CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
Cornell University Library 
 F 861G96 H6 
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 History of the state of California and b 
 
 3 1924 028 919 375 
 
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 Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924028919375 
 
HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 STATE OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 AND 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 
 
 OF THE 
 
 SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY, CALIFORNIA. 
 
 An Historical Story of the State's Marvelous Growth from Its Earliest Settlement 
 
 to the Present Time 
 
 BY 
 
 PROF. J. M. GUINN, A. M., 
 
 Author of A History of Los Angeles and Vicinity, History of Southern California, Secretary and Curator 
 
 of the Historical Society of Southern California, Member of the American 
 
 Historical Association, Washington, D, C. 
 
 ALSO 
 
 Containing Biographies of Well-Known Citizens of the Past and Present. 
 
 THE CHAPMAN PUBLISHING CO. 
 
 CHICAGO 
 l?05 
 

 Copyright, igoz 
 
 BY 
 
 CHAPMAN PUBLISHING CO. 
 
 to 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 HISTORICAL 
 
 THERE are very few states in the Union that have a more varied and a more interesting 
 history than California; and there are few if any whose history is so vaguely and so 
 indefinitely known. This is largely due to the fact that its colonization was effected by 
 one race and its evolution as a state by another. 
 
 In the rapid development of the state by the conquering race, the trials and struggles of 
 the first colonists have been forgotten. No forefathers' day keeps their memory green, and no 
 observance celebrates the anniversary of their landing. To many of its people, the history of 
 California begins with the discovery of gold, and all behind that is regarded of little impor- 
 tance. The race characteristics of the two peoples who have dominated California differ widely ; 
 and from this divergence arises the lack of sympathetic unison. Perhaps no better expression for 
 this difference can be given than is found in popular bywords of each. The " poco tiempo " 
 (by and by) of the Spaniard is significant of a people who are willing to wait — who would 
 rather defer till manmia — to-morrow — than hurry to-day. The " go .ahead " of the American is 
 indicative of haste, of rush, of a strenuous struggle to overcome obstacles, whatever they may be, 
 in the present. 
 
 In narrating the story of California, I have endeavored to deal justly with the different 
 eras and episodes of its history; to state facts; to tell the truth without favoritism or preju- 
 dice; to give credit where credit is due and blame where it is deserved. In the preparation of 
 this history I have tried to make it readable. I have avoided dull details and have omitted 
 cumbrous statistics. 
 
 The subject has been presented by topic, observing so far as possible the chronological order 
 of the events. In collecting material for this work, I have visited all the large libraries of the 
 state, have consulted state and county archives, and have scanned thqusands of pages of news- 
 papers and magazines. Where extracts have been made, due credit has been given in the body 
 of the work. I have received valuable assistance from librarians, from pioneers of the state, 
 from editors and others. To all who have assisted me, I return my sincere thanks. 
 
 J. M. GUINN. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL 
 
 THE high standing of the San Joaquin Valley is due not alone to ideal climate and rare beauty 
 of scenery. Other regions boasting an environment as attractive, have nevertheless re- 
 mained unknown to the great world of commerce and of thought. When we study the 
 progress made in this section of our country, especially during the past two decades of the nine- 
 teenth century and the opening years of the twentieth century, we are led to the conclusion that 
 the present gratifying condition is due to the enterprise of public-spirited citizens. They have 
 not only developed commercial possibilities and horticultural resources, but they have also main- 
 tained a commendable interest in public affairs, and have given to their commonwealth some of 
 its ablest statesmen. The prosperity of the past has been gratifying; and, with the building of 
 the canal to connect the Atlantic and the Pacific, with the increasing of railroad facilities, with the 
 further development of local resources, there is every reason to believe that the twentieth century 
 will witness the most marvelous growth this region has ever made. 
 
 In the compilation of this work and the securing of necessary data, a number of writers 
 have been engaged for months. They have visited leading citizens and used every endeavor to 
 produce a work accurate- and trustworthy in every detail. Owing to the great care exercised, 
 and to the fact that every opportunity was given to those represented to secure accuracy in 
 their biographies, the publishers believe they are giving to their readers a volume containing few 
 errors of consequence. The biographies of a number of representative citizens will be missed 
 from the work. In some instances this was caused by their absence from home when our writers 
 called, and in some instances was caused by a failure on the part of the men themselves to 
 understand the scope of the work. The publishers, however, have done all within their power 
 to make this work a representative one. 
 
 The value of the data herein presented will grow with the passing years. Posterity will 
 preserve the volume with care, from the fact that it perpetuates biographical history that other- 
 wise would be wholly lost. In those now far-distant days will be realized, to a greater extent 
 than at the present time, the truth of Macauley's statement, " The history of a country is best told 
 in the lives of its people." CHAPMAN PUBLISHING COMPANY. 
 
 April, 1905. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Spanish Explorations and Discoveries 33 
 
 Romance and Reality — The Seven Cities of Cibola — The Myth of Quivera — El Dorado — 
 Sandoval's Isle of the Amazons — Mutineers Discover the Peninsula of Lower California 
 ^Origin of the Name California — Cortes's Attempts at Colonization — Discovery of the 
 Rio Colorado — Coronado's Explorations — UUoa's Voyage. 
 
 tSrt (5* (5* 
 
 CHAPTER H. 
 Alta or Nueva California 37 
 
 Voyage of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo — Enters the Bay of 'San Diego in Alta California — 
 Discovers the Islands of San Salvador and Vitoria — The Bay of Smokes and Fires — The 
 Santa Barbara Islands — Reaches Cape Mendocino — His Death and Burial on the Island of 
 San Miguel — Ferrolo Continues the Voyage — Drake, the Sea King of Devon — His Hatred 
 of the Spaniard — Sails into the South Sea — Plunders the Spanish Settlements of the South 
 Pacific — Vain Search for the Straits of Anian — Refits His Ships in a California Harbor — 
 Takes Possession of the Country for the English Queen — Sails Across the Pacific Ocean 
 to Escape the Vengeance of the Spaniards — Sebastian Rodriguez Cermefio Attempts a 
 Survey of the California Coast — Loss of the San Agustin — Sufferings of the Shipwrecked 
 Mariners — Sebastian Viscaino's Explorations — Makes No New Discoveries — Changes the 
 Names Given by Cabrillo to the Bays and Islands — Some Boom Literature — Failure of 
 His Colonization Scheme — His Death. 
 
 (5* d?* to* 
 
 CHAPTER HI. 
 Colonization of Alta California 43 
 
 Jesuit Missions of Lower California — Father Kino or Kuhn's Explorations — Expulsion of 
 the Jesuits — Spain's Decadence — Her Northwestern Possessions Threatened by the Rus- 
 sians and English. — The Franciscans to Christianize and Colonize Alta California — Galvez 
 Fits Out Two Expeditions — Their Safe Arrival at San Diego — First Mission Founded — 
 Portola's Explorations — Fails to Find Monterey Bay — Discovers the Bay of San Fran- 
 cisco — Return of the Explorers — Portola's Second Expedition — Founding of San Carlos 
 Mission and the Presidio of Monterey. 
 
 t,?* 5i?* 65* 
 
 CHAPTER IV. ' 
 
 Aborigines of California. 
 
 Inferiority of the California Indian — No Great Tribes — Indians of the San Gabriel Valley — 
 Hugo Reid's Description of Their Government — Religion and Customs — Indians of the 
 Santa Barbara Channel — Their God Chupu — Northern Indians — Indian Myths and Tra- 
 ditions. 
 
 19 
 
 49 
 
^0 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Franciscan Missions of Alta California 5^ 
 
 Founding of San Diego de Alcala— San Carlos Barromeo — San Antonio de Padua — San 
 Gabriel Arcangel— San Luis Obispo— San Francisco de Asis— San Juan Capistrano— Santa 
 Clara — San Buenaventura — Santa Barbara — La Purisima Concepcion — Santa Cruz — La 
 Solcdad — San Jose — San Juan Bautista — San Miguel — San Fernando del Rey, San Luis 
 Rey, Santa Ynez — San Rafael — San Francisco Solano — Architecture — General Plan of the 
 Missionary Establishments — Houses of the Neophytes — Their Uncleanliness. 
 
 ^/% (^^ ^^ ^ 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Presidios of California 66 
 
 Presidio in Colonization — Founding of San Diego — General Plan of the Presidio — Found- 
 ing of Monterey — Rejoicing over the Event — Hard Times at the Presidio — Bear Meat Diet 
 — Two Hundred Immigrants for the Presidio — Founding of the Presidio of San Francisco 
 — Anza's Overland Route from Sonora — Quarrel with Rivera — Anza's Return to Sonora — 
 Founding of Santa Barbara — Disappointment of Father Serra — Quarrel of the Captain with 
 the Missionaries over Indian Laborers — Soldiers' Dreary Life at the Presidios. 
 
 t5* ^5* ^* 
 
 CHAPTER VH. 
 Pueblos 73 
 
 Pueblo Plan of Colonization — Necessity for Agricultural Colonies — Governor Filipe de 
 Neve Selects Pueblo Sites — San Jose Founded — Named for the Patron Saint of California 
 — Area of the Spanish Pueblo — Government Supplies to Colonists — Founding of the 
 Pueblo of Los Angeles — Names of the Founders — Probable Origin of the Name — Sub- 
 divisions of Pueblo Lands — Lands Assigned to Colonists — Founding of Branciforte the 
 last Spanish Pueblo. 
 
 i5* ti9* ^* 
 
 CHAPTER VHI. 
 
 The Passing of Spain's Domination. 
 
 Spain's Exclusiveness — The First Foreign Ship in Monterey Bay — Vancouver's Visit 
 
 Government Monopoly of the Fur Trade — American Smugglers — The Memorias Russian 
 
 Aggression — Famine at Sitka — Rezanofif's Visit — A Love Affair and Its Tragic Ending 
 
 Fort Ross— Failure of the Russian Colony Scheme— The War of Mexican Independence- 
 Sola the Royalist Governor— California Loj'alists— The Year of Earthquakes— Bouchard 
 the Privateer Burns Monterey— The Lima Tallow Ships— Hard Times— No Money and 
 Little Credit — The Friars Supreme. 
 
 (5* t5* «i5* 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 From Empire to Republic. 
 
 78 
 
 Sola Calls for Troops— Cholas Sent Him— Success of the Revolutionists— Plan of Iguala— 
 The Three Guarantees— The Empire— Downfall of Agustin I.— Rise of the Republic- 
 Bitter Disappointments of Governor Sola and the Friars— Disloyalty of the Mission 
 Friars— Refuse to Take the Oath of Allegiance— Arguella, Governor— Advent of Foreign- 
 ers—Coming of the Hide Droghers— Indian Outbreak. 
 
 82 
 
CONTENTS. 21 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 First Decade of Mexican Rule 87 
 
 Echeandia Governor — Make San Diego His Capital — Padres of the Four Southern Mis- 
 sions Take the Oath of Allegiance to the Republic — Friars of the Northern Missions 
 Contumacious — Arrest of Padre Sarria — Expulsion of the Spaniards — Clandestine De- 
 parture of Padres Ripoll and Altimira — Exile of Padre Martinez — The Diputacion — 
 Queer Legislation — The Mexican Congress Attempts to Make California a Penal Colony — 
 Liberal Colonization Laws — Captain Jedediah S. Smith, the Pioneer of Overland Travel, 
 Arrives — Is Arrested — First White Man to Cross the Sierra Nevadas — Coming of the 
 Fur Trappers — The Pattie Party — Imprisoned by Echeandia — Death of the Elder Pattie — 
 John Ohio Pattie's Bluster — Peg Leg Smith — Ewing Young — The Solis Revolution — A 
 Bloodless Battle — Echeandia's Mission Secularization Decree — He Is Hated by the Friars 
 — Dios y Libertad — The Fitch Romance. 
 
 (5* (5* e?* 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Revolutions — The Hijar Colonists. 93 
 
 Victoria, Governor — His Unpopularity — Defeated by the Southern Revolutionists — Abdi- 
 cates and is Shipped out of the Country — Pio Pico, Governor — Echeandia, Governor of 
 Abajenos (Lowers) — Zamarano of the Arribanos (Uppers)— Dual Governors and a No 
 Man's Land — War Clouds — Los Angeles the Political Storm Center — Figueroa Appointed 
 Gefe Politico— The Dual Governors Surrender— Figueroa the Right Man in the Place— 
 Hijar's Colonization Scheme— Padres, the Promoter— Hijar to be Gefe Politico— A Fa- 
 mous Ride — A Cobbler Heads a Revolution — Hijar and Padres Arrested and Deported — 
 Disastrous End of the Compania Cosmopolitana— Death of Figueroa. 
 
 c5* ^* (5* 
 
 CHAPTER XH. 
 The Decline and Fall of the Missions 96 
 
 Sentiment vs. History — The Friars' Right to the Mission Lands Only That of Occupa- 
 tion — Governor Borica's Opinion of the Mission System — Title to the Mission Domains — 
 Viceroy Bucarili's Instructions — Secularization — Decree of the Spanish Cortes in 1813 — 
 Mission Land Monopoly — No Land for Settlers — Secularization Plans, Decrees and Regla- 
 mentos — No Attempt to Educate the Neophytes — Destruction of Mission Property, 
 Ruthless Slaughter of Cattle — Emancipation in Theory and in Practice — Depravity of the 
 Neophj'tes — What Did Six Decades of Mission Rule Accomplish? — What Became of the 
 Mission Estates — The Passing of the Neophytes. 
 
 (5* (5* e5* 
 
 CHAPTER XHI. 
 
 The Free and Sovereign State of Alta California loi 
 
 Castro, Gefe Politico — Nicolas Gutierrez, Comandante and Political Chief — Chico, "Gober- 
 * nador Propritario" — Makes Himself Unpopular — His Hatred of Foreigners — Makes 
 Trouble Wherever He Goes — Shipped Back to Mexico — Gutierrez Again Political Chief — 
 Centralism His Nemesis — Revolt of Castro and Alvarado — Gutierrez Besieged — Surrenders 
 and Leaves the Country — Declaration of California's Independence — El Estado Libre y 
 Soberano de La Alta California — Alvarado Declared Governor — The Ship of State 
 
22 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 Launched— Encounters a Storm— The South Opposes California's Independence— Los An- 
 geles Made a City and the Capital of the Territory by the Mexican Congress-:-The Capital 
 Question the Cause of Opposition— War Between the North and South— Battle of San 
 Buenaventura— Los Angeles Captured— Peace in the Free State— Carlos Carrillo, Gov- 
 ernor of the South— War Again— Defeat of Carrillo at Las Flores— Peace— Alvarado 
 Appointed Governor by the Supreme Government— Release of Alvarado's Prisoners of 
 State— Exit the Free State. 
 
 C^* ^* CV" 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Decline and Fall of Mexican Domination lo8 
 
 Hijos del Pais in Power— The Capital Question — The Foreigners Becoming a Menace — 
 Graham Afifair — Micheltorena Appointed Governor — His Cholo Army — Commodore Jones 
 Captures Monterey — The Governor, and the Commodore Meet at Los Angeles — Extrava- 
 gant Demands of Micheltorena — Revolt Against Micheltorena and His Army of Chicken 
 Thieves — Sutter and Graham Join Forces with Micheltorena — The Picos Unite with 
 Alvarado and Castro — Battle of Cahuenga — Micheltorena and His Cholos Deported — Pico, 
 Governor — Castro Rebellious — The Old Feud Between the North and the South — Los 
 Angeles the Capital — Plots and Counter-Plots — Pico Made Governor by President Herrera 
 — Immigration from the United States. 
 
 1^9 ^^ ^* 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Municipal Government — Homes and Home Life of the Californians 114 
 
 The "Muy Ilustre Ayuntamiento," or Municipal Council — Its Unlimited Power, Queer Cus- 
 toms and Quaint Usages— Blue Laws— How Office Sought the Man and Caught Him— 
 Architecture of the Mission Age Not Aesthetic— Dress of the Better Class— Undress of 
 the Neophyte and the Peon— Fashions That Changed but Once in Fifty Years— Filial 
 Respect— Honor Thy Father and Mother— Economy in Government— When Men's Pleas- 
 ures and Vices Paid the Cost of Governing— No Fire Department— No Paid Police— No 
 Taxes. 
 
 (5* ^5 ^5* 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 Territorial Expansion by Conquest j jq 
 
 The Mexican War— More Slave Territory Needed— Hostilities Begun in Texas— Trouble 
 Brewing in California— Fremont at Monterey— Fremont and Castro Quarrel— Fremont 
 and His Men Depart— Arrival of Lieutenant Gillespie— Follows Fremont— Fremont's Re- 
 turn—The Bear Flag Revolt— Seizure of Sonoma— A Short-Lived Republic— Commodore 
 Sloat Seizes California— Castro's Army Retreats Southward- Meets Pico's Advancing 
 Northward— Retreat to Los Angeles— Stockton and Fremont Invade the South— Pico and 
 Castro Vainly Attempt to Arouse the People— Pico's Humane Proclamation— Flight of 
 Pico and Castro— Stockton Captures Los Angeles— Issues a Proclamation— Some His- 
 torical Myths— The First Newspaper Published in California. 
 
CONTENTS. 23 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Revolt of the Californians 125 
 
 Stockton Returns to His Ship and Fremont Leaves for the North — Captain Gilkspie, 
 Comandante, in the South — Attempts Reforms — Cahfornians Rebel — The Americans Be- 
 sieged on Fort Hill — Juan Flaca's Famous Ride — Battle of Chino — Wilson's Company 
 Prisoners — Americans Agree to Evacute Los Angeles — Retreat to San Pedro — Cannon 
 Thrown into the Bay — Flores in Command of the Californians. 
 
 (5* tS^ ^* 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Defeat and Retreat of Mervine's Men 129 
 
 Mervine, in Command of the Savannah, Arrives at San Pedro — Landing of the Troops — 
 Mervine and Gillespie Unite Their Forces — On to Los Angeles — Duvall's Log Book — An 
 Authentic Account of the March, Battle and Retreat — Names of the Killed and Wounded — 
 Burial of the Dead on Dead Man's Island — Names of the Commanding Officers — Flores 
 the Last Gefe Politico and Comandante-General — Jealousy of the Hiios del Pais — Hard 
 Times in the Old Pueblo. 
 
 fc?* (^* (i5" 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Final Conquest of California 13^^ 
 
 Afifairs in the North — Fremont's Battalion — Battle of Natividad — Bloodless Battle of Santa 
 Clara — End of the War in the North — Stockton at San Pedro — Carrillo's Strategy — A Re- 
 markable Battle — Stockton Arrives at San Diego — Building of a Fort — Raid on the 
 Ranchos — The Flag Episode — General Kearny Arrives at War^r's Pass — Battle of San 
 Pasqual — Defeat of Kearny — Heavy Loss — Relief Sent Him from San Diego — Preparing 
 for the Capture of Los Angeles — The March — Battle of Pa/o de Bartolo — Battle of La 
 Mesa — Small Losses — American Names of These Battles Misnomers. 
 
 ^ *5* i^ s5* 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Capture and Occupation of the Capital .\ 141 
 
 Surrender of Los Angeles — March of the Victors — The Last Volley — A Chilly Recep- 
 tion — A Famous Scold — On the Plaza — Stockton's HeadWiarters — Emory's Fort — Fre- 
 mont's Battalion at San Fernando — The Flight of Flores — Negotiations with General Pico — 
 Treaty of Cahuenga — Its Importance — Fremont's Battalion Enters the City — Fremont, 
 Governor — Quarrel Between Kearny and Stockton — Kearny Departs for San Diego and 
 Stockton's Men for San Pedro. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 Transition and Transformation 144 
 
 Colonel Fremont in Command at Los Angeles — The Mormon Battalion — Its Arrival at 
 San Luis Rey, Sent to Los Angeles — General Kearny Governor at Monterey — Rival 
 Governors — Col. R. B. Mason, Inspector of the Troops in California — He Quarrels with 
 Fremont — Fremont Challenges Him — Colonel Cooke Made Commander of the Military 
 
24 . CONTENTS. 
 
 , PAGE 
 
 District of the South— Fremont's Battalion Mustered Out— Fremont Ordered to Report 
 to Kearny— Returns to the States with Kearny— Placed Under Arrest— Court-Martialed 
 —Found Guilty— Pardoned by the President— Rumors of a Mexican Invasion— Buildmg 
 of a Fort— Col. J. B. Stevenson Commands in the Southern District— A Fourth of July 
 Celebration— The Fort Dedicated and Named Fort Moore— The New York Volunteers- 
 Company F, Third U. S. Artillery, Arrives— The Mormon Battalion Mustered Out- 
 Commodore Shubrick and General Kearny Jointly Issue a Proclamation to the People- 
 Col. R. B. Mason, Military Governor of California— A Policy of Conciliation— Varela, 
 Agitator and Revolutionist, Makes Trouble— Overland Immigration Under Mexican Rule— 
 The First Train— Dr. Marsh's Meanness— The Fate of the Donner Party. 
 
 t^W ^* (5* 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 Mexican Laws and American Officials ^5° 
 
 Richard A. Mason, Commander of the Military Forces and Civil Governor of California- 
 Civil and Military Laws— The First Trial by Jury— Americanizing the People— Perverse 
 Electors and Contumacious Councilmen — Absolute Alcaldes — Nash at Sonoma and Bill 
 Blackburn at Santa Cruz — Queer Decisions — El Canon Perdido of Santa Barbara— Ex- 
 Governor Pio Pico Returns— Treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo— Peace Proclaimed— The 
 News Reaches California— Country Acquired by the Treaty— The Volunteers Mustered 
 
 Out. 
 
 ^w (5* «5* 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 Gold ! Gold ! Gold ! I55 
 
 Traditions of Early Gold Discoveries in California — The First Authenticated Discovery — 
 Marshall's Discovery at Colomas — Disputed Dates , and Conflicting Stories About the 
 Discovery — Sutter's Account — James W. Marshall — His Story — The News Travels Slowly — 
 First Newspaper Report — The Rush Begins — San Francisco Deserted — The Star and the 
 Californian Suspend Publication — The News Spreads — Sonorian Migration — Oregonians 
 Come — The News Reaches the States — A Tea Caddy Full of Gold at the War Office, 
 Washington — Seeing Is Believing — Gold Hunters Come by Land and Sea — The Pacific 
 Mail Steamship Company — Magical Growth of San Francisco — The Dry Diggings — Some 
 Remarkable Yields — Forty Dollars for a Butcher Knife — Extent of the Gold Fields. 
 
 (5* e5* t5* 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 Making a State j52 
 
 Bennett Riley, Governor— Unsatisfactory Form of Government— Semi-Civil and Semi-Mil- 
 itary—Congress Does Nothing— The Slave-Holding Faction Prevents Action— Growing 
 Dissatisfaction — Call for Convention— Constitution Making — The Great Seal — Election of 
 State Officers— Peter H. Burnett, Governor— Inauguration of a State Government— The 
 First Legislature— A Self-Constituted State— The Pro-Slavery Faction in Congress— Op- 
 pose the Admission of California— Defeat of the Obstructionists— California Admitted into 
 the Union— Great Rejoicing— A Magnificent Procession— California Full Grown at Birth— 
 The Capital Question— San Jose Loses the Capital— Vallejo Wins— Goes to Sacramento- 
 Comes to Benicia— Capital Question in the Courts— Sacramento Wins— Capitol Building 
 Begun in i860 — Completed in 1869. 
 
CONTENTS. 25 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Argonauts 169 
 
 Who First Called Them Argonauts — How They Came and From Where They Came — 
 Extent of the Gold Fields — Mining Appliances — Bateas, Gold Pans, Rockers, Long Toms, 
 Sluices — Useless Machines and Worthless -Inventions — Some Famous Gold Rushes — Gold 
 Lake — Gold Bluffs — Kern River — Frazer River — Washoe — Ho for Idaho! — Social Level- 
 ing — Capacity for Physical Labor the Standard — Independency and Honesty of the Argo- 
 nauts. 
 
 (j?* ^" ti9» 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 San Francisco 175 
 
 The First House — A Famous Fourth of July Celebration — The Enterprise of Jacob P. Leese 
 — General Kearny's Decree tor the Sale of Water Lots — Alcalde Bartlett Changes the 
 Name of the Town from Yerba Buena to San Francisco — Hostility of the Star to the 
 Change — Great Sale of Lots in the City of Francisca, now Benicia — Its Boom Bursts — 
 Population of San Francisco September 4, 1847 — Vocations of Its Inhabitants — Population 
 March, 1848 — Vioget's Survey — O'Farrell's Survey — Wharves — The First School House^ 
 The Gold Discovery Depopulates the City — Reaction — Rapid Growth — Description of the 
 City in April, 1850 — Great Increase in Population — How the People Lived and Labored — 
 Enormous Rents — High Priced Real Estate — Awful Streets — Flour Sacks, Cooking Stove 
 and Tobacco Box Sidewalk — Ships for Houses — The Six Great Fires — The Boom of 1853 — 
 The Burst of 1855— Harry Meigs— Steady Growth of the City. 
 
 ^* (5* (5* 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Crime, Criminals and Vigilance Committees 182 
 
 But Little Crime in California Under Spanish and Mexican Rule — The First Vigilance 
 Committee of California — The United Defenders of Public Safety — Execution of Alispaz 
 and Maria del Rosario Villa — Advent of the Criminal Element — Criminal Element in the 
 Ascendency — Incendiarism, Theft and Murder — The San Francisco Vigilance Committee 
 of 1851 — Hanging of Jenkins — A Case of Mistaken Identity — Burdue for Stuart — Arrest, 
 Trial and Hanging of Stuart — Hanging of Whittaker and McKenzie — The Committee 
 Adjourns but Does Not Disband — Its Work Approved — Corrupt Officials — James King 
 of William Attacks Political Corruption in the Bulletin — Richardson killed by Cora — 
 Scathing Editorials — Murders and Thefts — Attempts to Silence King — King Exposes 
 James P. Casey's State's Prison Record — Cowardly Assassination of King by Casey — 
 Organization of the Vigilance Committee of 1856 — Fatal Mistake of the Herald — Casey 
 and Cora in the Hands of the Committee — Death of King — Hanging of Casey and Cora — 
 Other Executions — Law and Order Party — Terry afid His Chivalrous Friends — They Are 
 Glad to Subside — Black List and Deportations — The Augean Stable Cleaned — The Com- 
 mittee's Grand Parade — Vigilance Committees in Los Angeles — Joaquin Murrieta and His 
 Banditti — Tiburcio Vasquez and His Gang. 
 
 (5* (5* (5* 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 Filibusters and Filibustering 193 
 
 The Origin of Filibustering in California^Raousset-BouIbon's Futile Schemes — His Ex- 
 ecution — William Walker — His Career as a Doctor, Lawyer and Journalist — Recruits Fili- 
 busters — Lands at La Paz — His Infamous Conduct in Lower California — Failure of His 
 
26 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 Scheme— A Farcical Trial— Lionized in San Francisco— His Operations in Nicaragua— 
 Battles— Decrees Slavery in Nicaragua— Driven Out of Nicaragua— Tries Again— Is Cap- 
 tured and Shot— Crabb and His Unfortunate Expedition— Massacre of the Misguided 
 Adventurers — Filibustering Ends When Secession Begins. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 From Gold to Grain and Fruits I99 
 
 Mexican Farming— But Little Fruit and Few Vegetables — Crude Farming Implements — 
 The AgricultjiraKsCapabil-ities of California Underestimated— Wheat the Staple in Central 
 California— Cattle in the South— Gold in the North— Big Profits in Grapes— Orange Culture 
 Begun in the South — Apples, Peaches, Pears and Plums — The Sheep Industry — The Famine 
 Years of 1863 and 1S64 Bring Disaster to the Cattle Kings of the South — The Doom of 
 Their Dynasty — Improvement of Domestic Animals — Exit the Mustang — Agricultural Col- 
 onies. 
 
 ^ ^ ^ 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Civil War — Loyalty and Disloyai ty 204 
 
 State Division and What Became of It — Broderick's Early Life — Arrival in California — 
 Enters the Political Arena — Gv;in and Broderick — Duel Between Terry and Broderick — 
 Death of Broderick — Gwin-Latham Combination — Firing on Fort Sumter — State Loyal — 
 Treasonable Utterance — A Pacific Republic — Disloyalty Rampant in Southern California — 
 Union Sentiments Triumphant — Confederate Sympathizers Silenced. 
 
 tS* ((?• ti5" 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 Trade, Travel and Transportation 211 
 
 Spanish Trade— Fixed Prices— No Cornering the Market— Mexico's Methods of Trade— 
 The Hide Droghers — Trade — Ocean Commerce and Travel — Overland Routes — Overland 
 Stage Routes— Inland Commerce— The Pony Express— Stage Lines— Pack Trains— Camel 
 Caravans — The Telegraph and the Railroad — Express Companies. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXn. 
 Railroads 218 
 
 Early Agitation of the Pacific Railroad Scheme— The Pacific Railroad in Politics— Northern 
 Routes and Southern Routes — First Railroad in California — Pacific Railroad Bills in Con- 
 gress — A Decade of Agitation and No Road — The Central and Union Pacific Railroads 
 
 Act of 1862 — Subsidies — The Southern Pacific Railroad System— Its Incorporation and 
 Charter — Its Growth and Development — The Santa Fe System — Other Railroads. 
 
CONTENTS. 27 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Indian Question 223 
 
 Treatment of f^he Indians by Spain and Mexico — A Conquista — Unsanitary Condition of the 
 Mission Villages — The Mission Neophyte and What Became of Him — Wanton Outrages on 
 the Savages — Some So-Called Indian Wars — Extermination of the Aborigines — Indian 
 Island Massacre— The Mountaineer Battalion— The Two Years' War— The Modoc War. 
 
 ti?* ^* ^* 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 Some Political History 229 
 
 Advent of the Chinese — Kindly Received at First — Given a Public Reception — The "China 
 Boys" Become Too Many — Agitation and Legislation Against Them — Dennis Kearney 
 and the Sand Lot Agitation — Kearney's Slogan, "The Chinese Must Go" — How Kearney 
 Went — The New Constitution — A Mixed Convention — Opposition to the Constitution — 
 The Constitution Adopted — Defeat of the Workingmen's Party — A New Treaty with 
 China— Governors of California, Spanish, Mexican and American. 
 
 ^w (5* (5* 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 Education and Educational Institution 235 
 
 Public Schools in the Spanish Era — Schools of the Mexican Period — No Schools for the 
 Neophytes — Early American Schools — First School House in San Francisco — The First 
 American Teacher — The First School Law — A Grand School System — University of the 
 Pacific — College of California — University of California — Stanford University — Normal 
 Schools. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 Cities of California — Their Origin and Growth 242 
 
 The Spaniards and Mexicans Not Town Builders — Francisca, on the Straits of Carquinez, 
 the First American City — Its Brilliant Prospects and Dismal Failure — San Francisco — Its 
 Population and Expansion — Los Angeles, the Only City in California Before the Conquest 
 — Population and Development — Oakland, an American City — Population — Sacramento, 
 the Metropolis of the Mines — San Jose, the Garden City — Stockton, the Entrepot of the 
 Southern Mines — San Diego, the Oldest City — Fresno — Vallejo — Nevada City — Grass Val- 
 ley — Eureka — Marysville — Redding — Pasadena — Pomona — San Bernardino — Riverside. 
 
INDKX. 
 
 Abbay, J. N 6il 
 
 Abbey, Arthur A 1224 
 
 Abbott, Daniel 756 
 
 Ackerman, Fred 1080 
 
 Adair, Qiarles H., M. D 322 
 
 Adams, Silvio 1442 
 
 Adelsbach, Adam 622 
 
 Ahrensberg, Hans 1592 
 
 Akers, Joseph 107s 
 
 Akers, Thomas J 470 
 
 Akin, Albert G 850 
 
 Alcorn, J. Warren 888 
 
 Alford, Benjamin M., M. D 833 
 
 Alger, Hiram B 485 
 
 Allen, Frank L 954 
 
 Allen, Jonas A 1512 
 
 Allen, Parris 1449 
 
 Allen, Samuel A 852 
 
 Allen, Stonewall J 987 
 
 Allen, William T 1559 
 
 Amer, William M 1351 
 
 Anderson, A. W 1382 
 
 Anderson, Frank E 944 
 
 Anderson, G. W 1382 
 
 Anderson, Theodore 1561 
 
 Andrews, George R 1270 
 
 Applegate, Lewis H 483 
 
 Arkle, Christopher C 1617 
 
 Armitage, Harold V 1365 
 
 Arnaudon, Alfred J 270 
 
 Arnold, Mrs. Mary V 1 124 
 
 Askin, Capt. Robert M 407 
 
 Austin, Ephraim W 390 
 
 Avila, John B 1549 
 
 Awbrey, Thomas E •. 1005 
 
 B 
 
 Bachle, Frederick 1600 
 
 Bachman, Herman S 1433 
 
 Bachtold, Christian 1562 
 
 Bacon, James A 1076 
 
 Bacon, Thomas E 1312 
 
 Baggs, Samuel A 1174 
 
 Bagley, Frank S 621 
 
 Bagnelle, Miss Estella 697 
 
 Bailey, Charles H 1150 
 
 Bailey, John E 1029 
 
 Baird, Alfred 1393 
 
 Baird, Benjamin M 1411 
 
 Baker, Artemus J 938 
 
 Baker, Frank C 894 
 
 Baker, Gilbert L 1375 
 
 Baker, Richard 544 
 
 Baker, Col. Thomas 1229 
 
 Baker, Westwood J 1463 
 
 Balaam, Edwin S 1069 
 
 Baldwin, Elmer H 1017 
 
 Ball, Abraham R 1517 
 
 Ballou, George A 426 
 
 Bambauer, George S 1363 
 
 Bambauer, Louis F 851 
 
 Bambauer, Rudolph H 429 
 
 Bangs, Hon. Vital E 1020 
 
 Banister, William B 1536 
 
 Banta, Christopher H 846 
 
 Barber, Emmet 801 
 
 Barber, Schuyler A., M. D 1050 
 
 Barbour, Alexander 499 
 
 Barcroft, Fred 309 
 
 Barcroft, Joseph 369 
 
 Barcroft, Raphael 121 1 
 
 Barker, John 747 
 
 Barnett C. E 628 
 
 Barnum, Horace E 334 
 
 Barr, Thomas A 294 
 
 Barrett, Charles W 1361 
 
 Barstow, Richard N 1502 
 
 Bartch, Fred 351 
 
 Bartholomew, Asa L 413 
 
 Bassett, Mark 439 
 
 Bates, Dr. Cicero McL 373 
 
 Batten, Luther 338 
 
 Baxiter, James R 1064 
 
 Beall, J. A 1474 
 
 Beall, John W 1406 
 
 Beall, Zephaniah D 1314 
 
 Beard, Elihu B 521 
 
 Bearup, J. W 1245 
 
 Becker, Matthias 544 
 
 Bedesen, Philip 524 
 
 Belz, Andrew 1166 
 
 Bender, Howard P 1469 
 
 Benham, John A 162S 
 
 Bennett, Fred A 1576 
 
 Bennett, Obadiah R 825 
 
 Berger, John P 1054 
 
 Bering, Robert E., M. D 723 
 
 Bernard, James A 1444 
 
 Berry, Clarence J 1614 
 
 Berry, Fulton G 263 
 
 Berry, Hon. George S 281 
 
 Berry, William J 327 
 
 Berryhill, Orlando D 809 
 
 Bertch, George 583 
 
 Bertrandias, Adolph 512 
 
 3ibby, Enoch 322 
 
 Bibby, John 1625 
 
 Bibby, Nicholas 1604 
 
 Bickford, Adonijah 820 
 
 Billingslea, Walter 906 
 
 Bird, Isaac 727 
 
 Bisher, Charles A 1114 
 
 Bixby, Moses H 44S 
 
 Black, Frank E 1104 
 
 Blackledge, L. N., M. D 1098 
 
 Blades, Thomas 578 
 
 Bladt, Peter 1560 
 
 Plain, William H S77 
 
 Blair, James H 1032 
 
 Bland, George H., M. D 1438 
 
 Blankenship, William 783 
 
 Blankenship, Zachary T 638 
 
 Blayney, Arthur C 1464 
 
 Bliss, Henry F 702 
 
 Blodget, H. A 1624 
 
 Blodgett, Edwin 588 
 
 BIoss, George S., Sr 1356 
 
 Blowers, Cassius M 461 
 
 Boland, Patrick 1503 
 
 Bollin, A. Lewis 1390 
 
 Bollin, H. D 1623 
 
 Bond, Annie L., M. D 103S 
 
 Bond, J. M., M. D 1627 
 
 Bondson, Peter 563 
 
 Bonner, Charles G 1287 
 
 Bonnie Brae Ranch 1026 
 
 Bontadelli, Frederick 1550 
 
 Boot, Robert 609 
 
 Botsford, Gibbons A 717 
 
 Boyd, James A 730 
 
 Boydston, Charles D 1399 
 
 Boynton, C. E., M. D 410 
 
 Bozeman, Preston L 1 167 
 
 Bradley, J. D 590 
 
 Brady, George L 798 
 
 Brailsford, George... 552 
 
 Braly, James M 1380 
 
 Bramlet, Reuben H 346 
 
 Brandon, Amberson 484 
 
 Bratton, Theodore C 1460 
 
 Brauer, John C .' . 844 
 
 Braun, Johan 1605 
 
 Brem, Henry. . . . .• 656 
 
 Brennan, Daniel 670 
 
 Brewer, Thomas R 1301 
 
 Brey, Hiram F 1118 
 
 Brickley, Henry 260 
 
 Briscoe, Samuel M 908 
 
 Briscoe, Walter H 614 
 
 Brittan, Frank H 614 
 
 Brooks, Albert E SSi 
 
 Brooks, Judge T 596 
 
 Brotherton, William A 1070 
 
 Brough, WiUiam 708 
 
 Brown, Charles J 1471 
 
 Brown,. Daniel, Jr 1400 
 
 Brown, George 646 
 
 Brown, George S S49 
 
 Brown, Horace G. 822 
 
 Brown, John L 1520 
 
 Brown, Joseph 158S 
 
 Brown, Oliver C 389 
 
 Brown, Samuel C 293 
 
 Brown, Samuel T 1399 
 
 Brown, William G. H 1617 
 
 Browne, Jacob W 1468 
 
 Buckley, Irwin J 992 
 
 Buckner, William V 316 
 
 Buckreus, Franz iSS7 
 
 Buhach Plantation 1567 
 
 Bulger, Lawrence 1610 
 
 Bunker, Frederick E '. . . 717 
 
 Burch, William E 932 
 
 Burchell, Richard M 638 
 
 Burgan, John 721 
 
 Burgan, Samuel 864 
 
 Burleigh, Frank J 1569 
 
 Burness, Hector 1259 
 
11 INDEX. 
 
 Bnrnclt, John H 1402 Cloer, Elisha L 766 Daulton, Henry C ■ • • • ; ^^^ 
 
 Burnett, William 1 767 Clough Alfred G 132° DauUon John F. ..... ^ ^^ 
 
 Burns, Fielding G 1 100 Clow, Henry. 804 g^^ f "^J J^^^'f 491 
 
 Burr, Charle.s F 1612 Clute, George W 545 Dav s, ^^^H" ^- 1566 
 
 Burr,' John, Jr 161. Coates, W. D 1348 g- ;J/-fh W... 1579 
 
 Burton, Edward G 474 Coburn, Avon M^ 7I» ^av J ^ 
 
 Bush, E. E 1637 Cochran, John H i3D7 i^^v », g 
 
 Bnthemith T A 1516 Cody, C. Elmer 1532 Uavis, ^-ooen /4 
 
 ^utnemitn, J /\.^. . .^ J rnp Charles H 1013 Davis, Samuel 1408 
 
 rT' Ir h^-^ ,tfi Col' C ar les m' 1241 Dawson, John H 557 
 
 Butts, Robert J I5" '^oe, v^naneb ivi.... .. ... -r OnintiQ V P Tinfi 
 
 Byars Alfred H., M. D 464 Coen, Rev. Father John 113 g^J^^; ^"^ ^j^^' ^ \l% 
 
 Rvers Tnhn O 1359 Cokey, Benjamui F 81S iJeakm, yvuuam. 1227 
 
 iyd Jol H.::::: ; ul? Cole, Chanes P 589 Dean, Albert H • 813 
 
 cyra, jo.n. n ^^^^ WiUiam T 1483 Dean, Marcus L 814 
 
 Coley. John A 1129 Dechraan, Wilham J 917 
 
 ^ Colhns, Oscar A 1082 De La Grange, William 407 
 
 „ . , , o„. Collins, Thomas E 1370 DeLaney, A. J 1425 
 
 Cam, Jules. »94 Collins, William G 1330 Demaree, John H 1099 
 
 Cajriis, J^ J 1094 (2oi]i William W 659 Dennen, Charles L 1149 
 
 Ca cote Wi liam 476 Colquhoun, George S 1370 Denny, James E 953 
 
 Ca dwell Geor'e M io8q Colson, Benj amin Y 1283 Dewey. Alfred E 480 
 
 Ca Ikr^ F. 480 Combs, Fielding A., M. D 662 Dewey, Charles H 1474 
 
 Cam ron, George W.;:::::;:; ig? Condict, Henry F 434 Dewey, Edward M 1583 
 
 Camilla Ranch 1342 ^0"khn, Alvah L. 424 Dewey, Frederick V 1584 
 
 Campbell, Charles 969 Conley, Hon. William M 658 Dibble, Edwin J. . 566 
 
 Campbell James E 722 Coiw^yi, ^1^°"^^= ^ '^54 Dickenson, Samuel F 1299 
 
 Caourro E M 1278 Cook, F. M S98 Dixon, E. T 411 
 
 CardeTwiniamM i^^ Cook, William H 1325 Dobrzensky, Adolph 1565 
 
 Cardoza J S 33? Cooper, Dr. John C 1312 Dodd, Fred 1470 
 
 Carle Charles J 1200 Cooper, Robert J 369 Dodds, George A 762 
 
 Carmichael, Joseph! '.'.'.'.'.'.'.'..'.'. 558 Corrigan, Matthew 1313 Dodge, Moses . 506 
 
 Carney Alex R 1186 Cory, Lewis L 276 Dodge, Roswell R 550 
 
 Carpenter B L 1106 Cothran, Judge C. S 1582 Dodge, Roswell S 564 
 
 Carruthers, Thomas ' C.'. '.'.'.'.'. '. '. 573 Cottle Brothers . ■ ^ • . -^ 863 Doherty Robert. 1230 
 
 Carson, John L., M. D 476 Couey, Elmer J., M. D. ^ 396 Doran, James T. 750 
 
 Carson Emma HMD 476 Coverdale, Judge David S 380 Dorland, Philip T 633 
 
 Carter,' James T.' 1187 Cowgill, C. C . . . 429 Dorr, John. 585 
 
 Carter Joseph 1098 Cowles, Charles 1053 Dorsey, Hon. Jesse R 1515 
 
 Carter, Hon. Stanton L. . .... . 1533 Cox, Edward T 635 Dorsey, Capt. Norris H 1560 
 
 Cartmill Dr. W. F 707 Cox, Isaac 924 Douglass, Theodore C 1483 
 
 Cartwright, George W.. .. .'. .. . 304 Cox, John D 1023 Dowle, James T., M. D 1565 
 
 Carver, Hubert U 614 Crabtree, James A 813 Doyle, James 1276 
 
 Case, Calvin A., M. D 1217 Crandall, Perry, M. D 1223 Doyle, John J 602 
 
 Castle, Carroll C 1324 Craven, Joshua B 1466 Doyle, O. Burton, M. D 981 
 
 Castle! Hon. Curtis H. ........ ! 774 Crawford, James 1609 Draper, Wilbur F. 880 
 
 Castle! Lemuel F 340 Croop, Peter S 852 Drew, Hon. Alexander M S40 
 
 Gate, James W.. ..... ........ . 976 Croop, William B 451 Drew, George F 339 
 
 Gate,' J. Wilbur 1526 Crow, Benjamin F 557 Driskell, James 417 
 
 Catron, Greenberry 597 Crow, Benjamin H 887 Driver, C. B 790 
 
 Cavanagh, Mrs. Amelia 1064 Crow, C. C 1623 Droge, Peter 1586 
 
 Cerini, John 1605 Crow, James T 149S Drummond, John Q 370 
 
 Chamberlain, James F 1514 Crow, Lewis J 1548 Dubois, Edward 1476 
 
 Chandler, Wilbur F 1348 Crowder, H. C, M. D 683 Dudley, David B 79i 
 
 Chapin, Ezra H 397 Crowell, Abner B 374 Dudley, Moses : 1087 
 
 Chapmmi, Pleasant' F.,' M. D. .' .' '. 1079 Cummings, G. P 1364 Duke, Oscar 1425 
 
 Charles, William B., M. D 382 Cunningham, James 733 Duncan, Nathaniel P., M. D 1580 
 
 Chattel!, John 404 Cunningham, John 1265 Duncan, O. H. P 1636 
 
 Chatten! Richard 497 Cunningham, William N 595 Dungan, A. Clifford 1068, 
 
 Chinn, J. B 1632 Curtin, Cornelius 613 Dungan, James F., M. D 1092 
 
 Chrisman, Gabriel.......!!!!.! 1269 Curtis, David T 1642 Dungan, J. Smith 1205 
 
 Chrisman, Ira 1522 Cutler, Hobert N 395 Dungan, Thomas M 1230 
 
 Christian, Martin 936 Cutler, Loyal 307 Dunlap, John T 319 
 
 Church, Denver S 1621 Dunn, Clarence A 610 
 
 Claflin, Hon. Charles L 1510 D Duquesne, Felix D 1442 
 
 Clark, Albert B 1366 Dusy, ■' Chester 1166 
 
 Clark, Amaziah W 906 Daggett, George 1 156 
 
 Clark, James M 603 Daggs, James M 1616 g 
 
 Clark, John P 691 Dale, Edward H 1135 
 
 Clarke, Wilbur F 1507 Dale, Milton M 1041 Eachus, William P fy,^ 
 
 Clary, A. E. 896 Dale, Samuel E 1199 Eastin, C. C 1622 
 
 Clausen, Carl C 498 Daly, James P 988 Eastin, James T " _' ' gjj 
 
 Clement, Almond B 964 Danker, John H 981 Eastin, Oscar H g-g 
 
 Clement, George S 1307 Darwin, Andrew M 1245 Eastin, Thomas D. !!!!!.'! ^ 
 
INDEX. 
 
 jii 
 
 Eddlemon, Charles F 552 Fraser, Abner 1081 H 
 
 Edgerly, AS 1396 Fraser, John W. 896 Haas, Louis 1180 
 
 Edmiston, N. B.. . 1144 Fraser, Larkens K 742 Hadsell, Sidney F 1464 
 
 Edmonds, Reuben A 315 Freeland, David 661 Hahesv Tohn 1242 
 
 Edwards, David F. 282 Freman, Prof. Giles N 278 Halbert Edward D .;fiT 
 
 Edwards, Mrs. Emily J 1503 French Charles M 303 H^ Ho-SesW. .•.•::.: .'I ; 31 
 
 Edwards, John.^ 269 Frew. James H 902 Halted, Joseph 1030 
 
 Edwards, John G 652 Fnkka, James 1636 Hall John 660 
 
 Edwards, John H 423 FuUerton, George D 1465 Hall' Samuel too 
 
 Eichhoff, Henry 1013 Fulton, Percy B 816 Hall' William's 627 
 
 Elder, Martm 1470 Furtney, Henry, M. D 923 S^lLT JaTperN.: :: ; ; ! ! i :; ; 8?9 
 
 Ef' ^f'---^ ifS Hamilton, Azel B 1120 
 
 E fers, John H.. . 534 Hamilton Hugh L 1485 
 
 E fers, Lawrence C 1358 <- Hamilton James L 1497 
 
 E fe". Lome . . . 1602 Hamlett, Frank B 7/2 
 
 Elliott, Columbus W.. 1343 Gaines, Thomas C 1252 Hamlett, James H 802 
 
 Emmons, Hon. Elias J . 363 Gallagher, Robert H 762 Hammond, John S 651 
 
 Endicott Richard H., M. D. . . . 266 Galtes, Paul 467 Hammond William H 412 
 
 Enos, Manuel. 1368 Gann, William 1030 Hancock, J. B 354 
 
 Estes James M. 851 Gardner, B. A 1331 Hancock John Q 1449 
 
 Etzenhouser, John 1206 Gardner, William H 1587 Hanna, Mrs. Alice A 500 
 
 Evans, Adie B 1360 Garrett, James 999 Hannah, Robert D 1293 
 
 Evans John M.. . 1458 Garrett, Levi 1378 Hansberger, Layton J 1576 
 
 Everett, Thomas E 716 Garretson, Reuben J i486 Hansen, Hans 888 
 
 tverts, U. L, 479 Gastambide, Domingo 584 Hansen, Hans A 1504 
 
 Ewing, David S 478 Gay, Rev. Peter G 452 Hansen, Henry A 1555 
 
 Giannini, Frank 1236 Hansen, Niels 1234 
 
 Gibson, George W 749 Hansen, Nis 564 
 
 ^ Gibson, Lewis W 1592 Hansen, Peter P 1552 
 
 Gibson, William M 1487 Hardeman, John L., M. D 772 
 
 Farr, Elmer J 1567 Giddings, C. J 686 Harding, Hon. Fred E 1 137 
 
 Farr, George D 501 Giddings, William W 994 Hardman, William B 1185 
 
 Farrow, E. D., M. D 1524 Giffin. B. F ^ 1472 Hardwick, William J 659 
 
 Fay, Alfred 961 Gilbert, Rev. Amos F 1540 Harlan, Elisha 1430 
 
 Fay, Columbus 483 Gilbert, Samuel J. R 502 Harman, Lane S 936 
 
 Fay, Spencer 744 Gill, Fred 1049 Harp, John S 635 
 
 Feaver, George 1572 Gill, John $42 Harrah, James C 1479 
 
 Fee, Francis A 268 Gill, Levi L 367 Harray, John M 636 
 
 Feemster, Thomas, M. D 1105 Gill, William 956 Harrell, Andrew J 950 
 
 Fenley, J. E 1054 Gillette, J. Lotus 1035 Harrell, Jasper 1212 
 
 Fentem, Richard B 113S Gilliam, Samuel M 442 Harrington, Orville C 1475 
 
 Fergu.son, James G 1467 Gilliam, Rev. Samuel T 643 Harris, Amos 1480 
 
 Ferguson, Josiah M 1198 Gilmer, Rufus 1269 Harris, W. N 1628 
 
 Ferguson, Wallace 1530 Gilreath, Marshall A., M. D 6g8 Hart, Hon. Charles A 490 
 
 Ferril, Samuel H 1048 Gist, Thomas J 1248 Hart, Charles W 991 
 
 Fewel, James W 430 Givens, Eleazar T 831 Hart, Fred M 1547 
 
 Field, Augustus M., M. D 462 Givens, Samuel L 1180 Hart, Truman G 346 
 
 Field, John H 130a Gobin, Frank A 907 Hartley, William H ,. . 1318 
 
 Fillmore, George W 1187 Goldman, L W 1277 Ha.stie, Philip W 1594 
 
 Fink, William F 771 Goldstein, Henry S 947 Hatch, Charles M 736 
 
 Firebaugh, John F 1086 Gonzales, Manuel, Jr 1502 Hatfield, George A 1319 
 
 Fisher, Charles C 489 Good, Robert K L 1591 Hausch, Christian 986 
 
 Fisher, James 275 Goodin, Orville C 1088 Haycroft, Robert D 613 
 
 Fix, Robert W SH Goodwin, Harry E , 398 Hayes, Thomas 7SS 
 
 Flemming, Charles F loii Goudy, George W 1 100 Hayes, Timothy 795 
 
 Fletcher, Andrew 1257 Goularte, Frank L I5s8 Hazelton, William 1447 
 
 Fly, James C 1204 Gower, Edwin 685 Heberling, Burton U 1126 
 
 Ford, H 1630 Grace, Matthew W 1037 Hedberg, John 1188 
 
 Foreman, Charles, D. D. S 403 Gracey, Robert 994 Hedges, Henry P 1373 
 
 Forrest, Curtis T 1294 Graham, Elmer E 1364 Heidt, George 580 
 
 Forsythe, Charles 1036 Grant, W. H 1254 Heine, William L 1620 
 
 Foster, Earl P 1104 Granz, Herman " i437 Heisinger, Samuel L 1317 
 
 Fowler, David B 29S Graybill, Rev. Jonathan W 1192 Heitman, Hubert 1246 
 
 Fowler, Draper 760 Greeley, A. H 1343 Heitzeg, Henry C 574 
 
 Fowler, Robert R 985 Greeley, J. F 1354 Hellar, William T 1240 
 
 Fowler, Roval R •. 911 Green, William E 979 Helm, William 669 
 
 Fowler, William S., M. D 370 Greene, Samuel K 869 Henderson, Charles U 1509 
 
 Frame, Harvey A 1070 Gregory, Samuel 1162 Henderson, George C 683 
 
 Frame, Jesse E 704 Gries, Henry 1014 Henderson, Marion K 1037 
 
 Francis, George W 1518 Griffith, David R 1589 Henderson. Ruthvan 1490 
 
 Frankum, George T 1356 Grubb, Daniel H 512 Henderson, Thomas E 1 132 
 
 Frans, John 975 Gurnee, Brewster S 366 Henry, Benni J 489 
 
 Frans, Thomas H 453 Gurr, Alfred R 826 Henry, Lewis 646 
 
IT INDEX. 
 
 Henry, Oliver 1125 Jacobie, Judson D., M. D 1482 |;^;j^sen ^^^ D.! ! ! ! l ! '. 1 : ■ • ^^ 
 
 Henry, William W 1018 Jameson, James L 4SS Knupp v^^entme ^^^ 
 
 Hensley, John M 468 Jansen, Jesse 127S ^oc ^ ^^^^ 
 
 Hepburn, John R 1168 Janson, John H. . . . 1332 '^''^'^^^ ^ 882 
 
 Herminghaus, Gustave 1329 Jarrard, Thomas N 493 |°'b,^Jasper.^^ ^ ^ 
 
 Hersey, James B 1429 Jay, Richard C... J4 j^j, 'jj ^ 1614 
 
 Hesse, F. J 742 Jensen. Andrew P 563 ™^. ^^^ j ^ ^J 
 
 iS Shr:;:;::::::;::: ^^ &"^|."::::::::.- ^s -ke^ rjc^^^ ^^42 
 
 Higbee, Henry C 4S6 Johnson, John S....^ 258 Kuns, Henry L 1572 
 
 High, Willis R 310 Johnson, Langston A 633 
 
 Hildebrand, William H 433 Johnson, Nis . 1323 L 
 
 Hill, Arthur io79 Johnson, R. Hugh. 709 
 
 Hill Ira V S43 Johnson, Hon. Robert b 1541 Lafever, Andrew J 1141 
 
 Hilliard, X. i)..^' .^^ ii47 Johnston, Charles E., M. D 129S Lahann, Andrew R 1149 
 
 Hilton, 'john 1 138 Johnston, John P 42S Laird, Lewis N 1344 
 
 Hinds,' Archibald Y 1254 Jones, David L 253 La Marche, Joseph 935 
 
 Hines, Isaac B., M. D 1S38 Jones, David S 1629 Landram, Carter 1513 
 
 History of Le Grande 804 Jones, F. A : . 1418 Lane, Joseph P. 1362 
 
 Hitchcock, John R 1401 Jones, George W 674 Larig^ Nicholas 1412 
 
 Hoar, E. H 1302 Jones, John M 533 Larew, William H 1523 
 
 Hobbs, Albert L 602 Jones, William J 1441 Larkins, Ellwood 314 
 
 Hobler, Charles J 4I9 Jordan, Ehas F 741 Larsen, George 1359 
 
 Hodge, Warner I I047 Jordan, James B 1172 Larson, John N 1113 
 
 Hodges, John C 955 Jordan, John F 941 La Rue, Jabez H 626 
 
 Hoffknecht, William 1496 Jordan, William F 1174 Lasch, John J., M. D 870 
 
 Hoffman, Edward H 1568 Jorgensen, Peter 913 Latham, Charles. . '..'.!!!.! 357 
 
 Hogan, Stephen A. D 1353 Jorgensen, Peter 608 Lathrop', Ezra ' 765 
 
 Hogue, Samuel L 360 Laughead, George! '.'.'.'. '. '.'.'.'.'.'.'.. .511 
 
 Holder, Thomas W 43° . j. Laughlin, Francis W 496 
 
 Holdridge Jacob R 786 Lauritzen, Lauritz 1306 
 
 Holiday, James W. 1479 Kaehler, Rienhold H. G 1294 Lavers, Thomas R 426 
 
 Holhway, William H 620 ^ahl, Adam 657 Law, Judge John K 32S 
 
 Holmes, George W 3»i Kahl, Ernest D 652 Le Blanc, Perry 1263 
 
 Ho tby, Robert M^ iiS4 Kahl, George A 514 Ledbetter, Addis G 861 
 
 Holtoii Edward R 930 j^ahn, Louis 1539 Lee, William H 1162 
 
 Homgsberger, A. J ^f Kambich, John 1092 Leebon, John A 850 
 
 Hope Edgar G...^ 1282 Kavanagh, Michael 1577 Leggett, N. H 856 
 
 Horsley, William A 308 Kearney, Thomas 520 Lemasters, John 619 
 
 Hostettei% George K 1025 Keaton, Thomas J 980 Leonard, Dennis A 780 
 
 House, Thomas.. 918 Keefer, John W , 1549 Leonard, Edwin J 530 
 
 Houston, Wilham W 651 Keeley, Howard C 507 Leoni, Antone 520 
 
 Howard, Samuel W 439 Keeley, John H 1336 Leslie, Andrew 1130 
 
 Howard William 105S Keeley, Lewis C 1335 Lesnini, Tobia 1266 
 
 Howe Frank E 535 Kellenberg, Frank R 637 Lester, John 1488 
 
 Howell, Lewis M loii ^elley, Norman, D 296 Lewis, Mrs. Ellen 710 
 
 Hoxie, John C. 637 Kellogg, Clarence W., M. D 328 Lewis, James S ii77 
 
 Hudson, Julian W_. 337 Kelly, Greenbury M 431 Lewis, John B 1402 
 
 Hughes, Edward P 13SS Kelly, John W 810 Lewis, William F., M. D 1640 
 
 Hughson Hiram IS44 Kelsey, George P 601 Light, Harvey ii47 
 
 Hu en William Y 893 K;elsey, Horace G 296 Lilley, Walter E., M. D 364 
 
 Huls, Herbert K i477 Kennedy, John K 1466 Linden Hon. R 912 
 
 Hunsaker, Henry 65S Kennedy, Robert 1453 Lindgren, Axel T 1369 
 
 S"'\' ^lr,v ■ ■ • 'r^ .1^ Kennedy, William C 1619 Lindgren, diaries J 1431 
 
 g""ter, Williani G 722 K^^r, Thomas E 681 Lindsay Citrus Nursery Co ... . 1188 
 
 Huntley, John H.. ........... . 1043 Kessing, J. Fred 1513 Lindsay Fruit Association 1093 
 
 Hutchinson, Capt Arthur J "93 Kewin, William E 676 Lindsey, Joshua 947 
 
 Hutchinson, B. E.. 753 Kilburn, Guy 50S Little, William M., Jr 514 
 
 Hutchinson, John H .. 1552 Kimble, Charles A 1586 Loescher, Otto 1424 
 
 Hyde, R. E iS3i King Joseph 1053 Loinaz, Peter H 89S 
 
 King. Solomon M 1482 Loney, Julius 702 
 
 I Kinkade, Andrew 1.302 Long, G. L., M. D " 956 
 
 Idle, Thomas 514 kinkade, H. E.'. .^ 89S Long. George T. ; ; 1431 
 
 T„^' T^.^u cri7 Kinkier, Charles H 475 Loomis, Salmon H T472 
 
 T^ ' ^Tnhn'M i^^ Kirk, James 1049 Looney, Dennis J IT. 
 
 Irwin, John M 1308 j^i,.^;^^^ g^^^g, W 1087 Lovejoy. Josiah O.. . 67, 
 
 J Kittrell, William J 264 Lowell, William H.. „„ 
 
 -I Klehn, Henry 768 Lowrey, Lee j^^^ 
 
 Jack, Robert F 1332 Knapp, John A 743 Lowrey, William L.. ...',',[[' " ^60 
 
 Jackson, John W 628 Knauer, Frank S 1281 Lumereau, Charles M " ' Q07 
 
 Jacob, Elias 1063 Knox, J. W 3°! Lundy, Manning 'F.. ..'.[',',[[[' g^g 
 
INDEX. V 
 
 M Meilike, F. R 284 Nelson, A. L 1313 
 
 ,, „ . ., ^, Mentz, Wilko 843 Nelson, Charles C 695 
 
 McBriar, John. 667 Metzler, Conrad 1438 Nelson, Christian A 1517 
 
 McCabe, James C 1131 Meyer, Henry 973 Nelson, Frederick 501 
 
 McCann, George 698 Middleton, John C 90s Nelson, Joseph Y 1290 
 
 McCann James T. 612 Middleton, Richard G 1412 Nelson, Rev. Nicholas G 1491 
 
 McCardle, Charles M 1361 Miles, Edward H S9S Nelson, Oscar 1526 
 
 McCar hy, John D ...... 1499 Miles, William O iS37 Nelson, Victor R 900 
 
 McCarthy, Rev. Father J. D. . . . 1496 Miller, Clarence 756 Netherton, Walter E 1000 
 
 McCullah Clement J... 797 Miller, James 1073 Neu, John A 1354 
 
 McDona d, Mrs. A^es E 690 Miller, John W 821 Neumann, Paul 1221 
 
 McDona d, James R 38S Miller, Martin 1369 Nevin, Rev. W. A 949 
 
 McDonald, Wilham. 1319 Miller, Nathan 1287 Newbury, Denwood N. L 337 
 
 McElroy, William H. . 527 Miller, Newton W 1521 Newell, Thomas F 1554 
 
 McFar and, James H C 579 Miller, Peter 565 Newhall, Mrs, Mary E 1239 
 
 McFar and, Robert W 963 Mills, Elemuel M '. 1171 Newman, Harry H 1036 
 
 McFarlane, John L 1018 Mills, Jonathan K 477 Newman, Henry. : 4SS 
 
 McGee, H. K 9«S Mills, William H 1311 Newman, Jesse H 1218 
 
 McGregor, A Ian 1168 Milton, Julius A 1365 Newman, Jesse G 1042 
 
 McHaley, Wilham 1480 Miner, Henry H 759 Newman, Robert 1042 
 
 McHenry, Oramil 1531 Miner, James L 1136 Newport, Court L -. 44i 
 
 Mclndoo, Wilhani. ..... 1631 Minghetti, Joseph 1341 Newport, John B i545 
 
 Mcintosh, Arthur M., M. D 458 Misch, Franz ... 820 Newport William J 251 
 
 Mcjunkin Hon Joseph T 1019 Mitchell, Adolphus 589 Nichols, William B 1012 
 
 McKay, John R i{^4 Mitchell, James F 1490 Niederaur, Jacob 433 
 
 McKay, bcott. . . 2&S Mitchell, Joseph S 518 Nightingale, Miles J 967 
 
 McKee, Francis E. 508 Mitchell, Susmjan 1074 Noble, Joseph H 485 
 
 McKelvy, Thomas B IS97 Moffett, Joseph L 506 Nordgren, GiUo E 1504 
 
 McKenzie, Wilham H 668 Moffett, William H 480 Noriega, Faustino M 1571 
 
 McLean, Fleming, 808 Monroe, Ishmael 1067 
 
 McLees Brothers 1050 Monroe, John B 1276 ^ 
 
 McLees Edmund . . . . . . 1082 Montgomery, Hon. John M 976 " 
 
 St^on^Sr^D- lit Moo?'Eliri!..".-;;;:::;;:::: Js ^J%^r,-s::M.B.y.:: Ill 
 
 McQuiddy William R. 3S9 ^° ; Willifm O.: ! ; ! ! ! : ! : ! ! : ^ SlltVhnV""'' ^ ^ 
 
 Ke? Saries E i? 3 Moorehead, James A 837 ffishaw? Clement D.! . i!.. .. 929 
 
 Mackev Smes G n Moorehead, Robert C 876 oisen, Benedict S39 
 
 Madsen' Sn 1^76 ^oorehead, Samuel A 1571 Olsen, Ole J 1295 
 
 Madsen Rasmus loa Moorehead, William T S36 OrogAen, B 1424 
 
 Madsen, Rasmus 1492 Mordecai, George W 1282 Orton J ulius 1423 
 
 Madsen, Robert K 1599 t,^ ,„ , \^u,^^^ -K^r ScS )^ , ' -^t , ^ 
 
 Malesani, Tullius M &9 M.rrk ' niviH W oo R'k°'"' ^f i",,^' ' i^ '°'*5 
 
 Makharv Tnh Tco^ Morns, David W SIQ Osburn, Ashbel P 1235 
 
 Manlove Arthur 4?i ^°™' ^'^^^^ ^ f^ Osburn R. M 797 
 
 Man er Charles 1q2 ^°'''^' ^^"'''' ^ '^'° Ostrander, Judge Fred G 321 
 
 March R L IM4 ^°^°"' J^"^^= ^ ^^77 Ostrander Harvey J 528 
 
 Marchbank Geome ^8 ^°'^^'' Charles H 999 Otis, George B 1197 
 
 Marchbank George 130S Mosier, James C 899 Qtt Chris . 628 
 
 Marden, Wi ham E 627 at 4. a„ tt c„e X,^' ^" , 
 
 Marden William H 626 ^°S; T M i«8 ^"1' ^"r'^7^' ' ' '^^^ 
 
 Marks Frank B 77^ Mugndge, J. M 125S Quthet, John 436 
 
 Eo;,wi"hamM.::::::;:;:: 926 K^reTJ-w lit R"^"'i°'i" ?■„■ ^' 
 
 Margin Pharles A 777 duller, Gen. M, W 353 Owen, Richard H ,... 992 
 
 Martens; John... -^ 849 ^j;;;^^;, ^^/p^^'P ^5 ? 
 
 K": johnS;:.^.":;:;::;:::: H ^-r wmm™ ^ sso p^^,^,,^ ^,^^^,^^^^ j ,,^^ 
 
 Martin John W 868 ^"rphy, Geoige C 222 p^^^ -^^^^^^ j ^^^g 
 
 Martin^ Joseph G 975 Murphy, James . 1283 p Charles 1300 
 
 Martin, Thomas 969 ^""'^' Tu ^' ^t, 8^0 P^'"^' J^'"^^ ^ 1123 
 
 Martin William J 64S ^"'■''"^' r^l^'J" r"'' ^^ ,?^? Palladine, Antone C 1347 
 
 Mason Milton F 1413 ^'""''y' ?T% ^ ''f^l Pardee, William H., M, D S4i 
 
 Mathe;s, Carey W 1456 ^/'''^' J°''" f' V w ' ' m' n' ' ' rfin? P^^^e-"' Basil G 840 
 
 Mathewson, Arthur W 644 ¥/'?T^-r^\m" l.?r P^rlier, Isaac N 1293 
 
 Mattel, Andrew 607 ^"^l^'^' t 'It ^^n P^^^^ll, Jasper 1558 
 
 Matthews, Thomas B 463 H"''=S ^^'^" ^ ?^^ Patten, Elliott ii43 
 
 Maude, A, C 163S ^y'""' J^^ob. . iiS9 Patterson, Harris W 656 
 
 Maupin, William T., M. D 344 ^^^'^^' '-°"''a° ^"^ Patterson, James N 555 
 
 May, Jonathan W 982 ,- Patterson, Thomas W .-. . 267 
 
 May, Erie A 1218 ^ Payne, L. Roy,,,. 1209 
 
 Mayes, Archie A 495 Nehls, John 1029 Payson, Capt, William H 1561 
 
 Meier, Henry F. W. C 1554 Neighbor, Gilbert B 715 Pearsall, Joseph L 556 
 
Tt INDEX. 
 
 Peck, Charles S 145'; Reyburn, Joseph D .1529 Scott, Jay • • ■ • • • ^^I 
 
 Peck, James F 650 Reynolds, Theodore J 402 Scott, John W JJ^ 
 
 Peckham, Joshua 1426 Rhoads, Daniel 445 Scott, Philip. iiw 
 
 Pedigo, Thomas W 1216 Rhoads, John W 326 Scott, Sherman j 09" 
 
 Pelton, Judson S 1408 Rhodes, Raleigh E 276 Scott, William b.. 001 
 
 Pennebaker, William G 409 Rice, Mrs. Martha E 997 Scranton, h-dward t. 125J 
 
 Perkins, Elijah H 931 Richardson, John J 1607 Scruggs Albea E.. II94 
 
 Petersen, Hans 319 Richey, William H 889 Seaward, William ti 1395 
 
 Petersen, Hans P 1227 Richter, Charles 1284 Seligman, Emil 1251 
 
 Peterson, Alfred 744 Rider, Irving W 546 Seligman, Louis. 1251 
 
 Peterson, Henry C, W 1131 Ridgway, Christopher C 1129 Sellers, William L 004 
 
 Petrea, A. W 1390 Rising, Bennet 1247 Seropian Brothers... 1578 
 
 Pettus, James E 1508 Ritchev, Samuel L 497 Shannon, Carleton J 902 
 
 Pfitzer, Frank 874 Ritchie, James M 379 Shannon, Sidney J... 79^ 
 
 Pfitzer, Louis H 1613 Roadcap, Benjamin L 1171 Shannon, Judge William K 1323 
 
 Phenegar, George R 1103 Robb, Walter R 1326 Sharp, Charles..... I4I9 
 
 Phillipps, Edward S 954 Robinson, Hon. David V 1494 Sharp, Elder Craigie 1458 
 
 Phillips, Newton 1498 Robinson, J. R 873 Sharp, John W 353 
 
 Phillips, Perry C 1448 Robinson, William 382 Shaver, Charles B 1272 
 
 Phillips, William M iiii Roduner, John A 1234 Shedd, John H 679 
 
 Pickett, Edwin 1407 Rogers, Charles A., M, D 1506 Shepherd, Eugene 147° 
 
 Pickford, George 1413 Rogers, Emanuel 1619 Sheppa, Paul 1240 
 
 Pillsbury, Joseph D 724 Rogers, James R i044 Sherman, Mrs. Virginia 680 
 
 Pogue, J. Earl 1326 Rohloff, Charles 634 Shields, William 1430 
 
 Pogue, James W. C 1062 Rohrer, W. N 1626 Shippey, Daniel P 1581 
 
 Pool, John N 1368 Rordeii, John C 1288 Shirk, Isaac 1223 
 
 Porteous, James 1271 Rose, James A 651 Short, Frank H 257 
 
 Porter, Robinson R 816 Rose, James M 650 Short, John W 283 
 
 Potter, John W 1387 Rosendahl, Erick G 1432 Shumard, Frederick C IS93 
 
 Powell, Albert B., M. D 542 Rosendahl, Frank D 1460 Sides, Major Marion 308 
 
 Powell, Asa 1 1372 Rosenthal, N 1289 Silman, Mrs. Anna 366 
 
 Powers, Lucius 1587 Rosson, John B., M. D 834 Silman, Archibald L I5S6 
 
 Prather, Demetrius J., M. D... 470 Rouse, David M 875 Simonson, John H 1S36 
 
 Prather, Dr. William J 692 Rowell, Albert A 721 Simpson, Edward 1601 
 
 Pratt, Darius 1414 Rowell, Dr. Chester 1591 Simpson, George P ISOI 
 
 Pratt, Samuel 1626 Rowell, Chester H 1596 Simpson, John G 1465 
 
 Pratt, Willis L 57i Rowland, James S SS8 Simpson, John G., Sr 1500 
 
 Preciado, Charles F 522 Rucker, Hiram N., M. D 1574 Simpson, Hon. Marvin 140S 
 
 Premo, Walter E 875 Ruddle, James G 923 Simpson, Stephen Q 924 
 
 Preston, Francis M 352 Rudy, William 1615 Simpson, Thomas J 1575 
 
 Price, Thomas 1213 Rush, Morgan 855 Simpson, Wihiam S 1161 
 
 Pruner, Alfred E 1056 Russell, Ezra M 1407 Sivley, Alton D 620 
 
 Pucheu, Cyprien 1608 Russell, George H 926 Sivley, William J 622 
 
 Purcell, Alfred E 1528 Russell, Philip N., M. D 778 Slaughter, Clifford H 1247 
 
 Purcell, M. C 1601 Rutherford, James 32a Sledge, Strudwick 277 
 
 Putnam Brothers 1216 Rutherford, William W 302 Slinkard, James M 578 
 
 Putnam, R. Porter 1047 Ry^e, James W 1311 Sloan, Victor E .' 955 
 
 Pyle, Elmo E 832 Smith, Hon. Andrew G 1492 
 
 S Smith, Burton 390 
 
 Q Smith, Charles D 34s 
 
 St. Augustine's Academy 1566 Smith, Charles L 869 
 
 Quinlan, Mrs. Annie 1289 st. Clair, Leonard P 809 Smith, Charles P 798. 
 
 Salau, Adolph H 682 Smith, Frank S 1598 
 
 R Salau, Henry F., Jr 550 Smith, George W _. 1117 
 
 Salau, Henry F. F 414 Smith, Joseph M. ., 792 
 
 Radley, William 561 Samelson, Samuel J 283 Smith, Lewis H 328 
 
 Ragle, E. T 1209 Sample, David C 1349 Smith, Samuel A 1563 
 
 Ragle, George W 1408 Sanborn, Eben 625 Smith, Seth 968 
 
 Ragle, William C 1222 Sarringhausen, Fred 1370 Smith, Hon. Sylvester C 289 
 
 Ramm, John H 881 Sarringhausen, H. H 1362 Smith, Thomas J 1156 
 
 Ramsey, W. W 690 Say, Luther M 1550 Smith, Walter S 1351 
 
 Rankine, John 1596 Say, William H 1061 Smith, Wilson R 1420 
 
 Rasmussen, Frank N S18 Sayre, A. L 1618 Snodgrass, Joseph H 973 
 
 Rath, James W S66 Schank, Charles W 993 Snow, Alva E 1296 
 
 Ratliff, William P 1191 Schell, H. R '. 1602 Snow, Benjamin go8 
 
 Raven, Louis P 889 Schlitz, John J 815 Soper, Mrs. Etta M 1568 
 
 Raynor, Andres S 1000 Schmidt, Hans J 1615 Southwick, Ernest E 391 
 
 Rector, Hon. Elbndge N 703 Schmidt, Theodore C 1553 Sparks, Joseph S 1557 
 
 Reed, David J. F 567 Schmitz, J. W 604 Spear, ' Henry E 587 
 
 Reese, Joseph W 1461 Schweizer, Charles A 1330 Spear', John L 587 
 
 Renaud, Emerie 568 Scofield, A. H 998 Spenker, Charles 1023 
 
 Rey, Samuel 502 Scott, Carroll C 696 Springer, Barney 549 
 
 Reyburn, James J 1377 Scott, Charles R 827 Sprouse Prof. J.N 3.58 
 
INDEX. VII 
 
 Sronce, Robert H 1325 Toomey, William F 970 Wegner, Louis 1344 
 
 Staniford, George F 1337 Toothacre, D. M 254 Welirmann, Arthur 1598 
 
 Stanley, Frank S 1258 Toscano, J. V 1491 Weill, Alplionse 1056 
 
 Starkweather, Clarence A 39s Tout, Elias 768 Weisenberger, Joseph 867 
 
 Statham, Jefferson D ,. . 1338 Traber, Charles W 1137 Welch, Charles M 508 
 
 Stearns, James B 252 Traber, Hon. J. Orra 333 Weldon, Abraham J 1462 
 
 Steinwand, Oscar W., M. D... 1511 Traber, Roy C 1031 Wells, Andrew J 37S 
 
 Stelling, William C 1073 Tracy, F. A 1228 Wells, Hiram J 368 
 
 Stevens, Ezra M 789 Tremper, C. W 1595 Wells, Morgan J 1210 
 
 Stevens, Richard H 287 Tucker, Capt. Egbert H 761 Werner, Louis P 900 
 
 Stevenson, Sebert 863 Tulloch, Charles T 1606 Westman, N. J 964 
 
 Stiles, Frank H 913 Tully, Stephen E 454 Weyant, Woolsey 1367 
 
 Stilwell, Thomas 1337 Turner, Mrs. Elizabeth 1476 Whaley, Henry 7S0 
 
 Stimpson, G. W 1639 Turner, John R 1475 Wliealan, William 499 
 
 Stobie, William 1148 Turner, Levi N 486 Wheeler, Alexander W 948 
 
 Stockton, Robert L 376 Tyler, Stephen A 784 White, Capt. Harrison 418 
 
 Stockton, William J 536 White, Huffman M 319 
 
 Stokes, John W 1093 . tt White, S. J 587 
 
 Stone, Fred J 1414 White, William T 436 
 
 Stone, James S 1525 Unger, Mrs. Dora 1551 Whittington, William, M. D... 826 
 
 Stonesifer, Alfred G 1497 Unger' William 1161 Whitworth, George H 343 
 
 Street, Joseph J 1593 Uridge, William G. '.'. . . ... 358 Whitworth, John W 492 
 
 Stuhr, Jasper N 1564 Wigley, George W 634 
 
 Sturm, Fred 993 Wigley, Richard J 1505 
 
 Sturm, John 1026 ^ Wilcox, Origen A 914 
 
 Sturm, John, Jr 998 Van Benschoten, John W 929 W^-"-'"'' l^"'^?'''?",- ' t' ^1°, 
 
 Su ivan, Jeremiah 1124 Van Cleve, John A 1212 ^i i^""'' Frederick J 974 
 
 Sulhvan, Joseph. 1499 Vanderburgh, John J 1532 ,^' ^^'"'' /"S"'' ^. J^lt 
 
 Summers, John W 1487 Van Emon John M 792 Zt-^"""' ^ ^'''^f'^ lH 
 
 S^«nf "■ 0'.« 1260 Van Emon, William E 821 ™^'"'' l°\j ^w rT^l 
 
 Swall, W.lham 1473 Van Valer Edwin L 149S S^' r^"''' c'' ^'w ^ 
 
 Swan, John S.. 649 Van Wickle, Benjamin W 392 Zu-""^'' w """Ini' - ' T 1^ 
 
 Swanson, Miss Amanda 572 Vanwinkle, Abram 1441 ^1 Jams, Hon^ Wilham L.... 803 
 
 Swanson, Button 701 Vanwormer, Godfrey N.. ..... . 14S3 WiUiamson Charles 814 
 
 Sweeney James J 469 Vaughan, James U 448 ,^f mans John M ■ • • • -^^ • •• • • • 1629 
 
 Sweet, A. D 1608 Vaii?hn Tnhn W rnlr Wilson, Alexander L., M. D... 857 
 
 Sweet, Solomon 856 Vaulhn Lemuel W tAa Wilson, Edward G 802 
 
 Switzer, Upton D 901 vfetor Frank "^ ^"'''"' ^"' ^ ^^^ 
 
 V ncent Edward' ' E aIr Wilson, William C 533 
 
 vf^rZl' M,Hn„ M .tnl Wiseman, Addison L 1613 
 
 „ Vmcent, Marion M 1290 •.j,- , » n taca 
 
 T Vincent; Samuel J iigg Wfshon^ A. G. i454 
 
 Talbot, Courtney 1203-Vopl, Ja<^°b . . . . 1588 witt'en, Phflip w! .' i:::! .■.'::: : 1266 
 
 Tannahill, James S 1336 Volquards, Ernest 527 -^^jf^^ gmil i486 
 
 Tarkington, Matthew S 728 Vossler, Joseph 1112 ^^^^^ Chester W 1527 
 
 Taylor, Jesse S 1448 Wood', George D 130S 
 
 Teague, Benjamin F 1014 W Wood Levi 290 
 
 Teilman Ingvart 1573,,,^ ^, , .^ ,^ ^ Wood', Hon. Mirabeau D 473 
 
 Telfer, Charles A 284 Wade, Charles F., M. D 420 -yyood Uriah 941 
 
 Thorn, Robert C 1463 Waggoner, Joseph 1456 Woodard Homer D 1004 
 
 Thoming, George 1620 Wagner, James D., M. D 785 Woody Allen J 937 
 
 Thompson, Andrew F 987 Walker, Benjamin F, M. D.... 1430 ■Wri'^ht Harland E 1006 
 
 Thompson, John 1358 Walker, Hon. J. N 1633 Wright' Isaac 779 
 
 Thompson, John E 1233 Wallis, Daniel W 457 Wright', Isaac N 689 
 
 Thompson, J. Goodwin, M. D.. 259 Wallis, Robert H 496 Wrighti William W 1191 
 
 Thompson, Joseph C 1417 Walthall, John M 310 -Wyllie ' George W 1371 
 
 Thompson, Mortimer G 828 Warner, H. C 1357 "^ ' 
 
 Thompson, Capt. Thomas H... 845 Warren, Julius F 1450 
 
 Thornton, Harry W. R 1296 Warren, James W 1543 Y 
 
 Thornton, William 1048' Wasgatt, Archie B 716 . ,^ ^ 
 
 Thurman, William B 288 Wash, Isaac H 1306 Yeargm, A. T...... 1621 
 
 Thurman, William H 288 Watt, Alexander •.. 1389 Yoakum, George W 612 
 
 Tighe, William C 523 Waugh, J. D 879 Yost, Thomas . I443 
 
 Tilton, Joseph E 572 Waugh, William B 1025 Yost, William A 1038 
 
 Timmins, L. P 1634 Wear, George W 1542 Youd, William Si3 
 
 Tinnin, A. C 402 Weaver, Henry E. 858 
 
 Tinnin, Hon. Wiley J 1534 Weaver, William L 844 Z 
 
 Tinnin, William H 408 Webster, G. W 1591 
 
 Toomey, David J 943 Wegman, George J 1165 Zumwalt, Daniel K 631 
 
CALIFORNIA. 
 
 CHAPTER 1. 
 
 SPANISH EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES. 
 
 POR centuries there had been a vague tra- 
 dition of a land lying somewhere in the 
 seemingly limitless expanse of ocean 
 stretching westward from the shores of Europe. 
 The poetical fancy of the Greeks had located in 
 it the Garden of Hesperides, where grew the 
 Golden Apples. The myths and superstitions of 
 the middle ages had peopled it with gorgons 
 and demons and made it the abode of lost souls. 
 When Columbus proved the existence of a 
 new world beyond the Atlantic, his discovery 
 did not altogether dispel the mysteries and su- 
 perstitions that for ages had _ enshrouded the 
 fabled Atlantis, the lost continent of the Hesperi- 
 des. Romance and credulity had much to do 
 with hastening the exploration of the newly dis- 
 covered western world. Its interior might hold 
 wonderful possibilities for wealth, fame and con- 
 quest to the adventurers who should penetrate 
 its dark unknown. The dimly told traditions of 
 the natives were translated to fit the cupidity or 
 the credulity of adventurers, and sometimes 
 served to promote enterprises that produced re- 
 sults far different from those originally intended. 
 The fabled fountain of youth lured Ponce 
 de Leon ~ over many a league in the wilds of 
 Florida; and although he found no spring spout- 
 ing forth the elixir of life, he explored a rich 
 and fertile country, in which the Spaniards 
 planted the first settlement ever made within the 
 territory now held by the United States. The 
 legend of El Dorado, the gilded man of the 
 golden lake, stimulated adventurers to brave the 
 horrors of the miasmatic forests of the Amazon 
 and the Orinoco; and the search for that gold- 
 
 covered hombre hastened, perhaps, by a hun- 
 dred years, the exploration of the tropical re- 
 gions of South America. Although the myth of 
 Quivira that sent Coronado wandering over des- 
 ert, mountain and plain, far into the interior of 
 North America, and his quest for the seven cities 
 of Cibola, that a romancing monk^ Marcos de 
 Niza, "led by the Holy Ghost," imagined he 
 saw in the wilds of Pimeria, brought neither 
 wealth nor pride of conquest to that adventur- 
 ous explorer, yet these myths were the indirect 
 cause of giving to the world an early knowledge 
 of the vast regions to the north of Mexico. 
 
 When Cortes' lieutenant, Gonzalo de Sando- 
 val, gave his superior officer an account of a 
 wonderful island ten days westward from the 
 Pacific coast of Mexico, inhabited by women 
 only, and exceedingly rich in pearls and gold, 
 although he no doubt derived his story from 
 Montalvo's romance, "The Sergias of Esplan- 
 dian," a popular novel of that day, yet Cortes 
 seems to have given credence to his subordi- 
 nate's tale, and kept in view the conquest of the 
 island. 
 
 To the energy, the enterprise and the genius 
 of Hernan Cortes is due the early exploration 
 of the northwest coast of North America. In 
 1522, eighty-five years before the English 
 planted their first colony in America, and nearly 
 a century before the landing of the Pilgrims on 
 Plymouth rock, Cortes had established a ship- 
 yard at Zacatula, the most northern port on the 
 Pacific coast of the country that he had just 
 conquered. Here he intended to build ships to 
 explore the upper coast of the South Sea (as 
 
u 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the Pacific Ocean was then called), but his good 
 fortune, that had hitherto given success to his 
 undertakings, seemed to have deserted him, and 
 disaster followed disaster. His warehouse, 
 filled with material for shipbuilding, that with 
 great labor and expense had been packed on 
 muleback from \'era Cruz, took fire and all was 
 destroyed. It required years to accumulate an- 
 other supply. I-Ie finally, in 1527, succeeded in 
 launching four ships. Three of these were taken 
 possession of by the king's orders for service in 
 the East Indies. The fourth and the smallest 
 made a short voyage up the coast. The com- 
 mander, jMaldonado, returned with glowing re- 
 ports of a rich country he had discovered. He 
 imagined he had seen evidence of the existence 
 of gold and silver, but he brought none with 
 him. 
 
 In 1528 Cortes was unjustly deprived of the 
 government of the country he had conquered. 
 His successor, Nuno de Guzman, president of 
 the royal audiencia, as the new form of gov- 
 ernment for New Spain (Mexico) was called, had 
 pursued him for years with the malignity of a 
 demon. Cortes returned to Spain to defend 
 himself against the rancorous and malignant 
 charges of his enemies. He was received at 
 court with a show of high honors, but which in 
 reality were hollow professions of friendship 
 and insincere expressions of esteem. He was 
 rewarded by the bestowal of an empty title. Pie 
 was empowered to conquer and colonize coun- 
 tries at his own expense, for which he was to 
 receive the twelfth part of the revenue. Cortes 
 returned to Mexico and in 1532 he had two ships 
 fitted out, which sailed from AcapuIco, in June 
 of that year, up the coast of Jalisco. Portions 
 of the crews of each vessel mutinied. The mu- 
 tineers were put aboard of the vessel com- 
 manded by Mazuela and the other vessels, com- 
 manded by Hurtardo, continued the voyage as 
 far as the Yaqui country. Here, having landed 
 in search of provisions, the natives massacred 
 the commander and all the crew. The crew of 
 the other vessel shared the same fate lower 
 down the coast. The stranded vessel was after- 
 wards plundered and chsmantled by Nuno de 
 Guzman, who was about as much of a savage as 
 the predatory and murderous natives. 
 
 In 1533 Cortes, undismayed by his disasters, 
 fitted out' two more ships for the exploration 
 of the northern coast of ^lexico. On board one 
 of these ships, commanded by Bercerra de Men- 
 doza, the crew, headed by the chie pilot, Jim- 
 inez, mutinied. Mendoza was killed and ah 
 who would not join the mutineers were forced 
 to go ashore on the coast of Jalisco. The muti- 
 neers, to escape punishment by the authorities, 
 under the command of the pilot, Fortuno Jim- 
 inez, sailed westerly away from the coast of 
 the main land. After several days' sailing out 
 of sight of land, they discovered what they sup- 
 posed to be an island. They landed at a place 
 now known as La Paz, Lower California. Here 
 Jiminez and twenty of his confederates were 
 killed by the Indians, or their fellow mutineers, 
 it is uncertain which. The survivors of the ill- 
 fated expedition managed to navigate the vessel 
 back to Jalisco, where they reported the dis- 
 covery of an island rich in gold and pearls. This 
 fabrication doubtlessly saved their necks. There 
 is no record of their punishment for mutiny. 
 Cortes' other ship accomplished even less than 
 the one captured by the mutineers. Grixalvo, 
 the commander of this vessel, discovered a des- 
 olate island, forty leagues south of Cape San 
 Lucas, which he named Santo Tomas. But the 
 discovery that should immortalize Grixalvo, and 
 place him in the category with the romancing 
 Monk, de Niza and Sandoval of the Amazonian 
 isle, was the seeing of a merman. It swam about 
 about the ship for a long time, playing antics 
 like a monkey for the amusement of the sailors, 
 washing its face with its hands, combing its hair 
 with its fingers; at last, frightened by a sea 
 bird, it disappeared. 
 
 Cortes, having heard of Jiminez's discovery, 
 and possibly believing it to be Sandoval's isle 
 of the Amazons, rich with gold and pearls, set 
 about building more ships for exploration and 
 for the colonization of the island. He ordered 
 the building of three ships at Tehauntepec. The 
 royal audencia having failed to give him any 
 redress -or protection against his enemy, Nuno 
 de Guzman, he determined to punish him him- 
 s'elf. Collecting a considerable force of cava- 
 liers and soldiers, he marched to Chiametla 
 There he found his vessel. La Concepcion lying 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 35 
 
 on her beam ends, a wreck, and plundered of 
 everything of vahie. He failed to find Guzman, 
 that wor'thy having taken a hasty departure be- 
 fore his arrival. His ships having come up 
 from Tehauntepec, he embarked as many sol- 
 diers and settlers as his vessels would carry, and 
 sailed away for Jiminez's island. May 3, 1535, 
 he landed at the port where Jiminez and his fel- 
 low mutineers were killed, which he named 
 Santa Cruz. The colonists were landed on the 
 supposed island and the ships were sent back 
 to Chiametla for the remainder of the settlers. 
 His usual ill luck followed him. The vessels 
 became separated on the gulf in a storm and 
 the smaller of the three returned to Santa Cruz. 
 Embarking in it, Cortes set sail to find his miss- 
 ing ships. He found them at the port of Guaya- 
 bal, one loaded with provisions, the other dis- 
 mantled and run ashore. Its sailors had de- 
 serted and those of the other ship were about 
 to follow. Cortes stoppejd this, took command 
 of the vessels and had them repaired. When the 
 repairs were completed he set sail for his colony. 
 But misfortune followed him. His chief pilot 
 was killed by the falling of a spar when scarce 
 out of sight of land. Cortes took command of 
 the vessels himself. Then the ships encountered 
 a terrific storm that threatened their destruc- 
 tion. Finally they reached their destination, 
 Santa Cruz. There again misfortune awaited 
 him. The colonists could obtain no sustenance 
 from the barren soil of the desolate island. 
 Their provisions exhausted, some of them died 
 of starvation and the others killed themselves 
 by over-eating when relief came. 
 
 Cortes, finding the interior of the supposed 
 island as desolate and forbidding as the coast, 
 and the native inhabitants degraded and brutal 
 savages, without houses or clothing, living on 
 vermin, insects and .the scant products of the 
 sterile land, determined to abandon his coloniza- 
 tion scheme. Gathering together the wretched 
 survivors of his colony, he embarked them on 
 his ships and in the early part of 1537 landed 
 them in the port of Acapulco. 
 
 At some time between 1535 and 1537 the 
 name Califojnia was applied to the supposed 
 island, but whether applied by Cortes to en- 
 courage his disappointed colonists, or whether 
 
 given by them in derision, is an unsettled ques- 
 tion. The name itself is derived from a Spanish 
 romance, the "Sergas de Esplandian," written 
 by Ordonez de Montalvo and published in Se- 
 ville, Spain, about the year 1510. The passage 
 in which the name California occurs is as fol- 
 lows: 'Tvnow that on the right hand of the In- 
 dies there is an island called California, very near 
 the terrestrial paradise, which was peopled with 
 black women, without any men among them, 
 because they were accustomed to live after the 
 fashion of Amazons. They were of strong and 
 hardened bodies, of ardent courage and great 
 force. The island was the strongest in the 
 world from its steep rocks and great cl.ffs. 
 Their arms were all of gold and so were the 
 caparison of the wild beasts which they rede, 
 after having trained them, for in all the isknd 
 there is no other metal." The "steep rocks and 
 great cliffs" of Jiminez's island may have Sug- 
 gested to Cortes or to his colonists some fan- 
 cied resemblance to the California of Montalvo's 
 romance, but there was no other similarity. 
 
 For years Cortes had been fitting out ex- 
 peditions by land and sea to explore the un- 
 known regions northward of that portion of 
 Mexico which he had conquered, but disaster 
 after disaster had wrecked his hopes and im- 
 poverished his purse. The last expedition sent 
 out by him was one commanded by Francisco 
 LTlloa, who, in 1539, with two ships, sailed up 
 the Gulf .of California, or Sea of Cortes, on the 
 Sonora side, to its head. Thence he proceeded 
 down the inner coast of Lower California to 
 the cape at its southern extremity, which he 
 doubled, and then sailed up the outer coast to 
 Cabo del Engano, the "Cape of Deceit." Fail- 
 ing to make any progress against the head 
 winds, April 5, 1540, the two ships parted com- 
 pany in a storm. The smaller one, the Santa 
 Agueda, returned safely to Santiago. The 
 larger. La Trinidad, after vainly endeavoring to 
 continue the voyage, turned back. The fate of 
 Ulloa and of the vessel too, is uncertain. One 
 authority says he was assassinated after reach- 
 ing the coast of Jalisco by one of his soldiers, 
 who, for some trivial cause, stabbed him to 
 death; another account says that nothing is 
 known of his fate, - nor is it certainly known 
 
36 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 whether his vessel ever returned. The only 
 thing accomplished by this voyage was to dem- 
 onstrate that Lower California was a peninsula. 
 Even this fact, although proved by Ulloa's voy- 
 age, was not fully admitted by geographers until 
 two centuries later. 
 
 In 1540 Cortes returned to Spain to obtain, if 
 possible, some recognition and recompense from 
 the king for his valuable services. His declin- 
 ing years had been filled with bitter disappoint- 
 ments. Shipwreck and mutiny at sea; disaster 
 and defeat to his forces on land; the treachery 
 of his subordinates and the jealousy of royal of- 
 ficials continually thwarted his plans and wasted 
 his substance. After expending nearly a million 
 dollars in exploiations, conquests and attempts 
 at»colonization, fretted and worried by the in- 
 difiference and the Ingratitude of a monarch foi 
 whom he had sacrified so much, disappointed, 
 disheartened, impoverished, he died at an ob- 
 scure hamlet near Seville, Spain, in December, 
 
 IS47- 
 
 The next exploration that had something to 
 do with the discovery of California was that of 
 Hernando de Alarcon. With two ships he sailed 
 from Acapulco, May 9, 1540, up the Gulf of Cal- 
 ifornia. His object was to co-operate with the 
 expedition of Coronado. Coronado, with an 
 army of four hundred men, had marched from 
 Culiacan, April 22, 1540, to conquer the seven 
 cities of Cibola. In the early part of 1537 Al- 
 varo Nunez Cabaza de Vaca and three compan- 
 ions (the only survivors of six hundred men that 
 Panfilo de Narvaes, ten years before, had landed 
 in Florida for the conquest of that province) 
 after almost incredible sufferings and hardships 
 arrived in Culiacan on the Pacific coast. On 
 their long journey passing from one Indian tribe 
 to another they had seen many wondrous things 
 and had heard of many more. Among others 
 they had been told of seven great cities in a 
 country called Cibola that were rich in gold and 
 silver and precious stones. 
 
 A Franciscan friar, Marcos de Niza, liaving 
 heard their wonderful stories determined to find 
 the seven cities. Securing the service of 
 Estevanico, a negro slave, who was one of Ca- 
 beza de Vaca's party, he set out in quest of the 
 cities. With a number of Indian porters and 
 
 • 1 u^ traveled northward 
 Estevanico as a guide, he traveicu 
 
 a hundred leagues when he came to a desert 
 that took four days to cross. Beyond this he 
 found natives who told him of people four day-s 
 further away who had gold in abundance. He 
 sent the negro to investigate and that mdmdual 
 sent back word that Cibola was yet thirty days- 
 journey to the northward. Following the trail 
 of his guide, Niza. travelled for two weeks cross- 
 ing several deserts. The stories of the magnifi- 
 cence of the seven cities increased with every 
 tribe of Indians through whose country he 
 passed. At length, when almost to the prom- 
 ised land, a messenger brought the sad tidings 
 that Estevanico had been put to death with all 
 of his companions but two by the inhabitants of 
 Cibola. To go forward meant death to the 
 monk and all his party, but before turning back 
 he climbed a high mountain and looked down 
 upon the seven cities with their high houses and 
 teeming populations thronging their streets. 
 Then he returned to CuHacan to tell his wonder- 
 ful stories. His tales fired the ambition and 
 stimulated the avarice of a horde of adventurers. 
 At the. head of four hundred of these Coronado 
 penetrated the wilds of Pimeria (now Arizona). 
 He found seven Indian towns but no lofty 
 houses, no great cities, no gold or silver. Cibola 
 was a myth. Hearing of a country called Quivira 
 far to the north, richer than Cibola, with part of 
 his force he set out to find it. In his search he 
 penetrated inland as far as the plains of Kansas, 
 but Quivira proved to be as poor as Citola, and 
 Coronado returned disgusted. The Friar de 
 Niza had evidently drawn on his imagination 
 which seemed to be quite rich in cities. 
 
 Alarcon reached the head of the Gulf of Cal- 
 ifornia. Seeing what he supposed to be an in- 
 let, but the water proving too shallow for his 
 ships to enter it, -he manned two boats and 
 found his supposed inlet to be the mouth of a 
 great river. He named it Buena Guia (Good 
 Guide) now the Colorado. He sailed up if some 
 distance and was probably the first white man to 
 set foot upon the soil of Upper California. He 
 heard of Coronado in the interior but was unable 
 to establish communication with him. He de- 
 scended the river in his boats, embarked on his 
 vessels and returned to Mexico. The Viceroy 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 37 
 
 Mendoza, who had fitted out the expedition of 
 Alarcon, was bitterly disappointed on the re- 
 turn of that explorer. He had hoped to fi-nd the 
 ships loaded with the spoils of the seven cities. 
 
 The report of the discovery of a great river did 
 not interest his sordid soul. Alarcon found him- 
 self a disgraced man. He retired to private life 
 and not long after died a broken hearted man. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 ALTA OR NUEVA CALIFORNIA. 
 
 HILE Coronado was still wandering 
 
 lAI in the interior of the continent search- 
 •* * ing for Quivira and its king, Tatar- 
 rax, who wore a long beard, adored a gol- 
 den cross and worshipped an image of the 
 queen of heaven, Pedro de Alvarado, one of 
 Cortes' former lieutenants, arrived from Guate- 
 mala, of which country he was governor, with a 
 fleet of twelve ships. These were anchored in 
 the harbor of Navidad. Mendoza, the viceroy, 
 had been intriguing with Alvarado against 
 Cortes; obtaining an interest in the fleet, he 
 and Alvarado began preparations for an ex- 
 tensive scheme of exploration and conquest. Be- 
 fore they had perfected their plans an insurrec- 
 tion broke out among the Indians of Jalisco, and 
 Pedro de Alvarado in attempting to quell it 
 was killed. Mendoza fell heir to the fleet. The 
 return of Coronado about this time dispelled the 
 ~ popular beliefs in Cibola and Quivira and put 
 an end to further explorations of the inland re- 
 gions of the northwest. 
 
 It became necessary for Mendoza to find 
 something for his fleet to do. The Islas de 
 Poiniente, or Isles of the Setting Sun (now the 
 Philippines), had been discovered by Magellan. 
 To these Mendoza dispatched five ships of the 
 fleet under command of Lopez de Villalobos to 
 establish trade with the natives. Two ships of 
 the fleet, the San Salvador and the Vitoria, were 
 placed under the command of Juan Rodriguez 
 Cabrillo, reputed to be a Portuguese by birth and 
 dispatched to explore the northwest coast of 
 the Pacific. Cabrillo sailed from Navidad, June 
 27> 1542. Rounding the southern extremity of 
 the peninsula of Lower California, he sailed up 
 its outer coast. August 20 he reached Cabo del 
 Engano, the most northerly point of Ulloa's ex- 
 ploration. On the 28th of September, 1542, he 
 
 entered a bay which he named San Miguel (now 
 San Diego), where he found "a land locked and 
 very good harbor." He remained in this harbor 
 until October 3. Continuing his voyage he sailed 
 along the coast eighteen leagues, discovering 
 two islands about seven leagues from the main 
 land. These he named San Salvador and Vitoria 
 after his ships (iftw Santa Catalina and San 
 Clemente). On the 8th of October he crossed 
 the channel between the islands and main land 
 and anchored in a bay which he named Bahia 
 de los Fumos y Fuegos, the Bay of Smokes and 
 Fires (now known as the Bay of San Pedro). 
 Pleavy clouds of smoke hung over the head- 
 lands of the coast; and inland, fierce fires were 
 raging. The Indians either through accident 
 or design had set fire to the long dry grass that 
 covered the plains at this season of the year. 
 
 After sailing six leagues further up the coast 
 he anchored hi a large ensenada or bight, now 
 the Bay of Santa Monica. It is uncertain 
 whether he landed at either place. The next 
 day he sailed eight leagues to an Indian town 
 which he named the Pueblo de las Canoas (the 
 town of Canoes). This town was located on or 
 near the present site of San Buenaventura. 
 Sailing northwestward he passed through the 
 Santa Barbara Channel, discovering the islands 
 of Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa and San Miguel. 
 Continuing up the coast he passed a long nar- 
 row point of land extending into the sea, which 
 from its resemblance to a galley boat he named 
 Cabo de la Galera, the Cape of the Galley (now 
 called Point Concepcion). Baffled by head 
 winds, the explorers slowly beat their way up 
 the coast. On the 17th of November, they cast 
 anchor in a large bay which they named Bahia 
 de los Pinos, the Bay of Pines (now the Bay 
 of Monterey). Finding it impossible to land on 
 
38 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 account of the heavy sea Cabrillo continued his 
 voyage northward. After reaching a point on 
 the coast in 40 degrees north latitude, accord- 
 ing to his reckoning, the increasing cold and 
 the storms becoming more frequent, he turned 
 back and ran down the coast to the island of 
 San Miguel, which he reached November 23. 
 Here he decided to winter. 
 
 While on the island in October, he had broken 
 his arm by a fall. Suffering from his broken 
 arm he had continued in command. Exposure 
 and unskilful surgery caused his death. He 
 died January 3, 1543, and was buried on the 
 island. His last resting place is supposed to 
 be on the shore of Cuyler's harbor, on the 
 island of San Miguel. No trace of his grave 
 has ever been found. His companions named 
 the island Juan Rodriguez, but he has been 
 robbed of even this sHght tribute to his mem- 
 ory. It would be a slight token of regard if 
 the state would name the island Cabrillo. Saint 
 Miguel has been well remembered in California 
 and could spare an island. 
 
 Cabrillo on his death bed urged his successor 
 in command, the pilot Bartolome Ferrolo, to 
 continue the exploration. Ferrolo prosecuted 
 the voyage of discovery with a courage and dar- 
 ing equal to that of Cabrillo. About the middle 
 of February he left the harbor where he had 
 spent most of the winter and after having made 
 a short voyage in search of more islands he 
 sailed up the coast. February 28, he discovered 
 a cape which he named Mendocino in honor of 
 the viceroy, a name it still bears. Passing the 
 cape he encountered a fierce storm which drove 
 him violently to the northeast, greatly endanger- 
 ing his ships. On March ist, the fog partially 
 lifting, he discovered a cape, which he named 
 Blanco, in the southern part of what is now the 
 state of Oregon. The weather continuing stormy 
 and the cold increasing as he sailed northward, 
 Ferrolo reluctantly turned back. Running 
 down the coast he reached the island of San 
 Clemente. There in a storm the ships parted 
 company and Ferrolo, after a search, gave up 
 the Vitoria as lost. The ships, however, came 
 together at Cerros island and from there, in 
 sore distress for provisions, the explorers 
 reached Navidad April 18, 1543. On the discov- 
 
 eries made by Cabrillo and Ferrolo the Span- 
 iards claimed the territory on the Pacific coast 
 of North America up to the forty-second degree 
 of north latitude, a claim that they maifitained 
 for three hundred years. 
 
 The next navigator who visited California was 
 Francis Drake, an Englishman. He was not 
 seeking new lands, but a way to escape the 
 vengeance of the Spaniards. Francis Drake, 
 the "Sea King of Devon," was one of the brav- 
 est men that ever lived. Early in his maritime 
 life he had suffered from the cruelty and injus- 
 tice of the Spaniards. Throughout his subse- 
 quent career, which reads more Hke romance 
 than reality, he let no opportunity slip to pun- 
 ish his old-time enemies. It mattered little to 
 Drake whether his country was at peace or war 
 with Spain; he considered a Spanish ship or a 
 Spanish town his legitimate prey. On one of 
 his predatory expeditions he captured a Spanish 
 town on the isthmus of Panama named El Nom- 
 bre de Dios, The Name of God. Its holy name 
 did not protect it from Drake's rapacity. While 
 on the isthmus he obtained information of the 
 Spanish settlements of the South Pacific and 
 from a high point of land saw the South sea, as 
 the Pacific ocean was then called. On his re- 
 turn to England he announced his intention of 
 fitting out a privateering expedition against the 
 Spaniards of the South Pacific. Although Spain 
 and England were at peace, he received encour- 
 agement from the nobility, even Queen Eliza- 
 beth herself secretly contributing a thousand 
 crown towards the venture. 
 
 Drake sailed out of Plymouth harbor, Eng- 
 land, December 13, 1577, in command of a fleet 
 of five small vessels, bound for the Pacific coast 
 of South America. Some of his vessels were 
 lost at sea and others turned back, until when 
 he emerged from the Straits of Magellan he had 
 but one left, the Pelican. He changed its name 
 to the Golden Hind. It was a ship of only one 
 hundred tons' burden. Sailing up the South 
 Pacific coast, he spread terror and devastation 
 among the Spanish settlements, robbing towns 
 and capturing ships until, in the quaiiitt language 
 of a chronicler of the expedition, he "had loaded 
 his vessel with a fabulous amount of fine wares 
 of Asia, precious stones, church ornaments, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 39 
 
 gold plate and so mooch silver as did ballas the 
 Goulden Hinde." 
 
 From one treasure ship, the Caca Fuego, he 
 obtained thirteen chests of silver, eighty pounds 
 weight of gold, twenty-six tons of uncoined sil- 
 ver, two silver drinking vessels, precious stones 
 and a quantity of jewels; the total value of his 
 prize amounted to three hundred and sixty 
 thousand pesos (dollars). Having spoiled the 
 Spaniards of treasure amounting to "eight hun- 
 dred sixty-six thousand pesos of silver * * * 
 a hundred thousand pesos of gold * * * 
 and other things of great worth, he thought it 
 not good to return by the streight (Magellan) 
 * * * least the Spaniards should there waite 
 and attend for him in great numbers and 
 strength, whose hands, he being left but one 
 ship, he could not possibly escape." 
 
 Surfeited with spoils and his ship loaded with 
 plunder, it became necessary for him to find the 
 shortest and safest route home. To return by 
 the way he came was to invite certain destruc- 
 tion to his ship and death to all on board. At 
 an island off the coast of Nicaragua he over- 
 hauled and refitted, his ship. He determined to 
 seek the Straits of Anian that were believed to 
 connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Strik- 
 ing boldly out on an unknown sea, he sailed 
 more than a thousand leagues northward. En- 
 countering contrary winds and the cold in- 
 creasing as he advanced, he gave up his search 
 for the mythical straits, and, turning, he ran 
 down the northwest coast of North America to 
 latitude 38°, where "hee found a harborrow for 
 his ship.'* He anchored in it June 17, 1579. 
 This "convenient and fit harborrow" is under 
 the lee of Point Reyes and is now known as 
 Sir Francis Drake's Bay. 
 
 Fletcher, the chronicler of Drake's voyage, in 
 his narrative, "The World Encompassed," says: 
 "The 3rd day following, viz., the 21st, our ship 
 having received a leake at sea was brought to 
 anchor neerer the shoare that her goods being 
 landed she might be repaired; but for that we 
 were to prevent any danger that might chance 
 against our safety our Generall first of all 
 landed his men with necessary provision to build 
 tents and make a fort for defense of ourselves 
 and goods; and that we might under the shel- 
 
 ter of it with more safety (whatsoever should 
 befall) end our business." 
 
 The ship was drawn upon the beach, careened 
 on its side, caulked and refitted. While the 
 crew were repairing the ship the natives visited 
 them in great numbers. From some of their ac- 
 tions Drake inferred that they regarded himself 
 and his men as gods. To disabuse them of this 
 idea, Drake ordered his chaplain, Fletcher, to 
 perform divine service according to the English 
 Church Ritual and preach a sermon. The In- 
 dians were greatly delighted with the psalm 
 singing, but their opinion of Fletcher's sermon 
 is not known. 
 
 From certain ceremonial performance Drake 
 imagined that the Indians were offering him the 
 sovereignty of their land and themselves as sub- 
 jects of the English crown. Drake gladly ac- 
 cepted their proffered allegiance and formally 
 took possession of the country in the name of 
 the English sovereign, Queen Elizabeth. He 
 named it New Albion, "for two causes: the one 
 in respect of the white bankes and cliffes which 
 ly towardes the sea; and the other because it 
 might have some affinitie with our own country 
 in name which sometimes was so called." 
 
 Having completed the repairs to his ship, 
 Drake made ready to depart, but before leav- 
 ing "Our Generall with his company made a 
 journey up into the land. The inland we found 
 to be farre different from the shoare; a goodly 
 country and fruitful soyle, stored with many 
 blessings fit for the use of man; infinite was the 
 company of very large and fat deere which 
 there we saw by thousands as we supposed in a 
 lieard."* They saw great numbers of small bur- 
 rowing animals, which they called conies, but 
 which were probably ground squirrels. Before 
 departing, Drake set up a monument to show 
 that he had taken possession of the country. To a 
 large post firmly set in the ground he nailed a 
 brass plate on which was engraved the name of 
 the English Queen, the date of his arrival and the 
 statement that the king and people of the coun- 
 try had voluntarily become vassals of the Eng- 
 lish crown; a new sixpence was fastened to the 
 plate to show the Queen's likeness. 
 
 *World Encompassed. 
 
40 
 
 HISTORICAL AXD BIO'GRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 After a stay of thirty-six days, Drake took 
 his departure, much to the regret of the Indians. 
 He stopped at the Farallones islands for a short 
 time to lay in a supply of seal meat; then he 
 sailed for England by the way of the Cape of 
 Good Hope. After encountering many perils, 
 he arrived safely at Plymouth, the port from 
 which he sailed nearly three years before, hav- 
 ing "encompassed" or circumnavigated the 
 globe. His exploits and the booty he brought 
 back made him the most famous naval hero of 
 his time. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth 
 and accorded extraordinary honors by the na- 
 tion. He believed himself to be the first dis- 
 coverer of the country he called New Albion. 
 "The Spaniards never had any dealings or so 
 much as set foote in this country; tlie utmost 
 of their discoveries reaching only to many de- 
 grees southward of this place."* The English 
 founded no claim on Drake's discoveries. The 
 land hunger that characterizes that nation now 
 had not then been developed. 
 
 Fifty years passed after Cabrillo's visit to Cal- 
 ifornia before another attempt was made by the 
 Spaniards to explore her coast. Through all 
 these years on their return voyage far out be- 
 y-ond the islands the Manila galleons, freighted 
 with the wealth of "Ormus and Ind," sailed 
 down the coast of Las Californias from Cape 
 Mendocino to Acapulco. Often storm-tossed 
 and always scourged with that dread malady of 
 the sea, the scurvy, there was no harbor of ref- 
 uge for them to put into because his most Cath- 
 olic Majesty, the King of Spain, had no money 
 to spend in exploring an unknown coast where 
 there was no return to be expected except per- 
 haps the saving of a few sailors' lives. 
 
 In 1593, the question of a survey of the Cali- 
 fornia coast for harbors to accommodate the in- 
 creasing Philippine trade was agitated and Don 
 Luis de Velasco, viceroy of New Spain, in a let- 
 ter dated at Mexico, April 8, 1593, thus writes to 
 his majesty : "In order to make the exploration 
 or demarcation of the harbors of this main as 
 far as the Philippine islands, as your majesty 
 orders, money is lacking, and if it be not taken 
 from the royal strong box it cannot be supplied. 
 
 *The World Encompassed. 
 
 as for some time past a great deal of money has 
 been owing to the royal treasury on account 
 of fines forfeited to it, legal cost and the like. 
 Don Luis fortunately discovers a way to save 
 the contents of the royal strong box and hastens 
 to acquaint his majesty with his plan. In a let- 
 ter written to the king from the City of Mexico, 
 April 6, 1594, he says: "I ordered the navigator 
 who at present sails in the flag ship, who is 
 named Sebastian Rodriguez Cermeno, and who 
 is a man of experience in his calling, one who 
 can be depended upon and who has means of 
 his own, although he is a Portuguese, there 
 being no Spaniards of his profession whose serv- 
 ices are available, that he should make the ex- 
 ploration and demarcation, and I offered, if he 
 would do this, to give him his remuneration in 
 the way of taking on board merchandise; and 
 I wrote to the governor (of the Philippines) 
 that he should allow him to put on board the 
 ship some tons of cloth that he might have the 
 benefit of the freight-money." The result of 
 Don Luis's economy and the outcome of at- 
 tempting to explore an unknown coast in a 
 heavily laden merchant ship are given in a para- 
 graph taken from a letter written by a royal ofifi-! 
 cer from Acapulco, February i, 1596, to the 
 viceroy Conde de Monterey, the successor of 
 \'elasco: "On Wednesday, the 31st of January 
 of this year, there entered this harbor a vessel 
 of the -kind called in the Philippines a viroco, 
 having on board Juan de Morgana, navigating 
 officer, four Spanish sailors, five Indians and a 
 negro, who brought tidings that the ship San 
 Agustin, of the exploring expedition, had been 
 lost on a coast where she struck and went to 
 pieces, and that a barefooted friar and another 
 person of those on board had been drowned and 
 that the seventy men or more who embarked in 
 this small vessel only these came in her, be- 
 cause the captain of said ship, Sebastian Rodri- 
 guez Cermefio, and the others went ashore at 
 the port of Navidad, and, as they understand, 
 have already arrived in that city (Mexico). An 
 account of the voyage and of the loss of the 
 ship, together with the statement made under 
 oath by said navigating officer, Juan de Mor- 
 gana, accompany this. We visited officially the 
 vessel, finding no kind of merchandise on board 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 41 
 
 and that the men were almost naked. The ves- 
 sel being so small it seems miraculous that she 
 should have reached this country with so many 
 people on board." A viroco was a small vessel 
 without a deck, having one or two square sails, 
 and propelled by sweeps. Its hull was formed 
 from a single tree, hollowed out and having the 
 sides built up with planks. The San Agustin 
 was wrecked in what is now called Francis 
 Drake's Bay, about thirty miles north of San 
 Francisco. To make a voyage from there to 
 Acapulco in such a vessel, with seventy men on 
 board, and live to tell the tale, was an exploit 
 that exceeded the most hazardous undertakings 
 of the Argonauts of '49. 
 
 The viceroy, Condc de Monte Rey, in a let- 
 ter dated at Mexico,- April 19, 1596, gives the 
 king tidings of the loss of the San Agustin. He 
 writes: "Touching the loss of the ship, San 
 Agustin, which was on its way from the islands 
 of the west (the Philippines) for the purpose of 
 making the exploration of the coast of the South 
 Sea, in accordance with your Majesty's orders 
 to Viceroy, Don Luis de Velasco, I wrote to 
 Your Majesty by the second packet (mailship) 
 what I send as duplicate with this." He then 
 'goes on to tell how he had examined the ofiS- 
 cers in regard to the loss of the vessel and that 
 they tried to inculpate one another. The navi- 
 gating officer even in the viroco tried to ex- 
 plore the prmcipal bays which they crossed, but 
 on account of the hunger and illness they expe- 
 rienced he was compelled to hasten the voyage. 
 The viceroy concludes: "Thus I take it, as to' 
 this exploration the intention of Your Majesty 
 has not been carried into effect. It is the gen- 
 eral opinion that this enterprise should not be 
 attempted on the return voyage from the islands 
 and with a laden ship, but from this coast and 
 by constantly following along it." The above 
 account of the loss of the San Agustin is taken 
 from Volume II, Publications of the Historical 
 Society of Southern California, and is the only 
 correct account published. In September, 1595, 
 just before the viceroy, Don Luis de Velasco, 
 was superseded by Conde de Monte Rey, he 
 entered into a contract with certain parties of 
 whom Sebastian Viscaino, a ship captain, was 
 the principal, to make an expedition up the Gulf 
 
 of California "for the purpose of fishing for 
 pearls." There was also a provision in the con- 
 tract empowering Viscaino to make explorations 
 and take possession of his discoveries for the 
 crown of Spain. The Conde de Monte Rey 
 seems, from a letter written to the King, to have 
 seriously doubted whether Viscaino was the 
 right man for so important an expedition, but 
 finally allowed him to depart. In September, 
 1596, Viscaino sailed up the gulf with a fleet of 
 three vessels, the flag ship San Francisco, the 
 San Jose and a Lancha. The flag ship was dis- 
 abled and left at La Paz. With the other two 
 vessels he sailed up the gulf to latitude 29°. He 
 encountered severe storms. At some island he 
 had trouble with the Indians and killed several. 
 As the long boat was departing an Indian 
 wounded one of the rowers with an arrow. The 
 sailor dropped his oar, the boat careened and 
 upset, drowning twenty of the twenty-six sol- 
 diers and sailors in it. 
 
 Viscaino returned without having procured 
 any pearls or made any important discoveries. 
 He proposed to continue his explorations of the 
 Californias, but on account of his misfortunes 
 his request was held in abeyance. He wrote a 
 letter to the king in 1597, setting forth what 
 supplies he required for the voyage. His in- 
 ventory of the items needed is interesting, but 
 altogether too long for insertion here. Among 
 the items were "$35,000 in money"; "eighty ar- 
 robas of powder"; "twenty quintals of lead"; 
 "four pipes of wine for mass and sick friars"; 
 "vestments for the clergy and $2,000 to be in- 
 vested in trifles for the Indians for the purpose 
 of attracting them peaceably to receive the holy 
 gospel." Viscaino's request was not granted at 
 that time. The viceroy and the royal audiencia 
 at one time ordered his commission revoked. 
 PhiHp II died in 1598 and was succeeded by 
 Philip III. After five years' waiting, Viscaino 
 was allowed to proceed with his explorations. 
 From Acapulco on the 5th of May, 1602, he 
 writes to the king that he is ready to sail with 
 his ships "for the discovery of harbors and bays 
 of the coast of the South Sea as far as Cape 
 Mendocino." "I report," he says, "merely that 
 the said Viceroy (Conde de Monterey) has en- 
 trusted to me the accomplishment of the same 
 
42 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in two ships, a lancha and a barcoluengo, 
 manned with sailors and soldiers and provi- 
 sioned for eleven months. To-day being Sun- 
 day, the 5th of May, I sail at five o'clock in the 
 names of God and his blessed mother and your 
 majesty." 
 
 Viscaino followed the same course marked 
 out by Cabrillo sixty years before. November 
 10, 1602, he anchored in Cabrillo's Bay of San 
 Miguel. Whether the faulty reckoning of Ca- 
 brillo left him in doubt of the points named by 
 the first discoverer, or whether it was that he 
 might receive the credit of their discovery, Vis- 
 caino changed the names given by Cabrillo to 
 the islands, bays and headlands along the Cali- 
 fornia coast. Cabrillo's Bahia San Miguel be- 
 came the Bay of San Diego; San Salvador and 
 Vitoria were changed to Santa Catalina and 
 San Clemente, and Cabrillo's Bahia de los 
 Fumos y Fuegos appears on Viscaino's map as 
 the Ensenada de San Andres, but in a descrip- 
 tion of the voyage compiled by the cosmog- 
 rapher, Cabrero Bueno, it is named San Pedro. 
 It is not named for the Apostle St. Peter, but 
 for St. Peter, Bishop of Alexandria, whose day 
 in the Catholic calendar is November 26, the 
 day of the month Viscaino anchored in the Bay 
 of San Pedro. 
 
 Sailing up the coast, Viscaino passed through 
 the Santa Barbara channel, which was so named 
 by Antonio de la Ascencion, a Carmelite friar, 
 who was chaplain of one of the ships. The ex- 
 pedition entered the channel December 4, which 
 is the day in the Catholic calendar dedicated to 
 Santa Barbara. He visited the mainland near 
 Point Concepcion where the Indian chief of a 
 populous rancheria offered each Spaniard who 
 would become a resident of his town ten wives. 
 This generous offer was rejected. December 
 15, 1602, he reached Point Pinos, so named by 
 Cabrillo, and cast anchor in the bay formed by 
 its projection. This bay he named Monterey, 
 in honor of the viceroy, Conde de Monte Rey. 
 Many of his men were sick with the scurvy and 
 his provisions were becoming exhausted; so, 
 placing the sick and disabled on the San Tomas, 
 he sent them back to Acapulco; but few of them 
 ever reached their destination. On the 3d of 
 January, 1603, with two ships, he proceeded on 
 
 his search for Cape Mendocino, the northern 
 limit of his survey. The Manila galleons on 
 their return voyage from the Philippines sailed 
 up the Asiatic coast to the latitude of Japan, 
 when, taking advantage of the westerly wmds 
 and the Japan current, they crossed the Pacific, 
 striking the North American coast in about the 
 latitude of Cape Mendocino, and from there 
 they ran. down the coast of Las Cahfornias and 
 across the gulf to Acapulco. After leaving 
 Point Reyes a storm separated his ships and 
 drove him as far north as Cape Blanco. The 
 smaller vessel, commanded by Martin de Agui- 
 lar, was driven north by the storm to latitude 
 43°, where he discovered what seemed to be 
 the mouth of a great river; attempting to enter 
 it, he was driven back by the swift current. 
 Aguilar, believing he had discovered the western 
 entrance of the Straits of Anian, sailed for 
 New Spain to report his discovery. He, his 
 chief pilot and most of his crew died of scurvy 
 before the vessel reached Navidad. Viscaino, 
 after sighting Cape Blanco, turned and sailed 
 down the coast of California, reaching Acapulco 
 March 21, 1603. 
 
 Viscaino, in a letter to the King of Spain,, 
 dated at the City of Mexico, May 23, 1603, 
 grows enthusiastic over California climate and 
 ]n-oductions. It is the earliest known specimen 
 of California boom literature. After depicting 
 the commodiousness of Monterey Bay as a port 
 of safety for the Philippine ships, he says : "This 
 port is sheltered from all winds, while on the im- 
 mediate shores there are pines, frofn which masts 
 of any desired size can be obtained, as well as 
 live oaks and white oaks, rosemary, the vine, the 
 rose of Alexandria, a great variety of game, such 
 as rabbits, hare, partridges and other sorts and 
 species found in Spain. This land has a genial 
 climate, its waters are good and it is fertile, 
 judging from the varied and luxuriant growth 
 of trees and plants; and it is thickly settled with 
 people whom I found to be of gentle disposition, 
 peaceable and docile. * * * Their food con- 
 sists of seeds which they have in great abun- 
 dance and variety, and of the flesh of game such 
 as deer, which are larger than cows, and bear, 
 and of neat cattle and bisons and many other 
 animals. The Indians are of good stature and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 43 
 
 fair complexion, the women being somewhat 
 less in size than the men, and of pleasing counte- 
 nance. The clothing of the people of the coast 
 lands consists of the skins of the sea wolves 
 (otter) abounding there, which they tan and 
 dress better than is done in Castile; they pos- 
 sess also in great quantity flax like that of Cas- 
 tile, hemp and cotton, from which they make 
 fishing lines and nets for rabbits and hares. 
 They have vessels of pine wood, very well made, 
 in which they go to sea with fourteen paddle- 
 men of a side, with great dexterity in very 
 stormy weather. * * * They are well ac- 
 quainted with gold and silver and said that 
 these were found in the interior." 
 
 The object of Viscaino's boom literature of 
 three hundred years ago was the promotion of a 
 colony scheme for the founding of a settlement 
 on Monterey Bay. He visited Spain to obtain the 
 consent of the king and assistance in planting 
 a colony. After many delays, Philip III, in 
 1606, ordered the viceroy of New Spain to fit 
 out immediately an expedition to be com- 
 manded by Viscaino for the occupation and set- 
 tlement of the port of Monterey. Before the ex- 
 pedition could be gotten ready VisMino died and 
 his colonization scheme died with him. Had he 
 lived to carry out his scheme, the settlement of 
 California would have antedated that of James- 
 town, Va., by one year. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 COLONIZATION OF ALTA CALIFORNIA. 
 
 iTT HUNDRED and sixty years passed after 
 l\ the abandonment of Viscaino's coloniza- 
 tion scheme before the Spanish crown 
 made another attempt to utilize its vast posses- 
 sions in Alta Cahfornia. The Manila galleons 
 sailed down the coast year after year for more 
 than a century and a half, yet in all this long 
 space of time none of them so far as we know 
 ever entered a harbor or bay on the upper Cali- 
 fornia coast. Spain still held- her vast colonial 
 possessions in America, but with a loosening 
 grasp. As the years went by she had fallen 
 from her high estate. Her power on sea and 
 land had weakened. Those brave old sea kings, 
 Drake, Hawkins and Frobisher, had destroyed 
 her invincible Armada and burned her ships in 
 her very harbors. The English and Dutch pri- 
 vateers had preyed upon her commerce on the 
 high seas and the buccaneers had robbed her 
 treasure-ships and devastated her settlements on 
 the islands and the Spanish main, while the free- 
 booters of many nations had time and again 
 captured her galleons and ravished her colonies 
 on the Pacific coast. The energy and enterprise 
 that had been a marked characteristic of her 
 people in the days of Cortes and Pizarro were 
 ebbing away. The cruelty and rehgious intol- 
 
 erance of her kings, her nobles and her clergy, 
 had sapped the bravery of her people. The fear 
 of her Holy Inquisition palsied effort and sub- 
 stituted in her people cringing fbr courage. For 
 three centuries the rack and the thumb-screw 
 of her Holy Office had never been allowed to 
 rust from disuse nor its fires to burn out for 
 want of victims. In trying to kill heresy her 
 rulers were slowly but surely kilHng Spain. 
 Proscriptive laws and the fear of the inquisition 
 had driven into exile the most enterprising and 
 the most intelligent classes of her people. Spain 
 was decaying with the dry rot of bigotry. Other 
 nations stood ready to take advantage of her 
 decadence. Her old-time enemy, England, which 
 had gained in power as Spain had lost, was ever 
 on the alert to take advantage of her weakness; 
 and another power, Russia, almost unknown 
 among the powers of Europe when Spain was 
 in her prime, was threatening her possessions in 
 Alta California. To hold this vast country it 
 must be colonized, but her restrictions on com- 
 merce and her proscriptive laws against foreign 
 immigrants had shut the door to her colonial 
 possessions against colonists from all other na- 
 tions. Her sparse settlements in Mexico could 
 spare no colonists. The indigenous inhabitants 
 
44 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of California must be converted to Christianity 
 and made into citizens. Poor material indeed 
 were these degraded savages, but Spain's needs 
 were pressing and missionary zeal was powerful. 
 Indeed, the pristine courage and daring of the 
 Spanish soldier seemed to have passed to her 
 missionary priest. 
 
 The Jesuits had begun missionary work in 
 1697 among the degraded inhabitants of Lower 
 California. With a perseverance that was highly 
 commendable and a bravery that was heroic, 
 under their devoted leaders, Salvatierra, Kino, 
 Ugarte, Piccolo and their successors, they 
 founded sixteen missions on the peninsula. 
 Father Kino (or Kuhn), a German Jesuit, be- 
 sides his missionary work, between 1694 and 
 1702, had made explorations around the head 
 of the Gulf of California and up the Rio Colo- 
 rado to the mouth of the Gila, which had clearly 
 demonstrated that Lower California was a pen- 
 insula and not an island. Although Ulloa had 
 sailed down the inner coast and up the outer 
 coast of Lower California and Domingo del 
 Castillo, a Spanish pilot, had made a correct 
 map showing it to be a peninsula, so strong was 
 the belief in the existence of the Straits of 
 Anian that one hundred and sixty years after 
 Ulloa's voyage Las Californias were still be- 
 lieved to be islands and were sometimes called 
 Islas Carolinas, or the Islands of Charles, named 
 so for Charles II. of Spain. Father Kino had 
 formed the design of establishing a chain of mis- 
 sions from Sonora around the head of the gulf 
 and down the inner coast of Lower California to 
 Cape San Lucas. He did not live to complete 
 his ambitious project. The Jesuit missions of 
 Baja California never grew rich in flocks and 
 herds. The country was sterile and the few 
 small valleys of fertile land around the missions 
 gave the padres and the neophytes at best but a 
 frugal return for their labors. 
 
 For years there had been, in the Catholic 
 countries of Europe, a growing fear and dis- 
 trust of the Jesuits. Portugal had declared them 
 traitors to the government and had banished 
 them in 1759 from her dominions. France had 
 suppressed the order in her domains in 1764. 
 In 1767, King Carlos III., by a pragmatic sanc- 
 tion or decree, ordered their expulsion from 
 
 Spain and all her American colonies. So great 
 and powerful was the influence of the order that 
 the decree for their expulsion was kept secret 
 until the moment of its execution. Throughout 
 all parts of the kingdom, at a certain hour of 
 the night, a summons came to every college, 
 monastery or other establishment where mem- 
 bers of the order dwelt, to assemble by com- 
 mand of the king in the chapel or refectory 
 immediately. The decree of perpetual banish- 
 ment was then read to them. They were hastily 
 bundled into vehicles that were awaiting them 
 outside and hurried to the nearest seaport, 
 where they were shipped to Rome. During 
 their journey to the sea-coast they were not al- 
 lowed to communicate with their friends nor 
 permitted to speak to persons they met on the 
 way. By order of the king, any subject who 
 should undertake to vindicate the Jesuits in writ- 
 ing should be deemed guilty of treason and con- 
 demned to death. 
 
 The Lower California missions were too dis- 
 tant and too isolated to enforce the king's de- 
 cree with the same haste and secrecy that was 
 observed in Spain and Mexico. To Governor 
 Caspar de Portola was entrusted the enforce- 
 ment of their banishment. These missions were 
 transferred to the Franciscans, but it took time 
 to make the substitution. He proceeded with 
 great caution and care lest the Indians should 
 become rebellious and demoralized. It was not 
 imtil February, 1768, that all the Jesuit mis- 
 sionaries were assembled at La Paz; from there 
 they were sent to Mexico and on the 13th of 
 April, at Vera Cruz, they bade farewell to the 
 western continent. 
 
 At the head of the Franciscan contingent that 
 came to Bahia, Cal., to take charge of the aban- 
 doned missions, was Father Junipero Serra, a 
 man of indomitable will and great missionarv 
 zeal. Miguel Jose Serra was born on the island of 
 Majorica in the year 1713. After completing liis 
 studies in the Lullian University, at the age of 
 eighteen he became a monk and was admitted 
 into the order of Franciscans. On taking or- 
 ders he assumed the name of Junipero (Juniper). 
 Among the disciples of St. Francis was a very 
 zealous and devoted monk who bore the name 
 of Junipero, of whom St. Francis once said, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 45 
 
 "Would to God, my brothers, that I had a whole 
 forest of such Junipers." Serra's favorite study 
 was the "Lives of the Saints," and no doubt the 
 study of the life of the original Junipero influ- 
 enced him to take that saint's name. Serra's 
 ambition was to become a missionary, but it was 
 not until he was nearly forty years of age that 
 his desire was gratified. In 1749 he came to 
 Mexico and January i, 1750, entered the College 
 of San Fernando. A few months later he was 
 given charge of an Indian mission in the Sierra 
 Gorda mountains, where, with his assistant and 
 hfelong friend, Father Palou, he remained nuie 
 years. Under his instructions the Indians were 
 taught agriculture and the mission became a 
 model establishment of its kind. From this 
 mountain mission Serra returned to the city of 
 Mexico. He spent seven years in doing mis- 
 sionary work among the Spanish population of 
 the capital and surrounding country. His suc- 
 cess as a preacher and his great missionary zeal 
 led to his selection as president of the missions 
 of California, from which the Jesuits had been 
 removed. April 2, 1768, he arrived in the port of 
 Loreto with fifteen associates from the College 
 of San Fernando. These were sent to the dif- 
 ferent missions of the peninsula. These mis- 
 sions extended over a territory seven hundred 
 miles in length and it recjuired several months 
 to locate all the missionaries. The scheme for 
 the occupation and colonization of Alta Cali- 
 fornia was to be jointly the work of church and 
 state. The representative of the state was Jose 
 de Galvez, visitador-general of New Spain, a 
 man of untiring energy, great executive ability, 
 sound business sense and, as such men are and 
 ought to be, somewhat arbitrary. Galvez 
 reached La Paz in July, 1768. He immediately 
 set about investigating the condition of the 
 peninsula missions and supplying their needs. 
 This done, he turned his attention to the north- 
 ern colonization. He established his headquar- 
 ters at Santa Ana near La Paz. Here he sum- 
 moned Father Junipero for consultation in 
 regard to the founding of missions in Alta Cali- 
 fornia. It was decided to proceed to the initial 
 points San Diego arid Monterey by land and sea. 
 Three ships were to be dispatched carrying the 
 heavier articles, such as agricultural imple- 
 
 ments, church ornaments, and a supply of provi- 
 sions for the support of the soldiers and priest 
 after their arrival in California. The expedi- 
 tion by land was to take along cattle • and 
 horses to stock the country. This expedition 
 was divided into two detachments, the advance 
 one under the command of Rivera y Moncada, 
 who had been a long time in the country, and 
 the second division under Governor Caspar de 
 Portola, who was a newcomer. Captain Rivera 
 was sent northward to collect from the missions 
 ail the live stock and supplies that could be 
 spared and take them to Santa Maria, the most 
 northern mission of the peninsula. Stores of 
 all kinds were collected at La Paz. Father 
 Serra made a tour of the missions and secured 
 such church furniture, ornaments and vestments 
 as could be spared. 
 
 The first vessel fitted out for the expedition 
 by sea was the San Cailos, a ship of about 
 two hundred tons burden, leaky and badly con- 
 structed. She sailed from La Paz January 9, 
 1769, under the command of Vicente Vila. In 
 addition to the crew there were twenty-five Cat- 
 aionian soldiers, commanded by Lieutenant 
 Fages, Pedro Prat, the surgeon, a Franciscan 
 friar, two blacksmiths, a baker, a cook and two 
 tortilla makers. Galvez in a small vessel accom- 
 panied the San Carlos to Cape San Lucas, where 
 lie landed and set to work to fit out the San 
 y\ntonio. On the 15th of February this vessel 
 sailed from San Jose del Cabo (San Jose of the 
 Cape), under the command of Juan Perez, an 
 expert pilot, who had been engaged in the Phil- 
 ippine trade. On this vessel went two Franciscan 
 friars, Juan Viscaino and Francisco Gomez. 
 Captain Rivera y Moncada, who was to pioneer 
 the way, had collected supplies and cattle at Vel- 
 icata on the northern frontier. From here, with 
 a small force of soldiers, a gang of neophytes 
 and three muleteers, and accompanied by Padre 
 Crespi, he began his march to San Diego on the 
 24th of March, 1769. 
 
 The second land expedition, commanded by 
 Governor Caspar de Portola in person, began 
 its march from Loreto, March 9, 1769. Father 
 Serra, who was to have accompanied it, was de- 
 tained at Loreto by a sore leg. He joined the 
 expedition at Santa Maria, May 5, where it had 
 
46 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 been waiting for him some time. It then pro- 
 ceeded to Rivera's camp at VeHcata, sixty miles 
 further north, where Serra founded a mission, 
 naming it San Fernando. Campa Coy, a friar 
 who had accompanied the expedition thus far, 
 was left in charge. This mission was intended 
 as a frontier post in the travel between the pen- 
 insula missions and the Alta California settle- 
 ments. On the isth of May Portola began his 
 northern march, following the trail of Rivera. 
 Galvez had named, by proclamation, St. 'Joseph 
 as the patron saint of the California expeditions. 
 Santa Maria was designated as the patroness of 
 conversions. 
 
 The San Antonia, the last vessel to sail, was 
 the first to arrive at San Diego. It anchored in 
 the bay April ii, 1769, after a prosperous voy- 
 age of twenty-four days. There she remained 
 at anchor, awaiting the arrival of the San Car- 
 los, the flag ship of the expedition, which had 
 sailed more than a month before her. On the 
 29th of April the San Carlos, after a disastrous 
 voyage of one hundred and ten days, drifted 
 into the Bay of San Diego, her crew prostrated 
 with the scurvy, not enough able-bodied men 
 being left to man a boat. Canvas tents were 
 pitched and the afflicted men taken ashore. 
 When the disease had run its course nearly all 
 of the crew of the San Carlos, half of the sol- 
 diers who had come on her, and nine of the 
 sailors of the San Antonio, were dead. 
 
 On the 14th of May Captain Rivera y Mon- 
 cada's detachment arrived. The expedition had 
 made the journey from Velicata in fifty-one 
 days. On the first of July the second division, 
 commanded by Portola, arrived. The journey 
 had been uneventful. The four divisions of the 
 grand expedition were now united, but its num- 
 bers had been greatly reduced. Out of two 
 hundred and nineteen who had set out by land 
 and sea only one hundred and twenty-six re- 
 mained; death from scurvy and the desertion of 
 the neophytes had reduced the numbers nearly 
 one-half. The ravages of the scurvy had de- 
 stroyed the crew of one of the vessels and 
 greatly crippled that of the other, so it was im- 
 possible to proceed by sea to Monterey, the 
 second objective point of the expedition. A 
 council of the officers was held and it was de- 
 
 cided to send the San Antofiia back to San Bias 
 for supplies and sailors to man the San Carlos. 
 The San Antonia sailed on the 9th of July and 
 after a voyage of twenty days reached her des- 
 tination; but short as the voyage was, half of 
 the crew died of the scurvy on the passage. In 
 early American navigation the scurvy was the 
 most dreaded scourge of the sea, more to be 
 feared than storm and shipwreck. These might 
 happen occasionally, but the scurvy always made 
 its appearance on long voyages, and sometimes 
 destroyed the whole ship's crew. Its appearance 
 and ravages were largely due to the neglect of 
 sanitary precautions and to the utter indiffer- 
 ence of those in authority to provide for the 
 comfort and health of the sailors. The interces- 
 sion of the saints, novenas, fasts and penance 
 were relied upon to protect and save the vessel 
 and her crew, while the simplest sanitary meas- 
 ures were utterly disregarded. A blind, unrea- 
 soning faith that was always seeking interposi- 
 tion from some power without to preserve and 
 ignoring the power within,' was the bane and 
 curse of that age of superstition. 
 
 If the mandates of King Carlos III. and the 
 instructions of the visitador-general, Jose de 
 Galvez, were to be carried out, the expedition 
 for the settlement of the second point designated 
 (Monterey) must be made by land; accordingly 
 Governor Portola set about organizing his 
 forces for the overland journey. On the 14th 
 of July the expedition began its march. It con- 
 sisted of Governor Portola, Padres Crespi and 
 Gomez, Captain Rivera y Moncada, Lieutenant 
 Pedro Pages, Engineer Miguel Constanso, sol- 
 diers, muleteers and Indian servants, number- 
 ing in all sixty-two persons. 
 
 On the i6th of July, two days after the de- 
 parture of Governor Portola, Father Junipero, 
 assisted by Padres Viscaino and Parron, founded 
 the mission of San Diego. The site selected 
 was in what is now Old Town, near the tempo- 
 rary presidio, which had been hastily con- 
 •structed before the departure of Governor Por- 
 tola. A hut of boughs had been constructed 
 and in this the ceremonies of founding were 
 held. The Indians, while interested in what was 
 going on, manifested no desire to be converted. 
 They were willing to receive gifts, particularly 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 47 
 
 of cloth, but would not taste the food of the 
 Spaniards, fearing that it contained poison and 
 attributing the many deaths among the soldiers 
 and sailors to the food. The Indians had a great 
 liking for pieces of cloth, and their desire to 
 obtain this led to an attack upon the people of 
 the mission. On the 14th of August, taking 
 advantage of the absence of Padre Parron and 
 two soldiers, they broke into the mission and 
 began robbing it and the beds of the sick. The 
 four soldiers, a carpenter and a blacksmith ral- 
 lied to the defense, and after several of their 
 numbers had fallen by the guns of the soldiers, 
 the Indians fled. A boy servant of the padres 
 was killed and Father Viscaino wounded in the 
 hand. After this the Indians were more cau- 
 tious. 
 
 We now return to the march of Portola's ex- 
 pedition. As the first exploration of the main 
 land of California was made by it, I give con- 
 siderable space to the incidents of the journey. 
 Crespi, Constanso and Pages kept journals of 
 the march. I quote from those of Constanso 
 and Crespi. Lieutenant Constanso thus de- 
 scribes the order of the march. "The setting- 
 forth was on the 14th day of June* of the cited 
 year of '69. The two divisions of the expedition 
 by land marched in one, the commander so ar- 
 ranging because the number of horse-herd and 
 packs was much, since of provisions and victuals 
 alone they carried one hundred packs, which he 
 estimated to be necessary to ration all the folk 
 during six months; thus providing against a 
 delay of the packets, altho' it was held to be 
 impossible that in this interval some one of 
 them should fail to arrive at Monterey. On 
 the marches the following order was observed: 
 At the head vvcnt the commandant with the offi- 
 cers, the six men of the Catalonia volunteers, 
 who added themselves at San Diego, and some 
 friendly Indians, with spades, mattocks, crow- 
 bars, axes and other implements of pioneers, to 
 chop and open a passage whenever necessary. 
 After them followed the pack-train, divided into 
 four bands with the muleteers and a competent 
 number of garrison soldiers for their escort with 
 each band. In the rear guard with the rest of 
 
 ♦Evidently an error; it shoy'.d be July 14th. 
 
 the troops and friendly Indians came the cap- 
 tain, Don Fernando Rivera, convoying the 
 horse-herd and the mule herd for relays." 
 * * * 
 
 "It must be well considered that the marches 
 of these troops with such a train and with such 
 embarrassments thro' unknown lands and un- 
 used paths could not be long ones ; leaving aside 
 the other causes which obliged them to halt 
 and camp early in the afternoon, that is to say, 
 the necessity of exploring the land one day for 
 the next, so as to regulate them (the marches) 
 according to the distance of the watering-places 
 and to take in consequence the proper precau- 
 tions; setting forth again on special occasions 
 in the evening, after having given water to the 
 beasts in that same hour upon the sure informa- 
 tion that in the following stretch there was no 
 water or that the watering place was low, or the 
 pasture scarce. The restings were measured by 
 the necessity, every four days, more or less, 
 according to the extraordinary fatigue occa- 
 sioned by the greater roughness of the road, 
 the toil of the pioneers, or the wandering ofif of 
 the beasts which were missing from the horse 
 herd and which it was necessary to seek by their 
 tracks. At other times, by the necessity of 
 humoring the sick, when there were any, and 
 with time there were many who yielded up their 
 strength to the continued fatigue, the excessive 
 heat and cruel cold. In the form and according 
 to the method related the Spaniards executed 
 their marches; traversing immense lands more 
 fertile and more pleasing in proportion as they 
 penetrated more to the north. All in general are 
 peopled with a multitude of Indians, who came 
 out to meet them and in some parts accompa- 
 nied them from one stage of the journey to the 
 next; a folk very docile and tractable chiefly 
 from San Diego onward." 
 
 Constanso's description of the Indians of 
 Santa Barbara will be found in the chapter on the 
 "Aborigines of California." "From the chan- 
 nel of Santa Barbara onward the lands are not 
 so populous nor the Indians so industrious, but 
 they are equally afifable and tractable. The 
 Spaniards pursued their voyage without opposi- 
 tion up to the Sierra of Santa Lucia, which the.y 
 contrived to cross with much hardship. At the 
 
48 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 foot of said Sierra on trie north side is to be 
 found the port of Monterey, according to an- 
 cient reports, between the Point of Pines and 
 
 that of Ano Nuevo (New Year). The Spaniards .,...^.. rl t- t t 
 
 caught sight of said points on the ist of October and were obHged to make great detours^to^get 
 of the year '69, and, believing they had arrived 
 
 land as far as Point de los Reyes. The scouts 
 who were commissioned for this purpose found 
 themselves obstructed by immense estuaries 
 which run extraordinarily far back into the land 
 
 at the end of their voyage, the commandant sent 
 the scouts forward to reconnoitre the Point of 
 Pines; in whose near vicinity lies said Port in 
 T,6 degrees and 40 minutes North Latitude. But 
 the scant tokens and equivocal ones which are 
 given of it by the Pilot Cabrera Bueno, the only 
 clue of this voyage, and the character of this 
 Port, which rather merits the name of Bay, 
 being spacious (in likeness to that of Cadiz), 
 not corresponding with ideas which it is natural 
 to form in reading the log of the aforemen- 
 tioned Cabrera Bueno, nor with the latitude of 
 37 degrees in which he located it, the scouts were 
 persuaded that the Port must be farther to the 
 north and they returned to the camp which our 
 people occupied with the report that what they 
 sought was not to be seen in those parts." 
 
 They decided that the Port was still further 
 north and resumed their march. Seventeen of 
 their number were sick with the scurvy, some of 
 whom, Constanso says, seemed to be in their 
 last extremity; these had to be carried in lit- 
 ters. To add to their miseries, the rains began 
 in the latter part of October, and with them 
 came an epidemic of diarrhea, "which spread to 
 all without exception; and it came to be feared 
 that this sickness which prostrated their powers 
 and left the persons spiritless, would finish with 
 the expedition altogether. But it turned out 
 quite to the contrary.'' Those afflicted with the 
 scurvy began to mend and in a short time they 
 were restored to health. Constanso thus describes 
 the discovery of the Bay of San Francisco: 
 "The last day of October the Expedition by land 
 came in sight of Punta de Los Reyes and the 
 T-'arallones of the Port of San Francisco, whose 
 landmarks, compared with those related by 
 the log of the Pilot Cabrera Bueno, were found 
 exact. Thereupon it became of evident knowl- 
 edge that the Port of Monterey had been left 
 behind; there being few who stuck to the 
 contrary opinion. Nevertheless the comman- 
 dant resolved to send to reconnoitre the 
 
 around the heads of these. =^ ^ - Having 
 arrived at the end of the first estuary and recon- 
 noitered the land that would have to be followed 
 to arrive at the Point de Los Reyes, interrupted 
 with new estuaries, scant pasturage and fire- 
 v/ood and having recognized, besides this, the 
 uncertainty of the news and the misapprehen- 
 sion the scouts had labored under, the com- 
 mandant, with the advice of his officers, resolved 
 upon a retreat to the Point of Pines in hopes of 
 finding the Port of Monterey and encountering 
 in it the Packet San Jose or the San Antonia, 
 whose succor already was necessary; since of 
 the provisions which had been taken in San 
 Diego no more remained than some few sacks of 
 flour of which a short ration was issued to each 
 individual daily." 
 
 "On the eleventh day of November was put 
 into execution the retreat in search of Mon- 
 terey. The Spaniards reached said port and 
 the Point of Pines on the 28th of Novem- 
 ber. They maintained themselves in this place 
 imtil the loth of December without any ves- 
 sel having appeared in this time. For which 
 reason and noting also a lack of victuals, and 
 that the sierra of Santa Lucia was covering 
 itself with snow, the commandant, Don Caspar 
 de Portola, saw himself obliged to decide to 
 continue the retreat unto San Diego, leaving 
 it until a better occasion to return to the enter- 
 prise. On this retreat the Spaniards experi- 
 enced some hardships and necessities, because 
 they entirely lacked provisions, and because the 
 long marches, which necessity obliged to make 
 to reach San Diego, gave no time for seeking 
 sustenance by the chase, nor did game abound 
 equally everywhere. At this juncture they killed 
 twelve mules of the pack-train on whose meat 
 the folk nourished themselves unto San Diego, 
 at which new establishment they arrived, all in 
 health, on the 24th of January, 1770." 
 
 The San Jose, the third ship fitted out by 
 A^isitador-General Galvez, and which Governor 
 Portola expected to find in the Bay of Monte- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 49 
 
 rey, sailed from San Jose del Cabo in May, 
 1770, with supplies and a double crew to sup- 
 ply the loss of sailors on the other vessels, but 
 nothing was ever heard of her afterwards. Pro- 
 visions were running low at San Diego, no ship 
 had arrived, and Governor Portola had decided 
 to abandon the place and return to Loreto. 
 Father Junipero was averse to this and prayed 
 unceasingly for the intercession of Saint Joseph, 
 the patron of the expedition. A novena or nine 
 days' public prayer was instituted to terminate 
 with a grand ceremonial on March 19th, which 
 was the saint's own day. But on the 23rd of 
 March, when all were ready to depart, the 
 packet San Antonia arrived. She had sailed 
 from San Bias the 20th of December. She en- 
 countered a storm which drove her four hun- 
 dred leagues from the coast; then she made 
 land in 35 degrees north latitude. Turning her 
 prow southward, she ran down to Point Concep- 
 cion, where at an anchorage in the Santa Bar- 
 bara channel the captain, Perez, took on water 
 and learned from the Indians of the return of 
 Portola's expedition. The vessel then ran down 
 to San Diego, where its opportune arrival 
 prevented the abandonment of that settle- 
 ment. 
 
 With an abundant supply of provisions and a 
 vessel to carry the heavier articles needed in 
 forming a settlement at Monterey, Portola or- 
 ganized a second expedition. This time he took 
 with him only twenty soldiers and one officer. 
 Lieutenant Pedro Pages. He set out from San 
 Diego on the 17th of April and followed his trail 
 made the previous year. Father Serra and the 
 engineer, Constanso, sailed on the San Antonia, 
 which left the port of San Diego on the i6th of 
 April. The land expedition reached Monterey 
 on the 23d of May and the San Antonia on the 
 31st of the same month. On the 3d of June, 
 1770, the mission of San Carlos Borromeo de 
 Monterey was formally founded with solemn 
 church ceremonies, accompanied by the ringing 
 of bells, the crack of musketry and the roar of 
 cannon. Father Serra conducted the church 
 services. Governor Portola took possession of 
 the land in the name of King Carlos III. A 
 presidio or fort of palisades was built and a few 
 huts erected. Portola, having formed the nu- 
 cleus of a settlement, turned over the commmd 
 of the territory to Lieutenant Pages. On the 
 9th of July, 1770, he sailed on the San Antonia 
 for San Bias, He never returned to Alta Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 CHAPTER IV- 
 
 ABORIGINES OF CALIFORNIA, 
 
 WHETHER the primitive California In- 
 dian was the low and degraded being 
 that some modern writers represent 
 him to have been, admits of doubt. A mis- 
 sion training continued through three gen- 
 erations did not elevate him in morals at least. 
 When freed from mission restraint and brought 
 in contact with the white race he lapsed into a 
 condition more degraded and more debased than 
 that in which the missionaries found him. 
 Whether it was the inherent fault of the Indian 
 or the fault of his training is a question that is 
 useless to discuss now. If we are to believe the 
 accounts of the California Indian given by Vis- 
 caino and Congtango, who saw him before he 
 
 had come in contact with civilization he was not 
 inferior in intelHgence to the nomad aborigines 
 of the country east of the Rocky mountains. 
 
 Sebastian Viscaino thus describes the In- 
 dians he found on the shores of Monterey Bay 
 three hundred years ago: 
 
 "The Indians are of good stature and fair 
 complexion, the women being somewhat less in 
 size than the men and of pleasing countenance. 
 The clothing of the people of the coast lands 
 consists of the skins of the sea-wolves (otter) 
 abounding there, which they tan and dress bet- 
 ter than is done in Castile; they possess also, 
 in great quantity, flax like that of Castile, hemp 
 and cotton, from which they make fishing-lines 
 
60 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and nets for rabbits and hares. They have ves- 
 sels of pine wood very well made, in which they 
 go to sea with fourteen paddle men on a side 
 with great dexterity, even in stormy weather." 
 
 Indians who could construct boats of pine 
 boards that took twenty-eight paddle men to 
 row were certainly superior in maritime craft 
 to the birch bark canoe savages of the east. 
 We might accuse Viscaino, who was trying to 
 induce King Philip III. to found a colony on 
 Monterey Bay, of exaggeration in regard to 
 the Indian boats were not his statements con- 
 firmed by the engineer, Miguel Constanso, who 
 accompanied Portola's expedition one hundred 
 and sixty-seven years after Viscaino visited the 
 coast. Constanso, writing of the Indians of the 
 Santa Barbara Channel, says, "The dexterity 
 and skill of these Indians is surpassing in the 
 construction of their launches made of pine 
 planking. They are from eight to ten varas 
 (twenty-three to twenty-eight feet) in length, 
 including their rake and a vara and a half (four 
 feet three inches) beam. Into their fabric enters 
 no iron whatever, of the use of which they know 
 little. But they fasten the boards with firmness, 
 one to another, working their drills just so far 
 apart and at a distance of an inch from the edge, 
 the holes in the upper boards corresponding- 
 with those in the lower, and through these holes 
 they pass strong lashings of deer sinews. They 
 pitch and calk the seams, and paint the whole 
 in sightly colors. They handle the boats with 
 equal cleverness, and three or four men go out 
 to sea to fish in them, though they have capacity 
 to carry eight or ten. They use long oars with 
 two blades and row with unspeakable lightness 
 and velocity. They know all the arts of fishing, 
 and fish abound along their coasts as has been 
 said of San Diego. They have communication 
 and commerce with the natives of the islands, 
 whence they get the beads of coral which are 
 current in place of money through these lands, 
 although they hold in more esteem the glass 
 beads which the Spaniards gave them, and of- 
 fered in exchange for these whatever they had 
 like trays, otter skins, baskets and wooden 
 plates. * * * 
 
 "They are likewise great hunters. To kill 
 deer and antelope they avail themselves of an 
 
 admirable ingenuity. They preserve the hide 
 of the head and part of the neck of some one 
 of these animals, skinned with care and leaving 
 the horns attached to the same hide, which they 
 stuff with grass or straw to keep its shap.e. 
 They put this said shell like a cap upon the head 
 - and go forth to the woods with this rare equip- 
 age. On sighting the deer or antelope they go 
 dragging themselves along the ground little by 
 little with the left hand. In the right they carry 
 the bow and four arrows. They lower and raise 
 the head, moving it to one side and the other, 
 and making other demonstrations so like these 
 animals that they attract them without difficulty 
 to the snare; and having them within a short 
 distance, they discharge their arrows at them 
 with certainty of hitting." 
 
 In the two chief occupations of the savage, 
 hunting and fishing, the Indians of the Santa 
 Barbara Channel seem to have been the equals 
 if not the superiors of their eastern brethren. 
 In the art of war they were inferior. Their 
 easy conquest by the Spaniards and their tame 
 .subjection to mission rule no doubt had much 
 to do with giving them a reputation for infe- 
 riority. 
 
 The Indians of the interior valleys and those 
 of the coast belonged to the same general fam- 
 ily. There were no great tribal divisions like 
 those that existed among the Indians east of the 
 Rocky mountains. Each rancheria was to a 
 certain extent independent of all others, al- 
 though at times they were known to combine 
 for war or plunder. Although not warlike, they 
 sometimes resisted the whites in battle with 
 great bravery. Each village had its own terri- 
 tory in which to hunt and fish and its own sec- 
 tion in which to gather nuts, seeds and herbs. 
 While their mode of living was somewhat no- 
 madic they seem to have had a fixed location for 
 their rancherias. 
 
 The early Spanish settlers of California and 
 the mission padres have left but very meager 
 accounts of the manners, customs, traditions, 
 government and religion of the aborigines. The 
 padres were too intent upon driving out the old 
 religious beliefs of the Indian and instilling new 
 ones to care much what the aborigine had for- 
 merly believed or what traditions or myths he 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 51 
 
 had inherited from his ancestors. They ruth- 
 lessly destroyed his fetiches and his altars 
 wherever they found them, regarding them as 
 inventions of the devil. 
 
 . The best account that has come down to us 
 of the primitive life of the Southern CaHfornia 
 aborigines is found in a series of letters written 
 by Hugo Reid and published in the Los An- 
 geles Star in 1851-52. Reid was an educated 
 Scotchman, who came to Los Angeles in 1834. 
 He married an Indian woman, Dona Victoria, a 
 neophyte of the San Gabriel mission. She was 
 the daughter of an Indian chief. It is said that 
 Reid had been crossed in love by some high 
 toned Spanish seilorita and married the Indian 
 woman because she had the same name as his 
 lost love. It is generally believed that Reid was 
 the putative father of Helen Hunt Jackson's 
 heroine, Ramona. 
 
 From these letters, now in the possession of 
 the Historical Society of Southern California, 
 I briefly collate some of the leading character- 
 istics of the Southern Indians : 
 
 GOVERNMENT. 
 
 "Before the Indians belonging to the greater 
 part of this country were known to the whites 
 they comprised, as it were, one great family 
 under distinct chiefs ; they spoke nearly the same 
 language, with the exception of a few words, 
 and were more to be distinguished by a local 
 intonation of the voice than anything else. Be- 
 ing related by ^blood and marriage war was 
 never carried on between them. When war was 
 consequently waged against neighboring tribes 
 of no afSnity it was a common cause." 
 
 "The government of the people was invested 
 in the hands of their chiefs, each captain com- 
 manding his own lodge. The command was 
 hereditary in a family. If the right line of de- 
 scent ran out they elected one of the same kin 
 nearest in blood. Laws in general were made 
 as required, with some few standing ones. Rob- 
 bery was never known among them. Murder 
 was of rare occurrence and punished with death. 
 Incest was likewise punished with death, being 
 held in such abhorrence that marriages between 
 kinsfolk were not allowed. The manner of put- 
 ting to death was by shooting the delinquent 
 
 with arrows. If a quarrel ensued between two 
 parties the chief of the lodge took cognizance 
 in the case and decided according to. the testi- 
 mony produced. But if a quarrel occurred 
 between parties of distinct lodges, each chief 
 heard the witnesses produced by his own people, 
 and then, associated with the chief of the oppo- 
 site side, they passed sentence. In case they 
 could not agree an impartial chief was called in, 
 who heard the statements made by both and he 
 alone decided. There was no appeal from his de- 
 cision. Whipping was never resorted to as a 
 punishment. All fines and sentences consisted in 
 delivering shells, money, food and skins." 
 
 RELIGION. 
 
 "They believed in one God, the Maker and 
 Creator of all things, whose name was and is 
 held so sacred among them as hardly ever to be 
 used, and when used only in a low voice. That 
 name is Qua-o-ar. When they have to use the 
 name of the supreme being on an ordinary oc- 
 casion they substitute in its stead the word 
 Y-yo-ha-rory-nain or the Giver of Life. They 
 have only one word to designate life and 
 soul." 
 
 "The world was at one time in a state of chaos, 
 until God gave it its present formation, fixing 
 it on the shoulders of seven giants, made ex- 
 pressly for this end. They have their names, 
 and when they move themselves an earthquake 
 is the consequence. Animals were then formed, 
 and lastly man and woman were formed, separ- 
 ately from earth and ordered to live together. 
 The man's name was Tobahar and the woman's 
 Probavit. God ascended to Heaven immediately 
 afterward, where he receives the souls of all who 
 die. They had no bad spirits connected with 
 their creed, and never heard of a 'devil' or a 
 'heir until the coming of the Spaniards. They 
 believed in no resurrection whatever " 
 
 MARRIAGE. 
 
 "Chiefs had one, two or three wives, as their 
 inclination dictated, the subjects only one. When 
 a person wished to marry and had selected a 
 suitable partner, he advertised the same to all 
 his relatives, even to the nineteenth cousin. On 
 a day appointed the male portion of the lodge 
 
52 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 brought in a collection of money beads. All the 
 relations having come in with their share, 
 they (the males) proceeded in a body to the resi- 
 dence of the bride, to whom timely notice had 
 been given. All of the bride's female relations 
 had been assembled and the money was equally 
 divided among them, the bride receiving noth- 
 ing, as it was a sort of purchase. After a few 
 days the bride's female relations returned the 
 compliment by taking to the bridegroom's 
 dwelling baskets of meal made of chia, which 
 was distributed among the male relatives. These 
 preliminaries over, a day was fixed for the cere- 
 mony, which consisted in decking out the bride 
 in innumerable strings of beads, paint, feathers 
 and skins. On being ready she was taken up 
 in the arms of one of her strongest male rela- 
 tives, who carried her, dancing, towards her 
 lover's habitation. All of her family, friends and 
 neighbors accompanied, dancing around, throw- 
 ing food and edible seeds at her feet at every 
 step. These were collected in a scramble by ths 
 spectators as best they could. The relation:, 
 of the bridegroom met them half way, and, tak- 
 ing the bride, carried her themselves, joining in 
 the ceremonious walking dance. On arriving at 
 the bridegroom's (who was sitting within his 
 hut) she was inducted into her new residence by 
 being placed alongside of her husband, while 
 baskets of seeds were liberally emptied on their 
 heads to denote blessings and plenty. This was 
 likewise scrambled for by the spectators, who, 
 on gathering up all the bride's seed cake, de- 
 parted, leaving them to enjoy their honeymoon 
 according to usage. A grand dance was given 
 on the occasion, the warriors doing the danc- 
 ing, the young women doing the singing. The 
 wife never visited her relatives from that day 
 forth, although they were at liberty to visit her." 
 
 BURIALS. 
 
 "When a person died all the kin collected to 
 mourn his or her loss. Each one had his own 
 peculiar mode of crying or howling, as easily dis- 
 tinguished the one from the other as one song 
 is from another. After lamenting awhile a 
 mourning dirge was sung in a low whining tone, 
 accompanied by a shrill ; whistle produced by 
 blowing into the tube of a deer's leg bone. 
 
 Dancing can hardly be said to have formed a 
 part of the rites, as it was merely a monotonous 
 action of the foot on the ground. This was con- 
 tinued alternately until the body showed signs 
 of decay, when it was wrapped in the covering 
 used in life. The hands were crossed upon the 
 breast and the body tied from head to foot. A 
 grave having been dug in their burial ground, 
 the body was deposited with seeds, etc., accord- 
 ing to the means of the family. If the deceased 
 were the head of the family or a favorite son, 
 the hut in which he lived was burned up, as 
 likewise were all his personal effects." 
 
 FEUDS — THE SOXG FIGHTS. 
 
 "Animosity between persons or families was 
 of long duration, particularly between those of 
 different tribes. These feuds descended from 
 father to son until it was impossible to tell of 
 how many generations. They were, however, 
 harmless in themselves, being mefely a war of 
 songs, composed and sung against the conflict- 
 ing party, and they were all of the most obscene 
 and indecent language imaginable. There are 
 two families at this day (1851) whose feud com- 
 menced before the Spaniards were ever dreamed 
 of and they still continue singing and dancing 
 against each other. The one resides at the mis- 
 sion of San Gabriel and the other at ^an Juan 
 Capistrano; they both lived at San Bernardino 
 when the quarrel commenced. During the sing- 
 ing they continue stamping on the ground to 
 express the pleasure they wo,uld derive from 
 tramping on the graves of their foes. Eight days 
 was the duration of the song fight." 
 
 UTENSILS. 
 
 "From the bark of nettles was manufactured 
 thread for nets, fishing lines, etc. Needles, fish- 
 hooks, awls and many other articles were made 
 of either bone or shell; for cutting up meat a 
 knife of cane was invariably used. Mortars and 
 pestles were made of granite. Sharp stones and 
 perseverance were the only things used in their 
 manufacture, and so skillfully did they combine 
 the two that their work was always remarkabh- 
 uniform. Their pots to cook in were made of 
 soapstone of about an inch in thickness and 
 procured from the Indians of Santa Catalina. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 53 
 
 Their baskets, made out of a certain species of 
 rush, were used only for dry purposes, although 
 they were water proof. The vessels in use for 
 liquids were roughly made of rushes and plas- 
 tered outside and in with bitumen or pitch." 
 
 INDIANS OF THE SANTA BARBARA CHANNEL. 
 
 Miguel Constanso, the engineer who accom- 
 panied Portola's expedition in 1769, gives us the 
 best description of the Santa Barbara Indians 
 extant. 
 
 "The Indians in whom was recognized more 
 vivacity and industry are those that inhabit the 
 islands and the coast of the Santa Barbara 
 channel. They live in pueblos (villages) whose 
 houses are of spherical form in the fashion of a 
 half orange covered with rushes. They are up 
 to twenty varas (fifty-five feet) in diameter. Each 
 house contains three or four families. The 
 hearth is in the middle and in the top of the 
 house they leave a vent or chimney to give exit 
 for the smoke. In nothing did these gentiles 
 give the He to the affability and good treatment 
 which were experienced at their hands in other 
 times (1602) by the Spaniards who landed upon 
 those coasts with General Sebastian Vizcayno. 
 They are men and women of good figure and as- 
 pect, very much given to painting and staining 
 their faces and bodies with red ochre. 
 
 "They use great head dresses of feathers and 
 some panderellas (small darts) which they bind 
 up amid their hair with various trinkets and 
 beads of coral of various colors. The men go 
 entirely naked, but in time of cold they sport 
 some long capes of tanned skins of nutrias (ot- 
 ters) and some mantles made of the same skins 
 cut in long strips, which they twist in such a 
 manner that all the fur remains outside; then 
 they weave these strands one with another, 
 forming a weft, and give it the pattern referred 
 to. 
 
 "The women go with more decency, girt 
 about the waist, with tanned skins of deer which 
 cover them in front and behind more than half 
 down the leg, and with a mantelet of nutria over 
 the body. There are some of them with good 
 features. These are the Indian women who 
 make the trays and vases of rushes, to which 
 they give a thousand different forms and grace- 
 
 ful patterns, according to the uses to which they 
 are destined, whether it be for eating, drinking, 
 guarding their seeds, or for other purposes; for 
 these peoples do not know the use of earthen 
 ware as those of San Diego use it. 
 
 "The men work handsome trays of wood, with 
 finer inlays of coral or of bone; and some vises 
 of much capacity, closing at the mouth, which 
 appear to be made with a lathe — and with this 
 machine they would not come out better hol- 
 lowed nor of more perfect form. They give the 
 whole a luster which appears the finished handi- 
 work of a skilled artisan. The large vessels 
 which hold water are of a very strong weave of 
 rushes pitched within; and they give them the 
 same form as our water jars. 
 
 "To eat the seeds which they use in place of 
 bread they toast them first in great trays, put- 
 ting among the seeds some pebbles or small 
 stones heated until red; then they move and 
 shake the tray so it may not burn; and getting 
 the seed sufficiently toasted they grind it in mor- 
 tars or almireses of stone. Some of these mor- 
 tars were of extraordinary size, as well wrought 
 as if they had had for the purpose the best steel 
 tools. The constancy, attention to trifles, and 
 labor which they employ in finishing these pieces 
 are well worthy of admiration. The mortars are 
 so appreciated among themselves that for those 
 who, dying, leave behind such handiworks, they 
 are wont to place them over the spot where they 
 are buried, that the memory of their skill and 
 application may not be lost. 
 
 "They inter their dead. They have their cem- 
 eteries within the very pueblo. The funerals of 
 their captains they make with great pomp, and 
 set up over their bodies some rods or poles, ex- 
 tremely tall, from which they hang a variety of 
 utensils and chattels which were used by them. 
 They likewise put in the same place some great 
 planks of pine, with various paintings and fig- 
 ures in which without doubt they explain the 
 exploits and prowesses of the personage. 
 
 "Plurality of wives is not lawful among these 
 peoples. Only the captains have a right to 
 marry two. In all their pueblos the attention 
 was taken by a species of men who lived like the 
 women, kept company with them, dressed in the 
 same garb, adorned themselves with beads, pen- 
 
54 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 dants, necklaces and other womanish adorn- 
 ments, and enjoyed great consideration among 
 the people. The lack of an interpreter did not 
 permit us to find out what class of men they 
 were, or to what ministry they were destined, 
 though all suspect a defect in sex, or some 
 abuse among those gentiles. 
 
 "In their houses the married couples have 
 their separate beds on platforms elevated from 
 the ground. Their mattresses are some simple 
 petates (mats) of rushes and their pillows are 
 of the same petates rolled up at the head of the 
 bed. All these beds are hung about with hke 
 mats, which serve for decency and protect from 
 the cold." 
 
 From the descriptions given by Viscaino and 
 Constanso of the coast Indians they do not ap- 
 pear to have been the degraded creatures that 
 some modern writers have pictured them. In 
 mechanical ingenuity they were superior to the 
 Indians of the Atlantic seaboard or those of the 
 Alississippi valley. Much of the credit that has 
 been given to the mission padres for the patient 
 training they gave the Indians in mechanical 
 arts should be given to the Indian himself. He 
 was no mean mechanic when the padres took 
 him in hand. 
 
 Bancroft says "the Northern California In- 
 dians were in every way superior to the central 
 and southern tribes." The difference was more 
 in climate than in race. Those of Northern Cal- 
 ifornia living in an invigorating climate were 
 more active and more warlike than their 
 sluggish brethren of the south. They gained 
 their living by hunting larger game than 
 those of the south whose subsistence was derived 
 mostly from acorns, seeds, small game and fish. 
 Those of the interior valleys of the north were 
 of lighter complexion and had better forms and 
 features than their southern kinsmen. They 
 v/ere divided into numerous small tribes or 
 clans, like those of central and Southern Cali- 
 fornia. The Spaniards never penetrated very 
 far into the Indian country of the north and 
 consequently knew little or nothing about the 
 habits and customs of the aborigines there. 
 After the discovery of gold the miners invaded 
 their country in search of the precious metal. 
 The Indians at first were not hostile, but ill 
 
 treatment soon made them so. When they re- 
 taliated on the whites a war of extermmation 
 was waged against them. Like the mission In- 
 dians of the south they are almost extmct. 
 
 AH of the coast Indians seem to have had 
 some idea of a supreme being. The name dif- 
 fered with the different tribes. According to 
 Hugo Reid the god of the San Gabriel Indian 
 was named Quaoar. Father Boscana, who 
 wrote "A Historical Account of the Origin, 
 Customs and Traditions of the Indians" at the 
 missionary establishment of San Juan Capis- 
 trano, published in Alfred Robinson's "Life in 
 California," gives a lengthy account of the relig- 
 ion of those Indians before their conversion to 
 Christianity. Their god was Chinigchinich. Evi- 
 dently the three old men from whom Boscana 
 derived his information mixed some of the 
 religious teachings of the padres with their 
 own primitive beliefs, and made up for the father 
 a nondescript religion half heathen and half 
 Christian. Boscana was greatly pleased to find 
 so many allusions to Scriptural truths, evidently 
 never suspecting that the Indians were imposing 
 upon him. 
 
 The religious belief of the Santa Barbara 
 Channel Indians appears to have been the most 
 rational of any of the beliefs held by the Cali- 
 fornia aborigines. Their god, Chupu, was the 
 deification of good; and Nunaxus, their Satan, 
 the personification of evil. Chuputhe all-powerful 
 created Nunaxus, who rebelled against his cre- 
 ator and tried to overthrow him; but Chupu, the 
 almighty, punished him by creating man who, by 
 devouring the animal and vegetable products of 
 the earth, checked the physical growth of 
 Nunaxus, who had hoped by liberal feeding to 
 become like unto a mountain. Foiled in his am- 
 bition, Nunaxus ever afterwards sought to in- 
 jure mankind. To secure Chupu's protection, 
 offerings were made to him and dances were 
 instituted in his honor. Flutes and other in- 
 struments were played to attract his attention. 
 When Nunaxus brought calamity upon the In- 
 dians in the shape of dry years, which caused a 
 dearth of animal and vegetable products, or sent 
 sickness to aftlict them, their old men interceded 
 with Chupu to protect them; and to exorcise 
 their Satan they shot arrows and threw 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 55 
 
 stones in the direction in which he was sup- 
 posed to be. 
 
 Of the Indian myths and traditions Hugo 
 Reid says: "They were of incredible length 
 and contained more metamorphoses than Ovid 
 could have engendered in his brain had he lived 
 a thousand years." 
 
 The Cahuilla tribes who formerly inhabited 
 the mountain districts of the southeastern part 
 of the state had a tradition of their creation. Ac- 
 cording to this tradition the primeval Adam and 
 Eve were created by the Supreme Being in the 
 waters of a northern sea. They came up out 
 of the water upon the land, which they found to 
 be soft and miry. They traveled southward for 
 many moons in search of land suitable for their 
 residence and where they could obtain susten- 
 ance from the earth. This they found at last on 
 the mountain sides in Southern California. 
 
 .Some of the Indian myths when divested of 
 their crudities and ideas clothed in fitting 
 language are as poetical as those of Greece or 
 Scandinavia. The following one which Hugo 
 Reid found among the San Gabriel Indians 
 bears a striking resemblance to the Grecian 
 myths of Orpheus and Eurydice but it is not at 
 all probable that the Indians ever heard the 
 Grecian fable. Ages ago, so runs this Indian 
 myth, a powerful people dwelt on the banks of 
 the Arroyo Seco and hunted over the hills and 
 plains of what are now our modern Pasadena 
 and the valley of San Fernando. They com- 
 mitted a grievous crime against the Great Spirit. 
 A pestilence destroyed them all save a boy and 
 girl who were saved by a foster mother pos- 
 sessed of supernatural powers. They grew tO' 
 manhood and womanhood and became husband 
 and wife. Their devotion to each other angered 
 the foster mother, who fancied herself neglected. 
 She plotted to destroy the wife. The young 
 woman, divining her fate, told her husband that 
 should he at any time feel a tear drop on his 
 shoulder, he might know that she was dead. 
 While he was away hunting the dread signal 
 came. He hastened back to destroy the hag who 
 had brought death to his wife, but the sorceress 
 had escaped. Disconsolate he threw himself on 
 the grave of his wife. For three days he neither 
 ate nor drank. On the third day a whirlwind 
 
 arose from the grave and moved toward the 
 south. Perceiving in it the form of his wife, he 
 hastened on until he overtook it. Then a voice 
 came out of the cloud saying: "Whither I go, 
 thou canst not come. Thou art of earth but I 
 am dead to the world. Return, my husbanj, 
 return!" He plead piteously to be taken with 
 her. She consenting, he was wrapt in the cloud 
 with her and borne across the illimitable sea that 
 separates the abode of the living from that of 
 the dead. When they reached the realms of 
 ghosts a spirit voice said: "Sister, thou comest 
 to us with an odor of earth; what dost thou 
 bring?" Then she confessed that she had 
 brought her living husband. "Take him away!" 
 said a voice stern and commanding. She plead 
 that he might remain and recounted his many 
 virtues. To test his virtues, the spirits gave him 
 four labors. First to bring a feather from the 
 top of a pole so high that its summit was in- 
 visible. Next to split a hair of great length and 
 exceeding fineness; third to make on the ground 
 a map of the constellation of the lesser bear and 
 locate the north star and last to slay the celestial 
 deer that had the form of black beetles and were 
 exceedingly swift. With the aid of his wife he 
 accomplished all the tasks. 
 
 But no mortal was allowed to dwell in the 
 abodes of death. "Take thou thy wife and re- 
 turn with her to the earth," said the spirit. "Yet 
 remember, -thou shalt not speak to her-; thou 
 shalt not touch her until three suns have passed. 
 A penalty awaits thy disobedience." He prom- 
 ised. They pass from the spirit land and travel 
 to the confines of matter. By day she is invis- 
 ible but by the flickering light of his eamp-fire 
 he sees the dim outline of her form. Three days 
 pass. As the sun sinks behind the western hills 
 he builds his camp-fire. She appears before 
 him in all the beauty of life. He stretches forth 
 his arms to embrace her. She is snatched from 
 his grasp. Although invisible to him yet the 
 upper rim of the great orb of day hung above 
 the western verge. He had broken his prom- 
 ise. Like Orpheus, disconsolate, he wandered 
 over the earth until, relenting, the spirits sent 
 their servant Death to bring him to Tecupar 
 (Heaven). 
 
 The following myth of the mountain Indians 
 
56 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the north bears a strong resemblance to the 
 Norse fable of Gyoll the River of Death and its 
 glittering bridge, over which the spirits of the 
 dead pass to Hel, the land of spirits. The In- 
 dian, however, had no idea of any kind of a 
 bridge except a foot log across a stream. The 
 myth in a crude form was narrated to me many 
 years ago by an old pioneer. 
 
 According to this myth when an Indian died 
 his spirit form was conducted by an unseen 
 guide over a mountain trail unknown and inac- 
 cessible to mortals, to the rapidly flowing river 
 which separated the abode of the living from 
 that of the dead. As the trail descended to the 
 river it branched to the right and left. The right 
 hand path led to a foot bridge made of the mas- 
 
 sive trunk of a rough barked pine which spanned 
 the Indian styx; the left led to a slender, fresh 
 peeled birch pole that hung high above the roar- 
 ing torrent. At the parting of the trail an in- 
 exorable fate forced the bad to the left, while 
 the spirit form of the good passed on to the 
 right and over the rough barked pine to the 
 happy hunting grounds, the Indian heaven. The 
 bad reaching the river's brink and gazing long- 
 ingly upon the delights beyond, essayed to cross 
 the slippery pole— a slip, a slide, a clutch at 
 empty space, and the ghostly spirit form was 
 hurled into the mad torrent below, and was 
 borne by the rushing waters into a vast lethean 
 lake where it sunk beneath the waves and was 
 blotted from existence forever. 
 
 CHAPTER V- 
 
 FRANCISCAN MISSIONS OF ALTA CALIFORNIA. 
 
 San Diego de Alcala. 
 
 THE two objective points chosen by Vis- 
 itador General Galvez and President 
 Junipero Serra to begin the spiritual 
 conquest and civilization of the savages of Alta 
 California, were San Diego and Monterey. The 
 expeditions sent by land and sea were all united 
 at San Diego July i, 1769. Father Serra lost no 
 time in beginning the founding of missions. 
 On the i6th of July, 1769, he founded the mis- 
 sion of San Diego de Alcala. It was the first 
 link in the chain of missionary establishments 
 that eventually stretched northward from San 
 Diego to Solano, a distance of seven hundred 
 miles, a chain that was fifty-five years in forging. 
 The first site of the San Diego mission was at 
 a place called by the Indians "Cosoy." It was 
 located near the presidio established by Gov- 
 ernor Portola before he set out in search of 
 Monterey. The locality is now known as Old 
 Town. 
 
 Temporary buildings were erected here but 
 the location proved unsuitable and in August, 
 1774, the mission was removed about two 
 leagues up the San Diego river to a place called 
 by the natives "Nipaguay." Here a dwelling for 
 
 the padres, a store house, a smithy and a 
 wooden churcTi 18x57 feet were erected. 
 
 The mission buildings at Cosoy were given 
 up to the presidio except two rooms, one for 
 the visiting priests and the other for a temporary 
 store room for mission supplies coming by sea. 
 The missionaries had been fairly successful in 
 the conversions of the natives and some prog- 
 ress had been made in teaching them to labor. 
 On the night of November 4, 1775, without any 
 previous warning, the gentiles or unconverted 
 Indians in great numbers attacked the mission. 
 One of the friars. Fray Funster, escaped to the 
 soldiers' quarters; the other, Father Jaume, was 
 killed by the savages. The blacksmith also was 
 killed; the carpenter succeeded in reaching the 
 soldiers. The Indians set fire to the buildings 
 which were nearly all of wood. The soldiers, the 
 priest and carpenter were driven into a small 
 adobe building that had been used as a kitchen. 
 Two of the soldiers were wounded. The cor- 
 poral, one soldier and the carpenter were all 
 that were left to hold at bay a thousand howl- 
 ing fiends. The corporal, who was a sharp 
 shooter, did deadly execution' on the savages. 
 
HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 57 
 
 Father Funster saved the defenders from being 
 blown to pieces by the explosion of a fifty pound 
 sack of gunpowder. He spread his cloak over 
 the sack and sat on it, thus preventing the pow- 
 der from being ignited by the sparks of the 
 burning building. The fight lasted till daylight, 
 when the hostiles fled. The Christian Indians 
 who professed to have been coerced by the sav- 
 ages then appeared and made many protesta- 
 tions of sorrow at what had happened. The mili- 
 tary commander was not satisfied that they were 
 innocent but the padres believed them. New 
 buildings were erected at the same place, the 
 soldiers of the presidio for a time assisting the 
 Indians in their erection. 
 
 The mission was fairly prosperous. In 1800 
 the cattle numbered 6,960 and the agricultural 
 products amounted to 2,600 bushels. From 
 1769 to 1834 there were 6,638 persons baptized 
 and 4,428 buried. The largest number of cat- 
 tle possessed by the mission at one time was 
 9,245 head in 1822. The old building now stand- 
 ing on the mission site at the head of the valley 
 is the third church erected there. The first, 
 built of wood and roofed with tiles, was erected 
 in 1774; the second, built of adobe, was com- 
 pleted in 1780 (the walls of this were badly 
 cracked by an earthquake in 1803); the third was 
 begun in 1808 and dedicated November 12, 
 1813. The mission was secularized in 1834. 
 
 SAN CARLOS DE BORROMEO. 
 
 As narrated in a former chapter, Governor 
 Portoli, who with a small force had set out from 
 San Diego to find Monterey Bay, reached that 
 port May 24, 1770. Father Serra, who came 
 up by sea on the San Antonia, arrived at the 
 same place May 31. All things being in readi- 
 ness the Presidio of Monterey and the mission 
 of San Carlos de Borromeo were founded on 
 the same day — June 3, 1770. The boom of ar- 
 tillery and the roar of musketry accompani- 
 ments to the service of the double founding 
 frightened the Indians away from the mission 
 and it was some time before the savages could 
 muster courage to return. In June, 1771, the 
 site of the mission was moved to the Carmelo 
 river. This was done by Father Serra to re- 
 move the neophytes from the contaminating in- 
 
 fluence of the soldiers at the presidio. The erec- 
 tion of the stone church still standing was be- 
 gun in 1793. It was completed and dedicated 
 in 1797. The largest neophyte population at 
 San Carlos was reached in 1794, when it num- 
 bered nine hundred and seventy-one. Between 
 1800 and 1810 it declined to seven hundred and 
 forty-seven. In 1820 the population had de- 
 creased to three hundred and eighty-one and 
 at the end of the next decade it had fallen to 
 two hundred and nine. In 1834, when the de- 
 cree of secularization was put in force, there were 
 about one hundred and fifty neophytes at the 
 mission. At the rate of decrease under mission 
 rule, a few more years would have pro- 
 duced the same result that secularization did, 
 namely, the extinction of the mission Indian. 
 
 SAN ANTONIO DE PADUA. 
 
 The third mission founded in California was 
 San Antonio de Padua. It was located about 
 twenty-five leagues from Monterey. Here, on 
 the 14th of June, 1771, in La Canada de los 
 Robles, the cafion of oaks beneath a shelter of 
 branches. Father Serra performed the services 
 of founding. The Indians seem to have been 
 more tractable than those of San Diego or Mon- 
 terey. The first convert was baptized one 
 month after the establishment of the mission. 
 San Antonio attained the highest limit of its 
 neophyte population in 1805, when it had 
 twelve hundred and ninety-six souls within its 
 fold. In 1 83 1 there were six hundred and sixty- 
 one Indians at or near the mission. In 1834, the 
 date of secularization, there were five hundred 
 and sixty-seven. After its disestablishment the 
 property of the mission was quickly squandered 
 through inefificient administrators. The build- 
 ings are in ruins. 
 
 SAN GABRIEL ARCANGEL. 
 
 San Gabriel Arcangel was the fourth mission 
 founded in California. Father Junipero Serra, 
 as previously narrated, had gone north in 1770 
 and founded the mission of San Carlos Bor- 
 romeo on Monterey Bay and the following year 
 he established the mission of San Antonio de 
 Padua on the Salinas river about twenty-five 
 leagues south of Monterey. 
 
58 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 On the 6^h of August, 1771, a cavalcade of 
 soldiers and musketeers escorting Padres 
 Somero and Cambon set out from San Diego 
 over the trail made by Portola's expedition in 
 1769 (when it went north in search of Monterey 
 Bay) to found a new mission on the River Jesus 
 de los Temblores or to give it its full name, El 
 Rio del Dulcisimo Nombre de Jesus de los 
 Temblores, the river of the sweetest name of 
 Jesus of the Earthquakes. Not finding a suit- 
 able location on that river (now the Santa Ana) 
 they pushed on to the Rio San Miguel, also 
 known as the Rio de los Temblores. Here 
 they selected a site where wood and water were 
 abundant. A stockade of poles was built inclos- 
 ing a square within which a church was erected, 
 covered with boughs. 
 
 September 8, 1771, the mission was formally 
 founded and dedicated to the archangel Gabriel. 
 The Indians who at the coming of the Spaniards 
 were docile and friendly, a few days after the 
 founding of the mission suddenly attacked two 
 soldiers who were guarding the horses. One of 
 these soldiers had outraged the wife of the chief 
 who led the attack. The soldier who committed 
 the crime killed the chieftain with a musket ball 
 and the other Indians fled. The soldiers then 
 cut off the chief's head and fastened it to a pole 
 at the presidio gate. From all accounts the sol- 
 diers at this mission were more brutal and bar- 
 barous than the Indians and more in need of 
 missionaries to convert them than the Indians. 
 The progress of the mission was slow. At the 
 end of the second year only seventy-three chil- 
 dren and adults had been baptized. Father Serra 
 attributed the lack of conversions to the bad 
 conduct of the soldiers. 
 
 The first buildings at the mission Vieja were 
 all of wood. The church was 45x18 feet, built of 
 logs and covered with tule thatch. The church 
 and other wooden buildings used by the padres 
 stood within a square inclosed by pointed stakes. 
 In 1776, five years after its founding, the mis- 
 sion was moved from its first location to a new 
 site about a league distant from the old one. 
 The old site was subject to overflow by the 
 river. The adobe ruins pointed out to tourists 
 as" the foundations of the old mission are the 
 debris of a building erected for a ranch house 
 
 about sixty years ago. The buildings at the 
 mission Vieja were all of wood and no trace of 
 them remains. A chapel was first buih at the 
 new site. It was replaced by a church built of 
 adobes one hundred and eight feet long by 
 twenty-one feet wide. The present stone church, 
 begun about 1794, and completed about 1806, 
 is the fourth church erected. 
 
 The mission attained the acme of its impor- 
 tance in 1817, when there were seventeen hun- 
 dred and one neophytes in the mission fold. 
 
 The largest grain crop raised at any mission 
 was that harvested at San Gabriel in 1821, which 
 amounted to 29,400 bushels. The number ol cat- 
 tle belonging to the mission in 1830 was 25,725. 
 During the whole period of the mission's exist- 
 ence, i. e., from 1771 to 1834, according to sta- 
 tistics compiled by Bancroft from mission rec- 
 ords, the total number of baptisms was 7,854, 
 of which 4,355 were Indian adults and 2,459 
 were Indian children and the remainder gente de 
 razon or people of reason. The deaths were 
 5,656, of which 2,916 were Indian adults and 
 2,363 Indian children. If all the Indian children 
 born were baptized it would seem (if the sta- 
 tistics are correct) that but very few ever grew 
 up to manhood and womanhood. In 1834, the 
 year of its secularization, its neophyte popula- 
 tion was 1,320. 
 
 The missionaries of San Gabriel established 
 a station at old San Bernardino about 1820. It 
 was not an asistencia like pala, but merely an 
 agricultural station or ranch headquarters. The 
 buildings were destroyed by the Indians in 1834. 
 
 SAN LUIS OBISPO DE TOLOSA. 
 
 On his journey southward in 1782, President 
 Serra and Padre Cavalier, with a small escort of 
 soldiers and a few Lower Cahfornia Indians, on 
 September i, 1772, founded the mission of San 
 Luis Obispo de Tolosa (St. Louis, Bishop of 
 Tolouse). The site selected was on a creek 
 twenty-five leagues southerly from San An- 
 tonio. The soldiers and Indians were set at 
 work to erect buildings. Padre Cavalier was left 
 in charge of the mission, Father Serra continu- 
 ing his journey southward. This mission was 
 never a very important one. Its greatest popu- 
 lation was in 1803, when there were eight 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 69 
 
 hundred and fifty-two neophytes within its juris- 
 diction. From that time to 1834 their number 
 decHned to two hundred and sixty-four. The 
 average death rate was 7.30 per cent of the pop- 
 ulation — a lower rate than at some of the more 
 populous missions. The adobe church built in 
 1793 is still in use, but has been so remodeled 
 that it bears but little resemblance to the church 
 of mission days. 
 
 SAN FRANCISCO DE ASIS. 
 
 The expedition under command of Portola 
 in 1769 failed to find Monterey Bay but it passed 
 on and discovered the great bay of San Fran- 
 cisco. So far no attempt had been made to 
 plant a mission or presidio on its shores. Early 
 in 1775, Lieutenant Ayala was ordered to ex- 
 plore the bay with a view to forming a settle- 
 ment near it. Rivera had previously explored 
 the land bordering on the bay where the city 
 now stands. Captain Anza, the discoverer of the 
 overland route from Mexico to California via 
 the Colorado river, had recruited an expedition 
 of two hundred persons in Sonora for the pur- 
 pose of forming a settlement at San Francisco. 
 He set out in 1775 and reached Monterey March 
 10, 1776. A quarrel between him and Rivera, 
 who was in command at Monterey, defeated for 
 a time the purpose for which the settlers had- 
 been brought, and Anza, disgusted with the 
 treatment he had received from Rivera, aban- 
 doned the enterprise. Anza had selected a site 
 for a presidio at San Francisco. After his de- 
 parture Rivera changed his policy of delay that 
 had frustrated all of Anza's plans and decided at 
 once to proceed to the establishment of a pre- 
 sidio. The presidio was formally founded Sep- 
 tember 17, 1776, at what is now known as Fort 
 Point. The ship San Carlos had brought a num- 
 ber of persons; these with the settlers who had 
 come up from Monterey made an assemblage of 
 more than one hundred and fifty persons. 
 
 After the founding of the presidio Lieutenant 
 Moraga in command of the military and Captain 
 Quiros of the San Carlos, set vigorously at work 
 to build a church for the mission. A wooden 
 building having been constructed on the 9th of 
 October, 1776, the mission was dedicated. 
 Father Palou conducting the service, assisted by 
 
 Fathers Cambcn, Nocedal and Peiia. The site 
 selected for the mission was on the Laguna de 
 los Dolores. The lands at the mission were not 
 very productive. The mission, however, was 
 fairly prosperous. In 1820 it owned 11,240 cat- 
 tle and the total product of wheat was 114,480 
 bushels. In 1820 there were 1,252 neophytes 
 attached to it. The death rate was very heavy — 
 the average rate being 12.4 per cent of the pop- 
 ulation. In 1832 the population had decreased 
 to two hundred and four and at the time of 
 secularization it had declined to one hundred 
 and fifty. A number of neophytes had been 
 taken to the new mission of San Francisco So- 
 lano. 
 
 SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO. 
 
 The revolt of the Indians at San Diego de- 
 layed the founding of San Juan Capistrano a 
 year. October 30, 1775, the initiatory services 
 of the' founding had been held when a messenger 
 came with the news of the uprising of the sav- 
 ages and the massacre of Father Jaume and 
 others. The bells which had been hung on a 
 tree were taken down and buried. The soldiers 
 and the padres hastened to San Diego. Novem- 
 ber I, 1776, Fathers Serra, Mugartegui and 
 Amurrio, with an escort of soldiers, arrived at 
 the site formerly selected. The bells were dug up 
 and hung on a tree, an enramada of boughs was 
 constructed and Father Serra said mass. The 
 first location of the mission was several miles 
 northeasterly from the present site at the foot 
 of the mountain. The abandoned site is still 
 known a la Mision Vieja (the Old Mission). 
 Just when the change of location was made is 
 not known. 
 
 The erection of a stone church was begun in 
 February, 1797, and completed in 1806. A 
 master builder had been brought from Mexico 
 and under his superintendence the neophytes 
 did the mechanical labor. It was the largest and 
 handsomest church in California and was the 
 pride of mission architecture. The year 1812 
 was known in California as el ano de los tem- 
 blores — the year of earthquakes. For months 
 the seismic disturbance was almost continuous. 
 On Sunday, December 8, 1812, a severe shock 
 threw down the lofty church tower, which 
 crashed through the vaulted roof on the congre- 
 
CO 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 gation below. The padre who was celebrating 
 mass escaped through the sacristy. Of the fifty 
 persons" present only five or six escaped. The 
 church was never rebuilt. "There is not much 
 doubt," says Bancroft, "that the disaster was 
 due rather to faulty construction than to the 
 violence of the temblor." The edifice was of the 
 usual cruciform shape, about 90x180 feet on 
 the ground, with very thick walls and arched 
 dome-like roof all constructed of stones imbed- 
 ded in mortar or cement. The stones were not 
 hewn, but of irregular size and shape, a kind of 
 structure evidently requiring great skill to en- 
 sure solidity. The mission reached its maxi- 
 mum in 1819; from that on till the date of its 
 secularization there was a rapid decline in the 
 numbers of its live stock and of its neophytes. 
 
 This was one of the missions in which Gov- 
 ernor Figueroa tried his experiment of forming 
 Indian pueblos of the neophytes. For a time 
 the experiment was a partial success, but even- 
 tually it went the way of all the other missions. 
 Its lands were granted to private individuals 
 and the neophytes scattered. Its picturesque 
 ruins are a great attraction to-touiists. 
 
 SANTA CLARA. 
 
 The mission of Santa Clara was fotmded Jan- 
 uary 12, 1777- The site had been selected some 
 time before and two missionaries designated for 
 service at it, but the comandante of the terri- 
 tory, Rivera y Moncada, who was an exceed- 
 ingly obstinate person, had opposed the found- 
 ing on various pretexts, but posititve orders 
 coming from the viceroy Rivera did not longer 
 delay, so on the 6th of January, 1777, a detach- 
 ment of soldiers under Lieutenant Moraga, ac- 
 companied by Father Pefia, was sent from San 
 Francisco to the site selected which was about 
 sixteen leagues south of San Francisco. Here 
 under an enramada the services of dedication 
 were held. The Indians were not averse to re- 
 ceiving a new religion and at the close of the 
 year sixty-seven had been baptized. 
 
 The mission was quite prosperous and be- 
 came one of the most important in the territory. 
 It was located in the heart of a rich agricul- 
 tural district. The total product of wheat was 
 175,800 bushels. In 1828 the mission flocks and 
 
 herds numbered over 30,000 animals. The 
 neophyte population in 1827 was 1,464- The 
 death rate was highpaveraging 12.63 per cent 
 of the population. The total number of bap- 
 tisms was 8,640; number of deaths 6,950. In 
 1834 the population had declined to 800. 
 Secularization was efifected in 1837. 
 
 SAN BUENAVENTURA. 
 
 The founding of San Buenaventura had been 
 long delayed. It was to have been among the 
 first missions founded by Father Serra; it proved 
 to be his last. On the 26th of March, 1782, 
 Governor de Neve, accompanied by Father 
 Serra (who had come down afoot from San 
 Carlos), and Father Cambon, with a convoy of 
 soldiers and a number of neophytes, set out 
 from San Gabriel to found the mission. At the 
 first camping place Governor de Neve was re- 
 called to San Gabriel by a message from Col. 
 Pedro Fazes, informing him of the orders of the 
 council of war to proceed against the Yumas 
 who had the previous year destroyed the two 
 missions on the Colorado river and massacred 
 the missionaries. 
 
 On the 29th, the remainder of the company 
 reached a place on the coast named by Portola 
 in 1769, Asuncion de Nuestra Senora, which 
 •had for some time been selected for a mission 
 site. Near it was a large Indian rancheria. On 
 Easter Sunday, March 31st, the mission was for- 
 mally founded with the usual ceremonies and 
 dedicated to San Buenaventura (Giovanni de 
 Fidanza of Tuscany), a follower of St. Francis, 
 the founder of the Franciscans. 
 
 The progress of the mission was slow at first, 
 only two adults were baptized in 1782, the 
 year of its founding. The first buildings built 
 of wood were destroyed by fire. The church 
 still used for service, built of brick and adobe, 
 \\as completed and dedicated, September 9, 1809. 
 The earthquake of December 8, 1812, damaged 
 the church to such an extent that the tower 
 and part of the faqade had to be rebuilt. After 
 the earthquake the whole site of the mission 
 for a time seemed to be sinking. The inhabi- 
 tants, fearful of being engulfed by the sea, re- 
 moved to San Joaquin y Santa Ana, where they 
 remained several months. The mission at- 
 
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 61 
 
 tained its greatest prosperity in 1816, when its 
 neophyte population numbered 1,330 and it 
 owned 23,400 cattle. 
 
 SANTA BARBARA. 
 
 Governor Felipe de Neve founded the presidio 
 of Santa Barbara April 21, 1782. Father Serra 
 had hoped to found the mission at the same time, 
 but in this he was disappointed. His death in 
 1784 still further delayed the founding and it 
 was not until the latter part of 1786 that every- 
 thing was in readiness for the establishing of 
 the new mission. On the 22d of November 
 Father Lasuen, who had succeeded Father 
 Serra as president of the missions, arrived at 
 Santa Barbara, accompanied by two missiona- 
 ries recently from Mexico. He selected a site 
 about a mile distant from the presidio. The 
 place was called Taynagan (Rocky Hill) by the 
 Indians. There was a plentiful supply of stone 
 on the site for building and an abundance of 
 water for irrigation. 
 
 On the 15th of December, 1786, Father 
 Lasuen, in a hut of boughs, celebrated the first 
 mass; but December 4, the day that the fiesta of 
 Santa Barbara is commemorated, is considered 
 the date of its founding. Part of the services 
 were held on that day. A chapel built of adobes 
 and roofed with thatch was erected in 1787. Sev- 
 eral other buildings of adobe were erected the 
 same year. In 1788, tile took the place of 
 thatch. In 1789, a second church, much larger 
 than the first, was built. A third church of adobe 
 was commenced in 1793 and finished in 1794. 
 A brick portico was added in 1795 and the walls 
 plastered. 
 
 The great earthquake of December, 1812, de- 
 molished the mission church and destroyed 
 nearly all the buildings. The years 1813 and 
 1814 were spent in removing the debris of the 
 ruined buildings and in preparing for the erec- 
 tion of new ones. The erection of the present 
 mission church was begun in 181 5. It was com- 
 pleted and dedicated September 10, 1820. 
 
 Father Caballeria, in his History of Santa 
 Barbara, gives the dimensions of the church as 
 follows : "Length (including walls), sixty varas ; 
 width, fourteen varas; height, ten varas (a vara 
 is thirty-four inches)." The walls are of stone 
 
 and rest on a foundation of rock and cement. 
 They are six feet thick and are further strength- 
 ened by buttresses. Notwithstanding the build- 
 ing has withstood the storms of four score years, 
 it is still in an excellent state of preservation. 
 Its exterior has not been disfigured by attempts 
 at modernizing. 
 
 The highest neophyte population was reached 
 at Santa Barbara in 1803, when it numbered 
 1,792. The largest number of cattle was 5,200 in 
 1809. In 1834, the year of secularization, the 
 neophytes numbered 556, which was a decrease 
 of 155 from the number in 1830. At such a rate 
 of decrease it would not, even if mission rule 
 had continued, have taken more than a dozen 
 years to depopulate the mission. 
 
 LA PURISIMA CONCEPCIOX. 
 
 Two m-3sions, San Buenaventura and Santa 
 Barbara, had been founded on the Santa Bar- 
 bara channel in accordance with Neve's report of 
 1777, in which he recommended the founding of 
 three missions and a presidio in that district. 
 It was the intention of General La Croix to con- 
 duct these on a dififerent plan from that prevail- 
 ing in the older missions. The natives were not 
 to be gathered into a missionary establishment, 
 but were to remain in their rancherias, which 
 were to be converted into mission pueblos. The 
 Indians were to receive instruction in religion, 
 industrial arts and self-government while com- 
 paratively free from restraint. The plan which 
 no doubt originated with Governor de Neve, 
 was a good one theoretically, and possibly might 
 have been practically. The missionaries were 
 bitterly opposed to it. L-nfortunately it was 
 tried first in the Colorado river missions among 
 the fierce and treacherous Yumas. The mas- 
 sacre of the padres and soldiers of these mis- 
 sions was attributed to this innovation. 
 
 In establishing the channel missions the mis- 
 sionaries opposed the inauguration of this plan 
 and by their persistence succeeded in setting it 
 aside; and the old system was adopted. La 
 Purisima Coficepcion, or the Immaculate Con- 
 ception of the Blessed \^irgin, the third of the 
 channel missions, was founded December 8, 
 1787, by Father Lasuen at a place called by the 
 natives Algsacupi. Its location is about twelve 
 
62 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 miles from the ocean on the Santa Ynez river. 
 Three years after its founding three hundred 
 converts had been baptized but not all of them 
 lived at the mission. The first church was a 
 temporary structure. The second church, built 
 of adobe and roofed with tile, was completed in 
 1802. December 21, 1812, an earthquake de- 
 molished the church and also about one hundred 
 adobe houses of the neophytes. A site across 
 the river and about four miles distant from the 
 former one, was selected for new buildings. A 
 temporary building for a church was erected 
 there. A new church, built of adobe and roofed 
 with tile, was completed and dedicated in 1818. 
 
 The Indians revolted in 1824 and damaged 
 the building. They took possession of it and a 
 battle lasting four hours was fought between one 
 hundred and thirty soldiers and four hundred 
 Indians. The neophytes cut loop holes in the 
 church and used two old rusty cannon and a 
 few guns they possessed; but, unused to fire 
 arms, they were routed with the loss of several 
 killed. During the revolt which lasted several 
 months four white men and fifteen or twenty In- 
 dians were killed. The hostiles, most of whom 
 fled to the Tulares, were finally subdued. The 
 leaders were punished with imprisonment and 
 the others returned to their missions. 
 
 This mission's population was largest in 1804, 
 when it numbered 1,520. In 1834 there were but 
 407 neophytes connected with it. It was secular- 
 ized in February, 1835. During mission rule 
 from 1787 to 1834, the total number of Indian 
 children baptized was 1,492; died 902, which was 
 a lower death rate than at most of the southern 
 missions. 
 
 SANTA CRUZ. 
 
 Santa Cruz, one of the smallest of the twenty- 
 one missions of California, was founded Septem- 
 ber 25, 1790. The mission was never very pros- 
 perous. In 1798 many of the neophytes de- 
 serted and the same year a flood covered the 
 planting fields and damaged the church. In 1812 
 the neophytes murdered the missionary in 
 charge. Padre Andres Quintana. They claimed 
 that he had treated them with great cruelty. 
 Five of those implicated in the murder received 
 two hundred lashes each and were sentenced to 
 work in chains from two to ten years. Only 
 
 one survived the punishment. The maximum 
 of its population was reached in 1798, when 
 there were six hundred and forty-four Indians 
 in the mission fold. The total number bap- 
 tized from the date of its founding to 1834 was 
 2,466; the total number of deaths was 2,034. The 
 average death rate was 10.93 per cent of the 
 population. At the time of its secularization in 
 1834 there were only two hundred and fifty In- 
 dians belonging to the mission. 
 
 LA SOLEDAD. 
 
 The mission of our Lady of Solitude was 
 founded September 29, 1791. The site selected 
 had borne the name Soledad (solitude) ever 
 since the first exploration of the country. The 
 location was thirty miles northeast of San Car- 
 los de Monterey. La Soledad, by which name 
 it was generally known, was unfortunate in its 
 early missionaries. One of them, Padre Gracia, 
 was supposed to be insane and the other, Padre 
 Rubi, was very immoral. Rubi was later on ex- 
 pelled from his college for licentiousness. At 
 the close of the century the mission had become 
 fairly prosperous, but in 1802 an epidemic broke 
 out and five or six deaths occurred daily. The 
 Indians in alarm fled from the mission. The 
 largest population of the mission was seven 
 hundred and twenty-five in 1805. At the time 
 of secularization its population had decreased to 
 three hundred. The total number of baptisms 
 during its existence was 2,222; number of deaths 
 1,803. 
 
 SAN JOSE. 
 
 St. Joseph had been designated by the visita- 
 dor General Galvez and Father Junipero Serra 
 as the patron saint of the mission colonization of 
 California. Thirteen missions had been founded 
 and yet none had been dedicated to San Jose. 
 Orders came from Mexico that one be estab- 
 lished and named for him. Accordingly a de- 
 tail of a corporal and five men, accompanied by 
 Father Lasuen, president of the missions, pro- 
 ceeded to the site selected, which was about 
 twelve miles northerly from the pueblo of San 
 Jose. There, on June 11, 1797, the mission was 
 founded. The mission was well located agricul- 
 turally and became one of the most prosperous 
 in California. In 1820 it had a population of 
 
■s. 
 
 > 
 2; 
 
 
 in 
 m 
 
 O 
 Z 
 
 o 
 a 
 z 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 63 
 
 1,754, the highest of any mission except San 
 Luis Rey. The total number of baptisms from 
 its founding to 1834 was 6,737; deaths 5,109. 
 Secularization was effected in 1836-37. The to- 
 tal valuation of the mission property, not in- 
 cluding lands or the church, was $155,000. 
 
 SAN JUAN BAUTISTA. 
 
 In May, 1797, Governor Borica ordered the 
 comandante at Monterey to detail a corporal 
 and five soldiers to proceed to a site that had 
 been previously chosen for a mission which was 
 about ten leagues northeast from Monterey. 
 Here the soldiers erected of wood a church, 
 priest's house, granary and guard house. June 
 24, 1797, President Lasuen, assisted by Fathers 
 Catala and Martiari, founded the mission of 
 San Juan Bautista (St. John the Baptist). At 
 the close of the year, eighty-five converts had 
 been baptized. The neighboring Indian tribes 
 were hostile and some of them had to be killed 
 before others learned to behave themselves. A 
 new church, ipeasuring 60x160 feet, was com- 
 pleted and dedicated in 1812. San Juan was the 
 only mission whose population increased between 
 1820 and 1830. This was due to the fact that its 
 numbers were recruited from the eastern tribes, 
 its location being favorable for obtaining new 
 recruits from the gentiles. The largest popula- 
 tion it ever reached was 1,248 in 1823. In 1834 
 there were but 850 neophytes at the mission. 
 
 SAN MIGUEL. 
 
 Midway between the old missions of San An- 
 tonio and San Luis Obispo, on the 25th of July, 
 1797, was founded the mission of San Miguel 
 Arcangel. The two old missions contributed 
 horses, cattle and sheep to start the new one. 
 The mission had a propitious beginning; fifteen 
 children were baptized on the day the mission 
 was founded. At. the close of the century the 
 number of converts reached three hundred and 
 eighty-five, of whom fifty-three had died. The 
 mission population numbered 1,076 in 1814; 
 after that it steadily declined until, in 1834, there 
 were only 599 attached to the establishment. 
 Total number of baptisms was 2,588; deaths 
 2,038. The average death rate was 6.91 per 
 cent of the population, the lowest rate in any 
 
 of the missions. The mission was secularized 
 in 1836. 
 
 SAN FERNANDO REY DE ESPANA. 
 
 In the closing years of the century explora- 
 tions were made for new mission sites in Cali- 
 fornia. These were to be located between mis- 
 sions already founded. Among those selected 
 at that time was the site of the mission San Fer- 
 nando on the Encino Rancho, then occupied by 
 Francisco Reyes. Reyes surrendered whatever 
 right he had to the land and the padres occupied 
 his house for a dwelling while new buildings 
 were in the course of erection. 
 
 September 8, 1797, with the usual ceremo- 
 nies, the mission was founded by President 
 Lasuen, assisted by Father Dumetz. According 
 to instructions from Mexico it was dedicated to 
 San Fernando Rey de Esparia (Fernando III., 
 King of Spain, 1217-1251). At the end of the 
 year 1797, fifty-five converts had been gathered 
 into the mission fold and at the end of the cen- 
 tury three hundred .and fifty-two had been bap- 
 tized. 
 
 The adobe church began before the close oi 
 the century was completed and dedicated in De- 
 cember, 1806. It had a tiled roof. It was but 
 slightly injured by the great earthquakes of De- 
 cember, 1812, which were so. destfuctive to the 
 mission buildings at San Juan Capistrano, Santa 
 Barbara, La Purisima and Santa Ynez. This 
 mission reached its greatest prosperity in 1819, 
 when its neophyte population numbered 1,080. 
 The largest number of cattle owned by it at one 
 time was 12,800 in 1819. 
 
 Its decline was not so rapid as that of some 
 of the other missions, but the death rate, espe- 
 cially among the children, was fully as high. Of 
 the 1,367 Indian children baptized there during 
 the existence of mission rule 965, or over seventy 
 per cent, died in childhood. It was not strange 
 that the fearful death rate both of children and 
 adults at the missions sometimes frightened 
 the neophytes into running away. 
 
 SAN LUIS REY DE FRANCIA. 
 
 Several explorations had been made for a mis- 
 sion site between San Diego and San Juan 
 Capistrano. There was quite a large Indian 
 
•34 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 population that had not been brought into the 
 folds of either mission. In October, I797i ^ 
 new exploration of this territory was ordered 
 and a site was finally selected, although the ag- 
 ricultural advantages were regarded as not sat- 
 isfactory. 
 
 Governor Borica, February 28, 1798, issued 
 orders to the comandante at San Diego to 
 furnish a detail of soldiers to aid in erecting the 
 necessary buildings. June 13, 1798, President 
 Lasuen, the successor of President Serra, as- 
 sisted by Fathers Peyri and Santiago, with the 
 usual services, founded the new mission. It 
 Vv'as named San Luis Rey de Francia (St. Louis, 
 King of France). Its location was near a river 
 on which was bestowed the name of the mis- 
 sion. The mission flourished from its very be- 
 ginning. Its controlling power was Padre An- 
 tonio Peyri. He remained in charge of it from 
 its founding almost to its downfall, in all thirty- 
 three years. He was a man of great executive 
 abilities and under his administration it be- 
 came one of the largest and most prosperous 
 missions in California. It reached its maximum 
 in 1826, when its neophyte population numbered 
 2,869, the largest number at one time connected 
 with any mission in the territory. 
 
 The asihtencia or auxiliary mission of San 
 Antonio was established at Pala, seven leagues 
 easterly from the parent mission. A chapel was 
 erected here and regular services held. One of 
 the padres connected with San Luis Rey was 
 in charge of this station. Father Peyri left Cal- 
 ifornia in 1831, with the exiled Governor Vic- 
 toria. He went to Mexico and from there to 
 Spain and lastly to Rome, where he died. The 
 mission 'was converted into an Indian pueblo in 
 1834, but the pueblo was not a success. Most 
 of the neophytes drifted to Los Angeles and 
 San Gabriel. During the Mexican conquest 
 American troops were stationed there. It has 
 recently been partially repaired and is now used 
 for a Franciscan school under charge of Father 
 J. J. O'Keefe. 
 
 SANTA YNEZ. 
 
 Santa Ynez was the last mission founded in 
 Southern California. It was established Sep- 
 tember 17, 1804. Its location is about forty miles 
 
 northwesterly from Santa Barbara, on tjie east- 
 erly side of the Santa Ynez mountains and 
 eighteen miles southeasterly from La Purisima. 
 Father Tapis, president of the missions from 
 1803 to 1812, preached the sermon and was 
 assisted in the ceremonies by Fathers Cipies, 
 Calzada and Gutierrez. Carrillo, the comandante 
 at the presidio, was present, as were also a num- 
 ber of neophytes from Santa Barbara and • La 
 Purisima. Some of these were transferred to 
 the new mission. 
 
 The earthquake of December, 1812, shook 
 down a portion of the church and destroyed a 
 number of the neophytes' houses. In 1815 the 
 erection of a new church was begun. It was built 
 of adobes, lined with brick, and was completed 
 and dedicated July 4, 1817. The Indian revolt of 
 1824, described in the sketch of La Purisima, 
 broke out first at this mission. The neophytes 
 took possession of the church. The mission 
 guard defended themselves and the padre. At 
 the approach of the troops from Santa Barbara 
 the Indians fled to La Purisima.- 
 
 San Ynez attained its greatest population, 
 770, in 18 16. In 1834 its population had de- 
 creased to 334. From its founding in 1804 to 
 1834, when the decrees of secularization were 
 put in force, 757 Indian children were baptized 
 and 519 died, leaving only 238, or about thirty 
 per cent of those baptized to grow up. 
 
 S.\N RAFAEL. 
 
 San Rafael was the first mission established 
 north of the Bay of San Francisco. It was 
 founded December 14, 1817. At first it was an 
 asistencia or branch of San Francisco. An epi- 
 demic had broken out in the Alission Dolores 
 and a number of the Indians were transferred to 
 San Rafael to escape the plague. Later on it 
 attained to the dignity of a mission. In 1828 its 
 population was 1,140. After 1830 it began to 
 decHne and at the time of its secularization in 
 1834 there were not more than 500 connected 
 with it. In the seventeen years of its existence 
 under mission rule there were 1,873 baptisms and 
 698 deaths. The average death rate was 6.09 
 per cent of the population. The mission was 
 secularized in 1834. All traces of the mission 
 building have disappeared. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 65 
 
 SAN FRANCISCO SOLANO. 
 
 The mission of San Francisco de Asis had 
 fallen into a rapid decline. The epidemic that 
 had carried ofif a number of the neophytes and 
 had caused the transfer of a considerable num- 
 ber to San Rafael had greatly reduced its popu- 
 lation. Besides, the sterility of the soil in the 
 vicinity of the mission necessitated going a long- 
 distance for agricultural land and pasturage for 
 the herds and flocks. On this account and also 
 for the reason that a number of new converts 
 might be obtained from the gentiles living in 
 the district north of the bay, Governor Arguello 
 and the mission authorities decided to establish 
 a mission in that region. Explorations were 
 made in June and July, 1823. On the 4th of 
 July a site was selected, a cross blessed and 
 raised, a volley of musketry fired and mass said 
 at a place named New San Francisco, but after- 
 wards designated as the Mission of San Fran- 
 cisco Solano. On the 25th of August work was 
 begun on the mission building and on the 4th of 
 April, 1824, a church, 24x105 feet, built of wood, 
 was dedicated. 
 
 It had been intended to remove the neophytes 
 from the old mission of San Francisco to the 
 new; but the padres of the old mission opposed 
 its depopulation and suppression. A com- 
 promise was effected by allowing all neophytes 
 of the old mission who so elected to go to the 
 new. Although well located, the Mission of 
 Solano was not prosperous. Its largest popula- 
 tion, 996, was reached in 1832. The total num- 
 ber of baptisms were 1,315; deaths, 651. The 
 average death rate was 7.8 per cent of the pop- 
 ulation. The mission was secularized in 1835, at 
 Vi'hich time there were about 550 neophytes at- 
 tached to it. 
 
 The architecture of the missions was Moorish 
 — that is, if it belonged to any school. The 
 padres in most cases were the architects and mas- 
 ter builders. The main feature of the buildings 
 was massiveness. Built of adobe or rough stone, 
 their walls were of great thickness. Most of the 
 church buildings were narrow, their width being 
 out of proportion to their length. This was 
 necessitated by the difficulty of procuring joists 
 and rafters of sufficient length for wide build- 
 ings. The padres had no means or perhaps no 
 
 6 
 
 knowledge of trussing a roof, and the width 
 of the building had to be proportioned to the 
 length of the timbers procurable. Some of the 
 buildings were planned with an eye for the pic- 
 turesque, others for utility only. The sites se- 
 lected for the mission buildings in nearly every 
 case commanded a fine view of the surrounding 
 country. In their prime, their white walls loom- 
 ing up on the horizon could be seen at long 
 distance and acted as beacons to guide the trav- 
 eler to their hospitable shelter. 
 
 Col. J. J. Warner, who came to California in 
 1831, and saw the mission buildings before they 
 had fallen into decay, thus describes their gen- 
 eral plan: "As soon after the, founding _of a 
 mission as circumstances would permit, a large 
 pile of buildings in the form of a quadrangle, 
 composed in part of burnt brick, but chiefly of 
 sun-dried ones, was erected around a spacious 
 court. A large and capacious church, which 
 usually occupied one of the outer corners of the 
 quadrangle, v/as a conspicuous part of the pile. 
 In this massive building, covered with red tile, 
 v/as the habitation of the friars, rooms for guests 
 and for the major domos and their families. In 
 other buildings of the quadrangle were hospital 
 wards, storehouses and granaries, rooms for 
 carding, spinning and weaving of woolen fab- 
 rics, shops for blacksmiths, joiners and carpen- 
 ters, saddlers, shoemakers and soap boilers, and 
 cellars for storing the product (wine and brandy) 
 of the vineyards. Near the habitation of the 
 friars another building of similar material was 
 placed and used as quarters for a small number 
 — about a corporal's guard — of soldiers under 
 command of a non-commissioned officer, to hold 
 the Indian neophytes in check as well as to pro- 
 tect the mission from the attacks of hostile In- 
 dians." The Indians, when the buildings of the 
 establishment wefe complete, lived in adobe 
 houses built in lines near the quadrangle. Some 
 of the buildings of the square were occupied by 
 the alcaldes or Indian bosses. When the In- 
 dians were gathered into the missions at first 
 they lived in brush shanties constructed in the 
 same manner as their forefathers had built them 
 for generations. In some of the missions these 
 huts were not replaced by adobe buildings for 
 a generation or more. Vancouver, who visited 
 
66 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the Mission of San Francisco in 1792, sixteen visited San Carlos de Monterey in 1792, twenty- 
 vears after its founding, describes the Indian two years after its founding. He says, 
 village with its brush-built huts. He says: withstanding these people are taught and em- 
 •These miserable habitations, each of which was ployed from time to time m many of the occu- 
 pations most useful to civil society, they had not 
 
 allotted for the residence of a whole family, 
 were erected with some degree of uniformity 
 about three or four feet asunder in straight rows, 
 leaving lanes or passageways at right angles be- 
 tween them; but these were so abominably in- 
 fested with every kind of filth and nastiness as 
 to be rendered no less offensive than degrading 
 to the human species." 
 
 Of the houses at Santa Clara, Vancouver 
 says: "The habitations were not so regularly 
 disposed nor did it (the village) contain so many 
 as the village of San Francisco, yet the same 
 horrid state of uncleanliness and laziness seemed 
 to pervade the whole." Better houses were then 
 in the course of construction at Santa Clara. 
 "Each house would contain two rooms and a 
 garret with a garden in the rear." Vancouver 
 
 made themselves any more comfortable habita- 
 tions than those of their forefathers; nor did 
 they seem in any respect to have benefited by 
 the instruction they had received." 
 
 Captain Beechey, of the English navy, who 
 visited San Francisco and the missions around 
 the bay in 1828, found the Indians at San Fran- 
 cisco still living in their filthy hovels and grind- 
 ing acorns for food. "San Jose (mission)," he 
 says, "on the other hand, was all neatness, clean- 
 liness and comfort." At San Carlos he found 
 that the filthy hovels described by Vancouver 
 had nearly all disappeared and the Indians were 
 comfortably housed. He adds: "Sickness in 
 general prevailed to an incredible extent in all 
 :he missions." 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 PRESIDIOS OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 San Diego. 
 
 THE presidio was an essential feature of 
 the Spanish colonization of America. It 
 was usually a fortified square of brick or 
 stone, inside of which were the barracks of the 
 soldiers, the officers' quarters, a church, store 
 houses for provisions and military supplies. The 
 gates at the entrance were closed at night, and 
 it was usually provisioned for a siege. In the 
 colonization of California there were four pre- 
 sidios estabhshed, namely: San Diego, Monte- 
 rey, San Francisco and Santa Barbara. Each 
 was the headquarters of a military district and 
 besides a body of troops kept at the presidio 
 it furnished guards for the missions in its re- 
 spective district and also for the pueblos if there 
 were any in the district. The first presidio was 
 founded at San Diego. As stated in a previous 
 chapter, the two ships of the expedition by sea 
 for the settlement of Califorfiia arrived at the 
 port of San Diego in a deplorable condition 
 
 from scurvy. The San Antonia, after a voyage 
 of fifty-nine days, arrived on April 1 1 ; the San 
 Carlos, although she had sailed a month earlier, 
 did not arrive until April 29, consuming one 
 hundred and ten days in the voyage. Don 
 Miguel Constanso, the engineer who came on 
 this vessel, says in his report: "The scurvy had 
 infected all without exception; in such sort that 
 on entering San Diego already two men had 
 died of the said sickness; most of the seamen, 
 and half of the troops, found themselves pros- 
 trate in their beds ; only four mariners remained 
 on their feet, and attended, aided by the troops, 
 to trimming and furling the sails and other 
 working of the ship." "The San Antonia," says 
 Constanso, "had the half of its crew equal'-v 
 affected by the scurvy, of which illness two men 
 had likewise died." This vessel, although it had 
 arrived at the port on the nth of April, had evi- 
 dently not landed any of its sick. On the ist of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 67 
 
 May, Don Pedro Pages, the commander of the 
 troops, Constanso and Estorace, the second cap- 
 tain of the San Carlos, with twenty-five soldiers, 
 set out to find a watering place where they could 
 fill their barrels with fresh water. "Following 
 the west shore of the port, after going a mat- 
 ter of three leagues, they arrived at the banks 
 of a river hemmed in with a fringe of willows 
 and cottonwoods. Its channel must have been 
 twenty varas wide and it discharges into an 
 estuary which at high tide could admit the 
 launch and made it convenient for accomplish- 
 ing the taking on lof water." * * * "Hav- 
 ing reconnoitered the watering place, the Span- 
 iards betook themselves back on board the 
 vessels and as these were found to be very far 
 away from the estuary in which the river dis- 
 charges, their captains, Vicente Vila and Don 
 Juan Perez, resolved to approach it as closely 
 as they could in order to give less work to the 
 people handling the launches. These labors 
 were accomplished with satiety of hardship; for 
 from one day to the next the number of the sick 
 kept increasing, along with the dying of the 
 most aggravated cases and augmented the , fa- 
 tigue of the few who remained on their 
 feet." 
 
 "Immediate to the beach on the side toward 
 the east a scanty enclosure was constructed 
 formed of a parapet of earth and fascines, which 
 was garnished with two cannons. They disem- 
 barked some sails and awnings from the packets 
 with which they made two tents capacious 
 enough for a hospital. At one side the two ofifi- 
 cers, the missionary fathers and the surgeon put 
 up their own tents; the sick were brought in 
 launches to this improvised presidio and hospi- 
 tal." "But these diligencies," says Constanso, 
 "were not enough to procure them health." 
 * * * "The cold made itself felt with rigor at 
 night in the barracks and the sun by day, alter- 
 nations which made the sick suffer cruelly, two 
 or three of them dying every day. And this 
 whole expedition, which had been composed of 
 more than ninety men, saw itself reduced to only 
 eight soldiers and as many mariners in a state to 
 attend* to the safeguarding of the barks, the 
 working of the launches, custody of. the camp 
 and service of the sick." 
 
 Rivera y Moncada, the commander of the 
 first detachment of the land expedition, arrived 
 at San Diego May 14. It was decided by the 
 officers to remove the camp to a point near the 
 river. This had not been done before on ac- 
 count of the small force able to work and the 
 lack of beasts of burden. Rivera's men were all 
 in good health and after a day's rest "all were 
 removed to a new camp, which was transferred 
 one league further north on the right side of 
 the river upon a hill of middling height." 
 
 Here a presidio was built, the remains of 
 which can still be seen. It was a parapet of 
 earth similar to that thrown up at the first camp, 
 which, according to Bancroft, was probably 
 within the limits of New Town and the last one 
 in Old Town or North San Diego. 
 
 While Portola's expedition was away search- 
 ing for the port of Monterey, the Indians made 
 an attack on the camp at San Diego, killed a 
 Spanish youth and wounded Padre Viscaino, the 
 blacksmith, and a Lower California neophyte. 
 The soldiers remaining at San Diego, sur- 
 rounded the buildings with a stockade. Con- 
 stanso says, on the return of the Spaniards of 
 Portola's expedition: "They found in good con- 
 dition their humble buildings, surrounded with 
 a palisade of trunks of trees, capable of a good 
 defense in case of necessity." 
 
 "In 1782, the presidial force at San Diego, be- 
 sides the commissioned officers, consisted of five 
 corporals and forty-six soldiers. Six men were 
 constantly on duty at each of the three missions 
 of the district, San Diego, San Juan Capistrano 
 and San Gabriel ; while four served at the pueblo 
 of Los Angeles, thus leaving a sergeant, two 
 corporals and about twenty-five men to garrison 
 the fort, care for the horses and a small herd of 
 cattle, and to carry the mails, which latter duty 
 was the hardest connected with the presidio 
 service in time of peace. There were a carpenter 
 and blacksmith constantly employed, besides a 
 few servants, mostly natives. The population of 
 the district in 1790, not including Indians, was 
 220."* 
 
 Before the close of the century the wooden 
 palisades had been replaced by a thick adobe 
 
 ^Bancroft's History of California, Vol. I, 
 
68 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wall, but even then the fort was not a very for- 
 midable defense. Vancouver, the English navi- 
 gator, who visited it in 1793, describes it as 
 "irregularly built on very uneven ground, which 
 makes it liable to some inconveniences without 
 the obvious appearance of any object for select- 
 ing such a spot." It then mounted three small 
 brass cannon. 
 
 Gradually a town grew up around the pre- 
 sidio. Robinson, who visited San Diego in 
 1829, thus describes it: "On the lawn beneath 
 the hill on which the presidio is built stood 
 about 'thirty houses of rude appearance, mostly 
 occupied by retired veterans, not s.o well con- 
 structed in respect either to beauty or stability 
 as the houses at Monterey, with the exception of 
 that belonging to our Administrador, Don Juan 
 Bandini, whose mansion, then in an unfinished 
 state, bid fair^ when completed, to surpass any 
 other in the country." 
 
 Under Spain there was attempt at least to 
 keep the presidio in repair, but under Mexican 
 domination it feU into decay. Dana, describes it 
 as he saw it in 1836: "The first place we went 
 to was the old ruinous presidio, which stands on 
 rising ground near the village which it over- 
 looks. It is built in the form of an open square, 
 like all the other presidios, and was in a most 
 ruinous state, with the exception of one side, 
 in which the comandante lived with his family. 
 There were only two guns, one of which was 
 spiked and the other had no carriage. Twelve 
 half clothed and half starved looking fellows 
 composed the garrison; and they, it was said, 
 had not a musket apiece. The small settlement 
 lay directly below the fort composed of about 
 forty dark brown looking huts or houses and 
 three or four larger ones whitewashed, which 
 belonged to the gente de razon." 
 
 THE PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY. 
 
 In a previous chapter has been narrated the 
 story of Portola's expedition in search of Mon- 
 terey Bay, how the explorers, failing to recog- 
 nize it, passed on to the- northward and discov- 
 ered the great Bay of San Francisco. On their 
 return they set up a cross at what they supposed 
 was the Bay of Monterey; and at the foot of 
 the cross buried a letter giving information to 
 
 any ship that might come up the coast m search 
 of them that they had returned to Sari Diego. 
 They had continually been on the lookout for 
 the San Jose, which was to co-operate with 
 them, but that vessel had been lost at sea with 
 all on board. On their return to San Diego, in 
 January, 1770, preparations were made for a 
 return "as soon as a vessel should arrive. It 
 was not until the i6th of Aprilthat the San An- 
 tonia, the only vessel available, was ready to 
 depart for the second objective point of settle- 
 ment. On the 17th of April, Governor Portola, 
 Lieutenant Pages, Father Crespi and nineteen 
 soldiers took up their line of march for Monte- 
 rey. They followed the trail made in 1769 and 
 reached the point where they had set up the 
 cross April 24. They found it decorated with 
 feathers, bows and arrows and a string of fish. 
 Evidently the Indians regarded it as the white 
 man's fetich and tried to propitiate it by offer- 
 ings. 
 
 The San Antonia, bearing Father Serra, 
 Pedro Prat, the surgeon, and Aliguel Constanso, 
 the civil engineer, and supplies for the mission 
 and presidio, arrived the last day of May. Por- 
 tola was still uncertain whether this was really 
 Monterey Bay. It was hard to discover in the 
 open roadstead stretching out before them Vis- 
 caino's land-locked harbor, sheltered from all 
 winds. After the arrival of the San Antonia the 
 officers of the land and sea expedition made a 
 reconnaissance of the bay and all concurred that 
 at last they had reached the destined port. They 
 located the oak under whose wide-spreading 
 branches Padre Ascension, Viscaino's chaplain, 
 had celebrated mass in 1602, and the springs of 
 fresh water near by. Preparations were begun 
 at once for the founding of mission and presidio. 
 A sheltex of boughs was constructed, an altar 
 raised and the bells hung upon the branch of a 
 tree. Father Serra sang mass and as -they had 
 no musical instrument, salvos of artillery and 
 volleys of musketry furnished an accompani- 
 ment to the service. After the religious services 
 the royal standard was raised and Governor 
 Portola took possession of the country in the 
 name of King Carlos III., King of Spain. The 
 ceremony closed with the pulling of grass and 
 the casting of stones around, significant of en- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 CO 
 
 tire possession of the earth and its products. 
 After the service all feasted. 
 
 Two messengers were sent by Portola with 
 dispatches to the city of Mexico. A day's jour- 
 ney below San Diego they met Rivera and 
 twenty soldiers coming with a herd of cattle and 
 a flock of sheep to stock the mission pastures. 
 Rivera sent back five of his soldiers with Por- 
 tola's carriers. The messengers reached Todos 
 Santos near Cape San Lucas in forty-nine days 
 from Monterey. From there the couriers were 
 sent to San Bias by s'hip, arriving at the city of 
 Mexico August lo. There was great rejoicing 
 at the capital. Marquis Le Croix and Visitador 
 Galvez received congratulations in the King's 
 name for the extension of his domain. 
 
 Portola superintended the building of some 
 rude huts for the shelter of the soldiers, the 
 officers and the padres. Around the square 
 containing the huts a palisade of poles was con- 
 structed. July 9, Portola having turned over 
 the command of the troops to Lieutenant Pages, 
 embarked on the San Antonia for San Bias; 
 with him went the civil engineer, Constanso, 
 from whose report I have frequently quoted. 
 Neither of them ever returned to California. 
 
 The difficulty of reaching California by ship 
 on account of the head winds that blow down 
 the coast caused long delays in the arrival of 
 vessels with supplies. This brought about a 
 scarcity of provisions at the presidios and mis- 
 sions. 
 
 In 1772 the padres of San Gabriel were re- 
 duced to a milk diet and what httle they could 
 obtain from the Indians. At Monterey and San 
 Antonio the padres and the soldiers were obliged 
 to live on vegetables. In this emergency Lieu- 
 tenant Pages and a squad of soldiers went on a 
 bear hunt. They spent three months in the 
 summer of 1772 killing bears in the Cariada de 
 los Osos (Bear Cafion). The soldiers and mis- 
 sionaries had a plentiful supply of bear meat. 
 There were not enough cattle in the country to 
 admit of slaughtering any for food. The pre- 
 sidial walls which were substituted for the pal- 
 isades were built of adobes and stone. The 
 inclosure measured one hundred and ten yards 
 on each side. The buildings were roofed with 
 tiles. "On the north were the main entrance, 
 
 the guard house, and the warehouses; on the 
 west the houses of the governor comandante 
 and other officers, some fifteen apartments in 
 all; on the east nine houses for soldiers, and a 
 blacksmith shop; and on the south, besides 
 nine similar houses, was the presidio church, 
 opposite the main gateway.""' 
 
 The military force at the presidio consisted of 
 cavalry, infantry and artillery, their numbers 
 varying from one hundred to one hundred and 
 twenty in all. These soldiers furnished guards 
 for the missions of San Carlos, San Antonio, 
 San Miguel, Soledad and San Luis Obispo. The 
 total population of gente de razon in the district 
 at the close of the century numbered four hun- 
 dren and ninety. The rancho "del rey" or 
 rancho of the king was located where Salinas 
 City now stands. This rancho was managed by 
 the soldiers of presidio and was intended to 
 furnish the military with meat and a supply of 
 horses for the cavalry. At the presidio a num- 
 ber of invalided soldiers who had served out 
 their time were settled; these were allowed to 
 cultivate land and raise cattle on the unoccu- 
 pied lands of the public domain. A town grad- 
 ually grew up around the presidio square. 
 
 Vancouver, the English navigator, visited the 
 presidio of Monterey in 1792 and describes it as 
 it then appeared: "The buildings of the pre- 
 sidio form a parallelogram or long square com- 
 prehending an area of about three hundred 
 yards long by two hundred and fifty wide, mak- 
 ing one entire enclosure. The external wall is 
 of the same magnitude and built with the same 
 materials, and except that the officers' apart- 
 ments are covered with red tile made in the 
 neighborhood, the whole presents the same 
 lonely, uninteresting appearance as that already 
 described at San Francisco. Like that estab- 
 lishment, the several buildings for the use of the 
 officers, soldiers, and for the protection of stores 
 and provisions are erected along the walls on 
 the inside of the inclosure, which admits of but 
 one entrance for carriages or persons on horse- 
 back; this, as at San Francisco, is on the side 
 of the square fronting the church which was 
 rebuilding with stone like that at San Carlos." 
 
 *Bancroft's History of California, Vol. I. 
 
70 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 "At each corner of the square is a small kind 
 of block house raised a little above the top of 
 the wall where swivels might be mounted for its 
 protection. On the outside, before the entrance 
 into the presidio, which fronts the shores of 
 the bay, are placed seven cannon, four nine and 
 three three-pounders, mounted. The guns are 
 planted on the open plain ground without 
 breastwork or other screen for those employed 
 in working them or the least protection from the 
 weather." 
 
 THE PRESIDIO OF SAN FRANCISCO. 
 
 In a previous chapter I have given an account 
 of the discovery of San Francisco Bay by Por- 
 tola's expedition in 1769. The discovery of that 
 great bay seems to have been regarded as an 
 unimportant event by the governmental offi- 
 cials. While there was great rejoicing at the 
 city of Mexico over the founding of a mission 
 for the conversion of a few naked savages, the 
 discovery of the bay was scarcely noticed, ex- 
 cept to construe it into some kind of a miracle. 
 Father Serra assumed that St. Francis had con- 
 cealed Monterey from the explorers and led 
 them to the discovery of the bay in order that 
 he (St. Francis) might have a mission named 
 for him. Indeed, the only use to which the 
 discovery could be put, according to Serra's 
 ideas, was a site for a mission on its shores, dedi- 
 cated to the founder of the Franciscans. Several 
 explorations were made with this in view. In 
 1772, Lieutenant Pages, Father Crespi and six- 
 teen soldiers passed up the western side of the 
 bay and in 1774 Captain Rivera, Father Palou 
 and a squad of soldiers passed up the eastern 
 shore, returning by way of Monte Diablo, 
 Amador valley and Alameda creek to the Santa 
 Clara valley. 
 
 In the latter part of the year 1774, viceroy 
 Bucureli ordered the founding of a mission and 
 presidio at San Francisco. Hitherto all explora- 
 tions of the bay had been made by land expedi- 
 tions. No one had ventured on its waters. In 
 1775 Lieutenant Juan de Ayala of the royal 
 navy was sent in the old pioneer mission ship, 
 the San Carlos, to make a survey of it. August 
 5, "1775, he passed through the Golden Gate. 
 He moored his ship at an island called by him 
 
 Nuestra Seiiora de los Angeles, now Angel 
 Island. He spent forty days in making explora- 
 tions. His ship was the first vessel to sail upon 
 the great Bay of San Francisco. 
 
 In 1774, Captain Juan Bautista de Anza, com- 
 mander of the presidio of Tubac in Sonora, had 
 made an exploration of a route from Sonora via 
 the Colorado river, across the desert and 
 through the San Gorgonia pass to San Gabriel 
 mission. From Tubac to the Colorado river the 
 route had been traveled before but from the 
 Colorado westward the country was a terra m- 
 cognita. He was guided over this by a lower 
 California neophyte who had deserted from San 
 Gabriel mission and alone had reached the 
 rancherias on the Colorado. 
 
 After Anza's return to Sonora he was com- 
 missioned by the viceroy to recruit soldiers and 
 settlers for San Francisco. October 23, 1775, 
 Anza set out from Tubac with an expedition 
 numbering two hundred and thirty-five persons, 
 composed of soldiers and their families, colon- 
 ists, musketeers and vaqueros. They brought 
 with them large herds of horses, mules and cat- 
 tle. The journey was accomplished without loss 
 of life, but with a considerable amount of suf- 
 fering. January 4, 1776, the immigrants ar- 
 rived at San Gabriel mission, where they stopped 
 to rest, but were soon compelled to move on, 
 provisions at the mission becoming scarce. They 
 arrived at Monterey March 10. Here they went 
 into camp. Anza with an escort of soldiers pro- 
 ceeded to San Francisco to select a presidio 
 site. Having found a site he returned to Mon- 
 terey. Rivera, the commander of the territory, 
 had manifested a spirit of jealousy toward Anza 
 and had endeavored to thwart him in his at- 
 tempts to found a settlement. Disgusted with 
 the action of the commander, Anza, leaving his 
 colonists to the number of two hundred at INIon- 
 terey took his departure from California. Anza 
 in his explorations for a presidio site had fixed 
 upon what is now Fort Point. 
 
 After his departure Rivera experienced a 
 change of heart and instead of trying to delay 
 the founding he did everything to hasten it. The 
 imperative orders of the viceroy received at 
 about this time brought about the change. He 
 ordered Lieutenant Moraga, to whom Anza had 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 71 
 
 turned over the command of his soldiers and 
 colonists, to proceed at once to San Francisco 
 with tVi'enty soldiers to found the fort. The San 
 Carlos, which had just arrived at Monterey, was 
 ordered to proceed to San Francisco to assist 
 in the founding. Moraga with his soldiers ar- 
 rived June 27, and encamped on the Laguna 
 de los Dolores, where the mission was a short 
 time afterwards founded. Moraga decided to 
 located the presidio at the site selected by Anza 
 but awaited the arrival of the San Carlos before 
 proceeding to build. August 18 the vessel ar- 
 rived. It had been driven down the coast to the 
 latitude of San Diego by contrary winds and 
 then up the coast to latitude 42 degrees. On the 
 arrival of the vessel work was begun at once on 
 the fort. A square of ninety-two varas (two 
 hundred and forty-seven feet) on each side was 
 inclosed with palisades. Barracks, officers' 
 quarters and a chapel were built inside the 
 square. September 17, 1776, was set apart for 
 the services of founding, that being'^the day of 
 the "Sores of our seraphic father St. Francis." 
 The royal standard was raised in front of the 
 square and the usual ceremony of pulling grass 
 and throwing stones was performed. Posses- 
 sion of the region round about was taken in the 
 name of Carlos III., King of Spain. Over one 
 hundred and fifty persons witnessed the cere- 
 mony. Vancouver, who visited the presidio in 
 November, 1792, describes it as a "square area 
 whose sides were about two hundred yards in 
 length, enclosed by a mud wall and resembling 
 a pound for cattle. Above this wall the thatched 
 roofs of the low small houses just made their 
 appearance." The wall was "about fourteen feet 
 high and five feet in breadth and was first 
 formed by upright and horizontal rafters of 
 large timber, between which dried sods and 
 moistened earth were pressed as close and hard 
 as possible, after which the whole was cased with 
 the earth made into a sort of mud plaster which 
 gave it the appearance of durability." 
 
 In addition to the presidio there was another 
 fort at Fort Point named Castillo de San Joa- 
 quin. It was completed and blessed December 
 8, 1794. "It was of horseshoe shape, about one 
 hundred by one hundred and twenty feet." The 
 structure rested mainly on sand; the brick-faced 
 
 adobe walls crumbled at the shock whenever a 
 salute was fired; the guns were badly mounted 
 and for the most part worn out, only two of the 
 thirteen twenty-four-pounders being serviceable 
 or capable of sending a ball across the entrance 
 of the fort.* 
 
 PRESIDIO OF SANTA BARBARA. 
 
 Cabrillo, in 1542, found a large Indian popula- 
 tion inhabiting the main land of the Santa Bar- 
 bara channel. Two hundred and twenty-seven 
 years later, when Portola made his exploration, 
 apparently there had been no decrease in the 
 number of inhabitants. No portion of the coast 
 offered a better field for missionary labor and 
 Father Serra was anxious to enter it. In ac- 
 cordance with Governor Felipe de Neve's report 
 of '^777, it had been decided to found three mis- 
 sions and a presidio on the channel. Various 
 causes had delayed the founding and it was not 
 until April 17, 1782, that Governor de Neve 
 arrived at the point where he had decided to 
 locate the presidio of Santa Barbara. The 
 troops that were to man the fort reached San 
 Gabriel in the fall of 1781. It was thought best 
 for them to remain there until the rainy sea- 
 son was over. March 26, 1782, the governor and 
 Father Serra, accompanied by the largest body 
 of troops that had ever before been collected in 
 California, set out to found the mission of San 
 Buenaventura and the presidio. The governor, 
 as has been stated in a former chapter, was re- 
 called to San Gabriel. The mission was founded 
 and the governor having rejoined the cavalcade 
 a few weeks later proceeded to find a location 
 for the presidio. 
 
 "On reaching a point nine leagues from San 
 Buenaventura, the governor called a halt and in 
 company with Father Serra at once proceeded to 
 select a site for the presidio. The choice re- 
 sulted in the adoption of the square now 
 formed by city blocks 139, 140, 155 and 156, 
 and bounded in common by the following 
 streets: Figueroa, Cafion Perdido, Garden and 
 Anacapa. A large community of Indians were 
 residing there but orders were given to leave 
 them undisturbed. The soldiers were at once 
 
 ♦Bancroft's "History of California," Vol. I. 
 
72 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 directed to hew timbers and gather brush to 
 erect temporary barracks which, when com- 
 pleted, were also used as a chapel. A large 
 wooden cross was made that it miglit be planted 
 in the center of the square and possession of 
 the country was taken in the name of the cross, 
 the emblem of Christianity. 
 
 April 21, 1782, the soldiers formed a square 
 and with edifying solemnity raised the cross and 
 secured it in the earth. Father Serra blessed 
 and consecrated the district and preached a ser- 
 mon. The royal standard of Spain was un- 
 furled."* 
 
 An inclosure, sixty varas square, was made of 
 palisades. The Indians were friendly, and 
 through their chief yanoalit, who controlled thir- 
 teen rancherias, details of them were secured 
 to assist the soldiers in the work of building. 
 The natives were paid in food and clothing for 
 their labor. 
 
 Irrigation works were constructed, consisting 
 of a large reservoir made of stone and cement, 
 with a zanja for conducting water to the pre- 
 sidio. The soldiers, who had families, cultivated 
 small gardens which aided in their support. 
 Lieutenant Ortega was in command of the pre- 
 sidio for two years after its founding. He was 
 succeeded by Lieutenant Felipe de Goycoechea. 
 After the founding of the mission in 1786, a 
 bitter feud broke out between the padres and 
 the comandante of the presidio. Goycoechea 
 claimed the right to employ the Indians in the 
 building of the presidio as he had done before 
 the coming of the friars. This they denied. 
 After an acrimonious controversy the dispute 
 was finally compromised by dividing the Indians 
 into two bands, a mission band and a presidio 
 band. 
 
 Gradually the palisades were replaced by an 
 adobe wall twelve feet high. It had a stone 
 foundation and was strongly built. The plaza or 
 inclosed square was three hundred and thirty 
 feet on each side. On two sides of this inclos- 
 ure were ranged the family houses of the sol- 
 diers, averaging in size 15x25 feet. On one side 
 stood the officers' quarters and the church. On 
 
 ♦Father Cabelleria's History of Santa Barbara. 
 
 the remaining side were the main entrance four 
 varas wide, the store rooms, soldiers' quarters 
 and a guard room; and adjoining these outside 
 the walls were the corrals for cattle and horses. 
 A force of from fifty to sixty soldiers was kept 
 at the post. There were bastions at two of the 
 corners for cannon. 
 
 The presidio was completed about 1790, with 
 the exception of the chapel, which was not fin- 
 ished until 1797. Many of the soldiers when 
 they had served out their time desired to re- 
 main in the country. These were given permis- 
 sion to build houses outside the walls of the 
 presidio and in course of time a village grew up 
 around it. 
 
 At the close of the century the population of 
 the gente de razon of the district numbered 
 three hundred and seventy. The presidio when 
 coirrpleted was the best in California. Van- 
 couver, the English navigator, who visited it in 
 November, 1793, says of it: "The buildings ap- 
 peared to be regular and well constructed; the 
 walls clean and white and the roofs of the houses 
 were covered with a bright red tile. The pre- 
 sidio excels all the others in neatness, cleanli- 
 ness and other smaller though essential com- 
 forts; it is placed on an elevated part of the 
 plain and is raised some feet from the ground 
 by a basement story which adds much to its 
 pleasantness." 
 
 During the Spanish regime the settlement at 
 the presidio grew in the leisurely way that all 
 Spanish towns grew in California. There was 
 but little immigration from Mexico and about 
 the only source of increase was from invalid 
 soldiers and the children of the soldiers grow- 
 ing up to manhood and womanhood. It was a 
 dreary and monotonous existence that the sol- 
 diers led at the presidios. A few of them had 
 their families with them. These when the coun- 
 try became more settled had their own houses 
 adjoining the presidio and formed the nuclei 
 of the towns that grew up around the different 
 forts. There was but little fighting to do and 
 the soldiers' service consisted mainly of a round 
 of guard duty at the forts and missions. Oc- 
 casionally there were conquistas into the In' 
 dian country to secure new material for con- 
 verts from the gentiles. The soldiers were oc- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 73 
 
 casionally employed in hunting hindas or run- 
 aways from the missions. These when brought 
 back were thoroughly flogged and compelled to 
 wear clogs attached to their legs. Once a month 
 the soldier couriers brought up from Loreta a 
 budget of mail made up of ofificial bandos and a 
 
 few letters. These contained about all the news 
 that reached them from their old homes in 
 Mexico. But few of the soldiers returned to 
 Mexico when their term of enlistment expired. 
 In course of time these and their descendants 
 formed the bulk of California's population. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PUEBLOS. 
 
 THE pueblo plan of colonization so com- 
 mon in Hispano-American countries did 
 not originate with the Spanish-Amer- 
 ican colonists. It was older even than Spain 
 herself. In early European colonization, the 
 pueblo plan, the common square in the center 
 of the town, the house lots grouped round it, 
 the arable fields and the common pasture lands 
 beyond, appears in the Aryan village, in the an- 
 cient German mark and in the old Roman' 
 praesidium. The Puritans adopted this form in 
 their first settlements in New England. Around 
 the public square or common where stood the 
 meeting house and the town house, they laid off 
 their home lots and beyond these were their 
 cultivated fields and their common pasture lands. 
 This form of colonization was a combination of 
 communal interests and individual ownership. 
 Primarily, no doubt, it was adopted for protec- 
 tion against the hostile aborigines of the coun- 
 try, and secondly for social advantage. It re- 
 versed the order of our own western coloniza- 
 tion. The town came first, it was the initial 
 point from which the settlement radiated; while 
 with our western pioneers the town was an after- 
 thought, a center point for the convenience of 
 trade. , 
 
 When it had been decided to send colonists 
 to colonize California the settlements naturally 
 took the pueblo form. The difficulty of obtain- 
 ing regular supplies for the presidios from Mex- 
 ico, added to the great expense of shipping such 
 a long distance, was the principal cause that in- 
 fluenced the government to establish pueblos de 
 gente de razon. The presidios received their 
 shipments of grain for breadstufi from San Bias 
 
 by saihng vessels. The arrival of these was un- 
 certain. Once when the vessels were unusually 
 long in coming, the padres and the soldiers at 
 the presidios and missions were reduced to hv- 
 ing on milk, bear meat and what provisions they 
 could obtain from the Indians. When Felipe de 
 Neve was made governor of Alta or Nueva 
 California in 1776 he was instructed by the vice- 
 roy to make observations on the agricultural 
 possibilities of the country and the feasibility of 
 founding pueblos where grain could be produced 
 to supply the military establishments. 
 
 On his journey from San Diego to San Fran- 
 cisco in 1777 he carefully examined the coun- 
 try; and as a result of his observations recom- 
 mended the founding of two pueblos; one on the 
 Rio de Porciuncula in the south, and the other 
 on the Rio de Guadalupe in the north. On the 
 29th of November, 1777, the Pueblo of San 
 Jose de Guadelupe was founded. The colonists 
 were nine of the presidio soldiers from San 
 Francisco and Monterey, who had some knowl- 
 edge of farming and five of Anza's pobladores 
 who had come with his expedition the previous 
 years to found the presidio of San Francisco, 
 making with their families sixty-one persons in 
 ail. The pueblo was named for the patron saint 
 of California, San Jose (St. Joseph), husband of 
 Santa Maria, Queen of the Angeles. 
 
 The site selected for the town was about a 
 mile and a quarter north of the center of the 
 present city. The first houses were built of pal- 
 isades and the interstices plastered with mud. 
 These huts were roofed with earth and the floor 
 was the hard beaten ground. Each head of a 
 family was given a suerte or sowing lot of two 
 
74 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 hundred varas square, a house lot, "ten dollars 
 a month and a soldier's rations." Each, also, 
 received a yoke of oxen, two cows, a mule, two 
 sheep and two goats, together with the neces- 
 sary implements and seed, all of which were to 
 be repaid in products of the soil delivered at the 
 royal warehouse. The first communal work 
 done by the pobladores (colonists) was to dam 
 the river, and construct a ditch to irrigate their 
 sowing fields. The dam was not a success and 
 the first sowing of grain was lost. The site se- 
 lected for the houses was low and subject to 
 overflow. 
 
 During wet winters the inhabitants were com- 
 pelled to take a circuitous route of three leagues 
 to attend church service at the mission of Santa 
 Clara. After enduring this state of afifairs 
 through seven winters they petitioned the 
 governor for permission to remove the pu- 
 eblo further south on higher ground. The gov- 
 ernor did not have power to grant the request. 
 The petition was referred to the comandante- 
 general of the Intendencia in Mexico in 1785. 
 He seems to have studied over the matter two 
 , years and having advised with the asesor-general 
 "finally issued a decree, June 21, 1787, to Gov- 
 ernor Pages, authorizing the settlers to remove 
 to the "adjacent loma (hill) selected by them as 
 more useful and advantageous without chang- 
 ing or altering, for this reason, the limits and 
 boundaries of the territory or district assigned 
 to said settlement and to the neighboring Mis- 
 sion of Santa Clara, as there is no just cause 
 why the latter should attempt to appropriate to 
 herself that land." 
 
 Having frequently suffered from floods, it 
 would naturally be supposed that the inhabi- 
 tants, permission being granted, moved right 
 away. They did nothing of the kind. Ten years 
 passed and they "were still located on the old 
 marshy site, still discussing the advantages of 
 the new site on the other side of the river. 
 Whether the padres of the Mission of Santa 
 Clara opposed the moving does not appear in 
 the records, but from the last clause of the com- 
 andante-general's decree in which he says "there 
 is not just cause why the latter (the Mission of 
 Santa Clara) should attempt to appropriate to 
 herself the land," it would seem that the mission 
 
 padres were endeavoring to secure the new site 
 
 or at least prevent its occupancy. 
 
 Tliere was a 
 
 dispute between the padres and the pobladores 
 over the boundary line between the pueblo and 
 mission that outlived the century. After hav- 
 ing been referred to the titled officials, civil and 
 ecclesiastical, a boundary line was finally estab- 
 lished, July 24, 1801, that was satisfactory to 
 both. "According to the best evidence I have 
 discovered," says Hall in his History of San 
 Jose, "the removal of the pueblo took place in 
 1797," just twenty years after the founding. In 
 1798 the juzgado or town hall was built. It 
 was located on Market street near El Dorado 
 street. 
 
 The area of a pueblo was four square leagues 
 (Spanish) or about twenty-seven square miles. 
 This was sometimes granted in a square and 
 sometimes in a rectangular form. The pueblo 
 lands were divided into classes: Solares, house 
 lots; suertes (chance), sowing fields, so named 
 because they were distributed by lot; propios, 
 municipal lands or lands the rent of which went 
 to defray municipal expenses; ejidas, vacant 
 suburbs or commons; dehesas, pasture where 
 the large herds of the pueblo grazed; realenges, 
 royal lands also used for raising revenue; these 
 were unappropriated lands. 
 
 From various causes the founding of the sec- 
 ond pueblo had been delayed. In the latter part 
 of 1779, active preparations were begun for car- 
 rying out the plan of founding a presidio and 
 three missions on the Santa Barbara Channel 
 and a pueblo on the Rio Porciuncula to be 
 named "Reyna de Los Angeles." The comand- 
 ante-general of the Four Interior Provinces of 
 the West (which embraced the Californias, So- 
 nora, New Mexico and Viscaya), Don Teodoro 
 de Croix or "El Cavallero de Croix," "The 
 Knight of the Cross," as he usually styled him- 
 self, gave instructions to Don Fernando de Ri- 
 vera y Moncada to recruit soldiers and settlers 
 for the proposed presidio and pueblo in Nueva 
 California. He, Rivera, crossed the gulf and be- 
 gan recruiting in Sonora and Sinaloa. His in- 
 structions were to secure twenty-four settlers, 
 who were heads of families. They must be ro- 
 bust and well behaved, so that they might set 
 a good example to the natives. Their families 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 75 
 
 must accompany them and unmarried female 
 relatives must be encouraged to go, with the 
 view to marrying them to bachelor sol- 
 diers. 
 
 According to the regulations drafted by Gov- 
 ernor Felipe de Neve, June i, 1779, for the gov- 
 ernment of the province of California and ap- 
 proved by the king, in a royal order of the 24th 
 of October, 1781, settlers in California from the 
 older provinces were each to be granted a house 
 lot and a tract of land for cultivation. Each 
 poblador in addition was to receive $116.50 a 
 year for the first two years, "the rations to be 
 understood as comprehended in this amount, 
 and in lieu of rations for the next three years 
 they will receive $60 yearly." 
 
 Section 3 of Title 14 of the Reglamento pro- 
 vided that "To each poblador and to the com- 
 munity of the pueblo there shall be given under 
 condition of repayment in horses and mules fit 
 to be given and received, and in the payment of 
 the other large and small cattle at the just prices, 
 which are to be fixed by tariff, and of the tools 
 and implements at cost, as it is ordained, two 
 mares, two cows, and one calf, two sheep and 
 two goats, all breeding animals, and one yoke of 
 oxen or steers, one plow point, one hoe, one 
 spade, one axe, one sickle, one wood knife, one 
 musket and one leather^ shield, two horses and 
 one cargo mule. To the community there shall 
 likewise be given the males corresponding to 
 the total number of cattle of different kinds dis- 
 tributed amongst all the inhabitants, one forge 
 and anvil, six crowbars, six iron spades or shov- 
 els and the necessary tools for carpenter and 
 cast work." For the government's assistance to 
 the pobladores in starting their colony the set- 
 tlers were required to sell to the presidios the 
 surplus products of their lands and herds at fair 
 prices, which were to be fixed by the govern- 
 ment. 
 
 The terms offered to the settlers were cer- 
 tainly liberal, and by our own hardy pioneers, 
 who in the closing years of the last century were 
 making their way over the Alleghany mountains 
 into Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee, they would 
 have been considered munificent; but to the in- 
 dolent and energyless mixed breeds of Sonora 
 and Sinaloa they were no inducement. After 
 
 spending nearly nine months in recruiting, Ri- 
 vera was able to obtain only fourteen pobladores, 
 but little over half the number required, and two 
 of these deserted before reaching California. 
 The soldiers that Rivera had recruited for Cal- 
 ifornia, forty-two in number, with their families, 
 were ordered to proceed overland from Alamos, 
 in Sonora, by way of Tucson and the Colorado 
 river to San Gabriel Mission. These were com- 
 manded by Rivera in person. 
 
 Leaving Alamos in April, 1781, they arrived 
 in the latter part of June at the junction of the 
 Gila and Colorado rivers. After a short delay 
 to rest, the main company was sent on to San 
 Gabriel Mission. Rivera, with ten or twelve 
 soldiers, remained to recruit his live stock before 
 crossing the desert. Two missions had been es- 
 tablished on the California side of the Colorado 
 the previous year. Before the arrival of Rivera 
 the Indians had been behaving badly. Rivera's 
 large herd of cattle and horses destroyed the 
 mesquite trees and intruded upon the Indians' 
 melon patches. This, with their previous quar- 
 rel with the padres, provoked the savages to an 
 uprising. They, on July 17, attacked the two 
 missions, massacred the padres and the Spanish 
 settlers attached to the missions and killed Ri- 
 vera and his soldiers, forty-six persons in all. 
 The Indians burned the mission buildings. 
 These were never rebuilt nor was there any at- 
 tempt made to convert the Yumas. The hos- 
 tility of the Yumas practically closed the Colo- 
 rado route to California for many years. 
 
 The pobladores who had been recruited for 
 the founding of the new pueblo, with their fami- 
 lies and a military eftort,all under the command 
 of Lieut. Jose Zuniga, crossed the gulf from 
 Guaymas to Loreto, in Lower California, and by 
 the 1 6th of May were ready for their long jour- 
 ney northward. In the meantime two of the re- 
 cruits had deserted and one was left behind at 
 Loreto. On the i8th of August the eleven who 
 had remained faithful to their contract, with 
 their families, arrived at San Gabriel. Ori ac- 
 count of smallpox among some of the children 
 the company was placed in quarantine about a 
 league from the mission. 
 
 On the 26th of August, 1781, from San Ga- 
 briel, Governor de Neve issued his instructions 
 
76 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for the founding of Los Angeles, which gave 
 some additional rules in regard to the distribu- 
 tion of lots not found in the royal reglamento 
 previously mentioned. 
 
 On the 4th of September, 1781, the colonists, 
 with a military escort headed by Governor Fe- 
 Hp de Neve, took up their line of march from 
 the Mission San Gabriel to the site selected for 
 their pueblo on the Rio de Porciuncula. There, 
 with religious ceremonies, the Pueblo de Nues- 
 Ira Sefiora La Reina de Los Angeles was for- 
 mally founded. A mass was said by a priest 
 from the Mission San Gabriel, assisted by the 
 choristers and musicians of that mission. There 
 were salvos of musketry and a procession with 
 a cross, candlestick, etc. At the head of the 
 procession the soldiers bore the standard of 
 Spain and the women followed bearing a ban- 
 ner with the image of our Lady the Queen of 
 the Angels. This procession made a circuit of 
 the plaza, the priest blessing it and the building 
 lots. At the close of the services Governor de 
 Neve made an address full of good advice to the 
 colonists. Then the governor, his military es- 
 cort and the priests returned to San Gabriel and 
 the colonists were left to -tvork out their 
 destiny. 
 
 Few of the great cities of the land have had 
 such humble founders as Los Angeles. Of the 
 eleven pobladores who built their huts of poles 
 and tule thatch around the plaza vieja one hun- 
 dred and twenty-two years ago, not one could 
 read or write. Not one could boast of an un- 
 mixed ancestry. They were mongrels in race, 
 Caucasian, Indian and Negro mixed. Poor in 
 purse, poor in blood, poor ft all the sterner qual- 
 ities of character that our own hardy pioneers 
 of the west possessed, they left no impress on 
 the city they founded; and the conquering race 
 that possesses the land that they colonized has 
 forgotten them. No street or landmark in the 
 city bears the name of any one of them. No 
 monument or tablet marks the spot where they 
 planted the germ of their settlement. No Fore- 
 fathers' day preserves the memory of their serv- 
 ices and sacrifices. Tiieir names, race and the 
 number of persons in each family have been 
 preserved in the archives of California. They 
 are as follows: 
 
 1. Jose de Lara, a Spaniard (or reputed to be 
 one, although it is doubtful whether he was of 
 pure blood) had an Indian wife and three chil- 
 dren. 
 
 2. Jose Antonio Navarro, a Mestizo, forty- 
 two years old; wife a mulattress; three children. 
 
 3. Basilio Rosas, an Indian, sixty-eight years 
 old, had a mulatto wife and two children. 
 
 4. Antonio Mesa, a negro, thirty-eight years 
 old ; had a mulatto wife and two children. 
 
 5. Antonio Felix Villavicencio, a Spaniard, 
 thirty years old; had an Indian wife and one 
 child. 
 
 6. Jose Vanegas, an Indian, twenty-eight 
 years old; had an Indian wife and one child. 
 
 7. Alejandro Rosas, an Indian, nineteen years 
 old, and had an Indian wife. (In the records, 
 "wife, Coyote-Indian.") 
 
 8. Pablo Rodriguez, an Indian, twenty-five 
 years old; had an Indian wife and one child. 
 
 9. Manuel Camero, a mulatto, thirty years 
 old; had a mulatto wife. 
 
 10. Luis Quintero, a negro, fifty-five years 
 old, and had a mulatto wife and five children. 
 
 11. Jose Morena, a mulatto, twenty-two 
 years old, and had a mulatto wife. 
 
 Antonio Aliranda, the twelfth person described 
 in the padron (list) as a Chino, fifty years old ' 
 and having one child, was left at Loreto when 
 the expedition marched northward. It would 
 have been impossible for him to have rejoined 
 the colonists before the founding. Presumably 
 his child remained with him, consequently there 
 were but forty-four instead of "forty-six persons 
 in all." Col. J. J. Warner, in his "Historical 
 Sketch of Los Angeles," originated the fiction 
 that one of the founders (Miranda, the Chino,) 
 was born in China. Chino, while it does mean a 
 Chinaman, is also applied in Spanish-American 
 countries to persons or animals having curly 
 hair. Miranda was probably of mixed Spanish 
 and Negro blood, and curly haired. There is 
 no record to show that Miranda ever came to 
 Alta California. 
 
 When Jose de Galvez was fitting out the ex- 
 pedition for occupying San Diego and Monte- 
 rey, he issued a proclamation naming St. Jo- 
 seph as the patron saint of his California colon- 
 'zation scheme. Bearing this fact in mind, no 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 77 
 
 doubt, Governor de Neve, when he founded San 
 Jose, named St. Joseph its patron saint. Hav- 
 ing named one of the two pueblos for San Jose 
 it naturally followed that the other should be 
 named for Santa Maria, the Queen of the An- 
 gels, wife of San Jose. 
 
 On the 1st of August, 1769, Portola's expedi- 
 tion, on its journey northward in search of Mon- 
 terey Bay, had halted in the San Gabriel valley 
 near where the Mission Vieja was afterwards lo- 
 cated, to reconnoiter the country and "above 
 all," as Father Crespi observes, "for the purpose 
 of celebrating the jubilee of Our Lady of the 
 Angels of Porciuncula." Next day, August 2, 
 after traveling about three leagues (nine miles). 
 Father Crespi, in his diary, says: "We came to 
 a rather wide Canada having a great many Cot- 
 tonwood and alder trees. Through it ran a 
 beautiful river toward the north-northeast and 
 curving around the point of a cliff it takes a di- 
 rection to the south. Toward the north-north- 
 east we saw another river bed which must have 
 been a great overflov/, but we found it dry. This 
 arm unites with the river and its great floods 
 during the rainy season are clearly demon- 
 strated by the many uprooted trees scattered 
 along the banks." (This dry river is the Arroyo 
 Seco.) "We stopped not -very far from the river, 
 to which we gave the name of Porciuncula." 
 Porciuncula is the name of a hamlet in Italy 
 near which was located the little church of Our 
 Lady of the Angels, in which St. Francis of As- 
 sisi was praying when the jubilee was granted 
 him. Father Crespi, speaking of the plain 
 through which the river flows, says: "This is 
 the best locality of all those we have yet seen 
 for a mission, besides having all the resources 
 required for a large town." Padre Crespi was 
 evidently somewhat of a prophet. 
 
 The fact that this locality had for a number 
 of years borne the name of "Our Lady of the 
 Angels of Porciuncula" may have influenced 
 Governor de Neve to locate his pueblo here. 
 The full name of the town, El Pueblo de Nuestra 
 Senara La Reyna de Los Angeles, was seldom 
 used. It was too long for everyday use. In the 
 earlier years of the town's history it seems to 
 have had a variety of names. It appears in the 
 records as El Pueblo de Nuestra Sefiora de Los 
 
 Angeles, as El Pueblo de La Reyna de Los An- 
 geles and as El Pueblo de Santa Maria de Los 
 Angeles. Sometimes it was abbreviated to 
 Santa Maria, but it was most commonly spoken 
 of as El Pueblo, the town. At what time the 
 name of Rio Porciuncula was changed to Rio 
 Los Angeles is uncertain. The change no doubt 
 was gradual. 
 
 The site selected for the pueblo of Los An- 
 geles was picturesque and romantic. From 
 where Alameda street now is to the eastern 
 bank of the river the land was covered with a 
 dense growth of willows, cottonwoods and al- 
 ders; while here and there, rising above the 
 swampy copse, towered a giant aliso (sycamore). 
 Wild grapevines festooned the branches of the 
 trees and wild roses bloomed in profusion. Be- 
 hind the narrow shelf of mesa land where the 
 pueblo was located rose the brown hills, and in 
 the distance towered the lofty Sierra Madre 
 mountains. 
 
 The last pueblo founded in California under 
 Spanish domination was Villa de Branciforte, 
 located on the opposite side of the river from 
 the Mission of Santa Cruz. It was named after 
 the Viceroy Branciforte. It was designed as a 
 coast defense and a place to colonize discharged 
 soldiers. The scheme was discussed for a con- 
 siderable time before anything was done. Gov- 
 ernor Borica recommended "that an adobe 
 house be built for each settler so that the prev- 
 alent state of things in San Jose and Los An- 
 geles, where the settlers still live in tule huts, be- 
 ing unable to build better dwellings without 
 neglecting their fields, may be prevented, the 
 houses to cost not over two hundred dollars."* 
 
 The first detachment of the colonists arrived 
 May 12, 1797, on the Concepcion in a destitute 
 condition. Lieutenant Moraga was sent to su- 
 perintend the construction of houses for the 
 colonists. He was instructed to build temporary 
 huts for himself and the guard, then to build 
 some larger buildings to accommodate fifteen or 
 twenty families each. These were to be tem- 
 porary. Only nine families came and they were 
 of a vagabond class that had a constitutional 
 antipathy to work. The settlers received the 
 
 ♦Bancroft's History of California, Vol. I. 
 
78 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 same amount of supplies and allowance of 
 money as the colonists of San Jose and Los 
 Angeles. Although the colonists were called 
 Spaniards and assumed to be of a superior race 
 to the first settlers of the other pueblos, they 
 made less progress and were more unruly than 
 the mixed and mongrel inhabitants of the older 
 pueblos. 
 
 Although at the close of the century three 
 decades had passed since the first settlement was 
 made in California, the colonists had made but 
 little progress. Three pueblos of gente de razon 
 had been founded and a few ranchos granted to 
 ex-soldiers. Exclusive of the soldiers, the white 
 population in the year 1800 did not exceed six 
 hundred. The people lived in the most primi- 
 tive manner. There was no commerce and no 
 manufacturing except a little at the missions. 
 Their houses were adobe huts roofed with tule 
 thatch. The floor was the beaten earth and the 
 
 scant furniture home-made. There was a scarcity 
 of cloth for clothing. Padre Salazar relates that 
 when he was at San Gabriel Mission in 1795 a 
 man who had a thousand horses and cattle in 
 proportion came there to beg cloth for a shirt, 
 for none could be had at the pueblo of Los An- 
 geles nor at the presidio of Santa Barbara! 
 
 Hermanagildo Sal, the comandante of San 
 Francisco, writing to a friend in 1799, says, "I 
 send you, by the wife of the pensioner Jose 
 Barbo, one piece of cotton goods and an ounce 
 of sewing silk. There are no combs and I have 
 no hope of receiving any for three years." Think 
 of waiting three years for a comb! 
 
 Eighteen missions had been founded at the 
 close of the century. Except at a few of the 
 older missions, the buildings were temporary 
 structures. The neophytes for the most part 
 were living in wigwams constructed like those 
 they had occupied in their wild state. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE PASSING OF SPAIN'S DOMINATION. 
 
 THE Spaniards were not a commercial peo- 
 ple. Their great desire was to be let alone 
 in their American possessions. Philip II. 
 once promulgated a decree pronouncing death 
 upon any foreigner who entered the Gulf of 
 Mexico. It was easy to promulgate a decree or 
 to pass restrictive laws against foreign trade, but 
 quite another thing to enforce them. 
 
 After the first settlement of California seven- 
 teen years passed before a foreign vessel entered 
 any of its ports. The first to arrive were the 
 two vessels of the French explorer, La Perouse, 
 who anchored in the harbor of Monterey, Sep- 
 tember 15, 1786. Being of the same faith, and 
 France having been an ally of Spain in former 
 times, he was well received. During his brief 
 stay he made a study of the mission system and 
 his observations on it are plainly given. He 
 found a similarity in it to the slave plantations 
 of Santo Domingo. November 14, 1792, the 
 English navigator, Capt. George Vancouver, in 
 the ship Discovery, entered the Bay of San 
 
 Francisco. He was cordially received by the 
 comandante of the port, Hermanagildo Sal, and 
 the friars of the mission. On the 20th of the 
 month, with several of his officers, he visited the 
 Mission of Santa Clara, where he was kindly 
 treated. . He also visited the Mission of San 
 Carlos de Monterey. He wrote an interesting 
 account of his visit and his observations on the 
 country. Vancouver was surprised at the back- 
 wardness of the country and the antiquated cus- 
 toms of the people. He says: 'Instead of find- 
 ing a country tolerably well inhabited, and far 
 advanced in cultivation, if we except its natural- 
 pastures, flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, 
 there is not an object to indicate the most re- 
 mote connection with any European or other 
 civilized nation." On a subsequent visit, Cap- 
 tain Vancouver met a chilly reception from the 
 acting governor, Arrillaga. The Spaniards sus- 
 pected him of spying out the weakness of their 
 defenses. Through the English, the Spaniards 
 became acquainted with the importance and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 79 
 
 value of the fur trade. The bays and lagoons of 
 California abounded in sea otter. Their skins 
 were worth in China .all the way from $30 to 
 $100 each. The trade was made a government 
 monopoly. The skins were to be collected from 
 the natives, soldiers and others by the mission- 
 aries, at prices ranging from $2.50 to $10 each, 
 and turned over to the government officials ap- 
 ' pointed to receive them. All trade by private 
 persons was prohibited. The government was 
 sole trader. But the government failed to make 
 the trade profitable. In the closing years of 
 the century the American smugglers began to 
 haunt the coast. The restrictions against trade 
 with foreigners were proscriptive and the penal- 
 ties for evasion severe, but men will trade under 
 the most adverse circumstances. Spain was a 
 long way off, and smuggling was not a very 
 venal sin In the eyes of layman or churchman. 
 Fast sailing vessels were fitted out in Boston 
 for illicit trade on the California coast. Watch- 
 ing their opportunities, these vessels slipped 
 into the bays and inlets along the coast. There 
 was a rapid exchange of Yankee notions for sea 
 otter skins, the most valued peltry of California, 
 and the vessels were out to sea before the rev- 
 enue officers could intercept them. If success- 
 ful in escaping capture, the profits of a smug- 
 gling voyage were enormous, ranging from 500 
 to i,oco per cent above cost on the goods ex- 
 changed; but the risks were great. The smug- 
 gler had no protection; he was an outlaw. He 
 was the legitimate prey of the padres, the peo- 
 ple and the revenue officers. The Yankee smug- 
 gler usually came out ahead. His vessel was 
 heavily armed, and when speed or stratagem 
 [ailed he was ready to fight his way out of a 
 scrape. 
 
 Each year two ships were sent from San 
 Bias with the memorias — mission and presidio 
 supplies. These took back a small cargo of the 
 products of the territory, wheat being the prin- 
 cipal. This was all the legitimate commerce 
 allowed California. 
 
 The fear of Russian aggression had been one 
 of the causes that had forced Spain to attempt 
 the colonization of California. Bering, in 1741, 
 had discovered the strait that bears his name 
 and had taken possession, for the Russian gov- 
 
 ernment, of the northwestern coast of America. 
 Four years later, the first permanent Russian 
 settlement, Sitka, had been made on one of the 
 coast islands. Rum.ors of the Russian explora- 
 tions and settlements had reached Madrid and 
 in 1774 Captain Perez, in the San Antonia, was 
 sent up the coast to find out what the Russians 
 were doing. 
 
 Had Russian America contained arable land 
 where grain and vegetables could have been 
 grown, it is probable that the Russians and 
 Spaniards in America would not have come in 
 contact; for another nation, the United States, 
 had taken possession of the intervening coun- 
 try, bordering the Columbia river. 
 
 The supplies of breadstufls for the Sitka col- 
 onists had to be sent overland across Siberia 
 or shipped around Cape Horn. Failure of sup- 
 plies sometimes reduced the colonists to sore 
 straits. In 1806, famine and diseases incident 
 to starvation threatened the extinction of the 
 Russian colony. Count Rezanoff, a high officer 
 of the Russian government, had arrived at the 
 Sitka settlement in September, 1805. The des- 
 titution prevailing there induced him to visit 
 California with the hope of obtaining relief for 
 the starving colonists. In the ship Juno (pur- 
 chased from an American trader), with a scurvy 
 afflicted crew, he made a perilous voyage down 
 the stormy coast and on the 5tli of April, 1806, 
 anchored safely in the Bay of San Francisco. 
 He had brought with him a cargo of goods for 
 exchange but the restrictive commercial regula- 
 tions of Spain prohibited trade with foreigners. 
 Although the friars and the people needed the 
 goods the governor could not allow the ex- 
 change. Count Rezanoff would be permitted to 
 purchase grain for cash, but the Russian's ex- 
 chequer was not plethoric and his ship was al- 
 ready loaded with goods. Love that laughs at 
 locksmiths eventually unlocked the shackles 
 that hampered commerce. Rezanoff fell in love 
 with Dona Concepcion, the beautiful daughter 
 of Don Jose Arguello, the comandante of San 
 Francisco, and an old time friend of the gov- 
 ernor, Arrillaga. The attraction was mutual. 
 Through the influence of Dona Concepcion, the 
 friars and Arguello, the governor was induced 
 to sanction a plan by which cash was the sup- 
 
80 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 posed medium of exchange on both sides, but 
 grain on the one side and goods on the other 
 were tlie real currency. 
 
 The romance of Rezanoff and Dona Concep- 
 cion had a sad ending. On his journey through 
 Siberia to St. Petersburg to obtain the consent 
 of the emperor to his marriage he was killed 
 by a fall from his horse. It was severd years 
 before the news of his death reached his af- 
 fianced bride. Faithful to his memory, she never 
 married, but dedicated her life to deeds ol char- 
 ity. After Rezanofif's visit the Russians came 
 frequently to California, partly to trade, but 
 more often to hunt otter. While on these fur 
 hunting expeditions they examined the coast 
 north of San Francisco with the design of plant- 
 ing an agricultural colony where they could 
 raise grain to supply the settlements in the far 
 north. In 1812 they founded a town and built 
 a fort on the coast north of Bodega Bay, which 
 they named Ross. The fort mounted ten guns. 
 They maintained a fort at Bodega Bay and also 
 a small settlement on Russian river. The Span- 
 iards protested against this aggression and 
 threatened to drive the Russians out of the ter- 
 ritory, but nothing came of their protests and 
 they were powerless to enforce their demands. 
 The Russian ships came to California for sup- 
 plies and were welcomed by the people and the 
 friars if not. by the government officials. The 
 Russian colony at Ross was not a success. The 
 ignorant soldiers and the Aluets who formed 
 the bulk of its three or four hundred inhab- 
 itants, knew little or nothing about farming and 
 were too stupid to learn. After the decline of 
 fur hunting the settlement became unprofitable. 
 In 1 841 the buildings and the stock were sold 
 by the Russian governor to Capt. John A. Sut- 
 ter for $30,000. The settlement was abandoned 
 and the fort and the town are in ruins. 
 
 On the 15th of September, 1810, the patriot 
 priest, Miguel Hidalgo, struck the first blow 
 for Mexican independence. The revolution 
 which began in the province of Guanajuato was 
 at first regarded by the authorities as a mere 
 riot of ignorant Indians that would be speedily 
 suppressed. But the insurrection spread rap- 
 idly. Long years of oppression and cruelty had 
 instilled into the hearts of the people an undy- 
 
 ing hatred for their Spanish oppressors. Hidalgo 
 soon found himself at the head of a motley 
 arm)-, poorly armed and undisciplined, but its 
 numbers swept away opposition. Unfortunately 
 through over-confidence reverses came and in 
 March, 181 1, the patriots met an overwhelming 
 defeat at the bridge of Calderon. Hidalgo was 
 betrayed, captured and shot. Though sup- 
 pressed for a time, the cause of independence 
 was not lost. For eleven years a fratricidal war 
 was waged — cruel, bloody and devastating. Al- 
 lende, Mina, Moreles, Alama, Rayon and other 
 patriot, leaders met death on the field of battle 
 or were captured and shot as rebels, but "Free- 
 dom's battle" bequeathed from bleeding sire to ~ 
 son was won at last. 
 
 Of the political upheavals that shook Spain 
 in the first decades of the century only the faint- 
 est rumblings reached far distant California. 
 Notwithstanding the many changes of rulers 
 that political revolutions and Napoleonic wars 
 gave the mother country, the people of Califor- 
 nia remained loyal to the Spanish crown, al- 
 though at times they must have been .in doubt 
 who wore the crown. 
 
 Arrillaga was governor of California when 
 the war of Mexican independence began. Al- 
 though born in Mexico he was of pure Spanish 
 parentage and was thoroughly in sympathy with 
 Spain in the contest. He did not live to see the 
 end of the war. He died in 1814 and was suc- 
 ceeded by Pablo Vicente de Sola. Sola was 
 Spanish born and was bitterly opposed to the 
 revolution, even going so far as to threaten 
 death to any one who should speak in favor of 
 it. He had received his appointment from 
 Viceroy Calleja, the butcher of Guanajuato, the 
 cruelest and most bloodthirsty of the vice regal 
 governors of new Spain. The friars were to a 
 man loyal to Spain. The success of the repub- 
 lic meant the downfall of their domination. 
 They hated republican ideas and regarded 
 their dissemination as a crime. They were the 
 ruling power in California. The governors 
 and the people were subservient to their 
 wishes. 
 
 The decade between 1810 and 1820 was 
 marked by two important events, the year of the 
 earthquakes and the year of the insurgents. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 65 
 
 SAN FRANCISCO SOLANO. ' 
 
 The mission of San Francisco de Asis had 
 fallen into a rapid decline. The epidemic that 
 had carried ofif a number of the neophytes and 
 had caused the transfer of a considerable num- 
 ber to San Rafael had greatly reduced its popu- 
 lation. Besides, the sterility of the soil in the 
 vicinity of the mission necessitated going a long 
 distance for agricultural land and pasturage for 
 the herds and flocks. On this account and also 
 for the reason that a number of new converts 
 might be obtained from the gentiles living in 
 the district north of the bay, Governor Arguello 
 and the mission authorities decided to establish 
 a mission in that region. Explorations were 
 made in June and July, 1823. On the 4th of 
 July a site was selected, a cross blessed and 
 raised, a volley of musketry fired and mass said 
 at a place named New San Francisco, but after- 
 wards designated as the Mission of San Fran- 
 cisco Solano. On the 25th of August work was 
 begun on the mission building and on the 4th of 
 April, 1824, a church, 24x105 feet, built of wood, 
 was dedicated. 
 
 It had been intended to remove the neophytes 
 from the old mission of San Francisco to the 
 new; but the padres of the old mission opposed 
 its depopulation and suppression. A com- 
 promise was effected by' allowing all neophytes 
 of the old mission who so elected to go to the 
 new. Although well located, the Mission of 
 Solano was not prosperous. Its largest popula- 
 tion, 996, was reached in 1832. The total num- 
 ber of baptisms were 1,315; deaths, 651. The 
 average death rate was 7.8 per cent of the pop- 
 ulation. The mission was secularized in 1835, at 
 Vi'hich time there were about 550 neophytes at- 
 tached to it. 
 
 The architecture of the missions was Moorish 
 — that is, if it belonged to any school. The 
 padres in most cases were the architects and mas- 
 ter builders. The main feature of the buildings 
 was massiveness. Built of adobe or rough stone, 
 their walls were of great thickness. Most of the 
 church buildings were harrow, their width being 
 out of proportion to their length. This was 
 necessitated by the difficulty of procuring joists 
 and rafters of sufficient length for wide build- 
 ings. The padres had no means or perhaps no 
 
 knowledge of trussing a roof, and the width 
 of the building had to be proportioned to the 
 length of the timbers procurable. Some of the 
 buildings were planned with an eye for the pic- 
 turesque, others for utility only. The sites se- 
 lected for the mission buildings in nearly every 
 case commanded a fine view of the surrounding 
 country. In their prime, their white walls loom- 
 ing up on the horizon could be seen at long 
 distance and acted as beacons to guide the trav- 
 eler to their hospitable shelter. 
 
 Col. J. J. Warner, who came to California in 
 1831, and saw the mission buildings before they 
 had fallen into decay, thus describes their gen- 
 eral plan: "As soon after the founding of a 
 mission as circumstances would permit, a large 
 pile of buildings in the form of a quadrangle, 
 composed in part of burnt brick, but chiefly of 
 sun-dried ones, was erected around a spacious 
 court. A large and capacious church, which 
 usually occupied one of the outer corners of the 
 quadrangle, was a conspicuous part of the pile. 
 In this massive building, covered with red tile, 
 v/as the habitation of the friars, rooms for guests 
 and for the major domos and' their families. In 
 other buildings of the quadrangle were hospital 
 war4s, storehouses and granaries, rooms for 
 carding, spinning and weaving of woolen fab- 
 rics, shops for blacksmiths, joiners and carpen- 
 ters, saddlers, shoemakers and soap boilers, and 
 cellars for storing the product (wine and brandy) 
 of the vineyards. Near the habitation of the 
 friars another building of similar material was 
 placed and used as quarters for a small number 
 — about a corporal's guard — of soldiers under 
 command of a non-commissioned officer, to hold 
 the Indian neophytes in check as well as to pro- 
 tect the mission from the attacks of hostile In- 
 dians." The Indians, when the buildings of the 
 establishment were complete, lived in adobe 
 houses built in lines near the quadrangle. Some 
 of the buildings of the square were occupied by 
 the alcaldes or Indian bosses. When the In- 
 dians were gathered into the missions at first 
 they lived in brush shanties constructed in the 
 same manner as their forefathers had built them 
 for generations. In some of the missions these 
 huts were not replaced by adobe buildings for 
 a generation or more. Vancouver, who visited 
 
66 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the Mission of San Francisco in 1792, sixteen 
 years after its founding, describes the Indian 
 village with its brush-built huts. He says: 
 "These miserable habitations, each of which was 
 allotted for the residence of a whole family, 
 were erected with some degree of uniformity 
 about three or four feet asunder in straight rows, 
 leaving lanes or passageways at right angles be- 
 tween them; but these were so abominably in- 
 fested with every kind of filth and nastiness as 
 to be rendered no less offensive than degrading 
 to the human species." 
 
 Of the houses at Santa Clara, Vancouver 
 says: "The habitations were not so regularly 
 disposed nor did it (the village) contain so many 
 as the village of San Francisco, yet the same 
 horrid state of uncleanliness and laziness seemed 
 to pervade the whole." Better houses were then 
 in the course of- construction at Santa Clara. 
 "Each house would contain two rooms and a 
 garret with a garden in the rear." Vancouver 
 
 visited San Carlos de Monterey in 1792, twenty- 
 two years after its founding. He says: "Not- 
 withstanding these people are taught and em- 
 ployed from time to tifne in- many of the occu- 
 pations most useful to civil society, they had not 
 made themselves any more comfortable habita- 
 tions than those of their forefathers; nor did 
 thty seem in any respect to have benefited by 
 the instruction they had received." 
 
 Captain Beechey, of the EngHsh navy, who 
 visited San Francisco and the missions around 
 the bay in 1828, found the Indians at San Fran- 
 cisco still living in their filthy hovels and grind- 
 ing acorns for food. "San Jose (mission)," he 
 says, "on the other hand, was all neatness, clean- 
 liness and comfort." At San Carlos he found 
 that the fihhy hovels described by Vancouver 
 had nearly all disappeared and the Indians were 
 comfortably housed. He adds: "Sickness in 
 general prevailed to an incredible extent in all 
 the missions." 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 PRESIDIOS OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 San Diego. 
 
 THE presidio was an essential feature of 
 the Spanish colonization of America. It 
 was usually a fortified square of brick or 
 stone, inside of which were the barracks of the 
 soldiers, the officers' quarters, a church, store 
 houses for provisions and military supplies. The 
 gates at the entrance were closed at night, and 
 it was usually provisioned for a siege. In the 
 colonization of California there were four pre- 
 sidios established, namely: San Diego, Monte- 
 rey, San Francisco and Santa Barbara. Each 
 was the headquarters of a military district and 
 besides a body of troops kept at the presidio 
 it furnished guards for the missions in its re- 
 spective district and also for the pueblos if there 
 were any in the district. The first presidio was 
 founded at San Diego. As stated in a previous 
 chapter, the two ships of the expedition by sea 
 for the settlement of California arrived at the 
 port of San Diego in a deplorable condition 
 
 from scurvy. The San Antonia, after a voyage 
 of fifty-nine days, arrived on April 1 1 ; the San 
 Carlos, although she had sailed a month earlier, 
 did not arrive until April 29, consuming one 
 hundred and ten days in the voyage. Don 
 Miguel Constanso, the engineer who came on 
 this vessel, says in his report: "The scurvy had 
 infected all without exception; in such sort that 
 on entering San Diego already two men had- 
 died of the said sickness; most of the seamen, 
 and half of the troops, found themselves pros- 
 trate in their beds ; only four mariners remained 
 on their feet, and attended, aided by the troops, 
 to trimming and furling the sails and other 
 working of the ship." "The San Antonia," says 
 Constanso, "had the half of its crew equally 
 affected by the scurvy, of which illness two men 
 had likewise died." This vessel, although it had 
 arrived at the port on the nth of April, had evi- 
 dently not landed any of its sick. On the ist of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 67 
 
 May, Don Pedro Pages, the commander of the 
 troops, Constanso and Estorace, the second cap- 
 tain of the San Carlos, with twenty-five soldiers, 
 set out to find a watering place where they could 
 fill their barrels with fresh water. "Following 
 the west shore of the port, after going a mat- 
 ter of three leagues, they arrived at the banks 
 of a river hemmed in with a fringe of willows 
 and cottonwoods. Its channel must have been 
 twenty varas wide and it discharges into an 
 estuary which at high tide could admit the 
 launch and made it convenient for accomplish- 
 ing the taking on of water." * * * "Hav- 
 ing reconnoitered the watering place, the Span- 
 iards betook themselves back on board the 
 vessels and as these were found to be very far 
 away from the estuary in which the river dis- 
 charges, theif captains, Vicente Vila and Don 
 Juan Perez, resolved to approach it as closely 
 as they could in order to give less work to the 
 people handling the launches. These labors 
 were accomplished with satiety of hardship; for 
 from one day to the next the number of the sick 
 kept increasing, along with the dying of the 
 most aggravated cases and augmented the fa- 
 tigue of the few who remained on their 
 feet." 
 
 "Immediate to the beach on the side toward 
 the east a scanty enclosure was constructed 
 formed of a parapet of earth and fascines, which 
 was garnished with two cannons. They disem- 
 barked some sails and awnings from the packets 
 with which they made two tents capacious 
 enough for a hospital. At one side the two offi- 
 cers, the missionary fathers and the surgeon put 
 up their own tents; the sick were brought in 
 launches to this improvised presidio and hospi- 
 tal." "But these diligencies," says Constanso, 
 "were not enough to procure them health." 
 * * * "The cold made itself felt with rigor at 
 night in the barracks and the sun by day, alter- 
 nations which made the sick suffer cruelly, two 
 or three of them dying every day. And this 
 whole expedition, which had been composed of 
 more than ninety men, saw itself reduced to only 
 eight soldiers and as many mariners in a state to 
 attend to the safeguarding of the barks, the 
 working of the launches, custody of the camp 
 and service of the sick." 
 
 Rivera y Moncada, the commander of the 
 first detachment of the land expedition, arrived 
 at San Diego May 14. It was decided by the 
 officers to remove the camp to a point near the 
 river. This had not been done before on ac- 
 count of the small force able to work and the 
 lack of beasts of burden. Rivera's men were all 
 in good health and after a day's rest "all were 
 removed to a new camp, which was transferred 
 one league further north on the right side of 
 the river upon a hill of middling height." 
 
 Here a presidio was built, the remains of 
 which can still be seen. It was a parapet of 
 earth similar to that thrown up at the first camp, 
 which, according to Bancroft, was probably 
 within the limits of New Town and the last one 
 in Old Town or North San Diego. 
 
 While Portola's expedition was away search- 
 ing for the port of Monterey, the Indians made 
 an attack on the camp at San Diego, killed a 
 Spanish youth and wounded Padre Viscaino, the 
 blacksmith, and a Lower California neophyte. 
 The soldiers remaining at San Diego sur- 
 rounded the buildings with a stockade. Con- 
 stanso says, on the return of the Spaniards of 
 Portola's expedition: "They found in good con- 
 dition their humble buildings, surrounded with 
 a palisade of trunks of trees, capable of a good 
 defense in case of necessity." 
 
 "In 1782, the presidial force at San Diego, be- 
 sides the commissioned officers, consisted of five 
 corporals and forty-six soldiers. Six men were 
 constantly on duty at each of the three missions 
 of the district, San Diego, San Juan Capistrano 
 and San Gabriel ; while four served at the pueblo 
 of Los Angeles, thus leaving a sergeant, two 
 corporals and about twenty-five men to garrison 
 the fort, care for the horses and a small herd of 
 cattle, and to carry the mails, which latter duty 
 was the hardest connected with the presidio 
 service in time of peace. There were a carpenter 
 and blacksmith constantly employed, besides a 
 few servants, mostly natives. The population of 
 the district in 1790, not including Indians, was 
 220."* 
 
 Before the close of the century the wooden 
 palisades had been replaced by a thick adobe 
 
 *Bancrpft's History of California, Vol. I, 
 
68 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wall, but even then the fort was not a very for- 
 midable defense. Vancouver, the English navi- 
 gator, who visited it in 1793, describes it as 
 "irregularly built on very uneven ground, which 
 makes it liable to some inconveniences without 
 the obvious appearance of any object for select- 
 ing such a spot." It then mounted three small 
 brass cannon. 
 
 Gradually a town grew up around the. pre- 
 sidio. Robinson, who visited San Diego in 
 1829, thus describes it: "On the lawn beneath 
 the hill on which the presidio is built stood 
 about thirty houses of rude appearance, mostly 
 occupied by retired veterans, not so well con- 
 structed in respect either to beauty or stability 
 as the houses at Monterey, with the exception of 
 that belonging to our Administrador, Don Juan 
 Bandini, whose mansion, then in an unfinished 
 state, bid fair, when completed, to surpass any 
 other in the country." 
 
 Under Spain there was attempt at least to 
 keep the presidio in repair, but under Mexican 
 domination it fell into decay. Dana describes it 
 as he saw it in 1836: "The first place we went 
 to was the old ruinous presidio, which stands on 
 rising ground near the village which it over- 
 looks. It is built in the form of an open square, 
 like all the other presidios, and was in a most 
 ruinous state, with the exception of one side, 
 in which the comandante lived with his family. 
 There were only two guns, one of which was 
 spiked and the other had no carriage. Twelve 
 half clothed and half starved looking fellows 
 composed the garrison; and they, it was said, 
 had not a musket apiece. The small settlement 
 lay directly below the fort composed of about 
 forty dark brown looking huts or houses and 
 three or four larger ones whitewashed, which 
 belonged to the gente de razon." 
 
 THE PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY. 
 
 In a previous chapter has been narrated the 
 story of Portola's expedition in search of Mon- 
 terey Bay, how the explorers, failing to recog- 
 nize it, passed on to the northward and discov- 
 ered the great Bay of San Francisco. On their 
 return they set up a cross at what they supposed 
 was the Bay of Monterey; and at the foot of 
 the cross buried a letter giving information to 
 
 any ship that niTght come up the coast m search 
 of them that they had returned to San Diego. 
 They had contmually been on the lookout for 
 the San Jose, which was to co-operate with 
 them, but that vessel had been lost at sea with 
 all on board. On their return to San Diego, in 
 January, 1770, preparations were made for a 
 return as soon as a vessel should arrive. It 
 was not until the i6th of April that the San An- 
 tonia, the only vessel available, was ready to 
 depart for the second objective point of settle- 
 ment. On the 17th of April, Governor Portola, 
 Lieutenant Fages, Father Crespi and nineteen 
 soldiers took up their line of march for Monte- 
 rey. They followed the trail made in 1769 and 
 reached the point where they had set up the 
 cross April 24. They found it decorated with 
 feathers, bows and arrows and a 'string of fish. 
 Evidently the Indians regarded it as the white 
 man's fetich and tried to propitiate it by offer- 
 ings. 
 
 The San Antonia, bearing Father Serra, 
 Pedro Prat, the surgeon, and Miguel Constanso, 
 the civil engineer, and supplies for the mission 
 and presidio, arrived the last day of May. Por- 
 tola was still uncertain whether this was really 
 Monterey Bay. It was hard to discover in the 
 open roadstead stretching out before them Vis- 
 caino's land-locked harbor, sheltered from all 
 winds. After the arrival of the San Antonia the 
 officers of the land and sea expedition made a 
 reconnaissance of the bay and all concurred that 
 at last they had reached the destined port. They 
 located the oak under whose wide-spreading 
 branches Padre Ascension, Viscaino's chaplain, 
 had celebrated mass in 1602, and the springs of 
 fresh water near by. Preparations were begun 
 at once for the founding of mission and presidio. 
 A shelter of boughs was constructed, an altar 
 raised and the bells hung upon the branch of a 
 tree. Father Serra sang mass and as they had 
 no musical instrument, salvos of artillery and 
 volleys of musketry furnished an accompani- 
 ment to the service. After the religious services 
 the royal standard was raised and Governor 
 Portola took possession of the country in the 
 name of King Carlos HI., King of Spain. The 
 ceremony closed with the pulling of grass and 
 the casting of stones around, significant of en- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Gd 
 
 tire possession of the earth and its products. 
 After the service all feasted. 
 
 Two messengers were sent by Portola with 
 dispatches to the city of Mexico. A day's jour- 
 ney below San Diego they met Rivera and 
 twenty soldiers coming with a herd of cattle and 
 a flock of sheep to stock the mission pastures. 
 Rivera sent back five of his soldiers with Por- 
 tola's carriers. The messengers reached Todos 
 Santos near Cape San Lucas in forty-nine days 
 from Monterey. From there the couriers were 
 sent to San Bias by ship, arriving at the city of 
 Mexico August lo. There was great rejoicing 
 at the capital. Marquis Le Croix and Visitador 
 Galvez received congratulations in the King's 
 name for the extension of his domain. 
 
 Portola superintended the building of some 
 rude huts for the shelter of the soldiers, the 
 officers and the padres. Around the square 
 containing the huts a palisade of poles was con- 
 structed. July 9, Portola having turned over 
 the command of the troops to Lieutenant Pages, 
 embarked on the San Antonia for San Bias; 
 with him went the civil engineer, Constanso, 
 from whose report ' I have frequently quoted. 
 Neither of them ever returned to California. 
 
 The difficulty of reaching California by ship 
 on account of the head winds that blow down 
 the coast caused long delays in the arrival of 
 vessels with supplies. This brought about a 
 scarcity of provisions at the presidios and mis- 
 sions. 
 
 In 1772 the padres of San Gabriel were re- 
 duced to a milk diet and what little they could 
 obtain from the Indians. At Monterey and San 
 Antonio the padres and the soldiers were obliged 
 to live on vegetables. In this emergency Lieu- 
 tenant Pages and a squad of soldiers went on a 
 bear hunt. They spent three months in the 
 summer of 1772 killing bears in the Caiiada de 
 los Osos (Bear Cahon). The soldiers and mis- 
 sionaries had a plentiful supply of bear meat. 
 There were not enough cattle in the country to 
 admit of slaughtering any for food. The pre- 
 sidial walls which were substituted for the pal- 
 isades were built of adobes and stone. The 
 inclosure measured one hundred and ten yards 
 on each side. The buildings were roofed with 
 tiles. "On the north were the main entrance, 
 
 the guard house, and the warehouses; on the 
 west the houses of the governor comandante 
 and other officers, some fifteen apartments in 
 all; on the east nine houses for soldiers, and a 
 blacksmith shop; and on the south, besides 
 nine similar houses, was the presidio church, 
 opposite the main gateway."* 
 
 The military force at the presidio consisted of 
 cavalry, infantry and ai'tillery, their numbers 
 varying from one hundred to one hundred and 
 twenty in all. These soldiers furnished guards 
 for the missions of San Carlos, San Antonio, 
 San Miguel, Soledad and San Luis Obispo. The 
 total population of gente de razon in the district 
 at the close of the 'century numbered four hun- 
 dren and ninety. The rancho "del rey" or 
 rancho of the king was located where Salinas 
 City now stands. This rancho was managed by 
 the soldiers of presidio and was intended to 
 furnish the military with meat and a supply of 
 horses for the cavalry. At the presidio a num- 
 ber of invalided soldiers who had served out 
 their time were settled; these were allowed to 
 cultivate land and raise cattle on the unoccu- 
 pied lands of the public domain. A town grad- 
 ually grew up around the presidio square. 
 
 Vancouver, the English navigator, visited the 
 presidio of Monterey in 1792 and describes it as 
 it then appeared: "The buildings of the pre- 
 sidio form a parallelogram or long square com- 
 prehending an area of about three hundred 
 yards long by two hundred and fifty wide, mak- 
 ing one entire enclosure. The external wall is 
 of the same magnitude and built with the same 
 materials, and except that the officers' apart- 
 ments are covered with red tile made in the 
 neighborhood, the whole presents the same 
 lonely, uninteresting appearance as that already 
 described at San Francisco. Like that estab- 
 lishment, the several buildings for the use of the 
 officers, soldiers, and for the protection of stores 
 and provisions are erected along the walls on 
 the inside of the inclosure, which admits of but 
 one entrance for carriages or persons on horse- 
 back; this, as at San Francisco, is on the side 
 of the square fronting the church which was 
 rebuilding with stone like that at San Carlos." 
 
 ♦Bancroft's History of California, Vol. I. 
 
70 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 "At each corner of the square is a small kind 
 of block house raised a little above the top of 
 the wall where swivels might be mounted for its 
 protection. On the outside, before the entrance 
 into the presidio, which fronts the shores of 
 the bay, are placed seven cannon, four nine and 
 three three-pounders, mounted. The guns are 
 planted on the open plain ground without 
 breastwork or other screen for those employed 
 in working them or the least protection from the 
 weather." 
 
 THE PRESIDIO OF SAN FRANCISCO. 
 
 In a previous chapter I have given an account 
 of the discovery of San Francisco Bay by Por- 
 tola's expedition in 1769. The discovery of that 
 great bay seems to have been regarded as an 
 unimportant event by the governmental offi- 
 cials. While there was great rejoicing at the 
 city of Mexico over the founding of a mission 
 for the conversion of a few naked savages, the 
 discovery of the bay was scarcely noticed, ex- 
 cept to construe it into some kind of a miracle. 
 Father Serra assumed that St. Francis had con- 
 cealed Monterey from the explorers and ' led 
 them to the discovery of the bay in order that 
 he (St. Francis) might have a mission named 
 for him. Indeed, the only use to which the 
 discovery could be put, according to Serra's 
 ideas, was a site for a mission on its shores, dedi- 
 cated to the founder of the Franciscans. Several 
 explorations were made with this in view. In 
 1772, Lieutenant Pages, Father Crespi and six- 
 teen soldiers passed up the western side of the 
 bay and in 1774 Captain Rivera, Father Palou 
 and a squad of soldiers passed up the eastern 
 shore, returning by way of Monte Diablo, 
 Amador valley and Alameda creek to the Santa 
 Clara valley. 
 
 In the latter part of the year 1774, viceroy 
 Bucureli ordered the founding of a mission and 
 presidio at San Francisco. Hitherto all explora- 
 tions of the bay had been made by land expedi- 
 tions. No one had ventured on its waters. In 
 1775 Lieutenant Juan de Ayala of the royal 
 navy was sent in the old pioneer mission ship, 
 the San Carlos, to make a survey of it. August 
 S, 1775, he passed through the Golden Gate. 
 He moored his ship at an island called by him 
 
 Nuestra Seiiora de los Angeles, now Angel 
 Island. He spent forty days in making explora- 
 tions. His ship was the first vessel to sail upon 
 the great Bay of San Francisco.- 
 
 In 1774, Captain Juan Bautista de Anza, com- 
 mander of the presidio of Tubac in Sonora, had 
 made an exploration of a route from Sonora via 
 the Colorado river, across the desert and 
 through the San Gorgonia pass to San Gabriel 
 mission. From Tubac to the Colorado river the 
 route had been traveled before but from the 
 Colorado westward the country was a terra in- 
 cognita. He was guided over this by a lower 
 California neophyte who had deserted from San 
 Gabriel mission and alone had reached the 
 rancherias on the Colorado. 
 
 After Anza's return to Sonora he was com- 
 missioned by the viceroy to recruit soldiers and 
 settlers for San Francisco. October 23, 1775, 
 Anza set out from Tubac with an expedition 
 numbering two hundred and thirty-five persons, 
 composed of soldiers and their families, colon- 
 ists, musketeers and vaqueros. They brought 
 with them large herds of horses, mules and cat- 
 tle. The journey was accomplished without loss 
 of life, but with a considerable amount of suf- 
 fering. January 4, 1776, the immigrants ar- 
 rived at San Gabriel mission, where they stopped 
 to rest, but were soon compelled to move oh, 
 provisions at the mission becoming scarce. They 
 arrived at Monterey March 10. Here they went 
 into camp. Anza with an escort of soldiers pro- 
 ceeded to San Francisco to select a presidio 
 site. Having found a site he returned to Mon- 
 terey. Rivera, the commander of the territory, 
 had manifested a spirit of jealousy toward Anza 
 and had endeavored to thwart him in his at- 
 tempts to found a settlement. Disgusted with 
 the action of the commander, Anza, leaving his 
 colonists to the number of two hundred at Mon- 
 terey took his departure from California. Anza 
 in his explorations for a presidio site had fixed 
 upon what is now Fort Point. 
 
 After his departure Rivera experienced a 
 change of heart and instead of trying to delay 
 the founding he did everything to hasten it. The 
 imperative orders of the viceroy received at 
 about this time brought about the change. He 
 ordered Lieutenant Moraga, to whom Anza had 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 71 
 
 turned over the command of his soldiers and 
 colonists, to proceed at once to San Francisco 
 with tvv'enty soldiers to found the fort. The San 
 Carlos, which had just arrived at Monterey, was 
 ordered to proceed to San Francisco to assist 
 in the founding. Moraga with his soldiers ar- 
 rived June 27, and encamped on the Laguna 
 de los Dolores, where the mission was a short 
 time afterwards founded. Moraga decided to 
 located the presidio at the site selected by Anza 
 but awaited the arrival of the San Carlos before 
 proceeding to build. August 18 the vessel ar- 
 rived. It had been driven down the coast to the 
 latitude of San Diego by contrary winds and 
 then up the coast to latitude 42 degrees. On the 
 arrival of the vessel work was begun at once on 
 the fort. A square of ninety-two varas (two 
 hundred and forty-seven feet) on each side was 
 inclosed \Vith palisades. Barracks, officers' 
 quarters and a chapel were built inside the 
 square. September 17, 1776, was set apart for 
 the services of founding, that being the day of 
 the "Sores of our seraphic father St. Francis." 
 The royal standard was raised in front of the 
 square and the usual ceremony of pulling grass 
 and throwing stones was performed. Posses- 
 sion of the region round about was taken in the 
 name of Carlos III., King of Spain. Over one 
 hundred and fifty persons witnessed the cere- 
 mony. Vancouver, who visited the presidio in 
 November, 1792, describes it as a "square area 
 whose sides were about two hundred yards in 
 length, enclosed by a mud wall and resembling 
 a pound for cattle. Above this wall the thatched 
 roofs of the low small houses just made their 
 appearance." The wall was "about fourteen feet 
 high and five feet in breadth and was first 
 formed by upright and horizontal rafters of 
 large timber, between which dried sods and 
 moistened earth were pressed as close and liard 
 as possible, after which the whole was cased with 
 the earth made into a sort of mud plaster which 
 gave it the appearance of durability." 
 
 In addition to the presidio there was another 
 fort at Fort Point named Castillo de San Joa- 
 quin. It was completed and blessed December 
 8, 1794. "It was of horseshoe shape, about one 
 hundred by one hundred and twenty feet." The 
 structure rested mainly on sand; the brick-faced 
 
 adobe walls crumbled at the shock whenever a 
 salute was fired; the guns were badly mounted 
 and for the most part worn out, only two of the 
 thirteen twenty-four-pounders being serviceable 
 or capable of sending a ball across the entrance 
 of the fort.* 
 
 PRESIDIO OF SANTA BARBARA. 
 
 Cabrillo, in 1542, found a large Indian popula- 
 tion inhabiting the main land of the Santa Bar- 
 bara channel. Two hundred and twenty-seven 
 years later, when Portola made his exploration, 
 apparently there had been no decrease in the 
 number of inhabitants. No portion of the coast 
 ofifered a better field for missionary labor and 
 Father Serra was anxious to enter it. In ac- 
 cordance with Governor Felipe de Neve's report 
 of ^777, it had been decided to found three mis- 
 sions and a presidio on the channel. Various 
 causes had delayed the founding and it was not 
 until April 17, 1782, that Governor de Neve 
 arrived at the point where he had decided to 
 locate the presidio of Santa Barbara. The 
 troops that were to man the fort reached San 
 Gabriel in the fall of 1781. It was thought best 
 for them to remain there until the rainy sea- 
 son was over. March 26, 1782, the governor and 
 Father Serra, accompanied by the largest body 
 of troops that had ever before been collected in 
 California, set out to found the mission of San 
 Buenaventura and the presidio. The governor, 
 as has been stated in a former chapter, was re- 
 called to San Gabriel. The mission was founded 
 and the governor having rejoined the cavalcade 
 a few weeks later proceeded to find a location 
 for the presidio. 
 
 "On reaching a point nine leagues from San 
 Buenaventura, the governor called a halt and in 
 company with Father Serra at once proceeded to 
 select a site for the presidio. The choice re- 
 sulted in the adoption of the square now 
 formed by city blocks 139, 140, 155 and 156, 
 and bounded in common by the following 
 streets: Figueroa, Cailon Perdido, Garden and 
 Anacapa. A large community of Indians were 
 residing there but orders were given to leave 
 them undisturbed. The soldiers were at once 
 
 *Bancroft's "History of California," Vol. I. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 directed to hew timbers and gather brush to 
 erect temporary barracks which, when com- 
 pleted, were also used as a chapel. A large 
 wooden cross was made that it might be planted 
 in the center of the square and possession of 
 the country was taken in the name of the cross, 
 the emblem of Christianity. 
 
 April 21, 1782, the soldiers formed a square 
 and with edifying solemnity raised the cross and 
 secured it in the earth. Father Serra blessed 
 and consecrated the district and preached a ser- 
 mon. The royal standard of Spain was un- 
 furled."* 
 
 An inclosure, sixty varas square, was made of 
 palisades. The Indians were friendly, and 
 through their chief yanoalit, who controlled thir- 
 teen rancherias, details of them were secured 
 to assist the soldiers in the work of building. 
 The natives were paid in food and clothing for 
 their labor. 
 
 Irrigation works were constructed, consisting 
 of a large reservoir made of stone and cement, 
 with a zanja for conducting water to the pre- 
 sidio. The soldiers, who had families, cultivated 
 small gardens which aided in their support. 
 Lieutenant Ortega was in command of the pre- 
 sidio for two years after its founding. He was 
 succeeded by Lieutenant Felipe de Goycoechea. 
 After the founding of the mission in 1786, a 
 bitter feud broke out between the padres and 
 the comandante of the presidio. Goycoechea 
 claimed the right to employ the Indians in the 
 building of the presidio as he had done before 
 the coming of the friars. This they denied. 
 After an acrimonious controversy the dispute 
 was finally compromised by dividing the Indians 
 into two bands, a mission band and a presidio 
 band. 
 
 Gradually the palisades were replaced by an 
 adobe wall twelve feet high. It had a stone 
 foundation and was strongly built. The plaza or 
 inclosed square was three hundred and thirty 
 feet on each side. On two sides of this inclos- 
 ure were ranged the family houses of the sol- 
 diers, averaging in size 15x25 feet. On one side 
 stood the oiificers' quarters and the church. On 
 
 *Father Cabelleria's History of Santa Barbara. 
 
 the remaining side were the main entrance four 
 varas wide, the store rooms, soldiers' quarters 
 and a guard room; and adjoining these outside 
 the walls were the corrals for cattle and horses. 
 A force of from fifty to sixty soldiers was kept 
 at the post. There were bastions at two of the 
 corners for cannon. 
 
 The presidio was completed about 1790, with 
 the exception of the chapel, which was not fin- 
 ished until 1797. Many of the soldiers when 
 they had served out their time desired to re- 
 main in the country. These were given permis- 
 sion to build houses outside the walls of the 
 presidio and in course of time a village grew up 
 around it. 
 
 At the close of the century the population of 
 the gente de razon of the district numbered 
 three hundred and seventy. The presidio when 
 completed was the best in CaHfornia. Van- 
 couver, the English navigator, who visited it in 
 November, 1793, says of it: "The buildings ap- 
 peared to "be regular and well constructed; the 
 walls clean and white and the roofs of the houses 
 were covered with a bright red tile. The pre- 
 sidio excels all the others in neatness, cleanli- 
 ness and other smaller though essential com- 
 forts; it is placed on an elevated part of the 
 plain and is raised some feet from the ground 
 by a basement story which adds much to its 
 pleasantness." 
 
 During the Spanish regime the settlement at 
 the presidio grew in the leisurely way that all 
 Spanish towns grew in California. There was 
 but Httle immigration from Mexico and about 
 the only source of increase was from invalid 
 soldiers and the children of the soldiers grow- 
 ing up to manhood and womanhood. It was a 
 dreary and monotonous existence that the sol- 
 diers led at the presidios. A few of them had 
 their families with them. These when the coun- 
 try became more settled had their own houses 
 adjoining the presidio and formed the nuclei 
 of the towns that grew up around the different 
 forts. There was but little fighting to do and 
 the soldiers' service consisted mainly of a round 
 of guard duty at the forts and missions. Oc- 
 casionally there were conquistas into the In- 
 dian country to secure new material for con- 
 verts from the gentiles. The soldiers were oc- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 73 
 
 casionally employed in hunting hindas or run- 
 aways from the missions. These when brought 
 back were thoroughly flogged and compelled to 
 wear clogs attached to their legs. Once a month 
 the soldier couriers brought up from Loreta a 
 budget of mail made up of official bandos and a 
 
 tew letters. These contained about all the news 
 that reached them from their old homes in 
 Mexico. But few of the soldiers returned to 
 Mexico when their term of enlistment expired. 
 In course of time these and their descendants 
 formed the bulk of California's population. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PUEBLOS. 
 
 THE pueblo plan of colonization so com- 
 mon in Hispano-American countries did 
 not originate with the Spanish-Amer- 
 ican colonists. It was older even than Spain 
 herself. In early European colonization, the . 
 pueblo plan, the common square in the center 
 of the town, the house lots grouped round it, 
 the arable fields and the common pasture lands 
 beyond, appears in the Aryan village, in the an- 
 cient German mark and in the old Roman 
 praesidium. The Puritans adopted this form in 
 their first settlements in New England. Around 
 the public square or common where stood the 
 meeting house and the town house, they laid ofl 
 their home lots and beyond these were their 
 cultivated fields and their common pasture lands. 
 This form of colonization was a 'combination of 
 communal interests and individual ownership. 
 Primarily, no -doubt, it was adopted for protec- 
 tion against the hostile aborigines of the coun- 
 try, and secondly for social advantage. It re- 
 versed the order of our own western coloniza- 
 tion. The- town came first, it was the initial 
 point from which the settlement radiated; while 
 with our western pioneers the town was an after- 
 thought, a center point for the convenience of 
 trade. 
 
 When it had been decided to send colonists 
 to colonize California the settlements naturally 
 took the pueblo form. The difficulty of obtain- 
 ing regular supplies for the presidios from Mex- 
 ico, added to the great expense of shipping such 
 a long distance, was the principal cause that in- 
 fluenced the government to establish pueblos de 
 gente de razon. TItc presidios received their 
 shipments of grain for breadstuff from San Bias 
 
 by sailing vessels. The arrival of these was un- 
 certain. Once when the vessels were unusually 
 long in coming, the padres and the soldiers at 
 the presidios and missions were reduced to liv- 
 ing on milk, bear meat and what provisions they 
 could obtain from the Indians. When Felipe de 
 Neve was made governor of Alta or Nueva 
 California in 1776 he was instructed by the vice- 
 roy to make observations on the agricultural 
 possibilities of the country and the feasibility of 
 founding pueblos where grain could be produced 
 to supply the military establishments. 
 
 On his journey from San Diego to San Fran- 
 cisco in 1777 he carefully examined the coun- 
 try; and as a result of his observations recom- 
 mended the founding of two pueblos; one on the 
 Rio de Porciuncula in the south, and the other 
 on the Rio de Guadalupe in the north. On the 
 29th of November, 1777, the Pueblo of San 
 Jose de Guadelupe was founded. The colonists 
 were nine of the presidio soldiers from San 
 Francisco and Monterey^ who had some knowl- 
 edge of farming and five of Anza's pobladores 
 who had come with his expedition the previous 
 years to found the presidio of San Francisco, 
 making with their families sixty-one persons in 
 ail. The pueblo was aiamed for the patron saint 
 of California, San Jose (St. Joseph), husband of 
 Santa Maria, Queen of the Angeles. 
 
 The site selected for the town was about a 
 mile and a quarter north of the center of the 
 present city. The first houses were built of pal- 
 isades and the interstices plastered with mud. 
 These huts were roofed with earth and the floor 
 was the hard beaten ground. Each head of a 
 family was given a suerte or sowing lot of two 
 
74 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 hundred varas square, a house lot, "ten dollars 
 a month and a soldier's rations." Each, also, 
 received a yoke of oxen, two cows, a mule, two 
 sheep and two goats, together with the neces- 
 sary implements and seed, all of which were to 
 be repaid in products of the soil delivered at the 
 royal warehouse. The first communal work 
 done by the pobladores. (colonists) was to dam 
 the river, and construct a ditch to irrigate their 
 sowing fields. The dam was not a success and 
 the first sowing of grain was lost. The site se- 
 lected for the houses was low and subject to 
 overflow. 
 
 During wet winters the inhabitants were com- 
 pelled to take a circuitous route of three leagues 
 to attend church service at the mission of Santa 
 Clara. After enduring this state of affairs 
 through seven winters they petitioned the 
 governor for permission to remove the pu- 
 eblo further south on higher ground. The gov- 
 ernor did not have power to grant the request. 
 The petition was referred to the comandante- 
 general of the Intendencia in Mexico in 1785. 
 He seems to have studied over the matter two 
 years and having advised with the asesor-general 
 "finally issued a decree, June 21, 1787, to Gov- 
 ernor Fages, authorizing the settlers to remove 
 to the "adjacent loma (hill) selected by them as 
 more useful and advantageous without chang- 
 ing or altering, for this reason, the limits and 
 boundaries of the territory or district assigned 
 to said settlement and to the neighboring Mis- 
 sion of Santa Clara, as there is no just cause 
 why the latter should attempt to appropriate to 
 herself that land." 
 
 Having frequently suffered from floods, it 
 would naturally be supposed that the inhabi- 
 tants, permission being granted, moved right 
 away. They did nothing of the kind. Ten years 
 passed and they were sti-11 located on the old 
 marshy site, still discussing the advantages of 
 the new site on the other side of the river. 
 Whether the padres of the Mission of Santa 
 Clara opposed the moving does not appear in 
 the records, but from the last clause of the com- 
 andante-general's decree in which he says "there 
 is not just cause why the latter (the Mission of 
 Santa Clara) should attempt to appropriate to 
 herself the land," it would seem that the mission 
 
 padres were endeavoring to secure the new site 
 or at least prevent its occupancy. There was a 
 dispute between the padres and the pobladores 
 over the boundary line between the pueblo and 
 mission that outlived the century. After hav- 
 ing been referred to the titled officials, civil and 
 ecclesiastical, a boundary line was finally estab- 
 lished, July 24, 1801, that was satisfactory to 
 both. "According to the best evidence I have 
 discovered," says Hall in his History of San 
 Jose, "the removal of the pueblo took place in 
 1797," just twenty years after the founding. In 
 1798 the juzgado or town hall was built. It 
 was located on Market street near El Dorado 
 street. 
 
 The area of a pueblo was four square leagues 
 (Spanish) or about twenty-seven square miles. 
 This was sometimes granted in a square and 
 sometimes in a rectangular form. The pueblo 
 lands were divided into classes : Solares, house 
 lots; suertes (chance), sowing fields, so named 
 because they were distributed by lot; propios, 
 municipal lands or lands the rent of which went 
 to defray municipal expenses; ejidas, vacant 
 suburbs or commons; dehesas, pasture where 
 the large herds of the pueblo grazed; realenges, 
 royal lands also used for raising revenue; these 
 were unappropriated lands. 
 
 From various causes the founding of the sec- 
 ond pueblo had been delayed. In the latter part 
 of 1779, active preparations were begun for car- 
 rying out the plan of founding a presidio and 
 three missions on the Santa Barbara Channel 
 and a pueblo on the Rio Porciuncula to be 
 named "Reyna de Los Angeles." The comand- 
 ante-general of the Four Interior Provinces of 
 the West (which embraced the Californias, So- 
 nora, New Mexico and Viscaya), Don Teodoro 
 de Croix or "El Cavallero de Croix," "The 
 Knight of the Cross," as he usually styled him- 
 self, gave instructions to Don Fernando de Ri- 
 vera y Moncada to recruit soldiers and settlers 
 for the proposed presidio and pueblo in Nueva 
 California. He, Rivera, crossed the gulf and be- 
 gan recruiting in Sonora and Sinaloa. His in- 
 structions were to secure twenty-four settlers, 
 who were heads of families. They must be ro- 
 bust and well behaved, so that they might set 
 a good example to the natives. Their families 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 75 
 
 must accompany them and unmarried female 
 relatives must be encouraged to go, with the 
 view to marrying them to bachelor sol- 
 diers. 
 
 According to the regulations drafted by Gov- 
 ernor Felipe de Neve, June i, 1779, for the gov- 
 ernment of the province of California and ap- 
 proved by the king, in a royal order of the 24th 
 of October, 1781, settlers in California from the 
 older provinces were each to be granted a house 
 lot and a tract of land for cultivation. Each 
 poblador in addition was to receive $116.50 a 
 year for the first two years, "the rations to be 
 understood as comprehended in this amount, 
 and in lieu of rations for the next three years 
 they will receive $60 yearly." 
 
 Section 3 of Title 14 of the Reglamento pro- 
 vided that "To each poblador and to the com- 
 munity of the pueblo there shall be given under 
 condition of repayment in horses and mules iit 
 to be given and received, and in^he payment of 
 the other large and small cattle at the just prices, 
 which are to be fixed by tariff, and of the tools 
 and implements at cost, as it is ordained, two 
 mares, two cows, and one calf, two sheep and 
 two goats, all breeding animals, and one yoke of 
 oxen or steers, one plow point, one hoe, one 
 spade, one axe, one sickle, one wood knife, one 
 musket and one leather shield, two horses and 
 one cargo mule. To the community there shall 
 likewise be given the males corresponding to 
 the total number of cattle of different kinds dis- 
 tributed amongst all the inhabitants, one forge 
 and anvil, six crowbars, six iron spades or shov- 
 els and the necessary tools for carpenter and 
 cast work." For the government's assistance to 
 the pobladores in starting their colony the set- 
 tlers were required to sell to the presidios the 
 surplus products of their lands and herds at fair 
 prices, which were to be fixed by the govern- 
 ment. 
 
 The terms offered to the settlers were cer- 
 tainly liberal, and by our own hardy pioneers, 
 who in the closing years of the last century were 
 making their way over the Alleghany mountains 
 into Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee, they would 
 have been considered munificent; but to the in- 
 dolent and energyless mixed breeds of Sonora 
 and Sinaloa they were no inducement. After 
 
 spending nearly nine months in recruiting, Ri- 
 vera was able to obtain only fourteen pobladores, 
 but little over half the number required, and two 
 of these deserted before reaching California. 
 The soldiers that Rivera had recruited for Cal- 
 ifornia, forty-two in number, with their families, 
 were ordered to proceed overland from Alamos, 
 in Sonora, by way of Tucson and the Colorado 
 river to San Gabriel Mission. These were com- 
 manded by Rivera in person. 
 
 Leaving Alamos in April, 1781, they arrived 
 in the latter part of June at the junction of the 
 Gila and Colorado rivers. After a short delay 
 to rest, the main company was sent on to San 
 Gabriel Mission. Rivera, with ten or twelve 
 soldiers, remained to recruit his live stock before 
 crossing the desert. Two missions had been es- 
 tablished on the California side of the Colorado 
 the previous year. Before the arrival of Rivera 
 the Indians had been behaving badly. Rivera's 
 large herd of cattle and horses destroyed the 
 mesquite trees and intruded upon the Indians' 
 melon patches. This, with their previous quar- 
 rel with the padres, provoked the savages to an 
 uprising. They, on July 17, attacked the two 
 missions, massacred th.e padres and the Spanish 
 settlers attached to the missions and killed Ri- 
 vera and his soldiers, forty-six persons in all. 
 The Indians burned the mission buildings. 
 These were never rebuilt nor was there any at- 
 tempt made to convert the Yumas. The hos- 
 tility of the Yumas practically closed the Colo- 
 rado route to California for many years. 
 
 The pobladores who had been recruited for 
 the founding of the new pueblo, with their fami- 
 lies and a military escort, all under the command 
 of Lieut. Jose Zuniga, crossed the gulf from 
 Guaymas to Loreto, in Lower California, and by 
 the i6th of May were ready for their long jour- 
 ney northward. In the meantime two of the re- 
 cruits had deserted and one was left behind at 
 Loreto. On the i8th of August the eleven who 
 had remained faithful to their contract, with 
 their families, arrived at San Gabriel. On ac- 
 count of smallpox among some of the children 
 the company was placed in quarantine about a 
 league from the mission. 
 
 On the 26th of August, 1781, from San Ga- 
 briel, Governor de Neve issued his instructions 
 
76 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for the founding of Los Angeles, which gave 
 some additional rules in regard to the distribu- 
 tion of lots not found in the royal reglainento 
 previously mentioned. 
 
 On the 4th of September, 1781, the colonists, 
 with a military escort headed by Governor Fe- 
 lip de Neve, took up their line of march from 
 the Mission San Gabriel to the site selected for 
 their pueblo on the Rio de Porciuncula. There, 
 with religious ceremonies, the Pueblo de Nues- 
 tra Sehora La Reina de Los Angeles was for- 
 mally founded. A mass was said by a priest 
 from the Mission San Gabriel, assisted by the 
 choristers and musicians of that mission. There 
 were salvos of musketry and a procession with 
 a cross, candlestick, etc. At the head of the 
 procession the soldiers bore the standard of 
 Spain and the women followed bearing a ban- 
 ner with the image of our Lady the Queen of 
 the Angels. This procession made a circuit of 
 the plaza, the priest blessing it and the building 
 lots. At the close of the services Governor de 
 Neve made an address full of good advice to the 
 colonists. Then the governor, his military es- 
 cort and the priests returned to San Gabriel and 
 the colonists were left to work out their 
 destiny. 
 
 Few of the great cities of the land have had 
 such humble founders as Los Angeles. Of the 
 eleven pobladores who built their huts of poles 
 and tule thatch around the plaza vieja one hun- 
 dred and twenty-two years ago, not one could 
 read or write. Not one could boast of an un- 
 mixed ancestry. They were mongrels in race, 
 Caucasian, Indian and Negro mixed. Poor in 
 purse, poor in blood, poor in all the sterner qual- 
 ities of character that our own hardy pioneers 
 of the west possessed, they left no impress on 
 the city they founded; and the conquering race 
 that possesses the land that they colonized has 
 forgotten them. No street or landmark in the 
 city bears the name of any one of them. No 
 monument or tablet marks the spot where they 
 planted the germ of their settlement. No Fore- 
 fathers' day preserves the memory of their serv- 
 ices and sacrifices. Their names, race and the 
 number of persons in each family have been 
 preserved in the archives of California. They 
 are as follows: 
 
 I Jose de Lara, a Spaniard (or reputed to be 
 one, although it is doubtful whether he was of 
 
 w 
 
 ife and three chil- 
 
 pure blood) had an Indian 
 dren. 
 
 2. Jose Antonio Navarro, a Mestizo, forty- 
 two years old; wife a mulattress; three children. 
 
 3. Basilio Rosas, an Indian, sixty-eight years 
 old, had a mulatto wife and two children. 
 
 4. Antonio Mesa, a negro, thirty-eight years 
 old; had a mulatto wife and two children. 
 
 5. Antonio Felix Villavicencio, a Spaniard,' 
 thirty years old; had an Indian wife and one 
 child. 
 
 6. Jose Vanegas, an Indian, twenty-eight 
 years old; had an Indian wife and one child. 
 
 7. Alejandro Rosas, an Indian, nineteen years 
 old, and had an Indian wife. (In the records, 
 "wife, Coyote-Indian.") 
 
 8. Pablo Rodriguez, an Indian, twenty-five 
 years old; had an Indian wife and one child. 
 
 9. Manuel "Camero, a mulatto, thirty years 
 old; had a mulatto wife. 
 
 10. Luis Quintero, a negro, fifty-five years 
 old, and had a mulatto wife and five children. 
 
 11. Jose Morena, a mulatto, twenty-two 
 years old, and had a mulatto wife. 
 
 Antonio Miranda, the twelfth person described 
 in the padron (list) as a Chino, fifty years old 
 and having one child, was left at Loreto when 
 the expedition marched northward. It would 
 have been impossible for him to have rejoined 
 the colonists before the founding. Presumably 
 his child remained with him, consequently there 
 were but forty-four instead of "forty-six persons 
 in all." Col. J. J. Warner, in his "Historical 
 Sketch of Los Angeles," originated the fiction 
 that one of the founders (Miranda, the Chino,) 
 was born in China. Chino, while it does mean a 
 Chinaman, is also applied in Spanish-American 
 countries to persons or animals having curly 
 hair. Miranda was probably of mixed Spanish 
 and Negro blood, and curly haired. There is 
 no record to show that IMiranda ever came to 
 Alta California. 
 
 When Jose de Galvez was fitting out the ex- 
 pedition for occupying San Diego and Monte- 
 rey, he issued a proclamation naming St. Jo- 
 seph as the patron saint of his California colon- 
 ization schem.e. Bearing this fact in mind, no 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 77 
 
 doubt. Governor de Neve, when he founded San 
 Jose, named St. Joseph its patron saint. Hav- 
 ing named one of the two pueblos for San Jose 
 it naturally followed that the other should be 
 named for Santa Maria, the Queen of the An- 
 gels, wife of San Jose. 
 
 On the 1st of August, 1769, Portola's expedi- 
 tion, on its journey northward in search of Mon- 
 terey Bay, had halted in the San Gabriel valley 
 near where the Mission Vieja was afterwards lo- 
 cated, to reconnoiter the country and "above 
 all," as Father Crespi observes, "for the purpose 
 of celebrating the jubilee of Our Lady of the 
 Angels of Porciuncula." Next day, August 2, 
 after traveling about three leagues (nine miles). 
 Father Crespi, in his diary, says: "We came to 
 a rather wide Canada having a great many Cot- 
 tonwood and alder ti'ees. Through it ran a 
 beautiful river toward the north-northeast and 
 curving around the point of a cliff it takes a di- 
 rection to the south. Toward the north-north- 
 east we saw another river bed which must have 
 been a great overflov/, but we found it dry. This 
 arm unites with the river and its great floods 
 during the rainy season are clearly demon- 
 strated by the many uprooted trees scattered 
 along the banks." (This dry river is the Arroyo 
 Seco.) "We stopped not very far from the river, 
 to which we gave the name of Porciuncula." 
 Porciuncula is the name of a hamlet in Italy 
 near which was located the little church of Our 
 Lady of the Angels, in which St. Francis of As- 
 sisi was praying when the jubilee was granted 
 him. Father Crespi, speaking of the plain 
 through which the river flows, says: "This is 
 the best locality of all those we have yet seen 
 for a mission, besides having all the resources 
 required for a large town." Padre Crespi was 
 evidently somewhat of a prophet. 
 
 The fact that this locality had for a number 
 of years borne the name of "Our Lady of the 
 Angels of Porciuncula" may have influenced 
 Governor de Neve to locate his pueblo here. 
 The full name of the town. El Pueblo de Nuestra 
 Seiiora La Reyna de Los Angeles, was seldom 
 used. It was too long for everyday use. In the 
 earlier years of the town's history it seems to 
 have had a variety of names. It appears in the 
 records as El Pueblo de Nuestra Sefiora de Los 
 
 Angeles, as El Pueblo de La Reyna de Los An- 
 geles and as El Pueblo de Santa Maria de Los 
 Angeles. Sometimes it was abbreviated to 
 Santa Maria, but it was most commonly spoken 
 of as El Pueblo, the town. At what time the 
 name of Rio Porciuncula was changed to Rio 
 Los Angeles is uncertain. The change no doubt 
 was gradual. 
 
 The site selected for the pueblo of Los An- 
 geles was picturesque and romantic. From 
 where Alameda street now is to the eastern 
 bank of the river the land was covered with a 
 dense growth of willows, cottonwoods and al- 
 ders; while here and there, rising above the 
 swampy copse, towered a giant aliso (sycamore). 
 Wild grapevines festooned the branches of the 
 trees and wild roses bloomed in profusion. Be- 
 hind the narrow shelf of mesa land where the 
 pueblo was located rose the brown hills, and in 
 the distance towered the lofty Sierra Madre 
 mountains. 
 
 The last pueblo founded in California under 
 Spanish domination was Villa de Branciforte, 
 located on the opposite side of the river from 
 the Mission of Santa Cruz. It was named after 
 the Viceroy Branciforte. It was designed as a 
 coast defense and a place to colonize discharged 
 soldiers. The scheme was discussed for a con- 
 siderable time before anything was done. Gov- 
 ernor Borica recommended "that an adobe 
 house be built for each settler so that the prev- 
 alent state of things in San Jose and Los An- 
 geles, where the settlers still live in tule huts, be- 
 ing unable to build better dwellings without 
 neglecting their fields, may be prevented, the 
 houses to cost not over two hundred dollars."* 
 
 The first detachment of the colonists arrived 
 May 12, 1797, on the Concepcion in a destitute 
 condition. Lieutenant Moraga was sent to su- 
 perintend the construction of houses for the 
 colonists. He was instructed to build temporary 
 huts for himself and the guard, then to build 
 some larger buildings to accommodate fifteen or 
 twenty families each. These were to be tem- 
 porary. Only nine families came and they were 
 of a vagabond class that had a constitutional 
 antipathy to work. The settlers received the 
 
 ♦Bancroft's History of California, Vol. I. 
 
78 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 same amount of supplies and allowance of 
 money as the colonists of San Jose and Los 
 Angeles. Although the colonists were called 
 Spaniards and assumed to be of a superior race 
 to the first settlers of the other pueblos, they 
 made less progress and were more unruly than 
 the mixed and mongrel inhabitants of the older 
 pueblos. 
 
 Although at the close of the century three 
 decades had passed since the first settlement was 
 made in California, the colonists had made but 
 little progress. Three pueblos of gente de razon 
 had been founded and a few ranchos granted to 
 ex-soldiers. Exclusive of the soldiers, the white 
 population in the year 1800 did not exceed six 
 hundred. The people lived in the most primi- 
 tive manner. There was no commerce and no 
 manufacturing except a little at the missions. 
 Their houses were adobe huts roofed with tule 
 thatch. The floor was the beaten earth and the 
 
 scant furniture home-made. There was a scarcity 
 of cloth for clothing. Padre Salazar relates that 
 when he was at San Gabriel Mission in 1795 a 
 man who had a thousand horses and cattle in 
 proportion came there to beg cloth for a shirt, 
 for none could be had at the pueblo of Los An- 
 geles nor at the presidio of Santa Barbara. 
 
 Hermanagildo Sal, the comandante of San 
 Francisco, writing to a friend in 1799, says, "I 
 send you, by the wife of the pensioner Jose 
 Barbo, one piece of cotton goods and an ounce 
 of sewing silk. There are no combs and I have 
 no hope of receiving any for three years." Think 
 of waiting three years for a cpmb! 
 
 Eighteen missions had been founded at the 
 close of the century. Except at a few of the 
 older missions, the buildings were temporary 
 structures. The neophytes for the most part 
 were living in wigwams constructed like those 
 they had occupied in their wild state. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE PASSING OF SPAIN'S DOMINATION. 
 
 THE Spaniards were not a commercial peo- 
 ple. Their great desire was to be let alone 
 in their American possessions. . Philip II. 
 once promulgated a decree pronouncing death 
 upon any foreigner who entered the Gulf of 
 Mexico. It was easy to promulgate a decree or 
 to pass restrictive laws against foreign trade, but 
 quite another thing to enforce them. 
 
 After the first settlement of California seven- 
 teen years passed before a foreign vessel entered 
 any of its ports. The first to arrive were the 
 two vessels of the French explorer, La Perouse, 
 who anchored in the harbor of Monterey, Sep- 
 tember 15, 1786. Being of the same faith, and 
 France having been an ally of Spain in former 
 times, he was well received. During his brief 
 stay he made a study of the mission system and 
 his observations on it are plainly given. He 
 found a similarity in it to the slave plantations 
 of Santo Domingo. November 14, 1792, the 
 English navigator, Capt. George Vancouver, in 
 the ship Discovery, entered the Bay of San 
 
 Francisco. He was cordially received by the 
 comandante of the port, Hermanagildo Sal, and 
 the friars of the mission. On the 20th of the 
 month, with several of his officers, he visited the 
 Mission of Santa Clara, where he was kindly 
 treated. He also visited the Mission of San 
 Carlos de Monterey. He wrote an interesting 
 account of his visit and his observations on the 
 country. Vancouver was surprised at the back- 
 wardness of the country and the antiquated cus- 
 toms of the people. He says: "Instead of find- 
 ing a country tolerably well inhabited, and far 
 advanced in cultivation, if we except its natural 
 pastures, flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, 
 there is not an object to indicate the most re- 
 mote connection with any European or other 
 civilized nation." On a subsequent visit, Cap- 
 tain Vancouver met a chilly reception from the 
 acting governor, Arrillaga. The Spaniards sus- 
 pected him of spying out the weakness of their 
 defenses. Through the English, the Spaniards 
 became acquainted with the importance and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 79 
 
 value of the fur trade. The bays and lagoons of 
 California abounded in sea otter. Their skins 
 were worth in China all the way from $30 to 
 $100 each. The trade was made a government 
 monopoly. The skins were, to be collected from 
 the natives, soldiers and others by the mission- 
 aries, at prices ranging from $2.50 to $10 each, 
 and turned over to the government officials ap- 
 pointed to receive them. All trade by private 
 persons was prohibited. The government was 
 sole trader. But the government failed to make 
 the trade profitable. In the closing years of 
 the century the American smugglers began to 
 haunt the coast. The restrictions against trade 
 with foreigners were proscriptive and the penal- 
 ties for evasion severe, but men will trade under 
 the most adverse circumstances. Spain was a 
 long way off, and smuggling was not a very 
 venal sin in the eyes of layman or churchman. 
 Fast sailing vessels were fitted out in Boston 
 for illicit trade on the California coast. Watch- 
 ing their opportunities, these vessels slipped 
 into the bays and inlets along the coast. There 
 was a rapid exchange of Yankee notions for sea 
 otter skins, the most valued peltry of California, 
 and the vessels were out to sea before the rev- 
 enue ofiScers could intercept them. If success- 
 ful in escaping capture, the profits of a smug- 
 gling voyage were enormous, ranging from 500 
 to i,oco per cent above cost on the goods ex- 
 changed; but the risks were great. The smug- 
 gler had no protection; he was an outlaw. He 
 was the legitimate prey of the padres, the peo- 
 ple and the revenue officers. The Yankee smug- 
 gler usually came out ahead. His vessel was 
 heavily armed, and when speed or stratagem 
 failed he was ready to fight his way out of a 
 scrape. 
 
 Each year two ships were sent from San 
 Bias with the memorias — mission and presidio 
 supplies. These took back a* small cargo of the 
 products of the territory, wheat being the prin- 
 cipal. This was all the legitimate commerce 
 allowed California. 
 
 The fear of Russian aggression had been one 
 of the causes that had forced Spain to attempt 
 the colonization of California. Bering, in 1741, 
 had discovered the strait that bears his name 
 and had taken possession, for the Russian gov- 
 
 ernment, of the northwestern coast of America. 
 Four years later, the first permanent Russian 
 settlement, Sitka, had been made on one of the 
 coast islands. Rum.ors of the Russian explora- 
 tions and settlements had reached Madrid and 
 in 1774 Captain Perez, in the San Antonia, was 
 sent up the coast to find out what the Russians 
 were doing. 
 
 Had Russian America contained arable land 
 where grain and vegetables could have been 
 grown, it is probable that the Russians and 
 Spaniards in America would not have come in 
 contact; for another nation, the United States, 
 had taken possession of the intervening coun- 
 try, bordering the Columbia river. 
 
 The supplies of breadstuffs for the Sitka col- 
 onists had to be sent overland across Siberia 
 or shipped around Cape Horn. Failure of sup- 
 plies sometimes reduced the colonists to sore 
 straits. In 1806, famine and diseases incident 
 to starvation threatened the extinction of the 
 Russian colony. Count Rezanoff, a high officer 
 of the Russian government, had arrived at the 
 Sitka settlement in September, 1805. The des- 
 titution prevailing there induced him to visit 
 California with the hope of obtaining relief for 
 the starving colonists. In the ship Juno (pur- 
 chased from an American trader), with a scurvy 
 afflicted crew, he made a perilous voyage down 
 the stormy coast and on the 5th of April, 1806, 
 anchored safely in the Bay of San Francisco. 
 He had brought with him a cargo of goods for 
 exchange but the restrictive commercial regula- 
 tions of Spain prohibited trade with foreigners. 
 Although the friars and the people needed the 
 goods the governor could not allow the ex- 
 change. Count Rezanoff would be permitted to 
 purchase grain for cash, but the Russian's ex- 
 chequer was not plethoric and his ship was al- 
 ready loaded with goods. Love that laughs at 
 locksmiths eventually unlocked the shackles 
 that hampered- commerce. Rezanoff fell in love 
 with Dona Concepcion, the beautiful daughter 
 of Don Jose Arguello, the comandante of San 
 Francisco, and an old time friend of the gov- 
 ernor, Arrillaga. The attraction was mutual. 
 Through the influence of Dona Concepcion, the 
 friars and Arguello, the governor was induced 
 to sanction a plan by which cash was the sup- 
 
80 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 posed medium of exchange on both sides, but 
 grain on the one side and goods on the other 
 were the real currency. 
 
 The romance of Rezanofif and Dona Concep- 
 cion had a sad ending. On his journey through 
 Siberia to St. Petersburg to obtain the consent 
 of the emperor to his marriage he was killed 
 by a fall from his horse. It was several years 
 before the news of his death reached his af- 
 fianced .bride. Faithful to his memory, she never 
 married, but dedicated her life to deeds of char- 
 ity. After Rezanoff's visit the Russians came 
 frequently to California, partly -to trade, but 
 more often to hunt otter. While on these fur 
 hunting expeditions they examined the coast 
 north of San Francisco with the design of plant- 
 ing an agricultural colony where they could 
 raise grain to supply the settlements in the far 
 north. In 1812 they founded a town and built 
 a fort on the coast north of Bodega Bay, which 
 they named Ross. The fort mounted ten guns. 
 They maintained a fort at Bodega Bay and also 
 a small settlement on Russian river. The Span- 
 iards protested against this aggression and 
 threatened to drive the Russians out of the ter- 
 ritory, but nothing came of their protests and 
 they were powerless to enforce their demands. 
 The Russian ships came to California for sup- 
 plies and were welcomed by the people and the 
 friars if not by the government officials. The 
 Russian colony at Ross was not a success. The 
 ignorant soldiers and the Aluets who formed 
 the bulk of its three or four hundred inhab- 
 itants, knew little or nothing about farming and 
 were too stupid to learn. After the decline of 
 fur hunting the settlement became unprofitable. 
 In 1 841 the buildings and the stock were sold 
 by the Russian governor to Capt. John A. Sut- 
 ter for $30,000. The settlement was abandoned 
 and the fort and the town are in ruins. 
 
 On the 15th of September, 1810, the patriot 
 priest, Miguel Hidalgo, struck the first blow 
 for Mexican independence. The revolution 
 which began in the province of Guanajuato was 
 at first regarded by the authorities as a mere 
 riot of ignorant Indians that would be speedily 
 suppressed. But the insurrection spread rap- 
 idly. Long years of oppression and cruelty had 
 instilled into the hearts of the people an undy- 
 
 ing hatred for their Spanish oppressors. Hidalgo 
 soon found himself at the head of a motley 
 army, poorly armed and undisciplined, but its 
 numbers swept away opposition. Unfortunately 
 through over-confidence reverses came and in 
 March, 181 1, the patriots met an overwhelming 
 defeat at the bridge of Calderon. Hidalgo was 
 betrayed, captured and shot. Though sup- 
 pressed for a time, the cause of independence 
 was not lost. For eleven years a fratricidal war 
 was waged — ^cruel, bloody and devastating. Al- 
 lende, Mina, Moreles, Alama, Rayon and other 
 patriot leaders met death on the field of battle 
 or were captured and shot as rebels, but "Free- 
 dom's battle" bequeathed from bleeding sire to 
 son was won at last. 
 
 Of the political upheavals that shook Spain 
 in the first decades of the century only the faint- 
 est rumblings reached far distant California. 
 Notwithstanding the many changes of rulers 
 that political revolutions and Napoleonic wars 
 gave the mother country, the people of Califor- 
 nia remained loyal to the Spanish crown, al- 
 though at times they must have been in doubt 
 who wore the crown. 
 
 Arrillaga was governor of California when 
 the war of Mexican independence began. Al- 
 though born in Mexico he was of pure Spanish 
 parentage and was thoroughly in sympathy with 
 Spain in the contest. He did not live to see the 
 end of the war. He died in 1814 and was suc- 
 ceeded by Pablo Vicente de Sola. Sola was 
 Spanish born and was bitterly opposed to the 
 revolution, even going so far as to threaten 
 death to any one who should speak in favor of 
 it. He had received his appointment from 
 Viceroy Calleja, the butcher of Guanajuato, the 
 cruelest and most bloodthirsty of the vice regal 
 governors of new Spain. The friars were to a 
 man loyal to Spain. The success of the repub- 
 lic meant the downfall of their domination. 
 They hated republican ideas and regarded 
 their dissemination as a crime. They were the 
 ruling power in California. The governors 
 and the people were subservient to their 
 wishes. 
 
 The decade between 1810 and 1820 was 
 marked by two important events, the year of the 
 earthquakes and the year of the insurgents. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 81 
 
 The year 1812 was the Ano de los Tefnblores. 
 The seismic disturbance that for forty years or 
 more had shaken California seemed to concen- 
 trate in power that year and expend its force 
 on the mission churches. The massive church 
 of San Juan Capistrano, the pride of mission 
 architecture, was thrown down and forty per- 
 sons killed, The walls of San Gabriel Mission 
 were cracked and some of the saints shaken out 
 of their niches. At San Buenaventura there 
 were three heavy shocks which injured the 
 church so that the tower and much of the facade 
 had to be rebuilt. The whole mission site 
 seemed to settle and the inhabitants, fearful 
 that they might be engulfed by the sea, moved 
 up the valley about two miles, where they re- 
 mained three months. At Santa Barbara both 
 church and the presidio were damaged and at 
 Santa Inez the church was shaken down. The 
 quakes continued for several months and the 
 people were so terrified that they abandoned 
 their houses and lived in the open air. 
 
 The other important epoch of the decade was 
 El Afio de los Insurgentes, the year of the in- 
 surgents. In November, 18 18, Bouchard, a 
 Frenchman in the' service of Buenos Ayres and 
 provided with letters of marque by San Mar- 
 tain, the president of that republic, to prey upon 
 Spanish commerce, appeared in the port of 
 Monterey with two ships carrying sixty-six 
 guns and three hundred and fifty men. He at- 
 tacked Monterey and after an obstinate re- 
 sistance by the Californians, it was taken- by the 
 insurgents and burned. Bouchard next pillaged 
 Ortega's rancho and burned the buildings. 
 Then sailing down the coast he scared the Santa 
 Barbaraiios; then keeping on down he looked 
 into San Pedro, but finding nothing there to 
 tempt him he kept on to San Juan Capistrano. 
 There he landed, robbed the mission of a few 
 articles and drank the padres' wine. Then he 
 sailed away and disappeared. He left six of his 
 men in California, among them Joseph Chap- 
 man of Boston, the first American resident of 
 California. 
 
 In the early part of the last century there 
 was a limited comrnerce with Lima. That 
 
 being a Spanish dependency, trade with it was 
 not prohibited. Gilroy, who arrived in Califor- 
 nia in 1814, says in his reminiscences:* 
 
 "The only article of export then was tallow, 
 of which one cargo was sent annually to Callao 
 in a Spanish ship. This tallow sold for $1.50 
 per hundred weight in silver or $2.00 in trade 
 or goods. Hides, except those used for tallow 
 bags, were thrown away. Wheat, barley and 
 beans had no market. Nearly everything con- 
 sumed by the people was produced at home. 
 There was no foreign trade." 
 
 As the revolution in Mexico progressed 
 times grew harder in California. The mission 
 memorias ceased to come. No tallow ships from 
 Callao arrived. The soldiers' pay was years in 
 arrears and their uniforms in rags. What little 
 wealth there was in the country was in the 
 hands of the padres. They were supreme. "The 
 friars," says Gilroy, "had everything their own 
 way. The governor and the military were ex- 
 pected to do whatever the friars requested. The 
 missions contained all the wealth of the coun- 
 try." The friars supported the government and 
 supplied the troops with food from the products 
 of the neophytes' labor. The crude manufac- 
 turers of the missions supplied the people with 
 cloth for clothing and some other necessities. 
 The needs of the common people were easily 
 satisfied. They were not used to luxuries nor 
 were they accustomed to what we would now 
 consider necessities. Gilroy, in the reminis- 
 cences heretofore referred to, states that at the 
 time of his arrival (1814) "There was not a saw- 
 mill, whip saw or spoked wheel in California. 
 Such lumber as was used was cut with an axe. 
 Chairs, tables and wood floors were not to be 
 found except in the governor's house. Plates 
 were rare unless that name could be applied to 
 the tiles used instead. Money was a rarity. 
 There were no stores and no merchandise to 
 sell. There was no employment for a laborer. 
 The neophytes did all the work and all the busi- 
 ness of the country was in the hands of the 
 friars." 
 
 *Alta California, June 25, 1865. 
 
82 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 FROM EMPIRE TO REPUBLIC. 
 
 THE condition of affairs in California stead- 
 ily grew worse as the revolution in Mex- 
 ico progressed. Sola had made strenuous 
 efforts to arouse the Spanish authorities of New 
 Spain to take some action towards benefiting the 
 territory. After the affair with the insurgent 
 Bouchard he had appealed to the viceroy for re- 
 inforcements. In answer to his urgent entreaties 
 a force of one hundred men was sent from Ma- 
 zatlan to garrison San Diego and an equal force 
 from San Bias for Monterey. They reached Cal- 
 ifornia in August, 1819, and Sola was greatly 
 rejoiced, but his joy was turned to deep disgust 
 when he discovered the true character of the re- 
 inforcement and arms sent him. The only equip- 
 ments of the soldiers were a few hundred old 
 worn-out sabers that Sola declared were unfit 
 for sickles. He ordered them returned to the 
 comandante of San Bias, who had sent them. 
 The troops were a worse lot than the arms sent. 
 They had been taken out of the prisons or con- 
 scripted from the lowest class of the population 
 of the cities. They were thieves, drunkards and 
 vagabonds, who, as soon as landed, resorted to 
 robberies, brawls and assassinations. Sola wrote 
 to the viceroy that the outcasts called troops 
 sent him from the jails of Tepic and San Bias 
 by their vices caused continual disorders; their 
 evil example had debauched the minds of the 
 Indians and that the cost incurred in their col- 
 lection and transportation had been worse than 
 thrown away. He could not get rid of them, 
 so he had to control them as best he could. 
 Governor Sola labored faithfully to benefit the 
 country over which he had been placed and to 
 arouse the Spanish authorities in Mexico to do 
 something for the advancement of California; 
 but the government did nothing. Indeed it was 
 in no condition to do anything. The revolution 
 would not down. No sooner was one revolution- 
 ary leader suppressed and the rebellion ap- 
 parently crushed than there was an uprising in 
 
 some other part of the country under a new 
 leader. 
 
 Ten years of intermittent warfare had been 
 waged — one army of patriots after another had 
 been defeated and the leaders shot; the strug- 
 gle for independence was almost ended and the 
 royalists were congratulating themselves on the 
 triumph of the Spanish crown, when a sudden 
 change came and the vice regal government 
 that for three hundred years had swayed the 
 destinies of New Spain went down forever. 
 Agustin Iturbide, a colonel in the royal army, 
 who in February, 1821, had been sent with a 
 corps of five thousand men from the capital to 
 the Sierras near Acapulco to suppress Guerrero, 
 the last of the patriot chiefs, suddenly changed 
 his allegiance, raised the banner of the revolu- 
 tion and declared for the independence of Mex- 
 ico under the plan of Iguala, so named for the 
 town where it was first proclaimed. The central 
 ideas of the plan were "Union, civil and re- 
 ligious liberty." 
 
 There was a general uprising in all parts of 
 the country and men rallied to the support of the 
 Army of the Three Guarantees, religion, union, 
 independence. Guerrero joined forces with 
 Iturbide and September 21, 1821, at the head 
 of sixteen thousand men, amid the rejoicing of 
 the people, they entered the capital. The viceroy 
 was compelled to recognize the independence of 
 Mexico. A provisional government under a 
 regency was appointed at first, but a few months 
 later Iturbide was crowned emperor, taking the 
 title of his most serene majesty, Agustin L, by 
 divine providence and by the congress of the 
 nation, first constitutional emperor of Mexico. 
 
 Sola had heard rumors of the turn affairs 
 were taking in Mexico, but he had kept the re- 
 ports a secret and still hoped and prayed for 
 the success of the Spanish arms. At length a 
 vessel appeared in the harbor of Monterey float- 
 ing an unknown flag, and cast anchor beyond 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 83 
 
 the reach of the guns of the castillo. The sol- 
 diers were called to arms. A boat from the ship 
 put off for shore and landed an officer, who de- 
 clared himself the bearer of dispatches to Don 
 Pablo Vicente de Sola, the governor of the 
 province. "I demand," said he, "to be con- 
 ducted to his presence in the name of my sov- 
 ereign, the liberator of Mexico, General Agustin 
 de Iturbide." There was a murmur of applause 
 from the soldiers, greatly to the surprise of their 
 officers, 'who were all loyalists. Governor Sola 
 was bitterly disappointed. Only a few days be- 
 fore he had harangued the soldiers in the square 
 of the presidio and threatened "to shoot down 
 any one high or low without the formality of a 
 trial who dared to say a word in favor of the 
 traitor Iturbide." 
 
 For half a century the banner of Spain had 
 floated from the flag staff of the presidio of 
 Monterey. Sadly Sola ordered it lowered and 
 in its place was hoisted the imperial flag of the 
 Mexican Empire. A few months pass, Iturbide 
 is forced to abdicate the throne of empire and 
 is banished from Mexico. The imperial stand- 
 ard is supplanted by the tricolor of the republic. 
 Thus the Californians, in little more than one 
 year, have passed under three different forms 
 of government, that of a kingdom, an empire 
 and a republic, and Sola from the most 
 loyal of Spanish governors in the kingdom 
 of Spain has been transformed in a Mexican 
 republican. 
 
 The friars, if possible, were more bitterly dis- 
 appointed than the governor. They saw in the 
 success of the republic the doom of their estab- 
 lishments. Republican ideas were repulsive to 
 them. Liberty meant license to men to think 
 for themselves. The shackles of creed and the 
 fetters of priestcraft would be loosened by the 
 growth of liberal ideas. It was not strange, 
 viewing the question from their standpoint, that 
 they refused to take the oath of allegiance to 
 the republic. Nearly all of them were Spanish 
 born. Spain had aided them to plant their mis- 
 sions, had, fostered their establishments and had 
 made them supreme in the territory. Their al- 
 legiance was due to the Spanish crown. They 
 would not transfer it to a republic and they did 
 not; to the last they were loyal to Spain in 
 
 heart, even if they did acquiesce in the ob- 
 servance of the rule of the republic. 
 
 Sola had long desired to be relieved of the 
 governorship. He was growing old and was in 
 poor health. The condition of the country wor- 
 ried him. He had frequently asked to be re- 
 lieved and allowed to retire from military duty. 
 His requests were unheeded; the vice regal 
 government of New Spain had weightier mat- 
 ters to attend to than requests or the complaints 
 of the governor of a distant and unimportant 
 province. The inauguration of the empire 
 brought him the desired relief. 
 
 Under the empire Alta Cahfornia was allowed 
 a diputado or delegate in the imperial congress. 
 Sola was elected delegate and took his de- 
 parture for Mexico in the autumn of 1822. Luis 
 Antonio Arguello, president of the provincial 
 diputacion, an institution that had come into ex- 
 istence after the inauguration of the empire, be- 
 came governor by virtue of his position as 
 president. He was the first hijo del pais or na- 
 tive of the country to hold the office of gov- 
 ernor. He was born at San Francisco in 1784, 
 while his father, an ensign at the presidio, was 
 in command there. His opportunities for ob- 
 taining an education were extremely meager, 
 but he made the best use of what he had. He 
 entered the army at sixteen and was, at the time 
 he became temporary governor, comandante at 
 San Francisco. 
 
 The inauguration of a new form of govern- 
 ment had brought no relief to California. The 
 two Spanish ships that had annually brought 
 los memorias del rey (the remembrances of the 
 king) had long since ceased to come with their 
 supplies of money and goods for the soldiers. 
 The California ports were closed to foreign com- 
 merce. There was no sale for the products of 
 the country. So the missions had to throw open 
 their warehouses and relieve the necessities of 
 the government. 
 
 The change in the form of government had 
 made no change in the dislike of foreigners, 
 that was a characteristic of the Spaniard. Dur- 
 ing the Spanish era very few foreigners had 
 been allowed to remain in California. Run- 
 away sailors and shipwrecked mariners, notwith- 
 standing they might wish to remain in the coun- 
 
84 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 try and become Catholics, were shipped to 
 Mexico and returned to their own country. 
 John .Gilroy, whose real name was said to be 
 John Cameron, was the first permanent English 
 speaking resident of California. When a boy 
 of eighteen he was left by the captain of a Hud- 
 son Bay company's ship- at Monterey in 1814. 
 He was sick with the scurvy and not expected 
 to live. Nursing and a vegetable diet brought 
 him out all right, but he could not get away. 
 He did not like the country and every day for 
 several years he went down to the beach and 
 scanned the ocean for a foreign sail. When one 
 did come he had gotten over his home-sickness, 
 had learned the language, fallen in love, turned 
 Catholic and married. 
 
 In 1822 William E. P. Hartnell, an English- 
 man, connected with a Lima business house, 
 visited CaUfornia and entered into a contract 
 with Padre Payeras, the prefect of the missions, 
 for the purchase of hides and tallow. Hartnell 
 a few years later married a California lady and 
 became a permanent resident of the territory. 
 Other foreigners who came about the same time 
 as Hartnell and who became prominent in Cal- 
 ifornia were William A. Richardson, an Eng- 
 lishman; Capt. John R. Cooper of Boston and 
 William A. Gale, also of Boston. Gale had first 
 visited California in 1810 as a fur trader. He 
 returned in 1822 on the ship Sachem, the pioneer 
 Boston hide drogher. The hide drogher was 
 in a certain sense the pioneer emigrant ship 
 of California. It brought to the coast a 
 number of Americans who became permanent 
 residents of the territory. California, on ac- 
 count of its long distance from the world's 
 marts of trade, had but few products for ex- 
 change that would bear the cost of shipment. 
 Its chief commodities for barter during the 
 Mexican era were hides and tallow. The vast 
 range of country adapted to cattle raising made 
 that its most profitable industry. Cattle in- 
 creased rapidly and required but little care or 
 attention from their owners. As the native Cal- 
 ifornians were averse to hard labor cattle rais- 
 ing became almost the sole industry of the 
 country. 
 
 After the inauguration of a republican form 
 of government in Mexico some of the most 
 
 burdensome restrictions on foreign commerce 
 were removed. The Mexican Congress of 1824 
 enacted a colonization law, which was quite 
 liberal. Under it foreigners could obtain land 
 from the public domaiii. The Roman' Catholic 
 religion was the state religion and a foreigner, 
 before he could become a permanent resident of 
 the country, acquire property or marry, was 
 required to be baptized and embrace the doc- 
 trines of that church. After the Mexican Con- 
 gress repealed the restrictive laws against for- 
 eign commerce a profitable trade grew up 
 between the New England ship owners and the 
 Californians. 
 
 Vessels called hide droghers were fitted out 
 in Boston with assorted cargoes suitable for the 
 California trade. Making the voyage by way of 
 Cape Plorn they reached Cahfornia. Stopping 
 at the various ports along the coast they ex- 
 changed their stocks of goods and Yankee 
 notions for hides and tallow. It took from two 
 to three years to make a voyage to California 
 and return to Boston, but the profits on the 
 goods sold and on the hides received in ex- 
 change were so large that these ventures paid 
 handsomely. The arrival of a hide drogher 
 with its department store cargo was heralded 
 up and down the coast. It broke the monotony 
 of existence, gave the people something new 
 to talk about and stirred them up as nothing 
 else could do unless possibly a revolution. 
 
 "On the arrival of a new vessel from the 
 United States," says Robinson in his "Life in 
 California," "every man, woman, boy and girl 
 took a proportionate share of interest as to the 
 quahties of her cargo. If the first inquired for 
 rice, sugar or tobacco, the latter asked for prints, 
 silks and satins; and if the boy wanted a Wil- 
 son's jack knife, the girl hoped that there might 
 be some satin ribbons for her. Thus the whole 
 population hailed with eagerness an arrival. Even 
 the Indian in his unsophisticated style asked for 
 Panas Colorados and Abalaris — red handker- 
 chiefs and beads. 
 
 "After the arrival of our trading vessel (at Sari 
 Pedro) our friends'came in the morning flock- 
 ing on board from all quarters ; and soon a busy 
 scene commenced afloat and ashore. Boats 
 were passing to the beach, and men, women 
 
iHISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 85 
 
 and children partaking in the general excite- 
 ment. On shore all was confusion, cattle and 
 carts laden with hides and tallow, gente de razon 
 and Indians busily employed in the delivery of 
 their produce and receiving in return its value 
 in goods. Groups of individuals seated around 
 httle bonfires upon the ground, and horsemen 
 racing over the plains in every direction. Thus 
 the day passed, some arriving, some departing, 
 tin long after sunset, the low white road, lead- 
 ing across the plains to the town (Los Angeles), 
 appeared a living panorama." 
 
 The commerce of California during the Mex- 
 ican era was principally carried on by the hide 
 droghers. The few stores at the pueblos and 
 presidios obtained their supplies from them 
 and retailed their goods to customers in the in- 
 tervals between the arrivals of the department 
 store droghers. 
 
 The year 1824 was marked by a serious out- 
 break among the Indians of several missions. 
 Although in the older missionary establish- 
 ments many of the neophytes had spent half a 
 century under the Christianizing influence of 
 the padres and in these, too, a younger genera- 
 tion had grown from childhood to manhood 
 under mission tutelage, yet their Christian train- 
 ing had not eliminated all the aboriginal sav- 
 agery from their natures. The CaHfornia Indians 
 were divided into numerous small tribes, each 
 speaking a different dialect. They had never 
 learned, like the eastern Indians did, the ad- 
 vantages of uniting against a common enemy. 
 When these numerous small tribes were gath- 
 ered into the missions they were kept as far as 
 it was possible separate and it is said the padres 
 encouraged their feuds and tribal animosities to 
 prevent their uniting against the missionaries. 
 Their long residence in the missions had de- 
 stroyed their tribal distinctions and merged 
 them into one body. It had taught them, too, 
 the value of combination. 
 
 How long the Indians had been plotting no 
 one knew. The conspiracy began among the 
 neophytes of Santa Ynez. and La Purisima, but 
 it spread to the missions of San Luis Obispo, 
 Santa Barbara, San Buenaventura, San Fer-' 
 nando and San Gabriel. Their plan was to mas- 
 sacre the padres and the mission guard and 
 
 having obtained arms to kill all the gente de 
 razon and thus free themselves from mission 
 thralldom and regain their old time freedom. 
 The plotting had been, carried on with. great 
 secrecy. Rumors had passed from mission to 
 mission arranging the details of the uprising 
 without the whites suspecting anything. Sunday, 
 February 22, 1824, was the day set for begin- 
 ning the slaughter. At the hour of celebrating 
 mass, when the soldiers and the padres were 
 within the church, the bloody work was to be- 
 gin. The plot might have succeeded had not 
 the Indians at Santa Ynez began their work 
 prematurely. One account (Hittell's History of 
 California) says that on Saturday afternoon be- 
 fore the appointed Sunday they determined to 
 begin the work by the murder of Padre Fran- 
 cisco Xavier Una, who was sleeping in a cham- 
 ber next the mission church. He was warned 
 by a faithful page. Springing from his couch 
 and rushing to a window he saw the Indians ap- 
 proaching. Seizing a musket from several that 
 were in the room he shot the first Indian that 
 reached the threshold dead. He seized a sec- 
 ond musket and laid another Indian low. The 
 soldiers now raUied to his assistance and the 
 Indians were driven back; they set fire to the 
 mission church, but a small body of troops un- 
 der Sergeant Carrillo, sent from Santa Barbara 
 to reinforce the mission guard, coming up at 
 this time, the Indians fled to Purisima. The 
 fire was extinguished before the church was 
 consumed. At Purisima the Indians were more 
 successful. The mission was defended by Cor- 
 poral Tapia and five soldiers. The Indians de- 
 manded that Tapia surrender, but the corporal 
 refused. The fight began and continued all 
 night. The Indians set fire to the building, but 
 all they could burn was the rafters. Tapia, by a 
 strategic movement, succeeded in collecting all 
 the soldiers and the women and children inside 
 the walls of one of the largest buildings from 
 which the roof had been burnt. From this the 
 Indians could not dislodge him. The fight was 
 kept up till morning, when one of the Indians, 
 who had been a mission alcade, made a prop- 
 osition to the corporal to surrender. Tapia re- 
 fused to consider it, but Father Bias Ordaz in- 
 terfered and insisted on a compromise. After 
 
86 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 much contention Tapia found himself overruled. 
 The Indians agreed to spare the lives of all on 
 condition that the whites laid down their arms. 
 The _soidiers laid down their arms and sur- 
 rendered two small cannon belonging to the 
 church. The soldiers, the women and the chil- 
 dren were then allowed to march to Santa Ynez. 
 While the fight was going on the Indians killed 
 four white men, two of them, Dolores Sepulveda 
 and Ramon Satelo, were on their way to Los 
 Angeles and came to the mission not suspecting 
 any danger. Seven Indians were killed in the 
 fight and a number wounded. 
 
 The Indians at Santa Barbara began hostilities 
 according to their prearranged plot. They made 
 an attack upon the mission. Captain de la 
 Guerra, who was in command at the presidio, 
 marched to the mission and a fight of several 
 hours ensued. The Indians sheltered them- 
 selves behind the pillars of the corridor and 
 fought with guns and arrows. After losing sev- 
 eral of their number they fled to the hills. Four 
 soldiers were wounded. The report of the up- 
 rising reached Monterey and measures were 
 taken at once to subdue the rebellious 
 neophytes. A force of one hundred men was 
 sent under Lieut. Jose Estrada to co-operate 
 with Captain de la Guerra against the rebels. 
 On the i6th of March the soldiers surrounded 
 the Indians who had taken possession of the 
 mission church at Purisima and opened fire 
 upon them. The Indians replied with their cap- 
 tured cannon, muskets and arrows. Estrada's 
 artillery battered down the walls of the church. 
 The Indians, unused to arms, did little execu- 
 tion. Driven out of the wrecked building, they 
 attempted to make their escape by flight, but 
 were intercepted by the cavalry which had been 
 deployed for that purpose. Finding themselves 
 
 hemmed in on all sides the neophytes sur- 
 rendered. They had lost sixteen killed and a 
 large number of wounded. Seven of the prison- 
 ers were shot for complicity in the murder of 
 Sepulveda and the three other travelers. The 
 four leaders in the revolt, Mariano Pacomio, 
 Benito and Bernabe, were sentenced to ten 
 years hard labor at the presidio and eight oth- 
 ers to lesser terms. There were four hundred 
 Indians engaged in the battle. 
 
 The Indians of the Santa Barbara missions 
 and escapes from Santa Ynez and Purisima 
 made their way over the mountains to the 
 Tulares. A force of eighty men under com- 
 mand of a lieutenant was sent against these. 
 The troops had two engagements with the reb- 
 els, whom they found at Buenavista Lake and 
 San Emigdio. Finding his force insufficient to 
 subdue them the lieutenant retreated to Santa 
 Barbara. Another force of one hundred and 
 thirty men under Captain Portilla and Lieuten- 
 ant Valle was sent after the rebels. Father 
 Ripoll had induced the governor to offer a gen- 
 eral pardon. The padre claimed that the In- 
 dians had not harmed the friars nor committed 
 sacrilege in the church and from his narrow 
 view these were about the only venal sins they 
 could commit. The troops found the fugitive 
 neophytes encamped at San Emigdio. They 
 now professed repentance for their misdeeds and 
 were willing to return to mission life if they 
 could escape punishment. Padres Ripoll and 
 Sarria, who had accompanied the expedition, 
 entered into negotiations with the Indians; par- 
 don was promised them for their offenses. They 
 then surrendered and marched back with the 
 soldiers to their respective missions. This was 
 the last attempt of the Indians to escape from 
 mission rule. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 87 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 FIRST DECADE OF MEXICAN RULE. 
 
 JOSE MARIA ECHEANDIA, a lieutenant 
 colonel of the Mexican army, was ap- 
 pointed governor of the two Californias, 
 February i, 1825. With his staff ofhcers and 
 a few soldiers he landed at Loreto June 
 22. After a delay of a few months at Lo- 
 reto he marched overland to San Diego, 
 where he arrived about the middle of October. 
 He summoned Arguello to meet him there, 
 which he did and turned over tl>e government, 
 October 31, 1825. Echeandia established his 
 capital at San Diego, that town being about the 
 center of his jurisdiction. This did not suit the 
 people of Monterey, who become prejudiced 
 against the new governor. Shortly after his 
 inauguration he began an investigation of the 
 attitude of the mission friars towards the re- 
 public of Mexico. He called padres Sanches, 
 Zalvidea, Peyri and Martin, representatives of 
 the four southern missions, to San Diego and 
 demanded of them whether they would take the 
 oath of allegiance to the supreme government. 
 They expressed their willingness and were ac- 
 cordingly sworn to support the constitution of 
 1824. Many of the friars of the northern mis- 
 sions remained contumacious. Among the 
 most stubborn of these was Padre Vicente 
 Francisco de Sarria, former president of the 
 missions. He had resigned the presidency to 
 escape taking the oath of allegiance and still 
 continued his opposition. He was put under ar- 
 rest and an order issued for his expulsion by 
 the supreme government, but the execution of 
 the order was delayed for fear that if he were 
 banished others of the disloyal padres would 
 abandon their missions and secretly leave the 
 country. The government was not ready yet to 
 take possession of the missions. The friars 
 could keep the neophytes in subjection and 
 make them work. The business of the country 
 was in the hands of the friars and any radical 
 change would have been disastrous. 
 
 The national government in 1827 had issued 
 a decree for the expulsion of Spaniards froni 
 Mexican territory. There were certain classes 
 of those born in Spain who were exempt from 
 banishment, but the friars were not among the 
 exempts. The decree of expulsion reached Cal- 
 ifornia in 1828; but it was not enforced for the 
 reason that all of the mission padres except 
 three were Spaniards. To have sent these out 
 of the country would have demoralized the mis- 
 sions. The Spanish friars were expelled from 
 Mexico; but those in California, although some 
 of them had boldly proclaimed their willingness 
 to die for their king and their religion and de- 
 manded their passports to leave the country, 
 were allowed to remain in the country. Their 
 passports were not given them for reasons 
 above stated. Padres Ripoll and Altimira made 
 their escape without passports. They secretly 
 took passage on an American brig lying at 
 Santa Barbara. Orders were issued to seize the 
 vessel should she put into any other harbor on 
 the coast, but the captain, who no doubt had 
 been liberally paid, took no chance of capture 
 and the padres eventually reached Spain in 
 safety. There was a suspicion that the two 
 friars had taken with them a large amount of 
 money from the mission funds, but nothing was 
 proved. It was certain that they carried away 
 something more than the bag and staff, the only 
 property allowed them by the rules of their 
 order. 
 
 The most bitter opponent of the new govern- 
 ment was Father Luis Antonio Martinez of San 
 Luis Obispo. Before the clandestine departure 
 of Ripoll and Altimira there were rumors that 
 he meditated a secret departure from the coun- 
 try. The mysterious shipment of $6,000 in gold 
 belonging to the mission on a vessel called the 
 Santa Apolonia gave credence to the report of 
 his intended flight. He had been given a pass- 
 port but still remained in the territory. His 
 
88 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 outspoken disloyalty and his well known suc- 
 cess in evading the revenue laws and smuggling 
 goods into the country had made him particu- 
 larly obnoxious to the authorities. Governor 
 Echeandia determined to make an example of 
 him. He was arrested in February, 1830, and 
 confined in a room at Santa Barbara. In his 
 trial before a council of war an attempt was 
 made to connect him with complicity in the Solis 
 revolution, but the evidence against him was 
 weak. By a vote of five to one it was decided 
 to send him out of the country. He was put 
 on board an English vessel bound for Callao and 
 there transferred to a vessel bound for Europe; 
 he finally arrived safely at Madrid. 
 
 Under the empire a diputacion or provincial 
 legislature had been established in California. 
 Argue'.lo in 1825 had suppressed this while he 
 was governor. Echeandia,' shortly after his ar- 
 rival, ordered an election for a new diputacion. 
 The diputacion made the general laws of the 
 territory. It consisted of seven members called 
 vocals. These were .chosen by an electoral 
 junta, the members of which were elected by 
 the people. The diputacion chose a diputado or 
 delegate to the Mexican Congress. As it was a 
 long distance for some of the members to travel 
 to the territorial capital a suplente or substitute 
 was chosen for each member, so as to assure a 
 quorum. The diputacion called by Echeandia 
 met at Monterey, June 14, 1828. The sessions, 
 of which there were two each week, were held in 
 the governor's palacio. This diputacion passed 
 a rather peculiar revenue law. It taxed domestic 
 aguardiente (grape brandy) $5 a barrel and 
 wine half that amount in the jurisdictions of 
 Monterey and San Francisco; 'but in the juris- 
 dictions of Santa Barbara and San Diego the 
 rates were doubled, brandy was taxed $10 
 a barrel and wine $5. San Diego, Los An- 
 geles and Santa Barbara were wine producing 
 districts, while Monterey and San Francisco 
 were not. As there was a larger consumption of 
 the product in the wine producing districts than 
 in the others the law was enacted for revenue 
 and not for prevention of drinking. 
 
 Another peculiar freak of legislation perpe- 
 trated by this diputacion was the attempt to 
 change the name of the territory. The supreme 
 
 government was memorialized to change the 
 name of Alta California to that of Montezuma 
 and also that of the Pueblo de Nuestra Seiiora 
 de los Angeles to that of Villa Victoria de la 
 Reyna de los Angeles and make it the capital 
 of the territory. A coat of arms was adopted 
 for the territory. It consisted of an oval with 
 the figure of an oak tree on one side, an olive 
 tree on the other and a plumed Indian in the 
 center with his bow and quiver, just in the 
 act of stepping across the mythical straits 
 of Anian. The memorial was sent to Mexico, 
 but the supreme government paid no attention 
 to it. 
 
 The political upheavals, revolutions and coun- 
 ter revolutions that followed the inauguration 
 of a republican form of government in Mexico 
 demoralized the people and produced a prolific 
 crop of criminals. The jails were always full 
 and it became a serious question what to do 
 with them. It was proposed to make California 
 a penal colony, similar to England's Botany 
 Bay. Orders were issued to send criminals to 
 CaHfornia as a means of reforming their mor- 
 als. The Californians protested against the 
 sending of these undesirable immigrants, but in 
 vain. In February, 1830, the brig Maria Ester 
 brought eighty convicts from Acapulco to San 
 Diego. They were not allowed to land there 
 and were taken to Santa Barbara. What to 
 do with them was a serious question witfi the 
 Santa Barbara authorities. The jail would not 
 hold a tenth part of the shipment and to turn 
 them loose in the sparsely settled country was 
 dangerous to the peace of the community. Fin- 
 ally, about thirty or forty of the worst of the 
 bad lot were shipped over to the island of Santa 
 Cruz. They were given a supply of cattle, some 
 fishhooks and a few tools and turned loose on 
 the island to shift for themselves. They staid 
 on the island until they had slaughtered and 
 eaten the cattle, then they built a raft and 
 drifted back to Santa Barbara, where they 
 quartered themselves on the padres of the mis- 
 sion. Fifty more were sfent from Mexico a few 
 months later. These shipments of prison exiles 
 were distributed around among the settlements. 
 Some served out their time and returned to their 
 native land, a few escaped over the border, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 89 
 
 others remained in the territory after their time 
 was up and became fairly good citizens. 
 
 The colonization law passed by the Mexican 
 Congress August i8, 1824, was the first break 
 in the prescriptive regulations that had pre- 
 vailed in Spanish-American countries since their 
 settlement. Any foreigner of good character 
 who should locate in the country and become a 
 Roman Catholic could obtain a grant of public 
 land, not exceeding eleven leagues; but no for- 
 eigner was allowed to obtain a grant within 
 twenty leagues of the boundary of a foreign 
 country nor within ten leagues of the sea coast. 
 The law of April 14, 1828, allowed foreigners 
 to become naturalized citizens. The applicant 
 was required to have resided at least two years 
 in the country, to be or to become a Roman 
 Catholic, to renounce allegiance to his former 
 country and to swear to support the constitution 
 and laws of the Mexican republic. Quite a 
 number of foreigners who had been residing 
 a number of years in California took advantage 
 of this law and became jMexican citizens by nat- 
 uralization. The colonization law of Novem- 
 ber 18, 1828, prescribed a series of rules and 
 regulations for the making of grants of land. 
 Colonists were required to settle on and culti- 
 vate the land granted within a specified time or 
 forfeit their grants. Any one residing outside 
 of the republic could not retain possession of 
 his land. The minimum size of a grant as de- 
 fined by this law was two hundred varas square 
 of irrigable land, eight hundred varas square 
 of arable land (depending on the seasons) and 
 twelve hundred varas square grazing land. The 
 size of a house lot was one hundred varas 
 square. 
 
 The Californians had grown accustomed to 
 foreigners coming to the country by- sea, but 
 they were not prepared to have them come over- 
 land. The mountains and deserts that inter- 
 vened between the United States and California 
 were supposed to be an insurmountable barrier 
 to foreign immigration by land. It was no doubt 
 with feelings of dismay, mingled with anger, 
 that Governor Echeandia received the advance 
 guard of maldito estranjeros, who came across 
 the continent. Echeandia hated foreigners and 
 particularly Americans. The pioneer of over- 
 
 land travel from the United States to California 
 was Capt. Jedediah S. Smith. Smith was born 
 in Connecticut and when quite young came 
 with his father to Ohio and located in Ashtabula 
 county, wrhere he grew to manhood amid the 
 rude surroundings of pioneer hfe in the west. 
 By some means he obtained a fairly good educa- 
 tion. We have no record of when he began the 
 life of a trapper. We first hear of him as an 
 employe of General Ashley in 1822. He had 
 command of a band of trappers on the waters of 
 the Snake river in 1824. Afterwards he became 
 a partner of Ashley under the firm name of 
 Ashley & Smith and subsequently one of the 
 members of the Rocky Alountain Fur Company. 
 The latter company had about 1825 established 
 a post and fort near Great Salt Lake. From 
 this, August 22, 1826, Captain Smith with a 
 band of fifteen hunters and trappers started on 
 his first expedition to California. His object 
 was to find some new country that had not been 
 occupied by a fur company. Traveling in a south- 
 westerly direction he discovered a river which 
 he. named Adams (after President John Quincy 
 Adams) now known as the Rio \'irgin. This 
 stream he followed down to its junction with 
 the Colorado. Traveling down the latter river 
 he arrived at the Mojave villages, where he 
 rested fifteen days. Here he found tw'o wander- 
 ing neophytes, who guided his party across the 
 desert to the San Gabriel mission, where he and 
 his men arrived safely early in December, 1826. 
 The arrival of a party of armed Americans 
 from across the mountains and deserts alarmed 
 the padres and couriers were hastily dispatched 
 to Governor Echeandia at San Diego. The 
 Americans were placed under arrest and com- 
 pelled to give up their arms. Smith was taken 
 to San Diego to give an account of himself. He 
 claimed that he had been compelled to enter 
 the territory on account of the loss of horses 
 and a scarcity of provisions. He was finally re- 
 leased from prison upon the endorsement of 
 several American ship captains and supercar- 
 goes who were then at San Diego. He was al- 
 lowed to return to San Gabriel, where he pur- 
 chased horses and supplies. He moved his camp 
 to San Bernardino, where he remained until 
 February. The authorities had grown uneasy 
 
i)0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 at his continued presence in the country and 
 orders were sent to arrest him, but before this 
 could be done he left for the Tulare country by 
 way of Cajon Pass. He trapped on the tribu- 
 taries of the San Joaquin. By the ist of May 
 he and his party had reached a fork of the Sac- 
 ramento (near where the town of Folsom now 
 stands). Here he established a summer camp 
 and the river ever since has been known as the 
 American fork from that circumstance. 
 
 Here again the presence of the Americans 
 worried the Mexican authorities. Smith wrote 
 a conciliatory letter to Padre Duran, president 
 of the missions, informing him that he had 
 "made several efforts to pass over the moun- 
 tains, but the snow being so deep I could not 
 succeed in getting over. I returned to this 
 place, it being the only point to kill meat, to 
 wait a few weeks until the snow melts so that I 
 can go on." "On May 20, 1827," Smith writes, 
 "with two men, seven horses and two mules, I 
 started from the valley. In eight days we 
 crossed Mount Joseph, losing two horses and 
 one mule. After a march of twenty days east- 
 ward from Mount Joseph (the Sierra Nevadas) 
 I reached the southwesterly corner of the Great 
 Salt Lake. The country separating it from the 
 mountains is arid and without game. Often we 
 had no water for two days at a time. When 
 we reached Salt Lake we had left only one horse 
 and one mule, so exhausted that they could 
 hardly carry our slight baggage. We had been 
 forced to eat the horses that had succumbed." 
 
 Smith's route over the Sierras to Salt Lake 
 was substantially the same as that followed by the 
 overland emigration of later years. He discov- 
 ered the Humboldt, which he named the Mary 
 river, a name it bore until changed by Fremont 
 in 1845. He was the first white man to cross 
 the Sierra Nevadas. Smith left his party of 
 trappers except the two who accompanied him 
 in the Sacramento valley. He returned next 
 year with reinforcements and was ordered out 
 of the country by the governor. He traveled up 
 the coast towards Oregon. On the Umpqua 
 river he was attacked by the Indians. All his 
 party except himself and two others were mas- 
 sacred. He lost all of his horses and furs. He 
 reached Fort Vancouver, his clothing torn to 
 
 rags and almost starved to death. In 1831 he 
 started with a train of wagons to Santa Fe on a 
 trading expedition. While alone searching for 
 w^ater near the Cimarron river he was set upon 
 by a party of Indians and killed. Thus perished 
 by the hands of cowardly savages in the wilds of 
 New Mexico a man who, through almost in- 
 credible dangers and sufiferings, had explored 
 an unknown region as vast in extent as that 
 which gave fame and immortality to the African 
 explorer, Stanley; and who marked out trails 
 over mountains and across deserts that Fre- 
 mont following years afterwards won the title 
 of "Pathfinder of the Great West." Smith led 
 the advance guard of the fur trappers to Cali- 
 fornia. Notwithstanding the fact that they were 
 unwelcome visitors these adventurers continued 
 to come at intervals up to 1845. They trapped 
 on the tributaries of the San Joaquin, Sacramento 
 and the rivers in the northern part of the terri- 
 tory. A few of them remained in the country 
 and became permanent residents, but most of 
 them sooner or later met death by the savages. 
 
 Capt. Jedediah S, Smith marked out two of 
 the great immigrant trails by which the overland 
 travel, after the discovery of gold, entered Cal- 
 ifornia, one by way of the Humboldt river over 
 tlie Sierra Nevadas, the other southerly from 
 Salt Lake, Utah Lake, the Rio Virgin, across 
 the Colorado desert, through the Cajon Pass to 
 Los Angeles. A third immigrant route was 
 blazed by the Pattie party. This route led f^om 
 Santa Fe, across New Mexico, down the Gila 
 to the Colorado and from thence across the 
 desert through the San Gorgonio Pass to Los 
 Angeles. 
 
 This party consisted of Sylvester Pattie, 
 James Ohio Pattie, his son, Nathaniel M. 
 Pryor, Richard Laughlin, Jesse Furguson, Isaac 
 Slover, William Pope and James Puter. The 
 Patties left Kentucky in 1824 and followed trap- 
 ping in New Mexico and Arizona until 1827; 
 the elder Pattie for a time managing the cop- 
 per mines of Santa Rita. In ^lay, 1827, Pattie 
 the elder, in command of a party of thirty trap- 
 pers and hunters, set out to trap the tributaries ■ 
 of the Colorado. Losses by Indian hostilities, 
 by dissensions and desertions reduced the party 
 to eight persons. December ist, 1827, while 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 91 
 
 these were encamped on the Colorado near the 
 mouth of the Gila, the Yuma Indians stole all 
 their horses. They constructed rafts and floated 
 down the Colorado, expecting to find Spanish 
 settlements on its banks, where they hoped to 
 procure horses to take them back to Santa Fe. 
 They floated down the river until they encoun- 
 tered the flood tide from the gulf. Finding it 
 impossible to go ahead on account of the tide 
 or back on account of the river current, they 
 landed, cached their furs and traps and with 
 two days' supply of beaver meat struck out 
 westerly across the desert. After traveling for 
 twenty-four days and suffering almost incredible 
 hardships they reached the old Mission of Santa 
 Catalina near the head of the Gulf of California. 
 Here they were detained until news of their ar- 
 rival could be sent to Governor Echeandia at 
 San Diego. A guard of sixteen soldiers was sent 
 for them and they were conducted to San Diego, 
 where they arrived February 27, 1828. Their 
 arms were taken from them and they were put 
 in prison. The elder Pattie died during their 
 imprisonment. In September all the party ex- 
 cept young Pattie, who was retained as a host- 
 age, were released and permitted to go after 
 their buried furs. They found their furs had been 
 ruined by the overflow of the river. Two of the 
 party, Slover and Pope, made their way back 
 to Santa Fe; the others returned, bringing with 
 them their beaver traps. They were again im- 
 prisoned by Governor Echeandia, but were fin- 
 ally released. 
 
 Three of the party, Nathaniel M. Pryor, 
 Richard Laughlin and Jesse Furguson, became 
 permanent residents of California. Young Pat- 
 tie returned to the United States by way of 
 Mexico. After his return, with the assistance 
 of the Rev. Timothy Flint, he wrote an account 
 of his adventures, which was published in Cin- 
 cinnati in 1833, under the title of "Pattie's Nar- 
 rative." Young Pattie was inclined to exaggera- 
 tion. In his narrative he claims that with vac- 
 cine matter brought by his father from the 
 Santa Rita mines he vaccinated twenty-two 
 thousand people in California. In Los Angeles 
 alone, he vaccinated twenty-five hundred, 
 which was more than double the population of 
 the town in 1828. He took a contract from the 
 
 president of the missions to vaccinate all the 
 neophytes in the territory. When his job was 
 finished the president offered him in pay five 
 hundred cattle and five hundred mules 
 with land to pasture his stock on condition 
 he would become a Roman Catholic and 
 a citizen of Mexico. Pattie scorned the of- 
 fer and roundly upbraided the padre for taking 
 advantage of him. He had previously given 
 Governor Eacheandia a tongue lashing and had 
 threatened to shoot him on sight. From his 
 narrative he seems to have put in most of his 
 time in California blustering and threatening to 
 shoot somebody. 
 
 Another farnous trapper of this period was 
 "Peg Leg" Smith. His real name was Thomas 
 L. Smith. It is said that in a fight with the 
 Indians his leg below the knee was shattered by 
 a bullet. He coolly amputated his leg at the 
 knee with no other instrument than his hunting 
 knife. He wore a wooden leg and from this 
 came his nickname. He first came to California 
 in 1829. He was ordered out of the country. 
 He and his party took their departure, but with 
 them went three or four hundred California 
 horses. He died in a San Francisco hospital in 
 1866. 
 
 Ewing Young, a famous captain of trappers, 
 made several visits to California from 1830 to 
 1837. In 1831 he led a party of thirty hunters 
 and trappers, among those of his party who 
 remained in California was Col. J. J. Warner, 
 who became prominent in the territory and 
 state. In 1837 Ewing Young with a party of 
 sixteen men came down from Oregon, where 
 he finally located, to purchase cattle for the new 
 settlements on the Willamette river. They 
 bought seven hundred cattle at $3 per head from 
 the government and drove them overland to 
 Oregon, reaching there after a toilsome journey 
 of four months with six hundred. Young died 
 in Oregon in 1841. 
 
 From the downfall of Spanish domination in 
 1822, to the close of that decade there had been 
 but few political disturbances in California. The 
 only one of any consequence was Solis' and 
 Herrera's attempt to revolutionize the territory 
 and seize the government. Jose Maria Herrera 
 had come to California as a commissioner of 
 
9; 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the commissary department, but after a short 
 term of service had been removed from office 
 for fraud. Joaquin Solis was a convict who was 
 s^erving- a ten years sentence of banishment from 
 Mexico. The ex-ofificial and the exile with oth- 
 ers of damaged character combined to overturn 
 the government. 
 
 On the night of November 12, 1829, Solis, 
 with a band of soldiers that he had induced to 
 join his standard, seized the principal govern- 
 ment officials at Monterey and put them in 
 prison. At Solis' solicitation Herrera drew up 
 a pronunciamento. It followed the usual line 
 of such documents. It began by deploring the 
 evils that had come upon the territory through 
 Echeandia's misgovernment and closed with 
 promises of reformation if the revolutionists 
 should obtain control of the government. To 
 obtain the sinews of war the rebels seized 
 $3,000 of the public funds. This was dis- 
 tributed among the soldiers and proved a great 
 attraction to the rebel cause. Solis with twen- 
 ty men went to San Francisco and the sol- 
 diers there joined his standard. Next he 
 marched against Santa Barbara with an army 
 of one hundred and fifty men. Echeandia on 
 hearing of the revolt had marched northward 
 with all the soldiers he could enlist. The two 
 armies met at Santa Ynez. Solis opened fire on 
 the governor's army. The fire was returned. 
 Solis' men began to break away and soon the 
 army and its valiant leader were in rapid flight. 
 Pacheco's cavalry captured the leaders of the 
 revolt. Herrara, Solis and thirteen others were 
 shipped to Mexico under arrest to be tried for 
 their crimes. The Mexican authorities, always 
 lenient to California revolutionists, probably 
 from a fellow feeling, turned them all loose 
 and Herrera was sent back to fill his former 
 office. 
 
 Near the close of his term Governor 
 Echeandia formulated a plan for converting the 
 mission into pueblos. To ascertain the fitness 
 of the neophytes for citizenship he made an in- 
 vestigation to find out how many could read and 
 write. He found sO very few that he ordered 
 schools opened at the missions. A pretense was 
 made of establishing schools, but very little was 
 accomplished. The padres were opposed to edu- 
 
 cating the natives for the same reason that the 
 southern slave-holders were opposed to educat- 
 ing the negro, namely, that an ignorant people 
 were more easily kept in subjection. Echeandia's 
 plan of secularization was quite elaborate and 
 dealt fairly with the neophytes. It received the 
 sanction of the diputacion when that body met 
 in July, 1830, but before anything could be done 
 towards enforcing it another governor was ap- 
 pointed. Echeandia was thoroughly hated by 
 the mission friars and their adherents. Robin- 
 son in his "Life in California" calls him .a man 
 of vice and makes a number of damaging asser- 
 tions about his character and conduct, which 
 are not in accordance with the facts. It was dur- 
 ing Echeandia's term as governor that the motto 
 of Mexico, Dios y Libertad (God and Liberty), 
 was adopted. It became immensely popular 
 and was used on all public documents and often 
 in private correspondence. 
 
 A romantic episode that has furnished a 
 theme for fiction writers occurred in the last 
 year of Echeandia's rule. It was the elopement 
 of Henry D. Fitch with Doiia Josefa, daughter 
 of Joaquin Carrillo of San Diego. Fitch was a 
 native of New Bedford, Mass. He came to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1826 as master of the Maria Ester. 
 He fell in love with Doiia Josefa. There were 
 legal obstructions to their marriage. Fitch was 
 a foreigner and a Protestant. The latter objec- 
 tion was easily removed by Fitch becoming a 
 Catholic. The Dominican friar who was to per- 
 form the marriage service, fearful that he might 
 incur the wrath of the authorities, civil and cler- 
 ical, refused to perform the ceremony, but sug- 
 gested that there were other countries where 
 the laws were less strict and offered to go beyond 
 the limits of California and marry them. It is 
 said that at this point Doiia Josefa said: "Why 
 don't you carry me off, Don Enrique?" The 
 suggestion was quickly acted upon. The next 
 night the lady, mounted on a steed with her 
 cousin, Pio Pico, as an escort, was secretly 
 taken to a point on the bay shore where a boat 
 was waiting for her. The boat put of? to the 
 Vulture, where Captain Fitch received her on 
 board and the vessel sailed for Valparaiso, 
 where the couple were married. A year later 
 Captain Fitch returned to California with his 
 
HISTORICAL Ax\D BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 93 
 
 wife and infant son; At Monterey Fitch was 
 arrested on an order of Padre Sanchez of San 
 Gabriel and put in prison. His wife was also 
 placed under arrest at the house of Captain 
 Cooper. Fitch was taken to San Gabriel for trial, 
 "his ofifenses being most heinous." At her in- 
 tercession, Governor Echeandia released Mrs. 
 Fitch and allowed her to go to San Gabriel, 
 where her husband was imprisoned in one of the 
 rooms of the mission. This act of clemency 
 greatly enraged the friar and his fiscal, Pa- 
 lomares, and they seriously considered the ques- 
 tion of arresting the governor. The trial 
 dragged along for nearly a month. Many wit- 
 nesses were examined and many learned points 
 of clerical law discussed. Vicar Sanchez finally 
 gave his decision that the marriage at Val- 
 paraiso, though not legitimate, was not null and 
 void, but valid. The couple were condemned 
 
 to do penance by "presenting themselves in 
 church with lighted candles in their hands to 
 hear high mass for three feast days and recite 
 together for thirty days one-third of the rosary 
 of the holy virgin."* In addition to these joint 
 penances the vicar inflicted an additional pen- 
 alty on Fitch in these words: "Yet considering 
 the great scandal which Don Enrique has 
 caused in this province I condemn him to give 
 as penance and reparation a bell of at least fifty 
 pounds in weight for the church at Los An- 
 geles, which barely has a borrowed one." Fitch 
 and his wife no doubt performed the joint pen- 
 ance imposed upon them, but the church at Los 
 Angeles had to get along with its borrowed bell. 
 Don Enrique never gave it one of fifty pounds 
 or any other weight. 
 
 *Bancroft's History of California, Vol. III-144. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 REVOLUTIONS— THE HIJAR COLONISTS. 
 
 TUT ANUEL VICTORIA was appointed 
 / \ governor in March, 1830, but did not 
 reach California until the last month 
 of the year. Victoria very soon became un- 
 popular. He undertook to overturn the civil 
 authority and substitute military rule. He 
 recommended the abolition of the ayunta- 
 mientos and refused to call together the ter- 
 ritorial diputacion. He exiled Don Abel 
 Stearns and Jose Antonio Carrillo; and at dif- 
 ferent times, on trumped-up charges, had half 
 a hundred of the leading citizens of Los An- 
 geles incarcerated in the pueblo jail. Alcalde 
 Vicente Sanchez was the petty despot of the 
 pueblo, who carried out the tyrannical decrees 
 of his master, Victoria. Among others who 
 were imprisoned in the cuartel was Jose Maria 
 Avila. Avila was proud, haughty and over- 
 bearing. He had incurred the hatred of both 
 Victoria and Sanchez. Sanchez, under orders 
 from Victoria, placed Avila in prison, and to 
 humiliate him put him in irons. Avila brooded 
 over the indignities inflicted upon him and 
 vowed to be revenged. 
 
 Victoria's persecutions became so unbearable 
 that Pio Pico, Juan Bandini and Jose Antonio 
 Carrillo raised the standard of revolt at San 
 Diego and issued a pronunciamento, in which 
 they set forth the reasons why they felt them- 
 selves obliged to rise against the tyrant, Vic- 
 toria. Pablo de Portilla, comandante of the 
 presidio of San Diego, and his officers, with a 
 force of fifty soldiers, joined the revolutionists 
 and marched to Los Angeles. Sanchez's pris- 
 oners were released and he was chained up in 
 the pueblo jail. Here Portilla's force was re- 
 cruited to two hundred men. Avila and a num- 
 ber of the other released prisoners joined the 
 revolutionists, and all marched forth to meet 
 \"ictoria, who was moving southward with an 
 armed force to suppress the insurrection. The 
 two forces met on the plains of Cahuenga, west 
 of the pueblo, at a place known as the Lomitas 
 de la Canada de Breita. The sight of his per- 
 secutor so infuriated Avila that alone he rushed 
 upon him to run him through with his lance. 
 Captain Pacheco, of Victoria's staff, parried the 
 lance thrust. Avila shot him dead with one of 
 
94 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his pistols and again attacked the governor and 
 succeeded in wounding him, when he himself 
 received a pistol ball that unhorsed him. After 
 a desperate struggle (in which he seized Vic- 
 toria by the foot and dragged him from his 
 horse) he was shot by one of Victoria's soldiers. 
 Portilla's army fell back in a panic to Los An- 
 geles and \'ictoria's men carried the wounded 
 governor to the Mission San Gabriel, where 
 his wounds were dressed by Joseph Chapman, 
 who, to his many other accomplishments, added 
 that of amateur surgeon. Some citizens who 
 had taken no part in the fight brought the 
 bodies of Avila and Pacheco to the town. 
 "They were taken to the same house, the same 
 hands rendered them the last sad rites, and 
 they were laid side by side. Side by side kneU 
 their widows and mingled their tears, while 
 sympathizing countrymen chanted the solemn 
 prayers of the church for the repose of the 
 souls of these untimely dead. Side by side be- 
 neath the orange and the olive in the httle 
 churchyard upon the plaza sleep the slayer and 
 the slain."* 
 
 Next day, Victoria, supposing himself mor- 
 tally wounded, abdicated and turned over the 
 governorship of the territory to Echeandia. He 
 resigned the office December 9, 1831, having 
 been governor a little over ten months. When 
 Victoria was able to travel he was sent to San 
 Diego, from where he was deported to Mexico, 
 San Diego borrowing $125 from the ayunta- 
 miento of Los Angeles to pay the expense of 
 shipping him out of the country. Several years 
 afterwards the money had not been repaid, and 
 the town council began proceedings to recover 
 it, but there is no record in the archives to show 
 that it was ever paid. And thus it was that 
 California got rid of a bad governor and Los 
 Angeles incurred a bad debt. 
 
 January 10, 1832, the territorial legislature 
 met at Los Angeles to choose a "gefe politico," 
 or governor, for the territory. Echeandia was 
 invited to preside but replied from San Juan 
 Capistrano that he was busy getting Victoria 
 out of the country. The diputacion, after wait- 
 ing some time and receiving no satisfaction 
 
 ♦Stephen C. Foster. 
 
 from Echeandia whether he wanted the office 
 or not, declared Pio Pico, by virtue of his office 
 of senior vocal, "gefe politico." 
 
 No -sooner had Pico been sworn into office 
 than Echeandia discovered that he wanted the 
 office and wanted it badly. He protested against 
 the action of the diputacion and intrigued 
 against Pico. Another revolution was threat- 
 ened. Los Angeles favored Echeandia, al- 
 though all the other towns in the territory had 
 accepted Pico. (Pico at that time was a resi- 
 dent of San Diego.) A mass meeting was called 
 on February 12, 1832, at Los Angeles, to dis- 
 cuss the question whether it should be Pico or 
 Echeandia. I give the report of the meeting in 
 the quaint language of the pueblo archives: 
 
 "The town, acting in accord with the Most 
 Illustrious Ayuntamiento, answered in a loud 
 voice, saying they would not admit Citizen Pio 
 Pico as 'gefe politico,' but desired that Lieut.- 
 Col. Citizen Jose Maria Echeandia be retained 
 in office until the supreme government appoint. 
 Then the president of the meeting, seeing the 
 determination of the people, asked the motive or 
 reason of refusing Citizen Pio Pico, who was 
 of unblemished character. To this the people 
 responded that while it was true that Citizen 
 Pio Pico was to some extent qualified, yet they 
 preferred Lieut.-Col. Citizen Jose M. Echean- 
 dia. The president of the meeting then asked 
 the people whether they had been bribed, or 
 was it merely insubordination that they op- 
 posed the resolution of the Most Excellent Di- 
 putacion? Whereupon the people answered 
 that they had not been bribed, nor were they 
 insubordinate, but that they opposed the pro- 
 posed 'gefe politico' because he had not been 
 named by the supreme government." 
 
 At a public meeting February 19 the matter 
 was again brought up. Again the people cried 
 out "they would not recognize or obey any 
 other gefe politico than Echeandia." The Most 
 Illustrious Ayuntamiento opposed Pio Pico for 
 two reasons : "First, because his name appeared 
 first on the plan to oust Gefe Politico Citizen 
 Manuel Victoria," and "Second, because he, 
 Pico, had not sufficient capacity to fulfil the 
 duties of the office." Then Jose Perez and Jose 
 Antonio Carrillo withdrew from the meeting, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 95 
 
 saying they would not recognize Echeandia as 
 "gefe politico." Pico, after holding the office 
 for twenty days, resigned for the sake of peace. 
 And this was the length of Pico's first t.erm as 
 governor. 
 
 Echeandia, by obstinacy and intrigue, had ob- 
 tained the coveted office, "gefe politico," but he 
 did not long enjoy it in peace. News came 
 from Monterey that Capt. Agustin V. Zamo- 
 rano had declared himself governor and was 
 gathering a force to invade the south and en- 
 force his authority. Echeandia began at once 
 marshaling his forces to oppose him. Ybarra, 
 Zamarano's military chief, with a force of one 
 hundred men, by a forced march, reached Paso 
 de Bartolo, on the San Gabriel river, where, 
 fifteen years later, Stockton fought the Mexican 
 troops under Flores. Here Ybarra found Cap- 
 tain Borroso posted with a piece of artiUery and 
 fourteen men. He did not dare to attack him. 
 Echeandia and Borroso gathered a force of a 
 thousand neophytes at Paso de Bartolo, where 
 they drilled them in military evolutions. Ybar- 
 ra's troops had fallen back to Santa Barbara, 
 where he was joined by Zamorano with rein- 
 forcements. Ybarra's force was largely made up 
 of ex-convicts and other undesirable characters, 
 who took what they needed, asking no questions 
 of the owners. The Angelenos, fearing those 
 marauders, gave their adhesion to Zamorano's 
 plan and recognized him as military chief of the 
 territory. Captain Borroso, Echeandia's faith- 
 ful adherent, disgusted with the fickleness of 
 the Angelenos, at the head of a thousand 
 mounted Indians, threatened to invade the re- 
 calcitrant pueblo, but at the intercession of the 
 frightened inhabitants this modern Coriolanus 
 turned aside and regaled his neophyte retainers 
 on the fat bullocks of the Mission San Gabriel, 
 much to the disgust of the padres. The neo- 
 phyte warriors were disbanded and sent to their 
 respective missions. 
 
 A peace was patched up betwen Zamorano 
 and Echeandia. Alta California was divided 
 into two territories. Echeandia was given juris- 
 diction over all south of San Gabriel and Zamo- 
 rano all north of San Fernando. This division 
 apparently left a neutral district, or "no man's 
 land," between. Whether Los Angeles was in 
 
 this neutral territory the records do not show. 
 If it was, it is probable that neither of the gov- 
 ernors wanted the job of governing the rebel- 
 lious pueblo. 
 
 In January, 1833, Governor Figueroa arrived 
 in California. Echeandia and Zamorano each 
 surrendered his half of the divided territory to 
 the newly appointed governor, and California 
 was united and at peace. Figueroa proved to 
 be the right man for the times. He conciliated 
 the factions and brought order out of chaos. 
 The two most important events in Figueroa's 
 term of office were the arrival of the Hijar Col- 
 ony in California and the secularization of the 
 missions. These events were most potent fac- 
 tors in the evolution of the territory. 
 
 In 1833 the first California colonization 
 scheme was inaugurated in Mexico. At the 
 head of this was Jose Maria Hijar, a Mexican 
 gentleman of wealth and influence. He was 
 assisted in its promulgation by Jose M. Padres, 
 an adventurer, who had been banished from 
 California by Governor Victoria. Padres, like 
 some of our modern real estate boomers, pic- 
 tured the country as an earthly paradise — an 
 improved and enlarged Garden of Eden. 
 Among other inducements held out to the colo- 
 nists, it is said, was the promise of a division 
 among them of the mission property and a dis- 
 tribution of the neophytes for servants. 
 
 Headquarters were established at the city 
 of Mexico and two hundred and fifty colonists 
 enlisted. Each family received a bonus of 
 $10, and all were to receive free transporta- 
 tion to California and rations while on the jour- 
 ney. Each head of a family was promised a 
 farm from the public domain, live stock and 
 farming implements; these advances to be paid 
 for on the installment plan. The orignal plan was 
 to found a colony somewhere north of San 
 Francisco bay, but this was not carried out. 
 Two vessels were dispatched with the colonists 
 — the Morelos and the Nataha. The latter was 
 compelled to put into San Diego on account of 
 sickness on board. She reached that port Sep- 
 tember I, 1834. A part of the colonists on 
 board her were sent to San Pedro and from 
 there they were taken to Los Angeles and San 
 Gabriel. The Morelos reached Monterey Sep- 
 
9G 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tember 25. Hijar had been appointed governor 
 of California by President Farias, but after tlie 
 sailing of the expedition, Santa Ana, who had 
 succeeded Farias, dispatched a courier over- 
 land with a countermanding order. By one of 
 the famous rides of history, Amador, the courier, 
 made the journey from the city of Mexico to 
 JMonterey in forty days and delivered his mes- 
 sage to Governor Figueroa. When Hijar ar- 
 rived he found to his dismay that he was only 
 a private citizen of the territory instead of its 
 governor. The colonization scheme was aban- 
 ■doned and the immigrants distributed them- 
 selves throughout the territory. Generally they 
 were a good class of citizens, and many of them 
 became prominent in California afifairs. 
 
 That storm center of political disturbances, 
 Los Angeles, produced but one small revolution 
 during Figueroa's term as governor. A party 
 of fifty or sixty Sonorans, some of whom were 
 Hijar colonists who were living either in the 
 town or its immediate neighborhood, assembled 
 at Los Nietos on the night of March 7, 1835. 
 They formulated a pronunciamiento against 
 Don Jose Figueroa, in which they first vigor- 
 ously arraigned him for sins of omission and 
 commission and then laid down their plan of 
 government of the territory. Armed with this 
 formidable document and a few muskets and 
 lances, these patriots, headed by Juan Gallado, 
 a cobbler, and Felipe Castillo, a cigarmaker, in 
 the gray light of the morning, rode into the 
 pueblo, took possession of the town hall and 
 the big cannon and the ammunition that had 
 
 been stored there when the Indians of San Luis 
 Rey had threatened hostilities. The slumbering 
 inhabitants were aroused from their dreams of 
 peace by the drum beat of war. The terrified 
 citizens rallied to the juzgado, the ayuntamiento 
 met, the cobbler statesman, Gallado, presented 
 his plan; it was discussed and rejected. The 
 revolutionists, after holding possession of the 
 pueblo throughout the day, tired, hungry and 
 disappointed in not receiving their pay for sav- 
 ing the country, surrendered to the legal author- 
 ities the real leaders of the revolution and 
 disbanded. The leaders proved to be Torres,- 
 a clerk, and Apalategui, a doctor, both supposed 
 to be emissaries of Hijar. They were imprisoned 
 at San Gabriel. When news of the revolt 
 reached Figueroa he had Hijar and Padres ar- 
 rested for complicity in the outbreak. Hijar, 
 with half a dozen of his adherents, was shipped 
 back to Mexico. And thus the man who the 
 year before had landed in California with a 
 commission as governor and authority to take 
 possession of all the property belonging to the 
 missions returned to his native land an exile. 
 His grand colonization scheme and his "Com- 
 pania Cosmopolitana" that was to revolutionize 
 California commerce were both disastrous fail- 
 ures. 
 
 Governor Jose Figueroa died at Monterey 
 on the 29th of September, 1835. He is generally 
 regarded as the best of the Mexican governors 
 sent to California. He was of Aztec extraction 
 and took a great deal of pride in his Indian 
 blood. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE MISSIONS. 
 
 THE Franciscan Missions of Alta Califor- 
 nia have of late been a prolific theme 
 for a certain class of writers and espe- 
 cially have they dwelt upon the secularization 
 of these establishments. Their productions 
 have added little or nothing to our previous 
 knowledge of these institutions. Carried away 
 by sentiment these writers draw pictures of mis- 
 sion life that are unreal, that are purely imag- 
 
 inary, and aroused to indignation at the injus- 
 tice they fancy was done to their ideal institu- 
 tions they deal out denunciations against the 
 authorities that brought about secularization as 
 unjust as they are undeserved. Such expres- 
 sions as "the robber hand of secularization," and 
 "the brutal and thievish disestablishment of the 
 missions," emanate from writers who seem to 
 be ignorant of the purpose for which the mis- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 97 
 
 sions were founded, and who ignore, or who 
 do not know, the causes which brought about 
 their secularization. 
 
 It is an historical fact known to all acquainted 
 with California history that these establishments 
 were not intended by the Crown of Spain to 
 become permanent institutions. The purpose 
 for which the Spanish government fostered and 
 protected them was to Christianize the Indians 
 and make of them self-supporting citizens. Very 
 early in its history Governor Borica, Fages and 
 other intelligent Spanish officers in California 
 discovered the weakness of the mission system. 
 Governor Borica, writing in 1796, said: "Ac- 
 cording to the laws the natives are to be free 
 from tutelage at the end of ten years, the mis- 
 sions then becoming doctrinairs, but those of 
 New CaHfornia, at the rate they are advancing, 
 will not reach the goal in ten centuries ; the rea- 
 son God knows, and men, too, know something 
 about it." 
 
 The tenure by which the mission friars held 
 their lands is admirably set forth in William 
 Carey Jones' "Report on Land Titles in Cali- 
 fornia," made in 1850. He says, "It had been 
 supposed that the lands they (the missions) oc- 
 cupied were grants held as the property of the 
 church or of the misson establishments as cor- 
 porations. Such, however, was not the case; 
 all the missions in Upper California were estab- 
 lished under the direction and mainly at the 
 expense of the government, and the missionaries 
 there had never any other right than to the 
 occupation and use of the lands for the purpose 
 of the missions and at the pleasure of the gov- 
 ernment. This is shown by the history and 
 principles of their foundation, by the laws in 
 relation to them, by the constant practice of 
 the government toward them and, in fact, by the 
 rules of the Franciscan order, which forbid its 
 members to possess property." 
 
 With the downfall of Spanish domination in 
 Mexico came the beginning of the end of mis- 
 sionary rule in California. The majority of the 
 mission padres were Spanish born. In the war 
 of Mexican independence their sympathies were 
 with their mother country, Spain. After Mex- 
 ico attained her independence, some of them 
 refused to acknowledge allegiance to the repub- 
 7 
 
 lie. The Mexican authorities feared and dis- 
 trusted them. In this, in part, they found a pre- 
 text for the disestablishment of the missions and 
 the confiscation of the mission estates. There 
 was another cause or reason for secularization 
 more potent than the loyalty of the padres to 
 Spain. Few forms of land monopoly have ever 
 exceeded that in vogue under the mission system 
 of California. From San Diego to San Fran- 
 cisco bay the twenty missions established under 
 Spanish rule monopolized the greater part of the 
 fertile land between the coast range and the sea. 
 The limits of one mission were said to cover 
 the intervening space to the limits of the next. 
 There was but little left for other settlers. A 
 settler could not obtain a grant of land if the 
 padres of the nearest mission objected. 
 
 The twenty-four ranchos owned by the Mis- 
 sion San Gabriel contained about a million and 
 a half acres and extended from the sea to the 
 San Bernardino mountains. The greatest 
 neophyte population of San Gabriel was in 1817, 
 when it reached 1,701. Its yearly average for 
 the first three decades of the present century 
 did not exceed 1,500. It took a thousand acres 
 of fertile land under the mission system to sup- 
 port an Indian, even the smallest papoose of the 
 mission flock. It is not strange that the people 
 clamored for a subdivision of the mission estates; 
 and secularization became a public necessity. 
 The most enthusiastic admirer of the missions 
 to-day, had he lived in California seventy years 
 ago, would no doubt have been among the loud- 
 est in his wail against the mission system. 
 
 The abuse heaped upon the Mexican authori- 
 ties for their secularization of these institutions 
 is as unjust as it is unmerited. The act of the 
 Mexican Congress of August 17, 1833, was 
 not the initiative movement towards their dis- 
 establishment. Indeed in their foundation their 
 secularization, their subdivision into pueblos, 
 was provided for and the local authorities were 
 never without lawful authority over them. In 
 the very beginning of missionary work in Alta 
 California the process of secularizing the mis- 
 sion establishments was mapped out in the fol- 
 lowing "Instructions given by Viceroy Bucarili 
 August 17, 1773, to the comandante of the new 
 establishments of S^i^ Diego and Monterey. 
 
98 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Article 15, when it shall happen that a mission 
 is to be formed into a pueblo or village the 
 comandante will proceed to reduce it to the civil 
 and economical government, which, accordmg 
 to the laws, is observed by other villages of this 
 kingdom; their giving it a name and declaring 
 for its patron the saint under whose memory 
 and protection the mission was founded." 
 
 The purpose for which the mission was 
 founded was to aid in the settlement of the 
 country, and to convert the natives to Christian- 
 ity. "These objects accomplished the mission- 
 ary's labor was considered fulfilled and the es- 
 tablishment subject to dissolution. This view 
 of their purpose and destiny fully appears in 
 the tenor of the decree of the Spanish Cortes 
 of September 13, 1813. It was passed in conse- 
 quence of a complaint by the Bishop of Guiana 
 of the evils that affected that province on ac- 
 count of the Indian settlements in charge of 
 missions not being delivered to the ecclesiastical 
 ordinary, although thirty, forty and fifty years 
 had passed since the reduction and conversion 
 of the Indians."* 
 
 The Cortes decreed 1st, that all the new 
 reduciones y doctrinairs (settlements of newly 
 converted Indians) not yet formed into parishes 
 of the province beyond the sea which were in 
 charge of missionary monks and had been ten 
 years subjected should be delivered immediately 
 to the respective ecclesiastical ordinaries (bish- 
 ops) without resort to any excuse or pretext 
 conformably to the laws and cedulas in that 
 respect. Section 2nd, provided that the secular 
 clergy should attend to the spiritual wants of 
 these curacies. Section 3rd, the missionary 
 monks relieved from the converted settlements 
 shall proceed to the conversion of other 
 heathen." 
 
 The decree of the Mexican Congress, passed 
 November 20, 1833, for the secularization of the 
 missions of Upper and Lower California, was 
 very similar in its provisions to the decree of the 
 Spanish Cortes of September, 1813. The Mex- 
 ican government simply followed +1-"^ example 
 of Spain and in the conversion Oi tne missions 
 into pueblos was attempting to enforce a prin- 
 
 *William Carey Jones' Report, 
 
 ciple inherent in the foundation of the mission- 
 ary establishments. That secularization resulted 
 disastrously to the Indians was not the fault 
 of the Mexican government so much as it was 
 the defect in the industrial and intellectual 
 training of the neophytes. Except in the case 
 of those who were trained for choir services in 
 the churches there was no attempt made to 
 teach the Indians to read or write. The padres 
 generally entertained a poor opinion of the 
 neophytes' intellectual ability. The reglamento 
 governing the secularization of the missions, 
 published by Governor Echeandia in 1830, but 
 not enforced, and that formulated by the diputa- 
 cion under Governor Figueroa in 1834, approved 
 by the Mexican Congress and finally enforced 
 in 1834-5-6, were humane measures. These reg- 
 ulations provided for the colonization of the 
 neophytes into pueblos or villages. A portion of 
 the personal property and a part of the lands 
 held by the missions were to be distributed 
 among the Indians as follows: 
 
 "Article 5 — To each head of a family and all 
 who are more than twenty years old, although 
 without families, will be given from the lands 
 of the mission, whether temporal (lands depend- 
 ent on the seasons) or watered, a lot of ground 
 not to contain more than four hundred varas 
 (yards) in length, and as many in breadth not 
 less than one hundred. Sufficient land for water- 
 ing the cattle will be given in common. The 
 outlets or roads shall be marked out by each vil- 
 lage, and at the proper time the corporation 
 lands shall be designated." This colonization 
 of the neophytes into pueblos would have 
 thrown large bodies of the land held by the mis- 
 sions open to settlement by white settlers. The 
 personal property of missionary establishments 
 was to- have been divided among their neophyte 
 retainers thus: "Article 6. Among the said in- 
 dividuals will be distributed, ratably and justly, 
 according to the discretion of the poHtical chief, 
 the half of the movable property, taking as a 
 basis the last inventory which the missionaries 
 have presented of all descriptions of cattle. Arti- 
 cle 7. One-half or less of the implements and 
 seeds indispensable for agriculture shall be al- 
 lotted to them." 
 
 The political government of the Indian pu- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 99 
 
 eblos was to be organized in accordance with 
 existing laws of the territory governing other 
 towns. The neophyte could not sell, mortgage 
 or dispose of the land granted him; nor could 
 he sell his cattle. The regulations provided that 
 "Religious missionaries shall be relieved from 
 the administration- of temporalities and shall 
 only exercise the duties of their ministry so far 
 as they relate to spiritual matters." The nunner- 
 ies or the houses where the Indian girls were 
 kept under the charge of a duena until they 
 were of marriageable age were to be abolished 
 and the children restored to their parents. Rule 
 7 provided that "What is called the 'priest- 
 hood' shall immediately cease, female children 
 whom they have in charge being handed over 
 to their fathers, explaining to them the care 
 they should take of them, and pointing out their 
 obligations as parents. The same shall be done 
 with the male children. ' 
 
 Commissioners were to be appointed to take 
 charge of the mission property and superintend 
 its subdivision among the neophytes. The con- 
 version of ten of the missionary establishments 
 into pueblos was to begin in August, 1835. That 
 of the others was to follow as soon as possible. 
 San Gabriel, San Fernando and San Juan Capis- 
 trano were among the ten that were to be 
 secularized first. For years secularization had 
 threatened the missions, but hitherto something 
 had occurred at the critical time to avert it. 
 The missionaries had used their influence 
 against it, had urged that the neophytes were 
 unfitted for self-support, had argued that the 
 emancipation of the natives from mission rule 
 would result in disaster to them. Through all 
 the agitation of the question in previous years 
 the padres had labored on in the preservation 
 and upbuilding of their establishments; but with 
 the issuing of the secularization decree by the 
 Mexican Congress, August 17, 1833, the or- 
 ganization of the Hijar Colony in Mexico and 
 the instructions of acting president Farias to 
 Hijar to occupy all the property of the missions 
 and subdivide it among the colonists on their 
 arrival in California, convinced the missionaries 
 that the blow could no longer be averted. The 
 revocation of Hijar's appointment as governor 
 and the controversy which follovved b^tweeii 
 
 him and Governor Figueroa and the diputacion 
 for a time delayed the enforcement of the de- 
 cree. 
 
 In the meantime, with the energy born of de- 
 spair, eager at any cost to outwit those who 
 sought to profit by their ruin, the mission fath- 
 ers hastened to destroy that which through 
 more than half a century thousands of human 
 beings had spent their lives to accumulate. The 
 wealth of the missions lay in their herds of cat- 
 tle. The only marketable products of these were 
 the hides and tallow. Heretofore a certain num- 
 ber of cattle had been slaughtered each week 
 to feed the neophytes and sometimes when the 
 ranges were in danger of becoming over- 
 stocked cattle were killed for their hides and 
 tallow, and the meat left to the coyotes and the 
 carrion crows. The mission fathers knew that 
 if they allowed the possession of their herds to 
 pass to other hands neither they nor the 
 neophytes would obtain any reward for years of 
 labor. The blow was liable to fall at any time. 
 Haste was required. The mission butchers could 
 not slaughter the animals fast enough. Con- 
 tracts were made with the rancheros to kill 
 on shares. The work of destruction began at 
 the missions. The country became a mighty 
 shambles. The matansas were no longer used. 
 An animal was lassoed on the plain, thrown, its 
 throat cut and while yet writhing in death, agony, 
 its hide was stripped and pegged upon the 
 ground to dry. There were no vessels to con- 
 tain the tallow and this was run into pits in the 
 ground to be taken out when there was more 
 time to spare and less cattle to be killed. The 
 work of destruction went on as long as there 
 were cattle to kill. So great was the stench 
 from rotting carcasses of the cattle on the plains 
 that a pestilence was threatened. The ayunta- 
 miento -of Los Angeles, November 15, 1833, 
 passed an ordinance compelHng all persons 
 slaughtering cattle for the hides and tallow to 
 cremate the carcasses. Some of the rancheros 
 laid the foundations of their future weahh by ap- 
 propriating herds of young cattle from the mis- 
 sion ranges. 
 
 Hugo Reid, in the letters previously referred 
 to in this volume, says of this period at San 
 Gabriel, "These facts (the decree of secularization 
 
100 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and the distribution of the mission property) 
 being Icnown to Padre Tomas (Estenaga), he, 
 in all probability, by order of his superior, com- 
 menced a work of destruction. The back build- 
 ings were unroofed and the timber converted 
 into fire wood. Cattle were killed on the halves 
 by people who took a lion's share. Utensils 
 were disposed of and goods and other articles 
 distributed in profusion among the neophytes. 
 The vineyards were ordered to be cut down, 
 which, however, the Indians refused to do." 
 After the mission was placed in charge of an 
 administrator. Padre Tomas remained as min- 
 ister of the church at a stipend of $1,500 per 
 annum, derived from the pious fund. 
 
 Hugo Reid says of him, "As a wrong im- 
 pression of his character may be produced from 
 the preceding remarks, in justice to his memory, 
 be it stated that he was a truly good man, a sin- 
 cere Christian and a despiser of hypocrisy. He 
 had a kind, unsophisticated heart, so that he be- 
 lieved every word told him. There has never 
 been a purer priest in California. Reduced in 
 circumstances, annoyed on many occasions by 
 the petulancy of administrators, he fulfilled his 
 duties according to his conscience, with be- 
 nevolence and good humor. The nuns, who, 
 when the secular movement came into opera- 
 tion, had been set free, were again gathered to- 
 gether under his supervision and maintained at 
 his expense, as were also a number of old men 
 and women." 
 
 The experiment of colonizing the Indians in 
 pueblos was a failure and they were gathered 
 back into the mission, or as many of them as 
 could be got back, and placed in charge of ad- 
 ministrators. "The Indians," says Reid, "were 
 made 'happy at this time in being permitted to 
 enjoy once more the luxury of a tule dwelling, 
 from which the greater part had been debarred 
 for so long; they could now breathe freely 
 again." (The close adobe buildings in which 
 they had been housed in mission days were no 
 doubt one of the causes of the great mortality 
 among them.) 
 
 "Administrator followed administrator until 
 the mission could support no more, when 
 the system was broken up." * * * "The 
 Indians during this period were continually run- 
 
 ning oS. Scantily clothed and still more scant- 
 ily supplied with food, it was not to be wondered 
 at. Nearly all the Gabrielinos went north, while 
 those of San Diego, San Luis and San Juan 
 overrun this country, filling the Angeles and 
 surrounding ranchos with more servants than 
 were required. Labor, in consequence, was 
 very cheap. The different missions, however, 
 had alcaldes continually on the move, hunting 
 them up and carrying them back, but to no pur- 
 pose; it was labor in vain." 
 
 "Even under the dominion of the church in 
 mission days," Reid says, "the neophytes were 
 addicted both to drinking and gaming, with 
 an inclination to steal;" but after their emanci- 
 pation they went from bad to worse. Those at- 
 tached to the ranchos and those located in the 
 town were virtually slaves. They had bosses 
 or owners and when they ran away were cap- 
 tured and returned to their master. The account 
 book for 1840 of the sindico of Los Angeles 
 contains this item, "For the delivery of two 
 Indians to their boss $12." 
 
 In all the large towns there was an Indian 
 village known as the pueblito or little town. 
 These were the sink holes of crime and the 
 favorite resorts of dissolute characters, both 
 white and red. The Indian village at Los An- 
 geles between what is now Aliso and First street 
 became such an intolerable nuisance that on 
 petition of the citizens it was removed across 
 the river to the "Spring of the Abilas," but its 
 removal did not improve its morals. Vicente 
 Guerrero, the sindico, discussing the Indian 
 question before the ayuntamiento said, "The In- 
 dians are so utterly depraved that no matter 
 where they may settle down their conduct would 
 be the same, since they look upon death even 
 with indifference, provided they can indulge in 
 their pleasures and vices." This was their con- 
 dition in less than a decade after they were freed 
 from mission control. 
 
 What did six decades of mission rule accom- 
 plish for the Indian? In all the older missions 
 between their founding and their secularization 
 three generations of adults had come under the 
 influence of mission life and training — ^first, the 
 adult converts made soon after the founding; 
 second, their children born at the missions, and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 101 
 
 third, the children of these who had grown to 
 manhood before the fall of the missions. How 
 great an improvement had the neophytes of the 
 third generation made over those of the first? 
 They had to a great extent lost their original 
 language and had acquired a speaking knowl- 
 edge of Spanish. They had abandoned or 
 forgotten their primitive religious belief, but 
 their new religion exercised but little influence 
 on their lives. After their emancipation they 
 went from bad to worse. Some of the more 
 daring escaped to the mountains and joining 
 the wild tribes there became the leaders in 
 frequent predatory excursions on the horses and 
 cattle of the settlers in the valleys. They were 
 hunted down and shot like wild beasts. 
 
 What became of the mission estates? As the 
 cattle were killed off the different ranchos of 
 the mission domains, settlers petitioned the 
 ayuntamiento for grants. If upon investigation 
 it was found that the land asked for was vacant 
 the petition was referred to the governor for his 
 approval. In this way the vast mission domains 
 passed "into private hands. The country im- 
 proved more in v/ealth and population between 
 1836 and 1846 than in the previous fifty years. 
 Secularization was destruction to the mission 
 
 and death to the Indian, but it was beneficial 
 to the country at large. The decline of the mis- 
 sions and the passing of the neophyte had be- 
 gun long before the decrees of secularization 
 were enforced. Nearly all the missions passed 
 their zenith in population during the second 
 decade of the century. Even had the mission- 
 ary establishments not been secularized they 
 would eventually have been depopulated. At no 
 time during the mission rule were the number 
 of births equal to the number of deaths. When 
 recruits could no longer be obtained from the 
 Gentiles or wild Indians the decline became 
 more rapid. The mission annals show that from 
 1769 to 1834, when secularization was enforced 
 — an interval of sixty-five years — 79,000 con- 
 verts were baptized and 62,000 deaths recorded. 
 The death rate among the neophytes was about 
 twice that of the negro in this country and 
 four times that of the white race. The extinc- 
 tion of the neophyte or mission Indian was 
 due to the enforcement of that inexorable law 
 or decree of nature, the Survival of the Fittest. 
 Where a stronger race comes in contact with 
 a weaker, there can be but one termination 
 of the contest — the extermination of the 
 weaker. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE FREE AND SOVEREIGN STATE OF ALTA CALIFORNIA. 
 
 GOVERNOR FIGUEROA on his death- 
 bed turned over the civil command of 
 the territory to Jose Castro, who there- 
 by became "gefe politico ad interem." The 
 military command was given to Lieut.-Col. 
 Nicolas Gutierrez with the rank of comandante 
 general. The separation of the two commands 
 was in accordance with the national law of May 
 6, 1822. 
 
 Castro was a member of the diputacion, but 
 was not senior vocal or president. Jose An- 
 tonio Carrillo, who held that position, was 
 diputado or delegate to congress and was at 
 that time in the city of Mexico. It was he who 
 secured the decree from the Mexican Congress 
 May 23, 1835, making Los Angeles the capital 
 
 of California, and elevating it to the rank of a 
 city. The second vocal, Jose Antonio Estudillo, 
 was sick at his home in San Diego. Jose Cas- 
 tro ranked third. He was the only one of the 
 diputacion at the capital and at the previous 
 meeting of the diputacion he had acted as pre- 
 siding officer. Gutierrez, who was at San Ga- 
 briel when appointed to the military command, 
 hastened to Monterey, but did not reach there 
 until after the death of Figueroa. Castro, on 
 assuming command, sent a notification of his 
 appointment to the civil authorities of the dif- 
 ferent jurisdictions. All responded favorably 
 except San Diego and Los Angeles. San Diego 
 claimed the office for Estudillo, second vocal, 
 and Los Angeles declared against Castro be- 
 
102 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cause he was only third vocal and demanded that 
 the diputacion should meet at the legal capital 
 (Los Angeles) of the territory. This was the 
 beginning of the capital war that lasted ten years 
 and increased in bitterness as it increased in 
 age. The diputacion met at Monterey. It de- 
 cided in favor of Castro and against removing 
 the capital to Los Angeles. 
 
 Castro executed the civil functions of gefe 
 politico four months and then, in accordance 
 with orders from the supreme government, he 
 turned over his part of the governorship to 
 Comandante General Gutierrez and again the 
 two commands were united in one person. 
 Gutierrez filled the office of "gobernador in- 
 terne" from January 2, 1836, to the arrival of his 
 successor, Mariano Chico. Cliico had been ap- 
 pointed governor by President Barragan, Decem- 
 ber 16, 1835, but did not arrive in California 
 until April, 1836. Thus California had four 
 governors within nine months. They changed 
 so rapidly there was not time to foment a rev- 
 olution. Chico began his administration by a 
 series of petty tyrannies. Just before his ar- 
 rival in California a vigilance committee at Los 
 Angeles shot to death Gervacio Alispaz and his 
 paramour, Maria del Rosaria Villa, for the mur- 
 der of the woman's husband, Domingo Feliz. 
 Alispaz was a countryman of Chico. Chico had 
 the leaders arrested and came down to Los 
 Angeles with the avowed purpose of executing 
 Prudon, Arzaga and Aranjo, the president, sec- 
 retary and military commander, respectively, of 
 the Defenders of Public Security, as the vigi- 
 lantes called themselves. He announced his 
 intention of arresting and punishing every man 
 who had taken part in the banishment of Gov- 
 ernor Victoria. He summoned Don Abel 
 Stearns to Monterey and threatened to have him 
 shot for some imaginary offense. He fulminated 
 a fierce pronunciamento against foreigners, that 
 incurred their wrath, and made himself so odious 
 that he was hated by all, native or foreigner. 
 He was a centralist and opposed to popular 
 rights. Exasperated beyond endurance by his 
 scandalous conduct and unseemly exhibitions of 
 temper the people of Monterey rose en masse 
 against him, and so terrified him that he took 
 passage on board a brig that was lying in the 
 
 harbor and sailed for Mexico with the threat 
 that he would return with an armed force to 
 punish the rebellious Californians, but he never 
 came back again. 
 
 With the enforced departure of Chico, the 
 civil command of the territory devolved upon 
 Nicolas Gutierrez, who still held the military 
 command. He was of Spanish birth and a cen- 
 traHst or anti-federaUst in politics. Although a 
 mild mannered man he seemed to be impressed 
 with the idea that he must carry out the arbi- 
 trary measures of his predecessor. Centralism 
 was his nemesis. Like Chico, he was opposed 
 to popular rights and at one time gave orders 
 to disperse the diputacion by force. He was 
 not long in making himself unpopular by at- 
 tempting to enforce the centralist decrees of the 
 Mexican Congress. 
 
 He quarreled with Juan Bautista Alvarado, 
 the ablest of the native Californians. Alvarado 
 and Jose Castro raised the standard of revolt. 
 They gathered together a small army of ranch- 
 eros and an auxiliary force of twenty-five Amer- 
 ican hunters and trappers under Graham, a 
 backwoodsman from Tennessee. By a strategic 
 movement they captured the Castillo or fort 
 which commanded the presidio, where Gutierrez 
 and the Mexican army officials were stationed. 
 The patriots demanded the surrender of the 
 presidio and the arms. The governor refused. 
 The revolutionists had been able to find but 
 a single cannon ball in the Castillo, but this was 
 sufficient to do the business. A well-directed 
 shot tore through the roof of the governor's 
 house, covering him and his staff with the debris 
 of broken tiles; that and the desertion of most 
 of his soldiers to the patriots brought him to 
 terms. On the 5th of November, 1836, he sur- 
 rendered the presidio and resigned his authority 
 as governor. He and about seventy of his ad- 
 herents were sent aboard a vessel lying in the 
 harbor and shipped out of the country. 
 
 With the Mexican governor and his officers 
 out of the country, the next move of Castro and 
 Alvarado was to call a meeting of the diputa- 
 cion or territorial congress. A plan for the 
 independence of California was adopted. This, 
 which was known afterwards as the Monterey 
 plan, consisted of six sections, the most im- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 103 
 
 portant of which were as follows: "First, Alta 
 California hereby declares itself independent 
 from Mexico until the Federal System of 1824 
 is restored. Second, the same Cahfornia is 
 hereby declared a free and sovereign state; es- 
 tabhshing a congress to enact the special laws 
 of the country and the other necessary supreme 
 powers. Third, the Roman Apostolic Catholic 
 religion shall prevail; no other creed shall be 
 allowed, but the government shall not molest 
 anyone on account of his private opinions." 
 The diputacion issued a declaration of independ- 
 ence that arraigned the mother country, Mexico, 
 and her officials very much in the style that our 
 own Declaration gives it to King George III. 
 and England. 
 
 Castro issued a pronunciamiento, ending with 
 Viva La Federacionl Viva La Libertad! Viva 
 el Estado Libre y Soberano de Alta California! 
 Thus amid vivas and proclamations, with the 
 . beating of drums, and the booming of cannon, 
 El Estado Libre de AUa Cahfornia (The Free 
 State of Aha California) was launched on the 
 political sea. But it was rough sailing for the 
 little craft. Her ship of state struck a rock and 
 for a time shipwreck was threatened. 
 
 For years there had been a growing jealousy 
 between Northern and Southern California. 
 Los Angeles, as has been stated before, had by a 
 decree of the Mexican congress been made the 
 capital of the territory. Monterey had per- 
 sistently refused to give up the governor and 
 the archives. In the movement to make Alta 
 California a free and independent state, the An- 
 geleiios recognized an attempt on the part of 
 the people of the north to deprive them of the 
 capital. Although as bitterly opposed to Mex- 
 ican governors, and as active in fomenting revo- 
 lutions against them as the people of Monterey, 
 the Angeleiios chose to profess loyalty to the 
 mother country. They opposed the plan of 
 government adopted by the congress at Mon- 
 terey and promulgated a plan of their own, in 
 which they declared California was not free; 
 that the "Roman Catholic Apostolic religion 
 shall prevail in this jurisdiction, and any person 
 publicly professing any other shall be pros- 
 ecuted by law -as heretofore." A mass meeting 
 was called to take measures "to prevent the 
 
 spreading of the Monterey revolution, so that 
 the progress of the nation may not be 
 paralyzed," and to appoint a person to take mil- 
 itary command of the department. 
 
 San Diego and San Luis Rey took the part 
 of Los Angeles in the quarrel, Sonoma and Saa 
 Jose joined Monterey, while Santa Barbara, al- 
 ways conservative, was undecided, but finally 
 issued a plan of her own. Alvarado and Castro 
 determined to suppress the revolutionary An- 
 geleiios. They collected a force of one hun- 
 dred men, made up of natives, with Graham's 
 contingent of twenty-five American riflemen. 
 With this army they prepared to move against 
 the recalcitrant surefios. 
 
 " The ayuntamiento of Los Angeles began 
 preparations to resist the invaders. An army of 
 two hundred and seventy men was enrolled, a 
 part of which was made up of neophytes. To se- 
 cure the sinews of war Jose Sepulveda, second al- 
 • calde, was sent to the Mission San Fernando 
 to secure what money there was in the hands of 
 the major domo. He returned with two pack- 
 ages, which, when counted, were found to con- 
 tain $2,000. 
 
 Scouts patrolled the Santa Barbara road as 
 far as San Buenaventura to give warning of the 
 approach of the enemy, and pickets guarded the 
 Pass of Cahuenga and the Rodeo de Las Aguas 
 to prevent northern spies from entering and 
 southern traitors from getting out of the pueblo. 
 The southern army was stationed at San Fer- 
 nando under the command of Alferez (Lieut.) 
 Rocha. Alvarado and Castro, pushing down the 
 coast, reached Santa Barbara, where they were 
 kindly received and their force recruited to one 
 hundred and twenty men with two pieces of 
 artillery. Jose Sepulveda at San Fernando sent 
 to Los Angeles for the cannon at the town 
 house and $200 of the mission money to pay his 
 men. 
 
 On the i6th of January, 1837, Alvarado from 
 San Buenaventura dispatched a communication 
 to the ayuntamiento of Los Angeles and the 
 citizens, telling them, "vhat military resources 
 he had, which he would use against them if it 
 became necessary, but he was willing to confer 
 upon a plan of settlement. Sepulveda and An- 
 tonio M. Oslo were appointed commissioners 
 
104 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECOl^t). 
 
 and sent to confer with the governor, armed 
 with several propositions, the substance of 
 which was that California shall not be free and 
 the Catholic religion must prevail with the 
 privilege to prosecute any other religion, "ac- 
 cording to law as heretofore." The commission- 
 ers met Alvarado on ''neutral ground," between 
 San Fernando and San Buenaventura. A long 
 discussion followed without either coming to the 
 point. Alvarado, by a coup d'etat, brought it 
 to an end. In the language of the commission- 
 ers' report to the ayuntamiento : "While we 
 were a certain distance from our own forces with 
 only four unarmed men and were on the point of 
 coming to an agreement with Juan B. Alvarado, 
 we saw the Monterey division advancing upon 
 us and we were forced to deliver up the instruc- 
 tions of this illustrious body through fear of 
 being attacked." They delivered up not only 
 the instructions, but the Mission San Fer- 
 nando. The southern army was compelled to. 
 surrender it and fall back on the pueblo, Rocha 
 swearing worse than "our army in Flanders" 
 because he was not allowed to fight. The south- 
 ern soldiers had a wholesome dread of Gra- 
 ham's riflemen. These fellows, armed with long 
 Kentucky rifles, shot to kill, and a battle once 
 begun somebody would have died for his coun- 
 try and it would not have been Alvarado's rifle- 
 men. 
 
 The day after the surrender of the mission, 
 January 21, 1837, ^^e ayuntamiento held a ses- 
 sion and the members were as obdurate and 
 belligerent as ever. They resolved that it was 
 only in the interests of humanity that the mis- 
 sion had been surrendered and their army 
 forced to retire. "This ayuntamiento, consider- 
 ing the commissioners were forced to comply, 
 annuls all action of the commissioners and does 
 not recognize this territory as a free and sov- 
 ereign state nor Juan B. Alvarado as its gov- 
 ernor, and declares itself in favor of the Supreme 
 Government of Mexico." A few days later Al- 
 varado entered the city without opposition, the 
 Angeleilian soldiers retiring to San Gabriel and 
 from there scattering to their homes. 
 
 On the 26th of January an extraordinary 
 session of the most illustrious ayuntamiento was 
 held. Alvarado was present and made a lengthy 
 
 speech, in which he said, "The native sons were 
 subjected to ridicule by the Mexican mandarins 
 sent here, and knowing our rights we ought to 
 shake off the ominous yoke of bondage." Then 
 he produced and read the six articles of the 
 Monterey plan, the council also produced a plan 
 and a treaty of amity was effected. Alvarado 
 was recognized as governor pro tem. and peace 
 reigned. The belligerent surefios vied with each 
 other in expressing their admiration for the new 
 order of things. Pio Pico wished to ex- 
 press the pleasure it gave him to see a "hijo 
 del pais" in office. And Antonio Osio, 
 the most belligerent of the surefios, declared 
 "that sooner than again submit to a Mexican 
 dictator as governor, he would flee to the forest 
 and be devoured by wild beasts." The ayunta- 
 miento was asked to provide a building for the 
 government, "this being the capital of the state." 
 The hatchet apparently was buried. Peace 
 reigned in El Estado Libre. At the meeting of 
 the town council, on the 30th of January, Al- 
 varado made another speech, but it was neither 
 conciliatory nor complimentary. He arraigned 
 the "traitors who were working against the 
 peace of the country" and urged the members to 
 take measures "to liberate the city from the 
 hidden hands that will tangle them m their own 
 ruin." The pay of his troops who were ordered 
 here for the welfare of California is due "and 
 it is an honorable and preferred debt, therefore 
 the ayuntamiento will deliver to the government 
 the San Fernando money," said he. With a 
 wry face, very much such as a boy wears when 
 he is told that he has been spanked for his own 
 good, the alcalde turned over the balance of 
 the mission money to Juan Bautista, and the 
 governor took his departure for Monterey, 
 leaving, however, Col. Jose Castro with part of 
 his army stationed at Mission San Gabriel, os- 
 tensibly "to support the city's authority," but in ■ 
 reality to keep a close watch on the city author- 
 ities. 
 
 Los Angeles was subjugated, peace reigned 
 and El Estado Libre de Alta California took her 
 place among the nations of the earth. But 
 peace's reign was brief. At the meeting of the 
 ayuntamiento May 27, 1838, Juan Bandini and 
 Santiago E. Arguello of San Diego, appeared 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 105 
 
 with a pronunciamiento and a plan, San 
 Diego's plan of government. Monterey, Santa 
 Barbara and Los Angeles had each formulated 
 a plan of government for the territory, and now 
 it was San Diego's turn. Agustin V. Zamorano, 
 who had been exiled with Governor Gutierrez, 
 had crossed the frontier and was made comand- 
 ante-general and territorial political chief ad 
 interim by the San Diego revolutionists. The 
 plan restored California to obedience to the 
 supreme government; all acts of the diputa- 
 cion and the Monterey plan were annulled and 
 the northern rebels were to be arraigned and 
 tried for their part in the revolution; and so on 
 through twenty articles. 
 
 On the plea of an Indian outbreak near San 
 Diego, in which the redmen, it was said, "were 
 to make an end of the white race," the big can- 
 non and a number of men were secured at Los 
 Angeles to assist in suppressing the Indians, 
 but in reality to reinforce the army of the San 
 Diego revolutionists. With a force of one hun- 
 dred and twenty-five men under Zamorano and 
 Portilla, "the army of the supreme government" 
 moved against Castro at Los Angeles. Castro 
 retreated to Santa Barbara and Portilla's army 
 took position at San Fernando. 
 
 The civil and military officials of Los Angeles 
 took the oath to support the Mexican consti- 
 tution of 1836 and, in their opinion, this 
 absolved them from all allegiance to Juan Bau- 
 tista and his Monterey plan. Alvarado hurried 
 reinforcements to Castro at Santa Barbara, and 
 Portilla called loudly for "men, arms and 
 horses," to march against the northern rebels. 
 But neither military chieftain advanced, and the 
 summer wore away without a battle. There 
 were rumors that Mexico was preparing to send 
 an army of one thousand men to subjugate the 
 rebellious Californians. In October came the 
 news that Jose Antonio Carrillo, the Machiavelli 
 of California politics, had persuaded President 
 Bustamente to appoint Carlos Carrillo, Jose's 
 brother, governor of Alta California. 
 
 Then consternation seized the arribehos (up- 
 pers) of the north and the abajeilos (lowers) of 
 Los Angeles went wild with joy. It was not 
 that they loved Carlos Carrillo, for he was a 
 Santa Barbara man and had opposed them in 
 
 the late unpleasantness, but they saw in his ap- 
 pointment an opportunity to get revenge on 
 Juan Bautista for the way he had humiliated 
 them. They sent congratulatory messages to 
 Carrillo and invited him to make Los Angeles 
 the seat of his government. Carrillo was flat- 
 tered by their attentions and consented. The 
 6th of December, 1837, was set for his inaugura- 
 tion, and great preparations were made for the 
 event. The big cannon was brought over from- 
 San Gabriel to fire salutes and the city was 
 ordered illuminated on the nights of the 6th, 
 7th and 8th of December. Cards of invitation 
 were issued and the people from the city and 
 country were invited to attend the inauguration 
 ceremonies, "dressed as decent as possible," so 
 read the invitations. 
 
 The widow Josefa Alvarado's house, the fin- 
 est in the city, was secured for the governor's 
 palacio (palace). The largest hall in the city 
 was secured for the services and decorated as 
 well as it was possible. The city treasury, being 
 in its usual state of collapse, a subscription for 
 defraying the expenses was opened and horses, 
 hides and tallow, the current coin of the pueblo, 
 were liberally contributed. 
 
 On the appointed day, "the most illustrious 
 ayuntamiento and the citizens of the neighbor- 
 hood (so the old archives read) met his excellency, 
 the governor, Don Carlos Carrillo, who made 
 liis appearance with a magnificent accompani- 
 ment." The secretary, Narciso Botello, "read in 
 a loud, clear and intelligible voice, the oath, and 
 the governor repeated it after him." At the 
 moment the oath was completed, the artillery 
 thundered forth a salute and the belis rang out 
 a merry peal. The governor made a speech, 
 when all adjourned to the church, where a mass 
 was said and a solemn Te Deum sung; after 
 which all repaired to the house of his excellency, 
 where the southern patriots drank his health in 
 bumpers of wine and shouted themselves hoarse 
 in vivas to the new government. An inaugura- 
 tion ball was held — the "beauty and the chivalry 
 of the south were gathered there." Outside the 
 tallow dips flared and flickered from the porticos 
 of the house, bonfires blazed in the streets and 
 cannon boomed salvos from the old plaza. Los 
 Angeles was the capital at last and had a gov- 
 
106 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ernor all to herself, for Santa Barbara refused 
 to recognize Carrillo, although he belonged 
 within its jurisdiction. 
 
 The Angeleiios determined to subjugate the 
 Barbarenos. An army of two hundred men, 
 under Castenada, was sent to capture the city. 
 After a few futile demonstrations, Castenada's 
 forces fell back to San Buenaventura. 
 
 Then Alvarado determined to subjugate the 
 'Angeleiios. He and Castro, gathering together 
 an army of two hundred men, by forced marches 
 reached San Buenaventura, and by a strategic 
 movement captured all of Castenada's horses 
 and drove his army into the mission church. 
 For two days the battle raged and, "cannon to 
 the right of them," and "cannon in front of them 
 volleyed and thundered." One man was killed 
 on the northern side and the blood of several 
 mustangs watered the soil of their native land — ■ 
 died for their country. The southerners slipped 
 out of the church at night and fled up the val- 
 ley on foot. Castro's caballeros captured about 
 seventy prisoners. Pio Pico, with reinforce- 
 ments, met the remnant of Castenada's army at 
 the Santa Clara river, and together all fell back 
 to Los Angeles. Then there was wailing in the 
 old pueblo., where so lately there had been re- 
 joicing. Gov. Carlos Carrillo gathered to- 
 gether what men he could get to go with him 
 and retreated to San Diego. Alvarado's army 
 took possession of the southern capital and 
 some of the leading conspirators were sent as 
 prisoners to the Castillo at Sonoma. 
 
 Carrillo, at San Diego, received a small re- 
 inforcement from Mexico, under a Captain 
 Tobar. Tobar was made genera! ^nd given 
 command of the southern army. Carrillo, hav- 
 ing recovered from his fright, sent an order to 
 the northern rebels to surrender within fifteen 
 days under penalty of being shot as traitors if 
 they refused. In the meantime Los Angeles 
 was held by the enemy. The second alcalde 
 (the first, Louis Aranas, was a prisoner) called 
 a meeting to devise some means "to have his 
 excellency, Don Carlos Carrillo, return to this 
 capital, as his presence is very much desired by 
 the citizens to protect their lives and property." 
 A committee was appointed to locate Don 
 Carlos. 
 
 Instead of surrendering, Castro and Alvarado, 
 with a force of two hundred men, advanced 
 against Carrillo. The two armies met at Campo 
 de Las Flores. General Tobar had fortified a 
 cattle corral with rawhides, carretas and Cot- 
 tonwood poles. A few shots from Alvarado's 
 artillery scattered Tobar's rawhide fortifications. 
 Carrillo surrendered. Tobar and a few of the 
 leaders escaped to Mexico. Alvarado ordered 
 the misguided Angeleiiian soldiers to go home 
 and behave themselves. He brought the captive 
 governor back with him and left him with his 
 (Carrillo's) wife at Santa Barbara, who became 
 surety for the deposed ruler. Not content with 
 his unfortunate attempts to rule, he again 
 claimed the governorship on the plea that he 
 had been appointed by the supreme government. 
 But the Angeleiios had had enough of him. 
 Disgusted with his incompetency, Juan Gallardo, 
 at the session of May 14, 1838, presented a pe- 
 tition praying that this ayuntamiento do not rec- 
 ognize Carlos Carrillo as governor, and setting 
 forth the reasons why we, the petitioners, 
 "should declare ourselves subject to the north- 
 ern governor" and why they opposed Car- 
 rillo. 
 
 "First. In having compromised the people 
 from San Buenaventura south into a declara- 
 tion of war, the incalculable calamities of which 
 will never be forgotten, not even by the most 
 ignorant. 
 
 "Second. Not satisfied with the unfortunate 
 event of San Buenaventura, he repeated the 
 same at Campo de Las Flores, which, only 
 through a divine dispensation, California is not 
 to-day in mournjng." Seventy citizens signed 
 the petition," but the city attorney, who had done 
 time in Vallejo's castillo, decided the petition il- 
 legal because it was written on common paper 
 when paper with the proper seal could be ob- 
 tained. 
 
 Next day Gallardo returned with his petition 
 on legal paper. Tlae ayuntamiento decided to 
 sound the "public alarm" and call the people to- 
 gether to give them "public speech." The pub- 
 lic alarm was sounded. The people assembled 
 at the city hall; speeches were made on both 
 sides; and when the vote was taken twenty-two 
 were in favor of the northern governor, five 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 107 
 
 in favor of whatever the ayuntamiento decides, 
 and Serbulo Vareles alone voted for Don Carlos 
 Carrillo. So the council decided to recognize 
 Don Juan Bautista Alvarado as governor and 
 leave the supreme government to settle the con- 
 test between him and Carrillo. 
 
 Notwithstanding this apparent burying of the 
 hatchet, there were rumors of plots and in- 
 trigues in Los Angeles and San Diego against 
 Alvarado. At length, aggravated beyond en- 
 durance, the governor sent word to the surefios 
 that if they did not behave themselves he would 
 shoot ten of the leading men of the south. As 
 he had about that number locked up in the 
 Castillo at Sonoma, his was no idle threat. One 
 by one Alvarado's prisoners of state were re- 
 leased from Vallejo's bastile at Sonoma and re- 
 turned to Los Angeles, sadder if not wiser men. 
 At the session of the ayuntamiento October 20, 
 1838, the president announced that Senior 
 Regidor Jose Palomares had returned from 
 Sonoma, where he had been compelled to go 
 by reason of "political differences," and that he 
 should be allowed his seat in the council. The 
 request was granted unanimously. 
 
 At the next meeting Narciso Botello, its for- 
 mer secretary, after five and a half months' im- 
 prisonment at Sonoma, put in an appearance and 
 claimed his ofHce and his pay. Although others 
 had filled the ofhce in the interim the illustrious 
 ayuntamiento, "ignoring for what offense he was 
 incarcerated, could not suspend his salary." 
 But his salary was suspended. The treasury 
 was empty. The last horse and the last hide had 
 been paid out to defray the expense of the in- 
 auguration festivities of Carlos, the Pretender, 
 and the civil war that followed. Indeed there 
 was a treasury deficit of whole caballadas of 
 horses, and bales of hides. Narciso's back pay 
 
 was a preferred claim that outlasted El Estado 
 Libre. 
 
 The surefios of Los Angeles and San Diego, 
 finding that in Alvarado^they had a man of cour- 
 age and determination to deal with, ceased from 
 troubling him and submitted to the inevitable. 
 At the meeting of the ayuntamiento, October 5, 
 1839, a notification was received, stating that the 
 supreme government of Mexico had appointed 
 Juan Bautista Alvarado governor of the depart- 
 ment. There was no grumbling or dissent. On 
 the contrary, the records say, "This illustrious 
 body acknowledges receipt of the communica- 
 tion and congratulated his excellency. It will 
 announce the same to the citizens to-morrow 
 (Sunday), will raise the national colors, salute 
 the same with the required number of volleys, 
 and will invite the people to illuminate their 
 houses for a better display in rejoicing at such 
 a happy appointment." With his appointment 
 by the supreme government the "free and sov- 
 ereign state of Alta California" became a dream 
 of the past — a dead nation. Indeed, months be- 
 fore Alvarado had abandoned his idea of found- 
 ing an independent state and had taken the oath 
 of allegiance to the constitution of 1836. The 
 loyal surenos received no thanks from the su- 
 preme government for all their professions of 
 loyalty, whilst the rebellious arribefios of the 
 north obtained all the rewards — the governor, 
 the capital and the offices. The supreme gov- 
 ernment gave the deposed governor, Carlos 
 Carrillo, a grant of the island of Santa Rosa, 
 in the Santa Barbara Channel, but whether it 
 was given him as a salve to his wounded dignity 
 or as an Elba or St. Helena, where, in the event 
 of his stirring up another revolution, he might 
 be banished a la Napoleon, the records do not 
 inform us. 
 
108 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 DECLINE AND FALL OF MEXICAN DOMINATION. 
 
 WHILE the revolution begun by Al- 
 varado and Castro had not estabhshed 
 California's independence, it had effect- 
 ually rid the territory of Mexican dictators. 
 A native son was governor of the depart- 
 ment of the Californians (by the constitu- 
 tion of 1836 Upper and Lower California had 
 been united into a department); another native 
 son was comandante of its military forces. The 
 membership of the departmental junta, which 
 had taken the place of the diputacion, was 
 largely made up of sons of the soil, and natives 
 filled the minor offices. In their zeal to rid 
 themselves of Mexican office-holders they had 
 invoked the assistance of another element that 
 was ultimately to be their undoing. 
 
 During the revolutionary era just passed the 
 foreign population had largely increased. Not 
 only had the foreigners come by sea, but they 
 had come by land. Capt. Jedediah S. Smith, a 
 New England-born trapper and hunter, was the 
 first man to enter California by the overland 
 route. A number of trappers and hunters came 
 in the early '30s from New Mexico by way of 
 the old Spanish trail. This immigration was 
 largely American, and was made up of a bold, 
 . adventurous class of men, some of them not 
 the most desirable immigrants. Of this latter 
 class were some of Graham's followers. 
 
 By invoking Graham's aid to put him in 
 power, Alvarado had fastened upon his shoul- 
 ders an old Man of the Sea. It was easy enough 
 to enlist the services of Graham's riflemen, but 
 altogether another matter to get rid of them. 
 Now that he was firmly established in power, 
 Alvarado would, no doubt, have been glad to be 
 rid entirely of his recent allies, but Graham and 
 his adherents were not backward in giving him 
 to understand that he owed his position to them, 
 and they were inclined to put themselves on an 
 equality with him. This did not comport with 
 his ideas of the dignity of his office. To be 
 
 hailed by some rough buckskin-clad trapper 
 with "Ho! Bautista; come here, I want to speak 
 with you," was an affront to his pride that the 
 governor of the two Californias could not 
 quietly pass over, and, besides, like all of his 
 countrymen, he disliked foreigners. 
 
 There were rumors of another revolution, and 
 it was not difficult to persuade Alvarado that 
 the foreigners were plottingto revolutionize Cal- 
 ifornia. Mexico had recently lost Texas, and 
 the same class of "malditos extranjeros" (wicked 
 strangers) were invading California, and would 
 ultimately possess themselves of the country. Ac- 
 cordingly, secret orders were sent throughout 
 the department to arrest and imprison all for- 
 eigners. Over one hundred men of different 
 nationalities were arrested, principally Amer- 
 icans and English. Of these forty-seven were 
 shipped to San Bias, and from there marched 
 overland to Tepic, where they were imprisoned 
 for several months. Through the efforts of the 
 British consul, Barron, they were released. 
 Castro, who had accompanied the prisoners to 
 Mexico to prefer charges against them, was 
 placed under arrest and afterwards tried by 
 court-martial, but was acquitted. He had been 
 acting under orders from his superiors. After 
 an absence of over a year twenty of the exiles 
 landed at Monterey on their return from Mex- 
 ico. Robinson, who saw them land, says: 
 "They returned neatly dressed, armed with rifles 
 and swords, and looking in much better condi- 
 tion than when they were sent away, or probably 
 than they had ever looked in their lives before." 
 The Mexican government had been compelled 
 to pay them damages for their arrest and im- 
 prisonment and to return them to California. 
 Graham, the reputed leader of the foreigners, 
 was the owner of a distillery near Santa Cruz, 
 and had gathered a number of hard characters 
 around him. It would have been no loss had he 
 never returned. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 109 
 
 The only other event of importance during 
 Alvarado's term as governor was the capture of 
 Monterey by Commodore Ap Catesby Jones, of 
 the United States navy. This event happened 
 after Alvarado's successor, Micheltorena, had 
 landed in California, but before the government 
 had been formally turned over to him. 
 
 The following extract from the diary of a 
 pioneer, who was an eye-witness of the affair, 
 gives a good description of the capture: 
 
 "Monterey, Oct. 19, 1842. — At 2 p. m. the 
 United States man-of-war United States, Com- 
 modore Ap Catesby Jones, came to anchor close 
 alongside and in-shore of all the ships in port. 
 About 3 p. m. Capt. Armstrong came ashore, 
 accompanied by an interpreter, and went direct 
 to the governor's house, where he had a private 
 conversation with him, which proved tc be a 
 demand for the surrender of the entire coast of 
 California, upper and lower, to the United 
 States government. When he was about to go 
 on board he gave three or four copies of a 
 proclamation to the inhabitants of the two Cali- 
 fornias, assuring them of tlie protection of their 
 lives, persons and property. In his notice to the 
 governor (Alvarado) he gave him only until the 
 following morning at 9 a. m. to decide. If he 
 received no answer, then he would fire upon the 
 town.'' 
 
 "I remained on shore that night and went 
 down to the governor's with Mr. Larkin and 
 Mr. Eagle. The governor had had some idea 
 of running away and leaving Monterey to its 
 fate, but was told by Mr. Spence that he should 
 not go, and finally he resolved to await the re- 
 sult. At 12 at night some persons were sent 
 on board the United States who had been ap- 
 pointed by the governor to meet the commodore 
 and arrange the terms of the surrender. Next 
 morning at half-past ten o'clock about one hun- 
 dred sailors and fifty marines disembarked. The 
 sailors marched up from the shore and took pos- 
 session of the fort. The American colors were 
 hoisted. The United States fired a salute of thir- 
 teen guns; it was returned by the fort, which fired 
 twenty-six guns. The marines in the meantime 
 had marched up to the government house. The 
 officers an^ soldiers of the California govern- 
 ment were discharged and their guns and other 
 
 arms taken possession of and carried to the fort. 
 The stars and-^tripes now wave over us. Long 
 may they wave here in California!" 
 
 "Oct. 21, 4 p. m. — Flags were again changed, 
 the vessels were released, and all was quiet again. 
 The commodore had received later news bv 
 some Mexican newspapers." 
 
 Commodore Jones had been stationed at Cai- 
 lao with a squadron of four vessels. An English 
 fleet was also there, and a French fleet was 
 cruising in the Pacific. Both these were sup- 
 posed to have designs on California. Jones 
 learned that the English admiral had received 
 orders to sail next day. Surmising that his des- 
 tination might be California, he slipped out of 
 the harbor the night before and crowded all sail 
 to reach California before the English admiral. 
 The loss of Texas, and the constant influx of im- 
 migrants and adventurers from the United 
 States into California, had embittered the Mex- 
 ican government more and more against 
 foreigners. Manuel Micheltorena, who had 
 served under Santa Anna in the Texas war, 
 was appointed January 19, 1842, comandante- 
 general inspector and gobernador propietario of 
 the Californias. 
 
 Santa Anna was president of the Mexican re- 
 public. His experience with Americans in 
 Texas during the Texan war of independence, 
 in 1836-37, had determined him to use every 
 effort to prevent California from sharing the fate 
 of Texas. 
 
 Micheltorena, the newly-appointed governor, 
 was instructed to take with him sufficient force 
 to check the ingress of Americans. He recruited 
 a force of three hundred and fifty men, prin- 
 cipally convicts enHsted from the prisons of 
 Mexico. His army of thieves and ragamuffins 
 landed at San Diego in August, 1842. 
 
 Robinson, who was at San Diego when one 
 of the vessels conveying Micheltorena's cholos 
 (convicts) landed, thus describes them: "Five 
 days afterward the brig Chato arrived with 
 ninety soldiers and their families. I saw them 
 land, and to me they presented a state of 
 wretchedness and misery unequaled. Not one 
 individual among them possessed a jacket or 
 pantaloons, but, naked, and like the savage In- 
 dians, they concealed their nudity with dirty. 
 
110 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 miserable blankets. The females were not much 
 better off, for the scantiness of their mean ap- 
 parel was too apparent for modest observers. 
 They appeared like convicts, and, indeed, the 
 greater portion of them had been charged with 
 crime, either of murder or theft." 
 
 Micheltorena drilled his Falstaffian army at 
 San Diego for several weeks and then began his 
 march northward; Los Angeles made great 
 preparations to receive the new governor. Seven 
 years had passed since she had been decreed the 
 capital of the territory, and in all these years 
 she had been denied her rights by Monterey. 
 A favorable impression on the new governor 
 might induce him to make the ciudad his capital. 
 The national fiesta of September i6 was post- 
 poned until the arrival of the governor. The 
 best house in the town was secured for him 
 and his staff. A grand ball was projected 
 and the city illuminated the night of his arrival. 
 A camp was established down by the river and 
 the cholos, who in the meantime had been given 
 white linen uniforms, were put through the drill 
 and the manual of arms. They were incorrigible 
 thieves, and stole for the very pleasure of steal- 
 ing. They robbed the hen roosts, the orchards, 
 the vineyards and the vegetable gardens of the 
 citizens. To the Angeleiios the glory of their 
 city as the capital of the territory faded in the 
 presence of their empty chicken coops and 
 plundered orchards. They longed to speed the 
 departure of their now unwelcome guests. After 
 a stay of a month in the city Micheltorena and 
 his army took up their line of march northward. 
 He reached a point about twenty miles north 
 of San Fernando, when, on the night of the 
 24th of October, a messenger aroused him from 
 his slumbers with the news that the capital had 
 been captured by the Americans. Micheltorena 
 seized the occasion to make political capital for 
 himself with the home government. He spent 
 the remainder of the night in fulminating proc- 
 lamations against the invaders fiercer than the 
 thunderbolts of Jove, copies of which were dis- 
 patched post haste to Mexico. He even wished 
 himself a thunderbolt "that he might fly over 
 intervening space and annihilate the invaders." 
 Then, with his own courage and doubtless that 
 of his brave- cholos aroused to the highest 
 
 pitch, instead of rushing on the invaders, he and 
 his army fled back to San Fernando, where, 
 afraid to advance or retreat, he halted until news 
 reached him that Commodore Jones had re- 
 stored Monterey to the Californians. Then his 
 valor reached the boiling point. He boldly 
 marched to Los Angeles, established his head- 
 quarters in the city and awaited the coming 
 of Commodore Jones and his officers from Mon- 
 terey. 
 
 On the 19th of January, 1843, Commodore 
 Jones and his staff came to Los Angeles to meet 
 the governor. At the famous conference in 
 the Palacio de Don Abel, Micheltorena pre- 
 sented his articles of convention. Among other 
 ridiculous demands were the following: "Ar- 
 ticle VI. Thomas Ap C. Jones will deliver fif- 
 teen hundred complete infantry uniforms to re- 
 place those of nearly one-half of the Mexican 
 force, which have been ruined in the violent 
 march and the continued rains while they were 
 on their way to recover the port thus invaded." 
 "Article VII. Jones to pay $15,000 into the 
 national treasury for expenses incurred from the 
 general alarm; also a complete set of musical 
 instruments in place of those ruined on this 
 occasion."* Judging from Robinson's descrip- 
 tion of the dress of Micheltorena's cholos it is 
 doubtful whether there was an entire uniform 
 among them. 
 
 "The commodore's first impulse,'' writes a 
 member of his staff, "was to return the papers 
 without comment and to refuse further com- 
 munication with a man who could have the ef- 
 frontery to trump up such charges as those for 
 which indemnification was claimed." The com- 
 modore on reflection put aside his personal feel- 
 ings, and met the governor at the grand ball in 
 Sanchez hall, held in honor of the occasion. 
 The ball was a brilliant affair, "the dancing 
 ceased only with the rising of the sun next 
 morning." The commodore returned the articles 
 without his signature. The governor did not 
 again refer to his demands. Next morning, 
 January 21, 1843, Jones and his officers took 
 their departure from the city "amidst the beat- 
 ing of drums, the firing of cannon and the ring- 
 
 *Bancroft's History of California, Vol. IV. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Ill 
 
 ing of bells, saluted by the general and his wife 
 from the door of their quarters. On the 31st 
 of December Micheltorena had taken the oath 
 of office in Sanchez' hall, which stood on the 
 east side of the plaza. Salutes were fired, the 
 bells were rung and the city was illuminated 
 for three evenings. For the second time a gov- 
 ernor had been inaugurated in Los Angeles. 
 
 Micheltorena and his cholo army remained in 
 Los Angeles about eight months. The An- 
 gelefios had all the capital they cared for. They 
 were perfectly willing to have the govertior and 
 his army take up their residence in Monterey. 
 The cholos had devoured the country like an 
 army of cliapules (locusts) and were wilHng to 
 move on. Monterey would no doubt have gladly 
 transferred what right she had to the capital 
 if at the same time she could have transferred 
 to her old rival, Los Angeles, Micheltorena's 
 cholos. Their pilfering was largely enforced 
 by their necessities. They received little or no 
 pay, and they often had to steal or starve. The 
 leading native Californians still entertained their 
 old dislike to "Mexican dictators" and the ret- 
 inue of three hundred chicken thieves accom- 
 panying the last dictator intensified their hatred. 
 
 Micheltorena, while not a model governor, 
 had many good qualities and was generally liked 
 by the better class of foreign residents. He 
 made an earnest effort to establish a system of 
 public education in the territory. Schools were 
 established in all the principal towns, and ter- 
 ritorial aid from the public funds to the amount 
 of $500 each was given them. The school at 
 Los Angeles had over one hundred pupils in 
 attendance. His worst fault was a disposition 
 to meddle in local affairs. He was unreliable 
 and not careful to keep his agreements. He 
 might have succeeded in giving California a 
 stable government had it not been for the antip- 
 athy to his soldiers and the old feud between 
 the "hijos del pais" and the Mexican dictators. 
 
 These proved his undoing. The native sons 
 under Alvarado and Castro rose in rebellion. 
 In November, 1844, a revolution was inaugu- 
 rated at Santa Clara. The governor marched 
 with an army of one hundred and fifty men 
 against the rebel forces, numbering about two 
 hundred. They met at a place called the La- 
 
 guna de Alvires. A treaty was signed in which 
 Micheltorena agreed to ship his cholos back to 
 Mexico. 
 
 This treaty the governor dehberately broke. 
 He then intrigued with Capt. John A. Sutter of 
 New Helvetia and Isaac Graham to obtain as- 
 sistance to crush the rebels. January g, 1845, 
 Micheltorena and Sutter formed a junction of 
 their forces at Salinas — their united commands 
 numbering about five hundred men. They 
 marched against the rebels to crush them. But 
 the rebels did not wait to be crushed. Alvarado 
 and Castro, with about ninety men, started for 
 Los Angeles, and those left behind scattered 
 to their homes. Alvarado aiid his men reached 
 Los Angeles on the night of January 20, 1845. 
 The garrison stationed at the curate's house 
 was surprised and captured. One man was 
 killed and several wounded. Lieutenant Me- 
 dina, of Micheltorena's army, was the com- 
 mander of the pueblo troops. Alvarado's army 
 encamped on the plaza and he and Castro set 
 to work to revolutionize the old pueblo. The 
 leading Angelenos had no great love for Juan 
 Bautista, and did not readily fall into his 
 schemes. They had not forgotten their en- 
 forced detention in Vallejo's bastile during the 
 Civil war. An extraordinary session of the 
 ayuntamiento was called January 21. Alvarado 
 and Castro were present and made eloquent ap- 
 peals. The records say: "The ayuntamiento 
 listened, and after a short interval of silence and 
 meditation decided to notify the senior member 
 of the department assembly of Don Alvarado 
 and Castros' wishes." 
 
 They were more successful with the Pico 
 brothers. Pio Pico was senior vocal, and in 
 case Micheltorena was disposed he, by virtue of 
 his office, would become governor. Through 
 the influence of the Picos the revolution gained 
 ground. The most potent influence in spread- 
 ing the revolt was the fear of Micheltorena's 
 army of chicken thieves. Should the town be 
 captured by them it certainly would be looted. 
 The ■ department assembly was called together. 
 A peace commission was sent to meet Michel- 
 torena, who was leisurely marching southward, 
 and intercede with him to give up his proposed 
 invasion of the south. He refused. Then the 
 
112 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 assembly pronounced him a traitor, deposed 
 him by vote and appointed Pio Pico governor. 
 Recruiting went on rapidly. Hundreds of sad- 
 dle horses were contributed, "old rusty guns 
 were repaired, hacked swords sharpened, rude 
 lances manufactured" and cartridges made for 
 the cannon. Some fifty foreigners of the south 
 joined Alvarado's army; not that they had 
 much interest in the revolution, but to protect 
 their property against the rapacious invaders — 
 the cholos — and Sutter's Indians,* who were as 
 much dreaded as the cholos. On the 19th of 
 February, Micheltorena reached the Encinos, 
 and the Angelenian army marched out through 
 Cahuenga Pass to meet him. On the 20th the 
 two armies met on the southern edge of the 
 San Fernando valley, about fifteen miles from 
 Los Angeles. Each army numbered about four 
 hundred men. Micheltorena had three pieces 
 of artillery and Castro two. They opened on 
 each other at long range and seem to have 
 fought the battle throughout at very long range. 
 A mustang or a mule (autliorities diiTer) was 
 killed. 
 
 Wilson, Workman and McKinley of Castro's 
 army decided to induce the Americans on the 
 other side, many of whom were their personal 
 friends, to abandon Micheltorena. Passing up 
 a ravine, they succeeded in attracting the atten- 
 tion of some of them by means of a white flag. 
 Gantt, Hensley and Bidwell joined them in the 
 ravine. The situation was discussed and the 
 Americans of Micheltorena's army agreed to 
 desert him if Pico would protect them in their 
 land grants. Wilson, in his account of the bat- 
 tle, says:t "I knew, and so did Pico, that these 
 land questions were the point with those young 
 Americans. Before I started on my journey or 
 embassy, Pico was sent for; on his arrival 
 among us I, in a few words, explained to him 
 what the party had advanced. 'Gentlemen,' said 
 he, 'are any of you citizens of Mexico?' They 
 answered 'No.' 'Then your title deeds given 
 you by Micheltorena are not worth the paper 
 
 *Siitter bad under liis command a company of In- 
 dians. He had drilled these in the use of firearms 
 The employing of these savages by Micheltorena was 
 bitterly resented by the Californians. 
 ,,t^"'\ Historical Society of Southern California, 
 Vol. III. 
 
 they are written on, and he knew it well when 
 he gave them to you; but if you wiil abandon 
 his cause I will give you my word of honor as 
 a gentleman, and Don Benito Wilson and Don 
 Juan Workman to carry out what I promise, 
 that I will protect each one of you in the land 
 that you now hold, and when you become citi- 
 zens of Mexico. I will issue you the proper ti- 
 tles.' They said that was all they asked, "and 
 promised not to fire a gun against us. They also 
 asked not to be required to fight on our side, 
 which was agreed to. 
 
 "Micheltorena discovered (how, I do notknow) 
 that his Americans had abandoned him. About 
 an hour afterwards he raised his camp and 
 flanked us by going further into the valley to- 
 wards San Fernando, then marching as though 
 he intended to come around the bend of the 
 river to the city. The Californians and we for- 
 eigners at once broke up our camp and came 
 back through the Cahuenga Pass, marched 
 through the gap into the Feliz ranch, on the 
 Los Angeles River, till we came into close 
 proximity to Micheltorena's camp. It was now 
 night, as it was dark when we broke up our 
 camp. Here we waited for daylight, and some 
 of our men commenced maneuvering for a fight 
 with the enemy. A few cannon shots were 
 fired, when a white flag was discovered flying 
 from Micheltorena's front. The whole matter 
 then went into the hands of negotiators ap- 
 pointed by both parties and the terms of sur- 
 render were agreed upon, one of which was that 
 Micheltorena and his obnoxious officers and 
 men were to march back up the river to the 
 Cahuenga Pass, then down on the plain to the 
 west of Los Angeles, the most direct line to 
 San, Pedro, and embark at that point on a vessel 
 then anchored there to carry them back to Mex- 
 ico." Sutter was taken prisoner, and his Indians, 
 after being corralled for a time, were sent back 
 to the Sacramento. 
 
 The roar of the battle of Cahuenga, or the 
 Alamo, as it is sometimes called, could be dis- 
 tinctly heard in Los Angeles, and the people 
 remaining in the city were greatly alarmed. 
 William Heath Davis, in his Sixty Years in Cal- 
 ifornia, thus describes the alarm in the town: 
 "Directly to the north of the town was a high 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 113 
 
 hill" (now known as Mt. Lookout). "As soon 
 as firing was heard all the people remaining in 
 the town, men, women and children, ran to the 
 top of this hill. As the wind was blowing from 
 the north, the firing was distinctly heard, five 
 leagues away, on the battle-field throughout the 
 day. All business places in town were closed. 
 The scene on the hill was a remarkable one, 
 women and children, with crosses in their hands, 
 kneeling and praying to the saints for the safety 
 of their fathers, brothers, sons, husbands, lovers, 
 cousins, that they might not be killed in the bat- 
 tle; indifferent to their personal appearance, 
 tears streaming from their eyes, and their hair 
 blown about by the wind, which had increased 
 to quite a breeze. Don Abel Stearns, myself and 
 others tried to calm and pacify them, assuring 
 them that there was probably no danger; some- 
 what against our convictions, it is true, judg- 
 ing from what we heard of the firing and from 
 our knowledge of Micheltorena's disciplined 
 force, his battery, and, the riflemen he had with 
 him. During the day the scene on the hill con- 
 tinued. The night that followed was a gloomy 
 one, caused by the lamentations of the women 
 and children." 
 
 Davis, who was supercargo on the Don 
 Quixote, the vessel on which Micheltorena and 
 his soldiers were shipped to Mexico, claims that 
 the general "had ordered his command not to 
 injure the Californians in the force opposed to 
 him, but to fire over their heads, as he had no 
 desire to kill them." 
 
 Another Mexican-born governor had been 
 deposed and deported, gone to join his fellows, 
 Victoria, Chico and Gutierrez. In accordance 
 with the treaty of Cahuenga and by virtue of 
 his rank as senior member of the departmental 
 assembly, Pio Pico became governor. The hijos 
 del pais were once more in the ascendency. 
 Jose Castro was made comandante-general. Al- 
 varado was given charge of the custom house at 
 Monterey, and Jose Antonio Carrillo was ap- 
 pointed commander of the military district of 
 the south. Los Angeles was made the capital, 
 although tlie archives and the treasury remained 
 in Monterey. The revolution apparently had 
 been a success. In the proceedings of the Los 
 Angeles ayuritamiento, March i, 1845, appears 
 
 this record: "The agreements entered into at. 
 Cahuenga between Gen. Emanuel Michel- 
 torena and Lieut.-Col. Jose Castro were then 
 read, and as they contain a happy termination of 
 affairs in favor of the government, this Illustri- 
 ous Body Hstened with satisfaction and so an- 
 swered the communication." 
 
 The people joined with the ayuntamiento in 
 expressing their "satisfaction" that a "happy 
 termination" had been reached of the political 
 disturbances which had distracted the country. 
 But the end was not yet. Pico did his best to 
 conciliate the' conflicting elements, but the old 
 sectional jealousies that had divided the people 
 of the territory would crop out. Jose Antonio 
 Carrillo, the Machiaveli of the south, hated Cas- 
 tro and Alvarado and was jealous of Pico's good 
 fortune. He was the superior of any of them 
 in ability, but made himself unpopular by his 
 intrigues and his sarcastic speech. When Cas- 
 tro and Alvarado came south to raise the stand- 
 ard of revolt they tried to win him over. He 
 did assist them. He was willing enough to plot 
 against Micheltorena, but after the overthrow 
 of the Mexican he was equally ready to plot 
 against Pico and Castro. In the summer of 
 1845 he was implicated in a plot to depose Pico, 
 who, by the way, was his brother-in-law. Pico 
 placed him and two of his fellow conspirators, 
 Serbulo and Hilario Varela, under arrest. Car- 
 rillo and Hilario Varela were shipped to Mazat- 
 lan to be tried for their misdeed. Serbulo Va- 
 rela made his escape from prison. The two 
 exiles returned early in 1846 unpunished and 
 ready for new plots. 
 
 Pico was appointed gobernador proprietario, 
 or constitutional governor of California, Sep- 
 tember 3, 1845, by President Herrera. The su- 
 preme government of Mexico never seemed to 
 take oflcense or harbor resentment against the 
 Californians for deposing and sending home a 
 governor. As the officials of the supreme gov- 
 ernment, usually obtained office by revolution, 
 they no doubt had a fellow feeling for the revolt- 
 ing Californians. When Micheltorena returned 
 to Mexico he was coldly received and a com- 
 missioner was sent to Pico with dispatches vir- 
 tually approving all that had been done. 
 
 Castro, too, gave Pico a great deal of une^si- 
 
114 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ■ness. He ignored the governor and managed 
 the mihtary affairs of the territory to suit him- 
 self. His headquarters were at Monterey and 
 doubtless he had the sympathy if not the en- 
 couragement of the people of the north in his 
 course. But the cause of the greatest uneasi- 
 ness was the increasing immigration from the 
 United States. A stream of emigrants from the 
 western states, increasing each year, poured 
 down the Sierra Nevadas and spread over the 
 rich valleys of California. The Californians rec- 
 ognized that through the advent of these "for- 
 eign adventurers, "as they called them, the "man- 
 ifest destiny" of California was to be absorbed by 
 the United States. Alvarado had appealed to 
 Mexico for men and arms and had been an- 
 swered by the arrival of Micheltorena and his 
 cholos. Pico appealed and for a time the Cali- 
 fornians were cheered by the prospect of aid. 
 
 In the summer of 1845 ^ ^o^'^e of six hundred 
 veteran soldiers, under command of Colonel 
 Iniestra, reached Acapulco, where ships were ly- 
 ing to take them to California, but a revolution 
 broke out in Mexico and the troops destined for 
 the defense of California were used to overthrow 
 President Herrera and to seat Paredes. Cali- 
 fornia was left to work out her own destiny 
 unaided or drift with the tide — and she drifted. 
 In the early months of 1846 there was a rapid 
 succession of important events in her history, 
 each in passing bearing her near and nearer to 
 a manifest destiny — the downfall of Mexican 
 domination in California. These will be pre- 
 sented fully in the chapter on the Acquisition of 
 CaHfornia by the United States. But before 
 taking up these we will turn aside to review life 
 in California in the olden time under Spanish 
 and Mexican rule. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT— HOMES AND HOME-LIFE OF 
 
 THE CALIFORNIANS. 
 
 UNDER Spain the government of Califor- 
 nia was semi-military and semi-clerical. 
 The governors were military officers and 
 had command of the troops in the territory, and 
 looked after affairs at the pueblos; the friars 
 were supreme at the missions. The municipal 
 government of the pueblos was vested in ayun- 
 tamientos. The decree of the Spanish Cortes 
 passed May 23, 1812, regulated the membership 
 of the ayuntamiento according to the popula- 
 tion of the town — "there shall be one alcalde 
 (mayor), two regidores (councilmen), and one 
 procurador-syndico (treasurer) in all towns 
 which do not have more than two hundred in- 
 habitants; one alcalde, four regidores and one 
 syndico in those the population of which ex- 
 ceeds two hundred, but does not exceed five 
 hundred." When the population of a town ex- 
 ceeded one thousand it was allowed two al- 
 caldes, eight regidores and two syndicos. Over 
 the members of the ayuntamiento in the early 
 years of Spanish rule was a quasi-military offi- 
 
 cer called a comisionado, a sort of petty dictator 
 or military despot, who, when occasion required 
 or inclination moved him, embodied within him- 
 self all three departments of government, judi- 
 ciary, legislative and executive. After Mexico 
 became a republic the office of comisionado was 
 abolished. The alcalde acted as president of 
 the ayuntamiento, as mayor and as judge of 
 the court of first instance. The second alcalde 
 took his place when that officer was ill or ab- 
 sent. The syndico was a general utility man. 
 He acted as city or town attorney, tax collector 
 and treasurer. The secretary was an important 
 officer; he kept the records, acted as clerk of 
 the alcalde's court and was the only municipal 
 officer who received pay, except the syndico, 
 who received a commission 'on his collections. 
 
 In 1837 the ^Mexican Congress passed a decree 
 abolishing ayuntamientos in capitals of depart- 
 ments having a population of less than four 
 thousand and in interior towns of less than 
 eight thousand. In 1839 Governor Alvarado 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 115 
 
 reported to the Departmental Assembly that no 
 town in California had the requisite population. 
 The ayuntamientos all closed January i, 1840. 
 They were re-estabHshed in 1844. During their 
 abolition the towns were governed by prefects 
 and justices of the peace, and the special laws 
 or ordinances were enacted by the departmental 
 assembly. 
 
 The jurisdiction of the ayuntamiento often 
 extended over a large area of country beyond 
 the town limits. That of Los Angeles, after the 
 secularization of the missions, extended over a 
 country as large as the state of Massachusetts. 
 The authority of the ayuntamiento was as ex- 
 tensive as its jurisdiction. It granted town lots 
 and recommended to the governor grants of 
 land from the pubhc domain. In addition to 
 passing ordinances its members sometimes 
 acted as executive officers to enforce them. It 
 exercised the powers of a board of health, a 
 board of education, a pohce commission and a 
 street department. During the civil war be- 
 tween Northern and Southern California, in 
 1837-38, the ayuntamiento of Los Angeles 
 raised and equipped an army and assumed the 
 right to govern the southern half of the terri- 
 tory. 
 
 The a3'untamiento was spoken of as Muy 
 Ilustre (Most Ihustrious), in the same sense 
 that we speak of the honorable city council, but 
 it was a much more dignified body than a city 
 council. The members were required to attend 
 their pubHc functions "attired in black apparel, 
 so as to add solemnity to the meetings." They 
 served without pay, but if a member was absent 
 from a meeting without a good excuse he was 
 liable to a fine. As there was no pay in the office 
 and its duties were numerous and onerous, there 
 was not a large crop of aspirants for council- 
 men in those days, and the office usually sought 
 the man. It might be added that when it caught 
 the right man it was loath to let go of him. 
 
 The misfortunes that beset Francisco Pantoja 
 aptly illustrate the difficulty of resigning in the 
 days when office sought the man, not man the 
 office. Pantoja was elected fourth regidor of 
 the ayuntamiento of Los Angeles in 1837. In 
 those days wild horses were very numerous. 
 When the pasture in the foothills was exhaysted 
 
 they came down into the valleys and ate up 
 the feed needed for the cattle. On this account, 
 and because most of these wild horses were 
 worthless, the rancheros slaughtered them. A 
 corral was built with wings extending out on 
 the right and left from the main entrance. When 
 the corral was completed a day was set for a 
 wild horse drive. The bands were rounded up 
 and driven into the corral. The pick of the 
 caballados were lassoed and taken out to be 
 broken to the saddle and the refuse of the drive 
 killed. The Vejars had obtained permission 
 from the ayuntamiento to build a corral between 
 the Ceritos and the Salinas for the purpose of 
 corralling wild horses. Pantoja, being some- 
 thing of a sport, petitioned his fellow regidores 
 for a twenty days' leave of absence to join in 
 the wild horse chase. A wild horse chase was 
 wild sport and dangerous, too. Somebody was 
 sure to get hurt, and Pantoja in this one was 
 one of the unfortunates. When his twenty days' 
 leave of absence was up he did not return to 
 his duties of regidor, but instead sent his res- 
 ignation on plea of illness. His resignation was 
 not accepted and the president of the ayunta- 
 miento appointed a committee to investigate 
 his physical condition. There were no physi- 
 cians in Los Angeles in those days, so the com- 
 mittee took along Santiago McKinley, a canny 
 Scotch merchant, who was reputed to have some 
 knowledge of surgery. The committee and the 
 improvised surgeon held an ante-mortem in- 
 quest on what remained of Pantoja. The com- 
 mittee reported to the council that he was a 
 physical wreck; that he could not mount a 
 horse nor ride one when mounted. A native 
 Californian who had reached such a state of 
 physical dilapidation that he could not mount 
 a horse m.ight well be excused from official du- 
 ties. To excuse him might establish a danger- 
 ous precedent. The ayuntamiento heard the 
 report, pondered over it and then sent it and 
 the resignation to the governor. The governor 
 took them under advisement. In the meantime 
 a revolution broke out and before peace was re- 
 stored and the governor had time to pass upon 
 the case Pantoja's term had expired by limita- 
 tion. 
 
 That rnodern fad of reform legislation, the 
 
116 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 referendum, was in full force and effect in Cali- 
 fornia three-quarters of a century ago. When 
 some question of great importance to the com- 
 munity was before the ayuntamiento and the 
 regidores were divided in opinion, the alarma 
 pubhca or public alarm was sounded by the 
 beating of the long roll on the drum and all the 
 citizens were summoned to the hall of sessions. 
 Any one hearing the alarm and not heed- 
 ing it was fined $3. When the citizens were con- 
 vened the president of the ayuntamiento, speak- 
 ing in a loud voice, stated the question and the 
 people were given "public speech." The ques- 
 tion was debated by all who wished to speak. 
 When all had. had their say it was decided by a 
 show of hands. 
 
 The ayuntamientos regulated the social func- 
 tions of the pueblos as well as the civic. Ordi- 
 nance 5, ayuntamiento proceedings of Los 
 Angeles, reads: "All individuals serenading pro- 
 miscuously around the street of the city at night 
 without first having obtained permission from 
 the alcalde will be fined $1.50 for the first of- 
 fense, $3 for the second offense, and for the 
 third punished according to law." Ordinance 4, 
 adopted by the ayuntamiento of Los Angeles, 
 January 28, 1838, reads: "Every person not 
 having any apparent occupation in this city or 
 its jurisdiction is hereby ordered to look for 
 work within three days, counting from the day 
 this ordinance is published; if not complied 
 with, he will be fined $2 for the first offense, $4 
 for the second offense, and will be given com- 
 pulsory work for the third." From the reading 
 of the ordinance it would seem if the tramp 
 kept looking for work, but was careful not to 
 find it, there could be no offense and conse- 
 quently no fines or compulsory work. 
 
 Some of the enactments of the old regidores 
 would fade the azure out of the blue laws of 
 Connecticut in severity. In the plan of gov- 
 ernment adopted by the sureiios in the rebellion 
 of 1837 appears this article: "Article 3, The 
 Roman Catholic Apostolic religion shall pre- 
 vail throughout this jurisdiction; and any per- 
 son professing publicly any other religion shall 
 be prosecuted." 
 
 Here is a blue law of Monterey, enacted 
 March 23, 1816: "All persons must attend mass 
 
 and respond in a loud voice, and if any persons 
 should fail to do so without good cause they 
 will be put in the stocks for three hours." 
 
 The architecture of the Spanish and Mexican 
 eras of California was homely almost to ugliness. 
 There was no external ornamentation to the 
 dwellings and no internal conveniences. There 
 was but little attempt at variety and the houses 
 were mostly of one style, square walled, tile cov- 
 ered, or flat roofed with pitch, and usuahy but 
 one story high. Some of the mission churches 
 were massive, grand and ornamental, while 
 others were devoid of beauty and travesties on 
 the rules of architecture. Every man was his 
 own architect and master builder. He had no 
 choice of material, or, rather, with his ease- 
 loving disposition, he chose to use that which 
 was most convenient, and that was adobe clay, 
 made into sun-dried brick. The Indian was the 
 brickmaker, and he toiled for his taskmasters, 
 like the Hebrew of old for the Egyptian, making 
 bricks without straw and without pay. There 
 were no labor strikes in the building trades then. 
 The Indian was the builder, and he did not 
 know how to strike for higher wages, because 
 lie received no wages, high or low. The adobe 
 bricks were moulded into form and set up to 
 dry. Through the long summer days they 
 baked in the hot sun, first on one side, then on 
 the other; and when dried through they were 
 laid in the wall with mud mortar. Then the 
 walls had to dry and dry perhaps through an- 
 other summer before the house was habitable. 
 Time was the essense of building contracts then. 
 
 There was but little wood used in house con- 
 struction then. It was Qnly the aristocrats who 
 could indulge in the luxury of wooden floors. 
 Most of the houses had floors of the beaten 
 earth. Such floors were cheap and durable. 
 Gilroy says, when he came to Monterey in 1814, 
 only the governor's house had a wooden floor. 
 A door of rawhide shut out intruders and 
 v^'ooden-barred windows admitted sunshine and 
 air. 
 
 The legendry of the hearthstone and the fire- 
 side which fills so large a place in the home Hfe 
 and literature of the Anglo-Saxon had no part 
 in the domestic system of the old-time Califor- 
 nian. He had no hearthstone and no fireside. 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 lit 
 
 nor could that pleasing fiction of Santa Claus 
 coming down the chimney with toys on Christ- 
 mas eve that so deHghts the children of t07day 
 have been understood by the youthful Califor- 
 nian of long ago. There were no chimneys in 
 California. The only means of warming the 
 houses by artificial heat was a pan (or brasero) 
 of coals set on the floor. The people lived out 
 of doors in the open air and invigorating-^ sun- 
 shine; and they were healthy and long-lived. 
 Their houses were places to sleep in or shelters 
 from rain. 
 
 The furniture was meager and mostly home- 
 made. A few benches or rawhide-bottomed 
 chairs to sit on; a rough table; a chest or two 
 to keep the family finery in ; a few cheap prints 
 of saints on the walls — these formed the furnish- 
 ings and the decorations of the hving rooms of 
 the common people. The bed was the pride and 
 the ambition of the housewife. Even in humble 
 dwellings, sometimes, a snowy counterpane and 
 lace-trimmed pillows decorated a couch whose 
 base was a dried bullock's hide stretched on a 
 rough frame of wood. A shrine dedicated to the 
 patron saint of the household was a very essen- 
 tial part of a well-regulated home. 
 
 Fashions in dress did not change with the sea- 
 sons. A man could wear his grandfather's hat 
 and his coat, too, and not be out of the fashion. 
 Robinson, writing of California in 1829, says: 
 "The people were still adhering to the costumes 
 of the past century." It was not until after 1834, 
 when the Hijar colonists brought the latest fash- 
 ions from the City of Mexico, that the style of 
 dress for men and women began to change. The 
 next change took place after the American con- 
 quest. Only two changes in half a century, a 
 garment had to be very durable to become un- 
 fashionable. 
 
 The few wealthy people in the territory 
 dressed v/ell, even extravagantly. Robinson de- 
 scribes the dress of Tomas Yorba, a wealthy 
 ranchero of the Upper Santa Ana, as he saw 
 him in 1829: "Upon his head he wore a black 
 silk handkerchief, the four corners of which 
 hung down his neck behind. An embroidered 
 shirt; a cravat of white jaconet, tastefully tied; 
 a blue damask vest; short clothes of crimson 
 velvet; a bright green cloth jacket, with large 
 
 silver buttons, and shoes of embroidered deer- 
 skin composed his dress. I was afterwards in- 
 formed by Don Manuel (Dominguez) that on 
 some occasions, such as some particular feast 
 day or festival, his entire display often exceeded 
 in value a thousand dollars." 
 
 "The dress worn by the middle class of fe- 
 males is a chemise, with short embroidered _ 
 sleeves, richly trimmed with lace; a muslin pet- 
 ticoat, flounced with scarlet and secured at the 
 waist by a silk band of the same color; shoes of 
 velvet or blue satin; a cotton reboso or scarf; 
 pearl necklace and earrings; with hair falling in 
 broad plaits down the back."* After 1834 the 
 men generally adopted calzoneras instead of the 
 knee breeches or short clothes of the last cen- 
 tury. 
 
 "The calzoneras were pantaloons with the ex- 
 terior seam open throughout its length. On the 
 upper edge was a strip of cloth, red, blue or 
 black, in which were buttonholes. On the other 
 edge were eyelet holes for buttons. In some 
 cases the calzonera was sewn from hip to the 
 middle of the thigh; in others, buttoned. From 
 the middle of the thigh downward the leg was 
 covered by the bota or leggins, used by every 
 one, whatever his dress." The short jacket, 
 with • silver or bronze buttons, and the silken 
 sash that served as a connecting link between 
 the calzoneras and the jacket, and also supplied 
 the place of what the Californians did not wear, 
 suspenders, this constituted a picturesque cos- 
 tume, that continued in vogue until the con- 
 quest, and with many of the natives for years 
 after. "After 1834 the fashionable women of Cal- 
 ifornia exchanged their narrow for more flowing 
 garments and abandoned the braided hair for 
 the coil and the large combs tih then in use for 
 smaller combs. "f 
 
 For outer wraps the serapa for men and the 
 rebosa for women were universally worn. The 
 texture of these marked the social standing of 
 the wearer. It ranged from cheap cotton and 
 coarse serge to the costliest silk and the finest 
 French broadcloth. The costume of the neo- 
 I^yte changed but once in centuries, and that 
 
 *Robinson, Life in California. 
 tBancroft's Pastoral California. 
 
118 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 was when he divested himself of his coat of 
 mud and smear of paint and put on the mission 
 shirt and breech clout. Shoes he did not wear 
 and in time his feet became as hard as the hoofs 
 of an animal. The dress of the mission women 
 consisted of a chemise and a skirt; the dress of 
 the children was a shirt and sometimes even this 
 was dispensed. 
 
 Filial obedience and respect for parental au- 
 thority were early impressed upon the minds of 
 the children. The commandment, "Honor thy 
 father and mother," was observed with an ori- 
 ental devotion. A child was never too old or too 
 large to be exempt from punishment. Stephen 
 C. Foster used to relate an amusing story of a 
 case of parental disciplining he once saw at Los 
 Angeles. An old lady, a grandmother, was be- 
 laboring, with a barrel stave, her son, a man 
 thirty years of age. The son had done some- 
 thing of which the mother did not approve. She 
 sent for him to come over to the maternal home 
 to receive his punishment. He came. She took 
 him out to the metaphorical woodshed, which, 
 in this case, was the portico of her house, where 
 she stood him up and proceeded to administer' 
 corporal punishment. With the resounding 
 thwacks of the stave, she would exclaim, "I'll 
 teach you to behave yourself." "I'll mend your 
 manners, sir." "Now you'll be good, won't 
 you?" The big man took his punishment with- 
 out a thought of resisting or rebelling. In fact, 
 he seemed to enjoy it. It brought back feel- 
 ingly and forcibly a memory of his boyhood 
 days. 
 
 In the earlier years of the republic, before 
 revolutionary ideas had perverted the usages of 
 the Californians, great respect was shown to 
 those in authority, and the authorities were 
 strict in requiring deference from their constit- 
 uents. In the Los Angeles archives of 1828 are 
 the records of an impeachment trial of Don 
 Antonio Maria Lugo, held to depose him from 
 the office of judge of the plains. The principal 
 duty of such a judge was to decide cases of dis- 
 puted ownership of horses and cattle. Lugo 
 seems to have had an exalted idea of the dignity 
 of his office. Among the complaints presented 
 at the trial was one from young Pedro Sanchez, 
 in which he testified that Lugo had tried to ride 
 
 his horse over him in the street because he, 
 Sanchez, would not take off his hat to the juez 
 del campo and remain standing uncovered while 
 the"judge rode past. Another complainant at the 
 same trial related how at a rodeo Lugo ad- 
 judged a neighbor's boy guilty of contempt of 
 court because the boy gave him an impertinent 
 answer, and then he proceeded to give the boy 
 an unmerciful whipping. So heinous was the 
 offense in the estimation of the judge that the 
 complainant said, "had not Lugo fallen over a 
 chair he would have been beating the boy yet." 
 
 Under Mexican domination in California 
 there was no tax levied on land and improve- 
 ments. The municipal funds of the pueblos were 
 obtained from revenue on wine and brandy; 
 from the licenses of saloons and other business 
 houses; from the tariff on imports; from per- 
 mits to give balls or dances; from the fines of 
 transgressors, and from the tax on bull rings 
 and cock pits. Then men's pleasures and vices 
 paid the cost of governing. In the early '40s 
 the city of Los Angeles claimed a population of 
 two thousand, yet the municipal revenues rarely 
 exceeded $1,000 a year. With this small amount 
 the authorities ran a city government and kept 
 out of debt. It did not cost much to run a city 
 government then. There was no army of high- 
 salaried officials with a horde of political heelers 
 c]uartered on the municipality and fed from the 
 public crib at the expense of the taxpayer. Poli- 
 ticians may have been no more honest then 
 than now, but where there was nothing to steal 
 there was no stealing. The alcaldes and regi- 
 dores put no temptation in the way of the poli- 
 ticians, and thus they kept them reasonably 
 honest, or at least they kept them from plunder- 
 ing the taxpayers by the simple expedient of 
 having no taxpayers. 
 
 The functions of the various departments of 
 the municipal governments were economically 
 administered. Street cleaning and lighting were 
 performed at individual expense instead of pub- 
 he. There was an ordinance in force in Los 
 Angeles and Santa Barbara and probably in 
 other municipalities that required each owner of 
 a house every Saturday to sweep and clean in 
 front of his premises to the middle of the street. 
 His neighbor on the opposite side met him half 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 119 
 
 way, and the street was swept without expense 
 to the pueblo. There was another ordinance 
 that required each owner of a house of more 
 that two rooms on a main street to hang a 
 Hghted lantern in front of his door from twilight 
 to eight o'clock in winter and to nine in sum- 
 mer. There were fines for neglect of these duties. 
 There was no fire department in the pueblos. 
 The adobe houses with their clay walls, earthen 
 floors, tiled roofs and rawhide doors were as 
 nearly fireproof as any human habitation could 
 be made. The cooking was done in detached 
 
 kitchens and in beehive-shaped ovens without 
 flues. The houses were without chimneys, so 
 the danger from fire was reduced to a minimum. 
 A general conflagration was something un- 
 known in the old pueblo days of California, 
 
 There was no paid police department. Every 
 able-bodied young man was subject to military 
 duty. A volunteer guard or patrol was kept on 
 duty at the cuartels or guard houses. The 
 guards policed the pueblos, but they were not 
 paid. Each young man had to take his turn at 
 guard duty. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 TERRITORIAL EXPANSION BY CONQUEST. 
 
 THE Mexican war marked the beginning 
 by the United States of territorial ex- 
 pansion by conquest. "It was," says 
 General Grant, "an instance of a republic fol- 
 lowing the bad example of European mon- 
 archies in not considering justice in their desire 
 to acquire additional territory." The "additional 
 territory" was needed for the creation of slave 
 states. The southern pohticians of the extreme 
 pro-slavery school saw in the rapid settlement 
 of the northwestern states the downfall of their 
 domination and the doom of their beloved insti- 
 tution, slavery. Their peculiar institution could 
 not expand northward and on the south it had 
 reached the Mexican boundary. The only way 
 of acquiring new territory for the extension of 
 slavery on the south was to take it by force from 
 the weak Republic of Mexico. The annexation 
 of Texas brought with it a disputed boundary 
 line. The claim to a strip of country between 
 the Rio Nueces and the Rio Grande furnished a 
 convenient pretext to force Mexico to hostili- 
 ties. Texas as an independent state had never 
 exercised jurisdiction over the disputed terri- 
 tory. As a state of the Union after annexation 
 .she could not rightfully lay claim to what she 
 never 'possessed, but the army of occupation 
 took possession of it as United States property, 
 and the war was on. In the end we acquired a 
 large slice of Mexican territory, but the irony 
 
 of fate decreed that not an acre of its soil should 
 be tilled by slave labor. 
 
 The causes that led to the acquisition of Cali- 
 fornia antedated the annexation of Texas and 
 the invasion of Mexico. After the adoption of 
 liberal colonization laws by the Mexican gov- 
 ernment in 1824, there set in a steady drift 
 of Americans to California. At first they came 
 by sea, but after the opening of the overland 
 route in 1841 they came in great numbers by 
 land. It was a settled conviction in the minds 
 of these adventurous nomads that the manifest 
 destiny of California was to become a part of the 
 United States, and they were only too willing to 
 aid destiny when an opportunity offered. The 
 opportunity came and it found them ready for it. 
 
 Capt. John C. Fremont, an engineer and ex- 
 plorer in the services of the United States, ap- 
 peared at Monterey in January, 1846, and ap- 
 plied to General Castro, the military comandante, 
 for permission to buy supplies for his party of 
 sixty-two men who were encamped in the San 
 Joaquin valley, in what is now Kern county. 
 Permission was given him. There seems to 
 have been a tacit agreement between Castro and 
 Fremont that the exploring party should not 
 enter the settlements, but early in March the 
 whole force was encamped in the Salinas val- 
 ley. Castro . regarded the marching of a body 
 of armed men through the country as an act of 
 
120 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 hostility, and ordered them out of the country. 
 Instead of leaving, Fremont intrenched himself 
 on an eminence known as Gabilian Peak (about 
 thirty miles from Monterey), raised the stars 
 and stripes over his barricade, and defied Castro. 
 Castro maneuvered his troops on the plain 
 below, but did not attack Fremont. After two 
 days' waiting Fremont abandoned his position 
 and began his march northward. On May 9, 
 when near the Oregon line, he was overtaken 
 by Lieutenant Gillespie, of the United States 
 navy, with a dispatch from the president. Gil- 
 lespie had left the United States in November, 
 1845, and, disguised, had crossed Mexico from 
 A^era Cruz to Alazatlan, and from there had 
 reached Monterey. The exact nature of the 
 dispatches to Fremont is not known, but pre- 
 sumably they related to the impending war be- 
 tween Mexico and the United States, and the 
 necessity for a prompt seizure of the country 
 to prevent it from falling into the hands of Eng- 
 land. Fremont returned to the Sacramento, 
 v/here he encamped. 
 
 On the 14th of June, 1846, a body of Amer- 
 ican settlers from the Napa and Sacramento 
 valleys, thirty-three in number, of which Ide, 
 Semple, Grigsby and Merritt seem to have been 
 the leaders, after a night's march, took posses- 
 sion of the old Castillo or fort at Sonoma, with 
 its rusty muskets and unused cannon, and made 
 Gen. M. G. Vallejo, Lieut.-Col. Prudon, Capt. 
 Salvador Vallejo and Jacob P. Leese, a brother- 
 in-law of the Vallejos, prisoners. There seems 
 to have been no privates at the castillo, all offi- 
 cers. Exactly what was the object of the Amer- 
 ican settlers in taking General Vallejo prisoner 
 is not evident. General Vallejo was one of the 
 few eminent Californians who favored the an- 
 nexation of California to the United States. He 
 is said to have made a speech favoring such a 
 movement in the junta at Monterey a few 
 months before. Castro regarded him with sus- 
 picion. The prisoners were sent under an 
 armed escort to Fremont's camp. William B. 
 Ide was elected captain of the revolutionists 
 who remained at Sonoma, to "hold the fort." 
 He issued a pronunciamiento in which he de- 
 clared California, a free and independent gov- 
 ernment, under the name of the California Re- 
 
 public. A nation must have a flag of its own, 
 so one was improvised. It was made of a piece 
 of cotton cloth, or manta, a yard wide and five 
 feet long. Strips of red flannel torn from the 
 shirt of one of the men were stitched on the 
 bottom of the flag for stripes. With a blacking 
 brush, or, as another authority says, the end 
 of a chewed stick for a brush, and red paint, 
 William L. Todd painted the figure of a grizzly 
 bear passant on the field of the flag. The na- 
 tives called Todd's bear "cochino," a pig; it 
 resembled that animal ' more than a bear. A 
 five-pointed star in the left upper corner, 
 painted with the same coloring matter, and the 
 words "California republic'' printed on it in ink, 
 completed the famous bear flag. 
 
 The CaHfornia republic was ushered into ex- 
 istence June 14, 1846, attained the acme of its 
 power July 4, when Ide and his fellow patriots 
 burnt a quantity of powder in salutes, and fired 
 ofif oratorical pyrotechnics in honor of the new 
 republic. It utterly collapsed on the 9th of July, 
 after an existence of twenty-five days, when 
 news reached Sonoma that Commodore Sloat 
 had raised the stars and stripes at Monterey and 
 taken possession of California in the name of 
 the United States. Lieutenant Revere arrived 
 at Sonoma on the 9th and he it was who low- 
 ered the bear flag from the Mexican flagstaff, 
 where it had floated through the brief existence 
 of the California republic, and raised in its place 
 the banner of the United States. 
 
 Commodore Sloat, who 'nad anchored in 
 Monterey Bay July 2, 1846, was for a time un- 
 decided whether to take possession of the coun- 
 try. He had no official information that war 
 had been declared between the United States 
 and Mexico; but, acting on the supposition 
 that Captain Fremont had received definite in- 
 structions, on the 7th of July he raised the flag 
 and took possession of the custom-house and 
 government buildings at Monterey. Captain 
 Montgomery, on the 9th, raised it at San Fran- 
 cisco, and on the same day the bear flag gave 
 place to the stars and stripes at Sonoma. 
 
 General Castro was holding Santa Ckra and 
 San Jose when he received Commodore Sloat's 
 , proclamation informing him that the commo- 
 dore had taken possession of Monterey. Gas- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 121 
 
 tro, after reading the pj-oclamation, which was 
 written in Spanish, formed his men in line, and 
 addressing them, said: "Monterey is taken by 
 the Americans. What can I do with a handful 
 of men against the United States? I am going 
 to Mexico. All of you who wish to follow me, 
 'About face!' All that wish to remain can go to 
 their homes."* A very small part of his force 
 followed him. 
 
 Commodore Sloat was superseded by Com- 
 modore Stockton, who set about organizing an 
 expedition to subjugate the part of the territory 
 which still remained loyal to Mexico. Fre- 
 mont's exploring party, recruited to a battalion 
 of one hundred and twenty men, had marched 
 to Monterey, and from there was sent by vessel 
 to San Diego to procure horses and prepare to 
 act as cavalry. 
 
 While these stirring events were transpiring 
 in the north, what was the condition in the 
 south where the capital, Los Angeles, and the 
 bulk of the population of the territory were 
 located? Pio Pico had entered upon the duties 
 of the governorship with a desire to bring peace 
 and harmony to the distracted country. He ap- 
 pointed Juan Bandini, one of 'the ablest states- 
 men of the south, his secretary. After Bandini 
 resigned he chose J. M. Covarrubias, and later 
 Jose M. Moreno filled the office. 
 
 The principal offices of the territory had been 
 divided equally between the politicians of the 
 north and the south. While Los Angeles be- 
 came the capital, and the departmental assembly 
 met there, the military headquarters, the ar- 
 chives and the treasury remained at Monterey. 
 But, notwithstanding this division of the spoils 
 of office, the old feud between the arribefios 
 and the abajeiios would not down, and soon the 
 old-time quarrel was on with all its bitterness. 
 Castro, as military comandante, ignored the 
 governor, and Alvarado was regarded by the 
 sureiios as an emissary of Castro's. The de- 
 partmental assembly met at Lbs Angeles, in 
 March, 1846. Pico presided, and in his opening 
 message set forth the unfortunate condition of 
 affairs in the department. Education was neg- 
 lected; justice was not administered; the mis- 
 
 ♦Hall's History of San Jose. 
 
 sions were so burdened by debt that but few 
 of them could be rented; the army was disor- 
 ganized and the treasury empty. 
 
 Not even the danger of war with the Amer- 
 icans could make the warring factions forget 
 their fratricidal strife. Castro's proclamation 
 against Fremont was construed by the surefios 
 into a scheme to inveigle the governor to the 
 north so that the comandante-general could de- 
 pose him and seize the office for himself. Cas- 
 tro's preparations to resist by force the en- 
 croachments of the Americans were believed 
 by Pico and the Angelenians to be fitting out 
 of an army to attack Los Angeles and over- 
 throw the government. 
 
 On the i6th of June, Pico left Los Angeles 
 for Monterey with a military force of a hundred 
 men. The object of the expedition was to op- 
 pose, and, if possible, to depose Castro. He 
 left the capital under the care of the ayunta- 
 miento. On the 20th of June Alcalde Gallardo 
 reported to the ayuntamiento that he had posi- 
 tive information "that Don Castro had left 
 Monterey and would arrive here in three days 
 with a military force for the purpose of captur- 
 ing this city." (Castro had left Monterey with 
 a force of seventy men, but he had gone north 
 to San Jose.) The sub-prefect, Don Abel 
 Stearns, was authorized to enlist troops to pre- 
 serve order. On the 23d of June three compa- 
 nies were organized, an artillery company under 
 Miguel Pryor, a company of riflemen under 
 Benito Wilson, and a cavalry company under 
 Gorge Palomares. Pico called for reinforce- 
 ments, but just as he was preparing to march 
 against Monterey the news reached him of the 
 capture of Sonoma by the Americans, and next 
 day, June 24th, the news reached Los Angeles 
 just as the council had decided on a plan of 
 defense against Castro, who was five hundred 
 miles away. Pico, on the impulse of the mo- 
 ment, issued a proclamation, in which he 
 arraigned the United States for perfidy and 
 treachery, and the gang of "North American 
 adventurers," who captured Sonoma "with the 
 blackest treason the spirit of evil can invent." 
 His arraignment of the "North American na- 
 tion" was so severe that some of his American 
 friends in Los Angeles took umbrage to his 
 
122 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 pronunciamento. He afterwards tried to recall 
 it, but it was too late; it had been published. 
 
 Castro, finding the "foreign adventurers" too 
 numerous and too aggressive in the northern 
 part of the territory, determined, with what men 
 he could induce to go with him, to retreat to 
 the south; but before so doing he sent a medi- 
 ator to Pico to negotiate a treaty of peace and 
 amity between the factions. On the 12th of 
 July the two armies met at Santa Alargarita, 
 near San Luis Obispo. Castro brought the 
 news that Commodore Sloat had hoisted the 
 United States flag at Monterey and taken pos- 
 session of the country for his government. The 
 meeting of the governor and the comandante- 
 general was not very cordial, but in the presence 
 of the impending danger to the territory they 
 concealed their mutual dislike and decided to 
 do their best to defend the country they both 
 loved. 
 
 Sorrowfully they began their retreat to the 
 capital; but even threatened disaster to their 
 common country could not wholly unite the 
 north and the south. The respective armies, 
 Castro's numbering about one hundred and fifty 
 men, and Pico's one hundred and twenty, kept 
 about a day's march apart. They reached Los 
 Angeles, and preparations were begun to resist 
 the invasion of the Americans. Pico issued a 
 proclamation ordering all able-bodied men be- 
 tween fifteen and sixty years of age, native and 
 naturalized, to take up arms to defend the coun- 
 try; any able-bodied Mexican refusing was to 
 be treated as a traitor. There was no enthusi- 
 asm for the cause. The old factional jealousy 
 and distrust was as potent as ever. The militia 
 of the south would obey none but their own 
 officers; Castro's troops, who considered them- 
 selves regulars, ridiculed the raw recruits of 
 the sureiios, while the naturalized foreigners of 
 American extraction secretly sympathized with 
 their own people. 
 
 Pico, to counteract the malign influence of his 
 Santa Barbara proclamation and enlist the sym- 
 pathy and more ready adhesion of the foreign 
 element of Los Angeles, issued the following 
 circular: (This circular or proclamation has 
 never before found its way into print. I find 
 no allusion to it in Bancroft's or Hittell's His- 
 
 tories. A copy, probably the only one in exist- 
 ence, was donated some years since to the 
 Historical Society of Southern California.) 
 
 SEAL OF 
 
 Gobicrno del Dep. 
 de Calif ornias. 
 
 "Circular. — As owing to the unfortunate 
 condition of things that now prevails in this 
 department in consequence of the war into 
 which the United States has provoked the Mex- 
 ican nation, some ill feeling might spring up 
 between the citizens of the two countries, out of 
 which unfortunate occurrences might grow, and 
 as this government desires to remove every 
 cause of friction, it has seen fit, in the use of its 
 power, to issue the present circular. 
 
 "The Government of the department of Cali- 
 fornia declares in the most solemn manner that 
 all the citizens of the United States that have 
 come lawfully into its territory, relying upon 
 the honest administration of the laws and the 
 observance of the prevailing treaties, shall not 
 be molested in -the least, and their lives and 
 property shall remain in perfect safety under the 
 protection of the Mexican laws and authorities 
 legally constituted. 
 
 "Therefore, in the name of the supreme gov- 
 ernment of the nation, and by virtue of the 
 authority vested upon me, I enjoin upon all the 
 inhabitants of California to observe towards the 
 citizens of the United States that have lawfully 
 come among us, the kindest and most cordial 
 conduct, and to abstain from all acts of violence 
 against their persons or property; provided they 
 remain neutral, as heretofore, and take no part 
 in the invasion effeeted by the armies of their 
 nation. 
 
 "The authorities of the various municipalities 
 and corporations will be held strictly responsi- 
 h\t for the faithful fulfillment of this order, and 
 shall, as soon as possible, take the necessary 
 measures to bring it to the knowledge of the 
 people. God and Liberty. 
 
 "Pio Pico. 
 
 "Jose Matias Mareno, Secretary pro tern." 
 
 Angeles, July 27, 1846. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 123 
 
 When we consider the conditions existing in 
 California at the time this circular was issued, 
 its sentiments reflect great credit on Pico for 
 his humanity and forbearance. A Httle over a 
 month before, a party of Americans seized 
 General Vallejo and several other prominent 
 Californians in their homes and incarcerated 
 them in prison at Sutter's Fort. Nor was this 
 outrage mitigated when the stars and stripes 
 were raised. The perpetrators of the outrage 
 were not punished. These native Californians 
 were kept in prison nearly two months without 
 any charge against them. Besides, Governor 
 Pico and the leading Californians very well 
 knew that the Americans whose lives and prop- 
 erty this proclamation was designed to protect 
 would not remain neutral when their country- 
 men invaded the territory. Pio Pico deserved 
 better treatment from the Americans than he 
 received. He was robbed of his landed posses- 
 sions by unscrupulous land sharks, and his char- 
 acter defamed by irresponsible historical scrib- 
 blers. 
 
 Pico made strenuous efiforts to raise men and 
 means to resist the threatened invasion. He had 
 mortgaged the government house to de Cells 
 for $2,000, the mortgage to be paid "as soon as 
 order shall be established in the department." 
 This loan was really negotiated to fit out the 
 expedition against Castro, but a part of it was 
 expended after his return to Los Angeles in 
 procuring supplies while preparing to meet the 
 American army. The government had but little 
 credit. The moneyed men of the pueblo were 
 averse to putting money into what was almost 
 sure to prove a lost cause. The bickerings and 
 jealousies between the factions neutralized to a 
 considerable degree the efiforts of Pico and Cas- 
 tro to mobilize the army. 
 
 Castro established his camp on the mesa east 
 of the river. Here he and Andres Pico under- 
 took to drill the somewhat incongruous collec- 
 tion of hombres in military maneuvering. Their 
 entire force at no time exceeded three hundred 
 men. These were poorly. armed and lacking in 
 discipline. 
 
 We left Stockton at Monterey preparing an 
 expedition against Castro at Los Angeles. On 
 taking command of the Pacific squadron, July 
 
 29, he issued a proclamation. It was as bom- 
 bastic as the pronunciamiento of a Mexican 
 governor. Bancroft says: "The paper was 
 made up of falsehood, of irrelevent issues and-- 
 bombastic ranting in about equal parts, the 
 tone being offensive and impolitic even in those 
 inconsiderable portions which were true and 
 legitimate." His only object in taking posses- 
 sion of the country was "to save from destruc- 
 tion the lives and property of the foreign resi- 
 dents and citizens of the territory who had in- 
 voked his protection." In view of Pico's humane 
 circular and the uniform kind treatment that the 
 Californians accorded the American residents, 
 there was very little need of Stockton's interfer- 
 ence on that score. Commodore Sloat did not 
 approve of Stockton's proclamation or of his 
 policy. 
 
 On the 6th of August, Stockton reached San 
 Pedro and landed three hundred and sixty 
 sailors and marines. These were drilled in mili- 
 tary movements on land and prepared for the 
 march to Los Angeles. 
 
 Castro sent two commissioners, Pablo de La 
 Guerra and Jose M. Flores, to Stockton, asking 
 for a conference and a cessation of hostilities 
 while negotiations were pending. They asked 
 that the United States forces remain at San 
 Pedro while the terms of the treaty were under 
 discussion. These requests Commodore Stock- 
 ton peremptorily refused, and the commissioners 
 returned to Los Angeles without stating the 
 terms on which they proposed to treat. 
 
 In several so-called histories, I find a very 
 dramatic account of this interview. On the ar- 
 rival of the commissioners they were marched 
 up to the mouth of an immense mortar, 
 shrouded in skins save its huge aperture. Their 
 terror and discomfiture were plainly discernible. 
 Stockton received them with a stern and forbid- 
 ding countenance, harshly demanding their mis- 
 sion, which they disclosed in great confusion. 
 They bore a letter from Castro proposing a 
 truce, each party to hold its own possessions 
 until a general pacification should be had. This 
 proposal Stockton rejected with contempt, and 
 dismissed the commissioners with the assurance 
 that only an immediate disbandment of his 
 forces and an unconditional surrender would 
 
124 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 shield Castro from the vengeance of an incensed 
 foe. The messengers remounted their horses 
 in dismay and fied back to Castro." The mortar 
 story, it is needless to say, is pure fabrication, 
 yet it runs through a number of so-called his- 
 tories of California. Castro, on the 9th of Au- 
 gust, held a council of war with his officers at 
 the Campo en La Mesa. He announced his in- 
 tention of leaving the country for the purpose of 
 reporting to the supreme government, and of 
 returning at some future day to punish the 
 usurpers. He wrote to Pico: "I can count only 
 one hundred men, badly armed, worse supphed 
 and discontented by reason of the miseries they 
 suffer; so that I have reason to fear that not 
 even these men will fight when the necessity 
 arises." And this is the force that some imag- 
 inative historians estimate at eight hundred to 
 one thousand men. 
 
 Pico and Castro left Los Angeles on the 
 night of August 10, for Mexico; Castro going 
 by the Colorado River route to Sonora, and 
 Pico, after being concealed for a time by his 
 brother-in-law, Juan Foster, at the Santa Mar- 
 garita and narrowly escaping capture by Fre- 
 mont's men, finally reached Lower California 
 and later on crossed the Gulf to Sonora. 
 
 Stockton began his march on Los Angeles 
 August II. He took with him a battery of four 
 guns. The guns were mounted on carretas, and 
 each gun drawn by four oxen. He had with 
 him a good brass band. 
 
 Major Fremont, who had been sent to San 
 Diego with his battalion of one hundred and 
 seventy men, had, after considerable skirmish- 
 ing among the ranchos, secured enough horses 
 to move, and on the 8th of August had begun 
 his march to join Stockton. He took with him 
 one hundred and twenty men, leaving about 
 fifty to garrison San Diego. 
 
 Stockton consumed three days on the march. 
 Fremont's troops joined him just south of the 
 city, and at 4 p. m. of the 13th the combined 
 force, numbering nearly five hundred men, en- 
 tered the town without opposition, "our entry," 
 says Major Fremont, "having more the effect 
 of a parade of home guards than of an enemy 
 taking possession of a conquered town." Stock- 
 ton reported finding at Castro's abandoned camp 
 
 ten pieces of artillery, four of them spiked. Fre- 
 mont says he (Castro) "had buried part of his 
 guns." Castro's troops that he had brought 
 down with him took their departure for their 
 northern homes soon after their general left, 
 breaking up into small squads as they advanced. 
 The southern troops that Pico had recruited dis- 
 persed to their homes before the arrival of the 
 Americans. Squads of Fremont's battahon were 
 sent out to scour the country and bring in any ol 
 the Californian officers or leading men whom 
 they could find. These, when found, were 
 paroled. 
 
 Another of those historical myths, like the 
 mortar story previously mentioned, which is 
 palmed off on credulous readers as genuine his- 
 tory, runs as follows : "Stockton, while en route 
 from San Pedro to Los Angeles, was informed 
 by a courier from Castro 'that if he marched 
 upon the town he would find it the grave of him- 
 self and men.' 'Then,' answered the commodore, 
 'tell the general to have the bells ready to toll 
 at eight o'clock, as I shall be there by that 
 time.' " As Castro left Los Angeles the day 
 before Stockton began his march from San 
 Pedro, and when the commodore entered the 
 city the ^Mexican general was probably two 
 hundred miles away, the bell tolling myth goes 
 to join its kindred myths in the category of his- 
 tory as it should not be written. 
 
 On the 17th of August, Stockton issued a sec- 
 ond proclamation, in which he signs himself 
 commander-in-chief and governor of the terri- 
 tory of California. It was milder in tone and 
 more dignified than the first. He informed the 
 people that their country now belonged to the 
 United States. For the present it would be 
 governed by martial law. They were invited 
 to elect their local officers if those now in office 
 refused to serve. 
 
 Four days after the capture of Los Angeles, 
 The Warren, Captain Hull, commander, an- 
 chored at San Pedro. She brought official no- 
 tice of the declaration of war between the 
 United States and Mexico. Then for the first 
 time Stockton learned that there had been an 
 official declaration of war between the two 
 countries. United States officers had waged 
 war and had taken possession of California upon 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 125 
 
 the strength of a rumor that hostilities existed 
 between the countries. 
 
 The conquest, if conquest it can be called, was 
 accomplished without the loss of a Hfe, if we 
 except the two Americans, Fowler and Cowie, 
 of the Bear Flag party, who were brutally mur- 
 dered by a band of Californians under Padillo, 
 and the equally brutal shooting of Beryessa and 
 the two de Haro boys by the Americans at San 
 Rafael. These three men were shot as spies, 
 but there was no proof that they were such, and 
 they were not tried. These murders occurred 
 before Commodore Sloat raised the stars and 
 stripes at Monterey. 
 
 On the 15th of August, 1846, just thirty-seven 
 days after the raising of the stars and stripes 
 at Monterey, the first newspaper ever published 
 in California made its appearance. It was pub- 
 lished at Monterey by Semple and Colton and 
 named The Californian. Rev. Walter Colton 
 was a chaplain in the United States navy and 
 came to CaHfornia on the Congress with Com- 
 modore Stockton. He was made alcalde of 
 Monterey and built, by the labor of the chain 
 
 gang and from contributions and fines, the 
 first schoolhouse in California, named foi him 
 Colton Hall. Colton thus describes the other 
 member of the firm, Dr. Robert Semple: "My 
 partner is an emigrant from Kentucky, who 
 stands six feet eight in his stockings. He is in 
 a buckskin -dress, a foxskin cap; is true with his 
 rifle, ready with his pen and quick at the type 
 case." Semple came to California in 1845, with 
 the Hastings party, and was one of the leaders 
 in the Bear Flag revolution. The type and 
 press used were brought to California by Au- 
 gustin V. Zamorano in 1834, and by him sold 
 to the territorial government, and had been 
 used for printing bandos and pronunciamentos. 
 The only paper the publishers of The Californian 
 could procure was that used in the manufacture 
 of cigarettes, which came in sheets ' a little 
 larger than foolscap. The font of type was 
 short of w's, so two v's were substituted for 
 that letter, and when these ran out two u's were 
 used. The paper was moved to San Francisco 
 in 1848 and later on consolidated with the Cali- 
 fornia Star. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 REVOLT OF THE CALIFORNIANS. 
 
 HOSTILITIES h^d ceased in all parts of 
 the territory. The leaders of the Cali- 
 fornians had escaped to Mexico, and 
 Stockton, regarding the conquest as completed, 
 set about organizing a government for the con- 
 quered territory. Fremont was to be appointed 
 military governor. Detachments from his bat- 
 tahon were to be detailed to garrison different 
 towns, while Stockton, with what recruits he 
 could gather in California, and his sailors and 
 marines, was to undertake a naval expedition 
 against the west coast of Mexico, land his forces 
 at Mazatlan or Acapulco and march overland 
 to "shake hands with General Taylor at the 
 gates of Mexico." Captain Gillespie was made 
 mihtary commandant of the southern depart- 
 ment, with headquarters at Los Angeles, and as- 
 signed a garrison of fifty men. Commodore 
 Stockton left Los Angeles for the north Sep- 
 
 tember 2. Fremont, with the remainder of his 
 battalion, took up his line of march for Monte- 
 rey a few days later. Gillespie's orders were to 
 place the city under martial law, but not to en- 
 force the more burdensome restrictions upon 
 quiet and well-disposed citizens. A conciliatory 
 policy in accordance with instructions of the 
 secretary of the navy was to be adopted and the 
 people were to be encouraged to "neutrality, 
 self-government and friendship." 
 
 Nearly all historians who have written upon 
 this subject lay the blame for the subsequent 
 uprising of the Californians and their revolt 
 against the rule of the military commandant, 
 Gillespie, to his petty tyrannies. Col. J. J. 
 Warner, in his Historical Sketch of Los An- 
 geles County, says: "Gillespie attempted by a 
 coercive system to efifect a moral and social 
 change in the habits, diversions and pastimes of 
 
126 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the people and to reduce them to his standard 
 of propriety." Warner was not an impartial 
 judge. He had a grievance against Gillespie 
 which embittered him against the captain. Gil- 
 lespie may have been lacking in tact, and his 
 schooling in the navy under the tyrannical 
 regime of the quarterdeck of fifty years ago 
 was not the best training to fit him for govern- 
 ment, but it is hardly probable that in two 
 weeks' time he undertook to enforce a "coercive 
 system" looking toward an entire change in the 
 moral and social habits of the people. Los An- 
 geles under Mexican domination was a hotbed 
 of revolutions. It had a turbulent and restless 
 element among its inhabitants that was never 
 happier than when fomenting strife and con- 
 spiring to overthrow those in power. Of this 
 class Colton, writing in 1846, says: "They drift 
 about like Arabs. If the tide of fortune turns 
 against them they disband and scatter to the 
 four winds. They never become martyrs to any 
 cause. They are too numerous to be brought 
 to punishment by any of their governors, and 
 thus escape justice." There was a conservative 
 class in the territory, made up principally of 
 the large landed proprietors, both native and 
 foreign-born, but these, exerted small influence 
 in controlling the turbulent. While Los An- 
 geles had a monopoly of this turbulent and rev- 
 olutionary element, other settlements in the 
 territory furnished their full quota of that class 
 of political knight errants whose chief pastime 
 was revolution, and whose capital consisted of 
 a gaily caparisoned steed, a riata, a lance, a 
 dagger and possibly a pair of horse pistols. 
 These were the fellows whose "habits, diver- 
 sions and pastimes" Gillespie undertook to re- 
 duce "to his standard of propriety." 
 
 That Commodore Stockton should have left 
 Gillespie so small a garrison to hold the city 
 and surrounding country in subjection shows 
 that either he was ignorant of the character of 
 the people, or that he placed too great reliance 
 in the completeness of their subjection. With 
 Castro's men in the city or dispersed among the 
 neighboring ranchos, many of them still retain- 
 ing their arms, and all of them ready to rally 
 at a moment's notice to the call of their leaders; 
 with no reinforcements nearer than five hundred 
 
 miles to come to the aid of Gillespie in case of 
 an uprising, it was foolhardiness in Stockton to 
 entrust the holding of the most important place 
 in California to a mere handful of men, half 
 disciplined and poorly equipped, without forti- 
 fications for defense or supplies to hold out in 
 case of a siege. 
 
 Scarcely had Stockton and Fremont, with 
 their men, left the city before trouble began. 
 The turbulent element of the city fomented 
 strife and seized every occasion to annoy and 
 harass the military commandant and his men. 
 While his "petty tyrannies," so called, which 
 were probably nothing more than the enforce- 
 ment of martial law, may have been somewhat 
 provocative, the real cause was more deep 
 seated. The Californians, without provocation 
 on their part and without really knowing the 
 cause why, found their country invaded, their 
 property taken from them and their government 
 in the hands of an alien race, foreign to them 
 in customs and religion. They would have been 
 a tame and spiritless people indeed, had they 
 neglected the opportunity that Stockton's blun- 
 dering gave them to regain their liberties. They 
 did not waste much time. Within two weeks 
 from the time Stockton sailed from San Pedro 
 hostilities had begun and the city was in a state 
 of siege. 
 
 Gillespie, writing in the Sacramento States- 
 man in 1858, thus describes the first attack: 
 "On the 22d of September, at three o'clock in 
 the morning, a party of sixty-five Cahfornians 
 and Sonorenos made an attack upon my small 
 command quartered in the government house. 
 We were not wholly surprised, and with twenty- 
 one rifles we beat them back without loss to our- 
 selves, killing and wounding three of their num- 
 ber. When daylight came, Lieutenant Hensley, 
 with a few men, took several prisoners and 
 drove the Californians from the town. This 
 party was merely the nucleus of a revolution 
 commenced and known to Colonel Fremont be- 
 fore he left Los Angeles. In twenty-four hours, 
 six hundred well-mounted horsemen, armed 
 with escopetas (shotguns), lances and one fine 
 brass piece of light artillery, surrounded Los 
 Angeles and summoned me to surrender. There 
 were three old honey-combed iron guns (spiked) 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 127 
 
 ill the corral of my quarters, which we at once 
 cleared and mounted upon the axles of carts." 
 
 Serbulo Varela, a young man of some abihty, 
 but of a turbulent and reckless character, had 
 been the leader at first, but as the uprising as- 
 sumed the character of a revolution, Castro's old 
 officers came to the front. Capt. Jose Maria 
 Flores was chosen comandante-general ; Jose 
 Antonio Carrillo, major-general; and Andres 
 Pico, comandante de escuadron. The main 
 camp of the insurgents was located on the mesa, 
 east of the river, at a place called Paredon 
 Blanco (White Bluff). 
 
 On the 24th of September, from the camp 
 at White Blufif, was issued the famous Pronun- 
 ciamiento de Barelas y otros Californias contra 
 Los Americanos (The Proclamation of Barelas 
 and other CaHfornians against the Americans). 
 Il was signed by Serbulo Varela (spelled Bare- 
 las), Leonardo Cota and over three hundred 
 others. Although this proclamation is gener- 
 ally credited to Flores, there is no evidence to 
 show that he had anything to do with framing 
 it. He promulgated it over his signature Octo- 
 ber I. It is probable that it was written by 
 Varela and Cota. It has been the custom of 
 American writers to sneer at this production as 
 florid and bombastic. In fiery invective and 
 fierce denunciation it is the equal of Patrick 
 Henry's famous "Give me liberty or give me 
 death!" Its recital of wrongs is brief, but to 
 the point. "And shall we be capable of permit- 
 ting ourselves to be subjugated and to- accept in 
 silence the heavy chains of slavery? Shall we 
 lose the soil inherited from our fathers, which 
 cost them so much blood? Shall we leave our 
 families victims of the most barbarous servi- 
 tude? Shall we wait to see our wives outraged, 
 our innocent children beaten by American 
 whips, our property sacked, our temples pro- 
 faned, to drag out a life full of shame and dis- 
 grace? No! a thousand times no! Compatriots, 
 death rather than that! Who of you does not 
 feel his heart beat and his blood boil on con- 
 templating our situation? Who will be the 
 Mexican that will not be indignant and rise in 
 arms to destroy our oppressors? We believe 
 there will be not one so vile and cowardly!" 
 
 Gillespie had left the government house (lo- 
 
 cated on what is now the site of the St. Charles 
 Hotel) and taken a position on Fort Hill, where 
 he had erected a temporary barricade of sacks 
 filled with earth and had mounted his cannon 
 there. The Americans had been summoned to 
 surrender, but had refused. They were besieged 
 by the CaHfornians. There was but little firing 
 between the combatants, an occasional sortie 
 and a volley of rifle balls by the Americans 
 when the CaHfornians approached too near. 
 The CaHfornians were weU mounted, but poorly 
 armed, their weapons being principally muskets, 
 shotguns, pistols, lances and riatas; while the 
 Americans were armed with long-range rifles, 
 of which the CaHfornians had a wholesome 
 dread. The fear of these arms and his cannon 
 doubtless saved Gillespie and his men from 
 capture. 
 
 On the 24th Gillespie dispatched a messenger 
 to find Stockton at Monterey, or at San Fran- 
 cisco if he had left Monterey, and apprise him 
 of the perilous situation of the Americans at 
 Los Angeles. Gillespie's dispatch bearer, John 
 Brown, better known by his California nick- 
 name, Juan Flaco or Lean John, made one of 
 the most wonderful rides in history. Gillespie 
 furnished Juan Flaco with a package of cigar- 
 etees, the paper of each bearing the inscription, 
 "Believe the bearer;" these were stampd with 
 Gillespie's seal. Brown started frorn Los Angeles 
 at 8 p. m., September 24, and claimed to have 
 reached Yerba Buena at 8 p. m. of the 28th, 
 a ride of six hundred and thirty miles in four 
 days. This is incorrect. -Colton, who was al- 
 calde of Monterey at that time, notes Brown's 
 arrival at that place on the eveiiing of the 29th. 
 Colton, in his "Three Years in California," says 
 that Brown rode the whole distance (Los An- 
 geles to Monterey) of four hundred and sixty 
 miles in fifty-two hours, during which time he 
 had not slept. His inteHigence was for Com- 
 modore Stockton and, in the nature of the case, 
 was not committed to paper, except a few words 
 rolled in a cigar fastened in his hair. But the 
 commodore had sailed for San Francisco and 
 it was necessary he should go one hundred and 
 forty miles further. He was quite exhausted 
 and was allowed to sleep three hours. Before 
 day he was up and away on his journey. Gil- 
 
128 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lespie, in a letter published in the Los Angeles 
 Star, May 28, 1858, describing Juan Flaco's ride 
 says: "Before sunrise of the 29th he was lying 
 in the bushes at San Francisco, in front of the 
 congress frigate, waiting for the early market 
 boat to come on shore, and he delivered my 
 dispatches to Commodore Stockton before 7 
 o'clock." 
 
 In trying to steal through the picket line of 
 the Mexicans at Los Angeles, he was discovered 
 and pursued by a squad of them. A hot race 
 ensued. Finding the enemy gaining on him, he 
 forced his horse to leap a wide ravine. A shot 
 from one of his pursuers mortally wounded his 
 horse, which, after running a short distance, fell 
 dead. Flaco, carrying his spurs and riata, made 
 his way on foot in the darkness to Las Virgines, 
 a distance of twenty-seven miles. Here he se- 
 cured another mount and again set off on his 
 perilous journey. The trail over which Flaco 
 held his way was not like "the road from Win- 
 chester town, a good, broad highway leading 
 down," but instead a Camino de heradura, bridle 
 path, now winding up through rocky cafions, 
 skirting along the edge of precipitous cliffs, then 
 zigzagging down chaparral covered mountains; 
 now over the sands of the sea beach and again 
 across long stretches of brown mesa, winding 
 through narrow valleys and out onto the rolling 
 hills — a trail as nature made it, unchanged by 
 the hand of man. Such was the highway over 
 which Flaco's steeds "stretched away with ut- 
 most speed." Harassed and pursued by the 
 enemy, facing death night and day, with scarcely 
 a stop or a stay to eat or sleep, Juan Flaco rode 
 six hundred miles. 
 
 "Of all the rides since the birth of time. 
 Told in story or sung in rhyme, 
 The fleetest ride that ever was sped," 
 
 was Juan Flaco's ride from Los Angeles to San 
 Francisco. Longfellow has immortalized the 
 "Ride of Paul Revere," Robert Browning tells 
 in stirring verse of the riders who brought the 
 good news from Ghent to Aix, and Buchanan 
 Read thrills us with the heroic measures of Sher- 
 idan's Ride. No poet has sung of Juan Flaco's 
 wonderful ride, fleeter, longer and more perilous 
 than any of these. Flaco rode six hundred miles 
 
 through the enemy's country, to bring aid to a 
 besieged garrison, while Revere and Jorris and 
 Sheridan were in the country oi friends or pro- 
 tected by an army from enemies. 
 
 Gillespie's situation was growing more and 
 more desperate each day. B. D. Wilson, who 
 with a company of riflemen had been on an 
 expedition against the Indians, had been ordered 
 by Gillespie to join him. They reached the 
 Chino ranch, where a fight took place between 
 them and the Californians. Wilson's men being 
 out of ammunition were compelled to sur- 
 render. In the charge upon the adobe, where 
 Wilson and his men had taken refuge, Carlos 
 Eallestaros had been killed and several Cali- 
 fornians wounded. This and Gillespie's stubborn 
 resistance had embittered the Californians against 
 him and his men. The Chino prisoners had been 
 saved from massacre after their surrender by 
 the firmness and bravery of Varela. If Gillespie 
 continued to hold the town his obstinacy might 
 bring down the vengeance of the Cahfornians 
 not only upon him and his men, but upon many 
 of the American residents of the south, who had 
 favored their countrymen. 
 
 Finally Flores issued his ultimatum to the 
 Americans, surrender within twenty-four hours 
 or take the consequences of an onslaught by 
 the Californians, which might result in the mas- 
 sacre of the entire garrison. In the meantime 
 he kept his cavalry deployed on the hills, com- 
 pletely investing the Americans. Despairing of 
 assistance from Stockton, on the advice of Wil- 
 son, who had been permitted by Flores to inter- 
 cede with Gillespie, articles of capitulation were 
 drawn up and signed by Gillespie and the leaders 
 of the Californians. On the 30th of September 
 the Americans marched out of the city with all 
 the honors of war, drums beating, colors flying 
 and two pieces of artillery mounted on carts 
 drawn by oxen. They arrived at San Pedro 
 without molestation and four or five days later 
 embarked on the merchant ship Vandalia, which 
 remained at anchor in the bay. Gillespie in 
 his march was accompanied by a few of the 
 American residents and probably a dozen of the 
 Chino prisoners, who had been exchanged for 
 the same number of Californians, whom he 
 had held under arrest most likely as hostages. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 129 
 
 Gillespie took two cannon with him when he 
 evacuated the city, leaving two spiked and broken 
 on Fort Hill. There seems to have been a pro- 
 viso in the articles of capitulation requiring him 
 
 to deliver the guns to Flores on reaching the 
 embarcadero. If there was such a stipulation Gil- 
 lespie violated it. He spiked the guns, broke off 
 the trunnions and rolled one of them into the bay. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE DEFEAT AND RETREAT OF MERVINE'S MEN. 
 
 THE revolt of the Californians at Los An- 
 geles was followed by similar uprisings 
 in the different centers of population 
 where American garrisons were stationed. Upon 
 the receipt of Gillespie's message Commodore 
 Stockton ordered Captain Mervine to proceed 
 at once to San Pedro to regain, if possible, the 
 lost territory. Juan Flaco had delivered his 
 message to Stockton on September 30. Early 
 on the morning of October ist, Captain Mer- 
 vine got under way for San Pedro. "He went 
 ashore at Sausalito," says Gillespie, "on some 
 trivial excuse, and a dense fog coming on he 
 was compelled to remain there until the 4th." 
 
 Of the notable events occurring during the 
 conquest of California there are few others of 
 which there are so contradictory accounts as 
 that known as the battle of Dominguez Ranch, 
 where Mervine was defeated and compelled to re- 
 treat to San Pedro. Historians differ widely 
 in the number engaged and in the number killed. 
 The following account of Mervine's expedition 
 I take from a log book kept by Midshipman and 
 Acting- Lieut. Robert C. Duvall of the Savannah. 
 He commanded a company during the battle. 
 This book was donated to the Historical So- 
 ciety of Southern California by Dr. J. E. Cowles 
 of Los Angeles, a nephew of Lieutenant Duvall. 
 The account given by Lieutenant Duvall is one 
 of the fullest and most accurate in existence. 
 
 "At 9.30 a. m." (October i, 1846), says Lieu- 
 tenant Duvall, "we commenced working out of 
 the harbor of San Francisco on the ebb tide. 
 The ship anchored at Sausalito, where, on ac- 
 count of a dense fog, it remained until the 4th, 
 when it put to sea. On the 7th the ship entered 
 the harbor of San Pedro, At 6:30 p. m., as we 
 
 9 
 
 were standing in for anchorage, we made out 
 the American merchant ship Vandalia, having 
 on her decks a body of men. On passing she 
 saluted with two guns, which was repeated with 
 three cheers, which we returned. * * * * 
 Brevet Capt. Archibald Gillespie came on board 
 and reported that he had evacuated the Pueblo 
 de Los Angeles on account of the overpowering 
 force of the enemy and had retired with his 
 men on board the Vandalia after having spiked 
 his guns, one of which he threw into the water. 
 He also reported that the whole of California 
 below the pueblo had risen in arms against our 
 authorities, headed by Flores, a Mexican cap- 
 tain on furlough in this country, who had but 
 a few days ago given his parole of honor not 
 to take up arms against the United States. We 
 made preparations to land a force to march to 
 the pueblo at daylight. 
 
 "October 8, at 6 a. m., all the boats left the 
 ship for the purpose of landing the forces, num- 
 bering in all two hundred and ninety-nine men, 
 including thevolunteers under command of Cap- 
 tain Gillespie. At 6:30 all were landed without 
 opposition, the enemy in small detachments re- 
 treating toward the pueblo. P'rom their move- 
 ments we apprehended that their whole force 
 was near. Captain Mervine sent on board ship 
 for a reinforcement of eighty men, under com- 
 mand of Lieut. R. B. Hitchcock. At 8 a. m. 
 the several companies, all under command of 
 Capt William Mervine, took up the line of 
 march for the purpose of retaking the pueblo. 
 The enemy retreated as our forces advanced. 
 (On landing, William A. Smith, first cabin boy, 
 was killed by the accidental discharge of a Colt's 
 pistol.) The reinforcements under the com- 
 
130 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 raand of Lieut. R. B. Hitchcock returned on 
 board ship. For the first four miles our march 
 was through hills and ravines, which the enemy 
 might have taken advantage of,, but preferred to 
 occupy as spectators only, until our approach. 
 A few shots from our flankers (who were the 
 volunteer riflemen) would start them off; they 
 returned the compHment before going. The 
 remainder of our march was performed over a 
 continuous plain overgrown with wild mustard, 
 rising in places to six or eight feet in height. 
 The ground was excessively dry, the clouds of 
 dust were suffocating and there was not a breath 
 of wind in motion. There was no water on our 
 line of march for ten or twelve miles and we 
 suffered greatly from thirst. 
 
 "At 2:30 p. m. we reached our camping 
 ground. The enemy appeared in considerable 
 numbers. Their numbers continued to increase 
 until sundown, when they formed on a hill near 
 us, gradually inclining towards our camp. They 
 were admirably formed for a cavalry charge. 
 We drew up our forces to meet them, but find- 
 ing they were disposed to remain stationary, 
 the marines, under command of Captain Mars- 
 ton, the Colt's riflemen, under command of 
 Lieut. I. B. Carter and myself, and the volun- 
 teers, under command of Capt. A. Gillespie, were 
 ordered to charge on them, which we did. They 
 stood their ground until our shots commenced 
 'telling' on them, when they took to flight in 
 every direction. They continued to annoy us by 
 firing into our camp through the night. About 2 
 a. m. they brought a piece of artillery and fired 
 into our camp, the shot striking the ground 
 near us. ■ The marines, riflemen and volunteers 
 were sent in pursuit of the gun, but could see 
 or hear nothing of it. 
 
 "We left our camp the next morning at 6 
 o'clock. Our plan of march was in column by 
 platoon. We had not proceeded far before the 
 enemy appeared before us drawn up on each 
 side of the road, mounted on fine horses, each 
 man armed with a lance and carbine. They also 
 had a field piece (a four-pounder), to which were 
 hitched eight or ten horses, placed on the road 
 ahead of us. 
 
 "Captain Mervine, thinking it was the enemy's 
 intention to throw us into confusion by using 
 
 their gun on us loaded with round shot and 
 copper grape shot and then charge us with their 
 cavalry, ordered us to form a square — which was 
 the order of march throughout the battle. When 
 within about four hundred yards of them the 
 enemy opened on us with their artillery. We 
 made frequent charges, driving them before us, 
 and at one time causing them to leave some of 
 their cannon balls and cartridges; but owing to 
 the rapidity with which they could carry off 
 the gun, using their lassos on every part, en- 
 abled them to choose their own distance, en- 
 tirely out of all range of our muskets. Their 
 horsemen kept out of danger, apparently con- 
 tent to let the gun do the fighting. They kept 
 up a constant fire with their carbines, but these 
 did no harm. The enemy numbered between 
 one hundred and seventy-five and two hundred 
 strong. 
 
 "Finding it impossible to capture the gun, the 
 retreat was sounded. The captain consulted 
 with his officers on the best steps to be taken. 
 It was decided unanimously to return on board 
 ship. To continue the march would sacrifice 
 a number of lives to no purpose, for, admitting 
 we could have reached the pueblo, all com- 
 munications would be cut off with the ship, and 
 we would further be constantly annoyed by their 
 artillery without the least chance of capturing 
 it. It was reported that the enemy were be- 
 tween five and six hundred strong at the city 
 and it was thought he had more artillery. On 
 retreating they got the gun planted on a hill 
 ahead of us. 
 
 "The captain made us an address, saying to 
 the troops that it was his intention to march 
 straight ahead in the same orderly manner in 
 which we had advanced, and that sooner than 
 he would surrender to such an enemy, he would 
 sacrifice himself and every other man in his 
 command. The enemy fired into us four times 
 on the retreat, the fourth shot falling short, the 
 report of the gun indicating a small quantity of 
 powder, after which they remained stationary 
 and manifested no further disposition to molest 
 us. We proceeded quietly on our march to the 
 landing, where we found a body of men under 
 command of Lieutenant Hitchcock with two 
 nine-pounder cannon gotten from the Vandalia 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 131 
 
 to render us assistance in case we shoiild need it. 
 
 "We presented truly a pitiable condition, 
 many being barely able to drag one foot after 
 the other from excessive fatigue, having gone 
 through the exertions and excitement in battle 
 and afterwards performing a march of eighteen 
 or twenty miles without rest. This is the first 
 battle I have ever been engaged in, and, having 
 taken particular notice of those around me, I 
 can assert that no men could have acted more 
 bravely. Even when their shipmates were fall- 
 ing by their sides, I saw but one impulse and 
 that was to push forward, and when retreat was 
 ordered I noticed a general reluctance to turn 
 their backs to the enemy. 
 
 "The following is a list of the killed and 
 wounded: Michael Hoey, ordinary seaman, 
 killed; David Johnson, ordinary seaman, killed; 
 William H. Berry, ordinary seaman, mortally 
 wounded; Charles Sommers, musician, mortally 
 wounded; John Tyre, seaman, severely 
 wounded; John Anderson, seaman, severely 
 wounded; recovery doubtful. The following- 
 named were slightly wounded: William Con- 
 land, marine; Hiram Rockvill, marine; H. Lin- 
 land, marine; James Smith, marine. 
 
 "On the following morning we buried the 
 bodies of William A. Smith, Charles Sommers, 
 David Johnson and Michael Hoey on an island 
 in the harbor. 
 
 "At II a. m. the captain called a council of 
 commissioned officers regarding the proper 
 course to adopt in the present crisis, which de- 
 cided that no force should be landed, and that 
 the ship remain here until further orders from 
 the commodore, who is daily expected." 
 
 Entry in the log for Sunday, nth: "William 
 H. Berry, ordinary seaman, departed this life 
 from the effect of wounds received in battle. 
 Sent his body for interment to Dead Man's 
 Island, so named by us. Mustered the com- 
 mand at quarters, after which performed divine 
 service." 
 
 From this account it will be seen that the 
 number killed and died of wounds received in 
 battle was four; number wounded six, and one 
 accidentally killed before the battle. On October 
 22d, Henry Lewis died and was buried on the 
 island. Lewis' name does not appear in the list 
 
 of wounded. It is presumable that he died of 
 disease. Six of the crew of the Savannah were 
 buried on Dead Man's Island, four of whom 
 were killed in battle. Lieutenant Duvall gives 
 the following Hst of the officers in the "Expedi- 
 tion on the march to retake Pueblo de Los An- , 
 geles:" Capt. William Mervine, commanding; 
 Capt. Ward Marston, commanding marines; 
 Brevet Capt. A. H. Gillespie, commanding vol- 
 unteers; Lieut. Henry W. Queen, adjutant; 
 Lieut. B. F. Pinckney, commanding first com- 
 pany; Lieut. W. Rinckindofl, commanding sec- 
 ond company; Lieut. I. B. Carter, Colt's rifle- 
 men; Midshipman R. D. Minor, acting lieuten- 
 ant second company; Midshipman S. P. Griffin, 
 acting lieutenant first company; Midshipman P. 
 G. Walmough, acting lieutenant second com- 
 pany; Midshipman R. C. Duvall, acting lieuten- 
 ant Colt's riflemen; Captain Clark and Captain 
 Goodsall, commanding pikemen; Lieutenant 
 H/ensley, first lieutenant volunteers; Lieutenant 
 Russeau, second lieutenant volunteers. 
 
 The piece of artillery that did such deadly 
 execution on the Americans was the famous Old 
 Woman's gun. It was a bronze four-pounder, or 
 pedrero (swivel-gun) that for a number of years 
 had stood on the plaza in front of the church, 
 and was used for firing salutes on feast days and 
 other occasions. When on the approach of 
 Stockton's and Fremont's forces Castro aban- 
 doned his artillery and fled, an old lady. Dona 
 Clara Cota de Reyes, declared that the gringos 
 should not have the church's gun; so, with the 
 assistance of her daughters, she buried it in a 
 cane patch near her residence, which stood on 
 the east side of Alameda street, near First. 
 When the Californians revolted against Gil- 
 lespie's rule the gun was unearthed and used 
 against him. The Historical Society of South- 
 ern California, has in its possession a brass 
 grapeshot, one of a charge that was fired into 
 the face of Fort Hill at Gillespie's men when 
 they were posted on the hill. This gun was in 
 the exhibit of trophies at the New Orleans Ex- 
 position in 1885. The label on it read: "Trophy 
 53, No. 63, Class 7. Used by Mexico against 
 the United States at" the battle of Dominguez' 
 Ranch, October 9, 1846; at San Gabriel and the 
 Mesa, January 8 and 9, 1847; used by the United 
 
132 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 States forces against Mexico at Alazatlan, No- 
 vember II, 1847; Urios (crew all killed or 
 wounded), Palos Prietos, December 13, 1847, 
 and Lower California, at San Jose, February 15, 
 1848." 
 
 Before the battle the old gun had been 
 mounted on forward axle of a Jersey wagon, 
 which a man by the name of Plunt had brought 
 across the plains the jear before. It was lashed 
 to the axle by means of rawhide thongs, and 
 was drawn by riatas, as described by Lieutenant 
 Duvall. The range was obtained by raising or 
 lowering the pole of the wagon. Ignacio Aguilar 
 acted as gunner, and having neither lanyard or 
 pent-stock to fire it, he touched off the gun with 
 the lighted end of a cigarette. Never before or 
 since, perhaps, was a battle Vvfon with such crude 
 artillery. Jose Antonio Carrillo was in com- 
 mand of the Californians. During the skirmish- 
 ing of the first day he had between eighty and 
 ninety men. During the night of the 8th Flores 
 joined him with a force of sixty men. Next 
 morning Flores returned to Los Angeles, taking 
 with him twenty men. Carrillo's force in the 
 battle numbered about one hundred and twenty 
 men. Flad Mervine known that the Californians 
 had fired their last shot (their powder being ex- 
 hausted) he could have pushed on and captured 
 the pueblo. 
 
 The expulsion of Gillespie's garrison from 
 Los Angeles and the defeat of Mervine's force 
 raised the spirits of the Californians, and there 
 was great rejoicing at the pueblo. Detachments 
 of Flores' army were kept at Sepulveda's rancho, 
 the Palos Verdes, and at Temple'srancho of the 
 Cerritos, to watch the Savannah and report any 
 attempt at landing. The leaders of the revolt 
 were not so sanguine of success as the rank and 
 file. They were without means to procure arms 
 and supplies. There was a scarcity of ammuni- 
 tion, too. An inferior article of gunpowder was 
 manufactured in limited quantities at San 
 Gabriel. The only uniformity in weapons was 
 in lances. These were rough, home-made af- 
 fairs, the blade beaten out of a rasp or file, and 
 the shaft a willow pole about eight, feet long. 
 These weapons were for-midable in a charge 
 against infantry, but easily parried by a swords- 
 man in a cavalry charge, 
 
 After the defeat of Mervine, Flores set about 
 reorganizing the territorial government. He 
 called together the departmental assembly. It 
 met at the capital (Los Angeles) October 26th. 
 The members present, Figueroa, Botello, Guerra 
 and Olvera, were all from the south. The as- 
 sembly decided to fill the place of governor, 
 vacated by Pico, and that of comandante-gen- 
 eral, left vacant by the flight of Castro. 
 
 Jose Alaria Flores, who was now recognized 
 as the leader of the revolt against American rule, 
 was chosen to fill both offices, and the two of- 
 fices, as had formerly been the custom, were 
 united in one person. He chose Narciso Bo- 
 tello for his secretary. Flores, who was Mex- 
 ican born, was an intelHgent and patriotic officer. 
 He used every means in his power to prepare 
 his forces for the coming conflict with the 
 Americans, but with little success. The old 
 jealousy of the hijos del pais against the Mex- 
 ican would crop out, and it neutralized his 
 efforts. There were bickerings and complaints 
 in the ranks and among the officers. The na- 
 tives claimed that a Californian ought to be 
 chief in command. 
 
 The feeling of jealousy against Flores at 
 length culminated in open revolt. Flores had 
 decided to send the prisoners taken at the Chino 
 fight to j\lexico. His object was twofold — ^first, 
 to enhance his own glory with the Mexican 
 government, and, secondly, by showing what 
 the Californians had already accomplished to 
 obtain aid in the coming conflict. As most of 
 these men were married to California wives, 
 and by marriage related to many of the leading 
 California families of the south, there was at 
 once a family uproar and fierce denunciations 
 of Flores. But as the Chino prisoners were 
 foreigners, and had been taken while fighting 
 against the Mexican government, it was neces- 
 sary to disguise the hostility to Flores under 
 some other pretext. He was charged with the 
 design of running away to Sonora with the pub- 
 lic funds. On the night of December 3, Francisco 
 Rico, at the head of a party of Californians, took 
 possession of the cuartel, or guard house, and 
 arrested Flores. A special session of the as- 
 sembly was called to investigate the charges. 
 
 Flores expressed his willingness to give up 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 133 
 
 his purpose of sending the Chino prisoners to 
 Mexico, and the assembly found no foundation 
 to the charge of his design of running away 
 with the public funds, nor did they find any 
 funds to run away with. Flores was liberated, 
 and Rico imprisoned in turn. 
 
 Flores was really the last Mexican governor 
 of California. Like Pico, he was elected by the 
 territorial legislature, but he was not confirmed 
 by the Mexican congress. Generals Scott and 
 Taylor were keeping President Santa Anna and 
 
 his congress on the move so rapidly they had no 
 time to spare for California affairs. 
 
 ' Flores was governor from October 26, 1846, 
 to January 8, 1847. 
 
 With a threatened invasion by the Americans 
 and a divided people within, it was hard times 
 in the old pueblo. The town had to supply 
 the army with provisions. The few who pos- 
 sessed money hid it away and all business was 
 suspended except preparations to meet the 
 invaders. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 THE FINAL CONQUEST OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 COMMODORE STOCKTON, convinced 
 that the revolt of the Californians was 
 a serious afifair, ordered Fremont's bat- 
 talion, which had been recruited to one hun- 
 dred and sixty men, to proceed to the south to 
 co-operate with him in quelling the rebellion. 
 The battalion sailed on the Sterling, but shortly 
 after putting to sea, meeting the Vandalia, Fre- 
 mont learned of Mervine's defeat and also that 
 no horses could be procured in the lower coun- 
 try; the vessel was put about and the battalion 
 landed at Monterey, October 28. It was decided 
 to recruit the battalion to a regiment and 
 mounting it to march down the coast. Recruit- 
 ing was actively begun among the newly ar- 
 rived immigrants. Horses and saddles were 
 procured by giving receipts on the government, 
 payable after the close of the war or by confisca- 
 tion if it brought returns quicker than receipts. 
 
 The report of the revolt in the south quickly 
 spread among the Californians in the north and 
 they made haste to resist their spoilers. Manuel 
 Castro was made comandante of the military 
 forces of the north, headquarters at San Luis 
 Obispo. Castro collected a force of about one 
 hundred men, well mounted but poorly armed. 
 His purpose was to carry on a sort of guerrilla 
 warfare, capturing men and horses from the 
 enemy whenever an opportunity offered. 
 
 Fremont, now raised to the rank of lieuten- 
 ant-colonel in the regular army with head- 
 
 quarters at Monterey, was rapidly mobilizing his 
 motley collection of recruits into a formidable 
 force. Officers and men were scouring the 
 country for recruits, horses, accouterments and 
 supplies. Two of these recruiting squads en- 
 countered the enemy in considerable force and 
 an engagement known as the battle of Natividad 
 ensued. Capt. Charles Burroughs with thirty- 
 four men and two hundred horses, recruited at 
 Sacramento, arrived at San Juan Bautista, No- 
 vember 15, on his way to Monterey on the same 
 day Captain Thompson, with about the same 
 number of men recruited at San Jose, reached 
 San Juan. The Californians, with the design of 
 capturing the horses, made a night march from 
 their camp on the Salinas. At Gomez rancho 
 they took prisoner Thomas O. Larkin, the 
 American consul, who was on his way from 
 Monterey to San Francisco on official business. 
 On the morning of the i6th the Americans be- 
 gan their march for Monterey. At Gomez 
 rancho their advance learned of the presence of 
 the enemy and of the capture of Larkin. A 
 squad of six or eight scouts was sent out to find 
 the Californians. The scouts encountered a 
 detachment of Castro's force at Encinalitos 
 (Little Oaks) and a fight ensued. The main body 
 of the enemy came up and surrounded the grove 
 of oaks. Jhe scouts, though greatly outnum- 
 bered, were well armedwith long range rifles and 
 held the enemy at bay, until Captains Burroughs 
 
134 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and Thompson brought up their companies. 
 Burroughs, who seems to have been the ranking 
 officer, hesitated to charge the Californians, who 
 had the superior force, and besides he was fear- 
 ful of losing his horses and thus delaying Fre- 
 mont's movements. But, taunted witli cowardice 
 and urged on by Thompson, a fire eater, who 
 was making loud protestations of his bravery. 
 Burroughs ordered a charge. The Americans, 
 badly mounted, were soon strung out in an ir- 
 regular line. The Californians, who had made a 
 feint of retreating, turned and attacked with 
 vigor. Captain Burroughs and four or five others 
 were killed. The straggling line fell back on the 
 main body and the Californians, having ex- 
 pended their ammunition, retreated. The loss 
 in killed and wounded amounted to twelve or 
 fifteen on each side. 
 
 The only other engagement in the north was 
 the bloodless battle of Santa Clara. Fremont's 
 methods of procuring horses, cattle and other 
 supplies was to take them and give in payment 
 demands on the government, payable after the 
 close of the war. After his departure the same 
 method was continued by the officers of the 
 garrisons at San Francisco, San Jose and Mon- 
 terey. Indeed, it was their only method of pro- 
 curing supplies. The quartermasters were 
 without money and the government without 
 credit. On the 8th of December Lieutenant 
 Bartlett, also alcalde of Yerba Buena, with a 
 squad of five men started down the peninsula 
 toward San Jose to purchase supplies. Fran- 
 cisco Sanchez, a rancher, whose horse and cattle 
 corrals had been raided by former purchasers, 
 with a band of Californians waylaid and capr 
 tured Bartlett and his men. Other California 
 rancheros who had lost their stock in similar 
 raids rallied to the support of Sanchez and soon 
 he found himself at the head of one hundred 
 men. The object of their organization was 
 rather to protect their propertythan to fight. The 
 news soon spread that the Californians had re- 
 volted and were preparing to massacre the 
 Americans. Captain Weber of San Jose had a 
 company of thirty-three men organized for de- 
 fense. There was also a company of twenty 
 men under command of Captain Aram stationed 
 at the ex-mission of Santa Clara. On the 29th 
 
 of December, Capt. Ward Marston with a de- ' 
 tachment of thirty-fou; men and a field piece in 
 charge of Master de Long and ten sailors was 
 sent to Santa Clara. The entire force collected 
 at the seat of war numbered one hundred and 
 one men. On January 2 the American force 
 encountered the Californians, one hundred 
 strong, on the plains of Santa Clara. Firing at 
 long range began and continued for an hour or 
 more. Sanchez sent in a flag of truce asking an 
 armistice preparatory to the settlement of diffi- 
 culties. January 3, Captain Maddox arrived 
 from Monterey with fifty-nine mounted men, 
 and on the 7th Lieutenant Grayson came with 
 fifteen men. On the 8th a treaty of peace was 
 concluded, by which the enemy surrendered 
 Lieutenant Bartlett and all the other prisoners, 
 as well as their arms, including a small field 
 piece and were permitted to go to their homes. 
 Upon "reliable authority" four CaHfornians were 
 reported killed, but their graves have never been 
 discovered nor did their living relatives, so far 
 as known, mourn their loss. 
 
 Stockton with his flagship, the Congress, ar- 
 rived at San Pedro on the 23d of October, 1846. 
 The Savannah was still lying at anchor in the 
 harbor. The commodore had now at San Pedro 
 a force of about eight hundred men; but, not- 
 withstanding the contemptuous opinion he held 
 of the Californian soldiers, he did not march 
 against the pueblo. Stockton in his report 
 says: "Elated by this transient success (Mer- 
 vine's defeat), which the enemy with his usual 
 want of veracity magnified into a great victory, 
 they collected in large bodies on all the adjacent 
 hills and would not permit a hoof except their 
 own horses to be within fifty miles of San 
 Pedro." But "in the face of their boasting in- 
 solence" Stockton landed and again hoisted "the 
 glorious stars and stripes in the presence of 
 their horse covered hills." "The enemy had 
 driven off every animal, man and beast from 
 that section of the country ; and it was not pos- 
 sible by any means in our power to carry pro- 
 visions for our march to the city." The city 
 was only thirty miles away and American sol- 
 diers have been known to carry rations in their 
 haversacks for a march of one hundred miles. 
 The "transient success" of the insolent enemy 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 135 
 
 had evidently made an impression on Stockton. 
 He estimated the California force in the vicinity 
 of the landing at eight hundred men, which was 
 just seven hundred too high. He determined 
 to approach Los Angeles by way of San Diego, 
 and on the last day of October he sailed for that 
 port. B. D. Wilson, Stephen C. Foster and 
 others attribute Stockton's abandonment of an 
 attack on Los Angeles from San Pedro to a 
 trick played on him by Jose Antonio Carrillo. 
 Carrillo was in command of the detachment 
 stationed at the Cerritos and the Palos Verdes. 
 Carrillo was anxious to obtain an interview with 
 Stockton and if possible secure a cessation of 
 hostilities until the war then progressing in 
 Mexico should be decided, thus settling the 
 fate of California. B. D. Wilson, one of the 
 Chino prisoners, was sent with a Mexican ser- 
 geant to raise a white flag as the boats of the 
 Congress approached the landing and present 
 Carrillo's proposition for a truce. Carrillo, with 
 the intention of giving Stockton an exaggerated 
 idea of the number of his troops and thus ob- 
 taining more favorable terms in the proposed 
 treaty, collected droves of wild horses from the 
 plains; these his caballeros kept in motion, pass- 
 ing and repassing through a gap in the hills, 
 which was in plain view from Stockton's vessel. 
 Owing to the dust raised by the cavalcade it was 
 impossible to discover that most of the horses 
 were riderless. The troops were signalled to re- 
 turn to the vessel, and the commodore shortly 
 afterwards sailed to San Diego. Carrillo al- 
 ways regretted that he made too much demon- 
 stration. 
 
 As an illustration of the literary trash that 
 has been palmed off for California history, I 
 -give an extract from Frost's Pictorial History 
 of California, a book written the year after 
 the close of the Mexican war by Prof. 
 John Frost, a noted compiler of histories, who 
 writes LL. D. after his name. It relates to 
 Stockton's exploits at San Pedro. "At the 
 Rancho Sepulveda (the Palos Verdes) a large 
 force of Californians were posted. Commodore 
 Stockton sent one hundred men forward to re- 
 ceive the fire of the enemy and then fall back 
 on the main body without returning it. The 
 main body of Stockton's army was formed in a 
 
 triangle with the guns hid by the men. By the 
 retreat of the advance party the enemy were 
 decoyed close to the main force, when the wings 
 (of the triangle) were extended and a deadly fire 
 from the artillery opened upon the astonished 
 Californians. More than one hundred were 
 killed, the same number wounded and one hun- 
 dred prisoners taken." The mathematical ac- 
 curacy of Stockton's artillerists was truly 
 astonishing. They killed a man for every one 
 wounded and took a prisoner for every man 
 they killed. As Flores' army never amounted 
 to more than three hundred, if we are to believe 
 Frost, Stockton had all the enemy "present or 
 accounted for." This silly fabrication of Frost's 
 runs through a number of so-called histories of 
 California. Stockton was a brave man and a 
 very energetic commander, but he would boast 
 of his achievements, and his reports are unre- 
 liable. 
 
 As previously mentioned, Fremont after his 
 return to Monterey proceeded to recruit a force 
 to move against Los Angeles by land from Mon- 
 terey. His recruits were principally obtained 
 from the recently arrived immigrants. Each man 
 was furnished with a horse and was to receive 
 $25 a month. A force of about four hundred 
 and fifty was obtained. Fremont left Monterey 
 November 17 and rendezvoused at San Juan 
 Bautista, where he remained to the 29th of the 
 month organizing his battalion. On the 29th 
 of November he began his march southward to 
 co-operate with Stockton against Flores. 
 
 After the expulsion of Gillespie and his men 
 from Los Angeles, detachments from Flores' 
 army were sent to Santa Barbara and San 
 Diego to recapture these places. At Santa Bar- 
 bara Fremont had left nine men of his battalion 
 under Lieut. Theodore Talbot to garrison the 
 town. A demand was made on the garrison to 
 surrender by Colonel Garfias of Flores' army. 
 Two hours were given the Americans to decide. 
 Instead of surrendering they fell back into the 
 hills, where they remained three or four days, 
 hoping that reinforcements might be sent them 
 from Monterey. Their only subsistence was the 
 flesh of an old gray mare of Daniel Hill's that 
 they captured, brought into camp and killed. 
 They secured one of Micheltorena's cholos that 
 
136 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 had remained in the country and was living in 
 a canon among the hills for a guide. He fur- 
 nished them a horse to carry their blankets and 
 conducted them through the mountains to the 
 San Joaquin valley. Here the guide left them 
 vifith the Indians, he returning to Santa Barbara. 
 The Indians fed them on chia (wild flaxseed), 
 mush and acorn bread. They traveled down the 
 San Joaquin valley. On their journey they lived 
 on the flesh of wild horses, seventeen of which 
 they killed. After many hardships they reached 
 'Monterey on the 8th of November, where they 
 joined Fremont's battalion. 
 
 Captain Merritt, of Fremont's battalion, had 
 been left at San Diego with forty men to hold 
 the town when the battalion marched north to 
 co-operate with Stockton against Los Angeles. 
 Immediately after Gillespie's retreat, Francisco 
 Rico was sent with fifty men to capture the 
 place. He was joined by recruits at San Diego. 
 Merritt being in no condition to stand a siege, 
 took refuge on board the American whale ship 
 Stonington, which was lying at anchor. After 
 remaining on board the Stonington ten days, 
 taking advantage of the laxity of discipline 
 among the Californians, he stole a march on 
 them, recapturing the town and one piece of 
 artillery. He sent Don Miguel de Pedrorena, 
 who was one of his allies, in a whale boat with 
 four sailors to San Pedro to obtain supplies 
 and assistance. Pedrorena arrived at San Pedro 
 on the 13th of October with Merritt's dis- 
 patches. Captain Mervine chartered the whale 
 ship Magnolia, which was lying in the San 
 Pedro harbor, and dispatched Lieutenant Minor, 
 Midshipman Duvall and Morgan with thirty- 
 three sailors and fifteen of Gillespie's volun- 
 teers to reinforce Merritt. They reached San 
 Diego on the i6th. The combined forces of 
 Minor and Merritt, numbering about ninety 
 men, put in the greater part of the next two 
 weeks in dragging cannon from the old fort 
 and mounting them at their barracks, which 
 were located on the hill at the edge of the plain 
 on the west side of the town, convenient to 
 water. They succeeded in mounting six brass 
 nine-pounders and building two bastions of 
 adobes, taken from an old house. There was 
 constant skirmishing between the hostile parties, 
 
 but few fatalities. The Americans claimed to 
 have killed three of the enemy, and one Amer- 
 ican was ambushed and killed. 
 
 The CaHfornians kept well out of range, but 
 prevented the Americans from obtaining sup- 
 plies. Their provisions were nearly exhausted, 
 and when reduced to almost the last extreme 
 they made a successful foraging expedition and 
 procured a supply of mutton. Midshipman Du- 
 vall thus describes the adventure: "We had 
 with us an Indian .(chief of a numerous tribe) 
 who, from his knowledge of the country, we 
 thought could avoid the enemy; and getting 
 news of a number of sheep about thirty-five miles 
 to the south on tjie coast, we determined to send 
 him and his companion to drive them onto an 
 island which at low tide connected with the 
 mainland. In a few days a signal was made on 
 the island, and the boats of the whale ship 
 Stonington, stationed off the island, were sent 
 to it. Our good old Indian had managed, 
 through his cunning and by keeping concealed 
 in ravines, to drive onto the island about six hun- 
 dred sheep, but his companion had been caught 
 and killed by the enemy. I shall never forget 
 his famished appearance, but pride in his Indian 
 triumph could be seen playing in his dark eyes. 
 
 "For thirty or forty days we were constantly 
 expecting, from the movements of the enemy, 
 an attack, soldiers and officers sleeping on their 
 arms and ready for action. About the ist of 
 November, Commodore Stockton arrived, and, 
 after landing Captain Gillespie with his com- 
 pany and about forty-three marines, he suddenly 
 disappeared, leaving Lieutenant Minor governor 
 of the place and Captain Gillespie command- 
 ant."* 
 
 Foraging continued, the whale ship Ston- 
 ington, which had been impressed into the 
 government service, being used to take parties 
 down the coast, who made raids inland and 
 brought back with them catties and horses. 
 
 It was probably on one of these excursions 
 that the flag-making episode occurred, of which 
 there are more versions than Homer had birth- 
 places. The correct version of the story is as 
 follows: A party had been sent under com- 
 
 *Log Book of Acting Lieutenant Duvall. 
 
tllSTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 137 
 
 mand of Lieutenant Hensley to Juan Bandini's 
 rancho in Lower California to bring up bands 
 of cattle and horses. Bandini was an adherent 
 of the American cause. He and his family re- 
 turned with the cavalcade to San Diego. At 
 their last camping place before reaching the 
 town, Hensley, in a conversation with Bandini, 
 regretted they had no flag with them to display 
 on their entry into the town. Sehora Bandini 
 volunteered to make one, which she did from 
 red, white and blue dresses of her children. 
 This flag, fastened to a staff, was carried at the 
 head of the cavalcade when it made its triumphal 
 entry into San Diego. The Mexican govern- 
 ment confiscated Bandini's ranchos in Lower 
 CaHfornia on account of his friendship to the 
 Americans during the war. 
 
 Skirmishing continued almost daily. Jose 
 Antonio Carrillo was now in command of the 
 Cahfornians, their force numbering about one 
 hundred men. Commodore Stockton returned 
 and decided to fortify. Midshipman Duvall, in 
 the Log Book referred to in the previous chap- 
 ter, thus describes the fort: "The commodore 
 -now commenced to fortify the hill which over- 
 looked the town by building a fort, constructed 
 by placing three hundred gallon casks full of 
 sand close together. The inclosure was twenty 
 by thirty yards. A bank of earth and small gravel 
 was thrown up in front as high as the top of 
 the casks and a ditch dug around on the outside. 
 Inside a ball-proof vault of ketch was built out 
 of plank and lined on the inside with adobes, on 
 top of which, a swivel was mounted. The en- 
 trance was guarded by a strong gate, with a 
 drawbridge in front across the ditch or moat. 
 The whole fortification was completed and the 
 guns mounted on it in about three weeks. Our 
 men working on the fort were on short allow- 
 ance of beef and wheat, and for a time without 
 bread, tea, sugar or cofifee, many of them being 
 destitute of shoes, but there were few com- 
 plaints. 
 
 "About the ist of December, information hav- 
 ing been received that General Kearny was at 
 Warner's Pass, about eighty miles distant, with 
 one hundred dragoons on his march to San 
 Diego, Commodore Stockton immediately sent 
 an escort of fifty men under command of Cap- 
 
 tain Gillespie, accompanied by Past Midshipmen 
 Beale and Duncan, having with them one piece 
 of artillery. They reached General Kearny with- 
 out molestation. On the march the combined 
 force was surprised by about ninety-three Cal- 
 ifornians at San Pasqual, under command of 
 Andres Pico, who had been sent to that part 
 of the country to drive off all the cattle and 
 horses to prevent us from getting them. In 
 the battle that ensued General Kearny lost in 
 killed Captains Johnston and Moore and Lieu- 
 tenant Hammond, and fifteen dragoons. Seven- 
 teen dragoons were severely wounded. The 
 enemy captured one piece of artillery. General 
 Kearny and Captains Gillespie and Gibson were 
 severely wounded; also one of the engineer offi- 
 cers. Some of the dragoons have since died." 
 
 ^ ^ H= 
 
 "After the engagement General Kearny took 
 position on a 'hill covered with large rocks. It 
 was well suited for defense. Lieutenant Godey 
 of Gillespie's volunteers, the night after the 
 battle, escaped through the enemy's line of sen- 
 tries and came in with a letter from Captain 
 Turner to the commodore. Whilst among the 
 rocks. Past Midshipman Beale and Kit Carson 
 managed, under cover of night, to pass out 
 through the enemy's ranks, and after three days' 
 and nights' hard marching through the moun- 
 tains without water, succeeded in getting safely 
 into San Diego, completely famished. Soon 
 after arriving Lieutenant Beale fainted away, 
 and for some days entirely lost his reason." 
 
 On the night of Beale's arrival, December 9, 
 about 9 p. m., detachments of two hundred sail- 
 ors and marines from the Congress and Ports- 
 mouth, under the immediate command of Cap- 
 tain ZeiHn, assisted by Lieutenants Gray, 
 ■Hunter, Renshaw, Parrish, Thompson and 
 Tilghman and Midshipmen Duvall and Morgan, 
 each man carrying a blanket, three pounds of 
 jerked beef and the same of hard-tack, began 
 their march to relieve General Kearny. They 
 marched all night and camped on a chaparral 
 covered mountain during the day. At 4 p. m. 
 of the second night's march they reached 
 Kearny's camp, surprising him. Godey, who 
 had been sent ahead to inform Kearny that as- 
 sistance was coming, had been captured by the 
 
138 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 enemy. General Kearny had burnt and de- 
 stroyed all his baggage and camp equipage, sad- 
 dles, bridles, clothing, etc., preparatory to 
 forcing his way through the enemy's Una. 
 Burdened with his wounded, it is doubtful 
 whether he could have escaped. Midshipman 
 Duvall says: "It would not be a hazard of 
 opinion to say he would have been overpowered 
 and compelled to surrender." The enemy dis- 
 appeared on the arrival of reinforcements. The 
 relief expedition, with Kearny's men, reached 
 San Diego after two days' march. 
 
 A brief explanation of the reason why Kearny 
 was at San Pasqual may be necessary. In June, 
 1846, Gen. Stephen W. Kearny, commander of 
 the Army of the West, as his command was 
 designated, left Fort Leavenworth with a force 
 of regulars and volunteers to take possession of 
 New Mexico. The conquest of that territory 
 was accomplished without a battle. Under or- 
 ders from the war department, Kearny began his 
 march to California with a part of his force to 
 co-operate with the naval forces there. Octo- 
 ber 6, near Socorro, N. M., he met Kit Carson 
 with an escort of fifteen men en route from Los 
 Angeles to Washington, bearing dispatches 
 from Stockton, giving the report of the con- 
 quest of California. Kearny required Carson to 
 turn back and act as his guide. Carson was 
 very unwilling to do so, as he was within a few 
 days' journey of his home and family, from 
 whom he had been separated for nearly two 
 years. He had been guide for Fremont on his 
 exploring expedition. He, however, obeyed 
 Kearny's orders. 
 
 General Kearny sent back about three hun- 
 dred of his men, taking with him one hundred 
 and twenty. After a toilsome march by way 
 of the Pima villages, Tucson, the Gila and 
 across the Colorado desert, they reached the 
 Indian village pf San Pasqual (about forty miles 
 from San Diego), where the battle was fought. 
 It was the bloodiest battle of the conquest; 
 Kearny's men, at daybreak, riding on broken 
 down mules and half broken horses, in an ir- 
 regular and disorderly line, charged the Califor- 
 nians. While the American line was stretched 
 out over the plain Capt. Andres Pico, who was 
 in command, wheeled his column and charged 
 
 the Americans. A fierce hand to hand fight en- 
 sued, the Californians using -their lances and lar- 
 iats, the Americans clubbed guns and sabers. Of 
 Kearny's command eighteen men were killed and 
 nineteen wounded; three of the wounded died. 
 Only one, Capt. Abraham R. Johnston (a rela- 
 tive of the author's), was killed by a gunshot; 
 all the others were lanced. The mules to one 
 of the howitzers became unmanageable and ran 
 into the enemy's lines. The driver was killed 
 and the gun captured. One Californian was 
 captured and several slightly wounded; none 
 were killed. Less than half of Kearny's one 
 hundred and seventy men* took part in the 
 battle. His loss in killed and wounded was fifty 
 per cent of those engaged. Dr. John S. Grif- 
 fin, for many years a leading physician of Los 
 Angeles, was the surgeon of the command. 
 
 The foraging expeditions in Lower Califor- 
 nia having been quite successful in bringing in 
 cattle, horses and mules, Commodore Stockton 
 hastened his preparation for marching against 
 Los Angeles. The enemy obtained information 
 of the projected movement and left for the 
 pueblo. 
 
 "The Cyane having arrived," says Duvall, 
 "our force was increased to about six hundred 
 men, most of whom, understanding the drill, 
 performed the evolutions like regular soldiers. 
 Everything being ready for our departure, the 
 commodore left Captain Montgomery and ofH- 
 cers in command of the town, and on the 29th of 
 December took up his line of march for Los An- 
 geles. General Kearny was second in command 
 and having the immediate arrangement of the 
 forces, reserving for himself the prerogative 
 which his rank necessarily imposed upon him. 
 Owing to the weak state of our oxen we had 
 not crossed the dry bed of the river San Diego 
 before they began breaking down, and the carts, 
 which were thirty or forty in number, had to be 
 dragged by the men. The general urged 'on the 
 commodore that it was useless to commence 
 such a march as was before us with our present 
 m.eans of transportation, but the commodore 
 insisted on performing at least one day's march 
 
 ♦General Kearny's original force of one hundred and 
 twenty had been increased by Gillespie's command, 
 numbering fifty men. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 139 
 
 even if we should have to return the next day. 
 We succeeded in reaching the valley of the 
 Soledad that night by dragging our carts. Next 
 day the commodore proposed to go six miles 
 farther, which we accomplished, and then con- 
 tinued six miles farther. Having obtained some 
 fresh oxen, by assisting the carts up hill we 
 made ten or twelve miles a day. At San Luis 
 Rey we secured men, carts and oxen, and after 
 that our days' marches ranged from fifteen to 
 twenty-two miles a day. 
 
 "The third day out from San Luis Rey a white 
 flag was seen ahead, the bearer of which had a 
 communication from Flores, signing himself 
 'Commander-in-Chief and Governor of Califor- 
 nia,' asking for a conference for the purpose of 
 coming to terms, which would be alike 'honor- 
 able to both countries.' The commodore refused 
 to answer him in writing, saying to the bearer 
 of the truce that his answer was, 'he knew no 
 such person as Governor Flores; that he him- 
 self was the only governor in CaHfornia; that 
 he knew a rebel by that name, a man who had 
 given his parole of honor not to take up arms 
 against the government of the United States, 
 who, if the people of California now in arms 
 against the forces of the United States would 
 deliver up, he (Stockton) would treat with them 
 on condition that they surrender their arms 
 and retire peaceably to their homes and he 
 would grant them, as citizens of the United 
 States, protection from further molestation.' 
 This the embassy refused to entertain, saying 
 'they would prefer to die with Flores than to 
 
 surrender on such terms.' " 
 * * * 
 
 "On the 8th of January, 1847, they met us on 
 the banks of the river San Gabriel with between 
 five and six hundred men mounted on good 
 horses and armed with lances and carbines, 
 having also four pieces of artillery planted on 
 the heights about three hundred and fifty yards 
 distant from the river. Owing to circumstances 
 which have occurred since the surrender of the 
 enemy, I prefer not mentioning the particulars 
 of this day's battle and also that of the day fol- 
 lowing, or of referring to individuals concerned 
 in the successful management of our forces." 
 (The circumstance to which Lieutenant Duvall 
 
 refers was undoubtedly the quarrel between 
 Stockton and Kearny after the capture of Los 
 Angeles.) "It is sufficient to say that on the 8th 
 of January we succeeded in crossing the river 
 and driving the enemy from the heights. Hav- 
 ing resisted all their charges, dismounted one 
 of their pieces and put them to flight in every 
 direction, we encamped on the ground they had 
 occupied during the fight. 
 
 "The next day the Californians met us on the 
 plains of the mesa. For a time the fighting was 
 carried on by both sides with artillery, but that 
 proving too hot for them they concentrated 
 their whole force in a line ahead of us and at a 
 given signal divided from the center and came 
 down on us like a tornado, charging us on all 
 sides at the same time; but they were effectually 
 defeated and fled in every direction in the ut- 
 most confusion. Many of their horses were left 
 dead on the field. Their loss in the two battles, 
 as given by Andres Pico, second in command, 
 was eighty-three killed and wounded; our loss, 
 three killed (one accidentally), and fifteen or 
 twenty wounded, none dangerously. The enemy 
 abandoned two pieces of artillery in an Indian 
 village near by." 
 
 I have given at considerable length Midship- 
 man Duvall's account of Stockton's march from 
 San Diego and of the two battles fought, not 
 because it is the fullest account of those events, 
 but because it is original historical matter, never 
 having appeared in print before, and also be- 
 cause it is the observations of a participant 
 written at the time the events occurred. In it 
 the losses of the enemy are greatly exaggerated, 
 but that was a fault of his superior officers as 
 well. Commodore Stockton, in his official re- 
 ports of the two b'Sttles, gives the enemy's loss 
 in killed and wounded "between seventy and 
 eighty." And General Kearny, in his report of 
 the battle of San Pasqual, claimed it as a vic- 
 tory, and states that the enemy left six dead on 
 the field. The actual loss of the Californians 
 in the two battles (San Gabriel river and La 
 Mesa) was three killed and ten or twelve 
 wounded.* 
 
 *The killed were Ignacio Sepiilveda, Francisco 
 Rubio, and El Guaymeno, a Yaqiii Indian. 
 
140 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 While the events recorded in this chapter 
 were transpiring at San Diego and its vicinity, 
 what was the state of affairs in the capital, Los 
 Angeles? After the exultation and rejoicing 
 over the expulsion of Gillespie's garrison, Mer- 
 vine's defeat and the victory over Kearny at 
 San Pasqual there came a reaction. Dissension 
 continued between the leaders. There was lack 
 of arms and laxity of discipline. The army was 
 but little better than a mob. Obedience to or- 
 ders of a superior was foreign to the nature of a 
 Californian. His wild, free life in the saddle 
 made him impatient of all restraint. Then the 
 impossibility of successful resistance against 
 the Americans became more and more apparent 
 as the final conflict approached. Fremont's 
 army was moving down on the doomed city 
 from the north, and Stockton's was coming up 
 from the south. Either one of these, in num- 
 Ijers, exceeded the force that Flores could bring 
 into action; combined they would crush him 
 out of existence. The California troops were 
 greatly discouraged and it was with great diffi- 
 culty that the officers kept their men together. 
 There was another and more potent element of 
 disintegration. Many of the wealthier natives 
 and all the foreigners, regarding the contest as 
 hopeless, secretly favored the American cause, 
 and it was only through fear of loss of property 
 that they furnished Flores and his officers any 
 supplies for the army. 
 
 During the latter part of December and the 
 first days of January Flores' army was stationed 
 at the San Fernando Mission, on the lookout 
 for Fremont's battalion; but the more rapid 
 advance of Stockton's army compelled a change 
 of base. On the 6th and .7th of January Flores 
 moved his army back secretly through the 
 
 Cahuenga Pass, and, passing to the southward 
 of the city, took position where La Jaboneria 
 (the soap factory) road crosses the San Gabriel 
 river. Here his men were stationed in the thick 
 willows to give Stockton a surprise. Stockton 
 received information of the trap set for him and 
 after leaving the Los Coyotes swung off to the 
 right until he struck the Upper Santa Ana road. 
 The Californians had barely time to effect a 
 change of base and get their cannon planted 
 when the Americans arrived at the crossing. 
 
 Stockton called the engagement there the bat- 
 tle of San Gabriel river; the Californians call it 
 the battle of Paso de Bartolo, which is the bet- 
 ter name. The place where the battle was fought 
 is on bluff just south of the Upper Santa Ana 
 road, near where the Southern California 
 railroad crosses the old San Gabriel river. (The 
 ford or crossing was formerly known as Pico's 
 Crossing.) There was, at the time of the bat- 
 tle, but one San Gabriel river. Tlie new river 
 channel was made in the great flood of 1868. 
 What Stockton, Emory, Duvall and other 
 American officers call the battle of the Plains 
 of the Mesa the Californians call the battle of 
 La Mesa, which is most decidedly a better name 
 than the "Plains of the Plain." It was fought at 
 a ravine, the Canada de Los Alisos, near the 
 southeastern corner of the Los Angeles' city 
 boundary. In these battles the Californians had 
 four pieces of artillery, two iron nine-pounders, 
 the old woman's gun and the howitzer captured 
 from Kearny. Their powder was very poor. It 
 \\as made at San Gabriel. It was owing to this 
 that they did so little execution in the fight. 
 That the Californians escaped with so little 
 punishment was probably due to the wretched 
 marksmanship of Stockton's sailors and marines. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Ul 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 CAPTURE AND OCCUPATION OF THE CAPITAL. 
 
 ftFTER the battle of La Mesa, the Amer- 
 icans, keeping to the south, crossed the . 
 Los Angeles river at about the point 
 where the south boundary Hne of the city 
 crosses it and camped on the right bank. Here, 
 under a willow tree, those killed in battle were 
 buried. Lieutenant Emory, in his "Notes of a 
 Military Reconnoissance," says: "The town, 
 known to contain great quantities of wine and 
 aguardiente, was four miles distant (four miles 
 from the battlefield). From previous experience 
 of the difficulty of controlling men when enter- 
 ing towns, it was determined to cross the river 
 San Fernando (Los Angeles), halt there for 
 the night and enter the town in the morning, 
 with the whole day before us. 
 
 "After we had pitched our camp, the enemy 
 came down from the hills, and four hundred 
 horsemen with four pieces of artillery drew ofif 
 towards the town, in order and regularity, whilst 
 about sixty made a movement down the river on 
 our rear and left flank. This led us to suppose 
 they were not yet whipped, as we thought, and 
 that we should have a night attack. 
 
 "January lo (1847) — J^^t as we had raised 
 our camp, a flag of truce, borne by Mr. Cells, a 
 Castilian; Mr. Workman, an Englishman, and 
 Alvarado, the owner of the rancho at the Alisos, 
 was brought into camp. They proposed, on 
 behalf of the Californians, to surrender their 
 dear City of the Angels provided we would re- 
 spect property and persons. This was agreed 
 to, but not altogether trusting to the honesty 
 of General Flores, who had once broken his 
 parole, we moved into the town in the same 
 order we should have done if expecting an at- 
 tack. It was a wise precaution, for the streets 
 were full of desperate and drunken fellows, who 
 brandished their arms and saluted us with every 
 term of reproach. The crest, overlooking the 
 town, in rifle range, was covered with horsemen 
 engaged in the same hospitable manner. 
 
 "Our men marched steadily on, until crossing 
 , the ravine leading into the public square (plaza), 
 when a fight took place amongst the Califor- 
 nians on the hill; one became disarmed and to 
 avoid death rolled down the hill towards us, 
 his adversary pursuing and lancing him in the 
 most cold-blooded manner. The man tumbling 
 down the hill was supposed to be one of our 
 vaqueros, and the cry of 'rescue him' was 
 raised. The crew of the Cyane, nearest the 
 scene, at once and without any orders, halted 
 and gave the man that was lancing him a volley; 
 strange to say, he did not fall. The general 
 gave the jack tars a cursing, not so much for 
 the firing without orders, as for their bad marks- 
 manship." 
 
 Shortly after the above episode, the Cali- 
 fornians did open fire from the hill on the 
 vaqueros in charge of the cattle. (These 
 vacjueros were Californians in the employ of the 
 Americans and were regarded by their country- 
 men as traitors.) A company of riflemen was 
 ordered to clear the hill. A single volley ef- 
 fected this, killing two of the enemy. This was 
 the last bloodshed in the war; and the second 
 conquest of California was completed as the first 
 had been by the capture of Los Angeles. Two 
 hundred men, with two pieces of artillery, were 
 stationed on the hill. 
 
 The Angelefios did not exactly welcome the 
 invaders with "bloody hands to inhospitable 
 graves," but they did their best to let them know 
 they were not wanted. The better class of the 
 native inhabitants closed their houses and took 
 refuge with foreign residents or went to the 
 ranches of their friends in the country. The 
 fellows of the baser sort, who were in pos- 
 session of the city, exhausted their vocabularies 
 of abuse on the invading gringos. There was 
 one paisano who excelled all his countrymen in 
 this species of warfare. It is a pity his name 
 has trot been preserved in history with that of 
 
142 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 other famous scolds and kickers. He rode by 
 the side of the advancing colurhn up Main street, 
 firing volleys of invective and denunciation at 
 the hated gringos. At certain points of his 
 tirade he worked himself to such a pitch of 
 indignation that language failed him; then he 
 would solemnly go through the motions of 
 "Make ready, take aim!" with an old shotgun 
 he carried, but when it came to the order "Fire!" 
 discretion got the better of his valor; he low- 
 ered his gun and began again, firing invective 
 at the gringo soldiers; his mouth would go off 
 if his gun would not. 
 
 Commodore Stockton's headquarters were in 
 the Abila house, the second house on Olvera 
 street, north of the plaza. The building is still 
 standing, but has undergone many changes in 
 fifty years. A rather amusing account was re- 
 cently given me by an old pioneer of the manner 
 in which Commodore Stockton got possession 
 of the house. The widow Abila and her daugh- 
 ters, at the approach of the American army, had 
 abandoned their house and taken refuge with 
 Don Luis Vignes of the Aliso. Vignes was a 
 Frenchman and friendly to both sides. The 
 widow left a young Californian in charge of her 
 house (which was finely furnished), with strict 
 orders to keep it closed. Stockton had with him 
 a 'fine brass band, something new in California. 
 When the troops halted on the plaza, the band 
 began to play. The boyish guardian of the 
 Abila casa could not resist the temptation to 
 open the door and look out. The enchanting 
 music drew him to the plaza. Stockton and his 
 staff, hunting for a place suitable for headquar- 
 ters, passing by, found the door invitingly open, 
 entered, and, finding the house deserted, took 
 possession. The recreant guardian returned to 
 find himself dispossessed and the house in pos- 
 session of the enemy. "And the band played on." 
 
 It is a fact not generally known that there 
 were two forts planned and partially built on 
 Fort Hill during the war for the conquest of 
 California. The first was planned by Lieut. Wil- 
 liam H. Emory, topographical engineer of Gen- 
 eral Kearny's staff, and work was begun on it 
 by Commodore Stockton's sailors and marines. 
 The second was planned by Lieut. J. W. David- 
 son, of the First United States Dragoons, and 
 
 built by the Mormon battalion. The first was 
 not completed and not named. The second was 
 named Fort Moore. Their location seems to 
 have been identical. The first was designed to 
 hold one hundred men. The second was much 
 larger. Flores' army was supposed to be in the 
 neighborhood of the city ready to make a dash 
 into it, so Stockton decided to fortify. 
 *■ "On January nth," Lieutenant Emory writes, 
 "I was ordered to select a site and place a fort 
 capable of containing a hundred men. With 
 this in view a rapid reconnoissance of the town 
 was made and the plan of a fort sketched, so 
 placed as to enable a small garrison to com- 
 mand the town and the principal avenues to it, 
 the plan was approved." 
 
 "January 12. I laid off the work and before 
 night broke the first ground. The population 
 of the town and its dependencies is about three 
 thousand; that of the town itself about fifteen 
 hundred. * * * Here all' the revolutions 
 have had their origin, and it is the point upon 
 which any Mexican force from Sonora would 
 be directed. It was therefore desirable to estab- 
 lish a fort which, in case of trouble, should en- 
 able a small garrison to hold out till aid might 
 come from San Diego, San Francisco or Mon- 
 terey, places which are destined to become cen- 
 ters of American settlements." 
 
 "January 13. It rained steadily all day and 
 nothing was done on the work. At night I 
 worked on the details of the fort." 
 
 "January 15. The details to work on the 
 fort were by companies. I sent to Captain 
 Tilghman, who commanded on the hill, to de- 
 tach one of the companies under his command 
 to commence the work. He furnished, on the 
 1 6th, a company of artillery (seamen from the 
 Congress) for the day's work, which was per- 
 formed bravely, and gave me great hopes of 
 success." 
 
 On the 1 8th Lieutenant Emory took his de- 
 parture with General Kearny for San Diego. 
 From there he was sent with despatches, via 
 Panama, to the war department. In his book 
 he says: "Subsequent to my departure the en- 
 tire plan of the fort was changed, and I am not 
 the projector of the work finally adopted for 
 defense of that town." 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 143 
 
 As previously stated, Fremont's battalion 
 began its march down the coast on the 29th of 
 November, 1846. The winter rains set in with 
 great severity. The volunteers were scantily 
 provided with clothing and the horses were in 
 poor condition. Many of the horses died of 
 starvation and hard usage. The battalion en- 
 countered no opposition from the enemy on its 
 march and did no fighting. On the nth of 
 January, a few miles above San Fernando, Colo- 
 nel Fremont received a message from General 
 Kearny informing him of the defeat of the 
 enemy and the capture of Los Angeles. That 
 night the battalion encamped in the mission 
 buildings at San Fernando. From the mission 
 that evening Jesus Pico, a cousin of Gen. An- 
 dres Pico, set out to find the Californian army 
 and open negotiations with its Itaders. Jesus 
 Pico, better known as Tortoi, had been arrested 
 at his home near San Luis Obispo, tried by 
 court-martial and sentenced to be shot for 
 breaking his parole. Fremont, moved by the 
 pleadings of Pico's wife and children, pardoned 
 him. He became a warm admirer and devoted 
 friend of Fremont's. 
 
 Fie found the advance guard of the Califor- 
 nians encamped at Verdugas. He was detained 
 here, and the leading officers of the army were 
 summoned to a council. Pico informed them 
 of Fremont's arrival and the number of his men. 
 With the combined forces of Fremont and 
 Stockton against them, their cause was hopeless. 
 He urged them to surrender to Fremont, as they 
 could obtain better terms from him than from 
 Stockton. 
 
 General Flores, who held a commission in the 
 Mexican army, and who had been appointed by 
 the territorial assembly governor and comand- 
 ante-general by virtue of his rank, appointed 
 Andres Pico general and gave him command 
 of the army. The same night he took his de- 
 parture for Mexico, by way of San Gorgonio 
 Pass, accompanied by Colonel Garfias, Diego 
 Sepulveda, Manuel Castro, Segura, and about 
 thirty privates. General Pico, on assuming com- 
 mand, appointed Francisco Rico and Francisco 
 de La Guerra to go with Jesus Pico to confer 
 with Colonel Fremont. Fremont appointed as 
 commissioners to negotiate a treaty, Major P. 
 
 B. Reading, Major William H. Russell and 
 Capt. Louis M'cLane. On the return of Guerra 
 and Rico to the Californian camp. Gen. Andres 
 Pico appointed as commissioners, Jose Antonio 
 Carrillo, commander of the cavalry squadron, 
 and Agustin Olvera, diputado of the assembly, 
 and moved his army near the river at Gahuenga. 
 On the 13th Fremont moved his camp to the 
 Cahiienga. The commissionej-s met in tbe de- 
 serted ranch-house, and the treaty was drawn 
 up and signed. 
 
 The principal conditions of the treaty or ca- 
 pitulation of "Cahuenga," as it was termed, were 
 that the Californians, on delivering up their ar- 
 tillery and public arms, and promising not again 
 to take arms during the war, and conforming 
 to the laws and regulations of the United States, 
 shall be allowed peaceably to return to their 
 homes. They were to be allowed the same rights 
 and privileges as are allowed to citizens of the 
 United States, and were not to be compelled 
 to take an oath of allegiance until a treaty of 
 peace was signed between the United States and 
 Mexico, and were given the privilege of leaving 
 the country if they wished to. An additional 
 section was added to the treaty on the i6th at 
 Los Angeles releasing the officers from their 
 paroles. Two cannon were surrendered, the 
 howitzer captured from General Kearny at San 
 Pasqual and the woman's gun that won the bat- 
 tle of Dominguez. On the 14th, Fremont's bat- 
 talion marched through the Cahuenga Pass to 
 Los Angeles in a pouring rainstorm, and en- 
 tered it four days after its surrender to Stock- 
 ton. The conquest of Californiat was com- 
 pleted. Stockton approved the treaty, although 
 it was not altogether satisfactory to him. On 
 the i6th he appointed Colonel Fremont gov- 
 ernor of the territory, and William H. Russell, 
 of the battalion, secretary of state. 
 
 This precipitated a quarrel between Stockton 
 and Kearny, which- had been brewing for some 
 time. General Kearny claimed that under his 
 instructions from the government he should be 
 recognized as governor. As he had directly under 
 his command but the one company of dragoons 
 that he brought across the plain with him, he 
 was unable to enforce his authority. He left on 
 the 1 8th for San Diego, taking with him his 
 
144 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 officers and dragoons. On the 20th Commo- 
 dore Stockton, with his sailors and marines, 
 marched to San Pedro, where they all em- 
 barked on a man-of-war for San Diego to re- 
 
 join their ships. Shortly afterwards Commo- 
 dore Stockton was superseded in the command 
 of the Pacific squadron by Commodore Shu- 
 brick. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 TRANSITION AND TRANSFORMATION. 
 
 THE capitulation of Gen. Andres Pico at 
 Cahuenga put an end to the war in Cali- 
 fornia. The instructions from the secre- 
 tary of war were to pursue a policy of concilia- 
 tion towards the Californians with the ultimate 
 design of transforming them into American citi- 
 zens. Colonel Fremont was left in command at 
 Los Angeles. He established his headquarters 
 on the second floor of the Bell block (corner of 
 Los Angeles and Aliso streets), then the best 
 building in the city. One company of his' bat- 
 taHon was retained in the city ; the others, under 
 command of Captain Owens, were quartered at 
 the Mission San Gabriel. 
 
 The Mormons had been driven out of Illinois 
 and Missouri. A sentiment of antagonism had 
 been engendered against them and they had 
 begun their migration to the far west, pre- 
 sumably to California. They were encamped on 
 the Missouri river at Kanesville, now Council 
 Blufifs, preparatory to crossing the plains, when 
 hostilities broke out between the United States 
 and Mexico, in April, 1846. A proposition was 
 made by President Polk to their leaders to raise 
 a battalion of five hundred men to serve as 
 United States volunteers for twelve months. 
 These volunteers, under command of regular 
 army officers, were to march to Santa Fe, or, 
 if necessary, to California, where, at the expira- 
 tion of their term of enlistment, they were to be 
 discharged and allowed to retain their arms. 
 Through the influence of Brigham Young and 
 .other leaders, the battalion was recruited and 
 General Kearny, commanding the Army of the 
 West, detailed Capt. James Allen, of the First 
 United States Dragoons, to muster them into 
 the service and take command of the battalion. 
 On the i6th of July, at Council Blufifs, the bat- 
 
 talion was mustered into service and on the 14th 
 of August it began its long and weary march. 
 About eighty women and children, wives and 
 families of the officers and some of the enlisted 
 men, accompanied the battalion on its march. 
 Shortly after the beginning of the march, Allen, 
 who had been promoted to lieutenant-colonel, 
 fell sick and died. The battahon was placed 
 temporarily under the command of Lieut. A, J. 
 Smith, of the regular army. At Santa Fe- 
 Lieut. -Col. Philip St. George Cooke took com- 
 mand under orders from General Kearny. The 
 battalion was detailed to open a wagon road by 
 the Gila route to California. About sixty of 
 the soldiers who had become unfit for duty and 
 all the women except five were sent back and 
 the remainder of the force, after a toilsome jour- 
 ney, reached San Luis Rey, Cal., January 29, 
 1847, where it remained until ordered to Los 
 Angeles, which place it reached March 17. 
 
 Captain Owens, in command of Fremont's 
 battalion, had moved all the artillery, ten pieces, 
 from Los Angeles to San Gabriel, probably with 
 the design of preventing it falling into the hands 
 of Colonel Cooke, who was an adherent of 
 General Kearny. General Kearny, under addi- 
 tional instructions from the general government, 
 brought by Colonel Mason from the war depart- 
 ment, had established himself as governor at 
 Monterey. With a governor in the north and 
 one in the south, antagonistic to each other, 
 California had fallen back to its normal condi- 
 tion under Mexican rule. Colonel Cooke, 
 shortly after his arrival in the territory, thus de- 
 scribes the condition prevailing: "General 
 Kearny is supreme somewhere up the coast. 
 Colonel Fremont is supreme at Pueblo 'de Los 
 Angeles; Colonel Stockton is commander-in- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 145 
 
 chief at San Diego; Commodore Shubrick the 
 same at Monterey; and I at San Luis Rey; and 
 we are all supremely poor, the government hav- 
 ing no money and no credit, and we hold the 
 territory because Mexico is the poorest of all." 
 
 Col. R. B. Mason was appointed inspector of 
 the troops in California and made an official 
 visit to Los Angeles. In a misunderstanding 
 about some official matters he used insulting 
 language to Colonel Fremont. Fremont 
 promptly challenged him to fight a duel. The 
 challenge was accepted; double-barreled shot- 
 guns were chosen as the weapons and the 
 Rancho Rosa del Castillo as the place of meet- 
 ing. Mason was summoned north and the duel 
 was postponed until his return. General Kearny, 
 hearing of the proposed affair of honor, put a 
 stop to further proceedings by the duelists. 
 
 Col. Philip St. George Cooke, of the Mormon 
 battalion, was made commander of the military 
 district of the south with headquarters at Los 
 Angeles. Fremont's battaHon was mustered out 
 oL service. The Mormon soldiers and the two 
 companies of United States Dragoons who 
 came with General Kearny were stationed at 
 Los Angeles to do guard duty and prevent any 
 uprising of the natives. 
 
 Colonel Fremont's appointment as governor 
 of California had never been recognized by 
 General Kearny. So when the general had 
 made himself supreme at Monterey he ordered 
 Fremont to report to him at the capital and 
 turn over the papers of his governorship. Fre- 
 mont did so and passed out of office. He was 
 nominally governor of the territory about two 
 months. His appointment was made by Com- 
 modore Stockton, but was never confirmed by 
 the president or secretary of war. His jurisdic- 
 tion did not extend beyond Los Angeles. He 
 left Los Angeles May 12 for Monterey. From 
 that place, in company with General Kearny, 
 on May 31, he took his departure for the states. 
 The relations between the two were strained. 
 While ostensibly traveling as one company, 
 each officer, with his staff and escort, made sep- 
 arate camps. At Fort Leavenworth General 
 Kearny placed Fremont under arrest and pre- 
 ferred charges against him for disobedience of 
 orders. He was tried by court-martial at Wash- 
 10 
 
 ington and was ably defended by his father-in- 
 law. Colonel Benton, and his brother-in-law, 
 William Carey Jones. The court found him 
 guilty and fixed the penalty, dismissal from the 
 service. President Polk remitted the penalty 
 and ordered Colonel Fremont to resume his 
 sword and report for duty. He did so, but 
 shortly afterward resigned his commission and 
 left the army. 
 
 While Colonel Cooke was in command of 
 the southern district rumors reached Los An- 
 geles that the Mexican general, Bustamente, 
 with a force of fifteen hundred men, was pre- 
 paring to reconquer California. "Positive infor- 
 mation,'! writes Colonel Cooke, under date of 
 April 20, 1847, "has been received that the 
 Alexican government has appropriated $600,000 
 towards fitting out this force." It was also re- 
 ported that cannon and mihtary stores had been 
 landed at San Vicente, in Lower CaHfornia. 
 Rumors of an approaching army came thick and 
 fast. The natives were supposed to be in league 
 with Bustamente and to be secretly preparing 
 for an uprising. Precautions were taken against 
 a surprise. A troop of cavalry was sent to 
 Warner's ranch to patrol the Sonora road as 
 far as the desert. The construction of a fort 
 on the hill fully commanding the town, which 
 had previously been determined upon, was 
 begun and a company of infantry posted on 
 the hill. 
 
 On the 23d of April, three months after work 
 had ceased on Emory's fort, the construction of 
 the second fort was begun and pushed vigor- 
 ously. Rumors continued to come of the ap- 
 proach of the enemy. May 3, Colonel Cooke 
 writes: "A report was received through the 
 most available sources of information that Gen- 
 eral Bustamente had crossed the Gulf of Cali- 
 fornia near its head, in boats of the pearl fishers, 
 and at last information was at a rancho on the 
 western road, seventy leagues below San 
 Diego." Colonel Stevenson's regiment of New 
 York volunteers had recently arrived in Cali- 
 fornia. Two companies of that regiment had 
 been sent to Los Angeles and two to San 
 Diego. The report that Colonel Cooke had re- 
 ceived reinforcement and that Los Angeles was 
 being fortified was supposed to have frightened 
 
146 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Bustamente into abandoning his invasion of 
 California. Bustamente's invading army was 
 largely the creation of somebody's fertile imag- 
 ination. The scare, however, had the effect of 
 hurrying up work on the fort. May 13, Colo- 
 nel Cooke resigned and Col. J. B. Stevenson 
 succeeded him in the command of the southern 
 military district. 
 
 Colonel Stevenson continued work on the 
 fort and on the ist of July work had progressed 
 so far that he decided to dedicate and name it 
 on the 4th. He issued an official order for the 
 celebration of the anniversary of the birthday of 
 American independence at this port, as he called 
 Los Angeles. "At sunrise a Federal salute will 
 be fired from the field work on the hill which 
 commands this town and for the first time from 
 this point the American standard will be dis- 
 played. At II o'clock all the troops of the 
 district, consisting of the Mormon battalion, the 
 two companies of dragoons and two companies 
 of the New York volunteers, were formed in a 
 hollow square at the fort. The Declaration of 
 Independence was read in English by Captain 
 Stuart Taylor and in Spanish by Stephen C. 
 Foster. The native Californians, seated on their 
 horses in rear of the soldiers, listened to Don 
 Esteban as he rolled out in sonorous Spanish the 
 Declaration's arraignment of King George III., 
 and smiled. They had probably never heard of 
 King George or the Declaration of Independ- 
 ence, either, but they knew a pronunciamiento 
 when they heard it, and after a pronunciamiento 
 in their governmental system came a revolution, 
 therefore they smiled at the prospect of a gringo 
 revolution. "At the close of this ceremony 
 (reading of the Declaration) the field work will 
 be dedicated and appropriately named; and at 
 12 o'clock a national salute will be fired. The 
 field work at this post having been planned and 
 the work conducted entirely by Lieutenant Da- 
 vidson of the First Dragoons, he is requested 
 to hoist upon it for the first time on the morn- 
 ing of the 4th the American standard." * * * 
 The commander directs that from and after the 
 4th instant the fort shall bear the name of 
 Moore. Benjamin D. Moore, after whom the fort 
 was named, was captain of Company A, First 
 United States Dragoons. He was killed by a 
 
 lance thrust in the disastrous charge at the bat- 
 tle of San Pasqual. This fort was located on 
 what is now called Fort Hill, near the geograph- 
 ical center of Los Angeles. It was a breastwork 
 about four hundred feet long with bastions and 
 embrasures for cannon. The principal em- 
 brasure commanded the church and the plaza, 
 two places most likely to be the rallying points 
 in a rebellion. It was built more for the sup- 
 pression of a revolt than to resist an invasion. 
 It was in a commanding position; two hundred 
 men, about its capacity, could have defended it 
 against a thousand if the attack came from the 
 front; but as it was never completed, in an at- 
 tack from the rear it could easily have been cap- 
 tured with an equal force. 
 
 Col. Richard B. Mason succeeded General 
 Kearny as commander-in-chief of the troops 
 and military governor of California. Col. Philip 
 St. George Cooke resigned command of the 
 military district of the south May 13, joined 
 General Kearny at Monterey and went east 
 with him. As previously stated, Col. J. D. Ste- 
 venson, of the New York volunteers, succeeded 
 him. His regiment, the First New York, but 
 really the Seventh, had been- recruited in the 
 eastern part of the state of New York in the 
 summer of 1846, for the double purpose of con- 
 quest and colonization. The United States gov- 
 ernment had no intention of giving up California 
 once it was conquered, and therefore this regi- 
 ment came to the coast well provided with pro- 
 visions and implements of husbandry. It came 
 to Cahfornia via Cape Horn in three transports. 
 The first ship, the Perkins, arrived at San 
 Francisco, March 6, 1847; the second, the Drew, 
 March 19; and the third, the Loo Choo, March 
 26. Hostilities had ceased in California before 
 their arrival. Two companies, A and B, under 
 command of Lieutenant-Colonel Burton, were 
 sent to Lower California, where they saw hard 
 service and took part in several engagements. 
 The other companies of the regiment were sent 
 to different towns in Alta California to do gar- 
 rison duty. 
 
 Another military organization that reached 
 California after the conquest was Company F 
 of the Third United States Artillery. It landed 
 at Monterey January 28, 1847. It was com- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 147 
 
 manded by Capt. C. Q. Thompkins. With 
 it came Lieuts. E. O. C. Ord, William T. Sher- 
 man and H. W. Halleck, all of whom became 
 prominent in California affairs and attained na- 
 tional reputation during the Civil war. The 
 Mormon battalion was mustered out in July, 
 1847. One company under command of Cap- 
 tain Hunt re-enlisted. The others made their 
 way to Utah, where they joined their brethren 
 who the year before had crossed the plains and 
 founded the City of Salt Lake. The New York 
 volunteers were discharged in August, 1848. 
 After the treaty of peace, in 1848, four compa- 
 nies of 'United States Dragoons, under com- 
 mand of Major L. P. Graham, marched from 
 Chihuahua, by way of Tucson, to California. 
 Major Graham was the last military commander 
 of the south. 
 
 Commodore W. Branford Shubrick succeeded 
 Commodore Stockton in command of the naval 
 forces of the north Pacific coast. Jointly with 
 General Kearny he issued a circular or proc- 
 lamation to the people of California, printed in 
 English and Spanish, setting forth "That the 
 president of the United States, desirous to give 
 and secure to the people of California a share 
 of the good government and happy civil organ- 
 ization enjoyed by the people of the United 
 States, and to protect them at the same time 
 from the attacks of foreign foes and from inter- 
 nal commotions, has invested the undersigned 
 with separate and distinct powers, civil and mil- 
 itary; a cordial co-operation in the exercise of 
 which, it is hoped and believed, will have the 
 happy results desired. 
 
 "To the commander-in-chief of the naval 
 forces the president has assigned the regula- 
 tion of the import trade, the conditions on which 
 vessels of all nations, our own as well as foreign, 
 may be admitted into the ports of the territory, 
 and the establishment of all port regulations. 
 To the commanding military officer the presi- 
 dent has assigned the direction of the operations 
 on land and has invested him with administra- 
 tive functions of government over the people 
 and territory occupied by the forces of the 
 United States. 
 
 "Done at Monterey, capital of California, this 
 1st day of March, A. D. 1847. W. Branford 
 
 Shubrick, commander-in-chief of the naval 
 forces. S. W. Kearny, Brig.-Gen. United States 
 Army, and Governor of California." 
 
 Under the administration of Col. Richard B. 
 •Mason, the successor of General Kearny as 
 military governor, the reconstruction, or, more 
 appropriately, the transformation period began. 
 The orders from the general government were 
 to conciliate the people and to make no radical 
 changes in the form of government. The Mex- 
 ican laws were continued in force. Just what 
 these laws were, it was difficult to find out. No 
 code commissioner had codified the laws and it 
 sometimes happened that the judge made the 
 law to suit the case. Under the old regime the al- 
 calde was often law-giver, judge, jury and exe- 
 cutioner, all in one. Occasionally there was fric- 
 tion between the mihtary and civil powers, and 
 there were rumors of insurrections and inva- 
 sions, but nothing came of them. The Calif or- 
 nians, with easy good nature so characteristic 
 of them, made the best of the situation. "A 
 thousand things," says Judge Hays, "combined 
 to smooth the asperities of war. Fremont had 
 been courteous and gay; Mason was just and 
 firm. The natural good temper of the popula- 
 tion favored a speedy and perfect conciliation. 
 The American officers at once found themselves 
 happy in every circle. In suppers, balls, visiting 
 in town and country, the hours glided away with 
 pleasant reflections." 
 
 There were, however, a few individuals who 
 were not happy unless they could stir up dis- 
 sensions and cause trouble. One of the chief of 
 these was Serbulo Varela, agitator and revolu- 
 tionist. Varela, for some offense not specified 
 in the records, had been committed to prison by 
 the second alcalde of Los Angeles. Colonel Ste- 
 venson turned him out of jail, and Varela gave 
 the judge a tongue lashing in refuse Castilian. 
 The judge's official dignity was hurt. He sent 
 a communication to the ayuntamiento saying: 
 "Owing to personal abuse which I received at 
 the hands of a private individual and from the 
 present military commander, I tender my resig- 
 nation." 
 
 The a}'untamiento sent a communication to 
 Colonel Stevenson asking why he had turned 
 \^arela out of jail and why he had insulted the 
 
148 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 judge. The colonel curtly replied that the mili- 
 tary would not act as jailers over persons guilty 
 of trifling offenses while the city had plenty of 
 persons to do guard duty at the jail. As to the 
 abuse of the judge, he was not aware that any 
 abuse had been given, and would take no further 
 notice of him unless he stated the nature of the 
 insult offered him. The council decided to no- 
 tify the governor of the outrage perpetrated by 
 the military commander, and the second alcalde 
 said since he could get no satisfaction for insults 
 to his authority from the military despot, he 
 would resign; but the council would not accept 
 his resignation, so he refused to act, and the city 
 had to worry along with one alcalde. 
 
 Although foreigners had been coming to Cali- 
 fornia ever since 1814, their numbers had not 
 increased very rapidly. Nearly all of these had 
 found their way there by sea. Those who had 
 become permanent residents had married native 
 Cahfornian women and adopted the customs of 
 the country. Capt. Jedediah S. Smith, in 1827, 
 crossed the Sierra Nevada mountains from Cali- 
 fornia and by way of the Humboldt, or, as he 
 named it, the Mary River, had reached the Great 
 Salt Lake. From there through the South Pass 
 of the Rocky mountains the route had been 
 traveled for several years by the fur trappers. 
 This latter became the great emigrant route to 
 California a few years later. A southern route 
 by way of Santa Fe had been marked out and 
 the Pattee party had found their way to the 
 Colorado by the Gila route, but so far no emi- 
 grant trains had come from the States to Cali- 
 fornia with women and children. The first of 
 these mixed trains was organized in western 
 Missouri in May, 1841. The party consisted of 
 sixty-nine persons, including men, women and 
 children. This party divided at Soda Springs, 
 half going to Oregon and the others keeping on 
 their way to California. They reached the San 
 Joaquin valley in November, 1841, after a toil- 
 some journey of six months. The first settle- 
 ment they found was Dr. Marsh's ranch in what 
 is now called Contra Costa county. Marsh gave 
 them a cordial reception at first, but afterwards 
 treated them meanly. 
 
 Fourteen of the party started for the Pueblo 
 de San Jose. At the Mission of San Jose, 
 
 twelve miles from the Pueblo, they were all ar- 
 rested by order of General Vallejo. One of the 
 men was sent to Dr. Marsh to have him come 
 forthwith and explain why an armed force of 
 liis countrymen were roaming around the coun- 
 try without passports. Marsh secured their re- 
 lease and passports for all the party. On his 
 return home he charged the men who had re- 
 mained at his ranch $5 each for a passport, al- 
 though the passports had cost him nothing. As 
 there was no money in the party, each had to 
 put up some equivalent from his scanty posses- 
 sions. Marsh had taken this course to reim- 
 burse himself for the meal he had given the 
 half-starved emigrants the first night of their 
 arrival at his ranch. 
 
 In marked contrast with the meanness of 
 Marsh was the Hberality of Captain Sutter. Sut- 
 ter had built a fort at the junction of the Amer- 
 ican river and the Sacramento in 1839 ^^'^ had 
 obtained extensive land grants. His fort was 
 the frontier post for the overland emigration. 
 Gen. John Bidwell, who came with the first 
 emigrant train to California, in a description of 
 "Life in California Before the Gold Discovery," 
 says: "Nearly everybody who came to Califor- 
 nia then made it a point to reach Sutter's Fort. 
 Sutter was one of the most liberal and hospita- 
 ble of men. Everybody was welcome, one man 
 or a hundred, it was all the same." 
 
 Another emigrant train, known as the Work- 
 man-Rowland party, numbering forty-five per- 
 sons, came from Santa Fe by the Gila route to 
 Los Angeles. About twenty-five of this party 
 were persons who had arrived too late at West- 
 port, Mo., to join the northern emigrant party, 
 so they went with the annual caravan of St. 
 Louis traders to Santa Fe and from there, with 
 traders and trappers, continued their journey to 
 California. From 1841 to the American con- 
 quest immigrant trains came across the plains 
 every year. 
 
 One of the most noted of these, on account of 
 the tragic fate that befell it, was the Donner 
 party. The nucleus of this party, George and 
 Jacob Donner and James K. Reed, with their 
 families, started from Springfield, 111., in the 
 spring of 1846. By accretions and combinations, 
 when it reached Fort Bridger, July 25, it had 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 149 
 
 increased to eighty-seven persons — thirty-six 
 men, twenty-one women and thirty children, 
 under the command of George Donner. A new 
 route called the Hastings Cut-Off, had just been 
 opened by Lansford W. Hastings. This route 
 passed to the south of Great Salt Lake and 
 struck the old Fort Hall emigrant road on the 
 Humboldt. It was claimed that the "cut-off" 
 shortened the distance three hundred miles. 
 The Donner party, by misrepresentations, were 
 induced to take this route. The cut-off proved 
 to be almost impassable. They started on the 
 cut-off the last day of July, and it was the end 
 of September when they struck the old emigrant 
 trail on the Humboldt. They had lost most of 
 their cattle and were nearly out of provisions. 
 From this on, unmerciful disaster followed them 
 fast and faster. In an altercation. Reed, one of 
 the best men of the party, killed Snyder. He 
 was banished from the train and compelled to 
 leave his wife and children behind. An old 
 Belgian named Hardcoop and Wolfinger, a 
 German, unable to keep up, were abandoned to 
 die on the road. Pike was accidentally shot by 
 Foster. The Indians stole a number of their 
 cattle, and one calamity after another delayed 
 them. In the latter part of October they had 
 reached the Truckee. Here they encountered a 
 heavy snow storm, which blocked all further 
 progress. They wasted their strength in trying 
 to ascend the mountains in the deep snow that 
 had fallen. Finally, finding this impossible, they 
 turned back and built cabin's at a lake since 
 known as Donner Lake, and prepared to pass 
 the winter. Most of their oxen had strayed 
 away during the storm and perished. Those 
 still alive they killed and preserved the meat. 
 A party of fifteen, ten men and five women, 
 
 known as the "Forlorn Hope," started, Decem- 
 ber i6, on snowshoes to cross the Sierras. They 
 had provisions for six days, but the journey 
 consumed thirty-two days. Eight of the ten 
 men perished, and among them the noble Stan- 
 ton, who had brought relief to the emigrants 
 from Sutter's Fort before the snows began to 
 fall. The five women survived. Upon the ar- 
 rival of the wretched survivors of the "Forlorn 
 Hope," the terrible sufferings of the snow-bound 
 immigrants were made known at Sutter's Fort, 
 and the first relief party was organized, and on 
 the 5th of February started for the lake. Seven 
 of the thirteen who started succeeded in reach- 
 ing tlie lake. On the 19th they started back 
 with twenty-one of the immigrants, three of 
 whom died on the way. A second relief, under 
 Reed and McCutchen, was organized. Reed 
 had gone to Yerba Buena to seek assistance. A. 
 public meeting was called and $1,500 subscribed. 
 The second relief started from Johnston's 
 Ranch, the nearest point to the mountains, on 
 the 23d of February and reached the camp on 
 March ist. They brought out seventeen. Two 
 others were organized and reached Donner 
 Lake, the last on the 17th of April. The only 
 survivor then was Keseburg, a German, who 
 was hated by all the company. There was a 
 strong suspicion that he had killed Mrs. Don- 
 ner, who had refused to leave her husband (who 
 was too weak to travel) with the previous relief. 
 There were threats of hanging him. Keseburg 
 had saved his life by eating the bodies of the 
 dead. Of the original party of eighty-seven, a 
 total of thirty-nine perished from starvation. 
 Most of the survivors were compelled to resort 
 to cannabalism. They were not to blame if they 
 did. 
 
150 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 MEXICAN LAWS AND AMERICAN OFFICIALS. 
 
 UPON the departure of General Kearny, 
 :May 31, 1847, Col. Richard B. Mason 
 became governor and commander-in- 
 chief of the United States forces in California 
 by order of the president. Stockton, Kearny 
 and Fremont had- taken their departure, the 
 dissensions that had existed since the conquest 
 of the territory among the conquerors ceased, 
 and peace reigned. 
 
 There were reports of Mexican invasions and 
 suspicions of secret plottings against gringo 
 rule, but the invaders came not and the plottings 
 never produced even the mildest form of a Mexi- 
 can revolution. Alexican laws were adminis- 
 tered for the most part by military officers. The 
 municipal authorities were encouraged to con- 
 tinue in power and perform their governmental 
 functions, but they were indifferent and some- 
 times rebelled. Under Mexican rule there was 
 no trial by jury. The alcalde acted as judge 
 and in criminal cases a council of war settled the 
 fate of the criminal. The Rev. Walter Colton, 
 while acting as alcalde of Monterey, in 1846-47, 
 impaneled the first jury ever summoned in Cali- 
 fornia. "The plaintiff and defendant," he writes, 
 "are among the principal citizens of the country. 
 The case was one involving property on the one 
 side and integrity of character on the other. Its 
 merits had been pretty widely discussed,- and 
 had called forth an unusual interest. One-third 
 of the jury were Mexicans, one-third Califor- 
 nians and the other third Americans. This mix- 
 ture may have the better answered the ends of 
 justice, but I was apprehensive at one time it 
 would embarrass the proceedings; for the plaint- 
 iff spoke in English, the defendant in French; 
 the jury, save the Americans, Spanish, and the 
 witnesses, all the languages known to California. 
 By the tact of l\Ir. Hartnell, who acted as inter- 
 preter, and the absence of young lawyers, we 
 got along very well. 
 
 "The examination of witnesses lasted five or 
 six hours. I then gave the case to the jury, 
 stating the questions of fact upon which they 
 were to render their verdict. They retired for 
 an hour and then returned, when the foreman 
 handed in their verdict, which was clear and 
 explicit, though the case itself was rather com- 
 plicated. To this verdict both parties bowed 
 without a word of dissent. The inhabitants who 
 v.'itnessed the trial said it was what they liked, 
 that there could be no bribery in it, that the 
 opinion of twelve honest men should set the 
 case forever at rest. And so it did, though 
 neither party completely triumphed in the issue. 
 One recovered his property, which had been 
 taken from him by mistake, the other his char- 
 acter, which had been slandered by design." 
 
 The process of Americanizing the people was 
 no easy undertaking. The population of the 
 country and its laws were in a chaotic condition. 
 It was an arduous task that Colonel Mason and 
 the mihtary commanders at the various pueblos 
 had to perform, that of evolving order out of 
 the chaos that had been brought about by the 
 change in nations. The native population 
 neither understood the language nor the cus- 
 toms of their new rules, and the newcomers 
 among the Americans had very little toleration 
 for the slow-going Mexican ways and methods 
 they found prevailing. To keep peace between 
 the factions required more tact than knowledge 
 of law, military or civil, in the commanders. 
 
 Los Angeles, under Mexican domination, had 
 been the storm center of revolutions, and here 
 vmder the new regime the most difficulty was 
 encountered in transforming the quondam rev- 
 olutionists into law-abiding and peaceful Amer- 
 ican citizens. The ayuntamiento was convened 
 in 1847, after the conquest, and continued in 
 power until the close of the year. When the 
 time came round for the election of a new ayun- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 151 
 
 tamiento there was trouble. Stephen C. Foster, 
 Colonel Stevenson's interpreter, submitted a 
 paper to the council stating that the govern- 
 ment had authorized him to get up a register of 
 voters. The ayuntamiento voted to return the 
 paper just as it was received. Then the colonel 
 made a demand of the council to assist Stephen 
 in compiling a register of voters. Regidor Cha- 
 vez took the floor and said such a register 
 should not be gotten up under the auspices of 
 the military, but, since the government had so 
 disposed, thereby outraging this honorable 
 body, no attention should be paid to said com- 
 munication. But the council decided that the 
 matter did not amount to much, so they granted 
 the request, much to the disgust of Chavez. 
 The election was held and a new ayuntamiento 
 elected. At the last meeting of the old council, 
 December 29, 1847, Colonel Stevenson ad- 
 dressed a note to it requesting that Stephen C. 
 Foster be recognized as first alcalde and judge 
 of the first instance. The council decided to 
 turn the whole business over to its successor, to 
 deal with as it sees fit. 
 
 Colonel Stevenson's request was made in ac- 
 cordance with the wish of Governor Mason 
 that a part of the civil offices be filled by Amer- 
 icans. The new ayuntamiento resented the in- 
 terference. How the matter terminated is best 
 told in Stephen C. Foster's own words: "Colo- 
 nel Stevenson was determined to have our in- 
 auguration done in style. So on the day ap- 
 pointed, January 'i, 1848, he, together with 
 myself and colleague, escorted by a guard of 
 soldiers, proceeded from the colonel's quarters 
 to the alcalde's office. There we found the re- 
 tiring ayuntamiento and the new one awaiting 
 our arrival. The oath of office was adminis- 
 tered by the retiring first alcalde. We knelt to 
 take the oath, when we found they had changed 
 their minds, and the alcalde told us that if two 
 of their number were to be kicked out they 
 would all go. So they all marched out and left 
 us in possession. Hefe was a dilemma, but 
 Colonel Stevenson was equal to the emergency. 
 He said he could give us a swear as well as the 
 alcalde. So we stood up and he administered 
 to- us an oath to support the constitution of 
 the United States and administer justice in ac- 
 
 cordance with Mexican law. I then knew as 
 much about Mexican law as I did about Chinese, 
 and my colleague knew as much as I did. Guer- 
 rero gathered up the books that pertained to his 
 office and took them to his house, where he 
 established his office,, and I took the archives 
 and records across the street to a house I had 
 rented, and there I was duly installed for the 
 next seventeen months, the first American al- 
 calde and carpet-bagger in Los Angeles." 
 
 Colonel Stevenson issued a call for the elec- 
 tion of a new ayuntamiento, but the people 
 stayed at home and no votes were cast. At the 
 close of the year the voters had gotten over 
 their pet and when a call was made a council 
 was elected, but only Californians (hijos del 
 pais) were returned. The ayuntamientos con- 
 tinued to be the governing power in the pueblos 
 until superseded by city and county govern- 
 ments in 1850. 
 
 The most difficult problem that General Kear- 
 ny in his short term had to confront and, un- 
 solved, he handed down to his successor. Colo- 
 nel Mason, was the authority and jurisdiction 
 of the alcaldes. Under the Mexican regime 
 these officers were supreme in the pueblo over 
 which they ruled. For the Spanish transgressor 
 fines of various degrees were the usual penalty; 
 for the mission neophyte, the lash, well laid on, 
 and labor in the chain gang. There was no 
 written code that defined the amount of pun- 
 ishment; the alcalde meted out justice and some- 
 times injustice, as suited his humor. Kearny 
 appointed John H. Nash alcalde of Sonoma. 
 Nash was a somewhat erratic individual, who 
 had taken part in the Bear Flag revolution. 
 When the offices of the prospective Pacific Re- 
 public were divided among the revolutionists, 
 he was to be the chief justice. After the col- 
 lapse of that short-lived republic, Nash was 
 elected alcalde. His rule was so arbitrary and 
 his decisions so biased by favoritism or preju- 
 dice that the American settlers soon protested 
 and General Kearny removed him or tried to. 
 He appointed L. W. Boggs, a recently arrived 
 immigrant, to the office. Nash refused to sur- 
 render the books and papers of the office. Lieut. 
 W. T. Sherman was detailed by Colonel Mason, 
 after his succession to the office of governor, to 
 
152 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 proceed to Sonoma and arrest Nash. Sherman 
 quietly arrested him at night and before the 
 beUicose alcalde's friends (for he had quite a fol- 
 lowing) were aware of what was going on, 
 marched him off to San Francisco. He was 
 put on board the Dale and sent to Monterey. 
 Finding that it was useless for him to resist the 
 authority of the United States, its army and 
 navy as well, Nash expressed his willingness to 
 submit to the inevitable, and surrendered his 
 office. He was released and ceased from troub- 
 ling. Another strenuous alcalde was William 
 Blackburn, of Santa Cruz. He came to the 
 country in 1845, and before his elevation to the 
 honorable position of a judge of the first in- 
 stance he had been engaged in making shingles 
 in the redwoods. He had no knowledge of law 
 and but little acquaintance with books of any 
 kind. His decisions were always on the side of 
 justice, although some of the penalties imposed 
 were somewhat irregular. 
 
 In Alcalde Blackburn's docket for August 14, 
 1847, appears this entry: "Pedro Gomez was 
 tried for the murder of his wife, Barbara Gomez, 
 and found guilty. The sentence of the court is 
 that the prisoner be conducted back to prison, 
 there to remain until Monday, the i6th of Au- 
 gust, and then be taken out and shot." August 
 17, sentence carried into effect on the i6th ac- 
 cordingly. William Blackburn, Alcalde. 
 
 It does not appear in the records that Black- 
 burn was the executioner. He proceeded to 
 dispose of the two orphaned children of the 
 murderer. The older daughter he indentured to 
 Jacinto Castro "to raise until she is twenty-one 
 years of age, unless sooner married, said Ja- 
 cinto Castro, obligating himself to give her a 
 good education, three cows and calves at her 
 marriage or when of age." The younger daugh- 
 ter was disposed of on similar terms to A. Rod- 
 riguez. Colonel Mason severely reprimanded 
 Blackburn, but the alcalde replied that there 
 was no use making a fuss over it; the man was 
 guilty, he had a fair trial before a jury and de- 
 served to die. Another case in his court illus- 
 trates the versatility of the judge. A Spanish 
 boy, out of revenge, sheared the mane and tail 
 of a neighbor's horse. The offense was proved, 
 
 but the judge was sorely perplexed when he 
 came to sentence the culprit. He could find no 
 law in his law books to fit the case. After pon- 
 dering over the question a while, he gave this 
 decision: "I find no law in any of the statutes 
 to fit this case, except in the law of Moses, 'An 
 eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' Let the 
 prisoner be taken out in front of this office and 
 there sheared close." The sentence was imme- 
 diately executed. 
 
 Another story is told of Blackburn, which 
 may or may not be true. A mission Indian who 
 had committed murder took the right of sanc- 
 tuary in the church, and the padre refused to 
 give him up. Blackburn wrote to the governor, 
 stating the case. The Indian, considering him- 
 self safe while with the padre, left the church 
 in company with the priest. Blackburn seized 
 him, tried him and hung him. He then reported 
 to the governor: "I received your order to sus- 
 pend the execution of the condemned man, but 
 I had hung him. When I see you I will ex- 
 plain the affair." 
 
 Some of the miUtary commanders of the pre- 
 sidios and pueblos gave Governor Mason as 
 much trouble As the alcaldes. These, for the 
 most part, were officers of the volunteers who 
 had arrived after the conquest. They were un- 
 used to "war's alarms," and, being new to 
 the country and ignorant of the Spanish lan- 
 guage, they regarded the natives with suspicion. 
 They were on the lookout for plots and revolu- 
 tions. Sometimes they found these incubating 
 and undertook to crush them, only to discover 
 that the affair was a hoax or a practical joke. 
 The Cafion Perdido (lost cafion) of Santa Bar- 
 bara episode is a good illustration of the 
 trouble one "finicky" man can make when en- 
 trusted with military power. 
 
 In the winter of 1847-48 the American bark 
 Elisabeth was wrecked on the Santa Barbara 
 coast. Among the flotsam of the wreck was a 
 brass cannon of uncertain calibre; it might have 
 been a six, a nine or a twelve pounder. What 
 the capacity of its bore matters not, for the gun 
 unloaded made more noise in Santa Barbara 
 than it ever did when it belched forth shot and 
 shell in battle. The gun, after its rescue from 
 a watery grave, lay for some time on the beach, 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 153 
 
 devoid of carriage and useless, apparently, for 
 offense or defense. 
 
 One dark night a little squad of native Cali- 
 fornians stole down to the beach, loaded the 
 gun in an ox cart, hauled it to the estero and 
 hid it in the sands. What was their object in 
 taking the gun no one knows. Perhaps they 
 did not know themselves. It might come handy 
 m a revolution, or maybe they only intended to 
 play a practical joke on the gringos. Whatever 
 their object, the outcome of their prank must 
 have astonished them. There was a company 
 (F) of Stevenson's New York volunteers sta- 
 tioned at Santa Barbara, under command of 
 Captain Lippett. Lippett was a fussy, nervous 
 individual who lost his head when anything un- 
 usual occurred. In the theft of the cannon he 
 thought he had discovered a CaHfornia revolu- 
 tion in the formative stages, and he determined 
 to crush it in its infancy. He sent post haste a 
 courier to Governor Mason at Monterey,, in- 
 forming him of the prospective uprising of the 
 natives and the possible destruction of the 
 troops at Santa Barbara by the terrible gun the 
 enemy had stolen. 
 
 Colonel Mason, relying on Captain Lippett's 
 report, determined to give the natives a lesson 
 that would teach them to let guns and revolu- 
 tions alone. He issued an order from headquar- 
 ters at Monterey, in which he said that ample 
 time having been allowed for the return of the 
 gun, and the citizens having failed to produce 
 it, he ordered that the town be laid under a con- 
 tribution of $500, assessed in the following man- 
 ner: A capitation tax of $2 on all males over 
 twenty years of age; the balance to be paid by 
 the heads of families and property-holders in the 
 proportion of the value of their respective real 
 and personal estate in the town of Santa Bar- 
 bara and vicinity. Col. J. D. Stevenson was ap- 
 pointed to direct the appraisement of the prop- 
 erty and the collection of the assessment. If 
 any failed to pay his capitation, enough of his 
 property was to be seized and sold to pay his 
 enforced contribution. 
 
 The promulgation of the order at Santa Bar- 
 bara raised a storm of indignation at the old 
 pueblo. Colonel Stevenson came up from Los 
 Angeles and had an interview with Don Pablo 
 
 de La Guerra, a leading citizen of Santa Bar- 
 bara. Don Pablo was wrathfully mdignant at 
 the insult put upon his people, but after talking 
 over the affair with Colonel Stevenson, he be- 
 came somewhat mollified. He invited Colonel 
 Stevenson to make Santa Barbara his headquar- 
 ters and inquired about the brass band at the 
 lower pueblo. Stevenson took the hint and or- 
 dered up the band from Los Angeles. July 4th 
 had been fixed upon as the day for the payment 
 of the fines, doubtless with the idea of giving 
 the Californians a little celebration that would 
 remind them hereafter of Liberty's natal day. 
 Colonel Stevenson contrived to have the band 
 reach Santa Barbara on the night of the 3d. 
 The band astonished Don Pablo and his family 
 with a serenade. The Don was so delighted 
 that he hugged the colonel in the most approved 
 style. The band serenaded all the Dons of note 
 in town and tooted until long after midnight, 
 then started in next morning and kept it up 
 till ten o'clock, the time set for each man to con- 
 tribute his "dos pesos" to the common fund. 
 By that time every hombre on the list was so 
 filled with wine, music and patriotism that the 
 greater portion of the fine was handed over 
 without protest. The day closed with a grand 
 ball. The beauty and the chivalry of Santa Bar- 
 bara danced to the music of a gringo brass 
 band and the brass cannon for the nonce was 
 forgotten. 
 
 But the memory of the city's ransom rankled, 
 and although an American band played Spanish 
 airs, American injustice was still remembered. 
 When the city's survey was made in 1850 the 
 nomenclature of three streets, Cafion Perdido 
 (Lost Cannon street), Quinientos (Five Hun- 
 dred street) and Mason street kept the cannon 
 episode green in the memory of the Barbareiios. 
 When the pueblo, by legislative act, became a 
 ciudad, the municipal authorities selected this 
 device for a seal: In the center a cannon em- 
 blazoned, encircled with these words, Vale 
 Quinientos Pesos — ^Worth $500, or, more liber- 
 ally translated, Good-bye, $500, which, by the 
 way, as the sequel of the story will show, is the 
 better translation. This seal was used from the 
 incorporation of the city in 1850 to i860, when 
 another design was chosen. 
 
154 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOCiRAPMlCAL RECORD. 
 
 After peace was declared, Colonel Mason sent 
 the $500 to the prefect at Santa Barbara, with 
 instructions to use it in building a city jail; and 
 although there was pressing need for a jail, the 
 jail was not built. The prefect's needs were 
 pressing, too. Several years passed; then the 
 city council demanded that the prefect turn the 
 money into the city treasury. H'e replied that 
 the money was entrusted to him for a specific 
 purpose, and he would trust no city treasurer 
 with it. The fact was that long before he had 
 lost it in a game of monte. 
 
 Ten years passed, and the episode of the lost 
 cannon was but a dimly remembered story of 
 the olden time. The old gun reposed peacefully 
 in its grave of sand and those who buried it 
 had forgotten the place of its interment. One 
 stormy night in December, 1858, the estero 
 (creek) cut a new channel to the ocean. In 
 the morning, as some Barbarefios were survey- 
 ing the changes caused by the flood, they saw 
 the muzzle of a large gun protruding from the 
 cut in the bank. They unearthed it, cleaned ofif 
 the sand and discovered that it was El Cahon 
 Perdido, the lost cannon. It was hauled up 
 State street to Cafion Perdido, where it was 
 mounted on an improvised carriage. But the 
 sight of it was a reminder of an unpleasant in- 
 cident. The finders sold it to a merchant for 
 $80. He shipped it to San F'rancisco and sold 
 it at a handsome profit for old brass. 
 
 Governor Pio Pico returned from Mexico to 
 California, arriving at San Gabriel July 17, 1848. 
 Although the treaty of peace between the 
 United States and Mexico had bsen signed and 
 proclaimed, the news had not reached Califor- 
 nia. Pico, from San Fernando, addressed let- 
 ters to Colonel Stevenson at Los Angeles and 
 Governor Mason at Monterey, stating that as 
 Mexican governor of California he had come 
 back to the country with the object of carrying 
 cut the armistice which then existed between 
 the United States and Mexico. He further 
 stated that he had no desire to impede the es- 
 tablishment of peace between the two countries ; 
 and that he wished to see the Mexicans and 
 Americans treat each other in a spirit of frater- 
 nity. Mason did not like Pico's assumption of 
 the title of Mexican governor of California, al- 
 
 though it is not probable that Pico intended td 
 assert any claim to his former position. Gov- 
 ernor Mason sent a special courier to Los An- 
 geles with orders to Colonel Stevenson to 
 arrest the ex-governor, who was then at his 
 Santa Margarita rancho, and send him to Mon- 
 terey, but the news of the ratification of the 
 treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo reached Los An- 
 geles before the arrest was made, and Pico was 
 spared this humiliation. 
 
 The treaty of peace between the United States 
 and Mexico was signed at Guadalupe Hidalgo, 
 a hamlet a few miles from t'ne City of Mexico, 
 February 2, 1848; ratifications were exchanged 
 at Queretaro, May 30 following, and a procla- 
 mation that peace had been established between 
 the two countries was published July 4, 1848. 
 Under this treaty the United States assumed the 
 payment of the claims of American citizens 
 against Mexico, and paid, in addition, $15,000,- 
 000 to Mexico for Texas, New ]\Iexico and 
 Alta California. Out of what was the Mexican 
 territory of Alta California there has been 
 carved all of California, all of Nevada, Utah and 
 Arizona and part of Colorado and Wyoming. 
 The territory acquired by the treaty of Guada- 
 lupe Hidalgo was nearly equal to the aggre- 
 gated area of the thirteen original states at the 
 time of the Revolutionary war. 
 
 The news of the treaty of peace reached Cali- 
 fornia August 6, 1848. On the 7th Governor 
 jNIason issued a proclamation announcing the 
 ratification of the treaty. He announced that 
 all residents of California, who wished to be- 
 come citizens of the United States, were ab- 
 solved from their allegiance to Mexico. Those 
 who desired to retain their Mexican citizenship 
 could do so, provided they signified such inten- 
 tion within one year from ]\Iay 30, 1848. Those 
 ^^■ho wished to go to Mexico were at liberty to 
 do so without passports. Six months before. 
 Governor Mason had issued a proclamation pro- 
 hibiting any citizen of Sonora from entering 
 California except on official business, and then 
 only under flag of truce. He also required all 
 Sonorans in the cotuitry to report themselves 
 either at Los Angeles or ]\Ionterey. 
 
 The war was over; and the treaty of peace 
 had made all who so elected, native or foreign 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 155 
 
 born, American citizens. Strict military rule 
 was relaxed and the people henceforth were to 
 be self-governing. American and Californian 
 were one people and were to enjoy the same 
 rights and to be subject to the same penalties. 
 The war ended, the troops were no longer 
 needed. Orders were issued to muster out the 
 volunteers. These all belonged to Stevenson's 
 New York regiment. The last company of the 
 Mormon battalion had been discharged in April. 
 
 The New York volunteers were scattered all 
 along the coast from Sonoma to Cape St. Lucas, 
 doing garrison duty. They were collected at 
 different points and mustered out. Although 
 those stationed in Alta California had done 
 no fighting, they had performed arduous serv- 
 ice in keeping peace in the conquered territory. 
 Most of them remained in California after their 
 discharge and rendered a good account of them- 
 selves as citizens. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 GOLD! GOLD! GOLD! 
 
 SEBASTIAN VISCAINO, from the bay of 
 Monterey, writing to the King of Spain 
 three hundred years ago, says of the In- 
 dians of California: ''They are well acquainted 
 with gold and silver, and said that these were 
 found in the interior." Viscaino was endeavor- 
 ing to make a good impression on the mind of 
 the king in regard to his discoveries, and the 
 remark about the existence of gold and silver 
 in California was thrown to excite the cupidity 
 of his Catholic majesty. The traditions of the 
 existence of gold in California before any was 
 discovered are legion. Most of these have been 
 evolved since gold was actually found. Col. J. 
 J. Warner, a pioneer of 1831, in his Historical 
 Sketch of Los Angeles County, briefly and very 
 effectually disposes of these rumored discov- 
 eries. He says: "While statements respecting 
 the existence of gold in the earth of California 
 and its procurement therefrom have been made 
 and published as historical facts, carrying back 
 the date of the knowledge of the auriferous 
 character of this state as far as the time of the 
 visit of Sir Francis Drake to this coast, there is 
 no evidence to be found in the written or oral 
 history of the missions, the acts and correspond- 
 ence of the civil or military officers, or in the 
 unwritten and traditioaal history of Upper Cali- 
 fornia that the existence of gold, either with 
 ores or in its virgin state, was ever suspected 
 by any inhabitant of California previous to 1841, 
 and, furthermore, there is conclusive testimony 
 
 that the first known grain of native gold dust 
 was found upon or near the San Francisco ranch, 
 about forty-five miles north-westerly from Los 
 Angeles City, in the month of June, 1841. This 
 discovery consisted of grain gold fields (known 
 as placer mines), and the auriferous fields dis- 
 covered in that year embraced the greater part 
 of the country drained by the Santa Clara river 
 from a point some fifteen or twenty miles from 
 its mouth to its source, and easterly beyond 
 Mount San Bernardino." 
 
 The story of the discovery as told by Warner 
 and by Don Abel Stearns agrees in the main 
 facts, but differing materially in the date. Stearns 
 says gold was first discovered by Francisco 
 Lopez, a native of California, in the month of 
 March, 1842, at a place called San Francisquito, 
 about thirty-five miles northwest from this city 
 (Los Angeles). The circumstances of the dis- 
 covery by Lopez, as related by himself, are as 
 follows: "Lopez, with a companion, was out in 
 search of some stray horses, and about midday 
 they stopped under some trees and tied their 
 horses out to feed, they resting under the shade, 
 when Lopez, with his sheath-knife, dug Up some 
 wild onions, and in the dirt discovered a piece 
 of gold, and, searching further, found some 
 more. He brought these to town, and showed 
 them to his friends, who at once declared there 
 must be a placer of gold. This news being cir- 
 culated, numbers of the citizens went to the 
 place, and commenced prospecting in the neigh- 
 
156 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 borhood, and found it to be a fact thjt diere was 
 a placer of gold." 
 
 Colonel Warner says: "The news of this dis- 
 covery soon spread among the inhabitants from 
 Santa Barbara to Los Angeles, and in a few 
 weeks hundreds of people were engaged in 
 washing and winnowing the sands and earth of 
 these gold fields." 
 
 Warner visited the mines a few weeks after 
 their discovery. He says: "From these mines 
 was obtained the first parcel of California gold 
 dust received at the United States mint in Phila- 
 delphia, and which was sent with Alfred Robin- 
 son, and went in a merchant ship around Cape 
 Horn." This shipment of gold was 18.34 ounces 
 before and 18.1 ounces after melting; fineness, 
 .925; value, $344.75, or over $19 to the ounce, 
 a very superior quality of gold dust. It was 
 deposited in the mint July 8, 1843. 
 
 It may be regarded as a settled historical fact 
 that the first authenticated discovery of gold 
 in Alta California was made on the San Fran- 
 cisco rancho in the San Feliciano Cafion, Los 
 Angeles county. This caiion is about ten miles 
 northwest of Newhall station on the Southern 
 Pacific railroad, and about forty miles northwest 
 of Los Angeles. 
 
 The date of the discovery is in doubt. A peti- 
 tion to the governor (Alvarado) asking permis- 
 sion to work the placers, signed by Francisco 
 Lopez, Manuel Cota and Domingo Bermudez is 
 on file in the California archives. It recites: 
 "That as Divine Providence was pleased to give 
 us a placer of gold on the 9th of last March in 
 the locality of San Francisco rancho, that be- 
 longs to the late Don Antonio del Valle." This 
 petition fixes the day of the month the discovery 
 was made, but unfortunately omits all other 
 dates. The evidence is about equally divided 
 between the years 1841 and 1842. 
 
 It is impossible to obtain definite information 
 in regard to the yield of the San Fernando 
 placers, as these mines are generally called. 
 William Heath Davis, in his "Sixty Years in 
 California," states that from $80,000 to $100,000 
 was taken out for the first two years after their 
 discovery. He says that Melius at one time 
 shipped $S,ooo of dust on the ship Alert. Ban- 
 croft says: "That by December, 1843, two thou- 
 
 sand ounces of gold had been taken from the 
 San Fernando mines." Don Antonio Coronel 
 informed the author that he, with the assistance 
 of three Indian laborers, in 1842, took out $600 
 worth of dust in two months. De Mofras, in his 
 book, states that Carlos Baric, a Frenchman, in 
 1842, was obtaining an ounce a day of pure gold 
 from his placer. 
 
 These mines were worked continuously from 
 the time of their discovery until the American 
 conquest, principally by Sonorians. The dis- 
 covery of gold at Coloma, January 24, 1848, 
 drew away the miners, and no work was done 
 on these mines between 1848 and 1854. After 
 the latter dates work was resumed, and in 1855, 
 Francisco Garcia, working a gang of Indians, 
 is reported to have taken out $65,000 in one 
 season. The mines are not exhausted, but the 
 scarcity of water prevents working them profit- 
 ably. 
 
 It is rather a singular coincidence that the 
 exact dates of both the first and second authen- 
 ticated discoveries of gold in California are still 
 among the undecided questions of history. In 
 the first, we know the day but not the year; in 
 the second, we know the year but not the day 
 of the month on which Marshall picked up the 
 first nuggets in the millrace at Coloma. For a 
 number of years after the anniversary of Mar- 
 shall's discovery began to be observed the 19th 
 of January was celebrated. Of late years Jan- 
 uary 24 has been fixed upon as the correct date, 
 but the Associated Pioneers of the Territorial 
 Days of California, an association made up of 
 men who were in the territory at the time of 
 iVfarshall's discovery or came here before it 
 became a state, object to the change. For nearly 
 thirty years they have held their annual dinners 
 on January 18, "the anniversary of the discovery 
 of gold at Sutter's sawmill, Coloma, Gal." This 
 society has its headquarters in New York City. 
 In a circular recently issued, disapproving of 
 the change of date from the i8th to the 24th, the 
 trustees of that society say: "Upon the organi- 
 zation of this society, February 11, 1875, it was 
 decided to hold its annual dinners on the anni- 
 versary of the discovery of gold at Sutter's saw- 
 mill, Coloma, Gal. Through the Hon. Newton 
 Booth, of the United States Senate, this infer- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 157 
 
 mation was sought, with the result of a commu- 
 nication from the secretary of the state of Cali- 
 fornia to the eft'ect 'that the archives of the 
 state of California recorded the date as of Jan- 
 uary i8, 1848. Some years ago this date was 
 changed by the society at San Francisco to that 
 of January 24, and that date has been adopted 
 by other similar societies located upon the 
 Pacific and Atlantic coasts. This society took 
 the m.atter under advisement, with the result 
 that the new evidence upon which it was pro- 
 posed to change the date was not deemed suffi- 
 cient to justify this society in ignoring its past 
 records, founded on the authority of the state 
 of California; therefore it has never accepted 
 the new date." 
 
 Marshall himself was uncertain about the 
 exact date. At various times he gave three 
 different dates — the i8th, 19th and 20th, but 
 never moved it along as far as the 24th. In the 
 past thirty years three different dates — the i8th, 
 19th and 24th of January — have been celebrated 
 as the anniversary of Marshall's gold dis- 
 covery. 
 
 The evidence upon which the date was changed 
 to the 24th is found in an entry in a diary kept 
 by H. W. Bigler, a Mormon, who was working 
 for Marshall on the millrace at the time gold 
 was discovered. The entry reads: "January 24. 
 This day some kind of metal that looks like 
 goold was found in the tailrace." On this 
 authority about ten years ago the California 
 Pioneers adopted the 24th as the correct date 
 of Marshall's discovery. 
 
 While written records, especially if made at 
 the time of the occurrence of the event, are 
 more reliable than oral testimony given long 
 after, yet when we take into consideration the 
 conflicting stories of Sutter, Marshall, the Win- 
 ners and others who were immediately con- 
 cerned in some way with the discovery, we must 
 concede that the Territorial Pioneers have good 
 reasons to hesitate about making a change in 
 the date of their anniversary. In Dr. Trywhitt 
 Brook's "Four Months Among the Gold Find- 
 ers," a book published in London in 1849, ^^^ 
 long since out of print, we have Sutter's version 
 of Marshall's discovery given only three months 
 after that discovery was made, Dr. Brooks 
 
 visited Sutter's Fort early in May, 1848, and 
 received from Sutter himself the story of the 
 find. Sutter stated that he was sitting in his 
 room at the fort, one afternoon, when Marshall, 
 whom he supposed to be at the mill, forty miles 
 up the American river, suddenly burst in upon 
 him. Marshall was so wildly excited that Sutter, 
 suspecting that he was crazy, looked to see 
 whether his rifle was in reach. Marshall declared 
 that he had made a discovery that would give 
 them both millions and millions of dollars. Then 
 he drew his sack and poured out a handful of 
 nuggets on the table. Sutter, when he had 
 tested the metal and found that it was gold, 
 became almost as excited as Marshall. He 
 eagerly asked if the workmen at the mill knew 
 of the discovery. Marshall declared that he had 
 not spoken to a single person about it. They 
 both agreed to keep it secret. Next day Sutter 
 and Marshall arrived at the sawmill. The day 
 after their arrival, they prospected the bars of 
 the river and the channels of some of the dry 
 creeks and found gold in all. 
 
 "On our return to the mill," says Sutter, "we 
 were astonished by the work-people coming up 
 to us in a body and shovving us some flakes of 
 gold similar to those we had ourselves procured. 
 Marshall tried to laugh the matter off with them, 
 and to persuade them that what they had found 
 was only some shining mineral of trifling value ; 
 but orie of the Indians, who had worked at a 
 gold mine in the neighborhood of La Paz, 
 Lower California, cried out; 'Ora! Oral' (gold! 
 gold!), and the secret was out." 
 
 Captain Sutter continues: "I heard afterward 
 that one of them, a sly Kentuckian, had dogged 
 us about and, that, looking on the ground to see 
 if he could discover what we were in search of, 
 he lighted on some of the flakes himself." 
 
 If this account is correct, Bigler's entry in 
 his diary was made on the day that the workmen 
 found gold, which was five or six days after 
 Marshall's first find, and consequently the 24th 
 is that much too late for the true date of the 
 discovery. The story of the discovery given in 
 the "Life and Adventures of James W. Mar- 
 shall," by George Frederick Parsons, differs 
 materially from Sutter's account. The date of 
 the discovery given in that book is January 19, 
 
158 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1848. On the morning of that day Marshall, 
 after shutting off the water, walked down the 
 tailrace to see what sand and gravel had been 
 removed during the night. (The water was 
 turned into the tailrace during the night to cut 
 it deeper.) While examining a mass of debris, 
 "his eye caught the glitter of something that lay 
 lodged in a crevice on a riffle of soft granite 
 some six inches under water." Picking up the 
 nugget and examining it, he became satisfied 
 that it must be one of three substances — mica, 
 sulphurets of copper, or gold. Its weight satis- 
 fied him that it was not mica. Knowing that 
 gold was malleable, he placed the specimen on 
 a flat rock and struck it with another; it bent, 
 but did not crack or break. He was satisfied 
 that it was gold. He showed the nugget to his 
 men. In the course of a few days he had col- 
 lected several ounces of precious metal. "Some 
 four days after the discovery it became necessary 
 for him to go below, for Sutter had failed to 
 send a supply of provisions to the mill, and the 
 men were on short commons. While on his way 
 down he discovered gold in a ravine at a place 
 afterwards known as Mormon island. Arrived 
 at the fort, he interviewed Sutter in his private 
 office and showed him about three ounces of 
 gold nuggets. Sutter did not believe it to be 
 gold, but after weighing it in scales against $3.25 
 worth of silver, all the coin they could raise at 
 the fort, and testing it with nitric acid obtained 
 from the gun shop, Sutter became^convinced and 
 returned to the mill with Marshall. So little did 
 the workmen at the mill value the discovery that 
 they continued to work for Sutter until the mill 
 was completed, March 11, six weeks after the 
 nuggets were found in the tailrace. 
 
 The news of the discovery spread slowly. It was 
 two months in reaching San Francisco, although 
 the distance is not over one hundred and twenty- 
 five miles. The great rush to the mines from 
 San Francisco did not begin until the middle of 
 May, nearly four months after the discovery. On 
 the loth of May, Dr. Brooks, who was in San 
 Francisco, writes: "A number of people have ac- 
 tually started off with shovels, mattocks and 
 pans to dig the gold themselves. It is not likely, 
 however, that this will be allowed, for Captain 
 Folsom has already written to Colonel Mason 
 
 about taking possession of the mine on behalf of 
 the government,it being, he says, on public land." 
 
 As the people began to realize the richness 
 and extent of the discovery, the excitement in- 
 creased rapidly. May 17, Dr. Brooks writes: 
 "This place (San Francisco) is now in a perfect 
 furore of excitement; all the workpeople have 
 struck. Walking through the town to-day, I 
 observed that laborers were employed only upon 
 about half a dozen of the fifty new buildings 
 which were in course of being run up. The 
 majority of the mechanics at this place are mak- 
 ing preparations for moving off to the mines, 
 and several people of all classes — lawyers, store- 
 keepers, merchants, etc., are smitten with the 
 fever; in fact, there is a regular gold mania 
 springing up. I counted no less than eighteen 
 houses which were closed, the owners having 
 left. If Colonel Mason is moving a force to 
 the American Fork, as is reported here, their 
 journey will be in vain." 
 
 Colonel Mason's soldiers moved without 
 orders — they nearly all deserted, and ran off to 
 the mines. 
 
 The first newspaper announcement of the 
 discovery appeared in The Calif ornian of March 
 15, 1848, nearly two months after the discovery. 
 But little attention was paid to it. In the issue 
 of April 19, another discovery is reported. The 
 item reads: "New gold mine. It is stated that 
 a new gold mine has been discovered on the 
 American Fork of the Sacramento, supposed to 
 be on the land of W. A. Leidesdorflf, of this 
 place. A specimen of the gold has been ex- 
 hibited, and is represented to be very pure." 
 On the 29th of May, The Californian had sus- 
 pended publication. "Othello's occupation is 
 gone," wails the editor. "The majority of our 
 subscribers and many of our advertising patrons 
 have closed their doors and places of business 
 and left town, and we have received one order 
 after another conveying the pleasant request that 
 the printer will please stop my paper or my ad, 
 as I am about leaving for Sacramento." 
 
 The editor of the other paper, The California 
 Star, made a pilgrimage to the mines in the lat- 
 ter part of April, but gave them no extended 
 v/rite-up. "Great country, fine climate," he wrote 
 on his return. "Full flowing streams, mighty 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 159 
 
 timber^ large crops, luxuriant clover, fragrant 
 flowers, gold and silver," were his comments on 
 what he saw. The policy of both papers seems 
 to have been to ignore as much as possible the 
 gold discovery. To give it publicity was for a 
 time, at least, to lose their occupation. 
 
 In The Star of May 20, 1848, its eccentric 
 editor, E.' C. Kemble, under the caption "El 
 Dorado Anew," discourses in a dubious manner 
 upon the effects of the discovery and the extent 
 of the gold fields: "A terrible visitant we have 
 had of late. A fever which has well-nigh de- 
 populated a town, a town hard pressing upon a 
 thousand souls, and but for the gracious inter- 
 position of the elements, perhaps not a goose 
 would have been spared to furnish a quill to pen 
 the melancholy fate of the remainder. It has 
 preyed upon defenseless old age, subdued the 
 elasticity of careless youth and attacked indis- 
 criminately sex and class, from town councilman 
 to tow-frocked cartman, from tailor to tippler, 
 of which, thank its pestilential powers^ it has 
 beneficially drained (of tipplers, we mean) every 
 villainous pulperia in the place. 
 
 "And this is the gold fever, the only form of 
 that popular southerner, yellow jack, with which 
 we can be alarmingly threatened. The insatiate 
 maw of the monster, not appeased by the easy 
 conquest of the rough-fisted yeomanry of the 
 north, must needs ravage a healthy, prosperous 
 place beyond his dominion and turn the town 
 topsy-turvy in a twinkling. 
 
 "A fleet of launches left this place on Sunday 
 and Monday last bound up the Sacramento river, 
 close stowed with human beings, led by love of 
 filthy lucre to the perennial yielding gold mines 
 of the north. When any man can find two ounces 
 a day and two thousand men can find their 
 hands full, of work, was there ever anything so 
 superlatively silly! 
 
 "Honestly, though, we are inclined to believe 
 the reputed wealth of that section of country, 
 thirty miles in extent, all sham, a superb take-in 
 as w^s ever got up to guzzle the gullible. But 
 it is not improbable that this mine, or, properly, 
 placer of gold can be traced as far south as the 
 city of Los Angeles, where the precious metal 
 has been found for a -number of years in the bed 
 of a stream issuing from its mountains, said 
 
 to be a continuation of this gold chain which 
 courses southward froni the base of the snowy 
 mountains. But our best information respecting 
 the metal and the quantity in which it is gath- 
 ered varies much from many reports current, yet 
 it is beyond a question that no richer mines of 
 gold have ever been discovered upon this con- 
 tinent. 
 
 "Should there be no paper forthcoming on 
 Saturday next, our readers may assure them- 
 selves it will not be the fault of us individually. 
 To make the matter public, already our devil has 
 rebelled, our pressman (poor fellow) last seen 
 was in search of a pickaxe, and we feel like Mr. 
 Hamlet, we shall never again look upon the 
 likes of him. Then, too, our compositors have, 
 in defiance, sworn terrible oaths against type- 
 sticking as vulgar and unfashionable. Hope has 
 not yet fled us, but really, in the phraseology 
 of the day, 'things is getting curious.' " 
 
 And things kept getting more and more curi^- 
 ous. The rush increased. The next issue of 
 The Star (May 27) announces that the Sacra- 
 mento, a first-class craft, left here Thursday last 
 thronged with passengers for the gold mines, 
 a motley assemblage, composed of lawyers, mer- 
 chants, grocers, carpenters, cartmen and cooks, 
 all possessed with the desire of becoming rich. 
 The latest accounts from the gold country are 
 highly flattering. Over three hundred men are 
 engaged in washing gold, and numbers are con- 
 tinually arriving from every part of the country. 
 Then the editor closes with a wail: "Persons 
 recently arrived from the country speak of 
 ranches deserted and crops neglected and suf- 
 fered to waste. The unhappy consequence of 
 this state of affairs is easily foreseen. One more 
 twinkle, and The Star disappeared in the gloom. 
 On June 14 appeared a single sheet, the size of 
 foolscap. The editor announced: "In fewer 
 words than are usually employed in the an- 
 nouncement of similar events, we appear before 
 the remnant of a reading community on this 
 occasion with the material or immaterial in- 
 formation that we have stopped the paper, that 
 its publication ceased with the last regular issue 
 (June 7). On the approach of autumn, we shall 
 again appear to announce The Star's redivus. 
 We have done. Let our parting word be hasto 
 
IfiO 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 luego." (Star and Califorman reappeared No- 
 vember 14, 1848. The Star had absorbed The 
 Californian. E. C. Kemble was its editor and 
 proprietor.) 
 
 Although there was no paper in existence on 
 the coast to spread the news from the gold 
 fields, it found its way out of California, and 
 the rush from abroad began. It did not acquire 
 great force in 1848, but in 1849 the immigration 
 to California exceeded all previous migrations 
 in the history of the race. 
 
 Among the first foreigners to rush to the 
 mines were the Mexicans of Sonora. Many of 
 these had had some experience in placer mining 
 in their native country, and the report of rich 
 placers in California, where gold could be had 
 for the picking up, aroused them from their lazy 
 self-content and stimulated them to go in search 
 of it. Traveling in squads of from fifty to one 
 hundred, they came by the old Auza trail across 
 the Colorado desert, through the San Gorgonio 
 Pass, then up the coast and on to the mines. 
 They were a job lot of immigrants, poor in purse 
 and poor in brain. They were despised by the 
 native Californians and maltreated by the Amer- 
 icans. Their knowledge of mining came in play, 
 and the more provident among them soon man- 
 aged to pick up a few thousand dollars, and then 
 returned to their homes, plutocrats. The im- 
 provident gambled away their earnings and re- 
 mained in the country to add to its criminal ele- 
 ment. The Oregoniaus came in force, and all 
 the towns in California were almost depopulated 
 of their male population. By the close of 1848, 
 there were ten thousand men at work in the 
 mines. 
 
 The first official report of the discovery was 
 sent to Washington by Thomas O. Larkin, June 
 I, and reached its destination about the middle 
 of September. Lieutenant Beale, by way of 
 ^Mexico, brought dispatches dated a month later, 
 which arrived about the same time as Larkin's 
 report. These accounts were published in the 
 eastern papers, and the excitement began. 
 
 In the early part of December, Lieutenant 
 Loeser arrived at Washington with Governor 
 Mason's report of his observations in the mines 
 made in August. But the most positive evidence 
 was a tea caddy of gold dust containing about 
 
 two hundred and thirty ounces that Governor 
 Mason had caused to be purchased in the mines 
 with money from the civil service fund. This the 
 lieutenant had brought with him. It was placed 
 on exhibition at the war office. Here was tan- 
 gible evidence of the existence of gold in Cali- 
 fornia, the doubters were silenced and the ex- 
 citement was on and the rush began. 
 
 By the ist of January, 1849, vessels were fit- 
 ling out in every seaport on the Atlantic coast 
 and the Gulf of Mexico. Sixty ships were an- 
 nounced to sail from New York in February and 
 seventy from Philadelphia and Boston. All kinds 
 of crafts were pressed into the service^ some to 
 go by way of Cape Horn, others to land their 
 passengers at Vera Cruz, Nicaragua and Pana- 
 ma, the voyagers to take their chances on the 
 Pacific side for a passage on some unknown 
 vessel. 
 
 With opening of spring, the overland travel 
 began. Forty thousand men gathered at differ- 
 ent points on the Missouri river, but principally 
 at St. Joseph and Independence. Horses, mules, 
 oxen and cows were used for the propelling 
 power of the various forms of vehicles that were 
 to convey the provisions and other impedimenta 
 of the army of gold seekers. By the 1st of May 
 the grass was grown enough on the plains to 
 furnish feed for the stock, and the vanguard of 
 the grand army of gold hunters started. For 
 two months, company after company left the 
 rendezvous and joined the procession until for 
 one thousand miles there was an almost un- 
 broken line of wagons and pack trains. The 
 first half of the journey was made with little 
 inconvenience, but on the last part there was 
 great suffering and loss of life. The cholera 
 broke out among them, and it is estimated that 
 five thousand died on the plains. The alkali 
 desert of the Humboldt was the place where the 
 immigrants suffered most. Exhausted by the 
 long journey and weakened by lack of food, 
 many succumbed under the hardship of the des- 
 ert journey and died. The crowing of the Sierras 
 was attended with great hardships. From the 
 loss of their horses and oxen, many were com- 
 pelled to cross the mountains on foot. Their 
 provisions exhausted, they would have perished 
 but for relief sent out from California. The 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 161 
 
 greatest sufferers were the woman and children, 
 who in considerable numbers made the perilous 
 journey. 
 
 The overland immigration of 1850 exceeded 
 that of 1849. According to record kept at Fort 
 Laramie, there passed that station during the 
 season thirty-nine thousand men, two thousand 
 five hundred women and six hundred children, 
 making a total of forty-two thousand one hun- 
 dred persons. These immigrants had with them 
 when passing Fort Laramie twenty-three thou- 
 sand horses, eight thousand mules, three thou- 
 sand six hundred oxen, seven thousand cows 
 and nine thousand wagons. 
 
 Besides those coming by the northern route, 
 that is by the South Pass and the Humboldt 
 river, at least ten thousand found their way to 
 the land of gold by the old Spanish trail, by the 
 Gila route and by Texas, Coahuila and Chihua- 
 hua into Arizona, and thence across the Colo- 
 rado desert to Los Angeles, and from there by 
 the coast route or the San Joaquin valley to the 
 mines. 
 
 The Pacific Mail Steamship Company had 
 been organized before the discovery of gold in 
 California. , March 3, 1847, an act of Congress 
 was passed authorizing the secretary of the navy 
 to advertise for bids to carry the United States 
 mails by one line of steamers between New 
 York and Chagres, and'by another line between 
 Panama and Astoria, Ore. On the Atlantic side 
 the contract called for five ships of one thousand 
 five hundred tons burden, on the Pacific side two 
 of one thousand tons each, and one of six hun- 
 dred tons. These were deemed sufficient for the 
 trade and travel between the Atlantic and Pacific 
 coasts of the United States. The Pacific Mail 
 Steamship Company was incorporated April 12, 
 1848, with a capital stock of $500,000. October 
 6, 1848, the California, the first steamer for the 
 Pacific, sailed from New York, and was followed 
 in the two succeeding months by the Oregon 
 and the Panama. The California sailed before 
 the news of the gold discovery had reached New 
 York, and she had taken no passengers. When 
 she, arrived at Panama, January 30, 1849, she 
 encountered a rush of fifteen hundred gold hunt- 
 ers, clamorous for a passage. These had reached 
 Chagres 00 sailing vessels, and ascended the 
 11 
 
 Chagres river in bongos or dugouts to Gor- 
 gona, and from thence by land to Panama. The 
 California had accommodations for only one 
 hundred, but four hundred managed to find 
 some place to stow themselves away. The price 
 of tickets rose to a fabulous sum, as high as 
 $1,000 having been paid for a steerage passage. 
 The Cahfornia entered the bay of San Francisco 
 February 28, 1849, ^"^ was greeted by the boom 
 of cannon and the cheers of thousands of people 
 lining the shores of the bay. The other two 
 steamers arrived on time, and the Pacific Mail 
 Steamship Company became the predominant 
 factor in California travel for twenty years, or up 
 to the completion of the first transcontinental 
 railroad in 1869. The charges for fare on these 
 steamers in the early '50s were prohibitory to 
 men of small means. From New York to 
 Chagres in the saloon the fare was $150, in the 
 cabin $120. From Panama to San Francisco in 
 the saloon, $250; cabin, $200. Add to these the 
 expense of crossing the isthmus, and the argo- 
 naut was out a goodly sum when he reached the 
 land of the golden fleece, indeed, he was often 
 fleeced of his last dollar before he entered the 
 Golden Gate. 
 
 The first effect of the gold discovery on San 
 Francisco, as we have seen, was to depopulate 
 it, and of necessity suspend all building opera- 
 tions. In less than three months the reaction 
 began, and the city experienced one of the most 
 magical booms in history. Real estate doubled 
 in some instances in twenty-four hours. The 
 Calif ornian of September 3, 1848, says: "The 
 vacant lot on the corner of Montgomery and 
 Washington streets was offered the day previous 
 for $5,000 and next day sold readily for $10,000." 
 Lumber went up in value until it was sold at a 
 dollar per square foot. Wages kept pace with 
 the general advance. Sixteen dollars a day was 
 mechanic's wages, and the labor market was not 
 overstocked even at these high rates. With the 
 approach of winter, the gold seekers came flock- 
 ing back to the city to find shelter and to spend 
 their suddenly acquired wealth. The latter was 
 easily accomphshed, but the former was more 
 difficult. Any kind of a shelter that would keep 
 out the rain was utilized for a dwelling. Rows 
 of tents that circled around the business por- 
 
162 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BICX^RAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tion, shanties patched together from pieces of 
 packing boxes and sheds thatched with brush 
 from the chaparral-covered hills constituted 
 the principal dwellings at that time of the future 
 metropolis of California. The yield of the mines 
 for 1848 has been estimated at ten milHon 
 dollars. This was the result of only a few 
 months' labor of not to exceed at any time ten 
 thousand men. The rush of miners did not 
 reach the mines until July, and mining opera- 
 tions were mainly suspended by the middle of 
 October. 
 
 New discoveries had followed in quick suc- 
 cession iVlarshairs find at Coloma until by the 
 close of 1848 gold placers had been located on 
 all the principal tributaries of the Sacramento 
 and San Joaquin rivers. Some of the richest 
 yields were obtained from what was known as 
 "Dry Diggins." These were dry ravines from 
 which pay dirt had to be packed to water for 
 washing or the gold separated by dry washing, 
 tossing the earth into the air until it was 
 blown away by the wind, the gold, on account 
 of its weight, remaining in the pan. 
 
 A correspondent of the CaUfornian, writing 
 August 15, 1848, from what he designates as 
 "Dry Diggins," gives this account of the rich- 
 ness of that gold field: "At the lower mines 
 (Mormon Island) the miners count the success 
 of the day in dollars; at the upper mines near 
 the mill (Coloma), in ounces, and here in 
 pounds. The only instrument used at first was 
 a butcher knife, and the demand for that ar- 
 ticle was so great that $40 has been refused 
 for one. 
 
 "The earth is taken out of the ravines which 
 make out of the mountains and is carried in 
 wagons or packed on horses from one to three 
 miles to water and washed. I"our hundred dol- 
 lars is the average to the cart load. In one in- 
 stance five loads yielded $16,000. Instances are 
 known here where men have carried the earth 
 on their backs and collected from $800 to $1,500 
 a day." 
 
 The rapidity with which the country was ex- 
 plored by prospectors was truly remarkable. 
 The editor of the CaUfornian, who had sus- 
 pended the publication of his paper on May 29 
 to visit the mines^ returned and resumed it on 
 July 15 (1848). In an editorial in that issue he 
 gives his observations: "The country from the 
 Ajuba (Yuba) to the San Joaquin rivers, a dis- 
 tance of one hundred and twenty miles, and 
 from the base toward the summit of the moun- 
 tains as far as Snow Hill, about seventy miles, 
 has been explored, and gold found in every 
 part. There are probably three thousand men, 
 including Indians^ engaged in -collecting gold. 
 The amount collected by each man who works 
 ranges from $10 to $350 per day. The publisher 
 of this paper, while on a tour alone to the min- 
 ing district, collected, with the aid of a shovel, 
 pick and pan, from $44 to $128 a day, averag- 
 ing about $100. The largest piece of gold 
 known to be found weighed four pounds." 
 Among other remarkable yields the CaUfornian 
 reports these: "One man dug $12,000 in six 
 days, and three others obtained thirty-six 
 pounds of pure metal in one day." 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 MAKING A STATE. 
 
 COL. R. B. MASON, who had been 
 the military governor of California since 
 the departure of General Kearny in 
 May, 1847, had grown weary of his task. He 
 had been in the military service of his country 
 thirty years and wished to be relieved. His 
 request was granted, and on the 12th of April, 
 1849, Brevet Brigadier General Bennett Riley, 
 
 his successor, arrived at Monterey and the next 
 day entered upon his duties as civil governor. 
 Gen. Persifer F. Smith, who had been appointed 
 commander of the Pacific division of the United 
 States army, arrived at San Francisco Febru- 
 ary 26, 1849, and relieved Colonel Mason of 
 his military command. A brigade of troops 
 six hundred and fifty strong had been sent to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 163 
 
 California for military service on the .border 
 and to maintain order. Most of these promptly 
 deserted as soon as an opportunity offered and 
 found their way to the mines. 
 
 Colonel Mason, who under the most trying 
 circumstances had faithfully served his govern- 
 ment and administered justice to the people of 
 California, took his departure May i, 1849. 
 The same year he died at St. Louis of cholera. 
 A year had passed since the treaty of peace 
 with Mexico had been signed, which made Cali- 
 fornia United States territory, but Congress 
 had done nothing toward giving it a govern- 
 ment. The anomalous condition existed of citi- 
 zens of the United States, living in the United 
 States, being governed by Mexican laws admin- 
 istered by a mixed constituency of Mexican- 
 born and American-born officials. The pro- 
 slavery element in Congress was determined to 
 foist the curse of human slavery on a portion 
 of the territory acquired from Mexico, but the 
 discovery of gold and the consequent rush of 
 freemen to the territory had disarranged the 
 plans of the slave-holding faction in Congress, 
 and as a consequence all legislation was at a 
 standstill. 
 
 The people were becoming restive at the long 
 delay. The Americanized Mexican laws and 
 forms of government were unpopular and it 
 was humiliating to the conqueror to be gov- 
 erned by the laws of the people conquered. 
 The question of calling a conventiopi to form a 
 provisional government was agitated by the 
 newspapers and met a hearty response from the 
 people. Meetings were held at San Jose, De- 
 cember II, 1848; at San Francisco, December 
 21, and at Sacramento, January 6, 1849, ^° 
 consider the question of establishing a pro- 
 visional government. It was recommended by 
 the San Jose meeting that a convention be held 
 at that place on the second Monday of January. 
 The San Francisco convention recommended 
 the 5th of March; this the Monterey committee 
 considered too early as it would take the dele- 
 gates from below fifteen days to reach the pu- 
 eblo of San Jose. There was no regular mail 
 and the, roads in February (when the delegates 
 would have to start) were impassable. The 
 committee recprnmended May i as the earliest 
 
 date for the meeting to consider the question of 
 calling of a convention. Sonoma, without wait- 
 ing, took the initiative and elected ten delegates 
 to a provisional government convention. There 
 was no unanimity in regard to the time of meet- 
 ting or as to what could be done if the conven- 
 tion met. It was finally agreed to postpone the 
 time of meeting to the first Monday of August, 
 when, if Congress had done nothing towards 
 giving California some form of government bet- 
 ter than that existing, the convention should 
 meet and organize a provisional government. 
 
 The local government of San Francisco had 
 become so entangled and mixed up by various 
 councils that it was doubtful whether it had 
 any legal legislative body. When the term of 
 the first council, which had been authorized 
 by Colonel Mason in 1848, was about^to ex- 
 pire an election was held December 27, to 
 choose their successors. Seven new council- 
 men were chosen. The old council declared 
 the election fraudulent and ordered a new one. 
 An election was held, notwithstanding the pro- 
 test of a number of the best citizens, and an- 
 other council chosen. So the city was blessed 
 or cursed with three separate and distinct coun- 
 cils. The old council voted itself out of ex- 
 istence and then there were but two, but that 
 was one too many. Then the people, disgusted 
 with the condition of affairs, called a public 
 meeting, at which it was decided to elect 'a 
 legislative assembly of fifteen members, who 
 should be empowered to make the necessary 
 laws for the government of the city. An election 
 was held on the 21st of February; 1849, and a 
 legislative assembly and justices elected. Then 
 Alcalde Levenworth refused to turn over the 
 city records to the Chief Magistrate-elect Nor- 
 ton. On the 22d of March the legislative as- 
 sembly abolished the office of alcalde, but 
 Levenworth still held on to the records. He 
 was finally compelled by public opinion and a 
 writ of replevin to surrender the official records 
 to Judge Norton. The confusion constantly 
 arising from the attempt to carry on a govern- 
 ment that was semi-military and semi-Mexican 
 induced Governor Riley to order an election to 
 be held August ist, to elect delegates to a 
 convention to meet in Monterey September ist. 
 
164 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1849, to form a state constitution or territorial 
 organization to be ratified by the people and 
 submitted to Congress for its approval. Judges, 
 prefects and alcaldes were to be elected at the 
 same time in the principal municipal districts. 
 The constitutional convention was to consist of 
 thirty-seven delegates, apportioned as follows: 
 San Diego two, Los Angeles four, Santa Bar- 
 bara two, San Luis Obispo two, Monterey five, 
 San Jose five, San Francisco five, Sonoma four, 
 Sacramento four, and San Joaquin four. In- 
 stead of thirty-seven delegates as provided for 
 in the call, forty-eight were elected and seated. 
 
 The convention met September i, 1849, at 
 Monterey in Colton Hall. This was a stone 
 building erected by Alcalde Walter Colton for 
 a town hall and school house. The money to 
 build it was derived partly from fines and partly 
 from subscriptions, the prisoners doing the 
 greater part of the work. It was the most 
 commodious public building at that time in the 
 territory. 
 
 Of the forty-eight delegates elected twenty- 
 two were natives of the northern states; fifteen 
 of the slave states; four were of foreign birth, 
 and seven were native Californians. Several of 
 the latter neither spoke nor understood the 
 EngUsh language and William E. P. Hartnell 
 was appointed interpreter. Dr. Robert Semple 
 of Bear Flag fame was elected president, Will- 
 iam G. Marcy and J. Ross Browne reporters. 
 
 Early in the session the slavery question was 
 disposed of by the adoption of a section declar- 
 ing that neither slavery or involuntary servitude, 
 unless for the punishment of crimes, shall ever 
 be tolerated in this state. The question of fix- 
 ing the boundaries of the future state excited 
 the most discussion. The pro-slavery faction 
 was led by William M. Gwin, who had a few 
 months before migrated from Tennessee to 
 California with the avowed purpose of repre- 
 senting the new state in the United States sen- 
 ate. The scheme of Gwin and his southern as- 
 sociates was to make the Rocky mountains the 
 eastern boundary. This would create a state 
 with an era of about four hundred thousand 
 square miles. They reasoned that when the 
 admission of the state came before congress the 
 southern members would oppose the admission 
 
 of so large an area under a free state constitu- 
 tion and that ultimately a compromise might 
 be effected. California would be split in two 
 from east to west, the old dividing line, the 
 parallel of 36° 30', would be established and 
 Southern California come into the Union as a 
 slave state. There were at that time fifteen 
 free and fifteen slave states. If two states, one 
 free and one slave, could be made out of CaHfor- 
 nia, the equilibrium between the opposing fac- 
 tions would be maintained. The Rocky moun- 
 tain boundary was at one time during the ses- 
 sion adopted, but in the closing days of the 
 session the free state men discovered Gwin's 
 scheme and it was defeated. The present boun- 
 daries were established by a majority of two. 
 
 A committee had been appointed to receive 
 propositions and designs for a state seal. Only 
 one design was offered. It was presented by 
 Caleb Lyon of Lyondale, as he usually signed 
 his name, but was drawn by Major Robert S. 
 Garnett, an army officer. It contained a figure 
 of Minerva in the foreground, a grizzly bear 
 feeding on a bunch of grapes; a miner with an 
 uplifted pick; a gold rocker and pan; a view of 
 the Golden Gate with ships riding at anchor 
 in the Bay of San Francisco; the peaks of the 
 Sierra Nevadas in the distance; a sheaf of wheat; 
 thirty-one stars and above all the word 
 "Eureka" (I have found it), which might apply 
 either to the miner or the bear. The design 
 seems to have been an attempt to advertise the 
 resources of the state. General Vallejo wanted 
 the bear taken out of the design, or if allowed 
 to remain, that he be made fast by a lasso in the 
 hands of a vaquero. This amendment was re- 
 jected, as was also one submitted by O. M. 
 Wozencraft to strike out the figures of the gold 
 digger and the bear and introduce instead bales 
 of merchandise and bags of gold. The original 
 design was adopted with the addition of the 
 words, "The Great Seal of the State of Califor- 
 nia." The convention voted to give Lyon $1,000 
 as full compensation for engraving the seal and 
 furnishing the press and all appendages. 
 
 Garnett, the designer of the seal, was a Vir- 
 ginian by birth. He graduated from West 
 Point in 1841, served through the Mexican war 
 and through several of the Indian wars on the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 165 
 
 Pacific coast. At the breaking out of the re- 
 bellion in 1861 he joined the Confederates and 
 was made a brigadier general. He was killed 
 at the battle of Carrick's Ford July 15, 1861. 
 
 The constitution was completed on the nth 
 of October and an election was called by Gov- 
 ernor Riley to be held on the 13th of November 
 to vote upon the adoption of the constitution 
 and to elect state officers, a legislature and mem- 
 bers of congress. 
 
 At the election Peter H. Burnett, recently 
 from Oregon territory, who had been quite 
 active in urging the organization of a state gov- 
 ernment, was chosen governor; John McDou- 
 gall, lieutenant governor, and George W. 
 .Wright and Edward Gilbert members of con- 
 gress. San Jose had been designated by the 
 constitutional convention the capital of the state 
 pro tem. 
 
 The people of San Jose had pledged them- 
 selves to provide a suitable building for the 
 meeting of the legislature in hopes that their 
 town might be made the permanent capital. 
 They were unable to complete the building de- 
 signed for a state capital in time for the meet- 
 ing. The uncomfortable quarters furnished 
 created a great deal of dissatisfaction. The leg- 
 islature consisted of sixteen senators and thirty- 
 six assemblymen. There being no county or- 
 ganization, the members were elected by 
 districts. The representation was not equally 
 distributed; San Joaquin district had more sen- 
 ators than San Francisco. The senate and as- 
 sembly were organized on the 17th of Decem- 
 ber. E. K. Chamberlain of San Diego was 
 elected president pro tem. of the senate and 
 Thomas J. White of Sacramento speaker of the 
 assembly. The governor and lieutenant-gov- 
 ernor were sworn in on the 20th. The state 
 government being organized the legislature 
 proceeded to the election of United States sen- 
 ators. The candidates were T. Butler King, 
 John C. Fremont, William M. Gwin, Thomas 
 J. Henly, John W. Geary, Robert Semple and 
 H. W. Halleck. Fremont received twenty-nine 
 out of forty-six votes on the first ballot and was 
 declared elected. Of the aspirants, T. Butler 
 King and William M. Gwin represented the 
 ultra pro-slavery element. King was a cross- 
 
 roads politician from down in Georgia, who 
 had been sent to the coast as a confidential 
 agent of the government. The officers of the 
 army and navy were enjoined to "in all matters 
 aid and assist him in carrying out the views of 
 the government and be guided by his advice and 
 council in the conduct of all proper measures 
 within the scope of those instructions." He 
 made a tour of the mines, accompanied by Gen- 
 eral Smith and his staff; Commodore Ap Catesby 
 Jones and staff and a cavalry escort under Lieu- 
 tenant Stoneman. He wore a black stovepipe 
 hat and a dress coat. He made himself the 
 laughing stock of the miners and by traveling 
 in the heat of the day contracted a fever that 
 very nearly terminated his existence. He had 
 been active so far as his influence went in trying 
 to bring California into the Union with the hope 
 of representing it in the senate. Gwin had 
 come a few months before from Mississippi with 
 the same object in view. Although the free 
 state men were in the majority in the legislature 
 they recognized the fact that to elect two sena- 
 tors opposed to the extension of slavery would 
 result in arraying the pro-slavery faction in con- 
 gress against the admission of the state into 
 the Union. Of the two representatives of the 
 south, Gwin was the least objectionable and on 
 the second ballot he was elected. On the 
 2ist Governor Burnett delivered his message. 
 It was a wordy document, but not marked by 
 any very brilliant ideas or valuable suggestions. 
 Burnett was a southerner from Missouri. He 
 was hobbled on the subject of the exclusion of 
 free negroes. The African, free to earn his own 
 living unrestrained by a master, was, in his 
 opinion, a menace to the perpetuity of the com- 
 monwealth. 
 
 On the 22d the legislature elected the remain- 
 ing state officers, viz.: Richard Roman, treas- 
 urer; John I. Houston, controller; E. J. C. 
 Kewen, attorney general; Charles J. Whiting, 
 surveyor-general; S. C. Hastings, chief jus- 
 tice; Henry Lyons and Nathaniel Bennett, as- 
 sociate justices. The legislature continued in 
 session until April 22, 1850. Although it was 
 nicknamed the "Legislature of a thousand 
 drinks," it did a vast amount of work and did 
 most of it well. It was not made up of hard 
 
1G6 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 drinkers. The majority of its members were 
 above the average legislator in intelligence, 
 temperance and patriotism. The members were 
 not there for payorfor political preferment. They 
 were there for the good of their adopted state and 
 labored conscientiously for its benefit. The op- 
 probrious nickname is said to have originated 
 thus: A roystering individual by the name of 
 Green had been elected to the senate from Sac- 
 ramento as a joke. He regarded the whole pro- 
 ceedings as a huge joke. He kept a supply of 
 liquors on hand at his quarters and when the 
 legislature adjourned he was in the habit of call- 
 ing: "Come, boys, let us take a thousand 
 drinks." 
 
 The state had set up housekeeping without a 
 cent on hand to defray expenses. There was not 
 a quire of paper, a pen, nor an inkstand belong- 
 ing to the state and no money to buy supplies. 
 After wrestling with the financial problem some 
 time an act authorizing a loan of $200,000 for 
 current expenses was passed. Later on in the 
 session another act was passed authorizing the 
 bonding of the state for $300,000 with interest 
 at the rate of three per cent a month. The 
 legislature divided the state into twenty-seven 
 counties, created nine judicial districts, passed 
 laws for the collection of revenue, taxing all 
 real and personal property and imposing a poll 
 tax of $5 on all male inhabitants' over twen- 
 ty-one and under fifty years of age. 
 
 California was a self-constituted state. It 
 had organized a state government and put it into 
 successful operation without the sanction of 
 congress. Officials, state, county and town, had 
 been elected and had sworn to support the con- 
 stitution of the state of California and yet there 
 was really no state of California. It had not 
 been admitted into the Union. It was only a 
 state de facto and it continued in that condition 
 nine months before it became a state de jure. 
 
 '(A'heii the question of admitting California 
 in'.o the Union came before congress it evoked 
 a bitter controversy. The senate was equally 
 divided, thirty senators from the slave states 
 and the same number from the free. There 
 were among the southern senators some broad 
 minded and patriotic men, willing to do what 
 was right, but they were handicapped by an 
 
 ultra pro-slavery faction, extremists, who 
 would willingly sacrifice the Union if by that 
 they could extend and perpetuate that sum of 
 all villainies, human slavery. This faction in 
 the long controversy resorted to every known 
 parHamentary device to prevent the admission of 
 California under a free state constitution. To 
 admit two senators from a free state would de- 
 stroy the balance of power. That gone, it could 
 never be regained by the south. The north was 
 increasing in power and population, while the 
 south, under the bhghting influence of slavery, 
 was retrograding. 
 
 Henry Clay, the man of compromises, under- 
 took to bridge over the difficulty by a set of 
 resolutions known as the Omnibus bill. These 
 were largely concessions to the slave holding 
 faction for the loss of the territory acquired by 
 the Mexican war. Among, others was this, that 
 provision should be made by law for the restitu- 
 tion of fugitive slaves in any state or territory 
 of the Union. This afterward was embodied 
 into what was known as the fugitive slave law 
 and did more perhaps than any other cause to 
 destroy the south's beloved institution. 
 
 These resolutions were debated through 
 many months and were so amended and changed 
 that their author could scarcely recognize them. 
 Most of them were adopted in some form and 
 effected a temporary compromise. 
 
 On August 13th the bill for the admission 
 of California finally came to a vote. It passed 
 the senate, thirty-four ayes to eighteen noes. 
 Even then the opposition did not cease. Ten 
 of the southern pro-slavery extremists, led by 
 Jefferson Davis, joined in a protest against the 
 action of the majority, the language of which 
 was an insult to the senate and treason to the 
 government. In the house the bill passed by a 
 vote of one hundred and fifty ayes to fifty-six 
 ultra southern noes. It was approved and signed 
 by President Fillmore September 9, 1850. On 
 the nth of September the California senators 
 and congressmen presented themselves to be 
 sworn in. The slave holding faction in the sen- 
 ate, headed by Jefferson Davis, who had been 
 one of the most bitter opponents to the admis- 
 sion, objected. But their protest availed them 
 nothing. Their ascendency was gone. We 
 
HISTORFCAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1G7 
 
 might sympathize with them had their fight 
 been made for a noble principle, but it was not. 
 From that day on until the attempt was made 
 in 1861 these men schemed to destroy the 
 Union. The admission of California as a free 
 state was the beginning of the slave holders' re^ 
 bellion. 
 
 The news of the admission of California 
 reached San Francisco on the morning of Oc- 
 tober 18, by the mail steamer Oregon, nearly six 
 weeks after congress had admitted it. Business 
 was at once suspended, the courts were ad- 
 journed and the people went wild with excite- 
 ment. Messengers, mounted on fleet steeds, 
 spread the news throughout the state. News- 
 papers from the states containing an account 
 of the proceedings of congress at the time of 
 admission sold for $5 each. It was decided to 
 hold a formal celebration of the event on the 
 29th and preparations were begun for a grand 
 demonstration. Neither labor nor money was 
 spared to make the procession a success. The 
 parade was cosmopolitan in the fullest meaning 
 of that word. There were people in it from 
 almost every nation under the sun. The Chi- 
 nese made quite an imposing spectacle in the 
 parade. Dressed in rich native costumes, each 
 carrying a gaudily painted fan, they marched 
 under command of their own marshals, Ah He 
 and Ah Sing. At their head proudly marched 
 a color bearer carrying a large blue silk ban- 
 ner, inscribed the "China boys." Following 
 them came a triumphal car, in which was seated 
 thirty boys in black trousers and white shirts, 
 representing the thirty states. In the center of 
 this group, seated on a raised platform, was a 
 young girl robed in white with gold and silver 
 gauze floating about her and supporting a 
 breast plate, upon which was inscribed "Cali- 
 fornia, the Union, it must and shall be pre- 
 served." The California pioneers carried a ban- 
 ner on which was represented a New Englander 
 in the act of stepping ashore and'facing a na- 
 tive Californian with lasso and serape. In the 
 center the state seal and the inscription, "Far 
 west. Eureka 1846, California pioneers, or- 
 ganized August, 1850." Army and navy ofifi- 
 cers, soldiers, sailors and marines, veterans of 
 the Mexican war, municipal officers, the fire de- 
 
 partment, secret and benevolent societies and as- 
 sociations, with a company of mounted native 
 Californians bearing a banner with thirty-one 
 stars on a blue satin ground with the inscription 
 in gold letters, California, E Pluribus Unum, all 
 these various organizations and orders witli 
 their marshals ■ and aids mounted on gaily 
 caparisoned steeds and decked out with their 
 gold and silver trimmed scarfs, made an impos- 
 ing display that has seldom if ever been equaled 
 since in the metropolis of California. 
 
 At the plaza a flag of thirty-one stars was 
 raised to the mast head. An oration was de- 
 livered by Judge Nathaniel Bennett and Mrs. 
 Wills recited an original ode of her own compo- 
 sition. The rejoicing over, the people settled 
 down to business. Their unprecedented action 
 in organizing a state government and putting it 
 into operation wit^iout the sanction of congress 
 had been approved and legalized by that body. 
 
 Like the Goddess Minerva, represented on its 
 great seal, who sprung full grown from the 
 brain of Jupiter, California was born a fully ma- 
 tured state. She passed through no territorial 
 probation. No state had such a phenomenal 
 growth in its infancy. No state before or since 
 has met with such bitter opposition when it 
 sought admission into the family of states. 
 Never before was there such a medley of nation- 
 aUties — Yankees, Mexicans, Enghsh, Germans, 
 French, Spaniards, Peruvians, Polynesians, 
 Mongolians — organized into a state and made 
 a part of the body politic nolens volens. 
 
 The constitutional convention of 1849 did not 
 definitely fix the state capital. San Jose was 
 designated as the place of meeting for the legis- 
 lature and the organization of the state govern- 
 ment. San Jose had ofifered to donate a square 
 of thirty-two acres, valued at $60,000, for cap- 
 itol grounds and provide a suitable building for 
 the legislature and state officers. The offer was 
 accepted, but when the legislature met there 
 December 15, 1849, the building was unfinished 
 and for a time the meetings of the legislature 
 were held at a private residence. There was a 
 great deal of complaining and dissatisfaction. 
 The first capitol of the state was a two-story 
 adobe building 40x60, which had been intended 
 for a hotel. It was destroyed by fire April 29, 
 
1C8 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1853. The accommodations at San Jose were 
 so unsatisfactory that the legislature decided 
 to locate the capital at some other point. Prop- 
 ositions were received from Monterey, from 
 Reed of San Jose, from Stevenson & Parker of 
 New York of the Pacific and from Gen. M. G. 
 Vallejo. Vallejo's proposition was accepted. 
 He offered to donate one hundred and fifty-six 
 acres of land in a new town that he proposed 
 to lay out on the straits of Carquinez (now Val- 
 lejo) for a capital site and within two years to 
 give $370,000 in money for the erection of pub- 
 lic buildings. He asked that his proposition be 
 submitted to a vote of the people at the next 
 general election. His proposition was accepted 
 by the legislature. At the general election, Octo- 
 ber 7, 1850, Vallejo received seventy-four hun- 
 dred and seventy-seven votes; San Jose twelve 
 hundred and ninety-two, and Monterey three 
 hundred and ninety-nine. The second legisla- 
 ture convened at San Jose. General Vallejo ex- 
 erted himself to have the change made in accord- 
 ance with the previous proposition. The cit- 
 izens of San Jose made an effort to retain the 
 capital, but a bill was passed making Vallejp 
 the permanent seat of government after the 
 close of the session, provided General Vallejo 
 should give bonds to carry out his proposals. 
 In June Governor McDougal caused the gov- 
 ernmental archives to be removed from San 
 Jose to Vallejo. 
 
 When the members of the third legislature 
 m^et at the new capital January 2, 1852, they 
 found a large unfurnished and partly unfinished 
 wooden building for their reception. Hotel ac- 
 commodations could not be obtained and there 
 was even a scarcity of food to feed the hungry 
 lawmakers. Sacramento offered its new court 
 house and on the i6th of January the legislature 
 convened in that city. The great flood of 
 
 March, 1852, inundated the city and the law- 
 makers were forced to reach the halls of legis- 
 lation in boats and again there was dissatisfac- 
 tion. Then Benicia came to the front with an 
 offer of her new city hall, which was above 
 high water mark. General Vallejo had become 
 financially embarrassed and could not carry out 
 his contract with the state, so it was annulled. 
 The offer of Benicia was accepted and on May 
 18, 1853, that town was declared the permanent 
 capital. 
 
 In the legislature of 1854 the capital question 
 again became an issue. Offers were made by 
 several aspiring cities, but Sacramento won with 
 the proffer of her court house and >a block of 
 land betwen I arid J, Ninth and Tenth streets. 
 Then the question of the location of the capital 
 got into the courts. The supreme court de- 
 cided in favor of Sacramento. Before the legis- 
 lature met again the court house that had been 
 offered to the state burned down. A new and 
 more commodious one was erected and rented 
 to the state at $12,000 a year. Oakland made 
 an unsuccessful effort to obtain the capital. 
 Finally a bill was passed authorizing the erection 
 of a capitol building in Sacramento at a cost 
 not to exceed $500,000. Work was begun on 
 the foundation in October, i860. The great 
 flood of 1861-62 inundated the city and ruined 
 the foundafions of the capitol. San Francisco 
 made a vigorous effort to get the capital re- 
 moved to that city, but was unsuccessful. Work 
 was resumed on the building, the plans were 
 changed, the edifice enlarged, and, finally, after 
 many delays, it was ready for occupancy in De- 
 cember, 1869. From the original limit of half a 
 million dollars its cost when completed had 
 reached a million and a half. The amount ex- 
 pended on the building and grounds to date 
 foots vtp $2,600,000. 
 
ttlSTORrCAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1G9 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 THE ARGONAUTS. 
 
 WHEN or by whom the name argonaut 
 was first applied to the early Cali- 
 fornia gold seekers I have not been 
 able to ascertain. The earliest allusion to the 
 similarity of Jason's voyage after the Golden 
 Fleece and the miners' rush to the gold fields of 
 California is found in a caricature published in 
 the London Punch in 1849. O" the shore of 
 an island is a guide board bearing the inscrip- 
 tion "California;" near it is a miner digging gold 
 and presumably singing at his work. In a 
 boat near the shore is a fat individual, a typical 
 "Johnny Bull." He is struggling desperately 
 with two individuals who are holding him back 
 from leaping into the water, so fascinated is he 
 by the song of the miner. Under the drawing 
 are the words, "The Song of the Sirens." 
 
 If we include among the argonauts all who 
 traveled by land or voyaged by sea in search of 
 the golden fleece in the days of '49 we will have 
 a motley mixture. The tales of the fabulous rich- 
 ness of the gold fields of California spread rap- 
 idly throughout the civilized world and drew to 
 the territory all classes and conditions of men, 
 the bad as well as the good, the indolent as well 
 as the industrious, the vicious as well as the 
 virtuous. They came from Europe, from South 
 America and from Mexico. From Australia 
 and Tasmania came the ex-convict and the 
 ticket-of-leave man; from the isles of the sea 
 came the Polynesian, and from Asia the Hindoo 
 and the "Heathen Chinee." 
 
 The means of reaching the land of gold were 
 as varied as the character of the people who 
 came. Almost every form of vehicle was pressed 
 into service on land. One individual, if not more, 
 made the trip trundling his impedimenta in a 
 wheelbarrow. Others started out in carriages, 
 intent on making the journey in comfort and 
 ease, but finished on footr weary, worn and 
 ragged. When the great rush came old sailing 
 vessels that had long been deemed unseaworthy 
 
 were fitted out for the voyage to CaHfornia. It 
 must have been the providence that protects 
 fools which prevented these from going to the 
 bottom of the ocean. With the desperate 
 chances that the argonauts took on these old 
 tubs, it is singular that there were so few ship- 
 wrecks and so little loss of life. Some of these 
 were such slow sailers that it took them the 
 greater part of a year to round Cape Horn and 
 reach their destination. On one of these some 
 passengers, exasperated at its slowness, landed 
 near Cape St. Lucas and made the long journey 
 up the peninsula of Lower California and on to 
 San Francisco on foot, arriving there a month 
 before their vessel. Another party undertook to 
 make the voyage from Nicaragua in a whale 
 boat and actually did accomplish seven hundred 
 miles of it before they were picked up in the last 
 extremities by a sailing vessel. 
 
 The Sierra Nevada region, in which gold was 
 first found, comprised a strip about thirty miles 
 wide and two hundred miles long from north 
 to south in the basins of the Feather, Yuba, 
 Bear, American, Cosumne, Mokolumne, Stanis- 
 laus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers^ between the 
 elevations of one thousand and five thousand 
 feet. In all these streams miners washed gold 
 in 1848. The placer mines on the Upper Sacra- 
 mento and in the Shasta region were discovered 
 and worked late in the fall of 1848. The Kla- 
 math mines were discovered later. 
 
 The southern mines, those on the San Joaquin, 
 Fresno, Kern and San Gabriel rivers, were lo- 
 cated between 1851 and 1855. Gold was found 
 in some of the ravines and creeks of San Diego 
 county. Practically the gold belt of California 
 extends from the Mexican line to Oregon, but 
 at some points it is rather thin. The first gold 
 digging was done with butcher knives, the gold 
 hiinter scratching in the sand and crevices of 
 the rock to find nuggets. Next the gold pan 
 came into use and the miners became experts 
 
iTO 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in twirling the pan in a pool of water, so as to 
 wash out the sand and gravel and leave the gold 
 dust in the pan. Isaac Humphreys, who had 
 mined gold in Georgia, was the first person to 
 use a rocker or gold cradle in California. Al- 
 though a very simple piece of machinery those 
 who reached the mines early found it quite an 
 expensive one. Dr. Brooks in his diary, under 
 date of June ii, 1848, writes: "On Tuesday we 
 set to work upon our cradle. We resolved upon 
 the construction of two and for this purpose 
 went down to the store in a body to see about 
 the boards. We found timber extravagantly 
 dear, being asked $40 a hundred feet. The next 
 question was as to whether we should hire a 
 carpenter. We were told there was one or two 
 in the diggings, who might be hired, though 
 at a very extravagant rate. Accordingly Brad- 
 ley and I proceeded to see one of these gentle- 
 men, and found him washing away with a hollow 
 log and a willow branch sieve. He offered to 
 help us at the rate of $35 a day, we finding pro- 
 visions and tools, and could not be brought to 
 charge less. We thought this by far too ex- 
 travagant and left him, determined to undertake 
 the work ourselves. After two days' work of 
 seven men they produced two rough cradles 
 and found that three men with a cradle or rocker 
 could wash out as much gold in a day as six 
 could with pans in the same time." 
 
 A rocker or gold cradle had some resemblance 
 to a child's cradle with similar rockers and was 
 rocked by means of a perpendicular handle 
 fastened to the cradle box. The cradle box con- 
 sisted of a wooden trough about twenty inches 
 wide and forty inches long with sides four or 
 five inches high. The lower end was left open. 
 On the upper end sat the hopper, a box twenty 
 inches square with sides four inches high and 
 a bottom of^sheet iron or zinc pierced with holes 
 one-half inch in diameter. Where zinc or iron 
 could not be obtained a sieve of willow rods 
 was used. Under the hopper was an apron of 
 canvas, which sloped down from the lower end 
 of the hopper to the upper end of the cradle 
 box. A wooden riffle bar an inch square was 
 nailed across the bottom of the cradle box about 
 its middle, and another at its lower end. Under 
 the cradle box were nailed rockers, and near 
 
 the middle an upright handle by which motion 
 was imparted. If water and pay dirt were con- 
 venient two men were sufficient to operate the 
 machine. Seated on a stooi or rock the operator 
 rocked with one hand, while with a long handled 
 dipper he dipped water from a pool and poured 
 it on the sand and gravel in the hopper. When 
 the sand and earth had been washed through 
 the holes in the sieve the rocks were emptied 
 and the hopper filled again from the buckets of 
 pay dirt supplied by the other partner. The gold 
 was caught on the canvas apron by the riffle 
 bars, while the thin mud and sand were washed 
 out of the machine by the water. 
 
 In the dry diggings a method of separating 
 the gold from the earth was resorted to prin- 
 cipally by Sonorans. The pay dirt was dug and 
 dried in the sun, then pulverized by pounding 
 into fine dust. With a ba'tea or bowl-shaped 
 Indian basket filled with this dust, held in both 
 hands, the Mexican skillfully tossed the earth 
 in the air, allowing the wind to blow away the 
 dust and catching the heavier particles and the 
 gold in the basket, repeating the process until 
 there was little left but the gold. 
 
 The Long Tom was a single sluice with a 
 sieve and a box underneath at the end and rif- 
 fle bars to stop the gold. The pay dirt was shov- 
 eled in at the upper end and a rapid current of 
 water washed away the sand and earth, the gold 
 falling into the receptacle below. Ground sluic- 
 ing was resorted to where a current of water 
 from a ditch could be directed against a bank of 
 earth or hill with a sloping bedrock. The stream 
 of water washing against the upper side of the 
 bank caved it down and carried the loose earth 
 through a string of sluices, depositing the gold 
 in the riffle bars in the bottom of the sluices. 
 
 In the creeks and gulches where there was 
 not much fall, sluice mining was commonly re- 
 sorted to. A string of sluice boxes was laid, 
 each fitting into the upper end of the one below, 
 and in the lower ones riffle bars were placed 
 to stop the gold. The sluice boxes were placed 
 on trestles four feet from the ground and given 
 an incline of five or six inches to the rod. The 
 gravel from the bedrock up as far as there was 
 any pay dirt was shoveled into the upper boxes 
 and a rapid current of water flowing through the 
 
tllSTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 171 
 
 boxes carried away the gravel and rocks, the 
 gold remaining in the riffles. Quicksilver was 
 placed between the riffles to catch the fine gold. 
 The gold amalgamated with quicksilver was 
 cleaned out of the boxes at the end of the day's 
 work and separated from the quicksilver in a re- 
 tort. These were the principal methods of mining 
 used by the argonauts. The machinery and ap- 
 pliances were simple and inexpensive. Hy- 
 draulic mining came in later, when larger cap- 
 ital was required and the mines had fallen into 
 the hands of corporations. 
 
 When the news spread throughout the states 
 of the wonderful "finds" of gold in California, 
 the crudest ideas prevailed in regard to how 
 the precious metal was to be extracted from 
 the earth. Gold mining was an almost un- 
 known industry in the United States. Only 
 in a few obscure districts of North Caro- 
 lina and Georgia had gold been found, and 
 but very few people outside of these dis- 
 tricts had ever visited the mines. Not one in 
 ten thousand of those who joined the rush 
 to California in 1849 ^^'^ ^^^^ seen a grain of 
 virgin gold. The idea prevailed among the gold 
 seekers that the gold being found in grains it 
 could be winnowed from the sand and earth in 
 which it was found like wheat is separated from 
 chaff. Imbued with this idea Yankee ingenuity 
 set to work to invent labor-saving machines 
 that would accomplish the work quickly and 
 enrich the miner proportionally. The ships that 
 bore the argonauts from their native land car- 
 ried out a variety of these gold machines, all 
 guaranteed to wrest from the most secret re- 
 cesses the auriferous deposits in nature's 
 treasure vaults. These machines were of all 
 varieties and patterns. They were made of cop- 
 per, iron, zinc and brass. Some were operated 
 by means of a crank, others had two cranks, 
 while others were worked with a treadle. Some 
 required that the operator should stand, others 
 allowed the miner to sit in an arm chair and 
 work in comfort. 
 
 Haskins, in his "Argonauts of California," 
 describes one of these machines that was 
 brought around the Horn in the ship he came 
 on: "It was in the shape of a huge fanning 
 mill, with sieves properly arranged for sorting 
 
 the gold ready for bottHng. All chunks too 
 large for the bottle would be consigned to the 
 pork barrel." (The question of bringing home 
 the gold in bottles or barrels had been seriously 
 discussed and. decided in favor of barrels be- 
 cause these could be rolled and thus save cost 
 of transportation from the mines.) 
 
 "This immense machine which, during our 
 passage, excited the envy and jealousy of all 
 who had not the means and opportunity of se- 
 curing a similar one required, of course, the 
 services of a hired man to turn the crank, whilst 
 the proprietor would be busily engaged in shov- 
 eling in pay dirt and pumping water; the greater 
 portion of the time, however, being rec^uired, 
 as was firmly believed, in corking the bottles 
 and fitting the heads in the barrels. This ma- 
 chine was owned by a Air. Allen of Cambridge, 
 Mass., who had brought with him a colored 
 servant to manage and control the crank por- 
 tion of the invaluable, institution. 
 
 "Upon landing we found lying on the sand 
 and half buried in the mud hundreds of similar 
 machines, bearing silent witness at once to the 
 value of our gold saving machines without the 
 necessity of a trial." 
 
 Nor was it the argonaut alone who came by 
 sea that brought these machines. Some of 
 these wonderful inventions were hauled across 
 the plains in wagons, their owners often sacri- 
 ficing the necessities of life to save the prized 
 machine. And, when, after infinite toil and trou- 
 ble, they had landed their prize in the mines, 
 they were chagrined to find it the subject of jest 
 and ridicule by those who had some experience 
 in mining. 
 
 The gold rush came early in the history of 
 California placer mining. The story of a rich 
 strike would often depopulate a mining camp in 
 a few hours. Even a bare rumor of rich dig- 
 gings in some indefinite locality would send 
 scores of miners tramping off on a wild goose 
 chase into the mountains. Some of these 
 rushes originated through fake stories circu- 
 lated for sinister purpose; others were caused 
 by exaggerated stories of real discoveries. 
 
 One of the most famous fakes of early days 
 was the Gold Lake rush of 1850. This wonder- 
 ful lake was supposed to be located about two 
 
17: 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 hundred miles northeast of Marysville, on the 
 divide between the Feather and the Yuba rivers. 
 The Sacramento Transcript of June 19, 1850, 
 says: "We are informed by a gentleman from 
 Alarysville that it is currently reported there that 
 tlie Indians upon this lake use gold for their 
 commonest purposes; that they have a ready 
 way of knocking out square blocks, which they 
 use for seats and couches upon which to place 
 their beds, which are simply bundles of wild 
 oats, which grow so profusely in all sections of 
 the state. According to report also they use for 
 fishhooks crooked pieces of gold and kill their 
 game with arrows made of the same material. 
 They are reported to be thunderstruck at the 
 movements of the whites and their eagerness 
 to collect and hoard the materials of the very 
 ground upon which they tread. 
 
 "A story is current that a man at Gold Lake 
 saw a large piece of gold floating on the lake 
 which he succeeded in getting ashore. So 
 clear are the waters that another man saw a 
 rock of gold on the bottom. After many ef- 
 forts he succeeded in lassoing the rock. Three 
 days afterward he was seen standing holding on 
 to his rope." 
 
 The Placer Times of Marysville reports that 
 the specimens brought into Marysville are of a 
 value from $1,500 down. Ten ounces is re- 
 ported as no unusual yield to the pan. The 
 first party of sixty which started out under 
 guidance of one who had returned successful 
 were assured that they would not get less than 
 $500 each per day. We were told that two hun- 
 dred had left town with a full supply of pro- 
 visions and four hundred mules. Mules and 
 horses have doubled in value. Many places of 
 business are closed. The diggings at the lake 
 are probably the best ever discovered." The 
 Times of June 19 says: 'Tt is reported that up 
 to last Thursday two thousand persons had 
 taken up their journey. Many who were work- 
 ing good claims deserted them for the new dis- 
 covery. Mules and horses were about impos- 
 sible to obtain. Although the truth of the re- 
 port rests on the authority of but two or three 
 who have returned from Gold Lake, yet few 
 are found who doubt the marvelous revelations. 
 A party of Kanakas are said to have wintered 
 
 at Gold Lake, subsisting chiefly on the flesh of 
 their animals. They are said to have taken out 
 $75,000 the first week. When a conviction takes 
 such complete possession of a whole com- 
 munity, who are fully conversant with all the 
 exaggerations that have had their day, it is 
 scarcely prudent to utter even a qualified dissent 
 from what is universally believed." 
 
 The denouement of the Gold Lake romance 
 may be found in the Transcript of July i, 1850. 
 "The Gold Lake excitement, so much talked of 
 and acted upon of late, has almost subsided. 
 A crazy man comes in for a share of the re- 
 sponsibility. Another report is that they have 
 found one of the pretended discoverers at 
 Marysville and are about to lynch him. In- 
 deed, we are told that a demonstration against 
 the tovv'n is feared by many. People who have 
 returned after traveling some one hundred and 
 fifty to two hundred miles say that they left vast 
 numbers of people roaming between the sources 
 of the Yuba and the Feather rivers." 
 
 Scarcely had the deluded argonauts returned 
 from a bootless search for the lake of gold when 
 another rumored discovery of gold fields of 
 fabulous richness sent them rushing ofT toward 
 the sea coast. Now it was Gold Bluff that lured 
 Ihem away. On the northwest coast of Califor- 
 nia, near the mouth of the Klamath river, 
 precipitous bluffs four hundred feet high mark 
 the coast line of the ocean. A party of pros- 
 pectors in the fall of 1850, who had been up 
 in the Del Norte country, were making their 
 way down to the little trading and trapping sta- 
 tion of Trinidad to procure provisions. On 
 reaching the bluffs, thirty miles above Trinidad, 
 they were astonished to find stretching out be- 
 fore them a beach glittering with golden sands. 
 They could not stop to gather gold; they were 
 starving. So, scraping up a few handfuls of the 
 glittering sands, they hastened on. In due 
 time they reached San Francisco, where they 
 exhibited their sand, which proved to be nearly 
 half gold. The report of the wonderful find was 
 spread by the newspapers and the excitement 
 began. Companies were formed and claims lo- 
 cated at long range. One company of nine 
 locators sent an expert to examine their claims. 
 He, by a careful mathematical calculation, as- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 173\ 
 
 certained that the claim would yield forty-three 
 million dollars to each partner. As there were 
 fifteen miles of gold beach, the amount of gold 
 in the sands was suiTicient to demonetize the 
 precious metal. A laudable desire to benefit 
 the human race possessed some of the claim 
 owners. They formed joint stock companies with 
 shares at $ioo each. Gold Blufif mining stock 
 went off like the proverbial hot cakes and pros- 
 pectors went off as rapidly. Within two days 
 after the expert's wonderful story was spread 
 abroad nine ships were fitted out for Gold BlufT. 
 The first to arrive ofif the Blufif was the vessel 
 containing a party of the original discoverers. 
 In attempting to land in a boat, the boat was 
 upset in the breakers and five of the six occu- 
 pants were drowned, Bertram, the leader of the 
 party making the discovery, alone escaping. 
 The vessel put back to Trinidad and the gold 
 hunters made their way up 'the coast to the 
 Bluff. But alas for their golden dreams! 
 Where they had hoped to gather gold by the 
 ship load no gold was found. Old ocean had 
 gathered it back into his treasure vaults. 
 
 The bubble burst as suddenly as it had ex- 
 panded. And yet there was gold at Gold Bluff 
 and there is gold there yet. If the ocean could 
 be drained or coffer dammed for, two hundred 
 miles along the gold coast of northern Califor- 
 nia and Oregon, all the wealth of Alaska would 
 be but the panning out of a prospect hole com- 
 pared to the richness that lies hidden in the 
 sands of Gold Beach. For years after the 
 bursting of the Gold Bluff bubble, when the 
 tide was low, the sands along Gold Beach were 
 mined with profit. 
 
 The Kern river excitement in the spring of 
 1855 surpassed everything that had preceded it. 
 Seven years of mining had skimmed the rich- 
 ness of the placers. The northern and central 
 gold fields of California had been thoroughly 
 prospected. The miners who had been accus- 
 tomed to the rich strikes of early years could 
 not content themselves with moderate returns. 
 They were on the qui vive for a rich strike and 
 ready for a rush upon the first report of one. 
 The first discoveries on the Kern river were 
 made in the summer of 1854, but no excitement 
 followed immediately. During the fall and win- 
 
 ter rumors were set afloat of rich strikes on the 
 head waters of that stream. The stories grew 
 as they traveled. One that had a wide circula- 
 tion and was readily accepted ran about as fol- 
 lows: "A Mexican doctor had appeared in Mari- 
 posa loaded down with gold nuggets. He re- 
 ported that he and four companions had found 
 a region paved with gold. The very hills were 
 yellow with outcroppings. While gloating over 
 their wealth and loading it into sacks the In- 
 dians attacked them and killed his four com- 
 panions. He escaped with one sack of gold. He 
 proposed to organize a company large enough 
 to exterminate the Indians and then bring out 
 the gold on pack mules." This as well as other 
 stories as improbable were spread broadcast 
 throughout the state. Many of the reports of 
 wonderful strikes were purposely magnified by 
 merchants and dealers in mining supplies who 
 were overstocked with unsalable goods; and 
 by transportation companies with whom busi- 
 ness was slack. Their purpose was accom- 
 phshed and the rush was on. It began in Jan- 
 uary, 1855. Every steamer down the coast to 
 Los Angeles was loaded to the guards with 
 adventurers for the mines. The sleepy old 
 metropolis of the cow counties waked up to 
 find itself suddenly transformed into a bustling 
 mining camp. The Southern Calif ornian of Feb- 
 ruary 8, 1855, thus describes the situation: "The 
 road from our valley is literally thronged with 
 people on their way to the mines. Hundreds 
 of people have been leaving pot only the city, 
 but every portion of the county. Every descrip- 
 tion of vehicle and animal has been brought 
 into requisition to take the exultant seeker's 
 after wealth to the goal of their hopes. Im- 
 mense ten-mule wagons strung out one after 
 another; long trains of pack mules and men 
 mounted and on foot, with picks and shovels; 
 boarding-house keepers with their tents; mer- 
 chants with their stocks of miners' necessaries 
 and gamblers with their 'papers' are constantly 
 leaving for the Kern river mines. The wildest 
 stories are afloat. If the mines turn out $10 
 a day to the man everybody ought to be satis- 
 fied. The opening of these mines has been a 
 Godsend to all of us, as the business of the en- 
 tire country was on the point of taking to a 
 
17i 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RFXORD. 
 
 Iree. The great scarcity of money is seen in 
 the present exorbitant rates of interest which it 
 commands; 8, lo and even 15 per cent a month 
 is freely paid and the supply even at these rates 
 is too meager to meet the demands." As the 
 rush increased our editor grows more jubilant. 
 In his issue of March 7, he throws out these 
 headlines: "Stop the Press! Glorious News 
 from Kern River! Bring Out the Big Gun! 
 There are a thousand gulches rich with gold 
 and room for ten thousand miners. Miners 
 averaged $50 a day. One man with his own 
 liands took out $160 in a day. Five men in ten 
 days took out $4,500." 
 
 Another stream of miners and adventurers 
 was pouring into the mines by way of.the San 
 Joaquin valley. From Stockton to the Kern 
 liver, a distance of three hundred miles, the 
 road was crowded with men on foot, on stages, 
 on horseback and on every form of convey- 
 ance that would take" them to the new El Do- 
 rado. In four months five or six thousand men 
 had found their way into the Kern river basin. 
 There was gold there, but not enough to go 
 around. A few struck it rich, the many struck 
 nothing but "hard luck" and the rush out began. 
 Those who had ridden into the valley footed it 
 out, and those who had footed it in on sole 
 leather footed it out on their natural soles. 
 
 After the wild frenzy of Kern river, the press 
 of the state congratulated the public with the 
 assurance that the era of wild rushes was past — 
 "what had been Igst in money had been gained 
 "m experience." As if prospectors ever profited 
 by experience! Scarcely had the victims of Kern 
 river resumed work in the old creeks and caiions 
 they had deserted to join in the rush when a 
 rumor came, faint at first, but gathering 
 strength at each repetition, that rich diggings 
 had been struck in the far north. This time 
 it is Frazer river. True, Frazer river is in the 
 British possessions, but what of that? There 
 are enough miners in California to seize the 
 country and hold it until the cream of the mines 
 has been skimmed. Rumors of the richness 
 of mines increased with every arrival of a 
 steamer from the north. Captains, pursers, 
 mates, cooks and waiters all confirmed the sto- 
 ries of rich strikes. Doubters asserted that the 
 
 dust and nuggets exhibited had made the trip 
 from San Francisco to Victoria and back. But 
 they were silenced by the assurance that the 
 transportation company was preparing to double 
 the number of its vessels on that route. Com- 
 modore Wright was too smart to run his steam- 
 ers on fake reports, and thus the very thing that 
 should have caused suspicion was used to con- 
 firm the truth of the rumors. The doubters 
 doubted no more, but packed their outfits for 
 Frazer river. California was played out. Where 
 could an honest miner pan out $100 a day 
 in California now? He could do it every day 
 in Frazer; the papers said so. The first notice 
 of the mines was published in March, 1858. The 
 rush began the latter part of April and in four 
 months thirty thousand men, one-sixth of the 
 voting population of the state, had rushed to 
 the mines. 
 
 The effect of the craze was disastrous to busi- 
 ness in California. Farms were abandoned and 
 crops lost for want of hands to harvest them. 
 Rich claims in old diggings were sold for a trifle 
 of their value. Lots on Montgomery street that 
 a few years later were worth $1,500 a front foot 
 were sold for $100. Real estate in the interior 
 towns was sacrificed at 50 to 75 per cent less 
 than it was worth before the rush began. But 
 a halt was called in the mad rush. The returns 
 were not coming in satisfactorily. By the mid- 
 dle of July less than $100,000 in dust had 
 reached San Francisco, only about $3 for each 
 man who had gone to the diggings. There was 
 gold there and plenty of it, so those interested 
 in keeping up the excitement said: "The Frazer 
 river is high; wait till it subsides." But it did 
 not subside, and it has not subsided since. If 
 the Frazer did not subside the excitement did, 
 and that suddenly. Those who had money 
 enough or could borrow from their friends got 
 away at once. Those who had none hung 
 around Victoria and New Westminster until 
 they were shipped back at the government's ex- 
 ]5ense. The Frazer river craze was the last of the 
 mad, unreasoning "gold rushes." The Washoe 
 excitement of '59 and the "Ho! for Idaho of 
 1863-64" had some of the characteristics of the 
 early gold rushes, but they soon settled down to 
 steady business and the yield from these fairly 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1715 
 
 recompensed those who were frugal and indus- 
 trious. 
 
 Never before perhaps among civilized people 
 was there witnessed such a universal leveling 
 as occurred in the first years of the mining ex- 
 citement in California. "As the labor required 
 was physical instead of mental, the usual supe- 
 riority of head workers over hand workers dis- 
 appeared entirely. Men who had been gov- 
 ernors and legislators and judgqs in the old 
 states worked by the side of outlaws and con- 
 victs; scholars and students by the side of men 
 who could not read or write; those who had 
 been masters by the side of those who had been 
 slaves; old social distinctions were obliterated; 
 everybody did business on his own account, and 
 not one man in ten was the employe and much 
 less the servant of another. Social distinctions 
 appeared to be entirely obliterated and no man 
 was considered inferior to another. The hard- 
 fisted, unshaven and patch-covered miner was 
 on terms of perfect equality with the well- 
 dressed lawyer, surgeon or merchant; and in 
 general conferences, discussions and even con- 
 
 versations the most weather-beaten and strongly 
 marked face, or, in other words, the man who 
 had seen and experienced the most, notwith- 
 standing his wild and tattered attire, was lis- 
 tened to with more attention and respectful con- 
 sideration than the man of polished speech and 
 striking antithesis. One reason of this was that in 
 those days the roughest-looking man not infre- 
 quently knew more than anybody else of what 
 was wanted to be known, and the raggedest man 
 not infrequently was the most influential and 
 sometimes the richest man in the locaUty."* 
 
 This independent spirit was characteristic of 
 the men of '48 and '49. Then nearly everybody 
 was honest and theft was almost unknown. 
 With the advent of the criminal element in 
 1850 and later there came a change. Before that 
 a pan of gold dust could be left in an open tent 
 unguarded, but with the coming of the Sydney 
 ■ ducks from Australia and men of their class it 
 became necessary to guard property with sedu- 
 lous care. 
 
 * Hittell's History of California, Vol. III. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 SAN FRANCISCO. 
 
 IN 1835 Capt. William A. Richardson built 
 the first house on the Yerba Buena cove. 
 It was a shanty of rough board, which he 
 replaced a year later with an adobe building. 
 He was granted a lot in 1836 and his building 
 stood near what is now the corner of Dupont 
 and Clay streets. Richardson had settled at 
 Sausalito in 1822. He was an Englishman by 
 birth and was one of the first foreigners to settle 
 in California. 
 
 Jacob P. Leese, an American, in partnership 
 with Spear & Hinckley, obtained a lot in 1836 
 and built a house and store near that of Captain 
 Richardson. There is a tradition that Mr. Leese 
 began his store building on the first of July and 
 finished it at ten o'clock on the morning of 
 July 4, and for a house warming celebrated the 
 glorious Fourth- in a style that astonished the 
 natives up and down the coast. The house was 
 sixty feet long and twenty-five broad, and, if 
 
 completed in three days, Mr. Leese certainly de 
 serves the credit of having eclipsed some of 
 the remarkable feats in house building that were 
 performed after the great fires of San Francisco 
 in the early '50s. Mr. Leese and his neighbor, 
 Captain Richardson, invited all the high-toned 
 Spanish families for a hundred miles around to 
 the celebration. The Mexican and American 
 flags floated over the building and two six- 
 pounders fired salutes. At five o'clock the 
 guests sat down to a sumptuous dinner which 
 lasted, toasts and all. till 10 o'clock, and then 
 came dancing; and, as Mr. Leese remarks in his 
 diary : "Our Fourth ended on the evening of- 
 the fifth." Mr. Leese was an energetic person. 
 He built a house in three days, gave a Fourth of 
 July celebration that lasted two days, and inside 
 of a week had a store opened and was doing a 
 thriving business with his late guests. He fell 
 in love with the same energy that he did busi- 
 
176 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ness. Among the guests at his 4th of July 
 celebration were the Vallejos, the nabobs of 
 Sonoma. Leese courted one of the girls and in 
 a few months after the celebration married her. 
 Their daughter, Rosalie Leese, was the first 
 child born in Yerba Buena. Such was the be- 
 ginning of San Francisco. 
 
 This settlement was on a crescent-shaped cove 
 that lay between Clark's Point and the Rincon. 
 The locality was known as Yerba Buena (good 
 herb), a species of mint to which the native Cal- 
 ifornians attributed many medicinal virtues. 
 The peninsula still bore the name that had been 
 apphed to it when the mission and presidio 
 were founded, San Francisco. Yerba Buena 
 was a local appellation and apphed only to the 
 little hamlet that had grown up on the cove. 
 This settlement, although under the Mexican 
 government, was not a Mexican town. The 
 foreign element, the American predominating, 
 had always been in the ascendency. At the time 
 of the conquest, among its two hundred inhab- 
 itants, were representatives of almost every civ- 
 ilized nation on the globe. It was a cosmopol- 
 itan town. In a very short time after the con- 
 quest it began to take on a new growth and was 
 recognized as the coming metropolis of CaHfor- 
 nia. The curving beach of the cove at one 
 point (Jackson street) crossed the present line 
 of Montgomery street. 
 
 Richardson and Leese had built their stores 
 and warehouses back from the beach because of 
 a Mexican law that prohibited the building of a 
 house on the beach where no custom house ex- 
 isted. All houses had to be built back a certain 
 number of varas from high-water mark. This 
 regulation was made to prevent smuggling. Be- 
 tween the shore line of the cove and anchorage 
 there was a long stretch of shallow water. This 
 made transportation of goods from ship to 
 shore very inconvenient and expensive. With 
 the advent of the Americans and the inaugura- 
 tion of a more progressive era it became neces- 
 sary for the convenient landing of ships and for 
 the discharging and receiving of their cargoes 
 that the beach front of the town should be im- 
 proved by building wharves and docks. The dif- 
 ficulty was to find the means to do this. The 
 general government of the United States could 
 
 not undertake it. The war with Mexico was 
 still in progress. The only available way was 
 to sell off beach lots to private parties, but who 
 was to give title was the question. Edwin Bry- 
 ant, February 22, 1847, had succeeded Wash- 
 ington Bartlett as alcalde. Bryant was a pro- 
 gressive man, and, recognizing the necessity of 
 improvement in the shipping facilities of the 
 town, he urged General Kearny, the acting 
 governor, to rehnquish, on the part of the gen- 
 eral government, its claim to the beach lands in 
 front of the town in favor of the municipality 
 under certain conditions. General Kearny 
 really had no authority to relinquish the claim 
 of the general government to the land, for the 
 simple reason that the general government had 
 not perfected a claim. The country was held 
 as conquered territory. Mexico had made no 
 concession of the land by treaty. It was not 
 certain that California would be ceded to the 
 United States. Under Mexican law the gov- 
 ernor of the territory, under certain conditions, 
 had the right to make grants, and General Kear- 
 ny, assuming the power given a Mexican gov- 
 ernor, issued the following decree: "I, Brig.- 
 Gen. S. W. Kearny, Governor of California, 
 by virtue of authority in me vested by the Pres- 
 ident of the United States of America, do hereby 
 grant, convey, and release unto the Town of San 
 Francisco, the people or corporate authorities 
 thereof, all the right, title and interest of the 
 Government of the United States and of the 
 Territory of California in and to the Beach and 
 Water Lots on the East front of said Town of 
 San Francisco included between the points 
 known as the Rincon and Fort Montgomery, 
 excepting such lots as may be selected for the 
 use of the United States Government by the 
 senior ofificers of the army and navy now there; 
 provided, the said ground hereby ceded shall 
 be divided into lots and sold by public auction to 
 the highest bidder, after three months' notice 
 previously given; the proceeds of said sale to 
 be for the benefit of the town of San Francisco. 
 Given at Monterey, capital of California, this 
 loth day of March, 1847, ^^<i the seventy-first 
 year of the independence of thfe United States." 
 
 S. W. Kearny, 
 Brig.-Gen'l & Gov. of California. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 177 
 
 In pursuance of this decree. Alcalde Bryant 
 advertised in the Californian that the ground 
 described in the decree, known as Water Lots, 
 would be surveyed and divided into convenient 
 building lots and sold to the highest bidder on 
 the 29th of June (1847). He then proceeds in 
 the advertisement to boom the town. "The site 
 of the town of San Francisco is known by all 
 navigators and mercantile men acquainted with 
 the subject to be the most commanding com- 
 mercial position on the entire western coast of 
 the Pacific ocean, and the Town itself is no 
 doubt destined to become the commercial em- 
 porium of the western side of the North Ameri- 
 can continent." The alcaldes' assertions must 
 have seemed rather extravagant to the dweller§ 
 in the little burgh on the cove of Yerba Buena. 
 But Bryant was a far-seeing man and proved 
 himself in this instance to be a prophet. 
 
 It will be noticed that both General Kearny 
 and Alcalde Bryant call the town San Francisco. 
 Alcalde Bartlett, the predecessor in office of 
 Alcalde Bryant, had changed its name just be- 
 fore he was recalled to his ship. He did not 
 like the name Yerba Buena, so he summarily 
 changed it. He issued a proclamation setting 
 forth that hereafter the town should be known 
 as San Francisco. Having proclaimed a change 
 of name, he proceeded to give his reasons: 
 Yerba Buena was a paltry cognomen for a cer- 
 tain kind of mint found on an island in the 
 bay; it was a merely local name, unknown be- 
 yond the district, while San Francisco had long 
 been familiar on the maps. "Therefore it is 
 hereby ordained, etc." Bartlett builded better 
 than he knew. It would have been a sad mis- 
 take for the city to have carried the "outlandish 
 name which Americans would mangle in pro- 
 nouncing," as the alcalde said. 
 
 The change was made in the latter part of 
 January, 1847, ^lut it was some time before the 
 new name was generally adopted. 
 
 The California Star, Sam Brannan's paper, 
 which had begun to shine January 9, 1847, in 
 its issue of March 20, alluding to the change, 
 says: "We acquiesce in it, though we prefer 
 the old name. When the change was first at- 
 tempted we viewed it as a mere assumption of 
 authority, without law of precedent, and there- 
 
 }2 
 
 fore we adhered to the old name — Yerba 
 Buena." 
 
 "It was asserted by the late alcalde, Washing- 
 ton Bartlett, that the place was called San 
 Francisco in some old Spanish paper which he 
 professed to have in his possession; but how 
 could we believe a man even about that which 
 it is said 'there is nothing in it,' who had so 
 often evinced a total disregard for his own honor 
 and character and the honor of the country 
 which gave him birth and the rights of his fel- 
 low citizens in the district?" Evidently the edi- 
 tor had a grievance and was anxious to get even 
 with the alcalde. Bartlett demanded an inves- 
 tigation of some charges made against his ad- 
 ministration. He was cleared of all blame. He 
 deserves the thanks of all Californians in sum- 
 marily suppressing Yerba Buena and preventing 
 it from being fastened on the chief city of the 
 state. 
 
 There was at that time (on paper) a city of 
 Francisca. The city fathers of this budding me- 
 tropolis were T. O. Larkin and Robert Semple. 
 In a half-column advertisement in the Califor- 
 nian of April 20, 1847, aiid several subsequent 
 issues, headed "Great Sale of City Lots," they set 
 forth the many advantages and merits of 
 Francisca. The streets are eighty' feet wide, the 
 alleys twenty feet wide, and the lots fifty yards 
 front and forty yards back. The whole city 
 comprises five square miles." 
 
 "Francisca is situated on the Straits of Car- 
 quinez, on the north side of the Bay of San 
 Francisco, about thirty miles from the mouth 
 of the bay and at the head of ship navigation. 
 In front of the city is a commodious bay, large 
 enough for two hundred ships to ride at anchor, 
 safe from any wind." * * * "The entire 
 trade of the great Sacramento and San Joaquin 
 valleys, a fertile country of great width and near 
 seven hundred miles long from north to south, 
 must of necessity pass through the narrow chan- 
 nel of Carquinez and the bay and country is 
 so situated that every person who passes from 
 one side of the bay to the other will find the 
 nearest and best way by Francisca." Francisca, 
 with its manifold natural advantages, ought to 
 have been a great city, the metropolis of Cali- 
 fornia, but the Fates were against it. Alcalde 
 
ITS 
 
 HISTORICAL Ax\D BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Bartlett, pjobably without any design of doing 
 so, dealt it a fearful blow when he dubbed the 
 town of the good herb, San Francisco. Two 
 cities with names so nearly alike could not live 
 and thrive in the same state. Francisca became 
 Benicia. The population of San Francisco (or 
 Yerba Buena, as it was then called) at the time 
 that Captain ^.lontgomery raised the stars and 
 stripes and took possession of it probably did 
 not exceed two hundred. Its change of masters 
 accelerated its growth. The Californian of Sep- 
 tember 4, 1847 (fourteen months after it came 
 under the flag of the United States), gives the 
 following statistics of its population and prog- 
 ress: Total white male population, 247; female, 
 123; Indians, male, 26; female, 8; South Sea 
 Islanders, male, 39; female i; negroes, male, 
 9; female i; total population, 454. 
 
 Nearly every country on the globe had repre- 
 sentatives in its population, and the various vo- 
 cations by which men earn a living were 
 well represented. Minister, one; doctors, three; 
 lawyers, three; surveyors, two; agriculturists, 
 eleven; bakers, seven; blacksmiths, six; brew- 
 er, one; butchers, seven; cabinetmakers, two; 
 carpenters, twenty-six; cigarmaker, one; coop- 
 ers, three; clerks, thirteen; gardener, one; 
 grocers, five; gunsmiths, two; hotel-keepers, 
 three; laborers, twenty; masons, four; mer- 
 chants, eleven; miner, one; morocco case 
 maker, one; navigators (inland), six; navigator 
 (ocean), one; painter, one; printer, one; sol- 
 dier, one; shoemakers, four; silversmith, one; 
 tailors, four; tanners, two; watchmaker, one; 
 ^veaver, one. Previous to April i, 1847, accord- 
 ing to the Calif ornicji, there had been erected in 
 the town seventy-nine buildings, classified as 
 follows: Shanties, twenty-two; frame buildings, 
 thirty-one; adobe buildings, twenty-six. Since 
 April I, seventy-eight buildings have been 
 erected, viz.: Shanties, twenty; frame buildings, 
 forty-seven; adobe buildings, eleven. "Within 
 five months last past," triumphantly adds the 
 editor of the Californian, "as many buildings 
 have been built as were erected in all the pre- 
 vious years of the town's existence." 
 
 The town continued to grow with wonderful 
 rapidity throughout the year 1847, considering 
 that peace had not yet been declared and the 
 
 destiny of California was uncertain. According 
 to a school census taken in ]\Iarch, 1848, by 
 the Board of Trustees, the population was: 
 Males, five hundred and seventy-five; females, 
 one hundred and seventy-seven; and "children 
 of age to attend school," sixty, a total of eight 
 hundred and twelve. Building kept pace with 
 the increase of population until the "gold fever" 
 became epidemic. Dr. Brooks, writing in his 
 diary Alay 17, says: "Walking through the town 
 to-day, I observed that laborers were employed 
 only upon about half a dozen of the fifty new 
 buildings which were in the course of being 
 run up." 
 
 The first survey of lots in the town had been 
 made by a Frenchman named Vioget. No 
 names had been given to the streets. This sur- 
 vey was made before the conquest. In 1847, 
 Jasper O'Farrell surveyed and platted the dis- 
 trict extending about half a mile in the different 
 directions from the plaza. The streets were 
 named, and, with a very few changes, still retain 
 the names then given. In September the coun- 
 cil appointed a committee to report upon the 
 building of a wharf. It was decided to con- 
 struct two wharves, one from the foot of Clay 
 street and the other from the foot of Broadway. 
 Money was appropriated to build them and they 
 had been extended some distance seaward when 
 the rush to the mines suspended operations. 
 After considerable agitation by the two news- 
 papers and canvassing for funds, the first school- 
 house was built. It was completed December 
 4, 1847, but, for lack of funds, or, as the Star 
 says, for lack of energy in the council, school 
 was not opened on the completion of the house. 
 In March the council appropriated $400 and 
 April I, 1848, Thomas Douglas, a graduate of 
 Yale College, took charge of the school. San 
 Francisco was rapidly developing into a pro- 
 gressive American city. Unlike the older towns 
 of California, it had biit a small Mexican popu- 
 lation. Even had not gold been discovered, it 
 would have grown into a commercial city of con- 
 siderable size. 
 
 The first effect of the gold discovery and the 
 consequent rush to the mines was to bring 
 everything to a standstill. As Kemble, of the 
 Star, puts it, it was "as if a curse had arrested 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 179 
 
 our onward course of enterprise; everything 
 wears a desolate and sombre look; everywhere 
 all is dull, monotonous, dead." The return of 
 the inhabitants in a few months and the influx 
 of new arrivals gave the town a boom in the 
 fall of 1848. Building was only limited by the 
 lack of material, and every kind of a makeshift 
 was resorted to to provide shelter against win- 
 ter rains. From the many attempts at describ- 
 ing the town at this stage of its development, I 
 select this from "Sights in the Gold Regions," a 
 book long since out of print. Its author, T. T. 
 Johnson, arrived at San Francisco April i, 1849. 
 "Proceeding on our survey, we found the 
 streets, or, properly, the roads, laid out reg- 
 ularly, those parallel with the water being a 
 succession of terraces, and these ascending the 
 hills or along their sides being in some instances 
 cut down ten or twelve feet below the surface. 
 Except a portion of the streets fronting upon 
 the cove, they are all of hard-beaten, sandy clay, 
 as sohd as if macadamized. About three hun- 
 dred houses, stores, shanties and sheds, with a 
 great many tents, composed the town at that 
 period. The houses were mostly built of rough 
 •boards and unpainted"; brown cottons or calico 
 nailed against the beams and joists answered for 
 wall and ceiling of the better class of tenements. 
 With the exception of the brick warehouse of 
 Howard and Melius, the establishments of the 
 commercial houses of which we had heard so 
 much were inferior to the outhouses of the 
 country seats on the Hudson; and yet it would 
 puzzle the New York Exchange to produce 
 merchant princes of equal importance." * * * 
 "We strolled among the tents in the outskirts 
 of the town. Here was 'confusion worse con- 
 founded,' chiefly among Mexicans, Peruvians 
 and Chilians. Every kind, size, color and shape 
 of tent pitched helter-skelter and in the most 
 awkward manner were stowed full of everything 
 under the sun." 
 
 In the first six months of 1849 fifteen thou- 
 sand souls were added to the population of San 
 Francisco; in the latter half of that year about 
 four thousand arrived every month bv sea alone. 
 At first the immigrants were from Mexico, 
 Chile, Peru and the South American ports gen- 
 erally; but early in the spring the Americans 
 
 began to arrive, coming by way of Panama and 
 Cape Horn, and later across the plains. Europe 
 sent its contingent by sea via Cape Horn; and 
 China, Australia and the Hawaiian Islands 
 added to the city's population an undesirable 
 element. A large majority of those who came 
 by sea made their way to the mines, but many 
 soon returned to San Francisco, some to take 
 their departure for home, others to become resi- 
 dents. At the end of the year San Francisco 
 had a population of twenty-five thousand. The 
 following graphic description of life in San 
 Francisco in the fall of '49 and spring of '50 I take 
 from a paper, "Pioneer Days in San Francisco," 
 written by John Williamson Palmer, and pub- 
 lished in the Century Magazine (1890): "And 
 how did they all live? In frame houses of one 
 story, more commonly in board shanties and 
 canvas tents, pitched in the midst of sand or 
 mud and various rubbish and strange filth and 
 fleas; and they slept on rude cots or on soft 
 planks, under horse blankets, on tables, coun- 
 ters, floors, on trucks in the open air, in bunks 
 braced against the weather-boarding, forty of 
 them in one loft; and so they tossed and 
 scratched and swore and laughed and sang and 
 skylarked, those who were not tired or drunk 
 enough to sleep. And in the working hours 
 they bustled, and jostled, and tugged, and 
 sweated, and made money, always made rnoney. 
 They labored and they lugged; they worked on 
 lighters, drove trucks, packed mules, rang bells, 
 carried messages, 'waited' in restaurants, 
 'marked' for billiard tables, served drinks in 
 bar rooms, 'faked' on the plaza, 'cried' at auc- 
 tions, toted lumber for houses, ran a game of 
 faro or roulette in the El Dorado or the Bella 
 Union, or manipulated three-card monte on 
 the head of a barrel in front of the Parker 
 House; they speculated, and, as a rule, gam- 
 bled. 
 
 "Clerks in stores and offices had munificent 
 salaries. Five dollars a day was about the small- 
 est stipend even in the custom house, and one 
 Baptist preacher was paid $10,000 a year. La- 
 borers received $1 an hour; a pick or a shovel 
 was worth $10; a tin pan or a wooden bowl 
 $5, and a butcher knife $30. At one time car- 
 penters who were getting $12 a day struck 
 
180 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD, 
 thou- 
 
 for $i6. Lumber rose to $500 per 
 sand feet, and every brick in a liouse cost 
 a dollar one way or anotlier. Wheat, flour 
 and salt pork sold at $40 a barrel; a small 
 loaf of bread was fifty cents and a hard-boiled 
 egg a dollar. You paid $3 to get into the cir- 
 cus and $55 for a private box at the theater. 
 Forty dollars was the price for ordinary coarse 
 boots, and a pair that came above the knees 
 and would carry you gallantly through the quag- 
 mires brought a round hundred. When a shirt 
 became very dirty the wearer threw it away and 
 bought a new one. Washing cost $15 a dozen 
 in 1849. 
 
 "Rents were simply monstrous; $3,000 a 
 month in advance for a 'store' hurriedly built of 
 rough boards. Wright & Co. paid $75,000 for 
 the wretched little place on the corner of the 
 plaza that they called the ^Miners' Bank, and 
 $36,000 was asked for the use of the Old Adobe 
 as a custom-house. The Parker House paid 
 $120,000 a } ear in rents, nearly one-half of that 
 amount being collected from gamblers who held 
 the second floor; and the canvas tent next door 
 used as a gambling saloon, and called the El 
 Dorado, was good for $40,000 a year. From 
 10 to 15 per cent a month was paid in advance 
 for the use of money borrowed on substantial 
 security. The prices of real estate went up 
 among the stars; $8,000 for a fifty-vara lot that 
 had been bought in 1849 for $20. A lot pur- 
 chased two years before for a barrel of aguar- 
 diente sold for $18,000. Yet, for all that, every- 
 body made money. 
 
 "The aspect of the streets of San Francisco at 
 this time was such as one may imagine of an 
 unsightly waste of sand and mud churned by 
 the continual grinding of heavy wagons and 
 trucks and the tugging and floundering of 
 horses, mules and oxen; thoroughfares irregu- 
 lar and uneven, ungraded, unpaved, unplanked, 
 obstructed by lumber and goods, alternate 
 humps and holes, the actual dumping-places of 
 the town, handy receptacles for the general 
 sweepings and rubbish and indescribable offal 
 and filth, the refuse of an indiscriminate popu- 
 lation 'pigging' together in shanties and tents. 
 And these conditions extended beyond the 
 actual settlement into the chaparral and under- 
 
 brush that covered the sand hills on the north 
 and west. 
 
 "The flooding rains of winter transformed 
 what should have been thoroughfares into 
 treacherous quagmires set with holes and traps 
 fit to smother horse and man. Loads of brush- 
 wood and branches of trees cut from the hills 
 were thrown into these swamps; but they served 
 no more than a temporary purpose and the in- 
 mates of tents and houses made such bridges 
 and crossings as they could with boards, boxes 
 and barrels. j\Ien waded through the slough 
 and thought themselves lucky when they sank 
 no deeper than their waists." 
 
 It is said that two horses mired down in the 
 mud of ^lontgomery street were left to die of 
 starvation, and that three drunken men were 
 suffocated between Washington and Jackson 
 streets. It was during the winter of '49 that the 
 famous sidewalk of flour sacks, cooking stoves 
 and tobacco boxes was built. It extended from 
 Simmons, Hutchinson & Co.'s store to Adams 
 Express office, a distance of about seventy-five 
 yards. The first portion was biiilt of Chilean 
 flour in one hundred pound sacks, next came the 
 cooking stoves in a long row, and then followed 
 a double row of tobacco boxes of large size, 
 and a yawning gap of the walk was bridged by 
 a piano. Chile flour, cooking stoves, tobacco 
 and pianos were cheaper material for building 
 walks, owing to the excessive supply of these, 
 than lumber at $600 a thousand. 
 
 In the summer of '49 there were more than 
 three hundred sailing vessels lying in the harbor 
 of San Francisco, from which the sailors had 
 deserted to go to the mines. Some of these ves- 
 sels rotted where they were moored. Some 
 were hauled up in the sand or mud flats and 
 used for store houses, lodging houses and sa- 
 loons. As the water lots were filled in and built 
 upon, these ships sometimes formed part of 
 the line of buildings on the street. The brig 
 Euphemia was the first jail owned by the city; 
 the store ship Apollo was converted into a 
 lodging house and saloon, and the Niantic Hotel 
 at the corner of Sansome and Clay streets was 
 built on the hull of the ship Niantic. As the 
 wharves were extended out into the bay the 
 space between was filled in from the sand hills 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 181 
 
 and houses built along the wharves.. In this 
 way the cove was gradually filled in. The high 
 price of lumber and the great scarcity of houses 
 brought about the importation from New York, 
 Boston, Philadelphia and London of houses 
 ready framed to set up. For a time im- 
 mense profits were made in this, but an ex- 
 cessive shipment like that of the articles of 
 which the famous sidewalk was made brought 
 down the price below cost, and the business 
 ceased. 
 
 The first of the great fires that devastated San 
 Francisco occurred on Christmas eve, 1849. ^^ 
 started in Denison's Exchange, a gambling 
 house on the east side of the plaza. It burned 
 the greater part of the block between Wash- 
 ington and Clay streets and Kearny and Mont- 
 gomery streets. The loss was estimated at a 
 million and a quarter dollars. The second great 
 fire occurred on May 4, 1850. It burned over 
 the three blocks between Montgomery and 
 Dupont streets, bounded by Jackson and Clay 
 streets, and the north and east sides of Ports- 
 mouth square. The loss was estimated at 
 $4,000,000. It started in the United States Ex- 
 change, a gambling den, at four o'clock in the 
 morning, and burned for seven hours. The fire 
 was believed to be of incendiary origin and sev- 
 eral suspicious characters were arrested, but 
 nothing could be proved against them. A num- 
 ber of the lookers-on refused to assist in arrest- 
 ing the jprogress of the flames unless paid for 
 their labor; and $3 an hour was demanded and 
 paid to some who did. 
 
 On the 14th of June, 1850, a fire broke out in 
 the Sacramento House, on the east side of Kear- 
 ny street, between Clay and Sacramento. The 
 entire district from Kearny street between Clay 
 and California to the water front was burned 
 over, causing a loss of $3,000,000. Over three 
 hundred houses were destroyed. The fourth 
 great fire of the fateful year of 1850 occurred 
 September 17. It started on Jackson street and 
 destroyed the greater part of the blocks be- 
 tween Dupont and Montgomery streets from 
 Washington to Pacific streets. The loss in this 
 was not so great from the fact that the district 
 contained mostly one-story houses. It was esti- 
 mated at half a million dollars. December 14 
 
 of the same year a fire occurred on Sacramento 
 street below Montgomery. Although the dis- 
 trict burned over was not extensive, the loss 
 was heavy. The buildings were of corrugated 
 iron, supposed to be fireproof, and were filled 
 with valuable merchandise. The loss amounted 
 to $1,000,000. After each fire, building was re- 
 sumed almost before the embers of the fire that 
 consumed the former buildings were extin- 
 guished. After each fire better buildings were 
 constructed. A period of six months' exemp- 
 tion had encouraged the inhabitants of the fire- 
 afiflicted city to beHeve that on account of the 
 better class of buildings constructed the danger 
 of great conflagrations was past, but the worst 
 was yet to come. At 11 p. m.. May 3, 1851, a 
 fire, started by incendiaries, broke out on the 
 south side of the plaza. A strong northwest 
 wind swept across Kearny street in broad 
 sheets of flame, first southeastward, then, the 
 wind changing, the flames veered to the north 
 and east. All efforts to arrest them were use- 
 less; houses 'Were blown up and torn down in 
 attempts to cut off communication, but the en- 
 gines were driven back step by step, while some 
 of the brave firemen fell victims to the fire fiend. 
 The flames, rising aloft in whirling volumes, 
 swept away the frame houses and crumbled up 
 with intense heat the supposed fireproof struc- 
 tures. After ten hours, when, the fire abated for 
 want of material to burn, all that remained of 
 the city were the sparsely settled outskirts. All 
 of the business district between Pine and Pa- 
 cific streets, from Kearny to the Battery on 
 the water front, was in ruins. Over one thou- 
 sand houses had been burned. The loss of prop- 
 erty was estimated at $10,000,000, an amount 
 greater than the aggregate of all the preceding 
 fires. A number of lives were lost. During the 
 progress of the fire large quantities of goods 
 were stolen by bands of thieves. The sixth and 
 last of the great conflagrations that devastated 
 the city occurred on the 22d of June, 1851. The 
 fire started in a building on Powell street and 
 ravaged the district between Clay and Broadway, 
 from Powell to Sansome. Four hundred and 
 fifty houses were burned, involving a loss of 
 $2,500,000. An improved fire department, 
 more stringent building regulations and a bet- 
 
1!?-* 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ter water supply combined to put an end to the 
 era of great fires. 
 
 After the great fires of 1851 had swept over 
 the city there was practically nothing left of 
 the old metropolis of the early gold rush. The 
 hastily constructed wooden shanties were gone; 
 the corrugated iron building imported from 
 New York and London, and warranted to be 
 fireproof, had proved to be worthless to with- 
 stand great heat; the historic buildings had dis- 
 appeared; the new city that, Phoenix-like, arose 
 from the ashes of the old was a very different 
 city from its predecessor that had been wiped 
 from the earth by successive conflagrations. 
 Stone and brick buildings covered the former 
 site of wooden structures. The unsightly mud 
 flats between the wharves were filled in from the 
 sand hills and some of the streets paved. The 
 year 1853 was memorable for the rapid progress 
 of the city. Assessed property values increased 
 from $18,000,000 to $28,000,000. Real estate 
 values went soaring upward and the city was on 
 the high tide of prosperity; but a reaction came 
 in 1855. The rush to the mines had ceased, im- 
 migration had fallen off, and men had begun to 
 retrench and settle down to steady business 
 habits. Home productions had replaced im- 
 ports, and the people were abandoning mining 
 for farms. The transition from gold mining to 
 grain growing had begun. All these affected 
 the city and real estate declined. Lots that sold 
 for $8,000 to $10,000 in 1853 could be bought 
 for half that amount in 1855. Out of one thou- 
 sand business houses, three hundred were va- 
 cant. Another influence that helped to bring 
 about a depression was the growing political 
 
 corruption and the increased taxation from pec- 
 ulations of dishonest officials. 
 
 The defalcations and forgeries of Harry 
 Meigs, which occurred in 1854, were a terrible 
 blow to the city. Meigs was one of its most 
 trusted citizens. He was regarded as the em- 
 bodiment of integrity, the stern, incorruptible 
 man, the watch-dog of the treasury. By his 
 upright conduct he had earned the sobriquet of 
 Honest Harry Meigs. Over-speculation and 
 reaction from the boom of 1853 embarrassed 
 him. He forged a large amount of city scrip 
 and hypothecated it to raise money. His forger- 
 ies were suspected, but before the truth was 
 known he made his escape on the barque 
 America to Costa Rica and from there he made 
 his way to Peru. His forgeries amounted to 
 $1,500,000, of which $1,000,000 was in comp- 
 troller's warrants, to which he forged the names 
 of Mayor Garrison and Controller Harris. The 
 vigilance committee of 1856 cleared the political 
 atmosphere by clearing the city, by means of 
 hemp and deportation, of a number of bad 
 characters. The city was just beginning to re- 
 gain its former prosperity when the Frazer river 
 excitement brought about a temporary depres- 
 sion. The wild rush carried away about one- 
 sixth of its population. These all came back 
 again, poorer and perhaps wiser; at least, their 
 necessities compelled them to go to work and 
 weaned them somewhat of their extravagant 
 habits and their disinclination to work except for 
 the large returns of earlier days. Since 1857 the 
 growth of the city has been steady, unmarked 
 by real estate booms; nor has it been retarded 
 by long periods of financial depression. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 CRIME. CRIMINALS AND VIGILANCE COMMITTEES 
 
 THERE was but little crime in California 
 among its white inhabitants during the 
 Spanish and Mexican eras of its history. 
 The conditions were not conducive to the de- 
 velopment of a criminal element. The inhabit- 
 ants were a pastoral people, pursuing an out- 
 door vocation, and there were no large towns 
 or cities where the viciously inclined could con- 
 
 gregate and find a place of refuge from justice. 
 "From 1819 to 1846, that is, during the entire 
 period of Mexican domination under the Repub- 
 lic," says Bancroft, "there were but six murders 
 among the whites in all California." There were 
 no lynchings, no mobs, unless some of the rev- 
 olutionary uprisings might be called such, and 
 but one vigilance committee. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 188 
 
 San Francisco is credited with the origin of 
 that form of popular tribunal known as the vigi- 
 lance committee. The name "vigilance com- 
 mittee" originated with the uprising, in 185 1, of 
 the people of that city against the criminal ele- 
 ment; but, years before there was a city of San 
 Francisco, Los Angeles had originated a tri- 
 bunal of the people, had taken criminals from 
 the lawfully constituted authorities and had tried 
 and executed them. The causes which called 
 into existence the first vigilance committee in 
 California were similar to those that created the 
 later ones, namely, laxity in the administration 
 of the laws and distrust in the integrity of 
 those chosen to administer them. During the 
 "decade of revolutions," that is, between 1830 
 and 1840, the frequent change of rulers and the 
 struggles of the different factions for power en- 
 gendered in the masses a disregard, not only 
 for their rulers, but for law and order as well. 
 Criminals escaped punishment through the 
 law's delays. No court in California had power 
 to pass sentence of death on a civilian until its 
 findings had been approved by the superior tri- 
 bunal of Mexico. In the slow and tedious proc- 
 esses of the different courts, a criminal stood a 
 good show of dying of old age before his case 
 reached final adjudication. The first committee 
 of vigilance in California was organized at Los 
 Angeles, in the house of Juan Temple, April 7, 
 1836. It was called "Junta Defensora de La 
 Seguridad Publica," United Defenders of the 
 Public Security (or safety). Its motto, which ap- 
 pears in the heading of its "acta," and is there 
 credited as a quotation from Montesquieu's Ex- 
 position of the Laws, Book 26, Chapter 23, was, 
 "Salus populi suprema lex est" (The safety of 
 the people is the supreme law). There is a 
 marked similarity between the proceedings of 
 the Junta Defensora of 1836 and the San Fran- 
 cisco vigilance committee of 1856; it is not 
 probable, however, that any of the actors in the 
 latter committee participated in the former. 
 Although there is quite a full account of the 
 proceedings of the Junta Defensora in the Los 
 Angeles eity archives, no historian heretofore 
 except Bancroft seems to have found it. 
 
 The circumstances which brought about the 
 organization of the Junta Defensora ate as fol- 
 
 lows: The wife of Domingo Feliz (part owner 
 of the Los Feliz Rancho), who bore the poet- 
 ical name of Maria del Rosario Villa, became 
 infatuated with a handsome but disreputable 
 Sonoran vaquero, Gervacio Alispaz by name. 
 She abandoned her husband and lived with Alis- 
 paz as his mistress at San Gabriel. Feliz sought 
 to reclaim his erring wife, but was met by in- 
 sults and abuse from her paramour, whom he 
 once wounded in a personal altercation. Feliz 
 finally invoked the aid of the authorities. The 
 woman was arrested and brought to town. A 
 reconciliation was effected between the husband 
 and wife. Two days later they left town for the 
 rancho, both riding one horse. On the way 
 they were met by Alispaz, and in a personal en- 
 counter Feliz was stabbed to death by the wife's 
 paramour. The body was dragged into a ra- 
 vine and covered with brush and leaves. Next 
 day, March 29, the body was found and brought 
 to the city. The murderer and the woman were 
 arrested and imprisoned. The people were filled 
 with horror and indignation, and there were 
 threats of summary vengeance, but better coun- 
 sel prevailed. 
 
 On the 30th the funeral of Feliz took place, 
 and, like that of James King of William, twenty 
 years later, was the occasion for the renewal of 
 the outcry for vengeance. The attitude of the 
 people became so threatening that on the ist 
 of April an extraordinary session of the ayun- 
 tamiento was held. A call was made upon the 
 citizens to form an organization to preserve the 
 peace. A considerable number responded and 
 were formed into military patrols under the 
 command of Don Juan B. Leandry. The illus- 
 trious ayuntamiento resolved "that whomsoever 
 shall disturb the public tranquillity shall be pun- 
 ished according to law." The excitement ap- 
 parently died out, but it was only the calm that 
 precedes the storm. The beginning of the 
 Easter ceremonies was at hand, and it was 
 deemed a sacrilege to execute the assassins in 
 holy week, so all further attempts at punishment 
 were deferred uiitil April 7, the Monday after 
 Easter, when at dawn, by previous understand- 
 ing, a number of the better class of citizens met 
 at the house of Juan Temple, which stood on 
 the present site of the Downey Block. An or- 
 
184 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ganization was effected. Victor Prudon, a na- 
 tive of Breton, France, but a naturalized citizen 
 of California, was elected president; Manuel 
 Arzaga, a native of California, was elected sec- 
 retary, and Francisco Araujo, a retired army 
 officer, was placed in command of the armed 
 force. Speeches were made by Prudon, and by 
 the military commandant and others, setting 
 forth the necessity of their organization and jus- 
 tifying their actions. It was unanimously de- 
 cided that both the man and the woman should 
 be shot; their guilt being evident, no trial was 
 deemed necessary. 
 
 An address to the authorities and the people 
 was formulated. A copy of this is preserved in 
 the city archives. It abounds in metaphors. 
 It is too long for insertion here. I make a few 
 extracts: "* * * Believing that immorality 
 has reached such an extreme that public secur- 
 ity is menaced and will be lost if the dike of a 
 solemn example is not opposed to the torrent 
 of atrocious perfidy, we demand of you that you 
 execute or deliver to us for immediate execution 
 the assassin, Gervacio Alispaz, and the unfaith- 
 ful Maria del Rosario Villa, his accomplice. 
 * * '^' Nature trembles at the sight of these 
 venomous reptiles and the soil turns barren in 
 its refusal to support their detestable existence. 
 Let the infernal pair perish! It is the will of the 
 people. We will not lay down our arm-s until our 
 petition is granted and the murderers are exe- 
 cuted. The proof of their guilt is so clear that 
 justice needs no investigation. Public vengeance 
 demands an example and it must be given. The 
 blood of the Alvarez, of the Patinos, of the 
 Jenkins, is not yet cold — they, too, being the 
 unfortunate victims of the brutal passions of 
 their murderers. Their bloody ghosts shriek 
 for vengeance. Their terrible voices re-echo 
 from their graves. The afiflicted widow, the for- 
 saken orphan, the aged father, the brother in 
 mourning, the inconsolable mother, the public 
 — all demand speedy punishment of the .guilty. 
 We swear that outraged justice shall be avenged 
 to-day or we shall die in the attempt. The blood 
 of the murderers shall be shed to-day or ours 
 will be to the last drop. It will be published 
 throughout the world that judges in Los An- 
 geles tolerate murderers, but that there are 
 
 virtuous citizens who sacrifice their lives in 
 order to preserve those of their countrymen." 
 
 "A committee will deliver to the First Consti- 
 tutional Alcalde a copy of these resolutions, 
 that he may decide whatever he finds most con- 
 venient, and one hour's time will be given him 
 in which to do so. If in that time no answer has 
 been received, then the judge will be responsible 
 before God and man for what will follow. Death 
 to the murderers! 
 
 "God and liberty. Angeles, April 7, 1836." 
 
 Fifty-five signatures are attached to this doc- 
 ument; fourteen of these are those of natural- 
 ized foreigners and the remainder those of na- 
 tive Californians. The junta was made up of 
 the best citizens, native and foreign. An extraor- 
 dinary session of the ayuntamiento was called. 
 The members of the junta, fully armed, marched 
 to the city hall to await the decision of the 
 authorities. The petition was discussed in the 
 council, and, in the language of the archives: 
 "This Illustrious Body decided to call said 
 Breton Prudon to appear before it and to com- 
 pel him to retire with the armed citizens so that 
 this Illustrious Body may deliberate at liberty." 
 
 "This was done, but he declined to appear 
 before this body, as he and the armed citizens 
 were determined to obtain Gervacio AliSpaz and 
 Maria del Rosario Villa. The ayuntamiento 
 decided that as it had not sufficient force to 
 compel the armed citizens to disband, they 
 being in large numbers and composed of the 
 best and most respectable men of the town, to 
 send an answer saying that the judges could 
 not accede to the demand of the armed citi- 
 zens." 
 
 The members of the Junta Defensora then 
 marched in a body to the jail and demanded the 
 keys of the guard. These were refused. The 
 keys were secured by force and Gervacio AHspaz 
 taken out and shot. The following demand was 
 then sent to the first alcalde, Manuel Requena: 
 
 "It is. absolutely necessary that you deliver 
 to this junta the key of the apartment where 
 Maria del Rosario Villa is kept. 
 "God and liberty. 
 
 "Victor Prudon, President. 
 "Manuel Arzaga, Secretary." 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 185 
 
 To this the alcalde replied: "Maria del Rosa- 
 rio Villa is incarcerated at a private dwelling, 
 whose owner has the key, with instructions not 
 to deliver the same to any one. The prisoner is 
 left there at the disposition of the law only. 
 
 "God and liberty. 
 
 "Manuel Requena, (Alcalde." 
 
 The key was obtained. The wretched Maria 
 was taken to the place of execution 'on a car- 
 reta and shot. The bodies of the guilty p^ir 
 were brought back to the jail and the following 
 communication sent to the alcalde: 
 
 "Junta of the Defenders of Public Safety. 
 
 "To the I St Constitutional Alcalde: 
 "The dead bodies of Gervacio Alispaz and 
 Maria del Rosario Villa are at your disposal. 
 We also forward you the jail keys that you may 
 deliver them to whomsoever is on guard. In 
 case yoit are in need of men to serve as guards, 
 we are all at your disposal. 
 
 "God and liberty. Angeles, April 7, 1836. 
 "Victor Prudon, Pres. 
 "Manuel Arzaga, Sec." 
 
 A few days later the Junta Defensora de La 
 Seguridad Publica disbanded; and so ended the 
 only instance in. the seventy-five years of Span- 
 ish and Mexican rule in California, of the people, 
 by popular tribunal, taking th'e administration of 
 justice out of the hands of the legally consti- 
 tuted authorities. 
 
 The tales of the fabulous richness of the gold 
 fields of California were quickly spread through- 
 out the world and drew to the territory all 
 classes and conditions of men, the bad as well 
 as the good, the vicious as well as the virtuous; 
 the indolent, the profligate and the criminal 
 came to prey upon the industrious. These con- 
 glomerate elements of society found the Land 
 of Gold practically without law, and the vicious 
 among them were not long in making it a land 
 without order. With that inherent trait, which 
 makes the Anglo-Saxon wherever he may be 
 an organizer, the American element of the gold 
 seekers soon adjusted a form of government to 
 suit the exigencies of the land and the people. 
 There may have been too much lynching, too 
 much vigilance committee in it and too little 
 
 respect for lawfully constituted authorities, but 
 it was effective and was suited to the social 
 conditions existing. 
 
 In r85i the criminal element became so dom- 
 inant as to seriously threaten the existence of 
 the chief city, San Francisco. Terrible conflagra- 
 tions had swept over the city in May and June 
 of that year and destroyed the greater part of 
 the business portion. The fires were known to 
 be of incendiary origin. The bold and defiant 
 attitude of the vicious classes led to the or- 
 ganization by the better element, of that form 
 of popular tribunal called a committee of vigi- 
 lance. The law abiding element among the cit- 
 izens disregarding the legally constituted 
 authorities, who were either too weak or too 
 corrupt to control the law-defying, took the 
 ■power in their own hands, organized a vigilance 
 committee and tried and executed by hanging 
 four notorious criminals, namely: Jenkins, 
 Stuart, Whitaker and McKenzie. 
 
 During the proceedings of the vigilance com- 
 mittee a case of mistaken identity came near 
 costing an innocent man his life. About 8 
 o'clock in the evening of February 18, two men 
 entered the store of a Mr. Jansen on Mont- 
 gomery street and asked to see some blankets. 
 As the merchant stooped to get the blankets 
 one of the men struck him with a sling shot and 
 both of them beat him into insensibility. They 
 then opened his desk and carried away all the 
 gold they could find, about $2,000. The police 
 arrested two men on suspicion of being the rob- 
 bers. One of the men was identified as James 
 Stuart, a noted criminal, who had murdered 
 Sheriff Moore at Auburn. He gave the name of 
 Thomas Burdue, but this was believed to be one 
 of Stuart's numerous aliases. The men were 
 identified by Mr. Jansen as his assailants. They 
 were put on trial. When the court adjourned 
 over to the next day a determined effort was 
 made by the crowd to seize the men and hang 
 them. They were finally taken out of the hands 
 of the officers and given a trial by a jury selected 
 by a committee of citizens. The jury failed to 
 agree, three of the jury being convinced that 
 the men were not Jansen's assailants. Then the 
 mob made a rush to hang the jury, but were 
 kept back by a show of revolvers. The prison- 
 
is<; 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ers were turned over to the court. One of 
 them, Wildred, broke jail and escaped. Burdue 
 was tried, convicted and sentenced to fourteen 
 years' imprisonment. Before the sentence of 
 the court was executed he was taken to Alarys- 
 ville and arraigned for the murder of Sheriff 
 Moore. A number of witnesses swore positively 
 that the man was Stuart; others swore even more 
 positively that he was not. A close examination 
 revealed that the prisoner bore every distin- 
 guishing mark on his person by which Stuart 
 could be identified. He was convicted and sen- 
 tenced to be hanged in thirty days. In the mean- 
 time the vigilance committee of 1856 was or- 
 ganized and the real Stuart accidentally fell into 
 the hands of the vigilantes at San Francisco. 
 He was arrested for a theft he had not com- 
 mitted and recognized by one of the committee's 
 guards that he had formerly employed in the 
 mines. By adroit questioning he was forced to 
 confess that he was the real Stuart, the murderer 
 of Sherifif Moore and the assailant of Jansen. 
 His confederate in the robbery was Whitaker, 
 one of the four hanged by the committee. Bur- 
 due was finally released, after having twice 
 stood under the shadow of the gallows for the 
 crimes of his double. The confessions of Stuart 
 and Whitaker implicated a number of their pals. 
 Some of these were convicted and sent to prison 
 and others fled the country; about thirty were 
 banished. Nearly all of the criminals were ex- 
 convicts from Australia and Tasmania. 
 
 The vigorous measures adopted by the com- 
 mittee purified the city of the vicious class that 
 had preyed upon it. Several of the smaller 
 towns and some of the mining camps organized 
 vigilance committees and a number of the 
 knaves who had fled from San Francisco met a 
 deserved fate in other places. 
 
 In the early '50s the better elements of San 
 Francisco's population were so engrossed in 
 business that they had no time to spare to look 
 after its political affairs; and its government 
 gradually drifted into the hands of vicious and 
 corrupt men. Many of the city authorities had 
 obtained their offices by fraud and ballot stuf- 
 fing and "instead of protecting the community 
 against scoundrels they protected the scoundrels 
 against the community." James King of Will- 
 
 iam, an ex-banker and a man of great courage 
 and persistence, started a small paper called 
 the Daily Evening Bulletin. He vigorously as- 
 sailed the criminal elements and the city and 
 county officials. His denunciations aroused pub- 
 lic sentiment. The murder of United States 
 Marshal Richardson by a gambler named Cora 
 still further inflamed the pubHc mind. It was 
 feared that by the connivance of some of the 
 corrupt county officials Cora would escape pun- 
 ishment. His trial resulted in a hung jury. 
 There was a suspicion that some of the jury- 
 men were bribed. King continued through the 
 Bulletin to hurl his most bitter invectives against 
 the corrupt officials. They determined to silence 
 him. He published the fact that James Casey, 
 a supervisor from the twelfth ward, was an ex- 
 convict of Sing Sing prison. Casey waylaid 
 King at the corner of Montgomery and Wash- 
 ington streets and in a cowardly manner shot 
 him down. The shooting occurred on the 14th 
 of May, 1856. Casey immediately surrendered 
 himself to a deputy sheriff, Lafayete M. Byrne, 
 who was near. King was not killed, but an ex- 
 amination of the wound by the physicians de- 
 cided" that there was no hopes of his recovery. 
 Casey was conducted to the city prison and as 
 a mob began to gather, for greater safety he 
 was taken to the county jail. A crowd pursued 
 him crying, "Harfg him," "kill him." At the 
 jail the mob was stopped by an array of deputy 
 sheriffs, police officers and a number of Casey's 
 friends, all armed. The excitement spread 
 throughout the city. The old vigilance com- 
 mittee of 1 85 1, or rather a new organization out 
 of the remnant of the old, was formed. Five 
 thousand men were enrolled in a few days. 
 Arms were procured and headquarters .estab- 
 lished on Sacramento street between Davis and 
 Front. The men were divided into companies. 
 William T. Coleman, chairman of the vigilance 
 committee of 1851, was made president or No. i, 
 and Isaac Bluxome, Jr., the secretary, was No. 
 33. Each man was known by number. Charles 
 Doane was elected chief marshal of the military 
 division. 
 
 The San Francisco Hei'ald (edited by John 
 Nugent), then the leading paper of the city, came 
 out with a scathing editorial denouncing the 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 187 
 
 vigilance committee. Tlie merchants at once 
 withdrew their advertising patronage. Next 
 morning the paper appeared reduced from forty 
 columns to a single page, but still hostile to the 
 committee. It finally died for want of patron- 
 age. 
 
 On Sunday, May i8, 1856, the military di- 
 vision was ready to storm the jail if necessary to 
 obtain possession of the prisoners, Casey and 
 Cora. The dififerent companies, marching from 
 their headquarters by certain prescribed routes, 
 all reached the jail at the same time and com- 
 pletely invested it. They had with them two 
 pieces of artillery. One of these guns was 
 planted so as to command the door of the- jail. 
 There were fifteen hundred vigilantes under 
 arms. A demand was made on Sheriff Scannell 
 for the prisoners, Cora and Casey. The prison 
 guard made no resistance, the prisoners were 
 surrendered and taken at once to the vigilantes' 
 headquarters. 
 
 On the 20th of May the murderers were put 
 on trial; while the trial was in progress the 
 death of King was announced. Both men were 
 convicted and sentenced to be hanged. King's 
 funeral, the largest and most imposing ever seen 
 in San Francisco, took place on the 23d. While 
 the funeral cortege was passing through the 
 streets Casey and Cora were hanged in front of 
 the windows of the vigilance headquarters. 
 About an hour before his execution Cora was 
 married to a notorious courtesan, Arabella 
 Ryan, but commonly called Belle Cora. A 
 Catholic priest. Father Accolti, performed the 
 ceremony. 
 
 Governor J. Neely Johnson, who at first 
 seemed inclined not to interfere with the vig- 
 ilantes, afterwards acting under the advice of 
 David S. Terry, Volney E. Howard and others 
 of dominant pro-slavery faction, issued a proc- 
 lamation commanding the committee to disband, 
 to which no attention was paid. The governor 
 then appointed William T. Sherman major-gen- 
 eral. Sherman called for recruits to suppress 
 the uprising. Seventy-five or a hundred, mostly 
 gamblers, responded to his call. General Wool, 
 in command of the troops in the department of 
 the Pacific, refused to loan Governor Johnson 
 arms to equip his "law and order" recruits and 
 
 General Sherman resigned. Volney E. Howard 
 was then appointed major-general. His princi- 
 pal military service consisted in proclaiming 
 what he would do to the "pork merchants" who 
 constituted the committee. He did nothing ex- 
 cept to bluster. A squad of the vigilance po- 
 Hce attempted to arrest a man named Maloney. 
 Maloney was at the time in the company of 
 David S. Terry (then chief justice of the state) 
 and several other members of the "law and or- 
 der" party. They resisted the police and in the 
 melee Terry stabbed the sergeant of the squad. 
 Sterling A. Hopkins, and then he and his as- 
 sociates made their escape to the armory of the 
 San Francisco Blues, one of their strongholds. 
 
 When the report of the stabbing reached 
 headquarters the great bell sounded the alarm 
 and the vigilantes in a very brief space of time 
 surrounded the armory building and had their 
 cannon planted to batter it down. Terry, Ma- 
 loney, and the others of their party in the build- 
 ing, considering discretion the better part of 
 valor, surrendered and were at once taken to 
 Fort Gunnybags,* the vigilantes' headquarters. 
 The arms of the "law and order" party at their 
 various rendezvous were surrendered to the vig- 
 ilantes and the companies disbanded. 
 
 Terry was closely confined in a cell at the 
 headquarters of the committee; Hopkins, after 
 lingering some time between life and death, 
 finally recovered. Terry was tried for assault 
 on Hopkins and upon several other persons, was 
 found guilty, but, after being held as a prisoner 
 for some time, was finally released. He at once 
 joined Johnson and Howard at Sacramento, 
 where he felt much safer than in San Francisco. 
 He gave the vigilantes no more trouble. 
 
 On the 29th of July, Hethrington and Brace 
 were hanged from a gallows erected on Davis 
 street, between Sacramento and Commercial. 
 Both of these men had committed murder. 
 These were the last executions by the commit- 
 tee. The cornmittee transported from the state 
 thirty disreputable characters and a number de- 
 ported themselves. A few, and among them the 
 
 *The vigilantes built around the building which they 
 used for headquarters a breastwork made of gunny- 
 sacks filled with sand. Cannon were planted at the 
 corners of the redout. 
 
188 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 notorious Ned McGowan, managed to keep con- 
 cealed until the storm was over. A few of the 
 expatriated returned after the committee dis- 
 solved and brought suit for damages, but failed 
 to recover anything. The committee had paid 
 the fare of the exiles. It was only the high 
 toned rascals who were given a cabin passage 
 that brought the suits. The committee finished 
 its labors and dissolved with a grand parade on 
 the i8th of August (1856). It did a good work. 
 For several years after, San Francisco from be- 
 ing one of the worst, became one of the best 
 governed cities in the United States. The com- 
 mittee was made up of men from the northern 
 and western states. The so-called "law and 
 order" party was mostly composed of the pro- 
 slavery office-holding faction that ruled the state 
 at that time. 
 
 When the vigilance committees between 1851 
 and 1856 drove disreputable characters from 
 San Francisco and the northern mines, many of 
 them drifted southward and found a lodgment 
 for a time in the southern cities and towns. Los 
 Angeles was not far from the Mexican line, and 
 any one who desired to escape from justice, 
 fleet mounted, could speedily put himself be- 
 yond the reach of his pursuers. All these 
 causes and influences combined to produce a 
 saturnalia of crime that disgraced that city in 
 the early '50s. 
 
 Gen. J. H. Bean, a prominent citizen of 
 Southern California, while returning to Los An- 
 geles from his place of business at San Gabriel 
 late one evening in November, 1852, was at- 
 tacked by two men, who had been lying in wait 
 for him. One seized the bridle of his horse and 
 jerked the animal back on his haunches; the 
 other seized the general and pulled him from the 
 saddle. Bean made a desperate resistance, but 
 was overpowered and stabbed to death. The 
 assassination of General Bean resulted in the 
 organization of a vigilance committee and an 
 efifort was made to rid the country of desper- 
 adoes. A number of arrests were made. Three 
 suspects were tried by the committee for various 
 crimes. One, Cipiano Sandoval, a poor cob- 
 bler of San Gabriel, was charged with complicity 
 in the murder of General Bean. He strenuously 
 maintained that he was innocent. He, with the 
 
 other two, were sentenced to be hanged. On 
 the following Sunday morning the doomed men 
 were conducted to the top of Fort Hill, where 
 the gallows stood. Sandoval made a brief 
 speech, again declaring his innocence. The 
 others awaited their doom in silence. The trap 
 fell and all were launched into eternity. Years 
 afterward one of the real murderers on his 
 deathbed revealed the truth and confessed his 
 part in the crime. The poor cobbler was inno- 
 cent. 
 
 In 1854 drunkenness, gambling, murder and 
 all forms of immorality and crime were ram- 
 pant in Los Angeles. The -violent deaths, it is 
 said, averaged one for every day in the year. It 
 was a common question at the breakfast table, 
 "Well, how many were killed last night?" Little 
 or no attention was paid to the killing of an 
 Indian or a half breed ; it was only when a gente 
 de razon was the victim that the community was 
 aroused to action. 
 
 The Kern river gold rush, in the winter of 
 1854-55, brought from the northern mines fresh 
 relays of gamblers and desperadoes and crime 
 increased. The Southern Californian of March 
 7, 1855, commenting on the general lawlessness 
 prevailing, says: "Last Sunday night was a 
 brisk night for killing. Four men were shot 
 and killed and several wounded in shooting af- 
 frays." 
 
 A worthless fellow by the name of David 
 Brown, who had, without provocation, killed a 
 companion named Clififord, was tried and sen- 
 tenced to be hanged with one Felipe Alvitre, a 
 Mexican, who had murdered an American 
 named Ellington, at El Monte. There was a 
 feeling among the people that Brown, through 
 quibbles of law, would escape the death penalty, 
 and there was talk of lynching. Stephen C. 
 F''oster, the mayor, promised that if justice was 
 not legally meted out to Brown by the law, then 
 he would resign his office and head the lynching 
 party. January 10, 1855, an order was received 
 from Judge Murray, of the supreme court, stay- 
 ing the execution of Brown, but leaving Alvitre 
 to his fate. January 12 Alvitre was hanged by 
 the sheriff in the jail yard in the presence of an 
 immense crowd. The gallows were taken down 
 and the guards dismissed. The crowd gathered 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 189 
 
 outside the jail yard. Speeches were made. 
 The mayor resigned his office and headed the 
 mob. The doors of the jail were broken down; 
 Brown was taken across Spring street to a 
 large gateway opening into a corral and hanged 
 from the crossbeam. Foster was re-elected by 
 an almost unanimous vote at a special election. 
 The city marshal, who had opposed the action 
 of the vigilantes, was compelled to resign. 
 
 During 1855 and 1856 lawlessness increased. 
 There was an organized band of about one hun- 
 dred Mexicans, who patroled the highways, 
 robbing and murdering. They threatened the 
 extermination of the Americans and there were 
 fears of a race war, for many who were not 
 members of the gang sympathized with them. 
 In 1856 a vigilance committee was organized 
 with Myron Norton as president and H. N. 
 Alexander as secretary. A number of dis- 
 reputable characters were forced to leave town. 
 The banditti, under their leaders, Pancho Dan- 
 iel and Juan Flores, were plundering and com- 
 mitting outrages in the neighborhood of San 
 Juan Capistrano. 
 
 On the night of January 22, 1857, Sheriff 
 James R. Barton left Los Angeles with a posse, 
 consisting of William H. Little, Charles K. 
 Baker, Charles F. Daley, Alfred Hardy and 
 Frank Alexander with the intention of captur- 
 ing some of the robbers. At Sepulveda's ranch 
 'next morning the sheriff's party was warned that 
 the robbers were some fifty strong, well armed 
 and mounted, and would probably attack them. 
 Twelve miles further the sheriff and his men en- 
 countered a detachment of the banditti. A 
 short, sharp engagement took place. Barton, 
 Baker, Little and Daley were killed. Hardy and 
 Alexander made their escape by the fleetness 
 of their horses. When the news reached Los 
 Angeles the excitement became intense. A 
 public meeting was held to devise plans to rid 
 the community not only of the roving gang of 
 murderers, but also of the criminal classes in 
 the city, who were known to be in sympathy 
 with the banditti. All suspicious houses were 
 searched and some fifty persons arrested. Sev- 
 eral companies were organized; the infantry to 
 guard the city and the mounted men to scour 
 the country. Companies were also formed at 
 
 San Bernardino and El Monte, while the mil- 
 itary authorities at Fort Tejon and San Diego 
 despatched soldiers to aid in the good work of 
 exterminating crime and crirninals. 
 
 The robbers were pursued into the mountains 
 and nearly all captured. Gen. Andres Pico, 
 with a company of native Californians, was most 
 efficient in the pursuit. He captured Silvas and 
 Ardillero, two of the most noted of the gang, 
 and hanged them where they were cap- 
 tured. Fifty-two were lodged in the city jail. 
 Of these, eleven were hanged for various crimes 
 and^the remainder set free. Juan Flores, one 
 of the leaders, was condemned by popular vote 
 and on February 14, 1857, was hanged near the 
 top of Fort Hill in the presence of nearly the 
 entire population of the town. He was only 
 twenty-one years of age. Pancho Daniel, an- 
 other of the leaders, was captured on the 19th 
 of January, 1858, near San Jose. He was found 
 by the sheriff, concealed in a haystack. After 
 his arrest he was part of the time in jail and part 
 of the time out on bail. He had been tried three 
 times, but through law quibbles had escaped 
 conviction. A change of venue to Santa Bar- 
 bara had been granted. The people determined 
 to take the law in their own hands. On the 
 morning of November 30, 1858, the body of 
 Pancho was hanging from a beam across the 
 gateway of the jail yard. Four of the banditti 
 were executed by the people of San Gabriel, 
 and Leonardo Lopez, under sentence of the 
 court, was hanged by the sheriff. The gang was 
 broken up and the moral atmosphere of Los 
 Angeles somewhat purified. 
 
 November 17, 1862, John Rains of Cuca- 
 monga ranch was murdered near Azusa. De- 
 cember 9, 1863, the sheriff was taking Manuel 
 Cerradel to San Quentin to serve a ten years' 
 sentence. When the sheriff went aboard the tug 
 boat Cricket at Wilmington, to proceed to the 
 Senator, quite a number of other persons took 
 passage. On the way down the harbor, the 
 prisoner was seized by the passengers, who 
 were vigilantes, and hanged to the rigging; after 
 hanging twenty minutes the body was taken 
 down, stones tied to the feet and it was thrown 
 overboard. Cerradel was implicated in the mur- 
 der of Rains. 
 
190 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAI , RECORD. 
 
 In the fall of 1863 lawlessness had again be- 
 come rampant m Los Angeles; one of the chiefs 
 of the criminal class was a desperado by the 
 name of Boston Daimwood. He was suspected 
 of the murder of a miner on the desert 
 and was loud in his threats against the lives 
 of various citizens. He and four other well- 
 known criminals, Wood, Chase, Ybarra and 
 Olivas, all of whom were either murder- 
 ers or horse thieves, were lodged in jail. On 
 the 21 st of November two hundred armed 
 citizens battered down the doors of the jail, 
 took the five wretches out and hanged them to 
 the portico of the old court house on Spring 
 street, which stood on the present site of the 
 Phillips block. 
 
 On the 24th of October, 1871, occurred in 
 Los Angeles a most disgraceful affair, known 
 as the Chinese massacre. It grew out of one 
 of those interminable feuds between rival 
 tongs of highbinders, over a woman. Desul- 
 tory firing had been kept up between the rival 
 factions throughout the day. About 5:30 p. m. 
 Policeman Bilderrain visited the seat of war, an 
 old adobe house on the corner of Arcadia street 
 and "Nigger alley," known as the Coronel build- 
 ing. Finding himself unable to quell the dis- 
 turbance he called for help. Robert Thompson, 
 an old resident of the city, was among the first 
 to reach the porch of the house in answer to the 
 police call for help. He received a mortal wound 
 from a bullet fired through the door of a Chi- 
 nese store. He died an hour later in WoU- 
 weber's drug store. The Chinese in the mean- 
 time barricaded the doors and windows of the 
 old adobe and prepared for battle. The news 
 of the fight and of the killing of Thompson 
 spread throughout the city and an immense 
 crowd gathered in the streets around the build- 
 ing with the intention of wreaking vengeance on 
 the Chinese. 
 
 The first attempt by the mob to dislodge the 
 Chinamen was by cutting holes through the flat 
 brea covered roof and firing pistol shots into the 
 interior of the building. One of the besieged 
 crawled out of the building and attempted to 
 escape, but was shot down before half way 
 across Negro alley. Another attempted to es- 
 cape into Los Angeles street; he was seized, 
 
 dragged to the gate of Tomlinson's corral on 
 New High street, and hanged. 
 
 About 9 o'clock a part of the mob had suc- 
 ceeded in battering a hole in the eastern end of 
 the building; through this the rioters, with 
 demoniac bowlings, rushed in, firing pistols to 
 the right and left. Huddled in corners and hid- 
 den behind boxes they found eight terror- 
 stricken Chinamen, who begged piteously for 
 their lives. These were brutally dragged out 
 and turned over to the fiendish mob. One was 
 dragged to death by a rope around his neck; 
 three, more dead than alive from kicking and 
 beating, were hanged to a wagon on Los An- 
 geles street; and four were hanged to the gate- 
 way of Tomlinson's corral. Two of the victims 
 were mere boys. While the shootings and hang- 
 ings were going on thieves were looting the 
 other houses in the Chinese quarters. The 
 houses were broken into, trunks, boxes and 
 other receptacles rifled of their contents, and 
 any Chinamen found in the buildings were 
 dragged forth to slaughter. Among the vic- 
 tims was a doctor, Gene Tung, a quiet, inof- 
 fensive old man. He pleaded for his life in good 
 English, offering his captors all his money, 
 some $2,000 to $3,000. He was hanged, his 
 money stolen and one of his fingers cut ofif to 
 obtain a ring he wore. The amount of money 
 stolen by the mob from the Chinese quarters 
 was variously estimated at from $40,000 to 
 $50,000. 
 
 About 9:30 p. ra. the law abiding citizens, 
 under the leadership of Henry Hazard, R. M. 
 Widney, H. C. Austin, Sherifif Burns and oth- 
 ers, had rallied in sufficient force to make an 
 attempt to quell the mob. Proceeding to China- 
 town they rescued several Chinamen from the 
 rioters. The mob finding armed opposition 
 quickly dispersed. 
 
 The results of the mob's murderous work 
 were ten men hanged on Los Angeles street, 
 some to wagons and some to awnings; five 
 hanged at Tomlinson's corral and four shot to 
 death in Negro alley, nineteen in all. - Of all the 
 Chinamen murdered, the only one known to be 
 implicated in the highbinder war was Ah Choy. 
 All the other leaders escaped to the country 
 before the attack was made by the mob. The 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 191 
 
 grand jury, after weeks of investigation, found 
 indictments against one hundred and fifty per- 
 sons alleged to have been actively engaged in 
 the massacre. The jury's report severely cen- 
 sured "the officers of this county, as well as of 
 this city, whose duty it is to preserve peace," 
 and declared that they "were deplorably ineffi- 
 cient in the performance of their duty during 
 the scenes of confusion and bloodshed which 
 disgraced our city, and has cast a reproach upon 
 the people of Los Angeles county." Of all those 
 indicted but six were convicted. These were 
 sentenced to from four to six years in the state's 
 prison, but through some legal technicality they 
 were all released after serving a part of their 
 sentence. 
 
 The last execution in Los Angeles by a vig- 
 ilance committee was that of Michael Lachenias, 
 a French desperado, who had killed five or six 
 men. The offense for which he was hanged was 
 the murder of Jacob Bell, a little inoffensive 
 man, who owned a small farm near that of 
 Lachenias, south of the city. There had been 
 a slight difference between them in regard to 
 the use of water from a zanja. Lachenias, with- 
 out a word of warning, rode up to Bell, where 
 he was at work in his field, drew a revolver and 
 shot him dead. The murderer then rode into 
 town and boastingly informed the people of 
 what he had done and told them where they 
 would find Bell's body. He then surrendered 
 himself to the officers and was locked up in 
 jail. 
 
 Public indignation was aroused. A meeting 
 was held in Sfearns' hall on Los Angeles street. 
 A vigilance committee was formed and the de- 
 tails of the execution planned. On the morning 
 of the 17th of December, 1870, a body of three 
 hundred armed men marched to the jail, took 
 Lachenias out and proceeded with him to Tom- 
 linson's corral on Temple and New High streets, 
 and hanged him. The crowd then quietly dis- 
 persed. 
 
 A strange metamorphosis took place in the 
 character of the lower classes of the native Cal- 
 ifornians after the conquest. (The better classes 
 were not changed in character by the changed 
 conditions of the country, but throughout were 
 true gentlemen and most worthy and honorable 
 
 citizens.) Before the conquest by the Ameri- 
 cans they were a peaceful and contented people. 
 There were no organized bands of outlaws 
 among them. After the discovery of gold the 
 evolution of a banditti began and they produced 
 some of the boldest robbers and most daring 
 highwaymen the world has seen. 
 
 The injustice of their conquerors had much to 
 do with producing this change. The Ameri- 
 cans not only took possession of their country 
 and its government, but in many cases they de- 
 spoiled them of their ancestral acres and their 
 personal property. Injustice rankles; and it* is 
 not strange that the more lawless among the 
 native population sought revenge and retalia- 
 tion. They were often treated by the rougher 
 American element as aliens and intruders, who 
 had no right in the land of their birth. Such 
 treatment embittered them more than loss of 
 property. There were those, however, among 
 the natives, who, once entered upon a career 
 of crime, found robbery and murder congenial 
 occupations. The plea of injustice was no ex- 
 tenuation for their crimes. 
 
 Joaquin Murieta was the most noted of the 
 Mexican and Californian desperadoes of the 
 early '50s. He was born in Sonora of good fam- 
 ily and received some education. He came to 
 California with the Sonoran migration of 1849, 
 and secured a rich claim on the Stanislaus. He 
 was dispossessed of this by half a dozen Amer- 
 ican desperadoes, his wife abused and both 
 driven from the diggings. He next took up a 
 ranch on the Calaveras, but from this he was 
 driven by two Americans. He next tried min- 
 ing in the Murphy diggings, but was unsuccess- 
 ful. His next occupation was that of a monte 
 player. While riding into town on a horse bor- 
 rowed from his half-brother he was stopped by 
 an American, who claimed that the horse was 
 stolen from him. Joaquin protested that the 
 horse was a borrowed one from his half-brother 
 and offered to procure witnesses to prove it. 
 He was dragged from -the saddle amid cries of 
 "hang the greaser." He was taken to the ranch 
 of his brother. The brother was hanged to the 
 limb of a tree, no other proof of his crime being 
 needed than the assertion of the American that 
 the horse was his. Joaquin was stripped, bound 
 
192 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to the same tree and flogged. The demon was 
 aroused within him, and no wonder, he vowed 
 revenge on the men who had murdered his 
 brother and beaten him. Faithfully he carried 
 out his vow of vengeance. Had he doomed 
 only these to slaughter it would have been but 
 little loss, but the implacable foe of every 
 American, he made the innocent suffer with the 
 guilty. He was soon at the head of a band of 
 desperadoes, varying in numbers from twenty to 
 forty. For three years he and his band were the 
 terror of the state. From the northern mines 
 to the Mexican border they committed robberies 
 and murders. Claudio and some of his sub- 
 ordinates were killed, but the robber chief 
 seemed to bear a charmed life. Large rewards 
 were ofifered for him dead or alive and numerous 
 attempts were made to take him. Capt. Harry 
 Love at the head of a band of rangers August, 
 1853, came upon Joaquin and six of his gang 
 in a camp near the Tejon Pass. In the fight that 
 ensued Joaquin and Three Fingered Jack were 
 killed. With the loss of their leaders the or- 
 ganization was broken up. 
 
 The last organized band of robbers which 
 terrorized the southern part of the state was 
 that of Vasquez. Tiburcio Vasquez was born 
 in Monterey county, of' Mexican parents, in 
 1837. Early in life he began a career of crime. 
 After committing a number of robberies and 
 thefts he was captured and sent to San Quentin 
 for horse stealing. He was discharged in 1863, 
 but continued his disreputable career. He 
 united with Procopio and Soto, two noted ban- 
 dits. Soto was killed by Sheriff Morse of Ala- 
 meda county in a desperate encounter. Vasquez 
 and his gang of outlaws committed robberies 
 throughout the southern part of the state, rang- 
 ing from Santa Clara and Alameda counties to 
 the Mexican line. Early in May, 1874, Sheriff 
 William Rowland of Los Angeles county, who 
 had repeatedly tried to capture Vasquez, but 
 whose plans had been foiled by the bandit's 
 
 spies, learned that the robber chief was mak- 
 ing his headquarters at the house of Greek 
 George, about ten miles due west of Los An- 
 geles, toward Santa Monica, in a cafion of the 
 Cahuenga mountains. The morning of May 15 
 was set for the attack. To avert suspicion 
 Sheriff Rowland remained in the city. The at- 
 tacking force, eight in number, were under 
 command of Under-Sheriff Albert Johnson, the 
 other members of the force were Major H. M. 
 Mitchell, attorney-at-law ; J. S. Bryant, city con- 
 stable; E. Harris, policeman; W. E. Rogers, 
 citizen; B. F. Hartley, chief of police; and D. 
 K. Smith, citizen, all of Los Angeles, and a Mr. 
 Beers, of San Francisco, special correspondent 
 of the San Francisco Chronicle. 
 
 At 4 a. m. on the morning of the 15th of May 
 the posse reached Major Mitchell's bee ranch 
 in a small canon not far from Greek George's. 
 From this point the party reconnoitered the 
 bandit's hiding place and planned an attack. As 
 the deputy sheriff and his men were about to 
 move against the house a high box wagon drove 
 up the canon from the direction of Greek 
 George's place. In this were two natives; the 
 sheriff's party climbed into the high wagon box 
 and, lying down, compelled the driver to drive 
 up to the back of Greek George's house, 
 threatening him and his companion with death 
 on the least sign of treachery. Reaching the 
 house they surrounded it and burst in the door. 
 Vasquez, who had been eating his breakfast, at- 
 tempted to escape through a small window. 
 The party opened fire on him. Being wounded 
 and finding himself surrounded on all sides, he 
 surrendered. He was taken to the Los Angeles 
 jail. His injuries proved to be mere flesh 
 wounds. He received a great deal of maudlin 
 sympathy from silly women, who magnified him 
 into a hero. He was taken to San Jose, tried 
 for murder, found guilty and hanged, March 19, 
 1875. His band was thereupon broken up and 
 dispersed. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1&3 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII, 
 
 FILIBUSTERS AND FILIBUSTERING. 
 
 THE rush of immigration to California in 
 the early '50s had brought to the state 
 a class of adventurers who were too 
 lazy or too proud to work. They were ready 
 to engage in almost any lawless undertaking 
 that promised plunder and adventure. The tie- 
 feat of the pro-slavery politicians in their at- 
 tempts to fasten their "peculiar institution" upon 
 any part of the territory acquired from Mex- 
 ico had embittered them. The more un- 
 scrupulous among them began to look around 
 for new fields, over which slavery might be ex- 
 tended. As it could be made profitable only in 
 southern lands, Cuba, Mexico and Central 
 America became the arenas for enacting that 
 form of piracy called "filibustering." The object 
 of these forays, when organized by Americans, 
 was to seize upon territory as had been done 
 in Texas and erect it into an independent gov- 
 ernment that ultimately would be annexed to 
 the United States and become slave territory. 
 Although the armed invasion of countries with 
 which the United States was at peace was a di- 
 rect violation of its neutrality laws, yet the fed- 
 eral office-holders in the southern states and in 
 California, all of whom belonged to the pro- 
 slavery faction, not only made no attempt to 
 prevent these invasions, but secretly aided them 
 or at least sympathized with them to the extent 
 of allowing them to recruit men and depart 
 without molestation. There was a glamour of 
 romance about these expeditions that influenced 
 unthinking young men of no fixed principles 
 to join them; these were to be pitied. But the 
 leaders of them and their abettors were cold, 
 selfish, scheming politicians, willing, if need be, 
 to overthrow the government of the nation and 
 build on its ruins an oligarchy of slave holders. 
 The first to organize a filibuster expedition in 
 California was a Frenchman. Race prejudices 
 were strong in early mining days. The United 
 
 13 
 
 States had recently been at war with Mexico. 
 The easy conquest of that country had bred a 
 contempt for its peoples. The Sonoran migra- 
 tion, that begun soon after the discovery of 
 gold in California, brought a very undesirable 
 class of immigrants to the state. Sailing vessels 
 had brought from the west coast of South 
 America another despised class of mongrel 
 Spanish. It exasperated the Americans to see 
 these people digging gold and carrying it out 
 of the country. This antagonism extended, more 
 or less, to all foreigners, but was strongest 
 against men of the Latin races. Many French- 
 men, through emigration schemes gotten up 
 in Paris, had been induced to come to Califor- 
 nia. Some of these were men of education and 
 good standing, but they fell under the ban of 
 prejudices and by petty persecutions were 
 driven out of the mines and forced to earn a 
 precarious living in the cities. There was a 
 great deal of dissatisfaction among the French- 
 men with existing conditions in California, and 
 they were ready to embark in any scheme that 
 promised greater rewards. Among the French 
 population of San Francisco was a man of noble 
 family. Count Gaston Roaul de Raousset-Boul- 
 bon. He had lost his ancestral lands and was 
 in reduced circumstances. He was a man of 
 education and ability, but visionary. He con- 
 ceived the idea of establishing a French colony 
 on the Sonora border and opening the mines 
 that had been abandoned on account of Apache 
 depredations. By colonizing the border he 
 hoped to put a stop to American encroachments. 
 He divulged his scheme to the French consul, 
 Dillon, at San Francisco, who entered heartily 
 into it. Raousset was sent to the City of Mex- 
 ico, where he obtained from President Arista 
 the desired concession of land and the promise 
 of financial assistance from a leading banking 
 house there on condition that he proceed at 
 
194 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 once to Sonera with an armed company of 
 Frenchmen. Returning to San Francisco he 
 quickly recruited from among the French resi- 
 dents two hundred and fifty men and with these 
 he sailed for Guaymas, where he arrived early 
 in June, 1852. He was weh received at first, 
 but soon found himself regarded with suspicion. 
 He was required by the authorities to remain 
 at Guaymas. After a month's detention he was 
 allowed to proceed through Hermosilla to the 
 Arizona border. 
 
 When about one hundred miles from Arispe 
 he received an order from General Blanco, then 
 at Hermosilla, to report to him. While halting 
 at El Caric to consider his next move he re- 
 ceived a reinforcement of about eighty French 
 colonists, who had come to the country the year 
 before under command of Pindray. Pindray 
 had met his death in a mysterious manner. It 
 was supposed that he was poisoned. The colon- 
 ist had remained in the country. Raousset sent 
 one of his men, Garnier, to interview Blanco. 
 General Blanco gave his ultimatum — First, that 
 the Frenchmen should become naturalized citi- 
 zens of Mexico; or, secondly, they should wait 
 until letters of security could be procured from 
 the capital, when they might proceed to Arizona 
 and take possession of any mines they found; 
 or, lastly, they might put themselves under the 
 leadership of a Mexican officer and then proceed. 
 Raousset and his followers refused to accede to 
 any of these propositions. Blanco began col- 
 lecting men and munitions of war to oppose the 
 P'rench. Raousset raised the flag of revolt and 
 invited the inhabitants to join him in gaining 
 the independence of Sonora. After drilling his 
 men a few weeks and preparing for hostilities 
 he began his march against Hermosilla, distant 
 one hundred and fifty miles. He met with no 
 opposition, the people along his route welcom- 
 ing the French. General Blanco had twelve 
 hundred men to defend the city. But instead of 
 preparing to resist the advancing army he sent 
 delegates to Raousset to ofifer him money to let 
 the city alone. Raousset sent back word that 
 at 8 o'clock he would begin the attack; and at 
 1 1 would be master of the city. He was as good 
 as his v/ord. The Frenchmen charged the Mex- 
 icans and although the opposing force num- 
 
 bered four to one of the assailants, Raousset's 
 men captured the town and drove Blanco's 
 troops out of it. The Mexican loss was two 
 hundred killed and wounded. The French loss 
 seventeen killed and twenty-three wounded 
 Raousset's men were mere adventurers and were 
 in the country without any definite purpose. 
 Could he have relied on them, he might have 
 captured all of Sonora. 
 
 He abandoned Hermosilla. Blanco, glad to 
 get rid of the filibusters on any terms, raised 
 $11,000 and chartered a' vessel to carry them 
 back to San Francisco. A few elected to re- 
 main. Raousset went to Mazatlan and a few 
 months later he reached San Francisco, where 
 he was lionized as a hero. Upon an invitation 
 from Santa Ana, who had succeeded Arista as 
 president, he again visited the Mexican capital 
 in June, 1853. Santa Ana was profuse in prom- 
 ises. He wanted Raousset to recruit five hun- 
 dred Frenchmen to protect the Sonora frontier 
 against the Indians, promising ample remunera- 
 tion and good pay for their services. Raousset, . 
 finding that Santa Ana's promises could not be 
 relied upon, and that the wiley schemer was 
 about to have him arrested, made his escape to 
 Acapulco, riding several horses to death to 
 reach there ahead of his pursuers. He embarked 
 immediately for San Francisco. 
 
 In the meantime another filibuster, William 
 Walker, with forty-one followers had landed at 
 La Paz November 3, 1853, and proclaimed a 
 new nation, the Republic of Lower California. 
 Santa Ana, frightened by this new invasion, be- 
 gan making overtures through the Mexican con- 
 sul, Luis del Valle, at San Francisco to secure 
 French recruits for military service on the Mex- 
 ican frontier. Del Valle applied to the French 
 consul, Dillon, and Dillon applied to Raousset. 
 Raousset soon secured eight hundred recruits 
 and chartered the British ship Challenge to take 
 them to Guaymas. Then the pro-slavery federal 
 officials at San Francisco were aroused to ac- 
 tion. The neutrality laws were being violated. 
 It was not that they cared for the laws, but they 
 feared that this new filibustering scheme might 
 interfere with their pet, Walker, who had, in ad- 
 dition to the Republic of Lower California, 
 founded another nation, the Republic of Sonora, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 193 
 
 in both of which he had decreed slavery. The 
 ship was seized, but after a sliort detention was 
 allowed to sail with three hundred French- 
 men. 
 
 Del Valle was vigorously prosecuted by the 
 federal authorities for violation of a section of 
 the neutrality laws, which forbade the enlistment 
 within the United States of soldiers to serve un- 
 der a foreign power. Dillon, the French con- 
 sul, was implicated and on his refusal to testify 
 in court he was arrested. He fell back on his 
 dignity and asserted that his nation had been in- 
 sulted through him and closed his consulate. 
 For a time there were fears of international 
 trouble. 
 
 Del Valle was found guilty of violating the 
 neutrality laws, but was never punished. The 
 pro-slavery pet. Walker, and his gang were 
 driven out of Mexico and the federal officials 
 had no more interest in enforcing neutrality 
 laws. Meanwhile Raousset, after great diffi- 
 culties, had joined the three hundred French- 
 men at Guaymas. A strip of northern Sonora 
 had been sold under what is known as the Gads- 
 den purchase to the United States. There was 
 no longer any opportunity to secure mines there 
 from Mexico, but Raousset thought he could 
 erect a barrier to any further encroachments of 
 the United States and eventually secure Mexico 
 for France. His first orders on reaching Guay- 
 mas to the commander of the French, Desmaris, 
 was to attack the Mexican troops and capture 
 the city. His order did not reach Desmaris. His 
 messenger was arrested and the Mexican au- 
 thorities begun collecting forces to oppose 
 Raousset. Having failed to receive reinforce- 
 ments, and his condition becoming unendurable, 
 he made an attack on the Mexican forces, twelve 
 hundred strong. After a brave assault he was 
 defeated. He surrendered to the French consul 
 on the assurance that his life and that of his 
 men would be spared. He was -treacherously 
 surrendered by the French consul to the Mex- 
 ican general. He was tried by a court-martial, 
 found guilty and sentenced to be shot. On the 
 morning of August 12, 1854, he was executed. 
 His misguided followers were shipped back to 
 San Francisco. So ended the first California 
 filibuster. 
 
 The first American born filibuster who or- 
 ganized one of these piratical expeditions was 
 William Walker, a native of Tennessee. He 
 came to CaHfornia with the rush of 1850. He 
 had started out in life to be a doctor, had studied 
 law and finally drifted into journalism. He be- 
 longed to the extreme pro-slavery faction. He 
 located in San Francisco and found employment 
 on the Herald. His bitter invective against the 
 courts for their laxity in punishing crime raised 
 the ire of Judge Levi Parsons, who fined Walker 
 $500 for- contempt of court and ordered him 
 imprisoned until the fine was paid. Walker re- 
 fused to pay the fine and went to jail. He at 
 once bounded into notoriety. He was a mar- 
 tyr to the freedom of the press. A public in- 
 dignation meeting was called. An immense 
 crowd of sympathizers called on Walker in jail. 
 A writ of habeas corpus was sued out and he 
 was released from jail and discharged. In the 
 legislature of 1852 he tried to have Parson im- 
 peached, but failed. He next opened a law of- 
 fice in Marysville. 
 
 The success of Raousset-Boulbon in his first 
 expedition to Sonora had aroused the ambition 
 of Walker to become the founder of a new gov- 
 ernment. His first efTorts were directed towards 
 procuring from Mexico a grant on the Sonora 
 border; this was to be colonized with Americans, 
 who would protect the Mexican frontier from 
 Apache incursion. This was a mere subterfuge 
 and the Mexican authoriti,es were not deceived 
 by it — he got no grant. To forestall Raousset- 
 Boulbon, who was again in the field with his 
 revolutionary scheme, Walker opened a recruit- 
 ing office. Each man was to receive a square 
 league of land and plunder galore. The bait 
 took, meetings were held, scrip sold and re- 
 cruits flocked to Walker. The brig Arrow, was 
 chartered to carry the liberators to their des- 
 tination. The pro-slavery officials, who held all 
 the offices, winked at this violation of the neu- 
 trality laws. There was but one man. General 
 Hitchcock, who dared to do his duty. He seized 
 the vessel; it was released, and Hitchcock re- 
 moved from command. Jefferson Davis was 
 secretary of war and Hitchcock was made to feel 
 his wrath for interfering with one of Davis' pet 
 projects, the extension of slavery. Walker 
 
19G 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sailed in another vessel, the Caroline, taking 
 with him forty-one of his followers, well armed 
 with rifles and revolvers to develop the re- 
 sources of the country. 
 
 The vessel with Walker and his gang sneaked 
 into La Paz under cover of a }\Iexican flag. He 
 seized the unsuspecting governor and other offi- 
 cials and then proclaimed the Republic of Lower 
 California. He appointed from his following a 
 number of officials with high sounding titles. 
 He adopted the code of Louisiana as the law of 
 the land. This, as far as he was able, introduced 
 into the country human slavery, which indeed 
 was about the sole purpose of his filibuster- 
 ing schemes. Fearing that the Mexican gov- 
 ernment might send an expedition across the 
 gulf to stop his marauding, he slipped out of 
 the harbor and sailed up to Todas Santos, so as 
 to be near the United States in case the ^Mexican 
 government should make it uncomfortable for 
 him. With this as headquarters he began prepa- 
 rations for an invasion of Sonora. His delectable 
 followers appropriated to their own use what- 
 ever they could find in the poverty-stricken 
 country. The news of the great victory at La 
 Paz reached San Francisco and created great 
 enthusiasm among Walker's sympathizers. His 
 vice-president, Watkins, enrolled three hundred 
 recruits and sent them to him, "greatly to the 
 relief of the criminal calendar." 
 
 Walker began to drill his recruits for the con- 
 quest of Sonora. These patriots, who had ral- 
 lied to the support of the new republic, under 
 the promise of rich churches to pillage and well- 
 stocked ranches to plunder, did not take kindly 
 to a diet of jerked beef and beans and hard drill- 
 ing under a torrid sun. Some rebelled and it 
 became necessary for Walker to use the lash 
 and. even to shoot two of them for the good of 
 the cause. The natives rebelled when they found 
 their cattle and frijoles disappearing and the so- 
 called battle of La Gualla was fought between 
 the natives and a detachment of Walker's forag- 
 ers, several of whom were killed. The news of 
 this battle reached San Francisco and was mae- 
 
 o 
 
 nified into a great victory. The new republic 
 had been baptized in the blood of its martyrs. 
 
 After three months spent in drilling. Walker 
 began his march to Sonora with but one hun- 
 
 dred men, and a small herd of cattle for food. 
 ]\Iost of the others had deserted. In his jour- 
 ney across the desert the Indians stole some of 
 his cattle and more of his men deserted. On 
 reaching the Colorado river about half of his 
 force abandoned the expedition and marched 
 to Fort Yuma, where Major Heintzel.man re- 
 lieved their necessities. Walker with thirty-five 
 men had started back for Santa Tomas. They 
 brought up at Tia Juana, where they crossed 
 the American line, surrendered and gave their 
 paroles to Major I^cKinstry of the United 
 States army. When Walker and his Falstafifian 
 army reached San Francisco they were lionized 
 as heroes. All they had done was to kill a few 
 inoffensive natives on the peninsula and steal 
 their cattle. Their valiant leader had proclaimed 
 two republics and decreed (on paper) that slav- 
 ery should prevail in them. He had had sev- 
 eral of his dupes whipped and two of them shot, 
 which was probably the most commendable 
 thing he had done. His proclamations were 
 ridiculous and his officers with their high sound- 
 ing titles had returned from their burlesque con- 
 quest with scarcely rags enough on them to 
 cover their nakedness. Yet, despite all this, 
 the attempt to enlarge the area of slave territory 
 covered him with glory and his rooms were the 
 resort of all the pro-slavery officials of Califor- 
 nia. 
 
 The federal ofEcials made a show of prosecut- 
 ing the filibusters. Watkins, the vice-president 
 of the Republic of Lower California and So- 
 nora, was put on trial in the United States dis- 
 trict court. The evidence was so plain and the 
 proof so convincing that the judge was com- 
 pelled to convict against his will. This delightful 
 specimen of a pro-slavery justice expressed 
 from the bench his sympathy for "th'ose spirited 
 men who had gone forth to upbuild the broken 
 altars and rekindle the extinguished fires of lib- 
 erty in Mexico and Lower California." With 
 such men to enforce the laws, it was not strange 
 that vigilance committees were needed in Cal- 
 ifornia. Watkins and Emory, the so-called sec- 
 retary of state, were fined each $1,500. The 
 fines were never paid and no effort was ever 
 made to compel their payment. The secretary 
 of war and the secretary of the navy were put 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 197 
 
 on trial and acquitted. This ended tlie sliame- 
 ful farce. 
 
 Walker's next expedition was to Nicaragua in 
 1855. A revolution was in progress there. He 
 joined forces with the Democratic party or anti- 
 legitimists. He took but fifty-six men with 
 him. These were called the American phalanx. 
 His first engagement was an attack upon the 
 fortified town of Rivas. Although his men 
 fought bravely, they were defeated and two of 
 his best ofi&cers, Kewen and Crocker, killed. 
 His next fight was the battle of Virgin Bay, in 
 which, with fifty Americans and one hundred 
 and twenty natives, he defeated six hundred 
 legitimists. He received reinforcements from 
 California and reorganized his force. He 
 seized the Accessory Transit Company's lake 
 steamer La Virgin against the protest of the 
 company, embarked his troops on board of it 
 and by an adroit movement captured the capi- 
 tal city, Granada. His exploits were heralded 
 abroad and recruits flocked to his support. The 
 legitimist had fired upon a steamer bringing pas- 
 sengers up the San Juan river and killed several. 
 Walker in retaliation ordered Mateo Mazorga, 
 the legitimist secretary of state, whom he had 
 taken prisoner at Granada, shot. Peace was de- 
 clared between the two parties and Patrico 
 Rivas made president. Rivas was president only 
 in name; Walker was the real head of the gov- 
 ernment and virtually dictator. 
 
 He was now at the zenith of his power. By a 
 series of arbitrary acts he confiscated the Ac- 
 cessory Transit Company's vessels and charter. 
 This company had become a power in California 
 travel and had secured the exclusive transit of 
 passengers by the Nicaragua route,- then the 
 most popular route to California. 
 
 By this action he incurred the enmity of Van- 
 derbilt, who henceforth worked for his down- 
 fall. The confiscation of the transit company's 
 right destroyed confidence in the route, and 
 travel virtually ceased by 'it. This was a blow 
 to the prosperity of the country. To add to 
 Walker's misfortunes, the other Central Amer- 
 ican states combined to drive the hated foreign- 
 ers out of the country. He had gotten rid of 
 Rivas and had secured the presidency for him- 
 self. He had secured the repeal of the Nic- 
 
 aragua laws against slavery and thus paved the 
 way for the introduction of his revered institu- 
 tion. His army now amounted to about twelve 
 hundred men, mostly recruited from California 
 and the slave states. The cholera broke out 
 among his forces and in the armies of the allies 
 and numbers died. His cause was rapidly wan- 
 ing. Many of his dupes deserted. A series of 
 disasters arising from his blundering and in- 
 capacity, resulted in his overthrow. He and 
 sixteen of his officers were taken out of the 
 country on the United States sloop of war, St. 
 Mary's. The governor of Panama refused to 
 allow him to land in that city. He was sent 
 across the isthmus under guard to Aspinwall 
 and from there with his staf? took passage to 
 New Orleans. His misguided followers were 
 transported to Panama and found their way 
 back to the United States. 
 
 Upon arriving at New Orleans he began re- 
 cruiting for a new expedition. One hundred and 
 fifty of his "emigrants" sailed from Mobile; the 
 pro-slavery federal officials allowing them to 
 depart. They were wrecked on Glover's reef, 
 about seventy miles from Balize. They were 
 rescued by a British vessel and returned to Mo- 
 bile. Walker, with one hundred and thirty-two 
 armed emigrants, landed at Punta Arenas, No- 
 vember 25, 1857, and hoisted his Nicaraguan 
 flag and called himself commander-in-chief of 
 the army of Nicaragua. He and his men began 
 a career of plunder; seized the fort of Cas- 
 tillo on the San Juan river; captured steam- 
 ers, killed several inhabitants and made 
 prisoners of others. Commander Paulding, 
 of the United States flagship Wabash, then 
 on that coast, regarded these acts as rapine 
 and murder, and Walker and his men as out- 
 laws and pirates. He broke up their camp, dis- 
 armed Walker and his emigrants and sent them 
 to the United States for trial. But instead of 
 Walker and his followers being tried for piracy 
 their pro-slavery abettors made heroes of them. 
 
 Walker's last efifort to regain his lost prestige 
 in Nicaragua was made in i860. With two hun- 
 dred men, recruited in New Orleans, he landed 
 near Truxillo, in Honduras. His intention was 
 to make his way by land to Nicaragua. He very 
 soon found armed opposition. His new recruits 
 
198 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 were not inclined to sacrifice themselves to make 
 him dictator of some country that they had no 
 interest in. So they refused to stand up against 
 the heavy odds they encountered in every fight. 
 Finding his situation growing desperate, he was 
 induced to surrender himself to the captain of 
 the British man-of-war Icarus. The authorities 
 of Honduras made a demand on the captain for 
 Walker. That British officer promptly turned 
 the filibuster over to them. He was tried by 
 a court-martial, hastily convened, found guilty 
 of the offenses charged, and condemned to die. 
 September 25, i860, he was marched out and, 
 in accordance with his sentence, shot to death. 
 Walker's career is an anomaly in the history 
 of mankind. Devoid of all the characteristics of 
 a great leader, without a commanding presence, 
 puny in size, homely to the point of ugliness, 
 in disposition, cold, cruel, selfish, heartless, stol- 
 idly indifferent to the suffering of others, living 
 only to gratify the cravings of his inordinate 
 ambition — it is strange that such a man could 
 attract thousands to ofifer their lives for his 
 aggrandizement and sacrifice themselves for a 
 cause of which he was the exponent, a cause the 
 most ignoble, the extension of human slavery, 
 that for such a man and for such a cause thou- 
 sands did ofifer up their lives is a sad commen- 
 tary on the political morality of that time. It 
 is said that over ten thousand men joined 
 Walker in his filibustering schemes and that 
 fifty-seven hundred of these found graves in 
 Nicaragua. Of the number of natives killed in 
 battle or who died of disease, there is no record, 
 but it greatly exceeded Walker's losses. 
 
 While Walker was attaining some success in 
 Nicaragua, another California filibuster entered 
 the arena. This was Henry A. Crabb, a Stock- 
 ton lawyer. Like Walker, he was a native of 
 Tennessee, and, like him, too, he was a rabid 
 pro-slavery advocate. He had served in the 
 assembly and one term in the state senate. It 
 is said he was the author of a bill to allow slave- 
 holders who brought their slaves into California 
 before its admission to take their human chattels 
 back into bondage. He was originally a Whig, 
 but had joined the- Know-Nothing party and was 
 a candidate of that party for United States sen- 
 ator in 1856; but his extreme southern princi- 
 
 ples prevented his election. He had married a 
 Spanish wife, who had numerous and influential 
 relatives in Sonora. It was claimed that Crabb 
 had received an invitation from some of these t,o 
 bring down an armed force of Americans to 
 overthrow the government and make himself 
 master of the country. Whether he did or did 
 not receive such an invitation, he did recruit a 
 body of men for some kind of service in Sonora. 
 With a force of one hundred men, well armed 
 with rifles and revolvers, he sailed, in January, 
 1857, on the steamer Sea Bird, from San Fran- 
 cisco to San Pedro and from there marched over- 
 land. As usual, no attempt was made by the 
 federal authorities to prevent him from invading 
 a neighboring country with an armed force. 
 
 He entered Sonora at Sonita, a small town 
 one hundred miles from Yuma. His men helped 
 themselves to what they could find. When ap- 
 proaching the town of Cavorca they were fired 
 upon by a force of men lying in ambush. The 
 fire was kept up from all quarters. They made a 
 rush and gained the shelter of the houses. In 
 the charge two of their men had been killed and 
 eighteen wounded. In the house they had taken 
 possession of they were exposed to shots from 
 a church. Crabb and fifteen of his men at- 
 tempted to blow open the doors of the church 
 with gunpowder, but in the attempt, which 
 failed, five of the men were killed, and seven, 
 including Crabb, wounded. After holding out 
 for five days they surrendered to the Mexicans, 
 Gabilondo, the Mexican commander, promising 
 to spare their lives. Next morning they were 
 marched out in squads of five to ten and shot. 
 Crabb was tied to a post and a hundred balls 
 fired into hini; his head was cut off and placed 
 in a jar of mescal. The only one spared was a 
 boy of fifteen, Charles E. Evans. A_ party of 
 sixteen men whom Crabb had left at Sonita 
 was surprised and all massacred. The boy 
 Evans was the only one left to tell the fate of the 
 ill-starred expedition. This put an end to fili- 
 bustering expeditions into Sonora. 
 
 These armed forays on the neighboring coun- 
 tries to the south of the United States ceased 
 with the beginning of the war of secession. 
 They had all been made for the purpose of ac- 
 quiring slave territory. The leaders of them 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 199 
 
 were southern men and the rank and file were 
 mostly recruited from natives of the slave states. 
 Bancroft truthfully says of these filibustering 
 expeditions : "They were foul robberies, covered 
 by the flimsiest of political and social pretenses, 
 gilded by false aphorisms and profane distortion 
 of sacred formulae. Liberty dragged in the mud 
 for purposes of theft and human enslavement; 
 the cause of humanity bandied in filthy mouths 
 to promote atrocious butcheries; peaceful, 
 
 blooming valleys given over to devastation and 
 ruin; happy families torn asunder, and widows 
 and orphans cast adrift to nurse affliction; and 
 finally, the peace of nations imperiled, and the 
 moralily of right insulted. The thought of such 
 results should obliterate all romance, and turn 
 pride to shame. They remain an ineffaceable 
 stain upon the government of the most progres- 
 sive of nations, and veil in dismal irony the 
 dream of manifest destiny." 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 FROM GOLD TO GRAIN AND FRUITS. 
 
 UNDER the Spanish and Mexican jurisdic- 
 tions there was but little cultivation of 
 the soil in California. While the gardens 
 of some of the missions, and particularly those 
 of Santa Barbara and San Buenaventura, pre- 
 sented a most appetizing display of fruit and 
 vegetables, at the ranchos there were but mea- 
 ger products. Gilroy says that when he came 
 to the country, in 1814, potatoes were not cul- 
 tivated and it was a rare thing outside of the 
 mission gardens to find any onions or cabbages. 
 A few acres of wheat and a small patch of maize 
 or corn furnished bread, or, rather, tortillas for 
 a family. At the missions a thick soup made of 
 boiled wheat or maize and meat was the stand- 
 ard article of diet for the neophytes. This was 
 portioned out to them in the quantity of about 
 three pints to each person. Langsdorff, who 
 witnessed the distribution of soup rations to the 
 Indians at Santa Clara, says: "It appeared in- 
 comprehensible how any one could three times a 
 day eat so^ large a portion of such nourishing 
 food." The neophytes evidently had healthy ap- 
 petites. Frijoles (beans) were the staple vege- 
 table dish in Spanish families. These were 
 served up at almost every meal. The bill of 
 fare for a native Californian family was very 
 simple. 
 
 A considerable amount of wheat was raised 
 at the more favorably located missions. It was 
 not raised for export, but to feed the neophytes. 
 
 The wheat fields had to be fenced in, or perhaps 
 it would be more in .accordance with the facts 
 to say that the cattle had to be fenced out. As 
 timber was scarce, adobe brick did duty for 
 fencing as well as for house building. Some- 
 times the low adobe walls were made high and 
 safe by placing on top of them a row of the 
 skulls of Spanish cattle with the long, curving 
 horns attached to them pointing outward. These 
 were brought from the matanzas or slaughter 
 corrals where there were thousands of them 
 lying around. It was almost impossible for 
 man or beast to scale such a fence. 
 
 The agricultural implements of the early Cali- 
 fornians were few and simple. The Mexican 
 plow was a forked stick with an iron point fas- 
 tened to the fork or branch that penetrated the 
 ground. It turned no furrow, but merely 
 scratched the surface of the ground. After sow- 
 ing it was a race between the weeds and the 
 grain. It depended on the season which won. 
 If the season was cold and backward, so that 
 the seed did not sprout readily, the weeds got 
 the start and won out easily. And yet with such 
 primitive cultivation the yield was sometimes 
 astonishing. At the Mission San Diego the 
 crop of wheat one year produced one hundred 
 and ninety-five fold. As the agriculturist had 
 a large area from which 4.0 select his arable land, 
 only the richest soils were chosen. Before the 
 discovery of gold there was little or no market 
 
200 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for grain, and each ranchero raised only enough 
 for his own use. For a time there was some 
 trade with the Russians in grain to supply their 
 settlements in Alaska, but this did not continue 
 long. 
 
 When some of the Americans who came in 
 the gold rush began to turn their attention to 
 agriculture they greatly underrated the produc- 
 tiveness of the country. To men raised where 
 the summer rains were needed to raise a crop 
 it seemed impossible to produce a crop in a 
 country that was rainless for six or eight months 
 of the year. All attempts at agriculture hitherto 
 had been along the rivers, and it was generally 
 believed that the plains back from the water 
 courses could never be used for any other pur- 
 pose than cattle raising. 
 
 The mining rush of '49 found California with- 
 out vegetables and fresh fruit. The distance 
 was too great for the slow transportation of 
 that day to ship these into the country. Those 
 who first turned their attention to market gar- 
 dening made fortunes. The story is told of an 
 old German named Schwartz who had a small 
 ranch a few miles below Sacramento. In 1848, 
 when everybody was rushing to the mines, he 
 remained on his farm, unmoved by the stories 
 of the wonderful finds of gold. Anticipating a 
 greater rush in 1849, h^ planted several acres 
 in watermelons. As they ripened he took them 
 up to the city and disposed of them at prices 
 ranging from $1 to $5, according to size. He 
 realized that season from his melons alone 
 $30,000. The first field of cabbages was grown 
 'by George H. Peck and a partner in 1850. From 
 defective seed or some other cause the cajjbage 
 failed to come to a head. Supposing that the 
 defect was in the climate and not in the cabbage, 
 the honest rancher marketed his crop in San 
 PYancisco, carrying a cabbage in each hand 
 along the streets until he found a customer. To 
 the query why there were no heads to them 
 the reply was, "That's the way cabbages grow 
 in California." He got rid of his crop at the 
 rate of $1 apiece for each headless cabbage. 
 But all the vegetable growing experiments were 
 not a financial success. The high price of po- 
 tatoes in 1849 started a tuber-growing epidemic 
 in 1850. Hundreds of acres were planted to 
 
 "spuds" in the counties contiguous to San 
 Francisco, the agriculturists paying as high as 
 fifteen cents per pound for seed. The yield was 
 enormous and the market was soon overstocked. 
 The growers who could not dispose of their 
 potatoes stacked them up in huge piles in the 
 fields; and there they rotted, filling the country 
 around with their effluvia. The next year no- 
 body planted potatoes, and prices went up to 
 the figures of '49 and the spring of '50. 
 
 The size to which vegetables grew astonished 
 the amateur agriculturists. Beets, when allowed 
 to grow to maturity, resembled the trunks of 
 trees; onions looked like squash, while a patch 
 of pumpkins resembled a tented field; and corn 
 grew so tall that the stalks had to be felled to 
 get at the ears. Onions were a favorite vege- 
 table in the mining camps on account of their 
 anti-scorbutic properties as a preventive of 
 scurvy. The honest miner was not fastidious 
 about the aroma. They were a profitable crop, 
 too. One ranchero in the Napa valley was re- 
 ported to have cleared $8,000 off two acres of 
 onions. 
 
 With the decline of gold mining wheat be- 
 came the staple product of central California. 
 The nearness to shipping ports and the large 
 yields made wheat growing very profitable. In 
 the years immediately following the Civil war 
 the price ranged high and a fortune was some- 
 times made from the products of a single field. 
 It may be necessary to explain that the field 
 might contain anywhere from five hundred to 
 a thousand acres. The grain area was -largely 
 extended by the discovery that land in the 
 upper mesas, which had been regarded as only 
 fit for pasture land, was good for cereals. The 
 land in the southern part of the state, which 
 was held in large grants, continued to be de- 
 voted to cattle raising for at least two decades 
 after the American conquest. After the dis- 
 covery of gold cattle raising became immensely 
 profitable. Under the Mexican regime a steer 
 was worth what his hide and tallow would bring 
 or about $2 or $3. The rush of immigration in 
 1849 sent the price of cattle up until a fat bul- 
 lock sold for from $30 to $35. The profit to a 
 ranchero who had a thousand or more marketa- 
 ble cattle was a fortune. A good, well-stocked 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 201 
 
 cattle ranch was more valuable than a gold 
 
 mine. 
 
 The enormous profits in cattle raising dazed 
 the Californians. Had they been thrifty and 
 economical, they might have grown rich. But 
 the sudden influx of wealth engendered extrava- 
 gant habits and when the price of cattle fell, as 
 it did in a few years, the spendthrift customs 
 were continued. When the cattle market was 
 dull it was easy to raise money by mortgaging 
 the ranch. With interest at the rate of s per 
 cent per month, compounded monthly, it did 
 not take long for land and cattle both to change 
 hands. It is related of the former owner of 
 the Santa Gertrudes rancho that he borrowed 
 $500 from a money lender, at 5 per cent a 
 month, to beat a poker game, but did not suc- 
 ceed. Then he borrowed more money to pay 
 the interest on the first and kept on doing so 
 until interest and principal amounted to $100,- 
 000; then tile mortgage was foreclosed and 
 property to-day worth $1,000,000 was lost for 
 a paltry $500 staked on a poker game. 
 
 Gold mining continued to be the prevailing 
 industry of northern California. The gold pro- 
 duction reached its acme in 1853, when the 
 total yield was $65,000,000. From that time 
 there was a gradual decline in production and 
 in the number of men employed. Many had 
 given up the hopes of striking it rich and quit 
 the business for something more certain and 
 less illusive. The production of gold in 1852 
 was $60,000,000, yet the average yield to each 
 man of the one hundred thousand engaged in 
 it was only about $600, or a little over $2 per 
 day to the man, scarcely living wages as prices 
 were then. It has been claimed that the cost of 
 producing the gold, counting all expenditures, 
 was three times the value of that produced. 
 Even if it did, the development of the country 
 and impulse given to trade throughout the 
 world would more than counterbalance the loss. 
 
 At the time of the discovery of gold nearly all 
 of the fruit raised in California was produced at 
 Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. In Spanish and 
 Mexican days, Los Angeles had been the prin- 
 cipal wine-producing district of California. Al- 
 though wine, as well as other spirituous liquors, 
 were in demand, the vineyardists found it more 
 
 profitable to ship their grapes to San Francisco 
 than to manufacture them into wine. Grapes 
 retailed in the city of San Francisco at from 
 twelve and one-half to twenty-five cents a 
 pound. The vineyards were as profitable as 
 the cattle ranches. The mission Indians did the 
 labor in the vineyards and were paid in aguar- 
 diente on Saturday night. By Sunday morning 
 they were all drunk; then they were gathered 
 up and put into a corral. On Monday morning 
 they were sold to pay the cost of their dissipa- 
 tion. It did not take many years to kill off the 
 Indians. The city has grown over the former 
 sites of the vineyards. 
 
 The first orange trees were planted at the 
 Mission San Gabriel about the year 1815 and 
 a few at Los Angeles about the same time. But 
 little attention was given to the industry by the 
 Californians. The first extensive grove was 
 planted by William Wolf skill in 1840. The im- 
 pression then prevailed that oranges could be 
 grown only on the low lands near the river. 
 The idea of attempting to grow them on the 
 mesa lands was scouted at by the Californians 
 and the Americans. The success that attended 
 the Riverside experiment demonstrated that 
 they could be grown on the mesas, and that the 
 fruit produced was superior to that grown on 
 the river bottoms. This gave such an impetus 
 to the industry in the south that it has distanced 
 all others. The yearly shipment to the eastern 
 markets is twenty thousand car loads. The cit- 
 rus belt is extending every year. 
 
 The Californians paid but little attention to 
 the quaHty of the fruit they raised. The seed 
 fell in the ground and sprouted. If the twig 
 survived and grew to be a tree, they ate the fruit, 
 asking no question whether the quality might 
 be improved. The pears grown at-4he missions 
 and at some of the ranch houses were hard and 
 tasteless. It was said they never ripened. A 
 small black fig was cultivated in a few places, 
 but the quantity of fruit grown outside of the 
 mission gardens was very small. 
 
 The high price of all kinds of fruit in the early 
 '50S induced the importation of apple, peach, 
 pear, plum and prune trees. These thrived and 
 soon supplied the demand. Before the advent 
 of the railroads and the shipment east the quan- 
 
202 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tity of deciduous fruit produced had outgrown 
 tlie demand, and there was no profit in its pro- 
 duction. All this has been changed by eastern 
 shipment. 
 
 Sheep were brought to the country with the 
 first missionary expeditions. The Indian in his 
 primitive condition did not use clothing. A 
 coat of mud was his only garment and he was 
 not at all particular about the fit of that. After 
 his conversion the missionaries put clothmg on 
 him, or, rather, on part of him. He was given a 
 shirt, which was a shirt of Nessus, being made of 
 the coarse woolen cloth manufactured at the 
 mission. It was irritating to the skin and com- 
 pelled the poor wretches to keep up a continual 
 scratching; at least, that is what Hugo Reid 
 tells us. During the Civil war and for several 
 years after, the sheep industry was very profit- 
 able. The subdivision of the great ranchos and 
 the absorption of the land for grain growing and 
 fruit culture have contracted the sheep ranges 
 until there is but little left for pasture except the 
 foothills that are too rough for cultivation. 
 
 Up to 1863 the great Spanish grants that cov- 
 ered the southern part of the state had, with a 
 few exceptions, been held intact and cattle rais- 
 ing had continued to be the principal industry. 
 For several seasons previous to the famine years 
 of 1863 and 1864 there had been heavy rainfalls 
 and consequently abundant feed. With that 
 careless indifference that marked the business 
 management of the native Californian, the 
 ranges had become overstocked. When the 
 dry year of 1863 set in, the feed on ranches was 
 soon exhausted and the cattle starving. The 
 second famine year following, the cattle industry 
 was virtually wiped out of existence and the 
 cattle-owners ruined. In Santa Barbara, where 
 the cattle barons held almost imperial sway, 
 and, with their army of retainers, controlled the 
 political affairs of the county, of the two hun- 
 dred thousand cattle listed on the assessment 
 roll of 1862, only five thousand were alive when 
 grass grew in 1865. On the Stearns' ranchos in 
 Los Angeles county, one hundred thousand 
 head of cattle and horses perished, and the 
 owner of a quarter million acres and a large 
 amount of city property could not raise money 
 enough to pay $1,000 taxes. 
 
 Many of the rancheros were in debt when the 
 hard times came, and others mortgaged their 
 land at usurious rates of interest to carry them 
 through the famine years. Their cattle dead, 
 they had no income to meet the interest on the 
 cancerous mortgage that was eating up their 
 patrimony. The result was that they were com- 
 pelled either to sell their land or the mortgage 
 was foreclosed and they lost it. This led to the 
 subdivision of the large grants into small hold- 
 ings, the new proprietors finding that there was 
 more profit in selling them off in small tracts 
 than in large ones. This brought in an intelli- 
 gent and progressive population, and in a few 
 years entirely revolutionized the agricultural 
 conditions of the south. Grain growing and 
 fruit raising became the prevailing industries. 
 The adobe ranch house with its matanzas and 
 its Golgotha of cattle skulls and bones gave 
 place to the tasty farm house with its flower 
 garden, lawn and orange grove. 
 
 The Californians paid but little attention to 
 improving the breed of their cattle. When the 
 only value in an animal was the hide and tallow, 
 it did not pay to improve the breed. The hide 
 of a long-horned, mouse-colored Spanish steer 
 would sell for as much as that of a high-bred 
 Durham or Holstein, and, besides, the first 
 could exist where .the latter would starve to 
 death. After the /onquest there was for some 
 time but little improvement. Cattle were brought 
 across the plains, but for the most part these 
 were the mongrel breeds of the western states 
 and were but little improvement on the Spanish 
 stock. It was not until the famine years vir- 
 tually exterminated the Spanish cattle that bet- 
 ter breeds were introduced. 
 
 As with cattle, so also it was with horses. 
 Little attention was given to improving the 
 breed. While there were a few fine race horses 
 and saddle horses in the country before its 
 American occupation, the prevailing equine was 
 the mustang. He was a vicious beast, nor was 
 it strange that his temper was bad. He had to 
 endure starvatioai and abuse that would have 
 killed a more aristocratic animal. He took care 
 of himself, subsisted on what he could pick up 
 and to the best of his ability resented ill treat- 
 ment. Horses during the Mexican regime were 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 203 
 
 used only for riding. Oxen were the draft ani- 
 mals. Tlie mustang had one inherent trait that 
 did not endear him to an American, and that 
 was his propensity to "buck." With his nose 
 between his knees, his back arched and his legs 
 stiffened, by a series of short, quick jumps, he 
 could dismount an inexperienced rider with 
 neatness and dispatch. The Californian took 
 dehght in urging the bronco to "buck" so that 
 he (the rider) might exhibit his skillful horse- 
 manship. The mustang had some commenda- 
 ble traits as well. He was sure-footed as a goat 
 and could climb the steep hillsides almost equal 
 to that animal. He had an easy gait under the 
 saddle and could measure off mile after mile 
 without a halt. His power of endurance was 
 wonderful. He could live off the country when 
 apparently there was nothing to subsist on ex- 
 cept the bare ground. He owed mankind a debt 
 of ingratitude which he always stood ready to 
 pay when an opportunity offered. The passing 
 of the mustang began with the advent of the 
 American farmer. 
 
 The founding of agricultural colonies began 
 in the '50s. One of the first, if not the first, was 
 the German colony of Anaheim, located thirty 
 miles south of Los Angeles. A company of 
 Germans organized in San Francisco in 1857 
 for the' purpose of buying land for the cultiva- 
 tion of the wine grape and the manufacture of 
 wine. The organization was a stock company. 
 Eleven hundred acres were purchased in a 
 Spanish grant. This was subdivided into twenty 
 and forty acre tracts; an irrigating ditch 
 brought in from the Santa Ana river. A por- 
 tion of each subdivision was planted in vines 
 and these were cultivated by the company until 
 they came into bearing, when the tracts were 
 divided among the stockholders by lot, a cer- 
 tain valuation being fixed on each tract. The 
 m.an obtaining a choice lot paid into the fund 
 a certain amount and the one receiving an infe- 
 rior tract received a certain amount, so that each 
 received the same value in the distribution. The 
 colony proved quite a success, and for thirty 
 years Anaheim was one of the largest wine- 
 producing districts' in the United States. In 
 1887 3- mysterious disease destroyed all the vines 
 and the vineyardists turned their attention 
 
 to the cultivation of oranges and English 
 walnuts. 
 
 The Riverside colony, then in San Bernardino 
 county, now in Riverside county, was founded 
 in 1870.- The projectors of the colony were 
 eastern gentlemen. At the head of the organiza- 
 tion was Judge J. W. North. They purchased 
 four thousand acres of the Roubidoux or Jurupa 
 rancho and fourteen hundred and sixty acres of 
 government land from the California Silk Cen- 
 ter Association. This association had been or- 
 ganized in 1869 for the purpose of founding a 
 colony to cultivate mulberry trees and manu- 
 facture silk. It had met with reverses, first in 
 the death of its president, Louis Prevost, a man 
 skilled in the silk business, next in the revoca- 
 tion b_y the legislature of the bounty for mul- 
 berry plantations, and lastly in the subsidence 
 of the sericulture craze. To encourage silk cul- 
 ture in California, the legislature, in 1866, passed 
 an act authorizing the payment of a bounty of 
 $250 for every plantation of five thousand mul- 
 berry trees two years old. This greatly stimu- 
 lated the planting of mulberry frees, if it did 
 not greatly increase the production of silk. In 
 1869 it was estimated that in the central and 
 southern portions of the state there were ten 
 millions of mulberry trees in various stages of 
 growth. Demands for the bounty poured in 
 upon the commissioners in such numbers that 
 the state treasury was threatened with bank- 
 ruptcy. The revocation of the bounty killed 
 the silk worms and the mulberry trees; and 
 those who had been attacked with the sericulture 
 craze quickly recovered. The Silk Center As- 
 sociation, having fallen into hard lines, offered 
 its lands for sale at advantageous terms, and in 
 September, 1870, they were purchased by the 
 Southern California Colony Association. The 
 land was bought at $3.50 per acre. It was mesa 
 or table land that had never been cultivated. 
 It was considered by old-tim?rs indifferent sheep 
 pasture, and Roubidoux, it is said, had it struck 
 from the tax roll because it was not worth tax- 
 ing. 
 
 The company had the land subdivided and 
 laid off a town which was first named Jurupa, 
 but afterwards the name was changed to River- 
 side. The river, the Santa Ana, did not flow 
 
204 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 past the town, but the colonists hoped to make 
 a goodly portion of its waters do so. The lands 
 were put on sale at reasonable prices, a ditch 
 at a cost of $50,000 was constructed. Experi- 
 ments were made with oranges, raisin grapes 
 and deciduous fruits, but the colony finally set- 
 tled down to orange producing. In 1877 the 
 introduction of the Bahia or navel orange gave 
 an additional impetus to orange growing in the 
 colony, the fruit of that species being greatly 
 superior to any other. This fruit was propa- 
 gated by budding from two trees received from 
 Washington, D. C, by J. A. Tibbetts,'of River- 
 side. 
 
 The Indiana colony, which later became Pasa- 
 dena, was founded in 1873 by some gentlemen 
 from Indiana. . Its purpose was the growing of 
 citrus fruits and raisin grapes, but it has grown 
 into a city, and the orange groves, once the 
 pride of the colony, have given place to business 
 blocks and stately residences. 
 
 During the early '70s a number of agricul- 
 tural colonies were founded in Fresno county. 
 These were all fruit-growing and raisin-pro- 
 ducing enterprises. They proved successful and 
 Fresno has become the largest raisin-pro- 
 ducing district in the state. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 THE CIVIL WAR— LOYALTY AND DISLOYALTY. 
 
 THE admission of California into the Union 
 as a free state did not, in the opinion of 
 the ultra pro-slavery faction,, preclude the 
 possibility of securing a part of its territory for 
 the "pecuhar institution" of the ' south. The 
 question of state division which had come up 
 in the constitutional convention was again agi- 
 tated. The advocates of division hoped to cut 
 off from the southern part, territory enough for 
 a new state. The ostensible purpose of division 
 was kept concealed. The plea of unjust taxa- 
 tion was made prominent. The native Califor- 
 nians who under Mexican rule paid no taxes on 
 their land were given to understand that they 
 were bearing an undue proportion of the cost 
 of government, while the mining counties, pay- 
 ing less tax, had the greater representation. The 
 native Californians were opposed to slavery, an 
 open advocacy of the real purpose would defeat 
 the division scheme. 
 
 The leading men in the southern part of the 
 state were from the slave states. If the state 
 \vere divided, the influence of these men would 
 carry the new state into the Union with a con- 
 stitution authorizing slave-holding and thus the 
 south would gain two senators. The division 
 question came up in some form in nearly every 
 session of the legislature for a decade after Cali- 
 fornia became a state. 
 
 In the legislature of 1854-55, Jefferson Hunt, 
 of San Bernardino county, introduced a bill in 
 the assembly to create and establish, "out of 
 the territory embraced within the Hmits of the 
 state of California, a new state, to be called the 
 state of Columbia." The territory embraced 
 within the counties of Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, 
 San Joaquin, Calaveras, Amador, Tuolumne, 
 Stanislaus, Mariposa, Tulare, Monterey, Santa 
 Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Los Angeles, San 
 Bernardino and San Diego, with the islands on 
 the coast, were to constitute the new state. 
 "The people residing within the above mentioned 
 territory shall be and they are hereby author- 
 ized, so soon as the consent of the congress of 
 the United States shall be obtained thereto, to 
 proceed to organize a state government under 
 such rules as are prescribed by the constitution 
 of the United States." The bill met with oppo- 
 sition. It took in some of the mining counties 
 whose interests were not coincident with the 
 agricultural counties of the south. It died on 
 the files. 
 
 At a subsequent session, a bill was introduced 
 in the legislature to divide the state into three 
 parts, southern, central and northern, the cen- 
 tral state to retain the name of California. This 
 was referred to a committee and got no farther. 
 It was not satisfactory to the pro-slavery ele- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 205 
 
 ment because the gain to the south would be segregated from the remaining portion of the 
 
 overbalanced by the gain to the north. state for the purpose of the formation by con- 
 
 The success of border ruffianism, backed by gress, with the concurrent action of said portion 
 
 the Buchanan administration, in forcing the de- (the consent for the segregation of which is 
 
 testable Lecompton pro-slavery constitution on hereby granted), of a territorial or other gov- 
 
 the people of Kansas, encouraged the division- ernment under the name of the "Territory of 
 
 ists to make another effort to divide the state. Colorado," or such other name as may be 
 
 While California was a free state it had through- deemed meet and proper." 
 
 out its existence, up to 1857, when Broderick Section second provided for the submitting 
 
 was elected to the senate, been represented in the question of "For a Territory" or "Against 
 
 both houses either by slave-holders from the a Territory" to the people of the portion sought 
 
 south or by northern "dough faces" — men of to be segregated at the next general election; 
 
 northern birth with southern principles. Most "and in case two-thirds of the whole number of 
 
 of the state offices had been filled by southern voters voting thereon shall vote for a change of 
 
 men who had come to the state to obtain office government, the consent hereby given shall be 
 
 or men who had been imported by their friends deemed consummated." In case the vote was 
 
 or relatives to fill positions by appointment, favorable the secretary of state was to send a 
 
 Indeed, so notorious had this importation of certified copy of the result of the election and 
 
 office-holders become that California was often a copy of the act annexed to the president of 
 
 referred to as the "Virginia poorhouse." the United States and to the senators and rep- 
 
 Scarcely a legislature had convened in which resentatives of CaHfornia in congress. At the 
 
 there was not some legislation against free ne- general election in September, 1859, the ques- 
 
 groes. A free colored man was as terrible to tion was submitted to a vote of the people of 
 
 the chivalrous legislators as an army with ban- the southern counties, with the following result: 
 ners. 
 
 The legislature of 1859 was intensely pro- ^ a , . Agamst. 
 
 %, ,. . . .^ . .^ ^ '^ Los Angeles county 1,407 441 
 
 slavery. The dmsionists saw m it an oppor- ^^^ Bernardino 441 29 
 
 tunity to carry out their long-deferred scheme. San Diego 207 24 
 
 The so-called Pico law, an act granting the San Luis Obispo. .. ; 10 283 
 
 consent of the legislature to the formation of a Santa Barbara 395 51 
 
 different government for the southern counties J^" are 17 ^_^ 
 
 of this state, was introduced early in the ses- Total 2 477 828 
 sion, passed in both houses and approved by 
 
 the governor April 18, 1859. The boundaries The bill to create the county of Buena Vista 
 of the proposed state were as follows: "All of from the southern portion of Tulare failed to 
 that part or portion of the present territory of pass the legislature, hence the name of that 
 this state lying all south of a line drawn east- county does not appear in the returns. The 
 ward from the west boundary of the state along result of the vote showed that-considerably more 
 the sixth standard parallel south of the Mount than two-thirds were in favor of a new state. 
 Diablo meridian, east to the summit of the The results of this movement for division and 
 coast range; thence southerly following said the act were sent to the president and to con- 
 summit to the seventh standard parallel; thence gress, but nothing came of it. The pro-slavery 
 due east on said standard, parallel to its inter- faction that with the assistance of the dough- 
 section with the northwest boundary of Los faces of the north had so long dominated con- 
 Angeles county; thence northeast along said gress had lost its power. The southern senators 
 boundary to the eastern boundary of the state, and congressmen were preparing for secession 
 including the counties of San Luis Obispo, and had weightier matters to think of than the 
 Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, San Diego, San division of the state of CaHfornia. Of late years, 
 Bernardino and a part of Buena Vista, shall be a few feeble attempts have been made to stir up 
 
206 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the old question of state division and even to 
 resurrect the old "Pico law." 
 
 For more than a decade after its admission 
 into the Union, California was a Democratic 
 state and controlled by the pro-slavery wing of 
 that party. John C. Fremont and William H. 
 Gwin, its first senators, were southern born, 
 Fremont in South Carolina and Gwin in Mis- 
 sissippi. Politics had not entered into their 
 election, but the lines were soon drawn. Fre- 
 mont drew the short terra and his services in 
 the senate were very brief. He confidently 
 expected a re-election, but in this he was 
 doomed to disappointment. The legislature of 
 1851, after balloting one hundred and forty-two 
 times, adjourned without electing,, leaving Cali- 
 fornia with but one senator in the session of 
 1850-51. In the legislature of 1852 John B. 
 Wilier was elected. He was a northern man 
 with southern principles. His chief opponent 
 for the place was David Colbert Broderick, a 
 man destined to fill an important place in the 
 political history of California. He was an Irish- 
 man by birth, but had come to America in his 
 boyhood. He had learned the stone cutters' 
 trade with his father. His early associations 
 were with the rougher element of New York 
 City. Aspiring to a higher position than that 
 of a stone cutter he entered the political field 
 and soon arose to prominence. At the age of 
 26 he was nominated for Congress, but was de- 
 feated by a small majority through a split in the 
 party. In 1849 he came to California, where he 
 arrived sick and penniless. With F. D. Kohler, 
 an assayer, he engaged in coining gold. The 
 profit from buying gold dust at $14 an ounce 
 and making it into $5 and $10 pieces put him 
 in affluent circumstances. 
 
 His first entry into politics in California was 
 his election to fill a vacancy in the senate of the 
 first legislature. In 1851 he became president 
 of the senate. H'e studied law, history and liter- 
 ature and was admitted to the bar. He was ap- 
 pointed clerk of the supreme court and had as- 
 pirations for still higher positions. Although 
 Senator Gwin was a Democrat, he had managed 
 to control all the federal appointments of Fill- 
 more, the Whig president, and he had filled the 
 offices with pro-slavery Democrats. 
 
 No other free state .in the Union had such 
 odious laws against negroes as had California. 
 The legislature of 1852 enacted a law "respect- 
 ing fugitives from labor and slaves brought to 
 this state prior to her admission to the Union." 
 "Under this law a colored man or woman could 
 be brought before a magistrate, claimed as a 
 slave, and the person so seized not being per- 
 mitted to testify, the judge had no alternative 
 but to issue a certificate to the claimant, which 
 certificate was conclusive of the right of the per- 
 son or persons in whose favor granted, and pre- 
 vented all molestation of such person or per- 
 sons, by any process issued by any court, judge, 
 justice or magistrate or other person whomso- 
 ever."* Any one who rendered assistance to a 
 fugitive was liable to a fine of $500 or imprison- 
 ment for two months. Slaves who had been 
 brought into California by their masters before 
 it became a state, but who were freed by the 
 adoption of a constitution prohibiting slavery, 
 were held to be fugitives and were Hable to 
 arrest, although they had been free for several 
 years and some of them had accumulated con- 
 siderable property. By limitation the law should 
 have become inoperative in 1853, but the legis- 
 lature of that year re-enacted it, and the suc- 
 ceeding legislatures of 1854 and 1855 continued 
 it in force. The intention of the legislators 
 who enacted the law was to legalize the kid- 
 napping of free negroes, as well as the arrest of 
 fugitives. Broderick vigorously opposed the 
 prosecution of the colored people and by so 
 doing called down upon his head the wrath of 
 the pro-slavery chivalry. From that time on he 
 was an object of their hatred. While successive 
 legislatures were passing laws to punish black 
 men for daring to assert their freedom and their 
 right to the products of their honest toil, white 
 villains were rewarded with political preferment, 
 provided always that they belonged to the domi- 
 nant wing of the Democratic party. The Whig 
 party was but little better than the other, for the 
 same element ruled in both. The finances of 
 the state were in a deplorable condition and 
 continually growing worse. The people's money 
 was recklessly squandered. Incompetency was 
 
 *Bancroft's History of California, Vol. VI, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 207 
 
 the rule in office and honesty the exception. 
 Ballot box stuffing had been reduced to a me- 
 chanical science, jury bribing was one of the 
 fine arts and suborning perjury was a recognized 
 profession. During one election in San Fran- 
 ,cisco it was estimated that $1,500,000 was spent, 
 in one way or another to influence voters. Such 
 was the state of affairs just preceding the up- 
 rising of the people that evolved in San Fran- 
 cisco the vigilance committee of 1856. 
 
 At the state election in the fall of 1855 the 
 Know Nothings carried the state. The native 
 American or Know Nothing party was a party 
 of few principles. Opposition to Catholics and 
 foreigners was about the only plank in its plat- 
 form. There was a strong opposition to for- 
 eign miners in the mining districts and the 
 pro-slavery faction saw in the increased foreign 
 immigration danger to the extension of their 
 beloved institution into new territory. The 
 most potent cause of the success of the new 
 party in Cahfornia was the hope that it might 
 bring reform to reheve the tax burdened people. 
 But in this they were disappointed. It was made 
 up from the same element that had so long mis- 
 governed the state. 
 
 The leaders of the party were either pro- 
 slavery men of the south or northern men with 
 southern principles. Of the latter class was J. 
 Neely Johnson, the governor-elect. In the leg- 
 islature of 1855 the contest between Gwin and 
 Broderick, which had been waged at the polls 
 the previous year, culminated after thirty-eight 
 ballots in no choice and Gwin's place in the 
 senate became vacant at the expiration of his 
 term. In the legislature of 1856 the Know Noth- 
 ings had a majority in both houses. It was 
 supposed that they would elect a senator to 
 succeed Gwin. There were three aspirants: H. 
 A. Crabb, formerly a Whig; E. C. Marshall and 
 Henry S. Foote, formerly Democrats. All were 
 southerners and were in the new party for of- 
 fice. Thfi Gwin and Broderick influence was 
 strong enough to prevent the Know Nothing 
 legislature from electing a senator and Califor- 
 nia was left with but one representative in the 
 upper house of Congress. 
 
 The Know Nothing party was short lived. At 
 the general election in 1856 the Democrats 
 
 swept the state. Broderick, by his ability in or- 
 ganizing and his superior leadership, had se- 
 cured a majority in the legislature and was in a 
 position to dictate terms to his opponents. Wel- 
 ler's senatorial term would soon expire and 
 Gwin's already two years vacant left two places 
 to be filled. Broderick, who had heretofore 
 been contending for Gwin's place, changed his 
 tactics and aspired to fill the long term. Ac- 
 cording to established custom, the filling of the 
 vacancy would come up first, but Broderick, by 
 superior finesse, succeeded in having the caucus 
 nominate the successor to Weller first. Ex- 
 Congressman Latham's friends were induced to 
 favor the arrangement on the expectation that 
 their candidate would be given the short term. 
 Broderick was elected to the long term on the 
 first ballot, January 9, 1857, and his commission 
 was immediately made out and signed by the 
 governor. For years he had bent his energies 
 to securing the senatorship and at last he had 
 obtained the coveted honor. But he was not 
 satisfied yet. He aspired to control the federal 
 patronage of the state; in this way he could 
 reward his friends. He could dictate the elec- 
 tion of his colleague for the short term. Both 
 Gwin and Latham were willing to concede to 
 him that privilege for the sake of an election. 
 Latham tried to make a few reservations for 
 some of his friends to whom he had promised 
 places. Gwin offered to surrender it all with- 
 out reservation. He had had enough of it. 
 Gwin was elected and next day published an 
 address, announcing his obligation to Broderick 
 and renouncing any claim to the distribution of 
 the federal patronage. 
 
 Then a wail long and loud went up from the 
 chivalry, who for years had monopolized all the 
 offices. That they, southern gentlemen of aris- 
 tocratic antecedents, should be compelled to ask 
 favors of a mudsill of the north was too hu- 
 miliating to be borne. Latham, too, was indig- 
 nant and Broderick found that his triumph was 
 but a hollow mockery. But the worst was to 
 come. He who had done so much to unite the 
 warring Democracy and give the party a glo- 
 rious victory in California at the presidential 
 election of 1856 fully expected the approbation 
 of President Buchanan, but when he cahed on 
 
■208 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 that old gentleman he was received coldly and 
 during Buchanan's administration he was ig- 
 nored and Gwin's advice taken and followed in 
 making federal appointments. He returned to 
 CaHfornia in April, 1857, to secure the nomina- 
 tion of his friends on the state ticket, btit in 
 this he was disappointed. The Gwin ele- 
 ment was in the ascendency and John 
 B. Weller received the nomination for gov- 
 ernor. He was regarded as a martyr, having 
 been tricked out of a re-election to the sen- 
 ate by Broderick. There were other martyrs of 
 the Democracy, who received balm for their 
 wounds and sympathy for their sufiEerings at 
 that convention. In discussing a resolution de- 
 nouncing the vigilance committee, O'Meara in 
 his "History of Early Politics in CaHfornia," 
 says: "Col. Joseph P. Hoge, the acknowledged 
 leader of the convention, stated that the com- 
 mittee had hanged four men, banished twenty- 
 eight and arrested two hundred and eighty; and 
 that these were nearly all Democrats. 
 
 On Broderick's return to the senate in the 
 session of 1857-58, he cast his lot with Senator 
 Douglas and opposed the admission of Kansas 
 under the infamous Lecompton constitution. 
 This cut him loose from the administration 
 wing of the party. 
 
 In the state campaign of 1859 Broderick ral- 
 lied his followers under the Anti-Lecompton 
 standard and Gwin his in support of the Bu- 
 chanan , administration. The party was hope- 
 lessly divided. Two Democratic tickets were 
 placed in the field. The Broderick ticket, with 
 John Currey as governor, and the Gwin, with 
 Milton Latham, the campaign was bitter. Brod- 
 erick took the stump and although not an orator 
 his denunciations of Gwin were scathing and 
 merciless and in his fearful earnestness he be- 
 came almost eloquent. Gwin in turn loosed 
 the vials of his wrath upon Brod'erick and 
 criminations and recriminations flew thick and 
 fast during the campaign. It was a campaign 
 of vituperation, but the first aggressor was 
 Gwin. 
 
 Judge Terry, in a speech before the Lecomp- 
 ton convention at Sacramento in June, 1859, 
 after flinging out sneers at the Republican party, 
 characterized Broderick's party as sailing "under 
 
 the flag of Douglas, but it is the banner of the 
 black Douglass, whose name is Frederick, not 
 Stephen." This taunt was intended to arouse 
 the wrath of Broderick. He read Terry's speech 
 while seated at breakfast in the International 
 hotel at San Francisco. Broderick denounced 
 Terry's utterance in forcible language and 
 closed by saying: "I have hitherto spoken of 
 him as an honest man, as the only honest 
 man on the bench of a miserable, corrupt su- 
 preme court, but now I find I was mistaken. I 
 take it all back." A lawyer by the name of Per- 
 ley, a friend of Terry's, to whom the remark was 
 directed, to obtain a little reputation, challenged 
 Broderick. Broderick refused to consider Per- 
 ley's challenge on the ground that he was not 
 his (Broderick's) equal in standing and beside 
 that he had declared himself a few days before 
 a British subject. Perley did not stand very 
 high in .the community. Terry had acted as a 
 second for him in a duel a few years before. 
 
 Broderick, in his reply to Perley, said: "I 
 have determined to take no notice of attacks 
 from any source during the canvass. If I were 
 to accept your challenge, there are probably 
 many other gentlemen who would seek similar 
 opportunities for hostile meetings for the pur- 
 pose of accomplishing a political object or to 
 obtain public notoriety. I cannot afford at the 
 present time to descend to a violation of the 
 Constitution and state laws to subserve either 
 their or your purposes." 
 
 Terry a few days after the close of the cam- 
 paign sent a letter to Broderick demanding a 
 retraction of the offensive remarks. Broderick, 
 well knowitig that he would have to fight some 
 representative of the chivalry if not several of 
 them in succession, did not retract his remarks, 
 He had for several years, in expectation of such 
 a result in a contest with them, practiced 
 himself in the use of fire arms until he had be^ 
 come quite expert. 
 
 A challenge followed, a meeting was arranged 
 to take place in San Mateo county, ten miles 
 from San Francisco, on the 12th of September. 
 Chief of Police Burke appeared on the scene 
 and arrested the principals. They were released 
 by the court, no crime having been committed. 
 They met next morning at the same place; ex- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 209 
 
 Congressman McKibben and David D. Colton 
 were Broderick's seconds. Calhoun Benham 
 and Thomas Hayes were Terry's. The pistols 
 selected belonged to a friend of Terry's. Brod- 
 erick was ill, weak and nervous, and it was said 
 that his pistol was quicker on the trigger than 
 Terry's. When the word was given it was dis- 
 charged before it reached a level and the ball 
 struck the earth, nine feet from where he stood. 
 Terry fired, striking Broderick in the breast. 
 He sank to the" earth mortally wounded and died 
 three days afterwards. Broderick dead was a 
 greater man than Broderick living. For years 
 he had waged a contest against the representa- 
 tives of the slave oligarchy in California and the 
 great mass of the people had looked on with 
 indifference, even urging on his pursuers to the 
 tragic end. Now that he was killed, the cry went 
 up for vengeance on his murderers. Terry was 
 arrested and admitted to bail in the sum of 
 $10,000. The trial was put ofif on some pretext 
 and some ten months later he obtained a change 
 of venue to Marin county on the plea that he 
 could not obtain a fair and impartial trial in San 
 Francisco. His case was afterwards dismissed 
 without trial by a pro-slavery judge named 
 Hardy. Although freed by the courts he was 
 found guilty and condemned by public opinion. 
 He went south and joined the Confederates at 
 the breaking out of the Civil war. He some 
 time after the close of the war returned to Cal- 
 ifornia. In 1880 he was a presidential elector 
 on the Democratic ticket. His colleagues on 
 the ticket were elected,, but he was defeated. 
 He was killed at Lathrop by a deputy United 
 States marshal while attempting an assault on 
 United States Supreme Judge Field. 
 
 In the hue and cry that was raised on the 
 death of Broderick, the chivalry read the doom 
 of their ascendency. Gwin, as he was about to 
 take the steamer on his return to Washington, 
 "had flaunted in his face a large canvas frame, 
 on which was painted a portrait of Broderick 
 and this: 'It is the will of the people that the 
 murderers of Broderick do not return again to 
 California;' and below were also these words 
 attributed to Mr. Broderick: 'They have killed 
 me because I was opposed to the extension of 
 slavery, and a corrupt administration,' " 
 
 14 
 
 Throughout his political career Broderick was 
 a consistent anti-slavery man and a friend of 
 the common people. Of all the politicians of the 
 ante-bellum period, that is, before the Civil war, 
 he stands to-day the highest in the estimation of 
 the people of California. Like Lincoln, he was 
 a self-made man. From a humble , origin, 
 unaided, he had fought his way up to a lofty po- 
 sition. Had he been living during the war 
 against the perpetuity of human slavery, he 
 would have been a power in the senate or pos- 
 sibly a commander on the field of battle. As it 
 was, during that struggle in his adopted state, 
 his name became a synonyn of patriotism and 
 love for the Union. 
 
 Milton S. Latham, who succeeded John B. 
 Weller as governor in i860, was, like his pred- 
 ecessor, a northern man with southern prin- 
 ciples. Almost from the date of his arrival in 
 California he had been an office-holder. He was 
 a man of mediocre ability. He was a state di- 
 visionist and would have aided in that scheme 
 by advocating in the senate of the United States 
 (to which body he had been elected three days 
 after his inauguration) the segregation of the 
 southern counties and their formation into a 
 new state with the hopes of restoring the equi- 
 librium between the north and the south. But 
 the time had passed for such projects. The 
 lieutenant-governor, John G. Downey, suc- 
 ceeded Latham. Downey gained great popu- 
 larity by his veto of the "bulkhead bill." This 
 was a scheme of the San Francisco Dock and 
 Wharf Company to build a stone bulkhead 
 around the city water front in consideration of 
 having the exclusive privilege of collecting 
 wharfage and tolls for fifty years. Downey lost 
 much of his popularity, particularly with the 
 Union men, during the Civil war on account of 
 his sympathy with the Confederates. 
 
 At the state election in September, 1861, Le- 
 land Stanford was chosen governor. He was 
 the first Republican chosen to that office. He 
 received fifty-six thousand votes. Two years 
 before he had been a candidate for that office 
 and received only ten thousand votes, so rap- 
 idly had public sentiment changed. The news 
 of the firing upon Fort Sumter reached San 
 Francisco April 24, twelve days after its oc- 
 
210 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 currence. It came by pony express. The be- 
 ginning of hostilities between the north and the 
 south stirred up a strong Union sentiment. The 
 great Union mass meeting held in San Fran- 
 cisco May II, 1861, was the largest and most 
 enthusiastic public demonstration ever held on 
 the Pacific coast. The lines were sharply drawn 
 between the friends of the government and its 
 enemies. Former political alliances were for- 
 gotten. Most of the Anti-Lecompton or Doug- 
 las Democrats arrayed themselves on the side 
 of the Union. The chivalry wing of the Dem- 
 ocratic party were either open or secret sym- 
 pathizers with the Confederates. Some of them 
 were bold and outspoken in their disloyalty. 
 The speech of Edmund Randolph at the Dem- 
 ocratic convention July 24, 1861, is a sample 
 of such utterances. * * =1= "To me it seems 
 a waste of time to talk. For God's sake, tell 
 me of battles fought and won. Tell me of 
 usurpers overthrown; that Missouri is again a 
 free state, no longer crushed under the armed 
 heel of a reckless and odious despot. Tell me 
 that the state of Maryland lives again; and, oh! 
 gentlemen, let us read, let us hear, at the first 
 moment, that not one hostile foot now treads 
 the soil of Virginia! (Applause and cheers.) 
 If this be rebellion, I am a rebel. Do you want 
 a traitor, then I am a traitor. For God's sake, 
 speed the ball; may the lead go quick to his 
 heart, and may our country be free from the 
 despot usurper that now claims the name 
 of the president of the United States."* (Cheers.) 
 Some of the chivalry Democrats, most of whom 
 had been holding office in California for years, 
 went south at the breaking out of the war to 
 fight in the armies of the Confederacy, and 
 among these was Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston, 
 who had been superseded in the command of 
 the Pacific Department by Gen. Edwin V. Sum- 
 ner. Johnston, with a number of fellow sym- 
 pathizers, went south by the overland route and 
 was killed a year later, at the battle of Shiloh, 
 while in command of the Confederate army. 
 
 One form of disloyalty among the class 
 known as "copperheads" (northern men with 
 southern principles) was the advocacy of a Pa- 
 
 *Tuthill's History of California. 
 
 cific republic. Most prominent among these 
 was ex-Governor John B. Weller. The move- 
 ment was a thinly disguised method of aiding 
 the southern Confederacy. The flag of the 
 inchoate Pacific republic was raised in Stock- 
 ton January 16, 1861. It is thus described by 
 the Stockton Argus : "The flag is of silk of the 
 medium size of the national ensign and with 
 the exception of the Union (evidently a mis- 
 nomer in this case) which contains a lone star 
 upon a blue ground, is covered by a painting 
 representing a wild mountain scene, a huge 
 grizzly bear standing in the foreground and the 
 words 'Pacific Republic' near the upper border." 
 The flag raising w-as not a success. At first it 
 was intended to raise it in the city. But as it 
 became evident this would not be allowed, it was 
 raised to the mast head of a vessel in the slough. 
 It was not allowed to float there long. The hal- 
 yards were cut and a boy was sent up the mast 
 to pull it down. The owner of the flag was con- 
 vinced that it was not safe to trifle with the 
 loyal sentiment of the people. 
 
 At the gubernatorial election in September, 
 1863, Frederick F Low, Republican, was 
 chosen over John G. Downey, Democrat, by a 
 majority of over twenty thousand. In some parts 
 of the state Confederate sympathizers were 
 largely in the majority. This was the case in 
 Los Angeles and in some places in the San 
 Joaquin valley. Several of the most outspoken 
 were arrested and sent to Fort Alcatraz, where 
 they soon became convinced of the error of 
 their ways and took .the oath of allegiance. 
 When the news of the assassination of Lincoln 
 reached San Francisco, a mob destroyed the 
 newspaper plants of the Democratic Press, 
 edited by Beriah Brown; the Occidental, edited 
 by Zach. Montgomery; the News Letter, edited 
 by F. Marriott, and the Monitor, a Catholic 
 paper, edited by Thomas A. Brady. These were 
 virulent copperhead sheets that had heaped 
 abuse upon the martyred president. Had the 
 proprietors of these journals been found the 
 mob would, in the excitement that prevailed, 
 have treated them with violence. After this 
 demonstration Confederate sympathizers kept 
 silent. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 211 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 TRADE, TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION. 
 
 THE beginning of the ocean commerce of 
 California was the two mission transport 
 ships that came every year to bring sup- 
 plies for the missions and presidios and take 
 back what few products there were to send. 
 The government fixed a price upon each and 
 every article of import and export. There was 
 no cornering the market, no bulls or bears in 
 the wheat pit, no rise or fall in prices except, 
 when ordered by royal authority. An Arancel 
 de Precios (fixed rate of prices) was issued at 
 certain intervals, and all buying and selling was 
 governed accordingly. These arancels included 
 everything in the range of human needs — phys- 
 ical, spiritual or mental. According to a tariff 
 of prices promulgated by Governor Pages in 
 1788, which had been approved by the audencia 
 and had received the royal sanction, the price 
 of a Holy Christ in California was fixed at 
 $1.75, a wooden spoon six cents, a horse $9, a 
 deerskin twenty-five cents, red pepper eighteen 
 cents a pound, a dozen of quail twenty-five 
 cents, brandy seventy-five cents per pint, and 
 so on throughout the list. 
 
 In 1785 an attempt was made to open up 
 trade between California and China, the com- 
 modities for exchange being seal and otter 
 skins for quicksilver. The trade in peltries was 
 to be a government monopoly. The skins were 
 to be collected from the natives by the mission 
 friars, who were to sell them to a government 
 agent at prices ranging from $2.50 to $10 each. 
 The neophytes must give up to the friars all 
 the skins in their possession. All trade by citi- 
 zens or soldiers was prohibited and any one 
 attempting to deal in peltries otherwise than 
 the regularly ordained authorities wa's liable, if 
 found out, to have his goods confiscated. 
 Spain's attempt to engage in the fur trade was 
 not a success. The blighting monopoly of 
 church and state nipped it in the bud. It died 
 
 out, and the government bought quicksilver, 
 on which also it had a monopoly, with coin in- 
 stead of otter skins. 
 
 After the government abandoned the fur trade 
 the American smugglers began to gather up 
 the peltries, and the California producer re- 
 ceived better prices for his furs than the mis- 
 sionaries paid. 
 
 The Yankee smuggler had no arancel of 
 prices fixed by royal edict. His price list va- 
 ried according to circumstances. As his trade 
 was illicit and his vessel and her cargo were in 
 danger of confiscation if he was caught, his scale 
 of prices ranged high. But he paid a higher 
 price for the peltries than the government, and 
 that was a consolation to the seller. The com- 
 merce with the Russian settlements of the 
 northwest in the early years of the century fur- 
 nished a limited market for the grain produced 
 at some of the missions, but the Russians 
 helped themselves to the otter and the seal of 
 California without saying "By your leave'' and 
 they were not welcome visitors. 
 
 During the Mexican revolution, as has been 
 previously mentioned, trade sprang up between 
 Lima and California in tallow, but it was of 
 short duration. During the Spanish era it can 
 hardly be said that California had any com- 
 merce. Foreign vessels were not allowed to 
 enter her ports except when in distress, and 
 their stay was limited to the shortest time pos- 
 sible required to make repairs and take on 
 supplies. 
 
 It was not until Mexico gained her inde- 
 pendence and removed the prescriptive regu- 
 lations with which Spain had hampered com- 
 merce that the hide droghers opened up trade 
 between New England and California. This 
 trade, which began in 1822, grew to consider- 
 able proportions. The hide droghers were emi- 
 grant ships as well as mercantile vessels. By 
 
212 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 these came most of the Americans who settled 
 in California previous to 1840. The hide and 
 tallow trade, the most important item of com- 
 merce in the Mexican era, reached its maximum 
 in 1834, when the great mission herds were, by 
 order of the padres, slaughtered to prevent them 
 from falling into the hands of the government 
 commissioners. Thirty-two vessels came to the 
 coast that year, nearly all of which were en- 
 gaged in the hide and tallow trade. 
 
 During the year 1845, the last of Mexican 
 rule, sixty vessels visited the coast. These 
 were not all trading vessels; eight were men- 
 of-war, twelve were whalers and thirteen came 
 on miscellaneous business. The total amount 
 received at the custom house for revenue during 
 that year was $140,000. The majority oi the 
 vessels trading on the California coast during 
 the Mexican era sailed under the stars and 
 stripes. Mexico was kinder to California than 
 Spain, and under her administration commer- 
 cial relations were established to a limited ex- 
 tent with foreign nations. Her commerce at 
 best was feeble and uncertain. The revenue laws 
 and their administration were frequently 
 changed, and the shipping merchant was never 
 sure what kind of a reception his cargo would 
 receive from the custom house officers. The 
 duties on imports from foreign countries were 
 exorbitant and there was always more or less 
 smuggling carried on. The people and the 
 padres, when they were a power, gladly wel- 
 comed the arrival of a trading vessel on the 
 coast and were not averse to buying goods that 
 had escaped the tariff if they could do so with 
 safety. As there was no land tax, the revenue 
 on goods supported the expenses of the govern- 
 ment. 
 
 Never in the world's history did any country 
 develop an ocean commerce so quickly as did 
 California after the discovery of gold. When 
 the news spread abroad, the first ships to 
 arrive came from Peru, Chile and the South 
 Sea islands. The earliest published notice of 
 the gold discovery appeared in the Baltimore 
 Sim, September 20, 1848, eight months after it 
 was made. At first the story was ridiculed, but 
 as confirmatory reports came thick and fast, 
 preparations began for a grand rush for the 
 
 gold mines. Vessels of all kinds, seaworthy 
 and uiiseaworthy, were overhauled and fitted 
 out for California. The American trade with 
 California had gone by way of Cape Horn or 
 the Straits of Magellan, and this was the route 
 that was taken by the pioneers. Then there 
 were short cuts by the way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, across Alexico and by Nicaragua. The 
 first vessels left the Atlantic seaports in No- 
 vember, 1848. By the middle of the winter one 
 hundred vessels had sailed from Atlantic and 
 Gulf seaports, and by spring one hundred and 
 fifty more had taken their departure, all of them 
 loaded with human freight and with supplies of 
 every description. Five hundred and forty- 
 nine vessels arrived in San Francisco in nine 
 months, forty-five reaching that port in one day. 
 
 April 12, 1848, before the treaty of peace 
 with MexicO' had been proclaimed by the Presi- 
 dent, the Pacific Mail Steamship Company was 
 incorporated with a capital of $500,000. Asto- 
 ria, Ore., was to have been the Pacific terminus 
 of the company's fine, but it never got there. 
 The discovery of gold in California made San 
 Francisco the end of its route. The contract 
 with the government gave the company a sub- 
 sidy of $200,000 for maintaining three steamers 
 on the Pacific side between Panama and Asto- 
 ria. The first of these vessels, the California, 
 sailed from New York October 6, 1848, for San 
 Francisco and Astoria via Cape Horn. She 
 was followed in the two succeeding months by 
 the Oregon and the Panama. On the Atlantic 
 side the vessels of the line for several -years 
 were the Ohio, Illinois and Georgia. The ves- 
 sels on the Atlantic side were fifteen hundred 
 tons burden, while those on the Pacific were a 
 thousand tons. Freight and passengers by the 
 Panama route were transported across the isth- 
 mus by boats up the Chagres river to Gorgona, 
 and then by mule-back to Panama. In 1855 the 
 Panama railroad was completed. This greatly 
 facilitated travel and transportation. The At- 
 lantic terminus of the road was Aspinwall, now 
 called Colon. 
 
 Another line of travel and commerce between 
 the states and California in early days was the 
 Nicaragua route. By that route passengers on 
 the Atlantic side landed at San Juan del Norte 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 
 
 13 
 
 or Greytown. From there they took a river 
 steamer and ascended the Rio San Juan to Lake 
 Nicaragua, then in a larger vessel they crossed 
 the lake to La Virgin. From there a distance 
 of about twelve miles was made on foot or on 
 mule-back to San Juan del Sur, where they re- 
 embarked on board the ocean steamer for San 
 Francisco. 
 
 The necessity for the speedy shipment of mer- 
 chandise to California before the days of trans- 
 continental railroads at a minimum cost evolved 
 the clipper ship. These vessels entered quite 
 early into the California trade and soon displaced 
 the short, clumsy vessels of a few hundred tons 
 burden that took from six to ten months to 
 make a voyage around the Horn. The chpper 
 ship Flying Cloud, which arrived at San Fran- 
 cisco in August, 185 1, made the voyage from 
 New York in eighty-nine days. These vessels 
 were built long and narrow and carried heavy 
 sail. Their capacity ranged from one to two 
 thousand tons burden. The overland railroads 
 took away a large amount of their business. 
 
 Capt. Jedediah S. Smith, as previously stated, 
 was the real pathfinder of the western moun- 
 tains and plains. He marked out the route 
 from Salt Lake by way of the Rio Virgin, the 
 Colorado and the Cajon Pass to Los Angeles 
 in 1826. This route was extensively traveled 
 by the belated immigi'ants of the early '50s. 
 Those reaching Salt Lake City too late in the 
 season to cross the Sierra Nevadas turned 
 southward and entered California by Smith's 
 trail. 
 
 The early immigration to California came by 
 way of Fort Hall. From there it turned south- 
 erly. At Fort Hall the Oregon and California 
 immigrants separated. The disasters that be- 
 fell the Donner party were brought upon them 
 by their taking the Hastings cut-ofif, which was 
 represented to them as saving two hundred and 
 fifty miles. It was shorter, but the time spent 
 in making a wagon road through a rough coun- 
 try delayed them until they were caught by the 
 snows in the mountains. Lassen's cut-off was 
 another route that brought disaster and delays 
 to many of the immigrants who were induced 
 to take it. The route_up the Platte through the 
 
 :)GRA 
 
 South Pass of the Rocky mountains and down 
 the Humboldt received by far the larger amount 
 of travel. 
 
 The old Santa Fe trail from Independence to 
 Santa Fe, and from there by the old Spanish 
 trail around the north bank of the Colorado 
 across the Rio Virgin down the Mojave river 
 and through the Cajon Pass to Los Angeles, 
 was next in importance. Another route by 
 which much of the southern emigration came 
 was what was known., as the Gila route. It 
 started at Fort Smith, Ark., thence via El Paso 
 and Tucson and down the Gila to Yuma, thence 
 across the desert through the San Gorgono 
 Pass to Los Angeles. In 1852 it was estimated 
 one thousand wagons came by this route. Ther^ 
 was another route still further south than this 
 which passed through the northern states of 
 Mexico, but it was not popular on account of 
 the hostility of the Mexicans and the Apaches. 
 ^ The first overland stage line was established 
 in 1857. The route extended from San Antonio 
 de Bexar, Tex., to San Diego, via El Paso, Mes- 
 sillo, Tucson and Colorado City (now Yuma). 
 The service was twice a month. The contract 
 was let to James E. Burch, the Postal Departs 
 ment reserving "the right to curtail or discon- 
 tinue the service should any route subsequently 
 put under contract cover the whole or any por- 
 tion of the route." The San Diego Herald, 
 August 12, 1857, thus notes the departure of the 
 first mail by that route: 'The pioneer mail 
 train from San Diego to San Antonio, Tex., 
 under the contract entered into by the govern- 
 ment with Mr. James Burch, left here on the 
 9th inst. (August 9, 1857) at an early hour in 
 the morning, and is now pushing its way for the 
 east at a rapid rate. The mail was of course 
 carried on pack animals, as will be the case 
 until wagons which are being pushed across will 
 have been put on the line. * * * The first 
 mail from the other side has not yet arrived, 
 although somewhat overdue, and conjecture is 
 rife as to the cause of the delay." The eastern 
 mail arrived a few days later. 
 
 The service, continued to improve, and the 
 fifth trip from the eastern terminus to San 
 Diego "was made in the extraordinary short 
 
lU 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 time of twenty-six days and twelve hours," and 
 the San Diego Herald on this arrival, October 
 6, 1857, rushed out an extra "announcing the 
 very gratifying fact of the complete triumph of 
 the southern route notwithstanding the croak- 
 ings of many of the opponents of the adminis- 
 tration in this state." But the "triumph of the 
 southern route" was of short duration. In 
 September, 1858, the stages of the Butterfield 
 line began making their semi-weekly trips. 
 This route from its western terminus, San Fran- 
 cisco, came down the coast to Gilroy, thence 
 through Pacheco Pass to the San Joaquin val- 
 ley, up the valley and by way of Fort Tejon to 
 Los Angeles ; from there eastward by Temecula 
 and Warner's to Yuma, thence following very 
 /nearly what is now the route of the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad through Arizona and New Mex- 
 ico to El Paso, thence turning northward to 
 Fort Smith, Ark. There the route divided, one 
 branch going to St. Louis and the other to 
 Memphis. The mail route from San Antonio 
 t(j, San Diego was discontinued^^^,,^ 
 
 The Butterfield stage line was one of the long- 
 est continuous lines ever organized. Its length 
 was two thousand eight hundred and eighty 
 miles. It began operation in September, 1858. 
 The first stage from the east reached Los 
 Angeles October 7 and San Francisco October 
 10. A mass-meeting was held at San Francisco 
 the evening of October 11 "for the purpose of 
 expressing the sense entertained by the people 
 of the city of the great benefits she is to re- 
 ceive from the establishment of the overland 
 mail." Col. J. B. Crocket acted as president 
 and Frank M. Pixley as secretary. The speaker 
 of the evening in his enthusiasm said: "In my 
 opinion one of the greatest blessings that could 
 befall California would be to discontinue at once 
 all communication by steamer between San 
 Francisco and New York. On yesterday we 
 received advices from New York, New Orleans 
 and St. Louis in less than twenty-four days via 
 El Paso. Next to the discovery of gold this is 
 the most important fact yet developed in the 
 history of California." W. L. Ormsby, special 
 correspondent of the Nezv York Herald, the 
 first and only through passenger by the over- 
 
 land mail coming in three hours less than 
 twenty-four days, was introduced to the audi- 
 ence and was greeted with terrific applause. He 
 gave a description of the route and some inci- 
 dents of the journey. 
 
 The government gave the Butterfield com- 
 pany a subsidy of $600,000 a year for a service 
 of two mail coaches each way a week. In 1859 
 the postal revenue from this route was only 
 $27,000, leaving Uncle Sam more than half a 
 million dollars out of pocket. At the breaking 
 out of the Civil war the southern overland mail 
 route was discontinued and a contract was made 
 with Butterfield for a six-times-a-week mail by 
 the central route via Salt Lake City, with a 
 branch line to Denver. The eastern terminus 
 was at first St. Joseph, but on account of the 
 war it was changed to Omaha. The western 
 terminus was Placerville, Cal., time twenty 
 days for eight months, and twenty-three days 
 for the remaining four months. The contract 
 was for three years at an annual subsidy of 
 $1,000,000. The last overland stage contract 
 for carrying the mails was awarded to Wells, 
 Fargo & Co., October i, 1868, for $1,750,000 
 per annum, with deductions for carriage by rail- 
 way. The railway was rapidly reducing the dis- 
 tance of stage trav el. ^ ..•^ 
 
 The only inland commerce during the Mexi- 
 can era was a few bands of mules sold to New 
 Mexican traders and driven overland to Santa 
 Fe by the old Spanish trail and one band of 
 cattle -sold to the Oregon settlers in 1837 and 
 driven by the coast route to Oregon City. The 
 Californians had no desire to open up an inland 
 trade with their neighbors and the traders and 
 trappers who came overland were not welcome. 
 
 After the discovery of gold, freighting to the 
 mines became an important business. Supplies 
 had to be taken by pack trains and wagons. 
 Freight charges were excessively high at first. 
 In 1848, "it cost $5 to carry a hundred pounds" 
 of goods from Sutter's Fort to the lower 
 mines, a distance of twenty miles, and $10 per 
 hundred weight for freight to the upper mines, 
 a distance of forty miles. Two horses can draw 
 one thousand five hundred pounds." In Decem- 
 ber, 1849, the roads were almost impassable 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 215 
 
 and teamsters were charging from $40 to $50 a 
 hundred pounds for hauling freight from Sacra- 
 mento to Mormon Island. 
 
 In 1855 an inland trade was opened up be- 
 tween Los Angeles and Salt Lake City. The 
 first shipment was made by Banning and Alex- 
 ander. The wagon train consisted of fifteen 
 ten-mule teams heavily freighted with merchan- 
 dise. The venture was a success financially. 
 The train left Los Angeles in May and returned 
 in September, consuming four months in the 
 journey. The trade increased and became quite 
 an important factor in the business of the south- 
 ern part of the state. In 1859 sixty wagons 
 were loaded for Salt Lake in the month of 
 January, and in March of the same year one 
 hundred and fifty loaded with goods were sent 
 to the Mormon capital. In 1865 and 1866 there 
 was a considerable shipment of goods from Los 
 Angeles to Idaho and Montana by wagon trains. 
 These trains went by way of Salt Lake. This 
 trade was carried on during the winter months 
 when the roads over the Sierras and the Rocky 
 mountains were blocked with snow. 
 
 Freighting by wagon train to Washoe formed 
 a very important part of the inland commerce 
 of California between 1859 and 1869. The im- 
 mense freight wagons called "prairie schooners" 
 carried almost as much as a freight car. The 
 old-time teamster, like the old-time stage driver, 
 was a unique character. Both have disappeared. 
 Their occupation is gone. We shall never look 
 on their like again. 
 
 The pony express rider came early in the his- 
 tory of California. Away back in 1775, when 
 the continental congress made Benjamin Frank- 
 lin postmaster-general of the United Colonies, 
 on the Pacific coast soldier couriers, fleet 
 mounted, were carrying their monthly budgets 
 of mail between Monterey in Alta California, 
 and Loreto, near the southern extremity of the 
 peninsula of Lower California, a distance of one 
 thousand five hundred miles. 
 
 In the winter of 1859-60 a Wall street lobby 
 was in Washington trying to get an appropria- 
 tion of $5,000,000 for carrying the mails one 
 year between New York and San Francisco. 
 William H. Russell, of the firm of Russell, Ma- 
 
 jors & Waddell, then engaged in running a 
 daily stage line between the Missouri river and 
 Salt Lake City, hearing of the lobby's efiforts, 
 offered to bet $200,000 that he could put on a 
 mail line between San Francisco and St. Joseph 
 that could make the distance, one thousand nine 
 hundred and fifty miles, in ten days. The wager 
 was accepted. Russell and his business man- 
 ager, A. B. Miller, an old plains man, bought 
 the fleetest horses they could find in the west 
 and employed one hundred and twenty-five 
 riders selected with reference to their Hght 
 weight and courage. It was essential that the 
 horses should be loaded as lightly as possible. 
 The horses were stationed from ten to twenty 
 miles apart and each rider was required to ride 
 seventy-five miles. For change of horses and 
 mail bag two minutes were allowed, at each 
 station. One man took care of the two horses 
 kept there. Everything being arranged a start 
 was made from St. Joseph, April 3, i860. The 
 bet was to be decided on the race eastward. At 
 meridian on April 3, i860, a signal gun on a 
 steamer at Sacramento proclaimed the hour of 
 starting. At that signal Mr. Miller's private 
 saddle horse. Border Ruffian, with his rider 
 bounded away toward the foothills of the Sierra 
 Nevadas. The first twenty miles were covered 
 in forty-nine minutes. All went well till the 
 Platte river was reached. The river was swollen 
 by recent rain. Rider and horse plunged boldly 
 into it, but the horse mired in the quicksands 
 and was drowned. The rider carrying the mail 
 bag footed it ten miles to the next relay sta- 
 tion. When the courier arrived at the sixty- 
 mile station out from St. Joseph he was one 
 hour behind time. The last one had just three 
 hours and .thirty minutes in which to make the 
 sixty miles and win the race. A heavy rain 
 was falling and the roads were slippery, but 
 with six horses to make the distance he won 
 with five minutes and a fraction to spare. And 
 thus was finished the longest race for the larg- 
 est stake ever run in America. 
 
 The pony express required to do its work 
 nearly five hundred horses, about one hundred 
 and ninety stations, two hundred station keepers 
 and over a hundred riders. Each rider usually 
 rode the horses on about seventy-five miles. 
 
1216 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 but sometimes much greater distances were 
 made. Robert H. Haslam, Pony Bob, made on 
 one occasion a continuous ride of three hundred 
 and eighty miles and WilHam F. Cody, now fa- 
 mous as Buffalo Bill, in one continuous trip 
 rode three hundred and eighty-four miles, 
 stopping only for meals, and to change 
 horses. 
 
 The pony express was a semi-weekly service. 
 Fifteen pounds was the limit of the weight of 
 the waterproof mail bag and its contents. The 
 postage or charge was $5 on a letter of half an 
 ounce. The limit was two hundred letters, but 
 sometimes there were not more than twenty in 
 a bag. The line never paid. The shortest time 
 ever made by the pony express was seven days 
 and seventeen hours. This was in March, 1861, 
 when it carried President Lincoln's message. 
 At first telegraphic messages were received at 
 St. Joseph up to five o'clock p. m. of the day 
 of starting and sent to San Francisco on the 
 express, arriving at Placerville, which was then 
 the eastern terminus of the line. The pony ex- 
 press was suspended October 27, 1861, on the 
 completion of the telegraph. 
 
 The first stage line was established between 
 Sacramento and Mormon Island in September, 
 1849, fare $16 to $2^, according to times. 
 Sacramento was the great distributing point for 
 the mines and was also the center from which 
 radiated numerous stage lines. In 1853 a dozen 
 lines were owned there and the total capital in- 
 vested in staging was estimated at $335,000. 
 There were lines running to Coloma, Nevada, 
 Placerville, Georgetown, Yankee Jim's, Jack- 
 son, Stockton, Shasta and Auburn. In 1851 
 Stockton had seven daily stages. The first stage 
 line between San Francisco and San Jose was 
 established in April, 1850, fare $32. A number 
 of lines were consolidated. In i860 the Califor- 
 nia stage company controlled eight lines north- 
 ward, the longest extending seven hundred and 
 ten miles to Portland with sixty stations, thirty- 
 five drivers and five hundred horses, eleven 
 drivers and one hundred and fifty horses per- 
 taining to the rest. There were seven indepen- 
 dent lines covering four hundred and sixty-four 
 miles, chiefly east and south, the longest to Vir- 
 
 ginia City.* These lines disappeared with the 
 advent of the railroad. 
 
 The pack train was a characteristic feature of 
 early mining days. Many of the mountain 
 camps were inaccessible to wagons and the only 
 means of shipping in goods was by pack tram. 
 A pack train consisted of from ten to twenty 
 mules each, laden with from two hundred to 
 faur hundred pounds. The load was fastened on 
 the • animal by means of a pack saddle which 
 was held in its place by a cinch tightly laced 
 around the animal's body. The sure-footed 
 mules could climb steep grades and wind round 
 narrow trails on the side of steep mountains 
 without slipping or tumbhng over the cliffs. 
 Mexicans were the most expert packers. 
 
 The scheme to utilize camels and dromedaries 
 as beasts of burden on the arid plains of the 
 southwest was agitated in the early fifties. The 
 chief promoter if not the originator of the 
 project was Jefferson Davis, afterwards presi- 
 dent of the Southern Confederacy. During the 
 last days of the congress of 1851, Mr. Davis 
 offered an amendment to the army appropria- 
 tion bill appropriating $30,000 for the purchase 
 of thirty camels and twenty dromedaries. The 
 bill was defeated. When Davis was secretary 
 of war in 1854; congress appropriated $30,000 
 for the purchase and importation of camels and 
 in December of that year Major C. Wayne was 
 sent to Egypt and Arabia to buy seventy-five. 
 He secured the required number and shipped 
 them on the naval store ship Supply. They 
 were landed at Indianola, Tex., February 10, 
 1857. Three had died on the voyage. About 
 half of the herd were taken to Albuquerque, 
 where an expedition was fitted out under the 
 command of Lieutenant Beale for Fort Tejon, 
 Cal. ; the other half was employed in packing on 
 the plains of Texas and in the Gadsen Purchase, 
 as Southern Arizona was then called. 
 
 It very soon became evident that the camel 
 experiment would not be a success. The Amer- 
 ican teamster could not be converted into an 
 Arabian camel driver. From the very first meet- 
 ing there was a mutual antipathy between the 
 
 Sacramento Union, January i, 1861. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 217 
 
 American mule whacker and the beast of the 
 pfophet. The teamsters when transformed into 
 camel drivers deserted and the troopers refused 
 to have anything to do with the misshapen 
 beasts. So because there was no one to load 
 and navigate these ships of the desert their 
 voyages became less and less frequent, until 
 finally they ceased altogether; and these desert 
 • ships were anchored at the different forts^n 
 the southwest. After the breaking out of the 
 Civil war the camels at the forts in Texas and 
 New Mexico were turned loose to shift for 
 themselves. Those in Arizona and California 
 were condemned and sold by the government to 
 two Frenchmen who used them for packing, 
 first in Nevada and later in Arizona, but tiring 
 of the animals they turned them out on the 
 desert. Some of these camels or possibly their 
 descendants are still roaming over the arid 
 plains of southern Arizona and Sonora. 
 
 The first telegraph was completed September 
 II, 1853. It extended from the business quar- 
 ter of San Francisco to the Golden Gate and 
 was used for signalling vessels. The first long 
 line connected Marysville, Sacramento, Stock- 
 ton and San Jose. This was completed October 
 24, 1853. Another line about the same time 
 was built from San Francisco to Placerville by 
 way of Sacramento. A line was built southward 
 from San Jose along the Butterfield overland 
 mail route to Los Angeles in i860. The Over- 
 land Telegraph, begun in 1858, was completed 
 November 7, 1861. 
 
 The first express for the States was sent un- 
 der the auspices of the California Star (news- 
 paper). The Star of March i, 1848, contained 
 the announcement that "We are about to send 
 letters by express to the States at fifty cents 
 each, papers twelve and a half cents ; to start 
 April 15; any mail arriving after that time. will 
 be returned to the writers. The Star refused 
 to send copies of its rival. The Californian, in its 
 express. 
 
 The first local express was started by Charles 
 L. Cady in August, 1847. It left San Francisco 
 every Monday and Fort Sacramento, its other 
 terminus, every Thursday. Letters twenty-five 
 cents. Its route was by way of Saucelito, Napa 
 and Petaluma to Sacramento. 
 
 Weld & Co.'s express was established in Oc- 
 tober, 1849. This express ran from San Fran- 
 cisco to Marysville, having its principal offices 
 in San Francisco, Benicia and Sacramento. It 
 was the first express of any consequence estab- 
 lished in California. Its name was changed to 
 Hawley & Co.'s express. The first trip was 
 made in the Mint, a sailing vessel, and took 
 six days. Afterward it was transferred to the 
 steamers Hartford and McKim. The company 
 paid these boats $800 per month for the use of 
 one state room; later for the same accommoda- 
 tion it paid $1,500 per month. The Alta Cali- 
 fornia of January 7, 1850, says: "There are so 
 many new express companies daily starting that 
 we can scarcely keep the run of them.'' 
 
 The following named were the principal com- 
 panies at that time: Hawley & Co., Angel, 
 Young & Co., Todd, Bryan, Stockton Express, 
 Henly, McKnight & Co., Brown, Knowlton & 
 Co. The business of these express companies 
 consisted largely in carrying letters to the 
 mines. The letters came through the postoffice 
 in San Francisco, but the parties to whom they 
 were addressed were in the mines. While the 
 miner would gladly give an ounce to hear from 
 home he could not make the trip to the Bay at 
 a loss of several hundred dollars in time and 
 money. The express companies obviated this 
 difficulty. The Alta of July 27, 1850, says : "We 
 scarcely know what we should do if it were not 
 for the various express lines established which 
 enable us to hold communication with the mines. 
 With the present defective mail communication 
 we should scarcely ever be able to hear from 
 the towns throughout California or from the 
 remote portions of the Placers north or south. 
 Hawley & Co., Todd & Bryan and Besford & 
 Co. are three lines holding communication with 
 different sections of the country. Adams & Co. 
 occupy the whole of a large building on Mont- 
 gomery street." 
 
 Adams & Co., established in 1850, soon be- 
 came the leading express company of the coast. 
 It absorbed a number of minor companies. It 
 established relays of the fastest horses to carry 
 the express to the mining towns. As early as 
 1852 the company's lines had penetrated the re- 
 mote mining camps. Some of its riders per- 
 
218 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 formed feats in riding that exceeded the famous 
 pony express riders. Isaac W. Elwell made the 
 trip between Placerville and Sacramento in two 
 hours and fifty minutes, distance sixty-four 
 miles; Frank Ryan made seventy-five miles in 
 four hours and twenty minutes. On his favorite 
 horse, Colonel, he made twenty miles in fifty- 
 five minutes. Adams & Co. carried on a bank- 
 ing business and had branch banks in all the 
 leading mining towns. They also became a po- 
 
 litical power. In the great financial crash of 
 1855 they failed and in their failure ruined thou- 
 sands of their depositors. Wells, Fargo & Co. 
 express was organized in 185 1. It weathered 
 the financial storm that carried down Adams & 
 Co. It gained the confidence of the people of 
 the Pacific coast and has never betrayed it. Its 
 business has grown to immense proportions. It 
 is- one of the leading express companies of the 
 world. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXll, 
 
 RAILROADS. 
 
 THE agitation of the Pacific railroad ques- 
 tion began only two years after the first 
 passenger railway was put in operation 
 in the United States. The originator of the 
 scheme to secure the commerce of Asia by a 
 transcontinental railway from the Atlantic to 
 the Pacific was Hartwell Carver, grandson of 
 the famous explorer, Jonathan Carver. He 
 published articles in the Nczv York Courier and 
 Inquirer in 1832 elaborating his idea, and 
 memorialized congress on the subject. The 
 western terminus was to be on the Columbia 
 river. His road was to be made of stone. There 
 were to be sleeping cars and dining cars at- 
 tached to each train. In 1836, John Plumbe, 
 then a resident of Dubuque, Iowa, advocated 
 the building of a railroad from Lake Michigan 
 to Oregon. At a public meeting held in Du- 
 buque, March 26, 1838, which Plumbe ad- 
 dressed, a memorial to congress was drafted 
 ■'praying for an appropriation to defray the ex- 
 pense of the survey and location of the first link 
 in the great Atlantic and Pacific railroad, name- 
 ly, from the lakes to the Mississippi." Their 
 application was favorably received and an ap- 
 propriation being made the same year, which 
 was expended under the direction of the secre- 
 tary of war, the report being of a very favorable 
 character.'*' 
 
 Plumbe received the indorsement of the Wis- 
 
 *Bancroft's History of California, Vol. VIL, p. 
 
 499- 
 
 consin legislature of 1839-40 and a memorial 
 was drafted to congress urging the continuance 
 of the work. Plumbe went to Washington to 
 urge his project. But the times were out of 
 joint for great undertakings. The financial 
 panic of 1837 had left the government revenues 
 in a demoralized condition. Plumbe's plan was 
 to issue stock to the amount of $100,000,000 
 divided in shares of $5 each. The government 
 was to appropriate alternate sections of the 
 public lands along the line of the road. Five 
 million dollars were to be called in for the first 
 installment. After this was expended in building, 
 the receipts from the sale of the lands was to 
 continue the building of the road. One hundred 
 miles were to be built each year and twenty 
 years was the time set for the completion of the 
 road. A bill granting the subsidy and authoriz- 
 ing the building of the road was introduced in 
 congress, but was defeated by the southern 
 members who feared that it would foster the 
 growth of free states. 
 
 The man best known in connection with the, 
 early agitation of the Pacific railroad scheme 
 is Asa Whitney, of New York. For a time he 
 acted with Carver in promulgating the project, 
 but took up a plan of his own. Whitney wanted 
 a strip of land sixty miles wide along the whole 
 length of the road, which would have given 
 about one hundred million acres of the public 
 domain. Whitney's scheme called forth a great 
 deal of discussion. It was feared by some 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 21d 
 
 timorous souls that such a monopoly would 
 endanger the government and by others that 
 it would bankrupt the public treasury. The agi- 
 tation was kept up for several years. The 
 acquisition of CaUfornia and New Mexico threw 
 the project into politics. The question of de- 
 pleting the treasury or giving away the public 
 domain no longer worried the pro-slavery poli- 
 ticians in congress. The question that agitated 
 them now was how far south could the road 
 be deflected so that it would enhance the value 
 of the lands over which they hoped to spread 
 their pet institution — human slavery. 
 
 Another question that agitated the members 
 of congress was whether the road should be 
 built by the government — should be a national 
 road. The route which the road should take 
 was fought over year after year in congress. 
 The south would not permit the north to have 
 the road for fear that freemen would absorb the 
 public lands and build up free states. It was 
 the old dog-in-the-manger policy so character- 
 istic of the southern proslavery politicians. 
 
 The CaHfornia newspapers early took up the 
 discussion and routes were thick as leaves in 
 Valambrosa. In the Star of May 13, 1848, Dr. 
 John Marsh outlines a route which was among 
 the best proposed: "From the highest point on 
 the Bay of San Francisco to which seagoing 
 vessels can ascend; thence up the valley of the 
 San Joaquin two hundred and fifty miles; 
 thence through a low pass (Walker's) to the 
 valley of the Colorado and thence through Ari- 
 zona and New Mexico by the Santa Fe trail to 
 Independence, Mo." 
 
 Routes were surveyed and the reports of the 
 engineers laid before congress; memorials were 
 received from the people of California praying 
 for a road; bills were intrciduced and discussed, 
 'but the years passed and the Pacific railroad 
 was not begun. Slavery, that "siim of all vil- 
 lainies," was an obstruction more impassable 
 than the mountains and deserts that intervened 
 between the Missouri and the Pacific. Southern 
 politicians, aided and abetted by Gwin of Cali- 
 fornia neutralized every attempt. 
 
 One of the first of several local railroad 
 projects that resulted in something more than 
 resolutions, public meetings and the election of 
 
 a board of directors that never directed any- 
 thing was the building of a railroad from San 
 Francisco to San Jose. The agitation was be- 
 gun early in 1850 and by February, 185 1, $100,- 
 000 had been subscribed. September 6 of that 
 year a company was organized and the pro- 
 jected road given the high sounding title of the 
 Pacific & Atlantic railroad. Attempts were 
 made to secure subscriptions for its stock in 
 New York and in Europe, but without success. 
 Congress was appealed to, but gave no assist- 
 ance and all that there was to the road for ten 
 years was its name. In 1859 a new organization 
 was effected under the name of the San Fran- 
 cisco & San Jose railroad company. An at- 
 tempt was made to secure a subsidy of $900,- 
 000 from the three counties through which the 
 road was to pass, but this failed and the corpora- 
 tion dissolved. Another organization, the 
 fourth, was effected with a capital stock of 
 $2,000,000. The construction of the road was 
 begun in October, i860, and completed to San 
 Jose January 16, 1864. 
 
 The first railroad completed and put into suc- 
 cessful operation in California was the Sacra- 
 mento Valley road. It was originally intended 
 to extend the road from Sacramento through 
 Placer and Sutter counties to Mountain City, 
 in Yuba county, a distance of about forty miles. 
 It came to a final stop at a little over half that 
 distance. Like the San Jose road the question 
 of building was agitated several years before 
 anything was really done. In 1853 the company 
 was reorganized under the railroad act of that 
 year. Under the previous organization sub- 
 scriptions had been obtained. The Sacramento 
 Union of September 19, 1852, says: "The books 
 of the Sacramento Valley railroad company 
 were to have been opened in San Francisco 
 Wednesday. Upwards of $200,000 of the neces- 
 sary stock has been subscribed from here." 
 The Union of September 24 announces, "That 
 over $600,000 had already been subscribed at 
 San Francisco and Sacramento." Under the re- 
 organization a new board was elected November 
 12, 1853. C. L. Wilson was made president; 
 F. W. Page, treasurer, and W. H. Watson, sec- 
 retary. Theodore D. Judah, afterwards famous 
 in California railroad building, was employed as 
 
220 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 engineer and the construction of the road began 
 in February, 1855. It was completed to Fol- 
 som a, distance of twenty-two miles from Sacra- 
 mento and the formal opening of the road for 
 business toolv place February 22, 1856. Accord- 
 ing to the secretary's report for 1857 the earn- 
 ings of that year averaged $18,000 per month.- 
 The total earnings for the year amounted to 
 $216,000; the expenses $84,000, leaving a profit 
 of $132,000. The cost of the road and its equip- 
 ment was estimated at $700,000. From this 
 showing it would seem that California's first 
 railroad ought to have been a paying invest- 
 ment, but it was not. Money then was worth 
 5 per cent a month and the dividends from the 
 road about 18 per cent a year. The difiference 
 between one and a half per cent and 5 per cent 
 a month brought the road to a standstill. 
 
 Ten years had passed since California had 
 become a state and had its representatives in 
 congress. In all these years the question of a 
 railroad had come up in some form in that body, 
 yet the railroad seemingly was as far from a 
 consummation as it had been a decade before. 
 In 1859 the silver mines of the Washoe were 
 discovered and in the winter of 1859-60 the 
 great silver rush began. y\n almost continuous 
 stream of wagons, pack trains, horsemen and 
 footmen poured over the Sierra Nevadas into 
 Carson Valley and up the slopes of Mount 
 Davidson to Virginia City. The main hne of 
 travel was by way of Placerville, through John- 
 son's Pass to Carson City. An expensive toll 
 road was built over the mountains and monster 
 freight wagons hauled great loads of merchan- 
 dise and mill machinery to the mines. 'Tn 1863 
 the tolls on the new road amounted to $300,000 
 and the freight bills on mills and merchandise 
 summed up $13,000,000."* 
 
 The rush to Washoe gave a new impetus to 
 railroad projecting. A convention of the whole 
 coast had been held at San Francisco in Sep- 
 tember, 1859, but nothing came of it beyond 
 propositions and resolutions. Early in 1861, 
 Theodore P. Judah called a railroad meeting at 
 the St. Charles hotel in Sacramento. The feasi- 
 bility of a road over the mountains, the large 
 
 amount of business that would come to that 
 road from the Washoe mines and the necessity 
 of Sacramento moving at once to secure that 
 trade were pointed out. This road would be the 
 beginning of a transcontinental line and Sacra- 
 mento had the opportunity of becoming its 
 terminus. Judah urged upon some of the lead- 
 ing business men the project of organizing a 
 company to begin the building of a transconti- 
 nental road. The Washoe trade and travel 
 would be a very important item in the business 
 of the road. 
 
 On the 28th of June, 1861, the Central Pacific 
 Railroad company was organized under the 
 general incorporation law of the state. Leland 
 Stanford was chosen president, C. P. Hunting- 
 ton, vice-president, Mark Hopkins, treasurer, 
 James Bailey, secretary, and T. D. Judah, chief 
 engineer. The directors were those just named 
 and E. B. Crocker, John F.Morse, D. W. Strong 
 and Charles Marsh. The capital stock of the 
 company was $8,500,000 divided into eighty-five 
 thousand shares of $100 each. The shares taken 
 by individuals were few, Stanford, Huntington, 
 Hopkins, Judah and Charles Crocker subscrib- 
 ing for one hundred and fifty each; Glidden & 
 WiUiams, one hundred and twenty-five shares; 
 Charles A. Lombard and Orville D. Lombard, 
 three hundred and twenty shares; Samuel 
 Hooper, Benjamin J. Reed, Samuel P. Shaw, 
 fifty shares each; R. O. Ives, twenty-five shares; 
 Edwin B. Crocker, ten shares; Samuel Bran- 
 nan, two hundred shares; cash subscriptions of 
 which 10 per cent was required by law to be 
 paid down realizing but a few thousand dollars 
 with which to begin so important a work as a 
 railroad across the Sierra Nevada.* 
 
 The total amount subscribed was $158,000, 
 scarcely enough to build five miles of road on 
 the level plains if it had all been paid up. None 
 of the men in the enterprise was rich. Indeed, 
 as fortunes go now, none of them had more than 
 a competence. Charles Crocker, who was one 
 of the best off, in his sworn statement, placed 
 the value of his property at $25,000; C. ?■ 
 Huntington placed the value of his individual 
 possessions at $7,222, while Leland Stanford and 
 
 ♦Bancroft's History of California, Vol. VII., p. 541. 
 
 * Bancroft's History of California, Vol. VII. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 221 
 
 his ' brother together owned property worth 
 $32,950. The incubus that so long had pre- 
 vented building a Pacific railroad was removed. 
 The war of secession had begun. The southern 
 senators and representatives were no longer in 
 congress to obstruct legislation. The thirty- 
 second and the thirty-fifth parallel roads south- 
 ern schemes, were out of the way or rather the 
 termini of these roads were inside the confeder- 
 ate lines. 
 
 A bill "to aid in the construction of a railroad 
 and telegraph Hne from the Missouri river to 
 the Pacific ocean and to secure to the govern- 
 ment the use of the same for postal, military and 
 other purposes passed both houses and became 
 a law July i, 1862. The bill provided for the 
 building of the road by two companies. The 
 Union Pacific (which was to be a union of 
 several roads already projected) was given the 
 construction of the road to the eastern boundary 
 of California, where it would connect with the 
 Central Pacific. Government bonds were to be 
 given to the companies to the amount of $16,000 
 per mile to the foot of the mountains and 
 $48,000 per mile through the mountains when 
 forty miles of road had been built and approved 
 by the government commissioners^ In, addition 
 to the bonds the companies were to receive 
 "every alternate section of public land desig- 
 nated by odd numbers to the amount of five 
 alternate sections per mile on each side of the 
 railroad on the line thereof and within the Hmits 
 of ten miles on each side of the road not sold, 
 reserved or otherwise disposed of by the United 
 States." Mineral lands were exempted and any 
 lands unsold three years after the completion of 
 the entire road were subject to a preemption 
 like other public lands at a price not exceeding 
 $1.25 per acre, payable to the company. 
 
 The government bonds were a first mortgage 
 on the road. The ceremony of breaking ground 
 for the beginning of the enterprise took place at 
 Sacramento, February 22, 1863, Governor 
 Stanford throwing the first shovelful of earth, 
 and work was begun on the first eighteen miles 
 of the road which was let by contract to be 
 finished by August, 1863. The Central Pacific 
 company was in hard lines. Its means were not 
 sufficient to build forty miles which must be 
 
 completed before the subsidy could be received. 
 In October, 1863, Judah who had been instru- 
 mental in securing the first favorable legislation 
 set out a second time for Washington to ask 
 further assistance from congress. At New York 
 he was stricken with a fever and died there. To 
 him more than any other man is due the credit 
 of securing for the Pacific coast its first trans- 
 continental railroad. In July, 1864, an amended 
 act was passed increasing the land grant from 
 six thousand four hundred acres to twelve 
 thousand eight hundred per mile and reducing 
 the number of miles to be built annually from 
 fifty to twenty-five. The company was allowed 
 to bond its road to the same amount per mile 
 as the government subsidy. 
 
 The Western Pacific, which was virtually a 
 continuation of the Central Pacific, was organ- 
 ized in December, 1862, for the purpose of 
 building a railroad from Sacramento via Stock- 
 ton to San Jose. A branch of this line was 
 constructed from Niles to Oakland, which was 
 made the terminus of the Central Pacific. The 
 Union Pacific did not begin construction until 
 1865, while the Central Pacific had forty-four 
 miles constructed. In 1867 the Central Pacific 
 had reached the state line. It had met with 
 many obstacles in the shape of lawsuits and 
 imfavorable comments by the press. From the 
 state line it pushed out through Nevada and 
 on the 28th of April, 1869, the two companies 
 met with their completed roads at Promontory 
 Point in Utah, fifty-three miles west of Ogden. 
 The ceremony of joining the two roads took 
 place May 10. The last tie, a handsomely fin- 
 ished piece of California laurel, was laid and 
 Governor Stanford with a silver hammer drove 
 a golden spike. The two locomotives, one 
 from the east and one from the west, bumped 
 noses and the first transcontinental railroad 
 was completed. 
 
 The Southern Pacific Railroad company of 
 California was incorporated in December, 1865. 
 It was incorporated to build a railroad from 
 some point on the bay of San Francisco through 
 the counties of Santa Clara, Monterey, San 
 Luis Obispo, Tulare, Los Angeles to San 
 Diego and thence easterly through San Diego 
 to the eastern boundary of the state there to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 connect with a railroad from the Mississippi 
 
 river. 
 
 "In July, 1866, congress granted to the At- 
 lantic and Pacific Railroad company to aid in 
 the construction of its road and telegraph line 
 from Springfield, Mo., by the most eligible route 
 to Albuquerque in New Mexico and thence by 
 the thirty-fifth parallel route to the Pacific, an 
 amount of land equal to that granted to the 
 Central Pacific. By this act the Southern Pa- 
 cific Railroad was authorized to connect with 
 the Atlantic and Pacific near the boundary fine 
 of California, at such point as should be deemed 
 most suitable by the companies and should have 
 therefore the same amount of land per mile as 
 the Atlantic and Pacific."* 
 
 In 1867 the Southern Pacific company de- 
 cided to change its route and instead of build- 
 mg down through the coast counties to go east- 
 ward from Gilroy through Pacheco's pass into 
 the upper San Joaquin valley through Fresno, 
 Kern and San Bernardino to the Colorado river 
 near Fort Mojave. This contemplated change 
 left the lower coast counties out in the cold and 
 caused considerable dissatisfaction, and an at- 
 tempt vv'as made to prevent it from getting a 
 land subsidy. Congress, however, authorized 
 the change, as did the California legislature of 
 1870, and the road secured the land. 
 
 The San Francisco and San Jose Railroad 
 came into possession of the Southern Pacific 
 company, San Francisco donating three thou- 
 sand shares of stock in that road on condition 
 that the Southern Pacific company, after it se- 
 cured the San Jose road, should extend it to 
 the southeastern boundary of the state. In 1869 
 a proposition was made to the supervisors of 
 San Francisco to donate $1,000,000 in bonds of 
 the city to the Southern Pacific company, on 
 condition that it build two hundred miles south 
 from Gilroy, the bonds to be delivered on the 
 completion and stocking of each section of fifty 
 miles of road. The bonds were voted by the 
 people of the city. The road was built to 
 Soledad, seventy miles from Gilroy, and then 
 stopped. The different branch roads in the San 
 Jose and Sahnas valley were all consolidated 
 
 * Bancroft, VII., p. 594. 
 
 under the name of the Southern Pacific. The 
 Central Pacific and the Southern Pacific, al- 
 though apparently different organizations, were 
 really one company. 
 
 The Southern Pacific built southward from 
 Lathrop, a station on the Central Pacific's line, 
 a railroad up the valley by way of Tehachapi 
 Pass to Los Angeles. While this road was in 
 course of construction in 1872 a proposition was 
 made to the people of Los Angeles through the 
 county board of supervisors to vote a subsidy 
 equal to 5 per cent of the entire amount of the 
 taxable property of the county on condition that 
 the Southern Pacific build fifty miles of its main 
 line to Yuma in the county. Part of the subsidy 
 was to be paid in bonds of the Los Angeles & 
 San Pedro Railroad, amounting to $377,000 and 
 sixty acres of land for depot purposes. The 
 total amount of subsidy to be given was $610,- 
 000. The proposition was accepted by the 
 people, the railroad company in addition to its 
 original offer agreeing to build a branch road 
 twenty-seven miles long to Anaheim. This was 
 done to head off the Tom Scott road which 
 had made a proposition to build a branch road 
 from San Diego to Los Angeles to connect with 
 the Texas Pacific road which the year before 
 had been granted a right of way from Marshall, 
 Tex., to San Diego, and was preparing to build 
 its road. The Southern Pacific completed its 
 road to Los Angeles in September, 1876, and 
 reached, the Colorado river on its way east in 
 April, 1877. It obtained the old franchise of the 
 Texas Pacific and continued, its road eastward 
 to El Paso, Tex., where it made connections 
 with roads to New Orleans and other points 
 south and east, thus giving California its second 
 transcontinental railroad. This road was com- 
 pleted to El Paso in 1881. 
 
 The Atlantic & Pacific road with which the 
 Southern Pacific was to connect originally, 
 suffered from the financial crash of 1873 and 
 suspended operations for a time. Later it en- 
 tered into a combination with the Atchison, To- 
 peka & Santa Fe and St. Louis & San Francisco 
 railroad companies. This gave the Atchison 
 road a half interest in the charter of the Atlantic 
 & Pacific. The two companies built a main line 
 jointly from Albuquerque (where the Atchison 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 road ended) west to the Colorado river at the 
 Needles. Their intention was to continue the 
 road to Los Angeles and San Francisco. 
 
 The California Southern and the California 
 Southern Extension companies were organized 
 to extend the Atlantic &. Pacific from Barstow 
 to San Diego. These companies consolidated 
 and completed a road from San Diego to San 
 Bernardino September 13, 1883. The Southern 
 Pacific interfered. It attempted to prevent the 
 California Southern from crossing its tracks at 
 Colton by placing a heavy engine at the point 
 of crossing, but was compelled to move the en- 
 gine to save it from demolition. It built a branch 
 from Mojave station to connect with the At- 
 lantic & Pacific in which it had an interest. 
 This gave connection for the Atlantic & Pacific 
 over the Southern Pacific Hnes with both Los 
 Angeles and San Francisco. This was a serious 
 blow to the California Southern, but disasters 
 never come singly. The great flood of January, 
 1884, swept down through the Temecula Cafion 
 and carried about thirty miles of its track out 
 to sea. It was doubtful under the circumstances 
 whether it would pay to rebuild it. Finally the 
 Southern Pacific agreed to sell its extension 
 from Barstow to the Needles to the California 
 Southern, reserving its road from Barstow to 
 
 Mojave. Construction was begun at once on 
 the California Southern line from Barstow to 
 San Bernardino and in November, 1885, the 
 road was completed from Barstow to San 
 Diego. In October, 1886, the road passed un- 
 der control of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa 
 Fe. In the spring of 1887 the road was ex- 
 tended westerly from San Bernardino to meet 
 the San Gabriel valley road which had been 
 built eastward from Los Angeles through Pasa- 
 dena. The completed line reached Los Angeles 
 in May, 1887, thus giving California a third 
 transcontinental line. 
 
 After many delays the gap in the Southern 
 Pacific coast line was closed and the first trains 
 from the north and the south passed over its 
 entire length between Los Angeles and San 
 Francisco on the 31st of March, 1901, nearly 
 thirty years after the first section of the road 
 was built. 
 
 The Oregon & California and the Central 
 Pacific were consolidated in 1870. The two 
 ends of the road were united at Ashland, Ore., 
 in 1887. The entire line is now controlled by 
 the Southern Pacific, and, in connection with 
 the Northern Pacific and the Oregon Railway 
 & Navigation Road at Portland, forms a fourth 
 transcontinental line for California. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 THE INDIAN QUESTION. 
 
 IT IS quite the fashion now with a certain 
 school of writers, who take their history of 
 California from "Ramona" and their infor- 
 mation on the "Indian question" under the rule 
 of the mission padres from sources equally fic- 
 titious, to draw invidious comparisons between 
 the treatment of the Indian by Spain and Mex- 
 ico when mission rule was dominant in Cali- 
 fornia and his treatment by the United States 
 after the conquest. 
 
 That the Indian'was brutally treated and un- 
 mercifully slaughtered by the American miners 
 and rancheros in the early '50s none will deny; 
 that he had fared but little better under the rule 
 
 of Spain and Mexico is equally true. The tame 
 and submissive Indians of the sea coast with 
 whom the mission had to deal were a very 
 different people from the mountain tribes with 
 whom the Americans came in conflict. 
 
 We know but little of the conquistas or gentile 
 hunts that were occasionally sent out from the 
 mission to capture subjects for conversion. The 
 history of these was not recorded. From "The 
 narrative of a voyage to the Pacific and Berings 
 strait with the Polar expedition; performed in 
 his majesty's ship Blossom, under command of 
 Capt. F. W. Beechey, R. N., in the years 
 1825-26-27-28, we have the story of one of these 
 
224 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 conquistas or convert raids. Captain Beechey 
 visited California in 1828. While in California 
 he studied the missions, or at least those he vis- 
 ited, and after his return to England published 
 his observations. His observations have great 
 value. He was a disinterested observer and 
 gave a plain, straightforward, truthful account 
 of what he saw, without prejudice or partiality. 
 His narrative dispels much of the romance that 
 some modern writers throw around mission life. 
 This conquista set out from the Mission San 
 Jose. 
 
 "At a particular period of the year also, when 
 the Indians can be spared from agricultural con- 
 cerns of the establishment, many are permitted 
 to take the launch of the mission and make ex- 
 cursions to the Indian territory. All are anx- 
 ious to go on such occasions. Some to visit 
 friends, some to procure the manufactures of 
 their barbarian countrymen (which, by the =by, 
 are often better than their own) and some with a 
 secret determination never to return. On these 
 occasions the padres desire them to induce as 
 many of their unconverted brethren as possible 
 to accompany them back to the mission; of 
 course, implying that this is to be done only by 
 persuasion; but the boat being furnished with a 
 cannon and musketry and in every respect 
 equipped for war, it too often happens that the 
 neophytes and the gente de rason, who super- 
 intend the direction of the boat, avail them- 
 selves of their superiority with the desire of in- 
 gratiating themselves with their master and re- 
 ceiving a reward. There are besides repeated 
 acts of aggression, which it is necessary to pun- 
 ish, all of which furnish proselytes. Women and 
 children are generally the first objects of cap- 
 ture, as their husbands and parents sometimes 
 voluntarily follow them into captivity. These 
 misunderstandings and captivities keep up a per- 
 petual enmity amongst the tribes whose thirst 
 for revenge is insatiable." 
 
 We had an opportunity of witnessing the 
 tragical issue of one of these holyday excursions 
 of the neophytes of the Mission San Jose. The 
 launch was armed, as usual^ and placed under 
 the superintendence of an alcalde of the mission, 
 who appears from one statement (for there are 
 several), converted the party of pleasure either 
 
 into an attack for procuring proselytes or of 
 revenge upon a particular tribe for some ag- 
 gression in which they were concerned. They 
 proceeded up the Rio San Joachin until they 
 came to the territory of a particular tribe named 
 Consemenes, when they disembarked with the 
 gun and encamped for the night near the vil- 
 lage of Los Gentiles, intending to make an at- 
 tack upon them next morning, but before they 
 were prepared the gentiles, who had been ap- 
 prised of their intention and had collected a 
 large body of their friends, became the assail- 
 ants and pressed so hard upon the party that, 
 notwithstanding they dealt death in every direc- 
 tion with their cannon and musketry and were 
 inspired with confidence by the contempt in 
 which they held the valor and tactics of their un- 
 converted countrymen, they were overpowered 
 by numbers and obliged to seek their safety in 
 flight and to leave the gun in the woods. Some 
 regained the launch and were saved and others 
 found their way overland to the mission, but 
 thirty-four of the party never returned to tell 
 their tale. 
 
 "There were other accounts of the unfortu- 
 nate affair, one of which accused the padre of 
 authorizing the attack. The padre was greatly 
 displeased at the result of the excursion, as the 
 loss of so many Indians to the mission was of 
 great consequence and the confidence with 
 which the victory would inspire the Indians was 
 equally alarming. 
 
 "He therefore joined with the converted In- 
 dians in a determination to chastise and strike 
 terror into the victorious tribe and in concert 
 with the governor planned an expedition against 
 them. The mission furnished money, arms, In- 
 dians and horses and the presidio troops, headed 
 by Alferez Sanches, a veteran, who had been 
 frequently engaged ^ith the Indians and was 
 acquainted with that part of the country. The 
 expedition set out November 19, and we heard 
 nothing of it until the 27th, but two days after 
 the troops had taken to the field some immense 
 columns of smoke rising abpve the mountains 
 in the direction of the Cosemmes bespoke the 
 conflagration of the village of the persecuted 
 gentiles; and on the day above mentioned the 
 veteran Sanches made a triumphant entry into 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 225 
 
 the Mission of San Jose, escorting forty miser- 
 able women and children. The gun which had 
 been lost in the first battle was retaken and 
 other trophies captured. 
 
 "This victory, so glorious according to the 
 ideas of the conquerors, was achieved with the 
 loss of only one man on the part of the Chris- 
 tians, who was mortally wounded by the burst- 
 ing of his own gun; but on the part of the enemy 
 it was considerable, as Sanches the morning 
 after the battle counted forty-one men, women 
 and children dead. It is remarkable that none 
 of the prisoners was wounded and it is greatly 
 to be feared that the Christians, who could 
 scarcely be prevented from revenging the death 
 of their relatives upon those, who were brought 
 to the mission, glutted their brutal passions on 
 all who fell into their hands. 
 
 "The prisoners they had captured were imme- 
 diately enrolled in the list of the mission, except 
 a nice little boy whose mother was shot while 
 running away with him in her arms, and he was 
 sent to the presidio and, as I heard, given to 
 the Alferez as a reward for his services. The 
 poor little orphan ha,d received a slight wound in 
 his forehead ; he wept bitterly at first and refused 
 to eat, but in time became reconciled to his 
 fate. 
 
 "Those who were taken to the mission were 
 immediately converted and were daily taught by 
 the neophytes to repeat the Lord's prayer and 
 certain hymns in the Spanish language. I hap- 
 pened to visit the mission about this time and 
 saw these unfortunate beings under tuition. 
 They were clothed in blankets and arranged in 
 a row before a blind Indian, who understood 
 their dialect and was assisted by an alcalde to 
 keep order. Their tutor began by desiring them 
 to kneel, informing them that he was going to 
 teach them the names of the persons composing 
 the trinity and they were to repeat in Spanish 
 what he dictated. The neophytes being ar- 
 ranged, the speaker began: 'Santisima Trini- 
 dad, Dios, Jesu Christo, Espiritu Santo,' paus- 
 ing between each name to Hsten if the simple 
 Indians, who had never before spoken a word 
 of Spanish, pronounced it correctly or anything 
 near the mark. After they had repeated these 
 names satisfactorily, their blind tutor, after a 
 
 15 
 
 pause, added 'Santos' and recapitulated the 
 names of a great many saints, which finished the 
 morning's lesson. 
 
 "They did not appear to me to pay rtiuch at- 
 tention to what was going forward and I ob- 
 served to the padre that I thought their teachers 
 had an arduous task, but he said they had never 
 found any difficulty; that the Indians were ac- 
 customed to change their own gods and that 
 their conversion was in a measure habitual to 
 them. 
 
 "The expenses of the late expedition fell heav- 
 ily upon the mission and I was glad to find the 
 padre thought it was paying very dear for so 
 few converts, as in all probability it will lessen 
 his desire to undertake another expedition and 
 the poor Indians will be spared the horrors of 
 being butchered by their own countrymen or 
 dragged from their homes into captivity." 
 
 This conquista and the results that followed 
 were very similar to some of the so-called In- 
 dian wars that took place 'after the American 
 occupation. The Indians were provoked to hos- 
 tilities by outrage and injustice. Then the 
 military came down on them and wiped them 
 out of existence. 
 
 The unsanitary condition of the Indian vil- 
 lages at some of the missions was as fatal as an 
 Indian war. The Indian was naturally filthy, but 
 in his native state he had the whole country to 
 roam over. If his village became too filthy and 
 the vermin in it too aggressive, he purified it 
 by fire — burned up his wigwam. The adobe 
 houses that took the place of the brush hovel, 
 which made up the early mission villages, could 
 not be burned to purify them. No doubt the 
 heavy death rate at the missions was due largely 
 to the uncleanly habits of the neophytes. The 
 statistics given in the chapter on the Franciscan 
 missions show that in all the missionary estab- 
 lishments a steady decline, a gradual extinction 
 of the neophyte population, had been in prog- 
 ress for two to three decades before the mis- 
 sions were secularized. Had secularization been 
 delayed or had it not taken place in the course 
 of a few decades, at the rate the neophytes were 
 d)'ing off the missions would have become de- 
 populated. The death rate was greater than- the 
 birth rate in all of them and the mortality among 
 
•2-Hi 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the children was greater even than among the 
 adults. After secularization the neophytes 
 drifted to the cities and towns where they could 
 more readily gratify their passion for strong 
 drink. Their mission training and their Chris- 
 tianity had no restraining influence upon them. 
 Their vicious habits, which were about the only 
 thing they had acquired by their contact with 
 the whites, soon put an end to them. 
 
 During the Spanish and Mexican eras North- 
 ern California remained practically a terra in- 
 cognita. Two missions, San Rafael and San 
 Francisco Solano^, and the castillo at Sonora, 
 had been estabUshed as a sort of protection to 
 the northern frontier. A few armed incursions 
 had been made into the country beyond these 
 to punish Indian horse and cattle thieves. Gen- 
 eral Vallejo, who was in command of the 
 troops on the frontera del norte, had always 
 endeavored to cultivate friendly relations with 
 the gentiles, but the padres disliked to have 
 these near the missions on account of their in- 
 fluence on the neophytes. Near the Mission 
 San Rafael, in 1833, occurred one of those In- 
 dian massacres not uncommon under Spanish 
 and Mexican rule. A body of gentiles from the 
 rancherias of Pulia, encouraged by Figueroa 
 and Vallejo, came to the Mission San Rafael 
 with a view to establishing friendly relations. 
 The padre put off the interview until next day. 
 During the night a theft was committed, which 
 was charged to the gentiles. Fifteen of them 
 were seized and sent as prisoners to San Fran- 
 cisco. Padre Mercado, fearing that their coun- 
 trymen might retaliate, sent out his major doma 
 Molina with thirty-seven armed neophytes, who 
 surprised the gentiles in their rancheria, killed 
 twenty-one, wounded many more and captured 
 twenty men, women and children. Vallejo was 
 indignant at the shameful violation of his prom- 
 ises of protection to the Indians. He released 
 the prisoners at San Francisco and the captives 
 at the mission and tried to pacify the wrathful 
 gentiles. Padre Mercado was suspended from 
 his ministry for a short time, but was afterward 
 freed and returned to San Rafael.* 
 
 There was a system of Indian slavery in ex- 
 
 * Bancroft's History of California, Vol. III. 
 
 istence in California under the rule of Spain and 
 Mexico. Most of the wealthier Spanish and 
 Mexican families had Indian servants. In the 
 raids upon the gentiles the children taken by the 
 soldiers were sometimes sold or disposed of to 
 families for servants. Expeditions were gotten 
 up upon false pretexts, while the main purpose 
 was to steal Indian children and sell them to 
 families for servants. This practice was carried 
 on by the Americans, too, after the conquest. 
 For a time after the discovery of gold the In- 
 dians and the miners got along amicably. The 
 first miners were mainly old CaHfornians, used 
 to the Indians, but with the rush of '49 came 
 many rough characters who, by their injustice, 
 soon stirred up trouble. Sutter had employed a 
 large number of Indians on his ranches and in 
 various capacities. These were faithful and hon- 
 est. Some of them were employed at his mill 
 in Coloma and in the diggings. In the spring 
 of '49 a band of desperadoes known as the 
 Mountain Hounds murdered eight of these at 
 the mill. Marshall, in trying to defend them, 
 came near being lynched by the drunken brutes. 
 The injustice done the Indians soon brought 
 on a number of so-called Indian wars. These 
 were costly affairs to the state and in less than 
 two years had plunged the young common- 
 wealth into a debt of nearly $1,000,000. In a 
 copy of the Los Angeles Star for February 28, 
 1852, I find this enumeration of the wars and 
 the estimated cost of each : The Morehead ex- 
 pedition, $120,000; General Bean's first expedi- 
 tion, $66,000; General Bean's second expedition, 
 $50,000; the Mariposa war, $230,000; the El 
 Dorado war, $300,000. The Morehead war orig- 
 inated out of an injustice done the Yuma In- 
 dians. These Indians, in the summer of 1849, 
 had obtained an old scow and established a ferry 
 across the Colorado river near the mouth of the 
 Gila, and were making- quite a paying business 
 out of it by ferrying emigrants across the river. 
 A party of Americans, headed by a Dr. Lang- 
 don of Louisiana, and a desperado named Jack 
 Glanton, dispossessed the Indians of their boat, 
 and having obtained a liberal supply of whiskey 
 from San Diego set up in business for them- 
 selves. The Indians, watching their opportunity, 
 while the whites were asleep or stupefied with 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 227 
 
 drink, fell upon and massacred the whole party, 
 twelve or fifteen in all, and secured some $15,000 
 or $20,000 in money. On receipt of the news, 
 Governor Burnett ordered Major-General Bean 
 of the state militia to march against the Yumas. 
 Bean sent his quartermaster-general, Joseph C, 
 Morehead. Morehead, on Bean's orders, pro- 
 vided necessaries for a three months' campaign 
 at most extravagant prices, paying for them in 
 drafts on the state treasury. Morehead started 
 out from Los Angeles with forty men, but by 
 the time he reached the Colorado river he had 
 recruited his force to one hundred and twenty- 
 five men. The liquid supplies taken along doubt- 
 less stimulated recruiting. They reached the 
 Colorado in the summer of 1850, camped there 
 and attacked their rations. After a month's 
 siege (of their rations) they were ordered back 
 and disbanded. The only loss was one man 
 wounded (accidentally). He was sent back to 
 Los Angeles for treatment. The doctor who 
 treated him charged the state $500. The man 
 who boarded him put in a bill of $120; and the 
 patriot who housed him wanted $45 for house 
 rent. Bean's first and second expeditions were 
 very similar in results to the Morehead cam- 
 paign. The El Dorado expedition or Rogers' 
 war, as it was sometimes called, was another of 
 Governor Burnett's fiascos. He ordered Will- 
 iam Rogers, sheriff of El Dorado county, to call 
 out two hundred men at the state's expense to 
 punish the Indians for kilHng some whites who 
 had, in all probability, been the aggressors and 
 the Indians had retaliated. It was well known 
 that there were men in that part of the country 
 who had wantonly killed Indians for the pleas- 
 ure of boasting of their exploits. 
 
 Nor were the whites always the aggressors. 
 There were bad Indians, savages, who killed 
 without provocation and stole whenever an op- 
 portunity offered. In their attempts at retalia- 
 tion the Indians slaughtered indiscriminately 
 and the innocent more often were their victims 
 than the guilty. On the side of the whites it 
 was a war of extermination waged in many in- 
 stances without regard to age or sex; on the 
 part of the Indian it was a war of retaliation 
 waged with as Httle distinction. 
 
 The extermination of the aborigines was fear- 
 
 fully rapid. Of over ten thousand Indians in 
 Yuba, Placer, Nevada and Sierra counties in 
 1849 t^ot more than thirty-eight hundred re- 
 mained in 1854. Much of this decrease had been 
 brought about by dissipation and disease engen- 
 dered by contact with the whites. Reservations 
 were established in various parts of the state, 
 where Indians abounded, but the large salaries 
 paid to agents and the numerous opportunities 
 for peculation made these positions attractive 
 to politicians, who were both incompetent and 
 dishonest. The Indians, badly treated at the 
 reservations, deserted them whenever an oppor- 
 tunity offered. 
 
 A recital of the atrocities committed upon 
 each other in the northwestern part of the state 
 during a period of nearly twenty years would fill 
 a volume. The Indian with all his fiendishness 
 was often outmatched in cruelty by his pale 
 faced brother. The Indian Island massacre was 
 scarcely ever equaled, in the annals of Indian 
 cruelties. Indian Island lies nearly opposite 
 the city of Eureka in Humboldt Bay. On this 
 island, fifty years ago, was a large rancheria 
 of inoffensive Indians, who lived chiefly by fish- 
 ing. They had not been implicated in any of 
 the wars or raids that had disturbed that part 
 of the country. They maintained many of their 
 old customs and had an annual gathering, at 
 which they performed various rites and cere- 
 monies, accompanied by dancing. A number of 
 the Indians from the mainland joified them at 
 these times. Near midnight of February 25, 
 i860, a number of boats filled with white men 
 sped silently out to the island. The whites 
 landed and quietly surrounded the Indians, who 
 were resting after their orgies, and began the 
 slaughter with axes, knives and clubs, spHtting 
 skulls, knocking out brains and cutting the 
 throats of men, women and children. Of the 
 two hundred Indians on the island only four or 
 five men escaped by swimming to the mainland. 
 The same night a rancheria at the entrance of 
 Humboldt Bay and another at the mouth of Eel 
 river were attacked and about one hundred 
 Indians slaughtered. The fiends who commit- 
 ted these atrocities belonged to a secret or- 
 ganization. No rigid investigation was ever 
 made to find out who they were. The grand 
 
228 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 jury mildly condemned the outrage and there 
 the matter ended. 
 
 The Indians kept up hostilities, rendering 
 travel and traffic unsafe on the borders of Hum- 
 boldt, Klamath and Trinity counties. Governor 
 Stanford in 1863 issued a proclamation for the 
 enlistment of six companies of volunteers from 
 the six northwestern counties of the state. 
 These recruits were organized into what was 
 known as the Mountaineer battalion with Lieut. - 
 Col. Stephen G. Whipple in command. A num- 
 ber of Indian tribes united and a desultory war- 
 fare began. The Indians were worsted in nearly 
 every engagement. Their power was broken 
 and in February, 1865, fragments of the different 
 tribes were gathered into the Hoopa Valley 
 reservation. The Mountaineer battalion in what 
 was known as the "Two Years' War" settled the 
 Indian question from Shasta, to the sea for all 
 time. 
 
 The Modoc war was the last of the Indian 
 disturbances in the state. The Modocs inhab- 
 ited the country about Rhett Lake and Lost 
 river in the northeast part of the state, bordering 
 on Oregon. Their history begins with the mas- 
 sacre of an immigrant train of sixty-five per- 
 sons, men, women and children, on their way 
 from Oregon to California. This brought upon 
 them a reprisal by the whites in which forty- 
 one out of forty-six Indians who had been in- 
 vited by Benjamin Wright to a pow wow after 
 they had laid aside their arms were set upon by 
 Wright and his companions with revolvers and 
 all killed but five. In 1864 a treaty had been 
 made with the Modocs by which they were to 
 reside on the Klamath reservation. But tiring 
 of reservation life, under their leader, Captain 
 Jack, they returned to their old homes on Lost 
 river. A company of United States troops and 
 several volunteers who went along to see the 
 fun were sent to bring them back to the reser- 
 vation. They refused to go and a fight ensued 
 in which four of the volunteers and. one of the 
 regulars were killed, and the troops retreated. 
 The Modocs after kilhng several settlers gath- 
 ered at the lava beds near Rhett Lake and 
 prepared for war. 
 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Wheaton with about four 
 hundred men attacked the Indians in the lava 
 
 beds January 17, 1873. Captain Jack had but 
 fifty-one men. When Wheaton retreated he had 
 lost thirty-five men killed and a number 
 wounded, but not an Indian had been hurt. A 
 few days after the battle a peace commission 
 was proposed at Washington. A. B. Meacham, 
 Jesse Applegate and Samuel Case were ap- 
 pointed. Elijah Steele of Yreka, who was on 
 friendly terms with the Indians, was sent for. 
 He visited the lava beds with the interpreter, 
 P'airchild, and had a big talk. He proposed to 
 them to surrender and they would be sent to 
 Angel Island near San Francisco, fed and cared 
 for and allowed to select any reservation they 
 wished. Steele, on his return to camp, reported 
 that the Indians accepted the terms, but Fair- 
 child said they had not and next day on his re- 
 turn Steele found out his mistake and barely 
 escaped with his life. Interviews continued 
 without obtaining any definite results, some of 
 the commission became disgusted and returned 
 home. General Canby, commanding the depart- 
 ment, had arrived and taken charge of affairs. 
 Commissioner Case resigned and Judge Ros- 
 borough was appointed in his place and the Rev. 
 E. Thomas, a doctor of divinity in the Metho- 
 dist church, was added to the commission. A 
 man by the name of Riddle and his wife Toby, 
 a Modoc, acted as go-betweens and negotiations 
 continued. 
 
 A pow wow was arranged at the council tent 
 at which all parties were to meet unarmed, but 
 Toby was secretly informed that it was the in- 
 tention of the Modocs to massacre the commis- 
 sioners as had been done to the Indian com- 
 missioners twenty years before by Benjamin 
 Wright and his gang. On April 10, while 
 Meacham and Dyer, the superintendent of the 
 Klamath reservation, who had joined the com- 
 missioners, were away from camp, the Rev. 
 Dr. Thomas made an agreement with a dele- 
 gation from Captain Jack for the commission 
 and General Canby to meet the Indians at the 
 council tent. Meacham on his return opposed 
 the arrangement, fearing treachery. The doc:or 
 insisted that God had done a wonderful work 
 in the Modoc camp, but Meacham shocked the 
 pious doctor by saying "God had not been in 
 the Modoc camp this winter." 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 22D- 
 
 Two of the Indian leaders, Boston Charley 
 and Bogus Charley, came to headquarters to 
 accompany the commission. Riddle and his 
 wife, Toby, bitterly opposed the commissioners' 
 going, telling them they would be killed, and 
 Toby going so far as to seize Meacham's horse 
 to prevent him from going, telling him, "You get 
 kill." Canby and the doctor insisted upon going, 
 despite all protests, the doctor saying, "Let us go 
 as we agreed and trust in God." Meacham and 
 Dyer secured derringers in their side pockets 
 before going. When the commissioners, the 
 interpreters. Riddle and his wife, reached the 
 council tent they found Captain Jack, Schonchin 
 John, Black Jim, Shancknasty Jim, Ellen's 
 Man and Hooker Jim sitting around a fire at 
 the council tent. Concealed behind some 
 rocks a short distance away were two young 
 Indians with a number of rifles. The two Char- 
 leys, Bogus and Boston, who had come with the 
 commissioners from headquarters, informed the 
 Indians that the commissioners were not armed. 
 The interview began. The Indians were very 
 insolent. Suddenly, at a given signal, the Indians 
 uttered a war whoop, and Captain Jack drew 
 a revolver from under his coat and shot Gen- 
 eral Canby. Boston Charley shot Dr. Thomas, 
 who fell, rose again, but was shot down 
 while begging for his life. The young Indians 
 had brought up the rifles and a fusillade was 
 begun upon the others. All escaped without in- 
 jury except Meacham, who, after running some 
 distance, was felled by a bflllet fired by Hooker 
 Jim, and left for dead. He was saved from being 
 scalped by the bravery of Toby. He recovered, 
 however, although badly disfigured. While this 
 
 was going on, Curly Haired Doctor and several 
 other Modocs, with a white flag, inveigled Lieu- 
 tenants Boyle and Sherwood beyond the lines. 
 Seeing the Indians were armed, the ofiScers 
 turned to flee, when Curly Haired Jack fired and 
 broke Lieutenant Sherwood's thigh. He died a 
 few days later. The troops were called to arms 
 when the firing began, but the Indians escaped 
 to the lava beds. After a few days' preparation. 
 Colonel Gillem, who was in command, began an 
 attack on the Indian stronghold. Their position 
 was shelled by mountain howitzers. In the 
 fighting, which lasted four days, sixteen soldiers 
 Vv'ere killed and thirteen wounded. In a recon- 
 noissance under Captain Thomas a few days 
 later, a body of seventy troops and fourteen Warm 
 Spring Indians ran into an ambush of the In- 
 dians and thirteen soldiers, including Thomas, 
 were killed. Gen. Jefferson C. Davis was placed 
 in command. The Indians were forced out of the 
 lava beds, their water supply having been cut 
 off. They quarreled among themselves, broke 
 up into parties, were chased down and all cap- 
 tured. Captain Jack and Schonchin John, the 
 two leaders, were shackled together. General 
 Davis made preparations to hang these and six 
 or eight others, but orders from Washington 
 stopped him. The leading Indians were tried 
 by court-martial. Captain Jack, Schonchin 
 John, Black Jim and Boston Charley were hung, 
 two others were sentenced to imprisonment for 
 life. The other Modocs, men, women and chil- 
 dren, were sent to a fort in Nebraska and after- 
 wards transferred to the Quaw Paw Agency in 
 Indian Territory. This ended the Modoc war 
 and virtually put an end to the Modoc Indians. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 SOME POLITICAL HISTORY. 
 
 THE first Chinese emigrants to California 
 arrived in the brig Eagle, from Hong 
 Kong, in the month of February, 1848. 
 They were two men and one woman. This was 
 before the discovery of gold was known abroad. 
 What brought these waifs from the Flowery 
 
 Kingdom to California does not appear in the 
 record. February i, 1849, there were fifty-four 
 Chinamen and one Chinawoman in the territory. 
 January i, 1850, seven hundred and eighty-nine 
 men and two women had arrived. January i, 
 185 1, four thousand and eighteen men and seven 
 
230 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 women; a year later their numbers had in- 
 creased to eight thousand one hundred and 
 twenty-one men and eight women; May 7, 1852, 
 eleven thousand seven hundred and eighty men 
 and seven women had found their way to the 
 land of gold. The Alta California, from which 
 I take these figures, estimated that between 
 seven and ten thousand more would arrive in 
 the state before January i, 1853. The editor 
 sagely remarks: "No one fears danger or mis- 
 fortune from their excessive numbers." There 
 was no opposition to their coming; on the con- 
 trary, they were welcom.ed and almost lionized. 
 The Alta of April 27, 1851, remarks: "An 
 American barque yesterday brought eighty 
 worshippers of the sun, moon and many stars. 
 These Celestials make excellent citizens and we 
 are pleased to notice their daily arrival in large 
 numbers." The Alta describes a Great Chinese 
 meeting on Portsmouth Square, which took 
 place in 185 1. It seems to have been held for 
 the purpose of welcoming the Chinese to Cali- 
 fornia and at the same time doing missionary 
 work and distributing religious tracts among 
 them. The report says: "A large assemblage 
 of citizens and several ladies collected on the 
 plaza to witness the ceremonies. Ah Hee assem- 
 bled his division and Ah Sing marched his into 
 Kearny street, where the two divisions united 
 and then marched to the square. Many carried 
 fans. There were several peculiar looking Chi- 
 namen among them. One, a very tall, old Celes- 
 tial with an extensive tail, excited universal at- 
 tention. He had a huge pair of spectacles upon 
 his nose, the glasses of which were about the 
 size of a telescope lens. He also had a singu- 
 larly colored fur mantle or cape upon his shoul- 
 ders and a long sort of robe. We presume he 
 must be a mandarin at least. 
 
 "Vice Consul F. A. Woodworth, His Honor, 
 Major J. W. Geary, Rev. Albert Williams, Rev. 
 A. Fitch and Rev. F. D. Hunt were present. 
 Ah Hee acted as interpreter. The Rev. Hunt 
 gave them some orthodox instruction in which 
 they were informed of the existence of a coun- 
 try where the China boys would never die; this 
 made them laugh quite heartily. Tracts, scrip- 
 tural documents, astronomical works, almanacs 
 and other useful religious and instructive docu- 
 
 ments printed in Chinese characters were dis- 
 tributed among them." 
 
 I give the report of another meeting of "The 
 Chinese residents of San Francisco," taken 
 from the Alta of December 10, 1849. I quote 
 it to show how the Chinese were regarded when 
 they first came to California and how they were 
 flattered and complimented by the presence of 
 distinguished citizens at their meetings. Their 
 treatment a few years later, when they .were 
 mobbed and beaten in the streets for no fault 
 of theirs except for coming to a Christian coun- 
 try, must have given them a very poor opinion 
 of the white man's consistency. "A public 
 meeting of the Chinese residents of the town 
 was held on the evening of Monday, November 
 19, at the Canton Restaurant on Jackson street. 
 The following preamble and resolutions were 
 presented and adopted: 
 
 "'Whereas, It becomes necessary for us, 
 strangers as we are in a strange land, unac- 
 quainted with the language and customs of our 
 adopted country, to have some recognized coun- 
 selor and advisor to whom we may all appeal 
 with confidence for wholesome instruction, and, 
 
 " 'Whereas, We should be at a loss as to what 
 course of action might be necessary for us to 
 pursue therefore, 
 
 " 'Resolved, That a committee of four be ap- 
 pointed to wait upon Selim E. Woodworth, Esq., 
 and request him in behalf of the Chinese resi- 
 dents of San Francisco to act in the capacity of 
 arbiter and advisor .for them.' 
 
 "Mr. Woodworth was waited upon by Ah Hee, 
 Jon Ling, Ah Ting and Ah Toon and kindly 
 consented to act. The whole affair passed off 
 in the happiest manner. Alany distinguished 
 guests were present, Hon. J. W. Geary, alcalde; 
 E. H. Harrison, ex-collector of the port, and 
 others." 
 
 At the celebration of the admission of Cali- 
 fornia into the Union the "China Boys" were a 
 prominent feature. One report says: "The 
 Celestials had a banner of crimson satin on 
 which were some Chinese characters and the in- 
 scription 'China Boys.' They numbered about 
 fifty and were arrayed in the richest stuff and 
 commanded by their chief. Ah Sing." 
 
 While the "China Boys" were feted and flat- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 231 
 
 tered in San Francisco they were not so enthu- 
 siastically welcomed by the miners. The legis- 
 lature in 1850 passed a law fixing the rate of 
 license for a foreign miner at $20 per month. 
 This was intended to drive out and keep out of 
 the mines all foreigners, but the rate was so 
 excessively high that it practically nulhfied the 
 enforcement of the law and it was repealed in 
 1851. As the Chinese were only allowed peace- 
 able possession of mines that would not pay 
 white man's wages they did not make fortunes 
 in the diggings. If by chance the Asiatics 
 should happen to strike it rich in ground aban- 
 doned by white men there was a class among 
 the white miners who did not hesitate to rob the 
 Chinamen of their ground. 
 
 As a result of their persecution in the mines 
 the Chinese flocked to San Francisco and it was 
 not long until that city had more "China Boys" 
 than it needed in its business. The legislature 
 of 1855 enacted a law that masters, owners or 
 consignors of vessels bringing to Cahfomia 
 persons incompetent to become citizens under 
 the laws of the state should pay a fine of $50 for 
 every such person landed. A suit was brought 
 to test the validity of the act; it was declared 
 unconstitutional. In 1858 the foreign miner's 
 tax was $10 per month and as most of the other 
 foreigners who had arrived in California in the 
 early '50s had by this time become citizens by 
 naturalization the foreigners upon whom the 
 tax bore most heavily were the Chinese who 
 could not become citizens. As a consequence 
 many of them were driven out of the mines and 
 this again decreased the revenue of the mining 
 counties, a large part of which was made up of 
 poll tax and license. 
 
 The classes most bitterly opposed to the Chi- 
 nese in the mines were the saloon-keepers, the 
 gamblers and their constituents. While the 
 Chinaman himself is a most inveterate gambler 
 and not averse to strong drink he did not divest 
 himself of his frugal earnings in the white man's 
 saloon or gambling den, and the gentry who 
 kept these institutions were the first, like Bill 
 Nye in Bret Harte's poem, to raise the cry, 
 "We are ruined by Chinese cheap labor." 
 While the southern politicians who were the 
 rulers of the state before the Civil war were 
 
 opposed to the Chinese and legislated against 
 them, it was not done in the interest of the white 
 laborer, for at one time they had made an at- 
 tempt to introduce the coolie system, which was 
 to have been a substitute for their beloved in- 
 stitution — slavery. They could not endure the 
 presence of an inferior race not in bondage. The 
 most intolerant and the most bitter opponents 
 of the Chinese then and later when opposition 
 had intensified were certain servile classes of 
 Europeans who in their native countries had al- 
 ways been kept in a state of servility to the aris- 
 tocracy, but when raised to the dignity of Amer- 
 ican citizens by naturalization proceeded to 
 celebrate their release from their former serf- 
 dom by persecuting the Chinese, whom they re- 
 garded as their inferiors. The outcry these peo- 
 ple made influenced politicians, who pandered to 
 them for the sake of their votes to make laws 
 and ordinances that were often burlesques on 
 legislation. 
 
 In 1870 the legislature enacted a law impos- 
 ing a penalty of not less than $1,000 nor more 
 than $5,000 or imprisonment upon any one 
 bringing to California any subject of China or 
 Japan without first presenting evidence of his 
 or her good character to the commissioner of 
 immigration. The supreme court decided the 
 law unconstitutional. Laws were passed pro- 
 hibiting the employment of Chinese on the pub- 
 lic works; prohibiting them from owning real 
 estate and from obtaining licenses for certain 
 kinds of business. The supervisors of San Fran- 
 cisco -passed an ordinance requiring that the 
 hair of any male prisoner convicted of an of- 
 fense should be cut -within one inch of his head. 
 This, of course, was aimed at Chinese convicts 
 and intended to deprive them of their queues 
 and degrade them in the estimation of their peo- 
 ple. It was known as the Pig Tail Ordinance; 
 the mayor vetoed it. Another piece of class 
 legislation by the San Francisco supervisors im- 
 posed a license of $15 a quarter on laundries 
 using no horses, while a laundry using a one- 
 horse wagon paid but $2 per quarter. The Chi- 
 nese at this time (1876) did not use horses in 
 their laundry business. The courts decided 
 against this ordinance. 
 
 Notwithstanding the laws and ordinances 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 against them the Chinese continued to come 
 and they found employment of some kind to 
 keep them from starving. They were indus- 
 trious and economical; there were no Chinese 
 tramps. Although they filled a want in the 
 state, cheap and reliable labor, at the beginning 
 of its railroad and agricultural development, 
 they were not desirable citizens. Their habits 
 and morals were bad. Their quarters in the 
 cities reeked with filth and immorality. Tliey 
 maintained their Asiatic customs and despised 
 the "white devils" among whom they lived, 
 which, by the way, was not strange considering 
 the mobbing and maltreatment they received 
 from the other aUens. They made merchandise 
 of their women and carried on a revolting sys- 
 tem of female slavery. 
 
 The Burlingame treaty guaranteed mutual 
 protection to the citizens of China and the 
 United States on each other's soil ; to freedom in 
 religious opinions; to the right to reside in 
 either country at will and other privileges ac- 
 corded to civilized nations. Under this treaty 
 the Chinese could not be kept out of California 
 and agitation was begun for the modification or 
 entire abrogation of the treaty. 
 
 For a number of years there had been a steady 
 decline in the price of labor. Various causes 
 had contributed to this. The productiveness of 
 the mines had decreased; railroad communica- 
 tion with the east had brought in a number of 
 workmen and increased competition; the efforts 
 of the labor unions to decrease the hours of labor 
 and still keep up the wages at the old standard 
 had resulted in closing up some of the manu- 
 facturing establishments, the proprietors finding 
 it impossible to compete with eastern factories. 
 All these and other causes brought about a de- 
 pression in business and brought on in 1877-78 
 a labor agitation that shook the foundations of 
 our social fabric. The hard times and decline in 
 wages was charged against the Chinese. No 
 doubt the presence of the Mongolians in Cali- 
 fornia had considerable to do with it and par- 
 ticularly in the lower grades of employment 
 but the depression was mainly caused from 
 over-production and the financial crisis of 1873, 
 which had affected the whole United States. 
 Another cause local to California was the wild 
 
 mania for stock gambling that had prevailed in 
 California for a number of years. The bonanza 
 kings of the Washoe by getting up corners in 
 stocks running up fraudulent values and then 
 unloading on outside buyers had impoverished 
 thousands of people of small means and enriched 
 themselves without any return to their dupes. 
 
 Hard times always brings to the front a class 
 of noisy demagogues who with no remedy to 
 prescribe increase the discontent by vitupera- 
 tive abuse of everybody outside of their sym- 
 pathizers. The first of the famous sand lot mass 
 meetings of San Francisco was held July 23, 
 1877, on a vacant lot on the Market street 
 side of the city hall. Harangues were made and 
 resolutions passed denouncing capitalists,^ de- 
 claring against subsidies to steamship and rail- 
 road lines, declaring that the reduction of wages 
 was part of a conspiracy for the destruction of 
 the republic and that the military should not be 
 employed against strikers. An anti-coolie club 
 was formed and on that and the two succeeding 
 evenings a number of Chinese laundries were 
 destroyed. In a fight between the police (aided 
 by the committee of safety) and the rioters sev- 
 eral of the latter were killed. Threats were 
 made to destroy the railroad property and burn 
 ' the vessels of the Pacific Mail Steamship Com- 
 pany unless the Chinese in their employ were 
 immediately discharged. 
 
 Among the agitators that this ebullition of dis- 
 content threw to the front was an Irish dray- 
 man named Dennis Kearney. He was shrewd 
 enough to see that some notoriety and political 
 capital could be made by the organization of a 
 Workingmen's party. 
 
 On the 5th of October a permanent organiza- 
 tionof the Workingmen's party of Cahfornia was 
 effected. Dennis Kearney was chosen president, 
 J. G. Day, vice-president, and H. L. Knight, sec- 
 retary. The principles of the party were the con- 
 densed essence of selfishness. The working 
 classes were to be elevated at the expense of 
 every other. "We propose to elect none but com- / 
 petent workingmen and their friends to any of- 
 fice whatever." "The rich have ruled us till they 
 have ruined us." "The republic inust and shall 
 be preserved, and only workingmen will do it." 
 "This party will exhaust all peaceable means of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 233 
 
 attaining its ends, but it will not be denied jus- 
 tice when it has the power to enforce it." "It 
 will encourage no riot or outrage, but it will 
 not volunteer to repress or put down or arrest, 
 or prosecute the hungry and impatient who 
 manifest their hatred of the Chinamen by a cru- 
 sade against John or those who employ him." 
 These and others as irrelevant and immaterial 
 were the principles of the Workingmen's party 
 that was to bring the millennium. The move- 
 ment spread rapidly, clubs were formed in every 
 ward in San Francisco and there were organiza- 
 tions in all the cities of the state. The original 
 leaders were all of foreign birth, but when the 
 movement became popular native born dema- 
 gogues, perceiving in it an opportunity to ob- 
 tain office, abandoned the old parties and joined 
 the new. 
 
 Kearney now devoted his whole time to agi- 
 tation, and the applause he received from his 
 followers pampered his inordinate conceit. His 
 language was highly incendiary. He advised 
 every workingman to own a musket and one 
 hundred rounds of ammunition and urged the 
 formation of military companies. He posed as 
 a reformer and even hoped for martyrdom. In 
 one of his harangues he said: "If I don't get 
 killed I will do more than any reformer in the 
 history of the world. I hope I will be assassi- 
 nated, for the success of the movement depends 
 on that." The incendiary rant of Kearney and 
 his fellows became alarming. It was a tame 
 meeting, at which no "thieving millionaire, 
 scoundrelly official or extortionate railroad mag- 
 nate" escaped lynching by the tongues of la- 
 borite reformers. The charitable people of the 
 city had raised by subscription $20,000 to al- 
 leviate the prevailing distress among the poor. 
 It was not comforting to a rich man to hear 
 himself doomed to "hemp! hemp! hemp!" 
 simply because by industry, economy and enter- 
 prise he had made a fortune. It became evident 
 that if Kearney and his associates were allowed 
 to talk of hanging men and burning the city 
 some of their dupes would put in practice the 
 teachings of their leaders. The supervisors, 
 urged on by the better class of citizens, passed 
 an ordinance called by the sand-lotters "Gibbs' 
 gag law." On the 39th of October, Kearney and 
 
 his fellow agitators, with a mob of two or three 
 thousand followers, held a meeting on Nob Hill, 
 where Stanford, Crocker, Hopkins and other 
 railroad magnates had built palatial residences. 
 He roundly denounced as thieves the nabobs of 
 Nob Hill and declared that they would soon feel 
 the power of the workingmen. When his party 
 was thoroughly organized they would march 
 through the city and compel the thieves to give 
 up their plunder; that he would lead them to the 
 city hall, clear out the police, hang the pros- 
 ecuting attorney, burn every book that had a 
 particle of law in it, and then enact new laws 
 for the workingmen. These and other utter- 
 ances equally inflammatory caused his arrest 
 while addressing a meeting on the borders of 
 the Barbary coast. Trouble was expected, but 
 he quietly submitted and was taken to jail and a 
 few days later Day, Knight, C. C. O'Donnell and 
 Charles E. Pickett were arrested on charges of 
 inciting riot and taken to jail. A few days in 
 jail cooled them off and they began to "squeal." 
 They addressed a letter to the mayor, saying 
 their utterances had been incorrectly reported 
 by the press and that if released they were will- 
 ing to submit to any wise measure to allay the 
 excitement. They were turned loose after two 
 weeks' imprisonment and their release was cele- 
 brated on Thanksgiving Day, November 29, by 
 a grand demonstration of sand lotters — seven 
 thousand of whom paraded the streets. 
 
 It was not long before Kearney and his fel- 
 lows were back on the sand lots hurling out 
 threats of lynching, burning and blowing up. 
 On January 5 the grand jury presented indict- 
 ments against Kearney, Wellock, Knight, 
 O'Donnell and Pickett. They were alF released 
 on the rulings of the judge of the criminal court 
 on the grounds that no actual riot had taken 
 place. 
 
 The first victory of the so-called Working- 
 men's party was the election of a state senator in 
 Alameda county to fill a vacancy caused by the 
 death of Senator Porter. An individual by the 
 name of John W. Bones was elected. On ac- 
 count of his being long and lean he was known 
 as Barebones and sometimes Praise God Bare- 
 bones. His only services in the senate were the 
 perpetration of some doggerel verses and a 
 
234 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 speech or two on Kearney's theme, "The Chi- 
 nese Must Go." At the election held June 19, 
 1878, to choose delegates to a constitutional 
 convention of the one hundred and fifty-two 
 delegates the Workingmen elected fifty-seven, 
 thirty-one of whom were from San Francisco. 
 The convention met at Sacramento, September 
 28, 1878, and continued to sit in all one hundred 
 and fifty-seven days. It was a mixed assem- 
 blage. There were some of the ablest men in 
 the state in it, and there were some of the most 
 narrow minded and intolerant bigots there. The 
 Workingmen flocked by themselves, while the 
 non-partisans, the Republicans and Democrats, 
 for the most part, acted in unison. Opposition 
 to the Chinese, which was a fundamental prin- 
 ciple of the Workingmen's creed, was not con- 
 fined to them alone; some of the non-partisans 
 were as bitter in their hatred of the Mongolians 
 as the Kearneyites. Some of the crudities pro- 
 posed for insertion in the new constitution were 
 laughable for their absurdity. One sand lotter 
 proposed to amend the bill of rights, that all men 
 are by nature free and independent, to read, "All 
 men who are capable of becoming citizens of the 
 United States are by nature free and inde- 
 pendent." One non-partisan wanted to incor- 
 porate into the fundamental law of the state 
 Kearney's slogan, "The Chinese Must Go." 
 
 After months of discussion the convention 
 evolved a constitution that the ablest men in 
 that body repudiated, some of them going so far 
 as to take the stump against it. But at the elec- 
 tion it carried by a large majority. Kearney 
 continued his sand lot harangues. In the sum- 
 mer of 1879 he made a trip through the south- 
 ern counties of the state, delivering his diatribes 
 against the railroad magnates, the land mo- 
 nopolists and the Chinese. At the town of Santa 
 Ana, now the county seat of Orange county, in 
 his harangue he made a vituperative attack 
 upon the McFadden Brothers, who a year or 
 two before had built a steamer and run it in op- 
 position to the regular coast line steamers until 
 forced to sell it on account of losses incurred by 
 the competition. Kearney made a number of 
 false and libelous statements in regard to the 
 transaction. While he was waiting for the stage 
 to San Diego in front of the hotel he was con- 
 
 fronted by Rule, an employee of the McFad- 
 den's, with an imperious demand for tlie name of 
 Kearney's informant. Kearney turned white 
 with fear and blubbered out something about 
 not giving away his friends. Rule struck him 
 a blow that sent him reeling against the build- 
 ing. Gathering himself together he made a rush 
 into the hotel, drawing a pistol as he ran. Rule 
 pursued him through the dining room and out 
 across a vacant lot and into a drug store, where 
 he downed him and, holding him down with his 
 knee on his breast, demanded the name of his 
 informer. One of the slandered men pulled 
 Rule off the "martyr" and Kearney, with a face 
 resembling a beefsteak, took his departure to 
 San Diego. From that day on he ceased his 
 vituperative attacks on individuals. He had met 
 the only argument that could convince' him of 
 the error of his ways. He lost caste with his 
 fellows. This braggadocio, who had boasted of 
 leading armies to conquer the enemies of the 
 Workingmen, with a pistol in his hand had 
 ignominiously fled from an unarmed man and 
 had taken a humiliating punishment without a 
 show of resistance. His following began to de- 
 sert him and Kearney went if the Chinese did 
 not. The Workingmen's party put up a state 
 ticket in 1879, but it was beaten at the polls and 
 vv'ent to pieces. In 1880 James Angell of Mich- 
 igan, John F. Swift of California, and William 
 IT. Trescott of South Carolina were appointed 
 commissioners to proceed to China for the pur- 
 pose of forming new treaties. An agreement 
 was reached with the Chinese authorities by 
 which laborers could be debarred for a certain 
 period from entering the United States. Those 
 in the country were all allowed the rights that 
 aliens of other countries had. The senate ratified 
 the treaty May 5th, 1881. 
 
 The following is a list of the governors of Cal- 
 ifornia, Spanish, Mexican and American, with 
 date of appointment or election: Spanish: 
 Caspar de Portola, 1767; Felipe Barri, 1771; 
 Felipe de Neve, 1774; Pedro Fages, 1790; Jose 
 Antonio Romeu, 1790; Jose Joaquin de Ar- 
 rillaga, 1792; Diego de Borica, 1794; Jose Joa- 
 quin de Arrillaga, 1800; Jose Arguello, 1814; 
 Pablo Vicente de Sola, 1815. Mexican gov- 
 ernors: Pablo Vicente de Sola, 1822; Luis 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 235 
 
 Arguello, 1823; Jose Maria Echeandia, 1825; 
 Manuel Victoria, 1831; Pio Pico, 1832; Jose 
 Maria Echeandia, Agustin Zamorano, 1832; 
 Jose Figueroa, 1833; Jose Castro, 1835; Nicolas 
 Gutierrez, 1836; Mariano Chico, 1836; Nicolas 
 Gutierrez, 1836; Juan B. Alvarado, 1836; Man- 
 uel Micheltorena, 1842; Pio Pico, 1845. Amer- 
 ican military governors: Commodore Robert 
 F. Stockton, 1846; Col. John C. Fremont, Jan- 
 uary, 1847; Gen. Stephen W. Kearny, March 
 I, 1847; Col. Richard B. Mason, May 31, 1847; 
 Gen. Bennet Riley, April 13, 1849. American 
 governors elected: Peter H. Burnett, 1849. 
 John McDougal, Lieutenant-governor, became 
 governor on resignation of P. H. Burnett in 
 January, 1851; John Bigler, 1851; John Bigler, 
 
 1853; J. Neely Johnson, 1855; John B. Weller, 
 1857; M. S. Latham, 1859; John G. Downey, 
 lieutenant-governor, became governor in 1859 
 by election of Latham to United States senate; 
 Leland Stanford, 1861; Frederick F. Low, 1863; 
 Henry H. Haight, 1867; Newton Booth, 1871; 
 Romualdo Pacheco, lieutenant governor, be- 
 came governor February, 1875, on election of 
 Booth to the United States senate; William Ir- 
 win, 1875 ; George C. Perkins, 1879 ; George 
 Stoneman, 1882; Washington Bartlett, 1886; 
 Robert W. Waterman, lieutenant-governor, be- 
 came governor September 12, 1887, upon the 
 death of Governor Bartlett; H. H. Markham, 
 1890; James H. Budd, 1894; Henry T. Gage, 
 1898. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 EDUCATION AND EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 
 
 THE Franciscans, unlike the Jesuits, were 
 not the patrons of education. They 
 bent all their energies towards pros- 
 elyting. Their object was to fit their converts 
 for the next world. An ignorant soul might 
 be as happy in paradise as the most learned. 
 -Why educate the neophyte? He was converted, 
 baptized and when granted absolution had his 
 passport to heaven. There were no public 
 schools at the missions. A few of the brightest 
 of the neophytes, who were trained to sing in 
 the church choirs, were taught to read, but the 
 great mass of them, even those of the third gen- 
 eration, born and reared at the missions, were 
 as ignorant of book learning as were their great- 
 grandfathers, who ran naked among the oak 
 trees of the mesas and fed on acorns. 
 
 Nor was there much attention paid to edu- 
 cation among the gente de razon of the pre- 
 sidios and pueblos. But few of the common 
 people could read and write. Their ancestors 
 had made their way in the world without book 
 learning. Why should the child know more 
 than the parent? And trained to have great filial 
 regard for his parent, it was not often that 
 the progeny aspired to rise higher in the scale 
 
 of intelligence than his progenitor. Of the 
 eleven heads of families who founded Los An- 
 geles, not one could sign his name to the title 
 deed of his house lot. Nor were these an ex- 
 ceptionally, ignorant collection of hombres. Out 
 of fifty men comprising the Monterey company 
 in 1785, but fourteen could write. In the com- 
 pany stationed at San Francisco in 1794 not a 
 soldier among them could read or write; and 
 forty years later of one hundred men at Sonoma 
 not one could write his name. 
 
 The first community want the American pio- 
 neers supplied was the school house. Wher- 
 ever the immigrants from the New England 
 and the middle states planted a settlement, there, 
 at the same time, they planted a school house. 
 The first community want that the Spanish 
 pabladores (colonists) supplied was a church. 
 The school house was not wanted or if wanted it 
 vv^as a long felt want that was rarely or never 
 satisfied. At the time of the acquisition of Cal- 
 ifornia by the Americans, seventy-seven years 
 from the date of its first settlement, there was 
 not a public school house owned by any pre- 
 sidio, pueblo or city in all its territory. 
 
 The first public school in California was 
 
236 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 opened in San Jose in December, 1794, seven- 
 teen years after the founding of that pueblo. 
 The pioneer teacher of California was Manuel 
 de Vargas, a retired sergeant of infantry. The 
 school was opened in the public granary. 
 Vargas, in 1795, was ofiEered $250 to open a 
 school in San Diego. As this was higher wages 
 than he was receiving he accepted the offer. 
 Jose Manuel Toca, a gamute or ship boy, ar- 
 rived on a Spanish transport in 1795 and the 
 same year was employed at Santa Barbara as 
 schoolmaster at a yearly salary of $125. Thus 
 the army and the navy pioneered education in 
 California. 
 
 Governor Borica, the founder of public 
 schools in California, resigned in 1800 and was 
 succeeded by Arrillaga. Governor Arrillaga, if 
 not opposed to, was at least indifferent to the 
 education of the common people. He took life 
 easy and the schools took long vacations; in- 
 deed, it was nearly all vacation during his term. 
 Governor Sola, the successor of Arrillaga, made 
 an effort to establish public schools, but the in- 
 difference of the people discouraged him. In 
 the lower pueblo, Los Angeles, the first school 
 was opened in 1817, thirty-six years after the 
 founding of the town. The first teacher there 
 was Maximo Piila, an invahd soldier. He re- 
 ceived $140 a year for his services as school- 
 miaster. If the records are correct, his was the 
 only school taught in Los Angeles during the 
 Spanish regime. One year of schooling to forty 
 years of vacation, there was no educational 
 cramming in those days. The schoolmasters of 
 the Spanish era were invalid soldiers, possessed 
 of that dangerous thing, a "little learning;'' and 
 it was very little indeed. About all they could 
 teach was reading, writing and the doctrina 
 Christiana. They were brutal tj^rants and their 
 school government a military despotism. They 
 did not spare the rod or the child, either. The 
 rod was too mild an instrument of punishment. 
 Their implement of torture was a cat-o'-nine- 
 tails, made of hempen cords with iron points. 
 To fail in learning the doctrina Christiana was 
 an unpardonable sin. For this, for laughing 
 aloud, playing truant or other offenses no more 
 heinous, the guilty boy "was stretched face 
 downward upon a bench with a handkerchief 
 
 thrust into his mouth as a gag and lashed with a 
 dozen or more blows until the blood ran down 
 his little lacerated back." If he could not im- 
 bibe the Christian doctrine in any other way, 
 it was injected into him with the points of the 
 lash. 
 
 Mexico did better for education in Cahfornia 
 than Spain. The school terms were lengthened 
 and the vacation shortened proportionally. Gov- 
 ernor Echeandia, a man hated by the friars, was 
 an enthusiastic friend of education. "He be- 
 lieved in the gratuitous and compulsory educa- 
 tion of rich and poor, Indians and gente de 
 rason alike." He held that learning was the 
 corner-stone of a people's wealth and it was the 
 duty of the government to foster education. 
 When the friars heard of his views "they called 
 upon God to pardon the unfortunate ruler un- 
 able to comprehend how vastly superior a re- 
 ligious education was to one merely secular.* 
 Echeandia made a brave attempt to establish a 
 public school system in the territory. He de- 
 manded of the friars that they establish a school 
 at eadi mission for the neophytes; they prom- 
 ised, but, with the intention of evading, a show 
 was made of opening schools. Soon it was re- 
 ported that the funds were exhausted and the 
 schools had to close for want of means to sup- 
 port them. Nor was Echeandia more successful 
 with the people. He issued an order to the 
 commanding officers at the presidios to compel 
 parents to send their children to school. The 
 school at Monterey was opened, the alcalde act- 
 ing as schoolmaster. The school furniture con- 
 sisted of one table and the school books were 
 one arithmetic and four primers. The school 
 funds were as meager as the school furniture. 
 Echeandia, unable to contend against the enmity 
 of the friars, the indifference of the parents and 
 the lack of funds, reluctantly abandoned his 
 futile fight against ignorance. 
 
 One of the most active and earnest friends of 
 the public schools during the Mexican era was 
 the much abused Governor Midheltorena. He 
 made an earnest effort to establish a public 
 school system in California. Through his efforts 
 schools were established in all the principal 
 
 *Bancroft's California Pastoral. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 287 
 
 towns and a guarantee of $500 from the ter- 
 ritorial funds promised to each school. Michel- 
 torena promulgated what might be called the 
 first school law of CaUfornia. It was a decree 
 issued May i, 1844, and consisted of ten articles, 
 which prescribed what should be taught in the 
 schools, school hours, school age of the pupils 
 and other regulations. Article 10 named the 
 most holy virgin of Guadalupe as patroness of 
 the schools. Her image was to be placed in 
 each school. But, like all his predecessors, 
 Micheltorena failed; the funds were soon ex- 
 hausted and the schools closed. 
 
 Even had the people been able to read there 
 would have been nothing for them to read but 
 religious books. The friars kept vigilant watch 
 that no interdicted books were brought into the 
 country. If any were found they were seized 
 and publicly burned. Castro, Alvarado and Val- 
 lejo were at one time excommunicated for read- 
 ing Rousseau's works, Telemachus and other 
 books on the prohibited list. Alvarado having 
 declined to pay Father Duran some money he 
 owed him because it was a sin to have anything 
 to do with an excommunicated person, and 
 therefore it would be a sin for the father to take 
 money from him, the padre annulled the sen- 
 tence, received the money and gave Alvarado 
 permission to read anything he wished. 
 
 During the war for the conquest of California 
 and for some time afterwards the schools were 
 all closed. The wild rush to the gold mines in 
 1848 carried away the male population. No one 
 would stay at home and teach school for the 
 paltry pay given a schoolmaster. The ayunta- 
 miento of Los Angeles in the winter of 1849-50 
 appointed a committee to establish a school. 
 After a three months' hunt the committee re- 
 ported "that an individual had just presented 
 himself who, although he did not speak English, 
 yet could he teach the children many useful 
 things; and besides the same person had man- 
 aged to get the refusal of Mrs. Pollerena's house 
 for school purpose." At the next meeting of the 
 ayuntamiento the committee reported that the 
 individual who had ofifered to teach had left for 
 the mines and neither a school house nor a 
 schoolmaster could be found. 
 
 In June, 1850, the ayuntamiento entered into 
 
 a contract with Francisco Bustamente, an ex- 
 soldier, "to teach to the children first, second 
 and third lessons and likewise to read script, to 
 write and count and so much as I may be com- 
 petent to teach them orthography and good 
 morals." Bustamente was to receive $60 per 
 month and $20 for house rent. This was the 
 first school opened in Los Angeles after the 
 conquest. 
 
 "The first American school in San Francisco 
 and, we believe, in California, was a merely pri- 
 vate enterprise. It was opened by a Mr. Mars- 
 ton from one of the Atlantic states in April, 
 1847, in ^ small shanty which stood on the block 
 between Broadway and Pacific streets, west of 
 Dupont street. There he collected some twenty 
 or thirty pupils, whom he continued to teach for 
 almost a whole year, his patrons paying for tui- 
 tion."* 
 
 In the fall of 1847 ^ school house was built 
 on the southwest corner of Portsmouth square, 
 fronting on Clay street. The money to build it 
 was raised by subscription. It was a very mod- 
 est structure — box shaped with a door and two 
 windows in the front and two windows in each 
 end. It served a variety of purposes besides that 
 of a school house. It was a pubHc hall for all 
 kinds of meetings. Churches held service in it. 
 The first public amusements were given in it. 
 At one time it was used for a court room. The 
 first meeting to form a state government was 
 held in it. It was finally degraded to a police 
 ofifice and a station house. For some time after 
 it was built no school was kept in it for want of 
 funds. 
 
 On the 2ist of February, 1848, a town meet- 
 ing was called for the election of a board of 
 school trustees and Dr. F. Fourguard, Dr. J. 
 Townsend, C. L. Ross, J. Serrini and William 
 H. Davis were chosen. On the 3d of April fol- 
 lowing these trustees opened a school in the 
 school house under the charge of Thomas 
 Douglas, A. M., a graduate of Yale College and 
 an experienced teacher of high reputation. The 
 board pledged him a salary of $1,000 per an- 
 num and fixed a tariff of tuition to aid towards 
 its payment; and the town council, afterwards. 
 
 *Annals of San Francisco. 
 
238 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to make up any deficiency, appropriated to the 
 payment of the teacher of the public school in 
 this place $200 at the expiration of twelve 
 months from the commencement of the school. 
 "Soon after this Mr. Marston discontinued his 
 private school and Mr. Douglas collected some 
 forty pupils."* 
 
 The school flourished for eight or ten weeks. 
 Gold had been discovered and rumors were 
 coming thick and fast of fortunes made in a day. 
 A thousand dollars a year looked large to Mr. 
 Douglas when the contract was made, but in the 
 light of recent events it looked rather small. 
 A man in the diggings might dig out $1,000 in a 
 week. So the schoolmaster laid down the 
 pedagogical birch, shouldered his pick and hied 
 himself away to the diggings. In the rush for 
 gold, education was forgotten. December 12, 
 
 1848, Charles W. H. Christian reopened the 
 school, charging tuition at the rate of $10. Evi- 
 dently he did not teach longer than it took him 
 to earn money to reach the mines. April 23, 
 
 1849, the Rev. Albert Williams, pastor of the 
 First Presbyterian church, obtained the use of 
 the school house and opened a private school, 
 charging tuition. He gave up school teaching 
 to attend to his ministerial duties. In the fall 
 of '49 John C. Pelton, a Massachusetts school- 
 master, arrived in San Francisco and December 
 26 opened a school with three pupils in the Bap- 
 tist church on Washington street. He fitted up 
 the church with writing tables and benches at 
 his own expense, depending on voluntary con- 
 tributions for his support. In the spring of 
 1850 he applied to the city council for relief and 
 for his services and that of his wife he received 
 $500 a month till the summer of 1851, when he 
 closed his school. 
 
 Col. T. J. Nevins, in June, 1850, obtained rent 
 free the use of a building near the present inter- 
 section of Mission and Second streets for school 
 purposes. He employed a Mr. Samuel New- 
 ton as teacher. The school was opened July 
 13. The school passed under the supervision 
 of several teachers. The attendance was small 
 at first and the school was supported by con- 
 tributions, but later the council voted an ap- 
 
 * Annals of San Francisco. 
 
 propriation. The school was closed in 1851. 
 Colonel Nevins, in January, 1851, secured a 
 fifty-vara lot at Spring Valley on the Presidio 
 road and built principally by subscription a 
 large school building, employed a teacher and 
 opened a free school, supported by contributions. 
 The building was afterwards leased to the city 
 to be used for a free school, the term of the 
 lease running ninety-nine years. This was the 
 first school building in which the city had an 
 ownership. Colonel Nevins prepared an ordi- 
 nance for the establishment, regulation and 
 support of free common schools in the city. 
 The ordinance was adopted by the city council 
 September 25, 1851, and was the first ordinance 
 establishing free schools and providing for their 
 maintenance in San Francisco. 
 
 A bill to provide for a public school system 
 was introduced in the legislature of 1850, but 
 the committee on education reported that it 
 would be two or three years before any means 
 would become available from the liberal pro- 
 visions of the constitution; in the meantime 
 the persons who had children to educate could 
 do it out of their own pockets. So all action 
 was postponed and the people who had children 
 paid for their tuition or let them run without 
 schooling. 
 
 The first school law was passed in 1851. It 
 was drafted mainly by G. B. Lingley, John C. 
 Pelton and the superintendent of pubhc instruc- 
 tion, J. G. Marvin. It was revised and amended 
 by the legislatures of 1852 and 1853. The state 
 school fund then was derived from the sale and 
 rental of five hundred thousand acres of state 
 land; the estates of deceased persons escheated 
 to the state; state poll tax and a state tax of 
 five cents on each $100 of assessed property. 
 Congress in 1853 granted to CaHfornia the i6th 
 and 36th sections of the public lands for school 
 purposes. The total amount of this grant was 
 six million seven hundred and sixty-five thou- 
 sand five hundred and four acres, of which 
 forty-six thousand and eighty acres were to be 
 deducted for the founding of a state university 
 or college and six thousand four hundred acres 
 for pubHc buildings. 
 
 The first apportionment of state funds was 
 made in 1854. The amount of state funds for 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 239 
 
 that year was $52,961. The county and mu- 
 nicipal school taxes amounted to $157,702. 
 These amounts were supplemented by rate bills 
 to the amount of $42,557. In 1856 the state 
 fund had increased to $69,961, while rate bills 
 had decreased to $28,619. That year there were 
 thirty thousand and thirty-nine children of 
 school age in the state, of these only about 
 fifteen thousand were enrolled in the schools. 
 
 In the earlier years, following the American 
 conquest, the schools were confined almost en- 
 tirely to the cities. The population in the coun- 
 try districts was too sparse to maintain a school. 
 The first school house in Sacramento was built 
 in 1849. It was located on I street. C. H. T. 
 Palmer opened school in it in August. It was 
 supported by rate bills and donations. He gath- 
 ered together about a dozen pupils. The school 
 was soon discontinued. Several other parties 
 in succession tried school keeping in Sacra- 
 mento, but did not make a success of it. It was 
 not until 185 1 that a permanent school was es- 
 tabUshed. A public school was taught in Mon- 
 terey in 1849 by Rev. Willey. The school was 
 kept in Colton Hall. The first public school 
 house in Los Angeles was built in 1854. Hugh 
 Overns taught the first free school there in 1850. 
 
 The amount paid for teachers' salaries in 1854 
 -was $85,860; in 1900 it reached $4,850,804. The 
 total expenditures for school purposes in 1854 
 amounted to $275,606; in 1900 to $6,195,438. 
 The first high school in the state was estabHshed 
 in San Francisco in 1856. In 1900 there were 
 one hundred and twenty high schools with an 
 attendance of twelve thousand one hundred and 
 seventy-nine students. Two million dollars were 
 invested in high school buildings, furniture and 
 grounds. Five hundred teachers were employed 
 in these schools. 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY OF THE PACIFIC. 
 
 This institution was chartered in August, 
 185 1, as the California Wesleyan College, which 
 name was afterwards changed by act of the leg- 
 islature to that it now bears. The charter was 
 obtained under the general law of the state as 
 it then was, and on the basis of a subscription 
 of $27,500 and a donation of some ten acres of 
 land adjacent to the village of Santa Clara. A 
 
 school building was erected in which the pre- 
 paratory department was opened in May, 1852, 
 under the charge of Rev. E. Banister as prin- 
 cipal, aided by two assistant teachers, and be- 
 fore the end of the first session had over sixty 
 pupils. Near the close of the following year 
 another edifice was so far completed that the 
 male pupils were transferred to it, and the Fe- 
 male Collegiate Institute, with its special course 
 of study, was organized and continued in the 
 original building. In 1854 the classes of the 
 college proper were formed and the requisite 
 arrangement with respect to president, faculty, 
 and course of study made. In 1858 two young 
 men, constituting the first class, received the de- 
 gree of A. B., they being the first to receive 
 that honor from any college in California. In 
 1865 the board of trustees purchased the Stock- 
 ton rancho, a large body of land adjoining the 
 town of Santa Clara. This was subdivided into 
 lots and small tracts and sold at a profit. By 
 this means an endowment was secured and an 
 excellent site for new college building obtained. 
 
 THE COLLEGE OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 The question of founding a college or uni- 
 versity in California had been discussed early in 
 1849, before the assembling of the constitutional 
 convention at San Jose. The originator of the 
 idea was the Rev. Samuel H. Willey, D. D., of 
 the Presbyterian church. At that time he was 
 stationed at Monterey. The first legislature 
 passed a bill providing for the granting of col- 
 lege charters. The bill required that application 
 should be made to the supreme court, which was 
 to determine whether the property possessed by 
 the proposed college was worth $20,000, and 
 whether in other respects a charter should be 
 granted. A body of land for a college site had 
 been offered by James Stokes and Kimball H. 
 Dimmick to be selected from a large tract they 
 owned on the Guadalupe river, near San Jose. 
 When appHcation was made for a college char- 
 ter the supreme court refused to give a charter 
 to the applicants on the plea that the land 
 was unsurveyed and the title not fully deter- 
 mined. 
 
 The Rev. Henry Durant, who had at one time 
 been a tutor in Yale College, came to California 
 
240 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in 1853 to engage in teaching. At a meeting 
 cf the presbytery of San Francisco and the Con- 
 gregational Association of California held in 
 Nevada City in May, 1853, which Mr. Durant 
 attended, it was decided to establish an acad- 
 emy at Oakland. There were but few houses 
 in Oakland then and the only communication 
 with San Francisco was by means of a little 
 steamer that crossed the bay two or three times 
 a day. A Jiouse was obtained at the corner of 
 Broadway and Fifth street and the academy 
 opened with three pupils. A site was selected 
 for the school, which, when the streets were 
 opened, proved to be four blocks, located "be- 
 tween Twelfth and Fourteenth, Franklin and 
 Harrison streets. The site of Oakland at that 
 time was covered with live oaks and the sand 
 was knee deep. Added to other discourage- 
 ments, titles were in dispute and squatters were 
 seizing upon the vacant lots. A building was 
 begun for the school, the money ran out and 
 the property was in danger of seizure on a me- 
 chanics' lien, but was rescued by the bravery 
 and resourcefulness of Dr. Durant. 
 
 In 1855 the College of California was char- 
 tered and a search begun for a permanent site. 
 A number were offered at various places in the 
 f.tate. The trustees finally selected the Berkeley 
 site, a tract of one hundred and sixty acres on 
 Strawberry creek near Oakland, opposite the 
 Golden Gate. The college school in Oakland 
 was flourishing. A new building, Academy 
 Hall, was erected in 1858. A college faculty 
 was organized. The Rev. Henry Durant and 
 the Rev. Martin Kellogg were chosen pro- 
 fessors and the first college class was organized 
 in June, i860. The college classes were taught 
 in the buildings of the college school, which 
 were usually called the College of California. 
 The college classes were small and the endow- 
 ment smaller. The faculty met with many dis- 
 couragements. It became evident that the in- 
 stitution could never become a prominent one 
 in the educational field with the limited means 
 of support it could command. In 1863 the idea 
 of a state university began to be agitated. A bill 
 was passed by the state legislature in 1866, de- 
 voting to the support of a narrow polytechnical 
 school, the federal land grants to California for 
 
 the support of agricultural schools and a college 
 of mechanics. The trustees of the College of 
 California proposed in 1867 to transfer to the 
 state the college site at Berkeley, opposite the 
 Golden Gate, together with all the other assets 
 remaining after the debts were paid, on con- 
 dition that the state would build a University of 
 California on the site at Berkeley, which should 
 be a classical and technological college. 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 A bill for the establishing of a state university 
 was introduced in the legislature March 5, 1868, 
 by Hon. John W. Dwinelle of Alameda county. 
 After some amendments it was finally passed, 
 March 21, and on the 27th of the same month a 
 bill was passed making an appropriation for the 
 support of the institution. 
 
 The board of regents of the university was 
 organized June 9, 1868, and the same day Gen. 
 George B. McClellan was elected president of 
 the university, but at that time being engaged in 
 building Stevens Battery at New York he de- 
 clined the honor. September 23, 1869, the 
 scholastic exercises of the university were be- 
 gun in the buildings of the College of Cahfor- 
 nia in Oakland and the first university class was 
 graduated in June, 1873. The new buildings of 
 the university at Berkeley were occupied in 
 September, 1873. Prof. John Le Conte was act- 
 ing president for the first year. Dr. Henry 
 Durant was chosen to fill that position and was 
 succeeded by D. C. Oilman in 1872. The corner- 
 stone of the Agricultural College, called the 
 South Hall, was laid in August, 1872, and that 
 of the North Hall in the spring of 1873. 
 
 The university, as now constituted, consists 
 of Colleges of Letters, Social Science, Agricul- 
 ture, Mechanics, Mining, Civil Engineering, 
 Chemistry and Commerce, located at Berkeley; 
 the Lick Astronomical Department at Mount 
 Hamilton; and the professional and aiifiHated 
 colleges in San Francisco, namely, the Hastings 
 College of Law, the Medical Department, the 
 Post-Graduate Medical Department, the Col- 
 lege of Dentistry and Pharmacy, the Veterinary 
 Department and the Mark Hopkins Institute of 
 Art. The total value of the property belonging 
 to the university at this time is about $5,000,000 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 241 
 
 and the endowment funds nearly $3,000,000. 
 Tlie total income in 1900 was $475,254. 
 
 LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY. 
 
 "When the intention of Senator Stanford to 
 found a university in memory of his lamented 
 son was first announced, it was expected from 
 the broad and comprehensive views which he 
 was known to entertain upon the subject, that 
 his plans, when formed, would result in no ordi- 
 nary college endowment or educational scheme, 
 but when these plans were laid before the people 
 their magnitude was so far beyond the most ex- 
 travagant of public anticipation that all were as- 
 tonished at the magnificence of their aggregate, 
 the wide scope of their detail and the absolute 
 grandeur of their munificence. The brief his- 
 tory of California as an American state com- 
 prises much that is noble and great, but nothing 
 in that history will compare in grandeur with 
 this act of one of her leading citizens. The 
 records' of history may be searched in vain for 
 a parallel to this gift of Senator Stanford to the 
 state of his adoption. * * * gy this act 
 Senator Stanford will not only immortalize the 
 memory of his son, but will erect for himself a 
 monument more enduring than brass or marble, 
 for it will be enshrined in the hearts of succeed- 
 ing generations for all time to come."* 
 
 Senator Stanford, to protect the endowments 
 he proposed to make, prepared a bill, which was 
 passed by the legislature, approved by the gov- 
 ernor and became a law March 9, 1885. It is 
 entitled "An act to advance learning, the arts 
 and sciences and to promote the public welfare, 
 by providing for the conveyance, holding and 
 protection of property, and the creation of trusts 
 for the founding, endowment, erection and 
 maintenance within this state of universities, 
 colleges, schools, seminaries of learning, me- 
 chanical institutes, museums and galleries of 
 art." 
 
 Sectidn 2 specifies how a grant for the above 
 purposes may be made: "Any person desiring 
 in his lifetime to promote the public welfare by 
 founding, endowing and having maintained 
 within this state a university, college, school, 
 
 ' Monograph of Leland Stanford Junior University. 
 
 seminary of learning, mechanical institute, mu- 
 seum or gallery of art or any or all thereof, may, 
 to that end, and for such purpose, by grant in 
 writing, convey to a trustee, or any number of 
 trustees named in such grant (and their suc- 
 cessors), any property, real or personal, belong- 
 ing to such person, and situated or being within 
 this state; provided, that if any such person be 
 married and the property be community prop- 
 erty, then both husband and wife must join in 
 such grant." The act contains twelve sections. 
 After the passage of the act twenty-four trus- 
 tees were appointed. Among them were judges 
 of the supreme and superior courts, a United 
 States senator and business men in various 
 lines. 
 
 Among the lands deeded to the university by 
 Senator Stanford and his wife were the Palo 
 Alto estate, containing seventy-two hundred 
 acres. This ranch had been devoted principally 
 to the breeding and rearing of thoroughbred 
 horses. On this the college buildings were to 
 be erected. The site selected was near the town 
 of Palo Alto, which is thirty-four miles south 
 from San Francisco on the railroad to San Jose, 
 in Santa Clara county. 
 
 Another property donated was the Vina 
 rancho, situated at the junction of Deer creek 
 with the Sacramento river in Tehama county. 
 It consisted of fifty-five thousand acres, of 
 which thirty-six thousand were planted to vines 
 and orchard and the remainder used for grain 
 growing and pasture. 
 
 The third rancho given to the support of the 
 university was the Gridley ranch, containing 
 about twenty-one thousand acres. This was sit- 
 uated in Butte county and included within its 
 limits some of the richest wheat growing lands 
 in the state. At the time it was donated its as- 
 sessed value was $1,000,000. The total amount 
 of land conveyed to the university by deed of 
 trust was eighty-three thousand two hundred 
 acres. 
 
 The name selected for the institution was Le- 
 land Stanford Junior University. The corner- 
 stone of the university was laid May 14, 1887, 
 by Senator and Mrs. Leland Stanford. The site 
 of the college buildings is about one mile west 
 from Palo Alto. In his address to the trustees 
 
 i& 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 November 14, 1885, Senator Stanford said: "We 
 do not expect to establish a university and fill 
 it with students at once. It must be the growth 
 of time and experience. Our idea is that in the 
 first instance we shall require the establishment 
 of colleges for both sexes; then of primary 
 schools, as they may be needed; and out of all 
 these will grow the great central institution for 
 more advanced study." The growth of the uni- 
 versity has been rapid. In a very few years after 
 its founding it took rank with the best institu- 
 tions of learning in the United States. 
 
 N0R3IAL SCHOOLS. 
 
 The legislature of 1862 passed a bill author- 
 izing the establishment of a state normal school 
 for the training of teachers at San Francisco or 
 at such other place as the legislature may here- 
 after direct. The school was established and 
 conducted for several years at San Francisco, 
 but was eventually moved to San Jose, where a 
 site had been donated. A building was erected 
 and the school became a flourishing institution. 
 The first building was destroyed by fire and the 
 present handsome and commodious building 
 erected on a new site. The first normal school 
 established in the state was a private one, con- 
 ducted by George W. Minns. It was started in 
 
 San Francisco in 1857, but was discontinued 
 after the organization of the state school in 1863, 
 Minns becoming principal. A normal school 
 was established by the legislature at Los An- 
 geles in 1881. It was at first a branch of the 
 state school at San Jose and was under control 
 of the same board of trustees and the same prin- 
 cipal. Later it was made an independent insti- 
 tution with a board and principal of its own. 
 
 Normal schools have been established at 
 Chico (1889), San Diego (1897) and San Fran- 
 cisco (1899). The total number of teachers em- 
 ployed in the five state normal schools in 1900 
 was one hundred and one, of whom thirty-seven 
 were men and sixty-four women. Tlie whole 
 number of students in these at that time was 
 two thousand and thirty-nine, of whom two hun- 
 dred and fifty-six were men and one thousand 
 eight hundred and thirty-nine women. 
 
 The total receipts for the support of these 
 .schools from all sources were for the year end- 
 ing June 30, 1900, $251,217; the total expendi- 
 tures for the same time were $206,001 ; the value 
 of the normal school property of the state is 
 about $700,000. The educational system and 
 facihties of California, university, college, nor- 
 mal school and public school, rank with the best 
 in the United States. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 CITIES OF CALIFORNIA-THEIR ORIGIN AND GROWTH. 
 
 Ti LTHOUGH Spain and Mexico possessed 
 £ Y California for seventy-seven years after 
 the date of the first settlement made in 
 it, they founded but few towns and but one of 
 those founded had attained the dignity of a citv 
 at the time of the American conquest. In a 
 previous chapter I have given sketches of the 
 founding of the four presidios and three pueblos 
 under Spanish rule. Twenty missions were es- 
 tablished under the rule of Spain and one under 
 the Mexican Republic. While the country in- 
 creased in population under the rule of Mex- 
 ico, the only new settlement that was formed 
 was the mission at Solano. 
 
 Pueblos grew up at the presidios and some of 
 the mission settlements developed into towns. 
 The principal towns that have grown up around 
 the mission sites are San Juan Capistrano, San 
 Gabriel, San Buenaventura, San Miguel, San 
 Luis Obispo, Santa Clara and San Rafael. 
 
 The creation of towns began after the Ameri- 
 cans got possession of the country. Before the 
 treaty of peace between the United States and 
 Mexico had been made, and while the war was 
 in progress, two enterprising Americans, Robert 
 Semple and T. O. Larkin, had created on paper 
 an extensive city on the Straits of Carquinez. 
 The city of Francisca "comprises five miles," 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 243 
 
 so the proprietors of the embryo metropolis an- 
 nounced in the Calif ornian of April 20, 1847, 
 and in subsequent numbers. According to the 
 theory of its promoters, Francisca had the 
 choice of sites and must become the metropolis 
 of the coast. "In front of the city," says their 
 advertisement, "is a commodious Bay, large 
 enough for two hundred ships to ride at anchor 
 safe from any wind. The country around the 
 city is the best agricultural portion of California 
 on both sides of the Bay; the straits being only 
 one mile wide, an easy crossing may always be 
 made. The entire trade of the great Sacra- 
 mento and San Joaquin Valleys (a fertile coun- 
 try of great width and nearly seven hundred 
 miles long from North to South) must of neces- 
 sity pass through the narrow channel of Car- 
 quinez and the Bay, and the country is so situ- 
 ated that every person who passes from one side 
 of the Bay to the other will find the nearest _and 
 best way by Francisca." 
 
 In addition to its natural advantages the pro- 
 prietors otifered other attractions and induce- 
 ments to settlers. They advertised that they 
 would give "seventy-five per cent of the net pro- 
 ceeds of the ferries and wharves for a school 
 fund and the embellishment of the city"; "they 
 have also laid out several entire squares for 
 school purposes and several others for public 
 walks" (parks). Yet, notwithstanding all the su- 
 perior attractions and natural advantages of 
 Francisca, people would migrate to and locate 
 at the wind-swept settlement on the Cove of 
 Yerba Buena. And the town of the "good 
 herb" took to itself the name of San Francisco 
 and perforce compelled the Franciscans to be- 
 come Benicians. Then came the discovery of 
 gold and the consequent rush to the mines, and 
 although Francisca, or Benicia, was on the 
 route, or one of the routes, somehow San 
 Francisco managed to get all the profit out of 
 the trade and travel to the mines. 
 
 The rush to the land of gold expanded the 
 little settlement formed by Richardson and Leese 
 on the Cove of Yerba Buena into a great city 
 that iti time included within its limits the mis- 
 sion and the presidio. The consolidation of_the 
 city and county governments gave a simpler 
 form of municipal rule and gave the city, room 
 
 to expand without growing outside of its mu- 
 nicipal jurisdiction. The decennial Federal cen- 
 sus from 1850 to the close of the century indi- 
 cates the remarkable growth of San Francisco. 
 Its population in 1850 was 21,000; in i860, 56,-' 
 802; in 1870, 149,473; in 1880, 234,000; in 
 1890, 298,997; in 1900, 342,742. 
 
 LOS ANGELES. 
 
 The only settlement under Mexican domina- 
 tion that attained the dignity of a ciudad, or city, 
 was Los Angeles. Although proclaimed a city, 
 by the Mexican Congress, more than ten years 
 before the Americans took possession of the 
 country, except in official documents, it was 
 usually spoken of as el pueblo — the town. Its 
 population at the time of its conquest by the 
 Americans numbered about sixteen hundred. 
 The first legislature gave it a city charter, al- 
 though fifteen years before it had been raised to 
 the dignity of a city; the lawmakers for some 
 reason cut down its area from four square 
 leagues to four square miles. This did not aflect 
 its right to its pueblo lands. After the appoint- 
 ment of a land commission, in 1851, it laid claim 
 to sixteen square leagues, but failed to substanti- 
 ate its claim. Its pueblo area of four square 
 leagues (Spanish) was confirmed to it by the 
 commission. Within the past seven years, by 
 annexation, its area has been increased from the 
 original four square leagues, or about twenty- 
 seven miles, to thirty-seven square miles. Its in- 
 crease in population during the past twenty years 
 has been the greatest of any of the large cities of 
 the state. In 1880 it had 11,183 inhabitants; in 
 1890, 50,353; in 1900, 102,429. Its grpwth 
 since 1900 has exceeded that of any similar pe- 
 riod in its history. Its estimated population 
 January, 1903, is 125,000. 
 
 OAKLAND. 
 
 Oakland, the third city in population among 
 the cities of California, is the youngest of the 
 large cities. It is purely American by birth. 
 Its site during Spanish and Mexican rule was 
 uninhabited and was covered with oak trees and 
 chaparral. The territory which Oakland covers 
 was part of a five-league grant made to Luis 
 Maria Peralta, a Spanish soldier, who came to 
 
244 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the presidio of San Francisco in 1790. August 
 16, 1820, Governor Sola granted him the Rancho 
 San Antonio. His mihtary service had extended 
 over a period of forty years. In 1842 he divided 
 the grant among his five sons, the portion em- 
 braced in Oakland falling to the allotment of 
 Vicente. 
 
 The first permanent settlers and the fathers 
 of Oakland were Moore, Carpentier and Adams, 
 who squatted on the land in the summer of 1850. 
 The Peraltas made an attempt to evict them, 
 •but failed. This trio of squatters obtained a 
 lease from Peralta, laid out a town and sold lots, 
 giving quit-claim deeds. They erected houses 
 and are considered the founders of the town. 
 Other squatters followed their example and pos- 
 sessed themselves of the Peraltas' land. This 
 involved the settlers in litigation, and it was 
 many years before titles were perfected. The 
 Peralta litigants finally won. 
 
 May 4, 1852, the town of Oakland was incor- 
 porated. March 25, 1854, it was incorporated as 
 a city and Horace W. Carpentier was elected 
 the first mayor. The first ferry charter was 
 granted in 1853. Defective titles and the water- 
 front war between the city authorities and H. W. 
 Carpentier retarded its growth for a number 
 of years. In i860 its population was about 
 1,500. The completion of the overland railroad, 
 which made Oakland its western terminus, 
 greatly accelerated its growth. The water-front 
 war was continued; instead of Carpentier, the 
 city now had the Central Pacific Railroad Com- 
 pany to contend with. The controversy was 
 finally ended in 1882, and the city won. The 
 population of Oakland in 1890 was 48,682; in 
 1900, 66,960. According to a recent census 
 (November, 1902), it exceeds 88,000. 
 
 SACRAMENTO. 
 
 Sutter built his fort near the junction of the 
 Sacramento and American rivers , in 1839. It 
 was then the most northerly settlement in Cali- 
 fornia and became the trading post for the 
 northern frontier. It was the outpost to which 
 the tide of overland immigration flowed before 
 and after the discovery of gold. Sutter's settle- 
 ment was also known as New Helvitia. After 
 the discovery of gold at Coloma it was, during 
 
 1848, the principal supply depot for the mines. 
 Sutter had a store at the fort and did a thriving 
 business. Sam Brannan, in June, 1848, estab- 
 lished a store outside of the fort, in a long adobe 
 building. His sales amounted to over $100,000 
 a month. His profits were enormous. Gold 
 dust was a drug on the market and at one time 
 passed for $8 an ounce, less than half its value. 
 In September, 1848, Priest, Lee & Co. estab- 
 lished a business house at the fort and did an 
 immense business. The fort was not well lo- 
 cated for a commercial center. It was too far 
 away from the river by which all the freight 
 from San Francisco was shipped. The land at 
 the embarcadero was subject to overflow and 
 was deemed unsuited for the site of a city. Sut- 
 terville was laid out on rising ground three miles 
 below. A survey of lots was extended from 
 the fort to the embarcadero and along the river 
 baijk. This embryo town at the embarcadero 
 took the name of Sacramento from the river. 
 Then began a rivalry between Sutterville and 
 Sacramento. The first house in Sacramento, 
 corner of Front and I streets, was erected in 
 January, 1849. The proprietors of Sutterville, 
 McDougall & Co., made an attempt to attract 
 trade and building to their town by giving away 
 lots, but Sutter beat them at that game, and 
 Sacramento surged ahead. Sam Brannan and 
 Priest, Lee & Co. moved their stores into Sac- 
 ramento. The fort was deserted and Sutterville 
 ceased to contend for supremacy. In four 
 months lots had advanced from $50 to $1,000 
 and business lots to $3,000. A regular steam- 
 boat service on the river was inaugurated in 
 August, 1849, and sailing vessels that had come 
 around the Horn to avoid trans-shipment worked 
 their way up the river and landed their goods at 
 the embarcadero. The first number of the 
 Placer Times was issued April 28, 1849. The 
 steamboat rates of passage between San Fran- 
 cisco and Sacramento were: Cabin, $30; steer- 
 age, $20; freight, $2.50 per one hundred pounds. 
 By the winter of 1849 the population of the town 
 had reached five thousand and a year later it 
 had doubled. Lots in the business section were 
 held at $30,000 to $50,000 each. The great flood 
 of 1849-50, when four-fifths of the city was 
 under water, somewhat dampened the enthusi- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 245 
 
 asm of the citizens, but did not check the growth 
 of the city. Sacramento -Ipecame the trading 
 center of the mines. In 1855 its trade, princi- 
 pally with the mines, amounted to $6,000,000. 
 It was also the center of the stage lines, a dozen 
 of which led out from it. 
 
 It became the state capital in 1853, and al- 
 though disastrous floods drove the legislators 
 from the capital several times, they returned 
 when the waters subsided. The great flood of 
 1861-62 inundated the city and compelled an 
 immense outlay for levees and for raising the 
 grades of the streets. Sacramento was made the 
 terminus of the Central Pacific Railroad sys- 
 tem, and its immense workshops are located 
 there. Its growth for the past thirty years has 
 been slow but steady. Its population in 1890 
 was 26,386; in 1900, 29,282. 
 
 SAN JOSE. 
 
 The early history of San Jose has been given 
 in the chapter on Pueblos. After the American 
 conquest the place became an important busi- 
 ness center. It was the first state capital and 
 the removal of the capital for a time checked its 
 progress. In 1864 it was connected with San 
 Francisco 'by railroad. The completion of the 
 railroad killed oflf its former port, Alviso, which 
 had been laid out as a city in 1849. Nearly all 
 the trade and travel before the railroad was built 
 had gone by way of Alviso down the bay to 
 San Francisco. San Jose and its suburb, Santa 
 Clara, early became the educational centers of 
 California. The first American college founded 
 in the state was located at Santa Clara and the 
 first normal school building erected in the state 
 was built at San Jose. The population of San 
 Jose in 1880 was 12,570; in 1900, 21,500. 
 
 STOCKTON. 
 
 In 1844 the Rancho Campo de los Franceses, 
 Camp of the Frencli, or French Camp, on which 
 the city of Stockton is located, was granted to 
 William Gulnac by Governor Micheltorena. It 
 contained eleven leagues of 48,747 acres of land. 
 Capt. Charles M. Weber, the founder of Stock- 
 ton, was a partner of Gulnac, but not being a 
 Mexican citizen, he could not obtain a land 
 grant. After Gulnac obtained the grant he con- 
 
 veyed a half interest in it to Weber. Weber 
 shortly afterward purchased his partner's inter- 
 est and became sole owner of the grant. Some 
 attempts were made to stock it with cattle, but 
 Indian depredations prevented it. In 1847, ^fter 
 the country had come into the possession of the 
 Americans, Weber removed from San Jose, 
 which had been his place of residence since his 
 arrival in California in 1841, and located on his 
 ranch at French Camp. Fie erected some huts 
 for his vaqueros and fortified his corral against 
 Indians. In 1848 the site of the city was sur- 
 veyed and platted under the direction of Captain 
 Weber and Maj. R. P. Hammond. The rancho 
 was surveyed and sectionized and land offered 
 on most advantageous terms to settlers. Cap- 
 tain Weber was puzzled to find a fitting name 
 for his infant metropolis. Fie hesitated between 
 Tuleburgh and Castoria (Spanish for beaver). 
 Tules were plentiful and so were beaver, but 
 as the town grew both would disappear, so he 
 finally selected Stockton, after Commodore 
 Stockton, who promised to be a godfather to 
 the town, but proved to be a very indifferent 
 stepfather; he never did anything for it. The 
 discovery of gold in the region known as the 
 southern mines brought Stockton into promi- 
 nence and made it the metropolis of the south- 
 ern mining district. Captain Weber led the party 
 that first discovered gold on the Mokelumne 
 river. The freight and travel to the mines on 
 the Mokelumne, Tuolumne and Stanislaus rivers 
 passed through Stockton, and its growth was 
 rapid. In October, 1849, the Alta California 
 reports lots in it selling from $2,500 to $6,000 
 each, according to situation. At that time it had 
 a population of about one thousand souls and a 
 floating population, that is, men coming and 
 going to the mines, of about as many more. The 
 houses were mostly cotton-lined shacks. Lum- 
 ber was $1 a foot and carpenters' wages $16 per 
 day. There was neither mechanics nor mate- 
 rial to build better structures. Every man was 
 his own architect and master builder. Cloth 
 was scarce and high and tacks at one time were 
 worth $5 a package ; even a cloth house was no 
 cheap affair, however flimsy and cheap it might 
 appear. On the morning of December 23, 1849, 
 the business portion of the town was swept out 
 
246 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of existence by fire. Rebuilding was begun al- 
 most before tlie embers of the departed city 
 were cold and a better city arose from the ashes 
 of the first. After the wild rush of mining days 
 was over, Stockton drifted into a center of agri- 
 cultural trade and it also became a manufactur- 
 ing city. Its growth has been steady, devoid of 
 booms or periods of inflation, followed by col- 
 lapse. Its population in 1890 was 14,424; in 
 1900. 17,506. 
 
 SAN DIEGO. 
 
 In former chapters I have described the 
 founding of the presidio and mission of San 
 Diego. A pueblo of twenty-five or thirty houses 
 grew up around the presidio. This is what is 
 known as Old San Diego. In 1850 it was in- 
 corporated as a city. March 18, 1850, Alcalde 
 Sutherland granted to William Heath Davis and 
 five associates one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land a few miles south of Old Town, in con- 
 sideration that they build a wharf and create 
 a "new port." The town of New San Diego was 
 laid out, the wharf was built, several houses 
 erected, and government barracks constructed. 
 A newspaper was established and the Panama 
 steamers anchored at the wharf. San Diego 
 was riding high on the wave of prosperity. But 
 the wave broke and left San Diego stranded on 
 the shore of adversity. In 1868, A. E. Horton 
 came to San Diego. He bought about nine 
 hundred acres of pueblo lands along the bay at 
 twenty-six cents an acre. He subdivided it, gave 
 away lots, built houses and a wharf and soon 
 infused life into the sleepy pueblo. In 1884 
 the Southern California Railroad was completed 
 into the city. In 1887 San DiegO' experienced a 
 wonderful real estate boom and its growth for 
 several years was marvelous. Then it came to 
 a standstill, but has again started on the high- 
 way to prosperity. Its population in 1890 was 
 16,159; in 1900, 17,700. 
 
 FRESNO CITY. 
 
 Fresno City was founded by the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad in May, 1872. The road at that 
 time was in the course of construction. The 
 outlook for a populous town was not brilliant. 
 Stretching for miles away from the town site in 
 different directions was an arid-looking plain. 
 
 The land was fertile enough when well watered; 
 but the few settlers had no capital to construct 
 irrigating canals. 
 
 In 1875 began the agricultural colony era. 
 The land was divided into twenty-acre tracts. A 
 number of persons combined together and by 
 their united capital and community labor con- 
 structed irrigating canals and brought the land 
 under cultivation. The principal product is 
 the raisin grape. Fresno City became the 
 county seat of F"resno county in 1874. It is now 
 the largest and most important city of the 
 Upper San Joaquin Valley. Its population in 
 1890 was 10,818; in 1900, 12,470. 
 
 VALLEJO. 
 
 Vallejo was founded for the state capital. It 
 was one of several towns which had that tem- 
 porary honor in the early '50s, when the state 
 capitol was on wheels, or at least on the move. 
 The original name of the place was Eureka. 
 General A/'allejo made a proposition to the leg- 
 islature of 1850 to grant the state one hundred 
 and fifty-six acres of land and to donate and 
 pay to the state within two years after the ac- 
 ceptance of his proposition $370,000, to be used 
 in the erection of public buildings. The legisla- 
 ture accepted his proposition. The location of 
 the state capital was submitted to a vote of the 
 people at the election on October 7, 1850, and 
 Vallejo received more votes than the aggre- 
 gated vote of all its competitors. Buildings 
 were begun, but never completed. The legisla- 
 lure met there twice, but on account of insuffi- 
 cient accommodations sought other places 
 where they were better cared for. General Val- 
 lejo's proposition at his own request was can- 
 celled. In 1854 Mare Island, in front of Val- 
 lejo, was purchased by the general government 
 for a United States navy yard and naval depot. 
 The government works gave employment to 
 large numbers of men and involved the" expedi- 
 ture of millions of dollars. The town began to 
 prosper and still continues to do so. Its popu- 
 lation in 1890 was 6,343; in 1900, 7,965. 
 
 NEVADA CITY. 
 
 No mining town in California was so well and 
 so favorably known in the early '50s as Nevada 
 
HISTORICAX. AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 U7 
 
 City._ The first discovery of gold near it was 
 made in September, 1849; and the first store 
 and cabin erected. Rumors of rich strikes 
 spread abroad and in the spring of 1850 the rush 
 of gold-seekers came. In 185 1 it was estimated 
 that within a circuit of seven miles there was a 
 population of 30,000. In 1856 the business sec- 
 tion was destroyed by fire. It was then the 
 third city in population in the state. It has had 
 its periods of expansion and contraction, but 
 still remains an important mining town. Its 
 population in 1880 was 4,022; in 1890, 2,524; 
 in 1900, 3,250. 
 
 GRASS VALLEY. 
 
 The first cabin in Grass Valley was erected in 
 1849. The discoveries of gold quartz raised 
 great expectations. A quartz mill was erected 
 in 1850, but this new form of mining not being 
 understood, quartz mining was not a success; 
 but with improved machinery and better meth- 
 ods, it became the most important form of min- 
 ing. Grass Valley prospered and surpassed its 
 rival, Nevada City. Its population in 1900 was 
 4.719- 
 
 EUREKA. 
 
 In the two hundred years that Spain and Mex- 
 ico held possession of California its northwest 
 coast remained practically a terra incognita, but 
 it did not remain so long after the discovery of 
 gold. Gold was discovered on the head waters 
 of the Trinity river in 1849 ^^'^ parties of pros- 
 pectors during 1849 and 1850 explored the 
 country between the head waters of the Trinity 
 and Klamath rivers and the coast. Rich mines 
 were found and these discoveries led to the 
 founding of a number of towns on the coast 
 which aspired to be the entrepots for the sup- 
 plies to the mines. The most successful of these 
 proved to be Eureka, on Humboldt Bay. It 
 was the best located for commerce and soon 
 outstripped its rivals. Areata and Bucksport. 
 Humboldt county was formed in 1854, and Eu- 
 reka, in 1856, became the county seat and was 
 incorporated as a city. It is the largest ship- 
 ping point for lumber on the coast. It is also 
 the commercial center of a rich agricultural and 
 dairying district. Its population in 1880 was 
 2,639; in 1890, 4,858; in 1900, 7,327. 
 
 MARYSVILLE. 
 
 The site on which Marysville stands was first 
 known as New Mecklenburg and was a trading 
 post of two houses. In October, 1848, M. C. 
 'Nye purchased the rancho and opened a store 
 at New Mecklenburg. The place then became 
 known as Nye's rancho. In 1849 ^ town was 
 laid out and named Yubaville. The name was 
 changed to Marysville in honor of the wife of 
 the proprietor of the town Covilland. His wife 
 was Mary Murphy, of the Donner party. Marys- 
 ville, being at the head of the navigation of the 
 north fork of the Sacramento, became the en- 
 trepot for mining supplies to the miners in the 
 rich Yuba mines. After the decline of mining 
 it became an agricultural center for the upper 
 portion of the Sacramento. Its population in 
 1880 was 4,300; in 1890, 3,991; in 1900, 3,397. 
 
 REDDING. 
 
 The Placer Times of May 8, 1850, contains 
 this notice of Reading, now changed to Red- 
 ding: "Reading was laid of¥ early in 1850 by 
 P. B. Reading at the headwaters of the Sacra- 
 mento within forty-five miles of the Trinity 
 diggings. Reading is located in the heart of a 
 most extensive mining district, embracing as it 
 does, Cottonwood, Clear, Salt, Dry, Middle and 
 Olney creeks, it is in close proximity to the Pitt 
 and Trinity rivers. The pet steamer. Jack 
 Hayes, leaves tomorrow morning (May 9, 1850) 
 for Reading. It has been hitherto considered 
 impossible to navigate the Sacramento to this 
 height." The town grew rapidly at first, like 
 all mining towns, and hke most of such towns 
 it was swept out of existence by fire. It was 
 devastated by fire in December, 1852, and again 
 in June, 1853. Its original name, Reading, got 
 mixed with Fort Redding and it now appears on 
 all railroad maps and guides as Redding. Its 
 population in 1890 was 1,821; in 1900, 2,940. 
 
 PASADENA. 
 
 Pasadena is a child of the colony era of the 
 early '70s. Its original name was the Indiana 
 Colony. In 1873 a number of persons formed a 
 company for the purchasing of a large tract of 
 land and subdividing it among them. They in- 
 
248 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 corporated under the title of the San Gabriel 
 Orange Grove Association and purchased four 
 thousand acres in the San Pasqual rancho, sit- 
 uated about nine miles east of Los Angeles city. 
 This was divided on the basis of one share of 
 stock being equivalent to fifteen acres. E^ch 
 stockholder received in proportion to his invest- 
 ment. The colonists turned their attention to 
 the cultivation of vineyards and orange or- 
 chards. In 1875 the name was changed to Pasa- 
 dena, an Algonquin word meaning Crown of the 
 Valley. The colony had become quite noted fo;- 
 its production of oranges. In 1887 the great 
 real estate boom struck it and the cross roads 
 village suddenly developed into a city. It has 
 become famous as a tourist winter resort. Its 
 population in 1890 was 4,882; in 1900, 9,117. 
 
 POMONA. 
 
 Pomona was founded by the Los Angeles Im- 
 migration and Land Co-Operative Association. 
 This company bought twenty-seven hundred 
 acres of the Rancho San Jose, lying along the 
 eastern border of Los Angeles county. The 
 town was laid off in the center of the tract. The 
 remainder of the tract was divided into forty- 
 acre lots. The town made a rapid growth at 
 first, but disaster overtook it. First the dry 
 season of 1876-77, and next a fire that swept 
 it almost out of existence. In 1880 its popula- 
 tion had dwindled to one hundred and eighty 
 persons. In about 1881 it began to revive and 
 it has made a steady growth ever since. It is 
 the commercial center of a large orange grow- 
 ing district. Its population in 1890 was 3,634; 
 in 1900, 5,526. 
 
 SAN BERNARDINO. 
 
 San Bernardino was originally a Mormon col- 
 ony. In 185 1 one hundred, and fifty famihes 
 were sent from Salt Lake to found a colony or 
 a stake of Zion. The object of locating a colony 
 at this point was to keep open a line of commu- 
 nication with some seaport. San Bernardino was 
 near the old Spanish trail which led out through 
 the Cajon pass. Goods could be transported 
 to Salt Lake from San Pedro at all seasons of 
 the year, which could not be done to Salt Lake 
 
 over the central route v/estward or eastward 
 during the winter. The leaders of the Mormon 
 colony, Lyman and Rich, bought the San Ber- 
 nardino rancho from the Lugos. A portion of 
 the land was subdivided into small tracts and 
 sold to the settlers. The Mormons devoted 
 themselves to the cultivation of wheat, of which 
 they raised a large crop the first year and re- 
 ceived as high as $5 per bushel. The colony 
 prospered for a time, but in 1857 the settlers, 
 or all of them that would obey the call, were 
 called to Salt Lake by Brigham Young to take 
 part in the threatened war with the United 
 States. The faithful sold their lands for what- 
 ever they could get and departed. The gentiles 
 bought them and the character of the settlement 
 changed. The city of San Bernardino has an 
 extensive trade with the mining districts to the 
 east of it. Its population in 1890 was 4,012; in 
 1900, 6,150. 
 
 RIVERSIDE. 
 
 Riverside had its origin in the colony era. It 
 began its existence as the Southern California 
 Colony Association. In 1870 an association, of 
 which Judge John W. North and Dr. James P. 
 Gfeves were leaders, purchased four thousand 
 acres of the Roubidoux rancho and adjoining 
 lands, aggregating in all about nine thousand 
 acres. This was subdivided into small tracts 
 and sold to settlers at a low price. A town was 
 laid off and named Jurupa, but this being diffi- 
 cult of pronunciation its name was changed to 
 Riverside, which eventually became the name of 
 the settlement as well. An extensive irrigrating 
 system was constructed and the cultivation of 
 citrus fruits became the leading industry. The 
 Bahia or Washington navel orange has made 
 Riverside famous in orange culture. It was 
 propagated by budding from two small trees 
 sent by the Department of Agriculture to a citi- 
 zen of Riverside. The city of Riverside in area 
 is one of the largest cities of the state. Its 
 boundaries include fifty-six square miles. Its 
 corporate lines take in most of the orange 
 groves of the settlement. By this means mu- 
 nicipal regulations against insect pests can be 
 better enforced. The population of Riverside in 
 1890 was 4,683; in 1900, 7,973. 
 
1 .. 
 
 Cbaprr.an, Fr 1 1 i-'^.^s Co 'Zb.i: 
 
WILLIA.M J. NEWPORT. 
 
 vMLLlAM J. NEW rtJRT, banker, rancher, 
 
 ■p.<k ''i'eder and veteran of the Civil war, was 
 
 >>>rii nt-ar Lebanon, Warren county, Ohio, Feb- 
 
 mary 27. 1846, and died at his home near Han- 
 
 (irrd. Kings county, Cal., June 6, i(;04. He was 
 
 ikscendant of David Ne\v]j"it, a native of 
 
 . ''and, who immigrated to the United States 
 
 ' vounc;; manhood, setthng in Pennsylvania, 
 
 ':-,*re he resided for many years. He after- 
 
 -' tn came a pioneer of Ohio, making his home 
 
 ,', liat is now Warren county, wh^re he became 
 
 , citizen of prominence and influence. He lived 
 
 be eighty-six years of age. His son, James T., 
 
 A Sio was born in Pennsylvania, served in the war 
 
 !>f )8i2, and afterward became a captain in the 
 
 I >hio state militia. He lived to be sevcnt) -six 
 
 ' -cventy-seven years of age. lli.s son, Joseph 
 
 Virwin Newport, father of William J. Ncwp'-rt, 
 
 «^'ii.s born on the Warren count}- farm in iSifi. 
 
 He became widely known as a horticulturist, ac- 
 
 vifrjilishing much toward the advancement of 
 
 !!.' science of pomology in i)\\v... He married 
 
 . lizabeth Montgomery, a native of New Jersey 
 
 ! 'ennsylvania, and a daiii;!;*' j of Willicin 
 
 '.rntgomery, who came from Ireland to th-.. 
 
 iii^d States as a boy, locating in PttmsNlvania. 
 
 osej^h C. Newport lived to be seventy-five 
 
 >;ar!^ (>! age, and he and his wife ci^ltbratcfi their 
 
 i.'>i<len wedding in California in ii'^.SS. Mr-;. 
 
 < wport, who is now ■■i,.'li'y-six years of a,!.;i , 
 
 ■ v'sides in Lebanon, Ohio, and retains her mental 
 
 .ciikies to a rare d'uree. 
 
 fhe boyhood of Milliam J. Newjiort was 
 
 ...-si'd uneventfully on the farm in Warren 
 
 ■iiuly, Ohio, and with ihc exception of the 
 
 •i-blings of di.scontent and apprehe.n'^ion be- 
 
 ■ "<n \h< north and south, little happened to 
 
 ■' ik ibe mi nolony of hard work and irregular 
 
 > •i'.lance at the district schools. In 1863, at 
 
 t^e of seventeen years, Mr. Newport en- 
 
 ' ri Company B, Second Ohio Heaw Ar- 
 
 under Colonel Gibson, and at oni> en- 
 
 ■ '< ■' -nto active service for the L'nioii. L'lukr 
 
 '*'or^e H. 'Ml' mas he participated in tl;.- 
 
 .it Franklin, Tenn., Cleveland, Tenn., and 
 
 ■ ' uap, besides numerous minor engaue^ 
 
 • Hii^ command v-^as attached to the Anny 
 
 ■inilxrland, and under General Sherman 
 
 .i>^t»:.j in the March to the Sea and in the 
 
 • H'view at Washington, D. C, at the close 
 
 m- »far. Fortunately Mr. Newport escaped 
 
 ! the penalties of warfare, having suf- 
 
 . either serious illness nor injury. He was 
 
 ■'y discharged from the service at Colum- 
 
 bus, Ohio, .Auv.ust 23, 1865. Returning h<.inie 
 lie assi.'-!ed hi:- father in the work uri.m the farni, 
 
 but soon tnund Ins siirrr iiniiiiiirs 
 comjiansoii ui:b the sicrner reaUtii 
 
 :-,-.ni:.e m 
 of life ,1: 
 
 he had learned wi \u\v tiicm. 
 
 Jn iSoi) Mr. XeNsj.ioil reir,).ed ic ea-.tcrn 
 Kansa'-, ieeallng near Fort Scoll, and di-.nn^ the 
 following winttr and spfini; he attended the 
 Quincy Busirn -,s (,'ol!oge at (jsjiney. Til. In the 
 fall of 1868 he went ie' St. I'au!, Minn., and i'l r 
 two or three \ears wejrked in the luml>er eann^is 
 
 in that ^ ieimty. .Still remaining dis^atistie 
 
 ^ith 
 
 the middle wesl. he determined to embrace the 
 first favorable (ii)i>')rtanity to see the Pacific coast. 
 In pursuance of iliis plan he came to California 
 in 1873 and soeii after his arrival rented a ranch 
 in the Two Is'e>ck valley, near I'etaluma, Sonoma 
 county. So encouraging were the results of this 
 ind^ijendeiit venture, that in 1876 he establishe(l 
 a home of his own, marrying Elizabeth M. Rails- 
 back, a native of Warren county, Ind., the daugh- 
 ter of William and Mary (Rhode) Railsback, 
 liet!; of whom were of German extraction. Mrs 
 N2wj)ort's mother died when she was nine years 
 old, and her fatlier when she was twenty-three. 
 Six children were born of this union, namely : 
 Ada L., a graduate of the L-niversity of ('ali- 
 fornia. class of 1902, now a teacher in the Han- 
 ford high school ; Augusta E., who is engaged in 
 teachiric; vocal music: Walter Koll'i:, a inerchant 
 of Han!ord; Ernest C, who was edticated at ihe- 
 Lick Polytechnic School, and aj'jirfnii. ej him- 
 self with the Union Inm Work,< of San Fran- 
 cisco; and Rofa B. and .MildrcMl K.- whci are at 
 tiome. 
 
 In no wa> did ihc p; ot,n-essi\ c ano liberal mind 
 of Mr. Ncw]>jrr find a more satisfactory outlet 
 than in the rearint; and education of his children, 
 who, upon the found,: iui", of strong inherited 
 tendencies, have v. e)rked their way imo posi- 
 iions of more than ordinary merit uivl responsi- 
 l.nlity. The two eldest were born in Petaluma 
 and the others \\>r. born on tli? farm now oc- 
 cupied by the fanii'V, which Mr. Newport pur- 
 chased in 1878. 
 
 When Mr. .\c\e[ior; uurciiased the property 
 nicntieacd, he set about at once to develop is. e 
 ga^n,- in general farming and stock and fruit. 
 rai'-mt; In 1880 he and his brother, Jnhv. ': 
 purchased a threshing machine, which the 
 erated throughout this section of the cois - 
 
 four years. They built and con 
 cook-house, or boarding car, io-' 
 relieving the farmers ane! •nau^^v! 
 
 .-,,,,. ,! 
 
WILLIAM J. NEWPORT. 
 
 WILLIAM J. NEWPORT, banker, rancher, 
 stock-breeder and veteran of the Civil war, was 
 born near Lebanon, Warren county, Ohio, Feb- 
 ruary 27, 1846, and died at his home near Han- 
 ford, Kings county, Cal., June 6, 1904. He was 
 a descendant of David Newport, a native of 
 Scotland, who immigrated to the United States 
 in young manhood, settling in Pennsylvania, 
 where he resided for many years. He after- 
 ward became a pioneer of Ohio, making his home 
 in what is now Warren county, where he became 
 a citizen of prominence and influence. He lived 
 to be eighty-six years of age. His son, James T., 
 who was bom in Pennsylvania, served in the war 
 of 1812, and afterward became a captain in the 
 Ohio state militia. He lived to be seventy-six 
 or seventy-seven years of age. His son, Joseph 
 Corwin Newport, father of William J. Newport, 
 was born on the Warren county farm in 1816. 
 He became widely known as a horticulturist, ac- 
 complishing much toward the advancement of 
 the science of pomology in Ohio. He married 
 Elizabeth Montgomery, a native of New Jersey 
 or Pennsylvania, and a daughter of William 
 Montgomery, who came from Ireland to the 
 United States as a boy, locating in Pennsylvania. 
 Joseph C. Newport lived to be seventy-five 
 years of age, and he and his wife celebrated their 
 golden wedding in California in 1888. Mrs. 
 Newport, who is now eighty-six years of age, 
 resides in Lebanon, Ohio, and retains her mental 
 faculties to a rare degree. 
 
 The boyhood of William J. Newport was 
 passed uneventfully on the farm in Warren 
 county, Ohio, and with the exception of the 
 rumblings of discontent and apprehension be- 
 tween the north and south, little happened to 
 break the monotony of hard work and irregular 
 attendance at the district schools. In 1863, at 
 the age of seventeen years, Mr. Newport en- 
 listed in Company B, Second Ohio Heavy Ar- 
 tillery, under Colonel Gibson, and at once en- 
 tered into active service for the Union. Under 
 Gen. George H. Thomas he ^participated in the 
 battle at Franklin, Tenn., Cleveland, Tenn., and 
 Bull's Gap, besides numerous minor engage- 
 ments. His command was attached to the Army 
 of the Cumberland, and under General Sherman 
 participated in the March to the Sea and in the 
 Grand Review at Washington, D. C, at the close 
 of the war. Fortunately Mr. Newport escaped 
 many of the penalties of warfare, having suf- 
 fered neither serious illness nor injury. He was 
 honorably discharged from the service at Colum- 
 
 bus, Ohio, August 25, 1865. Returning home, 
 he assisted his father in the work Upon the farm, 
 but soon found his surroundings irksome in 
 comparison with the sterner realities of life as 
 he had learned to view them. 
 
 In 1866 Mr. Newport removed to eastern 
 Kansas, locating near Fort Scott, and during the 
 following' winter and spring he attended the 
 Quincy Business College at Quincy, 111. In the 
 fall of 1868 he went to St. Paul, Minn., and for 
 two or three years worked in the lumber camps 
 in that vicinity. Still remaining dissatisfied with 
 the middle west, he determined to embrace the 
 first favorable opportunity to see the Pacific coast. 
 In pursuance of this plan he came to California 
 in 1873 and soon after his arrival rented a ranch 
 in the Two Rock valley, near Petaluma, Sonoma 
 county. So encouraging were the results of this 
 independent venture, that in 1876 he established 
 a home of his own, marrying Elizabeth M. Rails- 
 back, a native of Warren county, Ind., the daugh- 
 ter of William and Mary (Rhode) Railsback, 
 both of whom were of German extraction. Mrs. 
 Newport's mother died when she was nine years 
 old, and her father when she was twenty-three. 
 Six children were born of this union, namely : 
 Ada L., a graduate of the University of Cali- 
 fornia, class of 1902, now a teacher in the Han- 
 ford high school ; Augusta E., who is engaged in 
 teaching vocal music ; Walter Rollin, a merchant 
 of Hanford ; Ernest C, who was educated at the 
 Lick Polytechnic School, and apprenticed him- 
 self with the Union Iron Works of San Fran- 
 cisco; and Rofa B. and Mildred R., who are at 
 home. 
 
 In no way did the progressive and liberal mind 
 of Mr. Newport find a more satisfactory outlet 
 than in the rearing and education of his children, 
 who, upon the foundation of strong inherited 
 tendencies, have worked their way into posi- 
 tions of more than ordinary merit and responsi- 
 bility. The two eldest were born in Petaluma 
 and the others were born on the farm now oc- 
 cupied by the family, which Mr. Newport pur- 
 chased in 1878. 
 
 When Mr. Newport purchased the property 
 mentioned, he set about at once to develop it, en- 
 gaging in general farming and stock and fruit 
 raising. In 1880 he and his brother, John B., 
 purchased a threshing machine, which they op- 
 erated throughout this section of the country for 
 four years. They built and conducted the first 
 cook-house, or boarding car, for employes, thus 
 relieving the farmers and inaugurating in south- 
 
252 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 erii California a system which has since been 
 generally adopted. 
 
 Subsequently William J. Newport became sole 
 owner of the machine, operating it for the ensu- 
 ing four years alone. From that time forward he 
 engaged exclusively in the cultivation of fruit 
 and the raising of grain and stock. At the time 
 of his death his ranch consisted of one hundred 
 and twenty acres, forty of which were devoted 
 to fruit. He was a model farmer, painstaking 
 and thrifty,' taking vastly more pleasure in his 
 work than most men thus engaged. His under- 
 takings were rewarded by success, and he glad- 
 ly paid the price of ceaseless vigilance for the 
 good fortune bestowed upon him. He was a great 
 frjend and admirer of the horse, and it is no 
 exaggeration to say that he bought, sold and bred 
 more draft horses than any other individual in 
 Kings county, importing the sires, and paying 
 especial attention to animals especially adapted 
 to work in California. Several years ago he 
 abandoned grain-raising for fruit-culture. He 
 has owned and improved a number of orchards 
 and vineyards in Kings county, but a short time 
 prior to his death he disposed of all but his home 
 farm, which is one of the most valuable and high- 
 ly improved in this section of California. 
 
 To so broad-minded a man as Mr. Newport, 
 events occurring outside his own particular do- 
 main naturally enlisted his support and co-opera- 
 tion. The development of Kings county was a 
 matter in which he exhibited the keenest pride, 
 and in innumerable ways he assisted in its 
 march of progress. In 1887 he became one of 
 the organizers of the Bank of Hanford, in which 
 he served for several years as a director. He 
 was also one of the founders of the Farmers' and 
 Merchants' Bank of Hanford, organized in 1891, 
 and from July 13, 1897, to July 15, 1902, he 
 served as its president, but declined the honor at 
 the latter date on account of the pressure of per- 
 sonal business matters. At the time of his death 
 he was still a member of its board of directors. 
 His political sympathies were always with the 
 Republican party. Though he was averse to 
 public life, he felt it his duty to serve as super- 
 visor of Tulare county from 1886 to 1890, in re- 
 sponse to a strong popular demand; and in 1893, 
 when Kings county was separated from Tulare 
 county, he was appointed a member of the com- 
 mission on organization by Governor Markham. 
 He was deeply interested in the development of 
 the oil fields of Kern and Fresno counties, and 
 was the owner of valuable properties in both 
 counties. Earlier in life he assisted for some 
 time in the operation of a lumber mill in the 
 Sierra forests, and was identified with the lum- 
 ber industry of Tulare county. In 1890 the old 
 cabin which had been the home of his family for 
 many years was removed from its site, and in 
 
 its place a handsome modern residence was 
 erected. The death of Mr. Newport was keenly 
 felt by his comrades in McPherson Post No. 51, 
 G. A. R., whose commander he had been snice 
 the last annual meeting of that organization. 
 
 In closing this memoir of one of the most m- 
 fluential and highly respected residents of Kings 
 county, it is but proper to record the fact that 
 no citizen of Hanford stood higher in the esteem 
 of thoughtful people than he. Throughout his 
 useful career he gave frequent evidence of the 
 possession of those traits of character upon which 
 rest the wealth and stability of communities. 
 Those who knew him best have paid him the 
 tribute of saying that he exhibited an unselfish 
 public spirit, a generosity of heart and a high- 
 mindedness of motive in all acts, public or pri- 
 vate, which entitle him to rank forever among 
 the most thoroughly representative men of Kings 
 county. The record of his upright and highly 
 useful career, perpetuated in the annals of the 
 state of California, should prove a source of in- 
 spiration to the younger generations, and of 
 gratification and pride to his descendants. 
 
 JAMES B. STEARNS. Oakdale in 1886 
 bore slight resemblance to the thriving, bustling 
 town which today evidences not only progress, 
 but promise, and which counts among its chief 
 upbuilders men expert in all lines of commercial 
 and industrial enterprise. As in all parts of the 
 west there were openings for ability and far- 
 sightedness, for thoroughness and high citizen- 
 ship, and the advent of men representing these 
 commendable attributes found appreciation and 
 sure financial reward awaiting them. In Janu- 
 ary, 1886, James B. Stearns, a rugged Canadian 
 of New England ancestry, joined the forces of 
 industry in Oakdale, and ever since that time 
 'his name has been associated with the most 
 earnest and capable efforts along the Hues of 
 blacksmithing, carriage and implement construc- 
 tion in Stanislaus county. The senior member 
 at present of the firm of Stearns & Harray; his 
 has the distinction of being not only the larg- 
 est, but the oldest and most reliable of any 
 similarly engaged concern in this part of the 
 state. 
 
 The early life of this honored citizen pre- 
 sents the interesting development of all who have 
 struggled with the absence of money and influ- 
 ence, and who have attained their goal solely 
 through their own efforts. He was trained to the 
 self-sacrifice and early assumption of responsi- 
 bility common in all large families of moderate 
 means, and as the fourth oldest of twelve chil- 
 dren, felt the pressure of an inadequate treas- 
 ury. Born in Lachute, province of Quebec, No- 
 vember 24, 1856, he is descended on both sides 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 253 
 
 of his family from English ancestry, on the 
 •paternal side from a forefather who early set- 
 tled in Connecticut, and on the maternal side 
 from a pioneer of the province of Quebec. His 
 father and grandfather were both farmers near 
 Lachute, and his mother, formerly Sarah Ann 
 Banning, came from a farm in the vicinity of the 
 quaint old town. His mother and several of the 
 children still live in Ontario, Canada, himself 
 and brother Albert, the latter a carriage manu- 
 facturer of Sacramento, being the only ones to 
 come to the coast; Interspersed with his farm 
 work, Mr. Stearns attended the public schools 
 of the northern province, and at the age of six- 
 teen apprenticed for three years to a carriage- 
 maker at Russell, Ontario. After a year at 
 school he worked at his trade in Ontario, Can- 
 ada, and in 1876 located in Rochelle, Ogle coun- 
 ty, 111., where he found steady employment at 
 carriage-making for four years. He then en- 
 gaged in blacksmithing and carriage-making at 
 Ashton, Lee county, 111., and in December, 1884, 
 yielded to d long dormant desire to cast his for- 
 tunes with the now famed coast country. Re- 
 maining in Davisville, Yolo county, for a num- 
 ber of months, he came to Oakdale in January, 
 1886, soon after purchasing an interest in a car- 
 riage manufactory with a Mr. Wilbert, operat- 
 ing the same under the firm name of Wilbert & 
 Stearns. In 1888 the interest of Mr. Wilbert re- 
 verted to M. J. Nightingale, and Nightingale 
 & Stearns continued in partnership until the 
 substitution of J. M. Harray in 1893. Stearns & 
 Harray have acquired a reputation second to 
 none on the coast for thoroughness and prac- 
 ticability, and have enlarged their business until 
 they now occupy a building 100 feet square and 
 two stories high, the machinery of which is oper- 
 ated by electric power. Their carriages, wagons, 
 plows, harrows, and carpentering tools, are un- 
 excelled, and are made of the finest materials 
 procurable in the west. Both men have a thor- 
 ough understanding of their business, and in ad- 
 dition realize the importance of fairness and 
 honesty in dealing with their many patrons and 
 friends. They represent the conservative, sub- 
 stantial business men of the coast, and their abil- 
 ity to represent the best in their line has long 
 since passed the era of experiment. 
 
 Mr. Stearns is a public-spirited and liberal gen- 
 tleman, taking a keen interest in many avenues 
 of activity which want of time alone prevents 
 his active participation in. The Republican par- 
 ty has profited by his able leadership as a mem- 
 ber of the county committee, and he has other- 
 wise invested the undertakings of his party with 
 dignity and practical usefulness. He is an in- 
 fluential factor in the Methodist Church, of 
 which he has been a trustee for many years, and 
 of which he is now chairman of the board, 
 
 Through his marriage in Lee county. III, with 
 Frances Lundy, a native of Pennsylvania, and 
 daughter of William Lundy, a California settler 
 of 1882, two children have been born into his 
 family, Eva Bell and Edna Adella. Mr. Stearns 
 is affable and approachable, kind and considerate 
 to his many employes, and in his life and char- 
 acter furnishes an example of the strong, mod- 
 erate and successful promoter of western enter- 
 prises. 
 
 DAVID L. JONES. The substantial, capable 
 and progressive citizens of San Joaquin county 
 have no better representative than David L. Jones, 
 who occupies a noteworthy position among the 
 enterprising, practical and business-like farmers, 
 who are so ably conducting the agricultural in- 
 terests of this part of the state. A son of the 
 late John W. Jones, he was born on his father's 
 farm, in that part of the valley now called Esca- 
 lon, January 13, 1867. His grandfather, Electus 
 Jones, was of Welsh ancestry. He was public- 
 spirited and patriotic, and after serving as a 
 soldier in the Revolution settled as a planter in 
 North Carolina. 
 
 Born on the parental plantation in North Caro- 
 lina, John W. Jones was there bred to agricul- 
 tural pursuits. In the earlier part of his career 
 he took up land in Missouri, and having cleared 
 a farm remained there until 1852. Joining an 
 ox-team train in that year, he made an overland 
 trip to California, being six months in crossing 
 the plains. Recognizing the fact that the many 
 miners flocking here from all parts of the Union 
 must be fed, he wisely decided that more money 
 could be made by tilling the soil than in digging 
 for gold. Locating accordingly on the Stanis- 
 laus river, he raised a good crop of grain the first 
 season, dragging in the seed with a brush. The 
 crop which he harvested he readily sold to the 
 men traveling to the southern mines, receiving 
 five cents a pound for the grain. Removing to 
 the present site of Escalon in 1853, he erected 
 a good dwelling-house, and began his career as 
 a grain raiser in earnest, having at first a small 
 ranch. At the end of each harvesting season, 
 with the money that he received for his wheat, 
 he purchased more land, until his home farm con- 
 tained one thousand acres. In addition to this, 
 he bought land in Stanislaus and Tulare counties, 
 becoming one of the most extensive landholders 
 in the state, at one time having a clear title to 
 thirty-seven thousand acres. He made two re- 
 turn trips to the east, and on each occasion 
 brought back with him large herds of cattle to 
 stock his ranches. He made a specialty of rais- 
 ing sheep, being thus actively engaged when wool 
 was selling at high prices, and made a good deal 
 of money in his operations. He was a man of 
 
■25i 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 marked ability and integrity, and stood very 
 high in the community. He died in Escalon, in 
 the brick residence that he occupied, September 
 ID, 1893, aged seventy-two vears. He was keenly 
 interested in the welfare of his adopted town and 
 county, and was a stanch adherent of the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 John W. Jones was twtce married. His first 
 wife, who died while crossing the plains, in 1852, 
 bore him six children, of whom but one is living, 
 .lamely: Mrs. Edna M. Bledsoe, of Modesto. 
 His second marriage was with Catherine M. 
 Dunlap, who was born in Springfield, III, which 
 was also the place of birth of her father, John 
 W. Dunlap, a pioneer stockman and farmer of 
 Knights Ferry, this state. She died on the home 
 farm, in Escalon, September 25, 1880, at the age 
 of forty-eight years. Of the eight children born 
 of this union, three are living, namely : David 
 L., the special subject of this sketch; Alice D., 
 residing with her brother David ; and James W., 
 living on the old home farm. 
 
 After leaving the district schools, David L. 
 Jones completed his early education at the Lytton 
 Springs College, in Sonoma county. Choosing 
 as his life-work the independent vocation to which 
 he was reared, he began farming for himself at 
 the age of twenty-one years, assuming possession 
 of the ranch which he now owns and occupies. 
 It is well situated on the river road, about three 
 miles from the village of Escalon, and contains 
 one thousand acres of land, which he devotes, 
 principally, to the raising of stock and grain. 
 Mr. Jones has met with characteristic success as 
 an agriculturist, and has added valuable im- 
 provements to his estate, having an orange grove 
 and a good orchard, and, in 1890, having erected 
 a large two-story residence. 
 
 In Oakland Mr. Jones married Hattie L. King, 
 a native of Wisconsin, and they have two chil- 
 dren, namely : Herbert L. and Merrill E. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Jones is a stanch Republican, and 
 fraternally he is an Odd Fellow. 
 
 D. M. TOOTHACRE. At an early period 
 of our country's history the Toothacre family 
 became established in Maine, and from that state 
 one of the name went forth to fight under the 
 standard of the colonies during the first struggle 
 with England. John Toothacre, a son of this 
 Revolutionary soldier, was born in Bangor, Me., 
 and at an early age settled on Long Island, New 
 York, where he enlisted in the war of 1812. 
 A man of sturdy frame and stalwart physique, 
 he was well fitted to endure the hardships and 
 privations of army life. Nor was he less adapted 
 for the stress and strain of pioneer existence. 
 To such as he Nature in her primeval condition 
 possessed charms which no city could aflford. 
 
 Like Daniel Boone and many other hardy fron- 
 tiersmen, he was content with the rough fare,' 
 the constant danger and the many deprivations 
 incident to the civilizing of the then west. For 
 a time after leaving New York he tilled the soil 
 near Zanesville, Ohio, but as early as 1836 he 
 settled in Jefferson county, Iowa, where he be- 
 came an extensive and prosperous stockman, and 
 lived to be one hundred and two years old. 
 
 In the family of this progressive pioneer was 
 a son, John W., who was born in Bangor, Me., 
 and who grew to manhood in the then frontier 
 regions of Iowa, where for years he engaged 
 in raising stock and general farm products. 
 Shortly after the outbreak of the Civil war he 
 enlisted and was accepted as a member of the 
 Twenty-second Iowa Infantry, but owing to his 
 unusual weight (two hundred and thirty-five 
 pounds) Captain Newbold (afterward governor of 
 Iowa) recommended that he be mustered out 
 as unable to endure the strain of long forced 
 marches. For this reason he saw no active 
 service. After many years in Iowa, during 1884 
 he went to Kansas and bought land in Sheridan 
 county, where he still carries on a stock busi- 
 ness as well as general farming. Fraternally he 
 is connected with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows. 
 
 The marriage of John W. Toothacre united 
 him with Rebecca Hickenbottom, who was born 
 in Jacksonville, Ky., and is still living. Her 
 father, Joseph Hickenbottom, was a Virginian 
 by birth and a pioneer of Kentucky. When Mr. 
 Hickenbottom and his father went to Iowa in 
 1836 they were the first white settlers west of 
 the Skunk river in that state, and his remaining 
 years were devoted to the development of a tract 
 of raw land in Jefferson county. Prosperity at- 
 tended his efforts. In time he accumulated thou- 
 sands of acres of tillable land. Not only was he 
 a man of influence among the white settlers who 
 gradually flocked to that section of country, but 
 among the Indians as well he wielded consider- 
 able influence and for years during his early 
 residence in Iowa he enjoyed the personal 
 friendship of the great chief, Blackhawk. At 
 the time of his death he was more than ninety 
 years of age. 
 
 In the family of John W. Toothacre there 
 are four sons and one daughter, all still living, 
 and of these the eldest, D. M., was born at Fair- 
 field, Jefferson county, Iowa, March 22, 1863. 
 In boyhood he attended the country schools dur- 
 ing the winter months and helped at home in 
 the summer. On starting out for himself, in 
 1880, he went to Colorado and for three years 
 engaged in lumbering at Leadville. The year 
 1883 found him in California, where he worked 
 at the lumber business in Santa Cruz. In 1884 
 he was appointed deputy to Sheriff Crittenden, 
 
v.'/v.r^'.yyM y- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 257 
 
 and two years later, on resigning that office, he 
 came to Visalia, where he took up carpentering. 
 That occupation engaged his attention entirely 
 until 1894, when he formed the partner,ship of 
 Heberling & Toothacre and organized the com- 
 pany of which he is now vice-president and 
 which owns the pioneer brickyard of Visalia. 
 
 The first wife of Mr. Toothacre was Miss 
 Jennie Brown, to whom he was married in 
 1887. She was a native of Ottumwa, Kans., and 
 came to California in 1886, dying in Visalia in 
 1889. The present wife of Mr. Toothacre was 
 formerly Miss Amanda Samis, who was born 
 in Amador county, Cal., their marriage being 
 solemnized in Hanford. They are the parents 
 of two children. Delta and Buenna, and make 
 their home at No. 407 Northwest First avenue, 
 in a residence built by Mr. Toothacre. In fra- 
 ternal relations he is a member of the Foresters 
 and Woodmen of the World, along commercial 
 lines holds membership in the Visalia Board 
 of Trade, and politically gives his allegiance to 
 the Republican party and is- a member of the 
 county central committee. 
 
 FRANK H. SHORT, attorney-at-law, Fresno, 
 Cal., occupies a position of distinction at the bar 
 of California, and for several years past has be€n 
 recognized as one of the leaders of the Republican 
 party of this state. He was born September 12, 
 1862, in Shelby county, Mo., and is a son of 
 Hamilton and Emily (Wharton) Short. His 
 father, who was also born in Shelby county, was 
 a son of John Short, who was born in "Delaware, 
 of English ancestry. In young manhood he im- 
 migrated to Missouri, becoming one of the 
 pioneers of Slielby county, where he cleared and 
 improved a homestead. He v^as a man of pro- 
 found religious convictions, and for many years 
 was actively identified with the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church. Hamilton Short received a com- 
 mon-school education, and afterward engaged in 
 farming. Upon the outbreak of the Civil war 
 he enlisted in the Missouri state troops ; and while 
 serving in the army died from drinking poisoned 
 vvater, being but twenty-nine years of age at the 
 time. Like his father, he was a consistent mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church. His 
 wife, who was born in Mount Pleasant, Ohio, 
 now resides near Fresno, Cal. Her father, 
 William Sayre Wharton, deceased, a descendant 
 of one of the early families of Delaware, was 
 born and reared in Ohio, where he learned the 
 trade of saddler. He subsequently located in 
 Shelby county. Mo., where he was engaged in 
 farming for a number of years. Removing to 
 the Pacific coast in later life, he spent his declin- 
 ing days in California, dying in Fresno in 1900, 
 at the advanced age of eighty-eight years. He 
 
 was a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, and in politics was a stanch Republican. 
 Two of his sons, Frank and F. A., served in the 
 Union army during the Civil war. Frank Whar- 
 ton, who held a commission as lieutenant, re- 
 moved to Fresno during the early days of its his- 
 tory, and until his death in 1889 was one of its 
 leading citizens, being a prominent attorney and 
 at one time a representative in the state legisla- 
 ture. His brother, F. A. Wharton, also removed 
 to Fresno county, where he is now a successful 
 vineyardist. 
 
 Of the children born of the union of Hamilton 
 and Emily (Wharton) Short, two attained ma- 
 turity, namely : John W., now postmaster of 
 Fresno, and Frank H. The latter attended the 
 common schools of Shelby county. Mo., until he 
 had reached the age of nine years, when he went 
 to Hastings, Neb., where his schooling was con- 
 tinued. At the age of nineteen years he was en- 
 gaged to teach school for one term. Removing 
 to Fresno in the spring of 1882, he continued 
 teaching one year, in the meantime beginning the 
 study of the law under the direction of his uncle, 
 Frank Wharton. In 1887 he was admitted to the 
 bar, and since that time has been successfully en- 
 gaged in the practice of his profession. Well 
 versed in the intricacies of the science, he has 
 successfully conducted many important cases, and 
 has ably filled the position of attorney for various 
 corporations. He is now serving as attorney for 
 the well-known firm of Miller & Lux ; for the 
 Fresno Canal & Irrigation Company, in which 
 he is also a director ; for the Fresno Electric Com- 
 pany ; for the City Water Company ; and for the 
 Fresno National Bank, in which he is a director 
 and one of the original stockholders. Associated 
 with Judge Chapman of Los Angeles, he was 
 connected with the litigation over oil lands be- 
 tween Scrippers and the mineral locators, and 
 was successful in obtaining decisions of the su- 
 preme court of the United States and from the 
 Secretary of the Interior in favor of the mineral 
 locators. He has likewise been actively identified 
 with other cases of importance. He assisted in 
 the prosecution of Heath for the murder of Mc- 
 Whorter, and defended Professor Sanders, ac- 
 cused of forgery and suspected of the murder of 
 WilHam Wooton. In the latter case he suc- 
 ceeded in avoiding the charge of murder, as the 
 death of Wooton was not actually proven, 
 although Sanders was subsequently prosecuted 
 for forgery and sentenced to prison. In a pro- 
 ceeding before the railway commissioners he suc- 
 ceeded in procuring a reduction of ten per cent 
 in the rates of transportation for oil, thus saving 
 the oil shippers about $500,000 per year at the 
 time and at the present amounting to about double 
 that sum. The cases here cited are but a few of 
 the more important ones with which Mr. Short 
 
258 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 has been associated, and the success which at- 
 tended his conduct of them has given him a posi- 
 tion among tlie leaders of the bar of Cahfornia. 
 Throughout his career his practice has been uni- 
 formly successful, whether in civil or criminal 
 causes. 
 
 Outside of legal circles, Mr. Short is best 
 known as one of the most aggressive and progres- 
 sive leaders in the ranks of the Republican party 
 in California. In 1885, two years prior to his 
 admission to the bar, he was elected justice ol 
 the peace. At the end of his term he became the 
 nominee of the 'Republican party for the office of 
 district attorney, but was not elected, the county 
 being strongly Democratic. He has been prom- 
 inent in state and county conventions for several 
 years. In 1896 he was chosen as a delegate to 
 the Republican National convention at St. Louis, 
 when McKinley was nominated for the presi- 
 dency. In 1904 he was a leading member of the 
 California delegation to the Republican National 
 convention at Chicago, at which Roosevelt was 
 nominated. He took a prominent and conspicu- 
 ous part in the work of that body, and was one 
 of the sub-committee chosen to frame the plat- 
 form upon which the campaign was- conducted. 
 In 1898 Governor Gage appointed him a member 
 of the State Board of Commissioners for the 
 preservation of the Yosemite Valley, a post he 
 still occupies. He was for a term also a member 
 of the board of trustees of the State Normal 
 School at San Jose. Fraternally he is a member 
 of Fresno Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M. ; of Trigo 
 Chapter No. 69, R. A. M. ; of Fresno Com- 
 mandery No. 29, K. T. ; and of Islam Temple, 
 A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Francisco. He is also 
 a member of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men. In his social relations he is identified with 
 the Union League and the Bohemian clubs of 
 San Francisco and with the Sequoia Club of 
 Fresno. He is also a member of the State Bar 
 Association, and ex-President of the Fresno 
 County Bar Association. In religion he is a com- 
 municant of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 In Fresno, in 1897, he was united in marriage 
 with Nellie C. (Curtis) Rorick, who was born in 
 Iowa, but was reared and educated in Los An- 
 geles. She had one daughter, Mildred. By his 
 first wife, Emma Packard, Mr. Short has one 
 son, Frank H., Jr. 
 
 Endowed by nature with a body and mind of 
 exceptional vigor, with praiseworthy ambition 
 and indefatigable powers, Mr. Short has become 
 recognized as a master of his profession at an 
 age when most men are standing upon the thresh- 
 holds of their careers. The marked success 
 which has attended his efforts is doubtless due 
 more to his untiring zeal and industry and his con- 
 stant application to the work intrusted to his care 
 than to any other attributes, although underlying 
 
 all is a thorough groundwork of study under the 
 supervision of one of the best-equipped lawyers 
 who ever practiced before the courts of southern 
 California. During the years of his residence in 
 this state he has given frequent evidence of a 
 hearty desire to accomplish all within his power 
 for the advancement of community interests, and 
 particularly for the promotion of those move- 
 ments intended to elevate the social, moral, edu- 
 cational and industrial status of Fresno county. 
 Though comparatively young in years, his strong 
 personal attributes have long since been gener- 
 ally recognized, and these characteristics, taken 
 in conjunction with his manifest public spirit, his 
 breadth of mind in viewing all public affairs, and 
 his generosity of heart, have given him a place in 
 the esteem of thoughtful and discriminating men 
 which few men attain at his time of life. His 
 work is making a marked impress upon the trend 
 of events in California, and the record of his life 
 is entitled to a place of distinction in the annals 
 of the state. 
 
 JOHN SUBLITT JOHNSON. Occupying 
 a prominent place among the citizens of Visalia, 
 Tulare county, is John Sublitt Johnson, whose 
 interests are as varied as the talents which have 
 marked his career in his adopted state. As a 
 child of eight years he came west with his father, 
 Langston A. Johnson,, whose sketch is found 
 elsewhere in this volume, starting from St. 
 Charles county, Mo., where he was born August 
 16, 1859. His boyhood years were passed in 
 the city of Los Angeles, this state, where he at- 
 tended the public schools, afterward becoming a 
 student in the schools of Kern county, where he 
 removed with his parents in 1874. Two years 
 later the family located in Visalia and this city 
 has since been the scene of the most ambitious 
 efforts of Mr. Johnson. 
 
 After completing an attendance of the com- 
 mon schools, Mr. Johnson attended Heald's 
 Business College, San Francisco, where he grad- 
 uated at the age of twenty-three years; this 
 training in Heald's Business College prepared 
 him for a business career. He then engaged as 
 a bookkeeper in his father's store in Visalia, and 
 also with various other concerns. Following this 
 he mined in Fresno county for several years, and, 
 returning to Visalia, entered politics, and in 1891 
 was elected to the office of county tax collector 
 after serving one year as deputy, and was col- 
 lector of taxes for six years. He then entered 
 Packers' School of Mines and graduated from 
 that institution. In 1899 he removed to Inde- 
 pendence, Inyo county, where he established a 
 laboratory. The following year he went to Nome, 
 Alaska, and engaged as a miner for one year in 
 the capacity of assayer and engineer and making 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 '25'J 
 
 reports on the various mines. Upon his return 
 to VisaHa he engaged in the same occupation, 
 establishing a laboratory at the corner of Bridge 
 and School streets. He is still interested in 
 mines in Inyo county as well as in Mexico. In 
 January, 1902, in partnership with William Ket- 
 ner, Mr. Johnson purchased the Visalia City 
 Water Company (incorporated), and in June, 
 1904, became sole owner of the concern by pur- 
 chase of his partner's interest. This plant is 
 operated by the Holly system, which pumps di- 
 rect into the pipes, the pumps used being the very 
 latest centrifugal type of Crow pumps. There 
 are two stations, one on the west side, with three 
 weils, and one on the east side, with five wells, 
 with an average depth of one hundred and twen- 
 ty-five feet. Mr. Johnson is also interested in 
 orchards in Evansdale, where, with a partner, he 
 owns eighty-three acres. He owns residence 
 property in VisaHa, as well as a quarter block 
 of business property, upon which is located a 
 livery stable. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Johnson united him with 
 Olga Woerner, who was born in Oakland, Cal. 
 In his political affiliations a Democrat, Mr. John- 
 son has been very active in his efforts to advance 
 the principles he espouses. Fraternally he is a 
 Mason of high degree, belonging to the Blue 
 Lodge, Chapter and Commandery, in Visalia, 
 and Islam Temple, N. M. S., of San Francisco; 
 and is a member of the Scottish Rite of Oakland. 
 He is also a member of the Lodge of Perfection 
 of Visalia; of the Woodmen of the World, and a 
 charter member of the lodge of the Knights of 
 Pythias, with which he has been identified for 
 twenty-one years. He belongs to the National 
 Guards, having been a charter member of Com- 
 pany E of the Sixth California regiment. He 
 has been a member for fourteen years and now 
 ranks as captain, as well as holding the office of 
 regimental commissary. A true sportsman, he 
 occupies admirably the office of vice president 
 of the State Fish and Game Association. In 
 the best interests of his home city he acts as 
 director in the building and loan association and 
 also on the board of trade. A public-spirited 
 and enterprising citizen, Mr. Johnson is highly 
 esteemed by all who know him. 
 
 J. GOODWIN THOMPSON, M. D. In con- 
 sidering the career and character of this emi- 
 nent member of the medical fraternity, the im- 
 partial observer will be disposed to rank him 
 not only among the distinguished members of 
 the profession on the coast, but also among the 
 most cultured and beneficent characters thus al- 
 lied with Stanislaus county. Born in Poughkeep- 
 sie, Dutchess county, N. Y., November 26, 1864, 
 his only patrimony was physical vigor and ten- 
 
 acity of purpose characteristic of the race from 
 which he springs, his ancestors coming from the 
 heart of Scotch Presbj'terianism, near Glasgow, 
 Lanarkshire, Scotland. His paternal grand- 
 father, William, brought his family to Pough- 
 keepsie, N. Y., at an early day, thus indulging a 
 departure from conservative procedure entirely 
 foreign to the trend of his forefathers. When 
 old age began to creep through his veins, the tra- 
 ditions of his native land, and the presence of his 
 children, weaned him back to the scenes of his 
 childhood, youth and manhood, and his death oc- 
 curred in Lanark, where he had farmed for so 
 many years, and where he attained the age of 
 ninety-one years. James Thompson, the father 
 of J. Goodwin, was a boy when he came from 
 Scotland, and after learning the trade of loco- 
 motive engineering, was employed on the New 
 York Central Railroad. About 1870 he brought 
 his family to near Portland, Ore., remained there 
 six months, and then settling on his present farm 
 at Lanark Park, Cal.^ in Stanislaus county. To 
 his original purchase he has added, and now 
 owns fifteen hundred acres, which, out of re- 
 gard for his native Scottish county, he has named 
 Lanark Park. True to the religious traditions of 
 his family, he is a stanch Presbyterian and an 
 elder in the church. His poHtical tendencies are 
 with the Republican party, and his activity has 
 resulted in commendable service as a member of 
 the county central committee. His wife, for- 
 merly Agnes Boyd, was born in New Jersey, and 
 is the mother of seven sons and three daugh- 
 ters. Dr. Thompson being the oldest of all. 
 
 Since his sixth year Dr. Thompson has lived 
 in California, and notwithstanding his father's 
 comparatively limited circumstances, has been 
 able to profit by the best educational opportun- 
 ities of the state. Starting out in that great field 
 of human equality, the public schools, he evi- 
 denced a:n early regard for the acquisition of 
 knowledge, and in 1886 graduated with honors 
 from the Modesto ■ high school. Pursuing his 
 studies at the University of California, his in- 
 dustry and balance met with the approval of his 
 superiors, and with the appreciation of his fel- 
 low students. He was active in college societies 
 and athletics, and in his senior year was treas- 
 urer of the associated student body, his gradua- 
 tion taking place in 1891, with the degree of 
 Ph. B. Long since, the determination to devote 
 his energies to medical science had taken firm 
 jroot in his mind and heart, and the fall follow- 
 ing his graduation he entered the medical de- 
 partment of the University of California, gradu- 
 ating from that institution in 1894. In 1895 he 
 located in Oakdale and began a general practice 
 of medicine and surgery, and it is the pride of 
 his adopted town that it has profited by his 
 steady advancement, and encouraged with its 
 
260 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 patronage and good-will his more than laudable 
 ambitions. In the early days of his practice he 
 met with success and encouragement, which is 
 not common to all alleviators of human ills, all 
 cases being regarded as stepping-stones to a 
 never failing and well defined ideal. 
 
 The mind of Dr. Thompson is eminently con- 
 structive, impelling him to suggest and put into 
 operation new agencies of instruction and relief. 
 Thus in 1903, he began the erection of a sani- 
 tarium which should embody the best known 
 means of caring for surgical and medical pa- 
 tients, and although the institution was opened as 
 recently as December 15, of that year, it quickly 
 outlived its capacity, and was in crying need of 
 additional facilities for caring for its applicants 
 for admission. Additions were made enabling 
 the doctor to accommodate three times as many 
 patients. The ground floor now covers 50x75 
 feet, the operating room also taking on the dig- 
 nity of larger proportion and newer appliances. 
 Besides, two cottages are in connection with the 
 sanitarium building. The sanitarium, equipped 
 with the latest modern appliances. X-ray appara- 
 tus, etc., is complete in every detail. The doctor 
 moves steadily in grooves maintained by the med- 
 ical school for years past, his practice suggest- 
 ing everything that is modern and yet conserva- 
 tive. The fascinations and. enormous possibili- 
 ties of surgery have led him to devote his chief 
 energies to that department of medical science, 
 and his inventive faculty has led him to devise, 
 modify and improve a variety of instruments 
 used in the delicate operations of surgery, as well . 
 as to introduce new methods of treatment and 
 manipulation of obscure cases. The recognition 
 of his skill has been prompt and far-reaching, 
 and has drawn patients from all over this and the 
 surrounding counties. In addition to his regular 
 practice important obligations of a public na- 
 ture have accumulated along his path, and he is 
 examiner of old line insurance companies, dis- 
 trict surgeon for the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 Company, and has at times been connected with 
 large mercantile and mining enterprises in the 
 capacity of physician and surgeon. He is a mem- 
 ber of the San Joaquin Valley Medical Associa- 
 tion, a charter member of the Pacific Coast As- 
 sociation of Railway Surgeons and a member of 
 the International Association of Railway Sur- 
 geons. His achievements are based on an inti- 
 mate knowledge of the intricate subjects of hu- 
 man anatomy and scientific therapeutics, to 
 more extensively write of which must needs 
 suggest the limitations attached both to the writ- 
 er and to the ordinary reader. 
 
 In the midst of his engrossing practice Dr. 
 Thompson has found time and inclination to en- 
 ter the marts of trade, and to profit by certain 
 advantages of wealth acquiring presented in his 
 
 native state. With his brother Robert, he is 
 operating a farm of fifteen, hundred acres at Lan- 
 ark Park, devoted to stock, alfalfa and grain 
 raising, making a specialty of a model dairy, and 
 high-grade Durham cattle. As a money maker 
 this farm has more than realized the expecta- 
 tions of its enthusiastic promoters. Ever since 
 his graduation Dr. Thompson has voted the Dem- 
 ocratic ticket, and in 1902-04 was a member of 
 the state central committee and of the county 
 central committee. For years he has realized the 
 social and general advantages of fraternal or- 
 ganizations, and at present is a member of the 
 Modesto Chapter, R. A. M., the Stockton Lodge 
 No. 218, B. P. O. E., and the Knights of Pyth- 
 ias. In religion he is a Presbyterian. No broad- 
 er or more uplifting human agency is working 
 for the good of Oakdale than that represented 
 in the life and character of Dr. Thompson. His 
 nature craves the best, and his intellect pene- 
 trates deeply and surely into the mazes of human 
 suffering and human relief. His work is con- 
 genial, satisfying, presenting interminable vis- 
 tas to be trodden reverently and with due re- 
 gard for the most trenchant of human respon- 
 sibility. His nature is genial, his heart large 
 and his capacity for research and labor practi- 
 cally inexhaustible. 
 
 HENRY BRICKLEY. A fine representative 
 of the native-born sons of Fresno county, and a 
 man of ability and integrity, Henry Brickley is 
 a deservedly popular member of the professional, 
 business and social circles of the city of Fresno. 
 As one of the rising young lawyers of the place, 
 he is building up a good practice and fast win- 
 ning for himself a prominent and honorable name 
 in the legal fraternity. A son of the late John 
 Brickley, he was born June 28, 1876, in Liberty, 
 Fresno county, of Irish ancestry. 
 
 John Brickley was born and reared in the 
 city of Cork, Ireland. When a young man he 
 immigrated to this country, and settled in Chi- 
 cago, 111., where he followed the trade of car- 
 penter and builder. Enlisting in an Illinois 
 regiment, he served in the Civil war, and just 
 before the surrender of Lee was wounded in the 
 right leg. In 1866, with his wife, he came across 
 the plains to California, and for two years or 
 more was a resident of Truckee, Nevada county. 
 Coming then to Fresno county, he engaged in 
 general farming and sheep raising for a few 
 years. He died in 1879 ""^ Madera county. His 
 wife, whose maiden name was Sarah McCor- 
 mickj_ was born in Ireland, and now lives near 
 Fresno. Four children were born of their union, 
 three daughters and one son, Henry, the special 
 subject of this sketch, being the third child in 
 succession of birth. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 263 
 
 Brought up in Fresno county, Henry Brickley 
 obtained his elementary education in the district 
 schools, and was afterward graduated from the 
 Fresno high school. Entering the University 
 of California in 1897, he continued there through 
 the sophomore year. The ensuing two years, he 
 was on the reportorial staff of the Fresno Re- 
 publican, during which time he studied law. Sep- 
 tember 12, 1900, Mr. Brickley was admitted to 
 the bar, and has since been actively ^engaged in 
 the practice of his profession, his office being in 
 the Short building. Mr. Brickley is also inter- 
 ested to some extent in agricultural pursuits, 
 owning a ranch of one hundred and twenty acres. 
 This ranch, lying about eight miles west of Fres- 
 no, near Kearney, is entirely under irrigation, 
 and is devoted to the raising of alfalfa, a most 
 prolific and valuable crop. Mr. Brickley is a 
 member of the County Bar Association, and a 
 charter member, and ex-president, of Fresno 
 Parlor No. 25, N. S. G. W. 
 
 FULTON G. BERRY. Distinguished as a 
 pioneer of California, and as one who has been 
 actively identified with the business and financial 
 interests of the state, Fulton G. Berry of Fresno 
 is especially worthy of honorable mention in a 
 work of this character. Coming to the Pacific 
 coast when a young man, more than half a cen- 
 tury ago, he has since been variously employed, 
 and by his own efforts has worked his way up- 
 ward from a state of comparative poverty to one 
 of affluence and influence. The lineal descendant 
 of a prominent New England family, he was 
 born February 10, 1832, in Belfast, Me., a son 
 of Watson Berry. He comes of thrifty Scotch 
 ancestry, his great-grandfather having been born 
 in Scotland, from there immigrating to the 
 United States in colonial times, and settling i-n 
 Massachusetts. Mr. Berry's paternal grand- 
 father, Scotta Berry, was a life-long resident of 
 Massachusetts, his home being on Cape Cod. 
 
 A native of Harwich, Barnstable county, Mass., 
 Watson Berry grew to manhood in his native 
 state, and during the War of 181 2 was an officer 
 in the American army, serving as colonel of a 
 regiment. Subsequently removing to Maine, he 
 established a tannery in Belfast, and was after- 
 ward engaged in mercantile business in that city 
 until his death, at the age of seventy-six years. 
 He was highly esteemed as a man of integrity, 
 and was prominent in the Masonic fraternity, 
 and in the Whig party. He married Elizabeth 
 Nickerson, who was born in Chatham, Mass., 
 and died in Chelsea, Mass. Her father, Capt. 
 Richard Nickerson, was born of English ances- 
 tors in Massachusetts, and died in the state that 
 gave him birth. He was for many years master 
 
 of an ocean vessel, and successfully engaged in 
 the East India trade. 
 
 The youngest of a family of twelve children, 
 Fulton G. Berry was bred and educated in Bel- 
 fast, Me., remaining beneath the parental roof 
 until seventeen years old. Ambitious and enter- 
 prising as a youth, he determined to seek the best 
 possible oppoTtunities for increasing his finances, 
 and soon after the discovery of gold in California 
 he concluded to try his fortunes in the mining 
 fields. Going to New York City, he sailed by 
 way of the Isthmus of Panama, and after a tedi- 
 ous voyage landed in San Francisco on May 20, 
 1 85 1. Going directly to the old diggings in 
 Forbestown, he met with success, and on his re- 
 turn to San Francisco sent his mother some of 
 his first accumulations. He was subsequently 
 employed in mining on the American river, and 
 afterward on the Yuba river, at Cherokee. Lo- 
 cating in San Francisco in 1853, Mr. Berry se- 
 cured employment at sand shoveling. Invest- 
 ing his earnings in a horse and dray, he was 
 engaged in teaming the following seven years, in 
 the meantime cooking his own meals, and sleep- 
 ing in the stable loft. Embarking then in the 
 grocery business, he opened a store at the corner 
 of Jackson and Stockton streets, where he car- 
 ried on a successful business for six years. Dur- 
 ing the stirring scenes of those years, he was an 
 active member of the Vigilance Committee, en- 
 forcing law and order, as far as lay in his power. 
 Subsequently becoming junior partner of the 
 firm of Badlam & Berry, Mr. Berry engaged in 
 the real estate business, his office being at No. 
 318 Montgomery street. Later, becoming a 
 member of the San Francisco Stock Exchange, 
 he paid $30,000 for a seat, the price given being 
 a record breaker. He was one of the charter 
 members of the Pacific Board, but sold his seat 
 in this to purchase the one mentioned above. 
 Later locating in San Rafael, he leased the 
 Tamalpais hotel, which he managed for two 
 years. The ensuing three years Mr. Berry served 
 as commissary at the San Quentin state prison. 
 Resigning his position there in 1884, he came to 
 Fresno, which had then a population of scarce 
 twenty-five hundred souls. Buying a half inter- 
 est in the Grand Central hotel, which is most 
 advantageously located in the center of the city, 
 he met with such success in its management that 
 he subsequently bought out the interests of his 
 partner, and in 1888 purchased the entire prop- 
 erty. The house is 1 50 x 1 50 feet, containing 
 four floors, and is finely furnished and equipped 
 for hotel purposes. 
 
 With characteristic enterprise Mr. Berry has 
 been actively associated with the establishment 
 of many of the city's improvements and indus- 
 tries. He started the first steam laundry in town, 
 built the first street railway in Fresno; was the 
 
264 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 principal owner of the gas works until the plant 
 was sold ; was one of the original owners of the 
 electric light plant ; and, in company with Ryland 
 Wallace, started the first orange grove in the 
 San Joaquin valley, setting out seventy acres of 
 trees at Orange Dale, on Kings river. He still 
 retains his interest in this grove, and likewise 
 owns a ranch of one hundred and forty acres. 
 This ranch, known as the Grand Central farm, 
 is located about three-fourths of a mile from 
 Fresno, and is devoted to general farming and 
 dairying. When he became a resident of Fresno, 
 Mr. Berry had lost a fortune, and was then 
 $16,000 in debt. By strict attention to the de- 
 tails of business he has accumulated some of the 
 best paying property in Fresno county. He was 
 one of the executive committee of the Mid- Win- 
 ter Fair held in San Francisco, which proved a 
 great success and as a result the museum now 
 seen in Golden Gate Park was built. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Berry married Mary 
 Eliza Torrey, who was born in Rockland, Me., 
 a daughter of E. M. Torrey, who came to Cali- 
 fornia in 1849 with the gold seekers. Settling 
 in San Francisco, he became one of the earliest 
 contractors and builders of the city, and was 
 joined by his family in 1850. Of the union of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Berry four children were born, two 
 of whom are deceased, namely : Fulton M., who 
 was engaged in the insurance business, and died 
 at the age of twenty-six years, and Mabel, who 
 died at the age of twenty years. Two daugh- 
 ters are living, namely : Mrs. Minnie L. Goodwin, 
 formerly a missionary in Cheefoo, China, now re- 
 siding in Mill Valley, and Maude Lillian, wife of 
 Frank Moulan, of New York city, who is now 
 the leading lady and whose husband is the leading 
 comedian with Klaw & Erlanger, playing in New 
 York city and meeting with great success in the 
 new spectacular play, Humpty Dumpty. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Berry is a Republican and has served 
 as member of the city council. Fraternally he 
 was made a Mason at California Lodge No. i, 
 San Francisco, and is now a member of Fresno 
 Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M. He is also a member 
 of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, and 
 of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. So- 
 cially he is connected with several of the promi- 
 nent clubs of San Francisco, including the Bo- 
 hemian club, the Union League club, the Family 
 club and the Corinthian Yacht club. 
 
 After an absence of fifty-three years Mr. Berry 
 made a visit to his old home and seeing how the 
 people have to economize to exist, he returned to 
 Fresno county with a firmer belief in its possi- 
 bilities than ever and declares that should any 
 unforeseen reverses overtake him he would nev- 
 er leave the county to gain another start in life. 
 Few residents of Fresno have taken so active 
 and important a part in the actual work of devel- 
 
 oping the city as has Mr. Berry. Settling there 
 when it was a comparatively small town, he soon 
 discerned the great possibilities offered by the 
 place and its surroundings, and at once began the 
 work of promoting enterprises of the greatest 
 public utility. Since then, during all the years 
 of his residence in Fresno, he has taken a lead- 
 ing part in the work of making that city one of 
 the most desirable places of residence in the state, 
 as well as assisting materially in the advance- 
 ment of the industrial, commercial and social in- 
 terests of the city. He has always exhibited a 
 keen public spirit, has been generous in his treat- 
 .ment of his fellowmen and liberal in his contribu- 
 tions toward worthy enterprises of whatsoever 
 nature, and has become widely known as one of 
 the most progressive and loyal champions which 
 Fresno has ever had. It is to such men as he 
 that the greatest credit for the upbuilding of the 
 city belongs, and thoughtful citizens freely ac- 
 cord him the honor which is his just due. Per- 
 sonally Mr. Berry is a man of most kindly and 
 considerate disposition, living not alone for him- 
 self, but striving throughout his daily life to be 
 of some benefit to mankind. He is entitled to a 
 permanent place in the historical Hterature of the 
 San Joaquin valley and of California, and the 
 foregoing brief estimate of his character and 
 standing as a citizen is a consensus of the opin- 
 ion of those who have known him best for a score 
 of years. 
 
 WILLIAM JOSEPH KITTRELL. A man 
 of abdity and integrity, enterprising and prac- 
 tical, William Joseph Kittrell-is well known in 
 the business circles of Fresno, being secretary 
 and financial agent of the Fresno Agricultural 
 Works, and secretary of the Knob Hill Oil 
 Company. He comes of honorable pioneer an- 
 cestry, his grandfather, Joseph Kittrell, and his 
 father, Francis M. Kittrell, having been among 
 the earlier settlers of San Joaquin county. A 
 Virgmian by birth, Joseph Kittrell settled in 
 Kentucky when a young man, from there remov- 
 uig to Clarksville, Ark. Joining the vast tide 
 of gold-seekers in 1849, he crossed the plains 
 to California, and for a year was successfully 
 employed in mining. Going home the following 
 year, he returned, in 1852, with his family to the 
 Pacific coast, bringing with him a fine herd of 
 cattle, and locating near Stockton. Taking up 
 land he carried on general farming, including 
 the raising of grain and stock, being quite suc- 
 cessful. He subsequently removed to Stanislaus 
 county, where he spent his declining years. 
 
 A native of Kentucky, Francis M. Kittrell 
 lived there but a short time before his parents 
 removed to Arkansas, where he acquired his 
 early education. As a young man he came with 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 265 
 
 his father to California, and lived for a time 
 near Stockton, where he assisted in the pioneer 
 labor of improving a homestead. Subsequently- 
 locating at French Camp, he followed general 
 farming a number of years. In 1867 he removed 
 with his family to Stanislaus county, where he 
 continued in agricultural pursuits for four years. 
 In 1871 he bought land on the Sacramento river, 
 in Isleton, Sacramento county, and there en- 
 gaged in his free and independent occupation 
 until his health failed. Owing to a severe attack 
 of asthma, in 1876. Returning then to Stanis- 
 laus county, he remained there until his death, 
 in 1877. His wife, whose maiden name was Se- 
 lina Harp, was born in Tennessee, of Dutch an- 
 cestry, her paternal great-grandfather having 
 been born and bred in Holland.- Her father, 
 William Harp, a native of Tennessee, became a 
 pioneer farmer of Arkansas. In 1852 he crossed 
 the plains to California, and located first in San 
 Joaquin county, later going to Stanislaus coun- 
 ty, where he resided until his death, at the vener- 
 able age of eighty-three years. He was an in- 
 dustrious, hard-working man, very successful in 
 his agricultural labors, and acquired much 
 wealth. After her husband's death Mrs. Selina 
 Kittrell resided for a few years with her father, 
 William Harp. She subsequently married, in 
 Stockton, Mr. Zabel, and now resides on Thirty- 
 fifth street, Oakland, Cal. Of her union with 
 Mr. Kittrell, four children were born, namely: 
 William Joseph, the special subject of this 
 sketch; Byron C, who died at the age of twenty 
 years; Mrs. Villa M. Purveyor, of Fresno; and 
 Francis M., of San Francisco, where he is em- 
 ployed by the Market Street Railway Company. 
 Born October 10, 1866, William J. Kittrell 
 spent the days of his childhood and youth in 
 Stanislaus county, three miles south of Modesto, 
 and was graduated from the Modesto high school 
 in 1886, and from the Stockton Business College 
 the following year. The next six months he was 
 an assistant teacher in the college from which he 
 had received his diploma, and on giving up the 
 situation located at Fresno Flats, Madera coun- 
 ty, where he was clerk and bookkeeper in a gen- 
 eral mercantile house for eight months. Accept- 
 ing a position with James Porteous, in March, 
 1888, he continued as bookkeeper and salesman 
 for the Fresno Agricultural Works for six years. 
 As the works increased in capacity and output, 
 additional help was needed, and Mr. Kittrell 
 gave assistance where it was most needed, and 
 has since 1894 had entire charge of the finan- 
 cial department, and is now one of the stock- 
 holders of the company. He is also secretary 
 of the Knob Hill Oil Company, which was 
 formed in 1900, capitalizing with $25,000, and 
 electing ' the following named officers : James 
 Porteous, president; W. A. Ferguson, superin- 
 
 tendent; G. T. Willis, vice-president; W. J. 
 Kittrell, secretary; and C. C. Wheeler. This 
 company owns forty acres of land on the Kern 
 river, and from the wells now in operation takes 
 out about two thousand barrels of oil per day, 
 having a fine flow ever since the first well was 
 struck. In the plant, the development of which 
 cost upward of $100,000, two large engines and 
 two boilers are kept constantly pumping, and 
 the equipments are of the most modern and ap- 
 proved style. Mr. Kittrell also owns valuable 
 real estate in Fresno. 
 
 In 1888, in Modesto, Mr. Kittrell married Miss 
 Ella Vezey, who was born in San Andreas, this 
 state, a daughter of D. D. Vezey. Mr. Vezey, 
 a native of Vermont, came to California in 1848, 
 and for many years was a prosperous contractor 
 and builder in San Andreas, but is now a resi- 
 dent of Fresno. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Minerva J. Lewis, was born in Illinois. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Kittrell have one child, a son, named 
 Erroll Kittrell. Fraternally Mr. Kittrell be- 
 longs to Fresno Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M., and 
 Fresno Commandery No. 29, Knights Templar, 
 and is a member of Fresno Lodge of Perfection. 
 Politically he is a sound Democrat, and in relig- 
 ion he is a member of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 SCOTT McKAY. A thorough master of his 
 profession, Scott McKay of Fresno, the present 
 county surveyor of Fresno county, is considered 
 one of the best civil engineers and surveyors of 
 this section of the state. He is accurate, pains- 
 taking, familiar with the topography of the coun- 
 ty, and is filling his responsible office most credit- 
 ably and acceptably to all concerned. He was 
 born July 17, 1868, in Vevay, Ind., which was 
 also the birthplace of his father, George W. Mc- 
 Kay. His grandfather, Isaac McKay, was a 
 life-long resident of Vevay, Ind., his parents 
 having migrated there from Virginia, being pio- 
 neers of the place. He followed agricultural 
 pursuits during his active life, clearing and im- 
 proving a homestead from the wilderness. 
 
 A farmer by birth and breeding, George W. 
 McKay is now living on the ancestral homestead 
 where his birth occurred sixty-three years ago. 
 From early manhood he was employed as a civil 
 engineer, and as county surveyor of Switzerland 
 county, Ind., a position which he held many 
 terms, he surveyed a large part of that county. 
 He was a strong Republican in politics, active in 
 public affairs, and two of his brothers served in 
 the Civil war. He married Mary Siebenthal, 
 who was born in Vevay, and there spent her en- 
 tire life, dying in 1899. Her father, Benjamin 
 Siebenthal, was also a life-long resident of that 
 place, his parents having located in Switzerland 
 county, Ind., on immigrating to this country from 
 
266 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Germany. He reared several children, and three 
 of his sons were soldiers in the Civil war. Of 
 the seven children born of the union of Mr. and 
 Mrs. George W. McKay, five are living, Scott, 
 the second child, and eldest son, being the only 
 one residing in California. 
 
 After completing the course of study in the 
 public schools, and the Vevay high school, Scott 
 McKay, in 1886, entered the scientific depart- 
 ment of the State Normal School at Terre Haute, 
 and remained there until his senior term. He 
 subsequently taught school a year, and then 
 decided to take up the professoin of civil en- 
 gineering, with which he was already quite fa- 
 miliar, having worked with his father more or 
 less from early boyhood. Entering the senior 
 class of the Valparaiso State Nornial School in 
 1890, Mr. McKay was graduated from that in- 
 stitution with the degree of C. E. in 1891. Com- 
 ing to California soon after, he located in Fres- 
 no, and as construction engineer for the San 
 Joaquin Electric Company had charge of the 
 building of the Reservoir Pipe Line ditches. At 
 the end of sixteen months, when the work was 
 completed, he became deputy county surveyor 
 under Surveyor Hoxie, with whom he was asso- 
 ciated for about seven years. In 1902 Mr. Mc- 
 Kay was nominated on the Republican ticket 
 for county surveyor of Fresno county, and was 
 elected by a majority of fourteen hundred and 
 ninety-six, for a term of four years, beginning 
 in January, 1903. 
 
 Mr. McKay married, in Fresno, Helen Jewett, 
 a native of Wisconsin, and a daughter of George 
 D. Jewett, an electrician, now living in Fresno, 
 retired from active business. Mr. and Mrs. 
 McKay have one child, a son named Warren 
 Scott McKay. Mr. McKay is a stanch supporter 
 of the principles of the Republican party, and 
 takes an active interest in city and county affairs. 
 He is a member of the Chamber of Commerce 
 and belongs to the Royal Arcanum, to the In- 
 dependent Order of Foresters, and to the Wood- 
 men of the World. 
 
 RICHARD HENRY ENDICOTT, M. D. 
 During the twenty-nine years Dr. Richard Henry 
 Endicott has pursued the practice of medicine 
 in California, he has been known not only for 
 his skill and assiduity as a physician, but also 
 for the genial urbanity of his manners, his liter- 
 ary taste and talent, and for his popularity as a 
 member of its social circles. He has gained pro- 
 fessional eminence by none of the arts of the 
 charlatan, neither has he sought it in special lines 
 of practice. He has been content to follow the 
 beaten track in which physicians educated in the 
 highest sense of the regular school, and loyal to 
 its ethical code, seek rather to merit recognition 
 
 by their knowledge and skill, than to gain notor- 
 iety by the more questionable methods by which 
 less meritorious practitioners find a short cut to 
 fame and fortune. Few, engrossed in the absorb- 
 ing occupations of life, appreciate the patience, 
 the self-denying apphcation, the weight of care 
 and anxiety, and the enormous responsibility 
 which attends the life of the meritorious phy- 
 sician. - It is the pride of the many families which 
 have come to regard Dr. Endicott as an integral 
 part of their households, that he belongs to and 
 adorns this class of professional men. 
 
 It is pleasing to note that Dr. Endicott belongs 
 to the only American aristocracy, that of brains 
 and birth. An ennobling ancestry set up in his 
 childish heart an ideal which the years have not 
 diminished or changed, and which has served as 
 a spur in overcoming obstacles and discouraging 
 drawbacks. Born in Ridgely, Platte county, Mo., 
 October 9, 1845, he is a lineal descendant of 
 Governor John Endicott of Massachusetts, that 
 zealous Puritan, Indian fighter and executive, 
 who was born in Dorchester, England, in 1589, 
 and who died in Boston, Mass., March 15, 1665. 
 Later members of the family made their way to 
 Virginia, where Joseph Endicott, the paternal 
 great-grandfather of the doctor was born, and 
 from which state he emigrated to Bourbon coun- 
 ty, Ky., in the early days of its plantation suprem- 
 acy. His son William, the next in line of succes- 
 sion, was born in Bourbon county, as was also 
 his son, Richard Bohannan Endicott, the father 
 of Richard Henry. William Endicott miOved 
 from Bourbon to Henry county, Ky., later mak- 
 ing his home in Platte county. Mo., where he 
 conducted farming until his death. Dr. Endi- 
 cott's mother, formerly Dieza L. Cartwright, was 
 a niece of that famous Methodist Episcopal cir- 
 cuit preacher, Peter Cartwright, who flourished 
 in the latter part of the eighteenth and fore 
 part of the nineteenth centuries. She was a 
 daughter of Isaac Cartwright, a planter of North 
 Carolina, where she was born, and from there 
 she went overland with horse teams to Missouri. 
 Richard Endicott made a fair success of farming 
 in Platte county, reared his family of four sons 
 and two daughters, three of whom are living, 
 and spent his declining years on a farm in Clay 
 county, where his life ended just as the Civil war 
 burst in fury over the land in 1861. Two 
 of his sons entered the medical profession, J. M., 
 the oldest, practicing for many years in Oakdale, 
 this state, where his death occurred. 
 
 Dr. Endicott is one of the many successful 
 men of to-day who had their characters set and 
 their thoughts turned into serious and responsi- 
 ble channels by the Civil war. When the call 
 for volunteers JDroke into the occupations of men, 
 he was a diard-working farmer lad with little 
 thought of the future, and at the time of his 
 
i;2>^-^3^^-!*C,-<^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 267 
 
 discharge in St. Louis, July 6, 1865, he was still 
 a youth, whose nineteen years would scarcely 
 seem to warrant the serious and earnest outlook 
 upon life. Enlisting in Company K, Eighteenth 
 Missouri Volunteer Infantry, in 1862, he was 
 mustered in at Macon, Mo., and after serving 
 six months was taken ill and discharged for dis- 
 ability. Enlisting in 1863 in Company A, Fourth 
 Missouri Cavalry, he participated in the second 
 battle of Springfield, January 8, 1863 ; the battle 
 of Jefferson City, Mo. ; of Marshalltown ; Big 
 Blue; Little Blue; besides numerous skirmishes 
 and cavalry dashes, and spent the winter of 1864 
 in quarters at Sedalia, Mo. When peace settled 
 over the country he returned to his home in 
 Missouri and attended Ridgely Academy, com- 
 pleting the course in 1868. A closely following 
 experience was a journey to Colorado as a con- 
 tractor on the Union Pacific Railway in Wy- 
 oming, and after the completion of the road he 
 returned to Missouri and began to study medi- 
 cine under his brother, J. M. Endicott. At the 
 same time he engaged in the drug business, and 
 in 1871 removed his store to Peru, Kans., where 
 he continued in the store until entering the Col- 
 lege of Physicians and Surgeons at Keokuk, 
 Iowa, from which he was graduated in the class 
 of 1875. 
 
 At the outset of his professional career Dr. 
 Endicott wisely chose California as his most 
 likely field of effort, practicing in Hollister from 
 the fall of 1875 until 1876, and then locating in 
 Darwin, Inyo county, where he remained a few 
 months. He next located in Sacramento, and 
 from there he removed to Bakersfield in 1877, 
 assuming the position of superintendent and phy- 
 sician of the county hospital. For five years he 
 practiced medicine in Riovista, Solano county, 
 and in 1883 took a much needed rest in the east, 
 visiting different cities and hospitals, and taking 
 a course at a hospital in St. Louis. Returning 
 to California in 1884, he practiced in Gilroy 
 until 1886, and for the following seven years 
 worked up a large practice in Oakdale. In 1893 
 he located in Stockton, from which headquarters 
 he followed mining in Tuolumne and Eldorado 
 counties, becoming interested as organizer and 
 promoter in several large properties. He was a 
 member of the company which opened the Red 
 Cloud mine, near Plymouth, organized the Red 
 Cloud Company and opened the North Star and 
 Black Warrior mines in Tuolumne county. He 
 also became interested in the Noonday mine in 
 Tuolumne county, which they mined for several 
 seasons, and a quarter of which he still owns. 
 In 1901 the doctor settled in Riovista, duplicated 
 his former success until 1904, in which year he 
 became a resident of Oakdale, to which he 
 brought a splendid reputation for erudition and 
 ability. Dr. Endicott has a son by his former 
 
 marriage, Edwin E., who shares his professional 
 tendency, and is now a practicing surgeon of 
 Jackson, Cal. He was educated in the public 
 schools and graduated from the Kentucky School 
 of Medicine m Louisville in 1894. In Stockton 
 Dr. Endicott married for his second wife. Lulu 
 Bechtol, a native of Clark county, Mo., and the 
 mother of two children : Jessie, a graduate of 
 the Stockton high school, and Albert. Dr. Endi- 
 cott is a Mason and Knight of Pythias, and in 
 politics is a Republican. His intellectual charac- 
 ter is marked by strong qualities and positive 
 convictions, which are tempered by kindly feel- 
 ing and sympatliy for the weak, while his profes- 
 sional endowments are of the kind which have 
 tended to inspire confidence in his ability and a 
 retention of his services as long as they were 
 available in a given locality. He is a sincere and 
 high-minded gentleman, proud of his good name, 
 his many and loyal friends and the success which 
 has been so fairly and strenuously won. 
 
 THOMAS W. PATTERSON. One of the 
 substantial and prominent men of Fresno is 
 Thomas W. Patterson, president of the Fresno 
 National Bank, and an extensive owner of landed 
 property in both city and county. Beginning 
 life at the bottom of the ladder of attainment, he 
 has steadily pushed his way upward, by ener- 
 getic industry, perseverance and wise manage- 
 ment achieving distinguished success in financial 
 and business ciixles. A son of T. J. Patter- 
 son, he was born August 3, 1859, in Perry, Wyo- 
 ming county, N. Y. He comes of patriotic New 
 England stock, his paternal grandfather, Robert 
 Patterson, a native of the Granite state, having 
 served as lieutenant of a company in the Revo- 
 lutionary war, Mr. Patterson having now in his 
 possession the commission which made him an 
 officer in the army. 
 
 Born and brought up in Londonderry, N. H., 
 T. J. Patterson subsequently settled in Wyoming 
 county, N. Y., as a manufacturer, and there 
 spent the remainder of his life. He married 
 Sophia H. Mace, who was born in Lockport, 
 N. Y., and died, in 1887, in New York state. Her 
 father, Isaac Mace, a native of Lowell, Mass., 
 was the descendant of a Puritan family of New 
 England. Of their union but two children were 
 born, a son and a daughter. 
 
 His parents removing to Warsaw, N. Y., when 
 he was young, Thomas W. Patterson was edu- 
 cated in the public schools of that place, and 
 was afterward employed in mercantile pursuits 
 in Rochester, N. Y. Going thence to Buffalo, 
 N. Y., he was similarly engaged in that city 
 until 1888, when he came to California and took 
 up his residence in Fresno, and has since been 
 a conspicuous factor in promoting its best inter- 
 
268 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ests. For a number of years he was actively 
 engaged in the real estate and loan business, in 
 1896 becoming associated with the Fresno Na- 
 tional Bank. In January, 1897, Mr. Patterson 
 was elected a director of this institution; in 
 January, 1900, was elected vice-president and 
 director, and since March, igoo, has ably served 
 as president. This bank, the second oldest na- 
 tional bank of Fresno, founded in 1888, has a 
 capital of $200,000, with a surplus of $60,000, 
 and is carrying on a general banking business, 
 hiving the largest capital stock of any bank in 
 the city. Mr. Patterson owns ranches, vineyards 
 and orchards in various parts of Fresno county, 
 and has valuable city property. His residence, 
 the old Pulaski house, is one of the most attract- 
 ive in the city, being most pleasantly located 
 on Tulare street, and surrounded by a magnifi- 
 cent park of three acres. On the northeast cor- 
 ner of Tulare and J streets, Mr. Patterson erect- 
 ed, in 1900, Patterson block, a fine building 
 150 X 175 feet, two stories in height, and in 1904 
 erected, in company with Colonel Forsyth, a 
 still larger block on the southeast corner of Tu- 
 lare and J streets, the dimensions being the same 
 as the former building, but having four stories 
 and a basement. This is modernly equipped and 
 furnished in every respect, fitted for offices, and 
 is the most complete in all of its details of any 
 similar block in the San Joaquin valley. 
 
 In Fresno, November 12, 1892, Mr. Patterson 
 married Lizzie E. Bernhard, who was born in 
 Mariposa county, the daughter of George Bern- 
 hard, a California pioneer, and an early settler 
 of Fresno. Mr. and Mrs. Patterson are the 
 parents of two children, namely : Dorothy H. 
 and John D. In politics Mr. Patterson is a 
 stanch supporter of the Republican party. He 
 is a member of the California Bankers' Asso- 
 ciation and of the American Bankers' Associa- 
 tion. 
 
 FRANCIS A. FEE. In every era of the 
 world's history the profession of the law has 
 attracted to its practice many of the keenest 
 minds which their generation could boast. Not- 
 withstanding the fact that the twentieth century 
 promises to be a strictly commercial age, it would 
 not be unwise to presage for the law that it will 
 continue to draw to its practice men of brilliant 
 intellects and that it will continue to fascinate 
 them by the intricate problems it constantly offers 
 for solution. Among the attorneys of California 
 who have gained an assured position in the profes- 
 sion mention belongs to Francis A. Fee of Madera 
 who practices in both the civil and criminal 
 branches of the law, and in addition to his pri- 
 vate practice acts as attorney for the Madera 
 Board of Trade, the Madera Sugar Pine Com- 
 
 pany, the Commercial Bank of Madera, the Ma- 
 dera Electric Light and Water Companies, and 
 various other concerns of an important nature. 
 
 Many years ago John Fee, who was a native 
 of Carrick-on-Shannon, Ireland, became a pio- 
 neer of the Western Reserve in Ohio and there 
 developed a farm, where he was largely inter- 
 ested in raising stock until his death. Like him- 
 self, his wife was of Irish nativity. She bore the 
 maiden name of Sarah Parks and since the death 
 of her husband has continued to live in Ohio. 
 Of their three sons and one daughter Francis 
 A. is the youngest child and the only one on the 
 Pacific coast. He was born in Trumbull county, 
 Ohio, November 5, 1859, and received the rudi- 
 ments of his education in the country schools. 
 The knowledge there secured was supplemented 
 by study in the Grand River Institute at Austin- 
 burg, Ashtabula county. While still a mere lad 
 he had resolved to become a lawyer and in pur- 
 suit of this plan, in 1881, he took up the study 
 of law under Judge Hunter of Warren, Ohio. 
 Having completed the prescribed course of study 
 and passed the stipulated examination, in Oc- 
 tober, 1883, he was admitted to the supreme 
 court of Ohio. 
 
 On selecting a location for practice Mr. Fee 
 first located in Syracuse, Otoe county. Neb., 
 where he established himself shortly after his 
 admission to the bar. From there in 1888 he 
 came to California and opened an office in Ma- 
 dera, where he has since become known as an 
 able attorney and counselor. During 1892-93 
 he took an active part in the county division 
 contest and, with other leading citizens, helped 
 to secure the organization of Madera county. 
 At the special election of May, 1893, pursuant 
 to the organization of the county, he was elected 
 district attorney on the independent ticket by a 
 majority of two hundred and twenty-two over 
 his Democratic opponent. Immediately after his 
 election he took the oath of office and entered 
 upon its duties, which he filled with energy and 
 dignity. At the next general election he was the 
 Republican candidate, but suflfered defeat by 
 sixty votes. He has always been a stanch Re- 
 publican and never fails to give his party the 
 support of his ballot at local and general elec- 
 tions. Pronouncedly Republican as he is, he 
 avoids any display of partisanship, but evinces 
 instead the public spirit and progressive dispo- 
 sition of a loyal citizen. While he is not identi- 
 fied with any denomination, he aids in the main- 
 tenance of the Madera Presbyterian Church, 
 with which his wife is identified. Mrs. Fee was 
 formerly Miss Edith Howard and was born in 
 Illinois, but in childhood accompanied her fam- 
 ily to Otoe county, Neb., where she remained 
 until after her marriage. The only child of the 
 union is a daughter, Mamie. While making his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 269 
 
 home in Nebraska Mr. Fee was initiated into 
 Masonry in Syracuse Lodge, F. & A. M., and 
 since coming to California has affiHated with Ma- 
 dera Lodge No. 280, F. & A. M. In the social 
 life of Madera he and his wife bear a prominent 
 part, having by their culture and refinement at- 
 tracted and retained the friendship of many of 
 Madera's most respected citizens. 
 
 JOHN EDWARDS. Though not one of the 
 earliest settlers of Tulare county, the fact that 
 he has been identified with the business and agri- 
 cultural interests of Visalia and the surrounding 
 country since 1874 entitles Mr. Edwards to be 
 classed among the pioneers of this portion of 
 the San Joaquin valley. Since he was a boy of 
 eight years he has made his home in the United 
 States, but by birth and ancestry he is a Welsh- 
 man. ' Montgomery, in North Wales, was his 
 native shire, and August 15, 1832, the date of 
 his birth, his parents being Maurice and Jane 
 (Griffiths) Edwards, natives of the same shire. 
 During 1840 the family crossed the ocean on a 
 sailing vessel and landed in New York, from 
 which city they journeyed westward to Ohio 
 and settled In Delaware county. Notwithstand- 
 ing his settlement in a strange land, where the 
 language of the people and the character of the 
 soil were unfamiliar to him, the father met with 
 considerable success, and at the time of his death 
 from cholera in 18641 he ranked among the most 
 influential men of his community. In religion 
 he was an active member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. His wife also died on their Ohio farm. 
 
 In a family of four sons and three daughters, 
 John Edwards was fourth in order of birth, 
 and is one of the three sons living. Of all the 
 family he alone has sought a home in California. 
 When twenty years of age he took his first 
 westward journey, halting in Illinois, where he 
 secured work as head sawyer in a sawmill in 
 Champaign. . During his employment in that 
 capacity the Civil war began, and in July of 1862 
 he left work to enlist in the Union service, being 
 accepted as a private in Company B, Seventy- 
 sixth Illinois Infantry. With his company and 
 regiment he served under General Sherman and 
 was present at Vicksburg, Jackson and Little 
 Rock in decisive engagements fought at these 
 places. At Jackson he was taken prisoner in 
 July, 1864, and for two months was kept in cap- 
 tivity, but then was exchanged. In recognition 
 of meritorious service he was promoted to be 
 sergeant early in his army career, and served as 
 such until he was mustered out at Galveston, 
 Tex., in July, 1865. Returning north he was hon- 
 orably discharged at Chicago. 
 
 Very shortly after the close of his army service 
 Mr. Edwards removed from Illinois to Kansas 
 
 and took up a soldier's homestead in Jackson 
 county, where he cleared the land and inaugu- 
 rated general farm pursuits. The ensuing years, 
 however, did not bring him the results he desired, 
 and accordingly in 1874 he disposed of his Kan- 
 sas property and came to Cahfornia, where he 
 now occupies a two-acre homestead at No. loio 
 West South street, Visalia. Here for twelve 
 years he was engaged as foreman of a ware- 
 house and later turned his attention to the cattle 
 business, in which he still engages, owning eighty 
 acres of pasture land north of Visalia. His first 
 marriage was in Covington, Ind., and united 
 him with Sophia Shofstall, who was born in 
 Kentucky and died in Kansas. Three sons and 
 a daughter were born of their union, of whom 
 those living are W. H. Edwards, a cattle-raiser 
 near Visalia, and Nancy Jane, wife of J. L. 
 Daniels, of Reno, Nev. In Kansas, Mr. Ed- 
 wards was united in marriage with Emily Jane 
 Harvey, who died after their removal to Cali- 
 fornia. Of this union one son is living, Joseph 
 H., residing at Lemon Cove, this state. The 
 present wife of Mr. Edwards, whom he met and 
 married at Visalia, was Mrs. Martha A. Simp- 
 son, a native of the eastern part of Tennessee 
 and a pioneer of 1856 in California, having 
 crossed the plains in company with her father 
 and husband. For a time they made their home 
 in Butte county and later settled in Lake county, 
 where her husband, Samuel V. Simpson, died 
 upon a farm. As might be expected from an 
 enthusiastic veteran, Mr. Edwards takes the 
 deepest interest in the Grand Army of the Re- 
 public. Largely through the eflforts of himself 
 and other loyal ex-soldiers, in 1886 the post was 
 organized at Visalia and of this organization, 
 known as the Gen. George Wright Post, he has 
 acted as commander since about 1892, mean- 
 while contributing of his time and means to its 
 maintenance and enhancing its popularity by his 
 effective leadership. 
 
 WILLIAM L. LOWREY. Among the rep- 
 resentatives of old pioneer families who are main- 
 taining high farming standards in Tulare county 
 mention is due William L. Lowrey, who was 
 born near where he now lives in the vicinity of 
 Visalia, November 28, 1864, and who is now 
 managing his mother's farm of sixty acres three 
 miles northwest of town. His father, Eldon 
 Lowrey, the establisher of the family on the 
 coast, was born in Tennessee, and by occupation 
 was a stock raiser and operator. Crossing the 
 plains to California from Missouri in 1852, he 
 located in Sonoma county and had a dairy and 
 stock ranch there, but sOon afterward removed 
 to Visalia and selected the farm upon which his 
 death occurred June 10, 1904, aged seventy-four 
 
270 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 years. Delighted with the prospects of this sec- 
 tion of the state, and pinning his financial faith 
 to stock raising, he returned east by way of 
 Panama, .and in 1856 drove a herd of cattle 
 across the plains, using them as the nucleus for 
 extensive stock dealing on his farm north of 
 Orosi. His wife, Elizabeth (Parsons) Lowrey, 
 was born in Missouri, and became his helpmeet 
 in the days of his struggle for a competence in 
 that state. Of strong constitution and active 
 mind, she survives him at the present time, and 
 still makes her home on the ranch near Visalia. 
 She has been the devoted mother of ten sons 
 and three daughters, of whom five sons and one 
 daughter are living. 
 
 The second youngest in his father s large fam- 
 ily, William L. Lowrey was educated in the pub- 
 lic schot>ls and at the Visalia normal school, there- 
 after engaging in farming and stock raising in 
 Fresno county for eight years. In 1902 he sold 
 his farm in Fresno county and came to Tulare 
 county, managing his mother's ranch, which is 
 under stock and alfalfa. The farm is well im- 
 proved, and evidences the care and industry of 
 its original owner, and is equipped with prac- 
 tical agricultural implements. Mr. Lowrey suc- 
 ceeds at farming because he uses good judgment 
 and likes his work, and because he is constantly 
 looking for improved ways of taking advantage 
 of his opportunities. For years he has been an 
 active Democrat, and in 1902 was appointed 
 assistant assessor of Fresno county, serving two 
 years. He is devoted to his home and farm, and 
 especially to the care and education of his three 
 children, Jerald, Pearl and Dorothy. Mrs. Low- 
 rey was formerly Maggie Rush, a native of Vis- 
 alia, and to her economy and practical assistance 
 her husband attributes much of his farming suc- 
 cess. She is a daughter of Isaac Rush, an old 
 settler of Tulare county. 
 
 ALFRED JOSEPH ARNAUDON. Distin- 
 guished as a leading citizen of Mendota, Alfred 
 Joseph Arnaudon is also known far and wide as 
 one of the most able and prosperous business 
 men of Fresno county. A brief resume of his 
 life affords a forcible illustration of the self- 
 made man, who began life at the foot of the lad- 
 der, and by his own strenuous efforts has stead- 
 ily climbed the pathway of success, gaining an 
 eminent position, socially and financially, among 
 his fellow-men. He is actively identified • with 
 the mercantile, agricultural, and industrial pros- 
 perity of this part of the state, and is not only 
 carrying on an extensive business as a dealer in 
 general merchandise, hay and grain, but is pro- 
 prietor of Arnaudon's hotel, in connection with 
 which he has a large livery stable, and is an ex- 
 tensive land owner and stock raiser, as well. A 
 
 native of France, he was born, October 14, 1853, 
 in the department of Hautes-Alpes, where his 
 parents, Joseph and Marie Arnaudon, spent their 
 entire lives. He is the youngest child in a fam- 
 ily consisting of three sons and six daughters 
 born to his parents and of the three children now 
 living, is the only one in America. 
 
 Born and reared on a farm, Alfred Joseph 
 Arnaudon received a practical common school 
 education in his native land, living at home until 
 eighteen years old. Ambitious and energetic, he 
 made up his mind to try life for himself in the 
 new world. Accordingly, in 1872, he sailed from 
 Havre on the steamer City of Paris, and fifteen 
 days later landed in New York. Boarding a train, 
 he started from there by rail for California, but 
 being caught in a snowstorm while crossing the 
 mountains was twenty-nine days en route. Arriv- 
 ing in San Francisco with just $20 in United 
 States money in his pocket, Mr. Arnaudon, not 
 a whit discouraged, began looking for employ- 
 ment, and the following six years worked in 
 Remillard's brickyard, in San Rafael. Industri- 
 ous, prudent and thrifty, he accumulated con- 
 siderable money, and in 1878 located in Sunol, 
 Alameda county, where, in partnership with his 
 nephews, the Chaix boys, he embarked in sheep 
 raising, having a large range in the Sunol foot- 
 hills. Succeeding well in the venture, these part- 
 ners subsec]uently bought a ranch in the valley, 
 and continued their profitable business awhile 
 longer. Later Mr. Arnaudon sold out his share 
 of the ranch, and taking his part of the sheep to 
 another ranch in the same county carried on stock- 
 raising alone for three years. Removing to Fres- 
 no county, on the west side, in 1886, he estab- 
 lished a sheep ranch, and at the same time em- 
 barked in mercantile pursuits, stocking a store at 
 White Bridge with general merchandise, and run- 
 ning it successfully for eight years, serving mean- 
 while as assistant postmaster. 
 
 In 1894 Mr. Arnaudon built the block which 
 he now owns and occupies in Mendota. It is 
 eighty feet front, and contains two stores, and a 
 large hotel, Arnaudon's, which he manages suc- 
 cessfully, having a lucrative patronage. As a 
 general merchant he has built up a large trade 
 among the best people of the community, being an 
 especially large dealer in hay and grain, as well 
 as general goods, and from the livery which he 
 manages in connection with his hotel he derives 
 a good profit. From June 3, 1895, until the 
 spring of igoo, Mr. Arnaudon was also the post- 
 master at Mendota. He is still interested in the 
 sheep business, owning a ranch of forty-five hun- 
 dred acres, lying three miles south of Mendota, 
 where he keeps about five thousand sheep. He 
 likewise owns a farm of one hundred and forty 
 acres near Pleasanton, and on this he has a win- 
 ery and a vineyard of twenty-five acres, while, 
 
MRS. JAMES FISHER 
 
c>rn^€^ ^^i^-^^^Cc.'-r- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 275 
 
 about six miles east of Mendota, on the banks 
 of the San Joaquin river, he has a small poultry, 
 hay and vegetable ranch. Mr. Arnaudon has oth- 
 er property of value, owning a residence in the 
 city of Fresno. In all of his undertakings Mr. 
 Arnaudon has exercised good judgment and 
 sound sense, and by wise forethought and pru- 
 dent management has accumulated wealth. 
 
 In Mission San Jose, Mr. Arnaudon married 
 Marie Arbios, who was born in France, in the 
 department of Basses-Pyrenees, a daughter of 
 John Arbios, who came with his family to Cali- 
 fornia in 1876, settling first as a dairyman in San 
 Rafael, but being now a resident of Pleasanton. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Arnaudon have six children, name- 
 ly : Emma (wife of R. Jury, of Palo Alto) ; Lucy, 
 Cora, Adelta, Marie and Alfred J. Poli*tically 
 Mr. Arnaudon supports the principles of the 
 Democratic party, and for many years served as 
 school director. Fraternally he belongs to the 
 Knights of -Pythias. 
 
 JAMES FISHER. Prominent among the 
 venerable and highly respected pioneers of Tu- 
 lare county is James Fisher, living near Visalia, 
 who, during his years of residence in this place, 
 has witnessed its remarkable development, and 
 in the work necessary for such an achievement 
 has taken a conspicuous part. Since coming here 
 in 1857 he has made an honorable record, by 
 his means, enterprise and counsel assisting in the 
 upbuilding of town and county, and by his en- 
 ergy and business management becoming an ex- 
 tensive landholder, and a most successful agri- 
 culturist. A son of Spencer Fisher, he was born, 
 October 13, 1821, in Kaskaskia, Randolph coun- 
 ty, 111. 
 
 The son of one of Illinois' pioneer settlers, 
 Spencer Fisher was born, lived and died in the 
 Prairie state, being engaged, principally, in ag- 
 ricultural pursuits. He married Elizabeth Hen- 
 derson, who was born near Little Rock, Ark., 
 and died in Illinois. Of the five children born 
 of their union but one, James, the youngest child, 
 is now living. Brought up on the home farm, 
 he obtained his early education in a subscrip- 
 tion school, which was held in a log house 
 chinked with mud, and having a puncheon floor 
 and shake roof. On one of the slab benches, 
 near the huge fireplace, he was taught to write 
 with a quill pen, and under the instruction of 
 his teacher made as good progress in the three 
 _'Rs" as his schoolmates. On attaining his ma- 
 jority he left the parental roof, going to Mur- 
 physboro, Jackson county. 111., where he engaged 
 in mercantile pursuits, boarding in the mean- 
 time at the hotel kept by Dr. Logan, father of 
 Gen. John A. Logan, one of the heroes of the 
 Civil war. At the end of two years Mr. Fisher 
 
 located in .Shreveport, La., where for a time he 
 ran a ferry boat for a Mr. Douglas. Returning 
 from there to his native state he was employed as 
 a clerk in Chester, Randolph counly, until 1855. 
 Desirous of a decided change of location and 
 occupation, Mr. Fisher started for the extreme 
 west. With horses and wagons he left Council 
 Bluffs in April, 1855, and followed the old Mor- 
 mon trail across the plains to California, arriv- 
 ing in Millerton in the fall, having journeyed 
 for six weary months. Taking a contract to cut 
 two million feet of saw logs for Alexander Ball, 
 Mr. Fisher completed the task, after which he 
 contracted to build three miles of road down the 
 mountains from Ball's Mill. He subsequently 
 bought from Mr. Ball several yoke of oxen, and 
 engaged in hauling lumber from the mill to Mil- 
 lerton and other places. Locating in Visalia in 
 the spring of 1857, Mr. Fisher continued freight- 
 ing for a year and a half. Using six yoke of 
 oxen, he made a specialty of hauling lumber from 
 mills to the markets, taking three thousand feet 
 at a load, and being five days in making the 
 round trip, receiving $30 a thousand for his work. 
 
 In the fall of 1858 Mr. Fisher went to Sonora, 
 Mexico, where he bought a herd of branded cat- 
 tle, which he drove to Antelope valley, Tulare 
 county, Cal., where he disposed of them at a 
 good price, making money in his venture. Pur- 
 chasing in i860 two hundred acres of land from 
 R. L. Howison, Mr. Fisher began the improve- 
 ment of his present home farm, which is now in 
 its appointments one of the best in this locality. 
 In addition to general farming, he made a spe- 
 cialty of stock-raising, until the enforcement of 
 the fence lav/, having at times as many as twenty 
 thousand sheep. As his money accumulated he 
 judiciously invested it in land, becoming one of 
 the largest real estate owners in the county. 
 Within three and one-half miles of Visalia, to 
 the northeast, he has thirteen hundred acres, in 
 sections 11, 12, 14 and 15, all of which is under 
 irrigation, being watered partly by Elbow creek 
 and the St. John's river and its canals, the farm 
 being known as Oaklawn ranch, and devoted to 
 the raising of grain and alfalfa. He also owns 
 a stock farm of ten hundred and twenty acres, 
 lying four miles north of Oaklawn ranch; a 
 ranch of eight hundred acres at Taurusa, two 
 miles north of Oaklawn; and a large ranch of 
 twelve hundred acres, lying seven miles east of 
 Oaklawn, which he gave to his son, William Lee 
 Fisher, for a stock farm. Mr. Fisher was inter- 
 ested in the building of the Witch Chimney 
 canal, which irrigates a large part of his home 
 ranch, and has been a promoter of many other 
 beneficial enterprises. He has been especially 
 successful as a stockman, raising draft horses 
 and mules, and owns many valuable cattle. 
 
 In i860, on his home farm Mr. Fisher mar- 
 
276 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ried Mary E. Howison, who was born in Louisi- 
 ana,, a daughter of R. L. Howison, an early 
 pioneer of Visaha. Three children were born- 
 of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Fisher, namely : 
 The late Mrs. Alice Markham, who died in Visa- 
 lia ; Mrs. Fannie Bodden, of Visalia ; and Will- 
 iam L., who assists his father in the management 
 of his farms and property. In 1875 Mr. Fisher 
 built his present commodious residence, which, 
 with its pleasant environments, is one of the 
 most attractive in the neighborhood. Politically 
 Mr. Fisher is a straightforward Democrat, ever 
 loyal to the interests of his party. 
 
 LEWIS LINCOLN CORY. A man of liter- 
 ary and scholastic attainments, possessing a vig- 
 orous mentality and a well-trained mind, Lewis 
 Lincoln Cory holds an assured position among 
 the leading attorneys of Fresno, his legal ability 
 and knowledge being recognized and appreciated. 
 A son of the late Dr. Benjamin Cory, he was 
 born. May 4, 1861, in San Jose, where his earlier 
 years were spent. 
 
 The descendant of a New Jersey family of 
 prominence, Benjamin Cory was born and bred 
 in Oxford, Ohio. With a natural aptitude for 
 learning, he was given excellent educational ad- 
 vantages, and after receiving the degree of A. 
 B. at the Miami University was graduated from 
 the Cincinnati Medical College with the degree 
 of M. D. Migrating to California in 1848, Dr. 
 Cory settled in San Jose, then the capital of the 
 state, becoming the first American physican to 
 locate in the Santa Clara valley. He took a prom- 
 inent part in local affairs, being active in the 
 capital fight, and was influential in advancing the 
 industrial, social and business growth and pros- 
 perity of city and county, being the first per- 
 son to set out a vineyard for commercial pur- 
 poses. For a number of years he served as 
 county physician, and until his death, in 1899, at 
 the age of seventy-three years, was the leading 
 physician of Santa Clara county. In his pro- 
 fessional career, the doctor traveled extensively 
 through the valley and mountains, his practice 
 extending to Santa Cruz and Monterey. Dr. 
 C017 married Sarah Braly, who was born in Mis- 
 souri, near St. Louis, a daughter of Rev. John 
 Braly. With his family, Mr. Braly came west- 
 ward to Oregon, being at Whitman station just 
 prior to the massacre. From there he came to 
 California, locating near Santa Clara, where he 
 improved a farm, on which he brought up his 
 family. He also continued his ministerial labors 
 in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, being 
 the first Presbyterian minister of this part of the 
 state, until his death, at the age of seventy-three 
 years. He married a Miss Hyde, who was of 
 English descent. Of the union of Dr. and Mrs. 
 
 Cory, eight children were born, Lewis L., the 
 subject of this sketch, being the fourth child in 
 order of birth. 
 
 After completing the course of study in the 
 grammar and high schools of San Jose, Lewis 
 Lincoln Cory fitted himself for college at the 
 University of the Pacific, after which he attended 
 Rutgers College, at New Brunswick, N. J., for 
 two years. In 1879 he entered the junior class of 
 Princeton University, from which he was gradu- 
 ated with the degree of A. B. in 1881. Becoming 
 a student then in the Columbia Law School, he 
 studied there for two years, when he was gradu- 
 ated with the degree of LL. B. Being admitted 
 to the bar in New York in 1883, Mr. Cory began 
 the practice of his profession in that city, for 
 two years being in the office of Judge William 
 FuUerton. Returning to California in 1885, he 
 practiced law in San Jose until 1886, when he 
 opened an office in Fresno, where he has since 
 been located. As a general practitioner, he has 
 built up an extensive and lucrative clientage. 
 Making a specialty of civil law, Mr. Cory has 
 been associated with some very important land 
 cases, and is now attorney for the Southern Pa- 
 cific Railroad Company, the First National Bank, 
 the Street Railway Company, the Water Com- 
 pany, and the Electric Light Company. Well 
 versed in legal lore, wise and firm in his decisions, 
 Mr. Cory inspires people with the greatest confi- 
 dence in his judgment and uprightness, and is 
 highly respected alike by his brother members of 
 the bar, and by all with whom he is brought in 
 contact, either in a business or a social way. 
 
 In New York City, Mr. Cory married Caro- 
 line A. Martin, a native of Rahway, N. J., and 
 they are the parents of five children, namely: 
 Edith M., attending the Leland Stanford, Jr., 
 University, being a member of the class of 1907; 
 Catherine H., a student in the Fresno high school ; 
 Margaret E. ; Martin and Benjamin. Politically 
 Mr. Cory is a steadfast Republican, and socially 
 he belongs to Delta Upsilon Fraternity of Rut- 
 gers^ College. He is also a member of the Fres- 
 no County Bar Association. 
 
 RALEIGH E. RHODES. Through the in- 
 heritance of exceptional ability from his father 
 and grandfather, both of whom were attorneys 
 of prominence, and through the diligent culti- 
 vation of his talents, Raleigh E. Rhodes has 
 gained a reputation as one of the leading law- 
 yers of Madera county. In the field of criminal 
 law he has met with especial success. His pre- 
 eminence as a criminal lawyer has been estab- 
 lished by his skilled management of numerous 
 important suits, notably the Lawson, Rockwell 
 and Derby murder trials, also the Fornier case, 
 the most bitterly contested of any ever tried in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 277 
 
 the count)'. As attorney for the Valley Railroad 
 when projected through Fresno, he successfully 
 fought the condemnation suits in behalf of the 
 railway. 
 
 The family genealogy is traced to Major 
 Joseph T. Rhodes, an officer in the Revolutionary 
 war under General Washington. The grand- 
 father. Col. E. A. Rhodes, a native of North 
 Carolina, became an influential attorney and 
 served as United States consul to Texas stationed 
 at Galveston. In the family of Colonel Rhodes 
 was a son, William H., who was born in Windsor, 
 N. C, in 1822, and was orphaned by his mother's 
 death when he was a child of six years. After 
 his preliminary education he was sent to Prince- 
 ton, N. J., where he was a student in the uni- 
 versity. Upon the appointment of his father as 
 consul at Galveston he joined him in that city, 
 where he continued his classical studies. In 
 1844 he matriculated in the Harvard Law 
 School, and at the expiration of his term re- 
 turned to Texas, where he was honored with the 
 office of probate judge. After a brief sojourn 
 in New York at the conclusion of his service 
 as jurist, he took up the practice of law in 
 Windsor, N. C, and remained there until he 
 heard of the discovery of gold in California. In 
 1850 he came to San Francisco, where he was 
 a member of the vigilance committee of 1856 
 and one of the most prominent lawyers of his 
 day. During those times he was editor and part 
 owner of the True California^, for which he pre- 
 pared some very able editorials and literary 
 articles. As a brilliant writer, he won a reputa- 
 tion on the coast. He was a man of classical 
 education and intellectual attainments, and his 
 writings, judged by the standard of both that 
 day and this, possess great literary merit. In 
 literature he laad a fondness for the Jules Verne 
 style of writing. He delighted in scientific fiction 
 and acquired prominence by several imaginative 
 articles of that kind which came from his pen. 
 Socially he was popular and prominent, a genial 
 companion, a prominent Knight Templar Mason, 
 and one of the founders of the Bohemian Club 
 of San Francisco. In that city his death occurred 
 April 14, 1876. His wife, who was Susan M. 
 McDermott, was born in England, but at an 
 early age came to Oroville, Cal., where she had 
 a brother in business ; she survived her hus- 
 band a great many years, dying in 1901 in San 
 Francisco. 
 
 Next to the youngest of four sons, Raleigh 
 E. Rhodes was born in San Francisco October 
 I, 1868. After completing the studies of local 
 schools he entered the law office of Colonel 
 Flournoy and later for six years was with 
 Naphtaly, Freidenrich & Ackerman, of San Fran- 
 cisco, one of the leading firms of attorneys on 
 the coast. After two years of study in the Hast- 
 
 ings Law School, in 1889 he was admitted to 
 the Supreme Court of California. For several 
 years he continued in his native city, but in 1893 
 came to Madera. Three years later he formed 
 a partnership with H. H. Welsh, and opened an 
 office in Fresno, but after three 3'ears came back 
 to Madera, where he has since conducted a gen- 
 eral law practice. During his residence in Fresno 
 he became actively connected with the Fresno 
 County Bar Association. The Democratic party 
 receives his ballot and influence, and in 1902 he 
 was his party's nominee for district attorney, but 
 was defeated by R. R. Fowler. As an attorney 
 his ability is unquestioned. The high principles 
 of honor which have guided him in the conduct 
 of his practice justly bring him the confidence of 
 associates and acquaintances and give him a high 
 rank among the attorneys of Madera. Socially 
 he is popular, and fraternally holds membership 
 with Yosemite Parlor No. 130, N. S. G. W. 
 His marriage took place in Berkeley, and united 
 him with Lillian Welton, who was born in New 
 York City and is a graduate of the Berkeley 
 high school. To this marriage three children 
 were born: Welton, Marjorie and Beatrice. The 
 family of which she is a member has not been 
 without influence in the east, and to her grand- 
 father, former United States Senator Thomas 
 Morris, of Ohio, belonged the distinction of hav- 
 ing appointed Ulysses S. Grant to the West 
 Point Academy. 
 
 STRUDWICK SLEDGE. As chairman of 
 the board of supervisors of Madera county, Cal., 
 Strudwick Sledge ranks among the most promi- 
 nent ranchers of that section. Born March 30, 
 1865, in Alabama, he was taken to the Golden 
 state by his parents at the age of three years. 
 Reared on his father's farm, he attended the 
 public schools of Fresno (now Madera) county, 
 and he then became a student at the San Jose 
 Business College, where he took a complete com- 
 mercial course. He has followed farming all 
 his life. In 1903 he' was elected to the office of 
 supervisor of the First District on the Demo- 
 cratic ticket, and upon the organization of that 
 body he was selected chairman. In addition to 
 his extensive business interests, Mr. Sledge has 
 ample time to attend to social duties to some ex- 
 tent, and affiliates with the Masonic and the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen lodges. 
 
 In tracing the ancestry of Mr. Sledge, we find 
 him to be a descendant of an old southern fam- 
 ily. His father, L. A. Sledge, was a native of 
 Alabama, born April 3, 1823, and in that state 
 he was united in marriage with Martha Strud- 
 wick. He was one of the founders of the Ala- 
 bama settlement in Madera county, Cal.~, then 
 a part of Fresno county. This colony was or- 
 
278 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ganized to form a settlement in 1868; they pur- 
 chased about twenty thousand acres of land in 
 the vicinity of Madera from the Chapman es- 
 tate. But the colony proved to be a failure and 
 Mr. Sledge returned east in 1875 ; a couple of 
 years later he again came west and the balance 
 of his life was spent in California. He engaged 
 in sheep raising, meeting with varied success, 
 and became one of the prominent stockmen in 
 the San Joaquin valley. At the time of his 
 death, July 3, i8g6, he left a valuable estate, 
 about eight hundred acres, which is now included 
 in the home ranch. 
 
 Four children blessed the home of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Sledge, namely : Sallie, Winnie, Levin L. 
 and Strudwick. Since the death of the father 
 these children, with the widowed mother, have 
 continued to reside on the home place. This 
 ranch is located five and one-half miles southwest 
 of Madera and is devoted to the raising of al- 
 falfa, grain, vineyards and stock. In addition 
 to attending these broad acres, the brothers rent 
 about eighteen hundred acres of additional land, 
 and upon the latter they carry on grain raising 
 on a large scale. 
 
 PROF. GILES N. FREMAN. As superin- 
 tendent of the schools of Fresno county Prof. 
 G. N. Freman, of Fresno, occupies a leading posi- 
 tion among the prominent educators of this part 
 of the country, his superior talents and scholarly 
 attainments eminently qualifying him for his im- 
 portant work. Cultured and capable, possessing 
 great force of character and executive ability, 
 he has been a potent factor in bringing the school 
 system to a high point of excellence, offering to 
 the yotmg, irrespective of sex, educational ad- 
 vantages worthy of consideration and com- 
 mendation. A native of Missouri, he was born 
 March 12, 1838, in Daviess county, where his 
 father, John W. Freman, was a man of prom- 
 inence and influence. His paternal grandfather 
 was born in North Carolina, of Scotch-English 
 ancestry. He served in the war of 1812 as a 
 gallant soldier, and afterward settled in Ken- 
 tucky as a pioneer farmer. 
 
 Born on the Kentucky homestead John W. 
 Freman obtained a superior education for the 
 times, and for many years was an educator of 
 some note, and a successful agriculturist. Re- 
 moving from his native state to Missouri, he 
 took up land in Daviess and Buchanan counties, 
 and there cleared and improved a farm, on which 
 he resided until 1845, ^t which time he removed 
 to Iowa, where he died the same year. For a 
 number of years after settling in Buchanan 
 county he taught school, and for one term served 
 as sheriff. He was active in public affairs, and 
 was a meniber of the Missouri troops that as- 
 
 sisted in driving the Mormons from the territory. 
 He was a strong Democrat in politics, and a 
 member of the Baptist Church. He married Mrs. 
 Massey E. (Parman) Black, who was born in 
 North" Carolina and died in Iowa. Of their 
 union four children were born, namely: Giles 
 N., the subject of this sketch; Phoebe A., de- 
 ceased; Eliza, the widow of George C. Grimes, 
 of Fresno; and John W., of Woodland, Cal. 
 
 After obtaining the rudiments of his education 
 in the public schools of Missouri, G. N. Freman 
 removed with the family to Iowa, where he con- 
 tinued his school life, between terms working on 
 the farm. Subsequently he served an apprentice- 
 ship at the printer's trade in Sidney, Fremont 
 county, Iowa. Going to Nebraska City, Neb., in 
 1856, he was for a year connected with the 
 Nebraska City Neivs, then edited by J. Sterling 
 Morton. Returning to Iowa in 1857, Mr. Fre- 
 man entered Mount Pleasant Seminary, at Mount 
 Pleasant, from which he was graduated in 1862. 
 Beginning then his career as an educator. Pro- 
 fessor Freman taught school in Fremont county, 
 Iowa, in the public schools of Warren and 
 Adams counties, 111., and was afterward prin- 
 cipal of the preparatory department and pro- 
 fessor of natural sciences in Abingdon College, at 
 Abingdon, 111. Resigning the position in 1864 
 he came to California, journeying across the 
 plains with mules and being three months on the 
 way, leaving Illinois May 16 and arriving in 
 Woodland, Cal., August 20. At Deep creek and 
 at Green river, the party with which he traveled 
 had encounters with the Indians, but sustained 
 no serious loss. 
 
 The following year Professor Freman was 
 principal of the Woodland schools, and the en- 
 suing six years was a member of the faculty of 
 Hesperian College. In 1871 he was elected su- 
 perintendent of the schools of Yolo county, and 
 in 1873 was re-elected to the same position, and 
 served efficiently for another term of two years. 
 Going to Arizona in 1875, he was superintendent 
 of the Stonewall Jackson mine, in the Globe dis- 
 trict, for two years, and then gave up the work 
 on account of the hostility of the Indians, who 
 killed several of his men. Returning to Cali- 
 fornia, he was engaged in mercantile pursuits 
 in Capay for awhile, and was afterward employed 
 in the raising of fruit in Vacaville for two years, 
 having a fine orchard and vineyard. Locating 
 in Fresno in 1887, Professor Freman bought 
 forty acres of land near Fowler, and started a 
 vineyard and orchard. He has since purchased 
 additional land, and is now owner of eighty 
 acres, devoted to orchard, in which he raises 
 peaches, figs and nectarines. He has had excel- 
 lent success as a horticulturist, making a spe- 
 cialty of the culture of Calymyrna figs and 
 peaches. In 1893 ^'^^ resumed his professional 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 281 
 
 labors, serving as principal of the Washington 
 Colony school of Fresno county. He was sub- 
 sequently employed in horticultural pursuits on 
 his ranch. He served for a year as deputy 
 county superintendent of schools under Thomas 
 J. Kirk. In December, 1901, Professor Freman 
 vifas appointed by the board of supervisors as 
 county superintendent of the schools of Fresno 
 county to fill a vacancy. In igo2 he was the 
 Republican nominee for the same office, and was 
 elected by a good majority for a term of four 
 years, being also ex-officio secretary of the Board 
 of Education of Fresno county. He is an active 
 member of the State Teachers' Association; of 
 the California Raisin Growers' Association ; and 
 of the State Horticultural Society. His orchard 
 is advantageously located about three miles north- 
 west of Fowler, and about eight miles from 
 Fresno. 
 
 In Abingdon, 111., March 16, 1863, Professor 
 Freman married Mollie T. Martin, who was born 
 in Dade county, Mo., of which her father, John 
 
 E. Martin, a native of Virginia, was a pioneer 
 settler. She died in 1883, leaving three children. 
 G. C, a well-known attorney of Fresno, was 
 graduated from the Hastings Law School with 
 the degree of LL. B. ; F. Harold, for some 
 months a reporter for the New York Journal, of 
 New York City, is now paying teller in the 
 cashier's department of that paper; and Frank 
 
 F. is superintendent of the home ranch. Pro- 
 fessor Freman was married a second time, Octo- 
 ber 17, 1887, Sarah A. DeBell, a native of Gray- 
 son, Ky., and a daughter of Alfred DeBell, be- 
 coming his wife. Mrs. Freman, the second of a 
 family of four children, of whom two are living, 
 is a well educated woman, and while in Illinois 
 was engaged in educational work. In 1884 she 
 came to California and .was here similarly em- 
 ployed until her marriage. As deputy county 
 superintendent of the Fresno county schools, 
 Mrs. Freman greatly assists her husband in his 
 work, taking charge of the office, as much of his 
 time is necessarily spent in visiting schools, his 
 territory extending one hundred and fifty miles 
 from east to west. Politically Professor Freman 
 is a Republican, and fraternally he is a member 
 of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and 
 since 1864 has been a consistent member of the 
 Christian Church. 
 
 HON. "GEORGE STOCKTON BERRY. 
 For over a quarter of a century G. S. Berry has 
 been one of the prominent citizens of Tulare 
 county. During these years he has been active 
 in public affairs and has at all times been willing 
 to give his attention to any movement which in 
 his estimation would prove a benefit to his state 
 or county. Such men are the makers of history 
 
 and are accorded a place in the annals of Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 Born in Cooper county. Mo., October 11, 1847, 
 G. S. Berry is a son of John and Josephine 
 (Jones) Berry. The fatlier was an early settler 
 in California, crossing the plains from Missouri 
 in 1857. He first settled at Lodi, where he en- 
 gaged in farming, but later removed to Placer- 
 ville, Eldorado county, where he followed min- 
 ing until 1874. In that year he removed tO' Tu- 
 lare county, where he engaged in farming and 
 where he lived the remainder of his life, although 
 he died in San Jose at the age of seventy-two 
 years. His wife is still living, making her home 
 at Campbell, Santa Clara county. By her union 
 with Mr. Berry the following children were born : 
 Martha, now Mrs. Wilson of Campbell ; Dr. John, 
 of Los Angeles ; William, of Lindsay ; Laura, 
 now Mrs. Sears of Wrights ; Robert, of Lindsay, 
 and George S. 
 
 The last named was ten years of age when 
 his parents crossed the plains, and his education 
 was obtained in the public schools of Placerville. 
 He first engaged in farming near Modesto with 
 his father and while there he married, in Tuo- 
 lumne City, June 2, 1868, Margaret Griffin, who 
 was born in Lincoln county, Mo., and is a daugh- 
 ter of Joel Griffin, a native of North Carolina 
 and an early settler in Lincoln county. In 1857 
 Mr. Griffin and his family crossed the plains to 
 California. Ox teams were used for transporta- 
 tion purposes and six months were required for 
 the completion of the journey. While en route 
 the party was twice attacked by the Indians, but 
 only one man in the train was killed. Mr. Griffin 
 first settled at what is called The Five-Mile 
 House, where he followed farming until his re- 
 moval to Tuolumne City, near which place he 
 engaged in farming and stock-raising. Later he 
 retired from active pursuits, and taking up his 
 residence in Oakland, died there at the age of 
 eighty-four years. His wife, Frances Smith, died 
 in Oakland at the age of seventy-two years. She 
 became the mother of six children, four of whom 
 are living, as follows : Joel, who resides near 
 Modesto; Frances, now Mrs. C. C. Baker of 
 Fruitvale; Margaret, Mrs. Berry; and Jennie, 
 now Mrs. Woolery of Portland, Ore. 
 
 In 1874 Mr. and Mrs. Berry took up their 
 residence in what was then called Tulare county 
 but is now Grangeville, Kings county. Here 
 Mr. Berry engaged in grain farming until 1875, 
 when he purchased two thousand acres of rail- 
 road land, adjoining that on which the town of 
 Lindsay is now located. Here he conducted an 
 extensive grain-raising business for several years, 
 but later disposed of a large portion of his land 
 and is now living on a ranch of one hundred and 
 sixty acres, one and a half miles east of Lind- 
 say. Twenty acres are devoted to oranges and 
 
282 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 about fifty to a vineyard. He is also engaged 
 in farming and stock-raising in the state of 
 Nevada. 
 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Berry four chil- 
 dren have been born : Lillie, now Mrs. Charles 
 Rankin of Deer Creek; Lettie, whO' became the 
 wife of Forrest Lyons and died in San Francisco ; 
 Mrs. M. Osborne, of Stockton ; am;! Arthur, who 
 lives at home and is engaged in business with 
 his father. On November 14, 1900, he married 
 Sena Jobe, who was born 'in Tulare county, a 
 daughter of H. H. Jobe. 
 
 Mr. Berry is one of the leading Democrats in 
 Tulare county and has befen active in public af- 
 fairs. He served one term in the assembly and so 
 well pleased were his constituents with his rec- 
 ord that in 1891 they elected him to the state 
 senate. Here as in the lower house he labored 
 earnestly for the welfare of those who had placed 
 him in this responsible position. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Knights of Pythias and the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in both of 
 which bodies he is an active worker. Mr. Berry 
 has made a success of life by being ready to im- 
 prove his opportunities, and the position he has 
 attained is the result of his own efforts. Since 
 early manhood he has made his own way in the 
 world and he deservedly ranks among the self- 
 made men. Mr. Berry was the patentee and 
 manufacturer of the first steam thresher and 
 harvester combined, used in the San Joaquin 
 valley ; this machine had a forty- foot cut, being 
 the only successful machine of that kind ever 
 manufactured, a forty horse-power engine re- 
 quired to operate the machine. 
 
 _ DAVID FRANKLIN EDWARDS. The ear- 
 liest recollections of Mr. Edwards are associated 
 with California, for he was a child of only three 
 years when the family came to the Pacific coast 
 in 1849. In his ancestry he is of remote English 
 extraction and of Irish parentage. His grand- 
 father, Patrick Edwards, who was the son of an 
 Englishman, brought his family from Ireland to 
 America and settled in Oswego county, N. Y., 
 where he cleared a tract of raw land. At the 
 time of crossing the ocean his son, John, was 
 perhaps fifteen years of age, but in a short time 
 he became familiar with American institutions and 
 as loyal to the government as any of its native- 
 born sons. This patriotic spirit was proved 
 through his enlistment in the United States army 
 during the Seminole war and also through his 
 service in the war with Mexico. It was his serv- 
 ice in the latter struggle that caused him to be- 
 come familiar with the plains and the western 
 country. In 1849 he brought his family via Cape 
 Horn to San Diego, they remaining in that city 
 while he went with his regiment to Colorado, 
 
 crossing the plains via Yuma to fight the Apa- 
 ches, the most savage of all Indian tribes. At 
 the expiration of his term of enlistment as a 
 soldier, in 1 851, he returned to San Diego and 
 ■from there brought the family to San Francisco, 
 thence to Tuolumne county, where he engaged 
 in mining. On relinquishing that occupation, 
 in 1876 he came to what is now Madera (then 
 Fresno) county and here he lived retired until 
 his death at the age of eighty-three years. His 
 wife, who bore the maiden name of Emeline Met- 
 calf, was born in New Hampshire and died in 
 California; her father, David Metcalf, a native 
 of New Hampshire, was one of the first settlers 
 of Oswego county, N. Y., and followed the shoe- 
 makers trade there during much of his active life. 
 
 In the family of John and Emeline Edwards 
 there were six children, namely : Mary R., who 
 died in girlhood ; David Franklin, of Madera ; 
 Sarah, who died in Tuolumne county; John G., 
 of Madera, whose sketch appears on another 
 page; Mrs. Lizzie Hope, of Madera county; and 
 James H., who is engaged with his oldest broth- 
 er as a blacksmith. David F. Edwards was born 
 at North Hannibal, Oswego county, N. Y., April 
 20, 1846, and was three years of age when the 
 family came to this section of the country. His 
 earliest recollections are of passing through 
 Stockton en route to Tuolumne county. When a 
 young man he began to learn the trade of black- 
 smith at Knights Ferry, Stanislaus county, and 
 worked as an apprentice for four years. In 1874 
 he opened a blacksmith's shop at Borden (now 
 in Madera county), and remained there for two 
 years. On coming to Madera in 1876, he bought 
 a shop and began to work as a blacksmith. His 
 place of business was in 1880 moved to his pres- 
 ent location on Yosemite street. Renting his shop 
 in 1883, he returned to Knights Ferry and con- 
 ducted a similar business there, remaining for 
 seven years. When he came back to Madera in 
 1890 he took his old shop, but the following year 
 was burned out, and so rebuilt, having now a shop 
 54x50 feet in dimensions, and carrying on a gen- 
 eral blacksmithing and repair business. 
 
 By his marriage to Eleanor Watson, a na- 
 tive of Pennsylvania and a resident of Stock- 
 ton in girlhood, Mr. Edwards has six children, 
 John F., Gertrude, Elsie, Percy, ElHs and Elean- 
 or, all of whom are at home. The family at- 
 tends the First Presbyterian Church of Madera, 
 in which Mr. Edwards is a ruling elder. Politi- 
 cally a Republican, he has served as a member 
 of the county central committee of his party both 
 in this and Stanislaus counties. Fraternally he is 
 connected with the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen, in which he is past master workman ; 
 Madera Lodge No. 134, K. of P., in which he is 
 past chancellor; and Summit Lodge No. 112, F. 
 & A. M., in which he is past master and served as 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ^3 
 
 worshipful master for four years. His Masonic 
 relations began when he was made a Mason in 
 Fresno Lodge No. 274, F. & A. M., and ever 
 since then he has been a believer in the princi- 
 ples of the fraternity. With his wife he holds 
 membership in the Eastern Star. His brother and 
 partner, J. H. Edwards, was born in Tuolumne 
 county, this state, in 1858, and during the years 
 of youth learned the blacksmith's trade at Bor- 
 den, afterward following the same in the employ 
 of others for some years. Coming to Madera in 
 1882, he has since been in business and is now 
 the company in the firm of D. F. Edwards & Co. 
 Fraternally he is associated with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, being past grand of the 
 Madera Lodge and a member of the Encamp- 
 ment at Fresno. 
 
 JOHN W. SHORT. Through his association 
 with the city of Fresno, which began in May of 
 1881, Mr. Short has been an influential factor in 
 its growth and progress. The occupation upon 
 which he entered, that of journalism, was one 
 offering the greatest opportunities to a public- 
 spirited man desirous of promoting the welfare 
 of his city and county. In other capacities he was 
 also a contributor to local movements, notably 
 through his service as vice-president of the 
 Chamber of Commerce, which position he has 
 held from the time of its organization. The 
 Republican party, of which he has always been 
 an intelligent champion, recognized his services 
 in its behalf by securing his appointment to the 
 office of postmaster, his first appointment to the 
 position, dating June 12, 1898, under the admin- 
 istration of President McKinley. Under Presi- 
 dent Roosevelt, December 22, 1902, he was again 
 appointed to the office, which he continues to 
 fill in a manner satisfactory to the citizens, irre- 
 spective of political faith. 
 
 In Shelby county, Mo., near Shelby ville, Mr. 
 Short was born October 8, 1858, being a brother 
 of Frank H. Short, in whose sketch the family 
 record will be found. In 1869 he accompanied 
 the family to Hastings, Neb., which was then 
 beyond the confines of civilization. As a boy he 
 endured all the hardships incident to life upon 
 the frontier. However, be was not entirely de- 
 prived of advantages, for he was sent to the 
 public school at Papillion, Sarpy county, for two 
 years, and there laid the foundation of the broad 
 education subsequently gained through reading 
 and observation. His education in the printing 
 business began at the age of fourteen years, 
 when he entered the office of the Sarpy County 
 Sentinel. A year later he went with the Papil- 
 lion Times, where he worked his way up from 
 the lowly position of "devil." Returning to 
 Hastings, he was employed on the Hastings 
 
 Journal for several years, first as a type-setter, 
 then as a reporter and assistant editor. 
 
 Leaving Nebraska for California in 1881, on 
 his arrival in Fresno Mr. Short secured employ- 
 ment as a compositor on the Fresno Republican. 
 A year later he became the editor of the paper, 
 in which capacity he continued for years, mean- 
 while becoming owner of a half interest in the 
 plant, his partner being J. W. Shanklin. To- 
 gether they established the Daily Republican, the 
 first morning paper published in the city. After 
 twelve years the paper was sold and Mr. Short 
 then traveled through California in search of an 
 attractive location, but, failing to find a place 
 that suited him as well as Fresno, he returned 
 to this city. Shortly afterward he assisted in or- 
 ganizing the Republican Publishing Company, of 
 which he was vice-president and a director, and 
 which he promoted through his successful edi- 
 torial work on the paper. He identified himself 
 with the California Press Association and gained 
 many friends among the leading journalists of 
 the state. With his brother Frank H. he erected 
 the Short building, a three-story structure on 
 J street. For some years he served as a member 
 of the Fresno Board of Education, in which posi- 
 tion he contributed effectively to the promotion 
 of the welfare of the city schools and the eleva- 
 tion of the standard of scholarship. Another 
 position in which he has rendered valuable serv- 
 ice is that of member of the board of library 
 trustees. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Short united him with 
 Miss Jessie Francis and was solemnized in Calis- 
 toga, Napa county, Cal. Mrs. Short was born at 
 Silver Mountain, Sierra county, Cal., whither 
 her father, James Francis, had come from Wis- 
 consin during the memorable year 1849. Born 
 of this union are three children : Jamie V., Mar- 
 garet and John Douglas. 
 
 SAMUEL J. SAMELSON. As manager of 
 the J. K. Armsby Company, packers and ship- 
 pers of dried fruits, nuts, honey, etc., Samuel J. 
 Samelson is discharging the duties incumbent 
 upon him in a manner calculated to win the com- 
 mendation of all with whom he comes in business 
 contact. A man of energy and ability, possessed 
 of quick and unerring judgment, he has made 
 his influence felt in the business circles of Visalia 
 and has risen rapidly to his present position of 
 prominence, while a bright and promising future 
 is assured him through his past work. Born in 
 Austin, Nev., November 30, 1865, he is a son 
 of Samuel Samelson, a native of New York state. 
 
 Samuel Samelson was an instrumental musi- 
 cian and was a leader of an orchestra for many 
 years. The greater part of his life was spent in 
 New York state, but in 1890 he came to California 
 
284 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and locating in Fresno county, bought a vine- 
 yard ten miles southwest of the city of Fresno, 
 where he still makes his home. His wife, formerly 
 Alice Prior, a native of New Zealand, is also liv- 
 ing. They became the parents of two sons and 
 one daughter, the latter of whom is now deceased. 
 The oldest of this family, Samuel J. Samelson re- 
 ceived his education in the public schools and high 
 school of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. He was then ap- 
 prenticed to learn the trade of print cutter for 
 wall-paper designing, etc. He came to Califor- 
 nia in i8go with his parents, and four years later 
 engaged in the fruit-packing business with the 
 Griffin-Skelley Company. He continued in this 
 employment for one year, when he was made su- 
 perintendent of the Producers' Packing Company, 
 of Fresno. Following this he accepted, in 1896, 
 the position of buyer with the Fresno Home Pack- 
 ing Company and manager of the Selma branch 
 through season, remaining so engaged for eight 
 years. In June, 1902, he became identified with 
 the J. K. Armsby Company as local manager of 
 the Visalia branch packing house, which han- 
 dles peaches, prunes and all dried fruits. Since 
 his assumption of these duties Mr. Samelson has 
 remodeled the packing house, which now has a 
 capacity of two thousand cases per day, during a 
 season of from three to five months, and em- 
 ploys sixty-five people. 
 
 ■ In fraternal associations Mr. Samelson is iden- 
 tified with the Woodmen of the World and Her- 
 alds of Liberty. Politically he is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. 
 
 F R. MEILIKE. Numbered among the Ger- 
 man-American citizens whose thrift and energy 
 have contributed to the advancement of Cali- 
 fornia is Mr. Meilike, member of the firm of 
 Wehrmann & Meilike, and a leading business man 
 of Madera. He was born in the province of Bran- 
 denburg, Prussia, Germany, February 12, 1858, 
 being a son of Gustav and Theresa (Luther) 
 Meilike, natives of the same province and mem- 
 bers of families of agriculturists. His great- 
 grandfather removed from the interior of Ger- 
 many to Brandenburg, where he helped to build 
 a large dam and was in other ways connected 
 with local enterprises. The father and mother 
 are deceased, the former having been accidentally 
 drowned. Of their six living children (all in 
 America), the subject of this narrative was third 
 in order of birth and is the only one in California. 
 Following the usual German custom, he was 
 kept in school until fourteen and then appren- 
 ticed to a trade. For three years he served under 
 a locksmith and at the expiration of his time 
 traveled as a journeyman through different parts 
 of Germany. 
 
 Coming to America in 1880, Mr. Meilike se- 
 cured employment on a farm in Mitchell county, 
 Iowa, but later removed to Milwaukee, Wis., 
 where he was employed as a machinist in Bayliss 
 iron ■ works. After a short time he went to 
 Menominee, Mich., and secured employment in 
 a sawmill. From there he went south to Ark- 
 ansas and Missouri, and next worked as a 
 machinist in Kansas City and at Rosedale, Kans. 
 After a short time in the Santa Fe shops at 
 Topeka, Kans., he became a blacksmith in the 
 Silver iron works at Salt Lake City, and in 1882 
 settled in CaHfornia, where he was first engaged 
 in the Southern Pacific Railroad shops at Sacra- 
 mento. Then from the Union iron works in 
 San Francisco he went to Seattle, Wash., and 
 secured work in a sawmill. On his return to 
 California, January, 1884, he came to Madera 
 county and for four years worked on Mr. Mor- 
 decai's ranch, after which he took up land and 
 engaged in teaming. In 1890 he secured employ- 
 ment as a clerk with Rosenthal & Kutner, at 
 Madera, and for nine years remained in their 
 mercantile establishment, leaving in 1899 to era- 
 bark in business for himself under the firm title 
 of Wehrmann & Meilike. The firm owns the 
 site and the building, the latter having been 
 erected in 1899 and increased in size by the 
 building of a brick structure adjoining in 1903, 
 so that the space utilized is now 50 x 150 feet in 
 dimensions. The stock is varied, including 
 groceries, house fyirnishing goods, queensware, 
 bakery goods, flour and feed. An excellent busi- 
 ness has been established among the residents 
 of Madera and the surrounding country, and the 
 reputation of the firm is unexcelled for accuracy 
 in all business transactions. 
 
 The Madera Board of Trade is one of the local 
 organizations to which Mr. Meilike gives his 
 support as a member. Fraternally he is con- 
 nected with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, 
 In religion he adheres to the Lutheran faith, and 
 politically votes for the men and measures of the 
 Democratic party. Since coming to Madera he 
 has established a home of his own. His wife 
 was formerly Marie Birch, a native of Germany. 
 Three children have been born of their union, 
 namely : George R., who died at the age of three 
 months ; Carl William and Louise Birch, who are 
 being educated in local schools and trained for 
 positions of usefulness and honor in the world. 
 
 CHARLES ALLISON TELFER. Through 
 his connection with the Fresno Canal & Irriga- 
 tion Company as its secretary and manager, Mr. 
 Teller is intimately associated with an organiza- 
 tion that has proved of distinct and permanent 
 value to the material development of Fresno and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 287 
 
 vicinity. His connection with this enterprise 
 dates from October i, 1903, when he was ten- 
 dered the position of manager, together with the 
 office of secretary of the company, the oldest of 
 its kind in this region. Within the hmits of the 
 company's three hundred miles of canals are em- 
 braced three large systems, namely : Church, 
 Gould and Enterprise. The canal has its source 
 in Kings river and is being gradually enlarged 
 from time to time, in order to meet the needs of 
 landowners in this community. 
 
 A native of Liverpool, Queens county. Nova 
 Scotia, Charles Allison Telfer is a son of Richard 
 H. and Martha (Freeman) Telfer, also natives 
 of Nova Scotia. The paternal grandfather, Rich- 
 ard Telfer, was born and reared in Edinburgh, 
 Scotland, and after crossing the Atlantic settled 
 near Liverpool, Nova Scotia, where he cleared a 
 tract of timbered land and improved a farm, 
 besides working as a contractor and builder. In 
 religion he was an adherent of the Baptist Church. 
 The maternal grandfather, George Freeman, was 
 a native of Massachusetts, where his ancestors 
 were established in a very early day. After his 
 removal to Nova Scotia he conducted farm pur- 
 suits. Taking up the trade of a millwright, Rich- 
 ard H. Telfer engaged in building and operat- 
 ing sawmills and conducted a large busiriess in 
 lumber manufacturing on Point Medway and Liv- 
 erpool river. Both he and his wife are living, 
 still occupying the family homestead near Liv- 
 erpool. Of their five children (all of whom sur- 
 vive) the eldest, Charles Allison Telfer was born 
 August 4, i860, and received such advantages, as 
 local schools afforded. Under his father's train- 
 ing he early acquired considerable knowledge of 
 lumbering and farming. In June of 1881 he came 
 to the United States, being first employed as fore- 
 man in the cotton mills at Ipswich, Mass., after 
 which he engaged in the grocery business at Bev- 
 erly in the same state. January, 1889, he came 
 to California and has since made Fresno his 
 home. In October following his arrival in this 
 city he entered the Fresno National Bank as a 
 bookkeeper, from which position in 1892 he was 
 transferred to that of assistant cashier. Upon the 
 death of J. B. Smith he was elected cashier and 
 continued in that capacity until February i, 1903, 
 when he resigned, afterward engaging in the con- 
 struction and building of irrigation canals un- 
 ■ til he entered upon the duties of his present post. 
 By his marriage to Evoline Bennett, who was 
 born and reared in Beverly, Mass., Mr. Telfer has 
 two children, Abbie and Girard. Politically he 
 votes with the Republican party in local and gen- 
 eral elections. On the organization of the Wood- 
 men of the World he became one of its charter 
 members and has since been interested in the 
 growth and activities of the fraternity, in addi- 
 tion to which he is connected with the Benevo- 
 
 lent Protective Order of Elks. In the Fresno 
 Chamber of Commerce he holds the office of vice- 
 president and is further identified with its work 
 through his membership on the executive commit- 
 tee. Prominent in business circles, a recognized 
 authority in financial matters, resourceful and ef- 
 ficient in the management of the canal company's 
 affairs, he is a leading factor in the business cir- 
 cles of Fresno and wields an influence as po- 
 tent as it is permanent. 
 
 RICHARD HUBBARD STEVENS. The 
 family represented by the late R. H. Stevens of 
 Visalia was among the earliest to settle in New 
 England, where several successive generations 
 lived and labored. Thoroughly loyal to the local- 
 ity where destiny bad placed them, they showed 
 no desire to drift into the outside world until the 
 middle of the nineteenth century, after which they 
 became scattered into various parts of the United 
 States, retaining in every locality the honorable 
 traits characteristic of them in the old state of 
 Vermont. The twelve children of Solomon 
 Stevens sought homes and fortunes in various 
 places, but he was content to pass his entire life 
 in his native town of Barnet, Caledonia county, 
 Vt., where he worked as a tanner and currier in 
 early manhood, and then conducted a saddlery 
 business in addition to owning and superintend- 
 ing farm land. His wife, Sallie, who was also 
 a life-long resident of Vermont, was a daughter 
 of Clark Cushman, and descended from Robert 
 Cushman, one of the passengers of the historic 
 Mayflower. 
 
 The youngest among the children of Solomon 
 Stevens was Richard Hubbard Stevens, who was 
 born in Barnet, Vt., April 30, 1841, and received 
 an academic education at St. Johnsbury. For 
 three years he was employed as a clerk in a 
 brother's store in Lacon, 111., but returned to Ver- 
 mont to take charge of the property and business 
 of another brother who went to the front with 
 the Green Mountain boys in the Civil war. In 
 1863 he came to California and after some years 
 of following various pursuits, but meeting with 
 success in none, he came to Tulare county in the 
 fall of 1869, seeking employment in any capacity 
 that offered. At Visalia he secured a clerkship 
 with Douglas & Co., and in 1871 purchased a 
 one-fourth interest in the store. Later, the firm 
 meeting with reverses, he purchased an addi- 
 tional interest, and in 1885 became sole owner 
 of the store. The following year he took into 
 partnership Abraham Hamerslag and the two re- 
 mained together until 1891, when Mr. Stevens 
 sold his interest and retired. During his con- 
 nection with the establishment it had developed 
 from a small country store to an important enter- 
 prise, with a large and valuable stock, and oc- 
 
288 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cupying commodious quarters. The successful 
 development of the business was due largely to 
 his capable business methods and untiring energy. 
 The first substantial business block erected in 
 Visalia was built by Mr. Stevens, whO' with a 
 firm faith in the future of the city believed that 
 its prosperity could be promoted by the develop- 
 ment of its business property. In addition he 
 erected one of the finest residences of which the 
 town boasts and devoted considerable attention to 
 the grounds surrounding the house, thus adding 
 greatly to the beauty of the homestead. At dif- 
 ferent times he acquired a number of ranches in 
 Tulare county, some of which were utilized for 
 the raising of horses. In disposition he was char- 
 itable, large-hearted and kind to those in distress, 
 and his genial and whole-souled qualities caused 
 him to become known as "Uncle Dick" among 
 the people of all this section of country. In 
 physique he was of commanding appearance, six 
 feet and one inch in height, and weighing about 
 two hundred pounds. Rugged health blessed his 
 years in Tulare county. Previously, however, 
 while in San Francisco, he had suffered much 
 from ill health, but after coming to this part of 
 the state he became robust and stalwart. Before 
 old age had come to him, however, he was 
 stricken with paralysis, which resulted in his 
 death January 9, 1894, at his Visalia home. The 
 interment of his body was conducted with Ma- 
 sonic honors, for he had been active in that order 
 as a member of lodge, chapter and commandery, 
 and had passed all the chairs in the chapter, in- 
 cluding that of high priest. In politics he favored 
 Republican principles. His wife, who is admin- 
 istratrix of the estate and a woman of excellent 
 business ability, bore the maiden name of Mattie 
 M. Roberts, and was born at Macomb, 111. The 
 Roberts family is of eastern extraction. Her 
 father, James C. Roberts, a native of New York, 
 went to Illinois during the pioneer days of the 
 latter state and settled in McDonough county, 
 where he followed the trade of carpenter and 
 builder. When advanced in life, having long 
 since retired from all active labors, he came to 
 California to see the country and visit his daugh- 
 ter at Visalia, and here his death occurred in 
 1901, when he had attained the age of eighty- 
 seven years. 
 
 WILLIAM H. THURMAN, founder of the 
 city of Madera, was born in 1831, in Winchester, 
 Tenn., and was a son of John Thurman, a Vir- 
 ginian and a pioneer of Tennessee. At the age 
 of sixteen years he left home and enlisted in 
 the Mexican war, where he served under Gen. 
 Winfield Scott. In 1849 he crossed the plains 
 to California, where, besides trying his luck in 
 the mines, he engaged in teaming and freighting 
 
 in the mountains. After settling in Washoe 
 county, Nev., he served for one term as sheriff. 
 On his return to California in 1869, he embarked 
 in the lumber business at Coulterville, Mariposa 
 county. Coming from there to what is now 
 Madera county, he organized the old California 
 Lumber Company, and built the flume from the 
 mills, sixty miles to this place. To the new 
 town he gave the Spanish name of Madera. A 
 man of inventive nature, he devised a number 
 of articles to aid in his work. Among these 
 was a clamp (patented), which is used in holding 
 the lumber together in bundles, for transporting 
 through the flume. After the disbanding of the 
 California Lumber Company, he became identi- 
 fied as a contractor to do the logging and sawing 
 for the Madera Flume and Trading Company, 
 being so engaged for two years, after which he 
 moved his family to Walla Walla, Wash., and 
 engaged in lumbering in Idaho for two years. 
 
 On his return to California, Mr. TThurman 
 built a mill in Mariposa county, and engaged 
 in manufacturing lumber. Meanwhile, his win- 
 ter home was at Fresno Flats. May 16, 1893, 
 he was elected sheriff of Madera county, and held 
 the office until January, 1895, when he declined 
 to become a candidate for re-election. Ill health 
 led him to remove to San Diego, but the change 
 of climate did not benefit him, and he died in 
 December, 1895, at sixty-four years of age. In 
 politics he~had always been a stanch Democrat, 
 and fraternally was a Master and Royal Arch 
 Mason. His wife, Emma (Bludworth) Thur- 
 man, was born in New Orleans, La., came to 
 California after the Civil war, and is novr liv- 
 ing in San Diego. Of her four children, W. B. 
 is a resident of Madera ; George S. is manager 
 of a commission house in San Francisco ; Arthur 
 L. is a conductor on the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road; and James D. is an attorney in San Fran- 
 cisco. 
 
 WILLIAM B. THURMAN was born in 
 Washoe, Nev., July 14, 1868, a son of the late 
 W. H. Thurman, the founder of the town of 
 Madera. He was brought to California by his 
 parents when a babe of six months, grew to 
 manhood and received his education in Merced 
 and Madera counties. At an early age he be- 
 came identified with the lumber interests of that 
 section, and in 1892 entered the employ of the 
 Madera Flume and Trading Company in this 
 city. When his father was elected sheriff of 
 Madera county, upon its organization, he was 
 appointed under-sheriff, serving until January, 
 1895, when he was appointed deputy to the coun- 
 ty clerk and clerk of the board of supervisors, 
 holding the position two years. 
 
 In 1898 he was the nominee of the Democratic 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 289 
 
 party for county sheriiif, was elected, and entered 
 upon his duties in January, 1899, retiring from 
 the office after serving efficiently four years. His 
 creed was the strict enforcement of law and 
 order, and in the fulfillment of his duties had 
 several narrow escapes from death. 
 
 In June, 1902, Mr. Thurman formed a part- 
 nership with J. W. Watkins, under the firm 
 name of Watkins & Thurman. Leasing the mill 
 owned by the Madera Flume and Trading Com- 
 pany, they began the manufacture of sash and 
 doors. In this enterprise they have built up a 
 splendid business, their product finding a ready 
 taarket throughout the eastern states and the 
 Pacific coast. 
 
 June 17, 1896, Mr. Thurman was united in 
 marriage in Fresno Flats, with Georgia A. Rice, 
 a native of Grant county, Ore. Her father, 
 Henry Rice, came to California in 1852 via Cape 
 Horn, and ten years later went to Oregon and 
 settled in Grant county, where he married So- 
 phronia Dodson. He now makes his home in 
 Fresno. 
 
 Mr. Thurman is a member of Madera Lodge 
 No. 280, F. & A. M.; is past grand of the local 
 lodge of Odd Fellows, and past district deputy 
 grand master; a member of the Rebekahs and 
 Encampment at Fresno ; Benevolent Protective 
 Order of Elks of Fresno, and the Woodmen of 
 the World, of Madera. Is an active member 
 of Madera Chamber of Commerce. 
 
 HON. SYLVESTER CLARK SMITH. 
 Through wise statesmanship and the promotion 
 of measures for the benefit of the people, Hon. 
 Sylvester Clark Smith has gained a reputation 
 which is not limited to the confines of his home 
 town of Bakersfield, nor the county of Kern, but 
 extends throughout the' state. His service in the 
 state senate, to which he was elected in 1894 and 
 re-elected in 1898, forms one of the most note- 
 worthy features of his life. In the halls of legis- 
 lature he has borne a prominent part in progres- 
 sive movements. He was the author of the coun- 
 ty government biU and chairman of the commit- 
 tee appointed to report upon the same. As the 
 author of the present registration law, he not 
 only introduced the bill during his first year in 
 the legislature, but also did all in his power to in- 
 terest other senators in its passage. At that time 
 it failed of passage, but later was more success- 
 fully pushed forward by its author. Two con- 
 stitutional amendments, providing for the em- 
 ployment of voting machines in cities of Cali- 
 fornia when sanctioned by the legislature, owe 
 their conception to him. One of the most im- 
 portant measures with which his name is con- 
 nected, the bill for the establishment of the Cali- 
 fornia Polytechnic School at San Luis Obispo, 
 
 was passed, and in October of 1903 the school 
 opened. The special purpose of the institution 
 is to furnish instruction to farmers and mechan- 
 ics, while there is also a department for young- 
 ladies. Should the purpose of the founders reach 
 a successful consummation the school will be 
 fruitful of much good. Senator Smith acts as 
 president of the board of trustees of the college, 
 having charge of some three hundred acres of 
 land owned by the institution. In this connec- 
 tion it may be stated that his services are given 
 gratuitously, none of the board receiving com- 
 pensation for their labors. 
 
 The ancestry of Senator Smith is traced to 
 John Smith, the Puritan pioneer of New Eng- 
 land. Sylvester Smith, the senator's grandfather, 
 a native of New England, spent the larger part 
 of his life in developing raw, unimproved land 
 and was a hardy frontiersman. At the time of 
 his death in Iowa he was about eighty years of 
 age. His son, Edward, was born in northern 
 New York, and in childhood accompanied the 
 family to Ohio, thence to Illinois, and with a 
 brother proceeded to Iowa in 1835, when that 
 state was considered beyond the boundary of civ- 
 ilization. Pleased with the prospects, they sent 
 for other members of the family and took up 
 government land in Henry county. Edward 
 Smith became the owner of a farm of one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres, and remained there- until 
 a short time before his death, which occurred in 
 California in 1882, at the age of sixty-three 
 years. In politics he voted with the Republicans. 
 During the Ci.vil war he offered his services to 
 the Union, but was rejected for physical reasons. 
 In his family there were five sons and three 
 daughters born of his union with Celia Shockley, 
 a native of Ohio but from childhood a resident 
 of Iowa, her parents being among the earliest 
 settlers of Henry county. At the time of her 
 death in 1866 she was about forty years of age. 
 
 Near Mount Pleasant, Henry county, Iowa, 
 Sylvester Qark Smith was born August 26, 
 1858. He was primarily educated in district 
 schools and later attended Howe's Academy at 
 Mount Pleasant. When eighteen years of age 
 he began to teach school and this occupation he 
 followed in the summers, attending school during 
 the winters, until he was twenty-one. In 1879 
 he came to California and began to teach a dis- 
 trict school in Colusa county, where. May 7, 
 1882, he was united in marriage with Maria 
 Hart, who was born near Warrensburg, Mo., 
 and by whom he has two daughters, Eva and 
 Dorrit. In the summer of 1882 Mr. Smith and 
 a brother drove through to Walla, Walla, Wash. 
 During the winter he read law in San Francisco. 
 The summer of 1883 found him in Kern county, 
 where he taught district schools until December, 
 1885, and meanwhile continued his law studies. 
 
290 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In October, 1885, he was admitted to the bar 
 and two months later came to Bakersfield, where 
 he opened an office. When, in 1886, the excite- 
 ment regarding the water supply arose, some of 
 the farmers deeply interested in the matter 
 started a paper, the Echo, and engaged him to 
 edit and conduct the same in their interests. In 
 1889, when the issue for which the paper had 
 been established was settled, he purchased the 
 plant, and ran it until 1897, when he resumed 
 his law practice. However, a short time after- 
 ward he resumed his journalistic connections, be- 
 coming the largest stockholder in the incor- 
 porated company, which founded a daily paper 
 called the Morning Echo. Ever since then Mr. 
 Smith has been manager of the publication and 
 one of its editorial writers. In 1902 he was one 
 of four Republican candidates for the congres- 
 sional nomination, but was defeated on the forty- 
 ninth ballot, although he stood first on next to 
 the last ballot. In company with the successful 
 candidate he afterward made a canvass of the 
 district, and his stump speeches were a feature 
 of the campaign. The campaign of 1904 again 
 found him a candidate for congressional honors, 
 and when the convention met at Santa Cruz on 
 August 25th, he was nominated by acclamation. 
 His election followed by a plurality of ten thou- 
 sand eight hundred votes. 
 
 Among the local movements which receive 
 Mr. Smith's support, mention belongs to the 
 library board, of which he is a trustee ; the board 
 of trade, and the board of health. He has been 
 one of the most active factors in the improve- 
 ment of the city and in beautifying its streets, and 
 was one of the leaders in the movement for the 
 incorporation of Bakersfield as a city. Frater- 
 nally he is connected with the Knights of Pythias 
 and the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 LEVI WOOD. There are few men now liv- 
 ing retired in Oakdale who have so emphatical- 
 ly impressed their worth upon Stanislaus coun- 
 ty as Levi Wood. While his name is associated 
 with that of its most substantial and conserva- 
 tive citizens, his prestige has been gained in the 
 fields and meadows of this fertile section, and is 
 identified with unusual sagacity in purchasing and 
 improving lands, and with the establishment of 
 a standard which aspirants for agricultural hon- 
 ors would do well to emulate. At all times prac- 
 tical and far-sighted, he is responsible for the 
 improvement of at least five farms in the coun- 
 ty, and his success has permitted the purchase of 
 four properties besides the farm of two hundred 
 and forty acres which he owns at present in the 
 vicinity of the town. 
 
 Mr. Wood is a self-made man from whose 
 career one may derive both encouragement and 
 
 help. He has given farming the best and strong- 
 est years of his life, has studied its every phase, 
 and is competent to talk intelligently and instruc- 
 tively concerning an occupation upon which de- 
 pends the success or failure of the markets of the 
 world. He came to California in 1869 from 
 Atchison county. Mo., to which his family had 
 removed from Pike county, Ind., in 1855, and 
 where an untracked wilderness, with its atten- 
 dant dangers and loneliness, presented problems 
 difficult to unravel. Born in Pike county Janu- 
 ary I, 1847, Levi was eight years old when he 
 went overland to Missouri, his father, Zach- 
 ariah, taking up land in Atchison county, where 
 the latter died when his son was fourteen years 
 old. He was born in Ohio, and was of Welsh 
 descent, and his father fought and was killed in 
 the Black Hawk war. Through his marriage 
 with Matilda J. Chambers, of North Carolina, he 
 became the parent of ten children, six of whom 
 attained maturity. Of these, Isaac died in Mis- 
 souri; Samuel, who served in the Civil war in 
 a Missouri regiment, lives on a farm near Port- 
 land, Ore. ; Aaron resides on a farm in Mis- 
 souri; Levi, the subject of this sketch, resides in 
 Oakdale ; Thomas died in Missouri ; Mrs. Shack- 
 leford died in Missouri. 
 
 Levi Wood had few playmates in his youth, 
 for there were but thirty families in Atchison 
 county when he first settled there, and of neces- 
 sity the opportunities for acquiring an educa- 
 tion were limited. Distinctly he recalls the dis- 
 turbance incident to the breaking out of the Civil 
 war, of the death of his father in the quiet of his 
 farm almost when the first bugle-call was stirring 
 patriots to action, of the hurried departure of 
 his older brother to the front, and his own as- 
 sumption of the responsibility of managing the 
 home place in his absence. Putting his shoul- 
 der to the wheel, he cared for those dependent 
 upon him, and when the war was over and peace 
 restored, established a home of his own by mar- 
 rying Lydia Keeley. Mrs. Wood was born in 
 Philadelphia, and came to Missouri with her fath- 
 er, Conrad Keeley, the latter of whom was a 
 carpenter by trade, and a soldier in the Civil war. 
 Mrs. Wood died in California in 1901. There 
 are five sons and one daughter living, all of whom 
 remain in their father's vicinity to comfort him 
 in his declining years. William Elwood is a 
 rancher near by ; Alonzo Thomas owns and oper- 
 ates a fruit ranch near Oakdale ; Harry J. is a 
 funeral director in Oakdale ; Ralph is running 
 a ranch near Oakdale ; Walter A. lives on the 
 home farm ; Laura Evelyn also lives at home. 
 Levi C, the second youngest, died in 1901. 
 
 Mr. Wood remained in Missouri until 1869, 
 when, owing to his health being broken, he came 
 to California with his wife, and began to ped- 
 dle fruit over the mountains from Tuolumne 
 
^ 6. (P^oiAm^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 293 
 
 county. This proved admirable summer work, 
 and his falls and winters he spent in Stockton, 
 soon regaining his health and spirits, and be- 
 coming thoroughly impressed with the many ad- 
 vantages of the west. In 1871 he rented a farm 
 on the Stanislaus river, and in 1878 purchased 
 a farm of three hundred and twenty acres three 
 miles south of Oakdale where he lived and pros- 
 pered for ten years. He then bought a farm the 
 same size twelve miles from town, remained 
 thereon for eight years, and then purchased a 
 half section two miles south of Oakdale, which 
 he eventually presented to his sons. In 1901 he 
 purchased his present home in Oakdale, and at 
 the same time a ranch of two hundred and thir- 
 ty-eight acres south of the town, which he has 
 placed to grain and stock, and which now con- 
 tains two hundred and forty acres. On all of 
 these properties he established an ideal farm- 
 ing center, instituted the most modern and lab- 
 or-saving of improvements, and secured from 
 his land the best results compatible with soil, cli- 
 mate, and general adaptiveness. He was system- 
 atic, practical and eminently far-sighted,' making 
 few mistakes, and those never a second time. 
 He ];ias always believed and lived up to the gos- 
 pel of industry and common sense, has been loy- 
 al to trusts imposed and friendships enjoyed, and 
 in consequence has won the lasting esteem of 
 the people among whom his lot has been cast. 
 A stanch but not active Republican, he is an ex- 
 member of the school board, and is a devout and 
 generous associate and trustee of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 SAMUEL CARR BROWN. A residence of 
 more than fifty years in Tulare county has made 
 Mr. Brown a witness of its development as well 
 as a contributor to its progress. As a result of 
 his far-sighted policy in purchasing tracts of fand 
 in early days when property was verv low, he 
 has attained a position of wealth and influence 
 among the people of Visalia, his home town. 
 With the exception of two others, he is the oldest 
 surviving settler of this region. Coming here; 
 in 1852 when settlers were few and the induce- 
 ments for permanent citizenship meager, it has 
 been his privilege to be associated with the de- 
 velopment of the valley, until it has become a 
 favorite place for investment among capitalists. 
 
 Franklin county, Vt., is Mr. Brown's native 
 place, and August 17, 1826, the date of his birth. 
 His parents, James and Sarah (Smith) Brown, 
 were natives respectively of Rhode Island and 
 Massachusetts, and resided for years at Swanton, 
 Franklin county, Vt., where the father engaged 
 m the mercantile business and owned large tracts 
 of land. Eventually they removed to St. Law- 
 rence county, N. Y., and there died. In their 
 
 family of four sons and three daughters, Samuel 
 Carr Brown was the youngest. Primarily edu- 
 cated in common schools, he was later a student 
 in Pennsylvania College in the Western Reserve 
 and also attended Oberlin College in 1848. 
 Having acquired a rudimentary knowledge of 
 law through study under Judge Wallace of St. 
 Lawrence county, N. Y., he gained considerable 
 experience of its practice through his connection 
 with a justice court, and throughout all of his 
 active life devoted his attention largely to pro- 
 fessional matters. 
 
 After one-half year in Pike county,_ 111., in 
 1849 ^''- Brown joined a band of gold-seekers 
 bound for California. In April the journey was 
 begun and in September he reached the North 
 Fork of the American river, where he tried his 
 luck at mining for a year. Fortune did not favor 
 his efforts and he gave up mining and went to 
 San FranciscO'. For six months he engaged as 
 steward on the Vincennes, a sloop, sailing out 
 from San Francisco. After leaving that work he 
 remained in San Francisco for a short time. 
 January of 1852 found him in Tulare county in 
 company with about fifty people, mostly farmers 
 from Iowa. They first built a stockade, the In- 
 dians two years before having killed the first 
 white settlers. After this other log houses, eight 
 or ten, were built in the stockade. It had not 
 been his intention to settle here permanently, for 
 his object in making the trip had been to hunt the 
 deer, antelope and bear that abounded in what was 
 then called the Four Creek county. However, as 
 trifles often change our destiny, so a trip taken 
 for recreation and hunting ended with permanent 
 settlement in the locality visited. The practice 
 of law, buying of land, teaching two terms of 
 school, and other- activities filled the early years 
 of Mr. Brown's residence in Visalia, and during 
 the Civil war he was an active sympathizer of the 
 Union. Three times attempts were made to wreck 
 his office, but United States troops restored order 
 and remained until the close of the war. TBese 
 troops were sent here at the request of six reputa- 
 ble citizens, three Republicans and three Demo- 
 crats, the latter having come to their Republican 
 friends to warn them of trouble. For a time he 
 was a law partner of William G. Morris and later 
 was a member of the firm of Brown & Daggett, 
 but in 1891 retired from active law practice. The 
 large properties owned by him are under his per- 
 sonal supervision, including an office building in 
 Visalia, twenty-five hundred acres of farm land in 
 proximity to the town, and a one-half interest in 
 four thousand acres in the foothills near Visalia. 
 The land is divided into five ranches, the most of 
 which are leased. 
 
 Many of the most important enterprises in 
 Visalia have received the aid and influence of 
 S. C. Brown. Seeing the need of a financial in- 
 
294: 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 stitution, he interested others in the estabhsh- 
 ment of the Bank of Visalia, of which he is now 
 a director. After taking part in the estabhshment 
 of the ice works he was elected a director, and 
 has since served in that capacity. Upon the 
 organization of the VisaHa steam laundry, an 
 enterprise that he aided in starting, he was chosen 
 a member of the board of directors and has since 
 helped to shape its business policy. In addition 
 he is a director of the soda works and a leading 
 worker in the Tulare Irrigation Company. Dur- 
 ing early days he held the office of district attor- 
 ney for two years, for two terms held the position 
 of mayor, and for three terms served in the city 
 council. Politically he was a Freesoiler during 
 the existence of that party, and during the can- 
 didacy of Abraham Lincoln became a Republican, 
 which party has since received his support. After 
 coming to Visalia he married Fannie Kellenburg, 
 a native of Illinois. They are the parents of five 
 children now living, namely : May, wife of 
 William H. Hammond, and Fannie, wife of C. G. 
 Wilcox, all of Visalia; Philip S., who has charge 
 of a ranch ; Maude, wife of J. E. Combs, of 
 Visalia, and Helen, who resides with her parents. 
 
 THOMAS A. BARR. The lineage of the 
 Barr family, represented in Fresno county by 
 Thomas A. Barr, a prominent vineyardist of the 
 Malaga district, is traced to Gernjany, from 
 which country some member emigrated to the 
 United States in the seventeenth century. He 
 is supposed to have located in Maryland, as 
 that is the state in which some of the more re- 
 cent ancestors were born, Adam Barr, the great- 
 grandfather of Thomas A., owing his nativity to 
 that locality, whence he joined the westward tide 
 of civilization and went to Kentucky as a scout 
 with Daniel Boone. His son, also called Adam, 
 served in the war of 1812. He was born in 
 Kentucky one and a half miles from the place 
 where Jerry B. Barr, his son, was born, the birth- 
 place of the latter being eight miles from that of 
 Thomas A., who was born in Breckinridge coun- 
 ty, Ky., September 10, 1841. 
 
 Jerry B. Barr was a farmer by occupation. 
 In 1852 he removed to Scotland county. Mo., 
 and later to Illinois, where he remained until 
 1861. Returning to Missouri in that year, he 
 located in Lewis county, where his death oc- 
 curred at the age of seventy-three years. By 
 marriage he had allied -himself with a family 
 which had been prominent in this country since 
 the colonial period, Eliza Anne Dowell, of Ken- 
 tucky, becoming his wife. She was the daughter 
 of Thomas Dowell, a native of Virginia, and on 
 the maternal side a great-granddaughter of John 
 Conklin, who served in the Revolutionary war as 
 a soldier in the famous cavalry commanded by 
 
 Light-horse Harry Lee. Of their family foiu" 
 children are now living, namely : Thomas A., 
 of this review ; Z. Taylor, of Selma, Cal. ; Eliza- 
 beth Johnson ; and Josephine Dudley. 
 
 Reared to manhood in the states of Kentucky 
 and Illinois, Thomas A. Barr received his educa- 
 tion in the common schools of both states. He 
 removed with his parents to Missouri in 1861, 
 and remained at home until the following year, 
 when he went back to Illinois and made his home 
 with an uncle for two years, renting his farm. 
 In 1869 he located in Lewis county, Mo., and 
 engaged in the general merchandise business in 
 Maywood, at the same time carrying on farming 
 operations. Until 1881 he remained connected 
 with the mercantile interests of that town, when 
 he gave his attention entirely to farming and 
 stock raising, becoming the owner of a four- 
 hundred-and-eighty-acre farm. Deciding to im- 
 migrate to the Pacific coast he sold his property 
 in 1890 and came to California, spending his 
 first year in Stockton, after which he came to 
 Fresno and purchased his present place in 1892. 
 He now owns eighty-three acres of land, sixty- 
 five acres being devoted to vines and fruits. 
 
 In Missouri, in 1866, Mr. Barr was united in 
 marriage with Anna L. Wright, a native of 
 Lewis county, and the daughter of Wesley 
 Wright. Of this union were born the following 
 children : Clarence E., of Sacramento ; Arthur 
 E., of Selma; Warden T., a physician of Fresno; 
 Adeline J., the wife of E. T. Wall, of Fresno 
 county ; and Edgar B., at home. In his political 
 convictions Mr. Barr is an adherent of the prin- 
 ciples of the Democratic party, and in religion 
 is a member of the Christian Church. 
 
 ALFRED D. McMASTER, M. D., a well 
 known practitioner and proprietor of the Moun- 
 tain View Drug Store of Le Grand, Merced 
 county, was born December 13, 1854, in North 
 Carolina, a son of Micajah and Sybil (Jones) 
 McMaster, both of whom were natives of that 
 state, the latter dying in 1857 at an early age. 
 
 Alfred D. McMaster received his education 
 in the common- schools making his home in 
 North Carolina until seventeen years of age, at 
 which time he went to Kansas and a few years 
 later to Missouri, where he engaged in a general 
 merchandise business for three years in Mor- 
 risville. During this time he studied medicine, 
 and in 1879 was graduated from the Missouri 
 Medical College at St. Louis. He began the 
 practice of his profession in that state and was 
 married to Delina J. Reed that same year. She 
 died in 1886, leaving one daughter, Willie A. 
 
 Having had several years' experience, and be- 
 Heving that California offered better induce- 
 ments, the doctor disposed of his holdings in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 295 
 
 Missouri in 1882 and came to this state, locat- 
 ing for a short time in Willits, Mendocino coun- 
 ty, where he opened a drug store in connection 
 with his practice. After three years he removed 
 to Sonoma county; remaining there one year, 
 he came to the San Joaquin valley and located 
 in Selma, Fresno county; later, in 1891, he 
 moved to Plainsberg, Merced county, and built 
 up a lucrative practice and patronage in his drug 
 store in his six years residence there. 
 
 In^i897 he came to Le Grand, where he has 
 since been one of the leading citizens and has 
 assisted materially in building up the town. His 
 practice reaches far into the country surround- 
 ing Le Grand and is a lucrative one as well. 
 
 In 1888 Dr. McMaster was united in marriage 
 in Merced county, with Nellie, the daughter of 
 N. N. Turner, a pioneer of 1849. She was born 
 in Merced county in 1868. Of this union have 
 been born two children, Raleigh, in 1889, and 
 Blanche in 1891. 
 
 In the county where Dr. McMaster has made 
 his home for nearly fifteen years he has gath- 
 ered about him many friends by his courteous 
 treatment, his hospitality and professional skill 
 as a physician. He is a man of public spirit and 
 always has supported movements he considered 
 worthy of advancing the interests of the county. 
 Fraternally he is a member of the Ancient Or- 
 der of United Workmen and Modern Woodmen 
 of America. In politics a Democrat, he has al- 
 ways had the interests of the party at heart. 
 
 DAVID B. FOWLER. The supervisor of the 
 third district of Madera county is a representa- 
 tive of a family identified with the colonial his- 
 tory of Virginia. At an early period, when 
 Kentucky was beginning to attract people over 
 the mountains, James Fowler, Sr., became a pio- 
 neer of the Blue-Grass state and cleared a raw 
 tract of land, making of it an improved farm. 
 From there late in life he removed to Indiana. 
 Next in line of descent was James Fowler, Jr., 
 a native of Kentucky and a farmer of Jennings 
 county, Ind., whence he removed to Nebraska 
 and died in Pawnee City'. His wife was Millie 
 Maria Stone, daughter of Thomas Stone, a Vir- 
 ginian who settled in Kentucky in an early day. 
 Among their children was a son, James M., who 
 served in an Indiana regiment during the Civil 
 war. Another son, W. F. (father of David B.), 
 was born in Indiana^ May 14, 1830, and while 
 still a mere boy gained a thorough knowledge of 
 agriculture under his father's training. At the 
 age of twenty-five, in 1855, he removed to Iowa 
 and settled on a farm in Wapello county. From 
 there in 1857 he removed to Pawnee City, Neb., 
 and took up farm pursuits in a new and unde- 
 veloped region. In 1864 he opened a mercantile 
 
 establishment in Pawnee City as a member of 
 the firm of Butler & Fowler, his partner being 
 later elected governor of Nebraska. Variously 
 interested in farming, stock-raising and mer- 
 cantile aiifairs, he led a busy and prosperous life 
 until the siege of grasshoppers brought disaster 
 and ruin to that region. Farmers lost their 
 crops and were unable to meet their bills at the 
 store, causing him a heavy loss. 
 
 Hoping to have better success in a different 
 location W. F. Fowler came to California in 
 1874. His first abode was at Tehachapi, Kern 
 county, where he took up a farm of one hundred 
 and sixty acres. Bad luck followed him, for 
 again the grasshoppers devastated his crop and 
 to add to his misfortunes the railroad claimed 
 and succeeded in getting possession of his farm. 
 Forced to make another start, in 1883 he settled 
 in Selma, where he combined real estate transac- 
 tions with farming and serving as justice of the 
 peace. In 1893 he came to Madera county, where 
 he has since been interested in farming. He 
 is proud of the fact that he supported Abraham 
 Lincoln for president in the days when that 
 statesman was comparatively unknown, and 
 later he was as firm in his allegiance to James 
 G. Blaine. Ever since the formation of the Re- 
 publican party he has voted that ticket, in both 
 local and general elections, and has maintained 
 the deepest interest in its success. His mar- 
 riage united him with Elizabeth H. Anderson, 
 who was born in Indiana, a daughter of Robert 
 Anderson, a farmer who removed from Ken- 
 tucky to Indiana. 
 
 Of two sons now living, David B. is super- 
 visor and R. R. district attorney of Madera coun- 
 ty, where both are influential in public affairs. 
 The former was born in Pawnee county. Neb., 
 May 20, i860, and attended district schools from 
 the age of six until fifteen. In 1874 he accom- 
 panied the family to California and aided his 
 father on the farm in Kern county. After re- 
 moving to Selma in 1883 he became interested 
 in the real estate business. In 1891 he came 
 to Madera and later was employed by the Sugar 
 Pine Company, acting as foreman of two differ- 
 ent colonies. At this writing he is engaged in 
 the cigar business on Yosemite avenue. He was 
 married in San Francisco to Mary Raish, who 
 was born in Marysville, this state, and they have 
 one son, Cecil. Mrs. Fowler is a member of 
 the Episcopal Church. Fraternally Mr. Fowler 
 is connected with the Woodmen of the World. 
 The commercial welfare of Madera secures his 
 co-operation through his membership on the 
 Board of Trade. In political belief he is a pro- 
 nounced Republican, always voting with his 
 party. In 1892 he was elected justice of the 
 peace, but resigned the same year. At the first 
 election after the organization of Madera coun- 
 
296 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ty he was elected county supervisor over two op- 
 ponents. Again, in 1902, he was elected on the 
 Republican ticket county supervisor for district 
 3, receiving a majority of forty- four, and taking 
 the office in January, 1903, to serve a term of 
 four years. 
 
 NORMAN D. KELLEY, D. D. S. The fam- 
 ily represented by Dr. Kelley of Fresno has been 
 identified with the history of California for a 
 long period and he himself is a native of this 
 state, iDorn at Watsonville. His father, Rev. D. O. 
 Kelley, was born at Kelley Island in Lake Erie, 
 being a member of an old family of Ohio. Edu- 
 cated in the east, at the outbreak of the Civil 
 war he enlisted and served as lieutenant of a 
 company belonging to the One Hundredth Ohio 
 Infantry. While participating in a campaign in 
 the south he was captured by the enemy and con- 
 fined in Libby prison, where for fifteen months 
 he endured all the hardships of that historic place. 
 When the war ended he returned to Ohio and 
 from there via Panama came to California, where 
 he practiced law, studied and was ordained to the 
 Episcopal ministry. His life has since been de- 
 voted to his denomination. In 1879 '''^ came to 
 Fresno and organized the first Episcopal parish 
 in this vicinity, also built the first house of wor- 
 ship used by the denomination here. For four- 
 teen years he remained rector of this congre- 
 gation, greatly promoting its welfare by his skill- 
 ful leadership. With Fresno as his headquar- 
 ters he organized congregations throughout the 
 San Joacjuin valley and gave to them the en- 
 couragement of his practical and efficient assis- 
 tance. All of the churches of his denomination 
 from the Tehachapi to Stockton were organized 
 under his direct supervision, and the denomina- 
 tion owes much to his ability as a missionary 
 preacher and organizer. Resigning his charge at 
 Fresno in 189 1, he returned to San Francisco as 
 a city missionary on the staff of Bishop Nichols, 
 and still makes that city his home, where he is 
 as earnest in the work of the church as in more 
 youthful years. For a long period he acted as 
 editor at San Francisco of the Pacific Churchman, 
 devoted to the interests of his denomination on 
 the coast. From the standpoint of an editor, no 
 less than as a missionary, his work was of per- 
 manent value to the church and promoted its 
 welfare and progress. He is a Republican in 
 political views, and is a member of the Loyal 
 Legion and Grand Army of the Republic. 
 
 After coming to California Rev. Mr. Kelley 
 married Annie A. Fletcher, who was born in Bos- 
 ton, Mass., and at an early age accompanied her 
 father, Stephen Fletcher, an Englishman, to the 
 Pacific coast. Settling in California, Mr. Fletch- 
 er remained a resident of San Francisco until 
 
 his death. In the Kelley family there are seven 
 sons, of whom Norman D. was next to the oldest. 
 He was born August 8, 1877, and was two years 
 of age when his parents removed to Fresno, where 
 his education was commenced in the public 
 schools. After removing to San Francisco in 
 1 89 1, he was a student in the schools of that city. 
 In 1895 he matriculated in the College of Phy- 
 sicians & Surgeons, where he took the regular 
 course of study and received the degree of D. D. 
 S. at his graduation in 1898. Immediately after 
 completing his studies he opened an office in 
 Fresno, where he has since engaged in practice. 
 Flis marriage was solemnized in San Francisco 
 and united him with Harriet P. Steinwand, who 
 was born in Oakland and grew to womanhood 
 in Fresno. They have two children, Douglas 
 Tracy and Harriet Elese. The family are iden- 
 tified with St. James Episcopal Church of Fresno. 
 If Dr. Kelley has a hobby outside of his pro- 
 fession, it is his enthusiastic support of the work 
 of the Sierra Club, with which he is associated. 
 It is his belief that mountain roads should be 
 opened sO' that tourists may have an opportunity 
 of beholding the grandeur of the Sierra scenery, 
 and he is a leader in the movement for the open- 
 ing of Kings river canyon. By frequent summer 
 visits in the mountains he has been impressed 
 with the beauty of the scenery, which, if a safe 
 and pleasant method of transit can be secured, 
 will undoubtedly draw thousands of visitors to 
 enjoy its wonderful attractions. 
 
 HORACE G. KELSEY. A native son of 
 Merced county, Horace G. Kelsey was born near 
 where he now Hves, May 5, 1859, hi^ parents 
 being Erastus and Melinda (Powers) Kelsey, 
 who crossed the plains in 1849, ^'^^ °'^ whom 
 mention is made in another part of this work. 
 Reared on the home farm, he was educated in 
 the public school at Merced Falls, later entering 
 the University of California from which he was 
 graduated in the class of 188 1. As a youth he 
 had a leaning toward the profession of medicine, 
 and to this end studied for a couple of years in 
 the Cooper Medical College of San Francisco. 
 His inclinations, however, underwent a change, 
 and he returned to the home farm in Merced 
 county and soon after purchased his father's in- 
 terest in his present ranch, upon which the elder 
 Kelsey had already made many improvements 
 and had set out a few fig trees. From 1889 until 
 1890 he worked zealously to set out his fig 
 orchard of seventy-five acres, and in all has about 
 twenty-five hundred trees. To the making of 
 the orchard, which has had the distinction of 
 being the largest fig orchard in the world, he 
 has brought all of the science and skill possible 
 of acquirement through the medium of the ex- 
 
CO. 
 
 ^r;t^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 301 
 
 perience of others, and the success of his project 
 is the best guarantee of his correct application 
 of modern horticultural ideas. As usual with figs, 
 he gathers two crops a year, the yearly produc- 
 tion being between one hundred and twenty-five 
 and one hundred and fifty tons. The trees are 
 thirty-five feet apart, and are known as the True 
 Mission fig tree. A ready market is found in 
 San Francisco. 
 
 The Kelsey ranch contains four- hundred and 
 forty-one acres, one hundred and ten of which 
 are under alfalfa, and the balance, not in orchard, 
 is under grain and pasture. Mr. Kelsey, in con- 
 nection with his diversified interests, keeps an 
 average of three thousand sheep. His home is a 
 commodious and modern one, his farm is well 
 kept and equipped with the most desirable of 
 agricultural and horticultural improvements, and 
 his orchard spreads its shade and shelters its 
 time-honored fruit in beautiful and luxuriant 
 fashion. At the helm of these varied country 
 enterprises is a man thoroughly in touch with his 
 work, of marked culture and sociability, and of 
 unquestioned integrity of purpose and public 
 spirit. His home is presided over by his wife, 
 formerly Ida T. Weed, a native of New Jersey, 
 and daughter of Mark H. Weed. Mr. Kelsey is a 
 Democrat in national politics, and was formerly 
 a member of the board of education. Fraternally 
 he is connected with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. He is a lover of nature and while 
 he has had advantages that tended toward a pro- 
 fessional career, he selected his present vocation 
 as one in which he could advance an intelligent 
 interest in horticulture in the state. To such 
 men as Mr. Kelsey California owes her present 
 prosperity. 
 
 J. W. KNOX, B. S., LL.B. Among the 
 leading attorneys and business men of central 
 California, is J. W. Knox, who is prominent in 
 legal, financial and social circles. Of a strong 
 personality, great force of character and rare 
 mental attainments, he is justly entitled to the 
 honorable position that he holds as one of the 
 most brilliant lawyers, and shrewd, energetic 
 and safe business men of that part of Califor- 
 nia. Through persistency of purpose and zeal, 
 intelligent^ and unerringly directed, he has 
 achieved success at the bar and in financial 
 circles, the influence of his masterful intellect 
 being felt by judge and jury as well as by his 
 associates and clientele. He is and has always 
 been, an inveterate worker, deep thinker and 
 great traveler; has a high sense of honor and 
 integrity, belongs to a good family, is of a 
 genial and hospitable nature, extremely cool, 
 self-possessed and calculating under trying 
 conditions, and is a gentleman under all cir- 
 
 cumstances. His caution is large, but it is 
 offset by a large hope ; his moral faculties are 
 strong and active; his intuitions and first im- 
 pressions and presentiments have almost in- 
 variably been correct, and have been his guide, 
 in a large measure, in his successful dealings 
 with strangers and men in general. He is 
 possessed with unbounded benevolence; is 
 philanthropic, large-minded, liberal and pub- 
 lic-spirited, ^nd has always been in advance of 
 the times in all matters relating to the pub- 
 lic welfare. He is a natural critic and has an 
 analytic mind; is a high idealist and a man 
 of great order ; a lover of art, books and nature, 
 and his home is surrounded and beautified by 
 all such. There is an under-current of thought 
 and philosophy permeating his nature ; his 
 mind is discriminating, logical and clear; he 
 spares neither time nor labor in any cause or 
 other business in which he is engaged. He is 
 a great lover of his home, of home life and 
 family, and has spared no expense to beautify 
 and make his home attractive. He is a Mason, 
 Knight of Pythias and Workman, and takes 
 much interest in these orders. He is, and has 
 always been, a leading Republican. Has been 
 for many years a member of the state central 
 committee and chairman of the Republican 
 county committee. While he takes great in- 
 terest in politics on principle, he has never 
 sought nor accepted office, preferring to de- 
 vote his entire time to his large and increasing 
 legal business. He has repeatedly refused 
 nomination for the office of superior judge 
 and other offices at the hand of his party, and 
 declined a tendered appointment by the gov- 
 ernor as judge of the superior court of Merced 
 county. Aside from his private practice, he 
 is filling an important position as chairman of 
 the board of directors of the Merced county 
 branch of the Federal Trust Company , of 
 which he is also attorney and treasurer. This 
 company, organized with an authorized capital 
 of $5,000,000, has its headquarters in the Mills 
 building, San Francisco, and acts as executor, 
 administrator, guardian and assignee ; executes 
 trusts of all kinds ; loans money and issues and 
 countersigns stocks and other securities. 
 
 Mr. Knox was born October 10, 1855, at 
 Bloomingburg, Fayette ceunty, Ohio. His 
 parents were William Knox, born at Xenia, 
 Ohio, January 6, 1828 (and died at Kansas City 
 on June 30, iQOo), and Mary Elizabeth (Short) 
 Knox, born February 20, 1833, at Blooming- 
 burg, Fayette county, Ohio (and died at Des 
 Moines, Iowa, in 1902). The issue of this mar- 
 riage was nine children, all of whom are living 
 at the present time, namely: Jessie, the wife 
 of Ira B. Thompson, a contractor and architect 
 of Evireka, Cal, ; Frank Knox, president of the 
 
 19 
 
302 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 National Bank of the Republic, of Salt Lake, 
 Utah ; Murray Knox, a large farmer and 
 breeder of blooded stock, of Osborne, Kansas ; 
 Helen, the wife of John Gibson, of the large 
 mercantile firm of Gibson & Gibson, of Max- 
 well, Iowa ; George Knox, a rising young phy- 
 sician of San Francisco ; Bruce Knox, a suc- 
 cessful merchant of Sonora; Florence Knox, a 
 teacher in the Pol3'technic and Training 
 School of Chicago, and Josephine JCnox, one of 
 the leading primary teachers of Des Moines, 
 Iowa. 
 
 William Knox, with his family, removed 
 from Ohio to Iowa in 1857, and was during the 
 remainder of his life engaged in farming and 
 the breeding of thoroughbred stock of all kinds. 
 His farm in Washington county was a model 
 of neatness, landscape beauty and profit. His 
 children were taught in their western home 
 three important lessons, habits of industry, 
 economy and integrity, and were all given a 
 liberal education. Mary Knox was a noble 
 Christian woman, and by her life and careful 
 teachings left a profound impress for good on 
 the minds of her children. 
 
 J. W. Knox graduated from Washington 
 College in 1876, and that fall came to Califor- 
 nia ; later he entered the first class of the law 
 department of the University of California, and 
 graduated from that department with the first 
 class of graduates in 1881. In 1882, he came 
 to the city of Merced, where he began the 
 practice of his profession and where he has 
 lived continuously since. His ability and 
 power met with ready recognition, and he 
 easily came to the front in his chosen profes- 
 sion. For the last fifteen years or more, he has 
 been identified with nearly all the litigation of 
 importance in central California, ranging over 
 probate, irrigation, land, corporation and crim- 
 inal law. His practice has extended to all the 
 counties of the San Joaquin valley and many 
 of the other counties of the state, besides a 
 large federal court practice in which he has 
 been universally successful. 
 
 In 1885, Mr. Knox married Miss Ella M., 
 the only child of Prof. W. A. and Minnie Cow- 
 dery, a native of New York, who died Septem- 
 ber 13, 1903, in the city of Merced, leaving four 
 daughters, Hazel,- Helen, Ruth and Karmel. 
 Mrs. Knox was a woman of charming person- 
 ality and noble character. All who knew her 
 were attracted by her winsome manner and 
 goodness of heart. Her praises are sounded 
 by many lips and she is sincerely mourned by 
 friends and acquaintances. In the church of 
 which she and her husband were members (the 
 First Presbyterian) and in the order of Eastern 
 Star, she was a devoted and valued member, 
 and took an important part in the work and the 
 
 social entertainments of these organizations. 
 She possessed many accomplishments. Her 
 memory will long be cherished in many a heart. 
 Death came to her in the noonday of her 
 happv life and usefulness. She had a beautiful 
 home" and enjoyed a large circle of friends; 
 had a fine voice and was especially gifted as a 
 singer and was always in demand to aid in 
 social entertainments, and she was ever ready 
 to lend her services in entertaining when for 
 the purpose of raising funds for charity. She 
 was proverbial for her good work in this way, 
 and it was fully appreciated. 
 
 WILLIAM W. RUTHERFORD. A typi- 
 cal representative of the honorable, determined 
 and fearless Scotchman is found in WiUiam W. 
 Rutherford, a California pioneer of 1854, who, 
 though now living retired in Oakdale, was for 
 many years identified with stock raising and 
 dairying in Stanislaus county. On the thres- 
 hold of his eighty-first year, Mr. Rutherford 
 scans the horizon of the past with clear eyes, and 
 looks confidently forward to many more years 
 of peaceful existence. His history since early 
 manhood is that of the west, for he arrived when 
 its possibilities were beginning to fret the mind 
 of the nation, and he has progressed in the wake 
 of its picturesque and ofttimes lurid path. He 
 has known the exposure of its vast stretches of 
 unfenced land, the deprivation incident to its un- 
 cultivated soil, and the joy of its fulfilled prom- 
 ise. That he has taken a noble part in its de- 
 velopment, is his own and the pride of his friends 
 and associates. 
 
 That few Scotchmen came to the west in its 
 crude awakening is generally believed. Their 
 conservatism rebelled at the element of chance 
 involved in its undertaking. Those that came 
 left their strength and reliability upon whatever 
 occupation they chose to engage in. Mr. Ruth- 
 erford is no exception to this rule. Born in Rox- 
 burgh, southern Scotland, March 10, 1824, he 
 was an infant when his paternal grandfather, 
 John Rutherford, set forth to make a home for 
 himself and family in St. Lawrence county, N. 
 Y. Reports sent back were so favorable, that 
 in 1827 he was taken by his parents, William and 
 Catherine (Forsyth) Rutherford, to America, 
 locating on a farm near Madrid, St. Lawrence 
 county. Besides WilUam W., who is the fifth 
 oldest and only living son in his father's fam- 
 ily, there were four sons and five daughters, 
 of whom James, who came to the coast in the 
 early days, died in the territory of Nevada. Mr. 
 Rutherford inherits the trait of longevity, for his 
 father lived to be ninety and his mother eighty 
 years old. His educational chances were limited 
 in the extreme, and his lessons of life were 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 303 
 
 learned from the great teachers, observation and 
 experience. From the drudgery of farm work 
 he turned his attention to carpentering, and while 
 thus employed had his thought turned into 
 broader channels by his cousin, J. F. Rutherford, 
 but recently returned from the west, to pur- 
 chase and drive back across the plains a herd 
 of cattle. The opportunity presented did not 
 escape the young carpenter, who accompanied 
 his relative to Illinois and Missouri, and assist- 
 ed him in purchasing cattle with which to stock 
 the ranges of the far west. Starting overland in 
 April, they took turns in driving stock on alter- 
 nating days, and with comparatively little diffi- 
 culty arrived in Cahfornia by way of the Walker 
 river, turning their stock loose in the San Joa- 
 quin valley, Stanislaus county. Thereafter they 
 engaged in stock raising in Stanislaus and Tuo- 
 lumne county, and at the same time Mr. Ruth- 
 erford ran a dairy at Keller's Ferry, his combined 
 efforts netting him an encouraging income. A 
 depreciation in stock values sent the business to 
 a low level, yet notwithstanding this, the cattle 
 were disposed of with small actual loss, after 
 which he purchased cattle for $5 a head which 
 formerly had been valued at $40. An opportun- 
 ity for making money was presented in the Chin- 
 ese Camp, where he, in partnership with Robert 
 McHenry, engaged in the meat business during 
 the mining rush. Starting all over again, he en- 
 gaged in raising hogs until 1865, and that year 
 entered land five miles from what is now Oak- 
 dalej on the Stanislaus river. Building a house 
 and barns, and making many improvements, he 
 developed a fine and paying property, adding to 
 it until he owned eleven hundred and fifty acres 
 in the river ranch, and three hundred and twen- 
 ty acres near there. He engaged in raising grain 
 and hogs principally, and was very successful 
 also as to general farming. In 1891 he located 
 in Oakdale, built a pleasant home, and has since 
 made this his headquarters. From 1897 until 
 1902 he lived in Paloalto, to educate his children, 
 returning then to Oakdale, where he contem- 
 plates spending the balance of his life. 
 
 In Stanislaus county Mr. Rutherford married 
 Mrs. Melvina (Stearns) Gray, a native of Beth- 
 el, Me., who came to Cahfornia about 1856. 
 Mrs. Rutherford died in California, May 10, 
 1904, having had two children by her second 
 marriage, Catherine and Mina, who are twins. 
 Through her former marriage four sons, and one 
 daughter were born, of whom Frank Gray lives 
 in Honolulu ; William and Newton run the Ruth- 
 erford ranch; Thomas is an attorney of Oak- 
 land; and a graduate of Stanford University; 
 and Emma is the wife of WiUiam Judkins, of 
 Oakdale. Long since Mr. Rutherford laid aside 
 the cares of active life, going occasionally to 
 his farm, and visiting the friends who have 
 
 helped to make life enjoyable. He has never 
 taken an active interest in politics, but has voted 
 the Republican ticket in national affairs, using 
 his discretion in voting for local offices. In re- 
 ligion he is a Presbyterian. Mr. Rutherford has 
 retained a remarkable serenity and clearness of 
 mind, and an unusual interest in the affairs and 
 people around him. He is respected for his in- 
 tegrity and success, and for the usefulness and 
 nobility of his well-balanced and moderate life. 
 
 CHARLES MORTIMER FRENCH. The 
 present game warden of Merced county is one of 
 the substantial business men of the town of that 
 name, and enjoys the distinction of having con- 
 ducted a dray business there for a longer time 
 than any other man in the community. He rep- 
 resents a family which has contributed not a 
 little to the educational and stock-raising devel- 
 opment of Merced county, and. which brought to 
 the coast the strong and reliable traits of a New 
 England ancestry. Mr. French was born in Au- 
 gusta, Kennebec county. Me., July 13, 1864, his 
 mother, Felicia Hemans (Gould) French, hav- 
 ing been born in the same city April 23, 1837. 
 His maternal grandfather was Judge Joshua 
 Gould, for many years connected with the juris- 
 prudence of Maine, and the education which he 
 himself absorbed was shared with his children, 
 and supplemented by training in the best schools 
 of that state. 
 
 Hayden Winfield French, the father of C. M. 
 French, was born in Lowell, Mass., and settled 
 at an early day in Kennebec county. Me., where 
 he owned a farm and where he married Novem- 
 ber 25, 1859. His immigration to Cahfornia in 
 1865 followed upon the close of his military serv- 
 ice in the Civil war, and he soon afterward went 
 to Montana and engaged in mining until 1869. 
 Subsequently settling in Merced county, Cal., 
 he sent east for his wife and children. Here he 
 engaged successfully in raising sheep, carrying 
 on an extensive business. Under A. J. Meany 
 he served as deputy sheriff of Merced county 
 for twelve or fourteen years, later serving a 
 couple of terms as constable, and finally retiring 
 from active life. His death occurred April 7, 
 1894, and he left a comfortable competence to 
 those dependent upon him. Fraternally he was 
 identified with the Knights of Pythias, and po- 
 litically he was a stanch Democrat, a man of high- 
 est integrity, and universally respected. He was 
 one of the first settlers of Merced county, and 
 his sheep ranch on Bear creek was a lonely place 
 in the early days. The family were hospitable 
 and generous, and many a wayfarer partook of 
 food and slept beneath their humble roof. While 
 rearing her five children, his wife taught a dis- 
 trict school, being the first to thus afford educa- 
 
804 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tional advantages to the children of the settlers. 
 A strong and self-reliant ^yoman, she was a typ- 
 ical pioneer and in later life, when prosperity 
 placed greater comfort in her path, she was a 
 social factor in her neighborhood. She was a 
 member of the Rathbone Sisters, a worker in the 
 Baptist Church, and took an active part in re- 
 form work. At the time of her death, February 
 4, 1897, she left a host of friends to mourn her 
 loss. Four of her children grew to maturity : 
 Fannie, the wife of J. R. Jones, of Fresno, Cal. ; 
 Charles Mortimer, the present game warden of 
 Merced county; Hayden Winfield, of Fresno, 
 Cal. ; and Abbie Maria, wife of John Macaboy, 
 of Fresno. 
 
 Charles Mortimer French went to school to 
 his mother on Bear creek, later attending the 
 grammar school of Merced until starting in the 
 dray business in 1887. He possessed plenty of 
 practical common sense and straightforward busi- 
 ness ability, qualities which won him recogni- 
 tion, and today he has a large patronage in the 
 town and county. In 1892 he erected his pres- 
 ent commodious residence on west Sixteenth 
 street, and January 10, 1898, he married Mary 
 Corinne Yoakum, who was born in Alameda 
 county, March 22, 1869, a daughter of George 
 W. Yoakum. 
 
 Mr. French is a Democrat in politics and in 
 April, 1904, was elected a member of the city 
 council. He also holds the position of game war- 
 den, to which he was appointed by the board of 
 supervisors February I, 1903. He is fraternally 
 connected with the Knights of Pythias, Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, Woodmen of the 
 World and the Foresters, in all of which he has 
 served in an official capacity. He is also a mem- 
 ber and was foreman of the Merced Hose Com- 
 pany, No. I. Mr. French is popular and prom- 
 inent in the business world of Merced, a man of 
 unciuestioned honor, of broad sympathies and 
 great generosity. 
 
 GEORGE W. CARTWRIGHT. The pro- 
 gressive citizenship of Fresno has a worthy 
 representative in George W. Cartwright, now 
 engaged in the practice of law in this city. 
 Energetic and enterprisng, he has done much 
 toward developing and promoting the horti- 
 cultural, manufacturing and political interests 
 of this part of the state, and in various official 
 capacities has served with credit. A son of 
 the late Rev. John Cartwright, he was born 
 November 9, 1863, in Coles county, III. His 
 grandfather, Reddick Cartwright, came from 
 old Virginia stock, and inherited in a large 
 measure the virtues of his honored ancestors. 
 As a man of patriotic zeal, he served in the 
 war of 1812, and actively participated in the 
 
 battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1813. He 
 subsequently removed to Illinois, becoming a 
 pioneer of Sangamon county. 
 
 A native of Sangamon county. 111., Rev. John 
 Cartwright was born in 1835, and nearly 
 rounded out the allotted period of man's life, 
 dying August 8, 1902, in Fresno, Cal. Dur- 
 ing the Civil war he fought in his country's 
 de'fense. serving as a private in Company F, 
 Fifty-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. As 
 a Baptist minister he subsequently preached 
 in Illinois until 1869, when he brought his 
 family, consisting of his wife and four children, 
 to California. Crossing the plains with horses 
 and wagons, he journeyed for five months, ar- 
 riving safely, although the party immediately 
 following the train which he accompanied was 
 massacred by the Indians. Settling first in 
 Colusa county he engaged in farming and 
 preaching, being the pioneer Baptist minister 
 of that county. Locating in Fresno county 
 in 1885, he bought forty acres of land lying 
 one and one-half miles west of Malaga, and 
 set out a vineyard, which he carried on suc- 
 cessfully for a number of years, in addition 
 to his horticultural labors, also preaching in 
 different places. He possessed great mechan- 
 ical ingenuity, and from his early youth was 
 familiar with the blacksmith's trade. About 
 1889 he began the manufacture of the now 
 famous Cartwright pruning shears, which are 
 of a better temper and better adapted for 
 pruning vines and trees than any other imple- 
 ment of the kind, and are now in general use 
 throughout the vineyards and orchards of the 
 Pacific coast. The business, small at first, has 
 grown rapidly and steadily, and is now con- 
 tinued by his sons, George W. and John M., 
 under the firm name of J. Cartwright & Sons. 
 Rev. John Cartwright was a Master Mason 
 and an Odd Fellow. He married Martha 
 Ashby, who was born in Coles county. 111., 
 of Virginia ancestry, and now resides with her 
 children in California. Four sons and two 
 daughters blessed their union, namely: Jas- 
 per F., a vineyardist, and an employe in the 
 office of the county clerk; Lizzie, wife of F. 
 M. Cook, of Orosi, Cal.; Reddick N., an em- 
 ploye in the manufacturing plant belonging 
 to his brothers ; George W., the subject of this 
 sketch ; Mamie, wife of Edward Roach, a vine- 
 yardist, residing in Fresno county; and John 
 M., in partnership with his brother, George 
 W., is a skilled mechanic and thoroughly un- 
 derstands the tempering of steel, being an ex- 
 pert in that line. 
 
 After leaving the public schools of Willows, 
 George W. Cartwright pursued his studies 
 under the guidance of Prof. J. L. Wilson, for 
 some years in Colusa county. Coming to 
 
^^x 
 
 ^..c.?^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 207 
 
 Fresno county in 1885, he taught in the pub- 
 lic schools for nine years. In 1894 he was the 
 nominee of the People's party for county su- 
 perintendent of schools, and although he ran 
 far ahead of his ticket he was defeated, the 
 Republican party electing its candidate. Prof. 
 Thomas J. Kirk, now state superintendent of 
 public instruction. Entering then the manu- 
 facturing establishment of his father, he 
 worked in the factory a few months, intro- 
 ducing many valuable improvements, and was 
 then elected secretary and business manager 
 of the Malaga Packing Association, a position 
 which he filled for four years. In 1896, nomi- 
 nated on the Fusion ticket, Mr. Cartwright 
 was elected as representative to the state leg- 
 islature, receiving a majority of over seven 
 hundred and fifty votes, and served during 
 the session of 1897. Appointed by caucus to 
 draft an income tax bill, he did so, and it was 
 introduced into the assembly by Shannahan of 
 Shasta, but was defeated by a strict party vote. 
 Mr. Cartwright also introduced a resolution 
 so to amend the constitution as to do away 
 with the poll tax,- but this was likewise de- 
 feated by party vote, as was the bill which 
 he introduced for the purpose of preventing 
 the demonetization of lawful money by con- 
 tract. In 1898 Mr. Cartwright was elected 
 county clerk, being the candidate of the Demo- 
 cratic and People's parties, and served efficient- 
 ly for four years, from January, 1899, until 
 January, 1903. 
 
 Taking up the study of law, which had al- 
 ways been his ambition, Mr. Cartwright was 
 admitted to the bar March 12, 1903, and has 
 since been successfully engaged in the prac- 
 tice of his profession in Fresno. In 1902, 
 soon after the death of his father, he pur- 
 chased an interest with his brother in the 
 manufacturing business of J. Cartwright & 
 Son, his brother being secretary and business 
 manager. New machinery has been installed 
 in the plant, which is now up to date in its 
 equipments, and the business is constantly in- 
 creasing, the shears manufactured being of 
 the finest quality. 
 
 In Fresno, December 24, 1889, Mr. Cart- 
 wright married Rosa S. Otto, who was born 
 in Wisconsin, near Oshkosh, atid they have 
 one child. Hazel. Mrs. Cartwright's father, 
 Andreas Otto, embarked in the manufacture 
 of sugar in Wisconsin, erecting there the first 
 sugar-mill in the United States. (A detailed 
 sketch of his life will be found elsewhere in 
 this work.) Politically Mr. Cartwright is a 
 Democrat, and since 1894 has been one of 
 the principal local speakers in every campaign. 
 
 Fraternally he belongs to the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, to the Woodmen of the 
 World, and Modern Woodmen of America. 
 He is also a member of the County Bar Asso- 
 ciation. 
 
 LOYAL O. CUTLER was born on the ranch 
 owned by his parents, five miles east of Visalia, 
 June 7, 1866, a son of Dr. John and Nancy 
 (Rice) Cutler, the former born in Indiana and 
 the latter in Ohio. Dr. Cutler was a graduate 
 in medicine and practiced his profession in Iowa 
 until 1849 when he crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia, locating in Eldorado county. While a 
 resident of that county he served as a repre- 
 sentative to the state legislature. In 1852 he re- 
 moved to Tulare county and engaged in farm- 
 ing on a farge ranch on the St. John's river, 
 meeting with deserved success and acquiring a 
 fortune. He was elected and served two terms 
 as county judge and died July 12, 1902, aged 
 eighty-three years. His wife died in Santa Cruz. 
 They became the parents of three sons and four 
 daughters, of whom L. O. was the youngest son 
 and the fifth child. 
 
 L. O. Cutler was reared on the home ranch 
 and educated in the public school and Visalia 
 Normal. He remained at home until he was 
 of age and became thoroughly acquainted with 
 all the details of the stock business, as conducted 
 by his father. At this time he and his brother 
 John began farming on a large scale on the home 
 ranch and also on two thousand acres . near 
 Goshen, which they sowed to grain. Meeting 
 with success in this independent venture they 
 began to make a specialty of Herefords in their 
 cattle business, having pasturage of about seven 
 thousand acres in the hills. At this time (1905) 
 they lease some of their land near Goshen. L. O. 
 Cutler, with his wife and brother John, owns the 
 H. T. Chrisman ranch of six hundred and forty 
 acres on Elbow creek, and John Cutler owns 
 three hundred and twenty acres at Cutler. The 
 old Cutler ranch has eight hundred acres, all fine 
 land. Mr. Cutler and his brother John have 
 about ' seven thousand acres at Auckland, all 
 fenced and devoted to raising cattle and hogs. 
 Their grain farm is located four miles south of 
 Cutler, and is known as the Petty Place. They 
 operate two combined harvesters, and in 1900 
 had eighty head of work horses. 
 
 December 31, 1889, Loyal O. Cutler was 
 united in marriage with Miss Villa Chrisman, 
 who was born in Tulare county. They have one 
 son, Harold Oliver. Though not an aspirant for 
 office, Mr. Cutler has always been an ardent sup- 
 porter of the Republican party. A member of a 
 pioneer family, Mr. Cutler has, by his earnest- 
 
308 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ness of purpose, strict integrity and public spirit,' 
 gained recognition as a worthy representative of 
 the younger generation of citizens in Tulare 
 county. 
 
 WILLIAM A. HORSLEY. The firm of 
 J. R. Horsley & Son, of Snelling, represents one 
 of the largest and best-equipped mercantile es- 
 tabhshments in Merced county. Its original es- 
 tablishment is due to the energy and resource of 
 J. R. Horsley, a pioneer of 1850, but its subse- 
 quent successful management is to be attributed 
 as well to an infusion of younger blood and am- 
 bition in the person of his son and business part- 
 ner, William A. Horsley. Joseph R. Horsley 
 was born in Philadelphia, Pa., in 1828, and as a 
 young man moved to Indiana, where he married 
 Catherine Caldwell, of Ohio, and where his son, 
 William A., was born January 11, 1853. The 
 family is of English descent, the immigrating an- 
 cestor being the paternal grandfather, James 
 Horsley, who sailed for the United States at an 
 early day and identified himself with trade inter- 
 ests in Philadelphia. 
 
 Joseph R. Horsley left his family in Indiana 
 in 1850 and crossed the plains with ox-teams, ac- 
 companied by his brother, Washington, with 
 whom he worked in the mines for a couple of 
 years. Pleased with the climate and prospects, 
 the brothers brought their hoard .back to Indiana 
 by way of Panama in 1852, and in 1857 the entire 
 family came to California, William A. being at 
 that time four years old. From Panama they 
 sailed on the steamer Golden Gate, and arriving 
 in California, located at Knights Ferry, Stanis- 
 laus county, where Mr. Horsley mined until 1859. 
 He then took charge of the store of Mr. Reese, 
 in Jeifersonville, Tuolumne county, until 1868, 
 returning then to Knights Ferry, where he was 
 employed as bookkeeper for the Stanislaus Mills 
 for nine years. By this time his son William A. 
 had grown into a strong and capable young man, 
 had proved himself useful in the general mer- 
 chandise store at Jeffersonville, and had gotten 
 a good start as a farmer in Stanislaus county. 
 Father and son joined their farming interests 
 upon the former's resigning from the Stanislaus 
 Milling Company, continuing to raise grain and 
 stock on eleven hundred and eighty acres of land 
 until disposing of their property in 1877. They 
 then moved to Snelling and farmed for a year, 
 after which they purchased the Snelling hotel and 
 ran the same until 1884. During this time they 
 also engaged in a general merchandise business 
 in Snelling, which, because of its rapid growth, 
 justified them in retiring from the hotel business 
 and devoting all of their time to their store. In 
 time they established another store at Water- 
 ford, each establishment carrying at the present 
 
 time a stock of about $11,000. They have a 
 complete line of general merchandise, are mod- 
 erate in their prices, and maintain uniform cour- 
 tesy and consideration in dealing with their many 
 patrons. They are among the popular and sub- 
 stantial upbuilders of mercantile superiority in 
 Merced county, and enjoy an extended reputa- 
 tion for public spirit and enterprise. The elder 
 Horsley has held a number of offices, among 
 them that of justice of the peace; he is a stanch 
 Democrat in national affairs, voting for the best 
 man for local offices. 
 
 William A. Horsley was educated in the pub- 
 lic schools, and has pursued his entire business 
 career in connection with that of his father. He 
 married Anna Owens, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 who came to California in 1878 with her father, 
 J. M. Owens. They have two children, Earl A. 
 and Samuel O. Mr. Horsley follows the family 
 inclination politically, being a Democrat in na- 
 tional politics, and is fraternally connected with 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He is 
 genial, able and painstaking, sharing with his 
 father the honor of conducting a thoroughly up- 
 to-date and growing business. 
 
 MAJOR MARION SIDES. Among the rep- 
 resentative men of Fresno county, Marion Sides 
 has held a position of prominence. As president 
 of the First National Bank of Selma, he is an ad- 
 vocate of a conservative policy and endeavors to 
 do all in his power to avoid all wild-cat specula- 
 tion. His ability to judge others has been of un- 
 told benefit to him in his business career as a 
 banker, merchant and farmer. He was born in 
 Perry county. Mo., January 27, 1837, a son of 
 Elihu and Daisy (Welker) Sides, the former a 
 native of North Carolina, and the latter of Perry 
 county, where they both died. 
 
 Elihu Sides located in Missouri at an early day 
 and engaged in farming, a vocation he followed 
 with success for many years. Marion Sides re- 
 ceived his education in the common schools of 
 Perry county and assisted with the work upon 
 the home farm until 1 86 1, at which time he en- 
 listed in Company D, Fifth Missouri Cavalry, 
 and was afterward transferred to the Forty- 
 eighth Infantry, taking part in many engage- 
 ments of the war. After being mustered out of 
 service in 1866, he returned to his home and 
 engaged in a general merchandise business for 
 one year, then took up fann work until 1875, 
 when he disposed of his holdings and came to 
 California, believing this state offered better in- 
 ducements for an ambitious young man. Locat- 
 ing at once in Fresno county he homesteaded one 
 hundred and sixty acres, two miles north of the 
 present site of Selma, and began its cultivation 
 and improvement. As success came his way he 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 S09 
 
 has added to his original tract, and now owns 
 about eight hundred acres of valuable land de- 
 voted to diversified farming interests. He also 
 was interested in the lumber business in Reed- 
 ley, and is a stockholder and president of the 
 First National Bank. 
 
 Mr. Sides has been twice married, the first 
 union was in Dent county. Mo., with Casander 
 ^latthews, a native of Missouri. Two children 
 were born to them, both now deceased, Effie A., 
 who married Qiarles E. Walker, and Ira M. 
 Mrs. Sides died in Fresno county, April 8, 1894. 
 In Fresno county, June 11, 1895, he was again 
 married, Ollie M. Davies, a native of Tennessee, 
 becoming his wife. Of this union two children 
 have been born, Richard D. and Thomas M. The 
 family are members of the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church, Mr. Sides serving as trustee. In 
 his political preference he is a Democrat, and 
 always cast his vote with that party, except when 
 Abraham Lincoln was a candidate. While a 
 resident of Dtnt county. Mo., he represented his 
 district in the state legislature two terms, serving 
 his constituents in an efficient manner. Since be- 
 coming a resident of California he has never been 
 an aspirant for official honors. He has always 
 been a friend of education and been a supporter 
 and advocate of a high standard of schools and 
 instructors. In all of his social and business 
 relations with the people he has always adhered 
 to the principles of fair dealing and strict busi- 
 ness integrity ; has always supported those meas- 
 ures which he considered worthy of his co-opera- 
 tion, and by his public spirit has attained a posi- 
 tion as one of the leading citizens of Selma and 
 Fresno county. 
 
 FRED BARCROFT. In his lineage, Fred 
 Barcroft, an influential business man of Madera, 
 represents an old-established eastern family and 
 also an aristocratic Castilian race. His father, R. 
 W., was a son of John Barcroft, a merchant tailor 
 of Cadiz, Ohio, and in that city was born, reared 
 and learned the trades of merchant tailor and 
 carpenter. During 1849 ^^ crossed the plains 
 with ox-teams and engaged in placer and quartz 
 mining in Mariposa county, continuing in that 
 ■occupation until 1899, when he retired. In addi- 
 tion, he also followed contracting and building. 
 By reason of ill health, he is now debarred from 
 business activities, and is living retired in Ma- 
 dera. After coming to California he married 
 Rafila Orosco, who was born near Casa Grande, 
 Ariz., the daughter of a pioneer Spanish ranch- 
 er who owned large tracts near Casa Grande and 
 was murdered there by the Apache savages. Aft- 
 erward his widow brought the children to Cali- 
 fornia and about 1852 settled in Hornitos, Mari- 
 posa county. She died November 6, 1901, in Ma- 
 
 dera, at the age of almost eighty-four years. She 
 was born in southern Arizona and was a mem- 
 ber of the Herrerra family. • A devout Roman 
 Catholic, she taught a private school for years, 
 charging tuition when the children were able to 
 pay, but teaching those who were poor without 
 any charge whatever. Her principal object in 
 teaching the children to read and write Spanish 
 was that she might have an opportunity to incul- 
 cate in their hearts the doctrines of Catholicism. 
 She was also a skilled needlewoman and devoted 
 considerable time to teaching fancy work. 
 
 In the family of R. W. and Rafila Barcroft 
 there were seven children, namely : Rafael, who 
 is engaged in the hardware business in Merced ; 
 Fred, of Madera; David, a graduate of the Uni- 
 versity of California and of the Johns Hopkins 
 University at Baltimore, who died at the age of 
 thirty-one years ; Caroline, who died at the age of 
 nine years ; Mrs. Mary Wilkinson, of Stockton ; 
 Joseph, who is a justice of the peace in Madera; 
 and Louisa, who died at sixteen years of age. 
 
 In Hornitos, Mariposa county, Fred Barcroft 
 was born July 31, 1858. During boyhood he at- 
 tended district schools. When about seventeen 
 years of age he was apprenticed to the tinsmith's 
 trade in Merced under J. Kocher, with whom he 
 remained for five and one-half years. At the ex- 
 piration of his time he started in business for 
 himself, opening a hardware store at Merced with 
 a partner under^the firm title of Branson & Bar- 
 croft. During the three years he remained in 
 Merced a branch store was started in Madera De- 
 cember 23, 1883, and he came to this city to as- 
 sume its management. October i, 1884, he sold 
 his interest in the Merced store to his brother 
 Rafael, after which he devoted his entire atten- 
 tion to the Madera business. For the first two 
 years he rented a store room adjoining H. S. Wil- 
 liams' store and then erected a frame building on 
 the site of his present establishment. The shop 
 was neatly and conveniently equipped with ev- 
 ery facility for the conduct of the business. In 
 addition to carrying a stock of hardware and tin- 
 ware, he had plumbing outfits and did consider- 
 able business in this line. July 19, 1886, the 
 building was destroyed by fire. He immediately 
 rebuilt, but the building was for temporary use 
 only, it being his intention to replace it as soon 
 as possible. Before he had commenced a new 
 building fire again destroyed his shop, April 20, 
 1895. All that he saved was a punching ma- 
 chine of his own invention, used in the punching 
 of sheet iron for tanks and well casing. 
 
 After his second heavy loss by fire, Mr. Bar- 
 croft began to construct a more substantial build- 
 ing than those he had previously occupied. Brick 
 was used instead of lumber, and every effort was 
 made to secure a building that could not readily 
 succumb to the fire element, the new structure be- 
 
3l0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ing three stories and basement, the highest build- 
 ing in the city, and in dimensions 25x80 feet. 
 Even this new building was not to escape un- 
 scathed, for the fiery element attacked it also July 
 2, 1904, with disastrous results. His shops in 
 the rear were destroyed and also the woodwork 
 in the rear and side of the building. But with 
 that quality of grit that has characterized the Cal- 
 ifornian, Mr. Barcroft set about restoring the 
 damaged portions, extending his shop to 38x70 
 feet, including a two-story brick on the west side 
 of his first building, 25x80 feet, which he leases. 
 He devoted the basement and first floor to a line 
 of heavy and shelf hardware, stoves and tinware. 
 His shop and plumbing establishment are the larg- 
 est in the city. He handles also gasoline engines 
 and the Aermotor windmills. 
 
 The Madera Chamber of Commerce numbers 
 Mr. Barcroft among its active members. In poli- 
 tics he votes with the Republican party, and fra- 
 ternally is connected with the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, Woodmen of the World, For- 
 esters and Fraternal Brotherhood. His first mar- 
 riage occurred in Hornitos and united him with 
 Carmen Navarine, who was born in that city and 
 died in Los Angeles. Afterward he married Cor- 
 nelia Reyes, of Madera, a native of Watsonville, 
 this state, and they have one daughter, Dolores. 
 
 JOHN MADISON WALTHALL. That Mr. 
 Walthall is popular as a Republican in a Demo- 
 cratic county, being twice elected to the office of 
 district attorney, his first nomination occurring a 
 week after his graduation, speaks well for the 
 character of the man, the strength and dignity of 
 the purpose which has animated him in his brief 
 but eminently successful career as a lawyer o'f 
 Modesto. Though young in years he has already 
 evidenced his ability and has made his influence 
 felt in legal circles in the community, and that 
 which has been accomplished presages a career 
 of exceptional interest and success. A native of 
 the state, he was born in San Joaquin county, 
 December 31, 1871, a son of Madison Walthall, 
 Jr., and grandson of Madison Walthall, Sr. 
 
 Madison Walthall, Sr., was born in Richmond, 
 Va., and was there reared to manhood, remaining 
 in his native state until the breaking out of the 
 Mexican war, when he enlisted and going to 
 Mississippi found his way two years later, via 
 the Isthmus, to Cahfornia. Locating in San 
 Jose, he early became an important factor in the 
 political life of the state, as a Democrat being 
 elected to the first legislature, in which he served 
 with commendable enthusiasm and abihty. Thor- 
 oughly imbued with the pioneer spirit, he decided 
 to cast in his lot permanently with the fortunes 
 of the state, and soon purchased a large tract 
 of land, containing five hundred acres, upon 
 
 which he engaged in the agricultural pursuits 
 which so early marked the development of this 
 particular section of the west. In 1851 he sent 
 for his son, Madison Walthall, Jr., who located 
 at Stockton, where the elder man had purchased 
 three hundred acres of land, and where his death 
 occurred by a fall from a window, when much 
 advanced in years. 
 
 Madison Walthall, Jr., there engaged in mining 
 and farming, and was also actively engaged in 
 surveying throughout the state, being for some 
 years employed in a land office and the real estate 
 business. In 1872 he died near the place which 
 had been his first home in the west. He married 
 Emma Covert, a native of Arkansas, who died 
 here in 1875, at the age of thirty-three years. Her 
 father, John Covert, came to California in 1838 
 with John C. Fremont, returning to the States 
 overland, after which he brought his family west. 
 Upon his second arrival in the state he engaged 
 in the general merchandise business at Tuoliunne 
 ■ City, this county, later locating in Modesto where 
 he remained until his removal to Tulare, where 
 his death occurred. Of the four children born 
 to Mr. and Mrs. Madison Walthall, Jr., two died 
 in infancy, the others being J. M. of this sketch 
 and Stella, who is married to Judge E. A. 
 Belcher, of San Francisco. 
 
 Mr. Walthall has spent his entire life in his 
 native state, as a child attending the common 
 schools in the vicinity of his home, and afterward 
 entering the San Mateo school where he took a 
 preparatory course, graduating with the degree 
 of B.S. In 1895 he entered Hastings Law Col- 
 lege, from . which institution he was graduated 
 three year£ later with the degree of B.L. Com- 
 ing at once to Modesto a week afterward he re- 
 ceived the nomination for district attorney and 
 was elected, serving two terms in an entirely ef- 
 ficient manner. Since 1901 he has carried on 
 his practice in partnership with L. L. Dennett, 
 the two having a constantly increasing clientele. 
 Fraternally he is a member of the Knights of 
 Pythias and Woodmen of the World, and politi- 
 cally is a Republican, having always been active 
 in the promotion of the principles he indorses. 
 He has served as delegate to the state convention 
 and in many other ways has aided in the support 
 of Republicanism. 
 
 WILLIS RUSSELL HIGH. Among the rep- 
 resentative business men of Modesto and Stanis- 
 laus county, Willis Russell High occupies a prom- 
 inent position, won by his own efforts since his 
 advent to California in 1883. He is now con- 
 nected with the business interests of Modesto 
 through the Farmers' & Merchants' Bank, of 
 which he is now president, having been elected 
 to that position in October, 1903, having pre- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 3l3 
 
 viously served as vice-president after assisting 
 materially in the organization of the bank. He 
 is a large land owner and extensively interested 
 in the land in the Turlock' irrigation district, hav- 
 ing five hundred and twenty acres which he in- 
 tends opening in the spring of 1904. A native of 
 Tennessee, he was born in Smith county March 
 30, i860, the son of James T. High. 
 
 James T. High was also a native of Tennes- 
 see, being a merchant by occupation during his 
 earlier years, and later in life engaging as a 
 farmer. He is now living retired from the active 
 cares of life in Alexandria, Tenn., at the age 
 of eighty years. He married Elizabeth Austin, 
 who was born in Glasgow, Ky., and she is also 
 living. To them were born eleven children, six 
 sons and five daughters, of whom all attained 
 maturity with the exception of the youngest two. 
 William Russell High was the fourth child and 
 the third son, and received his scholastic educa- 
 tion in the common schools of his native state and 
 the Masonic Academy located at Elmwood, Smith 
 county. In 1883 he came to California, locating 
 in Stanislaus county, one mile north of Modesto, 
 where he bought one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land. In addition to this farm he cultivated five 
 thousand acres located in Madera county, this 
 land being devoted entirely to the raising of 
 grain. From a small and modest beginning he 
 has accumulated considerable property and be- 
 come an influential man in the business of the 
 city. During the year 1900 he acted as a di- 
 rector of the irrigation district. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. High occurred in Mo- 
 desto and united him with Olive Dral<e, a native 
 of this city, and the daughter of Jacob Drake, a 
 native of Illinois, who crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia during the Civil war, locating as a farmer 
 near Modesto in 1861. Here his death occurred, 
 after a long and useful life. For about fifty years 
 of his life he had followed his trade which was 
 that of machinist. Fraternally he was a member 
 of the Masonic order. Politically he was a Demo- 
 crat. The children born to Mr. High and his 
 wife are named in order of birth as follows : 
 Benjamin Hugh, Delma Gertrude, James Luther, 
 Lester Homer and Vera. Fraternally Mr. High 
 is a member of Modesto Lodge No. 149, I. O. 
 O. F., and Stockton Lodge No. 218, B. P. O. E. 
 Politically he adheres to the principles advocated 
 in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 HON. JAMES W. HALEY, manager of the 
 Haley ranch of five thousand acres, twenty miles 
 northwest of Los Banos, and ex-member of the 
 state legislature, was born in St. Louis, Mo., July 
 12, 1849, the oldest of the four sons and two 
 daughters of WilHam and Esther (Byrns) Haley. 
 William Haley was born in county Wicklow, Ire- 
 
 land, and prior to coming to America married 
 and operated a farm of his own for a number of 
 years. In St. Louis he conceived the idea of 
 joining his fortunes to the growing west, and 
 with ox-teams left Missouri in March, 1852, 
 crossing the plains in the usual time, and with 
 the usual number of adventures. The mines of 
 Trinity county yielded him $8,000, and in the 
 fall of 1853 he returned to his wife and two sons 
 by way of Panama, again turning his steps west- 
 ward in 1854, accompanied by his family, in 
 whom he had aroused a spirit of interest in the 
 coast country. He started one of the pioneer 
 dairy industries in San Francisco in 1861, and 
 it is a tribute to him as a substantial business 
 man that the small business thus inaugurated un- 
 der scarcely promising circumstances, grew into 
 a permanent enterprise, and is still conducted by 
 his sons, with the dairy depot, on the corner of 
 Buchanan and Union streets. Mr. Haley's life 
 continued a busy one until his death in 1882, at 
 the age of fifty-eight years. He trained all of 
 his sons in the dairy business, and his two young- 
 est, Daniel T. and William E., are still' owners 
 and managers of the old dairy in San Francisco7 
 known as the Laurel Vale Dairy. His second 
 oldest son, Michael C, was formerly county 
 clerk in San Francisco, and is now living retired 
 in that city. 
 
 Although but five years of age when his fath- 
 er brought him to California, Hon. James W. 
 Haley distinctly recalls crossing the Isthmus of 
 Panama on the back of a mule, and afterward of 
 inaugurating his industrial career as a milk ped- 
 dler in the streets of San Francisco. He was 
 twelve years old at the time, and later carried his 
 milk on horseback, still later being supplied with 
 a wagon, filled at the home on the corner of 
 Greenwich and Buchanan streets. He was edu- 
 cated in the old Beach school, the Spring Valley 
 grammar school, the first of its kind in San Fran- 
 cisco, from which he graduated in the spring of 
 1863, and St. Ignatius College, which he attended 
 three years. He continued with the Laurel Vale 
 Dairy until 1870, in which year himself and 
 brother, M. C, rented a dairy, continuing the 
 same until Mr. Haley's marriage, after which he 
 dissolved the' partnership and engaged in an in- 
 dependent business. He was united with Rose 
 Smith, a native of Wallabout, Long Island, N. Y. 
 The Golden City Dairy prospered under his man- 
 agement until 1881, when he sold out his business 
 and located on the west side of Merced county, 
 purchasing land on San Luis creek, and engaging 
 in stock raising. He was successful beyond his 
 expectations, met with a ready response from the 
 San Francisco markets, and finally was obliged 
 to purchase more land in order to supply de- 
 mands for his stock. He now controls five thou- 
 sand acres, and raises principally Devonshire 
 
314: 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cattle and blooded horses. His land is watered 
 by San Luis creek, and admirably adapted for 
 the purpose intended. Mr. Haley has the rnost 
 modern and practical of improvements, and lives 
 in a manner befitting his enlightened and progres- 
 sive views. His only living child, George J., is 
 attending St. Mary's College, of Oakland, a mem- 
 ber of the class of '06. He is fond of out-door 
 sports and is the best amateur short stop in Cal- 
 ifornia. 
 
 Mr. Haley's active political service began in 
 1890, when he was elected supervisor of the fifth 
 district, his re-election following in 1894, and his 
 term expiring in January, 1899. For the last two 
 years he was chairman of the board. I^i 1900 he 
 was elected to the state legislature, representing 
 the fifty-seventh legislative district, which em- 
 braces Stanislaus and Merced counties, and re- 
 ceived the largest Democratic majority in the his- 
 tory of the district. During the session of 1901 
 he served on the committee on roads and irriga- 
 tion, succeeding in handling and securing the pas- 
 sage of the Modesto refunding bill ; the water 
 credit bill, a very important measure ; the Coyote 
 scalp bill, and the county government bill of 
 Stanislaus and Merced counties. He is now a 
 member of the county central committee, and has 
 been a delegate to various state and county con- 
 ventions. Mr. Haley is noted for the shrewdness 
 and practicability of his views upon public ques- 
 tions, and his influence is accordingly emphatic 
 and far reaching. He is a generous contributor 
 to all worthy causes, is public spirited and a 
 promoter of education, morality and good gov- 
 ernment. 
 
 ELLWOOD OLIVER LARKINS. When 
 the second war with England began among those 
 who enlisted to fight for the United States was 
 William Larkins, who some years before had 
 crossed the .ocean to establish his home in the 
 new world and who proved his loyalty to his 
 adopted country by faithful service at the front. 
 A, grandson of this soldier, ]. B. Larkins, was 
 born in Birmingham, Pa., and during 1850 
 settled in Ohio, engaging in the mercantile busi- 
 ness at East Liverpool, Columbiana county. 
 From there in 1861 he removed to Meigs county, 
 Ohio, where he not only carried on a store, but 
 also engaged in general farm pursuits. The 
 year 1866 witnessed his removal to Linn county, 
 Mo., where he added stock raising to his duties 
 as a merchant. He later removed to Kirksville, 
 which continued to be his home until 1899, when 
 he was killed by the cyclone that passed through 
 that town. 
 
 In the family of J. B. Larkins was a son, E. 
 O., born at East Liverpool, Ohio, December 16, 
 1854. Primarily educated in the public schools 
 
 of his native town, he had the further advantage 
 of attending the Missouri state normal school at 
 Kirksville, where he prepared for educational 
 work. During 1874 he was employed as a teach- 
 er in the schools of Salisbury, Chariton county, 
 Mo., and the following year acted as principal 
 of the schools of Laclede, Linn county, that 
 state. Already he had resolved to become an at- 
 torney, and with that ambition before him he 
 took up law studies under Harrington & Stover 
 of Kirksville. From Missouri he came to Cali- 
 fornia in the summer of 1875 and for a time 
 was a law student under Van Dyke & Wells, of 
 San Francisco. From 1877 to 1880 he held the 
 principalship of the Meridian public schools and 
 for three years of that period acted as a member 
 of the board of education of Sutter county. On 
 resigning there he accepted the chair of mathe- 
 matics in the Visalia normal school, a private in- 
 stitution, where he continued an instructor for 
 four years. In 1884 he was elected principal of 
 the grammar and high schools of Visalia, but re- 
 signed the following year in order to devote his 
 attention to the practice of law. 
 
 His since successful connection with the law 
 proves that Mr. Larkins selected wisely in choos- 
 ing a profession. The talents with which he is 
 endowed by nature qualify him for the logical 
 reasoning, keen insight and wise judgment de- 
 manded of an attorney. Furthermore, a fine 
 command of language and ready eloquence make 
 him a popular speaker, both in the court room 
 with judge and jury, and on the stump in po- 
 litical campaigns. His work as a speaker in 
 the interests of Senator George C. Perkins when 
 candidate for governor received frequent praise, 
 nor was he less active in the McKinley cam- 
 paign of 1896 and the Roosevelt campaign of 
 1904. Indeed, in every campaign when the prin- 
 ciples of the Republican party are at stake, he 
 willingly devotes time and money to the promo- 
 tion of their success. At other times, however, 
 he devotes himself closely to professional work, 
 and in leisure hours is a student of his fine law 
 library, broadening his knowledge of the intric- 
 acies and technicalities of the profession. For- 
 merly he was a partner of Hon. J. F. Whar- 
 ton of Fresno and Hon. Tipton Lindsey of Vis- 
 alia, but both of these gentlemen are now dead, 
 and he practices alone. Much of the important 
 litigation of the San Joaquin valley has been in 
 his charge, but civil cases are his preference and 
 his specialties are water rights and land titles. 
 For several years he was a director in the Bank 
 of Visalia, and is the owner of the Larkins build- 
 ing in this place. Now, as in earlier life, edu- 
 cational aflfairs receive his attention and aid. 
 He was a member of the educational commission 
 of California. For years he has been a member 
 of the Republican state central committee. Fra- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 315 
 
 ternally he is connected with the Woodmen of 
 the World, Ancient Order of United Workmen 
 and Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Vis- 
 alia, and is active in Masonry as a member of 
 Lodge, Chapter and Commandery, having re- 
 ceived the eighteen degrees, including that of 
 Scottish Rite, thirty-second degree. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Larkins united him with 
 Sallie C. Callaway, of Waverly, Mo., a descend- 
 ant of the Boone family and closely related to 
 the Hardins of Kentucky. The famous pioneer 
 Daniel Boone, was one of her ancestors, and it 
 is matter of history that his daughter, Jemima, 
 became the wife of a gallant young Kentuckian, 
 bearing the name of Callaway, who rescued her 
 from the Indians with the greatest daring and 
 bravery. Four daug^hters comprise the family 
 of Mr. and Mrs. Larkins, namely : Zoe P., who 
 is a graduate of Leland Stanford, Jr., Univer- 
 sity and married Roydon I. Woolsey, of Berk- 
 eley; Carroll, a graduate of the Visalia high 
 school; Addie T. and Calla, who are at home. 
 
 ORPEALYER P. MUNSON. In Orpealyer 
 P. Munson, near Crows Landing, is found a 
 representative of the third generation of his 
 family to identify himself with the growing for- 
 tunes of the great state of California. The name 
 was first known in the mining camps of the 
 coast through the emigration of his paternal 
 grandfather, Charles F. Munson, one of those 
 rugged sons of Maine who have ever been asso- 
 ciated with strong personal characteristics and 
 great perseverance. Perfecting himself in the 
 carpenter's trade as a young man, an occupation 
 with which his ancestors had long been familiar, 
 he not only paved the way for others to put to 
 sea, but applied his craft to the furtherance of 
 the supreme ambition of his life, that of locat- 
 ing in and growing up with the Pacific coast 
 country. Constructing a ship of strong timber, 
 he sailed from his bleak native coast, weather- 
 ing the storm and calms of two oceans with his 
 noble craft, and eventually landed on a sunnier 
 and more promising shore. Locating in French 
 Camp, Cal., he worked with pick and pan with 
 moderate success, and soon afterward started a 
 hotel for the accommodation of the fortune-seek- 
 ing public. He was successful as a miner and 
 hotel-kefeper, and in these occupations laid the 
 foundation for the fortune w'hich maintained 
 him in comfort up to the time of his death in 
 1892. His son Orpealyer P., Sr., was born on 
 his ranch in the San Joaquin valley, and upon 
 starting out upon his independent career located 
 in Merced county, ten miles from Turlock, re- 
 maining there until 1891. He settled on four- 
 teen hundred acres of leased land in Stanislaus 
 county in the latter year, where he died Septem- 
 
 ber 18, 1893, at the age of fifty-two years. He 
 was married to Mary L. Houser, a native of 
 Pennsylvania, and reared a family of three sons 
 and one daughter, namely : Orpealyer P., Jr., 
 George L., Benjamin E., and Leta R. The 
 honest efforts and industry of this worthy son 
 of the grand old pioneer were amply rewarded 
 in the gaining of an independent competency. 
 He was successful in his occupation and has left 
 his widow in independent and comfortable cir- 
 cumstances. She is a woman possessed of sound 
 faculties and cheerful views of life. 
 
 To the property rented by the elder Munson, 
 and devoted to extensive grain raising, land has 
 been added from time to time, until at present 
 Orpealyer P., Jr., and his brother, George L., 
 rent three thousand acres, all under wheat and 
 barley. Theirs is one of the largest grain-rais- 
 ing enterprises in Stanislaus county, and both 
 men stand high as authorities upon their par- 
 ticular line of activity. The land is all in the 
 San Joaquin valley, and the majority in Stanis- 
 laus county, and is of a kind particularly adapted 
 to grain raising. As the older of the brothers, 
 Orpealyer P., Jr., is the chief manager of the 
 property. 
 
 Mr. Munson is an energetic and practical man, 
 progressive in the extreme, and popular with 
 his fellow agriculturists of Stanislaus county. 
 He is a Republican in national politics, but as yet 
 has taken no active part in local affairs. Fra- 
 ternally he is identified with the Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen. Mr. Munson's prosperity 
 is reared upon a common school education, a 
 keen knowledge of scientific farming, and a high 
 regard for the dignity and importance of his 
 chosen occupation. 
 
 REUBEN A. EDMONDS. The postoffice 
 at Bakersfield, which is under the supervision 
 of Mr. Edmonds as postmaster, ranks among 
 the leading second-class offices of California. 
 Accuracy, promptness and system are notice- 
 able features in the administration of the 
 office. To assist in the assortment and- distri- 
 bution of the mail seven clerks are employed, 
 besides which four carriers take charge of the 
 city delivery and one carrier covers the rural 
 route. During his tenure of the position it has 
 been the aim of the postmaster to facilitate the 
 delivery of mail and thus promote the interests 
 of the people, and' he has been so successful 
 in his efforts that people of all political beliefs 
 testify to his fidelity as an official. 
 
 Mr. Edmonds was born in Lane county, 
 Ore., January 14, 1859. His father, William 
 Edmonds, was a native of Carlisle, Pa., and 
 at an early age went to Illinois. From there 
 he worked his way across the plains to Oregon 
 
316 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and entered the mines, since which time he 
 has made mining his occupation, and, though 
 now seventy years of age, he still continues 
 activel}^ at work. When Reuben A. Edmonds 
 was a boy of six years his mother died. He 
 was then taken into the home of his grand- 
 mother near Santa Rosa, Sonoma county, Cal., 
 and later remained for a time at Kellogg, Napa 
 county. After spending a short period in Ore- 
 gon he entered the public schools of Napa 
 City, where he was a pupil for seven years. His 
 education was further extended by a course 
 of study in the Napa Collegiate Institute, 
 where he made a specialty of bookkeeping. In 
 1881 he came to Bakersfield and, by the exer- 
 cise of constant economy and perseverance, 
 he reaped a gratifying measure of success and 
 built up a dry goods business that was im- 
 portant and remunerative. Unfortunately, the 
 great fire of 1889 found him without insurance 
 and his loss was complete. Being thus forced 
 to begin at the bottom once more, he secured 
 a position as clerk and bookkeeper, and worked 
 in that capacity for five years. 
 
 The Republican party has always had a firm 
 champion in Mr. Edmonds. For twenty years 
 he has been a local leader. At different times 
 he was chosen to occupy minor offices. In 
 1898 he was honored by receiving the appoint- 
 ment as postmaster under President McKin- 
 ley and four years later was reappointed to 
 the office. After coming to Bakersfield he 
 married Miss Elizabeth Hallet of Napa, by 
 whom he has two children, Shirlie A. and 
 Reubelle, both at home. On the organization 
 of the Knights of Pythias lodge at Bakers- 
 field he became one of its charter members, 
 and his fraternal relations are further supple- 
 mented by membership in the Bakersfield 
 Lodge of Elks. 
 
 WILLIAM VAN BUCKNER. In the com- 
 paratively brief history of Kings county, 
 William Van Buckner figures as one of its 
 most successful agricultural and horticultural 
 promoters, as well as its only citizen thus far 
 to hold the office of sheriff. Continuously 
 since the organization of the county in 1893 
 he has dignified a position calling for more 
 than the average tact, discretion and judg- 
 ment, evidencing particular aptitude for the 
 office and winning the good-will of the com- 
 munity, regardless of political creed. His 
 duties have been accompanied by the hard- 
 ships and trials usually associated with the 
 office in comparatively new localities, but he 
 has met them with courage and wisdom, and to 
 the satisfaction of the law and order loving 
 portion of the community. Continuous resi- 
 
 dence in the unsettled west since early boyhood 
 has made him most familiar with the cosmo- 
 politan element which comprises his environ- 
 ment, and his knowledge of human nature at 
 its worst and best has come to be of immense 
 use to him in the adjustment of the numerous 
 complications which have confronted him. 
 
 Mr. Buckner was born near Fort Scott, 
 Kans., August 31, 1859, his father, William G. 
 Buckner, having removed to that section from 
 his native state, Tennessee. The family came 
 to California in 1863, settling first in San 
 Joaquin county, and in 1868 locating in Stan- 
 islaus county, where they resided until 1881. 
 During the latter year Mr. Buckner purchased 
 his crude farm of eighty acres, improved it for 
 general farming and fruit-raising, and sold it 
 in 1890. Following his pronounced religious 
 bent, he then engaged in missionary work in 
 the South Pacific islands for two or three 
 3^ears, representing the Seventh Day Ad- 
 ventists, with whom he has been identified for 
 many years. He is now living in retirement 
 in San Jose, Cal., and is about seventy-six 
 years of age. Through his marriage with 
 Nancy Butts, who died in 1877, four sons were 
 born, namely: Henry F., a railroad con- 
 tractor of Washington ; James B., who died in 
 1885 ; Andrew E., a rancher in the vicinity 
 of Lemoore, and William V. 
 
 William Van Buckner was reared on his 
 father's farm in Stanislaus county, and his edu- 
 cation was received in the country schools 
 and the grammar school at Modesto. In 1881 
 he accompanied his father to Tulare county, 
 where he purchased a ranch of eighty acres. 
 This property, which is now managed by his 
 brother, he still owns. Upon the organization 
 of Kings county he was elected to the office 
 of sheriff, an honor which was entirely unex- 
 pected on his part. Yielding to the earnest 
 solicitations of friends he allowed his name 
 to be used, and the hearty support accorded 
 him was convincing proof of his popularity and 
 general fitness for the office. He was re- 
 elected in 1894, 1898 and 1902, and public senti- 
 ment appears to favor his retention of the 
 office so long as he will consent to fill it. 
 
 Mr. Buckner is a stockholder and director 
 in the Hanford National Bank. In politics he 
 has always been an advocate of the principles 
 of the Republican party, though at no time in 
 his life has he been what might be termed a 
 politician. Fraternally he is well known and 
 prominent, being a charter member of Lemoore 
 Court No. 196, I. O. F. ; Hanford Lodge No. 
 194, K. P.; Woodmen of the World, and the 
 Knights of Maccabees. 
 
 Upon the organization of Company I, Sixth 
 Regiment, California National Guard, March 
 
c^4^H4M'^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 319 
 
 14, 1900, he was elected first lieutenant, serv- 
 ing two terms of two years each. 
 
 Personally Mr. Buckner is a quiet and un- 
 assuming' man. Underlying his nature is the 
 iron and determination which make his influ- 
 ence felt, as well as the kindliness and benev- 
 olence which enable him to do much good 
 while seeing that the majesty of the law ife 
 upheld. He cheerfully co-operates with his 
 fellow-citizens in the promotion of all well- 
 considered movements tending toward the 
 betterment of social, moral, educational or in- 
 dustrial conditions in the community, and has 
 always had the best interests of the whole peo- 
 ple at heart. 
 
 HUFFMAN MICHAEL WHITE. An ex- 
 tensive land owner and a pioneer whose earliest 
 efforts have been enlisted in the cause of up- 
 building and developing the western state that he 
 made his home, Huffman M. White is esteemed 
 as a citizen of worth and integrity and a potent 
 factor in the commercial, political and social life 
 of the community. He was born in Tioga coun- 
 ty, N. Y., March 14, 1824, a son of Silas and 
 grandson of Joshua White, both natives of 
 Dutchess county, N. Y., where the death of the 
 latter occurred. Silas White went to Illinois in 
 1838 as a pioneer and located in LaSalle county, 
 where he engaged in farming until his death. 
 His wife, Maria McClave in maidenhood, was 
 born in New York state and died in Illinois. 
 They were the parents of five sons and four 
 daughters, of whom Hufifman Michael White 
 was the third in order of birth. 
 
 Reared to manhood in Illinois, to which state 
 he accompanied his parents when he was fourteen 
 years of age, Huffman M. White received his 
 education in the public schools in the vicinity of 
 his home. On attaining maturity he engaged in 
 lumbering in Grundy county, in 1844 operating 
 a sawrnill in that section of country. In 1850 
 he followed the westward trend of civilization, 
 making a trip across the plains by horse-teams, 
 consuming one hundred and one days from St. 
 Joseph, Mo. The trip was a pleasant one, even 
 in the midst of hardships and privations which 
 were necessarily incident to such travel. Upon 
 his safe arrival in California Mr. White fol- 
 lowed mining in Sacramento and Eldorado coun- 
 ties for about three months. The fall of 1852 
 found Mr. White in Parajo, Santa Cruz county, 
 where he farmed and raised potatoes and barley. 
 He was probably the largest potato raiser in 
 California at that time, having as many as seven 
 hundred acres planted to that vegetable. He 
 marketed his produce in San Francisco, by means 
 of a line of vessels which he owned, and amassed 
 a fortune of $100,000 in the business. One of 
 
 his vessels, the Young America, was sent to Mel- 
 bourne, AustraHa, in charge of his brother, but 
 the boat was lost at sea with all on board. Mr. 
 White suffered another loss in the burning of 
 one of his vessels while anchored in the harbor. 
 In the spring of 1865 Mr. White went to Sacra- 
 mento, where he engaged in the wholesale mer- 
 cantile business, and two years later came to 
 Tulare county, and in Visalia was interested in 
 mercantile pursuits for a year. Coming then to 
 the Frazier river valley he pre-empted and pur- 
 chased land, until today he owns twenty-three 
 hundred acres. The land available for grain pur- 
 poses he rents ; while the balance is devoted to 
 the raising of stock. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. White was united in marriage 
 with Mrs. Jerusha (Anthony) Brown, born in 
 New York state, and a daughter of Paul An- 
 thony, Jr., and Hannah Eddy, natives of Massa- 
 chusetts and Vermont, respectively. By her first 
 marriage Mrs. White became the mother of two 
 sons, Chnton T. and William W. Brown, the 
 former residing in Piano, and the latter in Por- 
 tersville. 
 
 To Mrs. White belongs the distinction of 
 planting the first orange tree in this vicinity. 
 The seed was brought from the Society Islands 
 by Captain McLaughlin, of ■ the United States 
 Volunteer army. One tree which came froan this 
 seed was planted in the White ranch, and is 
 still standing, an honored patriarch of California 
 trees, and the first tree to be planted in Tulare 
 county. When seven years old this tree bore 
 ten oranges, which were sold at $1 apiece, and 
 the sum which they brought, $10, was given by- 
 Mrs. White to the building fund of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church of Portersville. A lemon tree 
 planted at the same time bore fruit when three 
 years old. Mrs. White may well claim the honor 
 and distinction of being the mother of horticul- 
 ture in the San Joaquin valley. 
 
 In his political convictions Mr. White is a 
 staunch Republican and has always taken an 
 active interest in the workings of that party. He 
 served as a delegate to the first Republican con- 
 vention held in Sacramento, and subsequently 
 was a candidate for election to the assembly, 
 being defeated by only fifteen votes. He has 
 repeatedly served as school trustee, and for the 
 year of 1905 was a delegate to the state conven- 
 tion, being the oldest man in that body. 
 
 JOHN T. DUNLAP. Kings county has 
 among its 'citizens many men of more than the 
 average ability and intelligence who are doing 
 a great work for its advancement, and John T. 
 Dunlap may with justice be classed among that 
 number. He was born in S'omerset county, Me., 
 January 29, 1855, a son of Guy Dunlap, also a 
 
320 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 native of Maine, where as a farmer and lumber- 
 man he spent his entire hfe of seventy-six years. 
 Mrs. Jane A. (Tinkham) Dunlap, the mother 
 of John T., was also a native of Somerset coun- 
 ty, Me., where her entire life was spent, and 
 where her death occurred at the comparatively 
 early age of forty-six years. 
 
 When most other boys were enjoymg a free- 
 dom from care it fell to the lot of John T. Dun- 
 lap to give a helping hand in the support' of the 
 family, and when only fourteen years old he be- 
 gan working on farms adjacent to the parental 
 home. At sixteen he had his first experience 
 at railroad work, being on the construction force, 
 which gave him employment only during the 
 summer months, while he found work in the 
 straw hat manufactories at Medway and Fram- 
 ingham, Mass., that occupred his time during the 
 winters. After working in the vicinity of his 
 parents' home for about ten years he found a 
 better opening in Milwaukee, Wis., and thither 
 he went in the fall of 1880, taking a position 
 in the straw hat works in that place. Hard work 
 had impaired his health to some extent and he 
 deemed a short respite advisable. Not content 
 to be idle, however, he went to Kingsbury coun- 
 ty, S. Dak., and pre-empted a tract of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres of land, to which he has 
 since added until he now has four hundred and 
 eighty acres of land, which is constantly grow- 
 ing more valuable. The latter acquisition is lo- 
 cated in Clark county and was pre-empted in 
 the spring of 1882. He carried on general farm- 
 ing in that state until December, 1891, when he 
 sold his stock and, leasing his farm, came to 
 California in the employ of the Solano Colony, 
 which owned a section of land five miles north- 
 east of Hanford which had been laid out for the 
 purpose of inducing settlers to locate there. The 
 first attempt had not proved a success, but Mr. 
 Dunlap gave practical assistance, planting trees 
 and vines, and in various ways was instrumental 
 in putting the settlers in a position to become 
 independent of assistance. The land was di- 
 vided into ten and twenty acre tracts. After 
 two years spent in the employ of the company 
 Mr. Dunlap opened a brick yard in Hanford and 
 also erected a brick residence. He subsequently 
 sold his property and invested the proceeds in 
 town lots, which in turn were given in part pay- 
 ment for his present home of eighty acres plant- 
 ed to trees and vines, and valued at $187.50 per 
 acre. He has recently added to the original 
 tract, which was forty acres, and now practically 
 all of the land is devoted to fruits and vines. 
 
 Mr. Dunlap was married to Louise Slocum, 
 who was bom in Massachusetts, and who was 
 taken to Milwaukee, Wis., when a very young- 
 child. She received an excellent education in 
 the schools of that city, qualifying herself as a 
 
 teacher of German, and finally became prmcipal 
 of the Deaf and Dumb Institute, being connected 
 with the institution when it was conducted as a 
 private institution and also after it became a 
 state institution. Mr. and Mrs. Dunlap have 
 two children, Marjorie and Carol, both of whom 
 are attending school. Mr. Dunlap has been a 
 hard worker all of hi« life, starting out when 
 only thirteen years old to care for himself, and 
 his course throughout life has been one of steady 
 purpose and determination. His success speaks 
 for itself in the interests which have grown up 
 around him and in the esteem in which he is 
 held by his fellow-citizens. Mr. Dunlap is a 
 director in the Baby King Oil Company, which 
 owns wells in Fresno county, and is also a mem- 
 ber of the Raisin Growers' Association. 
 
 JAMES RUTHERFORD. Tlie twenty-acre 
 farm of James Rutherford bears evidence of the 
 thrift and painstaking methods of this venerable 
 farmer of the vicinity of Fresno. Mr. Ruther- 
 ford belongs to that number who have come and 
 gone and returned to the west, impelled by the 
 nameless charm which clings with renewed per- 
 sistency when one is again subjected to the try- 
 ing winters and uncertain elements of the east- 
 eni part of the country. He was born in Lin- 
 coln county, Ky., August 11, 1821, and is a son 
 of James and Polly Anne (Huntsman) Ruther- 
 ford. The former was born near Lexington, 
 Ky., and the latter in Lincoln county, the same 
 state. The parents moved to Howard county, 
 Mo., when James, Jr., was a small lad, ajid there 
 the mother died, leaving eight children, of whom 
 James is the seventh and the only one living. 
 Later the family located on a farm in Randolph 
 county, Mo., where the father died, and whence 
 his son and namesake removed to Pike county, 
 Mo., July 10, 1844. Here he learned the car- 
 penter's trade with his brother, and while thus 
 employed became interested in the stream of 
 emigration for the gold fields of California. 
 Outfitting with ox teams, he went overland in 
 the usual time, starting April 13, 1850, and ar- 
 riving at Hangtown August 29, 1850. A win- 
 ter spent on the American river failed to pro- 
 duce any of the startling evidences of wealth 
 which Mr. Rutherford had dreamed, and the fol- 
 lowing spring he returned to Pike county by 
 way of Central America. Here he joined his 
 wife, whom he had married in 1848, and who 
 was formerly Margaret A. Van Noy, a native of 
 Pike county. She is a daughter of Dr. Nathan 
 Van Noy, who, with his wife, came from the 
 Carolinas to Tennessee and from there to Mis- 
 souri. In the latter state, in Pike county, Dr. 
 Van Noy practiced medicine for many years. 
 
 In 1887 Mr. Rutherford sold his farm in Pike 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 321 
 
 county, Mo., and came to Fresno, where he plied 
 his trade in the town for some years. In 1892 
 he bought his present farm of twenty acres, six 
 miles east of Fresno. It is devoted principally 
 to horticulture, Mr. Rutherford having fifteen 
 'acres under orchard and vineyard, and the bal- 
 ance under general farming. Success has come 
 to him, and he has not only made a delightful 
 home, but has reared ten of his twelve children, 
 giving them all a practical common school edu- 
 cation and otherwise fitting them to fight their 
 independent battles of life. The children were : 
 Mary Eliza, Martha A., Sarah E. (deceased), 
 William N., Frances L., Ellen, JuHa, James L., 
 Robert, John (deceased), Albert and Effie. Mr. 
 Rutherford is a broad-minded and public-spir- 
 ited man, popular with his neighbors and always 
 ready to help those less fortunate than himself. 
 He is independent in politics and a member of 
 the Christian Church, which both himself and 
 wife joined while living in Missouri. 
 
 JUDGE FRED G. OSTRANDER. Promi- 
 nent among the attorneys of Fresno is Judge F. 
 G. Ostrander. Prior to locating in this city, he 
 had become well known throughout Merced 
 county, having served as district attorney, and as 
 judge of the superior court, positions which he 
 filled with eminent ability. Of keen perceptive 
 faculties, practical and logical, the finding of 
 fact's and the principles of law seldom elude his 
 notice, and his decisions are invariably just. A 
 native of California, he was born October 8, 1861, 
 in Merced county, a son of H. J. Ostrander. His 
 paternal grandfather, Peter Ostrander, came 
 from old Knickerbocker stock, having been de- 
 scended from one of three brothers named 
 Ostrander that emigrated from Holland to 
 America, and settled in New York in colonial 
 times. He was a farmer by occupation and spent 
 his entire life in the Empire state. 
 
 Born and reared in Petersboro, N. Y., H. J. 
 Ostrander migrated to California soon after the 
 discovery of gold was heralded through the 
 country, coming through Mexico and Lower 
 California, up through the San Joaquin Valley to 
 the gold fields. After mining for awhile, he em- 
 barked in the stock business, becoming an ex- 
 tensive raiser of cattle and sheep. He had his 
 headquarters in Merced county, of which he 
 was one of the earliest and most prominent 
 pioneers and Ostrander Lake and Ostrander 
 Rocks, near Yosemite, were named in his honor. 
 He has continued in business as a stock-raiser 
 and dealer until the present time. Always 
 ready to advance the agricultural interests of 
 his community, he was one of the first incor- 
 porators of the Farmers' Canal Company, which 
 was later known as the Crocker-Huffman 
 
 Canal Company, and was one of the first to 
 fertilize his land by irrigation. He is now a hale 
 and active man of seventy-eight years, honored 
 and respected by all. A Republican in poHtics, 
 he served as presidential elector when Rutherford 
 B. Hayes was made president, and in 1880 was 
 one of the Yosemite Park commissioners, being 
 appointed by Governor Markham. Going back 
 to New York in 1852, H. J. Ostrander married 
 Lydia A. Wheeler, who was born in that state, 
 and the same year returned with his bride to 
 California, coming by the Nicaragua route. She 
 died on the home farm in Merced county. Of 
 the five children born of their union, three are 
 living, namely : Willis H., a prosperous business 
 man of Chico, Cal. ; Mrs. Thomas N. Crew, also 
 of Chico, and Fred G., the subject of this sketch. 
 F. M. Ostrander, the oldest son, was a member 
 of the first class graduated from the Hastings 
 law .school. He was afterwards engaged in the 
 practice of law in Merced county until his death, 
 and was for some time district attorney. The 
 father is a member of the California Pioneer As- 
 sociation. 
 
 LTntil five years old, F. G. Ostrander lived in 
 Snelling, Merced county, and the following three 
 3'ears lived with his parents in Santa Clara. Go- 
 ing thence to New York, he attended the public 
 schools of Ithaca six years, after which he con- 
 tinued his studies in Berkeley, Cal., two years, 
 and then returned to Merced county, his early 
 home. In 1879 Mr. Ostrander entered the Uni- 
 versity of California, where he remained until 
 his junior year, when he left school to engage in 
 farming in Merced county, an occupation in 
 which he was employed for three years. The 
 next five years he was court reporter for Merced 
 and Mariposa counties, after which he studied 
 law with his brother, F. M. Ostrander. In 1890 
 Mr. Ostrander was admitted to the bar, and in 
 1896 was admitted to practice in the supreme 
 court. In 1892 he was the Republican nominee 
 for district attorney, and, being elected, served 
 from 1893 until 1895. Re-elected to the same 
 office, he served from 1895 until 1899, when he 
 was re-elected for the third term. In May, 1900, 
 however, being appointed, by application of the 
 entire bar of Merced county, judge of the su- 
 perior court of Merced county, he resigned his 
 position as district attorney and served as judge 
 until the next general election, in January, 1901. 
 In July, 1901, forming a partnership with Lewis 
 H. Smith, Judge Ostrander became junior mem- 
 ber of the firm of Smith & Ostrander in Fresno, 
 where he has built up a good law practice, and is 
 numbered among the citizens of prominence and 
 worth. He still practices in Merced county, 
 where he has a large clientele. 
 
 In Alameda;, Cal., the birthplace of the bride, 
 Judge Ostrander married Sarah Ellery, and into 
 
322 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 their home four children have been born, namely : 
 Jasper, Edith, Gladys and Willis. In his political 
 affiliations Judge Ostrander sustains the prin- 
 ciples of the Republican party. Socially he is a 
 member of Yosemite Parlor No. 24, N. S. G. W., 
 of which he is an ex-president, and of the County 
 Bar Association. FraternaUy he belongs to the 
 Independent Order of Odd JFellows, to the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen and to the 
 Woodmen of the World. 
 
 CHARLES H. ADAIR, M. D. A practi- 
 tioner of long experience, C. H. Adair, M. D., 
 holds a position of prominence among the 
 leading physicians of Fresno, where he has 
 built up a fine practice. A son of John Adair, 
 he was born October 7, 1848, in Logansport, 
 Ind. His grandfather, Asbury Adair, was 
 born and brought up in old Virginia, and was 
 afterward a pioneer settler of three states, 
 moving first to Kentucky, thence to Indiana, 
 and locating in Kansas while it was yet a 
 territory. 
 
 A native of Kentucky, John Adair moved to 
 Indiana with his parents, and after attaining 
 his majority followed the trade of a contractor 
 and bridge-builder in Logansport. He died 
 in the prime of life, in 1849, o^ cholera, being 
 then fifty-two years of age. He married Mar- 
 garet Stewart, who was born in Scotland, and 
 is now living in Rochester, Ind. Three chil- 
 dren blessed their union, namely : Frank, who 
 served in the Civil war in the One Hundred 
 and Twenty-eighth Indiana Volunteer In- 
 fantry, was wounded in battle, captured, con- 
 fined in Andersonville prison until exchanged, 
 and died soon after his release ; C. H., the 
 subject of this sketch; and Mrs. Mary Reniff, 
 of Sublette, 111. 
 
 After attending the public schools of Lo- 
 gansport, Ind., until thirteen years old, C. H. 
 Adair worked for a time as clerk in a drug 
 store. In 1864, running away from home, he 
 made his way to Washington, D. C, where 
 he enlisted as a private in Company C, Third 
 Veteran Reserve Corps, with which he was 
 at first stationed in VVashington, and then in 
 Johnson's Island until the close of the war, 
 when, in July, 1865, he was mustered out of 
 service. Returning then to Logansport, Ind., 
 Mr. Adair attended school for awhile, after 
 which he secured a position in the hospital 
 department of the United States army, and for 
 a year or more was in the employ of the 
 Freedmen's bureau, dealing out rations, medi- 
 cines, etc., to the negroes throughout the 
 south. Resigning from the bureau in 1867, 
 he entered the senior class of the medical de- 
 partment of the University of Philadelphia, 
 
 from which he was graduated in 1868 with the 
 degree of M. D. Locating at once in Salt 
 Lake City, Dr. Adair practiced medicine there 
 two years. Coming to California in 1870, he 
 continued the practice of his profession in 
 Stockton until 1872, when he removed to* 
 Roseburg, Ore. Locating there as a physi- 
 cian, he was soon after appointed surgeon with 
 the rank of major of an Oregon regiment by 
 the governor of the state, and served until 
 the close of the war with the Modoc Indians. 
 Returning to California in 1874, the doctor 
 was successfully engaged in the practice of 
 his profession at Colusa until 1887, being also 
 pension examiner. The ensuing three years 
 he practiced in San Francisco. Coming from 
 there to Fresno in 1890, he has been very suc- 
 cessful in the treatment of the many difficult 
 cases placed in his charge, by his skill and 
 knowledge winning the confidence of the 
 community, and gaining a large and lucrative 
 patronage. Dr. Adair has acquired consider- 
 able property, owning a ranch in the county, 
 and having a fine residence on M street. For 
 two years he served as county health officer, 
 and for two years was city health officer. 
 
 In San Francisco, in February, 1888, Dr. 
 Adair married Lena Cullum, a native of that 
 city, and the daughter of one of its pioneer 
 families. Two children have been born of 
 their union, Charles P. and Florine. Fra- 
 ternally Dr. Adair is a charter member of 
 Fresno Lodge No. 439, B. P. O. E., of which 
 he has been treasurer since its organization; 
 he united with Roseburg (Ore.) Lodge, F. & 
 A. M., with Colusa Chapter, R. A. M., and with 
 Marysville Commandery, K. T., but is not 
 now affiliated ; and was made an Odd Fellow 
 in Oregon. Politically he is a Republican. 
 Mrs. Adair is a member of the Catholic 
 Church. 
 
 ENOCH BIBBY. Prominent among the 
 active and progTessive citizens of Merced 
 county is Enoch Bibby, proprietor of a ranch 
 on the Bibby road, in Volta, and the head 
 carpenter for the San Joaquin & Kings River 
 Canal and Irrigation Company. He is a man 
 of good business capacity, great intelligence 
 and enterprise, a superior mechanic, and a 
 thorough-going farmer. The son of an hon- 
 ored pioneer of California, he was born Octo- 
 ber 13, i860, in Solano count3^ near Vacaville, 
 where his father, Nicholas Bibby, whose 
 sketch may be found elsewhere in this work, 
 settled soon after his marriage. 
 
 The second child in a family of eleven chil- 
 dren, Enoch Bibby received his first knowl- 
 edge of books in the district schools of Napa 
 
!yW<^^ <2n^. J^^xkt 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 325 
 
 county, where his parents lived for a time, 
 prior to removing, in 1869, to Merced county. 
 Completing his education in the Bibby Road 
 district school, he began the battle of life for 
 himself as a farmer, choosing the occupation 
 to. which he had been trained from childhood. 
 Renting five hundred acres of land in 1878, 
 Mr. Bibby carried it on for five years, raising 
 grain. Endowed with mechanical talent and 
 ingenuity, he had been familiar with the use 
 of tools from his early boyhood, working much 
 at the carpenter's bench. Turning his atten- 
 tion to carpentering in 1883, he worked at the 
 trade until 1894, meeting with great success. 
 At that time Mr. Bibby entered the employ of 
 the San Joaquin & Kings River Canal and 
 Irrigation Company, beginning as a workman, 
 and showed such ability and proficiency that 
 at the end of his first week's labor he was ad- 
 vanced to the position of head carpenter, and 
 given charge of the carpentering department. 
 Mr. Bibby has since had charge of that depart- 
 ment along the entire line of the canal, and 
 has given eminent satisfaction to all concerned. 
 Locating on his present ranch of twenty acres, 
 on the Bibby road, in 1881, he has made many 
 improvements on it, transforming it into a 
 good property. 
 
 In 1881, in Merced, Cal., Mr. Bibby married 
 Eliza Stevens, who was born in Mariposa 
 county. Her father, C. E. Stevens, a native of 
 Connecticut, came by way. of Cape Horn to 
 California with the gold hunters of 1849, ^^d 
 was first engaged in mining, and later in stock 
 raising. He is now living retired from active 
 pursuits in Madera county. His wife, whose 
 maiden nam.e was Martha Jane Loy, died in 
 Merced in 1878. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Bibby five children were born, namely : Clara ; 
 Walter, deceased ; Edith, a graduate from 
 Heald's Business College, San Francisco ; 
 Hazel, a pupil in the Los Banos high school ; 
 and Enoch Austin. Mr. Bibby is a member of 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and of 
 the Fraternal Aid. In religion both Mr. and 
 Mrs. Bibby are Christian Scientists. 
 
 JUDGE JOHN K. LAW. As one of the lead- 
 ing attorneys of the state of California, no man 
 occupies a more assured position than Judge John 
 K. Law, whose ability and achievements have 
 won him eminent professional success. The pos- 
 sessor of great legal acumen, learning and cour- 
 tesy, he invariably inspires respect and esteem 
 in those with whom he is brought in contact. 
 In addition to attending to his extensive general 
 law practice, he has filled various dificial posi- 
 tions in a commendable manner, and as judge of 
 the superior court for nine years added to the 
 
 glory already reflected on the Merced county 
 bench by his predecessors. Coming originally 
 of French stock on the paternal side, he was 
 born in Darlington county, S. C, which was like- 
 wise the birthplace of his father, E. A. Law. 
 His paternal grandfather, WiUiam A. Law, was 
 born and bred in Williamsburg county, S. C, 
 but became an early settler of Darlington county 
 of that state, where he owned and managed a 
 valuable plantation. He married a Miss Du Bose, 
 a descendant of a Huguenot family of promi- 
 nence. 
 
 After his graduation from Union College, at 
 Schenectady, N. Y., E. A. Law prepared himself 
 for the legal profession, and was for more than 
 four decades a practicing attorney, being senior 
 member of the Darlington county bar at the 
 time of his death, and one of the foremost law- 
 yers of South Carolina. He filled many im- 
 portant official positions, serving as judge of 
 the district court, as commissioner in equity for 
 one term, and for one term was a member of 
 the state legislature. He was a man of spotless 
 reputation and unblemished character, and ,for 
 more than thirty years was an elder in the Pres- 
 byterian Church. He married Sarah Elizabeth 
 Mclver, who was born in South Carolina, of 
 Scotch ancestors, and there spent her entire life, 
 tier father, Evander Roderick Mclver, a planter, 
 was major-general of the state troops of South 
 Carolina, and married Eliza Cowan, of North 
 Carolina, a sister of Gen. William Cowan, an 
 officer in the war of 1812, and subsequently 
 speaker of the North Carolina house of repre- 
 sentatives. Of the eleven children born of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. E. A. Law, eight grew 
 to years of maturity, and five are living, Judge J. 
 K. and T. C. being residents of Merced, and the 
 only ones in California. The oldest son, E. M. 
 Law, served as a major-general in the Confed- 
 erate army, and was several times wounded in 
 battle. He now resides in Florida, being the 
 founder and superintendent of the South Florida 
 Military Institute. Another son, Junius A. Law, 
 who died in his native state, served in the Con- 
 federate army, first as captain of a company, and 
 afterward as colonel of the Sixty-third Alabama 
 Regiment. Still another son, A. E. Law, enlisted 
 as a soldier in the Confederate army, and was 
 killed at the siege of Petersburg. 
 
 The fourth child in succession of birth of the 
 parental household, John K. Law, was born Jan- 
 uary 19, 1 84 1, in Darlington county, S. C, and 
 was educated in his native state. He was a stu- 
 dent in the South Carolina Military Academy, at 
 Charleston, when the Civil war broke out, and 
 with his companions built a battery on Morris 
 Island. During the summer of 1861 he spent 
 his vacation in Virginia, being drill master in 
 General Beauregard's corps. Returning to 
 
326 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Charleston in the fall, Mr.' Law resumed his 
 studies at the academy, being frequently called 
 out for military duty. The following vacation 
 he again went to Virginia, where he served as 
 aid on the staf? of his brother. Gen. E. M. Law, 
 and took part in the battle of Boonesboro, or 
 South Mountain, and in the battle of Sharps- 
 burg, or Antietam, in the latter engagement be- 
 ing wounded in the left ankle, and compelled to 
 use crutches for eighteen months. Returning to 
 the academy, Mr. Law was graduated there in 
 April, 1863,' and subsequently did some military 
 service in South Carolina as captain of a mounted 
 company, participating in repelling Potter's raid. 
 Then entering his father's office, he studied law, 
 and in November, 1866, was admitted to prac- 
 tice in the supreme court of South Carolina. The 
 following three years, in company with his father, 
 he practiced law, acquiring valuable professional 
 experience. 
 
 Coming to California in 1869, Mr. Law taught 
 a private school in Solano county, and afterward 
 taught in the public schools of that and Mariposa 
 counties. Locating in Merced' in 1873, he re- 
 sumed the practice of his profession, and also 
 served as county superintendent of schools, be- 
 ing appointed to fill out an unexpired term. Be- 
 ing elected district attorney on the Democratic 
 ticket in 1875, Mr. Law served until 1878, but 
 declined a renomination, preferring to return to 
 his general law practice. Receiving the Demo- 
 cratic nomination for superior judge in 1890, 
 he was elected by a large majority, and took the 
 oath of office in January, 1891. In 1896 Mr. Law 
 was re-elected to the same high position over two 
 opponents, and served as judge until April 27, 
 1900, when he resigned from the bench and 
 again took up the practice of his profession. In 
 1902, at the state convention, he was the Demo- 
 cratic nominee for chief justice of the supreme 
 court, but went down with his ticket. He was 
 one of the organizers of the Merced Security 
 Bank, and • served as its attorney until taking 
 his seat on the bench, and until that time was 
 likewise attorney for the Crocker-Huffman Land 
 & Water Company. 
 
 Judge Law married, in South Carolina, Mary 
 L. James, the daughter of a planter, and the de- 
 scendant of a family of prominence. She is of 
 Revolutionary stock, her grandfather. Major 
 James, fought under General Marion in the war 
 of the Revolution, acquiring fame for having 
 knocked down a British officer with a chair. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Law occupy a fine residence at the 
 corner of Canal and Twenty-third streets, where 
 they entertain their many friends and acquaint- 
 ances with true southern hospitality. Judge Law 
 is an influential member of the Presbyterian 
 Church, in which he has been an elder for more 
 than thirty years. The Presbyterian congrega- 
 
 tion of Merced was organized in August, 1873, 
 in Judge Law's house, and he was afterward 
 chairman of the building committee that erected 
 the present church edifice. He was moderator of 
 the Stockton Presbytery one term, and also 
 served one term as moderator of the Synod of 
 California, and has the distinction of being the 
 only layman that ever held that office. In pol- 
 itics he is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 JOHN W. RHOADS. The west, prolific of 
 contrasts, of successes and failures, of adventure 
 and monotony, of privation and plenty, presents 
 to the student of history no greater evidence of 
 its changefulness than the lives of those who 
 represent the second generation from the pio- 
 neer. Especially is this the case with John W. 
 Rhoads, capitalist, promoter and land owner of 
 Hanford, whose career stands out in bold re- 
 lief from that of his father, Daniel Rhoads, one 
 of the best remembered and most widely re- 
 spected and appreciated pioneers of 1846. The 
 elder Rhoads gained his inspiration from moun- 
 tain fastnesses, dire want, suffering and crude 
 conditions, while his only living son has stepped 
 into a waiting prosperity and has shown his met- 
 tle in knowing just how to apply his inherited 
 and perfected ability to latter-day civilization. 
 
 Born in Gilroy, Santa Clara county, Novem- 
 ber 3, 1859, Mr. Rhoads followed the growing 
 fortunes of his father for many years, having 
 come to Kings county when an infant in arms. 
 He attained maturity in a home atmosphere 
 calculated to develop whatever of worth lurked 
 in his nature, and in 1880 he had so far realized 
 his ambitions that he established a home of his 
 own by marrying Rosa A. Sanborn, a native of 
 San Jose, Cal., who was reared and educated 
 in Watsonville. Mrs. Rhoads' father, John L. 
 Sanborn, was born in New Hampshire and be- 
 came an early pioneer of California. She is the 
 mother of two children, Ethel and Earl. Di- 
 rectly after his marriage Mr. Rhoads settled on 
 a farm of his own four miles north of Lemoore, 
 consisting of two hundred and forty acres, to 
 the improvement of which, with the additional 
 two hundred and forty acres deeded to him by 
 his father, he devoted his time until removing 
 tO' Hanford in 1897. He made many fine im- 
 provements on his land, spared neither time nor 
 money in making it a valuable and productive 
 property, a fact which affords him great satis- 
 faction, as it does also the tenant who now occu- 
 pies and manages it. Since removing to Han- 
 ford Mr. Rlioads has been unceasing in his ef- 
 fort to administer the estate of his father, valued 
 at $200,000, and at the same time has taken an 
 active part in many avenues of activity in the 
 city and county. He was one of the organizers 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 327 
 
 of the California Gas and Oil Company, now the 
 Califorjiia Limited, operating in the Coalinga 
 field in Fresno county, and incorporated for 
 $100,000. The company owned one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land and put down three wells, 
 eventually selling out at a large profit. Mr. 
 Rhoads is also interested in other oil fields and 
 companies, and is a silent partner in many con- 
 cerns of commercial and industrial importance. 
 He possesses organizing ability of a high order, 
 and is one of the community's most generous 
 and progressive citizens. Extensive travel has 
 brought him into touch with people of corre- 
 sponding culture and enterprise, and his friends 
 include persons high in business and social life. 
 Schools and churches, charitable organizations 
 and social enterprises profit by his geniality and 
 his means, and his influence extends into all 
 avenues where honesty of purpose and correct- 
 ness of judgment are needed and appreciated. 
 Fraternally he finds a home with the Masons, 
 the Woodmen of the World and the Independent 
 Order of Foresters. 
 
 WILLIAM JACKSON BERRY. Noteworthy 
 among the substantial residents of Fresno county 
 is William Jackson Berry, one of the leading busi- 
 ness men of Selma. He has been actively identi- 
 fied with the development and promotion of the 
 oil interests of this section of the state, and it 
 is largely, owing to his energy and practical 
 judgment that this industry has been so suc- 
 cessfully launched and maintained. The agri- 
 cultural prosperity of the locality is likewise 
 partly due to his efforts in establishing irrigation 
 and assisting in cutting ditches. A son of 
 Hugh C. Berry, he was born June 14, 1840, in 
 Washington county, Mo. 
 
 Hugh C. Berry was a man of education and 
 culture, and a noted mathematician. During his 
 early manhood he was a teacher in Washington 
 county. Mo., and had among his pupils the 
 young lady that subsequently married Mr. Ap- 
 person, and became the mother of Mrs. Phoebe 
 Hearst. Moving to Texas after the close of the 
 Civil war, he located on Fall river, near Gran- 
 bury, and there, with his son Hugh, spent his 
 remaining days, dying at an advanced age. He 
 married Harriet A. Johnson, who was bom in 
 North Carolina, and moved with her parents 
 to Washington county, Mq., when a child. She 
 bore her husband nine sons and three daughters, 
 of whom William Jackson was the third- child. 
 
 Reared to manhood in his native state, William 
 Jackson Berry acquired a practical common- 
 school education. In 1861, with the bravery 
 and ambition born of a daring spirit, he joined 
 the party commanded by Captain Brawley, and 
 came with ox-teams across the plains, following 
 
 the wagon trail through Utah and Nevada. 
 Stopping at Carson City, he secured a position 
 as driver for the remaining distance, thus pay- 
 ing his way along. At Sportsman's Hall he 
 was snowed in for a while, and chopped wood 
 for his board. After a journey of five months 
 he arrived in California, and the two following 
 winters was employed in mining at Nigger flat 
 and Smith's flat, Eldorado county. In the spring 
 of 1862 he bought four yoke of oxen, the price 
 being $1,034. Giving $180 in cash, he paid the 
 balance on the installment plan, and embarked 
 in teaming and freighting. In 1864 he located 
 in Mendocino count)', and on the completion 
 of the railway sold his oxen and bought a tract 
 of land in Little Lake valley. In 1874, with 
 two companions, he drove to the present site of 
 the city of Selma, and helped survey this part 
 of Fresno county. In 1875 he also surveyed 
 Mendocino school district, which he named for 
 the county, and there took up at first one-half 
 section of government land, and subsequently 
 obtained possession of a whole section of rail- 
 road land. This party of surveyors in Fresno 
 county located a stake in Kings river, and by 
 measuring a wagon wheel, and locating a point, 
 drove twelve miles, not missing the line a hun- 
 dred yards, the accuracy of their survey being 
 afterward tested and proved. 
 
 When Mr. Berry settled in Fresno county he 
 bought three hundred and twenty acres of land 
 lying three miles east, and two miles north, of 
 Selma, and subsequently purchased a tract equally 
 as large adjoining his original purchase, and be- 
 gan his career as a general farmer. At that time, 
 in 1875, water being very scarce, he became one 
 of twenty-four men to contract with the Fresno 
 Canal and Irrigation Company for water rights 
 for each individual member for cutting a ditch 
 through the Long Cut, two and one-half miles 
 above Centreville. When completed, the ditch 
 was twelve hundred and forty yards long, thir- 
 teen feet deep, sixty feet on the bottom, and 
 let water into Fancher creek channel, and from 
 that into Lone Tree channel. In 1878 Mr. Berry 
 helped cut the Centerville and Kingsburg canal, 
 which still supplies that part of the county with 
 water for irrigating purposes, and in 1883 was 
 one of the promoters of the Fowler Switch canal. 
 
 Taking up his residence in the city of Selma 
 in 1888, Mr. Berry built up a good business as a 
 real estate agent, continuing it a number of 
 years. Going with his sons to Alaska in 1898, 
 he assisted them in locating and buying claims, 
 being successful in his operations. On his re- 
 turn to Selma, in the fall of that year, he became 
 identified with the development of the oil in- 
 dustry, becoming one of its organizers, and the 
 president, /ff the Eldorado Oil Company, which 
 leases four hundred and eighty acres of land 
 
3:J8 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 from the Kern \'alley Bank, and one hundred 
 and sixty acres to the Kern River Oil Company, 
 and to fifteen other companies. Mr. Berry is 
 also actively identified with the management 
 of several other leading oil - companies, being 
 a director in Our Own Oil Company; the Berry 
 Oil & Development Company, which owns three 
 sections of oil land in Kern county, and in the 
 Washington City Oil Company. 
 
 In 1863, in California, Mr. Berry married 
 Anna Coates, a daughter of George I. Coates, 
 who came to California in 1862, and they have 
 six children, namely : H. R, of Alaska ; Clarence 
 J., a sketch of whose life may be found on 
 another page of this work; Henry, of Los 
 Angeles ; Frederick, living near Selma ; Cora, 
 wife of R. J. Skilton, of Selma ; and NeUie, wife 
 of Harry Smith, of Burlingame. Politically Mr. 
 Berry was formerly an adherent of the Demo- 
 cratic party, but is now a strong Republican. 
 He is very prominent in fraternal circles, being 
 a charter member of three lodges, namely : Vine- 
 land Lodge, No. 66, K. P., of Fresno; Kings- 
 burg Lodge, No. 7, K.P., which he has repre- 
 sented in the Grand Lodge ; and Selma Lodge, 
 No. 155, K. P. He belongs to Fresno Lodge 
 No. 439, B. P. O. E., and also the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows and the Elks. 
 
 CLARENCE W. KELLOGG, M. D. For 
 the practice of his profession Dr. Kellogg re- 
 ceived a thorough preparatory training. It 
 was his good fortune to enjoy not only such 
 advantages as are afforded by excellent med- 
 ical colleges in our own country, but also to 
 attend clinics and engage in hospital work 
 in Europe, where he studied the methods em- 
 ployed by some of the ablest physicans and 
 surgeons of the day. Since 1900 he has made 
 his home in Kern City and has acted as sur- 
 geon for the Southern Pacific Railroad, be- 
 sides conducting a private practice. In ad- 
 dition, he has an office in Bakersfield, which 
 he attends daily. 
 
 Dr. Kellogg was born in Quincy, Plumas 
 county, Cal., October 25, 1866, and is a son 
 of Hon. W. W. Kellogg, a native of Massa- 
 chusetts, but a resident of California ever 
 since early manhood, and still engaged in the 
 practice of law at Quincy. In former years he 
 was active in politics and served both as a mem- 
 ber of the assembly and senate. The gram- 
 mar school at Quincy, Cal., afforded Dr. Kel- 
 logg his primary educational advantages. At 
 sixteen years of age he entered Santa Clara 
 College, where he vv^as a student for two terms. 
 With the intention of entering Yale College, 
 he studied under tutors in Massachusetts and 
 
 Connecticut. However, instead of entering 
 the university, he decided to take up the 
 study of medicine and therefore matriculated 
 in the Cleveland (Ohio) Homeopathic Medical 
 College, from which he was graduated two 
 years later. 
 
 Immediately after graduating Dr. Kellogg 
 went abroad in order to extend his professional 
 knowledgeJDy study in the hospitals and uni- 
 versities "Ih Europe. He matriculated in the 
 universities of Berlin and Vienna, where he 
 studied for two years, finding constant inspira- 
 tion for his work through observation of the 
 skillful methods employed by world-famous 
 surgeons. On his return to the United States 
 he entered the Cooper Medical College at San 
 Francisco and immediately after his gradua- 
 tion from that institution he settled in Ven- 
 tura. Two years later he removed to Lake 
 county, where he had his office at Lakeport 
 and Highland Springs. From there he came 
 to Kern county in 1900 and has since prac- 
 ticed in Kern City and Bakersfield. For a 
 time he was a partner of Dr. T. E. Taggart, 
 but the latter removed from the county in 
 May, 1903, and since then Dr. Kellogg has 
 practiced alone. While in Germany he met 
 and married Miss Minnie Rudolf, a native of 
 Dresden, by whom he has one daughter, Kate 
 Craig. 
 
 As might be expected. Dr. Kellogg is inter- 
 ested in the progress of associations connected 
 with his profession, and we find him actively 
 identified with the State Medical, San Joaquin 
 Vallejr and Kern County Medical societies, 
 also the Pacific Society of Railway Surgeons. 
 His fraternal connections are extensive and 
 include membership in the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows, Native Sons of the Golden 
 West, Knights of Pythias, Maccabees, Ma- 
 sonic fraternitv and Eastern Star. 
 
 LEWIS HOWELL SMITH. Bringing to 
 the practice of his. profession an active brain, a 
 well trained mind, great zeal and habits of in- 
 dustry, Lewis Howell Smith, although of the 
 }'ounger generation of lawyers, has already ob- 
 tained an honored position among the leading at- 
 torneys of Fresno. A son of the late John Boyd 
 Smith, he was born November 3, 1872, in Peoria, 
 111. His grandfather. Rev. William Smith, was 
 born in Pennsylvania of Scotch-Irish ancestry, 
 and during the active years of his life was en- 
 gaged in ministerial labors, being pastor of a 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 A native of Sunbury, Pa., John Boyd Smith 
 was reared and educated in that state. Com- 
 ing to Illinois when a young man, he engaged 
 in the banking business in Peoria, becoming one 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 331 
 
 of the founders, and the cashier, of the Mechan- 
 ics' National Bank, which afterward became the 
 Merchants' National Bank of Peoria. Remov- 
 ing to Fresno, Cal., with his family in 1889, he 
 became associated with the Fresno National 
 Bank of which he was cashier mitil his death 
 in 1893, at the age of sixty-four years. For 
 more than forty years he was employed in the 
 banking business, and was known far and wide 
 as an able financier. He was quite active in 
 public affairs, and while in Peoria served as 
 alderman. He married Lucetta Howell, who 
 was born in Peoria, and now resides in Fresno. 
 Her father, Lewis Howell, an early settler of 
 Peoria, 111., was a man of great financial ability, 
 and for many years was president of the Peoria 
 National Bank. Six children blessed the union 
 of Mr. and Mrs. John B. Smith of whom four 
 are living, namely : Boyd, bookkeeper for the 
 California Products Company; Mrs. W. E. 
 Stone of Peoria, 111. ; Lewis Howell, the subject 
 of this sketch; and Elsa, of Fresno. One son, 
 Archie A., deceased, was made cashier of the 
 Fre.sno National Bank in 1895, and retained the 
 position until his death in 1899. 
 
 Leaving the Peoria (111.) high school while a 
 member of the senior class', Lewis Howell Smith 
 came with the family to Fresno in 1889, and for 
 a year or more thereafter was in the government 
 employ as a mail carrier. In 1891 he entered 
 the Leland Stanford, Jr., University, from which 
 he was graduated in 1895 with the degree of 
 bachelor of law, having the distinction of re- 
 ceiving the first laW diploma issued by that uni- 
 versity. The ensuing year Mr. Smith spent in 
 the superior court, working in the chambers of 
 Judge Carter, with whom he was afterward in 
 partnership from 1896 until 1898, the firm name 
 being Carter & Smith. The following three years 
 Mr. Smith carried on his professional labors 
 alone, but in July, 1901, became associated with 
 Judge Ostrander, whose sketch appears else- 
 where in this volume, and has since been at the 
 head of the well-known firm ^ of Smith & Os- 
 trander, which is now located in the Forsyth 
 building. Mr. Smith is recognized as a most 
 skillful lawyer and has been identified with some 
 of the most important cases tried in the city or 
 county. In the case of the People vs. McDaniels, 
 a copy of which is transcribed in the California 
 Reports and in the American State Reports, he 
 served as attorney for the defendant, and won 
 the case in the supreme court to which it was 
 appealed, the supreme court reversing a former 
 decision and establishing a constitutional prece- 
 dent that has since been taken up in law jour- 
 nals throughout the land. He and his partner 
 are attorneys for the Fresno National Bank, in 
 which Mr. Smith is also one of the directorate. 
 
 In Georgetown, Cal., Mr. Smith married 
 
 Maude E. Shepherd, a native of that city, and 
 a daughter of B: F. Shepherd, who came to 
 California in 1849, was for many years a pros- 
 perous merchant of Georgetown, but is now a 
 resident of Fresno, making his home with Mr. 
 and Mrs. Smith. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Smith two children have been born, Archia A. 
 and Marylin Maude. Politically Mr. Smith af- 
 filiates with the Republican party. Socially he 
 belongs to the County Bar Association, the 
 Chamber of Commerce, the Sequoia Club, the 
 Sigma Nu Society, at the Leland Stanford, Jr., 
 University; and is a member of the Benevolent 
 Protective Order of Elks. 
 
 J. S. CARDOZA. While every nation has 
 its representatives in California, few citizens of 
 Portuguese ancestry and birth are to be found 
 within the limits of the state, and among these 
 few doubtless none has been more successful 
 than Mr. Cardoza, the owner of a valuable al- 
 falfa and dairy farm situated two and one-half 
 miles south of Newman. A record of his life 
 shows what it is possible for a man to accom- 
 plish in this land of opportunity, even when 
 he is hampered by poverty, inconvenienced by 
 unfamiliarity with the language, and ignorant 
 of the soil and conditions of the country. The 
 place which by unaided exertions he has ac- 
 quired lies in Merced county across the line 
 from Stanislaus county and consists of one 
 hundred and fifty acres under the canal. At 
 the time of making his first investment here 
 he bought eighty acres and later added to the 
 size of his farm by purchasing an adjoining 
 tract of seventy acres, all of which is in alfalfa. 
 The trees on the land have been set out by 
 him. since 1888, and -in 1903 he erected a neat 
 farm house. Other buildings have been con- 
 structed from time to time, including two hay 
 barns and a cow barn 120x48 feet. A pioneer 
 in the dairy industry and an original stock- 
 holder in the New Era creamery, he has al- 
 ways been a believer in the possibilities of 
 dairying, and by his early success he encour- 
 aged others to purchase dairy herds. In 1889 
 he started a cheese factory on his farm and 
 until 1902 manufactured cheese for shipment to 
 San Francisco, but in the latter year he "gave 
 up cheese-making and since then has used a 
 separator, shipping his cream to the city mar- 
 kets. At this writing there are one hundred 
 and thirty cows in his daiiry and at times he 
 milks as many as one hundred and ten, making 
 his dairy one of the largest in the vicinity. 
 Holsteins and Durhams are his specialties and 
 fine specimens of each may be found in his 
 herd. Each year he cuts about four hundred 
 tons of alfalfa, all of which he uses on his 
 
332 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 farm. Not only is he an active and energetic 
 man, but capable and resourceful as well, meet- 
 ing every emergency with sagacious judgment 
 and promptness of decision. 
 
 Mr. Cardoza is a native of St. George, 
 Azores, Portugal, and was born October 12, 
 1859, being second among three children, of 
 whom his only brother, Emanuel, is a resident 
 of Nevada county, Cal. His parents, Anton 
 and Anna (Sylvara) Cardoza, were likewise 
 natives of Azores, where the former in the 
 years of active life followed farm pursuits, but 
 is now living retired. The mother died in 1869 
 when her son, J. S., was only ten years of age, 
 and after her death the latter began to be self- 
 supporting. Though too young to be given a 
 man's work, he helped on a farm and his hours 
 of toil were long and monotonous, with few 
 pleasures to give him in his manhood any joy- 
 ous recollections of childhood days. Looking 
 about him he saw little to encourage him to 
 remain in his native land. Conditions were un- 
 promising and difficulties discouraging. How- 
 ever, he had heard of America as a country 
 where the poor might hope to attain success 
 and though a mere lad in years he decided to 
 sail acress the ocean to the new world. When 
 fourteen years of age, in 1873, he arrived in 
 New York, among strangers, with little money 
 and no friends. Fortune favored him and he 
 .secured work on a farm in Rhode Island. His 
 wages were so scant that when he came to 
 California one and one-half years later he had 
 scarcely more than enough to pay his passage. 
 During December of 1874 he started for the 
 western coast and on New Year's day of 1875 
 landed at San Francisco, with only twenty-five 
 cents in his possession. However, a willing 
 spirit and robust constitution will bring a live- 
 lihood and such he found to be the case. Work- 
 ing his way to the west side of the San Joaquin 
 valley, he secured employment on a farm. 
 Each year he economically saved his wages, by 
 which means he was enabled in 1881 to em- 
 bark in farming for himself. The first land 
 which he leased consisted of one thousand 
 acres well adapted to the raising of grain, and 
 each year he added to his leasehold until he 
 cultivated tAventy-five hundred acres of grain 
 land. About 1885 he bought one hundred and 
 sixty acres of the Page tract, which he put into 
 alfalfa, but this place he sold two years later 
 upon buying his present homestead. On the 
 organization of the Bank of Newman he be- 
 came one of its original stockholders and he 
 still remains a director in the institution. In 
 addition he is a stockholder of the Rochdale 
 Company, proprietors of a grocery in Newman. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Cardoza was solemn- 
 ized at Centerville, Cal., and united him with 
 
 Miss Mary Munyan,'a native of that place. 
 During the exciting days of 1849 her father, 
 Frank Munyan, crossed the plains from the 
 east and experienced all the hardships incident 
 to frontier existence and a miner's occupation ; 
 after a time he abandoned mining and turned 
 his attention to farming in the vicinity of Cen- 
 terville. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Car- 
 doza are Charles, Lena, Geneva, Carrie and 
 Lenas, who under the supervision of their par- 
 ents are being prepared for positions of useful- 
 ness in the future. Their father, having been 
 deprived of educational privileges in his youth, 
 is solicitous that they may have every advan- 
 tage and may enjoy in their youthful days the 
 recreations and innocent pleasures which found 
 no place in his boyhood years of toil- Since 
 coming to America he has familiarized himself 
 with national institutions, has studied the 
 issues before our country, and in the disputed 
 questions of tariff, currency, etc., finds himself 
 a believer in Republican principles. His fra- 
 ternal connections are varied, including mem- 
 bership in the Knights of Pythias and Uniform 
 Rank, Ancient Order of United Workmen and 
 Degree of Honor, Woodmen of the World and 
 Women of Woodcraft, United Portuguese Un- 
 ion and Knights of Honor. 
 
 JOHN W. SCOTT. Actively identified with 
 the horticultural and agricultural interests of 
 Fresno county is John W. Scott, proprietor of 
 a small but well improve'd ranch, which in its 
 appointments compares favorably with any in 
 the community. A son of Joseph Scott, he was 
 born October 3, 1839, in Limestone county, Ala. 
 Born and reared in Tennessee, Joseph Scott re- 
 moved to Alabama when a young man and lived 
 there until after hi.s marriage. Subsequently re- 
 moving to Mississippi, he lived first in Monroe 
 county and later in De Soto county, where his 
 death occurred while he was yet in the prime of 
 manhood. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Elizabeth Mays, was born in Virginia and died 
 in De Soto county. Miss. Of their eight chil- 
 dren, John W., the subject of this sketch, was 
 the fifth in order of birth. 
 
 Brought up principally in Mississippi, John 
 W. Scott there acquired his rudimentary educa- 
 tion, and later, in order to prepare for the min- 
 istry, studied for a while at Bethel College, in 
 Carroll county, Tenn. In 1862, in Arkansas, 
 where he had been teaching school for three 
 months, Mr. Scott enlisted in Company A, Tenth 
 Mississippi Volunteer Infantry, as a private, and 
 served until the close of the war. He took part 
 in many of the important engagements of the 
 conflict, including the battles of Shiloh, Mission- 
 ary Ridge and Chickamauga, and Cairo, where 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 333 
 
 he was captured and put on parole. He served 
 first under General Bragg, then under Johnston, 
 and later under General Hood. Toward the 
 close of the war Mr. Scott was promoted from 
 the ranks, being made chief color bearer, and 
 in the battle of Atlanta he fell with the colors 
 in his hands, while each of six guards surround- 
 ing him was shot down. 
 
 On returning to Mississippi Mr. Scott taught 
 school in De Soto county for two or more years. 
 Subsequently embarking in mercantile pursuits, 
 he was in business at Fort Smith, Ark., until 
 1879, when he removed to Seattle, Wash-., where 
 he continued as a merchant for two years. Com- 
 ing to CaHfornia in 1881, Mr. Scott was a resi- 
 dent of San Francisco for four years, being at 
 first employed as bookkeeper for the Judson 
 Manufacturing Company of Oakland, and later 
 for the Pacific Rolling Mills of San Francisco. 
 Locating in Fres,no in 1885, he purchased twenty 
 acres of. land, which are included in his present 
 ranch, and has devoted his attention principally 
 to berry raising and fruit culture, in which he 
 has been successful. 
 
 In 1867, in De Soto county. Miss., Mr. Scott 
 married Lida Beauchamp, who was born in Elk- 
 ton, Todd county, Ky., a daughter of Milton 
 Beauchamp. Her father, a native of Frankfort, 
 Ky., came with the gold seekers to California 
 in 1849, sailing around Cape Horn. Not meet- 
 ing with success as a miner, he returned to Ken- 
 tucky and was engaged in farming until his 
 death near Lexington. Mr. Beauchamp mar- 
 ried Mary Daniel, who was born near Elkton, 
 Ky., the descendant of a family of wealth and 
 prominence, and died in Texas. Of their nine 
 children, Mrs. Scott was the fifth. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Scott are the parents of seven children, 
 namely: William Walter of Seattle, Wash., an 
 insurance agent; Eula, wife of D. A. Stivers of 
 San Francisco; Mary, wife of A. P. Jordan of 
 Fresno; Wirt D., of Fresno; Lyda, wife of 
 Harry Cornell of Watsonville; John Franklin, 
 of San Francisco; and Oilman Winfield, living 
 at home. Mr. Scott is an earnest supporter of 
 the principles of the Democratic party, and is a 
 member of the Christian Church of Fresno. 
 
 HON. J. ORRA TRABER. An able and 
 successful attorney, and a man of prominence 
 and influence, J. Orra Traber of Fresno is 
 active in public 'affairs, and is now represent- 
 ing the sixtieth district' in the State Legisla- 
 ture. A son of John W. Traber, he was horn 
 in 1872, in Mendocino county, Cal., where he 
 spent his earliest childhood days. 
 
 A native of New York state, John W. Tra- 
 ber was born and educated near Albany, liv- 
 ing there until twenty-three years of age, 
 
 Migrating to the Pacific coast in the early part 
 of 1872, he located in Mendocino county, where 
 he taught school two years. In 1874, with a 
 brother and other relatives, he took up govern- 
 ment land in Fresno county, not far from 
 Selm.a, and embarked in agricultural and hor- 
 ticultural pursuits, engaging in general farm- 
 ing, stock-raising and fruit-growing, having 
 one hundred and sixty acres of his land sub- 
 ject to irrigation. Forming, with twenty- 
 three neighboring farmers, a stock company, 
 now known as the Fresno Canal and Irriga- 
 tion Company, he was one of the first to take 
 water out of Kings river to irrigate the land. 
 He continued his professional labors, however, 
 and still teaches school during the winter 
 terms, being one of the longest established 
 and most respected' educators of the county. 
 He is a man of high moral principles, and a 
 consistent member of the Methodist Church. 
 He married Anna Kane, who was born in Ver- 
 mont, a daughter of Dennis Kane. Mr. Kane, 
 a native of Ireland, emigrated to New Eng- 
 land when young, and settled first in Vermont. 
 During the Civil war he was employed by the 
 government as a railroad contractor, an occu- 
 pation which he subsequently followed in 
 Ohio and Michigan. He spent his last years 
 in Indiana, dying in the northern part of the 
 state. Of the union of John W. and Anna 
 (Kane) Traber four children were born, 
 namely : J. Orra, with whom this sketch is 
 chiefly concerned ; Charles H., a teacher of 
 Fresno county; Roy C, of Fresno county, a 
 farmer; and Cullen B., engaged in the oil 
 business in Bakersfield, Cal. 
 
 Reared to manhood in Fresno county, J. 
 Orra Traber studied under the supervision of 
 his father until fourteen years old, when he 
 -entered the Selma high school, in which he 
 completed the full course. Having as a boy qf 
 ten years decided to become a lawyer, he then 
 set earnestly at work to accomplish his pur- 
 pose, and having measured his ability he has 
 since by persistent effort hewn his way 
 straight to the goal thus early marked. La- 
 boring at anything he could find to do for the 
 next two years, Mr. Traber made and saved 
 enough money to warrant him in entering the 
 .State Normal School at San Jose. After 
 studying there two years, he obtained a teach- 
 er's certificate, and the following three years 
 taught in the Riverside district, Fresno coun- 
 ty, at the same time pursuing the study of 
 law. Going to Ann Arbor, Mich., in 1895, 
 Mr. Traber took the examinations, and en- 
 tered the senior class in the law department 
 of the University of Michigan, from which he 
 was graduated in 1896 with the degree of 
 LL, B. Remaining in Michigan another year. 
 
334 
 
 HISIORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he obtained a practical knowledge of law in an 
 office in Sturgis, and in 1897 returned to Cali- 
 fornia, locating in Fresno, where he has since 
 built up a large and most satisfactory practice 
 of his profession, paying especial attention to 
 civil law. Nominated on the Republican 
 ticket, in T902, as a Representative to the 
 state legislature, Mr. Traber was elected by 
 a majority of six hundred and forty-one, and 
 in the session of 1903 assisted in re-electing 
 United States Senator Perkins. He has served 
 as chairman of the committee on fruit and 
 vines, and has championed or introduced 
 bills of importance, including a bill to protect 
 the abandoned oil wells put down from sur- 
 face water, and a bill to compel parties aban- 
 doning oil wells to fill them up. 
 
 Tn Bronson, Mich., July 31, 1899, Mr. Tra- 
 ber married Mayme Kane, a native of that 
 city. Mr. Traber is a member of the Fresno 
 County Bar Association ; of the Fresno Parlor, 
 N. S. G. W. ; of the Knights of Pythias, and of 
 the Uniform Rank, K. P. In politics he is a 
 Republican. 
 
 HORACE E. BARNUM. One of the most 
 worthy and highly esteemed residents of Fresno 
 is H. E. Barnum, who is now serving his third 
 term as county auditor of Fresno county. A 
 man of strong personality, enterprising and per- 
 severing, he has won success in his active career 
 by sheer persistency of purpose. A son of the 
 late Philander Barnum, he was born May 9, 
 1854, in Barry county, Mich., near the city of 
 Hastings, of English-German descent. His pa- 
 ternal grandfather, Elijah Barnum, was born in 
 New England, but early in life removed to Barry 
 county, Mich., settling in the wilderness. Clear- 
 ing a space in the rnidst of the beach and maple 
 trees, he erected a log cabin for himself and fam- 
 ily, and from the unbroken forest cleared and 
 improved a homestead, on which he spent his re- 
 maining days. 
 
 Born in the pioneer log house in Barry county, 
 Mich., Philander Barnum followed the independ- 
 ent occupation in which he was reared, becom- 
 ing an extensive and prosperous farmer. On re- 
 tiring from active pursuits, he removed to Battle 
 Creek, Mich., where his death occurred the fol- 
 lowing year. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Harriet E. Bidwell, was born in Albion, Mich., 
 of New England ancestry, and died in Hastings^ 
 l\Tich. Of the four daughters and one son born 
 of their union all are living, Horace E., of this 
 review, being the fourth child, and the only one 
 on the Pacific coast. 
 
 Having received a practical education in the 
 public schools of Battle Creek and Albion, Mich., 
 H. E. Barnum came to California in search of 
 
 fortune in 1875, and spent the next three years 
 principally in the Sacramento valley. Going then 
 to Washington, he spent a year in that state. 
 Returning to California, he settled in Woodland, 
 Yolo county, where he was successfully engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits for a number of years. 
 In 1885 Mr. Barnum came with T. L. Reed to 
 the San Joaquin valley. Leasing the South 
 Mountain tract, he broke up the land, about 
 .seven sections in all, using from eight to ten 
 horses on a plow. He was exceedingly pros- 
 perous in his venture, raising a very large crop 
 of grain, which he hauled sixteen miles to mar- 
 ket, using twelve eight-mule teams, ten six-mule 
 teams, and several four-mule teams for the pur- 
 pose. Trading his interest to Mr. Reed for one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land in Tulare county 
 the following year, Mr. Barnum there carried 
 on farming for twelve months. Going then to 
 Lemoore, he was engaged in. the hotel business 
 for a year, when he was burned out. After 
 his heavy loss by fire, he returned to Reedley, 
 where he again engaged in the hotel business, 
 and bought twenty acres of land for an orchard. 
 Just after making the first payment on his land, 
 while returning from hunting one day, the gun 
 fell in the buggy, accidentally shooting him in 
 the left side and through the shoulder, inflicting 
 a fearful wound. The arm was amputated and, 
 contrary to the expectations of the surgeon, he 
 recovered. Nothing daunted by his misfortune, 
 he prepared the land for irrigation, set out an 
 orchard, made a park on the river bank, and 
 embarked in business as a hotel-keeper. 
 
 Soon afterward Mr. Barnum was appointed 
 constable, and served a year, and was afterward 
 .road-master for two years. Urged to become a 
 candidate for the office of county auditor in 1894, 
 he was nominated on the Republican ticket, and 
 elected for a term of four years, receiving a plu- 
 rality of six hundred votes. Renominated in 
 1898 for the same office, he was elected over' the 
 Fusion candidate by a majority of one hundred 
 and eight votes, being one of two Republicans 
 who were elected that year. In 1902 Mr. Bar- 
 num was re-elected as county auditor by a ma- 
 jority of seventeen hundred votes, leading his 
 ticket, and receiving the largest vote in the 
 county. On first assuming the duties of his posi- 
 tion Mr. Barnum removed from his ranch to 
 Fresno, where he has since resided. 
 
 In Woodland, Yolo count)?, in 1894, Mr. Bar- 
 num married Mary Eva Deering, who was bom 
 in Lake county, Ca^, a daughter of John and 
 Eliza Deering, pioneer settlers of Yolo county. 
 Her father is dead, but her mother survives, 
 and is living in Tulare county. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Barnum are the parents of two children, 
 namely: Ida May, and Charles T., students in 
 the Fresno high school. Mr. Barnum belongs to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 337 
 
 the Fresno Chamber of Commerce; and is a 
 member of the Benevolent Protective Order of 
 Elks; of the Knights of Pythias; of the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen; of the Independent 
 Order of Foresters; and of the Woodmen of the 
 World. In politics he is a Republican. Mrs. 
 Barnum is a member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 JULIAN W. HUDSON. The lumber indus- 
 try of the Pacific coast country furnishes em- 
 ployment for a large number of men, and has 
 reached gigantic proportions. The Fassett Lum- 
 ber Company, which carries on operations in 
 Fresno county, although it has just completed its 
 first year's operations in Selma, has made for it- 
 self an enviable reputation for promptness and 
 reliability, and the volume of its business has al- 
 ready reached a point which places this company 
 among the leaders of wholesale and retail lum- 
 ber merchants of this vicinity. The company se- 
 cured Julian W. Hudson as its manager in Sel- 
 ma, who opened a lumber yard and office at this 
 city, April 27, 1903, and looks after the inter- 
 ests of the company. Being a man of broad ex- 
 perience in this line of work, Mr. Hudson is fully 
 competent to fulfill all expectations, for his iden- 
 tification with the lumber development of this 
 section of California makes him an authority on 
 all subjects pertaining to this business. 
 Born February 17, 1868, in Shelby county, 
 , Mo., he is the youngest but one in a family of 
 four children born to John L. and Sallie Crocket 
 (Cardwell) Hudson, both of whom were na- 
 tives of Kentucky, the former of Mercer county ; 
 the latter was a distant relative of the famous 
 hunter, David Crocket. Both parents are now 
 deceased, the mother having passed to her final 
 rest January 17, 1900, at Fresno, Cal. She was 
 followed to the grave by her husband November 
 21 of the same year. 
 
 In 1852 John L. Hudson left Kentucky for a 
 home in Knox county, Mo., and subsequently 
 moved into Shelby county, and for a number of 
 years followed farm pursuits there. In 1882 he 
 came to California and located in the vicinity of 
 Fresno, and here also he farmed for several 
 years, but during the latter years of his life he 
 was a sewer contractor, doing most of the sewer- 
 work in Fresno, having completed an extensive 
 contract in the year 1900, a short time before his 
 death. 
 
 Having attained the age of fourteen years 
 when his parents moved to California, Julian W. 
 Hudson attended school in Missouri, there com- 
 pleting the common school course. This was 
 supplemented by a preparatory course in the high 
 schools of both Fresno and Berkeley, and he 
 afterward became a student in the State Univer- 
 sity at the latter place, but failed to complete 
 
 his college course. Not having sufficient means 
 to carry himself through college, he stopped to 
 earn more money, but being taken ill soon after- 
 ward, was unable to resume his studies. He first 
 'became interested in the lumber industry in 1884, 
 accepting at that time a position as clerk for 
 the Puget Sound Lumber Company, at Fresno. 
 In 1893 he became manager of the San Joaquin 
 Lumber Company, at Delano, in Kern county, 
 and during the four and a half years that he was 
 in the employ of this company the lumber yards 
 changed hands three times, and July 31, 1897, 
 Mr. Hudson was transferred to Lemoore, in 
 Kings county, and officiated as manager there 
 for a couple of years. Discontinuing this line of 
 work for a time, in 1900 he engaged in the fruit 
 business for one season on his own account, pack- 
 ing raisins, etc., but in 1901 he returned to Fres- 
 no, having been selected foreman for the Fresno 
 Flume & Irrigation Company, which position he 
 filled in an able manner until April, 1903, re- 
 signing at that time to again enter the lumber 
 industry as manager of the Fassett Lumber Com- 
 pany, at Selma, an office he still holds. 
 
 Mr. Hudson's lumber and timber business in 
 no way covers the range of his business activities. 
 He finds time to serve as notary public, as sec- 
 retary and manager of the Hudson-Jackson 
 Stove Company, and of the California Patent & 
 Manufacturing Company ; he is pre-eminently a 
 promoter of Fresno county industries. Frater- 
 nally he is associated with Delano Lodge No. 
 309, F. & A. M., of Delano; Camp ,No. 265, W. 
 O.' W., of Selma; Court Selma No. 4215, I. O. 
 F., of Selma, and is also a member of Selma 
 Tent No. 67, K. O. T. M., of which he is Sir 
 Knight Commander. In his religious views, Mr. 
 Hudson is one of the most active members of 
 the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, of which 
 he is ruling elder, and his political preference is 
 given to the Prohibition party. He was united 
 in marriage in Delano, Cal., January 17, 1894, 
 with Genevia N. Ward, a lady born in Kansas, 
 and four children bless their union, namely : Lew 
 Ward, Julian Wiley, Merle and Frances Ber- 
 
 DENWOOD N. L. NEWBURY, M. D. 
 Talented, skillful, and well acquainted with 
 the most modern methods used in the treat- 
 ment of diseases, Denwood N. L. Newburj', 
 M. D., of Bakersfield, has won an assured po- 
 sition among the leading physicians and sur- 
 geons of Kern county. ■ Although a general 
 practitioner, he makes a specialty of surgery, 
 and is considered an authority on women's 
 diseases, which he treats with great success. 
 A son of Edward S. E. Newbury, he was born 
 December 24, 1867, in Lambertville, Hunter- 
 
338 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 don county, N. J. He is descended from a 
 southern family of prominence, his grand- 
 father, Joseph D. Newbury, a large plantation 
 owner, and a man of influence, having been a 
 life-long resident of North Carolina. He and 
 one of his sons served in the Confederate 
 army during the Civil war. 
 
 Born • and reared on the North Carolina 
 plantation, Edward S. E. Newbury ran away 
 from home when young, and as captain of a 
 company in the Twenty-second New Jersey 
 Volunteer Infantry, was one of the bravest 
 soldiers in the Union army. He served 
 throughout the war, taking part in many im- 
 portant engagements, and was thirteen times 
 wounded, once through the breast. He sub- 
 sequently became a contractor and bridge- 
 builder, and now, at the age of sixty-eight 
 years, is living retired from active pursuits. 
 He married Margaret L. Sprout, who was 
 born in New York state, but reared in Lam- 
 bertville, N. J., where her father was a large 
 manufacturer. She died December 15, 1899, 
 in her fifty-sixth year. 
 
 After acquiring a practical education in the 
 public schools of Elizabeth, N. J., Denwood 
 N. L. Newbury went to New York City, and 
 for seven years was employed as a roadman 
 in a wholesale millinery store. At the age of 
 twenty-four years he entered the medical de- 
 partment- of Columbia University in that city, 
 and took a full course of three years. Pass- 
 ing the required examinations most creditably, 
 he was for the next two years an interne in 
 the St. Francis Hospital, and afterward visit- 
 ing surgeon tO' the same. Subsequently Dr. 
 Newbury was appointed one of the faculty of 
 the Post Graduate College, being the youngest 
 man ever thus honored, and for some time 
 held the chair of women's diseases. During 
 the time the doctor had a large private prac- 
 tice, his office being located at the corner of 
 Sixty-fourth street and the boulevard. Leav- 
 ing New York City in 1901, he came to Cali- 
 fornia, and at once settled in Bakersfield, 
 where he has established a good practice. 
 
 On September 21, 1898, in New York City, 
 Dr. Newbury married Susan Chatfield, a na- 
 tive of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and they have 
 one son, Denwood Wallace Newbury, born 
 December 11, 1900. The doctor is liberal in 
 his political views. Fraternally he belongs to 
 the Masons, the Foresters and to the Eagles. 
 
 LUTPIER BATTEN. Noteworthv among 
 the prosperous agriculturists and horticulturists 
 of Merced county is Luther Batten, who is pleas- 
 antly located on a well-improved ranch in Dos 
 Palos colony. Becoming familiar with the the- 
 
 ory and practice of agriculture when young, he 
 has followed this branch of industry most suc- 
 cessfully throughout his career. Intelligent, en- 
 terprising and public-spirited, he takes pleasure 
 in identifying himself with the best interests of 
 the place in which he resides, and is eminently 
 deserving of the high regard in which he is held 
 as a man and a citizen. Coming from a long 
 line of New England ancestors, he was born 
 August 28, 1848, in Wisconsin, on the Eau 
 Claire river, a son of John Batten, Jr. His 
 grandfather, John Batten, Sr., a native of Mas- 
 sachusetts, moved to Vermont when young, and 
 there spent the remainder of his long and busy 
 life, dying at the age of seventy-three years. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Hannah Ban- 
 field, spent her sixty years of life in the Green 
 Mountain state. 
 
 A native of Orange county, Vt., John Batten, 
 Jr., was born September 8, 1805. After serving 
 an apprenticeship of seven years with Ebenezer 
 Crone of Springfield, a , carriage-maker and 
 wheelwright, he followed his trade in different 
 parts of the country, finally going to Maryland, 
 where he was connected with the Baltimore & 
 Ohio Railroad as an employe for a while. He 
 subsequently assisted in building a canal along 
 the Potomac river, working until it was com- 
 pleted as far as Hagerstown. Locating then in 
 Pennsylvania, he was engaged in transporting 
 coal from Mauch Chunk to Philadelphia by 
 canal boat. Resuming his trade, he was after- 
 wards employed in New York City and Buffalo, 
 from the latter city going to London, Canada, 
 thence to Port Kent, where he embarked in the 
 lumber business. Removing from there to Mich- 
 igan, he settled near the present site of what is 
 now the flourishing city of Monroe, but what 
 was then but a straggling hamlet. In 1839, 
 three years after his marriage, he removed to 
 Galena, 111., from there going, in the course of 
 a year or two, to Grand Rapids, Wis., where as 
 a pioneer lumber manufacturer and dealer he 
 had the distinction of operating the first sawmill. 
 He afterwards resided at Stevens Point, Wis., 
 until 1870, when he went to Gar creek, Lincoln 
 county. Neb., where he took up a tract of wild 
 prairie land, from which he improved a good 
 farm. Selling out in 1879, he purchased land 
 at Oak Precinct, Lancaster county, where he re- 
 sided until his death in 1891, at a venerable age. 
 He was a man of much force of character, up- 
 right and honest, and an active Republican in 
 politics. 
 
 In 1836, in Monroe, Mich., John Batten, Jr., 
 married Sophia Allen, who was born in New 
 York state and died in Wisconsin, at the ad- 
 vanced age of eighty-six years. She was a 
 daughter of Samuel Allen and a cousin of Col. 
 Ethan Allen of Revolutionary fame. She bore 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 339 
 
 her husband seven children, one of whom, Han- 
 nah, born in Galena, 111., died in early child- 
 hood. The other six grew to years of maturity, 
 namely: Mrs. Mary Chapin, who died in 1903 
 in Nebraska; William, residing in Wisconsin; 
 Clarissa, who died in Wisconsin; Luther, the 
 subject of this sketch; John, of Waupaca; and 
 Mrs. Adaline Dunbar of Wisconsin. 
 
 Receiving his early education in the public 
 schools of Wisconsin, Luther Batten removed 
 with the family to Nebraska in 1870, and two 
 years later, in 1872, homesteaded eighty acres 
 of land on Gar creek. Subsequently selling out 
 in that vicinity, he bought one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land at Oak Precinct, Lancaster county, 
 where he settled with his family. He after- 
 wards added to his landed possessions by pur- 
 chase, becoming owner of two hundred and 
 ninety acres, which he broke and improved, mak- 
 ing it one of the richest and most productive 
 farming estates in Lancaster county. He erected 
 a substantial set of farm buildings, costing about 
 $5,000, and carried on general farming and 
 stock-raising with great success for many years. 
 He also owned and operated a threshing ma- 
 chine for twenty-four years, at first using horse- 
 power, but later having a steam thresher with 
 all the modern appliances. As a farmer and a. 
 citizen he was very prominent and popular in the 
 community and wielded a wide influence. He 
 still owns this farm, which lies about eight miles 
 northwest of Lincoln, Neb., but rents it. Com- 
 ing with his family to California in 1894, Mr. 
 Batten bought twenty acres of land in Dos Palos 
 colony, and soon started an orchard. In April, 
 1895, he set out a variety of trees, planting three 
 acres that spring, and has since greatly enlarged 
 his operations,, having now a fine orchard of 
 eighteen acres, in which he raises a choice vari- 
 ety of apples, pears, peaches, walnuts, apricots, 
 figs, etc., on one acre having thirty different 
 kinds of trees. He has other, land in his ranch, 
 owning sixty acres in all. He raises alfalfa in 
 large quantities, and also has a fine dairy, keep- 
 ing about thirty head of cows. Mr. Batten is 
 likewise interested financially in the local tele- 
 phone company, and in the development of the 
 G. A. R. park of ten acres, of which he is man- 
 ager. 
 
 April 19, 1874, in Lancaster county. Neb., Mr. 
 Batten married Helen Hermance, who was born 
 in Scio, Allegany county, N. Y., a daughter of 
 J. L. Hermance. Her grandfather, John S. 
 Hermance, born in 1806, died in Cuba, N. Y., in 
 1885. He married Marion Bristol, who was 
 born in Columbia county, N. Y., a daughter of 
 Rev. John Bristol, a Baptist clergyman. J. L. 
 Hermance was born in 1832 in Rensselaer coun- 
 ty, N. Y., and as a young man was engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits. May 9, 1861, he enlisted 
 
 in Company C, Sixty-seventh New York Vol- 
 unteer Infantry, and was on detached duty at 
 the Douglas Hospital, Washington, until July, 
 1862, when, on account of ill health, he was 
 honorably discharged. Recovering his normal 
 physical vigor, Mr. Hermance re-enlisted, join- 
 ing Company A, One Hundred and Eighty- 
 eighth New York Volunteer Infantry, in which 
 he served as color-bearer until the close of the 
 war. In that capacity he was present at the 
 surrender of General Lee, being color-bearer for 
 the Fifth Army Corps. After the grand review 
 at Washington he was mustered out of service 
 and returned home. Removing with his family 
 to Nebraska in 1872, Mr. Hermance took up a 
 homestead claim nine miles north of Lincoln, 
 and there improved a farm. He was shortly 
 afterward appointed superintendent of the poor 
 farm in that county, and served for six years. 
 He subsequently bought one hundred and sixty 
 acres within five miles of Lincoln, and there 
 set out an orchard and made improvements of 
 an excellent character, and is alsO' possessor of 
 various tracts of land in Lancaster county, hav- 
 ing accumulated large wealth. He makes his 
 home in Raymond, Neb., where he is held in 
 high respect. He is a Republican in politics, a 
 faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, and is prominently identified with the 
 Grand Army of the Republic. March 28, 1852, 
 he married Esther Hawkins, a native of Cat- 
 taraugus county, N. Y., and of the children born 
 of their union two are living, namely : Ernest 
 Hermance of Raymond, Neb. ; and Helen, now 
 Mrs. Batten. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Bat- 
 ten has been blessed by the birth of eight chil- 
 dren, five of whom grew to years of maturity. 
 Ernest LeRoy died in 1899, in Dos Palos ; Carrie 
 Addie died in 1901 ; Winnie died in 1903 ; Elmer 
 and Fay are living at home. Politically Mr. 
 Batten is a true-blue Republican, sustaining the 
 principles of his party by voice and vote. Fra- 
 ternally he belongs to the Knights of the Macca- 
 bees. Mrs. Batten is a member of the Ladies of 
 the Maccabees and of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 GEORGE F. DREW. A well-known and 
 respected citizen of Selma, and a progressive 
 and prosperous farmer, George F. Drew is in- 
 timately associated with the advancement of 
 the leading interests of this part of Fresno 
 county. He stands high in the community as 
 a man of ability and enterprise, who by per- 
 severing industry and thrift has won deserved 
 success in his business career. He was born 
 June 23, 1853, in Somerset county. Me., where 
 his parents, Timothy and Abby (Taylor) 
 Drew, passed their entire life. He was one 
 
340 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of a family of fourteen children, ten of whom 
 were boys, being the seventh child in order of 
 birth. 
 
 Reared on the parental farm, George F. 
 Drew attended the short terms of the district 
 school as a boy, and under his father's instruc- 
 tions became somewhat proficient in the sci- 
 ence of agriculture as carried on in those days 
 on the Atlantic coast. Coming to California 
 with a view of bettering his financial condition 
 in 1873, he was employed in a sawmill in Santa 
 Cruz county, near Watsonville, for three years. 
 Settling in Sutter county in 1876, he rented a 
 tract of land, and for five years was employed 
 in grain-raising. In 1881 Mr. Drew came to 
 Fresno county in search of a favorable loca- 
 tion, and being pleased with the richness and 
 fertility of the soil subject to irrigation from 
 the Centerville and Kingsburg canal, pur- 
 chased a ranch of forty acres, situated a mile 
 and a half north of East Selma. Embarking 
 in bjisiness as a horticulturist as well as agri- 
 culturist, Mr. Drew planted a vineyard of 
 twenty-three acres, being one of the fii-st to 
 set out any special variety of vines, and set 
 out an orchard of four acres, devoting the re- 
 mainder of his ranch to the raising of alfalfa. 
 In the care of his vines and trees he has been 
 very successful, both vineyard and orchard 
 being productive and remunerative. In 1887 
 Mr. Drew went with a party of one hundred 
 men to Cook's Inlet, Alaska, and while there 
 took up three claims, which proved valueless. 
 He was not disappointed, however, as the trip 
 was more one of pleasure than profit. He has 
 mining interests in Fresno county, being sole 
 owner of the Pajaro claim, near Trimmer 
 Springs, where he is developing a gold quartz 
 mine. 
 
 In Sutter county, Cal., Mr. Drew married 
 Mrs. Lizzie (Young) Duley, a native of Wis- 
 consin, where her birth occurred in 1851. Her 
 father, the late Samuel Young, crossed the 
 plains with his family in 1852, and settled in 
 Butte county, Cal., where he was engaged in 
 mining until his death. Politically Mr. Drew 
 affiliates with the Republican party. Frater- 
 nally he belongs to Selma Lodge No. 277, F. 
 & A. M. ; to Fresno Lodge No. 339, B. P. O. 
 E. ; and to Selma Circle, W. of W. 
 
 LEMUEL F. CASTLE. One of the best- 
 known and most prosperous stockmen of cen- 
 tral California is Lemuel F. Castle, who owns 
 and occupies an improved ranch in the Dos 
 Palos colony. As a cattle breeder and dealer he 
 has met with success, his judgment and business 
 management being wise and his methods prac- 
 tical, systematic and progressive. During the 
 
 time that he has resided in this section of Mer- 
 cer county the people have learned to look upon 
 him as a man fully worthy of their confidence 
 and as one who contributes materially to the ag- 
 ricultural and business prosperity of the com- 
 munity. His birth occurred November 14, 1858, 
 at Forest Home, Amador county, Cal. He 
 comes of substantial pioneer stock, his father, 
 Welman D. Castle, and his grandfather, Isaac 
 Castle, having both been among the early set- 
 tlers of the state. The latter, who was a farmer 
 and orchardist, died in San Jose. 
 
 Born in New York state, W. D. Castle lived 
 there until after attaining his majority. In 1849, 
 accompanied by his brother-in-law, Mr. Green, 
 he started across the plains for California, com- 
 ing the first part of the way by ox teams and 
 the last part by pack horses. Like the greater 
 part of those that came here in that year he was 
 first engaged in mining, but in his search for 
 gold was disappointed, and in 1851 he changed 
 his occupation. Going to Santa Ynez, he bought 
 a herd of cattle, which he drove to Sacramento, 
 where he sold them at a good price. Succeeding 
 so well in this business, he continued to buy and 
 sell cattle and sheep for several years. Subse- 
 quently locating at Forest Home, Amador coun- 
 ty, he erected a stone house on the old stage 
 road and engaged in the hotel business, becom- 
 ing proprietor of the Forest house, which is still 
 standing, being one of the early landmarks of 
 that locality. He continued as mine host until 
 the construction of the railroad, when, in 1869, 
 he removed tO' Milpitas, Santa Clara county, 
 where he was engaged in the butcher business 
 until his retirement from active pursuits. He 
 still resides there, a venerable and respected man 
 of four-score years. In Corunna, Mich., he mar- 
 ried Frances Farey, who was born in New York 
 state of New England ancestry, and died in 1861 
 at Forest Home, Amador county. He subse- 
 quently married again. By both unions he be- 
 came the father of nine children, five of whom 
 are living, Lemuel F. being the youngest child 
 of his first wife. 
 
 Removing with the family to Milpitas in 1869, 
 Lemuel F. Castle there continued his studies for 
 a while in the public schools, completing his 
 early education in the San Jose Business Col- 
 lege. Entering then the employ of his father, 
 he went to eastern Oregon to buy cattle, which 
 he drove from Crook county to San Jose and 
 Marysville, Cal., making a number of trips each 
 year. On starting in life on his own account, 
 Mr. Castle located in Crook county, Ore., thirty- 
 five miles east of Prineville, where he was suc- 
 cessfully engaged in the cattle business for 
 twelve years. At the same time, with his father 
 and brother, Isaac N., he had a large cattle 
 ranch at Hollister, Cal. In 1899, the partner- 
 
.^ 
 
 JU> 
 
 .}i.(^'iuU.<£L 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 343 
 
 ship being dissolved, Mr. Castle drove his fine 
 herd of cattle to Dos Palos, and, having pur- 
 chased the Davis ranch on Center avenue, has 
 continued in the stock business, buying and sell- 
 ing on a large scale. His home ranch contains 
 fifty-five acres of land, nearly all of which he has 
 planted to alfalfa, a sure and profitable crop. 
 Mr. Castle also owns a cattle ranch of three 
 hundred and twenty acres at Panoche, San Be- 
 nito county, where he keeps much valuable stock, 
 in addition to his own range leasing one thou- 
 sand acres of land. His business is extensive 
 and lucrative, his annual income being large. 
 
 In Saratoga, Santa Clara county, Mr. Castle 
 married Kate Hartman, who was born and 
 reared in San Jose. Politically he is a stanch 
 Republican, and fraternally belongs to the 
 Knights of the Maccabees and to the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen. 
 
 GEORGE HENRY WHITWORTH. In a 
 meritorious service as member of the board of 
 supervisors of Merced county, Mr. Whitworth 
 has given proof of the fact that the material in- 
 terests of a county may be trusted to its agri- 
 culturists. On the occasion of his first election 
 to represent the Fourth district upon the county 
 board he received a fair majority, and took the 
 oath of office January i^ 1901. At the expiration 
 of four years he was again a candidate subject 
 to the decision of Democratic voters at the pri- 
 maries August 6, 1904, and at the county con- 
 vention a week later. During his administra- 
 tion as supervisor a number of improvements 
 have been voted upon and adopted by the board. 
 Probably the most important of these was the 
 passing of the bill which authorized the erec- 
 tion of a county hospital, erected at a cost of 
 $60,000. Another important measure was the 
 building of the jail, which cost $30,000. The 
 courthouse was also remodeled and other im- 
 provements adopted. Another improvement was 
 a draw bridge over the San Joaquin river, near 
 Dos Palos. With A. E. Qafy, of the Fifth dis- 
 trict of Stanislaus county, he became an original 
 promoter of the measure for the building of a 
 steel bridge across the San Joaquin river, and it 
 was a source of gratification to him that the two 
 counties finally erected the much-needed struc- 
 ture across the river. 
 
 Mr. Whitworth is of English ancestry, a son 
 of Henry Whitworth, a native of Lincolnshire, 
 England, who came to America in 1848 and 
 landed in New York. From fhere he went to 
 Chicago, then an insignificant village.* In 1849 
 he went to St. Louis, and with a company of 
 fifty people made up ox and mule teams and 
 started across the plains. Molested by Indians 
 and traveling through New Mexico and Arizona 
 
 and up the coast to San Jose Mission, they crossed 
 Pacheco Pass to Hill's Ferry, where they ferried 
 the wagons and swam the stock across the river. 
 They then went to the southern mines in Mari- 
 posa county, and from there went to Tuolumne 
 county, where some of the party became pros- 
 perous. Henry Whitworth mined and teamed 
 in Tuolumne county, where he was married to 
 Ann Hall, a native of Lincolnshire, England, 
 who came to America and California by way 
 of Panama. In 1863 the family moved to Con- 
 tra Costa county, where they farmed until 1868. 
 That year the father came to Cottonwood dis- 
 trict on the Quinto creek, where he pre-empted 
 and later homesteaded, and finally bought more 
 land till eventually he had nine hundred and 
 twenty acres in one body, and eighty acres under 
 the canal, adjoining his son George Henry's 
 farm. He was an honored settler, interested in 
 good schools, good roads, and good government. 
 He was honored and respected by all who knew 
 him and died on his home farm February 15, 
 1897, aged nearly seventy-three years. His wife 
 died in March, 1877, aged forty-six years. She 
 was the mother of three children: George 
 Henry, John WiUiam, and Mary J., who mar- 
 ried Robert Butts. 
 
 George Henry Whitworth is a Californian by 
 birth as well as by patriotic spirit and loyal 
 devotion to the state's progress. ,He was born 
 at Dutch Bar, Tuolumne county, March 10, 1856, 
 and passed his early childhood years in the 
 county where he was born. During 1869 he 
 came to the Cottonwood district, where he at- 
 tended district school and aided his father on 
 the home farm. At the age of twenty-one years, 
 in 1877, he embarked in farming for himself, 
 his first venture being as a renter of grain land. 
 About 1880 he bought a farm in the Cotton- 
 wood district. Two years later he bought one 
 hundred and twenty acres on the upper county 
 road. This he put under ditch, suitable for the 
 cultivation of alfalfa, which is his main crop. 
 On his place there are one hundred and fifty 
 head of cattle, of which sixty-five head are milch 
 cows, and since 1896 he has made a specialty 
 of the milk business, his dairy farm three miles 
 south of Newman in Merced county being one 
 of the best in the locality. Besides his home 
 place he owns four hundred and sixty acres on 
 Quinto creek, which is rented to tenants and 
 utilized for the raising of grain. On the organi- 
 zation of the New Era Creamery he became one 
 of its first stockholders, and afterward was 
 chosen a member of its board of directors. He 
 is still a stockholder in this laudable enterprise, 
 which contributed so much to the county's pros- 
 perity. 
 
 In Santa Cruz, this state, occurred the mar- 
 riage of Mr. Whitworth to Miss Agnes -Ma- 
 
344 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 honey, a native of San Francisco, and a daugh- 
 ter of John Mahoney, who was born in New 
 York and became an influential business man 
 in California. Mrs. Whitworth died November 
 28, 1903, leaving two sons, John Henry and 
 George Hall. Another child, Carol, died at the 
 age of six months. Fraternally Mr. Whitworth 
 is connected with the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen and the Degree of Honor, also the 
 Woodmen of the World, and his wife was iden- 
 tified with the Women of Woodcraft. The 
 Democratic party has received his stanch sup- 
 port. In many ways he has promoted its 
 progress in the locality where he resides. Since 
 1903 he has served as a member of the county 
 central committee, and his election to the board 
 of supervisors was upon the Democratic ticket, 
 and November 8, 1904, he was re-elected to the 
 office of county supervisor, having no opposi- 
 tion. 
 
 WILLIAM T. MAUPIN, M. D. Very 
 early in the history of colonial Virginia mem- 
 bers of the Maupin family went there from 
 France and assisted in the development of the 
 new country, being especially prominent in 
 their home county of Albemarle. From ihat 
 state Cornelius Maupin removed with his fam- 
 ily to Kentucky and settled on a wild tract of 
 land in Fayette county, later going to Mis- 
 souri, where his last days were spent. His 
 son, William Maupin, although a native of 
 Virginia, spent his childhood days in Kentucky 
 and as early as 1816 became one of the first 
 settlers in Boone county. Mo., whither he jour- 
 neyed by wagon. He settled in Columbia and 
 built one of the first houses erected in that 
 now populous university town. For more than 
 sixty years he made his home on a farm six 
 miles from Columbia, and there his death oc- 
 curred at seventy-seven years of age. A man 
 of public spirit and a firm believer in the bene- 
 fits to be derived from a good education, he 
 was a patron and friend of the institutions that 
 were established in his home town for the 
 education of the young. 
 
 By his first marriage William Maupin had 
 three children, only one of whom survives, 
 Mrs. Cockrell, of Great Falls, Mont. His sec- 
 ond wife, Isabelle Lemon, was born in George- 
 town, Ky., and died in Columbia, Mo., at sev- 
 enty-seven years of age. Six children were 
 born of that union, four of whom are living. 
 Dr. W. T. Maupin, of Fresno, being next to 
 the youngest. Another son, Judge R. L. Mau- 
 pin, of Mobile, Ala., served as aide-de-camp 
 to Gen. Frank Cockrell throughout the Civil 
 war and was wounded at Atlanta. Dr. Mau- 
 pin's maternal grandfather, Robert Lemon, 
 
 was a native of Scotland and came to America 
 prior to the Revolutionary war. In that his- 
 toric struggle he bore an honorable part and 
 in an engagement with the British received a 
 sabre cut, across the head. For years he had 
 a farm in Kentucky, but became a pioneer of 
 Boone county. Mo., and engaged in farm pur- 
 suits there. His life was spared to the great 
 age of ninety-seven years. 
 
 On the homestead near Columbia, Mo., Dr. 
 W. T. Maupin was born April 17, 1839. As a 
 boy he was a pupil in the Columbia public 
 schools and later studied in the William Jewell 
 College, a Baptist institution at Liberty, Mo., 
 where he completed the studies of the junior 
 year. Under Dr. A. P. Spence, of Columbia, 
 he took up the study of medicine. At the first 
 call of Governor Jackson for troops, in 1861, 
 he enlisted at Jefferson City under Colonel 
 Singleton, and later was transferred to General 
 Price's command. On retiring from the army 
 in 1862 he resumed the study of medicine, tak- 
 ing a course of lectures in the St. Louis Med- 
 ical College, and in 1864 graduating from the 
 Jeflferson Medical College at Philadelphia. Re- 
 turning to Columbia, he opened an office for 
 the practice of medicine and surgery and con- 
 tinued in the same city as a practitioner for 
 twent}^-three years. Meanwhile for years he 
 was a member of the board of curators of 
 Stevens College. 
 
 On his arrival in Fresno in 1887, Dr. Maupin 
 found a city of scarcely four thousand inhab- 
 itants, yet bearing then, as it does now, the 
 appearance of thrift, prosperity and enterprise. 
 His ability was given ready recognition and he 
 has held a rank among the leading physicians 
 and influential men of the city. While acting 
 as health officer he took advantage of the san- 
 itary law of California and filled up the old 
 mill ditch running through the town where 
 Fresno street now is. His course aroused 
 many protests and much opposition, but those 
 who recognize the fact that the street is now 
 one of the best in the city, concur as to the 
 wisdom of his action. At one time he was 
 honored with the office of vice-president of 
 the State Medical Society, and for several 
 terms he was president of, the Fresno County 
 Medical Society. On the organization of the 
 San Joaquin District Medical Society he be- 
 came one of its charter members and continues 
 his association with it to the present. 
 
 In Columbia, Mo., Dr. Maupin married Miss 
 Mary A. Mathews, who was born and reared 
 in that city and graduated from Christian Col- 
 lege with the degree of A. B. Her father, 
 James Lawrence Mathews, went to Missouri 
 from Virginia and became a pioneer business 
 man of Columbia, where he died at the age of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 345 
 
 sixty-seven years. In the family of Dr. and 
 Mrs. Maiipin there are four children, namely: 
 Lulu B., wife of H. U. Maxfield, a business 
 man of Oakland; J. Lawrence, a graduate of 
 the College of Physicians and Surgeons, in St. 
 Louis, later doing post-graduate work in New 
 York City, and now a physician and surgeon 
 in Fresno; Bettie B., at home; and Mary W., 
 wife of A. O. Warner, a jeweler in Fresno. 
 
 In religious belief T>v. Maupin is a Baptist. 
 He was made a Mason in Columbia Lodge No. 
 114, at Columbia, Mo., in 1865, and is now a 
 member of the lodge in Fresno. His Chapter 
 membership has also been transferred from 
 Columbia to Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. M., 
 at Fresno. The Knight Templar degree was 
 conferred upon him in Columbia and he is now 
 connected with Fresno Commandery No-. 29, 
 besides which he is identified with Islam 
 Temple, N. M. S., of San Francisco. In poli- 
 tics he has always been a pronounced Demo- 
 crat. As chairman of the county^ central com- 
 mittee and a member of the state central com- 
 mittee, he has rendered his party effective 
 service. While living in Missouri, in 1880, he 
 was a delegate to the national convention at 
 St. Louis, which nominated Hancock for the 
 presidency. An active friend of the public 
 school system, he is a member of the Fresno 
 Board of Education and, as a member of its 
 building committee, took a leading part in 
 1903 in the erection of three school houses 
 costing altogether more than $80,000. He is 
 past commander of the Price Camp, Confeder- 
 ate Veterans' Association of Fresno. Since 
 1889 he has held the position of surgeon for the 
 San Joaquin division of the Southern Pacific 
 Railroad and, in connection therewith, is iden- 
 tified with the Association of Railway Sur- 
 geons of the Pacific Coast. 
 
 CHARLES D. SMITH, whose fortunes 
 have been more or less intima-tely identified 
 with the state of California since the fall of 
 "1859, is now living in retirement in Fresno, 
 enjoying the fruits of his early industry and 
 toil. His life has been a varied and eventful 
 one, and its record is entitled to a place in the 
 history of California. He was born in Oak- 
 land county, Mich., August 21, 1839, a son of 
 Addison and Caroline B. (Teeples) Smith. 
 Both his parents were natives of New York, 
 his father having been born in Onondaga 
 county February 8, 1812, and his mother in 
 Chautauqua county December 18, 1824. His 
 father followed the occupation of carpenter, re- 
 moving to Michigan in young manhood. After 
 the death of his wife, which occurred January 
 7, 1857, he left Michigan for a home in Illinois, 
 
 and the following year located near Galesburg. 
 About a year after settling in Galesburg he 
 again married, and soon afterward, in 1861, 
 enlisted as a private in Company A, Sixty-fifth 
 Illinois Volunteer Infantry. His Service in be- 
 half of the Union covered a period of nearly 
 three years, his death occurring at Camp Nel- 
 son February 22, 1864. 
 
 Charles D. Smith received his education in 
 the common schools of Michigan. After the 
 completion of his studies he assisted his father 
 in carpenter work until he was twenty years 
 of age. In the spring of 1859 he joined a party 
 bound for Pike's Peak, where it was widely 
 reported gold had been discovered, but on ar- 
 riving in that region they found thai the re- 
 ports regarding the existence of the precious 
 metal there had been grossly exaggerated, and 
 that time spent there would be wasted. He 
 accordingly decided to push on to California 
 with the other members of his party, which 
 they accordingly did, arriving in P'lacerville 
 September 7, 1859. The gold fever still surg- 
 ing through his veins, he continued prospect- 
 ing and mining in the vicinity of Placerville 
 for a short time, when, concluding that other 
 occupations would be rewarded with more sub- 
 stantial returns, he abandoned his search for 
 gold. Securing a position on the toll road be- 
 tween Lincoln and Bear River, in Placer 
 cOunty, he was thus employed for about five 
 years. Upon the expiration of that time he 
 returned to his old home in Michigan, and en- 
 gaged in farming in the vicinity of Flint. In 
 connection with farming he conducted a gen- 
 eral store in Flint for about two years, with 
 fair success. He continued to reside in Gene- 
 see county, Mich., until 1889, when he disposed 
 of his business' interests there and came once 
 more to California, locating at once in Fresno 
 county. Purchasing one hundred and sixty 
 acres of unimproved land, located five miles 
 west of Fresno, on the Whitesbridge road, he 
 planted a vineyard and began the general im- 
 provement of the property. Subsequently he 
 sold ofl eighty acres in twenty-acre tracts, and 
 upon the balance engaged in the culture of the 
 raisin grape until 1902. In that year he pur- 
 chased a comfortable residence in Fresno, 
 where he has since resided. 
 
 Mr. Smith affiliates with the Republican 
 party. During his residence in Michigan he 
 participated actively in municipal affairs, serv- 
 ing for six years as a member of the city coun- 
 cil of Flint, but since settling in California he 
 has left the conduct of public affairs to others. 
 December 24, 1865, in Genesee county, Mich., 
 he was united in marriage with Ellen Hodge, 
 who was born in Clarendon, Ohio, March 4, 
 1845, a daughter of Chauncey and Fanny 
 
346 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 (Parks) Hodge, the former a native of New 
 York. After marriage her parents removed 
 from Ohio to Michigan, when Mrs. Smith was 
 a child, locating for a time in Tipton, but after- 
 ward moving to Genesee county. Her father 
 was a carpenter by trade, but also engaged in 
 farming in connection with work at the former 
 calling. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have been the 
 parents of two sons, namely: Edwin A., who 
 resides in Concord, Contra Costa county, Cal. ; 
 and William T., whose death occurred m lyoo. 
 Mr. Smith is highly regarded by those who 
 have been favored with his acquaintance. He 
 takes a liberal view of public afifairs, and may 
 be depended upon to extend his assistance and 
 co-operation toward the success of projects 
 looking toward the advancement of the com- 
 munity. 
 
 REUBEN HENDERSON BRAMLET. 
 Closely associated with the advancement of 
 the agricultural prosperity of Fresno county is 
 Reuben Henderson Bramlet, who owns and 
 occupies a choice and well-improved ranch, 
 which is pleasantly located about five miles 
 northeast of Selma. Well educated, talented 
 and of undoubted business capacity, he has at- 
 tained a place of influence in the community, 
 and has established himself in the confidence 
 of his friends and fellow-citizens, who hold 
 him in high regard and favor. A son of Cole- 
 man Bramlet, he was born February 7, 1842, 
 in Saline county. 111. ; he comes of patriotic 
 stock, Reuben Bramlet, his paternal grand- 
 father, having been a soldier in the Revolu- 
 tionarj' war, and also in the war of 1812, tak- 
 ing part in the battle of New Orleans. After 
 ' the Revolution he removed from Virginia, his 
 native state, to South Carolina, thence to 
 Princeton, Ky. In 1818, becoming a pioneer 
 settler of Saline county. 111., he bought wild 
 land, and was there employed in tilling the 
 soil until his death. 
 
 A native of Princton, Ky., Coleman Bram- 
 let lived there until sixteen years old, when, in 
 1818, he moved with his parents to Illinois. Se- 
 lecting farming as his life occupation he took 
 up land in Saline county, and was there suc- 
 cessfully employed in the pursuit of agricul- 
 ture until his death, February 28, 1889, at the 
 venerable age of eighty-seven years and thir- 
 teen days. His wife, to whom he was mar- 
 ried in 1823, bore the maiden name of Susan 
 , Upchurch. She was born in Tennessee, and 
 died in October, 1889, on the home farm in 
 Illinois. Of the ten sons and two daughters 
 born of their union, Reuben H., the subject of 
 this sketch, was the tenth child. 
 
 After coming to California from his Illinois 
 
 home, in 1867, Reuben Henderson Bramlet 
 completed his education at the University of 
 the" Pacific, taking a special course of three 
 years, partly paying his expenses by working 
 during the vacations in Santa Clara. Remov- 
 ing to what is now Madera county in 1870, he 
 taught school in Fresno flats for four years, 
 being among the first teachers in Fresno 
 county. The following two years Mr. Bram- 
 let was county superintendent of the Fresno 
 county schools, and served the following five 
 years as county auditor and county superin- 
 tendent. In 1883 he was again elected county 
 auditor, and served ten years. Buying one 
 hundred and forty acres of land in Fresno 
 county, near Sanger, in 1893, he was there en- 
 gaged in general ranching for a number of 
 years. SelHng out in December, 1902, Mr. 
 Bramlet bought his present farm, lying five 
 miles northeast of Selma, and is managing the 
 eighty acres included in the purchase with suc- 
 cess, raising fruit, vines and alfalfa. 
 
 At Kingriver, Fresno county, Mr. Bramlet 
 married Euphemia Ellen Wren, who was born 
 in Adams county, 111., and cam'e across the 
 plains to California with her parents in 1863. 
 Her father, John Wren, a native, of Adams 
 county. 111., came first to California in 1849, ^'^'l 
 was for awhile engaged in mining, but was not 
 very successful. Returning to Illinois, he re- 
 mained there until 1863, when he brought his 
 family to the coast, locating in Fresno, Cal., 
 where he carried on a substantial business un- 
 til his death. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Bramlet four children were born, namely : 
 John C, who died at the age of two years; 
 Eva, wife of C. M. Mannon, of Ukiah, Cal. ; 
 Dora ; and Ellen, who died at the age of seven 
 years. Politically Mr. Bramlet endorses the 
 principles of the Democratic party, and re- 
 ligiously he is a member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 TRUMAN GEORGE HART. Prominent 
 among the younger generation of business men 
 of Fresno county is Truman G. Hart, of Fres- 
 no, a man well known throughout the San 
 Joaquin valley, and everywhere respected. He 
 is an excellent representative of the native- 
 born sons of California, and in his every-day 
 life exemplifies in a marked degree the influ- 
 ences of heredity, environments and training 
 upon the mind. A son of Judge Charles A. 
 and Ann (Brennan) (McKenzie) Hart, he was 
 born April 9, 1866, in Millerton, Fresno 
 county. For further ancestral history see the 
 sketch of Judge Charles A. Hart, which~ may 
 be found on another page of this volume. 
 
 Having obtained the rudiments of his edu- 
 
C^^^ yS.=^>^/^^t' 
 
^'tci^:^ j^<:tA;^cJ!gy 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 361 
 
 cation in the public schools of Millerton and 
 Fresno, Truman G. Hart in 1882 entered St. 
 Augustine's College, in Benicia, whence he 
 was graduated in 1886. Locating then in 
 Fresno, he became identified with the Fresno 
 County Abstract Company, which he served 
 as its business manager for a number of years. 
 In 1894 he was elected county clerk of Fresno 
 county on the Republican ticket, receiving the 
 large majority of seven hundred votes. Tak- 
 ing the oath of office in January, 1895, Mr. 
 Hart served most faithfully for four years, at 
 the end of his term declining a renomination 
 for the office. Becoming a pioneer in the oil 
 industry, he was one of the organizers, and a 
 director of the Producers' & Consumers' Oil 
 Company, which put down wells o'n sections 
 20, township 19, range 15, and succeeded in 
 finding a good flow of oil. Subsequently dis- 
 posing of his stock in that company, Mr. Hart 
 assisted in organizing the Oil City Petroleum 
 Company, of which he is president. This com- 
 pany has a tract of three hundred and twenty 
 acres, lying in section 28, township 19, range 
 15, on which are eleven finely producing wells, 
 all of good capacity. He was also one of the 
 organizers, and is president, of the Twenty- 
 eight Oil Company, which owns one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land in section 28, and has 
 eleven wells in operation, each one having a 
 capacity of four hundred barrels of oil per day. 
 Mr. Hart is also identified with other financial 
 enterprises, holding an interest in mining prop- 
 erty in Madera county, and being president, 
 and one of the incorporators, of the Fresno 
 Realty & Agency Company, which lays out 
 and builds up additions to the city, and han- 
 dles real estate of all kinds. In advancing and 
 promoting the interests of the num'erous com- 
 panies with which he is officially associated, 
 Mr. Hart is the leading spirit, his business 
 ability and judgment being unquestioned. 
 
 In Fresno, September 29, 1892, Mr. Hart 
 married Augusta A. Trowbridge, who was born 
 and reared in Illinois. Politically Mr. Hart is 
 a stanch advocate of the principles of the Re- 
 publican party, and socially he is a charter 
 member of the Sequoia Club. In his religious 
 belief he is an Episcopalian. 
 
 FRED BARTCH. With the energy and re- 
 source characteristic of the race from which he 
 springs, Fred Bartch has hewn his way to a 
 prominent place in the affairs of Stanislaus coun- 
 ty, eliciting approval as manager of twenty- 
 seven hundred acres of the Patterson ranch, as 
 one of the most extensive land owners and grain 
 growers in the county, as the chief stock holder 
 and manager of the Rising Sun Warehouse Com- 
 
 pany, one of the largest purchasers and shippers 
 of wheat in tliis section, and as a director in the 
 Farmers & Merchants Bank of Mt)desto. Fra- 
 ternally he is identified with the Masons, holding 
 membership in Blue Lodge No. 236, of Newman, 
 Chapter No. 49, of Modesto, Commandery No. 8, 
 of Stockton, and with the Knights Templar. He 
 is a Republican who has rendered useful and in- 
 telligent service to his party, both as an office 
 holder and as representative of his district to 
 state and county conventions. 
 
 For generations Mr. Bartch's ancestors were 
 known as agriculturists and trades-people in the 
 grand duchy of Baden, southern Germany, where 
 he was born November 26, 1844, and which was 
 the birthplace also of his, parents, George John 
 and Catherine S. (Faulholver) Bartch. When 
 he was eight years old, in 1852, his parents 
 brought their then small family to the United 
 States, locating in New Yiork state, where they 
 lived on a farm and prospered for many years. 
 In all, eleven children were born to them, five of 
 whom are living, Fred being the third. In his 
 search for a betterment of his prospects the 
 father decided upon California as his future home, 
 and after coming here with several of the chil- 
 dren in 1884, engaged in farming near Santa 
 Rosa until 1892. In the meantime his wife died, 
 and in 1892 he removed to Tulare county, where 
 he at present lives with his son, Louis Bartch, 
 eight miles west of the town of Tulare. The 
 cares of life have fallen lightly on his shoulders, 
 and he reaps the reward of a moderate and evenly- 
 balanced existence, retaining in excellent condi- 
 tion the majority of his faculties at the age of 
 ninety years. 
 
 To his willingness to sit by candle light and 
 ward off sleep until the small hours of the morn- 
 ing, Mr. Bartch owes whatever of early educa- 
 tion and book learning he acquired. His father's 
 farm failing to provide for so many mouths, he 
 set put early to work his way on surrounding 
 farms in New York state, finally finding himself 
 in Erie county when the Civil war broke in fury 
 over the country. Espousing the cause of the 
 Union, he enlisted in Company E, One Hundred 
 and Sixteenth New York Volunteer Infantry, in 
 August, 1861, and as a drummer boy kept up 
 the spirits of the company for three months. He 
 next carried a musket in the soldier ranks of his 
 regiment, and was with Butler and Banks at the 
 battle of Port Hudson. Receiving his discharge 
 in New Orleans in December, 1864, he improved 
 his liberty by removing to Ionia coiuity, Mich., 
 where a change of occupation awaited him in the 
 great lumber camps of that region. For two 
 years he made his headquarters at Hubbardston, 
 and in 1867 returned to Erie county, N. Y., later 
 locating in Herkimer county, where he assisted in 
 making the cheese for which the county is fa- 
 
352 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 mous. Returning to Erie county he lived there 
 a year, and in November, 1869, came by rail to 
 California, soon afterward finding employment on 
 a farm in Ventura county. In 1873 he began to 
 work on the Patterson ranch in Stanislaus county, 
 his ability soon elevating him to the position of 
 manager, which he occupied for two years. He 
 then leased six hundred acres of the Patterson 
 ranch, and at the present time farms twenty- 
 seven hundred acres of this same ranch, besides 
 eleven hundred and twenty acres of his own. In 
 all he is the owner of nineteen hundred and eighty 
 acres in the western part of Stanislaus county, 
 near Westley and Newman, sixty of which are 
 under alfalfa. For years he has been one of the 
 county's foremost wheat and grain raisers, and 
 while thus employed became interested in the 
 Rising Sun Warehouse project, in which he is 
 a large stockholder and the present manager. 
 He probably knows as much about wheat as any 
 man in the county, and his judgment has come to 
 be regarded as final in all transactions involving 
 difl^erences of opinion along wheat-raising lines. 
 The Patterson ranch, as well as his own, are man- 
 aged along practical and scientific lines, and are 
 made to yield to the extent of their fertility and 
 resource. Needless to say that the finest and 
 most modern of implements are owned and used^ 
 or that the most admirable method and system 
 prevails throughout. Mr. Bartch has a pleasant 
 country home, in which comfort and hospitality 
 abound, and which owns as mistress she who 
 was once Katie Nickert, formerly of New York 
 state, and who was also born in Germany. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Bartch have no children. Mr. Bartch 
 is one of the substantial and influential men of 
 Stanislaus county, and enjoys those advantages 
 conferred by unquestioned integrity, business 
 success, generous impulses and the affectionate 
 regard of a large circle of friends. 
 
 FRANCIS MARION PRESTON. Among 
 the prominent and enterprising business men of 
 central California is Francis Marion Preston, 
 who is actively engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
 which he follows according to the most approved 
 scientific methods. He makes a specialty of 
 dairying, having a well stocked ranch, and rais- 
 ing large quantities of alfalfa for feeding his 
 cattle. A son of C. J. Preston, he was born Jan- 
 uary 23, 1861, in Troy, Bradford county. Pa. 
 His grandfather, Colburn Preston, the descend- 
 ant of an old and honored New England family, 
 was born in Vermont, and served in the war of 
 1812. He subsequently settled in Bradford 
 county. Pa., and assisted in clearing the site of 
 the present citv of Troy. 
 
 A native of Pennsylvania, C. J. Preston grew 
 to manhood on the home farm, " Sailing by way 
 
 of Panama in 1865 he came to California, and 
 the following year took up one hundred and six- 
 ty acres of land in Contra Costa county. Suc- 
 ceeding well as a farmer, he sent for his fam- 
 ily, who joined him in 1870, and he is still 
 there employed in general farming and stock 
 raising, now having three hundred and twenty 
 acres of land in his home ranch. He married 
 Melissa Woodard, who was born in Bradford 
 county, Pa., where her father, Daniel Woodard, 
 settled on removing from Vermont. Of the five 
 daughters and two sons born of their union, all 
 are living with the exception of one daughter, 
 Francis Marion, the special subject of this bi- 
 ography, being the oldest child. 
 
 But nine years of age when he came to Cal- 
 ifornia to join his father, Francis Marion Pres- 
 ton was educated in the district schools of Con- 
 tra Costa county. Qioosing the free and inde- 
 pendent occupation to which he was reared, he 
 came to Merced county in 1886, settling near 
 Newman, where he bought eighty acres of land 
 on the Middle road, below the canal. With char- 
 acteristic industry and thrift, he at once began 
 its improvement, soon having it planted to al- 
 falfa. He also enlarged his operations, from 1892 
 until 1900 raising grain on the Crittenden ranch, 
 which consists of eight hundred acres of land, lo- 
 cated above the canal. Mr. Preston subsequently 
 purchased sixty-six acres of land lying near his 
 original estate, and now has the entire one hun- 
 dred and forty-six acres devoted to the raising 
 of alfalfa. He is profitably employed, also, in 
 dairying, keeping one hundred and forty head 
 of cattle, and milking about sixty cows, chiefly 
 Durhams and Holsteins. A man of much en- 
 ergy and keen foresight, Mr. Preston was one 
 of the promoters and original stockholders of 
 the New Era Creamery Company, which built 
 the first creamery in the valley, and was a mem- 
 ber of its first board of directors, on which he is 
 now serving for the third consecutive year, in 
 1902 and 1903 being likewise president of the 
 board. 
 
 In Contra Costa county, Cal., Mr. Preston 
 married Ida Burress, a native of that county. 
 Her father, Wilburn Burress, was born in Ten- 
 nessee, and when eighteen years old came by 
 way of Panama to Contra Costa county, where 
 he followed general farming and stock raising 
 until his death. He married Arvilla Morgan, 
 who was born in Texas, and came from there 
 to California with her father, Wesley Morgan, 
 and they became the parents of three children, 
 of whom Mrs. Preston is the oldest. Of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. Preston two children 
 have been born, namely: Marion and Lloyd. 
 An active and loyal Republican in his political 
 views, Mr. Preston takes great interest in local 
 afifairs, and for sixteen j-ears has been a school 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 353 
 
 trustee in the Canal district, and is now serv- 
 ing as president of the board. Fraternally he is 
 a member of the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen, and of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JOHN W. SHARP. A veteran agriculturist, 
 and one of the earliest settlers of the San Joaquin 
 valley, John W. Sharp has been a resident of 
 this locality for half a century, and has been an 
 important factor in developing its resources, and 
 advancing its growth and prosperity. Coming 
 here when the country roundabout was in its 
 pristine wilderness, he endured the hardships 
 and trials of pioneer life without murmur, help- 
 ing to make straight and thornless the pathway 
 of the coming generations. That he and his fel- 
 low-laborers succeeded in their efforts, the broad 
 expanse of highly cultivated fields, the pro- 
 ductive orchards, the well improved dairy farms, 
 and the large herds of magnificent cattle and 
 horses give ample evidence. A son of John 
 Sharp, he was born October 27, 1835, in Bed- 
 ford county, Va., of substantial ancestry. 
 
 Born and bred in old . Virginia, John Sharp 
 moved from there to Missouri, following a 
 broken pathway through the woods and across 
 the intervening prairies with wagons to Mont- 
 gomery county, where he cleared and improved 
 a farm. In 1850 he came with ox teams to Cal- 
 ifornia, and after working for two years in the 
 mines returned by way of Panama to his Mis- 
 souri farm, where he spent the remainder of his 
 life. He was a man of great integrity, honored 
 ind respected by all, and was a faithful member 
 of the Presbyterian Church. When a young 
 man he was a captain in a company of militia, 
 in those times when musters and training days 
 were holiday events, and called out all of the 
 people for miles around. He married Margaret 
 Jeter, who removed with her parents, Mr. and 
 Mrs. Pleasant Jeter from Virginia to Montgom- 
 ery county. Mo., and there resided during the re- 
 mainder of her life. She bore him five children, 
 all of whom grew to years of maturitv, and four 
 are now living, John W. being the only one on 
 the Pacific coast. 
 
 Having first attended the district school, John 
 W. Sharp subsequently continued his studies in 
 the public schools of St. Louis and Palmyra, 
 Mo. Entering the employ of Ambrose Stark 
 in 1854, he drove an ox team across the plains, 
 following the trail through Ogden, along the 
 Humboldt, entering California by the Lawson 
 route, arriving at Colusa, Cal., after a trip of 
 six months. Making his way from there to 
 Marysville, Mr. Sharp worked for a short time 
 in the Yuba mines, and was then employed in 
 teaming on the McCosma river, in Sacramento 
 county. Locating at HjU's Ferry, on the San 
 
 Joaquin river, in 1855, he worked for a number 
 of years for Mr. Wilson, a cattle man, and then 
 worked for John McPike, after which he turned 
 his attention to ranching. 
 
 Embarking in the sheep business on his own 
 account in 1874, he established a ranch on the 
 Orestimba creek, buying out Mr. Reed, and con- 
 tinued as a sheep raiser and dealer for six 
 years. Selling out his sheep in 1880, Mr. Sharp 
 purchased cattle, and was subsequently engaged 
 in stock raising in the same localitv. He after- 
 wards bought land on. the valley bottoms, eleven 
 miles from Newman, and in addition tO' his cat- 
 tle business, was employed as a grain raiser. In 
 1893 he disposed of his cattle, and from that 
 time until 1904 raised mules, having ^ large 
 herds. In March, 1904, he sold off all of his 
 stock, and has since rented that land. Pre- 
 viously, in 1903, Mr. Sharp bought his present 
 ranch of twenty acres of alfalfa land on the 
 Middle road, about one mile south of Newman. 
 He takes an active interest in local affairs, and 
 is identified with the Democratic party, being 
 an ardent supporter of its principles. 
 
 GEN. M. W. MULLER is one of the most 
 promuient men in the military circles of the 
 Pacific coast, being the ranking brigadier-gen- 
 eral of the National Guard of California. He 
 is also one of the leading business men of 
 Fresno, being an exterlsive individual grain 
 dealer in this part of the state. A man of 
 strong mental vigor and of exceptional ability, 
 he cordially endorses all enterprises calculated 
 to advance the city's prosperity, being actively 
 interested in its industrial, mercantile, military 
 and political development. He was born in Ger- 
 many, February 26, 1853, and came to the United 
 States when a mere boy, his parents having 
 lived in New Orleans, La., previous to that time 
 where his father was engaged in the mercantile 
 business for a number of years. He was edu- 
 cated in the public schools of San Francisco, the 
 City College and the Pacific Business College. 
 After his graduation from the latter institution 
 he was engaged in the real estate business in 
 that city for several years. In 1883, General 
 Muller came to Fresno to take charge of the 
 books of the Puget Sound Lumber Company, 
 which had yards located throughout the San 
 Joaquin valley. Having straightened out the 
 books satisfactorily, he served as agent for the 
 company until it sold out to Moore & Smith. 
 Embarking then, in 1887, in the grain business, 
 with headquarters in the FresnO' National Bank 
 building. General Muller has become one of the 
 most extensive wholesale grain dealers on the 
 coast. He handles grain by the carload, having 
 agents in different parts of the valley and ware- 
 
354 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 houses in Fresno, Caruthers, Herndon, Clovis 
 and Sanger. 
 
 In 1874 General Muller began his military 
 career in San Francisco, serving first as a pri- 
 vate, through one term of enlistment, in Com- 
 pany F, First Regiment, California National 
 Guard, and then through two terms of enlistment 
 in Company F, Second Regiment. When Com- 
 pany C, Sixth Battalion — later Sixth Regiment 
 ■ — was organized in Fresno, in 1885, he was made 
 captain of the company, receiving his commis- 
 sion from Governor Stoneman. November 10, 
 1 89 1, he was appointed brigadier-general of the 
 Third Brigade by Governor Markham and has 
 served in this capacity ever since, having been 
 re-appointed by Governors Waterman, Budd, 
 Gage and Pardee. When General Muller as- 
 sumed his present office, in 1 89 1, the brigade had 
 but eight companies, but now consists of eight- 
 een companies of infantry and a cavalry troop. 
 
 In Fresno, General Muller married Minnie 
 ?L. Clifford, who was born in Stockton, the 
 daughter of Henry K. Clifford, a pioneer of Cali- 
 fornia. General and Mrs. Muller are the par- 
 ents of two children, Maude and Ruth, who are 
 now attending Miss Hamlin's School in San 
 Francisco. In politics General Muller is a stanch 
 Republican ; socially he belongs to the Sec|uoia 
 Club and the Union League Club and is a mem- 
 ber of the Chamber of Commerce. 
 
 J. B. HANCOCK. An early settler of San 
 Joaquin valley, J. B. Hancock, now tax collector 
 of Fresno county, is a native of Missouri and 
 a descendant of old Virginia ancestry. His pa- 
 ternal grandfather, Benjamin Hancock, was 
 born in Patrick county, Va., of English extrac- 
 tion, and during early manhood settled in St. 
 Qiarles county. Mo., when St. Louis was an 
 insignificant French hamlet. The remaining 
 years of his life were passed in St. Charles 
 county and there his son, John Calvin Hancock, 
 was born and reared. When choosing an occu- 
 pation for life the latter selected the science of 
 medicine, the study of which he prosecuted in 
 the Louisville Medical College. After his gradu- 
 ation ^yith the degree of M. D., he opened an 
 office in Columbia, Boone county. Mo., and 
 there established a growing practice. His death 
 occurred at an early age, when he was just be- 
 ginning to reap the reward of years of study 
 and devotion to his profession. 
 
 The wife of Dr. John C. Hancock was Serena 
 Barton, who was born in Boone county. Mo., 
 and died in San Joaquin county, CaL, leaving 
 two sons, namely : Benjamin, a stockman resid- 
 ing on the Sycamore, Fresno county ; and J. B., 
 of Fresno. Mrs. Hancock was a daughter of 
 Jonathan Barton, who was a native of South 
 
 Carolina and a farmer of Kentucky, later becom- 
 ing one of the earliest settlers of Boone county, 
 Mo., and a pioneer in the Santa Fe trade. Dur- 
 ing 1849 hs crossed the plains to California and 
 took up the adventurous life of a miner. Tlie 
 country so attracted him that he resolved to set- 
 tle in California permanently, therefore in 1852 
 he returned via Panama to Missouri for his fam- 
 ily, who accompanied . him across the plains the 
 following year. Taking up land near Stockton, 
 San Joaquin county, he entered upon the occu- 
 pation of stock-raising, in which his remaining 
 active years were spent. At the time of his 
 death he had reached the age of eighty-four 
 years. 
 
 In the Missouri county where he was born 
 May 13, 1842, J. B. Hancock passed the first 
 eleven years of his life. During 1853, with his 
 mother and grandfather, he crossed the plains, 
 starting from Independence in April, crossing 
 the Kaw at the present site of Lawrence, Kans., 
 later crossing the Blue and Platte rivers, thence 
 proceeding via Sweetwater, Devil's Gate, South 
 Pass, Salt Lake, down the Humboldt river and 
 through Carson Cafion, thence over the Sierras 
 and on to the San Joaquin valley, where the 
 party arrived in September, after a journey with 
 their ox-teams of five months and three days. 
 In those days schools were few. The first which 
 Mr. Hancock attended in this state was held in 
 a canvas-covered tent in San Joaquin county 
 and was of the old-fashioned subscription nature. 
 Having little opportunity to attend school, he 
 began to earn his own livelihood at an age when 
 most boys are completing their educations, and 
 at sixteen embarked in the stock business, se- 
 lected a brand for his own use and took his part 
 in all of the round-ups of his neighborhood. 
 
 Selling out his cattle interests in 1865, Mr. 
 Hancock started east with a party of nine, trav- 
 eling on horseback and using pack-mules for 
 conveyance of supplies. At Fort Bridger they 
 were stopped by troops and joined a company of 
 fifty men from Idaho. Indians were hostile and 
 the danger to white travelers great, therefore 
 the expedition was heavily armed and ready for 
 attack at any moment. After leaving Austin, 
 Nev., they followed the Bitter Creek route and 
 the overland trail, going from Julesburg to Ne- 
 braska City along the route now followed by the 
 Union Pacific Railroad. Notwithstanding dan- 
 gers seen and unseen, Mr. Hancock arrived 
 safely at Columbia, and from there went to Wis- 
 consin, where he remained a year. Later travels 
 took him to other portions of the United States, 
 but nowhere did he find a spot that suited him 
 as well as California. He therefore returned 
 to the coast and in 1870 settled in Fresno county, 
 where he first was employed at lumbering and 
 then engaged in farming in the Dry Creek coun- 
 
Historical and biographical recorjd. 
 
 357 
 
 try. Successive years of drought caused him to 
 give up the land, after which he purchased one 
 hundred and sixty acres in the Lone Star coun- 
 try, six miles southeast of Fresno, and began to 
 raise fruit and raisins, also alfalfa. The entire 
 tract being under irrigation and well improved 
 was sold at an excellent profit. Another pur- 
 chase of similar acreage he still owns, the land 
 being divided between vineyard and alfalfa 
 fields. 
 
 Since 1899 Mr. Hancock has made his home 
 in Fresno, where he owns residence property on 
 N street. He is a member of the Fresno Cham- 
 ber of Commerce. In politics he votes with the 
 Democratic party. In 1898 he was nominated 
 for county tax collector by the Populists, en- 
 dorsed by the Democrats, and won the election 
 by a majority of three hundred and thirty. At 
 the expiration of his first term he was nomi- 
 nated by the Democrats for the same position 
 and elected by a majority of five hundred and 
 twenty-five. His wife, whom he married in 
 Fresno county, was formerly Alice Donahoo, and 
 was born in Iowa, whence she came to Califor- 
 nia in 1873 with her father, Peter Donahoo. The 
 six children of Mr. and Mrs. Hancock are as 
 follows: Clarence, a farmer of Fresno county; 
 Nellie, wife of Isaac Harris, of Fresno; Claude, 
 who is engaged in farming in Fresno county; 
 James L., a student in Fresno Business College; 
 Albert Sidney and Hattie Serena. 
 
 CHARLES LATHAM. Foremost among the 
 successful general farmers and fruit raisers of 
 the vicinity of Hanford is Charles Latham, a 
 man of varied experience in the west, who 
 crossed the plains in 1862, at the age of twenty- 
 one, bringing with him assets consisting chiefly 
 of a strong constitution and the reliable char- 
 acteristics of the sturdy families of New Eng- 
 land. He was born in Livingston county, 111., 
 May 17, 1841, a son of Lyman S. and grand- 
 son of Cyrus Latham, both of whom were born 
 in Connecticut, and were of English descent. 
 His mother was Mary A. (Gallup) Latham, 
 also born in Connecticut, and who died in Con- 
 tra Costa, Cal., at the age of eighty-four years. 
 Lyman S. Latham was somewhat of a wanderer 
 in early life, for after his marriage he removed 
 to Pennsylvania, and four years later to Illinois, 
 and in the spring of 1858 to Nebraska, locating 
 five miles from Omaha. He was one of the 
 earliest settlers in his county in the territory of 
 Nebraska, and lived there until the spring of 
 1862, when he made preparation to cross the 
 plains with his wife and children, equipped with 
 ox teams, provisions, and sufficient furnishing 
 to begin housekeeping in the west. The journey 
 was uneventful compared to that experienced by 
 
 earlier emigrants. Upon arriving in Cahfornia 
 they settled in Sutter county, west of Marys- 
 ville, where the father took up government land, 
 but later sold it and purchased land on the Sac- 
 ramento river. There he engaged in general 
 farming and stock raising until his death, at the 
 age of sixty-three. From a business standpoint 
 he was fairly successful, but he lost by reason 
 of his unsettled condition of mind, rarely stay- 
 ing in a place long enough to become thorough- 
 ly identified with it. He was a member of the 
 Presbyterian Church, and in politics was a Re- 
 publican. 
 
 Charles Latham was one in a family of eight 
 children, and his early advantages were such as 
 might be expected to fall to the lot of one in his 
 circumstances. He knew more of hard work 
 than of recreation or education, and whatever 
 of general knowledge has come his way has 
 been acquired through later application. In 
 1 86 1 and 1862 he was engaged in driving ox 
 teams in freight trains for Major & Russell from 
 Omaha to Denver, and during this period had 
 many exciting experiences on the plains. He 
 left the home ranch soon after reaching the 
 coast, and after three years of working by the 
 month on diflferent farms in Sutter county, 
 bought a squatter's right in that county and be- 
 gan to raise stock on a small scale. In time 
 he added to his property and finally had a 
 thousand acres, which he occupied and managed 
 until 1883. A sagacious business man, and ex- 
 cellent judge of stock, he made the most of his 
 opportunity, and upon disposing of his farm and 
 stock in the fall of 1883, realized a gratifying 
 profit. March 11, 1868, Mr. Latham married 
 Frances E. Wemple, a native of Schenectady 
 county, N. Y., who came to California in i860. 
 Of this union six children have been borij, of 
 whom Jennie is the wife of Richard Montgom- 
 ery, a rancher of Kings county; George is a 
 rancher in the same county; Fred C. is also en- 
 gaged in farming and stock raising in Kings 
 county; Mary A. is the wife of Oscar Railsback, 
 of Kings county ; Grace is the wife of Arthur R. 
 Raymond, of Los Angeles; and Hearold is as- 
 sisting his father on the home ranch. 
 
 After selling his stock ranch Mr. Latham went 
 to College City to educate his children, remain- 
 ing there five years, then purchasing his present 
 farm of one hundred and sixty acres, to which 
 he soon afterward added an equal amount of 
 land. Half of his land is under fruit and vines, 
 and the balance under alfalfa. He has also 
 rented four hundred and eighty acres three miles 
 southwest of Hanford for ten years, and from 
 this derives a substantial income, as it is all 
 under alfalfa. He has added to the original 
 improvements of his home farm, and now has 
 a valuable and productive property, and ample 
 
358 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 facilities for caring for his various products. 
 He has been interested in oil development in the 
 surrounding counties, and owns an interest in 
 the Knob Hill Oil Company, of Kern county. 
 Mr. Latham is a Republican in politics, but has 
 never held office, and fraternally is connected 
 with both the Masons and Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. He is a substantial, painstaking 
 man, thoroughly honorable in all of his deal- 
 ings, and of a pronounced public spirit. He 
 represents the type of strong, persevering, and 
 practical early settler who has laid the founda- 
 tion of the agricultural prestige of the coast. 
 
 WILLIAM GIBBINS URIDGE. Whatever 
 their nationality or previous environment the 
 citizens of Fresno are one in their admiration for 
 their home city and their faith in its possibilities. 
 Among all of them none is more loyal to the city 
 or more enthusiastic in its praise than William 
 G. Uridge, who has made his home in California 
 for a long period and has witnessed the gradual 
 development of local industries as well as the 
 steady growth of population. Of English birth 
 and lineage, his settlement in Fresno was some- 
 what an accident, but his continuance here is 
 from choice. He is a grandson of Henry Gib- 
 bins, who for many years and until his death 
 acted as vice-chairman of the board of directors 
 of the Prudential Assurance Company of Lon- 
 don, England, his successor now being Sir Henry 
 Harben, a cousin of Joseph Chamberlain, the 
 colonial secretary of England. 
 
 From the homestead of the Uridge family in 
 county Sussex, fifty miles south of London, Will- 
 iam G. Uridge started for the United States in 
 the spring of 18S5. Though intending to settle 
 in this country, he had no definite point in view. 
 While on shipboard he met a family en route 
 for California and from them he heard for the 
 first time concerning Fresno. On inquiring as 
 to the place, they drew an attractive word pic- 
 ture of comfortable homes surrounded by vine- 
 3'ards and fig trees lying within a sun-kissed val- 
 ley. Attracted by the description, he at once 
 resolved to visit the place, and May of 1885 
 found him investigating conditions and prospects 
 at Fresno. The favorable impression at first 
 formed has been deepened during his residence 
 here and he has found his liking for the city, 
 like good wine, increases with age. More than 
 ever before, he now believes in its great future. 
 While business and pleasure have caused him to 
 visit many parts of California, he still believes 
 Fresno to be the best county in the state. This 
 is not alone from the standpoint of a capitalist 
 seeking a field for investment, but he believes 
 the place to offer particularly great advantages 
 
 for a poor man, on account of the twenty-acre 
 system.. 
 
 As a member of the Chamber of Commerce 
 Mr. Uridge has been connected with various 
 movements for the benefit of the city. He is the 
 owner of real estate not only here, but also in 
 other parts of the county. Soon after arriving 
 here he bought a tract of raw land, which he 
 set out in a vineyard and then sold. Later he 
 bought another unimproved tract at Orangedale, 
 Fresno county, where he now owns one hundred 
 and twenty-six acres under cultivation to or- 
 anges. As an addition to Fresno he laid out 
 North Park and North Park Extension, com- 
 prising twenty acres altogether, all of which has 
 been sold out in town lots, and at this writing 
 promises to be the best residence part of the 
 city at no distant day. Besides his fruit inter- 
 ests he is connected with other enterprises. He 
 was one of the incorporators of the Central Cali- 
 fornia Redwood Company, and also the Western 
 Pacific Lumber Company, and is at this writing 
 president of both companies, being thus actively 
 associated with the building of the companies' 
 mills in Tulare county, east of Porterville, where 
 the companies engage in the manufacture of red- 
 wood and pine lumber. Another enterprise 
 which he assisted in incorporating is the Golden 
 Gate Brick Company, in which he holds the 
 office of president, and which has its plant at 
 Antioch, Contra Costa county. The company's 
 specialty is the manufacture of sand lime brick, 
 which is practically an artificial sandstone. 
 
 Reared in the faith of the Church of England, 
 Mr. Uridge is now connected with the Fresno 
 Episcopal Church and holds the office of senior 
 warden therein. Socially, he was one of the 
 organizers in the incorporation of the Sequoia 
 Club and is now its vice-president. Since be- 
 coming a citizen of the United States he has affil- 
 iated with the Republican party. He was mar- 
 ried in Fresno to Mildred, the daughter of John 
 Finnell, of Napa county, Cal. 
 
 PROF. J. N. SPROUSE. Occupying a fore- 
 most position among the educational institutions 
 of the San Joaquin valley is the Fresno Business 
 College, of which Prof. J. N. Sprouse is the 
 owner and proprietor. When he came to Fresno 
 in 1897 he was for a time connected with the 
 institution as principal of its commercial depart- 
 ment, but resigned in 1898 and opened Sprouse's 
 Commercial College. Two years later he pur- 
 chased the Fresno Business College and consoli- 
 dated the two institutions, which he has since 
 successfully conducted, having now an annual 
 enrollment of more than two hundred students in 
 the stenographic and commercial departments. 
 At the time -he purchased the college its enroll- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 359 
 
 ment was small and its indebtedness large, but 
 under his energetic and judicious management 
 debts have been paid, and the college occupies 
 well-lighted, commodious quarters, equal to any 
 business college on the coast. The six rooms 
 utilized by the college are furnished neatly and 
 comfortably, and supplied with all of the neces- 
 sary equipment for work. While a majority of 
 the students are from Fresno, there are also 
 many from different parts of the entire valley. 
 Positions are secured for students when they 
 have reached a point in their studies where they 
 can be recommended for accurate and reliable 
 work, and such has been the demand for clerical 
 help that a large majority of the students leave 
 before graduation to accept remunerative situa- 
 tions. In the shorthand department the Pitman 
 system is taught, and graduates are prepared to 
 take positions as private secretaries, amanuen- 
 ses, stenographic law clerks and court reporters. 
 Many of the stenographers now holding posi- 
 tions in Fresno received their training in the 
 college under the conscientious and efficient in- 
 struction of Mrs. Olive J. Sprouse, principal of 
 the shorthand and typewriting department. A 
 recent innovation is a course in advertising, a 
 new business, offering golden opportunities to 
 those who master it now. An expert advertiser 
 has been secured by the college, who instructs 
 the regular students in the science of advertis- 
 ing without extra cost to the pupils, except the 
 cost of necessary stationery. 
 
 Near Mount Vernon, 111., Prof. J. N. Sprouse 
 was born September 30, 1867, being the eldest 
 child of Rev. David and Millie (York) Sprouse. 
 His father, who was a native of Ohio, in an early 
 day accompanied his parents to Illinois and set- 
 tled on a farm in Jefferson county, where he 
 grew to manhood. During the Civil war he was 
 a member of an Illinois regiment and fought in 
 the memorable battle of Shiloh and the siege of 
 Vicksburg.^ On his return from the army he 
 took up farm pursuits, but also gave much time 
 and attention to the work of a minister in the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. From Illinois in 
 1876 he removed to Kansas and settled on a 
 farm in Butler county, where he remained for 
 some years. Since retiring from active cares 
 he has made his home at Southwest City, Mo. 
 He is a member of the Grand Army of the Re- 
 public. His wife, who was born near Nashville, 
 Tenn., grew to womanhood in Kentucky and is 
 still living. Of their five children, three are liv- 
 ing, J. N. being the only one on the Pacific coast. 
 He was nine years of age when the family set- 
 tled in Kansas and afterward aided in the clear- 
 ing of the home farm, also attended the high 
 school at Chetopa, of which he is a graduate. 
 In 1891 he taught a term of school, after which 
 he studied for a year in Park College at Park- 
 
 ville. Mo., later taking a course in the Wichita 
 Commercial College, from which he was gradu- 
 ated in 1893. Later he taught in the commercial 
 department of Soule College until 1897, when 
 he came to Fresno and has since been identified 
 with educational work in this city. The school 
 of which he is the head is located on the corner 
 of J and Tulare streets. 
 
 In Fresno Professor Sprouse married Miss 
 Jennie Sumner, who was born at Gold Hill, 
 Nev., and came to California with her father, 
 John M. Sumner, a pioneer rancher in Central 
 Colony, Fresno county. In religious connec- 
 tions Mrs. Sprouse is a Presbyterian. The fam- 
 ily residence stands three-quarters of a mile from 
 Fresno, where Prof. Sprouse bought twenty 
 acres of raw land and planted it in raisins, 
 peaches and figs. Since coming to this city he 
 has been initiated into the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows. Republican in politics, he is, 
 however, not a partisan, and has not identified 
 him«elf with political affairs. 
 
 WILLIAM R. McQUIDDY. As a practic- 
 ing attorney of Hanford, Kings county, Mr. Mc- 
 Quiddy is intimately associated with the legal 
 history of that section of California, where he 
 has made his home for many years. Born in 
 Coffee county, Tenn., April 8, 1849, he is a son 
 of Major Thomas J. McQuiddy, a sketch of 
 whose interesting pioneer life in California will 
 be found on another page of this volume. When 
 William R. McQuiddy was about one year old 
 the family took up their abode in Missouri, but 
 a few years later returned to Tennessee, this 
 time making their home in Bedford county. It 
 was in the common schools of Missouri and 
 Tennessee that William R. received his initial 
 training, and it was later his good fortune to 
 supplement the knowledge there gained by at- 
 tending Manchester College, in Manchester, 
 Tenn. When about nineteen years old he began 
 teaching school, following this congenial occu- 
 pation for the ensuing five years, or until 1874, 
 which year marks his arrival in California. Lo- 
 cating in the Mussel Slough district, Tulare 
 county, now a part of Kings county, he con- 
 tinued teaching for a time, and was later simi- 
 larly engaged in the neighboring county of Fres- 
 no and for three years was a member of the 
 board of examiners of Tulare county. 
 
 In 1880 Mr. McQuiddy discontinued teaching 
 and engaged in farming on one hundred and 
 sixty acres of railroad land located seven miles 
 northeast of Hanford. Not realizing his an- 
 ticipations in this direction, however, he sold 
 his farm three years later and moved to Han- 
 ford, which has since been his home. While 
 prosecuting a fairly successful business in the 
 
360 
 
 HISTORICAL AND IBIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 line of fire and accident insurance Mr. McQuiddy 
 began the study of law, and thus laid the foun- 
 dation upon which his present substantial prac- 
 tice has been built. For two terms he served as 
 justice of the peace and for two years as deputy 
 sheriff, serving the best interests of his con^ 
 stituents while occupying these positions, at the 
 same time keeping up his study of the law. His 
 indefatigable efforts were rewarded in 1893 by 
 his admission to> the bar of Kings county, which 
 has since been the field of his legal labors. 
 
 In 1872 Mr. McQuiddy was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Ida C. Putnam, and two years 
 later the young people came to California. Mr. 
 McQuiddy was one of the incorporators of the 
 Settler's Ditch Company, which was organized 
 to divert the water from Cross creek, and thus 
 enrich the surrounding country, which was very 
 dry and hence unprofitable from an agricultural 
 standpoint. The death of Mr. McQuiddy's first 
 wife occurred in 1874, and five years later, in 
 the fall of 1879, he was united in marriage with 
 Rebecca McMillan, a native of Louisiana, but 
 who was reared in Tennessee, in the vicinity of 
 Mr. McQuiddy's early home. Mr. and Mrs. 
 McQuiddy have two children, Inez, a graduate 
 of the state university at Berkeley, Cal., and 
 Edna R., a graduate of the high school at Han- 
 ford. 
 
 In his political sympathies Mr. McQuiddy 
 allies himself with the Prohibition party, stead- 
 fastly supporting its principles, and with his wife 
 attends the Christian Science Church, of which 
 they are both members. In May, 1903, Mr. Mc- 
 Quiddy was elected secretary of the Board of 
 Trade of Hanford, and for the past twenty years, 
 or ever sinc^ taking up his residence in Hanford, 
 he has been secretary of the People's Ditch Com- 
 pany, one of the most important factors in the 
 making of Kings county. In addition to the 
 varied interests already mentioned Mr. Mc- 
 Quiddy owns interests in oil lands, in which 
 venture he has been fairly successful. 
 
 _ SAMUEL L. HOGUE. During an early pe- 
 riod in the settlement of America the Hogue 
 family became identified with the history of Vir- 
 ginia. From that state the grandfather of Sam- 
 uel L. Hogue migrated to Illinois and settled in 
 Warren county, where he held the office of 
 sheriff at the time that Stephen A. Douglas was 
 circuit judge, and the two were warm friends. 
 Thomas Gibson Hogue, who was born while the 
 family lived in Virginia, spent his early man- 
 hood yearsin Illinois, but during the '60s came 
 to California. For a time he engaged in mining 
 and lumbering in Nevada county, and later was 
 similarly engaged in Fresno county, where he 
 died about 1893. During his active years he 
 
 was a prominent local worker of the Republican 
 party. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
 Mary Elizabeth Reed, was born in Kentucky 
 and died in Illinois, leaving four children. 
 Through her father, Richard Reed, a native of 
 Massachusetts, she traced her lineage back to 
 the Mayflower, while her mother was a member 
 of the Merrifield family, of southern lineage. 
 
 In the family of four children, all still living, 
 Samuel L. Hogue was the eldest. He was born 
 near Monmouth, 111., July 21, 1857, ^.nd in 1872 
 came to California to join his father. He was 
 then fifteen years of age, alert and ambitious to 
 make his own way in the world. For a time he 
 assisted his father in lumbering and mining, but 
 he made a specialty of shake-making and while 
 working at Pine Ridge he established a record 
 by splitting seven thousand shakes in ten hours. 
 Meanwhile, however, he had not neglected edu- 
 cational matters. In 1877-78 he attended the 
 San Jose Normal School, and later taught school 
 in Fresno county for five years, the last term 
 being principal of the Selma schools. As an 
 instructor he was painstaking, accurate and en- 
 ergetic, skillful in the imparting of knowledge 
 and a wise disciplinarian. 
 
 Ever since coming to Fresno county Mr. 
 Hogue has been more or less interested in poli- 
 tics. Loyal to the Republican party at all times, 
 he has been a leading local worker in its ranks. 
 The first Republican ticket placed before the 
 voters of Fresno county contained his name as 
 candidate for county auditor, but in those days 
 Reptiblicans were largely in the minority and- 
 he suffered defeat. Later he was elected justice 
 of the peace, serving four years in Selma and 
 two years in Fresno. His next position was that 
 of deputy county auditor under H. E. Barnum. 
 It is worthy of note that he has served as a 
 delegate to almost every county and state con- 
 vention since he attained his majority, and has 
 also been a leading member of the RepubHcan 
 state central committee, and identified with the 
 executive committee of the State League of Re- 
 publican clubs. For some years be acted as 
 secretary of the Fresno Board of Education, in 
 which capacity he proved a helpful factor in the 
 promoting of the city schools. March i, 1900, 
 he was appointed and commissioned deputy col- 
 lector of internal revenue, for which work he 
 was qualified by his experience as a special dep- 
 uty during the Spanish-American war. The 
 counties' included in his district are Tuolumne, 
 Mariposa, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Tulare, 
 Kings and Kern. His selection for this respon- 
 sible position gave satisfaction to the people of 
 Fresno, where he has a host of warm personal 
 friends in both parties. A man of fine physique, 
 he creates a favorable impression at first ac- 
 quaintance, and this invariably deepens into 
 
^Y ^' 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 363 
 
 esteem upon closer companionship. His meth- 
 ods in business and pohtics have ever been con- 
 scientious, upright and honorable, and his many 
 quiet acts of kindness prove him to be the pos- 
 sessor of a generous heart. 
 
 In 1881 Mr. Hogue married Effie H. Brown, 
 who was born in Yolo county, her father, J. W. 
 Brown, having crossed the plains from Illinois, 
 making the journey with a team of oxen and 
 settling in Yolo county. In the family of Mr. 
 Hogue there are two sons and two daughters, 
 Lassen E. ; James E. ; Hazel and Lucile. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Hogue was made a Mason in 
 Fresno Lodge No. 274, F. & A. M., of which 
 he has been secretary. In addition he is con- 
 nected with the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, and 
 Independent Order of Foresters, having offici- 
 ated as high vice-chief ranger of the latter organ- 
 ization. 
 
 HON. ELIAS JAMES EMMONS. One 
 of the most erudite and painstaking exponents 
 of legal science in Kern county is Hon. Elias 
 James Emmons, state senator, and since Janu- 
 ary, 1893, the recipient of an extensive patron- 
 age in Bakersfield. Mr. Emmons was born in 
 Greytown, Nicaragua, March i, 1859, his 
 father, William David Emmons, being at the 
 time a prosperous merchant of that city. The 
 elder Emmons was born and reared in Mis- 
 souri, but eventually became the victim of a 
 pioneering fever when the gold excitement in 
 Nicaragua was at its height. He took a more 
 practical view of the situation than did the 
 miners, and established a general merchandise 
 business, which in time more than verified his 
 glowing predictions. As became a man well 
 on the road to fortune, he established a home, 
 marrying in the South American republic 
 Elizabeth J. Miller, a native of the state of 
 Texas. Two children came to gladden the 
 home, Elias J. being the older. Henry Will- 
 iam, the younger, is now engaged in the oil 
 business in Bakersfield. The withdrawal of 
 the Vanderbilt Transit Line from Nicaragua 
 brought stagnation to business in that part of 
 the country, and Mr, Emmons was face to face 
 with financial ruin. With his wife and chil- 
 dren he came to California in 1862, but this 
 state, usually one of solace and rest for those 
 whose health has been undermined, failed to 
 perform its mission in his case, for he died 
 soon after locating in Vacaville, Solano county, 
 at the age of thirty-two years. 
 
 In 1864 the mother of Mr. Emmons married 
 again and removed to Antioch, Contra Costa 
 county, where the sons were educated in the 
 grammar school, but were permitted no further 
 
 educational advantages. Elias J. relieved his 
 parents of the necessity of supporting him at 
 an early age, accepting a position as clerk in 
 a law office in San Francisco, where he gained 
 his first insight into the intricacies of the sci- 
 ence. His taste and inclination glided into 
 this avenue of activity with perfect ease, and 
 in 1882 he was admitted to practice at the 
 bar of California. Locating at Chico, Butte 
 county, he practiced with an increasing clien- 
 tele until January, 1893, the date of his arrival 
 in Bakersfield. For a time he had as partner 
 F. M. Graham, later practicing alone, and in 
 1902 formed his present partnership with 
 Rowen Irwin. Many of the most important 
 cases in this and the adjoining counties have 
 been tried by Mr. Emmons, who is a sagacious 
 and practical lawyer, adhering always to the 
 highest tenets of his profession, and winning 
 patronage by the force of his character and the 
 sincerity of his motives. 
 
 Since attaining his majority Mr. Emmons 
 has taken a keen interest in Democratic poli- 
 tics, and in addition to minor offices was 
 elected to the state assembly in 1897, and to 
 the state senate in 1902. While living in 
 Chico he was united in marriage with Mar- 
 garet J. Wooden, a native of Vallejo, Cal., 
 and the mother of two children, Elias Carroll 
 and Edith June. In his rise to his present 
 prominent position Mr. Emmons has evi- 
 denced those strong and forceful characteris- 
 tics which are bound to win success over less 
 industrious competitors. 
 
 EDWIN LUTHER MOOR. In tracing 
 the causes which have led to the development 
 and present prosperity of California, the stu- 
 dent of history di^overs that the citizenship 
 of men from the states to the east has been 
 a leading factor in the results now visible. 
 Numbered among the business men of Merced 
 who, by excellent business judgment and un- 
 tiring energy, have contributed to the growth 
 of the city and county, mention belongs to Mr. 
 Moor, who came to the Pacific coast from 
 Michigan. The family which he represents 
 came originally from Scotland, but has been 
 established in America since a very early pe- 
 riod in the nation's history. His father, Ste- 
 phen, a native of Steuben county, N. Y., fol- 
 'iowed farming there and in Michigan. The 
 lady whom he married, Mary Ann Drake, was 
 born on the Hudson river, at Newpaltz, Ulster 
 county, N. Y., and died in Michigan. Through 
 her father, Gilbert Drake, a farmer, she traced 
 her lineage to an old colonial family allied to 
 the noted English family of that name. 
 
 In a family of thirteen children, all of whom 
 
364 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 attained mature years, and seven are still liv- 
 ing, Edwin Luther Moor was the youngest 
 in order of birth and is the only one to settle 
 in California. Three of his older brothers 
 were soldiers in the Civil war, Eli, Robert and 
 George, all of whom were members of Michi- 
 gan companies, and George died during the 
 period of his service. Near Tekonsha, Cal- 
 houn county, Mich., Edwin L. Moor was born 
 April 2, 1857. As a boy he alternated at- 
 tendance at school with work on the home 
 farm. In addition to a common school edu- 
 cation he had the advantage of a course of 
 study in Albion College. When eighteen 
 years of age he started out in the world for 
 himself, his first employment being that of 
 clerk, and later he became interested in a 
 fruit and shipping business. When he came 
 to Merced in 1891 he secured work by the 
 day in the Merced Grange warehouse, where, 
 through efiSciency and energy, he won a rec- 
 ognized position and was made assistant book- 
 keeper. At the expiration of two years he 
 went to Athlone as manager of a warehouse 
 owned by the company with which he had 
 been connected in Merced, and there he re- 
 mained for two years, later continuing for an- 
 other year with the company and in addition 
 buying grain on his own account. 
 
 On his return to Merced in 1896 Mr. Moor 
 embarked in the grain business, which he has 
 since conducted, buying through all parts of 
 Merced, Stanislaus and Madera counties, and 
 making shipments from his warehouse in this 
 city. In addition he engages in an insurance 
 and real estate business, with offices in the 
 Pedreira building, where he negotiates sales 
 of city property and farms, also secures loans 
 of nioney in sums large or small, as desired ; 
 and in the insurance line represents the North 
 American, German Alliance, Citizens of Mis- 
 souri, Aetna and Northwestern National. 
 Like all public-spirited citizens, he gives due 
 attention to matters affecting the political and 
 material welfare of the country. In political 
 views he is a pronounced Democrat, in whose 
 interests at one time he served on the county 
 central committee. The work of the Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian Church receives his foster- 
 ing aid, through his efficient service as a rul- 
 ing elder and member of the board of deacons, 
 and at one time he served as Sunday school 
 superintendent. While living in Calhoun 
 county, Mich., he married Miss Ellen L. John- 
 son, a native of New York state and a valua- 
 ble assistant to him in home, church and so- 
 cietJ^ Since coming to Merced he has allied 
 himself with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, and at one time officiated as noble 
 grand of the lodge in this city. Other organi- 
 
 zations with which he holds membership are 
 the Woodmen of the World, Beavers, Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen (in which he is 
 past m.aster workman), and Modern Wood- 
 men of America (in which he has held im- 
 portant official positions). Pleasant and gen- 
 ial in disposition, upright in character and 
 energetic in business affairs, he forms a dis- 
 linct and valuable addition to the citizenship 
 of Merced. 
 
 WALTER E. LILLEY, M. D. In the pro- 
 fessional circles of Merced county, W. E. Lil- 
 lev, M. D., occupies a position of importance 
 and influence, being one of the most active 
 and skillful physicians and surgeons of the 
 city of Merced. Noted for his keen intellec- 
 tual and merftal attainments and for his pro- 
 fessional knowledge and enterprise, he has 
 met Avith satisfactory results in his practice 
 of medicine and surgery, and since coming to 
 the Pacific coast has gained an extensive pat- 
 ronage throughout this part of California. His 
 office is on Main street, in the Barcroft build- 
 ing, where he also has a private sanitarium 
 and an operating room. His office is fitted up 
 with all the modern appliances and conven- 
 iences used by the profession, including an 
 electric static machine and an X-ray machine. 
 The doctor was' born November 5, 1866, in 
 Portland, Chautauqua county, N. Y., a son of 
 Abner Lilley. 
 
 Abner Lilley was born at Sandy Creek, N. 
 Y., but was bred and educated in Pennsyl- 
 vania, and was there engaged in business as 
 a lum.ber manufacturer and dealer during his 
 earlier life. Subsequently removing to Port- 
 land, he purchased land and was employed in 
 agricultural and horticultural pursuits until 
 his death, in 1890, aged eighty-three years. 
 He was twice married, by his first union hav- 
 ing five children, of whom two sons served 
 in the Civil war, and both were killed in bat- 
 tle, one being shot in the battle of Gettys- 
 burg. He married for his second wife, Olive 
 Pratt, daughter of William Pratt, a Pennsyl- 
 vania farmer. Six children were born of this 
 union, namely: Abner, living in Erie county, 
 Pa., a prosperous farmer; Henrv, engaged in 
 the fruit business in Westfield, N. Y. ; W. E., 
 the subject of this brief sketch ; Morris and 
 Charles, residents of Vermont ; and Frederick. 
 Frederick Lilley was graduated from the Col- 
 lege of Physicians and Surgeons in Baltimore, 
 Md., and subsequently engaged in the practice 
 of his profession in Merced, Cal., where he 
 died November 2, 1899, from blood poisoning 
 contracted while performing an operation. At 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.. 
 
 365 
 
 the time of his death he was serving as county 
 coroner and public administrator. 
 
 Acquiring a practical education in the pub- 
 lic schools, and being well trained in the vari- 
 ous branches of agriculture by his father, W. 
 E. Lilley remained at home until after attain- 
 ing man's estate, following the independent 
 occupation to which he was. reared. In 1890 
 he visited California, making a short stay in 
 San Diego. Returning east, he entered the 
 Baltimore Medical College, from which he 
 was graduated in 1894 with the degree of M. 
 D. The following year he practiced medicine 
 at Findley Lake, N. Y., and then located in 
 Barnard, Windsor county, Vt., where he built 
 up a large and successful practice, remaining 
 there three and one-half years. Coming to 
 California in December, 1899, Dr. Lilley con- 
 tinued his professional labors in Modesto for 
 six months, and then opened his present of- 
 fice and sanitarium in Merced. A close stu- 
 dent, ever ready to test the merits of new 
 medical or surgical discoveries, inventions or 
 appliances, he keeps abreast of the times in 
 regard to his profession and is numbered 
 among the foremost physicians and surgeons 
 of Merced coimty, his patronage being exten- 
 sive and lucrative. 
 
 In Chautauqua county, N. Y., Dr. Lilley 
 married, at Mayville, Miss Mabel Crossgrove, 
 a native of that city, and they have two chil- 
 dren, namely: Harold and Ivan. The doctor 
 is very prominent in medical organizations, 
 belonging to the State and to the American 
 Medical Associations ; to the San Joaquin Val- 
 ley Medical Society, of which he was formerly 
 president; and to the Merced County Medical 
 Society, of which he is secretary. In politics 
 he is a stanch supporter of the principles of 
 the Republican party. He is a member of the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is a 
 member and medical examiner of both the 
 Woodmen of the World and the Modern 
 Woodmen of America. In his religious views 
 he is a Baptist. 
 
 WILLIAM OSBORNE MOORE. Not 
 many years after the United States had 
 achieved independence, Jesse Hopkins Moore, 
 the son of a Revolutionary soldier, left his 
 home in North Carolina and took up a tract 
 of land in the newer country of Tennessee, 
 where he followed the life of a planter and 
 trader. The homestead that he built up be- 
 came the nucleus of a village, which was 
 named Mooresburg in his honor. Among his 
 children was a son, James Madison Moore, 
 who was born on the plantation at Moores- 
 burg, Tenn., in 1810, and remained a lifelong 
 
 resident of his native village, where he con- 
 ducted a general store and superintended a 
 plantation. The title of colonel, by which he 
 was always known, came to him through of- 
 ficial service in the Tennessee National 
 Guard. His death occurred in Mooresburg in 
 1859 when he was forty-nine years of age. In 
 his marriage to Mary T. Cobb he became con- 
 nected with an old-established Virginian fam- 
 ily, her grandfather having migrated from 
 that state to Tennessee, where he founded 
 Cobbsford on the Tennessee river ; and in that 
 vicinity her father, Jesse, a native of Tennes- 
 see, devoted his active years to the occupa- 
 tion of a planter. For more than twenty years 
 Mrs. Moore survived her husband, her death 
 occurring in Tennessee in 1881. In religious 
 belief she was a faithful adherent of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. Her family comprised six 
 sons and two daughters, namely : Hugh Alex- 
 ander, a cattle-raiser in Texas ; Jesse Hopkins, 
 a farmer in Texas and at this writing a com- 
 missioner of his county ; Carrie, Mrs. Will- 
 iams, who continues to reside at Mooresburg ; 
 J. M., a cattleman, who died in New Mexico ; 
 J. P., residing at San Antonio, Tex. ; Mrs. 
 Margaret Taylor, who died at Persia, Haw- 
 kins county, Tenn. ; William O., under sheriff 
 of Merced county, Cal. ; and Stephen A. D. 
 
 At the old homestead in Hawkins county, 
 Tenn., William O. Moore was born August 
 29, 1858, arid there he attended local schools 
 and St. Clair College. In the spring of 1876 
 he went to Missouri, joining his brother, J. 
 M., who was then engaged in the stock busi- 
 ness in Cass county. After three years he 
 went to Colorado at the time of the excite- 
 ment caused by the discovery of gold mines 
 at Leadville. For a time he prospected in the 
 San Juan country, but later entered the em- 
 ploy of Meyer, Simmons & Co., railroad con- 
 tractors, with whom he continued at mter- 
 vals until 1881. His next location was in 
 Utah, where he remained one winter, and then 
 traveled through Idaho, Montana and the 
 '' Northwest Territory. The year 1882 found 
 him at Spokane, Wash., and in 1883 he arrived 
 in Merced county, Cal., where he now makes 
 his home. For eleven months he was em- 
 ployed in teaming for C. H. Huffman, and 
 then became bookkeeper for Olcese & Gari- 
 baldi, with whom he continued for eleven 
 years and eight months. After one year with 
 R. Barcroft, January 5, 1903, he received the 
 appointment of under sheriff to John S. Swan, 
 since which time he has devoted his attention 
 to the duties of the office, doing much to assist 
 the sheriff in making this office one of the 
 best conducted in the entire state. From 1890 
 to 1892 he served as city clerk of Merced. In 
 
366 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1898 he was chosen secretary of the Demo- 
 cratic county central committee, holding the 
 position until 1900, since which time he has 
 acted as chairman of the committee, a posi- 
 tion of responsibility and one which he has 
 filled in a manner satisfactory to the leaders 
 of his party. In December, 1896, Governor 
 Budd appointed him secretary and a director 
 of the thirt5'-fifth district of the State Agri- 
 cultural Association, -to which office he was 
 again appointed four years later under the 
 administration of Governor Gage. Fraternally 
 he is associated with the Knights of Pythias, 
 Woodmen of the World and Modern AVood- 
 men of America. Domestic ties, established 
 at Merced in 1890, united him in marriage 
 with Miss Theresa Branson, who was born in 
 Mariposa county, her father, John Branson, a 
 native of Tennessee, having crossed the plains 
 to the Pacific coast in 1851 and for a time en- 
 gaging in mining, but later turning his atten- 
 tion to agricultural work. 
 
 BREWSTER S. GURNEE. The Gurnee 
 planing mill of Hanford, Kings county, takes 
 first rank among the substantial enterprises of 
 this thriving town, doing an annual business of 
 $60,000 in the manufacture of windows, doors, 
 moulding and bank fixtures of every description, 
 and in connection conducts a barley mill, prepar- 
 ing the grain for the market by the roller pro- 
 cess. Mr. Gurnee's identification with Hanford 
 dates from December, 1891, coming to the west 
 from New York City, where he had established 
 himself in a well-paying manufacturing business. 
 His present success, however, has not been 
 gained without discouraging experiences. In 
 addition to the mill which he established upon 
 Jocating in Hanford he also owned a fruit farm, 
 but during the panic of 1893-94 he lost both mill 
 and farm. In 1899, on borrowed capital, he 
 again became owner of the same mill and has 
 since been managing it with profit. The Gurnee 
 mill is one of the finest and best equipped plants 
 in the lower end of the San Joaquin valley and 
 the commodities manufactured have more than 
 a local reputation, finding their way into all 
 parts of the state. 
 
 Mr. Gurnee was born in Stony Point, Rock- 
 land county, N. Y., May 26, 1859, ^ son of 
 Walter F B. Gurnee and grandson of Mathew 
 Gurnee, both of whom were natives of New 
 York state, and could trace their ancestors to 
 the Pilgrim Fathers who came to this country 
 in the Mayflower. The former was a farmer 
 and also engaged in the manufacture of brick. 
 He served in the Civil war as a private for sixty 
 cays, when he was compelled to return home 
 on account of sickness, and died when about 
 
 fifty-five years of age. The mother of Mr. Gur- 
 nee, before her marriage Mary M. Smith, was 
 also a native of New York state, and is now 
 making her home in Rye, Westchester county, 
 N. Y., at the age of seventy-two years. 
 
 Until about eighteen )'ears old Mr. Gurnee 
 remained at home with his parents, attending 
 school and gaining a fair education as a start in 
 hfe, and at that age went out into the business 
 world. His first experience was in Washington, 
 N. J., where, with the Beaty Organ Company, he 
 began to learn the organ-maker's trade. After 
 mastering the trade he went to New York City 
 and found employment in a piano manufactory, 
 but within two years he was obliged, on account 
 of his wife's poor health, to relinquish the busi- 
 ness and seek a climate less harsh than that of 
 the east. LTpon coming to the west he first lo- 
 cated in Fresno, Cal., where after working in 
 a planing mill for about a year he became fore- 
 man in the large planing mill of M. R. Madary, 
 remaining in this capacity for about four years, 
 when he purchased a half interest in the busi- 
 ness. After two years of successful business 
 life there he sold his interest, in December, 1891, 
 and came to Hanford, with whose business and 
 social life he has since been identified. 
 
 While still a resident of the east Mr. Gurnee 
 was united in marriage with Eugenia A. Van- 
 Valer, a native of Stony Point, N. Y., and they 
 became the parents of five children, one of whom 
 died in infancy. Those living are: Mary, Min- 
 nie, Candace and Adelia, all of whom are at 
 home with their parents. The Republican party 
 claims Mr. Gurnee as one of its stanch allies, 
 although he has never been persuaded to hold 
 public office. He takes a deep interest in fra- 
 ternal affairs, belonging to Hanford Lodge No. 
 279, F. & A. M. ; Hanford Chapter No. 74, R. 
 A. M. ; Knights of Pythias, and Woodmen of 
 the World, all of Hanford, and to the Benevo- 
 lent Protective Order of Elks, of Fresno, Cal. 
 
 MRS. ANNA SILjMAN. The influence 
 wielded by Mrs. Silman, both as a teacher and 
 in her present' position as county superintendent 
 of schools has been of the highest importance in 
 the development of the schools of Merced coun- 
 ty. Possessing the tact, broad knowledge and 
 unerring sagacity of the true educator, in se- 
 lecting her life occupation she followed the bent 
 of her talents, and the high standing she has at- 
 tained in the profession proves her exceptional 
 fitness for the work of an instructor. During al- 
 most the entire time since she was four years of 
 age she has been in the schoolroom, either as 
 pupil or teacher, and in this period has become 
 thoroughly conversant with the true spirit and 
 aim of pedagogy. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGEAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 367 
 
 Bora in Platteville, Wis., Mrs. Silman is a 
 daughter of Moses and Sarah Ann (Borah) 
 Stewart, the former a native of county Down, 
 Ireland, and the latter born near Bowling 
 Green, Ky. Her father, Moses Stewart, came 
 to America at an early age and settled in Wis- 
 consm, where he engaged in general farming 
 and stock-raising near Platteville, and served 
 as a member of the county board of supervisors 
 there. The maternal grandfather, Samuel 
 Borah, was a member of an old Kentucky family 
 and died in that state. After the death of Moses 
 Stewart, which occurred near Platteville on his 
 farm, his widow came to California and spent 
 her last years in Merced county. Eleven chil- 
 dren were born of their union, eight of whom at- 
 tained mature years, and three reside in Stock- 
 ton, viz. : J. A. and E. C, who are business men 
 of that city, and Mrs. Gaines, a teacher. The 
 eldest of the children now living is Mrs. Sil- 
 man, who received her primary education in 
 grammar schools and later had the advantage 
 of study in the Platteville normal school. In 
 order to defray the expenses of an education she 
 began to teach in girlhood, using the money 
 earned to promote her work of preparation for 
 the teacher's profession. Where many thus sit- 
 uated would have been content with a common- 
 school education, she was satisfied only with the 
 most thorough education and aimed at the high- 
 est and best. With the advantage of a special 
 course in the Oshkosh normal school, she en- 
 tered upon the career of an educator. 
 
 At the time of coming to California in 1881 
 Miss Stewart was employed as principal of 
 schools in a Wisconsin town and for a time after 
 settling in the west she was engaged in teach- 
 ing in the Union school at Lathrop. At Stock- 
 ton, in 1883, she was married to L. H. Silman, 
 a widower with one daughter, Fannie, and by 
 their union a son, Stewart, was born. Mr. Sil- 
 man was born in Illinois and accompanied his 
 parents to California in boyhood. For a time he 
 was employed in driving stages in the San Joa- 
 quin valley and mountains, his route being in 
 Merced and Mariposa counties. For some years 
 past he has been engaged in stock-raising on 
 his farm ten miles south of Merced. In frater- 
 nal relations he is connected with the Masons, 
 Knights of Pythias and Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. 
 
 Since 1884 Mrs. Silman has made her home 
 in Merced. For fourteen years she was con- 
 nected with the grammar school of that city, first 
 as vice-principal and later as principal. In 1902 
 she was nominated on the Democratic ticket for 
 county superintendent of schools and was elected 
 by a majority of three hundred and twenty, tak- 
 ing the oath of office in January, 1903, for a 
 term of four years. Her entire attention is 
 
 given to the oversight of the schools, each of 
 which she visits at least once a year. In the 
 county there are sixty school districts and two 
 high schools, with eighty-five teachers engaged 
 in educational work. It is the ambition of Mrs. 
 Silman to promote the welfare of these schools 
 and so systematize and grade their work that 
 the pupils may make the most rapid yet thor- 
 ough advancement possible. Realizing that by 
 far the larger number of children receive no edu- 
 cational advantages except such as the common 
 schools afford, it is her aim to make these so use- 
 ful that boys or girls who have completed their 
 studies will be prepared for such responsibili- 
 ities as life may bring them. In religious faith 
 she is connected with the First Presbyterian 
 Church of Merced, and socially holds member- 
 ship in the Order of the Eastern Star. 
 
 LEVI LUKENS GILL. The standing at- 
 tained by L. L. Gill, one of Tulare county's prom- 
 inent and successful stockmen, is the result of 
 well-directed effort accompanied by ability and 
 energy. He was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, 
 June 23, 1837, the descendant of English ances- 
 try. His great-grandfather came to the United 
 States prior to the Revolutionary war, in which 
 he participated, and afterward became a pioneer 
 settler of Ohio, then the western border. His 
 son, John, was born in that state December 9, 
 1806, and in manhood followed farming in that 
 locality until his death. In his family was a son, 
 Samuel, who was a native of Pickaway coun- 
 ty, where he engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 for many years. He finally immigrated to Cali- 
 fornia, where his death occurred in 1887. His 
 wife, formerly Elizabeth Lukens, was a native of 
 Pennsylvania and the daughter of John Lukens, 
 also of that state, who became a farmer in Ohio, 
 where his death occurred. Of their three daugh- 
 ters and two sons Levi Lukens Gill, of this re- 
 view, was the oldest. 
 
 In the common schools of Ohio L. L. Gill re- 
 ceived his education, and after attaining years 
 of maturity he engaged in the stock business in 
 Ohio. For some years he bought and sold, traded 
 and shipped, as well as raised cattle for the mar- 
 kets, and met with a success in his work. In 
 1864 he removed to Iowa and located in Ring- 
 gold county and continued the same occupation 
 for nine years. He then came to California, and 
 located in Tulare county on the Yokohl' river, 
 homesteading and pre-empting land, and also 
 bought until he owned twelve hundred acres. 
 He followed the raising of stock in that locality 
 until 1883, when he bought twenty-four hun- 
 dred acres for stock purposes in Frazier valley. 
 Later he sold that property and in 1887 bought 
 that where he now makes his home. His home 
 
308 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ranch is also in Frazier valley, located six miles 
 northeast of Portersville, and consists of four 
 thousand acres all in one tract. This is justly 
 classed among the fine grain and stock farms in 
 Tulare county, and the success which Mr. Gill 
 has achieved since locating here has given him a 
 place among the representative citizens of the 
 community. 
 
 In Pickaway county, Ohio, in 1858, Mr. Gill 
 was united in marriage with Eliza A. Harriman, 
 a native of that state. Her father, Aaron Harri- 
 man, a native of New Hampshire, went to Ohio 
 at twenty years of age, and made that state his 
 home until his death. His wife, formerly Har- 
 riett Mitten, a native of South Charleston, Ohio, 
 also died in that state. He was a graduate of a 
 medical college of Cincinnati and practiced his 
 proiession for many years. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Gill were born the following children : Charles 
 Oscar, John Els worth (deceased), William, Fred, 
 Lewis, Julia, Proda, Frank, Levi, Mattie and Ora, 
 all of whom reside in the vicinity of their child- 
 hood's home. In his political convictions Mr. 
 Gill is a stanch Republican, and for many years 
 has served as school director. 
 
 HIRAM J. - WELLS. The rapid develop- 
 ment and growth of Fresno county as a fruit- 
 growing region has to a great extent enriched 
 many men by the increase in value of their lands 
 and productions. Prominent among the indi- 
 viduals who have been actively- identified with 
 this wonderful growth is Hiram J. Wells, a man 
 of enthusiastic zeal and ambition, who' has ac- 
 quired valuable tracts of land in this section of 
 the state, and is known as one of the most suc- 
 cessful vineyardists of Fresno county. A son 
 of Abram Wells, he was born October 26, 1866, 
 in Illinois. His grandfather, James Wells, and 
 his _ great-grandfather, Abram Wells, were both 
 natives of New York. The latter, a farmer by 
 occupation, served in the Revolutionary war, and 
 afterward settled on a farm in Delaware county, 
 N. Y., where he died at the age of fourscore 
 years. 
 
 Born and brought up in Delaware county, N. 
 Y.,_ James Wells succeeded to the occupation in 
 which he was reared, becoming a tiller of the 
 soil. Removing to Berrien county, Mich., in 
 1841, he bought land, and there continued gene- 
 ral farming until his death, in 1849. He mar- 
 ried Abigail Stearns, who was born in Pennsyl- 
 vania and died in Iowa, where she had removed 
 a few years after the death of her husband. Of 
 their family of ten children, four boys and six 
 girls, Abram was the sixth child. 
 
 A native of New York, Abram Wells was 
 born in Delaware county, February 2, 1835. Go- 
 ing with his parents to Michigan when a child, 
 
 he received his elementary education in the com- 
 mon schools, and at the age of seventeen years 
 entered the Kalamazoo Baptist College, which 
 he attended three years, when he was forced to 
 leave on account of ill-health. Going to Illinois 
 in i860, he bought land near Kirkwood, War- 
 ren county, where he resided eight years. Con- 
 tinuing his march westward, he settled in Os- 
 ceola, Clarke county, Iowa, in 1868, and was 
 employed in farming until 1873. Removing 
 thence to Redcloud, Neb., he resided there until 
 1890, when, with the John Brown colony, for 
 which he was traveling agent, he came to Cali- 
 fornia for the purpose of establishing a settle- 
 ment near Madera. Unsuccessful in the eflfort, 
 Mr. Wells bought eighty acres of land lying 
 two miles northeast of Selma, and has since re- 
 sided on the place. Going in debt for the ranch 
 when he bought it, he began raising fruit, vines 
 and alfalfa, having ten acres of trees, ten acres 
 of vines, and five of alfalfa, and has since 
 paid off the debt of $8,och3, and in 1901 erected 
 his present attractive residence. He married 
 Mary J. Wray, a native of Maryland, and they 
 have seven children, namely : Alma Rosalia, 
 wife of Frank Boran, of Kansas ; Cassius M., 
 of Nebraska ; George E., of Selma ; Hiram J., 
 the special subject of this sketch; Frank E., of 
 Selma ; Charles, of Del Rey, and Warren, of 
 Hanford, Cal. Mr. Wells' children are all mar- 
 ried, and he has thirty-three grandchildren. He 
 is a strong Prohibitionist, and is a member of 
 the Christian Church. 
 
 Going with his parents to Nebraska in 1869, 
 Hiram J. Wells received his rudimentary educa- 
 tion in Webster and Adams counties, completing 
 his studies at the college in Fairfield. Coming to 
 California with the John Brown colony in 1891, 
 he lived for ten months in what is now Madera 
 county. Removing to Fresno county in 1892 he 
 purchased forty acres of land lying two miles 
 northeast of Selma, along the line of the Center- 
 ville and Kingsburg ditch, and immediately em- 
 barked in fruit and vine growing, planting a 
 vineyard of five acres and an orchard of fifteen 
 acres, devoting the remainder of his ranch to 
 alfalfa. In the care of his land, he met with sig- 
 nal success from the start, and has since become 
 the owner of one hundred and forty acres of 
 land here. Three miles south of Fowler, Fres- 
 no county, Mr. Wells owns another ranch of 
 sixty acres, ten acres of which are planted to 
 vines and fifty acres to fruit trees, an estate that 
 he bought in 1902 ; he also owns an alfalfa ranch 
 of forty acres, which he bought in 1902, located 
 four miles northeast of Selma. He manages 
 his land so as to produce the best-paying crops 
 with the least outlay of money, and in addition 
 to caring for his own ranches superintends the 
 one hundred and sixty-acre ranch of J. M. Mer- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 369 
 
 rill, of San Francisco. As a vineyardist and 
 fruit-grower he is skillful and successful, and 
 has also had excellent success as an apiarist, at 
 the present time having eighty stands of bees. 
 
 On January 20, 1891, in Hastings, Neb., the 
 day previous to starting for California, Mr. 
 Wells married AUie Milner, a native of Iowa, and 
 they are the parents of three children namely : 
 Earl, Freddie and Walker. Politically Mr. Wells 
 is identified with the Republican party, sustain- 
 ing its principles by voice and vote. Fraternally 
 he belongs to Selma camp, W. of W. On the 
 ranch two miles north of Selma, Mr. Wells 
 erected a commodious residence in 1900, and 
 there he and his wife delight to entertain their 
 many friends and acquaintances. 
 
 ROBERT JINKENS COOPER. As an 
 energetic, industrious and thorough-going 
 business man, Robert Jinkens Cooper of Sel- 
 ma is intimately identified with the leading 
 industries of Fresno county. He is a native- 
 born son of California, and a worthy repre- 
 sentative of the sturdy agriculturists who 
 have so largely assisted in the material de- 
 velopment of the state, and who are drawing 
 from the soil the important elements of their 
 present prosperity. A son of Robert Bruce 
 Cooper, he was born March 8, 1858, in Cala- 
 veras county. 
 
 A native of Mississippi, Robert Bruce Coop- 
 er was born in January, 1822, living in that 
 state until eighteen years old. Going thence 
 to Texas, he was employed in agricultural pur- 
 suits in Harrison county for several seasons. 
 Coming, via Mexico, to California in 1850, he 
 worked in the mines for a few years, accumu- 
 lating some money, which he invested in land 
 near Milton, Calaveras county, where he im- 
 proved a small ranch. In 1889 he came to 
 Fresno county, making his home with his chil- 
 dren until he moved to Santa Cruz. He mar- 
 ried Alta Zara Lewis, who was born in Ar- 
 kansas and died in Calaveras county, Cal., in 
 1871. Of their union five children were born, 
 namely: Samuel B. of Fowler, Cal.; Joseph 
 H. of Selma ; Mary, wife of Frank Cleary, who 
 is engaged in the oil business and resides in 
 .Santa Cruz; Robert J., the subject of this 
 sketch; and Henry E., residing in Fresno 
 county. 
 
 Brought up on a farm and educated in the 
 cornmon schools, Robert J. Cooper became a 
 resident of Fresno county in 1875. Searching 
 for a favorable location, he bought his present 
 ranch of forty acres, situated about one mile 
 northeast of Selma, and at once began its 
 improvement. By persevering labor and wise 
 
 management, he has met with most satisfac- 
 tory results in farming, having now a good- 
 yielding vineyard of eighteen acres and an ex- 
 cellent orchard of fourteen acres, while the 
 remainder of his ranch is used in raising al- 
 falfa. His land is fertile and productive, be- 
 ing well watered by the Centerville and 
 Kingsburg ditch, which he assisted in build- 
 ing. In 1890 Mr. Cooper moved to a ranch 
 ten miles west of Paso Robles, San Luis 
 Obispo county, where he engaged in raising 
 grain for a period of five years, after which 
 he returned to Selma. He has other interests 
 of financial value, being a stockholder in the 
 two diflferent oil companies operating in Coal- 
 inga, Cal. 
 
 On December 24, 1883, in Visalia, Cal., Mr. 
 Cooper married Kate L. Mann, who was. born 
 February 19, 1864, in Contra Costa county, 
 Cal. Her father, Elson Mann, was born in 
 Indiana, and was one of the pioneers of Cali- 
 fornia, coming across the plains from Mis- 
 souri Avith the gold hunters of 1849. After 
 mining for a few years, he settled in HoUis- 
 ter, San Benito county, and lived there until 
 1 881, when he moved to Tulare county. Com- 
 ing to Fresno county in 1896, Mr. Mann re- 
 sided here until 1901, when he removed to 
 his present home in Santa Rosa, Sonoma 
 county. He is a veteran of the Mexican war, 
 having enlisted in 1846, under Colonel Doni- 
 phan. 
 
 JOSEPH BARCROFT. Both through his 
 intimate association with the Republican party in 
 Madera county and through his efficient service 
 in the office of justice of the peace, Mr. Barcroft 
 has become well known to the people of this part 
 of California. Few men of his party are better 
 posted than he concerning its history, its princi- 
 ples and the platform upon which it stands, and 
 he is therefore qualified to take a leading posi- 
 tion in matters relative to its local organization 
 and management. In 1900 he was chosen secre- 
 tary of the Republican county central commit- 
 tee and continued to hold that responsible posi- 
 tion until 1902, meanwhile accomplishing much 
 in the interests of the party. 
 
 The genealogy of the Barcroft family ap- 
 pears elsewhere in this volume, in the sketch 
 of Fred Barcroft, a brother of the subject of 
 this article. Their parents, R. W. and Rafila 
 (Orosco) Barcroft, were natives respectively of 
 Cadiz, Ohio, and southern Arizona, the latter be- 
 ing of Spanish family. The homestead was at 
 Hornitos, Mariposa county, Cal., and there Jo- 
 seph Barcroft was born June 27, 1870. The days 
 of his boyhood and youth were quietly and un- 
 eventfully passed in attendance upon local schools. 
 
370 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 When he came to Madera, in August of 1887, 
 he entered his brother's store and there acquired 
 a practical knowledge of the hardware business. 
 Feeling, however, that his education was incom- 
 plete, he resigned his position and entered Chest- 
 nutwood Business College at Santa Cruz, where 
 he took the regular course of study. On leaving 
 college he again took up work in his brother's 
 store and continued in the same position (with the 
 exception of two years in the mines of Mariposa 
 county) until he was elected justice of the peace. 
 His election to this office occurred in November, 
 1902, when he was chosen to serve for the third 
 township of Madera county, and received a ma- 
 jority of eighty-one. January 5, 1903, he took 
 the oath of office for a term of four years. Four- 
 fifths of all the cases in the county come before 
 him and his court, which occupies a room in the 
 county court-house, is in session all of the time. 
 As a justice he is strictly impartial, efficient and 
 painstaking, and his service has been eminently 
 satisfactory to all concerned. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Barcroft was solemnized 
 in his native town of Hornitos and united him 
 with Harriet Collins, who was born and reared 
 in that city, being the daughter of English par- 
 ents who came to California in an early day and 
 bore a part in the pioneer development of the 
 state. Justice Barcroft, with his wife and their 
 two children, David and Isabella, occupy a com- 
 fortable home in Madera and are respected 
 throughout the entire circle of their acquaint- 
 ances. 
 
 WILLIAM S. FOWLER, M. D. Conspicuous 
 among the active and able physicians and sur- 
 geons of Bakersfield is William S. Fowler, M. 
 D., who has had a wide and most successful pro- 
 fessional experience. Although now engaged in 
 the general practice of medicine, he has made a 
 special study of diseases of the eye, ear, nose 
 and throat, and is considered an authority on all 
 questions connected with the treatment of these 
 delicate organs. A native of Connecticut, which 
 was also the birthplace of his father, Edwin 
 Fowler, he was born April 28, 1857, in Guilford, 
 New Haven county, coming from substantial 
 New England ancestry. 
 
 Having acquired his elementary education in 
 the district schools of his native town, William 
 S. Fowler subsequently attended the grammar 
 and high schools of New Haven. He afterward 
 learned the machinist's trade in that city and 
 for a short time thereafter worked as a jour- 
 neyman On attaining his majority, he went to 
 New \ork City, where he entered the store of 
 a manufacturing jeweler, hoping to learn the 
 business. Beginning in the very lowest position, 
 he served first as janitor and clerk, gradually 
 
 working himself upward, and at the end of two 
 years was put on the road as commercial sales- 
 man, and in the nine years that followed he 
 traveled extensively throughout the Union. Dur- 
 ing this time he stored his mind with a useful 
 fund of knowledge by reading and observation. 
 Subsec[uently locating in Chicago, 111., Mr. Fow- 
 ler began the manufacture of , spectacles on a 
 large scale, borrowing $20,000 to start with. 
 Three years later, when owing to business de- 
 pression his debtors were unable to pay their 
 bills, he was forced to fail, his liabilities amount- 
 ing to $360,000. Turning the business over to 
 his brother, he continued with him as a clerk, 
 and at the same time read medicine, making a 
 special study of ophthalmology that he might 
 treat diseases of the eye, and fit spectacles to their 
 patrons, he and his brother being the first to 
 make compound lenses in the west. Entering 
 then the College of Physicians and Surgeons, he 
 was graduated in 1885, standing fifth in a class 
 numbering eighty-five students. Subsequently Dr. 
 Fowler was a special teacher of ophthalmology 
 in two watch factory schools, and an assistant 
 teacher in the post-graduate class of the medical 
 college for two years. The following two years 
 he spent in traveling with his wife, who was an in- 
 valid. Finally locating in Wheeling, W. Va., he 
 remained there as a physician for a few months, 
 continuing in practice until the death of his 
 wife. Returning to Chicago the year of the 
 Columbian Exposition, Dr. Fowler practiced 
 there as an eye specialist for four years. 
 
 Coming to California "in 1897, Dr. Fowler 
 bought a citrus fruit ranch of seventy-six acres 
 near Ventura, and began tiie cultivation of 
 lemons and oranges. The water supply giving 
 out at the end of six months, he resumed the 
 practice of his profession, opening an office in 
 Ventura, where his friend, Dr. Cephas L. Bard, 
 was located, and devoted his entire attention to 
 diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. Re- 
 rnoving to Bakersfield in 1901, the doctor con- 
 tinued his special work until May, 1903, when 
 he purchased the good-will and practice of Dr. 
 T. E. Taggart, and has since devoted his at- 
 tention to the treatment of diseases of all kinds. 
 
 Dr. Fowler married May Bogardus, who died 
 in West Virginia. His second wife was Laura 
 Nye, a native of Ohio. Politically the doctor is 
 a stanch advocate of the principles promulgated . 
 by the Democratic party, and though not an 
 aspirant for public honors is now serving as 
 health officer for Kern county. He is an active 
 inember of various medical associations, includ- 
 ing the San Joaquin and the Kern County, of 
 which he is also secretary, and the American, the 
 State, and the Southern California societies. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Bakersfield Lodge 
 No. 266, B. P. O. E. ^ 
 
CICERO M. BATES 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 373 
 
 DR. CICERO McLEAN BATES. The death 
 of Dr. Cicero McLean Bates, November i8, 1898, 
 at his beautiful country seat near Fresno, termin- 
 ated a career of exceptional usefulness, and one 
 in which heart, brain and keen understanding 
 were unfalteringly utilized in an efifort to estab- 
 lish the highest possible professional and sanitary 
 standards in the state of California. While his 
 presence in the mining camps was a boon for the 
 motley crowds assembled to wrest wealth from 
 the earth, his name will be more emphatically 
 associated with the early professional history of 
 San Francisco, where his record, from the stand- 
 point of actual good accomplished and zeal in 
 the prosecution of many salient reforms, had no 
 equal at the time and place. 
 
 A son of Ezekiel Bates, he was born in Cleve- 
 land, Tenn., August 15, 1831, and was educated 
 in the public schools, at O'Clare Academy and 
 Hiawassa College, his professional training be- 
 ing received at Jefferson Medical College, Phila- 
 delphia, from' which he was graduated in the 
 class of 1850. Returning to Tennessee, he en- 
 gaged in practice for a number of years, in the 
 meantime chafing in an atmosphere stagnant to 
 one of his force and determination. Disposing 
 of his interests in Tennessee, he arrived in San 
 Francisco November 14, i860, at once going to 
 Nevada City, then the most active center of min- 
 ing in the state. Success came to him from the 
 start, and in an atmosphere foreign to his culture 
 and refinement he accumulated wealth, and was 
 glad of the ambition which had led him to the 
 Pacific coast. The fire of 1865, which practical- 
 ly laid Nevada City in ashes, devoured about all 
 that he had in the world, and in 1868 he re- 
 turned to San Francisco, where, with character- 
 istic forgetfulness of past trouble, he threw him- 
 self into the vortex of its crude and varied ac- 
 tivity. His mind was too practical and far-reach- 
 ing to content itself with a practice which aston- 
 ished even himself with its rapid growth, and he 
 began to look around to better the condition of 
 those who were too intent upon money-getting 
 to have any thought for sanitation or laws of 
 health. He took upon himself the task of draw- 
 ing up a bill providing for extensive sanitary im- 
 provements, and through his vigorous deter- 
 mination secured its passage in the legislature of 
 1870. Upon the organization of the state board 
 of health, he was elected the first health officer, 
 holding the position four years, and during that 
 time working wonders in his department. In the 
 face of all manner of opposition, and even after 
 , personal threats had been directed against him, 
 he unfalteringly strode to his goal, enforcing all 
 of the ordinances, and maintaining the most 
 rigorous oversight of sewerage and general 
 health conditions. His sense of justice was 
 aroused from the- fact that many charlatans made 
 
 the town a Mecca, and he accordingly presented 
 a resolution to the San Francisco Medical So- 
 ciety, petitioning it to appoint a committee to 
 draft a bill for the legislature, regulating the 
 practice of medicine in the state of California. 
 The bill met with the approval of the society, and 
 Dr. Bates was made chairman of the committee, 
 and, with the late Dr. Henry Gibbons, drafted the 
 bill which became a law April 3, 1876. He was 
 a member of the state board of health for six 
 years, and for two years was its chairman. Sub- 
 sequently he was elected to the chair of clinical 
 practice in- the Toland Medical Institute, was ap- 
 pointed visiting physician to the City and County 
 and St. Luke's hospitals. He also was commis- 
 sioner oi the insane for several years, and for a 
 long period served as visiting physiciafi to the 
 Hebrew Orphan Asylum of San Francisco. 
 
 In 1882 Dr. Bates' health began to fail, so 
 earnestly and self-sacrificingly had he striven to 
 better the conditions of those around him. Com- 
 pelled to give up practice, he visited many re- 
 sorts in search of the boon of health, and finally 
 found, at Highland Springs, Lake county, Cal., 
 that which he desired. Recovering, he purchased 
 the place and installed himself as manager, and 
 under his wise rule it became one of the foremost 
 health resorts in the state. In 1888 he sold the 
 property and purchased the place now occupied 
 by his wife, four and a half miles southeast of 
 Fresno, on North avenue. From time to time he 
 invested in city property, but disposed of the 
 same as the market seemed to warrant. His 
 home place of eighty-six acres supplied the work 
 and interest whicla his enthusiastic nature craved, 
 and he made of it as nearly an ideal country home 
 as exists in Fresno county. About sixty acres 
 were set out in raisin grapes, twenty in Zinfandel 
 grapes and he had two hundred and fifty orange 
 trees. 
 
 Dr. Bates was united in marriage in Tennessee 
 with Virginia Ernest, and of this union there 
 are two surviving children : Fred L. Bates, now 
 in the Klondike, and Dr. Walter E. Bates, a 
 practicing physician and surgeon of Woodland, 
 Cal. Two children are deceased : Kittle, a gradu- 
 ate of Mills College, who died at the age of 
 eighteen, and Cicero, who died when four years 
 old. For his second wife Dr. Bates married Mrs. 
 Eusebia (Reynolds) Worth, widow of William E. 
 Worth, a native of Albany, N. Y., and the 
 founder of the Fulton Iron Works of San Fran- 
 cisco. When his health began to fail his wife 
 established, on Rincon Hill, San Francisco, the 
 Worth house, the first select family hotel to be 
 opened in San Francisco, and received the patron- 
 age of the leading people of the Pacific Slope. 
 Mrs. Bates was born in Binghamton, N. Y., and 
 is a woman of keen intelligence. She finds her 
 greatest pleasure in keeping in good order the 
 
374 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 delightful home which speaks so eloquently ol 
 her gifted husband. So extensive are her hold- 
 ings, now including one hundred and ninety acres, 
 that she employs a foreman and from five to ten 
 men the year round. 
 
 Too much cannot be said of the high moral 
 character of Dr. Bates, nor of his prominerice 
 among the mental giants who helped to establish 
 law and order on the western slope. In keeping 
 with his brain and heart, his physique vvas large 
 and commanding, and his manner dignified and 
 reassuring. He was too generous and disinter- 
 ested to accumulate a large fortune, for he found 
 it impossible to turn a deaf ear to an appeal 
 which seemed to him just and worthy of his help. 
 One of his finest traits was his loyalty to friends, 
 and it is recalled that he once said : "I would 
 scale a burning mountain barefoot to serve a 
 friend." He was a Mason and Knight Templar, 
 and a man of pronounced social tendencies, being 
 a good story teller and a wonderful inspiration 
 in a sick room. His knowledge of medical and 
 surgical science was exhaustive and clear, and 
 he invariably maintained the best tenets of his 
 absorbing and ever-widening profession. 
 
 ABNER BUEL CROWELL. Persistent ap- 
 plication of intelligent methods of energy and re- 
 source are requisites indispensable to the man 
 who would become, and remain, a success. This 
 truth has been illustrated in the career of Abner 
 B. Crowell, who carried to a financial triumph 
 an enterprise, and which awaited but the touch 
 of his well directed energy to make of it a sub- 
 stantial factor in the community. Reference is 
 made to the Hanford cheese factory, which rep- 
 resents ten years of Mr. Crowell's life work, 
 and which, during its time of greatest prosperity, 
 did more to advertise Hanford and vicinity than 
 any other enterprise. When Mr. Crowell first 
 took charge of the factory he found failure writ- 
 ten on its books and little promise of its better- 
 ment in the future. From the start it flourished 
 under his management, and the Hanford Cheese 
 Manufacturing Company, with himself as man- 
 ager, was conducted under the most auspicious 
 circumstances. The new management ascer- 
 tained and profited by the pitfalls of its prede- 
 cessors, added new machinery, depended upon 
 the best possible materials for manufacturing, 
 and soon established a reputation for its prod- 
 ucts second to none in the state. Later he ac- 
 quired a controlling interest in the concern and 
 he continued his policy of improvement, opening 
 every avenue for the making and distribution 
 of a thoroughly high-class article. While fac- 
 tories in Kings and adjoining counties were los- 
 ing prestige because of want of patronage, the 
 Hanford factory was turning out from two hun- 
 
 dred to four hundred pounds of cheese a day, 
 and shipping it not only to cities throughout the 
 state, but as far east as Chicago. Mr. Crowell 
 made cheese-making his constant , study, and ex- 
 erted every nerve to build his business up to the 
 highest possible standard. It was while his ex- 
 pectations were being realized in a most gratify- 
 ing manner that the factory burned to the ground 
 August 6, 1903, and the labor of years was 
 brought to an abrupt termination. Neverthe- 
 less his effort stands forth as one of success and 
 importance, and its influence upon the growing 
 fortunes of the community cannot be overesti- 
 mated. It represents the greatest ambition in 
 the life of a good and capable man, and that he 
 succeeded in its fulfillment gives evidence of the 
 possession of those traits most needed and ap- 
 preciated in the business world. 
 
 In reviewing the earlier life of Mr. Crowell it 
 is found that he is of English extraction and a 
 member of an early Massachusetts family, in 
 which state his paternal grandfather, Samuel 
 Crowell, was born. This sire served with credit 
 in the war of 1812, and in time moved to Vir- 
 ginia, where he owned and operated a farm. 
 After setthng in Sandusky county, Ohio, he led 
 a typical pioneer existence for many years, find- 
 ing upon his arrival Indian trails instead of 
 roads, and wigwams instead of the huts of the 
 settlers. His own was one of the first houses 
 in the county, and he was obliged to hew down 
 timber in order to erect it. His public spirit 
 led him to work for the Whig cause in his 
 adopted state, and he served the county as sheriff 
 for two terms. His son, John M., the father of 
 Abner, was bom in Virginia, and was a boy of 
 tender years when the family emigration to Ohio 
 took place. His education was acquired in the 
 public schools and at an academy which num- 
 bered among its students ex-President Ruther- 
 ford B. Hayes. His marriage in Sandusky 
 county with Ann Thraves gave him an added 
 incentive to make a success of his life, and he 
 continued his farming operations with the as- 
 sistance of a practical wife. The oldest child 
 in his family, Abner B., was born March 9, 1849, 
 and m 185 1 John M. Crowell came to Califor- 
 nia to investigate the prospects, and for a time 
 combined mining and merchandising in Yuba 
 and Eldorado counties. So well was he pleased 
 with the climate and opportunities of the west 
 that he returned east for his family in 1855, and 
 thereafter continued his former occupations in 
 Yuba county until 1865. He then went to the 
 Hawaiian Islands and engaged in the sugar in- 
 dustry until shortly before his death in 1881, at- 
 the age of fifty-five years. His was a strong 
 and forceful character and left the impress of 
 his individuality in the community where he re- 
 sided. He had gained courage and fearlessness 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 375 
 
 during service in the Mexican war, in which he 
 gained the rank of corporal, and he was always 
 outspoken in his opinions upon general subjects 
 of the day. He represented Yuba county in the 
 state legislature for one term, and served as as- 
 sociate judge for several years. Fraternally he 
 was connected with the Masons. He had one 
 son and two daughters, the youngest daughter, 
 Lizzie, being the widow of Eugene Covey of 
 San Francisco; and Mary is the wife of John 
 R. Kennedy of Camptonville, Cal. 
 
 Abner B. Crowell was six years old when he 
 came to California, and nineteen when he re- 
 turned to Fremont, Ohio, to attend school, his 
 fellow students including the sons of ex-Presi- 
 dent Hayes. After conipleting his education he 
 spent a winter in Indiana and one in Ohio, and 
 after returning to California taught school in 
 Yuba, and the adjoining counties, being one of 
 the pioneer educators of this part of the state. 
 'When he arrived in Grangeville, now in Kings 
 county, but then in Tulare county there was as 
 yet no sign of Hanford, or of a railroad, or other 
 signs of human activity not purely pastoral. For 
 a term and a half he taught school in Grange- 
 ville, and in 1873 took up his present farm of 
 one hundred and sixty acres, which, at that time, 
 was a dreary and unpromising property. There 
 were scarcely any settlers for miles around, and 
 only two within sight of his farm, and a deal of 
 work was required to render it homelike, pleas- 
 ant or profitable. In this he was ably assisted 
 by the wife whom he married May 3, 1874, and 
 who was formerly Mary Kanawyer, a native of 
 Iowa, and a daughter of Peter Kanawyer, who 
 was born in Indiana. The Kanawyer family 
 came to California in 1869, settling near Grange- 
 ville, where Mr. Kanawyer bought railroad land, 
 and became a prominent rancher' of the district. 
 He was one of the supporters and originators of 
 the People's Ditch, and assisted in the building 
 of this important waterway! Mr. Crowell also 
 became interested in the great ditch, contributing 
 his share of money and personal effort toward 
 its building. In time he bought the cheese fac- 
 tory previously mentioned, managing and con- 
 trolling it in connection with the cultivation of 
 his home property. At the sarnie time he has 
 been prominent in politics, and especially for- 
 ward in educational matters, serving as a director 
 of the Hanford Union High School since its 
 organization, and as president of the board four 
 years. He was also trustee of the school dis- 
 trict one term. He is fraternally connected with 
 the Masons. Nine children have been born into 
 the Crowell household, of whom Letus N., an 
 attorney in Hanford, and Alvin, who died at the 
 age of twenty-two years in 1900, were both 
 graduates of the law department of the Uni- 
 versity of California. Charles C. is a farmer 
 
 near Turlock, Cal. ; Leo C. is a cheese-maker by 
 trade, in the employ of the San Joaquin Ice Com- 
 pany ; Arthur G. is a farmer near Turlock, Cal. ; 
 Mary is a student at the State University of 
 California; and Lizzie, Clarence V. and Beulah 
 are living at home. Mr. Crowell is engaged in 
 general farming, dairying and stock-raising, and 
 has about one hundred and twenty acres under 
 alfalfa. He prefers Holstein cows, and his 
 dairy contains about fifty of this reliable breed. 
 He is one of the most highly honored of the 
 early settlers of Kings county, and has been one 
 of its most interested and helpful upbuilders. 
 His faith in its future was but recently indicated 
 anew by his purchase of another farm of three 
 hundred and fifty acres in Stanislaus county, 
 which is worth about $60 an acre. Thus has he 
 traveled the weary way of the pioneer, and the 
 prosperous way of the successful business man 
 of to-day, turning his opportunities to good ac- 
 count, and impressing his worth upon a com- 
 munity educated partially through his efforts 
 to a high standard of moral and financial well 
 being. 
 
 ANDREW J. WELLS. Although a resi- 
 dent of California for almost a quarter of a 
 century, .A. J. Wells is united by close ties to 
 West Virginia, for it was in that state that 
 he was born August 3, 1851. His father, the 
 late Benjamin Wells, whose recent death in 
 1902 deprived California of one of her most 
 successful agriculturists and esteemed citizens, 
 was born seventy-five miles from the city of 
 Wheeling, W. Va. A son of John Dusty 
 Wells, of Virginia, he wedded Miss Teresa 
 Conaway, a native of the same state. By oc- 
 cupation a millwright and an expert in his 
 line, Mr. Wells ran a mill in the east until 
 1880 and then came to the Pacific coast coun- 
 try. 
 
 The first year of his residence in California 
 was spent in Solano county, and the follow- 
 ing year he took up his residence in Fresno 
 county, purchasing at that time (1881) one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land near Del Rey, 
 and here it was that he spent the remainder 
 of his life busily engaged in the cultivation of 
 his land. At the time of his demise he had 
 attained the advanced age of seventy-nine 
 years, and of his children three are still liv- 
 ing, namely, Andrew J. ; Alfred ; and Emma, 
 the latter two residents of Virginia. 
 
 Reared and educated in his native state, 
 Andrew J. Wells accompanied his father to 
 California and spent a couple of years in 
 ranching in Tulare county, prior to settling 
 permanently upon the place he now occupies 
 in Fresno county. Purchasing eighty acres, 
 
376 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 six miles to the southeast of Sanger, he plant- 
 ed extensive orchards and vineyards. He has 
 thirty-five acres in vines and twelve acres are 
 devoted to other fruits, the balance of his 
 farm being used in producing alfalfa and 
 cereals. The marriage of Mr. Wells took 
 place in West Virginia in 1880, and united 
 him with Miss Elizabeth Underwood, of West 
 Virginia. Four children blessed their union, 
 Florence E., Emery A., Bessie R. and Frank 
 R. Mr. Wells is an intelligent and public- 
 spirited citizen and is highly respected in his 
 community. Like his father in politics, he is 
 a firm supporter of the Republican party. 
 
 JOHN Q. DRUMMOND. Distinguished 
 alike as an early pioneer of California, and as 
 one who has been actively and prominently as- 
 sociated with the wonderful growth and develop- 
 ment of this grand commonwealth, John Q. 
 Drummond, of Ingomar, holds an honored posi- 
 tion among the esteemed and valued residents of 
 Merced county. A man of sterling character and 
 worth, he has won well-deserved success in his 
 active career through his own ability, wise man- 
 agement and honest dealings, and the respect in 
 which he is held by all gives evidence of his 
 upright and manly life. A son of Andrew Drum- 
 mond, he was born June 20, 1827, in Licking 
 county, Ohio, of substantial ancestry. 
 
 Born and reared in Pennsylvania, Andrew 
 Drummond became an early settler of Ohio, and 
 for a number of years was engaged in farming 
 in Licking county. Removing to Illinois in 1838, 
 he took up land in Ogle county, and there pur- 
 sued his chosen vocation until his death. He 
 married Elizabeth Lutzenhizer, who was born 
 in Pennsylvania, and died, at the age of sixty 
 years, in Illinois. She bore him eleven children, 
 five of them being boys, and of these John Q. 
 was the sixth child in order of birth. 
 
 John Q. Drummond acquired a practical edu- 
 cation in his native district, attending school in 
 the little log cabin, with its customary puncheon 
 floor, shake-covered roof, and slab benches. Set- 
 tling in Ashton, Lee county, 111., when a young 
 man, he was there successfully employed for a 
 time as a merchant and grain dealer. In 1850 
 he came to California with the gold seekers, 
 crossing the plains with ox-teams, and being six 
 months en route. Locating in Eldorado county, 
 he worked in the Georgetown mines for nine 
 years, meeting with average sutcess. Then, 
 after making a visit in Illinois, he located in 
 Sacramento, and for three years was engaged in 
 freighting to the Washoe mines, in Nevada, and 
 while thus employed hauled the first battery for 
 crushing ore used in Virginia City, an under- 
 
 taking that took him six months, being snowed 
 in on the way. Losing his horses by drowning 
 in 1862, Mr. Drummond entered the employ of 
 the Central P'acific Railroad Company, and as- 
 sisted in grading the bed from San Jose to Gil- 
 roy, from San Quentin Point to San Rafael, and 
 other parts of the road, and also helped in the 
 building of the road through the Livermore 
 mountains. Coming to the San Joaquin valley 
 in 1871, Mr. Drummond took a prominent part 
 in the construction of the Kings River canal, 
 beginning work as foreman of a gang of men, 
 becoining superintendent of construction, and 
 later was general manager of the work, his ser- 
 vices in all covering a period of eighteen years. 
 Turning his attention then to agricultural pur- 
 suits, Mr. Drummond bought three-fourths of 
 a section of land near Ingomar, and has since 
 purchased additional land, having now six hun- 
 dred acres irrigated by water from the ditch, one 
 hundred and sixty acres in the mountains, and 
 three hundred and twenty acres in the Panoche 
 district. As a stock-raiser and dairyman he is 
 carrying on a large and lucrative business, and 
 is also financially interested in the Ingomar 
 warehouse. 
 
 In 1852 Mr. Drummond married, in lUinois, 
 Eliza Jane Rosecrans, a native of Ohio and cousin 
 of Gen. William S. Rosecrans, who acquired 
 fame in the Civil war. She died, in Sacramento, 
 Cal., in 1866. Of the four children born of their 
 union, two are living, namely: Lucy, wife of J. 
 E. Hollingsworth, of Ingomar; and Arthur W., 
 a well-known farmer of Ingomar. Politically Mr. 
 Drummond uniformly cast his vote with the Re- 
 publican party, and for one term served as county 
 supervisor. Fraternally he is a member of Los 
 Banos Lodge, F. & A. M. 
 
 ROBERT L. STOCKTON. The superin- 
 tendent of schools of Kern county needs no in- 
 troduction to the people among whom .he has 
 been known as an efficient educator since 1881. 
 His present position is perhaps the truest test 
 of both his ability and popularity, for, not being 
 a politician in any sense of the word, he was 
 elected in November, 1902, by a majority of 
 over one thousand votes. Several years of ser- 
 vice on the board of education had given con- 
 vincing proof of Mr. Stockton's practical theories 
 O'f education, and the many students now occupy- 
 ing positions of trust and responsibility through- 
 out the state, who owe their educational privi- 
 leges to his guidance, as well as the many wann 
 friends drawn to him by the force of his genial 
 and helpful personality are factors which have 
 brought him within range of the appreciation 
 of his ability. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 379 
 
 Mr. Stockton is a comparatively young man 
 to stand so high in his responsible calling. He 
 was born in Santa Rosa, Sonoma county, October 
 25, 1863, and is one in a family of nineteen chil- 
 dren, fourteen of whom are still living. His 
 parents were Dr. Isaac and Louise (Spiller) 
 Stockton, natives of Illinois and Tennessee re- 
 spectively, and his paternal grandparents were 
 Robert and Phoebe (Whiteside) Stockton, na- 
 tives of Kentucky, and the latter a cousin of 
 General Whiteside, of historic fame. The pater- 
 nal great-grandfather, a pioneer of Kentucky, 
 located in and improved a part of the fertile 
 valley which still bears his name. At the age of 
 sixteen Dr. Stockton enlisted for service in the 
 Black Hawk war, serving in a home regiment. 
 From the public schools he went to Shurtleff 
 College, near Alton, 111., and his medical edu- 
 cation was acquired at the Physio-Medical Sani- 
 tarium College at Cincinnati, Ohio, from which 
 he was graduated m 1838. He practiced medi- 
 cine in Illinois for eight years, married there, 
 and afterward lived in both Kansas and Texas. 
 In the latter state he was waylaid by robbers and 
 shot seven times, but owing to a sound consti- 
 tution and plenty of grit he recovered and con- 
 tinued his practice until coming to California 
 in 1856. Dr. Stockton selected Sonoma county 
 as his future field of endeavor, and developed 
 the well-known Stockton orchard, since asso- 
 ciated with his name. In 1872 he removed to 
 Kern county and improved the Stockton ranch 
 in the southern part of the county, afterward 
 making his home in Los Angeles, where he prac- 
 ticed medicine, and whence he returned to the 
 ranch where his death occurred at the age of 
 eighty-three. He was one of the honored and 
 resourceful pioneers of Kern county, and his 
 whole life bears tribute to the worth of high 
 ideals,_ whether applied to civil, professional or 
 private life. His wife lived to be fifty-seven years 
 old. 
 
 Robert L. Stockton was nine years old when 
 he came to Kern county, and he was educated 
 in its public schools, and in the Los Angeles 
 Business College. An apt pupil and studious, 
 he received a teacher's certificate in 1881, when 
 eighteen years old, and has ever since been identi- 
 fied with the schools in different parts of Kern 
 county. At the same time he has been interested 
 in stock-raising, owning, with his brother, three 
 thousand acres of hill land, upon which he lived 
 until the nature of his duties as county superin- 
 tendent of schools necessitated his removal to 
 Bakersfield in 1903. Upon his assumption of 
 the office of superintendent of schools, the city 
 of Bakersfield and the rest of the county had 
 diflferent courses of instruction. This was found 
 to work a hardship upon the people residing in 
 
 the county, but the courses have since been har- 
 monized, and are now uniform throughout die 
 county. 
 
 December 27, 1885, ^Jr. Stockton married 
 Frances Engle, who was born in Kern county 
 December 24, 1866, a daughter of the late David 
 Engle, one of the pioneer stockmen of Kern 
 county. The eight children born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Stockton are : Ralph T., David Denton, Francis 
 Warren, Marion Jewett, Irving, Jesse DeWitt, 
 Clara Roberta and Frank. Mr. Stockton is a 
 stanch Democrat, and is connected fraternally 
 with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks 
 and the Native Sons of the Golden West. 
 
 JAMES M. RITCHIE. The importance of 
 its bearing on the industries of the world, and 
 the necessity of individual effort in maintaining 
 a standard of agricultural excellence, is thorough- 
 ly understood by James M. Ritchie, one of the 
 foremost promoters of grain production in Stanis- 
 laus county. His association with this section be- 
 gan in 1868, when he supplemented an extended 
 wholesale grocery business in both Scotland and 
 America by identification with ranching interests 
 in San Joaquin county, engaging as foreman on 
 a ranch near Stockton for many years. In the 
 meantime he had become impressed with the 
 many advantages of climate and soil around him, 
 and in the western part of Stanislaus county pur- 
 chased fourteen hundred acres in the foothills, 
 operating the same as a sheep ranch for three 
 years. The next nine years were spent on his 
 wife's ranch near Stockton. His present ranch 
 of sixteen hundred and forty acres came into his 
 possession in 1883, and this has been his home 
 since New Year's day of 1884. As a grower and 
 shipper of grain and barley he has been success- 
 ful beyond his expectations. Mrs. Ritchie's ranch 
 consists of three hundred and twenty acres, where 
 general farming is conducted under the direction 
 of Mr. Ritchie. Improvements of a labor-saving 
 and modern nature have succeeded each other 
 since Mr. Ritchie became a land owner, and that 
 he has taken advantage of all that appealed to his 
 ideas of practicability and. utility, is the best evi- 
 dence of his progressiveness and success. Not- 
 withstanding his extreme industry and business 
 shrewdness in making every part of his property 
 count for its full value, he is one of the most 
 enthusiastic advocates of the latter-day comfort- 
 able and pleasant country life, surrounding him- 
 self and family with those aids which modern 
 ingenuity has devised for bringing to the fields 
 the advantages of the city resident. His fine 
 home, erected in 1900, carries out the plan of a 
 refined and progressive rnind, externally and in- 
 ternally, leaving little to be desired by its rural 
 occupants. The house is two stories in height. 
 
S80 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical RECORt). 
 
 and presents a cheery picture of convenience and 
 quiet elegance. Mrs. Ritchie was formerly Mrs. 
 Josie M. Merwin, of Stockton, and a native of 
 Peoria, 111., where she resided until coming to 
 California in 1870. Of her first marriage she 
 has one son, Milton D. Merwin, who resides at 
 home. Two children have come to brighten the 
 Ritchie home, David M. and Josie Belle, the lat- 
 ter of whom is the wife of E. M. Lightner, an 
 oil merchant of Fresno county. David M. Ritchie 
 married Florence Finney, of Oakland. He is en- 
 gaged in speculating in the gold mines of Gold- 
 field, Nev. 
 
 The first recollections of Mr. Ritchie are cen- 
 tered in the mountainous and picturesque mid- 
 land county of Perth, Scotland, where he was 
 born May 18, 1844. While his ancestry was 
 associated with the tilling of the soil and the herd- 
 ing of flocks, his father departed from the family 
 tradition sufficiently to master the science of civil 
 engineering, in which capacity he was employed 
 bv his government for many years. His mother, 
 May (McDonald) Ritchie, was also a native of 
 Perthshire, her family being one of those long 
 established in the midlands. There were three 
 sons and four daughters to share the resources of 
 the father, and each received the practical com- 
 mon-school education compulsory in the land of 
 simple living and vigorous constitutions. James 
 M. began at the bottom rung of the ladder in a 
 retail grocery business in Glasgow, Scotland, and 
 after three years of increasingly responsible ex- 
 perience, immigrated to the United States in 
 1866, locating at Keokuk, Iowa, where he en- 
 gaged in the grocery business for about three 
 years. His removal to California in the fall of 
 1868 was the realization of a long-thought-out 
 plan, the wisdom and satisfaction of which he 
 has never had cause to question. His entrance 
 into the opulence of the west through the portals 
 of agriculture has proved his financial upbuilding, 
 and his association with the political and general 
 undertakings of his county has demonstrated the 
 possession of altogether genial and influential 
 traits of character. Mr. Ritchie is a Republican, 
 but the uncertainties of office-holding have never 
 held any charm for him. He is a thorough-going, 
 practical landsman, and though conservative, as 
 are the majority of his countrymen, is graciously 
 adaptive to the customs and people among whom 
 his later life is being passed. 
 
 JUDGE DAVID S. COVERDALE. Few 
 more consistent, practical, or well balanced 
 careers have contributed to the pioneer and later 
 development of Delano than that of Judge David 
 S. Coverdale, veteran of the Civil war, and well 
 known as a justice of the peace, notary, health 
 officer, president of the board of trade, promoter 
 
 of waterways, and extensive real estate operator. 
 From a long line of English ancestors Judge 
 Coverdale inherits those substantial and con- 
 servative traits which have been of inestimable 
 value in his work in a growing community. His 
 father, Jonathan Coverdale, spent the first fif- 
 teen years of his life in England, and then came 
 with his parents to Lower Canada, where he 
 lived until attaining his majority. In Canada he 
 married Sallie Brisbon, a native of Lower 
 Canada, and of Irish-German descent, with 
 whom he removed to a farm in Lapeer county, 
 Mich. He found the country a stranger to the 
 improvements of man, and set about with charac- 
 teristic energy to clear his land, and establish 
 a general farming and stock-raising enterprise. 
 Six children were born into his family, of whom 
 David S. was the eldest. He was born March 
 16, 1835, in Detroit, Mich., his mother being 
 there temporarily. In 1850 Jonathan Coverdale 
 crossed the plains in an ox-train for California, 
 by way of Council Bluffs, Salt Lake City and 
 the Platte river, and in Sacramento, Cal., en- 
 gaged in teaming and the building of levees. 
 His dream of western success was not destined 
 for fulfillment, for a year after arriving on the 
 coast he was taken ill and died, at the age of 
 about forty-five years. Subsequently his wife 
 married again, and died in Michigan at the age 
 of fifty-five. 
 
 After his mother's second marriage David S. 
 Coverdale started out on his own responsibility, 
 armed with a common school education, and with 
 a determination which is bound to win results. 
 Settling in Goodhue county, Minn., then a terri- 
 tory, he worked on a farm by the month for his 
 uncle, and while thus employed won the con- 
 fidence of his relative to such an extent that he 
 subsequently made him manager of his ranch, 
 located near Red Wing, Minn. Having friends 
 in the railroad business, he secured the position 
 as station agent of the Northwestern Stage Com- 
 pany for a couple of years, and then engaged in 
 an agricultural implement business at Winona, 
 Minn., for several years. While in this town the 
 Civil war broke out, and he enlisted as a private 
 in Company K, Second Minnesota Volunteer In- 
 fantry, and because of meritorious service was 
 soon promoted from private, becoming in con- 
 secutive order corporal, sergeant, second lieu- 
 tenant, first lieutenant and captain in the same 
 company and regiment. During the war he par- 
 ticipated in the following engagements : Mill 
 Springs, Fort Donelson, Pittsburg Landing, 
 luka, the campaign under Buell, Stone River, 
 Crab Orchard, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge 
 and Lookout Mountain. At the battle of Chicka- 
 mauga he was wounded in the right thigh, and 
 left on the field without anything to eat for 
 three days, and after being taken prisoner made 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL -RECORD. 
 
 381 
 
 his escape at night by crawling on his hands and 
 one knee. At Missionary Ridge and Lookout 
 Mountain he commanded his company, although 
 he was obliged to walk with a cane. The regi- 
 ment veteranized for the balance of the war, 
 taking part in the battles of Tunnel Hill, Mill 
 Creek, Dug Gap, Resaca, Adairsville, New Hope 
 Church, Kenesaw Mountain, Marietta, Smyrna, 
 Peachtree Creek, Atlanta, Altoona Mountain, 
 Peavine Creek, Ringgold, first and second Tun- 
 nel Hill, first and second Rocky Face, Dalton 
 first and second, second battle of Resaca, Snake 
 Creek Gap, New Hope Church, Big Shanty, Pine 
 Ridge, , Kenesaw Mountain, six days' siege ; 
 Kalbs Mountain, Kenesaw Mountain, second bat- 
 tle, two days' siege; Marietta, Chattahooche, 
 Altoona Mountain, second battle, and Ezra 
 Church. Also the company was with Sherman 
 in his march to the sea, at the taking of Sa- 
 vannah, the campaign in North and South Caro- 
 lina, the capture of Goldsburg and Raleigh, and 
 the final surrender of the Confederate army. To 
 Richmond, Washington and Fort Snelling, 
 where he was discharged as captain of Company 
 K, Second Minnesota Volunteer Infantry. 
 
 In 1866, September 12, Judge Coverdale mar- 
 ried Nellie Gould, a native of New Jersey, whose 
 parents settled in Minnesota at Winona at an 
 early day. One daughter, Florence, was born to 
 Judge and Mrs. Coverdale. From Winona, 
 Minn., Judge Coverdale went to Eau Claire, 
 Wis., where he owned and operated a hotel for 
 two or three years, removing from thence to Will- 
 mer, Minn., where he again ran a hotel for three 
 years. Selling out here he went to Burlington, 
 Iowa, for a short time, then to Bloomington, III, 
 where he operated a small grocery for three 
 years. Again selling out he went to Lena, III, 
 bought and conducted a hotel for two years, 
 when he became identified as commercial traveler 
 for a large advertising concern, remaining with 
 them three years. He next engaged in an imple- 
 ment business in Peoria, 111., for a few years, 
 and November i, 1887, arrived in Delano, Cal. 
 
 In Delano the judge signified his intention of 
 remaining by erecting a home, planting trees, 
 and becoming as comfortable as the crude con- 
 ditions then existing permitted. He engaged in 
 real estate business from the first, and heartily 
 entered into various lines of activity suggested 
 by the peculiarities of climate and soil. He 
 became one of the promoters and the treasurer 
 and manager of the Poso Irrigating Company, 
 financiered the same to a large extent, and when 
 the contractor failed, ably directed the enterprise 
 through the hard times, sold most of the stock, 
 and succeeded in digging one hundred and 
 twenty-five miles of the ditch and six miles of 
 flume. This undertaking took four years, and 
 the water was secured for the district as agreed 
 
 upon in the terms of contract. Judge Coverdale 
 is treasurer of the enterprise at the present time, 
 and much regrets the internal strife which pre- 
 vented the completion of the canal as originally 
 decided upon. He has been active in Republi- 
 can politics for many years, but has always been 
 averse to office holding. He is prominent in 
 fraternal circles, being a member of Winona 
 Lodge No. 18, F. & A. M., and of the Wowa- 
 tonna Chapter, R. A. M., and Cyrene Com- 
 mandery No. 9, K. T., of Wowatonna. He was 
 a member of the Grand Army of the Republic 
 in Delano until it burned out. He is a man 
 whose mental superiority is borne out in his 
 physical stature, which is six feet three inches 
 in height; and he still carries himself like a 
 soldier, bearing with dignity and modesty the 
 reverses and honors which have broadened his 
 Hfe. 
 
 GEORGE WASHINGTON HOLMES. Oc- 
 cupying an honored position among the many 
 worthy citizens of Fresno county is George W. 
 Holmes, who is now serving as postmaster at 
 Selma. A man of integrity, industry and ster- 
 ling worth, he has been successful in his busi- 
 ness enterprises by earnest eflfort acquiring a 
 fair share of this world's goods. A son of Jacob 
 Holmes, he was born March 3, 1846, in Fayette 
 county, Ohio. 
 
 A native of New Jersey, Jacob Holmes was 
 born May 10, 1806. He was reared and educated 
 on the Atlantic coast, living there until 1840. 
 Following the surging tide of emigration west- 
 ward in that year, he moved to Fayette county. 
 Ohio, where he took up land, from which he 
 improved a farm. Going thence to Highland 
 county, Ohio, in 1857, he there continued in 
 agricultural pursuits during his active career, 
 living in that part of the state until his death, 
 March 2, 1896, in his ninety-first year. He mar- 
 ried Sarah Worden, who was born in New Jer- 
 sey, in 1810, and died in Ohio, in 1892. Six sons 
 and an equal number of daughters blessed their 
 union, and of these three children died in in- 
 fancy, five sons and four daughters growing to 
 years of maturity. 
 
 The ninth child in order of birth to his parents, 
 George W. Holmes was bred and educated in 
 Ohio. Removing to Illinois in the fall of 1865, 
 he found employment in Biggsville, where he 
 became manager of the lumber yard for the Cris- 
 well Lumber Company, after which he was clerk 
 in a mercantile house for two years. Then, in 
 company with a friend, he bought out his em- 
 ployer, and four years later purchased the inter- 
 est of his partner in the business. He established 
 a large and remunerative trade as a general mer- 
 
382 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 chant, continuing there until his store and its 
 contents were destroyed by fire in 1883. Mi- 
 grating then to Nebraska, Mr. Hohnes bought 
 one luindred and sixty acres of land in York 
 county, near York, and was there engaged in 
 farming from 1883 until 1891. Coming to Cali- 
 fornia in that year, he purchased forty acres of 
 land on the McCall road, three and one-half 
 miles north of Selma, and began the culture of 
 fruit and grapes. In 1896 he bought a ranch of 
 forty acres, lying south of Selma, and was there 
 engaged in business as a dairyman for six years. 
 In 1902 Mr. Holmes was appointed postmaster at 
 Selma, and, obtaining his commission February 
 15, 1902, has since served in that capacity, per- 
 forming the duties devolving upon him with abil- 
 ity and fidelity. 
 
 While a resident of Illinois, Mr. Holmes was 
 married in 1866 to Catherine Baxter, a native of 
 Maryland, and they have seven children living, 
 namely : Sarah Elizabeth, wife of Walter 
 Fisher, of Los Angeles; John A., of San Fran- 
 cisco ; Viola, wife of E. H. Eskew, of Los An- 
 geles ; Minnie, wife of J. D. Greene, of Selma ; 
 Lela, wife of Charles Heiguira ; Helen, assistant 
 postmaster at Selma; and Ralph Harrison, at 
 school in Los Angeles. Mr. Holmes is a sound 
 Republican in politics, and while in Nebraska 
 served two terms as county assessor of York 
 county and two terms as county supervisor. He 
 is a man of deep religious convictions, and is an 
 active member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 WILLIAM ROBINSON. John A. Robinson, 
 Sr., now retired, is an able representative of the 
 family of that name who had long been identified 
 with Boston, Mass. The ranch of this honored 
 pioneer, about twelve hundred acres in extent, 
 skirting the Merced river, and in the vicinity of 
 Snelling, is now managed by his sons, and is one 
 of the fertile and valuable properties which be- 
 speak the wise and practical rule of the pioneer. 
 His family numbers seven children, namely: 
 Charles A., the oldest, a United States deputy 
 surveyor, also mineral deputy surveyor ; William, 
 of this sketch; John A., Jr., a stock-raiser of 
 Merced county; Mrs. F. B. Collins, of Seattle, 
 Wash. ; Fred G., on the home ranch ; Walter H., 
 an educator; and George, living at the home 
 place and attending the University of California. 
 
 John A. Robinson, Sr., was born in East Mai- 
 den, Mass., April 9, 1825, and came to California 
 in 1849, vvith his cousins, Charles and Gus Hall. 
 The long journey around the Horn was in no way 
 remarkable for adventure. Mr. Robinson went 
 to the mines along the American river, achieving 
 more than average success in both Placer and 
 
 Mariposa counties. His operations were some- 
 what retarded by an accident to his leg, sustained 
 by a falling piece of rock, which had proven an 
 inconvenience for many years and finally was 
 amputated. Owing to this injury Mr. Robinson 
 gave up mining, turning his attention to cultivat- 
 ing a rented farm near Snelling. In 1866 he had 
 made such headway that he was able to purchase 
 his home ranch of two hundred acres, and this 
 has been increased to twelve hundred acres of 
 land on the Merced river. His 'land proved par- 
 ticularly fertile, much of it being rich bottom- 
 land, and he placed it under fruit and stock and 
 pasture, devoting his energies practically to this 
 industry the balance of his active life. His orig- 
 inal purchase was one of the first fruit farms of 
 the county. He impressed his vigor and influ- 
 ence upon the community which he did so much 
 to improve, and now, in his eightieth year, he 
 finds himself surrounded by the esteem and af- 
 fectionate regard not only of the older, but of 
 the younger generation. He lives with his son 
 and namesake, John A. Robinson, Jr., of Merced 
 county, his wife, formerly Agnes Graham, hav- 
 ing died in 1902. Mrs. Robinson was born in 
 Ireland and reared in Massachusetts. 
 
 William Robinson was born in Merced county 
 October 29, 1862; his earlier years did not differ 
 from those of practically all of his schoolmates 
 in Merced county, for he worked hard on the 
 home farm, and regarded the opportunity of 
 going to school a luxury to be used wisely and 
 thoroughly appreciated. When through with 
 school he devoted his entire energies to farming 
 and stock-raising, and this early application, with 
 desire to do his work well, is responsible for 
 the large measure of success which has come his 
 way. In 1896 he rented three hundred and sev- 
 enteen acres, which he has since purchased, one 
 hundred and four acres of which is rich bottom- 
 land. The lowlands are devoted to corn, and the 
 uplands to grain and pasture. Many improve- 
 ments signalize his industry and progressive 
 spirit, and his standing in the community is the 
 best proof of his ability, integrity and worth. 
 Mr. Robinson is of a social turn of mind, and 
 for years has been a member of the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows. In politics he is a stanch 
 Republican, and in connection with the political 
 attitude of his family, it is interesting to know 
 that his father was one of five men in Merced 
 county to raise the Union flag in 1862 and keep it 
 floating over his home during the war. 
 
 WILLIAM B. CHARLES, M. D. A few 
 links in the ancestral chain of our subject takes us 
 back to colonial days. For it was before Wash- 
 ington's command of the army or the signing of 
 the Declaration of Independence that Jonathan 
 
fmiji I II II I I I II -II , II II I friiiiiiiriiiiiimiiiiiiiiiriiimiiiiiw^^^^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 385 
 
 Charles, the great-grandsire of Dr. William B. 
 Charles, left his native heather and English home 
 to settle beside the blue Potomac in Maryland. 
 
 The grandfather, Nathan Charles, who was a 
 devout Quaker, was born in Maryland, and with 
 his parents removed to North Carolina, where he 
 was married. In 1818 he went to what is now 
 known as Washington county, Ind., and in that 
 new and unsettled country engaged in farming 
 and also followed the saddler's trade. He at- 
 tained a venerable age, dying in 1868, when nine- 
 ty-one years old. 
 
 The father of Dr. Charles, Levin Charles, was 
 born in North Carolina and went to Indiana with 
 his parents when a child of four years, receiving 
 his training in the latter state, and in fact spend- 
 ing his entire life within its confines. He be- 
 came an agriculturist of some importance for 
 those early days, and passed away when in his 
 sixty-sixth year. First a Whig, on the formation 
 of the Republican party he joined its forces and 
 was at once one of its stanchest allies. He mar- 
 ried America Rodman, a native of Shelby coun- 
 ty, Ky., whose father, Hugh Rodman, also a na- 
 tive of Kentucky, settled in Washington county, 
 Ind., about 1825. He served in the war of 181 2 
 as a commissioned officer and died when in his 
 seventy-sixth year, having spent his active years 
 as a tiller of the soil. His father, Hugh Rod- 
 man, Sr., was born in Bucks county, Pa., and 
 settled in Kentucky in a very early day, in 1786, 
 going by boat down the Ohio river. He was a 
 descendant of Scotch ancestors. Mrs. America 
 Charles died in Indiana in 1875, at the age of 
 fifty-two years, having become the mother of elev- 
 en children, of whom William B. was the sixth 
 in order of birth. 
 
 Dr. Charles was born in Salem, Washington 
 county, Ind., March 12, 1857. After attending 
 the schools of the latter city he received a high- 
 er training in an academy, and subsequently be- 
 gan teaching school. It was while thus em- 
 ployed that he .began reading medicine and for 
 five years diligently followed this method of self- 
 instruction. Later entering the University of 
 Louisville, he graduated from that institution 
 March i, 1887, and entered upon the practice of 
 his profession in Norcatur, Kans., where he re- 
 mained for eight years. In 1894 he identified 
 himself with Kings county, Cal., locating in Han- 
 ford in March of that year, and has ever since 
 made it his home, building up a lucrative prac- 
 tice and endearing himself to all by his thorough 
 understanding of the medical science and by his 
 winning personality. 
 
 The marriage of Dr. Charles and Carrie S. 
 Wildfang, a native of Wisconsin, was celebrated 
 in Norcatur, Kans., November 30, 1887, ^nd they 
 have two children, Ethel and William Gordon, 
 who are at home with their parents. While Dr. 
 
 Charles is a very busy man, he has time to de- 
 vote to measures which tend toward the better- 
 ment of his home locality and withal is a loyal, 
 public-spirited citizen. He is a Republican of 
 the deepest dye, and on the ticket of that party 
 was elected to the office of county physician, a 
 position which he has filled with credit for the 
 past 'five years. His interest in his profession is 
 deep and sincere and he keeps in touch with the 
 progress and improvement which medicak science 
 is constantly making. Fraternally he is a Ma- 
 son, holding membership in Hanford Lodge No. 
 279. 
 
 JAMES R. McDonald. Honored among 
 the early pioneers of the state, James R. Mc- 
 Donald will long be remembered both as a po- 
 litical and business factor of the country, and a 
 citizen whose moral influence it would be impos- 
 sible to measure. For more than a half century 
 he gave his best efforts toward the development 
 of natural resources, the promotion of all enter- 
 prises calculated to advance the material welfare 
 of whatever community he made his home, and 
 the moral uplifting of all with whom he came in 
 contact. In Grayson, San Joaquin valley, where 
 he lived for more than thirty years, his mem- 
 ory is revered by old and young, for it is here 
 that his efforts in behalf of the country's inter- 
 ests were most successful. To those who knew 
 him best the record of his life will be regarded 
 with affectionate interest; to those whose paths 
 have not crossed his, such a record will contain 
 all the interest which attaches to the lives of the 
 early pioneers. 
 
 The McDonald family is of Scottish origin and 
 in the lives of the western emigrants have been 
 demonstrated the splendid qualities which distin- 
 guish that sturdy nation. The head of the fam- 
 ily, Alexander McDonald, was born April 12, 
 1789, in Belead, Scotland, and in manhood mar- 
 ried Helen Sturten, who was born August 12, 
 1792, in the same locality. A farmer by occupa- 
 tion, he first leased a farm known as Belead and 
 later one called Pitkur, the latter being about 
 twelve miles from Dundee. This was a valuable 
 property, well improved and cultivated, and for 
 many years he carried on farming successfully. 
 It was in 1834 that he decided to try his for- 
 tune among the greater opportunities of the west- 
 ern world, and accordingly with two sons, John 
 and Alexander, he took passage for the United 
 States, with the understanding that the family 
 were to follow in another year, after a home had 
 been prepared for them. Their first information 
 was received from the emigrants several months 
 later, stating that the location selected for a home 
 was in the neighborhood of Jacksonville, Ill._, and 
 for the family to prepare to make the trip in 
 
386 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the spring of 183s' It was no small undertaking 
 for the mother to make the journey with the 
 care of nine children, the youngest of whom was 
 about three years old. However, the journey was 
 safely accomplished, by steamer to London, 
 thence by the Canada to New York city (the lat- 
 ter trip occupying six weeks), by rail to Pitts- 
 burg, by boat down the Ohio river to Cairo, then 
 up the Mississippi river to Alton, then the Illi- 
 nois to Naples, landing them within fifteen miles 
 of their new home. This consisted of a thou- 
 sand acres of prairie land, and four hundred 
 acres of timber land, the latter located four miles 
 southwest of the home farm. This property had 
 been entered by Mr. McDonald shortly after his 
 arrival in the state, and for the temporary shel- 
 ter of his family he erected a log house, after- 
 ward putting up another of brick, the brick being 
 burnt upon the farm. Success attended Mr. Mc- 
 Donald's efforts, but during the family's first year 
 in the state, nearly every member was taken ill 
 with fever, which was then prevalent throughout 
 the country. All recovered with the exception of 
 the father, who passed away in 1835, and is now 
 buried in Bethel Church cemetery, three miles 
 from the old home. Alexander McDonald was a 
 man of remarkable character, strong common 
 sense and a determination that brought him suc- 
 cess in whatever line he attempted. The moth- 
 er, left alone with the care of her large fam- 
 ily, bent every effort to rear her children and 
 train them to ways of industry and honest man- 
 hood and womanhood. That she succeeded a 
 record of the McDonald family will show beyond 
 doubt. Her death occurred in the early part of 
 the year 1845, taking from the home a loving and 
 always faithful mother, from the circles of the 
 Presbyterian Church a consistent and helpful 
 member, and from the community a pioneer wom- 
 an who had done no little to uplift the standard 
 of social intercourse. She was the mother of 
 twelve children, namely : Elizabeth, born January 
 7, 1814; William, February 4, 1816; Jane, May 
 12, 1818; John, September 11, 1819; Alexander, 
 June 13, 1821 ; Andrew N., April 14, 1823; 
 Charles, February 13, 1825; a twin of Qiarles, 
 who died in infancy; Maria S., November 27, 
 1826; James R., September 17, 1828; Sarah F., 
 October 19, 1830; and Thomas E., April 20, 1832. 
 All but one or two of the family married and 
 reared families, members of which have attained 
 honored places in the various professions, busi- 
 ness and political circles, and have ably upheld 
 the standard of honor set by the first emigrant 
 of the name in America. 
 
 James R. McDonald was born in Belead, Scot- 
 land, the seventh son and tenth child born to his 
 parents. He was only six years old when the 
 home was changed to the prairies of Illinois, and 
 in that location he spent his childhood and boy- 
 
 hood. He found his boyhood a very busy and 
 active one, beginning to plow at the age of elev- 
 en years and in many ways assisting in the 
 farm work. He received only a limited educa- 
 tion, the school he attended (a subscription 
 school) being in session about three months in 
 the year, and held in a rough building of un- 
 hewn logs, with puncheon floor, and slabs for 
 benches and desks, and a huge fireplace occupy- 
 ing the entire end of the room. After the death 
 of his mother, which occurred when he was about 
 seventeen years old, the property was divided 
 and the home broken up, the six children left 
 going to make their home with the married mem- 
 bers of the family, while John McDonald was 
 appointed administrator of the estate and guar- 
 dian of those still minors. Each of the chil- 
 dren had about $700 in property and cash. James 
 R. McDonald made his home for about a year 
 with his sister Jane, helping on the farm when 
 there was work to be done, at other times work- 
 ing for neighboring farmers. During the win- 
 ter of 1846-47 he attended the public school at 
 Manchester, and while located in that place joined 
 a class in geography, the lesson being learned 
 by singing — a unique method, but Mr. McDon- 
 ald has always said that he accomplished more 
 in those twelve lessons than he ever had in the 
 same length of time, employed in any other waj-. 
 Through the influence of the gentleman with 
 whom he boarded. Dr. Nettleton, Mr. McDonald 
 was induced to attend Jubilee College, located in 
 Peoria county. 111., near the forks of the Kick- 
 apoo creek. He remained there for one year, 
 when he was notified by his guardian that his 
 funds were exhausted. On leaving school he 
 cast about for some congenial occupatioft, and 
 having considerable mechanical ability he de- 
 cided to learn the trade of carpenter. This plan 
 was opposed by his brother Charles, who had 
 entered commercial life, and who finally induced 
 him to take a clerkship. A position was secured 
 with the firm of Stevenson & Lurton, with whom 
 he remained for six months, when he became con- 
 nected with Jiis brother Alexander in the same 
 capacity. 
 
 For some time Mr. McDonald was satisfied 
 with the peaceful life he led as a clerk in Jack- 
 sonville. However, the report of the great gold 
 discovery in California, where it was said for- 
 tunes could be made in a day, ended his con- 
 tentment and he longed to come west, as some of 
 his neighbors were then preparing for the trip. 
 He was induced by his brother John to remain in 
 Illinois and take charge of afifairs while he him- 
 self should make the westward trip. Circum- 
 stances, however, prevented John from leaving, so 
 James McDonald came instead. In company 
 with seven others, George Hufinagle, Braxton 
 Davenport and Bazzel, his brother. Sit and W. L. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 387 
 
 Reed, William A. Sanders and James Brown, on 
 April 9, 1850, he started upon the long and peril- 
 ous trip. The party was thoroughly equipped 
 with everything of first-class quality, wagons, 
 harness, mules, provisions, etc. Were it possi- 
 ble in this brief space to recount the history of 
 their trip as written down by Mr. McDonald him- 
 self, it would make a story of unsurpassed in- 
 terest. Suffice it to say that on August 28, four 
 months and nineteen days from the time they 
 left Jacksonville, they reached Ringgold, the first 
 mining camp on the trip. Several of their com- 
 pany had left them at the Humboldt sink and 
 they finished the journey alone. An incident of 
 interest was the return of Mr. McDonald in 1886 
 to his old home in Illinois, when he made the 
 journey in four days and at one-half the cost 
 lof his first trip across the continent. 
 
 After disposing of their superfluous articles and 
 stock, the party then returned to Ringgold from 
 Sacramento, where they, had spent a few days, 
 and putting up a cabin proceeded to engage in va- 
 rious occupations, some teaming and some min- 
 ing, during the first winter. Two men with 
 whom Mr. McDonald had associated that year 
 were T. B. McFarland, now justice of the su- 
 preme court, and Ross Sargent, of Stockton, who 
 then kept the American hotel in the town. In 
 the spring of 185 1 the Reeds and Mr. McDon- 
 ald concluded to try their fortunes north on the 
 high Sierras, and accordingly disposed of their 
 property in Ringgold and with a mule each start- 
 ed for the new location. They spent some time 
 at the American river and Nevada City, after 
 which they joined a party of old eastern friends 
 and went to the Feather river and entered upon 
 mining operations. One trying experience which 
 Mr. McDonald had during this time was a jour- 
 ney made to Marysville for provisions. Shortly 
 afterward they located on Poorman's creek near 
 Onion valley and there made considerable mon- 
 ey, the largest nugget taken out being worth 
 $1,800. For three years following his arrival in 
 California Mr. McDonald continued in the oc- 
 cupation of mining, meeting with just enough 
 success to continue in the hope of finding his 
 fortune some day. Finally the Reeds and Mr. 
 McDonald went to Tuolumne county, each to 
 visit relatives and at the same time cast about 
 for a better location than they had. It was th&re 
 the old friends separated, each going his own 
 way in an effort to earn a liveHhood. The min- 
 ing ventures of Mr. McDonald were ended by a 
 letter from his brother Charles, written from San 
 Francisco and asking him to come and meet him- 
 self and wife, who had just arrived. According- 
 ly he joined them in that city and eventually he 
 and his brother engaged in farming operations 
 in Alameda county. This venture did not prove 
 much of a success financially, although the prof- 
 
 its were fair at that time and would be con- 
 sidered excellent at the present. In the fall of 
 1856 they discontinued farming and bought out 
 the mercantile establishment of the Winton broth- 
 ers, at Haywards, and conducted this business to- 
 gether for about a year, when Charles sold his 
 interest to Alexander Allen and returned east. 
 Late in the fall of 1859 Mr. McDonald sold his 
 interest in the business to his partner, closing up 
 the partnership on the ist of January, i860. Fol- 
 lowing the settling up of his affairs Mr. McDon- 
 ald made a trip to Illinois via Panama as a del- 
 egate to the Republican convention held in Chi- 
 cago that nominated Abraham Lincoln for presi- 
 dent of the United States. 
 
 Upon returning to the west again, Mr. McDon- 
 ald's first venture was the purchase of a steam 
 thresher, the first introduced on that side of the 
 bay. However, it was both too new and too ex- 
 pensive an undertaking to be a success financial- 
 ly, so he sold out and spent the winter of 1861-62 
 on his sheep ranch in the Livermore hills on the 
 eastern edge of the valley. The following spring 
 he accepted a position with the California Wool 
 Growers to look after their packing house in San 
 Francisco, but remained there only a few months 
 when he returned to Haywards, going from there 
 to Walnut Creek, Contra Costa county, and es- 
 tablishing a general merchandise store. Largely 
 through Mr. McDonald's influence a postoffice 
 was established at that place, his appointment to 
 the postmastership naturally following. In all 
 public movements he took a most active interest, 
 and did much to advance the general welfare. 
 Becoming dissatisfied with his business ventures 
 Mr. McDonald located in Healdsburg, Sonoma 
 county, and established a general merchandise 
 store. All this time he had been acting as a part- 
 ner of Charles Whitmore, and during his resi- 
 dence in this place of about four years they dis- 
 solved the partnership and Mr. McDonald con- 
 tinued alone. In April, 1869, Mr. McDonald left 
 Healdsburg in search of a better location, finding 
 it in Grayson, Stanislaus county, where he pur- 
 chased a store and in conjunction with W. J. Til- 
 ley began in business May 20, 1869. They con- 
 tinued together until the ist of January, 1874, 
 when Mr. McDonald purchased his partner's in- 
 terest. During these years the little city of Gray- 
 son had been gradually growing; houses were 
 built and places of business established, among 
 them the Wells-Fargo Express Company, of 
 which Mr. McDonald held the agency for many 
 years. An impetus to the general business pros- 
 pects of Grayson was given by the discovery 
 of quicksilver in the mountain range west of the 
 town. A number of the citizens then formed a 
 corporation, of which Mr. McDonald was chosen 
 president, and with a large capital stock to in- 
 sure financial prestige, mining operations were 
 
388 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 begun. Not meeting with the success anticipated 
 the mine was eventually abandoned. This same 
 mine and many others have been developed of re- 
 cent years and are very successful. \'ery shortly 
 after his location on the west side Mr. McDon- 
 ald realized that the great need was a water sup- 
 ply to make the land productive. .In 1871 the San 
 Joac|uin and King's River Canal Irrigation Com- 
 pany had begun a canal at the junction of the 
 Fresno slough and the San Joaquin river, but for 
 some reason it was never extended beyond Crow's 
 Landing. In 1874 the irrigation question became 
 one of the most absorbing interests in the va- 
 rious granges of the country, and eventually led 
 to a mass meeting (which was held in Mr. Mc- 
 Donald's warehouse, as that was the only build- 
 ing large enough to accommodate the people), 
 when a committee of three was appointed to for- 
 mulate some plan whereby the country could re- 
 ceive its much needed improvement. This com- 
 mittee consisted of Gilbert Fisher, of Crow's 
 Landing; W. B. Hay, of Ellis, and Mr. McDon- 
 ald, each of whom was to draw up a plan and 
 present it at the next meeting of the convention. 
 Mr. McDonald's plan was that which is today 
 known as the Wright law, being the district plan 
 of irrigation, which was approved and adopted 
 and has since been in force. 
 
 The political career of Mr. McDonald was one 
 of intense interest, and embraced a participation 
 in many of the important movements in the early 
 history of the state. He was always a stanch Re- 
 publican and gave his best interests to the sup- 
 port of the principles which he endorsed, though 
 personally he was never desirous of official rec- 
 ognition. In 1857 he was elected public admin- 
 istrator of Alameda county by five votes over 
 his opponent, in a county strongly Democratic, 
 being nominated without his knowledge. With 
 the passing out of existence of the Whig party 
 and the inauguration of the Republican, Mr. Mc- 
 Donald, after a careful consideration of the new 
 platform, announced himself a supporter of the 
 old principles under a new name. When he 
 decided to return east, where he visited New 
 York city, Niagara Falls, and other places of in- 
 terest as well as his old home, he was induced 
 by friends to try for the office of delegate to the 
 national convention which was to be held at Chi- 
 cago, III, in i860. He therefore attended the 
 state convention at Sacramento, but afterward 
 withdrew for delegate and contested for alter- 
 nate, which position he won. Mr. McDonald 
 made the trip by way of New Orleans, in Louis- 
 iana visiting his sisters, who were conducting a 
 private school in the Red river district. Travel- 
 ing on to Illinois he found the entire state wild 
 with the prospect of the coming convention, and 
 eager to propose the name of the man who stood 
 so prominently before the public at that time 
 
 During the convention several honors fell to the 
 lot of Mr. McDonald, and in all positions he 
 carried himself in perfect honor and dignity. The 
 nomination of Abraham Lincoln followed, and 
 after the close of the convention Mr. McDon- 
 ald went to Jacksonville, 111., and spent one year 
 among his old friends and relatives. The fol- 
 lowing year he went to Washington to witness 
 the inauguration of Lincoln and also to seek an 
 appointment, but was unsuccessful in the latter. 
 After visiting his old home once more, he took 
 passage for California via the isthmus, arriving in 
 San Francisco the last of May. 
 
 In 1890, although advanced in years, Mr. Mc- 
 Donald was nominated and elected state treas- 
 urer, discharging the duties of this office for a 
 period of four years, with entire credit to him- 
 self and to those who had honored him with their 
 support. In 1894 he was a very popular man in 
 the Republican convention, but was finally de- 
 feated in his efforts for governor of the state. 
 
 Mr. McDonald was married twice, his first wife 
 being Clarissa Jane Cox, the daughter of E. H. 
 Cox, of San Ramon, Contra Costa county, Cal., 
 and of this union were born two children, Mark 
 E., and Paul, the former of whom was associ- 
 ated for years as his father's partner in the busi- 
 ness interests of Grayson, while the latter is a 
 prominent lawyer of San Francisco. The mother 
 of these sons died July 21, 1876, and is buried in 
 the Grayson cemetery. His second marriage unit- 
 ed him with Emma J. Cooper, who was born in 
 Sonoma, Cal., the daughter of James Cooper, a 
 native of Scotland. James Cooper ran away from 
 his native land when a mere lad in years, fol- 
 lowing a sea-faring life and in time becoming 
 mate of a vessel. He came to CaHfornia in 1845 
 and located in San Francisco, after which he 
 went to. Sonoma and conducted a hotel, and also 
 engaged in farming and stock-raising. He be- 
 came a prosperous and successful man, in addi- 
 tion to his accumulation of land winning the 
 esteem and respect of all with whom he came 
 in contact. He died in that locality in^iSs;, at 
 the age of thirty-five years. His wife, formerly 
 Sarah Bigelow, was a native of Nova Scotia, and 
 died in 1886, in Sonoma, aged sixty-three years. 
 She crossed the plains with her sister, Mrs. 
 Emma Smith as early as 1846. 
 
 ,To Mr. and Mrs. McDonald were born 
 three children, namely: James R., Jr., who is in- 
 terested in the store at Grayson; Ruth B., at 
 home; and Hay ward, at home. In his religious 
 convictions a Presbyterian, Mr. McDonald was 
 identified with that denomination for something 
 over a half century and to no man is greater 
 credit due for the establishment and upbuild- 
 ing of Presbyterian churches throughout this sec- 
 tion of California. At the same time that he 
 was sent as an alternate to the Republican Na- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 389 
 
 tional- convention he was also representing the 
 California Presbyterians as commissioner to the 
 General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church 
 which was held at Pittsburg, Pa. An incident of 
 note in the life of Mr. McDonald was his con- 
 nection with the famous vigilance committee of 
 San Francisco, which was brought about in this 
 wise: In 1856 the state authorities attempted 
 to put an end to this organization, which was 
 of a necessity deemed unlawful. The vigilantes, 
 therefore, to offset the efiforts of the state to 
 suppress them, sent agents through the counties 
 near the bay to enlist those favorable to their 
 cause, and among those who signed an agree- 
 ment to go to their assistance should the neces- 
 sity arise was Mr. McDonald, for though always 
 active in the maintenance of law and order he 
 knew enough personally of this organization to 
 believe in its efficacy. He was also active in the 
 establishment and upbuilding of a division of 
 the Sons of Temperance, which flourished for 
 some time in Haywards. Having been made a 
 Mason in Jacksonville, 111., in the spring of 1850, 
 he was afterward connected with the Masonic 
 lodge at San Leandro, Cal. In Grayson Mr. 
 McDonald was very successful as a merchant 
 and business man. In an early day this city 
 was practically the head of navigation, and 
 enormous quantities of grain were shipped from 
 this place. In addition to raising large quantities 
 of grain he was also interested in raising sheep. 
 He owned about three thousand acres of land 
 but his home always remained in Grayson. His 
 death occurred October 14, 1902, when seventy- 
 four year of age, and with him passed one of the 
 remarkable landmarks of Stanislaus county. He 
 was liberal in religious toleration and social and 
 friendly in his manner, — a man who loved his 
 fellow men. This article would not be complete 
 without mentioning Mrs. Emma J. McDonald, a 
 woman endowed by nature with many talents and 
 a strong mentality that has enabled her to uphold 
 with honor and credit the position of this re- 
 markable family, one of the strong arches in the 
 structure of a great western empire. 
 
 OLIVER CROMWELL BROWN. Since 
 the year 1879 M'"- Brown has made his home in 
 the Golden state, locating in that part of Tulare 
 county which has since been incorporated in 
 Kings county. His first purchase of land con- 
 sisted of eighty acres of prairie, four acres of 
 which he set out to fruit trees, and the balance 
 was devoted to the raising of wheat. Prosper- 
 ing in this small venture he enlarged the scope 
 of his holdings until he had two hundred and 
 ten acres under his control, the entire tract be- 
 ing devoted to the raising of raisin grapes, 
 peaches, apricots and prunes. Until 1899 he 
 
 made his home on the ranch, but in that year 
 he moved into the city limits of Hanford, and 
 has since lived retired from the cares and stress 
 of an active business life. The ranch is located 
 eight miles southwest of Hanford, and is now 
 rented, Mr. Brown receiving one-half of the 
 gross proceeds. 
 
 Oliver C. Brown is a native of Illinois, born 
 near Hillsboro, Montgomery county, February 
 24, 1829, a son of John Brown, who was born 
 and reared in Kentucky. After his marriage he 
 went to Montgomery county. 111., where he took 
 up raw timber land, and made his home for sev- 
 eral years. Later he sold this land and invested 
 in a tract of prairie land and in the course of 
 time owned a fine farm of two hundred acres, 
 which was his home until his death, when about 
 fifty-two years old. As a private he took part in 
 the Black Hawk war, and in politics he was a 
 Democra.t. Although a comparatively young 
 man at the time of his death he had accomplished 
 much in the course of his life, gaining the com- 
 petence which he left to his heirs solely by his 
 own efforts. His father, Richard Brown, was 
 a native of Virginia, removing from that state 
 to Kentucky when it was as yet a new country. 
 From his plantation in the latter state he went 
 to Illinois in an early day and purchased a farm, 
 upon which his death occurred when he was in 
 his seventy-eighth year. The grandfather was a 
 descendant of English ancestors who located in 
 the south many generations ago. The mother of 
 Oliver C. Brown was Sarah Craig prior to her 
 marriage, and was a native of Kentucky. In 
 Adair county, that state, occurred her marriage 
 with John Brown, and she died in Illinois when 
 about seventy-four years old, having become the 
 mother of nine children, of whom Oliver Crom- 
 well was the eldest. 
 
 In the public schools adjacent to his father's 
 farm in Illinois Oliver C. Brown gained a good 
 education, and when nineteen years old began 
 teaching school. Until reaching his twenty-first 
 year he gave his father the benefit of his services, 
 at that time purchasing an adjoining farm, al- 
 though he continued to live at home until his 
 marriage, which occurred when he was twenty- 
 three years old. Until 1872 he made his home 
 in Illinois, but in that year he began to work 
 his way toward the west and for seven years 
 resided on a farm in Fillmore county, Neb. 
 After suffering from the grasshopper plague for 
 three seasons he decided to make a change of 
 location and wisely chose Tulare, now Kings 
 county, Cal., as offering the best advantages 
 from an agricultural standpoint, as well as af- 
 fording a good home for his family. 
 
 In St. Louis county. Mo., in 1850, Oliver C. 
 Brown was united in marriage with Elizabeth 
 Kelso, who became the mother of ten children, 
 
390 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the eldest of whom died m infancy. John W., 
 born September 15, 1853, is a rancher near Sel- 
 ma, Fresno comity; Sarah E., born July 20, 
 1855, died October ■ 14, 1875 ; Artimesia, born 
 January 30, 1858, died October 15, 1875; Frank- 
 lin James, born January 4, i860, is also a rancher 
 near Selma; WilHam H., born March i, 1862, is 
 conducting a fruit ranch near Selma; Mary M., 
 born March 7, 1864, died February 10, 1881 ; 
 Edward E., born April 26, 1866, is a rancher 
 near Chico; Charles C, born October 24, 1868, 
 conducts a fruit, stock and grain ranch near 
 Durham; and Cora M., born March 13, 1871, 
 is the wife of Elmer Young, a rancher near 
 Hanford. The mother of these children died 
 December 26, 1893, at the age of sixty-five years, 
 seven months and twenty-four days. For his 
 second wife Mr. Brown married India C. Mez- 
 ick, who though born in Illinois was reared in 
 Indiana. Politically Mr. Brown is a Democrat 
 in national affairs, and in local matters votes 
 for the men best fitted to serve the public good, 
 regardless of party. He has always refused to 
 accept any office within the gift of his fellow 
 citizens, preferring to keep out of public life, 
 although he takes a keen interest in the welfare 
 of his home town. He is a self-made man in 
 the best sense of the term and may well be proud 
 of the success which has attended his efforts 
 since making his home in the Golden state. 
 
 BURTON SMITH. As superintendent of 
 the San Joac[uin & Kings River Canal and Irri- 
 gation Company, Burton Smith occupies a lead- 
 ing position among the business men of Merced 
 county, having won distinction as a man of un- 
 usual ability in the line which has held his at- 
 tention throughout the greater part of his life. 
 A native of California, he was born in Visalia, 
 Tulare county, June 17, 1872, the fifth in a fam- 
 ily of nine children, seven of whom are now liv- 
 ing. His parents, George W. and Nancy 
 (Parker) Smith, are mentioned at length in an- 
 other part of this volume. In the public and 
 high school of Visalia, Burton Smith received 
 his education, just before completing, taking a 
 special course in mathematics, which has been 
 of great service in his life work. When eight 
 years of age he began spending his vacations in 
 working with his father in. surveying, first carry- 
 ing the flag until capable of being advanced to 
 a more important position. He remained with his 
 father in irrigation work until he was eighteen 
 years of age, when he entered the employ of 
 Jasper Harrell of Tulare county, who owned one 
 of the largest ranches in that section. This had 
 formerly consisted of wild and desolate land, but 
 by the system introduced by the St. Johns River 
 Association, five thousand acres were reclaimed. 
 
 He retained the position of superintendent of 
 this raiich until his father's death, when, in 1897, 
 he resigned and took up the work of surveyor 
 and civil engineer, continuing, however, the con- 
 duct of his ranch, which consisted of six hun- 
 dred acres. He held the position of deputy 
 county surveyor, and for three years, from Feb- 
 ruary, 1899, to F'ebruary, 1902, was superin- 
 tendent of the St. Johns River Association. 
 April 20, 1902, he entered the employ of Mil- 
 ler & Lux, and was engaged in surveying for 
 them in Kern county until June, 1903, when 
 he was transferred to the west side of Mer- 
 ced county and continued in the same capacity. 
 In January, 1904, he received the appoint- 
 ment of superintendent of the San Joaquin & 
 Kings River Canal and Irrigation Company, 
 and immediately assumed charge of the same. 
 The main canal of this company is seventy-one 
 miles long, extending from the San Joaquin 
 river, the outside canal is forty miles in length, 
 and Colony canal and its branch is thirty miles. 
 The position is one of importance and responsi- 
 bility, but Mr. Smith has upheld the standard of 
 excellence noteworthy in all his work and has 
 enhanced the high regard in which he was uni- 
 versally held. 
 
 In 1904 Mr. Smith built his residence in Los 
 Banos which is presided over by his wife, for- 
 merly Edith Hemming, with whom he was 
 united in marriage in his native city. She is a 
 native of Clayton, Contra Costa county, and 
 daughter of W. B. Hemming, who is engaged 
 in the fruit-canning business. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Smith have one daughter, Gladys. Fraternally 
 Mr. Smith was made an Odd Fellow in Moun- 
 tain Brow Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Los Banos, and 
 a Mason in Los Banos Lodge No. 312, F. & A. 
 M. He also affiliates with the Woodmen of the 
 World. In his political convictions he adheres 
 to the principles advocated in the platform of 
 the Democratic party. 
 
 EPHRAIM W. AUSTIN. AdaptabiHty is 
 a trait to which Ephraim W. Austin is largely 
 indebted for his beautiful ranch and comforta- 
 ble home life in the vicinity of Bakersfield. 
 Reared to a life of luxury and comparative in- 
 dolence in die Hawaiian Islands, where he was 
 born at Hilo, October 11, 1869, the change to 
 an undeveloped ranch, with its phvsical and 
 other exactions, as well as the more strenuous 
 life in a thriving, progressive community, has 
 furnished abundant test of his mettle. The 
 Austin family has been prominent in the judicial 
 and governmental life of the Hawaiian Islands 
 for many years, being equally honored under the 
 new as well as old administration. The immi- 
 grant to the Pacific-swept lands was Stafford L. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 391 
 
 Austin, father of Ephraim, who was born in 
 Saratoga, N. Y., April lo, 1824. Under his 
 father, Benjamin H. Austin, lie studied law, later 
 attending^ Oberlin Law School, from which he 
 graduated. On a whaler he made one trip to the 
 .A.rctic regions before the mast, and on the return 
 trip stopped at Honolulu. In i860 he was given 
 a minor office under the monarchy, and in 1870 
 was appointed judge of the Third Judicial Dis- 
 trict of the islands. In the meantime the sugar 
 industry, in which he had become interested, had 
 grown apace, but 1885 proved a disastrous year, 
 and he lost the bulk of the fortune won by his 
 business sagacity and perseverance. To a certain 
 degree he received compensation for financial 
 losses in the honor conferred upon him by his 
 adopted government, and lived to be an old man, 
 to the last vigorous and active, giving promise of 
 indefinite usefulness. Judge Austin died of heart 
 disease while holding court, October 2, 1896, 
 aged seventy-two years. He married into one of 
 the very early families of the islands, his wife, 
 formerly Caroline Clarke, being a daughter of 
 Rev. Ephraim Clarke, who went there in 1828, 
 and became renowned as a missionary and trans- 
 lator of foreign languages. Mrs. Austin is still 
 living in Honolulu, and is about sixty-seven years 
 old. She became the mother of seven children, 
 one of whom is deceased. The oldest, Franklin 
 H., resides in Los Angeles; Herbert C. was au- 
 ditor of the islands after they became an Ameri- 
 can colony, and before that was assessor and col- 
 lector for several years, at present being one of 
 the prominent and influential men of Honolulu; 
 Stafford W. is in the United States land office at 
 Independence, Inyo county, Cal. ; C. Jonathan is 
 superintendent of the government gardens at 
 Honolulu ; Ephraim is a rancher of Kern county ; 
 and Harriet, formerly in the employ of the gov- 
 ernment, but since her resignation has held the 
 position of bookkeeper for the board of Congre- 
 gational Evangelists in the islands. 
 
 Educated at Oahu College, Hawaii, Ephraim 
 W. Austin came to California in 1888, resolved 
 to make his own living under the Stars and 
 Stripes. For a time he was variously employed 
 in San Luis Obispo county, and in August, 1888, 
 came to Kern county to take up swamp land. 
 Owing to the Kern lake excitement he was 
 obliged to abandon his property soon afterward, 
 and removed to the vicinity of Bakersfield, where 
 he has since lived the greater part of the time. 
 During 1889 ^"d 1890 he spent nine months in 
 Fresno county, on his return settling on the 
 ranch which he now owns, and which consists of 
 about forty acres, twenty of which he has placed 
 under fruit. He has found the horticultural busi- 
 ness unsuccessful, owing to the quality of his 
 land, and is now arranging to place it all under 
 
 alfalfa, which will undoubtedly prove more re- 
 munerative. For a couple of years Mr. Austin 
 engaged in a livery and veterinary business in 
 Bakersfield, with a partner. He is an active 
 Democrat, particularly for his friends, and has 
 himself served as clerk of the school board since 
 its organization, having been appointed to the 
 board of trustees by County Superintendent W. 
 C. Doub. Fraternally he is connected with the 
 Woodmen of the World. In 1893 Mr. Austin 
 was united in marriage with Beulah McKinzie, 
 of Bakersfield, and four daughters have been 
 born of the union : Caroline V., Miriam, Harriet 
 A., and Mary H. 
 
 ERNEST E. SOUTHWICK. , Among the 
 respected and highly esteemed residents of Dos 
 Palos, E. E. Southwick holds an assured posi- 
 tion. A skillful mechanic, and an experienced 
 engineer, he has assisted in installing different 
 pumping plants, and now, as an employe of the 
 Pacific Coast Oil Company is engineer at the 
 Dos Palos Pumping Station, which, with its 
 pipe line was erected under his careful supervis- 
 ion. A son of the late Edmund Z. Southwick, 
 he was born May 13, 1855, in Angola, Erie 
 county, N. Y. 
 
 A native of Erie county, N. Y., Edmund Z. 
 Southwick succeeded to the free and indepen- 
 dent occupation of his ancestors, and was en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits in western New 
 York until the fall of 1884. His health becom- 
 ing impaired, he then removed with his family 
 to California, and here lived retired until his 
 death, in 1894, at Niles, Alameda county. He 
 married Marietta J. Clough, who was born in 
 Erie county, N. Y., the daughter of Horace 
 Clough, a prosperous farmer. She now resides 
 in Pasadena. Of their four children, two sur- 
 vive, E. E., the special subject of this sketch, 
 being the eldest. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, E. E. South- 
 wick received excellent educational advantages, 
 attending the public schools and the Angola 
 Academy. He subsequently learned telegraphy, 
 and at the age of seventeen years accepted a posi- 
 tion on the line of the Buflfalo, New York & Pitts- 
 burg Railroad, for eighteen months being agent 
 and operator at Liberty, Pa. Entering then the 
 employ of the Tidewater Pipe Line Company, 
 Mr. Southwick helped to build that entire line, 
 and afterward, with his old superintendent, H. 
 C. Beamer, assisted in the building of the Rock 
 City and Buffalo Pipe Line. On its completion, 
 he took charge of a station belonging to the 
 Standard Oil Company, built a pipe line, and in- 
 stalled a plant, putting it in good running order. 
 Continuing then in the employ of the company 
 he traveled throughout the country as car tracer 
 
392 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and private detective until after his marriage, 
 when he tool< charge of a pumping station at 
 Richburg, N. Y. At the end of a year, Mr. 
 Southwick resumed work on the railroad, but 
 eighteen months later resigned his position. 
 
 Coming to California in December, 1884, Mr. 
 Southwick bought a small fruit ranch of ten 
 acres at Niles, which valuable property he still 
 owns. For about eight years he devoted his time 
 and attention to the care and improvement of 
 his orchard, and the following four years was 
 engaged in various occupations, serving as 
 deputy assessor, and for awhile being with the 
 California Nursery Company, and later with 
 the San Francisco Packing House Company. In 
 1896 Mr. Southwick returned to his former oc- 
 cupation of engineer, and having installed two 
 plants in Niles, Cal., had charge of them until 
 November, 1902. Becoming at that time con- 
 nected with the > Pacific Coast Oil Company as 
 engineer, he came to Dos Palos to install this 
 plant, and under his supervision the pipe line 
 and plant were built, and he has since served 
 most ably and faithfully as its engineer. 
 
 In Fredonia, N. Y., Mr. Southwick married 
 Carrie F. Baldwin, who was born in Chautau- 
 qua county, a daughter of Emery Baldwin, and 
 they are the parents of two children, namelv : 
 Marion H. and Clough E. In his political af- 
 filiations Mr. Southwick is a straightforward 
 Republican. He takes an intelligent interest in 
 local affairs, and while hving in Niles was for 
 many years school trustee, resigning from that 
 position when he moved from the city. Fratern- 
 ally he was made an Odd Fellow in Niles, and 
 is now a charter member and noble grand of 
 Santa Rita Lodge No. 124, I. O. O. F., of Dos 
 Palos ; he is also a member of Niles Encamp- 
 ment No. 62; of Maple Camp, W. of W., of 
 Centerville; and of the United Artisans. 
 
 BENJAMIN WALLACE VAN WICKLE. 
 A natural mechanic of great abilitv and in- 
 genuity, Benjamin Wallace Van Wickle, as 
 manager of the Los Banos Planing Mill, is in- 
 timately associated with the development and 
 advancement of the lumber interests of this part 
 of Merced county. Using good judgment and 
 wise forethought in his manufactures and deal- 
 ings, he has built up an excellent business in 
 this locality, now practically controlling the 
 trade on the west side of the valley. A native 
 of New York, he was born, September 3, 1851, 
 in Lyons, Wayne county, which was also the 
 birthplace of his father, John Rue Van Wickle 
 His grandfather, John R. Van Wickle, was born 
 m New Jersey, where the immigrant ancestor 
 of the family from which he was descended set- 
 tled on coming to the United States from Hol- 
 
 land. Subsequently removing to New York, he 
 improved a farm in Lyons, and was there en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits until his death. 
 
 Brought up in Lyons, N. Y., John Rue Van 
 Wickle learned the millwright trade when youpg, 
 and followed it in that locality for many years. 
 Removing from there to Michigan, he was busily 
 employed in erecting grist and sawmills, also 
 taking contracts for building, continuing in 
 active pursuits until seventy years of age. Re- 
 tiring then, he located in Oceana county of that 
 state, where he resided until his death, at the 
 venerable age of fourscore and four years. He 
 married Mary A. Hipp, who was born and bred 
 in Penfield, Monroe county, N. Y. Her father, 
 Horace Hipp, was at that time engaged there 
 in business as a brewer. He afterward removed 
 to Norwalk, Ohio, where he was extensively 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits for a number 
 of years. He spent his last years in Michigan, 
 dying in Van Buren county. Of the union of 
 Mr. and Mrs. John Rue Van Wickle two sons 
 and two daughters were born, and of these one 
 daughter and one son are living. The mother 
 died in Michigan when fifty-four years old. 
 
 Spending the days of his boyhood and youth 
 in Van Buren county, Mich., Benjamin Wallace 
 Van Wickle acquired his early education in the 
 public schools of Mattawan. In 1868 he went 
 to Hart, Oceana county, then in his seventeenth 
 year, securing work in a saw mill. An accident 
 happening to the owner of the mill, David Ben- 
 ham, who was also the sawyer, Mr. Van Wickle, 
 although so young, took charge of the saw, and 
 ran it winters for nine years, in the summer 
 seasons having charge of the sash and door 
 factory for his employer. In 1877 Mr. Van 
 Wickle assumed the position of foreman in a 
 sash and door factory at St. Joseph, Mich., and 
 remained there two years or more, when, on 
 account of the ague, he left that locality. Going 
 immediately to Butte, Mont., he was 'for three 
 years foreman in a large planing mill belonging 
 to the Montana Lumber & Produce Company: 
 The ensuing year he was foreman for the Idalio 
 Lumber Company, at Ogden, Utah, after which 
 he was for six years in the employ of the Eckles 
 Lumber Company, having entire management of 
 their business interests throughout Utah. 
 
 Coming to Los Angeles, Cal., in 1893, Mr. 
 Van Wickle was for a year foreman in Lindsey's 
 Mill, at Redondo Beach, and when Dillon 
 Brothers built their mill at Los Angeles he be- 
 came its manager, holding the position two years. 
 Removing to Fresno county in 1896, he was 
 foreman for the Sanger Lumber Company for 
 a year, and was afterward with Hollenbeck & 
 Bush, in Fresno, until 1900, and from that time 
 until 1902 was foreman in William Crocker's 
 planing mill, in San Francisco. Accepting a 
 
H jnS, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 395 
 
 position with Miller & Lux in 1902, Mr. Van 
 Wickle has since been foreman and manager of 
 the Los Banos Planing Mill, and in this capaci- 
 ty has met with characteristic success, building 
 up an extensive and remunerative trade, and be- 
 coming widely and favorably known as one of 
 the leading millmen of the San Joaquin valley. 
 In 1893, in Ogden, Utah, Mr. Van Wickle 
 married Harriet Osborne, who was born in Eng- 
 land. She died in Sanger, Cal. Three children 
 were born of their union, one of whom is living, 
 namely, Howard. In 1898, in Fresno, Mr. 
 Van Wickle married for his second wife Ethel 
 Hillgrove, a native of Sacramento county, and 
 they are the parents of three children, namely: 
 Carrie, Sephese and Gladys. Politically Mr. 
 Van Wickle is a stanch Republican, and frater- 
 nally he belongs to the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. 
 
 HOBERT N. CUTLER. Recognized as one 
 of the most intelligent and skillful agriculturists 
 of Fresno county, Hobert N. Cutler owns and 
 occupies a finely improved fruit ranch, lying 
 three miles northeast of Selma. In the pursuit 
 of his congenial occupation he has shown much 
 wisdom and practical judgment, and by many 
 years of hard labor has acquired a competency. 
 Coming from honored New England stock, he 
 was born July 28, 1838, in Holland, Erie county, 
 N. Y., a son of William C. Cutler. His pa- 
 ternal grandfather, Caleb Cutler, was born and 
 bred in Massachusetts. In the early part of the 
 nineteenth century he migrated to Vermont, and 
 for a number of years was engaged in farming 
 in Wardsboro, Windham county. In 1816 he 
 moved with his family to the western part of 
 New York, his only capital at that time being one 
 yoke of oxen, one cow, and three dollars in 
 Continental money. Taking up a tract of un- 
 broken land, he cleared a farm from the forest, 
 not far from Buffalo, and there spent the re- 
 mainder of his'life. 
 
 Succeeding to the ancestral occupation, Will- 
 iam C. Cutler, who was born in Vermont, re- 
 moved with his parents to New York state, and 
 when ready to embark in farming on his own 
 account purchased land in Holland, Erie county, 
 where he improved a good estate, on which he 
 lived until his death. He married Maria Morey, 
 who was born in Massachusetts, bred and edu- 
 cated in Otsego county, N. Y., and died in Hol- 
 land, N. Y. She bore him eight children, three 
 sons and five daughters, Hobert N. being the 
 fourth child. 
 
 Having completed his early studies in the com- 
 mon schools of his native town, Hobert N. Cut- 
 ler turned his attention to agricultural pursuits 
 for a few years. Migrating to Hancock county. 
 
 111., in i860, he taught school in Carthage for 
 two years. Coming to California by way of the 
 Isthmus in 1862, he followed farming in Sarato- 
 ga, Santa Clara county, until 1869. Removing 
 then to the western part of Fresno county, Mr. 
 Cutler took up one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land in Panoche valley, and subsequently bought 
 another tract equally as large. Improving the 
 property, he carried on general farming with 
 good success for a number of seasons. Settling 
 three miles northeast of Selma, in the spring 
 of 1879, Mr. Cutler bought his present valuable 
 ranch of eighty acres, and has since carried on 
 a large and remunerative business as a fruit- 
 grower. Thirty-five acres of his land are plant- 
 ed to vines, twenty-eight acres to fig trees, eleven 
 acres to peaches and apricots, twelve acres he 
 devotes to the raising of alfalfa, and in addition 
 he has a blue gum grove of three acres which 
 he planted himself. Mr. Cutler is a man of good 
 business ability, and is interested in both the 
 Rochdale store at Selma and in the Selma Co- 
 operative Packing Com.pany. 
 
 In San Francisco, Cal., November 2, 1869, 
 Mr. Cutler married Hester J. Donnellan, who 
 was born in Iowa, and came to California by way 
 of Cape Horn in 1853, being then a young child. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Cutler, five chil- 
 dren have been born, namely : Mary E., a teacher 
 in Selma; Stella, wife of O. E. Shepherd, of 
 Del Rey ; Ede T., a teacher in the Iowa district ; 
 Eleise, wife of John Waterman, residing near 
 Fowler; and William Cheney, a butter manu- 
 facturer, of Ferndale, Humboldt county. Mr. 
 Cutler is a zealous supporter of the principles of 
 the Democratic party, and has served many 
 times as a delegate to the county conventions. 
 He takes great interest in educational matters, 
 and assisted in organizing the seventh school 
 district of Fresno county and the Panoche school 
 district. Fraternally he belongs to Selma Lodge 
 No. 2.'j'j, F. & A. M. 
 
 CLARENCE A. STARKWEATHER. Ac- 
 tively identified with the advancement of the 
 agricultural interests of Merced county is C. 
 A. Starkweather, well known as the manager 
 of the Los Banos Creamery. He is wideawake, 
 full of energy, and not only possesses a thorough 
 knowledge of the details of his work, but is a 
 man of excellent business capacity and judg- 
 ment, having inherited in no small measure the 
 substantial qualities of a long line of honored 
 New England ancestors. A son of A. Stark- 
 weather, he was born, October 28, 1864, in 
 Whately, Mass., while his mother was there 
 visiting friends and relatives. The immigrant 
 ancestor of the Starkweather family came from 
 England to New England in early colonial days, 
 
396 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and settled in Connecticut, from whence his de- 
 scendants have scattered to all parts of the 
 Union. The grandfather of Mr. Starkweather 
 was a life-long farmer, and a resident of west- 
 ern Massachusetts. 
 
 Born and bred in the old Bay state, in the 
 town of Northampton, A. Starkweather grew 
 to manhood on the ancestral homestead, where 
 he was early trained to farming pursuits. Mi- 
 grating to California in 1851, he located eight 
 miles north of Stockton, where he was employed 
 in tilling the soil for a number of years. In 
 1858 he visited his old home in Massachusetts, 
 returning the same year to his ranch near Stock- 
 ton, where he resided the following ten years. In 
 1868, on account of ill health, he sold his land, 
 and went back to Massachusetts with his family. 
 Not content, however, among the rocks and 
 hills of his native state, he returned to the Pa- 
 cific coast in 1878, locating on a ranch near 
 Farmington. He subsequently bought land in 
 that locality, and was there employed in general 
 farming until after the death of his wife, when 
 he removed to Alameda, where he now resides. 
 Mr. A. Starkweather's wife was Frances 
 Loomis, who was born in Whately, Mass., a 
 daughter of Leonard Loomis, a prominent 
 farmer of that town, and for many years its 
 town clerk. She died in 1899. Three children 
 were born of their union, namely : H. K., a well- 
 known business man of San Francisco; C. A., 
 the special subject of this sketch, and H. R., in 
 business with his brother, C. A., in Los Banos. 
 
 During the earlier years of his boyhood, from 
 1868 until 1878, his parents being residents of 
 Massachusetts, C. A. Starkweather attended the 
 public schools of Northampton. Returning with 
 them to California, he took a two years' course 
 at the Stockton Business College, from which 
 he \yas graduated in 1883. From that time until 
 attaining his majority he remained at home, as- 
 sisting his father in the care of the ranch. Sub- 
 sequently forming a partnership with J. L. 
 Beecher, Mr. Starkweather was engaged in 
 grain farming from 1886 until 1898, being 
 located in Stanislaus county, and operating from 
 fifteen hundred to twenty-five hundred acres of 
 land. Selling out in 1898, having become dis- 
 couraged on account of a series of bad crops, 
 Mr. Starkweather gave up farming as an oc- 
 cupation. Going to Stockton, he entered the 
 employ of Fred Arnsberger, manager of the 
 Stockton Creamery, and during the three 
 months that he continued with him he learned 
 the details of the creamery business. Mr. Stark- 
 weather then took charge of the Oakdale Cream- 
 ery, which, while he was engaged in farming, 
 he had helped to build, serving the companv as 
 Its secretary and as a director, and remained 
 there as its manager for two years. Going from 
 
 there to San Joaquin county, he had charge of 
 the Lockeford Creamery from 1.901 until 1902. 
 Accepting then a position with Schultz, Niggle 
 & Co., he was for a time head butter-maker at 
 the Hygea Creamery in San Francisco, then 
 spent two months with the Jersey Creamery in 
 Alameda, after which he spent a year in San 
 Francisco with his brother, being city salesman 
 for his brother, then took up his business as 
 butter-maker for the Encinal Creamery Com- 
 pany until it became consolidated with the Jer- 
 sey Creamery Company, when he was made 
 head butter-maker at the Alameda plant. In 
 September, 1903, Mr. Starkweather accepted the 
 position of manager of the Los Banos Creamery 
 for Miller & Lux, the proprietors, and since 
 the leasing of the plant, on June i, 1904, to the 
 San Francisco cream depot, has continued its 
 management, his work being in every wa}- satis- 
 factory, meeting the approval of his employers 
 and of the patrons of the creamery. The plant, 
 having a capacity of eighteen hundred pounds 
 of butter per day, is furnished with all the 
 latest improved machinery and appliances, in- 
 cluding steam power, being up to date in all 
 respects. In addition to manufacturing butter 
 of a superior grade, Mr. Starkweather ships 
 cream to San Francisco daily. 
 _ In Farmington, Cal., Mr. Starkweather mar- 
 ried Anna H. Anthony, who was born near 
 there, being a daughter of Simeon H. Anthony, 
 a native of Massachusetts, and one of the early 
 pioneers of California, having come here in 
 1851, settling as a farmer, after leaving the 
 mines, in San Joaquin county. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Starkweather have two children, namely: Clara 
 A. and Elfleda H. Politically Mr. Starkweather 
 is an earnest supporter of the principles of the 
 Republican party. He is a member of the 
 National Union and of the California Creamery 
 Operators' Association. Religiously he belongs 
 to the Methodist Episcopal Church'. 
 
 ELMER J. COUEY, M. D. The family 
 represented by E. J. Couey, M. D., of Fresno, 
 IS of southern extraction, but was identified with 
 the pioneer history of Illinois and Wisconsin 
 prior to becoming established in California. The 
 doctor's father, Andrew A., a native of Ran- 
 dolph county. III, and a farmer by occupation, 
 responded to the first call for volunteers at the 
 outbreak of the Civil war, becoming a mem- 
 ber of Company C, Thirtieth Illinois Infantry. 
 After a considerable service under General 
 Grant he accompanied Sherman on the memor- 
 able campaign through the South and the march 
 to the sea, during the progress of which he was 
 captured by Confederate soldiers, and for nine 
 months remained a prisoner at Andersonville. At 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 397 
 
 the close of the war he returned to Wisconsin and 
 resumed farm pursuits, remaining in that state 
 until 1886, when he came to California. Set- 
 tling one and one-half miles west of Fresno, 
 he gave his attention to ranching and the rais- 
 ing of fruit, in which occupations he continued 
 during the remainder of his life. At the time 
 of his death, which occurred November 27, 
 1903, he was sixty-one years of age. In politics 
 he voted with the Republican party. His father, 
 James F. Couey, was born in Georgia, and at 
 fifteen years of age accompanied his parents to 
 Illinois, then a frontier region beyond the limits 
 of civilization. Later he entered a tract of raw 
 land in Richland county, Wis., and from there 
 in 1884 came to Fresno, where he engaged in 
 farming for some time, but of recent years has 
 lived retired from active cares. 
 
 The marriage of Andrew A. Couey united 
 him with Eliza Hartley, who was born in Ken- 
 tucky and at an early age accompanied her par- 
 ents to Wisconsin. Since the death of her hus- 
 band she has continued to make her home on 
 the property which they purchased after com- 
 ing west. In their family of four children the 
 youngest child and only son was E. J., whose 
 birth occurred in Richland county. Wis., Novem- 
 ber 25, 1876, and who at the time of coming to 
 California was a boy of ten years. His educa- 
 tion was acquired primarily in Wisconsin, but 
 principally in the schools of California, his at- 
 tendance at the Fresno grammar and high 
 schools being supplemented by a course of study 
 in Healdsburg College. On his return from col- 
 lege he aided his father on the home place for 
 a year, and then entered the St. Helena Sani- 
 tarium in Napa county, Cal., from which he 
 was graduated May 25, 1897, as a trained nurse. 
 During the fall of the same year he matriculated 
 in the College of Physicians and Surgeons at 
 San Francisco, where he took the regular course 
 of study, graduating in 1900 with the degree 
 of M. D. 
 
 Immediately after his graduation Dr. Couey 
 began the practice of medicine in Fresno. 
 Under appointment by the county board of 
 supervisors, February i, 1901, he became stew- 
 ard and resident physician at the county hos- 
 pital, and this position he filled until June i, 
 1903, when he resigned to resume private prac- 
 tice. He has his office in the Republican build- 
 ing. Among the members of his profession he 
 has a high standing. For some years he has 
 made a special study of smallpox and other dis- 
 eases that are characterized by eruptions. In 
 the diagnosis of disease he is careful, painstak- 
 ing and accurate, never contenting himself with 
 superficial examinations, but penetrating to hid- 
 den causes, which, once discovered, are prompt- 
 ly and skillfully brought under control. Dur- 
 
 ing 1903 he was honored with the office of 
 president of the Fresno County Medical So- 
 ciety. Other organizations with which he holds 
 membership are the San Joaquin Valley Medical 
 Society, the California State Medical Society, 
 the American Medical Association, the Alumni 
 Association of the College of Physicians and 
 Surgeons of San Francisco, and the Order of 
 Pendo, in which he is medical examiner, be- 
 sides being medical examiner for the Metropoli- 
 tan Life Insurance Company. In matters politi- 
 cal he gives his influence to the Republican 
 party. His marriage occurred in San Francisco 
 in 1902, and united him with Miss Blanche B. 
 Bodwell, a native of Nebraska, but a resident 
 of California from girlhood. They are the 
 parents of a son, Donald B. 
 
 EZRA H. CHAPIN. An enterprising, prac- 
 tical and successful business man of Fresno, 
 Ezra H. Chapin, a well-known liveryman, is a 
 typical representative of the self-made men of 
 -our time. He has labored hard from his earli- 
 est days, and, notwithstanding reverses and 
 losses that would discourage one of less pluck 
 and grit, he has sturdily pushed his way toward 
 the front, by sheer persistency and earnestness 
 of purpose winning a large measure of success. 
 He was born August 16, 1857, in McHenry 
 county. 111., of substantial New England ances- 
 try, the Chapin family, it is said, being of Puri- 
 tan stock. 
 
 A native of Massachusetts, Daniel Chapin, 
 Mr. Chapin's father, grew to manhood among the 
 rocks and hills of old New England, but rather 
 than try to obtain a living by tilling the soil 
 learned the trade of carpenter and builder. Mi- 
 grating westward in 1854, he followed his chosen 
 occupation in McHenry county. 111., for six 
 years. In i860, following one of the great wheel- 
 worn tracks across the plains, he came to Cal- 
 ifornia, and located in Stockton, 'where he was 
 employed as a builder and contractor until his 
 death in 1869, at the age of forty- four years. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Aurelia Staf- 
 ford, was born in Vermont, the descendant of 
 one of the earlier settlers of Plymouth colony, 
 and a daughter of Gilbert Stafford, who re- 
 moved from Vermont to North Adams, Mass., 
 where he carried on general farming until his 
 death. She joined her husband, in 1863, in 
 Stockton, bringing her children with her from 
 North Adams, where she had sperit the three 
 previous years. She now resides in Oakland, 
 Cal. Of her family of children but two are 
 living, Ezra H., the subject of this sketch; and 
 Stella A., of Oakland. 
 
 Leaving Marengo, 111., his birthplace, when a 
 boy of three years, E. H, Chapin lived for three 
 
398 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 years in North Adams, Mass., and then, in 1863, 
 came with his mother to Stockton, Cal., where 
 he attended the district school for several terms. 
 Being left fatherless at the age of twelve years, 
 he was forced to help support himself and the 
 other members of the family. Going, therefore, 
 to Stanislaus county, he worked for five years 
 for an uncle, a farmer. At the age of seven- 
 teen he rented a ranch lying between Modesto 
 and Ceres, and embarked in business for him- 
 self as a grain raiser, from year to year enlarg- 
 ing his operations until he had charge of eight 
 hundred acres of land. In 1886, locating in 
 Berendo, in what was then Fresno county, but 
 was later included within the limits of Madera 
 county, Mr. Chapin purchased six hundred and 
 forty acres of land that was still in its primitive 
 wildness, and in addition rented adjoining land, 
 having in his entire ranch three thousand acres. 
 Buying machinery and implements in large quan- 
 tities, and enough mules to allow ten or twelve to 
 each team, he sowed his farm to grain, but, unfor- 
 tunately, the next two years were so dry .that 
 the yield was very scant, one hundred and fifty 
 sacks of grain only being harvested the first 
 season, and but one-half as much the ensuing 
 year. At the end of three years, when all of 
 his debts were paid, Mr. Chapin's entire assets 
 consisted of one team of mules. Trading his 
 team and assuming the mortgage he continued 
 farming, likewise working in a sawmill in the 
 mountains, until the mortgage was canceled. 
 
 Disposing of his ranch in 1896, Mr. Chapin 
 located on the San Joaquin river, > nearly oppo- 
 site Pollasky, and was there employed in gen- 
 eral ranching, including grain and stock rais- 
 ing, and also in teaming in the mountains, for 
 two years. While living there, in 1898, he was 
 nominated on the Republican ticket for super- 
 visor of Madera county, and was elected by a 
 majority of twenty-eight, although the county 
 was a Democratic stronghold. Taking the oath 
 of ofHce in January, 1899, he served with ability 
 and fidelity for four years, during the entire 
 period of his service being chairman of the 
 board. He was likewise chairman of the build- 
 ing committee that erected the Madera county 
 court house, which is one of the finest for its 
 size of any in the state, and one of which the 
 citizens of the county may justly be proud. En- 
 tering the employ of the Pacific Construction 
 Company in May, 1902, Mr. Chapin assisted in 
 the building of the Modesto canal,' in Stanislaus 
 county, remaining with the company until the 
 completion of the canal, in March, 1903. The 
 following month Mr. Chapin settled in Fresno, 
 and, in company with Lyman Estes, bought the 
 Blackhawk stables, which have since been under 
 the management of the enterprising firm of Estes 
 & Chapin. The livery and boarding stable is 
 
 150x200 feet, being one of the largest in the 
 valley, and is well equipped with vehicles of all 
 kinds, and with excellent horses, the sole aim of 
 the proprietors being to please and accommo- 
 date their numerous patrons. 
 
 In Stanislaus county in 1879, M^- Chapin 
 married Ella Estes, who was born in Adrian, 
 Mich., a daughter of Albert Estes, a prosperous 
 farmer, living near Madera, Cal. Albert Ezra, 
 the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Chapin, is in 
 business with his father. Politically Mr. Chapin 
 is an earnest advocate of the principles of the 
 Republican party. Fraternally he belongs to 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He 
 is also a member of the Fresno Chamber of 
 Commerce. 
 
 HARRY E. GOODWIN. Among the ener- 
 getic and enterprising young men of Merced 
 county who have selected farming as their voca- 
 tion in life, and who, judging from. present in- 
 dications, are realizing their anticipations, is 
 Harry E. Goodwin, a successful farmer and 
 dairyman of Dos Palos. Beginning his career 
 at the foot of the ladder, W'ithout other resources 
 than his indomitable will and native stock of in- 
 dustry, he has gradually worked his way up- 
 ward, rising from a humble position to that of 
 one of the representative young men of an in- 
 telligent community, and is properly ranked 
 among the self-made men of our times. A son 
 of Samuel Goodwin, he was born December 19, 
 1870, in Ottumwa, Iowa. His grandfather, 
 Raleigh Goodwin, was born and reared in Ohio. 
 From there he migrated westward, locating first 
 in Indiana, and then in Iowa, where he was a 
 pioneer farmer and stock buyer. 
 
 A native of Indiana, Samuel Goodwin was 
 trained to agricultural pursuits, and began life 
 for himself as a farmer in Wapello county, Iowa, 
 where he was an early settler. Finding his land 
 rich in mineral deposits, he opened the first coal 
 mine in that locality, in the town now called Keb, 
 and operated it successfully for several years. 
 Selling out to the Whitebreast Company, he 
 bought land in Calhoun county, Iowa, and em- 
 barked in general farming. Coming to Califor- 
 nia in 1896, he located in Dos Palos, where he 
 purchased two ranches, which he improved. Re- 
 turning to Iowa in 1898, he located at Dallas 
 Center as a real estate dealer, and is now occu- 
 pied in the same business at Unionville, Mo. 
 He married Martha West, who was born in In- 
 diana, and died in Iowa. Her father, Samuel 
 West, bom in the east, was a pioneer farmer 
 of Wapello county, Iowa. She bore her husband 
 ten children, six of whom grew to years of ma- 
 turity, Harry E,, the second child, being the 
 only one residing in California. 
 
^-^/>^^^'W' A^^H4^^''^-^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 401 
 
 Completing his early education in the district 
 schools of Iowa, Harry E. Goodwin began farm- 
 ing when eighteen years of age, and until his 
 marriage was engaged in tilling the soil. The 
 ensuing three years he was employed in coal 
 mining in Wapello county, and then removed to 
 Calhoun county, Iowa, where he rented land, 
 and continued farming. In February, 1895, Mr. 
 Goodwin came to Dos Palos, Gal., and on Lex- 
 ington avenue purchased twenty acres of raw 
 land, which he at once began to improve. Hav- 
 ing leveled, checked and ditched it, he has since 
 carried on farming, raising alfalfa on all but two 
 and one-half acres, which he devotes to fruit 
 growing. He is also carrying on a substantial 
 business as a dairyman, and is much interested 
 in bee culture, having an apiary at his home 
 ranch, and one on the Santa Rita ranch, having 
 three hundred and twenty swarms. Soon after 
 locating here Mr. Goodwin bought thirty-three 
 acres of land adjoining his home farm and hav- 
 ing improved it raised alfalfa until disposing of 
 the farm in 1903. In his agricultural operations 
 Mr. Goodwin has met with success. He is a 
 member of the Central California Honey Pro- 
 ducers' Association^ and is interested in the 
 Rochdale Association. 
 
 September 9, 1890, in Manson, Iowa, Mr. 
 Goodwin married Addie Lenhouts, who was 
 born in Milwaukee, Wis., a daughter of Peter 
 Lenhouts. A native of Holland, Peter Lenhouts 
 came with his parents to this country, settling as 
 a pioneer in Wisconsin. During the Civil war 
 he served in a Wisconsin regiment, and after- 
 ward removed to Iowa, locating in Calhoun 
 county, where he was engaged in farming, and 
 as a printer, until his death. He married Jen- 
 nie Orlebeke, who was born in Holland, and 
 came with her parents to Wisconsin, where her 
 father, Henry Orlebeke, whose name was sub- 
 sequently changed to Ollenbeck, settled first, al- 
 though he afterward removed to Iowa, where he 
 followed blacksmithing. Of the union of Peter 
 and Jennie (Orlebeke) Lenhouts five children 
 were bom, four of whom are living, namely. 
 Henry, of Omaha, Neb.; Mrs. Goodwin; Mrs. 
 Raven, of Dos Palos; and Ralph, of Dos Palos. 
 Mrs. Lenhouts came to the Pacific coast in 189S, 
 and is now a resident of Dos Palos. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Goodwin have one child, Grace Evelyn. In 
 local affairs Mr. Goodwin takes great interest, 
 and is a member of the Board of Trustees of the 
 Dos Palos school district, of which he is presi- 
 dent. He is also serving as road overseer. 
 While living in Ottumwa, Iowa, he was made an 
 Odd Fellow, and is now a member and vice- 
 grand of Santa Rita Lodge No. 124, I. 0. O. F. 
 He is likewise a member of the Knights of the 
 Maccabees, being commander of his lodge, and 
 is also a member of the Modern Woodmen of 
 
 America. Mrs. Goodwin is a member and past 
 commander of the Ladies of the Maccabees, and 
 belongs to the Royal Neighbors. In his political 
 affiliations Mr. Goodwin is a Socialist. 
 
 CONRAD MYERS. It was in May, 1875, 
 that Conrad Myers arrived in California, settling 
 in Sonoma county, whence in 1876 he removed 
 to Tulare county. When he came to his present 
 ranch, six miles northeast of Selma, in 1878, he 
 found a desert as' yet unacquainted with the in- 
 dustry of man, and to encourage him in his set- 
 tlement, but one house between his own squatter's 
 claim and the town of Fresno. The region was 
 known as the Mendocino district. Mr. Myers has 
 long since seen his property take on the appear- 
 ance of an advanced agricultural section, and as 
 his sons reached maturity they also bought land, 
 adjoining the homestead, and improved it. 
 Eighty acres were bought at $75 per acre. After 
 selling a portion of the original holding, father 
 and sons still own two hundred acres, one hun- 
 dred and fifty-three acres of which are set to 
 grapes, and the near-by peach and apricot or- 
 chard of six acres yields a liberal income. The 
 balance is devoted to alfalfa, of which three crops 
 are cut each year. Mr. Myers and his sons are 
 among the foremost fruit growers in their im- 
 mediate neighborhood. 
 
 Born in Armstrong county. Pa., January 4, 
 1832, Mr. Myers is a son of Philip Myers, who 
 was born in Pennsylvania in 1790, and who early 
 settled in Wabash county, Ind. In 1845 the 
 father removed to Barry county. Mo., where he 
 engaged in farming and stock-raising, and where 
 his wife, formerly Margaret Myers, of Pennsyl- 
 vania, died, after rearing a family of four sons 
 and eight daughters, of whom Conrad is the elev- 
 enth child. Mr. Myers was an invalid for many 
 years of his life and in 1875 came to California 
 with his son, later going to Mussel Slough, Kings 
 county, where he died in 1876, at the age of 
 eighty-six. Owing to his father's impaired 
 health young Conrad was obliged to work hard 
 in his youth, as did all of the other children of ' 
 this large family. At the age of twenty-one he 
 married Hannah Hedrick, a native of Kentucky, 
 and bought a small place about three miles from 
 the home place in Barry county. Mo., where he 
 lived until coming to the coast in 1875. In the 
 meantime he left his farm in the care of his wife 
 and enlisted in the Confederate army in 1862, 
 serving under General Price for three years, or 
 until the capture of that famous general. 
 
 In California Mr. Myers has proved some- 
 thing more than a mere money-getter, for he is 
 public-spirited to a large degree, and takes a keen 
 interest in the enterprises . and resources which 
 contribute to the wellbeing of this district. He 
 
402 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is particularly active in irrigating enterprises, 
 and assisted with the building of the Centerville 
 & Kingsburg ditch, in which he has since sold 
 his interest, and purchased stock in the Church 
 ditch. He is a partner and stockholder in the 
 Palier Co-operative Packing House & Raisin 
 Seeder Company and the Growers Co-operative 
 Winery. Mr. Myers is a Democrat in pwlitics, 
 but has always objected to office-holding. Five 
 of his eight children are living, his wife and three 
 children, Charles Philip, Sarah M. and William 
 Conrad having died several years ago. The chil- 
 dren living are Mary C. Matilda, the wife of 
 John Lagrant; Melissa Angeline, the wife of O. 
 D. Berryhill; Orlena Price, the wife of G. D. 
 Nedry; George W., living on the home place 
 and operates his father's farm in connection with 
 his own; C. H., living near his father's place. 
 
 A. C. TINNIN. In the days before the rail- 
 road had become a recognized possibility as a 
 means of bringing into proximity the east and 
 the west, a multitude of gold-seekers undertook 
 the long and perilous journey through an un- 
 known country, amid hostile Indians, into the 
 El Dorado of their dreams. Though coming 
 somewhat later than many, the hardships of the 
 journey did not fall lighter upon A. C. Tinnin 
 than upon his predecessors of the previous years. 
 The ox-teams slowly wended their way across 
 the plains .from his early home in Perry county, 
 Mo., and after eight months brought him to the 
 country of the Golden Gate. Not caring to ven- 
 ture his future in the uncertain occupation of 
 mining, he turned to agriculture as offering a 
 favorable opportunity for securing a start. After 
 two years he drifted into teaming and freight- 
 ing, which in the days before the building of 
 railroads could be conducted upon an extensive 
 scale and with excellent profits. For five years 
 he worked as a teamster and then settled upon a 
 farm in the Santa Clara valley, but after a few 
 years removed to farm land in Contra Costa 
 county. The year 1869 found him a pioneer on 
 the west side in Merced county, where he took 
 up the raising of grain. During 1876 he pur- 
 chased one hundred and sixty acres on the upper 
 county road and immediately after purchase 
 checked the land for irrigation, after which he 
 successfully carried on wheat farming and raised 
 large crops of that cereal each year. Though 
 never active in politics he was at all times stanch 
 in his adherence to the Democratic party. His 
 death, which occurred in 1887, removed from 
 the San Joaquin valley one of its honored pio- 
 neers and successful farmers. 
 
 The marriage of A. C. Tinnin united him with 
 Sarah Bollenger, a native of Perry county, Mo., 
 and now occupying the old homestead with her 
 
 youngest son, William Henry. She is a mem- 
 ber of a pioneer family of the Pacific coast. 
 During 1852 her father, A. Joseph Bollenger, 
 crossed the plains from Missouri and settled in 
 Napa county, later removing to Santa Clara 
 county, where he purchased and tilled a tract of 
 farm land. On going from there to Contra 
 Costa county he homesteaded a tract, on which 
 eventually he became interested in the raising of 
 stock. To obtain needed pasturage for his large 
 herd of cattle and dairy cows he bought vast 
 tracts of range land. A fine orchard and run- 
 ning water made the Bollenger Caiion farm (as 
 the place was called) a desirable property, and 
 when he disposed of it he received a fair advance 
 on the original investment. Returning to Santa 
 Clara coimty he bought a ranch for $30,000, and 
 ten days later sold it for $60,000. It is needless 
 to state that those were the "boom" days, whose 
 culmination was followed by a reaction in prices 
 almost fatal to the permanent prosperity of the 
 valley. At the time of his death, which occurred 
 in 1884 in Santa Clara county, his possessions 
 were valued at $200,000, the larger part of 
 which was gained through fortunate handling of 
 real estate. In buying and selling few men had 
 more sagacious judgment; his foresight was 
 keen and his knowledge of land values almost 
 remarkable. His wife, Sarah E., died in 1898. 
 Of their four sons and three daughters, one 
 daughter and one son are deceased. At the time 
 the Bollenger family came to California their 
 daughter, Sarah, was a girl of sixteen years, and 
 not long afterward she became the wife of Mr. 
 Tinnin at Napa. Of their union ten children 
 were born and all but one attained maturity. 
 Three daughters, Mrs. Sarah Akins, Mrs. Mary 
 L. Raley and Mrs. Belsora Crittenden, reside in 
 .San Francisco. Mrs. Letitia Ewing makes her 
 home at Stockton. Mrs. Ada Hendsch lives in 
 Calaveras county, and George is at Copperopolis, 
 the same county. Lee is living at 'Shandon, San 
 Luis Obispo county. William Henry occupies 
 the homestead in Merced county ; and Cora, Mrs. 
 Dalzell, is a resident of Stockton. The sons and 
 daughters, in the various communities where 
 they reside, reflect credit upon the training re- 
 ceived from their parents, and by probity of 
 character and progressiveness of spirit have won 
 assured positions in social and business circles. 
 
 THEODORE J. REYNOLDS. The name of 
 T. J. Reynolds, late of Dos Palos, but now de- 
 ceased, is widely and favorably known through- 
 out this section of Merced county, and will long 
 be remembered and honored by all who had the 
 pleasure of his acquaintance. A man of strong 
 and intelligent convictions, honest and upright 
 in his dealings, he won the respect and esteem 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 403 
 
 of all with whom he came in contact, and gained 
 the confidence and good will of the community 
 in which he resided. A native of New York, he 
 was born in May, 1847, ""^ Hartford, Washing- 
 tor, county, which was also the birthplace of his 
 father, J. J. Reynolds. A Hfelong resident of 
 New York state, J. J. Reynolds turned his at- 
 tention to agricultural pursuits when young, and 
 continued to till the soil during his active career. 
 He married Abigail Bump, who lived and died 
 in New York, and into their home six children 
 were born, T. J., the subject of this sketch, 
 being the second in order of birth. 
 
 Receiving an excellent education in the public 
 schools of his native county, T. J. Reynolds was 
 subsequently for a number of years engaged in 
 teaching near Hartford, N. Y. In 1866, shortly 
 after his marriage, Mr. Reynolds settled as a 
 farmer in Greenville, N. Y., where he resided 
 twelve years. Removing with his family to Har- 
 vard, Clay county, Neb., in 1878, he bought one 
 hundred and twenty acres of railroad land, from 
 which he improved a good ranch, erecting there- 
 on a substantial set of buildings. Renting his 
 Nebraska farm in 1882 he spent the following 
 two years in New York, being there engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits. Returning to Nebraska in 
 1884, Mr. Reynolds kept a hotel in Harvard for 
 a year, after which, in 1885, he traded his land 
 in that vicinity for a farm in Hamilton county, 
 near Giltner, becoming possessor of two hun- 
 dred and twenty acres of fine farming land, on 
 which he lived and labored successfully for five 
 years. Selling that ranch March 6, 1890, Mr. 
 Reynolds came immediately to California, locat- 
 ing in Dos Palos. Buying sixty acres of land 
 lying three-fourths' of a mile south of the city, 
 he built a residence, and started a nursery, in- 
 tending to settle here permanently. The land, 
 however, proved unsuitable for fruit growing, 
 and Miller & Lux exchanged that ranch for 
 sixty acres of land, situated on the avenue which 
 now bears his name, at the corner of Cornelia 
 avenue, in the New Colony. Leveling and 
 checking the land, Mr. Reynolds set out an or- 
 chard, and was here actively and profitably en- 
 gaged in fruit raising and dairying until his 
 death, in August, 1901. He was interested in 
 the leading reform movements of the day, and in 
 his political preferences was an ardent Prohibi- 
 tionist. He belonged to the Knights of the Mac- 
 cabees, and was a member of the Christian 
 Church. 
 
 March 12, 1866, in New York state, Mr. 
 Reynolds married Jane E. Brayton, who was 
 born in that state, as was her father, William 
 Brayton, Jr. Her grandfather, William Bray- 
 ton, Sr., was a farmer by occupation, and spent 
 the larger portion of his life in New York. 
 William Brayton, Jr., succeeded to the occupa- 
 
 tion of his ancestors, and during his sixty-eight 
 years was engaged in general farming. He was 
 a man of prominence in his community, and a 
 valued member of the Baptist Church. He mar- 
 ried Maria Hoyt, who was born in Virginia, and 
 died in New York. Ten children were born of 
 their m.arriage, five of whom grew to years of 
 maturity, Jane E., now Mrs. Reynolds, being 
 the eighth child in order of birth. One son, 
 John, a resident of Hartford, N. Y., served in a 
 New York regiment during the Civil war. 
 Since the death of her husband, Mrs. Reynolds 
 has resided on the home farm, which she rents to 
 her son Harry. She now owns forty acres of 
 land, fifteen acres of which she devotes to the 
 culture of fruit, while on the remainder she 
 raises alfalfa. Four children blessed the union 
 of Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds, namely : Abbie M., 
 wife of y. W. Herman, of Stockton, Cal. ; Harry 
 T., having charge of the home ranch; Emma B., 
 of San Jose ; and Truman E., living at home. 
 Harry T. Reynolds, the oldest son, married Bon- 
 nie Hoyle, a native of Tennessee, and formerly 
 a teacher in the public schools, and they have 
 two children, Vesta and Lois. Mrs. Reynolds 
 is a woman of culture and refinement, highly es- 
 teemed by all, and is a consistent member of the 
 Christian Church. 
 
 CHARLES FOREMAN, D. D. S. Num- 
 bered among the successful members of the den- 
 tal profession is Charles Foreman, a well-known 
 dentist of Dos Palos. Noted for his skill and 
 thorotigh knowledge of his work, he has ac- 
 Cjuired an enviable reputation for honesty and 
 ability, and has here built up a large and remu- 
 nerative practice. He was for some years ac- 
 tively interested in agricultural pursuits, and 
 still owns a nice dairy farm and home on Palm 
 avenue. A native of Iowa, he was born April 
 I, 1866, in Pottawattamie county, about sixteen 
 miles north of Council Bluffs. His father, Ma- 
 son Foreman, was born and reared in old Vir- 
 ginia. Moving to Pottawattamie county, Iowa, 
 in* 1854, he improved a farm, and was there 
 engaged in stock and grain raising until his 
 death. His wife, who was born in Virginia, her 
 maiden name being Sarah Rodgers, died on the 
 Iowa farm, in 1873. Of the twelve children that 
 she bore her husband, nine grew to years of ma- 
 turity, and eight are now living, Charles, the 
 eleventh child in order of birth, being the only 
 one on the Pacific coast. 
 
 Brought up in Iowa, Charles Foreman began 
 life for himself when but ten years old, having 
 been left motherless when but seven years of 
 age. He worked as a chore boy on a farm, and 
 attended the short terms of the district school 
 
404: 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 for six years, and then removed to Thayer 
 county, Neb., where he continued as a farm 
 laborer for two years. The ensuing two years 
 he was similarly engaged in Concordia, Cloud 
 county, Kans., after which he returned to Iowa. 
 Settling in Harrison county, he purchased one 
 hundred acres of land, from which he improved 
 a farm, carrying it on until 1891, during the last 
 year being also employed as a barber. Coming 
 from there to California, Mr. Foreman bought_ a 
 lot in the original colony of Dos Palos, and'built 
 a small hotel, which he carried on for two years, 
 at the same time working at the barber's trade. 
 When the site of the colony was changed to its 
 present location, he purchased forty acres of 
 land on Palm avenue, moved his house from its 
 first site to his new possessions, and having re- 
 built his residence began the improvement of his 
 land, putting the larger part of it in alfalfa and 
 setting out a small orchard. He embarked in the 
 dairy business, in which he was quite successful. 
 Taking up the study of dentistry under Dr. 
 George Monroe, he completed his studies with a 
 well-known dentist of San Francisco, and be- 
 ginning the practice of his profession at Colony 
 Center in 1896 has continued here since, being 
 deservedly popular throughout the community, 
 where he has a rapidly increasing patronage. In 
 addition to his other duties, he is engaged in a 
 general real estate business. 
 
 In Harrison county, Iowa, Dr. Foreman mar- 
 ried Lizzie Ross, a native of that county, and 
 they are the parents of six children, namely : 
 Roy, Ross, Charles, Frank, Florence and Evard. 
 The doctor is a stanch adherent of the Repub- 
 lican party, and is a member of the Fraternal 
 Aid ; and of the Modern Woodmen oT America. 
 Mrs. Foreman is a member of the Church of 
 Latter Day Saints. 
 
 JOHN CHATTEN. Six miles northeast of 
 Visalia on the Millwood road lies the farm which 
 for years has been the home of Mr. Chatten and 
 which each year produces crops of alfalfa, corn 
 and grain, as well as furnishing pasturage ^or 
 the fine herd of milch cows. The homestead 
 includes one hundred and seventy-two and one- 
 half acres on Elbow creek, with adequate irriga- 
 tion facilities by means of the Wutchumna ditch, 
 in which company he is a director. Though not 
 entirely under cuhivation, every acre of the land 
 is tillable. In addition, Mr. Chatten owns a 
 quarter section of adjoining land which is util- 
 ized for grazing purposes. The family resi- 
 dence, built in 1903, is a substantial structure 
 with modern improvements and makes a com- 
 fortable home. 
 
 A resident of California since 1868, Mr. Chat- 
 
 ten is a native of Canada and a descendant of 
 English progenitors. His grandfather, Thomas 
 Chatten, brought the family to America from 
 Norfolk county, England, and settled in Ontario. 
 There the father, Robert Chatten, engaged in 
 farming near Colborne, remaining in the same 
 locality until his death, in 1896, at seventy-eight 
 years of age. During early manhood he married 
 Betsey Doe, who was born in Ontario and died 
 there at seventy-two years of age. Of English 
 ancestry, she was the daughter of James Doe, 
 an Englishman, who crossed the ocean to Canada 
 and became a farmer in Ontario. Among nine 
 children (all of whom attained mature years 
 and seven are still living) John Chatten was next 
 to the oldest child and the oldest son. He was 
 born near Colborne, Northumberland county, 
 Ontario, December 8, 1848, and grew to manhood 
 in the midst of discouraging conditions. Nature 
 had not richly blessed the locality where 
 he lived. A livelihood was earned only by the 
 most arduous labor. After reaching the age 
 of eleven years he was taken out of school and 
 given farm work, one of his most laborious tasks 
 being the picking of stones. 
 
 An uncle, Richard Chatten (now living in 
 Visalia) , had come to California, during the ex- 
 citing period of 1849, ^i^d reports sent to Ontario 
 by him contained glowing accounts of the cli- 
 mate here which differed so radically from the 
 bleak and stormy winters of Ontario. In this 
 way John Chatten was led to leave his child- 
 hood's home and seek the Pacific coast country. 
 For two years after arriving in the state he 
 worked for his uncle, but after his marriage 
 he took up independent farming and stock-rais- 
 ing on a tract of one hundred and fifty acres 
 belonging to his uncle. A year later he bought 
 an unimproved tract, which he has since trans- 
 formed into an attractive homestead. Of recent 
 years he has made a specialty of dairying and to 
 facilitate this work he utilizes a separator. More 
 than ordinary success has rewarded his efforts 
 as a_ farmer, for he came to this country with 
 nothing and now possesses a valuable property. 
 In his labors he has had the aid of an efficient 
 helpmate. His wife, formerly Miss Celestie 
 Reynolds, was born in Iowa and was brought 
 across the plains by her parents when seven 
 months old. Her entire life in California has 
 been spent in Tulare county. The children born 
 of their union are as follows : Wesley, who fol- 
 lows the engraving business in Portland, Ore.; 
 Arthur, a farmer in the vicinity of his father's 
 home; Wilmot and Ray, who are in Portland; 
 Fred and Elsie, who remain with their parents. 
 The family attend the Christian Church at Visalia 
 and Mrs. Chatten is a member of that organiza- 
 tion. In political belief Mr. Chatten supports 
 the Republican party. His activity in local affairs 
 
^^ ^.-^/c.^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 407 
 
 was displayed through efficient service some years 
 ago as a . member of the county central com- 
 mittee of his party, while his interest in educa- 
 tional affairs caused him to accept the office of 
 school trustee of the Elbow district, an office 
 that he filled efficiently for thirty years, mean- 
 while aiding in building a schoolhouse and in 
 placing the work of teaching upon a broad and 
 solid basis. Other praiseworthy movements 
 have received the benefit of his aid and counsel, 
 and he is justly recognized as one of the leading 
 men of his locality. 
 
 WILLIAM De LaGRANGE. Distinguished 
 alike for the honored French ancestry from which 
 he is descended and for his own noteworthy life 
 record, William De LaGrange occupies a sub- 
 stantial position among the most respected and 
 highly esteemed citizens of Selma. As a horti- 
 culturist, and a man of mechanical skill and in- 
 genuity, he has, during the past quarter of a 
 century, been an important factor in promoting 
 the industrial interests of Fresno cotinty. A son 
 of the late Omie De LaGrange, he was born 
 January i, 1840, in Washington county, Ohio. 
 His paternal great-grandfather, also named Omie 
 De LaGrange, came to this country at the begin- 
 ning of the Revolutionary war as an officer on the 
 staff of Marquis de Lafayette, whose sister he 
 had ^previously married. He was a highly edu- 
 cated man, and after serving in the army until 
 the close of the war received from the United 
 States Government three tracts of land, located 
 in different parts of New York state. He subse- 
 quently sent to France for his family, and took 
 up his residence in this country. He died in 
 France, while on a vfSit to his old home. His 
 son, Barnabas De LaGrange, Mr. De LaGrange's 
 grandfather, came with the family to the United 
 States, locating in Saratoga, N. Y., where he 
 followed teaching for many years. Removing 
 to Ohio in 1830, he settled near Marietta, and 
 subsequently resided there until his death, at the 
 venerable age of eighty-two years. 
 
 Born in Saratoga, N. Y.,- Omie De LaGrange 
 was there reared and educated. In early life he 
 removed to Washington county, Ohio, locating 
 near Marietta, where he became .owner of a 
 large and valuable farm. In addition to oversee- 
 ing the management of his farm, he was a noted 
 contractor and builder, and filled many govern- 
 ment contracts in Ohio and West Virginia, build- 
 ing canals and other public works, and becoming 
 a large property owner in both states. In 1892 
 he came from Parkersburg, W. Va., to Califor- 
 nia, and thereafter made his home with his son 
 William, in Selma, living here until his death, 
 in 1900, at the advanced age of eiglity-six years. 
 He married Elizabeth McClain, who was born 
 
 in Pennsylvania, and died in Parkersburg, W. 
 Va., at the age of seventy-four years. She bore 
 him eight children, four sons and four daugh- 
 ters, William being the oldest child. 
 
 After receiving a limited education in the com- 
 mon schools, William De LaGrange worked with 
 his father as carpenter and builder in Ohio and 
 Virginia. Enlisting, in 1861, in Company H, 
 Eleventh Virginia Volunteer Infantry, he served 
 as musician in a martial band of twelve mem- 
 bers for tv/o years, being employed along a line 
 of sharpshooters. At the expiration of his term 
 of enlistment, in 1863, Mr. De LaGrange en- 
 gaged in steamboating on the Ohio and Missis- 
 sippi rivers, serving as pilot on the Chesapeake, 
 the Emma Graham, the Mountain Boy, and other 
 large steamers. Coming to the Pacific coast in 
 1880, Mr. De LaGrange purchased forty acres of 
 land lying one mile southwest of Selma, in Fres- 
 no county, and began the improvement of a 
 ranch. In 1884 he was made foreman of the 
 work of building the head gates, bridges and 
 drops of the seventy-six canals on Fowler switch, 
 being thus employed for about a year. Selling 
 his ranch in 1890, Mr. De LaGrange removed 
 to his present estate, which lies four miles north- 
 east of Selma, on the Centerville and Kingsburg 
 ditch. Here he owns a fine orchard and vine- 
 yard of twenty acres, both of which produce large 
 quantities of fruit and grapes thriving well under 
 his skillful care. He also carries on an exten- 
 sive and lucrative business in boring wells and 
 installing pumping plants, using both gasoline 
 and steam power. 
 
 In 1870, while living in West Virginia, Mr. 
 De LaGrange married Virginia DeWitt, a na- 
 tive of that state, and they are the parents of 
 four children, namely : Ada Ethel, wife of Will- 
 iam Unger; William, of Bakersfield, an elec- 
 trician, in the employ of the Edison Electric 
 Company; John; and Omie. In politics Mr. De 
 LaGrange is a stanch Republican, and in religion 
 is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 CAPT. ROBERT M. ASKIN. Although not 
 one of the early settlers of Visalia, the business 
 interests and the high character of his citizen- 
 ship place Captain Askin among the leading resi- 
 dents of the city. Travel and extensive reading 
 have made him familiar with many portions of the 
 United States, but among them all California is 
 his favorite state, and he believes its business 
 openings to be as substantial as its climate is 
 fair. In business his specialties are plumbing and 
 iron work and along these lines he has built up 
 an extensive and important trade among the peo- 
 ple of Visalia and Tulare county. 
 
 Captain Askin was born in Dublin, Ireland, 
 April ID, 1838, and received his education prin- 
 
408 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cipally in the King's hospital of his native city. 
 His father, John Askin, was born in England, 
 and under the supervision of the grandfather 
 learned the trade of plumber, which he followed 
 from the time of his removal to Ireland until he 
 died. After leaving England for the Emerald 
 Isle he married Sarah Sophia Shea, a native of 
 Dublin. They became the parents of five chil- 
 dren, of whom two sons and two daughters at- 
 tained mature years, Robert M. being third in 
 order of birth. Hoping to find more advanta- 
 geous openings in the new world than his native 
 isle offered, in November, 1852, he crossed the 
 ocean to the United States and joined an uncle 
 at Trenton, Canada, where he served an appren- 
 ticeship to the tinner's trade. From there in 1854 
 he went to Jefferson county, N. Y., and after 
 working at his trade for two years there, joined 
 another uncle in New York City. 
 
 On settling in Missouri in 1859, Captain Askin 
 found employment in St. Louis, but soon ac- 
 companied a Mr. Crippin to Steelville, Crawford 
 county. Mo., where he started a tinsmith's shop. 
 Soon after his commencing in business at that 
 place the Civil war opened. September 6, 1861, 
 found him accepted in Company E, Phelps' regi- 
 ment, where he served for six months, mean- 
 while witnessing the battle of Pea Ridge. On the 
 expiration of his time he was honorably dis- 
 charged. August 14, 1862, he re-enlisted in Com- 
 pany E, Thirty-second Missouri Infantry, as a 
 private, but in October of the same year was 
 made lieutenant, and April 14, 1864, received a 
 commission as captain. During the early period 
 of his service he was under General Grant, but 
 from 1863 until the close of the war he took part 
 in the campaigns under Sherman. It is a note- 
 worthy fact that, while he bore a brave part in 
 thirty-two general engagements, he never missed 
 a roll-call or a meal with his company, and was 
 injured but once, that being a mere surface wound 
 made by a ball while he was charging on a bat- 
 tery at Jonesboro, Ga. July 18, 1865, he was 
 mustered out at Louisville, Ky., one hundred and 
 twenty-six members of the regiment being mus- 
 tered out at that time, of whom twenty-six be- 
 longed to his own company. 
 
 When the arms of a soldier were laid aside' 
 for the more peaceful equipments of commercial 
 life Captain Askin returned to Steelville and took 
 up .work as a tinner, also handled hardware of 
 all kinds. In 1870 he removed to Cuba, Craw- 
 ford county. Mo., and from there in 1878 went 
 to Salem, Dent county, where he carried a large 
 stock of stoves, hardware and house furnishing 
 goods, and also officiated as postmaster under 
 President Harrison. In the various places of his 
 residence he was an active worker in the Re- 
 publican party and for one term he served as pre- 
 siding justice of the county court. For twenty 
 
 years he was one of the most influential busi- 
 ness men of Salem, but finally closed out his in- 
 terests in that city and removed to California in 
 1899, since which year ViSalia has been his home 
 and business headquarters. 
 
 The first marriage of Captain Askin took place 
 February 22, 1866, and united him with Clara 
 Alice Jameson, who was born in Missouri, and 
 died at Cuba, that state. Four children were born 
 of that union, namely : Charles Robert and Mary 
 Catherine, both deceased; WilHam C, who still 
 lives in Missouri ; and John Herbert, who is con- 
 nected with his father in business at Visalia. The 
 present wife of Captain Askin, whom he mar- 
 ried at Cuba, Mo., April 12, 1876, was Frances 
 Amelia Shepard, a native of New York. The 
 children of this union are Arthur Wesley, Adney 
 Horace, Mervyn Leroy, Matie Amelia and Flora 
 Dell. Before coming to California Captain Askin 
 was active in the lodge and commandery of Ma- 
 sons at Salem, Mo., and the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen at the same place. For years 
 he has been deeply interested in the activities of 
 the Grand -Army of the Republic, and when the 
 first post was organized at Salem he became a 
 charter member and was honored by being chosen 
 its first commander. After coming west he trans- 
 ferred his membership to the Gen. George Wright 
 Post No. Ill, department of California and Ne- 
 vada, of Visalia. In religious connections he and 
 his family are members of the Episcopal Church. 
 
 WILLIAM HENRY TINNIN. Ahhough a 
 native of the same locality as that in which he 
 now makes his home, Mr. Tinnin has traveled 
 much throughout the west and by observation 
 of the soil, climate and peoples of different re- 
 gions, has not only become conversant with all 
 of the Pacific coast country, but has deepened his 
 original conviction that the San Joaquin valley 
 has a soil and a future surpassed by none. The 
 farm where he was born in 1871 is situated in 
 Merced county, five miles from his present home, 
 but at seven years of age he accompanied his 
 father. A. C. Tinnin, and other members of the 
 family to the farm two miles south of Newman, 
 which since then has always been considered his 
 home, although business interests have taken 
 him into other parts of the country and abroad. 
 The district schools afforded him fair advantages 
 for acquiring an education. Possessing an ex- 
 cellent memory and splendid mental endowments 
 he has acquired a breadth of information that 
 renders his suggestions and opinions valuable. 
 At the time of his father's death he was sixteen 
 years of age, and although so young he never- 
 theless afterward managed the home ranch, with 
 a wisdom of judgment not always surpassed by 
 men of middle age. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 409 
 
 After having remained in charge of the home 
 place for a long term, in 1899 Mr. Tinnin went 
 to Honolulu with a large numher of mules for 
 B. T. McCullough, and while on the Sandwich 
 Islands he received two cargoes of mules, which 
 he sold at fair prices. On his return to Cali- 
 fornia in 1900, he became a California buyer for 
 the Western Meat Company of San Francisco, 
 having, in addition to his territory in this state, 
 ,the supervision of the buying in Oregon and 
 Nevada. After two years he resigned and re- 
 turned to the old homestead, which he has since 
 rented from his mother. The farm is one of' the 
 finest in all of this region. It consists of one 
 hundred and sixty acres, all under irrigation, 
 well adapted to alfalfa, which he makes his prin- 
 cipal crop. In his pasture are fifty horses and 
 one hundred and fifty head of cattle, ninety of 
 these being milch cows, of high-grade Durham, 
 Holstein and Jersey breeds: The dairy business 
 is one of his principal interests and has been 
 conducted with profit. When the first creamery 
 was built in the valley, under the supervision of 
 the New Era Creamery Company, he became 
 one of the company's first stockholders and at 
 this writing is a member of the board of direc- 
 tors. In addition to other interests he has en- 
 gaged in dealing in and shipping hogs to the 
 Western Meat Company. Fraternally he is con- 
 nected with the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men and the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows. By his marriage in Petaluma to Miss 
 Josephine Johnson, who was born in San Fran- 
 cisco, he has two children, Roswell A. and Susie 
 L. While he is scarcely yet in life's prime he 
 has attained a success that is as commendable as 
 it is gratifying. In movements looking toward 
 the development of local resources he has proved 
 to be enterprising and liberal, enthusiastically 
 co-operating with public-spirited projects and 
 progressive plans originated for the benefit of 
 the community. 
 
 WILLIAM G. PENNEBAKER. With the 
 honors of a courageous pioneer and Civil war 
 veteran Mr. Pennebaker is quietly passing at Vi- 
 salia the afternoon of a very active existence, 
 whose labors have brought to him a gratifying de- 
 gree of prosperity and success. He is a mem- 
 ber of an old Kentucky family, but himself is a 
 native of Owen county, Ind., and was born Janu- 
 ary 22, 1836, being a son of William and Lucinda 
 (Findley) Pennebaker, natives respectively of 
 Kentucky and Tennessee. As early as 1835 his 
 father became a pioneer farmer of Indiana, where 
 he made his home successively in Monroe, Owen 
 and Putnam counties. After six years in the 
 county last named he went to Iowa in 1846, set- 
 tling fourteen miles northwest of Burlington, 
 
 where he engaged in farming. Four years were 
 spent in that locality and he then settled in the 
 southwestern part of the same state, in Wayne 
 county. During 1868, he and his wife accom- 
 panied their son, William G., across the plains 
 with teams and remained with him until they 
 died. 
 
 . In a family consisting of five daughters and 
 three sons William G. Pennebaker was the young- 
 est son and next to the youngest child. Owing 
 to the frequent removals of the family and the 
 necessary difficult task of clearing each farm as 
 they settled thereon, he had little opportunity to 
 obtain an education and his entire attendance at 
 school was limited to three terms of three months 
 each. However, being a man of quick observa- 
 tion and a wide range of reading, he has acquired 
 a breadth of knowledge not always secured from 
 text-books, and in the school of experience his 
 education has been thorough. For some years 
 after reaching manhood he continued to cultivate 
 a farm' in Iowa, but in 1868 came to California 
 and settled near Farmersville, Tulare county, 
 where he bought two hundred acres of land. The 
 tilling of the soil was made subsidiary to the rais- 
 ing of stock, and the crops secured from the land 
 were used for feeding his cattle, hogs and sheep. 
 For a long period he successfully conducted a 
 stock business on this property, but in 1891 moved 
 to a farm of one hundred acres, where he not 
 only, raised cattle, but also gave some attention to 
 the friiit industry. Eventually disposing of the 
 property, he purchased a fruit farm of forty acres 
 one mile southwest of Visalia, and here engages 
 in raising peaches and prunes. Since March of 
 1901 he has made Visalia his home, but, while 
 retired from active labors, he still superintends 
 his various interests, and at the same time aids in 
 movements for the benefit of his home town. 
 
 The Republican party has received the alle- 
 giance of Mr. Pennebaker ever since its organ- 
 ization. When the war commenced between the 
 north and south his sympathies were at once 
 .aroused in behalf of the Union. Early in 1862 
 he enlisted as a member of Company I, FoUrth 
 Iowa Infantry, assigned to the Army of the Ten- 
 nessee, in which for two years he served as a 
 hospital steward. During the period of his serv- 
 ice he was present at thirteen battles. When the 
 war ended he was mustered out of the service, 
 receiving an honorable discharge at Louisville, 
 Ky., in July, 1865, after which he returned to his 
 Iowa farm. In fraternal connections, he holds 
 membership with the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen. For about forty-five years he has 
 been a member of the Baptist Church, a sup- 
 porter of its services and a firm believer in its doc- 
 trines. While living in Iowa Mr. Pennebaker 
 was united in marriage with Louisa Jennison, who 
 was born in Indiana and died in California during 
 
4:10 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the year 1880. Nine children were born of their 
 union, of whom seven are living, all married and 
 established in homes of their own. They are 
 named as follows : Mrs. Sarah E. Rockwell ; 
 Laura, wife of W. F. Pennebaker ; Sherman T., 
 of Exeter, Cal. ; Mrs. Lenora Thomas ; William 
 M., of Redondo ; and Carl G. and Cora, who are 
 twins ; the latter is the wife of Hugh Clotfelter. 
 Bloom F. and one other child are deceased. Mr. 
 Pennebaker's present wife was Martha A. Jones, 
 a daughter of H. D. Jones, a native of Arkansas, 
 who came to California in i86g and settled in 
 Tulare county. 
 
 C. E. BOYNTON, M. D., physician and sur- 
 geon of Los Banos, Cal., was born in Groveland, 
 Essex county, Mass., March 16, i860, and is 
 the only representative of his family on the Pa- 
 cific coast. His family has long been represented 
 in the New England states. The founder of the 
 name in America was William Boynton, born in 
 East Riding, Yorkshire, England, in 1606, and 
 who came to Essex county, Mass., in 1638. He 
 became a man of affairs in the colonies, accjuir- 
 ing wealth and governmental influence. His son, 
 Joshua Boynton, was born in Rowley, Mass., 
 March 10, 1646, and in 1673 removed to a farm 
 in Newbury, Mass. The next generation was 
 represented by a Joshua, born in 1679, who mar- 
 ried Mary Gerrish Dale, and their son Enoch 
 was born in 1727. Enoch was a fisherman and 
 farmer, and served his country in the battle of 
 Louisburg. Enoch, Jr., was boi-n on the old 
 Boynton homestead in 1748, and married Abi- 
 gail Tarring, and their son. Captain Methusaleh, 
 who was born in 1777, was a sailor and captain 
 of a vessel. He attained distinction in the war 
 of 1812, and was noted for his great physical 
 strength. He married Abigail Dodge, and their 
 son, Enoch, was born in Newburyport, Mass., 
 June 12, 1816. Enoch was a man of courage 
 and strong convictions, and as early as 1836 was 
 stanchly in favor of the abolition of slavery. He 
 married Charlotte Gage Kimball, born in Brad- 
 ford, Mass., a daughter of George Kimball, of 
 old Massachusetts stock, who died in that state 
 about 1862, at the age of sixty-eight. Thus is 
 traced the American occupation of the family, 
 yet record has been kept of the Boyntons since 
 the time of William the Conqueror, at which 
 time baronets and peers maintained the family 
 prestige, one of the soldiers having been Bar- 
 tholemew de Boynton, who, in turn, owed his 
 lineage to the vikings of the northland. 
 
 Until his seventeenth year Dr. Boynton lived 
 in Groveland, Mass., when owing to the death 
 of his father, he was obliged to earn his own 
 living. At this time he had not a cent in the 
 world, and the position of deck-hand, offered 
 
 him by a considerate employer, was readily ac- 
 cepted. His education was a matter entirely 
 of his own getting,, for while working he walked 
 to Amherst College and back, studied diligently 
 as only boys spurred by necessity and poverty are 
 apt to do, and in time worked his way through 
 the Massachusetts Agricultural College, gradu- 
 ating in 1881 with the degree of B.S. In 1881 
 he began traveling through the middle states, 
 continuing his studies at various seats of learn- 
 ing, finally entering the Orange Street Medical 
 College in Syracuse, N. Y., from which he re- 
 ceived his professional degree in 1888. A 
 student of more than ordinary application and 
 resource, he carried away the highest honors 
 of his class, and was appointed medical superin- 
 tendent of the Onondaga Insane Asylum near 
 Syracuse. Holding the same for eighteen 
 months, he came west to Wyoming in 1890, prac- 
 ticed medicine and surgery at Almy and Red- 
 caiion, and in the mines near Evanston. A year 
 later he located in Cathlamet, Wash., on the 
 Columbia river, later practicing in the islands of 
 Puget Sound, taking his way from one island 
 to another in a rowboat. His next location was 
 Portland, Ore., and later for three years he was 
 located in Polk county, that state. Coming to 
 San Erancisco, he practiced for a time, and then, 
 through a friend. Dr. J. A. Anderson, learned 
 of the excellent opportunity awaiting an ambi- 
 tious practitioner in Los Banos. 
 
 From the start he was successful in Los Banos, 
 and at the end of six months had a creditable 
 and paying practice. Continuing here during 
 1896-97, he then went to Smithfield, Utah, where 
 he succeeded for a year, but owing to the high 
 altitude was obliged to make a change of location. 
 Then he practiced in Dungeness, Clallam county. 
 Wash., but not liking the place he located in 
 Hamilton, Wash., meeting with success:. He 
 next returned to Smithfield, Utah, for a time, 
 but soon after decided to locate permanently in 
 Los Banos, reaching here in 1901. Two years 
 here proved both profitable and pleasant, in the 
 meantime a petition had been signed by the peo- 
 ple of Smithfield, calling attention to the favor- 
 able impression he had made in that town, and 
 requesting his return. Accordingly he shifted 
 his field of operations, but again finding the alti- 
 tude too high, he sold out and came back to Los 
 Banos in May, 1904. Since then he has strength- 
 ened his hold upon the hearts and minds of the 
 people of this town, and is conducting a prac- 
 tice iri every way vvorthy the best tenets of medi- 
 cal science, having before him a career in which 
 continued success is happily assured. Dr. Boyn- 
 ton has an office equipped with a static machine 
 and the most modern of medical and surgical 
 appliances, and avails himself of the latest and 
 most practical innovations evolved from the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 411 
 
 highest professional authorities. He is a Repub- 
 hcaii in politics, and is an ordained elder in the 
 Church of the Latter Day Saints. 
 
 Mrs. Boynton ranks with the public-spirited 
 and capable women of California, being an orator 
 of acknowledged strength and persuasiveness, 
 and a power in the ranks of the Republican party. 
 ■With Mrs. Foster she stumped Utah for Presi- 
 dent McKinley, and undoubtedly was the means 
 of securing that territory to the Republicans. 
 Before her marriage she was Lucretia Houston 
 Hall, daughter of a physician, and the heir on 
 her mother's side to mental endowments of a 
 high order. Her mother was a medical practi- 
 tioner and scientist, and did much for the west 
 along these advanced lines. 
 
 E. T. DIXON. The distinction of being the 
 oldest estabhshed druggist in the city of Merced 
 is not the only claim upon the consideration of 
 his fellow townsmen earned by E. T. Dixon. 
 That the town exists at all, taking its place among 
 the flourishing communities of the county of that 
 name, is because such meli as Mr. Dixon have 
 known what was required for it& building, and 
 have taken the initiative in its foremost indus- 
 tries and improvements. From the time of its in- 
 corporation his name has been associated with its 
 political, social, educational, and moral welfare, 
 and there is scarcely a phase of its life which has 
 not been benefited by his strong and practical 
 views, if not active co-operation. 
 
 Born in Jackson, Miss., November 13, 1847, 
 Mr. Dixon comes of a family which had its repre- 
 sentatives among the earliest settlers of Virginia, 
 where his father, Judge Richard L. Dixon, was 
 born in Abingdon, and where his grandfather, 
 Henry St. John Dixon, was born, and eventually 
 enlisted in the war of 1812. Henry Dixon owned 
 a large plantation in Virginia, but after his son 
 had become established in Mississippi, he spent 
 his last years in the latter state. Judge Dixon 
 was a typical southerner, but his success savors 
 somewhat of the energy of the north. As a lad, 
 he bade adieu to the plantation in Virginia, and 
 with naught save what he could carry in a bun- 
 dle, started on horseback across the mountains 
 to Mississippi, where, in Jackson, his readiness 
 to work and ability won him a position in the 
 county clerk's office. As opportunity offered he 
 studied law and was admitted to practice in the 
 courts of Mississippi, eventually being elected 
 judge of Washington county, a position main- 
 tained for fourteen years. In 1870 he came to 
 what is now Madera county, Cal., and after farm- 
 ing four years, engaged in legal practice in Fres- 
 no, until his death, at the age of seventy-three 
 years. He was a member of the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, and at times during his 
 
 life was active in politics, filling, besides the of- 
 fice of judge, that of provost-marshal of Wash- 
 ington county, in the Department of the Missis- 
 sippi. His wife, formerly Julia Phillips, a na- 
 tive of Jackson, Miss., and a member of an old 
 southern family, died in Fresno at an advanced 
 age. There were seven children in his family, 
 of whom H. S., an attorney of Fresno, and a 
 soldier in the Twenty-eighth Mississippi Volun- 
 teer Cavalry during the Civil war, died in Sau- 
 salito; J. P., deceased, was a farmer of Kern 
 county, and served in the same regiment with his 
 brother during the war ; Edward T. ; Louise, who 
 married G. W. Mordecai, of Madera county ; W. 
 L., surveyor of Bakersfield ; L. L., engaged in the 
 express business in San Francisco ; and J. R., a 
 retired farmer of Madera. 
 
 Edward T. Dixon was reared on his father's 
 large plantation near Greenville, known as Syca- 
 more, Washington county. Miss., and located on 
 Deer creek. The peaceful existence to which he 
 was accustomed was broken into by the Civil war, 
 which necessifated his taking refuge in Alabama, 
 while his brothers departed to the scene of hos- 
 tilities. There were no schools in operation dur- 
 ing the war, and after the establishment of peace 
 he supplemented his rather meager common- 
 school education by tuition from a private teach- 
 er for a couple 'of years. In 1867, at the age of 
 nineteen, he began to learn the drug business in 
 Greenville, and in 1869 came to California and 
 located in Fresno county, where he entered one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land, at the same time 
 homestcading an equal amount. Engaging in 
 sheep raising until 1872, he finally sold his land 
 to Mr. Mordecai, and February 28, 1872, re- 
 moved to the present site of Merced, and was 
 present at the first sale of lots in the town. He 
 himself purchased a lot on Front street, and, after 
 erecting the first drug store in the city, continued 
 the ownership and management of the same up to 
 the present time. The old structure was replaced 
 by one more modern in 1901, the new store being 
 twenty-five by sixty feet in dimensions, and 
 equipped with the innumerable detail which makes 
 a drug establishment an attractive as well as nec- 
 essary place of business. 
 
 Having a keen insight into the future of Mer- 
 ced, he early invested in real estate, both for a 
 home and for business purposes, and among the 
 substantial undertakings, built, with Dr. H. N. 
 Rucker, the Baltic Building on the corner of 
 Sixteenth and K streets, with a frontage of fifty 
 feet, and two stories high. Assisting in the in- 
 corporation of the city, he was a member and the 
 president of its first and second board of trus- 
 tees ; he was school trustee two terms, and su- 
 perintendent of schools of Merced county for two 
 terms, of three and four months each. He has 
 always taken a keen interest in the cause of edu- 
 
412 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cation, and the admirable system at the disposal 
 of the rising generation of today is largely due to 
 his advocacy of thoroughness in scholars and 
 competency on the part of teachers. For years 
 he was chairman of the board of trustees of Mer- 
 ced Lodge No. 208, 1. O. O. F., of Merced, and is 
 past chief patriarch of the Encampment, a mem- 
 ber of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and 
 Ancient Order of Foresters. In religious belief 
 he is an Episcopalian. Mr. Dixon's high stand- 
 ing as a business man of Merced is well earned, 
 for he has not only made a success of his drug 
 enterprise, but has demonstrated his knowledge 
 of banking finance to the satisfaction of all con- 
 cerned. He was one of the organizers and the 
 first vice-president of the First National Bank of 
 Merced, remaining in the same capacity when it 
 was known as the Commercial iz Savings Bank, 
 and also after it was reorganized into the Com- 
 mercial Bank of Merced. He resigned the posi- 
 tion in January, 1904, but still continues a stock- 
 holder. 
 
 Through his marriage in Napa county, this 
 state, with Minnie Ralston, Mr. Dixon became 
 allied with another pioneer family of the state, 
 Clark and Eliza Ralston having settled here in 
 the pioneer days. Mr. Ralston has survived the 
 changes which have come to the coast country 
 during the past half a century, and is now living 
 retired in Livingston, alert and active notwith- 
 standing his fourscore and four years. Seven 
 children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Dixon, 
 of whom Florence, a graduate of the San Jose 
 normal, is engaged in educational work in Mer- 
 ced; Julia is a student, class of 1906, in the Uni- 
 versity of California; Rucker, a bookkeeper in 
 Merced, is a graduate of the commercial depart- 
 ment of the high school ; James P. died in child- 
 hood ; William, Richard and Mary, remain at 
 home. Mr. Dixon is a man of earnest and posi- 
 tive nature, of absolute fearlessness in matters 
 of right and wrong, and of noble characteristics 
 which bind to him for all time the friends which 
 pass his way. 
 
 WILLIAM HALL FIAMMOND. As presi- 
 dent of the Mt. Whitney Power Company Will- 
 iam Hall Flammond is sustaining the reputation 
 for business ability and judgment, energy and 
 unusual talent, won by him in the earlier part of 
 his career in Tulare county. This project, which 
 has felt the impetus of a master hand, was set in 
 motion in 1897, when the purchase of the location 
 and water rights on Kaweah was made; in Sep- 
 tember of the following year the building was 
 begun, and in July, 1899, the power was set in 
 motion and the city of Visalia was lighted. The 
 plant is located thirty-five miles east of Visalia 
 on the Kaweah, where is to be found the finest 
 
 water power in the state. The first plant put in 
 is known as No. i, and has a capacity of two 
 thousand horse-power; it is equipped with Doble 
 Tangential wheels, and has a fall of thirteen hun- 
 dred feet, brought down in a twenty-two-inch 
 steel pipe. The second plant, known as No. 2, 
 was put in a mile below, water being taken from 
 the middle fork of the Kaweah, and this has a 
 capacity of twenty-one hundred horse-power, the 
 fall being less, but the volume greater. The two 
 together have a capacity of forty-one hundred 
 horse-power, the water returning to the stream 
 above all ditches for irrigation of the valley 
 below. It is carried down by wires and distrib- 
 uted through the county by sub-stations. They 
 now furnish light and power to Visalia, Tulare, 
 Portersville, Lindsay and Exeter. The third 
 plant, which is to succeed the Globe Light and 
 Power Company, lately purchased by the Mt. 
 Whitney Power Company, will be located on the 
 Tule river, twenty miles above Portersville, and is 
 to have a capacity of twenty-five hundred horse- 
 power. In nine months over one-half million 
 feet of lumber were sawed for the flumes for the 
 first plants, which were conducted for a year by 
 Mr. Hammon.d himself. In December, 1899, the 
 Mt. Whitney Power Company was incorporated 
 with a capital of $1,000,000, and with Mr. Ham- 
 mond as president. The main office is located in 
 Visalia in the Brown building. This is an 
 achievement which has brought to Mr. Hammond 
 much deserved credit and placed him prominently 
 among the financiers of the county. 
 
 The Hammond family came originally from 
 Kent county, England, the first immigrant to 
 America locating in Maryland. In that, state 
 William Hammond was born, grew to manhood 
 and engaged in business. In 1851 he came to 
 California and two years later died in this state. 
 His son, Richard P. Hammond, was born near 
 Hagerstown, Md., received his preliminary edu- 
 cation in that vicinity and graduated from West 
 Point. He served as a major in the Mexican 
 war, after which he resigned from the army and 
 _ came to California in 1849. He located in San 
 Francisco and in 1857 became port- collector for 
 that city. He subsequently became identified with 
 the Southern Pacific Railroad and for many 
 years served as president of the California Pacific 
 Railroad Company. He was very prominent in 
 the municipal life of San Francisco, for fifteen 
 years serving as president of the board of police 
 commissioners, as well as taking an active in- 
 terest in all movements calculated to advance the 
 general welfare. In 1851 he was speaker of the 
 house of representatives and thoroughly demon- 
 strated while in that position the versatile talents 
 which made of him so valuable a citizen in the 
 formation of a new statehood. He died in San 
 Francisco in 1891, at the age of seventy-one years 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 413 
 
 and is buried in Oakland. He was a valued mem- 
 ber of the California Pioneers of San Francisco, 
 and also acted as regent of the University of Cali- 
 fornia. His wife was in maidenhood Sallie Hays, 
 of Tennessee, and daughter of Harmon Hays, 
 who died in that state, and sister of Col. Jack 
 Hays. She died at her home in San Francisco 
 in 1867. Of her four sons and two daughters, 
 two sons and one daughter are living. Richard 
 P., a prominent civil engineer, was United States 
 surveyor general, and was president of the 
 Golden Gate Park Commission ; he died in San 
 Francisco. John Hays, the celebrated mining en- 
 gineer, is now a resident of New York City; 
 Harry, a successful attorney, died in San Fran- 
 cisco; and William Hall is the subject of this 
 review. 
 
 Born in San Francisco September 25, 1857, 
 William Hall Hammond was reared to young 
 manhood in his native city. He was prepared for 
 college in New Haven, after his graduation from 
 the Hopkins grammar school entering Yale Uni- 
 versity, where he studied for two years. Return- 
 ing to California he entered the University of 
 California, from which he was graduated in 1879 
 with the degree of A.B., in the same class with 
 Governor Pardee. After his graduation he came 
 to Tulare county and engaged in farming and 
 stock-raising five miles east of Tulare. This he 
 continued for several years, when he located in 
 Visalia and engaged in the abstract and real es- 
 tate business with John F. Jordan, which was 
 incorporated under the title of Visalia Abstract 
 Company. Although he has taken up other lines 
 of endeavor, Mr. Hammond is still interested in 
 this business and retains his connection with it. 
 For a time he also took some interest in horticult- 
 ural pursuits. In 1892 he was elected on the 
 Democratic ticket county clerk by a large ma- 
 jority, and was re-elected for a second term, hold- 
 ing the office from January, 1893, to January, 
 1899. Refusing a further candidacy he entered 
 upon the accomplishment of the project which 
 has won for him large financial returns, wide 
 commendation and the added esteem and respect 
 of all who have known him. In addition to these 
 extensive interests he is also identified with the 
 Visalia Manufacturing Company, the Visalia 
 Steam Laundry Company, the Kaweah Lemon 
 Company, and the First National Bank, of all of 
 which he is a director, giving to each interest the 
 energy and abiHty characteristic of all his eflforts. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Hammond was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss May Brown, a native of this 
 city, and the daughter of S. C. Brown. They 
 are the parents of two children, William H., Jr., 
 student of the high school here, and May, a stu- 
 dent in Miss Head's School at Berkeley. A 
 strong Democrat politically, Mr. Hammond has 
 taken an active interest in the promotion of the 
 
 principles he endorses, being an ex-member of 
 the county committee and also of the state cen- 
 tral committee. For several terms he has filled 
 the office of mayor of Visalia and has also served 
 on the school board for several terms. In 1883 
 he was elected to the office of county supervisor, 
 discharging the duties acceptably for one term. 
 Always an active figure in the commercial life 
 of the city, he has served as a member of the 
 Board of Trade since its organization, and is as- 
 sociated with the Visalia Improvement Associa- 
 tion. Fraternally he is prominent, having been 
 made a Mason in Visalia Lodge No. 128, and now 
 belongs to Visalia Chapter No. 44, R. A. M., 
 in which he is past high priest; Visalia Com- 
 mandery No. 26, K. T. ; Islam Temple, N. M. S. ; 
 and Oakland Consistory, being a Thirty-second 
 Degree Mason. He belongs also to Visalia Par- 
 lor No. 19, N. S. G. W., and Knights of Pythias. 
 He is in all things a citizen who bears the impress 
 of talent, energy and perseverance, coupled with 
 dignity of purpose and integrity of aim which 
 have won -for him the esteem and confidence of 
 his fellow-townsmen and brought about a per- 
 sonal success neither lessened nor enhanced by 
 the financial returns which his efforts have given 
 him. 
 
 ASA L. BARTHOLOMEW. An old pioneer 
 and a worthy and esteemed citizen of Merced 
 county, Asa L. Bartholomew is still pursuing his 
 agricultural labors on his ranch of four hundred 
 and eighty acres located five miles northeast of 
 Merced. He purchased this property in Novem- 
 ber, 1883, and since that time has bent every 
 effort toward its improvement, placing the land 
 under profitable cultivation and adding commo- 
 dious buildings. In 1893 he erected his present 
 home, a two-story frame house consisting of 
 twelve rooms, finishing all in a modern and ap- 
 proved style. The large ranch is devoted to the 
 cultivation of grain and the raising of cattle. 
 
 In Berkshire county, Mass., Asa L. Bartholo- 
 mew was born June 24, 1827, a son of Andrew 
 and Abigail (Savage) Bartholomew, both owing 
 their nativity to the same state, where the father 
 engaged in farming throughout his entire life. 
 He was reared to manhood on the paternal farm 
 and remained at home until he was twenty years 
 of age, and three years later came to California 
 by way of the Isthmus of Panama. Upon his 
 arrival in San Francisco he followed the course 
 of the many who sought the west at that time — 
 1850 — going at once to the mines on Stanislaus 
 river, San Joaquin, now Stanislaus county. 
 Later he engaged in teaming, which work he 
 evidently found more profitable", for he remained 
 so employed for fifteen years. He then engaged 
 in ranching in Stanislaus county until his re- 
 
414 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 moval to Merced county, which took place twen- 
 ty-six years ago, as before mentioned locating 
 upon his present property in November, 1883, 
 and since making this his home. 
 
 Mr. Bartholomew has been married three 
 times ; his first wife, Mary Sparks, died, leaving 
 him two children, namely: Anna Mary, the 
 wife of Vaughn Gahan of Paso Robles, Cal., and 
 Emma, the wife of Fremont Burrows of Mo- 
 desto. His second wife was V. Myra Van 
 Ward, and after her death he married Mrs. 
 Emma (Sabers) Brown. She is a native of 
 Toronto, Canada, and the daughter of John 
 Sabers, of Irish birth. He came to Canada when 
 only fifteen years old and engaged in farming, 
 later locating in Illinois, where he married Mary 
 Beach, a native of that state. They subsequently 
 returned to Canada, but when Mrs. Bartholo- 
 mew was only seven weeks old they once more 
 located in Illinois. Upon the breaking out of the 
 Civil war Mr. Sabers enlisted in Captain Ander- 
 son's company and during the service had the 
 misfortune to lose an eye. On returning to the 
 pursuits of a civilian he located in Missouri, 
 where he is now engaged in farming at the age 
 of sixty-six years. By her first husband, Charles 
 Brown, Mrs. Bartholomew is the mother of two 
 children, namely: R. B. DeWitt and Benjamin 
 H., both of whom are at home. Mr. Bartholo- 
 mew is a Republican in his political convictions 
 and attends the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 HENRY FREDERICK FERDINAND 
 SALAU. The pioneers of Merced county in- 
 clude none whose lives have been more event- 
 ful or broader in scope than that of Henry 
 Frederick Ferdinand Salau, who resides five 
 miles southwest of Los Banos, and is prominent- 
 ly connected with the agricultural and stock- 
 raising development of his section. Few of the 
 residents in the vicinity of Los Banos have 
 touched at as many ports or are as familiar with 
 the geography of the world as is Mr. Salau, and 
 it is safe to say that none has had so many 
 exciting experiences upon the deep or sailed 
 more miles before the mast. He had ability and 
 enthusiasm, and sufificient energy to break away 
 from conditions which failed to come up to the 
 requirements of his nature. The son of a weaver 
 who had two other sons and two daughters, he 
 found little in the humble environment of his 
 home in Kiel, Germany, to stimulate his energy 
 or satisfy his craving for action. He was born 
 June 3, 183s, and is of Huguenot ancestry, early 
 bearers of his name having fled to Germany from 
 France to avoid religious persecution. His par- 
 ents, John and Catherine (Kremhoff) Salau, were 
 born m Kiel, the former living to the age of 
 sixty, while the latter died in 1854. The weaver 
 
 and his wife were plain, conscientious, and God- 
 fearing people, devout in their attendance and 
 support of the Lutheran Church, and strict in 
 the discipline of their children. 
 
 The oldest son in the family, Henry Frederick 
 remained at home until fourteen, when, feeling 
 the touch of poverty and lack of opportunity, 
 he gave vent to the desire which had strength- 
 ened each year as he watched the coming and 
 departure of ships in the great harbor. His 
 dream was to become a sailor, to visit distant 
 ports. Aboard the brig Betsey he sailed to Lon- 
 don, and then to Quebec, Canada, but before 
 reaching the latter city experienced his first ship- 
 wreck, which resulted in eleven of the crew 
 being rescued by the Humboldt of Hamburg, 
 and taken to New York. Three months later 
 he shipped on the ship Humboldt, returned to 
 Hamburg, then on the same ship made two 
 other trips to New York. The last time he came 
 around the Horn to San Francisco, stopped at 
 Acapulco to discharge a cargo of coal, and 
 reached the California city in August, 1858. 
 Thereafter for several years he engaged in the 
 coasting trade between San Francisco and Puget 
 Sound, and in 1861 shipped aboard the chpper 
 ship Challenger, destined for a voyage of one 
 hundred and three days to Liverpool. The 
 Nicholas Biddle was the next ship upon which 
 Mr. Salau shipped, and after reaching New 
 York he took a trip to the West Indies on the 
 barque Warwick, Next, on the clipper ship 
 Magnet, he sailed from New York around the 
 Horn to San Francisco in one hundred and forty 
 days, returning to New York on the . Susan 
 Faring, in which also he went on a forty days' 
 journey to the East Indies. Loading with rice, 
 the ship went to London, via the Cape of Good 
 Hope, in one hundred and forty days. He then 
 went to his old home in Kiel, also visiting Ham- 
 burg and other German towns. Still entranced 
 with the life of the sea, he shipped on the barque 
 Mary from Bremen to St. Thomas, then on 
 board the Geronimo, of Philadelphia. He was 
 shipwrecked ofif the coast of Cape Hatteras, this 
 ship going ashore in a gale, but as heretofore, 
 the crew were saved from a watery grave 
 through their ability to withstand exposure and 
 danger. Mr. Salau later became one of the 
 crew of the Josie H. Bates, bound for the East 
 Indies by way of Cape Hope ; next was on the 
 Alattapan, bound for San Francisco by way of 
 the Horn. This proved an enjoyable and profit- 
 able trip, but was paid for later on when he 
 chanced-- to be in the harbor at Baker's Island. 
 Lying at anchor, a terrific gale blew the boat 
 into a coral reef, and it soon afterward went 
 to the bottom, not, however, until the crew had 
 all been saved. Going to Honolulu aboard a 
 schooner, Mr. Salau shipped on the whaler Bri- 
 
JAMES DRISKELL 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 417 
 
 ganza, brought a cargo of oil to Bremen, Ger- 
 many, then returned on the City of Baltimore 
 to New York. Shortly afterward he went on 
 the Rover to the East Indies, returned to New 
 York, and then on the brig Hamburg went to 
 St. Thomas, and from there to Hamburg. This 
 proved the last trip of this great voyager, who 
 had attained the rank of second officer, and who 
 had profited intelligently and broadly by his 
 visits in many lands. He had absorbed his share 
 of the danger and responsibility of the merchant 
 marine and had encountered many and varied 
 experiences. 
 
 During his eleven months in Germany Mr. 
 Salau found employment in a moulding factory, 
 for, like the average sailor, he had accumulated 
 but little money, and was forced to begin at the 
 bottom round of the ladder. In 1866 he came 
 to New York, and thence to Aspinwall, Panama, 
 and San Francisco, arriving in the latter city 
 in April, 1867, on the steamer Moses Taylor. 
 After looking around for a favorable occupa- 
 tion he engaged in farming in the vicinity of 
 Santa Clara until 1869, then went to the West 
 side and entered a hundred and sixty acres of 
 land near Volta, Merced county. This proving 
 of little use, he allowed it to go back, and near 
 Los Banos engaged in the sheep business for 
 several years. In 1871 he located on one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres of his present ranch, im- 
 proved the same, added buildings and imple- 
 ments, and engaged in grain and stock raising 
 on as large a scale as the land permitted. Later 
 years witnessed additions to his property, and 
 he now owns two hundred and eighty acres be- 
 low the canal, and three hundred and twenty 
 above the canal, five miles southwest of Los 
 Banos. Previous to the construction of the out- 
 side canal he built a flume and canal with which 
 to irrigate his land, but has since availed himself 
 of the public waterway. The ranch is under 
 dairying, alfalfa and grain, one hundred and 
 eighty-five acres being under alfalfa. The dairy 
 land Mr. Salau leases for $12 an acre, and the 
 balance of the property is managed by his sons, 
 he having several years ago retired from active 
 life. 
 
 Mr Salau has entered into the affairs of his 
 home with the same enthusiasm and thorough- 
 ness with which he followed the sea in his youth. 
 He has proved a valuable adjunct to local Re- 
 publican undertakings, and has creditably served 
 as a member of the county central committee, and 
 as a delegate to state and county conventions. 
 He is fraternally connected with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, and is a member 
 of the Lutheran Church. In Kiel, Germany, 
 Mr. Salau married Doyetta Salau, a native of 
 Holstein, Germany, and the home thus estab- 
 lished has been augmented by five children, 
 
 namely : Augusta, who is married to M. Becker, 
 Adolph, Mary, Louis and Doretta. Mr. Salau 
 is a man of strong character, commanding pres- 
 ence and magnetic personality. He carries with 
 him a faithful memory of the people and places 
 he has known and of the incidents which have 
 enlivened his career, all which makes of him 
 an interesting companion, as well as a reliable 
 and instructive source of information. 
 
 JAMES DRISKELL. Numbered among the 
 pioneer agriculturists of California is James Dris- 
 kell, an esteemed and highly respected resident of 
 Newman, who came to this state more than forty 
 years ago, and has since been actively identified 
 with its industrial growth and prosperity. A 
 native of Kentucky, he was born October 26, 
 1828, in Morgan countv, a son of Davis Dris- 
 kell. 
 
 Born and reared in Kentucky, Davis Driskell 
 was there engaged in farming during his earlier 
 years. Migrating with his family to Illinois in 
 1833, he settled at Macoupin Point, in Macoupin 
 county, where he purchased land, and in addi- 
 tion to managing that was also employed as a 
 hotel keeper for five years. Removing to Lee 
 county, Iowa, in 1838, he took up government 
 land near West Point, and there cleared and im- 
 proved a homestead, on which he was engaged in 
 farming and stocl^-raising until his death. He 
 married first Mary Dunn, who was born in Ken- 
 tucky, and died in Illinois. She bore him four 
 sons and three daughters, of whom James, the 
 special subject of this sketch, was the youngest 
 child. After the death of his first wife, he was 
 subsequently twice married. 
 
 Attending the short terms of school held in the 
 rude log school house of his boyhood days, James 
 Driskell obtained a limited education in common 
 with the children of the neighborhood, while 
 under his father's tutelage he was well drilled in 
 the various branches relating to general farming. 
 For a short time he worked as a farm laborer in 
 Jeflferson and other Iowa counties, and then, in 
 1848, migrated to Nebraska, locating near Platts- 
 mouth, where he took up a tract of government 
 land, and followed farming for eleven years. 
 Crossing the plains with ox-teams in 1859, Mr. 
 Driskell located in L)ouglas county. Ore., living 
 first in Roseburg, and afterwards in Canyonville, 
 in both places being engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits. Coming from there to Santa Cruz county, 
 Cal., in 1863, Mr. Driskell settled first on land 
 near Watsonville, and subsequently lived for a 
 year in Watsonville, being engaged while in that 
 vicinitv in peehng tan bark. In 1876 he re- 
 moved to Los Banos, and the ensuing year pur- 
 chased a squatter's claim of one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land, which he managed for a few 
 
418 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 years. Disposing of that property to Miller & 
 Lux, he located in Stanislaus county in 1881, and 
 bought his present ranch of ninety-five and three- 
 fourths acres, adjoining Newman on the east. 
 With characteristic enterprise and foresight, he 
 has planted it largely to alfalfa, and is now carry- 
 ing on a profitable dairy business, keeping fifty 
 cows, and using a separator. 
 
 In Iowa Mr. Driskell married Mahala Card- 
 well, a native of Tennessee and a daughter of 
 Richard and Mary Campbell Cardwell, an old 
 Tennessee family. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Driskell eleven children have been born, and of 
 these seven daughters and two sons are living. 
 The names of the children are : Mrs. Mary J. 
 Gardener, George W., Mrs. Malicia A. Wisener, 
 Malinda Arizona, deceased, Mrs. Eliza C. Dra- 
 per, Sarah Matilda, deceased, William Daniel, 
 Mrs. Emma Idella Ward, Mrs. Martha Ellen 
 Tompkins, Mrs. Grace De Etta Gift, Clara Belle. 
 
 Politically Mr. Driskell is a zealous advocate 
 of the principles of the Republican party, and 
 religiously he is a member of the Cumberland 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 CAPT. HARRISON WHITE. The gene- 
 alogy of the White family in America is traced 
 back to Peregrine White, whose name is asso- 
 ciated with the historic Mayflower and the early 
 days of hardships on the bleak Atlantic coast. 
 Every generation has given to our country men 
 of valor in war and painstaking industry in times 
 of peace. During the Revolutionary war Silas 
 White, a native of New York, enlisted in a com- 
 pany from that state, and as captain led his men 
 into the thickest of many a struggle with the 
 Tory forces. A son and namesake of this Revo- 
 lutionary captain left his native New York 
 and in 1842 settled on the Fox river in Illinois, 
 becoming a pioneer farmer of LaSalle county, 
 where he died six years later. Long survived 
 by his wife, he left to her the heritage of an 
 upright life and unstained honor. In maiden- 
 hood she bore the name of Maria MacClave. 
 The family of which she was a member came 
 from Scotland to America in an early day and 
 settled in New York, where she was born at 
 Albany. At the time of her death, which oc- 
 curred in Illinois, she had reached the age of 
 ninety-eight years. Of her ten children who 
 attained mature years five are stilP living. One 
 of the survivors, Selim, who is now a resident- 
 of Coal City, Grundy .county. 111., served 
 through the entire period of the Civil war and 
 held the rank of captain of a company in the 
 Fifty-third Illinois Infantry. 
 
 Syracuse, N. Y., is the native city of Harrison 
 White, and June 28, 1836, the date of his birth. 
 When six years of age he accompanied the 
 
 family to Illinois and there obtained his primary 
 education in public schools, after which he alter- 
 nated teaching school with attendance at 
 Wheaton College. The breaking out of the Civil 
 war found him alert to offer his services to his 
 country. When the first appeal came for volun- 
 teers to enlist for three months he was quick 
 to respond, and in April, 1861, became a mem- 
 ber of Company F, Eleventh Illinois Infantry. 
 At the expiration of three rtionths, on being 
 honorably discharged, he decided to enlist in the 
 cavalry branch of the army, and accordingly 
 helped to organize Company B, Fourth Illinois 
 Cavalry, which was mustered into service at 
 Ottawa in August of 1861, and thence made its 
 way to Cairo. Among his early engagements 
 were those at Forts Henry and Donelson, Cor- 
 inth and Vicksburg. In the siege of Vicksburg 
 his company was detailed as an escort to Gen- 
 eral Grant and continued as such until the latter 
 was ordered east as commander-in-chief. Soon 
 afterward he was placed on detached service 
 and for a short time was assistant quartermaster 
 at Vicksburg, after which he joined his regiment 
 and aided General Custer in Louisiana during 
 the reconstruction period. January 26, 1866, he 
 was honorably discharged in Memphis, Tenn., 
 with the rank of captain, having been promoted 
 to that office in recognition of meritorious service 
 at Vicksburg. Somewhat earlier in the war 
 he had served as an orderly sergeant. Though 
 often in the midst of fierce struggles, with the 
 dead and wounded on every hand, he escaped 
 without injury, except during the conflict at 
 Shiloh, where a piece of shell killed his horse 
 and knocked him senseless, but he soon recovered 
 and joined his comrades. 
 
 For a year after his retirement from the army 
 Captain White rented a plantation at Yazoo 
 Pass, Miss., but the climate and occupation 
 proved trying, and on account of ill health he 
 returned to Illinois. For some months he con- 
 ducted a mercantile establishment at Sandwich, 
 III, but in the fall of 1868 he sold the business, 
 left Illinois, and traveled up the Missouri to 
 Fort Benton and thence to Helena, Mont., where 
 he engaged in merchandising. Later he carried 
 on a store at a mining camp. During the fall 
 of 1869 he went back to Illinois to visit relatives 
 and friends. The spring of 1870 found him in 
 California, where he settled at Portersville, a 
 small town in Tulare county. For two years 
 he was interested in the sheep business and 
 owned a ranch, but afterward for five years he 
 conducted a general merchandise store with Mr. 
 Putnam. Since 1877 Visalia has been his home 
 and headquarters. Three years after coming to 
 this city he was appointed deputy to the internal 
 revenue collector, William Higby, who had 
 charge of the district embracing Kern, Tulare, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 419 
 
 Fresno, Merced and Stanislaus counties, with 
 offices in Visalia. While holding the office of 
 deputy, in which he continued until 1889, he 
 maintained ranch and sheep interests, and still 
 owns a ranch of three hundred and twenty acres 
 on the Tulare river.,^ which he now leases. The 
 land is to sorhe extent under irrigation, water 
 being provided by means of a pumping plant 
 connected with wells. In addition to this prop- 
 erty he owns grazing lands. During 1891 he 
 was appointed under sheriff to Sheriff Overall 
 and continued in the office for eighteen months. 
 From 1893 to 1895 he served by appointment 
 as United States gauger. His present position 
 to which he was appointed in 1898, is that of 
 supervisor of the southern district of the Sierra 
 Forest reserve, comprising more than two million 
 acres in Kern, Tulare and Inyo counties, with 
 headquarters in Visalia. The position is one en- 
 tailing many responsibilities, but he has proved 
 ably qualified to discharge every duty with effi- 
 ciency and intelligence, his long experience in 
 many avenues of activity having given him a 
 breadth of knowledge and extent of information 
 as rare as it is valuable. 
 
 After coming to Visalia Captain White estab- 
 lished domestic ties through his marriage to 
 Miss Hattie Pauline Anthony, a native of Water- 
 town, N. Y. He is a member of Gen. George 
 Wright Post No. Ill, G. A. R., of which he 
 served as the first commander and afterward 
 by_ re-election twice held the office. Under ap- 
 pdintment by Governor Waterman he served 
 as major and quartermaster on the staff of Gen- 
 eral Budd, ' of the California National Guard. 
 Politically a Republican and a leader of his 
 party, for twelve years or more he has been sec- 
 retary of the Republican county central com- 
 mittee and for two terms officiated as its chair- 
 man, always taking an active part in its councils 
 and contributing to its usefulness as an organiza- 
 tion. Another important service in behalf of 
 his party has been as a member of the congres- 
 sional committee. Not only among the members 
 of his own party, but by the citizenship of Visalia 
 irrespective of political ties, he holds the position 
 which belongs to ability of a high order, attrac- 
 tive personality and broad-minded patriotism. 
 
 CHARLES JAMES HOBLER. For many 
 years Mr. Hobler has held an enviable position 
 among the first farmers of Kings county, Cal., 
 and to him belongs the distinction of raising the 
 finest of thoroughbred merino sheep to be found 
 in the vicinity of Hanford, where he has an ex- 
 tensive stock ranch. The high repute in which 
 he is held comes not only from his being a worthy 
 son of good ancestors, but also from the admira- 
 
 ble manner in which he has been living out his 
 pre-eminently useful and busy life, his affluent 
 circumstances being but the result of his indi- 
 vidual efforts. In tracing the ancestry of Mr. 
 Hobler, we find him to be a direct descendant of 
 a prominent English family. His paternal grand- 
 father, who was of Swiss extraction, was clerk 
 of the Mansion House in London for an un- 
 broken period of forty years, and a painted por- 
 trait of him may be found hanging in the halls 
 of the Mansion House to-day. 
 
 George Hobler, the father of Charles J., was a 
 native of London, England, where he was reared, 
 educated and lived until he attained the age of 
 twenty-five years. He wedded Miss Ann Turner, 
 a lady born in Devonshire, England. Her father 
 was a breeder of fine Devon cattle and sold to the 
 late Queen Victoria the stock which afterward 
 brought her many prizes at fairs, etc. After mar- 
 riage, about 1825, the young people went to 
 Australia and during the early years of their 
 residence in that country, Mr. Hobler followed 
 banking in connection with real estate business 
 and stock-raising. Fortune, on her wheel, 
 seemed to be traveling by his side, and at one 
 time he was one of the leading and wealthiest 
 men in the vicinity of Sydney. He subsequently 
 failed in business, however, but by hard work 
 and self-denial, he paid every dollar of his in- 
 debtedness. Undaunted, he began anew, and by 
 keen foresight he made a good start and in a 
 short time was again on the road to prosperity. 
 Removing far from the settlements, he took up 
 land and engaged in cattle and sheep-raising on 
 a large scale. His land was in a wild, unsettled 
 district, three hundred miles from the nearest 
 postoffice and here upon this place, shut off from 
 civilization, Mr. Hobler endeavored to retrieve 
 his fallen fortunes. After following this busi- 
 ness for six or eight years he became disgusted 
 with the English government, and having been 
 deprived of his land, he sold all his possessions 
 in that country, and severing his connection with 
 both the country and the government, he came 
 to America, making his way to Cahfomia in 
 1851. 
 
 Securing a favorable location in Alameda coun- 
 ty, he took up a claim of one Hundred and sixty 
 acres of land on the Spanish Grant, where he 
 improved a place and followed farming for sev- 
 eral years. On account of an existing dispute 
 concerning the title to this land and not wishing 
 to be again deprived of his rights, Mr. Hobler 
 sold his interest in this place and removed to 
 Alameda, where the latter years of his life were 
 spent in retirement. Here he died at the advanced 
 age of eighty-four years. Eleven children were 
 born to him and his wife, and of these, one died 
 in infancy, ten growing to maturity ; all are now 
 deceased except Charles J. and his sister, Ada, 
 
420 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wife of John Ellsworth, superior judge of Ala- 
 meda county, Cal. 
 
 Born, as he was, on the bank of Hunter's 
 river, near Sydney, AustraHa, August i6, 1836, 
 Qiarles J. Hobler spent his boyhood days in 
 the land of his nativity, and when of sufficient 
 age he was placed in a boarding-school, where he 
 remained for four years, during which time he 
 obtained a fair education. He had attained the 
 age of fifteen years when his parents left Aus- 
 tralia for a home in California and he worked on 
 his father's ranch until he was nineteen years 
 old, starting out at that time to make his own 
 way in the world. He took charge of a flock of 
 sheep, managing them first in Solano county 
 and afterward in Monterey county. The third 
 year a division was made and Mr. Hobler re- 
 ceived for his share, in addition to a certain sum 
 of money, five hundred ewes, and with these as a 
 start, he began sheep-raising on his own behalf 
 in Monterey county. After two or three years he 
 removed his stock to the tipper San Joaquin val- 
 ley, being subsequently located in different coun- 
 ties until 1864. 
 
 During that year he took up his sheep into 
 Mendocino county, having at that time about four 
 thousand head. This change, instead of being 
 beneficial to his interests, was quite the reverse, 
 as the settlers killed his sheep and he was after- 
 ward compelled to return to the San Joaquin 
 valley in order to save the remnant of his flock, 
 which was reduced to four hundred. Here he re- 
 mained until 1872, and it was during that year 
 that he purchased a section of land in Fresno 
 county, for which he paid $6,400. Upon this 
 land he carried on farm pursuits on a large scale, 
 raising grain, planting orchards, etc., and in ad- 
 dition to cultivating his own ranch, he rented six 
 sections of land in the same county and carried 
 on stock-raising extensively. In 1888 he sold his 
 entire possessions for $35,000 net, and purchased 
 his present home place, four hundred acres, six 
 miles northeast' of Hanford, in Kings county and 
 removing to this place, he has lived here ever 
 since. The purchase price, $18,400, is greatly 
 exceeded by the present value of the place, and 
 here Mr. Hobler continues stock-raising, making 
 a specialty of thoroughbred sheep. 
 
 Having invested quite largely in real estate, 
 Mr. Hobler at one time owned one hundred and 
 eighty lots in Hanford, in addition to his ranch. 
 His deep interest in educational affairs is unques- 
 tioned, as he donated eight lots for the high school 
 site. Besides this, he has sold at different times 
 one hundred lots that now contain residences. 
 He also purchased twenty acres of land near the 
 city, which he sold seven months later at a fair 
 profit. By his marriage in 1874, he was united 
 with Rosie Hunter, of Canadian birth, who was 
 brought to California by her parents when but 
 
 one year old; her family also is of English ex- 
 traction. Eight children were born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hobler, and of these, three sons, Louis W., 
 Adolph and Charles H., are deceased. Those 
 living are: Lizzie, wife of C. D. Haywood; 
 Rosie, wife of George Kelley, .of Hanford ; and 
 Bertha, Grace and Gladys. . The youngest three 
 are all at home. Politically, Mr. Hobler is a 
 firm adherent of Republican principles, but has 
 never aspired to office. Fraternally he is allied 
 with the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Ma- 
 sons, being a member of the Blue Lodge and 
 Royal Arch Chapter of Hanford. In embracing 
 Masonry, he but followed in the footsteps of his 
 honored father, who was made a Mason in Eng- 
 land, and just prior to his removal to Australia 
 the Grand Master's Lodge No. i, of which he was 
 a member, presented him with a jewel, bearing 
 the date of June 20, 1825, as an emblem of their 
 good-will. This token of esteem is now in the 
 possession of Mr. Hobler, who prizes it very 
 highly, a relic of bygone days, when his beloved 
 father was a much esteemed resident of England. 
 
 CHARLES FREDERICK WADE, M. D. 
 Medical and surgical science finds skillful ex- 
 pression in the career of Dr. Charles Frederick 
 Wade, a resident of Los Banos since 1891. Be- 
 sides being a general practitioner, he is the own- 
 er of a private hospital on the edge of the town, 
 the surgeon for the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 Company for many years, and examining physi- 
 cians for eight life insurance companies. Dr. 
 Wade comes of old Massachusetts stock, and on 
 both sides of his family inherits professional ten- 
 dencies. -He was born in Boston, Mass., Novem- 
 ber 17, 1 85 1, a son of Francis F., and grand- 
 son of Abraham Wade, the latter of whom spent 
 his entire life in Massachusetts, and counted as 
 his immigrating ancestor a Scotch traveler who 
 arrived off the Massachusetts coast during col- 
 onial times. Francis F. Wade was an attorney, 
 who in early manhood married Henrietta .Graves, 
 a native of Boston. She died leaving to his care 
 Charles Frederick, and Edgard F., the latter of 
 whom was a druggist, and died in Butte county, 
 Cal. Depressed because of the death of his wife, 
 and hoping much from a general change of op- 
 portunity, Mr. Wade brought his sons to Cali- 
 fornia in 1859, settHng in San Francisco, where 
 he practiced law until his death in 1864. He was 
 then in the prime of life, being forty years old, 
 and his passing meant much to the motherless 
 boys who would shortly have to depend upon 
 their own resources. He was a member in high 
 standing of the Pacific Lodge of Masons, and a 
 man of ability and resource. The maternal 
 grandfather of Dr, Wade, Dr. Philip Graves, was 
 
JOHN H. EDWARDS 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 423 
 
 born in England and was a graduate from an 
 English school of medicine. He practiced medi- 
 cine for many years in Massachusetts, became a 
 pioneer of California when there was need of 
 skilled physicians, and died near Stockton, this 
 state, at the age of eighty-six. 
 
 After graduating from the grammar school of 
 San Francisco, Dr. Wade entered a drug store in 
 Montezuma, and at the same time studied medi- 
 cine under Dr. Lampson. In 1887 he entered the 
 Cooper Medical College for the three years' 
 course, graduating in November, 1889, and soon 
 after engaging in practice in Tuolumne county. 
 When he arrived in Los Banos in 1891 the town 
 was devoid of medical assistance of any kind, 
 and as the pioneer physician and surgeon, he soon 
 worked up a large and lucrative practice. His 
 private hospital is equipped with the improve- 
 ments sanctioned by present standards of nurs- 
 ing, and he has the contract to care for the sick 
 and injured west of the San Joaquin river, in 
 Merced county. Dr. Wade is examining physi- 
 cian for the Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Com- 
 pany, the Equitable, Fidelity Mutual Life, North- 
 western Mutual Life, New York Life, Mutual 
 New York, Security Trust and Life, and the 
 Massachusetts Mutual Life insurance companies. 
 He is a member of the County Medical Society, 
 the State Medical Society, the American Medical 
 Society, and the Pacific Coast Association of 
 Railway Surgeons. 
 
 A Republican in national politics. Dr. Wade is 
 recognized as one of the leaders of that party in 
 the western part of the county. He was post- 
 master of Los Banos from 1898 until April, 1903, 
 and was Republican nominee for state senator of 
 his district, which is overwhelmingly Democratic. 
 His interest in education has been pronounced 
 and of a practical nature. He is president of the 
 school board, having held that position since the 
 organization of the district, also having been ac- 
 tive in organizing the district and securing the 
 erection of the high-school building. 
 
 He was made a Mason in George 'Washington 
 Lodge No. 62, F. & A. M., of Tuolumne county 
 and served twelve years consecutively as master ; 
 he assisted in organizing Los Banos Lodge No. 
 312, in 1892, is its secretary, and was its first mas- 
 ter, serving five terms. He is also identified with 
 Sonora Chapter No. 2, R. A. M.; the Pacific 
 Commandery No. 3, K. T. of Sonora, and the 
 Mountain Brow Lodge No. 82, I. O. O. F., of 
 which he is past grand ; this lodge was organized 
 in Chinese Camp, Tuolumne county, in 1858, and 
 was removed to Los Banos after Dr. Wade came 
 to this town. The doctor has social connections 
 with the Woodmen ^of the World, the Foresters, 
 the Ancient . Order of United Workmen and the 
 Knights of the Maccabees. Mrs. Wade was for- 
 merly Adelaide Mayhew, a native of Tuolumne 
 
 county, and daughter of Charles Mayhew, the lat- 
 ter a native of Nantucket, Mass., and a Cali- 
 fornia pioneer of 1852. Two children have been 
 born to Dr. and Mrs. Wade, of whom George 
 Royal is a graduate of Heald's Business College, 
 and is a civil engineer ; Henrietta Alice is a grad- 
 uate of the University of California, 1903, and is 
 now engaged in post-graduate work. Dr. Wade 
 enjoys a wide popularity in Merced county, and 
 his professional effort has had a tendency to es- 
 tablish and maintain a high standard. He ad- 
 heres invariably to the best tenets of the old 
 school, embellishing his practice with personal 
 characteristics as pleasing as they are rare and 
 inspiring. 
 
 JOHN HENRY EDWARDS. Among the 
 enterprising and progressive agriculturists that 
 improved large and valuable ranches in Merced 
 county was the late John Henry Edwards, whose 
 farm, now occupied by his widow and children, 
 lies about seven miles south of Newman. He 
 was well known throughout this section of the 
 country as a man of great ability, thrift and in- 
 tegrity, well worthy of the confidence and trust 
 reposed in him by his fellow-men. Public-spir- 
 ited and far-seeing, he willingly assisted in the 
 establishment of beneficial projects, and well per- 
 formed his part in advancing the intellectual 
 and moral status of the community. A native 
 of Alabama, he was born August 5, 1830, in 
 Russellville, and died December 17, 1895, on his 
 home ranch near Newman, Cal. His father, 
 James Garrett Edwards, was born in Kentucky 
 of Welsh descent, and removed from there to 
 Alabama and spent his later years in Arkansas. 
 
 Educated in the common schools of his na- 
 tive state, John Henry Edwards remained be- 
 neath the parental roof until nineteen years of 
 age, when he began life on his own account. On 
 hearing of the discovery of gold in California, 
 in 1849, he joined the tide of emigration that 
 was traveling across the plains to the valleys 
 of California, and located mines in Eldorado 
 county. Subsequently settling in Suisun, Sola- 
 no county, he, in partnership with his brothers, 
 Charles and James Edwards, began the manu- 
 facture of flour, owning mills there for a num- 
 ber of years, and also buying a ranch in that 
 vicinity. Selling out his interests, Mr. Edwards 
 removed to San Francisco, where he was in 
 business as an assayer until 1881. In that year 
 he took possession of the ranch now occupied 
 by his widow. This property, which was sub- 
 sequently sold, contained six hundred and forty 
 acres above the canal and one hundred and 
 sixty acres below the canal, on which he made 
 his home, he had purchased in 1869. In the 
 years that followed, Mr. Edwards made sub- 
 
iU 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 stantial improvements on his home farm, ren- 
 dering it one of the best and most desirable es- 
 tates in the neighborhood, and was here pleas- 
 antly engaged in 'his independent occupation un- 
 til his death as above staled. In politics Mr. 
 Edwards was a stanch Democrat, active in the 
 management of public affairs, and for seven 
 years was supervisor of Merced county, dying 
 while in office. 
 
 On October 4, 1864, in Suisun, Cal., Mr. Ed- 
 wards married Sarah Martha Ish, who was born 
 in Saline county. Mo., a daughter of Carroll 
 Whitfield Ish. A native of Tennessee, Mr. Ish 
 ■first migrated as far westward as Missouri, 
 whence, in 1850, he came across the plains to 
 California. Here he lived in various places, in- 
 cluding Sacramento and Sonoma, being engaged 
 in farming and stock-raising. For a time he 
 was a resident of Contra Costa county, later 
 owning land in Solano county, from there going 
 to Winters, Yolo county, where he resided un- 
 til his death at the age of seventy-six years. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Jane 
 Baldridge, was born in Tennessee and died in 
 Yolo county, Cal. 
 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Edwards three 
 children were born, namely : Cora Lee, de- 
 ceased; Grace Walston and John Henry, both 
 living at home. Under the management of Mrs. 
 Edwards and her son, the home ranch is carried 
 on with marked ability, being devoted largely 
 to dairy purposes, one hundred and sixty acres 
 beinsf sown to alfalfa. 
 
 ALVAH L. CONKLIN. The younger gen- 
 eration of business men of Bakersfield include 
 none more energetic, progressive or promising, 
 than Alvah L. Conklin, senior member of the 
 firm of Conklin & Coffee, wholesale and retail 
 meat merchants. Far from depending upon the 
 advantage to be gained from the reflected prom- 
 inence of his father, Hon. Alvah Russell Conk- 
 lin, for many years connected with the jurispru- 
 dence, and legislative and fraternal development 
 of California, this merchant has forged his way 
 to the front solely upon his own merits, depend- 
 ing upon tenacity of purpose, ambition and abil- 
 ity, to connect his name with the best citizenship 
 of the west. 
 
 Born in Warrensburg, Mo., August 21, 1868, 
 Mr. Conklin was a lad of seven years when he 
 came to California in 1875, settling with his 
 father in Independence, Inyo county, where he 
 attended the public schools. He developed studi- 
 ous characteristics and at the age of thirteen en- 
 tered Santa Clara College, where he remained for 
 three years. His first business venture was on 
 a stock ranch with his brother, N. E. Conklin, 
 in Inyo county, where he was fairly successful, 
 
 and sold out his interest with gratifying profit in 
 1899. Locating in Bakersfield, he formed a part- 
 nership with J. A. Baker in his present business, 
 continuing the same until February, 1903. Since 
 then George Coffee has purchased Mr. Baker's 
 interest, and the extensive patronage hitherto ac- 
 corded the establishment has known no diminu- 
 tion of its former proportions. Thoroughly 
 abreast with the times, courteous in the treat- 
 ment of its many customers, and depending upon 
 reliable and advanced business tactics, the man- 
 agement has won a strong footing in the com- 
 munity, and is appreciated because of the excel- 
 lence of its commodities, and the moderate prices. 
 Mr. Conklin is public-spirited, generous in his 
 support of charitable and social enterprises, and 
 tactful in the many situations in which a pros- 
 perous merchant finds himself in a progressive 
 community. He is a Republican in politics, and is 
 fraternally connected with the Elks. His fam- 
 ily consists of his wife, formerly Mary Shep- 
 pard, a native of Inyo county, and a daughter, 
 Mollie Irene. 
 
 Mr. Conklin feels a just pride in the career of 
 his father, and has ever valued the example of 
 perseverance and high ideals which influenced his - 
 own course in life. Hon. Alvah L. Conklin was 
 born in Mehoopany, Wyoming county. Pa., 
 March 12, 1835, and on the paternal side of the 
 family came from the Mohawk valley branch, his 
 mother being a member of the Redfield family of 
 Vermont. He was educated in the public schools 
 of Kingston, Luzerne county, Pa., and at the 
 Wyoming Seminary, and by trade became a print- 
 er. As a child, he was unlike the average, in 
 that he realized the promise of his youth, and be- 
 fore the age of twenty had edited two different 
 papers. He studied law under Hon. Lyman 
 Hokes of Wilkesbarre, Pa., and Hon. George S. 
 Tutton of Tunkhannock, and in 1858 removed 
 to Forest City, Holt county, Mo., where he prac- 
 ticed law and published the Forest City Coiirier. 
 In 1 86 1, at the outbreak of the Civil war, he ten- 
 dered his services in recruiting a company for 
 the Thirteenth Missouri Infantry, Colonel Pea- 
 body's regiment of volunteers, and while per- 
 forming his duty in this connection he was shot 
 down on the road, being the second in the state 
 to thus suffer at the hands of the Bushwhackers in 
 Missouri. Recovering from his wounds, he 
 served four years in the Federal army, filling va- 
 rious responsible positions, and being the first 
 judge advocate to determine the admission of tes- 
 timony of the negro before a military court. 
 
 After the war Judge Conklin settled in War- 
 rensburg, Mo., and from 1868 until 1872 was 
 judge of the court of common pleas of Johnson 
 county. In 1875 he came to California and lo- 
 cated at Independence, Inyo county, where he en- 
 gaged in the active practice of law with Hon. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 425 
 
 Patrick Reddy, his brother-in-law. In 1879 he 
 was nominated on the Repubhcan ticket for su- 
 perior judge of Inyo county, but decHned the 
 honor, and in 1882 he was the nominee for lieu- 
 tenant-governor, winning the nomination over 
 several well-known politicians through a three 
 minutes' magnetic speech. Though the Repub- 
 lican ticket met with defeat, he received six thou- 
 sand more votes than did the head of the opposi- 
 tion ticket. In 1884 he was nominated as one of 
 the electors-at-large on the James G. Blaine tick- 
 et, and after his election was chosen president of 
 the body of electors. Judge Conklin became iden- 
 tified with Kern county in 1892, when he was 
 appointed superior judge to fill the vacancy 
 caused by the death of Judge R. E. Arick. Tak- 
 ing up his residence in Bakersfield, he was elected 
 judge of the superior court in 1894, and four 
 years later was defeated- for the same office. 
 Thereafter he practiced law in Bakersfield un- 
 til his death, October 5, 1899, at the age of sixty- 
 two years. He was prominent in Masonry, start- 
 ing out upon his career in Forest City, Mo., as a 
 member of Lodge No. 214, F. & A. M. He was 
 afterward made a member of the Bodie Chapter 
 No. 35, R. A. M., and the Bodie Commandery 
 No. 15, K. T. From 1879 iintil his death he was 
 a member of' the Grand Lodge of California, and 
 for several years was chairman of the committee 
 on grievances. In 1886 he was elected junior 
 grand warden, and the following year was chosen 
 senior grand warden. In 1888 he was elected 
 deputy grand master, and in 1890 was chosen 
 grand master of the Grand Lodge, which posi- 
 tion he held for years. Mr. Conklin was gifted 
 with keen reasoning powers, remarkable adapt- 
 ability, and possessed a comprehensive knowl- 
 edge of the law. In him was found that strong 
 mental and moral timber which, more than any 
 other agency, has furnished telling strokes toward 
 the supremacy of the state of California. 
 
 DR. JOHN P. JOHNSTON. A prominent 
 farmer of Fresno county, and one who in the 
 past fifteen years has proved his business ability, 
 judgment and enterprise, is Dr. John P. Johns- 
 ton, now located upon a farm of thirty acres 
 in the neighborhood of Fresno. He purchased 
 the farm in 1888 about a month after arriving 
 in Fresno, and has since made the improvements 
 which have placed his property in the front ranks 
 of well-improved and highly developed farms 
 of the region. In addition to this property he 
 also owns seventy acres located on East and 
 Orange avenues, twelve acres of which are de- 
 voted to raisins, ten acres to peaches, ten acres 
 to pears, one acre to apricots, while the remain- 
 der is devoted to alfalfa and Bermuda grass. 
 Mr. Johnston also devotes considerable time to 
 
 stock raising. Another source of income to him 
 is a hundred hives of bees. 
 
 A native of Shelby county, Ohio, John P. 
 Johnston was born November 13, 1837. His 
 father, Christopher Johnston, was a native of 
 Scotland and as a drummer-boy served in the 
 Scotch army in Ireland. In 1830 he came to 
 America, settling in Miami county, Ohio, and 
 was there interested in the construction of a 
 saw and grist mill. In 1852 he established him- 
 self in the same business in Montezuma, Mer- 
 cer county, of that state, and continued so em- 
 ployed until 1856, when his son took charge of 
 the mill, and he returned to his farm in Miami 
 county, where his death occurred in 1894 at the 
 age of eighty-two years. By profession Christo- 
 pher Johnston was a lawyer, but never engaged 
 in the practice of law. In Miami county, Ohio, 
 he was united in marriage with Mary Peck, and 
 of this union were born the following children : 
 John P., the subject of this review ; Henry H. P., 
 who is now living a retired life in Fresno ; 
 Stephen, located in Shelby county, Ohio ; Thomas, 
 a merchant in Los Angeles ; William A., who 
 is conducting a jewelry store in Santa Paula, 
 Ventura county ; Mary, wife of Joseph Watkins, 
 of Ohio; Julia, who resides with her mother in 
 Piqua, Ohio, where the mother still lives at the 
 age of eighty-three years. 
 
 The education of Dr. Johnston was received 
 in the public schools of Miami county, Ohio. At 
 sixteen years of age he assumed charge of his 
 father's saw and grist mill. In this employment 
 he remained until twenty-two years of age, when 
 he took a commercial course, completing the 
 work in bookkeeping. At the same time, how- 
 ever, he continued his work in the mill until 1865, 
 when he entered the office of Dr. H. Potter, in 
 Montezuma, Ohio, where he remained two years, 
 after which he also studied in the office of Dr. 
 Walton, in Piqua, Ohio. Thereafter, during his 
 residence in Ohio, he practiced medicine and was 
 also employed on a farm. In 1888 he came to 
 California, and settling in Fresno, a month later 
 purchased the property upon which he has since 
 made his home. He has met with success in his 
 agricultural pursuits since his settlement in the 
 west and has become the owner of valuable prop- 
 erty. In conjunction with the cultivation of al- 
 falfa he has raised Bermuda grass. In one sea- 
 son Dr. Johnston has cut five crops of alfalfa. 
 
 Dr. Johnston was married January i, 1864, 
 to Nancy L. McDaniel, and four children have 
 blessed this union: William R., a raisin grower 
 of Fresno county ; Frank W., also a raisin grower, 
 having forty acres devoted to this cultivation; 
 George R., located in Fresno county ; and Fanny 
 L., the wife of G. A. Prater, of Lonestar. In 
 his political convictions Dr. Johnston is a Re- 
 publican and through the influence of this party 
 
426 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 has filled various official positions during his 
 residence in the west, acting as school director 
 in his locality. He is a member of the Christian 
 Church. The many sturdy qualities which dis- 
 tinguish the life of Dr. Johnston in this neigh- 
 borhood have called forth the esteem and respect 
 of his fellow townsmen and he has attained an 
 enviable position as a citizen of Fresno county. 
 
 GEORGE A. BALLOU. In all sections of the 
 world the pioneer is held in honor, but especial- 
 ly is this the case in California, where the pres- 
 ent generation realizes that the development of 
 the twentieth century is due to the indefatigable 
 determination of those who faced the hardships 
 of an overland journey to the coast and the still 
 greater hardships connected with the transform- 
 ing of an unknown, sparsely settled region into 
 one of the greatest commonwealths in the nation. 
 The development of Tulare county owes much to 
 the pioneer labors of George A. Ballou, and the 
 retirement and ease he now enjoys have been 
 justly earned by years of arduous effort and ap- 
 plication. 
 
 When the first settlers came to American 
 shores the Ballou family immigrated to this coun- 
 try from France and afterward members of the 
 different generations bore a part in the colonial 
 and Revolutionary struggles. The trade of weav- 
 er was followed by them in the early history 
 of the United States and from that they drifted 
 into the cotton manufacturing business during the 
 infancy of that industry. Ballou's cottons were 
 manufactured at Woonsocket, R. I., and acquired 
 a world-wide reputation through the exercise of 
 the fine business talents of Oliver Ballou, a na- 
 tive of Rhode -Island and for years the head of the 
 factory. Harvey, son of Oliver Ballou, was born 
 and reared in Rhode Island and through all his 
 life followed the trades of _plasterer and brick- 
 layer, in addition to superintending a farm. At 
 an early age he married Ruth Gould, who was 
 born at Cape Cod, Mass., and died in Rhode 
 Island. His death also occurred in the latter 
 state in 1854. In their family of three sons and 
 four daughters George A. Ballou was next to the 
 youngest. The common schools of Cumberland, 
 R. I., where he was born September 26, 1832, fur- 
 ni,shed him with a fair education, and he had the 
 further advantage of a term in an academy. Un- 
 der his father's supervision he learned the trades 
 of plasterer and bricklayer, which he has fol- 
 lowed throughout much of his active life. 
 
 The year 1850 brought many gold-seekers to 
 California, and among the number was George A. 
 Ballou, who came bv way of Panama and set- 
 tled in San Diego, going from there to Los An- 
 geles eighteen months later. In common with the 
 majority of the pioneers he did considerable pros- 
 
 pecting and mining, and it was his good fortune 
 to secure a sufficient amount of gold to repay him 
 for his arduous labors. For eight months he 
 made Los Angeles his home and then spent a 
 short time in San Francisco, afterward working 
 at his trade in Stockton. Subsequent to this he 
 engaged in mining in Mariposa county, and from 
 there returned to work at his trade in Los An- 
 geles. As early as i860 he became a pioneer of 
 Visalia, which has since remained his home and 
 the scene of his activities. After some years as 
 a wage-worker in laying brick he began to take 
 contracts for such work, and many of the first 
 builcHngs in the town were erected under his su- 
 pervision. In 1899 he retired from the trade* and 
 since that year he has given his attention to the 
 management of his property in town and the 
 large tracts of farm lands owned by him. These 
 lands aggregate more than one thousand acres 
 and are scattered through three counties. Pur- 
 chased at a time when property was much lower 
 than at present, they represent Mr. Ballou's ex- 
 cellent judgment in making investments and com- 
 prise to a large degree the savings of a lifetime 
 of labor. Since attaining the age of franchise 
 he has voted the Republican ticket and both in 
 local and general elections supports the men and 
 measures advocated by that party. 
 
 THOMAS REED LAYERS. An early pio- 
 neer of Kern county, and a veteran agricultur- 
 ist and stock raiser, Thomas Reed Lavers has 
 spent a busy and useful life, and is now living 
 retired from active business cares in Bakers- 
 field. Energetic, persevering and wise in his 
 management of affairs, he has achieved success 
 in industrial circles. He was bom October 15, 
 1825, in Cumberland county. Nova Scotia, and 
 on the home farm grew to man's estate. Im- 
 migrating to Massachusetts in 1847, he worked 
 as a farm laborer until 1852, when he succumbed 
 to a violent attack of gold fever, and came to 
 California by way of Cape Horn, the journey 
 from Boston to San Francisco taking six months. 
 After working in San Francisco for six weeks, 
 he made a trip to the mines, but winter weather 
 proving severe, and mining unprofitable, the 
 heavy rains interfering with the digging, he 
 located in Santa Clara county, where he rented 
 land and engaged in general farming. 
 
 In the fall of 1869 Mr. Lavers moved to what 
 was then Tulare, but is now Kern county, and 
 took up a tract of wild land about forty miles 
 northeast of Bakersfield, on Poso creek. Settlers 
 were few and far between, and Visalia, sixty 
 miles away, was the nearest trading point and 
 depot for supplies. He embarked in the cattle 
 business, having all the range he wanted, and 
 carried on a substantial business, having at times 
 
HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 429 
 
 from five hundred to one thousand head of stock. 
 Placing a part of his land in tillable condition, 
 he raised hay and grain, and being advanta- 
 geously located on the main road from Visalia to 
 Kernville had a good home market for his farm 
 products. He also kept a public inn, entertain- 
 ing people traveling through the country. One 
 half section of this land, which commands water 
 for a large territory, he still owns, but rents it, 
 the rent furnishing him with a good annual in- 
 come. In 1896 Mr. Lavers built his present resi- 
 dence in Bakersfield, and has since made his 
 home in this city. 
 
 In 1875 Mr. Lavers married Mary Gurnett, 
 a native of Canada, and they are the parents of 
 five children, namely: Henrietta E., Lewis, en- 
 gaged in the draying business in Bakersfield, 
 Winnifred, Lawrence and Josephine. Politically 
 Mr. Lavers is a Republican. Even during war 
 times, when but few men of his political persua- 
 sion were to be found in his neighborhood, he 
 remained loyal to the principles of his party. 
 
 RUDOLPH HENRY BAMBAUER. A 
 successful farmer, an active Democrat, and an 
 all-around enterprising man is found in Ru- 
 dolph Henry Bambauer, a self-made man in 
 the broadest sense of the word, and since 1896 
 the owner of seventy-nine and .three-quarter 
 acres of land three miles south of Newman. 
 Mr. Bambauer is of German ancestry, and his 
 strongest traits are those derived from the 
 fatherland. Born at Columbia, Tuolumne 
 county, Cal., December 16, 1859, he is one of 
 the multitudinous offspring of the men who 
 came to the coast in 1849, ^"d who tarried -in 
 the wake of more or less discouraging failure 
 in the mines. His parents, Charles and Ada- 
 laide Bambauer, were born in Germany, living 
 in Baden until coming to the United States 
 shortly after their marriage. The elder Bam- 
 bauer graduated from mining to freighting, and 
 in 1873 located on a farm near Modesto, Stan- 
 islaus county, in 1875 removing to one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres of government land in the 
 western part of Merced county. His land 
 proving unprofitable, he bought forty acres in 
 the Cottonwood district near Newman, im- 
 proved the same, and remained there for the 
 balance of his life. Of the five sons and three 
 daughters reared in this home Rudolph is the 
 oldest ; George lives on a ranch near Newman ; 
 Charles lives at Volta, Merced county, and is 
 making a home for his mother, where he and 
 his brother, Edward, conduct a blacksmith shop 
 which is one of the very best equipped shops 
 outside of Stockton ; Frank is deceased ; Louise 
 is stewardess on a steamer; Mrs. Carrie Rus- 
 
 sel is a resident of Newman ; and Louie lives 
 at Los Banos, Cal. 
 
 After leaving the public schools Rudolph 
 Henry learned the butcher's trade in San Fran- 
 cisco, working for Miller & Lux until 1878. 
 He then turned his attention to blacksmithing 
 in Merced for nine years, and after being in- 
 jured by a horse, and incapacitated for hard 
 physical labor, came to Fresno in 1887, and 
 engaged as a barkeeper until 1892. Purchas- 
 ing his present farm in 1896, he is devotipg it 
 to alfalfa and a dairy of thirty cows, at the 
 same time leasing nine hundred and sixty acres 
 of grain land with his brother, George, and 
 operating the same in partnership. He has 
 been successful as a dairyman and grain raiser, 
 and has_ accumulated a competence, due entire- 
 ly to his saving and industrious habits. He 
 has stock in the. New Era Creamery Company, 
 and has otherwise invested in lands and enter- 
 prises of an upbuilding nature. As a Demo- 
 crat he is regarded as promising office-holding 
 material, although as yet his efforts have been 
 confined to aiding his friends, and represent- 
 ing his district in state and county conven- 
 tions. He is a holder of the degree of honor 
 in the Ancient Order of United Workmen, and 
 is otherwise identified with the social life of 
 the county. Mr. Bambauer should regard his 
 past with satisfaction, and his future as full 
 of hope. Should chance turn his steps from 
 farming he could undertake blacksmithing or 
 butchering with every prospect of success, for 
 both of these trades he mastered with the same 
 degree of thoroughness and efficiency which 
 has characterized his every effort in life. He 
 is a highly respected member of the commun- 
 ity, and is deserving of credit for the ease with 
 which he has conquered the obstacles which 
 have beset his path. 
 
 Mr. Bambauer was married in A/[erced coun- 
 ty to Miss Ella Stahlman, who is the mother 
 of two children now living: Fulton Rudolph 
 and Marvell Ella. 
 
 C. C. COWGILL. A native of Iowa, Mr. 
 Cowgill was born near Bloomfield, Davis county, 
 September 24, 1851. His father, Abraham K. 
 Cowgill, was born and reared in Warren county, 
 Ohio, whence in youth he accompanied other 
 members of the family to Indiana and settled 
 on a farm. In 1849 the time news reached his 
 locality concerning the discovery of gold in Cali- 
 fornia, he determined to seek his fortune in the 
 far west. However, on reaching Iowa and find- 
 ing the soil fertile and land cheap, he was dis- 
 suaded from his original purpose and secured 
 a tract, of government land in Davis county, 
 
430 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 where he devoted some years to farming. From 
 there in i860 he moved to Lancaster, Mo. He 
 remained in Missouri until his death, which oc- 
 curred August 31, 1882, at the age of fifty-nine 
 years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
 Mary J. Bunnell, was born in Warren county, 
 Ohio, in 1825, and died March 31, 1901. Of 
 their marriage four sons and four daughters 
 were born. The fourth of these, in order of 
 birth, was C. C. Cowgill. 
 
 Mr. Cowgill settled in Bakersfield, October 
 15, 1875, and made this town his home, and en- 
 gaged in the practice of law' up to May, 1904. 
 
 In 1885 he married Nellie Butler, daughter 
 of Col. Thomas Butler, the founder of Bakers- 
 field. Mrs. Cowgill died two years after her mar- 
 riage, leaving an only child, Edgar. 
 
 May, 1904, Mr. Cowgill moved to the city of 
 San Francisco, where he now resides, and is en- 
 gaged in the practice of his profession. 
 
 THOMAS WOODVILLE HOLDER. The 
 family represented by the city recorder of Visalia 
 is of old southern bloody the progenitors on 
 both sides having been people of influence and 
 worth. One of the most honored of the name 
 was Isaac Newton Holder, a native of the middle 
 part of Tennessee and for years an active prac- 
 ticing physician. On removing to Alabama he 
 settled at Huntsville, Madison county, where he 
 built up an excellent practice. During the year 
 1843 he removed to Marengo county, Ala., where 
 he was similarly engaged. Finally, however, 
 he decided that he could find more desirable open- 
 ings elsewhere, and accordingly sought a location 
 in Missouri, where during 1855 he settled in 
 Lawrence county near Mount Vernon. The stir- 
 I ring events of the Civil war seemed to reach a 
 crisis in Missouri, where feeling ran so high that 
 life and property were in constant danger. For 
 this reasofi he sought a region where the people 
 were, like himself, strongly Confederate in their 
 sentiments, and from 1862 until 1867 he prac- 
 ticed in Arkansas at Rocky Comfort. During 
 the latter year he removed to Texas and took up 
 farm land in Grayson county, where he carried 
 on general farming until his death, in 1889, at 
 seventy years of age. His wife, who bore the 
 maiden name of Martha Mildred Amos, was born 
 in Tennessee and died in Texas in 1865, at the 
 age of about fifty-two years. 
 
 Among four sons and one daughter compris- 
 ing the parental fainily, Thomas Woodville 
 Holder was their second child and eldest son. 
 He was born at Huntsville, Ala., March 3, 1842, 
 and received his education in private schools in 
 that state and ]\/tissouri. At the opening of the 
 Civil war, in April, 1861, he enlisted as a private 
 in the Sixteenth Missouri Infantry, C. S. A., 
 
 and served for four and one-half years, enduring 
 all the hardships of forced marches, insufficient 
 provisions and frequent engagements. When the 
 cause for which he had struggled was abandoned 
 as hopeless and the southern army laid down 
 their weapons he returned to Arkansas and took 
 up farming pursuits in Little River county. How- 
 ever, the state had suffered so severely by reason 
 of the war that he decided it would be best to 
 seek a liveHhood further west. Accordingly in 
 1869 he crossed the plains with teams to Cali- 
 fornia. From October of that year until Feb- 
 ruary of the next year he remained in San Diego 
 county, and then pursued his journey to Tulare 
 county, where he took up land near Visalia. Dur- 
 ing 1875 he moved into town and for two years 
 engaged in the meat business. In 1878 and 1879 
 he served as deputy sheriff. On leaving that 
 position he went to his farm near Visalia, where 
 he spent the year 1880, and the following year 
 was at Lemoore, returing to Visalia in 1882, and 
 in 1883 working with a surveying crew. Since 
 then he has held a number of local positions of 
 trust. In 1884-85 he served by appointment as 
 deputy sheriff, and from 1885 until 1888 held the 
 position of deputy county clerk, after which he 
 served for two years as justice of the peace, and 
 then, in 1 89 1, was re-elected for another term 
 of two years. Since 1896 he has held the office 
 of city recorder by successive elections, and in 
 that capacity has proved a capable and trust- 
 worthy official. Active in the Democratic party, 
 he is one of its local leaders and has never 
 failed to give support to the men and measures 
 representing this organization. In fraternal mat- 
 ters he is connected with the Blue Lodge of ' 
 Masons. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Holder took place in 
 Arkansas in November, 1867, and united him 
 with Sarah Elizabeth Jones, who was born in 
 Arkansas. Seven children were born of their 
 union, namely : Ida ; Mrs. Martha Montrose, of 
 San Francisco ; Laura, who resides with her par- 
 ents; Lovina and Russell, both deceased ; Royfe- 
 ton and Mabel, who are with their parents in 
 the Visalia home. 
 
 JAMES WILLIAM FEWEL. Doubtless no 
 resident of Tulare county is more deeply inter- 
 ested in its progress and prosperity than the gen- 
 tleman whose name introduces this article aild 
 who, in addition to maintaining various inter- 
 ests in his home city of Visalia, since November 
 1902, has filled tlie office of county tax collector. 
 He is a member of a pioneer family of the west 
 and is himself a native of California, having been 
 born in Sonoma county, February 9, 1861. His 
 father, James M., a native of Tennessee, born 
 September 27, 1825, at an early age accompanied 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 431 
 
 his parents to Missouri, where he resided for a 
 time in Henry county and later in Clay county, 
 eventually in 1849 going to the Indian Territory. 
 The discovery of gold in California caused him 
 to turn his steps toward the Pacific ocean and in 
 1850 he landed at Dutch Flat, Placer county, this 
 state, where he engaged for some time as super- 
 intendent of a mine. In addition he had personal 
 interests in mines that were fairly successful. 
 After five years' experience in the adventurous 
 existence of a gold-seeker he wearied of the 
 work and sought a less exciting occupation. Se- 
 lecting land in Sonoma county near Windsor, in 
 1855 he established a home at that place and 
 took up general farming. A man of progressive 
 spirit, he experimented with different products ' 
 to ascertain what could be iiaost profitably raised. 
 One of his experiments was in the introduction of 
 tobacco, but it did not prove a success. In 1870 
 he removed to Santa Barbara county, but the next 
 year came to Tulare county, where he has since 
 made his home. For some time he interested him- 
 self in raising sheep, but since advancing years 
 have rendered hard labor impracticable he has re- 
 sided with his son in Visalia. 
 
 The marriage of James M. Fewel, in 1855, 
 united him with Miss Melinda E. Prewett, who 
 was born in Missouri and crossed the plains to 
 California in 1850, and who was still a young 
 woman when she died in 1870 in Sonoma county. 
 Two sons and a daughter were born of this un- 
 ion, of whom the latter is deceased. The second 
 child, James William, was educated primarily in 
 Sonoma county, but more especially in the Vis- 
 alia grammar schools and normal private school. 
 On starting out to earn his livelihood he taught 
 school and then for tv/o years acted as book- 
 keeper for S. Sweet & Co., of Visalia. While 
 filling a clerical position he had other interests, 
 particularly in the line of buying and selling 
 farm and ranch property. For four years he was 
 employed by the Kings River Lumber Company, 
 as bookkeeper and contractor for their freight de- 
 livery, and for three years he acted as grain buy- 
 er in Tulare county for the Grangers' Bank of 
 San Francisco. Another industry which neces- 
 sitated close attention was the buying and ship- 
 ping of fruit to the San Francisco markets, in 
 which work he engaged extensively during 1899 
 and subsequent years. In addition he was in- 
 terested in the Fewel & Anderson Dairy, which 
 he assisted in organizing, but in 1904 disposed 
 of his interest in the plant. 
 
 During 1890 Mr. Fewel was united in mar- 
 riage with Lourena Kellogg, who was born in 
 San Francisco and died at Visalia. The- only 
 child of this union is a daughter, Ethel. After 
 the death of his first wife Mr. Fewel was united, 
 in San Francisco, with Daisy D. Simpson, who 
 was born in Newman, this state, and as a girl 
 
 resided principally at Madera. Two sons bless 
 their marriage, Richard and Allan P. The Demo- 
 cratic party receives the stanch support of Mr. 
 Fewel and it was upon the regular party ticket 
 that he was elected to the office he now fills. By 
 virtue of his birth in this state he is entitled to 
 membership in the Native Sons of the Golden 
 West and his interest in the society has been con- 
 stant since he became a charter member of the 
 Parlor organized in Visalia in 1884 ; at this writ- 
 ing he? holds the office of vice-president. The 
 Woodmen of the World and Foresters of America 
 also receive his aid as an active member. 
 
 GREENBURY M. KELLY. An old pioneer 
 of California, Greenbury M. Kelly is remembered 
 as one of the upbuilders of the agricultural in- 
 terests of Tulare county, where he located upon 
 his arrival in the state in 1857. A native of Ala- 
 bama, he was born February 13, 1835, a son of 
 Samuel Kelly, who was a farmer and blacksmith 
 in that state until his removal to Arkansas. In 
 the latter state he located in Jasper and followed 
 the same occupations until his death. His wife, 
 formerly Nancy Self, also died in Arkansas. 
 
 The youngest child in his fath'er's family, 
 Greenbury M. Kelly was five years old when he 
 accompanied his parents to Arkansas. He there 
 attended the common schools in his boyhood. In 
 manhood he followed his father's example and 
 engaged in farming. Deciding to locate in the 
 more remote west, he crossed the plains with ox- 
 teams in 1857 and upon his safe arrival settled 
 in Tulare county. For about two months he 
 lived at Elkhorn Station, when he located near 
 Visalia and purchased, in i860, eighty acres of 
 land which now adjoins the city. He made a suc- 
 cess of his work and subsequently bought more 
 land adjoining his property until he owned one 
 hundred and seventy-nine acres. He resided in 
 this location until his death, which occurred May 
 30, 1884. He was a" man esteemed for his many 
 sterling traits of character, a progressive and en- 
 terprising citizen. In his political preference he 
 was an active Democrat. 
 
 In Jasper, Ark., August 24, 1854, Mr. Kelly 
 was united in marriage with Sarah Jane Hender- 
 son, who now survives him and makes her home 
 on the old home place, where she owns ninety 
 acres. She was born in Williamson county, III, 
 a daughter of William C. Hendersoil. He was 
 also a native of lUinois, making that state his 
 home until his removal to Arkansas, where he 
 was variously occupied as sheriflf of the county, 
 farmer and in the conduct of a general merchan- 
 dise store in Jasper, until his death. Of the 
 twelve children born to Mr. and Mrs. Kelly 
 eleven are living, the one deceased, Alta R., being 
 sixth in order of birth. The others are named as 
 
432 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 follows : Nancy E., the wife of Columbus Fay ; 
 Matilda L., the widow of G. M. Caldwell ; Ma- 
 linda E., the wife of M. J. Pasco, of Oakland; 
 William Wilson, of Bakersfield ; Martha Ann, the 
 wife of Scott Owen, of Visalia ; Clifford Hender- 
 son, at home; Ara Ada, the wife of Creed 
 Archer; Julia Isabelle, the wife of Fred Maskal, 
 of Visalia; Arthur H. ; Ethel I., the wife of 
 Hewitt Grant, of Visalia; and Earl E., at home. 
 Mrs. Kelly, is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South. 
 
 JOHN L. BUTIN, M. D. The genealogy of 
 the Butin family is traced to France, whence 
 during the perilous year following the revoca- 
 tion of the edict of Nantes a Huguenot family 
 of that name fled to Holland. The head of the 
 house, Peter Butin, left a large fortune and lands 
 in France and sought safety on the island of Kat- 
 sand, Holland, where, as in his native land, he 
 followed the occupation of a chemist. In search 
 of a land where freedom of religious faith was 
 offered, as well as an opportunity to earn a 
 livelihood, he came to America and settled in 
 New York state. With him came his son John, 
 who had been born during the residence of the 
 family on the little island near Holland. Some 
 years after coming to this country he settled in 
 Logan county, Ohio, and there followed farm 
 pursuits. Later he became a farmer and large 
 land owner near Burlington, Iowa, where he 
 died. Next in line of descent was William 
 Butin, a native of Ohio, and in early manhood 
 a farmer near Burlington, Iowa, but later a 
 resident of Jasper county, that state, where he 
 improved a farm near Newton and laid out the 
 village of Galesburg. At the time of his death, 
 which occurred in Jasper county, he was sixty- 
 five years of age. 
 
 The marriage of William Butin united him 
 with Nancy Scott, who was born in Alton, 111., 
 and died in Iowa, leaving three children, namely : 
 Layton, a resident of Nebraska ; Emma, who 
 lives in Oklahoma, and John L., of California. 
 Levi Scott, father of Mrs. Butin, was bom in 
 Cairo, 111. As a boy he went through a thrilling 
 experience, when his parents were massacred 
 by the Indians and he alone of all the children 
 escaped. During early manhood he took part in 
 the Black Hawk war. At one time he owned 
 the land now occupied by the city of Jackson- 
 ville, 111., having entered the same from the gov- 
 ernment. A later location was at Alton, and 
 from there he went to the vicinity of Burling- 
 ton, Iowa, where he conducted a farm. He built 
 by contract a part of old Fort Des Moines and 
 was otherwise connected intimately with the 
 pioneer days of Iowa. When the first wagon 
 train entered the Willamette vallev. Ore., in 
 
 1843, 1''^ was among the emigrants and settled 
 on the Tualatin plains. When the Indians be- 
 came troublesome he was among the settlers 
 who formed a company and fought to defend 
 their homes and children. During these skirm- 
 ishes he was twice wounded by Indian arrows. 
 From the earliest period of his residence in the 
 west he was prominent in public affairs in Ore- 
 gon. One of the most important services that 
 he rendered was as a member of the first terri- 
 torial legislature. He carried on a store at 
 Scottsburg, built the first mill there and discov- 
 ered Scott's Pass, over which he piloted the 
 United States troops. At the time of his death, 
 which occurred in Eugene, Ore., he was ninety- 
 • six years of age. His wife had died in Iowa 
 many years before. 
 
 At Burlington, Iowa, on the 4th of July, 1855, 
 John L. Butin was born, and grew to manhood 
 on the home farm in Jasper county and received 
 his primary education in country schools. For 
 two years he was a student in the University of 
 Iowa at Iowa City, afteyr which he began the 
 study of medicine under Dr. Fayler of Newton, 
 Iowa. His first course of lectures were taken 
 in the medical department of the University of 
 Iowa and later he was a student in the North- 
 western Medical College at St. Joseph, Mo., 
 from which he was graduated in 1882 with the 
 degree of M. D. For a time he engaged in 
 general practice at Dorchester, Saline county. 
 Neb., and from there in 1891 came to Califor- 
 nia, since which year he has been a practitioner 
 at Madera. In point of years of active profes- 
 sional work, he is the oldest physician, in this 
 city. For one term he acted as county physician 
 and for two years served as county health offi- 
 cer. At the time of the organization of the 
 county he was an enthusiastic supporter of the 
 movement whereby it was separated from Fresno 
 county. At different times since coming here he 
 has invested in land, and now owns more than 
 eight hundred acres, divided into three farms, 
 all near Madera and all tillable farm land. A 
 portion of the property is under irrigation and 
 is utilized for the raising of alfalfa. In politics 
 he is a Democrat and fraternally holds member- 
 ship with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows 
 in Madera. 
 
 While residing in Saline county. Neb., Dr. 
 Butin married Dr. Mary R3'erson, who was born 
 at Wilton Junction, Muscatine county, Iowa, be- 
 ing a daughter of Richard Ryerson, of Holland- 
 Dutch extraction. From his native locality in 
 New Jersey Mr. Ryerson moved to Iowa in early 
 day^ and settled on a farm. Years later he re- 
 moved to Nebraska and there died. Excelletit 
 advantages were given to his daughter, who was 
 graduated from Wilton College, and also, in 
 1882, from the Woman's Medical College of Chi- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 433 
 
 cago. For a year she was engaged as interne 
 in the Cook County Hospital in Chicago. Re- 
 turning to Nebraska, she engaged in practice 
 there and for one year was honored with the 
 vice-presidency of the Nebraska State Medical 
 Society. At this writing she holds office as coun- 
 ty health officer, and it is said that she rivals all 
 former incumbents of the position in the intelli- 
 gent discharge of its duties and the care with 
 which she guards the public health. 
 
 JACOB NIEDERAUR. Clearly defined 
 against the background of the history of Bakers- 
 field is the strong and useful career of Jacob 
 Niederaur, one of the typical German-American 
 citizens who maintain the dignity and substantial 
 traits of whatever region they call home. A 
 cabinet mal<er by trade, an undertaker, one of 
 the incorporators and stockholders of the South- 
 ern Hotel Company, and one of the first to ap- 
 preciate the oil resources of this part of the 
 state, he invested his undertakings with a de- 
 gree of caution and conscientiousness which won 
 confidence, and his death February 9, 1903, is 
 regarded as a distinct loss to a community which 
 had profited largely by his business sagacity and 
 fine personal characteristics. 
 
 Mr.- Niederaur was nine years old when he 
 came with his parents to America, having been 
 born in Bavaria, Germany, June 15, in 1841. The 
 family located in Bryan, Ohio, where the father, 
 a skilled mechanic, worked at his trade of cab- 
 inet maker, and trained his four sons in this 
 useful occupation as soon as they were old 
 enough to handle tools. Jacob found a large 
 field of endeavor awaiting him when he arrived 
 in Bakersfield in 1869, and here his work took 
 on larger scope, including general inside finish- 
 ing work and the finer details of cabinet making. 
 He was a thorough master of tools and under- 
 stood the value of an artistic eye, and soon 
 worked up a paying trade, in time becoming the 
 leading cabinet maker and furniture dealer in 
 the Kern valley. Alert to opportunity, he saw 
 the need of an undertaking establishment in the 
 town, and with characteristic energy and fore- 
 thought set about supplying the deficiency. In 
 time he built and owned one of the finest brick 
 business blocks in the city, the first floor being 
 devoted to his undertaking and furniture busi- 
 ness and the second to a large halft He became 
 a practical undertaker, studying the business 
 from the beginning, and for a long time had no 
 competitors to detract from his trade. He was 
 successful in both departments of activity. 
 
 August 6, 1878, Mr. Niederaur married Lucy 
 J. Williams, who was born in Ross county, Ohio, 
 May 10, i860, but reared in Vermont, to which 
 state her mother moved after the death of her. 
 
 husband. Miss Williams received an excellent 
 education, and when sixteen years old came to 
 Bakersfield as a governess for the children of 
 Philo Jewett, and it was while thus employed 
 that she met and married her husband. Mrs. 
 Niederaur lives in the beautiful Bakersfield home 
 with her two children, Philip Williams and 
 Helen Jewett. Mr. Niederaur was a stanch Re- 
 publican, but never desired or accepted official 
 favors. Fraternally he was connected with the 
 Knights of Pythias. He led an even and tem- 
 perate Hfe, impressing all with his sincerity and 
 largeness of heart, his capability and public 
 spirit. One of the pleasing features of his life 
 was his ability to make and retain friends, which 
 he chose with his usual caution, and upon whom 
 he showered the wealth of his fine nature and 
 generous appreciation. One of the stanchest of 
 his friends was Franz Buckreus, also a pioneer 
 of the town, and superintendent of the Kern 
 County Hospital for the past twenty years. Be- 
 tween the two early settlers there was cemented 
 a bond of friendship which time, misfortune or 
 success never altered, and as a final testimony of 
 his faith in his comrade, Mr. Niederaur ap- 
 pointed him his administrator without bonds, 
 and guardian of his children. That the trust 
 will be regarded as sacred, and fulfilled to the 
 minutest detail, admits of no question or doubt. 
 Mr. Buckreus continued the furniture and un- 
 dertaking establishment of Mr. Niederaur until 
 disposing of the latter to Morton & Connley, 
 March, 1904. The furniture business he sold 
 to George Haberfelde about the same time. Mr. 
 Niederaur left an estate of $70,000, all of which 
 represented honest, painstaking efifort, and which 
 in the aggregate is the reward of a self-made 
 man who never lost trace of his high ideals, or 
 strayed from the path of the conservative and 
 painstaking business man. 
 
 WILLIAM H. HILDEBRAND. One of the 
 finest dairy, stock and alfalfa farms in Kings 
 county is owned by William H. Hildebrand, who 
 lives eight miles south and three miles east of 
 Hanford, and who is known as a pioneer, and 
 one of the first raisers of alfalfa in this section. 
 Although still in the prime of life, and in the en- 
 joyment of vigorous health, the marked success 
 of this honored rancher enables him to rent his 
 land at the present time, and to temporarily retire 
 from its active management. His life-work is to 
 be measured rather by the extent accomplished 
 than by the time taken to accomplish, for he has 
 ever been a disciple of method as well as indus- 
 try, and has made every hour and day count for 
 its full valuation. An excellent business man, a 
 good judge of stock, and having an accurate 
 knowledge of the nature and kind of soil com- 
 
434 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 prising his property, he has turned it jo the best 
 possible account, and has been rewarded with a 
 substantial yearly income. The greater part of 
 his ranch is under alfalfa, while he maintains a 
 dairy of sixty cows and a family orchard of hye 
 acres, besides several acres under vines. His 
 improvements have been dictated by a thoughtful 
 and cautious mind, and embrace only such ad- 
 vantages as have met with the approval of a solid 
 and practical agriculturist. 
 
 Mr. Hildebrand comes from the middle west, 
 and was born near Des Moines, Iowa, July 28, 
 1851. As the name implies, he is of Teutonic 
 extraction, and both his paternal and maternal 
 grandparents were born in Germany. Early set- 
 tlers in America, they lived in Pennsylvania. 
 Near Johnstown, that state, the grandfather 
 owned a farm upon which Joseph Hildebrand, 
 the father of William H., was born, and where 
 he was reared and trained to thrifty habits. Jos- 
 eph Hildebrand saw beyond the old farm an era 
 of greater prosperity farther west, and thus be- 
 came identified with Ohio while it was yet an un- 
 settled country, later moving to Indiana, and still 
 later to Iowa. Still his restless spirit remained 
 unsatisfied, and, while yet the journey across the 
 trackless plains was matter of wonderment and 
 consternation to the minds of prospective emi- 
 grants, he started out to explore the west. Leav- 
 ing home in the spring of 1853, he arrived in 
 California in the fall of the same year, thereafter 
 mining and prospecting in different parts of the 
 state until 1855. He then located in Nevada City 
 where he found everything very expensive, and 
 afterward represented one of two families who 
 were first to settle at Grizzly Hill, seventeen miles 
 from Nevada City. Grizzly Hill was most ap- 
 propriately named, and was about as wild, pic- 
 turesque and wicked a community as was to be 
 found in the west at that time. With true cour- 
 age, the pioneer settler made the best of the situa- 
 tion, and, being on hand at the opening of the 
 mines, gathered in his share of their rich accumu- 
 lation. In 1856 he settled in the Vaca valley, 
 Solano county, taking up land, and engaging in 
 farming and stock raising until i860. His next 
 place of residence was near Madison, Yolo coun- 
 ty, where he preempted land and engaged in 
 stock raising until 1869. Disposing of this farm, 
 he went to San Luis Obispo county and rented 
 a farm until 1876, when he came to what is now 
 Kings county, and, being advanced in years, di- 
 vided his time between his son \yilliam and his 
 daughter, at whose house he died at the age of 
 eighty-four years and six months. He was a 
 Whig in the early days, and later espoused the 
 cause of the Republican party. He was reared in 
 the Moravian Church, and in that married Annie 
 Harkrader, a native of Ohio, who survived him 
 
 three years, her death occurring at the age of 
 eighty-two. 
 
 Until his twenty-fourth year William H. Hilde- 
 brand lived at home with his parents, and during 
 that time found too many duties around the farm 
 to permit of anything but a meager education. 
 For a couple of years he worked by the month 
 in the county, and in 1873 came to Kings county 
 and worked for his brother-in-law. Perry C. Phil- 
 lips, for a year. He preempted his present ranch 
 near Guernsey, in 1874, coming here a _ single 
 man with well defined ambitions, and with ex- 
 pectations of making a success as a farmer and 
 stock raiser. Putting up a small cabin, he lived 
 in it for nearly four years, and as soon as the 
 ditch was completed he began the raising of 
 grain. A few years later he experimented with 
 alfalfa, and finding it well adapted to his land, 
 he continued to make it his staple product for 
 i-nany years, being almost the first producer of it 
 in Kings county. In 1881 the humble cabin was 
 supplanted by a more pretentious habitation, to 
 which the owner brought his newly wedded wife, 
 formerly Agnes McNamee, who bore him three 
 children, and who died after a comparatively brief 
 married Hfe. These three children, Clarence E., 
 Everett A. and Alma G., are living with their 
 father. Mr. Hildebrand married for his second 
 wife Alice Chapman, a native of Canada. He 
 is a Republican in politics, but has never wanted 
 nor been willing to accept office of any kind. He 
 is a plain-spoken, straightforward, thoroughly 
 honorable man, a considerate 'neighbor, and a 
 generous contributor to all worthy causes. 
 
 HENRY FORD CONDICT. Occupying a 
 noteworthy position among the pioneer residents 
 of Kern county is Henry Ford Condict, who was 
 one of the very earlier settlers of Bakersfield, 
 and is now actively identified with its manufac- 
 turing industries as proprietor of the C. O. D. 
 Soda Works. Settling in Bakersfield before the 
 incorporation of the town, when a dozen or so 
 rude shacks were the only buildings in the local- 
 ity, he has watched with gratification the many 
 wondrous transformations that have since taken 
 place within its borders, and as a worthy citizen, 
 has contributed his full share toward the develop- 
 ment and growing prosperity of his adopted town 
 and county. A son of Sidney Condict, he was 
 born July 5, ^837, in Newark, N. J., of English 
 stock. His immigrant ancestor, John Condict, 
 who, on the maternal side, was a descendant of 
 Sir Isaac Newton, came to this country some 
 time during the latter half of the seventeenth 
 century, and according to the records purchased 
 land in Newark, N. J., in 1678. Sidney Condict, 
 grandfather of Henry Ford, was a prominent citi- 
 zen of Morristown, N. J., being for many years 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 435 
 
 president of a bank. His father, Nathaniel Con- 
 diet, served as colonel of a regiment in the Revo- 
 lutionary army, and died of smallpox during the 
 war. 
 
 A native of Morristown, N. J., Sidney Condict 
 began his business career as a merchant in New- 
 ark, N. J. Removing to Illinois in 1842, he took 
 up land in McHenry county, and was there en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits until his death, in 
 1854, at the age of fifty-six years. He married 
 Charlotte Renolds, who was born in New Jersey, 
 and died in Illinois, in 1876, aged sixty-three 
 years. She was a woman of refinement and cul- 
 ture, and a member of the Congregational 
 Church. Her father, Abraham Renolds, was an 
 officer in the war of 1812, serving as captain of 
 a company, and at one time assistant adjutant 
 general on General Scott's staff. He was after- 
 ward a resident of Paterson, N. J., for a few 
 years, and was sheriff of Passaic county. Subse- 
 quently removing with his family to McHenrj 
 county, III, he purchased a large tract of land, 
 to the clearing and management of which he de- 
 voted much of his time. He also loaned money, 
 and as a man of great financial ability and in- 
 tegrity acquired much wealth. He was of Eng- 
 lish extraction, and was familiarly known as 
 Judge Renolds. 
 
 Brought up on the Illinois homestead, Henry 
 Ford Condict attended the district schools until 
 fifteen years old, when he was sent to the Wauke- 
 gan Academy, where he continued his studies 
 two years. In 1854 he entered the United States 
 Naval Academy, at Annapolis, Md., receiving his 
 appointment thereto from State Senator Wash- 
 burn, but at the end of three years had to leave 
 the institution on account of failing eyesight, and 
 from 1857 until 1859 remained at home. Com- 
 ing by way of the Isthmus of Panama to Cali- 
 fornia in 1859, Mr. Condict was engaged in min- 
 ing in Siskiyou county for more than a year, 
 being fairly successful in his venture. In the 
 spring of 1861 he returned east by the same route 
 that he came, going to New Hampshire, where 
 he had left his wife. Very soon after his arrival 
 he enlisted in Company A, First New Hampshire 
 Light Artillery, as a private, and was elected 
 lieutenant of his company. He was offered the 
 position of captain, but refused the office, not 
 feeling himself qualified for its responsibilities. 
 After the battle of Chancellorsville he resigned, 
 and subsequently went to his old home in Illinois, 
 where he enlisted in Company H, Eighth Illinois 
 Cavalry. During his two enlistments, Mr. Con- 
 dict participated in some of the more important 
 conflicts of the war, including the second engage- 
 ment at Bull Run, the battles of Antietam, Fred- 
 ericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and in 
 many lively skirmishes. Although several balls 
 pierced his clothing, and at the battle of Freder- 
 
 icksburg his horse was shot under him, he him- 
 self escaped without a wound, and served until 
 the close of the war. His regiment, which was - 
 stationed near Washington when Lincoln was 
 assassinated, was sent to Maryland in search of 
 Booth. Mr. Condict was subsequently detailed 
 as clerk to administer the oath of citizenship to 
 all willing to express their loyalty. After partici- 
 pating in the grand review at Washington, his 
 regiment was discharged. 
 
 Returning to McHenry county, III, Mr. Con- 
 dict assumed the management of the old home- 
 farm, which he conducted for seven years. De- 
 sirous of again trying Hfe in California, Mr. 
 Condict arrived in Bakersfield, then a small ham- 
 let, on October 23, 1872, coming from Tipton, a 
 distance of eighty miles, by stage. At once rent- 
 ing the old stage hotel, which was a small shack, 
 the first one built in the place, and which had 
 been used as a tavern only about three months, 
 he ran it for eighteen months, and then sold out. 
 The following two years he had no regular em- 
 plo3'ment, but in 1876 had charge of the ferry 
 across the Kern river, running it for the owner. 
 In 1877 he entered the employ of the proprietor 
 of a small soda works establishment,' and, having 
 obtained a good knowledge of the business, he 
 bought out his employer the following year, and 
 has since successfully conducted the works. In 
 April, 1899, his business having so increased that 
 more room and better facilities were needecl, he 
 erected his present plant, which he has equipped 
 with all the latest improvements, rendering it in 
 every respect an up-to-date manufactory. In 
 1878, Mr. Condict also embarked in the draying 
 business, and from that time until August, 1903, 
 when he sold out, he kept three teams busily em- 
 ployed. A man of great enterprise and capa- 
 bility, he has by his own industry, thrift and wise 
 management accumulated a goodly share of this 
 world's goods. On the corner of H and Seven- 
 teenth streets he has a very pleasant home, which, 
 with its environments, is most attractive to the 
 passer-by. 
 
 On January 4, 1859, Mr. Condict married 
 Nancy J. Young, who was born in Maine, but 
 was reared and educated in New Hampshire. 
 She is of good old Pilgrim stock, her immigrant 
 ancestor having come over on the Mayflower. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Condict have two children, namely : 
 Bertha B., wife of C. L. Hollis, of Fresno, and 
 Charlotte M., a graduate from St. Luke's Hospi- 
 tal Training School for Nurses, at San Francisco, 
 now at home. In national politics Mr. Condict 
 is a Republican, but in local affairs votes for 
 the best men and measures. He served as the 
 first assessor of Bakersfield, and was elected su- 
 pervisor, but was counted out, although he had 
 fourteen votes to spare. He was one of the pro- 
 moters, and the first superintendent, of the Bak- 
 
436 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ersfield water works. In 1873 Mr. Condict 
 joined both the Masons and the Odd Fellows, 
 and is also a prominent member of the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, which he served as 
 hnancier for twenty-three consecutive years, 
 when in July, 1903, he declined a re-election to 
 that office. He likewise belongs to Hulburt Post 
 No. 127, G. A. R., of Bakersfield, of which he 
 was the first commander. 
 
 WILLIAM TIPTON WHITE. Personal 
 qualities of a high order are responsible for the 
 business and social success of William Tipton 
 White, general manager of the property and store 
 of Miller & Lux at Los Banos. He speaks 
 Spanish and Italian fluently, and has evidenced in 
 all his walks of life a predilection for the cultured 
 and- progressive. Almost continuously since 
 1862 his family has been connected with the 
 firm which has done so much to promote stock 
 raising and merchandising in the state. Born 
 in Paris, Ky., May 27, 1868, he is the only child 
 of Wade and Mary (Fox) White, natives of 
 Kentucky, and the former a nephew of Wade 
 Hampton, that intrepid and capable politician 
 and Revolutionary general of Kentucky. Wade 
 White was of an adventurous turn of mind. He 
 crossed the plains to California in 1849, ^^id after 
 mining for a short time in Nevada and Cali- 
 fornia, he then engaged in the stock business in 
 the territories until 1862, when he became cattle 
 foreman for Miller & Lux, in the San Joaquin 
 valley. For nearly thirty years he continued in 
 the same capacity, his death occurring in San 
 Francisco in 1901. 
 
 William Tipton White came to California with 
 his mother in 1872, and was reared in Merced 
 county. His childhood was filled with respon- 
 sibility, for at the age of eleven he began to 
 clerk in the store of Miller & Lux, at Central 
 Point, continuing thus about four years. With 
 the exception of a start in the public schools 
 his education was the result of his own fore- 
 sight and energy. He attended school for two 
 years in Merced, and in San Jose for a couple 
 of years. By saving his money and economiz- 
 ing lie was also able to take a course at Heald's 
 Business College, from which he was duly grad- 
 uated in 1885. In 1887 he became a clerk for 
 M. Goldman, at Merced, and was afterward 
 clerk at the El Capitan hotel in the sapie town. 
 In the spring of 1890 he returned to the employ 
 of Miller & Lux, as clerk in their store in Los 
 Banos, resigning shortly afterward to engage in 
 business on his own responsibility in partnership 
 with A. W. Drummond and J. E. Place. As 
 manager, he succeeded for three and a half years, 
 then disposed of his interest and became manager 
 of the Los Banos store of Miller & Lux. On 
 
 account of asthma and generally poor health he 
 resigned in the fall of 1895, and engaged in a 
 general merchandising business in Coulterville, 
 two years later managing a hotel in Jamestown 
 for a couple of years. He acted as manager of 
 the dry-goods and furnishing goods departments 
 for Kutner & Rosenthal, at Madera, for over one 
 year, afterward going to Old Mexico with Hamp- 
 son & Smith as camp foreman in the construction 
 of the Mexican Central Railroad. This position 
 caused him to visit many parts of Mexico, and 
 resulted in his complete familiarity with the 
 Spanish language. The sojourn in the south 
 further restored his lost health, and upon his 
 return to Los Banos, February 21, 1901, he was 
 appointed manager of the Los Banos store of 
 Miller & Lux, one of the largest establishments 
 in the San Joaquin valley. He has charge of the 
 store, buildings and general belongings of the 
 firm, and has fulfilled his responsibility in a man- 
 ner pleasing both to his superiors and to the city 
 which long ago arrived at a realization of his 
 worth as a man and citizen. 
 
 In Merced Mr. White married Sadie M. Cro- 
 well, a native of Stockton, and a daughter of an 
 early settler of the state. Two children comprise 
 the White household, Lester E. and Ethel M. 
 For several years Mr. White has been prominent 
 in Democratic politics, and was formerly a mem- 
 ber of the county central committee. He is well 
 known fraternally, being identified with Moun- 
 tain Brow Lodge No. 82, I. O. O. F., of which 
 lodge he is serving his second term as noble 
 grand ; also the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men; Woodmen of the World and Knights of 
 Pythias, of Madera. 
 
 JOHN OUTHET. Ever since the memorable 
 year of 1852 the career of John Outhet has run 
 parallel with the growth of California, for when 
 he arrived after the usual horse-train jaunt of 
 many months, in company with Wolcott Vedder, 
 of Chicago, his condition, both physical and finan- 
 cial, permitted of as much improvement as did 
 the enormously resourceful but undeveloped state 
 in which he was about to take up his abode. He 
 was poor, as were the majority of the courageous 
 men who sought to improve the prospects of 
 themselves and families at terrible risks, yet he 
 had grit and determination, and the moral cour- 
 age of a New England ancestry. Born in Os- 
 wego, N. Y., he was educated in the public schools 
 of the then small town of Chicago, to which his 
 parents removed when he was a boy, and he after- 
 ward labored by the day at such occupations as 
 were presented to the settlers who comprised the 
 lake community. Saving his money and living 
 frugally, he joined an emigrant train in the spring 
 of 1852, at times numbering one hundred and 
 
W^ /5^i^^ts^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 430 
 
 twenty-five souls, well equipped, and after one 
 hundred and twenty-five days en route, arrived 
 at Sacramento without any momentous incidents 
 happening on the way, having had no trouble with 
 Indians or outlaws. The horses which he had 
 driven across the plains were turned to still fur- 
 ther account after bringing their master thus far, 
 for he engaged in freighting between Placerville 
 and the surrounding camps, among which was 
 Diamond Spring. 
 
 Freighting seems to have afforded Mr. Outhet 
 a satisfactory livelihood, for he continued there- 
 at until 1869, after which he came to the San 
 Joaquin valley and- engaged in farming by the 
 month until 1871. Having satisfied himself that 
 the soil and climate were to his liking, he in- 
 vested his earnings in ofle hundred and sixty 
 acres, to which nucleus of his present farm he 
 added on several occasions, and now owns a 
 whole section in one of the most fertile parts of 
 Stanislaus county. For years he was one of the 
 most industrious men in his neighborhood, set- 
 ting a rare example of industry and progress, 
 and accumulating quite a fortune from his un- 
 failing harvests of wheat and barley. Latterly 
 he has rented his land and is taking life easy, 
 retaining one hundred and sixty acres upon which 
 to live, and attend to his garden and general 
 wants. He is corhparatively alone in the world, 
 having never married, yet finds much enjoyment 
 in life, especially in the companionship of his 
 many friends. Politically Mr. Outhet is a Re- 
 publican, and fraternally he is identified with the 
 Grange. 
 
 MARK BASSETT. Three miles north of 
 Hanford, Kings county, is located the ranch of 
 Mark Bassett, a steady, enterprising farmer, and 
 one who has in many ways added to the agricul- 
 tural prestige of the community. He was born 
 in Cornwall, England, August i, 1848, and was 
 reared to manhood upon a farm, where he re- 
 mained until he was thirty years old. In search 
 of a land where opportunities were greater than 
 in the mother country he crossed the ocean, and 
 locating in Ontario, Canada, engaged in farming 
 rented land until 1891. In the last-named year 
 he came to Fresno county, Cal., and was en- 
 gaged for about a year in general work, after 
 which he leased land and worked on contract for 
 the next twelve months. He then rented a vine- 
 yard of about one hundred acres, where he re- 
 mained until December, 1894. Following this he 
 rented various tracts until 1898, when he pur- 
 chased his present ranch, which consists of one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land, about half of 
 which is devoted to the cultivation of fruit, and 
 the balance to alfalfa. He has since given his 
 attention entirely to the improvement and culti- 
 
 vation of his ranch, and has met with success in 
 his undertaking. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Bassett occurred in 1872, 
 and united him with Helena Lander, also a na- 
 tive of Cornwall, and their union has been blessed 
 by the birth of eleven children, namely: Ellen, 
 the wife of Jonas Malott; Mabel; WilHam 
 George, a rancher at Armona; Mark, Jr., work- 
 ing with his father; Thomas John, a rancher in 
 Kings county; Bertha Arllne; Edith Annie; Al- 
 bert Ernest Cecil; Richard Guy; Archibald Les- 
 lie; and Harold, who died at the age of nine 
 years. Undesirous of official recognition, Mr. 
 Bassett has never taken an active part in politics, 
 though he endorses the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Republican party. Both him- 
 self and his wife are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, in which he officiates as 
 steward. 
 
 SAMUEL WELLINGTON HOWARD. 
 The name of Samuel Wellington Howard is 
 synonymous with the best to be found in country 
 life, with its utility, its charm, its promise, and 
 its bearing upon the progress of the world. Or- 
 der, system, unflagging zeal and adaptiveness to 
 innovations, the great handmaidens which aid the 
 tiller of the soil, are his by natural right, and he 
 thus has become an influence of worth as a large 
 land owner and grain producer of Stanislaus 
 county. Born on a farm near Racine, Wis., Mr. 
 Howard is the third oldest of two sons and two 
 daughters, and he had the benefit of the com- 
 mon schools of both Wisconsin and Illinois, re- 
 moving to the latter state with his uncle, , Henry 
 Kittinger, when eleven years of age. His par- 
 ents, Enos and Margaret (Kittinger) Howard, 
 were natives of New York and Pennsylvania re- 
 spectively, and removed as young people to Wis- 
 consin, where they took up government land and 
 proceeded to make a home in the midst of com- 
 parative isolation. The father died on his farm 
 near Racine, and the mother lived to see the 
 glories of the west, living for some time in Red- 
 wood City, Cal., where her death occurred at an 
 advanced age. 
 
 In McHenry county. 111., where he lived with 
 his relative until 1867, Samuel Wellington was 
 reared on a farm, and at one time gained some 
 business experience in Green Bay, Wis. In the 
 spring of 1870 he came west to Portland, Ore., 
 and after remaining for two years went to Salt 
 Lake City, from there traveling to California a 
 few months later. Working by the month on a 
 farm in the western part of Stanislaus county, he 
 afterward leased land of about four hundred and 
 eighty acres, to which he added as his gram 
 business increased and he came to better un- 
 derstand the immense fertility of the soil. It was 
 
 25 
 
440 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a happy day when he was able to become a land 
 owner in his own right, and at the present time 
 he is the possessor of eight hundred acres near 
 Westley, devoted to wheat and barley, besides 
 managing a tract of twenty-two hundred and 
 forty acres, also under grain. From the first his 
 spirit of progression has seen ever-widening vis- 
 tas, and the future will doubtless witness his 
 greater identification with a branch of industry 
 that finds so safe a home in this county. He is 
 one of the great grain farmers of the vicinity 
 of Westley, his land reaching to within a mile of 
 the town, he therefore having the advantages of 
 both town and country. 
 
 Mr. Howard's appreciation of the advantages 
 of life is nowhere more apparent than in his 
 home, which is the acme of comfort and refine- 
 ment, and where all that is useful and enlighten- 
 ing is fostered and encouraged. He married 
 Jennie Powell after gaining his start in Stanis- 
 laus county, his wife being a native of Ohio, and 
 the mother of four children. Of these, Clar- 
 ence, the oldest, is agent of the Southern Pacific 
 Railroad Company, at Montpellier, Cal. ; Evelyn 
 is the wife of Frank F. Raines, night operator of 
 the Southern Railroad Company at Westley ; 
 Angle is gifted with musical talent, and is at- 
 tending the Kings Conservatory of Music ; and 
 Hazel is at home. Mr. Howard's political sym- 
 pathies are with the Republican party, which he 
 has served as a delegate to state and county con- 
 ventions. He is the friend of education, of or- 
 ganization, of recreations and of those aids to a 
 happy and contented life which lift the farmer 
 of to-day above his toil-hardened and shut-in 
 predecessor. 
 
 AUGUSTUS FIFIELD JEWETT. The 
 value of a well-defined purpose steadily pursued, 
 of philosophy in viewing the obstacles and dis- 
 couragements in life, and of a broad and toler- 
 ant attitude toward the world and people in gen- 
 eral, find expression in the career of Augustus 
 F. Jewett, one of the conscientious and pains- 
 taking fruit-growers of the vicinity of Hanford, 
 Kings county. Mr. Jewett has struggled to his 
 present position with rare courage, worthy of 
 the stern and strong New England ancestry 
 from which he springs and of the training re- 
 ceived in a refined and industry-compelling 
 home. He was born in Hillsboro county, N. 
 H., June 15, 1856, and represents a family estab- 
 lished in America about two hundred years ago 
 by a forefather who felt the limitations of his 
 ancestral home in picturesque Wales. His par- 
 ents were Fifield Holt and Melissa L. (Richard- 
 son) Jewett, natives of Maine and New Hamp- 
 shire respectively. 
 
 Fifield H. Jewett was a pioneer of 1852 who 
 
 brought to the Pacific coast the sturdy traits 
 which succeed independent of book education. 
 The Maine farm offered scant opportunity for 
 attending school, but it developed hard muscles 
 and a good appetite, and consequent strength 
 for controlling the circumstances in which he 
 was placed. His dissatisfaction with the east 
 was not surprising when one considers his active 
 mind and commendable adaptiveness, and prob- 
 ably no youth departed for the sun-blessed Pa- 
 cific shores with more radiant hope in his heart 
 than this New England farm boy. Arriving 
 in San Francisco after a voyage by water to and 
 from Panama, he worked with fair success in 
 the mines at Georgetown on the American river. 
 In 1858 he took up government land in Placer 
 county, in the Sacramento valley, and followed 
 ranching in partnership with Thomas Jenkin- 
 son, about four years. He next returned east 
 for his family and brought them to the home 
 he had prepared, and farmed until 1880. Dis- 
 posing of this property in 1 881, he came to what 
 is now Kings county and bought a farm, he 
 also loaned money and dealt in country proper- 
 ties almost up to the time of his death at the 
 advanced age of eighty-five years. His hfe was 
 dignified by meritorious service for the Union 
 during the Civil war, when he attained to the 
 rank of first lieutenant in the Lincoln Home 
 Guards of the State Militia. He was particu- 
 larly averse to holding political office, but never- 
 theless served on the school board for several 
 years, advancing the cause of education to the 
 extent of his power, having often felt the loss 
 in that direction sustained in his own youth. 
 His wife, whom he brought to California in 
 1863, materially aided his success with her econ- 
 omy and constant encouragement. Her death 
 occurred at the age of sixty-five, and she left 
 two children older than Augustus F., of whom 
 Lucretia is deceased, and Abbie A. is the wife 
 of Thomas Jenkinson, of Kings county. 
 
 As a boy Augustus Fifield Jewett dreamed 
 of a career of legal prominence, and mapped 
 out his life in accordance with this desire. After 
 graduating from the high school of Sacramento, 
 he returned to the farm, and remained there 
 until twenty-four years of age, when he entered 
 the Hastings Law School, but was soon obliged 
 to leave, owing to the state of his health. Never 
 strong, he practically lost several vears of use- 
 fulness out of his life, being unable to perform 
 any kind of work requiring physical exertion. 
 Discouragement followed in the wake of months 
 of suffering and inertia, and when he arrived 
 m Hanford in 1886 to visit a sister, his spirits 
 were not only at low ebb, but his financial re- 
 sources were nearly exhausted. A couple of 
 months served to restore partial strength and 
 vigor, and with it came a desire to be of prac- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 4:4:1 
 
 tical use in the world, and to make up for his 
 enforced years of idleness. Becoming interested 
 in the handling of raisins, he rented a small 
 vineyard, and both grew and purchased grapes, 
 going in debt for all required to prosecute his 
 business, trusting to a future good fortune to 
 aid him in his ambition. He had established 
 credit in desirable directions, and in time was 
 not only able to meet his indebtedness, but be- 
 gan the purchase of land in his own right. In 
 1889 he packed the first full carload of raisins 
 ever shipped out of Tulare county, for Charles 
 King, and has been in the raisin growing busi- 
 ness for himself ever since. He owns a ranch 
 of thirty-six acres half a mile from the city 
 limits of Hanford, of which twenty-two acres 
 are under vines and trees, and the balance in 
 pasture. This property is worth about $300 an 
 acre. He also rents other land, and is increas- 
 ing his business every year. 
 
 For some years Mr. Jewett has taken an 
 active interest in Republican politics, and dur- 
 ing 1894 stumped the northern counties in the 
 state in the interests of protection. In Merced 
 county alone he made thirteen speeches. He 
 served as sergeant-at-arms in the California 
 Assembly in 1880, and has held many positions of 
 trust and responsibility. Among his warm per- 
 sonal friends is Senator Perkins, in whose inter- 
 ests he has been unusually zealous. His genial 
 and interesting personality has drawn toward 
 him many other valued friends, and he enjoys 
 a high degree of popularity in political, busi- 
 ness and social circles. Fraternally he is identi- 
 fied with the Woodmen of the World. While 
 acting as trustee of Armona school district he 
 did efficient work in the erection of the public 
 school at Armona. In 1902 he married Edith 
 Shriver, a native of Mariposa county, Cal., and 
 they are parents of one son, Augustus Fair- 
 fax. Mrs. Jewett is a daughter of Augustus F. 
 Shriver, a native of Prussia, who came to Amer- 
 ica with his father when eight years old, escap- 
 ing from a grave political disturbance in Ger- 
 many. His icarly years were spent in the state 
 of Ohio, where he learned the machinist trade, 
 and whence he came to California at the age 
 of nineteen. He was fairly successful in the 
 mines, and about 1859 started a machine-shop 
 and foundry and planing mill at Mariposa, Cal. 
 This he operated successfully for several years, 
 and then removed to Merced, of which he was 
 a pioneer settler and to the upbuilding of which 
 he devoted many years of his life. He had 
 the first plastered house and orange trees in the 
 town, and plied his trade with increasing suc- 
 cess. The last years of his life, which were 
 devoted to contracting, he spent in Stockton, 
 Cal., where he died at about fifty-nine years of 
 age. He was a pioneer of both Merced and 
 
 Mariposa counties, and as such impressed his 
 worth upon many years of their development. 
 In early manhood he married Ellen Gish, a 
 native of South Bend, Ind., and who, after his 
 death, married W. E. Elliott, with whom she 
 is now living in Humboldt county, this state. 
 Mrs. Jewett was six years old when she came 
 to Merced county, and she was a child when 
 her father died. Her education was acquired 
 in the public schools, and her training was such 
 as to develop a loving and home-giving disposi- 
 tion. Mr and Mrs. Jewett are refined, hospi- 
 table and gracious people, and in their c[uiet and 
 harmonious life furnish a lesson in home mak- 
 ing, forbearance and kindness. 
 
 COURT L. NEWPORT. The enterprise 
 which is a distinguishing feature of the Newport 
 family is reflected in the career of Court L. New- 
 port, a younger brother of William j. Newport 
 and J. B. Newport, mention of whose lives and 
 ancestry may be found elsewhere in this work. 
 The successful horticulturist located six miles 
 northwest of Hanford, and owning eighty acres 
 of rich, productive land, derives considerable sat- 
 isfaction from the care of his forty-acre orchard 
 and twenty-acre vineyard, and makes a practical 
 study of the best way to achieve the best results. 
 He was born in Lebanon, Warren county, Ohio, 
 March 11, 1858, and through his veins flows the 
 blood of old New England ancestry. As a lad 
 he saw his brother depart for the scene of action 
 during the Civil war, and temporarily his educa- 
 tion was suspended owing to the unsettled con- 
 dition of the country. He was trained to be a 
 model farmer, and to live frugally and with due 
 regard for the future, so that at the age of twen- 
 ty-six he was the possessor of enough means to 
 enable him to change his sphere of life. 
 
 His brother, William' J., having come to Cah- 
 fornia in 1873, Mr. Newport followed his ex- 
 ample in 1884, arriving in Kings county in due 
 time and .finding employment on the ranch of this 
 brother. Four years later he felt justified in es- 
 tabHshing a home of his own, and married, No- 
 vember 15, 1888, Ada L. Railsback, daughter of 
 Caleb Railsback, a prominent pioneer of Kings 
 county. Mrs. Newport is a native of California, 
 and received a practical education in the public 
 schools of the state. She is the mother of two 
 children, Alfred Leroy and Rav Corwin. At the 
 time of her marriage Mrs. Newport owned a 
 small ranch, to which her husband has since add- 
 ed, making in all eighty acres. The barren land 
 was not permitted to long retain its crude and 
 useless nature, but was developed and now is 
 covered with fruit-bearing trees and vines, and 
 is one of the neatest and most thrifty little 
 ranches in Kings county. The enterprising own- 
 
44:2 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 er has spared no expense in making it a pleas- 
 ant liome for his wife and children, and on every 
 side are seen evidences of the care and refine- 
 ment v.'hich is encouraged and insisted on in the 
 household. Some alfalfa is grown on the land 
 not under fruit, and the whole yields a comfort- 
 able living, and furnishes a wealth of congenial 
 occupation. Mr. Newport is highly respected by 
 his neighbors, and is one of the intelligent and 
 influential members of his community. Though 
 a Republican on national issues, he takes a broad 
 view of local public affairs and supports the men 
 and measures which in his mind are intended to 
 prove of the greatest benefit to the community. 
 Fraternally he is a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World. He was one of the original stock- 
 holders in the Farmers' & Merchants' Bank of 
 Hanford, and has been interested in the develop- 
 ment of the oil fields of Kern and FresnO' coun- 
 ties, though he has recently disposed of his in- 
 terests in the latter county, where he held stock 
 in the Esperanza Company. 
 
 SAMUEL MILES GILLIAM. One mile east 
 of the city limits of Visalia, on the Cutler bridge 
 road, lies the Dillon homestead, which for years 
 has been the home of Mr. Gilliam. Notwith- 
 standing the fact that he cannot boast of robust 
 body and, indeed, since the death of his 
 wife has been an invalid, he maintains a close 
 supervision of the place, directing the work of 
 farming and dairying. On the one hundred and 
 sixty acres may be found all the improvements 
 of a first-class dairy farm. Of full-blooded and 
 high-grade Holstein cattle he has about eighty 
 head. The land is largely used for pasturage and 
 seventy acres are under alfalfa, while such other 
 crops as are raised aid in providing feed for the 
 fine herd of milch cows. Water for irrigation 
 is obtained from a branch of the Watson ditch. 
 
 The Gilliam family was established in Cali- 
 fornia in 1849, when Jesse Gilliam, a Virginian 
 by birth and a pioneer of Clay county. Mo., 
 crossed the plains with his father and prospected 
 in the gold mines. Favored by fate, he accumu- 
 lated considerable gold in one year and with 
 the fruits of his toil he went back to the Missouri 
 homestead in 1850. One of his brothers. Gen. 
 Niell Gilliam, a soldier of the Black Hawk war. 
 crossed the trackless desert to Oregon as early 
 as 1844 and perished in the Cayuse war in that 
 country. Their father was a brave soldier of 
 the Revolution and belonged to a pioneer family 
 of Virginia. In the family of Jesse Gilliam was 
 a son, Samuel Thompson Gilliam, who was born 
 in Clay county. Mo., in 1828, and accompanied 
 his father to California at the time of the dis- 
 covery of gold, making the long journey hither 
 with ox-teams. After a year of fair success in 
 
 the mines in 1850 he went to Oregon and settled 
 on government land in Polk county near Dallas, 
 where he married and began housekeeping. In 
 1858 he disposed of that property and moved 
 to California, settling near Mountainview, Santa 
 Clara county, and engaging in the stock business. 
 From there in i860 he went to Tulare county 
 and established his home near Farmersville, but 
 in 1867 removed to a tract of one hundred and 
 sixty acres near Portersville, where he engaged 
 in general farming and stock-raising until his 
 retirement from agricultural labors. Though 
 still occupying the homestead, he rents the land 
 to tenants. While still a young man he was 
 ordained to the ministry of the Cumberland Pres- 
 byterian denomination in Oregon and for 3'ears 
 he gave much time to the building up of churches, 
 the planting of new congregations and other 
 pioneer religious work. More recently he has 
 had no special charge, but his interest in the 
 preaching of the Gospel remains unabated. For 
 years he has been popular as an officiating clerg}- 
 man at weddings and few preachers in the west 
 have united in wedlock more couples than his 
 list shows. His activities are further broadened 
 by a keen interest in the Masonic fraternity. 
 
 The marriage of Rev. Samuel Thompson Gil- 
 liam united him with Elizabeth Lewis, a native 
 of Tennessee, but after 1852 a resident of Ore- 
 gon, where her father built the first grist mill 
 in Dallas and brought the first mill race into the 
 town. Eight children were born of the union 
 of Samuel T. Gilliam and Elizabeth Lewis. All 
 but two of these are still living, Samuel Miles 
 being the eldest of the six. He was born near 
 Dallas, Polk county. Ore., February 26, 1854, 
 and at four years of age accompanied the family 
 to California. In boyhood he attended school 
 at Deep Creek, where he had A. P. French as 
 a teacher. It is significant of the frontier con- 
 ditions of the day when the fact is mentioned 
 that this school and one at Visalia were the only 
 schools in the entire county. During 1872 and 
 1873 he taught school, thus earning the means 
 necessary to work his way through Heald's 
 Business College, from which institution he was 
 graduated in 1874. From that time until 1885 
 he was a resident of Portersville, where he car- 
 ried on a small general store, also acted as Wells- 
 Fargo agent and as postmaster. While living 
 m that town he served as school director and for 
 one term, 1882-84, was supervisor of district 
 No. I. After selling his store he was deputy 
 county assessor under Seth Smith for two years 
 and under sheriff to George A. Parker for one 
 term, after which, beginning in 1892, he served 
 as supervisor of district No. 3 for four years. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Gilliam was solemnized 
 m Visalia in 1885 and united him with Miss 
 Mary J. Dillon, who was born and reared in 
 
/^ ^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 U5 
 
 this city, and died here in 1886. In her death 
 the city lost one of its most estimable women, 
 one whose refinement and kindly disposition en- 
 deared her to all. During her illness of fifty- 
 two days Mr. Gilliam took the entire care of her ; 
 night and day he, was by her side, giving every 
 dose of medicine and striving to alleviate the 
 pain of illness by the most vigilant care. When 
 she died he collapsed and suffered a long illness 
 which left him an invalid. Mrs. Gilliam was a 
 daughter of a Kentuckian, Ewell Dillon, a pio- 
 neer of 1852 in Visalia, where he erected one 
 of the first buildings in the future city and home- 
 steaded the ' tract now occupied by his son-in- 
 law. Fraternally Mr. Gilliam is a past officer 
 in the Knights of Pythias and for several terms 
 acted as representative to the Grand Lodge from 
 Portersville. As past master workman he is 
 connected with the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen, and has represented the Portersville 
 lodge in the Grand Lodge of the state. The 
 Democratic party receives his stanch allegiance, 
 and he has aided its local councils through effi- 
 cient service as chairman of the county central 
 committee, a member of the central committee, 
 and a delegate to the state conventions of the 
 party. 
 
 MOSES H. BIXBY. The ancestry of Moses 
 H. Bixby, a well known and progressive vine- 
 yardist of Fresno county, may be traced to the 
 early settlers of New England, and among his 
 personal attributes may be noticed character- 
 istics typical of men mighty in the formation 
 of our government. His paternal grandfather, 
 Albert Bixby, came from England to the United 
 States and settled in Vermont, in the course of 
 time participating in the Revolutionary war. In 
 his family was a son Albert, born in the state 
 of Vermont, in which state he grew to manhood 
 and married Eliza Dearborn, a native of Massa- 
 chusetts. She came of a distinguished family 
 of New England, her father, a sea-faring man 
 and the captain of a vessel, being the nephew 
 of Major General Daniel Dearborn, of Revolu- 
 tionary fame. When ninety-seven years old this 
 gallant patriot made the opening speech at the 
 dedication of Bunker Hill monument; his name 
 was also perpetuated by being given to the fort 
 which occupied a spot of land now in the heart 
 of the city of Chicago, 111. The younger Albert 
 Bixby was a millwright and carpenter, and died 
 at the age of forty years. 
 
 Born in Windsor county, Vt., March 5, 1848, 
 Moses H. Bixby was reared and educated in 
 the Green Mountain state. When twenty years 
 of age he came as far west as Illinois, locating 
 in Bureau county, where, for three years, he fol- 
 lowed agricultural pursuits. For t\^o years fol- 
 
 lowing he was likewise engaged in Taylor coun- 
 ty, Iowa. In 1873 he came to California, locat- 
 ing first in Alpine county, where he iremained 
 for a period of five years, engaging during this 
 time in logging, carrying lumber to Gold Hill 
 and Virginia City. Removing to Fresno county 
 in 1878, he purchased twenty acres of land — 
 that upon which his home now stands — and 
 through perseverance and continued industry has 
 acquired a competence and has built up for 
 himself an enviable reputation as a vineyard- 
 ist of Fresno county. He is now the owner of 
 eighty acres, at the corner of Clay and Elm ave- 
 nues, about six and one-half miles south of Fres- 
 no, thirty-four acres being set to vines, thirty- 
 eight to various fruits, while he also raises 
 some alfalfa. In the year 1903 his ranch pro- 
 duced forty-four and a half tons of raisins. As 
 an enterprising and progressive rancher, Mr. 
 Bixby occupies a position 6f prominence in the 
 beautiful and productive county wherein he has 
 resided for so many years. 
 
 In Illinois, P'ebruary 9, 1871, Mr. Bixby was 
 united in marriage with Rachel Fulton, a native 
 of Pennsylvania, and four children were born 
 to them, namely : Blanche R. ; John H. ; Guy C. ; 
 and Kenneth, deceased in infancy. Politically 
 Mr. Bixby is a Republican in national politics, 
 his first presidential ballot having been cast for 
 General Grant, but he reserves the right to vote 
 for the man best equipped for public office in 
 local affairs. He is a consistent member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 DANIEL RHOADS. In Daniel Rhoads Cali- 
 fornia found not only one of its earliest but one of 
 its bravest and most useful pioneers. Told with 
 the skill of a Cooper, his life story would adorn 
 the. pages of fiction for all time, representing as 
 it does the extremes of deprivation, suffering and 
 success, possible in a country and at a time 
 which has had no counterpart in the world's his- 
 tory. This plainsman of 1846 was born on his 
 father's farm four miles south of Paris, Edgar 
 county, 111., December 7, 1821, and comes of 
 English ancestry. His paternal grandfather en- 
 listed for service in the Revolutionary war, even- 
 tually being advanced to be bodyguard of Wash- 
 ington. His son, Thomas, father of Daniel, was 
 born in Kentucky, removed as a young man to 
 Mississippi, thence to Illinois, and thence to Mis- 
 souri, his last home before crossing the plains. 
 Thomas Rhoads married Elizabeth Forster, who 
 was born near Pittsburg, Pa., a daughter of 
 Thomas Forster, of Irish and German descent. 
 Of the sixteen children, ten sons and six daugh- 
 ters born to them, fourteen attained maturity. 
 
 Of this large family, Daniel Rhoads remained 
 at home with his father as long as he needed 
 
446 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 him, accompanying the family to Ray county, 
 Mo., in 1835, and remaining there until his mar- 
 riage, October 4, 1843, to Amanda Esrey, a 
 native of Clark county, III, and daughter of 
 Jesse Esrey. He then established a home for 
 himself on eighty acres of land allotted to him 
 by his father near his own farm, and thus started 
 in life under circumstances more encouraging 
 than had characterized his younger years. His 
 education had been necessarily limited, and his 
 schooling confined to a few months each winter 
 in the schools of Illinois and Missouri, but he 
 was strong bodily and progressive and ambitious. 
 Upon reaching manhood he became interested in 
 an account of John C. Fremont's first trip to Cal- 
 ifornia, and he therefore set about making plans 
 to follow the example of this earlier pioneer. In- 
 teresting his family and friends in his proposed 
 departure, he outfitted with two yoke of oxen, 
 a wagon, rifle, ammunition and provisions, mak- 
 ing the start from home as soon as the snow was 
 off the ground in the spring of 184.6. On this 
 journey he was accompanied by his wife, his 
 father and family, his uncle and family and a 
 brother-in-law and family, and during a portion 
 of the time they traveled with other emigrants, 
 boimd for the same elusive goal. Crossing the 
 Missouri river April 7, 1846, at St. Joseph, Mo., 
 they entered California by the Donner lake route, 
 passing through Emigrant Gap October 4 of the 
 • same year. They were fortunate in escaping any 
 hostile encounter with the Indians, but when 
 near Grand Island, on the Big Platte river, a 
 band of Pawnee Indians managed to stampede 
 all but three of their train of horses, not inter- 
 fering, however, with their cattle, which they 
 managed to bring through almost intact. 
 
 After crossing the Sierra Nevadas Mr. Rhoads' 
 party stopped for a month on Bear river, in the 
 Sacramento valley^ to rest from the arduous 
 journey across the plains, and while there made 
 stakes from oak timber, receiving in payment a 
 beef which kept them in meat for some time. 
 For a time Mr. Rhoads worked for Messrs. 
 Grimes and Sinclair near Sutter's Fort, over- 
 seeing the Indians, and receiving about $25 a 
 month for his services. When General Fremont 
 started upon his campaign against the Mexicans, 
 all of the men in the party accompanied him but 
 Mr. Rhoads, who was left in charge of the fort. 
 They were a desolate little band at best, main- 
 taining themselves on a scarcity of provisions, 
 and trying to keep up their courage as best they 
 could. Complications ensued in January, 1847, 
 when an Indian runner brought to Sutter's Fort, 
 by letter to Captain Sutter, the news of the suf- 
 fering of the now celebrated Donner party, and 
 their imminent danger of starvation. The story 
 of this brave but unfortunate band of men, wom- 
 en and children, who left Springfield, 111., and 
 
 were overtaken by snow in the Sierra Nevadas 
 just as they were entering the promised land, is 
 too familiar to require recapitulation. Having 
 little at his immediate command, Mr. Rhoads 
 and Mr. Sinclair started at once afoot for John- 
 son's ranch, fifty miles distant, the boggy condi- 
 tion of the roads, owing to the recent rains, mak- 
 ing it impossible to travel by horse. Arriving at 
 the ranch, four days were spent by the men, 
 women, children and friendly Indians in drying 
 beef over fires, barbeque fashion, and in crack- 
 ing wheat and running it through sieves, the 
 only means of milling in those primitive times. 
 With these supplies, Mr. Rhoads, his brother, 
 John P., and twelve other men and pack ani- 
 mals, laboriously made their way over trackless, 
 rocky ridges and canyons, and across swollen 
 streams to the snow-line on the Piny Ridge, just 
 beyond Steep Hollow. Here the pack-train was 
 left in charge of a boy and man, and the re- 
 lief supplies were packed the remaining distance 
 of eighty miles on the backs of men on snow- 
 shoes. Three days' travel brought them to Bear 
 Valley, at the head of the Bear riv6r. February 
 5 the party started for Donner lake, each man 
 carrying seventy-five pounds, including a blank- 
 et, hatchet, tin cup to make soup of dried beef, 
 cracked wheat and enough rawhide cut in strips 
 to repair the meshes of their snow-shoes. To 
 carry this weight, and travel on snow-shoes over 
 trackless mountains, required no little courage 
 and perseverance, and at Bear Valley half of 
 the party gave out and declared they could go 
 no farther. Seven, however, determined to pro- 
 ceed to their goal even at the risk of their lives. 
 One of the seven who turned back, upon reaching 
 Sutter's Fort informed Mrs. Rhoads that she 
 would never see her husband alive. 
 
 With rare far-sightedness the rescue party pro- 
 vided for their return by tying to the limbs of 
 pine trees small packages of beef and wheat in 
 bits of canvas. As they advanced toward the 
 summit of the mountain, the fall of_ snow was 
 heavy and in depth from twelve to twenty feet. 
 In the face of this appalling danger, the packs 
 of the seven who' ventured to advance were re- 
 plenished from the packs of the seven who had 
 returned to the pack-train, and for two weeks 
 more these seven toiled on toward the snow-cov- 
 ered huts of the starving and despairing emi- 
 grants. At least twelve days were consumed in 
 reaching the summit, some slight advance being 
 made each day, and when within two days' from 
 the summit they reached the head of Donner 
 lake, and the camps came in sight February 18, 
 1847. The lake was covered with thick ice and 
 snow, and they made their way directly down its 
 entire length to the head of one branch of the 
 Truckee river, still continuing to endure the tor- 
 tures of cold and insufiiicient ■ nourishment. Dur- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 4i7 
 
 ing the nights, many of which were sleepless, 
 the problem of building fires on the snow offered 
 great difficulties, and was solved by cutting down 
 small green pines, jnaking platforms of them on 
 the snow, and building the fires of dry limbs 
 upon them. Otherwise the fires would have sunk 
 into the snow to a depth of twenty feet or more. 
 They slept while seated around the fires^ leaning 
 against each other, and wrapped in their blank- 
 ets. As a guide for themselves and others they 
 set fire to the tops>of dead trees. On approach- 
 ing the huts of the emigrants the surroundings 
 were so terribly desolate and lifeless that noth- 
 ing was left but to conclude that all had per- 
 ished. At last a faint line of smoke was seen 
 coming out of the snow about sixty yards dis- 
 tant, and in answer to their loud greeting a wom- 
 an's head arose above the snow from a chute con- 
 nected 'with a hut twenty feet below. A second 
 woman, ghost-like in her emaciation, soon fol- 
 lowed, and seeing the men approaching ex- 
 claimed: "O, are you men from California or 
 from heaven?" In this hut they found not only 
 Mr. Keseberg, who was too feeble tO' rise, but 
 several others, and at the meeting not a dry eye 
 was apparent. Thirty of their number had al- 
 ready joined the great majority in the camps or 
 in their effort to reach the summit of the moun- 
 tain, and the only articles of food left were a few 
 pieces of rawhide, and bones which had been 
 boiled for soup 'again and again. 
 
 The situation was relieved at once, two days 
 being spent in distributing the provisions, after 
 which the greater number of the survivors ac- 
 companied the seven guides on the return trip, 
 making a party of twenty-one in all. During the 
 first five days out three of the rescued ones died, 
 one an infant, carried for a time in the arms of 
 John Rhoads, the second a young Englishman 
 named Denton, and the third, one of the Don- 
 ner boys who ate too much dried beef. Just be- 
 fore reaching their pack animals they met an- 
 other relief train on the way to Donner camp, 
 in charge of James F. Reed and William Mc- 
 Cutcheon, and which had been sent from Yerba 
 Buena by command of Commodore Stockton. 
 Upon leaving with their pack-train the Rhoads 
 party had but a day's provisions, excepting to 
 profit by the food they had tied to the branches 
 of the trees on the outward journey. Imagine 
 their dismay at finding that wolves had devoured 
 their precious pittances, and they were practi- 
 cally without food of any kind. The last three 
 days they subsisted on rawhide strips of their 
 snow-shoes roasted to a crisp. Thus was en- 
 acted one of the strangest and most thrilling ex- 
 periences which met the early pioneer of the lat- 
 ter '40s. All connected with the unfortunate 
 Donner party must needs be held in grateful 
 memory, for it was through the sufferings of 
 
 such that the civilization of the west was inaugu- 
 rated.. 
 
 In June, 1847, Mr. Rhoads moved to the Con- 
 sumne river, and the following October to So- 
 noma county. During 1848 he returned to the 
 Sacramento valley and settled on the Briggs & 
 Burris ranch, a mile below where Gait has since 
 been built, and was employed by Captain Sut- 
 ter, at Sutter's mill, when gold was discovered 
 there. Two years he mined during the sum- 
 mertime on the American river, taking out about 
 $8,000 in gold dust, and in 1850, accompanied by 
 his wife, he returned to Missouri by way of the 
 Isthmus of Panama. After a brief visit with rel- 
 atives and friends he returned to the Sacramento 
 valley, and in April, 1851, removed to the neigh- 
 borhood of what is now Gilroy, Santa Qara comi- 
 ty. Purchasing a thousand-acre stock ranch, he 
 lived on it for several years, but finally removed 
 his family to San Jose, while he drove his stock 
 across the coast range to the lower Kings river 
 in 1857. In i860 he removed his family to the 
 home he had built for them two and a half miles 
 northwest of Lemoore, where he continued to 
 live until taking up his residence in San Fran- 
 cisco in April, 1895. 
 
 As early as 1865 Mr. Rhoads sold his stock 
 business and engaged in farming, achieving 
 marked success, and accumulating a comfort- 
 able fortune, which he placed in different banks, 
 in real estate, and loans, principally in Fresno 
 and Kings counties. He was a member of the 
 Society of California Pioneers, and formerly be- 
 longed to the Grange or Patrons of Husbandry. 
 He was at one time one of the directors of the 
 Grangers' Bank of San Francisco, and he was 
 the pioneer and first president of the Bank of 
 Hanford, a position maintained until a year be- 
 fore his death, December 4, 1895. From the 
 time of its organization until his death he was 
 vice^resident of the Bank of Lemoore, and for 
 many years exerted a strengthening and wide 
 influence in financial circles in the county. Po- 
 litically he was a Democrat, and in religion was 
 identified for many years with the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South. For some time Mr. 
 Rhoads had been troubled with heart disease, and 
 though his end was sudden it was not unexpected. 
 The day of his passing away he had spent in a 
 pleasant manner in his home in San Francisco, 
 and near its close spoke of being weary. At sup- 
 per, when about to invoke a blessing, as had been 
 his custom for many years, he grew faint, spoke 
 a few words, and quietly and peacefully passed 
 away. Conscious of his approaching end, two 
 years before he had made minute preparation, 
 building close to his old home near Lemoore a 
 substantial vault in which to take his final rest. 
 He also distributed his property among his chil- 
 dren, three of whom are living: Mrs. Mary 
 
448 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Kieffer, John W. Rhoads and Mrs. Elvira H. 
 Dawson. His oldest daughter, Sarah, became the 
 wife of John F. Phillips, had a family of six 
 children, and died soon after her husband. These 
 children were reared and educated by Daniel 
 Rhoads and his wife. Mr. RTioads' body was 
 brought from San Francisco to Lemoore, and his 
 funeral services were conducted December _ 8, 
 1895. He was seventy-four years ol'd, lacking 
 three days, and his popularity was attested by 
 the friends and relatives who occupied the two 
 hundred carriages in the funeral cortege. His 
 widow still survives him, making her home in 
 Hanford, where her fourscore years are crowned 
 with good health and spirits. 
 
 JAMES- U. VAUGHAN. When James U. 
 Vaughan went to Tulare county in 1857 there 
 was little to suggest the prosperity which he 
 himself has helped to bring about. To a man 
 who has gained and lost fortunes, and who yet 
 finds himself one of the substantial and influen- 
 tial men in his community, the distance trav- 
 ersed on the road to success seems immeasur- 
 ably greater, and the changes by the wayside of 
 far more emphatic and impressive kind. Well 
 does this pioneer recall the atmosphere of deso- 
 lation which brooded over his pioneer ranch 
 twelve miles from Visalia, of his range for cat- 
 tle which extended along the river on the south 
 side for twenty miles, and of the vast distances 
 stretching out before him with scarcely a settler 
 to intercept between himself and the horizon. 
 The lowing of his kine was a welcome sound in 
 those days, and a human face and voice were 
 something over which to rejoice. Today Mr. 
 Vaughan enjoys the distinction of being one of 
 the foremost fruit-raisers in Kings county, and 
 formerly his name was associated with equal 
 prominence with extensive stock-raising interests, 
 in San Luis Obispo county. He was one of 
 the organizers and directors of the Old Bank of 
 Hanford, and also holds stock in the First Na- 
 tional Bank of Hanford. His activity has per- 
 vaded the general growth of the locality, and his 
 influence has been, and still is, of a strong, force- 
 ful and progressive nature. 
 
 Mr. Vaughan is of English descent, and his 
 family was probably established in this country 
 by his paternal grandfather. His father, Reuben 
 Vaughan, was born in Virginia, and when he ar- 
 rived at manhood went to Tennessee, where he 
 married Levina Nail, daughter of an Englishman 
 who served under General Haynes in the war of 
 the Revolution. From Tennessee Reuben 
 Vaughan went to Alabama, and from there to 
 Holmes county, Miss., where, September 9, 1841, 
 his son, James U., was born on a farm. 'Seven 
 years were spent in Louisiana, the family then 
 
 removing to Texas, arriving in the winter of 
 1849, ^"d remaining there until starting across 
 the plains with ox-teams in the spring of 1852. 
 Locating on a vineyard in the city of Los Ange- 
 les, he lived there two years, then removed to a 
 ranch four miles from the city, where he died in 
 1856, at the age of fifty-six years. His wife, 
 who was of Dutch extraction, died in California 
 at the age of eighty-four, having reared ten of 
 her thirteen children. 
 
 James U. remembers the overland trip to Tex- 
 as, and from there to California, which he reached 
 at the age of eleven. He was less than sixteen 
 when his father died, and thereafter he and his 
 brothers assumed the management of the farm, 
 in partnership with their mothet. From the 
 home farm the youth took a drove of stock to the 
 vicinity of Visalia in the spring of 1857, remain- 
 ing there comparatively alone on the range for 
 many months. In 1862 he married Sarah Ann 
 Tuel, a native of Texas, who came in 1852 with 
 her mother and stepfather to Mariposa county, 
 and in 1858 to Visalia, where she met her future 
 husband. The young couple began housekeeping 
 under crude conditions, but braved the loneliness 
 and monotony of their surroundings, being re- 
 warded by the business success which came their 
 way. The herd of cattle grew to large propor- 
 tions, and in 1865 Mr. Vaughan drove his stock 
 to San Luis Obispo county, where he took up 
 land and engaged in the cattle business until 
 1877. This experience terminated disastrously, 
 owing to severe drouth, and resulted in the 
 death by starvation of from seventeen to eighteen 
 hundred head of stock. In 1878 he went to Ari- 
 zona and engaged in the cattle business, getting 
 together a large band of cattle and realizing large 
 profits until another drouth swept away about, 
 four thousand head. Owning a large range of 
 about fifteen hundred acres, he again started in 
 the cattle business in 1893, and possessed about 
 six thousand head of cattle when he sold his 
 ranch and three thousand head in January, 1902. 
 He then shipped about three thousand head to 
 Fresno county and sold them soon after. 
 
 Coming to Hanford after clearing up from 
 $75,000 to $100,000 in the cattle industry, Mr. 
 Vaughan bought three hundred acres of the Bo- 
 nanza fruit ranch, one mile north of the city, 
 and placed two hundred and fifty acres in fruit, 
 and the balance under alfalfa. He paid $60,000 
 for his ranch, and he also owns ten acres ad- 
 joining the city limits, under vines and fruit, 
 where he also has his beautiful country home. 
 The same penetrating thought, thoroughness and 
 business sagacity which distinguished his cattle 
 industry is apparent in his present occupation, 
 and accounts for the measure of success which 
 has already attended his efforts. He has one of 
 the finest fruit ranches in Kings county, his out- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 451 
 
 put consisting of peaches, apricots, prunes and 
 raisin grapes. He is associated in business with 
 his two sons, Andrew H. and William T., each 
 of whom owns a third interest in the fruit lands. 
 His only daughter and youngest child, Lillie A., 
 is the wife of John A. Dunbar of Arizona. Mr. 
 Vaughan is a Democrat in national politics, but 
 independent locally. Fraternally he is a mem- 
 ber of the Masonic fraternity. He is a splen- 
 did example of the benefits of range life, of a 
 moderate and free and untrammeled existence. 
 The largeness of perception and breadth of mind 
 which has characterized his business undertak- 
 ings is realized in his physical proportions, for he 
 stands six feet one and a half inches in his stock- 
 ing feet, and weighs about two hundred and 
 twenty-five pounds. Notwithstanding his losses 
 and discouragements he is invariably genial and 
 optimistic in temperament, having an air of sat- 
 isfaction derived from having conquered stub- 
 born fate in the race for financial supremacy. 
 
 WILLIAM BIGLER CROOP, county clerk 
 of Merced county, is a member of an eastern 
 family that became established in New Jersey 
 and Pennsylvania prior to the Revolutionary 
 war. Originally its representatives in this coun- 
 try were known by the name of Grube and the 
 present form was not adopted until early in the 
 nineteenth century. Peter S., who was born 
 at Easton, Pa., in 1801, engaged in the trans- 
 portation business on the Susquehanna river and 
 superintended the construction of a portion of 
 the Susquehanna canal. For years he rnade 
 his home near Tunkhannock, Wyoming county, 
 where he cleared and improved a tract of unde- 
 veloped land and served as township super- 
 visor. An old-school Democrat, his political 
 opinions were pronounced and supported by his 
 vote. Though he lived to be past eighty-eight 
 years of age (his death occurring in 1889), he 
 was hale and robust to the last, retaining full 
 possession of his physical and mental faculties. 
 In early manhood he married Julia Sleagle, who 
 was born south of Wilkesbarre, near Nanticoke, 
 Luzerne county, and was a daughter of Adam 
 Sleagle, a native of the same county, descended 
 from an old established family of Pennsylvania. 
 Included in the estate of the Sleagle family was 
 a large farm which proved to be underlaid with 
 a rich vein of coal. Mrs. Croop was a member 
 of the Presbyterian Church, and lived in accord- 
 ance with its precepts, dying in that faith in 
 1888, when seventy-three years of age. Of her 
 twelve children all but four are still living, but 
 only three make their home in California, viz. : 
 Zachariah T., an orchardist in Santa Clara 
 county; Mrs. M. K. Taylor, whose home is near 
 Newman ; and William Bigler, of Merced. An- 
 
 other member of the familv, Stephen D., came 
 to the coast, and died in Merced county. One 
 brother, Cyrus W., now a resident of Allegany, 
 N. Y., was a soldier in the Civil war, and served 
 with a regiment from Pennsylvania. 
 
 The seventh in order of birth among the twelve 
 children, William Bigler Croop was born near 
 Tunkhannock, Pa., January 12, 1852, and grew 
 to manhood on the home farm. Until twelve 
 years of age he attended a subscription school 
 near his home, and then was a pupil in' a select 
 school at Factoryville for several successive 
 winters, after which he studied one winter in 
 Rushford (N. Y.) Academy, and two years in 
 Wyoming Seminary at Kingston. At eighteen 
 years of age he was given a teacher's certificate 
 and began to teach, following the occupation 
 during the winters in Wyoming and Luzerne 
 counties, and in the summer months working 
 on his father's farm.' In June, 1877, he came to 
 California, and after a short stay in San Fran- 
 cisco, proceeded to San Joaquin county. As an 
 assistant in threshing he was employed on Union 
 Island from the ist of July until October, when 
 he came to Merced, passed the teacher's exam- 
 ination, and secured a school near Snelling. The 
 following year he began the raising of grain 
 twelve miles west of Merced, but two successive 
 failures of crops obliged him to leave the farm; 
 he then clerked in a store at Merced. During 
 the winter of 1880-81 he taught school in Lane 
 county, Ore., and on his return to Merced the 
 spring following he resumed his position in the 
 store. His next work was that of traveling 
 agent for the Southern Pacific land department, 
 in which capacity he engaged in the sale of 
 lands in the San Joaquin and Sacramento val- 
 leys. During 1883 he was employed in the 
 bridge and construction department of the North- 
 ern Pacific Railroad in Montana and Idaho, re- 
 turning in 1884 to Merced and from here going 
 back to Pennsylvania, where he remained for 
 six months. The fall of 1884 found him again 
 in Merced, where he engaged in farming for a 
 year. The four following years were spent in 
 the east, and during two years of the time he 
 engaged m the mercantile business with his 
 brother, C. W., at Rushford, ^N. Y. 
 
 While making his home at Rushford, Septem- 
 ber I, 1886, Mr. Croop married Miss Grace M. 
 Beecher, a native of Williamsport, Pa., and a 
 member of the family whose most distinguished 
 representative was Henry Ward Beecher. Re- 
 motely of- English origin, the Beechers became 
 established in America at an early day, and were 
 pioneers in Allegany county, N. Y. On her 
 mother's side she traced her lineage to the Gor- 
 dons of Scotland. During girlhood she received 
 excellent advantages in Rushford Academy and 
 prior to her marriage followed the profession 
 
452 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of teacher. Two children have been born of 
 their union, Ada Adele, born in 1887, and Cyrus 
 William, born in 1890. 
 
 A few years after his marriage Mr. Croop 
 disposed of his interests in the east and returned 
 to California, where he s^ent two years in the 
 bridge and construction department of the South- 
 ern Pacific Railroad. From 1891 until 1898 he 
 engaged in teaching in the vicinity of Merced, 
 giving up the work in order to enter upon his 
 duties as county clerk, to which office he was first 
 elected in i8q8, on the Democratic ticket, by a 
 majority of two hundred and fifty. At the ex- 
 piration of his first term he was re-nominated 
 by the Democrats without opposition, nor did 
 the Republicans present any candidate for the 
 office, it being the universal feeling among repre- 
 sentatives of both parties that his service had 
 been so successful and efficient, due recognition 
 should be made thereof by his re-election. The 
 fact that he was re-elected without any opposi- 
 tion, receiving the largest vote on the ticket, 
 testifies as to the great appreciation of his worth 
 and ability as a public official. His entire at- 
 tention is given to the duties of the position, in- 
 cluding, in addition to the work of county clerk, 
 that of superior court clerk, and clerk to the 
 board of supervisors. He and his family have 
 a pleasant home on Nineteenth street, where he 
 built the house they occupy. In 1874 he was 
 made a member of the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows in Pennsylvania, and now is con- 
 nected with Merced Lodge No. 208, in which he 
 is past officer, also from 1900 to 1902 serving 
 as district deputy grand master. In the En- 
 campment he is past chief patriarch, and also 
 has been a prominent officer in the Woodmen of 
 the World. Movements for the benefit of his 
 home town, among them the Merced Improve- 
 ment Club, receive his hearty support and co- 
 operation, and he is deservedly numbered among 
 the public-spirited citizens of the place. 
 
 REV. PETER GERALD GAY. During the 
 days when Oliver Cromwell wrested England's 
 scepter from monarchical sway and established 
 a reformation far-reaching in its influence, the 
 Gay family were established in Ireland, where 
 the possession of large landed estates made them 
 a power among the gentry. Tradition indicates 
 that they belonged to Huguenot blood and his- 
 toric evidences point to their French extraction. 
 John Gay, who was the owner of the large estate 
 known as Gay Brook, situated in the county of 
 Westmeath, near Mullingar, held a position of 
 influence in that part of Ireland, and was an 
 acknowledged leader in his community. Among 
 his children was a son, John Gay, who was born 
 and reared on the family estate and received 
 
 his education in Royal College, graduating with 
 the degree of M. D., after which he acted as a 
 steamship surgeon. A fortunate chance, brought 
 about by his recognized ability both as physician 
 and scientist, made him an associate of Dr. Kane 
 in important explorations in various sections of 
 India, where he engaged in professional practice, 
 and he was also located for a time at Cape Town, 
 Cape Colony, Africa, and in Australia. After 
 extended travels and researches in many lands 
 he returned to Ireland and took up the practice 
 of medicine and surgery in Dublin. Since his 
 retirement from professional work he has de- 
 voted his time to scientific researches in the quiet 
 of his beautiful country place four miles from 
 Ireland's capital city. During early manhood 
 he chose as his wife Mary Reed, who was born 
 at Carrick Fergus, County Down, Ireland, and 
 traces her lineage to a Scotch family. In County 
 Down her father, David Reed, was born and 
 reared, and there he engaged in the manufacture 
 of cordage. The commercial aptitude which he 
 possessed, and which brought him a fair share 
 of prosperity, came to him less from inheritance 
 than from education and experience. Many of 
 his male ancestors were edifcators and philoso- 
 phers and the family talents were toward such 
 studies and professions rather than toward com- 
 merce and worldly gain. 
 
 In a family originally comprising seventeen 
 children (nine of whom now survive) Peter 
 Gerald Gay was among the younger members 
 and he alone has sought a home in America. He 
 was born in Dublin on New Year's day of 1874. 
 As a boy he attended the Qiristian Brothers 
 school in Dublin and later took up the study of 
 the classics in Black Rock College, Dublin. From 
 there he was sent to St. Michael's Priory, at 
 Farnborough, Hampshire, England, where for 
 a time he acted as guardian of the crypt where 
 lies Napoleon HI and all that is mortal of the 
 beloved and ill-fated Prince Louis, the Prince 
 Imperial of France during the days of the empire. 
 The priory where he was a student owed its 
 existence and support to the benevolence of 
 Empress Eugenie, who in the days of age and 
 loneliness devotes her thoughts to religion and 
 charity. It was his good fortune to study theol- 
 ogy and philosophy under the celebrated orator 
 Perc Guillme, and the confessoi; of Eugenie, 
 Pere Ibos. On leaving the priory in 1893 he 
 entered upon practical mission work as an as- 
 sistant to Father Bannon in the slums of Lon- 
 don. A year later, with faith deepened by the 
 difficulties of his city labors, he returned to Dub- 
 lin to continue his studies. 
 
 On coming to America in 1895 Father Gay 
 traveled through various portions of the States 
 and then matriculated in St. John's University, 
 at CoUegeville, Minn., where he was ordained, 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 453 
 
 June 21, 1897, by Bishop McGolrich of Duluth, 
 to the ministry of the Roman CathoHc Church 
 in appointment to the diocese of Los Angeles 
 and Monterey. For a time he was stationed in 
 the Cathedral at Los Angeles and afterward 
 acted as an assistant in different parishes of the 
 diocese, also served as pastor pro tem. of the con- 
 gregations at Pasadena, Santa Barbara, Santa 
 Cruz and Fresno. A later and very important 
 task was the building up of the parish and 
 church at Santa Paula, Cal., including the re- 
 nowned mission of Camulos, whose history is 
 interwoven with much of the romance and ad- 
 venture of early Californian days. In officiating 
 at a marriage ceremony in the Del Valle family, 
 owners of the famous mission, he used the vest- 
 ments that had been in possession of the family 
 for more than two centuries. Other missions 
 of which he had charge were Newhall, Ravenna 
 and Lancaster. August 11, 1904, he was ap- 
 pointed to St. Mary's Church in Visalia, where 
 he has the supervision of an important parish 
 and also attends St. Aloysius at Tulare, Sultana 
 and Dinuba. At this writing the parish at 
 Dinuba is erecting a new house of worship, the 
 supervision of which remains in his charge. The 
 edifice at Visalia is substantial and commodious, 
 with admirable facilities for religious services. 
 From the days of Father Dade, its first pastor, 
 to the present time, the church has wielded a 
 potent influence upon the lives of the parish- 
 ioners. Not only is the congregation one of the 
 first established by the Roman Catholics in the 
 San Joaquin valley, but it also has been one of 
 the most influential and prosperous, and the work 
 of its various pastors, culminating in the success 
 of the present incumbent of the pastorate, has 
 been of a high order both from a temporal and 
 spiritual standpoint, contributing to the religious 
 development of Tulare county and to the wel- 
 fare especially of such as are identifed with its 
 communion. 
 
 THOMAS H. FRANS. The earliest recol- 
 lections of Mr. Frans are associated with sights 
 and scenes in California. Although a native of 
 Missouri, born in Buchanan county, May i, 1853, 
 he was only ten days old when the family left 
 that locality and started across the plains in one 
 of the prairie schooners so familiar to the people 
 of that day. The slow-footed oxen drew the 
 little caravan on their toilsome way through 
 deserts, across streams, over mountains and 
 through still valleys, and finally, after six months 
 of travel, the destination of the pilgrims was 
 reached. In the company were John Bloom 
 Frans, who was born in Kentucky, November 16, 
 1818, and his wife, whom he had married in 
 Missouri, and who was Elizabeth Fulton, a na- 
 
 tive of Indiana. With them and their infant son 
 were the father of Mrs. Frans, Richard Fulton, 
 and her brothers, James and Thomas Fulton, 
 all of whom had made a previous journey across 
 the plains during the early days of the discovery 
 of gold. On arriving in Sonoma county, land 
 was secured on the Mark West creek, five miles 
 from Santa Rosa, and there the grandfather 
 died. In 1864 the father sold his farm in that 
 county and removed to Tulare county, where 
 he bought four hundred and twenty acres on the 
 Cutler bridge road, three and one-half miles 
 from Visalia. The property was in a raw state, 
 but through his efforts was brought under cul- 
 tivation and improved with a neat farm house. 
 Here, after a few years of devotion to general 
 farming and stock-raising, he died October 23, 
 1870. In religion he was a member of the Chris- 
 tian Church, a man of high principles and irre- 
 proachable character. His wife was born April 
 4, 183 1, and died May 15, 1886. They were the 
 parents of the following children : Thomas H., 
 of Visalia; James M., deceased; Mrs. Emily 
 Parr, who died in this locality ; John, Mary and 
 Mrs. Sarah Switzer, all of Visalia; Ellen, who 
 married Edward Hart and resides at Farmers- 
 ville; and Rebecca, Mrs. Thomas McGovern, 
 who died in this vicinity. 
 
 When the family came to Tulare county 
 Thomas H. Frans was a boy of eleven years and 
 afterward his education was pursued in district 
 schools and the old Visalia academy. When he 
 was seventeen his father died, leaving him the 
 eldest of a large family, and the one to whom 
 his mother and the younger children looked for 
 counsel and support. For some years he took 
 charge of the home farm, but when the younger 
 sons became old enough to attend to its culti- 
 vation he entered upon independent farming. 
 For fifteen years or more he conducted a large 
 grain farm on the plains. Returning to the old 
 homestead, he purchased the interests of some 
 of the heirs until he acquired one hundred and 
 sixty acres and this he now occupies and culti- 
 vates, having sixty acres in alfalfa and the balance 
 in general crops and pastures. The land is en- 
 tirely low ground, and can be irrigated by 
 seepage, thus rendering it unnecessary for him 
 to resort to flooding, but he has a private ditch 
 connected with the Kaweah river. It is not 
 unusual for him to raise two crops of potatoes 
 the same year, and often he has raised a crop 
 of barley, then planted the land to corn. His 
 specialty is the dairy business, for which pur- 
 pose he keeps a herd of fine milch cows, and the 
 crops raised are largely fed to his stock. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Frans was solemnized 
 in Visalia and united him with Miss Emma Eliza- 
 beth Johnson, whose father, Stephen Johnson, 
 was one of Visalia's early settlers, coming here 
 
454 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in 1870. He was a native of Mississippi, as was 
 also his father. Stephen Johnson was killed m 
 the Sierra Nevada mountains. Mrs. Frans was 
 born and reared in Visalia and by her marriage 
 has two children, Ruby lone and Richard Ful- 
 ton, the latter a member of the high school class 
 of 1908. The family are identified with the 
 Christian Church of Visalia, to the support of 
 which Mr. Frans has been a generous contribu- 
 tor, as he has also to movements for the wel- 
 fare of his community and the relief of the needy. 
 In national politics he favors Democratic prin- 
 ciples, but in local elections gives his support 
 to the men whom he deems best qualified to 
 represent the people and discharge official duties 
 with uprightness and intelligence. 
 
 STEPHEN E. TULLY. To a splendid rec- 
 ord as a soldier in the Union army during the 
 Civil war S. E. Tully has added years of prac- 
 tical experience along agricultural lines in Mer- 
 ced and other counties in California, and has suc- 
 ceeded by his earnest, upright and capable na- 
 ture. Mr. Tully's political sympathies are at va- 
 riance with those of his immediate ancestors, for 
 the south claimed the ambitions of both his fath- 
 er and grandfather. Samuel Tully was born in 
 old Virginia, and Martha (Vestal) Tully in the 
 Shenandoal; valley in the same state. The par- 
 ents were married in Virginia, and became very 
 early pioneers of Pickaway county, Ohio, then 
 but sparsely settled. The father lived to be fifty- 
 four, and the mother seventy years old. They 
 reared a family of eight children, two of whom 
 are living. Notwithstanding the southern sym- 
 pathies of the father, the children espoused the 
 northern cause, and two of the sons served in the 
 same regiment. Company C, Seventeenth Ohio 
 Volunteer Infantry ; of these, John, the young- 
 er, died in Nashville, Tenn., during the war. 
 
 S. E. Tully was born on the paternal farm on 
 the Scioto river, four miles north of Circleville, 
 Pickaway county, Ohio, September i, 1837, and 
 in early years attended the public schools and the 
 Circleville Academy, At the age of twenty-one 
 he removed to Iowa, and later to Minnesota, 
 spending two years in farming in those two fron- 
 tier states. Returning to Ohio in 1859, he en- 
 gaged in farming in Fayette county, and while 
 feeding stock in the afternoon of April 19, 1861, 
 was informed of the firing on Fort Sumter. That 
 evening, after completing his chores, he drove 
 eight miles to Midway, volunteered in Com- 
 pany C, and was mustered in at Camp Anderson 
 for three months. Sent to West Virginia under 
 General MacClellan, he participated in the bat- 
 tle of Rich Mountain, and was later detailed as 
 scout, a precarious service which brought him 
 much adventure and many hairbreadth escapes. 
 
 One night on the Little Kanawha, three com- 
 panies were surrounded by fifteen hundred reb- 
 els, but succeeded in holding the enemy at bay 
 for three days and nights, finally being relieved 
 by reinforcements. Mustered out at Danville, 
 at the expiration of his term, Mr. Tully re- 
 enlisted in 1862, in Company F, Nineteenth Ohio 
 Volunteer Infantry, becoming a part of the Army 
 of the Cumberland, and delegated to cover Nel- 
 son's retreat. During his second service Mr. Tul- 
 ly was in the thick of the fight in many of the 
 battles during the reinainder of the war, includ- 
 ing Chickamauga, Dalton, Resaca, Dallas, Ken- 
 nesaw Mountain, Snake Creek Gap, Peachtree, 
 Lovejoy Station, Jonesboro, Chancellorsville, and 
 Cold Harbor. His experiences were thrilling in 
 the extreme, especially toward the latter part of 
 the war, for at the battle of Stone River he had 
 thirty-two bullet holes in his blanket, and at 
 other engagements he had his hair shot off and 
 his clothes perforated with bullets. Being trans- 
 ferred to the command of General Thomas, he 
 took part in the battles of Spring Hill, Franklin 
 and Nashville, and at the close of the war was 
 honorably discharged at Cincinnati, Ohio, June 
 14, 1865. 
 
 The satisfaction and peace attending the life 
 of the agriculturist was thoroughly appreciated 
 by this brave soldier on returning to Pickaway 
 county, and after farming a year he removed to 
 Shelby county. 111., remaining there until set- 
 tling on a farm near Danville, the same state, in 
 1868. In 187s he came to Turlock, Cal., and the 
 following year, in January, began to farm in Tu- 
 lare county, still later purchasing land in Yolo 
 county. In 1886 he located on land in the west- 
 ern part of Merced county, homesteading one 
 hundred and sixty acres seven and a half miles 
 southeast of Los Banos, just outside of the canal. 
 Since then he has engaged in grain raising, and 
 at times has had a thousand acres under grain. 
 Ten acres under irrigation are placed to alfalfa, 
 and it is the intention of Mr. Tully to install an 
 engine and pumps, for irrigating the balance of 
 his farm. He has the best of modern improve- 
 ments, and his place has the air of being man- 
 aged by one who thoroughly understands the 
 scientific and practical side of farming. 
 
 Mr. Tully is a member of the William A. Se- 
 ward Post No. 65, G. A. R., of Woodland, and 
 is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Politically he votes the same way that he shot 
 during the war, and ever since has been a stanch 
 defender of the RepubHcan party. In Pickaway 
 county, Ohio, in 1866, he was united in mar- 
 riage with Mary Pennington, a native of Ohio, 
 and daughter of John Pennington, a farmer of 
 Pickaway county. Six children have been reared 
 in the Tully home, the order of their birth being 
 as follows : Alice, living on the home place ; 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 455 
 
 John, a fanner near Modesto; George, a farm- 
 er in the San Joaquin valley; Elmer, a business 
 man of Stockton ; Lester, a farmer of Merced 
 county; and Ernest, his father's assistant on the 
 farm. None of the pioneers of Merced county 
 can claim greater honor or consideration at the 
 hands of their fellowmen than Mr. Tully, for 
 his life is conceded to be not only a brave and 
 honorable one, but orie into which much success 
 has been crowded, and which has been of incal- 
 culable benefit to other strugglers on the high- 
 way of existence. 
 
 HENRY NEWMAN. Noteworthy among 
 the active and influential citizens of Visalia is 
 Henry Newman, who is most ably and accept- 
 ably filling the position of county treasurer of 
 Tulare county. He is an excellent business man, 
 upright and honorable in all of his transactions, 
 and is highly esteemed for his integrity and trust- 
 worthiness. A son of Christian Newman, Jr., 
 he was born in Petersburg, Menard county. III, 
 November 27, 1850. His grandfather, Chris- 
 tian Newman, Sr., emigrated from Germany 
 with his family, locating in Beardstown, 111., as 
 a pioneer. 
 
 Born in Saxony, Germany, Christian New- 
 man, Jr., came with' his parents to America. He 
 followed the business of a butcher in Illinois for 
 a number of years, living in Petersburg and 
 Springfield. Coming to California in 1859, he 
 settled first as a butcher in Bear Valley, Mari- 
 posa county, and was afterwards similarly en- 
 gaged in Turlock, Stanislaus county. From 
 there he removed to Merced coimty, settling in 
 Merced a short time previous to his death, which 
 occurred, at the -age of sixty-six years, in 1874. 
 He married Margaret Schoeneman, who was 
 born in Germany, a daughter of John Schoene- 
 man, who immigrated with his family to this 
 country and settled in Springfield, 111., where 
 he was engaged in the transfer business until 
 his death. She died in Merced, Cal., leaving 
 three children, namely : Henry, the subject of 
 this sketch; and John C. and William H., both 
 of Stockton, Cal. 
 
 Growing to manhood in Springfield, 111., 
 Henry Newman was educated in the public 
 schools of that city, and in the Christian Brothers' 
 Academy at St. Louis, Mo., where he was grad- 
 uated in 1869. The following two years he 
 clerked for his uncle, John Schoeneman, pro- 
 prietor of the Western hotel, in Springfield, 111. 
 In 1871 Mr. Newman joined his parents in Mari- 
 posa county, Cal., and from 1872 until 1874 
 assisted his father in Bear Valley. Removing 
 with the family to Merced in 1874, he was em- 
 ployed in the El Capitan hotel until September, 
 1876, when he engaged in business in Stockton. 
 
 From 1880 until 1884 Mr. Newman resided in 
 the city of Fresno. In the latter year he came 
 to Visalia, accepting a position in the Palace 
 hotel, and in 1886 was elected, under the old law, 
 as road master of District No. 6, and served 
 for two years. In the meantime Mr. Newman 
 moved to Exeter, Tulare county, and was ap- 
 pointed justice of the peace, tO' fill out an un- 
 expired term of two years. He was subsequent- 
 ly elected, and re-elected to the same office, which 
 he filled ten consecutive years, for four years 
 of the time, from 1893 until 1897, serving also 
 as postmaster of Exeter, being appointed to the 
 position by President Cleveland. Nominated 
 on the Democratic ticket for county treasurer 
 in 1902, Mr. Newman was elected for a term of 
 four years, and after taking the oath of office, 
 in January, 1903, removed to Visalia with his 
 family, and his home is open to his large circle 
 of friends and acquaintances. 
 
 In Stockton, Cal., in 1877, Mr. Newman mar- 
 ried Mary F. Rock, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 and they have five children living, namely : Harry 
 C, of Visalia; Mrs. Alice Corono, of Fullerton, 
 Cal.; Mrs. Vera Powell, of Exeter; Leila and 
 Loretta, living at home. Taking a keen and in- 
 telligent interest in public affairs, Mr. Newman 
 is an influential member of the Democratic party, 
 and an ex-member of the county committee. 
 In the congres^onal convention which nomi- 
 nated Creighton, of Fresno, for congress, he 
 served as secretary. While a resident of Exeter 
 he was one of the organizers of the Exeter Board 
 of Trade, which he served for two years as vice- 
 president, resigning the position on his removal 
 to Visalia. He was made an Odd Fellow in 
 1874, in Merced Lodge No. 208 and is now 
 past grand of Exeter Lodge, I. O. O. F., and 
 is past district deputy grand master of the 
 Grand Lodge; he also belongs to Orange Blos- 
 som Lodge of the Rebekahs, of which he is 
 past noble grand; and is captain of Visalia 
 Canton No. 24. In 1871, at Bear Valley, he was 
 made a Knight of Pythias. He is now past 
 Chancellor of Bonnie Brae Lodge, K. P., is ex- 
 representative to the Grand Lodge, and is also 
 ex-district deputy grand chancellor. 
 
 JAMES L. JAMESON. Among the repre- 
 sentatives of old pioneer families who are carry- 
 ing on, under more promising conditions, the 
 work undertaken by their sires, mention is due 
 James L. Jameson, a young man of energy and 
 resource, and one of the well-known farmers in 
 Merced county. Mr. Jameson lives three miles 
 southwest of Los Banos, where he owns one hun- 
 dred and sixty-five acres, all under alfalfa, and 
 developed to a dairy ranch, and fie also owns 
 
456 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 three hundred and twenty acres of grain land 
 above the canal. 
 
 Mr. Jameson has lived in California since 1869, 
 having moved here with his father, Zachariah, 
 from Lincoln county, Mo. His first six years 
 were spent on the farm in Lincoln county where 
 his birth occurred January 18, 1863. He was 
 third oldest in a family of six, of whom Susan, 
 the wife of D. M. Wood, of Santa. Cruz, WilHam, 
 a large stock-farmer of the vicinity of Los Banos, 
 and James survive. Emma, deceased, was the 
 wife of G. R. Wood, of Santa Cruz. 
 
 Zachariah Jameson had the courage to free 
 himself from a prosperous stock business in Lin- 
 coln county, Mo., establish a similar business on 
 the west side of Merced county, Cal., and de- 
 velop land which up to that time was in its 
 primeval condition. For years he was one of the 
 extensive sheep-raisers on the plains and moun- 
 tains, and at one time owned over a thousand 
 acres under alfalfa, raising a large number of cat- 
 tle also. At present he resides at 50 South Third 
 street, San Jose, but still owns six hundred acres 
 of land under irrigation, as well as other valuable 
 country and city property. Mr. Jameson was 
 united in marriage with Hannah Bayliss, who 
 died on the old place in Merced county. 
 
 James L. Jameson had better educational ad- 
 vantages than fall to the lot of the average coun- 
 try-reared boy. He attended the pubHc schools, 
 and finally entered the state normal, at San Jose, 
 which he left at the end of a two years' course. 
 He started out on his own responsibility at an 
 early age, engaging in stock-raising and farm- 
 ing, and finally purchased the nucleus of his pres- 
 ent land holdings. Formerly Mr. Jameson was 
 identified with Mountain Brow Lodge No. 82, 
 I. O. O. F., of Los Banos. In national politics he 
 is a Republican. 
 
 HENRY C. HIGBEE was born in Chittenden 
 county, Vt., May 25, 1828, and comes of a family 
 which for many years had been established in the 
 eastern colonies. His paternal grandfather, 
 Elisha Higbee, was born in Connecticut, served 
 in the Revolutionary war, and died in Vermont, 
 to which he had removed several years before. 
 His paternal grandmother, Nancy Higbee, had 
 a somewhat tempestuous youth, having been cap- 
 tured by the Indians when ten years of age, and 
 held by them for a period of five years. Lewis 
 Higbee, the father of Henry C, was bom in Ver- 
 mont, and had a firm character, which partook of 
 the nature of the granite hills among which his 
 youth was passed. Strong and resolute, and 
 knowing no compromise as far as right and 
 wrong were concerned, he was an ardent sup- 
 porter of education, was a voluminous reader, 
 and an able legislator when representing his dis- 
 
 trict in the state assembly. About 1855 he re- 
 moved to Beaverdam, Wis., and there engaged in 
 farming for the balance of his life. In his effort 
 to live a wise and consistent life he was ably sec- 
 onded by his wife, who was formerly Sarah 
 Baker, of New York, and a relative of Ethan 
 Allen, of Revolutionary fame. Mrs. Higbee was 
 a woman of dignity of manner, aristocratic bear- 
 ing, and unbounded influence in her home and 
 immediate circle of friends. She was greatly be- 
 loved for her rare good nature, and for the wis- 
 dom and thoroughness with which she reared her 
 eight sons and two daughters, of whom Henry C. 
 is next to the youngest. A reflection of the 
 mother's patience and the father's strength 
 would seem to have been found in the youngest 
 son of the family, who was state superintendent 
 of public institutions of Pennsylvania for nine 
 years, and who was a scholar of remarkable 
 breadth and erudition. Elnathan Elisha Higbee, 
 D.D., LL.D., was a man of ideal character, and 
 according to a memorial of his life, a righteous 
 man, the friend of humanity ; as a youth fore- 
 most in athletics and sports, and as a man, a 
 scholar, wise covinsellor and orator. He was 
 modest withal, and at his death was the most 
 widely beloved man in the state of Pennsylvania. 
 As a boy Henry C. Higbee had a longing for 
 the west, ■ a desire which he was able to gratify 
 in 1850, when he moved to Ohio, and the follow- 
 ing year to Kentucky. In the spring of 1852 he 
 started across the plains from Cincinnati, Ohio, 
 which was then the center of great excitement 
 over the favorable reports of gold which came 
 from the coast. Coming by way of the Ohio, 
 Mississippi and Missouri rivers to Leavenworth, 
 he proceeded by way of the Platte river, arriving 
 at Volcano, Cal., August 15, 1852. For thirteen 
 years he engaged in mining in different parts of 
 the state, spending the last few years in Amador 
 and Calaveras counties, in the latter county in- 
 vesting heavily in copper mines, and eventually 
 losing practically all that he had in the world. 
 With a company of men he started for Arizona 
 in the spring of 1867, but turned back to Los 
 Angeles, and went to the Kern county mines, in 
 the fall of 1867 coming to Visalia, where he made 
 arrangements to purchase four hundred acres of 
 land and engage in the stock business. He now 
 has two hundred and forty acres, twenty of which 
 are under fruit, eighty acres under alfalfa, and 
 the balance under pasture. His home is located 
 three miles south of Visalia, on the Santa Fe 
 Railroad, and has numerous advantages of soil, 
 situation and productiveness. Interest has been 
 shown in the comfortable, pleasant as well as 
 prosperous side of ranching, and the prevailing 
 atmosphere of the home is one of good cheer, 
 hospitality and unbounded good will. Mr. Hig- 
 bee has been twice married, his first wife having 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 457 
 
 been Martha A. Miles, of Minnesota, who died 
 in California. The present Mrs. Higbee was 
 Catherine Christie, of Schleswig-Holstein, Ger- 
 many; by this marriage one daughter, Elna C, 
 has been born. Politically Mr. Higbee is a 
 Socialist. 
 
 DANIEL W. WALLIS. The ability to con- 
 centrate upon a given subject, to master its ev- 
 ery detail, and correctly gauge its bearing upon 
 the other industries of the world, has brought a 
 two-fold distinction to Daniel W. Wallis, that of 
 general superintendent of the- enormous inter- 
 ests of Miller & Lux at Los Banos, and the repu- 
 tation of being one of the best judges of horses 
 in the state of California. Marked business abil- 
 ity, control of the resources and usefulness of 
 others, and the poweir to focus and direct both 
 men and interests, has further aided in his rise 
 to prominence. At the outset of his business ca- 
 reer Mr. Wallis had the advantages of good 
 birth, a practical home training, and a good edu- 
 cation. Born in Fayetteville, Ala., January 20, 
 1854, he is a graduate of the Fayetteville Acad- 
 emy and of the San Jose Institute and Business 
 College. 
 
 The parents of Mr. Wallis were Daniel and 
 Louisiana (Welch) Wallis, the former a native 
 of South Carolina, and the latter of Alabama. 
 There is martial blood on both sides of his fam- 
 ily, his paternal grandfather, William Wallis, and 
 his maternal grandfather, William Welch, both 
 served in the war of 1812, the latter attaining 
 the rank of lieutenant. William Welch served 
 also in the Seminole war in Florida, enlisted 
 from his adopted state of Alabama, of which 
 he was a pioneer . settler, and to which he re- 
 moved from Tennessee. The paternal great- 
 grandfatherj John Wallis, was a soldier in the 
 Revolutionary war, enlisting from Virginia, 
 where his entire life was spent. William Wallis 
 changed the spelling of the name from Wallace 
 to Wallis. He was born in Virginia, eventually 
 owned a plantation in the old Dominion, and in 
 time moved to South Carolina, but died in Texas. 
 Daniel Wallis was a boy when his parents moved 
 to Alabama, and for several years he was a mer- 
 chant in Fayetteville and owned and operated a 
 large plantation both of which he conducted until 
 his death. When Fort Sumter was fired on he 
 chanced to be on the ground, and was appointed 
 a member of the commissary department, a po- 
 sition which he resigned shortly after returning 
 to his home. He thereafter improved the op- 
 portunity of contracting for government rifles, 
 axes, saddles, bridles and general equipment, and 
 to this end started factories in different parts of 
 the state, of which he made a distinct success. 
 He died the year after the close of the war. 
 
 at the age of forty-six years, his wife having 
 died in Alabama in 1857. There were five chil- 
 dren in his family, four of whom are living, Dan- 
 iel W. being the fourth child and only son. 
 
 Coming to California in 1871, Daniel W. Wal- 
 lis completed his education and then engaged in 
 the stock business in Monterey, San Luis Obispo 
 and the surrounding counties, and for three years 
 was located near San Miguel, raising sheep. The 
 years 1876-77 proving disastrous to stockmen, 
 he engaged in the cattle business with Dumphy 
 & Hildreth, managing their extensive cattle in- 
 terests with headquarters in San Francisco, and 
 traveling throughout Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. 
 Resigning in 1885, he engaged in the horse busi- 
 ness in San F"rancisco, also conducting a large 
 livery business, and at the same time interesting . 
 himself in mines in Madera county. The lat- 
 ter venture proving unsuccessful, he entered the 
 employ of Miller & Lux as manager of the Santa 
 Rita ranch, taking the place of Charles War- 
 field. Mr. Wallis' responsibility included the 
 care of two hundred and fifty thousand acres of 
 land. He resigned the position in i8go to buy 
 cattle and ship them from Arizona and Nevada, 
 connecting himself with the firm of William 
 Dumphy. At the same time he became manager 
 of the firm's Monterey ranch q^ thirteen thou- 
 sand acres, nine thousand of which were under 
 the plow. His next position was with the 
 Spreckels Sugar Company, as superintendent of 
 the Tequiusquito ranch at Gilroy, his duties in- 
 cluding the oversight of the ditching and the im- 
 provement of the buildings and ranch in general, 
 also the sugar beet industry. Two years later, 
 in 1900, he resigned to accept the superintendency 
 of the Miller & Lux interests at Los Banos, which 
 extend from Dos Palos to Newman, and cover 
 about two hundred thousand acres. The great- 
 er part of this land is under the canal, and he has 
 five hundred men in his division. The land is 
 devoted principally to the general cattle business, 
 as well as raising fine horses and mules. 
 
 In Nevada, at Battle Mountain, Mr. Wallis 
 married Mattie A. Huntsman, a native of Ne- 
 vada, and daughter of Dow and Nancy (Greer) 
 Huntsman, natives respectively of Ohio and Mis- 
 souri. Mr. Huntsman crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia in 1847, soon after settling in Battle Moun- 
 tain, Nev., where he engaged in mining and ho- 
 tel business. He was a successful and thorough- 
 ly practical man, and previous to his death in De- 
 cember, 1903, while mining in the Lehigh valley, 
 Utah, accumulated a competence in money and 
 lands. In the early days, while on a journey to 
 Washoe county, he chanced to meet John Mack- 
 ey, who was out of provisions, and to whom he 
 gave a sack of flour. Mr. Huntsman is sur- 
 vived by his wife, who still lives at Battle Moun- 
 tain, and who, with four of her sisters, and her 
 
458 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD, 
 
 parents, crossed the plains in 1850. The mar- 
 riage of Mr. and Mrs. WalHs occurred January 
 30, 1884. They have one daughter, Mary D. 
 Wallis, a graduate of the Lowell high school, San 
 Francisco, and a young woman of high literary 
 gifts. Mrs. Wallis' reminiscences of the early 
 days of Battle Mountain are interesting, and in- 
 clude accounts of many of the notable person- 
 ages who contributed by their bravery and dar- 
 ing to the opening up of the west. She is a wom- 
 an of extreme charm of manner, conversational 
 ability of a high order, and great hospitality. Mr. 
 Wallis is a member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, the San Leseur Lodge F. & A. 
 M. of Kings Citv, Monterey county; the Hum- 
 boldt Chapter, R. A. M., of Winnemucca, 
 Xev., and the Eureka Commandery No. 2, K. T. 
 Politically Mr. Wallis is a Democrat, and is a 
 member of the county central committee. Both 
 himself and wife are members of Magnolia Chap- 
 ter, O. E. S., of Gilroy. Mrs. Wallis is a mem- 
 ber of the Episcopal Church. 
 
 EDWARD E. VINCENT. It is impossible to 
 overestimate the power of the press. As the news- 
 paper finds its way into almost every home, it 
 not only furnishes accounts of social neighbor- 
 hood happenings and county news, but also pre- 
 sents in brief the issues before state and nation 
 and influences every citizen in formulating de- 
 cisions concerning important problems before the 
 people. The true journalist has for his ambition 
 not the mere recording of events, but the moral, 
 educational and commercial upbuilding of his 
 community, and it is this ideal that has stimulated 
 Mr. Vincent in his labors as editor and proprietor 
 of the M rdera Mercury. When he established 
 the weekly edition in March of 1885, the paper 
 was necessarily very limited in the scope of its 
 influence, for the county was less thickly popu- 
 lated than at the present time. However, as set- 
 tlers became more numerous the circulation of the 
 paper increased. About 1893 a daily was estab- 
 lished, but after an experiment of five years it 
 was discontinued, not being profitable at the time. 
 With the progress made in the next two or three 
 years the editor felt justified in again publishing 
 the daily, and accordingly in igoo it resumed its 
 appearance in the homes of the people of Madera, 
 appearing in the form of a six-column folio, 
 while the weekly is a seven-column folio. Sep- 
 tember 28, 1903, the plant was destroyed by fire, 
 but a new office and printing room was at once 
 erected, and is now fitted up with a power press 
 and a full equipment for job work. 
 
 Mr. Vincent was born in San Francisco No- 
 vember I, 1853, and was an only son, having one 
 sister, Mrs. Mary Daugueuger, now of Portland, 
 Ore. His parents, Edward Joseph and Mary 
 
 Josephine (Petri) Vincent, were natives of 
 France, and came to CaHfornia via the Horn ift 
 185 1. The father, who had previously been em- 
 ployed as a machinist in a surgical manufacturing 
 establishment in France, took up the occupation 
 of a miner on the American river and for almost 
 twelve years followed the adventurous experi- 
 ences of a prospector and miner in a frontier 
 region. After his return to San Francisco he en- 
 gaged in business until his retirement, and died 
 in that city in 1881. His wife survived him nine- 
 teen years and died in Oakland when eighty-one 
 years of age. 
 
 His initiation into the printing business Ed- 
 ward E. Vincent gained at the early age of eleven 
 years and his first work was that of wrapping 
 papers in the office of the Nevada City Transcript. 
 During much of the time for sixteen years he 
 was employed on the San Jose Mercury, where he 
 filled different positions and gained a compre- 
 hensive knowledge of type-setting and printing. 
 From that city he came to Madera in 1885 and 
 established the paper with which his name is now 
 inseparably connected. Stanchly Republican in 
 his political views, his paper is the leading organ 
 of that party in Madera, county, and, in addition 
 to the work done for the party through the col- 
 umns of the paper, he has rendered efficient ser- 
 vice as chairman of the county central commit- 
 tee. On the organization of Parlor No. 180 N. S. 
 G. W., at Madera, he became one of its charter 
 members and was elected its first president. An- 
 other order with which he has been actively con- 
 nected is the Woodmen of the World. His mar- 
 riage, which was solemnized in San Jose, united 
 him with Miss Maggie James, who was born in 
 Missouri, and came to California with her father, 
 William James ; her mother was a Miss Brown- 
 ing, a sister of Mrs. Knox Goodrich, of San Jose. 
 In the family of Mr. and Mrs. Vincent there are 
 three children now living, Joseph E., James Al- 
 bert and Kittie. 
 
 ARTHUR M. McINTOSH, M.D. A man 
 of scholarly attainments, and a close student of 
 the best medical authorities of the day, Arthur 
 M. Mcintosh, M. D., is well fitted for his chosen 
 work, being familiar with modern medical and 
 surgical science as applied to the treatment of 
 the human body and its organs. Though young 
 in years and experience, he has made a most 
 favorable beginning in his professional career, 
 and gives promise of becoming ere long one of 
 the best-known and most successful physicians 
 of Kern county, as well as of Bakersfield, his 
 present place of residence. He was born in Elko, 
 Nev., a son of John Mcintosh. 
 
 John Mcintosh was born and bred in Canada, 
 where he spent the first eighteen years of his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 mi 
 
 life. Immigrating then to the United States, he 
 located first in Elko, Nev., where he found em- 
 ployment as clerk in a general store. He was 
 afterward in business for himself in Carlin, Nev., 
 for twelve years, and then for a few^ years in 
 Elko. Moving from the latter city to Lovelocks, 
 Nev., he engaged in mercantile pursuits, and as 
 a dealer in dry-goods and gentlemen's furnish- 
 ing goods is now carrying on a thriving trade. 
 He married Mary H. Munson, who was born 
 in Stockton, Cal. 
 
 Spending twelve years of his boyhood days 
 in Carlin, Nev., Arthur M. Mcintosh attended 
 the public schools of that city, and after the 
 family returned to Elko entered the Elko high 
 school, from which he was graduated at the age 
 of sixteen years. Taking then the teacher's ex- 
 amination, he received a first grade certificate, 
 and afterward taught school one term. Enter- 
 ing the University of Nevada, he completed the 
 freshman year, in the meantime reading medi- 
 cine. He subsequently continued his studies for 
 a year at the University of California. In .1896 
 Dr. Mcintosh entered the freshman class of the 
 medical department of the University of Cali- 
 fornia, and four years later,. 1900, was graduated 
 therefrom with the degree of M. D. The fol- 
 lowing twelve months Dr. Mcintosh was acting 
 assistant surgeon at the U. S. Marine Hospital 
 at San Francisco, and was afterward resident 
 physician at Waldeck's Sanitarium for a year. 
 Coming then to Vacaville, Cal., he was associated 
 in private practice there for one year with Dr. 
 J. W. Stitt. Locating in Bakersfield in October, 
 1903, the doctor bought the office furniture, prac- 
 tice and good-will of Dr. Snook, and, as his 
 successor, is winning a fair share of the city and 
 suburban patronage, among his patients being 
 some of the leading people of the community. 
 He is a member of the Kern County Medical As- 
 sociation, of the State Medical Association and 
 of the American Medical Association. 
 
 CASSIUS M. BLOWERS. This pioneer 
 rancher of Grangeville precinct, Kings county, 
 claims more than passing notice, as few, if any, 
 have struggled with more disparaging circum- 
 stances, and still brought success out of what to 
 the average man would have seemed an impossi- 
 bility. His introduction to Kings county in 
 1874 disclosed a sandy desert, practically worth- 
 less, but with the establishment of the irrigating 
 ditch, of which he was an earnest advocate, a 
 new order of things was made possible to the 
 pioneer. His ranch is located three miles north- 
 west of Hanford and is valued at $250 per acre. 
 
 John O. Blowers, the grandfather of Cassius 
 M., was a native of England and immigrated to 
 the United States at a very early day, settling 
 
 a6 
 
 in Crawford county, Ohio, where he took up land 
 from the government. He made his home there 
 the balance of his life, and passed away at the 
 age of eighty-four years. He was an active 
 worker in the Methodist Episcopal Qiurch and 
 filled the pulpit of that denomination in Bucyrus, 
 Ohio, being the pioneer preacher as well as 
 pioneer farmer of the locality. His son, Lemuel 
 Lane Blowers, was born on the Crawford coun- 
 ty farm, making it his home until coming over- 
 land to California in 1850. The mines were at- 
 tracting the newcomers at that time, and he 
 among many others became interested in the ^ 
 mines on the American river. Four years later 
 he took up land in Yolo county, but his death 
 the following year, 1855, when only thirty-eight 
 years old, prevented the consummation of his 
 well-laid plans. His marriage united him with 
 Caroline Foster, also a native of Ohio, and at 
 her death in 1849 she left five children, of whom 
 Cassius M. was the fourth. 
 
 Born December 20, 1845, Cassius M. Blowers 
 was only four years old when deprived of the 
 love and care of his mother. When ten years 
 of age he was brought to California by his uncle, 
 R. B. Blowers, who became a pioneer fruit 
 grower of this state, and made the first raisins 
 -produced in California. On his uncle's ranch, 
 near Woodland, Cassius M. Blowers spent his 
 boyhood days. When fifteen years old he began 
 life m new surroundings, and for the following 
 eight years was engaged in teaming to Nevada 
 and the mountain districts. His next venture 
 was farming in Yolo county, but in 1874 he 
 transferred his interests to Kings county, which 
 has ever since been his home. He purchased the 
 right to a railroad claim, paying therefor $600. 
 As previously intimated, he found the land in a 
 condition unfit for cultivation, being a sandy 
 waste, and he at once put his shoulder to the 
 wheel and assisted in the introduction of the 
 Lower Kings river. Last Chance and People's 
 ditches, which have been such a boon to Kings 
 county. In 1877 the ditches were completed, 
 and Mr. Blowers planted his farm to wheat, the 
 following year setting out a few vines. This 
 latter venture proved successful, and to Mr. 
 Blowers is given the credit for shipping in box 
 form, in 1883, the first raisins that were packed 
 in what was then Tulare county, but which is 
 now a part of Kings county. To him also is due 
 the credit for having originated the system of 
 having fruit cut by "piece work," paying cutters 
 according to the amount of fruit handled. This 
 system, which was inaugurated by Mr. Blowers 
 in 1886, has since been generally adopted by the 
 fruit growers of California. Mr. Blowers has 
 added to his holdings as opportunity permitted, 
 and now has two hundred and forty acres in the 
 home ranch, forty-eight acres being devoted to 
 
462 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 vines, seventy acres planted to peaches, apricots 
 and similar fruits, while the balance is in alfalfa 
 and grain. He also owns two hundred and fifty 
 acres in Fresno county, which is devoted to the 
 raising of stock and alfalfa, besides eighty acres 
 in the vicinity of Lemoore, which is planted to 
 fruit, vines and alfalfa. 
 
 January 19, 1875, Mr. Blowers was united in 
 marriage with Susie V. McLaughlin, a native 
 of Ohio, and they have eight children, all of 
 whom were born in Kings county on the home 
 ranch. Hulbert Lane conducts a ranch of thirty 
 acres in Kings county; Russell M. is a rancher 
 and fruit raiser, owning thirty acres given him 
 by his father; Olive G. is the wife of George 
 Blowers, who conducts a machine shop in San 
 Francisco; Francis carries on a ranch of fifty 
 acres in Fresno county which was given him by 
 his father; Bessie is the wife of Fred Arther, a 
 rancher of Fresno county ; and the three young- 
 est children, Mary, Ralph and Viola Susan, are 
 still at home with their parents. Politically Mr. 
 Blowers is a Republican, and has always taken 
 a keen interest in school affairs, having been a 
 trustee for seventeen years. For about twenty 
 years he has been president of the Last Chance 
 Ditch Corporation, and has also taken an active 
 part in the affairs of the Raisin Growers' Asso- 
 ciation. 
 
 AUGUSTUS MARION FIELD, M. D. To 
 the student of history genealogy forms a most 
 fascinating pursuit. Few vocations are more 
 alluring than to trace the lineage' of present gen- 
 erations back through the centuries of the past, 
 and it is to be regretted that the lack of printing 
 facilities in previous ages renders difficult a work 
 that presents so many features of interest. While 
 on his father's side Dr. Field finds the family 
 records incomplete and little can be learned of 
 his ancestry save that they were early and sub- 
 stantial residents of New England, fortunately 
 the record of his maternal ancestry is more ac- 
 curate and complete. His mother, who bore the 
 maiden name of Sophia Amy Hays, was born in 
 New York state, as was also her father, Corkins 
 Hays, a soldier in the war of 1812, and for years 
 a prominent farmer of Athens county, Ohio, 
 where he died at ninety-six years of age. The 
 wife of Corkins Hays was in maidenhood Amy 
 Dake, and her father, Bartlett, was a son of Bart- 
 lett Dake, Sr., whose mother was a sister of 
 George III of England and a daughter of George 
 II. The lineage of Dr. Field can thus be traced 
 back through five generations to one of the fa- 
 mous Georges of England. 
 
 Near Independence, Buchanan county, Iowa, 
 Dr. Field was born October 19, i860, being sec- 
 ond among four children who attained mature 
 
 years. His father, Orrin, was born near Athens, 
 Ohio, where the grandfather, Elisha Field, con- 
 ducted a blacksmith's shop and a farm. At an 
 early age Orrin Field learned the carpenter's 
 trade and after settling in Iowa he engaged in 
 the building business in addition to improving 
 a tract of farm land. From Iowa he went to 
 Nebraska and settled near Tecumseh and in 1881 
 came to California, where he followed the car- 
 penter's trade, as well as the occupation of an 
 apiarist. His death occurred near Lemoore, 
 Kings county, at about seventy years of age. 
 During the Civil war he served as a member of 
 an Iowa regiment and always afterward main- 
 tained a deep interest in the Grand Army of the 
 Republic. At this writing his widow makes her 
 home near Tulare. 
 
 When Augustus M. Field was a boy of nine 
 years he went to Ohio and a year later began to 
 earn his own way in the world, earning a live- 
 lihood among relatives of the family in Athens 
 county, where during his youth he learned the 
 builder's trade. In 1883 he went to Kansas and 
 secured employment at his trade first in Mc- 
 Pherson and then in Saline counties. When the 
 day's work was ended the evening hours found 
 him with books in hand, diligently endeavoring- 
 to acquire the education which had been denied 
 ' him by stress of poverty. Coming to California 
 in November, 1888, he bought a tract of land 
 near Lemoore, and laid out the property in trees 
 and vineyard, also devoted a part of the farm 
 to general products. While improving the land 
 he worked at the builder's trade as opportunity 
 offered and meanwhile also took up the study 
 of medicine under Dr. W. C. Yates of Lemoore. 
 Later he took the regular course in the Califor- 
 nia Medical College of San Francisco, from 
 which he was graduated in 1896. After some 
 professional experience gained in San Francisco, 
 he came to Tulare in March, 1897, and has en- 
 gaged since in a general practice in this city. 
 With a desire to broaden his professional knowl- 
 edge, especially along the line of his specialties 
 (diseases of women and children), he entered the 
 medical department of the University of South- 
 ern California at Los Angeles in 1902, and the 
 following year received his degree from that in- 
 stitution, making him a graduate from the two 
 leading schools of medicine. With high profes- 
 sional aims, he is not content to relinquish his 
 studies, but aspires to keep abreast with every 
 discovery in the science of materia medica. By 
 connection with the San Joaquin Valley Medical 
 Society, by the reading of current medical litera- 
 ture, by a thoughtful study of the varied forms 
 of disease and the different treatments thereof, 
 and, indeed, by every means possible to an am- 
 bitious professional man, he has endeavored to 
 attain a skill second to none in his community; 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 463 
 
 and hopes to remain a close student of therapeu- 
 tics as long as Hfe is spared. Aside from certain 
 interests in stock raising, he gives his whole at- 
 tention to his profession. While living at Le- 
 moore he married Miss Elmyra Stiles, a native 
 of San Joaquin county, this state, and, like him- 
 self, a member of the Baptist Church. The Im- 
 proved Order of Red Men and Fraternal Aid 
 number him among their members, and he is 
 further connected with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows at Tulare, having been initiated 
 into that body during his residence in Kansas, 
 where he was an active lodge worker and served 
 as noble grand. 
 
 THOMAS B. MATTHEWS. Always a be- 
 liever in the adage that "a rolling stone gathers 
 no moss," Thomas B. Matthews is an illustra- 
 tion of its truth, for he presents an example of 
 what steady and continuous effort in one chan- 
 nel of endeavor will accomplish, having devoted 
 himself solely to farm pursuits and stock rais- 
 ing. He gave this business his best thought 
 and energy, and as a reward for this singleness 
 of purpose, capable management and business 
 sagacity, he has acquired about one thousand 
 acres of land in Fresno county, Cal., mostly in 
 the vicinity of Selma, and has won an enviable 
 reputation as a successful farmer and stock 
 dealer. 
 
 Being next to the youngest in a family of 
 seven children and the only son, Mr. Matthews 
 was born June 19, 1858, in Salem, Mo. His 
 father, Ransom B. Matthews, a Kentuckian, 
 took up his residence in Missouri when he was 
 a very small child, and this continued to be his 
 home until his death in early manhood. He 
 was united in marriage with Miss Buchertt An- 
 derson, who was born in Crawford county. Mo. 
 She proved to be a worthy helpmeet, and to her 
 lot fell the rearing and educating of their fam- 
 ily, which duties she performed in an excep- 
 tional manner. Her last days were spent at 
 the home of her son, in Fresno county, Cal. 
 
 The common school education of Mr. 
 Matthews was supplemented by a more thorough 
 course in the Salem Academy, and after leav- 
 ing school he took up the occupation laid down 
 by his father, and to this business the whole 
 of the intervening years have been devoted. 
 January 10, 1879, he arrived at Kingsburg, Cal., 
 and very soon afterward engaged in farm pur- 
 suits there, renting land for two years from the 
 railroad company. In 1881 he purchased an 
 eighty acre tract one mile northeast of Selma, 
 which is now his place of residence. Here he 
 carries on farming in connection with stock rais- 
 ing, and has made a decided success of both lines 
 of business. He handles from six hundred tP 
 
 one thousand head of stock per year, and buys 
 and sells cattle at all times. Having added to 
 his possessions from time to time, he now owns 
 one thousand acres of land near Selma, also a 
 tract at Trimmer Springs, near Kings river. 
 Mr. Matthews has one hundred acres in vines 
 devoted to the raisin grape, and two hundred 
 acres in alfalfa. 
 
 By his marriage, in July, 1888, he was united 
 with Annie Allari, who was born in San Fran- 
 cisco, Cal. Two children were born of this 
 union, one died in infancy, and the other, a son. 
 Ransom, was born September 4, 1895. Mr. 
 Matthews has devoted himself exclusively to 
 business and abstained entirely from any par- 
 ticipation in public life, yet he has been a sup- 
 porter in a financial way of public movements 
 tending toward the betterment of his community. 
 As vice president of the Farmers' Bank, and a 
 stockholder of the First National Bank, he holds 
 an indisputable place of prominence among the 
 worthy citizens of Selma. He is also a director 
 of the Fresno Meat Company, and is largely in- 
 terested in the development of the lumber in- 
 dustry in Kings county. He is a Democrat in 
 politics. Fraternally he affiliates with the 
 Knights of Pythias. 
 
 JOHN D. MARTIN. A well-known resident 
 of Tulare county, John D. Martin is actively 
 identified with the advancement of its agricult- 
 ural prosperity, being the owner of two ranches 
 lying near Visalia. In the improvement of his 
 land he takes pride, and has been quite success- 
 ful. He belongs to the younger generation of 
 business men, his birth having occurred August 
 14, 1873, in Saginaw county, Mich., where his 
 father, George H. Martin, was born and reared, 
 and where his grandfather, Philip Martin, was 
 a pioneer settler. 
 
 Receiving excellent educational advantages, 
 George H. Martin was graduated from college 
 with the degree of M. D., and entered the medi- 
 cal profession. Removing to Texas in 1881 or 
 1882, he became a large land owner, and for 
 several years was actively engaged in the practice 
 of medicine, and also served as county clerk for 
 one or more terms. He subsequently practiced 
 law in Arkansas, in the Red River district, and 
 served in the state legislature, but later returned 
 to Texas, and there spent his remaining years, 
 dying in Waco. Dr. Martin married Julia Brown- 
 ing, a native of Texas, and of the children born 
 of this union two sons and two daughters are 
 living. The elder son, Powell Martin, is a 
 rancher in Texas, and John D., the youngest 
 child, is the subject of this sketch and the only 
 member of the family on the Pacific coast. The 
 mother died in T?xas, 
 
464 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Brought up in the south, John D. Martin re- 
 ceived his education in the public schools of 
 Arkansas, being afterwards graduated from the 
 high school of Waco, Texas. During the days 
 of his boyhood and youth he assisted his father 
 in raising cattle and cotton on the home planta- 
 tion, there becoming familiar with agricultural 
 pursuits. At the age of fourteen years he be- 
 gan working for the Southern Pacific Railroad, 
 in the bridge department. In 1888 Mr. Martin 
 went to New Mexico, where for a time he was 
 engaged in building flumes for the P. and I. 
 Irrigation Company. Entering then the employ 
 of the Santa Fe Railway Company, he assisted 
 in building bridges in Arizona, between Ash 
 Fork and Prescott. Coming to California in 
 May, 1892, Mr. Martin located first near Bakers- 
 field, but within a month settled near Visalia- as 
 a ranchman, working at first for wages. He 
 subsequently engaged in the wholesale wood 
 business in Tulare county, delivering wood in 
 Fresno and Bakersfield. In 1897 he embarked 
 in the wholesale and retail liquor business in 
 Visalia, where he has two stores. He is also 
 actively associated with the agricultural interests 
 of the county, having a farm of four hundred 
 and eighty acres, lying four and one-half miles 
 northeast of the city. This ranch is irrigated by 
 the Mathews ditch, in which he owns a one- 
 eighth interest, and here he raises cattle, horses 
 and hogs, and has two hundred and fifty acres 
 planted to alfalfa. His other ranch, containing 
 three _ hundred acres, lies six miles south of 
 Visalia, and is devoted to general farming. 
 
 In Fresno, Cal., Mr. Martin married Effie 
 Roadcap, a native of Texas, and they have one 
 child, John. _ Mr. Martin is a true-blue Repub- 
 lican_ in politics, never swerving from party 
 allegiance. 
 
 ALFRED H. BYARS, M. D. Through his 
 recognized skdl in the medical profession Dr. 
 Byars of Madera has added luster to an honored 
 name. His father, Gen. William Henry Byars, 
 a pioneer of the Pacific coast, has been so long 
 and intimately associated with the progress of 
 Oregon that, were his life record given in detail, 
 it would be found in many respects to be a his- 
 tory of his state. Born in Iowa, he was early 
 orphaned by his father's death. In 1852 he left 
 the surroundings of his youth to seek a home in 
 the then unknown west. In company with his 
 stepfather, Mr. Meyers, he crossed the plains 
 with ox-teams and after a tedious journey ar- 
 rived in Oregon. The land upon which the 
 family settled and where they proceeded to de- 
 velop a farm was situated near Oakland, Douglas 
 county, on the Calapooia river. There he grew 
 from youth into manhood. When Indians be- 
 
 came hostile and threatened the lives of the pio- 
 neers, he shouldered his rifle and accompanied 
 the volunteers who marched out against them. 
 During the Civil war he was a member of the 
 First Oregon Infantry. In the early days, before 
 railroads had been built, he was employed as a 
 mail carrier between Yreka and Eugene, making 
 the trips on his pony. From that work he drifted 
 into the newspaper business and became editor 
 of the Rosebwrg Plain Dealer in Douglas county. 
 Removing from that county to Salem, he was 
 elected state printer and also acquired by pur- 
 chase the Oregon States:numi, of which he was the 
 editor. For one term he served as surveyor- 
 general of Oregon. The various positions which 
 he held were filled with such recognized ability 
 and resourcefulness that he was still further 
 honored in being selected as commander of the 
 Soldiers' Home at Roseburg. After his retire- 
 ment from that office he returned to Salem, where 
 he now makes his home. While filling all of 
 these important positions, at no time did he sever 
 his connection with or his interest in the work of 
 government surveying and contracting, in which 
 he has built up a reputation for accuracy and 
 painstaking care. In the work of the Grand 
 Army of the Republic he has always taken a 
 warm interest and has been one of the leaders of 
 the organization in his state. 
 
 By his marriage to Anna Augusta, daughter of 
 Williami Slocum, General Byars became associ- 
 ated with an old Kentucky family. In 1852 Mr. 
 Slocum brought his family across the plains 
 from Kentucky, making the trip with ox-teams 
 and settling on a ranch near Myrtle Point, Coos 
 county. Ore. Later he removed to Douglas coun- 
 ty and died at Roseburg. During the Indian 
 wars his son. Clay Slocum, bore an active part 
 in quelling the hostility of the red men. General 
 and Mrs. Byars became the parents of three sons 
 and three daughters, of whom two sons and two 
 daughters are now living. Of the sons Alfred 
 H. resides in California and William' F. is editor 
 of the Goldendale Sentinel in Goldendale, Wash. 
 In point of birth Alfred H. was third among the 
 children. He was born at Wilbur, Douglas coun- 
 ty, Ore., November 8, 1872, and passed his early 
 childhood years in Roseburg, same county, but at 
 the age of eight was taken to Salem, the family 
 having removed to that city. Primarily educated 
 in the grammar schools, he was later a student 
 in the Willamette University and afterward was 
 graduated from Armstrong's Business College 
 in Portland. 
 
 On the completion of his classical studies, Dr. 
 B}ars began the study of the profession to which 
 his active life is being devoted. Under Dr. David- 
 son of Fresno, Cal., he gained a preliminary 
 knowledge of the science of materia medica in 
 1894. For a year he was a student in the medi- 
 
(JcoiA^ '^aJXLh 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 467 
 
 cal department of the University of Oregon at 
 Portland and for a similar period acted as interne 
 nurse in the Fresno county hospital. From there 
 he went to St. Louis, Mo., and took his second 
 year's course of lectures in Barnes Medical Col- 
 lege. During the summer vacation he was again 
 engaged in the Fresno county hospital, return- 
 ing in the fall to resume his studies at Barnes 
 Medical College, from which he was graduated 
 in 1898 with the degree of M. D. On his re- 
 turn to Fresno he was appointed superintendent 
 of the hospital with which he had been connected 
 previously, and continued in ' charge of the 
 institution until 1899, when he came to Madera. 
 Since opening an office in this city he has de- 
 voted his attention to his private practice and to 
 his duties as district surgeon for the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad. His home is presided over by 
 Mrs. Byars, who was Annie E. Limbaugh, a 
 native of Fresno county and of pioneer parentage. 
 Both in local and general elections Dr. Byars 
 supports the Republican ticket. Since locating 
 in Madera he has become identified with the Be- 
 nevolent Protective Order of Elks, of Fresno, and 
 was made a Mason in Madera Lodge No. 280, 
 F. & A. M., of which he served as worshipful 
 master. He is further identified with Yerba 
 Buena Lodge of Perfection No. i, of San Fran- 
 cisco, Woodmen of the World and Foresters. 
 With high ideals before him for both medicine 
 and surgery, he keeps in touch with every de- 
 velopment made in both, and, by the reading 
 of professional journals and by association with 
 the keenest intellects in the professional circles 
 of the state, his own fund of theoretical knowl- 
 edge is constantly expanding, while at the same 
 time, by means of practicd experience in the 
 conduct of intricate cases, he is constantly adding 
 to his professional information and gaining to 
 an increasing extent the confidence of the people 
 of his community. . He is a memberv of Fresno 
 County Medical Society, San Joaquin Valley 
 Medical Society, the Pacific Society of Railway 
 Surgeons and the California State Medical So- 
 ciety. 
 
 PAUL GALTES. Few residents of Bakers- 
 field have been identified with the history of the 
 town for a longer period than has Mr. Galtes. 
 When he came here in 1871 there was no rail- 
 road. Travelers journeyed to and from in the 
 old-fashioned stage coach. The desert village, 
 with its dozen or more little shanties, presented 
 an appearance far from attractive, yet with far- 
 seeing discernment he believed that success 
 awaited the efforts of those who had the forti- 
 tude and patience to endure hardships and sur- 
 mount obstacles. The experiences that have 
 since come to him prove his judgment to have 
 
 been sagacious. In establishing himself in busi- 
 ness in the town he was greatly aided by his 
 thorough knowledge of the Spanish language, 
 which enabled him to converse with the many 
 Mexicans then resident in this locality. 
 
 A native of Spain, Mr. Galtes was born in the 
 province of Catalonia, October 25, 1840, and 
 there in boyhood he became familiar with the 
 manufacture of irons for building purposes. At 
 the expiration of four years' apprenticeship at 
 this trade, when nineteen years of age, he began 
 to work as a journeyman, and in that capacity 
 traveled through many parts of Europe. In 
 1861 he crossed the ocean to Santiago de Cuba. 
 On the day of his arrival he secured employment 
 as clerk in a large dry goods store and con- 
 tinued for eight years with the same house. 
 When the people in 1868 began to raise a war 
 cry for independence he determined to leave, for 
 he did not wish to take up arms against his na- 
 tive country. For this reason he left Cuba and 
 sailed for Panama, thence proceeding by ship to 
 San Francisco, where he landed December 23, 
 1868. The appearance of the country pleased 
 him, but he found himself at great disad- 
 vantage- on account of hi^ lack of familiarity 
 with the English language. On the advice of 
 Archbishop Alamany of San Francisco, who 
 had come from the same Spanish province as 
 himself, he determined to devote some time to 
 study, and accordingly entered St. Vincent's 
 College in Los Angeles, where he devoted four 
 months to language study. At the expiration of 
 that time he secured employment in a bakery in 
 Los Angeles. During the erection of the then 
 leading hotel of the city he aided in the work and 
 on its completion he was appointed steward, 
 having charge of all the supplies. He went to 
 work without asking what his salary was to be. 
 After three months he was paid at the rate of 
 $75 per month. During the fourteen months he 
 continued in the position he carefully hoarded 
 his earnings and when he left there for Bakers- 
 field he had a small sum as a nucleus of his 
 business enterprises. 
 
 Immediately after his arrival, in 1871, Mr. 
 Galtes bought one of the shanties that were then 
 utilized for business purposes. By the payment 
 of a small sum he was enabled to secure the 
 privilege of paying the balance in installments. 
 With $600 worth of goods he began in business. 
 Such was his success that by good management 
 and having established a good credit in 1874 he 
 had accumulated $27,000 in general merchandise. 
 In 1878 he erected, at a cost of $18,000, the first 
 brick block in Bakersfield, and there he con- 
 ducted general mercantile pursuits until 1888, 
 when he sold out and retired from business. 
 Since then he has given his attention to the man- 
 agement of his numerous property interests and 
 
468 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to the cultivation of his raisin vineyard of fifty- 
 five acres. In all of his work he has received the 
 co-operation of his wife, whom he married in 
 1874 and who was Mariana Laxague, a native 
 of France near the Spanish border. Seven chil- 
 dren were born of their union, but only four at- 
 tained mature years. The eldest of these, Paul 
 F., is studying in Santa Clara College, with a 
 view to entering the Jesuit priesthood. The 
 younger son, Felix J., a graduate of Santa Clara 
 College, is now a clerk in the Bank of Bakers- 
 field. The daughters, Amelia and Lucy, are 
 students in the Convent of the Sacred Heart at 
 Oakland, Cal. On the incorporation of the city 
 of Bakersfield Mr. Galtes was elected a trustee, 
 receiving a larger number of votes than any other 
 candidate on the ticket, and during his incum- 
 bency of the office he rendered valuable assist- 
 ance in promoting movements for the benefit of 
 the town. Though loyal to the land of his adop- 
 tion, he had never displayed a partisan spirit 
 nor has he taken an active part in political affairs, 
 his preference having been to devote himself 
 wholly to his business enterprises. His greatest 
 desire is to see the young men of the country 
 build and own their own homes, realizing the im- 
 portance and influence it will have upon the com- 
 ing generations. 
 
 JOHN M. HENSLEY. Although not a na- 
 tive of California, the earliest recollections of Mr. 
 Hensley are associated with scenes in this then 
 frontier region. When he was a child of three 
 years his father, J. J. Hensley, who prior to that 
 year (1853) had been a farmer in Missouri, 
 brought his wife and six children across the 
 plains in wagons drawn by eight cows. The fam- 
 ily followed the northern route via Salt Lake City 
 and the Humboldt river to Calaveras county, 
 where they established their home. After having 
 devoted some years to mining without favorable 
 results, in 1859 ^"^^^ Hensley moved to Tulare 
 county and embarked in the cattle business. Dur- 
 ing the fall of 1861 he settled on the Fresno river 
 in what was then Fresno (now Madera) county, 
 where he purchased a tract of raw land and gave 
 his attention to the stock industry. On the Dem- 
 ocratic ticket he was elected supervisor of Fresno 
 county and filled the ofifice for one term. His 
 death occurred on Qiristmas day of 1902. ■ In 
 early manhood he had married Margaret Murray, 
 who was born and reared in Missouri and died in 
 Madera county, October 11, 1898. Her father, 
 Hon. Thomas Murray, was active in the public 
 affairs of Missouri and at one time served as a 
 member of the legislature of that state. When the 
 Hensley family crossed the plains in 1853 he ac- 
 companied them and settled at Petaluma, near 
 which town he engaged in farm pursuits. His 
 
 death occurred at Santa Rosa when he was ad- 
 vanced in years. 
 
 In the family of J. J. Hensley there were nine 
 children, of whom one daughter died at five years 
 of age. The others are as follows : Thomas J., 
 a stockman in Madera county; Samuel P., who 
 resides near Raymond, same county ; A. H., who 
 resides at the old home ; J. M., of Madera; W. C, 
 who remains at the old home farm; P. J., who 
 lives in Fresno county ; G. W., a resident of the 
 city of Fresno; and Martha A., who is married 
 and lives in Madera county. John M. Hensley 
 was born in Cass county. Mo., November 10, 
 1850, and at three years of age was brought to 
 California, passing his early childhood years in 
 Calaveras county. In 1859 he accompanied the 
 family to Tulare county and from there in 1861 
 moved with them to the Fresno river, six miles 
 from Raymond. When eight years of age he be- 
 gan to help his father on the farm and from that 
 time forward spent much of his time in the sad- 
 dle. 
 
 Starting out to earn his own livelihood at six- 
 teen years of age, Mr. Hensley secured employ- 
 ment with Jonathan Rae, a sheep-raiser. About 
 1870 he made his first independent venture by 
 starting out in the sheep business for himself. 
 On six hundred and forty acres situated at Wood- 
 ville, Tulare county, he established a sheep ranch, 
 which he conducted until the memorable dry year 
 of 1877. The drought caused a loss of eight 
 thousand head out of nine thousand and five hun- 
 dred and so injured him financially that he sold 
 out the balance of the flock. Returning to his 
 old home, he secured several contracts from Fres- 
 no county for keeping up the old Buchanan road 
 and for five years served as constable of Madera 
 township. Meanwhile he bore an active part in 
 Democratic politics and his services were recog- 
 nized by his party in 1888, at which timahe was 
 nominated by them for the ofifice of county sher- 
 iff. In the election he won by a majority of about 
 five hundred and in January, 1889, took the oath 
 of office, at the same time removing to Fresno to 
 assume tl^e management of the work. 
 
 At the expiration of his term of two years he 
 was honored by re-election to the office with a 
 larger majority than before, and continued in the 
 position until January, 1893. In those days the 
 sheriff's office brought unusual responsibilities 
 and even perils, for the Daltons were here and 
 the Sontag and Evans gang were committing con- 
 stant depredations. With no small satisfaction 
 Mr. Hensley succeeded in arresting Grant Dal- 
 ton in Fresno, but he escaped after having been 
 put in the Tulare county jail. The officers of the 
 law pursued him into the mountains, where, in an 
 exchange of shot between them and the desperado, 
 Mr. Hensley's deputy almost lost his life. The 
 Daltons were chased out of this county and went 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 469 
 
 to Oklahoma, where they and others of their type 
 were the terrors of that territory until finally they 
 were killed at Coffeyville, Kan. 
 
 On the expiration of his second term as sher- 
 iff Mr. Hensley returned his attention to the 
 sheep business. The prosecution of this industry 
 took him into Wyoming, Montana and other parts 
 of the west, where he jjought and sold in large 
 numbers. After carrying on the business for 
 three and a half years he returned to Madera, 
 in November, 1902, and resumed his residence in 
 this city, which he has considered his home since 
 1885. The position which he now holds, that of 
 under sheriiif, he received by appointment in Jan- 
 uary, 1903. In rehgion he is an active member 
 of the Presbyterian Church and one of its trus- 
 tees. The lady who became his wife in Wood- 
 ville, Cal., and who has since been his efficient co- 
 laborer and counselor, was Harriett R. Monroe, 
 a native of Missouri. Born of their union are 
 five children, namely : Etta, Mrs. A. L. Sayer, 
 of Fresno ; Walter J., of Madera ; Irving, who is 
 in northern California ; and Arthur and Rea, who 
 are with their parents in Madera. 
 
 JAMES J. SWEENEY. A representative citi- 
 zen of Los Banos, James J. Sweeney is owner of 
 a ranch of eighty-six acres adjoining the city, 
 upon which he conducts a dairy, having from 
 sixty to eighty cows, mostly Jersey, Durham and 
 Shorthorn stock. His dairy is equipped with a 
 separator, and upon the land he has erected ample 
 accommodations for his stock. He ships cream 
 to San Francisco and operates a milk wagon in 
 Los Banos to supply his patrons daily. His en- 
 tire life has been passed in the state in which he 
 now conducts business. He was born in San 
 Francisco May 12, 1861, and since has owed alle- 
 giance to the institutions and opportunities of the 
 coast. His parents, Daniel and Catherine (Lom- 
 bard) Sweeney, were born in county Roscom- 
 mon, Ireland. His father was a tailor by trade, 
 and in early manhood immigrated to Sydney, 
 Australia, where he plied his trade until 1849. 
 Setting sail for San Francisco, he arrived in Cali- 
 fornia during the fall of that year, but instead of 
 going to the mines he engaged in a draying busi- 
 ness in the embryo metropolis. A shrewd and 
 sagacious manager, he accumulated quite a for- 
 tune in valuable town property, but like many 
 other men, became the victim of adverse circum- 
 stances, and lost practically all that he had at- 
 tained. His death occurred at the age of fifty- 
 eight years, his wife having died several years 
 before, aged forty-eight. Three of the four chil- 
 dren in the family attained maturity, and of these, 
 Patrick is a barber in Dos Palos, and Garrat C. 
 is a contracting plumber, steam and gas fitter in 
 San Francisco. 
 
 J. J. Sweeney is a graduate of St. Mary's Col- 
 lege, San Francisco, and for a time was book- 
 keeper and apprentice to his brother, G. C, learn- 
 ing the gas fitter's trade. In 1884 he located in 
 Hills Ferry and learned the barber trade under 
 his brother Patrick, and when the town of New- 
 man was started he established its first barber 
 shop. For three years he was thus employed, and 
 in 1890 came to Los Banos and started the first 
 barber shop in this town. Nine years later, in 
 1899, he disposed of his shop in order to devote 
 all of his time to ranching, having begun to raise 
 sheep in the foothills in 1894. Later he bought 
 four hundred and eighty; acres of land thirteen 
 miles southwest of Los Banos, known as the 
 Aqua Fria ranch, which he still owns. A few 
 years ago he disposed of his sheep to engage 
 solely in dair3'ing, and his present gratifying suc- 
 cess would seem to warrant the wisdom of his de- 
 cision at that time. His knowledge of sheep- 
 raising is extensive and thorough, and this ability 
 found recognition in 1903 when he was appointed 
 by the board of supervisors as inspector of sheep 
 for Merced county. He is a Democrat in politics, 
 and is a member of Mountain Brow Lodge No. 
 82, I. O. O. F., of Los Banos, of which he is past 
 grand ; he is also past district deputy grand. Mrs. 
 Sweeney is a member and past grand of the 
 Rebekahs. 
 
 The married life of Mr. Sweeney has been a 
 particularly happy one. Mrs. Sweeney was 
 formerly Clara Hoffman, and was born in Alamo, 
 Cal., a daughter of Henrv and Elizabeth (Korn- 
 man) Hoffman, natives of Baden and Hesse- 
 Darmstadt, Germany, respectively. Henry Hoff- 
 man came ar9und the Horn from New York in 
 1852, and started a restaurant business in San 
 Francisco. Eventually he drifted into the mer- 
 cantile and hotel business in Alamo. In 1870 he 
 came to Dutch Corners, and built the first hotel 
 in what is now Newman. Here he also conducted 
 a butcher business, later removing to Stockton, 
 where he engaged in the sheep business on a part 
 of the Aqua Fria ranch, having as many as 
 twenty-five thousand head of sheep. Mr. Hoff- 
 man built the first hotel in old Los Banos, then 
 known as Dogtown, ran a hotel and butcher busi- 
 ness for several years, then returned to sheep 
 raising on his ranch. He next ran a hotel on the 
 old San Luis ranch for ten years, but finally re- 
 turned to Los Banos, where his death occurred in 
 February, 1892, at the age of fifty-six years. He 
 was a Democrat in politics, and in religion a 
 Lutheran. There were three daughters and one 
 son in his family : Caroline, now Mrs. Gysin ; 
 E. H., a plumber by occupation ; Qara, now Mrs. 
 Sweeney; and Anna, the wife of Bernard Orog- 
 nen, of this vicinity. Mrs. Sweeney is an artist 
 of more than local reputation, is also expert with 
 the needle, embroidering with exquisite neatness 
 
4T0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and coloring, and for many years has been at 
 work upon a silk quilt of varied design, which, 
 when completed, will be a wonder of workman- 
 ship and design. The practical things are hap- 
 pily allied with the artistic in the nature of Mrs. 
 Sweeney, for she understands stock-raising and 
 farming, and is her husband's ablest assistant and 
 most earnest sympathizer. 
 
 THOMAS J. AKERS. A skillful agricultur- 
 ist and fruit grower, Thomas J. Akers is carry- 
 ing on a substantial business in his particular line 
 of industry, his finely cultivated ranch lying four 
 and one-half miles northwest of Visalia. He has 
 been very successful in his methods of farming, 
 and as a grain and peach raiser has gained an 
 enviable reputation throughout this section of 
 the county. From a twelve-acre orchard, in the 
 season of 1904, he hauled one hundred eigh- 
 teen thousand eight hundred pounds of peaches 
 to the cannery, and these were conceded to 
 be the finest delivered to any of the canneries 
 belonging to the California Fruit Canneries as- 
 sociation, some of the fruit being by actual meas- 
 urement four inches in diameter. A native of 
 Pennsylvania, he was born in Wayne county, 
 twenty-two miles south of Honesdale, August 12, 
 1844. His father, John M. Akers, settled in 
 Wayne county when a young man, removing 
 there from Monroe county, where he was born 
 and brought up. In earlier life he followed the 
 trade of a blacksmith, but was afterward eii- 
 gaged in farming until his death, at an advanced 
 age. 'He married Mary Jane Nevins, who spent 
 her entire life in Wayne county. Fifteen chil- 
 dren were born of their union, twelve of whom 
 grew to years of maturity, and of these eight are 
 now living, three sons and one daughter being 
 residents of California, namely : Mrs. Mary Ann 
 Heberling, of Visalia ; R. J., living with his broth- 
 er, T. J. ; Joseph, a blacksmith in Dinuba ; and T. 
 J., the special subject of this sketch. 
 
 Brought up on a farm, and educated in the 
 district schools, T. J. Akers remained in his na- 
 tive county until after becoming of age. Start- 
 ing for the Pacific coast in 1866, he sailed from 
 New York City to Aspinwall on the Ocean Queen 
 and from Panama to San Francisco on the Gold- 
 en Age. At San Jose he formed a partnership 
 with Billy Fitch, and established the first 'bus 
 line between that city and Santa Clara, giving his 
 patrons a thirty-minute service, in order to do 
 which he kept thirty-two horses. At the end of 
 eight years, in 1874, he sold out to a Mr. Millard, 
 giving up the stage business on account of the 
 rheumatism, which he had contracted by night 
 work and the heavy fogs. For two years after- 
 ward Mr. Akers was unable to do any work. 
 In 1878 he came to Visalia, at the time being un- 
 
 able to put on his coat without help, and hired 
 out to a friend, Mr. Burrell, to ride the lines on 
 horseback and keep up the fences. His health 
 immediately began to improve, and within three 
 months he had recovered the use of his left arm, 
 and began driving a six-horse team on the plow. 
 Mr. Akers continued thus employed for eighteen 
 months, and subsequently worked for other stock- 
 men for eleven months. 
 
 Wishing to estabHsh a home of his own, Mr. 
 Akers, in 1881, purchased one hundred and six- 
 ty acres of land, now included in his present 
 home farm, lying four and one-half miles north- 
 west of Visalia. Beginning at the very bottom, 
 he broke it out, cleared the land, and sowed it 
 to grain, being then the farthest removed from 
 Visalia of any grain-raiser. Plowing deep for his 
 first crop, he harvested twenty-two sacks to the 
 acre, a most satisfactory yield. Meeting with en- 
 couraging success, he subsequently bought forty 
 acres of adjoining land, having now two hun- 
 dred acres in his home ranch, which is sub-irri- 
 gated from the St. John's river. He is also a 
 stockholder in the Modoc Ditch Company. He 
 raises grain, alfalfa, cattle and hogs, his farm 
 being one of the most productive in the vicin- 
 ity, and his estate, on which he erected a fine resi- 
 dence in 1899, being one of the most attractive 
 and pleasant. 
 
 In San Jose, Mr. Akers married Mary G. Al- 
 len, a native of San Francisco, and they have 
 two children living, namely : Mrs. Qara Hous- 
 man of Visalia; and Mabel, at home. Mr. Akers 
 takes a keen interest in public affairs, and for 
 three terms of four years each has served as 
 school trustee in the Willow district. In his po- 
 litical beliefs he is a Democrat. While living in 
 Pennsylvania he joined the Odd Fellows, and is 
 now a member of San Jose Lodge, I. 0- O. F. 
 
 DEMETRIUS J. PRATHER, M. D. Al- 
 though a comparatively new resident of Bakers- 
 field, Demetrius J. Prather, M. D., has already 
 acquired a fair share of the medical patronage of 
 this locality, and is numbered among the most 
 skillful and successful physicians and surgeons of 
 Kern county. Talented, cultured and broadened 
 by travel and experience, he inspires a feeling 
 of confidence in those with whom he is brought 
 in contact, whether professionally or socially. A 
 son of Thomas F. Prather, he was born Septem- 
 ber II, 1849, near Columbus, Ga. He comes 
 from honored southern stock, being, according 
 to tradition, the descendant of one of three 
 brothers named Prather, who emigrated from 
 England to the United States in colonial times, 
 and settled in Maryland. His paternal grand- 
 father, Thomas Prather, a life-long resident of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 473 
 
 Georgia, was a planter of prominence, and an 
 influential citizen. 
 
 A native of Wilkes county, Ga., Thonias F. 
 Prather was the owner of a large plantation, and 
 kept many slaves. During the Civil war he was 
 captain of a company of militia in the Confeder- 
 ate army, and served thrcatghout the entire con- 
 flict, being neither wounded nor taken prisoner, 
 and at the close of the war surrendered. Prior 
 to the breaking out of the war, he had sold his 
 plantation, expecting to come west, and had taken 
 his pay in Confederate money, which was worth- 
 less when the war was over. Beginning life 
 anew in 1865, he rented a farm in Georgia, where 
 for a number of years he raised cotton. Moving 
 then to Union Springs, Ala., he there spent his 
 remaining days, dying at the early age of fifty 
 years, in 1873. He married Harriet Brown, also 
 a native of Wilkes county, Ga. She was left an 
 orphan when a little girl, and was brought up 
 and educated by Gen. Robert Toombs, her first 
 cousin. She died when about fifty years old. 
 She bore her husband five children, namely: 
 Gabriella T., wife of William Rankin, of Florida; 
 Julius T., an invalid, residing in Fresno county, 
 this state, was an officer in the Georgia State 
 Reserve Militia during the war of the Rebellion ; 
 Anderson T., who died in 1883, aged thirty-five 
 years, served with his brother Julius in the 
 Georgia State Reserve Militia, and both served 
 as guards at Andersonville prison ; Demetrius 
 J., the subject of this sketch, and Oscar, who died 
 at the age of twenty-one years. 
 
 Spending the days of liis boyhood on the home 
 plantation, Demetrius J. Prather attended the 
 village school and academy, laying a substantial 
 foundation for his future education. His parents 
 having lost their entire property, he was forced 
 to work hard to earn his living, and for a while 
 was employed in agricultural pursuits. When 
 twenty-one years old he became clerk in a drug 
 store, and also read medicine for a year. Going 
 then to Mobile, Ala., he attended lectures at the 
 Mobile Medical College, after which he was 
 licensed to practice on a large plantation among 
 the negroes, thus earning suificient money to 
 complete his medical course. Subsequently enter- 
 ing the Louisville Medical College, he was gradu- 
 ated with the degree of M. D. in the spring of 
 1876, and for the following seven years was en- 
 gaged in the practice of his profession in Pres- 
 cott. Ark. In 1883 Dr. Prather took a post-grad- 
 uate course at the New York Polyclinic, and then 
 opened an office in Little Rock, Ark., where he 
 remained three years. Going again to New York 
 City, he took a second post-graduate course at 
 the same school in 1886. He then went abroad, 
 and for a year studied in Vienna, Austria. Re- 
 turning to Little Rock, he continued in active 
 practice there one year, and then made another 
 
 trip to Vienna, where he again studied, giving 
 special attention to__surgery and obstetrics. From 
 1890 until 1897 he was one of the leading phy- 
 sicians of Little Rock, Ark., but was forced on 
 account of ill health tO' seek a more favorable 
 cHmate. Coming thence to California, Dr. Prather 
 remained in Los Angeles six months, and then 
 located in Oakland, where he remained in active 
 practice until February, 1901. Coming to Bakers- 
 field at that time, the doctor has since been in 
 continuous practice here, and has been very suc- 
 cessful, his specialty being diseases of women, 
 in which he exhibits rare skill. 
 
 In 1879 Dr. Prather married Gertrude Mere- 
 dith, who died six months after their marriage. 
 Politically he is a straightforward Democrat, and 
 while a resident of Arkansas took a prominent 
 part in public affairs. He was surgeon-general 
 of the state for six years. Fraternally he is a 
 member of the Benevolent Protective Order of 
 Elks. He also belongs to the American Medical 
 Association', to the Alameda County Medical As- 
 sociation and to the Kern County Medical As- 
 sociation. Dr. Prather is a man of good financial 
 ability, and ,has acquired considerable valuable 
 property, owning a ranch in Fresno county, and 
 real estate in Bakersfield. 
 
 HON. MIRABEAU DALLAS WOOD. Ac- 
 tive, enterprising, and of great business aptitude 
 and talent, Hon. Mirabeau D. Wood holds high 
 rank among the prominent citizens of Merced, 
 and is ever among the foremost to forward all 
 projects conducive to the public welfare. He 
 is a man of solid worth, and his intelligence and 
 abilities have met with due recognition from hie 
 fellow-men, who have elected him to many pub- 
 lic positions of importance, in all of which he 
 has served with credit to himself and to the 
 honor of his constitutents. A son of the late 
 Igdaliah Wood, he was born May 22, 1846, in 
 Gadsden county, Fla. He comes of English 
 ancestry, his paternal great-grandfather having 
 emigrated from England to the United States 
 in colonial times, becoming a settler of South 
 Carolina. 
 
 Born and reared in South Carolina, Igdaliah 
 Wood was educated for the law, and after his 
 admission to the bar was for some time engaged 
 in the practice of his profession in his native 
 state. Subsequently removing to Florida, he 
 purchased a plantation, and was there engaged 
 in agricultural and horticultural pursuits until 
 his death, at the age of seventy-two years. He 
 was a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted 
 Masons, and belonged to the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. He married Eliza Dixon, who was 
 born in South Carolina, which was also the 
 birthplace of her father, Abel Dixon, a farmer 
 
474 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and a soldier in the war of 1812. Her Grand- 
 father Dixon, who was of Scotch descent, served 
 in the Revolutionary war. Of the thirteen chil- 
 dren born of their union, twelve grew to years 
 of maturity, and four of the sons served in the 
 Confederate army. The mother died in Florida, 
 on the home plantation. 
 
 The youngest of the family of thirteen chil- 
 dren, Mirabeau D. Wood, grew to man's estate 
 on the home farm, receiving his education at 
 private schools, and in Mount Pleasant Academy. 
 In 1863 he enlisted in Company K, Sixth Florida 
 Confederate Volunteer Infantry, as a private, 
 and being assigned to General Bragg's division, 
 served in many engagements in Kentucky and 
 Tennessee, covering the retreat of the soldiers 
 out of Kentucky after the battle of Perryville, 
 and being at the front in the battle of Missionary 
 Ridge, Lookout Mountain and Chickamauga. 
 Subsequently taking part in the Georgia cam- 
 paign, he was commissioned second lieutenant, 
 and at the engagement at Kenesaw Mountain 
 had charge of Company F, whose officers had 
 nearly all been killed. July 22, at Peachtree, 
 Lieutenant Wood was captured and sent as a 
 prisoner to Johnson's Island, where he remained 
 until paroled the following spring, when he re- 
 turned to his Florida home. 
 
 In 1866 Mr. Wood became superintendent of 
 a saw mill, a position that he retained two years. 
 In 1868, at the age of twenty-one years, he was 
 elected state senator, representing Washington 
 and Holmes counties in the Florida senate. Re- 
 signing the senatorship at the close of the ses- 
 sion, he started for California, and arrived in 
 Sonoma county October 22, 1868, the day of the 
 big earthquake. The same fall Mr. Wood be- 
 gan farming in Stanislaus county. Removing to 
 Merced county in the spring of 1869, he bought 
 six hundred acres of land on Bear creek, near 
 Merced, and for ten years was successfully em- 
 ployed in farming and stock-raising. Going then 
 to Sonoma county, he completed the course in 
 the normal school at Santa Rosa, where he also 
 taught school for some time. 
 
 Returning to Merced in 1882, Mr. Wood 
 served as deputy county assessor for a year, 
 and in the fall of 1882 was nominated on the 
 Democratic ticket for county treasurer. Being 
 elected, he served most ably for two years, when 
 he was re-elected for another term of two years, 
 and served, in all, from January, 1883, until 
 January, 1887. Being then elected county as- 
 sessor, he filled the office with eminent satisfac- 
 tion until January, 1891. The ensuing two years 
 he was engaged in the grocery business. In 
 February, 1893, being appointed by the board of 
 supervisors as superintendent of Merced County 
 Hospital, he served until February, 1897, giving 
 his entire attention to the duties of his office. 
 
 Embarking then in the grain business, Mr. Wood 
 was first bookkeeper for the firm of Balfour, 
 Guthrie & Co., in Merced, but was soon after- 
 ward made their agent, and in this capacity has 
 since had entire control of their grain buying, 
 warehouse, lands, etc., in Merced county. He 
 is also carrying on a substantial insurance busi- 
 ness, representing the Caledonian and the Fire 
 Association of Philadelphia. 
 
 In Merced county Mr. Wood married Annie 
 Rucker, who was born in Missouri, a daughter of 
 A. G. Rucker, and died in Sonoma county, Cal. 
 She bore him three children, namely : George 
 Marvin, who died in Merced ; Lou, wife of Bert 
 Crane, of Turlock, Cal.; and Jesse D., engaged 
 in business with his father, having charge of 
 the shipping department. For his second wife 
 Mr. Wood married, in Sonoma county, Maron 
 L. England, who was born in Missouri, but 
 reared and educated in Sonoma county, where 
 her father was a pioneer settler. Seven children 
 have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Wood, 
 namely: Bessie, Dallas England, Marjorie, 
 Barton Dixon, Kenneth Eugene, Carol and Mel- 
 ville. Politically Mr. Wood has always been ac- 
 tively identified with the Democratic party. He 
 was a member and the president of the first 
 board of trustees of Merced, and for one term 
 was a member of the County Board of Educa- 
 tion. He IS a member of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church South and one of its trustees. 
 
 EDWARD GEORGE BURTON. Promi- 
 nent among the substantial and successful agri- 
 culturists of Tulare county is Edward George 
 Burton, of Visalia, a man of more than average 
 ability and business judgment. From a long line 
 of New England ancestors he has inherited those 
 sterling traits of industry, honesty and thrift 
 that are sure to bring success to the possessor, 
 and win for him the respect and regard of his 
 fellowmen. By persevering effort and diligent 
 use of his native talents he has acquired a goodly 
 share of this world's goods and obtained an as- 
 sured position in the community in which he 
 resides. A son of the late Asa Burton, he was 
 born in Barton, Orleans county, Vt, January 2, 
 1835, and there spent his boyhood days. 
 
 Asa Burton was born in Norwich, \T., and 
 when a young man was there eng"aged in busi- 
 ness as a clothier. Removing to Barton, Orleans 
 county, he purchased land, and for a few years 
 lived there as a farmer. Removing to- Iowa in 
 1846, he settled near Fort Madison, Lee county, 
 as a pioneer, and for three years carried on gen- 
 eral farming. On hearing the glowing reports 
 of the discovery of gold in California he came 
 with the "forty-niners" to this state, and for 
 nineteen months worked in the mines. Becoming 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 475 
 
 ill, he returned to Iowa in 1851, and .nine days 
 after arriving home died from fever contracted 
 in Panama. He married Minerva Beach, who 
 was born in Rochester, N. Y., and died in Iowa 
 in 1886. She bore him twelve children, eleven 
 of whom grew to years of maturity, and six of 
 whom are now living, Edward George, the 
 seventh child in order of birth, being the only 
 one on the Pacific coast. 
 
 Removing with his parents to Lee county, Iowa, 
 when eleven years old, Edward George Burton 
 obtained his education in the district school 
 and at the Denmark Academy. In the pioneer 
 labor of clearing a farm he assisted his father, 
 remaining at home until attaining his majority. 
 He subsequently taught in the district schools 
 winters, and farmed summers, for four years, 
 after which he began farming on his own account 
 near Denmark, Iowa. Coming to Tulare county 
 in 1885, Mr. Burton bought a ranch of seventy 
 acres lying three miles northwest of Visalia, and 
 here continued in agricultural pursuits. Sub- 
 sequently taking up a homestead claim on White 
 river, fourteen miles south of Portersville, he re- 
 sided there nearly four years, during which time 
 he improved a valuable ranch. This estate he 
 still owns, but rents it. On account of sickness 
 while there he returned to his original estate, 
 near Visalia, and has since made this his home. 
 He is largely engaged in stock-raising, breeding 
 cattle, sheep and hogs, and raises large quan- 
 tities of grain, grass and alfalfa, one half of his 
 ranch being sowed to the latter crop. He is in- 
 terested in the Modoc Ditch Company, and can 
 irrigate his entire farm, although, being sub-ir- 
 rigated, it does not need flooding. 
 
 In Lee county, Iowa, Mr. Burton married Miss 
 Mary Jane Wren, who was born in Quincy, 
 Adams county. 111., the daughter of Daniel Wren, 
 a well-known farmer. Mrs. Burton is a woman 
 of culture, and prior to her marriage was a 
 school teacher. Mr. and Mrs. Burton are the 
 parents of two children, namely : Mrs. Edith 
 Weston, living near Visalia ; and Arthur, a 
 farmer, residing near this city. Politically. Mr. 
 Burton is actively identified with the Republican 
 party, and is a member of the County Republican 
 Central Committee. Fraternally he belongs to 
 the Iridependent Order of Odd Fellows and to 
 the Knights of Pythias. Mrs. Burton is a valued 
 and consistent member of the Christian Church. 
 
 CHARLES H. KINKLER. Among the pros- 
 perous and respected farmers and stockmen of 
 Tulare county is numbered Charles H. Kinkier, 
 of Visalia, a man of energy and ability, who is 
 now giving his entire attention to agricultural 
 pursuits. Although a skilled electrician and en- 
 gineer, he prefers the free and independent voca- 
 
 tion in which he is now engaged, and takes great 
 pride and pleasure in the management of his 
 ranch, which bears visible evidence of his in- 
 dustry, thrift and enterprise. He comes of ex- 
 cellent German ancestry, and was born in Phila- 
 delphia, Pa., March 29, 1866, a son of John Kink- 
 ier. 
 
 Emigrating from Germany, his native land, 
 to the United States, John Kinkier settled in 
 Philadelphia as a thinner and currier. He sub- 
 sequently established a tannery in Quakertown, 
 Bucks county. Pa., where he resided several 
 years. Coming to California in 1882, he settled 
 in San Francisco, and there operated a tannery 
 on the old Mission road. Returning east, he died 
 at Atlantic City, N. J., at the age of seventy- 
 eight years. He married Elenore Seneff, who 
 was born in Germany, and is now a resident of 
 Atlantic City, N. J. Two sons and three daugh- 
 ters blessed their union, and, with the exception 
 of one daughter, all are living. 
 
 The youngest child of the parental household, 
 Charles H. Kinkier was brought up and educat- 
 ed in Philadelphia, attending the public schools 
 of that city. From his boyhood he assisted his 
 father in the tannery, and for three years after 
 coming to California was similarly employed. 
 The following three years he was employed as 
 fireman on the steamboats of the bay and river. 
 Returning then to land pursuits, Mr. Kinkier was 
 for awhile chief engineer and electrician in the 
 Chronicle building, San Francisco, and was after- 
 ward connected with the Edison General Elec- 
 trical company as electrician until it was consol- 
 idated with the new organization under the name 
 of the General Electric company. Under the new 
 management, Mr. Kinkier continued in the same 
 position, and installed plants in different parts of 
 the state. In 1893 he came to Visalia as man- 
 ager and superintendent of the company's plant, 
 and served in that capacity for six years, when 
 the plant was sold to the Mount Whitney Power 
 Company. 
 
 Retiring from the electrical business in 1898, 
 Mr. Kinkier began ranching on the Andrew Har- 
 rell place, and has met with success in his un- 
 dertakings. Here he farms two hundred and for- 
 ty acres of land, all under irrigation, and has one 
 hundred and thirty-five acres sowed to alfalfa. 
 He carries on general farming, devoting con- 
 siderable attention to dairying, for which his 
 ranch is admirably adapted, and has a good-bear- 
 ing orchard of twenty acres. His farm is one of 
 the best improved in the county, and his machin- 
 ery is of the most approved modern construc- 
 tion. He has put in a pumping plant, with a 
 steam engine of eight-horse power, with which 
 he runs his silo, does his pumping and grinding, 
 besides using it for domestic purposes. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Kinkier married Mary 
 
476 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Riordan, a native of that city, and they have six 
 children, Elenore, Ethel, Charles H., Fern, May 
 and Cleon. Politically Mr. Kinkier is a stanch 
 Republican, and an influential member of the 
 County Republican Central Committee. Frater- 
 nally he is very prominent in Masonic circles, and 
 belongs to Visalia Lodge No. 128, F. & A. M. ; 
 to Visalia Chapter Noi. 44, R. A. M., of which 
 he is past high priest ; to Visalia Commandery No. 
 28, K. T., of which he is generalissimo ; to Islam 
 Temple, N. M. S., of San Francisco; and is a 
 charter member of Visalia Lodge of Perfection 
 No. 9. 
 
 JOHN L. CARSON, M. D., and EMMA M. 
 (NEWCOMER) CARSON, M. D. The med- 
 ical profession of Bakersfield, Kern county, has 
 among its able representatives John L. Carson, 
 M..D., a physician of skill and acknowledged abil- 
 ity, and his talented wife, Emma M. (Newcomer) 
 Carson, M.D., who has recently obtained her 
 degree, and become actively associated with her 
 husband in his practice. 
 
 A native of Illinois, John L. Carson was born 
 in Washburn, Woodford county, and after com- 
 pleting the course of study in the grammar and 
 high schools was graduated from Eureka College. 
 He was subsequently employed as a clerk in 
 drug stores in different places in Illinois and 
 Kansas, and for two and one-half years was in 
 business for himself as a druggist in Conway 
 Springs, Kans. Going then to Chicago, 111., he 
 studied at Rush Medical College for a year, after 
 which he was in business in Mobile, Ala., for 
 a year, as a pharmacist. Having to leave the 
 south on account of ill health, Mr. Carson came 
 to California, locating in Los Angeles, where he 
 attended medical lectures a year. Returi^ing to 
 Chicago, he then went to St. Joseph, Mo., where 
 he was graduated from the Northwestern Med- 
 ical College in 1894. Beginning the practice of 
 his profession in Oakland, Cal., Dr. Carson re- 
 mained there six months, and was afterward in 
 Livermore, Alameda county, two years. In 1896 
 he reinoved to Bakersfield, and has here built 
 np a lucrative patronage, his success having been 
 assured from the first. He has a large general 
 practice, and is also surgeon for the Santa Fe 
 Railway Company at this place. He is very 
 active in numerous medical associations, includ- 
 ing the following named : the Anierican, the San 
 Joaquin valley, the Kern County, the California 
 State and the International Railway Surgeons' 
 Association. 
 
 August 12, 1889, in Los Angeles, Dr. John L. 
 Carson married Emma M. Newcomer, who was 
 born in Vanwert, Ohio, the daughter of a promi- 
 nent merchant and capitalist. Her mother, who 
 was the daughter of a physician of note, and 
 
 had three .brothers that were practicing physi- 
 cians, was herself a graduate of both the old 
 school and the homeopathic medical colleges, 
 but never practiced medicine. Miss Newcomer 
 was graduated from the Vanwert high school, 
 and from her earliest days had greatly desired 
 to study medicine. In 1885, on account of her 
 health, she came to Los Angeles, and soon after 
 began to read medicine. Owing to the urgent 
 solicitations of her friends, she dropped the study 
 for awhile, but resumed it in the winter of 1888 
 and 1889. In the fall of 1893 Mrs. Carson entered 
 the medical college at St. Joseph, Mo., and con- 
 tinued her studies there for awhile, but was 
 again persuaded to relinquish them. In 1900, 
 determining to complete her medical education, 
 she entered the College of Physicians and Sur- 
 geons in San Francisco, and remained there until 
 the spring of 1903. Anxious then to finish her 
 course of study as soon as possible, she entered 
 the Illinois State Medical College, in Chicago, 
 and at the close of the summer term was gradu- 
 ated with honors. Returning to Bakersfield, Dr. 
 Emma M. (Newcomer) Carson immediately be- 
 gan the practice of her profession with her hus- 
 band, and being a woman of rare culture, talent 
 and judgment, will doubtless henceforth share 
 with him. the successes and honors of their pro- 
 fessional lives. The Drs. Carson. have a finely 
 equipped office, among other things of use to 
 them in their profession being a sixteen-plate 
 static machine, the only one in Kern county. 
 Dr. John L. Carson is a prominent member of 
 the Masonic fraternity, and is also a member of 
 the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. 
 
 WILLIAM CALCOTE. Four and one-half 
 miles northeast of Visalia, on Elbow creek, lies 
 the valuable farm which is the home of Mr. Cal- 
 cote and which was his birthplace as well. Few 
 of the men now prominent in agricultural af- 
 fairs in Tulare county are native-born citizeris 
 thereof, the majority having come from the east 
 or from other parts of California.; hence in his 
 life an instance is furnished as yet seldom seen 
 in any portion of the county. Having passed 
 his entire life within the limits of the county, 
 he is not only intimately acquainted with its peo- 
 ple, but in addition has gained a thorough knowl- ' 
 edge of the possibilities" of its soil and its oppor- 
 tunities for those desiring to earn a livelihood. 
 
 The Calcote family is of southern extraction. 
 In the family of Stephen Calcote, who was a 
 farmer and a soldier in the war of 1812, there 
 were nine children, but one alone survives, A. K., 
 a native of Madison county, Miss., born near 
 Canton, February 11, 1830. On account of be- 
 ing left an orphan at eight years of age he was 
 early forced to earn his own livelihood and thus 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 477 
 
 was prevented from gaining the education he 
 greatly desired. After having passed the years of 
 youth upon a Mississippi farm, in the fall of 185 1 
 he removed to Marshall, Tex., where he followed 
 teaming. From there in 1854 he crossed the 
 plains with ox- teams, journeying via El Paso and 
 Tucson to Visalia, where he arrived December 15, 
 1854. Later, during almost three years spent in 
 the mines of Mariposa countyj he met with fair 
 success, and thus earned a capital sufficient to en- 
 able him to establish a home of his own. Re- 
 turning to Tulare county, he was here married, 
 September i, 1856, to Miss Delila Harrell, who 
 was born in Texas, and died in Tulare county, 
 Gal., April 21, 1903. For years he cultivated his 
 home farm on Elbow creek, where he made a 
 specialty of stock-raising, but in 1901 he sold the 
 place to his son, William', and has since lived re- 
 tired from active labors.. Ever since attaining 
 his majority he has voted the Democratic tick- 
 et and has been a stanch supporter of party 
 principles. Throughout the community where 
 for years he has been a well-known farmer he 
 bears the reputation of a progressive citizen, cap- 
 able agriculturist and honorable man. 
 
 In the family of A. K. Galcote there were elev- 
 en children, eight of whom attained manhood 
 and womanhood, viz. : William, the subject of 
 this article; Henry, who owns a farm adjoining 
 the old homestead; Jackson, who died in 1890, 
 at the age of twenty-two years; Jefferson, a 
 farmer in Sonoma county; Mrs. Mary Ledbet- 
 ter, of Orosi, Tulare county ; Ellen, wife of James 
 Hill, and Daniel, both residents of Visalia; and 
 Mrs. Etta Fenley, who lives in this county. On 
 the farm where he now resides William Galcote 
 was born December 31, 1857, and here as a boy 
 he gained a thorough knowledge of agriculture 
 in all of its details. The school where he studied 
 the three R's' stands on his father's farm, and 
 he was a pupil there whenever he could be spared 
 from the farm work. On starting out to earn his 
 own livelihood at twenty-one years of age he en- 
 gaged in grain farming, but later made a spe- 
 cialty of the stock business. In 1890 he bought 
 one hundred and sixty acres thirteen miles north- 
 east of Portersville, Tulare county. The land is 
 irrigated by the Pleasant valley ditch and he was 
 one of the directors of the company owning the 
 ditch as long as he made his home there. Im- 
 mediately after establishing his home on that 
 place he began to set out fruit trees and finally 
 had twenty acres in an orchard, of which four 
 acres were in apples, three in prunes, ten in navel 
 oranges, and the balance in different varieties. 
 Twelve acres were under alfalfa and the re- 
 mainder of the land was utilized for grain, which 
 was raised by means of irrigation. On purchas- 
 ing the old homestead he returned here in 1901 
 and has since rented the Portersville ranch. On 
 
 his home place he has one hundred and sixty 
 acres, all of which can be irrigated from ..the 
 Mathews ditch. Seventy-five acres are under al- 
 falfa. The raising of cattle and hogs has been 
 his specialty, and in addition he buys and feeds 
 large quantities of stock. 
 
 ITie marriage of Mr. Calcote was solemftized 
 in Visalia and united him with Miss Janie Hous- 
 ton, who was born and reared in this city, her 
 father, Richard Houston, having been a pioneer 
 and stock-raiser in Tulare county. They have 
 six children, of whom the eldest, Charles, is a 
 forest ranger, and the others, Allen, Ora, Irene, 
 Lila and Alta, are at home. Not only has it been 
 Mr. Calcote's ambition to give his children good 
 educational advantages, but through his efficient 
 service as president of the board of trustees of 
 the Elbow creek school district he has accom- 
 plished much in the interests of all the children 
 of the district, and has proved himself a wise sup- 
 porter of the free school system. In fraternal re- 
 lations he is connected with the Woodmen of 
 the World. The Democratic party has always 
 received his vote and in former years he acted 
 as a member of the county central committee, but 
 with that exception has not been active in local 
 politics, preferring to devote his attention wholly 
 to his farm^ work. 
 
 JONATHAN K. MILLS. In the combination 
 of real estate and ' ranching, Jonathan K. Mills 
 has met with a success which places him among 
 the representative men of this section, his home 
 near Le Grand, Merced county, three sections 
 of land which he rents for the purpose of rais- 
 ing wheat, barley and stock, being one of the 
 best improved and well cultivated farms to be 
 found in this region. In his real estate opera- 
 tions he has been no less successful, during his 
 residence here of little more than a year having 
 disposed of over a thousand acres of land, which 
 has' tended materially to develop the country 
 and promote the general welfare. 
 
 Born in Putnam county. 111., October 15, 
 1855, Jonathan K. Mills was a son of Pusey and 
 Lydia (Hartley) Mills, both of whom were na- 
 tives of Pennsylvania, who after their immigra- 
 tion to the Prairie state engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits. The elder man died in that location. 
 Reared to young manhood upon the paternal 
 farm, Jonathan K. Mills was trained to the 
 practical duties of an agriculturist, which life 
 he early elected to follow. On becoming inde- 
 pendent he located in Missouri and engaged in 
 farming there for five years, when he decided 
 to change his location, and accordingly removed 
 to Kansas. Not quite satisfied with his second 
 choice for a home he then came to California, 
 in 1903 taking up his residence in this section 
 
478 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and renting something less than two thousand 
 acres of land in Merced county. His executive 
 ability has proven equal to the enterprise and he 
 is to-day numbered among the successful ranch- 
 men of the county. Four hundred acres of his 
 large ranch are devoted entirely to the production 
 of barley, which runs as high as twenty sacks 
 per acre. 
 
 In Illinois Mr. Mills was married to Olive 
 Spencer, of Putnam county, and of this union 
 were born nine children, four of whom are liv- 
 ing, namely: Laura, Mary, Henry and Joseph. 
 In his political convictions Mr. Mills adheres 
 to the principles advocated in the platform of 
 the Republican party, and fraternally he is as- 
 sociated with the Modern Woodmen of America. 
 
 DAVID S. EWING. Among the professional 
 men who occupy a position of prominence in the 
 esteem of the citizens of Fresno is David S. 
 Ewing, an attorney of more than local note, and 
 one who has won a wide popularity for the sterl- 
 ing traits which distinguish his character. Born 
 in Fulton, Callaway county. Mo., October 24, 
 1866, he was the son of Henry Neal Ewing, who 
 was a native of the same locality. The grand- 
 father, James Ewing, was born in Kentucky and 
 emigrated to Callaway county. Mo., in 1820, fol- 
 lowing the example of his father, who had 
 crossed the mountains into Kentucky from his 
 native state — Virginia. The family were of 
 Scotch-Irish ancestry and inherited the sturdy 
 traits which have made of these people some of 
 our most desirable citizens. Henry Neal Ewing 
 was reared in Missouri and educated at Yale 
 University, after which, in 1849, h^ crossed the 
 plains to California by ox-team. Upon his ar- 
 rival he engaged in mining for several years, 
 after which he returned to Missouri. He again 
 crossed the plains, and again returned to Mis- 
 souri during the Civil war. He removed to 
 Kansas City in 1874, where he engaged in busi- 
 ness for about six years, in 1880 bringing his 
 family to California and locating in Fresno 
 county. He was the third colonist of Fresno 
 colony, where he purchased a farm one and a 
 half miles southeast of Fresno and set out a 
 vineyard and a forty-acre orchard, as well as 
 made many other valuable improvements. In 
 1887 he sold out this property and located in 
 Fresno, where his death occurred in 1890. In 
 his religious convictions he was a member of 
 the Baptist Church. His wife, formerly Carrie 
 Martin, was born near Fulton, Mo., the daughter 
 of William Martin, who was a native of Virginia 
 and an early resident of Missouri, settling on a 
 farm adjoining the property of James Ewing. 
 He was of French and German ancestry, and a 
 worthy and esteemed man. Mrs. Ewing died in 
 
 Kansas City in 1878, leaving a family of six 
 sons and two daughters, all of whom attamed 
 maturity and five sons now surviving : A. D., 
 deputy county clerk of Fresno county; Harry 
 M., of Fresno; Emmet M., who is in business in 
 Victoria, British Columbia; Forest B., a sheep 
 man of Nevada; and David S., the subject of 
 this review. 
 
 The second son in his father's family, David 
 S. Ewing was reared to manhood in Fulton, 
 Kansas City, Fresno and the paternal farm in 
 Fresno county. In 1883 he secured employment 
 as a member of the surveying corps on the upper 
 San Joaquin canal, where he remained for about 
 two and a half years, after which, in 1887, he 
 attended the Pacific Business College in San 
 Francisco. Returning to Fresno county, he was 
 employed in the city tax collector's office, and 
 the following year became deputy county school 
 superintendent under Prof. B. A. Hawkins. In 
 1890 and 1891 he served as chief deputy in the 
 county tax collector's office. In all his official 
 positions he acquitted himself honorably, doing 
 credit to himself and those who placed him in 
 his various capacities. From early boyhood, 
 however, he had an eager desire to study law, 
 and was not content even with 'he good positions 
 which he so easily secured. At every opportu- 
 nity he took up the ponderous tomes which held 
 for him the realization of his ambitions, and in 
 1893 he was admitted to practice by the Superior 
 Court in Fresno county, and began the practice 
 of his profession. He formed a partnership with 
 O. L. Everts, which firm was known as that of 
 Everts & Ewing, and together they built up a 
 general practice. This partnership still exists 
 and is the oldest legal firm in the county. In 
 189s Mr. Ewing entered the University of Mich- 
 igan as a senior in the department of law, being 
 graduated therefrom in 1896 with the degree of 
 LL. B., and again taking up his practice in 
 Fresno. Among the cases which Mr. Ewing 
 has conducted or assisted in conducting may be 
 mentioned those of the "Land Scrippers," The 
 Cosmopolitan Exploration Company vs. the 
 Gray Eagle Development Company et al, in 
 which he took part, that being the first on record 
 to decide against the "Land Scrippers" ; and the 
 case of J. G. Roberts vs. The Fresno Democrat 
 Publishing Company, wherein the firm, repre- 
 sented the defendant. 
 
 In Fresno, May i, 1898, Mr. Ewing mar- 
 ried Grace Maul, a native of Illinois. She was 
 the daughter of Frank Maul, who was born in 
 Germany, and after his emigration to the United 
 States became a grocer in Illinois. He is now 
 living retired in Fresno. Mrs. Ewing is a grad- 
 uate of the Kewanee (111.) high school. To Mr. 
 Ewing and his wife in Fresno, August 15, 1901, 
 were born two daughters, twins, Blanche and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 479 
 
 Mildred. In his fraternal relations Mr. Ewing 
 is a member and exalted ruler of Fresno Lodge 
 No. 439, B. P. O. E.J and Manzanita Camp No. 
 i6o, W. O. W., which he has served five terms 
 as consul commander. In i8g8 he was elected 
 head escort of the Head Camp P. J. Woodmen 
 of the World, and served two years. His wife 
 is a member of the Episcopal Church. Polit- 
 ically he is a stanch adherent of the Democratic 
 party, and is a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce. He is also a member of the Fresno 
 County Bar Association. 
 
 O. L. EVERTS. The Everts family, repre- 
 sented in Fresno by O. L. Everts, attorney-at-law, 
 were prominent citizens of New England for 
 many years. The first of the name to seek a new 
 location was Gustavus Everts, Sr., who came as 
 far west as Indiana, settling in La Porte, where 
 he followed agricultural pursuits. ^He was also 
 a resident of Ohio for a time, and in that state 
 his son, Gustavus A., was born. The latter, in 
 young manhood, settled in Putnam county. 111., 
 and there engaged in stock-raising, making that 
 place his home until his removal to La Porte, 
 Ind., where he followed the same occupation. 
 Deciding to take up his residence in the more re- 
 mote west, he removed to Fresno, Cal., in 1884, 
 and in this city engaged in the real estate busi- 
 ness until the year before his death, when he 
 sought retirement from the active cares of life. 
 He died in 1897, at the age of sixty-three years. 
 Fraternally he was a Mason, and in his political 
 preference adhered to the principles of the Demo- 
 cratic party. For one term he served in the in- 
 terests of his party as public administrator of 
 Fresno county, Cal. His wife, formerly Rena 
 Newport, was born in Bureau county. 111., near 
 the city of Princeton, the daughter of P. N. New- 
 port, an extensive farmer and landowner, who 
 now resides in Princeton. Mrs. Everts died in 
 Illinois early in life. 
 
 The only child of his parents, O. L. Everts 
 was born in Putnam county. 111., February 11, 
 1869, and, after the death of his mother, went to 
 Kewanee, Henry county. 111., where he made his 
 home with his aunt, Mrs. H. E. Woodruff. He 
 attended the public schools, in time entering and 
 being graduated from the Kewanee high school. 
 In 1887 he removed to Fresno, Cal., and engaged 
 in the real estate business with his father. 
 Previous to this, while a resident of Kewanee, he 
 had read law during his vacations and the de- 
 sire to make that profession his life-work was 
 so strong in him that in 1889 he returned east, 
 and became a student in the law department of 
 the University of Michigan. Two years later he 
 was graduated from that institution with the de- 
 gree of LL. D., the year previous having been 
 
 admitted to the bar of Michigan, and the same 
 year he was admitted to practice in CaUfornia. 
 During his college life he was a member of the 
 Phi Delta Phi, a college fraternity. He located, 
 where he has since remained, in offices in the 
 First National Bank building, and entered upon a 
 general practice. In 1893 he formed a partner- 
 ship with David S. Ewing, the style of the firm 
 being Everts & Ewing. They have since con- 
 ducted a general practice, and, by their success, 
 winning a place among the most prominent at- 
 torneys in the city. 
 
 In his political convictions a Democrat, Mr. 
 Everts has been called upon by his party to hold 
 public office, in 1898 being nominated and elected 
 district attorney ; his election under the existing 
 political conditions speaking eloquently of the 
 high regard in which he is held. The following 
 January he took the oath of office and served 
 until January, 1903, when he retired, not caring 
 for re-election. 
 
 During Mr. Everts' term about five hundred 
 criminal cases in the superior court of the county, 
 many of them being bitterly contested, were 
 handled by his office, and the court records show- 
 ing the percentage of convictions in the number 
 of cases tried bespeak the ability and energy dis- 
 played by him in representing the interests of 
 the people. His discharge of official duties was 
 of so efficient and faithful a character that he 
 won the commendation of the citizens of Fresno 
 county, regardless of party affiliations. After 
 leaving the district attorney's office, Mr. Everts 
 continued the practice of his profession with his 
 partner, Mr. Ewing. For three successive terms 
 he has, with his partner, represented the public 
 administrator of Fresno county. They are now 
 the retained counsel of various banking institu- 
 tions in the San Joaquin valley, and for other 
 corporations of like character. A great deal of 
 the oil litigation of the valley has been handled 
 by this firm. Among the most notable cases in 
 this connection might be mentioned the suit of 
 the Cosmopolitan Exploration Company vs. The 
 Gray Eagle Company. 
 
 In Kewanee, 111., Mr. Everts was united in 
 marriage on November i, 1892, with Flora Maul, 
 a daughter of Frank Maul, a merchant of that 
 city, and they have one child living, Frank Gus- 
 tavus Everts. In his fraternal relations Mr. 
 Everts is prominent. Made a Mason in Kewanee 
 Lodge No. 159, F. & A. M., he is a member of 
 Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. M., of which he 
 is past high priest, and of Fresno Commandery 
 No. 29, K. T., and he belongs to Fresno Lodge 
 No. 186, I. O. O. F., Modern Woodmen of 
 America and the Independent Order of Foresters. 
 An enterprising and liberal .citizen, he takes a 
 most active interest in all that tends to promote 
 the general welfare and is now a member of the 
 
480 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of both 
 the County and State Bar Association. 
 
 ReHgiously, Mr. Everts in early Hfe joined the 
 Congregational Church. His wife being a mem- 
 ber of the Episcopal Church, in late years their 
 attendance and support have been given to that 
 church. 
 
 WILLIAM HAMILTON MOFFETT. As 
 representative of his district upon the board of 
 county supervisors and as a leading business 
 man of Visalia, where he has made his home 
 since 1892, William Hamilton Moffett is well 
 known 'throughout Tulare county. A native- 
 born son of the golden west and a member of 
 a pioneer family descended from southern an- 
 cestry, he was born in Sonoma county July 31, 
 1856. His father, James H. Moffett, a native 
 of Tennessee, settled in Missouri at an early 
 day and engaged in farming in McDonald coun- 
 ty. When the Pacific coast attracted throngs of 
 adventurous spirits he was induced by favorable 
 reports to cast his lot with the hardy pioneers 
 of the far west. Provided with the necessities 
 of existence, and with ox-teams and wagons, he 
 started across the plains in 1856, accompanied 
 by his wife and family. On reaching Sonoma 
 county he took up land and began to raise stock. 
 In i860 he removed to Mendocino county where 
 the same industry engaged his attention. In 
 search of a more satisfactory location he came to 
 Tulare county in 1865 and settled in the Lemon 
 Cove district, where he tilled the soil and also 
 raised stock. At the time of his death in 1875 he 
 was fifty-one years of age. Throughout his active 
 life he was an earnest believer in the doctrines 
 of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and at 
 one time officiated as an elder in the same. Po- 
 litically he voted the Democratic ticket in local 
 and national elections. Two years before his 
 demise occurred the death of his wife, Virginia 
 (Owen) Moffett, who was born and reared in 
 Tennessee, and had reached forty-nine years of 
 age at the time she passed from earth. 
 
 The family comprised seven sons and two 
 daughters, namely: James P., now living in 
 Arizona ; M. L., who continues to make his home 
 at Lemon Cove; William H. and Columbus B., 
 who are business partners at Visalia; Amanda 
 P., deceased; Virginia C, wife of Rev. J. A, 
 Skaggs, of Selma; Henry Owen, deceased; Eu- 
 gene L. and John L., who reside at Bakersfield, 
 Kern county. Upon the death of thejr father 
 the sons took charge of the home place, but in 
 1879 William H. started out for himself, buying 
 a ranch near Naranjo, Tulare county, where he 
 still owns a farm of one hundred and sixty acres. 
 On leaving that place in 1892 he removed to 
 
 Visalia, where he has since been interested in 
 the livery and feed business. For two years he 
 was connected with J. B. McKinley, then for 
 three years had John H. Dodson as a partner, 
 but since 1898 he and his brother have been the 
 proprietors, and have built up an excellent trade 
 in their special line. Realizing the need of good 
 roads, he has been a firm champion of the plan 
 of oiling the public highways, which he believes 
 to be the most satisfactory scheme for solving 
 the road problem. Reared in the Democratic 
 faith, he has always been a supporter of the prin- 
 ciples of that party and on the regular ticket, in 
 1900, was elected county supervisor for a term 
 of four years. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Moflett took place at 
 Lemon Cove, Tulare county, and united him 
 with Louisa Pogue, who was born and reared 
 in this county. Five children were born of their 
 union, but two, Florence P. and May, are de- 
 ceased, those living being named Elsie E., J. A. 
 Aubrey and Mildred. The religious faith of his 
 parents, that of the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 denomination, represents the doctrines with 
 which Mr. Moffett is in greatest sympathy in 
 matters of religion. Fraternally he holds mem- 
 bership in various societies of VisaHa, including 
 the Knights of Pythias, Woodmen of the World 
 and Native Sons of the Golden West. 
 
 ALFRED E. DEWEY, who makes his home 
 near Escalon, although still a young man, bids 
 fair to make his mark in the world, as he is an 
 honest and hard-working man. Born August 24, 
 1873, in the province of Ontario, Canada, he is 
 a son of Henry and Margaret (Osbom) Dewey. 
 Henry Dewey and his wife were natives of Can- 
 ada, iDUt came to California in 1881, spending a 
 year at Selma, Fresno county, and later moving 
 to Kings county. Although a moulder by trade, 
 Mr. Dewey engaged in the nursery trade while in 
 Kings county, and thousands of fruit trees were 
 planted in that county by his hand. In 1896, 
 however, the family removed to San Joaquin 
 county on account of the ill health of some of 
 its members, and they located on the Myer's 
 ranch, remaining there until the death of the 
 mother, at which time the father came to live 
 with Alfred E. 
 
 Alfred E. Dewey is at present engaged in 
 cutting the timber off die bottom lands, carrying 
 this on by means of a steam saw which he owns. 
 He also raises fruit to some extent and devotes 
 part of his time to raising stock, principally hogs. 
 His marriage united him with Miss Dessie Hall, 
 a native of San Joaquin county, and a daughter 
 of John Hall, whose biography appears elsewhere 
 in this history. To Mr. and Mrs. Dewey have 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 483 
 
 been born the following children, Alvin, Ernest 
 and Myrtle. A Republican in politics, Mr. Dewey 
 is true to the interests of his chosen party, as he 
 also is to the interests of his adopted state and 
 
 country. 
 
 LEWIS H. APPLEGATE. In California, 
 as well as in Oregon, the name Applegate is 
 synonymous of true worth and integrity, and the 
 identification of this family with the early his- 
 tory of both states is well known. Lewis H. Ap- 
 plegate has been a resident of California since 
 1870 and has been identified with Merced county 
 for nearly thirty years. He was born in Goshen, 
 Clermont county, Ohio, December 21, 1844, a 
 son of Perrine and Susan (Frybarger) Apple- 
 gate, the former a native of New Jersey and the 
 latter of Ohio. His paternal grandfather, Elijah 
 Applegate, also born in New Jersey, was of 
 Welsh descent and by occupation was a car- 
 penter and farmer. He removed to Ohio when 
 his son Perrine was but three years old and in 
 that state he followed the occupation of a mill- 
 wright, erecting many of the early mills of the 
 state. He died in Ohio when forty-five years 
 of age. Perrine Applegate was reared and edu- 
 cated in Ohio and upon leaving school he learned 
 the carpenter's trade under the supervision Of 
 his father; his later years, however, were spent 
 in agricultural pursuits. He passed to his final 
 rest in 1888, aged seventy-two years, being sur- 
 vived ten years by his widow, who died in 1898. 
 They became the parents of sixteen children, 
 fourteen of whom reached years of maturity, 
 and of these twelve are still living. With the ex- 
 ception of the two who died in infancy, their 
 family consisted of the following : Andrew J., 
 a manufacturer of Anderson, Ind. ; Oliver H. P., 
 a traveling salesman of St. Louis, Mo. ; Thomas 
 F., a member of the Thirty-fourth Indiana Vol- 
 unteer Infantry, who died during the Civil war ; 
 Angeline, wife of William McQelland, of 
 Goshen, Ohio ; Lewis H. ; Sallie E. Spence, of 
 Goshen; William P., a successful rancher of 
 Merced county ; Margaret C. McClintock ; Susan 
 A. Stouder; John P., now deceased, who came 
 to California in 1875 ; James B., a success- 
 ful druggist of Perkinsville, Ind. ; Joseph H., 
 a farmer near Goshen, Ohio ; Lydia A., a deacon- 
 ness of the Methodist Episcopal Church, en- 
 gaged in missionary work at Salt Lake City ; 
 and Pearl W., vice-principal of the grammar 
 school at Goshen. The two eldest sons also 
 have military careers, Andrew J. as a soldier in 
 Company G, One Hundred and Seventh Indi- 
 ana Volunteer Infantry, and Oliver H. P., as 
 color sergeant in the Second Ohio Volunteer 
 Infantry. 
 
 Reared on his father's farm, Lewis H. Apple- 
 
 gate attended the common school of his district,- 
 supplementing it by a course in Goshen Semi- 
 nary, after which he began teaching school and 
 so continued until coming to California, since 
 which time he has been engaged in farming. 
 The appearance of the state at that time, with its 
 sparse settlements, was a striking contrast to the 
 many thriving business centers of the present 
 day, scattered throughout various parts of the 
 state. The first year of his residence was spent 
 in Stockton, which place he left intending to go 
 to Nevada. At Knight's Ferry, however, a 
 short stop was made, and he was induced to 
 change his route. In 1872 he arrived in Merced 
 county, remaining but a short time, when he pro- 
 ceeded to Stanislaus county, where he farmed 
 near Turlock, till 1875. Returning to Merced 
 county that year, he, with a partner, rented land 
 six miles east of Merced and for ten months fol- 
 lowed general farming. He then embarked in 
 a similar business for himself, renting the ranch 
 upon which he now resides, and which is located 
 along Bear creek, nine miles east of Merced, 
 where for the past twenty-eight years he has 
 given his entire time and attention to raising 
 stock and grain. As he has prospered, he has 
 added to his acreage from time to time, and 
 has made valuable improvements on the land in 
 shape of buildings, etc. His home place con- 
 tains eleven hundred and sixty acres, devoted 
 t& raising grain and stock; another ranch which 
 he owns, seven miles east of Merced, contains 
 six hundred and forty acres, also devoted to the 
 same industry; one mile from Atwater he pur- 
 chased another section of land devoted almost en- 
 tirely to the cultivation of barley; in Fresno 
 county he bought a forty-acre alfalfa ranch, and 
 twenty acres in the Yosemite colony, Merced 
 county, which is also devoted to alfalfa. He has 
 always been an advocate of advancement and 
 when called upon to do so has aided all projects 
 that had for their object the development of the 
 county. 
 
 Mr. Applegate has been prominently con- 
 nected with the Grange, having served as over- 
 seer two terms and president and master four 
 terms. He is an active member and a director 
 of the CaHfornia Grain Growers' Association, 
 the object of which is to establish a uniform 
 ocean freight rate from San Francisco to Liver- 
 pool, England. He is a Democrat in politics, 
 though never an aspirant for office. 
 
 COLUMBUS FAY. Not only were the pater- 
 nal ancestors of Mr. Fay participants in the 
 colonial and Revolutionary wars and the second 
 struggle with England, but his maternal pro- 
 genitors, the Abbotts, were also of patriotic stock 
 and bore ari honorable part in all of the early 
 
484 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wars in which our country engaged. Both set- 
 tled in Massachusetts during its pioneer history 
 and afterward wielded an influence in the agri- 
 cultural development of various sections of New 
 England. Edward Fay, Jr., and his father, whose 
 name he bore, were natives of Vermont, the 
 former born at Underbill and there reared to 
 maturity, but later a pioneer of Jefferson county. 
 Wis., subsequently removing to^ Richland county, 
 the same state, where he died at sixty-three years 
 of age. The wife of Edward, Jr., was Sarah 
 Abbott, a native of Vermoiit, and a daughter of 
 Timothy Abbott. Like her husband she passed 
 the latter part of her life in Wisconsin and died 
 before attaining old age. Of their five children 
 only one son and one daughter grew to maturity. 
 The subject of this article, who was the youngest 
 of the children, was born in Jefferson county. 
 Wis., October 19, 1848, and grew to^ manhood 
 in Richland county, that state, where he had 
 such advantages as the country schools of that 
 day and locality afforded. After the death of 
 his father in 1870 he had charge of the home 
 farm, but in January, 1872, started out for him- 
 self, traveling through the middle states in search 
 of a suitable location. While traveling through 
 Kansas he met a cattle buyer, with whom he se- 
 cured employment to assist in driving a herd of 
 two thousand head of cattle across the plains to 
 Nevada. Eight men constituted the force of em- 
 ployes under whose guidance the cattle were 
 driven at a rate of from twenty to twenty-five 
 miles per day. After seventy days from Ells- 
 worth, Kans., they landed at Humboldt wells, 
 in Nevada. 
 
 A few weeks later Mr. Fay arrived in Alameda 
 county, Cal., where he secured employment on a 
 farm near Haywards. During the six years of 
 his residence there he made infrequent trips to 
 Oregon and Washington, going as far north as 
 Seattle. In the fall of 1879 he came to Tulare 
 county and settled at what is now Lemoncove, 
 where for five years he engaged in raising grain 
 on a tract of thirteen hundred acres. The en- 
 suing four years were passed on a grain farm 
 near Dry creek. In 1889 he removed to the Mill- 
 wood road, in the ficinity of Visalia, and settled 
 on a tract of ninety acres which he purchased the 
 following year. Here he has since made his 
 home, engaging in the dairy business with a herd 
 of fine Jersey cows and raising alfalfa by the aid 
 of excellent irrigation facilities. Having given 
 his attention closely to the work of his farm he 
 has had little or no leisure for participation in lo- 
 cal politics, nor has he borne any part in the same 
 aside from voting a straight Republican ticket at 
 all elections. The fact that he is thoroughly 
 awake to the need of educational facilities is 
 shown by his efficient service in the capacity of 
 member of the school board of Elbow district. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Fay was solemnized near 
 Visalia and united him with Miss Nannie E. Kel- 
 ly, who was born in Arkansas and removed to 
 California in company with her parents. Green- 
 berry and Sarah Kelly. The fainily settled in 
 Tulare county, where Mr. Kelly died, and his 
 widow has since remained on the old homestead. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Fay there are two 
 children. The son, Clarence, who is now fifteen 
 years of age, attends the high school of Visalia, 
 and the daughter, Gracie, who is six years of age, 
 js a pupil in the district schools. In religious 
 connections Mrs. Fay is associated with the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church and fraternally she 
 holds membership in the Magnolia Circle, Wom- 
 en of Woodcraft, her talents making her a wel- 
 comed worker in both the church and the fra- 
 ternal organization. 
 
 AMBERSON BRANDON. There is per- 
 haps nothing of which a man may be more proud 
 than that of gallant service in the cause of his 
 country, nor is there any service that lives longer 
 in the memory of a grateful people. Mr. Bran- 
 don was among those who early offered their 
 services to their country in her hour of peril and 
 who never deserted their post until peace 
 crowned their efforts. He enlisted in 1863 in 
 Company M, First California Regulars, and 
 served three years in Arizona and New Mexico, 
 fighting the Indians. He was appointed sergeant 
 and honorably discharged from service at Fort 
 Selden, N. M., in 1866. At the close of his 
 military career he returned to California and 
 turned his attention to teaming and sawmilling 
 in Amador county, and later in Stanislaus and 
 Merced counties, where he has since been en- 
 gaged in farming. 
 
 Since locating in Merced county, in 1896, he 
 has brought about a revelation in farm methods, 
 operating his extensive farms upon the most ap- 
 proved of methods. His home ranch, eight miles 
 from Le Grand, contains thirty-nine hundred and 
 eighty-nine acres, while at one time he farmed 
 seven thousand acres of land in the county. He 
 has two Holt traction engines, the only ones in 
 Merced county, and in connection he also has 
 two separators, with a thirty-four-foot cut. Each 
 engine is a forty-five horsepower, and requires 
 three hundred and fifty gallons of oil per day 
 to operate. Upon his extensive ranch, machin- 
 ery is made to supersede hand labor ; each engine 
 requires only three men, engineer, fireman and 
 water tender, to operate it. The wheels of these 
 gigantic engines, which themselves weigh sev- 
 enteen tons, are forty-two inches wide, being six 
 feet and eight inches in diameter. Each engine 
 hauls eighteen eight-inch standard plows, turns 
 the furrows, harrows and plants at the same 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 485 
 
 time. The magnitude of this work must be seen 
 to be understood or appreciated, 
 
 In Jefferson county, Wis., Mr. Brandon was 
 born, August 31, J845, a son of Z. P. and Mar- 
 tha (Enyart) Brandon. The former, a native of 
 Virginia, accompanied his parents to Ohio in 
 early boyhood, where he was reared on a farm 
 and subsequently located for a time in Cali- 
 fornia. When Amberson was about twelve years 
 old his mother died. In 1849 the father came 
 to California to seek his fortune in the mines. 
 Returning to his home in Wisconsin in 1851, he 
 brought his family across the plains to Califor- 
 nia. In Eldorado county he followed mining 
 and farming until his death in 1892, aged sixty- 
 five years. 
 
 Mr. Brandon remained at home until his en- 
 listment in the army, and at the close of the 
 hostilities returned to California. He went into 
 Amador county and purchased with a partner a 
 sawmill, operating it successfully for nine years. 
 At the close of that time he again took up farm 
 life, this time in the vicinity of Turlock, Stanis- 
 laus county, which continued to be his home 
 until 1884. Removing to Merced county, he 
 rented land until 1902, when he purchased the 
 ranch upon which he still lives. By his marriage, 
 August 31, 1868, in California, he was united 
 with Julia Misenheimer, a native of Illinois and 
 a daughter of Hartwell and Sarah (Williams) 
 Misenheimer, the former born in North Caro- 
 lina and the latter in Illinois. In 1853 they came 
 overland to California and are now respected 
 residents of Tulare county, Mr. Misenheimer be- 
 ing eighty years of age and his wife seventy- 
 four. Eleven children have been born to Mr. 
 and Mrs. Brandon, all living except one, name- 
 ly: Susan, wife of J. T. Flanagan; Bernice, 
 wife of E. T. Cunningham ; Howard ; Myron 
 (deceased) ; Frances, wife of J. R. Baxter; 
 Lloyd, Roger, Audley, Gladys, Roscoe and Hor- 
 ace. A self-made man in the truest sense of the 
 word and one of the most widely known men 
 in his locality, Mr. Brandon stands deservedly 
 high. He is a member of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic. In politics he is a Republican. 
 It is to such men as he California owes much 
 of her prosperity and greatness. 
 
 JOSEPH H. NOBLE. As a natural result 
 of his thrift and industry Joseph H. Noble has 
 become a prosperous citizen of Madera county, 
 Cal., which has been his home since 1889. The 
 farm which he now occupies, and which he pur- 
 chased in 1902, contains three hundred and twenty 
 acres, the west half of District No. 29, and is 
 devoted to raising grain and alfalfa. He is also 
 interested to some extent in stock-raising, and it 
 is his intention to give more attention to this latter 
 
 industry each year, with the ultimate idea of 
 changing his entire farm into a stock ranch in 
 time. At present one hundred acres are in al- 
 falfa, and the balance devoted to wheat and bar- 
 ley. His place is located four and a half miles 
 west of Madera, and since purchasing it he has 
 added all of the improvements, in buildings, ditch- 
 ing and checking. 
 
 Mr. Noble was born in Marshall county, 111., 
 June 8, 1859, a son of Elisha and Margaret (Mc- 
 Kinney) Noble, both natives of Ohio. Elisha 
 Noble went to Illinois when about twenty-two 
 years of age and spent many years engaged in 
 farming. In 1878 he removed to- Nebraska and 
 in 1889 was induced to come to California and 
 locate in Madera county, where he lived until 
 his death in 1901, aged seventy-four years. 
 
 The boyhood days of Joseph H. Noble were 
 spent upon his father's farm in Illinois, and he 
 obtained his education in the schools of that state. 
 In 1878 he accompanied his parents to Nebraska 
 and with them subsequently located in Madera 
 county, Cal. He has been a life-long farmer 
 and rancher, and enjoys the prestige he has 
 gained solely by incessant years of toil. 
 
 While a resident of Nebraska Mr. Noble was 
 united in marriage with Harriett Becker, and of 
 this union four children have been born : Joseph 
 C, Cora, Minnie and Qinton. In politics Mr. 
 Noble is a Democrat, though never an aspirant 
 for office. As a business man and a citizen, Mr. 
 Noble has won a host of friends and is highly 
 esteemed by all who know him. 
 
 HIRAM B. ALGER. The People's market, 
 owned and operated by the firm of Morgan & 
 Alger, successors to John R. Parr, is one of the 
 most popular and well-conducted enterprises of 
 the kind in Tulare county. As an adjunct to the 
 business life of Visalia the market is without a 
 peer in its facilities for catering to a large and 
 exacting trade, its promoters being men of 
 proved ability and integrity. 
 
 Hiram B. Alger, junior member of the firm 
 of Morgan & Alger, owes his birth and early 
 training to Delaware county, Iowa, where his 
 life began on a farm near Edgewood, October 
 I, 1867. His father, Myron H. Alger, was born 
 in New York in 1844, and was a babe in arms 
 when his parents located in Delaware county in 
 1845. His entire life has been spent on a farm, 
 and he still makes Delaware county his home, 
 his wife, formerly Cynthia J. Robinson, having 
 also survived the changes of existence. There 
 were four sons and three daughters in this 
 family, and Hiram B., the oldest, was the first 
 to assume the responsibility of self support, en- 
 gaging in school teaching in different parts of 
 
486 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Iowa after leaving the Upper Iowa University, 
 which he attended for one year. Later he en- 
 gaged as brakeman on the Central Iowa Rail- 
 road, using his wages to secure further educa- 
 tional advantages for himself, a fact which in- 
 dicates the resource and adaptiveness which has 
 characterized his entire life. Returning to farm- 
 ing in Iowa, Mr. Alger came to California in 
 1901, and in Visalia engaged in the meat-market 
 business, later becoming a member of the firm 
 of Morgan & Alger, purchasing the ^business of 
 John R. Parr. The plant covers twelve acres 
 the firm owning their own slaughter houses, and 
 besides supplying the home trade, the products 
 are shipped throughout the county. Mr. Alger 
 has a thorough understanding of his business, 
 has a large acquaintance with stock and business 
 men, and from the beginning of his residence 
 here has impressed the community with his earn- 
 estness and sincerity and his keen desire to 
 please. 
 
 In political affiliation Mr. Alger is indepen- 
 dent, and in religion he is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. He was reared in 
 an atmosphere of piety and responsibility, and 
 has never departed from the belief that a man 
 owes much to his church, and that his influence 
 is largely augmented thereby. He is active in the 
 business and social circles of the church, is sec- 
 retary of the board of trustees, and contributes 
 generously toward its general support. His 
 marriage with Alice Schrofif, a native of Penn- 
 sylvania, occurred in Iowa, and of this union 
 three sons have been born, Otto Dean, Donald 
 Wayne and Merle H. Mr. Alger is fraternally 
 connected with the Modern Woodmen of Amer- 
 ica and the Royal Neighbors. 
 
 LEVI N. TURNER. In no part of the 
 United States is a more correct appreciation 
 placed upon personal valor and courage than in 
 the west. Possibly conflict with the red men of 
 the plains, with pioneer conditions startling in 
 their crudeness, and with the terrible journey 
 across the prairies and mountains in the earlv 
 days, are too closely allied with the present to 
 permit of laxity in giving to each man his due 
 where aught of generosity has been required of 
 his nature. It thus happens that the soldier 
 comes into his own again as he gathers around 
 the camp-fires. He is given warm greeting be- 
 cause of his experiences when he embarks in 
 trade, and at all times carries with him the sense 
 of security in the people's esteem, which must 
 needs warm his heart and inspire him with love 
 for all mankind. Such a one is Levi N. Turner, a 
 soldier of the Civil war, who is also a successful 
 hardware merchant of Delano, and whose many 
 fine traits of character have contributed to the 
 
 moral and general upbuilding of whatever region 
 he has called home. 
 
 Behind his honored name and successful career 
 Mr. Turner has an ancestry which claims a voy- 
 ageur of the Mayflower, and early bearers of the 
 name settled in what now is Turner, Me. From 
 Androscoggin county later members moved to 
 Milo, Piscataquis county, where Levi N. was 
 born April 4, 1838, and where his father, Lyman, 
 was reared and learned the carpenter trade. In 
 early life the father married a Miss Flanders, also 
 a native of Maine, and with her and his children 
 removed overland to Wisconsin in 1845. Settling 
 in Dodge county in the midst of a dense timber 
 district, he -cleared a small farm, improved it to 
 general produce, and lived upon it until locating 
 in Faribault county, Minn., in 1873. He con- 
 ducted a fairly successful grocery business in 
 Minnesota for a few years, and died there in 
 1893, at the age of eighty-eight years. During 
 the Civil war he was a member of the Home 
 Guard. His wife lived tO' be seventy-five years 
 old. 
 
 Levi N. Turner was seven years old when the 
 family removed to Wisconsin, and remained there 
 until 1865, in the meantime acquiring a common 
 school education, and learning the carpenter 
 trade. In Blue Earth county, Minn., he followed 
 carpentering for five years, and in 1870 engaged 
 in a general merchandise business in Winnebago 
 City, remaining there four years. Afterward he 
 erected a flouring mill in Blue Earth county, 
 operated it successfully for ten years, and upon 
 disposing of it in 1892, took up his residence in 
 California in his present home in Delano. He 
 has found the hardware and implement business 
 lucrative and congenial, and has invested his 
 earnings in paying quarters, owning ten acres in 
 his home place, forty acres six miles south, and 
 one hundred and sixty acres seven miles north 
 of Delano. His home place, on the outskirts of 
 the town, has a pleasant and comfortable resi- 
 dence, with flowers, shrubs and trees, which con- 
 tribute to the beauty and pleasure of life in this 
 delightful state. In the meantime he has taken 
 a keen^interest in the general affairs of the town, 
 has been more or less prominent in politics, and 
 has been especially helpful in organizing the 
 board of trade, and in serving as its vice-presi- 
 dent. He has been a member of the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen since 1876. 
 
 The war experience of Mr. Turner stands out 
 in bold relief among the incidents which have 
 made his life interesting and useful to his fellow- 
 men. He was working in the lumber camps in 
 Wisconsin when the war broke out, and October 
 14, 1861, enlisted as a. private "in Company F, 
 Twelfth Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, and par- 
 ticipated in many of the battles ; served with 
 Grant in the western army, and with Sherman on 
 
m (^ a^Ety^fyiX 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 489 
 
 his march to the sea. In front of Atlanta, Ga., 
 he was wounded in both thighs by the same ball, 
 and was laid up in the hospital at Rome, Ga., 
 from July 21, 1864, until the following October. 
 He was promoted to the rank of sergeant in 1863, 
 and to first lieutenant in 1865, and might have 
 received still further honors, had he been able 
 to rejoin his regiment in January, following his 
 release from the hospital. Mr. Turner established 
 a home ere success had begun to come his way, 
 marrying Mary E. Weaver, a native of New 
 York; they have had three children, two of 
 whom are deceased., Florence E., the wife of Rev. 
 W. L. Miller, residing in Litchfield, Conn., is 
 the only child living. 
 
 CHARLES C. FISHER. Four miles from 
 Visalia, Tulare county, is located the farm of 
 Charles C. Fisher, consisting of one hundred 
 and twenty acres devoted principally to the dairy 
 business. Mr. Fisher is one of the early set- 
 tlers of this vicinity, having located here in 1879, 
 when he first came to California. He bought 
 this property and made all the improvements, 
 putting up adequate buildings, cultivating the 
 land, and assisting materially in the upbuilding 
 of the best interests of the county. He was born 
 in York, Livingston county, N. Y., August S7, 
 1830, the youngest in a family of ten children, 
 all of whom attained maturity, although but two 
 sons and two daughters are now living. His 
 father, Josiah Fisher, was born in Massachusetts 
 in 1784, reared in New Hampshire, and in young 
 manhood settled in Livingston county, N. Y., 
 where he engaged as a cabinet and chair maker. 
 In New York state he also engaged in the saw- 
 milling business and the manufacture of lumber, 
 as well as operating a farm which he owned. In 
 1832 he removed to Michigan and started the 
 first shingle machine in Grand Rapids. Later he 
 located near Elkhart, Ind., where he bought a 
 mill and farmed until 1839. ^^ the last named 
 year he returned to Livingston county, N. Y., 
 and on his old farm resumed agricultural pur- 
 suits and also conducted a milling business un- 
 til his death in 1853, at the age of seventy 
 years. His wife, formerly Orena Goss, was a 
 native of Claremont, N. H., who died in New 
 York. 
 
 In childhood Charles C. Fisher accompanied 
 his parents to the state of Michigan, and later 
 to Indiana, when nine years old returning to 
 the scenes of his birth, where he received his 
 education in the subscription and public schools. 
 He remained at home, learning the saw milling, 
 machinist and carpenter trades, until 1853, when 
 he went to Coldwater, Mich., and entered the 
 machine shops of that place. Later he went 
 
 to Ligonier, Ind. In 1857 he went to Kentuckv, 
 and followmg this located in southwest Missouri, 
 later locating in Union count}', Ky., where he 
 followed saw milling until the breaking out of 
 the war. He then sold out, and returning to 
 Indiana, bought a small farm and in addition to 
 running this he also ran a grist mill at Albion 
 for two years. Returning to Kentucky at the 
 end of this time he conducted a portable saw- 
 mill there for three years, after which he became 
 a master machinist in a large distillery at Union- 
 town, Ky., on the Ohio river. This establish- 
 ment has since been rebuilt, and today is the 
 second largest of its kind in the world. Resign- 
 ing his position in the distillery in 1879, Mr. Fish- 
 er came to California the same year. Locating in 
 Tulare county he purchased the farm where he 
 now makes his home, and later bought one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres near the lake, in Kings 
 county, and also one hundred and sixty acres near 
 Dunlap, Fresno county. His home place is irri- 
 gated by the Modoc ditch. 
 
 In Kentucky, Mr. Fisher married Martha Cul- 
 ver, a native of Union county, that state, where 
 her death occurred. Politically Mr. Fisher is a 
 Jacksonian Democrat and casts his ballot for the 
 pr^inciples of his party. Interested in local af- 
 fairs, he gave an acre of ground for the Willow 
 school, in the building of which he was one of 
 the chief factors, and has served as school trus- 
 tee for several terms. One of the early recol- 
 lections of Mr. Fisher is his trip over the first 
 railroad of the state of New Y!ork, the track 
 being wooden rails 4x6, strapped with iron. 
 
 BENNI J. HENRY. Conspicuous among the 
 enterprising and progressive agriculturists of 
 Visalia is Benni J. Henry, who during the past 
 quarter of a century has been actively identified 
 with the industrial prosperity of this section of 
 the state. Kind-hearted, accommodating and 
 pleasant, he is everywhere respected, and is held 
 in high regard throughout the community. Of 
 Scotch-Irish descent, he was born, November 13, 
 1853, in Savannah, Wayne county, N. Y., a son 
 of John and Margaret (Ferguson) Henry, the 
 latter of whom died in Visalia, while the former 
 is still living. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, in Wayne coun- 
 ty, N. Y., Benni J. Henry was educated in the 
 district schools, in common with the neighbor- 
 ing children, being well drilled in the three "R's." 
 Beginning life as a wage-earner at the age of 
 fifteen years, he first worked on a farm at Un- 
 ion Springs, Cayuga county, and was afterward 
 for two years employed in the factory of D. M. 
 Osborne & Co. Making a bold push to the west- 
 
4S0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ward in 1877, he came to California in search 
 of a favorable opportunity to advance his wel- 
 fare, and for a year resided on the line between 
 Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties. In Sep- 
 tember, 1878, Mr. Henry came to Visalia, and 
 the following ten months was employed on the 
 Burrell ranch. Buying his present farm of forty 
 acres in 1879, he at once began its improvement. 
 Clearing the land, he erected a good residence, 
 and has since been prosperously engaged in till- 
 ing the soil, raising alfalfa, principally, for which 
 his land is well fitted, being under irrigation, the 
 water coming from the Modoc ditch. Mr. Henry 
 also carries on a part of the old Kelsey ranch, 
 renting fourteen hundred acres of it. There he 
 has good pasture land, raises extensive crops of 
 grain, and has an eighty^acre vineyard and a val- 
 uable orchard of ninety acres. He has an espe- 
 cially fine farming outfit, running three eight- 
 horse teams, and having all the necessary machin- 
 ery and appliances for successfully carrying on 
 his large and lucrative business. He is much in- 
 terested in stock-raising, keeping a superior 
 grade of cattle and horses. 
 
 In Auburn, Cayuga county, N. Y., Mr. Henry 
 married Jennie Ferguson, who was born in the 
 north of Ireland, and into their pleasant house- 
 hold seven children have been born, namely : Ger- 
 trude, wife of Charles Smith, city marshal of 
 Visalia; Edith, wife of John Daily, a farmer, liv- 
 ing near Goshen, Cal., and Mamie, Robert Lee, 
 Grover C, Earl and Lillian, living at home. Po- 
 litically Mr. Henry is a steadfast adherent of the 
 Democratic party and is now serving as school 
 trustee in the Willow district. Fraternally he is 
 a member of the Woodmen of the World. Mrs. 
 Henry is a most estimable woman^ and a mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Church. 
 
 HON. CHARLES A. HART. Foremost 
 among the pioneer inhabitants of Fresno county 
 was Judge Charles A. Hart, deceased, who in 
 young manhood dauntlessly pushed his way 
 across the continent to a new and uncultivated 
 country, to whose development and advancement 
 he devoted his best efiforts and energies. A de- 
 scendant of a fine old family of New York, well 
 bred and well educated, he rapidly became an 
 acknowledged leader in the establishment of 
 beneficent enterprises in Millerton, the first 
 county seat of Fresno county, and for half' a 
 century occupied a post of honor and influence 
 in legal, financial, political, agricultural and so- 
 cial circles. 
 
 Judge Hart was born in Geneva, N. Y., No- 
 vember 7, 1820. His father, Hon. Truman 
 Hart, was a well-known banker of western New 
 York, and for several terms represented his dis- 
 trict in the New York state senate. His mother, 
 
 Susan Carpenter, was also a native of New York 
 state. Removing in childhood with his parents 
 to Palmyra, N. Y., Charles A. Hart attended the 
 grammar and high schools of that town, and 
 was afterward graduated from the Genesee Wes- 
 leyan Seminary at Lima, N. Y. The year fol- 
 lowing the completion of his college course he 
 was employed as civil engineer and surveyor 
 on the New York & Lake Erie Railroad, hav- 
 ing charge of the construction of that portion 
 of the road between Elmira and Binghamton. 
 Returning home upon the expiration of his con- 
 tract, he studied law for four years in the office 
 of Theron R. Strong of Palmyra, one of the 
 most noted legal practitioners of western New 
 York in those days, and after his admission to 
 the bar was engaged in the practice of his 
 profession for one year in partnership with A. G. 
 Hemingway. Removing then to New York 
 City, he entered upon an entirely new avocation, 
 engaging in business as a commission dealer in 
 wool, hides, leather, etc. Enterprising and far- 
 seeing, and doubtless actuated somewhat by a 
 spirit of adventure, he then decided to put his 
 fortunes to the hazard on the Pacific slope, where 
 he hoped to find a realization of his dreams of 
 future prosperity. Joining a party of forty New 
 England men in 1848, he proceeded by steamer 
 to Brazos, Texas, where the company secured a 
 good outfit and started upon their tedious journey 
 across the wild desert for southern California. 
 The region which they traversed afforded one of 
 the least known and most dangerous routes over- 
 land, though the shortest to their destination, 
 and the risk that they took was most appalling. 
 After a long and tedious journey, during which 
 they had numerous skirmishes and other diffi- 
 culties with the Indians, principally Navajos 
 and Apaches, they arrived at Hill's Ferry, Mer- 
 ced county, Cal., August 7, 1849. Anxious to 
 beg;in their search for gold with as little delay 
 as possible, the party continued up the Merced 
 river, upon the banks of which they accidentally 
 discovered two "rockers," which had been left 
 there by prospectors. Although entirely igno- 
 rant of mining, they started for the diggings 
 '^ith the rockers. On their way they were for- 
 tunate enough to meet Captain Cutler, who had 
 served in the Mexican war under General Tay- 
 lor, and from him received some excellent advice 
 and information in regard to gold mining. For 
 two years thereafter Mr. Hart and his compan- 
 ions worked most successfully in the mines, find- 
 ing gold in large quantities, not infrequently 
 averaging sixteen ounces per day each. 
 
 Upon the expiration of his mining experi- 
 ence Mr. Hart located at Fort Miller, Mari- 
 posa county, where he opened a law office and 
 engaged in the practice of his profession. When 
 Fresno county was erected from a portion of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 491 
 
 Mariposa county in 1856, and Fort Miller be- 
 came known as Millerton, and was made the 
 county seat, Mr. Hart was appointed the first 
 county judge, and filled the office with eminent 
 satisfaction to all concerned for one term. Upon 
 retiring from the office, he resumed private prac- 
 tice until 1874, when, his health failing, he act- 
 ed upon the advice of his physician. Dr. Leach, 
 and retired to his farm, comprising over two 
 thousand acres of fertile and valuable land. 
 When the federal government abandoned Fort 
 Miller as a military post in 1863, Judge Hart 
 purchased the post buildings, one of which he 
 remodeled and ever after occupied as a resi- 
 dence. In the care and cultivation of his land 
 he always took great pleasure, paying especial 
 attention to stock-raising and the culture of 
 fruit, in the latter industry being a pioneer in 
 the San Joaquin valley. After the removal of 
 the county seat to Fresno in 1874, Judge Hart 
 never resumed his legal practice, but made Fort 
 Miller his home until a short time before his 
 death, which occurred May 13, 1903, at the 
 home of his son, Truman G. Hart, No. 233 
 Blackstone avenue, Fresno, at the venerable age 
 of eighty-three years. 
 
 February 18, 1865, Judge Hart was united 
 in marriage with Mrs. Ann (Brennan) McKen- 
 zie, a native of Ireland. By her marriage to 
 Sergeant James McKenzie, who came to Fort 
 Miller with the United States army in 1854, she 
 became the mother of three children, namely: 
 W. H. McKenzie, a capitalist of Fresno; Mary 
 Jane, wife of J. C. Hoxie of Fresno, and E. P. 
 McKenzie, deceased. The only child born of 
 the union of Judge and Mrs Hart is Truman 
 G. Hart of Fresno, of whom a brief sketch may 
 be found elsewhere in this volume. Mrs. Hart 
 is highly esteemed by all who have the pleasure 
 of her acquaintance. She is now making her 
 home in Fresno, with her daughter, Mrs. Hoxie. 
 
 Judge Hart belonged to that rare type of men 
 who pursue to a consummation their plans in 
 life, in spite of all obstacles which may arise 
 in their paths. In early Hfe he enjoyed un- 
 usual advantages in preparing himself for a 
 career in the law, and he brought with him 
 to California those high ideals so characteristic 
 of the well-born and well-bred son of the Em- 
 pire State. Throughout his life he was actuated 
 by the highest motives, and though the early 
 days of California were fraught with oppor- 
 tunities to gain wealth and temporary eminence 
 by the adoption of questionable means thereto, 
 he was never known to pursue a policy in any 
 way subject to adverse criticism. His life was 
 pure and blameless, both in public and private 
 affairs, his frequently manifested public spirit 
 and liberality of heart and mind endearing him 
 closely to a multitude of friends. The beneficent 
 
 effect of his life and work upon the welfare, of 
 Fresno county cannot be overestimated, for dur- 
 ing the earlier days of the county's develop- 
 ment he was one of the most potential factors in 
 placing it upon a sound and substantial basis, 
 high-minded and unselfish motives governing 
 his participation in public affairs. His name 
 will be handed down in history as that of one 
 of the most striking characters and finest citi- 
 zens in the San Joaquin valley, and the record 
 of his life deserves a permanent and conspicu- 
 ous place in the historical literature of the 
 commonwealth. 
 
 ELONZO P. DAVIS. The present city mar- 
 shal of Bakersfield is eminently quaHfied for his 
 responsible position, having firmness, tact, 
 strength of character, and broad and liberal ten- 
 dencies. He is one of the pioneers of this sec- 
 tion, and well understands the various human 
 elements which comprise its varied, strenuous life. 
 He was born in Arkansas September 22, 1853, 
 and from his father, Isham T. Davis, inherits the 
 courage and personal influence felt by all asso- 
 ciated with him in whatsoever capacity. The 
 elder Davis was born in Tennessee, as was also his 
 wife, formerly Mary Farley, the latter of Scotch 
 extraction. He was a man of iron will and a nat- 
 ural soldier, the beating of a drum or the passing 
 of martial music arousing in him the spirit of 
 tented field and the rush of opposing forces. He 
 shouldered a musket in the Mexican war, the 
 Seminole and all the other Indian wars, and 
 seemed to be protected by the very strength of 
 his courage and daring in the face of danger. He 
 was perfectly at home on the frontier, and as a 
 pioneer of Kern county, where he lived for some 
 years, and where he died after an exceptionally 
 active and useful life. He reared a family of four 
 sons and four daughters. 
 
 Bakersfield was a small town when Elonzo P. 
 Davis, the present marshal, arrived in its midst, 
 and at that time he started the livery business 
 with which his name and activity has since been 
 associated. From a small beginning his business 
 has grown with the development of the city. Mr. 
 Davis has been one of the stanch advocates of 
 good horses in this section of the country. In 
 years past he has raised many blooded horses, 
 and still has on hand several valuable animals. 
 His livery ec|uipment is modern and complete, 
 and his name has stood at the head of enter- 
 prises of the kind for many years. He has tak- 
 en a keen interest in Democratic politics, under- 
 standing only too well the prejudices and ani- 
 mosities with which the politician in this sec- 
 tion has to deal. After an uimsually riotous 
 campaign he was elected marshal of Bakersfield 
 in 1903, but the ballots were destroyed by fire. 
 
492 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and through a miscount his opponent assumed 
 the office. Mr. Davis, however, contested his 
 right in the superior court, a ruhng in his favor 
 being secured in January, 1904, backed by the 
 approval of the board of city trustees, who main- 
 tained that his election has been eminently fair. 
 Thereupon he took up the duties of the office, 
 and has since proved his ability to maintain order 
 in a district noted for its reluctance to give up 
 the old-time frontier methods. January 4, 1882, 
 Mr. Davis married Maggie Hope Taylor, a na- 
 tive of Virginia. They have five children. Myr- 
 tle, Elonzo, -Pearl, Marvin and Erma. 
 
 JOHN W. WHITWORTH. AHke in England 
 and America successive generations of the Whit- 
 worth family have been characterized by high 
 principles of honor and firmness of purpose. The 
 family was founded in the United States by 
 Henry Whitworth, Jr., a native of Lincolnshire, 
 England, who settled in Ohio in 1848, but soon 
 went farther west to .St. Louis. Later his father, 
 Henry Whitworth, Sr., also crossed the ocean 
 and settled in Ohio, where he passed his last 
 days. A brother, John, entered the ministry of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church and for forty 
 years preached the gospel in the Ohio conference. 
 When the discovery of gold in California at- 
 tracted countless thousands to the Pacific coast 
 Henry Whitworth, Jr., with the ambition of a 
 young and ardent spirit, determined to seek 
 his fortune across the plains. Accordingly in 
 1849 he started with a body of emigrants and 
 followed the old Sante Fe trail and the Gila 
 river, proceeding up the coast to old San Jose 
 and thence to Tuolumne county, where he gained 
 his first knowledge of placer mining. Sufficient 
 success met his efforts to induce him to continue 
 mining for a number of years, much of his work 
 meanwhile being in quartz mills and mines. 
 Finally, having wearied of the hardships incident 
 to mining, in 1863 he left the mines and settled 
 upon a farm in Contra Costa county. About 
 1868 he removed to the west side in Merced 
 county, where he secured an unimproved tract 
 of government land consisting of three hundred 
 and twenty acres. Under his constant and in- 
 dustrious care the uninviting tract was trans- 
 formed into a neat estate, where waving fields 
 of grain betokened each year a bountiful harvest 
 to repay the farmer's diligent cultivation. Little 
 by little his possessions increased until finally 
 he acquired control of one thousand acres. The 
 management of such a large acreage necessitated 
 much toil, but he was a man of energetic tem- 
 perament and was never happier than when 
 directing large interests. Although he accumu- 
 lated a competency he remained an active worker 
 at an age when most men feel they are privileged 
 
 to retire from agricultural cares. Indeed, his 
 activities wiere never relinquished until death 
 came to him, February 15, 1897, at the close of 
 seventy-two busy years. His wife who bore the 
 maiden name of Ann Hall, was born in Lincoln- 
 shire, England, and died in the San Joaquin 
 valley in 1877. They were the parents of two 
 sons, George Henry and John W., and a daugh- 
 ter, Mrs. Mary J. Butts, of Merced county. 
 
 During the residence of the family in Tuo- 
 lumne county John W. Whitworth was born 
 April 8, 1859. Early in life he decided to be- 
 come a farmer, hence he endeavored to acquire 
 a thorough knowledge of agriculture in all of 
 its details. However, he has followed general 
 agriculture less than dairying, the latter having 
 been his principal occupation for a considerable 
 period. The property which he owns consists 
 of eighty acres under the ditch on the hill and 
 creamery roads, about two and one-half miles 
 south of Newman, in Merced county, directly 
 across the line from Stanislaus county. The 
 land is under alfalfa, which he uses as feed for 
 his herd of thirty cows and the other stock that he 
 keeps on the farm. When the New Era Cream- 
 ery Company was organized he became one of 
 the first stockholders and has since retained his 
 close connection with this pioneer industry of 
 its kind. Though not active in politics, he has 
 always favored Democratic principles and never 
 fails to support the men and measures of the 
 organization. Personally he is a genial, com- 
 panionable gentleman, who not only enjoys a 
 reputation as a successful dairyman, but is 
 esteemed as a valued citizen, accommodating 
 neighbor and unselfish friend. 
 
 CHARLES MANTER. Although a residerit 
 of California for more than forty-two years, it 
 was not until recently that Mr. Manter settled 
 upon his fine little fruit farm, two miles and a 
 half west of Hanford, in Kings county, for dur- 
 ing the period of his residence in California he 
 has devoted his time and energies to various 
 occupations, principally to mining and ranch- 
 ing. A descendant of sturdy New England 
 parents, and himself a native of Franklin county, 
 Me., where he was born April 6, 1843, ^^i"- Man- 
 ter is next to the youngest child in a family of 
 six children born to James and Maria (Norton) 
 Manter, and grandson of Benjamin Manter. 
 The latter, a native of Massachusetts, was for 
 many years a resident of that state, and early 
 took to life on the water. He was a whaler, 
 and upon several occasions took a trip around 
 the West Indies. Late in life, he retired from 
 the sea and moved to Franklin county. Me., 
 when that locality was yet all heavy timber land. 
 Here he cleared and improved a farm upon 
 
a. a 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 495 
 
 which he afterward died at the extreme age of 
 ninety-nine years. His^ ancestors were from 
 Scotland. 
 
 The father of Charles Manter was born upon 
 the above named farm in Franklin county, Me., 
 and was a life-long resident of that vicinity. 
 He followed farming and at the time of his 
 demise was eighty-one years old. His wife, who 
 was born in the same state, passed away at the 
 age of sixty-two years, leaving six children. 
 The boyhood days of Charles Manter were spent 
 upon the home place and he assisted his father 
 in farm pursuits until he attained the age of 
 nineteen years. In January, 1862, he left his 
 New England home for California, the trip 
 being made by water and by the Panama route. 
 Upon reaching his destination, he located for a 
 brief time in Placer county, but afterward found 
 employment on a toll road in Nevada county, 
 where he worked for a short time. Returning 
 to Placer county, he worked on a- farm for a 
 couple of years as farmhand and during the 
 winters he contracted at getting out timber for 
 the mines. 
 
 During the Civil war Mr. Manter showed his 
 patriotism by enlisting in Company I, Eighth 
 California Regiment, and saw "about a year's 
 service at San Francisco and vicinity, afterward 
 returning to the mining district. Here he took 
 up mining with disastrous results, losing every- 
 thing, and for a year afterward he was deeply 
 in debt. Leaving the mines, he secured work 
 in the flour mills of Marysville, where he worked 
 for a time, but mining still held out inducements 
 to him in spite of his loss and caused him to 
 return to the mines of Sierra and Plumas county, 
 where he worked for wages until the fall of 
 1871, during whicli time he was again on the 
 road to prosperity. In the fall of that year he 
 went to Portersville, Tulare county, and became 
 foreman of a large sheep ranch for several years. 
 In December, 1876, he purchased a number of 
 sheep which he took to a recently purchased 
 eighty-acre tract in what is now Kings county, 
 and upon this land, about three miles east of 
 Lemoore, he followed sheep ranching and horse 
 raising until January, 1903, selling out at that 
 time. Soon afterward he purchased twenty 
 acres of his present farm, which he planted in 
 peaches and vineyards, and in the fall of the 
 same year, by an additional purchase, he added 
 twenty acres of land adjoining, the greater part 
 of which is also in vines and peaches. His vine- 
 yards contain mostly the celebrated raisin grape, 
 which is so extensively grown in this localit}'. 
 Mr. Manter is unmarried and his present pros- 
 perity is due to his undivided efforts, as he 
 began entirely without capital, and, as a perusal 
 of the above facts will show, he has encountered 
 many difficulties, which he finally overcame. 
 
 During his short residence in this vicinity he 
 has already gained the good will of his neigh- 
 bors and he affiliates with but one fraternal 
 order, the Masons. Politically a Republican, 
 Mr. Manter could never be persuaded to accept 
 office, preferring as he does to devote his un- 
 divided time to his business pursuits. 
 
 ARCHIE ALEXANDER MAYES. From 
 the first years of manhood the energies of Mr. 
 Mayes have been directed to agricultural pur- 
 suits and for the past thirty-five years he has 
 been a resident of Stanislaus county, Cal, easily 
 ranking at the present time among the most suc- 
 cessful dairy farmers of this county. It was in 
 1896 that he purchased an eighty-acre tract of 
 land one mile and a half northeast of Crow's 
 Landing and engaged in farm pursuits on his 
 own behalf. He now owns sixty-six acres of his 
 original purchase. His attractive and convenient 
 residence is surrounded by lawns, family orchards, 
 etc., and the land not used as pasturage is de- 
 voted to raising alfalfa. His dairy is supplied 
 by fifty-five choice cows, and he disposes of his 
 dairy products to the local creamery. 
 
 Mr. Mayes is well connected on both paternal 
 and maternal sides of the family. He was born 
 June 19, 1848, in the vicinity of Lexington, Rock- 
 bridge county, Va., which was also the birth- 
 place of his father. He is the seventh child in 
 a family of nine born to Albert and Elizabeth 
 (Turner) Mayes, the latter born near Lynch- 
 burg, in Amherst county, Va. A farmer by oc- 
 cupation, the father spent his entire life in Rock- 
 bridge county, and died in 1855, his widow dying 
 four years later. 
 
 The mental training of A. A. Mayes, obtained 
 from the common schools near his home, was 
 necessarily very limited, owing to the unsettled 
 state of the country during the Civil war, which 
 brought about hard times. Obliged early in life 
 to become self-supporting, he naturally chose the 
 occupation of his father and engaged in farm 
 pursuits. After the termination of the war, about 
 1867, Mr. Mayes left the home of his boyhood 
 and went to Missouri, locating for a couple of 
 years in Pike county near Clarksville. During 
 this time he worked as a farm hand and in 1869 
 he came to California, which has been his home 
 almost ever 'since. In the San Joaquin valley, at 
 the junction of the Orestimba creek and the San 
 Joaquin river, he obtained work on a farm and 
 for twenty-five years was in the employ of Crow 
 Brothers, being identified with their business up 
 to 1896. In 1875 he severed his connection with 
 farm pursuits for a time and for one year offici- 
 ated as superintendent of a street railway in 
 Stockton, then owned by the Crow Brothers. He 
 subsequently took charge of their stock and cat- 
 
496 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIuGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tie ranch in Nevada for a short time and during 
 the remainder of the time he worked for them he 
 was employed in the San Joaquin valley on the 
 Stanislaus county farms. 
 
 The home ties of Mr. Mayes date back to the 
 year of his residence in Stockton, for it was in 
 that city that he married Miss Ella Delano, a 
 woman of high intellectual attainments, who was 
 born in Massachusetts. Mr. and Mrs. Mayes 
 have one daughter, Myra D., and one son, Albert 
 Alexander. The political views of Mr. Mayes 
 coincide with straight Democratic doctrines and 
 he has had much to say and to do in the guidance 
 of that party in his section. His estate is kept 
 in prime condition, clearly giving the best evi- 
 dence as to the thrifty character and methodical 
 habits of the owner, who has won an enviable 
 reputation, not only as a keen, up-to-date farmer, 
 but also as a clear-headed business man. 
 
 FRANCIS W. LAUGHLIN. The worthy 
 descendant of an honored pioneer family of 
 Stanislaus county Francis W. Laughlin has spent 
 the major part of his life within its limits, and 
 has been actively associated with its agricultural 
 and industrial development and progress. A son 
 of the late James E. LaughHn, he was born 
 March i, 1857, in Linn county, Kans. His grand- 
 father, William Laughlin, was born in Kentucky, 
 his parents having removed there from South 
 Carolina. Becoming an early settler of Osage 
 county, Mo., he took up land, and was there en- 
 gaged in tilling the soil the remainder of his life. 
 
 A native of Missouri, James E. Laughlin was 
 born October 20, 1829, in Osage County, where 
 his earlier years were passed. From there he 
 migrated to Linn county, Kans., and was there 
 prosperously engaged in farming a number of 
 years. In 1862, with horse and mule teams, he 
 came overland to California, bringing his wife 
 and two children, following the wagon trail 
 through Murphy and Copperopolis, in Calaveras 
 county. At once locating in Stanislaus county, 
 he entered three hundred and twenty acres, being 
 the first person to take up land back from the 
 river, and doing so against the protest of his 
 neighbors, all of whom predicted that he would 
 soon be starved out. He began raising grain, 
 and was so successful , that he afterward pur- 
 chased one hundred and sixty acres of adjoining 
 land, and on his ranch of four hundred and 
 eighty acres continued his agricultural labors for 
 thirty years. Selling out in 1890, he continued 
 his residence in that locality for two }'ears, but 
 was^ retired from active pursuits. In 1902 he 
 removed to Oakdale, where he subsequently 
 lived until his death, October 26, 1903, at the 
 age of seventy-four years. He married Sarah 
 
 E. Moore, who was born in Tennessee, but was 
 reared in Osage county. Mo., whither her father, 
 Patrick Moore, settled as a pioneer farmer. She 
 survives her husband, and now makes her home 
 with her children, having one son and one 
 daughter, namely: Francis W., the special sub- 
 ject of this sketch, and Mrs. Sarah E. Pyeatt of 
 Madera county. 
 
 Coming with his parents to Stanislaus county 
 when five years old, Francis W. Laughlin here 
 received all the advantages for obtaining an edu- 
 cation that the district schools afforded. Being 
 bred to agricultural pursuits, he naturally adopt- 
 ed farming as his occupation, and at the age of 
 twenty-one years rented and operated a ranch 
 on his own account. In 1886, having made con- 
 siderable money in his chosen work, he bought 
 three hundred and twenty acres of land, not far 
 from 'the old homestead, and there carried on 
 general farming for six years. Selling that farm 
 in 1902, Mr. Laughlin located in Oakdale, about 
 one and one-half miles from the village, where 
 he owns and occupies a finely improved ranch 
 of two hundred and forty-five acres. His land 
 is well watered by the ditch and yields him large 
 crops of alfalfa and grain. Most of the time 
 Mr. Laughlin resides in Oakdale. 
 
 Mr. Laughlin married, in San Francisco, Mrs. 
 Mamie J. (Gable) Armstrong, who was born in 
 Calaveras county, where her father, William 
 Armstrong, a pioneer farmer and stock raiser, 
 spent the larger part of his life, dying there in 
 1890. Mr. and Mrs. Laughlin have one child, 
 namely : Alpha. Politically Mr. Laughlin is a 
 strong Republican, and fraternally he is a mem- 
 ber of Oakdale Lodge No. 275', F. & A. M. 
 Mrs. Laughlin is a faithful and valued member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 ROBERT H. WALLIS, a prosperous citizen 
 living five miles east of Le Grand, figures promi- 
 nently in the affairs of the community. Besides 
 his home ranch of eight hundred and forty acres, 
 five miles east of Le Grand, and the four-hun- 
 dred- acre ranch adjoining, he leases and owns 
 one hundred and sixty acres of land in the foot- 
 hills, all of which is almost entirely devoted to 
 the raising of grain, especially barley, of which 
 splendid crops are obtained, and some attention 
 is also given to stock raising. 
 
 Robert H. Wallis is a son of John K. Wallis, 
 a native of England, from which country he 
 journeyed to the United States when but seven 
 years of age, accompanying his parents. Locat- 
 ing in Wisconsin, John K. Wallis, when of suf- 
 ficient age, commenced farming. In 1850 he 
 came to California by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, and settled near Sonora, Tuolumne 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 497 
 
 county, where he remained six years, engaged 
 in mining. At the end of that period he went 
 back to Wisconsin, again coming west at a later 
 date ; this time crossing the plains, through Colo- 
 rado to Utah, where he mined until death 
 claimed him in 1870, owing to an accident in 
 the mines. He married Elizabeth James, who, 
 like her husband, was born in England and 
 reared in Wisconsin. 
 
 A native of Iowa county. Wis., Robert H. 
 Wallis was born October 14, 1859, ^"d reared 
 on his father's farm in that section. At the age 
 of ten years he hired out at $5 per month to 
 work on a farm. Like his father, he was at- 
 tracted westward and in 1881 came to California 
 and located near Modesto, where he engaged as 
 a hired hand. As he grew more prosperous he 
 rented lancl, and in 1885 made a permanent set- 
 tlement on the ranch where he now lives. He 
 took for his life companion Rosa Dickinson, who 
 bore him two children, John S. and Rosa R. In 
 1895, Mrs. Wallis' death occurred, a sad be- 
 reavement to the family and a large circle of 
 friends. Mr. Walhs is a progressive and public- 
 spirited citizen. He is a member of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and politically 
 is an adherent of the principles advocated by the 
 Republican party. 
 
 terest, and conducts his farming enterprise in 
 a methodical and business-like manner. 
 
 Mr. Ritchey married Stella Turner, a native of 
 Texas, and they are the parents of two children, 
 namely: Roscoe and Donald. Politically he ad- 
 heres to the principles advocated in the platform 
 of the Democratic party, and in his religious 
 affiliations is a member of the Cumberland Pres- 
 byterian Church. 
 
 SAMUEL LA FAYETTE RITCHEY. In 
 DeKalb county, Tenn., April 12, 1867, S. L. 
 Ritchey was born, a son of Micajah M. Ritchey. 
 The latter was a native of the same state and in 
 1870 he brought his family to California. He 
 first located on the present site of Modesto, Stan- 
 islaus county, where he engaged in blacksmithing 
 and farming for a number of years. In 1882 the 
 family removed to Merced county where the 
 father and his sons are all prominent and suc- 
 cessful ranchers, widely known and esteemed for 
 their business ability as well as personal worth. 
 Their ranches are numbered among the first in 
 point of cultivation and improvement in this sec- 
 tion. 
 
 Reared and educated in Stanislaus and Merced 
 counties, S. L. Ritchey has known no other home. 
 He remained on the paternal ranch and assisted 
 in the home duties until 1892, in which year he 
 took up independent operations and has since 
 been engaged in farming for himself. He is now 
 located one and a half mile from Le Grand, on 
 Mariposa creek, where he has eighty acres of 
 land, six of which are devoted to the cultivation 
 of orchard fruits and a vineyard. He has a well 
 two hundred and seventy-five feet deep, and a 
 twelve horse-power pump, while in many other 
 ways his ranch is well improved. Following the 
 training of his boyhood and young manhood he 
 gives to his work an intelligent and practical in- 
 
 RICHARD CHATTEN. Living retired in 
 the city of Visalia is Richard Chatten, better 
 known among his personal friends as Dick Chat- 
 ten, who since October, 1852, has been recog- 
 nized as one of the upbuilders of Tulare county. 
 He was born in Ontario, Canada, December 
 II, 1826, the fifth in order of birth of nine chil- 
 dren born to his parents. He received his edu- 
 cation in the common schools of Canada and 
 New York, and in 1849 returned to Canada with 
 his father, but that same year came back to the 
 States with the determination of going to what 
 was to him the unknown west, which held allur- 
 ing prospects. After spending six weeks in Illi- 
 nois he journeyed to St. Louis, and April i, 1850, 
 he left Leavenworth, Kans., with an emigrant 
 train for the long trip across the plains, reaching 
 California in September of that year. 
 
 In Eldorado county he. engaged in mining for 
 a time, then followed that same occupation in 
 Mariposa county at Quartsburg and Cotterville 
 until August I, 1852. During this time he had 
 contracted chills and. fever, and, after leaving 
 Cotterville he spent some time in Los Angeles, 
 and in October of that year came to Tulare coun- 
 ty, where he pre-empted one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land ten miles west of the present city 
 of Visalia. Being in its primeval condition, he 
 at once began improving it with buildings, and 
 embarked in the stock raising business. From 
 this small beginning he added from time to time 
 until he acquired four thousand acres in the same 
 locality ; six hundred and sixty acres of this is 
 now known as the Mineral King orchard, which 
 he disposed of at a very satisfactory price. He 
 removed to Visalia in 1886 and has since made 
 this city his home, though superintending the 
 work of his various ranches up to the present 
 time. 
 
 January 12, 1854, he married Margaret Glenn, 
 who was born in Tennessee and who died in 
 Visalia, leaving one son and three daughters, 
 namely: Eliza, wife of Louis Whitendale, near 
 Visalia ; Frances, Etta, and Thomas. For a sec- 
 ond wife, Mr. Chatten married, in 1892, Mrs. 
 Leah (Miller) Davis, widow of the late Thomas 
 H. Davis, a pioneer of Antelope Valley. Mrs. 
 Chatten was born in Arkansas and crossed the 
 plains to California in 1856, and since 1857 has 
 
498 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 been a resident of Tulare county. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Chatten are much respected by a wide circle of 
 acquaintances in Tulare county. A Republican 
 in politics, Mr. Chatten has never aspired to offi- 
 cial positions. He was made a Mason in 1857, 
 and is a member of the Blue Lodge, Chapter and 
 Commandery, of Visalia. 
 
 In all movements that have had for their ob- 
 ject the advancement of the social, moral, edu- 
 cational and industrial welfare of Tulare county 
 Richard Chatten has been a prominent factor. 
 He has watched the growth of the county and 
 of California with practical eye, aiid himself is 
 one of the substantial, conservative and progress- 
 ive men of the San Joaquin valley, and to such 
 men as he CaHfornia is indebted for much of her 
 present prosperity. 
 
 CARL C. CLAUSEN, a successful rancher 
 of Merced county, was born in Denmark April 
 27, 1849. He remained in his native land until 
 1870, when he set sail for the new world and 
 finally found himself in Detroit, Mich. 
 
 Since 1870, Mr. Clausen has seen many places 
 in the United States, working in a number of 
 different parts before settling in California. Two 
 years of his time were spent in Illinois, three 
 years in Clear Creek county, Colo., and in No- 
 vember, 1879, he came to California, locating in 
 Solano county. There he farmed one year and 
 in 1880 came to Merced county, where he has 
 since resided, with the exception of the year 
 1894, when he paid a visit to his native land. 
 He was married in California October 12, 1897, 
 to Julie Jacobsen, also a native of Denmark. 
 Three bright children, Carl, Albert and Emery, 
 now bless their home. 
 
 Mr. Clausen is a Republican in his political 
 views and stands high in the esteem of his fel- 
 low citizens. From working on a farm for 
 wages, in his earlier years, he has worked his 
 way up in the world, next leasing a half-section 
 of land and raising grain. In 1897 he purchased 
 his present ranch of eight hundred acres, be- 
 sides which he owns a good timber claim in the 
 Sierra mountains and leases two sections of land 
 near Le Grand. All his farming land is devoted 
 to grain and his success is richly deserved. 
 
 HENRY CALCOTE. The purchase of forty 
 acres in 1894 formed the nucleus to which Mr. 
 Calcote has added from time to time until at this 
 writing (1905) his landed possessions aggregate 
 two hundred and forty acres in one body, located 
 four and three-quarters miles northeast of Vi- 
 salia, and adjoining the old Calcote homestead 
 low owned and occupied by his brother, Will- 
 iam. While various farm products are grown on 
 
 the land, a specialty is made of the stock busi- 
 ness and a large portion of the acreage is devoted 
 to pasturage, while forty acres are under alfalfa. 
 Water from the Mathews ditch furnishes ade- 
 quate irrigation facilities and enhances the value 
 of the property. Not only has the owner been 
 successful in raising and feeding cattle and hogs, 
 but he has also won exceptional success as a 
 dairyman, and possesses the necessary equipment 
 for this industry, including a modern separator 
 of approved make. The improvements on the 
 place, including a neat farm house, prove him to 
 be a man of energy and resourcefulness, possess- 
 ing the thrifty qualities necessary to modern 
 farming. 
 
 On the Calcote homestead near his present 
 home Mr. Calcote was born September 18, 1859, 
 being a son of A. K. Calcote, whose life record 
 appears elsewhere in this volume, in the biog- 
 raphy of William Calcote. Little of special mo- 
 ment occurred to mark the boyhood years of 
 Henry Calcote. The winter months were spent 
 in attendance upon the school of the Elbow creek 
 district, while in the summer he aided his father 
 in caring for the stock and cultivating the land 
 of the home farm. On attaining his majority 
 he started out for himself, his first independent 
 work being as a farmer on the St. John's river, 
 where for seven years he managed the Togue 
 place of one hundred and forty acres, and en- 
 gaged in raising grain, cattle and hogs. In 1894 
 he bought forty acres adjoining the homestead 
 and this place, with its subsequent additions of 
 land, forms his present home and the scene of 
 his activities. Like his father, he favors Demo- 
 cratic principles. At one time he was a member 
 of the election board and -he has also served as 
 a member of the school board. 
 
 The marriage of Henry Calcote occurred in 
 Visalia and united him witli Miss Mary Kate 
 Spiese, who was born in Pennsylvania. They have 
 had five children, four now living, Mamie, Delia, 
 Fred and Leta. Mrs. Calcote is the only survivor 
 among the four children of Fred and Sophia 
 (Zimmer) Spiese, natives respectively of Nassau 
 and Bavaria, Germany. Her maternal grand- 
 father was lost at sea. The paternal grandfath- 
 er, Jacob Spiese, a native of Nassau, and a shoe- 
 maker by trade, came to America in 1846 and set- 
 tled at York, Pa. At the opening of the Civil 
 war in 1861 he enlisted in Company I, Eleventh 
 Pennsylvania Cavalry, in which he served for 
 three years. After the expiration of his term 
 of service he became a member of Company A, 
 Two Hundredth Pennsylvania Infantry, where he 
 served until peace was declared. After the war 
 ended he returned to York, Pa., where he died 
 at seventy-two years of age. Of his four chil- 
 dren (all still living) Fred was third in order of 
 birth, and was born in Germany, November 24, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 499 
 
 1842. When four years of age he accompanied 
 his parents to America. March 15, i860, he was 
 apprenticed to the carpenter's trad-e, and followed 
 the occupation until 1863, when he responded to 
 an emergency call for volunteers in the state 
 mihtia to protect the railroad bridges of the state. 
 During 1864 he enlisted in Company A, Two 
 Hundredth Pennsylvania Infantry, of which his 
 father and brother, Lewis, also were members. 
 The regiment was assigned to the army oi the 
 Potomac and participated in a number of the 
 last engagements of the memorable war. With 
 his father and brother he took part in the grand 
 review and then received an honorable discharge, 
 June 30, 1865, after which he resumed carpen- 
 tering in his home neighborhood. 
 
 From 1872 until 1875 Mr. Spiese was a resi- 
 dent of Pittsfield, 111., and then came to Califor- 
 nia, settling in Visalia and following the carpen- 
 ter's trade. Later he began to take contracts for 
 houses and business blocks. While living in Pemi- 
 sylvania he married Miss Zimmer, a woman of 
 estimable character and a helpmate to him in 
 all of his undertakings. Fraternally he is con- 
 nected with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows and Gen. George Wright Post No. iii, G. 
 A. R., in the work of both of which he main- 
 tains a deep interest. 
 
 WILLIAM WHEALAN, one of the leading 
 agriculturists of Merced county, possesses ex- 
 ceptional qualifications for the business to which 
 his life has been devoted, and for a period of 
 forty-two years has been identified with the 
 steady growth and development of California. 
 He was born in Seneca county, Ohio, February 
 17, 1838, and was reared on the farm owned by 
 his father, who was one of the most prosperous 
 and prominent men in his locality. John Whea- 
 lan, a native of Ireland, came to the United States 
 at an early date, locating in Ohio, and it was 
 there that the greater part of his life was spent, 
 dying there at the advanced age of eighty-four 
 years, six months and eighteen days. He mar- 
 ried Mary Barbara Swalley, who was born in 
 Pennsylvania and at the time of her death had at- 
 tained the age of eighty-two years. 
 
 William Whealan remained in the east until 
 twenty-four years of age. In 1862 he went to 
 New York city, taking passage on a steamer 
 bound for the Panama district en route for Cali- 
 fornia. After crossing the isthmus he completed 
 the journey to San Francisco on the steamer St. 
 Louis and soon after his arrival in that city he 
 left for.Placerville, where he tried his luck in the 
 mines. Very soon, however, he abandoned this 
 course and returned to San Francisco, where he 
 was engaged as longshoreman for several years. 
 In 1865 he turned his attention to farming, set- 
 
 tling first in Napa county and in 1871 in Merced 
 county, renting land until 1875, when he felt able 
 to purchase a place of his own. He then bought 
 the ranch of three hundred and tweTity acres upon 
 which he now resides, located eight miles east of 
 Merced, and which is devoted to raising stock and 
 grain. Not having sufficient land for his needs 
 he rents two sections of land, which he devotes 
 to wheat and barley. The prosperity and thrift 
 of the owner will be seen from the comfortable 
 residence, substantial and well-filled barns and 
 finely fenced fields. 
 
 By his marriage in Napa county, Cal., March 
 31, 1867, Mr. Whealan was united with Cynthia 
 Halterman, a daughter of Joseph and Abigail 
 (Barnett) Halterman, who immigrated to Cali- 
 fornia in 1854 with their family, from Ohio, 
 where Mrs. Whealan was born. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Whealan have an intelligent family of nine chil- 
 dren, named in the order of their birth as fol- 
 lows : Dena, the wife of George Landis, of Mer- 
 ced ; Loretta, who became the wife of Howard 
 Wills, of Le Grand ; Ida, the wife of William 
 Sering, of Merced; Minnie; Hattie; Frankie, 
 wife of George D. Farr ; William Blaine ; Belle 
 and Eugene. The family are members of the 
 Presbyterian Church. Fraternally Mr. Whealan 
 is a member' of the Odd Fellows, and Woodmen 
 of the World. In his political views he is ever 
 to be found m the ranks of the Republican party. 
 Mr. Whealan's widespread reputation as a suc- 
 cessful stock and grain raiser is the result of a 
 wise selection in choosing his life calling, engag- 
 ing in the line of work for which he was best 
 fitted and the one most congenial to him. By his 
 public spirit he has gained recognition as one 
 of the men who have ever had the best interest of 
 the county at heart and with time, influence and 
 means have liberally supported all projects that 
 would advance the interests of the citizens. 
 
 ALEXANDER BARBOUR. An expert in 
 the use of tools of all kinds, with a special apti- 
 tude for mechanical pursuits, Alexander Barbour 
 was for many years actively identified with the 
 upbuilding of Newman as a carpenter and con- 
 tractor. A man of great integrity and business 
 ability, honest and honorable in all his dealings, 
 he has won the respect and esteem of his fellow- 
 men, and the high regard in which he is held 
 gives evidence of his upright and manly life. 
 Coming from a long line of thrifty Scotch ances- 
 try, he was born September 15, 1843, in the Island 
 of Bute, a son of Hugh Barbour. 
 
 A native of Scotland, Hugh Barbour was born 
 on one of the Cumbrae Islands, near Bute, in the 
 Frith of Clyde, and was there brought up to agri- 
 cultural pursuits. Immigrating to this country 
 in 1849, he settled in Bradford county, Pa., where 
 
500 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he followed the occupation to which he was bred 
 in his island home, and was there employed in 
 general farming until his death. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Margaret Hunter, also was 
 born on one of the Cumbrae Islands, Scotland, and 
 died in Bradford county, Pa. Three boys and 
 two girls blessed their union, and of these the 
 three sons are living, namely : James, living on 
 the home farm in Pennsylvania; Hugh, in Seat- 
 tle, Wash. ; and Alexander, the subject of this 
 sketch. 
 
 But six years old when he came with his par- 
 ents to the United States, Alexander Barbour 
 was educated in the common schools of Penn- 
 sylvania, and afterward served an apprentice- 
 ship at the carpenter trade. Leaving home in 
 1877, he removed to Ogle county. 111., locating at 
 Kings, where he worked at his trade for eleven 
 years. Coming from there to California in 1888, 
 Mr. Barbour purchased his present home estate 
 of thirty, acres, situated two miles northeast of 
 Newman, where he has thirty acres of land, on 
 which he raises fine crops of alfalfa. For ten 
 years after coming here, he continued as a con- 
 tractor and carpenter, assisting in the erection of 
 many houses and public buildings, including 
 among others the building of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church, for which he took the contract, and 
 helped to finish the Newman school building and 
 the Russ hotel. 
 
 In Towanda, Pa., Mr. Barbour married Mar- 
 dia Greening, who was born in Orange county, 
 N. Y., a daughter of Hubert Greening. Her 
 father was a native of New Jersey, as was also 
 her mother, Elmira Lundy. Settling in Pennsyl- 
 vania soon after his marriage, he there engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits until his death. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Barbour have one child, namely : Edward 
 M. Barbour. In politics Mr. Barbour is a strong 
 Prohibitionist, and while living in Illinois was 
 active in public affairs, serving as justice of the 
 peace and as school director. 
 
 MRS. ALICE A. HANNA. Not since Oak- 
 dale took on the dignity and importance of a 
 postal station have the affairs of Uncle Sam been 
 more satisfactorily attended to than under the 
 administration of Mrs. Alice A. Hanna, the 
 present incumbent of the office. Receiving her 
 appointment from President McKinley in 1898, 
 Mrs. Hanna was re-appointed by President 
 Roosevelt in July, 1902, and in the meantime 
 the bulk of matter to be cared for had increased 
 materially with the town's continuous growth, 
 calling for more expeditious methods and larger 
 capacity. That she has been equal to all de- 
 mands upon her ingenuity and ability admits of 
 no possibility of doubt, and neither does the 
 fact that the citizens appreciate the dependability 
 
 and stability of their always genial and accom- 
 modating postmistress. This high esteem is also 
 enjoyed by the efficient assistant postmistress. 
 Miss Adella A. Hanna. 
 
 Mrs. Hanna represents a family numerously 
 identified with the early and later history of 
 Stanislaus county, and one which has reflected 
 credit upon its business, agricultural and judi- 
 ciary growth. Born in the state of Massachu- 
 setts, she is a daughter of L. T. and Sarah 
 (Smith) Hill, of whom the father was born in 
 Vermont and the mother in New Hampshire, 
 and who became very early settlers of Dixon 
 county. Neb. Mr. and Mrs. Hill are at present 
 making their home in Soquel, Santa Cruz county, 
 the former having long since retired from active 
 life. In Vermilion, S. Dak., Mrs. Hanna mar- 
 ried J. E. Hanna, son of Judge John Hanna of 
 McConnellsville, Ohio, and thereafter lived prin- 
 cipally in South Dakota and Nebraska until com- 
 ing to California in the fall of 1891. Settling 
 in* Oakdale, the climate, wonderfully rejuvenat- 
 ing to the majority, seemed to disagree with 
 Mr. Hanna, who died a few months later with- 
 out having realized the advantages of climate 
 and business among which he dwelt. His wife 
 continued to reside here, making many friends, 
 and by her strong character an J ability win- 
 ning a stable place in the homes of the elect of 
 the city. Her appointment to the postmastership 
 was received with general approval, and her 
 subsequent admirable management has but 
 strengthened her in the popular regard. Faith- 
 fully she is caring also for her children, educat- 
 ing them to the best of her ability and preparing 
 them for lives of usefulnes in the future. She 
 is a member of the Presbyterian Church and one 
 of the church's most zealous and earnest work- 
 ers. 
 
 Mention of Mrs. Hanna's family would be 
 incomplete without according due honor in these 
 pages to Judge C. S. S. Hill, her paternal uncle, 
 who, after a career of exceptional activity and 
 usefulness, and while making his home with 
 Mrs. Hanna in Oakdale, died at the age ^of 
 ninety-two years. This veteran member of the 
 bench viewed complacently his many mile-posts, 
 reflecting in appearance and manner the tem- 
 perate and sound mind which governed his cred- 
 itable undertakings. Coming to California in 
 1852, he soon after stepped into a waiting niche 
 at Knights Ferry, where he became known as 
 one of its most successful pioneer merchants 
 and postmasters, and as probate judge for many 
 years. While Oakdale was still a small village 
 in 1870, he took up his residence here, and for 
 years was one of its most prominent and pro- 
 gressive citizens, interesting himself in its educa- 
 tional and civic advancement, and contributing 
 of his time and means to such of its institutions 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 501 
 
 as demanded his assistance. Besides owning 
 large tracts of land in the country, he owned and 
 laid out several additions to Oakdale, built sev- 
 eral houses, and otherwise contributed to its last- 
 ing welfare. The passing years saw no diminu- 
 tion of his interest, although failing powers ne- 
 cessitated less strenuous participation in general 
 affairs. His niece, Mrs. Hanna, spent the years 
 from 1872 to 1874 in his family, and the strong 
 bond of sympathy and good fellowship then 
 formed between them never waned or was 
 interrupted. His was a fine, strong character, 
 and one upon whom his friends and associates 
 could invariably rely. The twilight of his life 
 was unhampered by many of the weaknesses 
 and signs of impairment which often visit and 
 remain with the older grown, and it was felt by 
 all who knew him that his life was ' one of ex- 
 ceptional worth and interest. 
 
 FREDERICK NELSON. Adjoining, Oak- 
 dale is what is unquestionably the finest almond 
 orchard in Stanislaus county. Not only are the 
 twenty acres covered with finely developed and 
 prolific trees, but the grove presents an aspect 
 of thrift and painstaking care equaled but rarely 
 excelled in any part of the state. Its owner, 
 Frederick Nelson, has always maintained that 
 whatever was worth doing at all was worth do- 
 ing well, and in confirmation of his theory his 
 orchard rears its beautiful trees and puts forth 
 its rich, time-honored harvest, guarded as faith- 
 fully through the years as a child whose conduct 
 depended upon its sympathetic and kindly sur- 
 roundings. Mr. Nelson is essentially a lover 
 of the things that have their growth in the soil, 
 and the process affords him endless study and 
 interest. He counts no effort too great to ac- 
 complish the best possible on his ranch, and the 
 soil responds generously to his practical and 
 earnest efforts. His home ranch consists of a 
 pleasant California home and of an orchard of 
 various kinds of fruit, intended solely for family 
 use. That he has been successful is evidenced 
 a mile south of Oakdale, where he owns his 
 farm of two hundred and thirty-nine acres, de- 
 voted principally to grain raising and under a 
 high state of improvement. His chief pride, 
 however, is his almond orchard, under whose 
 shady trees he wanders gratefully and gladly, 
 feeling the success imparted by their sturdy and 
 unfailing production and the promise held out 
 by the advantages of the climate and soil in 
 which he lives. 
 
 Mr. Nelson was born in Ostrejotlan, Norrkop- 
 ing, Sweden, May 14, 1845, and is the second 
 oldest of three sons and three daughters born 
 to his now deceased parents, Nels and Fredericka 
 (Mailer) Nelson, the former of whom was a 
 contracting stone mason. Of this family, reared 
 
 in an humble and God-fearing home, two sons 
 and one daughter are now living in America, all 
 having made their own way in the world, having 
 had few educational or other advantages in their 
 youth. Frederick was obliged to support him- 
 self at the age of eleven, when he found work 
 on a farm near his home, and since that time 
 he has had no help whatsoever in a financial 
 way. Frugal and saving as are the majority of 
 his countrymen, he had sufficient means to come 
 to America in November, 1868, and after locat- 
 ing in Burlington, Iowa, he worked for the rail- 
 road there, later going to St. Joseph, Mo., and 
 in 1873 gave further rein to his ambition by 
 coming to Sonoma county, this state. Working 
 on a ranch near Stockton for a couple of years, 
 he began farming for himself on the Calaveras 
 river in San Joaquin county in 1877, devoting 
 his land to grain and cattle, and in time moving 
 to the Latimer ranch, where his former success 
 continued unabated. In 1891 he came to Oak- 
 dale and bought twenty-seven acres of his pres- 
 ent ranch, . adjoining the town, where he has 
 since made his home, and which has richly im- 
 proved under his energy and good management. 
 August 28, 1876, Mr. Nelson married in 
 Stockton, Mary Johnson, a native of Vermland, 
 Sweden, who became the mother of six children, 
 the oldest daughter Emma, dying at the age of 
 twenty. Ida is now Mrs. Adams of Sonora ; Al- 
 bert is a farmer of lone, Ore. ; Minnie is the 
 wife of George Crawford of Oakdale; Anna 
 Florence is the wife of J. H. Powell of Oak- 
 dale ; and Roy Austin is at home. In national 
 politics Mr. Nelson is a Republican, but in local 
 affairs is guided by existing conditions. For 
 five years he was a trustee of the school board 
 in San Joaquin county and has always taken a 
 keen interest in the cause of education. In re- 
 ligion he is a Methodist, and has for years been 
 a trustee, at present serving also as steward. He 
 is a progressive and enlightened citizen, repre- 
 senting the best traits and attainments of the 
 people of Sweden, and finding in his adopted 
 country many who rejoice at his success and his 
 ready adaptation of American customs and lan- 
 guage. 
 
 GEORGE D. FARR. The grain and stock 
 resources of Merced county have made independ- 
 ent fortunes for many industriously inclined 
 land owners, with the result that it is one of the 
 best known sections of the state to be devoted 
 to these commodities. One of the most prorni- 
 nent of the grain and stock raisers in the vicin- 
 ity of Geneva is George D. Farr, owner of two 
 hundred and fifty acres of land, including the 
 town site of Geneva. Prior to the purchase of 
 his present home place he farmed three and one- 
 half sections of land. In his family lives Michael 
 
502 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Fan-, the father to whom he owes his early train- 
 ing and education, and whose ambition and hard- 
 ihood resulted in establishing the family on the 
 coast. The elder Farr was born in Canada, and 
 there married Catherine Nash, with whom he 
 began housekeeping on a northern Canadian 
 farm. He was successful and saved money, and 
 with his wife came to California in 1852, sailing 
 from New York to Aspinwall, and from Panama 
 to San Francisco. After three years of success 
 and failure in the mines along the American 
 river, he began farming in Santa Clara valley, 
 in 1856 removing to San Joaquin county, and 
 from there to Contra Costa county. In the lat- 
 ter countv he had a ranch of two thousand acres 
 devoted mainly to stock. He lived for a short 
 time in Livermore, Alameda county. In 1889 
 he sold his land and came with his son to his 
 present farm near Geneva, where he is enjoying 
 fair health and is in good spirits, notwithstand- 
 ing that seventy-six years have passed over his 
 head. 
 
 George D. Farr was born on his father's farm 
 in Contra Costa cotuity. May 11, 1867, and when 
 old enough to assume responsibility entered into 
 a business partnership with his father. It was 
 largely through his advice that the Contra Costa 
 farm was sold and the one near Geneva pur- 
 chased. Mr. Farr has effected a transformation 
 in his property, has made many improvements 
 and has exerted every energy to make his ranch 
 a model of its kind. He is progressive, cautious 
 and painstaking, and is one of the best authori- 
 ties on grain and stock raising in the county. 
 Since locating here he has married Frankie 
 Whealan, a daughter of William Whealan, a 
 prominent rancher in their neighborhood. Four 
 children have been born into the Farr household : 
 Viva, who was accidentally killed September 7, 
 1904; Zyta, Curtis and Stanley. 
 
 SAMUEL JONATHAN REYNOLDS GIL- 
 BERT. The Gilbert family was once prominent 
 in English history, the first American emigrant 
 being a member of the bodyguard of the king. 
 Through an entanglement which endangered his 
 life he was forced to leave the country and chose 
 as his safest location the American colonies. This 
 was before the Revolutionary war, and since that 
 time the family has flourished on American soil. 
 The great-grandfather of Samuel J. R. Gilbert 
 served valiantly in the Revolutionary war, in 
 which he was taken prisoner, and returned to the 
 country of his forefathers. 
 
 J. R. Gilbert, born in Woodstock, Vt., in 1806, 
 emigrated to Ohio in the early '40s and located 
 in Akron. After the discovery of gold he crossed 
 the plains to California in 1849, being captain 
 of a large train which he organized. He engaged 
 
 in mining in Shasta county for a short time, after 
 which he took up the general merchandise busi- 
 ness. In 1852 he returned east for his family, 
 bringing them to California via the Nicaragua 
 route. The remainder of his life was spent in 
 this state, his death occurring in 1879. He is 
 survived by his wife, formerly Dorcas Fillebrown, 
 bom in Boston, Mass., in 1816, and she now 
 makes her home with her son, S. J. R. Gilbert, in 
 Visalia, at the age of eighty-nine years. Of her 
 three sons, one is deceased, while the other two, 
 Frank W. and S. J. R., are engaged in business 
 together in this city. 
 
 Samuel Jonathan Reynolds Gilbert was born 
 in Akron, Ohio, June 20, 1847, the second child 
 in his parents' family. He was not quite six years 
 old when he came to California, so the greater 
 part of his education was received in the common 
 schools of this state. In young manhood he en- 
 gaged with his father in the general merchandise 
 business in Shasta, afterward, in 1871, going to 
 Redding, Shasta countv, where he put up the 
 first tents of the town, for a time thereafter act- 
 ing as assistant railway agent. . He then entered 
 into the hardware and plumbing business and 
 met with a success which justified his continu- 
 ance for nearly twenty years. In the fall of 1891 
 he went to Fresno and for four years was asso- 
 ciated with the plumbing department of Kutner, 
 Goldstein & Co. In August, 1900, he came to 
 Visalia and engaged in the tinning and plumbing 
 business, the style of the firm name being Gilbert 
 & Son, the latter being his son Fred S. Gilbert. 
 From a small beginning the business has grown 
 to remunerative proportions and they now cater 
 to an extensive and lucrative trade. 
 
 In Shasta, Cal., Mr. Gilbert was united in mar- 
 riage with EHzabeth Wilhelm, a native of New 
 York and the descendant of an old German fam- 
 ily. Born of this union were four sons and three 
 daughters, of whom one daughter is deceased; 
 Mary Winifred is the wife of -J. P. Eaton, a 
 prominent business man of Redding, where he 
 conducts a stationery store ; George W. is a den- 
 tist of Fresno ; Fred S. is in business with his 
 father ; Walter F. is located in Portland, Ore. ; 
 Stella May became the wife of F. W. Velie, as- 
 sistant cashier of the First National Bank of 
 Portersville ; and J. R., completes the family. 
 Fraternally Mr. Gilbert is prominent as a Mason, 
 having joined the organization in Redding, Cal., 
 in 1880. He is pdst master of Blue Lodge No. 
 303 of Portersville ; belongs to Visalia Chapter 
 No. 44, R. A. M. ; Visalia Commandery No. 26, 
 K. T. ; and Islam Temple A. A. O. N. M. S., of 
 San Francisco. Politically he adheres to the prin- 
 ciples advocated in the platform of the Repub- 
 lican party. Mr. Gilbert is a broad-minded, pub- 
 lic-spirited citizen and has always given his best 
 efforts to advance the general welfare in what- 
 
J^^yt^ //i^^^^^^W_. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 505 
 
 ever community he has made his home. While 
 a resident of Redding, Cal., he was one of the 
 prime movers in securing that city as the county 
 seat and his aid was invaluable, as it was one of 
 the hardest struggles in the history of that sec- 
 tion. He acted as secretary of the immigration 
 committee of that county and in every way made 
 his own interests parallel with those of the city, 
 county and state which he had made his own 
 by adoption. Since his location in Visalia he 
 has shown the same liberal and enterprising spirit 
 and works with the same earnestness toward the 
 progress and advancement of this city. He is a 
 prominent social figure and occupies a position 
 of importance in the business world, as well, en- 
 joying to an unusual degree the esteem of all 
 who know him. 
 
 GUY KILBURN. Numbered among the 
 more prominent and prosperous of the earlier pio- 
 neers of California was the late Guy Kilburn, of 
 Newman, who came to this state in 1852, and 
 from that time until his death, January 23, 1903, 
 was actively identified with its agricultural and 
 industrial prosperity. A man of sterling worth 
 and integrity, honest and upright in all of his 
 dealings, he gained the respect and good will of 
 the community in which he resided, and his death 
 was deeply deplored as a public loss. He was 
 born November 17, 1836, in Tioga county. Pa., 
 which was also the birthplace of his father. Wells 
 Kilburn. 
 
 Reared to agricultural pursuits, Wells Kilburn 
 was engaged as a tiller of the soil in his native 
 state until 1852, when, with his family, he came 
 by way of the Isthmus of Panama to California, 
 being shipwrecked while en route. Taking up 
 land in Napa county, he was there engaged in 
 his independent occupation of a farmer the re- 
 mainder of his life. He married, in Baltimore, 
 Md., Ann Guy, a native of that city. 
 
 Having obtained the rudiments of his educa- 
 tion in his native county, Guy Kilburn completed 
 his early studies at a college in Baltimore, Md. 
 Coming with the family to the Pacific coast, he 
 assisted his father in improving a farm,, and aft- 
 erward engaged in farming on his own account 
 in the Napa valley. Removing to Contra Costa 
 county in 1867, he followed his chosen occupa- 
 tion in Antioch for a year. In 1868 Mr. Kil- 
 burn located at Hills Ferry, and having pur- 
 chased the ten hundred and twenty acres in- 
 cluded in his homestead, which lies four miles 
 north of Newman, he began the improvement of 
 a farm. He was for many years successfully em- 
 ployed as a grain raiser, but devoted the latter 
 years of his Hfe to stock-raising and dairying, 
 carrying on an extensive and profitable business 
 until his decease. 
 
 28 
 
 In Napa, Cal., Mr. Kilburn married Jeannette 
 A. Smith, who was born near West Liberty, 
 Iowa, a daughter of Egbert T.. Smith. A native 
 of New York state, Mr. Smith was born and 
 reared on Long Island, his birth occurring in 
 1817. When a young man he journeyed on 
 horseback to Ohio, locating in Franklin, where 
 he took up a tract of timbered land, from which 
 he cleared a farm. In 1835 he continued his 
 journey westward to Iowa, where he continued 
 as a tiller of the soil for nearly a score of years. 
 Coming from there to California via Panama 
 in 1852, he was employed in mercantile pursuits 
 at Marysville for two years, and then went to 
 Napa county, where he took up land, which he 
 managed during his remaining years of activity, 
 living in Napa until his death, in 1879, at the 
 venerable age of eighty-five years. Mr. Smith 
 married Sarah Schencke, who was born in Ohio, 
 a daughter of Rev. William Schencke, and died, 
 in 1851, in Iowa. Of the union of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Kilburn nine children were born, namely : 
 Stella, wife of William C. Smith, of Stockton, 
 Cal.; Ada, at-home; Ruth, wife of George Stew- 
 art, of Stanislaus county ; Kate, wife of F. M. 
 Eachus, of San Francisco ; E. S., living at home ; 
 Ella, wife of W. G. Wilson, of Madera county ; 
 Mabel, wife of L. M. Doty, of San Francisco ; 
 Charles L., of San Francisco ; and Guy, at home. 
 Politically Mr. Kilburn was a stanch RepubHcan 
 in his views ; religiously he was a member of the 
 Episcopal Church; and fraternally he was an ac- 
 tive and influential Mason, having passed through 
 all the diflferent organizations of the Masonic 
 order, and taken the thirty-second degree. He be- 
 came a Knight Templar in the Stockton Com- 
 mandery. Since the death of Mr. Kilburn, the 
 family have sold the dairy business, and two hun- 
 dred acres of land. The balance of the property 
 is rented for dairy purposes. 
 
 ASA EDWARD MOUTREY. As manager 
 of the Le Grand Rochdale, a general merchandise 
 establishment of this place, Mr. Moutrey ranks 
 among the most prominent business men of this 
 section. A native Californian, he was born in 
 Plainsberg, Merced county, November 16, 1874, 
 a son of Thomas L. Moutrey. The latter was 
 born in Missouri in 1847, his parents being na- 
 tives of Kentucky. In young manhood he mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Hayes, also a native of Missouri 
 and the daughter of Upton Hayes, of Kentucky, 
 a grandson of Daniel Boone. When five years 
 old Thomas L. Moutrey removed to Texas with 
 his parents, and while a resident of that state 
 served as soldier in the Confederate army, being 
 then but seventeen years of age. After the close 
 of the war he followed farming in Texas until 
 
506 
 
 HISTORICAL AXD BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1871, in which 3'ear he came to California, first 
 locating in Mariposa county and engaging in 
 agricultural pursuits for some time. In 1873 he 
 removed to Merced county and located at Plains- 
 berg, where he engaged in ranching until 1903, 
 when he removed to Madera, where he remained 
 one year, now making his residence in Le Grand. 
 Fotu' children were born to himself and wife, 
 namely: Asa Edward, the subject of this sketch; 
 Lemuel, Margaret and Fleda. 
 
 After attending the public schools of his native 
 county, Mr. Moutrey entered the Pacific Uni- 
 versity at San Jose and studied for two and a 
 half years. He then returned to Plainsberg and 
 engaged in ranching for a number of years, in 
 1903 accepting the position of manager in the 
 building of the store of the Rochdale Company, 
 since which time he has been in their employ. 
 This business is incorporated at $10,000, and car- 
 ries a full line of general merchandise, three men 
 being employed in the discharge of the work. 
 The ability of Mr. Moutrey to plan and execute 
 and his thorough understanding of the details of 
 the business have added to the profitableness of 
 the enterprise, as well as his uniform courtesy 
 and desire to please the public winning many 
 friends, who regard him both personally and com- 
 mercially as an acquisition to the society of the 
 place. In fraternal circles Mr. Moutrey is an 
 Odd Fellow, a Mason and a member of the 
 Woodmen of the World. Politically he is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 JOSEPH LARKIN MOFFETT. Numbered 
 among the active, enterprising and prosperous 
 agriculturists of Tulare county is Joseph Larkin 
 Moffett, who owns and occupies a well-tilled 
 alfalfa ranch, advantageously located about five 
 miles east of Visalia. Liberal, thoughtful and 
 full of energy, he is ever ready to lend a hand 
 toward the establishment of any good project, 
 and these sterling characteristics have made him 
 respected as an honored and useful member of 
 the community. A son of Henry Mofifett, he 
 was born February 13, i860, in Mendocino coun- 
 ty, this state. 
 
 Although a native of Tennessee, Henry Mof- 
 fett was brought up in Missouri, where his par- 
 ents settled as pioneers when he was a lad. In 
 1856, convinced by the glowing descriptions of 
 California that this state was surely the emi- 
 grant's eldorado, he joined a party 'bound for 
 the Pacific coast, and crossed the intervening 
 plains with ox teams. Locating in Mendocino 
 county, he took up land and carried on dairying 
 and farming for a number of years. Coming to 
 Tulare county in 1864, he took up land in the 
 Antelope valley, sixteen miles east of Visalia, 
 
 and continued in his independent occupation. He 
 was quite successful, and became owner of valu- 
 able tracts of land in the Sand creek district. 
 Removing to Visalia in 1887, he was there en- 
 gaged in the hardware business until 1895, when 
 he sold out his stock to King & Co., and invested 
 the proceeds in land. Taking up his residence 
 in Orosi in 1898, he is a hale and hearty man of 
 seventy-six years, living retired from active busi- 
 ness. He is a steadfast supporter of the Demo- 
 cratic party and a valued member of the Cum- 
 berland Presbyterian Church. He married Char- 
 lotta Smith, a native of Missouri, and they be- 
 came the parents of thirteen children, eight boys 
 and five girls, Joseph Larkin of this review being 
 the third child in order of birth. 
 
 Having completed his early education in the 
 district school, Joseph L. Moffett served an ap- 
 prenticeship at the carpenter's trade, at which 
 he worked for ten years, being employed in 
 Visalia and Portersville. Turning his attention 
 then to agricultural pursuits, he owned and op- 
 erated a threshing machine outfit for eighteen 
 summers, being employed in the San Joaquin 
 valley, and at the same time carrying on general 
 farming and stock raising. In 1899 Mr. Moffett 
 purchased his present home ranch, which is situ- 
 ated five miles east of Visalia, and of which he 
 had previously had the management for several 
 years. It contains eighty acres of rich and fer- 
 tile land, and in addition to raising large crops 
 of alfalfa he raises hogs and cattle. A thor- 
 ough-going farmer, paying strict .attention to 
 the details of his line of industry, Mr. Moffett 
 has been successful in his undertakings. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Moffett married Maggie Car- 
 ter, who was born and bred in Tulare county, 
 and they have eight children living, namely: 
 Joseph Otto, Henry Clyde, Charles, Ewell, Dor- 
 othy, Claris, and Rena and Vena, twins. Po- 
 litically Mr. Moffett is a stanch Democrat, hav- 
 ing never swerved from the faith in which he 
 was reared, and fraternally he belongs to the 
 Visalia Lodge, W. O. W., of which he is a past 
 officer. 
 
 MOSES DODGE. The possession of a ten- 
 acre ranch two miles west of Fresno has brought 
 Moses Dodge a realization of his desire for an 
 ideal country existence and a competence. The 
 modern improvements which add to the value of 
 his property are entirely of his own making, for 
 when he settled in Fresno in 1884 the ground was 
 an undisturbecl prairie, and at present is under 
 cultivation to fruit and alfalfa. He is engaged in 
 general farming and some stock raising, in both 
 of which departments of country activity he is 
 well schooled. Mr. Dodge was born in Olney, 
 Suffolk county, Me., October 4, 1831, a son of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 607 
 
 Moses and Mary (Leman) Dodge, who had be- 
 sides, two older and six younger children, four 
 of whom are living. The family was established 
 in America during early colonial times by an 
 ambitious Scotch ancestor, who presumably set- 
 tled in Massachusetts. Moses Dodge, Sr., died 
 when his son was five years old, having never 
 moved from his native state. He was survived 
 by his wife until her ninety-seventh year. 
 
 Owing to the death of his father, and the large 
 family dependent upon the care of his mother, 
 Moses Dodge, Jr., at the age of six years, went 
 to live with a relative in Edgecomb, Lincoln 
 county. Me., and was there reared and educated 
 until his twenty-first year. He then went to Bath, 
 Me., and learned the ship carpenter's trade, two 
 years later removing from there, but for ten years 
 continuing to work at his trade. April 26, 1861, 
 he arrived in San Francisco, after a journey by 
 way of the Isthmus of Panama, thereafter work- 
 ing at his trade for three and a half years, a 
 part of the time at Mare Island. In 1865 he re- 
 turned to his home in Maine and engaged in 
 farming near Newcastle, and in 1866 married 
 Esther Glidden, now deceased, who became the 
 mother of one son, Walter W., who is married 
 and has one child, Roland, and is a resident of 
 Fresno. In 1884 Mr. Dodge returned to the west 
 and bought his present ranch and in 1894 was 
 again married, in Fresno, to Laura.E. Hoffman, a 
 native of Ohio. Since his return to California he 
 has made many friends amone^ his progressive 
 and hospitable neighbors. During his long and 
 active life he has derived pleasure from asso- 
 ciation with the Masons for many years, and now 
 holds a demit from the Massachusetts lodge. He 
 is a Republican in politics, and in religion is 
 identified with the First Baptist Church of Fres- 
 no. 
 
 JACOB IPSEN. The success which Mr. 
 Ipsen has achieved has been entirely the result 
 of his own efforts, for he came to Merced county 
 a stranger in a strange land, with no knowledge 
 of either language or customs, and with only his 
 own energy and ambition upon which to build 
 his hopes for a future. He now owns a ranch of 
 four hundred and eighty acres adjoining the town 
 of Le Grand, Merced county, while the Santa Fe 
 Railroad passes through a part of his property, 
 which is given over entirely to the cultivation of 
 wheat and barley, the average yield being seven 
 sacks per acre. 
 
 A native of Denmark, Mr. Ipsen was born 
 February 19, 1856, on Bornhdlm Island, which is 
 sixteen by twenty miles in extent. He is a son 
 of Peter and Margarita (Funk) Ipsen, farmers 
 of Denmark, who never left their native country. 
 Jacob Ipsen received his education in the public 
 
 schools of Denmark and was reared to young 
 manhood on the paternal farm. He remained at 
 home until attaining the age of twenty-six years, 
 when, in 1882, he came to California by way of 
 New York City, and after reaching the west 
 located in Merced county, where he worked on 
 the ranch which he now owns for a period of 
 three years. He then rented land and raised 
 grain until 1900, renting from two to four 
 thousand acres of land and devoting the same 
 principally to wheat. In the meantime he pur- 
 chased his ranch and now gives his entire time 
 to its cultivation and improvement. 
 
 In California Mr. Ipsen married Anna Hansen, 
 also a native of Denmark, and they have one son, 
 Arthur, now eight years old. Mr. Ipsen is a Re- 
 publican in his political convictions, and fra- 
 ternally affiliates with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows ; he also belongs to the Encamp- 
 ment. He is a self-made man and has acquired 
 a competency since coming to California, as well 
 as winning for himself the esteem and confidence 
 of his fellow-citizens. 
 
 HOWARD C. KEELEY, who has served 
 Stanislaus county as county recorder and auditor, 
 has made his influence felt in both political and 
 business circles of the community and has made 
 for himself a position of prominence among its 
 representative citizens. He was born at Chilli- 
 cothe. Mo., December 3, 1867, being the sixtli 
 child and the youngest son in a family of five 
 sons and four daughters born to his parents, 
 Conrad and Louisa (Miller) Keeley, the former 
 born in Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, and the 
 latter born in that city December 29, 1832. The 
 father was a carpenter and builder by occupation, 
 and foreseeing greater opportunities in the middle 
 west he removed from his native state to Illinois, 
 afterward locating in Iowa, from which state he 
 removed to Chillicothe, Mo. In the last named 
 place he followed his trade as well as being em- 
 ployed as a farmer. In 1869 he emigrated to 
 California and located at Sonora, where he was 
 likewise employed, fifteen years later seeking a 
 home near Oakdale, Stanislaus county. After 
 four years of the same kind of employment he 
 removed to the neighborhood of Modesto, same 
 county, engaging in farming seven miles north of 
 the city until his death, which occurred January 
 20, 1900, at the age of seventy-one years seven 
 months and twenty days. In politics the elder 
 Mr. Keeley was a stanch Republican, and at the 
 time of his country's need he enlisted in Com- 
 pany ■ G, of- the Missouri Regulars and served 
 from 1861 for a period of three years. His wife 
 survives him, now living upon the home place 
 seven miles north of Modesto, at the age of sev- 
 enty-one years, 
 
508 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 After receiving inis preliminary education in 
 the common schools of California, Howard C. 
 Keeley entered the commercial college of Stock- 
 ton, from which he was graduated in 1898. His 
 first employment afterward was as manager^ of 
 the Grange' Company Warehouse at Montpellier, 
 Stanislaus county, in which connection he re- 
 mained until 1896. He then entered upon a gen- 
 eral merchandise business in that place, in his in- 
 tercourse with the public winning many friends 
 who recognized his evident ability in public ca- 
 pacity. A Republican in politics, and for five 
 years a member of the Republican county central 
 committee, he was nominated and elected by that 
 party to the office of county recorder and auditor 
 in 1902, acceptably discharging the duties of the 
 same. In Ripon, this state, he was united in mar- 
 riage with Lillie Ida Melton, of Iowa, whose 
 father Jesse, also a native of Iowa, came to Cali- 
 fornia in the '60s and located in Stanislaus coun- 
 ty, where he engaged in farming. His death oc- 
 curred at Ripon when about seventy-five years 
 old. To Mr. and Mrs. Keeley have been born 
 three children, all of whom are at home with 
 their parents : Jesse C, Clarence and Walter. 
 Fraternally Mr. Keeley is a member of the Wood- 
 men of the World. 
 
 FRANCIS E. McKEE. A well-known busi- 
 ness man of Le Grand, Merced county, is Francis 
 E. McKee, a dealer in general merchandise in 
 this place with W. C. Kroh. He was born in 
 Grant county, Wis., June 12, 1871, a son of Eli 
 McKee, a native of New England. The elder 
 Mr. McKee located in Wisconsin in an early day 
 and engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1872, 
 when he came to California. He settled in Ripon, 
 San Joaquin county, and there became a success- 
 ful rancher, remaining in that location until his 
 death at the age of sixty-five years. His wife, 
 who survives him and still makes her home in 
 Ripon, was fonnerly Ehzabeth Dickinson, a na- 
 tive of Wisconsin, and the daughter of Putman 
 Dickinson. 
 
 Mr. McKee has practically known no other 
 home than that of his adopted state, being reared 
 and educated in San Joaquin county and remain- 
 ing in the paternal home until manhood. He re- 
 mained in that county until 1899, the last five 
 years of his residence being engaged in a mer- 
 cantile enterprise in Lathrop, with B. F. Eastman. 
 In 1899 he came to Le Grand, in September of 
 that year opening a branch store in partnership 
 with Mr. Eastman, which continued about one 
 year, at which time he purchased Mr. Eastman's 
 interest and conducted the business alone until 
 January. 1903, when W. C. Kroh purchased an 
 interest in the business. They have since devel- 
 oped the business and continued to add to an 
 
 already extensive patronage, now carrying a 
 stock valued at $13,000, in the disposal of which 
 the services of four men are required. They are 
 men of undoubted business ability both to plan 
 and execute, of integrity and honor, and hold a 
 high place in commercial and social circles. 
 
 Mr. McKee married Laura Williams, a native 
 Californian, and the daughter of Mark Williams, 
 a pioneer of the state. They have one child, 
 Neva, who was born in San Joaquin county. In 
 his political convictions Mr. McKee is a Repub- 
 lican and as a popular man of his party was 
 chosen to the office of deputy assessor of Merced 
 county. Fraternally he affiliates with the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Fraternal 
 Aid Society. 
 
 CHARLES M. WELCH, an honored agricult- 
 urist and stock-raiser owning two hundred and 
 ninety-seven acres of land devoted to diversified 
 farming, has worked his way from a small be- 
 ginning, and is entitled to the credit due all de- 
 serving and persevering men. Mr. Welch is a 
 native of Cahfornia, being born near Waterford, 
 Stanislaus county, October 25, 1868, a son of 
 Charles E. and Sarah E. (Ramsey) Welch, Cali- 
 fornia pioneers of 1852, the former a native of 
 Maine, and the latter of Missouri. 
 
 Philip Welch, the grandfather of Charles M., 
 also was born in Maine, and was a man of pro- 
 nounced courage and ambition, as were all of 
 the California pioneers of 1849. Leaving a well- 
 tilled and paying farm, he embarked on a steamer 
 to the Isthmus of Panama, crossing which he re- 
 embarked for San Francisco, finally locating in 
 Tuolumne county, where he achieved fair success 
 as a miner. Charles E., his son, in 1852 gathered 
 together his belongings and joined his father on 
 the coast, journeying hither by the same route, 
 and riding across the Isthmus on a mule. He 
 also succeeded as a miner, and eventually settled 
 near Waterford, Stanislaus county, where he 
 owned a thousand acres of land, and rented the 
 Hartley ranch of three thousand acres, for three 
 years. He was married in Stanislaus county to 
 Sarah E. Ramsey. He operated on a large scale 
 in both stock and grain raising, leaving a com- 
 petency to his family at the time of his death in 
 San Francisco, at the age of fifty-seven. 
 
 Educated in the public schools of Stanislaus 
 count}', and at the Stockton Business College, 
 Charles M. Welch grew into a knowledge of 
 general farming, of which his father had made a 
 success. He assisted with the work of the home 
 and Hartley ranches for three years. In 1900 
 he went to Kings county and farmed a couple of 
 years, and during that time purchased his present 
 ranch of two hundred and ninety-seven acres, 
 one hundred of which consists of rich bottom- 
 
GEORGE LAUGHEAD 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 511 
 
 land, and upon which he located in 1903. Al- 
 ready his ranch shows the effort which he is ex- 
 pending upon it, and while he has the advantage 
 of the work of former owners, his methods are 
 more progressive, scientific, and practical, having 
 behind them a younger brain and more vigorous 
 physique. In 1898 Mr. Welch married Anna 
 Feldhaus, daughter of John Feldhaus, and born 
 in Merced county. -Two children have been born 
 into their home, Arlita and Lorina. Mr. Welch 
 has never aspired to political office, although he 
 is an active Democrat, having the greatest con- 
 fidence in the tenets of his chosen party. He is 
 gifted with an agreeable and jovial nature, a 
 keen sympathy for those less fortunate than him- 
 self aiid a generous heart for the deserving and 
 temporarily embarrassed. Mr. Welch is one of 
 the popular and successful men of the vicinity 
 of Snelling. 
 
 GEORGE LAUGHEAD. Until the early 
 part of the year 1904 the roll call of the coura- 
 geous men who cariie to California in 1849 in- 
 cluded the name of George Laughead, to whose 
 remote home in bleak Nova Scotia penetrated 
 the glad news of discovered gold, and whose 
 ambitious nature responded to so rare an oppor- 
 tunity of acquiring a fortune. Working in his 
 little shop in the English dependency yielded 
 him a fair income, for he was a good blacksmith, 
 doing thoroughly and well whatever task came 
 his way to perform', yet at best there was little 
 promise for the future, more especially of the 
 large kind held out by the practically unknown 
 west. He was a single man when he crossed 
 the Isthmus of Panama and sailed up the coast 
 to San Francisco, having no one to care for but 
 himself, and no hindrance in his way save that 
 of absence of money and influence. 
 
 After an unsuccessful mining experience Mr. 
 Laughead more fully appreciated the advantages 
 of his trade, and, locating in Stockton, applied 
 it with fair results. First and foremost he was 
 a lover of th^ soil, and his shop became restricted 
 and unsatisfying as he saw around him the 
 chances of land ownership and development. 
 Coming to the San Joaquin valley, he farmed on 
 the west side of Stanislaus county, finally ac- 
 quiring large tracts of land, which he set out in 
 wheat, becoming one of the largest grain raisers 
 of his section. He thought nothing of having 
 a thousand acres under wheat, and at present 
 his family own his farm of six hundred and forty 
 acres near Westley, another one-hundred-acre 
 tract in the same locality, and a mountain ranch 
 of over eighteen hundred acres. After years of 
 successful tilling of the soil, acquired solely 
 through his own efforts, and maintained in order 
 by his excellent management and enterprise, he 
 
 was counted one of the progressive agriculturists 
 of Stanislaus county. His death was not un- 
 expected, but was nevertheless deeply regretted 
 by appeciators of true and capable manhood, and 
 he was followed to his last resting place by many 
 who had known him in the early days, as well 
 as by those who had shared his later years of 
 prosperity. He was respected by all who knew 
 him, and was held up as representative of a class 
 of men who stand alone in the history of the 
 county, both as to the courage required of them, 
 and the nature of the work they accomplished. 
 In San Francisco, October i, 1897, Mr. Laug- 
 head was united in marriage with Mrs. Isabell 
 Langille, who is the mother of two children, 
 Samuel and Howard Langille, who reside with 
 their mother. Mr. Laughead was a Republican 
 in poHtics, and fraternally was connected with 
 Modesto Chapter No. 49, R. A. M. Mrs. Laug- 
 head, who is a native of Nova Scotia, is a con- 
 sistent member of the Presbyterian Church at 
 Grayson: 
 
 ROBERT W. FIX. A prominent citizen of 
 Merced county is Robert W. Fix, a successful 
 ranchman located on two hundred and forty acres 
 about one mile from Plainsberg, and engaged in 
 the raising of grain, for which purpose he also 
 rents six hundred and forty acres. He has been 
 located in the San Joaquin valley since 1876 and 
 has met with a success which has numbered him 
 among the representative men of the county. 
 Born in Bartholomew county, Ind., February 3, 
 1840, he is a son of William Fix. 
 
 William Fix was a native of Wheeling, W. 
 Va., and of German ancestry. In manhood he 
 married Margaret Monroe, a native of Kentucky 
 and of Scotch ancestry. He went to Indiana 
 when a young man and engaged in farming pur- 
 suits, where he remained until about 1851, when 
 he. located in Davis county, Iowa. Seven years 
 were passed in that location when they removed 
 to Macon county. Mo., where he farmed for sev- 
 enteen years. His last move was to the state of 
 Texas, where he died at the age of eighty-six 
 years. His wife died in 1903, also eighty-six 
 years old.. 
 
 Robert W. F"ix was reared in the states of Iowa 
 and Missouri and received his education through 
 the medium of the public schools. In Missouri 
 he married Frances Vickers, a native of Ken- 
 tucky, and in 1872 they removed to Texas, where 
 he farmed for four years. On account of his 
 wife's health he sold his farm in Texas and came 
 to California, and in Merced county he worked 
 as a ranch hand for seven years. He then rented 
 a section of land and raised grain for a number 
 of years. In 1897 he purchased his present ranch 
 of two hundrecl and forty acres and has since 
 
6l2 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 made this property his home, giving his most 
 earnest efforts toward its improvement and de- 
 velopment. Of the seven children born to him- 
 self and wife three are now living, namely : Effie, 
 wife of Robert Burchell ; Cecil, wife of E. T. 
 Russell of Lodi, this state; and Ora. Mr. Fix 
 is a Republican politically, and in the interests 
 of his party has served as school trustee. He 
 is a prominent member of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. 
 
 DANIEL H. GRUBB. Grain and stock are 
 the two commodities upon which Daniel H. 
 Grubb depends for a livelihood, preference being 
 given to the former, of which he has several hun- 
 dred acres. Mr. Grubb is one of the successful 
 grain raisers of the vicinity of Snelling, where 
 he purchased five hundred acres in 1883, and 
 where he also rents twelve hundred acres of grain 
 land. He is an energetic, well informed, and 
 popular farmer, aiming at the best along agri- 
 ■ cultural lines. He was born near Madisonville, 
 Monroe county, Tenn., September 12, 1837, a son 
 of Darius and Sarah (Heiskell) Grubb, natives 
 of Virginia. 
 
 Darius Grubb was reared on a Virginia planta- 
 tion, and as a young man went to Tennessee, 
 where he farmed near Madisonville, and where 
 he lived to be fifty-five years old. Daniel H. was 
 eight years old when his father died, and he con- 
 tinued to live at home tmtil after his marriage 
 to Sarah E. Carson, a native of Tennessee. She 
 was born in Madisonville, Monroe county, Octo- 
 ber 30, 1840, and marrying at the age of twenty- 
 one years, remained in Tennessee until her hus- 
 band removed to California. Mr. Grubb left his 
 farm to enlist in the Confederate army in Com- 
 pany G, Sixty-third Tennessee Volunteer Infan- 
 try, under Captain Grubb. His company sur- 
 rendered at the battle of Vicksburg, July 4, 1863, 
 and he soon afterward returned to his home in 
 Tennessee. The conditions in the south after the 
 war influenced him to seek a more promising 
 location, and early in 1869 he came to California, 
 having sailed from New York December 28, 1868, 
 arriving in San Francisco on the ship Golden 
 City, after twenty days on the water. He first 
 went to Stockton, of which he had heard much, 
 but not realizing his expectations of securing 
 work removed to Oakdale. Later he farmed in 
 Stanislaus county for two years. Not content 
 with his location he went to Fresno, but soon re- 
 turned to Stanislaus county, and farmed until 
 1883. 
 
 Mr. Grubb was a prudent as well as good 
 worker, and in 1883 it was possible for him to 
 realize his ambition of owning a farm of his own, 
 which is located a mile and a half from Snelling. 
 Mr. Grubb is a Democrat in politics. His farm 
 
 has kept him far too busy to permit of office seek- 
 ing, being averse to public life of any kind. He 
 is a stanch friend of education, and has been 
 glad to give his children better opportunities than 
 he himself had in his youth. In the order of 
 their birth the children are : Elizabeth D., the 
 wife of J. L. Allen ; Charles F., George, James, 
 Daniel H., Jr., and William. 
 
 Mrs. Grubb died September 6, 1902, at her 
 home near Snelling. Her life had been devoted 
 to her home, her husband, and her children, all 
 of whom were at her bedside when she passed 
 away. She had been in poor health for nearly 
 three years, but was a brave and patient sufferer. 
 Hers was a beautiful life, given to many kind- 
 nesses and acts of charity. Her passing was not 
 only a loss to her family but to the community at 
 large. 
 
 Mr. Grubb enjoys the confidence of the com- 
 munity in which he lives and is regarded as one 
 of its best informed, most public-spirited and in- 
 fluential farmers. 
 
 ADOLPH BERTRANDIAS, a liquor mer- 
 chant of Snelling, was born in San Francisco 
 September 25, 1852, and is a son of Alphonse 
 and Frances (Bedadet) Bertrandias, natives of 
 France, the former born February 25, 1823. 
 Alphonse Bertrandias was a carriage-maker and 
 a carpenter during early life. In 1847 he landed 
 at Valparaiso, Chili, South America, and arrived 
 in San Francisco in January, 1850. Until 1853 
 he mined in Calaveras and Mariposa counties, 
 after that followed his trade of carpenter, and in 
 connection therewith managed a bathing resort 
 in Mariposa county until 1861. At Hornitos he 
 engaged in the lumber business from 1861 until 
 1869, then went to San Francisco, and from 
 there to Merced in 1872, purchasing some town 
 lots which he improved and made his residence in 
 that city until 1874, when he again returned to 
 San Francisco, where he has since lived a retired 
 life. He was fairly successful in the various 
 lines of business in which he engaged, was always 
 respected by his associates and the public at large, 
 and accumulated a fair competence, Besides 
 Adolph, his oldest son, he has a son Emile, who 
 was born in 1857, and is now a resident of Oak- 
 land. 
 
 After completing his education in the public 
 schools of Mariposa county, Adolph Bertrandias 
 started to learn the trade of harness making in 
 1868, following this trade in San Francisco, and 
 later in Snelling, until taking up his present busi- 
 ness. He established a home of his own in 1884, 
 his marriage with Rebecca McSwain taking place 
 on January 16. Mrs. Bertrandias was born in 
 Missouri, March 10, i860, a daughter of Neil 
 and Mary E. (Miller) McSwain; the latter a 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 513 
 
 native of Kentucky, makes her home with her 
 daughter, Mrs. Bertrandias, and is past eighty- 
 one years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Bertrandias 
 have had five children ; Neil A. and Adlai, a son 
 and daughter, survive; two sons and one daugh- 
 ter died in childhood. Mr. Bertrandias is a Dem- 
 ocrat in politics, and is a member of the Knights 
 of Pythias. He is a descendant of a family sub- 
 stantially connected with the pioneer days of the 
 state, and he himself is recognized as a straight- 
 forward, intelligent member of the community, 
 having many pleasing and admirable traits of 
 character. 
 
 JAMES G. MACKEY. Among the agricult- 
 urists who gave the best years of their Hfe to the 
 development of Kings county, who lent their good 
 name and noble aims to the fovmdation of its 
 prestige, and who then passed on to the bourne 
 from which no traveler ever returns, must be 
 mentioned James G. Mackey, to whom his com- 
 munity owes much, because of his. perseverance 
 and fine traits which characterized his sojourn in 
 the west. During the years of his greatest activ- 
 ity, Mr. Mackey was one of the leading grain and 
 stock raisers in the vicinity of Hanford, and his 
 farm nof six hundred and forty acres, now occu- 
 pied by his widow and five children, bears every 
 evidence of his orderly and systematic habits, his 
 thrift and progressive spirit. He did not become 
 a land owner through any chance of inheritance, 
 but worked long and faithfully for the right to 
 leave those dependent on him secure from want 
 and in the possession of one of the most beauti- 
 ful and well-equipped rural homes in Kings 
 county. 
 
 The life of Mr. Mackey began on a farm in 
 Rockbridge county, Va., where his birth occurred 
 September i, 1854. He developed early aspira- 
 tions as an educator, and, after graduating from 
 the high school of a near-by town, taught school 
 for a few terms and also acquired business ex- 
 perience as a clerk in a general store. In 1876 
 he found his way clear to come to California. 
 Soon afterward he obtained employment on a 
 ranch in what is now Kings county, and after 
 two or three years rented a farm upon which he 
 started to raise grain on a small scale. So suc- 
 cessful was he in this department of activity that 
 he rented more and larger tracts, in time having 
 several hundred acres of rented land under grain. 
 The problem of threshing his own products sug- 
 gested the purchase of a threshing-machine, to 
 which he later added a header, and operated the 
 same throughout the country for several years. 
 In time he bought eighty acres in Fresno county, 
 and later eighty acres of the present home, add- 
 ing from time to time until a section had been 
 acquired. He also invested in one hundred and 
 
 sixty acres in Tulare county. During his last 
 3'ears he devoted his land to stock and general 
 ranching, instituted about all the improvements 
 known to the agricultural world, and built the 
 beautiful home, which illustrated his appreciation 
 of the comforts and luxuries of life. 
 
 February 9, 1882, Mr. Mackey married Calla- 
 van Woodcock, who came to California with her 
 parents in 1875, from Arkansas, her native state. 
 Five children were born of the union, of whom 
 Minnie C. married Robert Cavanaugh, and is 
 estabHshed in a home of her own, while Jasper 
 G., John W., Arthur A. and Annie Maude are 
 living at home. Mr. Mackey was a substantial 
 and painstaking man, and sociable in his nature, 
 being devoted to his friends and hospitable in his 
 home. For many years he was active in politics, 
 and not only served as county supervisor for four 
 years, but was a trustee of both the county and 
 town schools of Hanford. Fraternally he was 
 connectfd with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows. The estate of this honored pioneer is 
 valued at $30,000, all accumulated through his 
 own labor and without the sacrifice of principle 
 or the good will of any of his associates. He 
 was popular and highly esteemed, and one of 
 the county's most deserving and successful set- 
 tlers. He died at his home five miles northeast 
 of Hanford, June 10, 1902. 
 
 WILLIAM YOUD. One of the extensive 
 grain raisers in Merced county is William Youd, 
 who, in partnership with his brother, George, 
 owns a section of land fourteen miles north of 
 Merced, and four miles from Snelling. They 
 also lease eighteen hundred acres, both properties 
 being under grain, in the raising of which they 
 have achieved marked success. Mr. Youd is an 
 American from every standpoint save that of 
 birth, for he was just five weeks old when his 
 parents, James and Elizabeth (Prescott) Youd, 
 crossed the seas in a sailing vessel, hoping for 
 larger opportunities in America. 
 
 James Youd was a brick mason by trade, .a call- 
 ing which he followed for many years in Man- 
 chester, England, where his son William was 
 born December 25, 1848. He came direct to New 
 Orleans from the EngHsh port, finally locating in 
 St. Louis, where he was known as the leading 
 contractor for ten years. In 1859 he crossed the 
 plains with his family in an ox-train of forty 
 wagons, on the way experiencing many strange 
 happenings, and often encountering the Indians 
 who seemed kindly disposed. Inclement weather, 
 illness, and swollen streams retarded their prog- 
 ress, so that over a year had elapsed ere they ar- 
 rived in California. For some years the family 
 lived in Eldorado county, where the father en- 
 gaged in mining, after which he went to Stock- 
 
51i 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ton and followed his trade until 1869. He then 
 moved to Merced county and assisted in the con- 
 struction of many of the first buildings in the 
 town of Merced, working at his trade until 
 shortly before his death at the age of sixty-three 
 years. During the last years of his life he owned 
 a ranch ten miles south of Merced, where he 
 had a dairy, and also raised grain and stock. In 
 politics he was a Republican. 
 
 William Youd owes his early education to the 
 public schools of Eldorado and Amador counties, 
 and his agricultural knowledge to his father's 
 teachings and his own observation and experi- 
 ence. He was ambitious as a boy, and still more 
 so as a man, and in 1863 went into partnership 
 with his brother, George, renting four sections 
 of grain land. Since then the brothers have pur- 
 chased six hundred and forty acres, and con- 
 tinue to rent eighteen hundred acres, all devoted 
 to grain. Mr. Youd married Laura Thompson, 
 a native of Mississippi, and daughter of James 
 Thompson, who came to the coast in 1881. They 
 are parents of three children, namely : Bert, 
 twenty-two years old; Charles, eighteen; and 
 William T., twelve. Mr. Youd is one of the in- 
 fluential and progressive men of his neighbor- 
 hood, and ranks among the successful and ex- 
 tensive grain-growers of Merced county. 
 
 GEORGE A. KAHL. A prosperous rancher, 
 George A. Kahl is located near Plainsberg, Mer- 
 ced county, engaged in the cultivation of an ex- 
 tensive property, having three hundred and 
 twenty acres in his own ranch, and, with his 
 brother, Ernest D. Kahl, is conducting the in- 
 terests of the old homestead, which consists of 
 thirteen hundred and eighty acres. Their inter- 
 ests are largely given over to the raising of 
 wheat, barley and cattle, as well as other stock, 
 the sale of hogs alone in 1903 amounting to 
 $1,000. Mr. Kahl is a progressive and enter- 
 prising farmer and by his business-like methods 
 and thorough system has met with a success 
 which places him among the representative men 
 of the community. 
 
 With the exception of five years and five 
 months, every year of Mr. Kahl's life has been 
 spent in Merced county, where he was born Sep- 
 tember 26, 1866. He is a son of Adam Kahl, 
 whose biographical sketch appears on another 
 page of this volume. At the age of sixteen 
 he had finished the public school course and 
 then entered the Stockton Business College, pass- 
 ing five years preparing himself by a commer- 
 cial education for a successful prosecution of 
 whatever line of work he might choose to take 
 up. Afterward he spent five months in San Luis 
 Obispo county. Returning to Merced county, 
 he has since made this his home, engaging in the 
 
 cultivation of his extensive ranch. He is a prom- 
 inent man in his community and has been called 
 upon to serve in public capacity, for ten years, 
 from 1 89 1 to 1 901, discharging the duties of 
 justice of the peace. He married Mabel B. Gard- 
 ner, a native of Tennessee and a daughter of 
 William Gardner. Of this unioji were born five 
 children, namely : Georgia W., Helena W., Guy 
 and Mabel L., and Evelina M., the second child, 
 is deceased. Politically Mr. Kahl is independent, 
 reserving the right to cast his ballot for the man 
 whom he considers best adapted for official ca- 
 pacity. Fraternally he was a member of the 
 Merced Parlor No. 24, N. S. G. W., for ten 
 years ; is a member of the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows and Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen. 
 
 THOMAS IDLE. The life which this narra- 
 tive sketches began in Lincolnshire, England, 
 January 26, 1854, where Thomas Idle was born, 
 son of Thomas Idle, Sr., a native of the same lo- 
 cality, and his wife, who was formerly Eliza- 
 beth Carnal. His father being a farmer Thomas 
 Idle, Jr., was reared to the practical duties inci- 
 dent to an agricultural life, remaining at home 
 until attaining the age of twenty years. He 
 then, in 1874, immigrated to the western world, 
 seeking the greater opportunities of America. 
 Coming direct to California he located on the 
 Sacramento river where he found employment in 
 the work to which he had early been trained, con- 
 tinuing in this occupation for ten years. In 1877 
 he returned to England on a visit and on coming 
 back to California he located in Davisville, Yolo 
 county, where he remained for some time. In 
 1886 he came to Fresno county, purchasing a 
 property of twenty acres, located two and a half 
 miles southeast of the city of Fresno. Since that 
 time he has doubled the number of acres, has 
 made many improvements, and has brought his 
 property under a fine state of cultivation. He 
 now devotes thirty-two acres to the cultivation of 
 raisin grapes, while he has seven acres of fruit 
 trees, among which are one hundred and ten fig 
 trees. Mr. Idle was an active member of the 
 Raisin Grov/ers' Association during its existence. 
 Politically he is an adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 WILLIAM M. LITTLE, Jr., is one of the 
 popular and successful farmers of the vicinity of 
 Snelling, Merced county. The farm of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, which yields abundant har- 
 vests of wheat, alfalfa and general produce, has 
 been in the possession of his family since the fall 
 of 1862, having been bought by his father, Will- 
 iam M. Little, Sr., a few months after completing 
 
-=^^^^ /y^oo/^y 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 517 
 
 the journey across the plains from Randolph 
 county, Mo. The father was born in Virginia, 
 and when young removed with his parents to 
 Randolph county. Mo., where he married Mary 
 J. Thomas, a native of Kentucky, and at present 
 an occupant of the home ranch on the Merced 
 river. Mr. Little was a man of strong person- 
 ality, and, having learned the, carpenter trade as 
 a boy, determined to come to the west, where 
 he supposed larger fields awaited him. He was 
 not long in locating on the Merced river farm, 
 which he improved and worked with his sons, and 
 where he died in 1888, at the age of fifty-seven 
 years. He took a keen interest in the political 
 and other situations in which he found himself, 
 and while in no sense an office seeker, became 
 prominent in the deliberations of the Democratic 
 party in Merced county. At one time he was de- 
 feated for the office of county treasurer by a 
 small majority, and he served acceptably on the 
 school board of his district for several terms. 
 
 William M. Little, Jr., was born October 15, 
 1862, near Hopetown, Merced county, on what 
 is now the Barefield ranch, and has devoted all 
 of his life to farming. He has been manager 
 of the home place for several years, living there 
 with his mother, and realizing a liberal yearly 
 income from the rich bottom-land along the river. 
 In 1890 he married Eva Means, a native of 
 Merced county, who was born in March, 1872. 
 Her father, William L. Means, came to California 
 in 1850, having previously served in the Mexi- 
 can war, enlisting from his native state of Ala- 
 bama. Mr. and Mrs. Little have four children, 
 Leslie, Flossie, Clarence and Howard. Like his 
 father, Mr. Little is a supporter of the Demo- 
 cratic party, and fraternally is identified with 
 Snelling Lodge No. 121, I. O. O. F. He is an 
 agreeable, approachable man, broad-minded and 
 public spirited, and wielding a progressive in- 
 fluence in his neighborhood. 
 
 FRANK W. HICKOX. Prominent among 
 the active and prosperous business men of Bakers- 
 field is Frank W. Hickox, one of the leading 
 contractors and builders of the place. A skilled 
 mechanic, possessing inventive genius and 
 artistic abiHty, he is well qualified by his native 
 talents as well as by his knowledge and experi- 
 ence for his present occupation. In the fulfil- 
 ment of his various contracts he is careful, pains- 
 taking and honest, and his work invariably 
 stands the test of time. A son of the late 
 George Hickox, he was born July 13, 1859, ^^ 
 Rockford, 111. 
 
 Born and reared in Michigan, George Hickox 
 remained in his native state until early man- 
 hood, when he settled as a farmer in Winne- 
 bago county, 111. In 1858, on account of ill 
 
 health, he came to the Pacific coast, and for 
 a year was employed in mining on the Klamath 
 river. Returning to Illinois, he remained there 
 until 1861, when he removed to Central City, 
 Colo. There he engaged in placer mining, being 
 half owner of the Franklin mine. He also 
 bought a mountain ranch, from which he car- 
 ried on a profitable business by supplying the 
 miners of that locality with vegetables. Em- 
 barking in a new venture, he assisted in putting 
 up smelting works, but on account of the ig- 
 norance of the manager of the smelter the en- 
 terprise proved a failure. Selling his interest 
 in the mine for $60,000 he put a large part of 
 the sum into the smelting works, but was again 
 unsuccessful. He.su)3sequently devoted his time 
 to the care of his ranch, living on it until his 
 death, in 1875, at the age of "fifty-three years. 
 He was a stanch Republican, and a typical rep- 
 resentative of the self-made men of his day, 
 winning success through his own unaided ef- 
 forts, his father, who was a farmer, and a 
 Methodist minister, being unable to give him 
 much financial help. He married Eliza Hem- 
 minway, who was born in Vermont, where her 
 father. Dr. Joseph Hemminway, was a prac- 
 ticing physician. She died at the age of fifty 
 years, in Colorado. 
 
 Accompanying his parents on the long trip 
 by stage across the plains to Colorado, Frank 
 W. Hickox spent his boyhood days on the home 
 ranch. Until twelve years , old he attended the 
 little country school near his home, but after- 
 ward, for three terms, followed the trail on foot 
 across the mountains to Central City, to con- 
 tinue his studies at the public school of that 
 place. The family then lived for two years on 
 a ranch in the valley, and he attended the 
 schools in Golden City, after which all returned 
 to the mountain ranch. At the age of eighteen 
 years Mr. Hickox began learning the trade of 
 miller, serving an apprenticeship of three years 
 in Golden City. He subsequently spent two 
 years learning the carpenter's trade, after which 
 he worked as a journeyman in New Mexico, 
 and then in different places in Colorado, includ- 
 ing Pueblo, Silverton and Colorado Springs. In 
 1879, during the great booming excitement in 
 Leadville, he helped build many of the houses 
 then erected. Coming to California in 1886, 
 Mr. Hickox started in business as a contractor 
 and builder, and has since filled many contracts 
 of importance, putting up, among other build- 
 ings of note in Bakersfield, the high, grammar 
 and H street school buildings ; the Grand hotel ; 
 the J. T. Mack,' the L. P. St. Clair, and the Din- 
 kelspiei brothers' residences; the Producers' 
 Bank building; and many other large busmess 
 blocks and residences, including his own hand- 
 some residence, on the corner of Sixteenth and 
 
518 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 F streets. He also erected two" business blocks 
 in Tehachapi, and the Kern hotel at Kern City. 
 Since taking up his residence in Bakersfield Mr. 
 Hickox has l^een very successful in a financial 
 as well as in an industrial way, and has ac- 
 cumulated a good property. He owns an in- 
 terest in oil lands and stock in the Sunset dis- 
 trict, and is proprietor of a well-paying brick 
 yard in Kern City. In 1895 he erected the brick 
 high school building in Fresno, costing about 
 $50,000, and is now supervising the erection of 
 the new Methodist Episcopal Qiurch building 
 in Bakersfield, which will cost about $22,000. 
 
 In Durango, Colo., in 1882, Mr. Hickox mar- 
 ried Orilla Hart, a native of Missouri, and they 
 have two children, namely : Maude E., now pre- 
 paring to enter the Leland Stanford, Jr., Uni- 
 versity, at a school in Palo Alto; and Ada F., 
 living at home. Politically Mr. Hickox is an 
 adherent of the Republican party, and for a 
 short time served as city trustee from the 
 fourth precinct of Bakersfield. 
 
 JOSEPH S. MITCHELL. An enterprising 
 young ranchman of Merced county, located in 
 the neighborhood of Le Grand, is Joseph S. 
 Mitchell, who was born in Nebraska February 
 I, 1865, a son of J. S. Mitchell, Sr. .The latter 
 was a native of Kentucky, who removed to Mis- 
 souri in young manhood and there served in the 
 Confederate army under- General Price. After 
 the close of the war he engaged in the work to 
 which he was trained in his younger days, be- 
 coming a successful farmer in the state of his 
 adoption. Feeling, however, that opportunities 
 for advancement lay in the remote west, he came 
 to California in October, 1874, bringing his fam- 
 ily and locating in the neighborhood of Snelling. 
 He there engaged in the dairy business, remain- 
 ing in this county until his death. He married, 
 in Springfield, Ky., Juliet Montgomery, who was 
 a sister of the late J. A. Montgomery of Snelling, 
 Merced county. Their children were named, in 
 order of birth, as follows : Mary, James, Anna, 
 Robert, Joseph S., William and Ella. 
 
 From his native state of Nebraska Joseph S. 
 Mitchell accompanied his parents to California 
 when nine years old, and was reared near Snell- 
 ing, where he attended school in pursuit of an 
 education. At the age of twenty years he be- 
 came dependent upon his own resources, rent- 
 ing as a first venture along agricultural lines 
 one hundred and eighty acres of land, where 
 he farmed for about eleven years. With his 
 accumulated savings he purchased, in 1896, his 
 present ranch, which consists of one hundred 
 and twenty acres, since which time he has given 
 his best efforts toward its development and 
 proper cultivation. In conjunction with his cul- 
 
 tivation of this land he also rents eight hundred 
 acres, which is given over entirely to grain. Mr. 
 Mitchell's home is presided over by his wife, 
 who was formerly Jennie Turner, a native of 
 this county and the daughter of J. T. Turner. 
 They are the parents of five children, namely: 
 Merle, Joe, James, Hugh and Isabel. In his po- 
 litical convictions Mr. Mitchell is a stanch Demo- 
 crat and has been a member of the Democratic 
 central committee for the past four years. 
 
 FRANK NISSEN RASMUSSEN. Promi- 
 nent among the native-born citizens of Califor- 
 nia who have spent their lives within the state, 
 in every possible way aiding its development, 
 whether relating to its agricultural, manufac- 
 turing or financial interests, is Frank Nissen 
 Rasmussen, a well-known farmer and dairyman, 
 living about a mile east of Crows Landing. Of 
 Danish stock on the paternal side, he was born 
 May 24, 1876, in Ferndale, Humboldt county, 
 a son of Jacob Rasmussen. 
 
 Born, reared and educated in Denmark, Jacob 
 Rasmussen immigrated to the United States in 
 1871, and' the following two years was a resident 
 of Iowa. Coming to the Pacific coast in 1873, 
 he lived for a time in Marin county, and then 
 settled in Humboldt county, where he cleared 
 and improved a large ranch, and built up an 
 extensive business as a dairyman, establishing 
 the first dairy in the Eel River valley. By ener- 
 getic industry and good management, he ac- 
 quired a competency, and is now livipg at Fern- 
 dale, retired from active pursuits. He married 
 Qiristina Nissen, who was born in Schleswig- 
 Holstein, Germany, and they became the parents 
 of two sons and two daughters, of whom Frank 
 Nissen, the special subject of this sketch, is the 
 oldest child. 
 
 After completing his studies- in the public 
 schools of Ferndale, Frank N. Rasmussen en- 
 tered St. Mary's College, in Oakland, where he 
 was graduated in 1895. Returning then to Fern- 
 dale, he secured a position as clerk and book- 
 keeper, and there proved himself capable and 
 competent. In 1898 he took charge of the Crown 
 Creamery, in Ferndale, a large private creamery, 
 which was supplied with milk from farms that 
 aggregated several hundreds of acres of land, 
 and managed it most satisfactorily to all con- 
 cerned for four years. Coming to Stanislaus 
 county in 1903, Mr. Rasmussen located at 
 Crows Landing, buying his present ranch of 
 two hundred and forty acres, all of which is 
 irrigated by the canal, and has since made a 
 specialty of raising alfalfa, for which his land 
 is well adapted. 
 
 Politically Mr. Rasmussen is a loyal supporter 
 of the principles of the Republican party. Fra- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 519 
 
 ternally he is a member of Ferndale Lodge, F. 
 & A. M. ; Ferndale Chapter, R. A. M. ; Eureka 
 Commandery, K. T. ; the Shrine of Islam, and 
 the Eastern Star. A man of genuine worth, he 
 is highly esteemed by all. 
 
 HANS PETERSEN. During the sixteen 
 years of his life in Stanislaus county Hans Peter- 
 sen was known as an industrious and capable 
 dairyman and farmer, and as a man who ear- 
 nestly strove to maintain the good name of 
 Denmark on the western coast. He developed 
 a sincere and practical appreciation of the new 
 country to which he came .in his vigorous man- 
 hood, and set about applying his native adapta- 
 bility to its improvement. While successful as 
 a tiller of the soil and thoroughly at home in the 
 peaceful occupation to which his life was de- 
 voted, he was not born to the occupation, for 
 his father, Peter Petersen, was a musician, who 
 liked better to evoke sweet sounds from his in- 
 strument than to toil under the burning sun in 
 a harvest field from sunrise to sundown. 
 
 Born in Jutland, the mainland of Denmark, 
 his youth must have witnessed the strife en- 
 gendered between his own and the southern 
 country of Germany, and its subsequent govern- 
 ment by the latter power. Nevertheless, he ac- 
 quired a practical common school education, and 
 -possibly the poverty of the majority of his coun- 
 trymen illy accorded with the surging ambitions 
 which visited his own heart and brain. At any 
 rate, he immigrated across the sea to America 
 in 1872, and in the vicinity of Oakland engaged 
 in farming until 1877. Various causes conspired 
 to influence his return to Denmark at this time, 
 one of which was Anna Jepsen, daughter of 
 Peter and Cecil Maria (Jorgensen) Jepsen, farm- 
 ers living in the vicinity of his own home. His 
 marriage to his well remembered schoolmate fol- 
 lowed shortly upon his arrival in Jutland, the 
 ceremony taking place in the town of Varde. 
 Afterward Mr. Petersen settled on a farm and 
 remained there until 1882. Mrs. Petersen was 
 educated in the public schools and in early youth 
 evidenced the good judgment and business abil- 
 ity which has marked her management of her 
 husband's estate. Her father died in Denmark 
 in 1887, and her mother lived until 1902. 
 
 The memory of the clear skies and wonder- 
 ful climate of California abided with Mr. Peter- 
 sen continually, and doubtless with this balmy 
 land his own northern home compared unfavor- 
 ably. After selling his farm and bidding adieu 
 to the friends of his youth and manhood, he 
 again set sail for the United States, bringing 
 his wife with him and purchasing a small place 
 in Oakdale of about fifteen acres. Later he 
 bought the fifteen-acre tract now owned and 
 
 occupied by his wife, and in time bought other 
 property, both improved and unimproved, in the 
 town. A little later he bought four hundred 
 and eighty acres ten miles southeast of Oakdale 
 on Dry creek, and for the balance of his life 
 engaged in dairying there with gratifying suc- 
 cess. It was while out at this farm that he con- 
 tracted blood-poisoning in 1898, and died two 
 weeks later, on May 26. Since then his wife 
 has superintended the large farm, but instead 
 of dairying has utilized it for stock .raising, as 
 a less arduous and exacting occupation. Mr. 
 Petersen was a stanch Republican, and in re- 
 ligion was a Lutheran. He was a busy and en- 
 ergetic man, practical and substantial, and prone 
 to look on the bright side of life in general. He 
 possessed the requisites for popularity among his 
 fellow-men, and was invariably looked up to as 
 an honest and fearless man of afifairs. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Petersen were the parents of 
 two children, Peter Marion and Albert. The 
 latter was drowned June 18, 1888, at the age of 
 four years, five months and fifteen days. 
 
 DAVID WILLIAM MORRIS. The present 
 postmaster of Modesto is a man who well de- 
 serves the esteem and confidence which is given 
 him by his fellow-townsmen. Though not a na- 
 tive of California nor yet of the country wherein 
 he has made his home for so many years he has 
 still given his best efforts toward the promotion 
 of the welfare of city, county and state, as well 
 as having enlisted in the cause of the country in 
 time of war, having served as captain in the 
 Spanish-American war. A native of Cardigan- 
 shire, Wales, he was born April 21, i860, a son 
 of Morris and Mary (Lloyd) Morris, both like- 
 wise -natives of the same locality. The father was 
 a farmer by occupation and still makes his home 
 in Wales, being now seventy-two years old, while 
 his wife died there aged seventy years. 
 
 Reared to manhood in his native land, Mr. 
 Morris received his education in the common 
 schools, upon the completion of the course secur- 
 ing employment with a grocer, a business which 
 he afterward took up for himself. This work 
 occupied his attention until 1882, but foreseeing 
 greater opportunities on the American continent 
 he immigrated in that year, and landing in New 
 York City remained for a short time in that local- 
 ity. His next move brought him to the Pacific 
 coast, from San Francisco journeying at once to 
 Modesto, Stanislaus couTity, where he has since 
 made his home. Upon hife;^locating here, he first 
 engaged in running a restaurant, with which in- 
 terest he remained connected until 1887, com- 
 bining then a news agency with the printing 
 business. For twelve years he worked on the 
 Nezi's. At the breaking out of the Spanish- 
 
520 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 American war he was made captain of Company 
 D, Sixth CaHfornia Regiment of Infantry, Na- 
 tional Guards, being mustered into the United 
 States service May lo, 1898. Until December 
 15 of the same year this regiment performed 
 guard duty at Fort Point, and was then mus- 
 tered out of service. Returning then to Modesto 
 Mr. Morris once more resumed his business rela- 
 tions, handling in his news agency the San Fran- 
 ■ Cisco papers, cigars, stationery, etc. April 24, 
 1902, he received the appointment to the office 
 of postmaster of Modesto, a third-class' office, 
 and he has since acceptably discharged the duties 
 of the same, 
 
 Mr. Morris was married in San Francisco to 
 Mrs. Lottie Leet, a native of New Brunswick, 
 having come to California with her parents. Her 
 father, Joseph Ridgeway, a native of England, 
 was a manufacturer and came to California, his 
 death occurring in San Francisco. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Morris have been born two children, both 
 of whom are at home with their parents, namely : 
 Florence and Irma. Fraternally Mr. Morris is 
 a member of Lodge No. 118, B. P. O. E-, of 
 Stockton, and Knights of Pythias of Modesto. 
 Politically he is an adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party. He now ranks as major of the Sixth 
 California Regiment, National Guards, and is 
 much esteemed and liked by all his associates and 
 fellow-citizens. 
 
 THOMAS KEARNEY. The first immigrant 
 of this family was Samuel Kearney, who came 
 to the United States in 1855. He was born in 
 Ireland in 1816 and reared to manhood upon a 
 farm ; then learned the trade of shoemaker, which 
 he followed in Massachusetts, where he located 
 upon .crossing the ocean. He remained in the 
 Bay state considerably less than a year, for in 
 1855 he came to California by way of the Isthmus 
 of Panama, and after landing in San Francisco 
 went at once to the mines of Tuolumne county. 
 He continued the occupation of miner for nine 
 years, when, in 1864, he went to San Joaquin 
 county and secured employment on a ranch, re- 
 turning to the avocation to which he had been 
 early trained on the Emerald Isle. Until 1868 he 
 worked for other people, when he rented land 
 and for two years engaged in the cultivation of 
 grain. Coming to Stanislaus county in 1870 he 
 rented land for a like period, and then he pur- 
 chased the present Kearney home, where he lived 
 until his death in 1900 at the age of eighty-four 
 years. His wife, formerly Sarah Vine, also a 
 native of Ireland, still survives him and makes 
 her home on the family ranch at the age of sev- 
 enty years. The children born to them are as 
 follows : Michael, of Oakdale ; Edward, of San 
 
 Francisco; Mary E., who became the wife of 
 Larry Smith; and Thomas, the personal subject 
 of this review, whose birth occurred in Tuolumne 
 county, October 9, i860. 
 
 After the death of his father Thomas Kearney 
 assumed charge of the home ranch, which con- 
 sists of four hundred and eighty acres, located 
 four and a half miles southeast of Oakdale. The 
 interests of the place are practically given over to 
 the cultivation of grain, in which Mr. Kearney 
 has been very successful, making a place for him- 
 self among the enterprising ranchmen of the 
 county. In his political convictions Mr. Kearney 
 follows the example of his father and gives his 
 support to the principles of the Democratic party. 
 His father, Samuel Kearney, had served as school 
 trustee for many years. 
 
 ANTONE LEONI. In every section of the 
 west are evidences of the thrift and perseverance 
 of men who have passed their childhood in the 
 shadows of the Swiss Alps, and who, after cross- 
 ing the Atlantic ocean, have developed remark- 
 able loyalty to the country and institutions of 
 their adoption. While all departments of activ- 
 ity seem to be within range of their varied powers 
 of accomplishment, the pastoral life rests with 
 comparative ease upon the shoulders of the sons 
 of Switzerland, and especially are they at home 
 in the development of vineyards and in the gen- 
 eral science of horticulture. Antone Leoni- be- 
 longs to this class of worthy citizens, and in his 
 efforts to ally himself with the fruit-growing in- 
 dustry of Kings county has achieved a success 
 worthy his industrious and painstaking methods. 
 
 It was while working on his father's farm in 
 canton Ticino, Switzerland, that Mr. Leoni con- 
 ceived the idea of coming to California, having 
 heard much about its climate and natural ad- 
 vantages, and believing that it offered superior 
 inducements. He was fifteen years of age when 
 he set sail from European shores in 1875, hav- 
 ing been born October 15, i860. Arriving in San 
 Francisco, he remained there for a time, working 
 at the painter's trade, to which he had applied 
 himself in his native land. December 18, 1875, 
 he came to Kings county and for seven, years 
 worked on the ranch of his uncle near Grange- 
 ville, during that time laying by every dollar pos- 
 sible, until, in 1883, he found himself in a posi- 
 tion to engage in independent farming. Moving 
 to his present farm of eighty acres, three miles 
 south of Hanford, he found a waving wheat- 
 field, which he improved and set to general farm- 
 ing, in a few years setting out a small orchard. 
 Each year he added to his orchard and decreased 
 his general produce, until at present his entire 
 farm is set out to grapes, peaches and apricots. 
 He has ample facilities for caring for his fruit, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 521 
 
 and his ranch leaves httle to be desired in the 
 way of general nnprovements. 
 
 In 1896 Mr. Leoni was married to Sadie Lane, 
 who was born and reared in California, and of 
 this union one son has been born, Nelson Leoni. 
 Mr. Leoni has never desired to specially identify 
 himself with politics, and his vote has always 
 been determined by his appreciation of the char- 
 acter and abilities of the candidate in question. 
 He is highly respected by his fellow-horticultur- 
 ists, and has made many warm friends since tak- 
 ing up his abode in this part of the state. 
 
 ELIHU B. BEARD. Until recently the name 
 which heads this review was borne by a man 
 who gave no Httle of a long and useful Hfe to 
 the pioneer cause of California, making his pres- 
 ence felt in agricultural, commercial and politi- 
 cal circles of Stanislaus county and the city of 
 Modesto, in the latter making his home from 
 1873 ""til his death in 1902. Following the in- 
 evitable course of the old pioneers he has passed 
 away, but he shall be long revered in the hearts 
 of those who are now enjoying the material aid 
 which he gave to the county in the early days of 
 its history. 
 
 A native of Indiana, Elihu B. Beard crossed 
 the plains to California in 1850, arriving in the 
 west with but $1 upon which to lay the founda- 
 tion of that wealth which all expected to gain 
 at that period in the history of the state. Like 
 the great majority of people who sought the 
 west at that time he engaged in mining for a 
 while but later sought the more certain returns of 
 a mercantile life. In 1853 he removed to Dry 
 Creek and purchased a small ranch with the pro- 
 ceeds of his few years' work. This proved a suc- 
 cessful venture and he later engaged in sheep 
 raising, continuing to add to his land until, at 
 his death, he owned seven thousand acres. On 
 removing from his ranch he located first in San 
 Jose, Santa Clara county, remaining, however, 
 ■ only a short time until coming to Modesto, where 
 he gave his attention entirely to the interests of 
 his large property and also loaned money. A 
 Democrat in his political convictions he became a 
 man of strong influence in political circles, as 
 early as 1854 being elected assessor, in which ca- 
 pacity he ' continued for many years. Later in 
 life he was elected to the state legislature, where 
 he served two terms, his faithful support being 
 given ever to the interests of his constituents. 
 He was also surveyor for one term. Commer- 
 cially he became much interested with the busi- 
 ness life of Modesto, being connected with the 
 banks of the city many years previous to his 
 death. In religion he wag a member of the Chris- 
 tian Church, though his father was a Quaker 
 minister in Indiana, in which state the elder man's 
 
 death occurred. Mr. Beard lived to be seventy- 
 five years old, retaining his faculties and his help- 
 fulness in the affairs of the community up to 
 the time of his death. 
 
 In the fall of 1856 Mr. Beard was united in 
 marriage with Annie E. Kennan, a native of 
 Missouri. Her father, Thomas, was born in Ken- 
 tucky and later in life engaged as a farmer in 
 Boone county, Mo., in which state his death oc- 
 curred while en route to California. In 1854 
 the mother, Nancy (Cave) Kennan, brought her 
 children to California by ox-teams, the journey 
 consuming six months. They located on the Tuo- 
 lumne river, joining here her son, Thomas, who 
 had previously crossed the plains and located in 
 the state. To Mr. and Mrs. Beard were born 
 the following children : Thomas K., who is 
 located near Modesto (he married Grace Lewis, 
 a daughter of Alfred Lewis and Diana (Brown) 
 Lewis, and they are the parents of ten children 
 who are all living) ; Alice F., in the Sandwich 
 Islands, where she conducts an orphan school ; 
 William ; Annie ; Frank C. ; Ida S. and John, the 
 five last named being deceased, the last having 
 died in infancy. Mrs. Beard has a pleasant and 
 comfortable home in this city where she has lived 
 for so many years, like her husband a familiar 
 figure in the social life of the place. Like him, 
 also, she is a member of the Christian Church and 
 is active in religious work. Many donations have 
 been made to various interests of the state by 
 those who bear this name, and it is one which 
 will long be remembered among those who best 
 appreciate the devotion and self-sacrifice of those 
 who laid the foundation for the greatness of this 
 western statehood. 
 
 FRANK HICKMAN. For a number of years 
 past Mr. Hickman has been faithfully discharg- 
 ing the duties of the federal office of postmaster, 
 at Hanford, Kings county, Cal. He was ap- 
 pointed to this office by President McKinley, and 
 reappointed January 31, 1902, by President 
 Roosevelt. This office belongs to the second class 
 postoffices and Mr. Hickman employs as his as- 
 sistants four clerks and four rural mail carriers, 
 besides three city deliverers ; the gross receipts 
 for 1903 being $12,000. 
 
 It was in the city of Clarksburg, W. Va., that 
 Mr. Hickman was born, a descendant from an 
 old southern family. His father, J. W. Hickman, 
 is a native of the same state, where he still lives, 
 residing on a farm. It was upon this identical 
 farm that the boyhood days of Frank Hickman 
 were spent, and, like other boys, he attended the 
 common schools of his locality. Upon reaching 
 his majority, in 1892 he went west to join a 
 brother, who is now manager of the First Na- 
 tional Bank at Hanford, in Kings county. Dur- 
 
522 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ing the summer Mr. Hickman worked with his 
 brother in the bank and in November of the same 
 year he entered the business college at Santa 
 Cruz, from which he graduated in June, 1893. 
 
 Returning to Hanford he accepted a position as 
 freight agent for the Southern Pacific Railway 
 Company and filled this position in a satisfactory 
 manner for six months. He then resigned to 
 accept a more lucrative position as bookkeeper for 
 Mr. Overman, with whom he remained two years. 
 He next clerked six months in a clothing store 
 and about that time his services were sought by 
 the Mill & Electric Light Company and he 
 officiated as bookkeeper for this companv until 
 July, 1897, when he resigned and went east on a 
 vacation. He was subsequently appointed post- 
 master as previously mentioned and upon his re- 
 turn to California he assumed the duties of this 
 office, and by his genial politeness he has won a 
 large circle of friends. By his marriage, in May, 
 1903, Mr. Hickman wedded Annie Harris, 
 formerly of Montana, and they occupy a high po- 
 sition socially. In fraternal circles, Mr. Hick- 
 man is allied with Lodge No. 194, K. of P. ; Han- 
 ford Lodge No. 279, F. & A. M., and Hanford 
 Chapter No. 74, R. A. M., all of Hanford. As 
 may be inferred, Mr. Hickman is a Republican in 
 his political preferences. 
 
 CHARLES F. PRECIADO. During the 
 nineteenth century a Castilian, representative of 
 an ancient family of Spain, crossed the ocean to 
 America and settled in the western part of Mex- 
 ico, where he acquired large mining interests in 
 Sonora. His son, Y. Preciado, was born at Her- 
 mosillo, Sonora, Mexico, and at the age of 
 eighteen years, during the excitement caused by 
 the discovery of gold in California, crossed the 
 desert in 1848 and was one of the first to try his 
 luck in the placer mines of San Andreas, Cala- 
 veras county. Not meeting with the fortune he 
 had hoped for, he sought other occupations and 
 drifted into the stock business in Inyo county, 
 where he was living at the time of the earth- 
 quake. Some years afterward he returned to 
 Calaveras county, thence removed to Madera 
 county, from there went to Fresno county, and 
 in 1879 settled on a farm near Borden, Madera 
 county, where he spent the remainder of his 
 active years. Upon retiring from agricultural 
 labors he came to Madera, where he now makes 
 his home. Not only among people pf his own 
 nationality resident here, but among Americans 
 as well, he is held in high esteem as an honorable 
 citizen and one of the very oldest surviving set- 
 tlers of California. After coming to this state 
 he married Adilda Moraga, who was bom in 
 Calaveras county, and is a daughter of the late 
 
 Carlos Moraga, a Spaniard who was attracted 
 to this country by the discovery of gold. 
 
 In the family of Y. and Adilda Preciado there 
 are twelve children, namely : Albert E., who 
 represents the Singer Sewing Machine Company 
 in Madera; Rudolph R., who is a partner of his 
 brother, the subject of this narrative; Ygnacio V., 
 who follows the barber's trade in Madera ; Alex- 
 ander F., an artist living in Madera; Mrs. Lucy 
 Cosgrove, of Madera ; Carmelita, who is engaged 
 in the millinery business in Madera; Charles F., 
 also of Madera ; Ida, who clerks for her brothers 
 in their store in Madera; Benjamin W., who is 
 a partner of his two brothers in the book and sta- 
 tionery business; Abram, Lita and Henry, who 
 reside' with their parents. It is somewhat un- 
 usual that all of the members of so large a family 
 are still living and all remain in the town where 
 their parents are passing their advanced years. 
 
 The seventh in order of birth among the twelve 
 children was Charles F. Preciado, who was born 
 at San Andreas, October 24, 1878, and passed the 
 years of youth in Borden and Madera, alternating 
 work on the home farm in summers with attend- 
 ance at the common schools in the winter months. 
 When seventeen years of age he laid the founda- 
 tion of his present business by forming a part- 
 nership with his brother, Rudolph R., and open- 
 ing a fruit, confectionery and cigar store on 
 Yosemite avenue, Madera, in 1895. The two 
 had a combined capital of $17. Naturally their 
 beginning was a very humble one. A hole in the 
 wall, 4x8 feet in dimensions, sufficed to hold 
 their stock of goods. In a year they had out- 
 grown those humble quarters and by 1898 they 
 had leased the entire store. The firm of C. F. 
 Preciado & Co. was beginning to be recognized 
 as a growing one. Since then they have stead- 
 ily pushed their way to a position among the suc- 
 cessful business men of their town. They feel a 
 just pride in the fact that no bookstore in the 
 entire county is larger or more complete than 
 theirs. A full supply of county school books is 
 kept on hand, also the latest and most popular 
 novels, a varied assortment of stationery, novelty 
 goods for holiday sale, cigars of the best brands, 
 confectionery, etc. In addition, the brothers are 
 the exclusive agents in Madera for the San Fran- 
 cisco and other important daily papers. To meet 
 the demands of their growing business, it was re- 
 cently deemed advisable to build a gallery around 
 the first floor, thus giving them practically two 
 stories. 
 
 Reared in the Democratic faith, politically 
 Charles F. Preciado has always been a pro- 
 nounced believer in the principles of that party. 
 When he reached the age of twenty-one years he 
 was appointed secretary of the Democratic county 
 central committee and held that position for two 
 terms. In 1902, as the Democratic candidate, "he 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 523 
 
 was elected county tax collector by a majority of 
 one hundred and fifty, and in January of 1903 
 took the oath of office for a term of four years. 
 While giving his attention to official work, his 
 brothers maintain a close supervision over the 
 business, thus relieving him of much detail work. 
 He is a member of the Madera Chamber of Com- 
 merce and a contributor to movements for the 
 benefit of the town. Included in his fraternal 
 relations are associations with the Knights of 
 Pythias, Woodmen of the World and the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, in which he is past 
 master workman. On the organization of Ma- 
 dera Parlor No. 130, N. S. G. W., he became a 
 charter member and at this writing acts as presi- 
 dent of the local body, besides which in 1892 he 
 was honored with the office of deputy grand 
 president of this district. 
 
 WILLIAM C. TIGHE. As an example of 
 the opportunities offered by central California 
 to young men of ambition, intelligence and tire- 
 less energy, the business career of William C. 
 Tighe furnishes a fitting illustration. When he 
 came to the town of Madera, which has been 
 his home and the scene of his commercial activi- 
 ties since 1891, he had' a very limited amount of 
 capital and he lacked also the prestige given by 
 experience and influence. In compensation for 
 these disadvantages he possessed force of char- 
 acter and determination, decision of purpose and 
 high principles of honor, together with that op- 
 timistic faith in the future which is one of the 
 endowments of youth. 
 
 Not only by education, but also by birth as 
 well, Mr. Tighe is a Californian, for he is a 
 native of Oakland, Alameda county, born Janu- 
 ary 5, 1868. His grandfather, J. W. Tighe, a 
 native of Ireland, followed the butcher's trade in 
 London, England, where J. W., Jr., was born. 
 After some years in that city he brought the 
 family to California via Panama and engaged 
 in business as butcher in Oakland. The same 
 trade was followed by his son, J. W., Jr., who 
 opened a meat market at what is now East Oak- 
 land. Later, however, he turned his attention to 
 other forms of activity. For a time he operated 
 in the mines of California and Nevada. From 
 the west he removed to Howe, Grayson county, 
 Tex., where he conducted a hardware store and 
 also acted as postmaster. His death occurred 
 in that village when he was fifty-two years of 
 age. During his residence in California he mar- 
 ried Maria Henry, who was born in Boston and 
 died in Oakland. 
 
 The only child of J. W. Tighe, Jr., and Maria, 
 his wife, was William C. Tighe, who was reared 
 in his native city of Oakland and attended the 
 local grammar schools. When thirteen years of 
 
 age he began to clerk in. a men's furnishing goods 
 store on Broadway, between Seventh and Eighth 
 streets, Oakland, where he acquired a thorough 
 knowledge of that business and excelled in his - 
 ability as a salesman. Seeking an opening for 
 himself, he resigned there and went -to Fresno 
 in 1891, but during the same year proceeded to 
 Madera as offering, in his opinion, a better open- 
 ing for a man with small capital. With a part- 
 ner, under the title of Harris & Company, he 
 opened a store in a small frame house occupying 
 the present site of the postoffice. Here a small 
 stock of men's furnishing goods was placed on 
 sale. Reasonable prices and courteous treatment 
 of all won and retained customers. On assum- 
 ing the entire management of the business, in 
 the spring of 1893, Mr. Tighe leased a room 
 occupying a part of his present location, and to 
 this he has added from time to time until the 
 building is now 100x50 feet in dimensions, with 
 four entrances. Conducted as a department 
 storCj the business is the largest of its kind in 
 Madera county. A full and complete assortment 
 is kept in stock of men's furnishing goods, cloth- 
 ing, hats and caps, boots and shoes, dry goods, 
 notions and ladies' tailor-made goods. The 
 equipment is thoroughly up-to-date in every re- 
 spect. In 1901 the Tighe-Breyfogle Company 
 was incorporated, with Mr. Tighe as president, 
 and the business has since been conducted under 
 that title. He is a member of the Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen, and through his member- 
 ship in the Madera Chamber of Commerce he 
 has done much to promote the material growth 
 and commercial prosperity of his home city. He 
 is thoroughly alive to the importance of move- 
 ments tending to promote the standing of Cali- 
 fornia as a member of the great galaxy of states 
 comprising our nation. 
 
 JOHN Z. WILLIAMS. With the customary 
 zeal of an intelligent cultivator, Mr. Williams, in 
 his efforts as a fruit grower and more especially 
 as a raisin grower, has been amply repaid for his 
 industry, and no more productive fruit farm of 
 its size than his is to be found in the whole of 
 Fresno county. Born in Iowa, January 18, 1852, 
 he is a son of Henry and Harriett (Long) Will- 
 iams, both parents being natives of Tennessee. 
 The father, who was a life-long farmer, in the 
 early days located in Indiana, but a couple of 
 years later went to Iowa, where he lived until 
 1868. Subsequently he located in Missouri, and 
 it was there that his death occurred in 1886, 
 when in his seventy-sixth year. 
 
 John Z. Williams was seventeen years old 
 when the family moved to Missouri. He assisted 
 his father in farm pursuits until the latter's death, 
 and two vears afterward, in 1888, he left that 
 
524 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 section of the country for a home in California. 
 Being short of capital, soon after his arrival in 
 California, he rented land in the vicinity of 
 Selma, but two years later was enabled to pur- 
 chase land and this has been his home ever since. 
 His farm contains thirty-five acres of choice land 
 and is devoted wholly to the raising of fruit and 
 raisins. It is located seven miles from Selma, 
 in Rosedale school district, being five miles south- 
 east of Sanger. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Williams, in Missouri, 
 united him with Miss Lydia Elder, a native of 
 that state. They have reared a family of five 
 children, tlie two youngest being still at home. 
 The others own ranches in Fresno county and as 
 successful and prominent citizens all reflect great 
 credit on their parents. These children are Mrs. 
 Lena Donner, James L., Robert M., John H. and 
 Lula. Although not an active politician, nor an 
 aspirant to office, Mr. Williams is a faithful ad- 
 herent of Republican principles and does a great 
 deal of good in a cpiet way. 
 
 PHILIP BEDESEN. For nearly thirty years 
 Philip Bedesen has been a resident of Merced, 
 Merced county, and during that time has been ac- 
 tively identified with its mercantile interests as 
 proprietor of a meat market, having been one of 
 the original members of the firm of Banks & 
 Bedesen, established here in 1875. He has had a 
 varied experience in life, coming from a foreign 
 country to the L^nited States when a boy ; sub- 
 sequently driving teams across the plains when 
 danger from Indians or wild beasts beset every 
 traveler ; mining in Colorado in the days of rough 
 experiences and settling in California in pioneer 
 times, when hardships and privations had of ne- 
 cessity to be endured. In the various places 
 where he has lived and worked, Mr. Bedesen has 
 always been regarded as a man of integrity and 
 honor, and in the community where he now re- 
 sides, and to whose advancement and prosperity 
 he is ever ready to lead a helping hand, he is held 
 in great respect. A native of Germany, he was 
 born, March 15, 1843, in Rhenish Prussia, near 
 Trier, which was also the birthplace of his par- 
 ents, John and Angeline (Staden) Bedesen. His 
 father died in his native land when Philip was 
 but a small child, leaving three children, of whom 
 two are living. His mother married in Germany 
 for her second husband, Peter Lux, and with her 
 son and daughter they immigrated to America, 
 and settled in Aurora, 111. 
 
 Coming with his mother to Aurora, 111., when 
 thirteen years old, Philip Bedesen worked as a 
 farm laborer in that locality for about four years. 
 In 1861 he went to Pike's Peak, making the jour- 
 ney with mule-teams. Locating in Central City, 
 he was employed throughout the summer in haul- 
 
 ing wood from the top of Bald mountain to Ne- 
 vadaville, after which he was employed as a driv- 
 er in a freighter's train, driving a team com- 
 posed of three yoke of oxen through a country in 
 which the Indians were troublesome. Going to 
 St. Joseph, Mo., in the fall of 1862, he remained 
 there six weeks, and then hired out as a team- 
 ster, and drove a mule-team to Denver. Proceed- 
 ing directly to Black Hawk, Mr. Bedesen worked 
 in the Gregory mines for a couple of months, and 
 then went with ox-teams to Virginia City, Mont., 
 to try his luck in the new mines, known as the 
 Grasshopper mines, and was engaged for a time 
 in placer mining. Becoming acquainted while 
 there with John Banks, a butcher by trade, the 
 two men formed a partnership, and, under the 
 firm name of Banks & Bedesen, opened a butch- 
 er shop in Virginia City, it being the second shop 
 of the kind established in that vicinity. This en- 
 terprising firm subsequently opened another shop 
 in Central City, and for awhile ran both markets, 
 till selling out the Virginia City market, and later, 
 in the fall of 1865, selling the other. In the mean- 
 time, Messrs. Banks & Bedesen had accumulated 
 considerable wealth, having forty pounds of gold 
 dust in their possession after selling out. Con- 
 cealing this in buckskin sacks, placed either in 
 their pockets or around their waists, they started 
 east, traveling with their own horse and mule 
 teams in a train composed of eight wagons, as far 
 as Nebraska City, where they took a steamer for 
 St. Joseph. From there they went by rail to 
 Philadelphia, Pa., taking their gold dust to the 
 mint, where it was made into coin, which they 
 sold at a premium. After visiting for a time in 
 Aurora, 111., Messrs. Banks and Bedesen con- 
 tinued their journey westward to Missouri, locat- 
 ing in Daviess county, Mo., where, in partner- 
 ship, they purchased four hundred acres of land, 
 and were engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 until 1875. 
 
 Disposing of their land in that year, they mi- 
 grated to California, and selecting Merced as a 
 favorable location, opened a meat market, the 
 third one established in the city, and operated it to- 
 gether until the death of Mr. Banks, in 1898. 
 They built a slaughter house on the creek, and 
 also engaged to some extent in farming, owning 
 forty acres of land in the Ash colony, which they 
 devoted to the raising of sweet potatoes, and also 
 raised grain on two hundred acres of land which 
 they rented. Since the death of his partner, Mr. 
 Bedesen has continued the business alone, meeting 
 with marked success. 
 
 In 1865, in St. Joseph, Mo., Mr. Bedesen mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Stuber, a native of Switzerland, 
 and into their household thus established, ' nine 
 children have been born, namely : Lizzie, married 
 to John Peak, of Merced ; Emma, wife of Judge 
 W. M. Conley, of Madera; Gussie, married to 
 
-ftr^W. ^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 527 
 
 Frank Ralston, and died in Merced ; Charles, died 
 in Merced; Burt, in business with his father; 
 Frank, died in .childhood ; Frederick, a clerk in 
 Merced; Mary, at home; and William, a student 
 in the University of California. Politically Mr. 
 Bedesen is a Democrat, and fraternally he is a 
 member and ex-treasurer of the Ancient Order of 
 Druids. 
 
 WILLIAM H. Mcelroy. Noteworthy 
 among the prosperous and enterprising business 
 men of Merced is W. H. McElroy, a well known 
 contractor and'builder of the city. Industrious, 
 energetic and keen-witted, he has taken advan- 
 tage of every opportunity offered for bettering 
 his financial condition, and has had his full share 
 of work as a contractor, his abilities being rec- 
 ognized and appreciated. He is also actively 
 identified with one of the leading manufacturing 
 industries of this locality, being proprietor of the 
 Merced brick yards, located about a mile north 
 of the city. Here he manufactures brick of a 
 superior quality, using crude oil in burning them 
 and has a large trade in this line of business, his 
 manufactures being readily disposed of in the 
 home market. A son of David McElroy, he was 
 born, March ii, 1866, in Keokuk, Iowa. His 
 grandfather, Thomas McElroy, was born and 
 reared in Scotland, b,ut removed when a young 
 man to Ireland, settling in county Armagh, 
 where he spent his remaining days. 
 
 A native of Armagh, Ireland, David McElroy 
 was brought up on a farm. In his youthful days 
 he learned the trade of a civil engineer and sur- 
 veyor, and afterward worked as a railroad con- 
 structor in the old country. Immigrating to the 
 United States, he settled first in Cincinnati, Ohio, 
 as a merchant, and later was similarly employed 
 in Keokuk, Iowa. Removing thence to Ringgold 
 county, Iowa, he carried on general farming 
 there for several years, and then removed to 
 Fresno, Cal., where he resided until his death", 
 in 1894, at the age of seventy-seven years. He 
 married Jane Bell, who was born in the north of 
 Ireland, and came to this country with her fath- 
 er, Adam Bell, and settled on an Iowa farm. 
 She died in Iowa in early womanhood, in 1870. 
 Of the four children born of their union, three 
 are living, namely: Mrs. Elizabeth Vincent, of 
 Iowa; Ruth, wife of Dr. G. L. Lang, of Fresno, 
 Cal. ; and W. H., of this review. 
 
 Reared on a farm in Ringgold county, Iowa, 
 W. H. McElroy acquired a practical education in 
 the district schools. Leaving home at the age of 
 seventeen years, he served an apprenticeship of 
 three years at the carpenter's trade. Entering 
 then the employ of the Chicago, Rock Island & 
 Pacific Railroad Company, he worked in eastern 
 Iowa and Missouri, in the bridge department, and 
 
 subsequently became foreman of bridge construc- 
 tion, having headquarters in Eldon, Iowa. Mi- 
 grating to California in 1888, Mr. McElroy 
 worked at his trade in Merced one summer, and 
 then followed carpentering in Fresno for a year. 
 Returning to Merced in the fall of 1889, he has 
 since resided here, with the exception of a short 
 time when he was foreman of work in Santa Rosa 
 and Santa Cruz. Starting in business for him- 
 self as a contractor and builder in 1892, Mr. Mc- 
 Elroy has filled contracts of all kinds, being kept 
 busily employed at all times. He has erected 
 many of the finest residences and business houses 
 of the city and county, has built sewers and 
 bridges, and taken contracts for paving, his work 
 at all times giving satisfaction, being well and 
 promptly done. He built the Merced county jail, 
 and erected among others the Pednera, Barcroft 
 and Smith Estate buildings. 
 
 Mr. McElroy married, in Merced, Rena Vin- 
 cent, a native of Iowa, and they have two chil- 
 dren, Helen and David. Mr. McElroy is a mem- 
 ber of the Builders' Exchange of Fresno, and be- 
 longs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
 and to the Woodmen of the World. Politically 
 he gives his cordial support to the Republican 
 partv. Religiously he is a member of the Cum- 
 berland Presi)yterian Church. 
 
 ERNEST VOLQUARDS. Three miles south- 
 west of Visalia, Tulare county, is located the 
 ranch of Ernest Volquards, who is named among 
 the enterprising ranchers of this section. He is 
 a native son of California, having been born in 
 San Francisco January 4, 1869, his father, Ernest 
 Volquards, Sr., having emigrated from his birth- 
 place in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, in 1853. 
 The elder man was a sailor in occupation, follow- 
 ing this line of work from the time he was six- 
 teen years of age until his retirement in San 
 Francisco. This was in 1862, when he returned 
 to California as first mate. He spent three years 
 in mining in Placer county. His death occurred 
 in his adopted state in 1898, in the home of his 
 son. He is survived by his wife, formerly Eras- 
 mine Jensen, a native likewise of Schleswig-Hol- 
 stein, Germany, and who now makes her home 
 with her son. They became the parents of three 
 sons and one daughter, of whom two sons and 
 the daughter are now living. 
 
 The oldest child in his father's family, Ernest 
 Volquards, Jr., was reared in San Francisco, re- 
 ceiving his education in the public schools of that 
 city. Upon attaining maturity he engaged as an 
 employe in a nursery, raising stock for four 
 years. In 1886 he went to Fresno county and was 
 employed in the Faucher Creek nursery for the 
 period of five years. At the end of that time he 
 
628 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 removed to Tulare county and near Visalia 
 bought his present property, which consists of 
 forty acres of land under a high state of cultiva- 
 tion. This entire property is devoted to the rais- 
 ing of fruit; peaches and prunes occupying the 
 greater part of his attention. One acre is de- 
 voted to nursery stock, principally peaches. In 
 1899 he further improved his property by erect- 
 ing a beautiful residence. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Volquards was united in 
 marriage with Emily Quedens, a native of that 
 city, who died in Pasadena in 1900 while there 
 for the benefit of her health. Fraternally Mr. 
 A'olquards is associated with the Native Sons of 
 the Golden West, being a member of Visalia Par- 
 lor No. 19, of which he is now serving as the sec- 
 ond vice-president, and in which he has passed 
 all the chairs. Politically he is independent in 
 his views, reserving the right to cast his ballot 
 for the man whom he considers best qualified 
 for public office. 
 
 HARVEY J. OSTRANDER. Prominent 
 among the pioneer settlers of Merced county is 
 Harvey J. Ostrander, who for more than half a 
 century has been a resident of Merced, and one 
 of its most respected and valued citizens. In 
 the development of the agricultural, manufactur- 
 ing and mercantile interests, he has been an 
 active and influential force. Full of vim and 
 energy as a young man, he was among the fore- 
 most in establishing beneficial enterprises in the 
 county, and has the distinction of having brought 
 the first steam flouring mill to Merced county ; 
 of being the first to improve the land by irri- 
 gation; of sowing the first alfalfa seed in this 
 region; and of being the pioneer orchardist and 
 vineyardist of Merced county. The story of his 
 early life reads more like a tale of romance than 
 like the history of a plain, matter-of-fact agri- 
 culturist, being filled with thrilling incidents and 
 interesting facts, connected with the early settle- 
 ment of the state. A son of Alexander Ostran- 
 der, Jr., he was born, October 7, 1825, in Madi- 
 son county, N. Y., of Holland-Dutch ancestry, 
 being a lineal descendant of one Von Ostrander 
 who emigrated from Holland in 1666 and settled 
 in New York state. His grandfather, Alexander 
 Ostrander, Sr., a native of Washington county, 
 N. Y., served as an Indian scout during the Revo- 
 lutionary war, and afterward settled as a farmer 
 in Madison county, N. Y., where the Ostrander 
 families removed after the war of 1812. 
 
 Alexander Ostrander, Jr., was born in Wash- 
 ington county, N. Y., but settled in Madison coun- 
 ty with the other members of the families. He 
 was engaged in various business enterprises, 
 owning a good farm, contracting and superin- 
 
 tending large business enterprises. Inlitniing 
 the patriotic virtues of his ancestors, he served 
 in the war of 1812. He married Mary Annis, 
 who was born of Scotch-Irish ancestors in New- 
 York state, being the daughter of an Indian scout 
 during the Revolutionary war. She bore him 
 thirteen children, of whom Harvey J., the subject 
 of this sketch, was the youngest child, and is 
 the only survivor. 
 
 Educated in the. district schools, and well 
 trained in the arts and science of agriculture by 
 his father, Harvey J. Ostrander remained at 
 home during the days of his boyhood and youth, 
 completing his studies in the village academy. 
 Going west in 1845, he made several trips as 
 a boatman on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, 
 and afterward spent a number of months in Wis- 
 consin. Returning from there to New York, 
 he remained in his native state until 1849, when 
 he joined the gold-seekers, starting for the ex- 
 treme western part of the continent in search 
 of fortune. He came by boat to the mouth of 
 the Rio Grande river, and thence up that water- 
 way to within eighteen miles of Camargo, Mex- 
 ico, where the boat ran aground and he had to 
 help unload the goods, standing waist-deep in 
 water. He then hired a man to take his personal 
 effects, with those of some of his fellow-pas- 
 sengers, to Monterey, but that man dying of 
 cholera, he hired another. 
 
 With eight of his companions, Mr. Ostrander 
 purchased nine mules, one for each, and started 
 across the country for Mazatlan. At Rhinaldo 
 pass the company met some freighters camping. 
 On the way out their guide, McNab, killed one 
 of the party, a )'oung doctor. At Mazatlan the 
 company embarked on a schooner bound for San 
 Francisco, oiT which there were many other pas- 
 sengers bound for the same point. When forty 
 days out they made the captain land them, hav- 
 ing been on short rations (one pint of water 
 for cooking and drinking per day) for two weeks, 
 disembarking about three hundred miles south 
 of San Diego. Continuing the journey on foot, 
 the party came on the third day to a spring 
 around which there was about an acre of grass, 
 on which a Mexican pack train had left a horse 
 whose back was too sore to travel, and this 
 proved a blessing to the almost discouraged 
 travelers, who at once killed the animal for food. 
 Mr. Ostrander and two of his companions walked 
 on, traveling until ten o'clock that night, when 
 they made a camp, built a fire of sage brush and 
 cooked their horse meat, to him the sweetest 
 morsel he had ever eaten. On the fourth day 
 they traveled until sundown, when arriving at 
 .a dry creek at night, they dug down beside a 
 big rock for about twenty inches, and to their 
 joy found water. This day was one of the most 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 529 
 
 trying he ever experienced, the heat being in- 
 tense. Arriving at El Rosario, a small hamlet 
 of six or eight houses, on the fifth morning, they 
 were given food, consisting of a bowl of soup and 
 meat from a beef's head roasted in the ground. 
 The Mexicans fetched provisions back to the 
 remainder of the party, being induced to do so 
 by reason of the company's equipments, which 
 were exceptionally good, consisting of blankets 
 and clothing, no longer needed after they had 
 crossed the first range of mountains. Ojie of the 
 men left at the spring had died from hunger and 
 exposure. 
 
 From El Rosario Mr. Ostrander came as far 
 as San Diego on horseback, having been able 
 to pui-cha^e a horse near El Rosario, where he 
 sold his animal. Walking thence to Los Angeles, 
 he and his partner bought horses, each paying 
 $io apiece for them. Mr. Ostrander's proved 
 to be unbroken and bucked badly, but as he was 
 a born horseman, and could ride any kind of an 
 animal, he succeeded in conquering the bucking 
 horse, although he was thrown several times. 
 At San Luis Obispo the partners sold their 
 horses, and with one pack-horse between them 
 walked to the mines in Tuolumne county, going 
 via Monterey and Stockton. At the latter place 
 they bought a supply of ham and crackers, and 
 borrowing a pan and shovel engaged in placer 
 mining on the Tuolumne river. Mr. Ostrander 
 bought a rocker made from a shoe box, giving 
 $96 for it, and made enough in a week to pay 
 for all of his purchases, including overalls, shirts 
 and provisions. He and his partner met with 
 losses and reverses, but made a great deal of 
 money, also. In 1849 they accumulated much gold 
 on Indian bar, but lost it the following year by 
 becoming interested in companies to erect dams 
 at Rogers, Indian and Hawkins bars, to turn 
 ■ the waters from their natural beds, the price of 
 labor being $8 per day. The clams were all- 
 swept away by the high waters that prevailed 
 in September of that year. Mr. Ostrander suc- 
 ceeded in mining at the latter bar only, where 
 in ten days he washed out $3,000. Always in 
 search of something better, Mr. Ostrander and 
 his partner went to Mariposa county, but were 
 not at all successful there, and after wasting 
 a month's time returned to the Tuolumne dig- 
 gings, at which time they became interested in 
 the above enterprises. Had he and his partner 
 continued mining they would doubtless have 
 made money, but they opened a store and by 
 trusting the miners soon lost all their capital. 
 
 Disgusted with his .ill luck, Mr. Ostrander 
 came to the Merced river in the fall of 1850, 
 took' in another partner, and for two years was 
 profitably employed in buying and selling beef 
 cattle. Buying a steam flour mill in Stockton in 
 
 1853, he removed it to the Merced river, and 
 here put up the first mill south of Stockton. 
 He afterward sold both mill and lands. He as- 
 sisted in building the first water mill in this 
 locality, was the first to irrigate, set out the first 
 orchard and vineyard, and sowed the first alfalfa 
 seed, raising a crop which he at first found hard 
 work to dispose of, but which, during the 
 drought of 1864, he sold for from $40 to $60 
 a ton. Ever since that time Mr. Ostrander has 
 been prosperously engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits, including general farming and stock rais- 
 ing, and was the first man to use the mountain 
 ranges for summer pastures for sheep, taking a 
 flock to the Yosemite ranges as early as 1862. 
 He is now paying especial attention to raising 
 sheep, having four thousand head in Merced and 
 Fresno counties. He was the first president of 
 the Farmers' Canal Company, known afterward 
 as the Crocker-Huft'man Cana'l Company, the 
 first large irrigation company in the state. 
 
 Since casting his presidential vote in 1856, at 
 the mouth of a six-shooter, for John C. Fremont, 
 Mr. Ostrander has been a loyal supporter of the 
 principles of the Republican party. When the 
 news of the firing of Fort Sumter, in April, 1861, 
 was heard in Merced county, there ,was great ex- 
 citement among the Union and the Confederate 
 sympathizers, and when it was proposed to raise 
 the American flag there were threats of pulling 
 it down. Mrs. Ostrander made her husband 
 promise to refrain from talking politics. " On 
 his way to SnelHng with a man from Louisiana, 
 the subject O'f raising the flag was brought up, 
 but Mr. Ostrander, true to his promise, said noth- 
 ing. When his companion, Mr. Gwyn, said, 
 "If the flag is put up, it will be torn down," Mr. 
 Ostrander could contain himself no longer, and 
 said, "Both of my grandfathers fought in the 
 Revolution, my father fought in the war of 18 12, 
 and if the flag is put up and torn down I will 
 
 kill the that pulls it down." When 
 
 he returned he told his wife that he had broken 
 his promise. The Unionists decided that it was 
 best to defer the flag raising until the Fourth 
 of July, but the night of the third of July the 
 flag pole was chopped up, so there was no flag 
 raising the next day. The next year, previous 
 to July 4, 1862, Mr. Ostrander obtained from 
 those who had contributed to the purchase of the 
 flag, permission to put it up in his yard, and on 
 that glorious day it was unfurled to the breeze, 
 and strange as it may seem was never molested, 
 but was kept flying during the remainder of the 
 Civil war. 
 
 Returning to New York state in 1852, Mr. 
 Ostrander married Lydia Wheeler, who was bom 
 in Malone, N. Y., and died, in 1890, in California. 
 Five children were born of their union ; namely : 
 
530 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Frank, district attorney of Merced county, who 
 died in 1900; Jasper, a physician, who died in 
 1902; Willis, an inventor, who resides in Chico; 
 Sadie, the wife of Thomas Crew, of Chico ; and 
 Frederick G., a prominent attorney of Fresno, 
 who is an ex-district attorney and ex-judge of 
 Merced county. In 1876 Mr. Ostrander was 
 presidential elector of the fourth congressional 
 district, being elected on the Hayes and Wheeler 
 ticket. He was the first president of the Merced 
 County Agricultural Society and later of Agri- 
 cultural District No. 21, comprising Merced and 
 Mariposa counties, and was appointed by Gover- 
 nor Markham to serve one term of four years 
 as a member of the Yosemite valley and Mariposa 
 commission. He is a life member of the Society 
 of California Pioneers of San Francisco, and be- 
 longs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 While he has always participated in all move- 
 ments that have tended to advance the interests 
 of the community and has taken pride in the 
 success of the same, his greatest pride is in being 
 able to have kept the American flag flying dur- 
 ing the Civil war. 
 
 EDWIN JAMES LEONARD. The present 
 county recorder of Madera county is a descend- 
 ant from the very earliest settlers in America, 
 for the Leonard family was represented among 
 the pilgrims on the Mayflower and was of Eng- 
 lish extraction. Both in times of war and peace 
 its members have proved themselves worthy citi- 
 zens of our republic. They built the first iron 
 foundry in the United States, thus inaugurating 
 an enterprise that has since become of vast ex- 
 tent and importance. During the Revolution- 
 ary war one of the family bore arms in defense 
 of independence and liberty. James Leonard, 
 who was a son of this Revolutionary soldier, was 
 himself ~ of loyal and patriotic spirit, which he 
 showed during his service in the war of 1812. 
 During the next generation James Edwin, a son 
 of James, became a soldier in the Black Hawk 
 war and proved himself the possessor of true 
 Revolutionary courage. 
 
 James Edwin Leonard was a native of Nor- 
 wich, Conn., and grew to manhood upon his 
 father's farm. When Iowa was still an unde- 
 veloped region he identified himself with its 
 pioneer farmers, settling on a rich tract of bot- 
 tom-land five miles from Sabula, Jackson county, 
 within close proximity to the Mississippi river. 
 He witnessed the growth of that locality from 
 its raw and crude primeval condition to one of 
 the most fertile and valuable sections of the 
 west. Residing there during by far the greater 
 part of his life, he naturally had a circle of ac- 
 quaintances that was limited only by the number 
 of pioneers in the county. At the time of his 
 
 death, which occurred at seventy-six years, in 
 1900, he was the oldest surviving settler of the 
 entire county. His wife, who was born Maria 
 Higgins, was a native of Jacksonville, 111., and 
 died in Iowa. Her father, James Higgins, who 
 was a native of Nova Scotia, removed to Illinois 
 and settled on a farm near Jacksonville, Morgan 
 county, where he died. 
 
 Four children comprised the family of James 
 Edwin and Maria Leonard, namely: Henry, 
 who still lives near Sabula, Iowa; Bessie, wife 
 of M. H. Cassell of Los Angeles; Edwin James 
 of Madera; and Mrs. Mary Kuhnan of Daven- 
 port, Iowa. The third of these, Edwin James, 
 was born near Sabula, Iowa, August 19, i860, 
 and during boyhood years worked on the home 
 farm during summer months and studied in 
 country schools in the winter. Further educa- 
 tional advantages included attendance at the 
 Davenport high school and two years in Cornell 
 College, where he took the studies of the fresh- 
 man and sophomore classes. Leaving college 
 before entering upon his junior year, in 1879 he 
 went to Leadville, Colo., to assist in the Grant 
 smelter under ex-Governor J. B. Grant of Colo- 
 rado, Mr. Leonard's uncle. Judge James Grant, 
 being financially interested in the project. In 
 1881 he left Colorado for California and settled 
 in Madera (then Fresno) county, where he be- 
 came interested in the sawmill business. One 
 of his earliest ventures was the building of the 
 Miami sawmill in Mariposa county, where he 
 engaged in the manufacture of lumber with 
 William H. Crooks as a partner. In 1883 he 
 built a new mill with a larger capacity and con- 
 tinued to manage the same with his partner until 
 1891, when he sold his interest. He then pur- 
 chased the Oak Park ranch of four hundred and 
 eighty acres, which he improved by building an 
 e-xcellent system of ditching for irrigation. Mak- 
 ing his home on the ranch, he engaged in the 
 raising of Holstein cattle there until 1900, when 
 he moved into Madera, and has since disposed 
 of his ranch property. At one time he owned 
 an interest in the Gambetta mine at Grubgulch, 
 Madera county, but after working the claim for 
 three years he sold out. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Leonard united him 
 with Melvina Oxendine, who was born in Cala- 
 veras county, her father, Meldred Oxendine, hav- 
 ing been a pioneer of this state. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Leonard are the parents of two children, Mamie 
 and Mart. For several years Mr. Leonard was 
 a member of the state Democratic central com- 
 mittee, and he has also served on the county 
 central committee. In 1902 he was the Demo- 
 cratic nominee for county recorder and won the 
 election by a majority of one hundred and fifty- 
 four, taking the oath of office in January, 1903, 
 fol" a term of four years. In fraternal connec- 
 
ffiSTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 533 
 
 tions he is identified with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows, having been initiated into that 
 fraternity in the Madera Lodge. 
 
 WILLIAM C. WILSON. The county of 
 Kern has a full quota of live, energetic, pro- 
 gressive business men, who have been active and 
 influential in developing and advancing its indus- 
 trial and financial interests. Prominent among 
 the number is William C. Wilson, of Bakersfield, 
 the present county auditor. The descendant of 
 an old and honored Virginia family, he was born 
 August IS, 185 1, in Surry county, Va., a son of 
 James Wilson. His paternal grandfather, a life- 
 long resident of Virginia, was of English de- 
 scent, his parents having been born in England. 
 He owned a large plantation on the James river, 
 opposite Jamestown, and had many slaves. He 
 served in the war of 1812, belonging to a Vir- 
 ginia regiment. He lived to be seventy-nine years 
 of age. 
 
 A native of Virginia, James Wilson was em- 
 ployed in agricultural pursuits during his active 
 career. He died in the prime of life, in 1852, 
 when his youngest child, William C, was but 
 a year old. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Julia A. Cabaniss, was a native of Virginia, and 
 there spent her entire life, dying at the age of 
 sixty-five years. On being left a widow she and 
 her three sons made their home with her hus- 
 band's grandfather, living with him until about 
 i860, when, in order to give her children better 
 educational advantages, she removed to Smith- 
 field, Va. When war was declared, in 1861, she 
 took her family to Rutherford, N. C, and re- 
 mained there until the close of the conflict, when 
 she returned to Smithfield. 
 
 Educated mostly in private schools, William 
 C. Wilson remained at home until 1869, when 
 he came to Fort Jones^ Siskiyou county, Cal., 
 where he had a^ uncle living, borrowing money 
 to pay his fare out. He attended the public 
 schools for awhile, and then began for himself, 
 the first year thereafter being employed as a clerk 
 in a general store. In 1879, having previously 
 returned the money which he had borrowed, and 
 in addition saved enough to pay his expenses 
 through college, he entered Heald's Business Col- 
 lege, in San Francisco, from which he was grad- 
 uated. Mr. Wilson subsequently became hotel 
 and telegraph clerk at the Tubbs hotel, Oakland, 
 and was afterward in the employ of the South- 
 ern Pacific Railway Company for a time. Com- 
 ing then to Kern county, he was first agent in 
 Delano, and was then sent to Mojave, where he 
 was agent and operator for a year, during which 
 time the railroad was extended to The Needles. 
 
 Resigning his position with the railway com- 
 pany, Mr. Wilson embarked in mercantile pur- 
 
 suits in Mojave, and had just got well started 
 when, at the end of two years, he lost everything 
 by fire. Nothing daunted, however, he started 
 anew, and subsequently opened a branch store 
 at Randsburg, putting in a stock worth $20,000. 
 Again he lost by iire, his branch store and all of 
 his stock, on which there was no insurance, be- 
 ing burned. He had other property, being the 
 owner of valuable mining claims, and these, and 
 his general store in Mojave, he sold, paying up all 
 his indebtedness in full. Continuing his residence 
 in Mojave, he ran a drug store and operated the 
 postal telegraph office until October 9, 1900, when 
 he was for the third time the victim of a fire, his 
 office, store, home and everything being con- 
 sumed. Having previously built a telephone line 
 from Mojave to Randsburg, a distance of forty- 
 three miles, he now assumed the management 
 of it, taking the superintendency that the oper- 
 ating firm had given up. Putting in an exchange 
 at Randsburg, Mr. Wilson extended the line to 
 the Stringer district and Johannesburg, and was 
 successful in his operations. He also built two 
 business blocks in Mojave, and at Cameron, 
 eleven miles from there, he owned a ranch, the 
 management of which he supervised. In No- 
 vember, 1902, Mr. Wilson accepted the Demo- 
 cratic nomination for county auditor, and was 
 elected by a majority of six hundred and fifty 
 votes. Taking the oath of office in January, 
 1903, he has since resided in Bakersfield, where 
 he has built a fine, modern residence. 
 
 In October, 1890, Mr. Wilson married Annie 
 McNicoll, daughter of A. McNicoll, who is as- 
 sociated with the McNicoll Elevator Company of 
 San Francisco. Politically Mr. Wilson is a 
 Democrat in national affairs. Fraternally he is 
 a member of Tehachapi Lodge No. 313, F. & 
 A. M., which he helped to organize; of Bakers- 
 field Chapter, R. A. M. ; and of the Benevolent 
 Protective Order of Elks. 
 
 JOHN MARION JONES. The sherifi of 
 Madera county is a member of an old southern 
 family. Through his paternal ancestors he traces 
 his lineage to Wales, while his maternal progeni- 
 tors were of English extraction. His grand- 
 father, W. T. Jones, was a native of old Virginia 
 and became a planter in Tennessee, where he re- 
 mained until death. The other grandfather, 
 Charles Pigg, was also of Virginian birth and 
 became a pioneer planter of Tennessee. During 
 the war of 1812 he enlisted in the service of the 
 country and took part in the memorable engage- 
 ment at New Orleans under Gen. Andrew Jack- 
 son. In his brave service as a soldier he dis- 
 played the inheritance of a patriotic spirit from 
 his father, who was a Revolutionary hero. W. C. 
 and Mary Frances (Pigg) Jones, were natives of 
 
6U 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Tennessee and made their home upon a plantation 
 in Smith county, near Gordonsville, that state. 
 From that homestead during the Civil war W. C. 
 Jones went forth to serve the Confederacy as a 
 member of a Tennessee regiment. When defeat 
 met southern arms he returned home and re- 
 sumed the management of his estate, but later 
 settled upon a plantation in Davidson county. 
 
 In the family of W. C. Jones there were five 
 children, all but one of whom are living, John 
 Marion being the eldest and the only one in Cali- 
 fornia. He was born near Gordonsville, Tenn., 
 September 7, 1865, and during boyhood years at- 
 tended district schools and the Dekalb County 
 normal school at Alexandria, Tenn. His educa- 
 tion was brought to an abrupt termination 
 through a severe attack of inflammatory rheuma- 
 tism, which confined him to bed for sixteen 
 months. As soon as he was able to travel he 
 came to the Pacific' coast, where in a month he 
 had entirely recovered his strength. After com- 
 ing to Madera in 1885 he secured employment 
 on the Hely ranch. Two years later he became 
 a teamster with the Madera Flume & Trading 
 Company, and continued in their employ until 
 1892. His next position was with the Yosemite 
 Stage & Turnpike Company as teamster, engaged 
 in hauHng supplies, and later in charge of the 
 teaming and supplies, with headquarters at Ray- 
 mond. During his last year with them he super- 
 intended the oiling of the company's road from 
 Raymond, a distance of twenty-eight miles. 
 
 The Democratic party, of which Mr. Jones has 
 always been a firm supporter, brought his name 
 before their county convention in 1902 and made 
 him their candidate for county sheriff. Elected 
 by a plurality of seventy, he took the oath of 
 office in January, 1903, for a term of four years, 
 and has since given his attention with conscien- 
 tious fidelity to the discharge of official duties. It 
 is his ambition to preserve law and order in the 
 county and every precaution is taken to secure 
 the protection of law-abiding citizens. The State 
 Association of Sheriffs of California numbers 
 him among its members, while fraternally he is 
 connected with the Knights of Pythias, Madera 
 Lodge No. 280, F. & A. M., in which he was 
 made a Mason, and the Benevolent Protective 
 Order of Elks, in Fresno. 
 
 JOHN HENRY ELFERS. In the annals of 
 Stanislaus county no more worthy name is found 
 than that of John Henry Elfers, who, as owner 
 of a highly-improved ranch lying one mile south 
 of Crows Landing, is an able and important 
 factor in developing and advancing the agricul- 
 tural interests of this section of the state. A 
 native Californian, he was born July 24, 1864, 
 
 in Camptonville, of thrifty German ancestry, 
 being a son of Archibald Diederich Elfers. 
 
 Archibald Diederich Elfers was born and edu- 
 cated in Hanover, Germany. When a young man 
 he left the Fatherland, resolving to make his for- 
 tune in a newer country. Sailing around Cape 
 Horn in 1849, he came to the gold fields of Cali- 
 fornia, and for nearly twenty years thereafter 
 was employed in mining, being at first located 
 in Downieville, and subsequently in Campton- 
 ville. In 1864 he removed to San Francisco, 
 where he resided several years. Locating on the 
 west side of the San Joaquin valley in 1869, 
 he engaged in farming and stock-raising, buying 
 at first a ranch of three hundred and twenty 
 acres. He afterward bought a large tract of 
 land near Crows Landing, Stanislaus county, 
 and made other additions by purchase until he 
 had fifteen hundred acres of land in his posses- 
 sion. Continuing in his chosen occupation, he 
 was successfully employed in agricultural pur- 
 suits until 1900, when he turned the management 
 of his large ranch over to his son Louis, and re- 
 moved to Alameda, where he is now living re- 
 tired from the activities of business, being a hale 
 and hearty man of more than fourscore years. 
 Of his union with Catharine Elfers, a native of 
 Hanover, Germany, eight children grew to years 
 of maturity, and five are living, John Henry, the 
 special subject of this sketch, being the second 
 son. 
 
 Obtaining a practical knowledge of the elemen- 
 tary branches of learning in the public schools, 
 John Henry Elfers was subsequently thoroughly 
 drilled in the art and science of agriculture by 
 his father, with whom he lived and worked until 
 after attaining his majority. Coming to Stanis- 
 laus county in 1889, he soon began farming on 
 his own account, and is now carrying on an ex- 
 tensive and profitable business as a general far- 
 mer and stock-raiser. He has fifty acres of land 
 devoted to alfalfa and three wheat-fields, one 
 containing one hundred and twenty acres, another 
 containing two hundred and fifty acres, while 
 the third contains three hundred and twenty 
 acres. Mr. Elfers rents eight hundred acres of 
 land from his father, while, in company with 
 his brother Charles, he rents seventeen hundred 
 acres, and in addition to these large tracts he 
 has recently, in partnership with his brother and 
 others, purchased two thousand and four hun- 
 dred acres of the Jones tract. By the exercise 
 of his native industry and his able business 
 capacity, he is meeting with unquestioned suc- 
 cess in his undertakings ; he has firmly estab- 
 lished himself in the confidence of his friends and 
 fellow-citizens, and has won for himself a good 
 record as- an honest man and a valuable member 
 of the community. 
 
 In Stanislaus county, near Newman, Mr. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 535 
 
 Elfers married Doroth)' Kricke, a native of Ger- 
 many, and they are the parents of two children, 
 Charles and Ruth. Taking an intelligent interest 
 in public affairs, Mr. Elfers is actively identified 
 with the Democratic party, the principles of 
 which he at all times supports. 
 
 FRANK EDWIN HOWE. To the born 
 agriculturist, the man who appreciates the dig- 
 nity and utility of his work, and delights in 
 close association with nature, there would seem 
 to be no more gratifying accomplishment than 
 converting a profitless tract of land into one of 
 fertility and promise. This has been done with 
 more than ordinary zeal and intelligence by 
 Frank Edwin Howe, one of the early settlers of 
 Kings county, and the owner of a ranch of 
 eighty-five acres eight and a half miles south- 
 east of Hanford. Since 1885 Mr. Howe has had 
 his successes and failures in the west. He was 
 born in San Mateo county, Cal., January 31, 
 1853, and has risen to his present position solely 
 on his own merits, unaided by either influence or 
 material assistance. 
 
 Henry Newcomb Howe, the father of Frank 
 Edwin Howe, was born in Maine, but went to 
 New Brunswick at an early age, and devoted his 
 energies to the timber and milling business. He 
 married Rebecca Jane Hall, a native of New 
 Brunswick, and started housekeeping in a lum- 
 ber camp with few of the advantages or com- 
 forts of life. Even in this isolated region the re- 
 ports of the discovery of gold on the Pacific coast 
 penetrated with disquieting effect, and Mr. Howe 
 was one of the first in his neighborhood to heed 
 the clarion call to fortune. Embarking in a sail- 
 ing vessel with his wife he accomplished the long 
 and tedious journey around Cape Horn, arriving 
 in San Francisco in 1850, only to find that city 
 practically deserted. Everyone of energy or am- 
 bition had taken himself to the mines, and thither 
 went Mr. Howe; but a short experience con- 
 vinced him that his fate was that of the average 
 miner. He had thoroughly learned the saw- 
 milling business in Maine and New Brunswick, 
 and he naturally depended on his knowledge to 
 tide him over the emergency created by having 
 spent all of his money on the trip to the coast. 
 In the Santa Cruz mountains, near Lexington, 
 he and his brother, James S. Howe, built a saw- 
 mill out of lumber hewed by their- own hands, 
 thereafter managing and operating the same until 
 the fall of 1861. Desiring to live on a farm, 
 Henry N. sold his interest in the sawmill to his 
 brother and purchased a farm six miles south of 
 San Jose, where he lived until 1863. His farm 
 proving unsatisfactory he mortgaged it to secure 
 funds to take him to the Caribou mining dis- 
 trict. Here also disaster overcame him and he 
 
 not only lost all available cash but his farm be- 
 sides. Nothing daunted, he put his shoulder to 
 the wheel and worked on different farms in Santa 
 Clara county. In the meantime his sons, Frank 
 Edwin and Fred, went to the Mussel Slough 
 district, in what is now Kings county, and pur- 
 chased a settler's right to four hundred acres of 
 land, assuming the pre-emption indebtedness. 
 They built a house, barn and sheds on their prop- 
 erty, and in 1876 the father and the rest of the 
 family came to live on the newly acquired farm. 
 Henry N. Howe later bought eighty acres of rail- 
 road land and spent his remaining days there, his 
 death occurring in 1895, at the age of seventy- 
 seven years. The old place still shelters the wife 
 who bravely shared his rising but oft-times dis- 
 couraging fortunes, and who is now eighty-two 
 years old. Mr. Howe was a Republican in poli- 
 tics, and an extremely public-spirited man, assist- 
 ing among other things in the finishing of the con- 
 struction of the Lakeside ditch. 
 
 Frank Edwin Howe received as good a pre- 
 liminary education as the early schools of Cali- 
 fornia afforded, and was reared to an agricultural 
 Hfe. He took up the farm on the Mussel Slough, 
 Kings county, in 1874, prepared for the advent 
 of his parents, and with his brother engaged in 
 stock-raising- and general farming. In 1877 a 
 drought afflicted this part of the state and caused 
 almost total loss to the ranchers. The Howe 
 brothers lost seventy-seven head of cattle that 
 year and a big crop of grain, so in March, 1877, 
 they turned their attention to freighting to the 
 Darwin mines. This was their only means of 
 securing feed and seeds, and with the proceeds 
 of their labor they rented from three to four hun- 
 dred acres of land near Grangeville, and in time 
 bought a threshing-machine, which they operated 
 for several years. The season proved satisfac- 
 tory and the crop large, and they rented more 
 land and increased both their grain and stock 
 production. In 1878 they purchased a homestead 
 right to eighty acres, made their home there until 
 1885, and then sold out. Mr. Howe then pur- 
 chased his present farm of eighty acres. Since 
 then he has farmed alone, and has gradually en- 
 larged his stock and grain interests, and has 
 added alfalfa and dairying. His home farm is 
 devoted . exclusively to alfalfa and dairying, and 
 another farm owned by him six miles west of 
 Hanford, consisting of three hundred and twenty 
 acres, is under stock and alfalfa. In 1904 he 
 leased two thousand five hundred acres of land 
 on Tulare lake, which is all under wheat. His 
 operations are characterized by a thorough un- 
 derstanding of his occupation, by caution and 
 business sagacity, and are proving all that he 
 could desire from a financial standpoint. 
 
 May 22, 1877, Mr. Howe was united in mar- 
 riage with Anna M. Dibble, daughter of Edwin 
 
636 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 J. Dibble, who is mentioned elsewhere in this 
 work. Five sons have been born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Howe, of whom two died in infancy. Those 
 living are : Edwin H., Albert P., and Chester M., 
 who are working the home place. Mr. Howe is 
 an ardent Republican, and has served as a mem- 
 ber of the school board. With his wife he is an 
 active and influential member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. It will be seen that Mr. Howe 
 has been a man of courage and perseverance, that 
 he has overcome many obstacles, and that he is 
 entitled to all that a more kindly fate may bring 
 his way. He is a genial and pleasant man and 
 numbers among his stanchest friends the fore- 
 most people in the county. 
 
 WILLIAM THOMAS MOOREHEAD. By 
 virtue of the fact that his residence and the larg- 
 er portion of his land lies in Stanislaus county Mr. 
 Moorehead is a citizen of this county, but he also 
 maintains interests in Merced county by reason of 
 a small part of his farm lying across the county 
 line. A pioneer of this vicinity, he has witnessed 
 its development from a wild country into one of 
 the valuable agricultural regions of the state and 
 has himself been a large contributor thereto. 
 During the period covering about thirty years in 
 which he has made his home on his present farm 
 he has brought the land under cultivation to 
 grain and alfalfa and has acquired dairy inter- 
 ests to the amount of about twenty cows. 
 
 The Moorehead family has been identified with 
 Stanislaus county ever since the sixties, and men- 
 tion of the family history appears in the sketch 
 of Robert C, a brother of William Thomas, pub- 
 lished elsewhere in this volume. The subject of 
 this narrative was born near Lewisburg, Green- 
 brier county, W. Va., July 23, 1844, and at the 
 age of six years accompanied other members of 
 the family to Iowa, where he gained a rudi- 
 mentary education in the schools of that day and 
 locality. To a large extent, however, he is a self- 
 educated man and has acquired his wide range 
 of knowledge through habits of observation and 
 reading that have characterized all of his mature 
 years. When he was twenty years of age he 
 crossed the plains with his father and two broth- 
 ers and after his arrival at Boise Basin engaged 
 with them in mining. The placer mines of El- 
 dorado county attracted him to that part of Cali- 
 fornia in 1868, but the results were discouraging 
 and he determined to seek a more certain means 
 of livelihood. 
 
 Upon his arrival in Stanislaus county in Au- 
 gust of 1869, Mr. Moorehead found a wild coun- 
 try, offering few inducements to permanent set- 
 tlers. For two years he worked as a farm hand 
 and meanwhile became convinced of the fertility 
 of the soil when crops were selected suited there- 
 
 to. In 1 87 1 he began to farm rented land on 
 Crows Creek, and in 1875 bought the place four 
 and one-half miles southwest of the present site 
 of Newman. His landed possessions aggregate 
 two hundred acres, of which thirty-five acres are 
 provided with irrigation facilities that render al- 
 falfa a profitable crop. In addition to his own 
 place he cultivates a rented farm of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres adjoining, all of which is 
 under grain. On the organization of the New 
 Era creamery, the first enterprise of its kind in 
 this region, he became one of the original stock- 
 holders and has since been associated with its 
 management. Interested in educational affairs, 
 he renders faithful service in the office of school 
 trustee of Newman district. Fraternally he is 
 connected with the Knights of Honor and in re- 
 ligion is a Presbyterian, being ruling elder of the 
 church of that denomination at Newman. His 
 wife, whom he married in Merced county and 
 who was formerly Mary L. Johnsen, has been a 
 life-long resident of this part of California. Dur- 
 ing the exciting days of '49 her father, Bernard 
 Johnsen, a native of Germany, came to the gold 
 fields of the west, but after a brief experience in 
 mining turned his attention to farming, and also 
 became interested in sheep-raising on the Merced 
 river. The five sons of Mr. and Mrs. Moorehead, 
 John B., William D., Malcolm E., Charles C. and 
 Marion H., are young men of promise and educa- 
 tion, and all, with the exception of the eldest son 
 who is clerking in Modesto, still remain with their - 
 father, assisting him in the management of his 
 large interests, and, by the experience thus gained, 
 fitting themselves for positions of usefulness and 
 honor in future years. 
 
 WILLIAM J. STOCKTON. As a repre- 
 sentative of the intelligent and hardy pioneers 
 who came to Los Banos at an early period of its 
 settlement, and have since taken a conspicuous 
 part in the development of town and city, we 
 take pleasure in giving to the readers of this 
 volume a brief sketch of William J. Stockton, a 
 well-known and active citizen of this part of 
 Merced county. As a general farmer and grain 
 raiser he has been for many years intimately as- 
 sociated with the agricultural interests of this 
 section, and as a blacksmith has been connected 
 with its manufacturing prosperity. As a public 
 official he has held many positions of prominence 
 and responsibility, in each and every case dis- 
 charging the duties devolvins" upon him with 
 commendable punctuality and fidelity. A son of 
 Samuel Whiteside Stockton, he was born, Janu- 
 ary 25, 1848, in Marion, Williamson county, 
 111. His grandfather, Robert Stockton, a native 
 of Virginia, served in the war of 1812 as a com- 
 missioned officer. He subsequently settled on a 
 
{/>J^-yi^ (^^^^^^.e.'P^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 539 
 
 plantation in Alabama, removing from there 
 to Mt. Vernon, 111., as a pioneer. 
 
 Born and bred in Alabama, Samuel White- 
 side Stockton became familiar with the various 
 branches of agriculture when young, but besfan 
 life for himself as a manufacturer of bells in 
 Marion, 111. In 1859, accompanied by his wife 
 and their four children, he came across the 
 plains to California, settling first in Marin 
 county, and later in Nevada county, where he 
 followed mining for awhile. Locating then in 
 Colusa county, he carried on farming at Grand 
 Island for a few seasons, being afterward sim- 
 ilarly employed in Santa Cruz county. He died 
 in San Jose at the age of sixty-seven years. He 
 married Nancy Pope, who was born in Illinois, 
 a daughter of Benjamin Wood Pope, a native of 
 Tennessee. She survived her husband, and now 
 resides in San Jose. Of their eleven children, 
 six are living, William J., the firstborn, being 
 the special "subject of this sketch. 
 
 Living in Marion, 111., until eleven years old, 
 William J. Stockton there acquired his ele- 
 mentary education. With his parents he moved, 
 in 1859, to California, coming by the Truckee 
 route, and being six months and ten days cross- 
 ing the plains with ox-teams. In the public 
 schools of Nevada county, he continued his 
 studies, completing his early education at the 
 Watsonville Academy, studying for two years 
 under Professor Van Dorn. He subsequently 
 learned the blacksmith trade with his fathev, 
 who had a smithy on his farm, and when of age 
 entered into business with his father, with whom 
 he continued in partnership until 1872. In that 
 year Mr. Stockton rented, land in Los Banos, and 
 as a grain-raiser and blacksmith built up a large 
 business, farming a thousand acres of land much 
 of the time. In 1890, when the town of Los 
 Banos was started, M',r. Stockton moved his 
 smithy to its present site, and has since been 
 busily employed, being the leading blacksmith of 
 this vicinity. 
 
 Several years ago, Mr. Stockton purchased 
 one hundred and fifty acres of land, lying three 
 miles south of Los Banos, and, in partnership ' 
 with W. L. Garrison, planted it all to alfalfa. 
 He has made improvements of an excellent char- 
 acter on the place, and pays especial attention to 
 dairying, keeping about one hundred head of 
 cattle. In 1890 he embarked in the undertaking 
 business, being the pioneer in that line of indus- 
 try. He has since ' attended the Barnes School 
 of Embalming, and has acquired proficiency in 
 the art, which is so essential and in such general 
 use throughout our nation. 
 
 Mr. Stockton has four children, Mrs. Belle 
 Garrison, Alice, William J., Jr., and Alma 
 Marion. In the management of town and coun- 
 ty aflfairs he has taken an important part. For 
 
 many years he served as justice of the peace, 
 giving eminent satisfaction to all concerned in 
 that capacity; also was county supervisor a 
 number of terms, and for four years was county 
 coroner and public administrator. He was made 
 a Mason at Hills Ferry, and is now a member of 
 Los Banos Lodge No. 312, F. & A. M., which 
 he served as master three terms ; he also belongs 
 to Yosemite Chapter No. 12, R. A. M., and to 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. Polit- 
 ically he is a stanch adherent of the Democratic 
 party. 
 
 BENEDICT OLSEN. His humble home 
 hedged in by the awe-inspiring mountains of Nor- 
 way, Benedict Olsen was born June 12, 1871, and 
 was reared in a typical home of the peasantry, 
 descended from the historic Norsemen. His 
 education was the best procurable in his home 
 district, and was sufficiently broad to create dis- 
 content with his surroundings, no matter how 
 well they had supplied the needs of his fore- 
 fathers. Yielding to the impulse to immigrate to 
 the United States in 1895, he landed in New 
 York with twenty-four mile posts of his life 
 already passed, and with hope in his^heart, and 
 determination in his mind. Crossing the con- 
 tinent to San Francisco, he eneaged in the hum- 
 ble occupation of farm hand for a couple of 
 years, and thus demonstrated his ability to till the 
 soil and do with thoroughness and dispatch what- 
 ever work was assigned him. As a reward for 
 his ability and faithfulness .he was made man- 
 ager of the James C. McDermott ranch March 
 12, 1897, and has since been identified with this 
 large and important responsibility. 
 
 The McDermott ranch is located three and a 
 half miles north of Newman, and comprises five 
 hundred acres of alfalfa and seven hundred acres 
 of barley and grain land. The owner of this 
 large property is a wholesale meat merchant, 
 with headquarters at No. 345 Tenth street, San 
 Francisco, and from his farm he receives the 
 greater part of the stock required in his business 
 in the city. About one thousand head of cattle 
 are fattened for market every winter and the su- 
 perintending of these cattle and the planting and 
 harvesting of the grain and alfalfa rest upon the 
 shoulders of Mr. Olsen. That he is thoroughly 
 competent to attend to the task assigned him is 
 intimated by his long retention in the same posi- 
 tion, and by the air of thrift and prosperity which 
 pervades every department of the ranch. Pains- 
 taking and conservative, thoughtful of the best 
 interests of his em£loyer, he is a man upon whom 
 all rely who have ever been associated with him 
 in whatsoever capacity, and furthermore, he is 
 able to secure from his subordinates the best pos- 
 sible and most willing service. He is an appre- 
 
540 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ciator of fine stock, of fertile, yielding land, and 
 is able to turn it to the best financial account, as 
 becomes a man of his extended and intelligent 
 experience. 
 
 Thus far on his life journey Mr. Olsen is a 
 bachelor, but an eminently genial and social one, 
 taking his part in the diversions by which he is 
 surrounded, and occupying a prominent place in 
 the lodges of the Odd Fellows and Woodmen of 
 the World. In politics he is a Republican. That 
 he has prospered beyond his immediate needs is 
 evident from his ownership of a farm of eighty 
 acres three and a half miles north of Newman, 
 upon which he raises alfalfa, and which nets him 
 a handsome addition to his yearly salary. 
 
 HON. ALEXANDER M. DREW. Conspicu- 
 ous among the able attorneys of Fresno county is 
 Hon. A. M. Drew, who is meeting with signal 
 success in the practice of his profession in the 
 city of Fresno, which has been his home for the 
 past c[uarter of a century. A man of undoubted 
 ability and integrity, he is prominent in social, 
 legal, fraternal and political circles, and has now 
 the distinction of representing the Sixty-first 
 district in the state legislature. A son of Elish'a 
 Drew, he was born January 17, 1857, in Lena, 
 Stephenson county. 111. He is descended from 
 an old and honored family of New England and 
 comes of patriotic ancestry, his paternal grand- 
 father. Captain Drew, having served as a pri- 
 vate in the Revolutionary army and as an offi- 
 cer in the war of 1812. 
 
 A native of New England, Elisha Drew was 
 born in 1806, in the northern part of Vermont. 
 When a young man he lived for a few years in 
 Ontario, Can., from there moving to Illinois in 
 the early forties, and settling first near Galena. 
 He subsequently took up land in Stephenson 
 county, about four miles west of Lena, and there 
 improved a farm. In 1875 he removed to the 
 village of Lena and there spent his declining 
 years, passing away at the venerable age of 
 ninety years. He was in every respect a worthy 
 citizen and a consistent member of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church. He was twice married, 
 by his first wife, Anna Dart, having six sons, 
 namely: James, who died at Sterling, 111. • 
 Elisha, a resident of Greenville, Tex., who 
 served four years in the Civil war, enlisting first 
 in the Fifteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry and 
 afterwards in the Forty-third Illinois Volunteer 
 Infantry, and was wounded at the battle of Shi- 
 loh; Charles, who served in the United States 
 navy during the Civil war and died in New 
 York City; Isaiah, who served in an Illinois 
 regiment during the Civil war and now resides 
 in Marion Center, Kan. ; Alfred, a resident of 
 Rockford, 111.; and Joseph, who served in the 
 
 Ninety-second Illinois Volunteer Infantry dur- 
 ing the Civil war, was wounded in battle, and 
 died in Kansas in 1865. Elisha Drew married 
 for his second wife Caroline Smith, who was 
 born in Ogdensburg, N. Y., and died in Illi- 
 nois, at the age of sixty-nine years. Her 
 father, Captain Smith, was an officer in the 
 United States navy during the Revolution. Of 
 this marriage five children were born, namely: 
 Mrs. Montague, who died in Illinois ; Mrs. Car- 
 rie Hawley, of Illinois; Alexander M., the sub- 
 ject of this sketch; Mrs. Mary Lakin, of Palo 
 Alto, Cal. ; and Jessie, a teacher in the public 
 schools of Salt Lake City, Utah. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, A. M. Drew 
 obtained the rudiments of his education in the 
 district school, after which he entered the Lena 
 high school, from which he was graduated in 
 1875. The ensuing year he taught school near 
 Winslow, 111. Coming to California in 1877, 
 he continued his studies at Howe's normal 
 school, in Sacramento, and after his graduation 
 in 1878 taught school one term in that vicinity. 
 In August, 1878, Mr. Drew located in Fresno, 
 which was then but a small village, with but 
 one brick building within its limits, and a popu- 
 lation of four hundred souls. Continuing in 
 his chosen occupation, he taught in the district 
 schools for a time, making Fresno his home, al- 
 though for four years he was principal of the 
 Iowa Hill schools. During the time he was en- 
 gaged as a teacher he studied law during his 
 leisure moments, and in 1887 was admitted to 
 the bar. The following year Mr. Drew spent 
 in the law office of Wharton & Shaw, and from 
 1888 until 1890 was engaged in practice with 
 Judge George A. Nourse and F. H. Short. Since 
 that time he has practiced alone, and has won 
 an extensive and lucrative practice, being one 
 of the busiest and most successful lawyers of 
 the city. Mr. Drew at one time owned a vine- 
 yard and orchard of eighty acres, most of which 
 he set out himself, and is still interested in the 
 culture of grapes to some extent. He is one of 
 the oldest members of the Ra,isin Growers' As- 
 sociation, and frequently presides at its meet- 
 ings. 
 
 In Sacramento, Cal., Mr. Drew married Abbie 
 E. Pratt, a native of Maine, and a graduate of 
 Howe's normal school. Three children have 
 been born of their union, namely: Leslie M., 
 who was graduated from the Fresno high 
 school, and is in the employ of the Raisin 
 Growers' Association; Arthur Homan, a pupil 
 in the high school ; and Gertrude S. Politically 
 Mr. Drew is a steadfast Republican, and is a 
 member, and former chairman, of the Repub- 
 lican county central committee. In 1902 he was 
 nominated on the Republican ticket as repre- 
 sentative to the state legislature, and was elected 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 541 
 
 by a majority of three hundred, being the first 
 Republican ever elected in the Sixty-iirst dis- 
 trict, which is strongly Democratic. He is a 
 member of the judiciary and other committees 
 of the house, and has been quite active in legis- 
 lative matters. Of the sixteen bills which he 
 introduced, nine have become laws. One of the 
 most important of these was the Drew State 
 Text Book bill. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Drew was made an Odd Fel- 
 low at Iowa Hill, Placer county, Cal., in 1882, 
 and is now a member and past officer of Fresno 
 Lodge No. 186, I. O. O. F. In 1897 and 1898 
 he served as grand master of the Grand Lodge 
 of California; in 1898 he went to Boston as su- 
 preme representative to the Sovereign Grand 
 Lodge, and in 1899 went to Detroit in the same 
 capacity. He is also a member and past chief 
 patriarch of F'resno Encampment, Patriarchs 
 Militant, past captain of Fresno Canton, and a 
 member of Fresno Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M. 
 In religion he is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, in which he was formerly a 
 trustee. He also belongs to the F'resno County 
 Bar Association. 
 
 During the years of his residence in Fresno 
 Mr. Drew has become intimately identified with 
 numerous movements toward the upbuilding of 
 the city. He is regarded as one of its public- 
 spirited and progressive citizens, and a man who 
 never hesitates to support well-considered proj- 
 ects looking toward the elevation of the social, 
 moral, educational and industrial status of the 
 city. 
 
 WILLIAM H. PARDEE, M. D. Among the 
 most respected and esteemed residents of Dos 
 Palos is W. H. Pardee, M. D., who has acquired 
 distinction in various walks of life, and is well 
 deserving of particular mention in this biograph- 
 ical work. As a brave soldier in the Civil war 
 he won an honorable record, and as a physician 
 and a minister of the gospel his career has been 
 most useful and noteworthy. A man of broad 
 and enlightened views, patriotic and public- 
 spirited, he is noted for his earnestness of pur- 
 pose and upright integrity, and wherever he goes 
 he readily makes friends, his never-failing cour- 
 tesy and genial manners endearing him to all. 
 A son of Samuel Pardee, he was born Novem- 
 ber 24, 1834, in Windham, Portage county, Ohio. 
 Of distinguished stock, he is a lineal descendant 
 of a French Huguenot family that settled in 
 Connecticut in early colonial times, among his 
 ancestors being men that were active in public 
 affairs and helped to secrete the charter given 
 that state by Charles I, in the old tree at Hart- 
 ford that has since been known as the Charter 
 Oak. During the Colonial wars, and the stormy 
 
 times preceding the great struggle for independ- 
 ence, the name of Pardee was one of prominence 
 and influence, and has not yet lost its prestige, 
 being known throughout New England, and in 
 various parts of the Union, Gov. G. C. Pardee 
 being a kinsman of Dr. Pardee, of whom we 
 write. Asa Pardee, the doctor's grandfather, 
 was a lifelong resident of Connecticut, and a 
 wefl-to-do farmer. 
 
 Born and brought up on a Connecticut farm, 
 Samuel Pardee subsequently became a pioneer 
 of Portage county, Ohio, where he bought land, 
 and was afterward engaged in general farming 
 until his death, in the sixty-first year of his age. 
 He married Celinda Stiles, who was born in 
 Connecticut, of Holland Dutch ancestry, and 
 died in New York in 1835. Her father. Captain 
 Stiles, who came of Revolutionary stock, was 
 born in Connecticut, and died in Vermont. She 
 bore her husband six children, of whom William 
 H., the youngest, is the only survivor. 
 
 Left motherless when but three months old, 
 W. H. Pardee was brought up by an uncle, Mr. 
 Collins, a m_echanic, in Randolph, Ohio, not far 
 from Hiram, which afterward became famous 
 as the home of the late President Garfield, with 
 whom Dr. Pardee was personally acquainted, 
 both being attendants of the same church. After 
 leaving the public schools of Randolph, Mr. 
 Pardee attended the village academy for a while, 
 subsequently continuing his studies at Bragg 
 Academy. Beginning the study of medicine 
 under Dr. George W. Bettes, of Randolph, he 
 afterward entered the Physio-Medical College 
 at Cincinnati, where he .was graduated with the 
 degree of M. D. in 1861. His period of college 
 life embraced the troublous times preceding the 
 outbreak of the Civil war, when party lines were 
 drawn sharp and distinct, and the students from 
 the north and from the south were divided, each 
 having its special clique, and at times coming 
 into contact with one another. After a mem- 
 orable speech made in Washington by Senator 
 Wade, a southern boy spoke disparagingly of 
 the address, and of the northern cowards. Dr. 
 Pardee, an ardent Union man, took up the cause 
 of the northerner, hurling back the lie, and a 
 battle royal ensued, in which he came out vic- 
 torious. 
 
 Immediately after his graduation. Dr. Pardee 
 enlisted in the Seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, 
 but being taken ill was not mustered in with 
 that regiment. On recovering his health he en- 
 listed in Company B, One Hundred and Fourth 
 Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered into 
 service in February, 1862. At the end of one 
 year and nine months, on account of physical 
 disability, he was honorably discharged from the 
 service. Returning to Ohio, Dr. Pardee located 
 in Marlboro, Stark county, where he remained 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 as a physician and surgeon for sixteen years. 
 Becoming converted in 1868, he studied for the 
 ministry, and in Ohio was ordained. Remov- 
 ing to Fillmore county, Neb., in 1879, the doctor 
 located in Geneva, where he organized a Chris- 
 tian Church, of which he had ministerial charge 
 for a number of years. He likewise did much 
 pastoral work in other places in Nebraska, or- 
 ganizing several flourishing congregations. 
 
 Coming to California in 1895, Dr. Pardee 
 bought forty acres of land in Dos Palos, and 
 embarked in the culture of fruit and the raising 
 of alfalfa, intending to devote his time entirely 
 to agricultural pursuits. He was not allowed, 
 however, to give up either of his professions, 
 being almost forced to practice medicine, being 
 the first physician to locate here, and was also 
 made pastor of the Christian Church. Soon 
 after his arrival the doctor was elected president 
 of Colony Exchange No. 135, and until his res- 
 ignation was active in its upbuilding and ad- 
 vancement. He is now living retired in his 
 pleasant and attractive home, loved and honored 
 throughout the community. 
 
 In Ohio Dr. Pardee married Lucy F. Hough, 
 who was born in Vermont, and died in Dos 
 Palos, Cal. Two children were born of their 
 union, both now deceased, one dying in infancy, 
 and the other, Cora May, dying when twelve- 
 years old. Dr. Pardee married in Dos Palos, 
 Mrs. Mary Payne, a native of Ohio. Politically 
 the doctor is a stanch Republican. Fraternally 
 he united with the Masons in Alliance, Ohio ; 
 was afterward a charter member of the Masonic 
 lodge at Geneva, Neb., which he served as mas- 
 ter two terms ; belongs to Geneva Chapter, R. A. 
 M., and to Wilson Post No. 22, G. A. R. also of 
 Geneva. 
 
 ALBERT BAKER POWELL, M. D. A man 
 of superior attainments and culture, well fitted 
 by years of study and experience for a profes- 
 sional career, Albert B. Powell, M. D., is the 
 leading physician of Colony Center, Dos Palos, 
 where he also has a drug store and owns a well- 
 stocked ranch. Well versed in medical lore, he 
 has built up an extensive and lucrative general 
 practice in this part of Merced county, and in 
 his capacity of farmer finds great enjoyment as 
 well as profit, taking especial pleasure in raising 
 and caring for his fine herd of blooded stock. 
 A son of William Henry Powell, a prominent 
 farmer of Toronto, Ontario, he was born, March 
 13, 1859, near Toronto, of Welsh ancestry. His 
 grandfather, W. H. Powell, a native of Nova 
 Scotia, removed to Ontario, settling on a farm 
 near Toronto, where he spent his remaining 
 years. William Henry Powell married Lucy 
 Jane Hall, who was born in New York state 
 
 a daughter of David Hall, a life-long farmer of 
 that state, and into their household five children 
 were born, of whom two sons and one daughter 
 are living, Albert Baker of this review being the 
 youngest child. 
 
 After completing the course of studies taught 
 in the public schools of his native place, Albert 
 B. Powell entered King's University, at Whitby, 
 Ontario. Coming to Pasadena in 1888, he be- 
 gan the study of medicine the following year, 
 and subsequently entered the medical college 
 connected with the University of California, 
 from which he was graduated May 26, 1891, 
 with the degree of M. D. At once locating at 
 Round Valley, Dr. Powell remained there two 
 years, after which he practiced medicine in 
 Petaluma for a year. Removing thence to 
 Amador City, the doctor continued there as a 
 physician for six years, building up a large med- 
 ical and surgical practice. In 1900 he settled 
 in Tracy, San Joaquin county, where he en- 
 gaged in the practice of his profession, and was 
 also district surgeon for the Southern Pacific 
 Railway Company for three years. On March 
 25, 1903, Dr. Powell began the practice of medi- 
 cine and surgery in the Dos Palos Colony, and 
 has met with excellent success in his professional 
 labors. He established also a drug store, which 
 is complete in all respects. The doctor likewise 
 invested in land, buying a ranch of forty acres, 
 situated two and one-half miles from Colon}- 
 Center, and here is engaged in raising alfalfa 
 and dairying, having a herd of full-blooded Hol- 
 stein-Friesians, in which he takes genuine pride. 
 
 Dr. Powell married, in^ San Francisco, Susan 
 Lingenfeltzer, a native of that city, and into 
 their home four children have been born, namely : 
 Gladys E., William H., May E., and Lucy J. 
 The doctor is associated with several fraternal 
 organizations, being a member and rnedical ex- 
 aminer for the Modern Woodmen of America 
 and of the Knights of the Maccabees, and med- 
 ical examiner for the Royal Neighbors. He is 
 likewise medical examiner for all of the old-line 
 insurance companies, and is local surgeon for the 
 Southern Pacific Railway Company. Politically 
 he is a Socialist. 
 
 JOHN GILL. A capable and enterprising 
 agriculturist, John Gill is industriously engaged 
 in the prosecution of a calling upon which the 
 support and wealth of our nation is largely de- 
 pendent, being pleasantly located in Stanislaus 
 county, about a mile north of Newman. A son 
 of the late Samuel Gill, he was born August 2, 
 1842, in Pickaway county, Ohio. 
 
 A native of Ohio, Samuel Gill was reared to 
 agricultural pursuits, and during his earlier life 
 was engaged in farming in that state. Migrat- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 543 
 
 ing to Iowa in 1863, he followed his chosen oc- 
 cupation in Ringgold county for nine years. 
 Coming from there to California in 1872, he took 
 up land in Tulare county, and was there em- 
 ployed in stock-raising until his death. He mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Lukens, who spent her entire life 
 in Ohio, dying in early womanhood. She bore 
 him three daughters and two sons, John, the 
 special subject of this sketch, being the fourth 
 child in order of birth. 
 
 Educated in the common schools of Ohio, John 
 Gill subsequently obtained a practical knowledge 
 of the various branches of agriculture on the 
 home farm. In August, 1864, at the age of 
 twenty-two years he enlisted in the One Hun- 
 dred and Seventy-sixth Ohio Regiment Infantry, 
 and served till the close of the war. He partici- 
 pated among other engagements in the battles of 
 Franklin and Nashville. He was afterward en- 
 gaged in farming with his father in Iowa, and 
 came with him to California in 1872, settling 
 in Tulare county, about twenty-two miles east 
 of Visalia, where he was engaged in stock-rais- 
 ing and stock-dealing for twenty years. Going 
 to Fresno, in 1892, Mr. Gill was employed in 
 business as a vineyardist for two years, having 
 eighty acres of land set out with grapes. Re- 
 moving to Stanislaus county in 1894, he traded 
 his vineyard for three hundred and twenty acres 
 of land, lying a mile east of Hills Ferry, where 
 he resided several years. In October, 1903, Mr. 
 Gill, having previously sold his ranch, rented 
 the farm which he now occupies, and is devot- 
 ing its one hundred and sixty-two acres to the 
 raising of alfalfa, which is a most profitable crop 
 for this section of the state. 
 
 In Ringgold county, Iowa, Mr. Gill married 
 Catherine Bellamy, a native of Kentucky, and 
 they have five children living, namely: Mrs. 
 Laura May Osborn, residing near Portersville, 
 Tulare county; Robert M., of Stanislaus county; 
 Mrs. Alice Kate Dolby, of Stanislaus county; 
 Mrs. Edna Belle Walhouse, of Livermore, this 
 state, and J. Roy, at home. Politically Mr. Gill 
 is a steadfast Republican, supporting the prin- 
 ciples of that party by voice and vote. 
 
 IRA V. HILL. Representative of the wide- 
 avvake and energetic farming population of 
 Kings county is Ira V. Hill, a rancher living 
 five miles southeast of Hanford, who owns two 
 other farms besides his home place of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres. Mr. Hill is a southerner 
 by inheritance and earliest training ; he was born 
 near Martinsburg, W. Va., February 11, i860, 
 a son of George W., and a grandson of William 
 and Mary A. (Kreckseker) Hill, all born in the 
 same county in Virginia. Many of the mem- 
 bers of the family have attained to fulness of 
 
 years, the paternal grandfather attaining to one 
 less than a century, while his wife reached three 
 score. On the maternal side Mr. Hill comes 
 from a prominent old Maryland family, his 
 mother having been Melvina, daughter of 
 Augustus Bell, both natives of Maryland, the 
 latter a coal mine owner and extensive flour 
 miller of Cumberland, Md. Mrs. Hill died 
 when her son was eight years old, in Jefferson 
 county, Kans., at the age of twenty-eight, her 
 husband surviving her until 1888, when he was 
 fifty-four years of age. George Hill devoted 
 his entire active life to farming, and left the 
 plow to respond to a draft in the Confederate 
 army, serving through the greater part of the 
 war. 
 
 The resource which has followed Ira V. 
 Hill through life became apparent at a very 
 early age, and influenced his career in an un- 
 mistakable degree. His home was evidently not 
 to his liking after the death of his mother, and 
 at the age of fourteen he ran away and made 
 his way to Jefferson county', Kans., where he 
 worked on a farm by the month during the sum- 
 mer, and attended school during the winter. 
 Later on he journeyed west as far as Colorado, 
 where he worked on the construction of the 
 Santa Fe Railroad until February, 1878, when 
 he continued his way to California, thus accom- 
 plishing a trip which he had had in contempla- 
 tion since early boyhood. In what is now Kings 
 county he attended school in the winter and 
 worked on farms in the summer, but finally 
 inherited what seemed a gigantic fortune to a 
 struggling lad, and which amounted to three 
 thousand five hundred dollars. The highmind- 
 edness which has since been apparent to his 
 neighbors in Kings county was emphasized at 
 this time, when he departed for Baltimore, Md., 
 and took a course in a business college, thereby 
 supplementing an education which he had earn- 
 estly striven to make broad and comprehensive. 
 
 Well pleased with what he had found in 
 Kings county, he soon after returned and 
 bought his present farm from the railroad com- 
 pany, which was entirely unimproved at the 
 time. Since then he has changed the character 
 of the land, has it all under ditch, and has -set 
 out eleven acres in vines, devoting the balance 
 to alfalfa and general farming. He is the 
 owner of an eighty-acre ranch two and one- 
 half miles southeast of Hanford, under pas- 
 ture, and of forty-seven and one-half acres one 
 and one-half miles south from the city limits, 
 under alfalfa and pasture. December 24, 1882, 
 he was united in marriage with Melissa Liggett, 
 a native of Tennessee, who came to California 
 in 1881. Two sons are being reared in an at- 
 mosphere of geniality and encouragement, Mon- 
 roe C. and George Howard. Mr. Hill is a firm 
 
544 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 believer in the benefits of education, and his 
 own struggles to acquire knowledge has induced 
 him to take a particularly active part in fur- 
 nishing opportunities to the youth of his adopted 
 county. He is a Democrat in politics, and has 
 been a member of the school board for six years, 
 during that time contributing both time and 
 money to the improvement of the school and 
 surroundings. At his own expense he erected 
 at the schoolhouse a substantial shed for the 
 care of horses during inclement weather, and 
 has otherwise contributed to the pleasure and 
 opportunity of pupils of the school. He is a 
 man of high standing in the community, and 
 is noted for his public spirit and practical use- 
 fulness. 
 
 MATTHIAS BECKER. Not only is the 
 name of Matthias Becker identified with the 
 successful dairying interests in Merced county, 
 but he was one of the first to discover and 
 promote the oil industry in the foothills, taking 
 the initiative at great expense, and with faith 
 iu the local output of this resource. In the face 
 of ridicule, and of interference with his pro- 
 posed plans, Mr. Becker succeeded in finding 
 oil at a depth of ninety-five feet; he continued 
 to sink his well to a hundred and forty feet 
 below the surface, the scarcity of funds, and a 
 breakage in the machinery, thereafter hindering 
 operations which it was his intention to con- 
 tinue indefinitely. However, owing to his suc- 
 cessful demonstration, an interest in oil was de- 
 veloped, skepticism gave place to faith and en- 
 thusiasm, and a company which organized for 
 the purpose, has accomplished much toward 
 getting out the valuable deposits of oil. 
 
 Mr. Becker was born in the Rhine province, 
 Germany, February i8, 1858, the fourth child 
 in a family of six children, three of whom are 
 in America. His parents, Matthias and Anna 
 Maria (Haubrich) Becker, were born in the 
 same part of the empire, spending their entire 
 lives in the land which gave them a livelihood. 
 Matthias, Jr., was educated in the public schools 
 of Foehren, near his father's farm, and when 
 he was fourteen he removed with his parents to 
 Essen, Germany, famous as the seat of the great 
 Krupp gun works. The youth availed himself 
 of the opportunity presented by the works, 
 learned the steel rolling trade there, and later 
 operated a gas furnace in a glass factory. In 
 1882 he came to America and lived in Bethany, 
 Mo., for four months, but farm work did not 
 suit him, and he found employment in the Bes- 
 semer Steel Company's works in Pueblo, Colo., 
 remaining there as a roll hand until 1884. At 
 these works the first Bessemer steel rails west of 
 the Mississippi river were made, and he assisted 
 
 in the work. This year witnessed his departure 
 for Gonzales, Monterey county, Cal, where he 
 lived on a farm for a year, and then went to 
 Los Banos, Merced county, locating in San 
 Francisco in 1887. As a roll hand he was iden- 
 tified with the Union Iron Works in the latter 
 city, but not being favorably impressed with 
 the work he returned to Los Banos, and, when 
 the land came into the market, homesteaded one 
 hundred and sixty acres, his wife preempting 
 an equal amount of land. Mr. Becker then en- 
 gaged in the dairy and stock-raising business 
 on a large scale, but in time sold ofiE the most 
 of his land, at present owning about forty acres, 
 all under irrigation and devoted to alfalfa and 
 dairying. At present he milks about twenty-five 
 cows of the Holstein breed, and is meeting with 
 success in his undertaking. Practically all of 
 the improvements are of his making, giving him 
 a valuable and fertile property. 
 
 In Stockton, February 14, 1889, Mr. Becker 
 married Augusta Christian Salau, who was born 
 near Santa Clara, a daughter of Henry F. F. 
 Salau, Sr., mention of whom may be found else- 
 where in this work. Mr. and Mrs. Becker are 
 the parents of seven children, the order of their 
 birth being as follows : Marj- Eunice, Adolph 
 Matthias, Matthias, Eugenia Dorothea, Her- 
 bert Edmund, Harold Louis, and Muriel 
 Augusta. Mr. Becker is a Democrat in na- 
 tional politics, and fraternally is a member of 
 the Woodmen of the World. He belongs to that 
 class of rugged and determined men who came 
 to the west with little save the advantages of 
 good health and good will, and who work their 
 way into useful grooves, winning respect for 
 their energy, their courage, and their devotion 
 to high ideals. 
 
 RICHARD BAKER. A life distinguished for 
 its moderation, contentment and peace is that of 
 Richard Baker, the inheritor of New England 
 thrift and reliability, and the owner of a ranch 
 of forty acres three and a half miles north of 
 Newman. This genial farmer is a familiar figure 
 in this section, having lived here since 1884, en- 
 gaging in alfalfa and hay raising, and pursuing 
 always the even tenor of his ways. Undoubtedly 
 the same kind of existence was pursued by many 
 of his ancestors in Hampshire county, Va., where 
 he was born February 9, 1832, and which also 
 was the birthplace of his parents, Richard and 
 Mary (Martin) Baker, and the scene of the agri- 
 cultural activity of his grandfather, Michael Ba- 
 ker. Both of these sires participated in the wars 
 of their adopted country, the former in the war 
 of 1812, in which he acquired the rank of cap- 
 tain, and the latter in the War of the Revolu- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 645 
 
 tion, espousing the cause of the downtrodden col- 
 onists. 
 
 The Virginia home of the Bakers was a mod- 
 est one, yielding a livelihood which permitted of 
 few advantages for the six sons and two daugh- 
 ters, of whom Richard was the second oldest. 
 He was permitted such education as was obtain- 
 able in the rural schools of Hampshire county, 
 but eventually became dissatisfied with his pros- 
 pects in the Old Dominion and looked around for 
 broader opportunities. In 1853 he took the initial 
 step toward reaching the coast, making his way 
 overland to Missouri, where, the following year, 
 he joined a caravan bound for the land beyond 
 the Rockies. Driving an ox-team the most of 
 the way, he eventually came to San Jose, but the 
 same year went further south to Mexico, and en- 
 gaged in raising cotton for a year. The experi- 
 ment proving disastrous, he returned to San Jose, 
 and in 1866 went to Hollister, remaining until 
 1884. The fall of that year he came to the San 
 Joaquin valley, bought his present farm, and has 
 ever since lived here alone, save for the help re- 
 quired to harvest his products. Mr. Baker has 
 never felt called upon to identify himself with 
 political or other public undertakings, although 
 he votes the Democratic ticket, and is a steady at- 
 tendant of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. 
 He is highly respected for his quiet and unosten- 
 tatious life, for his honesty and uprightness, and 
 for his generosity in aiding those less fortunate 
 than himself. 
 
 GEORGE W. CLUTE. The owner of three 
 eighty-acre improved stock and dairy farms in 
 Kings county, George W. Clute is a representa- 
 tive of that class of men who embody good birth, 
 fair educational advantages and the perseverance 
 and determination to succeed in any occupation 
 and community to which nature and destiny have 
 assigned them. His practical, progressive and 
 industrious habits as a farmer and stock-raiser 
 have been evidenced in other directions during 
 his long and meritorious career, and were con- 
 spicuous when he donned a soldier's uniform and 
 took his place beside the defenders of his cause. 
 Born in Wyoming county, N. Y., August 12, 
 1839, he is descended on both sides of his family 
 from soldiers of the war of 1812, and his ma- 
 ternal grandfather, John H. Jones, was a pay- 
 master in that momentous struggle. This sire 
 owned a large tract of land in New York, and 
 lived there until his death. His daughter, Har- 
 riet, the mother of George W. Clute, was born 
 in New York, and died in Christian county. 111., 
 at the age of eighty-five years. Her father was 
 a native of Virginia, and her uncle was cap- 
 tured, and presumably murdered, by the Indians. 
 William Clute, the father of George W., was born 
 
 in New York state, where he farmed and en- 
 gaged in trading with the Indians at Schenectady. 
 He served with distinction in the war of 1812, 
 and died at the age of seventy-five years. Three 
 brothers, one of whom was his father, came from 
 Holland to America before the Revolutionary 
 war. 
 
 At the outbreak of the Civil war George W. 
 Clute was farming in Wyoming county, N. Y., 
 and at the age of twenty-two had acquired a com- 
 fortable competence. He left his home to enlist 
 August 6, 1862, in Company A, One Hundred 
 and Thirtieth New York Volunteer Infantry, and 
 was later transferred to the First New York 
 Dragoons. He arose to the grade of sergeant, 
 and followed the fortunes of one of the bravest 
 bands of men who defended the Union cause. 
 The First Dragoons started out with fourteen 
 hundred and sixty-four men, of whom four hun- 
 dred and sixty-one were killed, one hundred and 
 thirty-one died of disease, and thirty-three died 
 in prison. The heaviest loss falling to any cav- 
 alry regiment during the entire service was sus- 
 tained at Todd's Tavern. Mr. Clute was twice 
 wounded, a flesh wound in the side and a gun- 
 shot wound in the right foot, and after receiving 
 them he lay on the field unattended for two days, 
 having been fighting four days in succession. 
 This occurred May 8, 1864, and he was laid up 
 in the hospital at Alexandria, Va., four months, 
 and was then discharged from further service in 
 the Army of the Potomac. 
 
 Returning to his home in New York, Mr. 
 Clute recovered from his trying experiences, and 
 then went to Illinois, where he became foreman 
 of construction on a railroad for three years. He 
 next spent a year in McHenry county, then 
 rented a farm in Christian county, that state, for 
 three years. In 1876 he came to California and 
 settled on railroad land for a short time iri Tulare, 
 now Kings county, later purchasing eighty acres 
 in his present neighborhood, which he unexpect- 
 edly found was mortgaged for $1,100. He was 
 obliged to pay the mortgage, and set about im- 
 proving his farm, remaining on it until purchas- 
 ing his present ranch of eighty acres in 1898. He 
 is engaged in dairying and stock-raising, and has 
 many fine improvements on his farms. He is 
 public-spirited and enterprising, and interested 
 in local politics, being an active member of the 
 Republican party, and serving its welfare in many 
 ways. For the past twenty-five years he has 
 been a member of the county central committee, 
 attending many county and state conventions. 
 He is active iri the affairs of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic, and is a member and past com- 
 mander of McPherson Post No. 51. Mr. Clute 
 contributed time and labor to the digging of the 
 ditches of his section, and at one time was super- 
 intendent of construction. In 1871 he married 
 
54:6 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Edna Dodge, a native of McHenry county, 111., 
 and has five living children: William E., who 
 is renting one of his father's farms in Kings 
 county; Charles D., who is renting the home- 
 stead of eighty acres; Elmer, an employe in the 
 freight department of the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road in Hanford ; and Edith and Harriet at home. 
 Grace, the second oldest child, died at the age 
 of twenty-six. Mr. Clute has hewn a creditable 
 career out of the rude possibilities of the far west, 
 and is deserving of the universal esteem of his 
 fellowmen. 
 
 PROF. ELMER EDWARD OGDEN. One 
 of the grandest contributions of the United 
 States toward the elevation of the intellectual 
 and moral status of the entire world is the great 
 system of public instruction, which was developed 
 less than a century ago by a few liberal-minded, 
 clear-sighted men, whose efforts in this line were 
 rewarded by the establishment of our free public 
 schools, supported by general taxation. That 
 these schools may be carried on with the greatest 
 possible benefit to the present generation of boys 
 and girls, care is taken to secure competent teach- 
 ers only in every department of education. Note- 
 worthy among the instructors thus employed in 
 our own state is Prof. Elmer Edward Ogden, 
 principal of the grammar schools of Merced, a 
 man of scholarly attainments, and of good ex- 
 ecutive ability. A son of H. T. Ogden, he was 
 born, December 7, 1867, in Iowa county, Iowa, 
 of English ancestors. His grandfather, Robert 
 Ogden, a native of Harrison county, Ohio, be- 
 came a pioneer farmer of Dubuque county, Iowa. 
 
 Born in Harrison county, Ohio, H. T. Ogden 
 was taken by his parents to Dubuque county, 
 Iowa, when a child, and was there reared and edu- 
 cated. Enlisting in Company A, Ninth Iowa 
 Volunteer Infantry, in 1861, he took part in 
 several of the engagements of the Civil war, and 
 at the siege of Vicksburg was severely wounded. 
 After being detained at the hospital several 
 months, he was honorably discharged from the 
 service on account of physical disability. Re- 
 turning to Iowa, he continued in his former oc- 
 cupation as a stock-raiser, and was also identi- 
 fied with the management of public affairs for 
 some time as county supervisor. Migrating 
 with his family to California in 1883, he located 
 in Merced county, and for nearly ten years was 
 employed in grain raising, having near Snell- 
 ing, a ranch of eight hundred acres. Removing 
 to San Joaquin county in 1892, he took up land 
 near Lodi, where he has since been successfully 
 engaged as an orchardist. Professor Ogden is 
 a member of the Grand Army of the Republic 
 and of the Free and Accepted Masons, and be- 
 longs to the Methodist Episcopal Church. He 
 
 married Augusta Smith, who was born in Iowa, 
 a daughter of John Smith, who emigrated from 
 Bavaria to Dubuque county, Iowa, going from 
 there to Tama county, Iowa, where he was en- 
 gaged in general farming until his death. Five 
 children were born of their union, namely : Prof. 
 A. L., principal of the Acampo schools, in San 
 Joaquin county; Elmer E., the subject of this 
 record ; V. L., a teacher in San Joaquin county ; 
 Mrs.- Florence Adams, of Acampo, and E. L., 
 a resident of Merced county. 
 
 Coming with the family to Merced county in 
 1883, Elmer Edward Ogden assisted his father 
 in improving a large ranch, and was also en- 
 gaged to some extent in freighting, making long 
 and hard trips into the mountains. On attaining 
 his majority, he put into execution the plans that 
 he had previously formed for advancing his edu- 
 cation, entering the Stockton IBusiness College, 
 and subsequently taking a normal course. After 
 obtaining his diploma, he taught in the district 
 schools of Merced county two years, following 
 which he studied for a year at the San Joaquin 
 College, in Woodbridge. The ensuing few years. 
 Prof. Ogden taught in the eastern part of Mer- 
 ced county, and then went to Volta, that county, 
 where he was principal of schools for two years. 
 In 1902 he was elected principal of the Merced 
 grammar schools, a position that he has since 
 filled with credit to himself and to the eminent 
 satisfaction of the pupils, teachers, patrons and 
 trustees. 
 
 In Plainsberg, Merced county. Prof. Ogden 
 married Alice Wilson^ a native of this county, 
 and into their pleasant household three children 
 have been born, namely : Marguerite, Thelma and 
 Irene. The professor is a Democrat in his po- 
 litical affiliations, and is a member and ex-chair- 
 man of the county board of education, to which 
 he was elected in January, 1899. 
 
 IRVING W. RIDER. Numbered among the 
 successful farmers of Fresno county is Irving 
 W. Rider, whose principal interests have been 
 given to the dairy business since his location on 
 his present property of one hundred acres. A 
 native of Herkimer county, N. Y., he was born 
 September 11, 1868, a son of Mathew Rider, 
 a farmer by occupation. His grandfather Curtis 
 Rider, who still resides on the old home place in 
 New York state, was the descendant of sturdy 
 Holland stock and gave to the American branch 
 the many good qualities which distinguish that 
 nationality. Mathew Rider married Frances 
 Norton, also a native of Herkimer county, and 
 the daughter of Samuel Norton, a farmer by 
 occupation and a descendant of English ancestry. 
 Mr. Rider died in his native state, but is sur- 
 
^-^l/W>n. 
 
 ^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 5i9 
 
 vived by his widow, who still resides on the old 
 home place. 
 
 Of the two sons and one daughter born to his 
 parents Irving W. Rider was the oldest. He 
 was reared on his father's farm, receiving a 
 practical training along agricultural Hnes, while 
 he attended the public school and Winfield Acad- 
 emy. In the fall of 1888 he came to California, 
 locating first in San Francisco, shortly after- 
 ward, however, going to Oregon, where he en- 
 gaged in farming in Klamath county for one 
 year. Returning to San Francisco he became 
 interested in the milk business, entering the 
 employ of Uhls' X L Dairy & Bottled Milk 
 Company, remaining thus occupied for four 
 years. After one year in which he engaged in 
 the livery business he became associated with E. 
 Stewart in what was known as the Santa Clara 
 Milk Company, a wholesale and retail milk busi- 
 n(!ss which was carried on in San Francisco for 
 some time, having three different depots in the 
 city and running fourteen wagons. The com- 
 pany was incorporated with M)r. Stewart as 
 president and Mr. Rider as vice-president. In 
 1899 Mr. Rider sold out his interest and re- 
 moved to Stockton, where he established a parcel 
 delivery, eventually disposing of this and spend- 
 ing some time in Santa Cruz and San Francisco, 
 before locating on his present ranch. This ranch 
 of one hundred acres he purchased in 1903, its 
 location on Valeria avenue making it especially 
 desirable. The entire ranch is under alfalfa, 
 while he is engaged in the dairy business. With 
 practically nothing as a beginning in the way 
 of improvements his property now ranks with 
 the best in this section of the county, every acre 
 being under irrigation. He is an enterprising 
 and energetic farmer, with practical and pro- 
 gressive ideas, and well performs his part in 
 keeping in the San Joaquin valley its prestige as 
 an agricultural center. 
 
 In Vacaville, Solano county, Cal., Mr. Rider 
 married Lulu May Brown, a native of that place, 
 and born of this union is one child, Russell El- 
 wood. Mrs. Rider is the daughter of George S. 
 Brown, a pioneer of 1857. He was born in 
 Berkshire county, Mass., near Pittsfield, a son of 
 Sherman and grandson of Daniel Brown, both 
 of whom were natives of the same place. The 
 great-grandfather was a native of Connecticut, 
 in which state his parents had settled upon their 
 emigration from England. He served as soldier 
 '.n the Revolutionary war. Sherman Brown, 
 who was a master mechanic and farmer, in 1850 
 removed from his home in Massachusetts to Ful- 
 ton county, N. Y., where he followed these lines 
 until 1852. In that year he came to California 
 by way of the Isthmus of Panama and locating 
 in Marin county engaged as a builder. Later he 
 removed to Solano county and engaged in farm- 
 
 ing and stock raising. Some time before his 
 death, which occurred when he was nearly 
 eighty years old, he made his home with his son, 
 George S. Brown. He married Lucina Lester 
 Warren, a native of Massachusetts, whose father 
 was a farmer of that state, and whose descend- 
 ants were active in the political Hfe of the east, 
 his grandson, Francis B. Warren, being a state 
 senator. Mrs. Brown died in Solano county, 
 leaving a family of six children. ^ 
 
 George S. Brown was born February 13, 1843, 
 the oldest in his father's family, and was reared 
 to young manhood in the eastern states, remov- 
 ing to Fulton county, N. Y., in childhood, where 
 he attended the public schools. In 1857 he came 
 to California via the Isthmus of Panama, and 
 located in Marin county, where he engaged in 
 the dairy business with his father. He there 
 attended the Petaluma high school, remaining at 
 home until attaining his majority, when he 
 bought a farm near Vacaville, Solano county, 
 and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He pur- 
 chased adjoining land until he had three hundred 
 and twenty acres, but afterward entered the 
 mercantile business in Sacramento. Upon with- 
 drawing from the latter occupation he returned 
 to Solano county and engaged in the fruit busi- 
 ness, setting out sixty acres to orchard. He 
 eventually sold this and removed to Santa Cruz, 
 where he engaged in the dairy business and 
 farming until 1900, locating then in Los Banos 
 and following, the same occupation. Three years 
 later he purchased his present ranch of one hun- 
 dred acres, which is devoted entirely to alfalfa. 
 In Sacramento he married Lucinda Peck, a na- 
 tive of Oregon, and born of this union were 
 four daughters • and one son, namely : Minnie, 
 Lulu May, Alice, Erma and George. With his 
 family he is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. In political affiliations both himself and 
 Mr. Rider are stanch Republicans. During the 
 war Mr. Brown showed his patriotism by serv- 
 ing as a member of a military company in Solano 
 county. 
 
 BARNEY SPRINGER. An early settler and 
 a pioneer, Barney Springer is located six miles 
 east of Portersville, Tulare county, where he is 
 engaged in the cultivation and improvement of 
 his property. A native of Greene county. 111., 
 he was born December 2, 1831, on Mound 
 Prairie. The family was originally German, an 
 ancestor having located in Sweden, then coming 
 to America as early as the year 1600. Mr. 
 Springer's great-grandfather, Isaac, was a resi- 
 dent of New Jersey, his son, Noah, a native of 
 that state, being a soldier in the Revolutionary 
 war. The latter located in Essex county, N. J., 
 where David Springer was born. He served in 
 
550 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the war of 1812, a volunteer from Steuben coun- 
 ty, N. Y., where he was a farmer. From there 
 he removed to Madison county, 111., and was 
 married there in 1825. Subsequently he removed 
 to Jo Daviess county, same state, and followed 
 lead mining for a time, making considerable mon- 
 ey. Afterward he lived in Greene county for a 
 time, finally returning to Jo Daviess county in 
 1832, and in June of that year, he died a vic- 
 tim of cholera, his wife, formerly Sallie Wad- 
 dell, of Madison county, 111., following him with- 
 in twelve hours of the same disease. Thev were 
 the parents of six sons, of whom Barney 
 Springer was the youngest. 
 
 Left an orphan at an early age, he was cared 
 for by relatives until he was four years old, 
 when he went into the home of strangers and was 
 reared to the age of eighteen years, in the mean- 
 time acquiring a public school education. In 
 1850 he decided to cast in his lot with that of 
 the pioneer element which was contributing to 
 the strength and upbuilding of California, and 
 accordingly he crossed the plains, walking the 
 greater part of the distance and driving an ox- 
 team. He left Illinois April 3 and arrived in Cal- 
 ifornia September i. For six weeks he engaged 
 in mining in Nevada county, after which he came 
 to San Jose, Santa Clara county, and engaged as 
 a farmer on rented land. In the fall of 1854 he 
 once more engaged in mining in Nevada coun- 
 ty, remaining there for two years, when he re- 
 turned to San Jose. Two years later he came to 
 Tulare county and located five and a half miles 
 northwest of Tulare and engaged in the raising 
 of hogs. Three years later he located on the 
 Tule river a mile southwest of Portersville, tak- 
 ing up a homestead, the fifth in this. county. In 
 1883 he bought three hundred and twenty acres 
 which he subsequently sold, and which is now 
 owned by the Rosedale Water Company. His 
 home place, six miles southeast of Portersville, 
 to which he moved in 1891, comprises nine acres, 
 although he orieinallv owned four hundred acres. 
 One-half mile from his home he owns a tract of 
 three hundred and twenty acres. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Springer is associated with 
 the Knights of Pythias and the Pioneers of CaK- 
 fornia, and politically he is a Socialist. P.er- 
 sonally he is well and favorably known through- 
 out Tulare county, his kindly ways endearing 
 him to old and young alike. 
 
 ing well located one mile west of Hanford. About 
 fourteen acres of his place is in vines and fruit 
 and he rents out twenty acres of his land for 
 market-gardening. Mr. Dodge was born in 1874 
 on the farm which he now occupies, and he is a 
 son of the late Roswell S. Dodge, whose biog- 
 raphy may be found in another part of this his- 
 tory. 
 
 Left an orphan early in Mp, Mr. Dodge was 
 reared by his guardian, his half-sister, with 
 whom he lived until he went away to school. He 
 was given the best education available in his 
 locality and after completing the course of study 
 in the common schools, he became a student at 
 the San Mateo high school, where he comfjleted 
 his studies. Upon reaching his majority, Mr. 
 Dodge came into his inheritance and by the care- 
 ful, practical manner in which he has. managed 
 affairs on the ranch, he has not only shown him- 
 self capable of taking care of the property left 
 him, but has greatly improved it, and thereby in- 
 creased its value, until it is now worth at least 
 $250 per acre. By his marriage, in 1897, he was 
 united with Daisy Trewhitt, who was born in 
 Tennessee and their home is brightened by the 
 presence of one daughter, Dorena. Mr. Dodge 
 is a citizen whom it is good to know ; he is well 
 informed on general topics and keeps in touch 
 with the times. Politically, he has always been 
 a Republican and although patriotic and alive to 
 the needs of the nation, he is not active in politics, 
 but his voice is ever raised on the side of justice 
 and humanity. He belongs to the Knights of 
 Pythias and in all affairs of life is a man upon 
 whom his neighbors rely and one whom they 
 thoroughly respect. 
 
 ROSWELL R. DODGE. An example of one 
 whose natural inclinations seem to be in the line 
 of agricultural pursuits, is found in Roswell R. 
 Dodge, a young and prosperous farmer and fruit- 
 grower of Kings county, Cal. His productive 
 farm, which came to him by inheritance, contains 
 forty acres of the choicest land in his locality, be- 
 
 HENRY FERDINAND SALAU, Jr., has 
 made the best of such inherited gifts as in- 
 dustry, integrity, and practical common-sense, 
 and to-day is rated as one of the successful 
 farmers and dairymen of the vicinity of Los 
 Banos. The family connection with California, 
 from the time of its establishment in 1871, up 
 to the present, is known to practically all who 
 Hve in Merced county, and Ludwig Salau, the 
 father of Henry F., is esteemed as one of the 
 substantial and worthy residents of this section. 
 Ludwig Salau, as well as his son, were born 
 near Lybec, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, the 
 latter' March 4, 1857. Besides this only son 
 there were six dauglrters in the family, two of 
 whom now live in America, and one of whom 
 preceded her father and brother to the United 
 States, settling in California. Losing his wife, 
 Christine' (Weaver) Salau, in the old country, 
 father and son sailed for the United States in 
 the fall of 1871, the elder Salau having spent 
 many years as a weaver, and upon his arrival 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 551 
 
 in America resided with his children until his 
 death in 1882. 
 
 When Henry F. Salau, Jr., arrived in the west 
 side of Merced county in 1871, the region was 
 principally a sheep range, and his first employ- 
 ment was as a herder. Two years later he worked 
 on a farm and drove a team, and in 1878 had 
 saved enough money to enter his present ranch, 
 which came into the market in 1887, and upon 
 which he proved up in the spring of 1888. 
 Previous t.o this he had broken the land and 
 sowed it to grain, and at times had as many as 
 sixteen hundred acres under various grains. In 
 1 89 1 he homesteaded an additional hundred and 
 sixty acres in "the foothills, proved up on it, and 
 devoted that also to grain. He has since gone 
 back to live on the old place, taken up in 1878, 
 and where he has about a hundred and ten acres 
 in alfalfa. This is principally a dairy farm, 
 and is rented out, having a capacity of one 
 hundred milch cows, and one hundred and 
 thirty head of other cattle. The farm is one 
 which demonstrates what can be accomplished 
 ' when a man possesses energy, resource and 
 taste. The latter is evidenced in the general 
 aspect of the farm. Mr. Salau exerts a social 
 as well as agricultural influence in the com- 
 munity, is a factor in securing good government 
 and superior educational advantages, and is an 
 honored member of Mountain Brow Lodge No. 
 82, I. O. O. R, of Los Banos. In religion he is 
 a Lutheran, and in politics a Republican. 
 
 ALBERT ELLES BROOKS. The business " 
 methods of Albert E. Brooks are such as to win 
 for him the commendation of all who have had 
 occasion to deal with him. His undertaking par- 
 lors are modern in all their appointments, thor- 
 oughly equipped, and up-to-date in every respect, 
 and present a completeness of detail which give 
 to him a supremacy in his line of work in Visalia, 
 where he is located. A native of the state, Mr. 
 Brooks was born in Butte county, April 11, 1859, 
 a son of Julius Caesar Brooks. The elder man 
 was a native of Ohio, who became a pioneer of 
 Michigan, thence removing to Illinois, then to 
 Iowa, where, near the city of Des Moines, he en- 
 gaged in farming. Attracted to the west by the 
 multifold opportunities held out in the early days 
 of California, he crossed the plains with ox-teams 
 in 1854, a member of a large train which made 
 the journey in four months and twelve days. 
 Despite their numbers, ' they had considerable 
 trouble with the Indians, who stole their cattle 
 and horses, Mr. Brooks having but four yoke, of 
 oxen left when he reached California. He imme- 
 diately went to the mining districts in Butte 
 county but instead of engaging in mining opened 
 a dairy and carried milk to the miners by pack^ 
 
 train. After a time he sold his cattle and bought 
 a mine which, though promising results, had been 
 salted and proved his financial ruin. Forced to 
 seek his livelihood by less precarious means he 
 removed to Sutter county and in the vicinity of 
 Nicolaus engaged in freighting for several years. 
 Once more embarking in the dairy business, he 
 locat-ed on Feather river and carried on this work 
 successfully until the floods of 1868-69, during 
 which he suffered great losses, as did all others 
 in that neighborhood. In the fall of 1870 he re- 
 moved to Burney Valley, Shasta county, and pur- 
 chased a mountain ranch, where he carried on 
 stock raising. Three years later he removed to 
 Colusa county and engaged in wheat raising on 
 rented land near the city of Colusa. This loca- 
 tion remained his home for more than twenty 
 years, when, in 1894, he removed to Lompoc Val- 
 ley and near Lompoc bought a fruit ranch, con- 
 sisting principally of an apple orchard, where he 
 now makes his home at the age o"f seventy-eight 
 years. For thirty years he has officiated as a 
 deacon of the Baptist Church. Politically he is 
 a stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Republican party. In young 
 manhood he married . Mariam Wallace Haskell, 
 a native of Illinois, and she is still living at the 
 age of seventy-four years. Born of their union 
 were six children, four sons and two daughters, 
 of whom Albert Elles Brooks is the third in 
 order of birth. 
 
 Albert Elles Brooks received his preliminary 
 education in the common schools of California, 
 when in 1876-77 he attended Pierce Christian 
 College. Upon assuming independence Mr. 
 Brooks' first experience was in the raising of 
 wheat, his interests in that line being very ex- 
 tensive, as he had twelve hundred acres in cul- 
 tivation. He continued in that occupation for a 
 period of five years, when, in the fall of 1882, he 
 located near Fresno, Fresno county. For five 
 years more he followed farming operations. In 
 1887 he located in Selma and engaged in the 
 undertaking business with a firm of that city, 
 remaining so occupied for two years. Seeking 
 again an agricultural life he accepted the posi- 
 tion of superintendent of the California Prune 
 Orchard at Farmersville, Tulare county, dis- 
 charging the duties incumbent upon him capably 
 for several years. In 1898 he bought a half in- 
 terest in the Fresno Undertaking Parlors and 
 retained this interest until 1902, disposing of it 
 then on account of his health. In October, 1903, 
 he came to Visalia and bought the Visalia Under- 
 taking Parlors on the loth of that month and 
 has since conducted the same. 
 
 In Chico, Butte county, Mr. Brooks married 
 Mary Belle Childress, a native of Butte county, 
 and born of this union are four children, namely : 
 Edith Peari, Bessie May, Roy Oakland and Alvm 
 
552 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Earl. In his fraternal relations Mr. Brooks is a 
 member of Fresno Lodge No. i86, I. O. O. E. ; 
 Eresno Encampment No. 87 ; Canton Visalia No. 
 24; Eresno Rebekahs No. 158; Woodmen of the 
 World of Visalia and the Acacia Circle W. O. W. 
 of Eresno. He is a member of the First Baptist 
 Church of Fresno, in which he officiated as trus- 
 tee. In the construction of the building he acted 
 as superintendent and handled all the money 
 without bonds, an evidence of the high esteem in 
 which he was universally held and the confidence 
 which he enjoyed among his fellow-men. 
 
 CHARLES E. EDDLEMON. At the out- 
 break of the Revolutionary war Henry Eddlemon 
 enlisted in the defense of the colonies and by val- 
 or on the battlefield assisted in gaining indepen- 
 dence for our country. With a devotion to duty 
 as strong in times of peace as in war, he took 
 up the cjuiet life of a tiller of the soil in his 
 southern home. Late in life he took his family 
 to Missouri in a prairie schooner and settled upon 
 virgin soil south of Perryville, where the remain- 
 ing years of his long life were passed. At a 
 great age he closed his eyes upon the scenes of 
 time, cheered by a Qiristian's hope of eternal 
 happiness. Throughout life he was a consistent 
 member of the Lutheran Church and a friend of 
 religion. 
 
 Michael Sides Eddlemon, father of Charles E., 
 was born in North Carolina March 22, 1822, and 
 grew to manhood in Missouri. During the Mex- 
 ican war he served for nineteen months in Com- 
 pany I, Third Regiment of Missouri Mounted 
 Infantry. The war ended, he returned to Mis- 
 souri and embarked in the mercantile business at 
 Pleasant Valley, Perry county, where the ensuing 
 years passed uneventfully. At the opening of the 
 Civil war in 1861 he volunteered his services to 
 the Union, first serving as a captain in the Mis- 
 souri State Militia, and later acting as first lieu- 
 tenant of a regiment of Missouri Volunteer In- 
 fantry until the close of the war. Exposure to 
 inclement weather and the hardships of army life 
 brought on rheumatism, from which he never re- 
 covered. When the war ended he removed to the 
 vicinity of Fort Scott, Kans., where he bought a 
 farm and began to erect a house. Just before the 
 house was completed he died, December 20, 1866. 
 In religion he was a stanch member of the Meth- 
 odist Church. 
 
 The marriage of Michael S. Eddlemon oc- 
 curred in Perry county. Mo., March i, 1849, ^nd 
 united him with Mary Conrad, who was born in 
 that county March 17, 1827, being a daughter of 
 Jacob and Selma (Bollinger) Conrad, natives of 
 North Carolina. Her maternal grandfather, 
 Mathias Bollinger, removed from North Caro- 
 lina to Missouri and settled on the Whitewater 
 
 river, in Bollinger county, where he engaged in 
 tilling the soil until his death. Jacob Conrad, 
 who was a son of Peter Conrad of North Caro- 
 lina, removed to Perry county, Mo., where he 
 was prominent among the early settlers. Both 
 he and his wife remained in Missouri until their 
 death. After her husband's death Mrs. Eddlemon 
 continued on the farm near Fort Scott, Kans., 
 for a period of ten years, but in 1876 brought 
 her children to California and during the great- 
 er part of the succeeding years she has -made New- 
 man her home. In order of birth her children 
 are as follows : Mrs. Sarah Jane Sever, who died 
 in Kansas; Christopher C, a resident of New- 
 man, Cal. ; William Purvis, who makes his home 
 in Nevada, Mo. ; Jacob Henry, a merchant in San 
 Jose, Cal. ; George E., who died at five months of 
 age; Ellen A., who died in infancy; Charles F., 
 the subject of this sketch, who coinpletes the fam- 
 ily and is the youngest of the children. He was 
 born at Pleasant Valley, Perry county. Mo., De- 
 cember 7, 1865, and in infancy accompanied his 
 parents to Kansas. At the time of removing to 
 California he was about ten years of age. For a 
 vear afterward the family lived in Contra Costa 
 county and thence removed to Hills Ferry, where 
 he and his brothers became interested in grain 
 farming. In 1878 he began work as a teamster, 
 driving six and eight-mule teams. When he set- 
 tled in Newman in 1889 he started a dray busi- 
 ness, which he has since conducted, having eight 
 head of horses and several vehicles. In addition, 
 in 1898 he became agent for the National Ice 
 Company and now engages in the retail ice 
 business, selling in Newman and vicinity, and 
 shipping from Los Banos on the south to Crows 
 Landing on the north. 
 
 The neat residence which Mr. Eddlemon built 
 in Newman forms a pleasant home for himself 
 and wife. The latter, formerly Miss Tessie Gray, 
 was born near Fort Scott, Kans., and remained 
 there until her marriage. On the organizafion of 
 Oristemba Lodge No. 354, I. O. O. F., Mr. Ed- 
 dlemon became one of its charter members and is 
 now past grand. In matters political he votes 
 for the men and measures of the Democratic party 
 and in its local work at one time took a very active 
 part as a member of the county central commit- 
 tee. 
 
 GEORGE BRAILSEORD. To his neighbors 
 and friends who are engaged also in ranching in 
 the vicinity of Hanford, the life of George Brails- 
 ford presents an example of industry and worthi- 
 ness creditable alike to his native country and to 
 the country of his adoption. Born in Yorkshire, 
 England, June 12, 1850, he was reared to mer- 
 cantile pursuits under the guidance of his father, 
 William Brailsford, who was born in Derbyshire, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 555 
 
 England, and who became a large hardware 
 manufacturer in Yorkshire. Working with hard 
 metal was evidently not the occupation for which 
 nature intended his son George, for shortly after 
 his marriage to Martha Thompson, who was 
 born in Derbyshire in 1849, he began to plan for 
 a life in the country and far from the marts of 
 trade. 
 
 Arriving in New York in July, 1884, Mr. 
 Brailsford came by way of the Canadian Pacific 
 to Hanford, where, after looking around for a 
 time, he purchased forty acres of land, at that 
 time a barren plain. Erecting a house and be- 
 ginning the improvement of his land, he took 
 great pleasure in the ideal climate and the clearer 
 skies than he had known in England, and de- 
 veloped an inclination to branch out and become 
 one of the foremost ranchers of his locality. He 
 was one of the first in the section to set his land 
 to fruit, and as success came his way he added 
 to his possessions, and now has one hundred and 
 five acres, all under fruit. He has given the 
 subject the study necessary to place himself in 
 the ranks of the successful and promising horti- 
 culturists, and his ranch presents every evidence 
 of his thrift and painstaking methods. Fraternal- 
 ly he is identified with Hanford Lodge No. 194, 
 Knights of Pythias. 
 
 In early life Mr. Brailsford married in Eng- 
 land, and his wife died in May, 1897, at the age 
 of forty-eight years. She was the mother of one 
 son, William H., who is now in partnership with 
 his father, and lives with him on the home place. 
 William H. was ten years old when the family 
 came to America. He married Louise, daughter 
 of Judge Justin Jacobs, the latter the first su- 
 perior judge to hold that position after the or- 
 ganization of Kings county; he has been on the 
 school board and is now a member of the Repub- 
 lican county central committee. Mr. Brailsford 
 has one grandson, Howard G. The respect of 
 his fellow-men, a comfortable competence, and a 
 home wherein good-will and affection abide, is 
 the heritage of this well-known and popular 
 horticulturist. 
 
 JAMES NELSON PATTERSON. Residing 
 about three miles west of Dinuba is James N. 
 Patterson, one of the most active and intelligent 
 farmers of Tulare county, and a citizen of worth 
 and influence. One of the original settlers of 
 Mussel Slough, he was a vigorous participant in 
 the memorable troubles with the railroad com- 
 pany, with Major McQuiddy and others valiantly 
 standing up for the rights of the ranchers al- 
 ready established there, and was one of the five 
 men that was for eight months confined in the 
 San Jose jail for his opposition to the company's 
 claims. A son of Joshua Patterson, he was born 
 
 April 19, 1841, in Moultrie county, 111., near Sul- 
 livan. His grandfather, James Patterson, a farm- 
 er first in Kentucky and afterward in Tennessee, 
 served in the Revolution, taking part in the bat- 
 tle of Cowpens. He married a Miss Nelson, a 
 kinswoman of General Nelson of Revolutionary 
 fame, and both he and his wife became pioneers 
 of Moultrie county, 111., where they spent their 
 closing days. 
 
 Born in Tennessee, Joshua Patterson accom- 
 panied his parents to Illinois, and during his ear- 
 lier life was one of the most prominent citi- 
 zens of Moultrie county. He followed farming 
 to some extent, but was also interested in mill- 
 ing and mercantile pursuits. He accumulated 
 considerable property, and with others helped to 
 acquire the town site of the present city of Sulli- 
 van. He was personally acquainted with Abra- 
 ham Lincoln. Subsequently migrating with his 
 family to Davis county, Iowa, he improved a 
 fine ranch near ^loomfield, where he lived for 
 a number of years. In 1864, accompanied by 
 his wife and a part of his children, he crossed 
 the plains to California, and settled in Tehama 
 county, sixteen miles north of Red Bluff. In 
 1878 he moved to Tulaje county, where he spent 
 his remaining years on his farm near Grangeville, 
 in what is now Kings county. He was also a 
 participant in the Mussel Slough difficulties. His 
 wife, whose maiden name was Grizzle Ann Gates, 
 was born in East Tennessee ninety years ago, 
 and now resides in Tulare county, making her 
 home with her son James. She bore her husband 
 six sons and an equal number of daughters, and 
 of the seven children that came to California 
 three are living, two daughters and one son-. 
 
 Having received a practical education in the 
 common branches of learning while attending the 
 public schools of Moultrie county. 111., and of 
 Davis county, Iowa, James N. Patterson engaged 
 in farming on his own account, marrying and 
 setting up an establishment of his own. In 1864 
 he started for California, joining a party that 
 crossed the plains with fifty wagons drawn by 
 horse and mule teams. Being unanimously elect- 
 ed captain of the company, he assumed the lead 
 of the train, and followed the old overland trail. 
 Stopping at Julesburg, Colo., where the only 
 dweUing house was a log cabin, he made an 
 impromptu boat in which to ferry the wagons and 
 stock across the river, paying $400 for the four 
 hundred feet of timber required for its construc- 
 tion. Prior to that time Mr. Patterson had taken 
 a trip to Nevada, Iowa, in 1863, when Eddyville, 
 Iowa, was the western terminus of the railroad, 
 going after two desperadoes, whom he captured 
 and took back to the Davis county jail. Con- 
 tinuing the well-worn wagon roads along the 
 Humboldt, through Austin and Susanville, Mr. 
 Patterson arrived in Tehama county, Cal., where 
 
S56 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he engaged in fanning for awhile. He soon 
 became active in public affairs, and in 1868 was 
 elected county supervisor. Subsequently resign- 
 ing the office, he settled north of Red Bluff, where 
 he became well known as a stock raiser and deal- 
 er. Removing from there to College City, Co- 
 lusa county, Mr. Patterson carried on farming, 
 and also opened the first butcher's shop in the 
 town. In the fall of 1877 he located at Mussel 
 Slough, about a quarter of a mile from Grange- 
 ville, buying a settler's claim to eighty acres of 
 land, which he graded and improved, sowing it 
 to alfalfa, and setting out one of the finest or- 
 chards and vineyards in that locality. The rail- 
 road company laid claim to the land in that 
 vicinity, endeavoring to take it away from the 
 farmers, all of whom had settled on it in good 
 faith, and did not propose to give it up without 
 a brave struggle for their just rights. Mr. Pat- 
 terson tried to buy his ranch, but the company 
 refused to sell excepting at exoroitant prices, and 
 then to but a few of the ranchers, alleging as 
 an excuse that they needed the land for other 
 purposes. Mr. Patterson was one of the fore- 
 most in fighting the railroad company, being one 
 of the organizers of the Settlers' League, formed 
 for protection and to try to buy the land or raise 
 money to fight for a title to it. A suit of eject- 
 ment was brought by the railroad company, and 
 in the ensuing contest between the railway com- 
 pany and the settlers Messrs. Patterson, Doyle, 
 Purcell, Pryor and Braden were convicted, and 
 for eight months were confined in the San Jose 
 jail, where, having the sympathy of the jailer and 
 of the citizens, who recognized the injustice of 
 the " incarceration, they had as much freedom, 
 after the first day, as when at home. Subse- 
 quently Mr. Patterson and Major McQuiddy 
 made speeches all over the state, holding mass 
 meetings, and so arousing the active sympathy 
 of the public that the railroad officials were forced 
 to yield, eventually selling to the settlers for 
 $32.50 per acre. Mr. Patterson was obliged to 
 mortgage his property, and finally to sell off a 
 part in order to pay for the remainder. Locat- 
 ing on his present ranch in October, 1900, he 
 has improved his eighty acres of land, erecting 
 a substantial residence and farm buildings, and 
 is successfully employed in dairying and stock 
 raising, devoting his land chiefly to alfalfa. 
 
 In Davis county, Iowa, in January, 1859, ^^■ 
 Patterson married Mary E. Jones, a native of 
 Missouri, and they became the parents of seven 
 children, namely: Mary F., wife of S. J. White; 
 Rosalia E., deceased ; W. F., engaged in farming 
 near Grangeville; J. B., a farmer near Dinuba:; 
 Mrs. Metta C. Gregory, living near Smith Moun- 
 tain, Cal. ; Mrs. Menta Medora Bain, living near 
 Dinuba ; and Mrs. Viola Pearl Lochnane, of Tu- 
 lare county. Mrs. Mary E. Patterson died in 
 
 Grangeville, Cal., January 9, 1887. In McPher- 
 son county, Kans., near Canton, Mr. Patterson 
 married Mrs. Martha Ann (Jones) Thayer, a sis- 
 ter to his first wife, who was born in Davis coun- 
 ty, Iowa, where her father, M. M. Jones, was a 
 prominent farmer, and for many years justice of 
 the peace. He died in Canton, Kans., in his nine- 
 ty-ninth year. Mr. and Mrs. Patterson have one 
 child, Lizzie Mae. Formerly Mr. Patterson was 
 very active in the Christian Church, serving for 
 forty years as elder ; he is not a believer in sec- 
 tarianism, placing his faith in the Fatherhood of 
 God and the brotherhood of man. Politically he 
 is a reformer, independent of party restrictions. 
 
 JOSEPH L. PEARSALL. Prominent among 
 the prosperous business men of Stanislaus coun- 
 ty who have achieved success in mining opera- 
 tions is Joseph L. Pearsall, residing about four 
 miles north of Newman. Active, keen-witted, 
 far-sighted and capable, he has accumulated a 
 competency through his own persistent and 
 energetic efforts, and is now enjoying life as 
 proprietor of a small but valuable and productive 
 ranch. A native of New York state, he was born 
 in 1855 in Chenango county, which was also the 
 birthplace of his father, the late David Pearsall. 
 
 One of the most brainy and progressive men 
 of his day, David Pearsall was born, lived and 
 died in Bainbridge, N. Y. He was a farmer 
 by occupation, but was also actively interested 
 in other leading industries of the place, being 
 a lumberman, a millwright, a real-estate dealer, 
 a speculator and one of the most able and in- 
 fluential politicians of that section of the state. 
 He was an extensive landholder, and in his vari- 
 ous undertakings was uniformly successful. His 
 wife, whose maiden name was Mary Manning, 
 also ^yas born in New York state, and is now 
 a resident of Baiiibridge. She bore him four 
 children, three sons and one daughter, Joseph 
 L., the special subject of this sketch, being the 
 oldest child. 
 
 After completing the course of study in the 
 common schools, Joseph L. Pearsall was grad- 
 uated from the Bainbridge Academy. Leaving 
 home in 1879, he embarked in mining pursuits 
 in Colorado, locating first in Leadville, and after- 
 ward in other parts of the state. He subsequent- 
 ly spent a short time as a miner in the Wood 
 river valley, Idaho. Going to Washington in 
 1889, Mr. Pearsall discovered and located the 
 Monte Cliristo mines, which proved rich in min- 
 eral deposits. Selling out his interests in that 
 locality, he went to the Frazer river country, 
 British Columbia, in 1894, and was there en- 
 gaged in prospecting and mining for four years. 
 Becoming interested in the mining operations 
 in Alaska, Mr. Pearsall visited that region in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 65; 
 
 1898, and engaged in prospecting in the Nome 
 and Yukon districts, locating the Mattie Gibson 
 mine, which has paid well. He was successful 
 in his operations, and is still interested in the 
 copper producing mines of the Valdez district. 
 On his present home place, Mr. Pearsall has forty- 
 acres of land, twenty acres of which he has 
 sowed to alfalfa, while on the other twenty acres 
 he raises olives. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Pearsall stands high in 
 Masonic circles, and has done much to promote 
 the good of the Order. He is a member of 
 Seattle Lodge, F. & A. M. ; of Seattle Chapter, 
 R. A. M. ; of the Eastern Star ; and of the 
 Washington Lodge of Perfection No. i, of Seat- 
 tle, Wash. He belongs to Newman Lodge, 
 I. 0. O. F. Politically he is one of the leading 
 members of the Republican party, and in 1904 
 was a delegate to the Stanislaus county conven- 
 tion. Mr. Pearsall has never" married, being 
 probably too much engrossed with business mat- 
 ters to attend to domestic affairs. 
 
 JOHN H. DAWSON. As a citizen who for 
 more than a quarter of a century has been iden- 
 tified with the agricultural interests of Kings 
 county, CaL, John H. Dawson is deserving of 
 especial mention, and as president of the Kings 
 County Live Stock Association, added interest is 
 attached to his name. Born in Grant county. 
 Wis., August 23, 1854, the boyhood days of Mr. 
 Dawson were spent upon a farm, and, like the 
 average farmer's boy, he obtained his education 
 in the district schools. He left home to make 
 his own career in the world, being thoroughly 
 equipped with an ambitious spirit, which needed 
 only the school of experience to broaden its pow- 
 ers and capabilities. After following various oc- 
 cupations in as many different localities, Mr. 
 Dawson finally gave his entire attention to farm 
 pursuits and the result has been even greater than 
 he anticipated, assuring him continued prosper- 
 ity. He now ranks among the most prosperous 
 and substantial citizens of the Hanford district, 
 having lived since 1882 on his farm, seven and a 
 half miles northeast of Hanford, where he rented 
 for the first few years of his residence, but sub- 
 sequently purchased the land. 
 
 In tracing the ancestry of Mr. Dawson, we 
 find his father, Jacob Dawson, to be a native of 
 Kentucky. He was taken to Missouri by his par- 
 ents when but seven years old, and in 1847 the 
 father went to Texas for a short time. Return- 
 ing north to Wisconsin in 1848," Mr. Dawson 
 worked in the lead mines of that state for one 
 year and in 1849 ^^ ^^^^ that section of the coun- 
 try for California. Upon the present site of 
 Placerville, Mr. Dawson erected a cabin, which 
 proved to be the first in the vicinity, and here 
 
 he opened a general store, conducting a good 
 business for several years. Returning to Wiscon- 
 sin by the Panama route in 1852, in May of the 
 same year, he was united in marriage with Lyd- 
 ia Fuqua, who was born in Kentucky, and taken 
 to Ohio when quite small, and while still young 
 her parents moved to Wisconsin. After mar- 
 riage, Mr. Dawson settled on a farm in Wiscon- 
 sin and devoted his entire attention to agricul- 
 tural pursuits. The intervening years of his life 
 have been spent in that state, and there he still 
 enjoys life amid familiar scenes, having now 
 reached the age of eighty-two years, his wife be- 
 ing seventy-seven years old. 
 
 Upon first leaving home, John H. Dawson 
 went to White Pine county, Nev., remaining 
 there about a year, and in January, 1876, he was 
 persuaded to come to California. In Mariposa 
 county he prospected in the mining camps, also 
 followed teaming from the valley to the camps. 
 It was in 1877 that he first took up his residence 
 in Kings county, then Tulare county, and for a 
 time he rented land from Thomas Thornton. 
 This land afterward became the property of Da- 
 vid Burris, and, renting from the latter gen- 
 tleman, Mr. Dawson continued to remain on the 
 ranch for several years longer, renting from 1878- 
 82 sixteen hundred acres of land. The following 
 year he rented twenty-three hundred acres, 
 which he devoted to grain and before the close 
 of that year he purchased two hundred and 
 forty acres where he now lives. In connection 
 with his general farming, he operates a dairy, 
 making a specialty of the latter. He has a twen- 
 ty-five-acre vineyard and one hundred acres of 
 his land is used in raising alfalfa. 
 
 By his marriage, December 3, 1879, he was 
 united with Henrietta Ehrhart, who was born in 
 Decatur, 111., and four children blessed their un- 
 ion. They are named William Otto, Lucile, Lyd- 
 ia and John Jacob. Mr. Dawson has made a de- 
 cided success in introducing practical agricultur- 
 al methods, and he was a director of the People's 
 Irrigation Ditch, from 1886 to 1888, at which 
 time he was elected president, serving until 1896. 
 He then became a director and served two ad- 
 ditional terms, resigning in 1898 in order to take 
 a trip to Alaska. During the nineteen months 
 spent in that far northern territory he prospect- 
 ed along Pick river and at Nome. Politically, 
 Mr. Dawson is known as an independent Demo- 
 crat. 
 
 BENJAMIN F. CROW. At the foundation 
 of the agricultural success of Benjamin F. 
 Crow is a determination to do well whatever 
 task he undertakes, and to regard honest toil 
 as the rightful heritage of the healthy, nor- 
 mal mind. He not only follows willingly the 
 
56S 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 occupation of his forefathers, but seeks to improve 
 upon their methods, and to dignify by study and 
 research the oldest means of Uvelihood to which 
 man is heir. His entire life has been spent in 
 Cahfornia. He was born near Oakdale, this 
 state, October 30, 1866, the third oldest in a 
 family of four sons and three daughters. His 
 father, Lewis J., is one of the few remaining arg- 
 onauts of '49 to still retain interest in life, and re- 
 call the trials and deprivations which greeted the 
 courageous travelers from the east. He is one of 
 the first who settled in Stanislaus county, where 
 he began to raise stock on the Orestimba creek 
 from where he eventually removed to his present 
 home near Oakdale. 
 
 When he was twO' years old Benjamin F. Crow 
 went to live with his paternal uncle, B. H. 
 Crow, who was not blessed with children of his 
 own, and ever since the two have been insepa- 
 rable and always friendly associates. The'boy 
 was educated in the public schools and given a 
 business training in the Stockton Business Col- 
 lege, after which he continued to farm with his 
 uncle, and eventually became a land owner near 
 the latter's farm. He now owns a hundred and 
 sixty acres under the ditch, and leases seven hun- 
 dred and forty acres for grain and cattle rais- 
 ing, five hundred acres of this being also under 
 irrigation. His property is well cared for and 
 well adapted to the purpose intended, and the 
 future will doubtless witness additions to the 
 scope of Mr. Crow's resources. He has the in- 
 spiration of an interesting family to back him 
 in his ambitions, his three sons, Benjamin Thom- 
 as, Roy Franklin and Arthur Ward, already dis- 
 playing the traits which have made their father's 
 success possible. Mr. Crow married in Oakdale, 
 Ida Ward, a native of Stanislaus county, Cal., to 
 whose wise counsel and economy he owes the 
 encouragement and sympathy which have bright- 
 ened his home and helped him in his upward 
 course. Although in no sense a politician, he is 
 a stanch Democrat, upholding the interests of 
 his party with the same zeal and practical help- 
 fulness which have caused him to be regarded 
 as one of the community's most enlightened and 
 progressive citizens. 
 
 JAMES S. ROWLAND, a successful black- 
 smith and wheelwright of Visalia, Tulare coun- 
 ty, was born in Rock Island, 111., November 
 30, 1848, the second in a family of three chil- 
 dren born to his parents, Jacob and Ruth (Ho- 
 bert) Rowland. The father was a native of 
 Hancock, Md., who became a pioneer of Illi- 
 nois in 1836, locating east of Alton, where he 
 followed his trade of millwright. He also con- 
 ducted mills, following this line of work in the 
 Mississippi valley from St. Paul to New Orleans, 
 
 during which time his family lived at Port Byron, 
 111. In 1877 he came to Cahfornia on account 
 of his health, locating near Tulare river, where 
 he lived retired until his death in 1901 at the age 
 of eighty-five years. His wife, a native of Bos- 
 ton, Mass., died June 5, 1902, in this state, lack- 
 ing one month of being eighty-five years old. 
 Of their other two children, Marcus is located 
 in Redlands, while Anna is the wife of Jacob C. 
 Williams, of Visalia. 
 
 The education of James S. Rowland was re- 
 ceived in the common schools of his native state, 
 after which he engaged as night watchman in 
 the employ of the Racine & Mississippi Railway. 
 Later entering the operating department he was 
 fireman for two years, when he was promoted to 
 the position of engineer which he retained suc- 
 cessfully for seven years on the Chicago, Rock 
 Island & Pacific Railway. In 1879 he followed 
 his parents to California, locating in Visalia, 
 where he engaged in blacksmithing and wagon- 
 making, having learned this trade in Louisville, 
 Pottawatomie county, Kans. For three years fol- 
 lowing this work he operated the engine in a 
 flour mill in Visalia, after which he engaged 
 again in the prosecution of his trade. 
 
 In Louisville, Kans., Mr. Rowland married 
 Frances Wilson, a native of Canada, and they 
 are now the parents of three sons and three 
 daughters, namely: David H., a miller; Jacob, 
 Ray, Alma, Ruth and Laura, all except David H. 
 being still at home with their parents. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Rowland is a Democrat. 
 
 JOSEPH CARMICHAEL. The young men 
 of to-4ay who are inclined to underestimate the 
 chances for success in the country, might derive 
 encouragement and a change of opinion from the 
 career of Joseph Carmichael, one of the self-made 
 men of Merced county, and the owner of a ranch 
 of seven hundred and sixty-four acres six miles 
 from Snelling and twelve miles from Merced. 
 Mr. Carmichael inherits the mental and bodily 
 soundness of the sons of Scotland, in which coun- 
 try he was born June 24, 1851. He was educated 
 in the town of Paisley, famous for its peculiar and 
 beautiful shawls, and was reared in the humble 
 home of a weaver, the calling which his father, 
 Thomas Carmichael, adopted in early life. Mr. 
 Carmichael learned the turner's trade in Scotland, 
 following the same for ten years before leaving 
 for the United States in June, 1875. Thomas Car- 
 michael accompanied his family to America, 
 reaching NeW York in September, and at once 
 proceeded to California, locating at Woodbridge, 
 San Joaquin county. 
 
 In 1876 Joseph Carmiqhael came to Merced 
 county and rented four hundred and eighty acres, 
 embodied in his present farm, purchasing the 
 
<^J^. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 561 
 
 same at a later period, when his industry had ac- 
 cumulated sufficient means. He now has seven 
 hundred and sixty-four acres, devoted to wheat, 
 barley, corn, oats and hay, and he is also ex- 
 tensively engaged in raising high-grade horses, 
 keeping on hand from twenty to fifty thorough- 
 breds. In addition to his home property Mr. 
 Carmichael has two farms in Mariposa county, 
 one containing four hundred and eighty and one 
 four hundred and eighty-three acres, both of 
 which are rented out. Both of the Mariposa 
 county farms have valuable quartz deposits, yet 
 undeveloped, which run from $300 to $385 a ton, 
 and from which he hopes in time to reap large 
 financial gains; also deposits of gold were dis- 
 covered in the early days of placer mining in that 
 county. For several .years the Merced county 
 farm had as honored occupants the father and 
 mother of Mr. Carmichael, the former of whom 
 lived to be seventy-seven and the latter seventy- 
 eight years old. Mr. Carmichael has modern im- 
 provements on his farm, and under his manage- 
 ment his land has increased in value and produc- 
 tiveness. . He is scientific, cautious, and thor- 
 oughly practical, understanding well the business 
 requisites for successful farming, as well as the 
 theoretical conclusions arrived at by the col- 
 leges and students of agriculture throughout this 
 and other lands. Personally Mr. Carmichael ful- 
 fils the popular conception of an ambitious and 
 tireless worker, who a£preciates and avails him- 
 self of the many opportunities for progress and 
 enjoyment now at the disposal of the up-to-date 
 agriculturist. 
 
 EDWARD D. HALBERT. Six miles south 
 of Portersville, Tulare county, on Deer creek, is 
 located the large ranch of Edward D. Halbert, 
 consisting oT twelve hundred and seventy-three 
 acres, devoted to the cultivation of grain and the 
 raising of stock. A native of Missouri, he was 
 born in Hickory county, November 23, 1846, a 
 son of Joel B. Halbert. The latter was born in 
 South Carolina, reared in Warren county, Tenn., 
 and in 1842 removed to Hickory county. Mo. 
 He was a physician of considerable prominence in 
 the various communities where he made his home, 
 and practiced his profession in Hickory county 
 until his death, which occurred in 1876, at the 
 age of seventy-three years. His wife, formerly 
 Tirza Sherrill, was born in North Carolina and 
 died in Missouri. They became the parents of 
 nine sons and four daughters, of whom Edward 
 D. Halbert was the eleventh child. 
 
 A limited education in the common schools of 
 big native state was all that Edward D. Hal- 
 bert was able to obtain, while he was trained in 
 his home life to the habits of self reliance and 
 industry characteristic of the pioneer lad. In 
 
 1864 he enlisted in the Home Guards and was 
 ni active service for two months. In young man- 
 hood he became interested in saw-milling, build- 
 mg a mill in Missouri, which he conducted until 
 1869. He then sold and removed to Hermitage, 
 where he engaged as a clerk for a year and a 
 half, when he came as far west as Nevada City 
 and secured employment with the Missouri, Kan- 
 sas & Texas Railway as contractor. Later he 
 returned home and engaged in the harness busi- 
 ness in Humansville, Mo. After a year and a 
 half he found employment for the same length of 
 time as clerk. Deciding to come west, he lo- 
 cated in California in 1873, at Milton engaging 
 as a sheep herder for one year, when he came 
 to the San Joaquin valley. The first two months 
 he spent near Huron, when he located in Tulare 
 county. In -1878 he bought eight hundred head 
 of sheep, and until 1894 was interested in sheep 
 raising. In the meantime, in 1881, he purchased 
 the ranch which he now owns, and which has 
 since been his home. He has met with success 
 in his farming and stock-raising pursuits and is 
 numbered among the progressive and up-to-date 
 farmers of Tulare county. Mr. Halbert was also 
 a half owner in the Minnie Ellen mine from 1897 
 to 1 90 1, in the latter year disposing of this in- 
 terest in order to give his time and attention 
 entirely to his ranch. 
 
 In Tulare county Mr. Halbert was united in 
 marriage with Ellen Rhodes, a native of Tulare 
 county, and a daughter of William and Sarah 
 (Douglas) Rhodes, both of whom were natives 
 of Tennessee. The mother is now a resident of 
 Portersville. From Tennessee Mr. Rhodes moved 
 to Texas, and from there, in 1857, came across 
 the plains to California. Upon his arrival in the 
 state he located near Visalia and engaged in the 
 sheep business. In 1875 he made a trip to Ari- 
 zona, driving a band of sheep and in the vicinity 
 of Prescott was located until 1879, when he re- 
 turned to his interests in California, where he 
 had left his family. In 1880 he located in the 
 vicinity of Los Angeles, where he was accidental- 
 ly killed in 1885. Mr. and Mrs. Halbert are 
 the parents of four children, namely : Lois, the 
 wife of L. N. Sperry, of Elmwood, Cal. ; Edward 
 Fay ; Roy Dent ; and Ernest Sherrill, the last three 
 named bemg at home with their parents. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Halbert is a 'stanch ad- 
 vocate of the principles of the Republican party. 
 
 WILLIAM RADLEY. As superintendent of 
 the famous Waverly ranch, one of the largest in 
 Fresno county, Mr. Radley fills not only a posi- 
 tion of prominence, but one fraught with numer- 
 ous responsibilities. For the past seven years 
 he has filled this position of trust and this of itself 
 is a testimony of his worth. Born in Hamburg, 
 
662 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Sussex county, N. J., he is one of seven children 
 born to WilHani and Mary (Abbott) Radley, 
 both natives of that state, the former of Sussex 
 county. When but nine years old William Rad- 
 ley, Sr., went to sea as a cabin boy on a mer- 
 chant ship and followed life on the water for 
 eighteen years, during which time he visited 
 every country on the globe. It is said that travel 
 is the best educator and it is true that Mr. Rad- 
 ley is conversant upon many topics of which the 
 average citizen has little or no knowledge. His 
 father, Joseph Radley, a lawyer by profession, 
 was of English nationality. 
 
 Some time after his marriage, William Radley, 
 Sr., went to AustraHa and for five years was 
 located at Sydney, after which he sailed for San 
 Francisco. Soon after -his arrival upon the Pa- 
 cific coast he came to the San Joaquin valley, 
 purchasing twenty acres of land in the Washing- 
 ton colony, in Fresno county, where he followed 
 ranching pursuits for about thirteen years. Sell- 
 ing his farm in 1902 he retired from active busi- 
 ness pursuits and is now spending his declining 
 years at the home of his youngest son, Richard, 
 who is profitably engaged in growing fruit, hay 
 and vines upon his fifty-six-acre farm, three miles 
 west of Sanger. The other children of Mr. Rad- 
 ley are John, Anna, May, William, Thomas and 
 Jennie. 
 
 In his early boyhood days, William Radley, Jr., 
 accompanied his parents to Australia and it was 
 in that country that he was chiefly educated. 
 Upon the removal of the family to California he 
 assisted his father in ranching pursuits until he 
 accepted his present responsible position of man- 
 ager of the Waverly ranch, two miles east of 
 Sanger. The ranch contains five thousand acres, 
 devoted to the raising of wheat and other grains, 
 and constant employment is given to twenty 
 hands ; all of the repair work is done at the black- 
 smith shop which is located on the ranch. As 
 manager of these broad acres the duties" of "Mr. 
 Radley are manifold, and his personal supervision 
 is given to every detail. Fraternally he is allied 
 with the Odd Fellows. Although a resident of 
 Fresno county for but fifteen years, Mr. Radley 
 has attained a position of prominence accorded to 
 few so young as he, and his many friends pre- 
 dict for him a bright future. 
 
 SAMUEL REY. There are few men en- 
 gaged in land occupations in Kings county 
 whose experiences have been so varied, and 
 whose skill in narrating them is so pronounced 
 as in the case of Samuel Rey, owner of a ranch 
 of one hundred and sixty acres in the vicinity 
 of Hanford. In his later years Mr. Rey finds 
 himself the possessor of a comfortable home, 
 of a valuable property, and a ready income from 
 
 general farming and the dairying of from be- 
 tween twenty to thirty cows. He is gifted with 
 a retentive memory, and throughout his entire 
 life has been a keen observer of men and events, 
 cherishing in his mind many things, of import- 
 ance which escape the observation of the aver- 
 age sojourner. 
 
 Mr. Rey was twelve years old when he came 
 to America with his father, Rudolph Rey, em- 
 barking in a sailing vessel which spread its sails 
 upon the ocean for sixty-four days. He was 
 born in Switzerland, September 14, 1838, and 
 landed in the city of New Orleans in the fall 
 of 1850, soon journeying northward to Illinois, 
 where his father engaged in farming until his 
 death, at the age of forty-five years. Samuel 
 Rey was for several years employed in a hotel 
 in Illinois, but in 1857 went to Keokuk, Iowa, 
 where he teamed for about one year. He then 
 removed to St. Joseph, Mo., walking nearly the 
 entire distance, and there learned the barber's 
 trade, which secured him a comfortable living 
 for many years. Best of all his experiences, he 
 likes to recall his association with St. Joseph, 
 with Abraham Lincoln and the Confederate flag. 
 The Great Emancipator used to stroll into the 
 barber shop to be shaved, while in the town. 
 One day he saw a rebel flag swaying in the 
 breeze, and made the remark that he would like 
 to have somebody take that "rag" down. That 
 night, when his actions were covered with dark- 
 ness, Mr. Rey stole out and took down the 
 flag, presenting it the next morning to Lincoln 
 when he came in for his usual shave. Mr. 
 Lincoln told him. to burn the flag, and at the 
 same time presented him with five dollars out 
 of gratitude for his consideration and bravery. 
 
 In May, 1861, Mr. Rey enlisted in an escort 
 to cross the plains and protect the emigrants, 
 departing from Omaha, Neb., Jtme 3, 1861, and 
 arriving at Walla Walla, Wash., September 16, 
 after the usual adventures on the plains. Upon 
 receiving his honorable discharge from the ser- 
 vice in September, 1861, he engaged in mining 
 at Orafino and Pierce City, Idaho, also profiting 
 by the mining excitement on the Salmon river, 
 later returning to Walla Walla, where he se- 
 cured employment as steward in a hotel. In the 
 spring of 1862 he went to the Florence Basin 
 mines, and from there to Auburn, Ore., his 
 next stopping-place being the site of Silver City, 
 Idaho, which he helped to lay out, and where 
 he conducted a shop for a few months. Those 
 were exciting times in the new town, and it 
 fell to the barber to help drive the gamblers and 
 cut-throats out of the Golden Chariot and Ida 
 Elmore mines, after they had killed one of the 
 owners and spread consternation through the 
 settlement. Alone and single-handed Mr. Rey 
 descended into the mines, drove the men out, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 563 
 
 and won praise from the rugged and honest ele- 
 ment assembled for the making of fortunes. At 
 the same time he was operating a shop on Satur- 
 days in the Flint district, nine miles from Silver 
 City, during the daytime of other days busying 
 himself with sorting ores. About this time a 
 twenty-stamp mill was erected in the vicinity, 
 but it was obliged to close down and the camp 
 was abandoned in 1868. Mr. Rey then went 
 to the Carlin district, in Nevada, where he oper- 
 ated a barber shop for a short time, after which 
 he came to Woodland, Yolo county, Cal, on a 
 visit, and then took a trip to British Columbia. 
 For two seasons he mined and prospected in 
 Alaska, but not realizing success, opened a bar- 
 ber shop in Seattle, and operated it successfully 
 for five or six years. 
 
 In the meantime Mr. Rey had instructed his 
 brother to purchase a ranch for him in Kings 
 county, sending him the money to pay for it, 
 and himself taking possession of the same in 
 1877. The ranch consisted of eighty acres, to 
 which he soon added eighty more, and, thus 
 established, he felt the need of somebody to 
 share his rising and now almost certain fortunes. 
 Like so many of his countrymen, he had come 
 to America to get a start in life, and like so many 
 others had left behind him one of whom he 
 thought much, and who had been an incentive 
 to hard and earnest effort. In 1876 Mr. Rey 
 returned to Switzerland by way of Philadelphia, 
 where the Centennial Exposition was then be- 
 ing held, and married, March 17, 1877, Louise 
 Zubrist, a native of Switzerland, who immedi- 
 ately accompanied him to the farm in Kings 
 county. Together this energetic couple have 
 worked for the competence which is now theirs, 
 and during all the years that have passed have 
 maintained that perfect faith in each other, that 
 desire to sympathize and be of practical use, 
 which has made their home a peaceful and happy 
 one. Eight children have been added to the 
 household, and six have been reared from their 
 cradle to maturity in an atmosphere of good- 
 ness and encouragement. Of these, Charles R. 
 is a machinist of San Francisco; George Samuel 
 is engaged in hauling cream for the dairy asso- 
 ciation ; Albert P. lives at Randsburg, Kern coun- 
 ty; Delia L. is making her home in San Fran- 
 cisco; Clara is a stenographer in San Francisco 
 and Annie is attending the state normal school 
 at San Jose. These parents have given their 
 children the best advantages within their power, 
 and all are a credit to the training given them 
 in their youth. 
 
 Mr. Rey is a Democrat in politics, but cast 
 his first presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln, 
 at the time he was performing the humble ser- 
 vice of shaving that statesman^ He is identified 
 with Mount Whitney Lodge, F. & A. M., of 
 
 Dinuba, Cal. His wife is a member of the 
 Christian Church. Mr. Rey is somewhat inter- 
 ested in the development of oil in California, 
 and owns fourteen acres in the Coalingo district, 
 which, though promising, are as yet not in work- 
 ing order. In his heart this early pioneer car- 
 ries a great love for all mankind and an intense 
 desire to be of use to his fellow-men. In his 
 various wanderings in small towns and mining 
 camps he has invariably made many warm 
 friends, and these tinge his memory with pleas- 
 ant thoughts, and cause him to be glad that his 
 life has been an active and adventurous one. 
 
 PETER BONDSON. In Peter Bondson, 
 Kings county, Cal., has a Danish-American 
 agriculturist who reflects credit both upon his 
 native and adopted country, and who embodies 
 those thrifty and substantial traits which make 
 his countrymen a welcome addition to compara- 
 tively new countries. Mr. Bondson lives nine 
 miles southeast of Hanford on a farm of three 
 hundred and twenty acres, to which he came in 
 1875, and upon which he has brought about re- 
 markable changes. The country was extremely 
 wild at that time, and his neighbors were so 
 far apart that the loneliness became monotonous. 
 He assisted in the building of the ditch, which 
 has increased the possibilities of farmers along 
 its course, and until 1892 was engaged princi- 
 pally in grain raising, at which he made a com- 
 fortable liveHhood. Since then he has conducted 
 a dairy of from thirty-five to forty cows, and 
 devotes considerable attention to raising calves 
 for the market. His farm is well improved, and 
 his family are surrounded with the comforts 
 made possible by his industry and success. 
 
 Mr. Bondson came to America in 1870 from 
 North Slesvig, Denmark, where he was born 
 April I, 1848, and where he received fair educa- 
 tional training in the public schools. He was 
 reared on a farm, as had been generations of 
 his family before him, and he had no thought 
 save to succeed in and dignify this most hon- 
 orable of occupations. Twenty-two years of age 
 when he set foot in America, he came direct to 
 California, of which he had heard much, and 
 in Sonoma county found employment on a dairy 
 ranch for a couple of years. He then went to 
 Merced county and rented three hundred and 
 twenty acres of land on Bear creek for two 
 years, in the meantime saving his money and 
 intending to embark upon an independent farm- 
 ing enterprise. His expectations were realized 
 in 1875, when he bought and partially paid for 
 his present farm, advantageously located along 
 the ditch, and having excellent watering facili- 
 ties. His home is presided over by his wife, 
 formerly Deha Nantz, a native of Tulare coun- 
 
564 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ty, Cal, and the mother of three children, the 
 oldest of whom, Estella J., is attending the high 
 school of Hanford, while Pearl and Arthur N. 
 are at home with their parents. Mr. Bondson 
 is a Republican in politics, and with his wife is 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 of which he is a steward, and toward the sup- 
 port of which he is a generous contributor. He 
 is a hard-working, progressive and intelligent 
 man, thoroughly in accord with the people and 
 conditions of his adopted state, and able, by 
 the exercise of consideration and integrity, to 
 make his name respected and honored in the 
 community. 
 
 NIS HANSEN. It is universally conceded 
 by the majority of people that a man's success 
 in life is measured by the rapidity with which 
 he amasses wealth; the greater his wealth and 
 the more quickly it is accumulated,, the greater 
 his success. As an example of one who has 
 some claim to success and whose wealth has been 
 attained in one channel of endeavor, appropriate 
 mention may be made of Mr. Hansen, who, al- 
 though of foreign birth, has been a citizen of 
 the United States and of California since 1875, 
 and at the present writing is a well-known ranch- 
 er and fruit-grower in the vicinity of Armona, in 
 Kings county. 
 
 United, as he is, by clo'se ties to Schleswig, 
 then a part of Denmark, for it was there that he 
 was born March 17, 1859, Mr. Hansen remained 
 in his native land until he was sixteen years old, 
 spending his boyhood days on a farm. It was 
 early in the year 1875 that he left home and 
 friends and sailed for America to avoid having 
 to serve in the army, having little or no taste 
 for military life. Landing in New York city in 
 May of the same year, he remained there only 
 a short time, proceeding to Cafifornia. At Val- 
 lejo he secured employment in a meat market, 
 and for eighteen months he devoted his best en- 
 ergies to this business, subsequently following- 
 ranching pursuits for a time in Solano county, 
 and for a couple of years in Kings county, then 
 a part of Tulare county. A little later, Mr. Han- 
 sen purchased one hundred and sixty acres of 
 railroad land, which he at once began to im- 
 prove and cultivate. Here for years he raised 
 grain and carried on dairy farming to some ex- 
 tent, and in 1888 commenced to put out or- 
 chards. The latter yielded such fair returns that 
 more attention was paid to fruit culture with each 
 succeeding year, and at the present writing one 
 hundred acres of his ranch is in fine bearing or- 
 chards and vineyards. Havinp- prospered great- 
 ly Mr. Hansen has owned from time to time 
 farms in different sections, his possessions now 
 including thirty acres of choice land adjoining his 
 
 home ranch, fifteen acres of which is in vines. 
 That part of his land not devoted to fruit is uti- 
 lized in raising alfalfa and for pasturage, and this 
 season the entire ranch is leased to men who have 
 worked for Mr. Hansen for the past sixteen 
 years. 
 
 The home ties of Mr. Hansen date back to 
 1887, for at that time he wedded Josie Hutton, 
 a native of Califoi-nia. She passed to her final 
 rest in 1891, after a brief wedded life, leaving 
 two children; of these, one is deceased and the 
 other, Jesse, is at the home place. In 1894 Mr. 
 Hansen remarried to Jennie Dickinson, a native 
 of Maine. Four children have been born to this 
 union, one of whom died in infancy, and in 1900 
 their mother also died. The children are Cather- 
 ine, Jennie and Louis A. By his third marriage, 
 Mr. Hansen was united with Minnie D. Hough, 
 his present wife, who was born in Michigan, iDut 
 was reared in Virginia. In his political views, 
 Mr. Hansen is a Republican, but never aspired 
 to office, preferring rather to devote his time and 
 energy to his business pursuits, and by his 
 straightforward methods, he has made many 
 friends in his locality. His fine ranch is worth 
 many times the purchase money, and could not 
 be purchased for less than $250 per acre, being 
 well located, three-quarters of a mile west of 
 Armona. 
 
 ROSWELL S. DODGE. The name of Ros- 
 well S. Dodge will long be remembered as one 
 of the honored pioneers of what- is now Kings 
 county, Cal., but what was formerly a part of 
 Tulare county. Born in Michigan, August 10, 
 1 83 1, the boyhood days of Mr. Dodge were spent 
 on a farm in his native state, his education being 
 received in the common schools of his locality. 
 In 1852 Mr. Dodge crossed overland to Cali- 
 fornia in search of a more promising field for the 
 cultivation of his ambitions, but his roseate views 
 of the golden future in this locality were some- 
 what lessened by the arduous toil to which the 
 miners were subjected. In connection with 
 mining operations, he also followed teaming in 
 the mining district, a somewhat hazardous but 
 paying occupation. 
 
 In 1870 Mr. Dodge took up his permanent resi- 
 dence in Kings county, and at that time he not 
 only took up a homestead claim of one hundred 
 and sixty acres of government land, but obtained 
 possession of one hundred and sixty acres of 
 Southern Pacific Railroad land just across the 
 road from his hom.estead. This land was new 
 and undeveloped and for a time Mr. Dodge 
 teamed for his neighbors to get a start. He was 
 one of the instigators and promoters of the Peo- 
 ple's Irrigation Ditch, which he assisted in con- 
 structing and which opened up the section it 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 565 
 
 traversed for agricultural purposes, converting 
 the arid, sandy desert into fertile fields. Here 
 upon this land Mr. Dodge improved and culti- 
 vated his place until his death in 1881. By his 
 marriage, in 1872, he was united with Mrs. Caro- 
 line Adams, who was born in New York, but 
 who with her first husband and one daughter, 
 Hattie J., came to California, where the husband 
 afterward died. By her union with Mr. Dodge, 
 one child was born, a son, Roswell R., and in 
 1880, the beloved mother passed to her final rest, 
 leaving these two children to the care of her hus- 
 band, who, however, survived her only one year. 
 Upon his death, the homestead farm passed to 
 his son, Roswell R., and the one hundred acres of 
 railroad land was left to his step-daughter, now 
 Mrs. H. J. Bulloch. Later events developed the 
 fact that Mr. Dodge's title to the latter place was 
 not clear and in order to retain possession, Mrs. 
 Bulloch was obliged to repurchase it from the 
 railroad company. This she did and she still 
 resides upon this fine farm adjoining the home 
 of her half-brother; here she witnessed the de- 
 velopment of the country from a wilderness into 
 fertile and well-improved farms, dotted with 
 happy and attractive homes, and it may be said 
 that she has done her part to aid and bring about 
 this transformation. Politically, Mr. Dodge was 
 a life-long Republican and took an active part in 
 both local and national politics. To such men as 
 he, California owes much of her present pros- 
 perity. 
 
 PETER MILLER. The improvements no- 
 ticeable in the agricultural sections of Stanislaus 
 county are the direct result of the energetic 
 efforts of a number of progressive, resourceful 
 farmers, among whom Mr. Miller is influential 
 and well known. Eight miles southwest of New- 
 man stands his residence, surroimded by trees 
 that he himself planted and farm buildings that 
 he erected. In every direction, extending along , 
 the low foothills, are the acres that he owns and 
 cultivates, embracing an extensive area of valu- 
 able grain land. To keep in touch with the de- 
 velopments made in agriculture has been an aim 
 with Mr. Miller for many years, and according- 
 ly he adopts improved methods of machinery and 
 the most modern and improved ideas regarding 
 the rotation of crops and cultivation of the soil. 
 
 Of German nativity, Mr. Miller is a repre- 
 sentative of that class of German-American citi- 
 zens whose thrift has been a prominent factor 
 in the progress of the new world. He was born 
 in Holstein, near Hamburg, and is a son of John 
 and Angela (Loss) Miller, natives of the same 
 province as himself. His father followed the 
 occupation of brick-mason and contractor, but 
 died in early life, before attaining the success 
 
 that might have come to him had life been pro- 
 longed to old age. Later Mrs. Miller became 
 the wife of Claus Ebbs and came to America 
 in 1892. At this writing she makes her home 
 on her son's farm. She was a daughter of Peter 
 Loss, a farmer of Holstein. By her first mar- 
 riage she has two sons, namely : Peter, with 
 whom she makes her home; and John, who re- 
 sided on an adjoining farm, till his death in 
 July, 1904. Of her second marriage two daugh- 
 ters were born. The elder is Mrs. Mary Brauer, 
 of Newman, and the younger, Maggie, is the 
 wife of Henry Timm. Ever since the days of 
 Martin Luther the Miller family has been de- 
 voted to the religious doctrines for which he 
 stood. 
 
 Born October 11, 1856, Mr. Miller is now in 
 the prime of life and the vigor of manhood. As 
 a boy he attended the pubHc schools in the village 
 of Peisen, but when fifteen years of age he be- 
 gan to be self-supporting, and for some years 
 worked on a farm. In 1880 he crossed the ocean 
 to America and then proceeded across the con- 
 tinent to California, where he at once came to 
 the west side of Stanislaus county. Having no 
 means for the renting of a place, in the spring- 
 he secured employment as a farm hand by the 
 month. After eighteen moHths, in the fall of 
 1881, he secured a farm outfit and with a part- 
 ner, Charles Hagadorn, began raising grain on 
 four hundred acres of irrigated land. That part- 
 nership continued until 1883, after which he en- 
 gaged in wheat raising with John Hohr, the two 
 continuing in partnership until 1886. During 
 the latter year Mr. Miller purchased six hundred 
 and forty acres on Bennett's Valley road, where 
 he planted trees, erected a house and barns and 
 took up the work of grain raising. By subse- 
 quent purchases he has acquired a very large 
 property in low foothill land, his possessions 
 aggregating thirteen hundred and thirty acres. 
 It is worthy of note that almost all of this large 
 tract may be plowed for grain and hay. Fine 
 cattle and horses form a herd of stock whose 
 value is constantly increasing. In the cultiva- 
 tion of the land ten horse-teams and fifty head 
 of mules are used. The latest machinery is util- 
 ized, an instance of which fact is to be found in 
 his combined side-hill harvester, the first machine 
 of the kind brought into the valley, and in the 
 operating of which thirty-two mules are used. 
 Besides his grain land he owns forty acres on 
 the Creamery road, where he raises hogs, cattle 
 and horses, utilizing alfalfa for their pasturage. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Miller united him 
 with Miss Julia Williams, of Newman, a native 
 of California. She died on their home farm and 
 her only child, Julius, also is deceased. The 
 present wife of Mr. Miller was Miss Katie Jor- 
 gensen, a native of Holstein, but a resident of 
 
666 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Newman at the time of her marriage. Four 
 sons and two daughters were born of this union, 
 namely: Peter, Jr., Henry, William, Walter, 
 Katie and Elma. During the winter of 1892-93 
 Mr. Miller renewed associations with the friends 
 of his childhood by visiting his native land. 
 Around him there were many changes to be 
 noticed, but in none was the change greater than 
 in himself. He had left home poor and inex- 
 perienced, to go to a strange land with no capital 
 save that of youth and willing hands. When 
 he returned he was influential, experienced and 
 successful, one who by careful observation and 
 frequent reading had acquired a broad fund of 
 information. He had gone away a German, but 
 he returned a loyal American, proud of his 
 adopted country and proud of the success he had 
 attained in the midst of its opportunities. Now, 
 as always, he clings to the Lutheran religion, 
 the faith of his forefathers. In adopting Ameri- 
 can citizenship he acquainted himself with politi- 
 cal affairs and keeps in touch with the issues be- 
 fore our country. Politically he votes the Demo- 
 cratic ticket. Especially in educational matters 
 has his interest been deep and his helpful spirit 
 manifest. Since 1886 he has been a school 
 trustee and at this writing officiates as president 
 of the board. In tjie capacity of trustee he as- 
 sisted in the erection of the building now util- 
 ized for school purposes in his district. While 
 especially concerned as to the education of the 
 young, he is also interested in all measures look- 
 ing to the material success and moral training 
 of the boys and girls who are to have the re- 
 sponsibility for the future prosperity of our 
 country. In every respect he has acquitted him- 
 self as a patriotic Californian, a loyal American 
 and a helpful citizen of Stanislaus county. 
 
 EDWIN JAY DIBBLE, one ' of the first 
 actual settlers in the neighborhood of Guernsey, 
 Kings county, Cal., was born in Oneida county, 
 N. Y., September 8, 1834, and comes of a fine 
 old New England family of Scotch-English ex- 
 traction. It was well for him that he was a lad 
 of sturdy and reliant characteristics, for re- 
 sponsibility came his way at the age of sixteen, 
 owing to the death of his father, Jesse Dibble, 
 who died at the age of thirty-seven years. His 
 mother, formerly Anna Palms, a native also of 
 New York, lived to be seventy-seven years old 
 and died in Oneida county. 
 
 When he arrived at twenty-two years Mr. 
 Dibble left the home farm which he had man- 
 aged for six years and found employment by 
 the month in his native state. He' went to 
 Minnesota in i860 and was there married, later 
 locating on a rented farm in Allamakee countv, 
 Iowa, upon which he lived until 1863. He then 
 
 crossed the plains and located near San Jose, 
 Cal., where he rented land and also worked by 
 the day until removing to Santa Cruz county, 
 where he remained until settling on his present 
 farm nine miles south of Hanford, Kings coun- 
 ty. His land was a stranger to any kind of 
 improvement, and its development went hand 
 in hand with his active interest in the building 
 of the Lakeside ditch, which came as a boon to 
 the agriculturists and stock-raisers of Tulare 
 county. From a barren region he noted the 
 gradual unfolding of the great opportunities 
 awaiting the enterprise of man, industriously 
 applying himself to making his own home one 
 of fertility and unquestioned promise. Fortu- 
 nately he has been able to realize his expecta- 
 tions, and has accumulated a competency as a 
 dairyman and grain raiser. In 1890 he pur- 
 chased one hundred and sixty acres about two 
 miles from the home place, and this is devoted 
 to a dairy of twenty-five cows, and a herd of 
 about one hundred and fifty hogs. This latter 
 farm is under the management of his son 
 George, who is making a practical success as a 
 rancher. 
 
 With the assistance of a noble-hearted and 
 helpful wife, who died in 1896, and who was 
 formerly Hannah Blend, a native of Iowa, hav- 
 ing been born in 1840, Mr. Dibble has reared 
 a family of eight children, three others having 
 died in early childhood. Of those who reached 
 maturity, Annie is the wife of Frank E. Howe, 
 a rancher; Le Roy is a rancher located near his 
 father; Flora is the wife of Millard Welton, a 
 rancher of Kings county ; Judson also lives near 
 his father; Lester has a ranch in the neighbor- 
 hood; George leases his father's ranch; Abi 
 lives at home ; and Jesse assists his brother 
 George. Mr. Dibble had few educational ad- 
 vantages in his youth, and this fact has led him 
 to take a keen interest in the chances accorded 
 the sons of Kings county pioneers. He has 
 served several years as a trustee of schools, but 
 'has otherwise refused to hold any office what- 
 ever, although a stanch upholder of the Repub- 
 lican party. He is one of the men whose life has 
 commanded respect and whose example is 
 worthy of emulation. 
 
 JAMES W. RATH. Numbered among the 
 •successful business men of Tulare county, James 
 W. Rath occupies a responsible position as head 
 of one of the most extensive fruit canning con- 
 cerns in the state, located at Visalia. Since his 
 location in this city in 1897 he has held the posi' 
 tion of manager of this business, first known as 
 the Sacramento Packing and Drying Company, 
 but is now called the California Fruit Canners' 
 Association. Of strict business methods, con- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 567 
 
 servative yet progressive, Mr. Rath has dis- 
 charged the duties incumbent upon him in such 
 a manner as to win the commendation of all asso- 
 ciated with him. Born in Mason county, Mich., 
 May 10, 1858, he is the son of Hans Rath, a 
 native of New York state. 
 
 In 1846 Hans Rath went to Michigan and 
 located in Mason county, where he engaged in 
 farming, being at present located near the town 
 of Ludington. His wife, formerly Marie Olsley, 
 was also a native of New Y.ork state. She died 
 in her home in Michigan in 1898, leaving a fam- 
 ily of three sons and one daughter, of whom the 
 daughter is deceased. The youngest of this fam- 
 ily of children, James W. Rath, received his 
 education in the common schools in the vicinity of 
 his home, after which he attended a commercial 
 college at New Haven, Mich. Upon assuming 
 independence he went to New Orleans in 1877, 
 and two years later located in Austin, Tex. He 
 there followed the life of a cowboy for three 
 years, when he came to California and in San 
 Jose engaged as an employe for the San Jose 
 Fruit Packing Company. He continued in this 
 employment for several years, finally being pro- 
 moted to the position of foreman of the cook 
 room. In 1889 he went to Sacramento with R. I. 
 Bentley and engaged as foreman of the Sacra- 
 mento Packing and Drying Company, continuing 
 in that location for eight years, when he came to 
 Visalia and entered upon the duties of his present 
 position. From the plans of Mr. Rath the can- 
 ning factory was built, which has a capacity of 
 about one hundred thousand cases of fruit (prin- 
 cipally peaches) during the season, which lasts 
 fifty-five days. This association embraces thirty- 
 six plants from the Columbia river to San Diego, 
 and in the busy season employs from five hundred 
 and fifty to six hundred people. It is numbered 
 among the most important industries of Visalia 
 and adds no little to the financial prestige of the 
 place. 
 
 In San Jose Mr. Rath was united in marriage 
 with Ella Arnold, a native of Michigan, and they 
 are the parents of two daughters and one son, 
 namely : Ella, Jean and Arnold. In his political 
 affiliations Mr. Rath is a stanch Republican and 
 gives his support to the advancement of the prin- 
 ciples he indorses. 
 
 DAVID JAMES_ FRANKLIN REED. A 
 man of varied experience in life, energetic, intel- 
 ligent and enterprising, David J. F. Reed is num- 
 bered among the representative agriculturists 
 and horticulturists of Tulare county, and holds 
 an assured position among the most esteemed 
 and respected residents of Tulare. Although mis- 
 fortune has sometimes followed him, he has pur- 
 sued the eVen tenor of his way unfalteringly, by 
 
 courageous perseverance conquering all obstacles, 
 and is now enjoying to the utmost the reward 
 gained by his years of faithful and intelligent 
 toil. Wherever he has lived, he has been promi- 
 nent in public affairs, and has rendered note- 
 worthy service to his fellowmen. A son of David 
 Reed, he was born in Massillon, Stark county, 
 Ohio, April 12, 1832. His grandfather, Thomas 
 Reed, the emigrant ancestor, was born in the 
 North of Ireland, and after coming to the United 
 States settled in Ohio, becoming a pioneer of 
 Stark county. 
 
 David Reed was a life-long farmer, owning a 
 homestead near Massillon, Ohio. He spent his 
 entire life in Stark county, dying while yet in 
 manhood's prime. He married Susan Simon- 
 ton, who was born in Ohio, of Scotch parentage, 
 her father having emigrated from Scotland to 
 Ohio. Of her union with David Reed, three 
 children were born, of whom David J. F., is the 
 only survivor. After Mr. Reed's death she mar- 
 ried for her second husband A. W. Vail, and 
 removed to Laporte, Ind., where she resided until 
 her death, at the advanced age of ninety years. 
 Of her second marriage six children were born, 
 four of whom are still living. 
 
 Removing with his mother and step-father to 
 Laporte, Ind., when twelve years old, David J. F. 
 Reed at once began to assist in the pioneer la- 
 bor of breaking up the rough prairie land, and 
 improving a farm. His educational advantages 
 were very meagre, consisting of a few short 
 weeks in the winter season. Leaving the home 
 farm in 1851, he was clerk in a Laporte hotel 
 for about a year. In 1852, desiring to try the 
 hazard of new fortunes, he went to Chicago, 
 which then contained only forty thousand inhabi- 
 tants, with scarcely any of the modern improve- 
 ments so characteristic of the present populous 
 metropolis, its streets being veritable swamps, 
 or mud holes. Entering the employ of the late 
 Frank Parmelee, the founder of the Parmelee 
 Bus Line, he remained with him two years. Re- 
 turning then to Indiana, Mr. Reed opened a 
 hotel in Valparaiso, but was unfortunate in its 
 management, in the year that he ran it losing all 
 of his capital. Going back to Chicago, he se- 
 cured a position in the old Union Depot, and 
 the following thirteen years was there employed 
 by the Illinois Central and the Michigan Cen- 
 tral Railroad companies, serving as baggageman 
 the first two years, and as special poHceman the 
 last eleven years. He was there during the troub- 
 lous time of the Civil war, and has no doubt that 
 it was one of the hottest places in the country. 
 
 Locating in Plattsmouth, Neb., in 1870, Mr. 
 Reed secured a position as foreman of material, 
 and manager of a construction train, on the 
 BurHngton & Missouri division of the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Quincy Railroad, and held it for two 
 
568 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 seasons. Settling then in Crete, Neb., he en- 
 gaged in the grain and live-stock business. He 
 built an elevator, but it burned down, and he 
 had to rebuild it. He carried on a grain busi- 
 ness, shipping on an average two cars a day to 
 Chicago, and dealt largely in stock, shipping to 
 both the Chicago and the Omaha markets. Suc- 
 cessful in his ventures, Mr. Reed continued there 
 for twenty years, in the time accumulating some 
 means. He was an important factor in munici- 
 pal affairs, and for consecutive terms served as 
 mayor of Crete, and for one term county com- 
 missioner of Saline county. Selling his Nebras- 
 ka property in 1890, Mr. Reed migrated to 
 California, and settling in Tulare county pur- 
 chased eighty acres of land lying one and one- 
 fourth miles east of Tulare. He has improved 
 the land, having it all under the ditch, and has 
 it all set out to fruit, having a vineyard of thirty 
 acres, while the remainder is devoted to prunes 
 and peaches, in the culture of which he is quite 
 successful. Mr. Reed has also been prominent 
 in pubHc matters in Tulare, having served for 
 four years as a member of the city council, three 
 years of the time being president, and for four 
 3'ears, from January, 1899, until January, 1903, 
 serving- as justice of the peace. 
 
 In Chicago, 111., Mr. Reed married Evelyn 
 Powell, who was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., 
 but was brought up in Dupage county. 111. She 
 died in Crete, Neb., in 1888. Of the five chil- 
 dren born of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Reed, 
 three died in infancy; Clarence E. passed away 
 at the age of twenty-three years ; and Gertie E. 
 lived but eight years. Politically Mr. Reed has 
 been identified with the Republican party since its 
 formation, in 1856 casting his presidential vote 
 for John C. Fremont. He is a consistent and 
 active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 and while in Crete served on the official board, be- 
 ing president of its board of trustees. 
 
 EMERIE RENAUD. In the development and 
 advancement of the agricultural prosperity of Tu- 
 lare county are men of great intelligence, energy 
 and enterprise, prominent among the number be- 
 ing Emerie Renaud, who owns and occupies one 
 of the most attractive of the many beautiful home 
 farms to be found in this section of the state. 
 It is located alxiut four and one-half miles north 
 of Tulare, and in its appointments and equip- 
 ments compares favorably with any in the neigh- 
 borhood. A native of the province of Quebec, 
 and the descendant of one of its oldest and most 
 honored French families, he was born, July 25, 
 1857, "ear Montreal, which was also the birth- 
 place of his father, Charles Renaud, Jr., and of 
 his grandfather, Charles Renaud, Sr. The lat- 
 ter spent his entire life of sixty-three years near 
 
 Montreal, being engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
 and the farm which he managed for so many 
 years is still in the possession of the family, being 
 owned and occupied by one of his grandsons. 
 
 Succeeding to the occupation of his ancestors, 
 Charles Renaud, Jr., carried" on general farming 
 during his life, which was comparatively short, 
 his death occurring when he was but fifty-seven 
 years of age. He married Marcellian Pelon, 
 who was born in Quebec, a daughter of Celesta 
 Pelon, a farmer, and she still resides in Montreal. 
 Of the twelve children born to their union, ten 
 are living, Emerie, the third child, being the 
 only one in California. 
 
 Like the majority of farmers' sons, Emerie 
 Renaud received his early education in the dis- 
 trict schools, at the same time being well drilled 
 in the various branches of agriculture. Leaving 
 home when a boy of sixteen years, he came 
 with a brother and uncle as far westward as 
 Nevada. During the same year, 1874, he came 
 to Sacramento, Cal., where he worked as a farm 
 hand for two years. Thinking, however, to ob- 
 tain money more rapidly with pick and shovel, 
 he spent four or five years in the mines of Bodie, 
 Cal., and Nevada, but his success scarcely equalled 
 his anticipations. Returning then to Sacramen- 
 to, Mr. Renaud married, and soon afterward in 
 1884, settled in Tulare county. Buying a farm 
 on Elk Bayou, he operated it for a year, but found 
 the land almost worthless. Renting land, he em- 
 barked in grain raising on a large scale and met 
 with excellent success. Leasing from J. Gold- 
 man & Co. the old Stokes estate of three thou- 
 sand acres, he raised immense quantities of grain, 
 and with characteristic enterprise and thrift rent- 
 ed for a number of seasons a three thousand- 
 acre ranch lying near Portersville. In the man- 
 agement of these six thousand acres Mr. Renaud 
 used as many as one hundred head of horses 
 and mules, employing in his operations twelve 
 eight-mule teams. In 1903 he bought the old 
 J. B. Zumwalt place, containing four hundred 
 and twenty acres, lying north of Tulare, as above 
 stated, and in its care has been exceedingly pros- 
 perous. He has one hundred acres of alfalfa, 
 raises much grain and stock, and has a fine dairy, 
 which is equipped with all modern improve- 
 ments, including a separator. In addition to 
 caring for his home farm Mr. Renaud also rents 
 thirteen hundred acres of land adjoining his own, 
 and devotes this tract to grain and stock raising 
 also. He is continually adding to the improve- 
 ments of his estate, and has now one of the fin- 
 est farm residences to be found in this part of 
 Tulare county. 
 
 In Sacramento, Cal., Mr. Renaud married Mary 
 Giguiere, who was born in Yolo county, Cal., a 
 daughter of Frank Giguiere, a '49er, and they 
 are the parents of nine living children, all of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 571 
 
 whom are at home, namely : Joseph, Walter, 
 Laura, Flora, Arthur, Blanche, Bryan, Elma and 
 CoUis. Politically Mr. Renaud is a steadfast ad- 
 herent of the Democratic party, and is president 
 of the board of school trustees of the Enter- 
 prise district. Fraternally he belongs to Tulare 
 City Lodge No. 306, I. O. O. F. ; to Tulare En- 
 campment ; and to Olive Branch No. 269, F. & A. 
 M. He is liberal in his religious beliefs, a firm 
 believer in justice, taking the Golden Rule tor 
 his guide, his motto being "Do right and it will 
 be right." 
 
 WILLIS LAYTON PRATT, Sr. The Pratt 
 family, which has a representative in Visalia in 
 the person of Willis Layton Pratt, an old pioneer, 
 came originally from England, three brothers 
 crossing the ocean and locating in Jamestown in 
 the early days of its settlement. They became 
 prominent in the colony and were active partici- 
 pants in the various Indian wars which disturbed 
 the country. In time members of the family lo- 
 cated in North Carolina, and it was there that 
 the birth of George Pratt occurred. In manhood 
 he followed the occupation of farmer until his en- 
 listment for service in the war of 1812, during 
 which his death occurred. In his family was a 
 son called Thomas, who was born in North Car- 
 olina, and following the example of his early 
 ancestors immigrated to the middle west when it 
 presented all the dangers and hardships of a pio- 
 neer country. He located in Ptitnam county, 
 Ind., and there improved a farm for a number 
 of years. Removing to Missouri he located first 
 in Newton county and afterward in Marion coun- 
 ty, this latter location remaining his home until 
 after the war, during which he suffered many 
 hardships and privations and eventually lost his 
 property, when he went to Kentucky to visit a 
 brother and there died at the age of seventy- 
 eight years. His wife, formerly Mary Rogers, 
 of Indiana, was a daughter of Samuel Rogers, 
 a native of Kentucky and an early settler of the 
 Hoosier state, where he followed farming as a 
 means of livelihood. He removed to Missouri 
 and died in Stewartsville. From his Scotch an- 
 cestry he inherited sturdy traits of character and 
 a loyalty and patriotism that led him to enlist in 
 the war of 1812, a soldier under the command of 
 General Harrison. Mrs. Pratt died in Missouri, 
 leaving a family of three sons and one daughter, 
 of whom one son is deceased. Joseph, who 
 served as a captain in a Missouri regiment dur- 
 ing the Civil war, was a lawyer by profession and 
 made his home in Arkansas until his death ; Ben- 
 jamin p., who also served in a Missouri regi- 
 ment, is a farmer in Missouri ; Mary became the 
 wife of Alexander Forman, who served as a sol- 
 dier in the Civil war and died in Missouri ; the 
 
 oldest of the family now living is Willis Layton 
 Pratt, who was born in Putnam county, Ind., 
 February 24, 1834. 
 
 In his native state Willis Layton Pratt spent 
 the first ten years of his life, removing with his 
 parents to Platteville, Wis., where he gained the 
 greater part of his education in the public schools. 
 In 1851 the family moved to Newton county. 
 Mo., and he there found employment in lead min- 
 ing until his departure for California in 1854. 
 He was accompanied by his two brothers, the 
 three earning their passage by assisting to drive, 
 receiving for their services $10 per month, using 
 their own horses. They had outfitted at Neosho, 
 Mo., for the trip, and on the loth of April started 
 across the plains up the North Platte, thence 
 through Sublett's cut-off, and through Goose 
 Lake country to Yreka, Cal., arriving September 
 20, 1854. They were there compelled to pay $1 
 each night for the privilege of spreading their 
 blankets out on the floor under the dining room 
 table of a hotel. Their first week at mining was 
 one of severe toil and brought them in only $9; 
 they were more fortunate the second week and 
 made $150 each. Until November, 1858, Mr. 
 Pratt engaged in placer mining, meeting with a 
 success which justified his long continuance in 
 the work. Returning to Missouri in the last- 
 named year by way of the Isthmus of Tehuante- 
 pec (being the second party that ever made the 
 trip in that way, as after about three parties had 
 passed over the route the natives resisted so 
 strenuously it ceased to be a passage to the west). 
 Mr. Pratt remained in the middle west until 
 April, 1859. Getting together a herd of one hun- 
 dred and fifty cattle he, with others, drove them 
 across the plains to Honey lake, Lassen county, 
 where he established a ranch. On the 24th of 
 November of that year he married and located 
 upon his property, where he continued to farm 
 and raise stock until 1861. He then went to Vir- 
 ginia City, Nev., and engaged in the dairy busi- 
 ness for one year, then located at Fremont Bend, 
 Yolo county, Cal., where he engaged again in the 
 stock business. The flood of 1862 brought him 
 financial ruin in the drowning of stock and the 
 death of those that escaped the water, and after 
 this disaster he followed grain farming for two 
 years. Locating in Yuba county, six miles from 
 Marysville, he entered government land and in 
 time owned five hundred and twenty acres which 
 were devoted to general farming and stock-rais- 
 ing for about seven years. In 1881 he sold out 
 this property at auction and removed to Tulare 
 county, where he had four hundred and eighty 
 acres adjoining Visalia. He here engaged in the 
 raising of cattle and hogs, and also conducted a 
 dairy. He bought adjoining property until he 
 now owns eight hundred acres, under fence, and 
 well improved in the way of buildings and general 
 
572 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 equipments. He built a fine residence on the 
 home place and established two fine dairies which 
 he now rents, and for some time was interested 
 in the first creamery established here, giving no 
 small effort toward its upbuilding. His property 
 is under irrigation, much of the land being given 
 over to the raising of alfalfa. 
 
 The wife of Mr. Pratt was formerly Mary J. 
 Jones, a native of Tennessee, who crossed the 
 plams with her father and located in Lassen 
 county. They are the parents of the following 
 children : George, a carpenter in Visalia ; Laura, 
 the wife of T. E. Hayes, a farmer in this vicin- 
 ity ; Thomas H., who conducts the dairy on this 
 place ; Frances, the wife of E. S. Nichols, of this 
 vicinity; Willis L., Jr., a farmer and dairyman; 
 Joseph, on the home place; and Lillie, the wife 
 of L. J. McWilliams. In his fraternal relations 
 Mr. Pratt is associated with the Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen, and politically is a true-blue 
 Republican, having cast his first ballot for Fre- 
 mont in 1856. He is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 MISS AMANDA O. SWANSON. The 
 Swanson family is widely known and honored in 
 Tulare county, where John Swanson, the grand- 
 father of Miss Swanson, built the first irriga- 
 tion ditch. He came to California in 1849, cross- 
 ing the plains, and upon his arrival in the state 
 followed mining in Tuolumne county, near Gold 
 Hill. In 1 85 1 he went east via Panama, and af- 
 ter disposing of his holdings, returned with his 
 family, consisting of his wife, Hannah, and their 
 children. He took up eighteen hundred acres of 
 land in Tulare county, in what is now known 
 as the Lemon Cove country, where he was a suc- 
 cessful pioneer, inheriting the sturdy traits of 
 character which distinguish the natives of Eng- 
 land, from which country his father had immi- 
 grated to America. 
 
 Coming to California with his parents in 1852, 
 Aaron Swanson was reared and educated in this 
 state. He has followed farming all his life, and 
 now owns three hundred and twenty acres near 
 Lindsay, upon which he is engaged in general 
 farming. Personally he is a man of strong char- 
 acter and progressive ideas, keeping abreast of the 
 times. His wife, formerly Mary N. Fletcher, was 
 a native of La Salle county, 111., and a daughter 
 of William P. Fletcher, a native of Virginia and 
 a descendant of Scotch-Irish ancestry. When six- 
 teen years of age William P. Fletcher removed 
 to Illinois and located in Jo Daviess county, where 
 he found employment in the lead mines. Dur- 
 ing the Black Hawk war he served under General 
 Dodge, after which he located within six miles 
 of Freeport. He remained in Illinois until 1850, 
 when he came to California and engaged in min- 
 
 ing for three years. Returning to Illinois in that 
 year, he remained a short time, when he located 
 in Iowa, near Leon, and followed farming. In 
 1862 he crossed the plains and settled in Tulare 
 county, purchasing land on Deep creek, near Vis- 
 alia, where he established a comfortable home. 
 Later he located in Washington, in which state 
 his death occurred at the age of eighty-one years. 
 His wife, formerly Narcissa Swanson, a native of 
 Ohio, died in Oregon. They left a family of 
 seven children, of whom three only are now liv- 
 ing, ]\lrs. Swanson being the only one left in 
 this vicinity. To Mr. and Mrs. Swanson were 
 born five children, of whom two attained ma- 
 turity. Of these Willard became a stockman in 
 Tulare county, but is now deceased, his death 
 having occurred in Chicago in 1898. 
 
 The only living child of her parents, Amanda 
 O. Swanson is a native of Tulare county, and 
 has spent her entire life within its borders. In 
 1892 she began improvements upon her prop- 
 erty, purchasing twenty acres of land-, which was 
 immediately sown to alfalfa. Meeting with a 
 success in her efforts, she has since purchased 
 land adjoining, now owning one hundred and 
 fifty acres two miles east of Tulare, of which 
 seventy acres are under alfalfa. The entire prop- 
 erty is under irrigation, and her interests are 
 largely centered in stock-raising. Miss Swanson 
 has won more than local renown for her success 
 as an agriculturist, and especially for the pro- 
 gressive and up-to-date methods which have char- 
 acterized her efforts. She is prominent in local 
 societies, being a charter member and past of- 
 ficer of the Women of Woodcraft, and also be- 
 longs to the Tulare Grange. She is progres- 
 sive in her views, believing with many others that 
 poHtics would be elevated to a higher plane, that 
 woman's best interests would be conserved, and 
 the country a happier and better place, if jus- 
 tice and equality were accorded to all. 
 
 JOSEPH ELLSWORTH TILTON. To Jo- 
 seph Ellsworth Tilton, who has been a resident 
 of the Golden state for an unbroken period of 
 forty-four years, belongs the distinction of hav- 
 ing propagated the Tilton apricot, one of the most 
 successfully grown varieties in the whole of Kings 
 county. Although now well advanced in years, 
 Mr. Tilton oversees affairs on his fruit ranch, 
 located four and a half miles northwest of Han- 
 ford, in Kings county. Born in Noble county, 
 Ohio, December 6, 1834, his iDoyhood days were 
 spent on a farm, and he was educated in the 
 common schools of his locality. At twenty-one 
 he began teaching as a profession and taught 
 four terms in the vicinity of his home. He con- 
 tinued to teach during the winter and farm dur- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 573 
 
 ing the summer until i860, going that year to 
 California, by the Panama route. 
 
 In the far west, he spent the first five years 
 of his residence in Solano county, teaching dur- 
 ing the winter months and following ranching 
 during the summer months, renting land until 
 1877. During that year he, like many others, 
 took advantage of the special inducements open 
 to settlers in Kings county, then TuTare, and he 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres of rail- 
 road land from the Southern Pacific Company, 
 near Grangeville. Here he farmed until 1880, 
 raising grain mostly. He then set out fruit or- 
 chards as an experiment. In the meantime he 
 rented the place which is now his home, and ac- 
 cording to the conditions he was to plant and 
 cultivate an eighty-acre tract, realizing for his 
 trouble thirty acres after the first crop. He 
 planted the thirty acres so obtained in fruit and 
 vines. Having subsequently lost his place near 
 Grangeville, he removed to his present home in 
 1895. He now has fifteen acres in fruit and an 
 equal amount of land in alfalfa, and he ranks 
 among the most progressive and practical agri- 
 culturists in his locality. A stanch adherent to 
 the Republican party, he served two terms as one 
 of the horticultural commissioners of Kings 
 county. Fraternally he is allied with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen. 
 
 By his marriage in Solano county in 1866, Mr. 
 Tilton was united with Elizabeth Reeve, daugh- 
 ter of George Reeve, a native of England and a 
 California pioneer of 1849. Six children were 
 born to them, the three eldest being daughters, 
 named Addie T., Josephine T. and iVIary Jane ; 
 and the three youngest being sons, Franklin E., 
 George L. and John Wesley. The sons are all 
 engaged in fruit ranching near Lemoore, Kings 
 county. The youngest daughter died at the early 
 age of eighteen years. Addie T. married M. D. 
 Robinson, a prosperous rancher near Grangeville, 
 and Josephine T. wedded G. H. Rogers, also a 
 rancher in Kings county. In religion Mrs. Til- 
 ton is an Adventist, and Mr. Tilton a Methodist. 
 Both are highly esteemed by their associates and 
 neighbors and are influential in' their immediate 
 community. 
 
 THOMAS CALVERT CARRUTHERS. 
 Public-spirited, enterprising and progressive, 
 Tliomas C. Carruthers has laeen actively identi- 
 fied with the industrial, social and political ad- 
 vancement of Tulare for nearly four decades, 
 and in the growth and development of city and 
 county has given substantial aid. The leading 
 undertaker of this section of the state, he is 
 thoroughly skilled in the art of embalming, and 
 his services are in demand wherever e'special 
 care and efficiency are needed. A son of John 
 
 Carruthers, Jr., he was born, January 12, 1845, 
 in Ogdensburg, N. Y., coming from honored 
 Scotch ancestry, tracing his descent from the an- 
 cient family of "Caer Rythers," who were promi- 
 nent in the eleventh century. His grandfather, 
 John Carruthers, Sr., emigrated from Scotland 
 to Canada, settling in Ontario, where he con- 
 tinued in business the remaining years of his 
 life. 
 
 A native of Scotland, John Carruthers, Jr., 
 was born and reared in I3umfries-shire, living 
 there until after his marriage. Immigrating 
 then to America, he settled near Ogdensburg, N. 
 Y., but afterward removed to Prescott, Ontario, 
 where he purchased land, and having improved a 
 good farm, continued as an agriculturist, meet- 
 ing with good success in his chosen occupation. 
 He married Mary Calvert, who was born in 
 Scotland, and died in Ontario. Of the six chil- 
 dren that blessed their union, four are living, 
 Thomas C, of this review, being the youngest, 
 and the only resident of California. 
 
 At the age of "sixteen years, having completed 
 the course of study in the public schools of Pres- 
 cott, Ontario, Thomas C. Carruthers began 
 learning the miller's trade, serving an apprentice- 
 ship of three years in the nearby town of Morris- 
 burg. Going from there to Sharon, Ba., he fol- 
 lowed his trade there until 1864, when he started 
 for California, coming by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, and arriving in the month of April. 
 Proceeding to Nevada City, he was employed in 
 mining and prospecting for about three months. 
 Luck being against him, Mr. Carruthers located 
 in Sacrarnento, and for a time worked at his 
 trade in the Pioneer Mills, being head miller. He 
 subsequently bought the Healdsburg Mills, 
 which he operated successfully, and later built 
 the Alhambra Mill, on Putah creek, in Lake 
 county, that being a burr mill, run by water 
 power. Going thence to Santa Rosa, Mr. Car- 
 ruthers, in partnership with J. Mather, bought 
 the Santa Rosa Mills, which they rebuilt, putting 
 in machinery for manufacturing flour by the roll- 
 er process, and there carried on a substantial 
 business for a number of seasons. Coming to 
 Tulare in 1886, Mr. Carruthers, in company with 
 the Bowles Brothers, erected the Tulare Mills, 
 fitting them up with steam power and rollers, and 
 ran them for two years. Disposing of his inter- 
 est in the mills in 1888, he embarked in the furni- 
 ture and undertaking business, becoming junior 
 member of the firm of Black & Carruthers. 
 
 In 1892 Mr. Carruthers bought out his partner, 
 and carried on the business alone until 1894. 
 when he sold the furniture business to the firm of 
 Wheeler & Johnson, and has since devoted his 
 entire attention to undertaking, for which he 
 perfected himself by taking a complete course in 
 embalniing. The Republican candidate m 1898 
 
574 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for county coroner, Mr. Carruthers was elected 
 by a plurality over the other two candidates, 
 and served in that capacity from January, 1899, 
 until January, 1903. For eight years he was one 
 of the school trustees; and for the past eight 
 years has been a member of the city council. 
 
 September 25, 1873, in Healdsburg, Cal., Mr. 
 Carruthers married Belle Heizer, and they have 
 one child living, Grace, wife of J. F. Harding, 
 of Salt Lake City, Utah. Robert Heizer, Mrs. 
 Carruther's father, came from old Virginia to 
 California in 1853, crossing the plains with ox- 
 teams, and being six months en route, bringmg 
 with him his wife and three children. He lo- 
 cated in Solano county, near Vacaville, where 
 he carried on farming for many years; he died 
 in Tulare, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Car- 
 ruthers, with whom he spent the last few months 
 of his life. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Susan Hunter, was born in Virginia and died in 
 Healdsburg, Cal. Politicallv Mr. Carruthers is 
 a stanch supporter of the principles promulgated 
 by the Republican party. Fraternally he be- 
 longs to Olive Branch Lodge No. 269, F. & A. 
 M., having demitted from Santa Rosa Lodge; 
 to Tulare Chapter, R. A. M. ; to the Ancient Or- 
 der of United Workmen ; to the Independent Or- 
 der of Foresters; and to Tulare Chapter, O. E. 
 S. In 1904 Mr. Carruthers made a trip to the 
 eastern states and Canada, visiting his old home, 
 and renewing acquaintances with old friends, 
 while on the journey taking in the St. Louis Ex- 
 position. Success-ful in his ventures, Mr. Car- 
 ruthers has through his own efforts acquired 
 some property in Tulare county. 
 
 HENRY C. HEITZEG. Noteworthy among 
 the most active and esteemed citizens of Tulare 
 is Henry C. Heitzeg, who has been prominently 
 identified with the development and prosperity 
 of this section of Tulare county, and, as oppor- 
 tunity has offered, has given his influence and 
 encouragement to the establishment of enter- 
 prises conducive to the public welfare. Of thrifty 
 German ancestry, he was born, March 30, 1859, 
 in Freeborn county, Minn., a son of William 
 Heitzeg. 
 
 A native of Hanover, Germany, William Heit- 
 zeg immigrated to the United States, hoping in 
 this land of plenty to more quickly establish him- 
 self as a householder. Locating in Freeborn 
 county, Minn., he was employed in agricultural 
 pursuits for a few years. Removing to Fari- 
 bault county, that state, in 1859, he entered land, 
 and by dint of persevering labor improved a 
 farm, on which he resided until his death, at the 
 age of sixty-four years. Loyal to his adopted 
 country, he enlisted in a Minnesota regiment, in 
 1863, and served until the Sioux outbreak was 
 
 quelled. . He married Elizabeth Ewald, who was 
 born in Hanover, Germany, and now resides in 
 Tulare. Of the nine children born of their 
 union, eight grew to years of maturity, and 
 seven are now living, four being residents of 
 California, one of Arizona, and two of Minne- 
 sota. One son, Aaron, is a blacksmith in Coal- 
 inga, and another son, John, is a stockman in 
 Delano. 
 
 At the age of sixteen years, having acquired 
 the rudiments of his education in the district 
 schools of Faribault county, Minn., Henry C, 
 Heitzeg went to Freeborn county, where, by 
 working as a farm laborer, he paid his way 
 through the Albert Lea High School, taking the 
 full course of four years. Returning to Faribault 
 county he embarked in agricultural pursuits on 
 his own account, locating near Banks, where he 
 had the management of two farms. Removing to 
 Wells, Minn., Mr. Heitzeg engaged in the har- 
 ness business there in 1886, and continued for 
 about five years, when, on account of ill health, 
 he was advised by his physician to come to the 
 Pacific coast. Arriving in Tulare on March 12, 
 1 89 1, he soon began to feel the beneficial effects 
 of the mild climate, and within a month thought 
 himself well enough to work. Returning to Min- 
 nesota to settle up his business affairs, Mr. Heit- 
 zeg remained there seven months, and in the 
 meantime lost thirty-six pounds of flesh. Con- 
 cluding that California was the place for him, 
 he came back to Tulare and started in the butcher 
 business as senior member of the firm of Heitzeg 
 & Dreblow. A short time later he bought out 
 the interest of his partner, and continued alone 
 until April i, 1898, when he formed a partner- 
 ship with John R. Hitchcock, the firm name be- 
 ing Hitchcock & Heitzeg. Locating on Kern 
 street, the firm built up a large and- lucrative 
 wholesale and retail trade in meats of all kinds, 
 and carried on a substantial business as stock 
 raisers and dealers, managing both successfully 
 until June 28, 1903, when Mr. Heitzeg, owing to 
 the pressure of other business, sold his interest 
 to his partner. 
 
 In February, 1903, Mr. Heitzeg was elected 
 a director of the Tulare Irrigation District, 
 which worked with the Bond Liquidating Com- 
 mittee, and soon found that if he accomplished 
 the work necessitated by his position he must 
 give it his entire attention. Therefore, after 
 selling out to Mr. Hitchcock, he attempted Ae 
 almost Herculean task of raising the entire 
 amount of money needed to pay in full the Irri- 
 gation bonds and the accrued interest, a sum 
 amounting to $670,000, although the directors 
 had previously made arrangements to settle for 
 fifty cents on a dollar. In order to do this, Mr. 
 Heitzeg personally interviewed the property 
 owners, many of whom resided in different 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 57? 
 
 places, including San Francisco, Oakland, 
 Alameda and Stockton, securing their support 
 to an equalized assessment. He was one of the 
 most active workers in securing the needed 
 money, which was collected and paid in full by 
 October i, 1903, in San Francisco. On return- 
 ing to Tulare from that city Mr. Heitzeg was ap- 
 pointed one of the committee to solicit funds for 
 a grand celebration and jollification in Tulare, 
 and without any trouble soon had $3,800 col- 
 lected for that purpose. At the celebration, Oc- 
 tober 17, 1903, the day and night fireworks were 
 the most magnificent ever seen in the state, and 
 the celebration one long to be remembered by 
 every participant, although its joy was dimmed by 
 the deplorable death of City Marshal George Mar- 
 tin by William Janes. Mr. Heitzeg subsequently 
 bought land near the Bayou, and has checked 
 and irrigated it. He has now four hundred and 
 forty acres of land lying five miles south of 
 Tulare, one hundred and seventy-five acres of 
 which are sowed to alfalfa, the remainder being 
 devoted to farming, grazing and stock-raising. 
 
 In Faribault county, Minn., Mr. Heitzeg mar- 
 ried Addie M. Payne, who was born in Cohoes, 
 N. Y., and was reared and educated in Faribault, 
 Minn., where her parents settled in 1867. Her 
 father was a farmer by occupation, both in New 
 York and in Faribault, but subsequently became 
 a merchant and hotelkeeper at Rice Lake, Minn. 
 Two children have been born of the union of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Heitzeg. George, who lived but eight 
 months; and Robert L. Politically Mr. Heitzeg 
 is a straightforward Republican, and takes an 
 intelligent interest in public affairs. 
 
 WILLIAM H. BLAIN. Fifty years of pio- 
 neer life have brought to William H. Blain a 
 success which numbers him prominently among 
 the men of the early day, as he came to California 
 in 1854 with only twenty-five cents with which 
 to start the fortune which is now his. As well as 
 winning financial returns Mr. Blain is justly con- 
 sidered one of the best-informed men on the 
 stock question in the San Joaquin valley, becom- 
 ing thoroughly conversant with it through his 
 wide experience. Born in Pike county, Mo., 
 twelve miles from Bowling Green, January 3, 
 1839, he was the son of W. W. Blain, a native 
 of Virginia and an early settler of Missouri. The 
 latter engaged as a brick manufacturer, a mason 
 and cooper in Bowling Green, and also conducted 
 a hotel m that city, known as the Blain hotel, 
 which he himself built of brick. In 1844 he also 
 completed the court house in that city. Until his 
 retirement he was engaged in the hotel business, 
 after which he continued his residence there until 
 his death. His wife, formerly Ann Turner, of 
 Virginia, died in Hannibal, Mo. Of their family 
 
 of nine children six are now living, and two came 
 to California. The oldest daughter married Hugh 
 Jones, a retired pioneer of 1849, having made 
 the trip to the coast with her brother. She died 
 in Gilroy. 
 
 The second child in his father's family, William 
 H. Blain was reared in Bowling Green, receiv- 
 ing his education in the public schools, then of so 
 primitive a character that but scant knowledge 
 could be obtained through a limited attendance. 
 He also learned the stock business to some extent 
 while a resident of his native state, his first trip 
 across the plains in 1854 being made with a drove 
 . of cattle. He was then but fifteen years' old, yet 
 he took a man's place in standing guard and in 
 all the other duties that fell to the members of 
 the company. They left Missouri on the 20th 
 of April, 1854, and arrived in Santa Clara in 
 October, their journey having been made to Sub- 
 lett's Cut-off, thence down the Humboldt by way 
 of the Thousand Springs valley to Walker's, 
 thence to Tuolumne county, Cal., this route being 
 selected in order to have feed for their cattle, as 
 there was but little travel that way. Mr. Blain 
 was located near Santa Clara until December of 
 the same year, when he went to Monterey county 
 (now San Benito), where he conducted a stock 
 ranch for one year. Returning to Santa Qara, 
 he engaged in farming on shares until 1857, when 
 he went to Tuolumne county and engaged in 
 hauling lumber. Locating again in Monterey 
 county, he undertook the raising of cattle on 
 shares, being located in Pacheco Pass. He sold 
 out in 1863 and in June of that year drove 
 through to Visalia, Tulare county, and engaged 
 in teaming to the mountains until the spring of 
 1865, spending his first winter in Wilcox canon. 
 In 1865 he began the sheep business, in which 
 he continued profitably for four years, at the end 
 of that period going to White Pine, Nev., where 
 he opened and conducted a butcher shop, later 
 following the same occupation in Eureka. Re- 
 turning to Visalia in 1873, he opened a butcher 
 shop here and for many years continued in this 
 occupation. In conjunction he carried on an ex- 
 tensive cattle business, having at one time six 
 hundred head. He owns an improved cattle 
 ranch of thirteen hundred and twenty acres li^ar 
 Monson, Tulare county, on Cottonwood creek; 
 three hundred and fifty acres three and a half 
 miles northeast of Visalia, devoted principally to 
 the cultivation of alfalfa and to stock-raising; 
 about five thousand acres in -the foothills of this 
 county, all fenced and devoted to stock-raising; 
 one hundred and sixty acres seven miles east of 
 Visalia, and a handsome residence in Visalia. 
 For a time he also engaged in the dairy business, 
 but abandoned this later and continued alone in 
 stock-raising. 
 
 In Santa Cruz Mr. Blain married Sarah Col- 
 
His 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lier, and they became the parents of two children 
 who are now Hving, Mrs. Laura Zimmerman of 
 Tiburon, Cal, and William, a resident of Bakers- 
 field. In Visalia Mr. Blain was united in mar- 
 riage with Julia Strube, a native of Texas, who 
 crossed the plains about 1861 and located in 
 Visalia. They became the parents of four chil- 
 dren : Frank L., in partnership with his father ; 
 George William, deceased; Gladys and Mar- 
 guerite, the two last at home. Mr. Blain is a 
 stockholder in the First National Bank of Visalia, 
 and in various ways demonstrates his strong in- 
 terest in the upbuilding of the city and com- 
 munity. He is a member of the Independent- 
 Order of Good Templars, of which he is past 
 officer, and the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men. In the organization and upbuilding of the 
 San Joaquin Valley Cattle Growers' Association 
 Mr. Blain took an active and helpful part. In 
 religious affiliations the family attend the Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 JAMES M. SLINKARD. An enterprising 
 farmer, James M. Slinkard is successfully en- 
 gaged in the dairy business three miles south of 
 Tulare. A native of the state, he was born in 
 Mariposa county, March 12, 1861, a son of J. M. 
 Slinkard, Sr. The latter was born in Arkansas, 
 in which state he grew to manhood and married, 
 engaging in agricultural pursuits as a means of 
 livelihood. Deciding to immigrate to the more 
 remote west, he crossed the plains in 1852, bring- 
 ing with him his wife and two children, and on 
 the Gila river another child was born, a daughter, 
 whom they called Melvina Gila. Coming by the 
 southern route, they reached California after a 
 six-months trip, and after disposing of their 
 stock, took passage on a boat bound for San 
 Francisco. From that city they went to Stock- 
 ton, thence to Mariposa county, where Mr. Slink- 
 ard engaged in mining for many years. He met 
 with sufficient success to justify his long con- 
 tinuance in the work, but later located on Bear 
 creek, Merced county, and engaged in grain 
 farming and stock-raising. In 1869 he came to 
 Tulare county and followed the same occupation 
 until his accidental death, which was caused by 
 the brake on his wagon giving way. This oc- 
 curred October 27, 1899, when he was seventy- 
 three years old. His wife, formerly Harriet Rob- 
 erts, made her home with her children and died 
 at the home of her son, James M., January 7, 
 1905. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Slinkard were born nine 
 children, of whom Richard J. died at Deer creek. 
 Hot Springs ; William J. is located on a ranch 
 at Lincoln, Cal. ; Melvina Gila is the wife of 
 B. H. Klein, of White River, Cal.; Charles M. 
 died in 1876; Mollie A. is the wife of J. A. Nor- 
 
 vell, of Merced; J. M. is the subject of this re- 
 view ; A. Newton is located in Modoc county, 
 Cal. ; Annetta, the wife of Charles Peim, died in 
 Washington ; and John A. died at the age of 
 eleven years. 
 
 James M. Slinkard remained at home with his 
 father until he was twenty-one years old, in 
 youth attending the district schools of Merced 
 county, where he spent his first eight years, and 
 those of Tulare county. He followed farming 
 in young manhood, at twenty-three years of age 
 renting a farm on Tule river, where he engaged 
 in grain raising. Locating on the property where 
 he now resides he has since carried on general 
 farming and dairying, being engaged in the lat- 
 ter business only since 1900. Of the four hun- 
 dred and seventy-one acres which he operates 
 along the Southern Pacific Railroad, twenty 
 acres are in fruit, eighty-five acres are in alfalfa, 
 while the balance is given over to pastures and 
 grain. All of this land can be irrigated in the 
 Tulare Irrigation District, of which he has been 
 a director since 1895. In 1897 he was elected 
 president, which office he has since held, working 
 with indefatigable energy to devise means to pay 
 off banks, traveling throughout the county mak- 
 ing collections. October 17, 1903, he had the 
 pleasure of watching the burning of the bonds. 
 For all that he has .accomplished in this work 
 Mr. Slinkard merits the high esteem in which he 
 is universally held. 
 
 In 1885, in Visalia, Mr. Slinkard was united 
 in marriage with Mrs. Ella M. (Churchill) Ayer, 
 a native of Illinois, and the daughter of Zenas 
 Churchill, a pioneer farmer of Cahfornia. Mrs. 
 Slinkard was the widow of Charles S. Ayer. 
 They settled on eighty acres of land on Tule 
 river eight miles southeast of Tulare, where Mr. 
 Ayer died. Before his death he and his wife 
 negotiated for the purchase of the property where 
 Mr. and Mrs. Slinkard now reside, and upon 
 which Mr. SHnkard has put the present improve- 
 ments. In his political affiliations Mr. Slinkard 
 is a stanch Democrat. Fraternally he is a mem- 
 ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
 of Tulare, where he was first admitted to the 
 organization, and of which he served ^two terms 
 as noble grand. He also belongs to the Encamp- 
 ment, of which he is past chief patriarch; the 
 Rebekahs ; Woodmen of the World ; and the Im- 
 proved Order of Red Men. 
 
 THOMAS BLADES is known throughout 
 Tulare county as a successful stockman, and a 
 citizen of broad and liberal ideas fostered by 
 travel and contact with the world. He was born 
 in Lincolnshire, England, April 29, 1853, the 
 second in a family of seven children, of whom 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 579 
 
 only four are now living, he being the only one 
 in California. His parents, Henry and Mary 
 (Lincoln) Blades, were both natives of the same 
 place, where the death of both occurred. His 
 father being a farmer, Thomas Blades was reared 
 to the practical duties of a farmer's son, attend- 
 ing the public schools of England until eighteen 
 years old. In 1871 he came to America and lo- 
 cated in Pontiac, Mich., finding employment on 
 a farm until 1875. In March of that year he 
 came to California for the sake of a milder cH- 
 mate, locating at Riverside, where he bought six 
 acres within the city limits, consisting of two 
 blocks near the center of the city. This he set 
 out to lemons. He also bought ten acres near 
 Riverside and engaged in horticultural pursuits, 
 but gave the most of his attention to the River- 
 side Land & Water Company. In 1887 he sold 
 this property and located in Tulare, accepting the 
 position of superintendent in the construction of 
 the irrigation system for the Tulare Irrigation 
 District, also acting as superintendent in the con- 
 struction of canals and ditches until completed 
 and ready for running water. He then took a 
 trip to the World's Fair, thence to the West In- 
 dies, traveling over Cuba and acting as inter- 
 preter for the Costa Rica government,' as he 
 speaks the Spanish language fluently. For two 
 years Mr. Blades continued his travels, spending 
 considerable time in Central America and on 
 the Isthmus of Panama but eventually returned 
 to Tulare county, having found no climate more 
 desn-able than this. Upon his second location in 
 this county he engaged in buying and selHng 
 cattle, locating on a fine farm, where he raises 
 high grade Durham cattle. Mr. Blades has been 
 connected with the Elk Bayou Ditch Company 
 for some time, acting as director until 1904, when 
 he resigned from the ofHce. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. Blades married Mrs. Elmira 
 Love, a native of Petersburg, 111. She is a mem- 
 ber of the Episcopal Church. Mr. Blades is a 
 stanch Republican in his political convictions, but 
 as a citizen of the community gives his most 
 earnest support to all movements calculated to ad- 
 vance the general welfare regardless of party 
 restrictions. 
 
 JAMES HENRY CLAY McFARLAND. 
 Prominent among the successful citizens of Tu- 
 lare county, Mr. McFarland occupies a place of 
 importance as a horticulturist, as well as rancher 
 and stockman. In 1891 he purchased his present 
 property, consisting of eighty acres located four 
 miles south of Tulare, and he has since devoted 
 his time and attention to its improvement and 
 cultivation. Born in Springfield, Mo., August 
 19, 1849, he is the youngest, child in a family of 
 three sons and five daughters, all of whom at- 
 
 tamed maturity though only five are now living 
 H:s grandfather, Jacob McFarland, a native of 
 North Carohna, took his family to Cooper coun- 
 ty, Mo., in which state William McFarland, the 
 father of James H. C. McFarland, spent the re- 
 mainder of his life. In manhood he followed the 
 occupation^, to which he had early been trained, 
 becoming a farmer and stockman dR property lo- 
 cated five miles from Springfield, where his death 
 occurred in 1863. In his political affiliations he 
 was a stanch Whig and a supporter of the Union; 
 and upon the breaking out of the Civil war he 
 organized the first Home Guards in the county. 
 His wife was in maidenhood Martha Roberts, a 
 native of East Tennessee, whose father John Rob- 
 erts, took the family to Missouri, locating first 
 in Cooper county and later in Springfield, where 
 his death occurred. Mrs. McFarland died in 
 1880. Of her three sons all volunteered their 
 services to the Union : George, now a resident of 
 Springfield, serving in a Missouri regiment ; John, 
 also a resident of Springfield, serving in the 
 Eighth Missouri Cavalry; while James Henry 
 Clay McFarland, no more than a lad in years, 
 was mustered into service in the Fourteenth Mis- 
 souri Cavalry, in Company F, at Springfield, in 
 March, 1865. 
 
 James Henry Clay McFarland was reared to 
 young manhood upon his father's farm in Mis- 
 souri, attending the district school until taking 
 up the duties of manhood, which came early in 
 the pioneer days. After his enlistment for serv- 
 ice as a soldier his regiment was sent west for 
 frontier duty against the Indians in western Kan- 
 sas, Colorado and New Mexico. A battle was 
 fought at Salt river with the Cheyennes and 
 Comanches, who were defeated, the army con- 
 tinuing in that location until the government 
 made a treaty on the site of Wichita, Kans. In 
 November, 1865, Mr. McFarland was mustered 
 out of service at Fort Leavenworth, being dis- 
 charged at St. Louis. Then just a little more 
 than seventeen years old he returned to school for 
 a time, shortly afterward beginning farming and 
 stock-raising for himself. He located upon a 
 farm of «ghty acres five miles from Springfield, 
 and conducted the same with success until 1887, 
 when he came to California and located in Tulare 
 county. In 1891 he purchased his present prop- 
 erty, the first purchase consisting of twenty acrps, 
 to which he later added sixty acres. Twenty-nine 
 acres of this property are in orchard and forty- 
 five in alfalfa. Until recently he engaged in the 
 dairy business, but this interest he has now dis- 
 posed of. In addition to this ranch he owns 
 three hundred and twenty acres of the bayou 
 three miles from Tulare, used for stock-raising. 
 
 Near Springfield, Mo., Mr. McFarland was 
 tmited in marriage with Martha Wharton, a na- 
 tive of Greene county. Mo., and daughter of 
 
580 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 Emsley Wharton, who moved from North Caro- 
 lina to Missouri as an early settler and there his 
 death occurred. During the Civil war he served 
 in the Eighth Missouri Cavalry, U. S. A. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. McFarland have been born two 
 children, Clara, the wife of W. C. Abercrombie, 
 of Tulare, and Charles, engaged in stock-raising 
 and dairying osix miles south of TuTare. Mrs. 
 McFarland is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church. In his political convictions Mr. 
 McFarland holds himself independent of party 
 restrictions, giving his support to the man whom 
 he considers best qualified for pubhc office. 
 
 GEORGE HEIDT. Actively identified with 
 the agricultural interests of Tulare county is 
 George Heidt, whose well-conducted farm lies 
 about six miles northwest of the city of Tulare. 
 Energetic, industrious, and possessing excellent 
 business qualities, he has been uniformly suc- 
 cessful in his labors, giving to whatever he has 
 attempted his best efforts, and from a modest be- 
 ginning has advanced to a good position, both 
 socially and financially, among his fellowmen. A 
 native of New York, he was born, October 17, 
 1856, near Pike Pond, now Kenoza Lake, Sulli- 
 van county, being the youngest child of Peter 
 and Mary Heidt, who emigrated from Germany 
 to the United States, settling on a farm in Sul- 
 livan county, N. Y. 
 
 Brought up on a farm, George Heidt attend- 
 ed the district school as a boy and youth, in the 
 meantime becoming familiar with agricultural 
 pursuits. Aftei: the death of his father, which 
 occurred when George was seventeen years old, 
 he was practically thrown upon his own re- 
 sources, from that time becoming self-supporting. 
 With his brother Edward he went to Pennsyl- 
 vania, where for two years he was employed in 
 getting out tan bark by contract. Returning to 
 his old home, he worked there until April, 1877, 
 when, in search of better opportunities for ad- 
 vancing his financial condition, he came from 
 the Atlantic coast to the Pacific coast, locating 
 first in San Francisco. Securing employment 
 as a wood chopper in San Mateo county, Mr. 
 Heidt also worked for a Mr. Sweat for a time, 
 and was subsequently in the employ of A. Fay, a 
 dairyman, for five years. Industrious and thrif- 
 ty, Mr. Heidt invested his savings in land, com- 
 ing to Tulare county in 1882 and buying his 
 present farm. The season proving a dry one, he 
 went back to the coast, and during the summer 
 worked in a lumber mill. Taking possession of 
 his ranch in the spring of 1883, Mr. Heidt began 
 its improvement, and succeeded in raising a 
 good crop. The same year, having irrigated his 
 land, he began to raise alfalfa, which he has 
 since continued. For a number of seasons Mr. 
 
 Heidt worked as a wage-earner on the coast, put- 
 ting the money that he thus obtained in farm 
 improvements, one year running a farm in San 
 Mateo county. He has two hundred and twenty- 
 seven acres of land in his ranch, forty acres of 
 which he has sowed to alfalfa, the remainder, 
 with the exception of a good-bearing family or- 
 chard, being devoted to grain and pasturage. He 
 pays much attention to stock-raising and dairy- 
 ing, and is a stockholder in the Tulare Roch- 
 dale Association and the Co-Operative Milling 
 Company. 
 
 In San Mateo, Cal., Mr. Heidt married Laura 
 Moore, a native of this state, and into their 
 pleasant household nine children have been born, 
 all of whom are living at home, namely : Charles, 
 Ella, George, Frederick, Elmer, Lester, Albert, 
 Elsie and Mary. Politically Mr. Heidt is a strong 
 adherent of the Republican party, and has ren- 
 dered good service a number of terms as school 
 trustee, serving in both the Enterprise district 
 and in San Mateo. Fraternally he belongs to 
 Tulare City Lodge, I. O. O. F. 
 
 WILLIAM MOSES MUNSON. The name 
 of William Moses Munson takes high rank 
 among the extensive wheat and barley raisers of 
 Stanislaus county. Operating upon leased land 
 two thousand acres in extent, this honored pro- 
 moter of a great western resource evidences pro- 
 found knowledge of his chosen calling, having de- 
 voted years to the study of soil and other requi- 
 sites for its successful carrying on. His ranch 
 has the finest equipment known to modern grain 
 raisers, and his home and family represent the 
 highest type of community well-being which en- 
 nobles the western slope. _A native son of Cali- 
 fornia, Mr. Munson comes of a family numer- 
 ously identified with the coast, and established 
 here in 1849 by his father, Charles Munson, a 
 native of Maine and part owner of the boat in 
 which he accomplished the feat of sailing around 
 the Horn with his wife. Charles Munson suc- 
 ceeded as a hotel man of French Camp, one of 
 the important early settlements of the state, and 
 eventually devoted his entire time to farming un- 
 til shortly before his death in September, 1891, 
 at the age of seventy-one. His wife, Rebecca S. 
 (Elsmore) Munson, also a native of Maine, died 
 in 1882, at the age of fifty-seven. This courage- 
 ous couple reared their seven sons on their ranch 
 in San Joaquin county, on the old French Camp 
 road. All the children were given as good a pub- 
 lic school education as the times permitted, and 
 thoroughly were trained in everything pertaining 
 to farming. 
 
 William Moses, the fifth oldest of this family, 
 engaged in ranching in San Joaquin county for 
 several years, and in 1886 became identified with 
 
'j .'^.JlMj^^' 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 583 
 
 Stanislaus county, locating on a ranch near Tur- 
 lock. In 1896 he changed to his present ranch of 
 two thousand acres six miles west of C'.ows 
 Landing, which he has since made his home, be- 
 coming one of the most prominent and influential 
 of the grain raisers of this section. Through 
 his marriage with Josephine Nicewonger, born 
 near Stockton, San Joaquin county, Mr. Munson 
 became associated with another pioneer family of 
 the state, the head of which is Levi H. Nicewong- 
 er, a native of Westmoreland county. Pa., and at 
 present living on a farm on the French Camp 
 road. Though seventy-two years of age, Mr. 
 Nicewonger is still recognized as one of the suc- 
 cessful and extensive farmers .of his neighbor- 
 hood, evidencing in mind and heart the modera- 
 tion and common sense which has characterized 
 his life. Mr. and Mrsi. Munson have an interest- 
 ing family of seven children, all living at home ; 
 namely: Mary, Frankie, Merced, William, Jose- 
 phine, Gertrude and Levi. For many years Mr. 
 Munson has influenced eaucational matters in 
 Stanislaus county, and as a school director has 
 insisted upon a high standard and competent 
 teachers. Politics have played a minor part in his 
 career, although for years a Republican, a few 
 years ago he changed his preference to the Dem- 
 ocratic party. He leads a busy and practically 
 useful life, is popular among his many friends and 
 business associates, and in his home is the jDer- 
 sonification of kindness and consideration. 
 
 OLLI SKEEN WILSON. This honored vet- 
 eran of the Mexican war is a member of a co- 
 lonial family, founded in America by John Wil- 
 son, a native of the north of Ireland, of Scotch 
 ancestry, and an immigrant to Virginia, where 
 he enlisted in the Revolutionary service. A son 
 and namesake of this Revolutionary hero was 
 born near Charleston, S. C, and became a farm- 
 er in Stokes county, N. C, where he also preached 
 in the Baptist denomination. As early as 181 5 he 
 took his family to the then wilderness of Indiana, 
 settling in Washington county, and becoming a 
 pioneer preacher on the Blue river. A tract of 
 • land that he entered and later sold for $10 an 
 acre is now a part of the city of Indianapolis. 
 Among the children born of his marriage to a 
 daughter of Lamar Skeen was a son, Joel, who 
 was born in Stokes county, N. C, and became 
 the owner of a valuable farm on the East Blue 
 river, tv/elve miles from Salem, where he died at 
 sevefity-six years. The wife of Joel Wilson bore 
 the maiden name of Elizabeth Williams, and was 
 born near Salisbury, N. C, where her father. 
 Dill Williams, an Englishman and a sailor, had 
 settled on a farm, remaining there during the 
 balance of his life. At the time of her death, 
 which occurred in Washington county, Ind., she 
 
 was seventy-eight years of age. Of her twelve 
 children only three sons and one daughter are 
 living. Three of the sons came to California, 
 namely : Olli Skeen, of Dinuba ; Ozborn Lamar, 
 a pioneer of 1849, now living at Hanford; and 
 Wylie, who resides west of Dinuba. 
 
 _ Of the twelve children the second in order of 
 birth was Olli Skeen Wilson, who was born near 
 Salem, Washington county, Ind., December 16, 
 1823, and received the meagre educational ad- 
 vantages afforded by the subscription schools of 
 early days. In 1846 he enlisted in Company D, 
 Second Indiana Infantry, and went to the south, 
 where he served under General Taylor in various 
 engagements with the Mexicans, including the 
 battle of Buena Vista. At the expiration of his 
 military service he was honorably discharged in 
 New Orleans. During his service in the war his 
 Hfe was once saved by a strange coincidence. In 
 one of his battles he carried in a pocket a purse 
 with money and a Testament. While fighting at 
 the front a ball struck him over the heart, but 
 was diverted by the Testament and thus his life 
 was spared. After his return home he engaged 
 In farming and stock-raising, also served as town- 
 ship trustee for sixteen years, and occupied a 
 position of honor among his associates. 
 
 In Jackson county, Ind., Mr. Wilson mar- 
 ried Miss Elizabeth Hamilton, who was born in 
 that state and died there in 1870. Her father, 
 James Hamilton, came from the vicinity of the 
 James river in Virginia and as early as 181 5 set- 
 tled in the sparsely inhabited regions of Indiana, 
 where he transformed a tract of raw land into a 
 well improved farm. In the family of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Wilson there were seven children, name- 
 ly : Robert Fulton ; Mrs. Theresa I. Weddle, who 
 resides in Dinuba; Rebecca F., who died at four 
 years of age; Mrs. Clara Arnold, who resides 
 near her father ; Willard, who died in Indiana in 
 1870; Sarah J., wife of Edwin Giddings, of this 
 vicinity; and Dora, who died after the removal 
 of the family to California. The eldest son, Rob- 
 ert F., was accidentally killed at Lemoore Novem- 
 ber II, 1882, by the explosion of anvils during a 
 gubernatorial celebration in the town. 
 
 After the death of his wife Mr. Wilson sold 
 his Indiana farm of four hundred and twenty 
 acres and settled up his business affairs in that 
 state. In 1874 he came to California and was 
 the pioneer settler in the northern part of Tulare 
 county, where he pre-empted one hundred and 
 sixty acres and took up a homestead of the same 
 size, on which he first engaged in grain-raising. 
 Later he laid out a vineyard of twenty acres, 
 planted an orchard, and put a large tract under 
 cultivation to alfalfa. Since then he has sold 
 sixty acres and given two hundred and thirty- 
 three aci-es to members of his family, but still 
 owns forty-five acres one-half mile south of 
 
584 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Dinuba, as well as town lots in Dinuba and a 
 residence which he rents. On his home place he 
 has a vineyard of twenty acres and an orange 
 grove of two hundred trees, as well as a field 
 of alfalfa and an orchard of assorted fruits. 
 Though retired from active cares, he still su- 
 perintends his property and in mind and body 
 retains the activity of earlier years. In na- 
 tional politics he gives his support to the Demo- 
 cratic party. 
 
 YEISER HUGH MORRIS. The rapid de- 
 velopment of the rich agricultural resources of 
 Tulare county is due to the strenuous efforts of 
 men of brain and enterprise, who bring to their 
 calling excellent judgment and superior busi- 
 ness methods. Conspicuous among this number 
 is Yeiser Hugh Morris, whose finely improved 
 ranch, located about five miles northwest of 
 Tulare, is one of the best in its appointments of 
 any in the vicinity, giving ample evidence to 
 even the most casual observer of his skill and 
 ability as a practical farmer and rural house- 
 holder. A native of old Virginia, he was born, 
 September 23, 1853, ^^^^ Scottsville, which was 
 also the birthplace of his parents, John and Lucy 
 (Cleveland) Morris. His paternal grandfather, 
 Lee Morris, a planter, served in the war of 1812, 
 after which he settled near Scottsville, Va., where 
 he spent his remaining days. His maternal 
 grandfather, William Cleveland, was also en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits in the same place. 
 
 The fifth child in a family of six children, of 
 whom three are living, Yeiser Hugh Morris grew 
 to manhood on the home farm, obtaining his 
 knowledge of books in the district school and in 
 the graded school of Scottsville, and acquiring a 
 good knowledge of agriculture under Iiis fath- 
 er's wise instructions. Beginning life on his own 
 account at the age of twenty-one years, he went 
 first to Indiana, and for three years was em- 
 ployed at different kinds of work near New Ross. 
 Desirous of seeing more of his native country, 
 Mr. Morris then proceeded westward to Tama 
 county, Iowa, locating near Toledo, where he re- 
 mained for another three years. Not entirely sat- 
 isfied with his prospects, he then journeyed to 
 Oregon, and after spending the winter in that 
 state came, in the spring of 1884, to Tulare, Cal. 
 The two ensuing years he worked as a farm 
 laborer, becoming familiar with the agricultural 
 methods employed on the Pacific coast. In 1886 
 he wisely invested his money in land, buying a 
 farm of eighty acres four miles northwest of 
 Tulare, which is devoted to grain and alfalfa. 
 Enterprising and thrifty, he at once began the 
 improvement of his property by erecting a resi- 
 dence and a set of outbuildings. In the care of 
 his land he has met with well-merited success as 
 
 a general farmer, each season raising bountiful 
 crops of grain and alfalfa, and also paying much 
 attention to dairying and stock raising, keeping a 
 fine lot of cattle and hogs. In addition to man- 
 aging this place, Mr. Morris leases the George H. 
 Ingham ranch which adjoins his place of resi- 
 dence, and consists of two hundred acres of well- 
 improved land owned by his wife. 
 
 In 1898, Mr. Morris married Mrs. Bertha 
 (Ray) Ingham, who was born in Syracuse, N. 
 Y., a daughter of Frederick Ray, who migrated 
 from the Empire State to California. Politically 
 Mr. Morris is a faithful supporter of the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party. He finds but little 
 time to give especially to public matters, but he 
 takes a keen interest in everything pertaining to 
 the advancement of the agricultural and indus- 
 trial prosperity of town and'county, and is a mem- 
 ber of the Rochdale Association ; of the Co-Oper- 
 ative Creamery Company; and of the Tulare 
 Grange. 
 
 DOMINGO GASTAMBIDE has proven 
 himself one of the successful and enterprising 
 pioneers of Merced county, in whose veins flows 
 the blood of the Latin races. On the paternal 
 side he is of Spanish ancestry. His birth oc- 
 curred in France in 1843, and his early training 
 was gained on a small farm near Sare. His 
 father, Baptiste Gastambide, moved across the 
 border upon starting out upon his independent 
 life, and there married Maria Elisalda, a native 
 of France, who bore him several children, the 
 oldest of whom is Domingo. 
 
 The first event out of the ordinary in the life 
 of Domingo Gastambide was his immigration to 
 America in 1862. Coming at once to California 
 he engaged in the butcher business in the mines 
 at Almaden. Prices were high and business was 
 good, and a year later he removed to Monterey 
 county and iDegan herding sheep. Two years 
 later he began a sheep business of his own in 
 Monterey county, and at the end of eighteen 
 months came to the west side of Merced count}- 
 and engaged in the sheep business in the foot- 
 hills, since which time his name has been identi- 
 fied with sheep raising, and he has been one of 
 the most extensive and successful in this line in 
 the county. In 1877 he entered one hundred and 
 sixty acres of government land, added to the tract 
 from time to time, and now has fourteen hun- 
 dred acres in his home ranch five miles from Los 
 Banos. Here he established a camp in the early 
 da\s. Each year has witnessed improvements on 
 his place, which is devoted entirely to sheep and 
 grain raising. Besides, he owns twenty-two hun- 
 dred acres in the foothills, on Ortigalito creek, 
 and at times has three to four thousand sheep. 
 Years of practical experience have made him one 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 585 
 
 of the best posted and most scientific farmers and 
 sheep raisers in this part of the state, and his 
 advice and counsel regarding these important re- 
 sources invariably receive the attention due his 
 sound judgment and self-earned success. 
 
 The Gastambide home is commodious, well 
 furnished throughout, and writh due regard for 
 the comfort and convenience of the happy family 
 under its roof. In San Francisco Mr. Gastam- 
 bide married Maria Etchevery, who was born in 
 France, and by this marriage four children have 
 been born : Pedro, Maria, Annie and Bertha. 
 Mr. Gastambide ranges his sympathies on the 
 side of Republicanism, and votes that ticket with 
 care and discretion. He is a member of and 
 generous contributor to the Catholic Church at 
 Volta. 
 
 GEORGE BERTCH. A successful rancher 
 and stockman of Tulare county. George Bertch 
 is located upon his property of seven hundred and 
 fifty acres nine miles west of Tulare, which has 
 been the scene of his labors since the fall of 
 1882. He was born in Baden, Germany, in 
 Lichtenau, December 11, 1841. His parents, 
 George and Saloma (Faulhauver) 'Bertch, were 
 both natives of the same place. His father, who 
 was a farmer, brought his family to America in 
 1853, locating near Buffalo, Erie county, N. Y., 
 making that place his home for m.any years, 
 eventually coming to California, where he is now 
 spending his last days at the age of ninety years. 
 The mother was burned to death in 1895, by an 
 explosion of a coal oil stove. 
 
 Of a family of ten sons and two daughters, of 
 whom five sons are living, George Bertch is the 
 oldest. Until he was twelve years old his home 
 remained in Germany, where he attended the 
 public schools. The trip to America was made 
 upon the sailing vessel Havre, and occupied forty 
 days. After the permanent location of the family 
 in Erie county, N. Y., George attended the public 
 schools for a time, but with the spirit of thrift 
 characteristic of his race he early sought and 
 found employment on neighboring farms, giving 
 to his father all that he made up to the time of 
 his tvi^entv-first birthday. In 1863 he came to 
 California by the Nicaragua route, and after a 
 long and tedious voyage landed in San Fran- 
 cisco June II, 1863. He easily found employ- 
 ment on farms in Napa county, where he re- 
 mained for six years, and then located in Ven- 
 tura county, where he purchased one hundred 
 acres and engaged in general farming and stock- 
 raising until 1873. In the last named vear he 
 went to Stanislaus county and followed farming 
 near GraysCn, being principally interested in 
 grain raising. After about nine years in that 
 localitv he located on Robert's Island, San 
 
 Joaquin county, and farmed for two \ears. In 
 the fall of 1882 he came to Tulare county and 
 with the results of his years of energy and thrift 
 purchased a ranch of seven hundred and fiftv 
 acres nine miles west of Tulare. This property 
 was without any improvement at that time. He 
 at once bored an artesian well four hundred and 
 seventy-five feet deep, and as soon as it produced 
 sufficient for irrigation began farming. He put 
 in_ alfalfa and ever since has engaged in stock- 
 raising. He has met with a most gratifying suc- 
 cess, improved his farm, by putting up modern 
 buildings, irrigating by ditch and well, and has 
 brought his property to rank with the most valu- 
 able in this section. Two hundred and fifty acres 
 of his extensive ranch are devoted to alfalfa, 
 while his attention is given to the raising of 
 stock and the m.anagement of a dairy enterprise. 
 In Stockton Mr. Bertch married Caroline (J. 
 Minges, a native of that city, whose father, John 
 Minges, came to California as a pioneer and be- 
 came an extensive farmer in San Joaquin county. 
 They are the parents of four children : Laura 
 Pearl Georgia, Carroll Minges, Henry Harrison, 
 and George Leslie, all attending school in Tulare. 
 Mrs. Bertch also owns valuable property, having 
 a ranch of thirty-two acres one mile and a half 
 west of Tulare, which they make their home, as 
 in so doing they are enabled to give their children 
 better school privileges ; she also owns a ranch 
 of two hundred and twenty acres in San Joaquin 
 county, as well as property in Tulare. During 
 Mr. Bertch's residence in Tulare of eleven years 
 he served as alderman for four years, being a 
 stanch Republican in his political convictions as 
 well as a citizen whose strongest desire is to ad- 
 vance the general welfare of the community. He 
 is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 and fraternally is prominent in the Odd Fellows 
 lodge, being past grand of the lodge in Tulare, 
 past chief patriarch of the encampment, and both 
 himself and wife associated with the Rebekahs 
 and they are also identified with the Fraternal 
 Aid. 
 
 JOHN DORR, a German by birth and parent- 
 age, was reared in Bavaria, confirmed in the Ger- 
 man Lutheran Church and educated in the Ger- 
 man schools. In the town of Essingen, Bavaria, 
 where he was born February 12, 1858, he passed 
 his bo)'hood years in the home of his parents, 
 John and Calherine (Hauck) Dorr, and was one 
 of a family of nine children, all but three of 
 whom still survive. His father is now dead, but 
 his mother is living and still makes her home 
 in Germany. From the age of thirteen years he 
 began to learn the barber's trade under the in- 
 struction of his father, and worked at the occu- 
 pation in his home locality until twenty-two years 
 
586 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of age. Meanwhile, he had read much concern- 
 ing the United States and all accounts impressed 
 him favorably. Believing he could better his con- 
 dition he crossed the ocean in 1880 and without 
 delay secured work at his trade in New York, but 
 a year later went south to Texas and worked in 
 Austin and Palestine for a short time. Return- 
 ing to the northern states, he was employed in 
 Fort Wayne, Ind., for a short period. 
 
 Coming to California in June, 1884, Mr. Dorr 
 conducted a barber shop in Gait, Sacramento 
 county. During 1886 he came to Tulare and 
 bought an interest in a barber shop owned by 
 Tony Schenck, continuing in the business for two 
 years with the same partner, but eventually buy- 
 ing him out and operating the shop alone. In 
 1890 he bought twenty-three acres of wild land in 
 the Bishop colony and from year to year his earn- 
 ings were devoted to the improvement of the 
 land. Finally, in 1899, he sold his barber busi- 
 ness and settled on the property, which is situated 
 three miles northeast of Tulare, and on which 
 he has erected a farm house and other buildings. 
 By the raising of alfalfa he has secured feed 
 for his cows, and a part of the place is in an 
 orchard. 
 
 In Cincinnati, Ohio, September 26, 1887, Mr. 
 Dorr married Miss Susan Nicholi, who was born 
 in Bavaria, and died at Tulare, Cal., in 1899, 
 leaving three children, Ida, John Lewis and Nel- 
 lie. Since becoming a citizen of the United 
 States Mr. Dorr has given steadfast allegiance to 
 the Republican party and has maintained a warm 
 interest in movements conducive to the prosperity 
 of his county, state and country. In the Tulare 
 City lodge he was initiated in the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, and he has also become 
 an active member of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 EDWIN E. MORRIS. Previous.to his loca- 
 tion in California as manager of his son's ranch, 
 known as the Chicago Ranch, Edwin E. Morris 
 was variously interested in the fruits of the state 
 and had become well acquainted with its possi- 
 bilities. For many years he has been prominently 
 identified with the business life of Chicago, in 
 which city he still owns considerable valuable 
 property, through his work as a merchant broker 
 Ijecoming acquainted with the fruit interests of 
 CaHfornia. Born in Brighton, Sussex, England, 
 August 10, 1826, he is the youngest child of his 
 parents and the only one now living. Both par- 
 ents, Joseph and Ann (Marchant) Morris, were 
 natives of Brighton, England, and in her native 
 country Mrs. Morris died, leaving a family of 
 eight children. Every advantage was given Ed- 
 win E. Morris in an educational line, receiving 
 his preliminary education in Brighton, after 
 which he was g'raduated from Eton in 1847. For 
 
 one year following he attended Cambridge Uni- 
 versity, when he left school and learned the trade 
 of miller and engineer in Kent. In 1850 he came 
 to America, locating in New York, where he re- 
 mained three years, following his trade. Decid- 
 ing to locate in the newer city of the middle west, 
 Chicago, he became associated in 1853 with the 
 Blackall Company, a tea, coffee and spice firm, 
 superintending the construction of a large factory 
 and roaster in their interests. Later he became 
 a partner in the firm, remaining so engaged until 
 1 86 1, in which year he established a business of 
 his own, known as the Phoenix Coffee & Spice 
 Mills, in the John Wentworth building. This firm 
 was known as Morris, Clayes & Co., which car- 
 ried on a wholesale coffee and spice trade, during 
 the Civil war filling the largest government con- 
 tracts of any firm in the city. After the close 
 of the war he sold his interest in the business, 
 and after a relaxation of two years, during which 
 he made a trip to Europe, he engaged as a mer- 
 chant broker in Chicago, handling California 
 fruits, both dried and green, the firm name in 
 Chicago being Buchanan & Co. As early as 1885 
 he came to California and bought fruits, and was 
 the first to get advance on bills of lading in the 
 state, principally through his friendship with 
 Banker Gage, of Chicago, from whom he had a 
 strong letter on the subject. He continued to 
 buy fruits until 1890, in which year he retired 
 from active participation in business. Some tirne 
 previously Mr. Morris' son had bought land in 
 Tulare county and developed what is universally 
 known as the Chicago ranch. Pleased with the 
 idea of~ locating permanently in California Mr. 
 Morns undertook the management and improve- 
 ment of the ranch in 1890, and since that time has 
 given his entire time and attention to the same. 
 He now has four hundred and eighty acres of 
 rich land, lying eight miles west of Tulare, of 
 which one hundred and sixty acres are in fruit, 
 the balance being devoted to alfalfa. Mr. Morris 
 still owns property in Lake View, Chicago, and 
 also property near the corner of State and 
 Twelfth streets, which he purchased in 1867, and 
 upon which he built stores and flats vi^hich have 
 brought him in a handsome income since. Mr. 
 Morris has made of the Chicago ranch one of the 
 finest fruit ranches in the county, and has met 
 with i-nost gratifying results in his efforts. 
 
 In England, in 1857, Mr. Morris was united 
 in marriage with Annie Oliver, a native of Lon- 
 don. Her father, William Oliver, is the largest 
 mahogany and rosewood merchant in the world, 
 carrving on a business which was established by 
 William Oliver & Son over a century ago. Mrs. 
 Morris died in 1890, leaving two children, of 
 whom Lydia is the wife of W. S. Wflson, of Bal- 
 timore, Md., and Joseph O. is one of the leading 
 attorneys of Chicago, his offices being located in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 587 
 
 the Rookery building. Mr. Morris is a member 
 of the Episcopal Church, and politically is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Republican party. While a 
 resident of Chicago he took an active part in 
 local affairs, and was a citizen upon whom the 
 public honor might safely rest. He was also a 
 member of the Chicago Board of Trade. One of 
 the most important events in the career of Mr. 
 Morris was the introduction of the hog product 
 in England, the years of 1872-3-4-5 and 6 being 
 given over practically to that interest. Mr. Mor- 
 ris is a progressive and broad-minded citizen, a 
 cultured and educated gentleman, an active par- 
 ticipant in all that pertains to the general wel- 
 fare. He has won the cordial good will and fel- 
 lowship of all with whom he has come in con- 
 tact since locating in Tulare county by the quali- 
 ties which have distinguished his citizenship. 
 
 HENRY EWING SPEAR. A native son of 
 CaUfornia, Henry Ewing Spear is a son of John 
 L. Spear, who immigrated to this state in 1853.. 
 Born in Page county, Va., July i, 181 1, he is a 
 son of Jacob and Polly (Hardberger) Spear, 
 both natives of Pennsylvania, who removed to 
 Virginia soon after their marriage. There were 
 nine children in the grandparents' family, but 
 during the Civil war Mr. Spear lost track of them 
 and now does not know how many are living. 
 Reared in his native state of Virginia, J. L. 
 Spear there married his first wife, who bore 
 him a daughter, Sarah Ann, the deceased wife 
 of Edward Davis of Exeter. Some time after 
 this marriage Mr. Spear migrated to Missouri 
 and there his wife died in 1836. In 1844 he 
 wedded Mary R. Garvin and to them six children 
 were born, one dying in infancy. Those living 
 are as follows: Jacob; Margaret, wife of John 
 Fox, a resident of Los Angeles county ; Frances 
 Eliza, wife of R. C. Glass of Bakersfield ; Agnes, 
 wife of John Woolley, a resident of Fresno 
 county; and Henry E., the personal subject of 
 this review. 
 
 In 1853 John L. Spear crossed the plains to 
 California. Upon arrival he first settled in 
 Stanislaus county. Two years later he went 
 into the placer mines, following mining until 
 1861, in that year coming to Tulare county, first 
 settling on eighty acres of timber land, but soon 
 afterward locating near Farmersville, where he 
 resided until his death in 1892. 
 
 Henry E. Spear was born near Hills Ferry, 
 Stanislaus county, April" 28, 1855. When but 
 a babe he was taken to Amador county by his 
 parents, and in 1861 accompanied them to Tulare 
 county, where he has since made his home. 
 When old enough he took part in the work of 
 the home ranch and in 1884 took entire charge of 
 
 the place, which he has since conducted. In ad- 
 dition to this ranch he and his brother, J. B. 
 Spear, own two hundred and eighty acres on 
 .section 24, one mile north of Exeter. They also 
 own eighty acres on section 6, township 19, range 
 26. The majority of this land is devoted to gen- 
 eral farming. 
 
 Mr. Spear was married in Visalia to Belle 
 (Canfield) Clark, who is a native of Tulare 
 county and a daughter of Cyrus Canfield, who 
 was born in Ohio and during the Mexican war 
 served in the army as captain. In 1850 he 
 crossed the plains to Salt Lake City, where his 
 wife's parents died. In 1853 the journey west- 
 ward was resumed and after a tiresome trip 
 across the mountains, the party arrived in Los 
 Angeles. Five years later Mr. Canfield removed 
 to Visalia, where he was engaged in the stock 
 business and also served as deputy county clerk. 
 His next location was Owens river and from 
 there he went to Nevada, where he died in 1890. 
 He married a Miss Allen, who was born in New 
 York state in 1827 and died in San Jose in June, 
 1872. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Spear have been born four 
 children, Lena, Laura and Eula, all at home, 
 and John, deceased. Mr. Spear has taken an 
 active interest in educational affairs and has 
 served as school trustee of Locust Grove district 
 for the past seven years. In political belief he is 
 a Democrat, but has neither the time nor the 
 desire to take part in public aflfairs other than 
 those of local interest. During his residence in 
 Tulare county he has met with financial success, 
 but in gaining his position of prominence he has 
 never neglected the duties of a citizen. He is 
 one of those broad-minded men, firm in his be- 
 lief, but always open to conviction. Both he and 
 his wife have made scores of true friends in 
 Tulare county, who are at all times happy to 
 receive them within their homes. 
 
 SANDY J. WHITE, of Armona, is one of 
 the many sens of Missouri to contribute to the 
 well-being of Kings county. He was born in 
 Phelps county, near the county seat, December 
 15, 1857, a son of Isaac N. and Nancy (Hopkins) 
 White, who were born in the south and were 
 very early settlers in Missouri, where the father 
 died at the age of forty-five, two days before the 
 birth of his son, Sandy J. When he was seven 
 years old his mother died, and it fell to his lot 
 to make his home with his maternal grand- 
 mother until his fourteenth year. He then struck 
 out for himself and went to Kansas to live on a 
 farm with his uncle near Topeka, and in 1875, 
 when eighteen years old, came to California, ar- 
 riving in Woodland with ten cents in his pocket. 
 This fact did not discourage him, however, for 
 
588 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he soon found work on a farm, where his will- 
 ingness and ability not only secured the good 
 will of its occupants, but fair remuneration con- 
 sidering the time and place. In 1878 he came to 
 what is now Kings county, and worked on a 
 ranch for a year, going then into the employ of 
 another rancher with whom he remained a year 
 also. , During the following four years he rented 
 a ranch near Hanford, and then went to San Jose, 
 where he clerked in the wholesale and retail gro- 
 cery business of the Farmers' Union. After 
 five years of mercantile experience he settled in 
 Tulare and engaged in the real-estate business for 
 a year, then married Mary F. Patterson, a native 
 of Iowa, who came overland to California in 
 1864, locating in Shasta county. Two children 
 have been born to Mr. and Mrs. White, Everett 
 and Lloyd E. Soon after his marriage Mr. 
 White bought a ranch near Tulare, besides lots 
 and residences in the town, three years later dis- 
 posing of his property and purchasing an eighty- 
 acre ranch three miles south of Armona. This 
 land he set out to vineyard and orchard, oc- 
 cupied and improved it for nine years, and then 
 sold and purchased his present valuable farm. 
 In the meantime he has bought and sold, ex- 
 changed and improved other properties, and has 
 encouraged many to take up land and make their 
 home in this fertile and promising community. 
 His farm is under a high state of cultivation and 
 he makes a specialty of fine Jersey stock for 
 dairying. Mr. White is an upright and con- 
 scientious man, faithful to friends and duties, 
 and one of the most helpful and progressive up- 
 builders which this county has known. 
 
 EDWIN BLODGETT. Prominent among 
 the active and thriving farmers of the San 
 Joaquin valley is Edwin Blodgett, a man of abil- 
 ity, intelligence and good business capacity, 
 whose handsome property lies eight miles from 
 Oakdale, on the Berneyville road, his ranch being 
 on the Stanislaus river. He is a man of liberal 
 views and of greatest integrity, energetic and ca- 
 pable, and throughout the community is held -in 
 high regard as one whose word is as good as his 
 bond. Of English ancestry, he is directly descend- 
 ed from one of three brothers that emigrated from 
 England to the United States in old colonial 
 days and settled in Massachusetts, where numer- 
 ous members of the Blodgett family still live, 
 honored and respected by all. A son of Solomon 
 Blodgett, he was born September 5, 1848, in Put- 
 nam county, Ohio, near Ottawa, and there spent 
 his childhood. 
 
 A native of Ontario, Solomon Blodgett learned 
 the trade of saddler and harness-maker when 
 young, serving a full apprenticeship. Subse- 
 quently removing to Putnam county, Ohio, he 
 
 followed his trade for awhile, after which he was 
 employed in farming for several years. In 1864 
 he started for California with his wife and four 
 children, and with a bunch of horses. Shipping 
 the latter to St. Louis, he procured his outfit 
 in that city, and came overland across the plains 
 with horse teams, driving the herd. The In- 
 dians were somewhat troublesome, stampeding 
 the horses occasionally, but never getting any, 
 Mr. Blodgett's sons assisting him in keeping 
 guard. Three of his uncles were already estab- 
 lished here, namely : Nelson Hubbard, Chauncey 
 Hubbard, and Oscar Blodgett, who came by the 
 Carson route in 1849, ^nd settled first as miners 
 at Hangtown. Going directly to Yolo county, 
 Solomon Blodgett entered land on the Sacra- 
 mento river, in Cache Creek valley, where he im- 
 proved a farm, and was actively engaged in 
 stock-raising during the remainder of his work- 
 ing life. His declining years he spent with his 
 son Edwin, dying at the age of seventy-two 
 years. His wife, whose maiden name was So- 
 phronia Curtis, was born, reared and married in 
 Ohio, and now, a bright and active woman of 
 seventy-five years, resides with her son Edwin. 
 She bore her husband ten children, seven of 
 whom grew to years of maturitv, namely : Ed- 
 win, the subject of this sketch ; Oscar, of Santa 
 Rosa ; Wardie, living near Chico ; Ernest, a resi- 
 dent of Washington ; George, in business in 
 Sacramento ; Mrs. Mamie Donaldson, of 
 Modesto ; and Thedie, deceased. Both parents 
 united with the United Brethren Church when 
 young, and faithfully lived up to its teachings. 
 
 Coming across the plains with the family in 
 1864, Edwin Blodgett helped his brothers drive 
 the horses, and during the trip of four months 
 took his turn in standing guard. He subsequent- 
 ly remained at home until attaining his majority, 
 assisting in the pioneer labor of clearing the 
 parental homestead. Beginning life on his ac- 
 count at the age of twenty-one years, Mr. Blod- 
 gett entered one hundred and sixtv acres of land 
 on Cache creek, and in its improvement was suc- 
 cessful. He afterwards bought adjoining land, 
 increasing the size of his ranch to three hundred 
 and twenty acres, and continued in business as 
 a grain and stock raiser. He afterwards farmed 
 in diflferent places along the Sacramento river, 
 being quite prosperous. Coming to San Joaquin 
 county in 1879, Mr. Blodgett continued in his 
 independent occupation on the farm which he 
 now occupies, but later removed to Woodbridge, 
 San Joaquin county, purchasing a ranch there in 
 order that his children might have better educa- 
 tional advantages. In 1897 he returned to the 
 farm on which he now resides, which is ad- 
 vantageously located on the Stanislaus river, and 
 contains fifty-five acres of bottom land. Since 
 his return to the farm Mr, Blodgett has carried 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 589 
 
 on an extensive and remunerative business as a 
 dairyman and stock-raiser, and in the cultiva- 
 tion of hay, grain and alfalfa. He has also other 
 property of value, owning one hundred and sixty 
 acres of good land in Fresno county, and re- 
 ceiving a good income from its rental. 
 
 Mr. Blodgett married, in Yolo county, Cal., 
 Ellen McBride, a native of Ohio, and into their 
 household six children have been born. .Solo- 
 mon, a graduate of Woodbridge College, is a 
 bookkeeper in Sacramento ; Elzana also attended 
 Woodbridge College; Samuel is a graduate of 
 Woodbridge grammar school ; Edwin, who was 
 graduated from the Oakdale grammar school, is 
 interested with his father in the management of 
 the home farm ; Mina and Rosetta complete the 
 family. Politically Mr. Blodgett is a steadfast 
 adherent of the Republican party, and religiously 
 he belongs to the United Brethren Church. 
 
 CHARLES P. COLE. A native-born citizen 
 of California, and a worthy representative of an 
 honored pioneer family of Stanislaus county^ 
 Charles P. Cole has been actively identified with 
 the development and advancement of the agri- 
 cultural resources of this part of the state, and 
 now holds a position of prominence among the 
 younger generation of practical and progressive 
 farmers. Skillful, systematic and thorough in 
 his methods, he is meeting with well merited 
 success in his undertakings, and is held in high 
 estimation throughout the community in which 
 he resides. He was. born December i6, 1876, 
 in that part of Stanislaus county that is now in- 
 cluded within the limits of the town of Qaus. 
 
 Lum Cole, Mr. Cole's father, was born in 
 Ohio, reared and educated in Missouri, and in 
 1849 crossed the plains to California, coming with 
 ox-teams, which, as a boy, he assisted in driving. 
 He was first employed in teaming in the mount- 
 ains, and in the 'Sos visited his old home. Re- 
 turning again to this state, he purchased land in 
 Stanislaus county, becoming owner of ranches 
 near Claus, and was there profitably engaged in 
 farming for a number of years. Disposing of 
 his land in that vicinity, he carried on farming 
 in different places, being first located in Tulare 
 county, then in Kings county, and being now a 
 resident of Fresno county. He is highly re- 
 spected as a man and a citizen, and is a mem- 
 ber of the Masonic fraternity. His second wife, 
 whose maiden name was Hattie Islip, was born 
 in the east, and came with her parents, Mr. and 
 Mrs. Joseph Islip, to Stanislaus county when 
 four years old. Mr. Islip, now a venerable man 
 of four score years,* resides with his aged wife in 
 Modesto. By his first marriage, Lum Cole had 
 seven children, and of his union with Miss 
 
 Islip three children were born, Charles P. being 
 the second child. 
 
 Brought up on a farm, Charles P. Cole at- 
 tended school in different districts, living first in 
 Stanislaus county, then in Tulare county, com- 
 pleting his education in Kings county. Obtain- 
 ing a thorough knowledge of the science of agri- 
 culture while working with his father, he began 
 farming for himself in 1901, on the old Joseph 
 Trollinger ranch, where he still resides, operating 
 a farm of ten hundred and forty acres, and rais- 
 ing gain and hay principally. He pays some at- 
 tention to raising stock, making a specialty of 
 breeding mules, for which he finds a ready mar- 
 ket. 
 
 September 23, 1902, in Stockton, Cal., Mr. 
 Cole married Marion Dolan, who was born in 
 Stanislaus county, a daughter of Joseph Dolan. 
 A native of Boston, Mass., Joseph Dolan grew 
 to manhood in that city. Migrating to the Pa- 
 cific coast in the '60s, he improved a farm at 
 Montpellier, Stanislaus county, and was there en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits until his retirement 
 from the activities of life, being a very success- 
 ful farmer and stock-raiser. He was a noted 
 breeder of thoroughbred horses, and raised some 
 of the greatest winners and most famous race- 
 horses in the county. After his retirement he 
 lived in Modesto. His death occurred in Hollis- 
 ter October 8, 1893. He married Lucinda Jones, 
 who was born in San Joaquin county, where her 
 father, John Jones, was a pioneer settler, coming 
 here from South Carolina and becoming one of 
 the largest land owners of this part of California. 
 She survived him, dying in 1896, in Oakland, 
 Cal., leaving four children, namely : Marion, 
 wife of Mr. Cole ; Wilbur, living on the old Do- 
 lan ranch, in Montpelher ; Alvar, of Oakland ; 
 and Basil, living with Mr. and Mrs. Cole. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Cole have one child, a daughter whom 
 they have named Dorothy. Politically Mr. Cole 
 is a true-blue Republican, and fraternally he is 
 a member of Escalon Lodge, M. W. A. 
 
 ADOLPHUS MITCHELL, a successful 
 rancher of Tulare county, was born in Hawkins 
 county. East Tennessee, May 28, 1829. His 
 father, Lewis Mitchell, was a native of South 
 Carolina, and the son of Solomon Mitchell, like- 
 wise a native of that state. Solomon Mitchell 
 was a patriot and served in the Revolutionary 
 war under General Pickens. After the close of 
 hostilities he came as far west as Tennessee and 
 located in Hawkins county as a farmer, making 
 that section his home until his death. Lewis 
 Mitchell followed the example of his father and 
 in 1836 emigrated to the southwestern part of 
 Missouri, locating in McDonald county, where 
 he engaged in farming until his death in 1861. 
 
590 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 He became a prominent man in that locality, as he 
 had been in his home in Tennessee, in that state 
 having served as justice of the peace and post- 
 master for fourteen years. His wife, formerly 
 Mary Duff, of West Virginia, also died in Mc- 
 Donald county, Mo'. Of their family of five sons 
 and one daughter only two sons are now living, 
 the two youngest, Adolphus and Ozro, who live 
 together in their western home. 
 
 In the common schools of Missouri Adolphus 
 Mitchell received his education, after which he 
 engaged in working on his father's farm until 
 1855. On April 21 of that year, in company with 
 his brother, he crossed the plains to California, 
 arriving at the head waters of the Little Yuba 
 river, Sierra county, August 5. For a time he 
 worked for wages in that locality, in the same 
 year going to Mariposa county, where he re- 
 mained until 1857. In August of that year he 
 came to Tulare county, where he first worked 
 on the range as a cowboy, handling Spanish cat- 
 tle. In i860 he made his first purchase of land, 
 buying eighty acres, which was the beginning of 
 the property which to-day numbers twelve hun- 
 dred and eighty acres, increased by both his own 
 and the efforts of his brother. This property is 
 eight miles southwest of Visalia, under irrigation 
 from the Evans, Watson and Persian ditches, 
 while they also own a foothill ranch of fifteen 
 hundred acres about six miles north of Lemon 
 cove. With his brother he is extensively engaged 
 in the cultivation of wheat and the -raising of 
 horses and mules, in addition to which they run 
 a dairy. 
 
 In Newton county. Mo., Mr. Mitchell married 
 Susan Bogle, who was born in Bedford county, 
 Tenn., where she spent the first fifteen years of 
 her life. They are the parents of three children, 
 namely : Walter Franklin and Arthur Gaden, at 
 home; and Addie Belle, the wife of Edward C. 
 Jones, who is located two miles south of Dinuba. 
 Politically Mr. Mitchell adheres to the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Democratic 
 party. In all matters that have had for their 
 object the advancement of Tulare county and 
 California he has always given his hearty co- 
 operation. 
 
 J. D. BRADLEY. The name of T. D. Bradley 
 carries with it weight and influence, as manager 
 of the Crocker-Huffman Land & Water Com- 
 pany's interests at Merced, extensive stock- 
 raiser and land owner, and president of the Com- 
 mercial Bank. Mr. Bradley comes of a family 
 of which much is reasonably expected, and to 
 whom the community looks for the maintenance 
 of high standards of life and work. His grand- 
 father, Lewis R. Bradley, was twice governor 
 of Nevada, and probably was one of the most 
 
 capable and widely advertised executives of the 
 silver state. His life history is found in many 
 periodicals of the west, and briefly told is that 
 of a man who rose upon his own efforts and at- 
 tained success through the homely, attributes of 
 integrity, perseverance and practical common 
 sense. Born in Virginia in 1806, his first inde- 
 pendent work was as superintendent of a south- 
 ern farm at $80 a year, a position from which 
 he was promoted to purchaser of mules and 
 horses for his employer. From 1843 uri*^il 1852 
 he made his home in Missouri, crossing the 
 plains with cattle during the summer of 1852, 
 and succeeding so well that he returned the fol- 
 lowing year for a larger band of horses, mules, 
 and cattle. In 1862 he settled in Lander county, 
 Nev., and engaged in stock-raising, and in 1866 
 settled in Elko county with his son, John R., 
 being pioneers of that then wild region. Al- 
 ways an enthusiastic politician, he served as 
 treasurer and commissioner of Elko county. 
 Elected governor of the territory in 1870, he 
 succeeded himself, his administration being 
 characterized by breadth of mind, intelHgence and 
 remarkable sagacity. His son, John R., the 
 father of J. D. Bradley, was born in Virginia in 
 1835, and married in Missouri in 1857, Elizabeth 
 Hitt, also a native of Virginia, and daughter of 
 Jacob Hitt, a pioneer of Virginia. He became 
 the largest stock-raiser of Elko county, Nev., 
 and filled other important positions than those 
 already mentioned. His death occurred in Reno, 
 Nev., in February, 1902, he being survived by 
 his wife, who still makes her home in Reno, and 
 who is the mother of four daughters and two 
 sons, three daughters being deceased. L. L. 
 Bradley is a resident of Elko county, Nev. 
 
 Born on a farm near Stockton, Cal., May 31, 
 1861, J. D. Bradley was educated in the public 
 schools of Nevada, and from earliest youth was 
 reared to a knowledge of stock-raising. In time 
 he became one of the chief incorporators and 
 president of the Marys River Land & Cattle 
 Company, of which his brother was manager and 
 vice-president, and which was one of the largest 
 concerns of the kind in the territory of Nevada. 
 In 1 89 1 he went to Utah as manager for the 
 Promontory Ranch Company of Promontory, 
 Boxelder county, and in 1894 came to Merced 
 county as manager of the Crocker-Huffman Land 
 & Water Company. The Crocker-Huffman Com- 
 pany owns many thousand acres of land in 
 Merced county, and is one of the largest agencies 
 in central California. Climate, soil and ad- 
 vantageous location conspire to make these pos- 
 sessions among the richest and most desirable in 
 the state. 
 
 Two years ago Mr. Bradley began the coloni- 
 zation of a tract of his land, and the results thus 
 achieved point to a future of unexampled pros- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 
 
 595 
 
 perity. In addition to his other i-esponsibihties 
 Mr. Bradley is president of the Commercial Bank 
 of Merced, which he assisted in organizing. He 
 is prominent fraternally, being identified with 
 Elko Lodge, F. & A. M., of Nevada ; the Royal 
 Arch Masons of Ogden ; the commandery ; and 
 Islam Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Fran- 
 cisco. Mr. Bradley was married in San Fran- 
 cisco to Emma Donnels, a native of California, 
 and has one daughter, Dita. Mr. Bradley is a 
 man of energy, wise judgment, and practical 
 knowledge of men and affairs, is affable and 
 approachable, a generous contributor to worthy 
 causes, and a friend upon whom his intimates 
 may unerringly rely. 
 
 REV. WILLIAM NEWTON CUNNING- 
 HAM. No name is more intimately connected 
 with the early religious and ethical growth of 
 Bakersfield than that of Rev. William Newton 
 Cunningham, a life-long Christian worker, and 
 a scholar and humanitarian, whose precept and 
 example serve to strengthen one's faith in the 
 goodness and possibility of human nature, and 
 one's admiration of a self-sacrificing, disinter- 
 ested and beautiful life. At present occupying 
 twenty-four lots on the outskirts of the city, de- 
 voted to the cultivation of fruit, he has returned 
 to the occupation to which he was reared as a 
 child near Huntsville, Madison county, Ala., 
 whera he was born May 20, 1825. 
 
 F'rom the southern plantation, with its pro- 
 rebellion interests, Mr. Cunningham went to the 
 Cumberland University, at Lebanon, Tenn., from 
 which he was graduated in 1859, he having in 
 the meantime accustomed himself to preaching 
 as a licensed traveling evangelist. His services 
 had become invaluable to the missionary board, 
 and in i860 he was selected and sent by it to 
 Stockton, Cal., where he built the first Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian house of worship in the town. 
 The church was already established in the state, 
 and in connection there was a college in Sonoma 
 county, which was in debt $7,500. Mr. Cun- 
 ningham paid off this debt, and organized a new 
 association, known as the Cumberland College 
 Association. For twelve years he was the presi- 
 dent and manager of the school, of which he was 
 the largest stockholder, and for which he erected 
 a large concrete building, capable of accommo- 
 dating a large number of pupils. Education was 
 conducted on a practical and helpful basis, and 
 from the doors of the college many men now 
 prominent in all walks of life in the state, stepped 
 forth as graduates. The failure of the institu- 
 tion was a bitter disappointment to its zealous 
 promoter, yet he managed to save something 
 from the wreck, and to start forth anew with 
 
 undiminished behef and as a factor for the up- 
 lifting of mankind. 
 
 From Stockton, Cal., Mr. Cunningham went 
 to Merced, Merced county; erected a store, and 
 managed the same in addition to following the 
 ministry for ten years. About this time he 
 erected a church at Plainsberg, and in 1882 ar- 
 rived at Han ford. Kings county, when that town 
 was in its infancy. After erecting a parsonage 
 and preaching a year, he accepted a call to a 
 church in Visalia, but that church was burned 
 about eleven months later. He organized a 
 church at Fresno and later found a field of ac- 
 tivity in his present home in Bakersfield. The 
 Cumberland Presbyterian Church was not com- 
 pleted and he later reorganized it and after 
 preaching there for a year resigned from active 
 ministerial work. His interest in the church has 
 never diminished and he has been its sincerest 
 friend and supporter, filling the pulpit in time 
 of need, and donating his services to assist in 
 paying off the indebtedness. Incidentally he has 
 served as traveling salesman, but more recently 
 has devoted his entire time to fruit raising. 
 
 The home life of Mr. Cunningham has been 
 a particularly happy and harmonious one, for in 
 his wife, to whom he was married in California 
 in 1867, he has found that perfect sympathy 
 which makes burdens light and sorrow a thing 
 to be borne bravely. Mrs. Cunningham, former- 
 ly Ellen A. Abbott, a native of Vermont, was 
 reared and educated near Montpelier. She was 
 formerly a teacher, and also often contributed to 
 periodicals for publication. It was the result of 
 her pen that the free library was established in 
 Bakersfield. She is versed in French, Greek, 
 Spanish and Latin and follows the early training 
 she received in her life as an educator. She is 
 quiet and reserved and has always contributed 
 her share to the upbuilding of the institutions 
 that have advanced the educational and moral 
 standards of the country. A son has been born 
 to Mr. and Mrs. Cunningham, Lucian Abbott, 
 now identified with the Standard Oil Company, 
 operating in the oil fields near Bakersfield. He 
 served as a soldier in the Spanish-American war, 
 after which he served about two years in the 
 Philippine Islands. 
 
 EDWARD H. MILES. Deservedly popular 
 in the ranks of both business and educational 
 men of Exeter, E. H. Miles occupies a position 
 of. prominence won by merit. He is widely 
 known and esteemed as a merchant of good 
 business ability, far-sighted judgment and un- 
 swerving integrity, ranking high in the com- 
 mercial interests of Exeter, while in educational 
 affairs he holds the position of president of the 
 board of trustees of the Exeter schools. A na- 
 
596 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tive of the state where all his life has been spent, 
 he was born near Healdsburg, Sonoma county, 
 October 28, 1862, the fourth child in the parental 
 family. His father, Burke Miles, was born in 
 Indiana, from which state his father, William 
 Miles, removed to Greene county. III, and be- 
 came a farmer. William Miles crossed the plains 
 in 1852, and subsequently six different times, 
 one time crossing alone with his horse and pack 
 animal. He became a farmer and horticulturist 
 in Sonoma county, his death occurring in Por- 
 tersville, Tulare county, at the age of seventy- 
 six years. Burke Miles crossed the plains also 
 in 1852 and upon his arrival in California en- 
 gaged in mining in Mariposa county. Returning 
 east he brought cattle across the plains, eventu- 
 ally making his third trip to the west and lo- 
 cating on Dry creek, Sonoma county, as a 
 farmer. In 1867 he settled in Tulare county, 
 one mile northwest of Farmersville, where he 
 purchased land and engaged in its improvement 
 and cultivation. He owned in that section two 
 hundred and forty acres and also owned other 
 property, upon which he engaged in general 
 farming and stock-raising. He died in 1888, at 
 the age of sixty-two years. Fraternally he was 
 a Knight Templar Mason and politically cast his 
 ballot with the Republican party. He married 
 Mrs. Catherine Murtha Fitzsimmons, a native 
 of Ireland. While a resident of her native coun- 
 try she married Dr. Fitzsimmons, with whom 
 she calne to New York. He became a surgeon 
 in the United States army, and in the early '50s 
 came around the Horn and was stationed at Fort 
 Steilacoom, Wash., where he died shortly after- 
 ward. His widow came to California .and in 
 Sonoma county married Mr. Miles. She died in 
 1900, at the age of seventy-three years. By her 
 first marriage she had one son, Charles, who is 
 now engaged in business with Edward H. Miles. 
 The children of the second marriage are as fol- 
 lows : William B., who died on the home 
 place at the age of thirty-six years; Hattie, the 
 wife of D. L. Healy, of San Francisco ; Alice, the 
 wife of Philip H. Hering, of San Francisco ; Ed- 
 ward H., of this review ; and George, a barber in 
 Farmersville. 
 
 Edward H. Miles was about five years old 
 when he accompanied his parents to Tulare 
 county, and here he was reared to young man- 
 hood on the paternal farm. He received his edu- 
 cation in the district schools and at the same 
 time was thoroughly drilled in the practical duties 
 of a farmer's son. He also attended the A^isalia 
 Normal School, from which institution he was 
 graduated in 188 1 with honors. Following h'is 
 graduation he engaged in teaching for five 
 terms in this county, during which time he also 
 farmed and clerked. In 1898 he withdrew from 
 educational work and engaged in the mercantile 
 
 business in Exeter, purchasing the interest of 
 F. S. Montgomery, of the firm of Teague & 
 Montgomery, the firm name thereafter being 
 known as Teague & Miles. In 1902 Mr. Teague 
 sold his interest to Charles Fitzsimmons, since 
 which time the business has been conducted under 
 the title of E. H. Miles & Co. They have pur- 
 chased the brick building in which their business 
 is located, adding to the original dimensions of 
 50x60 feet a storage building 24x50 feet. Mr. 
 Miles also owns the old home place near Farm- 
 ersville, consisting of one hundred and forty 
 acres, all of which is under the People's Ditch, 
 a concern of which his father was president for 
 many years. This farm is now leased and is 
 devoted to the cultivation of alfalfa, while there 
 is also an orchard of twenty acres ; he also owns 
 a twenty-acre orange orchard two miles south- 
 east of Exeter. Mr. Miles was largely instru- 
 mental in the organization of the California Talc 
 & Soapstone Company, of which he acts as a 
 director, and for the past twelve years has served 
 as secretary of People's Ditch Company. 
 
 Mr. Miles was made a Mason in Visalia Lodge 
 No. 128, F. & A. M., of which he served as 
 master three terms ; is also a member of Visalia 
 chapter No. 44, R. A. M., of which he is past 
 high priest; Visalia Commandery No. 26, K. T., 
 of which he is past excellent commander ; and 
 Islam Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Fran- 
 cisco. He also belongs to Knights of Pythias, 
 of Exeter, of which he is past chancellor, and 
 Woodmen of the World. He is a memjjer of 
 Visalia Parlor No. 19, N. S. G. W. Politically 
 he is a stanch Republican and is active in the 
 councils of his party, being an ex-member of 
 the county central committee. 
 
 JUDGE THORN.BERRY BROOKS. Oc- 
 cupying a most picturesque and beautiful loca- 
 tion seven miles north of Hanford, in the Kings 
 river district, apart from the distracting influ- 
 ences of city life, stands the cozy home of Judge 
 T. Brooks, who is one of the prominent pioneer 
 ranchers of Kings county. His landed posses- 
 sions comprise three hundred and twenty acres 
 in Kings county, besides three hundred and 
 twenty acres in Fresno county. He was born 
 December 22, 1822, in Jackson county, Ga., a 
 son of Isaac and Genesee (Fowler) Brooks, na- 
 tives of Georgia and South Carolina, respective- 
 ly. In 1833 the family removed to a farm near 
 Columbus, Ga., and there the son passed his 
 years until reaching young manhood. He then 
 learned the butcher business, and later the car- 
 penter's trade, following this until 1850. Feb- 
 ruary II of that year he started for California, 
 embarking at New Orleans with six hundred 
 other passengers, and landing at San Francisco 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 597 
 
 in the following April. After looking about the 
 country for three weeks he became interested in 
 the mines around Sonora, and for five 3'ears 
 thereafter was engaged in mining with varying 
 degrees of success. In 1852, in addition to look- 
 ing after his claims, for two years he operated a 
 sawmill on Hangtown creek, one of the oldest 
 mills in the state, in which he had bought an 
 interest. In, 185 5 he rented land on the Sacra- 
 mento river, in Sacramento county, and engaged 
 in ranching and also raised vegetables to some 
 extent, but this in time became unprofitable on 
 account of the high rents demanded, and in 
 1866 he came to Kings river, settling on what 
 was thought to be government land, but after five 
 years of hard labor spent in improving the tract 
 a Spanish grant was floated over him and he was 
 obliged to seek other quarters, being allowed 
 only such improvements as were portable. Not 
 discouraged by this experience, however, he 
 crossed over to the other side of the river and 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres, upon 
 which he established his home and began life 
 anew as a stock-raiser. This was in the days be- 
 fore the adoption of the fence law, which was 
 passed in 1873, and as a consequence Mr. Brooks 
 lost one hundred head of horses, never being 
 able to trace them in any way. 
 
 January 9, 1855, near what is now Placerville, 
 Gal., Mr. Brooks was married to Frances A. 
 Foster, who was born in Alabama. Her father, 
 John C. Foster, came to California in 1849, and 
 Mrs. Brooks came to the state in 1853. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Brooks became the parents of eight chil- 
 dren, as follows : Susan A., the widow of Jef- 
 ferson Hames ; Charles H., who assists his father 
 with the duties on the ranch; Georgia, a 
 teacher in the schools of Kings county; Edward 
 L., also a rancher; Mary A., the wife of J. N. 
 Bowhay; Amos B., William A. and Wesley W. 
 Although well advanced in years, Mr. Brooks is 
 hale and hearty, with every evidence of many 
 years to his credit in which to enjoy his present 
 happy surroundings. Politically he is a stanch 
 Democrat, but always has refused official posi- 
 tions. 
 
 GREENBERRY CATRON is remembered 
 throughout Tulare county as one of the substan- 
 tial and enterprising agriculturists and stock- 
 men of this section of the San Joaquin valley, 
 the results accomplished by his energy and am- 
 bition visible in the home which he left to his 
 widow as well as wide lands improved and cul- 
 tivated in various parts of the community. He 
 was bom in Lafayette county. Mo., October 10, 
 1829, a son of Solomon and Elizabeth (Jennings) 
 Catron, natives respectively of Tennessee and 
 Virginia. Solomon Catron emigrated from his 
 
 native state to Missouri, where he engaged in 
 farming until his death. His wife also died in 
 that state at the age of ninety-five years. 
 
 Greenberry Catron became a soldier in the 
 Mexican war in 1846, leaving the peaceful farm- 
 ing pursuits which had occupied his attention 
 from early boyhood. After the war he crossed 
 the plains in 1849, the six months' trip being made 
 with ox-teams. He was accompanied by two 
 brothers, Christopher and Glenville, the latter of 
 whom died in the mines, while the former re- 
 turned east and is now residing in Holt county, 
 Mo. Upon his safe arrival in California Mr. 
 Catron engaged in mining on Feather and Yuba 
 rivers, and also farmed some in Lake county. 
 In 1864 he located in Tulare county, purchasing 
 the farm of one hundred and sixty acres which 
 now forms the home of the family. At that time 
 it was nothing but a barren plain, but he imme- 
 diately began improvements, putting up adecjuate 
 buildings, erecting fences and setting out trees. 
 To-day this place is famous throughout Tulare 
 county for its immense cactus, of the lobe va- 
 riety, which grows as large as trees. He also 
 bought one hundred and sixty acres adjoining 
 his property, and at his death owned the half 
 section in one body, besides owning a mountain 
 ranch of eight hundred and seventy-one acres 
 at the foot of Blue Ridge, in the Yokohl valley, 
 which was utilized exclusively for stock-raising 
 purposes. On his home property he carried on 
 general fanriing and stock-raising successfully, 
 being numbered among the prominent agricult- 
 urists of Tulare county. He died in his home 
 two and a half miles northwest of Exeter, May 
 II, 1901, in his seventy-second year. He was a 
 member of the Baptist Church and politically 
 was a stanch Democrat. 
 
 Mr. Catron's widow was formerly Mrs. 
 Amanda Melvina (Maxon) Wolbert, to whom he 
 was united in marriage June 2, 1881. She was 
 born in Jefferson county, N. Y., a daughter of 
 Erasmus D. Maxon, a native of the same place. 
 His father, Paul C. Maxon, was bom in Con- 
 necticut and settled in Jefferson county, N. Y., 
 where he followed farming until his death. 
 Erasmus D. Maxon was a farmer in occupation, 
 and in young manhood removed to Jackson 
 county, Wis. He there enlisted in the Fourteenth 
 Wisconsin Cavalry, and served for three years 
 in the Civil war, after which he returned to his 
 farming operations in that state. In 1873 he 
 came to California and settled near what is now 
 Exeter, homesteading one hundred _ and sixty 
 acres, which he improved and cultivated until 
 his death in 1881, at the age of seventy-nine 
 years. His wife, formerly Hannah Crouch, of 
 New York state, a daughter of Joseph and Mary 
 (Resigue) Crouch, died in Tulare county, at 
 the age of sixty-one years. Of their ten children 
 
598 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 seven are now living, a son, Harrison, having 
 served in the Civil war as a soldier in a Wis- 
 consin regiment. Mrs. Catron was the third in 
 order of birth and was reared to womanhood in 
 Wisconsin, whither she accompanied her par- 
 ents in 1849. I" 1876 she came to California, 
 and married Mr. Catron a few years later. She 
 is the mother of the following children : Everett 
 Wolbert, of Exeter, and Birdine, the wife of 
 Sherman Pennebaker, of Exeter. Mr. Catron 
 was a member of the Society of California 
 Pioneers of San Francisco. Mrs. Catron is a 
 woman of business ability and judgment and 
 has conducted her affairs in a capable manner 
 since the death of her husband. 
 
 F. M. COOK. It is universally conceded that 
 the banner vineyard of Tulare county, and prob- 
 ably of San Joaquin valley, is that of F. M. 
 Cook, who located at Orosi as one of the first 
 horticulturists of this section. He purchased 
 sixty acres of land in section 18, which was 
 then nothing but a stubble field, set it to raisin 
 grapes, all Muscat, and has since met with a 
 success which has placed him prominently among 
 the horticulturists of Tulare county. Born in 
 Van Buren county, Iowa, November 10, 1852, 
 he was the oldest in a family of six children, of 
 whom four are now living. His father, James 
 Cook, was a native of Ohio and the representa- 
 tive of a family prominent in that state. In 
 young manhood he removed to Illinois and there 
 married Elizabeth Killebrew, a native of that 
 state, a descendant of sturdy Scotch ancestry. 
 Mr. Cook finally took his family to Van Buren 
 county, Iowa, and there engaged as a farmer 
 until his removal to Illinois, thence in 1868 to 
 California. Upon reaching this state he located 
 first in Solano county, later in Colusa county, 
 still later in Tehama county, his last residence 
 being in Willows, where his death occurred. He 
 is survived by his wife, who makes her home in 
 Fresno. 
 
 Until he was three years old F. M. Cook re- 
 mained in Iowa, his father at that time going to 
 Illinois, and in that state he attended the dis- 
 trict schools in Scott county. When sixteen 
 years old he made the memorable trip to Cali- 
 fornia, crossing the plains with mule teams and 
 being four months on the journey. After lo- 
 cating in Solano county he attended the common 
 school for a time, remaining at home until at- 
 taining his majority. He then engaged in grain- 
 raising near Willows and also gave some time 
 to the stock business. In 1884 he removed to 
 Fresno county and near Malaga bought new 
 land and set out a fifty-acre vineyard. This he 
 conducted successfully for six years, when he 
 
 came to Orosi, Tulare county. Purchasing sixty 
 acres he set it out to grapes, and has realized 
 each year for the last six years from sixty to 
 sixty-two tons of fruit. In 1904 he realized 
 sixty-seven tons from forty-four acres. Besides 
 the Muscat he has set out the Thompson seedless 
 and has met with a success in its cultivation. In 
 addition to the sixty acres already mentioned he 
 owns twenty acres across the road set out to 
 Muscat and Thompson seedless; a twenty-acre 
 vineyard of Zinfandel at Sultana; and twenty 
 acres southeast of Sultana, making one hundred 
 and twenty acres in all, all devoted to the culti- 
 vation of grapes. The ranch is finely developed 
 and cared for, all being under irrigation. 
 
 In Willows, CaL, Mr. Cook was united in mar- 
 riage with Sarah Elizabeth Cartwright, a native 
 of Iowa, and they are the parents of three chil- 
 dren, Francis Elmer, James Ernest and Virgil. 
 Mr. Cook has been prominent in his community 
 and has taken an active part in all movements 
 calculated to advance the general welfare. For 
 over twelve years he served as school trustee, 
 and although a Democrat in national politics 
 never allows his views to stand between him and 
 a vote for a man whom he considers qualified to 
 discharge public duties satisfactorily. He is a 
 director and stockholder in the Bank of Dinuba, 
 as wgll as a director in the Alta Irrigation Com- 
 pany, being elected to this latter in 1902. He is 
 a member of the Presbyterian Church, of Orosi, 
 in which he officiates as trustee. Fraternally he 
 was made an Odd Fellow in Fresno in 1886, and 
 belongs also to Knights of Pythias of Orosi and 
 Woodmen of the World, being past councillor 
 commander. He is also identified with Women 
 of Woodcraft. For some time he was associated 
 with the Raisin Growers' Association and was 
 exceedingly active in its work. 
 
 JOHN F. DAULTON. In what is now the 
 county of Madera, but was then a portion of 
 Fresno county, J. F. Daulton was born January 
 24, 1862, being a son of the late Henry Clay 
 Daulton, one of the most influential stockmen 
 in this part of the state. The family possessing 
 ample means, he was given every advantage for 
 obtaining an excellent education, and for a time 
 studied in the Stockton Business College. From 
 his father he inherited a fondness for stock and 
 at an early age he selected stock-raising for his 
 life work. At the age of twenty-two he started 
 out for himself as a sheep-raiser in Madera coun- 
 ty and from a small beginning accumulated a 
 large flock in later years. 
 
 Upon the death of his father in 1893, J. F. 
 Daulton took charge of the estate and has since 
 maintained a close supervision of the ranch and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 601 
 
 the stock. To promote the interests of the family, 
 in 1898 he incorporated the Daulton Ranch Com- 
 pany, of which he is president and manager. In 
 the ranch there are seventeen thousand acres, all 
 under fence, and supplied with water by means 
 of flowing springs. Of the entire tract four 
 thousand acres are under cultivation, mostly in 
 grain, while the remainder of the land is utilized 
 as a pasture for the stock. In sheep he makes 
 a specialty of the Merino breed and at this writ- 
 ing has about eight thousand head on the ranch. 
 In 1889 he moved from the ranch into Madera, 
 where he has since made his home, but his resi- 
 dence in town has never interfered in any re- 
 spect with the close supervision he maintains 
 of the ranch and stock. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Daulton, in San Jose, 
 united him with Addie M. Raynor, who was 
 born in Connecticut and came to California with 
 her father, W. M. Raynor, a sheep-raiser, and 
 the owner of twelve thousand acres in Merced, 
 Mariposa and Madera counties. The family of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Daulton comprises four children, 
 namely: Hazel, Raynor McErlane, Henry Clay 
 and Erma. Mrs. Daulton is a member of the 
 Presbyterian Church and the family are attend- 
 ants upon its services. From the time of attain- 
 ing his majority Mr. Daulton has voted and 
 worked with the Republicans. Formerly he was 
 a member of the Republican county central com- 
 mittee. As the nominee of his party, in 1898 
 he was elected supervisor of the third district 
 of Madera county for a term of four years, and 
 during this time the court-house was planned 
 and completed. His fraternal relations include 
 membership in the Masonic Lodge No. 280, F. 
 & A. M., of Madera ; Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, in which he is past grand of the local 
 lodge; Ancient Order of United Workmen at 
 Madera, and the Benevolent Protective Order of 
 Elks at Fresno. 
 
 GEORGE POWERS KELSEY has the dis- 
 tinction of being the second oldest native son of 
 Merced county now living in the county, where 
 he was born May 25, 1855, and is the owner of 
 a ranch of eighty-six hundred acres, of which 
 one hundred and sixty acres of bottom land are 
 under alfalfa, and he has about two hundred and 
 fifty head of stock. A number of tenants occupy 
 the pasture lands, the owner occupying sufificient 
 for his needs. His home is on an elevation over- 
 looking the Merced river, half a mile from 
 Merced Falls. 
 
 Mr. Kelsey is a graduate of the University of 
 California, class of 1879, and by profession is 
 a civil engineer. A justifiable pride of ancestry 
 is a family characteristic, the earliest emigrant 
 bearing the name having arrived on American 
 
 shores from England in the early part of the 
 eighteenth century. Connecticut is supposed to 
 have been the destination of this remote sire, for 
 the paternal great-grandfather was born in that 
 state, moving, however, to New York state later 
 in life, and there Erastus Kelsey, the father of 
 George P., was born. On the maternal side Mr. 
 Kelsey is of Revolutionary stock, his maternal 
 grandfather, Powers, having served in the Brit- 
 ish army. His great-grand-uncle. Judge Stephen 
 Powers, at one time served as United States min- 
 ister to Switzerland. His mother, Malinda 
 (Powers) Kelsey, was born in Wisconsin. She 
 bore her husband six children, two of whom died 
 in early childhood, and those living are : Charles, 
 now living in Mariposa county ; George P. ; 
 Horace G., of Merced county; and Dr. A. L. 
 Kelsey, of Los Angeles. Erastus Kelsey went to 
 Illinois from New York in 1842, and assisted in 
 the laying of the first plank walk in what is now 
 the city of Chicago. In 1849 he crossed the 
 plains to California, mined along the American 
 river in Placer county, and was so successful 
 that he took a trip back to Illinois during the 
 summer of 1851. In 1852 he located on the 
 Merced river in the county of that name, entered 
 and purchased land to the extent of eight thou- 
 sand acres, which he sold to his son, George P., 
 in 1 881, and upon which he engaged in general 
 farming, stock and grain raising. Mr. Kelsey 
 later bought a section of land near Antioch, on 
 an island in the San Joaquin river, which he still 
 owns and occupies. Still active, he is the for- 
 tunate possessor of good health, cheerful spirits 
 and many friends, and besides has an ample share 
 of worldly goods. He is a Republican in, politics, 
 and has ever been regarded as a public-spirited, 
 generous and broad-minded man. 
 
 From the public schools George P. Kelsey en- 
 tered the University of California, his classmates 
 including George C. Pardee, the present gov- 
 ernor of California; Judge F. W. Henshaw, 
 Judge C. W. Slack, Prof. E. O'Neil and Charles 
 Butters, the mining expert. Shortly after his 
 graduation, Mr. Kelsey learned civil engineer- 
 ing and surveying, which he has practiced to 
 some extent ever since, and for which he has 
 particular aptitude. He was a school teacher in 
 Merced county for one year, and since buying 
 his father's ranch in 1881 has practically de- 
 voted his energies to its cultivation. He has 
 taken a commendable interest in Republican pol- 
 itics and was supervisor of the county four years. 
 He married Frances Overstreet, who was born 
 in San Francisco in 1866, a daughter of Will- 
 iam F. Overstreet, a pioneer of Mariposa coun- 
 ty, Cal. They are the parents of the following 
 children: Eudora M., Grace L., Lillian, Law- 
 rence DeW., Ruth N., George W., Francis O. 
 and Ethel. Mr. Kelsey has a pleasing and in- 
 
60^ 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 teresting personality, and is a good conversation- 
 alist, well versed in the current topics of the day. 
 He is held in high esteem by his many friends 
 for his honorable and upright dealings and his 
 public spirit. 
 
 JOHN J. DOYLE, an esteemed resident of 
 Portersville, Tulare county, was born in Lafay- 
 ette, Ind., April 19, 1844, a son of John Doyle. 
 The latter was a native of Kentucky, who re- 
 moved to Indiana in 1829, and there engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits until his death in 1876. His 
 father, William Doyle, came from Ireland when 
 a lad, locating in Virginia and later in Kentucky, 
 his death occurring in the latter state. John Doyle 
 married Sarah Wilson, a native of Virginia, who 
 in 1876 died in California, where she was brought 
 by her son, John J., on his second trip to the 
 coast. Mr. and Mrs. Doyle became the parents 
 of sixteen children, nine sons and seven daugh- 
 ters, of whom John J. was next to the youngest. 
 
 Until attaining his majority the home of John 
 J. Doyle remained under the parental roof in 
 Lafayette, Ind., where he took a commercial 
 course. In the meantime he had become much 
 interested in CaHfornia, and despite the wishes 
 of his mother made the trip. He lacked the 
 money to pay his passage, having only a Henry 
 rifle, a brass watch and $2 in Missouri state cur- 
 rency, but managed to work his way across, 
 trading the watch for a shotgun and afterward 
 selling that for $15. He was three months en 
 route, and after his arrival in the state worked 
 in Sierra valley, Plumas county. He would have 
 been satisfied to remain in the state, but learning 
 of the death of two brothers and knowing the 
 condition of his mother he at once returned to 
 Indiana by way of Panama, having upon his ar- 
 rival at home $18 in gold. In 1867 he brought 
 his mother via Nicaragua to California and lo- 
 cated in Sonoma county, engaging in farming on 
 land purchased by his mother. Two years later 
 he taught school in the old Santa Rosa district. 
 In the fall of 1870 he came to the San Joaquin 
 valley and located near the Cottonwoods, in 
 Merced county, on the west side of the valley, and 
 engaged in grain farming for two years. In 
 1 87 1 he came to Tulare county on a business trip 
 and while here took up the cause of the citizens 
 against the Southern Pacific Railway Company, 
 the case famous throughout the San Joaquin val- 
 ley, which remained unsettled from 1874 to 1883. 
 During this time Mr. Doyle made two trips to 
 Washington to champion the citizens' cause, 
 spending eight months trying to settle the mat- 
 ter, , but . finally _ had to admit defeat as the bill 
 never came up. The matter was taken through 
 the courts and was finally ended and five citizens 
 of the Mussel Slough district trouble were sen- 
 
 tenced to spend eight months in jail, though there 
 was nothing actually proven against them, the 
 court being owned by the railroad company. 
 
 Mr. Doyle afterward became a stanch friend 
 of Mr. Huntington, of the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 way Company, who had been kept in ignorance 
 of the actual facts in the difficulty just mentioned. 
 The two men remained firm friends until the 
 death of Mr. Huntington. Subsequently Mr. 
 Doyle located near Grangeville, Kings county, 
 and farmed there until 1885, when he removed 
 to the mountains of Tulare county, taking up a 
 timber claim of one hundred and sixty acres and 
 homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres, which 
 he still owns. In February, 1893, he removed to 
 Portersville, Tulare county, while he gives his 
 attention to his mountain ranch. This property 
 is famous for the fine apple orchard which is 
 widely known, and for the fruit upon which Mr, 
 Doyle has won several medals at the Agricult- 
 ural Fair. 
 
 In Kings county, Cal., Mr. Doyle was united 
 in marriage with Lillie Alice Holser, a native of 
 Prairie City, Cal., and they have three children, 
 Chester H., Ruby S. and Floreda Alice. Until 
 1876 Mr. Doyle was a Democrat but after that 
 became a member of the Workingmen's Party, 
 in 1879 being a delegate to the state convention. 
 There he had a strong altercation with Dennis 
 Kearney, and on account of the demonstration he 
 left the convention and since that time has not 
 been an active participant in political affairs. 
 During his residence in Kings county he served 
 two terms as justice of the peace of the Lemoore 
 district. Mr. Doyle is a man of ability and has 
 proven himself a helpful and practical citizen 
 wherever he has made his home. 
 
 ALBERT LINCOLN HOBBS. The extent 
 to which the people are interested in the raising 
 of fruit has made the packing business one of 
 the principal industries of Fresno county, and 
 among the men who have given their time and at- 
 tention to the occupation mention belongs to the 
 subject of this narrative, who is the president, 
 manager and ' principal proprietor of the A. L. 
 Hobbs Company, of Fresno. Under his close 
 personal oversight a large business has been es- 
 tablished. A packing house and seeding plant' 
 has been erected of suitable dimensions (225x100 
 feet) for the business conducted, and with ade- 
 quate facilities for shipment via the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad. A specialty is made of the 
 packing of figs and the seeding and packing of 
 raisins, of which latter the output is about fifty 
 tons per day. In addition to this plant, Mr. 
 Hobbs purchased and now conducts a packing 
 house at Selma. From these two houses ship- 
 ments are made to all points of the compass. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 603 
 
 The Hobbs family is of New England extrac- 
 tion. Daniel Hobbs, a native of Massachusetts 
 and a soldier in the Revolutionary war, became 
 a pioneer of Maine, where his son, Josiah, was 
 born and reared, and followed farm pursuits. 
 Charles Cyprian Hobbs, a son of Josiah, and 
 likewise a native of Maine, became a farmer and 
 lumberman of that state, where he held many 
 local offices and was a leader among the Jack- 
 sonian Democrats of his vicinity. In religion he 
 was of the Universalist faith. At the time of his 
 death, in 1888, he was eighty-four years of age. 
 In early manhood he married Isabella Hender- 
 son, who was born in Nova Scotia, being a daugh- 
 ter of John Henderson, also a native of that pen- 
 insula, of Scotch descent, and by occupation a 
 farmer. When she died in 1899 she had reached 
 the seventy-fifth year of her age. Of her five 
 children, four are living, Albert Lincoln being the 
 second of these and the only one to settle on the 
 Pacific coast. He was born at Norway, Oxford 
 county. Me., October 26, 1861. As a boy he 
 learned many lessons of patient toil when striv- 
 ing to cultivate the homestead, which was one of 
 the most sterile and rocky farms in all of Maine. 
 There Nature gave reluctant response to the la- 
 bors of man. 
 
 After having completed his studies in the pub- 
 lic schools and Norway Academy, A. L. Hobbs 
 began to teach school at twenty years of age 
 and for two years he followed that occupation. 
 Meanwhile he had resolved to seek a home in a 
 region where the struggle to gain a livelihood 
 might not be waged under such dire stress of 
 stern climate and sterile soil. Attracted to Cali- 
 fornia by what he had heard concerning the state, 
 in the spring of 1883 he crossed the continent 
 to San Francisco, from there going to Stanislaus 
 county. Work was difficult to secure. For three 
 weeks he chopped wood in return for his board, 
 after which he worked as a farm hand for two 
 years. At the expiration of that time he re-- 
 turned to Maine, where he engaged in the meat 
 and produce business and the packing of ap- 
 ples. During 1888 he again came to California, 
 this time settling at Santa Cruz, where he en- 
 gaged in the dairy business. Since 1890 he has 
 been identified with the business interests of 
 Fresno, beginning as a retail dealer in produce 
 and fruit on Fresno street, but a year later mov- 
 ing to larger quarters on I street between Fresno 
 and Mariposa. As a member of the firm of Hobbs 
 & Parsons, in 1892 he embarked in the whole- 
 sale trade on Tulare street, where even more than 
 the anticipated success rewarded his efforts. In 
 1897 the Hobbs-Parsons Company was incor- 
 porated with himself as president and manager, 
 but three years later the business was divided, 
 his partner retaining the wholesale department, 
 while he took charge of the packing interests 
 
 and established the company of which he is now 
 the chief member. 
 
 While in Santa Cruz Mr. Hobbs married Alice 
 Steinmetz, who was born in this state, her par- 
 ents having been pioneers of 1849. Oi this un- 
 ion there is a son, Charles Steinmetz. Mr. Hobbs 
 is connected with the Knights of Pythias and 
 the Sequoia Club and contributes to the Presby- 
 terian Church, of which his wife is a mem- 
 ber. From the time of casting his first ballot he 
 has been stanch in his allegiance to the Repub- 
 lican party, and his services in its behalf have 
 been recognized in his appointment as a dele- 
 gate to conventions ; as a member of the county 
 central committee for eight years, and also of the 
 executive committee of the same. At one time 
 he was a director of the Fresno Chamber of 
 Commerce and his interest in this important or- 
 ganization has been continuous. As a business 
 man he has proved himself possessed of excep- 
 tional ability, while personally his c[ualities of 
 mind and heart are such as to win the friend- 
 ship and confidence of associates. 
 
 JAMES MITCHELL CLARK. During his 
 comparatively brief life James Mitchell Clark 
 succeeded in his chosen vocation, that of farming 
 and stock-raising, and from comparative poverty 
 raised himself upon a good name, an honorable 
 character, and well directed industry. His death 
 January 21, 1899, removed from the pioneer 
 ranks of Kings county one who had developed 
 its resources intelligently and well, and who 
 left an unincumbered section of land, replete 
 with modern improvements, to tell the story of 
 his struggles, unfailing application and practical 
 business ability. 
 
 Of the early life of Mr. Clark little is recalled, 
 save that he was of humble parentage, and in 
 his youth had comparatively few educational 
 advantages. The farm in Maine, where he was 
 born August 17, 1849, held out little induce- 
 ments to an able-bodied and progressive young 
 man, and in 1871 he came to California and 
 found work by the month on a ranch in the vi- 
 cinity of Merced. Later on he ran a thresh- 
 ing-machine in that neighborhood, and at the 
 same time rented land and raised grain. In 
 1875 he removed to what is now Kings county, 
 and with his brother, A. W. Clark, purchased 
 the section of land now owned by his wife and 
 children, eight and one-half miles northeast of 
 Hanford. As yet no white man had turned up 
 the sod to the sun, or set his mind to speculating 
 as to its value as a productive agency. For the 
 balance of his Hfe his work went hand in hand 
 with that of his brother, and they entered upon 
 large stock-raising enterprises, and farmed ex- 
 tensively in grain. Time brought the need of 
 
604 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORE). 
 
 additional land, and they purchased tracts in 
 Tulare county, overseeing its disposition with 
 a regard for its improvement. Mr. Clark was 
 progressive and a man of great energy, and he 
 took much pride in the comfortable things of 
 life with which he was able to surround himself 
 and family. 
 
 When starting out on his successful career 
 Mr. Clark wisely concluded that a sympathetic 
 and intelligent wife would materially advance 
 his interests, and was united in marriage with 
 Amanda Woodcock, a native of Arkansas, May 
 II, 1879, who arrived in what is now Kings 
 county with her parents in 1875. Mrs. Clark has 
 proved worthy of the name of pioneer, and has 
 not only assisted her husband, within and out- 
 side of the house, but has reared a family of 
 eight children, two others having died in in- 
 fancy. With the exception of Arthur W., the 
 oldest son, who is a farmer and fruit-raiser near 
 Portersville, Tulare county, the children are all 
 at home, and are active in their effort to improve 
 the farm and add to the pleasure of those who 
 gather around their fireside. The children are : 
 Ida, Ada, Hannah, James, Augustus Rea, D. 
 Mitchell and Rose. The older daughters are 
 especially successful as managers of the property 
 since the departure from home of the eldest son. 
 Mr. Clark was never active in politics although' 
 he had well defined ideas of both parties, and 
 experienced a change of heart from the Demo- 
 cratic to Republican party after the first ad- 
 ministration of Grover Cleveland. He was a 
 man whose word was as good as his bond, and 
 who was conceded to be of a generous, kindly 
 and home loving nature, and his death in the 
 prime of usefulness in 1899, deprived his home 
 of a good husband and father, and the com- 
 munity of a valued and respected citizen. 
 
 J. W. SCHMITZ. One of the foremost agri- 
 culturists of the San Joaquin valley, and a citi- 
 zen of much prominence, J. W. Schmitz is worthy 
 of more than passing mention in this volume. 
 Associated with Miller & Lux, he is manager of 
 the Poso district, which includes the Helen, 
 Poso, Central, Temple and River Camp, Corm 
 Camp and Colony ranches, and of the east side 
 division, in which are New Ranch, and the New 
 and Old Columbia ranches. He is also manager 
 of large grain ranches in the Madera Berendo 
 country. A man of unbounded energy, great 
 enterprise, and strong force of character, he has 
 been influential in the development of the re- 
 sources of this section of Fresno, Madera and 
 Merced counties and the prime factor in mak- 
 ing irrigation successful, having been the first 
 to make and utilize permanent head gates. Pos- 
 sessing a thorough knowledge of the occupation 
 
 to which he is giving his best efforts, and the 
 sound judgment and wisdom that renders his 
 decisions quick and accurate, he has attained a 
 place of eminence among the keen, progressive 
 and business-like farmers of the community in 
 which he resides. A native of Germany, he was 
 born April 14, 1846, a son of F. P. Schmitz. 
 
 A man of great mechanical ability and talent, 
 F. P. Schmitz learned the trade of a gunsmith 
 in Germany, and for a number of years was a 
 commissioned officer in the German army, serv- 
 ing as gunsmith to Emperor Frederick William. 
 Immigrating with his family to America in 1854, 
 he resided in Detroit, Mich., until his death, 
 which occurred in 1857. His wife, whose maiden 
 name was Isabella Birk, was born in Germany, 
 and died in Detroit, Mich. Of the seven chil- 
 dren born of their union, J. W. is the only sur- 
 vivor. 
 
 Completing his early education in the city 
 schools of Detroit, J. W. Schmitz left Michigan 
 in 1862, his venturesome spirit deciding him to 
 try the hazard of new fortunes. Going to Atchi- 
 son, Kans., he joined a freighting outfit as train 
 clerk, but later drove six yoke of oxen across the 
 plains to Salt Lake City, being three months en 
 route, and afterwards resuming his former posi- 
 tion as train clerk. Desirous of extending his trav- 
 els, he next became train clerk for Forbes Broth- 
 ers, and with them went to the East Bannock 
 mines, now Montana, driving an ox-team on the 
 way, and arriving in the fall of 1862. Follow- 
 ing close in the footsteps of the on-rushers, Mr. 
 Schmitz continued his journey to Virginia City, 
 Mont., where he was employed in mining for 
 four years and ten months, prospecting and 
 opening up different claims. Starting for CaH- 
 fornia in 1867, he journeyed on horseback to 
 Walla Walla, thence by steamer down the Co- 
 lumbia river to Portland, Ore., and from there 
 to San Francisco by water. Going at once to 
 Calaveras county, Mr. Schmitz was for ten 
 months engaged in quartz mining near West 
 Point. Not particularly successful, he proceeded 
 to Santa Clara county, where he made an entire 
 change of occupation, becoming bridge builder 
 for the old San Francisco and San Jose Railroad 
 Company, on the line now known as the Coast 
 Line. When the road was completed as far as 
 Gilroy, he continued with the same company as 
 a carpenter in the bridge department, remaining 
 thus employed until the old company sold out to 
 the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, when he 
 settled as a carpenter in San Jose. 
 
 In April, 1871, Mr. Schmitz entered the em- 
 ploy of Miller & Lux, coming to the west side 
 of the San Joaquin valley as fence builder on the 
 Santa Rita ranch. Proving himself capable and 
 faithful, he was given the entire charge of fence 
 building on that ranch, and held the position 
 
a. ^a^M^' 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 60? 
 
 from July, 1871, until the summer of 1873, when 
 he was made superintendent of Santa Rita ranch. 
 He at once began needed improvements on the 
 place, and during that year the canal was built 
 through that estate, and the S. J. & K. R. C. & 
 I. Co.'s canal was begun. Giving up the man- 
 agement of the ranch in 1874, he worked as a 
 fence maker for his former employers a few 
 years, building fences on the east and west sides 
 of the valley, and in Santa Clara and Monterey 
 counties, and also superintended the building of 
 the Chowchilla canal. In 1877 Mr. Schmitz built 
 a head gate that proved successful, answering 
 all requirements, and marking a revolution in 
 farming. During the ensuing two years he was 
 very active in developing irrigation on both sides 
 of the valley, and at Los Banos began raising 
 alfalfa as an experiment. From year to year he 
 made improvements of a marked character, de- 
 veloping the country included between Los Banos 
 and Firebaugh, in which previously there had 
 been no water, by his efforts making it one of 
 the most fertile productive regions of central 
 California. He has had charge of the Chow- 
 chilla canal since its completion, and superin- 
 tended also the improvement of the east side, and 
 a part of Dos Palos ranch, of which he had 
 charge in 1879. In 1884 Mr. Schmitz began 
 working in a systematic and scientific manner at 
 the Poso ranch, and as mentioned above is man- 
 ager of the entire Poso district, and of the east 
 side division. He raises large quantities of 
 alfalfa on each of the ranches, and likewise 
 breeds and raises stock of all kinds. He is also 
 advisory manager of the Santa Rita ranch, and 
 has the supervision of the grain farms in Ma- 
 dera county. 
 
 Mr. Schmitz is personally interested in farm- 
 ing and stock raising in Madera county, being 
 owner of the old Chapman ranch, and of the 
 Howard and Wilson ranches, the three farms 
 containing five thousand acres of land. This 
 vast estate he devotes to the raising of grain, 
 alfalfa and fruit. He has there a fine orchard 
 of thirty-five acres ; a vineyard of twenty-five 
 acres; four hundred acres of alfalfa; four and 
 one-half sections of grain ; and two sections of 
 grass land. His property is finely improved, and 
 yields bountiful harvests each year, bringing him 
 in a princely income. 
 
 February 11, 1886, in Detroit, Mich., Mr. 
 Schmitz married Mary Van Leyen, who was 
 born in that city, a daughter of John Van 
 Leyen, who was born in Dusseldorf, Germany, 
 and now makes his home in Detroit. By his 
 marriage with Hendrina Look there were five 
 children born, of whom Mrs. Schmitz is the 
 only one in California. The maternal grand- 
 father of Mrs. Schmitz. John Look, served as a 
 commissioned officer in Napoleon's army at Mos- 
 
 cow. He subsequently came to America, locating 
 at Detroit, Mich., where he engaged in farming, 
 living there until his death, at the advanced age 
 of ninety-three years. The only child of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Schmitz, J. Walter Schmitz, is attend- 
 ing Santa Clara College. Politically Mr. Schmitz 
 is a stanch Republican. Fraternally he was 
 made a Mason in Merced, and now belongs to 
 Madera Lodge, F. & A. M., of which he is a 
 charter member. 
 
 ANDREW MATTEL From obscurity and 
 comparative poverty on a small Swiss farm, to 
 the ownership of oije of the largest vineyards 
 and wine manufactories in Fresno county, are 
 the extremes which have met in the life of 
 Andrew Mattei, than whom no more successful 
 man is representing his picturesque country in 
 this part of the state. Perseverance and good 
 judgment are noticeable characteristics of Mr. 
 Mattei, and are, mainly accountable for the fact 
 that a man less than fifty years old governs so 
 large a responsibility with apparent ease. His 
 identification with the county began in 1887, 
 when he purchased the William Wilkinson 
 ranch of half a section, the same being part of 
 his present home, and in 1890 he took posses- 
 sion of what was then a waving wheat field. 
 He commenced setting out grape vines from the 
 first, and soon after purchased an additional one 
 hundred and ten acres, which also was placed 
 under vines. In 1900 he bought another sec- 
 tion of land, and at present his ranch, consist- 
 ing of ten hundred and seventy acres, is all under 
 vines. He grows about two thousand tons of 
 grapes a year, although many of the vines are 
 not yet bearing, and has his own winery and 
 distillery, employing from thirty to sixty men, 
 according to the season. He also purchases 
 large quantities of grapes. In 1902 he manufac- 
 tured three hundred thousand gallons of wine 
 and one hundred thousand gallons of proof 
 brandy, all of which is sold in carload lots. One 
 section of his immense vineyard is watered by 
 a thirty-two horse-power gasoline engine, which 
 pumps water twenty feet, and the rest is irri- 
 gated by the Fresno Canal Company. This is 
 one of the finest and largest vineyards in this 
 splendidly productive section, and Mr. Mattei 
 has the satisfaction of knowing that every vine, 
 every building, fence, and appliance, is the re- 
 sult of his ability to direct his energy into chan- 
 nels for which he is eminently fitted, and toward 
 which he has had the courage to labor uiiceas- 
 ingly and wisely. His home of two stories is 
 located on slightly elevated ground, is_ well fur- 
 nished, and noted for its genuine hospitality and 
 good cheer. His family consists of his wife, 
 whom he married in Los Angeles in 1886, and 
 
608 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 who was formerly Eleanor J. Joughin, a native 
 of Rockford, 111., but who came to California 
 with her parents in i860, locating in Los An- 
 geles in 1866; and three children, Andrew, Jr., 
 Anne Joughin, and Eleanor Theadolinda. 
 
 Mr. Mattel's early life was spent on a farm 
 in Switzerland, where he was born August 9, 
 1855, and from where he came to the United 
 States in 1874. He was a strong and rugged 
 youth, used to hard work and simple living, 
 and his work in the timberlands of Nevada 
 proved less arduous than it would to many. Af- 
 ter two years in Nevada he went to San Fran- 
 cisco, and thence to Modesto, where he worked 
 in a dairy for abont six months. For the fol- 
 lowing year and a half he was employed in a 
 dairy in San Jose, after which he returned to 
 San Francisco for eight months. Returning 
 to San Jose he engaged in dairying for three 
 years, and January i, 1882, removed to Los 
 Angeles and manufactured cream of tartar for 
 six months. Dairying occupied his attention for 
 the next two years on a rented farm in Los 
 Angeles county, at the end of which time he 
 purchased the farm outright and continued its 
 management until 1890, when he came to his 
 present home. Mr. Mattel's success and char- 
 acter have made an impression on his fellow 
 residents of the Malaga district, and he is hon- 
 ored for his enterprise, thoroughness, and sub- 
 stantiality, no less than for his development of 
 a California resource destined to assume enor- 
 mous proportions, and gain world-wide fame. 
 
 JOHN H. OGLE. To John H. Ogle belongs 
 the distinction of having bought the second lot 
 sold in the town of Le Grand, Merced county, 
 Cal., and he has teen successfully engaged in 
 business here ever since the town was started. 
 A good mechanic and an expert blacksmith and 
 wagon-maker, he has had broad experience in 
 this line of work and is now the owner and pro- 
 prietor of a fully equipped blacksmith and 
 wagon-shop where he does general repair work 
 of all kinds. He was born in Cumberland coun- 
 ty. Pa., July 26, 1862, a son of J. H. and Minnie 
 (Buckingham) Ogle, the former a brick mason 
 by occupation. Soon after the birth of John H., 
 the father enlisted in the Union army and served 
 three years and six months as a private in the 
 Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. In 1863 his 
 wife died when John H. was but six months old. 
 
 Some time after the close of the war, the 
 Ogle .family moved to Missouri. John H., of 
 this review, left home in 1880, at which time he 
 traveled over various parts of Mexico. Colorado, 
 Arizona and Texas, and on May 21, 1881, he 
 touched Cahfornia soil. Spending six weeks in 
 Los Angeles, he went from place to place, and 
 
 the following year found him in Merced county, 
 engaged as a journeyman blacksmith at Plains- 
 berg. He was subsequently located in Selma 
 for one year, and at one time owned a black- 
 smith shop in Raymond, Madera county, where 
 he carried on a good business for four years, 
 prior to locating at Le Grand in business for 
 himself. He married Mrs. Lou A. (Kelley) 
 Footman, and they have two children, J. Kirk 
 and Lillie A. Politically Mr. Ogle is a stanch 
 Republican, and fraternally is allied with the 
 Woodmen oi the World and Modern Woodmen 
 of America. As a business man he is methodical, 
 thorough, successful, and as a citizen he is a 
 highly esteemed factor in the history of Le- 
 Grand. 
 
 PETER JORGENSEN. The Oakdale soda 
 works is an enterprise which commends itself 
 to the purchasing public by the excellence of its 
 products and the high character of the man con- 
 trolling and directing its operations. As a fea- 
 ture of the business activity which is contribut- 
 ing to the prestige of the town it is without a 
 rival, in equipment, if not in size, equalling any 
 concern of the kind in Stanislaus county. All 
 kinds of carbonated beverages are manufactured 
 in their greatest purity, such as lemon soda, sar- 
 saparilla, ginger ale, champagne and orange 
 cider, cream soda, birch beer, etc., and find a 
 ready market not only throughout this, but the 
 surrounding counties. Mr. Jorgensen has given 
 his business a great deal of study, and, added to 
 several years of practical experience in catering 
 to the exclusive demands of his customers, has 
 |)erfected himself as nearly as possible in his line 
 of business, which is assuming larger and more 
 important proportions each year. 
 
 Mr. Jorgensen owed early allegiance to Prus- 
 sian rule, for though born on the island of Alsen, 
 oiif the coast of Schleswig-Holstein, his ancestors 
 were Danes, who had fought and lost to Ger- 
 many their independence shortly before his birth, 
 October 24, 1868. His parents, Jacob P. and 
 Anna D. (Schmidt) Jorgensen, were born while 
 the Danish kings still ruled what is now Schles- 
 wig-Holstein, and owned a farm of some size 
 on Alsen, an island of great fertility, about 
 twenty miles long and about eight miles wide. 
 He was reared on this farm until coming to the 
 United States in 1885, at the time being a strong, 
 ambitious boy of sixteen, looking hopefully out 
 upon life and its manifold responsibilities. His 
 inclination naturally turned to the occupation of 
 his forefathers, and in time he was employed on 
 the farm of Eben Wood in the San Joaquin val- 
 ley, on which farm he worked for eight years. 
 This experience not onlv introduced him to 
 western farming methods, but enabled him to 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 609 
 
 exchange his Danish for the American language, 
 an accomplishment which he acquired with com- 
 parative ease. True to the national characteris- 
 tic, he was both thrifty and saving, and in 1893 
 bought a half interest in the Modesto soda works, 
 operating the same under the firm name of 
 Jacobsen & Jorgensen. In the fall of 1896 he 
 came to Oakdale and established a branch of the 
 Modesto manufactory, operated the same until 
 1901, and then started in business for himself 
 by purchasing his partner's interest. He is agent 
 also for Shasta and Cooks mineral waters. 
 
 On the corner of Second avenue and I streets 
 Mr. Jorgensen has erected a fine residence, fur- 
 nished it throughput in modern style, and sup- 
 plied for his family the comforts and luxuries of 
 life to the best of' his ability. He was married 
 April 14, 1903, to Miss Emma C. Vaccaro, born 
 at Snelling, Merced county, Cal., and a repre- 
 sentative of an early pioneer family of this 
 state. Mr. Jorgensen is independent in politics, 
 and is fraternally connected with the Artisans 
 and the Knights of Pythias, of which he is a 
 past chancellor. He is also a member of the 
 Dania Society of Modesto. He is honored for 
 his unswerving integrity, his progressiveness 
 and adaptability to western conditions, and for 
 his ' generosity in contributing to worthy com- 
 munity causes. 
 
 ROBERT BOOT. Few if any organizations 
 have proved more beneficial to fruit specialists 
 of California than the Raisin Growers Associa- 
 tion, which since its inception afforded valuable 
 assistance in the development of one of the most 
 important industries in the state, and has also 
 been the means of bringing into fraternal rela- 
 tions the men and women who are devoting them- 
 selves to this occupation. On the occasion of the 
 first meeting of this body Mr. Boot, who had 
 been an enthusiastic promoter of the movement, 
 was chosen a director and was re-elected to. the 
 office each succeeding year. During the first 
 three years of the association's history he filled 
 the office of secretary, after which he served 
 as general inspector for a year and then, in the 
 spring of 1902, was elected its president, which 
 responsible position he filled till 1904. 
 
 By birth and ancestry Mr. Boot is an English- 
 man. His parents, Isaac and Rebecca (Sutton) 
 Boot, spent their entire lives in Nottinghamshire, 
 where the former engaged in the manufacture 
 and sale of merchandise, his specialty being 
 laces. In -their family were two daughters and 
 a son, the latter, the subject of this narrative, 
 having been the second in order of birth. He 
 was born in Nottingham January 10,, 1839, and 
 received his education principally in the Ack- 
 worth high school. After leaving school he en- 
 
 tered a counting-house in his native city, where 
 he was employed for two years. During the 
 ensuing four years he served an apprenticeship 
 to the dry-goods business in Hempstead. Dur- 
 ing 1859 he came to America for the first time 
 and for a year acted as manager of the Man- 
 chester department- of a wholesale dry-goods 
 house in Toronto. Coming from Canada to 
 the United States, he engaged in farming in 
 Baltimore county, Md. In 1863 he returned to 
 England and sailed from London on the Tibernia, 
 which rounded the Cape of Good Hope and after 
 a voyage of ninety-four days anchored at Auck- 
 land, New Zealand. Settling in that growing 
 city, he turned his attention to the manufacture 
 and export of Kauri pine lumber and spar timber. 
 Coming from New Zealand to California in 
 1880, Mr. Boot settled in Fresno county, where 
 he has since made his home. He was among the 
 first to purchase property in the Oleander dis- 
 trict, where he bought a tract of new land, 
 leveled and prepared it for irrigation, then set 
 it to a vineyard and orchard. The original tract 
 he still owns, but has also purchased other land, 
 having acquired eighty acres altogether, of which 
 he improved forty acres himself. While giving 
 close attention to his fruit interests^ at the same 
 time he did much to promote and secure the 
 organization of the Oleander Packing Company, 
 of which he acted as secretary and manager until 
 he resigned to associate himself with the organi- 
 zation of which he is now the chief executive. 
 In 1899 he came to Fresno, where he now has 
 his residence. He is a member of the Fresno 
 Chamber of Commerce, the Congregational 
 Church of this city, and the California State 
 Horticultural Society. Since becoming a citizen 
 of the United States he has affiliated with the 
 Republican party. His marriage was solemnized 
 while he was in New Zealand and united him 
 with Gertrude Hurndall, a native of Somerset, 
 England. By this union he has nine children, 
 all of whom are residents of Fresno county. Per- 
 sonally Mr. Boot is a man of many admirable 
 qualities. His travels in many lands have made 
 him a cosmopolitan in his views and given him 
 an education not possible to be acquired in any 
 other way. Though he has seen many lands and 
 become familiar with many climates, he believes 
 California to be the peer of all in offering to 
 settlers those attractions which enhance the joys 
 of existence. 
 
 TULLIUS MARCUS MALESANI has ac- 
 quired for himself a prominent position in the 
 business interests of Madera county, Cal, and 
 since 1900 has been closely identified with the 
 commercial life of the city and its vicinity, as 
 the superintendent of the Madera Winery, which, 
 
610 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 it is claimed, has one of the largest fermenting 
 plants in the world and whose products are well 
 known. The plant is owned by the Italian-Swiss 
 colony, and comprises five thousand acres. The 
 railroad spur was built one year before Mr. 
 Malesani's management began. The plant it- 
 self is of mammoth size, its various buildings 
 covering twenty acres. Here is to be found 
 the best and most improved machinery for 
 crushing grapes, and the various branches of 
 wines and brandies put upon the market by 
 this company are among the finest-flavored in 
 the world. A number of port, sherry and other 
 sweet wines are also manufactured. The total 
 cooperage of this winery is three million gallons 
 and five hundred tons of grapes are handled 
 in one day, almost twenty thousand in one sea- 
 son. 
 
 The water system is perfect, the tower hold- 
 ing fifteen thousand gallons, and the machinery 
 is operated by powerful engines, which aggre- 
 gate three hundred and fifty horse power, and all 
 the repair work is done in the blacksmith shops, 
 wagon shops, etc., in proximity to the plant and 
 the property of the company. The season com- 
 mences early and twenty-six plows are usually 
 running by March 15, and from one hundred 
 to two hundred men are employed constantly. 
 Each department is under competent foremen, 
 who in turn report regularly to the superinten- 
 dent. The two distilleries have a capacity of 
 forty thousand gallons a day, and the^ plant 
 is in the ist district of California, No. 183. For 
 storage purposes, the plant has fifty twenty-five 
 thousand gallon tanks for one kind, ten twenty- 
 five thousand gallon tanks for another kind, 
 twelve forty thousand gallon tanks for another, 
 and in addition they have eight sherry tanks 
 of fifteen thousand gallons each, and twelve 
 other tanks with a capacity of five hundred thou- 
 sand gallons for still another quality. The mag- 
 nitude of this industry can hardly be over-esti- 
 mated, and the same may be said of its import- 
 ance in the community. 
 
 Mr. Malesani descended from a prominent 
 family and is himself a native of Verona, Italy, 
 October i, 1873, marking the date of his birth. 
 His common-school education was supplemented 
 by a university course in his native land, and 
 as a result he possesses superior intellectual at- 
 tainments. In 1896 he came to the United States 
 and foT the two years following he was identi- 
 fied with the Sunnyside Company, at Sunny- 
 side, Ark. He subsequently returned for a 
 time to Italy in the interest of the St. Louis & 
 San Francisco Railroad company, and in 1900 
 came to California and assumed the duties of 
 his present position, succeeding at that time A. 
 C. Palladini as superintendent of the Madera 
 Winery. 
 
 Mr. Malesani was united in marriage with 
 Miss Mary Lunghi, who was born in St. Louis, 
 Mo., and they have two children, Yolanda and 
 Santina. The father of Mr. Malesani, G. B. 
 Malesani, is still living in Italy, being now more 
 than seventy years old. Although for a number 
 of years past he has been living retired, he was 
 for many years a prominent member of his com- 
 munity, a civil engineer by profession and a 
 writer of some note. For years he served as 
 school inspector and he is highly esteemed in 
 his community. He is also decorated with the 
 title of Chevalier of the Italian Royal Crown, 
 as a reward for his great interest and ability in 
 popularizing the scientific progress of modern 
 agriculture. 
 
 CLARENCE A. DUNN. The Madera Coun- 
 ty Hospital, located one and one-half miles from 
 the city of Madera, is most ably and carefully 
 managed by Clarence A. Dunn, who has served 
 as superintendent of this institution for the past 
 four years. A man of fine physical and mental 
 development, energetic and public-spirited, ever 
 mindful of the public weal, he is performing the 
 arduous duties connected with his position with 
 commendable zeal and fidelity, and is well worthy 
 of the confidence and trust reposed in him by 
 his fellow-men. A son of Samuel Dunn, he was 
 born August 10, 1858, in Atchison county, Kans. 
 
 The lineal descendant of an old and prominent 
 Virginian family, Samuel Dunn was born in Vir- 
 ginia, but was brought up and educated in Ohio. 
 He there learned the trade of carpenter, and also 
 became familiar with the various branches of 
 agriculture. From Ohio he moved with his fam- 
 ily to Iowa, living there for four years, from 
 1 85 1 until 1855. Removing then to Kansas, he 
 carried on general farming and carpentering un- 
 til his death. In Washington county, Ohio, he 
 married Lucy Ellis, who was born in Ohio, and 
 died on the home farm, in Kansas, in 1876. 
 
 At the age of twenty-one years, in 1879, 
 Clarence A. Dunn left his native state, going 
 first to Iowa, and then to Omaha, Neb., where 
 he remained two years. Ret-urning to Kansas, 
 he continued work in that state for about ten 
 years. Wishing, however, to improve his finan- 
 cial prospects, and to enjoy the beautiful climate 
 of California, he came to this state in 1891, lo- 
 cating in Madera, where he secured a position in 
 a sash and door factory, and also worked at the 
 carpenter's trade. In 1900 he was made super- 
 intendent of the Madera County Hospital, and 
 has since served in this capacity in a manner 
 worthy of notice. The main building of the Hos- 
 pital, erected in 1895, is a two-story frame build- 
 ing, fitted out with five wards, in which there 
 are accommodations for fifty or more patients. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 611 
 
 Connected with this institution is a small farm, 
 which is likewise under the management of Mr. 
 Dunn, who raises all the poultry, eggs and vege- 
 tables needed for use on the place. This is a 
 great help to the county, as on January i, 1904, 
 there were forty-nine men and one woman being 
 cared for on the farm. 
 
 While living in Iowa Mr. Dunn married 
 Carrie Lloyd. Politically Mr. Dunn is an ardent 
 supporter of the principles promulgated by the 
 Republican party, and fraternally he belongs 
 to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and 
 to the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 J. N. ABBAY. The Southern Pacific Rail- 
 way Company has always been especially for- 
 tunate in the selection of its employes, upon each 
 of whom great responsibility is placed, be he 
 section hand, roadmaster, fireman, engineer or 
 general superintendent of the road. Prominent 
 among the oldest in point of service, and the most 
 trustworthy of these employes, is J. N. Abbay, 
 of Merced, well known to the patrons of the 
 Oakdale branch of the road as engineer of a 
 passenger train running between Merced and 
 Stockton, the round trip covering a distance 
 of one hundred and forty-four miles. An ex- 
 perienced railroad man, with a thorough knowl- 
 edge of the mechanical construction and man- 
 agement of a locomotive, he is especially fitted 
 for his position, and well deserving of the high 
 estimation and regard in which he is held by 
 his employers, and by the traveling public. A 
 son of the late William Abbay, he was born 
 December 13, 1847, i" Maquoketa, Jackson coun- 
 ty, Iowa. 
 
 A native of Missouri, William Abbay learned 
 the trade of blacksmith when young, and subse- 
 quently settled in Maquoketa, Iowa, where he 
 built up a good business. Crossing the plains 
 to California in 1852, he was first employed in 
 agricultural pursuits in Bodega, Sonoma county. 
 Subsequently buying land near Geyserville, he 
 improved a ranch, and there spent his remaining 
 days. He was interested to some extent in frater- 
 nal societies, and belonged to the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows. In Anamosa, Iowa, he 
 married Martha Lamson, who was born in New 
 York state, and is now a resident of Fresno. 
 Of their six children, one daughter has passed 
 to the life beyond, and one daughter and four 
 sons are living, namely: J. N., the subject of 
 this sketch; Mary, residing in Idaho; George, 
 an engineer on the Southern Pacific Railway, re- 
 siding in Nevada ; John, a merchant in Missouri ; 
 and William, of Oakland, this state. 
 
 Living in Iowa until about nine years old, J. 
 N. Abbay came with friends to California in 
 1856, coming via the Isthmus of Panama. Join- 
 
 ing his father in Sonoma county, he attended the 
 short sessions of the district school for a few 
 years, in the meantime working for his father, 
 or for neighboring ranchmen. Beginning life 
 for himself when a boy of fifteen years, he 
 entered the employ of the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road company, working in the Sacramento shops 
 before the road had been completed to the Sum- 
 mit. In 1866 he was made fireman, a position 
 in which he continued two years. In 1868 he 
 was promoted to the position of engineer, as 
 such running an engine in Nevada before the 
 driving of the golden spike. Continuing in 
 Nevada for fourteen years, he ran from different 
 cities, including Carlin, Winnemucca and Wads- 
 worth. Returning to CaHfornia in 1882, Mr. 
 Abbay was first located in Oakland, becofning 
 an engineer on the western division of the above 
 railroad, with which he has been actively identi- 
 fied as an engineer for the past twenty-two years, 
 having charge of a passenger engine for seven- 
 teen years, but for the past five years holding his 
 present position of responsibility. During this 
 time, Mr. Abbay has had one serious accident. 
 In June, 1891, near Port Costa, in a head-end 
 collision, his train was telescoped, and he was 
 badly burned and scalded, his escape from death 
 being almost miraculous, and his complete re- 
 covery from his injuries a surprise. 
 
 In Truckee, this state, Mr. Abbay married 
 Mary Henry, who was born in Tuolumne county, 
 where her father, John Henry, was an early pio- 
 neer. Mr. and Mrs. Abbay have one child, Will- 
 iam H., who was graduated from the San Fran- 
 cisco Dental College with the degree of D. D. S., 
 and is a successful dentist in Oakland. Mr. 
 Abbay is identified with the Republican party 
 in politics, and belongs to the Brotherhood of 
 Locomotive Engineers, of Oakland. 
 
 JAMES T. EASTIN. One of the most 
 prosperous and respected members of the farm- 
 ing population of Madera county is James T. 
 Eastin, whose well-kept homestead lies about six 
 and one-half miles south of the city of Madera. 
 For many years he has been actively identified 
 with the agricultural interests of this section of 
 the state as a grain raiser and stock grower, 
 and in the pursuit of his chosen vocation still 
 finds his greatest pleasure. Coming from sub- 
 stantial Kentucky stock, he was born in 1830, 
 in Kentucky, which was likewise the birthplace 
 of his parents, James and Docie (South) Eastin, 
 who moved to Pike county, Mo., in 1834, pur- 
 chasing a farm, on which they spent their re- 
 maining days. 
 
 But four years old when he went with his 
 parents to Missouri, James T. Eastin was reared 
 on the home farm, and educated in the pioneer 
 
612 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 district school. In 1850, following in the foot- 
 steps of his brother, the late Brutus Eastin, who 
 had come to California with the gold-seekers of 
 1849, he crossed the plains to the Pacific coast 
 with an ox-team train. Proceeding directly to 
 Weaver Creek, Mr. Eastin was there engaged 
 in mining for ten years. He met with excellent 
 success, accumulating considerable money, which, 
 like many other miners, he lost by investing in 
 mines. Locating in Tuolumne county in i860, 
 he embarked in grain raising in the San Joaquin 
 valley, where he lived ten years. Moving thence 
 to Fresno county, he was there engaged in the 
 stock business for several years, making a spe- 
 cialty of raising sheep. Disposing of that prop- 
 erty, he went east, married, and soon after re- 
 turned to California, where he resumed his agri- 
 cultural labors. About 1894 Mr. Eastin bought 
 his present ranch, which contained eleven hun- 
 dred acres, and by dint of persevering industry 
 and superior management has improved a valu- 
 able farm, which in its appointments and equip- 
 ments compares favorably with any in the coun- 
 ty. He carries on general farming with marked 
 success, ■ raising large quantities of grain and 
 stock. 
 
 Mr. Eastin married, in 1872, Susan L. For- 
 tune, who was born in Missouri and died Oc- 
 tober 30, 1904. They had one child, Pulaski C. 
 This son married, Katie C. Skaggs, and they are 
 the parents of two children, namely : Mary and 
 Arthusa. Politically Mr. Eastin is an earnest 
 supporter of the principles of the Democratic 
 party, which he thinks is sure to advance the 
 best interests of the country, if given the con- 
 trolling power. He is a man of deep religious 
 convictions, and is a faithful member of the 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 JAMES T. McCANN. As a vineyardist and 
 fruit grower of Fresno county, James T. Mc- 
 Cann is securing the best results from the cultiva- 
 tion of forty acres of land in the Malaga district, 
 eighteen acres being devoted to grapes, ten to 
 orchard and the remainder to alfalfa. Born in 
 Marion county. Mo., July 26, 1853, he is the son 
 of Thomas J. McCann, whose birth occurred in 
 Hardin county, Ky., in 1818. He was a farmer 
 all his life and after his marriage with Sarah 
 Jane Haycraft, born in Bourbon county, Ky., in 
 1819, he removed to the state of Illinois, and 
 afterward to Missouri, where his death occurred 
 in 1884. 
 
 Reared to manhood in Lewis county. Mo., 
 James T. McCann there engaged in farming for 
 himself on attaining years of maturity. In 1882 
 he married Margaret Haycraft, a daughter of 
 S. M. Haycraft, after which he removed to 
 Kansas and remained until his father's death. 
 
 He then returned to Missouri and assumed 
 charge of the home farm until 1888, when he 
 came to California and located in Madera coun- 
 ty, where with his brother Robert he engaged 
 in farming on a ranch of one hundred and twenty 
 acres. After a residence of ten years in that 
 location he removed to Fresno county, following 
 farming in the vicinity of Selma for three years. 
 In 1902 he purchased forty acres of land in the 
 Malaga district and here he has since made his 
 home. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. McCann have been born two 
 daughters, Bernice, deceased, and Marjorie. In 
 his religious convictions Mr. McCann subscribes 
 to the doctrines of the Baptist Church. Politic- 
 ally he casts his ballot with the Democratic 
 party, and through the influence of those of like 
 convictions he has been chosen to act as school 
 trustee in the Malaga district. Fraternally he is 
 identified with the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 GEORGE W. YOAKUM. Living retired in 
 Merced, Cal., George W. Yoakum is enjoying 
 a well-earned rest from an active business career 
 of forty years. He was born in Ray county, Mo., 
 May 17, 1842. In 1852 the family came to Cali- 
 fornia, where the father sought to better his con- 
 dition. For one year he conducted a hotel in 
 Gold Hill, Placer county. In 1853 the family 
 moved to Alameda county and there George W. 
 grew to manhood on his father's ranch. In 1862 
 he left home and went to Contra Costa county, 
 where he attended school for a time, and then 
 returned home and assisted his father for one 
 year. Returning to Contra Costa county in 1863 
 he was married, October 26, to Rebecca A. 
 Johnston. Immediately after his marriage he 
 returned to his father's ranch in Alameda county 
 and worked it on shares for a year, and for the 
 same length of time farmed in Pacheco valley, 
 Contra Costa county. From there he went to 
 Green valley, Solano county, and carried on farm 
 pursuits for one year. Returning once more to 
 Contra Costa county he made his first purchase 
 of land and remained there two years, after 
 which he moved to East Oakland, purchasing 
 a home there, and for four years carried on a 
 butcher business. In 1871 he removed to his 
 ranch and conducted a butcher business in Wal- 
 nut Creek. In the fall of 1883 he removed his 
 family to Mariposa county, where he had been 
 interested in the stock business since 1880. While 
 still continuing his business in the latter county, 
 he had, in 1884, started a meat market in Merced, 
 to which city his family came in 1885, he himself 
 coming in 1887. The year following he sold his 
 market. Having been elected to the office of 
 city marshal, he served in this capacity for two 
 years and as constable for four years, but since 
 retiring from office has lived practically retired. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 613 
 
 Mrs. Yoakum was born in Green county, Mo., 
 February 6, 1845, ^ daughter of Thomas M. 
 Johnston, who was a native of Kentucky and an 
 early settler of Missouri. Mr. Johnston brought 
 his family to California in 1859, living first in 
 Sonoma, and later in Contra Costa county, in 
 time settling in Stockton, but a few months later 
 he moved to Napa, where his death occurred 
 July 22, 1877. His wife, Eleanor (Steele) John- 
 ston, was born in Tennessee and died in Napa. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Yoakum six children have been 
 born, of whom Emma E. is the wife of E. C. 
 Cribb, of Los Angeles ; Ann Jeanette is the wife 
 of Thomas Mack, of Merced; Mary C. is the 
 wife of Charles M. French ; and the others are : 
 George Franklin ; Alvis Thomas ; and Nellie C, 
 the wife of F. V. Routt, of San Jose. Fraternally 
 Mr. Yoakum is a Mason, and in politics is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 CORNELIUS CURTIN. At the time he 
 came to Madera in 1880 Mr. Curtin found a small 
 hamlet, with meager business facilities and little 
 promise for the future. ^ However, with keen dis- 
 cernment he detected favorable indications and 
 resolved to identify himself with the town, a de- 
 cision which he has had no occasion to regret. 
 On the other hand, the competency which he now 
 enjoys has been accumulated entirely since he 
 came to his present location and represents the 
 results of his investments and business enterprises 
 here. While his interests have been varied, his 
 name is especially associated with the livery busi- 
 ness which he conducts and with the raising of 
 stock on his stock farm. 
 
 Of eastern birth and Irish parentage, Cor- 
 nelius Curtin was born in Franklin county, N. Y., 
 December 22, i860, and was third among seven 
 children, all but one of whom are still living. 
 Two of his brothers, Matthew and Daniel, own 
 and operate farms in Tulare county, the former, 
 who was an early settler of California, having 
 been for some time a resident of Yolo county. 
 The father, John Curtin, came to the United 
 States from Ireland and settled upon a farm in 
 New York, where he remained until his death. 
 His wife, who bore the maiden name of Mary 
 Spillings, was born in Ireland and died in Febru- 
 ary, 1904, on the home farm in New York at 
 eighty-four years of age. The bovhood years of 
 Cornelius Curtin were uneventfully passed in as- 
 sisting on the home farm and attending the pub- 
 lic schools of the district. He was sixteen when 
 he started out to earn his own way in the world. 
 Ambitious to settle in the west, he came to Cali- 
 fornia. Almost all of his money had been spent 
 in railroad fare and he had but $5 left when he 
 reached Sacramento. Starting out to seek work, 
 he was met by the tax collector, who made him 
 
 pay a poll tax of $2. This beginning did not seem 
 auspicious, but to a young man of energy and 
 good health the lack of money is not a discour- 
 aging fact. 
 
 On his second day in California Mr. Curtin se- 
 cured work on a hay press and continued at the 
 same place for two months. He then went to 
 Merced county, where he worked as a farm hand 
 by the month for two and one-half years. Next 
 he secured employment on a farm in Tulare coun- 
 ty and from there in the spring of 1880 came 
 to Madera. For two years he drove a stage from 
 Madera to Yosemite. In 1882 he started a liv- 
 ery business on the block where he still remains, 
 buying the corner where he has since conducted 
 business. His first building, a frame stable, was 
 destroyed by fire in 1886, but he rebuilt the same 
 year and now has a two-story stable, 100x150 feet 
 in dimensions, and with sheds besides, the total 
 capacity being over two hundred head of horses. 
 The livery is the largest in the county. A full 
 assortment of vehicles is kept, suitable for any 
 purpose desired. In addition to Ihe barn Mr. 
 Curtin owns three hundred acres of irrigable 
 land adjoining the city on the south and under 
 cultivation to alfalfa and grain, besides which he 
 owns a stock ranch in the foothills. 
 
 The family residence, erected by Mr. Curtin, 
 stands on Yosemite street. After coming to Ma- 
 dera he married Etta Martin, who was born in 
 Kansas and died in this city, leaving a son, Will- 
 iam, a graduate in the June class of 1904, Santa 
 Clara College. In religion Mr. Curtin is a Roman 
 Catholic and a contributor to the various charities 
 of his church. He co-operates in all movements 
 for the benefit of Madera, including the Board 
 of Trade, which has been a helpful agent in the 
 growth of the town. His political allegiance is 
 given to the Democratic party, in which he has 
 been a prominent local worker, having been for 
 some time a member of the county central com- 
 mittee and its chairman for one term. 
 
 ROBERT D. HAYCROFT. More than the 
 allotted number of years have passed over the 
 head of Robert D. Haycroft, and yet he is in- 
 terested in the busy activities which have marked 
 his entire life. He is located upon his ranch of 
 twelve acres in the vicinity of Malaga, Fresno 
 county, and is devoting his time to the culture 
 of vines and fruit. In additon to this property 
 he also owns twenty acres between Malaga and 
 Fowler, and thirty acres in Madera county. Born 
 in Morgan county. 111., February 11, 1831, he is 
 the descendant of an English family, the first 
 American emigrant being his great-grandfather, 
 a sailor lad who escaped from his ship and set- 
 tled in the Old Dominion. Later he removed to 
 Maryland, and in that state Samuel Haycroft 
 
614 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 was born. In manhood he served in the Revo- 
 lutionary war. His home eventually was located 
 in Hardin county, Ky., where Presley N._ Hay- 
 croft was born. He became a Baptist minister 
 and married Elizabeth Kennedy, a native of Vir- 
 ginia, whose father, Samuel Kennedy, was also 
 a native of that state. Mr. and Mrs. Haycroft 
 removed from their home in Kentucky to Illi- 
 nois and later to Lewis county. Mo., where his 
 last days were spent as a preacher and farmer, 
 his death occurring- at the age of ninety-two 
 years. 
 
 Reared to manhood in the state of Missouri, 
 Robert D. Haycroft was trained in the practical 
 duties of farm life. At the age of twenty-two 
 years he engaged in the cattle business in com- 
 pany with a brother, carrying on the work in 
 the states of Missouri, Texas and Arkansas, for 
 twenty years. He decided then to try Hfe among 
 the pleasant scenes of California, and accord- 
 ingly came west in 1885, purchasing in the fall 
 of the following year his present place of twelve 
 acres, upon which he has since made his home. 
 In Malaga he built a grain warehouse which he 
 operated for several years, but the building has 
 since been converted into a packing house. In 
 Kentucky he married Elizabeth Miller, now de- 
 ceased, and by whom he had one child, Lee Wal- 
 lace. He afterward married Hattie Prentiss. In 
 his political convictions, although a stanch Demo- 
 crat, he cast his first vote for Zachary Taylor, 
 the hero of the Mexican war. Mr. Haycroft is 
 widely known and respected for the many admir- 
 able qualities which distinguish his character. 
 
 WALTER H. BRISCOE. A prominent and 
 successful vineyardist of Fresno county, Walter 
 H. Briscoe is located upon his ranch of forty 
 acres in the neighborhood of Malaga, and seven 
 miles from the city of Fresno. His land is de- 
 voted to the cultivation of various fruits and 
 alfalfa, twenty-six acres given over to the raisin 
 grape, five acres to general orchard, and a part 
 of the remainder to alfalfa. A native of Lewis 
 county. Mo., Mr. Briscoe was born in 1837, a 
 son of Walter Briscoe, of Kentucky, and the 
 grandson of a Virginian whose ancestors came 
 from Germany to the United States in an early 
 day. Walter Briscoe was married in Kentucky 
 to Eliza Wagner, and soon afterward removed to 
 Missouri and located in Lewis county, where he 
 farmed until his death at the age of fifty-two 
 years, while his wife passed away at the age of 
 sixty. 
 
 Reared on his father's farm, Mr. Briscoe was 
 early trained in the practical duties which insure 
 the success of an agriculturist. In manhood he 
 purchased a farm for himself in Missouri, but 
 in 1888 decided to change his location, coming 
 
 to California, where he located in Fresno county 
 and purchased the forty acres which has since 
 remained his home, and where he is now devot- 
 ing his energies toward the upbuilding of the 
 agricultural interests of the community. In Mis- 
 souri, in 1 861, he was united in marriage with 
 Elizabeth Wallace, a native of Kentucky, born 
 in 1841, and they are the parents of four chil- 
 dren, namely : James, who is engaged in the oil 
 business at Bakersfield, Kern county; Robert A., 
 who is a vineyardist of Fresno county; Eliza; 
 and Gertrude. Though not at present a Mason 
 Mr. Briscoe was connected with this order for 
 forty years, and politically he is a Democrat. 
 He is a member of the Malaga Baptist Church, 
 in which he officiates as deacon. 
 
 HUBERT U. CARVER. A very successful 
 ranchman and much-esteemed and respected 
 citizen, Hubert U. Carver is numbered among 
 the prominent vineyardists of the Malaga dis- 
 trict, Fresno cormty, where he has made his home 
 since 1885. A native of Canada, he was born in 
 Ontario May 9, 1854, a son of Samuel J. Carver, 
 whose birthplace was England, being reared and 
 educated in London, where he studied law. In 
 1828, when twenty-six years old he came to 
 America and located in Ontario, there marrying 
 Jane Montgomery, a native of Ireland. Besides 
 engaging as a farmer throughout the greater 
 part of his Hfe in Canada Mr. Carver acted as 
 postmaster at Petersborough where his death 
 occurred at the advanced age of ninety years. 
 
 Reared upon the paternal farm Hubert U. 
 Carver remained at home until 1881, when he 
 went to Winnipeg, Manitoba, and following his 
 early training engaged in farming for four years. 
 He then came to California and located in Fresno 
 county, purchasing the farm of forty acres upon 
 which he has since made his home. Later he also 
 bought forty acres in the Lone Star district, de- 
 voting the entire number of acres there to the 
 cultivation of peaches, while thirty acres of his 
 home ranch are given over to the raisin grape. 
 He has met with every success in his work and 
 has acquired a competence in his vvestern home. 
 Fraternally Mr. Carver is a member of Fowler 
 Lodge No. 71, K. P. 
 
 FRANK HENRY BRITTAN. A citizen of 
 much worth and character, Mr. Brittan is wide- 
 ly esteemed by all who know him. Although 
 comparatively a recent acquisition to the busi- 
 ness and social life of Visalia he has yet made 
 his influence felt in the upbuilding of the best 
 interests of the place and the progress and de- 
 velopment of resources, and has already won a 
 position of prominence among the representa- 
 

 
 
 
 
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 61!) 
 
 tive citizens of the community. Born in New 
 York City February ii, 1834, he is the son of 
 Francis Brittan, a native of London, England, 
 who came to the United States in 1828 and lo- 
 cated in New York City as a merchant. In 1844 
 he removed to Lafayette, Ind., and followed the 
 same business for five years; then located near 
 Mineral Point, Wis., there engaging as a farm- 
 er. After nine years he returned to his former 
 employment, locating in Burlington, Kans., re- 
 moving thence to Missouri in i860, where, in 
 Liberty, he followed a mercantile pursuit. For 
 a time he was located in Monmouth, 111., later 
 in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, and finally in Adams 
 county, Iowa, where he was accidentally drowned 
 at the age of eighty-five years. His wife, for- 
 merly Louisa Gates, was a native of Bath, Eng- 
 land, and she died in Riverton, Iowa, at the age 
 of sixty-five years. She left a family of thirteen 
 children, nine sons and four daughters, of whom 
 Frank Henry Brittan was the second in order of 
 birth. 
 
 Frank Henry Brittan obtained his education 
 in the common schools of Wisconsin and Indi- 
 ana and also attended a seminary in Platteville. 
 He engaged in surveying and civil engineering 
 in Wisconsin and Kansas for some years, and in 
 1858 went to Pike's Peak, being among the first 
 to arrive on the scene of excitement. He fol- 
 lowed the precarious fortunes of a miner for a 
 time, when he went to New Mexico, shortly aft- 
 erward returning to Pike's Peak, where he did 
 some prospecting.^ Returning to the middle west 
 he located in Kansas City and worked at the car- 
 penter's trade until failing health impelled him 
 to locate in Mineral Point, Wis., where he again 
 followed surveying and civil engineering. After 
 following the carpenter's trade in Burlington, 
 Iowa, for a time he went to Perry, Kans., fol- 
 lowing wagonmaking and surveying until 1872, 
 when he removed to a farm in Adams county, 
 Iowa, making his home there for seven years. 
 Removing then to Denver, Colo., he engaged in 
 contracting and building until 1887, when he 
 came to California and located in Visalia, which 
 city has since remained his home. He has here 
 followed contracting and building and has built 
 a large number of fine residences here. In 1899 
 he bought a ranch of seventeen acres located two 
 miles southwest of Visalia and in 1904 located 
 upon it, having erected a modern and comfort- 
 able cottage. He is now practically retired from 
 active duties and is enjoying the competence 
 which his years of industry have brought him. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Brittan, solemnized in 
 Monmouth, 111., on February 6, 1863, united him 
 with Margaret Jennie McBride, who was born 
 in Monmouth, 111., in 1842. She is the daugh- 
 ter of Stephen Thomas McBride, a native of 
 Ohio, who came to Illinois in 1832 and located 
 
 33 
 
 in Monmouth, where he engaged as a contractor 
 and builder. During the Civil war he enlisted in 
 Company H, Eighty-third Regiment of Illinois 
 Volunteers, and died of pneumonia in 1863, at 
 Fort Donelson. His wife, formerly Minerva 
 Tracy, was born in New York. She married a 
 second time, her husband being Rev. Josiah Ter- 
 rell, who was a minister in the United Brethren 
 Church. He located in Kansas about 1854 and 
 took an active part in the border warfare as an 
 anti-slavery man. He became a prominent man 
 in Kansas and was active in the establishment 
 of Lane University at Lecompton, Kans. For 
 many years Mr. and Mrs. Terrell made their 
 home in Perry, Kans., where he engaged in the 
 drug business and where his death occurred. 
 Mrs. Terrell died in California in the home of 
 her daughter, Mrs. Brittan. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Brittan were born five children, namely : Arthur 
 J., of Fresno; Guy Clifford, deceased; Sadie 
 Grace, at home ; Ralph W., at home ; and Fran- 
 cis, of Stockton, Cal. Fraternally Mr. Brittan 
 is associated with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, and in his religious convictions is an 
 active member of the Christian Church. Politi- 
 cally he is a Democrat. 
 
 JOHN LEMASTERS. The postmaster of 
 Kern, Kern county, Cal., was born in Shelby 
 county, Ind., February 14, 1846, and lived in the 
 Hoosier state until coming to California in 1890. 
 His father, Henry Lemasters, was born in Ohio, 
 and during his busy career illustrated the typical 
 ambitious and successful middle west farmer. 
 Left an orphan at an early age, he was taken to 
 Indiana when six years old, and there was reared 
 on a farm and educated in the early subscrip- 
 tion schools. Embarking on an independent ca- 
 reer, he gained in lands and influence, finally 
 owning five hundred and forty acres of land, val- 
 ued at $200 an acre. He lived to be seventy-two 
 years old. 
 
 The breaking out of the Civil war found John 
 Lemasters busily engaged on his father's farm, 
 but he did not enlist until 1864, when he became 
 a soldier in Company E, One Hundred and Thir- 
 ty-second Indiana Infantry. He saw little of act- 
 ual warfare, however, for he was mustered out 
 at the end of four months, and returned to the 
 occupation for which he had a natural liking. At 
 the age of twenty-one, in 1867, he married Belle 
 Endecott, who was born in Kentucky and re- 
 moved to Indiana with her parents when five 
 years old. Settling on a farm of his own in 
 Shelby county, he continued to farm and raise 
 stock successfully, and upon arriving in Cal- 
 ifornia in the fall of 1890, purchased two acres 
 of land in Rosedale, Kern county, and soon after- 
 ward became identified with the Kern County 
 
620 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Land Company as a fence-building contractor. 
 After four years witli the company he moved to 
 Bakersfield and lived there for two years, com- 
 ing then to Kern, where he speculated in mines 
 until his appointment to the postmastership in 
 March, 1898. Since then he has conscientiously 
 and satisfactorily discharged the affairs of the 
 office at this point, and has taken his place as a 
 progressive and liberal-minded citizen. He has 
 voted the Republican ticket since attaining his ma- 
 jority, and is a member of the Grand Army of 
 the , Republic. Mr. Lemaster's son, Roy, is a 
 clerk in the pnstoffice, and his daughter, Mary, 
 is the wife of John F. Parish, of Ogden, Utah. 
 Mr. Lemasters is popular and genial, a well-in- 
 formed and generous man. 
 
 WILLIAM H. HOLLIWAY. To recuperate 
 from a discouraging business reverse in his na- 
 tive state of Missouri, William H. Holliway 
 came to Oakdale in 1886, and has since been an 
 integral and increasingly useful adjunct to the 
 trade life of the city. Possessing marked me- 
 chanical ingenuity, and a complete mastery of the 
 blacksmith and machinist trades, he has not only 
 conducted a shop here for fifteen years, but has 
 brought honor upon the community by invent- 
 ing, and patenting in this country and Canada, 
 the Holliway adjusting axle nut, already of 
 proved practicability, and now being extensively 
 placed on the market. Furthermore, he is known 
 as the owner and manager of a large livery en- 
 terprise, connected with a feed and sales stable, 
 and which has for years netted him a substan- 
 tial income. Mr. Holliway bought his black- 
 smith shop soon after arriving here, but later 
 rented it and put up the shop which he conduct- 
 ed until 1901, and then rented that to the man 
 to whom he sold his business. 
 
 To the hundreds who have profited by his 
 skill in Oakdale Mr. Holliway is recognized as a 
 remarkably painstaking and competent business 
 man. He laid the foundation for his industry 
 in Osage county. Mo., where he was born May 
 28, 1845, and where he acquired muscle and sane 
 views of life on the farm of his parents, Wil- 
 liam Harrison and Elizabeth (Goodman) Holli- 
 way, natives of Tennessee and Virginia respec- 
 tively, and the latter of whom was a daughter 
 of Robert Goodman, son of a veteran of the 
 Revolutionary war, and an early settler in Osage 
 county. Mo. William Harrison Holliday, Sr., 
 removed to Osage county as a young man with 
 few prospects and little money, purchasing a 
 farm on time, and gradually working his way to 
 prominence in the agricultural community. 
 Twelve children were born into his family, eight 
 of whom attained maturity, and only one of 
 whom came to California.' William Harrison 
 
 Holliway, Jr., was not particularly impressed 
 with farm work as a youth, and, the property 
 yielding sHght chances for so many children, 
 he took his departure at the age of sixteen and 
 carried mail on horseback from Linn to Vienna, 
 Mo., until the close of the war. His experiences 
 during that troublesome time were numerous 
 and sometimes thrilling, but in spite of the slight 
 regard for human life, and the tendency to rob 
 and molest, he pursued his mail carrying with 
 singular freedom, abandoning it at the age of 
 nineteen but little the worse for his adventures. 
 Long before this, he had evidenced mechanical 
 tendencies, and he applied himself to learning 
 the blacksmith trade in Osage county, thereafter 
 running a small shop in Linn, the same county, 
 later still removing to Vichy, Maries county, Mo., 
 where he built a shop and operated it for six 
 years. He was firmly established and confident 
 of a bright future in 1886, when a cyclone car- 
 ried away his shop, and practically destroyed his 
 prospects for a livelihood without the expendi- 
 ture of more money than he felt inclined to make. 
 What remained of his possessions netted suffi- 
 cient to bring him to California, where oppor- 
 tunity awaited the capable and industrious, to 
 which class of workers he assuredly belonged. 
 
 While in Linn, Osage county. Mo., Mr. Holli- 
 way married Lucy Jane Glover, a native of that 
 section, and to whom has been born six chil- 
 dren, four of whom are living. Of these, Wil- 
 liam Chester is a business man of San Francisco ; 
 Mary is now Mrs. Smith, of Modesto ; Kate is 
 Mrs. Rodda, of Sacramento ; and Grace is living 
 with her parents. Mr. Holliway is a Democrat 
 in politics, and fraternally is a member of the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. In religion 
 he finds a home in the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, to which, as to other institutions for the 
 uplifting of the race, he contributes with a gen- 
 erosity befitting his broad sympathies and sub- 
 stantial means. He has not only won the esteem 
 of the business element in the town, but is sin- 
 cerely liked by a large circle of friends and as- 
 sociates for his fine and strong traits of char- 
 acter, and for the dignity with which he has in- 
 vested his useful and always dependable calling. 
 
 ALTON D. SIVLEY. Beginning in tlie 
 humble capacity of clerk, Alton D. Sivley has 
 mastered every department of the grocery busi- 
 ness, and at present enjoys enviable business 
 prominence and financial stability as a member 
 of the firm of Sivley Brothers. He is one of 
 the most industrious and promising of the young- 
 er generation of merchants in Oakdale, and has 
 profited by a liberal common school education, 
 and such experience of a general nature as comes 
 into the life, of the average native son of Call- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 621 
 
 fornia. Born in Woodbridge, San Joaquin coun- 
 ty, Cal., March 12, 1878, he comes of a family 
 otherwise represented in the business life of the 
 community, and which is further referred to in 
 the sketch of his brother, W. J. Sivley, a promi- 
 nent meat merchant. The second oldest of four 
 children, he was reared in Oakdale, where his 
 father was engaged in building and contracting, 
 and in 1898 graduated from the high school, 
 which had accounted him one of its brightest 
 and most intelligent scholars. Soon after he en- 
 tered upon his self-supporting career as a clerk 
 in a store in Oakdale, and in 1902 entered into 
 his present business with his brother, Charles 
 H., dealing in groceries of all kinds, queensware, 
 and paints. His business is conducted on broad 
 and progressive lines, and with due regard for 
 the times, tastes and inclinations of his many 
 patrons. The store is neat and orderly in ap- 
 pearance, and indicates in its arrangement and 
 disposition the methodical and time-saving na- 
 ture of its chiefs. While there may be stores as 
 complete and well managed in the county, none 
 are larger or better appreciated, nor do any give 
 promise of a brighter future. 
 
 Mr. Sivley has other claims upon the consid- 
 eration of his fellow citizens than that presented 
 by his excellent business record. He is a tal- 
 ented musician, understanding both the theory 
 and execution of music, and contributing to the 
 success of the Oakdale band by his performance 
 on the trombone. He is past chancellor of the 
 Oakdale Lodge No. 120, K. of P., and an ex- 
 member of the Oakdale Native Sons of the Gold- 
 en West. In politics he is a Democrat, but in 
 local affairs votes for the best man for the of- 
 fice. He is liberal-minded, generous, and public- 
 spirited, and to an unusual extent is valued for 
 his fine social and business qtialities. 
 
 JAY SCOTT. Through his identification, 
 with public affairs of Fixsno county Jay Scott 
 is widely known, the two terms which he served 
 as sheriff, from 1892 to 1898, and the effective 
 service he gave while in office making him a 
 popular citizen. Born in Will county. 111., Janu- 
 ary 13, 1850, he was the son of J. H. Scott, a 
 native of New York state. When still young 
 J. H. Scott accompanied his parents to IlHnois, 
 being reared to manhood on the farm which his 
 father took up in the vicinity of Qiicago. On 
 attaining years of maturity he married Anna 
 Chamberlain, a native of Canada, and at once en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits on his own ac- 
 count. He remained a resident of Illinois until 
 1852, when he brought his family to California, 
 crossing the plains with ox-teams. He located 
 in the Sacramento valley and farmed there until 
 
 a few years before his death, which occurred 
 in Fresno in 1894, when seventy-six years of age. 
 
 But two years old when he came to the state, 
 Mr. Scott is practically a Californian. He was 
 reared in the Sacramento valley and received his 
 education in the schools of the community in 
 which he made his home. In 1880 he located in 
 Fresno, where he engaged in business until 1900, 
 when he located upon his present ranch in the 
 Lone Star district, eight miles southeast of 
 Fresno on North avenue. His home ranch con- 
 sists of one hundred and twenty acres, devoted 
 to raisin grapes, various fruits and general farm- 
 ing, while he has another ranch of forty acres 
 located one mile north of this, devoted to fruit 
 and vines. 
 
 In Tulare county Mr. Scott was married to 
 Ida Burch, and to them were born the following 
 children : Oliver C, Myrtle and Philip. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Scott is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the platform 
 of the Republican party, and through this in- 
 fluence was elected to the office of sheriff. Fra- 
 ternally he is identified with the Odd Fellows 
 and the Elks. 
 
 FRANK S. BAGLEY. A thoroughly _ suc- 
 cessful man and one who occupies a prominent 
 place in his community is Frank S. Bagley, for 
 many years a merchant, in Malaga, where he 
 opened the first store, and where he served as 
 postmaster for fourteen years. In the neighbor- 
 hood of Malaga he is located upon a ranch of 
 eighty acres devoted entirely to the cultivation 
 of grapes, the average annual yield being about 
 sixty tons. He also owns property in Los An- 
 geles. Born in New York City, November 18, 
 1855, he is the son of James Bagley, also a na- 
 tive of that state. The family is of Irish extrac- 
 tion, the grandfather having come to the United 
 States when a young man. He engaged in the 
 prosecution of his trade of stone mason, and 
 among other well-known buildings upon which 
 he worked was that of the old city hall of New 
 York City. James Bagley rose to prominence in 
 a comparatively brief life of forty-five years, as 
 a Republican of considerable influence receiving 
 appointment to the position of deputy United 
 States marshal of Eastern District of the state of 
 New York. He was also identified with im- 
 portant movements in Williamsburg, conducting 
 the first street car in that city. He married Sarah 
 A. Silkwith, a native of England. 
 
 But two years old when his mother died, and 
 eleven at the time of his father's death, Frank S. 
 Bagley has been more or less thrown upon his 
 own resources from his earliest remembrance. 
 When only a lad in years he went to Illinois, 
 where he engaged in farm work, remaining in 
 
622 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 that state for seventeen years, and through the 
 exercise of his native qualities — industry, energy, 
 and perseverance — acquired thirty acres of land 
 which he farmed until 1888. Coming to Cali- 
 fornia that year he established the first store in 
 the towrn of Malaga, Fresno county, and con- 
 ducted a successful business for fourteen years, 
 while, as .previously mentioned, he also acted as 
 postmaster. Disposing of his mercantile inter- 
 ests in 1902 to R. R. Porter, he purchased his 
 present valuable property, upon which he has 
 since made his home. 
 
 In Illinois Mr. Bagley was united in marriage 
 with Jennie S. Witt, who is now deceased. They 
 became the parents of three children: Anna, 
 Clifford and John. Following the early precepts 
 of his father, Mr. Bagley adheres to the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party. Fraternally he is 
 identified with the Woodmen of the World and 
 tne Masonic order. 
 
 the following children: Percy F., of Hanford; 
 Frank, deceased; George L., of Fresno county; 
 Mamie, wife of John Griggs; Adolph, deceased; 
 Anna, Harry, Myrtle and Clarence, at home. 
 
 ADAM ADELSBACH. The success which 
 numbers Adam Adelsbach among the prosperous 
 ranchmen and vineyardists of Fresno county has 
 been entirely the result of his own efforts, for 
 he came empty-handed from Germany, where he 
 was born August i, 1848, and with the energy 
 and perseverance characteristic of the natives 
 of Germany has gained a competence in the face 
 of many difficulties. He is the son of Peter and 
 Catherine (Tusnich) Adelsbach, his father being 
 a cooper by occupation. The latter died at the 
 age of sixty-eight years, when his son Adam 
 was in his youth. 
 
 In young manhood Adam Adelsbach learned 
 the trade of locksmith, and when twenty-four 
 years old, realizing the superior opportunities 
 which existed in America, he came to the United 
 States and located in Chicago, 111., where he 
 worked at the trade of carpenter, made so profit- 
 able by the great fire of 187 1. In the same year 
 he went to Wisconsin and engaged in the lumber 
 business with his brother Peter, and while there 
 married Anna Leonard, a native of that state. 
 From Wisconsin he removed to Michigan, and 
 was there employed as fireman on the railroad 
 and also worked in the mines. He remained in 
 that state until 1876, when he came to Merced 
 county, Cal., and found employment with the 
 firm of Miller & Lux, of Los Banos, with whom 
 he continued for five years. In 1883 the fruits 
 of his industry and economy were invested in his 
 present farm of twenty acres in Fresno county, 
 this being located on Fresno avenue between 
 Walnut and Elm avenues, two and a half miles 
 from the city of Fresno. The land is devoted 
 principally to the cultivation of grapes and 
 alfalfa. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Adelsbach have been born 
 
 WILLIAM J. SIVLEY. In William J. Siv- 
 ley Oakdale has an honorable' and progressive 
 business man, one who thoroughly understands 
 the conducting of the meat business, and digni- 
 fies his association with the public with fairness, 
 consideration and a never failing desire to please. 
 He is a native son of California, and was born 
 in Lodi, September 27, 1875, his parents being 
 Garland and Catherine (Bardo) Sivley, both 
 of whom are living. Garland Sivley resides in 
 Groveland, Tuolumne county, and is engaged 
 in mining. The establishment of the family on 
 the coast is due to the ambitious tendencies of 
 Garland Sivley, who was born near Havana, 
 III, and whose father was an early settler of 
 that state. Garland left the farm with little 
 reluctance and crossed the plains with ox teams 
 in 1851 or 1852, and after indifferent success in 
 the mines in the northern part of the state, fol- 
 lowed the millwright's trade in Woodbridge and 
 Oakdale. In the latter city he met and married 
 Catherine Bardo, a native of Michigan, and 
 daughter of William Bardo, born in Pennsyl- 
 vania and an early settler of Michigan. Mr. 
 Bardo was a builder and contractor by occupa- 
 tion, and in order to increase his prospects of 
 success came to California during the '60s, 
 settling in Oakdale and working at his trade for 
 the balance of his life. Mr. Sivley moved to 
 Groveland some years ago, and has since con- 
 tracted and built as well as mined. He has the 
 satisfaction of knowing that his four children 
 are well established in homes of their own, his 
 second oldest son, A. D., being a merchant of 
 Oakdale ; his daughter. Ivy M., being the wife 
 of A. N. Burch, of Oakdale, and his youngest 
 son, Charles H., being also a merchant of Oak- 
 dale. 
 
 The genial meat merchant of Oakdale received 
 his education in the public schools, attending 
 the high school until the senior year. It then 
 became necessary for him to embark in business 
 on his own account, and he entered the shop of 
 Mr. Meyer with whom he remained and learned 
 the trade from 1894 until 1901. He then bought 
 the Bald Eagle market, enlarged it to twice its 
 former capacity, and has since made many ad- 
 ditions to its equipment and capacity. His cold 
 storage plant is run by electricity, and his re- 
 frigerators and machinery are of the latest and 
 most approved designs. He has ample facilities 
 for catering to a large and exacting trade, and 
 runs two wagons the year round, supplying cus- 
 tomers living in outlying districts as well as in 
 
yiU^T-i 
 
 <^-^^>7. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 625 
 
 town. His stock consists of fresh and manu- 
 factured meats of all kinds and he aims to sup- 
 ply the best possible in his line at the most rea- 
 sonable prices. The standing of Mr. Sivley in 
 the community is emphasized by his prominence 
 in fraternal circles, he being a member of Lodge 
 No. 120, Knights of Pythias, of Oakdale, and 
 of the Woodmen of the World. He is also a 
 member of the Oakdale Parlor No. 142, N. S. G. 
 W. In political affiliation he is a Republican. 
 Mr. Sivley is public-spirited and generous, re- 
 sponding to just appeals to his heart and purse, 
 and taking a keen interest in all that pertains to 
 the welfare of the community. 
 
 EBEN SANBORN. When Eben Sanborn 
 came to his present ranch four miles north- 
 west of Hanford, Kings county, in 1876, he 
 found it a veritable desert, with little to en- 
 courage him to locate here. The introduction 
 of irrigation, however, about that time, brought 
 new life and inspiration to the settlers, and 
 with zest they went to work to convert into a 
 garden spot that which a short time before had 
 been a vast expanse of waste land. Mr. Sanborn 
 paid $i,200 for a claim of one hundred and sixty 
 acr^s of railroad land on the line of the Blowers 
 ditch, which proved a remarkably good invest- 
 ment, owing to the opening of the ditch soon 
 afterward, and he at once began to reap good 
 crops. To Mr. Sanborn is due the credit for 
 setting out the first orchard and vineyard in 
 his immediate section. This venture proved a 
 success. He enlarged the scope of his horticul- 
 tural operations from time to time until he now 
 has, on the home place, eighty-three acres in 
 peaches and apricots, thirty-eight acres in vine- 
 yard, and is now setting out nine acres more 
 to peaches. The balance of his land is devoted 
 to the raising of alfalfa and to dairy purposes. 
 The raising of peaches may be said to be a 
 specialty with Mr. Sanborn. To prepare his 
 fruit for the market he has supplied his ranch 
 with a modern and well-equipped dryer. He 
 also owns three hundred and twenty acres of 
 land six miles southwest of Hanford, near the 
 Lone Oak slough, eighty acres two and a half 
 miles south of Armona, which is set out to the 
 various fruits and to the vine, besides eighty 
 acres southwest of Armona, which is in wild 
 feed and alfalfa. 
 
 Mr. Sanborn's grandfather, Capt. Eben San- 
 born, was descended from English ancestors. 
 Throughout his life he was a tanner and farm- 
 er. He probably lived in New Hampshire, as 
 it was there that his son, Caleb M. Sanborn, was 
 born and spent his life, following farmin^^ and 
 shoemaking. The latter died at the age of 
 eighty-two years. He married Ann Quimby, a 
 
 native of New Hampshire, who was descended 
 from Scotch ancestors. She attained the age of 
 nearly eighty-three years, and reared a family 
 of ten children, six dying in infancy. 
 
 Born in New Hampton, N. H., February 17, 
 1837, Eben Sanborn was the fifth child in the 
 family. Until the fall of 1857 he made his home 
 with his parents, attending the common and high 
 schools, and also assisting his father in the man- 
 agement of the farm. In the fall of 1857 he 
 came to California by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, and for one year was employed upon 
 a ranch in Napa county. From the fall of 1859 
 until 1875 he rented a farm in Napa county. In 
 the latter year he removed to Fresno county, 
 renting a farm there for one year, and in the 
 fall of 1876 came to Kings county, which has 
 since been the field of his operations. 
 
 October 11, 1877, Mr. Sanborn was united in 
 marriage with Missouri Morris, who was born 
 in Jackson county, -Mo., August 2, 1848. Her 
 father, John Morris, who was born in Ken- 
 tucky, at the age of nineteen years, removed to 
 Missouri, then a new and untried country, and 
 engaged in stock raising, also working at his 
 trade of cabinet-making to some extent. In 
 1852 he made the overland trip to California, 
 coming hither in search of health rather than 
 for the betterment of his financial condition. 
 The following year he returned to his old home 
 by way of the Panama route, but in 1857 again 
 came to California, this time for the purpose of 
 making it his residence. He brought a band of 
 cattle across the country, maintained them for 
 three years upon the range, and then conducted 
 a ranch in the Suisun valley, in Solano county, 
 Cal. He died there at the age of seventy-three 
 years, having been successful in all his under- 
 takings. He was, a member of an old southern 
 family who were of Scotch descent. His wife, 
 who was formerly Martha Draper, was born in 
 Tennessee, and in later life lived in Missouri. 
 The British military commander. Lord Cornwal- 
 lis, was her grandmother's uncle, and performed 
 the ceremony which united her in marriage with 
 her husband. Her maiden name was Hill, and 
 her husband was named Lane. Both were 
 prominent old families of the east, and were 
 represented in America in the Colonial period. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sanborn became the parents 
 of five children, of whom the eldest died in in- 
 fancy. The next in order of birth, Mary, died 
 at the age of twenty years. Lois was united 
 in marriage May 4, 1904, with Ernest Pickerill, 
 bookkeeper in the First National Bank of Han- 
 ford. John Eben is a student in a business 
 college in San Francisco. Ethel Draper is a 
 student in Irving Institute, where she is tak- 
 ing private instruction in music and drawing. 
 
 In politics Mr. Sanborn is an earnest advo- 
 
626 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cate of the principles of the Republican party. 
 He has become widely known throughout Kings 
 and surrounding counties as an honorable, 
 progressive and public-spirited citizen. During 
 the years of his residence in Kings county he 
 has "been recognized as one of the most influ- 
 ential leaders in the promotion of those move- 
 ments which have been calculated to advance the 
 best interests of the entire community, and espe- 
 cially of those affairs which will prove of last- 
 ing benefit to the agricultural and horticultural 
 interest of the county. No history of California 
 would be complete were mention of his career 
 omitted, for he is entitled to a prominent place 
 in the annals of the county and state. 
 
 JABEZ H. La RUE. The name which heads 
 this review is a familiar one to the citizens of 
 Fresno county, for it is borne by one who, though 
 he has been a resident of California but a com- 
 paratively brief period, has still made his influ- 
 ence felt in both the agricultural and social life 
 of the community. In the neighborhood are lo- 
 cated also three sons, all of whom are prosper- 
 ously engaged in agricultural pursuits, adding 
 by virtue of their successes to the prestige of the 
 county as well as by their quiet yet effective 
 citizenship. 
 
 The La Rue family came originally from 
 France, where they were Huguenots in religious 
 faith. Three brothers, William, Isaac and Jacob, 
 came to America at an early day, the direct an- 
 cestor of Mr. La Rue being Jacob. The family 
 became residents of Kentucky, and it is said that 
 Abraham Lincoln was born near a mill that be- 
 longed to William La Rue, the grandfather of 
 our subject. Jacob H., his son, was born in 
 Hodgensville, La Rue county, in 1799, and in 
 manhood married Mrs. Sarah McElroy Park, 
 who was born and died near Springfield, Ky. 
 Mr. La Rue moved his family to Lewis county. 
 Mo., in 1838, and there engaged in farming un- 
 til 1884, when he came to California, and died 
 in Sacramento at the advanced age of eighty- 
 five years. Like his father he had also followed 
 the trade of blacksmith. 
 
 Born in Elizabeth, Ky., February 16, 1833, 
 Jabez H. La Rue was but a little more than five 
 years old when his home was changed from the 
 southern scenes of his native state to those of 
 Missouri. He was reared upon his father's farm 
 and received his education among the primitive 
 conditions of the middle west. At the age of 
 twenty-one years he began farming for himself, 
 and while a resident of Missouri he married 
 Margaret Haycraft, a native of Kentucky. He 
 came to California in 1886 and the year follow- 
 ing he was deprived by death of the companion- 
 ship of his wife. Upon his arrival in California 
 
 Mr. La Rue located upon his present property, 
 purchasing forty acres which he devotes entirely 
 to the cultivation of grapes. He has since added 
 to his landed interests until he now owns one 
 hundred and twenty acres, thirty-two acres being 
 devoted to the cultivation of raisin grapes and 
 the remainder to general farming. The second 
 marriage of Mr. La Rue occurred in 1891 in 
 Missouri and united him with Helen H. Chris- 
 tie, a native of Winchester, Va. In his political 
 convictions Mr. La Rue is a stanch Democrat, 
 and fraternally is prominent in the Masonic or- 
 der, being a member of the Blue Lodge and 
 Royal Arch Chapter. He is a member of the 
 Baptist Church, while his wife belongs to the 
 Christian Church. 
 
 The children born to Mr. La Rue by his first 
 marriage are as follows : Hugh William, Ed- 
 win H. and Samuel R. Hugh W. La Rue was 
 born in Lewis county. Mo., December i, 1851, 
 and came to California in 1873, locating first in 
 Yolo county, where he remained until 1885. He 
 then came to Fresno county and purchased his 
 present farm of one hundred and ten acres in 
 the Malaga district. Edwin H. has a sixty-acre 
 vineyard near that of his father. Samuel R., 
 born in Lewis county, Mo., July 25, 1857, mar- 
 ried Belle Bradshaw and came to California in 
 1885, and the following year located on his 
 ranch of one hundred and ten acres near Malaga. 
 
 WILLIAM HARRISON MARDEN. The 
 title of general given to William Harrison Mar- 
 den, a successful and highly esteemed farmer of 
 Yolo county, recalls to many of the old pioneers 
 of the state the early days in the history of the 
 west, for it was as the commander of an emi- 
 grating party that crossed the plains in 1850 that 
 he was first known as such. In the inevitable 
 march of progress the years have carried on 
 many of the reminders of the past, have changed 
 the unimproved, uncultivated land into fields rich 
 with harvest yields and orchards laden with fruit, 
 and have changed the thriving hamlets into cities 
 teeming with the busy activities of a prosperous 
 life. As a pioneer of that early day General 
 Marden has witnessed the gradual growth and 
 change and has himself been a constant con- 
 tributor toward the development of the natural 
 resources of California. 
 
 Born in Coos county, N. H., March 4, 1824, 
 General Marden is a son of William Marden, 
 also a native of that state. The elder man, a 
 farmer by occupation, removed to New York 
 state when this son was but seven years of age, 
 locating in Chenango county. His wife, who 
 before her marriage was known as Polly Stokes, 
 was a native of New Hampshire, and died in 
 New York about the year 1855. When about 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 627 
 
 twenty-four years of age General Harden left 
 his New England home, and coming as far west 
 as- Wisconsin, located in Waukesha county, 
 March 24, 1848. Induced to undertake the trip 
 across the plains for the sake of the advantages 
 and opportunities which awaited there the man 
 of pluck as well as ability, he assumed command 
 of a company in 1850, and on the 6th of March 
 of that year they set out for the west. May 8 
 they crossed the Missouri river at St. Joseph, 
 and after a journey filled with the adventures 
 and hardships incident to life on the plains they 
 arrived at Placerville, September 8, 1850. For 
 the first year General Harden was occupied in 
 mining pursuits, but in the fall of 185 1 he came 
 to Yolo county and engaged in the less hazardous 
 if less exciting life of a farmer. He purchased 
 the farm of five hundred and twenty-eight acres 
 upon which he now lives, located four miles 
 southeast of Davisville. In 1869 he moved to 
 Davisville and established a butcher business, the 
 first of the kind in that town, and later branched 
 into the hardware and hotel business, making a 
 success of each. About 1880, however, he sold 
 his interests in Davisville and returning to his 
 farm has made it his home ever since. 
 
 In Yolo county General Harden was united 
 in marriage with Marian Leigh, who was born 
 in New York state and died April 16, 1899, at 
 the age of sixty-eight years, one month and six- 
 teen days. She had also been numbered among 
 the pioneers of- the state, for she had come from 
 her home in Illinois in 1854 to join her father 
 who was then in Sacramento. 
 
 WILLIAH E. HARDEN. 'The one-hun- 
 dred-and-sixty-acre fruit ranch of William E. 
 Harden justifies his reputation as one of the 
 painstaking and practical horticulturists of the 
 Fowler district. He was born on a ranch near 
 Davisville, Yolo county, July 5, 1857, and repre- 
 sents one of the pioneer and energetic families of 
 Yolo county. His father, William H. Harden, 
 is still one of the most substantial ranchers of 
 Yolo county. William E. Harden started out in 
 life with a better education than many of the 
 horticulturists of the west, receiving not only a 
 grammar and high school training at Sacra- 
 mento, but profiting by a course in a business col- 
 lege, from which he was graduated in 1876. 
 Returning to Yolo county, he worked in a ware- 
 house for a short time, and was then manager of 
 his father's ranch until 1885, th^ elder man at- 
 tending to the hotel and butcher business in 
 Davisville. October 26, 1885, he came to Fresno 
 county, settling on nine hundred and sixty acres 
 of land previously purchased, and of which he 
 still retains one hundred and sixty acres. It was 
 then a wheat field, but it has since been trans- 
 
 formed into a vineyard, and set out with two 
 thousand fruit trees. Hr. Harden has given 
 much study to scientific horticulture, and under- 
 stands both its possibilities and limitations. He 
 is public spirited and liberal minded, a stanch 
 Republican, and a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World. His wife, to whom he was married 
 in January, 1895, was formerly Kathryn Smith, 
 daughter of C. C. Smith, of Alameda county. 
 
 WILLIAH S. HALL. A keen, wideawake rep- 
 resentative of the thriving agriculturists of San 
 Joaquin county, William S. Hall resides about 
 three and one-half miles east of Escalon, where 
 he owns and occupies a choice, well improved 
 ranch, which is furnished with a good house, 
 barn and outbuildings and everything pertaining 
 to a first-class estate. Industrious, far-sighted 
 and thrifty, he has met with marked success in 
 his agricultural labors, long years ago establish- 
 ing himself in the confidence of his neighbors 
 and friends, and has won for himself an honored 
 record as an honest man and a valuable member 
 of the community. He is a native and to the 
 manner born, his birth having occurred, June 8, 
 1867, in San Joaquin county, near Burneyville. 
 His father, John Hall, whose sketch may be found 
 elsewhere in this volume, was born in Missouri, 
 came to California in 1863, and is now success- 
 fully engaged in farming in San Joaquin county. 
 
 Brought up in Stanislaus and San Joaquin 
 counties, William S. Hall acquired a practical 
 education in the district schools, and in his boy- 
 hood became familiar with the different branches 
 of farming. At the age of eleven years, he began 
 driving a four-horse team, and the next year was 
 given eight-horse and ten-horse teams to drive. 
 Remaining with his parents, he assisted in the 
 management of the home ranch until 1893, when 
 he rented six hundred and forty acres of land in 
 this county, and carried it on for two years. 
 Renting a larger ranch, one of thirteen hundred 
 acres, in 1895, Hr. Hall was engaged in raising 
 grain, the staple crop of this region, for five years. 
 Purchasing land, then in Stanislaus county, near 
 Riverbank, he embarked in stock growing and 
 grain raising oh his three hundred and twenty 
 acres of land, from which he harvested two large 
 crops. Selling out that property in 1903, Hr. 
 Hall bought his present farm of two hundred and 
 forty acres, lying on the Burneyville road, about 
 eight miles from Oakdale, and has here con- 
 tinued his operations as a grain-raiser, meeting 
 with most satisfactory pecuniary results, his suc- 
 cess in this line of industry being due to his 
 energetic activity, good judgment and wise man- 
 agement. 
 
 In Stockton, Hr. Hall married Annie E. Hyer, 
 a daughter of Jacob Hyer, who was born in 
 
628 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Seneca county, Ohio, and into their pleasant 
 household four children have been born, namely : 
 Bessie M., William Granville, Charles Otto, and 
 Elmer Roy. In his political affiliations, Mr. 
 Hall is a Republican, straight and strong, and 
 while in Stanislaus county served as school 
 trustee. Fraternally he belongs to Oakdale Lodge 
 No. 275, F. & A. M. Although not connected 
 by membership with any religious denomination 
 he contributes generously toward the support of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church, which tiis family 
 attends. 
 
 JOHN W. JACKSON. The Jackson family, 
 represented in Fresno county by John W. Jack- 
 son, a vineyardist and orchardist, came to the 
 United States from England during the eight- 
 eenth century, a part of the company who fol- 
 lowed John Wesley into the western wilderness. 
 The first of the name on American soil are sup- 
 posed to have settled in the southern states, as it 
 is there that the first ancestral records are traced. 
 John W. Jackson w*as born in Calhoun county, 
 Ala., June 12, 1847, a son of John W., a native 
 of Georgia, who was likewise the son of another 
 John W. John W. Jackson of Georgia married 
 Lydia Clements of South Carolina and engaged 
 in farming until his death at the age of seventy- 
 seven years. 
 
 When seven years old Mr. Jackson accom- 
 panied his parents to a new home in the state of 
 Arkansas, where the family remained for seven 
 years. They then located in Texas, where he 
 grew to manhood, and following his early train- 
 ing, engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1893. 
 In that year he came to California and located 
 in Fresno county on a ranch of twenty acres 
 seven and a half miles southeast of the city of 
 Fresno and two and a half northwest of Fowler. 
 This property he has since devoted to the culti- 
 vation of various fruits, much of his attention 
 being given to a vineyard. While a resident of 
 Texas, in January, 1870, he married Nancy H. 
 Millemon, a native of that state, and to them 
 were born the following children : Ida M., now 
 the wife of W. W. Varnell, located on a ranch 
 about a mile from Mr. Jackson's home ; Nolan 
 S., who married Cassie Rice, a native of Canada ; 
 and Eunice, the wife of Dr. Frank Wolf, of Fres- 
 no. Mr. Jackson is a Democrat politically, and 
 belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South. 
 
 tion of grapes and fifteen to orchard. For al- 
 most a score of years this property has belonged 
 to William Barnett, having passed into his owner- 
 ship in 1887, when he came to California with his 
 family and located in Fresno county, and since 
 that time many improvements have been made, 
 among them a comfortable two-story house. _The 
 interests of the ranch are looked after and con- 
 ducted by C. E. Barnett, the subject of this re- 
 view, whose birth occurred in Mississippi, April 
 23, 1866. 
 
 William Barnett is a native of Alabama, born 
 February 19, 1838, a son of M. P. and Jane 
 (Wallace) Barnett, both natives of Virginia. 
 They had removed to Alabama in an early day, 
 afterward located in Mississippi, and still later 
 moved to Texas, where the death of the grand- 
 father occurred at the age of eighty-six years. 
 William Barnett accompanied his parents to 
 Mississippi, where he was reared to manhood on 
 the paternal farm, marrying Nancy Benson, also 
 of Alabama. They became the parents of eight 
 children, namely: C. E., of this review; Eva 
 A., deceased ; Carrie ; Alonzo ; Emma ; Mattie, 
 deceased; Lillian; and George. In 1869 William 
 Barnett left Mississippi and went to Texas, 
 where he engaged in agricultural pursuits until 
 1887, in which year he came to California and 
 has since made this state his home. During the 
 years in which he conducted the interests of the 
 ranch he became well known as a successful and 
 progressive farmer, and his son has followed his 
 early training and has built up for himself a posi- 
 tion of prominence among the farmers of this 
 section. The elder man is a Mason, while the 
 younger is an Odd Fellow, and also identified 
 with the Encampment. In politics he is an ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the platform 
 of the Democratic party, and is a member of the ■ 
 Christian Church. 
 
 C. E. BARNETT. Located seven and a half 
 miles southeast of Fresno, and two and a half 
 miles from Fowler, is the farm which belongs 
 to the Barnett family. It consists of seventy 
 acres, fifty of which are devoted to the cultiva- 
 
 CHRIS OTT. If an honored name, a large 
 and growing blacksmithing and manufacturing 
 business, and the esteem of a host of friends and 
 general associates may be taken as an indica- 
 tion of success, Chris Ott has cause for congrat- 
 ulation, and is entitled to rank among the sub- 
 stantial and leading German-American, citizens 
 of Oakdale and Stanislaus county. A young man 
 as yet, having been born near Berlin, Germany, 
 January 24, 1873. he has worked his way up 
 without money or influence, and has richly prof- 
 ited by his opportunities since coming to Cali- 
 fornia with his parents in 1880. His father, 
 William, and his mother, Carrie (Keyser) Ott, 
 were both born in Germany, and possessed the 
 typical traits which have made the Teuton a 
 welcome and reliable addition to American af- 
 fairs. He is the fourth oldest in a family of 
 

 'ۤi:& 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 631 
 
 seven, and this county is also profiting by the 
 energy and resource of his brothers, who are 
 large grain and stock ranchers. The elder Ott 
 settled on a farm near Knights Ferry, owning 
 a hundred and sixty acres of land, which he 
 cultivated until his death in 1898, and which is 
 still occupied by his widow. 
 
 While on the home farm near Knights Ferry 
 Mr. Ott attended the district schools, and in 
 1890 apprenticed to Nightingale & Stearns for 
 three years, afterward finding employment with 
 Stearns & Harray for several years, or until buy- 
 ing out Holliday's old blacksmith shop in 1901. 
 The little shop proved altogether inadequate for 
 the business which he intended conducting, so 
 he greatly enlarged it, put in new machinery in- 
 cluding a ten-horse-power engine, planes, saws, 
 hammers, and all kinds of fine tools, and started 
 in to manufacture wagons, plows, harrows, and 
 other farm machinery, and to do all manner of 
 repairing. While making a specialty of horse- 
 shoeing, he has worked up a large general re- 
 pair and manufacturing trade and has won the 
 entire confidence of a public, which appreciates 
 and demands high-grade work. His shop is now 
 50x75 feet in dimensions, and is one of the 
 most complete in Stanislaus county. Mr. Ott is 
 a natural mechanic, and his success rests chief- 
 ly upon the foundation of a genuine liking for 
 his work, and upon indefatigable industry in 
 pursuing the best in his line. Since coming to 
 Oakdale he married Alice Burns, and has a 
 pleasant home for his wife, who is a native of 
 Tulare county, this state. Mr. Ott subscribes to 
 the principles of the Democratic party, and as 
 a fraternalist is connected with the Ancient Or- 
 der of United Workmen. He is well known for 
 his uprightness, sincerity and obligingness, and 
 for an optimistic nature which sees the best side 
 of nature, the world and his friends. 
 
 DANIEL KINDLE ZUMWALT. The life 
 and early work of Daniel K. Zumwalt are in- 
 dissolubly woven with the pioneer history of 
 California, belonging especially to that of Tulare 
 county, where he made his home for many years. 
 Born near Joliet, Will county, 111., January 24, 
 1845, he was the descendant of an old Virginia 
 family, whose first ancestor, George or Adam 
 Zumwalt, was an emigrant from Germany in 
 the eighteenth century. George or Adam Zum- 
 walt later located in Ohio, then on the border 
 of civilization, becoming a pioneer and rearing a 
 family amid the deprivations and hardships that 
 marked life in the middle west. His son, Jacob, 
 a native of that state, in which he spent the 
 greater part of his life, removed in January, 
 1830, from Adams county, Ohio, to Hancock 
 county, Ind., where his death occurred in Decem- 
 
 ber, 1833. His son, also called Jacob, was born 
 in Adams county, Ohio, September 15, 1807, and 
 there grew to manhood. June 24, 1830, he was 
 united in marriage with Susanna Kindle Smith, 
 who was born in Adams county, Ohio, June 12, 
 181 1. In company with his father and father's 
 family, besides himself consisting of three sons 
 and five daughters, he removed to Hancock coun- 
 ty, Ind., in 1830, as a farmer making his home 
 in that locality for four years. He then removed 
 to Will county. 111., in 1834, locating ten miles 
 from JoHet. Twenty years later, in March, 1854, 
 he crossed the plains with ox teams, and until 
 1872 followed farming in Sacramento county. 
 In that year he located in Tulare county and 
 engaged in farming in the vicinity of Vis- 
 alia until his death, which occurred May 31, 
 1878. He is buried in Sacramento, in which city 
 his wife died November 20, 1896. In religion 
 he was a faithful member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church and a supporter of all movements 
 calculated to advance the general welfare. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Zumwalt were born the following 
 children : Nancy Ann, who became the wife of 
 Rockwell Hunt and died in Sacramento in 1904; 
 Sarah M., the wife of James Shoemaker, of Santa 
 Clara; Joseph, born April 30, 1836, and who 
 died in Kern county, Cal., April i, 1878; John H., 
 located in College Park, Cal. ; Elizabeth, Mrs. 
 Hawk, of Sacramento; and Daniel Kindle, the 
 subject of this review. 
 
 Daniel K. Zumwalt was nine years old when 
 the memorable trip across the plains was made, 
 his duty being to ride horseback and drive the 
 cattle. With the exception of standing guard 
 at night every duty that fell to the lot of the 
 grown members of the party likewise fell to him. 
 Upon his father's location in Sacramento he at- 
 tended the public schools and later the high 
 school, graduating from the latter in 1865. In- 
 tent upon securing a good education, he after- 
 ward entered the University of the Pacific, from 
 which he graduated with the degree of A. B. 
 and later received the degree of A. M. Secur- 
 ing a first grade state teacher's certificate he 
 taught schoolfor one year in Yolo, Cal., after 
 which, in 1869, he came to Tulare county, which 
 was his home up to the time of his death. He 
 improved and developed lands of his own, the 
 estate now owning a large farm between Visalia 
 and Tulare, which is devoted to dairying and to 
 the raising of Short-horn cattle. For twenty- 
 three years Mr. Zumwalt acted as land agent and 
 attorney for the Southern Pacific Railroad Com- 
 pany, his territory extending over Tulare, Kern, 
 Fresno and what is now Kings county, and dur- 
 ing this time he sold more land than any other 
 man in the section. His ability and management 
 were made manifest at the time of the Mussel 
 slough difficulties. Shrewd and far-sighted, Mr. 
 
632 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Zumwalt perceived that the proper development 
 and upbuilding of the county must come through 
 irrigation, and bent every effort to bring about 
 a satisfactory system. He was one of the or- 
 ganizers and promoters of the 76 Land and 
 Water Company, the principal capital being ob- 
 tained through his efforts, as well as the men 
 best qualified to carry the plan to successful 
 issue. Of the original incorporators only one 
 is now living, I. H. Jacobs, of the firm of Simon, 
 Jacobs & Co. Mr. Zumwalt secured the co- 
 operation of Dr. H. P. Merritt, Francis E. Bul- 
 lard, Charles Traver and Thomas Fowler, who 
 was one of the suggesters of the scheme, and P. 
 Y. Baker, who was Mr. Zumwalt's partner, se- 
 curing the co-operation of C. F. J. Kitchener. 
 As a first step in the formation of the 76 Land 
 and Water Company Mr. Zumwalt purchased the 
 water rights from Risley & Cameron and others, 
 and secured options on large tracts of land for 
 the benefit of the company, and as secretary of 
 the company gave to the project his co-operation 
 and support up to the time of the removal of 
 the principal place of business from Visalia to 
 Traver. He was also associated with the build- 
 ing of numerous other canals, being a prime 
 mover in the Kaweah Canal & Irrigation Com- 
 pany, in which he was a heavy stockholder, and 
 was deeply interested in legislation to bring 
 about some means whereby the water could not 
 be diverted from the use of the settlers. In the 
 improvement and equipment of his own property 
 he established a creamery on his ranch and assist- 
 ed materially in the building of one in Visalia. 
 
 Perhaps one of the most far-reaching and 
 memorable achievements of Mr. Zumwalt was se- 
 curing the preservation of a greater part of the 
 redwoods. He with others was indefatigable 
 in presenting proofs to the Interior department 
 of the value and nature of many of the lands 
 in the Sierra Nevada mountains, and the neces- 
 sity of preserving the forests for future genera- 
 tions. In the fall of 1890, while in Washington, 
 D. C, he enlisted the co-operation of General 
 Vandever, congressman from California, and 
 within two or three days of the adjournment of 
 congress secured the passage of a measure to set 
 aside General Grant Park, which insures the 
 preservation of those monsters of the forest, 
 which here stand more compact than in any other 
 part of the Sierras. Progressive, liberal and 
 enterprising, the results of his eft'orts have not 
 yet been measured, but shall go down the years 
 which shall bring continued prosperity to Tulare 
 county and shall continue to add honor to the 
 name which he made lustrous with good and 
 great deeds. His death occurred November 2, 
 1904, his last resting place being in the citv of 
 Visalia, the scene of his labors for so many 
 years. 
 
 In Tulare May 20, 1890, Mr. Zumwalt was 
 united in marriage with Emma F. Blackwedel, 
 who was born in Taycheedah, near Fond du Lac, 
 Wis. Her father, J. Henry Blackwedel, was a 
 native of Hemsling, Hanover, Germany, from 
 which country her grandfather, John Blackwedel, 
 came to America with his family in November, 
 1847. The month following he settled on a farm 
 in Wisconsin, later moving to Jo Daviess county, 
 111. J. H. Blackwedel was first a farmer in Wis- 
 consin, and later engaged in mercantile pursuits 
 in Sauk City, Wis., Galena, 111., and Dubuque, 
 Iowa, in which latter place his death occurred 
 November 29, 1863. A man of considerable 
 ability and superior education, the Blackwedel 
 home, both in Wisconsin and Illinois, was the 
 rendezvous of lecturers and those of literary 
 tastes whenever they came to his home town. 
 Mr. Blackwedel was well and favorably known 
 throughout the state of Wisconsin, where he 
 was one of the sponsors of the Republican party. 
 His wife, formerly Anna Meta Holterman, was 
 also a native of Germany, and the daughter of 
 H. C. Holterman, who died in Germany. Mrs. 
 Blackwedel died in Dubuque in 1872. There 
 were four children in the Blackwedel household 
 who grew to maturity, of whom two sons, Henry 
 Herman and John Frederick, died while serving 
 in Company I, Seventeenth Missouri Volunteer 
 Infantry. A daughter, Minnie I., became the 
 wife of Francis I. Pillsbury, and came to Cali- 
 fornia, her death occurring in Riverside, Janu- 
 ary 30, 1887. , Next to the youngest, Mrs. Zum- 
 walt was reared in Dubuque, where she attended 
 both public and private schools. In 1886 she 
 came to Riverside with her sister, Mrs. Pills- 
 bury, and the following year came to Tulare 
 county. She is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church, and is identified with Visalia Lodge 
 No. 48, I. O. G. T., of which Mr. Zumwalt was 
 also a member and which he organized Novem- 
 ber 18, 1870. He was foremost in incorporating 
 the Good Templar's Hall Association, and in 
 building Good Templar's Hall in Visalia, and 
 put such safeguards around it that it has never 
 been perverted from its original use or passed 
 out of the hands of the society. He was past 
 grand counsellor of the order and up to the time 
 of his death was its most stanch supporter. He 
 was also a member and trvistee of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church of Visalia, and for many years 
 was superintendent of the Sunday-school which 
 he organized in 1869-70. Politically he was a 
 Republican in early life, but for many years was 
 a strong party Prohibitionist, and his ideas upon 
 the liquor question are also held by Mrs. Zum- 
 walt, who is not only a pronounced Prohibition- 
 ist,' but is a strong woman suffragist. In addi- 
 tion to the many interests already mentioned Mr. 
 Zumwalt carried on an abstract and land busi- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 633 
 
 ness, patented a process for photographing and 
 preserving records, and was also engaged in 
 stock-raising and dairying. While in Sacramento, 
 from 1861 to 1865, Mr. Zumwalt joined Com- 
 pany H, Fourth Regiment, Fourth Brigade Cali- 
 fornia State Militia, serving as first lieutenant 
 of the company and first lieutenant and quarter- 
 master of his regiment. 
 
 In recording the events in the life of Mr. Zum- 
 walt it is but just to state that Mrs. Zumwalt has 
 been a most potent factor in his success, stand- 
 ing beside him in all trials and encouraging him 
 with her love and devotion. Their union was an 
 unusually happy and congenial one, and whether 
 at home, in church or in lodge work, their inter- 
 ests were mutual. 
 
 PHILIP THOMAS DORLAND. Numbered 
 among the extensive and successful grain-raisers 
 and stock-growers of San Joaquin county is 
 Philip Thomas Dorland, a man of decided energy, 
 great enterprise and excellent ability. Conduct- 
 ing his agricultural labors with skill and good 
 judgment, he has been amply rewarded for his 
 years of toil, winning the esteem and respect of 
 his fellow-men and acquiring considerable wealth. 
 On the paternal side, he is of German extraction, 
 the Dorland family, whose name was formerly 
 spelled Dorlandt having originated in Germany. 
 This family was first represented on American 
 soil by two brothers of that name, who immi- 
 grated to Massachusetts in early colonial times, 
 becoming settlers of Plymouth colony. Mr. Dor- 
 land was born July 19, 1865, in Adolphustown, 
 Lennox county, Ontario, which was also the 
 birthplace of his father, Philip Dorland, and of 
 his grandfather, John Dorland. His great-grand- 
 father. Captain Dorland, an officer in the British 
 army, refused to settle in the United States after 
 the Revolutionary war, and, with his battalion, 
 migrated to Canada, locating permanently in 
 Adolphustown, Ontario. 
 
 Succeeding to the free and independent oc- 
 cupation in which he was reared, Philip Dorland 
 became a tiller of the soil, and spent his fifty- 
 one years of earthly life as a farmer in his native 
 town. He married Charlotte Trumpour, a native 
 of Adolphustown, and a daughter of Samuel 
 Trumpour, a life-long farmer of that place. Her 
 great-grandfather. Col. John Trumpour, immi- 
 grated to the United States from Germany, and 
 after serving as an officer in the English army 
 during the Revolution settled in Ontario. She 
 survived her husband, and is now living, a bright 
 and well-preserved woman of eighty-three years. 
 Of their twelve children, eleven grew to years of 
 maturity, and ten survive, Philip Thomas, the 
 special subject of this sketch, being the youngest 
 son. 
 
 Acquiring a thorough knowledge of the com- 
 mon branches of study in the public schools, 
 Philip Thomas Dorland remained at home until 
 fifteen years old, when he went to Chatham, 
 Ontario, where he served an apprenticeship of 
 three years at the upholsterer's trade. From 
 there Mr. Dorland went to Brantford, Ontario, 
 and in 1884 made his first trip to California, re- 
 maining here seven months. Returning to Brant- 
 ford, he worked as a journeyman two years, and 
 then started in business for himself as an up- 
 holsterer and furniture dealer, being first located 
 in Gait, and afterward in Toronto. In 1890 Mr. 
 Dorland came again to the Pacific coast, and for 
 four years worked for his brothers at farming. 
 Renting land, in 1894 he began grain raising on 
 his own account and met with good success in 
 his efforts. Removing to his present place of 
 residence, in San Joaquin county, about seven 
 miles from Oakdale, he has since been profitably 
 employed in agricultural pursuits. He rents the 
 old Poland ranch of one thousand and eighty 
 acres, and also a farm of two hundred and forty 
 acres near Lonetree, and is extensively engaged 
 in raising grain and stock. He has all of the 
 necessary machinery and implements for carry- 
 ing on his work, and with his combined harvester 
 cuts not only his ov\'n grain, but much of that 
 raised by his neighbors. Fraternally Mr. Dor- 
 land belongs to Oakdale Lodge No. 275, F. &. 
 A. M., and politically he is identified with the 
 Republican party. 
 
 LANGSTON ANDREW JOHNSON. An 
 esteemed pioneer citizen of Visalia is Langston 
 Andrew Johnson, since 1879 the proprietor of 
 the Visalia hotel, which he is still conducting. 
 A native of St. Louis county, Mo., where he was 
 born June 16, 1837, he was a son of John John- 
 son. The latter was born in Tennessee, reared 
 in Kentucky, and in an early day removed to 
 St. Louis county, Mo., where he married and 
 engaged as a farmer. During the Civil war he 
 was shot by the Home Guards. His wife was 
 in maidenhood Mary Bacon, a native of Missouri, 
 who died when her son, Langston A., was born. 
 He was the youngest of five children, the others 
 being as follows : William, located in Missouri ; 
 Nathaniel, located in Napa county, this state; 
 Bettie and James, deceased. 
 
 The education of langston A. Johnson was re- 
 ceived in the common schools of his native state, 
 after which he followed his father's occupation 
 of farmer. He became a large slave owner in 
 Missouri, where he made his hc^ne until 1864, 
 in that year crossing the plains to California by 
 mule teams. He located in Los Angeles and 
 engaged as foreman for Mr. Nadeau, collecting 
 and paying ofif on the freighting business, which 
 
e34 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 was conducted by mule teams. He followed this 
 occupation for two years, when he went to Ari- 
 zona and engaged in mining at Cerbat, Mohave 
 county. A year and a half of this work resulted 
 in financial reverses, after which he returned to 
 Los Angeles, sold out his interests and, locating 
 in Kern county, engaged in the sheep business. 
 He met with fair success for the ensuing two 
 years. In 1876 he located in Visalia and began 
 at the foot of the ladder again as a hod-carrier, 
 later opening a boarding house, which was suc- 
 cessfully conducted for some time. For three 
 or four years he engaged in the general mer- 
 chandise business with marked success, after 
 which he purchased the Visalia hotel. The years 
 have" brought to him added success, and as his 
 financial ability has increased he has bought both 
 town and country property until he owns con- 
 siderable of the former and one hundred and 
 sixty acres of the latter. He is justly accounted 
 one of the successful men of the community, 
 and as an enterprising citizen is held in high 
 regard by all who know him. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. Johnson married Mary A. 
 Howell, a native of that state. They are the 
 parents of the following children : Mrs. Eviza 
 V. Baker, Mrs. Mattie Wilber, and John S., the 
 last named being represented elsewhere in this 
 work. Fraternally Mr. Johnson is identified with 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen and with 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In his 
 political affiliations he adheres to the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Democratic 
 party, in the interests of which he has served for 
 one term as a member of the city council. 
 
 GEORGE W. WIGLEY. A typical repre- 
 sentative of the self-made men of our times, 
 George W. Wigley has paddled his own canoe 
 to some purpose, and now in the prime of a 
 vigorous manhood is enjoying the reward of his 
 earlier years of toil, having by his own efforts 
 risen to a place of influence and affluence. Ener- 
 getic, ambitious and far-seeing, he has met with 
 excellent success as an agriculturist, being now 
 one of the leading dairymen and farmers of San 
 Joaqum county, his farm, with its valuable im- 
 provements, being finely located on the Stanis- 
 laus river, three-fourths of a mile from Huntley, 
 and but four miles from Escalon. A native of 
 Georgia, he was born April 4, 1854, in Resaca, 
 Gordon county, where his father, Richard Wig- 
 ley, was a planter. His grandfather, Joseph 
 Wigley, also a planter by occupation, was a native 
 of England, and settled in Virginia. 
 
 Brought up on his father's plantation, Richard 
 Wigley chose the independent vocation of a 
 farmer, and began his active career in his native 
 state. Subsequently removing to Gordon county, 
 
 Georgia, he farmed there till he removed to 
 FrankHn county. Ark., where he bought land on 
 the Arkansas river, and was there employed in 
 raising cotton until his death, at the advanced 
 age of eighty-eight years, in 1901. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was Minerva McKay, was 
 born in North CaroHna, and died in Arkansas 
 at the age of seventy-five years. She bore him 
 a large family of children, of whom nine grew 
 to years of maturity, and six survive. Two sons 
 served in the Civil war, and one son, Richard 
 J. Wigley, resides in Tulare county, CaL, owning 
 a wheat ranch near Portersville. 
 
 Living in Georgia until 1868, George W. Wig- 
 ley obtained the rudiments of his education in 
 his native county, but completed his studies in 
 the district schools of Franklin county. Ark. 
 His ambition on attaining his majority was to 
 seek his fortune in some newer country, and he 
 thought strongly of going to Texas, but was 
 dissuaded by his brother Hiram and induced to 
 come with said brother to CaHfornia instead. 
 Arriving in San Joaquin county in March, 1874, 
 Mr. Wigley soon found that he knew but little 
 of agricultural methods as pursued on the coast. 
 Determined, however, to become familiar with 
 them, he worked out as a farm hand for two 
 years. In 1876, with a partner, he rented a 
 ranch of two hundred and fifty acres, and, not- 
 withstanding that it was a dry season, he raised 
 a good crop of wheat, which he disposed of at 
 the rate of $2.45 per hundred, clearing $2,850 
 in the operation. Encouraged by his success, 
 Mr. Wigley then purchased a farm of three 
 hundred and five acres, and for several years 
 carried on general farming and grain-raising 
 with good results, and still owns a portion of his 
 original purchase. He has since bought adjoin- 
 ing land, and now owns five hundred acres on the 
 Stanislaus river, on which he has made improve- 
 ments of exceptional value and worth. In 1898 
 Mr. Wigley embarked in the dairy business, and 
 has now the largest and best-equipped private 
 creamery in the San Joaquin valley, having a two- 
 horse-power steam engine, and all the modern ap- 
 pliances for manufacturing butter, the output 
 of his creamery averaging four hundred pounds 
 per week. His farm contains one hundred and 
 fifty acres of bottom-land, on which he raises 
 large crops of alfalfa, and in his dairy he keeps 
 about one hundred head of milking cows. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Wigley is a member of Oak- 
 dale Lodge No. 275, F. & A. M. 
 
 CHARLES ROHLOFF. The Arroyo Vine- 
 yard, of which Charles Rohloff is the owner and 
 proprietor, is one of the deservedly popular me- 
 diums of procuring pure California wines and 
 vinegar in Tulare county. Located inside the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 635 
 
 city limits, at 812 Watson avenue, the vineyard 
 covers sixteen acres, its equipment including a 
 wine cellar of two thousand gallons capacity 
 and a distillery where grape brandy is manufac- 
 tured. The trade of the vineyard is confined al- 
 most exclusively to Visalia and vicinity, and the 
 excellent quality of the commodities insures a 
 steady and increasing patronage. The genial and 
 successful owner has had many years of experi- 
 ence, and his winery is conducted along modern 
 and progressive lines, with due regard for his 
 personal and business reputation. 
 
 Mr. Rohloflf was born in Prussia, Germany, 
 July 27, 1853 ; his parents were natives of the 
 same country. His mother dying when he was 
 a child, himself and brother attended the public 
 schools, and when their strength permitted, as- 
 sisted their father in the work around the farm. 
 Mr. Rohloff early appreciated the limitations by 
 which he was surrounded, and in 1880 came to 
 the United States, traveling over Illinois, Michi- 
 gan, Wisconsin, Iowa and Montana, reaching 
 California in the spring of 1884. Settling in 
 Visalia, he found employment under George 
 Mauer in the Arroyo Vineyard, in time learn- 
 ing every department of the business and becom- 
 ing manager of the vineyard and winery. Going 
 to Livermore, he worked in a winery there for 
 two years, and then worked on a ranch in Fresno 
 county until 1899. In September of that year 
 he purchased the Arroyo Vineyard and Winery 
 and has since conducted it on a paying basis. 
 Mr. Rohloff is a quiet, unassuming man, with 
 no inclination for political office, although he has 
 been a stanch Republican ever since landing on 
 American shores. He is public-spirited and gen- 
 erous, was quick to adopt the language and ways 
 of his adopted country, and is now an earnest 
 enthusiast of the state in which his lot is perma- 
 nently cast. In San Francisco he married Marie 
 Hoesing, a native of Hamburg, Germany, and 
 they have one son, Dewey. Respected by his 
 fellow townsmen, and having a business which 
 reflects credit upon his growing community, Mr. 
 Rohloff may well regard the future as promising 
 and the past as full of work well done. 
 
 JOHN S. HARP, of the firm of yarp 
 Brothers, proprietors of the Kaweah stables, is 
 named among the most enterprising and ambi- 
 tious young men of Visalia, and a future of suc- 
 cess is predicted for him by all his friends who 
 best appreciate his many sterling traits of char- 
 acter. He was born in Georgia, near Middleton, 
 August 2, 1876, the youngest in a family of nine 
 children, seven of whom attained maturity and 
 five of whom are now living. His father, George 
 Harp, removed to Arkansas, where he is located 
 as a farmer. The mother of the family died 
 
 when John S. was but two years old, the greater 
 part of the care and training which fell to his 
 lot being given by his brother, William, who is 
 now his partner in his present business. He was 
 reared on a farm in Arkansas occupied by his 
 brother, who was extensively interested in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. He attended the public schools 
 in pursuit of an education. In 1892 he came to 
 California with William Harp and located in 
 Tulare county, his brother returning to Arkansas 
 after six years' residence, while he remained 
 here. He found employment on various ranches 
 until February, 1904, when, having accumulated 
 sufficient capital, he purchased the livery stable 
 of J. B. McKinley, known as the Kaweah 
 stables. He has successfully conducted the busi- 
 ness since, having the best equipped as well as 
 the most extensive livery and feed stable in the 
 city, his building having a fifty-foot front which 
 extends from Main to Center street, located on 
 East Main street. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Harp married Bertha Roberts, 
 a native of this city, and daughter of Newton 
 Roberts, a pioneer settler of this section. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Harp is identified with the Wood- 
 men of the World and Fraternal Brotherhood. 
 Politically he adheres to the principles advocated 
 in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 EDWARD T. COX. Among the farmers and 
 land owners who have gained a wide experience 
 in other lines of business in California, mention 
 is due Edward T. Cox, owner of five hundred 
 and sixty acres of land in Tulare county, and 
 one of the popular, progressive and public-spir- 
 ited men of his neighborhood. Born in St. Clair 
 county, 111., May i, 1852, he is a son of Elijah 
 and Elizabeth (Nimerick) Cox, also natives of 
 Illinois, and farmers by occupation. The family 
 moved from St. Clair to Hancock county, the 
 same state, at an early day, and here Elijah Cox 
 passed the balance of his life, being survived 
 by his wife, who still makes her home in Illinois. 
 Eight sturdy sons were reared to manhood in 
 this humble home, v^^ere educated in the public 
 schools, and started upon their respective self- 
 supporting careers with assets consisting chiefly 
 of common sense and a willingness to embrace 
 whatever opportunity might come their way. 
 
 During his eighteenth year Edward T. Cox 
 attended school for the last time, and, leaving 
 the home place behind him, started out to see 
 the world and earn his own living. From Illi- 
 nois he went to Minneapolis, Minn., engaged in 
 business there during 1879-80, realizing a con- 
 siderable profit in both groceries and real estate, 
 and in various kinds of speculation. Coming to 
 California in 1883 on a visit, he was delighted 
 with the country and engaged in a real estate 
 
636 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 business in Monterey, in conjunction with the 
 San Francisco Bureau of Immigration. In this 
 capacity he helped to settle Monterey county, a 
 difficult task at best, as at every step progress 
 was balked by the efforts of the stockmen, who 
 resented the dividing up of the lands. In 1886 
 he removed to Los Angeles, profiting by the 
 boom of that time, and remained there for about 
 three years. During the winter of 1888 he 
 shouldered a gun and hunted all through San 
 Luis Obispo county, in the spring coming to the 
 San Joaquin valley, the richness of which ap- 
 pealed to his judgment and hopes for the future. 
 Visalia seemed to him a promising center, and 
 near this town he found employment on the farm 
 ot a Mr. Evans, whose widow he later married. 
 This was the beginning of his substantial suc- 
 cess, and he began to buy land, in time accumu- 
 lating his present farm, and having the over- 
 sight of the ranch owned by his wife, which is 
 one hundred and forty acres in extent. The Cox 
 property is highly improved and yields a sub- 
 stantial yearly income. 
 
 In 1894 Mr. Cox married Mrs. Ellen Evans, 
 a native of New York state, who came across 
 the plains with ox teams at an early day. One 
 child, Edward, has been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Cox. Mr. Cox has found recreation with the 
 Odd Fellows and Masons for many years, and 
 in the latter organization is a member of Lodge, 
 Chapter, Commandery, and of the Scottish Rite. 
 In politics he is a Republican, and is esteemed 
 for his many strong and reliable traits of char- 
 acter, his support of charitable and social insti- 
 tutions and his moderate and temperate life. 
 
 JOHN MERWICK HARRAY. Of the 
 workers along practical and time-honored lines 
 in Oakdale none have better command of their 
 occupation, or dignify it with greater thorough- 
 ness and reliability than John Merwick Harray, 
 junior member of the firm of Stearns & Harray, 
 blacksmiths, carriage manufacturers, and machin- 
 ists. A parallel is found in the work of Mr. 
 Harray and his rugged Scottish ancestry. He 
 has the perseverance, determination and steadi- 
 ness of his race, traits doubly appreciated in the 
 place to which nature and his good genius have 
 assigned him. His family were well known for 
 centuries in the Orkney Islands, where he was 
 born September 20, 1864, and which also was 
 the birthplace of his parents, John and Jane 
 (Merwick) Harray. He was reared near Kirk- 
 wall, on the mainland, and as a boy realized some 
 of the disadvantages of being one in a large 
 family, dependent upon the income derived from 
 an average farm. Moderation and industry were 
 encouraged and required in the modest home, 
 and that they were important factors is realized 
 
 in the life of his father, who, at the age of eighty- 
 four years, is still hale and hearty, and able to 
 enjoy the leisure denied him in earlier years. 
 His mother, long since deceased, came of one 
 of the very old families on the islands. She is 
 recalled as a good disciplinarian, a friend and 
 comrade of her children, and an earnest worker 
 in the Presbyterian Church. All of her nine chil- 
 dren are living, and five are in America, John 
 Merwick being the fourth oldest. 
 
 Mr. Harray is not indebted for his success in 
 life to early educational advantages, for the 
 necessity of beginning to work early cut short 
 his school days, and threw him upon the resources 
 of later years. When thirteen he served an ap- 
 prenticeship to a blacksmith, and upon the com- 
 pletion of his trade at the end of three years, 
 came to America in 1881, and lived a short time 
 in Philadelphia. From July, 1881, until March, 
 1882, he worked at his trade in Bay City, Mich., 
 and then transferred his field of activity to Chi- 
 cago, 111., where he remained three and a half 
 years. The farther west he got the better he 
 liked it, and the larger seemed the opportunities 
 for a young and ambitious man. Becoining inter- 
 ested in California, he came to Stockton in the 
 fall of 1886, remaining there and working at his 
 trade until the spring of 1887. In April, 1887, 
 he located at Point Arena, Mendocino county, 
 securing a position with the Central CaHfomia 
 Lumber Company as master blacksmith for two 
 years. Returning to Stockton, he lived there a 
 few months, and in October, 1889, entered the 
 employ of Nightingale & Stearns as master 
 horseshoer. In the meantime he had lived always 
 within his income, had saved considerable money, 
 and in March, 1894, bought out Mr. Nightingale, 
 and the firm name was changed to Stearns & Har- 
 ray. Since then Mr. Harray has had charge 
 principally of the blacksmithing and carriage 
 manufacturing, the partners working together 
 amicably and with excellent financial results. The 
 firm have an enviable reputation among people 
 appreciating fine workmanship and reliability, 
 and their standing is not excelled by any similarly 
 employed in the county. 
 
 Mr. Harray is a stanch Republican, but not 
 an office seeker. Fraternally he is identified with 
 the Oakdale Lodge, No. 228, 1. O. O. F., of which 
 he was noble grand two terms, and the Wood- 
 men of the World. His religious convictions 
 are strong and humane, and for years he has 
 been a member of the Presbyterian Church, act- 
 ing in the capacities of ruling elder and trustee. 
 He is a man who thinks for himself, and has well 
 defined opinions on the leading questions of the 
 day. The high ideals which have accompanied 
 him on his life journey thus far are never allowed 
 to sink into the background, and all who know 
 him feel that he is guided in all his walks bv 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 637 
 
 a high and noble mind. He is devoted to his 
 friends, his family and the interests which rep- 
 resent his life work, and especially does he ob- 
 serve the golden rule in his business and social 
 undertakings. Mr. Harray married in Modesto, 
 Cora Boyd, a native of Nevada. Of this union 
 three children have been born. Earl Merwick, 
 Irvin William and Stanley John. 
 
 JOHN C. HOXIE. Although not a native 
 Californian the earliest recollections of John C. 
 Hoxie are associated with the scenes of his adopt- 
 ed state, in which all but the first ten years of his 
 life have been spent. The family is of English 
 ancestry and for many generations residents of 
 Massachusetts where the first emigrant is sup- 
 posed to have settled. The paternal grandfather 
 died in Massachusetts, leaving a family, among 
 whom was a son called Clark Hoxie. He was 
 born in Sandwich, Barnstable county, and in 
 young manhood became a contractor and build- 
 er. In 1852, following the westward trend of 
 civilization, he came to California by way of the 
 Isthmus of Panama and located in Tuttletown, 
 Tuolumne county, erecting the first quartz mill 
 ever built in that vicinity. He also engaged in 
 mining for some time. In 1856 he located on 
 the Indian Reservation where he was employed 
 to teach carpenter work, but before 1858 he lo- 
 cated in Millerton, and conducted a blacksmith 
 and wagon shop. He became an influential man 
 in that community and took a prominent part in 
 local affairs, serving as a member of the first 
 board of supervisors and also acted as justice 
 of the peace. Returning to Massachusetts in 
 1866 by way of the Isthmus, he died in Sand- 
 wich which had been the home of the family for 
 so many years. His wife, formerly Susan Fes- 
 senden, was born in Sandwich, a daughter of 
 Capt. Sewall Fessenden, who was a sea captain 
 and hotel man there. During the Revolutionary 
 war he gave valiant service as captain of the 
 state militia. 
 
 Bom March 15, 1848, in Sandwich, Mass., 
 John C. Hoxie was but ten years old when he 
 came to California. The journey was made by 
 way of the Isthmus of Panama, on the Golden 
 Age to San Francisco, by boat to Stockton, 
 thence by stage to Millerton. There were no 
 schools in that locality at that time and Mr. 
 Hoxie received all his instructions from his moth- 
 er, a woman of many accomplishments and rare 
 intellect. The first school in Millerton was a 
 private affair and was opened and conducted in 
 1859 by Mrs. Hoxie, at the same time in which 
 she served as postmistress. With the courage 
 and self-reliance characteristic of the pioneer lad 
 of the early days, he engaged in the stock busi- 
 ness at the age of fifteen years and has continued 
 
 successfully in that work up to the present time. 
 In time he located on a ranch which he pur- 
 chased at Millerton, engaging in sheep and cat- 
 tle raising and farming there for many years, 
 and in time becoming the owner of several thou- 
 sand acres. In 1874 he removed to Fresno and 
 bought a block and built the residence now oc- 
 cupied by F. H. Short, and later bought one 
 block from his original purchase and built a res- 
 idence at the corner of L and Stanislaus streets. 
 He engaged as a grain merchant for many years, 
 and also became interested in mining properties 
 about twenty years ago. In conjunction with 
 W. H. McKenzie and T. G. Hart, he purchased 
 the Mud Springs mine and operated and devel- 
 oped the same, which is conceded to be one of 
 the finest mining properties in this part of the 
 country. He has since acted as superintendent 
 of the property and by his skill and management 
 has done much to further the best interests of 
 the company. He is also largely interested in 
 mines in Fresno, Madera, Inyo and Mono coun- 
 ties, and is numbered among the men who have 
 met with success in this line of work. 
 
 In Fort Miller, December 18, 1873, Mr. Hoxie 
 married Mary J. McKenzie, who was born in 
 that location. For more complete details con- 
 cerning her family refer to the sketch of William 
 H. McKenzie, which appears elsewhere in this 
 volume. In his political convictions Mr. Hoxie 
 is a Democrat. 
 
 FRANK REMBRANDT KELLENBERG. 
 Twelve years as a retail shoe dealer have re- 
 sulted in a steady increase of the business of 
 Frank Rembrandt Kellenberg, one of the sub- 
 stantial and painstaking merchants of Visalia. 
 Mr. Kellenberg was born at Alton, Madison 
 county. 111., June 11, 1854. His father, Francis 
 Jerome Kellenberg, was born in Georgetown, D. 
 C, and at an early age displayed marked talent 
 for drawing, an inclination which was fostered 
 and developed, resulting in a life devotion to art. 
 He became both a landscape and portrait painter, 
 having a studio in Georgetown and one in Alton, 
 111., where he settled about 1846. In i860 he 
 became interested in the far west, moved his 
 family to California by way of Panama, and es- 
 tablished his home in Visalia, where his death 
 occurred in 1876, at about seventy-six years of 
 age. Latterly he devoted himself to artistic sign 
 painting, but left a large collection of pictures, 
 among them copies and original productions, 
 many of them of great value. His most prized 
 effort was a copy of the Court of Death, upon 
 which he worked at odd times for twelve years ; 
 a copy of the portrait of the Duke of Athens; 
 of Ebenezer rising from the tomb ; and an orig- 
 inal picture called the Dance of the Four Sea- 
 
638 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sons. Mr. Kellenberg had no thought of worldly 
 fame as he mixed his colors on his palette and 
 applied them with steady hand; painting to him 
 was a congenial occupation, and the study of 
 color had a fascinating charm. His wife, for- 
 merly Mary Hillery, died ere he allied his for- 
 tunes with the west, leaving two sons and five 
 daughters, of whom Frank Rembrandt, named 
 for the great Dutch artist of that name, is the 
 second youngest. 
 
 Educated in the public schools of California, 
 Mr. Kellenberg gained his first business experi- 
 ence in the mercantile store of Richard E. Hyde, 
 one of the early pioneers of Tulare county, and 
 president of the Bank of Visalia for thirty years. 
 A year and a half later he became a clerk for 
 Douglas & Co., continuing with the firm after 
 they sold out to Stevens & Co., and eleven and 
 a half years from the time of entering their em- 
 ploy he purchased a quarter interest in the busi- 
 ness. However, in 1881 he disposed of his in- 
 terest, and in 1882 started his present shoe store, 
 which is now one of the best in this line in the 
 city. Mr. Kellenberg is a broad-minded and 
 public-spirited gentleman, a stanch Republican, 
 and a valued member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. In Visalia, in 1885, he mar- 
 ried Minnie Rebecca Kelsey, who was born in 
 Iowa and came with her parents to California. 
 Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Kellenberg, Fi^ank Guido and Louise. 
 
 ZACHARY T. BLANKENSHIP. A native 
 son of California and born in San Joacjuin coun- 
 ty December 11, 1854, Zachary T. Blankenship 
 has spent his entire life on the frontier, and has 
 been an interested and intelligent spectator of 
 the rise from obscurity of the west. On both 
 sides of his family he is of southern ancestry, 
 his father, William Moore Blankenship, having 
 been born in Virginia, and his mother, Rebecca 
 Williams, in South Carolina. William M. 
 Blankenship removed to Iowa from Virginia in 
 early life, married there and made Iowa his home 
 until making his first trip across the plains dur- 
 ing the summer of 1850. He brought a band 
 of stock with him, sold the same in the mining 
 camps and engaged in mining at Mokelumne 
 Hill until 1852. Returr>ing to Iowa by way of 
 the Isthmus, he again brought a herd of cattle 
 across the plains during the summer of 1853. 
 In 185s he made another journey to Iowa by 
 water, and crossed the plains for the third time 
 with cattle in 1858. On these expeditions for 
 securing stock for the ranch which he had pur- 
 chased near Stockton, Mr. Blankenship took his 
 family with him on his three trips to the ea'st, 
 and had his own crew of men for his prairie 
 schooners and stock, and at times encountered the 
 
 Indians under terribly dangerous circumstances. 
 In the fall of 1859 he came to Tulare county and 
 bought a half-section of land, of which his son, 
 Zachary T., still owns one hundred and fifty-six 
 acres, added to it as occasion required, and at 
 the time of his death, in the fall of 1883, owned, 
 besides his farm of five hundred and sixty acres, 
 a large amount of other property. Notwith- 
 standing his large land ownership, Mr. Blanken- 
 ship died comparatively poor, for his enterprises 
 were conducted on a large scale, and with more 
 or less loss on account of changes in climate. 
 He died aged eighty-four years, and his wife 
 died aged seventy-four. Of his children, one son 
 and one daughter are deceased, leaving four 
 sons to perpetuate his name and excellent quali- 
 ties of mind and heart. 
 
 Although his educational opportunities were 
 extremely limited, Zachary T. Blankenship had 
 no cause to complain of his agricultural or stock 
 training, for at a very early age he was taught 
 to appreciate a good horse, cow or sheep, and 
 in 1878 took a band of horses to eastern Oregon, 
 engaging in the stock business there until 1884. 
 Returning to his father's farm, he continued to 
 raise stock, and at the present time devotes his 
 energies to dairying, sheep, hogs and cattle rais- 
 ing. The Blankenship ranch presents an aspect 
 of thrift and neatness, evidencing pronounced 
 regard on the part of the owner for the niceties 
 and comforts as well as profits of country life. 
 Mr. Blankenship long voted the Democratic tick- 
 et, but owing to the attitude of his party toward 
 the silver question, changed to the other side. 
 He married into one of the pioneer families of 
 the state, his wife being Hattie, daughter of 
 John Bond, the latter a native of Louisiana and 
 a miner of 1849. Mr. Bond was living in Ne- 
 vada when his daughter was born there, and after 
 years spent in mining he became a farmer near 
 Modesto, this state, where his death occurred at 
 an advanced age. In the household of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Blankenship are two children, Helen and 
 Bond, both attending the A^isalia school. Mr. 
 Blankenship is a remarkably well informed man, 
 being a constant reader and having an excep- 
 tional memory. He^is highly respected by both 
 his old and new friends, and is a man whom it 
 is pleasant and profitable to meet. 
 
 RICHARD M. BURCHELL. The name of 
 Burchell is well known to the citizens of Merced 
 county and is synonymous with prosperity, 
 thrift, honesty and integrity. As a worthy scion 
 of this distinguished family, Richard M. Burch- 
 ell is filling out a life of usefulness on his fine 
 farm of six hundred and forty acres, about two 
 miles from Le Grand, which is a part of the old 
 homestead. He was bom October 22, 1853, in 
 
a/yt^ 
 
4^^/jki^a&,.,^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 643 
 
 Buchanan county, Mo., the fifth child born to 
 Richard M., Sr., and Martha M. (Hill) Burch- 
 ell, the latter a native of Kentucky. 
 
 His father, for many years a prominent 
 rancher of Merced county, Cal., was born in 
 County Cork, Ireland, and came to the United 
 States when a young man. A tailor by trade, 
 he followed that occupation for a livelihood in 
 Maryland, and subsequently in Kentucky, where 
 his marriage took place. In 1864 he came to 
 California with a party of fifty persons, the trip 
 across the plains being made with mule teams, 
 and consuming five months' time. Upon his 
 arrival in California, he located near Healdsburg, 
 Sonoma county, and for three years he there 
 gave his attention to farming. The four years 
 following he was engaged in similar work in 
 Napa and Monterey counties. 
 
 In 1872 Mr. Burchell purchased a large tract 
 of land in Merced county, now known as the 
 Burchell estate, where the remainder of his life 
 was passed ; he lived to the advanced age of 
 seventy-two years. His ranch contained twenty- 
 eight hundred acres, devoted to the raising of 
 grain and stock, and is now owned and operated 
 by his children, namely: William G., of Gilroy ; 
 James W. ; Milton C. ; Robert C. ; Richard M., 
 and Mary E., the wife of J. T. Rucker, of Moun- 
 tainview, each of whom received a fine farm 
 as his portion of the home place. The four 
 sons are farming the old home place. Upon this 
 ranch Richard M., Jr., spent his youth and early 
 manhood and has since made his home. He was 
 joined in matrimony with Grace Richards, who 
 was born in Illinois, and they have two children, 
 Leroy and Leola. Politically a Democrat, Mr. 
 Burchell is not an active politician. He affiliates 
 with the Fraternal Aid Society. 
 
 REV. SAMUEL T. GILLIAM. A pioneer 
 minister of California, the Rev. S. T. Gilliam has 
 given his best efforts toward the moral and spir- 
 itual welfare of the various communities in which 
 his labors have lain. He was born in Clay coun- 
 ty. Mo., February 21, 1828, the only one now sur- 
 viving of a family of twelve children, all of whom 
 attained maturity. He and a brother, Robert, 
 came to California, while various members of the 
 family located in Oregon. The family is of 
 southern origin, the name flourishing in 
 North Carolina for generations. There, in 1790, 
 Epaphroditus Gilliam was born, becoming a 
 farmer in manhood. Following the example of 
 one of his ancestors he became a pioneer of Mis- 
 souri, locating in the state at a time when it was 
 necessary for the settlers to build forts for pro- 
 tection from the Indians. His death occurred in 
 Platte county, Mo., after a life of usefulness and 
 practical citizenship. One of his sons, Cornelius, 
 
 became famous as General Gilliam, the hero of 
 the_ Cay use Indian war, who was killed by the 
 accidental discharge of a gun in a wagon, after 
 a battle won after thirty-six hours of steady fight- 
 ing. Another son, Jesse, a native of North Caro- 
 lina, became a farmer in Clay county. Mo., where 
 he participated in the Mormon warfare, which 
 resulted in the expulsion of the Mormons from 
 that territory and their settlement at Nauvoo, 111. 
 In young manhood he married Jeanette Mc- 
 Dowell, a native of South Carolina, whose father 
 served in the Revolutionary war, dying soon 
 afterward. Mrs. Gilliam died in Andrew county, 
 Mo., where the death of Mr. Gilliam also oc- 
 curred, at the age of seventy-six years. He made 
 the trip across the plains in '49 with his son, 
 teamed for several years, then returned to his 
 farm and the peaceful pursuits of an agricultural 
 life. In young manhood he had become a min- 
 ister in the Methodist Church and was active in 
 his efforts to advance the spiritual welfare of 
 those about him. 
 
 Samuel T. Gilliam was reared in Qay, Platte 
 and Andrew counties, in his native state, receiv- 
 ing his education in the subscription schools of 
 that day. When scarcely large enough to reach 
 the plow handles he was set to work to assist in 
 the cultivation of the home farm. With ox-teams, 
 in 1849, he crossed the plains with his father, 
 leaving Missouri June i, over the trail on the 
 South Pass, Green river. Ft. Hall, then the Car- 
 son and Humboldt rivers to California. They 
 had a pleasant and safe trip, which lasted one 
 hundred and four days, reaching their destina- 
 tion ahead of the mule teams which started out 
 with them. In Hangtown (now Placerville) 
 S. T. Gilliam followed mining, and struck a 
 ledge rich in quartz, but as nothing was known 
 about that kind of mining and there were no 
 quartz mills it meant practically nothing to him. 
 Later he was located on the north fork of the 
 American river, after which he went to Oregon 
 and located on the Luckiamute, Polk county, 
 where he took up a donation claim of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres. He there engaged in 
 farming until 1858, and while there began the 
 ministry as a licentiate in the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church. Returning to California in 1858, 
 he located in San Ramon valley, Contra Costa 
 county, and was there ordained as a minister. 
 Subsequently he was located in Stockton and 
 vicinity following the ministry. In i860 he lo- 
 cated in Tulare county and since that time has 
 preached throughout Tulare, Fresno, Kings and 
 Kern counties, organizing congregations and 
 building churches. For thirty-four years he 
 preached from three to five sermons a week, and 
 at the same time did a man's work on the farm, 
 making his living by the raising of produce rather 
 than accept the money taken often from the poor- 
 
644 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 est men of a community, giving his services 
 gratis practically for the entire time. It is said 
 that during his ministry he married and buried 
 more people than any other two ministers in 
 central California. AJDout 1884 he retired from 
 active work in the ministry and has since devoted 
 his efforts to the cultivation and improvement of 
 his property. .The ranch he now owns was bought 
 in 1867, and consists of one hundred and sixty 
 acres, ninety acres of which he devotes to the 
 cultivation of alfalfa. This land is under irriga- 
 tion from the Gilliam & Cummings ditch, an 
 ample supply of water being furnished. He now 
 rents the farm, having retired from practical 
 duties. 
 
 Near Dallas, Ore., December 27, 1852, Mr. 
 Gilliam was united in marriage with Elizabeth 
 Lewis, a native of Overton county, Tenn. Her 
 father, Rev. William P. Lewis, was a native of 
 Virginia, who, after his settlement in Tennessee, 
 became a pioneer of Platte county. Mo. In 1852 
 he crossed the plains to Oregon, locating near 
 Dallas, Polk county, where he engaged as a 
 farmer and merchant until his death, at the age 
 of sixty-four years. He was one of the pioneer 
 ministers in the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church. His wife, formerly Jane Saddler, of 
 Tennessee, also' died in that state. Four children 
 blessed this union, of whom Mrs. Gilliam is the 
 only one surviving. Mr. Lewis married a second 
 time, by his second wife having four children, all 
 of whom are living in Oregon. Mrs. Gilliam also 
 crossed the plains in 1852, and in Oregon met 
 again her childhood's friend, with whom she had 
 attended school in Platte county, Mo. Born to 
 Mr. Gilliam and his wife are the following chil- 
 dren : Samuel Miles, a farmer near Visalia ; 
 Alexander Sweeney, also a farmer near Visalia ; 
 Ewell Ashby, of Visalia ; Emina J., the wife of 
 Arthur Crowley, of Visalia ; Adelia J., the wife 
 of Charles Morgan, of Los Angeles; and Alice, 
 with her brother Samuel M., located near Visalia. 
 Mr. Gilliam was made a Mason in Dallas, Ore., 
 in 1 85 1, and is a charter member of Portersville 
 Lodge 303, F. & A. M., of which he has served 
 as chaplain since its organization. Politically he 
 is a stanch adherent of the principles advocated 
 in the platform of the Democratic party, and 
 though offered public ofifice he has uniformly re- 
 fused. As long as he was active in the ministry 
 of the church Mr. Gilliam served either as mod- 
 erator or clerk of the Presbyterv. 
 
 ARTHUR WILLIAM MATHEWSON. The 
 Mathewson family, which had a representative in 
 California in the person of Arthur William Math- 
 ewson, a pioneer of 1856, is of English ancestry, 
 the first emigrant from his native shores settling 
 in Rhode Island, There the family flourished 
 
 for many generations, the first to remove from 
 the state being Charles Mathewson, who located 
 in Wheelock, Caledonia county, Vt. His wife 
 was in maidenhood Sarah Williams, a native of 
 Rhode Island and a direct descendant of Roger 
 Williams, and a relative of Governor Sprague, 
 of that state, where members of her family are 
 cotton manufacturers. Charles Mathewson came 
 to California about 1849 ^^'^ f^"" some time en- 
 gaged as a miner, after which he located near 
 Visalia, Tulare county, and made this commun- 
 ity his home until his death. 
 
 The birth of Arthur William Mathewson oc- 
 curred in Wheelock, Caledonia county, Vt., No- 
 vember 14, 1834, he being the sixth in order of 
 birth in a family of ten children. Reared on his 
 father's farm he was trained to the practical duties 
 which fell to his lot. His early education in the 
 public school near his home was followed by at- 
 tendance at the academy at Lyndon, Vt. At six- 
 teen years of age he started out for himself, but 
 after working in a tannery for two years he re- 
 turned to the home farm, and three years later, 
 in 1856, came to California as a pioneer. Like 
 the majority who thronged to the west at that 
 time he began as a miner, and for two years was 
 engaged in Placer county. Locating in San Jose 
 in 1859 he bought a farm and followed general 
 agricultural pursuits for five years, or until he 
 lost his land, as it was found that it belonged to 
 a Spanish grant. Coming to Tulare county he 
 engaged in the sheep business, gradually increas- 
 ing his herds until he had over four thousand 
 head. He continued to purchase land from time 
 to time, disposing of it as he could make a profit, 
 but retained his home on the Fannersville road, 
 five miles southeast of Visalia. He spent one 
 year in Nebraska, located at Omaha, engaging in 
 buying and selling sheep. He engaged in general 
 farming until his death, which occurred August 
 17, 1896, and which removed from the commun- 
 ity a man respected for his honorable record of 
 years, and a citizen whose best efforts had ever 
 been given to promote the general welfare of the 
 community. He was especially prominent in con- 
 nection with the irrigating movement in Tulare 
 county, for seven years prior to his death being 
 president of the People's Ditch Company. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Mathewson' united him 
 with Lucinda Tinkham in 1861. She was a na- 
 tive of Ohio and the daughter of Nathaniel Tink- 
 ham, the greater part of whose life was spent 
 in Ohio and Iowa, his death occurring in the 
 latter state. Mrs. Mathewson came to California 
 with her mother, Clarissa Lampeer, whose death 
 occurred in this state. Mrs. Mathewson sur- 
 vives her husband and is the manager of the 
 home place of two hundred and sixty acres. Of 
 her children, Charles is deceased ; Pearl is the 
 wife of Robert K. Ogden, who is located near 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 645 
 
 the home place; Levi is also in the vicinity; 
 Edith is the wife of William Mosher, of Visalia ; 
 Earl and James A. are at home ; and Maud is de- 
 ceased. One child died in infancy. Mrs. Math- 
 ewson is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 Mr. Mathewson was a stanch Republican in 
 his political convictions and was an active partici- 
 pant in the affairs of his party. He served on 
 the state central committee on the People's party 
 ticket at one time, was a frequent attendant of 
 state conventions, and was candidate for super- 
 visor from the second district. Fraternally he 
 was identified with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows and Foresters of America, and also be- 
 longed to the Tulare Grange and Patrons of 
 Husbandry. He was an active and enterprising 
 citizen and took a most helpful interest in all 
 movements calculated to advance the general wel- 
 fare. 
 
 WILLIAM JACOB MARTIN. The present 
 clerk of Stanislaus county, elected to the office 
 November 4, 1902, is a man of many sterling 
 qualities which have won for him the material 
 appreciation of those with whom he has come 
 in business or social contact. A native son of 
 the state, William Jacob Martin was born near 
 Waterford, Stanislaus county, March 23, 1868. 
 His father, William Harvey Martin, a native of 
 Michigan, crossed the plains with ox-teams in 
 1850, upon his arrival in California engaging 
 first in freighting to the Mariposa mines, after' 
 which he located on Dry creek, this county, and 
 for many years conducted an inn or hotel, which 
 was well known in the early days. Later in 
 life he engaged in stock-raising and continued 
 so occupied until his death June i, 1874, on the 
 ranch, when in his sixty-third year. His wife, 
 formerly Adeline Gardenhire, a native of Ar- 
 kansas, died October 14, 1897, also aged sixty- 
 two years. 
 
 Of the seven children born to his parents, 
 five sons and two daughters, three attained ma- 
 turity, of whom William Jacob Martin was the 
 oldest son and the second child. He was reared 
 to the practical duties incident to the life of a 
 farmer, during his boyhood years acquiring a 
 common-school education in the school in the 
 vicinity of their home. He was but six years 
 old at the time of his father's death, and upon 
 attaining manhood he engaged with his brother 
 in farming pursuits upon the old homestead. 
 This work remained his principal employment 
 until his election to the office of county clerk, 
 the duties of which office he is discharging to 
 the satisfaction of all concerned. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Martin was married to Laura 
 Jane Welch, a native of Stanislaus county, and 
 
 they are the parents of two children, William 
 Erwin and Lilah Bernice. In his political con- 
 victions Mr. Martin is a Democrat, and has al- 
 ways been interested in the promotion of the 
 principles which he indorses, having served at 
 various times on the county central committee. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Oakdale Lodge, 
 I. O. O. F., and is also identified with the 
 Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JOHN A. MARTIN, Jr. Enterprising and 
 successful, John A. Martin, Jr., is named among 
 the representative men of Fresno county, where 
 he has been located since the year 1888. His 
 ranch, comprising one hundred and ten acres, 
 forty-eight acres of which are given over to vines, 
 twelve to orchard, and the balance in pasture, 
 is located three miles north of Selma, and while 
 these aflfairs occupy considerable of his time 
 he is also interested in oil stock, being a director 
 of the Echo Oil Company, incorporated with 
 a capital of $200,000. Born in Preston county, 
 W. Va., August 22,, 1849, Mr. Martin is the 
 son of John A. Martin, Sr., a native of Bavaria, 
 Germany. 
 
 The elder Mr. Martin was brought to the 
 United States in the care of an uncle when only 
 two years old, and was reared to manhood in 
 the states of Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Vir- 
 ginia, in the last named making his home until 
 1854. In that year he became a pioneer of the 
 state of Missouri, locating in Audrain county, 
 where he farmed and worked at his trade of 
 carpenter until his death. He married Margaret 
 E. Wootring, who was a native of Preston coun- 
 ty, W. Va. Of the four sons and three daugh- 
 ters born to his parents John A. Martin, Jr., was 
 the fourth in order of birth, and was but five 
 years old when he removed with his parents to 
 Missouri. In the' primitive schools of that state 
 he received a limited education, after the com- 
 pletion of which he followed his early trainiiig 
 and became a farmer, remaining so employed in 
 Missouri until the spring of 1882. Coming then 
 to California, he spent a year in the west, when 
 he returned and again took up life in Missouri. 
 In 1888 he located permanently in this state, pur- 
 chasing in that year the first forty acres of his 
 present ranch. Success has accompanied his 
 efforts, and he is now the owner of the one hun- 
 dred and ten acres before mentioned in the 
 home ranch, as well as one hundred and sixty 
 acres of pine timber located on Pine Ridge. In 
 1894 he built a pleasant and comfortable home. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. Martin was united in mar- 
 riage with Margaret Emma Leach, a native of 
 Ohio, and to them were born the followmg chil- 
 dren • Lena F., wife of S. L. Heisinger, located 
 near Selma; Nellie Lee, wife of M- G, Gallagher, 
 
646 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of Woodsfield, Ohio; Luther C, a student in 
 the schools of Berkeley ; John A. and Mary 
 Myrtle, attending the high school. Mr. Martin 
 is a Good Templar and a member of the Cum- 
 berland Presbyterian Church, in which he offi- 
 ciates as an elder. Politically he adheres to the 
 principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Democratic party, and has always been active 
 in his support of its measures. In the educa- 
 tional interests of the community he served at 
 one time as school director. 
 
 LEWIS HENRY. Occupying a substantial 
 position among the active and successful agri- 
 culturists of Tulare county is Lewis Henry, 
 whose highly-improved and well-kept ranch lies 
 three miles west of Visalia. Pleasant, liberal 
 and progressive, he is an important member of 
 the community in which he resides, and is con- 
 tributing his full share toward the maintenance 
 of good order, high principles and all of those 
 things that insure the welfare and prosperity of 
 town and country. A native of Killycurragh, 
 County Tyrone, Ireland, he was born March 19, 
 i860, in Wayne county, a son of John Henry. 
 His father, a farmer by occupation, came from 
 New York to California in 1886, and now re- 
 sides here, making his home with a daughter. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Margaret 
 Ferguson, died in this state. Of the children 
 born of their union, eight grew to years of ma- 
 turity, and six are now living, Lewis being the 
 fourth child. 
 
 Remaining beneath the parental roof until 
 twenty-one years of age, Lewis Henry acquired 
 his early education in the district school, and 
 while assisting his father became familiar with 
 the various branches of agriculture as carried 
 on in the east. Choosing the independent occu- 
 pation to which he was reared, he was there 
 engaged in farming on his own account for a 
 number of years. Coming to the Pacific coast 
 in 1889, Mr. Henry located in Visalia, and was 
 here employed as a farmer and orchardist for 
 some time. In 1903 he bought his present home 
 ranch, which is pleasantly situated about three 
 miles west of Visalia. It contains eighty acres 
 of land, all under the ditch, being irrigated by 
 the Modoc Ditch Company's ditch, in which 
 Mr. Henry is financially interested, being a part 
 owner. He devotes about one-half of his land 
 to alfalfa, raising grain on the remainder, and 
 in his operations is meeting with well-merited 
 success. He has made improvements of an ex- 
 cellent character, in 1904 having erected a fine 
 residence, which greatly enhances the attract- 
 iveness and the value of the estate. 
 
 January 14, 1885, in Savannah, Wayne 
 county, N. Y., Mr. Henry married Miss Addie 
 
 Agnes Snyder, who was born in Conquest, Ca- 
 yuga county, N. Y., which was also the birth- 
 place of her father, Samuel Snyder. Her 
 grandfather, William Snyder, was a lifelong 
 farmer of Cayuga county. She comes of old 
 Holland-Dutch stock, her paternal great-grand- 
 father, a pioneer of Cayuga county, N. Y., hav- 
 ing cleared from the wilderness a farm which 
 is still in the family, being now owned and occu- 
 pied by one of his descendants of the fourth 
 generation. In 1885 Samuel Snyder removed 
 from the ancestral home to Austinburg, Ohio, 
 and in'May, 1901, came with his family to Cali- 
 fornia, and now owns and manages a farm near 
 A^isalia. He married Martha Banning, who was 
 born in Wayne county, N. Y., a daughter of 
 William Benning, who was of English birth and 
 breeding, and they became the parents of three 
 children, of whom Mrs. Henry is the second 
 child. Mr. and Mrs. Henry have five children, 
 namely : Bertha Marion, Myrtie May, Walter 
 Lewis, Howard Leon and Elmer Homer. In 
 his political views Mr. Henry affiliates with the 
 Democratic party. A piece of good fortune fell 
 to Mrs. Henry in the shape of the first prize 
 offered by the San Francisco Weekly Exmniner, 
 she having subscribed to that paper April 6, 
 1903. The drawing took place June 3, and the 
 check was received the next day, a telegram of 
 congratulation announcing its arrival. This 
 event furnished the main topic of conversation 
 in Visalia and vicinity for many weeks after- 
 ward. Good use was made of the money, as 
 the valuable investment proves. 
 
 GEORGE BROWN. Among the active and 
 thriving farmers- of Madera county who are aid- 
 ing in every possible way its agricultural growth 
 and development is George Brown, who. with 
 his brother and partner, William A. Brown, is 
 prosperously engaged in farming and stock rais- 
 ing near Borden. Both of these brothers are 
 well known as men of sterling character and 
 ability throughout the community in which they 
 reside, and both are highly esteemed for their 
 integrity and general worth. They are natives 
 of the province of Quebec, Canada, William h. 
 having been born in June, 1854, and George in 
 August, 1858. Their father, James Brov.n, was 
 born in the north of Ireland about 1819. In 
 1832 he immigrated to America, locating in Can- 
 ada as a farmer, and is still living there, being 
 now eighty-five years of age. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Annie E. Armstrong, has 
 spent her entire life in Canada. 
 
 Leaving Canada in 1875 George Brown went 
 to New Hampshire, and in 1878 came to Cali- 
 fornia with a view of making this state his per- 
 manent home, and until 1881 lived in Stockton. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 649 
 
 The ensuing three years he worked in Amador 
 and Calaveras counties, going from the latter 
 place to Stanislaus county in the spring of 1884, 
 and remaining there three years. Dviring all of 
 these years he had worked as a wage-earner, and 
 by prudent thrift had accumulated a goodly sum 
 of money. In 1887 he came to Madera county, 
 and the following year, forming a partnership 
 with his brother, William A, Brown, was en- 
 gaged in wheat raising until 1900, when the 
 brothers bought a ranch near Borden, and have 
 since been profitably engaged in farming pur- 
 suits. The ranch contains three hundred and 
 twenty acres of good land, which these brothers 
 have devoted to the raising of alfalfa, cattle and 
 hogs, and dairying, keeping forty cows of a fine 
 grade. Energetic and willing to labor, they also 
 rent sixteen hundred acres, which they sow to 
 wheat, raising excellent crops of- this staple 
 grain. The Brown brothers are typical repre- 
 sentatives of the self-made men of Madera coun- 
 ty, and by their own efforts have climbed the 
 ladder of success, acquiring prominence and 
 wealth. Both are Republicans in politics, and 
 both are members of the Masonic fraternity and 
 past masters of the lodge to which they belong. 
 George Brown, the particular subject of this 
 sketch, married Maud H. Cunningham, a native 
 of California, and they have three children : 
 Marie, Gertrude and William. 
 
 JOHN SANDERSON SWAN. When the 
 family represented by-the sheriff of Merced coun- 
 ty crossed the ocean from Wales to America 
 they became established in New England, and 
 several successive generations lived and labored 
 in Oxford county. Me. There were born Capt. 
 Thomas Swan and his father, Dudley, the latter 
 of whom was killed by a falling tree when he was 
 clearing a tract of timber land. The former, in 
 addition to following the occupation of a farmer, 
 engaged at the stone-mason's trade and made a 
 specialty of contracting for bridge work. The 
 title by which he was familiarly known came to 
 him as the result of his service at the head of a 
 company of state militia. Maine continued to be 
 his home throughout all of his life, and he died 
 there about 1896. In that state his wife, Eliza 
 Sanderson, also spent her entire life ; she was a 
 daughter of John Sanderson, who was born in 
 Maine, of Scotch descent, and engaged in farm- 
 ing and lumbering. The children of Capt. Thom- 
 as Swan are as follows: Mrs. Mary Caswell, 
 of Maine ; Charles, a practicing physician in Des 
 Moines, Iowa ; Thomas B., an attorney at Atlan- 
 tic, Iowa, and John Sanderson, the only member 
 of the family on the Pacific coast. The last- 
 named was born at Waterford, Oxford county. 
 Me., September 30, 1849, ^^d passed the years 
 
 of childhood in the town which was the home 
 of Artemus Ward. After completing the studies 
 of common schools he entered North Bridgton 
 Academy in Cumberland county, where he con- 
 tinued for a time as a student. 
 
 Starting out to earn his livelihood at eighteen 
 years of age Mr. Swan traveled for a year in 
 Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois and Minnesota, and on 
 his return to the east engaged in the sale of 
 fruit trees in Maine, Nova Scotia and New 
 Brunswick. Two years were spent in that occu- 
 pation and he then became foreman for J. B. 
 Dacy & Co., railroad contractors, with whom he 
 continued for seven years. For the greater part 
 of that period his work kept him in Massachu- 
 setts and Connecticut. Next he became road 
 master for the town of Concord, Mass. He 
 dates his residence in California and in Merced 
 county from the year 1882, when he came to the 
 coast region and took up farm pursuits. During 
 the years that have since elapsed he has made a 
 specialty of raising wheat and rye. At first he 
 had twenty-three hundred acres in wheat. Year 
 by year this amount increased until he was culti- 
 vating fifty-five hundred acres at the time of his 
 election to the sheriff's office. In the care of the 
 land the most modern machinery was utilized. 
 To prepare the land he had six ten-inch or 
 eight-inch plows, while the work of harvesting 
 was done with a machine cutting a swath of 
 thirty-two feet, the first of its size to be brought 
 to the county. The ranch is situated four and 
 one-half miles from Atwater, midway between 
 the Southern Pacific and Santa Fe railroads, 
 with a shipping point at each side, thus facilita- 
 ting the prompt transportation of the crops. 
 Upon being elected sheriff he disposed of his 
 harvesting outfit. 
 
 The Democratic party, of which he has been 
 a stanch supporter, elected Mr. Swan to the 
 office of sheriff in 1902, and it is worthy of note 
 that he received a majority of two hundred and 
 ten votes over C. H. Warfield, who had held the 
 office for fourteen years. He entered upon his 
 duties in January, 1903, for a term of four years, 
 arid has since made his home in Merced, devot- 
 ing his entire time to the proper management 
 of his office. The jail under his charge is one 
 of the most substantial and modern structures 
 of its kind in the valley. In its building due re- 
 gard was paid to sanitary conditions as well as 
 to solidity of construction. The records of the 
 office are kept neatly and systematically in mod- 
 ern books, adapted to their various purposes, and 
 the entire work shows the oversight of a man 
 of careful business methods. Being a man of 
 remarkable memory, the sheriff finds few occa- 
 sions personally to refer to the records, but keeps 
 them properly filed for the convenience of his co- 
 workers and also for his successors in office. He 
 
650 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is a member of the California Association of 
 Sheriffs and at one time took an active part in 
 the work of the Democratic county central com- 
 mittee. While in Maine he served as selectman 
 of Waterford for five years. Fraternally he is 
 connected with the independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows. His marriage was solemnized in his 
 native county November 20, 1870, and united 
 him with Miss Saran Swan, who was born in 
 Denmark, Me., being the daughter of Joseph 
 Greeley Swan, a farmer of Oxford county. 
 
 his splendid health and physical endurance give 
 promise of a career of exceptional prominence 
 and usefulness. 
 
 JAMES F. PECK. In less than a decade 
 James F. Peck has acquired a professional prac- 
 tice of financial and legal significance, embracing 
 association with many of the most important civic 
 and corporate complications in Merced and San 
 Francisco. The fact that his business has in- 
 creased in greater degree in the larger city is 
 perhaps proof of his capacity for managing large 
 affairs. In Merced Mr. Peck is appreciated as 
 a man who has added to the prestige of the town, 
 and as one to whose family the community owes 
 a pioneer debt of gratitude. His father, Charles 
 S. Peck, watched the city rise from the desert, 
 was its most prominent builder and contractor 
 for many years, and materially assisted in its 
 general development. 
 
 Reared at Snelling, Merced county, James F. 
 Peck came with his parents to Merced in 1874, 
 and after finishing his education in the public 
 schools entered the University of California, 
 from which he was graduated from the law de- 
 partment in 1885, with the degree of LL.B. His 
 preliminary practice was inaugurated in Merced 
 in partnership with J. W. Breckenridge, and con- 
 tinued until 1892, two years before the death 
 of the eminent lawyer. Since then Mr. Peck 
 has conducted an independent practice, and in 
 1896 became attorney for the Crocker-Huffman 
 Land & Water Company. For years he was the 
 attorney for the Commercial Bank, and also was 
 attorney for the Mitchell and Turner estates, and 
 the Potter estate of San Francisco. His work 
 in the latter city assuming such large propor- 
 tions, he established an office there in the Mills 
 Building in 1902. 
 
 In San Francisco, in 1883, ^^- Peck married 
 Emma Spring, a daughter of one of the pioneer 
 families of Nevada county, Cal. Three children 
 have been born of this union, Charles Melnotte, 
 Jesse Lydell and James Forester. Mr. Peck is 
 independent in politics. He is a member of the 
 State Bar Association, a member of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Knights 
 of Pythias. His wife is a member of the Epis- 
 copal Church. Mr. Peck has a profound under- 
 standing of the theory and practice of law, and 
 
 JAMES MONROE ROSE. To James M. 
 Rose belongs the distinction of having been one 
 of the early settlers in Fresno county, Cal., for 
 in 1878, when the county was new and unde- 
 veloped, he took up a half-section of government 
 land about five miles southeast of the present 
 site of Sanger, and upon this land he followed 
 farming for sixteen consecutive years. Selling 
 out he resided in Fresno for a few years, but 
 for some time past he has been living retired at 
 the home of his granddaughter, Mrs. W. A. 
 Poole, who resides on a fruit ranch one and one- 
 half miles east of Fowler. An Ohioan by birth, 
 Mr. Rose was born July i, 1823, and is a son 
 of John and Sarah (Baker) Rose, the fofmer 
 born in Pennsylvania and the latter in Virginia. 
 
 The history of his ancestors chronicles the 
 fact that both the Rose and Baker families were 
 active participants in America's war for free- 
 dom. The paternal grandfather of James M. 
 Rose was of German nationality, and upon com- 
 ing to America took up his residence in Penn- 
 sylvania. The father of James M. Rose went 
 to Illinois in 1825, locating in Green county, and 
 for a number of years he followed farming and 
 contracting in that section. He died in that 
 state at the age of sixty-five years. James M. 
 Rose remained at home assisting his parents un- 
 til his marriage in 1848, at which time he was 
 united with Eliza Jane Lakin, who was born in 
 Illinois in May, 1827. After many years of 
 happy wedded life she died in March, 1898, 
 leaving eight children. 
 
 In 1852 Mr. Rose removed with his family to 
 Texas, where he resided for about nine years, 
 during which time he was engaged in farm pur- 
 suits, and in addition, devoted some attention 
 to contracting and building. Crossing the plains 
 to California in 1861 he spent the following win- 
 ter in San Bernardino county, and the next 
 spring (1862), he went to Sonoma county and 
 located on a farm. He followed farmmg unin- 
 terruptedly for fourteen years and in the fall 
 of 1876 was induced to go to Tulare county. 
 It was a couple of years later that Mr. Rose took 
 up land in Fresno county, since which time he 
 has been identified with its progress and de- 
 velopment. His eldest son, John S., born 1851, 
 resides in the vicinity of Sanger, owning a forty- 
 acre tract adjoining that of James A. Another 
 son. Matthew S., who was for a time supervisor 
 of Fresno county, died January 28, 1903. The 
 third son, Lewis A., is a resident of Modesto. 
 A daughter, Martha, became the wife of Samuel 
 Johnson, and resides in San Mateo county. For 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 G51 
 
 many years Mr. Rose has been an active mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Church. In national affairs 
 he votes the Republican ticket. 
 
 JAMES A. ROSE was born February 14, 
 1864, iij Sonoma county, Cal., and in the same 
 vicinity his early boyhood days were spent. He 
 accompanied his father to Tulare county and 
 later to Fresno county and to Fresno. In the 
 latter place he was profitably engaged as a paper 
 hanger, and for a period of five years he was 
 horticultural commissioner of Fresno county, a 
 position which placed him for the time promi- 
 nently before the public. He was united in mar- 
 riage with Maggie Blunt and their home is 
 brightened by the presence of four children, 
 Albert, Elsie, Letis, and an infant not named. 
 Purchasing, in 1901, the forty-acre fruit farm 
 upon which he resides, he now devotes his time 
 and attention to the cultivation of grapes and 
 other fruits. He is a stanch Republican in his 
 political convictions, and fraternally affiliates 
 with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 JOHN STEPHEN HAMMOND. An ex- 
 tensive and well-to-do agriculturist of San Joa- 
 quin county John Stephen Hammond is pros- 
 perously engaged in his free and independent oc- 
 cupation on one of the pleasantest and most 
 desirable homesteads to be found in this part 
 of the valley. It has a fine location on the Stan- 
 islaus river, and contains three hundred and 
 eighty-eight acres of land, one hundred acres 
 being on the bottom, and is especially rich and 
 fertile. With its comfortable and convenient set 
 of buildings, and their neat and tasteful sur- 
 roundings, his estate invariably attracts the at- 
 tention of the passer-by, eliciting words of praise 
 and commendation. A son of William C. Ham- 
 mond, he was born October 27, 1850, in Pulaski 
 county, Ky., which was also the birthplace of 
 his father. His grandfather Hammond, an early 
 settler of Kentucky, served in the war of 1812. 
 
 Bred and educated in Kentucky, William C. 
 Hammond became a farmer from choice. Re- 
 moving with his family to Missouri in 1863, he 
 located near Savannah, where he lived two 
 years. Intending then to go to Central Amer- 
 ica, he sold his property there, but, changing his 
 plans, came by the Nicaragua route to California, 
 settling in Napa county, where he was engaged 
 in farming four years. Coming then to Stanis- 
 laus county, he took up government land on 
 the west side, near Grayson, and there improved 
 a ranch, on which he resided until his death, in 
 1894. He married Nancy Hale, who was born 
 on a farm in Kentucky, the daughter of Stephen 
 Hale, and she still occupies the old homestead 
 
 near Grayson. Of the five boys and five girls 
 born of their union, four boys and four girls 
 survive, all of whom, with the exception of 
 John Stephen, the subject of this sketch, are res- 
 idents of Stanislaus county. 
 
 Obtaining the rudiments of his education in 
 the district schools of Kentucky, John Stephen 
 Hammond subsequently attended school in Mis- 
 souri for two years, completing his studies in 
 the public schools of Napa county, Cal. He was 
 subsequently employed at various kinds of work, 
 among other things working in a butcher shop in 
 Napa, and in the quicksilver mines at Oakville. 
 Embarking in farming on his own account, Mr. 
 Hammond assumed charge of a ranch of one 
 thousand acres on the west side of Stanislaus 
 county, and in his agricultural operations, met 
 with satisfactory results, accumulating consid- 
 erable money. Locating in San Joaquin county 
 in 1897, he purchased the old Copeland ranch 
 of three hundred and eighty-eight acres, lying 
 on the Stanislaus river, on the Berneyville roa-d, 
 and is here carrying on general farming and 
 dairying with success, raising hay, alfalfa and 
 grain, and keeping a great deal of stock, his 
 special breed being Durhams. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Hammond married Mary 
 Hettie Kingsley, who was born in Placer coun- 
 ty, the daughter of a pioneer settler, and the 
 niece of Joseph Hanchett, a well-known resident 
 of San Francisco. Mr. and Mrs. Hammond 
 are the parents of five children, namely : Frank, 
 Clarence, Jesse, Elmer and Amy. In his politi- 
 cal views Mr. Hammond sustains the princi- 
 ples of the Democratic party, but he is not at 
 all radical in his opinions or judgments. 
 
 WILLIAM W. HOUSTON. A comparative- 
 ly recent addition to professional circles of Tu- 
 lare county is William W. Houston, who was 
 admitted to the bar in 1898, and since 1900 has 
 conducted a growing practice in the city of Vis- 
 alia. Mr. Houston is of southern ancestry, and 
 was born in Randolph county. Ark., May 26, 
 1854. His father, James, was born near Shelby- 
 ville, Tenn., and as a young man settled near 
 Pocahontas, Randolph county. Ark., where he 
 participated in the early Indian and other 
 troubles incident to border life. During the 
 Sabine disturbances of 1837 he enlisted in the 
 United States army, becoming a lieutenant of 
 the mounted gun militia of Arkansas. Before 
 his discharge in the latter part of 1837 he had 
 been brevetted major, emerging from the trouble- 
 some times with an enviable reputation for brav- 
 ery and efficient service. He married Frances 
 Black, a native of Virginia and an early arrival 
 in Arkansas, and in 1859 brought his family 
 across the plains with ox teams, spending his 
 
652 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 first winter in the west in the mining community 
 of Hangtown, now Placerville. In the spring 
 of i860 he located in VisaHa, purchased land near 
 the town and lived there until his death in 1902, 
 at the age of ninety-three years. He was per- 
 mitted to enjoy the companionship of his devoted 
 wife until the end of his life journey, she surviv- 
 ing him two years, her death occurring in April, 
 1904, at the age of eighty-four. Mr. Houston 
 remained loyal to the spirit of the south, never 
 regretted or saw aught reprehensible in his up- 
 holding of slavery, and stood out strongly for 
 the Democracy as the ideal condition of govern- 
 ment. 
 
 William W. Houston is the second oldest son 
 and seventh oldest child in a family of eleven 
 children, eight of whom are living. His early 
 educational opportunities were limited, and his 
 youth knew more of hard work on the farm 
 than of diversion or chance for personal im- 
 provement. Through his own ability to labor 
 and save he was enabled to begin the study of 
 law with E. O. Larkins of Visalia, and in 1879 
 he journeyed to Arizona and New Mexico, where 
 he engaged in the stock business until 188 1. He 
 then located in Visalia and continued the study 
 of law, and after being admitted to the bar in 
 1898 went to Sonora, Mexico, and engaged in 
 mining for a couple of years. Mr. Houston is 
 a bachelor and lives with his sister Thalia in 
 the old Houston home on Houston avenue, at 
 the edge of the town. Like his father he also 
 is an active Democrat, and has attended many 
 state and county conventions, being at present 
 a member of the county central committee. Fra- 
 ternally he is identified with the Blue Lodge No. 
 128, F. & A. M., and Perfection Lodge of Scot- 
 tish Rites. 
 
 ERNEST D. KAHL. Occupying a position 
 of prominence among the ranchers of Merced 
 county, Ernest D. Kahl is engaged in the culti- 
 vation of his three hundred and twenty acres, 
 which ranch is located one mile northwest of 
 Plainsberg, and devoted to grain and stock rais- 
 • ing. In addition to these interests he is also 
 farming the old Kahl ranch in conjunction with 
 his brother, and is meeting with success in the 
 agricultural line. A native of California, he 
 was born in Monterey county, March 27, i860, 
 a son of Adam Kahl, a pioneer of the state, and 
 an early settler of Merced county. For more 
 complete details concerning the life of the elder 
 man refer to his biographical sketch which ap- 
 pears on another page of this work. Ernest D. 
 Kahl was brought to this county in December, 
 i860, and has never known any other home.' 
 Reared to young manhood upon the paternal 
 farm, he alternated an attendance of the com- 
 
 mon schools with the practical duties to which 
 he was early trained, and in maturity engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits. He married Margaret 
 Baxter, who was born in Nova Scotia, a daugh- 
 ter of J. C. Baxter, a prominent rancher of Mer- 
 ced county, where she was reared. Of this 
 union were born two children, namely: Leslie 
 A., and James A. In his political convictions 
 Mr. Kahl is a Prohibitionist, and fraternally he 
 is associated with Yosemite Parlor, N. S. G.. W., 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belonging 
 to the Encampment, and the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. 
 
 JOHN GILBERT EDWARDS. The people 
 of Madera are justly proud of the character and 
 enterprise of their business men and claim that 
 no city of the same size in the entire state can 
 boast of a larger number of progressive, capable 
 and resourceful men of affairs. Whether as mer- 
 chants, mechanics or tradesmen, whether as pro- 
 fessional men or men of commerce, they have 
 been, with few exceptions, men of the highest 
 principles of honor and unwavering integrity of 
 character. As an example of this class of citi- 
 zens mention should be made of John Gilbert Ed- 
 wards, who, with his brothers, David Franklin 
 and James H. Edwards, has long been a factor in 
 the iDusiness progress of the city. Mention of 
 his ancestry and the record of his parents will 
 be found elsewhere in this volume, in the sketch 
 of his brother, David F., and from it the reader 
 will see that the family is numbered among the 
 pioneer settlers of California, having come west 
 during the period of the great gold excitement. 
 From that time to this the various members have 
 contributed to the progress of the communities 
 where they have resided. 
 
 While the family were Hving in Tuolumne 
 county, this state, John Gilbert Edwards was 
 born August 31, 1852. Primarily educated in 
 grammar schools, he has added to the informa- 
 tion thus acquired by subsequent habits of read- 
 ing and observation, sO' that he is now a well- 
 informed man. Upon starting out to earn his 
 own way in the world he went to Borden and 
 took up the trade of wagon-maker. After a 
 year as an apprentice, in 1875 he started a shop 
 of his own in that place, engaging in work es- 
 pecially as a repairer of wagons and carriages, 
 but also manufacturing certain parts of the ve- 
 hicles. During 1882 he operated not only this 
 shop but a blacksmith's shop as well. Since he 
 came to Madera in 1889 he has been engaged in 
 the management of his wagon and carriage shop. 
 Through his skilled workmanship he has gained 
 a large share of the trade of Madera and the sur- 
 rounding country. Among his patrons he is known 
 as a reliable workman and an honest and honor- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 655 
 
 able man. Many of them have retained his serv- 
 ices ever since he came to the city, having been 
 so well pleased with his work that they have nev- 
 er desired to look elsewhere for such labor. While 
 he has never been prominent in political affairs 
 nor has it been his wish to become an office hold- 
 er, yet he is a pronounced upholder of the Re- 
 publican party and at every election, whether lo- 
 cal or general, votes for the men and measures of 
 the party. In addition to his property in town, 
 he is the owner of a grain farm in Madera coun- 
 ty, situated near Borden, and comprising one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres. 
 
 HENRY HUNSAKER. One of the oldest of 
 the settlers in Tulare county, Henry Hunsaker 
 is held in the highest esteem for the many quali- 
 ties which have distinguished his long residence 
 in this part of the state. A native of Adams 
 county. 111., he was born seven miles from Quincy 
 November 13, 1835. His father, Isaac Hunsaker, 
 was a native of Kentucky, and the descendant 
 of an old Kentucky family whose first Ameri- 
 can ancestors came originally from Germany. 
 Isaac Hunsaker engaged in farming in Adams 
 county until 1837, in which year he removed to 
 Platte county, Mo. That location remained his 
 home until 184^, when he became a resident of 
 Fremont county, Iowa. Daniel Hunsaker, a 
 brother, was a participant in the Black Hawk 
 war and became a pioneer of California in 1848, 
 crossing the plains and locating in Contra Costa 
 county, first at Benicia, Solano count}', and after- 
 ward at Martinez. He died at Woodville, Tulare 
 county, in June, 1897. Isaac Hunsaker crossed 
 the plains with ox:-teams in 1850, locating first 
 in Taylor valley, near Martinez, Contra Costa 
 county, where he engaged in farming for about 
 eight years. In 1858 he came to Tulare county 
 and bought lands on the Tule river and El^ bayou, 
 making his home five miles north of Woodville 
 until his death in 1885, at the age of seventy- 
 eight years. In early Hfe he had been a mem- 
 ber of the Baptist Church, but was later asso- 
 ciated with the Methodist Episcopal Church. His 
 wife, formerly Sarah King, a native of Ken- 
 tucky, died in Fremont county, Iowa, leaving 
 a family of four sons and one daughter, of whom 
 three sons are now living, as follows : Henry, 
 of this review ; George, a dentist in San Luis 
 Obispo; and William, located on the Tule rtver. 
 Of his second marriage, to Mary Walker, three 
 children are living : Clara E., Elizabeth, wife of 
 James Daley, of Contra Costa county, living on 
 the old homestead, and Dr. H. W. Hunsaker, of 
 San Francisco. 
 
 Henry Hunsaker was eleven years old when 
 he was left motherless. He was reared in Mis- 
 souri and Iowa, attending the public schools of 
 
 each state in the vicinity of his home. With 
 his father he crossed the plains in 1850, driving 
 loose stock. The journey was made by way of 
 Sublett's Cut-off, and Humboldt and Carson 
 route, and the party arrived in Hangtown Sep- 
 tember I, and September 29 of the same year, ar- 
 rived in Martinez. For a time Henry remained 
 on his father's farm in Contra Costa county, at- 
 tending the public schools, and shortly afterward 
 became a student in McMinnville Baptist Col- 
 lege, in McMinnville, Ore., where he remained 
 two years. Returning to California, he began 
 -stock-raising. In 1862 he located in Tulare coun- 
 ty and engaged in stock-raising on the Tule 
 river until 1873, when the railroad was put 
 through the county and the town of Tulare was 
 established. He then entered into agricultural 
 pursuits, farming from one thousand to five thou- 
 sand acres of land on the Tule river and the 
 Terra Bella country, using in his work thirteen 
 eight-horse teams. He continued in this exten- 
 sive farming until 1902, when he sold his home- 
 stead of about ten hundred and fifty-eight acres 
 five miles north of Woodville, retaining three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres twelve miles south of Por- 
 tersville. At present his family is located in 
 Tulare and he is engaged in farming about eight 
 hundred acres. 
 
 Mr. Hunsaker has been twice married, the first 
 ceremony being performed in San Rafael and 
 uniting him with Mary F. Shuey, a native of Illi- 
 nois, and daughter of Samuel D. Shuey, who 
 came to California in 1852. Her death occurred 
 September 7, 1880. She left a family of six chil- 
 dren, namely: Carrie, the wife of Henry Roth, 
 of Visalia ; Giarles H., on the home ranch ; Harry, 
 the manager of Travelers' Insurance Company of 
 San Francisco; Kittie, the wife of W. H. Wil- 
 hams, of Los Angeles county ; Mattie Jewell, who 
 died in infancy ; and Walter S., representing the 
 Travelers' Insurance Company in Tulare. Mrs. 
 Mary F. Hunsaker and her daughter Mattie Jew- 
 ell lie buried in the Tulare Cemetery, where a 
 monument to their memory towers above their 
 graves. By his second marri.age Mr. Hunsaker 
 was united with Mrs. Frances C. (Hunsaker) 
 Hastings, a native of Marion county, Mo., and 
 the daughter of Enoch Hunsaker, of Kentucky. 
 Enoch Hunsaker crossed the plains in 1850 and 
 located first in Sacramento county, and later in 
 Contra Costa county. Subsequently he removed 
 to Tulare county and in 1864 engaged as a stock- 
 man, his death occurring in. this locality in 1878. 
 His wife, Emily Hunsaker, died in Sacramento m 
 1852. Mrs. Hunsaker was first married in Mar- 
 tinez to Lyman H. Hastings, a native of Ohio, 
 who in 1849 came across the plains to California. 
 He first conducted a meat market in Martinez, 
 in 1870 removing to Tulare county, where he 
 engaged in .stock-raising until his death in 1874. 
 
656 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hastings were the parents of six 
 children, namely : Warren W., a farmer at Ter- 
 ra Bella; Leslie L., who died February 7, 1880, 
 at nineteen years of age; Lyman F., of Modesto, 
 a civil engineer and superintendent of the Tur- 
 lock Irrigation District ; Ulysses G., in Fairbanks, 
 Alaska, engaged in mining ; Ada, the wife of R. 
 F. Roth, of Visalia; and Herbert J., represent- 
 ing the Remington Typewriter Company in San 
 Francisco. To Mr. and Mrs. Hunsaker was born 
 one child, Gyneth. 
 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Hunsaker is a 
 stanch Democrat and is now a member of the 
 county central committee, and is on the executive 
 board. He has served one term as supervisor of 
 the Fifth district. Fraternally he was made a 
 Mason in Martinez and in 1864 was demitted to 
 the Visalia Lodge, where he is still a member. 
 He is a member of the Tulare County Pioneer 
 Society, of which he served for three years as 
 commander, holding office until September, 1904. 
 when he refused longer service. He is a valued 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South, of Woodville, which he helped materially 
 to build. He serves as trustee and steward of 
 the same, and for many years acted as super- 
 intendent of the Sunday-school. 
 
 HENRY BREM. Many of the most thrifty 
 and successful agriculturists of Stanislaus coun- 
 ty were born and bred on the European conti- 
 nent, and to the little republic of Switzerland, 
 especially, is California indebted for some of her 
 most enterprising and prosperous citizens. 
 Prominent among this nvmiber is Henry Brem, 
 who has resided on his home farm, not far from 
 Oakdale, for a quarter of a century, during 
 which time he has established for himself an ex- 
 cellent reputation as a thoroughly honest and 
 worthy man. A native of Switzerland, he was 
 born, in December, 1841, in Schlieren, canton of 
 Zurich, which was also the birthplace of his fath- 
 er, Jacob Brem, Jr. and his grandfather Jacob 
 Brem, Sr. 
 
 The son of a farmer, Jacob Brem, Jr., was bred 
 to agricultural pursuits, which he followed in his 
 earlier life. He subseciuently became railroad 
 agent in his native town, and was there em- 
 ployed as a ticket seller until his death, at the 
 age of sixty-three years. He married Susanna 
 Poshart, who was born in Ambrach, canton of 
 Zurich, where her father, Conrad Poshart, spent 
 his entire life, being a prosperous farmer and 
 wine manufacturer. She died at the age of sev- 
 enty-one years. Of the five children born of their 
 union, one daughter, Caroline, died when young, 
 and four are living, Henry, the firstborn, and the 
 subject of this sketch being the only one in Amer- 
 ica. The other three are still residents of Schlier- 
 
 en, namely : John, in the employ of a railway 
 company; Hans H., a farmer and forester; and 
 Mrs. Louisa Humble. 
 
 Until twelve years old, Henry Brem lived on 
 a farm in Schlieren, and attended the grammar 
 school. Beginning life then as a wage-earner, 
 he worked as a farm laborer until 1869, when 
 he immigrated to this country, hoping in this 
 land of plenty to soon acquire riches. Locating 
 in Seneca county, Ohio, he remained there a 
 year, and then, in the spring of 1870, came west- 
 ward to the Pacific coast, and for six months 
 thereafter was employed on a dairy farm in San 
 Joaquin county. Accepting a position on the 
 ranch of J. K. Meyer in the fall of 1870, he re- 
 mained with him, near Stockton, until 1877, i" 
 the meantime acquiring a practical knowledge of 
 the modern methods of farming, and accumu- 
 lating considerable money. Removing to Stan- 
 islaus county in 1878, Mr. Brem purchased his 
 present ranch of one hundred and eighty-six 
 acres, lying five miles from Oakdale, on the riv- 
 er road, and has since been busily and profitably 
 engaged in general farming, including grain and 
 stock raising. He also devotes a part of his time 
 to the culture of fruit, having a fine orchard, and 
 raises much poultry. In his labors, Mr. Brem 
 has met with signal success, his finely-appointed 
 and well-cultivated farm^ with its substantial 
 residence and outbuildings, bearing evidence of 
 his thrift, skill, ability and excellent manage- 
 ment. 
 
 In Elkhart, Ind., Mr. Brem married Barbara 
 E. Hoenstein, a native of Indiana, and they have 
 one child, namely : William T., living at home. 
 Politically Mr. Brem is identified with the Re- 
 publican party, and religiously he is a valued 
 member of the Evangelist Reformed Church. 
 
 HARRIS W, PATTERSON. Conspicuous 
 among the energetic and enterprising agricult- 
 urists of Madera county is Harris W. Patter- 
 son, whose ability, industry and business tact 
 have won for him a position of note among the 
 prominent husbandmen of this section of the 
 state, and have made him a fine representative 
 of its industrial interests. Located about six 
 miles south of the city of Madera, he has a well- 
 improved ranch, which he is managing with 
 characteristic success, devoting it largely to gen- 
 eral farming and dairying. A son of the late 
 Hiram S. Patterson, he was born August 12, 
 1 86 1, in Tennessee, where the earlier years of 
 his life were spent. 
 
 A native of Tennessee, H. S. Patterson owned 
 a good farm in that state, and was also engaged 
 in business in Smith county, as a merchant for 
 a number of years, and identified with the lum- 
 ber interests of his native place as the owner and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 657 
 
 manager of a sawmill. In 1870 he emigrated 
 with his family to California, and in 1873 settled 
 in Fresno (now Madera) county, near Borden. 
 Taking up government land, he cleared and im- 
 proved a ranch, on which he resided until his 
 death, at the age of sixty-seven years. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was .Lydia Aminett, was 
 born and bred in Tennessee. 
 
 Coming with his parents to the Pacific coast 
 in 1870, Harris W. Patterson has spent the 
 larger part of his life in Madera county, where 
 he assisted his father in the improvement of the 
 old home ranch. He now owns a valuable farm 
 of two hundred and forty acres, ninety-five acres 
 of which he sows to alfalfa, devoting the re- 
 mainder of it largely to grain raising. He is 
 also interested to some extent in dairying, keep- 
 ing about twenty-five cows. Progressive in 
 his views, and a man of great activity and enter- 
 prise, Mr. Patterson carries on a very extensive 
 business during harvest time, as proprietor of 
 a threshing-machine, being owner of one of the 
 two steam threshing-machines in Madera coun- 
 ty. He has been employed in this business for 
 twenty-eight years, and in operating his steam 
 thresher employs twenty-one men, paying them 
 $55 per day wages, during the season. With his 
 machine, for which he paid $6,000, he threshes 
 out about sixty-five thousand bags, or one hun- 
 dred and thirty-five thousand bushels, of grain 
 a season. 
 
 Mr. Patterson married Minnie Lillian Lester, 
 who was born in lowa, and they are the parents 
 of four children, namely: Ward A., Frederick 
 L., James B. and Merritt P. 
 
 ADAM KAHL. The late Adam Kahl will be 
 gratefully remembered by many of the old resi- 
 dents of Merced county as one of the foremost 
 men of his day in that section of the country, 
 having located in i860 on the place known as 
 the Kahl ranch, which is in the vicinity of 
 Plainsberg, along Mariposa creek. From the 
 date of purchasing this land Mr. Kahl was 
 active in all organizations for the benefit of the 
 farmers, and took a fitting interest in every 
 movement calculated to benefit his fellow-citi- 
 zens and to advance the interests of his county 
 and state. His ranch contained two thousand 
 acres, upon which he spent both time and money 
 in bringing it to a high state of cultivation and 
 building' thereon many substantial buildings. 
 Among the improvements were a splendid brick 
 residence, which alone represented a big outlay 
 of capital, large barns and granaries, good fences, 
 wells, windmills, etc. In addition, his farm was 
 well stocked with none but the best breed of 
 cattle, liorses, hogs and poultry. During his 
 many years of labor he thoroughly tested the 
 
 capabilities of the soil, and his success, confi- 
 dence and expenditures, not only inspired the 
 doubting ones with confidence, but induced many 
 others to settle in Merced county. 
 
 In tracing the ancestry of Mr. Kahl, we find 
 him to be a son of Jacob and Catherine Kahl. 
 He was born September 6, 1825, in Franklin 
 county. Pa., and in that vicinity spent his boy- 
 hood days on his father's farm. He afterward 
 went to Richland county, Ohio, and later to 
 Carroll county, Ind., and while in the latter 
 place conceived the idea of coming to California. 
 He did not hesitate long, but making hasty 
 preparations, left home and proceeded to the 
 vicinity of Delphi, in that county, from which 
 point he followed the course of the Wabash 
 river and soon afterward was enabled to take 
 passage down the Mississippi river to New Or- 
 leans. At the latter place he embarked on a 
 sailing vessel, landing at Chagres on the Isthmus 
 of Panama. Crossing the latter, the journey to 
 San Francisco was completed on the barque 
 Alyoma, and he arrived in that city June 20, 
 1850, having made the journey from Panama in 
 eighty-one days. 
 
 Upon his arrival in California, he engaged in 
 mining with fair success for four years, in Butte 
 Flat and in the Mokelumne Hill and River dis- 
 tricts. He returned home for a visit in 1855 
 and spent the winter with his father in the 
 east. He subsequently went to Iowa, and a sea- 
 son or two later found him located in . Pettis 
 county. Mo. There on the fourth day of July, 
 1858, he wedded Lydia A. Spangenberg, a na- 
 tive of Luzerne county. Pa., and a year later 
 proceeded to California. Thjs time the trip 
 was made across the continent behind ox teams 
 by the northern route through Utah and Carson 
 City, over the summit of the mountains to Cala- 
 veras county as far as Bigtrees. Mr. Kahl ar- 
 rived in SnelHng, Merced county, October, 1859, 
 but afterward moved to Pajaro valley in Mon- 
 terey county, where he lived until December, 
 i860, purchasing at that time the ranch near 
 Plainsberg, now owned by his widow and sons. 
 The former resides on the old homestead, be- 
 ing seventy-six years old, and the latter are 
 among the most prosperous and infiuential 
 ranchers in Merced county. The Kahl ranch of 
 two thousand acres was purchased by Mr. Kahl 
 for from $1.25 to $35 per acre. At the time of 
 his death, January 11, 1889, Merced county lost 
 one of her most progressive and active citizens. 
 His fine estate was divided between his widow 
 and children, each child receiving three hundred 
 and twenty acres ; the ranch as owned by the mem- 
 bers of the family now contains sixteen hundred 
 and eighty acres. His children, five in number, 
 are as follows: Ernest D. ; AHce M., wife of 
 John Dickinson, of Mariposa county ; George A. ; 
 
658 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Charles W., a successful physician in San Fran- 
 cisco, and Arthur S., of San Luis Obispo county. 
 To such men as Mr. Kahl Merced county owes 
 much of her prosperity. 
 
 HON. WILLIAM M. CONLEY. Ever 
 since the organization of Madera county, with 
 which he was intimately identified. Judge Con- 
 ley has been a Democratic leader in the county 
 and on€ of the most influential citizens of the 
 city of Madera. His entire life has been passed 
 in central California. Born in Mariposa county 
 July 17, 1866, he is a son of Matthew and Mar- 
 garet (Ryan) Conley, natives respectively of 
 Ireland and Maine. When a very small child 
 Matthew Conley was left an orphan and at the 
 age of seven crossed the ocean to New York 
 with older members of the family. Few advan- 
 tages came to his boyhood years, for he was 
 obliged to earn his livelihood at an age when 
 most boys are in school ; yet, by thoughtful read- 
 ing and self-culture, he gained a breadth of 
 knowledge not always possessed by college grad- 
 uates. From New York he went to Chicago and 
 later purchased from Colonel Beaubien the old 
 Fort Dearborn hotel which he sold in 1862. Dur- 
 ing that year he came to California and took up 
 mining in Mariposa county, but in 1870 removed 
 to Snelling, Merced county, where he continued 
 to reside until his death in 1871. His wife, who 
 now makes her home with judge Conley, is a 
 daughter of John Ryan, who moved from Maine 
 to Chicago and in 1849 crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia with ox-teams, settling in Coulterville, 
 Mariposa county, where he engaged in mining 
 from the time of his arrival until his death in 
 1890. In the family of Matthew Conley there 
 were only three children, William M., C. C. and 
 J. T. The latter since 1894 has served as the 
 official reporter of the superior court of Madera 
 and Mariposa counties. 
 
 After having completed the course of study 
 in the Merced public schools and graduated 
 from the Stockton Business College, William M. 
 Conley taught school for four years in Merced 
 and Butte counties. In 1889 he became chief 
 deputy assessor of Merced county and continued 
 in that capacity until the expiration of the term 
 of the incumbent, M. D. Wood, whereupon, in 
 October, 1890, he took up the study of law. On 
 successfuly passing the required examination, 
 January 13, 1891, he was admitted to the su- 
 preme court. His initial experience as a prac- 
 titioner was gained at Bakersfield, but ill health 
 led him to return to Merced. In 1892, as the 
 Democratic nominee for district attorney, he was 
 defeated by F, G. Ostrander by ninety majority. 
 December 4, 1892, he came to Madera, his object 
 in so doing being to assist the county in the coun- 
 
 ty division struggle then being fiercely waged. 
 To promote the cause, he spent a considerable 
 part of the winter of 1892-93 in the state leg- 
 islature, endeavoring to interest assemblymen. 
 In a large measure it was due to his efforts that 
 victory was won. At the first county election. 
 May 16, 1893, he was candidate for superior 
 judge, and received fifty-one plurality over the 
 three independent candidates. May 20, 1893, he 
 was elevated to the bench and took the oath of 
 office, being the youngest superior judge that 
 had up to that time been elected in the state. At 
 the general election of 1894, as the Democratic 
 nominee, he was elected for a term of six years, 
 receiving a plurality of four hundred over the 
 Repubhcan and Popu'list candidates. 
 
 During the session of the Democratic state 
 convention at Sacramento in 1898 Judge Conley 
 was nominated for associate justice of the su- 
 preme court, over Judge James V. Coflfey, Judge 
 J. W. Hughes, Joe Hamilton (ex-attorney-gen- 
 eral), L. D. McKisseck, ex-Chief Justice of Ten- 
 nessee, and five others. The contest was one 
 of the most exciting in the history of the Demo- 
 cratic party of California. By the aid of the 
 Santa Clara delegation he was nominated on the 
 fourth ballot. In addition, he was the nominee 
 of the People's party and the silver wing of the 
 Reputlican party. However, in the general elec- 
 tion the entire Democratic ticket suffered defeat. 
 It was a source of gratification to his ardent sup- 
 porters that he ran sixteen thousand votes ahead 
 of his ticket, being defeated by some three thou- 
 sand votes, while the candidate for governor lost 
 by nearly twenty thousand. At the biennial ses- 
 sion of the state legislature in 1899 he received 
 the unanimous vote of the Democratic senators 
 and assemblymen for the United States senate. 
 In 1900 the Democratic county convention placed 
 him in nomination for superior judge over two 
 competitors. His election was bitterly opposed 
 and the campaign was one that called for ardu- 
 ous labor. When election day came the county 
 went Republican for the first time in its history. 
 President McKinley receiving a majority of 
 twenty-seven. Notwithstanding this, he was 
 elected judge by a majority of one hundred and 
 forty-eight, a fact which furnishes added proof 
 of his popularity. In January, 1901, he entered 
 upon the administration of his duties for a term 
 of six years. 
 
 One of the most remarkable facts in connec- 
 tion with Judge Conley 's experience on the 
 bench is summed up in the statement that he 
 has tried over thirteen hundred cases in the va- 
 rious counties of the state and in the appealed 
 cases only four have been reversed, two of these 
 four having been tried by jurors. Such a record 
 is unsurpassed in the state. While he is a stanch 
 Democrat, politics does not enter into his service 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 659 
 
 upon the bench, nor are personal reasons ever al- 
 lowed to influence his decisions. Cahnness and 
 impartiality characterize his mental deliberations. 
 With a comprehensive sweep of mind, he reviews 
 the disputed points in a case, weighs up the evi- 
 dence logically and reaches a decision promptly. 
 Indeed, his attributes of mind are such as quali- 
 fy him admirably for judicial labors. 
 
 The marriage of Judge Conley was solemnized 
 in Merced and united him with Emma Bedesen, 
 who was born in Gallatin, Mo., and in 1875 ac- 
 companied her father, Philip Bedesen, to Cali- 
 fornia, settling in Merced. Judge Conley has 
 two sons, Philip and Matthew. In fraternal con- 
 nections he is associated with Fresno Lodge, B. 
 P. O. E. ; Madera Lodge No. 130, K. of P., in 
 which he is past chancellor ; Yosemite Parlor No. 
 24, N. S. G. W., of which he is past president; 
 Madera Parlor No. 134, N. S. G. W., in which 
 he has likewise held the highest office, being fur- 
 ther honored by election as grand president of 
 the order, Native Sons of the Golden West, in 
 1898-99. Few men in California are as well 
 known throughout the state as he and none has 
 accomplished more in promoting the welfare of 
 his city and county through the distinguished 
 character of his public services. 
 
 WILLIAM W. COLLINS. The sheriff of 
 Tulare county is a member of an eastern family 
 and a son of Albert O. Collins, a veteran of the 
 Civil war, who for more than thirty years has 
 been identified with the citizenship of California. 
 Born in Ohio, he was a young man when the 
 war began between north and south, and, fired 
 with enthusiasm in behalf of the Union, h'e 
 ofi'ered his services to his country. During 
 April of 1862 he became a soldier in the Eighty- 
 fifth Illinois Infantry, and for three years re- 
 mained in the service, holding rank as captain 
 of Company C. On the expiration of the war 
 he returned to Coshocton, Ohio, where he had 
 previously established his family and where for 
 a time he taught school. In the spring of 1866 
 he removed to Missouri and settled on a farm 
 in Putnam county, where also he engaged in 
 teaching school. Coming to California in May 
 of 1873, he first settled at Bakersfield, Kern 
 county, where he followed the butcher's trade 
 and later conducted a large ranch. From there 
 in 1887 he went to Inyo county, where he still 
 follows the stock business, occupying a large 
 ranch near Bishop. In young manhood he mar- 
 ried Sarah J. Cochoran, a native of Ohio. They 
 are the parents of three sons and two daughters, 
 namely, Charles A., sheriflf of Inyo county, to 
 which office he was elected on the Democratic 
 ticket; William W., who was elected sheriff of 
 Tulare county on the Republican ticket ; John L., 
 
 who has stock interests with his father on the 
 ranch in Inyo county; Minnie, wife of W. L. 
 Blythe, of Chico, Butte county; and Leora, who 
 married Bertrand Rhine and lives at Bishop, 
 this state. 
 
 On the home farm near Coshocton, Ohio, Wil- 
 liam W. Collins was born June 23, 1865. On 
 completing the studies of the common schools 
 he became a pupil of the Visalia normal school, 
 where he remained during the terms of 1882-83, 
 and then entered the California state normal 
 school at Los Angeles. His education complet- 
 ed, he turned his attention to the active duties 
 of life. For a time he assisted his father in the 
 cattle business. Leaving home in 1889 he came 
 to Tulare county and embarked in wheat rais- 
 ing, in addition to which he conducted a livery 
 business. During 1895 he engaged in buying 
 wheat in Tulare and Kern counties for the 
 Farmers' Union Milling Company of Stockton, 
 and in 1896 accepted a position with J. Goldman 
 & Co., of Tulare, as foreman of their lands, or- 
 chards and stock. 
 
 Ever since attaining the age of twenty-one 
 years Mr. Collins has been an active factor in 
 local politics, and has been a frequent participant 
 in the workings of the county central committees 
 of the Republican party. In view of his activity 
 in the party, as well as by reason of the posses- 
 sion of characteristics qualifying him for the of- 
 fice, he was selected by his party in the county 
 convention of 1902 as their candidate for the po- 
 sition of sheriff, and was duly elected for a term 
 of four years. Not only has his service thus far 
 been satisfactory to the party electing him, but 
 also the general public has recognized in him an 
 official determined to preserve law and order ; 
 impartial, fearless and just, one whom the law- 
 abiding element could look to with the fullest 
 faith in the painstaking discharge of his duties. 
 Fraternally he is connected with the Woodmen 
 of the World, Fraternal Aid, Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, and Lodge and Encampment 
 of Odd Fellows, in which he has been an office- 
 holder. Sharing with him in the esteem of the 
 people of VisaHa is his wife, formerly Louise 
 Clarke, who was born and reared in Inyo coun- 
 ty, and by whom he has three daughters. Hazel, 
 Vera and Blanche. 
 
 WILLIAM J. HARDWICK. Although San 
 Francisco has profited by the citizenship of Will- 
 iam J. Hardwick since 1883, Merced county 
 gains by the possession of his business interests, 
 centered in a grain ranch of two thousand acres, 
 upon which he has expended the best years of his 
 active life. Mr. Hardwick is a southerner by 
 birth, Alabama being his native state, and his 
 natal day May 23, 1834. His father, Thomas 
 
660 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Harclwick, was born in Georgia, and his mother, 
 Anna (McFarland) Hardwick, was born in Ten- 
 nessee in 1812. This devoted mother, who 
 reared her children with so much care, is still 
 living- in Merced county, and is ninety-two years 
 of age, being perhaps the oldest living resident 
 of this county. Longevity is not noticed to so 
 great an extent in the paternal family, for Thom- 
 as Hardwick died at a comparatively early age 
 in 1873, on the ranch in Merced county upon 
 which he settled in 1859. About 1846 he re- 
 moved from Georgia to Missouri with his fam- 
 ily, and there became interested in farming, in 
 which he achieved a fair measure of success. He 
 was a Democrat in politics, but too much of a 
 home-loving man to desire or be willing to ac- 
 cept positions of official trust. 
 
 William J. Hardwick was fourteen when his 
 family settled in Missouri, and twenty years old 
 when he came to Merced county. At once he be- 
 came interested in the cattle business, at which 
 he continued until 1864, when he turned his at- 
 tention to sheep raising. He added to his orig- 
 inal purchase until he owned two thousand acres, 
 fifteen hundred of which are now under barley 
 and wheat. Since 1883 Mr. Hardwick has made 
 his headquarters at 1719 Oak street, San Fran- 
 cisco, but the disagreeable weather during the 
 summer drives him to the country, and his ranch 
 continues from year to year to be a source of 
 pleasure, recreation and profit to him. Mr. 
 Hardwick married Anna Miller, a native of New 
 York, now deceased. He is a Democrat in poli- 
 tics, and fraternally is identified with the Lodge 
 and Royal Arch in Masonry, having been made 
 a Mason in 1861. It may be said of Mr. Hard- 
 wick that he thoroughly understood and appre- 
 ciated the advantages by which he was sur- 
 rounded in the west, and turned them to the best 
 possible account. In consequence he is one of 
 the prominent and financially substantial men of 
 Merced county. His neighboring ranchers speak 
 of him in highest terms, praising his character 
 and great good sense, and regret that he is not 
 permanently located in the county which has 
 profited by his example of industry, thrift and 
 progressive spirit. 
 
 JOHN HALL. For twenty-five years John 
 Hall has owned and occupied his present ranch 
 of three hundred and thirty-seven acres on the 
 Stanislaus river, twenty-five miles southeast of 
 Stockton, twelve miles northwest of Oakdale, 
 and three miles from Escalon. He is one of the 
 early settlers of California, having lived in the 
 state since his seventeenth year, arriving in 1857 
 with his father, William, and the rest of the fam- 
 ily. Mr. Hall was born in Alton, III, April 20, 
 1840. William Hall was born in the state of 
 
 Georgia, coming from an old southern family of 
 Scotch-Irish extraction. 
 
 In early manhood William Hall married 
 Nancy Eubank, and for some years combined 
 his trade of carpentering with the management 
 of his farm in Georgia. He became a very early 
 settler of Alton, 111., and when his son John 
 was three years old removed to what was then 
 Greene county. Mo., where he took up govern- 
 ment land and farmed until coming to Califor- 
 nia in 1857. Crossing the plains with ox-teams 
 and prairie schooner, he completed the distance 
 from Missouri to Farmington, Cal., in five 
 months, remaining in Farmington until 1864. 
 For the following two years he lived in Ore- 
 gon, but not liking the northern state so well 
 as California, returned in 1866, living near Esca- 
 lon until his death at the age of eighty-four 
 years. His wife, who survived him two years, 
 was over eighty at the time of her death, and 
 but three of her children are living, namely: 
 John, the special subject of this sketch; George 
 W., a rancher in Stanislaus county; and Rich- 
 ard G., residing in Arizona. 
 
 John Hall was an industrious lad, and became 
 a painstaking, conscientious farmer. While yet 
 on the home place he purchased one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land, and shortly after his mar- 
 riage in 1866, at the age of twenty-six to Stella 
 J. Huntley, daughter of L. L. and Matilda 
 (Brown) Huntley and a native of Illinois and 
 California pioneer of 1852, he settled on his 
 farm and lived there five years. He then re- 
 moved to Stanislaus county and rented three 
 hundred and twenty acres for four years, and 
 about twenty-five years ago came to his present 
 farm, which is under barley and oats, and which 
 has besides a home orchard, and a dairy of fifteen 
 cows. Mr. Hall is essentially a self-made man, 
 never having depended on any assistance from 
 his family, as he desired to be the architect of 
 his own fortune. He has sometimes felt the 
 pinch of hard times, but has always profited by 
 his experiences, and has laid a solid founda- 
 tion of industry and integrity under his steady, 
 well directed life. With the assistance of his 
 frugal wife he has gained steadily each year, 
 and now has a competence which places those 
 near and dear to him beyond the possibility of 
 want. His children have been trained to look 
 out for themselves, and long since his two old- 
 est sons, William S. and Harlow have left 
 the family roof and are ranching on their own 
 responsibility, the former in San Joaquin, and 
 the latter in Stanislaus county. His eldest 
 daughter, Ida, is married and has a home of her 
 own, as has also his second oldest daughter, Des- 
 sie. Frank, Reuben Roy and Erma Matilda, 
 the three youngest children, are still on the home 
 place. All of the children save Ida were born in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 661 
 
 San Joaquin county, she being born in Stanis- 
 laus county. Mr. Hall takes a lively interest in 
 political and other undertakings of his county, 
 but is essentially a home man, finding his great- 
 est consolation at his own fireside, so that offices 
 or public honors of any kind have never appealed 
 to him. He is a rugged and honest son of the 
 soil; a plain, unpretentious man, having a just 
 scorn for falsehood and pretense, and a whole- 
 some admiration for what is upright and noble. 
 
 JOHN H. OWEN. Although purchasing 
 his present ranch as recently as November, 1902, 
 John H. Owen needs no introduction to the peo- 
 ple of a county whose best interests he has 
 served as farmer and stock raiser for his entire 
 business life. He is one of the wealthy and sub- 
 stantial men of the vicinity of Escalon, San 
 Joaquin county, owning not only his home farm 
 of four hundred and eleven acres, but having be- 
 sides a farm of one hundred and sixty acres near 
 Cometa Station. Probably no farmer in the 
 county is more comfortably situated than Mr. 
 Owen, his place having every improvement 
 known to modern agricultural, science. Ninety 
 acres of his land are under alfalfa, a number 
 of acres under barley, and he has a home vine- 
 yard of forty acres under the ditch. The place 
 is located on the French Camp road, twenty miles 
 southeast of Stockton, and eight and a half 
 miles northwest of Oakdale. His other farm is 
 under grain entirely, netting him a handsome 
 yearly income. 
 
 Mr. -Owen was born in Meigs county, Tenn., 
 October 15, 1862, a son of James R. and Cath- 
 erine (Hunt) Owen, both natives of Meigs 
 county. The paternal grandfather, George P. 
 Owen, was a native of Kentucky, where he 
 owned a large plantation previous to removing 
 to Tennessee. The maternal family of Hunt 
 came originally from Virginia, and were early 
 settlers of Meigs county. James R. Owen 
 brought his family to California in 1869, settling 
 in San Joaquin county, this side of Stockton, 
 on the French Camp road, upon what was 
 known as the Turner ranch. A year later he 
 removed to near Waterloo, and rented a farm 
 for a year, then farmed near Farmington for 
 thirty years. He gained an enviable reputa- 
 tion as a business man and agriculturist, having 
 a capacity for large' interests, and much mana- 
 gerial ability. Near Farmington he rented four 
 sections of grain land, paying for the same 
 $110,000 during the time he rented it, but not- 
 withstanding this enormous rental made money 
 rapidly. At the present time he is living re- 
 tired at Linden, this county. He is a Democrat 
 in politics, and for many years has been a 
 Mason. 
 
 Until 1885 John H. Owen remained at home 
 with his father, then left the farm to engage in 
 the mercantile business in Farmington under 
 the firm name of Long & Owen. During the 
 five years in which he prospered as a merchant 
 he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land, eventually locating thereon, and engaging 
 in farming and stock-raising. Later he rented 
 four hundred acres more, and in 1892 rented 
 fourteen hundred and forty acres of grain land, 
 in 1896-97 having as many as twenty-seven hun- 
 dred and twenty acres under grain, the greater 
 part of it comprising the old Leach ranch. He 
 next came to his present farm, which has proved 
 of great fertility and adaptability, rendering pos- 
 sible a variety of products. 
 
 Mr. Owen married Sarah E. Griffin, of Stanis- 
 laus county, and daughter of Mitchell Griffin, 
 a deceased pioneer of 1849. The children in the 
 Owen household are Alva, Lizzie, Arthur and 
 Hazel. Mr. Owen is an enthusiastic fraternalist, 
 being a member of the Masons, Odd Fellows, 
 Knights of Pythias, and Woodmen of the 
 World. He is highly respected for his industry, 
 good judgment, success and integrity, and for 
 his interest in all that pertains to the upbuilding 
 of San Joaquin county. 
 
 DAVID FREELAND. An important factor 
 in the development of the industrial resources of 
 Madera county, David Freeland occupies an hon- 
 ored position among the progressive and skillful 
 farmers of this section of California. His ranch, 
 pleasantly located near the town of Madera, is 
 a well-appointed and well-kept estate, his stock 
 and machinery being of first-class description, 
 his buildings ample and commodious, everything 
 about the premises indicating to the passer-by 
 the thrift, industry and keen judgment of the 
 owners. Like many others of our most prosper- 
 ous and valued citizens, he is of foreign birth 
 and breeding, being a native of Scotland, where 
 he was born March 20, 1862. His father, Wil- 
 liam Freeland, a native of Scotland, was a farm- 
 er by occupation, and married Jean Sillars, also 
 of Scotch birth and parentage. 
 
 Reared to agricultural pursuits, David Free- 
 land remained with his parents until twenty 
 years of age, working on the home farm as a boy, 
 and afterward learning the trade of stone-cutter, 
 which he followed four years. Immigrating to 
 Nova Scotia, he spent a year and a half in Hali- 
 fax, and then migrated to the States, coming to 
 California in search of a favorable location. Set- 
 tling first near Selma, Fresno county, he began 
 life in this state as a farmer, purchasing a ranch 
 five miles south of Selma. Coming to Madera 
 in 1900, Mr. Freeland, with I. L. Borden, pur- 
 chased the present ranch of six hundred acres, 
 
662 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and has since been successfully engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits as manager of the business. 
 He raises grain and stock, and is also interested 
 in the culture of fruit, having an orchard of 
 thirty acres and a vineyard equally as large. 
 In addition to this he devotes two hundred and 
 fifty acres of this ranch to alfalfa, on the re- 
 mainder raising grain. As a stock grower and 
 dairyman, he has acquired a good reputation, his 
 dairy of one hundred cows being one of the best 
 in this part of the county. He uses a separator 
 in his dairy, and on the ranch are four wells, one 
 hundred and twenty feet deep, from which the 
 water is drawn by a twenty-five-horse power en- 
 gine. 
 
 March 19, 1889, Mr. Freeland was married to 
 Jean Rice, who was born in California, and into 
 their household three children have been born, 
 namely : Margaret W., Jean S. and David, Jr. 
 During his residence in California, Mr. Free- 
 land has always enjoyed the respect and confi- 
 dence of his neighbors and friends, and has well 
 performed his part as a faithful citizen. Politi- 
 cally he is identified with the Republican party, 
 and fraternally he is a member of the Woodmen 
 of the World. 
 
 FIELDING A. COMBS, M. D., of Visalia, has 
 proved himself worthy of his heritage, and in fol- 
 lowing his chosen profession has added luster to 
 the name which had for several generations been 
 prominent in the medical calendars of the south- 
 ern and central states. During his many years 
 of practice in Tulare county he has won the 
 confidence and esteem of the people to a note- 
 worthy extent, his skill and ability being widely 
 known and highly appreciated. Although now 
 practically retired, he does a little office work 
 for some of his old friends. A son of Dr. Ennis 
 Combs, he was born in Mount Sterling, Mont- 
 gomery county, Ky., August 10, 1825, coming 
 from substantial Scotch-Irish ancestry. His 
 grandfather, Cuthbert Combs, removed from his 
 native state, Virginia, to Kentucky, locating 
 there in pioneer days, and by industry and good 
 management improving a large farm. 
 
 Born in Virginia, Ennis Combs received good 
 educational advantages, and in 1815 was gradu- 
 ated from the University of Pennsylvania with 
 the degree of M. D. Going to Kentucky, he com- 
 menced his medical career at Mount Sterling, 
 where he was for many years the leading phy- 
 sician. Settling in Independence, Mo., in 1842, 
 he continued in practice there until his death, 
 in 1849. He married Mary Hinde, who was 
 born in Winchester, Clark county, Ky., a daugh- 
 ter of Dr. John W. Hinde, a native of Virginia, 
 who was graduated from the University of Penn- 
 sylvania with the degree of M. D. in 1795, and 
 
 was afterward successfully engaged in the prac- 
 tice of his profession in Virginia and Kentucky. 
 His father, Dr. John W. Hinde, Sr., served as a 
 surgeon in the English navy during the French 
 and Indian war. During the Revolutionary war 
 he was a surgeon in Washington's army, and 
 after the close of the war, settled in Winchester, 
 Ky., where he practiced medicine until his death, 
 at the advanced age of ninety-six years. Of 
 the union of Dr. Ennis and Mary (Hinde) 
 Combs, twelve children were born, of whom six 
 sons and four daughters grew to years of ma- 
 turity. Dr. F. A., of this review, being the oldest 
 child now living. The mother died in 1836. 
 
 Having laid a substantial foundation for his 
 future education in his youthful days, F. A. 
 Combs completed the literary course at Transyl- 
 vania University, in Lexington, Ky., when but 
 eighteen years old. Entering then the medical 
 department of the same institution, he was gradu- 
 ated from there with the degree of M. D. in 
 1847. Thus prepared to follow in the footsteps 
 of his father, his maternal grandfather and 
 great-grandfather. Dr. Combs began the prac- 
 tice of his profession in Missouri, being first lo- 
 cated at Independence. He subsequently took 
 'a full course in the medical department of the 
 University of Missouri, after which, in 1849, he 
 located in Marshall, then a mere hamlet, con- 
 taining but fifteen inhabitants. As the town 
 grew his practice increased, becoming very large 
 and remunerative, his professional knowledge 
 and skill being recognized throughout that part 
 of the state. During the Mexican war,. Dr. 
 Combs served under General Kearney, in Doni- 
 phan's Regiment of Mounted Infantry. After 
 the close of the war he returned to Marshall, 
 where he remained as a physician and surgeofi 
 until 1877. 
 
 Coming from Missouri to the Pacific coast in 
 1877, Dr. Combs resided in Lake county two 
 years. In 1879 he located in Visalia as a phy- 
 sician and surgeon, and for a quarter of a cen- 
 tury was the foremost practitioner in Tulare 
 county. He won an extensive patronage among 
 the best people of this vicinity, and is now prac- 
 tically retired from active professional duties, a 
 respected and honored citizen, held in high re- 
 gard by old and young. He is still county and 
 city health officer, ably filing the position which 
 he has held the past ten years. In Saline coun- 
 ty. Mo., Dr. Combs married Elizabeth Carthrae, 
 who was bom in Missouri, of Scotch parents. 
 She died in Missouri in 1877, leaving six chil- 
 dren, namely: Howard Matthew, a graduate of 
 the St. Louis Dental College, now practicing his 
 profession in Visalia ; Mary, of Los Angeles ; 
 Sydnor, at home ; Nannie Letcher, a resident 
 of Visalia; Sarah, an educator in Visalia; and 
 James, who was graduated from the Nashville 
 

 yj/M' 
 

HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 667 
 
 Seminary with the degree of D. D. S., now prac- 
 ticing dentistry in VisaHa. The doctor is a 
 valued member of the San Joaquin Valley Medi- 
 cal Society. He takes great interest in the wel- 
 fare of city and county, and in his political affili- 
 ations is a strong Democrat, and an ex-member 
 of the county central committee.. He has the dis- 
 tinction of being the oldest Mason in the valley, 
 having united with the Masonic Order at Inde- 
 pendence, Mo., in 1846. He is now a member of 
 Visalia Lodge No. 128, F. & A. M., and Mar- 
 shall Chapter, R. A. M., of Marshall, Mo. In 
 1849 the doctor joined the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows, but is not now affiliated with the 
 order. 
 
 JOHN McBRIAR. Noteworthy among the 
 leading citizens and business men of Tulare 
 county is John McBriar, a man of more than 
 average intelligence and ability, whose large and 
 well-improved ranch lies midway between Reed- 
 ley and Dinuba, being three and one-half miles 
 from either place. Energetic and enterprising, 
 in the prime of a vigorous manhood, he is re- 
 spected and esteemed by a large circle of friends, 
 neighbors and acquaintances, and is enjoying, as 
 he well deserves, a generous portion of this 
 world's goods. Like many other of our most 
 prosperous and worthy residents, he was born 
 and bred in a foreign country, his birth having 
 occurred November 12, 1861, near Belfast, Ire- 
 land. His father, John McBriar, Sr., was born 
 there also, and with the exception of a brief 
 visit to Nova Scotia spent his life in that vicinity, 
 being employed as a stockman. He was of 
 Scotch descent, as was his wife, Mary Jamison, 
 who was born in County Down, Ireland, and 
 spent her entire life in her native isle. They 
 became the parents of six children, five of whom 
 are living, only two of them being in America, 
 namely: John, the subject of this sketch; and 
 James, a member of the firm, and the manager of 
 the Morton Baking Company, Detroit, Mich. 
 
 The oldest child of the parental household, 
 John McBriar was brought up on the home farm, 
 receiving his early education in the national 
 school. Leaving' his native land when sixteen 
 years old, he immigrated to Ontario, locating in 
 Ottawa in 1878, and there being employed for 
 a time in the Ironside mines. Going thence to 
 the upper part of Michigan, he worked in the 
 Calumet and Hecla copper mines for a while, and 
 was afterwards similarly engaged in the phos- 
 phate mines on the Lievre river, Lower Canada. 
 Successful in his operations, Mr. McBriar went 
 to Arizona in 1885, prospected in the silver re- 
 gions of Tombstone for a few months, from there 
 going to Guaymas, Mexico, and thence to La 
 Paz, Lower California. Finding the peninsula 
 
 rich in mineral resources, he remained there five 
 years, three years of the time being foreman in 
 the Trimbo mines. While thus employed, in 1886, 
 Mr. McBriar spent one of his vacations in San 
 Francisco. In 1889 he took an extended vaca- 
 tion, visiting San Francisco and Detroit, Mich., 
 going from there back to his old home in Bel- 
 fast, Ireland. After spending a week with his 
 boyhood friends and companions he was ready 
 to return to America, but continued his visit 
 for four weeks, when he sailed for Quebec on 
 one of the line steamers. From that city he 
 journeyed by the Central Pacific Railroad to 
 Vancouver, thence by boat to San Francisco, re- 
 turning the same year to Lower California. Re- 
 suming his former position with his employers, 
 Mr. McBriar continued as foreman in the mines 
 until January, 1891, when he resigned on ac- 
 count of ill health, being afflicted with miner's 
 consumption. 
 
 Coming directly to Lake county, Cal., Mr. Mc- 
 Briar spent four months at Bartlett Springs, 
 where he recovered his former vigor. While 
 there he formed the acquaintance of D. T. Curtis, 
 of Reedley, who had large interests in the San 
 Joaquin valley, and with him came here on a 
 prospecting trip. Pleased with the looks of the 
 country, Mr. McBriar purchased sixty acres of 
 his present home ranch, and immediately began 
 the work of converting the raw stubbkfield into 
 a productive estate. He set out twenty acres 
 of SuUanas, planted a twelve-acre orchard, sow- 
 ing the remainder to alfalfa. He erected a small 
 dwelling, and this he has since enlarged, having 
 new a substantial residence. Succeeding beyond 
 his expectations as an agriculturist and horti- 
 culturist, Mr. McBriar bought forty acres more 
 in 1897, and two years later purchased eighty 
 acres of adjoining land, and all of this he has 
 checked and irrigated and sowed to alfalfa. In 
 1902 he invested in more land, buying one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres, which he devotes to al- 
 falfa, and also purchased eighty acres of im- 
 proved land in section 15, but this he afterwards 
 sold. He also has an unexpired contract of two 
 years with D. T. Curtis for improving a ninety- 
 acre vineyard, lying on the same section as his 
 home ranch. 
 
 Mr. McBriar married, near Dinuba, Mary A. 
 Johnson, who was born in Ontario, a daughter of 
 Tliomas Johnson, of Dinuba, and they have two 
 children, Agnes and Raymond. Mr. McBriar 
 is one of the directors of the Alta Irrigation Dis- 
 trict, and is a trustee of the Windsor School 
 District. Politically he is a straightforward Re- 
 publican. Fraternally he was made a Mason 
 in Reedley, and is a member and past grand of 
 Reedley Lodge, I. O. O. F. He is also a member 
 and past grand of the Reedley Lodge of Re- 
 
G68 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 bekahs, to which his wife likewise belongs. Mrs. 
 McBriar is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, and is much esteemed for her many 
 fine C[ualities of heart and mind. 
 
 WILLIAM H. McKENZIE. A liberal and 
 enterprising citizen, and an upbuilder of the best 
 interests of county and state, William H. Mc- 
 Kenzie is one of the most widely known and 
 honored men of Fresno county. The son of a 
 pioneer and himself born among the primitive 
 conditions of an early civilization, his efforts have 
 lain along the lines of the beginning of a state- 
 hood, the development of natural resources, the 
 promotion of enterprises calculated to advance 
 the growth of the community's interests. A busi- 
 ness man of unusual executive ability, unerring 
 judgment, conservative yet progressive ideas, he 
 has made a personal success, and in addition to 
 the position accorded him as a factor in pioneer 
 enterprises he also holds the esteem of his fellow- 
 citizens for these qualities which distinguish his 
 character. 
 
 The McKenzie family is of Scotch-Irish ances- 
 try. County Sligo, Ireland, being their home for 
 several generations. Alexander McKenzie, the 
 grandfather of William H., was a large land 
 owner in that locality, a gentleman of means and 
 education, who gave to his family every possible 
 advantage. A son, James McKenzie, who was 
 born in County Sligo, came to New York about 
 1848, in young manhood, and in 1853 he joined 
 the United States army. The regiment was or- 
 dered to the Pacific coast to subdue the Indians 
 in 1854, traveling by steamer to Aspinwall, thence 
 across the Isthmus on mule back, thence by 
 steamer to San Francisco, then to Benicia, and 
 by land to Fort Miller. Mr. McKenzie became 
 sergeant in the company which was commanded 
 by Captain Lozier, remaining at Fort Miller until 
 they were ordered north to Oregon to serve in 
 the Indian wars. At the end of his enlistment, 
 in 1858, he was honorably discharged, when as a 
 citizen of California he began the sheep and 
 cattle business on a ranch located just above Fort 
 Miller. He remained in that location and occu- 
 pation until his death, which occurred January i, 
 1864, at the early age of thirty-three years. He 
 was married in New York City, in 1854, to Ann 
 Brennan, who was born in County Sligo, Ireland, 
 November 7, 1826. She came to the United 
 States in 1848 to visit a sister. Her wedding 
 journey was a trip to the far west, like her hus- 
 band, riding astride a mule across the Isthmus 
 and passing through many experiences incident 
 to pioneer life. She made her home at the fort 
 up to the time of her husband's discharge, owning 
 their quarters there until 1861, when they sold out 
 and located upon the ranch. She afterward be- 
 
 came the wife of Judge Charles A. Hart, a pio- 
 neer of California and the first judge of Fresno 
 county. (For more complete details concerning 
 Judge Hart refer to the sketch of his life, which 
 appears on another page of this work.) 
 
 Of the three children born to his parents, Will- 
 iam H. McKenzie and Mary, now the wife of 
 John C. Hoxie, of Fresno, are the only survivors ; 
 E. P. was a merchant and died at Pollasky, 
 Fresno county, in 1888, at the age of twenty-five 
 years, leaving one daughter. The birth of Will- 
 iam H. McKenzie occurred at Fort Miller, in 
 what was then known as Mariposa county but 
 now constitutes a part of Fresno, March 10, 1857. 
 He was reared to manhood upon the old farm 
 just above the fort and which is still in the pos- 
 session of the family. This ranch comprises 
 three thousand acres on the San Joaquin river 
 and on the place is located the old fort and town 
 of Millerton, and the old courthouse of Fresno 
 county. A part of the old fort is standing and 
 is in a fairly good state of preservation. It is an 
 adobe building covered with redwood shingles 
 put on over fifty years ago, the broad veranda 
 which surrounds the house being built of hewed 
 timber. For many years this formed the resi- 
 dence of the McKenzie family. The old court 
 house was built of brick and granite in 1866, the 
 granite being obtained on the ranch a quarter of 
 a mile from the location, while the brick was 
 burned upon the ranch, as was the adobe. At the 
 time of the erection qI the old fort everything in 
 the way of provisions, etc., had to be hauled from 
 Stockton. 
 
 Mr. McKenzie received his education in the 
 public schools at Fort Miller, after which he at- 
 tended and graduated from Heald's Business Col- 
 lege at San Francisco in 1873. The following 
 year he returned to Fort Miller and in the same 
 year was appointed deputy sheriff of the county 
 under J. S. Ashman, serving in that capacity for 
 some time, after which he acted as deputy clerk, 
 deputy assessor, and deputy tax collector. In 
 1879 he was nominated and elected to the position 
 of county assessor and the adoption of the con- 
 stitution extended the term nearly three years. 
 In 1882 he became interested in the abstract busi- 
 ness which was finally incorporated as the. Fresno 
 County Abstract Company, with himself as a 
 director, which position he has continued to hold 
 up to the present time, being the largest stock- 
 holder of the company. At the same time that 
 he has engaged in farming the old home place 
 on the San Joaquin river he has been extensively 
 interested in mining and oil wells, meeting with 
 a success in both lines. With Mr. Griffith he was 
 prominent in the building of the electric railway. 
 After the building of the railway the company 
 bought, in August, of the same year, the old road 
 and formed the Fresno Electric Railway Com- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 669 
 
 pany, of which Mr. McKenzie was director and 
 manager. Following this the company built many 
 more miles of railway and equipped it for busi- 
 ness, putting in new electric machinery for power, 
 and in every way adding to the facilities for 
 transportation. They had twelve miles completed 
 and in operation when they sold out in May, 
 1903. In his mining interests Mr. McKenzie has 
 been very active, developing several mines, 
 among them being the Mudspring mine in Ma- 
 dera county, and also gold mines in Fresno, 
 Tulare and other counties. He was one of the 
 early men to develop the resources of Kern coun- 
 ty, in the Kern River Oil Company being man- 
 ager and vice-president, in both Bakersfield and 
 McKittrick sinking wells, which were the first 
 drilled in this most productive field. He was 
 also largely interested in the Four Oil Company 
 adjoining the Kern river property, and two oth- 
 ers of equal note, disposing of his interests in the 
 various concerns when affairs were in the most 
 satisfactory shape. He was also interested in the 
 meantime in the Coalingo oil fields, their location 
 on section 28 being the most celebrated oil-pro- 
 ducing land in this country. 
 
 In Healdsburg, Cal., Mr. McKenzie was united 
 in marriage with Carrie E. Hoxie, who was born 
 in Millerton, a daughter of Clark Hoxie, a pio- 
 neer farmer of that place and a citizen prominent 
 in early local affairs, being one of the first super- 
 visors of the county. (For more complete de- 
 tails concerning his life refer to the sketch of his 
 son, John C. Hoxie, which appears elsewhere in 
 this work.) To Mr. and Mrs. McKenzie were 
 born five children, namely: Alfred H., of San 
 Francisco, and William T., Richard, Donald and 
 Truman. Mr. McKenzie has served as city treas- 
 urer for about twelve years in the, interests of the 
 Democratic party, of whose principles he is a 
 stanch adherent and in whose councils he has 
 always been a potent factor. He is ex-chairman 
 of the county and city Democratic committees. 
 He is a member of the board of fire and police 
 commissioners and of the chamber of commerce. 
 Fraternally he is a member and past officer of the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows of Fresno. 
 
 WILLIAM HELM. Noteworthy among the 
 pioneer settlers of Fresno county is William 
 Helm, a respected and valued citizen of Fresno. 
 A keen, progressive business man, he is gifted 
 with quick perceptions and a resolute spirit, and 
 is well endowed with that peculiar vein of grit 
 and determination that invariably leads onward 
 to success. A perusal of the principal events of 
 his career will prove what a man can do for him- 
 self by persistent application, if he have faith in 
 the future of his community, and will also show 
 what a prominent part he has taken in the de- 
 
 velopment and improvement of the San Joaquin 
 valley. A son of George Helm, he was born 
 March 9, 1837, in Ontario, Canada, about forty 
 miles above Montreal, on the St. Lawrence river. 
 
 George Helm was born and bred in Scotland, 
 living there until early manhood. Immigrating 
 then to America, he settled in Gait, Ontario, 
 where he was engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 until his death, at a ripe old age. He married 
 Mary Oliver, who was born in Scotland, but 
 was of English parentage on the paternal side. 
 After the death of her husband she removed from 
 Gait, Ontario, to California, and died in San 
 Francisco, aged eighty-two years. Of the nine 
 children which she bore her husband, three are 
 living, namely: William, the subject of this 
 sketch ; George, of Phoenix, Ariz. ; and Ellen 
 B., of Alameda, this state. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, William Helm 
 acquired a practical education in the district 
 schools, and a thorough knowledge of the vari- 
 ous branches of agriculture under his father's 
 instruction. Leaving home in 1856, he went to 
 Wisconsin, and for three years thereafter was 
 engaged in lumbering on the Chippewa river, 
 also in operating a sawmill. Sailing from New 
 York City in 1859, he came by way of the Isth- 
 mus of Panama to San Francisco, Cal. Going 
 to Placer county, he began searching for gold, 
 but did not find it in such quantities as he had 
 anticipated. Learning the butcher's business, he 
 followed it for three years, first in Foresthill, and 
 then in Todds Valley. Going from the latter 
 place to Bear river. Placer county, Mr. Helm 
 embarked in the sheep business, having a good 
 range there. In 1865 he brought his sheep to 
 Fresno county, which was then a vast space of 
 open land, with no improvements, and not a mile 
 of railway. At Dry Creek, on section four, six 
 miles northeast of what is now the city of Fres- 
 no, Mr. Helm bought two thousand six hundred 
 and forty acres of land of Mr. Chapman, paying 
 a dollar an acre. Continuing business as a sheep 
 raiser and dealer, he subsequently bought ad- 
 joining land, and established a winter camp for 
 his sheep on the present site of the Fresno court 
 house. His herd increased rapidly, at one time 
 containing twenty-two thousand head of sheep, 
 which browsed on the mountains during the sum- 
 mer seasons. 
 
 Mr. Helm was the largest individual sheep 
 grower in that section of the state, and in carry- 
 ing his wool to market at Stockton he used three 
 wagons, each drawn by ten mules, and spent 
 twelve days in making the trip. He subsequent- 
 ly bought additional land, having sixteen thou- 
 sand acres in one body. Establishing his resi- 
 dence in Fresno, he continued his business from 
 here, and in addition to stock raising began the 
 improvement of his land, as soon as practicable, 
 
670 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 building a ditch from Kings river for the pur- 
 pose of irrigating. He was afterward one of a 
 stock company that built the Gould ditch, from 
 which he had branch ditches running through his 
 own land. When, in course of time, there came 
 a demand for land in this section c;>f the country, 
 Mr. Helm began selling his at an advantageous 
 price, and has now but three thousand acres left, 
 this being entirely valley land, and all well im- 
 proved. He raises large crops of wheat, barley 
 and alfalfa, and in his large vineyard of four 
 hundred acres, one of the most extensive in the 
 county, he makes a specialty of raising wine 
 grapes. His sheep ranch is located two miles 
 west of Fresno, where he keeps about three thou- 
 sand Merinos. This ranch is in what is called a 
 swamp country, but he has improved the land, 
 converting a part of it into a large alfalfa field. 
 Mr. Helm also owns valuable city property, hav- 
 ing erected Helm block, at the corner of Mari- 
 posa and Fresno streets, a block at the corner of 
 J and Fresno streets, and built up other prop- 
 erty here. He is likewise interested in the Farm- 
 ers' National Bank of Central California. 
 
 In Placer county, Mr. Helm married Fannie 
 S. Newman, who was born in England, but was 
 brought up and educated in New York state. 
 Of their union seven children have been born, 
 namely: Mrs. Jessie Cox, of San Francisco; 
 George, a vineyardist, in Fresno county ; Frank, 
 a resident of Fresno, also a vineyardist ; Mrs. 
 Fannie Walrond, of Fresno; Mary, wife of Dr. 
 J. L. Maupin, of Fresno; Agnes, wife of Dr. 
 Montgomery Thomas, of Fresno ; and Maude, 
 living at home. In politics Mr. Helm invariably 
 supports the Republican ticket. He is a mem- 
 ber of the Fresno Chamber of Commerce, which 
 is composed of the most able business men of the 
 place. Mrs. Helm is a member of the Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 It is impossible to overestimate the beneficent 
 eiifect upon the growth and prosperity of the 
 San Joaquin Valley which the work of William 
 Helm has had. Not only has he been an eye wit- 
 ness to practically every step in the great scheme 
 of development of the agricultural and horticul- 
 tural resources of the valley, but he has borne a 
 most conspicuous and valued part in the vast un- 
 dertaking which has made that region one of the 
 finest in the world. Throughout his entire career 
 in the state he has not been unmindful of the 
 rights and privileges of others, but has earnest- 
 ly co-operated with his fellow-citizens in all well- 
 considered efforts to advance the material welfare 
 of the community, . viewing the future with an 
 unselfish eye. The remarkable success which has 
 rewarded his labors is due to his indefatigable 
 industry, his energy and his progressive spirit, 
 as much as to his sagacity and discernment in 
 studying the opportunities which California has 
 
 offered in the past, and still extends with a lavish 
 hand. Personally Mr. Helm belongs to that 
 strong type of pioneer citizen who survive de- 
 spite the obstacles which constantly presented 
 themselves in the earlier days of the state. His 
 life has been closely interwoven with the history 
 of the San Joaquin valley, and this brief record 
 of it will prove of increasing interest to the 
 younger generation and students of history as the 
 years pass. 
 
 DANIEL BRENNAN will be remembered as 
 a man of high literary attainments and one deep- 
 ly interested in educational affairs, having been 
 instrumental in establishing a number of schools 
 in CaHfornia after taking up his abode in this 
 section. He was an able instructor, but upon 
 first locating in the far west he followed book- 
 keeping in San Francisco for a few years, prior 
 to going into the ranching business in connec- 
 tion with educational work. Born in County 
 Galway, Ireland, he left his native land for a 
 home in America, and upon immigrating to this 
 country went first to New York City, but after- 
 ward pursued his way to the Pacific slope, go- 
 ing by way of the Isthmus of Panama. In ad- 
 dition to his other qualifications Mr. Brennan 
 was a surveyor and did a great deal of surveying 
 and locating of claims. In the early days of his 
 life in California he was frequently called upon 
 to write up deeds, conveyances, etc. 
 
 Some time after going to San Francisco, in 
 partnership with a friend, Mr. Brennan bought 
 a farm in San Joaquin county, near Escalon, con- 
 taining three hundred and twenty acres, and to- 
 gether they followed ranching pursuits for 
 awhile. At length, by mutual consent, a divi- 
 sion of the land was made, each receiving one 
 hundred and sixty acres, and Mr. Brennan then 
 engaged in conducting his part alone, renting 
 land adjoining until he farmed six hundred acres 
 in all. He was successful in his ranching pur- 
 suits, which he followed in that vicinity until his 
 death. May 23, 1881. He was forty-nine years 
 old at the time of his death. By his marriage 
 in Stockton October 7, 1868, he was united with 
 Hannah Collins, a native of County Cork, Ire- 
 land, and a daughter of John and Mary (Mc- 
 Carthy) Collins, the latter having passed away 
 in Stockton at the advanced age of seventy years. 
 She and her husband reared a family of five 
 children, among them Cornelius, who resides 
 with his sister near Escalon. Mrs. Brennan ac- 
 companied this brother from the old home in 
 Ireland to New York, and for years lived in 
 that city. About 1863 they left New York for 
 Aspinwall, thence pursuing their way to San 
 Francisco. 
 
 After the death of Mr. Brennan, Mrs. Bren- 
 
MISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 GT3 
 
 nan rented the ranch till her sons were old 
 enough to take charge of affairs, from which 
 time they have conducted the farm. Seven chil- 
 dren were born to them and they are as fol- 
 lows : ' Margaret, Mary, Anne, John, Catherine, 
 Thomas and Eldora. The sons are farmers and 
 the daughters, with the exception of Margaret 
 and Catherine, are school teachers and are doing 
 their part toward raising and maintaining the 
 standard of education in California. The family 
 occupy a high standing socially, and they wor- 
 ship at St. Patrick's Church, of which parish 
 they are devout members. 
 
 ' J6SIAH OTIS LOVEJOY. The sturdy 
 traits characteristic of the Scotch race, when 
 transplanted to New England soil made of the 
 Love joy family leaders in religious affairs and 
 patriots of the highest type. Prior to the first 
 war with Great Britain, Ebenezer Lovejoy left 
 his native Scotland and accompanied by his wife, 
 a lady of English birth, settled in Massachusetts, 
 where for forty-seven years he was a deacon in 
 the Congregational Church at West Andover. At 
 the outbreak of the Revolution he left his plow 
 and entered the army, where he served as a non- 
 commissioned officer through the entire period of 
 the struggle. As an inheritance to his son, Jo- 
 siah Ballard Lovejoy, he. left the endowment of 
 an honorable name, an unspotted character and 
 a loyal devotion to his country and his God; 
 and the son, following in his footsteps, officiated 
 as a deacon in the Congregational Church until 
 his death in 1847 ^"d manifested, throughout 
 his career as a shoe and leather merchant in Bos- 
 ton, the upright and manly traits which had been 
 his heritage. By the marriage of Josiah Ballard 
 Lovejoy and Martha Stickney, who was born at 
 Duxbury, Mass., and died at West Andover, sev- 
 en children were born, of whom three sons and 
 three daughters lived to maturity. Of the daugh- 
 ters Phoebe M. is a resident of Philadelphia, Pa., 
 Annie is deceased, and Addie makes her home at 
 West Newton, Mass. Of the sons, Josiah Otis, 
 the eldest, is a pioneer and influential citizen of 
 Tulare, Cal. George Walter, who served in a 
 Massachusetts regiment during the Civil war, is 
 a machinist by trade and lives in Tehachapi, 
 Kern county, Cal. ; while in the army, where he 
 served from the first battle of Bull Run until the 
 close of the war, he lost two fingers by a wound 
 received in the engagement in front of Richmond. 
 The youngest son, Wisner, served as an engineer 
 in the United States navy throughout all of the 
 Civil war ; after receiving an honorable discharge 
 he took a position as engineer on a vessel bound 
 for China, but when off Cape Hatteras the vessel 
 was wrecked and all on board perished. 
 
 At the family home in Duxbury, only a short 
 distance from the famous Plymouth Rock in 
 Massachusetts, Josiah Otis Lovejoy was born 
 March 29, 1833. As a boy he lived in Boston and 
 attended the schools of that city. When still a 
 mere child, in 1845, his uncle took him to sea 
 on a trading vessel, bound for Honolulu. In 
 1847 he rounded the Horn to the Sandwich 
 Islands, the trip there and back consuming one 
 year. On his return he shipped on the Minstrel 
 to East India via the Cape of Good Hope, Cal- 
 cutta, Singapore and Shanghai, and remained 
 with his uncle in the Indies until December, 1851, 
 when he returned to Boston. Two months later 
 he started for California on his uncle's ship. Roe- 
 buck, which cast anchor at San Francisco on 
 the 4th of July, 1852, after a voyage of one hun- 
 dred and fifty days from Boston. On disembark- 
 ing from' the ship he proceeded to San Jose and 
 Mission San Jose, thence to Santa Clara, where 
 he worked with a saw-milling firm for two years, 
 and in October, 1854, began to mine at Mariposa. 
 The following year he bought a sawmill on Snow 
 creek and took the contract to build the county 
 jail at Mariposa, which work he successfully car- 
 ried out. For twelve years he ran the mill, and 
 meanwhile was elected justice of the peace, which 
 office he held for many years. From 1867 until 
 1 87 1 he served as county judge of Mariposa 
 county. 
 
 " During May, 1871, Mr. Lovejoy removed to 
 Tulare county, and in July established his home 
 at Tulare, where his family joined him in De- 
 cember. The town was just started; the roof 
 was being put on the depot when he reached the 
 town, and other buildings were conspicuous only 
 by their absence. For two years he conducted the 
 hotel, but after the great fire he discontinued the 
 business. For sixteen years he acted as justice 
 of the peace, also as notary public, and meanwhile 
 engaged in the real estate and insurance business, 
 also bought land and conducted dairy and fruit 
 farms for several years. By the erection of a 
 residence at a cost of $10,000 he furnished a 
 valuable improvement to the town and encour- 
 aged other citizens in the building of substantial 
 homes. He still owns his country residence. 
 From the organization of the Kaweah Canal 
 Company he served as its secretary until the stock 
 was sold to the Tulare irrigation district. Be- 
 sides other valuable interests he has been a pio- 
 neer in the oil fields. During 1864 he located the 
 Buena Vista claims in township 30, range 21, 
 and township 30, range 22. The importance of 
 drilling and the use of drilling machinery were 
 not understood then as now, and it was his plan 
 to utilize the surface flow in the manufacture of 
 illuminating oil by the aid of a small refinery. 
 During 1887 he was one of the locators of the 
 Sunset claims, township 11, range 23, and town- 
 
^74 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RfiCORD. 
 
 ship II, range 24, and since then he has served 
 as secretary of the Sunset Oil Company, with 
 office at Tulare. 
 
 While living at Mariposa, on Christmas day of 
 1857, Mr. Lovejoy married Miss Emma Green, 
 who was born in Washington, D. C, and in 185S 
 came to California by way of Panama, accom- 
 panying her father, Gardner Green, who for 
 some years followed mercantile pursuits in Mari- 
 posa county, but later engaged in the manufac- 
 ture of lumber. Thirteen children were born to 
 the union of Mr. and Mrs. Lovejoy, and the fol- 
 lowing are now living : Otis Hart, a stockman 
 in Glenn county; Guard, an engineer on the 
 Southern Pacific Railroad, with headquarters at 
 Portland ; Wisner, who formerly held the office 
 of district attorney at Weiser, Idaho ; Mrs. Emma 
 Erwin, of Santa Rosa; Mrs. Mary J. Warren, a 
 resident of Belvedere, Marin county, Cal. ; Mrs. 
 Grace Canelo, of San Francisco ; and Mrs. Jessie 
 Garrison, of Tulare. Mrs. Lovejoy is identified 
 with the Congregational Church and reared her 
 sons-lmd daughters in that faith. In politics Mr. 
 Lovejoy is a stanch Democrat and at one time 
 served as chairman of the county central com- 
 mittee. Local movements of a progressive char- 
 acter receive his co-operation and support. From 
 the first inception of the public schools in Tulare, 
 he has been an ardent supporter of education, 
 and by constant application with others succeeded 
 in bringing the schools to their present high 
 standing. As a member of the Tulare Board of 
 Trade Mr. Love joy's efforts have been especially 
 noteworthy, and as president of the board of 
 trustees of the free public library he has ren- 
 dered valuable assistance. From the first he was 
 a friend of the movement to start a library and 
 when the movement was launched he was chosen 
 one of the trustees, serving as a member of the 
 board for years, and later being honored with the 
 office of president. In fraternal affairs he is con- 
 nected with the Knights of Pythias, is a past 
 officer in the lodge and' encampment of Odd 
 Fellows, and a past officer, also for sixteen years 
 a trustee of the grand lodge. Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. 
 
 ROBERT DAVIS. Occupying a prominent 
 position among the well-to-do agriculturists of 
 Stanislaus county is Robert Davis, whose well- 
 improved and productive ranch is finely located 
 on Orestimba creek, about seven and one-half 
 miles west of Newman. A man of unquestioned 
 ability and integrity, he is held in high respect 
 throughout the community in which he lives, 
 his sterling qualities of heart and mind being 
 recognized. A son of Andrew Jackson Davis, 
 he was born January 9, 1848, in Pike county, Mo. 
 
 Born and iDred in Wythe county, Va., Andrew 
 
 J. Davis removed to Missouri in 1835, becoming 
 a pioneer of Pike county, where he improved a 
 good farm from a tract of timbered land, and 
 was there engaged in agricultural pursuits until 
 his death. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Grazella Staley, was born in Tennessee, and died 
 in Pike county. Mo. Nine sons and three 
 daughters were born of their marriage, Robert, 
 the special subject of this sketch, being the sixth 
 child in succession of birth. 
 
 Receiving but meager educational advantages 
 in the pioneer schools of his native county, Rob- 
 ert Davis began the battle of life on his own ac- 
 count when seventeen years of age. Starting 
 for the Pacific coast in 1865, he crossed- the 
 plains with mule teams, coming by way of the 
 Platte river route, and being four months in 
 making the journey. Locating near Stockton, 
 Cal., he was employed as a farm laborer for 
 three years. Removing to the San Joaquin valley 
 in 1868, he lived near Hills Ferry for four years, 
 and then, in 1872, took possession of his pres- 
 ent ranch, which he rented for a year. In 1873 
 Mr. Davis homesteaded a claim of one hundred 
 and sixty acres on Orestimba creek, and engaged 
 in general farming, including grain and stock- 
 raising, in which he has been eminently success- 
 ful. He has bought adjacent land, having now 
 one thousand and fifty acres in his home farm, 
 and one hundred and sixty acres on the opposite 
 side of the creek, just across the stream from 
 his main ranch. From 1888 until 1900, Mr. 
 Davis resided on the east side of the San Joaquin 
 river, at Hickman, where he was in the hotel 
 business. 
 
 Mr. Davis married, near Hickman, Nellie 
 Sophia McAlpine, who was born in New Hamp- 
 shire, and they are the parents of four children, 
 namely: Harvey V., manager of the home 
 ranch, Arthur, Ethel and Stella. Politically 
 Mr. Davis is a Socialist. 
 
 GEORGE W. JONES. Among the younger 
 generation of men who are rapidly coming to 
 the front in Madera county mention is made of 
 Georgq W. Jones, who, as manager of the Bor- 
 den farm, has shown rare business ability. This 
 ranch, which contains two thousand two hun- 
 dred and forty acres, is well located about four 
 and three-quarters miles west of Madera and 
 upon it is to be found the well-known Richland 
 vineyard which alone contains two hundred 
 acres, devoted solely to the culture of the raisin 
 grape. Two sections of this farm are devoted 
 to grain-raising, and dairy farming is also car- 
 ried on to some extent, about one hundred fine 
 milch cows being kept constantly upon the 
 place. From ten to thirty men are employed 
 upon the farm, as .occasion demands ; the largest 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 675 
 
 barn in JMaciera county is located there, the 
 dimensions being 250x100 feet. 
 
 George W. Jones, a descendant of a prom- 
 inent Kentucky family, was born in Santa Clara 
 county in 1877. His father, Hugh S. Jones, 
 was a native of Kentucky, and crossed the plains 
 to California in the early days of the gold ex- 
 citement. Entering the mines in 1849, he was 
 one of the few who were successful in their 
 mining operations and became one of the 
 wealthy men in California during the early pio- 
 neer days. He was among the most active poli- 
 ticians of his section, a Democrat by his polit- 
 ical preference, at one time he was state comp- 
 troller of the currency. He was a thirty-second 
 degree Mason. At the time of his death, in 
 1893, California lost one of her most public- 
 spirited citizens. By his marriage, he was united 
 with Henrietta Bye. 
 
 G. W. Jones grew to manhood in Santa Clara 
 county and had the advantage of a liberal edu- 
 cation. His common school education was sup- 
 plemented by a complete scientific course in the 
 Garden City College, and he was graduated, 
 from that institution in the class of 1897. He 
 subsequently took a business course in Santa 
 Clara College, and after leaving school, took 
 up the occupation of bookkeeping, which occu- 
 pied his attention for four years, in San Fran- 
 cisco, Oakland and San Jose, where he was 
 chosen manager of the Borden farm in Madera 
 county, a position he still holds and for which 
 he has shown much aptitude. He was united 
 in marriage with Jeanet La Montagne, who was 
 born in Santa Clara county and is a graduate 
 of San Jose high school, class of 1897, and to 
 them have been born three children, Gillon 
 Hugh, Marjorie J. and Margaret S. Mr. Jones 
 and family occupy a high place in social circles. 
 He is a member of Madera Lodge No. 280, F. 
 & A. M., and of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JOHN HENRY OBERT. Among the pros- 
 perous, substantial and progressive horticultur- 
 ists of Fresno county there is no one that stands 
 higher in the estimation of the people than John 
 Henry Obert, a well-known vineyardist and 
 orchardist of Selma. Enterprising and far- 
 sighted, he has made wise investments, paid 
 strict attention to the details of his business, and 
 in his career has been successful. Of German 
 parentage, he was born February 20, 1832, in 
 Cumberland county, Pa. His father, Peter 
 Obert, a native of Baden, Germany, came with 
 his bride to this country in 1830, being then 
 twenty-one years of age. The following four 
 years he lived in Cumberland county, Pa. Go- 
 ing to Missouri as a pioneer in 1834, he opened 
 a shoemaker's shop in St. Louis, and a few years 
 
 later bought forty acres of land in Florisant val- 
 ley, about twenty miles north-northwest of St. 
 Louis. Continuing his work as a shoemaker, he 
 also worked his land, being a farmer and 
 gardener, and was successful in his occupations 
 until his death, which was caused by smallpox, 
 when he was sixt\--three years of age. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was Mary Glazier, was 
 born in Germany, and died, in 1834, in Penn- 
 sylvania. Of their three children, two boys and 
 one girl, John Henry was the youngest. 
 
 After completing his education in a subscrip- 
 tion school, the sessions being held in a small 
 log cabin, John Henry Obert remained home 
 with his father until after attaining his ma- 
 jority, assisting in the care of the shop and the 
 farm. Enlisting in Company E, Eighty-fifth 
 Missouri Volunteer Infantry, in 1864, he served 
 for three months under Col. E. M. M. Smith, 
 guarding St. Louis against an expected attack 
 by Price and his followers. Going to Illinois in 
 1865, Mr. Obert purchased one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land in Madison county, and was 
 there prosperously engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits for many years. Disposing of his farm 
 in 1899, he came to California, selecting Fresno 
 county as a place of location, and soon after 
 bought the twenty-acre ranch which he now oc- 
 cupies. Sparing neither time nor money in its 
 improvement, Mr. Obert has here a finely bear- 
 ing orchard and vineyard, and an alfalfa field, 
 all yielding him a good income. He likewise 
 owns a vineyard of twenty acres in the Pat- 
 terson colony, and supervises the work on both 
 estates. He has also other financial interests, 
 having money loaned in the east. 
 
 Mr. Obert has been twice married, and by his 
 first wife had four children, namely : Jacob 
 John, living near Selma ; Frank S., of Selma ; 
 Mrs. Emma Wentv, of Selma; and Rebecca, at 
 home. In St. Louis, Mo., in 1875, Mr. Obert 
 married for his second wife Mrs. Mary (Heis- 
 sener) Turner, and they have one child, name- 
 ly: John M., a telegraph operator and train 
 dispatcher for the Virginia & Truckee Railway 
 Company. Politically Mr. Obert is an earnest 
 advocate of the principles of the Republican 
 party, and while living in, Illinois took an active 
 part in local afifairs, serving as school director 
 for twenty years, as highway commissioner and 
 township trustee, and filling many other public 
 offices. 
 
 MANNING F. LUNDY. One of the suc- 
 cessful and thriving agriculturists of Stanis- 
 laus county is Manning F. Lundy, who lives 
 about two miles north of Newman, where he 
 owns and occupies a well-kept homestead. A 
 man of good abilitv and judgment, possessing 
 
676 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECOkB. 
 
 to a marked degree those sterling qualities that 
 everywhere constitute an honest and good citi- 
 zen, he is well deserving of especial mention in 
 this biographical work. A son of Isaac Lundy, 
 he was born May 29, 1842, in Sussex county, 
 N. J. His father, who was a blacksmith and 
 ax manufacturer by trade, died in 1847, while 
 yet in the prime of life, in New Jersey. His 
 widow, whose maiden name was Rebecca 
 Schoonover, settled on a farm in Bradford 
 county, Pa., in 1852, and there spent her re- 
 maining years. 
 
 The eighth child in a family consisting of six 
 boys and four girls. Manning F. Lundy was left 
 fatherless when but five years of age, and from 
 his early boyhood had to be in a measure self- 
 supporting. After receiving a limited education 
 in the common schools of New Jersey and Penn- 
 sylvania, he worked out as a farm laborer for 
 several years. Thinking to find better oppor- 
 tunities for increasing his finances in the Prai- 
 rie state, he migrated to Lee county. 111., when a 
 young man, and there continued in his chosen 
 employment for a while. Coming across the 
 continent to California in 1875, Mr. Lundy en- 
 tered the employ of the San Joaquin Canal 
 Company, and helped build the long canal in 
 the valley, for three years of the time that he 
 was thus engaged being foreman of a gang of 
 men, and being located in one place. During 
 the seven years that he was with the company 
 he accumulated considerable money, and made 
 judicious investments. In 1879 he purchased 
 his present ranch, and in 1882 moved on to it, 
 and has since devoted his attention to its care 
 and improvement. He has seventy acres of good 
 land, and is successfully engaged in raising al- 
 falfa, and in dairying, keeping twenty-one cows. 
 He has also other interests, being a director in 
 the Rochdale store at Newman. 
 
 In Merced county, Mr. Lundy married Annie 
 Bibby, a native of Napa county, and into their 
 household thus established three children have 
 been born, namely: Mary, Ida May and Het- 
 tie. Mr. Lundy is an earnest advocate of the 
 principles of the Republican party, and is a 
 faithful member of the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 WILLIAM E. KEWIN. In the business 
 which he conducts, that of liveryman and dealer 
 in feed, Mr. Kewin has made himself a com- 
 mercial factor of Modesto, to which city he 
 came in 1892. During the comparatively brief 
 period which has since elapsed he has estab- 
 lished a large trade, now owning twenty-five ve- 
 hicles and twenty-five head of horses, and also 
 handling grain and hay in large quantities. An 
 
 interest which has netted him considerable 
 money has been the buying and selling of horses, 
 this having proved of much profit during the 
 Boer war. Mr. Kewin also owns forty acres 
 of alfalfa in the Modesto irrigation district. A 
 native of Illinois, he was born at Gardner, Grun- 
 dy county, December 24, 1865, the son of Will- 
 iam Kewin. 
 
 William Kewin was born 6n the Isle of Man, 
 and upon attaining manhood he came to the 
 United States, locating first in Wisconsin, from 
 which state he later removed to Grundy county, 
 111., locating in the latter state in 1861, where 
 he remained as a farmer until his death. He 
 married Elizabeth James, of Wisconsin, in which 
 state her death occurred in 1884. Of the four 
 sons and two daughters born to them three sons 
 attained maturity. 
 
 William E. Kewin received his education in 
 the common schools of Illinois, where he made 
 his home until he was twenty years old. Decid- 
 ing then to seek a home in the west, he came 
 to California, and located in Salida, Stanislaus 
 county, where he worked for a period of five 
 years. In 1890 he rented land and engaged as 
 a farmer on his own resources, acquiring suffi- 
 cient means to enable him to enter in 1892 upon 
 his present lucrative business. Energy, perse- 
 verance and undoubted ability have been the 
 foundation upon which Mr. Kewin has reared 
 his financial success, and the esteem of all who 
 know him is given him for the evidence of the 
 many qualities which distinguish his character. 
 In this city he was united in marriage with 
 Annie M. Cocking, a native of Michigan, and 
 they have now a pleasant home. Fraternally 
 Mr. Kewin is a member of the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias and 
 the Masons, being a member of the Blue Lodge. 
 Politically he is a stanch Republican, and is 
 active in his support of the principles which 
 he indorses. Recognized as a citizen of ability 
 he has been called upon to serve as a member 
 of the city council for one year. 
 
 OSCAR H. EASTIN. The faiTiily with 
 which Oscar H. Eastin is connected is one prom- 
 inent in the agricultural life of California, his 
 father, Octavius C. Eastin, having been for 
 many years an extensive grain raiser. At one 
 time owning in Madera county eighteen hundred 
 acres of wheat land, at the present time, he has 
 in his possession seven hundred and fifty acres 
 which he has rented. A native of Madison 
 county, Ky., he is the son of James Eastin, who 
 was in turn the son of Reuben, all of whom 
 were farmers. Octavius C. Eastin married Lucy 
 J. Hope, also a native of Kentucky, and in 1833 
 removed to Missouri, making their home in that 
 
JOHN P. MURRY 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 6?9 
 
 state until 1854, when he, with his family, crossed 
 the plains for California. Locating first in Cala- 
 veras county he engaged in mining, and later 
 met with considerable success in the dairy and 
 sheep business. In 1879 he removed to Madera 
 county and farmed south of Madera, cultivating 
 his property of eighteen hundred acres. Now 
 in his seventy-third year he has retired from the 
 active cares of life and is making his home with 
 his son, Oscar H., of this review. An influential 
 man in the community where he has made his 
 home for so many years, he enjoys the esteem 
 and confidence of all who have known him in 
 the past. An honor paid him was the naming of 
 the Eastin school district for him. 
 
 A native son of the state, Oscar H. Eastin 
 was born in Calaveras county, February 26, 1865, 
 but was reared to manhood upon the paternal 
 ranch in Madera county. In September, 1903, 
 he located on his present property, which con- 
 sists of eleven and a half acres of land just west 
 of Merced, while he also cultivates thirty acres 
 which he rents, this entire amount being devoted 
 to alfalfa, fruits, especially berries, and a dairy. 
 In addition to this property he also owns other 
 land in Madera county. He married Rissa Mof- 
 fett, a native of Sonoma county, and the daugh- 
 ter of Henry Mofifett, of Tennessee, who came to 
 this state among the early pioneers. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Eastin are the parents- of three children, 
 namely: Ralph, Ethel and Naomi. In his polit- 
 ical preferment Mr. Eastin is like his father, a 
 Democrat, and is prominent in local affairs. He 
 was one of the five commissioners appointed by 
 Governor Markham to act as officers of Madera 
 county when it was separated from Fresno coun- 
 ty. A man of intelligence and great personal 
 worth, Mr. Eastin is recognized as one of the 
 substantial citizens of the community. 
 
 JOHN P. MURRY. The name of John P. 
 Murry bears with it remembrance of a citizen 
 who held a high place in the affairs of Porters- 
 ville and Tulare county, having been one of 
 the earliest settlers upon the Tule river. ■ He 
 was born in Louisiana and passed the first eigh- 
 teen years of his life upon the paternal farm, 
 where he was trained to the practical duties which 
 made his success in later life. Becoming de- 
 pendent upon his own resources in his nine- 
 teenth year, he decided to cast in his lot with the 
 CaHfornia pioneers, and accordingly he crossed 
 the plains in 1852, being employed by John Mont- 
 gomery, of Independence, Mo., to assist in driv- 
 ing a band of six hmidred cattle to the coast. 
 They brought the cattle successfully through 
 and turned them out on the range in Merced 
 county. Mr. Murry soon afterward returned 
 to Missouri by water, with Mr. Montgomery, 
 
 and the following year (1853) brought out sev- 
 en hundred head of cattle. Mr. Murry remained 
 with Mr. Montgomery until 1855, when he be- 
 came associated with a Mr. Johnson, who was 
 later called "Tule River" Johnson. Together 
 they purchased stock in Los Angeles and win- 
 tered them on the Tule river, and the following 
 spring they were driven to the mines and sold. 
 The successful issue of this venture induced Mr. 
 Murry to continue in the business, and following 
 this he became one of the most prominent stock- 
 men of the San Joaquin valley, in 1874, in part- 
 nership with Henry Mentz, owning twelve thou- 
 sand head. The dry year of 1877 proved disas- 
 trous to many of the stockmen, among whom 
 was Mr. Murry, who lost about five thousand 
 from starvation, and on account of poor range 
 sold the balance for. $10 a head. For several 
 years following this misfortune Mr. Murry was 
 out of the business, being employed in 1883 to 
 go to New Mexico to purchase cattle and stock 
 ranches for Haggin & Hearst, in the four years 
 that he was so occupied purchasing over eight 
 thousand head of cattle. Returning to Porters- 
 ville in 1887, Mr. Murry engaged in stock spec- 
 ulations until his death, owning a range of about 
 fourteen hundred acres lying near the Tule river. 
 In 1888 he laid out Murry's addition to the 
 town of Portersville, and subdivided eighteen 
 acres for building purposes. For a time, from 
 1865 to 1868, Mr. Murry was located in Visalia, 
 where he was engaged with J. E. Denny, of that 
 city, in the livery business, and has also speculated 
 somewhat in mines, although his principal busi- 
 ness has remained throughout his entire resi- 
 dence in the west in the buying, selling and rais- 
 ing of live stock. His death occurred August 
 25, 1899, removing from the community a man 
 who enjoyed to an unusual degree the esteem 
 and confidence of all who knew him, holding a 
 high place by reason of his personal worth as 
 well as business ability. 
 
 In Visalia, in 1858, Mr. Murry was united in 
 marriage with Martha Keeney, a native of Ohio, 
 and they became the parents of five children, of 
 - whom Theodore R. and George G. were the only 
 ones who reached maturity. In his fraternal re- 
 lations Mr. Murry was a member of Porters- 
 ville Lodge No. 199, A. O. U. W. 
 
 JOHN H. SHEDD. One of the leading citi- 
 zens of Borden, John H. Shedd has been suc- 
 cessfully engaged in agricultural pursuits in 
 Madera county for the past thirty years, and 
 in the prosecution of his calling has gained an 
 excellent reputation as a man of ability and 
 worth. Beginning life for himself in boyhood 
 in a small New England village, he has been in 
 truth the architect of his own fortunes, and has 
 
680 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 worked himself up from a condition of compara- 
 tive poverty to a place of affluence and influence. 
 He comes of old colonial stock, the emigrant an- 
 cestor of the Shedd family having settled in New 
 England. A son of Alvin Shedd, he was born 
 April II, 1836, in Orleans county, Vt. His fath- 
 er was a farmer and tanner, and was born and 
 reared in New Hampshire, living there until 
 after his marriage with Laurinda Smith, also a 
 native of that state, then moving to Vermont. 
 
 Born and bred on a Green Mountain farm, 
 John H. Shedd began the battle of life for him- 
 self at the age of sixteen years, learning the 
 shoemaker's trade, at which he served an ap- 
 prenticeship of four years. In 1857, needing a 
 change of climate on account of ill health, he 
 came by way of the Isthmus of Panama to Cali- 
 fornia, and for three years thereafter was en- 
 gaged in mining in Tuolumne county. Recov- 
 ering his former physical vigor, he settled as a 
 farmer in San Joaquin county, near Stockton, 
 where he remained two years. Removing to 
 Owens river valley in Tulare county in 1863, 
 he took up land, and was there engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits until after the memorable earth- 
 quake of 1872. From August, 1872, until April, 
 1873, Mr. Shedd was a resident of Stanislaus 
 county. Removing from there to Fresno (now 
 Madera) county that spring, he bought his pres- 
 ent ranch, which now contains sixteen hundred 
 acres of land, and has since carried on a very 
 extensive and profitable business as a grain and 
 stock raiser. 
 
 In 1869, in San Joaquin county, Mr. Shedd 
 married Elizabeth M. Salmon, a native of Wis- 
 consin, and they are the parents of five chil- 
 dren, namely : Albert E., George M., Lelia A., 
 John F. and Dee Truman (now dead). Taking 
 a keen interest in local affairs, Mr. Shedd has 
 been identified with the public welfare of town, 
 county and state since coming to the coast. He 
 has served as supervisor of Inyo county, and 
 for four years filled the same office in Madera 
 county. 
 
 MRS. VIRGINIA SHERMAN. An ac- 
 complished and enterprising business woman, 
 Mrs. Virginia Sherman is devoting her time 
 and energies to the management of her well- 
 improved ranch, which is pleasantly located near 
 Newman, being about a mile east of the town. 
 Of thrifty and substantial German stock, she 
 was born and brought up in Clark county, Mo., 
 a daughter of Daniel Byers. 
 
 A native of Germany, Daniel Byers came with 
 his parents to the United States when a child, 
 and lived for a short time in Pennsvlvania. At 
 the age of nine years he was taken to Virginia, 
 where he attended the common schools for a 
 
 few years, an-d afterwards learned the potter's 
 trade. Migrating to Missouri in 1852, he set- 
 tled as a pioneer in Clark county, and was there 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death. 
 Mr. Byers 'married Emma Little, a native of 
 Fairfax county, Va., and they became the par- 
 ents of eleven children, of whom four sons and 
 three daughters grew to years of maturity. In 
 1879 Mrs. Byers came to California, and from 
 that time until her death lived in Colusa county, 
 making her home with one of her sons. 
 
 The youngest child of the parental household, 
 Virginia Byers received a good common school 
 education in her native town. In 1876, in Clark 
 county, Mo., she married Hiram F. Sherman. 
 Mrs. Sherman is a clear-headed, active woman, 
 possessing excellent judgment and great execu- 
 tive ability, and since assuming her position as 
 manager of the home estate has met with marked 
 success and but few discouragements. She has 
 quite a dairy, keeping many cows, and has eighty 
 acres of her land devoted to the raising of alfalfa, 
 which is her principal crop. Mrs. Sherman has 
 had four children, namely: Milton R. ; Cecil B., 
 deceased ; Leo D. ; and William Rey. Through- 
 out the community in which she resides, Mrs. 
 Sherman has the respect and esteem of her 
 friends and neighbors, who have ever found her 
 a kind, helpful and genial companion. 
 
 THOMAS DRAKE EASTIN. Conspicu- 
 ous among the many enterprising and progres- 
 sive agriculturists who bring to their calling 
 good business methods and excellent judg- 
 ment is Thomas Drake Eastin, a thriving and 
 prosperous farmer, living about six and one- 
 half miles west of Newman, in Stanislaus county, 
 A son of the late Brutus Eastin, he was born 
 July 27, 1870, in Pike county. Mo. 
 
 A native of Kentucky, Brutus Eastin was 
 born in Madison county. In early boyhood he 
 reiTLOved with his parents, James and Theo- 
 docia (South) Eastin, natives of Virginia, of 
 Scotch-English descent, to Missouri. When the 
 wonderful stories of the rich discovery of gold 
 in California reached his ears, Brutus Eastin 
 crossed the jjlains with an ox team train, and 
 for nine years cast his luck with the miners, 
 in his labors meeting with average success. Re- 
 turning to Missouri in 1858, he married, and 
 lived there for twenty years, when, in 1878, 
 he came with his family to Stanislaus county. 
 He located first at Crow's Landing, and then 
 on the farm now occupied by his son, Thomas 
 Drake Eastin, at Orestimba, which he purchased 
 in the spring of 1887, and where he resided 
 until his death, in 1899, aged seventy-three 
 years. He married Emeline South, who was 
 J3orn in Missouri, and died in Stockton, Cal. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 681 
 
 She bore him four sons and four daughters, 
 Thomas Drake, the special subject of this sketch, 
 being the second child. Two of the sons are 
 now deceased. 
 
 Coming with his parents to Stanislaus county, 
 in 1878, Thomas Drake Eastin was educated in 
 the public schools at Crow's Landing. In 1887 
 he came with the family to the farm on which 
 he now lives, at Orestimba, and since the death 
 of his father has had its management, renting 
 the place from the remaining heirs. The ranch 
 comprises three hundred and sixty-eight acres 
 of land, one-sixth of which is his by inheritance. 
 As a general farmer he is meeting with suc- 
 cess, and in addition to raising the staple crops 
 of this section of the state, Mr. Eastin pays 
 some attention to stock raising, and also has a 
 chicken ranch, from which he receives a good 
 income. 
 
 In San Luis Obispo, Cal., Mr. Eastin married 
 Miss Louisa Vernon, a native of Monterey 
 county, and they have two children, namely: 
 Thomas Drake, Jr., and Inez Dorothy. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Eastin is an earnest supporter of the 
 principles of the Democratic party, and reli- 
 giously he is a member of the Cumberland 
 Presbyterian Church. 
 
 THOMAS FRANK KERR. A wide-awake 
 energetic and progressive man, Thomas F. 
 Kerr has been actively associated with the de- 
 velopment and promotion of the industrial 
 growth and prosperity of the San Joaquin val- 
 ley, and is recognized as one of its leading dairy- 
 men. His ranch, lying about seven miles south 
 of Newman, is well irrigated, and is especially 
 adapted for dairy purposes. He has a good 
 residence and convenient farm buildings, every- 
 thing about the premises indicating the care and 
 supervision of an excellent manager and a thor- 
 ough-going farmer. A son of John James Kerr, 
 he was born March 27, 1849, ^^ Jasper county. 
 Mo. 
 
 Born and reared on a farm in Pike county, 
 Mo., John James Kerr was there employed as a 
 tiller of the soil during his earher life. In 1864, 
 in search of wealth, he came with his family 
 to the Golden State, crossing the plains with 
 ox and mule teams, the journey taking, four 
 months to accomplish. Settling in Contra Costa 
 county, he was engaged in farming and stock 
 raising near Danville. Removing then to Ore- 
 gon, he bought land near Eugene, and there 
 continued his agricultural operations from 1877 
 until 1882. Subsequently returning to Califor- 
 nia, he has since resided in Fresno county, and 
 now, at the age of seventy-seven years, is liv- 
 ing retired, making his home with one of his 
 sons. He married Margaret A. Braley, who 
 
 was born in Missouri, and now lives in Fresno 
 county. Of their union ten children were born, 
 five boys and five girls, Thomas F., the sub- 
 ject of this sketch, being the first-born. 
 
 Having obtained a practical education in the 
 public schools of his native state, Thomas F. 
 Kerr came with his parents to California in 
 1864, settling in Contra Costa county. Select- 
 ing farming as the means of getting a liveli- 
 hood, he has since devoted his time and atten- 
 tion to this branch of industry, and has been 
 favored in every respect. He began his career 
 as a farmer and stock raiser in the vicinity in 
 which he first located, going from there to Kern 
 county, where he engaged in raising sheep and 
 farming, and afterward removed to Merced 
 county, in 1877, where he continued to farm. 
 Removing to Santa Clara county in 1890, Mr. 
 Kerr was engaged in fruit raising near Camp- 
 bell until the fall of 1903, when he removed to 
 San Jose, having previously secured his present 
 ranch, which contains six hundred and forty 
 acres of land, and is irrigated by water from 
 the ditch. Here Mr. Kerr is successfully pursu- 
 ing his pleasant occupation, raising a small 
 amount of grain, and having three hundred and 
 fifty acres of alfalfa. He pays especial atten- 
 tion to his dairy, keeping one hundred and eighty 
 cows, and selling and shipping his dairy products 
 daily to the San Francisco market. 
 
 While living in Contra Costa county, Mr. Kerr 
 married Susie C. Chrisman, a native of Cal- 
 ifornia, and they are the parents of seven chil- 
 dren. In politics Mr. Kerr is identified with 
 the Prohibition party. He takes keen interest 
 in local and national affairs, and for one term 
 was supervisor of Kern county. Both Mr. and 
 Mrs. Kerr are members of the Cumberland Pres- 
 byterian Church. 
 
 WILLIAM STODDARD SCOTT, who has 
 been identified with the business interests of 
 Fresno since the age of nineteen years, has spent 
 his entire life in California. He is a native of 
 Woodland, Yolo county, where he received a pub- 
 lic-school education. He learned the brick- 
 layer's trade under his father, the late C. C. 
 Scott, whose sketch appears on another page in 
 this work. When sixteen years old he began to 
 do journeyman work, being thus engaged in 
 Selma and later in San Francisco. On coming 
 to Fresno he took charge of C. J. Craycroft's 
 brick buildings as foreman and continued in the 
 same position for five years. Since 1895 he has 
 engaged in contracting for himself and in the in- 
 terval has erected, among other structures, the 
 Santa Fe round house and depot, the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South, Baptist Qiurch, Sani- 
 tarium, Kinspiel building, O'Neill, Carnegie, 
 
682 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Wenner, Rosser, Cooper and Porteous buildings, 
 Episcopal Church, Risley building (now the 
 LTnion hotel), Forsythe building, and numerous 
 residences in Fresno, besides being foreman in 
 the construction of both wings of the court house. 
 Out of the city his contracts have taken him to 
 Sanger, Reedley, Madera, Clovis, Selma, Merced 
 and other towns where building enterprises are 
 being pushed with energy and success. 
 
 An active worker in the Republican party, Mr. 
 Scott was its candidate for county clerk in 1902, 
 but was defeated by one hundred and eighty- 
 four votes. The Fresno Chamber of Commerce 
 numbers him among its members. His fraternal 
 relations include membership in the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of the Macca- 
 bees, Knights of Pythias (in which he has offi- 
 ciated as captain of the Uniform Rank), Forest- 
 ers of America, Modern Woodmen of America, 
 Fraternal Brotherhood, Rebekahs, Degree of 
 Honor, Ancient Order of United Workmen and 
 Native Sons of the Golden West. Since 1890 
 he has been connected with the California Nation- 
 al Guard and at one time was drum major of the 
 Sixth Regiment. During the Spanish-American 
 war he enlisted as a private in Company C, Sixth 
 California Infantry, and rose to be sergeant, in 
 which capacity he was serving at the time of his 
 honorable discharge from the volunteer organ- 
 ization. Afterward he renewed his membership 
 in Company C, Sixth National Guard, and held 
 a commission as first lieutenant of his company. 
 He is connected with the Spanish-American War 
 Veterans. During the progress of the war he 
 acted as a correspondent for the Fresno Repub- 
 lican, to which, as to other local papers, he has 
 also been a contributor on other topics. On the 
 organization of the Bricklayers & Masons In- 
 ternational Union No. i, at Fresno, he became 
 a charter member, was elected its first secretary, 
 and has continued to fill that office up to the 
 present time. He also holds office as vice-presi- 
 dent of the state union of the same organization 
 and is further connected with the Building and 
 Trades Council of Fresno as its secretary. 
 
 ADOLPH PI. SALAU. Four and a half 
 miles southwest of Los Banos is located the dairy 
 farm of Adolph H. Salau, one of the representa- 
 tives of a family established in the state in 1858, 
 a son of H. F. F. Salau, whose sketch appears 
 elsewhere in this volume. Soon after the birth 
 of his son. Adolph H., on his farm in Santa 
 Clara county, August 24, 1869, he settled on the 
 west side of Merced county and engaged in the 
 sheep business on Badger Flats for a year, after- 
 ward engaging in the same business in the foot- 
 hills along the Los Banos creek. Five years 
 later he moved to his present place, a farm of 
 
 two hundred and eighty acres, of which two 
 hundred acres are under alfalfa. Besides Adolph 
 H., he had four other children, of whom Mrs. 
 Mathias Becker lives in the vicinity of Los 
 Banos; and Mary A., Louis H., and Doretta C, 
 live on the old place. 
 
 Adolph H. has always been industrious and 
 appreciative of the many advantages of country 
 existence. He received a practical education in 
 the public schools and continued to live on the 
 home place until his twent)'-first year, when he 
 located on the farm which has since been his 
 home. He has turned his attention principally 
 to raising grain, and at times has farmed six 
 hundred and forty acres. He now has thirty 
 acres under alfalfa and raises about two hundred 
 tons a year. He is a progressive farmer, appre- 
 ciating the comforts and luxuries of life, and 
 bringing many of the advantages of the city 
 within the borders of his property. 
 
 Mr. Salau has served his township well as a 
 stanch Republican, and has taken a prominent 
 part in the local deliberations of his party, rep- 
 resenting his district in state and county conven- 
 tions. Fraternallv he is a member of Los Banos 
 Lodge No. 312, F. & A. M. ; the Woodmen of 
 the World, and the Order Eastern Star. Mr. 
 Salau married in Marshfield, Ore., Lulu C. Mil- 
 ler, a native of San Francisco. He is a promi- 
 nent rancher, and respected for his many sterling 
 traits of character. 
 
 HENRY G. BOLLMAN is a successful 
 ranchman of Contra Costa county, located in 
 the Mount Diablo valley on a ranch of six hun- 
 dred acres, which is now devoted to the cultiva- 
 tion of hay and raising of stock. Previous to 
 the last ten years he raised grain principally, in 
 which cultivation, by wise and judicious man- 
 agement, he met with success and accumulated 
 a competency which enabled him to become the 
 owner of his present prosperous ranch. Mr. 
 Bollman is a strictly self-made man, having been 
 thrown upon his own resources at an early age, 
 and with nothing but his own energy and 
 courage to buoy him up, has steadily advanced 
 to his present position of influence and affluence. 
 
 Born in Santa Clara county, Cal, August 3, 
 1855, Mr. Bollman was a son of Dedrick and 
 Henrietta (Ringstruflf) Bollman. The elder 
 man brought his family to California in 1853 
 or '54, locating at San Jose, Santa Clara county, 
 where he followed farming until his death in 
 1858, at the early age of forty-five years. His 
 widow married a second time, becoming the wife 
 of Andrew Gehringer, who afterward settled in 
 Contra Costa county, where her death occurred 
 in May, 1903, in her eighty-second year. Henry 
 G. Bollman grew to manhood and sought to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 683 
 
 earn his living by hiring out to neighboring 
 farmers. By industry and economy he man- 
 aged to accumulate suflScient money to admit 
 of the purchase of one hundred and fifteen acres 
 of his step-father's ranch, and began general 
 farming and stock raising. With the passing 
 years his accumulated wealth was invested in 
 adjoining land until today he owns six hundred 
 acres. He has continued to add improvements 
 in the way of buildings, fences, etc., and has 
 set out a small fruit orchard, which is only in- 
 tended to supply his family with needed fruits. 
 In addition to his farming interests he con- 
 ducts a dairy of thirty-five cows, having his own 
 creamery upon the ranch. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Bollman in 1887 united 
 him with Mattie Smith, a daughter of George 
 Smith, who spent his last years in Contra Costa 
 county. Mrs. Bollman was born in Iowa, but 
 was reared and educated in California. Born, 
 of this union were six children, namely: 
 Harold, Henrietta, Ralph, Winnie, Catherine 
 and Marion. 
 
 GEORGE C. HENDERSON. In the strug- 
 gle of life which results in the survival of the 
 fittest, George C. Henderson had only those 
 qualities with which nature had endowed him 
 to depend upon, and the story of his life is the 
 story of what a man can do if his energies are 
 directed along the channel where his interest 
 lies. For when a man pursues a calling for 
 which nature has peculiarly fitted him and which 
 possesses a never-ceasing interest for him, suc- 
 cess will crown his individual efforts in almost 
 every instance. It is so in the case of Mr. Hen- 
 derson, one of the early pioneers of California, 
 which has been his home for more than half a 
 century, and for more than thirty years he has 
 followed ranching pursuits in Merced county, of 
 which he is now a retired and honored citizen. 
 In observing this well-known, keen-looking gen- 
 tleman, it will be seen at a glance that his sev- 
 enty-five years sit lightly upon him and his activ- 
 ity would shame many a younger man. 
 
 Of Scotch-English ancestry, born March 10, 
 1829, in the town of Chester, Warren county, 
 N. Y., Mr. Henderson is a son of Carlton and 
 Lovina (Smith) Henderson, both of whom were 
 also natives of the Empire state, the father be- 
 ing of Scotch extraction and the mother of Eng- 
 lish. When but eight years old George C. was 
 deprived of his father by death. He continued 
 to live in New York and during his boyhood 
 and early manhood, receiving his education in 
 the local schools. In 1852, in his twenty-third 
 year, he sailed for California, coming by way 
 of the Nicaragua route, and shortly after land- 
 ing at San Francisco went to the mines of Yuba 
 
 county, near Marysville, but paid very little at- 
 tention to mining. He ditched one hundred and 
 sixty acres in that county, working for wages, 
 and subsequently assisted in threshing wheat 
 the same fall in the vicinity of San Jose, and 
 the following four months were spent by him 
 in the Redwood district, in San Mateo county. 
 He was located next in the Santa Clara valley, 
 where lie worked for a year and a half, then 
 went to Stockton and for ten years he followed 
 teaming from that city to Sonora and Columbia. 
 
 In 1864 Mr. Henderson went back to Warren 
 county and September 10 was married to Emma 
 Brusie, and, accompanied by his wife, he re- 
 turned to California. Purchasing land in the 
 vicinity of Modesto, Stanislaus county, he fol- 
 lowed farming until 1874. During that year he 
 came to Merced county and four years later he 
 purchased the place where he now resides and 
 which has since been his home. His original 
 purchase contained one hundred and eighty-five 
 acres and is located four miles west of Merced. 
 He has raised principally grain and hay, paying 
 some attention, however, -to fruit and alfalfa. 
 Being very productive, the place has yielded him 
 an income above the ordinary and has placed 
 him in comfortable circumstances, in addition 
 to having enabled him to rear and educate his 
 family of five children : Cora became the wife 
 of A. E. Burnside of Merced county and has 
 one child ; Ruby, who married S. T. Baker, lives 
 in Oregon and has two children, Lora Belle and 
 an infant unnamed ; Charles is an engineer liv- 
 ing in Everett, Wash. ; Henri Herbert, a sur- 
 veyor, lives in Merced ; and Fred, an electrician, 
 lives in Redlands, Cal. 
 
 Politically Mr. Henderson was a Whig in the 
 early days, but afterwards, upon the organiza- 
 tion of the Republican party, joined its ranks. 
 He is a prominent character in the history of 
 Merced county, of which he is one of the early 
 settlers and one who is held in highest esteem 
 by all who know him for his generosity and 
 public spirit. 
 
 H. C. CROWDER, M. D. During that period 
 of American history when Kentucky was still a 
 frontier settlement in the midst of hostile savages, 
 John Crowder left his native South Carolina and 
 established a home in the blue-grass country. The 
 next generation was represented by Reuben 
 Crowder, a native of Kentucky, who as early as 
 1824 removed to Sangamon county. 111., and 
 settled on raw land in Gardner township. The 
 present capital city of Springfield was at that 
 time a hamlet containing only six houses, and 
 those of the crudest construction. At the time 
 of removing to Illinois, the son, Thomas M., who 
 was born in Kentucky in 18 18, was a child of 
 
684 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 six years, and from that time forward he was 
 identified with farm pursuits in Ilhnois, where 
 he remained until his death. In early manhood 
 he married Mary J. Dally, who was born in 
 Pennsylvania and removed to Illinois at an early 
 age with her father, Milton Dally, likewise of 
 Pennsylvania birth. 
 
 The family of Thomas M. and Mary J. Crow- 
 der consisted of ten children, all but three of 
 whom attained mature years. Of these, H. C. 
 Crowder was second in order of birth, and was 
 born near Springfield, 111., June 19, 1844. As a 
 boy, he attended the Springfield schools. Early 
 in life he formed an aspiration to become a phy- 
 sician, but the outbreak of the war delayed him 
 in taking up the necessary studies. He enlisted 
 in Company G, Tenth Illinois Cavalry, mustered 
 into service at Springfield in 1862 and assigned 
 to the army of the Mississippi under Generals 
 Steele and Canby. In that department he served 
 until the close of the war, when he was honorably 
 discharged in New Orleans June 8, 1865, pursu- 
 ant upon the general, order for the disbandment 
 of the army. On his return to Illinois he assisted 
 his father on the home farm for four years and 
 during his leisure hours studied medicine under 
 Dr. J. M. West, then of Springfield, and now 
 of Red Bluff, Cal. In order to avail himself of 
 the advantages offered by one of the most thor- 
 ough institutions in the country he matriculated 
 in Rush Medical College in Chicago in 1870, and 
 received the degree of M. D. from that college 
 in 1874 on the completion of the regular course. 
 
 Upon establishing an office for practice. Dr. 
 Crowder located first at San Jose, Mason county, 
 111. In 1876 he came to California, locating at 
 Santa Rosa, but in 1879 transferring his office 
 to Williams, Colusa county, where he built up 
 an important patronage in the ten ensuing years. 
 During the period of his residence at WiUiams 
 he served as coroner and public administrator for 
 one term, and under appointment by Governor 
 Stoneman was for four years a member of the 
 state board of health. In 1889 he returned to 
 his former home in Santa Rosa, where in addi- 
 tion to his private practice he held the position 
 of surgeon to the Southern Pacific Railroad. For 
 two terms he was a member of the board of 
 trustees of the public library. In 1896 he be- 
 came a practicing physician of Sutter Creek, 
 Amador county, and from there, in March, 1903, 
 came to Tracy, San Joaquin county, where he 
 now carries on a general practice and also acts 
 as district surgeon for the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road. The Pacific Coast Association of Railroad 
 Surgeons numbers him among its members, and 
 he is also actively interested in the San Joaquin 
 County, California State and American Medical 
 Associations, besides being a thoughtful reader 
 of current medical literature. It is his ambition 
 
 to keep abreast with every development made in 
 the science of medicine. With this object in view 
 he has ever been a student of therapeutics, and 
 no discovery is made of possible value to the 
 fraternity of physicians that fails to receive his 
 thorough investigation and study. 
 
 The marriage of Dr. Crowder was solemnized 
 in Santa Rosa, February 15, 1878, and united 
 him with Bertha Letold, who was born in Grass 
 Lake, Mich., and came to California in company 
 with her parents in 1875. The doctor and his 
 wife are associated with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church of Tracy, in which he serves as chairman 
 of the board of trustees. Though not a radical 
 partisan, he is nevertheless a stanch Democrat 
 and in local and national elections gives his sup- 
 port to the party of his choice. In Masonry he 
 became connected with the Blue Lodge at Bloom- 
 field, where he was initiated in Vitruvius Lodge 
 No. 76, and later was chosen master of the Will- 
 iams Lodge, also rose to the chapter degree at 
 Colusa. While residing at Santa Rosa he was 
 honored with the office of commander of Ells- 
 worth Post No. 20, and also officiated as medical 
 director of the department of California, with the 
 rank of colonel. 
 
 FRANKLIN P. BAKER is a citizen whose 
 interests have always been identified with those 
 of Brentwood, Contra Costa county, Cal., and 
 who has given no little of a busy life to its 
 progress and upbuilding. He was born in Con- 
 tra Costa county, December 23, 1856, a son of 
 John Baker, a well-known and highly honored 
 pioneer resident of this section. 
 
 John Baker was born in Westmoreland county. 
 Pa., July 4, 1819, a son of Richard Baker, who 
 settled in Stark county, Ohio, in 1822. He was 
 there reared to manhood and learned the trade 
 of carpenter, engaging in its prosecution as well 
 as having farming interests in both that state 
 and Michigan, locating in Cass county of the 
 latter state in 1845. In 1853 he joined the tide 
 of emigration setting toward the west and 
 crossed the plains to California. On his arrival 
 he located in Contra Costa county, where he 
 purchased a Spanish land grant near Walnut 
 creek. This property, consisting of one hundred 
 and eighty acres, he devoted principally to the 
 cultivation of grain, raising some stock and also 
 putting out a family orchard of apples, pears 
 and grapes, fruits which he found best adapted 
 to the soil and climate. He was a successful 
 man and attained a prominent place among the 
 ranchmen of the county. Fraternally he affili- 
 ated with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, and belonged to the Grange. He was a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, He 
 died December 9, 1901, at the age of eighty-two 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 685 
 
 years, leaving a widow, formerly Martha Ann 
 Glass, who was born in Harrison, Ohio, a 
 daughter of William and Priscilla (Wiley) 
 Glass, and to whom he was married June 4, 
 1848. They were the parents of four children, 
 namely : Almira J., deceased ; Franklin P. ; 
 John C. ; and Mary P. With the exception of 
 Franklin P. Baker, all are at home. 
 
 Franklin P. Baker was reared and educated 
 in the county, and after completing the course 
 of the common schools he entered the Univer- 
 sity of the Pacific at San Jose, and later Mc- 
 Clure's Military School, of Oakland. Well 
 equipped to conduct a commercial or agricul- 
 tural enterprise, he then returned to the coun- 
 try and engaged in the work to which he had 
 early been trained. His first purchase of land 
 was made of Mr. Bannister, and consisted of 
 one hundred and sixty acres located in Contra 
 Costa coimty in the southeastern part of sec- 
 tion 3, I south, 2 east, and this he proceeded 
 to cultivate to grain. He then bought two hun- 
 dred and forty acres on the northwest, section 
 12, I north, 2 east, and north quarter-section, 
 southwest section 12. This property he devotes 
 entirely to stock raising. He makes his home in 
 Brentwood. A Republican in politics he has 
 always been a stanch supporter of his party's 
 principles. For the past ten years he has acted 
 as deputy assessor and now holds the office of 
 deputy registrar for supervisors, district No. 5. 
 Fraternally he is associated with the Independ- 
 ent Order of Odd Fellows, and also belongs to 
 the Rebekahs. 
 
 EDWIN GOWER. As the first commercial 
 manufacturer of olive oil in the San Joaquin val- 
 ley, Mr. Gower is associated with the establish- 
 ment and building up of an enterprise of no small 
 importance to the people of this part of California. 
 It was during 1899 that he started a small olive 
 oil plant on his ranch in Fresno county, where, 
 with George C. Roeding as partner, he manu- 
 factured olive oil upon a small scale. When the 
 need of a city environment and more adequate 
 accommodations became imperative the plant was 
 moved to Fresno, where a factory was built on 
 the Southern Pacific Railroad, and in 1903 a new 
 company was organized under the title of Roed- 
 ing Olive Company. The building of the plant 
 was superintended by Mr. Gower. With a ca- 
 pacity of twenty-five thousand gallons per year, 
 pure olive oil is manufactured in large quantities, 
 for sale both in this country and abroad. The 
 high reputation acquired by the product is abund- 
 ant evidence of its purity, and more and more it 
 is coming into popularity for medicinal and other 
 purposes where a pure oil is absolutely imperative. 
 
 The west has been the lifelong home of Mr. 
 
 Gower, who was born at Gold Hill, Nev., Sep- 
 tember 14, i860, being a son of Sewall and Cor- 
 nelia (DeVoe) Gower, natives respectively of 
 Maine and New York. His grandfather, kobert 
 Gower, a native of Maine, became a pioneer 
 farmer in Cedar county, Iowa, and for years ran 
 a ferry across the Cedar river at a point that came 
 to be known as Gower's Ferry. His death oc- 
 curred in Iowa. At an early age Sewall Gower 
 crossed the plains with mule teams and engaged 
 in mining at Gold Hill, Nev., but later removed to 
 San Joaquin county, Cal., and engaged in raising 
 grain on a farm near Stockton. He and his wife 
 now make their home in Santa Cruz. Of their 
 seven children four are living, Edwin being the 
 only son. As a boy he aided in the cultivation 
 of the San Joaquin farm and attended local 
 schools, but during youth he was sent to Iowa, 
 where he attended an old Quaker academy at 
 Springdale, Cedar county. While there he met 
 and married Miss Cora C. Perkins, a native of 
 that county and a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 . Accompanied by his wife Mr. Gower returned 
 to California and for a year resided in San Joa- 
 quin county. In 1887 he came to Fresno county 
 and purchased three hundred and twenty acres 
 of raw land near Fowler, where he set out one- 
 half of the acreage in orchard of various fruits 
 and put the balance largely under alfalfa. This 
 property lies three and one-half miles northeast 
 of Fowler and under his capable supervision has 
 greatly increased in value. In the organization 
 of the Armstrong Fruit Company at Fowler he 
 took an active part and has since held the office , 
 of secretary and treasurer of the concern, al- 
 though, as before stated, since 1899 much of his 
 time has been devoted to the manufacture of com- 
 mercial olive oil. He is a member of the Fresno 
 Chamber of Commerce. Possessing a progres- 
 sive spirit, he is always to be relied upon to assist 
 in developing enterprises for the benefit of this 
 community. When once convinced of the merits 
 of a new movement, his co-operation is always 
 generously given to its progress. His own in- 
 terests, though important and extensive, are never 
 allowed to exclude participation in plans for the 
 public welfare. In every respect he has proved 
 himself a public-spirited citizen of his adopted 
 town. 
 
 The family of Mr. and Mrs. Gower comprises 
 nine children, all of whom are at home except the 
 eldest, Cornelia, who is married and lives in Fres- 
 no county. The others are Emma, Viola, Rosa- 
 mond, Mellicent, Sewall, Edwin, Gertrude and 
 Cora. At no time has Mr. Gower desired to 
 occupy positions of official importance, for his 
 tastes are commercial, rather than political ; how- 
 ever, his interest in educational affairs led him 
 to accept the position of member of the board 
 
686 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of high school trustees during his residence in 
 Fowler, and this position he filled with a fidelity 
 characteristic of him in every relation of life. In 
 politick he gives his support to Democratic can- 
 didates. Through his membership in the Cali- 
 fornia Raisin Growers' Association he is con- 
 nected with an organization of the greatest aid 
 in the development of an important industry. 
 Fraternally he is associated with the Knights of 
 Pythias ; the Independent Order of Odd Fellows 
 at Fowler, where he is past noble grand ; and the 
 Order of Foresters, in which he has held impor- 
 tant official positions. 
 
 C. J. GIDDINGS. Representative of the best 
 type of American citizenship, C. J. Giddings oc- 
 cupies a prominent place among the business men 
 of Visalia. Since October, 1880, he has held the 
 position of cashier in the Bank of Visalia, of 
 which he is also a director, and for eighteen 
 years has acted as president of the Building and 
 Loan Association, which he helped to organize. 
 In addition to these absorbing interests he has 
 as well been variously connected with many move- 
 ments important in the development and up- 
 building of the city and county, and" has thus 
 come to be recognized as a citizen upon whom 
 public honor and responsibility may safely rest. 
 
 Mr. Giddings is the descendant oi an old New 
 England family located in Ipswich, Mass., in 1635, 
 by George Giddings, a native of Herefordshire, 
 England. The line of descent is from his son, 
 John, whose son, Thomas, had a son, Joshua, 
 whose son of the same name was the great-grand- 
 father of C. J. Giddings. He was born in Lyme, 
 Conn., whence he came west to Athens, Pa., then 
 located in Canandaigua, N. Y., and in 1806 set- 
 tled in Ashtabula county, Ohio. He was num- 
 bered among the patriotic citizens who gave their 
 services at the time of the Revolutionary war, 
 being in service with Arnold on Lake Champlain. 
 He married Submit Jones and both himself and 
 wife died in the state which they had helped to 
 develop into statehood. His son, Elisha, a na- 
 tive of Connecticut, became a farmer in Ashtab- 
 ula county, Ohio, marrying Philotheta Fish, 
 daughter of Colonel Fish, of Vermont, who was 
 also a pioneer of the Western Reserve, hewing 
 a farm from the wilderness. His death occurred 
 in Ohio. Sidney Giddings, a son of Elisha, was 
 born in Ashtabula county, Ohio, where he died 
 at the age of thirty-five years, having spent his 
 life in agricultural pursuits. His wife was in 
 maidenhood Polly Sackett, who was born in 
 Geauga county, Ohio, a daughter of Ephraim 
 Sackett, who emigrated from his native state, 
 Massachusetts, and became a pioneer of Geauga 
 county. Mrs. Giddings also died at the age of 
 thirty-five years, leaving a family of two chil- 
 
 dren, C. J., of this review, and Mrs. Welsh, of 
 Rivera, Los Angeles county. 
 
 Born in Ashtabula county, Ohio, December 29, 
 1843, C. J. Giddings was but eight years old 
 when his father died and only fifteen when he also 
 lost his mother. Shortly after this last sad 
 event he went to Geauga county and spent a 
 year or more, when (being then seventeen years 
 old), he went to Cleveland and engaged in cler- 
 ical work in the employ of the Cleveland & Pitts- 
 burgh Railroad. This position he retained until 
 1862, when he enlisted in the Eighty-fourth Ohio 
 Regiment, as a member of Company C, for serv- 
 ice in the Civil war. He was mustered in for 
 three months, after which he went to Cumberland, 
 serving four months, when he received an hon- 
 orable discharge. Going then to Iowa Falls, 
 Iowa, he engaged in farming and stock raising 
 for a time, after which he returned to Ohio and 
 entered the employ of the Atlantic & Great 
 Western Railway, in the clerical department. 
 With the exception of a short time spent at Ober- 
 lin College, he remained in that capacity for two 
 years, when he went to Cleveland and engaged 
 as bookkeeper with a hardware firm. Deciding 
 to follow the example of his early ancestors, he 
 came to California in 1869, spending his first four~ 
 years in Woodland. His first position in that 
 locality was as deputy county clerk, after which 
 he became a searcher of records, when he made 
 a full set of abstract books, the first of the kind 
 in that" city. In the fall of 1873 he came to 
 Tulare county and located on government land 
 near Grangeville, improving and cultivating a 
 farm, upon which he made his home for three 
 years. At the end of that period he removed 
 to Visalia, entering the employ of D. K. Zum- 
 walt in an abstract office, with whom he remained 
 six months, when he established a new set of 
 abstract books and engaged in the business in- 
 dependently until the fall of 1880. In October 
 of that year he was elected to his present position 
 of cashier of the Bank of \^isalia, maintaining 
 with increasing credit the responsibilities for 
 nearly twenty-five years. 
 
 In Kent, Portage county, Ohio, November 10, 
 1869, Mr. Giddings was united in marriage with 
 Minnie R. Holcomb. She was born in Ravenna, 
 Ohio, a daughter of Samuel Holcomb. He was 
 a native of Westfield, Mass., and son of Roswell 
 Holcomb, who died in that state. The family 
 was established in America by Thomas Holcomb, 
 who came to this country in the ship Mary and 
 John in 1630. He located in Massachusetts and 
 became the founder of Dorchester, the meaning 
 of which name is woody valley. Samuel Hol- 
 comb removed to Ohio in an early day and set- 
 tled near Ravenna, where he engaged as a stone- 
 mason, in the building of bridges principally. He 
 located in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, for four years, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 689 
 
 when he returned to Ravenna, and took charge 
 of die building of bridges for the Atlantic & 
 Great Western Railway until 1872. In the last 
 named year he came to California and the fol- 
 lowing year located in Tulare, where he was one 
 of the first merchants, carrying on the first 
 grocery business of the place. He was burned 
 out twice and finally quit the business and re- 
 tired. His death occurred in Tulare county in 
 1894 at the age of eighty-one years. ^In his po- 
 litical preference he was a stanch Republican, 
 and fraternally was a member of the Independ- 
 ent Order of Odd Fellows. His wife, formerly 
 Lucina Stough, was a native of Ravenna, Ohio, 
 and the daughter of Simon Stough, born in Con- 
 necticut of Dutch descent and a pioneer of Port- 
 age county, Ohio. He was a soldier in the war 
 of 1812 and an earnest and upright citizen. Mrs. 
 Holcomb died in 1892, leaving two children, 
 namely : Mattie, who became, the wife of A. W. 
 Wheeler of Tulare; and Minnie R., the wife of 
 C. J. Giddings. To Mr. and Mrs. Giddings was 
 born one daughter, Blanche. She was educated 
 at Mills College and Fields Seminary, Oakland, 
 this state, and married J. O. Hickman, cashier 
 of the First National Bank of Hanford. 
 
 Mr. Giddings is a stanch Republican politically 
 and for several years served as city treasurer. 
 Fraternally he is identified with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, being a member and past 
 grand of Four Creeks Lodge; a member of 
 Knights of Pythias, being past chancellor for 
 several terms; and also associated with the 
 Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of Fresno. 
 
 ISAAC N. WRIGHT. Prominent among the 
 venerable and highly respected citizens of Tulare 
 county is I. N. Wright, who has the distinction 
 of being one of the oldest settlers in the county 
 in point of years. During his long residence 
 here he has taken an active interest in everything 
 tending toward advancement and has been an 
 important factor in helping forward ,its indus- 
 trial and agricultural prosperity. A man of in- 
 dustry, thrift and sound judgment, he has been 
 successful as an agriculturist, improving a good 
 farm, and acquiring a fair share of this world's 
 goods. A native of Ohio, he was born, October 
 13. 1823, in Knox county, about five miles from 
 Mount Vernon, of English ancestry. 
 
 William Wright, his father, was born in Eng- 
 land, and was there brought up and educated. 
 Immigrating to America, he located in Ohio, be- 
 coming one of the earliest pioneers of Knox' 
 county. Taking up land that was in its original 
 wildness, he erected a log cabin in an opening, 
 and having reclaimed a farm was engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits for many years. Removing 
 to Iowa in the later years of his life, he resided 
 
 in that state until his death. He married Eliza- 
 beth Newton, who was born in England, and died 
 in Omaha, Neb. She bore him eleven children, 
 four of whom are still living. One son, George, 
 came to California in rSso, and died in Tuolumne 
 county. Another son, James, came to the coast 
 with his brother, Isaac N., in 185 1, and died in 
 San Diego. 
 
 Reared on the home farm, I. N. Wright re- 
 ceived his elementary instruction from his mother, 
 a woman of refinement and education. At the 
 age of sixteen years he assisted in building a 
 log school house in his district, and being very 
 clever with an axe was allowed to cut the saddles 
 and notches for one corner. In this building he 
 completed his school life, attending five years. 
 After attaining his majority he served an ap- 
 prenticeship at the miller's trade, after which he 
 leased a flour and saw mill at Mount Vernon, 
 Ohio, on Owl creek, and managed it for two 
 years. Deciding to come to California in search 
 of fortune, Mr. Wright sailed from New York 
 on the Georgia'in November, 185 1, for Aspin- 
 wall, from there going by rail to Gorgona, thence 
 by small steamer to the head of navigation, com- 
 pleting the remaining distance, about twenty-five 
 miles, across the Isthmus on foot. Taking pas- 
 sage on the steamer Northerner at Panama, he- 
 landed in San Francisco in December, 1851. 
 Going directly to Jamestown, Tuolumne county, 
 he, with his brothers, was engaged in placer min- 
 ing for two years, meeting with reasonable suc- 
 cess. In 1854, with his brother George, Mr. 
 Wright leased a sawmill, which he operated for 
 four years. Returning then by way of Panama 
 to New York, he went to Ohio for his family, 
 arriving there in February, 1856. The following 
 April he again started for California by the 
 Isthmus route, having with him his wife and 
 child, and was in Panama on April 15, when the 
 memorable riots took place. Fortunately he had 
 his family safely ensconced in the American hotel, 
 near the Plaza, but he himself took part in the 
 outbreak, being armed with an old United States 
 fiint-lock musket. When order was restored Mr. 
 Wright came with his family to San Francisco 
 on the steamer John L. Stevens, having a good 
 passage. Settling.in Sonora, he engaged in quartz 
 mining and milling, carrying on a prosperous 
 business for a number of years. In 1869 he lo- 
 cated his family in San Jose and made a prospect- 
 ing tour through the coast counties and into the 
 San Joaquin valley, his intention being to em- 
 bark in the stock business, but found the season 
 too dry for that. 
 
 Very soon afterward, in 1870, Mr. Wright pre- 
 empted one hundred and sixty acres of the land 
 now included within the limits of the city of Tu- 
 lare and in 1872 he traded this tract to the rad- 
 road company for his present homestead and at 
 
600 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 once located on it. He subsequently improved 
 the land, placing it under irrigation, and grad- 
 ually drifted into the stock business, at the same 
 time becoming one of the successful farmers of 
 his locality. Of the four hundred and nine acres 
 of land which Mr. Wright owns he has one hun- 
 dred acres in alfalfa, and is putting in more each 
 season. He has a large dairy, and pays much at- 
 tention to the raising of cattle and hogs, keeping 
 a good grade of each. In the upbuilding of Tu- 
 lare Mr. Wright has taken a keen interest, gladly 
 lending his aid and influence to the establishment 
 of all beneficial enterprises. He was one of the 
 promoters of the Kaweah Canal and Irrigating 
 Company, of which he was a director from the 
 first, and which he subsequently served as presi- 
 dent. For ten years he was school trustee, and 
 superintended the building of the brick school 
 house in Tulare. In national politics Mr. Wright 
 is a straight Republican, but in local affairs he 
 votes with the courage of his convictions, regard- 
 less of party restrictions. 
 
 January 14, 1851, in Mount Vernon, Ohio, Mr. 
 Wright married Charlotte A. Phillips, and they 
 are the parents of four children. Victoria is the 
 wife of A. D. Neff, of Oakland, Cal. ; George W., 
 residing in Tuolumne, was born in Tuolumne 
 county ; he is a railway engineer, and in that_ ca- 
 pacity brought the first passenger train into 
 Sonora; Alic.e L. is at home; and Hattie M. is 
 the wife of W. J. Higdon, of Tulare. Mrs. 
 Wright was born November 20, 1830, near Mount 
 Vernon, Knox county, Ohio, a daughter of 
 Qiarles and Addie (Foster) Phillips, the latter 
 of whom was born and reared in England. She 
 is the fourth child in order of birth in a family 
 of six children, two of whom are living, she 
 being the only one on the Pacific coast. 
 
 MRS. AGNES E. McDONALD. Among 
 the institutions which are maintaining the repu- 
 tation of Fresno county as a humane and gen- 
 erous community is the Orphanage, located on 
 the old Judge Nourse place, two miles east of 
 Fresno, on Ventura avenue. This institution 
 was founded in Fresno in January, 1895, with 
 eighteen children to profit by ij:s practical home 
 atmosphere, and in June, 1897, it was removed 
 from Fresno to its present home, purchased by 
 the county and consisting of ten acres, improved 
 in trees and lawns and affording ample oppor- 
 tunity for the out-of-doors development of its 
 fortunate little charges. A committee of twen- 
 ty-five ladies of Fresno direct the affairs of the 
 institution and appropriations for its mainte- 
 nance are made by the board of county super- 
 visors. Children without home connections are 
 maintained at the Orphanage until their four- 
 teenth year, and when they depart take with 
 
 them a common school education up to and in- 
 cluding the ninth grade. The greatest number 
 of children accommodated at one time has been 
 sixty-three, and during the past five years four 
 hundred and ten homeless ones have passed 
 through the hospitable doors, remaining for va- 
 rious lengths of time in its Christian and help- 
 ful atmosphere. 
 
 Inseparably connected with the Orphanage is 
 the name of its much-loved matron, Mrs. Agnes 
 E. McDonald, who has been elected to her pres- 
 ent position for nine consecutive years. She be- 
 came identified with the Orphanage at its or- 
 ganization in 1895, and has since proved herself 
 a good genius to the waifs unfortunately thrown 
 upon a none too charitable world. She is a 
 woman of education and progressive views, 
 loyal to trusts imposed and remarkable in her 
 appreciation of child character and aspirations. 
 
 W. W. RAMSEY, D. D. S. Although but in 
 the beginning of his professional career. Dr. Ram- 
 sey has already established a reputation for broad 
 and accurate knowledge of the science of dentist- 
 ry and has an assured position among the pro- 
 fessional men of Madera county. When he came 
 to the city of Madera in the summer of 1901 
 he succeeded to the practice of Dr. A. T. Lock- 
 wood. Since then, through his skillful handling 
 of the work given him, be has gained the confi- 
 dence of the people and enjoys an increasing 
 practice together with a growing reputation for 
 professional skill. In his office are all the equip- 
 ments necessary to modern dentistry, and such 
 inventions as he believes to be helpful he utilizes 
 in his work. 
 
 In his lineage Dr. Ramsey is of old Virginian 
 stock. His parents, Joseph and Jennie (Sharp) 
 Ramsey, were natives of the Old Dominion, but 
 settled in Texas after their marriage, the fath- 
 er embarking in the cattle business near Dallas. 
 Dr. Ramsey, who was an only child, was born in 
 Dallas, May 8, 1875, and was but one year old 
 when his father died. Afterward the widowed 
 mother returned to Virginia and settled among 
 relatives in Abingdon, Washington county, where 
 he was sent to the public schools. The educa- 
 tion there acquired was supplemented by at- 
 tendance at Liberty Hall Academy and Glade 
 Spring Military Academy. When in his junior 
 year he left the latter institution and removed 
 to Kewanee, 111., after which he traveled for a 
 Chicago house for about four years, his terri- 
 tory covering the middle west. 
 
 Coming to California in 1895 Dr. Ramsey has 
 since made this state his home, and his moth- 
 er also lives here, having her home in Red- 
 lands. After he had spent two years in South- 
 ern California he took up dental work with a 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 691 
 
 cousin, Dr. Sharp, in Lodi, and soon decided to 
 make the profession his Hfe-work. With that ob- 
 ject in view he matriculated in the College of 
 Physicians and Surgeons in San Francisco, de- 
 partment of dental surgery, from which he was 
 graduated June 23, 1901, receiving the degree 
 of D. D. S. After his graduation he came to 
 Madera, where he has since given his attention 
 to professional duties. Along the line of his 
 profession he is identified with the State Dental 
 Association, also with the Alumni Association of 
 his alma mater. With his wife, formerly Cora 
 Tooker, a native of Iowa, he holds a high posi- 
 tion socially and is welcomed in the best circles 
 of Madera. Although born in the south, and 
 reared in the east, he is loyal to the state of his 
 adoption, has been a careful and thoughtful stu- 
 dent of California's early history, and believes 
 in her ultimate destiny as one of the greatest 
 commonwealths in our nation, offering to her 
 citizens beauties of climate and commercial op- 
 portunities unsurpassed by any state. To a gen- 
 tleman of his genial temperament, association 
 with fraternal organizations provides a desirable 
 form of recreation, and since coming to Madera 
 he has affiliated with Lodge No. 280, F. & A. M., 
 in which he was made a Mason, also the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows, Woodmen of 
 the World and Modern Woodmen of America. 
 
 JOHN PEACE CLARK. In the material de- 
 velopment of California perhaps no subject has 
 been of more vital importance than that of irri- 
 gation, for it has brought into the greatest pro- 
 ductiveness vast areas which otherwise could not 
 be profitably cultivated. Nowhere in the state 
 is the value of an excellent water supply more 
 appreciated than in the San Joaquin valley, and 
 therefore the men who have given their time and 
 thought to the question are necessarily leaders in 
 the community. Of the organizations established 
 to secure waterways for the land, none is better 
 known than the Consolidated Canal Company, 
 which embraces the Centerville & Kingsburg, 
 Fowler Switch and Emigrant canals, together 
 with their several branches. Through his long 
 and intimate connection with a canal which was 
 merged into the present association, Mr. Clark 
 was admirably qualified to fill the responsible post 
 of president and manager of the consolidated 
 concern, to which he was elected, in addition to 
 •being chosen one of the board of directors. 
 
 When Mr. Clark came to California in 1887 he 
 engaged as a clerk at Kingsburg, Fresno county, 
 but a year later he became secretary of the Center- 
 ville & Kingsburg Canal Company, and has since 
 given his attention wholly to matters pertaining 
 to irrigation. In the discharge of his duties as 
 secretary he spent considerable time at Kings- 
 
 burg and Selma, and after 1898 acted as man- 
 ager of the canal. In 1901 this was merged into 
 the Consolidated Canal Company, of which he is 
 ^:he chief executive and which has its offices in 
 Fresno. It is a matter of no small pride with him 
 that he has witnessed the growth of the plant 
 from a small ditch to one of the largest canal sys- 
 tems in California, and much of its growth is at- 
 tributed to his wise management by those in a 
 position to estimate forces bringing about certain 
 results. 
 
 The management of this company, important 
 as it is and varied as are its duties, does not rep- 
 resent the limit of Mr. Clark's activities. Upon 
 the organization of the Central Canal & Irriga- 
 tion Company he was chosen its first president 
 and still holds the position. The company has 
 its offices in San Francisco and obtains from the 
 Sacramento river the supply of water necessary 
 to operate its canal systan in Glenn and Colusa 
 counties. The work of building has not been 
 completed, and it is the sanguine expectation of 
 its projectors that the system will eventually be- 
 come the largest in the entire state. Another en- 
 terprise of similar nature which receives the bene- 
 fit of Mr. Qark's wide experience is the Butte 
 County Canal Company, of which he is a director, 
 and the building and completion of which will be 
 consummated under his management. In addi- 
 tion he holds the position of assistant manager of 
 the Fresno Canal Company. 
 , Mr. Clark is a member of an old Kentucky 
 family and was born near Manchester, that state, 
 January 26, i860, being a son of Capt. D. W. 
 and Mary (Peace) Qark, who lived upon a farm 
 near Manchester for many years. The paternal 
 grandfather, Anderson Clark, was a farmer in 
 Kentucky, and the same occupation was followed 
 by the maternal grandfather, John Peace, who 
 was a native of Scotland and an earnest worker 
 in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Captain 
 Clark was an officer in the Union army during 
 the Civil war, his company being attached to the 
 Forty-seventh Kentucky Infantry, in which he 
 served until the close of the struggle. At the 
 time of his death, in 1903, he was sixty-six years 
 of age. His wife was born near Williamsburg, 
 Ky., and died near Manchester about 1876. Of 
 their seven children, two sons and two daughters 
 are living. Three are in California, namely: 
 John Peace, of Fresno; T. J., a farmer at Selma; 
 and Mrs. Bishop, of Kingsburg. The eldest of 
 these, John Peace Clark, passed the first eight- 
 een years of his life on the home farm, whence 
 in 1878 he went to Missouri, clerking in a drug 
 store at Marionville and attending the academy 
 of that town, also engaging for a time in teach- 
 ing school. In 1882 he went to Berryville, Ark., 
 where he attended the academy- and also taught 
 school, From there he came to California, which 
 
692 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 state has since been his home and the scene of 
 his activities. Before leaving Arkansas he mar- 
 ried Miss Donie Gibson, a native of that state, 
 and by her he has one daughter, Mina. Frater- 
 nally he is connected with the Foresters, in poli- 
 tics advocates Republican principles, and so- 
 cially holds membership in the Sequoia Club of 
 Fresno. He is a member of the Chamber of 
 Commerce and a thorough believer in and sup- 
 porter of all movements for the advancement of 
 Fresno, among whose citizens none is more loyal 
 than he. Through his identification with water 
 systems he has done much to promote the pros- 
 perity of the San Joaquin valley. His interest 
 in the water question led him to accept the posi- 
 tion of delegate to the National Irrigation Con- 
 gress at Ogden, Utah, in 1903, where he was an 
 interested participant in a convention having the 
 one purpose only, viz. : the securing to the west- 
 ern portion of our continent such irrigation fa- 
 cilities as will protect this region from the effects 
 of drought. This problem to a large degree has 
 been solved in California by the enterprise of such 
 citizens as Mr. Clark, but there still remain vast 
 tracts on the western plains from which Nature 
 has withheld the needed moisture and which will 
 remain unproductive until the wise judgment and 
 enterprise of man has introduced a satisfactory 
 system of irrigation. 
 
 DR. WILLIAM JETER PRATHER. This 
 pioneer of 1849 is a descendant of southern an- 
 cestors that came to this country from England. 
 His paternal great-grandfather, John Smith 
 Prather, of Maryland, lived to be ninety-four 
 years of age. The grandfather. Rev. Leonard 
 Deacons Prather, a native of Maryland, entered 
 the ministry of the Presbyterian denomination, 
 and filled a number of pastorates in North Caro- 
 lina, where he married Miss Frances Williamson. 
 A number of members of the WilHamson family 
 participated in the war of the Revolution and 
 one of that name served as a delegate to the 
 continental congress and was a signer of the con- 
 stitution. 
 
 In the family of Rev. Leonard D. Prather was 
 a son, Robert R., who was born in Caswell coun- 
 ty, N. C, February 26, 1800, and became a min- 
 ister in the Christian Church. His wife, Frances, 
 was born in Guilford county, N. C, and was a 
 daughter of Josiah Lambeth, a native of North 
 Carolina and by occupation a farmer. The 
 founder of the Lambeth family in America was 
 the great-grandfather, an Englishman, and 
 owner of large estates in his native land, which, 
 however, he lost through immigrating to the 
 United States and failing to claim his property. 
 Several of his sons were participants in the war 
 with England. Fourteen children comprised the 
 
 family of Rev. Robert R. Prather, and all but one 
 of these attained mature years. One of the sons, 
 Robert, is a minister in the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian denomination in Arkansas. Another son, 
 L. L., who served in the Civil war and was 
 wounded at Sharpsburg, engaged in the practice 
 of medicine until his death, which occurred in 
 Arkansas. The father died March 4, 1881. 
 
 The oldest member of this large family was 
 William J. Prather, who was born in Guilford 
 county, N. C, May 11, 1827, and grew to man- 
 hood on a farm in that state. In early boyhood 
 he attended subscription schools. One of his 
 most distinct recollections is concerning the estab- 
 lishment of the first free schools in North Caro- 
 lina. His father was a member of the first board 
 of teachers' examiners in their county. In" 1847 
 he went to Florida, where he was employed as 
 overseer of a plantation. In 1848 he went to 
 Tennessee and operated a sawmill near Memphis. 
 On learning of the discovery of gold in California 
 he at once determined to seek the remote west. 
 March 19, 1849, he started upon the eventful 
 journey through an unknown wilderness. Going 
 to Fort Smith, Ark., he joined a large train of 
 mule teams bound for Santa Fe. There the 
 wagons were traded for pack mules, with which 
 the party traveled via Taos, N. M., toward 
 Pueblo, crossing the Platte at old Fort St. Vrain 
 and Green river above the gorge. At Salt Lake 
 City they bought wheat and had it ground, se- 
 cured other necessary supplies, and started on- 
 ward, fording Bear river, traveling through 
 Thousand Spring valley, then along the Lawson 
 cut-off, and across the mountains, finally crossing 
 Pitt and Feather rivers, and reaching the Sacra- 
 mento river September 22, 1849. 
 
 Gaining some experience as a miner in the 
 mines, on Yuba river, Mr. Prather remained 
 there until December, and then went to Nye's 
 ranch, now Marysville, with an uncle, A. T. Far- 
 rish, with whom he crossed the plains. He was 
 also engaged in the general mercantile business 
 with his uncle. In the spring of 1850 he returned 
 to the mines on Feather river, from there went 
 to Downieville, later to Caiion creek and Sears' 
 Diggings, and was one of the discoverers of the 
 Harris Gulch, where he remained until July and 
 then returned to Marysville with $1,000 in gold 
 dust. Soon he returned to the Yuba and bought 
 a claim for which he paid $1,100, but after a 
 month left discouraged, with only fifty cents in 
 gold. With his uncle he started for Park's Bar- 
 and there met with encouraging success. His 
 next venture was as proprietor of a general store 
 at Wyandotte Diggings, but after several unsuc- 
 cessful months he took the goods to Bidwell's 
 Bar and sold them at auction. After another 
 brief experience in the Yuba mines he started a 
 hotel at Owsley's Bar. In July of 1852 he went 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 (tyo 
 
 into the mountains to saw lumber, returning the 
 next year to Sacramento, where he married Miss 
 Margaret Lawson, who was born in Missouri 
 and died in 1879 in California. After his mar- 
 riage he settled on a farm in Yolo county, four 
 miles from Woodland, where he brought under 
 cultivation a tract of wild land. At first he met 
 with success, but the dry years of 1858 and 1859 
 forced him to sell out at a loss. Afterward he 
 studied dentistry in Sacramento and for twenty 
 years followed that profession in Woodland. 
 
 During February of 1877 Dr. Prather came to 
 Fresno county. Two years before he had located 
 a tract of raw land at Wildflower, where he had 
 one hundred 1 and sixty acres under timber, and 
 engaged in farming and stock-raising. This prop- 
 erty he sold in 1886, but three years before had 
 moved from the farm into Fresno, where he has 
 since practiced dentistry. On East avenue, in 
 the Fresno colony, he bought forty acres about 
 1886 and set out the land in raisin grapes and 
 fruit trees, building the residence where he has 
 since made his home. He is a meinber of the 
 Raisin Growers' Association, and is also identi- 
 fied with the California State Dental Association, 
 which he assisted in organizing. Politically a 
 Democrat, he was elected justice of the peace on 
 that ticket while making his home in Yolo county. 
 The California Pioneers of San Francisco num- 
 ber him among their active members. In relig- 
 ion he is a believer in the doctrines of the Chris- 
 tian Church and was formerly connected with the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Of his first 
 marriage nine children were born, of whom the 
 following survive: Mrs. Mary McGuire, of 
 Fresno; Mrs. Sonora A. Heilbron, also of 
 Fresno; Mrs. Belle Clute, who resides in San 
 Francisco; William Robert, owner of Adams 
 Springs in Lake county, Cal. ; Mrs. Emma Mar- 
 shall, of Fresno; and Frank M., who is connected 
 with the electric railway in Lake county, this 
 state. The second marriage of Dr. Prather oc- 
 curred in Fresno and united him with Miss Mary 
 Healey, who was born in Wisconsin and grew to 
 womanhood in Minnesota. The two children of 
 this union. Alma and George Virgil Jeter, are 
 with their parents in the Fresno home, on East 
 avenue, two and one-half miles south of the city. 
 In closing this brief memoir of this venerable 
 pioneer of California, it is but due him to em- 
 phasize the fact that throughout the fifty-five 
 years of his residence in this state he has been 
 recognized as one of its most useful, high-minded 
 and public-spirited citizens. It has lain within 
 his power to accomplish much good, and he has 
 not failed to embrace every opportunity to pro- 
 mote the well-being of his fellow-men. No 
 project for the advancement of the welfare of the 
 people has failed to receive his support, and he 
 has been actuated by motives of a high and un- 
 
 selfish nature in all his transactions. The careers 
 of such men as Dr. Prather always leave an in- 
 delible impress upon the community in which 
 they are spent. Now, in the twilight of his long 
 and well-spent life, he is able to take a retrospec- 
 tive view of his career without regret over its 
 most conspicuous features; and the record here 
 preserved should prove a source of inspiration 
 to the young men of the present generation, as 
 well as of gratification and pride to his descend- 
 ants, all of whom are residents of California and 
 who, as the years pass, will exhibit a keener in- 
 terest in the history of the state. 
 
 CHARLES CROSS NELSON is a worthy 
 representative of that class of enterprising citi- 
 zens who has made the prosperity of California 
 a possibility. He has been closely identified with 
 the interests of Merced county, in the vicinity of 
 Plainsberg, since 1856, and is now living re- 
 tired in this place, enjoying the fruits of his 
 well-directed life. 
 
 Mr. Nelson was born in Tompkins county, 
 N. Y., November 7, 1832, the youngest son of 
 Robert and Margaret (Cross) Nelson, both of 
 whom were natives of Orange county, that state. 
 Robert Nelson was a farmer and it was upon 
 the home farm that Charles C. spent his boyhood 
 days and attended the district school. Leaving 
 school at the age of fourteen years, he assisted 
 his father with the work upon the home farm 
 until he had reached manhood's estate, at which 
 time he embarked upon an independent career. 
 In December, 1853, he took passage on the ves- 
 sel Star of the West, from New York for Cali- 
 fornia, by way of the Isthmus of Panama. From 
 Greytown to Virgin Bay he traveled in a small 
 boat, and on horseback from the latter place to 
 San Juan, where he secured passage on a Pacific 
 vessel for San Francisco, arriving there twenty- 
 eight days after leaving New York. He went 
 to the mines after he had spent two months on 
 a ranch, believing he could better his financial 
 condition more rapidly. After spending two 
 years in the mines of Mariposa county with 
 varied success, he again turned his attention to 
 the calling he had followed from boyhood, having 
 great faith in the future of California as an 
 agricultural state. 
 
 In partnership with E. T. Givens he engaged 
 in farming in the vicinity of Plainsberg for a 
 few years, meeting with gratifying success. He 
 then sold his interests in the co-partnership and 
 embarked in a general farming enterprise inde^ 
 pendently. So successful was he that he made 
 purchases of land from time to time until he had 
 acquired fourteen hundred and forty acres, which 
 he improved, giving his undivided attention to 
 its cultivation until about 1890, when he dis- 
 
696 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 posed of his holdings and has since lived a re- 
 tired life, free from the cares of business 
 which had engrossed his attention since 1854, 
 the year of his arrival in this state. 
 
 A Democrat in politics, Mr. Nelson has taken an 
 intelligent interest in the workings of that party 
 and acceptably served as supervisor of Merced 
 county from his district from 1888 to 1896, dur- 
 ing which time he was instrumental in doing 
 much good for his section of the county. He 
 also served as postmaster of Plainsberg for sev- 
 eral years. A man of high moral principles, 
 of broad mind and public spirit, he has ever been 
 a champion of all worthy causes that had 
 for their object the advancement of the educa- 
 tional and moral status of the county or state, 
 and he is highly esteemed by all who know him. 
 
 CARROLL CARROLLTON SCOTT. The 
 life which this narrative sketches began at Holli- 
 day's Cove, Brooke county, W. Va., November 
 28, 1836, and closed at Fresno, Cal., May 25, 
 1903. Peter Scott, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 lived for some years upon a farm in Brooke 
 county, then a part of Virginia. From there in 
 1844 he removed to the vicinity of Sandusky, 
 Ohio, where he and his wife, Susanna Speilman, 
 a native of Maryland, passed the closing years of 
 their lives. One of their sons, D. S. Scott, is a 
 resident of Woodland, Cal. ; another, O. L., is a 
 lumber manufacturer at Pinos Altos, N. M., and 
 a daughter, Mrs. P. S. Ginn, makes her home in 
 Los Angeles; Among their other children was 
 a son, Carroll CarroUton, who was twelve when 
 the family settled in Ohio. After graduating 
 from Antioch College in 1856 he engaged in 
 teaching school for three years and then crossed 
 the plains to California, arriving at Grass Valley 
 in the fall of 1859. In early days he participated 
 in two Indian campaigns in Inyo and Mono coun- 
 ties, and was also a participant in the stormy 
 scenes incident to the Civil war. In Mono county 
 he served as superintendent of schools and as 
 county supervisor. From there he moved to 
 Woodland, Yolo county, where he followed the 
 brickmason's trade and built up a large contract- 
 ing business. In 1887 he moved to Selma, where 
 he had the contract for most of the masonry 
 work in the town. From 1895 until his death he 
 made Fresno his home, and here was a charter 
 member qf the first international bricklayers' 
 union organized in the state. While living in 
 Woodland he was an active worker in the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows. While residing 
 in Grass Valley he joined the first company of 
 state militia. In religion he was connected with 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 The marriage of C. C. Scott was solemnized at 
 Woodland, January 5, 1868, and united him with 
 
 Mrs. Myra A. (Stoddard) Burton, who was born 
 at Millersburg, Holmes county, Ohio, being a 
 daughter of Thomas Adams and Jane (Cochran) 
 Stoddard, natives respectively of Connecticut and 
 Rockland, N. Y. Among fourteen children, nine 
 of whom came to California, six daughters and 
 one son are still living, Mrs. Scott being the eldest 
 surviving daughter. Her father, who was a 
 cousin of John Q. Adams, was reared principally 
 in Boston until thirteen years of age and was 
 orphaned when only nine. After his marriage 
 in New York he removed to Pennsylvania, where 
 two sons and two daughters were born. His next 
 home was at Millersburg, Ohio, where he fol- 
 lowed farm pursuits in addition to stone cutting. 
 Later he became a pioneer at Lafayette Grove, 
 Ogle county. III, and next settled in Oregon, 111. 
 During July of 1853 he drove to Iowa with ox- 
 teams and spent the winter at Newton, Jasper 
 county, where his two daughters were married. 
 In April of 1854 he started across the plains for 
 Oregon, but while en route changed his plans and 
 came to California, arriving in Yuba county Sep- 
 tember ID, 1854. For some years he followed the 
 business of stone-cutter and contractor, and 
 finally retired from active pursuits to Woodland, 
 Yolo county, remaining there until his death, at 
 the age of seventy-seven years. During much of 
 his active life he was an exhorter in the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church. In politics he was a Re- 
 publican and fraternally held membership with 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His 
 wife, who was a daughter of Rev. William 
 Cochran, a minister in the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, died in Shasta county, Cal., January 4, ■ 
 1870, after having been an invalid for thirty-three 
 years. 
 
 Born in April, 1836, Mrs. Scott was only a few 
 months old when her parents removed, to Illi- 
 nois in January of 1837. Her first marriage was 
 solemnized in Newton, Iowa, March 23, 1854, 
 and united her with Andrew H. Springer, a na- 
 tive of Indiana and a cousin of Hon. John G. 
 Springer, of Illinois. While the family were 
 traveling to the west Mr. Springer died on the 
 4th of July, 1854, of mountain fever, and was 
 buried at Ham's Fork, of Bear river. In De- 
 cember, 1855, Mrs. Springer became the wife of 
 Rev. J. W. Burton, who was born in Broome 
 county, N. Y., February 26, 1823, and at ten years 
 of age removed to Pennsylvania. At sixteen he 
 was converted, at twenty licensed to preach and a 
 year later admitted to the Wisconsin conference. 
 In 1847 he was transferred to the Rock river con- 
 ference in Illinois. After coming to California 
 in 1850 he worked at mining for a time, but in 
 September, 1856, was admitted to the California 
 conference and afterward labored in the confer- 
 ence of northern California, his last pastorate be- 
 ing at Woodland, where he died March 17, 1864. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 697 
 
 He was a consecrated man, a devoted pastor and 
 loyal to the cause of Christianity. Of his mar- 
 riage to Mrs. Springer four children were born, 
 namely : Thomas H. Burton, a brick contractor, 
 and vice-president of the Bricklayers' Union at 
 Fresno ; Frank A., also a brick contractor ; Retta 
 J., who died at Woodland; and Lida E., Mrs. 
 Weeks, a resident of Fresno. By her first mar- 
 riage Mrs. Scott has a daughter, Mary Alice, who 
 is the widow of George Banks, of San Fran- 
 cisco. Her union with Mr. Scott resulted in the 
 birth of seven children, namely : Edwin Carroll- 
 ton, who died at nineteen months ; William Stod- 
 dard, of Fresno ; Eddith Parthenia, wife of G. M. 
 Crawford, of Fresno; Fred Carroll, an attorney 
 of Fresno; Chancellor Hollis, a brick contractor 
 with his brother, William S. ; Elmer Leslie, who 
 died at five months ; and Delia Gertrude, who re- 
 sides with her mother. 
 
 MISS ESTELLA BAGNELLE. In no field 
 of activity has the influence of woman been more 
 uplifting and permanent than in educational af- 
 fairs. Legion are the names of those women 
 who, in large cities or remote hamlets, have 
 contributed to the development of the public 
 school system and the advancement of our stan- 
 dard of education. To a large extent they have 
 labored directly in the schoolroom, but a few 
 have been chosen to the even greater responsi- 
 bility of acting as county superintendent of 
 schools, and have thus carried the burden of the 
 success or failure of each individual worker. In 
 every position to which Miss Bagnelle has been 
 chosen, whether that of teacher, principal of 
 schools, member of the board of education or 
 county superintendent of schools, she has im- 
 pressed her individuality upon her associates, and 
 by originality of ideas, breadth of knowledge 
 and success in discipline she has won the esteem 
 of the members of her profession and the pa- 
 trons of the public schools. 
 
 Many of the qualities that have contributed to 
 Miss Bagnelle's success in educational work 
 come to her from a worthy ancestry. Her father, 
 J. D. Bagnelle, was born in Mississippi, of an 
 old southern family descended from French 
 progenitors and identified with the early history 
 of Virginia. During his early manhood he 
 moved to Illinois and engaged in the mercantile 
 business at Litchfield, Montgomery county, until 
 his early death. He married Amanda Slaughter, 
 who was born in Tennessee and survived him 
 many years, passing away December 28, 1901. 
 The lineage of the Slaughter family is traced 
 back to 1608 in Scotland, and three brothers 
 coming from that country founded the family 
 in America. Mrs. Bagnelle's father, Capt. L. R. 
 Slaughter, a native of Tennessee and a pioneer 
 
 cabmet-maker, builder and lumberman of'Hills- 
 boro. 111., served during the Civil war as cap- 
 tarn of Company D, One Hundred and Twenty- 
 sixth Illinois Infantry. After the war he en- 
 gaged in merchandising in Litchfield, 111. From 
 there he came to California in 1881 and settled 
 m San Jose, where he planted an orchard and 
 became interested in horticulture. In 1887 he 
 removed to a ranch near Madera. His death oc- 
 curred in Madera, January, 1903, when he had 
 attained eighty-four years of age. On the 
 twenty-first anniversary of his birth he was made 
 a Mason and for more than sixty years continued 
 a disciple of the high principles of the order. 
 Politically he voted the Democratic ticket at local 
 and general elections. His wife, who was Mary 
 Stultz, a native of Tennessee, died in 1892. Both 
 were identified with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church and liberal in their contributions to re- 
 ligious movements. 
 
 Miss Bagnelle was one of three children, the 
 others being Ray L., of Madera, and George, who 
 resides in San Francisco. Her education, be- 
 gun in Litchfield, III, her native town, was com- 
 pleted in the state normal school of San Jose, 
 from which she was graduated in 1885. After 
 teaching for a year in San Jose, in 1887 she be- 
 gan to teach in the district schools of Madera 
 county, and afterward was for eight years con- 
 nected with the Madera schools. During the 
 first six years of this time she held the position 
 of vice-principal and then for two years served 
 as principal. In 1898 she was nominated for 
 county superintendent of schools on the Demo- 
 cratic ticket and received a majority of one hun- 
 dred and forty, taking the oath of office in Janu- 
 ary, 1899, for a term of four years. At the ex- 
 piration of that time, in 1902, she was re-elected 
 without opposition, a fact which furnishes abund- 
 ant testimony as to the efficiency of her services. 
 Her successful experience as an educator es- 
 pecially qualifies her for the office she now fills. 
 Having been a teacher, she understands thor- 
 oughly the many difficulties that teachers have 
 to contend with and the many impediments that 
 interfere witTi their fullest success. There are 
 four improvements for which she has labored 
 indefatigably, namely : uniformity of text books ; 
 higher standard of teachers ; better salaries ; more 
 interest among trustees. To the securing of 
 these results she has given time, thought and 
 attention, and whatever improvements in these 
 directions future years may bring they may be 
 attributed in large degree to her efforts during 
 the years of her connection with the schools. 
 Aside from her duties as superintendent she acts 
 as secretary of the San Joaquin Teachers' Asso- 
 ciation, is warmly interested in the National Ed- 
 ucational Association, and has the deepest sym- 
 pathy with all movements for the benefit of the 
 
698 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 profession. May, 1893, she was chosen a mem- 
 ber of the county board of education, at the 
 time of the organization of Madera county, and 
 since 1899 she has officiated as secretary of the 
 board. 
 
 GEORGE McCANN. From the pioneer days 
 of hardships and privations to tlie present pros- 
 perity of CaHfornia, George McCann has given 
 his best efforts toward the development of re- 
 sources and the upbuilding and growth of the 
 community in which he has made his home. The 
 experiences which have made up his life for the 
 past half century have been such as to bring out 
 the strongest characteristics of manhood, under 
 which a weaker nature would have sunk to in- 
 significance, while his rose superior to the trials 
 and adversities which surrounded him. To-day 
 he is justly entitled to the honored position which 
 he holds among the representative citizens of 
 Tulare county, which has been the scene of his 
 labors since September 15, 1859, when he located 
 on Cross creek, Tulare (now Kings) county, and 
 entered upon his work of stock raising. 
 
 Born in County Dublin, Ireland, August 15, 
 1826, he is the only son living in a family of 
 eight sons and two daughters, of whom all but 
 one daughter attained maturity. He was the 
 youngest child of his parents, George and Mary 
 (McKeon) McCann, the latter a native of the 
 same locality. The father was a farmer in Ire- 
 land, who di^d when his youngest son was only 
 six years old. The mother came to America and 
 joined her children in Illinois, where her death 
 occurred near Redbud. George McCann was 
 reared on the home farm in Ireland until he 
 was twenty years old, and on his birthday, in 
 August, 1846, starting for America on the sailer 
 Letitia Haynes. Five weeks and three days were 
 spent in the passage from Liverpool to New 
 York City. He remained in New York state 
 until the fall of that year, when he went to New 
 Orleans and spent the winter. In the spring of 
 1847 he came north to Redbud, III, thence to 
 the lead mines at Benton, Wis. He engaged 
 in that occupation until 1850, when, in company 
 with three others, he crossed the plains with 
 ox teams. The party outfitted at St. Joseph, Mo., 
 which city they left May 12, 1850, and after a 
 journey of three months and three days arrived 
 in Hangtown (Placerville), Cal., the day of his 
 arrival there being signalized by the fact that it 
 was also his birthday. From Hangtown he went 
 to Calaveras county and for seven years follow- 
 ing made Murphys Camp his headquarters, en- 
 gaged for the greater part of the time in placer 
 mining. He discovered some very rich quartz, 
 but was unable to make a success in mining it, 
 although he was very successful in his other 
 
 mining ventures. In 1857 he went to southern 
 California and bought cattle, bringing them to 
 Monterey county, where he engaged in this work 
 for two years. September 15, 1859, he located 
 on Cross creek, in what was then Tulare county, 
 but is now in Kings county, and continued his 
 stock business. He had fine headquarters, run- 
 ning water, and his stock ranged over thousands 
 of acres of land. He finally became the owner of 
 nine thousand acres up and down Cross creek 
 for a distance of seven miles, and this is all 
 fenced, and a large part irrigated. Of this vast 
 property four hundred and sixty acres is in Tulare 
 county and the balance in Kings county. He was 
 one of the first farmers of his vicinity to put in 
 alfalfa, after which he engaged in both the stock 
 business and the raising of grain, while for a 
 time he also conducted a dairy with much profit. 
 In Visalia, in 1870, Mr. McCann married Mary 
 L. Corcoran, also a native of Ireland, and they 
 became the parents of six children, namely : Le- 
 titia, Mary, Thomas, George, Clara and Katie. 
 The saddest reverse in the lives of these worthy 
 pioneers was the death of all of these children in 
 1886. Four, Letitia, George, Clara and Katie, 
 died from diphtheria, which the eldest daughter 
 contracted at school;- Mary died in Santa Cruz 
 while at school, and Thomas died in infancy. Mr. 
 McCann and his wife traveled considerable after 
 these sad bereavements, and finally, in 1889, lo- 
 cated in VisaHa, where they have a comfortable 
 and pleasant residence, rounding out the years 
 of a well-spent life in quiet enjoyment of the 
 prosperity which the years have brought to them 
 and to the country at large. Politically Mr. Mc- 
 Cann is a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 Incidents which remain strong in the memory of 
 Mr. McCann are often recounted by him, one of 
 which is the many times that he has found his 
 way home at night when there were no roads 
 nor landmarks of any kind, aided only by the 
 light of a star. 
 
 MARSHALL ALEXANDER GILREATH, 
 M. D. As one who has attained a fair degree 
 of success during the eight years of his resi- 
 dence in Selma, Eresno county, we mention Dr. 
 Marshall Alexander Gilreath, who has been a 
 resident of California since 1892. Dr. Gilreath 
 is a worthy representative of a distinguished 
 southern family, and in tracing his ancestral his- 
 tory it is found that his paternal grandfather, 
 George H. Gilreath, was born in South CaroHna. 
 and not only was he prosperous as a farmer and 
 planter, but he was also successful as a min- 
 ister of tlie Gospel, in the interests of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church South. While laboring 
 in the latter capacity, he took his family to 
 
/^U/Uu^^ jac^^M^ a^^piA}OlA) 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 701 
 
 Georgia in 1830, locating in Bartow county. It 
 was in this county that his death took place, at 
 the advanced age of eighty-four years. His son, 
 Jabez, the father of Dr. Gilreath, was also a 
 South Carolinian, and during his Hfe followed 
 the double occupation of farmer and tanner. He 
 was united in marriage with Elza E. Weakfield, 
 who was born in Greenville, S. C, and eleven 
 children were born to them, four sons and 
 seven daughters. The mother of these children 
 spent her last years at Atlanta, Ga., where she 
 died in 1903, her husband having passed away 
 in 1896. 
 
 The recipient of but a limited education in 
 the common schools of Georgia, Dr. Gilreath, 
 after leaving school and having made a choice 
 of his life-work, set about securing the neces- 
 sary training. Entering Emory College at Ox- 
 ford, Ga., in 1887, he also attended lectures in 
 Atlanta, and subsequently finished his medical 
 education in the Vanderbilt University at Nash- 
 ville, Tenn., graduating from that institution in 
 1891, with the degree of M. D. It remained 
 now to make the proper application of the 
 knowledge gained during his years of study, and 
 during his first year's practice at Cartersville, 
 Ga., he learned many valuable lessons in the 
 school of experience. The following year Dr. 
 Gilreath came to California, locating in Bakers- 
 field in January of that year, but after a two 
 months' stay there, a more desirable location was 
 secured in Kingsburg, and during his four 
 years' residence in that place he was successful 
 in building up a good practice. In 1896 he re- 
 moved to a broader field of labor at Selma, where 
 he has since remained. He is well posted and 
 keeps abreast of the times, and takes a fitting 
 interest in the moral, religious and social de- 
 velopment of his section. A Democrat in his 
 political views, Dr. Gilreath is not an active par- 
 tisan. He is a member of the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows. His marriage took place 
 in Kingsburg, this state, when he was united 
 with Emily B. Garret, formerly of Philadelphia. 
 They have two children, Elza E. and Walker G. 
 The religious inclinations of the family are for 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and they 
 occupy a high position socially in Selma. 
 
 BURTON SWANSON. Owning and occupy- 
 ing the old homestead on which he was born, 
 Burton Swanson holds an assured position among 
 the successful farmers of Tulare county. Ac- 
 tively engaged in the cultivation of the soil, he has 
 spent a busy and useful life, his farm, lying about 
 six miles east of Visalia, bearing evidence to the 
 observer of his skill and ability as an agricult- 
 urist. The son of John Swanson, an honored 
 pioneer of this section of California, his birth 
 
 occurred March 25, 1858, in the old log house 
 that was built during the Indian war, and which 
 is still standing on the farm. 
 
 Born in Indiana in 1812, John Swanson lived 
 in his native state until after attaining his ma- 
 jority._ Migrating westward, he spent a few 
 years in Illinois, but on hearing the exciting re- 
 ports of the discovery of gold in California he 
 came by boat to this state in 1849. Meeting with 
 fair success as a miner, he went back to Illinois 
 in 1850 for his family, with whom he returned, 
 crossing the plains in 1851 with an emigrant 
 train drawn by ox-teams. Locating at Mud 
 Springs, Eldorado count)', he engaged in mining, 
 and also established a trading post, which he 
 conducted for a year. Coming to Tulare county 
 in 1852, he took up land six miles east of Visalia, 
 and partly improved it. Subsequently removing 
 to Lemon Cove, he bought land, and there en- 
 gaged in farming and stock raising until 1862, 
 when his house was washed away by the floods, 
 and his crops destroyed. He then returned to 
 his original homestead, the possession of which he 
 had retained, and here resided until his death, 
 August 12, 1863. He married Hannah Sherman, 
 who was born in Ohio, near Zanesville, and died. 
 May 5, 1877, on the home farm, in Tulare coun- 
 ty. She came of distinguished stock, her father, 
 William Sherman, having been an uncle of 
 William Tecumseh Sherman, one of the generals 
 of the Civil war. Of their union twelve children 
 were born, seven sons and five daughters. In his 
 political affiliations, John Swanson was a true 
 blue Republican. During the Indian troubles 
 that occurred soon after his settling in Tulare 
 county, he took an active part, and as captain of 
 the Home Guards was buried with military 
 honors. 
 
 The eleventh child in order of birth of the 
 parental household, Burton Swanson received a 
 limited education in the pioneer district school, 
 and from the age of twelve years assisted in the 
 care of the home farm, on which he now lives. 
 He has forty acres of land, which he devotes to 
 alfalfa, hay, grain and stock and also rents forty 
 acres lying near. Here he successfully pur- 
 sues his pleasant and independent occupation, and 
 his ranch, with its many substantial improve- 
 ments, is one of the most desirable pieces of prop- 
 erty for its size of any in the neighborhood. 
 
 Mr. Swanson has been twice married. He 
 married first, in Tulare county, Elizabeth Ewing, 
 who was born in Illinois, and died on the home 
 farm, leaving two children, namely: Elmer, at 
 home; and Stella, wife of R. H. Arnett, Jr., of 
 Visalia. Mr. Swanson's second marriage took 
 place in this county, and united him with Chris- 
 tiana R. Anderson, a native of Denmark, and they 
 are the parents of three children, namely : Clara 
 I., Hannah C, and John Henrv. Politically Mr. 
 
?02 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Swanson is a stanch Republican, and belongs 
 to the Fraternal Brotherhood, of Exeter, Tulare 
 county. Mr. Swanson is a man of striking per- 
 sonality, being well proportioned, standing six 
 feet six inches in his stocking feet, and weighing 
 two hundred pounds. He is strong and healthy, 
 with a clear, dark complexion, neither drinking 
 liquors nor using tobacco in any form. 
 
 HENRY F. BLISS. An influential position 
 among the pioneer residents of Visalia was held 
 by the Bliss family, nor has their prestige been 
 diminished by the passing of the years. The 
 first of the name to settle in this part of Cali- 
 fornia was H. F. Bliss, Sr., a native of New 
 York state and the son of a Presbyterian min- 
 ister, whom he accompanied to Michigan and 
 grew to manhood amid frontier conditions in 
 Allegan county. During 1850 he crossed the 
 plains with ox-teams and followed the calling of 
 a miner after his arrival in California, soon, 
 however, returning east by way of Panama. It 
 was not his intention to remain permanently in 
 Michigan and as soon as arrangements could be 
 brought about he crossed the plains a second 
 time, settling in Tulare county and buying a 
 tract of land six miles south of Visalia. Later 
 he sold that property and bought a farm one 
 mile or more to the south of town, where he con- 
 ducted large stock-raising interests. His death 
 occurred in Visalia when he was fifty-seven years 
 of age. After coming to the west he married 
 Roxey Jordan, who was born in Texas and ac- 
 companied her father, Frank, to the coast re- 
 gion. One of her brothers, John F. Jordan, is 
 an influential citizen of Visalia. From girlhood 
 her home was in this locality, and her death 
 occurred in the home of her son, Henry F., when 
 she was fifty-three years of age. Of her chil- 
 dren William died in Visalia ; Henry F. was sec- 
 ■ond in order of birth and is now a prominent 
 stock-dealer of Visalia; Charles E. resides in 
 Fresno and engages in mining in this state ; 
 George is a real estate agent at Hanford ; Irving 
 conducts a dairy business at Bakersfield, where 
 J. H., the sixth son, carries on an abstract busi- 
 ness ; Mary, the eldest daughter, died in Visalia ; 
 Cora is engaged in the abstract business in this 
 city ; Rose is a school teacher at Hanford ; and 
 Maggie and Earl are twins ; Maggie is now at- 
 tending the State Normal School at San Jose, and 
 Earl follows the abstract business in Hanford. 
 
 In Visalia, where he was born December 7, 
 1861, Henry F. Bliss acquired a fair education 
 in the public schools. From boyhood his tastes 
 have led him into agriculture, both in the depart- 
 ments of general farming and stock-raising. At 
 one time he operated twelve hundred acres near 
 Exeter, but in 1901 he disposed of these inter- 
 
 ests and settled on the old Bliss homestead in the 
 suburbs of Visalia. Here he has since engaged 
 in the live-stock business, buying and selling 
 horses, cattle and hogs, and dealing in poultry 
 of all kinds. Under his supervision are seventy 
 acres, of which the larger part is under alfalfa. 
 In his work he has the co-operation and counsel 
 of his wife, whom he married in San Francisco, 
 and who was formerly Mrs. Florence M. Raisch, 
 a native of Logan county. Ark. In religious be- 
 lief Mrs. Bliss is identified with the Congrega- 
 tional Church and Mr. Bliss is interested in the 
 work of the same, though not a member. In- 
 cluded in his fraternal relations may be mentioned 
 membership in the Knights of Pythias, Uniform 
 Rank, and the Fraternal Brotherhood, both of 
 which organizations have the benefit of his active 
 interest and constant support. Tulare county 
 has been his lifelong home and its interests he 
 has made his own. No citizen is more interested 
 in its material development than he and none has 
 been more solicitous to aid in its progress. 
 Movements for the benefit of his home city or 
 county receive his stanch support and he is al- 
 ways relied upon to champion public-spirited 
 projects. Politically he is a Democrat. 
 
 JULIUS LONEY. Among the native-born 
 citizens of California conspicuous for their abil- 
 ity and worth is Julius Lone}', one of the most 
 thrifty and prosperous of the successful agricul- 
 turists of Stanislaus county. His well-cultivated 
 and well-improved ranch, lying three miles east 
 of Oakdale, is one of the best in its appoint- 
 ments of any in this section of the state, re- 
 flecting credit on his sound judgment and wise 
 management. A son of the late James Loney, he 
 was born May 27, 1864, in Tuolumne county. 
 His father was of Scotch ancestry and his mother 
 of Swedish. 
 
 A native of Scotland, James Loney was born 
 December 24, 1818. Shipping as a cabin-boy 
 when eleven years old, he was engaged in sea- 
 faring pursuits for nearly a score of years, all 
 of the latter part of the time serving as first 
 mate of his vessel. After visiting many of the 
 more important ports of the globe, he located in 
 California in Tuolumne county, in 1848, and was 
 there successfully employed in mining for twelve 
 years. Purchasing a ranch of three hundred and 
 twenty acres in 1862, he carried on general farm- 
 ing and stock raising with great success, in 
 course of time becoming an extensive landhold- 
 er, at one time owning several thousand acres 
 of land in that county. Inheriting the physical 
 strength and vigor of his hardy Scotch progen- 
 itors, he lived to a good old age, passing away 
 June I, 1904. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Kate Jones, is now living on the home 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 TOS 
 
 ranch, being a bright and active woman of sev- 
 enty-six years. He was a consistent Democrat 
 in his pohtical affiliations, and fraternally was 
 an Odd Fellow. Of the children born to him, six 
 grew to years of maturity, namely : John H. ; 
 Mrs. Jane A. Clavey ; James W. ; Joseph V. ; 
 Julius, the subject of this sketch; and Jeffer- 
 son; one son, Jerome, is dead. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, and obtaining 
 a limited education in the district schools, Julius 
 Loney early acquired a good knowledge of the 
 various branches of agriculture, and at the age 
 of thirteen years began working for wages. 
 Prudent, thrifty and economical, he accumulated 
 considerable money, and in 1885 located on his 
 present farm, three miles east of Oakdale, on 
 what is known as the Clavey ranch. He has sev- 
 enteen hundred acres of valuable land, the larg- 
 er part of which he devotes to the raising of 
 grain, harvesting large crops each season, there- 
 from realizing a handsome annual income. 
 
 Mr.. Loney, married Nancy E. Box, who was 
 born in Calaveras county, a daughter of Stephen 
 and Melissa (Abbott) Box, who came across the 
 plains to this state in 1852. They had three 
 children, namely: Jessie A., Elmer S. and Eliza 
 B. Mrs. Loney died October 21, 1899. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Loney cordially indorses the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party, of which he is a 
 devoted adherent, but, his time being fully taken 
 up with agricultural pursuits, he has never 
 sought any public office. 
 
 HON. ELBRIDGE NELSON RECTOR. 
 Upon being transplanted from Germany to Scot- 
 land the Richter family became known by their 
 present appellation of Rectoi". At an early pe- 
 riod in the settlement of America they estab- 
 ■lished themselves in Virginia, and several gen- 
 erations were identified with the growth of that 
 commonwealth. At the outbreak of the Revo- 
 lutionary war Charles Rector, a large and pros- 
 perous planter, was engaged in the cultivation 
 of his land, which occupied a portion of the 
 present site of Lexington, Va. In his family 
 there were eleven sons, most of whom accom- 
 panied him when he entered the service of the 
 colonies to fight for independence. When the 
 war ended he resumed the peaceful pursuits of 
 a planter in the Old Dominion.- During his lat- 
 ter years he traveled by horseback across the 
 mountains to Kentucky and thence to Tennessee, 
 where he remained until his death. Among the 
 sons who served with him in the war with Eng- 
 land was Benjamin, a native of Virginia, for 
 some years a resident of Kentucky, later a plant- 
 er in Sevier county, Tenn., and from 1840 until 
 his death a resident of Texas. 
 
 Next in line of descent was Kenner Avery 
 
 Rector, a native of Virginia, who enlisted in the 
 war of 1812, took part in the battle of New Or- 
 leans,_ and gained a reputation of being the best 
 shot in General Jackson's army. His marriage 
 to Elizabeth Randall, a native of Tennessee, al- 
 lied him with an influential old Virginia family, 
 who were connected with the Spencers, Clack's, 
 and other prominent families of the Old Domin- 
 ion. Among the five children of Kenner Avery 
 Rector the eldest, Elbridge Gerry, was born in, 
 Sevier county, Tenn., February 19, 1816, and 
 during 1835 went to TTexas, where the following 
 year he joined the Texan army. In the battle 
 of San Jacinto he was twice severely wounded, 
 from the effects of which he never entirely re- 
 covered. Later he was on the frontier in the 
 Indian war as a Texas ranger under Col. Jack 
 Hayes and Captain Bird. In 1847 he took part 
 in the Mexican war, remaining at the front until 
 peace was declared. During 1849, with pack 
 mules, he made the long journey via El Paso, 
 Tucson and Yuma to Los Angeles and thence 
 up the coast and across T:o San Joaquin county, 
 and from there to Mariposa county, where he 
 landed on the September memorable in state his- 
 tory as the date of the election of the members 
 of the California constitutional convention. For 
 a time he engaged in mining and then carried 
 on a hotel at the Green Valley ranch. In 1853 
 he removed to what is now Merced county and 
 engaged in farming and stock-raising on the 
 Merced river. One of his first public efforts was 
 the circulation of a petition for the setting off 
 of Merced from Mariposa county, which was 
 successfully accomplished in 1855, and he was 
 elected the first county clerk. After he had 
 filled that position for seven years he was elect- 
 ed covinty sheriff, and served from 1864 to 1866. 
 Removing from Merced to Stanislaus county 
 in 1868, Elbridge G. Rector engaged in farming 
 and stock-raising opposite the present site of 
 Modesto. In 1870 he transferred his residence 
 to Mariposa county, where he was engaged in 
 farming and stock-raising near Coulterville. His 
 next removal, in 1877, took him to Texas, where 
 he embarked in the stock business in San Saba 
 county, remaining there until November, 1882, 
 and then returning to Merced county, Cal. 
 From January, 1889, to January, 1891, he filled 
 the office of county treasurer. For years he 
 was the leader of the Democratic party in Mer- 
 ced county. Possessing to a remarkable degree 
 the faculty of winning and retaining friends, few 
 men have been more popular or prominent than 
 he, and it furnishes an evidence of his noble 
 character to state that, though he led one par- 
 ty, he was respected by members of the oppo- 
 sition. Indeed, on every hand there came trib- 
 utes of regard and respect. Without doubt he 
 worked more to secure the interests of his town 
 
704 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and county than his own financial affairs, for he 
 was one of the most unselfish of men. Governor 
 Latham always gave him the credit for his elec- 
 tion to the gubernatorial chair and assured him 
 any favors requested would be granted, yet Mr. 
 Rector asked for nothing. His work was done 
 from a sense of duty and patriotic pride, not with 
 the expectation of pecuniary reward or official 
 holdings. He was a charter member of La 
 Grange Lodge, F. & A. M., in which he was 
 past master, and in addition he held member- 
 ship with the Royal Arch Masons. From 1883 
 until his death, October 19, 1903, he continued 
 to make Merced his home. 
 
 The marriage of Elbridge G. Rector occurred 
 in Merced county in i860 and united him with 
 Amanda M. McFarlane, who was born in Jack- 
 son county, Ala., and now resides in Merced. 
 Her parents, Robert and Elizabeth (Hobbs) 
 McFarlane, were natives of Virginia and settled 
 in Tennessee at an early day, thence removing 
 to a farm in Alabama. The McFarlane family 
 came from Scotland and established themselves 
 on a plantation in Virginia during the colonial 
 period. The Hobbs family originated in Eng- 
 land and also had representatives in the Revo- 
 lutionary war from Virginia, In the family of 
 Elbridge G. Rector there were five children. 
 The eldest son, William Fielding, was born at 
 Snelling, Merced county, CaL, April 8, 1861, 
 and is a journalist and literary writer residing 
 at Merced. The second son, Thomas Blackston, 
 is a farmer and stock-raiser of Mariposa county. 
 The daughters, Mary E. and Laura A., are the 
 youngest of the family; the former resides with 
 her mother and the latter is engaged in teach- 
 ing school at Santa Ana. 
 
 The birth of Elbridge Nelson Rector occurred 
 at Snelling, Merced county, CaL, January 6, 
 1865. After completing the district school 
 studies he entered the Pacific Methodist College, 
 at Santa Rosa, from which he was graduated 
 in 1889 with tlie degree of A. B. The next year 
 was spent in Hastings College of Law, after 
 which he taught school for two years at 
 Atwater. With the means thus secured he 
 was enabled to complete his law course. 
 In 1895 he was graduated from Hastings with 
 the degree of LL. B., after which he engaged 
 in the practice of the law in San Francisco for 
 a year, and in 1896 returned to Merced to begin 
 professional work in this city. For the next two 
 years he served as secretary of the county cen- 
 tral committee of the Democratic party. At a 
 special election in 1900, to fill the vacancy in 
 the unexpired term of Judge J. K. Law, he was 
 nominated by the Democrats for the office of su- 
 perior judge of Merced county and received a 
 fair majority over Judge Ostrander, entering 
 upon his judicial duties in December of that 
 
 year. In 1902 he was nominated by a large ma- 
 jority, against opposition in the Democratic 
 party. In the Republican convention no nomina- 
 tion was made for the office and he was there- 
 fore elected without opposition to serve until 
 January, 1909. The qualities of mind which he 
 possesses pre-eminently qualify him for success- 
 ful service in the office of judge. Of an im- 
 partial, cool and calm temperament, he avoids 
 the impetuosity of hastily formed decisions, but 
 gives to each case the dignified and unbiased de- 
 Hberation which it merits. In his well rounded 
 character religion mingles harmoniously with 
 other lofty attributes of mind. For years he has 
 been identified with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South, in which he officiates as a trus- 
 tee. In fraternal relations he is connected with 
 the Woodmen of the World. The State Bar As- 
 sCTciation has his name enrolled among its mem- 
 bers and other movements for the benefit of 
 professional men receive his co-operation. While 
 he is a leader in politics and one of the most 
 influential Democrats of the San Joaquin valley, 
 in official relations politics are made subservient 
 to public duty. Neither personal nor political 
 matters are allowed to bias his judgment in the 
 decisions of the courtroom, hence he gives to 
 the bench the dignity and elevation that should 
 be its foremost attributes. 
 
 JESSE E. FRAME. During the early his- 
 tory of Wisconsin and while that state was. still 
 considered a frontier region, Jeremiah Frame 
 left his eastern home and settled among the pio- 
 neers of Lafayette county. After a considerable 
 experience in lead mining he turned his atten- 
 tion to farming. Eventually he removed to Ne- 
 braska, where he died in Brown county. In 
 his family was a son, Elias, who was born near 
 Argyle, Lafayette county. Wis., and from there 
 went to the front during the Civil war as a 
 member of a regiment of infantry. After his 
 marriage he left Wisconsin and settled in Se- 
 ward county, Neb., where he improved a tract 
 of wild land and also engaged in missionary 
 work for the Methodist Episcopal denomination. 
 After his removal to Brown county. Neb., in 
 1880, he homesteaded a claim and iauilt him a 
 house of logs, where his family lived for about 
 twelve years. During 1892 he came to Cali- 
 fornia and began to raise oranges at Porters- 
 ville. Afterward he returned to Wisconsin to 
 renew the associations of boyhood and died 
 while visiting at Martintown, Green countv. His 
 widow, who was born at IXIonroe, Wis., now re- 
 sides near Portersvtlle. Of her marriage there 
 are seven children, all Hving, as follows : H. A., 
 who is engaged in the commission business at 
 Portersville ; Rozella, wife of William A. Henry, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 707 
 
 of Tulare; Mrs. Clara Doty, who lives near 
 Portersville ; Jesse E., of Tulare; Mrs. Ida 
 Withro^y, William E., and Mrs. Mabel Weisen- 
 -berger, all residing at Portersville. 
 
 During the residence of the family on their 
 homestead near Seward, Neb., J. E. Frame was 
 born February 29, 1876. In the country schools 
 of Nebraska he received a fair education, which 
 has been supplemented by habits of close obser- 
 vation. At sixteen years of age he accom- 
 panied the family to California and soon acquired 
 a knowledge of the care of trees and raising of 
 fruit. In 1897 he set out a grove of oranges 
 covering ten acres and there carried on a citrus 
 nursery business for three years. Since 1900 he 
 has been a business man of Tulare, where, as a 
 partner of J. N. Larson, he started the soda 
 works and later bought the ice business. The 
 firm makes a specialty of soda and mineral wa- 
 ters and carbonated drinks, also has the agency 
 for Weiland and Fredericksburg beers in VisaHa, 
 and represents the Union, National and San 
 Joaquin ice companies in Tulare. Besides the 
 business at Tulare the partners own a one-half 
 interest in the Visalia soda and bottling works. 
 Through energy and industry they have built up 
 a growing trade in the line of their specialties 
 and have gained a position among the rising 
 young business men of the city. 
 
 In Portersville Mr. Frame married Miss 
 Madge Harris, who was born in San Francisco, 
 and of their union two children were born, How- 
 ard and Carl. In his fraternal relations he holds 
 membership in a number of local organizations, 
 including the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, Woodmen of the World, Independent Or- 
 der of Foresters and Knights of the Royal Arch. 
 
 DR. W. F. CARTMILL. When an investiga- 
 tion of conditions led Dr. Cartmill to purchase 
 property in Tulare county in 1861, the city of 
 Tulare, where he now resides, had not been 
 founded and few attempts had been made to im- 
 prove any portion of the country. The possibil- 
 ities of the soil were unknown and the healthful 
 climate unappreciated. With keen discernmerit 
 he decided that success awaited the man of per- 
 severance and energy and industry. Looking 
 about him for a location, he soon bought a quar- 
 ter section ten miles southwest of Visalia, and 
 to this original homestead he added from year 
 to year until his landed possessions aggregated 
 twelve hundred acres, all under ditch. During 
 the early years of his residence in the county he 
 made a specialty of the cattle business, but with 
 the advent of many settlers and the dividing up 
 of farm lands cattle could no longer be raised 
 with profit. For this reason he changed his ef- 
 
 forts to the raising of sheep, of which he had 
 as many as six thousand head at one time, but 
 about 1894 he sold his flock and retired from 
 the business. For about fifteen years he con- 
 ducted an apiary, but in 1904 disposed of all of 
 his bees and discontinued the work. At this 
 writing he owns two hundred and forty acres 
 situated six miles northwest of Tulare, a large 
 part of which is under alfalfa, the remainder in 
 orchard and vineyard, while the balance of his 
 extensive property he has given over to his son. 
 With the building of the railroad to Tulare, in 
 1872 Dr. Cartmill removed here and started a 
 house in town, which was among the first resi- 
 dences to be built, and he still makes his home in 
 this old homestead on West Tulare street. 
 
 W. F. Cartmill was born January 5, 1822, in 
 Franklin county, Ohio, but was reared in Madi- 
 son county, and was next to the youngest among 
 seven children, and is the sole survivor of the 
 family. His father, William, was born in Vir- 
 ginia and settled in Kentucky, where he married 
 Isabelle Ferguson, a native of Old Virginia. 
 After his marriage he removed to Franklin coun- 
 ty and later to Madison county, Ohio, and cleared 
 a farm on Darby creek. There he continued to 
 make his home for many years and until his life 
 came to qn end just three years before rounding 
 out a full century. When a boy W. F. Cartmill 
 was a pupil in a subscription school held in a 
 log building wholly destitute of comforts. After 
 leaving school he studied medicine under Dr. 
 Thomas, of London, Ohio, in which city he prac- 
 ticed from 1846 to 1848, and then started to Cali- 
 fornia. However, after he had traveled as far 
 as Missouri he was persuaded to stop near Co- 
 lumbia and there he engaged in practice two 
 years. 
 
 During the spring of 1850 Dr. Cartmill crossed 
 the plains with horses, following the overland 
 trail up the Hatte, on to Salt Lake (where he 
 remained one week), thence down the Humboldt 
 river and by the Carson route. One hundred 
 days after crossing the Missouri state line he 
 landed in California and at once began mining at 
 Rancheria near Volcano, Amador county, where 
 he also practiced his profession. During 1854 
 he returned via Panama to Ohio and from there 
 went to Missouri, where, near Columbia, March 
 27, 1855, he married Miss Sophia Barnes, a 
 native of that locality. Her parents, Rev. James 
 and Elizabeth (Burkhart) Barnes, were born re- 
 spectively in Kentucky and Missouri, and the 
 father, after settling in Randolph county, Mo., 
 became a pioneer farmer and Baptist preacher, 
 also served in the Indian wars of early days. 
 Both he and his wife died in Missouri. They 
 were the parents of fifteen children, all but two 
 of whom attained mature years, and four are now 
 living, Mrs. Cartmill being tenth in order of 
 
708 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 birth and the only member of the family to set- 
 tle on the Pacific coast. 
 
 After their marriage Dr. and Mrs. Cartmill 
 came to CaHfornia by the Nicaragua route and 
 settled in Amador county, where he resumed the 
 work in which he had been interested previous- 
 ly. From there he came to Tulare county in 
 1 86 1 and now resides in the city of Tulare, where 
 he is an honored and influential citizen. The 
 deepest bereavement that has befallen himself 
 and wife in their otherwise happy married life 
 was the loss, by diphtheria, within ten days, of 
 their three daughters. Flora, Eva and Mary, leav- 
 ing a son, Wooster Beach, who was born in 
 1857, in Amador county, as the sole survivor 
 of their five children. The youngest child, Sel- 
 mon, died at the age of two years. Besides this 
 family of three daughters and two sons Dr. and 
 Mrs. Cartmill have reared to womanhood a girl, 
 Amelia Jessie, who is the wife of R. F. Guerin, 
 a dairyman, living in the vicinity of Tulare. 
 Politically Dr. Cartmill believes in Republican 
 principles and votes the party ticket, but has 
 never been active in partisan affairs. By virtue 
 of his long identification with this part of the 
 state he has been admitted as a member of the 
 San Joacjuin Valley Pioneers Society, in which 
 he maintains a warm interest. During all the 
 period of his residence in the county he has sup- 
 ported movements for the benefit of the people 
 and has been unwearied in his efforts to promote 
 the common good. 
 
 WILLIAM BROUGH. To the long list of 
 men responsible for the agricultural upbuilding 
 of Stanislaus county belongs the name of Will- 
 iam Brough, the improver of several country 
 properties, and for years as practical and in- 
 fluential a farmer as now lives in retirement in 
 Newman. Not yet an old man as life is viewed 
 today, Mr. Brough still has the fire of youth 
 in his heart, and the enthusiasm of a vigorous 
 constitution in his manner of thought. He has 
 been one of the plain, matter-of-fact men around 
 whom centers the strength and stability of com- 
 munities, and his coming and going has always 
 been according to method and rule, unmixed 
 with speculative ventures, or desires which 
 neither his training or abilities entitled him to 
 realize. Born in Chenango county, N. Y., Sep- 
 tember 13, 1837, his ancestors resided peace- 
 fully in England until the ambitious tendencies 
 of his father, George, caused his immigration to 
 the United States from Devonshire, England, in 
 the_ early part of the nineteenth century, after 
 which he devoted his energies to farming in 
 New York state until his removal to La Porte 
 county, Ind., in 1840. William, the younge"st 
 of the four sons and four daughters in his 
 
 father's family, was three years old at the time 
 of this overland journey, and today is the sole 
 survivor of a home where prudence, industry, 
 and humanity ruled supreme. Five years later,, 
 in 1845, the father laid aside his earthly cares 
 and joined the silent majority, and later still, 
 his wife died, whose girlhood name was Ann 
 Young, and who accompanied him from Eng- 
 land. 
 
 The youth of William Brough knew more of 
 labor than leisure, and his education was at 
 best irregularly gained, and consisted rather 
 of observation and experience than application 
 to book learning. As an unmarried man he 
 came across the plains in 1853, driving a horse 
 team, and locating in Eldorado county, in the 
 vicinity of Placerville. At first he met with in- 
 different success in the mines, but finally had 
 cause for encouragement, and continued to 
 search the camps for gold for several years, 
 seven of which were spent in Eldorado county. 
 Coming to the San Joaquin valley in 1862, he 
 settled eight miles east of Stockton, and in con- 
 nection with farming engaged in freighting to 
 the various mines in the vicinity. When the 
 business fell off owing to greater increase of 
 facilities and population he removed to Merced 
 county, and near the town of. that name pur- 
 chased land which he cultivated until 1873. He 
 then removed to the west side of the county^ 
 near Los Banos, and tilled a farm until set- 
 tling three and a half miles south of Newman, 
 Stanislaus county, in 1884. This latter pur- 
 chase, consisting of forty acres of alfalfa land, 
 he owns at the present time, and with it farmed 
 large areas near by, at the time being considered 
 one of the largest farmers in the neighborhood. 
 Having earned a competence at farming, and 
 feeling justified in handing over the reins of 
 management to younger and stronger hands, he 
 moved into Newman May i, 1904, and is now 
 living a retired life, surrounded by the com- 
 forts and diversions which his years of industry 
 have taught him to appreciate at their true value. 
 
 Notwithstanding his exceedingly busy life, 
 Mr. Brough has taken a keen interest in general 
 county matters, has encouraged schools anJ char- 
 itable institutions, and has responded liberally 
 whenever call was made upon his financial or 
 other assistance. He has stock in the New. Era 
 Creamery, an enterprise which has done much 
 for the welfare of the dairymen of the county, 
 and he is popular fraternally as a member of the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. For many 
 j'ears Mr. Brough has exerted an influence in 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he 
 is steward at the present time, and he has as- 
 sisted materially in the moral and financial up- 
 building of the church. Politically he espouses 
 the Republican cause, but aside from holding the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 709 
 
 office of school trustee has never aspired to the 
 uncertainties and worries of official life. In San 
 Joaquin county, this state, he married Margaret 
 Madora Soper, a native of Pennsylvania, and 
 who has borne him eight children, four sons 
 and four daughters, of whom three sons are 
 deceased. In the order of their birth the children 
 are: Mary Annetta, Mrs. Hiram Hoskins; Em- 
 ily N., now Mrs. Albert Knebes ; Charles, de- 
 ceased; William, living near Newman; Mrs. 
 Harriett Madora Hollister; Orvilla, deceased; 
 Bertha Ray, residing at home, and her twin 
 brother Orville, who died in infancy. The life 
 of Mr. Brough has been such as to command 
 the respect and confidence of all with whom he 
 came in contact, and his efforts have reflected un- 
 changing credit upon a county which is vastly 
 indebted to the men who have created its past. 
 
 R. HUGH JOHNSON. A resident of Cali- 
 fornia since a lad of three years, R. Hugh John- 
 son can well be ranked with the brave pioneers, 
 his life history, in its principal facts, being a 
 record of the lives of the earlier settlers of this 
 great and glorious commonwealth. When he 
 came to Tulare county large lakes and ponds 
 stocked with fish of all kinds were much in evi- 
 dence, occupying the land that has since been 
 c"6nverted by the industry bf the people into mag- 
 nificent vineyards and orchards burdened with 
 luscious fruits. Indians were troublesome in 
 those days, and the wild antelope galloped over 
 the plains, traveling so swiftly that it required 
 an expert to lasso them. The pioneers were 
 then obliged to avail themselves of every pos- 
 sible advantage in order to provide themselves 
 with the necessaries of life and proceed with 
 the improvements on their homesteads. In com- 
 mon with his neighbors, Mr. Johnson's father 
 toiled with diligence and energy, and in the 
 course of time success smiled upon his energetic 
 and persevering labors. A son of J. H. John- 
 son, the subject of this sketch was born October 
 27, 1846, in Yamhill county, Ore., on the Wil- 
 lamette river. His paternal grandfather moved 
 with his family to Arkansas at an early period 
 of its settlement, locating in the western part, 
 where he became a citizen of so much promi- 
 nence and influence that the county in which 
 he resided was named Johnson county in his 
 honor. 
 
 A native of Johnson county. Ark., J. H. John- 
 son succeeded to the occupation in which he was 
 reared, living at home until after becoming of 
 age. In 1845, with an ox team train, he crossed 
 the plains to Oregon, and for three years lived 
 in Yamhill county. Migrating to California in 
 1849, he built the first hotel in Napa City, but 
 it burned to the ground on the opening day. 
 
 Going then to Sausalito, Marin county, he was 
 employed as lumberman for a while. Not sat- 
 isfied, however, he removed to Oakland, bought 
 land on the San Pablo creek, where for three 
 years he was a butcher and stock raiser. He 
 then settled on a farm in French Camp, at the 
 same time owning a ranch on the San Joaquin 
 river in San Joaquin county. In 1858 he took 
 up his residence in Tulare, on Cross creek, near 
 Tulare lake, but shortly after removed to Visa- 
 lia. Three years later he bought land nine miles 
 east of Visalia, and as a general farmer met with 
 distinguished success. He became one of the 
 most extensive landholders of this section, hav- 
 ing a stock ranch of four thousand seven hun- 
 dred acres on the Kaweah river, and owning 
 other farming property. Selling out to the 
 Crocker estate in 1897 for $115,000, he rented 
 the land until 1902, but made his residence in 
 Visalia. In 1902 he removed to San Francisco, 
 where he is now living. He married Mary Ann 
 Murray, who was born in Tennessee, the daugh- 
 ter of Parson Murray, a pioneer minister of the 
 Christian Church, who removed from Pennsyl- 
 vania, his native state, to Tennessee, and then to 
 Arkansas. Of the ten children born of their 
 union, four are living, namely : James L., a 
 farmer in Orosi; R. Hugh; T. D. ; and Mrs. 
 Alice Crew of Fresno county. 
 
 Spending the larger part of his youthful days 
 in Tulare county, R. Hugh Johnson obtained 
 his early education principally in the public 
 schools of Visalia. Beginning life for himself 
 at the age of twenty-one years, he had charge 
 of a part of the old homestead for a year, and 
 was afterwards engaged in sheep raising for 
 several seasons. Buying the old Drum valley 
 farm of four hundred and forty acres in 1872, 
 Mr. Johnson began its improvement, and for 
 many years was successfully employed in stock 
 growing and breeding, making a specialty of 
 raising hogs, and of breeding, raising and break- 
 ing horses. He also carried on a good business 
 as a freighter, teaming to Visalia and Cross 
 Creek Switch. As he made money,, he wisely 
 invested it in adjoining land, and now owns 
 nearly the whole of Drum valley, having title 
 to nearly seventeen hundred acres, all of which 
 is fenced. He has been for many years an ex- 
 tensive stock raiser, also raising grain and hay 
 for winter feed. He erected a fine residence 
 and substantial barns and outbuildings, render- 
 ing the place one of the best and most con- 
 venient in its appointments of any in the vicin- 
 ity. In 1903 Mr. Johnson bought the forty-acre 
 ranch on which he now resides, it being a part 
 of the old Camp place. It is located two miles 
 south of Sultana, and is sixteen miles from his 
 home ranch in the Drum valley, where his son 
 Charles is now manager, thirty-three miles from 
 
710 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Visalia, which was the nearest market when he 
 began farming and the place to which he used 
 to haul grain and lumber. 
 
 In Tulare county Mr. Johnson married Sarah 
 E. Crowley, a native of Missouri and a daugh- 
 ter of G. B. Crowley, who brought his family 
 across the plains with ox teams in pioneer days, 
 and is now a resident of Los Angeles. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Johnson are the parents of ten children, 
 namely : Mrs. Alice Rosaline Davis of Farmers- 
 ville; Mrs. Mary Ann Stokes, living near Dinu- 
 ba; Charles, on the Drum valley ranch; Mrs. 
 Laura Leggett, living near Sultana; Frank, a 
 farmer; Mrs. Emma Ogen of Drum Valley; 
 and R. B., Walter, Ray and Letha, at home. 
 Politically Mr. Johnson is a steadfast Democrat. 
 He served as a member of the first board of 
 trustees in the Drum Valley district, a position 
 that he filled many terms, and assisted in build- 
 ing the first school house in that section. So- 
 cially he is a member of the San Francisco As- 
 sociation of California Pioneers. Mrs. Johnson 
 is a valued member of the Christian Church. 
 
 JOHN F. BURCH. Classed among the pro- 
 gressive and enterprising farmers of Contra 
 Costa county, John F. Burch occupies a position 
 won by many years of industrious and painstak- 
 ing effort. He is a self-made man in the best 
 sense implied by the term, and has not-only made 
 a success financially but has gained the respect 
 and esteem of all who have come to know him. 
 Born in New York City, December 25, 1837, he 
 was the son of Henry Burch, and in that location 
 he was reared to young manhood. At the break- 
 ing out of the Civil war he was among the first 
 to offer his services, becoming a member of Com- 
 pany F, Fifty-sixth New York Volunteer In- 
 fantry in 1861. Following his enlistment he 
 served two years and ten months, at which time 
 he was honorably discharged for disability. At 
 the battle of Gettysburg he served as corporal. 
 On his return to civic duties he took up survey- 
 ing and civil engineering, and spent two winters 
 in South Carolina and ten years in the state of 
 Nebraska. In 1876 he came to California and 
 located at Visalia, Tulare county, where he as- 
 sisted in building the overland Southern Pacific 
 Railroad, and acted for the company as land ap- 
 praiser. He remained in that location until 1898 
 when he bought ninety-four and seventy-five one- 
 hundredths acres of the Playter estate in Contra 
 Costa county, and also thirty-three and one-third 
 acres from Henry Ivey. In addition to these two 
 pieces of land he purchased a small fruit orchard 
 and a vineyard of six acres. The ranch is de- 
 voted to the cultivation of grain and hay, in 
 which he has been very successful. He has made 
 many improvements on his property and greatly 
 
 enhanced its value. The land of this ranch is 
 peculiarly adapted to the production of corn, a 
 farm product which is exceedingly rare through- 
 out the state. 
 
 In 1870 in Sullivan county, N. Y., Mr. Burch 
 married Harriet A. Pierson, also a native of that 
 county, and of this union were born two chil- 
 dren, namely: Alfred P. and Bertha G. The 
 daughter married William DuBois, and they are 
 the parents of one daughter, Grace M. 
 
 MRS. ELLEN (GREENE) LEWIS. One 
 of the large landholders of Tulare county is 
 Mrs. Ellen (Greene) Lewis, who owns and oc- 
 cupies a valuable ranch lying about three miles 
 south of Dinuba. She is a woman of remarkably 
 good business capacity, great intelligence- and 
 resolution, and in the management of her farm 
 shows excellent judgment and commendable 
 wisdom. A native of Texas, she was born in 
 Dallas county, near Lancaster, a daughter of 
 the late Robert L. Greene, and a sister of Sam- 
 uel K. Greene. She conies of old Virginian 
 stock, her grandfather Greene having been born 
 and bred in Virginia. 
 
 A native of east Tennessee, Robert L. Greene 
 became a farmer from choice, and in early man- 
 hood located in Menard county, 111. Subse- 
 quently removing to Dallas county, Texas, he 
 was for a time there in business as a stock 
 grower and cotton raiser. Returning to Menard 
 county, 111,, he resided there until 1868, when, 
 with his wife and three children, he came across 
 the plains to California', performing the journey 
 with horse teams. Locating in Merced county, 
 he was engaged in farming at Snelling for six 
 years, when, at the time the mill and flume was 
 extended to Madera, he went to Fresno Flats, 
 where he continued as a stock-raiser and farmer 
 for a few seasons. Coming from there to Tulare 
 connty, he located near Dinuba, buying a home- 
 stead claim of eighty acres, and subsequently 
 purchasing eighty acres of adjoining land. On 
 this ranch that he improved he spent the remain- 
 der of his life, dying at the age of sixty-six 
 years. He was a strong Democrat in politics, 
 and a faithful member of the Christian Church, 
 in which he was for many years an elder. His 
 wife, wliose maiden name was Rebecca Senter, 
 was born in Tennessee. She survived him, and 
 married for her second husband Judge Louis 
 Van Tassel, who came to California with the 
 "forty-niners," settled in Tulare county, where 
 he served as .county judge for several terms 
 prior to his death. Since the judge's death Mrs. 
 Van Tassel resides with her daughter, Mrs. 
 Lewis, being now seventy-six years old. She is 
 a most estimable woman and a member of the 
 Christian Church. By her union with her first 
 
cMt^.cJt^.^^<-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 rio 
 
 husband three children were born, namely : Mrs. 
 Ellen Lewis; Qark C, a farmer near Diniiba; 
 and Samuel K., whose sketch may be seen on 
 another page of this work. 
 
 Spending the days of her girlhood in Texas, 
 Illinois and California, Ellen Greene attended 
 the public schools of each of these states, ac- 
 quiring a good education, in the meantime being 
 trained by a wise mother in domestic pursuits. 
 She married first, in Plainsberg, Merced county, 
 William Dudney, who was born and reared in 
 Arkansas, and when a young man came across 
 the plains to the California gold fields. Sub- 
 sequently, as junior member of the firm of 
 Simons & Dudney, he embarked in the sheep 
 business on a large scale, keeping ten thousand 
 head of sheep, his range extending from South 
 Mountain to Grand View and Cross Creek 
 Switch, or Traver, a distance of fourteen miles. 
 Giving that up, Mr. Dudney bought a farm two 
 miles south of the one now occupied by Mrs. 
 Lewis, and was there pleasantly and profitably 
 engaged in agricultural work until his death in 
 
 * 1889. He was a Democrat in politics, and a 
 Mason. Mrs. Dudney subsequently married for 
 her second husband Rev. Josiah A. Lewis, a 
 native of Missouri, and a pioneer minister of 
 the Christian Church, who crossed the plains 
 with wagons and located first on a farm in 
 Sonoma county. From there he went to Santa 
 Clara county, settling near San Jose, and thence 
 to Mussel Slough, where he bought land and 
 carried on farming for a time, at the same time 
 preaching in the Christian Church. He after- 
 wards bought and improved a ranch in Tulare 
 county, not far from Dinuba, and there resided 
 until his death, in June, 1895. He was an active 
 worker in his denomination, and assisted in 
 building churches throughout the valley. He 
 was highly respected and was an active Mason. 
 Since the death of Mr. Lewis, Mrs. Lewis 
 bought her ranch of one hundred and sixty acres 
 from her brother, and for a number of years 
 she was engaged in grain raising, carrying on 
 one thousand acres of land, but since 1899 she 
 has devoted her land to raising alfalfa and stock. 
 Mrs. Lewis has a large property, owning one 
 thousand acres of land adjoining her home farm, 
 and has an alfalfa ranch of three hundred acres 
 lying three and one-half miles south of Dinuba, 
 all of which is under irrigation. Mrs. Lewis 
 has made substantial improvements on her prop- 
 erty, and on the home ranch has built three 
 houses, the first two having been burned down. 
 She is an extensive stock raiser, keeping many 
 cattle, horses and hogs, and she has one of the 
 best pumping plants in this vicinity, furnished 
 with a ten-horse-power engine, which she can 
 use in case of extreme dry weather, irrigating 
 six or seven acres a day. 
 
 37 
 
 By her first marriage Mrs. Lewis had three 
 children, two of whom are living, namely : Pearl, 
 wife of Edward Lewis of Dinuba; and Rem- 
 brandt C. Dudney, a horticulturist living near 
 Dinuba. Mrs. Lewis is an ardent suffragist in 
 politics and fraternally is a member of the Court 
 of Honor and of the Rebekahs, of which she is 
 past grand. She belongs to the Christian Church 
 and is an active member of its Ladies' Aid So- 
 ciety, of which she has been president the past 
 twelve years. 
 
 GILBERT B, NEIGHBOR. One of the old- 
 est landmarks in Snelling is the general mer- 
 chandise store of Gilbert B. Neighbor, where 
 since his arrival in 1873 he has been engaged in 
 the general merchandise business in the growing 
 community, and is respected and honored by all 
 with whom he has had business or social rela- 
 tions. Mr. Neighbor embodies the sterling traits 
 and energy of the west, intensified by an inherit- 
 ance of eastern grit and determination, honesty 
 and high-mindedness. He was born at German 
 Valley, Morris county, N. J., September 14, 
 1836, a son .of Jacob Weise and Mary Ann 
 (Trimmer) Neighbor, natives of New Jersey. 
 His paternal great-grandfather, Leonard Neigh- 
 bor, was born in New Jersey in 1730, and his 
 paternal grandfather, also named Leonard, was 
 born in the same state in 1764, both serving in 
 the Revolutionary war. In later life the grand- 
 father served as an able judge, and during his 
 professional career settled twenty-two estates in 
 New Jersey. He died at the advanced age of 
 ninety-one years. 
 
 Jacob W. Neighbor was reared on a farm in 
 New Jersey, and when grown to manhood 
 stepped from the occupation of his forefathers 
 to that of merchandising. In 1855 he sought to 
 benefit his condition by removal to Princeton, 
 111., where he engaged successfully in buying and 
 selling grain. He lived to be fourscore and two 
 years old, his wife having died in her fortieth 
 year. One of his sons, Jesse H., is a business 
 man of Pacific Grove, Cal. Gilbert B. received 
 his preliminary education in the public schools 
 of New Jersey, and was nineteen years old when 
 the family removed to Illinois. He heard much 
 of, the wonders of California and had a longing 
 to see the country, but it was not until 1859 that 
 he was able to realize his wishes. Going to New 
 York, he sailed for Aspinwall, and from Panama 
 to San Francisco, arriving in the latter city De- 
 cember 14, 1859. Going at once to Tuolumne 
 county, he engaged in farming for seven years, 
 and then went to Jamestown, where he clerked 
 in a store for a like period. With his experience 
 to guide him he came to Snelling in 1873, and 
 
716 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 has been engaged in merchandising since that 
 date. 
 
 Until 1893 Mr. Neighbor was interested in 
 sheep raising, at one time having a band of five 
 thousand. He owns a farm of one hundred and 
 twenty acres, as well as some town property. He 
 is public-spirited, and his political activities have 
 been of lasting benefit to the community. A 
 stanch Republican, he has fought for the best 
 tenets of his party, and served as justice of the 
 peace for four years. 
 
 In this state Mr. Neighbor was united in mar- 
 riage with Matilda H. Smith, a native of Au- 
 gusta, Me., and daughter of P. B. Smith, who 
 came around the Horn in 1850, and is still a 
 resident of Jamestown, Tuolumne county. Eight 
 children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Neigh- 
 bor, of whom Charles G. is a rancher of Merced 
 county ; Marjorie A. is the wife of William C. 
 Richards ; May N. is the wife of Fred G. Robin- 
 son; Ada Grace married R. H. Allen; Pearl is 
 deceased ; and Josie, Melvin and Ethel are at 
 home. Mr. Neighbor is one of the popular and 
 successful merchants of Merced county and his 
 record is one which may well furnish encourage- 
 ment to the youth of the rising generation. One 
 of his strongest characteristics is faithfulness to 
 duty, a trait appreciated by the Wells Fargo Ex- 
 press Company, which he has represented as 
 agent for the past twenty-nine years. In all 
 movements that have tended to advance the wel- 
 fare of the county and citizens, he has given of 
 his means, time and influence. 
 
 born in Illinois, a daughter of John B_. Beck- 
 with. Mr. Beckwith removed from Illinois to 
 California about twenty years ago, and was en- 
 gaged in the grocery and commission business 
 in Tulare until his death, in May, 1903. He 
 was a man of much force of character, ranking 
 among the foremost men of the community, and 
 was highly esteemed. His wife died several 
 years before he did. Fraternally Mr. Everett is 
 a member of the Independent Order of Foresters 
 and of the Improved Order of Red Men. 
 
 THOMAS E. EVERETT. A man of ability 
 and energy, Thomas E. Everett is intimately as- 
 sociated with the industrial prosperity of Tulare 
 as one of its leading business men. An able 
 architect, contractor and builder, his services are 
 in constant demand, and as the owner and man- 
 ager of the pioneer planing plant of this local- 
 ity he is active in advancing its manufacturing 
 interests. Born July 22, 1861, in Halifax, Nova 
 Scotia, he was there reared and educated, being 
 graduated from the high school. He subse- 
 quently learned the trades of a carpenter and 
 cabinet maker, and followed these with success 
 in his native city. Migrating to Massachusetts 
 in 1899, he spent three years in Boston. 
 
 In 1902 Mr. Everett located in Tulare as a 
 contractor and builder. He met with excellent 
 success, and in March, 1904, enlarged his opera- 
 tions by starting a planing mill. Furnishing it 
 with machinery of the most approved patterns, 
 he manufactures building material of all kinds, 
 and carries on an extensive and lucrative busi- 
 ness in general mill work. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. Everett married Kate B. Beck- 
 with, a woman of rare personal worth. She was' 
 
 ARCHIE B. WASGATT. Ever since the 
 Wasgatt family became established in America 
 successive generations have been identified with 
 the growth and history of Maine. In that state 
 Elisha Wasgatt was born and reared and there 
 he followed the blacksmith's trade through all of 
 his active life. Following him in line of descent 
 was Moses Wasgatt, a ship carpenter by trade, 
 who for twenty years engaged in the West In- 
 dia coasting trade. It was he who founded the 
 family in the far west. During 1876 he, removed 
 to California and settled in Los Angeles county 
 near Florence, where he took up the building 
 business. In 1881 he removed to Selma, _this 
 state, where for years he was the leading con- 
 tractor and builder, following the occupation un- 
 til his death, which occurred October 10, 1902. 
 Before leaving Maine he had married Ann 
 Adelia Higgins, a native of that state, and now a 
 resident of Selma. Three sons and one daughter 
 were born of their union, namely : Hiram T., 
 a musician in San Francisco; Archie B., of Din- 
 uba; Fred M., agent for the Southern Pacific 
 Railroad at Reedley ; and Annie M., a teacher in 
 the Selma schools. 
 
 At Mount Desert, Hancock county, Me., 
 Archie B. Wasgatt was born May 28, 1869. 
 When the family removed from the Atlantic to 
 the Pacific coast he was a child of six years, 
 hence his education has been gained wholly in 
 California. At the age of eleven he accompanied 
 his parents to Selma and there attended the pub- 
 lic schools. When sixteen years old he secured 
 work in a general mercantile establishment at 
 Selma. A few years later he left that store and 
 became a clerk with Jacob Schwalby in the same 
 town. Later he held a clerkship in Madera, and 
 for two years acted as manager of a store owned 
 by Radin & Kamp of Fresno. From Madera he 
 went to Fresno, where he continued with his for- 
 mer employers for almost three years. On re- 
 turning to Selma he engaged with the Brown- 
 stone Company for two years. During the 
 summer of 1901 he engaged in prospecting at 
 Nome, Alaska. On his return to California he 
 settled in Dinuba, where he has since engaged in 
 business, having in a short time built up the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 717 
 
 largest business of the kind in town. His estab- 
 lishment contains shoes of all kinds and to suit 
 all tastes, while he also has a large and complete 
 stock of gent's furnishing goods. Possessing 
 energy and resourcefulness, he has worked with 
 persevering fidelity and has attained already a 
 commendable degree of success. In national pol- 
 itics he votes with the Democratic party, while 
 fraternally he affiliates with the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows. His marriage, solemnized 
 in Reno, Nev., united him with Miss Cenie Les- 
 ter, a native of Missouri, and the daughter of 
 Mark Lester, who came to California at an early 
 day and now resides on a farm near Centerville. 
 Reared and educated in the west, Mrs. Wasgatt 
 is in sympathy with all movements looking to- 
 ward the upbuilding of this part of the country 
 and as a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church is in deep sympathy with all work that 
 tends toward the spiritual uplifting of the com- 
 munity. 
 
 GIBBONS ANDREW BOTSFORD. Not 
 alone through the accumulation of large landed 
 estates, but also through his long and intimate 
 association with the history of Tulare county, Mr. 
 Botsford holds a position among the most in- 
 fluential and prominent men of Visalia, where he 
 has made his home and business headquarters 
 since 1859. The family of which he is a mem- 
 ber came from New England. His father, T. E. 
 Botsford, was a native of Massachusetts, but 
 removed to Ohio after he was married. For 
 some years he conducted a mercantile store at 
 Akron and from there in 1844 removed to Co- 
 lumbus, Ohio, where he became proprietor of a 
 store and resided until death. Originally a Whig, 
 with the disintegration of that party he became 
 an adherent of the newly organized Republican 
 party and afterward gave its principles his stanch 
 allegiance. His wife, who was Nancy Merillo 
 Gibbons, was born in Connecticut and died in 
 Ohio after his demise. In their family were 
 three sons and three, daughters, of whom the 
 subject of this narrative was third in order of 
 birth. A native of Akron, born November 13, 
 1836, he was eight years of age when the fam- 
 ily removed to Columbus, and afterward became 
 a pupil in the schools of the latter city, com- 
 pleting his education by a business course in Cin- 
 cinnati. 
 
 Upon starting out to make his way in the 
 world Mr. Botsford settled in Iowa, where with 
 a brother he conducted a mercantile business for 
 about eighteen months. In 1856 he joined a 
 party of emigrants and crossed the plains via the 
 southern route. In common with the majority 
 of early settlers he tried his luck in mining and 
 prospected considerably both in this state and 
 
 Arizona. Meanwhile for a year he clerked in 
 a hardware store in Los Angeles and from there 
 came to Visalia in 1859, taking up the trade of 
 tinner and also acting as deputy assessor by ap- 
 pointment. In 1863 he was appointed United 
 States revenue collector for this district and 
 served for one term. In 1865-66 he served as 
 register of the United States land office at Visalia 
 and in 1867 was again appointed for a second 
 term. Since 1867 he has engaged in the real- 
 estate business, but finds his attention required 
 for the management of his own lands. At this 
 writing he owns the Botsford building, a brick 
 structure in Visalia; other town property, in- 
 cluding a commodious residence set in the midst 
 of three lots that are adorned with flowers and 
 shrubbery; also various tracts in Tulare coun- 
 ty, and a farm of six thousand acres in Kings 
 county, where he has a large number of cattle.' 
 At different times he has platted additions to 
 Visalia and sold off the property for residence 
 lots. The loaning of money has been a special 
 feature of his business and he has also engaged 
 in the insurance business. 
 
 After coming to VisaHa Mr. Botsford mar- 
 ried Miss Harriet G. Edwards, who was born 
 in New York and died in this town in 1896. A 
 woman of great capability, she had been a con- 
 stant help to her husband by her counsel and her - 
 death was a heavy bereavement to him. Through- 
 out all of his Hfe Mr. Botsford has been inter- 
 ested in politics. When he was a young man the 
 organization of the Republican party, with its 
 stirring poHcy and progressive platform, enlisted 
 his support, and he has never wavered in al- 
 legiance to its principles. Frequently since com- 
 ing to Visalia he has rendered able service along 
 party lines, notably through his work as a mem- 
 ber of the county and state central committees. 
 Stirring in action, courteous to rich and poor, 
 quick in decision, generous to the needy, he rich- 
 ly deserves the high measure of financial success 
 that has been his portion. 
 
 FREDERICK E. BUNKER. In Stanislaus 
 county there are many enterprising agricultur- 
 ists who bring to their calling good business 
 methods and excellent judgment, and whose 
 labors are crowned with success. Conspicuous 
 among this number is Frederick E. Bunker, who 
 owns and occupies a finely improved ranch, ly- 
 ing about seven miles south of Newman, in a 
 rich and fertile district. A man of undoubted 
 abihty and integrity, he is held in high regard 
 throughout the community, both he and his wife 
 being respected for their many virtues, and 
 heartily liked for their frank, open-hearted hos- 
 pitality and kindly manners. He is a native 
 Cahfornian, his birth having occurred Septem- 
 
718 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ber 28, 1875, in Cottonwood, Merced county, on 
 the farm of his father, Nathaniel Bunker. 
 
 A native of New England, Nathaniel Bunker 
 was born and reared in Maine. Becoming a 
 civil engineer, he came with a surveying party 
 to Michigan, when a young man, from there 
 migrating to the Pacific coast, crossing the plains 
 to California. As a miner he searched for gold 
 in .Nevada county, but not being especially suc- 
 cessful in his quest, he embarked in the lumber 
 business at Truckee. Desiring a change of oc- 
 cupation, he rented land at Cottonwood, Shasta 
 county, in 1869, and was there engaged in farm- 
 ing for nine years. Buying six hundred and 
 forty acres of land in that localitv in 1878, he 
 began the raising of grain on an extended scale, 
 and was thus successfully employed until 1903, 
 when he removed to Oakland, Cal., where he is 
 living retired, his home being No. 480 Moss 
 avenue. He married Elizabeth Dunning, also a 
 native of Maine, and they reared a family con- 
 sisting of four boys and two girls, of whom 
 Frederick E., the subject of this sketch, is the 
 third child, and the third son. 
 
 After leaving the district schools, Frederick E. 
 Bunker attended the State Normal School at 
 San Jose for awhile, completing his early edu- 
 cation at a private school in Oakland. The en- 
 suing year he was employed as a clerk in a drug 
 store. Preferring a more independent life, he 
 turned his attention to agriculture, and in his 
 chosen pursuit has been exceedingly prosperous. 
 Purchasing his present farm, the old Castner 
 estate, of eighty acres, which is situated seven 
 miles south of Newman, in the Cottonwood dis- 
 trict, he has devoted himself more especially to 
 raising alfalfa, and to dairying, keeping on an 
 average from thirty to forty cows. In regard to 
 its appointments, Mr. Bunker's ranch compares 
 favorably with any in the neighborhood, its neat 
 and orderly appearance bearing evidence of the 
 thrift and care of its owner. 
 
 In Newman, Mr. Bunker married Lela 
 Switzer, a native of this town. Politically Mr. 
 Bunker affiliates with the Republican party, be- 
 ing one of its most loyal supporters, and fra- 
 ternally he is a member of Hill's Ferry Lodge 
 No. 236, F. & A. M. 
 
 _ AVON M. COBURN. The town of Spring- 
 ville, Tulare county, was laid out by Avon M. 
 Coburn, an esteemed resident of the place and 
 a potent factor in the material upbuilding of 
 this section. A man of energy and abilitv, he 
 gives his whole effort to promote the general 
 welfare, making his personal efforts lie parallel 
 with those for the community in which he makes 
 his home. A native son of the state, he was 
 born in Placer county July 26, 1857. His father, 
 
 Samuel S. Coburn, was a native of Maine, in- 
 heriting from his New England ancestors those 
 qualities which make them desirable citizens in 
 any part of the country. He came to California 
 in 1852 via the Horn, locating in Placer county, 
 where he first engaged in mining. He acted as 
 superintendent in the erection of the wagon road 
 over the Sierra Nevada mountains, while he also 
 worked on the construction of the Central Pa- 
 cific Railway. In 1868 he came to Tulare coun- 
 ty and located in Visalia, where he remained for 
 two years. He then went to Mountain View, 
 on the Upper Tule, where he farmed and raised 
 stock for a time, then sold and went to the Mid- 
 dle Fork of the Tule and followed the same 
 business. Eventually disposing of this property, 
 he located near Springville, where his death oc- 
 curred in 1894. His widow, formerly Julia A. 
 Crockett, a native of Maine, is now living, the 
 wife of S. G. Harvey, of Springville. To Mr. 
 and Mrs. Coburn were born one son and two 
 daughters, of whom Avon C. Coburn is the sec- 
 ond child. 
 
 The education of Avon C. Coburn was re- 
 ceived in the common schools of his native state, 
 more or less limited on account of the primitive 
 conditions of that day. In young manhood he 
 engaged in sawmilling in the pineries at the 
 head of the Tule river, working from fifteen 
 years of age until 1884, when he bought a small 
 mill with his earnings and entered into the work 
 for himself. Later he enlarged the mill and con- 
 tinued successfully until igoi, when he sold out 
 with profit. In 1890 he purchased the quarter 
 section of land on which Springville now stands 
 and erected the planing and box mill which he 
 conducted in conjunction with his sawmill until 
 1 90 1, when he also disposed of this interest tem- 
 porarily by leasing the property to what is now 
 known as the Central California Redwood Com- 
 pany until May I, 1905, when he will again take 
 possession. Mr. Coburn is adding materially to 
 the growth of Springville by putting up houses 
 which he rents. This land he purchased in 1890 
 from Sweet & Co. of Visalia, and laid out the 
 town of Springville, and has since given his 
 best efforts towards its upbuilding and the pro- 
 motion of all worthy movements. 
 
 In Springville Mr. Coburn was united in mar- 
 riage with Fannie Daunt, a native of San Joa- 
 quin county, Cal, and they have one son, Leonard 
 A. Mrs. Coburn is a daughter of William Giles 
 Daunt and Henrietta C. Tlangy, the former a 
 native of Montreal, Canada, and the latter of 
 Germany. He came to~California in June, 1867, 
 and lived in Los Angeles arid then in Pacheco. 
 He traveled all over the United States and lived 
 in New Orleans for years, besides many other 
 places. He was a painter by trade, and a fine 
 workman. He accumulated considerable prop- 
 
a^o^ /^c^.^^:'c^f 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 r2i 
 
 erty before the war, but lost his weahh in that 
 gigantic struggle. He came to Springville many 
 years ago and the postoffice was named in his 
 honor, he being the first postmaster. Politically 
 Mr. Coburn is a stanch adherent of the prin- 
 ciples . advocated in the platform of the Repub- 
 hcan party. Fratefrnally he is identified with 
 the Woodmen of the World, and is past chair- 
 man of the Springville Lodge, of which he was 
 the first council commander. He also belongs 
 to Mount Whitney Camp. 
 
 ALBERT ABBOTT ROWELL. Among the 
 pioneers who have watched the development of 
 Fresno county from a wild desert region to a 
 land of happy homes and flourishing industries, 
 is Albert Abbott Rowell, a carpenter and builder 
 by trade, owner of a one hundred and sixty acre 
 ranch two miles west of Selma, and since 1901 
 a retired resident of the town. Mr. Rowell start- 
 ed on his independent career at a very early age, 
 with but slight knowledge of the diversions or 
 pleasures which make youth a time to be recalled 
 with unceasing joy. He was born in Essex 
 county, Vt., May 3, 1846, and when four years 
 old removed to McLean county. 111., with his 
 parents, where his father died the following year, 
 and where he worked hard on the home farm, 
 having but few opportunities of attending the 
 district school. At the age of fourteen he began 
 his independent career by working as a farm hand 
 until the outbreak of the Civil war, when he en- 
 listed in Company G, Seventeenth Illinois Vol- 
 unteer Infantry, serving until March, 1863. 
 Leaving Illinois in 1871, he located in York 
 county, Neb., and combined carpentering with 
 the management of a one hundred and sixty acre 
 farm. 
 
 In 1873 Mr. Rowell came to California and 
 engaged in the sheep business with his brothers 
 in Fresno county, and when it came time to send 
 the herds to the mountains, he plied his trade 
 in Fresno with Andy Law. He cut the first 
 stick of timber used in the warehouses, in the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church South and the water 
 works building, and built the Fresno residence 
 of his brother. Dr. Rowell, mentioned elsewhere 
 in this work. In the spring of 1878 he located 
 the claim still owned by him, and in February, 
 1879, became one of the first workers on the 
 great Centerville and Kingsburg Irrigation 
 Company's ditch, for which he contracted for the 
 wood work. Not long afterward he went to the 
 Washington colony and assisted with its laying 
 out, dug the ditches and otherwise arranged for 
 the comfort and convenience of the settlers. In 
 December, 1879, he went to the central colony, 
 and there married Nancy Ann Booth, born in 
 Minnesota, and daughter of Stephen Booth, one 
 
 of the early settlers of that colony. The fol- 
 lowing year he located on his pre-empted claim 
 two miles west of Selma, set it out to vineyard, 
 orchard and alfalfa, and improved it until com- 
 ing to Selma in 1901, when its management was 
 given to other parties. 
 
 In numerous ways Mr. Rowell has filed a lien 
 upon the gratitude and appreciation of the peo- 
 ple of Fresno county. His skill as a builder has 
 erected many monuments, including residences, 
 public buildings, stores, and churches, and -his 
 thorough understanding of horticulture has as- 
 sisted the establishment of the present high 
 standard of excellence throughout the county. 
 Until recently he has taken an active interest in 
 the Christian Church, of which he has been a 
 member for years, and he has been equally ener- 
 getic in promoting the cause of temperance. Mr. 
 Rowell is a man of high moral character, gen- 
 erous impulses, and practical common sense, and 
 the fact that his present state of health interferes 
 with his enjoyment of life is greatly regretted by 
 his many friends. 
 
 JOHN BURGAN. Ever since starting out 
 for himself at twenty-one years of age Mr. Bur- 
 gan has made his home in California and at this 
 writing is a resident of Tulare, where he engages 
 in business as proprietor of the City livery. 
 The family of which he is a member came from 
 the east, his father, Samuel, having been a native 
 of Ohio, but from the age of twenty-one years 
 a resident of Kansas, where for some years he 
 followed the freighting business on the plains be- 
 tween Leavenworth and Fort Scott. In the 
 interests of the same occupation he made a trip 
 to Pike's Peak and to the Black Hills, thus 
 seeing much of frontier and mining life. Even- 
 tually he discontinued freighting and settled on a 
 farm two miles north of Lawrence, where he de- 
 voted himself to the cultivation of eighty acres 
 of valuable land. During 1901 he removed to 
 California and has since engaged in the stock 
 business upon a ranch that he owns near Tulare. 
 However, owing to advancing years, he is no 
 longer active in business and many of the activ- 
 ities of former years have been relinquished. By 
 his marriage to Ellen Foltz, who was born in 
 Ohio and is still living, he became the father 
 of ten children, nine of whom survive. In this 
 family John Burgan was second in order of 
 birth. Born at Lawrence, Kans., June 16, 1867, 
 he passed the years of boyhood somewhat im- 
 eventfully on the home farm, where from early 
 boyhood he showed a liking for horses. While 
 still quite young he became an expert judge of 
 horseflesh and his counsel was often sought in 
 the purchase of teams by neighbors. At the 
 same tim.e he became a student of the diseases 
 
722 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of horses, thus gaining the knowledge which 
 gives him considerable veterinary skill. 
 
 On coming to Tulare county, in December, 
 1888, Mr. Burgan secured employment as a 
 farm hand. After two years he bought forty 
 acres of land two miles from Tulare, and this he 
 checked and put into alfalfa. At the same time 
 he engaged in trading and dealing in horses, an 
 occupation for which his experience and inclina- 
 tion admirably qualified him. In 1896 he pur- 
 chased the City livery from James Shannon and 
 engaged in the livery, feed and sale business, 
 also continued to buy and sell horses. In 1901 
 he sold the barn and removed to Los Angeles, 
 where he bought the Nevada stables on Broad- 
 way, but a year later disposed of that property 
 and purchased the Richmond stables on Main be- 
 tween Eighth and Ninth streets, continuing in 
 that place until May of 1904, when he returned 
 to Tulare. In October of the same year he pur- 
 chased the site and barn previously owned by 
 him, and here he conducts a first-class livery. 
 In politics he votes the Democratic ticket, while 
 fraternally he holds membership in the Wood- 
 men of the World, P'raternal Brotherhood and 
 Fraternal Aid. After coming to Tulare he was 
 here united in marriage with Miss Verna Riley, 
 a native of Kansas, and a member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church. The three children 
 born of their union are Walter Lloyd, Loran 
 Donald and Harold Rex. 
 
 WILLIAM G. HUNTER. An industrious, 
 thrifty and able agriculturist, William G. Hun- 
 ter, living four miles southeast of Dinuba, is 
 a fine representative of the prosperous horti- 
 culturists, stock raisers and dairymen of this 
 section of California. Possessing good business 
 tact and judgment, he has made wise and judi- 
 cious investments, taking advantage of the fa- 
 cilities afforded in these days by the modern 
 machinery and other appliances required in till- 
 ing the soil, and is carrying on his extensive 
 operations after the most approved methods. A 
 native of Stanislaus county, he was born Janu- 
 ary '28, 1864, near Modesto, of New England 
 ancestry on the paternal side, his father, Charles 
 Hunter, having been born and reared in Ver- 
 mont. 
 
 Beginning life for himself as a lumberman, 
 Charles Hunter located in Canada, and for a 
 number of years was engaged in the manufac- 
 ture of lumber near Montreal. Crossing the 
 plains in the '50s, he settled as a farmer and 
 stockman in Stanislaus county, where he im- 
 proved a ranch. He was quite successful, and 
 became owner of land near Fresno, and also had 
 land near Hanford. He died while yet in the 
 prime of life, in 1871. His wife, whose maiden 
 
 name was Elizabeth Ketzebach, was born near 
 Montreal, Canada, and now resides in Stanislaus 
 county, Cal. Of the seven children born of their 
 union, two daughters and one son survive. 
 
 After the death of his father, William G. 
 Hunter lived for a number of years in Canada, 
 and there began his school life. Coming, back 
 to California in 1875, he lived a part of the 
 time on the family ranch near Fresno, and a 
 part of the time near Hanford, attending the 
 district schools of both places. At the age of 
 eighteen years he began the battle of life on his 
 own account, buying, in 1882, from the rail- 
 road company, the one hundred and sixty acres 
 of land included in his present ranch, which 
 was then prairie and range land. Two years 
 later Mr. Hunter began its improvement, fenc- 
 ing it and sowing it to grain. In the meantime 
 he and his brother Charles formed a partnership, 
 and for a year farmed a section of land. Mr. 
 Hunter has since been actively engaged in ag- 
 ricultural operations alone, and has met with 
 excellent success. When the ditch was put 
 through his land, in 1892, he leveled and checked 
 his ranch, put out a vineyard of twenty-four 
 acres, an orchard of thirteen acres, and has now 
 eighty acres of alfalfa. He raises considerable 
 stock, and is carrying on a good dairy business, 
 although he makes a specialty of fruit culture, 
 whicli he finds both pleasant and profitable. He 
 also has a grain farm of one hundred and sixty 
 acres near Monson, from which he realizes a 
 good annual income, besides a stock ranch of 
 two hundred and forty acres one mile south- 
 east of his horhe. 
 
 June 2, 1892, in Dinuba, Mr. Hunter married 
 Harriet B. Rice, who was born in Tulare coun- 
 ty, where her father, the late Isaac Rice, was 
 a pioneer settler. Further parental and ances- 
 tral history may be found elsewhere in this work 
 in connection with the sketch of her mother, 
 Mrs. Martha Elizabeth Rice of Dinuba. Into 
 the pleasant household of Mr. and Mrs. Hunter 
 three children have been born, namely : Ada 
 Elizabeth, Earl Charles Wilham, and Evelyn 
 Grace. Mr. Hunter takes an active interest ni 
 ■the welfare of the community in which he re- 
 sides, and politically votes the Democratic ticket. 
 Fraternally he belongs to the Court of Honor. 
 Mrs. Hunter is a member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 JAMES E. CAMPBELL. Classed among 
 the successful agriculturists of Tulare county is 
 James E. Campbell, who is pleasantly located 
 just south af Monson Station, where he is de- 
 voting his time and attention to the cultivation 
 of the soil and the raising of stock. A man of 
 remarkably good judgment, sound sense and 
 ability, he is well entitled to the high rank he 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 723 
 
 holds among the most useful and enterprising 
 residents of his community. A son of Nathan- 
 iel Campbell, he was born in Laclede county, 
 Mo., November 19, i860. His grandfather, 
 Galloway Campbell, a native of Virginia, mi- 
 grated to Tennessee, where he worked as a 
 millwright and also followed the trade of a 
 carpenter for many years. 
 
 Born June 4, 1828, in Greene county, Tenn., 
 Nathaniel Campbell married in his native state, 
 and in 1858 followed the well-trodden path of 
 the emigrants to Laclede county, Mo., where 
 he lived for three years. He was subsequently 
 employed as a tilkr of the soil in Scotland county 
 until after the breaking out of the Civil war, 
 when he joined the Union army. Enlisting in 
 Company E, Twelfth Missouri Cavalry, he 
 served bravely for three years, at the close of 
 the conflict being honorably discharged. Re- 
 turning to Scotland county, he continued there 
 as a farmer until 1881, when he came with his 
 family to the Pacific coast. The same fall he 
 homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land near Monson, just south of the present 
 village, and was successfully employed in agri- 
 cultural pursuits until his death, April 26, 1903. 
 He was a man of great integrity, and a stanch 
 Republican in his political beliefs. January 17, 
 1856, in Tennessee, he married Susanna Simp^ 
 son, who was born in Greene county, Tenn., of 
 Virginia stock, and is now living on the farm 
 that her husband improved, owning forty acres 
 of the original homestead, the remainder of 
 which .she divided among her children. Her 
 father, James Simpson, a farmer, was born in 
 Tennessee and died in Missouri, as did his wife, 
 whose maiden name was Dorcas Depew. Of 
 the union of Nathaniel and Susanna (Simpson) 
 Campbell, seven children were born, namely: 
 John L., marshal of Selma; James E., the sub- 
 ject of this sketch ; Mrs. Mary March of Tauru- 
 sa; Mrs. Sarah A. Harris of Selma; J. W., and 
 Luella, both living on the home ranch ; and Lee 
 A., engaged in farming near Monson. The 
 mother is a faithful member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, and in politics is an un- 
 doubted Republican. 
 
 Brought up in Scotland county. Mo., James 
 E. Campbell acquired his early knowledge of 
 books in the district schools. With the family 
 he came to California in 1881, and during the 
 following, winter homesteaded the tract of land 
 adjoining his father's near Monson. Subse- 
 quently, in partnership with W. G. Hunter, he 
 engaged in grain raising on an extended scale, 
 carrying on fourteen hundred acres of land. 
 Since 1900 Mr. Campbell has devoted himself 
 to raising alfalfa, to which the major portion of 
 his ranch of two hundred and ninety acres is 
 sown, the remainder being pasture land. His 
 
 farm is under irrigation, the ditch passing 
 through it and watering it thoroughly. He is 
 specially interested in stock raising, having over 
 one hundred head of fine Holstein cattle, while 
 in his dairy he keeps about thirty cows. 
 _ In- Schuyler county, Mo., Mr. Campbell mar- 
 ried Lulu Breckenridge, who was born in that 
 county, and they have two children, Harlev and 
 Cleo. Politically Mr. Campbell is a true-blue 
 Republican, and for nine years served as trustee 
 and clerk of the Monson school district. Mrs. 
 Campbell is highly esteemed among her neigh- 
 bors and friends, and is a consistent member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 ROBERT E. BERING, M. D. The stability 
 of character noticeable in the German race and 
 the genial social qualities with which nature has 
 endowed those of southern birth find expression 
 in the temperament and talents of Dr. Bering, 
 who is first vice-president of the San Joaquin 
 Medical Society, and a member of the Fresno 
 County, State and American Medical Associa- 
 tions. As a contributor to medical journals he 
 has advanced ideas of interest to his professional 
 brethren, while by the thoughtful reading of lit- 
 erature of a similar nature he has broadened 
 his own professional equipment. Many physi- 
 cians of the twentieth century have given them- 
 selves to specialties and he has proved no ex- 
 ception to the rule, having estabHshed in Tulare 
 a san?torium where he gives treatment for the 
 cure of the morphine, whiskey and other drug 
 habits. 
 
 When Louis H. Bering was a boy he came to 
 America with his father from his native prov- 
 ince of Hesse-Cassel, Germany, and settled in 
 Houston, Tex., where he grew to manhood and 
 entered upon a successful business career. From 
 that time forward he had hardware interests 
 in that city and Galveston, and his death 'oc- 
 curred in Houston in 1891. While making 
 Houston his home he there formed the acquaint- 
 ance of Mary J. Michau, a native of Florida, 
 and a daughter of Dr. M. M. Michau, who was 
 a dentist and who' also did considerable work 
 as a home missionary of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church South. Louis H. Bering was united 
 in marriage with Miss Michau, by whom he had 
 three children. The eldest. Dr. Robert E. Ber- 
 ing, was born in Galveston, Tex., January 9, 
 1 87 1, and had excellent advantages in the Hous- 
 ton high school, from which he was graduated 
 in 1888. With a love for the medical profession 
 formed in childhood, he early decided to enter 
 upon its study and practice, and pursuant to that 
 end he became a student under Dr. J. M. Boyles 
 of Houston. In 1889 he matriculated in the 
 Tulare University, New Orleans, where he took 
 
724 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RfiCORD. 
 
 the full course of four years, supplemented by 
 two years of work in Charity Hospital in the 
 same city. 
 
 After having received the degree of M. D., 
 in 1895, Dr. Bering opened an office in his home 
 town of Houston, but soon removed to Alice, 
 Tex., and from there in 1901 came to CaUfor- 
 nia. Since then he has conducted a general 
 practice of medicine and surgery, in addition to 
 maintaining his private hospital, and in both 
 capacities he has become well known throughout 
 the San Joaquin valley. When attending col- 
 lege in New Orleans he met and later married 
 Miss Noemie Bostick, a native of that city, but 
 of English descent. They have three children, 
 Robert Ellis, Virginia May and Louis Henry. 
 The family attend the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church of Tulare, in which Dr. Bering officiates 
 as a steward. Politically he favors Democratic 
 principles. Before leaving Texas he was initi- 
 ated into Masonry at Corpus Christi, and in 
 addition he holds fraternal relations with the 
 Woodmen of the World, Modern Woodmen of 
 America, Improved Order of Red Men, Inde- 
 pendent Order of Foresters, Fraternal Aid and 
 Fraternal Brotherhood in Tulare, all of which 
 bodies retain him in the capacity of examining 
 physician, and in addition he has held the presi- 
 dency of the organization last named. 
 
 JOSEPH D. PILLSBURY. A man of great 
 integrity, ability and resolution, Joseph D. Pills- 
 bury occupies a place of prominence and influ- 
 ence among the leading citizens of Traver. He 
 is actively identified with its business interests, 
 and is widely known throughout this section of 
 the county as collector for the Alta Irrigation 
 District and as postmaster at Traver. He comes 
 from substantial colonial stock, being a descend- 
 ant in the ninth generation of one William 
 Pillsbury, the emigrant ancestor, who was born 
 in England in 1615, emigrated to New England 
 in 1640, locating in Essex county, Mass., and 
 became founder of one of the most loyal and 
 patriotic families of the United States, one or 
 more of his descendants having taken an active 
 part in every war in which our country has since 
 been involved. The line of descent from this 
 honored ancestor is as follows : ( i ) William 
 Pillsbury was one of the original settlers of 
 Newbury, Mass., where his death occurred in 
 1686; (2) Moses, born in 1645; (3) Moses, born 
 in 1672; (4) Ezra, born in 1703, moved from 
 Newbury, Mass., to Weare, N. H. ; (5) Ezra, 
 born in Weare, N. H., in 1740, served in the 
 Revolution under Gen. John Stark, taking part 
 in the battle of Bennington; (6) Joseph, born 
 in 1762; (7) Joseph, born in 1786, settled as 
 a farmer near Springfield, N. H. ; (8) Daniel 
 
 H., born in Springfield, N. H., in 1825; and (9) 
 Joseph D., the subject of this sketch, born in 
 .San Andreas, Calaveras countv, Cal., October 
 26, 1859. 
 
 Improving his natural talents when young, 
 Daniel H. Pillsbury learned the machinist's trade, 
 and for a few years followed it in his New 
 England home. Leaving Boston in the fall of 
 1849, h^ embarked on the bark Oscar, which 
 was owned by a stock company, which consisted 
 of the crew, and was provisioned for two years. 
 Sailing by way of Cape Horn, he arrived in 
 California, where the company separated, some 
 settling in Sacramento and Qthers locating in 
 Marysville, where they erected the hotel build- 
 ing that had been brought west on board the 
 Oscar. Mr. Pillsbury, hov/ever, went into the 
 mining regions of Calaveras county, where he 
 put through several ditches without the aid of 
 a civil engineer's outfit, using the triangle, the 
 largest one, known as Pillsbury 's ditch, being 
 recognized as a splendid piece of civil engineer- 
 ing. The mines failing, he was afterwards em- 
 ployed in the cattle business in that county until 
 his death, in 1889. He was a man of sterling 
 worth and character, active in local affairs, being 
 a Whig until the formation of the Republican 
 party, when he became one of its stanchest ad- 
 herents. He married Elizabeth Curley, who was 
 born in West Meath, Ireland, immigrated to 
 America, came with relatives to the Pacific coast 
 in 1853, and died in Calaveras county, Cal., in 
 1872. She bore her husband six children, all of 
 whom are living, Joseph D. being the second 
 child in succession of birth. 
 
 Brought up in Calaveras county and vicinity, 
 Joseph D. Pillsbury lived first in San Andreas, 
 then in Eldorado, going from there to Railroad 
 Flat, where the family still own property. Ob- 
 taining his education in the district schools, he 
 remained at home until fifteen years old, when 
 he came to the San Joaquin valley in search of 
 remunerative employment. Inheriting in a 
 marked degree the mechanical ability and in- 
 genuity of his father, he became an engineer, 
 and for eight or nine years went with a thresh- 
 ing outfit in that capacity. Locating in Tulare 
 county, near Hanford, in 1884, Mr. Pillsbury 
 worked as a farmer and engineer for two years, 
 running a harvester. Entering then the employ 
 of the Traver Warehouse and Business Associa- 
 tion, he was clerk for a year, when the hard- 
 ware business was burned out, and he was given 
 charge of the warehouse, which has since been 
 under his supervision. Mr. Pillsbury was like- 
 wise engaged in the hardware business for sev- 
 eral seasons in Traver, and is now one of the 
 leading pharmacists of the place, having a well- 
 stocked drug store. For the past nine years 
 he has been postmaster, and for ten years has 
 
'yC^iyC-^^ 
 
 /vLc^L^t/ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 727 
 
 served as collector for the Alta Irrigation Dis- 
 trict, a position to which he has been elected 
 five times. He is also interested in agricultural 
 pursuits, owning one hundred and sixty acres of 
 good land located southwest of Traver. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. Pillsbury married Harriet E. 
 Morton, who was born in Sacramento, Cal., the 
 daughter of Darius Morton, who came to Cali- 
 fornia as a pioneer in 1851. Two children have 
 been Tjorn of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. 
 RUsbury, namely : Etta L., a pupil in the Han- 
 ford high .school ; and Daniel W. Politically 
 Mr. Pillsbury, true to the principles in which 
 he was reared, is a stanch Republican, and has 
 been a member of the county central commit- 
 tee. He served several terms as school trustee, 
 and in 1902 was candidate for the office of county 
 tax collector, running ahead of his ticket. P>a- 
 ternally he is prominent in Masonic circles as 
 well as in other fraternal societies. He is a 
 member of Traver Lodge No. 294, F. & A. M., 
 which he has served as master for six terms; 
 was grand Bible bearer of the Grand Lodge of 
 Cahfornia; is a member of Visalia Lodge of 
 Perfection No. 9; was made an Odd Fellow in 
 Mount Whitney Lodge, I. O. O. F., and now 
 belongs to Dinuba Lodge, I. O. O. F., and to 
 the Traver Lodge of Rebekahs; is a member of 
 the Woodmen of the World ; and belongs to the 
 Fraternal Brotherhood. Mrs. Pillsbury is a 
 most estimable woman, highly esteemed, and is 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 ISAAC BIRD. The agricultural interests of 
 central California have no more worthy or able 
 exponent than Isaac Bird, of Merced, who thor- 
 oughly, understands the vocation which he is 
 pursuing, and, as manager of the Chowchilla 
 stock farm, is carrying on an extensive business 
 as a stock and grain raiser. Possessing in an 
 eminent degree the executive ability and the 
 force of character requisite for the responsible 
 position which he holds, he handles the large 
 body of land entrusted to his care with great suc- 
 cess, haying by his energy, discretion and good 
 judgment brought it up to its present state of 
 excellence. He is also identified with the finan- 
 cial prosperity of city and county as one of the 
 directorate of the Security Savings Bank of 
 Merced. A son of the late Isaac Bird, Sr., he 
 was born, March 17, 1855, in San Jose, Cal, of 
 English ancestry. His grandfather, also named 
 Isaac Bird, emigrated from England, the coun- 
 try of his nativity, to America, settling in Ala- 
 bama, whpre he was engaged as a planter until 
 his death. 
 
 Born in Whitehaven, Cumberland county, 
 England, Jsaac Bird, Sr., remained in his native 
 land until after attaining his majority. Com- 
 
 ing with his parents to Alabama, he lived in the 
 south many years, prosperously engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. Coming in 1849, with the 
 army of Col. Jack Playes, to California, he lo- 
 cated in Santa Clara county, buying two hun- 
 dred and fifty acres of land that is now included 
 within the limits of the city of San Jose, and soon 
 returned to Alabama for his family. There he 
 and D. C. Vestal, a California pioneer, were the 
 first to engage in fruit culture in this part of 
 the state, setting out orchards of apples, peaches 
 and pears. Subsequently selling out his orchards, 
 he purchased forty acres of land in the Pajaro 
 valley, near Watsonville, and was there success- 
 fully employed as an orchardist until his death, 
 in 1899, at the advanced age of eighty-five years. 
 He was a man of upright moral character, and a 
 valued member of the Presbyterian Church. He 
 married Alabama Welch, a daughter of John 
 Welch, who emigrated from Wales to Alabama, 
 where he became owner of a large plantation, on 
 which his daughter was born and reared. He 
 was a soldier in the war of 1812, serving under 
 General Jackson in New York. Mrs. Bird died, 
 March 17, 1904, in San Jose, and her body was 
 laid to rest in the cemetery at Watsonville. She 
 bore her husband six children, namely : Cal- 
 vert T., an attorney in San Jose; George W., 
 engaged in the fruit business in Watsonville; 
 Mrs. Mary Bowen, a widow, living in San Jose ; 
 Isaac, of this brief review ; Mrs. Belle Wood, of 
 Tulare county; and Mrs. Maggie Keesling, of 
 San Jose. 
 
 , Brought up on the San Jose ranch, Isaac Bird 
 obtained his early education in that place, attend- 
 ing the public schools and the San Jose Insti- 
 tute. Beginning life for himself as an agricul- 
 turist, he established a ranch in Monterey coun- 
 ty in 1874, and was there employed in sheep 
 raising for five years. SelHng out in 1879, he 
 was employed in general farming in the San 
 Joaquin valley for the next two years. In 1881 
 Mr. Bird entered the em.ploy of the California 
 Pastoral and Agricultural Company as superin- 
 tendent of the Chowchilla Stock Farm, a posi- 
 tion which he has since filled with great credit 
 to himself, and to the perfect satisfaction of the 
 company. This ranch contains one hundred and 
 eight thousand acres of land, and is largely de- 
 voted to the raising of stock, a specialty being 
 made of breeding and raising Short-horn cattle. 
 Under the efficient management of Mr. Bird 
 this branch of industry has well-nigh reached 
 a state of perfection. He has also introduced a 
 new system of irrigation throughout the farming 
 lands of this vast estate, making them rich and 
 productive, and now raises large crops of both 
 alfalfa and barley, the grains best adapted, in 
 his judgment, to this section of the country. The 
 leading agriculturist of this section, Mr. Bird 
 
728 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is prominently identified with the leading agricul- 
 tural organizations, being one of the organizers, 
 and a director, of the State Short-Horn Breed- 
 ers' Association, and of the Thirty-fifth District 
 of the State Agricultural Association. 
 
 In San Jose, Cal., Mr. Bird married Josephine 
 Blanchard, a native of Iowa, and they are the 
 parents of three children, namely : Bernice, 
 Isabella and Henrietta. Politically Mr. Bird is 
 well known as a firm supporter of the principles 
 of the Democratic party, and is an ex-member 
 of the county central committee. Fraternally he 
 is a member of LaGrange Lodge No. 99, F. & 
 A. M. of Merced; of Merced Chapter No. 12, 
 R. A. M.; and of the Knights of Pythias. He 
 is a consistent member of the Presbyterian 
 Church, toward the support, of which he con- 
 tributes generously. 
 
 MATTHEW SIMPSON TARKINGTON. 
 At an early period in the history of our country 
 Joshua Tarkington and a brother came from 
 England and settled in the colony of North 
 Carolina. Not long afterward, while they were 
 still mere boys, the brother was stolen by the 
 Indians while hunting some lost cows, and he 
 was never heard of afterward. Joshua, Jr., a 
 son of the English emigrant, married Zelphia 
 Alexander in North Carolina, and their son, 
 Jesse, was born in Tyrrell county, that state, but 
 early removed to Tennessee, and in the cane- 
 brake region of Davidson county took up the 
 difficult task of clearing a farm. During 181 5 
 he left there in search of a more fertile soil, and 
 two years later arrived in Monroe county, Ind., 
 which was then very sparsely settled. The long 
 journey from the .south had been made by 
 wagon, and during their first winter they built 
 and occupied a log house on the banks of the 
 White river at what is now Edwardsport. Im- 
 mediately after settling in Monroe county they 
 began to clear a tract of raw land in the midst 
 of a wilderness, whose principal inhabitants 
 were Indians. The task of clearing a farm was 
 most difficult, but each member of the family 
 bravely did his part. 
 
 In this pioneer family one of the sons was 
 Joseph, born in Nashville, Tenn., October 30, 
 1800, and a youth of fifteen at the time of going 
 to Indiana. Stalwart of frame and untiring in 
 industry, he was qualified to aid in evolving a 
 home from the trackless wilderness. Reared 
 under religious influences, in a home where 
 prayer was wont to be made, he early had im- 
 planted in his soul a deep and unwavering faith 
 in Jehovah. August 27, 1820, he was converted ' 
 in a camp-meeting at Bloomington and joined 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church, where he was 
 appointed a class leader. On being licensed to 
 
 preach the gospel he entered ardently into the 
 work and was active in the ministry in Indiana 
 and central Illinois. In 1851 he was assigned 
 to the Greensburg district and thereupon moved 
 his family to a farm one mile west of that town, 
 on the Michigan road, where he made his home 
 until he died, in October of 1892. He was a 
 lieutenant in the Mexican war. 
 
 Near Vevay, Ind., September 21, 1831^ Rev. 
 Joseph Tarkington married Miss Maria Slau- 
 son, who was born in Orange county, N. Y., 
 January 22, 1806, and died in Indiana, in De- 
 cember, 1889. Her father, Simeon, was a son 
 of Jonathan Slauson, who died August 31, 1820. 
 A native of Stamford, Fairfield county, Conn., 
 Simeon Slauson learned the cooj>er's trade in 
 youth and besides following that occupation 
 owned and cultivated a farm in Orange county, 
 N. Y., three miles from Middletown. In 1818, 
 accompanied by his family, he moved to Indi- 
 ana and settled nine miles north of Vevay, Swit- 
 zerland county, where he endured innumerable 
 hardships in the difficult task of clearing a farm 
 and making a comfortable home. In the family 
 of Rev. Joseph and Maria Tarkington there 
 were six children. The oldest son. Judge John 
 S. Tarkington, who served in Company A, One 
 Hundred and Thirty-second Indiana Infantry, 
 during the Civil war, is now a resident of In- 
 dianapolis, and is the father of Booth Tarking- 
 ton, author of "A Gentleman from Indiana," and 
 other novels widely read and admired. The 
 older daughter, Mary M., is the wife of Dr. 
 John H. Alexandre of Greensburg, Ind., and 
 the younger daughter, Martha, married Daniel 
 Stewart, now residing in Indianapolis, Ind. The 
 second son, Joseph A. Tarkington, M. D., who 
 died May i, 1902, had served in the Civil war as 
 a leader of the regimental band of the Seventh 
 Indiana Infantry ; the third son, William S. R., 
 who died in Indianapolis in August, 1903, was 
 a drummei in the band of which his brother 
 acted as leader. 
 
 The youngest son in the family was Matthew 
 Simpson Tarkington, who was born at Green- 
 castle, Ind., July 15, 1848, and was baptized by 
 Rev. Matthew Simpson (later a bishop in the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church), in whose honor 
 he was named. After completing the studies of 
 the Greensburg public schools he entered De- 
 Pauw University as a member of the class of 
 1870, and continued there until the close of the 
 junior year. Meanwhile, in 1864, he volunteered 
 in Company A, One Hundred and Sixth Indiana 
 Volunteer Rifles, and served with his regiment 
 until mustered out by special order in the fall 
 of the same year. Later he took up the univer- 
 sity course, but in 1869 was obliged to discon- 
 tinue his studies on account of sickness, and af- 
 terward engaged in the stock and grain business 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 729 
 
 on his father's farm. For four years he was 
 freight and passenger agent at Greensburg for 
 the Pennsylvania Railroad, but in 1888 resigned 
 to remove to California, where he has since 
 made Tulare his home. 
 
 As state agent for the Page Woven Wire 
 Fence Company, for six years Mr. Tarkington 
 traveled throughout California. The first fence 
 of this kind was put on Cartmill's ranch near 
 Tulare and still stands. In 1894 he introduced 
 the fence on the Southern Pacific system, where 
 it has been used extensively ever since. The 
 business grew to such a magnitude that since 
 1894 he has confined his personal work as agent 
 to the San Joaquin valley, and has agents in 
 every town of importance. In addition he acts 
 as agent in Tulare county for the Lamb fence. 
 A man of inventive genius, he patented the 
 Tarkington wire fence stay, has two patents on 
 lock whip sockets for buggies, and before leav- 
 ing Indiana secured the second patent on the 
 tongueless cultivator, operated by attaching a 
 wheel, and manufactured in Kokomo, that state. 
 In addition to his other interests, he built and 
 now operates at Tulare the California steam 
 barley mill, which has a large capacity for barley 
 and other grains. 
 
 The residence of Mr. Tarkington was erected 
 under his supervision at No. 346 West Tulare 
 street, and is presided over by his wife, whom 
 he married in Greensburg, Ind., and who was 
 Clara W. Baker, daughter of Marsh Baker, a 
 prominent farmer still living near Greensburg. 
 Mrs. Tarkington is a direct descendant of 
 Colonel Williams, one of General Washington's 
 staff officers. Throughout his locality Mr. Baker 
 has acquired considerable prominence through 
 his successful work in importing and breeding 
 Poland-China hogs and Polled Angus cattle. In 
 religion Mr. Tarkington was reared in the Meth- 
 odist faith and still adheres to the same, while 
 his wife is identified with the Presbyterian 
 Church. In politics he gives his support to the 
 Republican party. Before leaving Indiana he 
 was made a Mason and raised to the Royal Arch 
 degree at Greensburg; also became a member 
 of Baldwin Commandery No. 2, K. T., at Shel- 
 by ville, and. was connected with Al Malakia 
 Temple, N. M. S., of Los Angeles. 
 
 STEPHEN HICKS. A highly intelligent 
 and prosperous farmer of Tulare county, resid- 
 mg three and one-half miles south of Dinuba, 
 Stephen Hicks is well known in this vicinity for 
 his varied interests, and he and his wife are 
 held in high esteem as people of worth and in- 
 tegrity. A son of William Hicks, he was born 
 November 3, 1851, in Scotland county. Mo., of 
 Scotch ancestry, being the descendant of one 
 
 of three brothers that emigrated from Scotland 
 to this country in colonial times. His great- 
 grandfather on the paternal side served as a 
 soldier in the Revolution. Stephen Hicks, his 
 grandfather, served as captain of a company in 
 the war of 1812. He subsequently removed 
 from Tennessee to Missouri, settling in Schuyler 
 county as a farmer and there spending the re- 
 mainder of his life. 
 
 Born in east Tennessee, William Hicks re- 
 moved when a young man to Missouri, and 
 when ready to begin farming on his own ac- 
 count located in Scotland county. In 1852 he 
 crossed the plains to California, coming with 
 an ox team train, and for three years sought 
 for wealth in the gold fields. Returning to 
 Missouri in 1855, he lived on his farm until 
 after the breaking out of the Civil war, when 
 he enlisted in the Union army for three years, 
 becoming a member of a Missouri regiment. 
 Returning to his farm at the expiration of his 
 term of enlistment, he continued there as a tiller 
 of the soil until 1881, when he settled near Han- 
 ford, Cal., where he resided until his death. He 
 married Nancy Pell, who was born in Missouri, 
 a daughter of William Pell, a German by de- 
 scent and a farmer. She survived her husband 
 and now resides near Hanford, and all of her 
 eleven children are in California and live not 
 far from her. 
 
 The second child in order of birth of the 
 parental household, Stephen Hicks, in common 
 with his neighborhood companions, was edu- 
 cated in the district school and early taught to 
 work on the farm. He remained at home until 
 becoming of age, but the following spring bade 
 good-bye to family and friends and started west- 
 ward in search of fortune, being the first of the 
 family to come to California, although the others 
 followed him in due season. Arriving in Mo- 
 desto on April 23, 1873, Mr. Hicks worked as 
 a farmer until the fall of that year, when he 
 borrowed money to procure an outfit and began 
 farming on his own account, for six years there- 
 after being engaged in grain raising on a ranch 
 lying between Lemoore and Hanford. For a 
 short time he lived on land at Mussel Slough, 
 but while there was between twO' fires, fearing 
 to buy from the Settlers' League and realizing 
 that if he staid the railroad company would 
 bring judgment against him. Selling his house 
 he came away, having lost nearly all of his 
 possessions between the league and the company, 
 and began life anew. 
 
 Locating in Tulare county in 1879, Mr. Hicks 
 homesteaded eighty acres of his present farm, 
 improved it, and rented other land, at one time 
 carrying on seven hundred acres, which he de- 
 voted principally to grain. When the ditch was 
 put through he sowed alfalfa, one of the best 
 
730 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 paying crops that can be raised here now. He 
 has two hundred and forty acres now in his 
 farm, lying in sections 32 and 33, township 16, 
 range 24. He carries on general farming, mak- 
 ing a specialty of dairying and stock raising, 
 keeping about seventy-five head of stock. He 
 has made valuable improvements on his place, 
 in 1902 building his fine residence, which is com- 
 modious and attractive. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. Hic5ks married Eliza Mulli- 
 nix, who was born in Iowa, a daughter of John 
 and Alzira (Brandon) Mullinix, the latter of 
 whom died February 7, 1903, when seventy-four 
 years of age. Mr. Mullinix is a farmer and 
 makes his home near Hanford, Cal. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hicks have two children living, Albert S., 
 in the Dmuba high school, and Leah Ethel. 
 Their oldest daughter, Alzira, died when six 
 weeks old. In July, 1885, three children died 
 from diphtheria, their names being Alzira, EHza 
 and John W. In his political relations Mr. 
 Hicks is independent, voting with the courage 
 of his convictions. For the past twenty years 
 he has been one of the trustees of the Wilson 
 school district, and is one of the trustees of the 
 Dinuba Union High School. Both he and his 
 wife are active members of the Baptist Church, 
 of which he has been one of its board of trustees. 
 
 JAMES ANDREW BOYD. A resident of 
 California since eleven years of age, James An- 
 drew Boyd, a prosperous and thrifty farmer 
 living seven miles southwest of Dinuba, may well 
 lay claim to the title of a pioneer. His life in 
 those early days was full of incident, and to 
 the young people of this generation a record of 
 his hard experiences, privations and tribulations 
 might read like a tale of romance. As a team- 
 ster he hauled freight from Sycamore Point, on 
 the San Joaquin river, to Visalia, a distance of 
 seventy miles, that city being then the trading 
 center for all this country, and the land office 
 for the entire region roundabout. This whole 
 section of the state was then an immense sandy 
 plain, with but two sheep camps to be seen, and 
 not a tree to be found excepting the lone willow 
 on the old stage road leading from Kings River 
 to Visalia. In the subsequent development of 
 the rich agricultural and horticultural resources 
 of the country he has played an important part, 
 and by industry, keen foresight and sound busi- 
 ness judgment has acquired a competency. A 
 son of James S. Boyd, he was born June 24, 
 1848, near Van Buren, Crawford county. Ark.,- 
 on the Middle Fork of the White river. 
 
 A. native of Tennessee, James S. Boyd re- 
 moved when young tO' Arkansas, settling as a 
 farmer on the White river. He served through- 
 out the Mexican war under General Taylor, tak- 
 
 ing an active part in many engagements, in- 
 cluding the battle of Buena Vista. In 1852 he 
 crossed the plains with ox teams, bringing with 
 him a herd of cattle to California, and being 
 seven months on the way. In 1853 he went 
 home by way of Cape Horn, in a saiHng vessel, 
 and for six years remained in Arkansas, getting 
 his living by tilHng the soil. In 1859, accom- 
 panied by his wife and children, he again 
 crossed the plains with ox teams, having three 
 wagons in the train. One yoke of oxen gave 
 out while en route, and a pair of milch cows was 
 substituted. In order to leave Thousand Spring 
 valley, which had but a short time before been 
 the scene of a horrible massacre, on the right, 
 the party made quite a detour, and came by way 
 of the Humboldt river and desert and Carson 
 river to Hangtown, Cal. Locating in the Napa 
 valley in 1859, he was there employed in farming 
 for one year, the following year, i860, having 
 a large ranch near Lincoln, Placer county, and 
 from 1862 until 1868 being similarly engaged at 
 Murphy's Camp. Becoming the first actual set- 
 tler of Stokes valley in 1868, he homesteaded 
 and improved one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land. Subsequently selling that, he bought land 
 on the other side of the valley, improved a good 
 ranch and continued in agricultural pursuits for 
 a number of seasons. Selling at an advantage, 
 he moved to Traver, where he purchased town 
 lots, erected a large building and embarked in 
 the grocery business. Disposing of his store and 
 stock, he bought land near Orosi, Tulare coun- 
 ty, and for a while carried on general farming, 
 living there until after the death of his wife. 
 Selling out then, he removed to Oregon, and 
 is now living near Salem, a hale and hearty 
 gentleman of seventy-eight years. He married 
 Mary M. Little, who was born in Tennessee 
 and died, in February, 1903, in Orosi, Cal. J'ive 
 children were born of their union, namely : 
 James A., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Mary 
 E. Moyle, who died in Traver, Cal.; George 
 W., of Seattle, Wash. ; Cordis J., engaged in 
 farming at Orosi; and Mrs. Isabelle Robinson, 
 living near Orosi. 
 
 Living in Arkansas during the first ten years 
 of his life, James A. Boyd attended the public 
 schools a short time. While coming with the 
 family across the plains in 1859 he so injured 
 his leg that he was unable to use it much for 
 several years, and was consequently deprived of 
 school advantages until 18G4, when he attended 
 one term, his education having been largely ob- 
 tained by reading and observation. In 1868 he 
 went with his parents to Stokes valley, where, 
 in 1869, he took up a homestead claim. Re- 
 linquishing the claim in 1872, Mr. Boyd pur- 
 chased a large ranch near by, becoming owner 
 of eight hundred acres of land, and embarked 
 
^,^Z'm^ (^U^r>n^v^<t^'YM^'f^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 733 
 
 in grain and stock raising on a large scale, in 
 the meantime building the grade in the public 
 road known as the Boyd grade. Selling out in 
 1887, he located in Tulare county, about seven 
 miles southwest of Dinuba, where he has two 
 farms, containing one hundred and twenty acres 
 of rich and productive land. His home estate 
 contains forty acres and is highly improved, 
 twelve acres being devoted to a finely-bearing 
 orchard, six acres to the culture of grapes, and 
 the remainder to the raising of alfalfa. Here 
 he also has a commodious and conveniently ar- 
 ranged residence and a substantial set of farm 
 buildings, his place being one of the best in its 
 appointments of any in the locality, bespeaking 
 the industry, thrift and wise management of 
 the proprietor. . His other ranch, and four hun- 
 dred acres of land which he rents, is used for 
 grain raising and grazing, and as a horticultur- 
 ist, agriculturist and stock-raiser, Mr. Boyd is 
 meeting with most satisfactory success. 
 
 At Todd's Flat, Tulare county, Mr. Boyd 
 married Miss Litha Work, who was. born in 
 Missouri, a daughter of Fleming Work, an early 
 settler and farmer of Todd's Flat. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Boyd are the parents of three children, 
 namely : James F. and Zachariah E., at home ; 
 and Mrs. Annie Martin of Coalinga, Cal. Po- 
 litically Mr. Boyd is an ardent supporter of the 
 principles of the Democratic party and an ex- 
 member of the county central committee. Al- 
 though not an office seeker, he served for a 
 number of years as clerk and trustee of the 
 Kennedey school district. He is an active and 
 valued member of the Christian Church, in 
 which he is a deacon and in whose Sunday-school 
 he was superintendent for many years. 
 
 JAMES CUNNINGHAM. One of the most 
 highly esteemed and interesting personages in 
 Merced county is James Cunningham, to whom 
 is accorded the distinction of being one of the 
 organizers of the county. He was born in Dun- 
 given, County Londonderry, Ireland, May 12, 
 1824, a son of James, Sr., and Margaret (Dun- 
 lap) Cunningham, the former was bom in Cas- 
 tle Colley, eight miles from Londonderry, and 
 served in the English army as a member of the 
 South Fifteenth Infantry for seventeen years, 
 twelve of which he was color sergeant, sta- 
 tioned in the West Indies. He was a brave and 
 courageous man, taking part in some of the 
 most famous battles of his time, and was the last 
 man to leave the island of Martinique when the 
 island was given up to the French, wading to 
 the boat with the water up to his neck. His 
 father was a man of wealth at one time, but 
 lost it all duripg the war. 
 
 James Cunningham, Jr., remained at home 
 
 until he was sixteen years of age, when he ran 
 away and went to sea, his ambition as a mere 
 boy being to become a proficient navigator arid 
 owner of ocean vessels. In company with a boy 
 friend he went to Liverpool, England, and ap- 
 prenticed for four years as a sailor with the 
 firm of Booker, Bond & Co., merchants, who 
 shipped to all parts of the world. Being an in- 
 telligent youth he was made second mate of the 
 barque John Horrocks, at the age of nineteen, 
 and a few months later was promoted to first 
 mate of the ship Lancaster. While on this 
 vessel he met with an accident, breaking his col- 
 lar bone and shoulder, which incapacitated him 
 for service for six months, during which time, 
 however, he was not idle. Upon the advice of 
 one of his employers he attended a school of 
 navigation, and when he was able to do duty 
 again he had successfully passed the examina- 
 tion and was made captain of the ship Cyclops. 
 He followed the sea for eleven years, rounded 
 Cape Horn three times, was twice over two- 
 thirds around the globe, and visited many lands. 
 In his travels he had heard of the gold discover- 
 ies in California and had made several attempts 
 to get here, even offered to work his passage as 
 ordinary seaman, without success. His idea was 
 to work in the mines, the more rapidly to ac- 
 cumulate wealth, which he intended to invest in 
 ships. In the fall of 1850 a golden opportunity 
 came to him, being selected as chief officer of 
 the clipper ship Canada, two thousand tons bur- 
 den. After the ship had out-fitted in 1851 he 
 started for the New World and for California^ 
 and at the end of a long and stormy voyage he 
 landed in San Francisco in February, 1852. 
 Here the entire crew deserted and left the ship. 
 Mr. Cunningham had eight months' pay coming 
 to him, but as he never received it he found him- 
 self in a strange land practically penniless. He 
 soon found a friend in a Mr. Livingston, to 
 whose cabin he removed his effects, and some 
 time later a party was organized to go to the 
 mines; Robert Sherwood supplied him with 
 money and the party of five, among whom was a 
 Mr. Stephenson, a geologist, who had been a 
 passenger on the Canada, set out for the mines 
 on the Yuba river. He spent about two years 
 mining when he made his first trip on horseback 
 to Mariposa county to visit a cousin named 
 Laughlin. While there he located a claim on 
 Mariposa creek, the place now being occupied 
 by a Mr. Myers. 
 'Returning to the mines in Grass valley, Mr. 
 Cunningham also purchased some land in the 
 vicinity, but continued to follow the former 
 occupation. In 1853 he made another trip to 
 Mariposa county, only to find that some one 
 had jumped his claim. In the meantime Cap- 
 tains Smith and Renwick had secured three hun- 
 
734 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 dred and twenty acres of good land and put in 
 a crop of barley. Mr. Cunningham purchased 
 the land and crop for $i,ooo, which was the 
 nucleus of his present large holdings. The land 
 is located on the line between Mariposa and 
 Merced counties and is still in his possession. 
 He harvested his barley and succeeded in get- 
 ting a good price for it. At the time of pur- 
 chase the nearest neighbors were seven miles 
 distant. 
 
 Not meeting with the desired result in the 
 mines, Mr. Cunningham turned his attention 
 to the stock business, in 1864, with Thomas 
 Fowler, who was afterwards senator from 
 Tulare county. He made several trips to the 
 southern part of the state and purchased cattle 
 for his ranch, and for beef to supply the mines, 
 also horses. That same year was noted for 
 the continued dry season, and many of his cat- 
 tle died. Accordingly he started for Humboldt 
 county, Nev., but lost nearly all his stock and 
 barely escaped with his own life owing to the 
 depredations of the Indians. After many years 
 had passed he gave up the idea of becoming a 
 ship owner and turned his attention entirely to 
 general farming and the stock business, having 
 on the ranch on an average about fifty head 
 of fine horses and twelve hundred head of cat- 
 tle. Beginning with his three hundred and 
 twenty acres he has added to it from time to 
 time until the combined acreage of the family 
 aggregates nearly sixteen thousand acres, all 
 devoted to the above named interests, and oper- 
 ated by the Cunningham Land Company, Inc., 
 composed of Mr. and Mrs. James Cunningham 
 (the former as president), his two sons. James 
 Charles and Emmett T., and his daughter, Mrs. 
 E. Massengale, all of whom reside upon the 
 ranch, which is located about sixteen miles 
 northeast of Merced. 
 
 July 30, 1868, Mr. Cunningham was united 
 in marriage with S. Elizabeth Turner, a native 
 of Jackson county, Mo., and a daughter of Capt. 
 Nicholas Turner, a pioneer of '49, of California. 
 Of this union three children have been born: 
 James Charles, who married Stella Smith, a na- 
 tive of Mariposa county, and has two children, 
 James Byron and Vesta; Emmett T., who mar- 
 ried Bernice Brandon, a native of Merced coun- 
 ty, and has two children, Margaret and lone; 
 and Evangeline, the wife of Eugene Massen- 
 gale. 
 
 Mr. Cunningham is a Democrat in politics, 
 and has taken an active interest in the delib- 
 erations of that party as delegate to county 
 and state conventions, and held the office of 
 supervisor from i860 to '64. For many years 
 he also served as school trustee. It has ever 
 been his policy to elevate the standard of educa- 
 tion and he has contributed liberally of his 
 
 means toward that end. In Ireland he was made 
 a Mason, and is now a member of La Grange 
 Lodge No. 99, F. & A. M., of Merced. 
 
 In his long and eventful life Mr. Cunning- 
 ham has had many interesting and thrilling ex- 
 periences! Of the latter one incident worthy 
 of mention and one that will perpetuate his 
 memory for generations, occurred in 1862, dur- 
 ing the flood at Snelling that threatened the 
 lives of thirty-five people who had sought refuge 
 in the trees when the hotel was washed from 
 its foundation. Accustomed as a sailor to 
 act quickly when danger threatened, he, with 
 the assistance of others, among them Judge 
 Breen, Hon. W. H. Howard, and a Mr. Per- 
 kins, constructed a raft and by hard work and 
 danger to their own lives, safely landed the peo- 
 ple from their perilous positions. 
 
 Though now past eighty years of age James 
 Cunningham is hale and hearty, can read with- 
 out the aid of glasses, and though practically 
 retired from active labors, takes an intelligent 
 interest in the improvement of his property. In 
 all matters that have been put forward to ad- 
 vance the interest of the people or the welfare 
 of the coimty, he has always given his support, 
 and extended a helping hand to those less for- 
 tunate than himself, and his door is always 
 open to the wayfarer. In the evening of his 
 well-spent Hfe, surrounded by his children and 
 their families, he and his wife are living in the 
 enjoyment of a well-earned rest, respected and 
 esteemed by all who have come to know them, 
 and the love of their children. 
 
 JAMES FRANKLIN WILLIAMS. The 
 lineage of the Williams family is traced to the 
 southern state, and Alexandre Williams, a son 
 of Dill Williams by his marriage to a Miss 
 Brooks, was born near Salisbury, N. C, but in 
 childhood, after his father's death, accompanied 
 his mother and other members of the family to 
 Indiana, where he took up farm work. Later he 
 removed to Missouri and settled on a farm near 
 Sandhill, Scotland county, where he remained 
 until death. The next generation is presented by 
 Wiley Williams, who was born in Washington 
 county, Ind., and grew to manhood in Scotland 
 county. Mo., thence at the time of attaining his 
 ' majority starting to California in company with 
 a cousin, Osborn Wilson, during the memorable 
 year of 1849. Equipped with ox-teams, wagons 
 and provisions, their party crossed the plains in 
 safety and landed at their destination after a trip 
 of six months. Later some of their company set- 
 tled at Owsley's Bar in the northern mines. The 
 cousin, Osborn Wilson, is still living and makes 
 his home at Hanford, Cal. 
 
 Instead of trying his luck as a miner, Wiley 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 7U 
 
 Williams began to run a pack-train into the 
 mines, and later entered government land near 
 Gilroy, three and one-half miles south of that 
 town, on the San Juan road, where he built a 
 hotel and stage station, known as the Eagle 
 house. In addition thereto he conducted farm 
 pursuits and operated a dairy. During the 
 drought of 1856 he lost his cattle and a few 
 years later disposed of the property, removing 
 into Gilroy and opening a store. Previous to 
 this the Spaniards had been the only merchants 
 in the town and he was the first American to es- 
 tablish a store here. In addition he built the 
 Williams house at a cost of $40,000 in construc- 
 tion and furnishing, but when the railroad was 
 built into the south part of the town, one mile 
 from his hotel, he traded the building for a large 
 stock ranch in San Benito county. Unfortunate- 
 ly, the title to this property proved worthless and 
 he lost the entire tract. In 1882 he came to 
 Tulare county and bought two hundred and forty 
 acres two miles north of the present site of Din- 
 uba, where he engaged in farming. While visit- 
 ing his son at Lemoore, in 1884, he died suddenly 
 of heart disease, aged sixty-six years. 
 
 The wife of Wiley Williams bore the maiden 
 name of Mary Tennant and was born in London, 
 England, whence she came by way of Panama 
 to San Francisco with her father, William Ten- 
 nant, and other members of the family in 1853. 
 Shortly afterward Mr. Tennant settled on the 
 Monterey road and erected the Twenty-one Mile 
 house, which still stands. After some years he 
 relinquished the management of the place to a 
 son, William, and removed four and one-half 
 miles northwest of Gilroy, where he engaged in 
 fruit ranching until his death, in 1871, at seventy- 
 one years of age. It was while Mr. Williams 
 was engaged in teaming to San Jose and. Gilroy 
 that he stopped at the Twenty-one Mile house 
 and there formed the acquaintance of Miss Ten- 
 nant, whom he married in 1854 at the old home- 
 stead. At the time of her death, which oc- 
 curred near Dinuba in 1894, she was sixty years 
 of age. Seven children were born of her mar- 
 riage and attained mature years, namely : Wil- 
 liam A., proprietor of the Kenmore, at San Jose ; 
 James Franklin, of Dinuba; Mary D., who died 
 at twenty-six years ; John, who died at twenty- 
 one years of age, being accidentally killed while 
 working as brakeman on the railroad at Gilroy; 
 Fannie Ellen, wife of John T. Mickle, of San 
 Francisco ; Annie, wife of Charles Earhart, a 
 farmer living near Dinuba; and Emily, wife of 
 Porter Mickle, of Hanford. 
 
 Near Gilroy, Santa Clara county, James 
 Franklin Williams was born April 18, 1856, and 
 there he passed the years of early youth, receiv- 
 ing his education in the Gilroy public schools. 
 When seventeen years of age he accompanied 
 
 his parents to San Benito county and afterward 
 remained at home, aiding his father until he 
 was twenty-five years of age. In addition to 
 planting and cultivating the crops on the home 
 place, he put in crops for himself on adjoining 
 land. In 1880 he visited Tulare county and the 
 following year he returned here to locate, having 
 with him for investment $1,000 that he had 
 saved. Soon afterward he opened a livery barn 
 at Lemoore, in what is now Kings county, and 
 from there in July of 1889 removed to a tract of 
 one hundred and sixty acres of wild ' land near 
 Dinuba. In 1890 he set out forty acres in vines 
 which are still bearing, and in 1900 set out fifteen 
 acres in Thompson's seedless grapes on the old 
 place. Four hundred acres of adjoining land, as 
 well as much of his own place, he had under 
 wheat, and one hundred and twenty acres were 
 leveled, checked and sown to alfalfa. In 1900 he 
 embarked in the dairy business, which he con- 
 ducted upon an extensive scale for two years 
 and then sold the entire plant. Since then he 
 has acquired other properties. For forty acres 
 of grain land, purchased from Mr. Cummings, 
 he paid $62.50 per acre; one-half of this he 
 planted in a vineyard and the balance is in al- 
 falfa. From R. F. Dunn he bought forty acres 
 for $200 per acre, twenty acres of this being a 
 vineyard and twenty acres an orchard. This 
 gives him an aggregate of two hundred and 
 forty acres in his home place, one and one-half 
 miles south of Dinuba. Of this property ninety- 
 five acres are in a vineyard, with twenty acres in 
 Zinfindels, fifty acres in Muscats, ten acres in 
 Sultanas, and fifteen acres in Thompson's seed- 
 less. Twenty acres are in an orchard and the 
 balance of the ranch under alfalfa. The farm 
 house was erected in 1885 and by subsequent 
 enlarging has been converted into a commodious 
 residence. The entire property is under irriga- 
 tion and takes rank as first-class land. When 
 he first began to raise alfalfa he had no facilities 
 for irrigation, and of course did not cut the large 
 crops that have been made possible by subse- 
 quent development of water supply. Through 
 his place runs an avenue of fig trees one-half 
 mile in length, greatly adding to the beauty of 
 the homestead. His work of transforming a 
 sheep range into a garden of beauty entitles him 
 to praise from all who strive for the progress of 
 this region and believe in its possibilities. The 
 name "Moosehead ranch" might be given tothe 
 place appropriately, in recognition of what might 
 be called a freak of nature. On one of the 
 eucalyptus trees in front of the house, by the 
 cutting of two large limbs, and the growing of 
 new branches into the shape of horns, there may 
 be seen the head of a moose, with its large nose, 
 perfectly formed neck and curving horns. 
 
 In politics Mr. Williams votes with the Demo- 
 
736 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cratic party. Fraternally he is connected with 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen and is a 
 charter member and past grand of the Odd Fel- 
 lows' lodge at Dinuba, whither he transferred 
 his membership from Lemoore. His marriage 
 was solemnized in Lemoore and united him with 
 Mrs. Alice (Casey) Wilson, a native of Indiana, 
 born near Seymour, Jackson county. Her fath- 
 er, William Casey, was born near Lexington, 
 Ky., a son of William Casey, Sr., a Virginian 
 who spent his last years upon a Kentucky planta- 
 tion. From Kentucky the junior William Casey 
 moved to Indiana and settled on a farm near 
 Seymour. His wife, Mary Anderson, was a 
 member of an old Virginia family. They were 
 the parents of seven children riow living, but Mrs. 
 Williams is the only one of the family to settle 
 in California. While living in Indiana she be- 
 came the wife of Robert Fulton Wilson, a native 
 of Jackson county, that state. During 1874 they 
 settled in Tulare county, Cal., where Mr. Wilson 
 engaged in the sheep business and also for a 
 short time followed the blacksmith's trade in Le- 
 moore. While celebrating the election of Gov- 
 ernor Budd in 1882 he was accidentally killed 
 by an explosion of anvils. Besides his wife he 
 left a son, Clarence Wilson, who is a graduate 
 of the San Jose Normal School, class of 1902, 
 and now holds the position of assistant cashier 
 in the Bank of Dinuba. Of her present mar^ 
 riage Mrs. Williams has one child, Frankie. A 
 woman of culture and refinement, her tastes for 
 the beautiful are evidenced in her comfortable 
 home, over which she presides with grace and 
 hospitality. Active in social affairs, she is a 
 member of the Ladies' Club and past noble grand 
 in the Order of Rebekahs. 
 
 CHARLES MELZAR HATCH. Shortly af- 
 ter the Mayflower had landed its passengers on 
 the dreary and ice-bound coasts of Massachu- 
 setts, two brothers bearing the name of Hatch 
 came from Wales to the new world and identi- 
 fied themselves with the destinies of its pioneers. 
 While one went some distance south, the other 
 settled at Scituate, Plymouth county, Mass., and 
 from him descended the branch of the family rep- 
 iesented by Charles M. Hatch of Tulare county. 
 One of the ancestors, Mark Hatch, a native of 
 Bristol, Me., and for 3'ears a farmer in that 
 neighborhood, left his plow at the outbreak of 
 the Revolution, and followed the fortunes of the 
 patriots in more than one sanguinary engagement 
 with the British troops. Mark Hatch, Jr., who 
 was a son of this Revolutionary soldier, and a 
 native of Bristol, in early manhood settled upon 
 a farm in Knox county, Me., where the remain- 
 ing years of his life were uneventfully and busily 
 passed. Among his children was a son who bore 
 
 the name of father and grandfather and who 
 was born near Washington, Knox county, Me., 
 but at twenty years of age removed to Bangor, 
 the same state, and took up the trade of a builder. 
 When the discovery of gold allured thousands to 
 the Pacific coast, he took passage on a ship that 
 sailed south on the Atlantic, rounded the Horn, 
 then went north on the Pacific to San Francisco, 
 where he landed in May, 1850. The climate and 
 conditions for future success in California at- 
 tracted him from the first, but the thought of 
 the dreary miles of mountains and desert sep- 
 arating him from old friends and home gave him 
 a feeling of homesickness, and in 1852 he re- 
 turned to his home at the other extreme of the 
 country. For some years he carried on a mer- 
 cantile business at Charleston, Me., and also held 
 the office of postmaster. Meanwhile, in 1857, 
 his son, Charles M., came to California and the 
 following year he joined him in Calaveras coun- 
 ty, where he engaged in mining. Later he was 
 employed by the Southern Pacific Railroad at 
 Sacramento. At the time of his death, in 1877, 
 he was sixty-four years of age. His wife, Jane 
 Stevens, was born at Stark, Me., and died in 
 Charleston, same state, at forty-two 3'ears of age. 
 The family of Mark and Jane Hatch consisted 
 of seven children, six of whom attained mature 
 years and settled in California: Charles Melzar, 
 of Tulare county; Roscoe Green, a contractor at 
 Woodland, Yolo county; Jane A., wife of C. L. 
 Chase, of Lodi ; Florence Adelle, wife of Dr. W. 
 A. Patterson, of Wheatland, Yuba county ; Ann, 
 who died in Sacramento; and Helen, wife of 
 Walker Bagby, of Tipton, Tulare county. 
 Charles Melzar Hatch was born in Bangor, Me., 
 October 29, 1836, and received a district school 
 education, supplemented by attendance at Charles- 
 ton Academy. In 1857 he came via Panama to 
 California, arriving on the ist of August at San 
 Andreas, Calaveras county, where first he en- 
 gaged in lumbering and saw-milling, then became 
 a placer miner at Eldorado. From 1871 to 1873 
 he was with the Southern Pacific at Sacramento, 
 after which he clerked in San Francisco for one 
 year, and in 1874 went to Lathrop, San Joaquin 
 county, as clerk in the motive power department 
 of that division of the Southern Pacific system. 
 When the shops were located at Tulare, in 1875, 
 he came to this place in the employ of the road, 
 being the first division shop clerk in the plant 
 at this place, and continuing as chief clerk until 
 November, 1890. Upon resigning his position 
 with the railroad he turned his attention to agri- 
 culture, having bought one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land near Tulare. Immediately after 
 settling on the land he put out an orchard of 
 twenty-two acres. Later a vineyard of twenty 
 acres was started. The balance of the land is 
 under alfalfa, thus rendering the place available 
 
^ ^^/-'T^^r;^:^^:^.^^'--^^- 
 
o0^yuyu.o<K^ , Cc, ^/-^^c^Wl 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 741 
 
 for a dairy industry. The irrigation system was 
 completed about the time he settled there and in 
 addition he had an artesian well from which to 
 obtain a supply of water for the land. Under his 
 wise oversight the value of the property has 
 greatly increased and the income derived there- 
 from has assumed gratifying proportions. 
 
 In Dexter, Me., September 17, 1866, occurred 
 the marriage of Charles Melzar Hatch and Miss 
 Clara P. Dugans, a native of Orono, Penobscot 
 county, Me., and next to the youngest of twelve 
 children, of whom two, Newell and William, were 
 killed in battle while serving with a Maine regi- 
 ment in the Civil war. Her father, William, who 
 was born near Bangor, was employed in early 
 life as a pilot, then became a lumberman, but 
 finally settled on a farm near Medford, Me., and 
 there remained until his death at eighty-eight 
 years of age. He was a son of William Dugans, 
 Sr., a Revolutionary soldier, who married Miss 
 McPheaters, member of an old Scotch family. 
 The mother of Mrs. Hatch bore the maiden name 
 of Mary Parsons, and was born in Bangor. In 
 the family of Mr. and Mrs. Hatch there were 
 five children, but only two reached maturity, 
 namely : Laura Alma, who married W. B. Cart- 
 mill, and died in Stockton, March 30, 1889; and 
 Luella Augusta, Mrs. James B." Gist, of Los An- 
 geles. For years Mr. Hatch was a member of 
 the county central committee of the Republi- 
 can party, and for two terms he was a member 
 of the board of irrigation district directors. 
 Largely through his efforts the Tulare Building 
 & Loan Association was Drganizcd, and he ofEci 
 ated as its first president. To him is due the credit 
 for securing the location of the cemetery and 
 interesting the people in its establishment ; while 
 acting as director of the company having the 
 movement in charge he succeeded in securing as 
 a gift from the Southern Pacific road an acreage 
 twice as large as originally planned. After com- 
 ing to California he was made a Mason in Cala- 
 veras Lodge No. 78, F. & A. M., at San Andreas, 
 and is now connected with Olive Branch Lodge 
 No. 269, and is also a member of Tulare Lodge 
 No. 78, A. O. U. W., in which he is past master 
 workman. While aiding in the progress of the 
 community along material lines, he was not for- 
 getful of its needs from the standpoint of religion. 
 Both he and his wife are ardent church workers, 
 and to their efforts in no small degree is due 
 the organization of the Christian Church of Tu- 
 lare, in which he now officiates as a deacon and 
 chairman of the board of trustees. The respon- 
 sible task of building the new house of worship, 
 which was dedicated in May, 1887, fell largely 
 upon him as chairman of the building committee. 
 It is the unanimous opinion of the people that 
 the edifice, which was erected at a cost of $10,- 
 000, is substantial, modern and appropriately fin- 
 38 
 
 ished, its quiet elegance within and harmonious 
 effects without all combining to produce a result 
 as desirable as it is rare. 
 
 ELIAS FRANaS JORDAN. When Mr. 
 Jordan started to California he had not been 
 given a name whereby he was to be known amon^ 
 the children of his father's family. The mem- 
 bers of the train in which the Jordan family trav- 
 eled overland to the Golden state gave to the 
 six-weeks-old baby the appellation of "Califor- 
 nia," their destination, a title shortened eventu- 
 ally to "Forney," the name by which he has ever 
 since been known. He was born in Galveston, 
 Tex., January 28, 1850, a son of John Jordan. 
 The latter, who was a farmer by occupation, 
 traveled overland to California by ox-teams via 
 El Paso, Tucson, Fort Yuma to San Diego, reach- 
 ing the last-named place in the fall of the year. 
 He located first in San Juan, Monterey county, 
 where he engaged in the stock business for seven 
 years. In 1857 he removed to Tulare county 
 and for one year made his home near Visalia, 
 afterward purchasing a farm in the Yokohl val- 
 ley. He obtained a charter to build a toll trail 
 from Yokohl across the mountains and the Kern 
 river into Nevada, and successfully completed it 
 to the Kern river. In crossing the Kern river on 
 a raft it went under a fallen tree, he was knocked 
 into the river and was drowned, his body never 
 being recovered. This occurred in 1861, and 
 after that time the road was allowed to fall into 
 disuse and has never been completed. His wife, 
 formerly Eliza Jane Sadorus, a native of Penn- 
 sylvania and a daughter of Henry Sadorus, of 
 German ancestry, survives him, and at the age 
 of ninety-two years is still hale and hearty. She 
 makes her home with her son, E. F. Jordan, of 
 this review. Born to Mr. and Mrs. Jordan were 
 twelve sons and one daughter, of whom six sons 
 are deceased. 
 
 Elias Francis Jordan was the tenth in order 
 of birth in this large family. He was named by 
 an uncle in Texas, at whose home they stopped on 
 their way to the west, although he had already 
 received the name which could not fail to cling 
 to him throughout life on account of the peculiar 
 circumstances under which it was given him. 
 From the age of seven years he made his home 
 in Tulare county, receiving his education in the 
 public school in the vicinity of the paternal farm, 
 which was located on section 13, township 8, 
 range 26, at the mouth of the Yokohl. He re- 
 mained at home until he was twenty-nine years 
 old, helping his mother in the management of the 
 farm. During this time he had, however, taken 
 opportunity to locate a homestead of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres on section 20, township 18, 
 range 26, three miles north of Exeter. In 1880 
 
742 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he ixmoved to this land and has since made his 
 home here, eventually purchasing another quar- 
 ter section of section 20, and engaging in the 
 raising of grain. In addition to this property he 
 has rented, in connection with his brother, J. B. 
 Jordan, as high as five thousand acres for the 
 raising of grain. They were successful in their 
 •efforts and continued together for some years 
 but have now dissolved partnership. In addition 
 to his home property Mr. Jordan also owns eighty 
 acres of section 26, and the same number of acres 
 of section 35, as well as eighty acres of the old 
 home place. He has at the present time planted 
 to grain five quarter sections of land, eight hun- 
 dred acres in all, in the operation of this enter- 
 prise using three six-horse teams, and a combined 
 harvester which requires the use of thirty-two 
 horses. He is also largely interested in the rais- 
 ing of cattle, horses and hogs, and in this line as 
 well as that of general farming has met with a 
 gratifying success. He is numbered among the 
 representative citizens of the county and merits 
 the esteem and respect of his fellow-men. 
 
 In Farmersville, Tulare county, July 23, 1879, 
 Mr. Jordan was united in marriage with Lou- 
 rissia Ann Hill, a native of Iowa, and they are 
 the parents of four daughters and one son, 
 namely: Alice, the wife of W. A. McNay, of 
 Visalia; Leonora, the wife of M. M. Epperson, 
 of Exeter; Frances, Estella and Grover. Mr. 
 Jordan is a stanch Democrat in his political con- 
 victions and takes an active interest in the work- 
 ings of his party. He has always taken a strong 
 interest in the educational affairs of his com- 
 munity, now serving as clerk of the school board 
 of the Kaweah district. Fraternally he was made 
 an Odd Fellow in Exeter, of which lodge he 
 served as noble grand two terms. Both Mr. and 
 Mrs. Jordan are charter members of the Re- 
 bekahs, in which Mrs. Jordan has passed all the 
 chairs. 
 
 F. J. HESSE. Though born in Virginia, the 
 earliest recollections of Mr. Hesse are associated 
 with Kansas, where he grew to manhood, but 
 since 1885 he has been a resident of Tulare 
 county. In boyhood he removed to Kansas in 
 company with other members of the family and 
 for some years interested himself in general 
 farming and stock-raising on a tract of land 
 near Emporia. During 1884 he came to Cali- 
 fornia and after trying unsuccessfully to get a 
 start at the stock business near San Diego, he 
 went to Santa Rosa, where he again met with 
 losses. In 1885 he came to Tulare county and 
 bought large tracts of land near the present site 
 of Angiola, where at this writing he owns more 
 than ten sections of land in one body. On his 
 range he has large herds of cattle. The stock 
 
 business has brought him gratifying returns as 
 well as a wide reputation among people engaged 
 in the same business throughout the state. By 
 his marriage to Kate Bamesberger, a native of 
 Illinois, he has three sons and a daughter. The 
 eldest of the children, William G., was born near 
 Emporia, Kans., March 7, 1884, and grew to 
 manhood in Tulare county, where he had the 
 advantage of a course of study in the Tulare 
 high school, supplemented by attendance at the 
 Fresno Business College, from which he , was 
 graduated in the spring of 1904. 
 
 Very soon after his graduation from the busi- 
 ness college Mr. Hesse bought the old Hitch- 
 cock meat market at Tulare. Since then he has 
 remodeled the market and put in a cold storage 
 plant with a capacity of two tons of ice. The 
 market occupies a central location on Kern 
 street, where he utilizes two floors in a building, 
 25x90 feet in dimensions. To facilitate the busi- 
 ness he has his own slaughter house, where the 
 meat is prepared for the market. In addition to 
 his retail trade he has built up a wholesale busi- 
 ness and ships to various points in the county. 
 On account of the close attention which his 
 business demands he has never participated in 
 local or political affairs, aside from voting the 
 Republican ticket at both local and general elec- 
 tions. 
 
 LARKENS K. ERASER. The Pacific coast 
 with its world-famed mining, horticultural and 
 agricultural specialties, has within the past two 
 decades made rapid strides along the path of 
 prosperity, and in no line of industry has there 
 been more noticeable advancement than in that 
 controlled by the energetic, wide-awake ranch- 
 man. Conspicuous among the participators in 
 the grand transformation scene that has con- 
 verted dreary wastes and sandy plains into fruit- 
 ful orchards, vineyards and grain fields is Lar- 
 kens K. Eraser, a successful vineyardist, orchard- 
 ist and stockman, living two and one-half miles 
 south-east of Dinuba, where he has a valuable 
 and well-kept ranch. A native of Nova Scotia, 
 he was b(Jrn May i, i860, in New Glasgow, of 
 Scotch ancestry, being a son of the late Robert 
 John Eraser, and a brother of Abner Eraser, in 
 whose sketch, which appears on another page of 
 this work, further parental and ancestral history 
 may be found. 
 
 At the age of eight years Larkens K. Eraser 
 accompanied his parents to Omaha, Neb., where 
 he attended - the public schools two years, com- 
 pleting his early studies in the district schools 
 of Visalia, Tulare county, whither the family 
 located in 1870. He subsequently assisted his 
 father in improving a ranch, acquiring valuable 
 experience and knowledge. On attaining his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 743 
 
 majority, Mr. Fraser took up a homestead claim 
 of eighty acres on section 26, near Monson, and 
 having improved it, he rented adjoining land, 
 and for a number of years carried on grain farm- 
 ing on an extensive scale. Locating on his pres- 
 ent ranch in 1891, he has continued in agricul- 
 tural and horticultural pursuits, his farm of two 
 hundred acres being highly improved, and bear- 
 ing speaking evidence of his thrift, wise manage- 
 n.ent and practical judgment. He has here a 
 vineyard of thirty acres, an orchard of thirteen 
 acres, and an extensive and valuable altalfa field, 
 raising the feed for his fine herd of Holstein cat- 
 tle on the latter. His ranch, located on section 
 22, ranks high in its appointments, being one of 
 the most attractive in the vicinity, and a credit 
 to his energy and perseverance. 
 
 Mr. Fraser married, near Dinuba, Alice J. 
 Garr, a native of Indiana, and into their home 
 two children have been born, Louis Arthur and 
 Dora. Politically Mr. Fraser is a sound Repub- 
 lican, and fraternally he belongs to the Modern 
 Woodmen of America, and to the Beavers. He 
 is a member of the Christian Church, in which 
 he is serving as deacon, and to which Mrs. Fraser 
 also belongs. 
 
 JOHN ALBERT KNAPP. Previous experi- 
 ence in diflferent departments of agriculture 
 qualified Mr. Knapp for successful work in the 
 cultivation of the property which he began to 
 operate in 1897 and which became his by right of 
 purchase five years later. The quarter section 
 lies within a few miles of Tulare and is under 
 irrigation, Mr. Knapp having the use of water 
 from the ditch, in addition to his own continu- 
 ously flowing artesian well eleven hundred and 
 fifty feet deep, with a connecting reservoir which 
 covers one-half acre. In order to secure the feed 
 necessary for the milch cows used in his dairy 
 business he has seventy .acres under alfalfa and 
 a smaller acreage in grain. Besides dairying he 
 makes a specialty of fruit and has twenty acres 
 in a vineyard, also thirteen acres in an orchard 
 of assorted fruits. Another specialty, and one 
 in which he maintains a warm interest, is that 
 of apiarist having nearly fifty colonies of bees, 
 and this industry has proved a source of con- 
 siderable profit in return for the amount invested 
 therein. 
 
 The Knapp family comes from German stock. 
 Henry Knapp crossed the ocean and settled in 
 Fulton county, Ohio, later removing to a farm 
 in Williams county, the same state, but even- 
 tually returning to Fulton county, where his last 
 days were spent. Accompanying across the 
 ocean, among other members of the family, was 
 a son, Daniel Knapp, who was born in Bavaria, 
 Germany, and was a youth of eighteen when he 
 
 became a resident of the United- States. Near 
 Archbold, Fulton county, he evolved a farm 
 from the forest, a task that demanded the most 
 arduous and long-continued labor. Later he re- 
 moved to Williams county and bought a farm 
 there. Since retiring from active farm cares he 
 has made his home in the city of West Unity, 
 Williams county. His wife, who survives to 
 enjoy his present prosperity, was Rachel Spiess, 
 a native of Canton Zurich, Switzerland, and a 
 daughter of Henry Spiess. When she was a 
 child the family came to the United States, her 
 father first settling in Fulton county, Ohio, later 
 removing to Williams county and then returned 
 to Fulton county, where he died, aged about 
 ninety-six years. 
 
 Among seven children now Hving (five sons 
 and two daughters) John Albert Knapp is the 
 eldest, arid was born near Archbold, Fulton 
 county, Ohio, June 11, 1859. After 1864 he was 
 reared in Williams county, where he received a 
 common- school education. Reared to farm pur- 
 suits and possessing a fondness for the work, 
 he chose agriculture for his life occupation, and 
 in addition to cultivating a farm he operated a 
 steam thresher in that part of the country for 
 ten years. His arrival in California occurred 
 February 10, 1891, and soon afterward he 
 bought twenty acres near Tulare. Of this tract 
 five acres were in orchard, and the same amount 
 respectively in a vineyard and alfalfa. After 
 three years on that place he removed to the Lake- 
 side country in Kings county, where he com- 
 bined dairying and grain farming. In 1897 he 
 moved to the place which five years later he ac- 
 quired by purchase and of which he is still the 
 owner. During his residence in Ohio he was 
 united in marriage, in Williams county, Novem- 
 ber 28, 1880, with Miss Effie C. Rittenour, a 
 native of that county and a daughter of George 
 and Sarah (Hisey) Rittenour. Her father came 
 from his native state of Virginia to Ohio and. 
 settled in Columbiana county, where he met and 
 married Miss Hisey. From there he moved to 
 WilHams county, where he added shoe-making 
 to general farm pursuits. Now, at eighty-six 
 years of age, he is still living on the old home- 
 stead near Bryan, that county. Of his thirteen 
 children all but three attained maturity and eight 
 are now living, Mrs. Knapp being next to the 
 youngest of the family. Born of her marriage 
 are five children, namely : Daisy, wife of J. L. 
 Crye, of Kings county; Ivy, wife of B. E. 
 Matthews, of Kern, this state; Ernest, who as- 
 sists his father on the home farm ; Florence and 
 George also at home. The family attend the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church of Tulare. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Knapp has always been a pronounced 
 Republican, while in social organizations he 
 holds membership with the Fraternal Aid. 
 
7U 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Keenly interested in educational matters, he has 
 given his most efficient service to the Buena 
 Vista school district, of whose board of trus- 
 tees he is a member, and for five years has acted 
 as clerk of the board. 
 
 ALFRED PETERSON. The success which 
 has been achieved by Mr. Peterson since identi- 
 fying himself with the agricultural interests of 
 Tulare county furnishes another proof of the 
 opportunities offered by this section of Califor- 
 nia to men of resolute spirit and persevering in- 
 dustry. It was during 1896 that he purchased 
 his present property three miles east of Tulare. 
 The original purchase consisted of only twenty 
 acres, but at three different times he has added 
 to the acreage until his landed possessions now 
 aggregate three hundred and forty-five acres in 
 one body, improved with the necessary buildings 
 and fences, and planted to different crops for 
 which the soil is adapted. One hundred and 
 fifteen acres are under alfalfa. A special feat- 
 ure of the place is the raising of stock, and fine 
 grades of horses, cattle and hogs may be seen 
 here, the sale of which adds not a little each sea- 
 son to the income of the owner. 
 
 A native of Sweden, Mr. Peterson was born 
 near Oskarshamn, Smoland, August 23, 1869, 
 and is a son of Peter and Christine (Johnson) 
 Carlson, natives of the same locality, where they 
 still reside, the father being sexton in his home 
 church and its cemetery. The grandfather was 
 a soldier in the Swedish cavalry and served in 
 the Napoleonic wars from 1812 to 1815. Since 
 the establishment of the reformation by Martin 
 Luther the various generations of the family 
 have adhered to that faith, and Alfred Peterson 
 was reared in its doctrines, but since coming to 
 America he has been associated with the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal denomination. He and his sister, 
 Mrs. Selma Pospeshek, of Tulare county, are the 
 only living children in his father's family, the 
 other having died some years since. 
 
 At the age of fourteen years, in 1884, Alfred 
 Peterson came to America with his brother, Os- 
 kar, and secured work on a farm near Long 
 Point, Livingston county. 111. After five years 
 in the same part of the country, in 1889 he came 
 to California and began to work as a farm hand. 
 Four years later he entered into the threshing 
 business and with a partner purchased and oper- 
 ated an eng;ine of twenty-four "horse-power, con- 
 tinuing with his partner for the first two years, 
 but afterward working alone until 1901, when 
 he retired from the business in order to devote 
 his entire attention to stock-raising. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Peterson, in Chicago, 
 united him with Miss Hilda Anderson, who 
 was born near Westervik, Smoland, Sweden, and 
 
 like himself, affiliates with the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. In politics he votes, the Republican 
 ticket. Since coming to Tulare county he has 
 been identified with the Lodge, Encampment and 
 Rebekahs of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows. Of recent years he has devoted much of 
 his time to travel and in 1903 covered thirty 
 thousand miles by steamer and railroad. Seven 
 times he has crossed our own continent, and 
 twice has returned to the old home to renew 
 the associations of youth, the first of these trips 
 occurring in 1901, when he enjoyed a pleasant 
 visit with his father in Oskarshamn and with 
 other relatives and friends from whom he long 
 had been separated. While maintaining a deep 
 affection for the land of his birth, he is never- 
 theless loyal to his adopted country and especial- 
 ly to his chosen home in California, where he 
 believes may be found the most fertile soil in 
 the west. From an early period of his residence 
 here he has been an advocate of irrigation, real- 
 izing that the lack of water is the only drawback 
 to the achievement of the most satisfactory re- 
 sults in agriculture. At one time he served as 
 a director in the Farmers' Ditch Company, from 
 which his own land was irrigated, and in other 
 ways he has endeavored to promote the irriga- 
 tion facilities of his home neighborhood, nor has 
 he been less responsive to other movements for 
 the benefit of the people among whom he has 
 cast his lot. 
 
 SPENCER FAY. A well-known landholder 
 of Tulare county, Spencer Fay is located five 
 miles south of Portersville, where in 1889 he pur- 
 chased five hundred and twenty acres of land. 
 Later he added six hundred acres, now owning 
 eleven hundred, devoted to pasture and the cul- 
 tivation of wheat. This property he leases, al- 
 though he makes his home on the place. A na- 
 tive of Springville, N. Y., he was born August 
 20, 1849, ^ son of Benjamin Fay, a wagon maker 
 and carpenter of the same place, where he is now 
 living, at the age of eighty-two years. The fam- 
 il\' came originally from Massachusetts, the pa- 
 ternal grandfather, also named , Benjamin, re- 
 moving from Athol, that state, where he was a 
 farmer, to New York state in 181 1. He was an 
 active participant of the war of 1812, after the 
 war making his hom6 in Erie county, where his 
 death occurred. In manhood Benjamin Fay, Jr., 
 married Hulda Cope, a native of Canada, and 
 she died in New York state about 1865. 
 
 In a family of four sons and one daughter 
 born to his parents, Spencer Fay was the old- 
 est. He received his education in the common 
 school in the vicinity of his home, after which 
 he was apprenticed to learn the trade of black- 
 smith. Deciding to locate on the Pacific coast, 
 
/ /'^(^WW- 
 
 -A — 
 
f ' 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical RECORt). 
 
 t4l 
 
 he came to California in 1874, and settled at 
 Eortersville, where for fifteen years he carried on 
 a lucrative business as a blacksmith. With the 
 results of his industry and energy, in 1889, he 
 purchased the five hundred and twenty acres 
 which formed the nucleus of his property. One 
 of the branches to which Mr. Fay has given his 
 attention has been the budding of orange trees 
 for market, and in which he has met with grati- 
 fying success. For a time he was also engaged 
 in sheep raising in partnership with Ed D. Hal-' 
 bert. 
 
 In California Mr. Fay married Tennie Rhodes, 
 a native of Tulare county, and they have one 
 daughter, J ewel, who is at home with her parents. 
 Fraternally Mr. Fay is a charter member of Por- 
 tersville Lodge, A. O. U. W., and politically is 
 a stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 JOHN BARKER was born in Bristol, Eng- 
 land, September 4, 1832, and is descended from 
 a family who for many generations had followed 
 the sea. His father commanded a ship before 
 he was twenty-one years old, and went down 
 with all on board off the African coast when 
 he was thirty years old. He left a widow and 
 three children, the oldest of whom, John Barker, 
 is the subject of this review. With the born 
 instinct of the sailor, before he was twelve years 
 old he made his first voyage to the island of 
 Terceira, one of the Azores, from which place 
 his ship brought home a cargo of oranges. He 
 followed the sea in five Mediterranean voyages, 
 each time passing through the Grecian Archi- 
 pelago, on through the Hellespont and the Bos- 
 porus, and into the various parts of the Black 
 sea. During the intervals of these voyages he 
 made four voyages across the Atlantic to the 
 United States and one to British America. On 
 three of these voyages he brought passengers, 
 all in the steerage of a sailing ship. On a voy- 
 age to Quebec in 1847 his ship took four hun- 
 dred passengers from the northwest coast of 
 Ireland, where they had taken one thousand 
 tons of shelled corn, the donation made by Ab- 
 dul Medjid, the sultan of Turkey, to the starv- 
 ing people of Ireland, at the time of the famine 
 there. About half of these passengers died 
 while the ship was imprisoned among the ice- 
 bergs on the banks of Newfoundland. 
 
 At the age of eighteen years Mr. Barker 
 found himself second officer of his ship, well 
 posted on navigation, and if occasion had de- 
 manded would have been capable of command- 
 ing a ship. In December, 1848, while on a home- 
 ward trip from Constantinople to England, they 
 encountered a heavy westerly wind when near- 
 ing Gibraltar and were compelled to put into 
 
 the bay of Gibraltar for a time. This accidental 
 stay was indirectly the means of changing the 
 whole course of Mr. Barker's life, for while there 
 the news of the discovery of gold in California 
 reached his ears. The history of the coast of 
 California was somewhat familiar to him 
 through the stories he had heard from many of 
 the old mariners who had been to the new coun- 
 try and taken back cargoes of hides and tallow. 
 The first officer of his ship had been to the state 
 in command of a ship, and was a whaler on the 
 coast for about three years. His stories of the 
 country and climate inflamed the already heated 
 imagination of Mr. Barker, who determined to 
 start for California as soon as he could after his 
 arrival in England. On reaching England the 
 ship was chartered to carry passengers to New 
 York, and so Mr. Barker concluded to remain 
 aboard of her and not to leave until that city 
 was reached. In the meantime he opened com- 
 munication with some friends who lived in Ga- 
 lena, III, and who advised him to cross to 
 America and 4Tiake the trip over the plains with 
 them. Reaching New York in the latter part 
 of February, 1849, he left the ship the first even- 
 ing there, going aboard one of the Hudson river 
 steamers, which carried him to Albany. From 
 that point he chartered his passage on a canal 
 boat to Buffalo, cabin passage with board being 
 $10. Arriving at that city he went aboard a 
 propellor and took passage for Chicago, which 
 was then a small, very dirty town, half buried 
 in mud and water on the shores of Lake Michi- 
 gan. Although offered profitable employment 
 Mr. Barker declined and went on to Galena, 
 traveling by wagon and stage, as there were then 
 no railroads, only to find at the end of the trip 
 that his friends had already started for the west. 
 Knowing it would be impossible to overtake 
 them before they started upon their journey 
 across the plains, he decided to stay where he 
 was and accept some kind of employment until 
 the following sprrhg, when he also would make 
 the trip. He easily secured employment with 
 Harris Brothers, of Galena, who owned a line 
 of steamers which plied upon the Mississippi 
 river between that point and St. Louis and to 
 St. Paul, Minn. He remained as mate of one 
 of their boats throughout that year, until the 
 river froze up in November, when all traffic 
 ceased above St. Louis. He then began prepa- 
 rations for his trip across the plains, joining a 
 party of young men, eight in number, with 
 eight animals and two wagons. 
 / On May i, they crossed the Missouri river 
 where Omaha is n ow lo cated. The trip was full 
 of the incidents characteristic of life on the 
 plains in the pioneer days of the country, includ- 
 ing skirmishes with the Indians, in one of which 
 Mr. Barker was wounded in the forehead by 
 
748 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a musket ball. They arrived in Salt Lake City 
 on July 4, and remained a few miles from the city 
 until the 26th, when the final start was made 
 on what they were assured was the hardest part 
 of their journey. They came over the Hum- 
 boldt route along the line now occupied by the 
 Central Pacific. The feed for the stock was of 
 poor quality and scarce, the water bad, and for 
 a great part of the way the road was literally 
 a bed of alkali dust that cut and irritated the 
 mucous membrane- of both men and animals. 
 The Shoshone Indians whom they encountered 
 on this part of their journey were troublesome 
 and treacherous, so they were compelled to 
 stand guard over their animals day and night, 
 and isolated and small parties were in constant 
 danger of being massacred. Several of their 
 animals were stolen in spite of their vigilance, 
 and some died, and on their arrival at their des- 
 tination they had but one pair of mules and a 
 wagon. They reached the summit of the Sierra 
 Nevadas on the old Cara oa-joute, September i, 
 1850. There the party separated, and each went 
 his way, intent upon finding the fortune for 
 which he had endured such dangers and priva- 
 tions. ^^ — ' 
 
 Mr. Barker drifted down through Eldorado, 
 Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and Mariposa 
 counties, experiencing various fortunes until the 
 spring of 1853. He then was mining at a place 
 called New Year's diggings, between the Tuo- 
 lumne and Merced rivers. It was what was 
 called "dry diggings," as he had to wheel his 
 gravel in a wheel barrow about three hundred 
 yards to a pool of water and wash it with a 
 rocker. While thus engaged one afternoon 
 three of his former companions with whom he 
 had crossed the plains rode into his camp. He 
 was just washing up his day's work and had $28 
 in coarse gold as a result. This was the final 
 result of three days' labor. His friends told him 
 they had started out to explore the great valley 
 of the San Joaquin, and that they had heard of 
 a stream called the Kern river which was a per- 
 fect Eldorado, and as yet untouched by the hand 
 of the miner. Accordingly he decided to cast 
 in his lot with theirs, and on the following Mon- 
 day he broke camp and set out for the south. 
 After leaving the 'neighborhood in which he 
 had located they found no other settlers until 
 they reached Fort Miller, a military post, then 
 under the command of Captain Jordan. There 
 was quite a number of miners on the river as well 
 as on Fine and Coarse Gold gulches. They found 
 Chinamen making $20 per day in diggings that 
 had been abandoned by white men. But hav- 
 ing set out for the Kern river they determined 
 to reach it before stopping in their journey. 
 When they arrived -at Visalia the town and 
 county were in process of organization and after 
 
 resting a few days they went on and entered the 
 Kern river mines by way of Linn's valley. They 
 here encountered the usual experience of min- 
 ers, although the country was far from being 
 as rich in the mineral as in the northern part. 
 After working in the mines for several months 
 they all became dissatisfied and returned to 
 Visalia. There Mr. Barker found employment 
 as a writer in the county surveyor's office and 
 also received the appointment of under-sheriff 
 to W. G. Poindexter. A year later he located 
 on a ranch on Lower Kings river, in what is 
 now Kings county, and entered extensively into 
 the raising of cattle and horses and the growing 
 of hay. He made a final settlement by erecting 
 
 /in 1856 the first human habitation on the Fresno 
 plain and establishing a ranch and road house at I 
 
 \ Elk Horn. / 
 
 A pioneer in the truest sense of the word, Mr. 
 Barker was ever found ready to lend his aid 
 for either the upbuilding or protection of his 
 adopted state, and at the breaking out of the 
 Indian troubles in 1856 he was one of the first 
 to offer his services. The Four Creek and 
 Tule River Indians, joined by the Owens river 
 tribes, made a raid on the settlement at Tule 
 river and literally destroyed it, immediately 
 thereafter retreating to the mountains, driving 
 all the stock they wanted with them. There 
 they slaughtered the cattle and collected stores 
 of "charqui" or dried beef, and with plenty of 
 acorns, grass seed and roots, and among their ' 
 fortifications they defied the settlers. The set- 
 tlers built a cordwood fort at Visalia and col- 
 lected therein all the women and children and 
 mustered all the men between Kern river and 
 the San Joaquin, two hundred in number. Ac- 
 companied by a lieutenant and twelve soldiers 
 with a gun from Fort Miller, they entered the 
 mountains by way of the Yokohl valley and 
 reached the north fork of the Tule river. Find- 
 mg there the fortifications of the Indians, they 
 stormed them and destroyed them, killing forty 
 of the Indians and scattering the remainder, 
 which they afterward drove to the reservation. 
 This was such a severe lesson to the savages 
 that they never troubled the white settlers again. 
 y In i860, about the time of the breaking out 
 of; the Civil war, Mr. Barker sold his ranch at 
 Elk Horn and went to Stockton, where, during 
 that year, he was married to Mary Alma 
 Weaver, a native of Ohio. Mr. Barker re- 
 mained in the vicinity of Stockton for ten years, 
 when, in 1870, he returned to Kern county and 
 engaged in the sheep business, in 1882 chang- 
 ing to cattle, which he believed would be more 
 profitable. After remaining on his ranch on 
 Kern river until 1900 he removed to Bakers- 
 field, where he now resides with two of his 
 daughters, Lottie E. and Emma Belle. Nellie 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 749 
 
 A. became the wife of John Fremont Bonham 
 and resides in Sebastopol, Sonoma county. 
 
 It is not necessary to pass an encomium upon 
 the Hfe of Mr. Barker, as pioneer, patriot or 
 citizen, for he is so well known throughout this 
 section of the state and so thoroughly appre- 
 ciated for his many sterling traits of character 
 that it would be no information to his friends, 
 nor be understood 'by those who do not know 
 him. A man of seventy-two years, he has re- 
 tained his faculties and his mind is as clear and 
 bright as in his young manhood, and teeming 
 with the events which gave to California the 
 chance for her present prosperity. A fluent 
 speaker, he is a very entertaining companion, 
 and is no less eloquent in the writings which 
 he often gives to the public, and which are be- 
 coming rnore and more appreciated as time is 
 removing from the present generation those 
 who were eye-witnesses to the pioneer struggles 
 of the state as well as helpers in the cause. 
 True, earnest and steadfast in his convictions, 
 he has been a Republican all his life, and has 
 been one of the leaders of this party for many 
 years, being one of the four Republicans in the 
 entire San Joaquin valley who, during the early 
 '60s, remained true to their principles and voted 
 for Lincoln. During campaigns he has stumped 
 the county in behalf of his party's candidates, 
 and has also ably edited papers which have 
 proved .of immeasurable service to the cause. 
 In personal characteristics he is a man of un- 
 impeachable integrity and courage. As a link 
 in the chain of events leading from the pioneer 
 days to the present, Mr. Barker stands to-day, 
 looking back without reproach, and forward 
 without fear, secure in the peace which is his 
 as a man who has done his best and is now con- 
 tent to reap the reward. Peace and plenty and 
 prosperity are a part of this reward, while the 
 love and respect of a young generation add 
 sunshine to his declining years. 
 
 GEORGE W. GIBSON. The family of 
 which this prosperous farmer of Tulare county 
 is a member comes of old southern stock and 
 has long been identified with the history "of our 
 country. At an early period in the agricultural 
 development of Missouri his grandfather, John 
 Gibson, removed thither from East Tennessee, 
 and with him was a son, William B., who de- 
 voted the balance of his active years to agricul- 
 tural pursuits in Missouri. During the Civil war 
 the latter enlisted in the Union service as a 
 member of a Missouri regiment and endured 
 many hardships in weary marches, long cam- 
 paigns and sanguinary battles. When the war 
 closed he resumed the cultivation of his Mis- 
 souri farm and remained there until his death 
 
 in 1902. During early manhood he married 
 Susan Wills, who was born in Old Virginia and 
 is still living in Missouri. From her native 
 home she accompanied her father, Lewis Wills, 
 to Missouri and settled in Christian county, 
 where Mr. Wills added stock-raising to general 
 farm pursuits. At the opening of the Civil war 
 he offered himself to the Union, but was re- 
 jected on account of disabihty. In spite of this, 
 however, he took part in a skirmish at Spring- 
 field against the forces of General Marmaduke. 
 
 The family of William B. and Susan Gibson 
 consisted of seven children, all but one of whom 
 survive, three residing in California and three 
 in Missouri. G. W., who was fourth in order 
 of birth, was born near Springfield, Mo., July 
 28, 1865. As a child he witnessed the hardships 
 incident to life in Missouri during the years fol- 
 lowing the conflict between north and south. 
 After finishing the studies of the district schools 
 he was sent to the academy at Henderson for 
 one term, but had no other advantages. Dissat- 
 isfied with prospects, he resolved to go to Cali- 
 fornia and return thence to Missouri after earn- 
 ing the money needed to complete his educa- 
 tion. The first part of his plan was carried out, 
 but once definitely identified with the west, asso- 
 ciated with its people, enthusiastic over its op- 
 portunities, and awake to its resources, he aban- 
 doned all plans to go back to his old home, and 
 has been content since to remain "in the har- 
 ness," enjoying the prosperity his quiet perse- 
 verance justly merits. 
 
 Arriving in Tulare county in 1886 with $9 as 
 his entire capital, but with youth and hope and 
 strength to aid him in getting a start, he at 
 once began to work on a farm owned by his 
 uncle, J. H. Woody. A year later he took up 
 general farming in the vicinity of Tulare and 
 since that time has made a specialty of raising 
 grain. During 1896 he spent six months in 
 Alaska. In October, 1897, he bought a farm of 
 three hundred and twenty acres situated seven 
 miles southwest of Tulare and here he has since 
 operated a grain farm and dairy business. The 
 excellent irrigation facilities furnished by the 
 ditch enables him to raise alfalfa, to which prod- 
 uct he has one hundred acres sown, and the 
 crop is used for his milch cows. To aid in his 
 dairy he avails himself of the advantages of a 
 separator, thus securing the greatest possible re- 
 sults from his herd. A few years ago, when 
 the Oakland colony was originated, he bought 
 forty acres in its tract and this he planted to an 
 orchard, afterward selling the land at an ad- 
 vance. After coming to Tulare county and se- 
 curing the start necessary for the establishment 
 of a house of his own he was married, in 1897, 
 in San Francisco, to Miss Sadie Galbraith, who 
 was born in Stockton, this state, and by whom 
 
750 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he has a son, Rex. Together with his wife he 
 attends the Methodist Episcopal Oiurch in Tu- 
 lare and contributes to its maintenance. The 
 Fraternal Aid numbers him among its mem- 
 bers. Though a believer in Republican prin- 
 ciples, he takes no part in party work aside from 
 voting the ticket at all elections. Realizing the 
 advantages of a good education and desirous 
 that the children of his locality shall enjoy that 
 which he earnestly desired in boyhood, he has 
 willingly given of his time and influence to pro- 
 mote the cause of the public schools and by his 
 service as a member of the board of school trus- 
 tees of his district has promoted the interests 
 of education in his district. 
 
 HENRY WHALEY. The proprietor of the 
 Tulare Agricultural Works has built up an im- 
 portant trade in his specialties. The business 
 was inaugurated in October, 1897, upon a small 
 scale, but has been increased from year to year 
 until now the stock fills a building 75 x 125 feet, 
 as well as the warehouse adjoining. A general 
 blacksmithing business is conducted, repair 
 work is done, and buggies and various agricul- 
 tural implements are manufactured, in addition 
 to which a complete stock is carried of wagons, 
 carriages, plows, harrows, discs, riding and walk- 
 ing cultivators. In cream separators JVIr. 
 Whaley acts as agent for the celebrated De- 
 Laval, while in gasoline engines he is agent 
 for the Weber, Jr., and in addition he represents 
 the Rushford wagon manufacturers, the Mil- 
 waukee mower and rake, the Hooker line of 
 buggies, and the Parlin and Obendorf plow 
 goods. 
 
 Another enterprise of which Mr. Whaley is 
 president and with which his name is intimately 
 associated, the Tulare County Live Stock Show 
 and Race Meet, was established by a private 
 company consisting of himself and three others. 
 They purchased the old fair grounds, compris- 
 ing ninety acres, one-half mile from the city of 
 Tulare, and adjoining the city Hmits on the east. 
 The grounds have been improved, the old race 
 track remodeled into a kite-shaped track of one 
 mile, pronounced by experts to be one of the 
 best in the state, a grand stand has been erected 
 and large sums of money expended to meet the 
 demands of the people for first-class accom- 
 modations. By the establishment of the show 
 it is the hope of the projectors to cause an im- 
 provement in the grades of stock raised in the 
 county, and should this ambition be realized 
 the venture would prove more than a source of 
 remuneration to its backers and more than a 
 source of entertainment to its visitors, for the 
 improvement of the stock would directly afifect 
 the entire county and promote the prosperity of 
 
 the people. During the meet, held October 17- 
 22, 1904, Professor Majors was engaged to 
 judge the stock and give lectures to stock-rais- 
 ers. 
 
 Mr. Whaley is a Californian by birth, and was 
 born at Olema, Marin county, October 26, 1871. 
 His father, Samuel, came from Canada to Cali- 
 fornia via Panama and followed dairy farming 
 in Marin county, but later took up general farm 
 pursuits near Sebastopol, Sonoma county, and 
 in 1884 came to Tulare county, where he home-- 
 steaded a farm near Tipton. At this writing he 
 makes his home on a farm near Stockton. He 
 and his wife, Rachel, had fifteen children, and 
 nine of these are still living, Henry being the 
 eldest. He was reared principally in Sonoma 
 county, but in 1887 came to Tulare county, and 
 as soon as old enough to take up the task of 
 self-support he began farming. In 1891 he left 
 the farm and took up blacksmithing, which he 
 followed, together with other mechanical work, 
 in the village of Pixley, Tulare county. From 
 Pixley he moved to Tulare, where he has since 
 made his home and here he has built up a mod- 
 ern blacksmith and machine shop, operated by 
 electricity, as well as a warehouse stocked with 
 implements of the most modern patterns. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Whaley was solemnized 
 at Delano, Kern county, and united him with 
 Miss Lizzie Aubery, who was born at San Jose, 
 Cal., and by whom he has a son, Percy. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Whaley is a pronounced Republican. 
 For one term he served as city marshal, but 
 his attention has been given closely to business 
 matters and he has had little leisure for public 
 offices. For nine years he has been a member 
 of the Tulare volunteer fire department, at one 
 time served as foreman of the hose company, 
 three times was chosen chief engineer and is 
 now treasurer of the department. Since coming . 
 to Tulare he has been initiated into Masonry as 
 a member of Olive Branch Lodge No. 269, F. 
 & A. M., and is further connected with the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen and the 
 Knights of the Maccabees. 
 
 JAMES TURNER DORAN. Possessing 
 great artistic ability, and much native talent, 
 James Turner Doran is the leading photographer 
 of Tulare, and has the distinction of being the 
 longest-established artist in the county. He is 
 also interested in horticultural pursuits, own- 
 ing land in different parts of the state, and may 
 truly be considered a representative man, enter- 
 prising and progressive. A native of Ontario, 
 he was born, August 22, 1844, near Brantford, 
 and was there reared and educated, remaining 
 there until twenty-one years of age. 
 
 Migrating to the United States in 1865, Mr. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 753 
 
 Doran located in McLean county, 111., where he 
 was engaged in business as a photographer for 
 twenty years, during which time he kept in touch 
 with all the newer methods employed in his pro- 
 fession. Removing to Chicago in 1885, he fol- 
 lowed his profession in that city two years, and 
 then came to Cahfornia to reside. Settling in 
 Tulare, Mr. Doran built his present studio, 
 which was the first complete establishment of 
 the kind in Tulare county. It is finely equipped 
 with the best instruments and appliances used 
 in photography, including artistic scenery and 
 backgrounds. His work is acknowledged to be 
 of a superior order, and he makes pictures of 
 all styles and kinds, from the smallest to life 
 size, doing his own •retouching in a skillful man- 
 ner. Mr. Doran has bought considerable land 
 since coming to the state, and in its manage- 
 ment has met with success. In 1886 he bought 
 forty acres of raw land, lying about five miles 
 west of Fresno, and this he devotes to the culti- 
 vation of fruit, one-half of it being set with 
 raisins, and one-half with peach trees. He also 
 owns six hundred and forty acres of land in 
 San Diego county, and he is financially interested 
 in the Tulare Fuel, Feed and Land Company, 
 of which he is one of the directors. 
 
 In Illinois Mr. Doran married Kate Brown, 
 a native of Connecticut, and a woman of culture 
 and refinement. Mr. Doran is a member of the 
 California Association of Photographers. Po- 
 litically he is a strong Republican, never swerv- 
 ing from the principles advocated by his party. 
 Fraternally he is prominent in several organiza- 
 tions. He was made a Mason in Farmer City, 
 111., and is now a life member of Garfield Lodge, 
 A. F. & A. M., of Chicago; he joined the Odd 
 Fellows in Illinois, and is now past grand of 
 Tulare City Lodge No. 306, I. O. O. F. ; and 
 past chief patriarch of Mount Whitney Encamp- 
 ment No. 82; in 1896 and 1897 he was Grand 
 Patriarch of the Grand Encampment of Califor- 
 nia; in 1898 was representative to the Sovereign 
 Grand Lodge, which met in Boston, Mass., and 
 in 1899 attended the meeting of the Sovereign 
 Grand Lodge at Detroit, Mich., in the same ca- 
 pacity. 
 
 B. E. HUTCHINSON, a well-known vine- 
 yardist and orchardist of Fowler district, Fresno 
 county, is still hale and hearty, and active in the 
 supervision of his affairs. Born in Orange 
 township, Cuyahoga county, Ohio, near Cleve- 
 land, June 19, 1836, he was the descendant of 
 a member of an Irish family, three brothers of 
 whom came to America before the Revolutionary 
 war. One located in the southern states, one in 
 Massachusetts, and the other in New York, and 
 they all served the land of their adoptioa in the 
 
 Revolutionary war. Mr. Hutchinson's father, 
 Solomon, was born in Fenner, Dutchess county, 
 N. Y., August 9, 1809, the son of "WilHam, also 
 of that state. In m.anhood he became a carpen- 
 ter, removing to Cleveland, Ohio, when it was a 
 small place, and remaining a resident of Cuya- 
 hoga county until 1844. He then removed to 
 Indiana, living first in Lafayette and afterward 
 in Mishawaka, where his death occurred at the 
 age of seventy-three years. His wife, formerly 
 Phalla I. Caswell, of New York state, died at 
 the age of sixty-nine years. 
 
 The only child of his parents now living, B. E. 
 Hutchinson was eight years old when his parents 
 removed to Indiana, and he remained in the 
 paternal home until attaining the age of twenty- 
 two years. Under the instruction of his . father 
 he learned the trade of carpenter. In the spring 
 of 1856 he joined a surveying party headed by 
 Thomas R. Clark, which was planning to go to 
 Superior, Wis., and begin the survey of the , 
 Northern Pacific Railroad. The survey was 
 abandoned, however, and Mr. Hutchinson helped 
 to lay out about seven thousand acres in town 
 lots. He also named several of the bays in that 
 vicinity. He then went down the coast, assisted 
 in laying out another town and in building a 
 mill, returning to Indiana in the fall of 1857. 
 Soon afterward he went to Michigan and located 
 in Big Rapids, then a hamlet of only seven build- 
 ings. He purchased the only store there and en- 
 gaged in a mercantile business, continuing un- 
 interruptedly for the period of twenty-two years. 
 He met with success in his work and became 
 an influential man in the town, which had grown 
 to six thousand inhabitants. Always active for 
 the advancement of all movements calculated to 
 increase the prosperity of the community, he 
 was chosen to represent his ward in the city 
 council, was a member of the school board, 
 deputy sheriff for four years, and township treas- 
 urer for six years. In addition to his first mer- 
 cantile interests he had also engaged in the fur- 
 niture business for a part of this time, and had 
 as well traded among the Indians and learned 
 their language, and attained a considerable de- 
 gree of influence with them. In 1883 Mr. Hutch- 
 inson disposed of his interests in Big Rapids, 
 and went to Des Moines, Iowa, where he re- 
 mained eight months, in 1884 coming to Fresno, 
 Gal., where he spent the intervening months from 
 February to October. Returning to Iowa he 
 made that state his home for the ensuing two 
 years and a half, when in 1887 he came again 
 to California and located upon his present ranch. 
 This property lies in the Fowler district, on sec- 
 tion 4, seven miles southeast of Fresno and 
 three miles from Fowler, and consists of one 
 hundred and seventy acres ; eighty acres of this 
 ranch are devoted to the cultivation of raism 
 
764 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 grapes, and seventy acres are in orchard. This 
 is considered one of the best fruit ranches in 
 the county. In 1899 Mr. Hutchinson raised from 
 four hundred trees one hundred and eighteen 
 tons of fruit that went to the cannery, besides 
 a large quantity which he dried. This is un- 
 questionably the largest yield of fruit on record 
 in the United States. Mr. Hutchinson has also 
 been interested in the development of the oil 
 fields of Kern county, and still holds stock in 
 the Associated Oil Companies. He travels ex- 
 tensively through the state and addresses farm- 
 ers' institutes on scientific fruit culture. 
 
 In Indiana Mr. Hutchinson was united in 
 marriage with Elma L. Fuller, a native of Ohio, 
 and the daughter of Edson Fuller. The latter 
 was also a native of Ohio, from which state he 
 went to Michigan in 1846, engaging as a mer- 
 chant in Grand Rapids. To Mr. and Mrs. Hutch- 
 inson were born two children : C. C, who is sta- 
 tion agent at Oleander, Fresno county, and W. 
 W., manager of the Northwestern Insurance 
 Company, his home being located in Seattle, 
 Wash. Mrs. Elma L. Hutchinson died in De- 
 cember, 1896, and October 26, 1897, Mr. Hutch- 
 inson married Mrs. Marie L. Van Loo, a native 
 of Michigan. Politically Mr. Hutchinson is a 
 stanch Republican. Fraternally he is a prom- 
 inent Mason, being a member of Pine Tree 
 Lodge, the Chapter and Pilgrim Commandery 
 of Big Rapids, Mich., having filled most of the 
 chairs in all three organizations. 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON MULL. The 
 founder of the Mull family in the United States 
 came from Scotland and settled upon a planta- 
 tion in North Carolina, where he passed the 
 remaining years of his life with the exception 
 of the period of his service in the war of 1812. 
 After he settled in North Carolina his son, 
 James, was born on the homestead in that state, 
 and the latter as a boy was apprenticed to the 
 trade of a tanner and currier, which he followed 
 for a time in Georgia and later at Wetumpka, 
 Elmore county, Ala. Moving to Arkansas in 
 1846 he carried on a large tannery at Batesville, 
 Independence county, but in 1858 removed to 
 Mississippi and engaged in the saw-mill busi- 
 ness at Pontotoc. At the opening of the Qvil 
 war he enlisted in the Confederate service and 
 was chosen captain of Company A, Twelfth 
 Mississippi Cavalry, which he commanded un- 
 til the close of the struggle. Eighteen different 
 times during his service he received wounds in 
 battle and in one engagement was four times 
 wounded. The fall of the Confederacy brought 
 disaster to the south, and he returned home to 
 find plantations laid waste, mansions ruined and 
 homes desolate. Within a short time he became 
 
 convinced that, to gain a livelihood for his fam- 
 ily he must seek a new locality, and for this 
 reason in 1868 he brought his family via Pan- 
 ama to California, where he settled in Merced 
 county on a farm. On retiring from agricul- 
 tural cares he came to make his home with his 
 son, Thomas J., and here at eighty-eight years 
 of age his life came to an end. In the home of 
 this son also occurred the death of the wife 
 and mother, Marion (Fraley) Mull, a native of 
 North Carohna, of Dutch lineage. 
 
 The family of James Mull consisted of nine 
 children and all but one attained mature years, 
 but only three are now living. Three sons 
 served in the Civil war, Thomas J., Martin and 
 James, of whom the first arid last-named served 
 with their father in Company A, Twelfth Mis- 
 sissippi Cavalry, while Martin was a member 
 of the First Arkansas Regiment of Confederate 
 Infantry. Thomas J. Mull, who was sixth in 
 order of birth among the nine children, was born 
 at Wetumpka, Ala., July 30, 1846. His earliest 
 recollections are of Arkansas, whither his 
 parents moved by wagon in his infancy, but 
 after 1858 he lived in Mississippi and attended 
 the public schools there. During the fall of 
 1862 he volunteered in the Confederate service 
 and became a private in Company A, Twelfth 
 Mississippi Cavalry, in which he remained until 
 the ck>se of the war. Among the engagements 
 in which he took part were those of Chicka- 
 mauga, lojokout Mountain, Dalton, Kenesaw 
 Mountain, Resaca (where he was severely 
 wounded in the left ear), Dallas, Peach Tree 
 Creek, Snake Creek, Marietta (where he was 
 wounded in the right leg), Buzzard's Roost, 
 Roma, Atlanta, Love joy Station, Jonesboro, 
 Spring Hill, Franklin, Nashville and Selma. 
 The war ended, he received an honorable dis- 
 charge from his regiment. May 5, 1865, and 
 returned at once to his father's home in Ponto- 
 toc, where he took up work in the saw mill. 
 Until the fall of 1868 he remained in that town. 
 Meanwhile a brother, Benjamin, had crossed the 
 plams in 1853 and established a home in Cali- 
 fornia, and, returning on a visit in 1867, brought 
 such favorable reports concernmg the west that 
 the other members of the family decided to re- 
 move thither. 
 
 Ten miles south of Merced, Mr. I\Iull en- 
 tered from the government one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land, which he cleared and im- 
 proved and devoted to raising stock and grain. 
 In the fall of 1877 he became interested in the 
 business of boring wells and this he followed 
 until about 1896, meanwhile doing woik of that 
 kind in Merced, Stanislaus, Santa Barbara, Los 
 Angeles, Kern, Tulare and Fresno counties. At 
 one time he had five machines for well-boring 
 in active use. All of his own tools he con- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 755 
 
 structed himself, for he possesses mechanical 
 ability of a high order. Some of the wells that 
 he bored reached to a depth of more than one 
 thousand feet, while others were only a few 
 hundred feet deep. In December, 1888, he 
 came to Tulare county and the following year 
 bouglit an eighty-acre farm situated three 
 and one-half miles northwest of Tulare. Until 
 1896 he continued to make his home in the city 
 of Tulare, but at that time he retired from the 
 well-boring business and settled upon his farm, 
 where he engages in the dairy- business, also has 
 eighteen acres in an orchard of peaches and 
 prunes, and has sixty acres under alfalfa. 
 
 The family of Mr. Mull consists of his wife 
 and daughter Carle. The former, who bore the 
 maiden name of Kate Stiles, was born in Iowa, 
 but at the time of her marriage was a resident 
 of Modesto, Cal. In religious connections she 
 is identified with the Baptist Church and Mr. 
 Mull, though not a member, is in sympathy with 
 the work of that denomination and contributes 
 to its work. In fraternal relations he is a Knight 
 of Pythias, and politically adheres to Democratic 
 principles. A man of enterprise, his progressive 
 spirit brings him to the front in all movements 
 calculated to advance the agricultural interests 
 of the community. It is a source of considerable 
 pride to him that he and his brother-in-law, 
 Frank Stiles, own an irrigating plant declared 
 by competent judges to be the iinest of its kind 
 in the San Joaquin valley. An abundance of 
 water to accommodate himself and brother-in- 
 law, as well as two neighbors, can be secured 
 from a reservoir covering one-half acre, and into 
 this reservoir the water is pumped from a well 
 four hundred and thirty feet deep, whose pump 
 is operated by a five-horse-power electric motor 
 with a capacity of five hundred gallons per min- 
 ute. In the building of the water plant every 
 precaution was observed in order to secure the 
 best possible results, and the success which has 
 met the efforts of the two men has not only given 
 them a pumping apparatus surpassed by none, 
 but also has enhanced the value of their farms 
 in a notable degree. 
 
 THOMAS HAYES. The founder of the 
 Hayes family in America was Timothy Hayes, 
 a native of Ireland, who after the death of his 
 father accompanied the widowed mother to the 
 United States, landing in New Orleans and 
 from there soon going to New \ ork. At Rosen- 
 dale on the Hudson he opened the first cement 
 mines in the United States. When these were 
 sold he mewed to Pennsylvania and bought large 
 tracts of land near Honesdale, Wayne county, 
 where in addition to general farm pursuits he 
 built a saw mill and engaged in the manufac- 
 
 ture of lumber. During 1870 he came to Cali- 
 fornia and bought a farm near Livermore, Ala- 
 meda county, eventually moving into town, 
 where he died in 1902, at ninety-five years of 
 age. His three brothers, Thomas, Michael and 
 John, came to California and attained eminence 
 in public affairs. The first-named. Col. Thomas 
 Hayes, who was a pioneer of 1848, became an 
 historical character in San Francisco, where in 
 business and politics his influence was great. 
 Michael, also a resident of San Francisco, served 
 several terms in the state senate; and John was 
 a member of the state legislature from San 
 Francisco several terms. All of the brothers are 
 now deceased. 
 
 The marriage of Timothy Hayes united him 
 with Julia Carey, who was born at Rosendale 
 on the Hudson and died at Livermore in 1901. 
 They were the parents of fourteen children, arid 
 it is worthy of note that all but two of this large 
 family still survive. The eldest son and second 
 child, Thomas, was born at Honesdale, Wayne 
 county, Pa., March 2, 1852, and passed the 
 years of boyhood on the home farm, receiving 
 excellent advantages in the grammar and high 
 schools, Cochecton Academy and Waymart Col- 
 lege, from which latter he was graduated in 
 1869. Immediately after graduation he came 
 to California and began to raise stock and farm 
 products near Pleasanton, in partnership with 
 Joseph Black. The ensuing years were fruitful 
 of large successes and brought him ample means 
 and local prominence. In 1884 he removed to 
 Visalia and in the Redwood mountains of this 
 county built the Hayes lumber mills, with a daily 
 capacity of fifty thousand feet. By means of his 
 own teams the lumber was hauled to his yards 
 in Visalia, from which point it was shipped all 
 through the country. Unfortunately the depres- 
 sion of 1889-90 found him unprepared for such 
 a crisis. With many unsettled accounts on his 
 books, he found his debtors were in no position 
 to pav, while creditors demanded their dues. To 
 add to his troubles lumber depreciated so that, 
 at a price of $8 and $10 per thousand, there was 
 no sale whatever for it. Under these circum- 
 stances he was forced to relinquish his business 
 at a heavy loss and once more to make a start 
 in the business world. After a few years as a 
 real estate agent at Visalia, in the fall of 1896 
 he came to Tulare, where he has since followed 
 the building business. While still a youth he 
 learned the carpenter's trade and qualified him- 
 self for thorough and accurate work along 
 building lines. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Hayes occurred 
 in San Francisco in 1875 and united him with 
 Miss Alice Nougues, who was born in Maryland 
 and died at Visalia in 1888. The only child of 
 this union, Shirley, was the recipient of superior 
 
t5Q 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 educational advantages and is now vice-principal 
 of the \A'infield Scott school in San Francisco. 
 A iew years after the death of his first wife Mr. 
 Hayes married Miss Carrie Kelsey, who was 
 born in Oakland, but spent her early life in Vis- 
 alia. Two children, Leslie and Leland, bless this 
 union. Politically Mr. Hayes is a Republican. 
 Concerning early times in California he is well 
 posted, not only by experience, but by hearing 
 pioneer stories from his uncles. Among his ex- 
 periences, of which he entertains a vivid recol- 
 lection, was that of being at the hotel in Tracy 
 when Terry was shot and sitting next to him at 
 dinner just before the catastrophe. 
 
 CLARENCE O. MILLER. In Colony Cen- 
 ter are located some of the most energetic and 
 thriving young business men of Merced county ; 
 men who have been successful in their under- 
 takings, and whose efforts through life thus far, 
 by their own perseverance and activity, have 
 borne ample recompense; prominent among this 
 number is Clarence O. Miller, proprietor of a 
 hardware business and founder of C. O. Miller's 
 ten-acre addition to the town in which he re- 
 sides. A son of the late F. P. Miller, he was 
 born, June 30, 1873, in Shirland, Winnebago 
 county. 111. His paternal grandfather, Alexan- 
 der Miller, was born and bred in Vermont, but 
 subsequently came west in search of cheap and 
 fertile - lands, and became a pioneer settler of 
 Winnebago county, 111., where he followed the 
 trade of a millwright and builder. He lived to 
 a good old age, dying in Shirland, 111. 
 
 A native of Shirland, III, F. P. Miller was en- 
 gaged to some extent in agricultural pursuits, 
 becoming owner of a good farm near Shirland. 
 Possessing great musical ability, however, he 
 made use of his natural talent in this science, 
 for many years being a teacher of both vocal 
 and instrumental music, making a specialty of 
 instructing bands, his services in this capacity 
 being ever in demand. He died in 1900. His 
 wife, whose maiden name was Mary Phelps, 
 was born near Rockton, Winnebago county. 111., 
 a daughter of W. A. Phelps, who removed from 
 New York, his native state, to Illinois, where he 
 followed general farming. She survived her 
 husband, and is now residing in Dos Palos, 
 Merced county, where she owns a fine ranch of 
 forty acres. 
 
 The oldest of a family of four children, Clar- 
 ence O. Miller was brought up on the home 
 farm, receiving the rudiments of his education 
 in the district schools. In 1892 he was gradu- 
 ated from the Rockford Business College, after 
 which he was employed as a farmer for two 
 years. Coming to California in 1894, Mr. Miller 
 located in the Dos Palos Colony, buying twenty 
 
 acres of land, which he devoted to the raising of 
 alfalfa and fruit, setting out a good orchard. 
 Ten acres of his ranch he has since laid out as 
 an addition to Colony Center, platting it, and 
 selling it in lots. Subsequently, wishing to be- 
 come proficient as a dairyman, Mr. Miller en- 
 tered the dairy school of the University of Cali- 
 fornia, from which he was graduated, as a mem- 
 ber of the first class to take a full course in that 
 department, in 1901. Thus equipped, he served 
 as manager of the Dos Palos Creamery from 
 1901 until 1903, and was very successful, win- 
 ning such a wide reputation as an expert cream- 
 ery man that he is often called upon to decide 
 tests, and to settle questions connected with the 
 dairy business. Embarking in a mercantile 
 career in 1903, Mr. Miller erected a building and 
 opened the first hardware store in Colony Cen- 
 ter, where he has a rapidly growing trade. He 
 is also an expert plumber, and does much skill- 
 ful plumbing in the vicinity, and is agent for 
 the Star Windmills and the Simplex Separator, 
 and is now serving as secretary for the local tele- 
 phone company. 
 
 In Sac City, Iowa, Mr. Miller married Nevada 
 Irene Booth, who was born in Missouri. Polit- 
 ically Mr. Miller is a steadfast adherent of the 
 Republican party. Fraternally he belongs to the 
 Modern Woodmen of America, to the Knights 
 of Maccabees and to the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows, being one of the first in Colony 
 Center to join this organization. He is one of 
 the leading members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, of which he is a trustee, and of which 
 he has been steward. 
 
 DANIEL ABBOTT. The substantial and 
 well-to-do farmers of Tulare county have no 
 better representative than Daniel Abbott, who 
 occupies a good position among the industrious, 
 thrifty and business-like agriculturists who are 
 so ably conducting the farming interests of this 
 part of the state. He is a self-made man in every 
 sense implied by the term, and though in his long 
 career he has met with reverses and losses, he 
 has pursued the even tenor of his way, and by his 
 indomitable perseverance and patient toil has 
 overcome all obstacles. Beginning life poor in 
 pocket, he has acquired considerable property, and 
 has now a clear title to a three thousand acre 
 ranch lying four miles south of Portersville. A 
 son of Joshua Abbott, he was born January 3, 
 1836, in Washington county, Ark., where he 
 spent the first four years of his life. 
 
 Born in Pennsylvania in 1800, Joshua Abbott 
 there grew to manhood. Ambitious and venture- 
 some, he went to Arkansas, hoping in a newer 
 country to secure greater financial advantages and 
 opportunities. Locating in Washington countv, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 759 
 
 he remained there until 1840, when he settled in 
 Benton county as a farmer. In 1857 he made 
 another move, coming with ox teams and wagons 
 to California, bringing with him his family. He 
 knew something of the country roundabout, as 
 in 1850 he visited Calaveras county, where he 
 worked as a miner for awhile, but without suffi- 
 cient financial encouragement to stay. Locating 
 in Calaveras county, he lived there four years, 
 but was not quite satisfied with his prospects. In 
 1861, therefore, he came to Tulare county, set- 
 tling about four miles southwest of Portersville, 
 on the Tule river, where he took up land, from 
 which he intended to improve a ranch. Being 
 washed out by the memorable floods of the spring 
 of 1862, he removed to Princeton, Mariposa coun- 
 ts', where he was a wood contractor for a year 
 or more. Settling in Stanislaus county, near 
 Melton, in the fall of 1863, he bought land, and 
 was there engaged in general farming and stock- 
 raising until after the death of his wife, in 1876. 
 He subsequently spent the remainder of his life 
 with one of his daughters, in Calaveras county, 
 dying there at the venerable age of eighty-six 
 years. He was a man of strong convictions, and 
 a sound Democrat in politics. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Elizabeth Ann Matthews, was 
 born in Tennessee, and died in Stanislaus county, 
 Cal. 
 
 The third child in a family consisting of two 
 sons and three daughters, IDaniel Abbott was 
 brought up in Benton county, Ark., where he re- 
 ceived but limited educational advantages, pursu- 
 ing his studies in the log schoolhouse during the 
 brief school term's. Crossing the plains to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1857, he had many narrow escapes from 
 the Indians while enroute. The savages stole some 
 of the stock belonging to the company, and Mr. 
 Abbott, with six of his companions, followed 
 the marauders from daylight until ten o'clock. 
 They met a large band of the Indians, who fired 
 at their followers, wounding Mr. Abbott in the hip 
 joint, and hitting one of his companions. Mr. Ab- 
 bott, though badly wounded, was gritty, and while 
 he laid upon the ground fired at the Indians, who 
 fled for the time being. Mr. Abbott secured a 
 horse, and was prbceeding on horseback toward 
 the wagon train when he came across his 
 wounded comrade, whom he took on behind. 
 Then, being again surrounded, his companion 
 jumped over a bluff and escaped, but Mr. Abbott 
 had to stand and fight the savages, who tried 
 many times to kill him, but he succeeded in 
 reaching camp after an all-night tramp to the 
 train, which was only seven miles away. On 
 reaching the party he was put into one of the 
 wagons, and during the remainder of the journey 
 suffered excruciating pain from his wound, and 
 has since been a cripple. For two years after- 
 ward he was scarcely able to get around. 
 
 In 1866 Mr. Abbott embarked in sheep rais- 
 ing on his own account, having flocks in both 
 Stanislaus and Calaveras counties, about six 
 thousand head in all, and is still interested to some 
 extent in this line of industry. He used to take 
 his herds to the Alpine ranges during the sum- 
 mer seasons, bringing them back in the winter 
 time. In 1874 Mr. Abbott settled in Tulare 
 county, near Portersville, and in 1875 bought one 
 hundred and sixty acres of the land included in 
 his present home ranch. During the land grab 
 that followed he acquired title to other tracts 
 and has now three thousand acres all in one 
 body, and all under good cultivation. During his 
 thirty years' residence in this locality he has 
 seen Portersville grow from a small hamlet into 
 a flourishing town, and in its upbuilding has 
 taken an active part. In 1902 Mr. Abbott moved* 
 to Portersville, where he has a beautiful resi- 
 dence, in order that his children might have bet- 
 ter educational advantages than they could in the 
 country, but after they are all through school 
 he intends to return to his ranch, which he still 
 manages. 
 
 In Tulare county, on the Tule river, Mr; Ab- 
 bott married Mrs. Frances Elizabeth (Fine) 
 Bursey, who was born in Arkansas, and crossed 
 the plains to this state in 1857, ^he same year 
 that he did, although they did not meet until 
 after their arrival. Of the union of Mr, and 
 Mrs. Abbott nine children have been born, 
 namely: Martha Ann, deceased; Charles, de- 
 ceased; Mrs. Louise Mahaffey, of Portersville; 
 Daniel, Jr., deceased; Arlesle, at home; Lana; 
 Winifred and Minnie, twins; and Emma. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Abbott have also the care of two grand- 
 children. Earl and Claudia Billingsley,'to_ whom 
 they are giving the same kind and loving at- 
 tention that they bestowed upon their own little 
 ones. Mr. Abbott is much interested in the wel- 
 fare of town and county, and is a strong support- 
 er of the principles of the Democratic party. 
 
 HENRY H. MINER. As a prominent citi- 
 zen and well-known real estate dealer of Le 
 Grand, Merced county, Henry H. Miner's posi- 
 tion is one of consequence in his community, and 
 through him many important deals have been 
 satisfactorily made. He is a man of noble in- 
 stincts, congenial, friendly, methodical in regard 
 to business details and he always aims to' please 
 those with whom he has business dealings. Dur- 
 ing the two years in which he has followed this 
 line of work he has made a creditable showing, 
 especially during 1904, for in the first five months 
 of that year he effected the sale of forty-five 
 thousand acres of land. He resides on his ranch 
 four miles east of Le Grand, where he owns 
 thirty-eight hundred acres of the best land of 
 
760 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the locality and where he has gained recogni- 
 tion as a successful stock and grain raiser. 
 
 Mr. Miner was born in Dent county, Mo., Oc- 
 tober 19, 1859, the eldest of three sons born to 
 jQrdan and Emeline (Parker) Miner, both 
 of whom were also natives of Missouri, and de- 
 scendants of prominent old southern families. 
 The father followed farming as a vocation in 
 Missouri until 1854, crossing that year over- 
 land to California behind ox teams. He followed 
 mining four years near Placerville, afterward 
 returning to Missouri by way of Panama and 
 New York. He is now a resident of Madera 
 county, Cal., where his youngest son, David E., 
 resides. His second son, Benjamin F., resides 
 in Madera. 
 
 July 17, 1888, Henry H. Miner arrived on 
 California soil and in Shasta county he engaged 
 in mining for eighteen months, later spending 
 one year on a ranch in Butte county. About this 
 time he entered the employ of the Mutual Life 
 Insurance Company with which he was identi- 
 fied until 1892. During that year he was joined 
 in marriage with Mrs. Mary Phenegar, widow 
 of George Robert Phenegar, whose biography 
 also appears in this history. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Miner have one son, HoUis Homer Miner, aged 
 eight years. After marriage Mr. Miner engaged 
 successfully in the drug business in Merced for 
 one year, when he took up farming, to which he 
 has since devoted his time, in addition to carry- 
 ing on the real estate business in Le Grand, 
 where he is regarded as an influential citizen. 
 
 DRAPER FOWLER. For several genera- 
 tions the Fowler family has been identified with 
 the building business. During his active busi- 
 ness career Draper Fowler was an architect and 
 superintendent of construction, while his father 
 and paternal grandfather were both contractors 
 and builders in county Kent, England. The for- 
 mer, John Fowler, spent his last days in the home 
 of his son Draper, at Fresno, dying here at the 
 age -of eighty-four years. The mother, Mary M. 
 Goldfinch, a native of Kent, was the daughter 
 of a miller who came to America and settled in 
 the south. In the parental family of five children, 
 three daughters and one son are now living, and 
 of these only two are in America, Maria and 
 Draper. The former is the widow of William 
 R. King, formerly an architect, and resides at 
 Seattle, Wash. The third among the children was 
 Draper, whose birth occurred in Kent county 
 August 9, 1843. He was reared in his native 
 town of Ashford and received an excellent edu- 
 cation in Borrow Hill Academy and the Latin 
 grammar school. Under the careful supervision 
 of his father he early acquired a thorough knowl- 
 edge of contracting and building, and when only 
 
 nineteen was placed in charge of the building of 
 a large hotel. Having an ambition to become an 
 architect he took up the study of the occupation 
 at Croydon, across the line in Surrey county, and 
 later completed his studies at Maidstone, Kent 
 county, after which he took up practical work as 
 an architect in his native village. In addition, 
 with a partner, he established a yard for the sale 
 of lumber, a kiln for the manufacture of brick 
 and a ntill for the cutting and sawing of timber, 
 building up by degrees one of the finest plants of 
 its kind in Kent county. 
 
 On disposing of his business interests in Eng- 
 land, Mr. Fowler, in 1884, went by steamer from 
 London to Auckland, New Zealand, and there 
 for four years engaged in the occupation of an 
 architect as a partner of A. C. Wilkinson, mean- 
 while erecting and designing many of the most 
 substantial business blocks and private residences 
 in the city. In 1888 he came to the Pacific coast 
 and after arriving in San Francisco learned of 
 the climate and possibilities of Fresno, whereupon 
 he removed to Fresno, and with his New Zealand 
 partner opened an architect's office, under the title 
 of Fowler & Wilkinson. The partnership was 
 dissolved in 1897, but Mr. Fowler did not retire 
 from business until 1899. Meantime, in 1889, 
 he had purchased twenty acres on East avenue in 
 the Central colony and a few years later bought 
 another twenty, making a total of forty acres, 
 comprising lots 12 and 13. At first he made a spe- 
 cialty of raisins, but later decided that a variety 
 of fruits was more profitable, and now has twenty 
 acres in a vineyard and raisins, and the other 
 twenty in apricots, peaches and other fruits, hav- 
 ing altogether about twenty different varieties 
 of fruit on the place. Before retiring from the 
 work of an architect he designed a number of 
 business blocks in Fresno and Sanger, as well as 
 many fine residences, and by the excellence of his 
 plans won merited praise. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Fowler took place in Ad- 
 dington, Surrey, England, in July, 1867, and 
 united him with Miss M. J. Brabiner, who was 
 born in Yorkshire, December 24, 1841. They 
 are the parents of four daughters living, namely : 
 Mrs. Louisa Marshall, who makes her home in 
 New Zealand ; Mrs. Edith M. Otto ; Mrs._ Flora 
 Durrant, of Fresno county; and Mrs. Daisy M. 
 Qiamberlain, of Zion City, 111. In religious be- 
 lief Mr. Fowler is a member of the Christian 
 Catholic Church and an upholder of its doctrines. 
 Since becoming a citizen of the United States he 
 has given his support to the principles of the Re- 
 publican party. When the original Raisin Grow- 
 ers' Association was established on the co-opera- 
 tive plan he became associated with it and later 
 took a part in organizing the society into which 
 the former was merged. Among the people of 
 Fresno he is held in the highest esteem and has 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 761 
 
 a host of warm personal friends in the commun- 
 ity where for sixteen years or more he has been 
 a resident. 
 
 CAPT. EGBERT H. TUCKER. In Fresno 
 county, Cal., there is no more worthy gentleman 
 than Capt. Egbert H. Tucker, who performs 
 well his duties as justice of the peace. To him 
 belongs the distinction of being one of the pro- 
 moters and founders of the city of Selma, Cal., 
 his home, which was platted in 1880, and is now 
 the second city in size in Fresno county. As 
 a citizen whose influence and worth early won 
 recognition. Captain Tucker for years has made 
 an efficient public servant, and it may be said of 
 him that he has carried into public life the same 
 indomitable will, honesty and industry that have 
 characterized him in private life, and as a mem- 
 ber of the general assembly he made a record 
 that few have equaled. He ,was elected to this 
 office in 1888, on the Democratic ticket, and 
 was immediately appointed upon a number of 
 important committees, among them were the Ir- 
 rigation committee, of which he was chosen 
 chairman, the committee on Indian affairs, the 
 Judiciary committee, and others of minor im- 
 portance. During his term of service he was 
 one of the hardest workers in the assembly, and 
 thirteen bills became laws; of these some were 
 created and championed by Captain Tucker, and 
 it was due largely to his influence that their 
 passage was secured. Among the latter was 
 a bill for the improvement of the Wright Irri- 
 gation law, and it is worthy of mention that 
 upon the subject of irrigation. Captain Tucker 
 is one of the best informed men of his locality, 
 having made a study of the work for years. 
 
 A native of Livingston county, Ky., where he 
 was born March 9, 1838, Captain Tucker is the 
 second child in a family of five children, three 
 sons and two daughters ; his parents, Martin and 
 Matilda (Owens) Tucker, were both Kentuck- 
 ians, but the paternal grandfather, Lambert 
 Tucker, was born in Virginia. Farm pursuits 
 occupied the attention of Martin Tucker dur- 
 ing his residence in his native state, and also in 
 Iowa, whither he removed in 1840, locating in 
 the vicinity of Mount Pleasant. His subsequent 
 removal to Fort Des Moines in 1843 was of ma- 
 terial benefit to himself and family, and there he 
 conducted a hotel for a number of years. Dis- 
 psing of his interests in 1852, he came to Cal- 
 ifornia, and the balance of his life was spent in 
 mining at Sutter creek in Amador county. He 
 died about 1868 at the age of seventy years. 
 There also the mother of Captain Tucker passed 
 the closing years of her life. 
 
 The recipient of .a good education, acquired 
 in^ the common schools of Iowa and of Cal- 
 
 ifornia, Captain Tucker when of sufficient age 
 joined his father in mining operations, and was 
 so engaged until 1858. About that time he went 
 to Washington, where one year later he was 
 elected sheriff of Pierce county. While there he 
 also served in 1861 and '62 as deputy United 
 States marshal. At the request of Colonel Jus- 
 tin Steinberg, an old friend of his father's, 
 Captain Tucker resigned the office of sheriff, 
 and assisted the colonel to recruit the First 
 Washington United States Volunteer Infantry, 
 and was elected captain of Company K. He 
 continued in command until the close of the 
 Civil war, being honorably discharged from 
 service April 9, 1865. Being appointed quarter- 
 master's agent at Fort Boise, Idaho, the year fol- 
 lowing, by Major T. J. Eckerson, he filled this 
 position with credit until June, 1867. He partici- 
 pated in the various engagements with Indians 
 that afterward occurred in California, Oregon 
 and Idaho territory, and upon the termination of 
 these wars returned to his home at Sutter Creek. 
 In 1874 he received the appointment of United 
 States mail carrier in Fresno county, and pro- 
 ceeding to Kingsburg, he assumed the duties of 
 that position, and his interests have been identi- 
 fied with those of this section of the state ever 
 since. 
 
 Aside from his personal affairs, the captain 
 has been largely instrumental in the develop- 
 ment of Fresno county. In company with J. E. 
 Whitson, George B. Otis, and Monroe Snyder, 
 he assisted in laying out the town of Selma in 
 1880, and also aided in developing the southern 
 part of Fresno county. Neither capital nor labor 
 were spared in building irrigation canals, so 
 essential to this section. He was a member and 
 director of the Centerville & Kingsburg Canal 
 Company, arfd president of the Fowler Switch 
 Canal Company for a number of years, and his 
 connection with these companies, in addition to 
 his being a member of the state irrigation com- 
 mittee, placed him in a position to render aWe 
 assistance in the development of this section. 
 By his influence extensive irrigation projects 
 were put through, and the improvements then 
 made have been of untold benefit to the property 
 owners. It was in 1882 that Mr. Tucker first 
 began dealing in real estate and became inter- 
 ested in irrigation, and he made a careful study 
 of this business as the head of the firm of 
 Tucker, Sharp & Co. He served as postmaster 
 of Selma during Cleveland's administration, and 
 in 1885 was also elected justice of the peace, an 
 office he still holds and fills in an exemplary 
 manner. A Democrat in his political prefer- 
 ences, and an active politician, he has also filled 
 a number of minor offices, such as school di- 
 rector, city marshal, etc., and in every way pos- 
 sible has shown his fidelity to this party. By his 
 
762 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 marriage in Fresno, he was united with Miss 
 Martha E. Fanning, a native of Santa Barbara, 
 Cal., and their union is blessed with one son. 
 Clay H. The latter has been a student in the 
 scientific department of the Stanford University 
 for the past three years, and it is his intention 
 to enter the law department of the same insti- 
 tution. The family unite in worshiping at the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, of which they are 
 devout and consistent members, Captain Tucker 
 beinp; a member of the board of trustees. 
 
 ROBERT H. GALLAGHER. Among the 
 leading business men of Sanger, Fresno county, 
 who have demonstrated their ability to make a 
 success of life financially as well as otherwise, a 
 striking example is found in Robert H. Gallagher, 
 a liveryman of Sanger. Since his location in 
 Fresno county in 1889 he has been identified with 
 several of the enterprising and progressive con- 
 cerns doing business in this section, among them 
 the Sanger Lumber Company, being in their em- 
 ploy for three years prior to engaging in the liv- 
 ery business. In Gold Hill, Nev., he was born, 
 December 31, 1867, and is a son of the late Thom- 
 as Gallagher, of San Francisco. 
 
 The latter, a native of Ireland, spent his early 
 life on the sea, and upon one of his voyages he 
 sailed around Cape Horn, going as far north as 
 San Francisco. In 1851, during the gold excite- 
 ment, like others he went to seek his fortune in 
 the mines, and for about eight years followed 
 mining pursuits m and about Grass Valley, Vir- 
 ginia City and later in Nevada City. Although 
 quite successful in his mining operations, in the 
 early '60s he discontinued work in the mines and 
 took up the somewhat hazardous, but profitable 
 business of freighting. Continuing in this busi- 
 ness until 1882, he acquired considerable capital, 
 which he invested in land in Solano county the 
 following year and upon this he followed farming 
 until 1899. Retiring from business, he took up 
 his residence in San Francisco, where he died in 
 October, 1904, at the advanced age of eighty- 
 seven years. 
 
 The boyhood days of R. H. Gallagher were 
 spent in Nevada. He was fifteen years old when 
 his father purchased land in Solano county, whith- 
 er the family removed, and there he followed 
 ranching pursuits until 1889, when he located in 
 Fresno county. It was several years later that 
 Mr. Gallagher went into the livery business and 
 he has followed that line of work ever since. By 
 his marriage he was united with Minnie M. 
 Hanke, a daughter of the late H. H. Hanke, who 
 in the early days of the history of Fresno coun- 
 ty settled here and became prominent as a ranch- 
 er. Three children bless the home of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Gallagher: Mabel, Grace and Arthur. A 
 
 faithful adherent to the Republican party, Mr. 
 Gallagher can hardly be called an active poli- 
 tician, being too deeply engrossed in business pur- 
 suits. Fraternally he affiliates with the Knights 
 of Pythias and Woodmen of the World. 
 
 The Sanger, Millwood and Converse Stage 
 Line, in which Mr. Gallagher owns a half in- 
 terest, in connection with the Southern Pacific 
 Railway Company, makes regular trips to and 
 from Millwood, King's River Canyon and to the 
 General Grant National Park. From Sanger to 
 Millwood the distance is forty-five miles over an 
 interesting route. The first six to eight miles 
 traverses the level San Joaquin valley, with its or- 
 chards, vineyards and grain fields, and then begins 
 the ascent to the mountains, the traveler passing 
 many interesting points, among them the famous 
 Sontag point. Squaw village and McKenzie's mill. 
 After the summit is reached a beautiful forest 
 ride completes the journey to Millwood. From 
 this point by way of Meadow Lake a trip can be 
 taken to the Grant National Park and the Big 
 Tree Groves, which contain one hundred and 
 twenty-five mammoth trees, including the Gen- 
 eral Grant, one hundred and six feet in circum- 
 ference at the base, the Garfield, Cleveland, Lin- 
 coln, Washington, Dead Monarch, the Happy 
 Family and many other noted specimens. Here 
 also may be seen the Big Tree stump from which 
 the Centennial exhibit was taken. 
 
 On the return trip from Millwood the beauti- 
 ful Sequoia lake, four miles distant, may be visited 
 and in the Converse basin is to be seen one of the 
 largest sawmills in the west, which handles tim- 
 ber unrivaled in size anywhere in the world. A 
 logging railroad extends back seven miles into 
 the forest, which transports the logs to the mills, 
 and from this point the lumber is shipped to San- 
 ger in a V-shaped flume, fifty miles long. 
 
 GEORGE A. DODDS. In Piano, Tulare 
 county, is located the ranch of George A. Dodds, 
 'where he is engaged in the raising of fruit, giv- 
 ing especial attention to the cultivation of apples, 
 the trees having been brought around the Horn 
 forty-five years ago. Mr. Dodds is a native of 
 Wabash county. 111., where he was born February 
 25, 1842, a son of Josiah Dodds, of Tennessee, 
 a farmer in that location and later a merchant 
 and farmer in Wabash county and Olney, 111., 
 where he located. He died there in 1846. His 
 wife, formerly Cynthia Winters Skeggs, of Eng- 
 land, died in 1843. They were the parents of 
 two sons and two daughters, of whom George A. 
 is the only one living. 
 
 George A. Dodds was reared by an uncle, S. Z. 
 Dodds, of Richland county. 111., who was killed 
 at Qiattanooga during the Civil war. He at- 
 tended the common schools in pursuit of an edu- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 765 
 
 cation, and at the same time received the prac- 
 tical training which later added to his ability to 
 make a success. In 1854 he ran away from his 
 uncle's home, going to Crawford county, where 
 he found employment on various farms at $4 
 per month. After one year of this life he went 
 to live with another uncle, Dr. Adams, also of 
 Richland county, and for a year and a half 
 studied medicine under his instruction. Upon 
 the breaking out of the Civil war he enlisted in 
 Company L, First Regiment Missouri Cavalry, 
 August I, 1862, being mustered in at St. Louis. 
 His regiment was active in the suppression of 
 guerrilla bands, while they also took part in vari- 
 ous battles, among them being Pea Ridge, where 
 he received a slight saber cut on his right wrist. 
 In September, 1864, at Jefferson Barracks, he 
 was honorably discharged, when he returned 
 to Illinois, and engaged in farming in the vicinity 
 of Olney. In 1871 he located near Quincy, Mo., 
 where he farmed and raised stock for two years. 
 He then removed to Butler county, Kans., and 
 began farming during the grasshopper season. 
 He continued to make his home in that state until 
 1882, when he came to California and settled 
 near Visalia, Tulare county. He located on a 
 timber ranch on Deer creek until 1893, principally 
 occupied in stock raising, but in that year re- 
 moved to his present place in Piano, consisting 
 at that time of twenty-one acres, eleven of which 
 were in fruit and vines. Afterward he disposed 
 of seven acres and at a later date bought ten 
 acres more, the tract being given over to the cul- 
 tivation of oranges. 
 
 In Richland county. 111., April 18, 1867, Mr. 
 Dodds was united in marriage with Lavina 
 Smith, of that place, and they have had one 
 daughter, Emma, who is now deceased. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Dodds is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party, and is active in 
 the councils of the party. 
 
 EZRA LATHROP. A record of the life of 
 Ezra Lathrop is in many respects a' record of 
 the progress and development of Tulare, for he 
 has long been inseparably associated with many 
 of its leading and most substantial enterprises. 
 Since 1873 Tulare county has been his home and 
 he dates his residence in California from the 
 year 1866, having come to the state after a brief 
 sojourn in Nevada subsequent to crossing the 
 plains from his old Iowa home. The family of 
 which he is a member traces its lineage to Eng- 
 land and was established in York state during 
 an early period of our nation's history. His 
 grandfather, William, and father, Perrin Lath- 
 rop, were natives of New York, but settled in 
 Susquehanna county, Pa., where the former re- 
 
 mained until death. The latter, following the 
 tide of emigration as it drifted toward the Mis- 
 sissippi valley, became a pioneer of Dubuque 
 county, Iowa, settling at Cascade, but later re- 
 moving to the big woods region of Blackhawk 
 county, where he improved a farm near Cedar 
 Falls at Center Point. Eventually he identified 
 himself with the agricultural interests of Louisa 
 county, Iowa, but upon retiring from farm la- 
 bors he returned to Blackhawk county to spend 
 the closing days of life. By his marriage to 
 Clementine Dowdney, who was born in the east 
 and died near Center Point, Iowa, he had two 
 sons and a daughter, namely: Ezra, of Tulare, 
 Cal. ; Gilead P., who died while serving in the 
 Eighth Iowa Infantry during the Civil war; 
 and Mrs. Mary Ellen Brown, who resides north 
 of Visalia, Tulare county. 
 
 The early years of Ezra Lathrop's Hfe were 
 passed at Rush, near Montrose, Susquehanna 
 county, Pa., where he was born in 1839, and 
 where he was primarily educated in district 
 schools. When ten years of age he accompanied 
 the family to Iowa and after the death of his 
 • mother six years later he started out to make 
 his own way in the world, at first earning a live- 
 lihood as a" farm hand. During 1864 he started 
 across the plains with a party of emigrants seek- 
 ing a home in the western country. Indians were 
 very troublesome at that time, having taken ad- 
 vantage of the war between north and south to 
 commit depredations and steal from travelers. 
 However, this cavalcade proceeded unmolested 
 up the Platte and by way of Salt Lake City into 
 Nevada, where Mr. Lathrop took up farm pur- 
 suits on the East Walker river. In 1865 he went 
 to Dayton and worked at teaming. The follovv- 
 ing year he crossed the mountains to California 
 and settled near Suisun, where he engaged in 
 farming, but three years later removed to Monte- 
 zuma Hills, and from there in 1873 came to 
 Tulare. On a lot he then bought he built the 
 residence which continues to be. his home. At 
 first he was employed in driving six-horse teams 
 and hauling freight into the mountains. Mean- 
 while, in 1874, he homesteaded eighty acres four 
 miles north of Tulare, which, with other lands, 
 he began to cultivate in 1880, and by the pur- 
 chase of adjoining property acquired the title to 
 four hundred and thirty acres. At one time he 
 was a director in the Rocky Ford Irrigation 
 Ditch Company, and he also formerly owned the 
 Round Valley ranch of thirty-eight hundred 
 acres. At this writing his landed possessions m- 
 clude four hundred and forty acres in one body, 
 all under ditch, and utilized for grain and alfalfa 
 raising, also for the pasturage of stock ; five hun- 
 dred and sixty acres eight miles south of Tulare ; 
 and eighty acres southeast. 
 
 39 
 
7613 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Perhaps no citizen of Tulare has been more 
 intimately connected with the lumber industry 
 at this point than has Mr. Lathrop, who em- 
 barked in the business in 1882. The most vio- 
 lent opposition only developed in him a deter- 
 mined persistence. After eighteen months, dur- 
 ing which time he had built up a valuable trade, 
 the company that had opposed him so strenu- 
 ously sold out to Moore & Smith, a concern 
 with large financial resources. Unable to cope 
 with a firm of such resources, Mr. Lathrop in 
 1884 sold out to the Puget Sound Lumber Com- 
 pany, for whom he continued as agent. In 1886 
 the two firms consolidated as the San Joaquin 
 Lumber Company and he continued as agent for 
 five years. On the incorporation of the com- 
 pany he was chosen manager and continued as 
 such until November, 1898, when the profits were 
 divided among stockholders and the yard was 
 closed. 
 
 On the incorporation of the gas company in 
 January, 1884, Mr. Lathrop was financially in- 
 terested in the work of the concern, and since 
 May, 1885, has officiated as its president. The 
 electric light plant was built by the company in . 
 1890 and since 1894 they have discontinued the 
 manufacture and use of gas. He was chairman 
 of the liquidating committee that succeeded in 
 compromising with the bondholders of Tulare 
 Irrigation district for forty-one cents on the dol- 
 lar and by fair assessment secured the consent 
 of property owners, raising sufficient money to 
 clear up the indebtedness ; this resulted in a 
 grand jollification and bond burning. By his 
 service as school trustee and fire commissioner 
 he has aided two movements of the greatest im- 
 portance to the permanent prosperity of the 
 town, and in many other ways the value of his 
 citizenship has been felt. Especially has he been 
 helpful to the place by his wise and conservative 
 judgment in financial matters. In 1885 he as- 
 sisted in the organization of the Bank of Tulare, 
 which is the oldest institution of its kind in the 
 town and, with a capital of $100,000, transacts a 
 general banking business. Under the capable 
 oversight of Mr. Lathrop, who was the first and 
 has been the only president, the bank has estab- 
 lished a reputation for stability and strength, and 
 has been a most important factor in the welfare 
 and prosperity of the town. Though for years 
 a Democrat, the silver question and the platform 
 adopted by the Democratic party in 1896 caused 
 Mr. Lathrop to transfer his allegiance to the 
 Republican party, which he has since supported. 
 In fraternal relations he is connected with the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen, being a 
 charter member of the lodge at .Tulare. Before 
 leaving Iowa he formed the acquaintance of 
 Miss Virginia Blake, a native of Oakland, that 
 
 state, where they were married. Their married 
 life continued to be a union of mutual helpful- 
 ness until the death of Mrs. Lathrop in 1898. 
 Two daughters, twins, survive their mother, and 
 both make their home in Tulare, Martha Adeline 
 being the wife of G. W. Bauman, and Matilda 
 Eveline being the wife of W. J. Sturgeon. All 
 movements for the benefit of Tulare have a 
 stanch supporter in Mr. Lathrop, whose wise 
 counsel, sagacious judgment and progressive 
 spirit have been of the greatest assistance in the 
 permanent upbuilding and prosperity of the 
 town. 
 
 ELISHA L. CLOER. When Mr. Cloer lo- 
 cated in the vicinity of Poplar, Tulare county, 
 the land was nothing but sand moles and. sheep 
 camps. Time, with the energies of men strong 
 in the pursuit of fortune and the development of 
 a country given over to pioneer hands, has 
 brought about the changes which today greet the 
 traveler of the San Joaquin valley, — the wide 
 farming lands rich with the harvest yields, the 
 beautiful country homes, the towns, the cities, 
 and the extensive business which speaks elo- 
 quently of the prosperity of this section of the 
 state. Prominent among the farmers in the vi- 
 cinity of Poplar is Elisha L. Cloer, who was 
 born in Washington county. Ark., June 24, 1852. 
 He is a son of E. L. Qoer, a native of Alabama, 
 who settled in- Arkansas in an early day and be- 
 came a farmer and a breeder of fine horses in 
 Washington county, where his death occurred 
 in 1859. His wife, formerly Susannah Stone, 
 was born in Missouri and died in Arkansas in 
 1886. They were the parents of five sons and 
 four daughters, of whom Elisha L. Cloer was 
 the seventh in order of birth. 
 
 Reared in the place of his birth, EHsha L. 
 Cloer received his education in the common 
 school in the vicinity of his home. He then en- 
 gaged in farming on the old home place until 
 1873, when he followed the westward trend of 
 immigration and came to California. He had 
 but seventy-five cents in money upon his ar- 
 rival, and for a time made his home with an uncle 
 in Tuolumne county, where he remained for four 
 months. He then went to Stanislaus county 
 and farmed for two years, in the fall of 1875 
 going to Portersville, Tulare county, where he 
 entered the employ of the government as assist- 
 ant farmer on the Tule River Reservation. After 
 five months there he went to Stanislaus county, 
 but soon afterward located once more in Tulare 
 county, purchasing a quarter section of land lo- 
 cated two and a quarter miles northwest of Pop- 
 lar, and here he engaged in farming. In 1879 
 he removed to Kern county and located on Posey 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 76T 
 
 creek, near Delano, where he found employment 
 until 1881. He then returned to Tulare county 
 and homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres, 
 five miles southeast of Poplar, where he is now 
 located, engaged in the raising of grain, stock 
 and fine hogs. He has added to his property by 
 purchase until he now owns six hundred acres in 
 one tract, devoted to grain, also an additional 
 eighty acres, which is given over to alfalfa. 
 
 In West Plains, Mo., Mr. Cloer was united 
 in marriage with Ellen Krause, a native of that 
 state, and they became the parents of five chil- 
 dren, Thomas, Everett, Carl, Harold and Myrtle, 
 the latter deceased. Politically Mr. Qoer is a 
 stanch Republican and is active in the councils 
 of the party. For the past thirteen years he 
 has served as school clerk. 
 
 WILLIAM ISHAM BURNETT. The Bur- 
 nett family is of sotithern extraction. Hardin H. 
 Burnett, the son of a Kentuckian, was born and 
 reared in Missouri, and for a time carried on a 
 farm in Johnson county, but at the time of the 
 discovery of gold in California he joined one of 
 the early emigrant trains in 1849 and crossed 
 the plains with ox teams and wagons. Ere yet 
 success had come to him in the mines, and during 
 his first winter in the west, he died and. was 
 buried near Angel's Camp. It had been his ex- 
 pectation, if fortune favored him, to return to 
 Missouri for his wife and three sons, but his 
 death left them with little means, and not long 
 afterward the sons were orphaned by the death 
 of their mother, who was Nancy Janes, a native 
 of Missouri. The maternal grandparents were 
 William and Mary A. (Leah) Janes, the former 
 a native of Kentucky, and the latter of German 
 descent. For years William Janes engaged in 
 farming in Missouri and after his death his widow 
 brought the three orphaned grandchildren in 
 1859 across the plains to California, where she 
 still lives at San Jose, at the age of ninety-six 
 years. Of the grandsons who accompanied her 
 to the west, William I. makes his home in Tulare 
 county, John J. resides in Hollister, and M. M. is 
 a citizen of Stockton. 
 
 Near Warsaw, Benton county, Mo., William 
 Isham Burnett was bom December 26, 1845, and 
 there he received such advantages as district 
 schools afforded. When in his fourteenth year 
 he came to California, leaving the Benton county 
 home on the ist of May and arriving at San Jose 
 during the following September. The family set- 
 tled in that city, where he attended the public 
 schools and the old San Ramon College. Agri- 
 culture has been his life occupation. After work- 
 ing for others some years he bought a ranch 
 near Milpitas, Santa Clara county, but in 1874 
 removed to Tulare county, where he has since 
 
 made his home. Immediately after coming to 
 this county he purchased land on the Tule river 
 at Earlham and began to make a specialty of 
 raising grain. By gradual increase to his "first 
 purchase he acquired more than eleven hundred 
 acres of land, all of which was utilized for farm- 
 ing and stock-raising. Early ventures in the 
 sheep business did not prove profitable, and he 
 discontinued their raising. 
 
 October 4, 1871, in San Joaquin county, oc- 
 curred the marriage of Mr. Burnett and Martha 
 Carter, a native of Clark county, Mo., and a 
 daughter of William Carler, who came to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1853. Six children were born of their 
 union, namely : Arthur H., who was one of the 
 first graduates from the electrical engineering 
 course at Leland Stanford University, and who 
 now follows his occupation at Oakland; George 
 Carter, who is his father's business partner, and 
 is manager of the Tulare lumber yard; Mrs. 
 Grace Rosson, of Hanford; Charles, manager of 
 a lumber yard in Hanford ; Roy, an employe of 
 the Linder Hardware Company ; and Clarence, a 
 bookkeeper in Hanford. In order that the chil- 
 dren might have the advantage of town schools, 
 in 1884 Mr. Burnett moved the family into Tu- 
 lare, later returning to the farm. In 1900 he sold 
 the entire property and purchased his present 
 homestead four miles northeast of Tulare, where 
 he owns one hundred and twenty acres in the 
 Bishop colony tract. One-half of the acreage is 
 under alfalfa, giving him advantages for the stock 
 business. With a dairy of full-blooded Holstein 
 milch cows, and with a separator to aid in the 
 care of the milk, he is equipped for profitable 
 work in an industrj^ that is one of the most profit- 
 able in the west. All of the land is under irriga- 
 tion from the Farmers' ditch, while among the 
 improvements are a neat farm house and substan- 
 tial barns. Eight acres are in fruit, furnishing 
 a sufficient amount for family use, as well as a 
 considerable amount for the markets. In the or- 
 ganization of the Tulare Co-Operative Creamery 
 Association Mr. Burnett took an active part and 
 was elected the first treasurer, holding the office 
 until he resigned. For eight years he was a di- 
 rector of the Tule River Irrigation District. In 
 political belief he favors Democratic principles, 
 along the line of his occupation holds membership 
 in the Grange, and in religious connections is 
 identified with the Christian Church, in which his 
 first wife was a devoted member and earnest 
 worker. 
 
 The death of Mrs. Martha Burnett occurred in 
 1902, and he was again married, July 3, 1904, at 
 Tulare, his wife being Mrs. Cordelia E. (Chedes- 
 ter) Berry, a native of East Tennessee, and the 
 eldest of three children, all of whom settled in 
 Tulare county. Her father, John C. Chedester, 
 was a son of Thomas Chedester, both natives of 
 
768 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Tennessee, in which ,the family were established 
 at a very early date. In Hawkins county, Tenn., 
 John C. Chedester has long been a well-known 
 farmer and stockman, and there the greater part 
 of his life has been passed. In early manhood he 
 married Candacy Campbell, who was born in 
 North Carolina, and removed to Tennessee with 
 her father, Elijah Campbell. Afterward she 
 made her home in that state until her death in 
 1885, when somewhat advanced in years. In 
 1890 Miss Chedester came to California and at 
 Tulare was married to Alonzo Berry, a native 
 of this state, and the owner of a farm in the Elk 
 Bayou district, fourteen miles southwest of 
 Tulare. During the years of their married life 
 Mr. and Mrs. Berry resided on that farm, and 
 there his death occurred in December, 1900, leav- 
 ing his widow with two children, Vernon and 
 Lois Berry. In her possession now is one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres where she formerly made 
 her home. For years she has been a member of 
 the Baptist Church and a contributor to its main- 
 tenance, while socially she unites with Mr. Bur- 
 nett in offering the hospitality of their country 
 home to their many friends throughout this 
 county. 
 
 HENRY KLEHN. Numbered among the 
 more prominent and progressive agriculturists 
 of Stanislaus county and one of the oldest and 
 best posted settlers is Henry Klehn, who owns 
 and occupies a large and well-improved ranch, 
 lying about one mile north of Newman. As a 
 general farmer and stock-raiser he has fine suc- 
 cess, the productions of his land bring him in 
 handsome profits. A self-made man in every 
 sense implied by the term, he is everywhere re- 
 spected, and his honesty and straightforward 
 business methods have gained for him the con- 
 fidence of the community in which he resides. 
 He was born August 20, 1844, in Holstein, Ger- 
 many, where his parents, Hans and Margaret 
 (Meinke) Klehn, spent their entire lives. 
 
 The youngest son, and the sixth child, in a 
 family consisting of four daughters and three 
 sons, Henry Klehn received a practical educa- 
 tion in the elementary schools of the Fatherland. 
 A lover of the sea from his boyhood, he shipped 
 as a cabin-boy on a Danish vessel when a mere 
 lad, and subsequently as a sailor visited all the 
 important ports of the world, including among 
 others the following named : Hammerfest, Lon- 
 don, Antwerp, Riga, Copenhagen, Hayti, Lagos, 
 Mozambique, Zanzibar, St. Helena, Bahia, Val- 
 paraiso, Peru, Singapore, Siam, Hong Kong, 
 Bankok, Canton, Chefu, Tien-Tsin, Manila and 
 San Francisco. In the latter city, in 1866, Mr. 
 Klehn took French leave of the vessel, and for 
 a year was employed in coasting along the bay 
 
 and the river. Turning his attention then to 
 agricultural pursuits, he worked first as a farm 
 laborer in Napa valley, and afterward on Ores- 
 timba creek, in the San Joaquin valley. In 1872, 
 forming a . partnership with Morris and Crow 
 and Ed. Randall, his former employer, he em- 
 barked in farming on his own account, continu- 
 ing for seven years. The partnership being dis- 
 solved in 1879, ■'^''- Klehn located a mile north 
 of Newman, where he bought his present ranch 
 of six hundred and forty acres, which he has 
 farmed with undisputed success, carrying on gen- 
 eral farming, stock-raising and dairying on a 
 large scale. His own land not being sufficient 
 for his operations, he rented a thousand acres 
 of land, which he operated in addition to his own. 
 Active and enterprising, he kept busily employed 
 at all times, during the harvesting season running 
 a threshing machine for over twenty years. He 
 sold his ranch September i, 1904. 
 
 Mr. Klehn married Anna Kricke, a native of 
 Germany, and a lady of culture and refinement; 
 they are the parents of four children, namely: 
 Walter H., Helena D., Bertha E. and Charles F. 
 Of these Bertha E. married the Rev. August 
 Hansen, a minister of the German Lutheran 
 Church. Religiously Mr. Klehn is a member of 
 the German Lutheran Church, and politically he 
 IS actively identified with the Democratic party. 
 Fraternally he belongs to Newman Lodge, F. & 
 A. M., in which he has passed all the chairs ; is 
 a member of the Stockton Commandery, K. T. ; 
 is a member and past officer of the Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen and of the Knights of 
 Honor. Mrs. Klehn is a member of the German 
 Evangelical Lutheran Church, and a member of 
 the Eastern Star. 
 
 ELIAS TOUT. Upon establishing his home 
 in the United States during his early manhood 
 Basil Tout, who was by birth a Londoner and 
 descended from a long line of English pro- 
 genitors, selected Kentucky as the scene of his 
 activities, and there he took up the life of a 
 planter. His son, William S., was born and 
 reared on a Kentucky plantation, from there 
 moved to Adams county, 111., and eventually 
 came to California, where he died near Dinuba at 
 the close of eighty-four busy years. In marriage 
 he had been united with Lovina Garr, a native 
 of Indiana and a descendant of Abraham Garr, 
 a German, who founded the famil}' now num- 
 bering more than six hundred persons scattered 
 in every part of the United States. Her father, 
 Solomon Garr, was a lifelong resident of Indiana, 
 where he followed agricultural pursuits. At the 
 time of her death, which occurred in California, 
 Lovina Tout was seventy years of age. In her 
 family there were sixteen children, all of whom 
 
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 771 
 
 passed the years of childhood. They were named 
 as follows : Mary, who died at sixteen years ; 
 Anderson, who enlisted in the Fiftieth Illinois 
 Infantry during the Civil war and served until 
 he was killed in the battle of Bentonville; Mrs. 
 Martha Hobson, of Sultana, Cal. ; Eucebia, who 
 died in Illinois ; John, a rancher of Fresno coun- 
 ty; Mrs. Julia Sproat, living at Traver, Tulare 
 county; Perry, now in Idaho; Mrs. Virinda But- 
 try, also of Idaho; William, now living near 
 Sultana, and who during the Civil war was a 
 member of the Fiftieth Illinois Infantry ; Eleazer, 
 who died in Illinois at twenty-three years; Mrs. 
 Kate Lynch, who died in Idaho; Mrs. Nancy 
 West, living near Dinuba; Elias, who lives near 
 Sultana, and is supervisor of the fourth district 
 of Tulare county; Mrs. Mathilda Fulton, of Illi- 
 nois; Benjamin, a fruit farmer near Sultana; 
 and Mrs. Letitia Seals, who died in Idaho. 
 
 On the home farm near Mendon, Adams coun- 
 ty, 111., Elias Tout was born February 28, 1854, 
 and there he passed the imeventful years of boy- 
 hood. It was his privilege to attend the Christian 
 University at Canton, Mo., after which he taught 
 school for two winters in Illinois. In 1882 he 
 came to California and near Hanford secured 
 work in cutting cord wood. During the spring 
 of 1883 he moved to Tulare county and bought 
 land near Smith mountain, also homesteaded one 
 hundred and sixty acres near Traver, Tulare 
 county, locating on the latter property and set- 
 ting out a vineyard, which he diligently culti- 
 vated. After twelve years he sold that place and 
 removed to his other quarter section adjoining 
 Sultana on the east. Of this tract he platted 
 and sold twenty acres. The north eighty acres 
 are in an orchard of different kinds of fruit, 
 fifty acres being in peaches. There are also twen- 
 ty acres of Sultana grapes. A large tract is in 
 alfalfa, all of which can be irrigated, as indeed 
 can the entire property, for water is abundant. 
 To him belongs the distinction of setting out 
 the first apple trees in Sultana district, and he 
 now has a fine orchard of choice apples. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Tout occurred in Adams 
 county, 111., and united him with Miss Mary 
 Wright, a native of Missouri. They are the par- 
 ents of six children, namely: Floyd, a student in 
 the San Luis Obispo Polytechnic school, class 
 of 1905 ; Mrs. Maude Depew, of Sultana ; Carl 
 and Jeane, who are also students in the school 
 attended by their older brother; Grace and 
 Beulah. The family are identified with the Din- 
 uba Christian Church, in which Mr. Tout is lead- 
 er of the choir and for years, until resigning in 
 January, 1904, acted as superinterident of the 
 Sunday-school. Fraternally he is cotinected vfith 
 the Woodmen of the World and the Court of 
 Honor. In 1902 he was the independent candi- 
 date for supervisor of the fourth district of 
 
 Tulare county, and was elected by a plurality of 
 ten votes given him by count of the supreme 
 court. One of his opponents was given a cer- 
 tificate of election. Mr. Tout refused to appeal, 
 but his friends started a contest, and the investi- 
 gation proved that five of his votes had been 
 overlooked, thus giving, according to' the verdict 
 of the superior judge, a plurality of three to Mr. 
 Tout. His opponent carried it up to the supreme 
 court, and in the recount the plurality of three 
 was increased to ten votes. Meanwhile fifteen 
 months had elapsed, so that it was on the 5th of 
 May, 1904, when he "entered upon his duties, 
 after a long contest and with the record of being 
 the first independent candidate for supervisor 
 ever elected in the county. As supervisor he has 
 championed movements for the benefit of the 
 county, yet he has been conservative, careful as 
 to expenditures, guarding well the interests of 
 the tax-payers and property owners. In the 
 temperance movements his influence has been 
 strong and constantly exerted. Believing that a 
 majority of the votes of the people should be 
 necessary to the granting of a saloon license, 
 instead of merely seven as at present, he has 
 worked with unwearied interest and determina- 
 tion to secure the passage of a law giving the 
 decision of this matter into the hands of the 
 majority instead of a small minority as formerly. 
 The new law went into effect January, 1905. 
 
 WILLIAM FREDERICK FINK. The sub- 
 stantial and respected citizens of Stanislaus coun- 
 ty have no more worthy representative than 
 William Frederick Fink, who occupies an as- 
 sured position among the keen, progressive, and 
 business-like farmers who are so ably conduct- 
 ing the agricultural interests of this section of 
 the state, his well-improved ranch lying about one 
 mile northeast of Crows Landing. A son of the 
 late Jacob Fink, he was born November 10, 1854, 
 in Marion county, Ohio, of German lineage. 
 
 Born and reared in Wurtemberg, Germany, 
 Jacob Fink remained in his native land until 
 1846, when, his prospects for earning a liveli- 
 hood there not being very brilliant, he immi- 
 grated to America, the land of promise for a 
 poor man. Settling at first in Ohio, he was en- 
 gaged in farming in Marlon county for a num- 
 ber of years. In 1858 he removed to Minne- 
 sota, and two years later, in i860, located in 
 Sheboygan county. Wis., establishing himself 
 in business as a tanner and farmer. Migrating 
 to California in 1873, he bought a ranch of three 
 hundred and twenty acres at Crows Landing, and 
 was here engaged in agricultural pursuits until 
 his death, in 1896, at the advanced age of seven- 
 ty-eight years. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Rosanna Harsch, was born in Wurtemberg, 
 
772 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL R£C0RD. 
 
 Germany, and died at Crows Landing, Cal. Of 
 their union five sons and two daughters were 
 born, William F. being the oldest son, and the 
 third child of the household. 
 
 Spending the days of his boyhood and youth in 
 Sheboygan county. Wis., WiUiam F. Fink there 
 acquired a practical common school education. 
 Coming with his parents to California in 1873, 
 he assisted his father in the improvement of a 
 homestead, and in 1878 located one mile north- 
 east of Crows Landing, purchasing three hundred 
 and twenty acres of his present farm. To this he 
 has added other land by 'purchase, having now 
 four hundred and sixty acres in his home ranch. 
 Here Mr. Fink is carrying on general farming 
 with eminent success, having seventy acres in al- 
 falfa, which is a most desirable crop in this re- 
 gion, the soil being well adapted to its growth. 
 He also pays a good deal of attention to stock- 
 growing, raising cattle, horses and mules. He 
 has made many valuable improvements on his 
 place, and in 1890 built a fine two-story residence. 
 
 Mr. Fink was married August 18, 1881, to 
 Laura A. Pipkin, a native of Tennessee, and the 
 only daughter of Andrew J. Pipkin and Elizabeth 
 Gum Pipkin, both natives of Tennessee, where 
 their ancestors were honored pioneers. Andrew J. 
 Pipkin and family came to California in 1873, 
 and settled in Yolo county. In 1874 they came to 
 Stanislaus county, going back to Yolo county in 
 1876, but returned to Crows Landing in 1881. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Fink are the parents of six chil- 
 dren, namely: Ida M., George W., Clara E., 
 Esther R., Eva M. and Lloyd W. Politically Mr. 
 Fink is an earnest Democrat, supporting the prin- 
 ciples of that party at the ]x>lls. He takes a genu- 
 ine interest in local aflfairs, and for a number of 
 years served as school director. Mrs. Fink is a 
 most estimable woman, and a valued member of 
 the Presbvterian Church. 
 
 FRANK B. HAMLETT. Among the young- 
 er generation in Merced county who are actively 
 engaged in farming is numbered Frank B. Ham- 
 lett, residing near Le Grand. He was born in 
 Audrain county, Mo., December 4, 1874, a son 
 of Thomas R. and Amanda (Culwell) Hamlett, 
 both natives of Pike county, the former a de- 
 scelidant of a southern family and one of the 
 well-to-do farmers in Missouri at the present 
 time. 
 
 Frank B. Hamlett was reared on his father's 
 farm, educated in the common schools and as- 
 sisted with the farm work until 1891, at which 
 time he came to California. After spending some 
 time in search of a suitable location, he finally 
 purchased two hundred acres, which he proceeded 
 to cultivate. He later rented two hundred acres 
 and now devotes his land to raising grain. 
 
 In December, 1896, Mr. Hamlett was married 
 in Merced county, to Harriett L., a daughter of 
 Jonas Turner, a native of Merced county. Capt. 
 Turner, the father of Jonas, came to California in 
 1849, ^nd some years later located in Merced 
 county. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Hamlett 
 one daughter, Esma A. was born. In' politics a 
 Democrat, Mr. Hamlett takes no active part aside 
 from casting his vote, preferring rather the quiet 
 of his home life and his business. He is one 
 of the well-known young men of his community. 
 
 JOHN LOCKE HARDEMAN, M. D. Among 
 the leading citizens of Portersville is John Locke 
 Hardeman, M. D., who takes a keen interest in 
 all lines of industry in his adopted county. A 
 son of Dr. Glen O. Hardeman, he was born Feb- 
 ruary 27, 1855, in Marshall, Saline county, Mo. 
 
 A native of Howard county. Mo., Dr. Glen 
 O. Hardeman was born in 1825, near Boones 
 Lick. After leaving the district school he was 
 graduated from McDowell's College, receiving 
 the degree of M. D., subsequently taking the 
 same degree at the University of Pennsylvania, 
 where he completed his medical studies. He be- 
 gan the practice of his profession in Missouri, 
 and at the breaking out of the Civil war, although 
 he was a slave holder, enlisted as a surgeon in the 
 Federal army. His father, John Hardeman, an 
 attorney, moved from Tennessee, his native state, 
 to Missouri, and was engaged in the Santa Fe 
 trade. He lived near Kit Carson, the famous 
 scout, who was not particularly friendly to him. 
 He died while in New Orleans on a business 
 trip. Dr. Glen O. Hardeman married Permelia 
 Townsend, who was born in Missouri in 1830, 
 a daughter of Sanders Townsend. Mr. Town- 
 send was born and reared in South Carolina. In 
 1820 he moved to Missouri, becoming a pioneer 
 farmer and stock-raiser of Saline county, his 
 home being near Arrowrock. He was a man of 
 strong personality, and until his death, at the 
 advanced age of ninety-two years, was loyal to 
 the south. 
 
 The oldest of a family consisting of five sons 
 and three daughters, John Locke Hardeman laid 
 a substantial foundation for his future educa- 
 tion in the district schools, subsequently continu- 
 ing his studies at Pritchett's Institute, in Glas- 
 gow, Mo. In 1874 and 1875 he attended the 
 Missouri State University, and then, in 1876, 
 entered the St. Louis Medical College, from 
 which he was graduated with the degree of 
 Ml" D. in 1878. Locating in Brownington, Mo., 
 Dr. Hardeman practiced his profession there for 
 ten years, meeting with good success. Coming 
 to California in 1888, he spent the first year 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 773 
 
 in San Diego, and in 1889 located in Portersville, 
 where he has built up a remunerative practice. 
 
 Dr. Hardeman has invested his money in a 
 fine orange grove of twenty acres lying east of 
 the town, and a smaller one of five acres lying 
 north of Portersville. With J. H. Williams, he 
 is interested in saddle-bred horses, owning two 
 stallions, registered stock, and five mares. They 
 have some of the finest thoroughbred saddle 
 horses to be found on the coast, among them be- 
 ing Squirrel Montrose, and at the state fair car- 
 ried off several prizes. 
 
 In Washington, Mo., Dr. Hardeman married 
 Elizabeth Jeffries, a native of Frankhn county. 
 Mo., and they have two children; Elvira, living 
 at home; and Charles, of Seattle, Wash. Politi- 
 cally the doctor is a steadfast adherent of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 FRANK B. MARKS. Actively engaged in 
 the prosecution of a calling upon which more 
 than any other, the strength, wealth and prosper- 
 ity of our nation depends, Frank B. Marks, of 
 Dos Palos, is numbered among the successful 
 farmers and dairymen of Fresno county. In his 
 selection of a location, and in the improvement 
 and stocking of his ranch, he has been particu- 
 larly fortunate, his home estate being now one 
 of ihe most productive and attractive in the com- 
 munity. A native Californian, he was born,' 
 January 31, 1870, in San Francisco, a son of 
 Bernhard Marks. He comes of German stock, 
 his Grandfather Marks, tjie descendant of a 
 German family, emigrating from Poland, his na- 
 tive country, to America, settling with his family 
 in New York. 
 
 Born in Poland, Bernhard Marks came with 
 his parents to this country, and was reared and 
 educated in New York City, and there began life 
 for himself as a clerk. Migrating to California 
 in 1852, he followed mining for three or four 
 years, and then settled in San Francisco, becom- 
 ing principal of the Lincoln school. He subse- 
 quently engaged in mining for a time, after 
 which he again taught school in San Francisco. 
 Taking up land in the San Joaquin valley, he 
 was numbered among the reclaimers of the place, 
 remaining there until he was drowned out. 
 Going to Fresno in 1875, he organized the Col- 
 ony Settlement of Fresno county, arranging with 
 W. S. Chapman, the owner of the land, for its 
 platting. Having laid out Central California 
 Colony, he resided there for a while, and set out 
 fruits and vines as an experiment, successfully 
 improving a large orchard and farm. Bringing 
 the Colony before the public by judicious adver- 
 tising, he sold o& all the lots, and afterward 
 laid out West Park Colony, in Fresno county. 
 Moving from there to Merced, he talked up the 
 
 colonization system, and induced the landholders 
 of that section to lay out the Dean Colony, and 
 others. Returning then to San Francisco, he 
 entered the employ of the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road Company as general colonization agent, and 
 traveled extensively throughout the east in the 
 interests of the company. He induced Carr & 
 Haggin to sub-divide land near Bakersfield, in 
 Kern county, and in 1890 persuaded Miller & 
 Lux to divide their land in Dos Palos.' The 
 land just south of the Dos Palos Depot was first 
 colonized, but as good drinking water was there 
 impossible to obtain the colony was removed to 
 its present advantageous site the following year, 
 a large colony being established .through the ef- 
 forts of Mr. Marks, who gave large concessions 
 on land in the new colony, and persuaded Miller 
 & Lux to move the houses, etc. Mr. Marks is 
 still associated with the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road Company, traveling much in the eastern 
 states, and is now colonizing near Gait, in the 
 Sacramento valley, with headquarters at San 
 Francisco. Bernhard Marks married Cornelia D. 
 Barlow, who was born in Dutchess county, N. 
 Y., a daughter of Elisha Barlow, the descendant 
 of an old and honored New England fam.ily. 
 She died in Dos Palos, leaving two children, 
 namely: Howard B., employed in the San Fran- 
 cisco postofifice ; and Frank B. 
 
 Brought up in Fresno, Frank B. Marks there 
 acquired his elementary education, completing it 
 in the San Francisco Boys' High School, from 
 which he was graduated in 1887. Returning 
 then to Fresno, he assisted his father in the land 
 business for a year, and then traveled for a year 
 in the east, visiting all the principal cities. Re- 
 turning to the Pacific coast, he followed farming 
 in Merced county for eighteen months, and was 
 afterward for a time bookkeeper for Brigham, 
 Hoppe & Co., in San Francisco. Coming to Dos 
 Palos in 1893, Mr. Marks had charge of his 
 father's colony land business for eight years, 
 subsequently locating on his present home ranch, 
 which was then raw land. He began its im- 
 provement at once, and on account of the beau- 
 tiful palm trees which he set out the thorough- 
 fare on which it is located was named Palm 
 avenue. Leveling and ditching the original forty 
 acres contained in his farm, Mr. Marks began 
 farming and dairying on a modest scale, and has 
 since greatly enlarged his operations. He has 
 added by purchase to his first purchase, having 
 now one hundred acres of fine land, the greater 
 part of which he devotes to alfalfa. He has one 
 of the best dairies in this section, milking about 
 fifty cows, and keeping much other stock. In 
 the care of his herd he exercises great judgment, 
 feeding green feed all the year round. He has 
 a large silo, one hundred and fifty tons capacity, 
 which he fills with green corn in the fall for 
 
774 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 winter feed, his silo being the only one in this 
 part of the county. Mr. Marks' contract with 
 the Colony expired in 1901. He assisted in or- 
 ganizing what is now the Rochdale Creamery 
 Association, and helped build the creamery. 
 
 In San Francisco, Mr. Marks married Frances 
 T. Olmstead, who was born in San Joaquin 
 county, Cal, where her father, Edward Olm- 
 stead, was a pioneer settler. Three children have 
 been born of their marriage, namely: Frances 
 Blossom, Howard Edward, and Alice Marie. Po- 
 litically Mr. Marks always casts his vote with 
 the Republican party. 
 
 HON. CURTIS H. CASTLE, A. M., M. D. 
 During the pioneer history of Illinois Henry 
 Castle brought his family to that state from 
 West Virginia and settled in 1833 among the 
 early inhabitants of Knox county, where he re- 
 mained until death. Among his children was 
 a son Reuben, who was born in West Virginia, 
 and devoted all of his active years to agricultural 
 pursuits in Illinois, dying in Knox county during 
 1894. In early manhood he had been united in 
 marriage with Mary A. Long, a native of Penn- 
 sylvania, whence she accompanied her father, 
 George Ixing, to Zanesville, Ohio, and from 
 there in 1835 to Knox county. 111., where she met 
 and married Reuben Castle. Four children were 
 born of their union. The eldest, Rufus, was a 
 member of Company E, Eighty-third Illinois In- 
 fantry, during the Civil war, and afterward set- 
 tled on a farm near Healdsburg, Cal, where he 
 remained until he died. The second son, George 
 H., who was a lieutenant in the Fifty-ninth Illi- 
 nois Infantry, from the beginning until the close 
 of the Civil war, and who was severely wounded 
 before Atlanta, is now an attorney in -Shenandoah, 
 Iowa, and serves as colonel of the Iowa state 
 militia. The only daughter, Mrs. Griffith, resides 
 in Omaha, Neb., and it was in her home that her 
 mother died in 1904. 
 
 The youngest son in the family, Curtis H. Cas- 
 tle, was born near Galesburg, 111., October 4, 
 1848, and received excellent advantages in youth, 
 attending Knox College until the close of the 
 sophomore year, after which he became a stu- 
 dent in the Northwestern University, from which 
 he was graduated in 1872, with the degree of 
 A. B. Later the degree of A. M. was conferred 
 upon him from the same institution. After grad- 
 uating he engaged as principal of the schools of 
 Washington, Tex., for four years, and dui-ing 
 that time devoted all of his leisure hours to the 
 study of medicine, which he further pursued as a 
 student in the College of Physicians & Surgeons, 
 at Keokuk, Iowa. After his graduation in 1878 
 he took up professional practice in Fulton county, 
 111., but soon removed to what is now Wayland, 
 
 Henry county, Iowa, where he remained until 
 1882, and then came to California. A brief so- 
 journ in Los Angeles was followed by his loca- 
 tion at Point Arena, Mendocino county, in 1883. 
 Four years later he removed his office to Merced, 
 where he built up a large and lucrative practice. 
 
 Until 1892 Dr. Castle voted the Republican 
 ticket, but in the campaign of that year he sup- 
 ported Weaver and since then he has been a 
 Populist. At this writing he is a member of 
 the national committee of his party. In 1896 and 
 1904 he was chosen a delegate to the national 
 convention, but each time pressure of business 
 and professional duties prevented him from be- 
 ing present at the convention. The convention 
 of his party at Sacramento in 1896 nominated 
 him for member of congress. _ Shortly after- 
 ward the Democratic sub-committee met with 
 the Populist committee and a fusion was effected. 
 Dr. Castle remaining as the candidate of the 
 fusion ticket. He was elected by a majority of 
 two hundred and forty votes over M. C. Bowers, 
 and took his seat in March of 1897, serving 
 through the extra session from March 12 to July 
 12; also serving in the regular session from De- 
 cember, 1897, to July, 1898, and then from Decem- 
 ber of 1898 to March 4, 1899. During his service 
 he was a member of the committee on pensions 
 and did much to aid the passage of private pen- 
 sion bills. The old Seventh congressional dis- 
 trict which he represented embraced Stanislaus, 
 San Benito, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings, 
 Kern, Tulare, San Bernardino, Riverside, Or- 
 ange and San Diego counties. At the expiration 
 of his first term he was again nominated by the 
 Democratic and regular Populist conventions, 
 but was defeated by Needham by about one hun- 
 dred and tv/enty-five votes. His service had been 
 one of the greatest fidelity. The interests of his 
 constituents had been carefully and wisely rep- 
 resented, and he retired to private life with an 
 enviable record in the halls of congress. 
 
 Removing from Merced to San Francisco in 
 1901, two years later Dr. Castle was induced to 
 remove to Dinuba by reason of having acquired 
 interests in raisin lands, and here he now en- 
 gages in the "practice of medicine, also superin- 
 tends his varied business interests. Two miles 
 north of Dinuba lies his vineyard of fifty-five 
 acres, as well as his forty-acre orchard of 
 peaches. He has been interested in the develop- 
 ment of oil in the Coalinga field, is a stockholder 
 in the Fossil Oil Company, and president of the 
 Merced Oil Mining Company. Among the or- 
 ganizations with which he is identified may be 
 mentioned the San Francisco City and County 
 Medical Society and the American Academy of 
 Medicine. While in Iowa he was made a Mason 
 at Wayland and at this writing has his member- 
 ship in the blue lodge at Point Arena. In relig- 
 
^vW^oo^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 777 
 
 ion he is associated with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South, while he has been no less active 
 in educational matters than in religious affairs, 
 being a school trustee and member of the county 
 board of education. While living in Illinois he 
 married Miss Alma Taber, who was born in 
 Rhode Island and died in Illinois, leaving two 
 children, Grace and Curtis. The Doctor's sec- 
 ond marriage was solemnized in Merced, Cal., 
 and united him with Miss Virginia Wills, who 
 was born in Mariposa county, of pioneer parents, 
 and by whom he has three children, Chandos 
 Barrett, Mary Mercedes and Genevieve Wills. 
 
 VALENTINE DARIUS KNUPP. As may- 
 or of Portersville, Tulare county, Cal., V- D. 
 Knupp is intimately associated with the growth 
 and progress of the city and in touch with all the 
 movements which have tended to develop the 
 county. He is a native of St. Charles county. 
 Mo., where his birth occurred July 20, 1856. His 
 father, Valentine Knupp-, was a native of Penn- 
 sylvania, who emigrated to St. Charles county, 
 Mo., where he became a merchant. He died in 
 1859, while on a trip to Texas. His wife, for- 
 merly Hulda Pringle, a native of Missouri, was 
 the daughter of Mark Pringle, whose death oc- 
 curred in that state. She survived her hus- 
 band and came to California, her death occurring 
 in Visalia in June, 1903, at the age of eighty-four 
 years. They had two sons, Valentine Darius, 
 the subject of this review, and Charles O., who 
 is located in San Francisco. 
 
 The oldest son in the family of his parents, 
 Valentine Darius Knupp was reared in St. 
 Charles county, Mo., where he attended the dis- 
 trict school and later the district schools in War- 
 ren county, where his widowed mother located. 
 In March, 1869, he came to California via the 
 Isthmus of Panama with his mother and brother, 
 locating in Visalia, and the same year he re- 
 turned east with his mother, attending school- in 
 Glasgow, Mo. In 1872 they removed to a farm 
 near Carlinville, 111., and two years later he re- 
 turned to Visalia. In Tulare county he en- 
 gaged in the stock business with his half-brother, 
 Henry Perkins, being located on the Bayou until 
 1876. Deciding then to take a commercial course, 
 he entered Heald's Business College, of San 
 Francisco. Upon leaving school he became agent 
 for the Visalia Railroad Company, a position 
 which he held for four years, after which he 
 became interested in the abstract business, the 
 firm being known first as Miller & Knupp, later 
 Knupp & Anderson, and is now merged into the 
 Visalia Abstract Company. He became secretary 
 of thfe Visalia & Tulare Railroad Company, 
 which position he retained until July, 1895, when 
 he resigned. and located in Portersville to accept 
 
 the management of the Pioneer Land Company. 
 This company owns five thousand acres of land, 
 sub-divided in twenty-acre tracts, and since his 
 assumption of the management one thousand 
 acres have been sold off. A part of this land 
 has been set out to oranges, the whole being irri- 
 gated by means of pumping plants and irrigating 
 ditches in which the company is largely inter- 
 ested. It has also erected several buildings, 
 among them being the Pioneer hotel and the Pio- 
 neer Bank building. In addition to his other 
 interests Mr. Knupp is connected with the Sun- 
 nyside Water Company and the Hilo Water Com- 
 pany, both for the irrigation of oranges, and in 
 both of which he serves as a director. Individu- 
 ally he has also given much time to the setting 
 out and cultivation of an orange grove and in 
 this work as well as that of his business career 
 is meeting with a success which places him among 
 the representative men of the vicinity of Porters- 
 ville. 
 
 In VisaHa Mr. Knupp was united in marriage 
 with Nellie Cutler, a daughter of Dr. John Cut- 
 ler, of whom mention is made elsewhere in this 
 volume. They are the parents of four children, 
 namely : Reginald, who is a graduate of Heald's 
 Business College, now associated with the San 
 Joaquin Power Company, of Fresno; Guy, a 
 graduate of the high school of Portersville and 
 now a student in Stanford University ; Wilko ; 
 and Myra. In his political affiliations Mr. Knupp 
 is a Republican. In 1903, on an independent 
 ticket, he was elected mayor of Portersville, for 
 a term of two years. He has proven himself 
 a man of exceptional ability and earnest integ- 
 rity, giving his leadership toward the advance- 
 ment and betterment of municipal affairs, and he 
 is held in high esteem by all who have had busi- 
 ness or social relations with him. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Knights of Pythias of Visalia, 
 of which lodge he is past chief chancellor. 
 
 CHARLES A. MARSH. For more than a 
 quarter of a century Charles A. Marsh has been 
 identified with the agricultural development of 
 Fresno county, and his farm about one and a 
 half miles north of Parlier is among the most 
 productive and well kept in this vicinity, being 
 utilized as a stock, grain and fruit farm. To Mr. 
 Marsh belongs the distinction of being one of the 
 early settlers of his community, for at the time 
 of his locating here in 1877, there were only 
 two sheep ranches between his farm and the city 
 of Fresno. The country was new and unde- 
 veloped, a striking contrast to the present situa- 
 tion with its numerous cities and villages and 
 productive grain field and fruit-bearing orchards. 
 
 Born in Muscatine, Iowa, October 2, 1856, 
 Charles A. Marsh is the youngest of four sons 
 
t78 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 born to John and Eliza (Traer) Marsh, the lat- 
 ter of whom was born in Ohio and died in Iowa. 
 The father of Charles A. Marsh went to Iowa 
 in the early '40s, locating in Muscatine county, 
 and for a number of years thereafter followed 
 farming there. In 1877 he left those familiar 
 scenes and came to California. Locating on a 
 farm, now the home of his son, Charles A., for 
 a few years he followed various pursuits and in 
 1881 went north to Shasta county, where he 
 died about 1888. 
 
 The education of Charles A. Marsh was re- 
 ceived in Iowa, where he attended only the com- 
 mon schools, and since locating upon this farm 
 in 1877 he has devoted himself assiduously to- 
 ward making a success of his chosen vocation. 
 He purchased eighty acres from the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad Company, one and a half miles 
 north of Parlier, and at once engaged in farm- 
 ing and stock raising, having remained on the 
 same farm through the intervening years. Thir- 
 ty-five acres of his farm he planted in vineyards, 
 twenty-five acres are devoted to the raising of 
 alfalfa and about two acres are in orchard. The 
 balance is used for grazing purposes, as he con- 
 ducts a dairy, also shipping his cream to Visalia, 
 Tulare county. In addition to his other under- 
 takings he is interested in a packing house and 
 winery in Parlier, while with his son, Arthur E., 
 he is engaged in the real estate business, their 
 transactions being conducted from the home 
 place. 
 
 By his marriage in Cedar Rapids in 1876, Mr. 
 Marsh united his fortunes with those of Sarah 
 E. Zediker, who was born in Linn county, Iowa. 
 Three children blessed this union, two sons and 
 one daughter, namely : Beryl W., the wife of 
 Walter Parlier, residing near the home place; 
 Arthur E. and Glen W. Mr. Marsh is greatly 
 interested in the cause of education and for a 
 number of years has officiated as clerk of the 
 board of school directors for the Mendocino 
 school district. Fraternally he affiliates with 
 Selma Lodge No. 155, K. P.. 
 
 MAJOR PHILIP N. RUSSELL, M. D. 
 Holding a position of prominence among the 
 leading physicitms and surgeons of the San 
 Joaquin valley is Major P. N. Russell, M. D., 
 of Fresno, a practitioner of skill and experience 
 and a close student of the science which he has 
 chosen as a profession. A son of J. N. P. Rus- 
 sell, he was born December 14, 1854, in Fred- 
 ericktown, Madison county, Mo., of thrifty 
 Scotch ancestry. His paternal grandfather, 
 Levi Russell, a native of North Carolina, re- 
 moved to Missouri with his family in 1827, be- 
 coming a pioneer of New Madrid and he there 
 
 spent his remaining days, dying at a good old 
 age. 
 
 A native of North Carolina, J. N. P. Russell 
 lived there until ten years old, when he accom- 
 panied his parents to Missouri. On attaining his 
 majority he embarked in agricultural pursuits, 
 and for many years was prosperously engaged 
 in farming and stock-raising at Fredericktown. 
 He died December 23, 1903, at the age of 
 eighty-six years, at his home in St. Louis, Mo. 
 He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, toward the support of which he always 
 contributed generously. He married Sarah 
 Jackson, who was born in Kentucky, near 
 Franjkfort, where her parents settled on their 
 removal from Virginia. She died on the home- 
 stead in Missouri. Of the eight children which 
 she bore her husband, seven grew to years of 
 maturity, and six are living. Dr. P. N. Russell 
 being the only one residing on the Pacific coast. 
 
 The eighth child in succession of birth, P. N. 
 Russell was reared on the home farm. After 
 leaving the district school he continued his stud- 
 ies at the Fredericktown Academy, afterwards 
 entering the Missouri Medical College in St. 
 Louis, from which he was graduated with the 
 degree of M. D. in 1888. Beginning the prac- 
 tice of medicine in Van Buren, Ark., he remained 
 there a year, and then took a post-graduate 
 course in New Orleans. Returning then to Van.- 
 Buren, he continued the practice of his profes- 
 sion there until 1891, when he came to Cali- 
 fornia. Locating at once in Fresno, Dr. Rus- 
 sell soon acquired an enviable reputation as a 
 skillful surgeon and physician, and in the com- 
 paratively few years that have since elapsed he 
 has built Mp a large and remunerative patron- 
 age. In 1894 he was appointed a member of 
 the State Board of Pension Examiners, of 
 which he was formerly secretary, and is now the 
 treasurer. For two years he rendered excellent 
 service as city health officer, a position that he 
 was forced to resign, in July, 1903, on account 
 of his large practice. In 1894 Dr. Russell was 
 commissioned, by Governor Markham, assistant 
 surgeon, with the rank of captain, of the Cali- 
 fornia National Guard, Sixth Regiment, and in 
 1897 was made surgeon of the regiment, with 
 rank of major. During the Spanish- American 
 war, in May, 1898, he was commissioned assist- 
 ant surgeon of the Seventh California Volunteer 
 Infantry, being stationed at the Presidio and 
 at Los Angeles, and held the position until the 
 regiment was mustered out of service, in De- 
 cember, 1898. Returning then to Fresno, Dr. 
 Russell resumed his former position in the Na- 
 tional Guard of California, and is still surgeon 
 of the Sixth Regiment, with the rank of major. 
 
 August 14, 1899, in San Francisco, Cal., Dr. 
 Russell married Zelia Bridgeport, a native of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 779 
 
 San Francisco, and a graduate of the high school 
 of that city. Her father, Judge Eugene Bridge- 
 port, was born in Missouri, but when a young 
 man removed to California, becoming a pioneer 
 settler of Colusa county, where he was judge 
 of the superior court for fourteen years. He 
 subsequently became a resident of San Fran- 
 cisco,' where he now resides, and where for 
 many years he was engaged in the practice of 
 law with General Quney. Dr. and Mrs. Russell 
 have one child, De Witt L. Russell. Dr. Rus- 
 sell is a stanch Democrat in his political affili- 
 ations. He is identified with the County Med- 
 ical Society, of which he is ex-president; the 
 San Joaquin Valley Medical Society, the State 
 Medical Society, and the American Medical 
 Association. He is likewise a member of, and 
 medical examiner for, the Woodmen of the 
 World ; a member of the Fraternal Brotherhood ; 
 medical examiner for both the Equitable and 
 the Provident Life Insurance Associations; a 
 member of the Spanish-American War Veterans' 
 Association; and a charter member of the Mis- 
 souri Society of San Francisco, of which Judge 
 Bridgeport was the first president. 
 
 ISAAC WRIGHT, A. M., LL. B. As far 
 back as the family history can be traced the 
 Wrights have been identified with the history of 
 county Down, Ireland, and there an ancestor 
 bearing the name of Isaac followed farm pur- 
 suits and also engaged in the manufacture of 
 linen. Among his brothers was one. Rev. Wil- 
 liam Wright, D. D., who became an eminent 
 Presbyterian minister. In the family of Isaac 
 Wright there were seven sons, all of whom 
 crossed the ocean, six settling in the United 
 States, and one in Montreal. Of these Samuel, 
 a native of county Down, became a farmer on 
 the border of Jefferson and Carroll counties, in 
 the eastern part of Ohio, where also he operated 
 a saw mill and manufaqtured lumber. In relig- 
 ion he was a strict Presbyterian and long offici- 
 ated as a ruling elder of his church. During the 
 existence of the Whig party he supported its 
 principles and afterward he joined the newly or- 
 ganized Republican party, which he continued 
 to support as long as he lived. At the time of 
 his death he was seventy-nine years of age. 
 
 The lady who from early womanhood until 
 her death in 1854 at the age of forty-seven re- 
 mained the faithful helpmate of Samuel Wright 
 bore the maiden name of Margaret McKee and 
 was born in county Down, Ireland, where like- 
 wise were born her father, John (a farmer, flax 
 manufacturer and lumberman), and her grand- 
 father, David McKee (a native of Ayrshire, 
 Scotland, and the founder of the family in Ire- 
 land). In the family of Samuel Wright there 
 
 were six sons and one daughter, namely: Mrs. 
 Mary Kean, who lives near the old homestead; 
 John, a resident of Paola, Miami county, Kans. ; 
 Isaac, the subject of this narrative and a resi- 
 dent of Dinuba, Cal. ; James, deceased, formerly 
 a merchant at McKee's Rocks, Pa. ; William, who 
 died at the old homestead in i860; Samuel, who 
 died in Minnesota in 1867; and David, who 
 served in the Ninety-eighth Ohio Infantry until 
 the close of the war and is now living in Jeffer- 
 son county, Ohio. 
 
 The old home at Ballynahinch, county Down, 
 Ireland, where he was born in 1835, Isaac Wright 
 remembers with such affection that he has named 
 his California vinej^ard in its honor. While he 
 was still quite young he accompanied the family 
 to America and settled in Ohio, where he attend- 
 ed district schools. In 1852 he began to prepare 
 for colleg'e under Dr. Patterson, and in 1-854 he 
 entered Westminster College at New Wilming- 
 ton, Lawrence county. Pa., from which he was 
 graduated four years later with the degree of 
 A. B. In 1859 he was graduated from the Ohio 
 State Normal School at Hopedale, and imme- 
 diately became principal of the schools of Steu- 
 benville, Ohio, where he remained for two years. 
 For a year following he served at the head of the 
 intermediate department of the high schools of 
 Toledo, Ohio. At the expiration of that time 
 he took up the study of law under Hon. M. R. 
 Waife, on whose certificate he was admitted 
 to the Ohio bar in 1864.. During the four 
 ensuing years he engaged in practice at 
 Steubenville, Ohio. In 1868 he went to 
 Tarrytown, N. Y., as vice-principal of the 
 Irving Institute, where he enjoyed some of the 
 most pleasant experiences of his entire life and 
 had the privilege of attending the old church 
 where Washington Irving once worshiped. Af- 
 ter two years he became vice-principal of the 
 White Plains military school and during his five 
 years there he built up an institution that had 
 experienced heavy reverses and many hardships. 
 On leaving that school he became connected with 
 the Brooklyn Polytechnic School as a teacher. 
 His work ending each day at three in the after- 
 noon, he devoted the remainder of the afternoon 
 to study in the Columbia Law School, from 
 which he was graduated in 1873 with the degree 
 of LL. B. Meanwhile the school at White 
 Plains, under the control of Dr. Willis, had be- 
 come unpopular and Mr. Wright was urgently 
 entreated to return, being offered a partnership 
 in the institution. Returning to his old place, 
 he succeeded in bringing the students back to 
 the school and remained there for two years 
 more. 
 
 During 1875 Mr. Wright came by steamer to 
 Cahfornia: His first experience was unfortunate. 
 The Bank of California, in which his money was 
 
780 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 deposited, closed its doors, leaving him without 
 funds. However, without delay he secured a 
 position in the California Military Academy. At 
 the same time he was introduced to the supreme 
 court by Governor Haight and received the privi- 
 lege of practicing law in the state. In 1876 he 
 became connected with the University Mound 
 College at South San Francisco, but after five 
 months resigned to enter upon the practice of 
 law in Oakland, where in the spring of 1877 he 
 was appointed deputy city attorney, and for two 
 and one-half years continued in that position. 
 Having meanwhile purchased the Oakland 
 Academy he became its principal and remained 
 at its head for twelve years, meantime bringing 
 it to a high grade and raising its standard of 
 scholarship. On selling the academy he ac- 
 cepted a position in the Oakland high school. A 
 year later he was elected to the head of the 
 classical department of the high school in Port- 
 land, Ore., but resigned in favor of a former in- 
 cumbent of the office, and instead became prin- 
 cipal of the Livermore high school. After a 
 year in that position he became principal of 
 the high school at Winters, Yolo county, where 
 he remained for three years. His next position 
 was that of principal in the San Luis Ol.'ispo 
 high school. After a year devoted to recupera- 
 tion and rest at Los Gatos he became principal 
 of the high school at Arroyo Grande, San Luis 
 Obispo county, where he saved the high school 
 for the district. In 1900 he was elected princi- 
 pal of the Dinuba high school, established in 
 1899, and here he started the junior and senior 
 classes, and had charge of the first graduating 
 exercises. Going to Brentwood, Contra Costa 
 county, in 1902, he organized the high school and 
 had it in charge for a year, when he retired from 
 educational work and returned to Dinuba. Pre- 
 viou-s to this, in 1901, he had purchased twenty 
 acres adjoining Dinuba on the north, and a year 
 later had set out a vineyard in Thompson's seed- 
 less grapes, which already are in splendid bearing 
 condition and bring him quick returns for his 
 investment. After a lifetime devoted to educa- 
 tional activities he finds the care of his vineyard 
 a pleasant change, affording the outdoor exer- 
 cise he so much enjoys and bringing him into 
 direct touch with nature. As secretary of the 
 Farmers' Institute he proved helpful to that 
 movement and he has been interested in other 
 plans for the benefit of those who gain their live- 
 lihoods from the tilling of the soil. The Presby- 
 terian Church has received his support and al- 
 legiance for many years. Though not a partisan, 
 he is a stanch Republican, ever interested in the 
 party's principles and progress. While he is a 
 student and a scholar rather than a public man or 
 a politician, he has kept in touch with afifairs 
 connected with the prosperity and progress of 
 
 our nation, and has always been justly proud 
 of the fact that it was his suggestion, made to 
 Mr. Spafiford during the presidency of U. S. 
 Grant, that brought to the supreme court Judge 
 M. R. Waite, whose judicial career has been one 
 of unusual distinction and merited honors as 
 chief justice of the United States. 
 
 DENNIS A. LEONARD. A practical agri- 
 culturist, and a man of more than ordinary ex- 
 ecutive and business ability, D. A. Leonard, man- 
 ager for Miller & Lux, of the Dos Palos division, 
 holds a position of eminence among the leading 
 farmers of Fresno county. In the management 
 of the one hundred thousand acres of land under 
 his control, he exercises great skill and excellent 
 judgment, and by his systematic and scient^ic 
 methods of procedure has wrought wondrous 
 improvements. A son of John Leonard, he was 
 born July 18, i860, in Utica, Oneida county, 
 N. Y." 
 
 Settling when a young man in Utica, N. Y., 
 John Leonard helped build the Erie canal, and 
 afterv/ard assisted in the construction of some 
 of the first railroads of the state, at that time 
 using the old strap rail. On retiring from that 
 occupation, he bought land in Deerfield, Oneida 
 county, N. Y., and is still living on the farm 
 which he cleared and improved, being now a 
 venerable man of more than ninety years, and 
 one of the most respected and honored citizens 
 of the town. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Mary Allen, is now eighty years of age, and her 
 mother lived past the century mark. Of the 
 fifteen children born of their marriage nine grew 
 to years of maturity, and eight are living, four 
 of thern being residents of the Pacific coast. 
 
 Removing with his parents from Utica, N. Y., 
 to Deerfield, when a boy, D. A. Leonard worked 
 as chore boy on the home farm, completing his 
 education in the district schools. Beginning the 
 battle of life for himself at the age of sixteen 
 years, he worked for a while in Vermont, at the 
 end of a year returning to New York. Engag- 
 ing then in railroad work, he ran first as brake- 
 man, and later as conductor, on the Delaware, 
 Lackawanna & Western Railroad, running from 
 Utica to Binghamton. Resigning his position 
 as conductor in i88r, Mr. Leonard came to 
 Kern county, Cal., and as an employe of Carr & 
 Haggin had charge for four years of the heads 
 of the canals on the Zamjora. Locating in 
 Bakersfield in 1885, he opened a livery stable, 
 and was there engaged in business for six years. 
 In 1892 Mr. Leonard assumed the management 
 of the Dos Palos division, and has since con- 
 tinued in the employ of Miller & Lux. He is a 
 man of great energy and perseverance, and has 
 effected marked improvements on this immense 
 
A^-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 783 
 
 ranch since becoming its manager, and is now 
 extensively engaged in raising grain, alfalfa and 
 stock. Fifty thousand acres are under irrigation. 
 In Bakersfield, CaL, Mr. Leonard married 
 Maria Sanger, who was born in Alvarado, Cal., 
 where her father, Gustof Sanger, now a resident 
 of Inyo county, was a pioneer settler. Polit- 
 ically Mr. Leonard is a zealous supporter of the 
 principles of the Republican party, and while liv- 
 ing in Kern county served for several years as 
 deputy sheriff. Fraternally he is a member of 
 Los Banos Lodge, F. & A. M. ; of Fresno Chap- 
 ter, R. A. M. ; of Fresno Commandery, K. T. ; 
 of Los Banos Chapter, O. E. S., and of the 
 Knights of Pythias of Bakersfield. 
 
 WILLIAM BLANKENSHIP. During the 
 early years of California's history as a state, 
 when mining was attracting more attention than 
 agriculture and men were eager to attain riches 
 by a single bound, William Blankenship became 
 a pioneer of Tulare county, where he contented 
 himself with the peaceful pursuit of farming and 
 stock-raising. That he made no mistake in the 
 selection of an occupation is proved by his present 
 standing as a large land-owner and prosperous 
 cattleman. Since 1874 he has made his home 
 nine miles southeast of Tulare, on the Tule river, 
 where he owns all of section 16, and two hun- 
 dred acres of section 15, making a total of eight 
 hundred and forty acres in his home place, be- 
 sides which he has three hundred and sixty acres 
 one and one-half miles south of Visalia, where he 
 has alfalfa land and a large herd of cattle. 
 
 A native of West Virginia, Mr. Blankenship 
 was born on Brush creek, near Princeton, Mercer 
 county, March 14, 1830, being a son of William 
 and Polly (Martin) Blankenship, also natives of 
 Mercer county. The maternal grandfather, John 
 Martin, who traced his ancestry to Germany, was 
 born and reared in Mercer county, and with the 
 exception of the period of his service in the war 
 of 1812, devoted all of his active life to the occu- 
 pation of a planter in his native county. The 
 paternal grandfather, John Blankenship, was like- 
 wise a Virginian by birth, a planter by occupa- 
 tion, and during the war of 1812 served at the 
 front. At the time of his death he was one hun- 
 dred and four years of age. His father, who 
 bore the same name as himself, was born in 
 France and in youth became a soldier in the 
 French army. Enlisting under General Lafay- 
 ette, he accompanied that famous soldier to 
 America and fought on the side of the colonies. 
 At the close of the war he settled in Virginia 
 and took up the work of a planter in Mercer 
 county. 
 
 As early as 1833, when Iowa was still con- 
 sidered the remote west and while as yet few 
 
 civilizing influences had been brought to bear 
 upon its possibilities, William Blankenship, Sr., 
 accompanied by his wife and two children, jour- 
 neyed over the mountains from West Virginia to 
 the valley of the Mississippi, his family riding 
 pack-horses, while he walked by their side and 
 drove a cow. Their possessions were meager, 
 but their hopes were large, for before them lay 
 the wealth of unfilled acres and the possibilities 
 of a vast valley. His course led him through the 
 present city of Burlington, whose site was then 
 unmarked by even one house. Near that locality 
 he settled, but in three years moved to Jefferson 
 county and took up land thirty miles below Des 
 Moines, later going to Marion county. In the 
 fall of 1834 he lost his wife and was left with 
 three small children, namely : John, who became 
 a pioneer of 1850 in California and now makes 
 his home in Stockton ; William, of Tulare county ; 
 and Mrs. Nancy Sweem, of Stockton. After- 
 ward he married Rebecca Williams, who was 
 born in Indiana and died in Tulare county, Cal. 
 Of that marriage seven children were born, of 
 whom four now make their home in Tulare coun- 
 ty. During April of 1850 Mr. Blankenship 
 brought his family across the plains with ox- 
 teams, traveling along the North Platte, thence to 
 Salt Lake, on down the Humboldt river, and via 
 the Carson route to Hangtown, where he landed 
 on the 1st of September, 1850. After mining at 
 Mokelumhe Hill for two years he returned to 
 Iowa, but in 1853 again crossed the plains and 
 with a herd of cattle purchased in "the east he 
 began in the stock business at French Camp, near 
 Stockton. A second trip east was made in March, 
 1856, and in 1858 he came to California with 
 his son William, settling down to farm pursuits 
 at French Camp. A year later he came to Tu- 
 lare county and bought a farm one and one-half 
 miles south of Visalia, where he remained until 
 his death at seventy-five years. 
 
 The fact that the subject of this article is a 
 man of broad information may be attributed to 
 habits of close observation and to self-culture 
 rather than to any special advantages that fell to 
 his boyhood years. The son of a pioneer, living 
 in a sparsely settled region, he felt it a peculiar 
 fortune that he was within walking distance of 
 a log cabin where, during three months of the 
 year, a subscription school was conducted, where 
 boys and girls, seated on rude benches surmount- 
 ing a dirt floor, were initiated into the mysteries 
 of the three R's. Out of that life he passed into 
 the difficult struggle with nature in the improve- 
 ment of a raw tract of land. The difficulties and 
 obstacles which he was compelled to meet and 
 surmount fitted him to take hold of life as a Cali- 
 fornia pioneer, when, in 1850, he crossed the 
 plains with his father's family. After a brief ex- 
 perience in the mines of Calaveras county in 
 
784 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1852 he returned to Iowa by way of Panama and 
 in 1853 again crossed the plains, this time driving 
 three hundred head of cattle. While at the head 
 of the Humboldt he and his companions missed 
 six head of cattle and suspecting the Indians of 
 having stolen them, four of the men volunteered 
 to follow the red men. This they did, but failed 
 to overtake them and in eighteen hours returned 
 to camp, none the worse for their reckless ad- 
 venture. On his arrival in California he estab- 
 lished a stock ranch on a quarter section adjoin- 
 ing his father's half section at French Camp. In 
 March, 1856, his father returned to the east, and 
 the next month he too began the long journey to 
 his old home. During the voyage a stop of four- 
 teen days was made at the city of Havana. After 
 arriving at New Orleans he proceeded up the 
 Mississippi river to Iowa, where he married. In 
 1858, with an outfit of ox-teams and a drove of 
 two hundred head of cattle and horses, he and 
 his wife crossed the plains alone. Not an animal 
 was lost during the trip, but their experience 
 would have been different had they not followed 
 in the wake of Johnston's army. After his re- 
 turn to French Camp he remained on his old 
 farm for a year, but in 1859 removed to Tulare 
 county, and from that time until 1874 made his 
 home near Visalia, removing from there to his 
 present homestead. 
 
 In Marion county, Iowa, November 3, 1857, 
 Mr. Blankenship married Miss Melissa E. 
 Guthrie, a native of Mercer county, Ohio, and 
 a lady of attractive qualities, superior character 
 and unusual capabilities. Born February 10, 
 1834, she was a child when the family moved to 
 Indiana and in 1856 accompanied them, to Iowa, 
 where she married. In religion she is a faithful 
 member of the Christian Church, in which her 
 brother. Rev. J. D. Guthrie, pastor of a church- 
 at Oskaloosa, Iowa, is a leading and well-known 
 minister. The family was founded in America 
 by John Guthrie, a native of Scotland and a pio- 
 neer of Georgia. During the course of his serv- 
 ice in the Revolutionary war he received a severe 
 wound through the body, but recovered and re- 
 sumed the work of a planter in Georgia. In that 
 state occurred the birth of his son, James, who 
 early in life settled in Ohio and there followed 
 the tilling of the soil and the trade of a black- 
 smith. At an early day he settled in Jasper 
 county, Iowa, where he improved a tract of raw 
 land and supplemented his income by work at 
 his trade. The lady who was the companion of 
 his youth and survived to bless his age bore the 
 maiden name of Nancy Corn and was born in 
 Kentucky, her father, George, having emigrated 
 from Germany to America, settled in Kentucky, 
 served in the Revolutionary war, and late in life 
 made his home in Ohio. Both James and Nancy 
 Guthrie died in Iowa. Of their fourteen children 
 
 all but two attained mature years, but only three 
 are living, and of these Mrs. Blankenship alone 
 makes her home in California at this writing. Of 
 the children born to Mr. and Mrs. Blankenship 
 who are living we make the following mention: 
 John R. married Lena L. Scruggs and has two 
 sons, Ewell C. and Roy W. ; Bert G. married 
 Mary Herndon and has two daughters, Mary E. 
 and Retha E. The two sons mentioned, John R. 
 and Bert G., reside on the old homestead, the 
 former working as a farmer, while the latter 
 makes a specialty of dairy business. Delia Grace 
 became the wife of F. J. Smith, of Grass Valley, 
 and has one son, Frank W. The three oldest 
 children in the family are deceased. Ludenia L. 
 died at the age of eighteen years. Mary F. died 
 when three years old. Blank William died in 
 November, 1897, when thirty-four years old; in 
 1 88 1 he married Lucy Hardaway, by whom he 
 had two children, William R. and Kate M. At 
 no time during his busy life has Mr. Blankenship 
 been willing to accept office, and he has taken 
 no part in politics aside from voting the Repub- 
 lican ticket at national elections. In county elec- 
 tions he maintains an independent attitude, giv- 
 ing his support to the men whom he considers 
 best calculated to honorably and intelligently 
 carry out the wishes of the people. Honorable 
 in every transaction, sagacious in judgment, a 
 friend to the needy, hospitable to all, he has 
 proved himself an ideal representative of the 
 honored class of pioneers. 
 
 STEPHEN A. TYLER. To Stephen A. Ty- 
 ler belongs the distinction of being one of the 
 early settlers in the neighborhood of Sanger, 
 Fresno county, and for the past twehty-three 
 years he has followed farming, ranking among 
 the successful orchardists and vine growers in 
 his locality. An Ohioan by birth, he was born 
 July 8, 1847, ^"fi his youth and early manhood 
 were spent in his native state. After leaving 
 school he learned the blacksmith trade, which 
 he followed until he attained his majority. His 
 father, Stephen I. Tyler, was born in Providence, 
 R. I. He was a sailor, and for many years was 
 a captain on the great lakes. He was united in 
 marriage with Miss Alzina Edmonds of New 
 York state, and about 1840 he retired from 
 marine life, settling in Ohio and devoting the 
 remainder of his years to the useful trade of a 
 blacksmith. He died at the age of fifty-five 
 years. 
 
 At the age of twenty-one Stephen A. Tyler 
 went into Michigan, where he lived for a time, 
 but subsequently moved to Tennessee and fol- 
 lowed farming in that state until 1876. It was 
 in that year that he conceived the idea of com- 
 ing to the Pacific slope and upon his arrival in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 785 
 
 California found a desirable location in Yolo 
 county, where he engaged in farming for three 
 years. The following year he became a resident 
 of San Joaquin county, where he resided for one 
 year. In 1881 he looked about him for a good 
 investment and a permanent location for a home, 
 and as Fresno' county appeared to offer both, he 
 was induced to purcha^ land there. His orig- 
 inal purchase, which consisted of eighty acres, 
 was located one mile south of the farm which is 
 his home at this time, and upon it he followed his 
 chosen vocation for six years. He then pur- 
 chased the farm upon which he still resides, con- 
 sisting of sixty acres located in the Parrie school 
 district, about five miles northeast of Sanger. 
 
 His ranch is well improved and very product- 
 ive and bespeaks the prosperity and thrift of its 
 owner. By his marriage in Michigan Mr. Tyler 
 was united with Sarah Anderson, formerly of 
 New York, and they have six children, as fol- 
 lows : George A., W. Plarvey, William J., Effie 
 M., Ella M. and Charles. The family unite 
 in worshiping at the Baptist Church, of which 
 Mr. and Mrs. Tyler are members. In his polit- 
 ical convictions Mr. Tyler is active in the inter- 
 ests of the Prohibition party. 
 
 JAMES DANIEL WAGNER, M. D., fur- 
 nishes a striking example of one who has made 
 a success of his life work from a professional 
 and a business point of view, and during the 
 twenty-three years of his residence in the vi- 
 cinity of Selma, Cal., he has been largely instru- 
 mental in the upbuilding of this section in addi- 
 tion to fulfilling his many obligations as a gen- 
 eral practitioner. 
 
 A native of Savannah, Hardin county, Tenn., 
 where his birth took place November 30, 1844, 
 Dr. Wagner is the fourth child in a family of 
 thirteen children born to his parents, being the 
 eldest son of this family, of which seven were 
 sons and six were daughters. On the paternal 
 side, his great-grandfather left his home in 
 Alsace-Lorraine, Germany, immigrating to the 
 United States at an early age, and became a sol- 
 dier in the Revolutionary war. He settled in 
 Virginia, which was also the home of his ma- 
 ternal ancestors. The maternal great-grand- 
 father was also a soldier, and served as captain 
 on General Washington's staff. While serving 
 as such, he was presented with a watch by the 
 general, and this watch is now a much valued 
 relic in the possession of Dr. Wagner. In tracing 
 the lineage down one generation farther, we find 
 the paternal grandfather, Daniel Wagner, to 
 have been a native of Virginia and a farmer by 
 occupation. He left that state for a home in 
 the south, locating in Hardin county, Tenn., a 
 
 pioneer settler of that county, and it was there 
 he died. His son, Matthias, also a Virginian 
 by birth, was the father of Dr. Wagner, and he 
 also settled in Tennessee, leaving Hardin county 
 about 1870, and locating near Montague, Tex., 
 and it was in that vicinity that he followed farm 
 pursuits and stock raising until his death, which 
 took place at the age of seventy-three years. 
 He was united in marriage with Miss Mary Gra- 
 ham, a native of Tennessee, and a daughter of 
 James Graham, who although born in Virginia 
 passed his last days in Hardin county, Tenn. 
 The mother of Dr. Wagner died in Texas when 
 about sixty years old. 
 
 Completing the course in the common schools 
 of Tennessee, James D. Wagner became a stu- 
 dent at the University of Nashville, Tenn., in 
 1869, graduating from the medical department 
 of that institution in 1873. Soon afterward he 
 engaged as a general practitioner at his old home 
 in Tennessee, and continued to live there for 
 several years. In 1881 he sought a new loca- 
 tion in California, locating at that time on the 
 present site of Selma, which was then known 
 as Selma Switch. Here he also began the prac- 
 tice of his profession, which has occupied the 
 greater part of his time during the intervening 
 years, and he enjoys today a practice second 
 to none in his locality. He has certainly aided 
 materially in the- upbuilding of Selma, and in 
 making it what it is today. Although the popu- 
 lation is but two thousand, it has all the con- 
 veniences of a city many times that size, and 
 this is due largely to the influence of such men 
 as Dr. Wagner. He was one of a company who 
 erected the Masonic Temple, and it was due 
 largely to his efforts that the edifice of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church South was built 
 in Selma in 1887. 
 
 In May, 1861, Dr. Wagner enhsted in the 
 Confederate army, being then but sixteen years 
 old, and served under Gen. Joseph Johnston in 
 the Armv of the Tennessee, and in General 
 Wheeler's' cavalry, in Company G, First Con- 
 federate Regiment. At the battle of New Hope 
 Church a shell struck a tree behind which he 
 was standing, and the shock rendered him sense- 
 less for several hours. He was rolled up in a 
 blanket for burial, which was deferred owing to 
 the necessary retreat, and in the meantime he re- 
 covered consciousness. 
 
 By his marriage in Tennessee, Dr. Wagner 
 was united with Miss Elizabeth Gray, a native 
 of Hickman county, that state. Nine children 
 blessed this union, namely: William and. Wal- 
 ter are deceased ; Dr. J. H. is a graduate of the 
 Vanderbilt University of Tennessee; Mary is 
 also deceased; Alice is attending the State 
 Normal at Los Angeles; John H. is deceased; 
 Ella is also attending the State Normal, as is 
 
786 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 also Lillian ; the j'oungest child died in infancy. 
 Mrs. Wagner died in Selma March ii, 1888. 
 
 Fraternally Dr. Wagner is allied with Selma 
 Lodge No. 2TJ, F. & A. M., Trigo Chapter No. 
 69, R. A. M., of Fresno. In politics he is a 
 stanch supporter of the Democratic party, hav- 
 ing served many times as a delegate to county 
 conventions, and as a member of the state cen- 
 tral committee. In religious circles he is an 
 active member of the Methbdist Episcopal 
 Church South. Such men as Dr. Wagner are a 
 valuable acquisition to any community. 
 
 AUGUST JERNBERG. As agent for the 
 Crocker-Huffman Land and Water Company, 
 Mr. Jernberg also represents the Homeseekers 
 Land Agency, with offices in the large cities of 
 the Union, and through these mediums has as- 
 sisted in disposing of the forty-five thousand-acre 
 tract in Merced county owned by the former com- 
 pany, all of which is available for growing fruit 
 or alfalfa. This land can be purchased for $35 
 and up, per acre, with the assurance that the 
 best system of irrigation prevails. Every in- 
 ducement is given to those of limited means to 
 build a home. 
 
 By trade Mr. Jernberg is a practical machinist, 
 and comes of a family identified with that oc- 
 cupation for generations. One member, more 
 ambitious than the rest, emigrated from Ger- 
 many and settled in Sweden, his example being 
 followed by his descendants, who were peaceful 
 and law-abiding citizens. In Wernland, Sweden, 
 Mr. Jernberg was born March 17, 1858, and the 
 same kingdom was the birthplace of his par- 
 ents, John and Ulrika (Lovequist) Jernberg, the 
 latter the daughter of Olaf Lovequist, a harness- 
 maker by occupation. That the family were in 
 moderate circumstances, and encouraged inde- 
 pendence at an early age, was demonstrated in 
 the case of all the children, of which there were 
 eight, five daughters and three sons. Of these, 
 all but two daughters came to America, and the 
 sons all engaged as ironworkers or rnachinists. 
 While Mr. Jernberg has been forging his way 
 to the front in real estate circles, his brothers, 
 Carl and John, are equally industrious, the for- 
 mer being mechanical engineer and a partner 
 of the Standard Forgings Company of Chicago, 
 and superintendent of the plant at Indiana Har- 
 bor, while the latter brother assists him in the 
 last named capacity. Mr. Jernberg's father was 
 an engineer for his entire active life, and died 
 in Sweden, although he had formerly spent a 
 number of years in Chicago, 111. 
 
 Coming to Chicago, 111., about 1879, Mr. Jern- 
 berg became identified with the Chicago Bolt & 
 Forge Company, was raised to the position of 
 foreman in 1880, and remained with the con- 
 
 cern until deciding to embark in the real estate 
 business in 1886. Chicago at that time offered 
 inducements to men thus inclined, and from pur- 
 chasing small tracts of land outlying the city, he 
 enlarged his business in all directions, laying out 
 the additions to west part of Englewood, and in- 
 vesting in lands in Austin, Morgan Park, West 
 Pullman and South Chicago. At the same time 
 he became identified with the well-known real 
 estate concerns, of the Union Pacific, Western, 
 and Koltz Brothers, operating successfully in the 
 purchase and disposal of their various proper- 
 ties. The same tendency which had prompted 
 the immigration of his family to Chicago, in- 
 duced him to dispose of his Chicago interests 
 and put his fortunes to the hazard in the west. 
 Arriving in California in 1902, he traveled ex- 
 tensively over the state, finally selecting Merced 
 as a promising and favorable field of operation. 
 He practically laid out the Bradley addition of 
 one hundred and sixty-one lots, and has since 
 vigorously and with telling results, promoted its 
 advancement to a thriving and useful commun- 
 ity of interests. He is a member of the Cham- 
 ber of Commerce. 
 
 Mr. Jernberg is improving a home place of 
 thirteen and a half acres, where he is living with 
 his family, and where may be found the com- 
 forts and luxuries dictated by a refined and ex- 
 acting intelligence. His first wife, Hilda Stope, 
 whom he married in Sweden, died during his res- 
 idence in Chicago, leaving to his care seven chil- 
 dren, in order of birth as follows : Ellen, a resi- 
 dent of Chicago ; Hilda, the wife of F. Bryant, of 
 Chicago ; Gustav, a machinist by trade ; and 
 Laura, Julia, August and Ruth. His second mar- 
 riage in 1900 united him with Anna LiHa, a na- 
 tive of Sweden and formerly a resident of San 
 Francisco. Mr. Jernberg is a man of pleasing 
 address, and courteous in dealing with patrons. 
 He is rated as one of the substantial men of the 
 community, having inspired confidence and sup- 
 port from the time of his arrival. 
 
 JACOB RANDOL HOLDRIDGE. The 
 family of which Jacob Randol Holdridge of Tu- 
 lare county is a representative was established 
 in Connecticut over four hundred years ago. The 
 emigrating ancestor located in that state and 
 succeeding generations have followed him, mem- 
 bers of the family taking an active part in the 
 growth and development of the country. The 
 great-grandfather of Mr. Holdridge was a pa- 
 triot in the Revolutionary war, while his grand- 
 father served in ,the war of 1812. His father, 
 Randol Holdridge, a native of New London 
 county, Conn., was a brick and rock mason by 
 trade and also engaged in farming as a means 
 of livelihood. Both himself and wife, the latter 
 
<^ (Jy? <;drUi^^Zi^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 789 
 
 being in maidenhood Emeline Read, of the same 
 locality, died in Connecticut. They were the 
 parents of sixteen children, five sons and eleven 
 daughters, of whom the tenth in order of birth 
 was Jacob Randol Holdridge, born in New Lon- 
 don county. Conn., March 12, 1849. 
 
 Reared upon the paternal farm in his native 
 itate, Mr. Holdridge received a rather limited 
 education in the common schools which he at- 
 tended for a time. When only nineteen years 
 old he decided to follow the example of his 
 earliest American ancestor and seek a home in 
 a newer country. He accordingly came to Cali- 
 fornia in 1868 via the Isthmus of Panama, and 
 upon his safe arrival in the state located in the 
 Sacramento valley near Dixon. Bringing to 
 bear in the prosecution of his work as an agri- 
 culturist the qualities of his New England an- 
 cestry and training, he met with success and 
 soon acquired a competency. He continued in 
 the Sacramento valley, devoting considerable 
 time and attention to the cultivation of various 
 fruits, until 1891, when he sold his property and 
 came to Tulare county and assumed the manage- 
 ment of the Eppinger ranch in the vicinity of 
 Visalia. He soon purchased one thousand acres 
 of land located east of Portersville, in the Moun- 
 tain View district, which he has owned since 
 1892. In 1901 he bought his present home 
 property, a half section of grain land nine miles 
 north of Portersville, where he is now living. 
 
 In Dixon, Cal., Mr. Holdridge was united in 
 marriage with Isabel Marian Grieve, a native of 
 Illinois, who died at Davisville, Yolo county, 
 Cal., Tuesday, November 4, 1884, at the age of 
 twenty-four years. She was a daughter of 
 Robert and Elizabeth Grieve, the former a na- 
 tive of Scotland and the latter of England. They 
 were pioneers of Illinois," emigrating there prior 
 to the Blackhawk war, and were also pioneers of 
 California, coming overland by ox team and ex- 
 periencing many hardships and trials, as well as 
 attacks by Indians. They died in Dixon, Cal. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Holdridge were the parents of 
 three children, namely : Ernest, located on the 
 South Tule river ; Robert, deceased ; and Hazel 
 Isabel, at home with her father. In his political 
 convictions Mr. Holdridge is an adherent of the 
 principles advocated in the platform of the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 EZRA M. STEVENS. Distinguished as one of 
 the most successful and progressive business men 
 of Fresno county, E. M. Stevens of Selma is 
 widely known as a prominent vineyardist and 
 orchardist. During the thirty years that he has 
 been a resident of the Pacific coast fortune has 
 favored him with her kindest smiles, bringing him 
 wealth and influence. His investments have in- 
 40 
 
 variably proved profitable, and he is now one of 
 the most extensive land owners in this part of 
 the state, and a large stockholder in various lead- 
 ing oil companies. He was bom April 28, 1840, 
 in Ontario, Canada, a son of Enoch Stevens. 
 His great-grandfather, Adam Stevens, was a life- 
 long resident of New Jersey, and came from sub- 
 stantial colonial stodc. David Stevens, Mr. 
 Stevens' grandfather, was born in New Jersey, 
 but when a young man migrated to Canada, 
 where he was an inn-keeper for many years, but 
 afterward became a farmer. 
 
 Brought up in Canada, near Toronto, Enoch 
 Stevens was engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 during his entire active career, being an extensive 
 and prosperous farmer. He died in Blenheim, 
 Ontario, where the last half of his life was spent. 
 He married Clarissa Hall, a life-long resident of 
 Ontario, and they became the parents of twelve 
 children, six girls and six boys. One child died 
 in infancy, and the others grew to years of ma- 
 turity, E. M., the special subject of this sketch, 
 being the- fifth child in succession of birth. 
 
 Growing to manhood beneath the parental roof- 
 tree, E. M. Stevens acquired a practical educa- 
 tion in the common schools, and a thorough 
 knowledge of agriculture on the home farm. In 
 1869 he came to California, arriving December 
 30, and the following six months was engaged 
 in farming in Placer county. Going back to 
 Canada at the end of that time, he remained there 
 three years. Returning to California in 1873, 
 Mr. Stevens bought land near Santa Rosa, and 
 lived there two and one-half years. He subse- 
 quently spent one year in Sacramento and one 
 year in Visalia. Locating in Fresno county in 
 1877, eight miles east of Selma, he purchased a 
 ranch of three hundred and twenty acres, and has 
 here improved and developed a magnificent vine- 
 yard of two. hundred and twenty-five acres, 
 and an orchard of seventy acres, the remainder 
 of his land being devoted to alfalfa. In dispos- 
 ing of the fruits of his vineyard and orchard, 
 Mr. Stevens does his own packing, his raisins 
 being placed upon the market under the name of 
 Ivy Bran^J. 
 
 Possessing unusual business activity and en- 
 ergy, Mr. Stevens is a large property owner, hav- 
 ing one thousand acres of land in Kern county; 
 one hundred and sixty acres in Tulare county.; 
 town and residence property in Fresno ; one 
 thousand two hundred and eighty acres in Adams 
 county. Wash. ; and owning mineral land,, which 
 he is interested in developing, in the foothills of 
 the Sierra Nevada and Fresno mountains. He 
 is financially interested in the oil industry, being 
 a stockholder in the London Oil Company, of 
 which he is the president, and which is develop- 
 ing fifteen hundred acres of land in Coalinga, 
 Fresno county. He pays considerable attention 
 
790 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to mining pursuits, and is now working on the 
 Golden Eagle and the Bonanza mines, and is in- 
 terested to some extent in the Apache mine. 
 
 In Ontario, Canada, Mr. Stevens married 
 Emma DeHart, who was born in Toronto, Can- 
 ada, a daughter of Nicholas DeHart, a well-to- 
 do farmer, now living retired from active pur- 
 suits. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Stevens, 
 two children have been born, namely: Reuben 
 E., in business with his father, and Edmund Les- 
 lie, deceased. Mr. Stevens is a Republican in 
 politics, and a member of the Methodist Church. 
 He is much interested in the cause of education, 
 and was formerly one of the directors of the 
 Reedley high school. He is a resident of the 
 city of'Selma, his home being pleasantly located 
 at the corner of Second and Young streets. 
 
 are the parents of seven children, namely : Nel- 
 lie, William, John, Mabel, Aubrey, Francis and 
 Leslie. Fraternally Mr. Williamson belongs to 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and is 
 a charter member of the Knights of the Macca- 
 bees. 
 
 WILLIAM C. WILLIAMSON. In the 
 eastern part of Contra Costa county, just south 
 of Antioch, is located the well-improved and 
 highly cultivated ranch of William C. William- 
 son, which evidences the ability, energy and in- 
 dustry of its prosperous owner. He came to 
 the state empty-handed less than thirty years 
 ago, a young man of twenty years, his only cap- 
 ital a strong constitution and unlimited ambition, 
 and from the foot of the ladder has climbed 
 steadily upward until he holds rank to-day with 
 the most successful ranchers of the county. 
 
 A. native of Missouri, Mr. Williamson was 
 born October 27, 1858, a son of Jesse and Mis- 
 souri Ann (Stallcup) Williamson, the father be- 
 ing a miller by trade. He was reared and edu- 
 cated in Sullivan county, Mo., remaining in 
 that location until 1878 when he decided to try 
 his fortunes on the Pacific slope. Accordingly 
 he came west in that year and located at Men- 
 docino City where he spent one year in the lum- 
 ber section, but not content with hfs prospects 
 for a future success, he came to Contra Costa 
 county and rented a ranch upon which he en- 
 gaged in the cultivation of grain. He met with 
 a success which brought him financial returns 
 sufficient to justify the purchase of a quarter sec- 
 tion of land in 1888 from Mrs. Thomas Shan- 
 non. This property he continued to cultivate and 
 improve and when it was all paid for he imme- 
 diately purchased two hundred and forty acres 
 more, all of this land being now devoted to the 
 cultivation of wheat, barley and hay, the first 
 named, however, occupying the greater part of 
 his attention. Among the improvements which 
 have added value to his property are a comfort- 
 able residence and commodious barn. 
 
 In California, November, 1888, Mr. William- 
 son was united in marriage with Elizabeth Shan- 
 non, a native of the state, and a daughter of 
 Thomas Shannon, who is now deceased. They 
 
 C. B. DRIVER. Identified with CaHfornia 
 not only by reason of a sojourn of more than 
 twenty years in the state, but also by reason of 
 his loyal devotion to the state's welfare and 
 progress, Mr. Driver is typical of the twentieth 
 century spirit of progress and enthusiasm which 
 is bringing to California a foremost position 
 among the states of our nation. He is a mem- 
 ber of an eastern family, his parents, James A. 
 and Mary J. (Smith) Driver, having been na- 
 tives respectively of Maryland and Ohio. After 
 some years upon an Ohio farm his father went 
 as far west as Colorado, where he became a pio- 
 neer in the now well known and prosperous com- 
 munity of Greeley, and there for some years he 
 engaged in farming and raising sheep. In 1883 
 he brought his family to CaHfornia and settled 
 on a small farm near Fresno. Here he spent the 
 remainder of his days, dying in 1887, and since 
 then his wife has made her home in Fresno. Of 
 their ten children all but two are still living, C. 
 B., having been born in Lorain county, Ohio, 
 May 15, 1863. At the time of the family's re- 
 moval to Colorado he was nine years of age, 
 and his subsequent schooling was obtained at 
 Greeley. 
 
 When twenty years of age, in 1883, Mr. Driv- 
 er accompanied his father's family to C.ilifornia 
 and settled at Fresno. Two years later he went 
 to Oakland and there served an apprenticeship 
 to the trade of stereotyping and electrotyping, 
 which he followed in that city for some years. 
 In 1889 he went to Australia and at Melbourne 
 put in the machinery for an electrotyping and 
 stereotyping plant, which he conducted for 
 eighteen months. Returning from Australia to 
 California, he resumed work at his trade in Oak- 
 land, but after two years discontinued that em- 
 ployment and took up the occupation of vine- 
 yardist at Fresno. After nine years in that coun- 
 t}-, in 1901 he bought one hundred and sixty 
 acres of open land two miles south of Dinuba 
 and in 1903 purchased another quarter section 
 adjoining, so that he now owns three hundred 
 and twenty acres. The entire tract is planted in 
 vineyards, one-half being in Thompson's seedless 
 grapes, while the other one hundred and sixty is 
 in Muscats, with the exception of ten acres in 
 Sultanas. 
 
 While in Australia Mr. Driver met and mar- 
 ried Miss Jean E. Eraser, a native of Australia, 
 and the eldest daughter of William and Jane 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 791 
 
 (Stuart) Fraser, the latter a relative of James 
 Watt. At an early age William Fraser left his 
 native home in Scotland and tried his fortunes in 
 Australia, where for years he was identified with 
 the lumber business. At this writing he still 
 makes his home there. In his family there are 
 four daughters and three sons now living, all of 
 whom remain in their home land with the ex- 
 ception of the daughter, Jean, in America. Of 
 their union Mr. and Mrs. Driver have three chil- 
 dren, Paul, Stephen and Ruth, who are being 
 given excellent educations and the most thorough 
 preparations for positions of responsibility in 
 the social and business world. In religion Mr. 
 Driver is identified with the Seventh Day Advent 
 Church and for some years has officiated as a 
 deacon of the congregation at his home town. 
 
 DAVID BROWN DUDLEY. Worthy of 
 mention among the pioneer agriculturists of 
 California who have attained success from a 
 financial point of view is David Brown Dudley, 
 residing near Los Banos, where he has a clear 
 title to two highly-cultivated and well-improved 
 farms. He is one of the progressive and ener- 
 getic farmers and dairymen of this section of 
 Merced county, and is complete master of the 
 honorable calHng which he is following, while 
 his sterling integrity and upright manhood fully 
 entitle him to the position which he holds in 
 the estimation of the people of the community. 
 A son of John Dudley, he was born, August lo, 
 1840, in Readfield, Me., of English ancestry, 
 being able to trace his descent from the Duke 
 of Dudley. His Grandfather Dudley served as 
 a soldier in the Revolutionary war, after which 
 he settled as a farmer in Kennebec county, Me., 
 purchasing land in Readfield. 
 
 A life-long resident of Readfield, Me., John 
 Dudley chose the independent calling to which 
 he was reared, spending his days as a tiller of 
 the soil. Patriotic and loyal as a citizen, he 
 served in the war of 1812. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Polly Brown, was born in 
 West Hampden, Me., and died on the home 
 farm, in Readfield. She bore her husband 
 twelve children, nine of whom grew to years of 
 maturity, David Brown, the subject of this 
 sketch, the youngest child of the household, be- 
 ing the only one now living. 
 
 Brought up on the parental homestead, David 
 B. Dudley acquired his elementary education 
 in the district schools, completing it at Kent's 
 Hill Seminary. Thus equipped, he subsequently 
 taught school several terms, turning his atten- 
 tion to farming during the long vacations. After 
 the breaking out of the Civil war, Mr. Dudley, 
 fired with the same patriotic zeal that inspired 
 his ancestors, tried to enlist in a Maine regi- 
 
 ment, but having lost the sight of one eye was 
 rejected. In 1863, on account of ill health, he 
 started for California, hoping in this sunn}' 
 climate to regain his pristine vigor. Leaving 
 New York on the liner North Star in November, 
 he sailed by way of Panama, where he took 
 passage on the ship Constitution, which landed 
 him in San Francisco in June, 1864. 
 
 Going at once to Eureka, Cal., Mr. Dudley 
 taught school there during the summer, and then 
 entered the employ of a stockman, and for 
 eighteen months was engaged in gathering up 
 cattle and taking them in large herds to Bald 
 Hill. Starting then in business on his own ac- 
 count, he located about fifty miles south of 
 Eureka, where he pre-empted one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land in the Mattole country. To 
 this he afterward added by purchase until he 
 owned eight hundred acres of land, and on this 
 ranch he was extensively and successfully en- 
 gaged in dairying and stock-raising for a num- 
 ber of seasons. Leasing his ranch in 1878, Mr. 
 Dudley started out on a camping expedition, 
 and in the two ensuing years visited twenty- 
 three dififerent counties in this state. Subsequent- 
 ly locating in Pacheco, Contra Costa county. 
 he purchased a ranch, and was there engaged 
 in raising fruit, hay and dairying for seven 
 years. Disposing of that property in 1892, Mr. 
 Dudley came to Los Banos, intending to settle 
 here permanently. Buying ten acres of alfalfa, 
 lying north of the park, he enlarged and re- 
 paired the buildings, and embarked in the dairy 
 business. He has been exceedingly prosperous 
 in his undertakings, and has since bought ad- 
 joining land, having now one hundred and fifty 
 acres, all under irrigation, and the most of it 
 planted to alfalfa. He made improvements of 
 great value on the estate, putting up windmills, 
 and stocking his dairy with over one hundred 
 head of cattle. Renting this large ranch in 1903, 
 Mr. Dudley sold all of his cattle, and in 1904 
 bought a smaller farm, consisting of forty-five 
 acres of land almost adjoining his other ranch, 
 and is here busily and profitably engaged in 
 raising alfalfa and dairying, his farm being one 
 of the best in this locality. 
 
 In San Leandro, Cal., June 4, 1865, Mr. 
 Dudley married Addie M. Bean, who was born 
 in Readfield, Me., and came to California in 
 1865. She comes of New England Quaker 
 stock, being a daughter of John Bean, and 
 granddaughter of Joel Bean, prominent mem- 
 bers of the Quaker Society of Maine. Her 
 father, who followed the occupation to which 
 he was brought up, was a woolen manufacturer 
 and miller, and one of the brave soldiers of the 
 war of 1812. He married Sophronia Dorr, who 
 was born in New Hampshire, and died in Los 
 Banos, Cal., at the home of Mr, and Mrs. 
 
792 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Dudley, at the venerable age of ninety years. 
 Her father, Stephen Dorr, was a prominent 
 attorney of New Hampshire, and served in the 
 state legislature. Mr. and Mrs. Dudley are the 
 parents of three children, namely : Chester D., 
 in partnership with his father; Annie A., the 
 wife of J. E. Smith, of Pacific Grove; and 
 Serene S., wife of R. L. Miller, of Pacific Grove. 
 Politically Mr. Dudley is a steadfast Republican. 
 
 JOHN M. VAN EMON. Born in Minne- 
 sota, near Stillwater, Mr. Van Emon is a son 
 of Cyrus and Massah (Miller) Van Emon. His 
 father was a native of Ohio, having been born 
 near Youngstown. He was a son of Michael, 
 who was a native of Pennsylvania and who set- 
 tled in Ohio in 1805. The great-grandfather of 
 our subject emigrated to this country from Hol- 
 land and settled in Pennsylvania. Cyrus Van 
 Emon followed farming in Ohio for several 
 years, but later removed to Indiana, where he 
 lived until 1857, when he located near Still- 
 water, Minn. There he continued farming until 
 1862, then going to Rice county, and in 1876 
 migrating to Linn county, Iowa, where he lived 
 until 1884, the year of his arrival in California. 
 Locating in Fresno county, he again engaged in 
 farming. He died near Portersville in 1898, at 
 the age of seventy-four years. His wife was 
 born in Indiana, a daughter of Joshua Miller, 
 a native of New Jersey. By her union with Mr. 
 Van Emon she became the mother of seven chil- 
 dren, all of whom are living, as follows : Phoebe, 
 wife of John J. Smith of Portersville ; Isabelle, 
 wife of Thomas H. Smith of Portersville ; Sarah 
 D., wife of Charles Graham of Minnesota ; 
 Louisa, wife of William Maxwell of Fresno; 
 John M., the next in order of birth ; Walter S., 
 who resides in Fresno, and William E., whose 
 sketch will be found on another page of this 
 volume. 
 
 John M. Van Emon first saw the light of day 
 on January 22, 1858. He was brought up on his 
 father's farm, attending the district schools and 
 assisting in the labors about the home place until 
 he was eighteen years of age. He then went to 
 Iowa, where he remained until 1878, when he 
 came to California. Locating in Tulare county 
 he at once became engaged in farming, which 
 occupation he has since followed with marked 
 success. In 1880 he returned east and in Lis- 
 bon, Iowa, married Rosa A. Files. The next 
 year he and his wife came to California and Mr. 
 Van Emon homesteaded a ranch six miles north 
 of Portersville, where he engaged in grain rais- 
 ing. Later he bought a farm on the Tule river, 
 four miles west of Portersville. There he be- 
 came a large stock-raiser and made his home 
 until 1896, when he removed to the place which 
 
 is his present place of residence. From time to 
 time he has added to his first purchase until he 
 now owns eleven hundred acres, all in the vicin- 
 ity of Portersville. While he has, to some ex- 
 tent, engaged in the cattle business, his entire 
 land is practically devoted to grain and at times 
 he rents additional land, having upwards of five 
 thousand acres in grain. He owns two com- 
 bined harvesters and reapers, and when both are 
 in operation it requires eighty head of horses and 
 mules to propel them. His farm is within one- 
 half mile of the Zante station on the Southern 
 Pacific, making the shipping facilities equal to 
 any ranch in the county. Recently Mr. Van 
 Emon has subdivided three hundred and twenty 
 acres of his land into ten and twenty acre tracts, 
 which are on the market, the whole being the 
 best of orange land. The ranch is supplied with 
 a fine pumping plant of forty horsepower. This 
 makes it possible to irrigate part of his property 
 independent of ditch companies. 
 
 As a result of his marriage four children have 
 been born, as follows : Ray C, Mabel G., now 
 the wife of Glover Eldridge of Poplar ; Maudie 
 E., now living at home, and Earl E., also at 
 home. The mother of these children died in 
 1904. 
 
 In politics Mr. Van Emon is a Republican, 
 but aside from being a trustee of the Welcome 
 school district, he has never cared to take part 
 in public affairs. In the conduct of his own 
 business he finds all that he can properly attend 
 to. Fraternally he is prominently identified with 
 the Odd Fellows, being a member of the En- 
 campment of which he is past chief patriarch. 
 
 Mr. Van Emon is what the world styles a self- 
 made man. He has succeeded in his ventures 
 and is looked upon as one of the leading men of 
 Tulare county. As a citizen he never fails to 
 perform his part. Every movement tending to- 
 ward progress has his hearty support. He is a 
 firm believer in all that is modern, and is counted 
 one of the most progressive men in the state. 
 Much in the lives of such men is worthy of emu- 
 lation. Much can be learned from the experi- 
 ences of those who have fought their way alone 
 and written the word "success"' on the pages of 
 time. 
 
 JOSEPH M. SMITH, cashier and manager of 
 the newly incorporated Farmers' Bank of Selma, 
 Cal., was born in Gibson county, Ind., February 
 20, 1874. Mr. Smith is the youngest of two 
 children, being the only son born to W. L. and 
 Annie J. (Calhoun) Smith. The parents were 
 both born in Gibson county, Ind. The father, 
 a man of scholarly attainments, followed teach- 
 ing as a profession, not only in Indiana but in 
 Santa Barbara, Cal, whither he removed in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 795 
 
 1875. In later years he located in Fresno county 
 and turned his attention to carpenter work in 
 connection with farm pursuits in that locality, 
 where he still resides. In 1887 he lost his wife, 
 who died in Selma. 
 
 Joseph M. Smith had educational advantages 
 above the ordinary, and his common school edu- 
 cation was supplemented by a complete course 
 in the Fresno Business College. It was there he 
 secured the necessary training so essential to 
 success in his after years. After leaving col- 
 lege, he entered the em.ploy of the Wells Fargo 
 Express Company, in Selma, where he filled a 
 clerical position until 1890. The two years fol- 
 lowing were spent by him in Texas in farm pur- 
 suits, but returning to Selma in 1892, he re- 
 sumed his former position in the office of the 
 express company, and spent two additional years 
 in their employ. In 1894 Mr. Smith first be- 
 came identified with the banking business, be- 
 coming clerk and bookkeeper in the Bank of 
 Selma,, retaining his position until 1897. In 
 January of that year he accepted a more lucra- 
 tive position one step up the ladder, with the 
 Farmers' National Bank of Fresno, where he 
 filled the position of assistant cashier in an able 
 manner until April, 1903, tendering his resigna- 
 tion at that time to assume the duties of his new 
 position as cashier and manager of the Farm- 
 ers' Bank of Selma. 
 
 By his marriage in Selma, Mr. Smith united 
 his fortunes with those of Miss Georgia Nees, 
 who was born in Missouri, and their home is 
 brightened by the presence of one son, George G. 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Smith occupy a high posi- 
 tion in social circles. In politics Mr. Smith is 
 an adherent of the Republican party, having 
 frequently been a delegate to county conventions, 
 and served as city treasurer of Selma one term. 
 He is a member and master of Fresno Lodge 
 No. 247, F. & A. M., a member of Fresno Lodge 
 of Perfection No. 6, Scottish Rite, and a mem- 
 ber of Selma Lodge No. 309, I. O. O. F. 
 
 TIMOTHY HAYES. Well known as a suc- 
 cessful farmer and stock-raiser, Timothy Hayes 
 is extensively engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
 arid is one of the largest landliolders in the vicin- 
 ity of Visalia. A resident of California for thir- 
 ty-five years, he has witnessed its almost marvel- 
 ous development and progress, and has well 
 performed his part in those grand transformation 
 scenes that have changed the wild and unculti- 
 vated tracts of land into waving fields of grain, 
 productive vineyards and fruitful orchards. A 
 son of Timothy Hayes, Sr., he was born, March 
 10, 1859, in Wayne county, Pa., about ten miles 
 from Honesdale. 
 
 A native of Ireland, Timothy Hayes, Sr., came 
 
 with his parents to the United States when a lad 
 of fourteen years, and lived for a time in New 
 York City, going from there to Rosendale, on 
 the Hudson river. He was subsequently engaged 
 in farming in Wayne county. Pa., for a number 
 of years. Migrating to California in 1870, he 
 settled in Alameda county, and having purchased 
 six hundred and forty acres of land in Livermore, 
 in the valley, engaged in raising grain and stock, 
 and likewise planted a vineyard. He was exceed- 
 ingly fortunate in his undertakings, and resided 
 on his ranch until his death, in 1900, at the ven- 
 erable age of ninety-two years, being active and 
 hearty until the last year of his life, retaining 
 his physical and mental vigor to a remarkable 
 degree. His wife, whose maiden name was Julia 
 Carey, died in Livermore, in 1898. Of their 
 twelve children, one daughter died in New York 
 state, and eleven grew to years of maturity, all 
 of whom came to California, and nine of these 
 are still living. 
 
 The fifth child of the parental household, Tim- 
 othy Hayes obtained his elementary education 
 in the public schools of his native county, and 
 after coming with the family to California, in 
 1870, here continued his studies, which he com- 
 pleted at Heald's Business College, in San Fran- 
 cisco. He subsequently spent two years in that 
 city as shipping clerk for Hawley Brothers, and 
 the following year followed farming in the San 
 Ramon valley. Returning thence to Livermore 
 valley, Mr. Hayes was there engaged in wheat 
 growing for two or three seasons. Locating in 
 Tulare county in 1885, he was for two years 
 foreman on a ranch containing sixty-four hun- 
 dred acres. Beginning farming on his own ac- 
 count in 1887, he first rented four hundred acres, 
 and succeeded so well that he next took two 
 thousand acres near Goshen. In 1890 Mr. Hayes 
 made his first purchase of land in this coun- 
 ty, buying forty acres of the land now included 
 in his home ranch, and in 1891 bought an ad- 
 joining forty, giving him eighty acres in sec- 
 tion 17. He has from time to time made many 
 other investments in real estate, being now the 
 owner of about twelve hundred acres, five hun- 
 dred and forty of which are located in section 
 17, township 18 south, and range 24 east. He 
 also owns all of section 20, and the southeast 
 quarter of section 19. He is one of the largest 
 grain and stock raisers of Tulare county, and 
 is considered an authority on agricultural mat- 
 ters. He has two hundred and fifty acres sowed 
 to alfalfa, a vineyard of ten acres, and an or- 
 chard containing thirty-five acres, in which he 
 raises peaches and prunes of a superior quality. 
 Aside from the management of his home farm 
 Mr. Haves operates a grain ranch of thirteen hun- 
 dred acres south of Goshen. He runs four and 
 five eight-horse teams, and has a combined har- 
 
796 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 vester and thresher, which he keeps busy in the 
 season. In addition to the holdings already men- 
 tioned Mr. Hayes also owns seven hundred and 
 twenty acres of valuable land in Kings county, 
 near Goshen, which is used as a stock farm. He 
 pays much attention to the breeding of hogs and 
 cattle, preferring the Short-horns and Durhams 
 to any other grade of cattle. His home ranch 
 lies six miles north and west of Visalia, and two 
 miles from Goshen. He is interested in the Mo- 
 doc Ditch Company, in which he is a director, 
 and of which he has been president since 1900, 
 and his entire ranch is subject to irrigation. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Hayes married Elsie Hausch, 
 who was born in Sonoma county, a daughter of 
 C. Hausch, in whose sketch, which appears else- 
 where in this volume, a more extended parental 
 and ancestral history may be found. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hayes have two children, Horace and Hel- 
 en. In national politics Mr. Hayes is a Demo- 
 crat, and is a member of the county Democratic 
 central committee. 
 
 SIDNEY J. SHANNON. A man of excel- 
 lent business capacity and tact, enterprising and 
 liberal, Sidney J. Shannon, an esteemed resident 
 of Los Banos, is widely and favorably known 
 throughout the length and breadth of the San 
 Joaquin valley, his position with Miller & Lux 
 as their land agent bringing him in contact with 
 the leading men of this part of the state. A 
 native Californian, he was born, August 27, 
 1868, at Fort Miller, near Millerton, Fresno 
 county, a son of the late Hon. Jefferson M. 
 Shannon. His paternal grandfather, Nathaniel 
 Shannon, was born and bred in Kentucky, in 
 early life moving from there to Marion county. 
 Mo., where he cleared and improved a farm. 
 Crossing the plains with ox teams in 1849, he 
 located at Diamond Springs, Eldorado county, 
 Cal., where he at once embarked in business as 
 a butcher, thinking to make more money by sup- 
 plying the niiners with meat than in digging 
 for gold. His career, however, was short, his 
 death occurring a few weeks after his arrival in 
 the late fall of 1849. 
 
 Born in Marion county. Mo., Jefiferson M. 
 Shannon was there brought up and educated. 
 In the spring of 1850, following in the footsteps 
 of his father, he crossed the plains to California, 
 and not until his arrival on the coast did he hear 
 of his father's death. Locating in Sonoma coun- 
 ty, he carried on the butchering business there 
 four years, meeting with good success. Settling 
 on Chowchilla creek, in Fresno county, in 1854, 
 he was employed for a time in stock-raising and 
 dealing. Subsequently removing to Fort Miller, 
 he was elected one of the early sheriffs of Fres- 
 no county, a position which he held two terms, 
 
 being connected with the office of sheriff and 
 tax collector until the removal of the office to 
 Fresno. While a resident of Fort Miller he 
 served one term in the state legislature. In De- 
 cember, 1873, he removed to Fresno, where he 
 became connected with the land department of 
 the Southern Pacific, or Pacific Improvement 
 Company, as general town-site agent, having 
 charge of the location of town sites in California, 
 Arizona and New Mexico. He made wise in- 
 vestments in land, becoming owner of several 
 vineyards, comprising hundreds of acres, and 
 being among the largest raisin-growers of Cali- 
 fornia. Removing to Alameda, in 1888, he con- 
 tinued as town-site agent until his death, June 
 8, 1902. He was a man of upright character, 
 respected and honored by all, and was a promi- 
 nent member of the Republican party. 
 
 Mr. Shannon fnarried Rebecca M. Bailey, who 
 was born in Jackson county. Mo., a daughter of 
 Judge Gillam Bailey. Judge Bailey, a native of 
 Kentucky, moved first to Missouri, settling as 
 a pioneer in Jackson county. Coming across the 
 plains to California in 1854, he located in Vi- 
 salia, Tulare county, where he served as district 
 judge for Fresno, Mariposa and Merced coun- 
 ties for several terms. He died in Fresno. Of 
 the union of Hon. Jefferson and Rebecca M. 
 (Bailey) Shannon four children were bom, . 
 namely: Scott Ashman, of Fresno, managing 
 the Fresno county property of his father; Idria, 
 wife of W. E. Toms, of Alameda; Sidney J., 
 the special subject of this sketch; and Leland 
 S., of Alameda. The mother is still living, mak- 
 ing her home at No. 1610 Central avenue, Ala- 
 meda. 
 
 His parents removing from Fort Miller to 
 Fresno in 1873, Sidney J. Shannon was there 
 educated, completing the course of study in the 
 public schools when but fourteen years old. En- 
 tering then the employ of Miller & Lux. at Dos 
 Palos, he began work in a low position, but 
 gradually worked his way upward, remaining 
 with the firm until 1888. In January, 1889, ^^- 
 moying to Alameda, Mr. Shannon accepted the 
 position of office boy with the Pacific Improve- 
 ment Company, and proved himself so efficient 
 that he was promoted from time to time, soon 
 becoming chief accountant, in which position he 
 remained until April, 1901. Resigning at that 
 time, Mr. Shannon has since served in his pres- 
 ent position as land agent for Miller & Lux, 
 in this capacity superintending the colonization 
 of different places, laying out new additions to 
 towns and having charge of the land sales 
 throughout the San Joaquin valley. 
 
 In Alameda, Cal., Mr. Shannon married Jo- 
 hanna M. Brock, a native of Alameda, and they 
 have one child, a daughter named Marie Mar- 
 garet. Politically Mr. Shannon is a stanch Re- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 797 
 
 publican. Fraternally he is a member of Oak 
 Grove Lodge, No. 215, F. & A. M., of Alameda; 
 of Alameda Chapter, No. 70, R. A. M. ; of Oak- 
 land Commandery No. 11, K. T. ; of Islam 
 Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Francisco; 
 a member and past president of Halcyon Parlor 
 No. 146, N. S. G. W., of Alameda, and also 
 a member of Fresno Lodge of Elks. Mrs. 
 Shannon is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 R. M. OSBURN. The dairy industry, which 
 has proved of incalculable benefit in the devel- 
 opment of Stanislaus county, owes its incep- 
 tion and progress to a number of public-spirited 
 men, among whom mention belongs to Mr. 
 Osburn, residing one-half mile from Newman 
 on the west side. When he came to this lo- 
 cality, in 1886, he bought forty acres of wild 
 land under the ditch, and here he has built a resi- 
 dence, set out fruit trees and placed the land 
 under excellent cultivation. Finding that hay 
 could be raised profitably, he has gradually put 
 all of the land in alfalfa, and since 1891 has 
 made a specialty of the hay and dairying busi- 
 ness. -The dairy industry has proved a source 
 of gratifying profit in Stanislaus county, and 
 on his homestead may be seen one hundred head 
 of high-grade Shorthorn Durhams, thirty of 
 which are milch cows. The demands of his 
 dairy interests were such that he found- it ad- 
 visable to purchase a tract of thirty acres ad- 
 joining his original purchase, and this gives him 
 a total of seventy acres, which at its nearest 
 point is one-eighth of a mile from Newman. 
 
 In Ontario, between St. Thomas and London, 
 Mr. Osburn was born October 31, 1857, bein^ 
 a son of Hugh and Rebecca (McCully) Osburn, 
 the former a native of Scotland, and the latter 
 born near Dublin, Ireland. Upon starting out 
 to earn his livelihood, Hugh Osburn left his 
 old home and crossed the ocean to Ontario, 
 where he settled on a farm. In 1865 he came 
 across the plains to California and tried his luck 
 at mining on the Frazier river and other locali- 
 ties, returning east via Panama and resuming 
 farm work in Ontario. About 1881 he came to 
 California a second time, but instead of seek- 
 ing the regions familiar to him during mining 
 days' he established himself upon a farm in San 
 Benito -county. His last days were passed in 
 Ontario, where his death occurred. In religion 
 he was of the Presbyterian faith. His wife, who 
 was the daughter of Robert McCully, a lifelong 
 resident of Ireland, accompanied him to Cal- 
 ifornia, and died in Gilroy. Of their twelve 
 children eleven came to California, and nine still 
 survive, R. M. being fourth in order of birth. 
 When a little less than eighteen, in 1875, he 
 
 came to California and secured employment as 
 a farmer near Salinas, Monterey county. Sub- 
 sequently for many years he was employed by 
 Henry Miller in Santa Clara county, and from 
 there removed to San Benito county, where he 
 embarked in stock raising and grain farming. 
 With four other parties he rented Quien Sabe 
 ranch, of twenty-four thousand acres, and dur- 
 ing the ten years, beginning in 1881, that they 
 retained the property, they paid an aggregate 
 rental of $150,000. Before giving up his inter- 
 est in that ranch he came to Stanislaus county, 
 and in 1891 sold his ranching outfit in order to 
 devote himself to enterprises in his present lo- 
 cation. 
 
 When a movement was inaugurated for the 
 establishment of a creamery Mr. Osburn was 
 quick to see the advantages to be derived from 
 such an industry, and gave it his enthusiastic 
 support, becoming one of the original stock- 
 holders in the New Era Creamery Company, 
 which erected the first of the creameries in the 
 county. The name New Era did not prove a 
 misnomer, for the starting of. the plant inaug- 
 urated a new era of prosperity for the people, 
 and made the dairy industry profitable. Not 
 a little of the recent growth and development 
 of the county is due to the dairy interests and 
 enterprises, whose existence and success are de- 
 pendent upon the operation of creameries. In 
 politics Mr. Osburn is a believer in Republican 
 principles. Since coming to the coast country 
 he has been a student of the Spanish language, 
 in which he has acquired such fluency that his 
 services are often brought into requisition as an 
 interpreter. He was married in San Jose, this 
 state, his wife being Miss Annie Dunn, like 
 himself a native of Ontario. Their children are 
 Elmer, Robert, Ruth and Raymond. 
 
 CLEMENT J. McCULLAFI. The keynote to 
 the success of Clement J. McCullah is unfailing 
 industry, to which might be added a love of home, 
 and a desire to m.ake those dependent on him 
 both comfortable and happy. He has never been 
 afflicted with towering ambitions, but has quietly 
 pursued the occupation of soil tilling, for which 
 he is admirably fitted, and in which he finds suf- 
 ficient to meet his wants. 
 
 Mr. McCullah was born in Parker county, 
 Texas, November 28, 1854, his father, John Mc- 
 Cullah, being an early settler of that county. 
 John McCullah was born in Tennessee, and when 
 a small boy moved with his parents to Bond 
 county. 111., where he was reared to manhood and 
 married, and from which place he departed over- 
 land with teams and household furnishings to 
 Parker county, Texas. Evidently he found less 
 than he expected to in the great cattle state, for 
 
798 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 after four years he journeyed back to Bond coun- 
 ty. He is now living at Kingston, Cal., at the 
 age oi seventy-two years. Clement J. McCullah 
 remained on the Bond county farm until his 
 twenty-second year, and in 1876 came to Califor- 
 nia by way of Panama, bringing little with him 
 save a strong constitution and willing hands. In 
 what is now Kings county he found employ- 
 ment at ranch work for about four years, and at 
 the end of that time had saved enough money 
 to purchase his present farm of eighty acres six 
 and a half miles northwest of Hanford. He has 
 found alfalfa raising a paying branch of indus- 
 try, and with the exception of a small dairy, de- 
 votes all of his land to it. He has a small fam- 
 ily orchard and a garden in which the finest of 
 vegetables grow, and his farm and buildings are 
 neat and convenient, showing the thrifty nature 
 of their owner. 
 
 Mr. McCullah is a Democrat in politics, but in 
 local affairs is liberal, voting for the men best 
 qualified to serve the common good. In Kings 
 county he married Ahce Smith, a native daugh- 
 ter of California, and they are the parents of six 
 children, namely: Charles Albert, John Dobson, 
 Henry Edward, Lucy Ellen, Neola Ida and Nel- 
 lie Irene. The last named are twins. Mr. Mc- 
 Cullah is a man of highest personal honor, and is 
 esteemed and respected by the neighbors who 
 have worked beside him in the struggle for a com- 
 petence. 
 
 CHARLES PHILLIP SMITH is widely and 
 favorably known as a representative farmer and 
 dairyman. The son of Samuel A. Smith, an hon- 
 ored pioneer of this part of Merced county, he is 
 a native son, a business man of ability, and a 
 highly esteemed citizen. He was born near what 
 is now Los Banos, September 6, 1874, being the 
 youngest son in a family consisting of five boys 
 and two girls. A brief parental history may be 
 found elsewhere in this volume, in connection 
 with the sketch of his father, S. A. Smith. 
 
 The early life of Charles P. Smith passed 
 without especial incident. In common with the 
 children of the neighborhood, he attended the 
 district school, gleaning a practical knowledge 
 of books, while on the home farm he labored 
 industriously, becoming familiar with the science 
 of agriculture. Wishing to enter a mercantile 
 career, he was for two years engaged in the 
 grocery business, being a member of the firm 
 of Smith Brothers, in Los Banos. The occupa- 
 tion not proving congenial to his tastes, he sold 
 out his interest in the store, and began the im- 
 provement of his farm of forty acres, which is 
 situated one-half mile south of Los Banos. He 
 was one of the first in this locality to check up 
 and ditch his land, and has it now devoted to 
 
 alfalfa and dairy purposes. Mr. Smith now 
 manages his father's farm of two hundred acres, 
 making a specialty of alfalfa-raising and of 
 dairying. He has over two hundred head of 
 cattle, mostly Holsteins, and milks about one 
 hundred cows. His dairy is equipped with a 
 separator, operated by steam power, and with 
 all other needed machinery and appliances for a 
 first-class dairy. He carries on a large business 
 in this line of industry, shipping his cream to 
 Oakland, where he receives the highest market 
 prices. Politically Mr. Smith is a stanch Demo- 
 crat. Until the disbandment of the Santa Rita 
 Parlor, N. S. G. W., he belonged to the organ- 
 ization, having been one of its charter members. 
 
 GEORGE L. BRADY. Among the success- 
 ful young business men of Dos Palos, Merced 
 county, there are none possessing greater enter- 
 prise and energy than George L. Brady, now 
 serving as postmaster, a position which he has 
 filled with eminent satisfaction to all concerned 
 for more than four years. He comes of old Vir- 
 ginia stock, and was born, September ig, 1867, 
 near Muncie, Delaware county, Ind. His father, 
 the late Jackson Brady, was born and bred in 
 Virginia, but settled as a farmer near Muncie, 
 Ind., where he resided until his death. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was Catherine La Rowe, 
 was born, lived and died in Indiana. She bore 
 her husband eight children, of whom three sur- 
 vive, George L., the seventh child in order of 
 birth, being the only one on the Pacific coast. 
 
 Brought up in Delaware county, Ind., George 
 L. Brady acquired his early education in the dis- 
 trict school, spending the days of his boyhood 
 and youth on the parental homestead, which was 
 located about eleven miles from Muncie. After 
 attaining his majority he had charge of the home 
 farm for awhile, continuing thus occupied until 
 1889. Thinking in a newer country to enlarge 
 his opportunities for acquiring wealth, he then 
 went to Nebraska, and the following four years 
 was a resident of Geneva. Migrating to Cali- 
 fornia in 1893, Mr. Brady purchased land at' Dos 
 Palos, and, improving a good farm, was here 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits for several 
 years, being quite successful. In 1900 he was 
 appointed postmaster of Dos Palos; taking the 
 oath of office July i, 1900, he has performed the 
 duties devolving upon him in this capacity with 
 commendable fidelity and ability. The work of 
 the office has been enlarged since he assumed his 
 position, rural free delivery in this vicinity hav- 
 ing been established in September, 1900. Since 
 1903 Mr. Brady has also served as fireman at 
 the Dos Palos station of the Pacific Coast Oil 
 Company. 
 
 In Shickley, Neb., Mr. Brady married Julia 
 
>(r/yvi^L 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 801 
 
 Brown, a native of Illinois, and they have one 
 child, Edna Brady. Mrs. Brady assists her hus- 
 band in his duties at the office, being assistant 
 postmaster. In his political affiliations Mr. 
 Brady is a true blue Republican. While living 
 in Nebraska he joined Geneva Lodge No. 79, 
 F. & A. M., and is now also a member of the 
 Modern Woodmen of America, and a member 
 and past officer of the Knights of the Maccabees. 
 
 EMMET BARBER. The lineage of the Bar- 
 ber family is traced to the Puritans of Massa- 
 chusetts. One of the name was a brave soldier 
 of the Revolution, and his son, Reuben Barber, 
 went to the front during the war of 1812. After 
 the close of the first struggle with Great Britain 
 the soldier returned to his home in Massachusetts 
 and later (whether before or after the birth of 
 his son cannot be definitely ascertained) removed 
 to Vermont, where he took up farm pursuits. 
 The next step westward was made by his son, 
 who removed to New York state about 1809 and 
 settled in St. Lawrence county. William, son of 
 Reuben Barber, was born at Middlebury, Vt., in 
 1804, and was five years of age when the family 
 joined the tide of emigration drifting toward the 
 west. Throughout his entire life he remained a 
 resident of that vicinity, where he was a pros- 
 perous farmer near Canton and a devoted mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church until his 
 death in 1864. By his marriage he was united 
 with Eliza Barnes, who was born in Connecticut 
 in 1818, and accompanied her father, Truman 
 Barnes (the son of a Revolutionary soldier), to 
 New York, settling in St. Lawrence county, 
 where she married. At this writing she makes 
 her home in Cresco, Iowa, where after a busy 
 and useful existence she is quietly passing the 
 twilight of life's day, cheered by the hope which 
 religion gives. 
 
 In the parental family of eight children all but 
 one attained mature years and six are now living, 
 Emmet being- the fourth son in order of birth. 
 He was born at Canton, St. Lawrence county, 
 N. Y., September 10, 1849, ^^'^ i" boyhood was 
 given public-school advantages, supplemented by 
 attendance at the St. Lawrence Academy. In 
 1867 he went to Ohio, where he'' worked for a 
 year on the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Rail- 
 road out of Dayton. A year was then spent in 
 New York, but in 1869 he returned to the same 
 railroad in the bridge and carpentering depart- 
 ment. In 1870 he went west as far as Iowa and 
 settled in Cresco, where he worked at farming 
 during the summer months, and then attended the 
 Cresco high school. While teaching in a district 
 school during the next two years he studied sur- 
 veying and civil engineering, and in 1873 and 
 1874 acted as deputy county surveyor of How- 
 
 ard county, Iowa. The latter part of 1874 he 
 was employed on a railroad survey in Wisconsin, 
 after which he resumed teaching in Iowa. The 
 year 1875 found him a resident of Decorah, 
 Iowa, where for two years he was deputy county 
 surveyor and a practicing civil engineer. In 
 1880 he removed to Knox county. Neb., and fol- 
 lowed surveying and civil engineering, with head- 
 quarters at Niobrara. A year after going to the 
 state he homesteaded a quarter section of land. 
 Removing to Creighton, Knox county, in 1883 he 
 worked as a surveyor and also engaged in the 
 real estate business, besides acting as manager of 
 the Creighton Pioneer from January, 1884, to 
 April, 1886. 
 
 From October i, 1887, Mr. Barber dates his 
 residence in California and his first identification 
 with Tulare, where he has engaged in surveying 
 and civil engineering, with a specialty of irriga- 
 tion work. For fifteen months he was employed 
 in the Poso irrigation district and for six months 
 had charge of construction work for the Tulare 
 irrigation district. As chief engineer, in 1893, he 
 had charge of the construction work of the Tule 
 river irrigation district, a task that occupied 
 eighteen months, then made a trip with team to 
 Mexico and return looking for a location for a 
 colony. For two years, beginning in 1895, he 
 was employed by Miller & Lux in building canals 
 in Kern county. On his return to Tulare in 
 1897 he resumed professional work and also took 
 up the real estate and insurance business. An 
 important responsibility which he filled was the 
 dividing up of the Waukena tract of two thousand 
 acres, also the surveying and dividing of the 
 Laurel tract of fourteen hundred acres. At this 
 writing he represents the Central California 
 Realty Company, also the Atlas and Liverpool, 
 London & Globe, and German Alliance Fire In- 
 surance Companies. Elected the first city engi- 
 neer of Tulare, he established the city grades 
 and did other work of an important nature while 
 filling the office from 1888 to 1892. 
 
 When the McKittrick oil fields were opened 
 Mr. Barber surveyed the first tract of oil lands 
 there and did other pioneer work in the district. 
 On the organization of the first oil company he 
 was retained to survey their lands and assisted 
 in the management of the property. After sev- 
 eral good wells had been found on the Sham- 
 rock oil claim this claim was sold to the Asso- 
 ciated Oil Company for $90,000. Eight hundred 
 acres of oil land are still in the company's pos- 
 session and he remains a stockholder and director. 
 He is a stockholder in the Farmers' and Mer- 
 chants' Bank of Tulare, owns an interest in more 
 than two hundred acres of land in this vicinity 
 (a part of which he owns individually), owns 
 two dairies individually and a one-half interest 
 in another dairy, was interested in the establish- 
 
802 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ment of the Tulare Co-operative Creamery Asso- 
 ciation that bought and improved a creamery in 
 this city, and was also interested in organizing 
 and starting the Tulare Rochdale Company. 
 
 While living in Iowa Mr. Barber was married 
 at Cresco to Miss Ella A. Smith, who was born 
 in Wisconsin and died in Nebraska. The chil- 
 dren of their union are named as follows : Alma 
 B., who is married and makes her home in Peta- 
 luma, this state; Louis and Luther (twins), the 
 former professor of schools in Cortlandt, S. Dak., 
 and the latter a traveling salesman of Denver, 
 Colo. ; and Mrs. Blanche Frisby, who resides at 
 Hulett, Wyo. The marriage of Mr. Barber and 
 Mrs. Belle Perrine, a native of Monroe, Wis., 
 was solemnized at Omaha, Neb., in 1883 ; Mrs. 
 Barber died in California, August 31, 1901, and 
 their only son. Earl, passed away December 22 
 of the same year. The present wife of Mr. Bar- 
 ber was Mrs. Mollie B. Gould, a native of Mis- 
 souri, who was united with him at Tulare Octo- 
 ber 5, 1902. The connection of Mr. Barber witli 
 the Episcopal Church dates back to 1877 ^^'^ 
 for years he has officiated as a vestryman. In 
 early manhood he voted the Republican ticket, 
 but a study of the relations between capital and 
 labor and the conditions that depress the poor 
 in great cities has caused him to adopt socialistic 
 views. In fraternal relations he has been identi- 
 fied with Masonry since his initiation in 1871 into 
 the blue lodge at Cresco, Iowa, and at this writ- 
 ing he holds membership with Olive Branch 
 Lodge No. 269, F. & A. M., at Tulare; while at 
 Cresco he was also raised to the chapter degrees 
 and since coming west he has transferred his 
 membership to Tulare Chapter No. 71, R. A. M. 
 January 7, 1905, he was installed as master of 
 Tulare Grange, P. of H., No. 198. No resident 
 of Tulare is more interested than he in the de- 
 velopment of its resources. The success he has 
 attained he attributes to the possibilities this val- 
 ley affords, and the opportunities he believes to 
 be as great now as in years gone by. 
 
 JAMES H. HAMLETT. Located on a ranch 
 of six hundred and forty acres, thirteen miles 
 east of Merced, is the residence of J. H. Hamlett, 
 where, since 1898, he has been engaged in gen- 
 eral farming. He was born in Pike county, Mo., 
 August 24, 1863, a son of William and Altha 
 (Burford) Hamlett, natives of Virginia and resi- 
 dents of Missouri from their early married life. 
 The father is a successful farmer there and 
 owns a quarter section of land. 
 
 Upon his father's farm in Missouri James H. 
 Hamlett was reared to manhood and until twenty- 
 five years of age he remained at home assisting 
 his father. He then went to Texas, where he 
 farmed for some time, after which he returned 
 
 to Missouri. In 1894 his attention was attracted 
 to the west, at which time he came to California. 
 His first location was in Mariposa county, where 
 he remained for four years and then came to 
 Merced county. Here he rents a ranch which 
 is devoted to the raising of grain and stock, 
 meeting with success in both of these branches 
 of agriculture. 
 
 In California, August 23, 1896, Mr. Hamlett 
 was united in marriage with Miss Rhoda Ryan, 
 a native of Mariposa county and a daughter of 
 James Ryan, an early settler of that county. 
 Mr. Harrtlett is a Democrat in politics. He and 
 his estimable wife are held in high esteem by their 
 friends and acquaintances in the community in 
 which they reside. 
 
 EDWARD GUY WILSON. Occupying an 
 assured position among the venerable and well- 
 to-do citizens of Fresno county is Edward G. 
 Wilson, a veteran agriculturist. He is the owner 
 of a choice and well-appointed ranch near Selma, 
 where he is spending the later years of his long 
 and varied life in ease and comfort. A native of 
 England, he was born June 24, 1819, in Bingley, 
 Yorkshire. His father, Dr. Thomas Wilson, was 
 born in Yorkshire Center, England, and there be- 
 gan the practice of his profession. Removing to 
 Bingley after his marriage, he continued there as 
 a physician until his death, at the age of seventy- 
 one years. His wife, Jane Tenent, was a native 
 of Yorkshire, also, and spent her entire life in 
 England. Of the three sons and one daughter 
 born of their union, Edward G., the special sub- 
 ject of this sketch, was the third child. 
 
 Having completed the course of study in the 
 grammar schools of Bingley, Edward G. Wilson 
 served an apprenticeship at the tinsmith's trade. 
 He was a musician and leader of the band and 
 served during the Crimean war in the First 
 Royal Lancastershire Militia. A skilled me- 
 chanic, and possessing considerable inventive 
 talent, he began the manufacture of brass musical 
 instruments and of sewing machines. The first 
 sewing machine that he made was most intricate, 
 having fifty-si.x needles to be used in making 
 figures, and cost him five hundred pounds ster- 
 ling. After being in business for himself three 
 years, Mr. Wilson disposed of his interest in the 
 firm for twelve hundred pounds. Prior to this, 
 in 1857, he went to Australia, where he mined 
 for gold two years, and was afterward employed 
 in the manufacture of machines. Immigrating 
 to California in 1878, Mr. Wilson engaged in 
 fruit growing in Petaluma, buying five acres of 
 land for $1,500, but a few years later selling it 
 for $2,000. Locating in Fresno county in 1885, 
 he purchased ten acres of land lying one mile 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 803 
 
 northeast of Selma, on the line of the Centerville 
 and Kingsburg irrigating ditch, and has from it 
 developed a productive fruit and raisin ranch, 
 which yields him an annual income of $800. 
 
 In England, in 1854, Mr. Wilson married Mar- 
 garet Ann Crossley, who was born in Yorkshire, 
 England, and died, in 1884, in Petaluma, Cal. 
 Five children were born of the union of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Wilson, namely: Alice M., Albert E., 
 Edgar G. (deceased), Emily J. and Harry C. 
 Albert E. Wilson, the oldest son, was born in 
 Keighley, England, May 30, 1872, being but six 
 years old when he came with his parents to 
 America. With his brother and sisters, he re- 
 mains at home with his father. He is an indus- 
 trious, progressive agriculturist, owning a valu- 
 able ranch of eighty acres, of which fifteen acres 
 are devoted to the culture of vines, twenty acres 
 are set out to trees, and five acres are sowed to 
 alfalfa. 
 
 HON. WILLIAM L. WILLIAMS. The 
 postmaster of Madera is a member of an old and 
 honored Welsh family and was born at Milford- 
 Haven,T:he largest natural harbor in the world, 
 situated in Pembrokeshire, on the southwest coast 
 of Wales. His father, John Williams, of Welsh 
 birth, married Fannie Lloyd, also a native of that 
 country. In the spring of 1869, seeking a new 
 home for the family, he came to the United States 
 and settled at Nanticoke in the mining regions of 
 Pennsylvania. Shortly after his arrival a mem- 
 orable disaster occurred whereby more than one 
 hundred men and boys were entombed in a mine 
 that was on fire. The horror-stricken spectators 
 of the disaster, not knowing the fate of those 
 within the mine, sent down a dog in a cage and 
 were encouraged when it was brought up alive. 
 Two men then volunteered to undertake the work 
 of rescue and were sent down, but when the cage 
 came again to the surface both were dead. Un- 
 deterred by this calamity, two more men volun- 
 teered to descend. One of these was John Wil- 
 liams. He stayed below twenty-one minutes and 
 found the men and boys dead in a heap, all naked, 
 having taken off their clothing to use as a barri- 
 cade against the smoke. On being brought to the 
 surface he was overcome and passed into a state 
 of coma. When he recovered consciousness he 
 found himself in a morgue. He remained in 
 Pennsylvania until 1891, when he settled with the 
 John Brown colony in Madera and now owns 
 twenty acres near this city. When the smelter 
 was building here he hauled brick for its con- 
 struction and while engaged at this work his team 
 became frightened and ran away, throwing him to 
 the ground. For six weeks he remained uncon- 
 scious. Skilled physicians in San Francisco, who 
 examined the case, were baffled by it and con- 
 
 fessed their inability to be of any assistance. At 
 the end of that time he regained consciousness 
 and soon recovered. Notwithstanding his age (he 
 was born in 1837) and the many hardships he 
 has experienced, he retains a degree of health 
 scarcely to be expected and works almost as con- 
 stantly as in his younger years. He and his wife 
 became the parents of six children, four of whom 
 are living, all in Madera. 
 
 The oldest member of the family circle was 
 William L., who was born July 25, i860. In 
 the fall of 1869 he and the others in the family 
 joined his father, who -had preceded them to the 
 United States. At the age of nine years he 
 was put to work in the breaker as a slate picker. 
 Two years later he was sent into the mines as 
 door boy, then made a driver and next a runner, 
 finally becoming a miner. In 1886 he left the 
 mines to enter school, for he was ambitious to gain 
 an education. With the money he had saved he 
 paid his expenses in the Bloomsburg normal 
 school, from which he was graduated in 1888, 
 having completed the regular three years' course 
 in two years. At his graduation he received the 
 degree of B. E. He remained in Nanticoke, 
 where he was employed as principal of the school 
 until 1891. Meanwhile, in the fall of -1888, on the 
 Republican ticket he was elected to represent 
 Luzerne coimty in the state legislature and 
 served in the session of 1889. 
 
 On leaving Nanticoke in 1891 Mr. Williams 
 came to California and secured employment in 
 his profession at Madera, where for eleven years 
 he was a teacher and principal. In the fall of 
 1902 the board of supervisors appointed him ex- 
 pert bookkeeper to examine the county books, 
 and this work occupied his entire attention dur- 
 ing the winter. In February of 1903 Ptesident 
 Roosevelt appointed him postmaster of Madera 
 and on the ist of April he took the oath of of- 
 fice, since which time he has given his attention 
 to the duties of his position. Just prior to his ap- 
 pointment there had been a number of candi- 
 dates and the determination with which each 
 faction supported its candidate caused much ill- 
 feeling. In order to settle the difficulty J. C. 
 Needham proposed that the candidates be dropped 
 and the different factions unite on another Re- 
 publican. This was done. Both sides solicited Mr. 
 Williams to become a candidate and he consented, 
 although prior to that he had no idea of enter- 
 ing the race. 
 
 During his residence in Nanticoke Mr. Wil- 
 liams married Mary Hughes, who was born in 
 Glamorganshire, Wales. They have three chil- 
 dren, Percy, Maude and Ethel, of whom the two 
 eldest are high-school students. The family is 
 identified with the Madera Baptist Church and 
 Mr. Williams is a member of its board of trus- 
 tees. He was made a Mason in Madera Lodge 
 
804 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BlOORAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 No. 280, F. & A. M., and is further connected 
 with the Woodmen of the World. Though no 
 longer actively engaged in teaching, his interest 
 in educational affairs remains as deep and strong 
 as in his earlier )'ears. For six years he was a 
 member of the Madera board of education and 
 during four years of that time he officiated as its 
 president. On two occasions the Republican par- 
 ty placed him in nomination for the office of 
 county superintendent of schools, but he was de- 
 feated with the balance of the ticket, the county 
 being strongly Democratic. From 1894 until 1900 
 he served as secretary of the county central com- 
 mittee of his party and he was also secretary of 
 the congressional convention at the time that Con- 
 gressman Needham was first nominated to repre- 
 sent this district at Washington. Movements for 
 the benefit of his home town, including the 
 Chamber of Commerce, receive his support and 
 encouragement, and he may always be relied upon 
 to aid all such to the extent of his influence and 
 ability. Tlwroughly devoted to the interests of 
 this part of California, he is one of those public- 
 spirited citizens whose coming from the east has 
 meant so much to the development and growth of 
 the state. 
 
 HENRY CLOW, one of the most prominent 
 citizens of Le Grand, Merced county, has been in- 
 terested in farming for many years and since 
 1898 has conducted a livery, feed and sales stable 
 in Le Grand. He caters to the traveling public, 
 having a fine equipment of horses for ladies, sad- 
 dle horses and up-to-date vehicles for the tran- 
 sient trade. 
 
 Born in Defiance county, Ohio, October 31, 
 1855, Mr. Clow is a son of Abraham and Maria 
 (Vigerson) Clow, the former born in Defiance 
 county, September 13, 1827, and the latter a na- 
 tive of Germany. At the age of thirteen years 
 she immigrated to America with her brother, who 
 located in Ohio. When Henry was two years old 
 his parents moved to Fort Dodge, Iowa, locating 
 on a farm, where the son received his education 
 in the common schools. 
 
 In 1876 Henry Clow came to California and in 
 Mariposa county followed stock-raising for a 
 few years prior to locating in Merced county in 
 1880. In the vicinity of Le Grand he began 
 raising wheat and barley upon fourteen hundred 
 acres of rented land, giving his attention to this 
 branch of agriculture for fourteen years. He 
 subsequently moved into Le Grand and engaged 
 in the livery business. He built the Commercial 
 hotel, which he afterward sold. He now owns 
 the building in which were located the lodge 
 rooms of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men; the Knights of Honor and the Le Grand 
 hotel. In addition he owns other valuable real 
 
 estate in Le Grand, including a comfortable resi- 
 dence. 
 
 In Mariposa county Mr. Qow was married to 
 Lucinda J. Kinser, a native of Kansas, and to 
 them have been born six children, namely : Elsie, 
 the wife of E. A. Graham, of Point Richmond; 
 Edward, deceased; Bessie, Harry, Edith and El- 
 mer. Politically Mr. Clow is a faithful adherent 
 of Republican prmciples, and at all times exerts 
 his influence in favor of his chosen party. Con- 
 siderate and thoughtful for others, he has every 
 claim to the title of gentleman, and his popu- 
 larity is richly deserved. 
 
 LE GRAND, unlike many other towns that 
 have sprung up in the west during the last few 
 years, had many natural advantages to offer as 
 inducements to settlers, and as a result its growth 
 has been steady and permanent. Situated in the 
 center of the most fertile spot of the San Joaquin 
 valley, a few years ago the town site was a part 
 of the Dickinson estate, but the building of the 
 San Francisco & San Joaquin Valley Railway 
 through the eastern part of Merced county 
 opened a market for the hitherto unknown coun- 
 try and consequently lands formerly devoted to 
 wheat were divided into small tracts to sell to 
 homeseekers. In this way the splendid lands of 
 Mrs. Luella Dickinson and others were thrown 
 open to settlers upon such terms as made it pos- 
 sible for the most humble family to own a home. 
 
 Through the generosity of Mrs. Dickinson the 
 right of way was granted to the railroad company 
 on the condition that they erect a depot and 
 freight station, the town site, however, to remain 
 a part of the property of the Dickinson estate. 
 As a result a very handsome depot and ware- 
 house were built, and in July, 1896, the embryo 
 town took definite shape. In September of the 
 following year the town site was surveyed and 
 laid out and the growth of the town from that 
 time has been phenomenal. What Chicago has 
 accomplished on an immense scale has been done 
 by Le Grand in miniature, for almost in a single 
 night the transformation from^ a dreary ranch 
 into a bustling town took place, and today there 
 stands on the same ground a prosperous town, 
 a town of steady, rapid, substantial growth, that 
 gives no evidence of falling off in the future, but 
 on the contrary' shows every sign of continued 
 prosperity and growth. 
 
 The Le Grand Improvement Club has not only 
 been instrumental in inducing residents to set 
 out trees and otherwise make permanent im- 
 provements, but through their efforts, $300 was 
 raised to buy the right of way through two pieces 
 of property in order that the road into Mariposa 
 county could be thrown open. The opening of 
 this road has been of untold benefit to the citizens 
 
Cn2/^ 
 
 lAyy^HJ^-^'z:.^^''^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 807 
 
 of Le Grand and the whole of Mariposa county 
 is now easy of access from the town. 
 
 The soil of the surrounding country is a sandy 
 loam susceptible of irrigation without baking, 
 but by far the greater part of the land is very 
 fertile and productive without irrigation. Sur- 
 face water can be obtained at a depth of from 
 twelve to fifteen feet, and by agreement with the 
 Dickinson estate the railroad company supplied 
 all the water necessary for town purposes for two 
 years, for which purpose they erected a sub- 
 stantial tank with a capacity of fifty thousand 
 gallons. The place now contains several hotels, 
 general merchandise stores, drug stores, livery 
 stables, blacksmith shops, general provision 
 stores, harness shops, dressmaking parlors, bar- 
 ber shops, churches, schoolhouse, hall and a 
 number of handsome residences. In the sur- 
 rounding country can be seen growing side by 
 side all the different varieties of citrus and 
 deciduous fruits, which prove to the most skep- 
 tical the truthfulness of all that is claimed for this 
 section, showing the capability of the soil with- 
 out water, save the natural rainfall. The same 
 can be truthfully said not only of these particular 
 lands, but of the thousands of acres owned by 
 Price Brothers, the Ipsom estate, the Turners, the 
 Burchells, and in fact all the lands surrounding 
 this prosperous town, which has inducements 
 offered by no other part of the state. 
 
 CHARLES M. LUMEREAU. Now retired 
 from the active cares which have so long en- 
 grossed his attention, Charles M. Lumereau is 
 numbered among the representative citizens of 
 Portersville, Tulare county, where he is making 
 his home. A native of Jefferson county, N. Y., 
 he was born January 21, 1838. His father, Lu- 
 cius Lumereau, was a native of Albany, N. Y., 
 and as a lad demonstrated the qualities inherited 
 from pioneer ancestry. When only nine years 
 of age he drove a team for his father, and at 
 twelve drove a government team during the war 
 of 1812. In young manhood he mastered the 
 trade of carpenter, and after his marriage in Jef- 
 ferson county, N. Y., removed to Syracuse, where 
 he followed his trade. In 1850 he came as far 
 west as Bureau county. 111., where he remained 
 for four years, when he started for Nebraska. 
 Meeting with a wagon train bound for the more 
 remote west, and being disappointed in Nebraska, 
 he joined them and traveled to Salt Lake City. 
 There he spent the winter and in the spring con- 
 tinued the journey to California. He located in 
 El Dorado county, where he carried on his trade, 
 until injured by a nail striking him in the eye, 
 causing total blindness. His death occurred in 
 that location. His wife, formerly Eunice Brog- 
 ham, was a native of Ostego county, N. Y., and 
 
 the daughter of Alexander Brogham, of Ver- 
 mont, who located in New York state and car- 
 ried on shoe-making, farming and the conduct of 
 a hotel until his death. The family was dis- 
 tantly related to Lord Brougham, of England. 
 Two sons and two daughters blessed this union, of 
 whom Charles M. is the third in order of birth. 
 
 Charles M. Lumereau received his education 
 in the common schools in New York and Illi- 
 nois. He was sixteen years of age when he 
 accompanied his parents across the plains, and 
 after his arrival he found employment in the 
 mines of El Dorado county. After five years 
 (in 1859), he located in Tulare county, and pros- 
 pected and traveled for his health on the desert, 
 a- year later going to Mono county, and in 186 1 
 to Lind valley, with the exception of three months 
 spent as clerk in a store, remaining there two 
 years. In November, 1863, he went to Los An- 
 geles and in the hope of benefiting his health 
 made a trip to the Colorado river shortly after- 
 ward. Later he drove an ambulance at Drum 
 Barracks for three months, after which he re- 
 turned to Visalia. During the year 1864 he 
 worked in a sawmill on Greenhorn mountain, 
 two years later went to Pajaro valley and farmed, 
 and in 1867 removed to Mountain View, Tulare 
 county, and in partnership with three others 
 put up a sawmill. This they conducted for a 
 year, when they sold out. Mr. Lumereau then 
 engaged in saw-milling in conjunction with the 
 farming of his mother's claim, located on the 
 north fork of the Tule river, continuing so oc- 
 cupied until 1878. In that year he sold the 
 -mill and shortly afterward traded land which 
 he had pre-empted in 1877 ^^ Pleasant valley, 
 for one hundred and sixty acres on the Tule 
 river, four miles west of Portersville. He farmed 
 in that location until 1880, the following year 
 homesteading one hundred and sixty acres near 
 Tipton, which he left in 1897, moving back to 
 the Tule river ranch. In December, 1903, he 
 located in Portersville, renting his ranch, which 
 is considered one of the most fertile in this sec- 
 tion, all being under irrigation ditches, while 
 he also irrigates from the river. 
 
 In 1876, at Mountain View, Tulare county, 
 Mr. Lumereau was united in marriage with 
 Margaret E. Frame, a native of Guernsey coun- 
 ty, Ohio. She accompanied her parents to Cali- 
 fornia in 1859, her father, James Smith Frame, 
 of Ohio, bringing his family across the plains 
 to Nevada and later to El Dorado county, Cal., 
 where he engaged in mining. In 1876 he came 
 to Tulare county and located at Mountain View, 
 where he engaged in farming. He finally made 
 his home with Mr. Lumereau, where his death 
 occurred in 1883, at the age of sixty-one years. 
 His wife, formerly Susan C. Webster, a native 
 of Virginia, still survives him, making her home 
 
808 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 with Mr. Lumereau and his wife at the age of 
 seventy-six years, still enjoying the best of health. 
 Mr. Lumereau and his wife have reared two 
 children, namely : Albert A. Foster, employed 
 in the ticket office for the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 way, of San Francisco; and Lillian Lottie, who 
 is the wife of W. H. Simms, of Lindsay, Cal. 
 Fraternally Mr. Lumereau is a member of Tu- 
 lare City Lodge No. 306, I. O. O F., of Tulare, 
 and Portersville Encampment No. 89. Politically 
 he resei'ves the right to cast his ballot for the 
 man whom he considers best qualified for public 
 office. 
 
 W. A. MOORE. Notwithstanding hardships 
 and discouragements, of which he has experi- 
 enced not a few, Mr. Moore, by force of per- 
 sisteiice and persevering industry has risen to a 
 position of influence among the business men of 
 Madera and is now president of the Moore- 
 Plate Company, Incorporated. Of remote 
 Scotch-Irish descent, he is a descendant of one 
 of the pioneer families of New Jersey and his 
 great-grandfather was a native of that state, but 
 removed to Northumberland county, Pa. The 
 grandfather, Abraham, and father, Charles 
 Moore, were natives of Northumberland county 
 and both learned the mason's trade; but, while 
 the former followed it as a life occupation, the 
 latter early turned therefrom to farm pursuits 
 and now resides on the property which has been 
 his homestead since 1858. During the Civil war 
 he was unable to serve, but was in sympathy with 
 the Union, and had two brothers who went to 
 the front as soldiers. His wife, Jane Thomas, 
 daughter of a Quaker family of Northumberland 
 county, died in Pennsylvania in March of 1903. 
 
 In a family of seven children, all still living, 
 W. A. Moore was fourth in order of birth and 
 is the only one to settle in California. He was 
 born near Sunbury, Northumberland county. Pa., 
 February 27, 1862, and as a boy aided in the 
 cultivation of the home fann. However, his 
 tastes did not lie in the direction of agriculture. 
 Ambitious to acquire a thorough education, he 
 attended Union Seminary and after teaching 
 school for two years used his earnings to pay 
 his expenses in the Bloomsburg normal school, 
 from which he was graduated in 1885 with the 
 degree of B. E. For three years afterward he 
 engaged in teaching in his home county. The 
 convention of the National Educational Associa- 
 tion, held in California in 1888, led him to come 
 to the coast and he was so pleased with the 
 country that he abandoned his plans for return- 
 ing east. After traveling over the southern part 
 of the state he settled on a ranch at Piru City, 
 Ventura county, but a year later went into town 
 and secured a clerkship in a store. Three years 
 
 later he embarked in business for himself, but 
 after a year sold out in 1893. The sale proved 
 an unfortunate one, as the purchaser failed and 
 Mr. Moore lost $1,500. 
 
 Coming to Madera in 1893, Mr. Moore became 
 a partner with C. M. Petty in the grocery busi- 
 ness. At first they carried only a small stock 
 and conducted business with a very limited cap- 
 ital. During the financial depression which 
 swept over the country from 1893 to 1897 it 
 was only by the exercise of the greatest economy 
 and constant care that they were able to con- 
 tinue in business. However, as better times came 
 to the country and they became more widely 
 known for integrity of dealings and honesty of 
 purpose, they reaped a more gratifying success. 
 In January of 1895 the store was moved to its 
 present location, where a two-story structure is 
 occupied, 25x100 feet in dimensions. Here may 
 be found a complete assortment of groceries, 
 hardware, queensware, paints, oils, etc. In Janu- 
 ary of 1903 the Moore-Plate Company was in- 
 corporated, with Mr. Moore as president, and in 
 that capacity he has the management of the 
 growing business. At the time of the incorpora- 
 tion of the Madera Match Company he became 
 interested in it and became treasurer of the orig- 
 inal company, serving in that capacity until its 
 plant was destroyed by fire. 
 
 In San Jose, Mr. Moore married Nettie Fal- 
 coner, who was born in Nova Scotia and died 
 at Madera in 1899, leaving three children, Walter 
 LeRoy, Estella and Charles A. The second mar- 
 riage of Mr. Moore was solemnized in Madera 
 and united him with Freda C. Kicker, who was 
 born in St. Louis, Mo. Of that union there is a 
 daughter, Marie. The family is connected with 
 the Presbyterian Church of Madera, in which 
 Mr. Moore is treasurer, an elder and trustee, also 
 assistant superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
 
 The Madera Chamber of Commerce is one of 
 the local activities which he supports, believing 
 it to be an influence for the upbuilding of the 
 town and county. Though not a partisan, he is 
 stanchly Republican in his political views, while 
 fraternally he associates with the local organiza- 
 tion of Woodmen of the World. 
 
 FLEMING McLEAN. Among the promi- 
 nent vineyardists of the Malaga district is Flem- 
 ing McLean, owner of an eighty-acre ranch five 
 miles southeast of Fresno, and one of the most 
 successful in his line in the county. Fifty acres 
 of his ranch are devoted to raisin grapes, averag- 
 ing about a ton to the acre. The balance of his 
 ranch is under orchard and alfalfa, and is under 
 the direction of Mr. McLean, who thoroughly 
 understands the scientific aspect of horticulture, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 809 
 
 as well as the possibilities of soil production in 
 his adopted state. 
 
 Of Scotch ancestry on the paternal side, Mr. 
 McLean is descended from an ancient Virginia 
 family, his mother having been Hannah, daugh- 
 ter of Jacob Weese, both of whom were natives 
 of the Old Dominion. His father, WiUiam, was 
 born in Virginia, as was also his paternal grand- 
 father, Daniel, while his paternal great-grand- 
 father, the founder of the family in Virginia, 
 was born in Scotland. William McLean fol- 
 lowed in the footsteps of his forefathers and de- 
 voted his life to farming, his death occurring in 
 Virginia at the age of fifty-six years. 
 
 The youth of Fleming McLean was unevent- 
 fully passed on the paternal farm until the 
 breaking out of the Civil war. In 1863 he en- 
 listed in the Confederate army in Company E, 
 , Sixty-second Virginia Infantry, and served un- 
 til 1865 in Virginia, under command of Captain 
 Hill. After the downfall of the Confederacy he 
 returned to his home in Virginia, and in 1867 
 removed to Scotland county. Mo., and engaged 
 in farming until the spring of i86g. He then 
 boarded a steamer bound for the Isthmus of 
 Panama, reaching San Francisco April i, 1869, 
 and soon after went to Dixon, Solano county. 
 There, and in Colusa county, he remained for 
 fourteen years. 
 
 In 1883 Mr. McLean came to Fresno county 
 and located on his present ranch, almost imme- 
 diately returning to Scotland county, Mo., where 
 he farmed for six years. In April, 1890, he re- 
 turned to his farm in Fresno county, and has 
 since bent his efiforts towards its wisest and most 
 substantial upbuilding-. In Canton, Iowa, Mr. 
 McLean was united in marriage with Tenna M. 
 Smith, who, at the time of her death, left a 
 daughter, Mina F. Mr. McLean is a Democrat 
 in politics, and fraternally is a Mason. 
 
 ORLANDO D. BERRYHILL. For nearly 
 thirty years a resident of California and for twen- 
 ty-two years a resident of Fresno county, Mr. 
 Berryhill has demonstrated the possibilities of the 
 agriculturist's life. His success is attributed not 
 alone to his industry and singleness of purpose, 
 but to his keen foresight and good judgment in 
 selecting the most profitably grown crops. He 
 has found by experience that both climate and soil 
 are adapted to fruit growing in his locality, and 
 this is particularly so regarding raisin grapes and 
 alfalfa. 
 
 Born in Barry county. Mo., in April, 1849, O- 
 D. Berryhill is a son of M. V. Berryhill, who 
 was a native of Alabama and a farmer by occupa- 
 tion. He went to Missouri in the early days of 
 the history of that state and later to Arkansas, 
 and it was in the latter state that he died at the 
 
 advanced age of eighty-two years. In 1875 O. D. 
 Berryhill came to California to seek his fortune 
 and for a few months was located in Sonoma 
 county. In 1876 he went to Kings county and 
 upon leased land engaged in raising wheat until 
 1882, when he found a more favorable location in 
 Fresno county. Purchasing a ranch south of his 
 home place from the Southern Pacific Railway 
 Company, he lived upon it for three years, when 
 he sold his right and purchased two other farms 
 north of his present home, where he farmed for 
 twelve years. Again selling, he purchased the 
 farm of eighty acres upon which he now resides, 
 four miles south of Sanger, and he also owns for- 
 ty acres one mile north. Of the home place forty 
 acres are devoted to the raisin grape, thirteen 
 acres to other fruits, and twenty-seven acres to 
 alfalfa. January 12, 1879, Mr. Berryhill was 
 united in marriage in California with Melissa 
 Myers, a native of Missouri and daughter of Con- 
 rad Myers. They have a family of seven children 
 living, as follows : Floyd H., Eugene A., Homer 
 Lee, Edith (the wife of Henry Estes), Claude 
 C, Leonard R. and Augusta Pauline. Zoa Alice, 
 the first born, died at the age of six years. 
 
 LEONARD P. ST. CLAIR. Whatever meas- 
 ure of success Mr. St. Clair has achieved may be 
 attributed to his unaided exertions, for he was 
 orphaned at an early age and has made his own 
 way in the world ever since youth. He was 
 born in Allegheny county, Pa., November 20, 
 1831. After the death of his parents he accom- 
 panied his grandfather, Philip Covert, to Athens 
 county, in the southern part of Ohio, where he 
 aided in the cultivation of a farm in summer 
 and during the winter months attended district 
 school. In the spring of 1848, when sixteen 
 years of age, he went to Iowa and secured em- 
 ployment as a farm hand near Burlington. Next 
 he was engaged on a farm near Mount Pleas- 
 ant. In the spring of 1850 he went to Burling- 
 ton for the purpose of learning the blacksmith 
 trade, but after he had worked in a shop there 
 about a year he determined to come to California. 
 Returning to Mount Pleasant he prepared for 
 the long journey across the plains. In March 
 of 1852 he started overland, with a party of 
 eleven, having three wagons drawn by oxen. He 
 walked most of the distance, driving one of the 
 ox-teams. 
 
 Upon arriving at the headwaters of the Feather 
 river, August i, 1852, Mr. St. Clair began pros- 
 pecting and mining, but after a few weeks he 
 left with the intention of going to the mines of 
 Australia. However, upon reaching Sacramento 
 he gave up the trip and spent the winter of 
 1852-53 in Auburn and vicinity. In the spring 
 
810 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of 1853 he engaged in mining on the Middle 
 Fork of the American river, but after a short 
 time went to Volcano, Eldorado county, where 
 he engaged in the butchering business. On sell- 
 ing out in 1856 he bought a tannery on Otter 
 creek in company with Judge Aaron Bell, but the 
 venture did not prove successful and the follow- 
 ing year he resumed the meat business. In 1859 
 he went to Red Dog, Nevada county, where he 
 engaged in butchering for a year or more. His 
 next location was on Dutch Flat, in Placer 
 county, but he soon left there for his former 
 location and remained at Red Dog until 1865, 
 when he went back east. After two years, in 
 1867 he came again to California and opened a 
 meat market at Dutch Flat, at the same time buy- 
 ing and selling cattle. 
 
 The fall of 1887 found Mr. St. Clair a resi- 
 dent of Bakersfield, where he has since made his 
 home. For a year after settling there he con- 
 ducted a meat market. On disposing of that busi- 
 ness he turned his attention to securing gas and 
 electric lights for the city, and acted as manager 
 of the Bakersfield Electric Light & Gas Company 
 until 1902, the success of which is largely due 
 to his assiduous devotion and painstaking care. 
 In that year he sold his stock in the company and 
 has since lived retired. His home, erected by 
 himself, is a beautiful residence and stands on 
 the corner of Fourteenth and H streets. Its pre- 
 siding genius is his wife, formerly Mary F. Dunn, 
 whom he married in 1869 and by whom he has 
 four children : Leonard P., Jr.. Everett S., 
 Franklin C. and Cora May, all at home. 
 
 JOHN W. KELLY. Only those who have 
 lived in Kern county, and are familiar with the 
 motley crowd which comprises a considerable 
 portion of its inhabitants, can arrive at an ap- 
 preciation of the enormous responsibility of the 
 man elected to serve its interests as sheriff. There 
 are but two cities in the state of California where 
 more civil and criminal cases are tried than in 
 Bakersfield, Kern county. These are San Fran- 
 cisco and Los Angeles. In the former, the law 
 allows eighty deputy assistants, in the latter ten, 
 and in Bakersfield there are but four. Numer- 
 ous causes contribute to the lawlessness of the 
 region, among them being the oil fields and 
 mines, which attract large numbers of wealth 
 seekers, many of whom bring with them lurid 
 careers, and a propensity for breaking out afresh 
 under the favorable circumstances among which 
 they find themselves in the west. The history 
 of criminology in the county is both startling 
 in its nature and persistent in its duration, in 
 consequence of which, the high official depended 
 on to bring order out of chaos, and maintain a 
 wholesome respect for the law, is necessarily a 
 
 man of great force of character and unflinching 
 determination. An average of from fifty-five to 
 sixty prisoners are guests of the state, and in 
 their aggregate embody the sharpest and most 
 desperate of offenders. 
 
 John W. Kelly, the present sheriff of Kern 
 county, is a Democratic politician who has 
 effected his rise solely through the medium of 
 sterling worth and faithfulness to trusts imposed. 
 He is a Missourian, and spent his youth on the 
 farm in Cooper county, where his birth occurred 
 October 19, 1861. His first educational training 
 was received in the coimtry school near his home, 
 and subsequently he attended a private school 
 at Boonville with his second cousin, Ex-Gov. L. 
 V. Stevens, of Missouri. His childhood was one 
 of toil and privation, for after the death of his 
 mother, when he was eight or nine years old, he 
 was obliged to shift for himself, and to depend 
 upon his innate strength and fine instincts for 
 guidance. He contracted the western fever in 
 1884, and after locating in Newville, Glenn coun- 
 ty, worked by the day, and later became inter- 
 ested in a stage line operating between Newville 
 and Redbluff, a distance of forty-five miles. 
 Those were desperate times, and the stage-driver 
 took his life in his hands in the same way that he 
 did in the days of the discovery of gold and the 
 rush of early argonauts. After a year of stage- 
 driving he engaged in farming in Colusa, now 
 Glenn county, until 1895, and then repaired to 
 Randsburg, which was then making a start as 
 a mining center. He was one of the first to 
 place any faith in its future, and remained there 
 in active mining for several months, in time pur- 
 chasing property, which he still owns. 
 
 Mr. Kelly's active political career began in 
 1897, when he was appointed constable of Rands- 
 burg, a position maintained until his election to 
 the office of supervisor in 1900. Upon being 
 elected sheriff of Kern county in 1902, he re- 
 signed the supervisorship, and has since devoted 
 himself uninterruptedly to making the life and 
 property of citizens as safe here as elsewhere in 
 the state. He is admira.bly adapted for his work, 
 possesses authority of manner, and while humane 
 in his tendencies, and always wiUing to help a 
 man to better things, he knows no mercy for the 
 habitual evildoer. During his maintenance of 
 his present office he has been called upon to per- 
 form dangerous service in the interests of good 
 government, not the least of which was his posi- 
 tion as leader of a posse which surprised a des- 
 perado in the Chinese quarter, April 19, 1903, 
 and succeeded in shooting him only after he had 
 added to his crimes the kilHng of two of the 
 officers under Mr. Kelly. In Glenn county, Mr. 
 Kelly married Ida Perry, a native of California. 
 He is one of the prominent men in fraternal 
 circles of Kern county, and is identified with the 
 
^^-n^^^ i^. /..^.^^KLe-^. 
 
MRS. J. A. CRABTREE 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 813 
 
 Masons, Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the 
 Eagles, all of Bakersfield. Mr. Kelly is a brave, 
 tolerant and broad-minded citizen, a keen reader 
 of human nature, and an ardent worker for the 
 best welfare of Kern county. 
 
 JAMES A. CRABTREE. Among the ear- 
 liest pioneers of Tulare county, James A. Crab- 
 tree has been, identified with the development, 
 growth and material upbuilding of this section 
 for nearly a half century. A native of Jefiferson 
 county. 111., he was born November 13, 1829. 
 The family traces its ancestry to England, when 
 two brothers, banished from their native land, 
 came to America and located in Virginia. The 
 first to leave Virginian soil was Isaac Crabtree, a 
 native of the Old Dominion, who became a pio- 
 neer farmer of Tennessee and later of Illinois. 
 In his family was a son, J. B. Crabtree, who 
 was born in Tennessee. In young manhood he 
 enlisted for service in the war of 1812, serving 
 at New Orleans as a member of the life guard 
 of General Jackson, who as a boy had made his 
 home with the Crabtree family. Coming safely 
 through the perils and adventures of war, J. B. 
 Crabtree returned to civic life as a farmer in Illi- 
 nois, preferring agricultural pursuits to the trade 
 of hatter, which he had learned. He eventually 
 removed to Benton county. Ark., thence to New- 
 ton county. Mo., remaining in the latter loca- 
 tion foi- four years, when he settled in Lamar 
 county, Tex., and engaged as a stockman and 
 hatter. In 1852 he brought his family across 
 the plains, crossing the country by teams to Du- 
 rango, thence packing across the mountains to 
 Mazatlan, then by boat to San Diego. The re- 
 mainder of the journey was made on the steam- 
 er Ohio to San Francisco. A desirable loca- 
 tion was chosen for a home at Santa Cruz, but 
 the family later removed to San Juan, Monterey 
 county, where they remained until 1857. I^ that 
 year James A. Crabtree located in Tulare county, 
 where he engaged in the stock business. In 
 i860 his father, J. B. Crabtree, located in Tulare 
 county, and in 1864 homesteaded one hundred 
 and sixty acres on the site of the soda springs 
 at Springville, which town he laid out. Later 
 he sold the springs and passed the remainder 
 of his life in retirement, living to be eighty-three 
 years old. His wife was formerly Rebecca Wil- 
 kerson, a native of Tennessee, and a daughter of 
 Thomas Wilkerson. She died on the home place 
 in Tulare county at the age of seventy-four years. 
 Of their family of nine children, four sons and 
 one daughter are living, namely : Rebecca, the 
 wife of J. H. Thorp, of Napa; James ^., of this 
 review; J. F-, located on the Kings river; W. N., 
 on the Tule river; and E. J., at Bakersfield. 
 
 The boyhood years of James A. Crabtree were 
 
 spent principally in Texas, receiving his edu- 
 cation m private schools in Hopkins and Chero- 
 kee. He was twenty-three years old when he 
 accompanied his father across Old Mexico to 
 California, remaining with him in his residence 
 m Santa Cruz, San Juan and Tulare counties, en- 
 gagmg in the stock business on the lands adjacent 
 to the Tule river. For many years he remained 
 occupied as a stockman, when he began prospect- 
 ing and mining, opening the White Chief mine 
 at the headwaters of Kaweah, which he still owns. 
 Adjoining that is the Silver Lake mine and the 
 Lady Franklin mine, both of which are fine sil- 
 ver properties. Of late years he has sought re- 
 tirernent from active cares and is making his home 
 on his farm of one hundred and sixty acres lo- 
 ' cated two and a quarter miles east of Porters- 
 ville, in which town he had previously made his 
 home. Seventeen acres of his ranch is devoted 
 to navel oranges in full bearing, while the en- 
 tire property is fine orange land, all being un- 
 der irrigation, as he has a fine electric pumping 
 plant. He is also interested in the Pioneer Ditch 
 Company. 
 
 At Piano Mr. Crabtree was united in marriage 
 with Paulina Moreland, a native of Jackson, Mo., 
 who came with her father, Zachariah Moreland, 
 to California, in 1849. She died January 12, 
 1903, at the age of sixty-one years. She was 
 a devout member of the Christian Church, al- 
 though her husband is a Methodist. Of the 
 five children born of this union two are living, 
 namely: Thomas, a farmer living at home, and 
 William, a farmer at Rocky Ford, both of whom 
 own considerable alfalfa land. A public-spirited 
 citizen, Mr. Crabtree has taken an active in- 
 terest in public affairs, being one of the organ- 
 izers of the cemetery association at Portersville, 
 and was for several years a director. Politically 
 he is a stanch adherent of the principles advo- 
 cated in the platform of the Democratic party. As 
 a pioneer Mr. Crabtree has many recollections 
 of the early days, interesting alike to old and 
 young, — to those who participated in the stirring 
 events and to those who are profiting by the 
 courage and energy of the first settlers of this 
 region. He recalls the days when the plains 
 abounded in deer, elk, bear, panther, etc., and 
 the many adventures vvhich he had when only 
 courage and presence of mind saved his life. To- 
 day the fields are dotted with orange groves, or- 
 chards and prosperous farming lands, all elo- 
 quent of the changes which the years have 
 wrought. 
 
 ALBERT H. DEAN. One mile north of 
 Fowler is located the well-improved ranch of 
 Albert H. Dean, consisting of forty acres, 
 twenty-two of which is given over to the 
 
814 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cultivation of grapes, seven to a peach or- 
 chard, and the remainder devoted to gen- 
 eral farming. Mr. Dean has been the owner 
 of this property since January, 1882, when he 
 came to CaHfornia and located in Fresno 
 county, purchasing the ranch which he has 
 since brought to rank with the best in this 
 section of the country. Born in Indiana Aug- 
 ust 15, 1849, hs is the son of Harmon . R. 
 Dean. 
 
 Harmon Dean was a native of Virginia 
 and the son of John Dean, also of that state, 
 whose ancestors had emigrated to the west- 
 ern world from Germany. Harmon Dean re- 
 moved to Indiana with his parents when only 
 four years old, in years of maturity engaging 
 in an agricultural life and marrying Cather- 
 ine Evens, a native of Indiana and daughter 
 of Samuel Evens, an emigrant from Wales. 
 The remainder of the years of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Dean were passed in the Hoosier state, and 
 there Mr. Dean died at the age of seventy- 
 eight years, his demise occurring in Dear- 
 born county. Albert H. Dean was reared 
 upon his father's farm until he had attained 
 the age of twenty-two, when he married Mar- 
 tha Allen and engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits for himself. He remained in Indiana 
 until 18.76, when he came as far west as Os- 
 born county, Kan., continuing his farming op- 
 erations until January, '1882. On that date 
 he sought a home in the state of California, 
 becoming the owner of his present property, 
 since which time he has devoted himself as- 
 siduously to its proper cultivation and has 
 met with the returns which foflow close ap- 
 plication in any line. ^ 
 
 His first wife having died in February, 1895, 
 Mr. Dean was married in 1896 to Mrs. Emma 
 L. (McKittrick) Radley. By his first. wife he 
 has two daughters, namely: Ida, wife of J. 
 S. Niswander, of Fresno county, and Emma, 
 wife of D. S. McCullaugh, of Fowler. Polit- 
 ically Mr. Dean is identified with the Repub- 
 lican party and fraternally belongs to the 
 Knights of Pythias. He is a member of the 
 First Presbyterian Church and for six years 
 has been chairman of the board of trustees. 
 
 CHARLES WILLIAMSON. With a justly 
 won popularity and esteem, Qiarles Williamson 
 is rounding out the years of a well spent life as 
 a vineyardist of the beautiful and productive 
 county of Fresno, where he has made his home 
 for nearly a quarter of a century. A native of 
 Scotland, he was born August 23, 1831, a son 
 of David and Johanna (Henderson) William- 
 son, and was reared upon the paternal farm until 
 he was twenty years old. Attracted by the mani- 
 
 fest advantages of the western world, he came 
 to the United States in June, 1852, and located 
 first in the state of Pennsylvania, remaining 
 three years, when he came as far west as Illi- 
 nois. In the latter state he engaged in coal min- 
 ing for a like period, after which he settled in 
 Missouri and followed farming. In 1862 he once 
 more took up the march westward and became 
 a resident of Nevada, working in the Comstock 
 mine for many years and winning for himself a 
 position of prominence in the county wherein he 
 resided. Becoming interested in the fruit grow- 
 ing districts of California, he came to this state 
 in 1881 and purchased a ranch of twenty acres 
 located about four miles southeast of Fresno on 
 Cherry avenue, devoting this land to the cultiva- 
 tion of grapes and various other fruits, as well 
 as alfalfa. He has made a success of his agri- 
 cultural work in the county and has built up for 
 himself a competence and a very desirable home 
 among the pleasant and prosperous surround- 
 ings of one of the finest counties in the state. 
 
 Mr. Williamson has been thrice married, his 
 first wife being Elizabeth Perry, to whom he 
 was united in Missouri, and his second, Asenath 
 Geach Gay, whom he married in Virginia City, 
 Nev. By his present wife, formerly Jessie L. 
 Gibson, he has one son, Charles F. In politics 
 Mr. Williamson is a stanch Republican and has 
 always been active in the promotion of the prin- 
 ciples he endorses, while a resident of Nevada 
 serving as sheriff of his county for two years. 
 
 MARCUS L. DEAN. In reviewing the lives 
 of the substantial and representative citizens of 
 Fresno county, we call attention to Marcus L. 
 Dean, who is not only a practical farmer and 
 orchardist, but a firm business man in every par- 
 ticular, a gentleman of quiet tastes, of excep- 
 tional worth, and one who is esteemed by all 
 who know him. He first became identified with 
 agricultural pursuits in Fresno county in March, 
 1878, and for a number of years thereafter he 
 rented land near what is now Sanger and car- 
 ried on farm pursuits. In 1888 he purchased his 
 home place of eighty acres in Bethel school dis- 
 trict, about two and one-half miles southwest 
 of Sanger. In addition to improving and beau- 
 tifying his place, Mr. Dean accumulated capital 
 and in 1902, by additional purchase, he acquired 
 eighty acres directly opposite his home place, 
 thus making his farm one of the most productive 
 farms in this locality. Planting eighty acres in 
 vines, he grows the raisin grape quite success- 
 fully, and his peach orchards cover a tract of 
 forty-five^acres, containing some of the choicest 
 varieties grown. 
 
 In tracing the ancestry of Marcus L. Dean, we 
 find him to be a member of a worthy , southern 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 815 
 
 family and a son of William and Annie (Lilly) 
 Dean, both of whom wei^e natives of North Car^ 
 olina. His father, a farmer by occupation, re- 
 moved to Mississippi in 1858, and for eleven 
 )'ears followed farming in that state. In 1869 
 he found a more suitable climate and location for 
 a home in Arkansas and for many years was 
 an esteemed resident of that state. He was a 
 Democrat in his political views. He died at an 
 advanced age in February, 1900. Born March 
 6, 1855, in Anson county, N. C, Marcus L. Dean 
 was taken to Mississippi by his parents when 
 but three years old, and spent his boyhood days 
 upon his father's farm. He attended school and 
 improved every opportunity to add to his stock 
 of knowledge and became equipped for his life- 
 work, being in his fifteenth year when the fam- 
 ily removed to Arkansas. 
 
 At the age of twenty-three he left home to 
 seek his fortune and spent the following six 
 months in Colorado, working for a month or 
 so in the mines adjacent to Denver. In Octo- 
 ber, 1877, he pi^oceeded to California and after 
 a short time spent in San Francisco he went to 
 Placer county and worked for a time in the wood 
 camps. But with keen foresight he once more 
 returned to the occupation of his youth, this time 
 in Fresno county. By his marriage in Califor- 
 nia, Mr. Dean was united with Mrs. Amanda 
 Edwards, who was born in Tennessee. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Dean is a member of Sanger Camp 
 No. 265 W. O. W. In his political affiliations he 
 supports men best qualified for office regardless 
 of party lines. 
 
 BENJAMIN F. COKLEY. Self-made in the 
 best sense implied by the term, Benjamin F. 
 Cokley, a prominent vineyardist of Paige dis- 
 trict, Fresno county, has brought his own suc- 
 cess by the application of energy and industry 
 with which he has devoted himself to the accu- 
 mulation of a competence. A native of Sumner 
 county, Tenn., he was born September 10, 1859, 
 a son of William Cokley, who owed his nativity 
 to Robinson county, of the same state. He mar- 
 ried Martha Lawrence, also of that state, whose 
 father, Lammy Lawrence, was a native of Vir- 
 ginia. William Cokley was a farmer, and both 
 himself and wife died early in life, leaving Ben- 
 jamin F. Cokley an orphan at the age of twelve 
 years. Reared to manhood in the family of an 
 uncle, he was trained in the practical duties of 
 a farmer. He remained with him until attain- 
 ing the age of twenty-two years, when' he came 
 to California, locating, in 1882, in Fresno coun- 
 ty, where he engaged in farm work on King's 
 river. For twelve years he was actively engaged 
 in this work, and having accumulated sufficient 
 money to warrant his enterprise he came into 
 
 possession of the property upon which he has 
 since lived, that being the year of 1897. He has 
 forty acres of land devoted to the cultivation of 
 grapes, orchard and the raising of hay. He also 
 has sixteen acres in alfalfa in the Malaga dis- 
 trict, and twenty acres in the Garfield district 
 devoted to vines and peaches. Politically Mr. 
 Cokley is a Democrat and fraternally is identi- 
 fied with the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JOHN J. SCHLITZ. Like the majority of 
 men gifted with speculative ability, John J. 
 Schlitz .has experienced his moments of financial 
 elation and depression, and on several occasions 
 has won and lost fortunes which would have 
 maintained an average family in comfort for the 
 remainder of its days. Unquestionably one of 
 the most capable grain buyers and dealers in 
 Kern county, his present position as buyer for 
 the G. W. McNear Company affords ample scope 
 for his exhaustive knowledge of the grain re- 
 sources of this section of the state, knowledge 
 gained through practical management of a grain 
 farm of fifteen hundred acres, and years of study 
 along his chosen occupation. He has been with 
 the present concern since 1898, and during cer- 
 tain prosperous years has purchased as high as 
 a hundred and fifty thousand dollars worth of 
 grain. The company has four warehouses be- 
 tween Bakersfield and Tulare, and carries on 
 one of the most extensive businesses of its kind 
 on the Pacific coast. 
 
 A representative German-American citizen, 
 Mr. Schlitz is a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Ger- 
 many, and was bom December 2, 1835. Accord- 
 ing to the custom of the country, he learned a 
 useful trade, apprenticing to a lace maker for 
 three years, with which assurance of a livelihood 
 he immigrated to the United States, arriving in 
 New York in September, 1852. A year later he 
 went to Philadelphia'«and worked at his trade for 
 a couple of years, and in 1855 sailed around the 
 Horn to San Francisco, reaching there August, 
 2. His first occupation in the west was as an 
 assistant in the construction of the first starch 
 factory in Berkeley, for the firm of J. Everding 
 & Company, and after its completion he was em- 
 ployed in the factory for a year. He then worked 
 on a farm until 1859, when he became interested 
 in mining, and ineffectually sought to enlarge 
 his fortune at Dutchflat for one season. His next 
 venture was as manager of a dairy ranch in 
 Contra Costa county, and in 1866 he engaged 
 in a general merchandise business at Walnut 
 creek, Contra Costa county, a venture which 
 netted him twenty-'five thousand dollars, when 
 he sold out in 1876. Later on he engaged in 
 quicksilver mining speculation in Napa county, 
 and in one year lost all that he had. 
 
816 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Removing to Oakland, Mr. Schlitz became 
 manager of a produce business until 1881, and 
 then rented a ranch near Fresno for a couple 
 of years. In 1883 he went to Tulare and operated 
 a grain warehouse for three years, and in the 
 meantime had purchased a three hundred and 
 twenty acre ranch in Tulare county, where he 
 raised his first crop of grain in 1884. He con- 
 tinued in grain raising with fluctuating success 
 until 1898, often having as many as fifteen hun- 
 dred acres under cultivation. He still owns his 
 ranch . in Tulare county, near the Kern county 
 line, but found that grain raising, when con- 
 ducted exclusively, did not pay. In keeping with 
 his line of business and public spirit, Mr. Schlitz 
 became one of the organizers and the secretary 
 of the Delano board of trade in 1903. From 
 time to time he has taken an active interest in 
 Republican politics, serving as justice of the 
 peace for twelve years in Walnut creek, for two 
 years in Fresno, and for four -years in Tulare 
 county. He has been a notary public for several 
 years. Mr. Schlitz is identified with Delano 
 Lodge No. 309, F. & A. M., and Tulare Chapter, 
 R. A. M. His marriage occurred in 1868, which 
 united him with Mattie A. Jones, a native of 
 Contra Costa county, who was born in 1847. Six 
 children have been born of this, union, of whom 
 the oldest is deceased. Lizzie, the second child, 
 is the wife of Charles S. Eaton, of Tulare ; Mabel 
 is the wife of H. D. Zimmerman, a large sheep 
 raiser of Tulare county; Juanita is the wife of 
 R. M. Miller, of the vicinity of Delano; Nellie 
 is the wife of A. B. Bulock, of Reno, Nev. ; and 
 Frank is a rancher in Tulare county. Mr. Schlitz 
 bears an honored name in the community, and 
 is regarded as one of the liberal-minded, gener- 
 ous and public-spirited citizens of Delano. 
 
 ROBINSON R. PORTER. A thorough 
 business man and' a highly respected citizen of 
 Malaga, R. R. Porter is conducting a general 
 mercantile establishment as well as acting as 
 postmaster of the town. The family of which 
 he is a member came originally from England, 
 the grandfather, William Porter, a native of Vir- 
 ginia, being the first born upon American soil. 
 Later in life he removed to Elizabeth county, 
 Ky., and there William- Pike Porter was born. 
 Pie married Nannie Robinson, also a native of 
 the state. He removed to Lewis county, Mo., 
 and abandoned his work of brick mason for that 
 of farming, continuing so employed until his 
 death at the age of sixty-eight years. 
 
 Born in Lewis county,' Mo., February 17, 1868, 
 R. R. Porter was reared and educated among 
 the surroundings of his birthplace, remaining 
 on his father's farm until attaining the age of 
 twenty years. In 1890 he came to California 
 
 and located in the Malaga district, Fresno coun- 
 ty, where he followed farming for three years, 
 after which he engaged in the general merchan- 
 dise business in Malaga in partnership with 
 Frank S. Bagley. Disposing of his interests a 
 little later he bought forty acres of land, where 
 he engaged in raisin culture for six years. Re- 
 turning to Malaga he purchased the store of Mr. 
 Bagley in 1902, since which time he has carried 
 on a successful business in the mercantile life 
 of the community. 
 
 Mr. Porter was married February 17, 1892, to 
 Rose McCann, a native of Marion county, Mo., 
 and daughter of Thomas McCann of Kentucky. 
 They are the parents of the following children: 
 Maurine, Beth, Roberta and Thomas. In his 
 political preferment Mr. Porter is a Democrat. 
 Fraternally he is identified with the Woodmen 
 of the World, being a member of the Fresno 
 lodge. In his religious convictions he subscribes 
 to the doctrine of the Baptist Church. 
 
 PERCY B. FULTON. The efficient post- 
 master at Dinuba, who has filled this responsible 
 position since November of 1897, is a descen- 
 dant of old Virginian ancestry and a member of 
 a family prominent in the early settlement of the 
 west. "His father, Rev. Samuel D. Fulton, was 
 born in Ohio, where the grandfather, John 
 Marks Fulton, M. D., a native of Botetourt coun- 
 ty, Va., engaged in the practice of medicine and 
 surgery for a long period. Early in life he com- 
 pleted his classical education and supplemented 
 the same by the study of the law, which he prac- 
 ticed in Weston, Mo., and also as a member of 
 the law firm of Bixler, Williams & Fulton, at 
 Virginia City, Nev., during the balmy days of 
 the rich Comstock mine. On his return to Mis- 
 souri he resumed professional work at Weston, 
 but later removed to Quincy, 111., and there was 
 ordained to the ministry of the Presbyterian 
 Church. For years he served as a missionary 
 on the frontier and established churches and 
 schools in various parts of New Mexico and 
 Arizona. From New Mexico he removed to 
 Oregon and accepted the pastorate of the Pres- 
 byterian Church at Dallas, Polk county. His 
 next and last pastorate, which covered a period 
 of several years, was at Holiister, Cal, and from 
 that place he came to Dinuba, where he died in 
 1896 at the home of his son. During much of 
 his active life he was connected with the Ma- 
 sonic fra.ternity, whose principles of brotherhood 
 and charity he believed to be in harmony with 
 the divine teachings. 
 
 The marriage of Rev. Samuel D. Fulton united 
 him with Adelaide A. Buell, who was born in 
 New York City, July 31, 1838, and was the eld- 
 est child of John T. and Louisa Pamelia (Cook) 
 
^(y\ ^iJ^lMO- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 819 
 
 Buell, the former born in New York City, June 
 19, 1812, and the latter born in Bridgeport, Conn., 
 July 13, 1817. Her grandfather, Abel Buell, 
 was a sea-faring man and a ship officer in the 
 merchant marine service. In October of 1839 
 John T. Buell left his eastern home and migrated 
 to Burlington, Iowa, where he was soon after- 
 ward chosen chief of police and continued in that 
 capacity until shortly before his death in 1900. 
 During the early history of the town he was 
 one of its most influential citizens, and few were 
 more closely associated with its growth than he, 
 nor did any cherish a deeper interest in its de- 
 velopment. Of his marriage there were six 
 children, and the eldest, Adelaide Augusta, Mrs. 
 Fulton, now makes her home with her only son, 
 Percy B., in Dinuba, and in her family there are 
 also two daughters. 
 
 At Weston, Mo., Percy B. Fulton was born 
 July 25, 1867. In boyhood he attended the pub- 
 lic schools of Quincy, 111., and later became a 
 student in Highland University, at Highland, 
 Kans. During 1886 he went to New Mexico and 
 settled at Aztec, San Juan county, where he held 
 the office of po.stmaster for two years. While 
 there he was admitted to the bar and began the 
 practice of law. On the Republican ticket in 
 1889 he was nominated as a member of the 
 constitutional convention of New Mexico, but 
 removed before the election to Oregon, conse- 
 quently resigned as nominee. After settling at 
 Dallas, Ore., in 1889, he engaged in the real 
 estate and insurance business. During 1893 he 
 came to California and bought a fruit ranch at 
 Dinuba, where he not only engaged in fruit- 
 growing but also carried on a real estate and 
 insurance business. When he was appointed 
 postmaster under President McKihley this was 
 a fourth-class office. In the fall of 1903 it be- 
 came a third-class office, and about the same 
 time two rural mail routes were started from 
 here into the adjoining country. January i, 1904, 
 he was again appointed to the office under Presi- 
 dent Roosevelt. In addition he continues to sell 
 real estate and negotiate insurance policies. In 
 1896 he was appointed justice of the peace and 
 two years later was elected to the office for a term 
 of four years, at the expiration of which he 
 was re-elected to the position. 
 
 While living at Aztec, New Mexico, Mr. Ful- 
 ton married Miss Irma Koontz, who was born in 
 Florence, Colo. Her father, Hon. John A. 
 Koontz, was a member of the Colorado state leg- 
 islature several terms, later founded the town of 
 Aztec in New Mexico and at this writing is a 
 resident of Palo Alto, Cal. By his marriage Mr. 
 Fulton has four children, Howard, Gladys, Les- 
 ter and Muriel. In religion he and his family 
 are identified with the Presbyterian Church. 
 Here, as in the other places where he has resided. 
 
 the Republican party has received his stanch al- 
 legiance, and at this writing he is a member of 
 the county central committee. In the Board of 
 Trade he is a member of the executive committee. 
 Fraternally he is secretary of the Court of Honor 
 and past officer in the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen. 
 
 JASPER NEWTON HALSTEAD. In Mr. 
 Halstead we find one of the oldest pioneer set- 
 tlers of Tulare county. Coming here in 1854 he 
 has seen this country change from a wilderness 
 to a thickly populated district. In his time cities 
 have grown up, the railroads have come as have 
 also the telegraph, the telephone, electricity, in 
 fact everything that makes us the advanced na- 
 tion of the world. When Mr. Halstead located 
 here the only means of travel were ox teams. 
 Neighbors were few and far between, yet there 
 was a spirit of brotherly love and helpfulness 
 that can no longer be found. At that early date 
 men were taken for what they really were. If a 
 stranger appeared, no questions were asked and 
 as long as he acted the part of a man he was 
 honored and respected by all. In this great 
 march of civilization Mr. Halstead has played a 
 prominent part. He has ever been ready to lend 
 a helping hand and when there vi^ere need of men 
 to do men's work Mr. Halstead was there. A 
 native of Indiana, he was born near South Bend 
 April 30, 1836, a son of Timothy and Annie (Den- 
 end) Halstead. His father was born in New 
 York state and on going to Indiana settled near 
 South Bend, where he resided until 1845, when 
 he removed to Kirksville, Mo., remaining there 
 until J 853 and that year he brought his family 
 across the plains, six months being the time 
 necessary for this long journey. The first year 
 in California was spent near Stockton and in 
 October, 1854, he located near Visalia, where he 
 purchased a farm of three hundred and twenty 
 acres on which he engaged in general farming 
 and stock-raising. There he died at about the 
 age of "eighty years, as did also his beloved wife. 
 
 Jasper N. Halstead attended the pioneer schools 
 in Indiana and Missouri and in 1853 crossed the 
 plains with his parents, driving four yoke of oxen 
 most of the way. Coming to Tulare county in 
 1854 he remained at home for a time, but later 
 became engaged in the stock business and the 
 owner of three hundred and twenty acres of land. 
 Meeting with success in this line of business, he 
 became known as one of the leading stock men 
 of the county, following this occupation until 
 January, 1892, when he removed to Goshen and 
 engaged in the livery business, which he has 
 since conducted, although he still owns eighty 
 acres of land three miles from Goshen, where 
 he raises considerable stock. 
 
820 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mr. Halstead has been twice married, his first 
 union being with Miss Mary Cason, who was 
 born in Missouri. She bore him one child, Ed- 
 ward, who hves in Goshen. For his second wife 
 Mr. Halstead married Miss Georgia Bacon, a na- 
 tive of Massachusetts and a daughter of George 
 and Charlotte (Sawyer) Bacon. George Bacon, 
 a soldier in, the Civil war, was killed the first 
 year of the war, 1861, at the age of twenty-three 
 years. As a result of this marriage three chil- 
 dren have been born, as follows : Burt, who is 
 in the employ of the Southern Pacific at Bakers- 
 field ; Mabel and Walter, at home. 
 
 In politics Mr. Halstead is a true-blue Re- 
 publican and while he has never been very active, 
 he has at all times been deeply interested in local 
 affairs, taking an especial interest in educational 
 matters. Although now an old man and with 
 but a few more years to live, Mr. Halstead is 
 active and takes as much interest in affairs as 
 he did fifty years ago. It is a matter of special 
 pride that the famous historian and writer, Murat 
 Halstead, is an own cousin of Mr. Halstead, and 
 yet, while he has fine antecedents on both sides 
 of the family, he has never risen in the world 
 through any support he has' received from them. 
 What he has accumulated has been the natural 
 results of his own honest efforts. He is one of the 
 vast army of men who crossed the plains to this 
 new country that is fast becoming thinned in 
 ranks, each year adding to the list that has re- 
 sponded to the last call. Tulare county honors 
 and respects Mr. Halstead. Here he has hosts 
 of friends who wish him many years of con- 
 tinued happiness. 
 
 ADONIJAH BICKFORD. Well known as 
 a sturdy and successful agriculturist, Adonijah 
 Bickford of Merced is also distinguished as one 
 of those brave and heroic pioneers who, by their 
 industry, energy and pluck, assisted in develop- 
 ing the resources of that country bordering on 
 the Pacific coast, and paved the way for civiliza- 
 tion's grand march across the continent, thus 
 making possible California's present prosperous 
 condition. Little do the young people of this 
 day and generation realize their indebtedness to 
 those men of brain and muscle. The descendant 
 of an old and much-respected New England 
 family, Mr.^ Bickford was born November 24, 
 1829, in Penobscot county. Me. His parents, 
 Nathaniel and Susan (Stevens) Bickford, were 
 both born and brought up in New Hampshire, 
 but after their marriage settled on a farm in 
 Maine. 
 
 Educated in the district schools and reared 
 on the parental homestead, Adonijah Bickford 
 remained at home until attaining his majority. 
 When the news of the discovery of gold on the 
 
 Pacific shores reached the eastern coast of our 
 "Continent, his ambition was aroused and in 1851 
 he came by way of Panama to California, land- 
 ing in San Francisco. He proceeded directly to 
 the gold fields of Placer county, and for eighteen 
 years thereafter was a gold digger. In 1863 he 
 went to Arizona prospecting for a company at 
 the Walker and Weaver diggings, and after his 
 return to this state again mined in Placer county. 
 During the eighteen years that he was thus em- 
 ployed, Mr. Bickford had the proverbial luck of 
 a miner, being a rich man one day, and the next 
 day perhaps losing all of his wealth. On the 
 whole, however, he was quite successful, accu- 
 mulating considerable money. 
 
 Coming to the San Joaquin valley in 1869, 
 Mr. Bickford lived for three years in Tulare 
 county. In 1872 he came to Merced, and the 
 next seven years had charge of the Eagle hotel. 
 Then, renting a section of land four miles south 
 of Merced, he was engaged in grain raising for 
 a number of years. In 1889 Mr. Bickford pur- 
 chased his present ranch, which is favorably lo- 
 cated, about one-half mile southeast of Merced, 
 and contains one hundred and fifty acres of rich 
 and productive land. He is here successfully 
 carrying on the various branches of agriculture, 
 raising grain and stock. From the time of set- 
 tling here until 1904 he also rented five hundred 
 acres of adjoining land, which he managed in 
 connection with his own, but this tract he has 
 recently given up, giving his entire attention now 
 to his own ranch. 
 
 In the fall of 1859 ^i"- Bickford married 
 Eleanor Adeline Kerr, who was born in Mans- 
 field county, Ohio, October 4, 1842. She is the 
 daughter of Col. William Kerr, who raised a 
 company and was commissioned an officer for 
 the Mexican war, and subsequently, in 1855, 
 brought his family to California. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Bickford have one child, Lillian M., wife of Ed- 
 ward Mugler, who was the first white child bom 
 in Merced county. Mr. and Mrs. Mugler have 
 two children, Eleanor Caroline and Frederick 
 Riley. Politically Mr. Bickford is a stanch Re- 
 publican, and fraternally he has belonged to the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows for forty- 
 five years. He was one of the organizers and 
 is one of the directors of the Merced Security 
 Savings Bank. 
 
 FRANZ MISCH. Prominent among the 
 younger generation of agriculturists who are 
 meeting with commendable success in their un- 
 dertakings is Franz Misch, who, as superintend- 
 ent of the Colony fami for Miller & Lux, is car- 
 rying on an extensive and lucrative business. He 
 is a man of good executive ability, well versed 
 in the science of agriculture, and holds an as- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 821 
 
 sured position among the leading men of the 
 community. A native of Germany, he was bom, 
 November 19, 1870, in Breslau, where he at- 
 tended the pubHc schools and the gymnasium. 
 Working with his father, he subsequently 
 learned the miller's trade, after which, at the 
 age of eighteen years, he became bookkeeper for 
 a large milling establishment in Breslau. 
 
 Leaving the Fatherland in 1892, Mr. Miscn 
 immigrated to the United States, locating first 
 in Chicago, 111. A month later he came to the 
 Pacific coast, and in San Francisco completed 
 his education, attending the Lincoln evening 
 school, and studying under private tutors. Going 
 to Firebaugli in 1893, he accepted a position as 
 foreman over a gang that were leveling and 
 ditching for alfalfa. The following year he was 
 made foreman on the Colony farm, and in 189S 
 was promoted to the position of manager, which 
 he has since filled with signal ability. The ranch 
 was almost in its original condition when he as- 
 sumed its management, but he has labored un- 
 remittingly in its improvement. He has broken 
 much of the land, fenced and ditched it, and has 
 leveled and checked three thousand acres, plac- 
 ing it in alfalfa. In the orchards that he has 
 set out he raises a variety of choice fruits, includ- 
 ing peaches, apricots, apples, pears and plums. 
 He likewise pays much attention to stock-rais- 
 ing, making a specialty of Short-horns. Mr. 
 Misch also owns a valuable ranch of thirty-five 
 acres in the Dos Palos Colony, on Eucalyptus 
 and Elgin avenues, where he has an apple or- 
 chard of twelve acres, the remainder of his farm 
 being devoted to alfalfa. 
 
 In Dos Palos in 1901 Mr. Misch married 
 Annie May Christian, who was born near Stock- 
 ton, Cal., a daughter of Martin Christian, pro- 
 prietor of the Dos Palos hotel, and into their 
 household three children have been born, 
 namely : Madeline M., Alvina E. and Annie F. 
 Politically Mr. Misch is a steadfast Republican, 
 and takes great interest in party affairs. He is 
 a member of the board of directors of the West 
 Side Union high school at Los Banos. Frater- 
 nallv he is a member of Mountain Brow Lodge 
 No." 82, I. O. O. F., of Los Banos. 
 
 WILLIAM E. VAN EMON. A native of 
 Minnesota, Mr. Van Emon was born near Still- 
 water, July I, 1864, a son of Cyrus and Massah 
 (Miller) Van Emon. His early days were spent 
 on his father's farm near Faribault, but in 1876 
 he went with his parents to Iowa, settling near 
 Lisbon. There his attendance at the public 
 schools was followed by a course in Cornell col- 
 lege at Mount Vernon. In 1883 he started out 
 for himself and came to California, securing em- 
 ployment on the farm of his uncle, J. W. Miller, 
 
 near Portersville. Seven years later, in 1890, 
 he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land, which is his present home and where he 
 has since resided. The place is now known as 
 the "Oakdale Dairy," which branch of farming 
 Mr. Van Emon has made a decided success. He 
 has nearly fifty cows and supplies the local trade 
 in Portersville with milk and cream. His place 
 is located five miles northwest from Portersville 
 and is well improved. He disposed of seventy 
 acres of his land in- 1896. Mr. Van Emon is also 
 engaged in the stock business on the Tule river. 
 
 In 1891 he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Jessie Payne, a native of New York state, and a 
 daughter of James H. Payne, who is a resident 
 of Portersville. To this union have been born 
 five children, as follows : Roy E., Merle Eva, 
 Irving, Bernice and Grace E. 
 
 Fraternally, Mr. Van Emon is a member of 
 the Woodmen of the World, while in politics he 
 supports the men and m.easures of the Republic- 
 an party, but he has never cared to take a very 
 active part in public affairs, preferring rather to 
 devote his time to his own business. He is a 
 self-made man in the full sense of the word. 
 
 JOHN WILCOX MILLER. Probably no 
 name in Tulare county is more widely or favor- 
 ably known than the one introducing this re- 
 view, and no work of this nature would be com- 
 plete were mention of this honorable pioneer and 
 successful business man to be omitted. A '49er, 
 Mr.' Miller came to the state when all this coun- 
 try was a barren waste of land, and where one 
 now sees beautiful orchards and well cultivated 
 fields was then an endless expanse of sand that 
 no one thought would ever be used for any pur- 
 pose. 
 
 A native of Indiana, he subsequently removed 
 to Missouri, being one of the very early settlers 
 of that state. It was in the early '30s that Mr. 
 Miller took tip his residence there, and St. Louis 
 was merely a French trading post, numbering 
 but a few hundred souls. Not being satisfied 
 with the prospects in Missouri, he soon after 
 went to Texas, locating near Paris, where he 
 erected a tannery and engaged in the tanning 
 business until 1849, the year of his arrival in 
 California. The trip overland was made with ox 
 teams, and none but those who have made a 
 similar journey can tell of- the hardships these 
 venturesome pioneers endured. After spending 
 some time in the mines, Mr. Miller engaged in 
 the hotel and livery business at Marysville. Later 
 he went to Havila, and still later to VisaHa, 
 where he conducted a livery stable on the cor- 
 ner that is now occupied by the Harrell block. 
 Subsequently he sold this business and started in 
 to raise sheep. This was about 1868, and his 
 
B22 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 first ranch was located near where the Welcome 
 school house now stands. Soon after he pur- 
 chased the old Lewis place, on which he located. 
 From that time on he began adding to his landed 
 possessions until at one time he owned ten thous- 
 and acres of valuable land, six thousand five hun- 
 dred acres of which was located on the Tule river. 
 For many years he was one of the largest and 
 most successful sheep raisers in the state, but 
 during the last few years of his life he devoted 
 more of his time to general farming and grain 
 raising. It is quite natural that a man so promi- 
 nent in a business wav should take a leading part 
 in public affairs, but Mr. Miller never had the 
 desire to hold office, although he was deeply in- 
 terested in the success of the Republican party, 
 which organization he always supported by his 
 voice and vote. 
 
 In fraternal relations he held membership with 
 the Masons, in which lodge he attained the Royal 
 Arch degree. His death was caused by an acci- 
 dent in 1886, which happened during a visit to 
 Portersville. He was driving a spirited team 
 which became frightened and ran away; the 
 wagon struck against some obstruction, and he 
 was thrown from his seat against the post of the 
 bridge; this resulted in internal injuries from 
 which he died twenty-four hours later. His 
 death was a sad blow to the whole county in 
 which he had lived so many years, and the fu- 
 neral was one of the largest ever held in the vi- 
 cinity of Portersville. 
 
 Such, in brief, is an outline history of this man 
 who took such an important part in the develop- 
 ing of the county. He was public-spirited to the 
 last degree and never withheld his support from 
 any movement calculated to be of material benefit 
 to the county or state. Had he desired he could 
 have been elected to any office within the gift of 
 the people, and his circle of friends was co-ex- 
 tensive with his circle of acquaintances. Such 
 men are history makers, for thev blaze the way 
 for later day develonments, and while the pres- 
 ent generation has done much to p'erpetuate the 
 memory of the pioneer, these noble men and 
 women will never receive too much credit. But 
 for them California would never have been de- 
 veloped, and what is now one of the greatest 
 states in the Union would still be a wilderness. 
 
 HORACE GREELEY BROWN. The orig- 
 inal acreage purchased by Mr. Brown shortly 
 after his arrival in Tulare county in 1894 has 
 been increased by subsequent purchases and at 
 the same time the entire tract has been brought 
 under cultivation and improved with a substan- 
 tial set of farm buildings. The twenty acres 
 constituting his first purchase has been placed 
 under cultivation to an orchard and improved 
 
 with buildings erected by himself and in addi- 
 tion he owns an adjoining tract of seventy-five 
 acres on the Lindsay road, about two and three- 
 quarters miles east of Tulare. Of this tract thir- 
 teen acres are in an orchard, eighteen acres in 
 salt grass for pasturage and the balance in alfal- 
 fa, irrigated by the Farmers' ditch. The dairy 
 business forms a leading industry, but in addi- 
 tion Mr. Brown engages in bee culture on an 
 extensive scale, having over one hundred col- 
 onies of bees on his home place, and an apiary 
 of equal size on the Lindsay road. 
 
 Very early in the history of Indiana William 
 Brown left his native state of Pennsylvania and 
 settled in the wilds of the new region, where he 
 proceeded to evolve a farm from a tract of raw 
 land. M'^ith him from Pennsylvania came his 
 son, Joseph H., who in early life followed farm 
 pursuits and also worked at the building busi- 
 ness, but left home to serve the Union as a 
 soldier in the One Hundred and Twenty-third 
 and later in the Sixty-third Indiana Volunteer 
 Infantry. At the close of the war he was hon- 
 orably discharged and returned to the pursuits 
 of civic life, but, instead of resuming the occu- 
 pations in which he had engaged formerly, he 
 studied law and became a very successful- at- 
 torney, his worth, character and ability giving 
 him large influence among associates. In early 
 manhood he married Hester Palmer, who was 
 bom at Steam Corner, Fountain county, Ind., a 
 daughter of Daniel Palmer, and a descendant of 
 Scotch-Irish progenitors. Her death occurred 
 in middle life, about 1868. Of her six sons and 
 three daughters, three sons and three daughters 
 survive, among these being Horace Greeley 
 Brown, who was born at Alamo, Montgomery 
 • cotinty, Ind., November 29, 1862, and in boyhood 
 lived at Steam Corner, attending the common 
 schools of that locality. When fourteen years of 
 age he began to work for farmers and ever 
 since then he has depended upon his own exer- 
 tions for whatever progress he has made in the 
 world. With a desire to broaden his education 
 he attended the Veedersburg high school, work- 
 ing his way by his own labors. 
 
 When seventeen years of age Mr. Brown re- 
 moved to Newman, 111., and engaged in farming. 
 After getting a start he returned to Indiana 
 and at Veedersburg married Caroline Hershber- 
 ger, a native of that state. The young couple 
 began housekeeping four miles from Longview, 
 111., where Mr. Brown bought a farm of eighty 
 acres and engaged in farming and stock-raising. 
 During 1891 he removed to Iowa and bought 
 three hundred and twenty acres of land near 
 Rockwell City, Calhoun county. Two years la- 
 ter he sold the land at an advance of $2,500, 
 and with the proceeds of the sale was ready to 
 invest in California property upon removing to 
 
'/:H.e/0~^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 825 
 
 this state in 1894. During that year he acquired 
 the twenty acres forming the nucleus of his 
 present homestead near Tulare, and here he has 
 since engaged in dairying and the work of an 
 apiarist. His home is brightened by the pres- 
 ence of his wife and their children, Claude, Jo- 
 seph, Everett, Charles, Edith, May, Goldie, Ruth 
 and Hester. The family stand high in the com- 
 munity and have many friends among those 
 whose acquaintance they have formed in the dec- 
 ade of their residence in Tulare county. Mr. 
 Brown is independent in politics, voting for the 
 men whom he considers best qualified to serve 
 the interests of the people. The Woodmen of 
 the World and the Fraternal Brotherhood num- 
 ber him among their members, and in the work 
 of each he takes a lively interest. For five 
 years he was a member of the board of school 
 trustees of Oakdale district and served as clerk 
 of the board until he declined to hold the posi- 
 tion longer, preferring to give other men the 
 opportunity to serve the interests of the school 
 as he had done. In every respect he has proved 
 himself a valuable addition to the agricultural 
 population of Tulare county. 
 
 OBADIAH RIPLEY BENNETT. Distin- 
 guished alike as a pioneer resident of California 
 and as the representative of an honored pioneer 
 family, Obadiah R. Bennett is well worthy of 
 mention in a work of this character. There is 
 probably no man more familiar with the topog- 
 raphy of the Pacific states than he, his rides on 
 the range having extended from Tulare Lake to 
 Puget Sound and Spokane Falls.. He comes of 
 Revolutionary stock, and among his most cher- 
 ished possessions is a powder horn, a Revolu- 
 tionary relic, probably one hundred and fifty 
 years old, that both he and his father have often ' 
 used in hunting excursions. A son of the late 
 Silas F. Bennett, he was born February 12, 
 1846, in Stephenson county, 111. 
 
 Born in Canada in 1801, Silas F. Bennett was 
 brought up on a farm in Ohio, and as a boy 
 endured the hardships and privations incident to 
 pioneer life. He subsequently moved to Stephen- 
 son CQunty, 111., where he reclaimed a farm 
 from the wild prairie, living there nearly a score 
 of years. Starting with his family for California 
 in 1848, he' joined a party coming with ox-teams 
 along the overland trail. While en route, in Ne- 
 vada, they met Mormons from California, who 
 told them of the discovery of gold in California. 
 This so excited the people that they threw away 
 much of their load, even provisions, and when 
 the stock became exhausted they were helpless 
 and their stock was run off by the Digger In- 
 dians. They were so nearly starved that at one 
 time Mr. Bennett, imable to get anyone to ac- 
 
 company him, started alone to hunt, and killed 
 a large deer, but was too exhausted from hun- 
 ger to load it on his horse. He returned to his 
 companions without it, but later brought the 
 deer into camp, when all ate the meat raw, and 
 then laid down around the camp fire to sleep, 
 the stars the only sentinels and wolves howling 
 a lullabye. Soon afterward relief appeared, Kit 
 Carson having heard of their distress through the 
 Indians. On arriving at Coloma, Mr. Bennett 
 was for a while employed as a lumber manufac- 
 turer and dealer, subsequently re-building Sutter's 
 mill lower down the stream. Going then to 
 Sacramento, he ran a schooner for a short time, 
 and then located in Santa Cruz, where he was 
 employed in agricultural pursuits until 1861. He 
 afterwards removed to Mendocino county, where 
 he built a saw-mill and a grist-mill, both of which 
 he operated for a number of years, being at the 
 same time engaged in stock-raising. He spent 
 his last years in Oakland, dying at a ripe old 
 age. His wife, whose maiden name was Su- 
 sanna Ripley, was born in New York state, and 
 died in Oakland, Cal. Of the three sons and 
 three daughters born of their union, all are liv- 
 ing excepting one son and one daughter. One 
 daughter resides in Corvallis, Ore., being the 
 wife of Prof. T. M. Gatch, president of the Ore- 
 gon Agricultural College. The professor is very 
 prominent in educational circles, having formerly 
 served as president of Willamette University, in 
 Salem, Ore., and of the University of Washing- 
 ton, at Seattle. 
 
 Brought up in Santa Cruz and Mendocino 
 counties, Obadiah R. Bennett attended the pub- 
 lic schools when young, and from his earliest 
 boyhood was accustomed to the saddle, riding 
 on horseback all over the vast ranges of the 
 great northwest. He began life as a stockman 
 in Mendocino county, in 1879, going from there 
 to Soden Flats, Idaho, near Lewiston. Purchas- 
 ing land on the Snake river, he rode the range 
 for eighteen consecutive years, traveling all over 
 Idaho, eastern Oregon and Washington. Re- 
 turning to California, Mr. Bennett located at 
 Grangeville, where he embarked in horticulture, 
 for which he had a natural taste, setting out an 
 orchard of twenty acres, and in its subsequent 
 care meeting with good success. In 1899 he 
 bought his present home ranch of seventy acres, 
 lying one mile east of Dinuba, and in 1900 as- 
 sumed its possession and management. It was 
 then an immense grain field. Erecting the first 
 house built on his section, Mr. Bennett began 
 the improvement of his ranch, setting out vines 
 and fruit trees, and has now a fine vineyard of 
 thirty acres, and a bearing orchard of sixteen 
 acres, the remainder of his farm being in alfalfa. 
 
 February 8, 1869, in Mendocino county, Cal, 
 
826 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mr. Bennett married Candace Cassandra Kanaw- 
 yer, who was born in Indiana, a daughter of 
 Peter Kanawyer. She comes of substantial Ger- 
 man ancestry, her grandfather, Frederick Kanaw- 
 yer, having emigrated from Germany to the 
 United States, locating first in Ohio, and then 
 in Indiana, where he spent the closing years of 
 his life. A native of Ohio, Peter Kanawyer 
 was brought up principally in Iowa on a farm. 
 In 1862 he came by the overland route to Cali- 
 fornia, settling first in Grangeville, and being 
 there through the Mussel Slough troubles, which 
 are so vividly portrayed by the late Frank Norris 
 in his celebrated novel, "The Octopus," which 
 treats of the conflict between the wheat growers 
 of the San Joaquin valley and the railroad. Mr. 
 Kanawyer married Abigail Cole, who was bom 
 in Ohio, where her father settled on removing 
 from Pennsylvania, and died at Grangeville, Cal. 
 Of the children born of their union, three sur- 
 vive, namely: Mrs. Crowell, of Hanford; Mrs. 
 Bennett; and Peter, of Fresno, a government 
 ranger. Mr. and Mrs. Bennett are the parents 
 of four children, namely: Mancel A. and Hor- 
 ace H., engaged in horticultural pursuits near 
 Dinuba; Mrs. Edna Smith, living near Dinuba; 
 and Pearl K., at home. Politically Mr. Bennett 
 is a true-blue Republican, and religiously he is 
 a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. Mrs. Bennett is identified by member- 
 ship with the United Brethren Church, and be- 
 longs to the Woman's Christian Temperance 
 Union. 
 
 WILLIAM WHITTINGTON, M. D. Not- 
 withstanding a comparatively brief sojourn in 
 Dinuba, Dr. Whittington has established a prac- 
 tice which proves his growing reputation as a 
 skilled physician, particularly in the line of his 
 specialty, tuberculosis and other diseases of the 
 lungs. With a beautiful home in this city, a cul- 
 tured wife and talented children, possessing the 
 friendship of many and the esteem of all, he has 
 won many of the greatest prizes that life can 
 offer. Of northern birth and southern extrac- 
 tion, he unites with the enterprise of the one the 
 culture of the other, and worthily represents an 
 honored race. 
 
 At an early period in the settlement of Illinois 
 Joseph Whittington removed from Tennessee and 
 settled near Benton, Franklin county, where he 
 secured a tract of virgin soil and engaged in 
 farm pursuits until his death. Next in line of 
 descent was J. F., a native of Franklin county, 
 111., and a farmer near Benton until death ter- 
 minated his activities about 1886. Surviving him 
 is his widow, formerly Mary Spencer, who re- 
 moved from Tennessee to Illinois with her parents 
 and settled on a farm in the neighborhood wJiere 
 
 she still resides. Of her ten children two sons 
 and three daughters survive, WilHam being the 
 eldest of those now living and the only member 
 of the family in California. He was born near 
 Benton, 111., December 12, 1853, and grew toman- 
 hood on the old homestead, where he acquired a 
 thorough knowledge of every detail connected 
 with agriculture. The occupation, however, held 
 few fascinations for him as conducted in that 
 day and locality, and at an early age he began to 
 teach school, also took up the study of medicine 
 under Dr. C. O. Kelley, of Ewing, 111. During 
 1878 he matriculated in the Missouri Medical 
 College at St. Louis, from which he was gradu- 
 ated March 4, 1880, with the degree of M. D. 
 Returning to Illinois, he took up professional 
 practice at Ewing, but soon removed to Campbell 
 Hill, Jackson county, where he married Miss 
 Jennie Hackney, a native of Tennessee. 
 
 On coming to California in 1891 Dr. Whitting- 
 ton opened an office at Reedley, Fresno county, 
 but in 1893 removed to Tulare, where he con- 
 ducted practice for a number of years. From 
 1898 to 1900 he followed his profession in Los 
 Angeles, after which he returned to Reedley, and 
 continued in. practice there until his removal, in 
 November, 1902, to his present location at Dinuba, 
 Tulare county. During his residence in Illinois 
 he was actively identified with the Southern Illi- 
 nois Medical Society and still retains member- 
 ship in that organization. In politics he is a 
 Democrat, but not radical in opinions. With 
 his wife he holds membership in the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church and contributes to its main- 
 tenance and charities. Initiated into Masonry in 
 Shiloh Hill Lodge No. 695, F. & A. M., he is 
 now a member at Reedley, and has further been 
 raised to the thirty-second degree, Scottish Rite. 
 In his family there are one daughter and four 
 sons now living, namely : Pearl lone, wife of H. 
 Hamner, of Los Angeles; Frank Edward, who 
 died at the age of ten months ; William E., a 
 student in the medical department of Washington 
 University, St. Louis ; Charles Roy and Ray 
 Hackney, who are students in the high school 
 of their home town. 
 
 ALFRED RICHARD GURR. An active, 
 brainy and progressive man, noted as a pro- 
 moter, and an early settler, of the British Col- 
 ony, Merced county, Alfred Richard Gurr is a 
 prominent exponent of its agricultural, manufac- 
 turing and business interests. By occupation 
 he is a general farmer, raising grain, cultivat- 
 ing fruit, manufacturing olive oil, and keeping 
 a large apiary, in every branch of his industries 
 meeting with eminent success. A son of the late 
 A. J. Gurr, he was born in London, England, 
 March 13, 1851. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 827 
 
 A. J. Gurr was born, reared and educated in 
 the county of Sussex, England. Engaging in 
 mercantile pursuits when a young man, he set- 
 tled in London, where he was in active business 
 until his death, at the age of forty-eight years. 
 He married Mary Bennett, a native of London, 
 and of the children born of their union three are 
 living, namely: Alfred Richard, the subject of 
 this biographical sketch; Rev. Henry J., a miji- 
 ister of the Episcopal Church, located in Chelan, 
 Wash., and Edwin R. of England. ■ A. R. and 
 Rev. H. J. Gurr came to Merced in 1889, and 
 were the first settlers of the British Colony, Mer- 
 ced county, Cal., from which was derived its 
 present name. E. R. Gurr came to Merced in 
 1891 and resided two years, in the meantime 
 building the Weaver residence. He then re- 
 turned to England. 
 
 After his graduation, in 1866, from Christ's 
 Hospital, better known as the Blue Coat School 
 of London, England, Alfred Richard Gurr en- 
 tered into business in London with his father, 
 remaining in that metropolis until 1889. Emi- 
 grating then to the United States, he came di- 
 rectly to California, and bought his present farm, 
 which lies four and one-fourth miles west of 
 Merced. About twenty acres of his ranch he 
 has sowed to alfalfa, and in addition to general 
 farming he has a fine dairy, keeping Jersey 
 cows, and also raises many hogs each year. He 
 is an expert horticulturist, and has made great 
 success in caring for his vineyard of four acres, 
 at the mid-winter fair in San Francisco winning 
 the bronze medal for his exhibit of three and 
 four crown raisins. A man of great enterprise 
 and keen foresight, Mr. Gurr manufactures a 
 fine quality of olive oil, having established a 
 plant on his farm, and buying his olives from 
 the growers of that fruit. He leases land on the 
 San Joaquin river, and on this land are his api- 
 ary, which contains three hundred stands of bees, 
 and yields him large quantities of honey each 
 year. 
 
 In London, England, Mr. Gurr married Emily 
 Hunter, a native of that city, and into their home 
 twelve children have been born, namely : Alfred 
 J., Henry R., Edwin, Emily M., William, Mary 
 (the wife of M. P. Crookshanks of Hanford), 
 David, Nellie, Ethel, Gordon, Beatrice, and Er- 
 nest. 
 
 CHARLES R. SCOTT. The family repre- 
 sented by this influential citizen of Tulare is of 
 eastern extraction. His father, Joseph, was a 
 native of Chambersburg, Pa., but at an early 
 age accompanied his parents to Ohio and settled 
 on a farm near Goshen. On starting out to earn 
 his own way in the world he went to Illinois and 
 settled on a farm in McLean county, thence in 
 
 1864 removing to Doniphan county, Kans., where 
 he combined the raising of stock with the tilling 
 of the soil. When advanced in years he came 
 to the coast and died in California, August 24, 
 1904, after eighty busy years. During the days 
 of his youth he met Maria Thacker, who was the 
 daughter of William Thacker, one of their neigh- 
 bors near Goshen, Ohio. The acquaintance thus 
 formed ripened into affection, and their destinies 
 were united by marriage. Mrs. Scott was a mem- 
 ber of an eastern family ; her father was a native 
 of New York state, and for years carried on a 
 farm in Ohio, but eventually removed to Michi- 
 gan, where he died. Since the death of her hus- 
 band Mrs. Scott has made her home in Tulare, 
 and notwithstanding her advanced age of sev- 
 enty-eight years, she is still physically and men- 
 tally robust. In religious belief she is a devoted 
 adherent of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 In a family of seven children, of whom two 
 sons and two daughters are now living, Charles 
 R. Scott was third in order of birth, and was 
 born near Hey worth, McLean county. 111., April 
 6, 1857. Accompanying his parents to Kansas 
 in 1864, he was primarily educated in the pub- 
 lic schools of Doniphan county, and then took 
 the regular course of study in Highland Univer- 
 sity, from which he was graduated in 1882 with 
 the degree of A. B. During the next few years 
 he engaged in teaching school in his home coun- 
 ty and in Buchanan county. Mo., meanwhile de- 
 voting his leisure days to the study of law under 
 the preceptorship of M. Poke, of St. Joseph. In 
 1885 he was admitted to the bar in Kansas and 
 entered upon a general practice at Nashville, 
 Kingman county. The prospects, however, were 
 not flattering. There was much to turn his am- 
 bitious thoughts from the conditions and climate 
 there to the opportunities offered in the trans- 
 mountain region, and he decided to seek a home 
 in the coast country. On New Year's day of 
 1889 he arrived in Fresno, and with the new 
 year began life in a new region. November 20, 
 1889, he left Fresno and came to Tulare, where 
 he began in the practice of law, but gradually 
 drifted into the real estate and insurance busi- 
 ness, which he now conducts, in addition to the 
 negotiating of loans. He also acts as agent for 
 the Laurel colony of fourteen hundred acres, is 
 a director of the Rochdale Company, owns in- 
 dividually an alfalfa ranch north of Tulare and 
 considerable orchard land, and is further a one- 
 tenth owner and a stockholder in El Mirador 
 Colony with four thousand acres of orange land, 
 which, as the company's local agent, he superin- 
 tends for colonization purposes. The El Mirador 
 Land Company's property lies at Lindsay, at the 
 approach of the Sierra Nevada range, almost at 
 the base of Mount Whitney, with sufficient ele- 
 vation to give a commanding view of the valley 
 
328 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to the west, with a climate of warm, sunny days 
 and cool but frostjess nights, thus being well 
 adapted to the orange, lemon, fig, apricot, peach, 
 plum and cherry. El Mirador is a tract former- 
 ly known among Califarnians as the Lewis creek 
 ranch, and at the old homestead there stands 
 the largest lemon tree and the largest lime tree 
 in the state, also figs forty years old and more 
 than a hundred feet high, which each year are 
 burdened to the ground with valuable fruit. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. Scott married Miss Annie H. 
 Wilder, who was born in Germantown, Pa., and 
 by whom he has a son, Joseph Francis. For six 
 years Mr. Scott filled the office of city attorney 
 of Tulare, elected on the Independent ticket, and 
 he has also served as treasurer of the Tulare 
 Board of Trade, being the present incumbent of 
 the office. He is a member of the Fraternal 
 Brotherhood and a leading worker in the Tulare 
 Congregational Church, of which he is now pres- 
 ident of the board of trustees. 
 
 MORTIMER G. THOMPSON. The Thomp- 
 son homestead consists of one hundred and 
 twenty acres situated five and one-half miles 
 southwest of Dinuba and largely under alfalfa 
 and in pastures, facilitating the dairy interests 
 of the owner, who since 1894 has made this 
 industry a special feature of his farm work. 
 While it was in 1889 that he purchased this tract, 
 it was not until three years later that he built 
 a farm house and brought his family to reside 
 on the place, and since then he has made vari- 
 ous other improvements that have added to the 
 value of the property. Besides the management 
 of his land and dairy, he devotes considerable 
 attention to the work of ditch tender of the Alta 
 district, which he has filled since March of 1904, 
 and in which one of his duties is to make daily 
 inspections of many miles of canals. 
 
 Of eastern ancestry, Mr. Thompson was born 
 at Theresa, Jefferson county, N. Y., May 7, 
 1840, being the second among seven children, 
 all but one of whom reside in California. His 
 father, J. D. Thompson, was born and reared 
 in New York, where he followed the milling busi- 
 ness. After i-emoving to Wisconsin and settling 
 at Neenah, Winnebago county,, he supplemented 
 milling by agricultural pursuits, and became a 
 prosperous and influential man in his community. 
 From Wisconsin he came to California in 1888 
 and settled on a small ranch at Traver, Tulare 
 county. His death occurred in Oakland when he 
 was seventy-four years of age. While living in 
 the east he married Mary E. Kennan, who was 
 born in New York and now, at seventy-six years 
 of age, makes her home with her children in 
 California. 
 
 From the age of three years Mortimer G. 
 
 Thompson was reared in Wisconsin, where the 
 family home was on a farm near Neenah. At 
 nineteen years of age he began to farm for him- 
 self and for this purpose rented land near Fond 
 du Lac, Dodge county. While living there he 
 established domestic ties through his marriage, 
 March 30, 1870, to Miss Jennie Butler, a native 
 of Leroy, Dodge county, Wis., and a daughter of 
 James Henry and Sarah (Billings) Butler, na- 
 tives respectively of Pelham, Hillsboro county, 
 N. H., and Newburg, Cleveland, Ohio. Her 
 paternal grandfather, James Butler, removed 
 from his native locality in New Hampshire to 
 New York and afterward became a pioneer of 
 Wisconsin, where he improved a farm in Dodge 
 county, but eventually moved to Adams county 
 and there died. The maternal grandfather, Syl- 
 vester Billings, removed in an early day from 
 Vermont to New York,- later settled in Ohio, and 
 finally established himself in the sparsely settled 
 region of Dodge county, Wis., where he im- 
 proved a farm from a tract of raw land. Late 
 in life, during 1874, he came to California, where 
 he died at Healdsburg, aged seventy-eight years. 
 At the time of settling in Dodge county. Wis., 
 James Henry Butler was twenty-one years of 
 age, and at Leroy in 1850 he married Miss Bill- 
 ings, after which he settled on a farm of his 
 own near Leroy. During 1874 he came to the 
 west and bought land near Healdsburg, CaL, 
 where at first he devoted himself exclusively to 
 agriculture, but later turned his attention to the 
 trade of blacksmith and carriage-maker. At the 
 time of his death, in 1895, he Vas sixty-eight 
 years of age. His widow now makes her home 
 with her oldest child, Mrs. Jennie Thompson, 
 besides whom she has two other children now 
 living, four being deceased. 
 
 After his marriage for a time Mr. Thompson 
 engaged as baggageman with the railroad at 
 Fond du Lac. With other members of- the fam- 
 ily, in 1874 he came to California and settled on 
 a farm near Healdsburg. Four years later he 
 became a pioneer of the state of Washington. 
 With the first boat that landed at Asotin Flats 
 he sought the new country in the southeastern 
 part of Washington, and took up one hundred 
 and sixty acres as a homestead, situated south of 
 Lewiston, Idaho, in the Nez Perces country. Fif- 
 teen miles back from the creek he built a log 
 cabin, where he made his home. Hardships in- 
 numerable were crowded into the next few years. 
 The struggle for a livelihood was fought amid 
 the most discouraging environments, in a region 
 where settlers were few and conveniences con- 
 spicuous by their absence. At harvest time he 
 went to Walla Walla to earn money with which 
 to buy provisions for his family. 
 
 Tiring of the uncongenial environment Mr. 
 Thompson in 1885 came south overland, bring- 
 
^^ 
 
 '2iA/ij~-^^\y^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 831 
 
 iug with him fourteen horses and household ne- 
 cessities. For his first location he settled one 
 mile south of his present home in Tulare county 
 and here engaged in grain-raising, operating at 
 times as many as eight hundred acres. In 1889 
 he bought and began to improve his present prop- 
 erty, and here he and his wife, with their son, 
 James Earle, have made their home since 1892. 
 Fraternally he was formerly connected with the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Traver and 
 is now a member at Dinuba, where he is past 
 grand. With his wife he is connected with the 
 Order of Rebekahs, in which he is past noble 
 grand, and in addition he holds membership with 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. Though 
 not ■ identified with any denomination, he is in 
 sympathy with the work of the Christian Church, 
 to which his wife belongs and in which he has 
 been a contributor ' during the entire period of 
 his residence in Tulare county. In politics he 
 favors RepubUcan principles and casts his ballot 
 for the men and measures advocated by that 
 party. 
 
 ELEAZAR T. GIVENS. Living retired in 
 Oakland, Cal., E. T. Givens is rounding out a 
 well-spent life, free from the business cares which 
 have engrossed his attention for many years. He 
 was born in Union county, Ky., October 17, 1828, 
 a son of Thomas and Catherine (Richards) Giv- 
 ens, both of whom were highly esteemed residents 
 of Union county. E. T. Givens received his edu- 
 cation in the pioneer school of his day and grew 
 to manhood on his father's farm. Among his 
 schoolmates were George Penn Johnston, of San 
 Francisco, and the Casey brothers, for whose 
 father Caseyville, Ky., was named. 
 
 April S, 1849, Mr. Givens left Caseyville with 
 a party of emigrants for California, crossing the 
 plains by way of St. Joseph, Mo., and Salt Lake 
 City. At the latter place the party separated, 
 and Mr. Givens and his brother remained six 
 weeks in that city, then joined another party 
 under the leadership of James Waters, of San 
 Bernardino. They took the southern route and 
 in October arrived at the Rubidotix ranch, along 
 the Santa Ana river, and there the following win- 
 ter was spent working on the ranch. March, 
 1850, found Mr. Givens in the Coarse Gold 
 Gulch, of Fresno county, where he met with fair 
 success. .He tlien went into Mariposa county, 
 where he met with good success in the Whit- 
 lock and Agua Frie mines. October 11 of that 
 year he met with a severe accident that necessi- 
 tated his retirement from mining for a time. On 
 that morning one of the party, John W. Childs, 
 wounded a grizzly bear and returned to the camp 
 for assistance. Mr. Givens and three others re- 
 sponded and upon going to the place where the 
 
 encounter had taken place, found the bear with 
 two cubs. Upon the approach of the party they 
 started to run away, when both Mr. Childs and 
 Mr. Givens shot and wounded the bear again. 
 After following them for some time they were 
 found in a thicket and the final fight took place. 
 Being near the bear Mr. Givens fared badly, 
 losing a part of his scalp and sustaining other 
 severe injuries. Mr. Childs, with true heroism, 
 stood by him and fired three shots, at the risk of 
 killing his friend, before the bear was killed. 
 After suffering for a long time Mr. Givens re- 
 covered and in 1851, nearly a year afterward, 
 was enabled to return to his home in Kentucky. 
 In 1852 his parents came to this state by way of 
 the Isthmus of Panama, and the following year 
 E. T. Givens returned overland, coming as far 
 as Salt Lake City by the same route that he had 
 first traveled and completing the journey by way 
 of the Carson route. In the meantime, in 1853, 
 in Morganfield, Ky., he had married Martha 
 Pratt, who came with him. They arrived in Cali- 
 fornia without any mishap and spent that winter 
 on the old Texas ranch in Mariposa county, then 
 owned by his father. In 1854 they settled on 
 Bear creek, in what is now Merced county, ten 
 miles from the present site of Merced. Upon the 
 organization of Merced county Mr. Givens as- 
 sisted in electing the first officers. In 1856 he 
 removed to a place on Mariposa creek, and it 
 was under the trees on this ranch that the first 
 court in the county was held. This ranch con- 
 tinued to be his home until the fall of 1904. There 
 were seven children born of this marriage, but 
 of these four died in early childhood. The others 
 are : Mary Louise, wife of C. H. Porter, of 
 Chico, Cal. ; Matilda Frances, wife of E. B. 
 Trescott, "of Texas; and James William, of 
 Merced county. In 1867 Mrs. Martha P. Givens 
 died at the home of her sister in East Oakland. 
 The daughters were placed in Mills' Seminary 
 at Benicia, and the son was later educated at the 
 California Military Academy, in Oakland. In 
 1870 Mr. Givens was united in marriage with 
 Adelaide M. Brooks, who was born in Canada 
 in 1837, a daughter of Alonzo Brooks, who re- 
 moved in an early day to Jeflferson county, N. Y., 
 in 1838 to Sheboygan, Wis., and in 1849 to Cali- 
 fornia, during the excitement of the discovery of 
 gold. By this marriage five sons and two daugh- 
 ters were born, viz. : Arlington B. of Merced, 
 Helen E., E. Virgil, Thomas T., Frederick C. 
 and Constance E., living ; and John H., a twin of 
 Thomas T., deceased. Two of the sons operate 
 the home ranch of thirteen hundred and sixty 
 acres, which is devoted to grain, stock and poul- 
 try. The ranch is well improred, with a com- 
 fortable house and a substantial set of buildings 
 adequate for the needs of the place ; also to facili- 
 tate shipments of grain. Mr. Givens has a ware- 
 
832 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 house 40x100 feet located on the Southern Pa- 
 cific Railroad. On his ranch is located one of 
 the oldest buildings in Merced county, a smoke- 
 house, erected in 1856, which is covered with 
 shingles made by hand from timber brought from 
 the mountains. This has never been re-shingled 
 and is now in a fair state of preservation. 
 
 In politics Mr. Givens has given his support 
 to the Democratic' party and by his voice and vote 
 has ever been an advocate of good government 
 and is a promoter of education. He has never 
 been willing to accept any office, though he has 
 had them offered him at various times. By his 
 upright character, integrity and public spirit he 
 has won a host of friends among those with whom 
 he has come in contact. 
 
 ELMO E. PYLE. Prominent among the 
 younger generation of ranchers of Kern county 
 is Elmo E. Pyle, of whom it may be said that the 
 advantage of inheriting his estate and of being 
 surrounded with early opportunities above the 
 average has in no wise stilled the voice of am- 
 bition nor lessened his desire to establish an in- 
 dependent reputation for enterprise and public 
 spirit. Mr. Pyle has the task before him of 
 maintaining high standards established by two 
 other generations of his family in the state, that 
 of his grandfather, William, and his father, Hon. 
 Darius Pyle. William Pyle became an early set- 
 tler of Vermilion county, Ind., where two of his 
 eleven children were born, a daughter, and 
 Darius, the latter born April 20, 185 1. Mr. Pyle 
 was ambitious and far-sighted, and in 1852 came 
 to the Pacific coast, settling at Sutterville, three 
 miles below Sacramento. In 1855 he was joined 
 by his wife and two children, Darius at that 
 time being four years old. He removed to 
 Orange county in 1883 and continued to live on 
 his farm for the balance of his life, dying in 
 1890, at the age of sixty-six years. Eight of 
 his children attained maturity, and all had op- 
 portunities for developing their various abilities 
 not experienced by the average children of the 
 pioneers. Mrs. William Pyle makes her home 
 in San Franci.sco, aged seventy-three years. 
 
 Hon. Darius Pyle was educated in the com- 
 mon schools and at the University of the Pa- 
 cific, and afterward applied himself to learning 
 the tinner's trade. After serving an apprentice- 
 ship of three years he taught school for four or 
 five years in Santa Clara county, a part of that 
 time being principal of the Alviso school. He 
 took a prominent part in educational matters in 
 the county, was clerk of the board of trustees, 
 and assessor of, the town of Santa Clara. In 
 1876 he leased land and engaged in the stock- 
 raising and dairy business at Gilroy. During 
 the six years thus employed he was elected to 
 
 the general assembly, serving in the regular ses- 
 sion of 1885, and the special session of 1886. In 
 the latter year he was elected supreme repre- 
 sentative of the American Legion of Honor of 
 California, and was present at the session of the 
 council in Boston, Mass. In February, 1887, he 
 removed to Kern county and became superin- 
 tendent of the Mountainview dairy and stock- 
 ranch for the Kern County Land Company, and 
 in the fall of 1891 bought the ranch upon which 
 his son Elmo now lives, and which consists of 
 sixty acres, at that time unimproved. He has 
 made extensive changes, erecting a fine rural 
 home, and setting the ranch out to fruit send 
 general products. In 1894 he supplemented his 
 former political success by service as under 
 sherifl: of Kern county. In 1897 he became in- 
 terested in mining, and with his son Elmo and 
 others prospected near Randsburg and discov- 
 ered what is now the St. Elmo mine, named 
 after the son, to whose energy was due a large 
 share of the success of the expedition. The his- 
 tory of this mine is a veritable financial tragedy, 
 and as far as the Pyle family was concerned 
 had its end in the duplicity of a trusted friend. 
 Father and son were offered $150,000 for the 
 mine, but thinking to make more money by re- 
 taining possession, formed a stock company with 
 a capitalist who froze them out and stole the 
 mine. Mr. Pyle was completely prostrated by 
 the change in his fortunes, but fortunately in 
 1897 had deeded his ranch to his son, and thus 
 averted total financial loss. For a time he was 
 manager of a ranch for Claus Spreckels in Santa 
 Clara county, and eighteen months later re- 
 moved to Guadalajara, Mexico, where he started 
 the creamery and cheese factory which has since 
 netted him a comfortable income. Personally he 
 is a man of strong character and fine business 
 ability. While his mining experience was a bit- 
 ter one, it covered but a small part of his life, 
 and represented the loss of a piece of good for- 
 tune, rather than the gain of a lifetime of toil. 
 He bore it as would a strong and noble char- 
 acter, and remains unembittered, and hopeful in 
 his survey of life. 
 
 The wife of Mr. Pyle was formerly Mary 
 Rea, born in Santa Clara county January i, 
 1850, an adopted daughter of Hon. Thomas Rea, 
 who was a native of the vicinity of Gallipolis, 
 Ohio, and born November 22, 1820. Mr. Rea 
 removed to Hancock county, Ohio, in 1833 with 
 his parents, thence to Macon county. 111., where 
 he started out to earn an independent livelihood. 
 From 1842 until 1849 he was interested in lead 
 mining in Wisconsin, and then responded to his 
 ambition to make a fortune in the mines of the 
 far west, reaching San Francisco via Panama 
 February 22, 1850. He worked in the mines of 
 Placer county and Downieville imtil 1852, and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 833 
 
 then returned east and married, at Springfield, 
 lU., in 1853, Mary Ann Jones, and with his wife 
 started overland to the coast, locating in Gilroy 
 township, Santa Clara county. Here he en- 
 gaged in ranching and stock-raising on a large 
 scale, and in 1868 removed to Gilroy, where he 
 erected his present handsome residence, and has 
 since lived in comparative retirement. ^ His 
 active brain has seen countless opportunities of 
 increasing his fortune, and he owns thousands 
 of acres of land in Santa Clara county, all valu- 
 able, and bringing in a substantial yearly in- 
 come. He also erected the Rea building in San 
 Jose, which is a valuable property. He gave 
 his children the best possible education, as Mrs. 
 Pyle can testify, and his life and character are 
 enshrined in the hearts of an appreciative com- 
 munity. To Mr. and Mrs. Darius Pyle four 
 children have been born, namely : Elmo E. ; 
 Aldine, a musician of repute; Elva W. C, an 
 artist, being educated by her grandfather, 
 Thomas Rea, at Hopkins Art Institute ; and Rea, 
 at home. 
 
 Elmo E. Pyle was sixteen years old when he 
 came to his present ranch, and with the excep- 
 tion of the two years spent in mining with his 
 father, he has made this his home. Since 1902 
 he has served as postmaster of Pylema, the town 
 being named after the family. He is a keen, 
 practical business man, industrious and bound to 
 succeed, and utilizes to the best possible advan- 
 tage his sixty acres of well-tilled land. His 
 home is ten miles south of Bakersfield, where 
 hospitality and good cheer seem to emanate from 
 its fertile fields, and its quiet, peaceful and sun- 
 shiny atmosphere. 
 
 BENJAMIN M. ALFORD, M. D. The Al- 
 ford family is of English extraction and the first 
 representative in America became a planter in 
 North Carolina. A son of this immigrant, Wylie 
 Alford, was born and reared on a southern plan- 
 tation and at an early age settled near Nashville, 
 Tenn., where he enjoyed the prosperity attend- 
 ing southern planters in the days before the Civil 
 war. At the time of his death he was sixty- 
 two years of age. During early manhood he mar- 
 ried Sophia Drake, like himself a native of North 
 Carolina; she was the daughter of a farmer who 
 served in the Revolution and traced her lineage 
 direct to Sir Francis Drake. When eighty-six 
 years of age she passed away on the Tennessee 
 plantation. 
 
 Among the eleven children of Wylie and So- 
 phia Alford the youngest was Benjamin M., a 
 native of Tennessee, born fifteen miles from East 
 Nashville, December 13, 1833, and reared on the 
 plantation, with the best educational advantages 
 private schools could bestow. While still a mere 
 
 lad he developed a liking for the medical pro- 
 fession and selected the same for his life work. 
 Pursuant upon that ambition, he took the entire 
 course of lectures in the Nashville Medical Col- 
 lege, from which in 1856 he received the degree 
 of M. D. Immediately after graduating he 
 opened an office at Boston, Bowie county, Tex., 
 where he built up a practice extending through 
 all of the surrounding country. When the Civil 
 war began it was natural that his southern train- 
 ing and sympathies should assert themselves. 
 Fired with loyalty to the old southland, he at 
 once offered his services as a surgeon in the 
 First Mounted Battalion of Texas Troops. How- 
 ever, the battalion being already overcrowded, 
 the regiment was made the Thirty-second Texas 
 Infantry, and he was commissioned surgeon, with 
 the rank of .major. The record of his army serv- 
 ice is a record of hard marches, privations in- 
 numerable and hunger that at times verged on 
 starvation. The effect of constant hardships and 
 exposure wrecked his health and threatened life 
 itself, but with the devotion characteristic of 
 those who loved the lost cause, personal suffer- 
 ing was sunk beneath the claims of the Confed- 
 eracy. 
 
 In all of the engagements of his regiment Dr. 
 Alford bore a part. After crossing the Missis- 
 sippi with General Price he took part in the bat- 
 tle of Corinth and then accompanied Gen. E. 
 Kirby Smith into Kentucky, serving under him 
 until after the battle of Perryville. Later he was 
 present at Murfreesboro and Chickamauga, and 
 then followed Gen. Joseph E. Johnston into 
 the Georgia campaign, participating in the bat- 
 tles that marked the retreat to Atlanta, after 
 which he served at Nashville, Tenn., for a time, 
 then was transferred to Mobile, Ala., and re- 
 mained until the campaign ended. When the 
 war came to a close he returned to Texas, with 
 health shattered and property gone. All that was 
 left to him were his ex-slaves who, remembering 
 his goodness to them and reluctant to take up 
 the task of earning a livelihood without his aid, 
 refused to leave him; but, as he was no longer 
 able to support them, he found homes for all 
 as soon as possible and assisted them to_ get a 
 start in the world. 
 
 During 1868 Dr. Alford came to California via 
 Panama. Having heard much concerning the 
 climate of the Pacific coast, he was desirous of 
 coming hither in the hope that his health might 
 be benefited by the change. For five years he re- 
 mained with his father-in-law, W. B. Poer, who 
 owned the McFarland toll road in the mount- 
 ains The pure mountain air proved the tonic 
 most needed and, with health renewed, he re- 
 turned to Texas in 1873 and opened an office at 
 Fort Worth. However, like the majority who 
 have once come under the fascinating spell ot 
 
834 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 California's charms, he felt dissatisfied else- 
 where, and in 1875 returned to the coast, settHng 
 at Portersville, Tulare county, where he engaged 
 in the practice of medicine. Since June of 1881 
 he has engaged in practice at Tulare, where he is 
 now the oldest physician in point of years of 
 practice. Since coming here he has acquired al- 
 falfa lands, which he rents, and also owns a 
 building on the corner of Tulare and K streets. 
 Twice since buying this corner he has been 
 burned out, but the present building is a fire- 
 proof structure, so he has no further fear of 
 disaster. 
 
 While living at Boston, Tex., Dr. Alford mar- 
 ried Miss Josephine Poer, a native of Texas, 
 and a daughter of W. B. Poer, who served in the 
 war for the independence of Texas, also in the 
 Mexican war, later becoming a pioneer of 1849 
 in California, and eventually dying at Tulare. 
 The family of Dr. and Mrs. Alford comprises 
 two sons and two daughters, viz. : William H., 
 an attorney of San Francisco, now serving as 
 adjuster of the state taxes on the board of equali- 
 zation; Forest L., who practices law at Bakers- 
 field; Josephine, the widow of W. D. Haslam, 
 and a resident of San Francisco ; and Daisy, Mrs. 
 Hetherington, of Columbia, Mo. Throughout 
 all of his active life Dr. Alford has been a stanch 
 Democrat and has never failed to cast a vote for 
 the candidates of his party. Along the line of 
 his profession he has been an interested worker 
 in the San Joaquin Valley Medical Society and 
 the Tulare County Medical Society, and has 
 officiated as president of the latter organization. 
 The Independent Order of Odd Fellows number 
 him am.ong their members and he is also identi- 
 fied with Masonry, having been made a Mason 
 while at Boston, Tex., and later becoming a char- 
 ter member of Olive Branch Lodge, F. & A. M., 
 at Tulare, in which he is now an influential mem- 
 ber. 
 
 JOHN B. ROSSON, M. D. The founder of 
 the Rosson family in America was Major Joseph 
 Rosson, an Englishman, who crossed the ocean 
 accoiTtpanied by a brother and settled in the col- 
 ony of Virginia. When the Revolutionary war 
 opened he ofifered his services in behalf of his 
 adopted country, was commissioned a major in 
 Washington's army and bore a part in numerous 
 engagements, including the siege of Yorktown, 
 where he witnessed the surrender of Lord Corn- 
 wallis. Later he engaged in the practice of medi- 
 cine in North Carolina, where his son and name- 
 sake was born and reared. In time the latter re- 
 moved to Tennessee and engaged in farming in 
 Marshall county. Next in line of descent was 
 Osboi-n Rosson, a native of North Carolina and 
 by occupation a farmer. When the Civil war 
 
 brought its train of devastation and financial ruin 
 to the south he suflfered the loss of his farm, and 
 in 1866 made a new start in the world, removing 
 to Illinois and settling on a farm near Murphys- 
 boro, Jackson county, where he died in 1894 at 
 eighty-three years of age. In character he was 
 a man of great strength, firm of purpose, strong 
 of will, and politically was a Democrat and a 
 great admirer of Stephen A. Douglas. By his 
 marriage to Rebecca Patton, a native of Marshall 
 county, Tenn., he became allied with a family of 
 Scotch extraction and southern renown. John 
 Patton, her father, was a soldier in the Seminole 
 war, and for years followed farming in Tennes- 
 see ; her mother was a member of the Beck fam- 
 ily, of German descent, and was an aunt of Gen. 
 N. B. Forrest, the celebrated cavalryman. 
 
 In the family of Osborn and Rebecca Rosson 
 there were four sons and one daughter, namely: 
 John B., of Tulare, Cal. ; Mrs. Virginia Mahoney, 
 M. D., who is a graduate of the Woman's Medical 
 College of Chicago, and is now engaged in prac- 
 tice at Phoenix, Ariz. ; William T., a farmer in 
 Jackson county. 111. ; James A., who follows farm- 
 ing in Union county, that state; and Theodore 
 W., deceased. John B. Rosson was born in Mar- 
 shall county, Tenn., November 30, 1853, and at 
 thirteen years of age removed with his parents 
 to Illinois, where he attended the Centralia high 
 school. Later he pursued academic studies at 
 Troy, Tenn. For five years he engaged in teach- 
 ing school, using the money thus earned in pay- 
 ing the expenses of his medical education. After 
 having taken his preliminary studies under Dr. 
 O. L. Mahoney, of Phoenix, Ariz., he matricu- 
 lated in the Ohio Medical College (now the medi- 
 cal department of the University of Cincinnati), 
 and there he remained until his graduation in 
 1872. Returning to Jackson county. 111., he took 
 up professional work near Vergennes, where he 
 built up a valuable practice and served also as a 
 member of the board of pension examiners. In 
 1894 he removed to California and settled in 
 Tulare, where he has since devoted himself to pro- 
 fessional work. Surgery has always possessed 
 especial fascination for him, and his work in 
 that department has been skillful to an unusual 
 degree. 
 
 While still a mere lad Dr. Rosson took up the 
 study of shorthand under Prof. Charles Wright, 
 under whom he made such advancement that his 
 accuracy and speed in stenographic work attract- 
 ed local attention. In 1866 he was engaged to re- 
 port the Braden-Ditzer debate and for twenty 
 years acted as reporter for the Southern Illinois 
 Medical Association. His work in reporting was 
 a source of great pleasure to him and was con- 
 tinued for years, not as a source of remuneration, 
 but for the enjoyment it afforded him. He is 
 the father of five children. The eldest child, 
 
/^ /TTio^nnXL^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 837 
 
 Charles T. Rosson, M. D., now of Hanford, is 
 a graduate of the College of Physicians & Sur- 
 geons, San Francisco, class of 1903, and later en- 
 gaged in clinical work at the San Francisco 
 county hospital. The other children are Dora 
 L., of Tulare; Maude, a teacher in Illinois; Vir- 
 ginia F., who also resides in Illinois; and Ray 
 Wright, now in Tulare. Since coming to his 
 present location Dr. Rosson has rendered valu- 
 able service as a member of the board of health 
 examiners and the school board. Various fra- 
 ternal organizations number him among their 
 members, some of these being the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, Improved Order of Red 
 Men, Knights of Pythias, Woodmen of the 
 World and Fraternal Brotherhood. In politics 
 he was reared in the Democratic faith and has 
 never swerved in his allegiance to the party. 
 Whatever pertains to the progress of medical 
 science receives his thoughtful attention. Espe- 
 cially has he been interested in bodies organized 
 by physicians rendering possible the cultivation of 
 a fraternal spirit as well as discussion concern- 
 fng methods of coping with disease. Besides be- 
 ing prominent in the organization of the San 
 Joaquin Valley Medical Society he has officiated 
 as its president and been a leading factor in its 
 deliberations. The Tulare County Medical So- 
 ciety also receives his support and co-operation, 
 while he is further connected with the American 
 Medical Association and retains connection with 
 the Southern Illinois Medical Association as an 
 honorarv member. 
 
 JAMES ADDISON MOOREHEAD. Oc- 
 cupying a position of prominence among the ac- 
 tive and prosperous agriculturists of Tulare coun- 
 ty is James A. Moorehead. His fine homestead 
 and farm, located about six miles northwest of 
 Tulare, is a well-appointed and well-kept estate, 
 his stock and machinery being of modern manu- 
 facture, and everything about the premises indi- 
 cating the industry and keen judgment of the 
 owner. A large number of magnificent oak trees 
 adorn his ranch, one of which, the monarch of all, 
 is worthy of especial mention. It is nearly, if not 
 quite, thirty feet in circumference, one hundred 
 and twenty-five feet in height and its top over- 
 shadows a larger space of ground than any other 
 tree of its species in the county or valley, its 
 trunk resembling one of the immense redwoods 
 for which the state is noted. It is known far 
 and wide, and has been many times photographed, 
 both by local artists and by tourists. 
 
 A son of John Moorehead, Jr., Mr. Moore- 
 head was born, August 15, 1833, near Lewis- 
 burg, Greenbrier county, W. Va. His paternal 
 grandfather, John Moorehead, Sr., was born on 
 the Atlantic ocean, while his parents were ?n 
 
 route from England to the United States. He 
 was brought up in West Virginia, and during 
 his active career was engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits in Greenbrier county. 
 
 Born, reared and educated in Greenbrier coun- 
 ty, W. Va., John Moorehead, Jr., grew to man- 
 hood on the home farm. Moving westward in 
 1850, he bought government land in Louisa coun- ' 
 ty, Iowa, and was there employed in general farm- 
 ing for nearly a quarter of a century. In 1873 
 he located in Idaho, and a few years later came 
 to California, settling in Stanislaus county, near 
 Newman, where he resided until his death. His 
 wife, whose maiden name was Nancy McVey, 
 was born in West Virginia, and died of cholera, 
 in 1850, while en route to Iowa. Six sons and 
 four daughters blessed their union, and of these 
 four sons and one daughter are living, James 
 Addison, of this review, being the second child. 
 
 Spending the days of his boyhood and youth 
 in his native town, James A. Moorehead re- 
 ceived but meager educational advantages, his 
 school life being limited to a few brief terms. 
 One of the oldest of a large family of children, 
 he began assisting his father on the farm and 
 in the sawmill when a lad, and after _ removing 
 to Iowa assisted in the clearing and improving 
 of a horiTestead, remaining at home until after 
 attaining his majority. Embarking then in agri- 
 cultural pursuits on his own account, he con- 
 tinued a resident of Louisa county until 1862, 
 when he made up his mind to follow the march 
 of civilization to the Pacific coast. With a train 
 consisting of thirty wagons drawn by horses he 
 started across the plains, having previously been 
 appointed captain of the party. Taking the old 
 overland- trail, via Salt Lake City, he found some 
 of his former friends there among the Mormons, 
 and being well treated by them stopped there two 
 weeks, having a pleasant visit and a good rest. 
 Continuing the journey to Stockton, Cal., Mr. 
 Moorehead remained in that city about two years, 
 and was afterward engaged m placer mining in 
 Eldorado county for four years. Locating in Tu- 
 lare county in 1869, he pre-empted one hundred 
 and sixty acres of his present ranch, and af- 
 ter proving up homesteaded eighty acres 
 of adjoining land, so that he has now in 
 his home farm two hundred and forty 
 acres. By dint of unceasing toil and wise man- 
 agement Mr. Moorehead has made substan- 
 tial improvements, enhancing its value and add- 
 ing to its attractions. He has a productive or- 
 chard and vineyard, forty acres planted to al- 
 falfa, all under irrigation, and in addition to 
 general farming, pays considerable attention to 
 the breeding and raising of stock, his specialty 
 being horses and hogs, and in conducting the 
 latter industry he has eighteen different fields 
 fenced, and hog tight. He also owns a fine gram 
 
838 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 farm of one hundred and sixty acres, lying about 
 tliree miles southwest of Tulare, and from this 
 he receives a good annual income also. Though 
 not an aspirant for office, Mr. Moorehead takes 
 an intelligent interest in political matters, and 
 is a stanch adherent of the Republican party. 
 
 ABRAM HUNTER MURRAY, Sr. Al- 
 though several generations of the Murray family 
 have made their home in America they still dis- 
 play, in their rugged constitutions and mental 
 traits, the possession of Scotch proclivities in- 
 herited from a long line Of sturdy ancestors who 
 lived and labored and died in bonnie Scotland. 
 A strong patriotic sentiment and a love for the 
 stirring life of the frontier were predominant 
 characteristics among representatives of the fam- 
 ily in the early days of American history. Orig- 
 inally estabhshed in the southeast of the Mis- 
 sissippi river, Thomas Murray, who was a native 
 of Tennessee, removed from that state to Mis- 
 souri. Accompanying him, among other mem- 
 bers of his family, was a son bearing the name of 
 Thomas, who was born in Campbell county, 
 Tenn., January 28, 1797, and who during early 
 manhood served in various wars. During the war 
 of 1812 he went to the front, later served in 
 the Blackhawk war from Missouri and was an 
 officer in the Mormon war. After making his 
 home for a time at Boone's Lick, Cooper county, 
 Mo., he moved to the mouth of the Moniteau 
 river in Cole county, that state, where he ran a 
 ferry across the river and also carried on farm 
 pursuits. About 1843 he moved to the western 
 part of Missouri and settled in Cass county near 
 the town of West Point, where he engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits. Meanwhile, drawn to the 
 west by the discovery of gold, his sons had 
 joined a party of Argonauts, and in 1853 he and 
 his wife, with their three daughters, followed the 
 westward tide of emigration and joined their 
 sons in California, settling at Petaluma, Sonoma 
 county, where he died at the age of eighty-five 
 years. During his residence in Missouri he had 
 served as county judge about fourteen years and 
 there as well as in California he held office as 
 justice of the peace for many years. 
 
 The marriage of Thomas Murray, Jr., united 
 him with Barbara Hunter, who was born in 
 Powell's valley, Tenn., July 7, 1797, and died at 
 Cloverdale, Sonoma county, Cal., at eighty-four 
 years of age. The family of which she was a 
 member crossed the ocean from Germany to Vir- 
 ginia in an early day and her father, Abram 
 Hunter, removed from the Old Dominion to 
 Tennessee, where he engaged in farm pursuits. 
 Of her marriage twelve children were born, 
 namely: Mary M. (commonly called Polly), 
 Mrs. Walker, who died at Santa Rosa, this state ; 
 
 Margaret, Mrs. Hensley, who died in Madera 
 county; Jane C, wife of Enoch Enloe, and de- 
 ceased in Cole county. Mo. ; Emily M., Mrs. 
 Hugh Enloe, a resident of Inyo county, Cal. ; 
 Abram H.^ Sr., who was with 'one exception the 
 earliest settler of Tulare county; Urith, Mrs. 
 Orr, who died in California ; Barbara Ann, Mrs. 
 Williams, of San Diego county; Joshua H., who 
 came to CaHfornia in 1850, engaged in farm- 
 ing for years, and eventually died at Visalia ; 
 Josephine, who died at the age of ten years; 
 Rachel, Mrs. Clark, a resident of Santa Rosa; 
 Sarah E., Mrs. Stanley, living in Humboldt 
 county, this state ; and Hannah Retta, Mrs. Coop- 
 er, of Cloverdale. 
 
 At the home farm, ten miles west of Jefferson 
 City, in Cole county. Mo., Abram Hunter Mur- 
 ray, Sr., was born January 17, 1827. From the 
 age of sixteen years he was a resident of Cass 
 county. Mo., until his removal to California. 
 April 25, 1844, he was united in marriage with 
 Miss Sarah T. Hensley, who was born in Cole 
 county. Mo., July 4, 1824. Her father, Hon. 
 John Hensley, a native of Tennessee and a pio- 
 neer of Missouri, passed through St. Louis when 
 it was still under the Spanish government. For 
 a time he lived in Gasconade county, that state, 
 but later became a pioneer farmer of Cole coun- 
 ty. A man of large ability and possessing the 
 qualities qualifying him for leadership, he was 
 three times elected to represent his district in 
 the state senate, where his record was that of an 
 honorable official and progressive citizen. 
 
 After having engaged in farming and stock- 
 raising in Cass county for some years, Mr. Mur- 
 ray decided to remove to the coast. In 1852, 
 accompanied by his wife and three children, he 
 crossed the plains with ox-teams and driving a 
 herd of cattle. On the 19th of April the journey 
 was begun. After leaving Missouri the party 
 traveled up the Platte, thence along the overland 
 trail, and down the Humboldt, then into Cali- 
 fornia by the Carson river route. After a few 
 weeks in Stockton they came up the San Joaquin 
 valley in the then wilderness of Tulare county. 
 .S. C. Brown had arrived here a few days before 
 Mr. Murray and they were the only men in all 
 the country. As early as 1850 a Mr. Woods had 
 sought to establish a home here and had built a 
 log hut, but he had been killed by the Indians 
 and seventeen of his men met a similar fate, 
 only one escaping to tell the story of their mas- 
 sacre. The town of Woodville in Tulare county 
 was named in honor of this first settler. 
 
 Selecting land in what is now the western 
 part of Visalia, Mr. Murray engaged in farm- 
 ing and stock-raising on an extensive scale. 
 From the state and government he bought eigh- 
 teen thousand acres of land, but this he after- 
 ward lost through business reverses. He was 
 
PIISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 839 
 
 also unfortunate in losing a large number of 
 sheep during the dry years. In 1879 ^^ removed 
 to The Dalles, Ore., where he was engaged in 
 steamboating and the wood business. However, 
 finding the winters too cold in that climate, he 
 returned to the San Joaquin valley and settled on 
 a tract of two hundred acres. Much of this prop- 
 erty has been sold, but he still retains forty 
 acres in vineyard and alfalfa. Politically he is a 
 Democrat and fraternally holds membership with 
 the Masons, being connected with Visalia Lodge 
 No. J28, F. & A. M., of which he was twice 
 elected master; and in addition he is a demitted 
 Qiapter Mason. In religion he was liberal, but 
 generous to all denominations and especially in- 
 terested in the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South, of which his wife was a member. Mrs. 
 Murray died July 8, 1902, and since then her 
 place at the old homestead has been filled by her 
 eldest child, Mary F., wife of William J. Adams, 
 who was a California pioneer of 1859. The other 
 children are as follows : Thomas H., who fol- 
 lows ranching near the Toll Gate in Fresno 
 county; John H., also a rancher of Fresno coun- 
 ty; Commodore P., a retired rancher in Hum- 
 boldt county ; Jackson C, who carries on a ranch 
 in Fresno county ; Barbara E., Mrs. Taylor, who 
 died in Tulare county at her home on the White 
 river; and A. H., Jr., court reporter, and a resi- 
 dent of Visalia. 
 
 ABRAM HUNTER MURRAY, Jr. Prac- 
 tically the entire life of A. H. Murray, Jr., has 
 been passed in Tulare county, where he is well 
 known. LTpon the home farm near the present 
 city of Visalia he was born November 12, 1863, 
 being the youngest among the seven children of 
 Abram Hunter Murray, Sr. The educational 
 advantages of the growing town of Visalia were 
 within his reach and of these he availed himself 
 to the utmost, taking the regular course of study 
 in the old Visalia Normal, from which he was 
 graduated in 1882. Meanwhile, during a por- 
 tion of the years 1879 and 1880, he had been em- 
 ployed at The Dalles, Ore., where his father 
 temporarily engaged in business. Soon after his 
 graduation from the Normal he took up the 
 study of shorthand in San Francisco and when 
 he had completed the course he returned to 
 Visalia. For a time he was connected with an 
 abstract office as clerk and stenographer and 
 then entered the service of another abstract firm, 
 with whom he remained until his appointment in 
 1888 as deputy to the county clerk, John G. 
 Knox. In September, 1890, he was appointed 
 official reporter of the superior court oi Tulare 
 county and has held the position ever since, with 
 the exception of the years 1896-98, when he 
 was engaged in private business, In his pro- 
 
 fession he has the reputation of being an expert, 
 and among the court reporters of the entire state 
 none stands higher than he in accuracy of tran- 
 scripts and thoroughness of work. A man of 
 progressive spirit, he has been eager to adopt 
 any plans calculated to benefit him in the dis- 
 charge of his official duties. Among other im- 
 provements, he was one of the first to adopt the 
 graphophone in the transcribing of his notes. , 
 The first efiforts in this line were not success- 
 ful, "but after certain changes had been made in 
 the cylinders, the machine began to work with 
 accuracy, and he now uses it to the entire ex- 
 clusion of the old-fashioned system of tran- 
 scripts. 
 
 Within one-half mile of the city limits of Vis- 
 alia Mr. Murray owns a fruit ranch of twenty- 
 three and one-half acres, of which eight acres 
 are in an orchard and the balance in alfalfa. The 
 supervision of this property enables him to gain 
 a needed relaxation from the trying responsibil- 
 ities of his work as reporter. The comfortable 
 home occupied by his family was built by him- 
 self some years since and is one of the attractive 
 dwellings of Visalia. An influential Democrat 
 he holds office as chairman of the county central 
 committee and is a leader in all local work of the 
 party. Fraternally he is a prominent Mason, 
 being master of Visalia Lodge No. 128, F. & 
 A. M. ; member of Visalia Chapter No. 44, R. 
 A. M. ; Visalia Commandery No. 26, K. T., Islam 
 Temple, N. M. S, and the Order of the Eastern 
 Star. In addition, he is an active member of 
 Visalia Parlor No. 19, N. S. G. W. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Murray married Miss Karoline 
 A. Knox, by whom he has one child, Rita. Mrs. 
 Murray was born in the Greenhorn mountains in 
 Kern county and received her education in Vis- 
 alia, where she is a leading member of the Epis- 
 copal Church, the Eastern Star, and Visalia Par- 
 lor, N. D. G. W. In the latter organization she 
 acts as grand organist of the Grand Parlor, to 
 which she presented a march of her own compo- 
 sition. The Parlor adopted it as their official 
 march and published it under the name of the 
 Karoline march in her honor. In other ways her 
 talent as a pianist has brought pleasure to her 
 friends and honors to herself. The family of 
 which she is a member traces its genealogy to 
 Scotland, but became early settlers of Virginia 
 and a number of them bore arms in the Revolu- 
 tion. Her father, John G. Knox, a California 
 pioneer of 1857, was born in Greene county. Mo., 
 being a son of George and Amanda (Gaw) 
 Knox, natives of old Virginia, but long residents 
 of Greene county. Mo., where George Knox fol- 
 lowed mercantile pursuits, also engaged in the 
 steamboat business and the Santa Fe trade. In 
 a family of four daughters and four sons, of 
 whom two daughters and two sons survive, John 
 
8+0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 G. Knox is the oldest one now living. He was 
 born February 19, 1838, and after completing 
 the studies of the district schools attended the 
 Jones Commercial College at St. Louis for a 
 vear. When seventeen years of age he became a 
 clerk on one of his father's boats. In 1857 he 
 made the overland trip to California, whither an 
 older brother, George, had migrated in 1850. 
 The journey was made with ox- teams to Salt 
 Lake, and thence by pack animals on the old 
 Mormon trail to San Bernardino, Cal., thence to 
 Visalia and on to the Kern river mines, where 
 Mr. Knox became interested in buying and sell- 
 ing mines, and also engaged in the stock busi- 
 ness. In 1865 he was elected county clerk, but 
 after three months he resigned for the privilege 
 of residing in the Greenhorn mountains. He 
 was interested in the organization of the county 
 of Kern and served there as an under-sheriff. 
 In 1869 he came to VisaHa, where he first served 
 as deputy county clerk and later for twelve years 
 held the clerk's 'office. In 1893 he took out pa- 
 pers as a notary public and United States com- 
 missioner and at this writing is referee in bank- 
 ruptcy, also owns an interest in the Tulare Ab- 
 stract Company. Politically he is a Democrat and 
 fraternally holds membership in the Independent 
 Order of Foresters. Elected a member of one 
 of the first boards of school trustees in Visalia, 
 for years he continued in that position and filled 
 the same with characteristic fidelity. Near Farm- 
 ersville, Tulare county, he married Julia Brown, 
 who was born in Indiana and came to California 
 in 1854 at the age of eight years, accompanying 
 her father, John Brown, a pioneer miner of 
 Tulare county. Of their marriage three children 
 were born, namely : Karoline, wife of A. H. 
 Murray, Jr., of Visalia; Nora, wife of W. T. 
 Nicholson, who is supreme court reporter in San 
 Francisco; and John Franklin. 
 
 tensive and lucrative trade. Beginning on a mod- 
 est scale, he enlarged his operations as demanded 
 by his patronage, and has now a fine location 
 on the corner of Church and Main streets, hav- 
 ing moved to this building on its completion, in 
 1897. By good management and thrift Mr. 
 Honigsberger has accumulated a competency, a 
 part of which he has invested in real estate, hav- 
 ing a peach orchard of ten acres lying a mile 
 and a half southwest of the city. He is identi- 
 fied with the business progress of this section 
 and is a member of the Visalia Board of Trade. 
 Politically Mr. Honigsberger supports the 
 principles of the Democratic party. Fraternally 
 he was made an Odd Fellow in San Jose, and i.'. 
 now past grand of Visalia Lodge, past chief 
 patria,rch of Visalia Encampment; a memb,*r 
 of the Rebekahs, and of the Visalia Canton; and 
 belongs to the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 A. J. HONIGSBERGER. Among the active 
 and progressive business men of Visalia is A. 
 J. Honigsberger, proprietor of one of the lead- 
 ing clothing establishments of Tulare county. 
 A man of good impulses and strict integrity, 
 careful and conscientious in all of his dealings, 
 he is observant of those high moral principles 
 that have gained for him the respect of the com- 
 munity and the good will of his fellow-men. 
 
 Born, reared and educated in New York City, 
 A. J. Honigsberger began life as a wage-earner 
 at the age of thirteen years, finding employment 
 in a jewelry store. His health failing, he came 
 to San Franc-isco, Cal, in 1876, and was there 
 engaged in the wool business for a number of 
 years. Locating in Visalia in 1891, Mr. Honigs- 
 berger opened a gentlemen's clothing and fur- 
 nishing goods store, and has since built up an ex- 
 
 BASIL G. PARKER. This California pio- 
 neer of the early '50s was born in Ray jounty, 
 Tenn., September 20, 1825, and in 1834 accom- 
 panied his parents to Arkansas, settlirig on a 
 tract of cane land in Carroll county. There with 
 a grubbing hoe he assisted in clearing off the 
 cane and underbrush and endured all the priva- 
 tions of life in the midst of the mcx.t primeval 
 conditions. Educational advantages there were 
 absolutely none. All the knowledge 1 le possessed 
 was acquired in the school of experience. While 
 still less than twenty-one, July 20, 1U4.6, he mar- 
 ried Malinda Charlotte Kelly, and the two be- 
 gan housekeeping without any capital save af- 
 fection and hope. Hardships gather* d thick and 
 fast ; the loss of their little home by fire proved 
 a distressing occurrence; and the strictest fru- 
 gality and hardest labor did not eniible them to 
 provide their children with the comfi>rts they de- 
 sired. Believing he might be moie successful 
 in another section, Mr. Parker secured the con- 
 sent of his wife to remove to California, and 
 April I, 1853, they started on the long journey 
 through an unknown desert and over trackless 
 plains. They crossed the Arkansas river with 
 a large party, then traveled up the river to Fort 
 Smith, next journeyed through the Cherokee, 
 Chickasaw and Choctaw Indian nations, crossed 
 the Red river at Preston, traveled across the 
 frontiers of Texas to the Rio Grande, which 
 they followed about sixty miles before crossing, 
 and from there pursued their way into New Mex- 
 ico, a land then abounding with rattlesnakes, 
 horned toads, centipedes and tarantulas; next 
 entered the most desolate part of Arizona, and 
 traveled on through Santa Cruz, Tucson and 
 Pima. After crossing the Gila river they began 
 the journey through the desert of ninety miles, 
 on whose glistening surface lay the bleaching 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 sU 
 
 bones of many travelers. The journey was full 
 of perils. Water was so scarce that death from 
 thirst threatened the entire party, and at one 
 time Mr. Parker was about to give up in de- 
 spair when his father, a man then about sixty 
 years old, walking on ahead, soon • returned to 
 tell of a running brook of pure water. With the 
 discovery of this stream their worst troubles 
 were over, for they were then within sixteen 
 miles of the end of the desert. 
 
 While the family were spending the winter 
 at Los Angeles, one of the daughters died of 
 the scarlet fever. In the spring Mr. Parker 
 brought the other members of the family to 
 Tulare county, stopping at Visalia, where they 
 camped under an immense oak tree occupying 
 the present site of the court-house. The town 
 consisted of a few board shanties, but the cli- 
 mate seemed excellent, wood, water and grass 
 abounded, and all the butter Mrs. Parker could 
 make found ready sale at seventy-five cents a 
 pound. These inducements were sufficient to 
 cause the family to settle here. Mr. Parker ob- 
 tained a tract of land five miles north of town, 
 and there put up a shanty about twelve feet 
 square, this being the first roof they had slept 
 under for twenty months. From the first he 
 was interested in raising stock, those he brought 
 with him forming the nucleus of a large herd. 
 After a few prosperous years word came from 
 Arkansas of the death of his oldest brother, so 
 Mr. and Mrs. Parker decided to return there 
 for the widow and her three little boys, also for 
 a widowed sister of Mrs. Parker with her two 
 girls. Proceeding to San Francisco, they bought 
 first-class tickets on the Oriziba, which sailed 
 November 20, 1856. At Central America they 
 encountered trouble owing to the filibustering 
 expedition of Walker and were forced to go with- 
 out food for such a long period that, when pro- 
 visions came, many of the passengers ate too 
 heartily and died of cholera. From Greytown 
 they proceeded to New Orleans and there took 
 a Mississippi river steamer for Arkansas. Meet- 
 ing old friends did not form all of Mr. Par- 
 ker's activities while there, for he also bought a 
 herd of cattle to drive overland; with these and 
 a number of Arkansas acquaintances he started 
 on the return trip, traveling via the Arkansas 
 river and on to the South Platte, over Cripple 
 creek to Green river, thence to Salt Lake City, 
 where they 4)rocured a reinforcement of provi- 
 sions, on to Ogden, thence to Bear river, and the 
 head waters of the Humboldt river, thence across 
 the desert of forty-five miles to the Carson river, 
 after which they found an abundance of water, 
 grass and wood all the way to the Sierras, a dis- 
 tance of one hundred and fifty miles. October i, 
 1857, they reached the summit of the mount- 
 ains, and then traveled along the Big Tree route 
 
 past Angel's Camp and Murphy's, and on the 
 26th of October arrived at his ranch with a herd 
 of three hundred head of cattle. 
 
 Shortly after his return Mr. Parker built a 
 two-story brick house. For some years he was 
 prospered, but with the passage of the law re- 
 garding fences he saw that cattle could no long- 
 er be raised with profit, and so turned his at- 
 tention to sheep. However, these proved an ex- 
 pensive investment and caused him heavy losses, 
 finally obliging him to sell his ranch to meet 
 his debts. At this time a nephew, Thomas Kel- 
 ley, came to his aid, offering him equal shares in 
 all that he could raise on a ranch on the Tule riv- 
 er. The proposition was accepted and in less 
 than three years uncle and nephew divided over 
 $7,000 and had more stock on the ranch than 
 at first. With the money thus gained Mr. Par- 
 ker bought a ranch near Portersville, but there 
 he became a sufferer from malaria, and was 
 forced to move out on the plains, where he soon 
 regained his health. On account of his two 
 grandchildren who lived with him wishing to 
 find work, he and his wife moved into Tulare, 
 and there ten years later his beloved wife passed 
 away, leaving him alone in the world. His last 
 days were spent in the home of his grandchil- 
 dren at Tulare, where the loneliness of age was 
 raitigated by their companionship and cheerful 
 ministrations. He passed away May 19, 1903. 
 
 WILKO MENTZ. Active, energetic and pro- 
 gressive in his views, Wilko Mentz is promi- 
 nent in the agricultural, financial, social and 
 fraternal circles of Tulare coimty, and is identi- 
 fied with the best interests of Portersville, where 
 he has spent the greater 'portion of his life. A 
 man of ability and push, he has been success- 
 ful in his undertakings, and judging from his 
 past career a fine future is before him. He is a 
 native-born Californian, his birth having oc- 
 curred, January 5, 1857, in San Francisco. On 
 both sides of the house he comes of thrifty 
 German ancestry, and has inherited in a marked 
 degree those habits of industry and prudence 
 characteristic of his race. 
 
 Henry Mentz, his father, was born August 20, 
 1824, in Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany, and 
 when a young man immigrated to the United 
 States, arriving in the spring of 1850. He came 
 almost directly to California, and for a few years 
 resided in San Francisco. Coming to Tulare 
 county, from there, he located in Portersville, 
 where he was engaged in the cattle business 
 until his death, which occurred August 13, 1901. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Regina Mey- 
 ers, was born in Germany, and died in San Fran- 
 cisco, leaving an only child, Wilko, of this re- 
 view. 
 
844 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Reared and educated in San Francisco, Wilko 
 Mentz first attended a private school, after which 
 he entered the City College, where he took a 
 full business course. After his gradtiation he 
 worked with his father in the stock business for 
 a few years. In 1887 he opened a store of gen- 
 eral merchandise in Portersville, and built up a 
 large and thriving trade, which he conducted un- 
 til burned out in the great fire of 1897, when his 
 building, with its contents, was destroyed. Since 
 that time Mr. Mentz has rented a store and con- 
 tinued as a general merchant, meeting with ex- 
 ceptional success. He is also still interested in the 
 stock business, having two large ranches, ag- 
 gregating thirty-six hundred acres of land, de- 
 voted to general farming and cattle breeding and 
 raising. He is recognized as a man of financial 
 ability, and is serving as president of the First 
 National Bank of Portersville. He was presi- 
 dent of the first board of trustees of the city, of 
 which he was one of the incorporators. 
 
 Politically Mr. Mentz is a stalwart Republican, 
 ever ready to support the principles of his party 
 by voice and vote. Fraternally he is a member 
 of Portersville Lodge No. 303, F. & A. M. ; of 
 Portersville Chapter No. 85, R. A. M. ; and of 
 Portersville Lodge No. 93, K. of P., in which he 
 has passed all the chairs. 
 
 WILLIAM L. WEAVER. Prominent among 
 the most respected and esteemed residents of 
 the British Colony, Merced county, is William L. 
 Weaver, who, as an industrious and capable 
 farmer, is closely identified with the agricultural 
 and industrial prosperity of this section of Cali- 
 fornia. Although not very large, his ranch, with 
 its excellent improvements, constitutes ■, one of 
 the best and most desirable pieces of property iij 
 the neighborhood. His house, a two-story frame 
 building of modern construction, was built at 
 a cost of $7,000, and contains eight rooms and 
 a bath. It is conveniently arranged and fur- 
 nished, surrounded by beautiful flowers, whose 
 brilliancy is enhanced by the vivid green of a 
 large field of alfalfa which forms the foreground 
 of the home lot, rendering the estate especially 
 attractive to the passers-by. A native of West- 
 moreland county, Pa., he was born January 15, 
 1847. His father, Henry Weaver, was a Penn- 
 sylvania farmer and died at his home in July, 
 1888, aged seventy-three years. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Catherine Pool, survived him, 
 passing away at the age of eight3'-seven years, in 
 1902. 
 
 Reared and educated in his native state, Will- 
 iam L. Weaver followed the carpenter's' trade 
 during his earlier life. In January, 1870, he 
 made a trip to California, and until October, 
 1871, remained here, working in the meantime 
 
 for wages. Returning home in 1872, he fol- 
 lowed his trade in Pennsylvania for a while, but 
 not content came again to the Pacific coast in 
 1874, bringing his family with him. In 1876 he 
 took up his residence in Merced county, and for 
 three years was employed on different ranches. 
 Buying a half section of land in 1879, he was 
 for twenty-one years successfully employed in 
 raising grain, finding the occupation both pleas- 
 ant and profitable. Disposing of that property, 
 Mr. Weaver bought his present ranch in 1901, 
 at that time bu3'ing sixty-two acres of land, but 
 having sold a part of the original purchase his 
 farm now contains but forty acres, the greater 
 part of which he devotes to alfalfa, although he 
 has a vineyard of three acres from which he has 
 gathered forty-five tons of grapes. He likewise 
 pays some attention to stock growing, raising 
 hogs on a limited scale. His farm is advanta- 
 geously located, being but four miles west of 
 Merced, and within easy reach of good markets. 
 Mr. Weaver has three brothers living in Merced 
 county, one of whom, R. A. Weaver, owns a 
 ranch fifteen miles from Merced, which is op- 
 erated by John and Abram Weaver, his brothers. 
 While a resident of Pennsylvania Mr. Weaver 
 married, December 28, 1871,' Annie Stoner, who 
 was born in that state February 5, 1847, a 
 daughter of Christian Stoner, a lifelong resi- 
 dent of Pennsylvania. Nine children have 
 blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Weaver, the 
 two oldest of whom were born in Pennsylvania 
 and the others in California, namely: Charles 
 H., farming on the west side ; Elma, the wife of 
 J. C. Middleton, living near Newman, Cal. ; 
 Sarah C. ; Christian S., a teacher; Robert, farm- 
 ing with his brother Charles ; Mollie R., a teach- 
 er; Nettie M.; Margaret A.; and Alvin E. 
 
 JOHN ORAL BRAUER. The industrial 
 circles of Newman have no more worthy repre- 
 sentative than John C. Brauer, who has built 
 up an extensive and remunerative business as 
 a general blacksmith, his mechanical skill and 
 mgenuity being recognized by all with whom he 
 has dealings. A son of Paul Brauer, he was 
 born August 20, i86t, in Rendsburg, Holstein, 
 Germany. A native, also, of Holstein, Paul 
 Brauer was for many years foreman of a fer- 
 tilizer factory in Rendsburg, Germany, where 
 he is now living retired from the' active cares 
 of business. He married Christina Hansen, 
 who died in the fatherland, where her entire 
 life had been passed. She bore him nine chiF- 
 dren, three sons and six daughters, John C. 
 being the fifth child in order of birth. 
 
 Having acquired a substantial education in 
 the public schools of his native land, John C. 
 Brauer served a full apprenticeship at the black- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BlOGKAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 845- 
 
 smith's trade in, or near, Rendsburg. In 1880, 
 prior to attaining his majority, he crossed the 
 ocean to America, and for about six months 
 worked at his trade in the Simpson Carriage Fac- 
 tory, in Omaha, Neb. Going thence to Colorado, 
 he assisted in the construction of the Denver & 
 Rio Grande Raih'oad, and of the Chicago Burl- 
 ington & Quincy Railroad, working as a black- 
 smitli in the railway camps. Removing to Idaho 
 in the spring of 1882, Mr. Brauer worked on the 
 Oregon Short Line for six months, and then, 
 in the fall of 1882, came to the Pacific coast, 
 locating in Sacramento, and has since traveled 
 extensively throughout the state. Settling in 
 Newman, in 1890, he worked as a journeyman 
 blacksmith for a year, and then, with a partner, 
 bought his present smithy. In April, 1903, Mr. 
 Brauer purchased his partner's interest in the 
 business, which he has since managed alone, 
 meeting with characteristic success in his un- 
 dertaking. 
 
 Since becoming a resident of Newman, Mr. 
 Brauer married Maria lbs, a native of Germany, 
 and they have four children, namely : Ella, 
 Paul, Freda and Anna. Intelligent and well in- 
 formed, possessing excellent judgment and 
 sound common sense, Mr. Brauer is ably per- 
 forming his duties as a faithful citizen of his 
 adopted country. A stanch adherent of the 
 Republican party, he has served for the past 
 six years as a member of the County Central 
 Committee. He is an influential member of the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, having 
 passed all the chairs of his lodge, and belongs 
 to the American Order of United Workmen, and 
 to the Woodmen of the World. A man of great 
 moral worth and integrity, he is . a valued mem- 
 ber of the German Lutheran Church, toward 
 the support of which he contributes liberally. 
 
 CAPT. THOMAS H. THOMPSON. In- 
 tense loyalty to their country has ever character- 
 ized the Thompson family. When they became 
 transplanted from Scotland into the rigorous cli- 
 mate of Maine they brought with them the 
 courage, perseverance and fidelity characteristic 
 of the race. Thomas Thompson of Maine was 
 a brave soldier of the Revolution, and his son, 
 Capt. Thomas H., Sr., who was born in Bruns- 
 wick, Me., served in the war of 1812 with the 
 same patriotic devotion that had led the father 
 to endure hardships innumerable in the first strug- 
 gle with Great Britain. Some years aftei^ the 
 second war had terminated Captain Thompson re- 
 moved to Plattsbyrg, N. Y., and in 1832 went as 
 far west as Chicago, then known as Fort Dear- 
 born, where he built the first bridge across the 
 Chicago river. Eventually he removed to the Fox 
 river in Kane county, where he died in 1861. 
 
 His wife, who bore the maiden name of Sarah 
 Hoit, was born in Plattsburg, N. Y., and died in 
 Illinois. She was a daughter of Col. George W. 
 Hoit, a native of New York, and an officer in 
 the war of 1812, later becoming a pioneer of 
 Bloomingdale, 111., where his last days were 
 passed. 
 
 In the famil\' of Capt. Thomas H. Thompson, 
 Sr., there were ten children, and all but one at- 
 tained mature years. A son, Harlow C, is now 
 manager of the water works at Santa Barbara, 
 Cal. Thomas H., Jr., was born in Kane county, 
 111., October i, 1842, and as a boy worked so con- 
 stantly on the home farm that he had little leisure 
 to attend school. Notwithstanding his lack of 
 advantages he gained a thorough knowledge of 
 civil engineering and surveying, and as early dS 
 1859 he turned his attention to surveying and 
 map- making. When the Civil war began he was 
 fired with the patriotic spirit inherited from a 
 long line of courageous ancestors and at once 
 offered his services for the required time of three 
 months, but the quota being filled he and his com- 
 panions were not sent to the front. During Sep- 
 tember, 1861, he enlisted in Company I, Fifty- 
 second Illinois Infantry, which was mustered into 
 service at Geneva, 111., and sent south. The list 
 of his engagements includes the battle of Pitts- 
 burg Landing or Shiloh, first battle of Corinth, 
 Lagrange, luka, Holly Springs, Chattanooga, 
 Dallas, Resaca, Snake creek (where his regiment 
 built the pontoon used to move the first troops 
 over the water), Peach Tree creek, Kenesaw, 
 Lost mountain. Buzzard's Roost, Altoona Pass, 
 Jonesboro and siege of Atlanta. After Shiloh he 
 was promoted from the ranks to be second lieu- 
 tenant, sixty days later became regimental quar- 
 termaster, eighteen days later was made brigade 
 quartermaster, still later was made first lieuten- 
 ant and division quartermaster, and eventually 
 was raised to the rank of captain arid inspector- 
 general, detailed as topographical engineer on 
 the staff of General McPherson, whom he met 
 fifteen minutes before he fell in battle. After 
 the death of McPherson he was given the same 
 work on the staff of General Logan, but after the 
 arrival of General Howard he was transferred 
 to the staff of Gen. John M. Corse as inspec- 
 tor-general with the rank of captain. It is sig- 
 nificant of his accuracy that, when relieved as 
 quartermaster, his accounts showing millions of 
 dollars that had passed through his hands were 
 closed up and settled with the passage of but one 
 letter. Not the sHghtest error could be found in 
 them, notwithstanding the large amounts han- 
 dled. 
 
 On the expiration of his term of office and 
 service Captain Thompson in October, 1864, was 
 mustered out at Rome, Ga. The following win- 
 ter he spent in Louisville, Ky., and during that 
 
UG 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORO. 
 
 time renewed a close friendship formed with 
 General Sweeney, the veteran of the Mexican 
 and Civil wars. For about seven years afterward 
 he engaged in publishing maps and county atlases 
 in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and 
 Iowa. After the great fire in Chicago he carried 
 on a furniture business there, but sold out in 
 1873 and resumed the pubhcation of maps. On 
 coming to California in 1875 he engaged in the 
 map business in Oakland, continuing there until 
 his health failed about the fall of 1883. During 
 1885 he came to Tulare county, where he bought 
 a ranch and took up farm pursuits. Later he 
 became interested in the sale of agricultural im- 
 plements and vehicles, from which he drifted 
 into the real estate business and also published 
 atlases of Fresno and Tulare counties. At this 
 writing he is an extensive dealer in lands and 
 real estate, makes loans and issues insurance pol- 
 icies in old-line companies. 
 
 Ever since casting his first presidential vote for 
 Abraham Lincoln, Captain Thompson has been 
 a firm believer in Republican principles. In 
 Illinois, Iowa and California, he has been prom- 
 inent in the work of the state conventions, and in 
 ,this state served as a member of the executive 
 committee for years, also in 1884 was chosen a 
 delegate to the national convention at Chicago 
 that nominated James G. Blaine for president. 
 In 1890 Governor Markham appointed him com- 
 missioner from his congressional district to the 
 Columbian Exposition of 1893. On the organi- 
 zation of the commission he was chosen secretary 
 and general manager and during the following 
 two years devoted almost his entire attention to 
 the work of preparation, meanwhile advertising 
 to the state and the country the fine natural re- 
 sources of California. In April, 1893, he re- 
 signed as secretary of the commission, but three 
 months later returned to assist them in their 
 work. The splendid state building at the Chi- 
 cago Exposition, furnishing a fine type of old 
 mission architecture, and filled with the most 
 magnificent fruits and other products of the state, 
 was admired by thousands of visitors and brought 
 many home-seekers to the coast. 
 
 The marriage of Captain Thompson occurred 
 in Dundee, 111., and united him with Lucy W. 
 Hemenway, who was born and reared there. 
 Her father, William R., who was a farmer by 
 occupation and for some years the postmaster of 
 Dundee, served as commissary sergeant in the Civ- 
 il war, being a member of Company I, Fifty-sec- 
 ond Illinois Infantry. The children of Captain and 
 Mrs. Thompson are Sarah May (Mrs. C. F. Ril- 
 liet of Oakland) and Lucy Pearl (Mrs. William 
 H. Jones of Salt Lake). In religious connec- 
 tions Mrs. Thompson is identified with the Con- 
 gregational Church. While living in Illinois 
 Captain Thompson was made a Mason at Dun- 
 
 dee, and is now a member of Olive Branch Lodge 
 No. 269, at Tulare; is demitted from the Chap- 
 ter at Anamosa, Iowa, and still a member of 
 Mount Olivet Commandery No. 36, K. T., at 
 Anamosa. Until the disbandment of the Grand 
 Army Post at Tulare he was its commander, and 
 he is further connected with the California Chap- 
 ter of Loyal Legion in San Francisco. Among 
 the social organizations of which he is a mem- 
 ber may be mentioned the Union League Club 
 of San Francisco. At this writing he holds of- 
 fice as vice-president of the Tulare Board of 
 Trade, in which for years he has been a lead- 
 ing worker. At the time of President Harrison's 
 visit to the Pacific coast he was appointed presi- 
 dent of the committee to arrange for the enter- 
 tainment of their distinguished guest. Desiring 
 to introduce some novel feature into the affairs, 
 the captain, brought to town the stump of one of 
 California's big trees. The stump had a diam- 
 eter of twenty-nine feet and from it, with ap- 
 propriate decorations. President Harrison de- 
 livered an address to the throng of people gath- 
 ered to welcome him. The unusual platform fur- 
 nished gave rise»to the comment that this ad- 
 dress was the "biggest stump speech" ever given, 
 and the presence of such a unique product of the 
 state, supplemented by other features provided 
 for the entertainment of the president, made of 
 the occasion a successful function to which the 
 people still refer with pride and pleasure. 
 
 CHRISTOPHER H. BANTA. The owner 
 of a pleasant home and farm in Fresno county, 
 C. H. Banta, of Dos Palos Colony, is widely 
 and favorably known as justice of the peace for 
 the First District of Fresno county, which in- 
 cludes nearly all the west side of the county. 
 Liberal and enterprising, he is also noted for 
 his keen intelligence and sound judgment as a 
 public official, his decisions being marked by fair- 
 ness and impartiality. A son of William J. 
 Banta, he was born April 22, 1855, near Clinton, 
 Henry county. Mo. His paternal grandfather, 
 A. Banta," was one of the hardy pioneers that 
 assisted in settling Missouri. He afterward re- 
 moved to Colorado, and there spent the' declining 
 years of his life, dying in 1883. 
 
 Although born in Kentucky, William J. Banta 
 grew to manhood in Missouri, and there com- 
 menced life for himself as a farmer. Removing 
 with his family to Colorado, he settled first near 
 Pueblo as an agriculturist, but went from there 
 to Cripple Creek, where he discovered and 
 opened mines that proved of great value. He 
 accumulated great wealth in his operations, and 
 now has two homes, one in Idaho, and one at 
 Dos Palos, Cal. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Margaret Goflf, was a native of Tennessee. 
 
-viU^ /^aA^S^^^<^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 849 
 
 The oldest of a family of nine children, C. H. 
 Banta spent the days of his boyhood and youth 
 in Colorado, going there when eight years old, 
 and receiving his early education in the public 
 schools. Turning his attention to agricultural 
 pursuits, he afterward worked on cattle ranches 
 and as a teamster for a while. He subsequently 
 traveled extensively in Colorado, becoming ac- 
 quainted with all parts of the state, for a short 
 time being employed as clerk in Durango. Com- 
 ing to California in 1884, Mr. Banta located in 
 what is now Kings county, and for two years 
 followed farming for a living. Locating in Fire- 
 baugh in 1886; he worked dviring the summer 
 seasons for Miller & Lux for a number of years, 
 while in the winter he was busily employed in 
 hunting, supplying the local and city markets 
 with ducks and geese. In 1899 ^r. Banta set- 
 tled in Dos Palos Colony, his residence and farm 
 being in Fresno county, where he operates ten 
 acres of land. Being elected justice of the peace 
 in November, 1902, he took the oath of office in 
 January, 1903, and has since served ably and 
 faithfully in this position, his services being rec- 
 ognized and appreciated by all concerned. The 
 territory over which he has official jurisdiction 
 embraces a large part of the west side of Fresno 
 county, and he has two offices, one at Firebaugh 
 and one at Mendota. 
 
 Mr. Banta married, in Fresno, Mrs. Sarah P. 
 (Johnson) Dye, who was born in West Virginia, 
 and came to Dos Palos in 1894. By her former 
 marriage four sons were born. Homer, Clarence, 
 Frinzy and Evert. The only child born of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. Banta is a son, named 
 Leonard. In his political views Mr. Banta is a 
 stanch Republican, and is an active member of 
 the party, at the present time being a member 
 of the Republican county central committee. 
 Fraternally he is a member of the Modern 
 Woodmen of America, of the Knights of the 
 Maccabees and of the Fraternal Aid. 
 
 JOHN MARTENS. Coming from a country 
 where the density of population makes of agri- 
 culture an intensive occupation, one unfamiliar 
 with Mr. Martens' capable and energetic disposi- 
 tion scarcely would expect him to embark in 
 stock-raising upon a scale undreamed of in his 
 native; land. Abundant proof of his ability is 
 furnished by the quickness with which he grasped 
 the large opportunities offered by California. 
 From the time of his arrival in Tulare county, 
 in 1872, until the present day, he has been en- 
 gaged in the sheep business upon a scale so ex- 
 tensive that more than once his flocks have num- 
 bered twenty-three thousand head, arid without 
 question he is the largest raiser of sheep in the 
 entire county. During the long years of his large 
 
 ventures he has had his share of losses, perhaps 
 the most disastrous of these occurring in 1877, 
 when out of a flock of thirty-seven hundred he 
 lost all but fourteen hundred. Yet, take it all in 
 all, the business has proved very profitable, the 
 losses have been recompensed by large profits, 
 and the years have brought him a success where 
 another man with less courage might have met 
 with failure. 
 
 The Martens family is of loyal German stock. 
 John Martens was born in the city of Heide, 
 Holstein, not far from the shores of the North 
 sea, and is a son of John J. and Wipke (Sivers) 
 Martens, natives of the same kingdom, and life- 
 long residents of that part of Germany, making 
 their home upon a farm. The father was a par- 
 ticipant in the first Schleswig-Holstein war; at 
 the time of his death he was sixty years of age. 
 In his family there are six children, namely: 
 Harder, who remains upon a farm in Holstein; 
 Claus, who is engaged in the sheep business in 
 Tulare county; Hans, a manufacturer of plush 
 cases, doing business in New York City; Mrs. 
 Annie Besthorn, of San Francisco ; John, of Tu- 
 lare county; and Elene, Mrs. Peters, who still 
 lives in Holstein. The youngest son, John, was 
 born August 28, 1850, and received a common 
 school education in Heide. During the fall of 
 
 1867 he crossed the ocean to New York, and 
 from there sailed to Aspinwall, thence to San 
 Francisco. For a year he was employed on a 
 farm at what was then Bannos. In the fall of 
 
 1868 he and two brothers went to the new city 
 of San Diego and homesteaded land on the mesa 
 near the San Miguel mountains, where they en- 
 gaged in raising grain for three years. The 
 rainfall being insufficient to mature their crops 
 and facilities for irrigation not being available at 
 that time, they abandoned their house and farm 
 and came to Tulare county, where they entered 
 land on the Big Bayou and engaged in farming. 
 
 The sheep business, which has been the chosen 
 occupation of Mr. Martens since 1873, was 
 started in that year on the Bayou, the valley 
 being utilized as a range for the flocks. After 
 three years he moved his sheep to Kern county 
 and later to Fresno, where he had his camp on 
 a spot within the limits of the present city of 
 that name. Returning to Tulare county in 1879 
 he rented land at Fountain Springs south of 
 Deer creek and turned his sheep upon that range 
 for three years, later moving to a point some- 
 what below the other. At this writing he rents 
 for his sheep a ranch of nine thousand acres, and 
 of this property he owns four hundred and eighty 
 acres situated near Alila. In addition he rents 
 twenty thousand acres in the Antelope valley m 
 Kern county, this property, as the other, bemg 
 abundantly supplied with wells. The sheep are 
 of the Shropshire and Merino varieties, and to 
 
850 
 
 HISTORICAL AND 1310GRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 care for them twenty hands are employed under 
 the oversight of two foremen. 
 
 In San Francisco, September 2, 1886, occurred 
 the marriage of Mr. Martens and Miss Christina 
 Dorothea Dahl, a native of Heide, Holstein, and 
 a daughter of Suhl and Christina Dahl. Her 
 parents were natives of Holstein and spent their 
 lives upon a farm, dying at their home farm on 
 the same day. Of their seven children, Claus 
 died in Iowa. Five are now living, namely : Her- 
 man and John, of Iowa ; Katherine, who remains 
 in Holstein; Wipke, living in Iowa; and Chris- 
 'tina, Mrs. Martens. Mr. and Mrs. Martens have 
 been extensive travelers. He has made six trips 
 back to his old German home and his wife has re- 
 turned there seven times. Their daughters, 
 Dorothea and Mary, were born in Linden, Ger- 
 many, and have been made citizens of Germany 
 by Emperor William. The family are of the 
 Lutheran faith and conform to the doctrines of 
 that denomination. After coming to Tulare coun- 
 ty Mr. Martens was initiated into the Independ- 
 ent Order of Odd Fellows and is still a member 
 of the local lodge. Though cherishing the great- 
 est fondness for his native country, he discharges 
 every duty resting upon a citizen of California, 
 has been a student of the government of the 
 United States and has adopted the Republican 
 platform as the expression of his personal opin- 
 ions in matters of national moment. Any plan 
 for the promotion of the sheep industry meets 
 his hearty co-operation. Largely through his 
 efforts an organization was effected known as 
 the Tulare County Wool Growers' Association 
 and of this he has been an active member and 
 leading worker. 
 
 JOHN AUGUST LEEBON. Three miles 
 east of Visalia, Tulare county, is located the fine 
 fruit ranch which belongs to John August Lee- 
 bon, one of the progressive and successful ranch- 
 men of this section. A native of Sweden, he was 
 born May 16, 1861, and was reared to young 
 manhood in the country, receiving his educa- 
 tion in the common school in the vicinity of his 
 home. In 1881 he immigrated to America and 
 located in Minneapolis, Minn. Desiring to ac- 
 quire more education than he possessed he at- 
 tended school for one year, after which he en- 
 gaged as a laborer on a farm, and also worked 
 in the stables of a street car company. Coming 
 to California in 1886 he located in San Jose and 
 found employment in an orchard for a year and 
 a half, after which he worked in a sawmill in 
 Tacoma, Wash. As the result of an accident he 
 was in -a hospital for some time, and in 1889 
 returned to San Jose and engaged in teaming. 
 He continued profitably in this employment for 
 about eight years, when, in 1897, he came to 
 
 Tulare county and in the vicinity of Visalia 
 rented one hundred and eighteen acres of land 
 from the First National Bank of San Jose. In 
 1 90 1 he was' able financially to purchase this 
 property, the greater part of which was then 
 planted to fruit, sixty acres given over to the 
 cultivation of peaches, twenty to prunes^ six to 
 nectarines, while the balance is devoted to pas- 
 ture and grain. He is modern and up to date 
 in his methods and has made a success of his 
 work. 
 
 In San Jose, Cal., Mr. Leebon was married 
 to Annie Anderson, also a native of Sweden, 
 who died in her home in Visalia, leaving two 
 sons, Oscar William and Carl Edward. Mr. 
 Leebon was one of the founders of the Swedish 
 Mission Church of San Jose, of which he is a 
 charter member. Politically he is a Republican, 
 and though never desirous of public ofHce he 
 has accepted that of school director, and is now 
 serving as clerk of the board. He is an enter- 
 prising and public-spirited citizen and commands 
 the esteem of all with whom he conies in contact. 
 
 ALBERT G. AKIN. The record of a life 
 well lived, of duties faithfully discharged, of a 
 competence won in all good conscience, make 
 bright the evening of his days for Albert G. 
 Akin, a pioneer vineyardist of Fresno county, 
 located upon his ranch near Oleander. A na- 
 tive of Wentworth, N. H., he was born Novem- 
 ber 22, 1824, the son of William Akin, also a 
 native of New Hampshire and whose death oc- 
 curred in Rochester, N. Y., when Mr. Akiti was 
 but one year old. He was a millwright by occu- 
 pation. The family is of Scotch origin, the 
 great-grandfather of Mr. Akin, Jedediah, hav- 
 ing emigrated from his native land to the United 
 States, where he participated in the Revolution- 
 ary war. 
 
 Reared to manhood upon a farm, Mr. Akin 
 was trained in the practical duties and the 
 methodical habits which are characteristic of the 
 successful agriculturist, and in engaging for 
 himself in the battle of life carried with him the 
 benefits of both training and inheritance. Being 
 of a studious turn of mind he at first thought 
 he would follow a profession, studying law for 
 two years. In 1870 he went to the oil fields of 
 Pennsylvania, where he engaged in drilling 
 wells for some time, remaining in the state for 
 fifteen years. Previous to his work in the oil 
 wells of that state, however, he had gone to. In- 
 diana, where he enlisted in the Forty-second In- 
 diana Regiment of Infantry and served valiantly 
 in the Civil war. Attracted by the manifest 
 opportunities of the West he came to California 
 in 1885, spending the first eight months in Ven- 
 tura county, after which he located in Fresno 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 851 
 
 county, purchasing his present farm of forty 
 acres in Washington Colony, seven and a half 
 miles from the city of Fresno. Upon this ranch 
 he has since made his home, interested in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. Of the ranch twenty-nine 
 acres are devoted to the cultivation of grapes, 
 and he has also another ranch of forty acres in 
 the same colony, devoted to grapes and various 
 other fruits. 
 
 In Newcastle, Pa., March 17, 1846, Mr. Akin 
 was married to Joanna W. Carroll who was 
 born in that state October 19, 1826, a daughter 
 of Jonathan Carroll, also a native of that state. 
 Mr. Akin and his wife celebrated their golden 
 wedding in 1896 and are happy in their length- 
 ening years together. They are the parents of 
 five living children, of whom Emlin H. is en- 
 gaged in Texas oil fields ; George W. is operat- 
 ing for oil in Indian Territory; Melvine is en- 
 gaged in drilling water wells in Fresno county 
 and conducts the home ranch; FrankHn A. is a 
 printer in Titusville, Pa. ; and Willard N. is 
 mining in Alaska. In his political convictions 
 Mr. Akin is an adherent of the principles advo- 
 cated in the platform of the Republican party, 
 and fraternally is a member of the Masonic 
 order, in which he is past master. 
 
 JAMES M. ESTES. Ever since establishing 
 his home in the county of Tulare Mr. Estes has 
 made agriculture his chosen occupation, his spe- 
 cialty at times being the raising of grain, while 
 more recently he has devoted his attention largely 
 to the dairy business as a member of the firm of 
 Hunsaker & Estes. By means of a dairy com- 
 prising seventy-five head of cows and with the 
 aid of a separator, a large and profitable industry 
 has been gradually built up by the two partners. 
 The cattle are pastured on their farm of nine 
 hundred and sixty-seven acres on Elk Bayou, 
 four and one-half miles east of Tulare, of which 
 property five hundred and fifty acres are under 
 alfalfa and the balance utilized for the raising of 
 general farm products. In the mowing of hay a 
 Fleming buck rake is used to gather up the al- 
 falfa, which is then brought to a stack and from 
 there elevated by a derrick and fork. During the 
 la.st season (1904) five hundred tons were baled 
 from two cuttings of two hundred and fifty acres 
 and the balance of the cuttings were threshed 
 for seed. 
 
 Mr. Estes is of southern parentage, his parents, 
 W. H. and Emily V. (Carroll) Estes, having been 
 natives respectively of Kentucky and Virginia. 
 The paternal grandfather, James Estes, who 
 served in the Black Hawk war, removed from 
 Kentucky to Missouri in 1823, when W. H. was 
 only a year old, and the latter in time became the 
 possessor of the Missouri homestead, where he 
 
 remained until his death in July of 1887. His 
 wife, who accompanied her parents to Illinois at 
 an early age and from there went to Missouri, 
 died at the old home in August, 1885. Of their 
 seven children three make their home in Cal- 
 ifornia. J. M., who was the eldest son and second 
 child, was born near Louisiana, Pike county, Mo., 
 February 19, i860, and in boyhood attended the 
 common schools of his district. When twenty- 
 one years of age he took up farming for himself 
 in his home state, but in 1886 removed to Kansas 
 and entered upon railroad work at Chanute, Neo- 
 sho county, later following the same occupation 
 at Blue Hill, Neb. From there in 1887 he went 
 tp eastern Oregon, spending a short time at Ar- 
 lington, Gilliam county. During six months of 
 1888 he was engaged in assisting to drive seven 
 thousand sheep from that section of country 
 across the plains to Sidney, Cheyenne county, 
 Neb., it being his intention to remain in the east 
 after his return. However, finding that his father 
 had died during his- absence and the old home 
 thus broken up, he decided to come to California, 
 and April of 1889 found him in Los Angeles, 
 whence in June following he came to Tulare. 
 Since then he has made his headquarters in this 
 city, his present home being on South G street. 
 From here he has made frequent trips to his coun- 
 try place, in the interests of his agricultural pur- 
 suits. At one time he cultivated a tract of three 
 thousand acres, using four six-horse teams in the 
 work ; but of recent years he has given his atten- 
 tion almost wholly to the dairy industry, and has 
 been successful to a gratifying degree in the man- 
 agement of this responsible work. In politics 
 he votes with the Democratic party. The Wood- 
 men of the World and Fraternal Brotherhood 
 number him among the members of their orders 
 at Tulare. In this city he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Mary White, who was born and reared 
 in Tulare county, being a member of a pioneer 
 family of the state. At an early day her mother 
 came to the coast by way of Cape Horn, while 
 her father, Mosby White, who now resides at 
 Palo Alto, was a very early settler of Tulare 
 county. 
 
 LOUIS F. BAMBAUER. Among the dairy- 
 men of the Los Banos district are many who cor- 
 rectly estimate the opportunities by which they 
 are surrounded, and who, by diligence and faith- 
 fulness to trusts imposed, fulfill their mission as 
 exponents and successful managers of worthy en- 
 terprises. Of these, Louis F. Bambauer is well 
 known and highly honored, being one of the 
 younger generation who are carrying on the 
 work begun by worthy sires in the pioneer days. 
 " Mr. Bambauer was born in Calaveras county, 
 this state, February n, 1872, the youngest of the 
 
85ii 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 children of Charles Daniel Bambauer, who came 
 from Baden, Germany, and whose life is reviewed 
 elsewhere in this work. Mr. Bambauer lived on 
 his father's mountain farm until five years old, 
 and then located with the rest of the family on a 
 farm near Hills Ferry, Merced county, where he 
 attended the public schools, and lived until his 
 twentieth year. Looking ahead into the future, 
 he chose the blatksmith trade as a worthy means 
 of livelihood, serving an apprenticeship under his 
 brother, Charles D., at Volta, and continuing to 
 work at his trade in the same town for nine years. 
 He then left the forge and anvil and engaged in 
 stock-raising and general farming, and in 1902 
 purchased his present fertile ranch of forty acres, 
 one mile south of Los Banos. He has a dairy 
 of about twenty-five cows, mostly Durhams and 
 Holsteins. The Bambauer ranch, called Green 
 Acres, is well improved and equipped with mod- 
 ern, labor-saving devices, and under its present 
 management gives evidence of the method and 
 care adopted by its owner. , 
 
 In Palo Alto, this state, October 5, 1903, 
 Mr. Bambauer married Lulu Gertrude, daughter 
 of the late Charles A. and Mrs. Marian A. 
 (Souther) Wood, both early settlers of Cali- 
 fornia. Mrs. Bambauer was born in San Felipe, 
 Santa Clara county, and after graduating from 
 the San Jose Normal School engaged in educa- 
 tional work in, Los Banos for several years. Mr. 
 Bambauer votes the Democratic ticket in na- 
 tional politics, but locally is guided solely by the 
 merits of office-seekers. He is a liberal and pub- 
 lic-spirited gentleman, having many friends in a 
 community which has watched his progress dur- 
 ing his active life, and which has found him in- 
 variably honorable, courteous and steadfast. 
 
 PETER S. CROOP. Eight miles north of 
 Le Grand, in Merced county, Cal, and fifteen 
 miles northeast of Merced, resides Peter S. 
 Croop, who, for the past five years, has rented a 
 ranch which contains fourteen hundred and 
 eighty acres, upon which he devotes his time to 
 raising grain and stock, and from the beginning 
 has met with gratifying success. A native of 
 Allegany county, N. Y., he was born December 
 16, 1872, the fourth in a family of six children 
 born to Stephen and Susan (Wagner) Croop, 
 both of whom were natives of Pennsylvania. 
 
 When a young man Stephen Croop left the 
 Keystone state for a home in New York, where 
 he engaged in dairy farming, for years devoting 
 his time exclusively to this business. In 1880 he 
 left New York and with his family came to Cali- 
 fornia ; locating in Merced county, he purchased 
 the ranch of eight hundred acres which is still 
 occupied by his widow and where his death oc- 
 curred in 1900. He met with good success in 
 
 his farming operations, and as a citizen he was 
 one of the most highly respected men in the 
 county. Politically a Democrat, he never cared 
 for office, but was always a strong advocate of 
 party principles. He was a member of the Ma- 
 sons and Odd Fellows. Mr. and Mrs. Croop 
 became the parents of six children, namely : 
 Mrs. Ida Herren, Mrs. Hattie Aumsbaugh, Scott, 
 Peter S., Maggie and Graver, all residents of 
 Merced county. Grover conducts the home ranch 
 for his mother, twelve miles southwest of Merced. 
 Peter S. Croop was about eight years old when 
 his parents brought him to Merced county. He 
 was educated in the common schools and re- 
 mained on the home ranch until he was twenty- 
 five, and then embarked in business for himself. 
 Renting twelve hundred acres of land six miles 
 south of Merced, for two years he engaged in 
 raising stock and grain ; he then leased the ranch 
 where he now resides. He is a worthy repre- 
 sentative of the young men of Merced county, 
 aiding all movements that have been of benefit to 
 the people and making it one of the prosperous 
 communities of the state. Like his father he is a 
 Democrat, and fraternally he is a member of the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows and of the 
 Modern Woodmen of America. 
 
 SAMUEL A. ALLEN. A few years before 
 the discovery of gold had attracted thousands of 
 fortune-seekers to California, the Allen family 
 became established in this state, and S. A. Allen, 
 manager of the Westwood orchard, three miles 
 west of Tulare, represents the third generation 
 of the family in the far' west. During the early 
 years of the nineteenth century his paternal 
 grandfather, Isaac Allen, left his home in west- 
 ern Tennessee and migrated by wagon to Mis- 
 souri, settling near Jefferson City, and also for 
 a time making his home on the Platte purchase. 
 Reports concerning the desirable soil and climate 
 of California led him to determine to make the 
 long journey hither, although at the time the 
 overland trail was not definitely marked out and 
 emigrants faced countless perils in attempting to 
 reach the coast. In 1846 he started upon the 
 journey, accompanied by members of the family, 
 including a son, William, who was a native of 
 west Tennessee, and who some years before had 
 taken as a bride a young lady from Missouri, 
 Miss Albina J. Foster. With an equipment of 
 wagons, ox teams, and necessary provisions and 
 supplies, the Allen family joined a large train 
 bound for the west. After the journey had 
 progressed for some time Isaac Allen died and 
 his body was buried on the plains. The others 
 continued on the road, where for a time they 
 were companions of the unfortunate Donner par- 
 ty, but crossed the Sierras about two weeks 
 
na^o^ayyi 
 
 /^^tX^-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 855 
 
 ahead of them. Some members of the train 
 wished to camp at the lake in order to secure 
 needed feed for their oxen, but the guide urged 
 them so strongly to hasten onward without delay 
 that they yielded to his solicitations and thus 
 their lives were saved. After their 'arrival in Cal- 
 ifornia the widow of Isaac Allen made her home 
 with her children for a time, but later married 
 Elam Brown, a well-known resident of Lafayette, 
 Contra Costa county. 
 
 The first winter in California William Allen 
 and wife spent in the Childs valley, Napa coun- 
 ty, but in the spring of 1847 settled at San Jose, 
 and a few years later removed to Martinez, where 
 he built one of the first frame houses erected in 
 the town. For some time he engaged in placer 
 mining, but afterward took up farming and stock- 
 raising near Lafayette, and in i860 settled in San 
 Joaquin county, at Collegeville, twelve miles from 
 Stockton. Eventually he took up farm pursuits 
 in Kings county, which at the time was still' a 
 part of Tulare county. After his retirement from 
 active cares he came to make his home with his 
 son, S. A., and here died in March, 1903, at eigh- 
 ty-four years of age. All through his life he 
 was guided by high Christian principles and ex- 
 empHfied in his kind and charitable disposition 
 the doctrines of the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church, in which he ofiSciated as a ruling elder. 
 His wife was a daughter of Elijah Foster, a 
 pioneer of Missouri; she died near Tulare at 
 sixty-five years of age. 
 
 Three diildren had been born to William and 
 Albina Allen while living in Missouri, but two 
 had died there, and at the time of crossing the 
 plains they had only one child, Isaac N., who now 
 resides on a farm at Camp Badger, Tulare coun- 
 ty. Nine children were born after the family 
 settled in California, but only four of these are 
 now living, namely : Mrs. J. E. Barton, at Three 
 Rivers, Tulare county; E. E., near Watsonville; 
 William T., near Ripon, San Joaquin county, and 
 S. A., who forms the subject of this narrative. 
 He was born near Lafayette, Contra Costa coun- 
 ty, Cal., April 2, i860, and until fifteen years of 
 age lived principally near Collegeville, after which 
 from 1875 to 1882 he made his home on a farm 
 in what is now Kings county. Going to Orange, 
 Cal., in 1882, he for four years was engaged in 
 the horticultural business there. On his return 
 to Kings county in 1886, he took up horticultural 
 work near Hanford. From 1892 to 1899 he acted 
 as superintendent of the Minnewawa ranch in 
 Fresno county, where imder his supervision was 
 a valuable tract, comprising six hundred and forty 
 acres of land, utilized for dairy purposes, also to 
 some extent planted in an orchard and vineyard. 
 On resigning that position he acted as superin- 
 tendent of an orchard at Farmersville, Tulare 
 county, for a year. In. July, 1901, he was ap- 
 
 pointed manager of the Westwood orchard of 
 three hundred and eighty acres, situated three 
 miles west of Tulare, and under cultivation to 
 peaches, prunes, pears and grapes. This position 
 he has since filled with characteristic energy and 
 capability. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Allen united him with 
 Miss Rhoda J. Fry, who was born in Iowa, but 
 at the time of marriage made her home in Visalia, 
 Cal. Their family consists of six children, Clar- 
 ence A., John Wesley, Myrtle, Henry L., Ralph 
 E., and Roy H. The family are in sympathy with 
 the work of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 
 with which Mrs. Allen is actively identified and 
 to which Mr. Allen has always been a contrib- 
 utor. In politics he gives his support to the Re- 
 publican party, but is not active in public affairs, 
 his tastes inclining him toward horticulture and 
 agriculture rather than toward public life. In 
 fraternal connections he is associated with the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen at Fresno, 
 the Woodmen of the World and the Fraternal 
 Aid at Tulare. 
 
 MORGAN RUSH was born on the old Rush 
 homestead five miles north of Visalia, March 13, 
 1863. His father, Isaac Rush, a native of Ten- 
 nessee, was the son of a farmer and was trained 
 to the practical duties incident to such a life. 
 In young manhood he removed to Arkansas, 
 where he married, and from which state, in the 
 early '50s, he crossed the plains to California. 
 Upon his arrival in the state he located on the 
 property now owned by his son in Tulare county, 
 entering the land and proceeding to a practical 
 improvement and cultivation of the farm. He 
 became an extensive and successful stockman and 
 was one of the prominent men of his day in 
 this section. His death occurred in Texas, at 
 the age of seventy years. Mrs. Rush, formerly 
 Mary G. Parker, was a native of Arkansas and 
 a daughter of Hiram Parker, who removed from 
 Tennessee, his native state, to Arkansas, where 
 he died. Another member of this family is the 
 late Basil G. Parker, of Tulare county, who was 
 a cousin of Mrs. Rush. She survives her hus- 
 band and makes her home on the old farm. Of 
 her six sons and five daughters all attained 
 maturity, while seven are now living. 
 
 The fourth in the family of his parents, Mor- 
 gan Rush was reared on the old home place, re- 
 ceiving his scholastic training in the public 
 schools in the vicinity. From boyhood he fol- 
 lowed farming, when still youthful assuming 
 charge of the place for his mother, as he was 
 the oldest living son, and he remained at home 
 for about twenty years as manager of the prop- 
 erty. In 1898 he bought the two hundred and 
 forty acres which forms his property, located on 
 
856 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 section 5, township 18, range 25, four and a 
 lialf miles north of Visaha, where he now engages 
 in farming and stock-raising. He has twenty- 
 five acres devoted to alfalfa, and is largely in- 
 terested in the dairy business, besides which he 
 also engages in stock-raising in the mountains, 
 and owns three hundred and twenty-nine acres in 
 Harmon valley, Fresno county, on section 18, 
 township 13, range 25, eighteen miles from San- 
 ger, where he has the greater part of his cattle 
 and hogs. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Rush married Rosalie Bennett, 
 a native of Tulare county, and the daughter of 
 Booker and Lizzie Bennett, residents of Fresno. 
 Politically Mr. Rush is a Democrat and frater- 
 nally is identified with the Woodmen of the 
 World of Visalia. All his life a resident of this 
 county, with the exception of four years, from 
 1900 to 1904, which he spent on a farm in 
 Fresno county, Mr. Rush has won the highest es- 
 teem from those who have known him, his abil- 
 ity in his line of work winning the commenda- 
 tion of the farmers, and for his integrity and 
 manhood the respect of all. 
 
 SOLOMON SWEET. Scarcely any name in 
 Tulare county is more intimately associated with 
 the business history of Visalia than that of Solo- 
 mon Sweet, whose death was a distinct loss to 
 the citizenship of the town with which he had 
 been identified for more than forty years. A 
 native of Germany, he was born in Kreigsheim, 
 October 18, 1827, and received a fair education 
 in his native locality. Desiring to avail him- 
 self of the opportunities oflFered by the new 
 world, in 1845 he crossed the ocean to New 
 York and from there went to Chicago, thence 
 to Ogle county. III, where he was employed as 
 a stage drfver. Later he secured a clerkship 
 in Milwaukee. In the fall of 1850 he returned 
 to New York and took passage on the Georgia 
 for Chagres, thence across the Isthmus, and from 
 there on the Columbia to San Francisco. At 
 first he clerked in a general mercantile store in 
 Stockton, but in the fall of 1851 proceeded to 
 the mines of Mariposa county and later carried 
 on a general store at Agua Fria. 
 
 Arriving in Visaha in 1857, Mr. Sweet in 1859 
 opened what is now the oldest store in town, 
 having as a partner James L. Wells, under the 
 firm title of Sweet & Wells. Railroads as yet 
 having not been built into the valley, all the 
 goods were hauled in wagons drawn by oxen, 
 and the trip of two hundred miles occupied from 
 one to three months. In addition the firm fur- 
 nished the milling supplies for this part of the 
 state. Their goods were sold and hauled to Kern, 
 White and Owens rivers ; to Millerton, sixty 
 miles north; to Tehachapi Pass on the south, 
 
 and to Independence, In)'o county, on the east. 
 Eventually Mr. Wells was succeeded in the 
 business by J. M. Fox and he by Elias Jacob and 
 Simon Sweet, and after 1879 two nephews, 
 Adolph and Leon Levis, were associated with 
 Mr. Sweet as active partners in the house. About 
 1895 the firm of S. Sweet & Co. was incorpor- 
 ated, with Solomon Sweet as president, a posi- 
 tion that he continued to fill until his death in 
 San Francisco four years later. 
 
 By the purchase of land at different times Air. 
 Sweet acquired a large acreage in Tulare coun- 
 ty, and this he improved and irrigated by means 
 of canals, then set out orchards and engaged in 
 horticultural pursuits, also raised general farm 
 products and stock. As a stockholder, vice-presi- 
 dent and chairman of the executive committee 
 he was connected with the California Fruit and 
 Wine Land Company, which owned sixty-six 
 hundred and forty acres, with three hundred 
 acres of the land planted in raisins, and one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres in oranges, olives, almonds 
 and peaches. He was a stockholder and director 
 in the Goshen & Visalia and the Visalia & Tulare 
 Railroads. Another enterprise was the building 
 of the Palace hotel, which his estate now owns. 
 In politics he always voted the Republican ticket. 
 Fraternally he was a Mason of the Royal Arch 
 degree. The Jewish Orphan Asylum of San 
 Francisco, which he assisted in founding, for 
 years had the benefit of his counsel and experi- 
 ence as a member of its board of trustees. 
 
 The marriage of Solomon Sweet was solem- 
 nized in San Francisco in i860 and united him 
 with Miss Annie Phillips, who was born in New 
 York City. Their eight children were bom in 
 San Francisco, and during his latter years Mr. 
 Sweet spent much of his time in that city, in the 
 society of his family and in the enjoyment of 
 their beautiful home on Pacific avenue. Since 
 his death Mrs. Sweet has continued to live in 
 that city, which is also the home of a number 
 of her children. 
 
 N. H. LEGGETT. A small stock of dry 
 goods, occupying but one-half of a store room, 
 formed the nucleus from which Mr. Leggett has 
 built up an .extensive and growing trade in 
 Tulare and the surrounding country. When he 
 located in this city, April 28, 1899, he had lit- 
 tle capital and was obliged to start in business 
 upon a very small scale, but as his means in- 
 creased, he was enabled to add to his stock and 
 enlarge his equipment. The original room soon 
 became too small for his growing trade and he 
 removed to a brick building, and in December of 
 1903 opened business in his new building, a 
 structure 60x75 feet in dimensions, which is well 
 stocked with a full line of dry goods, ladies' fur- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 857 
 
 nishings, carpets, etc., while the clothing and 
 gents' furnishings are still carried in the brick 
 building across the street. The department plan 
 has proved a success in this store, as it has also 
 in the establishment at Portersville, which he 
 opened October 9, 1903, and which he now suc- 
 cessfully conducts. 
 
 Early in the colonial settlement of Virginia the 
 Leggett family crossed the ocean irom. England 
 and became planters and farmers in the new 
 country. John Leggett, whO' was a Virginian by 
 birth and a soldier in the war of 181 2, became 
 a pioneer farmer of Bedford county, Tenn., and 
 about 1874 came to California, where he died in 
 Tulare county. His son, John Calvin Leggett, 
 was a native of Tennessee and for many years 
 engaged in farming in that state, but in 1892 
 established his home in Texas and later died in 
 Grayson county, that state. Since his death his 
 widow, who was Elizabeth Musgraves, daughter 
 of a Tennessee farmer, has continued to make 
 her home in Texas. Strong in Christian faith, 
 he was a man universally respected, and his wife 
 also has always held the regard of acquaintances. 
 In their family of three daughters and three 
 sons, one of whom. Cooper, is a resident of Han- 
 ford, Cal., N. H. Leggett was next tO' the young- 
 est, and was born in Bedford county, Tenn., Jan- 
 uary 8, 1868. After having completed his studies 
 in the grammar and high schools of Bedford he 
 began to earn his livelihood as a clerk when he 
 was eighteen years of age, but two years later 
 became interested in photography and the pic- 
 ture business, in which he continued until his 
 removal to California. During July of 1891 he 
 arrived in Hanford, where he secured employ- 
 ment as a clerk with A. Weiner. In 1897 he 
 went to Fresno and became a clerk in the White 
 Front store, but resigned the position in order to 
 embark in business for himself at Tulare. Since 
 coming to this city he has become identified with 
 the Tulare Board of Trade and has also been 
 interested in other enterprises for the benefit of 
 the vicinity, the development of 'material re- 
 sources and the enhancement of the people's pros- 
 perity. Fraternally he holds membership with 
 the Knights of Pythias, Independent Order of 
 Foresters, Woodmen of the World and the Fra- 
 ternal Aid. 
 
 ALEXANDER LOGAN WILSON, M. D. 
 Amohg the well known physicians and surgeons 
 of Tulare is Alexander Logan Wilson, M. D., 
 who by his devotion to his work and the careful 
 study and diagnosis of the various diseases that 
 have come under his observation, has been ex- 
 ceptionally successful in his professional career, 
 and has gained a wide reputation for skill and 
 ability. By means of thrift and good manage- 
 
 ment he has accumulated some means. A son 
 of A. M. Wilson, he was born January 31, i860, 
 in Randolph county. III, near New Palestine, of 
 English ancestry. Grandfather Wilson, who 
 was born and reared in London, England, later 
 settled in New York City. His son, A. M., was 
 bom in the new world and spent the first ten 
 years of his life here. Running away from 
 home then, he sailed on a merchant vessel to 
 London. There, joining a whaler, he followed 
 the seas for a number of years, and in this way 
 circumnavigated the globe several times. Re- 
 tiring from that occupation, he settled in Illi- 
 nois when about twenty-three years old, and be- 
 came a citizen of prominence. He bought land 
 near New Palestine and carried on general farm- 
 ing during the remainder of his life. In 1861 
 he enlisted in the Thirtieth Illinois Volunteer 
 Infantry, being first a member of Company C, 
 but afterwards of Company I, and served until 
 the close of the war. He was present at the 
 siege of Vicksburg, marched with Sherman to 
 the sea, and was mustered out at Washington 
 after the grand review. He was promoted from 
 time to time, receiving commissions from both 
 Gov. Richard Yates and Gov. Richard Oglesby, 
 becoming major of his regiment. He married 
 Susan Young, who was born in Illinois, coming 
 from an old and honored family, and they be- 
 came the parents of eight sons and four daugh- 
 ters, and of these six boys and two girls are 
 living, Alexander L. being the eighth child. The 
 eldest son, Ulric, in 1861, when but seventeen 
 years old, enlisted for three months, and at the 
 expiration of that term joined the Thirtieth Illi- 
 nois Volunteer Infantry and served under his 
 father till the close of the conflict. Two of the 
 sons, John and Edwin, are prosperously em- 
 ployed in farming in Tulare county. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm,* Alexander 
 Logan Wilson attended first the district schools 
 of New Palestine, and was afterwards graduated 
 from the Sparta high school. Entering then 
 the Missouri Medical College, he was graduated 
 from there with the degree of M. D. in 1884,' 
 and at once began the practice of his profession 
 in Appleton, Cape Girardeau county, Mo. Suc- 
 ceeding well, he remained there eleven years. In 
 1895 Dr. Wilson located in Tulare, Cal., and in 
 the years that have since elapsed has built' up a 
 substantial and remunerative general practice. 
 He is also surgeon for the Santa Fe Railroad 
 Company, having the medical and surgical 
 charge of the Tulare district. The doctor is also 
 identified with the agricultural prosperity of this 
 section of the county. Six miles south of Tulare 
 he owns a well improved ranch containing three 
 hundred and eighty acres, through which the 
 Tule river passes, and from which he secured 
 water for irrigation, having his own ditch sys- 
 
858 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tem. He makes a specialty of dairying, has one 
 half of his farm planted to alfalfa and has a 
 good orchard of twenty acres. 
 
 In Appleton, Mo., Dr. Wilson married Emma 
 Lang, a native of that place, and they have four 
 children : Maud, Delia, Edgar and Murray. 
 The doctor is prominent in medical, fraternal 
 and political circles. He is a member and ex- 
 president of the Tulare County Medical Society ; 
 a member of the San Joaquin Medical Society ; 
 of the Pacific Coast Association of Railway Sur- 
 geons ; is United States Pension Examiner ; is a 
 member of Olive Branch Lodge No. 269, F. & 
 A. M.; of Tulare Chapter No. 71, R. A. M. ; 
 and is a member and medical examiner of the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Wood- 
 men of the World and the Independent Order 
 of Foresters. Politically he is a steadfast Re- 
 publican. Mrs. Wilson is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 HENRY E. WEAVER. A man of excellent 
 business capacity, keen foresight and great en- 
 terprise, Henry E. Weaver holds a prominent 
 position among the active and progressive agri- 
 culturists of San Joaquin county. As a general 
 farmer and grain raiser, he has met with un- 
 questioned success, and in the harvesting and 
 handling of the products of the eighteen hun- 
 dred acres of land that are under his management 
 he uses the most modern approved machinery, 
 all of his implements and appliances being up- 
 to-date and of a practical and substantial char- 
 acter. A native of Pennsylvania, he was born 
 March S, 1872, in Westmoreland county, which 
 was the home of his ancestors for several gen- 
 erations, being the birthplace of his father, J. L. 
 Weaver, and of his grandfather, Henry Weaver. 
 The latter, a farmer, came to California with a 
 view to settling here in 1875, but being dissatis- 
 fied with the place returned to Westmoreland 
 county and there passed his remaining days. 
 
 Born and reared in Pennsylvania, J. L. Weaver 
 began work for himself as a coal miner, but sub- 
 sequently purchased land and was there employed 
 in tilling the soil from 1877 ""til 1884. Mi- 
 grating then with his family to the Pacific coast, 
 he located in Merced county, Cal., where he con- 
 tinued his farming pursuits. Subsequently buy- 
 ing the ranch of one hundred and sixty acres that 
 he now occupies, he has since been prosperously 
 engaged in raising grain and stock. He married 
 Jennie Greer, a native of the Keystone state, and 
 they have three children, namely: Carrie, born 
 February 10, 1870, and now the wife of Charles 
 Sutliff, of San Joaquin county ; Hency E., with 
 whom this brief sketch is principally concerned; 
 and Lloyd, born July 9, 1875, engaged in farm- 
 ing near Merced. 
 
 Coming with his parents to California when 
 twelve years old, Henry E. Weaver completed his 
 early education in the schools of the Merced 
 district. Working under his father's instruc- 
 tions, he obtained a superior knowledge of the 
 various branches of agriculture, remaining be- 
 neath the parental roof-tree until his marriage, 
 in 1892. Locating then in Stanislaus county, 
 Mr. Weaver rented a ranch of seven hundred 
 and twenty acres, near Turlock, and for a year 
 was prosperously engaged in raising grain. In 
 1893, ill partnership with his brother-in-law, 
 Charles Sutliff, he rented the Joyce ranch of 
 two thousand acres, which he operated a year. 
 The ensuing four years he carried on the Mitchell 
 ranch in Merced county, renting it and making 
 considerable money. Locating in San Joaquin 
 county in 1897, Mr. Weaver rented the Muenter 
 and Sutliff ranches, together containing twelve 
 hundred and fifty acres of land, and operated 
 them successfully until the fall of 1904, when he 
 gave up the Sutliff farm. Removing then to the 
 Harrison ranch, which contains one thousand 
 acres of land, lying in Stanislaus county, he is 
 carrying that on with characteristic success, and 
 also manages the Muenter farm of eight hundred 
 acres, which he still rents. Mr. Weaver raises 
 one thousand acres of grain each year, running 
 three ten-mule teams, and has a combined header 
 and harvester, which is run by thirty-two head 
 of horses and mules and cuts over forty acres of 
 grain per day. 
 
 In San Joaquin county, near Stockton, Mr. 
 Weaver married Lulu May Sutliff, who was born 
 March 7, 1872, near Stockton, a daughter of 
 Charles B. Sutliff, and they have two children: 
 Claude Leslie, born July 30, 1893, and Stella 
 Myrtle, born June 4, 1897. Politically Mr. 
 Weaver cordially supports the principles of the 
 Democratic party by voice and vote. Fraternally 
 he is a member of the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen and of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 ALBERT WARREN MORLEY. California 
 numbers among her native-born citizens many 
 loyal, true-hearted men, men of excellent busi- 
 ness ability, who, as farmers, have done their 
 part toward making the state famous for its 
 grain and live-stock, and to this class of citizens 
 belongs A. W. Morley, a prominent rancher in 
 the vicinity of Plainsberg, Merced county. Mr. 
 Morley has under his supervision twelve hun- 
 dred acres of the most productive land in the 
 county, a part of which is rented land. He owns 
 his home place of two hundred and forty acres 
 about two miles west of Plainsberg. He is suc- 
 cessfully engaged in raising grain and live-stock. 
 
 Born near his present home, August 5, 1871, 
 Albert W. Morley is the eldest of five children 
 
qQ .-^ .Xzc/aZz:^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 861 
 
 born to John W. and Abbie Jane (Spangenberg) 
 Morley, and is a grandson of Israel Dodge and 
 Samantha Morley. John W. Morley was born 
 in Onondaga county, N. Y., September 29, 1836 ; 
 his wife, Abbie ]., was born June 16, 1847. They 
 were married in 1869 in Stanislaus county, and 
 of this union the following children were born: 
 Albert W., of this review ; Eugene L., born July 
 29, 1873, now a rancher near Plainsberg; Wal- 
 ter S., born June 3, 1875, an instructor in the 
 University of California; Helen, deceased; and 
 Edith, born in 1883. 
 
 John W. Morley was reared on a farm, and in 
 1847, being tlien a mere boy, he ran a horse- 
 power threshing machine under his father's di- 
 rection. After leaving home he spent five years 
 in Indiana and Michigan ; subsequently locating 
 in Steuben county, Ind., he resided near Ft. 
 Wayne until 1852. In March of that year he 
 Began the tedious journey with ox- teams across 
 the plains to California, coming by way of Chi- 
 cago, Iowa City, and Council Bluffs, crossing the 
 Missouri river May 2, 1852, and arriving in 
 Hangtown, Cal., August 3 of the same year. 
 During the most of this trip Mr. Morley was 
 confined to a wagon, owing to inflammatory 
 rheumatism. He farmed in San Joaquin county 
 until 1853, then went to Stanislaus county, which 
 continued to be his home until November 16, 
 1869, at which time he located in Merced county, 
 where the remainder of his life was spent as a 
 successful rancher and stockman. At the time 
 of his death in 1891, he had accumulated twelve 
 hundred acres of land, 'which was divided among 
 his heirs. His widow is now a resident of Mis- 
 souri. 
 
 Albert W. Morley was educated in the public 
 schools of Merced county and attended school in 
 Oakland for five years. Upon leaving school he 
 turned his attention to farming, having been en- 
 gaged successfully in that vocation ever since. 
 By his marriage he united his fortunes with those 
 of Mary E. Earl, a native of Merced county and 
 a daughter of Robert Earl, who settled in Cali- 
 fornia about i860. Mr. and Mrs. Morley are the 
 parents of three children, Gladys T., Grace H. 
 and Kenneth E. The family are attendants of 
 the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Mr. Mor- 
 ley is a member of the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen, Woodmen of the World and the Fra- 
 ternal Aid societies, and as a citizen he is highly 
 respected. 
 
 ADDIS GOULDER LEDBETTER. The 
 Ledbetter family is widely known throughout 
 Tulare county and honored for the sterling traits 
 of character which have distinguished its mem- 
 bers. The pioneer to the state of California was 
 James Ledbetter, a native of Lincolnshire, Eng- 
 
 land, who located in New York state upon his re- 
 moval to the United States. There he engaged as 
 a farmer until his removal to Waterloo, Iowa, 
 where he followed the same occupation, and fin- 
 ally in Blackhawk county, purchased a farm, 
 which he cultivated and improved, breaking up 
 the prairie land. Deciding to locate in the more 
 remote west, he brought his family to California 
 in 1876, locating in Tulare county, where he 
 engaged in farming on the Cottonwood. The 
 following year he pre-empted one hundred and 
 sixty acres in Drum valley, after one year re- 
 turning to the Cottonwood. In the fall of 1879 
 he purchased three hundred and twenty acres on 
 section 17, which is now the site of Orosi, and 
 which he held for some time, erecting modern and 
 substantial buildings and improving the land. 
 Eventually he traded that property for his present 
 place, consisting of one hundred and -forty acres 
 in Orosi, a half-mile south of the corners. He 
 is still living, a hale and hearty man of nearly 
 eighty years, having been born in February, 1825. 
 He married Sarah Wrought, also a native of Eng- 
 land, the ceremony being performed in New York 
 state. Her father, Thomas Wrought, was an 
 early settler of New York, and afterward a farm- 
 er in Iowa. Mrs. Ledbetter died in Orosi, four 
 of her eight children surviving her. 
 
 Addis Goulder Ledbetter was bom September 
 20, i860, the second in age of the children now 
 living. He is a native of Blackhawk county, 
 Iowa, where he spent the first fifteen years of 
 his life, receiving his scholastic training in the 
 common schools, and at the same time following 
 the practical work of a farmer's son. Coming 
 to California in 1876, he found employment in 
 farming and teaming. Deciding to take up agri- 
 cultural pursuits independently, he located upon 
 his present property and has since given his en- 
 tire time and attention to this work. For many 
 years, in conjunction with his father and broth- 
 er, he was interested in an extensive line of work, 
 the three cultivating as many as twelve hundred 
 acres at a time. He bought two hundred and 
 forty acres on the Lovell road and improved the 
 same, later selling eighty acres of it. He now 
 owns one hundred and sixty acres located on 
 sections 17 and 18, upon which he has put up 
 modern buildings, improving and cultivating the 
 land, principally devoting his time to grain and 
 stock-raising. Since 1896 he has found consid- 
 erable profit in running a combined harvester, 
 which requires thirty-two horses and mules. 
 
 In Orosi Mr. Ledbetter was united in mar- 
 riage with Mary Calcote, who was born near 
 Visalia, a daughter of A. K. Calcote, and sister 
 of William Calcote, whose sketch appears else- 
 where in this work. They are the parents of 
 four children, namely: Lee, a student of the 
 Dinuba high school; Roy, attending the Chest- 
 
862 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 nutwood Business College, of Fresno ; Oscar, and 
 Gordon. Mr. Ledbetter is Democratic on nation- 
 al issues but locally gives his support to the man 
 whom he considers best qualified for public of- 
 fice. In the interest of educational matters in his 
 vicinity he has served on the board of school trus- 
 tees for twelve years, for eight years of that 
 time acting as president. Fraternally he is as- 
 sociated with the Knights of Pythias, being past 
 chancellor for two terms. He is a member of 
 the First Presbyterian Qiurch, in which he has 
 officiated as ruling elder and trustee for some 
 years. He is also active in the work of the 
 Sunday-school, having acted for some time as 
 superintendent. Mr. Ledbetter is a man of force 
 and energy, his ability commanding the respect 
 of his business associates, and by the sterling 
 qualities which have distinguished his citizen- 
 ship winning the esteem of all who know him. 
 He merits the high place he holds among the 
 representative men of this section. 
 
 JOHN B. O'CONNOR. The first locomotive 
 whistle which awoke the echoes in Visalia was 
 blown by the trained engineering hand of John 
 B. O'Connor, as he started the first engine over 
 the Visalia & Goshen Railroad in 1874. Mr. 
 O'Connor was the first steam engineer to locate 
 in this town, and he has since been identified 
 with its growth, having shared its fortunes when 
 little of promise beckoned settlers within its bor- 
 ders, and helped to bring about the prosperity 
 which it now enjoys. After years of activity as 
 an engineer he is living retired on his beautiful 
 home of twenty acres at the foot of Watson ave- 
 nue, on the southern edge of the town, caring 
 for his apricot and French prune trees and tak- 
 ing a genial and kindly interest in his many 
 friends and associates. Mr. O'Connor has trav- 
 eled far and in many directions during his active 
 life, and always with observant eye and remem- 
 bering brain. He is an interesting and instruct- 
 ive conversationalist, having picked up snatches 
 of humor and pathos from his surroundings, 
 wherever he has been. 
 
 Mr. O'Connor was born in Maine, on a farm 
 along the Penobscot river, in Indian Old Town, 
 twelve miles from Hampden, December 4, 1825. 
 His family was an old one in Maine, having 
 been established on the Penobscot in 1812 by his 
 parents, Daniel and Bridget (Keenan) O'Con- 
 nor, natives of Ireland, the former born in County 
 Kerry in 1802. The elder O'Connor was a ma- 
 chinist by trade, who in 1827 moved to Syra- 
 cuse, N. Y., and was employed by the Schenec- 
 tady Locomotive Works in that' city. In 1857 
 he located in Louisville, Ky., and engaged in 
 the machine shops of the railroad company, his 
 death occurring in Louisville in 1861, " His 
 
 father, Arthur O'Connor, also was a native of 
 Ireland, and was a man of military prowess, at- 
 taining to the rank of general in the rebellion 
 against England under King George's reign. For 
 this disregard of royalty he was transported to 
 Van Dieman's Land, but was allowed his free- 
 dom on the island, and in 1837 was made a free 
 man by Queen Victoria, married and remained 
 in Australia. Mrs. O'Connor died in Huntsville, 
 Ala., in 1887, at the age of seventy-seven years, 
 having reared a family of four sons and two 
 daughters. 
 
 The oldest in his parents' family, John B. was 
 educated in the public schools of Syracuse, and 
 as soon as old enough served an apprenticeship 
 as machinist in the Schenectady Locomotive 
 Works. With this admirable training he moved 
 to Massachusetts in 1845, and during the next 
 three years assisted with the construction of the 
 Vermont & Massachusetts Railroad and the 
 Cheshire Railroad, afterward becoming an en- 
 gineer on these roads. Returning to New York 
 state in 1854, he soon after was sent to Syca- 
 more, 111., as an engineer on the Dixon Air Line, 
 and in 1859 crossed the plains to California with 
 horse teams, locating in Visalia, where later he 
 left his team and went to Oroville. Engaging in 
 mining in Oroville, on the Feather river, he next 
 mined in Inyo county, on Owens river, for three 
 years, and after locating in Visalia worked as an 
 engineer of the A'isalia Flour Mill for twenty- 
 four years. He then returned to locomotive 
 engineering, pulled the throttle of the first en- 
 gine that came to the town, and for a few years 
 was interested in running a threshing machine 
 in different parts of the county. He put together 
 the first steam fire engine that came to Visalia 
 and ran it four years. From 1872 until 1&76 he 
 engaged in the sheep business in connection with 
 his other work, purchasing his present place in 
 the latter part of 1865, and moving onto it in 
 1867. 
 
 While living in Syracuse, N. Y., December 
 7, 1850, Mr. O'Connor married Elizabeth Bet- 
 tinger, who was born in 1825 on a farm skirting 
 the Mohawk river in Herkimer county, and who, 
 as a child, was a playmate of her husband's, and 
 a daughter of Baltes and Elizabeth (Fulmer) 
 Bettinger, of Dutch ancestry. Mrs. O'Connor 
 has grown old gracefully, retaining' her charm of 
 manner, her innate refinement and her large- 
 hearted hospitality. She is the devoted mother 
 of three children, of whom Mary is the wife of 
 S. Stevenson of Visalia, and John is Hving at 
 home. Francis died at the age of twenty-three. 
 Mr. O'Connor's genial manner and ability to 
 entertain his friends have made him a social fa- 
 vorite, and for years he has been a member of 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, having 
 been a delegate to the Grand Lodge on five occa- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 8G3 
 
 sions. He also is a member and past chief pa- 
 triarch of the encampment, and was sent as a 
 delegate to the Grand Encampment in San Fran- 
 cisco in 1904. He is a Republican in politics and 
 in religion is a member of the Christian Church. 
 
 COTTLE BROTHERS. Energetic, indus- 
 trious and enterprising, Messrs. Melvin Green 
 and Ulysses Grant Cottle are actively identified 
 with the business and agricultural interests of 
 Tulare county. They are land owners and 
 stockmen, and are also carrying on a substantial 
 livery business as proprietors of the Tulare 
 stables, located on South K street, Tulare. Sons 
 of the late E. L. N. Cottle, both were born in 
 Lincoln county. Mo., near Troy, the birth of 
 Melvin Green occurring February 16, 1861, and 
 that of .Ulysses Grant September 22, 1862. Their 
 grandfather, Edward Cottle, the descendant of 
 an old and honored New England family, was 
 born and reared in Vermont. Moving westward, 
 he located in Missouri, where he cleared and 
 improved a farm, and for many years was pros- 
 perously engaged in tilling the soil. Crossing 
 the plains in 1854, he came as a f)ioneer to 
 California, settling first in Coyote, four miles 
 from San Jose, but subsequently removing to that 
 city, where he spent his last years. 
 
 Born in Missouri, E. L. N. Cottle spent the 
 larger part of his life in his native state, being 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 1885 he 
 came to California to make his permanent home. 
 Locating thirteen miles southwest of Tulare, he 
 bought land, and there continued the independ- 
 ent occupation of his choice until his death, Sep- 
 tember 22, 1892. He married Louisa Duff, who 
 was born in Lincoln county, Mo., the daughter 
 of a pioneer settler, who removed to that state 
 from Pennsylvania, and was afterwards killed 
 by the Indians while hunting for his horses. She 
 survived her husband, and now, a bright and 
 active woman of seventy-six years, continues her 
 residence in Tulare. She bore him eleven chil- 
 dren, ten of whom are living, namely : J. A., 
 of San Jose; R. E., of Los Angeles; H. B., of 
 San Francisco; Mrs. Celia E. Elder, of Visalia; 
 Sarah, of San Jose ; Mar.shall, of Tulare ; Mrs. 
 Jennie Birkhead, living near Tulare ; Melvin 
 Green and Ulysses Grant, of this review; and 
 M. Mae, of Tulare. One child is dead, William 
 having lived but two years. 
 
 Both Melvin Green Cottle and Ulysses Grant 
 Cottle were brought up on the home farm in 
 Missouri, and both were educated in the public 
 schools and subsequently trained to agricultural 
 pursuits. In 1885 M. G. Cottle came to Tulare 
 county, Cal., and the following year he was 
 joined by his brother, U. G. Cottle. Both broth- 
 ers worked as farm hands until 1887, when they 
 
 began farming on their own account, renting 
 two_ ranches and making a specialty of raising 
 grain. Giving up that business in 1898, they 
 turned their attention to stock raising. They 
 purchased land in different places and now own 
 eight hundred and eighty acres of land, all lying 
 within twelve miles of Tulare. A part of this 
 they use for grazing and stock raising and a part 
 is sowed to alfalfa. They keep now about one 
 hundred and fifty head of cattle and maintain a 
 good dairy farm, which they run with profit "to 
 themselves. In April, 1904, Messrs. Cottle pur- 
 chased of Williams & Webb the Tulare stables, 
 and have since carried on an extensive livery, 
 feed and sale stable. Although they still con- 
 tinue their stock and dairy business, they reside 
 in Tulare, and Melvin G. is a m.ember of the 
 Tulare Board of Trade. 
 
 M. G. Cottle is a shareholder and a director 
 of the Co-operative Creamery Company of Tu- 
 lare. For eight years he served as deputy coun- 
 ty assessor. He was made a Mason in New 
 Salem Lodge No. 270, of Argentville, Mo., and 
 is now a member of Olive Branch Lodge No. 
 269, F. & A. M., and also belongs to the Wood- 
 men of the World. Fraternally Ulysses G. Cot- 
 tle is a member of the Woodmen of the World, 
 of the Improved Order of Red Men, and of the 
 Independent Order of Foresters. 
 
 SEBERT STEVENSON. One of the first 
 white children born in Tulare county was Sebert 
 Stevenson, whose natal day was September 16, 
 1854, and whose native town was Visalia. In 
 1852 his parents, Robert and Frances (Willis) 
 Stevenson, crossed the plains with ox teams, 
 having the usual experiences which befell the 
 plains travelers, and eventually located in what 
 is now Tulare county. Robert Stevenson was 
 born in Pennsylvania, and after starting out on 
 his own responsibility lived in Illinois, Missouri 
 and Iowa, in the latter state changing his bach- 
 elor state for one of marriage with a native 
 daughter of Iowa. He assisted in the organiza- 
 tion of Tulare county, took quite an active part 
 in its politics and government, and became the 
 owner of a large amount of land upon a portion 
 of which Visalia has since been built. His home 
 was just half a mile from the town of Visalia, 
 and here he died in 1874, at the age of sixty- 
 seven years. June 10, 1893, his wife died at the 
 age of seventy, having reared a family of seven 
 children, of whom Sebert is the fifth oldest. 
 Cyrus and Preston are deceased ; Curtis is a resi- 
 dent of Visalia; Robert is a rancher of this 
 county; Corrilla is deceased; and Fannie is now 
 Mrs. Keener of Visalia. 
 
 From boyhood up Sebert Stevenson has en- 
 gaged in stock raising and farming, and he has 
 
864 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 both the desire and the industry to succeed. He 
 had a common school education, which he has 
 supplemented by years of reading and research, 
 and for many years he was one of the most suc- 
 cessful stock raisers in this neighborhood. Con- 
 tinuously since his father's death he has lived 
 on the home place, and still owns the fifteen 
 acres within the city limits, which is now set off 
 in town lots. He has been an interested spec- 
 tator of the upbuilding of Visalia, particularly 
 of Main street, which goes by his house. He 
 married into one of the old families of Tulare 
 county, Mary O'Connor being a daughter of 
 John O'Connor, the first steam engineer of Visa- 
 lia, and who, previous to locating on his present 
 fruit ranch near the city, was employed in en- 
 gineering and other capacities here for many 
 years. Mr. O'Connor, whose information con- 
 cerning the early days is both interesting and 
 exhavistive, is written of at length in another 
 part of this work, and given the honor due his 
 energetic and worthy life. Mr. and Mrs. Steven- 
 son have three children, Ocie, Hazel and Sebert, 
 Jr. Mr. Stevenson is a Republican in politics, 
 and is a quiet, methodical man, faithful to friends 
 and interests and appreciated for his many ex- 
 cellent traits of character. 
 
 WILLIAM L. SELLERS. A typical repre- 
 sentative of the self-made men of today, W. L. 
 Sellers came to California without means, and 
 by the exercise of his resolute will and persever- 
 ing industry has established a prosperous dairy 
 business and gained a substantial position among 
 the successful agriculturists of Tulare. His en- 
 terprise, thrift and straightforward dealings with 
 all have won for him the respect of the commun- 
 ity in which he resides. A native of Iowa, he 
 was born, October 6, 1856, in Keosauqua, Van 
 Buren county, a son of Franklin S. Sellers. 
 
 Born and reared in Pittsburg, Pa., Franklin 
 S. Sellers was well endowed with mechanical 
 genius, and when a young man learned the trade 
 of a blacksmith. He settled in business first in 
 Muncie, Ind., from there removing to Keosauqua, 
 Iowa, where he followed his trade a few years. 
 During the Civil war he served in a Kansas 
 regiment, and took part in Price's raid. He after- 
 ward took up land in Wilson county, Kans., be- 
 coming owner of three hundred and twenty acres, 
 from which he iniproved a farm. He spent his 
 last years, however, in Ford county, dying in 
 Dodge City. He married Lydia Bentley, who was 
 born in Indiana, a daughter of Joseph Bentley, 
 and died in Kansas. Five children were born 
 of their union, William L. being the second child. 
 
 Brought up in Wilson county, Kans., William 
 L. Sellers received a limited education in the 
 pioneer district schools, and as a boy and youth 
 
 assisted his father in clearing a farm from the 
 raw prairie. After his marriage Mr. Sellers en- 
 gaged in farming and stock-raising in his native 
 state, remaining there until 1887. Going then to 
 Las Animas county, Colo., he bought government 
 land, and there continued as a farmer and stock- 
 raiser for three years. The land being too dry, 
 with no irrigating advantages, Mr. Sellers re- 
 turned to Kansas in 1890, and for two years 
 was engaged in farming in Wilson county. Not 
 satisfied with the result of his labors, he came 
 to California in 1892 in search of a more favor- 
 able opportunity for increasing his finances. Be- 
 ginning again at the very bottom of the ladder, 
 he worked out as a farm hand for about three 
 years, and by means of economy and prudent 
 thrift saved some money. In 1895 Mr. Sellers 
 purchased twenty acres of land, lying one and 
 one-half miles southeast of Tulare, and started in 
 the dairy business on his own account. In this 
 occupation he labored hard, for the first six years 
 doing all of the work himself, milking the cows, 
 and delivering the milk, making two trips each 
 day. Meeting with well-deserved success in his 
 operations, Mr. Sellers enlarged his business as 
 his patronage demanded. January i, 1904, he 
 bought his present ranch of forty acres, lying 
 within the city limits, and now retails all of 
 his milk in the city, running the Tulare Dairy. 
 His home ranch is all under irrigation, and is 
 devoted to alfalfa. He also rents three hundred 
 and twenty acres of land near Tulare, and part 
 of this he has sowed to alfalfa, while on the 
 remainder he pastures his large herd of cattle. 
 He keeps a fine lot of choice cows for his dairy, 
 and in the raising of stock is carrying on a good 
 business also. 
 
 In Wilson county, Kans., October 31, 1879, 
 Mr. Sellers married Mary E. Sears, who was 
 born near Joplin, Mo., and they have two chil- 
 dren, Effie J. and Mattie B. Politically Mr. Sell- 
 ers is a Republican, and fraternally he belongs 
 to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and 
 to the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 SAMUEL BURGAN. A worthy representa- 
 tive of the prosperous and thriving agriculturists 
 of Tulare, Samuel Burgan holds a high position 
 among the esteemed and respected residents of 
 the township. He has seen much of the stormy 
 side of life, but even under the most discour- 
 aging circumstances never for a moment lost his 
 grit. As a freighter across the plains, he met 
 with many rough and thrilling experiences, and in 
 the mining camps of the earlier days suffered 
 hardships and privations. Industrious and cour- 
 ageous, however, he continued his way without 
 thought of giving up, and by dint of perse- 
 
mSlORICAL AND BiOGRAPHlCAL RECORt). 
 
 867 
 
 verance and good management has acquired a 
 fair share of this world's goods. A son of Sam- 
 uel Burgan, Sr., he was born, September 25, 
 1841, in Holmes county, Ohio, of Scotch de- 
 scent. His paternal grandfather, William Bur- 
 gan, was born in Pennsylvania, but removed froi-n 
 there to Ohio, becoming a pioneer of Wayne 
 county. 
 
 A life-long resident of Ohio, Samuel Bur- 
 gan, Sr., was born and reared in Wayne county, 
 and died in Holmes county. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Hester Burnett, was born in 
 Pennsylvania, and died in Wayne county, Ohio, 
 where her father, Isaac Burnett, settled when 
 she was a girl. Of the six children born of 
 their union, five grew to years of maturity, Sam- 
 uel being the youngest child. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, near Wooster, 
 Wayne county, Ohio, Samuel Burgan received a 
 common school education in his native district. 
 Breaking home ties in 1861, he migrated west- 
 ward, going as far as Indiana, where he spent 
 a year. Continuing his onward progress in 1862, 
 he started with wagon and team, May 6, intend- 
 ing to come to the Pacific coast. After cross- 
 ing the Missouri river he and a companion start- 
 ed across the plains with a load of freight and 
 provisions, using ox-teams for transportation. 
 Selling out his entire load at Fort Kearney, Mr. 
 Burgan returned to the Missouri river. Hiring 
 out then to a man loading a freight train, he 
 proceeded to Denver, Colo., arriving there in Jan- 
 uary, 1863. Finding nothing to do in that em- 
 bryo city, he went back to the Missouri river 
 to await the opening of spring, when he started 
 with a load of freight for the mines, going first 
 to Montana, then to Idaho, and on to Oregon, 
 where he intended to winter. From Boise City 
 he went down the river of that name to the Snake 
 river, but finding the snow too deep to travel 
 through, he turned his course, and after camping 
 for awhile went back to the Idaho mining fields. 
 The following winter Mr. Burgan spent in Den- 
 ver. In July, 1866, he made a trip to Nebraska, 
 locating on the Missouri river. Picking up a load 
 of freight, he started, in October, 1866, for Kan- 
 sas. Arriving in the Kaw valley, he took up 
 land two and one-half miles north of Lawrence, 
 and there engaged in farming and freighting, 
 for a number of seasons being engaged in team- 
 ing to soutliern Kansas. He subsequently sold 
 and traded lands until he had title to eighty- 
 four acres, situated three miles north of Law- 
 rence. He engaged in general farming, includ- 
 ing the raising of vegetables, finally achieving 
 notable success as a potato, grower. He also 
 operated a threshing machine, and paid much at- 
 tention to horse breeding, in all branches of 
 agriculture being successful, and in the mean- 
 
 time improving one of the finest home estates in 
 Grant township. 
 
 In 1901 Mr. Burgan came to California, locat- 
 ing in Tulare, where he has since been extensive- 
 ly and profitably employed in the stock busi- 
 ness. He owned five hundred acres of land five 
 miles south of the city, and also leased a large 
 tract, running a little over nineteen hundred 
 acres in all until the fall of 1904, when he sold 
 out to his son-in-law, William E. Green, whose 
 sketch may be found elsewhere in this volume. 
 Mr. Burgan now owns a Valuable ranch near 
 Tulare, where he is successfully conducting his 
 chosen occupation. 
 
 While a resident of Nebraska Mr. Burgan 
 married Ellen Foltz, a native of Ohio,. and into 
 their home nine children have been born, name- 
 ly : Rose, wife of W. E. Green, of Tulare ; John, 
 engaged in the livery business in Tulare; Anna, 
 of Nebraska ; Charles, a dairyman in Tulare ; 
 Ida, wife of Dr. Snell, of Texas ; and Etta, Sam- 
 uel, Blanche and Inez, of Tulare. Politically Mr. 
 Burgan is a Democrat in national affairs ] socially 
 he belongs to the Fraternal Aid ; and religiously 
 he is a Methodist. 
 
 JOSEPH WEISENBERGER. As a success- 
 ful orange grower of the vicinity of Portersville, 
 Tulare county, Joseph Weisenberger is widely 
 known. A native of Germany, he was born in 
 Baden, near Weissweil, June 7, 1842, the young- 
 est in a family of five children, of whom three 
 are living. His father, Mathias Weisenberger, 
 was a native of the same locality and a farm- 
 er by occupation. He was accidentally killed by 
 a falling tree when his son was six months old. 
 His wife, formerly Magdalena Houser, was also 
 a native of the Fatherland ; she died in Missouri 
 in 1871, having come to America to make her 
 home with her children. Joseph Weisenberger 
 was reared on a farm in his native country until 
 1865, when he came to America, locating first in 
 New York state, then in New Jersey, and in the 
 spring of 1868 coming as far west as Illinois. 
 He was located for a time in Qiicago, then 
 Bloomington, remaining in that state until 1871, 
 when he went to Rockport, Atchison county. Mo., 
 where he bought a farm of one hundred and 
 sixty-two acres. He engaged in general farming 
 and stock-raising in that locality for twenty-three 
 years, meeting with success in his work. His 
 first trip to California was made in 1890, but 
 he returned east shortly afterward and then it 
 was his intention to remain. However, five years 
 later he sold out and sought a home in the 
 southern part of this state, buying the ranch_ of 
 forty acres, which he now owns. In the sprmg 
 of 1896 he set it out in navel oranges, and 
 now has twenty-five acres in this fruit. The land 
 
868 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is under irrigation from tlie Pioneer ditch, and 
 in the spring of 1905 he contemplates putting 
 in a pumping plant. His orchard is located with- 
 in a half mile of Zante. 
 
 In Missouri, in 1874, Mr. Weisenberger was 
 united in marriage with Augusta Heidenreich, a 
 native of Germany. She died in California in 
 1898, the mother of eight children, of whom 
 six are living, namely : Ernest J., of Porters- 
 ville ; Anna, the wife of J. B. Spears, of Berkeley ; 
 J. Richard, of Portersville ; Leo M. ; Carl ; and 
 Josephine, the three last named being at home. 
 Mr. Weisenberger's second marriage occurred in 
 California, April 20, 1901, and united him with 
 Mrs. Amelia (Becker) Mathews, a native of Ger- 
 many, who was brought to America by her par- 
 ents when an infant. Her first husband died in 
 Mississippi, after which she came to California. 
 Mr. Weisenberger is interested in the Porters- 
 ville Rochdale Company. Politically he is in- 
 dependent in his affiliations, preferring to re- 
 serve the right to cast his ballot for the man 
 whom he considers best qualified for public office. 
 
 JOHN W. MARTIN. The Martin family 
 is of colonial Virginian ancestry. James Mar- 
 tin was born in Montgomery county, Va., in 
 1 80 1, and removed from there to Livingston 
 county. Mo., in 1843, settling on a large tract of 
 land, where he engaged in general farming and 
 the breeding and raising of fine horses. During 
 1854 be crossed the plains to California with ox- 
 teams and settled in Yuba county near Marys- 
 ville, where he remained until his death in 1861. 
 With him to the west came his wife, who was 
 Linnie Williams, a native of Montgomery coun- 
 ty, Va., and a daughter of George Williams, 
 a Virginian planter. She survived him for a 
 long period and died in Yolo county during 
 1884. Of their five children only twO' are liv- 
 ing, viz. : George C, a farmer near Woodland ; 
 and John W., who is engaged in raising horses 
 and in general farm pursuits near Woodville, 
 Tulare county. 
 
 While the family were living near Chillicothe, 
 Livingston county. Mo., J. W. Martin was born 
 April 2, 1850, and from there he accompanied 
 his parents to California at the age of four years. 
 During the memorable flood of 1862 their fine 
 bottom land was almost wholly ruined and his 
 mother therefore decided to dispose of the prop- 
 erty. After selling out they removed to the 
 vicinity of Woodland and bought a raw tract of 
 land, which the sons improved and placed under 
 cultivation. Meanwhile J. W. Martin was giv- 
 en good educational advantages in Hesperian 
 College and later, at the age of about twenty 
 years, began to teach school. With the money 
 thus earned he paid his tuition and board while 
 
 attending the California State Normal at San 
 Jose, where he remained until his graduation in 
 1874. Returning to Yolo county he resumed the 
 work of teaching school and for eight years 
 acted as principal of schools ^in that county. 
 Eventually, however, delicate health forced him. 
 to seek an occupation that would permit him to 
 be in the open air, so he turned his attention to 
 the raising of standard-bred horses, in which 
 both his father and grandfather had been suc- 
 cessful. As early as 1875 he had purchased 
 land on the Tule river, ten miles southeast of 
 Tulare, and in 1890 he settled on the farm, 
 which he still owns and occupies. In 1890 he 
 brought fifty head of horses to the farm and has 
 since made the breeding of horses his principal 
 industry. The farm comprises three hundred 
 and twenty acres, of which eighty acres are un- 
 der alfalfa, irrigated from the Woodville ditch, 
 in which he is financially interested. Among 
 the valuable horses that he owns may be men- 
 tioned McKinley, with a record of 2 129, one of 
 the greatest horses in the San Joaquin valley, 
 by McKinney, dam by Richard's Elector, son of 
 Electioneer, and he also owns some fine fillies 
 that are standard-bred. In 1905 he installed a 
 twenty-five-horse power pumping plant on his 
 ranch. 
 
 While living in Yolo county Mr. Martin mar- 
 ried Miss Emma Bonham, who was born at 
 Healdsburg and died in Yolo county. Of their 
 four children the sole survivor is Benjamin A., 
 who is a practicing attorney of Woodland, Cal. 
 The second marriage of Mr. Martin occurred in 
 1884 and united him with Miss Lizzie Smith, by 
 whom he has four children, Claire E. C, Leland 
 S., Roswell E. and Lucille. In 1902 he was 
 elected on the Democratic ticket to serve for a 
 term of four years as supervisor of the fifth dis- 
 trict. In 1898 he was chosen a presidential elec- 
 tor on the Bryan and Sewall ticket, receiving 
 a majority of about four thousand and being the 
 only Democratic elector chosen at the time. It 
 is worthy of note that he received a large vote 
 in his old home locality in the Sacramento val- 
 ley as well as a large vote in the San Joaquin 
 valley, this attesting his popularity among neigh- 
 bors and associates. With characteristic enthu- 
 siasm he canvassed the entire valley in the in- 
 terests of the ticket. At the election Bryan re- 
 ceived one hundred and forty-four thousand sev- 
 en hundred and sixty-six votes, being the largest 
 vote ever received by a Democrat in California. 
 At one time Mr. Martin was a member of the 
 county central committee of his party and he 
 has also served as a delegate to state Democratic 
 conventions. Fraternally he is connected with 
 the Woodmen of the World, also the Fraternal 
 Brotherhood, of which organization he was chos- 
 en the first president. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHI-CAL RECORD. 
 
 8f]'J 
 
 Through the efforts of Mr. Martin the indebt- 
 edness was settled tliat long had hung over the 
 Tule River Irrigation District, and for his work 
 in the matter he received many flattering press 
 notices, not a few papers claiming that the set- 
 tlement was the best of its kind ever made in 
 California. Seven months of arduous labor 
 brought about the result he so greatly desired. 
 Through bringing together the bondholders and 
 land owners, he secured the consent of the for- 
 mer to settle at fifty cents on the dollar, with- 
 out interest, and bonds in escrow. Next an 
 order was made levying a tax. It was necessary 
 to negotiate, in person or by letter, with all land 
 owners. Finally he succeeded in raising $50,000, 
 with which he cancelled the bonds at Fresno in 
 January, 1904, and in May of the same year the 
 bonds were burned, leaving the district in ex- 
 cellent financial condition. 
 
 SAMUEL KELLEY GREENE. Capable, 
 enterprising and eminently trustworthy, Samuel 
 K. Greene occupies a conspicuous position 
 among the leading residents of Dinuba and vicin- 
 ity. The owner of a finely improved ranch, sit- 
 uated three and one-half miles from Dinuba, to- 
 wards the southeast, he is carrying on an excel- 
 lent business as a general farmer and dairyman, 
 and is widely and favorably known as the su- 
 perintendent of the Alta Irrigation District, 
 which includes Fresno, Tulare and Kings coun- 
 ties, his office being in Dinuba. A native Cali- 
 fornian, he was born. May 24, 1858, in Mer- 
 ced county, a son of Robert L. Greene. 
 
 Of Virginia ancestry, Robert L. Greene was 
 born and reared in Tennessee. He settled as a 
 farmer in Menard county. 111., living there until 
 1850, when he crossed the plains to California, 
 coming by the southern route. He brought with 
 him his wife and family, and it is said that she 
 was the first white woman to cross the Tehachapi 
 Pass. In 1858 he returned east with his fam- 
 ily, and imtil after the close of the Civil war 
 resided in Texas. He subsequently spent two or 
 three years in Menard county. 111., and 1868 
 again came across the plains to this state. For 
 six years he lived on a farm in Snelling, then 
 located at Fresno Flats, from there coming, in 
 1876, to Tulare county, where, not far from 
 Dinuba, he homesteaded land, on which he lived 
 until his death. He married Rebecca Center, a 
 native of Tennessee, and she now resides with 
 her daughter, Mrs. Ellen Lewis, being the widow 
 of the late Judge Louis Van Tassel, whom she 
 married for her second husband. 
 
 Until the close of the war Samuel K. Greene 
 lived in Dallas county, Tex., from there going 
 with the family to Illinois, and with them com- 
 ing to California in 1868, completing his edu- 
 
 cation in the district schools of Merced county, 
 and at Fresno Flats. In 1876, while yet in his 
 teens, he wrote a petition. for the establishment 
 of the Greene school in the Wilson district. On 
 attaining his majority Mr. Greene took up a 
 homestead claim of one hundred and sixty acres, 
 three and one-half miles south of Dinuba, and 
 having proved up engaged in grain farming un- 
 til he sold the farm to his sister, Mrs. Lewis. 
 He subsequently built a planing mill at Traver, 
 after which he erected a steam saw-mill in the 
 Redwood Mountains, where for awhile he was 
 engaged in the manufacture of lumber. Return- 
 ing to the vicinity of his old farm, Mr. Greene 
 bought ninety acres of land, which he has placed 
 under irrigation, and is now engaged in dairy- 
 ing, stock-growing and fruit-raising, having a 
 good vineyard and orchard, and raising alfalfa 
 as his principal crop. 
 
 In 1895 Mr. Greene was elected superinten- 
 dent of the Alta Irrigation District, which em- 
 braces one hundred and thirty thousand acres 
 of land, and has over two hundred and seventy- 
 five miles of canal, all af which, with the aid of 
 ten men, he supervises. 
 
 In Tulare county, on the Tule river, Mr. 
 Greene married Lula J. Harper, who was born 
 in Yolo county, Cal., where her father, T. W. 
 Harper, was a pioneer settler, and they are the 
 parents of eight children : Joseph E., a grad- 
 uate cf the Dinuba high school, is now a stu- 
 dent in the law department of the University 
 of California; Daisy, Pearl and Hazel are pupils 
 in the Dinuba high school ; and Ruth, Irene, Ed- 
 ward and Marguerite complete the family. Mr. 
 Greene is interested in educational matters, and 
 is one of the trustees of the Dinuba Union High 
 School, and a trustee and clerk of the Wilson 
 District School. Politically he is a sound Dem- 
 ocrat, and fraternally he belongs to Traver 
 Lodge, I. O. O. F. Mrs. Greene and the fam- 
 ily are members of the Christian Church. 
 
 CHARLES L. SMITH, D. D. S. A skillful 
 dental surgeon, possessing a thorough knowledge 
 of his profession, Charles L. Smith, D. D. S., of 
 Tulare, has attained his present honorable posi- 
 tion among the leading dentists of Tulare county 
 by his own unaided exertions, earning the means 
 for pursuing his studies" by his own laboirs. A 
 son of the late Valentine E. Smith, he was born, 
 August 13, 1859, ^t Strongs Prairie, Adams 
 county. Wis. His grandfather, Rev. John Smith, 
 a minister of the United Brethren Qiurch, re- 
 moved fram Pennsylvania to Ohio, settling in 
 Gallon, Crawford county, where he had charge 
 01 a laige society. 
 
 A native of Pennsylvania, Valentine E. Smith 
 was born and brought up near Harrisburg. He 
 
870 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 afterward lived in Ohio, from there going to 
 Strongs Prairie, Wis., becoming the pioneer mer- 
 chant of that town. About 1872 he removed to 
 Chippewa county. Wis., where he was engaged in 
 the hotel business until his death. He married 
 Miena Woock, who was born in Sauk county, 
 Wis., a daughter of Peter Woock, who emigrated 
 from Germany to the United States, and set- 
 tled permanently in Wisconsin. She survived 
 her husband, and now resides in Tulare, mak- 
 ing her home with her son. Dr. Smith. She 
 has three children : William, in business at Chip- 
 pewa, Wis. ; Charles L., and Edward B., of 
 Tulare. 
 
 Accompanying his parents to Bloomer, Chip- 
 pewa county, Wis., in 1872, Charles L. Smith 
 continued his studies in the district school, re- 
 maining at home until 1885. Coming in that 
 year to the Pacific coast, he located in Tulare, 
 and for two years thereafter was employed in 
 boring for artesian wells, and the following three 
 years worked in the Southern Pacific Railway 
 car shops. Desirous then of entering upon a 
 professional career, Mr. Smith began the study 
 of dentistry with Dr. Belfils, and afterwards prac- 
 ticed for a year by himself in Lemoore. Enter- 
 ing the College of Physicians and Surgeons, in 
 San Francisco, in 1896, he took a course of three 
 years in the dental department, from which he 
 was graduated in 1899 with the degree of D. D. S. 
 Returning then to Tulare, Dr. Smith opened an 
 office here, and has since built up a large and 
 lucrative practice. 
 
 In Delano, Kern county, Cal., Dr. Smith mar- 
 ried Alma Latimer, a native of Fairbury, III., and 
 they are the parents of two children, Edgar and 
 Esther. The doctor is much interested in every- 
 thing pertaining to the advancement of his pro- 
 fession, and is a member of the State Dental As- 
 sociation. In April, 1903, he was elected to the 
 City Council, from the first ward, and is now 
 chairman of the finance committee. He is quite 
 active in secret and benevolent organizations, 
 being past grand of Tulare Lodge No. 306 I. O. 
 O. F. ; chief patriarch of Tulare Encampment ; 
 a member of the Woodmen of the World ; and 
 of the Fraternal Aid. 
 
 JOHN JACOB LASCH, M. D. Through 
 travel in every part of the United States, includ- 
 ing visits to every city of importance in the en- 
 tire country, Dr. Lasch has gained a knowledge 
 of climates, customs and conditions not always 
 possessed by a native-born American, and as a re- 
 sult of this experience he gives it as- his opinion 
 that Tulare is the healthiest city in our country 
 with the sole exception of Ironton, Mo. Since 
 establishing his home in Tulare in 1888 he has 
 conducted a drug business and, in point of years 
 
 of business activity, claims to be the oldest phar- 
 macist in the town. Though a graduate in medi- 
 cine, the science of therapeutics never fascinated 
 him, and for this reason he has devoted himself 
 to pharmaceutical work, in which he is deeply 
 interested and well informed. 
 
 The Lasch family was founded in America by 
 Jacob Lasch, who in early life served as an official 
 in the German government, but after the revolu- 
 tion of 1848 plunged his ambitious hopes in de- 
 feat, he removed to America, settling in New Or- 
 leans in 1850. Three years later he died of yel- 
 low fever. With him to America came his wife, 
 who was Elizabeth Kunz, a native of Baden; af- 
 ter his death she continued to make her home in 
 New Orleans until she passed from earth in 
 1866. Of their seven children only two are living, 
 one of these being John Jacob, who was born in 
 Baden, Germany, October 6, 1838, and at twelve 
 years of age accompanied the family to New Or- 
 leans, where the advantages previously obtained 
 in German schools were supplemented by attend- 
 ance at public schools and a commercial college. 
 Varied experiences were crowded into his youth. 
 Disliking the work at which he was engaged, he 
 ran away from home on a steamboat, but soon re- 
 turned, only, however, to run away a second time 
 and take up the carpenter's trade. A cruel mas- 
 ter filled his days with heavy tasks, and caused 
 him to regret his rashness in leaving home, so he 
 returned and took up the study of pharmacy un- 
 der Dr. Albrecht, of New Orleans, later becom- 
 ing a student in the medical department of the 
 University of Louisiana (now Tulane Univer- 
 sity), from which in i860 he was graduated with 
 the degree of M. D. 
 
 A short experience in the practice of medicine 
 convinced Dr. Lasch that the work was not to 
 his taste, and he accordingly entered the drug 
 business as a clerk, filling positions in this capac- 
 ity in all the large cities of the United States. 
 After some years, in 1872 he suffered a severe and 
 almost fatal attack of cerebro-meningitis, during 
 which his physician gave him at one time eight 
 grains of quinine, instead of the usual dose of two 
 grains. He was left blind and deaf and almost 
 helpless, but with a firmness of will characteristic 
 of him he refused to be discouraged, and as soon 
 as possible began to work at hard manual labor, 
 gradually regaining his faculties and strength. In 
 1886 he arrived in San Francisco and bought out 
 a drug company on Mission street, but the cli- 
 mate did not prove satisfactory to him and two 
 years later he moved the stock of drugs to Tulare, 
 where he continues in business at this writing, 
 and is also a member of the State Pharmaceutical 
 Association. 
 
 By his first marriage Dr. Lasch has three chil- 
 dren, namely: Arthur C, a resident of Delano, 
 Kern county; Mrs. Florence L. Lee and Miss 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 873 
 
 Mary Louise Lasch, both of Tulare. The present 
 Mrs. Lasch was Mrs. Mary Josephine Michau 
 Bering, a native of Tallahassee, Fla., and who 
 became his wife at Houston, Tex., in June of 
 1900. Her father. Dr. M. M. Michau, a native 
 of South Carolina, was a dentist, and also filled 
 pulpits in the Methodist Episcopal Church in 
 both Florida and Texas, his death finally occur- 
 ring in Galveston. The two children comprising 
 his family were born of his marriage to Louisiana 
 Floyd Newsom, daughter of Capt. D. P. F. N. 
 Newsom; she was born in Florida, and died at 
 Houston, Tex. The first husband of Mrs. Lasch 
 was Louis H. Bering, a hardware merchant and 
 influential Mason of Houston, Tex., where he 
 died at fifty-two years of age. The children born 
 of that marriage are named as follows : Robert 
 E. Bering, M. X)., of Tulare ; Mrs. Hortense Bry- 
 ant, of Houston, Tex. ; and Raymond L. Bering, 
 a stenographer, now in charge of the Lasch phar- 
 macy at Tulare. 
 
 J. R. ROBINSON. Many and varied have 
 been the experiences of this well-known pioneer 
 of Tulare county, who for more than twenty 
 years was the most extensive stock-buyer in the 
 upper part of the San Joaquin valley, but who 
 now to some extent is retired from active busi- 
 ness cares. Two and one-half miles north of 
 Visalia, on the St. John's river, lies his stock 
 farm of three hundred and twenty acres, the 
 value of which is greatly increased by sub-irriga- 
 tion. Throughout all this section of country 
 he has a reputation as a judge of stock, and 
 often now his counsel is sought by those desir- 
 ous of making purchases, but he no longer con- 
 ducts the large enterprises of former years, when 
 he was accustomed to ship stock by the train 
 load from Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and 
 California. During his long and active career 
 he made thousands and lost thousands, his larg- 
 est losses being caused by cholera breaking out 
 among his hogs. At one time he lost $20,000 
 from that disease alone. However, many of his 
 ventures in the hog industry were most profit- 
 able. It is still a matter of history in the San 
 Francisco stock market that at one time (1880) 
 he cornered the hog market so completely that 
 the city dealers were obliged to come to him for 
 purchases, large San Francisco buyers paying 
 him seven and three-fourths and even eight cents 
 per pound for hogs, of which he had- more than 
 ten thousand head. In buying wool his first ex- 
 perience was with a Mr. Beach of Nevada, with 
 whom he bargained for the clip from seventeen 
 thousand sheep, amounting to about thirty thou- 
 sand pounds. Two days later he sold the wool 
 to Mr. Lovejoy of Boston at an advance of eight 
 cents a pound, clearing over $2,400 in the deal. 
 
 Mr. Robinson was born in Richland county, 
 Ohio, August 14, 183s, and was third in a farn- 
 dy of two sons and three daughters, of whom 
 he arid one sister survive. His father, George, 
 a native of Ohio, and a pioneer farmer of Iowa' 
 took up land from the government near Farm- 
 ington and for a long period made his home there, 
 eventually in the spring of 1883 coming to Cali- 
 fornia, where he died in the home of his son. 
 Previous to this he had lost his wife by death; 
 she was Margaret Snellbecker, a native of Ohio, 
 and died in Iowa. After 1838 J. R. Robinson 
 was reared on an Iowa farm twenty-five miles 
 northwest of Keokuk, where he attended a sub- 
 scription school and learned to write by the aid 
 of an old-fashioned quill pen. At the age of six- 
 teen he left home and secured work on a farm 
 and two years later he began to trade in stock. 
 During 1861 he crossed the plains with a bull- 
 team. The party preceding his own lost thir- 
 teen persons killed by Indians, but his company 
 made the journey without molestation or harm. 
 After a journey occupying exactly six months he 
 reached the Carson river. Later he went to the 
 Washoe valley, where for two years he was em- 
 ployed in logging and saw-milling with Mr. Mus- 
 grove. July 13, 1863, he arrived in Tulare coun- 
 ty. Not only was he without any means, but 
 he was further handicapped by the extreme 
 drouth of that year rendering work difficult to 
 secure and payment uncertain. To add to his 
 difficulties his wife was suffering with consump- 
 tion. However, after several years of discour- 
 agements his finances began to improve, and he 
 was able to take up farming and stock-raising on 
 a tract of one hundred and sixty acres which he 
 homesteaded. Later he turned his attention to 
 shipping stock, making his home and headquar- 
 ters in Visalia. From 1883 to 1885 he was en- 
 gaged in the wholesale butchering business in 
 San Francisco and Oakland and later again 
 turned his attention to the shipment of stock, in 
 which he continued until 1901. Endowed with 
 remarkable judgment, he carried to success plans 
 and speculations that would have brought many 
 a buyer to financial ruin. Allied with keenness 
 of judgment was firmness of will. Indeed these 
 two traits are his most prominent characteristics, 
 and have been the principal factors in his suc- 
 cess, securing for him a position of influence 
 among the stock buyers of the west. 
 
 Tile first wife of Mr. Robinson was Elizabeth 
 Denny, who was born in Clark county. Mo., and 
 died in Tulare county, Cal., in 1873. Six chil- 
 dren were born of their marriage, of whom the 
 following survive : Mrs. Mary Shippy, of Santa 
 Clara; Mrs. Alice Shively, of San Francisco; 
 Josephine, of Sacramento; Mrs. Olive Black and 
 Rose, both of San Francisco. At Visalia, Sep- 
 tember 4, 1883, occurred the marriage of Mr. 
 
874 
 
 HISTORICAL AND TilOGRAPHICAL RECOR]!). 
 
 Robinson and Miss Mathilda Kibbler, a native of 
 St. Johns, New Brunswick, and a daughter of 
 James and Catherine (Burns) Kibbler, natives re- 
 spectively of London, England, and New Bruns- 
 wick. On crossing the ocean tO' New Bruns- 
 wick Mr. Kibbler settled on a farm near St. 
 Johns and continued in the same locality until 
 he died. In his family there were thirteen chil- 
 dren who attained mature years and seven are 
 now living. Mrs. Robinson was the eighth in 
 order of birth and is the only member of the 
 family living in California. At fourteen years of 
 age she went to Boston, Mass., where she at- 
 tended the public schools. In 1869 she came 
 to California and followed the occupation of a 
 nurse in San Francisco, remaining there until 
 1883, when she removed to^ Visalia. In religion 
 she is of the Methodist faith, taking a warm in- 
 terest in the work of the church, as well as in 
 all movements for the uplifting of humanity. 
 Politically Mr. Robinson votes the Democratic 
 ticket, but has never been an active partisan 
 and at no time has he sought the emoluments and 
 honors of official positions. 
 
 FRANK PFITZER. August 10, 1903, Frank 
 Pfitzer succeeded through purchase to the gen- 
 eral merchandise business of G. M. Martin, and 
 has since taken an active part in the commercial 
 life of Volta, attending also to the duties of post- 
 master. Mr. Pfitzer's reputation as a business 
 man rests upon years of worthy effort as a 
 sheep raiser, and upon successful dealings in 
 lands, and the ability to accumulate several 
 large and paying country properties. His en- 
 tire active life has been spent in California, as 
 was aUo the greater part of his youth, for he 
 came here a child in the summer of 1863. He 
 was born in Jackson county, Iowa, February 21, 
 1859, 3^nd is the oldest of ten children of Anthony 
 and Theresa (Myers) Pfitzer, natives of Wur- 
 temberg, Germany, the latter a resident of Santa 
 Cruz. 
 
 Anthony Pfitzer was a blacksmith by trade, 
 giving to his work the thoroughness and ap- 
 plication required of apprentices in the old world. 
 With his trade as a guarantee of at least a fair 
 livelihood, he came to the United States, traveled 
 throughout the east, and finally became a pioneer 
 farmer of Jackson county, Iowa. His land lay 
 along the Maquoketa river, was fertile and pro- 
 ductive, and soon placed him above indebtedness 
 and on the road to success. In the spring of 
 1863 he yielded to a desire to see the far west, 
 and with his family crossed the plains, locating 
 in Eldorado county, where he followed freight- 
 ing. In 1867 he located on land near old Los 
 Banos, engaged in the stock-raising business, 
 and became one of the largest stock and grain 
 
 men in the county. From a small beginning he 
 branched out repeatedly, purchasing additional 
 land from the settlers, until he owned over six 
 thousand acres. During the last years of his life 
 he leased the greater part of his property, his 
 death occurred in Merced county in 1892, at the 
 age of sixty-two years. He was a, man of 
 marked characteristics, liberal and public-spirited, 
 and .impressed his influence upon many depart- 
 ments of the county's growth. As a Democrat 
 he was active in the interests of his party, served 
 on the county central committee, the school 
 board, and was instrumental in securing the 
 building of the first school house in Volta. He 
 was one of the founders and builders of the 
 church at Volta. Honest and straightforward in 
 all of his dealings, genial and considerate in his 
 association with friends and neighbors, he com- 
 manded the respect and good-will of the com- 
 munity, and left a void in the hearts of manv 
 when he died. Nine of his ten children are liv- 
 ing, and of these Joseph, the second son, is a 
 farmer of the Cottonwood district; Mary is the 
 wife of A. Domegine, of Fresno county; Julia 
 is the wife of E. McCabe of Merced county; 
 Anthony lives on the old home farm; Rose mar- 
 ried William Bunker of Cottonwood ; William is 
 a farmer of the Cottonwood district; Clara is 
 a resident of Santa Cruz ; and Louis runs a dairy 
 near Los Banos. 
 
 From 1867 until his twenty-first year Frank 
 Pfitzer lived on his father's farm, after which 
 he started out on his own responsibility in the 
 sheep business, herding his sheep on the plain? 
 and in the valley. Eventually he purchased a 
 farm of sixteen hundred acres in the foothills, 
 which he still owns, and where he pastured 
 sheep until July, 1903. Since then he has rented 
 this property. He also owns a thousand acres 
 of land south of Volta, which he rents for grain 
 purposes, and two hundred and forty acres in 
 his home ranch, all under irrigation, of which 
 eighty acres are under alfalfa and rented out for 
 a dairy. Mr. Pfitzer practically retired from 
 immediate supervision of his landed interests 
 when he embarked in the merchandise business 
 in 1903, but his responsibilities are still great, 
 and include active political service, and an in- 
 terest in all questions of local public moment. 
 He is at present a member of the Republican 
 county central committee, and has been for many 
 years a delegate to state and count\' conventions. 
 The friend of education and all manner of im- 
 provement, he was formerly a member of the 
 school board, and his contributions to church 
 and charitable undertakings are generous. Mr. 
 Pfitzer was united in marriage in 1881 in Mer- 
 ced county, to Esther A. Knight, a native of 
 Jones county, Iowa, and they have four children, 
 Clarence, May, Ruby and Frances. Fraternally 
 
HiStORlCAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 875 
 
 he is associated with the Hills Ferry Lodge No. 
 236, F. & A. M., of Newman, and the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen of Los Banos. His 
 character, lifework and aims command the re- 
 spect of an intelligent and discriminating com- 
 monwealth, and his rise to success is of such a 
 nature as to furnish encouragement and hope to 
 the industrious and ambitiously inclined. 
 
 DAVID M. ROUSE. The former superin- 
 tendent of the San Joaquin and Kings River 
 Canal & Irrigating Company has probably super- 
 intended the construction of more miles of water- 
 ways in the state of California than any other 
 man. His work included first the canal and 
 reservoir of Salt Spring valley, at Milton, Cal, 
 the Crocker & Huffman canal in Merced county, 
 the Modesto canal and the San Joaquin and 
 King's river canal, built by Miller & Lux, be- 
 gun in October, 1891 ; the latter waterway is 
 one hundred and thirty-nine miles in length, 
 including the main canjil of seventy-four miles, 
 fifty miles outside of the canal, and fifteen 
 miles of Colony ditch, besides many miles of 
 laterals. He has made a profound study of 
 irrigation, and upon resigning his position with 
 the San Joaquin and King River Canal & Ir- 
 rigating Company, in January, 1904, was prob- 
 ably as well posted in his particular line aS 
 any man now interested in this department of 
 progress. Mr. Rouse is now" in the employ of 
 James Stephenson, and is superintending the 
 construction of that rancher's canal on the west 
 side of Merced county. He has invested in town 
 and country property, owning, besides his resi- 
 dence in Los Banos, a ranch of seventy acres 
 adjoining the town, which is rented and devoted 
 to dairying. 
 
 Mr. Rouse's youth was spent on the frontier 
 of Iowa, on a farm near Ottumwa, Wapello coun- 
 ty, near the Indian agency, upon which his father 
 had settled. As the first white child to come into 
 existence in the wild and uncultivated region, 
 he was a subject of curiosity to both whites and 
 Indians, although the family was a large one, 
 he being the second youngest of ten children. 
 His parents, D. J. and Eliza (Manson) Rouse, 
 were born in Indiana, his paternal grandfather 
 having settled in the Hoosier state during the 
 Indian wars, in which he took a prominent part. 
 D. J. Rouse sold his Iowa farm about 1870, re- 
 moving to Olathe, Johnson county, Kans., where 
 he lived in retirement until his death in 1874. 
 He was a man of much ability and natural 
 shrewdness, considerable of a politician, and at 
 one time clerk of Wapello county on the Repub- 
 lican ticket. He was survived by his wife until 
 1894. George, his oldest son, served all through 
 
 the Civil war in the First Iowa Cavalry, and 
 now lives in Iowa. 
 
 Reared in the Indian agency, D. M. Rouse 
 found plenty of hard work to test his growing 
 strength, and his opportunity for acquiring an 
 education was limited in the extreme. At the 
 age of twenty-two he engaged in independent 
 farming, and shortly after removed to Olathe, 
 Kans., and the same year to Coffey county, that 
 state. There he pre-empted land and lived on 
 his quarter-section until 1874. Selling out dur- 
 ing that year he removed to Stockton, Cal., and 
 engaged in grain raising near Lodi, moving later 
 to Milton, where he undertook his first super- 
 intendency of a California canal. He found it 
 sufficiently remunerative and interesting to war- 
 rant investigation and study, and so continued 
 to work and made a name for himself as an 
 authority on the subject of irrigation. 
 
 _ The first marriage of Mr. Rouse was solem- 
 nized in Ottumwa, Iowa, with India Hixson, a na- 
 tive of that locality, who died in California. His 
 present wife, Sarah McCulligh, was born in the 
 north of Ireland, whither her family had re- 
 moved to avoid religious persecution. There are 
 two children of this union, Horace Manson and 
 David Mansfield. Mr. Rouse votes the straight 
 Republican ticket and is a member of the school 
 board, which is constructing the new school 
 building of Los Banos. He is fraternally con- 
 nected with the Knights of Pythias and the In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fello-ws. Mrs. Rouse 
 is a member of the Presbyterian church. What- 
 ever success has come to Mr. Rouse has been 
 of his own making, for his start in life was un- 
 attended by advantages of either money or influ- 
 ence. He illustrates the value of gift and per- 
 severance, as well as of integrity, reliability, and 
 personal agreeableness. 
 
 WALTER E. PREMO, Ph. B., supervising 
 principal of the Tulare schools, occupies a con- 
 spicuous place among the leading educators of 
 Tulare county, his superior ability and scholarly 
 attainments eminently qualifying him for his im- 
 portant work. He is a native son of California, 
 his birth having occurred in San Joaquin county, 
 May 8, 1875, on the farm improved by his fath- 
 er, Michael Premo. 
 
 A Canadian by birth, Michael Premo was born 
 and reared near the city of Montreal, the son of 
 a farmer. With the love of youth for travel 
 and adventure, he went to New York in search of 
 work, from there coming by way of Panama to 
 San Francisco in 1869. Subsequently locating in 
 San Joaquin county, he took up land on the 
 French Camp road, near Atlanta, and was there 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1882. Com- 
 ing in that year to Tulare county, he bought a 
 
876 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ranch west of Tulare, in the artesian belt, hav- 
 ing six hundred and forty acres, and was there 
 employed in grain farming for nearly twenty 
 years. In 1901 he removed to Longbeach, Los 
 Angeles county, where he still resides. He mar- 
 ried Magdalene Minges, who was born in Cali- 
 fornia, the daughter of John Minges, a pio- 
 neer who crossed the plains with ox-teams and 
 settled in the San Joaquin valley, spending his last 
 years in Stockton. Eight children were born to 
 Michael Premo and his wife, seven of whom are 
 living, Walter E., of this review being the old- 
 est child. 
 
 But seven years of age when his parents set- 
 tled in Tulare county, Walter E. Premo here 
 received his elementary education, being gradu- 
 ated from the Tulare High School in 1893. The 
 ensuing two years he worked with his father on 
 the home farm, after which he attended the Uni- 
 versity of Southern California for two years. 
 In 1897 Mr. Premo entered the University of 
 California as a junior, and in 1899 was gradu- 
 ated from that institution with the degree of 
 Ph. B. After teaching mathematics and the sci- 
 ences for a year in the Portersville High School, 
 in 1900, he accepted a similar position in the Tu- 
 lare High School. His services in this capacity 
 proved so acceptable that in 1902 he was elected 
 supervising principal of the Tulare schools, which 
 includes the grammar and high schools. Under 
 his regime, these are in a flourishing condition, 
 in 1904 there being five hundred and eighty-five 
 enrolled, and the teachers numbering fifteen. 
 Mr. Premo is very popular in educational and 
 social circles, and for three years was president of 
 the Tulare High School Alumni. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. Premo married Alice McDon- 
 ald, a native of Virginia City, Nev., and they 
 have two children, Walter and Olive. Fraternal- 
 ly he is a member of Ohve Branch Lodge No. 
 269, F. & A. M. ; and of the Woodmen of the 
 World. Politically he is a Republican. He takes 
 a keen interest in athletic sports, and while in 
 Portersville coached the football team, and is 
 now coaching the Tulare team. 
 
 ROBERT C. MOOREHEAD. At an early 
 period in the development of Stanislaus county 
 Mr. Moorehead became identified with its agri- 
 cultural possibilities and has since accomplished 
 much in promoting the development of its lands. 
 The influence which he wields as an old settler 
 is heightened by his successful prosecution of 
 various departments of farm work. Through the 
 exercise of constant industry and sagacious judg- 
 ment he has converted an unattractive area into 
 a valuable homestead, whose fertility is enhanced 
 by irrigation from the canal. The place is situ- 
 ated three and three-fourths miles southwest of 
 
 Newman, and, with its improvements, stands as 
 a monument to the owner's unwearied efforts, 
 continued through many years. 
 
 Remotely of English and Scotch descent, Mr. 
 Moorehead represents a family long resident in 
 America. His father, John, was the son of a 
 Kentucky farmer, machinist and blacksmith, who 
 proved as valiant in war as he was industrious 
 in peace, and served with recognized faithfulness 
 in the war of 1812. A native of Greenbrier 
 county, W. Va., John Moorehead was a young 
 man when in 1850 he resolved to seek a home- 
 stead among the undeveloped lands of what was 
 then considered the far west. Establishing him- 
 self in Iowa, he improved a farm near Columbus 
 City, Louisa county. Meanwhile the trend of 
 emigration had drifted still further westward. 
 The gold fields of California and Colorado had 
 attracted thousands of Argonauts, who had set- 
 tled permanently in the west. With a longing 
 for larger results than could be achieved on his 
 Iowa homestead, and impelled by the rumors of 
 the wealth of the great gold fields of the west, 
 he started across the plains in 1864, accompanied 
 by his three sons, and using oxen and horses as 
 motive power for the "prairie schooners." An 
 experience of four years in Boise Basin mines 
 ind other camps proved less remunerative than 
 hoped for, and he retired from the occupation, 
 coming to California in 1868, and spending the 
 ■ balance of his Hfe in this state. During his resi- 
 dence in Iowa he served as justice of the peace, 
 but in the west did not identify himself with local 
 affairs. He had attained the age of eighty-four 
 years when, in 1887, death came to him at the 
 home of his son, Robert C, in Stanislaus county. 
 His wife, Nancy (McVey) Moorehead, was born 
 in Virginia and died in St. Louis while en route 
 to Iowa. They were the parents of five sons. 
 The eldest, Samuel A., a pioneer of 1862 in Cal- 
 ifornia, resides on the West Side in Stanislaus 
 county. The second son, J. A., who came to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1863, now owns and occupies a farm 
 in Tulare county. The third son, George W., 
 came to California, but returned to Iowa, and 
 died there in 1902. The other sons, W. T. and 
 R. C, are farmers in Stanislaus county. 
 
 In Greenbrier county, W. Va., Robert C. Moore- 
 head was born July 15, 1846. While still a 
 very small child he was taken to Iowa, and there 
 received a district school education. With his 
 father and two brothers he crossed the plains in 
 1864. After an experience of four years in the 
 mines he came to San Francisco, and two weeks 
 later proceeded to Eldorado county, thence going 
 to Truckee, Nevada county, where he engaged 
 in lumbering. When Stanislaus county was 
 still an undeveloped region he became one of its 
 pioneers, August of 1869 finding him a partner 
 of his brother, Samuel A., in farming pursuits 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 879 
 
 on the west side. After three years he disposed 
 of his interests and then bought a farm adjoining 
 his present property. The nucleus of the place, 
 which he now owns became his about 1886, since 
 which time he has added to it by purchase, until 
 now his landed possessions aggregate two hun- 
 dred acres. All of the improvements have been 
 made under his personal supervision. Twenty 
 acres are under the ditch and in alfalfa, while 
 the remainder of the land is used for the raising 
 of grain. Though he has not made a specialty 
 of dairying, he owns twelve milch cows and finds 
 his dairy interests no unimportant factor in the 
 footing of each year's profits. Attention to de- 
 tails and untiring industry have brought him a 
 large measure of success, while his fair deaUngs 
 with all have retained for him the confidence of 
 his associates. Fraternally he holds membership 
 with the Knights of Pythias. In political mat- 
 ters he votes the Democratic ticket, and has served 
 as a delegate to county conventions of the party. 
 Three children, Elvin J., Raleigh C, and NeUie 
 May, were born of his marriage to Miss Jessie 
 Johnson, who was born and reared in Merced 
 county, this state, her father, Daniel B. Johnson, 
 having come from Germany during the early set- 
 tlement of the valley, where he became- a well- 
 known farmer and stockman. 
 
 J. D. WAUGH. The Waugh family came 
 originally from England, the first emigrant be- 
 ing John Waugh, a native of Yorkshire and the 
 son of William Waugh, an agriculturist, and the 
 representative of an old and distinguished fam- 
 ily. John Waugh came to Virginia and located 
 on the Potomac, near Leesburg, where he became 
 a farmer and an importer of Durham and Devon 
 cattle from England. He became the owner of 
 a fine farm, upon which he made his home until 
 his death in 1844. His wife, formerly Mary 
 Cox, was a native of Dublin, Ireland, who came 
 with her parents to Virginia. Her death oc- 
 curred when her youngest son was an infant. 
 Born of this marriage were the following chil- 
 dren: Thomas, who served in the Civil war in 
 a Missouri regiment, and was killed with some 
 comrades on his way home from the war; Ann, 
 Mrs. Hayes, a resident of Knox county. Mo.; 
 and J. D., the subject of this review. 
 
 Born on the Potomac, near Leesburg, Va., 
 June 17, 1832, J. D. Waugh was reared to young 
 manhood in Virginia, receiving his education in 
 a private school at Leesburg and the Upperville 
 Academy. In 1856 he came as far west as Mis- 
 souri and located in Edina, Knox county, where 
 he followed farming. In the first years of the 
 Civil war he removed to Iowa, locating in Mount 
 Vernon. Deciding to emigrate to the more re- 
 mote west, he crossed the plains in 1864 by mule- 
 
 teams, leaving Muscatine, Iowa, May 10, 1864, 
 and arriving in Grass valley September 17 of 
 the same year, the trip being made via Echo 
 canon. Salt Lake and Truckee route, under com- 
 mand of Captain Beach. The train comprised 
 one hundred men, all well armed and prepared 
 for the dangers and rigors of the tedious jour- 
 ney. For four years Mr." Waugh remained in 
 Grass valley, for a part of the time engaged in 
 prospecting, and also conducting the Ohio saw 
 mill ranch which he purchased, raising hay and 
 fruit. October 13, 1868, he went to San Jose 
 and bought a small place on Stockton avenue, 
 engaging in the dairy business there and on the 
 Guadeloupe river, until February, 1873, when he 
 came to Tulare county. Seven miles east of 
 Visalia, on the Kaweah, he bought a small place, 
 where he made his home until 1876, when he sold 
 out and bought his present property in Ante- 
 lope valley, consisting of railroad land. This 
 he improved and cultivated, and later pre-empted 
 what is now the Sequoia Reservoir, then known 
 as the Mill flat, a rich little basin or valley. The 
 Sequoia Lumber Company dammed it up and 
 made a lake of one hundred and sixty acres for 
 fluming, having an altitude of forty-eight hun- 
 dred feet. Mr. Waugh has put up ice in winter, 
 having built an ice-house of logs and sawdust, 
 and two seasons he hauled ice to Visalia with 
 teams, a distance of more than fifty miles. In 
 Santa Clara county he began to raise Jersey cat- 
 tle and upon his removal here brought them to 
 Tulare county and continued in the dairy busi- 
 ness, having sixty cows. Deciding to devote his 
 energies to the raising of stock, he invested in 
 Aberdeen Polled Angus and Black Commodore 
 Polled, imported from Scotland. He now has 
 Forest S., brought from Iowa, at the head of his 
 herd, and also owns Leonmaster, the second. He 
 has about seventy-two full-blooded Aberdeen 
 Polled Angus, his ranch being known as the 
 Polled Angus Stock ranch. He owns seven hun- 
 dred and sixty acres in Antelope valley, sixteen' 
 miles northeast of Visalia. 
 
 Mr. Waugh has been twice married, his first 
 wife being Mrs. Eliza (Leonard) Debolt, a na- 
 tive of Ohio, who died October i, 1897, leav- 
 ing three children, namely: Georgie, who be- 
 came the wife of Thomas Chatten of Visalia, and 
 died January 22, 1904; William, engaged with 
 his father in the stock business ; and Harry V., 
 of Tulare county. His second marriage oc- 
 curred in Fresno and tmited him with Mrs. Eve- 
 line (Collier) Strang, a native of Iowa. Her 
 death occurred September 6, 1904. A promi- 
 nent citizen in all local affairs, Mr. Waugh has 
 served as a member of the school board for over 
 twenty years, now acting as clerk of the Town- 
 send district. Fraternally he was made a Mason 
 in Friendship Lodge No. 210, and now belongs 
 
880 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to Visalia Lodge No. 128, F. & A. M. Political- 
 ly he is a stanch Democrat and has served as a 
 member of the county central committee. 
 
 WILBUR FISK DRAPER. Instances ,pf the 
 attainment of a gratifying degree of success are of 
 frequent occurrence in Stanislaus county, where 
 the development of the dairy industry, the growth 
 of the stock business and the cultivation of the 
 farms in the valleys and foothills afford oppor- 
 tunities for men of wise judgment and untiring- 
 industry. Among the men of influence identified 
 with local stock and ranching interests few have 
 been more successful than Mr. Draper, who re- 
 sides one and one-half miles west of Newman. 
 Since making his first purchase of property in 
 the county he has been one of its leading land 
 owners. It was during 1879 that he bought thir- 
 ty-one hundred acres of low foothill land in this 
 county, and at the same time he purchased eight 
 hundred acres in the valley. On the latter farm 
 he established his home in 1880, and here he has 
 since resided. In addition he owns fifty acres 
 of alfalfa land at Crow's Landing, which makes 
 a first-class hay farm. All of these various prop- 
 erties he personally superintends, besides acting 
 as president of the Acme Creamery Company. 
 
 The Draper family is of English extraction, 
 but has been identified with New York state since 
 an early period in our country's history. Addi- 
 son Draper was a lifelong farmer, and died in 
 Akron, N. Y. His son, Alfred, father of Wilbur 
 Fisk Draper, was a native of Genesee county, 
 N. Y., and grew to manhood in Akron. After his 
 marriage to Eliza Doney he removed to Michigan 
 and settled in Rives township, Jackson county, 
 where he acquired the ownership of two hundred 
 and forty acres. Four brothers also settled in 
 that county and identified themselves with pioneer 
 influences and environments. In that day the city 
 of Jackson contained only two grocery stores, 
 and its population was so small as to give no 
 evidence of future municipal importance. On his 
 retirement from agricultural operations Mr. 
 Draper moved into the city of Jackson, about 
 1884, and has since made his home there. For 
 many years, during his earlier life, he served as 
 justice of the peace. Since the organization of 
 the Republican party he has supported its prin- 
 ciples. In religion he is connected with the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. His wife was born 
 at Black Rock, a suburb of Buffalo, Erie county, 
 N. Y., and grew to womanhood at Clarence Hol- 
 low, same county, but was married at Black 
 Rock. She was a daughter of Harry Doney, a 
 native of New York, and of French ancestry. At 
 the time of her death, which occurred at Jack- 
 son, Mich., she had attained the age of eighty-six 
 years. Of her marriage there were born eight 
 
 sons and one daughter, namely : Edwin, who 
 makes his home at San Jose, Cal. ; Mrs. Mary 
 Beebee, who died at Jackson, Mich. ; Wilbur 
 Fisk, of Stanislaus county; Harry, a rancher at 
 Paso Robles, Cal. ; Milton, who follows farm pur- 
 suits at Hull, Iowa ; Frederick, who is living re • 
 tired in Jackson, Mich. ; George, a railroad man 
 living in Chicago; Alfred, of San Jose, Cal.; and 
 Clarence, who is a business man at Toledo, Ohio. 
 
 On the home farm in Jackson county, Mich., 
 Wilbur Fisk Draper was born February 8, 1840. 
 The common schools of the district afforded him 
 all the educational advantages that he ever en- 
 joyed. In 1862 he left home for California via 
 Panama, sailing from New York May i, 1862, on 
 the steamer North Star, and after crossing the 
 isthmus took passage on the Orozaba for San 
 Francisco, May 26th being the date of his ar- 
 rival at the Golden Gate. Selecting a location 
 on Walnut creek. Contra Costa county, he en-- 
 gaged in general farming for two years, and af- 
 terward, in partnership with his brother Edwin, 
 cultivated a farm owned by Albert Stone, where 
 he used two four-horse teams in the tilling of the 
 soil. After a year he went to Washoe, Nev., and 
 for a year engaged in teaming between that town 
 and Virginia City. During the fall of 1864 he 
 retui'ned to California, this time renting a farm 
 at Livermore, where he remained until 1869. 
 His next removal took him to the west side in 
 Merced county, and there he farmed three sec- 
 tions of the Page ranch and had charge of Mr. 
 Page's interests, during his second year acting,as 
 superintendent. In that capacity he started eight 
 new farms and superintended the erection of 
 eight farmhouses and accompanying barns and 
 granaries. In addition he had four thousand 
 sheep pa.sturing in the foothills. From there he 
 came to Stanislaus county, where for sixteen 
 years he continued to conduct an extensive sheep 
 business in addition to raising grain. The tract of 
 thirty-seven hundred acres that he owns is excel- 
 lent grain land, besides being adapted for stock. 
 Of his valley farm one hundred and thirty acres 
 under the canal are in alfalfa, thus furnishing an 
 abundance of hay for the cattle, horses and mules. 
 In addition to his own land he tills a rented 
 tract of two hundred and sixteen acres in the 
 river bottom. Eight ten-mule teams are neces- 
 sary in the working of his various tracts, while 
 the harvesting is done with the aid of a combined 
 Stockton harvester and thresher operated by thir- 
 ty-two mules. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Draper took place 
 at Alamo, Cal., and united him with Miss Can- 
 dace Jones, a native of Missouri.^ Her parents, 
 John M. and Mary (Smith) Jones, crossed the 
 plains from Missouri in 1846. With them came 
 the ill-fated Donner party, whose tragic end is 
 one of the saddest chapters of western frontier 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 881 
 
 history. Fortunately the Jones family took the 
 old Dutch flat route, and crossed the mountains 
 one and one-half days before the others. When 
 they landed in California they settled near Alamo, 
 Contra Costa county, where Mr. Jones died; his 
 widow still resides on the old homestead in that 
 county. Mrs. Candace Draper died in Merced 
 county, leaving three children, namely : Fred- 
 erick, now in Alaska; Qarence, a resident of 
 Oakland; and Blanche, wife of Edward Besheer, 
 of Modesto. After the death of his first wife 
 Mr. Draper married Miss Carrie Driskell, of 
 Modesto, who was born at Jacksonville, Ore., 
 and came to California with her father, James 
 Driskell ; the latter is now a dairyman near New- 
 man. The only child of Mr. Draper's second 
 marriage was a daughter named Lena, who died 
 at three years of age. Fraternally Mr. Draper 
 affiliates with the Masons. He was made a Mason 
 in Hill's Ferry Lodge No. 236, F. & A. M., which 
 later becarne the Newman Lodge. In addition 
 he holds membership with Merced Chapter No. 
 12, R. A. M., and Pacific Commandery No. 3, at 
 Sonora. Always a Republican, he has been active 
 in promoting the local progress of the party and 
 has voted its ticket in all elections, local and na- 
 tional. 
 
 JOHN HENRY RAMM. Though a com- 
 paratively recent settler at Dinuba, Mr. Ramm 
 has made California his home for many years 
 and is familiar with its growth and development 
 during the past thirty years. When he came to 
 Dinuba in 1902 he built the residence he now 
 occupies and also improved with a family or- 
 chard and alfalfa the forty acres he owns at this 
 point. In addition he owns eighty acres on sec- 
 tion 16, one-half mile east of Dinuba, where he 
 has twenty acres in peach trees and forty-two 
 acres in a vineyard subdivided into the follow- 
 ing: Twenty acres, Muscat; twelve acres, 
 Thompson's seedless; and ten acres, Sultanas, 
 all in excellent bearing condition and furnishing 
 large crops of the choicest varieties of grapes. 
 
 A native of Germany, Mr. Ramm was born in 
 Holstein, at Henstedt, near Killinghosen, April 
 25, 1854, and was second in a family of two 
 sons and two daughters, all of whom are living 
 except one son. His father, Henry, spent his 
 entire life in Holstein, where he was a mason 
 and contractor until his death at an early age; 
 the mother, Abby Wagner, was also a lifelong 
 resident of Holstein. Their son, John Henry, 
 who was the only member of the family to settje 
 in America, passed his boyhood years in Ber- 
 gen, where he attended school and^ became fa- 
 miliar with farming. In 1871 he crossed the 
 ocean to America and stopped at Fremont, Neb., 
 where he worked on a farm for a time and later 
 
 bought eighty acres of railroad land. This he 
 sold, then purchased one hundred and twenty 
 acres, which he improved and sold. The year 
 1875 found him in California, but he remained 
 only a short time in San Francisco, soon pro- 
 ceeding to Whatcom county. Wash., and pre- 
 empting land at Samish Flats. Thither he 
 brought the first reaper ever used in those parts, 
 and with three yoke of oxen and one team of 
 horses threshed the first crop of grain on the 
 Flats. Though not a native-born American, he 
 proved his patriotism by starting the first 4th of 
 July celebration the Flats had ever witnessed, se- 
 curing for this purpose a flag pole and flag. 
 
 After two years Mr. Ramm sold his farm on 
 the Flats and removed to the Kittitas valley in 
 Washington, where he bought and improved one 
 hundred and twenty acres of railroad land. Set- 
 tlers were few in that locality. Few attempts 
 had been made at improvements. Ptoduce had 
 to be hauled one hundred and sixty miles. In- 
 dians were hostile and numerous at first, but 
 after two years, through the ' strategic capture 
 of Old Moses, the red men were quieted, and 
 Mr. Ramm had no further trouble with them. 
 After his marriage he engaged in raising grain 
 and stock on his farm of three hundred and 
 twenty acres situated on the Yakima river, and 
 in addition for twelve years he operated a flour 
 mill at Thorp, Kittitas county. His large farm 
 near Ellensburg on the Yakima he still owns, 
 but rents it to tenants, having removed from 
 there to California in 1902 and settled on his 
 present homestead. 
 
 At Ellensburg, Wash., in 1884, occurred the 
 marriage of Mr. Ramm and Mrs. Sophronia 
 Ellen (Parker) Pollington, a native of Adams 
 county. 111., and the next to the youngest in a 
 family of twelve children, all but two of whom 
 attained mature years. Two of her brothers, 
 Lewis A. and William Jefferson, served in the 
 Civil war and the latter «was imprisoned at An- 
 dersonville. Her parents, Archibald and Anna 
 (Combs) Parker, were natives of Ohio and Ken- 
 tucky, respectively. For many years they lived 
 on a farm in Adams county. 111., thence removed 
 to Kansas, later to Wyoming, going from there 
 to Elko, Nev., and eventually going to Wash- 
 ington, where they died, the father April 24, 
 1903, at the age of eighty-eight, and the mother 
 in July, 1888. During the Civil war Mr. Parker 
 served in an Illinois regiment. The first mar- 
 riage of Mrs. Ramm was solemnized in Chey- 
 enne, Wyo., and united her with Shadrick Price, 
 who was in the government employ when he was 
 killed by the Ute Indians, in the White River 
 Agency massacre, September 29, 1879. This 
 was one of the most noted of the Indian out- 
 breaks resulting from dissatisfaction with the In- 
 dian agent, N. C. Meeker. He and seven others, 
 
882 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 among whom was Shadrick Price, were shot 
 while working on a store building. Mrs. Price, 
 her two children, Mrs. Meeker and daughter 
 Josephine, aged twenty-two years, were cap- 
 tured by the Indians and kept prisoners twenty- 
 three days, but were rescued by General Adams 
 and his party. The Indians took their prisoners 
 about three hundred miles on horseback into the 
 mountains. The rescue took place on Plateau 
 creek, and was effected by the head chief of the 
 Utes, Ouray, who threatened to exterminate the 
 tribe if they harmed the prisoners. After the 
 rescue the women and children went to Denver, 
 from there to Greeley, Colo., and from the lat- 
 ter place Mrs. Price went with her parents to 
 Washington. By her first marriage she had two 
 children, namely : Florence, now Mrs. Schaaf, 
 of Sultana, Cal. ; and John A. L., who resides in 
 Washington. Afterward she was married to 
 Plorace Pollington, of Ellensburg, Wash., a na- 
 tive of England, and a farmer in Washington, 
 where he was killed by a falling tree. By that 
 union there was one daughter, Rosa, now Mrs. 
 Weaver, of Sultana. The two children of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Ramm are Charles Henry and Anna 
 Pearl, who remain with their parents. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Ramm is independent and in religion 
 adheres to the Lutheran faith, in which he was 
 reared. While living in Washington he became 
 connected with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows at Ellensburg and is now noble grand 
 of the lodge at Dinuba, also a member of the 
 Encampment at Ellensburg, while with his wife, 
 who is past noble grand, he is warmly interested 
 in the work of the Rebekahs. 
 
 JASPER KOLB. Noteworthy among the 
 thrifty and progressive agriculturists of Tulare 
 county is Jasper Kolb, living about four miles 
 west of Dinuba, where he has a highly produc- 
 tive ranch, that in point of improvements and 
 appointments compares favorably with the best 
 in the vicinity. Belonging to a family noted for 
 its patriotism, he has himself a distinguished 
 record as a soldier, and is a fine representative of 
 the substantial citizens of the community in which 
 he resides. A son of William Kolb, he was 
 born, August 9, 1836, in Rush county, Ind., of 
 German ancestry, his great-grandfather on the 
 paternal side having been born and bred in Ger- 
 many. His grandfather, Jonathan Kolb, a native 
 of South Carolina, settled as a farmer in Georgia 
 when young, but subsequently became a pioneer 
 of Indiana, where he spent the later years of 
 his life. 
 
 William Kolb was born in Georgia in 1805, 
 and was there reared and educated. Removing 
 to Indiana in pioneer days, he lived for three 
 years in Fayette county, being employed in agri- 
 
 cultural pursuits. He was afterward engaged 
 m farming in Rush county for a number of 
 years, from there going to Benton county, Ind., 
 where he resided until his death at the venerable 
 age of ninety-three -years. He married Keziah 
 Rich, who was born in Ohio, a daughter of John 
 Rich, and died in Indiana when ninety-one years 
 of age. Nine children were born of their union, 
 and of these eight are living, Jasper, the fifth 
 child, being the only California resident. He 
 and two other sons served in the Civil war. One 
 son, Richard Kolb, enlisted in Company E, For- 
 tieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, was commis- 
 sioned first lieutenant of his company, but after 
 the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, in which he 
 was wounded, he resigned his commission, and 
 he is now living - in White county, Ind. An- 
 other son, William. D. Kolb, now of Marion, 
 Ind., served as a member of Company C, Nine- 
 ty-ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was 
 wounded at the siege of Atlanta. 
 
 Brought up in Rush county, Ind., Jasper Kolb 
 obtained his rudimentary education in the dis- 
 trict schools, after which he attended the Ko- 
 komo Normal School for awhile. Removing 
 with the family to Benton county in 1854, he 
 taught school for two terms in Tippecanoe, sub- 
 sequently remaining on the home farm, and as- 
 sisting in its management until coming of age. 
 Anxious to further advance his education, Mr. 
 Kolb then began to work on his own account, 
 and with the money thus earned he paid his way 
 through one of the higher institutions of learn- 
 ing, being principally employed in teaching. In 
 November, 1861, inspired by true patriotic im- 
 pulses, he enlisted as a private in Company E, 
 Fortieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and with 
 his comrades took a very active part in many 
 of the more important engagements of the Civil 
 war, being in the following-named battles : Stoije 
 River ; Missionary Ridge, where he received two 
 slight wounds; Resaca, Buzzards Roost; Dallas; 
 New Hope Church ; Lost Mountain ; Kenesaw 
 Mountain, where he received a flesh wound; 
 Peach Tree Creek; Love joy Station; Jonesboro; 
 Spring Hill; Franklin, where he was twice 
 wounded ; and at Nashville. In the latter en- 
 gagement, November 30, 1864, under General 
 Thomas, Mr. Kolb was so severely wounded in 
 the left thigh, the bone being fractured, that he 
 was sent to the Nashville Hospital, later being 
 transferred to the Louisville Hospital, and from 
 there being sent home to recuperate. Able to go 
 to the front in sixty days, he joined his regi- 
 ment at Huntsville, Ala., and from there was 
 ordered to Texas, where he was stationed until 
 January, 1866, when he returned to Indiana, and 
 January 23, 1866, was mustered out at Indian- 
 apolis, being then first lieutenant of his com- 
 pany, his promotion through the various ranks 
 
^''V-n^rH Cc, (pi\ /^r-^iri/ 
 
^ ^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 887 
 
 having been earned by bravery and faithful con- 
 duct. 
 
 Being married soon after receiving his dis- 
 charge from the army, Mr. Kolb located in Foun- 
 tain county, Ind., where he was successfully 
 engaged^ as a lumber manufacturer and dealer 
 for nearly a score of years. Migrating to the 
 Pacific coast in 1884, he was for seven years en- 
 gaged in farming and stock-raising in Paso 
 Robles, San Luis Obispo county. In 1891 he 
 located in Tulare county, purchasing forty acres 
 of his present farm, and putting in alfalfa for 
 his first crop, and setting out an orchard. Suc- 
 ceeding well in his efforts, Mr. Kolb has since 
 bought another forty acres of adjoining land, 
 and on this has made great and valuable im- 
 provements. He has a fine orchard of fourteen 
 acres, but devotes the larger part of his ranch 
 to the growing of hay and alfalfa. He makes 
 a specialty of dairying and stock raising, and is 
 meeting with unquestioned success. 
 
 In Lafayette, Ind., Mr. Kolb married Maria 
 Knight, a native of that city, and they have 
 three children living, namely: Nellie B., at 
 home; and Henry Clay and Jesse J., farmers. 
 Politically Mr. Kolb is an earnest supporter of 
 the Prohibition ticket in national affairs, but in 
 local matters is independent, voting according to 
 the dictates of his conscience. He is a man 
 of high moral principles, and a member of the 
 Christian Church at Dinuba. 
 
 BENJAMIN HAMILTON CROW. An- 
 other pioneer resident of Stanislaus county may 
 be found in the person of Benjamin H. Crow, 
 an octogenarian, who for more than half a cen- 
 tury has been identified with the agricultural in- 
 terests of California. It was in Mercer county, 
 Ky., that Mr. 'Crow was born February 27, 1824. 
 His father, Walter Crow, who was a soldier in 
 the war of 1812, left his native state, Kentucky, 
 in 1828, and settled in Pike county, Mo., near 
 Bowling Green. He followed farming in that 
 locality until 1849, when, like thousands of 
 others, he swelled the tide of immigration to- 
 ward the Pacific coast, crossing the plains with 
 ox-teams. He and his two companions were ac- 
 companied by two negroes, named Marion and 
 Sam. Arriving in California Mr. Crow spent 
 some time in the mines at Hangtown, and subse- 
 quently returned to Missouri by way of the 
 Isthm.us of Panama. 
 
 Accompanied by four of his sons, William H., 
 James A., Benjamin H. and Alfred M., Mr. 
 Crow again crossed the plains in 1850, driving 
 a herd of eight hundred cattle. At Junction 
 City, in Trinity county, on the Feather river, 
 Mr. Crow became seriously ill with typhoid fever 
 and died. The sons took the cattle to the San 
 
 Joaquin valley, and in Stanislaus county they 
 took a squatter's claim to one hundred and sixty 
 acres of government land. They afterward pur- 
 chased a land grant in the same county and be- 
 came prominent citizens. The mother, who was 
 known in maidenhood as Susan Pritchett, was 
 born in Kentucky, a daughter of Abraham 
 Pritchett, a native of Virginia, and a pioneer of 
 Kentucky. Mrs. Susan Crow died in Pike coun- 
 ty. Mo., in 1833, when about thirty-five years of 
 age. She became the mother of nine children, 
 eight sons and one daughter, as follows : Isaac, 
 William H., James A., Benjamin H., John Brad- 
 ford, Alfred McDowell, Lewis, Pike and Susan. 
 The latter became the wife of Capt. James W. 
 Smith, and with her family resides in Stockton, 
 Cal. All of the sons eventually came to Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 Benjamin H. Crow was the recipient of only 
 a limited education in his > youth and this was 
 gleaned from- the common schools of Pike coun- 
 ty, Mo., but nevertheless the results accom- 
 plished in his life challenge the admiration of 
 all. After the death of his father, in 1850, al- 
 though still retaining his interest in the cattle 
 business in the San Joaquin valley, he followed 
 mining during the years 1851, '52 and '53. In 
 1854 he located in Stanislaus county on Ores- 
 timba creek, among the foothills, and there fol- 
 lowed ranching until 1869, in which year he 
 removed to his present home, three miles east 
 of Crow's Landing. At that day Crow's Land- 
 ing was a place of considerable importance, as 
 all shipping was done by boat, and the landing 
 and postoffice were located near Mr. Crow's 
 ranch. It was in 1870 that he built the home 
 now occupied by himself and wife. His posses- 
 sions aggregate nearly four thousand acres of 
 land, of which about one thousand acres are 
 rmder the West Side ditch. In addition to carry- 
 ing on general farming, he has paid considerable 
 attention to the raising of cattle, mules and sheep. 
 Owing to advanced years Mr. Crow has rented 
 his land for a number of 3'ears, which insures 
 him a comfortable income. 
 
 By his marriage October 10, 1858, Mr. Crow 
 was united with Miss Emma Patchett, who was 
 born in Chester county. Pa., a daughter of John 
 and Esther (Passmore) Patchett. John Patchett 
 was a native of Lincolnshire, England, and in an 
 early day immigrated to the United States. His 
 marriage occurred in Pennsylvania, in which 
 state he conducted a brewery for a number of 
 years. Going to Iowa in 1836, he resided in 
 Van Buren county on the Des Moines river, for 
 some time. In 1850 he came to California, locat- 
 ing in Napa valley, near Napa, in which vicinity 
 he acquired a large amount of land. He died in 
 1875, when eighty years of age, surviving his wife 
 a quarter of a century, her death occurring in No- 
 
d83 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 vember, 1850, soon after their arrival in Eldorado 
 county. She was a native of Pennsylvania. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Crow have no children. Politically Mr. 
 Crow supports the Democratic party. Both are 
 esteemed residents of the community in which 
 they have made their home for so many years, 
 and in comfort and plenty, the result of economy 
 and good business ability, they are passing their 
 declining years. Surrounded by hosts of friends, 
 they are familiarly known as Uncle Ben and 
 Aunt Emma, and by all who share their acquaint- 
 ance are loved and revered. The story of their 
 lives, with its lessons of honesty, frugality and 
 high principles, will be read with interest by 
 
 J. WARREN ALCORN. An enterprising, 
 practical and thriving agriculturist, living one 
 and one-half miles east of Traver, J. W. Al- 
 corn holds an assured position among the prom- 
 inent husbandmen of this section of Tulare coun- 
 ty, being the leading dairyman and poultry 
 raiser and dealer. A son of Hamlet Alcorn, he 
 was born November i, 1859, in Pocahontas, 
 Randolph county, Ark. On both sides of the 
 house he came of pioneer ancestry, both his 
 paternal and his maternal grandfathers having 
 been early settlers and well-to-do farmers of 
 Arkansas. Hamlet Alcorn chose the occupation 
 to which he was bred, and during his brief life 
 was engaged in agricultural pursuits in his na- 
 tive state, carrying on general farming until his 
 death, about 1869. Although a strong Union 
 man, he was forced to serve in the Confederate 
 army during the Civil war. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Margaret Ann Stubblefield, 
 died in 1862, leaving six children, of whom J. 
 W. was the fourth child in order' of birth. 
 
 Left an orphan at the age of nine years, J. 
 W. Alcorn was brought up by his Uncle Dalton, 
 with whom he lived until attaining his major- 
 ity. In 1881, thinking to improve his chances 
 for making a fortune, he came to Tulare county, 
 Cal., locating in Hanford, where his uncle, I. P. 
 Alcorn, resided, and there he worked as a farmer 
 for a couple of years, during the winter seasons 
 attending school. He subsequently spent a brief 
 time in Nevada, but returned to this county, 
 living first in Hanford, his old home, and then 
 in Tulare. In the spring of 1884 Mr. Alcorn 
 settled in Traver, and being very much pleased 
 with lis many advantages decided to locate here 
 permanently. With that end in view he pur- 
 chased from Thomas Fowler, in the spring of 
 1885, a timber claim, from which, by close ap- 
 plication to his chosen industry, he has improved 
 his present valuable ranch. At first Mr. Alcorn 
 used the land mostly for a sheep range, but he 
 subsequently broke it up, and for many years 
 
 was prosperously engaged in raising wheat. In 
 the spring of 1896 he started a dairy, putting 
 in a good stock of Holstein cows, and devoting 
 about eighty acres of his ranch, which contains 
 one hundred and forty acres, to alfalfa. One of 
 the foremost dairy farmers of this section, Mr. 
 Alcorn has done much towards advancing the 
 dairy interests of this section, and was one of 
 the organizers of the Traver Co-operative 
 Creamery Association, in which he is a director, 
 and is also a shareholder in the Selma Co-oper- 
 ative Creamery Association. He makes ' some- 
 what a specialty of the raising of poultry, in 
 which he has had praiseworthy success. He 
 'keeps a fine grade of hens, preferring Leghorns 
 and Minorcas, having now over three hundred 
 birds in his hennery. The eggs he ships to Oak- 
 land, and the sale of these in September, 1904, 
 amounted to $83.65, a fine profit for the labor 
 involved and the small expense connected with it. 
 In Visalia, Cal., Mr. Alcorn married Cyn- 
 thia Kenner, who was born and reared in Men- 
 docino county. He has but little time to devote 
 to pubHc office, but is now serving as trustee 
 of the Traver school district. He joined Traver 
 Lodge, I. O. O. F., which he served three dif- 
 ferent times as grand, and is now a member of 
 Dinuba Lodge, I. O. O. F. He also belongs to 
 the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 HANS HANSEN. Noteworthy among the 
 skillful and thriving ranchmen of Merced coun- 
 ty is Hans Hansen, proprietor of a highly im- 
 proved farm, lying in Ingomar. Born and bred 
 on the farther side of the broad Atlantic, he 
 became master of the various branches of agri- 
 culture when young, and since coming to this 
 country has followed the occupation to which 
 he was reared. Energetic and ambitious, he has 
 never been satisfied with anything less than the 
 highest possible results, in his agricultural labors, 
 and having added substantial improvements " to 
 his valuable farm, he is now carrying on a most 
 successful business in general ranching, raising 
 large crops of hay and grain, and growing some 
 stock. He was born December 19, 1861, in Den- 
 mark, a son of Peter and Anna Christina (John- 
 son) Hansen. His father spent his entire life 
 in Denmark, being engaged in farming, and his 
 mother still resides in her native country. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, and obtaining 
 his education in the . common schools, Hans 
 Hansen remained at home until eighteen years 
 of age. Seeing but little opportunity to accumu- 
 late much wealth in his native land, he immigrated 
 to the United States in 1879, coming directly 
 to Alameda county, Cal., where he secured work 
 on a ranch. Going from there to Benicia, he was 
 in the employ of Baker & Hamilton, manufac- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 889 
 
 turers of implements, for two years. Resuming 
 work as a ranchman, he lived at Crows Landing 
 for awhile, and then settled in Merced county, 
 where, from 1890 until 1892, he was employed 
 in farming near his present home estate. Prudent 
 and thrifty, Mr. Hansen accumulated consider- 
 able money during these years, and in 1892 
 bought his present farm of six hundred and 
 forty acres, of which two hundred and twenty 
 acres are under the ditch. Embarking in general 
 agriculture, he has met with eminent success 
 in his labors, his homestead property being now 
 one of the finest and most valuable in the vi- 
 cinity, well supplied with all the necessary build- 
 ings and appliances for carrying on his work 
 after the most approved modern methods. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Hansen married Chris- 
 tina Schmidt, a native of Denmark, and into 
 their household five children have laeen born, 
 namely : Peter, Hans, Christina, Lillie and 
 Mabel. A loyal and trusted citizen of his adopted 
 country, Mr. Hansen is a stanch supporter of the 
 principles of the Democratic party, and is a 
 valued member of the Lutheran Church, toward 
 the .support of which he contributes generousl}'. 
 
 WILLIAM H. RICHEY. The truth of the 
 old maxim, "success is built on a foundation 
 of hard work," is exemplified by Mr. Richey, 
 who has applied himself with uncomplaining 
 and whole-hearted industry to his duties as a 
 general farmer and stockman, his life-long oc- 
 cupation. Since the early '80s, he has been 
 a resident of the old Wheat ranch in the Brit- 
 ish colony, three miles west of Merced, Cal. 
 Considerable attention is given to raising 
 dairy stock and hogs upon this place, and some 
 grain is also raised. The greater part of Mr. 
 Richey's time is given to raising alfalfa. He 
 has upon this place a twelve-inch, sixty-foot 
 well, and in connection a fifteen-horse-power 
 gasoline engine with which he irrigates one 
 hundred acres of alfalfa, one of the most profit- 
 able products of this section of the state. 
 
 Being a native of California, born in Amador 
 county, March 4, i860, Mr. Richey was reared 
 and educated in the locality of his birth, and, 
 arriving at manhood's estate, he took up the 
 occupation of farming, which he followed in 
 his home locality until 1883. He is the eldest 
 of seven children born to William C. and 
 Minerva A. (Dillian) Richey, the former a na- 
 tive of Illinois. He left that state when a 
 young man for a home in California, crossed 
 the plains with the customary ox teams, and 
 assisted in driving a large herd of cattle across. 
 The party of which he was a member expe- 
 rienced some little trouble with the Indians 
 and lost a part of their stock, but suffered no 
 
 fatalities among its numbers, arriving safely 
 at their destination. In Amador county, Mr. 
 Richey engaged in mining for a short time 
 prior to engaging in a mercantile business. 
 Opening a general store in proximity to the 
 mines, he carried on a successful business 
 there for a number of years. In looking about 
 for a safe investment and a desirable place for 
 a permanent home, Mr. Richey was attracted 
 by the conditions in Merced county, whither 
 he went in 1881. Leasing land near Snelling 
 he carried on ranching pursuits there for fif- 
 teen years. He is now living retired from 
 active business, a respected resident of Mer- 
 ced, being now seventy-four years old. In 
 1904 he was deprived of his beloved compan- 
 ion, who died, aged sixty-four years. The 
 seven children bprn to them are as follows : 
 W. H., John C, Nancy, James, Anna, Samuel 
 and Lula. 
 
 In 1883, two years after his father left Ama- 
 dor county, W. H. Richey became a resident 
 of Merced county and for a short time he fol- 
 lowed agricultural pursuits in the vicinity of 
 Atwater. At that time the finest land in this 
 section could be purchased for $5 per acre. 
 Mr. Richey subsequently removed to the old 
 Wheat ranch, where he still lives (so called 
 from being first entered by the late John 
 Wheat, who was an early settler in the valley, 
 raising sheep quite extensively). By his mar- 
 riage, Mr. Richey was united with Miss Jo- 
 hanna Wheat, a daughter of this worthy pio- 
 neer, who was born on the old ranch which 
 has ever been her home. This union has been 
 blessed by the birth of four children, named 
 Ella M., Everett, Nellie, and William C. Polit- 
 ically, Mr. Richey is an adherent of the Demo- 
 cratic party and he affiliates with the Wood- 
 men of the World. He is highly esteemed and 
 is entitled to be classed among the progressive 
 and practical farmers of his district. 
 
 LOUIS P. RAVEN. When Louis P. Raven 
 arrived in Los Banos in 1889, he was thirteen 
 years old, having been born in Cedarfalls, Black- 
 hawk county, Iowa, October i, 1876. His family 
 was the first to think sufficiently well of the lo- 
 cality to make it their permanent home. His par- 
 ents, Iver and Mary (Lorentzen) Raven, were 
 born in Denmark, and upon arriving. in Black- 
 hawk county, Iowa, engaged in farming there, 
 coming to Watsonville, Cal., in the fall of 1884. 
 Mr. Raven entered the employ of Miller & Lux, 
 on the west side of Merced county, in 1885, taking 
 charge as foreman of the Centenella ranch until 
 1889. He then took his family to Los Banos,' 
 built the first house in the settlement, opened 
 the first restaurant and served the first meals, 
 
890 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 also engaged in carpentering and building. The 
 Railroad house, the first hotel in town, was built 
 and maintained by him, his wife becoming his 
 able assistant in all his pioneer undertakings. 
 Five children came to this worthy couple, of 
 whorri Hans is superintendent of cattle on the 
 Santa Rita ranch; Gertrude and Annie are in 
 San Francisco, and Carle is in business with his 
 brother. 
 
 Louis P. Raven attended school at old Central 
 Point, and in 1890 went to Watsonville to learn 
 the blacksmith business with Jensen & Lorent- 
 zen. Three years later he moved to Salinas and 
 worked at his trade for a couple of years, mak- 
 ing a specialty of horseshoeing, then entering 
 the employ of O'Day & Son, at 114 Geary street, 
 San Francisco, as a horseshoer. In 1897 he came 
 to Los Banos, built and started a small shop, and 
 prospered so well that in 1901 he leased his pres- 
 ent shop, known as the old Sullivan shop, in 
 which he has since plied his trade. Here he 
 makes a specialty of horseshoeing, but does much 
 fine repairing, foT he is a thorough mechanic, 
 understanding everything pertaining to his line 
 of work. Mr. Raven is frugal and enterprising, 
 and has invested in a twenty-seven-acre ranch 
 two miles south of Los Banos, which is devoted 
 to alfalfa and dairying. Adjoining Los Banos 
 he bought a fine home, surrounded by two acres 
 of land. His wife was formerly Bertha Hard- 
 man, a native of Volta, and daughter of W. B. 
 Hardman, a stockman and rancher of that vi- 
 cinity. The home is brightened by the presence 
 of a little daughter, Icie Gertrude. Mr. Raven 
 is popular with his feUow townsmen, is generous 
 and public-spirited, and is a valued member of 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 the owner of his present property and engaged 
 in general ranching. The farm is located on 
 Union avenue on the Kern Island canal. He 
 has met with success in his agricultural ven- 
 tures and has acquired a competence in the new 
 location he sought for his home when removing 
 from the middle west. 
 
 In 1892 Mr. Kooken was united in marriage 
 with Miss Lulu Brown, a native of Hampton- 
 ville, Yuba county, Cal., and they are the par- 
 ents of one daughter, Irva, who was born in No- 
 vember, 1899. Fraternally Mr. Kooken is iden- 
 tified with the Woodmen of the World, and po- 
 litically casts his ballot with the Republican 
 party, in the interests of which he has always 
 been active. 
 
 ELMER T. KOOKEN. Eleven miles south 
 of Bakersfield, Kern county, in the Shafter dis- 
 trict, is located the ranch of Elmer T. Kooken, 
 consisting of ninety acres, for which he paid $50 
 per acre in December, 1902. He is a native of 
 Nebraska, his birth having occurred in Richard- 
 son county, near Falls City, February 10, 1870. 
 When only four years old he removed witK his 
 parents to Kansas, locating in Crawford county, 
 eighteen miles from Fort Scott, where the father 
 engaged in farming and reared his family to a 
 practical agricultural life. In 1890 Mr. Kooken 
 decided to try his fortunes on the Pacific slope. 
 He accordingly came to California, locating in 
 Los Angeles county, and took up a homestead 
 near Neenach. This property remained his 
 home until he had proved up on his claim, when 
 he sold out and in 1899 came to Kern county. 
 Upon locating here he purchased two different 
 farms in the county, but his first year's work 
 was in the oil regions, after which he became 
 
 SHERMAN J. SCOTT. Although a resi- 
 dent of Visalia but a few years Sherman J. Scott 
 has won a place of prominence among the busi- 
 ness men of the place, both for the ability which 
 has distinguished his eflforts and the character of 
 his citizenship. He is identified with several of 
 the most important industries of the city, being 
 manager of the Valley Condensed Milk & Cream 
 Company and Visalia Manufacturing Company, 
 and is secretary of the Visalia Soda Works. 
 Born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., March 29, 
 1865, he is a son of Calvin L. Scott, also a native 
 of the same locality. 
 
 Calvin L. Scott is a carpenter and builder by 
 trade and has followed this occupation through- 
 out his entire life. He now makes his home in 
 Westfield, N. Y., at the age of sixty-eight years. 
 His father, Merrick Scott, was also born in New 
 York state, where he engaged as a farmer until 
 his death. The wife of Calvin L. Scott was in 
 maidenhood Mary E. Porter, also a native of 
 Chautauqua county, N. Y., where her death oc- 
 curred. Out of a family of four children two 
 sons and one daughter are living. The second 
 child in this family, Sherman J. Scott received 
 his preliminary education in the common school 
 in the vicinity of his home, after which he at- 
 tended business college at Mansfield, Pa. In 
 1885 he went to Devils Lake, N. Dak., and also 
 to the Mouse river country, where he engaged in 
 ranching until 1887, in which year he went to 
 Montana and located at Great Falls. He there 
 joined a railway surveying party and helped build 
 the Montana Central Railway, after which, in 
 1888, he was associated with the Northern Pa- 
 cific Railway system, receiving a promotion in 
 his line. In December, 1888, he went to Ashland, 
 Ore., as clerk in a men's furnishing and clothing 
 establishment, remaining a year and a half, fol- 
 lowing which he engaged in private work in sur- 
 veying in Portland, Ore. In 1891 he held the 
 position of city engineer of Albina, now a part 
 
mStOKICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 893 
 
 of the city of Portland. In 1892 he was appointed 
 to the position of deputy street superintendent and 
 held the same until 1894, when he returned to 
 New York and spent the following year at home. 
 Returning west in February, 1895, he located in 
 \'isalia, Cal, engaging as a surveyor in private 
 work for about four and a half years. In 1899 
 he became associated with the Visalia Manufac- 
 turing Company in the capacity of manager, he 
 being one of the original stockholders. This com- 
 pany manufacture ice and maintain a cold storage 
 plant. The business has grown to remunerative 
 proportions in the short time it has been estab- 
 lished and gives promise of a future success which 
 shall place the owners among the successful busi- 
 ness men of the San Joaquin valley. Mr. Scott 
 discharges his duties of manager in an efficient 
 and praiseworthy manner. 
 
 In Oregon Mr. Scott was united in marriage 
 with May Pennebaker, a native of Visalia, and 
 to them the following children have been born : 
 Rodney (deceased), Fred, Richard and Mary. 
 Fraternally Mr. Scott became an Odd Fellow in 
 Albina, Ore., and politically he is a stanch Repub- 
 lican and active in his efforts to advance the cause 
 of the party whose principles he endorses. 
 
 WILLIAM YANCEY HULEN. Occupying 
 a substantial position among the prosperous and 
 progressive agriculturists of Merced county is 
 William Yancey Hulen, a dairyman, stockman 
 and general farmer, owning six hundred and forty 
 acres of land near Volta. His ranch is well lo- 
 cated, receiving water from both canals, and is 
 highly productive, yielding him rich returns 
 for the labor expended on it, it being one 
 of the best in point of improvements in the 
 Pacheco Pass section. A son of Woodson Clark 
 Hulen, he was born, July 26, 1847, in Schuyler 
 county, Mo. His grandfather, William Hulen, 
 was born in Boone county, Ky., and was among 
 the pioneer farmers of Boone county. Mo., where 
 he lived a number of years. In 1864 he removed 
 to Barkersville, Cal., and there spent the re- 
 mainder of his life. 
 
 A native of Boone county, Mo., Woodson 
 Clark Hulen was reared to agricultural pursuits, 
 and having purchased land in Schuyler county, 
 was there engaged in farming until 1852, when he 
 started for California. However, he got no fur- 
 ther than Marion county, Iowa, where he pur- 
 chased land and carried on farming until his 
 death, February 17, 1864. He married Margaret 
 Battern, who was born in Terre Haute, Ind., a 
 daughter of William Battern, who removed from 
 that place to Boone county, Mo., and died in 
 Iowa. Her death occurred at Willows, Cal., Jan- 
 uary 26, 1896. She bore her husband five chil- 
 
 dren, all of whom are living, four of them being 
 residents of California. 
 
 When a boy William Yancey Hulen removed 
 with his parents to Marion county, Iowa, where 
 he completed his early education, attending the 
 short sessions of school held in a rude log cabin, 
 the pioneer schoolhouse of the district. As soon 
 as old enough to manage a team he began to as- 
 sist his father in improving a homestead, break- 
 ing up the wild prairie land, using five or six 
 yoke of oxen in plowing. During the harvest 
 seasons he used the scythe and cradle, and bind- 
 ing up the shocks of grain by hand. Beginning 
 life for himself when eighteen years old, Mr. 
 Hulen spent a year in the vicinity of Keokuk, 
 Iowa, and then returned to Marion county, where 
 he continued farming another twelve months. 
 Removing to Kansas in 1869, he pre-empted one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land in Republic coun- 
 ty, and was there engaged in farming four years. 
 Selling out in the fall of 1873, he returned to 
 Iowa, remaining there a year, when, in March, 
 1875, he came to California, locating in Solano 
 county. 
 
 Removing to Fall River valley, Shasta county, 
 in 1877, Mr. Hulen was settled there as a lumber- 
 man and farmer until the big snow storm nearly 
 ruined his business. Going thence to Colusa 
 county, he worked on a ranch for three years, 
 from 1880 until 1883, when he went to Los An- 
 geles county, locating at Anaheim, which is now 
 included within the Hmits of Orange county. A 
 year later he made another removal, going to 
 Fresno county, where he spent a year, after which 
 he traveled through Monterey, Santa Cruz and 
 San Luis Obispo counties, in each one of the 
 changes that he made seeking to find a climate 
 that would alleviate the sufferings of his wife, 
 who was troubled with asthma. Locating on the 
 west side of the San Joaquin valley, near Hills 
 Ferry, in the fall of 1885, Mr. Hulen followed 
 farming there until the fall of 1888, when he 
 settled east of Cottonwood. From there he re- 
 moved to the mouth of the Pacheco Pass, where 
 he engaged in general farming and grain rais- 
 ing, carrying on from four to six sections of land, 
 running six ten-mule teams, and in the gathering 
 in of his enormous crops of wheat and barley 
 wearing out two combined harvesters. His wife's 
 health was excellent after locating at Pacheco 
 Pass, and he continued his agricultural opera- 
 tions in that locality from the fall of 1888 until 
 the fall of 1903. Purchasing then his present 
 farm of six hundred and forty acres, lying in 
 section 10, township 9, range 9, east, Mr. Hulen 
 has since continued in his chosen occupation 
 with eminent success. Receiving water from 
 the two canals, he has four hundred acres of his 
 farm under irrigation, and already has planted 
 one hundred and seventy-five acres of alfalfa. 
 
894 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 He sows about one hundred and sixty acres of 
 grain annually, and also carries on a large and 
 remunerative dairy business. His ranch, located 
 about three and one-fourth miles from' Volta, 
 is finely improved, and bears speaking evidence 
 of the thrift, intelligence and wise management 
 of the owner. 
 
 In Fairfield, Cal, July 23, 1876, Mr. Hulen 
 married Bethana E. Fairbanks, who was born 
 March 11, 1855, in Yuba county, and reared in 
 Grass valley. She was a daughter of Wilson 
 Fairbanks, and a cousin of Charles Warren 
 Fairbanks, vice-president of the United States. 
 Her grandfather, William Fairbanks, the de- 
 scendant of a New England Puritan settler, was 
 a pioneer farmer of Indiana. Wilson Fairbanks 
 was born on a farm near Terre Haute, Ind., and 
 there grew to manhood. Crossing the plains with 
 ox teams in 1854, he arrived in Marysville, Cal., 
 in the fall of that year with a herd of cattle, which 
 he sold at a good price. Turning his attention 
 then to mining, Mr. Fairbanks was first located 
 at Round Tent House, and afterward in Grass 
 valley, where he remained until his death, March 
 26, '1867, in the thirty-fourth year of his age. 
 He married Mary Ann Wayman, who was born 
 at Fort Des Moines, Iowa, the daughter of Will- 
 iam Wayman, who was born either in Kentucky 
 or Virginia, and was a pioneer of Iowa. She sur- 
 vived her husband, dying in Reno, Nev., Decem- 
 ber 10, i8go, in the fifty-fourth year of her age. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Hulen six children 
 have been born, namely : Birdie Pearl, wife of 
 J. E. Jeffers, of Oakland; John W., engaged in 
 the dairy business with his father ; Dock O. ; 
 Rosa C. ;Xillie L. ; and Henry K. Politically Mr. 
 Hulen is identified with the Republican party, 
 and for eleven years rendered good service as 
 school trustee. Fraternally he belongs to Monroe 
 Lodge No. 289, I. O. O. F., at Willows ; and to 
 Newman Lodge No. 238, K. of P. He is broad in 
 his religious views, leaning toward the faith 
 of the Presbyterians. 
 
 , FRANK C. BAKER. Nine miles south of 
 Bakersfield, Kern county, and in the Shafter 
 district, is located the ranch which belongs to 
 Frank C. Baker, consisting of twenty acres de- 
 voted formerly to the cultivation of prunes. 
 This ranch, which is on the Kern Island canal, 
 is all leveled so that every foot can be irri- 
 gated, and it is justly classed among the Val- 
 uable ranches of this section of the country. 
 A native Californian, Mr. Baker was born' in 
 Dixon, Solano county, December 22, 1867. 
 
 Roland T. Baker, the father of Frank C, 
 was a native of Clark county, 111., where he 
 made his home until nineteen years old. In 
 1857 he came to California in the western tide 
 
 of emigration, taking up a ranch in Solano 
 county, where he followed farming until 1900. 
 Coming south in that year he located in Kern 
 county, purchasing twenty acres of land in 
 Greenfield district. The boyhood of Frank C. 
 Baker was passed tipon the paternal farm in 
 Solano county, where he was trained in the 
 practical life of a farmer. At the age of twenty- 
 two years he took up the work for himself, in 
 addition to ranching interests carrying on car- 
 penter work, being located near Gorman Sta- 
 tion, Los Angeles county. He then came to 
 Kern county and rented land near Rosedale, 
 where he remained until 1902, in that year pur- 
 chasing his present ranch. Since locating upon 
 this property he has taken up the prune trees 
 and is now devoting the land to alfalfa and 
 general farming. 
 
 In Solano county Mr. Baker was married to 
 Louise Crow, also a native of that locality, 
 and they are the parents of four children, Vio- 
 let, Henry, Roland and Roy M. In national 
 politics Mr. Baker is, a Republican, but in all 
 local affairs he reserves the right to cast his 
 vote for the man whom he considers best qual- 
 ified for public office. He is now serving 
 efficiently as school trustee. Fraternally he is 
 identified with the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JULES CAIN. The business house of Jules 
 Cain & Co. is not only well known in Newman 
 and the San Joaquin valley, but throughout this 
 portion of California, where the principal mem- 
 ber of the firm has a reputation for remarkable 
 business sagacity. Under his capable manage- 
 ment the firm has attained dimensions ten times 
 as great as in former years, their connections now 
 extending more than fifty miles on the west side 
 of the San Joaquin among farmers, dairymen and 
 stockmen of that region. The building occu- 
 pied by their general mercantile business is a 
 large store one hundred feet long, and is stocked 
 with a full assortment of merchandise of every 
 kind. In addition they carry a varied assortment 
 of hardware and agricultural implements, also 
 deal largely in lands, cattle and grain, for the 
 latter purpose having warehouses in close prox- 
 imity to the railroad. In a large degree the com- 
 pany has been and still is a contributor to the 
 commercial prestige of Newman. 
 
 Of French nativity and lineage, Mr. Cain was 
 born in the city of Paris, April 17, 1870, and 
 is the son of Sincere Cain, now a retired mer- 
 chant residing in the famous French city. In 
 boyhood he was the recipient of fair advantages, 
 and gained a good education in the Paris high 
 school. 
 
 Three months after Mr. Cain landed in Cal- 
 ifornia the store was moved from Hill's Ferry to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 89c 
 
 Newman, then just founded, and a building was 
 erected on the corner still occupied by the com- 
 pany. In 1892 Mr. Cain became manager of the 
 business, but resigned four years later and re- 
 turned to Paris. After a visit of three months 
 with his parents, in the fall of 1896 he returned 
 to California, spending the winter in San Fran- 
 cisco and returning to Newman "in June of 1897. 
 At that time he purchased the business which 
 he had formerly managed and established the 
 firm of Jules Cain & Co., which has since ac- 
 quired a wide reputation for successful mercan- 
 tile transactions. Besides managing the inter- 
 ests of the firm he owns and superintends sev- 
 eral thousand acres of grain and stock land, with 
 facilities for irrigation. In addition he platted 
 seven hundred acres, known as Acme colony, sit- 
 uated two miles north of Newman under the 
 canal, and a portion of this property he still 
 owns. In business circles he commands the re- 
 spect to which his success entitles him and is uni- 
 formly recognized as one of the most progressive 
 merchants of the San Joaquin valley. 
 
 H. E. KINKADE. Although the period of 
 Mr. Kinkade's residence in Stanislaus county has 
 not been of sufficiently long duration to place him 
 among the pioneers of this portion of California, 
 nevertheless he has become thoroughly identi- 
 fied with the agricultural interests of this region, 
 and is intimately associated with movements tend- 
 ing to promote the welfare of the people, par- 
 ticularly the farming class. The ranch which 
 he has occupied since 1895 is situated three miles 
 west of Newman and consists of three hundred 
 and twenty acres of tillable land, especially 
 adapted to the raising of grain. In addition he 
 owns a quarter section of wheat land on Garcia 
 creek, and tills an adjoining grain farm of eight 
 hundred acres, thus giving him altogether . the 
 control of a large acreage of plow land. 
 
 On the paternal side Mr. Kinkade is of Vir- 
 ginia extraction. From the Old Dominion his 
 grandfather, Samuel, removed to Kentucky, and 
 settled upon a plantation in the blue grass region. 
 The father, Christopher Ross Kinkade, was born 
 near Lexington, Ky., and in young manhood set- 
 tled in Wapello county, Iowa, where he followed 
 the plasterer's trade at Eddyville. At the out- 
 break of the Civil war his sympathies were in 
 behalf of the Union, and he enlisted in the Thir- 
 teenth Iowa Cavalry, in which he was commis- 
 sioned a sergeant. While participating in a 
 skirmish in Tennessee he was killed on the bat- 
 tlefield, in 1863. His widow, who survives him 
 and resides at the old homestead, was Armilda 
 Nosier, a native of Indiana, her father. Dr. 
 James Nosier, having been a physician, first in 
 Indiana and later in Iowa. 
 
 In a family consisting of two sons, of whom 
 G. T. is engaged in the oil business at McKit- 
 trick, Kern county, CaL, H. E. Kinkade was the 
 elder, and was born at Eddj'ville, Iowa, Febru- 
 ary 2, 1862. After having completed the studies 
 at the public schools of his home town, at eighteen 
 years of age he went to Des Moines, where he 
 entered the employ of the United States Express 
 Company. Later he was made express messenger 
 on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad be- 
 tween Davenport and Council Bluffs, Iowa, a dis- 
 tance of three hundred and twenty-two miles. In 
 1889 he resigned that position and came to Cal- 
 ifornia, where the spring of 1890 found him em- 
 barking in agricultural pursuits as manager of a 
 farm of fourteen hundred acres. Five years later 
 he left that place and removed to the farm he still 
 owns and operates. Since coming west he has 
 met with success in his farming ventures and 
 has every reason to be grateful for the influ- 
 ences that led him to become an agriculturist in 
 California. Before leaving Eddyville he married 
 Miss Lillie Totman, who was born and reared 
 in that town, her father, S. P. Totman, a native 
 of Ohio, having been for a considerable period 
 engaged in farm pursuits in Iowa. During the 
 Civil war Mr. Totman served as a member of 
 an Iowa regiment of infantry. In 1891 he re- 
 moved from Iowa to the coast country and set- 
 tled on a farm near Newman, where he remained 
 until death. Since then his widow, who was 
 Christine Oldham, a native of Ohio, has made 
 her home with her daughter near Newman. In 
 her family there were five children, of whom Mrs. 
 Kinkade was next to the youngest. In their re- 
 ligious affiliations Mr. and Mrs. Kinkade are as- 
 sociated with the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church, and Mr. Kinkade has officiated as a rul- 
 ing elder in the congregation. The Republican 
 party has always received his stanch support, both 
 in local and national elections. Fraternally he 
 holds membership with the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, Woodmen of the World and 
 Degree of Honor. 
 
 PETER H. LOINAZ. One of the most 
 popular and successful hotel men of Fresno 
 county is P. H. Loinaz, the genial and accom- 
 modating proprietor of the Firebaugh hotel, 
 whose services as a host are appreciated by the 
 traveling public. A native-born son of Cali- 
 fornia, his birth occurred September 9, 1873, in 
 San Francisco, where his father, P. Loinaz, 
 settled on coming to the Pacific coast from 
 Spain. 
 
 Emigrating from Spain to California about 
 1856, iP. Loinaz was associated with the in- 
 stallment of the first water system in San 
 
fi&6 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Francisco. He subsequently removed to the 
 San Joaquin valley, locating on the west side, 
 where he was successfully engaged in sheep 
 raising for a few years. Investing his money 
 then in land in Madera county, he improved a 
 valuable ranch, and has since been profitably 
 employed in grain and stock raising, being one 
 of the leading farmers of that section, and a 
 citizen of much prominence and influence. 
 
 Spending his earlier years principally in Ma- 
 dera county, P. H. Loinaz was educated under 
 a private instructor, the school system in that 
 then sparsely settled section being primitive 
 and limited, afterwards being graduated from 
 the Chestnutwood Business College, in Santa 
 Cruz. Going then to San Francisco, Mr. Loi- 
 naz was for five years bookkeeper in the Pal- 
 ace hotel. Returning to Madera county, he 
 was for eight years a resident of Berendo, serv- 
 ing the first three years as clerk in a mercan- 
 tile establishment, and the last five as proprie- 
 tor of the Berendo hotel. Coming to Fire- 
 baugh in 1898, Mr. Loinaz purchased the Fire- 
 baugli hotel, which he has since conducted in 
 a noteworthy manner, winning an extensive 
 and lucrative patronage. The house is large, 
 attractive, and well arranged, and under the 
 genial management of Mr. Loinaz presents to 
 its guests a homelike feeling that is ever ap- 
 preciated. 
 
 JNIr. Loinaz married, in Firebaugh, Miss 
 Emilie C. Idiart, who was born and bred in 
 San Francisco, and they have one child, Juan- 
 ita. Politically Mr. Loinaz casts his vote in 
 favor of the Republican party. 
 
 JOHN WILLIAM FRASER. Conspicuous 
 among the successful horticulturists of Tulare 
 cormty is John W. Eraser, whose finely improved 
 fruit ranch lies four miles southeast of Dinuba. 
 Born of Scotch ancestry, August 20, 1856, in 
 Mansfield, Mass., he is the son of the late Rob- 
 ert John and Anna (Forbes) Eraser. Further 
 history of his parents and ancestors may be found 
 elsewhere in this historical work, in connection 
 with the sketch of his brother, Abner Eraser. 
 
 Coming from Omaha, Neb., to California in 
 1870, he completed his education, which was 
 begun in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, and con- 
 tinued in Omaha, in the public schools of Visalia. 
 Beginning life for himself at the age of twenty- 
 one years, he pre-empted one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land on section 22, and took up a tim- 
 ber claim equally as large in the same section. 
 Proving up on the preemption, and homestead- 
 ing the timber claim, Mr. Fraser became owner 
 of three hundred and twenty acres of good land 
 in the east half of the section on which he set- 
 tled, and for a number of seasons was success- 
 
 fully employed in raising grain. As soon as the 
 ditch was put through, Mr. Fraser took advan- 
 tage of the irrigation furnished, and began the 
 growing of fruit. In 1890 he set out an orchard, 
 later improved a vineyard, sowing the remainder 
 to alfalfa. He subsequently sold a part of his 
 ranch, and now has one hundred and thirty 
 acres of land, thirty of which is in orchard, eighty 
 acres are devoted to the culture of grapes of 
 various kinds, and twenty acres are sowed to 
 alfalfa. On his ranch he has made excellent 
 improvements, including the erection of a fine 
 residence and substantial farm buildings, which, 
 with their pleasant environments, invariably at- 
 tract the attention of the passing traveler, win- 
 ning from him words of praise and admiration. 
 In Tulare county, not far from Dinuba, Mr. 
 Fraser married Allie Roork, who was born near 
 Visalia, a daughter of the late Thomas Roork, a 
 pioneer farmer of this county. Of the union of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Eraser two children have been 
 born, Warren J. and Grace, both of whom are 
 at home. Politically Mr. Eraser is identified 
 with the Republican party, which he supports by 
 voice and vote. 
 
 A. E. CLARY. The farm property occupied 
 and operated by Mr. Clary lies near Newman, his 
 residence being one and one-half miles west of 
 that town, while in the immediate vicinity he 
 superintends more than twenty-three hundred 
 acres devoted to grain and stock-raising purposes. 
 Mr. Clary is a California pioneer of 1864, and by 
 birth a Missourian, descended through his pa- 
 ternal grandfather, a Revolutionary patriot, from 
 Scotch forefathers. His father, Daniel, who was 
 born near Frostburg, Md., in early life settled 
 near Louisville, Ky., and there married Rachel 
 Llewellen, a native of that locality, of Welsh ex- 
 traction. Accompanied by his family, in 1836 
 he removed to Pike county. Mo., and from virgin 
 soil developed a fine stock and grain farm in the 
 vicinity of Louisiana, that county. During the 
 spring" of 1852 he disposed of his landed pos- 
 sessions there and removed to Montgomery coun- 
 ty. Mo., where he bought raw land and again 
 cleveloped a valuable farm. At a time when his 
 neighbors held slaves he refused to follow the 
 universal custom, believing that the institution 
 of slavery should be abolished. It was his priv- 
 ilege to survive the period of the Civil war and 
 to witness the extermination of slavery from the 
 entire country. In religion he was a devout Bap- 
 tist and in politics voted with the Democratic 
 party. At the time of his death, which occurred 
 in 1868, he was seventy-two years of age. His 
 wife passed away in Montgomery county. Mo., 
 on the last day of January, 1864. They were 
 the parents of eleven children, of whom four sons 
 
6*-^ yULA- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 899 
 
 and four daughters attained mature years. One 
 of the sons, J. A., died at Livermore, this state. 
 At this writing one son and three daughters sur- 
 vive, among the latter being Mrs. Smith, a resi- 
 dent of Kern county, this state. 
 
 The youngest son in the family, A. E. Clary, 
 was born in Pike county. Mo., July 22, 1842, and 
 at ten years of age accompanied his parents to 
 Montgomery county, where, as he grew old 
 enough to work, he assisted in the cultivation of 
 the home farm. Habits of industry were incul- 
 cated in him at an early age and thus became fixed 
 in his character. Self-reliance, too, was devel- 
 oped by the necessity of assisting in the manage- 
 ment of the farm. In March of 1864 he married 
 Miss Joanna Smith, who was born in Pike county, 
 Mo., her parents, Felix and Barbara (Dismuth) 
 Smith, having removed to that state from Ken- 
 tucky. The month after their marriage Mr. 
 Clary and his wife started for California in a 
 train composed of horse teams. The journey 
 was made up the North Platte, through Wyom- 
 ing, down the Humboldt river and along the 
 Carson route to Sacramento, where they arrived 
 September 16, 1864. With an energy charac- 
 teristic of him, Mr. Clary immediately began 
 farming, which occupation he followed in Colusa, 
 Yolo and Sutter counties until 1871. During the 
 latter year he was elected county assessor by a 
 majority of forty-four. Shortly afterward the 
 legislature passed a law extending the length of 
 
 ' assessors' tenure of office to four years, and in 
 accordance therewith he served until 1875. Dur- 
 ing the latter year he was elected for another 
 term of four years, receiving a majority of seven 
 hundred and five votes, and continuing in office 
 until January of 1880. 
 
 On the expiration of his second term as as- 
 sessor Mr. Clary removed to Nevada City, where 
 he engaged in the mercantile business. In the 
 fall of 1881 he settled near Sunolglen, Alameda 
 county, and there engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits for four years. The year 1885 found him 
 a resident of Stanislaus county, where he first 
 raised stock and grain on property near Crow's 
 Landing, and now cultivates a large tract near 
 Newman. Since coming to this county he has 
 for twelve years served as deputy assessor under 
 Assessors TuUock and Campbell, and in 1900 he 
 was elected without opposition to the board of 
 county supervisors, whereupon he resigned as 
 deputy assessor. In national politics he favors 
 Democratic principles, but in local matters has 
 never displayed a spirit of partisanship. Fra- 
 ternally he is associated with the Ancient Order 
 
 -of United Workmen and in religion worships 
 with the Christian Church. In his family there 
 are four sons and three daughters. The eldest 
 and youngest sons, C. M. and E. F., are engaged 
 in the mercantile business at Modesto, and the 
 
 other sons, J. E. and W. E., h^ve adopted their 
 father's calling of agriculturist. The daughters 
 are Mrs. Belle Hiatt, of Sutter county, Mrs. 
 Lulu Schoaff, of Gilroy, and Pearl, who is with 
 her parents. 
 
 JAMES CULVER MOSIER. A conserva- 
 tive _ yet progressive stockman, James Culver 
 Mosier is numbered among the successful busi- 
 ness men of Tulare county. He has been en- 
 gaged in this line of work for about twenty years 
 and has brought to bear the experience which 
 the years have given him in his methods of to- 
 day, and combined with ability and energy he 
 has met with a success which places him anaopg 
 the first ranchmen of the county. He is now 
 located upon a tract of four hundred and eighty 
 acres, five miles south of Visalia, on the Santa 
 Fe Railroad, where his specialties are hogs and 
 cattle, which he sells in the local markets. 
 
 A native of Louisiana, Pike county, Mo., he 
 was born January 25, 1851, a son of Henry 
 Mosier, who was employed in a grist mill in that 
 town, where his death eventually occurred. His 
 wife, formerly Nancy Zumwalt, was a native of 
 Missouri, in which state she died in 1862. Of 
 her family of three sons and three daughters, 
 one son and one daughter are now deceased. 
 The oldest of this family, James Culver Mosier 
 was reared in his native state, receiving a 
 limited education in the common school in the 
 vicinity of his home. At eleven years of age 
 he was apprenticed to learn the trade of miller, 
 working two years in Louisiana, after which 
 he went to Alton, 111., and engaged in the same 
 occupation there for four years. Returning to 
 his native town he spent the ensuing year, when 
 he went to Deer Lodge, Mont., traveling by 
 stage, as there were no railroads at that time. 
 Upon locating in that state he at first followed 
 the precarious" life of a miner, continuing so 
 occupied for two winters. Entering then upon 
 the milling business he had charge of the first 
 water-power mill in Deer Lodge. After some 
 time he returned to Missouri and spent one- year. 
 In 1882 he came to California, locating at Grand 
 Island, Colusa county, where he found employ- 
 ment on a ranch for two years. In Lassen county 
 he had charge of a stock business for himself, 
 remaining there for two years, when he went 
 to Crook county, Ore., still engaged in the stock 
 business. On a small scale he and a partner 
 opened up a business in the same line, which in- 
 creased to such proportions that in 1888 they 
 sold out for $30,000. Returning east to his old 
 home in Louisiana, Mo., he married, April 18, 
 1888, Mary Elizabeth Suda, a native of that place, 
 and two months later brought her to California. 
 They located on his present property, which con- 
 
900 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sisted originally of three hundred and twenty 
 acres which he had purchased just previous to 
 returning east. This property he has cultivated 
 and improved, adding to his original purchase 
 until now he owns four hundred and eighty 
 acres, upon which he engages in the raising of 
 hogs, cattle and grain. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Mosier are the parents of one 
 daughter, Katie Irene, who is at home. In his 
 political affiliations Mr. Mosier is a Democrat, 
 but has never desired official honors, as his life 
 has been too full of personal duties. 
 
 LOUIS P. WERNER. The establishment of 
 creameries and the development of dairy inter- 
 ests have rendered possible for the farmers of 
 Stanislaus county the attainment of a success 
 seldom witnessed in the early days of the county's 
 history. Among the agriculturists who haVe 
 been quick to avail themselves of this new avenue 
 for their energetic efforts, mention should be 
 made of Mr. Werner, who owns and manages 
 a dairy farm four miles southwest of Newman. 
 The original purchase made by him in this neigh- 
 borhood comprised twelve acres, which he ac- 
 quired by purchase in 1885, and later he bought 
 an adjoining tract, so that at thi^ writing he 
 owns twenty-five acres under the canal. The 
 land is in alfalfa, which he uses for feed for his 
 dairy of sixteen cows. Since coming here he 
 has made a specialty of dairying, disposing of the 
 cream to the New Era Creamery, in which he is 
 a stockholder. 
 
 Though of German parentage, Mr. Werner is 
 a native of CaHfornia. He was born in San Fran- 
 cisco July 20, 1855, and is a son of Christian and 
 Gesina (Becker) Werner, natives respectively of 
 Hesse-Darmstadt, and Oldenburg, Germany. His 
 father learned the locksmith trade as an appren- 
 tice in his native land, and after crossing the 
 ocean followed the barber's trade in New Orleans 
 and other towns, at the same time having other 
 interests that assisted him in earning a liveli- 
 hood. In 1852 he left the south and by way of 
 Panama came to San Francisco, where he opened 
 a barber shop. While conducting that business 
 he made investments in property, built business 
 and residence structures, and by reason of ad- 
 vances in valuations of land became well-to-do. 
 Though now seventy-five years of age (having 
 been born in 1829) he still superintends his varied 
 interests and manages his properties in San Fran- 
 cisco, where he makes his home. In religion both 
 he and his wife are of the Lutheran faith. 
 
 In a family of eight children Louis P. Werner 
 is the sole survivor. He was reared principally 
 in San Francisco, where he attended a grammar 
 school and Heald's Business College. For the 
 purpose of gaining a German education his par- 
 
 ents sent him to Hesse-Darmstadt in 1869, and 
 for some time he had the advantage to study in 
 Schmitz Institute at Darmstadt. Returning to 
 San Francisco after two years abroad, he con- 
 tinued his business studies at Heald's Business 
 College for a time. On taking up an occupation 
 he entered the carpenter's trade, but soon aban- 
 doned it for real estate matters in company with 
 his father. In 1885 he left his native city and 
 removed to Stanislaus county, where he has by 
 reason oi energy, perseverance and good manage- 
 ment worked his way to a position among the 
 honored dairymen in his section. To such an 
 extent has his attention been given to personal 
 affairs that he has not had leisure to participate 
 in local politics, and takes no part in the same 
 aside from voting the Republican ticket. Under 
 the careful training of his parents, in his boyhood 
 he became a believer in the Lutheran Church, 
 and this religion he now supports. While a resi- 
 dent of San Francisco he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Louisa Kricke, a native of Germany. 
 In their family are three daughters, namely : Ida, 
 wife of Peter Hansen, of Merced county : Alice, 
 wife of William Brough, manager of the skim- 
 ming station of the New Era Creamery; and 
 Mabel, who resides with her parents. 
 
 VICTOR R. NELSON. Among the self- 
 made men of Tulare county, and the active, en- 
 ergetic, go-ahead business men of Visalia is 
 Victor R. Nelson, widely and favorably known 
 as manager of the Visalia Steam Laundry, and 
 one of its stockholders. Like many of Cali- 
 fornia's most prosperous citizens, he was born 
 across the seas, his birth having occurred in 
 Smoland, Kalmar Lan, near Oscarshamn, Swe- 
 den, January 23, 187 1. His father, Nels Nelson, 
 was an extensive landholder, for many years own- 
 ing and managing the farming estate "Granholt," 
 a valuable and attractive place. Retiring from 
 agricultural pursuits in 1901, he has since been 
 engaged in the manufacture of lumber in a near- 
 by city, being now a hale and hearty man of sixty- 
 five years. He is a man of great integrity, and 
 a member of the Mission Church. His wife, 
 Hatmah Nelson, died in 1883, leaving five sons 
 and one daughter. The sons are all residents of 
 California, namely : Charles, a farmer near 
 Fresno ; Oscar, engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 near Visalia ; Victor ; Axel, a farmer, living in 
 San Jose ; and Herman, of San Jose, interested in 
 the National Laundry of that city. 
 
 Brought up on the old home farm, "Granholt," 
 Victor R. Nelson obtained a practical education 
 in the public schools of his native town. Enter- 
 prising and venturesome, he immigrated to this 
 country when but fifteen years old, and for a year 
 worked on a farm in Allen county, Kans. In 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 901 
 
 1887 he came from there to VisaHa, Cal., where 
 he first found employment in a lumber camp. 
 The ensuing five winters Mr. Nelson was en- 
 gaged in bu)'ing and selling lumber, and also cut- 
 ting and shipping wood, carrying on an extensive 
 business, while during the summer seasons he 
 was employed in logging. In 1897, when the un- 
 precedented rush to the Klondike was at its 
 height, he started for the distant gold fields, going 
 to Dyea, thence over the Chilkoot Pass, being but 
 one day behind those unfortunate ones caught at 
 Sheep Camp in the great slide. Making his own 
 boat, Mr. Nelson proceeded down the "Yukon, at 
 White Horse running both rapids, and nearly 
 losing his cargo and his Hfe. Arriving safely, 
 however, in Dawson, he gave $i,c;oo for fifteen 
 claims that proved worthless. The next two years 
 Mr. Nelson engaged in mining, the last year run- 
 ning a mine as a working partner, and meeting 
 with excellent pecuniary success. 
 
 In 1900 Mr. Nelson returned to Visalia, and 
 in 1 90 1 purchased an interest in the Visalia Steam 
 Laundry, an incorporated company, and has since 
 served as its manager. This is the only steam 
 laundry in Tulare county, and is aclmirably 
 equipped, being fitted with all the modern appli- 
 ances and conveniences for operating; it satisfac- 
 torily. He has built up a large and prosperous 
 business, his patronage extending over a wide 
 territory in either direction from its location, on 
 Cottonwood street, near Main street. 
 
 Mr. Nelson married, in Fresno, Cal-, Hannah 
 Anderson, a native of Dolarne, Sweden, and they 
 have one child, Edwin Nelson. Politically Mr. 
 Nelson unhesitatingly supports the principles of 
 the Republican party. 
 
 UPTON DANIEL SWITZER. Though in- 
 terested in general farming of a diversified na- 
 ture, Mr. Switzer has found one department of 
 agriculture in which his success has been espe- 
 cially noteworthy and his reputation widespread. 
 For years he has made a specialty of raising 
 potatoes and plants from fifteen to thirty acres 
 to this product. In an eiifort to introduce the 
 very choicest varieties of potatoes he has paid 
 as much as $1 per pound for seed and then, with 
 a generosity characteristic of him in all transac- 
 tions, after finding the variety to be adapted to 
 the cHmate and soil, he has in turn sold seed to 
 neighbors at the regular price. So well known 
 are his- potatoes that in the market they bring 
 twenty-five cents per bushel more than those 
 from other sources. Throughout his locality he 
 is regai-ded as an authority on the subject, and 
 those wishing to plant new varieties are accus- 
 tomed to consult him before making any ven- 
 tures with unknown varieties. 
 
 Mr. Switzer is a descendant of German an- 
 
 cestors. His father, J. J. Switzer, was born in 
 old Virginia in 1800 and after removing to Linn- 
 ville. Licking county, Ohio, followed the black- 
 smith's trade, also carried on a hotel. In 1859 
 he removed to Peoria county, 111., and settled 
 on a farm near Edwards, where he also followed 
 blacksmithing. From there he went to Missouri 
 in 1866 and settled four miles north of Bruns- 
 wick, Chariton county, where he supplemented 
 farming with work at the blacksmith's trade. At 
 the age of eighty-four he died on his homestead 
 in that county. During his active years he was 
 a leading worker in the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church and politically gave his support to the 
 Republican party after its organization. His 
 wife, Mary Ellen Dawson, was a member of an 
 old Maryland family, and was born in that state, 
 thence removed to Ohio, and at the age of fifty- 
 six years died in Missouri. Of her seven chil- 
 dren all but one are still living and Upton Dan- 
 iel is the youngest of the family. During the 
 residence of his parents in Linnville, Licking 
 county, Ohio, he was born June 25, 1856, and 
 at three years of age accompanied the family to 
 Missouri, where he received his education and 
 early acquired a thorough knowledge of farm- 
 ing and blacksmithing. 
 
 The fact that a sister, Mrs. E. A. Laird, had 
 taken up her residence in Visalia and wrote 
 favorable impressions of the country to her east- 
 ern relatives, led Mr. Switzer to come to this 
 place in 1877. For eight months he was em- 
 ployed in a dairy, after which he aided in the 
 construction of a tramway and mill site on the 
 Mineral King road, and in the fall of 1879 be- 
 came an employe of L. Van Tassel, with whom 
 he continued for three years. His next venture 
 was the homesteading of one hundred and sixty 
 acres of government land near Orosi, which 
 property he utilized for grain-raising until he 
 disposed of it in 1888. Thereupon he returned 
 to the farm where he had been an employe in 
 earlier days, the same being eighty acres of the 
 old Frans homestead, and inherited by his wife 
 from her father. The land is sub-irrigated from 
 the St. John's river and can be flooded as occa- 
 sion demands. A larger part of the property is 
 under alfalfa, but, as already stated, a consid- 
 erable acreage is devoted to potatoes and there 
 is also a small orchard. On the place may be 
 found a fine herd of dairy cows and good breeds 
 of hogs. Besides taking the active management 
 of the farm he has ' other interests, notably ih 
 irrigation matters, being vice president and su- 
 perintendent of the Visalia and Kaweah Water 
 Company, also president and superintendent of 
 the Fleming Ditch Company. 
 
 On the old Frans homestead occurred the 
 marriage of Mr. Switzer and Miss Sarah Eliza- 
 beth Frans, a native of Tulare county and a sis- 
 
S02 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ter of Thomas H. Franz, in whose sketch the 
 family history appears. The family of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Switzer comprises the following children: 
 Ada Lillian, Leiia Winnifred, Roy Daniel, John 
 Earl, Thomas Wayne, Walter Alva and Carl 
 Madison. Mrs. Switzer is a member of the 
 Christian Church and a contributor to its main- 
 tenance. In political matters Mr. Switzer gives 
 stanch allegiance to the Republican party, while 
 fraternally he is connected with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen and the Woodmen of 
 the World. For more than ten years he has offi- 
 ciated as clerk of the Elbow school district and 
 in that capacity has done much to promote the 
 educational interests of this district. 
 
 JAMES H. FREW. While the period of Mr. 
 Frew's identification with the people of Tulare 
 county has been comparatively brief, by his suc- 
 cessful prosecution of the creamery business he 
 has been of great benefit to the dairymen of the 
 county through the increase in the price of butter 
 brought about under his energetic management. 
 He came to this state from Iowa, where he was 
 born near Lamotte, Jackson county, April 7, 
 1862, being a son of John and Eliza Ann (Gregg) 
 Frew, natives respectively of Allegheny and 
 Washington counties, Pa. The father, who was 
 a son of James Frew, early acquired a thorough 
 knowledge of agriculture, which he followed un- 
 der pioneer conditions both in Iowa and Ne- 
 braska. On removing to Nebraska in 1869 he 
 settled on a farm in Cass county, but later re- 
 moved to the vicinity of York, Neb., where dur- 
 ing his last years he lived in retirement from 
 active cares. At the time of his death he was 
 visiting relatives in Iowa. His wife is still liv- 
 ing and makes her home with her children, of 
 whom five out of the nine now survive. One of 
 the sons. Will L., is principal of the public schools 
 of Compton, Cal. The next to the youngest of 
 the children was James H. Frew, who was a boy 
 of seven years when the family settled on a tract 
 of raw land in Nebraska. Though educational 
 advantages were meagre, he- eagerly availed 
 himself of such as were offered, and for some 
 terms was a student in York College. 
 
 On the completion of his collegiate course Mr. 
 Frew took up the occupation of teaching school, 
 and was engaged successively as principal of the 
 Bradshaw, Benedict, Arborville and Arcadia 
 schools, in York and Valley counties. Neb. Af- 
 ter having taught for eleven years in all, he 
 decided to enter another occupation and in 1900 
 established himself in Iowa, where he embarked 
 in the dairy business at Shady Grove, Buchanan 
 county. It was not long before he had an in- 
 dustry established upon a firm basis. With an 
 ability that qualified him for thorough work in 
 
 any line, he yet seemed especially qualified for 
 the dairy business, and time has proved that he 
 made no mistake in selecting it for his occupa- 
 tion. In many respects he felt dissatisfied with his 
 location in Iowa and after a few years he de- 
 termined to try his fortune in the far west. 
 During 1903 he came to California and settled 
 at Tulare, where he engaged in the creamery 
 business with such success that after five months 
 the farmers formed a co-operative company and 
 bought him out. Soon afterward he resigned 
 the management of that creamery and December 
 20, 1903, he started the Good Luck creamery, 
 putting in a new plant operated by electricity and 
 -containing modern butter-making apparatus, with 
 the aid of which fifteen hundred pounds of but- 
 ter can be made in one day. Shipments are 
 made to Pasadena and Long Beach, where the 
 splendid quality of the butter brings for its mak- 
 er the highest market prices. Indeed, as a rule 
 his butter commands a higher price than that 
 from other creameries, and it may be said that 
 he originated high prices for butter fat in Tulare, 
 his product bringing thirty-five cents per pound 
 in January, 1904. Good Luck creamery butter 
 is most aptly named, for it has brought the best 
 of luck to its maker, and its buyers are always 
 the creamery's solicitors. 
 
 In Buchanan county, Iowa, Mr. Frew married 
 Miss Lydia A. Houck, who was born and reared 
 there. They became the parents of three chil- 
 dren, of whom two are living, Myron and Bula. 
 The family are identified with the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church of Tulare and Mr. Frew is 
 a regular contributor to its support. While a 
 resident of Nebraska he was associated with the 
 Royal Highlanders. In national politics he votes 
 the Republican ticket, but in local affairs g^ves 
 his support to the men whom he deems best qual- 
 ified to promote the welfare of the people of the 
 community. As a member of the Tulare Board 
 of Trade, he is associated with an organization 
 designed to advance the business interests of the 
 city, and in its progressive enterprises he is 
 always a stanch supporter. • 
 
 WALTER LEE MUNCY. A prominent 
 business man of Dinuba, Walter Lee Muncy is 
 widely known and esteemed for the sterling 
 traits of character which distinguish his citizen- 
 ship. A native of California, he was born neaf 
 Stockton June i, ^863, the sixth in order of 
 birth in a family of six sons and four daugh- 
 ters, all of whom are living. His father, J. S. 
 Muncy, was born in East Tennessee of Virginian 
 ancestors. In 1849 he crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia, where he first engaged in mining, and 
 afterward teamed to the southern mines from 
 Stockton. Eventually locating on a farm in 
 
^&iru^ C^^^'i^^.^tMjL^^^'-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 905 
 
 San Joaquin county, he followed agricultural 
 pursuits for a time, then purchased a farm of 
 sixteen hundred acres in Stanislaus county, just 
 south of Modesto, which he devoted to the rais- 
 ing of grain. He now makes his home in Mo- 
 desto, retired from the active cares of life. In 
 Tuolumne county, Cal., he was united in mar- 
 riage with Juliette Squires, a native of St. Louis, 
 Mo., who is still sharing with him the fruits of 
 his years of industry and energy. 
 
 Reared to young manhood upon the paternal 
 farm, Walter Lee Muncy attended the district 
 school, while at the same time he received the 
 practical training which has formed no unimpor- 
 tant part in his subsequent career. He remained 
 at home until he was twenty-six years old, when 
 he sought independent ventures, locating in 1890 
 in Dinuba (which then consisted of but eight 
 houses and one store), and here established the 
 first hardware store. He continued successfully 
 in its management for two years, when he estab- 
 lished a blacksmith business on Main street. This 
 remained his chief interest until 1901, when he 
 once more gave impetus to the business activity 
 by establishing a plumbing and tinning business, 
 now manufacturing everything in his line, such 
 as tanks, towers, the Sampson windmill, gaso- 
 line engines, etc., as well as everything in a 
 plumbing line. In December; 1902, he formed 
 a partnership with Zenas E. Thorp, a practical 
 plumber. Mr. Muncy has made a success of 
 every enterprise undertaken and has proven him- 
 self an important, factor in the upbuilding of the 
 town. 
 
 Near Modesto Mr. Muncy was united in mar- 
 riage with Lulu May, a native of that xity, and 
 they are the parents of two sons, Leonard Glenn 
 and Irwin. Mr. Muncy is prominent in frater- 
 nal orders, being a member of the Odd Fellows' 
 lodge of this place, of which he is past grand, 
 having served two terms ; Woodmen of the 
 World, of which he was second counselor com- 
 mander, and both himself and wife are members 
 of the Rebekahs and Women of Woodcraft. 
 Politicallv he is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 JOHN CHANCEY MIDDLETON. Promi- 
 nent among the most substantial and respected 
 residents of Stanislaus county is John Chancey 
 Middleton, a successful dairyman and stock- 
 raiser, and an extensive landholder, residing 
 about three miles southwest of Newman, al- 
 though a large part of his real estate is within 
 the limits of Merced county. A son of the late 
 Robert S. Middleton, he was born May 20, 
 1861, at the foot of Pike's Peak, in Colorado. 
 
 A native of St. Louis, Mo., Robert S. Middle- 
 ton was of Scotch-Irish descent, his grand- 
 father Stinsoh, who emigrated to this country. 
 
 settling first in Missouri and later in Illinois, 
 having been born in Ireland of Scotch ances- 
 tors. Removing with his parents from St. Louis 
 to Illinois, he was brought up in the Prairie 
 State. Migrating to California in 1852, he in- 
 tended to settle here as a miner, but being dis- 
 appointed in the results of his labors with pick- 
 axe and shovel, he returned to Illinois, settling 
 in Hancock county, near Nauvoo, where he was 
 employed in farming for a number of years. 
 Coming again to the Pacific coast in 1872, he 
 located in Santa Cruz county, where his family 
 joined him in 1875. Coming to Stanislaus coun- 
 ty three years later, he took up land on the west- 
 ern border, and was here employed in stock- 
 raising until his death in 1892. He was an act- 
 ive and capable business man and a faithful 
 supporter of the principles of the Democratic 
 party. He married Emma Caroline Robison, 
 who was born in Nauvoo, III, a daughter of 
 James Robison, a farmer, who removed there 
 from Pennsylvania. Eight children were born 
 of their union, six of whom are living, namely : 
 Mary S., wife of James Rogers, a dairyman in 
 Merced county; James S., a hotel keeper in 
 Fresno; John C, the special subject of this 
 sketch ; Mrs. Julia Dunningan of Cottonwood 
 Grove ; George C, a barber in Newman ; and 
 Mrs. Cibba A. Hill of Merced county, wife of 
 a dairyman. The mother is still living, making 
 her home with her son, John C. 
 
 Remaining in Illinois throughout his boyhood, 
 John C. Middleton obtained a practical educa- 
 tion in the district schools of Hancock county. 
 Coming with his mother and the family to Santa 
 Cruz in 1875, he worked for three years in the 
 lumber camps and sawmills. In 1878 he re- 
 moved to Stanislaus county, and was subse- 
 quently engaged in the cattle business with 
 his father, and also raised~stock to some extent 
 on his own account. Renting a ranch below the 
 ditch in 1900, Mr. Middleton embarked in the 
 dairy business and has since been very success^ 
 ful. He is now located on the Creamery road, 
 where he keeps a dairy consisting of forty Dur- 
 ham and Holstein cows, and runs his own sep- 
 arator, delivering the cream to the nearby 
 creamery. He raises many Poland China hogs 
 and is still engaged in the cattle business, his 
 range being in the foothills. Mr. Middleton 
 owns about one thousand two hundred and 
 eighty acres of land on the Quinto, all of which 
 is fenced, and has running water upon it, and 
 is stocked with one hundred and fifty head of 
 cattle. He likewise has thirty-three acres of 
 land sowed with alfalfa near Dos Palos, Merced 
 county. 
 
 In Merced Mr. Middleton married Elma E. 
 Weaver, a native of Pennsylvania, where her 
 father, William L. Weaver, was born and reared. 
 
906 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 A carpenter by trade, Mr. Weaver came with 
 his family to California in 1873, locating first in 
 Stockton, but subsequently removing to Livings- 
 ton, Merced countv, where he followed farming 
 for a few years. He is now a resident of Mer- 
 ced, where he is engaged in business as a dairy- 
 man and vineyardist. He married Annie Stoner, 
 who was born in Pennsylvania, a daughter of 
 Christian Stoner, and they became the parents 
 of nine children, all of whom are now living, 
 Mrs. Middleton being the second child in order 
 of birth. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Mid- 
 dleton two children have been born, but neither 
 are living, both having died in childhood. Po- 
 litically Mr. Middleton is identified with the 
 Democratic party. Fraternally he belongs to the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen, and to 
 the Woodmen of the World, of which he is past 
 consul commander. Both Mr. and Mrs. Middle- 
 ton are members of the Degree of Honor, and 
 of the Women of Woodcraft. Mrs. Middleton 
 belongs to the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 AMAZIAH W. CLARK. As far back as 
 the records of the Clark family can be traced 
 its members were residents of New England, 
 where they led quiet, industrious lives as tillers 
 of the soil. Samuel Clark, who was a native 
 of New Hampshire and a farmer in Maine, 
 rendered his country faithful service as a sol- 
 dier in the war of 1812. Lorenzo, a son of 
 Samuel, was born in Maine and there passed 
 his entire life, devoting himself to the cultiva- 
 tion of a farm near Albion, where he died. By 
 his marriage to Hannah Mitchell, who was 
 born at Freedom, Waldo county, and died at 
 Albion, he had five children, of whom a son 
 and daughter now survive. Two sons, Samuel 
 and James, came to California in early man- 
 hood, gave their attention to agricultural pur- 
 suits, cultivated large tracts of land, and while 
 still in middle age died near Hanford. The 
 youngest of the family, A. W., was born at 
 Albion, Me., April 8, 1859, ^'^cl passed his early 
 youth upon a New England farm, where a 
 livelihood wa^ earned only by the most ardu- 
 ous efifort. Not wishing to settle permanently 
 in a land where the climate and soil were so 
 inhospitable, in November of 1875 he came to 
 California whither his brothers had preceded 
 him. Immediately after his arrival he began 
 to work on the ranch of Dewey & Applegarth 
 in Merced county. During 1878 he removed 
 to the vicinit}' of Hanford and engaged in 
 grain and stock-raising seven miles northeast 
 of the town, forming a partnership with his 
 brother, James, with whom he cultivated about 
 six thousand acres. Included in their posses- 
 
 sions was a section of land in Mussel Slough, 
 purchased from the railroad and duly paid for, 
 but on account of the land troubles that arose 
 at a later date, paid for a second time. After 
 the death of the older brother, James, the part- 
 nership was dissolved, A. W. Clark retaining 
 the Tulare county property, and the heirs of 
 James Clark the Kings county property. In 
 the raising and threshing of grain they used 
 from twelve to sixteen mule teams, and all 
 their farm work was conducted upon an ex- 
 tensive scale. 
 
 Some years after coming west Mr. Clark 
 was married in Fresno to Miss Marion Ken- 
 nedy, who was born in Tulare county and died 
 here January 10, 1901. In life she had been 
 her husband's efficient helpmate and affection- 
 ate companion, and her death was the deepest 
 sorrow of his life. For one term Mr. Clark 
 officiated as a director of the Alta irrigation 
 district, and in other movements of public 
 benefit he has been equally interested and 
 helpful. Politically he supports the Repub- 
 lican party. His farm interests are large. In 
 addition to superintending his own estate, 
 comprising sixteen hundred acres of choice 
 land, .he has charge of twenty-four hundred 
 acres of land owned by his father-in-law, Rob- 
 ert Kennedy, the well-known and honored pio- 
 neer of the northern part of Tulare county. In 
 the cultivating of the four thousand acres he 
 employs about six eight-mule teams. One 
 thousand acres of the tract are in alfalfa, a 
 similar amount is in grain, and an equal acre- 
 age in summer fallow. The entire place is 
 under irrigation and furnishes exceptional ad- 
 vantages for the raising of cattle and sheep, 
 which are among his specialties, and there are 
 perhaps no herds of Shorthorn Durhams in 
 the entire county that present a finer appear- 
 ance than those on his farm. When it is re- 
 membered that he came to the west a mere 
 boy, without experience or means, the"" large 
 property he now owns proves him to be a man 
 of exceptional capabilities. 
 
 WALTER BILLINGSLEA. A prominent 
 fruit grower, owning two vineyards and an 
 orchard near Dinuba, Walter Billingslea has per- 
 formed his full share in developing and promot- 
 ing the horticultural interests of this p^art of 
 Tulare county, and is widely known as one of 
 the directors of the Alta Irrigation District. Lib- 
 eral and public-spirited, he has always been the 
 supporter and encourager of everything cal- 
 culated to benefit the community, intellectually, 
 socially and morally, and is greatly esteemed for 
 his integrity and stability. The descendant of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 907 
 
 a Maryland family of prominence, he was born 
 July 20, 1852, in Harford county, Md., near Be- 
 lair, where his father, James Billingslea, was also 
 born and bred. 
 
 Left fatherless when a young child, James 
 BilHngslea, or Billingsley, as he always spelled 
 the surname, served an apprenticeship at the 
 saddler and harnessmaker's trade, which he fol- 
 lowed west of Belair until his early death, in 
 1852. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary 
 J. Brian, was born in Baltimore county, Md. Her 
 father, Joseph Brian, emigrated from Bordeaux, 
 France, to America and settled in Baltimore. 
 Mrs. Mary J. Billingslea survived her husband 
 and died in Baltimore aged about seventy years. 
 She bore her husband six children, five of whom 
 are living. The oldest son, Thomas BilHngslea, 
 is a merchant in San Francisco. 
 
 Brought up on a farm in Harford county, Md., 
 Walter Billingslea attended the district school 
 when young, completing his studies by one term's 
 attendance at the Presbyterian Academy near his 
 home. In 1872 he began journeying westward, 
 going as far as Butler county, Ohio, where for 
 three years or more he followed the occupation 
 to which he was reared, being engaged in farm- 
 ing near Hamilton. Migrating still farther west- 
 ward in 1876, Mr. Billingslea was engaged in ag- 
 ricultural pursuits in the vicinity of Atchison, 
 Kans., for two years. Again taking up the line of 
 march in 1878, he continued his journey to the 
 coast, and for awhile was employed in grain 
 raising at Wild Flower, Fresno county, Cal. He 
 was subsequently similarly employed on land 
 lying north of Selma for a few seasons, after 
 which he was for two years engaged in horti- 
 cultural pursuits in the Scandinavian Colony, 
 Fresno county. Coming to Tulare county in 
 1890, M^. Billingslea located near Dinuba, on 
 his present home ranch. Buying first a grain 
 field of thirty acres, he set out a vineyard and 
 orchard, and in their care and management met 
 with such satisfactory results that he bought 
 thirty acres of adjoining land, and enlarged his 
 operations, having now a magnificent vineyard 
 of forty acres, in which he raises grapes of dif- 
 ferent kinds, including Muscat, Sultanas and 
 Malaga, and a small orchard, the remainder of 
 his ranch being alfalfa land. As a vineyardist 
 and orchardist he is considered an expert, his 
 crops being fine in quantity and quality, and yield- 
 ing him a handsome annual income. He is in- 
 timately acquainted with fruit culture in its 
 various phases, and for six years was raisin in- 
 spector at this point for the California Raisin 
 Growers' Association. 
 
 In Fresno county, Mr. Billingslea married 
 Nancy Isabelle Miller, who, was born in Mis- 
 souri, and came with her parents to California 
 when six years old. She died in March, 1898, 
 
 leaving two children, James William, and Ina 
 Lee. Mrs. Billingslea was a woman of superior 
 character, estimable and amiable, and a faithful 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Politically Mr. Billingslea is one of the leading 
 Democrats of the county, active in his party, be- 
 ing an influential member of the Democratic 
 county central committee, and having served as 
 a delegate to the state convention held at Santa 
 Cruz. Fraternally he belongs to the Woodmen 
 of the World. For about ten years he was a 
 member and the clerk of the District School 
 Board, and was also a member of the Dinuba 
 Union High School Board. In February, 1899, he 
 was elected a director of the Alta Irrigation Dis- 
 trict for a term of four years, and in February, 
 1903, was re-elected for another term of equal 
 length. 
 
 FRANK ALBERT GOBIN. The thriving 
 city of Tulare has a full quota of live, energetic 
 and progressive business men, prominent among 
 whom is Frank Albert Gobin, who, as a buyer 
 and shipper of green and dried fruits of all 
 kinds, is carrying on a large and substantial 
 trade. A man of abihty, tact and keen fore- 
 sight, he _ is intimately associated with the in- 
 dustrial and commercial prosperity of Tulare 
 county, and in the advancement of its welfare 
 lends material assistance. A native of Indiana, 
 and the descendant of a pioneer family of in- 
 fluence, he was born June 17, 1868, in Carlisle, 
 Sullivan county, which was also the birthplace 
 of both his father, John Lindsay Gobin, and of 
 his grandfather, James Gobin. The latter, a 
 farmer by occupation, served in the Civil war, 
 belonging to an Indiana regiment. 
 
 After leaving the ancestral farm, John Lind- 
 say Gobin engaged in mercantile pursuits, and 
 for many years was one of the leading drug- 
 gists of Carlisle, Ind. By good management and 
 wise judgment he accumulated considerable 
 property, and is- now living in that city, retired 
 from the activities of business. He married 
 Margaret Hall, who was born in Carlisle, Ind., 
 the daughter of Thomas Hall, a pioneer farmer 
 of that place, who is now living at Hall's Cor- 
 ner, Erie county, N. Y., enjoying the large 
 wealth which he has accumulated by means of 
 industry and thrift. Of the six children born 
 of the union of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Gobin, 
 four are living, namely: R. D., of Fort Scott, 
 Kans., a railroad man; James M., of Fresno, 
 Cal; Pauline I., wife of Dr. J. R. Whalen of 
 Carlisle, Ind.; and Frank Albert. The mother 
 passed to the higher life in 1874. 
 
 Frank A. Gobin was brought up and educated 
 in CarHsle, Ind. After his graduation from the 
 high school he learned the carpenter's trade, 
 
908 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 which he followed for a few 3'ears in his native 
 state. With a desire to broaden his field of ac- 
 tion, he came to the Pacific coast in 1891, and 
 for a year resided in Los Angeles. Taking unto 
 himself a wife in 1892, Mr. Gobin settled in 
 Tulare, and at once embarked in the fruit busi- 
 ness. He buys green and dried fruits of every 
 variety, and these he sells at local points and 
 ships to New York City, where he has estab- 
 lished a market. He also carries on an excel- 
 lent business as a commission merchant, and is 
 agent for the California Wine Association, for 
 which he buys the grapes. In 1902 Mr. Gobin 
 shipped from Tulare forty-four hundred tons of 
 wine grapes, an immense quantity to send from 
 one place. He also represents, in the trade of 
 green fruits, Simpson Hack of Los Angeles. 
 
 February 6, 1892, in Pasadena, Cal., Mr. 
 Gobin married Hattie Carpenter, who was born 
 in Petaluma. Her father, William Carpenter, 
 was a wheelwright and a pioneer settler of 
 Tulare. Mr. and Mrs. Gobin have one child, 
 Ramona Tressa. Politically Mr. Gobin is a 
 stanch Republican. Fraternally he has served 
 three terms as chief ranger of Court Mount 
 Whitney No. 211, F. of A., and also belongs to 
 the Modern Woodmen of America, of which he 
 is one of the board of managers. 
 
 BENJAMIN SNOW. A skillful and thor- 
 ough-going farmer and dairyman, Benjamin 
 Snow, residing three miles south of-Dinuba, is 
 actively identified with the advancement and 
 development of the agricultural prosperity of 
 this section of Tulare county, and holds high 
 rank among the prosperous and substantial citi- 
 zens of his neighborhood. A son of Edmund 
 Snow, he was born, November 13, 1847, in Scot- 
 land county. Mo., where he lived until after his 
 marriage. A native of North Carolina, Edmund 
 Snow was there reared and educated. Subse- 
 quently following the tide of emigration across 
 the Alleghanies, he came as far westward as 
 Missouri, bringing with him his little family. 
 He located first in Howard county, but soon 
 removed to Scotland county, where he was en- 
 gaged in tilling the soil until his death, in 1871, 
 at the age of sixty-seven years. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Hannah Riggs, was born in 
 North Carolina, and died in Missouri, in 1886, 
 aged seventy-five years. Of the eight sons and 
 three daughters born of their marriage, three 
 sons and three daughters survive, the oldest 
 daughter, Mrs. Louisa Wylie, residing in Ne- 
 vada county, Cal. 
 
 , Brought up on the home farm, near Mem- 
 phis, Mo., Benjamin Snow acquired his rudi- 
 mentary education in the district school, and un- 
 der his father's tuition early became familiar 
 
 with the science and art of agriculture as then 
 and there practiced. He subsequently engaged 
 in farming on his own account, having eighty 
 acres of land. In 1881, three years after his 
 marriage, Mr. Snow disposed of his interests 
 in that locality, and came with his family to 
 the sunny state of California, locating on his 
 present farm on July 5 of that year. Buying out 
 a homesteader, he proved up his claim, and em- 
 barked in grain raising, in which he was quite 
 successful. He continually added to the im- 
 provements on his estate, in 1889 getting the 
 first ditch put through his land and that in the 
 vicinity. That very season Mr. Snow put in his 
 first crop of alfalfa, sowing eighteen acres, and 
 since then he has levelled and checked ninety 
 acres for alfalfa. In his home ranch Mr. Snow 
 has one hundred and twenty acres, five acres of 
 which is planted to fruit trees and vines, the re- 
 mainder being alfalfa land, on forty-five acres 
 of which he raises excellent crops by sub-irriga- 
 tion only. In addition to general farming he 
 carries on a profitable stock and dairy business, 
 keeping about one hundred and eighty head of 
 cattle, and a good herd of graded cows. 
 
 In 1878, in Missouri, Mr. Snow married 
 Mary A. Hicks, who was born in that state, a 
 daughter of William Hicks. Mr. Hicks, a na- 
 tive of Tennessee, settled m Missouri when a 
 young man, and from there, in 1881, came to 
 Hanford, Cal., where he resided until his death, 
 in 1885. Into the home of Mr. and Mrs. Snow 
 nine children have been born, five of whom are 
 living, namely : Nannie, John H., Minnie, Lil- 
 lie and Bryan. A man of strong convictions, 
 Mr. Snow has taken an active part in the Dem- 
 ocratic politics of the town and county, and is 
 a member of its county central committee, and 
 one of its executive board. Mrs. Snow is a 
 valued member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 SAMUEL MORTON BRISCOE. Born in 
 Missouri, where he was reared chiefly, for years 
 a resident of Texas, Colorado and New Mexico, 
 it is but fitting that Samuel Morton Briscoe, in 
 his search for the best, should at last reach the 
 goal of his ambitions by turning to Fresno coun- 
 ty, Cal. In 1889 Mr. Briscoe moved to this 
 county, and in 1899 purchased eighty acres one 
 and a half miles west of Fresno, on California 
 avenue, extending back to Kearney avenue, and 
 here he engaged in raising the muscat or raisin 
 grape. His place now contains many fine im- 
 provements, and fifty acres are devoted to the 
 culture of this grape alone. 
 
 In reviewing the history of the Briscoe family, 
 it will be found that man)' of its members were 
 noted for their fighting proclivities and for their 
 longevity. The grandfather, Walter Briscoe, was 
 
'J^W'^^^rAr;- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 911 
 
 a native of the Keystone State,- which he left 
 for a home in Kentucky at an early date in the 
 history of that section, when the country was 
 unsettled. A farmer by occupation, he rendered 
 valiant service to the country by participating 
 in all of the early Indian wars throughout that 
 state. In 1832 he removed with his family to 
 Missouri, locating in Lewis county, where he 
 died m 1855, aged about ninety-two years. Mer- 
 ritt Craig Briscoe, the father of S. M. Briscoe, 
 was born at Elizabethtown, Ky., April 25, 1818. 
 In his youth he accompanied his parents to Mis- 
 souri, and for many years thereafter his life his- 
 tory is closely interwoven with the history of 
 Lewis and Marion counties of that state, his early 
 manhood having been spent in the former county. 
 He was joined in marriage with Alzada Morton, 
 a native of Owensboro, Ky., and a daughter of 
 Samuel Morton^ also a Kentuckian. In 1831 
 Mr. Morton moved to Missouri, locating in 
 Marion county, and at Palmyra, the county-seat, 
 he engaged in a general merchandise business, 
 and for years was among the most successful 
 merchants of that place. He was an old line 
 Whig in his political views, and like the ma- 
 jority of the early settlers, he took an' active 
 part in the Indian disturbances. Mrs. Briscoe 
 still survives her husband, and although she was 
 born May 10, 1823, she is still hale and hearty 
 and resides with her son, S. M., near Fresno. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Briscoe were blessed with four 
 children, only one of whom is now living, and he 
 was the eldest child of the family. 
 
 Samuel Morton Briscoe was born April 5, 
 1840, at Palmyra, Marion county. Mo., and it 
 was in that state that his boyhood days were 
 spent. During the gold fever of 1849, his father 
 left the family in Missouri and crossed the plains, 
 being en route from March 31 to August. Ar- 
 riving safely in California, he followed mining 
 near Red Bluffs for a few months, but subse- 
 quently engaged in freighting between Sacramen- 
 to and the mining camps, following this some- 
 what hazardous occupation until 185 1, when he 
 returned home by way of the Isthmus. During 
 the same year he moved his family to Lewis 
 county and remained at home occupied in farm 
 pursuits until 1854, when he again came to Cali- 
 fornia with a herd of cattle, accompanied by his 
 son, S. M., who was then but fifteen years old. 
 From this time on the lives of father and son 
 were closely interwoven. 
 
 Arriving in Sacramento, August 10, 1854, to- 
 gether the father and son engaged in the butcher 
 business at Colusa, in Colusa county, soon after 
 their arrival. The following year the son re- 
 turned home, but the father continued in this 
 business until 1856, when he, too, returned to 
 Missouri. Farm pursuits occupied the attention 
 of both in Lewis county for several years there- 
 
 after, and their next location was Dallas, Tex. 
 In 1861 the father entered the Confederate army 
 under General McCullough, and served as a pri- 
 vate for three years, mostly in the Western 
 Army Corps. The son also enlisted the same 
 year, and for four years served as a private mes- 
 senger for Gen. Kirby Smith between Dallas 
 and New Orleans. He served throughout the 
 war, being mustered out of service in 1865, 
 when he returned to Dallas. 
 
 After 'the close of the war, in 1866, the family 
 returned to Lewis county. Mo., and there both 
 father and son carried on farm pursuits until 
 1873. At that time the son moved to Colorado 
 Springs, Colo., where he followed both dairy 
 farming and mining, and the next year he was 
 joined by his parents. This continued to be 
 their home until 1887, when a new location was 
 sought, this time at Las Vegas, N. Mex., where 
 dairy farming occupied their attention for a cou- 
 ple of years. It was not until 1889 that the fam- 
 ily went to California to reside, and for several 
 years thereafter they lived in Madera county, 
 JDUt in 1893 took up their abode in Fresno county. 
 January 28, 1898, the father passed away, lack- 
 ing but three months of being eighty years old. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Briscoe in Marion county. 
 Mo., April 26, 1859, united him with Elizabeth 
 Fisher, who was born near Palmyra, Mo., April 
 27, 1849. Four children blessed this union — Zada 
 Belle, Florence, Merritt C. (deceased), and 
 Thomas M. Zada Belle married Isaac Erickson, 
 who died in 1902. Florence married M. D. 
 Young and resides in St. Joseph, Mo.; and 
 Thomas M. is still at home. Politically Mr, 
 Briscoe is an adherent of the Democratic party, 
 but is not an office-seeker, nor can he be termed 
 an active politician. 
 
 ROYAL R. FOWLER. A native son of the 
 state and a prominent rancher of Merced coun- 
 ty, Royal R. Fowler was born in San Joaquin 
 county March 12, 1861. His father, Joseph M. 
 Fowler, was a native of Massachusetts, born 
 near Westfield on a farm, where he was reared 
 to manhood. Upon leaving the paternal home he 
 went to Northampton, where he joined the sol- 
 diers, thence to New York. In 1849 he went 
 with the company intending to go to the south- 
 west to enlist in the Mexican war, but as the 
 war ended in that year they decided to come on 
 to California. Leaving New York City they 
 took passage on a steamer bound for Mexico, 
 and crossing to the Pacific they completed their 
 voyage and safely reached San Francisco. Mr. 
 Fowler went at once to the mines at Horseshoe 
 Bend and for the ensuing seven years followed 
 the life of a miner in northern California. Need- 
 less to say his success justified a continuance in 
 
912 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the work, and during this time he made several 
 trips back to his eastern home. Upon decidmg 
 to take up other work he came _ south to San 
 Joaquin county and in company with his brother, 
 William P. Fowler, bought six hundred and 
 forty acres of land, which was devoted to gen- 
 eral ranching and stock-raising. He remained 
 so engaged until his death in 1896, at the age 
 of seventy-two years. His wife, formerly Eliza 
 Bi-omley," of Massachusetts, still survives him, 
 and has six living children. 
 
 Reared upon his father's ranch in San Joaquin 
 county, Royal R. Fowler remained at home until 
 attaining manhood,^ when he came to Merced 
 county, and locating near Atwater raised wheat 
 for a short time. In 1886 he located upon his 
 present property, which consists of fourteen hun- 
 dred and forty acres of fine farming land five 
 and a half miles east of Merced. This property 
 is given over entirely to the cultivation of wheat 
 and barley, while in addition to this he rents a 
 thousand acres. Upon his own property he has 
 erected a beautiful two-story frame house, con- 
 sisting of nine rooms, finished in a modern and 
 approved style, and provided with a telephone. 
 In addition to his ranching interests Mr. Fowler 
 is proprietor of the Cerealis Warehouse at 
 Turner Station, which adjoins his ranch. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Fowler occurred in 1885 
 and united him with Miss Mary McCauley, a na- 
 tive of Tiffin, Ohio. In his political convictions 
 Mr. Fowler is an adherent of the principles advo- 
 cated in the platform of the Republican party, 
 and fraternally he is associated with the Knights 
 of Pythias, Ancient Order of Foresters and the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 HON. R. LINDER. The advancement of 
 the San Joaquin valley and the upbuilding of 
 the city of Tulare have had a progressive pro- 
 moter in ex-Senator Linder, whose name is 
 synonymous with many of the influences and 
 movements tending to the development of local 
 industries. Viewing the growth of Tulare he 
 might truthfully say : "All of which I saw and 
 part of which I was." The credit for the beauti- 
 fying of the city belongs largely to him. In the 
 heart of the town he laid out and since has kept 
 up two small parks. In one of these he built a 
 thatched pavilion where during the summer en- 
 tertainments and Sunday religious services are 
 held and band concerts are given. The other 
 park is stocked with deer and elk and contains 
 an aviary with an interesting collection of fine 
 birds. All of this work he has accomplished in- 
 dividually without financial aid from others. 
 Nor does this represent the limit of his work 
 toward the permanent prosperity of Tulare. The 
 business block which he erected in 1902 on the 
 
 corner of K -and Kern streets is commodious, 
 well-appointed and conveniently arranged, and 
 adds much to the appearance of the business sec- 
 tion of the place, besides providing adequate 
 facilities for the stock carried by the Linder 
 Hardware Company, of which he is president. 
 
 Of German birth and ancestry, Mr. Linder 
 is the only representative of his father's family 
 in the United States. He was born at Solingen, 
 near Dusseldorf, Rhenish Prussia, April 25, 
 1854, and is a son of August Linder, a hard- 
 ware merchant. After completing his gymnas- 
 ium studies, at seventeen years of age he came 
 to the United States and settled in San Fran- 
 cisco, where he secured employment with Tread- 
 well & Co., wholesale hardware merchants, on 
 Market and Fremont streets. After thirteen 
 years with this house he became connected with 
 D. M. Osborne & Co., dealers in agricultural 
 implements, with whom he remained for four 
 years. Meanwhile, in 1886, he purchased an 
 interest in an agricultural implement business at 
 Tulare, whither he moved in 1888, at the same 
 time starting the firm of Linder & Grace. In 
 1900 the Linder Hardware Company was incor- 
 porated with himself as president, and soon after 
 the incorporation a general stock of hardware 
 was added. The Linder block, 75 x 150 feet, 
 and two stories high, was erected in 1902, and 
 afiforded the company facilities for a grocery de- 
 partment, which is now one of the principal feat- 
 ures of the business. Besides groceries the firm 
 carries in stock stoves, cutlery, glassware, tin 
 and agate ware, paints, oils, varnishes, iron, 
 steel and pipe, sporting goods, wagons, carriages, 
 buggies and agricultural implements. 
 
 Notwithstanding the pressure of business re- 
 sponsibilities Mr. Linder has contributed largely 
 to the movements for the benefit of his town 
 and county and has been especially prominent 
 in irrigation matters. Individually he built for 
 the Tulare irrigation district one hundred and 
 twenty-five miles of canals and ditches from the 
 Kaweah and St. Johns rivers, thus bringing un- 
 der irrigation more than twenty-five thousand 
 acres in the immediate vicinity of Tulare. 
 While living in San Francisco he married Miss 
 Addie L. Palmer, who was born in that city, 
 her father, Samuel Palmer, having been an early 
 settler there. They are the parents of three 
 children, George, Grade and Edyth, all at home, 
 the son being engaged as secretary of the Linder 
 Hardware Company. 
 
 As a member af tlie Tulare Board of Trade 
 and the execlitive committee thereof, Mr. Lin- 
 der has been identified with an organization 
 whose aim is the advancement of the commercial 
 prosperity of the town and surrounding country. 
 Fraternally he is associated with the Benevolent 
 Protective Order of Elks at Fresno. Ever since 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 913 
 
 becoming a voter he has supported RepubHcan 
 prmciples. In recognition of his able and faith- 
 ful services for the party, in 1894 the Repub- 
 lican senatorial convention placed his name in 
 nomination for the office of state senator. His 
 popularity is proved by the fact that he was 
 elected, in a Democratic district, by a majority 
 of about two hundred. While serving in the 
 sessions of 1895 and 1897 he acted as chairman 
 of the irrigation committee and the committee 
 on county and county boundaries, in both of 
 which responsible positions he gained the es- 
 teem of co-workers and a reputation for ability 
 and fine character. In the contest for the United 
 States senatorship he gave his support to Sen- 
 ator Perkins, both for the short term and the 
 long term. On his retirement from office he re- 
 sumed business' affairs. Both in official posi- 
 tions and commercial pursuits his reputation is 
 that cf a man of brilliant attainments, shrewd 
 foresight, keen discrimination, a man who sel- 
 dom makes mistakes, yet, having made them, is 
 quick to make amends. It is to such citizens as 
 he that Tulare county and the San Joaquin 
 valley owe their increasing importance and grow- 
 ing prestige as profitable places for investment. 
 Whatever of prosperity they may attain in the 
 future and whatever of prominence is their good 
 fortime to enjoy, due credit should be given to 
 the philanthropic work and public-spirited efforts 
 of ex-Senator Linder. 
 
 PETER JORGENSEN. Holding a good 
 position among the prosperous agriculturists 
 and respected citizens of Merced county is 
 Peter Jorgensen, whose ranch is advanta- 
 geously situated about four miles north of 
 Volta. Since assuming its possession he has 
 labored industriously, improving and beautify- 
 ing the property by the erection of buildings, 
 and the setting out of shade, ornamental and 
 fruit trees. A native of Denmark, he was born 
 on the Island of Fyen, near Faaborg, December 
 20, 1835. His father, Hans Jorgensen, a life- 
 long resident of Fyen, was a farmer by occu- 
 pation, and died in January, 1836, while in the 
 prime of life. His wife, Margaret Jorgensen, 
 died in Fyen, on the old homestead. 
 
 The youngest child in a family of nine chil- 
 dren, Peter Jorgensen obtained a practical 
 common school education in his native town, 
 and during his youthful days was well drilled 
 in the various branches of agriculture as pur- 
 sued in his Danish home. Entering the Fifth 
 Battalion, Danish Infantry, in 1864, he served 
 in the Schleswig-Holstein war, taking part in 
 many important engagements. Returning 
 home at the close of the conflict, Mr. Jorgen- 
 sen was foreman on a large farm for two or 
 
 three years. Immigrating to America in i^__, 
 he came_ by way of the Isthmus of Panama to 
 California, and subsequently made a trip to 
 British Columbia, where he was engaged in 
 mining for six months. Not satisfied with the 
 results of his labor at the mines he came back 
 to California, and in San Francisco for a while 
 followed the carpenter's trade, with which he 
 had become familiar in his native country. 
 Going thence to Inyo county, Cal., he con- 
 tinued there as a miner three years, and the 
 following year worked at his trade in San 
 Francisco. 
 
 In 1879, desirous of resuming the free and 
 independent occupation to which he was 
 brought up, Mr. Jorgensen came to the San 
 Joaquin valley, locating at Hills Ferry, where 
 for seven years he worked for J. L. Crittenden, 
 being foreman of his large ranch, which was 
 devoted to the raising of alfalfa and grain. 
 Removing then to the east side, of the valley, 
 he took charge of the Stephenson ranch as 
 foreman, remaining thus employed two years. 
 With wise foresight and enterprise, Mr. Jor- 
 gensen had previously, in 1884, purchased his 
 present ranch of one hundred and twenty 
 ■acres, four miles north of Volta, and in 1891 
 he located on it, and has since been actively 
 engaged in its care and management, adding 
 from year to year to its improvements and 
 value. He has erected buildings, bored an 
 artesian well, and irrigated the land, and has 
 forty acres of his ranch planted tp alfalfa. 
 Although he is a general farmer, he makes a 
 specialty of raising beef cattle, in which he is 
 very successful, his favorite breed being the 
 Durham. 
 
 In his political affiliation Mr. Jorgensen is a 
 true blue Republican, and though not an as- 
 pirant for official favors has served for the 
 past ten years as school trustee in the Ingomar 
 district. Fraternally he is past grand of New- 
 man Lodge, I. O. O. F., and also a member of 
 the Grand Lodge. He was brought up a Lu- 
 theran, but in his religious views is broad and 
 liberal, following as far as possible in his 
 every-day life the Golden Rule. 
 
 FRANK H. STILES. Upon the founda- 
 tion laid by the brave and resolute pioneers of 
 the west their sons have builded wisely and well, 
 and it may be said with justice that the develop- 
 ment of the present era is due not less to the en- 
 terprise of the second generation than to the 
 courageous spirit of their predecessors. Repre- 
 sentative of the keen and capable young farm- 
 ers of the twentieth century is Frank H. Stiles, 
 while his father, Pascal P., furnishes a typical 
 
Oltt 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 example of the pioneer who followed the over- 
 land trail amid dangers from Indians and in- 
 numerable perils seen and unseen. Father and 
 son now reside a few miles from Tulare, the 
 son energetically cultivating a farm and develop- 
 ing an orchard and vineyard, the father some- 
 what retired from active labors that once en- 
 grossed his attention and crowded his days. 
 
 From A^ermont, where he was born in 1826, 
 P. P. Stiles early followed the drift of emigra- 
 tion toward the Mississippi valley, and in search 
 of a satisfactory location he experimented with 
 farming in IlHnois and Minnesota, then returned 
 to Illinois, and in 1863 came with wagon and 
 horses, in company -jvith a large train, across 
 the plains to California, settling near Stockton in 
 the San Joaquin valley. Later he removed to 
 Paradise, Stanislaus county, and about 1889 
 bought farm land in what is now Kings coun- 
 ty, near Lemoore, but in 1892 came to his pres- 
 ent location near Tulare. By his marriage to 
 Caroline Brown, a native of New York state, 
 he had five children, of whom three survive, 
 namely: Catherine, wife of Thomas J. Mull, 
 who occupies a farm adjoining the Stiles home- 
 stead ; Myra, wife of Dr. A. M. Field ; and Frank 
 H., who was born at old Paradise, Stanislaus 
 county, December 28, 1874, and passed his boy- 
 hood days mainly in the San Joaquin valley. 
 Primarily educated in district schools, he later 
 attended the schools of Modesto and Lemoore, 
 and since leaving school has engaged in farm 
 work. \'\''hen he came to Tulare county in 1892 
 he set about the task of improving the home 
 farm of eighty acres, then a raw wheat field. 
 The irrigation facilities from the Tulare ditch 
 wei-e inadequate to his needs and prevented him 
 from making the improvements necessary to the 
 highest development of the land. In order to 
 secure an abundance of water, he formed a 
 partnership with his brother-in-law, Thomas J. 
 Mull, in the establishment of a private irrigating 
 plant, the same consisting of a well four hun- 
 dred and thirty feet deep,' from which water can 
 be secured night and day by means of a pump 
 operated by an electric motor. In connection 
 with the plant is a reservoir covering one-half 
 acre. The Mull and Stiles farms are irrigated 
 from this plant and in addition the flow of water 
 is sufficient to furnish irrigation facilities for a 
 few neighbors. Since securing the needed supplv 
 of water Mr. Stiles has found no obstacle to the 
 development of his land, and now has forty acres 
 under alfalfa, which enables him to carry on a 
 dairy business; seventeen acres in an orchard 
 of peaches and plums ; and seventeen acres in a 
 vineyard of the choicest varieties of grapes, his 
 specialties being the muscat and Thompson seed- 
 less. 
 
 The wife of Mr. Stiles was Eleanor Besse, a 
 
 native of South Dakota, but a resident of Tulare 
 for some time prior to their marriage. Both are 
 active members of the First Baptist Church ot 
 Tulare and Mr. Stiles holds the office of treas- 
 urer of the congregation. Politically he votes 
 the Republican ticket in national issues, but in 
 local matters maintains an independent spirit, 
 supporting the men whom he considers best 
 qualified to serve the people, irrespective of their 
 views concerning governmental problems. The 
 only organization of a fraternal nature to which 
 he has given his active support is the Patrons of 
 Husbandry No. 198, of Tulare, and of it he was 
 master from 1900 to January, 1905, devoting 
 meanwhile considerable thought and time to the 
 promotion of its interests and the enlarging of 
 its avenues of usefulness. 
 
 ORIGEN ABBEY WILCOX. A pioneer of 
 the early days, Origen Abbey Wilcox recalls 
 the foundation of the statehood of California and 
 the years of efifort and energy which have trans- 
 formed the wilderness of the San Joaquin valley 
 into its present prosperous condition. He is lo- 
 cated on a ranch of seven hundred and eighty 
 acres within the vicinity of Portersville, Tulare 
 county, a portion of which he homesteaded and 
 pre-empted, the balance he bought. A native of 
 Erie county, N. Y., he was born December i, 
 1840, a son of John Wilcox, who was born in 
 Cattaraugus county, same state. His grand- 
 father, Jerry Wilcox, was a native of Vermont 
 and a patriot in the Revolutionary war, in an 
 early day locating in the state of New York. 
 John Wilcox came to California in 1850, cross- 
 ing the plains after wintering at Council Bluffs. 
 The train in which he traveled had considerable 
 trouble with the Indians, he and his brother, 
 Alfred, being taken prisoner by the Sioux. They 
 were bound and lying on a rock ready for the 
 torture of burning, when Mr. Wilcox made the 
 Masonic sign. They were immediately liber- 
 ated and permitted to join their friends. Arriv- 
 ing in California in 1852 he located at Fiddler's 
 Green, afterward called Hangtown until it came 
 to be known by the name of Placerville. He en- 
 gaged in mining until 1854, when he went to 
 Los Angeles and followed the stock business for 
 two years. In 1856 he came to the place now 
 occupied by his son, seven miles east of Por- 
 tersville, where he remained for two years, then 
 returned to the middle west and followed saw 
 milling and stock-raising in Taylors Falls, Minn. 
 His death occurred in that locality in 1862. His 
 wife, formerly Fannie Manters, was a native of 
 the Mohawk valley, and her death occurred in 
 Erie county, N. Y. They had two children, the 
 oldest, a daughter, being deceased. 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 9l7 
 
 Origen Abbey Wilcox was reared to boyhood 
 in his native place, receiving a very limited edu- 
 cation through an attendance of the common 
 schools up to the age of eight years. In 1854 
 he shipped from New Bedford on a whaling 
 cruise, being absent from home for three years. 
 The ship was wrecked on its way to the north 
 seas, and afterward its course was changed to 
 the south coast of Africa, in the vicinity of Cape 
 Town. In six months the vessel was filled with 
 oil and whale bone, after which they returned to 
 New York. Mr. Wilcox then returned home, 
 having run away to make his first business ven- 
 ture in the world. He worked on a farm until 
 he had saved $160, when he came to California 
 via the Isthmus of Panama. He located with 
 his father on his present place, homesteaded and 
 pre-empted another tract, until at the present 
 time he owns seven hundred and eighty acres of 
 land, given over to general farming and stock- 
 raising, the latter occupation claiming the greater 
 part of his time and attention. For one year 
 after arriving in California Mr. Wilcox owned, 
 and drove the stage from Visalia to Quartzburg, 
 when he sold out and devoted his entire time to 
 farming and stock-raising. 
 
 In 1868, while on a trip to New York, Mr. 
 Wilcox married Clara J. Emerson, a native of 
 New York state, and a daughter of William 
 Lewis and Maria (Chase) Emerson, who were 
 natives of Massachusetts, but who were reared 
 in Vermont. The following children were born 
 to Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox: Mamie J., the wife of 
 James Putnam, of Portersville ; John A.; Fred 
 E., of Portersville; Harry, also of Portersville; 
 Alice ; Guy F. ; and Grace E., the last three and 
 the second being still members of their parents' 
 home. Politically Mr. Wilcox is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the Repub- 
 lican party, and has served in its interests as 
 constable for two terms, and has been school 
 director for many years. 
 
 WILLIAM JAMES DECHMAN. Closely 
 allied with the history and growth of Dinuba 
 during the last decade or more is the name of 
 William James Dechman, cashier and treasurer 
 of the Bank of Dinuba, also a member of the 
 board of directors of this substantial institution. 
 Since coming to this place he has built up an 
 attractive suburban homestead, situated one and 
 one-fourth miles south of Dinuba, where he has 
 a commodious two-story residence, surrounded 
 by a vineyard of 'thirty-five acres and a large 
 orchard, the entire place, covering two small 
 ranches, embracing forty-eight acres of valuable 
 land. In selecting this community for his home 
 he chose a climate radically diflferent from the 
 
 bleak and stormy land of Nova Scotia, whence 
 he came. Born near Halifax, November 6, 1864, 
 he was a son of John and Margaret (Logan) 
 Dechman, and a grandson of John Dechman and 
 Robert Logan, all of whom were natives of Nova 
 Scotia. The ancestry of the Dechman family 
 is traced to Germany, while the Logans originally 
 came from Scotland. During all of his active 
 life John Dechman has engaged in farm pur- 
 suits near Halifax and he still makes that place 
 his home; his wife died in May, 1904, and of 
 their six children William James, the third in 
 order of birth, is the only one to settle on the 
 coast. Until nineteen years of age he remained 
 on the home farm, attending school as oppor- 
 tunity offered. On leaving home he went to 
 Boston and in that vicinity secured work on a 
 farm. 
 
 After six months spent in Minneapolis, in 1886 
 WilHam James Dechman came to California and 
 secured employment on a fruit ranch near Santa 
 Clara, where he remained less than one year. 
 In January, 1887, he took up telegraphy with the 
 Southern Pacific Railroad at Santa Clara, and 
 later was appointed assistant agent and operator 
 at Newhall, afterward serving in a similar ca- 
 pacity at Madera and other places as vacancies 
 occurred. In 1888 he was transferred to" the 
 Tucson division of the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 and became station agent at Pantano, Pima 
 county, Ariz., where he remained for five years, 
 and then returned to CaHfornia as operator at 
 Lathrop, San Joaquin county. After seven 
 months at the latter place, August 10, 1893, he 
 became station agent for the Southern Pacific at 
 Dinuba, and that position he continued to fill until 
 October 25, 1902, when he resigned to accept 
 the post of cashier in the Bank of Dinuba, a 
 flourishing concern that had been organized in 
 the preceding February as a state institution. 
 As a financier he has the reputation of being 
 progressive yet conservative, keen yet tactful and 
 accommodating yet ever regardful of the bank's 
 interests. He is a member of the State and 
 American Bankers' Associations and maintains a 
 deep interest in the world of finance and invest- 
 ment. Besides his other work he finds time to 
 discharge the duties of his position as treasurer 
 of the Alta irrigation district. Though not active 
 in politics, he is a pronounced Republican. In 
 rehgion he is of the Presbyterian faith and' of- 
 ficiates as a trustee in the Dinuba Church. While 
 employed in Arizona he met and married Miss 
 Jennie Carmichael, of Tucson, a native of Boc- 
 abec, New Brunswick, and of this union there 
 is a son, Charles Stanley. Fraternally he has 
 been associated with the Benevolent Protective 
 Order of Elks at Fresno, while after coming to 
 Dinuba he was initiated into the Independent 
 
t)l8 
 
 HISTORICAL AMD BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Order of Odd Fellows, in which he is past grand. 
 Though business matters have engrossed his 
 attention, he has displayed a keen interest in 
 fruit-growing and has maintained his orchard 
 and vineyard under the highest state of improve- 
 ment, also has taken a warm interest in the work 
 of the Raisin Growers' Association as well as in 
 other movements for the promoting of the valua- 
 ble fruit interests of this locality. 
 
 THOMAS HOUSE. An old-time agricul- 
 turist of large experience, and a successful stock- 
 raiser of early days, Thomas House, now living 
 with his daughter and her husband, Mr. and 
 Mrs. John Fox, near Dinuba, is numbered 
 among the venerable residents of that commun- 
 ity, and by its people is held in that reverence 
 and respect tacitly accorded to those whose lives 
 have been distinguished by integrity and use- 
 fulness. A man of strong personality, upright 
 and strictly honest in all of his dealings, he is a 
 worthy representative of the pioneer element 
 which laid the foundations for the present and 
 future prosperity of our great and undivided 
 country, rendering it one of the recognized pow- 
 ers of the world. Born and bred in Illinois, 
 through the days of his boyhood and youth he 
 suffered all the privations and hardships of life 
 in a new and uncivilized country. Migrating to 
 Missouri, then the extreme western frontier, in 
 November, 1839, he rendered efficient service in 
 transforming the primeval forest into tillable 
 land, while during the Civil war he served with 
 distinction, offering his life if need be for his 
 country. During the quarter of a century that 
 he has resided in California he has been an 
 important factor in advancing its farming in- 
 terests, and in the march of progress, wherever 
 he has lived has kept in the front rank. No 
 more pleasant hour can be passed than in lis- 
 tening to the reminiscences of Mr. House, who 
 has witnessed the wonderful changes that in 
 the last half century have been wrought in all 
 lines of industry and science, bringing the At- 
 lantic and Pacific shores into close contact, and 
 placing both in touch with all parts of the earth. 
 Within his remembrance the rude trails and 
 foot-paths have developed into broad, well-trav- 
 eled thoroughfares ; dense forests and waste 
 prairies and deserts have blossomed into large, 
 well-tilled fields of hay and grain; modern ma- 
 chinery has replaced the rude implements for- 
 merly used on the farm and in the house, the 
 combined harvester taking the place of the sickle 
 and cradle, and the immense cotton and woolen 
 factories rendering useless the old spinning 
 wheel and hand loom. From the home-made 
 candle dip to the evolution of the electric light 
 plant has been but a few short steps, while our 
 
 superior system of railway communication, our 
 telegraph, telephone and postal facilities have 
 added an important impetus to the growth, pop- 
 ulation, wealth and intelligence of the country, 
 and given us close connection with the entire 
 nation. Of pioneer ancestry, Mr. House was 
 born, February 2, 1823, in Edgar county. 111., 
 a son of John House. His grandfather, John 
 Joseph Anderson House, a Virginian by birth, 
 served in the Revolutionary war, after which he 
 settled in Ohio, where he cleared and improved 
 a farm, on which he resided until his death. 
 
 Born on the Ohio homestead, John House 
 spent his earlier years in his native state. In 
 1819 he removed to Edgar county, 111., locating 
 eight miles from Paris. Engaging in river pur- 
 suits, he did a good deal of trading in New Or- 
 leans, taking produce down the Mississippi in 
 flat boats. On one occasion the children remem- 
 ber that he brought back calico enough to make 
 his wife a dress, paying six bits, or seventy-five 
 cents, per yard for it, that being the first piece 
 of calico the family had ever seen. On one of 
 his trips, he died of cholera in New Orleans. He 
 married Margaret Foster, who was born in Ken- 
 tucky, a daughter of Thomas Foster. Mr. Fos- 
 ter was born of Scotch-Irish ancestors, in Penn- 
 sylvania. He settled first in Kentucky, from 
 there removing, in 1819, to Edgar county. 111., 
 becoming a pioneer farmer of that place. He 
 served in the war of 1812. In 1836 he migrated 
 with his family to Missouri, and there spent his 
 remaining years. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Catherine Harbaugh, was of German de- 
 scent. After Mr. Foster's death, Mrs. Foster 
 returned to Illinois, where she subsequently 
 passed the remainder of her life. Mrs. House 
 survived her husband, and married in due course 
 of time Thomas Martin, of Indiana, with whom, 
 in 1839, she removed to Missouri, where both 
 resided until their deaths, hers occurring when 
 she was seventy-eight years of age. Eight chil- 
 dren, all boys, blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 John House, and of them we make the following 
 mention; Thomas, the subject of this sketch; Jo- 
 seph Anderson, a soldier in the Mexican war, 
 died in Gilroy, Cal. ; Samuel, who lost his health 
 while in the Mexican war, died soon after its 
 close in Edgar county. 111. ; Ezekiel is a farmer 
 near Gilroy, Cal. ; John, who served in a Mis- 
 souri regiment in the Union Army during the 
 Civil war, died in Texas ; Francis Marion, now 
 operating a small ranch near Traver, Cal., ren- 
 dered the Union brave service during the Civil 
 war as a member of the Twelfth Missouri Cav- 
 alry, in which he enlisted in 'spite of a lameness 
 caused by hip disease that was brought on from 
 abuse by the people to whom he was bound out 
 after his father's death ; Emanuel died near Gil- 
 roy, Cal. ; and Arthur died in Ray county. Mo., 
 
HISTORICAL Ax\D BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 919 
 
 in 1866. Arthur, the youngest son, served in 
 the Union Army during the Civil war, belonging 
 to the Eighth Kansas Volunteer Infantry. On 
 one occasion, while he and a comrade, George 
 Metcaif, were home on a furlough, the rebels 
 hounded them, and finally sent for them to come 
 out of the house. The two brave boys came 
 out back to back, and as soon as they appeared 
 the rebels began firing, Metcaif returning the 
 first shot. The horses becoming frightened, 
 turned about, thus giving Arthur House an op- 
 portunity to take better aim at his assailant, 
 whom he killed. George Metcaif put nine buck- 
 shot into one of the rebel's shoulders. The boys 
 fought their way through the rebel line, and in 
 their stocking feet, reached a camp of state 
 militia. Soon afterward the militia was at- 
 tacked by Bill Anderson and his followers near 
 Richmond, Mo., and these boys were in the 
 thickest of the fight. Arthur was lying upon the 
 ground when he saw Bill Anderson aim at Met- 
 caif. Seizing his musket, Arthur House fired, 
 and Bill Anderson, who at the time had the 
 scalps of seventeen white men on his bridle, fell 
 from his horse dead. Arthur never told this tale 
 until lying on his death-bed, fearing that his 
 mother and sister might be made to suffer for the 
 act. 
 
 When a boy Thomas House obtained his first 
 knowledge of the three "R's" in the rude log 
 schoolhouse, with its dirt floor and slab benches, 
 but acquired the greater part of his education 
 after his marriage by reading. In November, 
 1839, he went with the family to Ray county. 
 Mo., moving across the country with teams. 
 He subsequently worked for two years at the 
 blacksmith's trade, after which he located in 
 Carroll county, near Norborne, where he car- 
 ried on farming for many years. Possessing 
 great physical strength and endurance, Mr. 
 House did many a hard day's work. On the 
 day that Lincohi was inaugurated he broke four 
 hundred poands of hemp, which was four times 
 the amount expected of a slave, and he at one 
 time mauled and split four hundred and thirty- 
 five ten-foot rails in one day. In those pioneer 
 times produce of all kinds was very cheap. In 
 1842 and 1843 bacon was hauled to the Mis- 
 souri river and sold for one and one-fourth 
 cents per pound; it took six bushels of corn to 
 buy a yard of calico; forty bushels of wheat to 
 purchase a pair of boots; while sheep sold for 
 $1.50 a dozen. Each merchant in those days 
 had a list of all the banks, and the value of wild 
 cat money was kept. This bank list was re- 
 viewed from time to time, and was called a de- 
 tective. At one time Mr. House received sever- 
 al months pay for labor, but before he could get 
 to town to purchase the clothes, boots and pro- 
 visions that he really required the money was 
 
 worthless, the bank which issued it having be- 
 come defunct. 
 
 An outspoken Union man, Mr. House enlisted 
 at Chillicothe, Mo., July 17, 1861, in Company 
 D of the famous Merrill's Horse. Later on 
 January 8, 1864, he re-enlisted as a veteran at 
 Brownville, in the same company and regiment. 
 He took part in many different battles and skir- 
 mishes, and followed the bushwhackers through 
 Missouri and Arkansas. He was in the battle 
 at Little Rock, and at Mer de Changnes when 
 Marmaduke and Cabell were captured. Gen. 
 John McNeil had given the command to "trot, 
 gallop, gallop like hell." Besides capturing 
 Generals Marmaduke and Cabell they took nine 
 cannons and twenty-two hundred prisoners. 
 Mr. House served until the close of the war, 
 when he was discharged as sergeant of his com- 
 pany. Prior to the breaking out of hostilities 
 he had two hundred acres of land, and at the 
 end he had but eighty acres, and was in debt 
 for that. He suffered a good deal during the 
 war from the southern sympathizers. At one 
 time the rebels threatened to burn out his fam- 
 ily, but Mr. House sent word in a letter to them 
 through his family physician, whO' was a rebel, 
 that if such a thing was attempted he would 
 sweep the valley, kaving not one of their houses 
 standing, as he had Colonel Merrill's permission 
 to pick out fifteen men to help him do it. The 
 rebels knowing full well that Thomas House 
 would do as he promised left him and his family 
 unmolested. 
 
 Leaving Missouri in 1881 Mr. House came 
 to California, locating in Hanford, on April i. 
 Subsequently buying land on the San Joaquin 
 river, in Fresno county, two and one-half miles 
 south of the San Joaquin power house, he im- 
 proved a fine ranch, which is well located, being 
 two thousand, five hundred feet above the sea. 
 Since 1902 Mr. House has rented this ranch, 
 and has made his home with his daughter, Mrs. 
 Fox. 
 
 Mr. House married first, in Norborne, Mo., 
 Hannah Coleman, who was born in Ray county. 
 Mo., and died in Carroll county. Mo. She bore 
 him four children, one of whom is living, Jo- 
 seph A. House. September 12, 1854, in Ray 
 county, Mo., he married for his second wife 
 Sarah Ann Clark, a daughter of John Clark, 
 who was born in Pennsjdvania, and died in Mis- 
 souri. She died on the home ranch, in Tulare 
 county, CaL, in September, 1891, aged fifty- 
 eight years. By this marriage Mr. House has 
 five children, of whom we mention the following : 
 Georgia A- married, April 17, 1873, John Fox, 
 who was born near Norborne, Mo., a son of 
 John and Elizabeth (Tiner) Fox, and is now 
 employed in agricultural pursuits in Tulare 
 county, his ranch of one hundred and thirty- 
 
920 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 four and one-half acres lying four miles south- 
 west of Dinuba; Mrs. Mary Beaty, lives near 
 Sanger, Cal. ; Mrs. Fannie Caeser, lives near 
 Reedley; Mrs. Emeline Root is a resident of 
 Sanger; and Mrs. Caroline Dailey resides in 
 Coalinga, Cal. A man of true Christian piety 
 and devotion, Mr. House united with the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church in January, 1844, and 
 has since been a consistent member, as was his 
 wife during her life. He was a charter mem- 
 ber of McPherson Post, G. A. R., and now be- 
 longs to the Dick Yates Post, G. A. R. Politi- 
 cally he was a Whig until the formation of the 
 Republican party, and has since been one of its 
 most zealous supporters. He has cast his vote 
 for the presidential candidates in the oxder 
 named, voting first for Clay, then Taylor, Scott, 
 Fremont, Lincoln, Lincoln, Grant, Grant, Hayes, 
 Garfield and Arthur, Blaine, Harrison, Harrison, 
 McKinley, McKinley and Roosevelt, and lastly 
 for Roosevelt. 
 
 FRANKLIN WILLIAMS. For more than 
 half a century a resident of California, Franklin 
 Williams, a well-known horticulturist, living 
 three miles southeast of Dinuba, is a worthy repre- 
 sentative of the early pioneers of the state, and 
 in the development arid promotion of its indus- 
 trial and agricultural prosperity has been active 
 and influential. In his career he has been finan- 
 cially prosperous, acquiring a comfortable com- 
 petency, and as an intelligent, honorable and well- 
 disposed citizen has won the regard and respect 
 of his neighbors and friends. A son of Jedediah 
 Williams, he was born, February 22, 1830, in 
 Jackson county. Mo., near Independence. His 
 grandfather, Thomas Williams, a Virginian by 
 birth and breeding, served in the war of 1812. 
 He afterward farmed for a few years in Ten- 
 nessee, from there removing to Missouri. In 
 ■1853 he started with the family across the plains 
 for California, via the Carson route, going as 
 far as Summit, where he was taken ill, and died 
 very suddenly, being then seventy-six years old. 
 
 Born in Tennessee, Jedediah Williams went 
 with the family to Missouri, and for several years 
 was employed in general farming in Jackson 
 county. In 1853 he came with a large party to 
 California, crossing the plains with oxen, and 
 located in Solano county, near Vacaville, where 
 he was in business as a stock-raiser and dealer 
 until his death. He married Mary G. Lewis, who 
 was born in North Carolina, and died in Solano 
 county, Cal. They became the parents of thir- 
 teen children, all of whom grew to years of ma- 
 turity, became residents of California, and of 
 these four are now living. 
 
 The third child of his parents, Franklin Will- 
 iams was brought up on a farm, and while young 
 
 attended the subscription school held in the little 
 log house with its puncheon floor and slab 
 benches. At the age of nineteen years, he and 
 his brother Jefferson, now a resident of Santa 
 Ana, were seized by the gold fever then epidemic 
 throughout the country, and started for Cal- 
 ifornia, joining a company in which were two 
 of their cousins, Richard Lewis and Joshua 
 Lewis. The wagons were drawn by oxen, four 
 yoke to each, and there were besides three driv- 
 ing horses. This train, the noted Hedgepath 
 train, well provisioned, left Missouri April 24, 
 1849, followed the old trail, taking the Sublette 
 cut-off, traveling through Goose Lake country, 
 and arriving in California on September 15, 
 
 1849. Going directly to Placerville, Mr. Will- 
 iams worked in the mines until the spring of 
 
 1850, when he went to Downieville to try his 
 luck. From there he proceeded to Nevada City, 
 where he continued mining for awhile. In 1851, 
 having been successful, he returned east by way 
 of Panama, and in 1852 came back across the 
 plains with a large drove of cattle. Disposing 
 of these at an advantage, he made another trip 
 to the east, going, in February, 1853, by way of 
 Panama, and th^ following April piloted his 
 father across the plains, coming by the same old 
 route, and locating in Solano county, about four 
 miles from Vacaville, where he had previously 
 purchased a ranch. 
 
 In the fall of 1853 Mr. WilHams journeyed 
 eastward by way of the Isthmus of Panama for 
 the third time, and on his return across the plains 
 with the inevitable ox team train, in April, 1854, 
 brought with him a bride, who for many years 
 presided over his household with rare skill and 
 ability. At that time Mr. Williams also drove 
 a large herd of cattle, but many of these he lost 
 while traveling through the alkali district. Set- 
 tling on his ranch, near Vacaville, he improved 
 the land, and for forty-one consecutive years was 
 there prosperously engaged in general farming 
 and stock-raising. Selling out in 1895, he bought 
 his present home farm, near Dinuba, having fifty- 
 five acres of choice land, which he devotes prin- 
 cipally to the culture of vines and fruits, hav- 
 ing a large vineyard and orchard. 
 
 Mr. Williams married first, February 17, 1854, 
 in Jackson county. Mo., Mary Jane Morgan, 
 who was born in Sangamon county, 111., and died 
 in Solano county, Cal. Six children were born 
 of their union, namely : Oliver Cromwell, en- 
 gaged in farming near Sultana; Rufus L., de- 
 ceased ; Cornelius E., of Vacaville ; Claudius, of 
 Dinuba ; Everett, of Vacaville ; and Eulalia, de- 
 ceased. For his second wife Mr. Williams mar- 
 ried, in Yolo county, Cal., Sarah Catherine Stark, 
 who was born in Hannibal, Mo., and came 
 across the plains with her father and family in 
 1853, he, Ambrose Stark, settling near Vaca- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 92J 
 
 ville. Mr. and Mrs. Williams have two children 
 born of their marriage, Raleigh F., at Berkeley, 
 attending the University of California ; and Wert, 
 a student in the San Francisco School of Phar- 
 macy. Politically Mr. Williams is a stanch 
 Democrat. Fraternally he belongs to the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, and is a member of 
 the California Pioneer Association of San Fran- 
 cisco. He is a prominent member of the Qiris- 
 tian Church, in which he is an elder, and for 
 many years was superintendent of its Sunday 
 School. 
 
 JAMES G. RUDDLE. The Merced River 
 Roller Mills, two and a half miles from Snelling, 
 are owned and operated by James ■ G. Ruddle, 
 one of the popular and successful farmers and 
 millers of this section. He was born in Merced 
 county January 7, 1862, and represents one of 
 the pioneer families of '49. His parents, John 
 and Anna E. (Hardwick) Ruddle, came from 
 Missouri during that memorable year, the father 
 attaining to prominence as an agriculturist and 
 stock-raiser, and accumulating a competence 
 which enables him to live a comfortable retired 
 life. 
 
 James G. Ruddle has spent his entire life on a 
 farm, and has been independent of the paternal 
 resources since completing his education in the 
 public school of Merced county. His commodi- 
 ous house is located on a hill above the Merced 
 river, from which one can gain a view of this 
 entire part of the valley. He owns four thou- 
 sand acres devoted to stock and grain, and his 
 mill, fitted with modern, roller machinery, has a 
 daily output of one hundred barrels. Mr. Rud- 
 dle has" the latest and most practical improve- 
 ments on his farm, and mill and farm constitute 
 one of the finest and most paying combinations 
 in Merced county. He installed the electric light 
 plant at Merced Falls,- the first water povrer 
 plant in the county, and was one of the organiz- 
 ers of the Merced Falls Electric Company. Since 
 his boyhood days he has been a constant and 
 hard worker, careful and conscientious in the 
 performance of whatever tasks came his way. 
 Generous and public-spirited, his interests have 
 by no means been confined within the borders of 
 his valuable property, but have extended to the 
 political and general upbuilding of his native 
 county, and have brought him the good-will and 
 appreciation of his fellow townsmen. 
 
 Mr. Ruddle is an honored member of the 
 Knights of Pythias Lodge, and in politics is a 
 Democrat. He married into another pioneer 
 family of the coast, his wife being Annette, 
 daughter of John Stockard, a California settler 
 of 1852. The children of the Ruddle household 
 are: John, Allen, Edwin, Annette and Alice. 
 
 HENRY FURTNEY, M. D. Since iJ 
 Dr. Furtney has been a resident of Tulare 
 county and has built up a liberal patronage 
 among the citizens. He was born in Lee 
 county, Iowa, November 4, 1856, the young- 
 est in a family of seven children, five of whom 
 are living, three in California. His parents, 
 George and Margaret (Shettler) Furtney, were 
 both natives of Pennsylvania, who settled in 
 Iowa in 1845, where the father engaged as a 
 blacksmith and farmer and in which state the 
 death of both occurred. Henry Furtney was 
 reared to young manhood upon the paternal 
 farm in Lee county, attending the district 
 schools while he also engaged in farming pur- 
 suits. On deciding to take up a profession he 
 studied medicine with Dr. C. F. Wahrer, of 
 Mt. Hamill, Iowa. Later entering the College 
 of Physicians and Surgeons, in Keokuk, Iowa, 
 he was graduated from the same in March, 
 1888, with the degree of M. D. Starting at 
 once for California he located first in Orosi, 
 Tulare county, where he engaged in a practice 
 of medicine and surgery for the period of three 
 years. In March of 1891 he removed to Di- 
 nuba and with the exception of nine months 
 spent in Alaska, where he prospected and 
 mined, going there in the spring of 1898, he 
 has made this place the scene of his labors 
 ever since. In 1900 he went to San Francisco 
 and in the College of Physicians and Surgeons 
 took a seven months' course in post-graduate 
 work, hospital, etc. He is well posted on every 
 branch of his profession, keeping w^ll abreast 
 of the times, and thoroughly in touch with 
 every advance made in the science of medicine 
 or surgery. 
 
 Dr. Eurtney has been married twice, the first 
 ceremony being performed in Lee county 
 Iowa, March 4, 1885, and uniting him with 
 Mary Brown, a native of that county. She 
 died in Orosi, leaving two children, Lester 
 and Edna. She was a member of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church and was an active worker 
 in all its branches. The doctor was married 
 December 16, 1894, to Mrs. Mattie J. Shoe- 
 make, a native of Iowa, and her death occurred 
 in Dinuba June 13, 1898. She was a member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and at 
 the time of her death was serving as noble 
 grand of Rebekah Lodge No. 203. The doctor 
 has been a member of the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows for twenty years, joining the 
 order in Mt. Hamill Lodge, Iowa. He is now 
 a charter member of Dinuba Lodge No. 381, of 
 which he is past grand, having served for two 
 terms, and has also served as district deputy 
 grand master. He is also identified with the 
 Rebekahs ; Woodmen of the World, of which 
 
9M 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD, 
 
 he is examining pliysician; Women of Wood- 
 craft, in which he is also examining physician ; 
 and Fraternal Brotherhood. In the line of 
 his profession he belongs to the San Joaquin 
 Valley Medical Society, of which he is second 
 vice-president. He is "a member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, and politically is a 
 stanch Republican. 
 
 STEPHEN Q. SIMPSON. Prominent in the 
 annals of Tulare county are the representative 
 business men, among whom Stephen Q. Simp- 
 son, a wide-awake, enterprising merchant of 
 Monson and the postmaster of this place, holds 
 an honored position. He is a man of worth 
 and promise, exemplary in his habits, strictly 
 upright in his dealings with his fellow-men, and 
 is deservedly esteemed and respected through- 
 out the community. A son of John Crittenden 
 Simpson, he was born August 12, 1871, in Scot- 
 land county, Mo., near Memphis. His grand- 
 father, James Simpson, a native of North Caro- 
 lina, settled as a pioneer of Greene county, Tenn., 
 and after farming there for a time removed with 
 his family to Scotland county. Mo., where he 
 spent his declining years. 
 
 Born in Greene county, Tenn., John Critten- 
 den Simpson accompanied the family to Mis- 
 souri, where, following in the footsteps of his 
 progenitors, he engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
 clearing and improving a farm in Scotland 
 county. Taking advantage of the country being 
 opened up by agriculturists in California, he 
 came here' with his family in 1875, and for five 
 years lived at Mussel Slough, near old Grange- 
 ville. Locating on the plains in 1880, he took 
 up a homestead claim of one hundred and sixty 
 acres one-half mile south of Monson, built a 
 residence, made valuable improvements and be- 
 gan raising grain. Successful in his undertak- 
 ings, he has resided there since, and is now 
 largely engaged in stock raising and dairying. 
 Patriotic and energetic, he served in the state 
 militia while a resident of Missouri. He mar- 
 ried Sarah Hicks, who was born in Schuyler 
 county, Mo., a daughter of William Hicks and 
 a sister of Stephen Hicks, in whose sketch, 
 which may be found on another page of this 
 volume, further history of her parents and an- 
 cestors is given. Of the five children born of 
 their marriage, three are living, Stephen Q. 
 being the second in order of birth. 
 
 Passing the days of his boyhood and youth 
 in California, principally in the northern part 
 of Tulare county, Stephen Q. Simpson received 
 his elementary education in the Monson district 
 school, completing it at Washington College, in 
 Irvington, where he was graduated in 1892. For 
 five years thereafter he was actively employed 
 
 in agricultural pursuits in the vicinity of Mon- 
 son, meeting with reasonable success. Wishing 
 to change his occupation, he embarked in mer- 
 cantile pursuits in 1897, opening a store of gen- 
 eral merchandise in Monson, and has since built 
 up a large and lucrative trade, his store being 
 well stocked with a fine class of goods of all 
 the kinds usually found in an establishment of 
 that kind. In December, 1897, Mr. Simpson 
 was appointed postmaster by President McKin- 
 ley, and has since served most satisfactorily to 
 all concerned. 
 
 In Delano, Cal., November 16, 1899, Mr. 
 Simpson married Rachael Hubbard, who was 
 born in Yolo county, Cal, a daughter of Will- 
 iam and Nancy (McBride) Hubbard, both na- 
 tives of Ohio, her mother being a daughter of 
 the late Samuel McBride, who died in Califor- 
 nia. WiUiam Hubbard came across the plains 
 to California in 1864, with his father. Nelson 
 Hubbard. He engaged in farming, being first 
 located in Stanislaus county, then in Fresno 
 county. He subsequently bought land near De- 
 lano, Kern county, where he is carrying on gen- 
 eral farming and grain raising. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Hubbard became the parents of six children, all 
 of whom are living, Mrs. Simpson being the 
 third child. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Simpson two children have been born. Bertha 
 and Edna. Politically Mr. Simpson is a straight- 
 forward Republican, ever loyal to the interests 
 of his party. Religiously he and his wife are 
 active members of the Christian Church, in 
 which he is an elder, and the superintendent of 
 the Sunday-school. 
 
 ISAAC COX. Besides the priceless heritage 
 of a good name, and the example of work well 
 done, Isaac Cox left to Merced county three 
 sturd)' sons, who conduct his well-appointed 
 dairy, and maintain the kind of character and 
 efifort which has laid the foundation of the civiH- 
 zation of the west. Isaac Cox, one of the up- 
 builders of the western part of Merced county, 
 came of ruggtd English ancestry, and was born 
 October 11, 1845, in Cambridgeshire, on the 
 farm of his father, Williain Cox. He was edu- 
 cated in the national schools of England, and 
 came to America in 1865, locating in Wisconsin, 
 where he succeeded at fanning and stock-rais- 
 ing. His brother William Cox died after ex- 
 tended service in the Civil war. Another 
 brother, Daniel Cox, came to California about 
 i860, and resides in Pacific Grove. 
 
 Shortly after arriving in California in 1871, 
 Mr. Cox engaged in farming in Los Banos val- 
 ley. He later purchased eighty acres of land 
 now owned and occupied by his widow and sons, 
 and until starting his dairy made a specialty of 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 925 
 
 grain and stock. His death occurred January 
 12, 1903, in the fifty-eighth year of his age; his 
 passing from the field of activity which had 
 known him so well caused profound sorrow in 
 the hearts of his many friends. He was a man 
 of sterling worth, of great industry and 'practical 
 business shrewdness. A stanch upholder of 
 Republicanism, he never sought or was willing 
 to accept any office save that of school director. 
 He was fraternally connected with the Foresters. 
 Mrs. Cox, who is recognized as one of the 
 ideal women and mothers of the county, was 
 formerly Caroline Birchall, and was born in 
 Manchester, England, in 1849. Her father, 
 Joseph, and her mother, Sarali Ann (Ginn) 
 Birchall, were also born in England, the former 
 in Northampton, and the latter in Wakefield. 
 Joseph Birchall was a bookkeeper and expert 
 accountant, and his services were in demand in 
 several cities in England, his death occurring in 
 Leeds. Abram Ginn, the maternal grandfather 
 of Mrs. Cox, was an oldtime character in Wake- 
 field, and for many years owned and operated 
 a flouring mill in town. Mrs. Cox is the fourth 
 child in a family of nine children, seven of whom 
 are living, and is the only one in California. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Cox were married in Leeds, England, 
 April 19, 1881, while Mr. Cox was on a visit 
 to his home, and their married life was a par- 
 ticularly happy and contented one. With her 
 sons, William, Joe Benton and George W., she 
 manages her well tilled farm, superintends a 
 model dairy and raises fine stock and poultry. 
 Her white Leghorns are not only many but fa- 
 mous, and a considerable income is derived from 
 her extensive poultry operations. She is a genial 
 and sympathetic woman, and a devout member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Her sons 
 are men of high ideals, excellent morals, and 
 practical worth, and their standing in the com- 
 munity is unexcelled. 
 
 WILLIAM PIKE EACH-US. One of the 
 intelligent, extensive and prosperous agricultur- 
 ists of Merced county is Maj. William P. Eachus, 
 who owns and occupies a valuable homestead 
 near Ingomar. He is familiarly known as 
 Major, a title that was bestowed upon him while 
 he was journeying with a large company across 
 the plains, when he was but eighteen years old, 
 and by which he is still affectionately called. 
 A man of ability and strong individuality, he is 
 held in high esteem, and is in all respects a valu- 
 able citizen of the coiinty, fulfilling his duties 
 and obligations as such with fidelity. A son 
 of David Eachus, he was born March 13, 1849, 
 in Henry county, Iowa, where the earlier years 
 of his life were passed. 
 
 Born and educated in the Shenandoah valley, 
 
 in Virginia, David Eachus learned the miller's 
 trade in his native town, and subsequently fol- 
 lowed his chosen occupation in Cairo, 111., or 
 near there, for three years. Leaving the Prairie 
 state in 1847, he located at Deedsville, now 
 Merrimac, Iowa, on the Skunk river, where he 
 was employed as a miller for a number of years. 
 Coming across the plains to Tehama county, 
 Cal., in 1865, he operated a mill near Redbluff 
 for four years, and was afterward engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits during the remainder of 
 his active life. He lived to the ripe old age of 
 eighty-three years, dying at Brentwood, this 
 state. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary 
 Pike, was born in Tennessee, and also died at 
 Brentwood, at the age of eighty-two years. They 
 were the parents of eight children, four boys 
 and four girls, William Pike, the subject of this 
 sketch, being the third child. 
 
 Brought up in Iowa, William Pike Eachus 
 received a limited education in the common 
 schools, and in 1865 came with his parents to 
 California, following the wagon trail across the 
 plains. Beginning the battle of life on his own 
 account soon after coming to this state, he worked 
 as a farm laborer on different ranches in the 
 San Joaquin valley, at one time being employed 
 on the ranch that he now owns. Going from 
 there to Butte county, Major EachuS, as he was 
 always called, leased land near Oroville, and 
 was there successfully engaged in raising wheat 
 and barley for more than a score of years. Re- 
 turning to the San Joaquin valley in 1892, the 
 Major continued his agricultural operations with 
 characteristic skill and success. In 1903, with 
 the money that he had accumulated, he purchased 
 his present valuable ranch, lying in Ingomar, 
 about ten miles southwest of Newman, and is 
 pursuing his free and independent occupation 
 with excellent results. In his home farm he 
 has four hundred and eighty acres of fine land, 
 which he devotes to the culture of wheat and 
 barley, and also rents nine hundred and sixty 
 acres on Garzos creek for the same purpose, 
 raising large crops, which bring him in a good 
 annual income. 
 
 In Merced county, Cal., December 25, 1870, 
 Major Eachus married Sophia Jane Bradley, a 
 native of Contra Costa county, being the daugh- 
 ter of one of its earliest pioneer settlers, 
 Thomas Wesley Bradley. A native of Tennes- 
 see, Mr. Bradley migrated first as far west- 
 ward as Missouri, from there coming overland 
 to California in 1843. Locating first in Napa 
 county, he engaged in general farming and cattle 
 raising. Moving then to Contra Costa county, 
 he erected the first hotel in Martinez, and re- 
 mained as its landlord for many years. After 
 spending a short time in Lafayette, he came 
 from that county to the San Joaquin valley, 
 
926 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 locating near Newman, where he was engaged 
 in general farming until his death, which oc- 
 curred while he was visiting friends in Tulare 
 county. Of the union of Major and Mrs. Eachus 
 nine children have been born, one of whom, a 
 daughter, Gladys, died when young, and eight 
 are living, namely : Albert J., of Newman ; Maud, 
 wife of R. Trefts, of Newman; Harry B., at 
 home; Delia, wife of Leonard Ball, of Oroville; 
 Kittie, the wife of Louis- Pfitzer; Edward P., 
 at home ; Nola Butte and Ray, at home. Politi- 
 cally Major Eachus is an earnest advocate of 
 the principles of the Republican party, and 
 while a resident of Butte county served as school 
 director. 
 
 GEORGE HORACE RUSSELL. During the 
 cjuarter of a century that George Horace Russell 
 has been a resident of Tulare county, he has 
 been associated with its advancement, and has 
 watched with pride and pleasure the onward 
 march of progress and civilization throughout 
 its borders. He owns a fine orange grove near 
 Piano, his place of residence, and in the care 
 and management of his estate is meeting with 
 success. A son of the late Phillip James Rus- 
 sell, he was born, April 4," 1848, in Fremont, 
 Ohio. 
 
 Born in New York, Phillip James Russell was 
 brought up in Ohio, whither his parents removed 
 when he was a child. For several years he was 
 engaged in nautical pursuits, sailing on the 
 Great Lakes. Migrating with his family to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1874, he settled in Tulare county. Buy- 
 ing six hundred and forty acres of land near 
 White river, he was here engaged in cultivating 
 the soil until his death, in 1896, at the age of 
 three score and ten years. He married Sarah 
 Tilton, who was born in New Jersey, and now 
 resides in Piano, making her home with her 
 son George H., being a bright and active woman 
 of eighty years. Two children were born of 
 their union, George H., and John H., of Sac- 
 ramento. 
 
 After receiving a good common school educa- 
 tion in Ohio, George Horace Russell served an 
 apprenticeship at the carpenter's trade in Fre- 
 mont. In 1879 he came to California, and for 
 several years_ thereafter carried on a successful 
 business as a general merchant at Piano. Sell- 
 ing out in 1896, Mr. Russell purchased the Por- 
 tersville steam feed mill, in Portersville, and 
 having rebuilt and refurnished the plant, oper- 
 ated it successfully for seven years. In the sum- 
 mer of 1903 he gave the entire business to his 
 son, George E. Russell, as a wedding present, a 
 gift that was highly appreciated. Mr. Russell 
 owns a half-section of land along the foothills, 
 
 near Piano, and carries on general farming and 
 fruit growing, raising oranges especially, and in 
 his agricultural and horticultural undertakings 
 is quite prosperous. 
 
 Mr. Russell has been twice married. His first 
 marriage occurred in Wyandot county, Ohio, and 
 united him with Emma Tillison, who was born in 
 that state, and came with him to Piano. Being 
 taken ill here she returned to her old home in 
 Ohio, and died while visiting friends. Their only 
 child, Frank W., died when young. In Piano, 
 Cal., Mr. Russell married Permelia Sorrels, a 
 native of Eldorado county, Cal., and of this union 
 seven children have been born, namely : Ralph 
 Ray (engaged in farming with his father), 
 George Earl (proprietor of the Portersville Feed 
 Mill), Rosie, John, Philip Joseph, Frank and 
 Lillian. Politically Mr. Russell is one of the 
 leading Republicans of Piano, where for eight 
 years he served as postmaster, and was also 
 school trustee of the Vandalia district. Fra- 
 ternally he is a member of Portersville Camp, 
 W. O. W. In 1900 his residence was totally de- 
 stroyed by fire, but he soon rebuilt, and has now 
 a most pleasant and attractive home, where he 
 and his hospitable family delight in entertaining 
 their many friends and acquaintances. 
 
 WILLIAM M. MARLOW. Among the pro- 
 gressive farmers and fruit-growers who have 
 made a splendid record for successful work in 
 agricultural lines and who are an honor alike 
 to their county and their country as representa- 
 tives of the best class of citizens, we may ap- 
 propriately mention WiUiam M. Marlow, who 
 for the past nineteen years has been a resident 
 of Hanford district. Kings county, and one of 
 her most successful fruit-growers. Although 
 justly considered a pioneer of California, where 
 he located as early as 1859, it was not until 
 1885 that he came to Kings county, having de- 
 voted the early part of his residence in this state 
 to mining pursuits. In 1885 he purchased ten 
 acres of land at Grangeville, Kings county, all 
 planted to fruit, and until 1902 he devoted his 
 energies to fruit cylture, easily ranking among 
 the most successful fruit-growers in his locality. 
 Upon selling his place in that year,- he removed 
 to his present location in the Hanford district, 
 purchasing thirty-five acres of alfalfa land. Al- 
 though practically retired on account of poor 
 health, Mr. Marlow is still able to oversee the 
 work done on his place. 
 
 In tracing the ancestry of Mr. Marlow, we 
 find him to be a descendant of an old southern 
 family. His father, McKinsey Marlow, was 
 born in Virginia and spent his entire life within 
 the borders of that state in agricultural pur- 
 suits, dying at the advanced age of ninety years. 
 
J. W. \'AN BENSCHOTEX 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 929 
 
 It was in Pittsylvania county, Va., that William 
 M. Marlow was born April 14, 1832, spending 
 his boyhood days on his father's ranch, and 
 receiving his education in the subscription 
 schools. At the age of twenty-three he took 
 up the occupation of his father in his native lo- 
 cality, where until 1859 ^'^^ followed farming. 
 In that year he left home and went to Missouri, 
 but a few months later joined a party en route 
 to California and arriving in this state engaged 
 in mining pursuits in Gibsonville, Sierra coun- 
 ty, where for a period of ten years he was fairly 
 successful. 
 
 Returning to Missouri with the means which 
 he had accumulated, Mr. Marlow, with a part- 
 ner, built and conducted a distillery for about 
 a year. The venture proved an unprofitable one, 
 for, besides losing the distillery, Mr. Marlow lost 
 nearly all the money he had invested in the busi- 
 ness. Again turning his attention to farm pur- 
 suits, he gave his entire time to this calling for 
 fifteen, years, and once more success crowned 
 his efforts and he retrieved his lost fortune. 
 Selling out about 1885, he came to California, 
 as previously mentioned, and the farm which is 
 his home to-day is worth perhaps $300 per acre 
 and adjoins the city limits. By his marriage in 
 Missouri Mr. Marlow was united with Polly 
 Ann Gaer, who was born in Iowa, and they have 
 one son, Claude. In his political inclinations 
 Mr. Marlow has ever been a stanch Republican, 
 but he has never possessed any political aspira- 
 tions. Fraternally he is a valued member of 
 Lemoore Lodge No. 255, F. & A. M., and as a 
 citizen he is highly esteemed in his community. 
 
 JOHN WESLEY VAN BENSCHOTEN. 
 The name of John Wesley Van Benschoten must 
 ever be enrolled with the comparatively few 
 brave men who founded towns and started com- 
 munities on the western slope. As the owner 
 of the land which he eventually laid out for 
 the convenience of settlers in 1850, and as the 
 erector of its first public and other buildings at 
 great cost and personal sacrifice, he stands forth 
 as the father of Grayson, now the center of edu- 
 cational, commercial and industrial promise. 
 His services on the coast, however, antedate 
 this historical occurrence, for he came here in 
 1846 with the noted explorer, general and poli- 
 tician, John Charles Fremont, surnamed the 
 Pathfinder, in the capacity of meat supply for 
 the United States troops. To do this he left 
 a lucrative butchering" business in New York 
 City, and undoubtedly regarded his contract as 
 a temporary one, leading to temporary associa- 
 tion with the untutored west. 
 
 The meat tradesman was evidently a man of 
 discernment, for he tarried when his government 
 
 task was done, and for some time operated a 
 pick in the gold mines near Jamestown. Before 
 Grayson was ever thought of he came here from 
 Stockton, purchased a large ranch, and in time 
 recognized its adaptability to community inter- 
 ests. After it was laid out he named it after 
 General Grayson, a personal friend, and pro- 
 ceeded to erect the first hotel from materials 
 which he had sent around the Horn from New 
 York at great expense and inconvenience. As a 
 farmer he was prominent and influential, re- 
 taining for his own all but the land comprising 
 the town site, and operating extensively in grain 
 and cattle. His death, in January, 1886, at the 
 age of seventy, was as regrettable as it was un- 
 timely and tragic, for he was drowned in the 
 San Joaquin river while crossing the ferry, 
 through losing his balance. He left a wife to 
 mourn his loss, and was followed to his last 
 resting place by an army of friends and loyal 
 associates. He married in San Francisco, in 
 September, 1872, Mrs. Mary A. (Cameron) 
 Gunn, who was born in Picton, Nova Scotia, 
 and who came to the United States when 
 eighteen years old, settling with a sister in 
 Providence, R. I. While there Miss Cjimeron 
 became the wife of John G. Gunn, who came 
 to California in 1851, settling in the mining re- 
 gions, where his death occurred ere he had 
 realized a tithe of his ambitions. Mrs. Mary A. 
 Gunn, as she was then known, came to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1856, to visit her brother, Daniel L. 
 Mr. Van Benschoten was a member of 
 the Pioneer Association, and was identified 
 with the Masonic fraternity. With his wife he 
 found a religious home in the Presbyterian 
 Church. He was a man of strong convictions, 
 of great strength of character, and of impressive 
 and winning personality. He won the respect 
 of all men with whom he had aught to do, and 
 lived to realize finer expectations than his start 
 in life would seem to suggest. By a former 
 marriage he had one Son, Cliarles Wesley Van 
 Benschoten, who resides near his mother. He 
 married Mattie Belle Cameron, a native of 
 Ohio, and she is the mother of three children : 
 Madeline, John Wesley, and Irene. C. W. Van 
 Benschoten at one time owned six hundred and 
 forty acres of land upon which the town of 
 Grayson was laid out. 
 
 CLEMENT D. OLDERSHAW. The ranch 
 of C. D. 01dersha:w, located in the Greenfield 
 district, ten miles south of Bakersfield, Kern 
 county, is numbered among the model farms 
 of this section of country, the improvements 
 and cultivation which have made it so being 
 entirely the result of the efforts of its enter- 
 prising owner. When he purchased the prop- 
 
930 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 erty in 1898 there were no improvements of 
 any kind, and though thirty acres were under 
 the plow he has set out the fruit which since 
 that time has brought him so large an income. 
 Besides small fruits he is interested in bee 
 culture, having an apiary of two hundred colo- 
 nies, and in his various lines has met with a 
 success which rarely fails to attend concen- 
 trated effort. 
 
 In London, England, Mr. Oldershaw was 
 born October 24, 1864, and in his native city 
 and the vicinity was reared and educated. His 
 father, Francis P. Oldershaw, an accountant 
 by occupation, was also a native of London, 
 and in that location his death occurred in 1870. 
 Until he was twenty years old Mr. Oldershaw 
 remained at home, when he decided tO' emi- 
 grate, and taking passage for America he land- 
 ed in New York City March 22, 1885. Coming 
 direct to California he took up a homestead in 
 Antelope valley, Los Angeles county, where 
 he engaged in farming for some time. Dispos- 
 ing of that property he came to Kern county 
 in 1898, and as before mentioned purchased the 
 ranch upon which he has since made his home. 
 Eight acres of his ranch are devoted to small 
 fruits, and the remaining twenty-two acres 
 are devoted to general farming. His ranch 
 is entirely level, and being located on the 
 Kern Island canal he can irrigate every foot of 
 the land. 
 
 In 1898 Mr. Oldershaw married Miss Anna 
 Long, a native of Ireland, and they are the par- 
 ents of the following children : Minna, Basil 
 and Percy. In national politics a Democrat 
 Mr. Oldershaw reserves the right to cast his 
 ballot for that man whom he knows to be best 
 equipped for official service in all local affairs. 
 Fraternally he is identified with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen and the Woodmen 
 of the World. 
 
 EDWARD ROSCOE HOLTON. Although 
 for more than half a century a resident of Cal- 
 ifornia, where he located as early as 1852, it was 
 many years later when Mr. Holton removed to 
 his present home in Selma, Fresno county, and 
 during this time he has followed successively 
 the occupation of a miner, a carpenter, a farmer 
 and a fruit-grower, and in placing before the 
 public a review of his life history, we but re- 
 late briefly the story of his individual success, 
 particularly in and about Selma, with its many 
 resources and wonderful opportunities for the 
 newcomer. He is a descendant of a worthy 
 Vermont family. The father of E. R. Holton 
 was born in Brattleboro, Vt., and was by trade 
 a carpenter and builder, being quite an expert 
 at this business. Removing west to Illinois 
 
 in early manhood he married and his wife died 
 there a few years later, leaving four sons. Of 
 these sons, the youngest but one was Edward 
 Roscoe, who was but four years old at the time 
 of her death. He was born in Tazewell county, 
 III, March 4, 1837. Some time after the death 
 of his first wife, the father married Mrs. Lizzie 
 Moody, and of this union two children were 
 born, one son and one daughter. In 1852 the 
 family became a part of Captain Barber's immi- 
 gration train en route to California, the trip be- 
 ing made overland with ox teams. Six or eight 
 yoke of oxen were hitched to each wagon, and 
 after a six months' journey the party arrived 
 safely at Marysville, Cal. After a six months' 
 stay in this place they pushed on to Martinez, 
 in Contra Costa county, which was their home 
 for one year. Their next location was Wiscon- 
 sin Hill, in Placer county, where the father fol- 
 lowed mining pursuits with fair success until 
 1856. He then purchased land in Yolo county 
 near Cache creek, at what is now Madison, and 
 spent the latter vears of his life there, dying in 
 1868. 
 
 Edward Roscoe Holton received but little 
 schooling in his boyhood days, attending school 
 but six months in Tazewell county. 111. He 
 learned the carpenter's trade of his father, and 
 after the removal of the family to CaHfornia, 
 he followed mining for awhile, and while en- 
 gaged in this manner, he had a number of thrill- 
 ing experiences. Upon one occasion in 1856, in 
 Placer county, while working in an open cut 
 fifteen feet, deep, with another man, the side 
 caved in and Mr. Holton was buried under four 
 feet of debris; the other man went for assist- 
 ance and he was dug out, but at first was sup- 
 posed to be dead, as he was unconscious. In 
 relating his experience Mr. Holton testifies that 
 he thinks death in this manner is singularly free 
 from pain. In 1879 while Mr. Holton was a 
 passenger on the steamship The Great Republic, 
 bound from San Francisco to Portland, Ore., 
 the steamer foundered on a sandbar at the 
 mouth of the Columbia river, and in reaching 
 land in a lifeboat he had a narrow escape from 
 death. 
 
 Inheriting from his father one-half section 
 of land in Yolo county, Mr. Holton removed to 
 this place, continuing to remain there until 1879. 
 He then went to Berkeley, Cal., and followed 
 carpenter work there for a time. It was in 1880 
 that he first became interested in farming pur- 
 suits in Fresno county, purchasing a quarter 
 section of land near Wild Flower, in the vicinity 
 of Selma. Putting out a forty acre vineyard, 
 he returned to Berkeley for a time but subse- 
 quently moved upon his place with his family 
 and carried on farm pursuits for a number of 
 years. Having purchased a thirteen acre tract, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 931 
 
 half of which js in the town limits of Selma, 
 Mr. Holton removed to this place March 4, 
 1902, and still resides here, and he has seven 
 acres of this tract in orchards. He still retains 
 the ownership of his farm at Wild Flower, 
 which has been added to until it now contains 
 three hundred and twenty acres, which he 
 leases. Although well advanced in years, Mr. 
 Holton, besides caring for his place, does car- 
 penter work to some extent. By his marriage 
 in Napa valley, Cal., he was joined in matri- 
 mony with Sarah Owsley, who was born in that 
 vicinity in 1849. They have reared a family of 
 three children, one son and two daughters. 
 They are Charles Roscoe, an attorney-at-law in 
 San Francisco; Nellie, the wife of W. E. 
 Walker, of Selma; and Grace, who lives at 
 home with her parents. Mr. Holton is a Repub- 
 lican in his political views, but not very active. 
 Fraternally he is a valued member of the Grange 
 society, and of the Good Templars. 
 
 ELIJAH HENRY PERKINS. The earliest 
 recollections of Mr. Perkins are associated with 
 frontier scenes in California, for he was only two 
 years of age when in 1852 the family left their 
 Missouri home and traveled across the plains in 
 a wagon drawn by oxen, arriving in Contra Costa 
 county after a tedious journey of six months. 
 Now, by virtue of large landed possessions, high 
 principles of honor and progressive spirit, he 
 ranks among the leading farmers of Tulare coun- 
 ty, where he makes his home two miles south 
 of Dinuba, in a residence erected under his su- 
 pervision in 1901 and on a farm of fifty acres 
 largely in alfalfa. A native of Missouri, he was 
 born April 20, 1850, being a son of S. D. and 
 Susan E. (Asherbraner) Perkins, natives of Mis- 
 souri. The Perkins family was established in 
 Missouri by his grandfather, Jacob Perkins, a 
 Kentuckian by birth, but for many years and un- 
 til death a resident of Missouri. After his demise 
 his widow, who was Sarah Bollinger of Ken- 
 tucky, came to California and continued in this 
 state until her death at seventy-five years. 
 
 Agricultural pursuits and merchandising oc- 
 cupied the attention of S. D. Perkins in his native 
 county of Stoddard, but when the tide of emigra- 
 tion began to drift toward the gold-mines of 
 California he decided to try his fortunes on the 
 Pacific coast. Accompanied by his family, in 
 1852 he made the long journey across mountains 
 and over deserts until finally he landed at Kirk's 
 Pass, ten miles from Martinez, where he made 
 his first stopping place. His tastes did not lie in 
 the direction of mining and he turned to agri- 
 culture as a more congenial occupation. For a 
 time he experimented with farm pursuits in Mor- 
 gan Canon. During one winter he killed eight 
 
 large grizzly bears on Mount Diablo, and other 
 wild animals also abounded. In 1859 he estab- 
 lished his home in the San Ramon valley and at 
 the same time brought his cattle to the range on 
 the Tule river in Tulare county. In 1863 he 
 moved to Lake county. The drought of 1864 
 caused the loss of his entire herd of cattle, and 
 he then opened a general store in a brick build- 
 ing at Yountville, Napa county. 
 
 After a short sojourn in Los Angeles, during 
 the fall of 1868, S. D. Perkins followed the old 
 Soledad trail to the Tule river and bought land 
 three miles below Portersville. In 1871 he sold 
 his two farms there and removed to San Ber- 
 nardino county, but in 1872 went to Ventura 
 county and the next year returned to the foot- 
 hills of Tulare county, and bought a farm near 
 Auckland in Wilcox Canon. There he died in 
 1882 at the age of fifty-eight years. His wife 
 survived him until 1902, dying at Visalia, aged 
 sixty years. They were the parents of two 
 sons and four daughters and of these one son 
 and two daughters are now living. The eldest 
 of the family, Elijah Henry, was, as previously 
 stated, only two years of age when the family 
 settled in California. Upon starting to school in 
 Contra Costa count)-, he had the only book 
 among all the pupils, this having been brought 
 from the east by his parents. Rather from ob- 
 servation than from the study of text-books he 
 has acquired a broad fund of information, which 
 gives added value to his citizenship. In 1873 he 
 came with his father to Tulare county and set- 
 tled in Wilcox Canon, where he engaged in rais- 
 ing grain and stock. After the death of his fath- 
 er he purchased the interests of the other heirs 
 in the estate, and by subsequent purchases has 
 added to the original property until he now owns 
 two thousand acres in one ranch, situated four- 
 teen miles east of Dinuba. The land is improved 
 with the necessary buildings and is in excellent 
 condition under his keen supervision. For 
 twenty-six years or more he has operated a 
 threshing machine and during that time has worn 
 out three separators and steam engines. Now, as 
 in past years, a specialty is made of the stock 
 business, although grain is also raised on a con- 
 siderable acreage. While he still superintends 
 this property, since 1901 he has made his home 
 on his small farm near Dinuba. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Per}<ins was solem- 
 nized in Tulare county and united him with Miss 
 Mary Rutherford, who was born in Sacramento 
 county and died on the home farm in Wilcox 
 Canon. Six sons and one daughter were born 
 of this union, five of whom are living, namely : 
 W. H., who is engaged in the real-estate business 
 at Dinuba; E. O., who lives on the home ranch 
 in Wilcox Canon; Forest C, a real estate agent 
 in Visalia ; Ross L. and Burt, who are with their 
 
932 
 
 HISTORICAL Ax\D BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 father. At Visalia, February i, 1896, occurred 
 the marriage of Mr. Perkins and Miss Mary L. 
 Osborn, who was born in that city in December, 
 1868, and was next to the eldest among ten chil- 
 dren, six of whom are now living. Her father, 
 William T. Osborn, was born in South Carolina 
 and reared in Georgia, where his father, Jesse, 
 followed farm pursuits. During the eventful 
 year 1849 he crossed the plains and settled in 
 California. While Tulare county still had few 
 inhabitants he engaged in the saw-mill and lum- 
 ber business here, and for eight years served as 
 a supervisor of this county. His death occurred 
 in Isham valley, where he owned a stock farm. 
 Surviving him, and residing at the old home in 
 Visalia, is his widow, who was Lavenia Smith, 
 a native of West Virginia, and an orphan from 
 the age of seventeen years. Her father, John 
 Smith, was born and reared in Germany, and 
 came to America at an early age, settling in 
 West Virginia, where he died. Mrs. Perkins 
 was reared in Isham valley and attended the 
 Visalia Normal, also was a student in the San 
 Jose State Normal until the senior year. A 
 lady of excellent education and culture, she 
 stands high in the Woman's Club of Dinuba and 
 in other social organizations with which she is 
 identified. Of her marriage, there is one son, 
 Clarence Osborn. In politics Mr. Perkins gives 
 his support to the Democratic party. Interested 
 in securing educational advantages for the 
 young, he helped to organize the Elder school 
 district, gave the land on which the schoolhouse 
 was built, and for seventeen or more years offi- 
 ciated as director of the school. In other ways 
 he has proved a valuable citizen to his county, 
 where for so many years he has been actively and 
 successfully connected with local agricultural in- 
 terests. 
 
 WILLIAM E. BURCH. Ranking high 
 among the energetic and substantial citizens of 
 Merced County is W. E. Burch, who, as manager 
 for Miller & Lux, of the Los Banos Lumber 
 Yards, is intimately associated with the indus- 
 trial and mercantile prosperity of this section 
 of the state. Wideawake and enterprising, ever 
 ready to take advantage of favorable opportuni- 
 ties for extending his operations, he has built 
 up a large and lucrative trade as a lumber dealer 
 and manufacturer, while as a grain merchant he 
 is carrying on a prosperous business. A Ken- 
 tuckian by birth'and breeding, he was born, De- 
 cember 25, 1866, in Nicholasville, Jessamine 
 county, which was likewise the birthplace of his 
 father, R. M. Burch. He comes of Revolution- 
 ary stock, his great-grandfather Burch, a pioneer 
 of Kentucky, having served in the grand strug- 
 gle for independence. His grandfather, Ezekiel 
 
 Burch, spent his entire life in Kentucky, being 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
 
 Soon after attaining his majority, R. M. 
 Burch settled as a merchant in Nicholasville, his 
 native city, and was there engaged in mercantile 
 business until 1899, for four years being govern- 
 ment storekeeper. During the Civil war he 
 served for a time as a soldier in the Federal 
 army. Now a hale and hearty man of three- 
 score years, he is engaged in farming in Nich- 
 olasville. He comes of Scotch-Irish ancestry, 
 and is a consistent member of the Christian 
 Church. He married Mattie Hill, who was born, 
 in 1850, in Nicholasville, Ky., a daughter of W. 
 S. Hill, who came from English ancestors. 
 W. S. Hill, and his father, William Hill, were 
 natives of Fayette county, Ky., and both re- 
 moved to Jessamine county, that state, where 
 they followed farming. W. S. Hill also worked 
 as a machinist, and during the Civil war served 
 in the Federal army, belonging to a Kentucky 
 regiment. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. R. M. 
 Burch, two children were born, namely : Mrs. 
 Nellie Camery, of Nicholasville, Ky., and W. E., 
 the special subject of this sketch. 
 
 Brought up in Nicholasville, Ky., W. E. 
 Burch acquired a practical education in the pub- 
 lic schools of that city. Striking out for him- 
 self when but fifteen years old, his inclinations 
 led him to try railroading, and for several years 
 he was an employe on the Cincinnati, New Or- 
 leans & Texas Pacific Railway, serving first as 
 fireman, and from 1886 until 1888 being station- 
 ary engineer. Giving up his position in the lat- 
 ter year, Mr. Burch came to California in search 
 of more congenial pursuits. Locating in Fresno, 
 he had charge of a vineyard in that place for 
 one year. He subsequently was employed in the 
 lumber business at Ben Lomond, after which he 
 resided for twelve months in Humboldt county. 
 Accepting a position with Miller & Lux in 1892, 
 Mr. Burch took charge of their lumber yard at 
 Los Banos, and in the years that have since in- 
 tervened has built up an immense business for 
 the firm. Under his judicious management the 
 trade of the Los Banos Lumber Yards has as- 
 sumed large proportions. The yards, which are 
 the largest retail yards in the San Joaquin val- 
 ley, were equipped with a new side-track in 1903, 
 and are well stocked with lumber of all kinds. In 
 1902 Mr. Burch erected a planing mill, and in 
 the shipping of its manufactures, which include 
 everything in planing-mill goods, he has a large 
 trade throughout the west. Mr. Burch is like- 
 wise manager of the grain business established 
 by Miller & Lux, and in its transaction has two 
 large warehouses, one 48x400 feet, in Los 
 Banos, and one 48x300 feet at Volta. 
 
 By dint of thrift and able business tact, Mr. 
 Burch has accumulated a good property. Ad- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 935 
 
 joining the city he has a productive ranch of ten 
 acres, which he devotes to the raising of alfalfa, 
 and on which he has a small apiary, in the care 
 of which he finds pleasure and profit. Here he 
 has a pleasant residence, in which he and his 
 family find great enjoyment, and gladly welcome 
 their many friends. 
 
 In Lexington, Ky., Mr. Burch married Sallie 
 Frost Dishman, who was born in that city, a 
 daughter of Addison Dishman. They have two 
 children, namely : Marguerite and William Ad- 
 dison. Politically Mr. Burch is a sound Repub- 
 lican. Fraternally he belongs to the Odd Fel- 
 lows and the Rebekahs. Mrs. Burch is a mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 JOSEPH LA MARCHE. The name La 
 Marche indicates the French extraction of the 
 family. Early in the nineteenth century they 
 were transplanted to Canadian soil, and John, 
 who was a son of the original immigrant, claimed 
 Ontario as his native land, enlisting from there 
 in 1837 as a MacKenzie supporter in the Canadian 
 rebellion. Joseph, son of John, was born near 
 Montreal, Canada, in 1823, and received better 
 educational advantages than usually fall to the 
 lot of the sons of pioneer farmers, being a gradu- 
 ate of a Canadian college. In early life a farm- 
 er at La Clinte Mills, he later turried his at- 
 tention to merchandising and at the same time 
 filled the office of magistrate. At the time of 
 his death in 1900 he had attained the age of sixty- 
 seven years. The lady whom he married bore 
 the maiden name of Julia La Mare and, while a 
 native of Ontario, like himself descended from 
 French ancestors, her paternal grandfather hav- 
 ing founded the family in Canada. Death claimed 
 her after seventy busy years. Of her thirteen chil- 
 dren all but three lived to inaturity and still 
 survive, the second of these being Joseph, an in- 
 fluential and prominent citizen of Tulare and the 
 only representative of the family on the Pacific 
 coast. On the home farm near Montreal, where 
 he was born March i, 1853, he passed the years 
 of early boyhood. The nearest school was five 
 miles distant, and thither he walked whenever 
 the weather permitted and the work of the farm 
 allowed sufficient leisure for study. 
 
 Leaving hoine at fourteen years of age Mr. La 
 Marche went to Upper Canada and engaged in 
 logging and lumbering on the Ottawa river, but 
 after a year returned on a raft to Quebec and 
 from there went to the Lake Superior region. 
 For two years he was employed at teaming in the 
 charcoal furnace region near Marquette. Dur- 
 ing 1871 he came west as far as Nevada and 
 followed teaming in the lumbering district near 
 Carson. The year 1874 found' him a resident 
 of California and he has since been a loyal citizen 
 
 46 
 
 of this state, enthusiastic in behalf of its op- 
 portunities and attributing to its openings for 
 prosperous work the success he has here experi- 
 enced. F'or three years he engaged as a ranch 
 hand near Princeton, Colusa county, and thus 
 earned an amount sufficient to enable him to un- 
 dertake independent farming. His first venture 
 was as a grain raiser on a rented farm. Upon 
 coming to Tulare county in 1883 he began as a 
 renter, but soon began to buy land and at this 
 writing 'owns about six thousand acres situated 
 seven miles southwest of Tulare. Of this tract 
 five hundred or more acres are under alfalfa and 
 the balance is utilized for grain ■ raising and 
 stock pasturage. The Tule and Elk bayou rivers 
 pass through the land, and further irrigation facil- 
 ities are furnished by the Elk bayou ditch, which 
 was constructed under his supervision as presi- 
 dent of the company. On his large ranch the 
 baling of hay is a special feature and every year 
 he ships hundreds of tons to the markets. In 
 stock he makes a specialty of graded Short- 
 horns and has altogether about eight hundred 
 head of cattle. 
 
 The management of his large landed posses- 
 sions by no means represents the limit of Mr. La 
 Marche's activities, for in addition he acts as a 
 director of the Bank of Tulare, the Rochdale 
 Company, the Tulare Creamery Company and the 
 Tulare Gas Company which furnishes the elec- 
 tricity used in lighting the streets and houses of 
 Tulare. Through his membership in the Tulare 
 Board of Trade he is connected with many enter- 
 prises for the commercial growth of the city. In 
 politics he favors Democratic principles and at 
 one time served on the county central com- 
 mittee of his party. While in Colusa county he 
 became identified with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows and since coming to Tulare he has 
 transferred ^his membership to the lodge at this 
 point, besides being active in the work of the 
 encampment. 
 
 Since establishing his home in Tulare, in 1898, 
 Mr. La Marche has owned and occupied a com- 
 fortable dwelling on West Inyo street. His fam- 
 ily consists of his wife and their two children, 
 Joseph (now a student in the Santa Clara Col- 
 lege) and Bernie. Mrs. La Marche bore the 
 maiden name of Mary Le Clert and was born at 
 Portsmouth, England, being a daughter of Theo- 
 dore and Mary (Simms) Le Clert, natives re- 
 spectively of France and England, and members 
 of old-established families of their respective 
 countries. When Mr. Le Qert settled in Eng- 
 land he followed the brick mason's trade at Ports- 
 mouth. Later he crossed the ocean to America 
 and secured work at Albion, N. Y., coming from 
 the east to CaHfornia in 1856 via the Horn and 
 following the miner's occupation at Knight s Fer- 
 ry, later removing to Copperopolis, Calaveras 
 
936 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county, and eventually settling upon a ranch. His 
 death occurred at Oakdale, Stanislaus county, 
 where also his wife spent her last days. They 
 were the parents of three daughters and two sons, 
 all now living. Of these Mrs. La Marche was 
 second in order of birth. In 1861 she accom- 
 panied other members of the family to California 
 and joined her father at Knight's Ferry, where 
 she became the wife of Melvin Howard, a na- 
 tive of New York state, and an orchardist at So- 
 nora, Tuolumne county, where he died. Some 
 time afterward she was united with John M. 
 Creighton and in 1876 they settled on the Creigli- 
 ton ranch in Tulare county. A few years later 
 Mr. Creighton died at Byron Hot Springs, and 
 on the 7th of August, 1886, at Tipton, Tulare 
 county, she was married to Mr. La Marche, 
 since which time they have made their home in 
 Tulare county. In the work of the Woman's 
 Christian Temperance Union she has been warm- 
 ly interested and the local organization owes 
 much to her enthusiastic co-operation in its phil- 
 anthropies. Other movements of undoubted mer- 
 it have received constant and helpful support 
 from both Mr. and Mrs. La Marche, who, hav- 
 ing accumulated ample means by years of per- 
 severing industry and sagacious judgment, now 
 respond generously to calls for aid, whether in 
 behalf of the needy or in benevolences affect- 
 ing the general welfare of the community. 
 
 LANE. SCOTT HARMAN. A successful 
 rancher. Lane Scott Harnian is located upon his 
 property of forty acres, in Kern county, Cal., 
 having made this his home since 1890. In addi- 
 tion to grapes, he raises various other fruits and 
 alfalfa, having transformed his land from a wild 
 state into its present prosperous condition. Born 
 near Wellsville, York county. Pa., March 24, 
 1854, he is a son of Ross L., also a native of that 
 state and the representative of an old Pennsyl- 
 vania family. The latter was born in 1818, and 
 during his youth and young manhood he learned' 
 the trade of carpenter, also owning and conduct- 
 ing a small farm. In 1877 he removed to Ohio 
 with a view to bettering his condition, there work- 
 ing at his trade for a short time, when he re- 
 tired from active duties. Later he returned to 
 Pennsylvania, but went back to Ohio, his death 
 occurring in Mansfield at the age of eighty-one 
 years. During the Civil war he enlisted and was 
 made captain of Company H, Eighty-seventh 
 Pennsylvania Regiment, serving for twenty-eight 
 months, mostly in West Virginia, though not par- 
 ticipating in any notable battle. He married 
 Frances Bradford, also a native of Pennsylvania, 
 and her death occurred at the age of seventy- 
 eight years. Both herself and husband were 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 They were the parents of three children, of whom 
 one died in infancy. 
 
 The boyhood years of Lane Scott Harman 
 were spent in his native state, where he received 
 his education in the public schools and at Mt. 
 Union College, which he attended for a short 
 time. After his removal to Ohio in 1877 he was 
 employed as shipping clerk in a wholesale grocery 
 for a time, after which he traveled for a plow 
 company for ten years, through the states of 
 Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Subse- 
 quently he became connected with a newspaper in 
 Mansfield, Ohio, having charge of the Jausiness 
 department of the Mansiield Daily Nezvs for two 
 years. Following this he was again employed as 
 traveling salesman for an implement firm, hand- 
 ling reapers and mowers, his route being in south- 
 western Ohio. During the two years in which 
 he was thus engaged he made his home at Colum- 
 bus, Ohio. In 1890 he came to California and 
 locating in Kern county, purchased forty acres 
 of barren land. He has in the meantime brought 
 it to a fine state of cultivation and made many 
 valuable improvements. He has a water fran- 
 chise and his place is well ditched in order that 
 it may be thoroughly irrigated. 
 
 On the 9th of September, 1880, Mr. Harman 
 was united in marriage with Ada E. Carpenter, 
 who was bom in Richland county, Ohio, a daugh- 
 ter of William B. and Emeline (Grove) Carpen- 
 ter. Mr. Carpenter is also a native of Ohio, is 
 a farmer by occupation, and at one time owned 
 a tannery at Mansfield, where he now makes his 
 home, at the age of seventy-eight years. His 
 wife, a native of Pennsylvania, died in Mansfield 
 at the age of seventy-four years. She was a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as is 
 also her husband. To Mr. and Mrs. Harman 
 were born the following children: Emrie L. : 
 William C, now attending high school ; Jeanette 
 E. ; Frances; Jo; Helen; Ada; and Monroe. 
 In his political convictions Mr. Harman is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Prohibition party, and has 
 been quite active in the work, serving as clerk 
 of the school board ever since the district was 
 organized. Fraternally he is a member of the 
 Good Templars. Mrs. Hannan is a member of 
 the Methodist Church. 
 
 MARTIN CHRISTIAN. Numbered among 
 the successful business men and esteemed resi- 
 dents of Dos Palos is Martin Christian, one of 
 the most active and enterprising citizens of Mer- 
 ced county. He has performed his full part in 
 the advancement of the agricultural and mer- 
 cantile interests of the county, and since becom- 
 ing a resident of Dos Palos has been one of its 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 937 
 
 leading merchants, and has become generally 
 and favorably known to the traveling public as 
 proprietor of the Hotel Dos Palos. Beginning 
 life as a poor boy, he has been in truth the archi- 
 tect of his own fortunes, by strenuous effort, 
 ability and prudent management acquiring an 
 honored position in financial and social circles. 
 A native of Denmark, he was born, October 25, 
 1851, in Jutland, being the only child born of 
 the union of George and Annie (David) 
 Christian. His parents spent their entire lives in 
 Denmark, the father dying, while yet in man- 
 hood's prime, in 1861, and the mother in 1896. 
 
 Growing to manhood in his native land, Mar- 
 tin Christian received such educational advan- 
 tages as were afforded by the common schools, 
 in the meantime being well drilled in agricult- 
 ural pursuits. In 1871, desirous of taking ad- 
 vantage of the opportunities offered to young- 
 men of energy and enterprise in America, he 
 immigrated to the United States, and after 
 spending a year in Toledo, Ohio, came to San 
 Francisco. Entering the employ of Hiram 
 Scott, he drove a coach for awhile, after which 
 he traveled extensively in the state, visiting 
 many different places, and being variously em- 
 ployed. Locating at Hills Ferry in 1877, Mr. 
 Christian kept a hotel for a short time, and then 
 removed to the west side of Merced county, 
 where he carried on general farming and stock 
 raising, operating five thousand acres of land, 
 and making a specialty of grain raising until 
 selling out his interests in that locality. 
 
 Coming to Dos Palos in 1891, Mr. Christian 
 purchased the Hotel Dos Palos, which had then 
 been running but nine months, and has since 
 been very successful in its management. As 
 his patronage increased, he has twice enlarged 
 the house to meet the demands upon his hos- 
 pitality. In connection with his hotel, Mr. 
 Christian also runs a livery business, and has a 
 well-patronized stage line to Mercy Hot Springs, 
 which is fast becoming a popular resort. In 
 1894 he erected a store, and has since carried 
 on a very successful mercantile trade, being 
 in partnership with his son George, and for four 
 years he was also postmaster at Dos Palos. With 
 characteristic enterprise, he opened a store of 
 general merchandise in Los Banos in 1900, 
 where, as junior member of the firm of Place & 
 Christian, he has built up an extensive and 
 lucrative business. 
 
 In Sacramento, Cal., Mr. Christian married 
 Caroline Kair, who was born in Denmark, and 
 they are the parents of seven children, namely: 
 Annie, wife of Franz Misch, foreman for Miller 
 & Lux ; George, in partnership with his father ; 
 Hedrig; Mabel; Clarence; Thomas and Alice. 
 Politically Mr. Christian is a straightforward 
 Republican, and active in party ranks. He is 
 
 an ex-member of the county central committee, 
 and for many years served as school trustee and 
 as constable. Fraternally he belongs to the 
 Ancient Order of Druids. 
 
 ALLEN J. WOODY. The supervisor of 
 Kern county, Allen J. Woody, is a man well 
 known throughout this part of the country for 
 the excellent qualities which have marked his 
 citizenship, and, coupled with the ability with 
 which he has discharged his official duties, has 
 won for him the esteem and regard of his fel- 
 low townsmen. Although not a native son of 
 the state, his birth having occurred in Chris- 
 tian county, Mo., on the Wilson Creek battle 
 ground, December 4, 1866, Mr. Woody came 
 to the west at so youthful an age that he has 
 spent praictically his entire life among the 
 scenes of his adopted state, and to the ad- 
 vancement of every movement calculated to 
 increase the prosperity of whatever community 
 he chanced to make his home he has given his 
 best efforts and strongest influence. 
 
 Mr. Woody's father, John H. Woody, was 
 also a native of Missouri, where in manhood 
 he engaged as a farmer and stockman. In 1859 
 he came to California, following the precarious 
 fortunes of a miner for some time, but returned 
 east upon the death of his father and settled 
 up the.latter's estate. For ten years following 
 his return to Missouri he engaged in farming 
 in that state, but in 1874 he came again to 
 California, locating near Stockton, where he 
 engaged in ranching until 1883. Going to Tu- 
 lare county he engaged in farming and stock- 
 raising until he moved into Tulare, where he 
 now makes his home at the age of sixty-six 
 years. He married Hester E. Wills, who was 
 born in Tennessee and reared in Missouri, and 
 is now sixty-two years old. 
 
 Of the six children born to his parents Aljen 
 J. Woody v/as the eldest, and was seven years 
 old when he came to California with the fam- 
 ily. His boyhood years were spent on the 
 paternal ranch, where he combined the prac- 
 tical duties of a farmer with the studies which 
 he followed in the public school in the vicinity 
 of his home. After completing the course of 
 the common schools he attended the Univer- 
 sity of California for one year, then entered 
 Woodbury's Commercial College, of Los An- 
 geles, wrhere he fitted himself for a business 
 career. Upon attaining his majority he be- 
 came superintendent of a sawmill in Tulare 
 county, in which he had one-fourth interest. 
 Two years later, when the firm failed, he en- 
 tered the court house at Visalia as deputy 
 assessor and tax collector, filling these posi- 
 
938 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tions for one year. Subsequently he filled a 
 clerkship in the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 Company for eleven years. A stanch Demo- 
 crat, and one always interested in the advance- 
 ment of the principles he endorsed, he was 
 chosen bv his party for the nomination of 
 supervisor in 1902. In the election that fol- 
 lowed his popularity was attested by the large 
 majority which brought him success, and on 
 the ist of January, 1903, he entered upon, the 
 duties of his position. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Woody was united m 
 marriage with Rose Clarridge, a native of Rio 
 Vista, Cal., and they have two children, Allen 
 George and Geneva. Besides the official ca- 
 pacity in which Mr. Woody is now serving he 
 acted as town clerk of Kern for four years. 
 Fraternally he is identified with Sumner Lodge 
 No. 143, K. P., of B^ern. 
 
 ARTEMUS J. BAKER. In tracing the fam- 
 ily history of this citizen of Newman we find 
 that he is a member of an eastern family es- 
 tablished in Ohio by his grandfather, a Penn- 
 sylvanian by birth and parentage. Survived by 
 his wife for many years, the grandfather passed 
 away on his Ohio farm and subsequently the 
 widow came to California, dying near River- 
 side when one hundred and four years of age. 
 
 The father, Emmaus Baker, a native of Rich- 
 land county, Ohio, took up agricultural work 
 in early life and continued to earn his liveli- 
 hood from the tilling of the soil until his death, 
 which occurred in Ohio at the age of more than 
 four score years. By his marriage to Matilda 
 Dunlop he was united with an old Virginian 
 family numbered among the pioneers of Ohio, 
 where she was born in Morrow county. Her 
 father, James, removed from the Old Dominion 
 to Ohio, and thence to Des Moines, Iowa, where 
 his death occurred. 
 
 In the family of Emmaus Baker there were 
 three sons, namely : Artemus J., of Newman ; 
 Frank, who makes his home near Turlock, Cal. ; 
 and W. C, who died at Stockton, this state. 
 The eldest son, Artemus J., was born near 
 Mansfield, Ohio, September 24, 1849, '^"d re- 
 ceived a district school education. In the spring 
 of 1864, when fourteen years of age, he en- 
 listed in Company I, One Hundred and Thirty- 
 sixth Ohio Infantry, and was mustered into the 
 service at Mount Gilead, Ohio. At the expira- 
 tion of his time he was honorably discharged, 
 in September, 1864, a short time before the 
 fifteenth anniversary of his birth. After a short 
 sojourn at his old home he went to the vicinity 
 of Muncie, Ind., thence returned to Ohio, from 
 there went to Missouri and settled on land near 
 Taberville, St. Clair county, where he engaged 
 
 in ranching until 1874. During the spring of 
 that year he came to California and settled on 
 a ranch near Modesto, where he was employed 
 until 1879. Later he followed the raising of 
 grain and operating of a threshing machine. 
 
 Since 1888 Mr. Baker has been connected 
 with the Southern Pacific Railroad, his first 
 position with the company being that of pumper 
 at Fresno. Next he was placed in the construc- 
 tion department as foreman and extra pumper, 
 and in 1891 was given charge of the pump at 
 Bakersfield. During July of 1893 he was given 
 his present position at Newman, where he has 
 charge of the pumps (operated by gasoline en- 
 gine), as well as those at Firebaugh, Fresno 
 county (run by steam engine). In this par- 
 ticular work he has had long experience and 
 stands high with the company. A portion of 
 his savings he invested in an alfalfa farm of 
 twenty-two acres, and he also built the residence 
 which he occupies in Newman. His first wife 
 was Miss Maggie Dimmick, who was born in 
 Germany and died in Merced. At Newman, 
 August I, 1894, Mr. Baker was united with 
 Mrs. Maggie McGuire, who was born in 
 Yarmouth, Ontario, being a daughter of 
 James and Nancy J. (Minard) Dunn, natives 
 of Ontario. By trade a builder, her father 
 followed that occupation in addition to farm- 
 ing after his removal to the vicinity of Well- 
 ington, Kan. During a visit to his old home 
 in Ontario he died, and his body was laid to 
 rest amid scenes familiar to him in early life. 
 His wife passed away in Kansas. She was a 
 member of a family characterized by longevity, 
 her mother having attained the age of more 
 than one hundred years. Among nine children, 
 eight of whom attained mature years, seven 
 are now living, and all but one of these in Cal- 
 ifornia, Mrs. Baker was next to the eldest. Her 
 first marriage was solemnized in Kansas, and 
 united her with Charles Geofifroy, a native of 
 France. Four children were born of that union, 
 namely : Mrs. Adell Fisher, Mrs. Josie Huber 
 and Mrs. Pearl Gray, all of Newman; and 
 Maude, who died at four years of age. After 
 the death of her first husband she was married 
 to James McGuire, of Ohio, and one child, 
 Leslie McGuire Baker, was born of that union. 
 Politically Mr. Baker always gives his sup- 
 port to the Republican party. In matters fra- 
 ternal Mrs. Baker is a past officer in the Degree 
 of Honor; Mr. Baker is a member of the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen ; past chancellor 
 commander of Newman Lodge No. 139, K. of P., 
 member of the Grand Lodge, and second lieu- 
 tenant of the Uniform Rank No. 47, of the 
 same order. At the annual inspection of pump- 
 ing plants of the Southern Pacific System, Mr. 
 Baker was awarded a medal from the company 
 
HISTORICAL AND J3T0GRAPHiCAL RECORD. 
 
 941 
 
 for having the most perfect pump house on the 
 Southern Pacific System of 5,833 miles. A 
 board saying, "Premium Pump House, Pacific 
 System, 5,833 Miles," adorns the top of the pump 
 house. 
 
 JOHN F. JORDAN. While the abstract 
 business has engaged the attention of Mr. Jordan 
 during a large portion of the time since he set- 
 tled in Visalia, his work as secretary and man- 
 ager of this enterprise by no means represents 
 the limits of his activities. As evidence of his 
 varied interests it may be mentioned that he as- 
 sisted in the organization of the Kaweah Lemon 
 Company, Incorporated, of which he is now secre- 
 tary and which owns two hundred and fifty acres 
 in the foothills east of Visalia. As a director of 
 the Encina Eruit Company he is closely connected 
 with the development of the company's property, 
 embracing four hundred and forty acres two miles 
 north of Visalia. In addition he holds the office 
 of secretary of the Lemon Cove Ditch Company 
 and is secretary of the Queen Oil Company, in 
 the establishment of which he took an active part. 
 Ever since the organization of the Acme Oil 
 Company, iri which he assisted, he has been a 
 member of its board of directors, and he was also 
 a prominent worker in organizing the Visalia 
 Fruit and Land Company. It will be readily un- 
 derstood that- the management of these important 
 interests requires a versatile mind, keen reason- 
 ing faculties, indomitable energy and force of 
 will, all of which qualities Mr. Jordan possesses. 
 In the eastern part of Texas, December 10, 
 1850, occurred the birth of John- F. Jordan, son 
 of Frank and Alabama (McMicken) Jordan, na- 
 tives respectively of Illinois and Alabama. His 
 father removed to Texas in an early day and 
 lived there for some time, also owned and man- 
 aged a plantation near Shreveport, La. When 
 he came to California in 1854 he made the trip 
 overland as captain of a train comprising seventy- 
 four families. Settling in Monterey county, in 
 what is now San Benito county, he took up the 
 hotel business, and began to raise and deal in 
 stock. In 1858 he came to Tulare county and 
 two years later brought his family to Visalia, 
 which he afterward considered his home, although 
 the buying and selling of stock frequently re- 
 quired his presence in other places for considera- 
 ble periods. His death occurred in Visalia in 
 1878, when he was fifty-nine years of age, he 
 having survived his wife, who passed away in 
 San Benito county. In politics he was a Demo- 
 crat, always a stanch supporter of party prin- 
 ciples._ Notwithstanding the fact that he came 
 to California entirely without means, he accumu- 
 lated considerable property and was considered 
 one of the successful men of his day. 
 
 Among four sons and three daughters compris- 
 ing the parental family (of whom three sons and 
 one daughter are living), John F. Jordan was 
 fifth in order of birth. The trip across the plains 
 occurred when he was a child of four years, 
 hence the greater part of his life has been passed 
 in California. After completing the studies ""of 
 the Visalia public school he took a commercial 
 course in Heald's Business College at San Fran- 
 cisco, from which he was graduated in February 
 of 1875. On his return to Tulare county he was 
 appointed deputy postmaster and the following 
 year (1876) received the appointment of deputy 
 sheriff. In 1879 he was elected county auditor 
 and served in that capacity during the five ensu- 
 ing years. On retiring from office he turned his 
 attention to the abstract business, which he started 
 in 1884 and in 1892 incorporated as the Visalia 
 Abstract Company, he being secretary, manager 
 and a director. Under his supervision a large 
 business has been established in the bringing 
 down of abstracts and perfecting of titles, and no 
 one is recognized as a more accurate judge of 
 titles than he. The knowledge he has acquired 
 along this line represents years of study as well 
 as actual experience and makes his advice con- 
 cerning titles of the greatest value. 
 
 After coming to Visalia and taking up active 
 business duties, Mr. Jordan established domestic 
 ties through his marriage to Alice L. Neil, a na- 
 tive of California. They are the parents of three 
 children: Ethel V., Roy F., and Neil J., all of 
 whom are at home. In Masonry, Mr. Jordan 
 ranks high, being a member of Lodge No. 128, 
 F. & A. M., at Visalia ; Chapter No. 44, R. A. M. ; 
 Commandery No. 26, K. T., of which he acts as 
 recorder; Scottish Rite No. 9, of which he is 
 treasurer; and Islam Temple, N. M. S., San 
 Francisco. Always a pronounced Democrat, he 
 has been a local leader of his party, at one time 
 served on the county central committee, in 1904 
 acted as delegate to the state convention, and in 
 other ways has manifested his interest in the 
 progress of the party. 
 
 URIAH WOOD. More than fifty years have 
 come and gone since Mr. Wood became asso- 
 ciated with the then frontier state of California. 
 When he crossed the plains he was a young man, 
 full of ambition, courage and perseverance, yet 
 so destitute of capital that he was obliged to 
 borrow from a brother-in-law the means neces- 
 sary to defray the expenses of the trip. Bravely 
 enduring the hardships of a pioneer existence, 
 cheerfully accepting the privations consequent to 
 the environment, and persistently pushing his 
 way forward in the face of discouragement and 
 occasional reverses, he has now reached a posi- 
 
942 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORC). 
 
 tion where, with an abundance of means and 
 with the record of a well-spent life, he wields 
 the influence and commands the prestige born of 
 material success. 
 
 Many of the traits noticeable in the charac- 
 ter^of Mr. Wood are his by inheritance from an 
 honorable ancestry, of remote German extrac- 
 tion, but long identified with the United States. 
 His grandfather, David Wood, who was a native 
 of New York, suffered the terror of being taken 
 captive by the Indians when a boy, but made 
 his escape and reached home in safety. Some 
 years afterwards, when he had grown to man's 
 estate, he became a soldier in the Revolutionary 
 war and fought for independence with a bravery 
 characteristic of his race. Uriah D., son of this 
 Revolutionary veteran, was born and reared in 
 New York, and in early nianhood engaged in 
 lumbering in the Allegheny mountains. While 
 the Mississippi valley was still an unknown re- 
 gion and its wealth of fertile soil unrealized, he 
 took his family from New York to Illinois in 
 1839, making the trip with horses through Ohio 
 and Indiana. In Chicago they stopped only long 
 enough to visit a drug store and purchase a 
 remedy for ague, the prevailing disease of those 
 days. Arriving in Whiteside county, he settled 
 near Portland, where he took up land, turned 
 the first furrow in the soil and (being a carpen- 
 ter) erected all of his buildings without aid. In 
 1841 he removed to LaSalle county, where he de- 
 voted himself to agricultural pursuits through 
 the balance of his active life. In politics he was 
 a Whig, while in religion he upheld the doctrines 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church. At the time 
 of his death he had reached the age of eighty 
 years. His wife, Anna (Cline) Wood, was born 
 in New York of Mohawk-Dutch ancestry, and 
 died in Illinios. Of her marriage eight children 
 were born. One son, David, was a pioneer of 
 1849 in California and continued to make this 
 state his home until he died, at Gilroy, about 
 1891. 
 
 While the family were living in Cattaraugus 
 county, N. Y., Uriah Wood was born Septem- 
 ber 5, 1829. He was ten years of age when he 
 accompanied his parents to Illinois. In their 
 new home schools were so uncommon that he 
 had no opportunity to study under teachers, yet 
 by self-culture he acquired a fund of informa- 
 tion, of a different nature from that gained in 
 text-books, but none the less valuable. Pos- 
 sessed of a robust constitution, excellent health 
 and unusual capability, his services were eagerly 
 sought by farmers. At the age of seventeen he 
 received $15 per month, this being the highest 
 wages paid any man in all that country. Half 
 of his wages was given to his father each month, 
 and the remainder applied to the purchase of 
 the necessities of life. With four yoke of oxen 
 
 and a breaking plow he turned the furrows in 
 many acres of primitive soil, his work being al- 
 ways carefully and successfully done. His em- 
 ployer said that he was the best teamster in the 
 entire neighborhood. Sometimes he drove to 
 Chicago with his father, hauling wheat to the 
 market, but he found little in that then swampy 
 village to impress him favorably. During the 
 fall of 1850 he began to work for a man in Arkan- 
 sas and while with him made two trips to New 
 Orleans on large flat boats, returning on a 
 steamer. On his return to Illinois, he worked in 
 a brickyard at Earlville, and while there began 
 to make preparations for a trip to the coast. 
 
 There were three young men in the party that 
 started for the west in 1852. Their ox-teams 
 were shipped to St. Joseph, Mo., where they were 
 taken out of the cars and hitched to wagons. 
 However, the animals were so stiff from being 
 inactive that they could not be used, and were 
 put in a corral. A Missouri man, seeing the 
 difficulty, suggested that the oxen be started with- 
 out whipping and used just a little each day, until 
 they gradually regained their normal condition. 
 This advice was followed successfully. Soon the 
 emigrants had left all traces of civilization behind 
 them. In company with an expedition from Ray 
 county. Mo., the Illinois boys pursued the dif- 
 ficult journey over plains and mountains, across 
 rivers and through deserts, down the Humboldt 
 river and on to Hangtown, where they arrived in 
 September of 1852. The journey was much less 
 arduous for them than for many emigrants, for 
 the Indians did not molest them, nor were they 
 sufferers from .lack of provisions. 
 
 After a short experience as a miner in Cala- 
 veras county Mr. Wood went to Spanish Flats 
 and in the fall of 1853 tried his luck on the 
 middle fork of the American river. In no place, 
 however, did he meet with the success he had 
 anticipated. Learning that it was possible to 
 earn $50 per month on the ranches in the valley, 
 he decided to change his occupation, and went to 
 Coloma, thence to Sacramento, where he was 
 paid $50 a month for driving a team. In the 
 spring of 1854 he came via San Jose to Gilroy, 
 Santa Clara county, and buying two yoke of oxen 
 and a wagon, he engaged in teaming in the red- 
 woods. Money being scarce he accepted as pay- 
 ment horses and cattle. In this way he accu- 
 mulated one hundred head of cattle, which he 
 sold, buying about the same time eight hundred 
 and forty-two head of sheep. For eighteen 
 months he herded his flock in the Pacheco moun- 
 tains and then moved them into Merced county, 
 establishing a sheep ranch at Los Banos, ten 
 miles from his nearest neighbor. After investi- 
 gating land in various parts of the state and 
 finding nothing better suited to his purpose than 
 the land he occupied, he bought the property. 
 
Historical and SiogRaphIcaL record. 
 
 did 
 
 Each year his flock was almost dotibled. At first 
 he was obliged to pump all the water needed by 
 the flock, but after some years the canal was 
 built through his land. During the dry year 
 (1863) he managed to keep his flock almost in- 
 tact, although many sheep-raisers suffered heavy 
 losses, but in 1864 he suffered heavy losses, losing 
 over three thousand sheep. 
 
 Adding to his original purchase year by year, 
 Mr. Wood finally acquired five thousand acres, 
 the larger part of which was good land. Much 
 of this was rented to tenants, as many as fifteen 
 operating different parts of the ranch. When he 
 first began to sell, he received $30 per acre, but 
 afterward was paid as much as $125 an acre. In 
 1898 he owned thirty-five hundred acres of farm 
 land in Merced county, operated by two tenants, 
 and principally under grain and hay. In addi- 
 tion he owned the San Felipe ranch of two hun- 
 dred and forty acres near Gilroy, Santa Clara 
 county. All of his real estate is incorporated 
 under the title of the Uriah Wood Company, he 
 being president and each of his four sons a direc- 
 tor in the organization. In 1885 he came to San 
 Jose and erected the beautiful residence where 
 he now makes his home. Various enterprises 
 of this and other cities have engaged his atten- 
 tion and co-operation, included among these 
 being the Farmers' Union, in which he is a di- 
 rector, the Garden City Bank and the Bank o'f 
 San Jose. He is also a director of the Bank of 
 HolHster, of which he was one of the founders, 
 and the same can be said of the San Benito 
 County Savings Bank. He is also a stockholder 
 in the SaHnas City Bank of Salinas, Cal. He is 
 a member of the Santa Clara County Pioneer 
 Association, fraternally is identified with the Odd 
 Fellows and in politics gives his influence and 
 vote to Republican candidates and measures. 
 During 1862 he returned to Illinois and in Earl- 
 ville married Miss Phoebe L. Smith, who was 
 born in Ohio and grew to womanhood in Illi- 
 nois. They are the parents of four sons, Chester 
 W., Walter H., Ralph W. and Louis E., all of 
 whom are successful land-owners and agricultur- 
 ists, the last mentioned residing in San Jose. 
 
 Notwithstanding the vicissitudes which have 
 more than once thrust discouragements upon 
 him and notwithstanding the hardships incident 
 to pioneer existence, Mr. Wood retains the ro- 
 bust constitution of his youth. With his erect 
 carriage and fine physique he gives to a stranger 
 tlie impression of being in life's prime, and sub- 
 sequent companionship, exhibiting the resource- 
 fulness and activity of his mind, but deepens the 
 first impression. He belongs to that class of 
 "young old" pioneers to whom the state owes a 
 debt of gratitude, men who gave the best that 
 was within them to aid in the development of the 
 
 state and the expansion of her interests. It is 
 to the patient, persistent efl^orts of such as he 
 that the prosperity of the state may be attributed. 
 
 DAVID J. TOOMEY. In various lines oi 
 business — farming, stock-raising and the man- 
 agement of a butcher shop in Visalia— Mr. 
 Toomey has proved his ability and is numbered 
 among the successful citizens of the place. He 
 is a native of Richmond, Va., and was born Oc- 
 tober 16, 1867. His father, David Toomey, a 
 resident of that state, served through the Civil 
 war, and in 1872 came to California and located 
 on Dry creek. Later he removed to the vicinity 
 of Lodi and engaged in farming. In 1882 he 
 went to Woodbridge, and in 1885 located one 
 mile east of Visalia, Tulare county, where he en- 
 gaged in general farming and stock-raising. His 
 death occurred in 1892. His wife, formerly 
 Margaret A. Witten, a native of Virginia, sur- 
 vives him and now makes her home in San Fran- 
 cisco. The children born of this union are as 
 follows : Richard Edward, David J., of this re- 
 view; James, employed by Wells-Fargo & Co., 
 express, of San Francisco ; Elizabeth, in San 
 Francisco; Elenore, the wife of E. D. Vogel- 
 sang of Fresno ; Charles, a butcher of San Fran- 
 cisco ; and Thomas, also in that city. 
 
 David J. Toomey was but five years old when 
 he accompanied his parents to California. He 
 received a limited education in the district schools 
 of San Joaquin county, the greater part of his 
 training lying in the cornfields, while he gradu- 
 ated between plow handles, as he quaintly puts 
 it. When seventeen years old he went to Visalia 
 and attended school for six weeks. He remained 
 at home and assisted in the farm work until the 
 death of his father, after which he engaged in 
 the stock business for himself. He was located 
 in Old Round valley, eighteen miles southeast 
 of Visalia, where he operated a ranch of two 
 thousand acres, engaged in wheat raising, con- 
 ducting four eight-horse teams'. He was very 
 successful in this work, in which he engaged 
 from 1885 to 1892; a man of energy and ability, 
 and with proper ideas of handling the men who 
 worked under him, he made a success financially. 
 Returning in 1892 to the home place, he engaged 
 in the raising of hay and threshing, and in Sep- 
 tember, 1900, with G. B. Simpson, bought out 
 the Pioneer market in A^isalia and has since been 
 engaged in the butcher business. They later took 
 in another partner, the firm being then known 
 as Toomey & Co. In April, 1904, Mr. Toomey 
 bought out his partners and has since continued 
 the business alone, in the meantime having pur- 
 chased two other markets, one in Visalia and the 
 other in Exeter. The Pioneer market, located on 
 East Main street, has recently been built, a new 
 
944 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 and modern plant for butchering installed, a new 
 cold storage plant of three-ton capacity having 
 also been built. He has a slaughter house on 
 his ranch three miles east of Visalia, where he 
 owns forty acres. He makes his home on the 
 old home ranch one mile east of Visalia. 
 
 In Los Angeles Mr. Toomey married Clara 
 C. Hinds, who was born near Exeter, Tulare 
 county, a daughter of Archibald Y. Hinds, a 
 pioneer of this section. They are the parents of 
 two children, Catherine Maurine and Kenneth 
 David. Fraternally Mr. Toomey is identified 
 with the Woodmen of the World and the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen. Interested in 
 all local affairs, he has taken an interest in edu- 
 cational matters, having served as a trustee of 
 the East Lynne district. Politically he is a stanch 
 Democrat and is a member of the county central 
 committee. 
 
 FRANK ELLIOTT ANDERSON. Promi- 
 nent among the enterprising and wide-awake 
 business men of Tulare is Frank Elliott Ander- 
 son, who through his own efforts has risen to 
 his present position among the leading citizens 
 of his adopted city. Endowed with good busi- 
 ness judgment and tact, he has been uniformly 
 successful in life, and is now carrying on a 
 large and successful mercantile trade as head of 
 the well known firm of Anderson & Scranton. 
 A son of the late J. N. Anderson, he was born 
 in Fairbury, 111., October 17, 1867. 
 
 A native of Ohio, J. N. Anderson was born 
 near Hillsboro, Highland county, and was there 
 reared to agricultural pursuits. He was a lover 
 of fine horses from his boyhood, and when a 
 young man, about i860, removed to Fairbury, 
 111., where he embarked in business as a horse- 
 man, importing horses, and breeding much fine 
 stock. Settling in Holden, Johnson county. Mo., 
 in 1870, he continued there for a few years as 
 a horse breeder, raising draft and coach horses, 
 making a specialty of Morgan horses. Coming 
 from there to California in 1888, he was engaged 
 in the same business in Tulare until his death, 
 in 1899, being successful in his operations. He 
 was a man of sterling worth, and a valued mem- 
 ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows 
 and of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 He married Columbia Morrow, who was born in 
 Ohio, the daughter of James Morrow, a mer- 
 chant, established first in Ohio, and later in Mc- 
 Lean county. 111. She survived her husband, and 
 now makea her home with her son, Frank, in 
 Tulare. Four children blessed their union, 
 namely : James Morrow, a druggist in Tulare ; 
 Frank Elliott, the special subject of this sketch; 
 Grace, wife of Z. S. Gather, of San Francisco; 
 and one that died in childhood. Col. James E. 
 
 Morrow, a brother of Mrs. J. N. Anderson, 
 served as colonel of an Illinois regiment durmg 
 the Civil war, and was subsequently a banker in 
 Pontiac, 111., until his death. 
 
 James Morrow Anderson, the eldest soil of 
 the parental household, was born in Pontiac, 111., 
 October i, 1862. In March, 1886, he located in 
 Tulare, and for nearly four years afterward 
 worked at the carriage maker's trade with A. G. 
 Woodward. In 1890 he purchased a half inter- 
 est in R. L. Reid's pharmacy, which was estab- 
 lished about the time that Tulare was incorpor- 
 ated, being one of the pioneer business houses 
 of the place. In 1892 Frank E. Anderson 
 bought out Mr. Reid's share of 'fhe business, 
 which has since been continued successfully by 
 the two brothers. James Morrow Anderson is 
 also proprietor of the California Gypsum & Min- 
 eral Company, and manufactures the Diamond 
 fertilizer and plaster, and is likewise president 
 of the Tulare Oil Company. He married Lulu 
 Schlageter, and they have one child, Morrow J. 
 He is prominent in the Masonic fraternity, be- 
 ing a Knight Templar. 
 
 His parents removing to Holden, Johnson 
 county. Mo., when he was but three years old, 
 Frank Elliott Anderson was there brought up 
 and educated. At the age of fifteen he began 
 learning the dry goods business, for four years 
 being in the employ jjf W. H. Etter, proprietor 
 of a One Price Cash House. Coming to the 
 Pacific coast in 1886, he was for four years en- 
 gaged as a clerk for F. M. Schultz, in Tulare, 
 the following ten years being similarly anployed 
 in the dry goods department of the store of J. 
 Goldman & Co. Resigning the position in 1900, 
 Mr. Anderson formed a co-partnership with Mr. 
 Scranton, as senior member of the firm of An- 
 derson & Scranton, and March 15 of that year 
 opened a store on the corner of K and Kern 
 streets. The business of the firm increased so 
 rapidly that new quarters were demanded, and 
 February 4, 1904, Messrs. Anderson & Scranton 
 removed into their present store, which is 41x80 
 feet, with three floors. This enterprising firm 
 carries a complete stock of up-to-date goods, in- 
 cluding dry goods of all kinds, furs, and ladies' 
 and children's shoes. As above stated, Mr. An- 
 derson also has a half interest in the Anderson 
 Pharmacy, owning it with his brother, James 
 Morrow. He belongs to the Tulare Board of 
 Trade ; is a stockholder in the Farmers' and 
 Merchants' Bank ; and is a charter member and 
 a director of the Tulare Building and Loan As- 
 sociation. 
 
 In Tulare, Cal., Mr. Anderson married Selina 
 R. Belfils, who was born in Roseburg, Ore., a 
 daughter of Lewis Belfils, a jeweler, who set- 
 tled in Tulare in 1897. Politically Mr. Ander- 
 son is a stanch Republican. Fraternally he is a 
 
^, 
 
HISTORICAL AND JBlOGRAPHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 94? 
 
 member of Olive Branch Lodge No. 269, F. & 
 A. M.; of Tulare Chapter No. 71, R. A. M.; 
 and belongs to the Independent Order of For- 
 esters. Mr. Anderson is a talented musician, 
 and a clarionet player of note. For many years 
 he was leader of the Tulare Band, and still leads 
 the Tulare Orchestra. He formerly taught clar- 
 ionet playing, but of late years has confined him- 
 self to orchestral work. 
 
 JOSHUA LINDSEY was born near South 
 Bend, Ind., May 18, 1818, a son of John and 
 Nancy (Shields) Lindsey, the former born in 
 Scotland and the latter in Indiana. John Lindsey 
 served in the war of 1812 and engaged in farm- 
 ing in Indiana until his death. 
 
 Joshua Lindsey, who was the eldest of five 
 sons, was reared on a farm and educated in the 
 pioneer subscription schools of his native state, 
 that were held in the log houses and furnished 
 with slab benches. As a young man he learned 
 the blacksmith's trade, following it in Indiana 
 and Iowa, to which latter state he removed in 
 1843. Settling in Muscatine county, he con- 
 tinued his trade until April 15, 1855, at which 
 time he started to cross the plains to California in 
 wagons' drawn by oxen and horses, and arrived 
 at Downieville in October of that year. In the 
 spring of 1856 Mr. Lindsey located in Gilroy and 
 remained until 1859. Locating then on one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres of land that he entered, five 
 miles west of Visalia, he remained there six years, 
 then purchased a ranch at Rocky Ford, on the 
 St. Johns river, now owned by his widow. There 
 he engaged in the sheep business, meeting with 
 success and acquiring a competency, and re- 
 mained there until his death, which occurred Sep- 
 tember 13, 1887. 
 
 In an early day Mr. Lindsey, with two others, 
 built the ditch known as the Moffett, Curtis and 
 Lindsey ditch and when this was acquired by the 
 Wutchumna Ditch Company they gave him a 
 perpetual water right, free from assessment, for 
 granting the company the right of way through 
 his farm. 
 
 In 1844, at Moscow, Muscatine county, Iowa, 
 Mr. Lindsey was united in marriage with Sarah 
 Jane Hughes, who was born in Lawrence county, 
 Ohio, October 30, 1826, daughter of Asa and 
 Sarah (Smith) Hughes, both natives of Ken- 
 tucky. Asa Hughes followed farming in In- 
 diana and Michigan and he and his wife were 
 early settlers of Moscow, Muscatine county, 
 Iowa. From there they removed to a place near 
 Ft. Des Moines. The Indians were hostile and 
 it was nearly two years before they could safely 
 locate on their farm. There the father died, and 
 the mother came to California and spent the re- 
 mainder of her life, dying in her eightieth year. 
 
 They had twelve children, eight of whom grew 
 to maturity, Mrs. Lindsey being the eldest daugh- 
 ter. She was reared to frontier life and early ex- 
 perienced the hardships of pioneer existence. 
 She became the mother of ten children, nine of 
 whom are living, viz. : Asa Wayne, of Nome, 
 Alaska; Sarah J., Mrs. Sterling, of Portland, 
 Ore. ; Amanda E., Mrs. Eledge, of Visalia ; Mary 
 D., Mrs. Baker, of Los Angeles; Clara Alice, 
 Mrs. DeLong, of Visalia; Lucy, Mrs. Mathias, ' 
 of Los Angeles ; William Mark, of San Fran- 
 cisco; Dora, Mrs. Lee, of Mountainview ; and 
 John, of Visalia. After the death of Mr. Lindsey 
 his widow remained on the home ranch engaged 
 in the stock business and in the management of 
 her six hundred and forty-acre ranch until 1901, 
 when she located in Visalia, where she is sur- 
 rounded by a host of loving friends. 
 
 In religious matters Mrs. Lindsey adheres to 
 the doctrines of the Christian Church, and in 
 jjolitics, though not able to cast a vote, wields 
 an influence with those who are, in the support of 
 the Republican party's principles. 
 
 Mr. Lindsey was a Mason and a Republican. 
 He met with success in his various business ven- 
 tures, was much respected for his sterling quali- 
 ties and did much to improve the county he se- 
 lected for his home. In all matters that he 
 thought would advance the moral, social and in- 
 dustrial welfare of the county, he always gave his 
 liberal support. At his death Tulare county lost 
 one of her progressive supporters. 
 
 HENRY S. GOLDSTEIN. Among the 
 prominent business men of Visalia, Henry S. 
 Goldstein occupies a place of importance, in 
 connection with Leon Goldstein and M. E. Ise- 
 man following a mercantile line in this city. A 
 native of Visalia, he was born June 8, 1869, the 
 oldest in a family of six living children. His 
 father, Isaac Goldstein, a native of Nuremberg, 
 Bavaria, was the son of Simon Goldstein, an ex- 
 tensive cattle dealer, his birth having occurred 
 November 17, 1839. Until he was twelve years 
 old he remained a resident of his native country, 
 at which time he removed to Connecticut and 
 entered school. Four years later he came to 
 California by way of the Isthnjus of Panama, in 
 company with United States Senator John B. 
 Weller, who later became governor of Califor- 
 nia. Upon his arrival in San Francisco, Mr. 
 Goldstein engaged as a clerk in the mercantile 
 establishment of Ackerman Brothers, later fol- 
 lowing the same line in the employ of Godchaux. 
 In 1858 he went to the Eraser river mines, and 
 three years later to the Salmon river mines, this 
 last trip being memorable for the hardships and 
 privations endured. Returning to San Francisco, 
 he remained there until 1862, in which year he 
 
94:8 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 located in Visalia, Tulare county, entering the 
 general merchandise establishment of S. Sweet. 
 Four years later, in partnership with D. R. 
 Douglas and Marshall Johnson, he opened a 
 general merchandise business on the corner 
 where the Gray Horse harness shop is now lo- 
 cated. Later he was associated with Mr. Sweet 
 for one year on the same corner, then for a time 
 conducted a general merchandise business alone 
 where the Visalia hotel now stands. Returning 
 to his first location, he was associated with S. 
 H. Collins and S. Reinstein, under the firm name 
 of Goldstein & Co. In 1876 the firm dissolved 
 partnership and disposed of their business in- 
 terests, when Mr. Goldstein engaged in the stock 
 business, being located in various parts of the 
 San Joaquin valley, from which location he 
 shipped cattle and hogs, principally to San Fran- 
 cisco and Los Angeles. In Visalia he married 
 Rebecca Abrams, a native of London, England, 
 and they have six living children. 
 
 Reared in Visalia, Henry S. Goldstein attend- 
 ed the public schools in pursuit of an education, 
 eventually entering Heald's Business College of 
 San Francisco, from which he was graduated in 
 1890. Returning to Visalia, he entered the em- 
 ploy of Sweet & Co. in the capacity of clerk, re- 
 taining the position until his location in Santa 
 Barbara. He remained a resident of that city 
 for a short time, when he returned to Visalia 
 and found employment with Wilzinsky Brothers. 
 In 1896 he opened a grocery, c|ueensware and 
 crockery business in partnership with M. E. Ise- 
 man, under the firm name of Goldstein & Ise- 
 man. Later they took into partnership Leon 
 Goldstein, and have since added hardware, now 
 carrying a full line of groceries, stoves, agri- 
 cultural implements and general hardware. They 
 have a double store, 60 x 125 feet in dimensions, 
 and a large warehouse on the Santa Fe Rail- 
 road, and carry on an extensive wholesale and 
 retail business throughout Tulare county. 
 
 Mr. Goldstein is prominent in the public af- 
 fairs of Visalia, being a member of the Board of 
 Trade, and in various ways indicates his public 
 spirit. Politically he is a Republican in national 
 issues, and fraternally is associated with Visalia 
 Parlor No. 19, N. S.'G. W. For the past fifteen 
 years he has been a member of the volunteer fire 
 department of Visalia. 
 
 ALEXANDER WOODFALL WHEELER. 
 As president of the Tulare Building and Loan 
 Association, president of the Petrolia Oil Com- 
 pany, owning land on the west side, and proprie- 
 tor of the oldest and largest exclusive furniture 
 establishment in Tulare, Mr. Wheeler has an in- 
 fluential position in the commercial circles of 
 Tulare county. Flis father, William Wheeler, 
 
 was born in London, England, in April, 1824, 
 and received superior educational advantages, 
 being sent to Oriole College, Oxford, England, 
 and after graduation from that institution he 
 traveled over Europe, completing his education 
 with Sir Montague Barnard. His step-father, 
 Thomas Giles, was a man of prominence in Lon- 
 don. 
 
 After his marriage to Elizabeth Ellen Brown, 
 a native of Ross, England, during the early '50s 
 William Wheeler came to America and for two 
 years followed the ship-building business at Ho- 
 boken, N. J., thence went to Chicago as an em- 
 ploye of the McCormick Company, and about 
 1857 settled in Ottawa, III, where he was em- 
 ployed as a stationary engineer for many years. 
 After coming to California in 1884 he engaged 
 with the Southern Pacific Railroad as a station- 
 ary engineer in Tulare and later went to Bakers- 
 field, where he died January 26, 1895. In his 
 native land he had been a communicant of the 
 Church of England and during his residence in 
 America attended the Episcopal Church. On 
 gaining citizenship in the United States he be- 
 came a student of governmental policies and 
 gave his support to Republican principles. His 
 wife, who died in Tulare, was a daughter of 
 William Brown, an Englishman, who for years 
 and until his death followed the trade of a pat- 
 tern-maker in Chicago. 
 
 The family of William and Elizabeth E. 
 Wheeler consisted of four sons and one daugh- 
 ter, the latter now deceased. The sons are 
 named as follows: Fred W., of Oakland, Cal. ; 
 A. W., of Tulare; M. J., of Los Angeles; and 
 Frank H., of Los Angeles. During the residence 
 of the family in Ottawa, 111., A. W. Wheeler was 
 born October 17, 1859. When only nine years 
 of age he secured employment on a farm and 
 ever afterward made his own way. For six 
 years he clerked in a news store in Ottawa and 
 then returned to farm work for a year. In 1880 
 he came to California and for a time was em- 
 ployed as an orchardist in San Leandro, Ala- 
 meda county, later visiting Benicia, where he 
 worked for Baker and Hamilton. During 1882 
 he came to Tulare, where, with his brother, 
 Fred W., he embarked in the carriage manufac- 
 turing business, but after eighteen months gave 
 up his interest in the business in order to home- 
 stead a tract of farm land twelve miles south 
 of Tulare. During the nine years of his resi- 
 dence on this property he bored one of the first 
 artesian wells in the county aiid by this means 
 secured an abundance of water for the carrying 
 on of his grain farm of three hundred and twen- 
 ty acres. Eventually the land was sold and he 
 returned to Tulare, where after a year with the 
 Southern Pacific Railroad, in January, 1893, he 
 bought the furniture business owned by T. C. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 949 
 
 Carruthers, the oldest enterprise pi the kind in 
 the town, and the largest exclusive furniture 
 business in the entire county, the stock filling 
 two stories of a building, 50x90 feet in dimen- 
 sions. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Wheeler united him with 
 Miss Mattie B. Hdlcomb, who was born at 
 Ravenna, Ohio, and in girlhood came to Tulare 
 with her father, Samuel Holcomb, a mason and 
 builder in this city. The only child of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Wheeler is a daughter, Claire J. For 
 years Mr. Wheeler has been a participant in 
 local Republican aiifairs and during 1896 offi- 
 ciated as president of the McKinley Club. 
 Through his connection with the Tulare Board 
 of Trade he has fostered measures for the prog- 
 ress of the city and the development of its busi- 
 ness resources. Since coming to this city he 
 has been made a Mason in Olive Branch Lodge 
 No. 269, F. & A. M. ; raised to the Royal Arch 
 degree in Tulare Chapter No. 71, and is also 
 identified with the Order of Eastern Star. The 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows have the 
 benefit of his active work as a member and past 
 grand of Lodge No. 306, at Tulare. In the En- 
 campment he is past chief patriarch, four times 
 was honored by being chosen delegate to the 
 Grand Encampment, and is also past district 
 deputy. In his possession, a most valued relic 
 received from his forefathers, is a Bible, bearing 
 the date of 1700. Although the book was seri- 
 ously injured in a fire, he still has the larger 
 part of it, and from this may be seen the ex^ 
 quisite care with which the words were printed 
 and pictures drawn by hand, machines not hav- 
 ing been invented for that purpose. The fam- 
 ily which he represents is an old English race, 
 many of whose members in past generations at- 
 tained positions of distinction. By his honorable 
 character, commercial enterprise, progressive 
 spirit and upright life he has added honor to an 
 old family name. 
 
 REV. W. A. NEVIN. Remote from the 
 stately missions sleeping in the shadows of the 
 past and eloquently bespeaking the guidance of 
 priests and prelates in the dreamy Spanish days, 
 Stanislaus county ■ has pursued her individual 
 spiritual upbuilding, and at a later day reared 
 her props for a strong religious foundation. 
 Fifty years ago the old French miners of French 
 Bar, temporarily forgetting the vices of the 
 rough camps, turned in their sleep to dream 
 again of the teachings of their priests and par-' 
 ents in the land beyond the sea, and awoke to 
 give shape and tangibility to their needs, erect- 
 ing the little church of St. Louis at La Grange, 
 and assisting at -the sacrifice of the mass. The 
 chant from the windowless edifice reverberated 
 
 through the wilderness, faintly perhaps, but with 
 persistence, and could he foresee the miner might 
 realize the extent of his influence, and behold the 
 near approach of the ideal community, with its 
 many church edifices, its parochial schools, its 
 charities arising to extend their protecting wings 
 over the unfortunate and friendless, its homes 
 for the aged, hospitals, houses of providence for 
 young women, orphan and foundling asylums, 
 and industrial training schools. All these ad- 
 vancements are suggested if not realized by the 
 Catholic church in Stanislaus county to-day, and 
 the zeal, piety and spirit of self sacrifice of her 
 teachers and leaders fill with hope the hearts of 
 her many hundreds of children. 
 
 Till 1899 St. Mary's Church of Oakdale was 
 a mission of Modesto, with a small "congrega- 
 tion and little actual stimulus for the energies 
 of its members. In that year Rev. W. A. Nevin 
 became the first resident priest, and the mission 
 took on a dignity and importance hitherto im- 
 possible. A change has taken place such as one 
 would expect from a man of great culture, learn- 
 ing and large heart, and the church has been 
 added to and improved, a new parish house in 
 mission style has been erected, and surrounding 
 it are luxuriant vegetation, roses, palms, orange 
 and lemon trees, which in itself is one of the 
 crowning glories of California. Different socie- 
 ties have been organized to stimulate the activi- 
 ties of the congregation, many members have 
 been added, and the parish is a vital center of 
 religious ' and humanitarian zeal. In addition to 
 this responsibility, Rev. Mr. Nevin has charge 
 of St. Joseph's Church at the Twenty-six Mile 
 House, which also has been greatly improved, 
 and which is now one of the prettiest little 
 churches in the county. Under the jurisdiction 
 of Father Nevin also is the old church of St. 
 Louis, LaGrange, which bears well the distinc- 
 tion of being the oldest church building in Stan- 
 islaus county, and one of the oldest in the state. 
 Under his devotion and assiduous superintend- 
 ence, new life has been infused into all of these 
 churches, and his efforts to strengthen Catholi- 
 cism within his jurisdiction has met with the hap- 
 piest results. The situation demanded great en- 
 ergy of action and wisdom of administration, but 
 it has been met unflinchingly, and the church's 
 financial and spiritual interests have been direct- 
 ed with prudence and discretion. 
 
 The career of Father Nevin presents an un- 
 broken chain of earnest endeavor to live accord- 
 ing to his highest light and inspiration. He 
 was born in Rochester, N. Y., December i, 1856, 
 and is the seventh of fourteen children, thirteen 
 of whom attained maturity, but only two of 
 whom are on the Pacific coast. Besides adorn- 
 ing the ministry, the family contributes to the 
 civic usefulness of the west, and one of the sons, 
 
950 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 James Nevin, is at present chief of detectives of 
 Portland, Ore. At the age of fifteen he enhsted 
 in Reynolds' Light Artillery and served until the 
 close of the war. He took part in the second 
 battle of Bull Run and in the decisive battle of 
 Gettysburg he stood at one of the guns stationed 
 in the now famous cemetery whence went many 
 a hot and telling shot. Brian and Kate (Kilroy) 
 Nevin, the parents of this large family, were 
 born in County Mayo, Ireland, the former in 
 Castlebar and the latter in Newport. The pa- 
 ternal grandfather, Patrick Nevin, was also born 
 in County Mayo, and his oldest son, James, came 
 to America in 1841, settling in New York state, 
 while the grandfather himself came later, and 
 died in Peterboro, Ontario. Brian learned his 
 trade in his native land, and after his marriage 
 came to Rochester, N. Y., in 1846, remaining 
 there until his removal to Saginaw, Mich., in 
 1864. In both of these towns he plied his useful 
 trade, and died in the latter in 1874, at the age 
 of fifty-seven. His wife survived him until the 
 spring of 1894, when she was sixty-six years 
 old. 
 
 At an early age Father Nevin evidenced a pre- 
 dilection for the priesthood. His education in 
 ■ the public schools of Rochester and Saginaw was 
 supplemented by private instruction relative to 
 his vocation, and at eleven he began the study of 
 the Latin classics and French. In the summer 
 of 1872 he entered St. Mary's College in Cin- 
 cinnati, Ohio, completing the classics in 1876, 
 and thereafter studying philosophy and theology 
 in the school of St. Francis at Milwaukee, Wis. 
 He was ordained in Detroit, Mich., by Bishop 
 Borgess in February, 1880, for the diocese of 
 Detroit, and ten days later became pastor of the 
 church at Monroe, Mich., continuing thus until 
 his health broke down and necessitated an all 
 around change. Rest was found in extended 
 travel in northern and continental Europe, and 
 upon his return he held a minor position until 
 fully restored to health. The little church at 
 Tawas City, Mich., proved a pleasant and not 
 too arduous responsibility, and in 1896 he came 
 to California as assistant of the church at Oak- 
 land. Three years of residence converted him 
 into an ardent enthusiast of the climate and re- 
 sources of this western state, and his appoint- 
 ment to his present charge in 1899 afiforded the 
 field for Christian work since proved of infinite 
 possibility. 
 
 ANDREW J. HARRELL. The success 
 which has followed the efforts of Andrew J. 
 Harrell is the result of well-directed ability, 
 coupled vifith an indomitable will which admits 
 of no defeat. He has established his business 
 life in the lines followed by his father, the late 
 
 Jasper Harrell, a sketch of whose life appears 
 elsewhere in this volume, being variously inter- 
 ested in the commercial activity of Visalia and 
 the stock business in this state and Nevada. 
 Upon the death of his father he assumed control 
 of the vast family estate, bringing to bear in its 
 management the same ability, judgment and 
 energy which have characterized all his independ- 
 ent effort. 
 
 Born May 5, 1861, near Visalia, Tulare coun- 
 ty, Andrew J. Harrell is the son of Jasper and 
 Martha E. (Bacon) Harrell. The father was 
 one of the foremost citizens of Tulare county, 
 active in its development and upbuilding and the 
 promotion of various important enterprises. 
 Andrew J. Harrell was reared in the vicinity of 
 Visalia, receiving his preliminary education in 
 the public schools, after which he took a com- 
 mercial course in Heald's Business College of 
 San Francisco. Previous to this he had attended 
 the high school in that city, completing the 
 course with honors, after which he went to Ne- 
 vada to learn stock raising, which was occuj?ying 
 the greater part of the attention of his father. 
 Shortly afterward he assumed charge of the 
 Jasper Harrell cattle ranch, a position which he 
 held until 1883, when the property was sold to 
 Sparks and Tinnin. Returning to California, he 
 located in Los Angeles, where his father owned 
 considerable property, and here he made his 
 home in a residence built by his father, and gave 
 his attention to the supervision of all the family 
 interests in that city. In 1889 his father estab- 
 lished the firm of Harrell & Son, Bankers, of 
 Vi.salia, and he became manager of the same. 
 Two years later a half -interest, was purchased 
 in the ranch, which was afterward known as the 
 Sparks-Harrell Company, and as the attention of 
 this vast property occupied so much time, the 
 banking interests were sold, the Producers' Bank 
 being incorporated to succeed them. From that 
 time on Mr. Harrell gave his entire time and 
 attention to the cattle business in Nevada. In 
 1 901 the entire property was purchased, when 
 he assumed control of the large ranch, and after 
 the death of his father took charge of the estate 
 for the family. They still own the Nevada 
 ranch, consisting of one hundred and seventy 
 thousand acres of grazing land And about three 
 million acres of range. Thev also own the Har- 
 rell ranch on Cross creek in this county, con- 
 sisting of ten thousand acres, where the mother 
 still resides. Mr. Harrell is still a stockholder 
 in the First National Bank of Visalia, in which 
 he is a director. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Harrell was united in 
 marriage with Ella Crofton, a native of Stock- 
 ton, Cal., and they are the parents of two chil- 
 dren, Andrew Jasper and Elinore Crofton Har- 
 rell. In 1899 Mr. Harrell located with his fam- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 953 
 
 ily in Palo Alto, where they have a comfortable 
 home and pleasant surroundings, although he 
 still retains many interests in the city where his 
 business activities lay for so long. Fraternally 
 he is a member of Visalia Parlor No. 19, N. S. 
 G. W. 
 
 JAMES EDWARD DENNY. The name of 
 James Edward Denny is well known throughout 
 Tulare county, where he has been identified with 
 the business, political and social life for about 
 forty years, and he holds a place of especial prom- 
 inence among the citizens of Visalia. A native 
 of Bond county. 111., he was born June i, 1838, 
 a son of James Denny. The latter, a native of 
 Maryland, immigrated to Illinois before its ad- 
 mission as a state, arid in Bond county carried 
 on farming until his death. His wife, formerly 
 Mary White, of North Carolina, also died in the 
 same locality. They were the parents of nine 
 children, eight sons and one daughter. 
 
 The fifth child in the family of his parents, 
 James Edward Denny received his education in 
 the common school in the' vicinity of his home 
 and in McDonough College, in Macomb, 111., at- 
 tending the latter institutiob two terms. In April, 
 1854, he started for California, making the per- 
 ilous trip across the plains by ox-team and being 
 six months en route. Arriving in the state in 
 September, he located near Forest, Sierra coun- 
 ty, Cal., where he was employed in the mines un- 
 til i860. In partnership with W. G. Sanderson 
 he then bought a ferry (cable power) on the 
 King's river, San Joaquin valley, and conducted 
 the same successfully for four years. In 1864 he 
 came to Visalia, Tulare county, and purchased 
 the Overland livery stables, finding profitable 
 employment until 1866, when he remove3 to Mil- 
 lerton, then the county seat of Fresno county, 
 where he built a store and established a general 
 merchandise business under the firm name of J. 
 E. Denny & Co. This prospered until 1868, when 
 the entire town was washed away by an over- 
 flow. Returning to Visalia Mr. Denny engaged 
 as a clerk in the dry goods establishment of R. 
 E. Hyde for one year, when he entered the hotel 
 business by leasing the Visalia house, under the 
 firm name of Dincker & Denny, who remained 
 the proprietors for about two years. Disposing 
 of his interests Mr. Denny went to Illinois and 
 spent some time in his home in Bond county. 
 Returning to Visalia in the spring of 1872 he was 
 appointed deputy assessor, which office he held 
 until July, when he went into the employ of D. 
 R. Douglass in charge of a general merchan- 
 dise store in Porters ville, Tulare county. In the 
 fall of 1873 he was elected to the combined of- 
 fices of county clerk, auditor and recorder, serv- 
 ing creditably for a term of two years. Fol- 
 
 lowing this he was elected county recorder and 
 auditor for one term; in 1876 was made deputy 
 treasurer for one term; and in 1878 was elected 
 county recorder for one term, discharging the 
 duties incumbent upon him in a capable and ef- 
 ficient manner, and winning commendation from 
 all citizens. In 1880 he returned to the general 
 merchandise business which was conducted under 
 the firm name of Crowley, Denny & Co., for two 
 years, when it was closed out on account of the 
 death of the partner. Mr. Denny then conducted 
 a drug business under the name of Griggs & Den- 
 ny until 1884, when he bought a tract of land 
 (eleven hundred and eighty acres) in Tulare 
 county and engaged in farming. This, perhaps, 
 was the one exception in the life of Mr. Denny 
 where he did not meet with the expected suc- 
 cess. In 1893 he was elected county recorder, 
 and upon the expiration of his term engaged in 
 the real estate business. This latter occupation 
 was interrupted in 1898, when he was elected 
 county treasurer for a term of four years. Since 
 1902 he has engaged exclusively in the real estate 
 and insurance business, handling property, col- 
 lecting rents, etc. He is also identified with the 
 development of oil wells, acting as vice-presi- 
 dent of the Diana Oil Company (incorporated), 
 of Visalia, and is a stockholder in the Devil's 
 Den Oil Company (incorporated), also of this 
 city. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Denny was united in mar- 
 riage with Jennie Drouillard, a native of Iowa, 
 whose death occurred in 1882. She left two 
 children. Mabel married C. D. Rogers, of Mont- 
 erey, Cal., and Lawrence is a freight clerk fn the 
 Southern Pacific Railway, located in San Fran- 
 cisco. Fraternally Mr. Denny is prominent in 
 this section. He belongs to Blue Lodge No. 128, 
 F. & A. M., Visalia Chapter No. 44, R. A. M., 
 and Visalia Commandery No. 26, K. T., all of 
 Visalia, and holds the office of treasurer in the 
 Blue Lodge, Chapter and Commandery. He is 
 also a member of Islam Temple No. 429, N. M. 
 S., of San Francisco. He joined this organiza- 
 tion in Forest City in i860, becoming a mem- 
 ber in Forest City Lodge No. 66. He is also a 
 member of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men. In his political convictions Mr. Denny is a 
 stanch Republican and an active and influential 
 member of the party's counsels. Although a resi- 
 dent in a Democratic county Mr. Denny has held 
 many offices, his personal popularity winning 
 him much support. In 1886 he was nominated 
 on the Republican ticket for state comptroller and 
 although defeated he still ran far ahead of his 
 ticket, even the candidate for governor. He has 
 taken an active and intelligent interest in all pub- 
 lic movements and has given his support to those 
 he considered best calculated to advance the gen- 
 eral welfare of the community. He was one of 
 
954 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the assessors of the Income Tax law of the state 
 in 1864-66. Mr. Denny is representative of the 
 best in American citizenship and among all who 
 know him holds a high place in their regard. 
 
 EDWARD STRACHEY PHILLIPPS. To 
 the discernment and far-sighted judgment of 
 Edward Strachey Phillipps is due the establish- 
 m.ent and upbuilding of the town of Sultana, Tu- 
 lare county. After a comprehensive study of 
 the conditions of the county and particularly of 
 this section of it, he foresaw the need of a set- 
 tlement at this p>oint (then Alta Station, a point 
 on the Santa Fe Railroad), and also the oppor- 
 tunity for advancement of the interests located 
 here. He first purchased one acre of Hugh Lo- 
 gan, which was planted to orange trees, and on 
 the site of the present mercantile establishment 
 of Sultana built the first store which he opened 
 December 25, 1899. The town he named in hon- 
 or of the Sultana grapes which grow so pro- 
 lifically in this section. Shortly afterward he 
 secured a postofifice for the town and was named 
 its first postmaster, which office he has held con- 
 tinuously since. In addition to his own home 
 he built three other residences and another store 
 building, and in various ways has added to the 
 improvement and upbuilding of the best inter- 
 ests of the place. 
 
 Born in London, Canada, January 12, 1868, 
 he was the son of Capt. J. J. Winsloe Phillipps, 
 a native of England. He held the office of cap- 
 tain in the Sixtieth Rifles (King's Corps), serv- 
 ing in India, and also in Canada during the 
 Fenian excitement. On account of ill health he 
 resigned from the army, and until his death made 
 his home in Torquay. Devonshire, England, on 
 his country place. His wife, formerly Margaret 
 Strachey, was born in England, where her death 
 also occurred. Of their three sons, Ralph K. was 
 a civil officer in Borneo, where his death oc- 
 curred; Paul W. is located in London; and Ed- 
 ward Strachey is the subject of this review. He 
 was reared to young manhood in Devonshire, 
 England, receiving his education in St. Mark's 
 College, at Windsor. In 1891 he decided to lo- 
 cate in the United States and accordingly came 
 to Iowa, and engaged in farming near Cedar 
 Rapids. During the three years in which he 
 was a resident of that state he made two trips 
 back to his old home in England. In 1894 he 
 came to California and in Auckland engaged in 
 a mercantile enterprise, and shortly afterward 
 secured the appointment of postmaster. He re- 
 mained in that city until Mav, 1899, when, with 
 his wife, he took a trip back to England. On 
 their return to America their ship was wrecked 
 on the rocks of Belle Island, in the Straits of 
 Belle Isle, upon which they spent four nights 
 
 and five days before being rescued. They fin- 
 ally signaled a cattle boat, which took them into 
 Montreal^. Many of the passengers perished and 
 all suffered untold horrors during that time. 
 Upon his return to California he established Sul- 
 tana, and since that time has made his home in 
 this section. A short distance north of Sultana 
 he owns forty acres of land devoted to alfalfa, 
 fifteen acres east of Sultana, in vineyard and al- 
 falfa ; forty acres at Orosi, principally in vines, 
 while the balance of his land is devoted to or- 
 chard fruits. Through his own success he has 
 induced others to Seek a home here, many being 
 willing to profit by his efforts. In addition to 
 all that he has done for the commercial growth 
 of Sultana, he has given his best efforts along 
 educational lines, assisting in securing a school 
 for the Sultana district, and always taking an 
 active interest in the progress and welfare of the 
 community. In 1902 he disposed of his inter- 
 est in the store to a cousin, L. G. Uniacke. 
 
 In Hanford, Kings county, Mr. Phillipps was 
 united in marriage with Leora Campbell, who 
 was born near Visalia, this county, a daughter 
 of H. Campbell and Elizabeth (Bacon) Camp- 
 bell. They are the parents of one child, Ed- 
 ward Strachey, Jr. In their religious affiliations 
 the family are members of the Episcopal Church. 
 
 FRANK L. ALLEN. As a successful ranch- 
 er Frank L. Allen is located two miles south of 
 Sultana, Tulare county, engaged in the cultiva- 
 tion and improvement of his farm of sixty acres, 
 which is devoted to alfalfa, with the exception of 
 six acres given over to a vineyard and orchard. 
 In addition to his ranching interests he is also 
 engaged in the dairy business, having a herd of 
 thirty Holstein cows, carrying on the work in a 
 modern and up-to-date manner and with every 
 modern equipment, being supplied with a sepa- 
 rator, etc. He also raises stock generally, works 
 with poultry and has a fine apiary, combining his 
 interest in such a manner as to bring about the 
 best results from his labor. 
 
 Born in Lincoln county. Mo., October 8, 1859, 
 Frank L. Allen was the youngest in a family 
 of eleven children, of whom nine attained matur- 
 ity and eight are now living. His father, Rob- 
 ert B. Allen, was a native of West Virginia and 
 an early settler in Missouri, becoming a farmer in 
 Lincoln county, where his death occurred. He 
 married Louisa J. Chambers, a native of St. 
 Clair county. Mo. On the paternal farm Frank 
 L. Allen grew to young manhood, attending 
 the public schools until the fall he was eighteen 
 years old, when he entered the Troy high school. 
 The following year (in 1878) he went to Lead- 
 ville, Colo., during the excitement at that place, 
 and for three and a half years engaged in mining 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 955 
 
 and prospecting. Returning to his home in Mis- 
 souri he remained there until 1883, when he 
 came to California and locating at Lemoore, 
 Kings county, became manager for the Dave 
 Brownstones' warehouses. This position he re- 
 tained until 1886, when he accepted a like po- 
 sition in the Jacobs warehouse. The following 
 year he went to Kern county and homesteaded 
 one hundred and sixty acres near Delano and 
 improved and cultivated it for five years. Dis- 
 posing of that property in 1892 he came to Tu- 
 lare county and in the vicinity of Traver pur- 
 chased a tract of forty acres. Through a de- 
 fective title he subsequently lost this property, 
 and in November, 1898, he located upon his pres- 
 ent property two miles south of Sultana, which 
 he has since made his home and the scene of his 
 labors. It was formerly a wheat field, but he 
 has since changed the crop to alfalfa and fruit, 
 and by combining with the cultivation his va- 
 rious other interests he has made an unqualified 
 success of his efforts. In 1904 he built an 
 addition to his residence and in many other ways 
 has added to the value of his property. 
 
 In Lincoln county, Mo., Mr. Allen was united 
 in marriage with Lucy E. Anderson, a native of 
 Montgomery county, that state. They have one 
 child, Paul E. Active in all matters pertaining 
 to the advancement of the community, Mr. Allen 
 has acted . as school trustee and in many other 
 ways has shown his interest and ability. 
 
 JOHN C. HODGES, a successful stockman 
 of Tulare county, is a native of the state, his 
 birth having occurred in Tulare county, near 
 Mountain View, April 16, 1876. Plis father, 
 Charles Hodges, was a native of Virginia and 
 the descendant of a fine southern family. He 
 became a sailor in manhood, his first trip to 
 California being made around the Horn. This 
 trip was made twice before he finally located in 
 California, which he did about i860, seeking the 
 mines of Eldorado and Placer county immedi- 
 ately after his arrival. For some years he was 
 located in Idaho, Montana and Oregon, where 
 he followed mining for a livelihood. Returning 
 to California he located in Tulare county, first 
 near Lindsay and afterward in the vicinity of 
 Mountain View. He 'then went to Frazier valley 
 and followed farming and stock-raising until his 
 death, which occurred January 20, 1904. His 
 wife, formerly Josephine Ballard, a native of San 
 Jose, Cal., survives him, now making her home 
 on the old place in Frazier valley. 
 
 Of the five sons and four daughters born to 
 his parents, John C. Hodges was the second in 
 order of birth. He received a limited education 
 in the public schools in Tulare county, and in 
 manhcxjd he followed the training of his youth 
 
 and engaged in general farming and stock-rais- 
 ing. He remained in Tulare county, which .place 
 has always been his home, carrying on his opera- 
 tions in Pleasant valley, Frazier valley and the 
 vicinity of Visalia, and in 1902 he located in the 
 mountains in the vicinity of Mountain View, 
 where he became the owner of one thousand 
 acres. He is now engaged extensively in the 
 raising of stock, while he also carries on agri- 
 cultural pursuits to a limited extent. 
 
 In Frazier valley Mr. Hodges was united in 
 marriage with Proda May Gill, a native of Yo- 
 kohl valley, Cal., and they are the parents of one 
 daughter, Itha Marie, who is at home. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Hodges is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the platform 
 of the Republican party. 
 
 VICTOR ELSWORTH SLOAN. The abil- 
 ity which Mr. Sloan has evidenced in his work 
 as a horticulturist since locating in Tulare coun- 
 ty has won for him the respect of his fellow citi- 
 zens as well as a competence, the result of energy 
 and industry. He is located near Orosi engaged 
 in the cultivation of a twenty-acre vineyard, as 
 well as having considerable land devoted to> the 
 raising of peaches. Born August 31, 1863, in 
 Canton, Mo., he is the second child in the fam- 
 ily of his parents, George W. and Margaret 
 (Hodges) Sloan, the former of whom now re- 
 sides in Newark, Mo., while the latter died when 
 her son was ten years old. George W. Sloan 
 was a native of IndianapoJis, Ind., removing in 
 manhood to Canton, Mo., where he engaged as 
 a manufacturing cooper. During the Civil war 
 he served as a member of the 'Thirteenth Illi- 
 nois Regiment of Infantry. Of the four chil- 
 dren born to himself and wife three are now 
 living. 
 
 Victor Elsworth Sloan is the only one of this 
 family who has sought a home in California. He 
 was reared in his native state, receiving his edu- 
 cation principally in the public schools of New- 
 ark. In 1882 he came west, first finding em- 
 ployment in Santa Clara in orchard work, re- 
 maining so occupied for one year. Following 
 this he located in Pleasanton, Alameda county, 
 and engaged in the same employment for seven 
 years, in 1890 .coming to Orosi, Tulare county. 
 He purchased the twenty acres upon which he 
 now resides, planting it to vineyard, and also en- 
 gaging in the nursery business, raising fifteen 
 thousand Muir peach trees. Since that time 
 he has purchased other property, having a twen- 
 ty-acre tract about a mile from his home given 
 over to the cultivation of Muir peaches, while 
 he has also improved a tract of thirty-seven 
 acres one mile north of this place, which he 
 has also planted to Muir peaches. 
 
956 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In Orosi Mr. Sloan was united in marriage 
 with Mary Sallee, a native of Knox county, Mo'., 
 and they 'are now the parents of four children, 
 namely : Myrtle, Clarence, Clififord and Arthur. 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Sloan is a Re- 
 publican and is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church, in which he has officiated as trustee, and 
 also as superintendent of the Sunday-school. He 
 takes an active interest in all matters pertain- 
 ing to the general welfare of the community 
 and especially in educational movements, having 
 acted for some time as school trustee. Fra- 
 ternally he is quite prominent, being identified 
 with the Woodmen of the World, and formerly 
 with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and 
 Knights of Pythias. 
 
 honor of the public may safely rest, and to whom 
 much credit is due for the force he exerts for 
 the moral welfare of the community. 
 
 G. L. LONG, M. D., was born in Mercer 
 county. Pa., July 31, 1858. His residence in 
 California dates from September, 1882. 
 
 WILLIAM GILL. An intelligent, prosper- 
 ous and enterprising stockman, William Gill, of 
 Tulare county, enjoys a wide popularity both 
 for his business ability and his personality. He 
 is a native of Ringgold county, Iowa, where he 
 was born May 14, 1870, a son of Samuel Gill. 
 The family history will be found more at length 
 in the biographical sketch of L. L. Gill, on an- 
 other page of this volume. William Gill re- 
 ceived his education in the common schools of 
 Iowa and California, whither his father removed 
 when he was a lad. He engaged in the stock 
 business with Jiis father until 1893, when he 
 entered upon independent operations. Later he 
 located in the foothills back of Portersville, Tu- 
 lare county, and engaged in the buying, selling 
 and raising of stock. In 1899 he began bu3'ing 
 land in partnership with his brother and they 
 now own thirty thousand acres, all given over to 
 the raising of stock. His home, which is eleven 
 miles east of Portersville, is presided over by 
 his wife, formerly Josephine Adeline McKiear- 
 nan, a native of the state, to whom he was united 
 in marriage in Visalia. She is a daughter of John 
 M. and Nancy (Dunn) McKiearnan, the former 
 a native of Illinois and the latter of Arkansas, who 
 came overland to California. Mr. and Mrs. Gill 
 are the parents of three children, all of whom 
 are at home, namely : Effie Inez, Ralph and 
 Ernest. 
 
 In his political convictions Mr. Gill is an 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. He is a man of 
 energy and unusual ability, inheriting the talent 
 which has been demonstrated in his work as a 
 stockman. Broad-minded and liberal, he is also 
 a citizen who ranks with those upon whom the 
 
 EDWARD STEPHEN O'BRIEN, M. D. 
 Occupying a position of prominence among 
 the successful and best-known physicians of 
 Merced county is Edward S. O'Brien, M. D., 
 who has been in almost continuous practice in 
 the city of Merced since 1881. Bringing to his 
 professional work a well-trained mind, en- 
 thusiastic zeal, and a sympathetic nature, he 
 has met with rare success in his labors, and has 
 won the respect and esteem of his numerous 
 patrons, and of the community in which he re- 
 sides. A son of the late Bernard O'Brien, he 
 was born February 24, 1854, in Boston, Mass. 
 
 A native of Ireland, Bernard O'Brien was 
 born in the city of Waterford, of excellent an- 
 cestry, his mother, whose maiden name was 
 Power, belonging to one of the most noted 
 families of county Waterford. Emigrating to 
 this country when young, he was prosperous- 
 ly engaged in mercantile pursuits in Boston 
 until the breaking out of the Civil war. In 
 1861, selling his store in Boston, he enlisted 
 in Company A, First Maine Cavalry,- under 
 Captain Thaxter, and at once went to the front. 
 During Banks' retreat, in the Shenandoah val- 
 ley, he was severely wounded, receiving two 
 saber cuts, one over the head and the other 
 across the right side of his face, inflicting such 
 serious wounds that he was soon honorably 
 discharged from the army on account of phys- 
 ical disability. Coming by way of the Isthmus 
 of Panama to California in 1863, he located in 
 Mendocino county, where he engaged in stock- 
 raising and subsequently became identified 
 with the transportation of lumber, being finan- 
 cially interested in several schooners employed 
 in the lumber trade. On retiring from busi- 
 ness pursuits, he removed to San Francisco, 
 where he resided until his death, at the age of 
 seventy-three years. His wife, whose maiden 
 name was Margaret Walsh, survived him, and 
 is now a resident of San Francisco. He was a 
 true blue Republican in politics, and a member 
 of the Grand Army of the Republic. Of the 
 nine children born of their union, five are liv- 
 ing, Edward Stephen being the only resident, 
 however, of the San Joaquin valley. 
 
 At the age of eleven years Edward S. 
 O'Brien left Boston, and came by way of 
 Panama, on the ship Golden Gate, to San Fran- 
 cisco, from there joining his father in Men- 
 docino county. After attending the Mendocino 
 schools for awhile he completed his early edu- 
 cation in the public schools of San Francisco. 
 For two years thereafter he was in the employ 
 
i^ ^2^ 4 [J< 
 
 V- 
 
HISTORICAL AiND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 961 
 
 of the J. G. Jackson Compan>', in which his 
 father had an interest, going as a sailor on 
 board a schooner engaged in the coasting trade, 
 running from Coos Bay to San Diego. Be- 
 coming interested then in the study of medi- 
 cine, Mr. O'Brien spent a year in the office of 
 Dr. W. A. McCornack, in Mendocino, after 
 which he continued his studies under Dr. C. G. 
 Kenyon, of San Francisco. Subsequently en- 
 tering the medical department of the College of 
 the Pacific, which was afterward merged in 
 the Cooper Medical College, he was graduated 
 from there in November, 1879, with the degree 
 of M. D. During the last two years of his col- 
 lege course, Dr. O'Brien, with his classmates. 
 Dr. George Adams and Dr. John F. Dillon, 
 were internes at the United States Marine Hos- 
 pital, securing the position by competitive ex- 
 amination, and being the first board of internes 
 appointed in San Francisco. 
 
 After his graduation Dr. O'Brien continued 
 his studies for a year with his former tutor, Dr. 
 Kenyon. In 1881 he began the practice of his 
 profession in Merced, and has been here most 
 of the time since, being the longest-established 
 physician in the city. He has built up an ex- 
 tensive practice in medicine and surgery, his 
 office being now located in the Packer Build- 
 ing, on Main street, and by his professional 
 knowledge and skill has won the respect and 
 esteem of the medical fraternity and of the 
 community. The doctor is now serving as 
 county health officer, and for many years has 
 been county physician. For four terms, from 
 1885 until 1893, he was county coroner. In 
 1897, Dr. O'Brien was appointed, by Governor 
 Budd, superintendent of the lone Reform 
 School, in Amador count)^ but at the end of a 
 year in that capacity resigned the position, and 
 resumed his practice in Merced. By thrift, 
 sound financial judgment and keen foresight, 
 the doctor has accumulated a fine estate, and 
 in addition to owning a valuable residence in 
 the city has good business property. He was 
 one of the organizers, and one of the first presi- 
 dents, of the Merced Milling Company, which 
 erected the Merced Flour Mill, with a capacity 
 of one hundred and fifty barrels a day, and a 
 large warehouse, and is still a director, and a 
 large stockholder in the plant. The doctor also 
 has large mining interests in Mariposa county, 
 owning the Mabel and Ethel quartz mines, 
 which are rich in mineral ores. 
 
 Dr. O'Brien married, in San Francisco, Mary 
 Ragesdale, who was born in California, a 
 daughter of John Ragesdale, who came here in 
 1849, and was engaged in mining and stock- 
 raising for many years, and was also an edu- 
 cator of some note. He spent his last years 
 in Nevada. The doctor and Mrs. O'Brien have 
 
 two children, namely: Mabel Genevieve, a 
 graduate of the high school, is now attending 
 the Leiand Stanford, Jr., University, being a 
 inember of the class of 1906; and Ethel, a pu- 
 pil in the Merced high school, belonging to the 
 class of 1906. The doctor is surgeon for the 
 Merced district of the Santa Fe Railway, and 
 is a member of the Pacific Coast Railroad 
 Surgeons' Association. He is also a member 
 of the American and State Medical associa- 
 tions, and of the San Joaquin Valley and the 
 Merced County Medical societies, being also 
 president of the latter society. He belongs to 
 the Cooper Medical College Alumni Associa- 
 tion, and is an active member and ex-president 
 of the Merced Board of Trade. Politically 
 Dr. O'Brien is a steadfast Democrat, and 
 served as chairman of the Democratic county 
 central committee. Fraternally the doctor is 
 a member and past master of LaGrange 
 Lodge No. 99, F. & A. M. ; of Merced Chapter 
 No. 9, R. A. M. ; a member and past grand of 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows; a 
 member of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men ; and of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 ALFRED FAY. Not only is Mr. Fay a pio- 
 neer of California, but as a child he saw much 
 of frontier life in different sections of the east. 
 His experiences have been many and varied. 
 Hardships not a few have impeded his pJ-ogress. 
 Discouragements have thwarted his plans more 
 than once. In spite of these, however, with a 
 courage and optimism that seem part of his na- 
 ture, he pursued his way quietly and with un- 
 wearied perseverance, and now, in the twilight 
 of a busy life, he can enjoy the fruits of his 
 labors in the possession of a competency sufficient 
 for all needs, and in the possession also of that 
 which is more desirable than wealth, the esteem 
 of associates and affectionate regard of friends. 
 
 In the town of Tully, county of Onondaga, 
 N. Y., Mr. Fay was born May 13, 1827, being a 
 son of David and Lucretia (Farr) Fay, natives 
 respectively of Springfield, Mass., and Onon- 
 daga county, N. Y. His father, who throughout 
 life followed farming as a means of livelihood, in 
 1843 moved by wagon to Illinois, passing through 
 Ohio over the corduroy roads and stopping for 
 the winter in Indiana four miles from Laporte. 
 The spring of 1844 found the family at their 
 new location in McHenry county. 111., where the 
 father entered a tract of government land and 
 improved a farm. His wife died in Wisconsin, 
 where he also passed away, having married again. 
 In his family there were ten children and all 
 attained mature years, but only four are now liv- 
 ing. One of the sons, David, came to California 
 in 1861, and now resides in Los Angeles. An- 
 
962 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 other son, Alvin, who came in 1865, is also living 
 in Los Angeles. 
 
 In order of birth Alfred Fay was the second 
 among the ten children. When sixteen years of 
 age he accompanied his parents by wagon to 
 Illinois. While they were traveling through 
 Ohio they met the family of Ichabod Paddock, 
 who also were removing to the newer regions of 
 the west. Mr. Fay's mother soon found that she 
 had known Mrs. Paddock when they were girls 
 in the same neighborhood, and the acquaintance 
 of their childhood was gladly renewed, the two 
 families traveling together as far as Laporte, 
 Ind. From there the Fay family w.ent to Illi- 
 nois. The Paddocks stayed in Indiana for a 
 time, then removed to Lafayette county. Wis. 
 Among the children of Ichabod and Mary Ann 
 Paddock was a daughter, Elsie, a native of Cat- 
 taraugus, N. Y., and about twelve years old when 
 the two families met. The youth of sixteen was 
 pleasantly impressed, but the two drifted apart. 
 Some years later, when he was peddling, he ac- 
 cidentally met one of her brothers and learned 
 that the family were living near Darlington, Wis. 
 Thus he was given an opportunity to renew his 
 acquaintance with the young lady, and on New 
 Year's day of 1852 they were married at her 
 home in Wisconsin. 
 
 Prior to this Mr. Fay had experienced many 
 of the hardships of frontier existence. When he 
 commenced to work on an Illinois farm, in the 
 spring of 1844, he used ten oxen in breaking the 
 prairie, plowing a furrow of twenty-six inches. 
 All around was open prairie, on which scarcely an 
 attempt had been made at cultivation. For many 
 miles in every direction not a furrow had been 
 turned in the soil, and the country remained in 
 the primeval condition of nature. Chicago was 
 forty-five miles distant and there were but two 
 houses in all the intervening space. When he 
 was twenty-two he started a peddling wagon and 
 traveled through Boone, Winnebago, Stephen- 
 son and Jo Daviess counties, 111., and Rock, Green, 
 Lafayette and Grant counties. Wis. After four 
 years of this work he opened a general store at 
 Darlington, where, under the firm title of A. 
 Fay & Co., he built up the largest mercantile 
 business in the entire county, also erected the 
 best brick store in the county. In i860 he sold 
 his property there and came via New York and 
 Panama to California, being a passenger on the 
 North Star from New York, and on the T. C. 
 Twichell . up the Pacific ocean, landing at San 
 Francisco November 14, i860. During his first 
 two years in the state he carried on farm pur- 
 suits in Napa county. From there he moved to 
 San Mateo county, thirty miles south of San 
 Francisco, where he bought four hundred and 
 eighty acres of raw land and developed it into 
 a fine farm, with substantial residence, and all 
 
 equipments for the raising of stock and grain, to- 
 gether with the carrying on of a large dairy busi- 
 ness. 
 
 Meanwhile Mr. Fay had made occasional trips 
 to the San Joaquin valley, where his wife had 
 relatives living near Hanford. On one of these 
 visits he purchased one hundred and sixty acres 
 on section 21, four miles northwest of Tulare. 
 November 30, 1884, he settled on this property 
 and took up the task of making improvements. 
 On Tuesday he began to build a barn and by 
 Friday the structure was enclosed and roofed 
 so that he could store his hay .within. Other 
 buildings were erected, an orchard of trees for 
 family use was planted, the facilities for a dairy 
 business were introduced, also the necessary 
 equipment for raising horses, cattle and hogs. 
 Since 1864 he has engaged in raising standard 
 horses and few men are more familiar with the 
 good points in horses than is he. As a judge 
 of such stock he has few superiors. Of his quar- 
 ter section he has put sixty-six acres into alfalfa, 
 all of which can be irrigated from the People's 
 ditch. In every respect the place is one of the 
 best improved homesteads of Tulare county and 
 its hospitable owner and his wife join in wel- 
 coming beneath their roof those whom business 
 relations or the ties of friendship bring to their 
 home. For many years Mr. Fay officiated as a 
 school director and his interest in educational 
 affairs has been continuous and strong. Many 
 years ago he was made a Mason in Redwood 
 City Lodge, and now has his membership in 
 Olive Branch Lodge No. 269, F. & A. M., also, 
 with his wife, belongs to the Order of the East- 
 ern Star, and in religious connections affiliates 
 with the Baptist Church. 
 
 CARLETON JAMES SHANNON. Well 
 and favorably known throughout Tulare county, 
 where he has been a resident since 1889, Carle- 
 ton James Shannon is prominently mentioned 
 among the representative citizens of this section. 
 He was born in Colborne, Ontario, June 9, 1870,. 
 the second in a family of four sons and one 
 daughter, of whom all are living. His parents, 
 Robert and Deborah (Richardson) Shannon, left 
 their farm in Ontario and came to California in 
 1 89 1, locating on a farm near A^isalia, where 
 Mr. Shannon's death occurred. His widow sur- 
 vives him and liow makes her home in Farmers- 
 ville. 
 
 Carleton James Shannon was reared in On- 
 tario on the parental farm until he was sixteen 
 years old, attending the public schools in pur- 
 suit of an education. When sixteen he hecame 
 dependent upon his own resources, finding em- 
 ployment for three years in the vicinity of his 
 home. At the end of that time he was making 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 963 
 
 only $15 per month and he conckided to try his 
 fortunes in the west. He accordingly came to 
 California in 1889, reaching Tulare county with 
 but $20 left of all he had saved. He at once 
 found employment with J. R. Robinson, remain- 
 ing with him for twenty months, after which he 
 rented a farm of John Frans and engaged in 
 stock raising for two years. He then rented 
 the R. H. Stevens ranch in the vicinity of his 
 present farm, upon which he remained for five 
 years, then returned to the ranch of Mr. Frans, 
 with whom he worked in partnership in feeding 
 and selling stock. Through good management 
 he acquired sufficient means to purchase a farm 
 of one hundred and forty acres in 1897, the 
 nucleus of his present ranch, in 1900 purchasing 
 two hundred and forty acres more, and in 1902 
 another hundred acres, making in all owned at 
 -present four hundred and eighty acres located 
 on sections 32 and 33, of township 19, range 25, 
 located five miles northeast of Tulare. He has 
 improved and cultivated the property to the best 
 advantage, taking a pride in bringing the ranch 
 to rank with the best in the county. Seventy 
 acres are devoted to Muscat grapes, the balance 
 being in alfalfa, grain and pasture, all under the 
 Farmers' ditch, of which company Mr. Shanfton 
 is a director. He also feeds cattle and hogs, 
 while he raises a large number. The summer of 
 1903 he spent at Santa Cruz for recreation, and 
 in the fall of the year engaged in general farm- 
 ing and stock raising on his home place. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Shannon married Mrs. Lulu 
 B. (Jordan) Smith, who was born near Visalia, 
 a daughter of James B. Jordan. By her former 
 marriagf Mrs. Shannon had one son, Leslie 
 Smith. Mr. and Mrs. Shannon have one son, 
 Gordan. Fraternally Mr. Shannon belongs to 
 Four Creeks Lodge No. 92, I. O. O. F., of 
 Visalia, and politically is a stanch adherent of 
 the principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 ROBERT WEST McFARLAND. Self- 
 made, in the best sense implied by the term, Rob- 
 ert West McFarland enjoys to an unusual de- 
 gree the confidence and esteem of all who have 
 come to know him. Both as a farmer and in 
 his active participation in public affairs in Tu- 
 lare county, Mr. McFarland has shown himself 
 to be possessed of unusual ability, energy and 
 foresight, and with a personality which wins him 
 friends wherever he goes he has made a success 
 in his life work. In 1900 he located on his pres- 
 ent property, eight miles east of Portersville, 
 the thousand acres of land in this tract belonging 
 to his wife and daughter. 
 
 Born in Macoupin county, III, June 3, 1837, 
 Mr. McFarland is a son of James McFarland, 
 
 who was born in Christian county, Ky., May 25, 
 1810. In 1835 the elder man removed to Macou- 
 pin county. 111., and there engaged as a merchant 
 for a time, and later conducted a drovers' mar- 
 ket. He was located in this work at St. Louis 
 and finally he went to Henry county, Mo., and 
 engaged in farming and stock-raising. In Jas- 
 per county, where he afterward removed, he fol- 
 lowed the same occupation. Upon the breaking 
 out of the Civil war he enlisted in a Kansas troop 
 and after the close of hostilities resumed his 
 peaceful life in Jasper county. He had become a 
 prominent man in the county, however, and in 
 1865 was elected to the state legislature on the 
 Republican ticket, having gone into the war a 
 Democrat and come out a Repiiblican. Until 
 his death he remained active in this party, and 
 was also active in the Grand Army of the Re- 
 public. His death occurred in Jasper county at 
 the age of eighty-seven years. Previous to his 
 enlistment for service in the Civil war, Mr. Mc- 
 Farland had been attacked by bushwhackers and 
 hung, but was cut down, after which he imme- 
 diately entered the army under General Blunt. 
 He was the descendant of an old southern fam- 
 ily, his grandfather, James, of North Carolina, 
 having served in the Revolutionary war, enter- 
 ing at the age of seventeen years, and serving 
 until the close of hostilities, after which he re- 
 moved to Kentucky and died in that state. His 
 father, Robert, was a native of Halifax county, 
 Va., in manhood becoming a resident of Ken- 
 tucky, where he also died. James McFarland 
 married in manhood Sarah E. Maze, a native of 
 Tennessee, who died in Missouri. They were 
 the parents of three children, of whom Robert 
 West McFarland was the oldest. 
 
 Mr. McFarland was educated in the primitive 
 schools of Missouri, and began farming in Jas- 
 per county in young manhood. He bought land 
 and continued his operations there until i860, 
 when he located in Henry county. There he 
 farmed until 1879, after which he engaged in a 
 mercantile enterprise for ten years. He be- 
 came active in public affairs, taking a prominent 
 part in the township organization of the county 
 and holding many offices of trust and respon- 
 sibility. Deciding to locate in the more remote 
 west he came to California in 1889, settUng in 
 Portersville, where he engaged as a merchant 
 until 1899. He then closed out his business and 
 the following year removed to his present loca- 
 tion, where he is engaged in carrying on farming 
 operations. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. McFarland married Sarah 
 E. Dunning, a native of Henry county, Mo., and 
 a daughter of Shadrach and Adah (Morns) 
 Dunning, the former a native of Kentucky, and 
 the latter of North Carolina, but reared and 
 married in Kentucky. They died in Henry coun- 
 
964 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ty, Mo. Mr. and Mrs. McFarland have five liv- 
 ing children, namely : J. A. S., located on the 
 home ranch; Ada B., at home; Martha, the wife 
 of O. L. Brough, of Portersville ; and Chester 
 A. and Archie A., both at home. One son, John 
 H., died at the age of twenty-nine years. He 
 was associated with his father in the mercantile 
 business at Portersville. Politically Mr. McFar- 
 land was a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Democratic party, 
 but was a member of the Populist party from 
 1892 to 1896. He has always taken an active in- 
 terest in public affairs, and in 1900 was elected 
 supervisor of District No. i, by the Democratic 
 party, and re-elected by a large majority in 1904. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Portersville Lodge 
 No. 303, F. & A. M., and also belongs to the 
 Order of the Eastern Star. 
 
 N. J. WESTMAN. An important place in 
 the community is invariably won by representa- 
 tives of certain European countries, not the least 
 of which is Sweden. From this country of sturdy 
 citizens has come many residents of California, 
 of whoin N. J. Westman, of Orosi, Tulare coun- 
 ty, is named as representative of the best class. 
 He was born in Sweden, September 6, 1870, the 
 youngest in a family of three children, two of 
 whom are located in America. His father, N. O. 
 Westman, was born, reared and educated in Swe- 
 den, in manhood becoming a farmer and own- 
 ing today a comfortable home, known as the 
 Knoll Farm. He still survives his wife, former- 
 ly Anna Margareta Larson, also a native of that 
 country, who died in 1874. 
 
 The boyhood of N. T. Westman was passed 
 upon the paternal farm, and while attending the 
 public schools he also received the practical train- 
 ing which has contributed no little tO' his suc- 
 cessful career. Upon attaining the age of six- 
 teen years he left school and gave his entire at- 
 tention to work on his father's farm, remaining 
 so occupied for two years. In 1889 he caine 
 to the United States, and immediately after land- 
 ing in New York City he crossed the continent 
 to Nebraska, where, in Wahoo, Saunders coun- 
 ty, he found employment on a farm at $12 per 
 month. To make this trip he had gone in debt 
 $152.85, and to the payment of this sum he de- 
 voted his wages. For three years he remained in 
 liiat location, coming to California in 1892. In 
 Tehama county, near Red Bluff, he found em- 
 ployment on a farm, in the fall of the same year 
 finding work on an extensive ranch, helping on a 
 thresher. In the same year he located in Oak- 
 land and there followed a prosecution of the 
 carpenter's trade, remaining so occupied until 
 June, 1893, after which he worked for J. W. 
 Phillips, of that city. In 1897 he went to Mal- 
 
 aga and bought a tract of twenty acres, which 
 he planted to vineyard and alfalfa, erecting build- 
 ings and making that his home for two years. 
 On account of so much alkali in the ground he 
 was not satisfied with his location, and accord- 
 ingly sold out in 1899, when he came to Orosi, 
 Tulare county, here purchasing another twenty 
 acres. This was only slightly improved at the 
 time of his purchase, since which time he has 
 given his best efforts to make of it a comfortable 
 home and a credit to the ranches of the sec- 
 tion. For a time he conducted a vineyard of 
 forty acres near Tulare, meeting with the same 
 success which has characterized his entire ca- 
 reer. Returning to his own farm he has since 
 given his entire time and attention to its im- 
 provement and cultivation. He has put up com- 
 fortable and substantial buildings, has a five- 
 acre orchard and an eight-acre vineyard, the rest 
 of the property being devoted to alfalfa. He 
 has all modern improvements, having a railroad 
 from his drying grounds to the sulphur houses. 
 In partnership with his brother he also owns 
 twenty acres in Orosi, all devoted to vineyard, 
 and also owns ten lots in the same town. Mr. 
 Westman has proved himself one of the most 
 substantial men of the town, giving material as- 
 sistance in its upbuilding by a prosecution, to 
 some extent, of his trade. 
 
 In Oakland Mr. Westman was united in mar- 
 riage with Anne Hegstrom, a native of Westman- 
 land, Sweden, and they have one daughter, Edith 
 Violet. Fraternally Mr. Westman is associated 
 with the Modern Woodmen of America and the 
 Beavers. Politically he is a stanch Republican. 
 A member of the Baptist Church, he has been 
 active in its support, having served as trustee 
 for some time. 
 
 ALMOND B. CLEMENT. The extensive 
 farming interests of Almond B. Clement justly 
 place him among the representative men of that 
 class in this section of Tulare county. He is now 
 engaged in the cultivation and improvement of 
 nine hundred and sixty acres in the vicinity of 
 Springville, where he carries on principally the 
 raising of stock and hay. A native of Barry 
 county, Mich., he was born July 23, 1856, a son 
 of Isaac Clement. The elder man was a native 
 of New York state, who located in Barry county, 
 Mich., in 1870, and engaged as a pioneer farm- 
 er. Later he removed to Floyd county, Iowa, 
 and followed the same occupation in that local- 
 ity; then, in 1873, settled near Lincoln, Neb., 
 from there removing to Ada county, Idaho, in 
 1881, where he engaged in fruit growing and 
 general farming. Three years later he came to 
 California and located near Springville, Tulare 
 county, and later near Globe, and in 1902 sold 
 
-^-X ^^U/i^..A^ 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 .&C7 
 
 out and now resides with his daughter in the 
 vicinity of Springville at the age of seventy- 
 four years. His wife, formerly Savilla M. Clark, 
 was bom in New York state and died in Cali- 
 fornia, leaving a family of three sons and three 
 daughters. One son and two daughters were by 
 a former marriage. 
 
 The eldest in his father's family. Almond B. 
 Clement was reared in the various localities 
 where his parents lived, receiving his educa- 
 tion in the public schools of Michigan, Iowa and 
 Nebraska. He began farming in Nebraska but 
 removed with his father to Idaho and also came 
 to California with him in 1884. He located upon 
 the place where he now lives, owning nine hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, of which he homesteaded 
 one hundred and sixty acres. His property is 
 three miles north of Springville in the moun- 
 tains, and is principally devoted to stock-raising. 
 In Idaho he married Sarah A. Wittel, a native 
 of Shelby count)', Ohio, and the daughter of 
 John Wittel, of Pennsylvania, who came to Ida- 
 ho in 1884 and to California ten years later, lo- 
 cating near Chico, Butte county, where he is now 
 engaged in farming and fruit-raising. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Clement have two children, Elzie F. and 
 Alpha M., both at home. Politically Mr. Qe- 
 ment is a Democrat, and in the interests of this 
 party has served in various offices, at present 
 filling that of clerk of the school board of the 
 Mountain View district. 
 
 MILES J. NIGHTINGALE. There is no 
 such word as luck in the lexicon of business men, 
 for experience has taught them most convincing- 
 ly that success is the result of persistent appli- 
 cation of intelligent methods that demand time 
 for their development. To executive ability and 
 organized sense must be added public confidence 
 and a thorough knowledge of the field to be oc- 
 cupied, which latter can be gained only by steady 
 approaches. Sudden acquisition of wealth is of 
 rare occurrence and usually followed by speedy 
 and irremediable collapse. In any event, one 
 . would never intimate that Miles J. Nightingale, 
 the popular proprietor of the largest and finest 
 mercantile establishment in Oakdale, owes, his 
 success to any adventitious aid. His present 
 enviable position is due to an inheritance of Eng- 
 lish thrift, manly energy, sterling honesty, in- 
 flexible sense of justice, tireless energy and inti- 
 mate acquaintance with business methods. He 
 had the patience to wait when he started out 
 in life, and he never spent any time in watch- 
 ing the clock. 
 
 Mr. Nightingale was born in Philadelphia, 
 Pa.,. August ID, 1843, ^"d is the only son in a 
 family of three children. His parents, John and 
 Sarah (Grime) Nightingale, and his paternal 
 
 grandfather. Miles, were born in Bolton, Lan- 
 castershire, England, and both his father and 
 grandfather were bleachers in cotton mills in 
 England. John Nightingale followed his trade 
 after immigrating to P^ladelphia, and when 
 Mdes J. was nine years old, in 1852, came to Cal- 
 ifornia, walking across the Isthmus, and disem- 
 barking on the west side of San Francisco. At 
 first his field of activity was a farm in San 
 Joaquin county, and he later lived near Stock- 
 ton, in time following teaming and farming and 
 mining in Calaveras county. His death occurred 
 in Stockton about 1897, when between seventy- 
 seven and eighty 3'ears of age. When Miles J. 
 was thirteen his mother and sister came with 
 him to California, sailing on the steamer Illinois 
 to Aspinwall, and from Panama to San Fran- 
 cisco on the steamer Sonora, being on the way 
 twenty-four days. He was a strong and rugged 
 lad, and immediately went to work on a farm 
 near Linden, at the age of twenty apprentic- 
 ing to a blacksmith named William P. Miller, of 
 Stockton, for three years. Possessing mechan- 
 ical ingenuity, he made an excellent workman, 
 and after finishing his apprenticeship remained 
 with his employer for eighteen years, making 
 in all a business association of twenty-one years. 
 From 1872 until 1884 he had charge of the 
 works as superintendent, and during the latter 
 year stepped out of the business in order to 
 purchase his father's old farm of One hundred 
 and sixty acres near Linden, which he operated 
 four years, and then rented to a tenant. This 
 farm remained in his possession until 1902. 
 
 In the meantime, in 1888, Mr. Nightingale lo- 
 cated in Oakdale and bought an interest in a 
 carriage shop, operating the same under the 
 firm name of Nightingale & Stearne for six 
 years. Disposing of his interest to J. M. Har- 
 ray, he entered mercantile ranks by buying the 
 small tinshop of A. S. Dingley, shortly after the 
 election of the latter to the office of county treas- 
 urer. The small shop was soon enlarged and 
 started on a more ambitious career, finally taking 
 on the dignity of a hardware establishment, and 
 eventually graduating into a general merchan- 
 dising business. At the present time the con- 
 cern occupies space covering 50x200 feet, and a 
 basement, besides warehouses for the storage of 
 heavy agricultural implements, windmills, plumb- 
 ing apparatus, and all requirements which come 
 under the head of hardware. The general mer- 
 chandise includes everything which comes un- 
 der that head, selected with due regard to the 
 size and requirements of the town, the status of 
 its citizens, and its prestige as a leading mer- 
 cantile center. His rise has been gradual, steady 
 and substantial, and backed by the confidence 
 of men who have known him as a blacksmith 
 and small merchant, and who repose unlimited 
 
968. 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 faith in his maintenance of the high standard 
 established in his youth. His influence is no- 
 wliere more apparent than with the people who 
 serve his interests as clerks and assistants, and 
 who look to him as an example of well won 
 and substantial success. He has the faculty of 
 securing from them their best possible efforts, 
 and of inducing a co-operative feeling beneficial 
 alike to employe and employer. If he preaches 
 the gospel of industry and application, he car- 
 ries out in his own life an example of its ap- 
 plication. He is as faithful to the best inter- 
 ests of his employes as he expects them to be to 
 his interests. 
 
 In Alpine county, Cal., Mr. Nightingale mar- 
 ried Florence Mercer, a native of Calaveras 
 county, and -daughter of William Mercer, a na- 
 tive of England, and a pioneer miner of Cal- 
 averas and Nevada counties, Cal. The only 
 child of this union, John Mercer Nightingale, is 
 a student at the University of California, and 
 will graduate in the class of 1905. The political 
 opinions held by Mr. Nightingale are grounded 
 in a faith that comes of much thought and study, 
 and he is from conviction a Republican, al- 
 though taking no open or active part in election 
 campaigns. The mercantile career of Mr. Night- 
 ingale leaves him strong and alert, with faith un- 
 shaken in humanity and with heart untainted 
 by avarice. He is devotedly attached to his fam- 
 ily, and the same good fellowship extends to 
 all his relations, and is manifested in unosten- 
 tatious aid to those requiring it, and affection 
 and sympathy for all. 
 
 SETH SMITH. Among the men who have 
 been largely instrumental in developing the rich 
 resources of central California is Seth Smith of 
 Visalia, a skillful civil engineer, who has, may- 
 hap, done more surveying throughout Tulare 
 county than any other one person. An expert in 
 his line of industry, he has been professionally 
 connected with the establishment of mam^ of 
 the leading projects of the county, working for 
 the government, for incorporated companies and 
 for private individuals, his knowledge, experi- 
 ence and judgment rendering him especially 
 competent as a surveyor. Of good old New Eng- 
 land stock, he was born April 19, 1846, near 
 Chatham, Columbia county, N. Y., which was 
 also the birthplace of his father, David Smith. 
 His grandfather, Seth Smith, was born in Mas- 
 sachusetts, where his parents settled on coming 
 to the United States from England, but died in 
 Columbia county, N. Y.-, where he carried on 
 farming for many years. He was the represent- 
 ative of one of the early Quaker families of New 
 England. 
 
 Brought up in Columbia county, N. Y., David 
 
 Smith followed the free and independent call- 
 ing in which he was reared, and was also actively 
 engaged in business near Chatham. He married 
 Lovisa Palmer, who was born in Columbia coun- 
 ty, N. Y., the daughter of Asa P. Palmer, a 
 farmer, who removed there from Rhode Island. 
 The Palmers, who were of Scotch-Irish descent 
 and prominent Baptists, came from England to 
 America, the emigrant ancestor locating in Rhode 
 Island. ,0f the union of David and Lovisa 
 (Palmer) Smith nine children were born, all of 
 whom grew to years of maturity, and two ar€ 
 still living, namely : Emma J., wife of P. H. 
 Pultz of Chatham, N. Y., and Seth. 
 
 Having acquired a practical education in the 
 public schools of his native town, Seth Smith 
 remained at home until the fall of 1864, when, 
 in the employ of the government, he went south, 
 and at Alexandria, Va., served in the quarter- 
 master's department until after the . surrender of 
 Richmond. Returning north to New York City, 
 he remained in the employ of Leeds & Minor, 
 commission merchants, for nearly two years. 
 Going to Louisville, Pottawatomie county, Kans., 
 Mr. Smith worked for a year, from January, 
 1867, until January, 1868, in the office of the 
 county surveyor. The following year he served 
 as deputy county surveyor under P. Y. Baker. 
 He was subsequently elected county surveyor, 
 and was afterward re-elected, serving in that 
 capacity until 1874, wheri he resigned. Coming 
 then to the Pacific coast, Mr. Smith began sur-" 
 veying with his brother George, then county 
 surveyor of Tulare county, serving as deputy 
 county surveyor and civil engineer. Subse- 
 quently being elected county surveyor, he held 
 the position from March, 1879, until January, 
 1883. Becoming the Democratic candidate for 
 county assessor in 1882, he was elected by a 
 majority of six hundred and seven, and in 1886 
 was re-elected by an increased majority, serving 
 from January, 1883, until January, 1891. Mr. 
 Smith afterward continued as surveyor and 
 civil engineer for several years, surveying canals 
 and ditches, being during the time in the employ 
 of nearly every ditch company in the county, his 
 skill and knowledge rendering his services of 
 inestimable value. In i'898 Mr. Smith was elect- 
 ed county surveyor, and in 1902 was re-elected 
 to the same position by a handsome majority 
 for another term of four years, the first term 
 extending from January, 1899, until January, 
 1903, and the present term from the latter date 
 until January. 1907. He is also deputy United 
 States mineral surveyor. He is a man of excel- 
 lent business tact and ability. He is interested 
 in the Jennings Ditch Water Company, of which 
 he is director and president, and owns a good 
 ranch of thirty-five acres, all under the ditch, 
 on which he raises alfalfa and keeps a fine herd 
 
HISTORICAL AND BlOGlRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 9(59 
 
 of full-blooded Jersey cattle. On Grove- street, 
 Visalia, Mr. Smith has a fine residence, which he 
 and his family occupy. 
 
 In Pottawatomie county, Kans., Mr. Smith 
 married Mary L. Anderson, a native of Wash- 
 ington, Ohio, by whom he has had six children, 
 three of whom grew to years of maturity : 
 George D., graduate of a business college, is 
 deputy county surveyor ; LeRoy G., a graduate 
 of the University of California and of the Hast- 
 ings Law School, is engaged in the practice of 
 his profession at Dinuba, Cal. ; and Oscar C, a 
 student at the University of California, died in 
 Oakland in August, 1904. Politically Mr. Smith 
 is actively identified with the Democratic party; 
 sustaining its principles by voice and vote. Fra- 
 ternally he is a member of Visalia Lodge No. 
 128, F. & A. M. ; of Visalia Chapter, R. A. M. ; 
 and of the Scottish Rite. Mrs. Smith is a mem- 
 ber of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. 
 
 THOMAS MARTIN came to California in 
 1875, and for a number of years followed vari- 
 ous pursuits in counties along the coast. It 
 was not until 1882 that he purchased land in 
 Fresno county, four miles west of Selma, and 
 the following year he took up his residence 
 here, and has made it his home ever since. Upon 
 his fine six hundred and sixty acre ranch Mr. 
 Martin is engaged in stock-raising and general 
 farm pursuits, about two hundred acres of his 
 land being devoted to the raising of alfalfa, 
 which yields enormous returns. 
 
 A descendant of a well-known Canadian fam- 
 ily, and born in the city of Ontario, May 7, 1852, 
 Mr. Martin is a son of Hugh and Margaret 
 (Kirkwood) Martin, the former a native of Ire- 
 land and the latter of Canada, where she is still 
 living at the advanced age of eighty-five years. 
 When twelve years old, Hugh Martin accom- 
 panied his father, William Martin, from Ireland 
 to Canada, and settled in Ontario, in which lo- 
 cality the whole of his after-life was spent. 
 When grown to manhood he followed the oc- 
 cupati6n of teaching for a number of years, 
 afterward turning his attention to farm pursuits 
 in the neighborhood of Campwell, and it was 
 there that he died at the age of seventy. Ten 
 children were born to him and his wife as fol- 
 lows : Robert and William, deceased ; John, a 
 resident of Dakota ; Mary Jane and Joseph, also 
 deceased; Thomas; George, a contractor and 
 builder of Yolo county, Cal. ; Maggie, a resident 
 of Canada; Hugh, also a contractor and builder, 
 residing at Berkeley, Cal.; and Annie, deceased. 
 
 The recipient of but a limited education, 
 gleaned from the common schools of his native 
 place, Mr. Martin, during his youth and early 
 manhood, assisted his father in farm pursuits, but 
 
 in 1875 he followed the tide of immigration to 
 the westward coast of the United States, locating 
 m Sonoma county, Cal., where he rented land 
 and followed dairy farming for five years near 
 Petaluma. In 1881 he discontinued this busi- 
 ness and went into Yolo county, where he pur- 
 chased a half interest in a threshing machine, but 
 the following year (1882), in looking about for 
 a good investment, he was attracted by the favor- 
 able outlook in Fresno county and purchased 
 land near Selma. Returning to Yolo county, he 
 remained there long enough to dispose of his 
 iriterests to advantage, and in 1883 proceeded to 
 his recently acquired land, which he has im- 
 proved and cultivated ever since. By additional 
 purchases made from time to time, his ranch 
 has grown to its present proportions — six hun- 
 dred and sixty acres — and to-day he has one of 
 the finest farms in this vicinity. 
 
 The political preference of Mr. Martin is given 
 to the Democratic party, and in i8g8 he was the 
 choice of his party for county supervisor, being 
 re-elected to this office in 1902 from the fourth 
 district of Fresno county. He was also chosen 
 director of the Selma irrigation district and his 
 interest in educational affairs is evinced by his 
 excellent services as a member of the local school 
 board. He is allied with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows and the Woodmen of the World 
 of Selma. He married Mrs. Maud Jackson, a 
 native of Missouri, who had two children, Clar- 
 ence and Nina, by her former marriage. 
 
 CHARLES CAMPBELL. The ranch of 
 Charles Campbell, consisting of twenty acres lo- 
 cated in the vicinity of Orosi, Tulare county, and 
 devoted to the cultivation of a vineyard and or- 
 chard fruits, is an evidence of the ability and 
 energy which distinguishes this citizen. He was 
 born in Boston, Mass., April 7, 1856, inheriting 
 from New England ancestors the sturdy quali- 
 ties which have contributed to his success. His 
 father, W. H. Campbell, was born in Nova Sco- 
 tia, of Scotch parentage, and in manhood he be- 
 came a contractor and builder. He married Jes- 
 sie Miller, also of Nova Scotia and of Scotch 
 • ancestry, and of this union were born nine chil- 
 dren, of whom Charles Campbell is the eighth 
 child. 
 
 Reared to young manhood in Boston, Charles 
 Campbell found employment in maturity as a 
 clerk. This position he retained until October, 
 1879, when he came as far west as Denver, Colo., 
 and entered the employ of the Denver & Rio 
 Grande Railroad as baggage master. Four years 
 later he resigned this position, and, locating in 
 Montrose countv, same state, engaged in farming- 
 and stock raising, meeting with a success which 
 justified his continuance in the same for eight 
 
970 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 years. Deciding to settle in California on ac- 
 count of his wife's health, in May, 1893, he came 
 to Orosi, and the following year bought the 
 twenty acres which now form his ranch. This 
 property had but few improvements, but since 
 his purchase he has transformed it into a com- 
 fortable home, and has cultivated the land in such 
 a way as to make it very profitable. He has ten 
 acres planted to vineyard, while the balance is 
 given over to orchard and alfalfa. He has built 
 a comfortable residence, new barns and outbuild- 
 ings, and his drying ground and packing house 
 are connected by a short railroad. In every re- 
 spect his property is modern and up to date, and 
 is a credit to the horticultural interests of the 
 section. 
 
 In Boston, Mass., Mf. Campbell was united in 
 marriage with Elizabeth McDonald, a native of 
 Nova Scotia, and they are now the parents of 
 three children, namely: Chester, a student in 
 Ayres Business College in San Francisco; Jen- 
 nie, and Frank. Both himself and wife are mem- 
 bers of the Presbyterian Church, and also of the 
 Order of the Eastern Star. Politically he is a 
 stanch Republican. Fraternally Mr. Campbell 
 is quite prominent, having been made a Mason 
 in Montrose Lodge No. 63, and now belongs to 
 Montrose Lodge, R. A. M., and the Montrose 
 Commandery; is a member of the Knights of 
 Pythias and the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 WILLIAM FRANCIS TOOMEY. The 
 magnitude of the fruit industry in the San Joa- 
 quin valley has caused a number of men to de- 
 vote their entire attention to the packing and 
 shipping of the products for which this region 
 is famous. Among those who have a thorough 
 knowledge of the business and a wide acquaint- 
 ance among fruit-growers, mention belongs to 
 W. F. Toomey, the Fresno local manager of 
 Guggenheim & Co., packers and shippers of dried 
 fruits, raisins, nuts and honey. Under his su- 
 pervision has been erected one of the most motk 
 ern packing plants in the state, and its capacity 
 of one hundred and fifty thousand cases enables 
 the manager to control a large portion of the 
 output of the vicinity. Under his supervision 
 as manager is embraced the territory lying be- 
 tween Merced and Bakersfield, including the 
 branch house at Selma. The company which he 
 represents has its headquarters in San Francisco, 
 with packing houses and representatives in 
 Woodland, Fresno, Santa Ana and Selma. 
 
 By birth Mr. Toomey is a Californian. His 
 father, Michael J. Toomey, who was a native 
 o'f Limerick, Ireland, settled in San Francisco 
 about 1869 and embarked in the dairy" business, 
 establishing the Mount View dairy with a Mr. 
 Green, and building up a large business. In 
 
 1877, while driving a team, his wagon was hit 
 by a train on Fourth and Townsend streets, San 
 Francisco, and he was thrown from the wagon 
 and killed. Before coming to California and 
 when a resident of the south, he joined the 
 Union army at the outbreak of the Civil war 
 and remained at the front until seriously wound- 
 ed in battle. During the same war his brother, 
 J. J. Toomey, also fought on the Union side, 
 while his wife, Mary J. Heartnett, a native of 
 Ballybingen, Ireland, had one brother in the 
 Federal army. Since the death of her husband 
 Mrs. Toomey has continued to make her home 
 in San Francisco. Of her five sons and one 
 daughter all are living but one son. The third 
 in order of birth was William Francis, who was 
 born in San Francisco April 10, 1870. At the 
 age of ten years he left the grammar school 
 and began to earn his own livelihood. During 
 September of 1886 he came to Fresno and se- 
 cured employment on a ranch, where he studied 
 the raising and curing of fruits until he was 
 familiar with every detail, from the' planting of 
 the tree to the shipping of the fruit. During 
 much of the time for seven years he was inter- 
 ested in fruit-raising, and in packing seasons 
 worked for the Curtis Fruit Company of New 
 York. In 1891 he was appointed superintendent 
 of the Producers' Co-operating Company, with 
 which he remained for two years. For the en- 
 suing two years he acted as superintendent and 
 buyer for Castle Brothers, and then for three 
 seasons represented the Earl Fruit Company as 
 manager, meanwhile establishing their interests 
 in excellent condition. As assistant manager for 
 Porter Brothers from 1897 to 1902 he traveled 
 in every part of the San Joaquin valley in their 
 interests, resigning from their employ to form 
 his present association. Many of tlie seasons 
 between 1886 and 1897 were spent, the summers 
 in the San Joaquin valley and the winters in 
 Southern California, where he became familiar 
 with the handling of oranges and lemons, but 
 since 1897 *^he dried fruit interests in Fresno 
 have assumed such magnitude that he has neces- 
 sarily spent the entire year in this valley. In 
 addition to his many responsibilities as manager, 
 he has interests in orchards and vineyards near 
 Fresno. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Toomey united him with 
 Miss Callie J. Ferrel, of Fresno, a native of Mis- 
 souri, and a daughter of Marion Ferrel, who 
 was among the pioneers of Des Moines, Iowa, 
 and is now a contractor and builder in Los An- 
 geles. During the entire period of the Civil 
 war he served at the front with an Iowa regi- 
 ment as first lieutenant of his company and to 
 this day he carries the ball that he received in 
 a battle during 1863. Three of his brothers 
 were also participants in the war. When a child 
 
^^c^^^^A- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 973 
 
 Mrs. Toomey accompanied her parents to Fresno, 
 where she was reared and educated. Of her 
 marriage there are two sons, Irving Francis and 
 Lloyd Ferrel. Mr. Toomey is a member of the 
 Chamber of Commerce and an enthusiastic sup- 
 porter of every movement that promises to pro- 
 mote the material welfare of his adopted city. 
 Although reared in the Democratic faith, he now 
 gives his allegiance to the Republican party. 
 On the organization of Fresno Parlor No. 25, 
 Native Sons of the Golden West, he became a 
 charter member and was elected one of its first 
 officers. The Woodmen of the World and 
 Knights of Pythias also receive his support, 
 through his membership in local organizations 
 of the orders. While Mr. Toomey is still a 
 young man, scarcely yet in the prime of life, he 
 has gained a success that entitles him to men- 
 tion among the representative men of the valley, 
 while his thorough knowledge of every detail 
 of the packing business makes his services of 
 value to the company with which he is asso- 
 ciated. 
 
 HENRY MEYER. A man of broad princi- 
 ples, of an earnest nature and upright life, Henry 
 Meyer is one of the substantial and progres- 
 sive citizens of Tulare county and one who com- 
 mands the respect and esteem of all who have 
 come in contact with him, either in a business or 
 social way. He owns and is operating one of 
 the finest farms in the Yokohl valley, adding by 
 his efforts to his competence acquired in the pio- 
 neerdays of the state, and at the same time mak- 
 ing it a part of his duty to give employment of 
 all kinds to those who need it, his Christian 
 motto being "Live and let live." 
 
 A native of Germany, Henry Meyer was born 
 in Wilhelmsbutg November 23, 1823, a son of 
 Peter C. Meyer, a carpenter and millwright of 
 Hanover, where he was born, reared and died. 
 His mother, Catherine (Benke) Meyer, was born 
 in Hanover, where she also died. Of the two 
 children Henry Meyer is the only one living. He 
 was reared in Hanover and attended school un- 
 til he was fourteen years old, when he was ap- 
 prenticed for five years to learn the ship carpen- 
 ter's trade. He went to sea as ship carpenter on 
 the brig Johanna, plying between Hamburg and 
 Marseilles, on a nine' months' trip. The follow- 
 ing fall he was employed on the brig Elbe, mak- 
 ing a trip around the Horn and putting in at 
 Valparaiso, where the vessel was sold. This was 
 in 1849. Imbibing the spirit of excitement which 
 was leading so many to cast in" their lot with 
 the pioneers of California, he came to San Fran- 
 cisco on the brig Aurora, arriving October 15. 
 Going at once to~the mines he worked at Moku- 
 lumne Hill, which was the beginning of eighteen 
 
 years spent in the mines, engaging in placer, 
 drift and quartz mining, in all of which he met 
 ^ylth a success which justified his long con- 
 tmuance in the work. Receiving a letter finally 
 from his friend, William Mehrtens, he was in- 
 duced to come to Tulare county and settle down 
 to a more peaceful if less exciting life than the 
 one he had led so long. In 1866 he settled on 
 the land which now forms a part of his home, 
 "squatting" on the land until the survey, when 
 he pre-empted one hundred and sixty acres on 
 section 8, township 19, range 27. He immediate- 
 ly began improvements, adding' to his property 
 by homesteading another one hundred and sixty 
 acres on the same section and buying railroad 
 land adjoining on section 9, township 19, range 
 27, owning then six hundred and forty acres. 
 Eventually he sold oflf ten acres for the granite 
 quarry and eighty acres more to the proprietors 
 of the quarry, now owning five hundred and 
 twenty acres in the Yokohl valley. This property 
 is all under fence, and is principally devoted to 
 the raising of grain, cattle and hogs, having 
 among his stock some very fine Durham cattle. 
 He is now devoting some time and attention to 
 the cultivation of figs, which trees are now about 
 the largest in the valley, measuring over ■ two 
 feet in diameter. He is very successful in his 
 work and prominent among the agriculturists and 
 stockmen of the county. 
 
 Mr. Meyer has been twice married, his first 
 wife being Sophia Mehrtens, of Hanover, who 
 died in Tulare county at the age of seventy- 
 two years. She was a Lutheran in religion. Mr. 
 Meyer's second marriage occurred December 29, 
 1902, uniting him with Mary Jane (Jamison) 
 Starnes. She was born in Indiana and came to 
 California with her mother in 1852 and has since 
 been a resident of the state. Mr. Meyer is a 
 Democrat in his political affiliations. 
 
 JOSEPH HENRY SNODGRASS was born 
 in Glade Spring, Va., February 20, 1858, a son 
 of Joseph and Annie C. (Edmondson) Sndd- 
 grass. Glade Spring was also the birthplace of 
 his grandfather, David, and his great-grand- 
 father, also named David. Both of these men, 
 as well as the father, Joseph, were farmers and 
 all died where they had lived for so many years. 
 
 Annie C. Edmondson, the mother, was a na- 
 tive of Glade Spring, being a daugliter of An- 
 drew Edmondson, a farmer. Her grandfather 
 Edmondson was a soldier and served in the Revo- 
 lutionary war. As a result of her union with 
 Joseph Snodgrass she became the mother of nine 
 children, five of whom are living. Four of the 
 sons were in the Confederate army, two of them 
 being officers. 
 
 Joseph H. Snodgrass was reared on the home 
 
974 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 farm, attending the district school when the work 
 of the farm allowed such a luxury. At the age 
 of fifteen years he took charge of the home place 
 and continued to conduct the farm until 1885, 
 when he removed to Hawkins county, Tenn., 
 where he purchased a stock farm and continued 
 in business until 1900. In December of the 
 same year he came to California and located in 
 Exeter. He soon after purchased his present 
 ranch of forty acres, adjoining the town on the 
 east. Many improvements were made the first 
 year and in February, 1901, he began setting out 
 his vineyard. His grapes are all Emperors and 
 each year he ships his product to the eastern 
 markets direct, not dealing with the jobbers. 
 Each year sees some new improvement and he 
 now has an irrigation plant with a sixty-inch 
 capacity which is run with a fifteen-horse power 
 electric motor. 
 
 In Washington county, Va., he was united in 
 marriage with Miss Robinson, who was born at 
 Glade Spring, a daughter of James and Mary 
 (McKee) Robinson, both of whom were born at 
 Glade Spring. Mrs. Snodgrass is the fifth in a 
 family of six children, all of whom are living. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Snodgrass have been born 
 three children, as follows : Flora, Mary, now 
 Mrs. Irving Jordan, of Exeter, and Mabel. 
 
 Mr. Snodgrass takes a deep interest in church 
 work, being a member and steward of "the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church South. \ 
 
 In politics he is a Democrat, but never takes 
 an active part in political matters. He belongs 
 to the Exeter board of trade and can always 
 be counted oil to put his shoulder to the wheel 
 when there is any movement on foot calculated 
 to be of benefit to his town or county. With such 
 men in a community the future of that particu- 
 lar locality is assured. Mr. Snodgrass has a 
 host of warm personal friends, all of whom will 
 be pleased to hear of his continued success. Both 
 he and his wife are most estimable people and 
 are very popular wherever known. 
 
 FREDERICK J. WILLIAMS. The Central 
 California Planing Mill Company, of which Mr. 
 Williams is president and manager, is one of the 
 recent organizations established in Fresno, its 
 mill at the Santa Fe depot, corner of Tulare 
 and P streets, having been erected in November 
 of 1903. The machinery is modern and sub- 
 stantial, and the equipment is such as to guar- 
 antee the successful manufacture of everything 
 in the building line. Power is furnished by a 
 seventy-five horse engine of substantial and mod- 
 ern pattern. The mill is large, being 80x150 feet 
 in dimensions, with a capacity sufficient to insure 
 the prompt filling of orders, even during the 
 busiest seasons of the year. To facilitate the 
 
 conduct of the business the company was incor- 
 porated in October, 1903. 
 
 Referring to the history of the WiUiams fam- 
 ily, we find that the subject of this narrative is 
 a son of John J. Williams, a native of Portugal, 
 and in boyhood an assistant on his father's farm. 
 With a taste for adventure and a love for the 
 sea, he shipped as a sailor and during his voy- 
 ages visited almost every prominent port in the 
 world. The rumor of discovery of gold led him 
 to California, and after anchoring at San Fran- 
 cisco in 1850 he went to the mines of Placer 
 county. For about twenty years he followed 
 mining, meanwhile working in the principal 
 mines throughout the northern counties of Cali- 
 fornia. When weary of the occupation, he 
 abandoned it for a more settled pursuit in life, 
 and purchased a farm at San Leandro, Alameda 
 county, where the latter part of his event- 
 ful career was passed in quiet. At the time 
 of his death, in 1896, he had reached the 
 age of eighty-two years. His wife, Mary Will- 
 iams, was born in Portugal and died in San 
 Leandro when fifty years of age. Of their three 
 sons, Frederick J. resides in Fresno; John W. 
 is a contractor and builder in San Leandro; and 
 Joseph, a carpenter by trade, assists his brother 
 in the mill at Fresno. 
 
 While the family were making their home at 
 Auburn, Placer county, Cal., Frederick J. Will- 
 iams was born April 16, 1865. At seven years 
 of age he removed with his parents to San 
 Leandro, where he received his education in the 
 public school. For four years he served an ap- 
 prenticeship to the carpenter's trade, after which 
 he took up contracting and building in Berkeley. 
 During the following years he had contracts for 
 numerous business houses and private residences 
 in Berkeley, Oakland, Alameda and San Fran- 
 cisco. His first settlement at Fresno occurred 
 during 1888, when he began contracting and 
 building in that city, but after two years he 
 purchased land fifteen miles west of the city 
 and turned his attention to farming. Forty-four 
 acres were placed under irrigation and set out 
 in an orchard and vineyard, the improvement 
 greatly enhancing the value of the property, 
 which remained in his possession until recently. 
 In connection with its cultivation he rented three 
 thousand acres, on which he engaged in raising 
 wheat and barley. About 1900 he returned to 
 Fresno to take up the building business again, 
 and continued thus occupied until he purchased 
 the planing mill, meanwhile having the contract 
 for several business houses, residences and the 
 Catholic Church. 
 
 While residing in Berkeley Mr. Williams mar- 
 ried Miss Mary G. Ramos, who was born in 
 Yolo county, this state. They are the parents 
 of three children, namely : Frederick, who as- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 975 
 
 sists his father in the mill; Lena, who is a stu- 
 dent in the Fresno high school ; and Mary. The 
 interest which Mr. Williams feels in the public 
 school question was shown through his long and 
 efficient service in the capacity of school trustee. 
 While holding the office he did much to promote 
 the welfare of the school under his especial 
 charge. As a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce he is connected with an association largely 
 contributory to the present progress and high 
 standing of Fresno. In fraternal relations he is 
 a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, 
 Improved Order of Red Men and Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 JOSEPH G. MARTIN. Familiarity with the 
 lumber business in all of its details and through 
 a long period of )^ears qualifies J. G. Martin suc- 
 cessfully to discharge his duties as secretary and 
 manager of the Fresno Lumber Company, which 
 has its yards on I and Ventura streets, Fresno, 
 occupying about a block of ground for the stor- 
 age of lumber. Mr. Martin has been a resi- 
 dent of California since 1889, but is of eastern 
 birth, a native of Waterbury, Vt. His father, 
 Philip, who was born in Ireland, crossed the 
 ocean to Ontario and from there removed to a 
 farm in Vermont. The latter part of his life 
 was spent in that state, and there also occurred 
 the death of his wife, Mary (Tusau) Martin, 
 who was born in Canada, of French descent. Of 
 their six sons and six daughters, three sons and 
 four daughters are now living. Three of the 
 oldest sons were soldiers of the Federal army 
 during the Civil war, namely : William H., now 
 of Hanford, Cal. ; Dennis, who died in VeriTiont ; 
 and Philip, who came to California and died at 
 Stockton. All were members of a Vermont regi- 
 ment. 
 
 At Waterbury, Vt., where he was born Feb- 
 ruary 17, 1854, J. G. Martin grew to manhood, 
 and received a fair education. On starting out 
 for himself he took up farm pursuits, being thus 
 engaged in Vermont for a few years. In 1879 
 he settled on a farm in Monona county, Iowa, 
 "but after two years abandoned agriculture and 
 moved to Mapleton, that county, where he en- 
 gaged in the sale of hardware, agricultural im- 
 plements and lumber. When he came to Cali- 
 fornia in 1889 he first settled in Hanford, which 
 then boasted of only a few shanties, giving no 
 indication of the prosperity it has since enjoyed. 
 Securing employment as foreman of a lumber- 
 yard, he soon proved his thorough knowledge of 
 the business, and was then made manager of the 
 company's yard at Lemoore. He assisted in the 
 incorporation of the Central Lumber Company, 
 of which he was chosen vice-president and a 
 director, at the same time being appointed man- 
 
 ager of the company's yard at Visalia. In the 
 latter town he remained until 1902, when he dis- 
 posed of his stock in the company and resigned 
 his office. The following year he removed to 
 Fresno, purchased an interest in the Fresno Lum- 
 ber Company's business and assumed the man- 
 agement. Since locating in Fresno he has iden- 
 tified himself with the Chamber of Commerce 
 and Builders' Exchange. 
 
 Politically Mr. Martin is a Republican, and 
 during his residence in Visalia was elected on 
 that ticket to the city council. While living in 
 Hanford he met and married Grace .Turner, who 
 was born in Illinois, but has spent her life prin- 
 cipally in California. In religion she is asso- 
 ciated with the Methodist Episcopal Church, to 
 which Mr. Martin is a contributor. Both are 
 connected with the Order of the Eastern Star, 
 and at Visalia Mr. Martin was honored with the 
 office of worthy patron of Martha Washington 
 chapter, and prior to this of Lucerne Chapter at 
 Hanford. Fraternally he is identified with the 
 Woodmen of the World and the Masons. His 
 connection with the latter fraternity began in 
 Mapleton, Iowa, where he was master of Quary 
 Lodge. After coming to California he placed 
 his membership in Hanford Lodge No. 279, F. 
 & A. M., and in the latter city he was raised to 
 the Royal Arch degree in Hanford Chapter No. 
 74. At Visalia he was knighted in Visalia Com- 
 mandery No. 26, K. T., in which he is past 
 eminent commander. He is further connected 
 with Perfection Lodge No. 9 at Visalia, the 
 Council and Consistory at Oakland and Islam 
 Temple, N. M. S., of San Francisco. Through 
 his activity in Masonry he has been brought into 
 contact with many of the leaders of that fra- 
 ternity in California, among whom he has a 
 number of warm friends. A believer in the lofty 
 principles of philanthropy for which the order 
 stands, he has never allowed his interest in its 
 work to languish, but has contributed thereto 
 generously of his time, means and influence, and 
 has given his sympathy and co-operation to all 
 of its charities. 
 
 JOHN FRANS. A successful stockman 01 
 Tulare county is named in the person of John 
 Frans, who is now located at No. 609 South 
 Court street, Visalia, while he operates his ex- 
 tensive ranch just north of the city, consisting 
 of over 'one thousand acres. He began farming 
 operations in 1886 independently, having pre- 
 viously purchased (in 1884) a small tract of 
 land. With the passing years he has continued 
 in the raising of stock and general farming oper- 
 ations and has added to his original purchase 
 until he is now the owner of a large and valuable 
 property. A native of the state, he was born 
 
9?6 
 
 Historical aisid ibiographical record. 
 
 in Santa Rosa, Sonoma county, January ii, 
 1859, a son of John B. Frans, who was born m 
 Kentucky. 
 
 Until reaching young manhood, John B. Frans 
 made his home in Kentucky, and then removed 
 to Missouri, becoming a farmer in the neigh- 
 borhood of St. Joseph. While in that state he 
 served as a volunteer in the Mexican war under 
 General Price. In 1853 he crossed the plams 
 with ox teams, and upon his arrival in California 
 located in San Jose. Several years ■ later he 
 located in Santa Rosa, Sonoma county, where 
 he engaged, in farming until 1863. In the last 
 named year he removed to Tulare county and 
 three and a half miles east of Visalia bought a 
 ranch of four hundred and twenty acres, where 
 he continued in general farming operations until 
 his death in 1870, at the age of fifty-two years. 
 His wife, formerly Elizabeth Fulton, was a na- 
 tive of Indiana, and she also died in this state. 
 John Frans was the fourth child and the 
 youngest son in a family of three sons and five 
 daughters. He received his education in the 
 common schools of California, after which in 
 1878 he engaged in farming on the home place 
 in partnership with his brothers, Thomas H. and 
 James Madison, the latter of whom died in 1880, 
 aged twenty-five years. In 1886 John Frans en- 
 tered upon farming operations alone, on prop- 
 erty which he had purchased two years previ- 
 ously, and is now classed among the prominent 
 business men of the county. In Visalia he mar- 
 ried Miss Dora Jones, also a native of Santa 
 Rosa, Cal., and they have one son. John B., who 
 is at home with his parents. Politically Mr. 
 Frans adheres to the principles advocated in the 
 platform of the Democratic party, and is a pub- 
 lic-spirited and enterprising citizen. Mrs. Frans 
 is a member of the Society of Native Daughters. 
 
 JAMES W. GATE. A pioneer of California 
 and for many years connected with the business 
 life of Fresno county, James W. Gate is remem- 
 bered throughout this part of the country as a 
 man of ability, energy and executive force, and 
 one who made his influence felt throughout the 
 industrial circles of the community. A native 
 of New Hampshire, he was born in 1828, a son 
 of Walter and Mary P. (Wiggins) Gate, resi- 
 dents of Stafiford county, N. H., and also natives 
 of the same state, both descendants of old New 
 England families of worth and prominence. In 
 1838 the father located in Adams county. 111., 
 where he engaged in general farming and stock- 
 raising. James W. Gate remained at home until 
 he was twenty-four years of age, at which time 
 he bought land and entered into independent 
 operations. In 1864 he came overland to Cali- 
 fornia, traveling by the customary ox-teams, at 
 
 Salt Lake deciding to enter the state by the 
 southern route. In the fall of the same year 
 he arrived in Los Angeles county, and after stop- 
 ping a short time in El Monte leased land near 
 Downey, where he engaged in farming for three 
 years. Purchasing one hundred and iifty-five 
 acres of land in the Ranchito school district, be- 
 tween the old and new San Gabriel rivers, he 
 became the first white settler of that region, 
 where he devoted his time to agricultural and 
 horticultural pursuits for many years following. 
 Thirty acres of his land was devoted to a fine 
 walnut grove, the profits for one year amounting 
 to $200 per acre. He had also a vineyard of 
 twelve acres, on eleven cultivating the Berger 
 and on one the Zinfandel grape, the yield in 
 1888 being seventeen tons per acre. Two and a 
 half acres were devoted to various fruits, while 
 the remainder of the land was given over to 
 alfalfa, corn, hay and grain. In addition to this 
 property he became the owner of one hundred 
 acres of grain land six miles west of Los An- 
 geles, twenty acres of improved land at Monro- 
 via, and eighteen hundred acres in Fresno 
 county, ten miles northeast of Fresno. Success 
 accompanied him in all his efforts ; he became a 
 wealthy man, a prominent and influential citizen, 
 and a factor in the business world of his adopted 
 state, making his influence felt in whatever line 
 of activity his energies were directed. His death 
 occurred in March, 1900, after a long life of use- 
 fulness among the scenes of his adopted state. 
 He was a faithful member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South, and for twenty years a 
 school trustee. Politically he was a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated by the Demo- 
 cratic party. 
 
 In 1856 Mr. Gate was united in marriage with 
 Eliza Henderson, a native of Indiana, and a 
 daughter of William and Anna (McConnell) 
 Henderson, both of whom were born in the state 
 of Pennsylvania. Of this union were born five 
 children, of whom the following are now living: 
 Daniel Webster, who married Emma Pierce; 
 Dallas Mason; and James Wilbur, a sketch of 
 whom also appears in this volume. The third 
 child. Hay den, died in 1878, at the age of twenty 
 years, while the fifth child, Louise Olive, died in 
 1888, at the age of twenty-two years. Mrs. Gate 
 survives her husband and now makes her home 
 in Los Angeles. 
 
 HON. JOHN M. MONTGOMERY. Num- 
 bered among the pioneers of Merced county is 
 Hon. John M. Montgomery, whose death May 4, 
 1891, removed from the community a public 
 spirited and enterprising citizen, and one whose 
 best interests have always lain parallel with those 
 of his adopted state. Born in Hardin county, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 979 
 
 Ky., September i8, 1816, he spent the years to 
 manhood in his native state. On removing from 
 the scenes of his boyhood years he located in 
 Missouri, where he remained until the spring 
 of 1847 ! following then the westward trend of 
 civilization, he crossed' the plains to California, 
 and entered into business life in Monterey, where 
 he was located at the time of the discovery of 
 gold. Instead of engaging in the precarious for- 
 tunes of a miner he found profitable employment 
 in hauling freight to the new diggings, having 
 immediately fitted up his old ox team with which 
 he had crossed the plains. In the fall of 1849 
 Mr. Montgomery, with Samuel Scott, located in 
 probably the first settlement in what is now 
 Merced county, being but a short distance below 
 the present site of Snelling. He engaged in 
 general farming and stock-raising, and continued 
 so engaged for many years. 
 
 In 1852 Mr. Montgomery returned to his old 
 home in Missouri, and was there united in mar- 
 riage with Elizabeth Armstrong. Together 
 they made the trip back to California and located 
 in the home on Bear creek six miles east of 
 Merced, which Mr. Montgomery had prepared 
 before going east. Born of this union were the 
 following children : Mary, the wife of I. Jay 
 Buckley ; Jennie, the wife of H. K. Huls ; Ella, 
 the widow of E. L. Smith, of Merced county; 
 John A., deceased; Robert H., of Snelling; Will- 
 iam S., of Merced; Katie and Lizzie, both de- 
 ceased. In his political preference Mr. Mont- 
 gomery was active in the counsels of the Demo- 
 cratic party, and was often called upon to fill 
 positions of trust and honor. In 1861 he was 
 elected a member of the board of supervisors, 
 which office he filled with efficiency. In 1875 he 
 was elected to the state senate from his district, 
 and in the sessions that followed gave efficient 
 and valuable service. One of the broadest acts in 
 the life of Mr. Montgomery occurred in connec- 
 tion with this election to the senate : his seat 
 was hotly contested and rather than allow the 
 state to meet this expense he paid it himself. He 
 was considered by all who knew him a man ot 
 splendid ability, a manly and upright character, 
 a firm friend and a patriotic citizen, and left to 
 his children the inheritance of an honored name. 
 
 WILLIAM EDGAR GREEN. During the 
 past twenty years Tulare city and county have 
 made a rapid and healthful growth, and in their 
 upbuilding and advancement no man has taken 
 a keener interest than William Edgar Green, a 
 well-known business man of Tulare. Energetic, 
 enterprising and progressive, he is actively identi- 
 fied with the industrial, agricultural and financial 
 prosperity of this section of the state, and in 
 their development has spared neither time nor 
 
 expense. A son of the late William Green, he 
 was bom in April, 1849, i^i Oneida county, N. Y., 
 near Rome. 
 
 The descendant of an old and prominent New 
 England family, William Green was born and 
 reared in Massachusetts, his birth occurring in 
 1799. Following the march of civilization west- 
 ward, when a young man he settled in Oneida 
 county, N. Y., buying a farm twelve miles from 
 the city of Rome, and was there engaged in 
 tilling the soil until his death in 1861 at the age 
 of sixty-two years. He married Catherine High- 
 land, who was born in Ireland, and came with 
 an uncle to New York state when a girl. She 
 survived her husband many years, and died, at 
 the advanced age of eighty-five years, in Kansas, 
 at the home of a daughter. She bore him twelve 
 children, of whom one son and three daughters 
 are living, William Edgar, the youngest child, 
 being the only California resident. One son, 
 Benjamin, served in the Civil war, and died while 
 in service. Judge Sanford M. Green, a brother 
 of William Green, was for many years a prom- 
 inent judge in Michigan, and in that capacity was 
 instrumental in having the law prohibiting hang- 
 ing passed, being at that time a resident of the 
 city of Flint. He subsequently removed to Pon- 
 tiac, Mich., where he engaged in business as a 
 banker. 
 
 Brought up on the homestead, receiving his 
 early education in the district school, William 
 Edgar Green became familiar with the various 
 branches of general agriculture while young. 
 Being the only son at home when his father died, 
 he subsequently assisted his mother in the care 
 of the farm, remaining with her until 1868. Com- 
 ing then as far west as Kansas, he settled about 
 five miles north of Lawrence, near the home of 
 Gov. Charles Robinson. Investing all the money 
 he received from his father's estate, Mr. Green 
 bought a farm and embarked in agricultural pur- 
 suits on his own account. During the next four 
 or five years the grasshoppers entirely destroyed 
 the Kansas crops, and he lost all of his property. 
 Discouraged with the outlook in that section of 
 the country, Mr. Green, in 1875, migrated to 
 California, locating in Santa Clara county, near 
 Alviso, where he worked eight months as a farm 
 hand for Martin French, subsequently being em- 
 ployed by S. B. Emerson. Going thence to 
 Redwood City, Mr. Green remained there four 
 years, the first half of the time running a gro- 
 cery, and the last two years keeping a hotel. His 
 first wife dying in Redwood, Mr. Green returned 
 to Kansas, residing there two years. Dissatisfied, 
 however, he came back to California, and in 
 1884 established himself in the liquor business 
 in Tulare. He is also extensively engaged in 
 stock-raising; owning a ranch of five hundred 
 and twenty acres, lying five miles southwest of 
 
980 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the city. In addition Mr. Green leases seven 
 hundred and forty acres of land, operating in all 
 more than twelve hundred acres. A large part 
 of this is under irrigation, well adapted for stock- 
 raising and dairying, in both of which he is spe- 
 cially interested. He raises large quantities of 
 grain, and has one hundred and fifty acres sowed 
 to alfalfa, the remainder of the land being de- 
 voted to grazing purposes. He has two artesian 
 wells on his estate, and in the management of 
 his dairy has the latest improvements. Taking 
 an intelHgent interest in the establishment of 
 beneficial enterprises, Mr. Green is one of the 
 stockholders of the Tulare Creamery Associa- 
 tion ; of the Farmers' and Merchants' Bank, of 
 Tulare ; and was one of the promoters of the 
 Tulare County Live Stock Show and Race Meet, 
 being treasurer of the association, and one of 
 the four proprietors of the Tulare Fair Grounds ; 
 also a shareholder in the Co-operative Milling 
 Association of Tulare and vicinity. 
 
 Mr. Green has been twice married. He mar- 
 ried first, in Kansas, near Lawrence, Lizzie 
 Wood, who died in Redwood, Cal. She bore 
 him three children, of whom two are living, Oren, 
 living at home ; and Mrs. Nellie Garrish, of Ala- 
 meda. Near Lawrence, Kans., he married Rose 
 Burgan, who was born near Lawrence, Douglas 
 county, Kans., a daughter of Samuel Burgan, 
 now a resident of Tulare. Mr. and Mrs. Green 
 are the parents of three children, Mabel, Ida and 
 Alta. Politically Mr. Green is an active member 
 of the Democratic part}^, and takes an intelligent 
 interest in all things pertaining to the welfare of 
 city and county. For three terms, from 1892 
 until 1904, he represented the first ward of Tu- 
 lare in the city council, for ten years of the time 
 serving as chairman of the finance committee, 
 and for two years being president pro tern, of the 
 board. Mrs. Green is a most estimable woman 
 and a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 THOMAS J. KEATON. Not alone in the 
 dairy mdustry, which has been an important fea- 
 ture of the recent development of Stanislaus 
 county, but also in the raising of grain, which 
 for years has been a leading occupation of the 
 people, Mr. Keaton has met with a gratifying 
 degree of success. The dairy farm which occu- 
 pies most of his time comprises eighty-seven 
 acres, and since it came into his possession, in 
 1897, has been improved by a neat residence 
 and a set of dairy buildings. The land is under 
 alfalfa, which is used for feed for his milch 
 cows. While the management of the home place 
 necessitates careful attention, he finds leisure for 
 other interests, and at this writing raises grain 
 on about one thousand acres of rented land at 
 
 different places on the west side, using for the 
 purpose three teams of horses. 
 
 Of southern birth and ancestry, Mr. Keaton 
 was born in Camden county, N. C, July 27, 
 1852, and in a family of three sons and one 
 daughter he alone attained mature years. His 
 parents, Dempsey and Clarkey (Brown) Keaton, 
 were natives of North Carolina, and spent their 
 entire lives in that state, the father being a 
 farmer by occupation. Owing to the limited 
 means of the family Mr. Keaton had few ad- 
 vantages aside from those offered by district 
 schools. When a mere boy he began to plan 
 for the future, and soon decided that other 
 states presented better opportunities for ad- 
 vancement than did his own. As early as 1866 
 he started out in the world to earn his own live- 
 lihood. In 1866 he went to Illinois and secured 
 work in Lee county, near Dixon, where he spent 
 a few years as a farm-hand. For a time he also 
 worked in Ogle county. 
 
 When a young man of twenty-two years Mr. 
 Keaton came to California for the first time, 
 and for four months he worked at Bakersfield in 
 the employ of the Southern Pacific Railway 
 Company. At the expiration of that time he re- 
 turned to Illinois, but soon became dissatisfied, 
 and in December of the same year (1874) he 
 came to California as a permanent settler. Af- 
 ter working on a ranch at Chico for a short time 
 he secured employment in the lumbering busi- 
 ness at Susanville, and from_ there went back 
 to Chico. During June of 1876 he established 
 himself in Merced county, where he worked as 
 a farm-hand for three years on the west side. 
 The savings of these years enabled him to start 
 out independently. In 1879 he rented a grain 
 farm of eight hundred acres near Hill's Ferry, 
 and there he remained many years. During a 
 part of this time he had charge of lands aggre- 
 gating twenty-seven hundred acres. On leav- 
 ing that property he moved to the farm he has 
 since owned and managed. As a dairyman and 
 grain-raiser he is quick to adopt methods cal- 
 culated to increase profits and reduce expenses. 
 Personally he is a man of firm will, self-reliance, 
 persevering industry and excellent judgment, 
 and in character is eminently worthy of the 
 prosperity he is gaining. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Keaton took place in 
 Modesto, Cal., and united him with Mrs. E. S. 
 Parsons, nee Weddle, a daughter of William Hall 
 Weddle and Elizabeth Wecldle, both natives of 
 Missouri, where they were married April 4, 1852, 
 and the next month started for California across 
 the plains. They settled first in Napa county, Cal., 
 Mr. Weddle died in Mariposa county, but Mrs. 
 Weddle is still living in San Diego. Mrs. Keaton 
 is next to the youngest of five children. Mrs. 
 Keaton is the mother of two daughters and one 
 
HISTORICAL AND SIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 981 
 
 son, namely : Mrs. Mabel Wilkes, who lives in 
 Bishop, Inyo county; and Edna and Dempsey, 
 who reside with their parents at the homestead 
 four miles southwest of Newman. The family 
 are believers in the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 doctrines, and Mr. Keaton has been a contributor 
 to the maintenance and progress of this de- 
 nomination. In fraternal connections he is identi- 
 fied with the United Artisans. As a citizen he is 
 esteemed for the possession of honorable traits 
 of character, and as a farmer he has won recog- 
 nition through his progressive spirit and re- 
 sourcefulness. 
 
 O. BURTON DOYLE, M. D. The geneal- 
 ogy of the Doyle family is traced back to the 
 colonial history of the south, where its represen- 
 tatives bore an honorable part in public and com- 
 mercial affairs. Dr. Doyle is a son of John F. 
 Doyle, M. D., whose father for years held a 
 leading position among the people of Dyer 
 county, Tenn. For one term he held the office 
 of county sheriff, for a similar period served as 
 county clerk, owned and conducted a hotel and 
 also had general mercantile interests, but finally 
 settled upon a cotton plantation in Dyer county, 
 where he remained until his death. Born and 
 reared in Dyer county, Dr. John F. Doyle was 
 given excellent educational advantages, and after 
 completing his classical studies he matriculated 
 in the McDowell Medical College of St. Louis, 
 from which he received the degree of M. D. 
 Durmg all of his active professional career he 
 had his office in Kuttawa, Lyon county, Ky. In 
 1898 he retired from practice and in 1902 came 
 to California, since which time he has made his 
 home with his son, Dr. O. B. Doyle, in Fresno. 
 His wife, who died in 1898, was Laura Gray 
 Rucker, a native of Kentucky, and a daughter 
 of Isaac B. Rucker, also a native Kentuckian 
 and a lifelong farmer. 
 
 In the family of Dr. John F. Doyle there are 
 four children, of whom O. B. was the first-born. 
 Ernest M., a graduate of dental surgery, is en- 
 gaged in practice at Fresno ; Earl P. is an em- 
 ploye on the Southern Pacific Railroad at 
 Fresno; and King V., an eleven-year-old boy, is 
 a student in the Fresno schools. Dr. O. B. 
 Doyle was born in Kuttawa, Lyon county, Ky., 
 November 2, 1875. During boyhood years he 
 attended the public schools of his home town. 
 Later he was a student in the Princeton Col- 
 legiate Institute, after which he entered a drug 
 store and studied pharmacy for two years. His 
 next employment was as a clerk in the freight 
 office of the Illinois Central Railroad at Paducah, 
 Ky. It was his ambition to become a physician 
 and his earnings were carefully saved with this 
 object in view. The hope he had cherished found 
 
 its fruition in his matriculation, January i, 1896, 
 in the Kentucky School of Medicine at Louis- 
 ville, and he continued a student in that institu- 
 tion until he received the degree of M. D., at 
 the time of his graduation, in June of 1898. 
 
 A month after completing his medical studies 
 Dr. Doyle came to Fresno county. In October 
 of the same year he was appointed physician and 
 surgeon to the Fresno Flume & Irrigating Com- 
 pany at Shaver and continued in that capacity 
 until December l, 1902, meanwhile spending the 
 summer months at Shaver and during winters 
 residing in Fresno. In January, 1903, he estab- 
 lished himself in Fresno, where he has since 
 spent his entire time, engaging in a general prac- 
 tice of medicine and surgery. Everything per- 
 taining to his profession receives his thoughtful 
 attention. The developments constantly being 
 made in the science of materia medica are care- 
 fully studied by him and, when feasible, adopted 
 in his own practice. Various associations of a 
 professional nature receive his support and en- 
 couragement. Numbered among these is the 
 Fresno County Medical Society, of which at one 
 time he acted as first vice-president. He is fur- 
 ther connected with the San Joaquin Valley Med- 
 ical Society, California State Medical Society 
 and the American Medical Associations. Among 
 organizations more strictly commercial receiving 
 the benefit of his support may be mentioned the 
 Chamber of Commerce. In fraternal relations 
 he is connected with the Benevolent Protective 
 Order of Elks and the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows'. 
 
 May 10, 1904, Dr. Doyle was united in mar- 
 riage with Ruby H. Perkins, of Visalia, Cal., a 
 daughter of Henry P. Perkins, a pioneer of 
 Tulare county. 
 
 JOHN HENRY DANKER. Well known as 
 a pioneer settler of CaHfornia, and as the owner 
 of a finely improved ranch, which is located two 
 miles southeast of Newman, John Henry Danker 
 is especially deserving of personal mention in 
 this biographical volume. One of the foremost 
 agriculturists of this part of the San Joaquin 
 valley, he has accumulated much wealth in his 
 chosen vocation, his homestead property, with 
 its substantial and convenient buildings, and its 
 large dairy, from which he derives a good an- 
 nual income, giving visible evidence of his in- 
 dustry, good management and success. A na- 
 tive of Germany, he was born August 3, 1837, 
 in Elmshorn in the Duchy of Holstein, which 
 was also the birthplace of his parents, John and 
 Ann (Munster) Danker, being the youngest of 
 a family of twelve children, eleven of whom grew 
 to years of maturity. 
 
 Brought up in his native town, John Henry 
 
982 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Danker began life for himself at the age of 
 eleven years, herding cattle during the sum- 
 mer seasons, and attending school winters. 
 Subsequently engaging in seafaring pursuits, he 
 was employed in foreign trade for two years, 
 and for one year hunted seals off the coast of 
 Greenland. Sailing from Hamburg August 5, 
 185s, Mr. Danker started for America. Off 
 Cape Horn the vessel was for six weeks and 
 three days in a terrible gale, and driven seven 
 hundred miles out of its course. They stopped 
 four weeks in Valparaiso, arriving in San Fran- 
 cisco March 8, 1856, having been more than 
 seven months on the ocean. Securing work on 
 a ranch, Mr. Danker mowed hay and milked 
 cows in that section of the city that is now built 
 up with substantial brick houses. Subsequently 
 removing to Contra Costa county, he worked as 
 a farm laborer in San Ramon from 1869 until 
 1879. Coming then to the San Joaquin valley, 
 he rented land on the west side, prior to the 
 building of the canal, and engaged in farming on 
 his own account. 
 
 Purchasing his present farm of one hundred 
 and sixty acres in 1879, he worked hard to im- 
 prove it, succeeding so well that it was soon 
 numbered among the most valuable estates 
 in this part of the, county. For many years he 
 carried on general farming, raising large crops 
 of hay and grain, by thrift and judicious man- 
 agement accumulating a large share of this 
 world's goods. He is now living somewhat re- 
 tired from active pursuits, renting his ranch, 
 which is sowed mostly to alfalfa, for dairy pur- 
 poses. Mr. Danker is a man of keen foresight 
 and sound judgment, and occupies a secure posi- 
 tion in the consideration and respect of his fel- 
 lowmen. In his political views he is a stanch 
 Republican, and in his religious beliefs is a 
 Lutheran. 
 
 JONATHAN WARD MAY. The May fam- 
 ily is descended from New England ancestry 
 prominent in the early history of our country. 
 The name flourished first in Massachusetts, 
 where Philip May served in the Revolutionary 
 war and later in the war of 1812. He located 
 in Alabama in manhood, finally removing to 
 Kemper county. Miss., where he became an ex- 
 tensive planter and slave owner. There his death 
 occurred, removing from the midst of his adopted 
 community a citizen of ability, patriotism and 
 sterling worth, whose best efforts were ever giv- 
 en toward all movements calculated to advance 
 the general welfare. In his family was a son, 
 William Curtis, who was born in North Carolina, 
 the home of the family for a time. He followed 
 the example of his father and engaged in farm- 
 ing in Mississippi until some time before the 
 
 breaking out of the Mexican war. At that time 
 he was residing near Dallas, Tex., and immedi- 
 ately sought service in the cause of his country. 
 His death occurred near Dallas in 1852. His 
 wife, formerly Mary Ann Ward of Alabama, 
 died in Shreveport, La., in 1848, where her hus- 
 band had settled on account of the hostility of 
 the Indians. They were the parents of seven 
 children, four sons and three daughters, of whom 
 Jonathan Ward May, the eldest and only one 
 now living, is the subject of this review, and 
 was born in Kemper county. Miss., July 31, 1839. 
 
 Jonathan Ward May was reared in Shreve- 
 port, La., receiving his education in the common 
 schools of that place. In young manhood he 
 engaged in the stock business in Louisiana and 
 Texas, in Shackelford county, Tex., handling as 
 many as eighty thousand head of cattle. His 
 stock-raising pursuits were interrupted by the 
 breaking Out of the Civil war, his enHstment in 
 the Confederate army taking place in 1861. He 
 served in the Trans-Mississippi army under 
 General Maxey, of the Indian Department of 
 Heavy Artillery. He enlisted as a private sol- 
 dier and in the second year of his service was 
 commissioned second lieutenant. He took par! 
 in the following engagements : Galveston and 
 Yellow Bayou, Fort Smith, Sabin; Creek, the 
 scene of Bank's defeat ; Mud Creek, Honey 
 Creek, Mazard Prairie, Diamond Grove, Camden 
 and Poison Springs, then- company carrying six- 
 ty-four-pound marine guns. The ending, of the 
 war found many ruined homes and estates in 
 the south and among them was that of Mr. May. 
 He remained in his old home only long enough 
 to raise a few crops of cotton, the first one fol- 
 lowing immediately upon the close of the war. 
 Deciding to seek a home in the west, he came 
 to California in 1871, arriving February 13, 
 when he engaged in the San Joaquin valley in 
 hauling lumber over the mountains with ox 
 teams. Two years later he began farming on 
 the Tule river at Pleasant A^alley, on a ranch 
 of one hundred and sixty acres. In 1880 he 
 purchased another ranch near this one, and in 
 the same year pre-empted a stock ranch on the 
 middle fork of the Tule river. In the following 
 year he removed to this ranch which adjoins the 
 Indian Reservation, where he became the owner 
 of eleven hundred acres. He held this in his 
 possession until 1903, when he sold out and came 
 to Springville, Tulare county, where he engaged 
 in the livery business. This has since occupied 
 his attention, and in the work he has met with 
 the same success which has characterized his en- 
 tire career. He owns his residence and six acres 
 in town besides his stable, which is one of the 
 principal business enterprises of the place. 
 
 In Texas Mr. May was united in marriage 
 with Johanna Stanphill, a native of Missouri, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 085 
 
 who died in 1875. They became the parents of 
 two children, John Benjamin, located near 
 Springville, and Mattie, the wife of H. C. Tal- 
 bot of Portersville. Mr. May was again mar- 
 ried April 13, 1903, to Mrs. Anna Brown, a na- 
 tive of Louisiana, and the representative of an 
 old pioneer family of California. Fraternally 
 Mr. May is identified with the Woodmen of the 
 World, and politically is a Democrat. 
 
 ROBERT R. FOWLER. The district attor- 
 ney of Madera county, who is one of the rising 
 young lawyers and influential Republicans of the 
 city of Madera, is a member of a family that 
 early became established in the commonwealth 
 of Virginia and later settled in the blue-grass 
 regions of Kentucky. Genealogical records show 
 that his ancestors were people of unquestioned in- 
 tegrity and genuine worth of character. His par- 
 ents, William F. and Elizabeth A. (Anderson) 
 Fowler, are natives of Indiana and, after vari- 
 ous changes of residence, have established them- 
 selves in the city of Madera, which place is 
 the home of their only two living children, name- 
 ly : David B., supervisor of the third district of 
 Madera county ; and Robert R., district attorney. 
 The family history appears in the sketch of tlie 
 older of these sons, presented on another page 
 of this volume. 
 
 Near Table Rock, Pawnee county, Neb., Rob- 
 ert R. Fowler was born August 15, 1870. At an 
 early age he accompanied the family to Califor- 
 nia and this state has since been his home. His 
 education was primarily secured in the district 
 schools of Tulare and Fresno counties. He then 
 turned his attention to newspaper work, led in 
 that decision not only by an opening that oc- 
 curred, but also by the inclination of his mind 
 toward journalism. One of his early experiences 
 in this occupation was gained while editor of 
 the Selma Irrigator. After coming to Madera in 
 1890 he secured a position on the Madera Mer- 
 cury, where he proved himself to be an able news- 
 paper man. His tastes have always been in the 
 direction of literature. Many of his most en- 
 joyable hours have been spent among his books. 
 Possessing a wide command of language, versa- 
 tile mind and resourceful wit, he has written arti- 
 cles for the press that have attracted attention 
 by their depth and far-seeing intelligence. 
 
 Notwithstanding his love for the journalistic 
 field, Mr. Fowler was led to enter the profes- 
 sion of law for his life-work, and in the fall of 
 1893 he began to study under Mr. Hargrove. 
 June, 1895, he was admitted to the supreme 
 court and at once began to practice in Madera. 
 From the first he has been an enthusiastic sup- 
 porter of Republican principles. The party in 
 Madera county has had in him one of its most 
 48 
 
 energetic champions. His services in behalf of 
 the organization were fittingly recognized in 
 1898, when he was placed in nomination for the 
 office of district attorney. Notwithstanding the 
 fact that this is a Democratic county, he was 
 elected by a majority, of two hundred and six- 
 teen. At the expiration of his term of four years, 
 the Republicans again made him their choice for 
 candidate, and this time he won the victory by 
 two hundred and forty-eight majority. In his 
 second term, as in his first, he is distinguished 
 by faithful discharge of official duties and skill 
 in the handling of the cases under his super- 
 vision. Fraternally he is identified with the Be- 
 nevolent Protective Order of Elks and the In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 The lady who presides over Mr. Fowler's pleas- 
 ant home and who became his wife in Oakland, 
 was formerly Blanche Butler. She was born in 
 Hastings, Nebr., and received excellent advan- 
 tages in the schools of Tulare county. Reared in 
 the faith of the Christian Church, she is con- 
 nected with that organization in Madera. The 
 family of which she is a member holds a high 
 rank for mental attainments and statesmanship. 
 One of her uncles, Hon. David Butler, at one 
 time officiated as governor of Nebraska. Her 
 father, the late Dr. A. B. Butler, was a man of 
 broad professional ability, splendidly educated for 
 his profession, and ranked high among the citi- 
 zens of Tulare county. He removed to Madera 
 and died in that city in 1904, after a residence of 
 about one year. In public affairs he held a 
 position of influence and at one time, while a res- 
 ident of Tulare county, represented his district 
 in the state legislature. Mr. and Mrs. Fowler 
 have a son, Robert Butler Fowler. The family 
 ranks among the most popular in Madera and has 
 a host of warm personal friends within the cir- 
 cle of its acquaintances. 
 
 H. R. McGEE. Born in Guelph, Ontario, 
 December 22, 1864, H. R. McGee was the young- 
 est child in a family of six children, of whom 
 he is the only one now living. His father, Henry 
 McGee, was a native of Northern Ireland, who 
 settled in Canada at an early date, locating in 
 Guelph, where he followed the work of a con- 
 tractor and builder. About 1866 he located in 
 Cedar Falls, Iowa, where he continued in the 
 same occupation, making that location his home 
 until 1878. In December of the last-named year 
 he brought his family to California, locating in 
 Tulare county nine miles north of Visalia. Un- 
 til the following spring he made that place his 
 home, when he went to Eastern Oregon and 
 Washington, and engaged in building for one 
 year. Returning to Tulare county he engaged 
 in contracting and building until his death, In 
 
9S6 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the meantime he purchased and improved a piece 
 of property in Orosi, which continued to be his 
 home until 1895, when his death occurred. He 
 was married twice, his first wife being Rachel 
 Bell, a native of London, England, and after her 
 death in Iowa he married Mary E. Ledbetter, a 
 native of New York and the daughter of James 
 Ledbetter, an old settler of Orosi. She died in 
 Orosi. 
 
 In Cedar Falls, Iowa, H. R. McGee spent his 
 boyhood until he was fourteen years of age, at- 
 tending the public schools. In December, 1878, 
 in company with his father's family he came 
 to California, where he has remained ever since. 
 Thrown upon his own resources at an early age 
 he has made his own way in the world and has 
 met with the success which is the direct result 
 of energy, industry and perseverance. He first 
 found employment on neighboring farms, after 
 which he drove teams to the mountains from the 
 mills. Deciding to engage in farming he farmed 
 his father's property of three hundred and eighty 
 acres in Orosi, raising grain principally. He set 
 out an orchard and has engaged in the cultiva- 
 tion of fruits and vineyard since 1892. He now 
 owns twenty acres in Orosi, devoted principally 
 to the cultivation of Muir peaches. 
 
 In Tulare county Mr. McGee was united in 
 marriage with Nellie Combs, a daughter of B. C. 
 Combs, a well-known citizen of Orosi. She died 
 in Orosi in June, 1889, aged twenty-seven years. 
 She was a member of the Presbyterian Church 
 and the mother of three children : Oriva Marguer- 
 ite, Rilma May and Robert Henry. Mr. McGee is 
 Democratic in his political convictions, and in the 
 interests of his party has served as constable and 
 also as justice of the peace of Orosi for one 
 term. Fraternally he belongs to the Knights of 
 Pythias, being past councillor of his lodge, ex- 
 representative to the Grand Lodge, and district 
 deputy grand chancellor ; Woodmen of the 
 World, of which he is past officer, having served 
 for four years; and also belongs to the Women 
 of Woodcraft. 
 
 CHRISTIAN HAUSCH. To rise from a po- 
 sition of obscurity to influence, to surmount the 
 obstacles confronting one who seeks to gain in- 
 dependence, to live at peace with fellow-citi- 
 zens, and to gain a reputation for worth of char- 
 acter, this is a record of which one may well be 
 proud, and in the attaining of such an ambition 
 Mr. Hausch has merited and won the respect of 
 associates and acquaintances. Many of the quali- 
 ties noticeable in his character come to him from 
 a line of worthy German ancestors, and he has 
 added to the German characteristics of thrift 
 and economy the American qualities of energy 
 and resourcefulness. A native of Prussia, he 
 
 was born at Hohenzollern, May 6, 1832, being 
 the second in a family of five children, two sons 
 and three daughters. His parents, John and 
 Gertrude (Pflumm) Hausch, were natives of 
 Prussia, and remained in that country until death, 
 leading usefxil lives as members of a farming 
 community. It was their aim to educate each 
 child as well as their means permitted, and Qiris- 
 tian was sent to the common schools until he 
 reached the age of fourteen years, after which 
 he assisted in the cultivation of the home farm. 
 Believing that better opportunities awaited him 
 in the new world than in the home land, he .set 
 sail for America in 1851, and for a year worked 
 as an apprentice to the cooper's trade in Buffalo, 
 N. Y., after which he labored as a journeyman 
 at Cincinnati and Zanesville, Ohio, and Peters- 
 burg, Ky., going in 1855 to St. Joseph, Mo., 
 where he worked at the same trade. 
 
 During the spring of 1856 Mr. Hausch came 
 across the plains with ox teams and after a jour- 
 ney of six months landed at Healdsburg, Cal., in 
 September of the same year. For a time he 
 engaged at his trade in addition to working as 
 a farmer, but in the spring of 1857 he went to 
 the mines of Sierra county near Downieville and 
 continued there for five years. No special good 
 fortune crowned his labors in the mines, and he 
 finally determined to seek a more certain means 
 of livelihood. , Returning to Sonoma county, in 
 1863 he worked as a cooper at Healdsburg and 
 later built a shop on his eight-acre farm one and 
 one-half miles north of that town. On coming 
 to Tulare countv in 1874 Mr. Hausch settled 
 three and one-half miles south of Goshen, where 
 he bought six hundred and forty acres of rail- 
 road land, and began the tilling of the soil. As 
 time passed by he gradually became interested in 
 the stock business, and the raising of cattle be- 
 came one of the special features of his farm 
 work. The profits of his labors were invested 
 in other lands until he had acquired, in addition 
 to the original purchase, a tract of one hundred 
 and sixty acres and another of eighty acres, all 
 of which still remain in his possession. In 1903 
 he retired from agricultural pursuits and came 
 to Visalia, where he now makes his. home. 
 Though retired from active labors he still super- 
 intends his lands, and takes an active interest 
 in the improvement of the property. As a citi- 
 zen he has neglected no duty falling to a public- 
 spirited man, but he has been averse to office- 
 holding and, aside from votina: the Democratic 
 ticket, has taken no part in politics. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Hausch occurred 
 in Healdsburg, and united him with Eliza Jane 
 Irland, who was born in Ohio and died in Healds- 
 burg in 1873. The children of their union are 
 as follows : Anna Belle, now Mrs. Dye, \ resi- 
 dent of Tulare county; Hannah May, wife of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 987 
 
 H. A. Crowell, of Los Gatos ; Mrs. Flora Middle- 
 ton; Mrs. Henrietta Lamb, who lives on her 
 father's ranch; Mrs. Elsie Christina Hayes, liv- 
 ing near Goshen; and Charles Joseph, who re- 
 sides in Tulare county. The present wife of Mr. 
 Hausch was Catherine Pflumm, a native of Prus- 
 sia, but since 1882 a resident of Tulare county. 
 The only child of this union, Catherine Gertrude, 
 is with her parents. Fraternally Mr. Hausch for 
 years has taken a deep interest in Masonry, hold- 
 ing membership in the Lodge of Perfection, of 
 Visalia, and Islam Temple, N. M. S., of San 
 Francisco, and is also identified with the East- 
 ern Star. 
 
 STONEWALL JACKSON ALLEN. 
 Through his efficient service in public office Mr. 
 Allen has gained the confidence of the people 
 of Merced county, where he also has the good 
 fortune to possess the warm friendship of men 
 with whom he has associated for years before 
 becoming a county official. Himself a lifelong 
 resident of California and a native of Tuo- 
 lumne county, he is of southern family, de- 
 scended from Virginian ancestors of colonial 
 fame. His father, James M. Allen, was born 
 and reared in Tennessee and about 1850 came 
 to California via the Panama route, settling in 
 Tuolumne county and taking up the uncertain 
 occupation of mining. During 1869 he re- 
 moved to Stanislaus county and began to im- 
 prove a farm on the San Joaquin river, but two 
 years later he abandoned agriculture for the 
 hotel business in Turlock, where he built the 
 first hotel building in the village. At seventy- 
 three years of age, in November, 1903, he died 
 at the home of a daughter in Bakersfield. His 
 wife was Eliza Ellen Bradford, a native of Mis- 
 souri, whence she crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia and settled in Tuolumne county. She 
 is still proprietor of the old Turjock hotel, but 
 makes her home in Modesto. In her family 
 there are two daughters and a son, namely: 
 Nettie, wife of C. F. Lander, of Bakersfield ; 
 Stonewall Jackson, of Merced ; and Mattie, 
 wife of Richard Wilhite, of Bakersfield. 
 
 The birth of Stonewall Jackson Allen oc- 
 curred November 11, 1862, while his parents 
 were living at Saw Mill Flat. He was seven 
 years of age when the family removed to the 
 San Joaquin valley, and in 1871 went with 
 them to Turlock, where he attended the gram- 
 mar school. Later he completed his education 
 by taking a business course in a college at 
 South San Francisco. On his return home he 
 engaged in the hotel business for three years. 
 Under appointment from President Cleveland 
 he served as postmaster from 1894 to 1898. At 
 the expiration of his term of office he removed 
 
 to Atwater, Merced county, buying in 1899 
 twenty acres under ditch and engaging in rais- 
 ing sweet potatoes. During 1901 he sold the 
 property and now makes his home in the city 
 of Merced, where, since January of 1903, he 
 has filled the office of county recorder, to 
 which he was elected on the Democratic ticket 
 by a majority of eighty-five. In the adminis- 
 tration of his office he has proved himself to 
 be tactful, energetic, reliable and painstaking, 
 reflecting credit upon the party who selected 
 him as their standard-bearer. While his atten- 
 tion is given to the proper management of the 
 office, he has not neglected the amenities of 
 life, but has maintained a constant interest in 
 organizations of a fraternal and social nature. 
 Some yeairs ago he was an active worker in 
 the Knights of Pythias, and now is connected 
 with the Modern Woodmen of America, Beav- 
 ers and Merced Parlor No. 24, N. S. G. W. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Allen occurred in Tur- 
 lock and united him with Miss Annie Mitchell, 
 by whom "he had two children, Clayton and 
 Nellis M. ; the latter died at the age of two 
 and one-half years. Mrs. Allen is a daughter 
 of Samuel B. and Helen (McCulloch) Mitchell, 
 her mother being a near relative of General 
 McCulloch. Coming from Lexington, Ky., Mr. 
 Mitchell migrated to California at the close of 
 the Mexican war and settled in the San Joa- 
 quin valley, where he engaged in raising stock 
 and conducting a meat business for many 
 years. During the Mexican war he endured 
 the hardships incident to forced marches and 
 sharp skirmishes, and remained at the front 
 until peace was declared. Of all the members 
 of his company he alone survives. Retired 
 from business cares, he makes his home in 
 Modesto. Of his three children Mrs. Allen 
 was the second in order of birth and the only 
 daughter. The older son, Samuel, at this writ- 
 ing holds an appointment as deputy county 
 clerk of Stanislaus county, and the younger, 
 Benjamin, is engaged in raising stock in Mer- 
 ced county. 
 
 ANDREW F. THOMPSON. Since 1882 
 Andrew F. Thompson has been located upon his 
 present property in the vicinity of Portersville, 
 Tulare county, during the yjears which have 
 passed since his purchase of the same, devoting 
 his time to various agricultural and horticul- 
 tural pursuits. Previous to his locating here 
 he was known in Visalia and throughout the 
 county as the local editor of the Visalia Delta 
 for one year (1877-78). A native of Peoria, 111., 
 he was born March 14, 1850, a son of Samuel 
 Thompson. The latter was a native of Ayr- 
 shire, Scotland, from which country he emi- 
 
988 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 grated to the United States when a young man. 
 He was a pattern-maker by trade and located in 
 Peoria, III, 'where he followed that occupation 
 until his death in 1852, at the early age of thir- 
 ty-three years. His wife, formerly Helen Mc- 
 Cormack, a native of the same locality in Scot- 
 land, also died in Illinois. They were the par- 
 ents of three children, two sons and one daugh- 
 ter, of whom Andrew F. was the youngest. He 
 received his education in the common schools of 
 Santa Cruz, Cal., to which state he came with 
 his aunt, Mrs. Mary Fletcher. In 1873 he en- 
 gaged in farming with his uncle in Pleasant val- 
 ley, Tulare county, with whom he remained until 
 1877, when he accepted the position of book- 
 keeper and local editor of the Visalia Delta. In 
 1882 he purchased his present property, adding 
 by purchase until he owned considerable land, 
 having sold off a part and now owning two hun- 
 dred acres. He engaged for a time in the rais- 
 ing of deciduous fruits but did not meet with 
 the desired results so now devotes his land to 
 grain and alfalfa, while he also has three and 
 a half acres in oranges. 
 
 In Tulare, September 4, 1884, Mr. Thomp- 
 son was. united in marriage with Priscilla Dun- 
 ham, who was born in Mercer county. Pa., Au- 
 gust 6, 1850. She was educated in Iowa, gradu- 
 ating from the high school of Maquoketa, after 
 which she engaged in teaching for some years. 
 She came to California in 1881 and taught four 
 years in Tulare and San Luis Obispo counties. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Thompson were born the fol- 
 lowing children : William F., Clay, Mary, Hel- 
 en, Walter and Ernest. Fraternally Mr. Thomp- 
 son is identified with the Ancient Order of Unit- 
 ed Workmen of Portersville, and politically casts 
 his ballot with the Republican party. 
 
 JAMES P. DALY. A native of California, 
 James P. Daly has been one of the active men 
 of the state, one who has at all times done his 
 share toward the upbuilding of the community 
 in which he has resided. Every movement cal- 
 culated to be of material benefit to the state or 
 county has received his support, and today he is 
 one of the men who is honored and respected by 
 all who know him. 
 
 Born in Lake county, near Lakeport, April 3, 
 i860, Mr. Daly is the son of Patrick and Mary 
 (O'Hara) Daly. Patrick Daly was born in Ire- 
 land, where he resided until he had reached his 
 fourteenth year. He then left his native land 
 and finally made his way to California, reaching 
 here in 1849, the year of the great gold excite- 
 ment. Like thousands of others who came to 
 the state at that time, he went to the mines where 
 he engaged in the search for gold a short time. 
 Tiring of this pursuit he located in Lake coun- 
 
 ty. Here he became engaged in farming and 
 later began raising stock. Finally he settled' four 
 miles southeast of Lakeport, where he became 
 the owner of two hundred and fifteen acres of 
 fine farming land. Although considerable of his 
 time was devoted to agricultural pursuits, he was 
 one of the leading stock men of the county, rais- 
 ing cattle for the market, also dealing in hogs, 
 shipping them to San Francisco. For thirty-five 
 years Mr. Daly resided on this farm, and dur- 
 ing that time became one of the largest stock 
 men of the county, but after all these years of 
 active life, he sold his home and removed to 
 San Francisco. After a short time he again 
 returned to Lakeport, where he is now Hving, 
 being engaged in shipping hogs to the San Fran- 
 cisco market. 
 
 Mrs. Daly, who in maidenhood was Mary 
 O'Hara, was born in New York city. After her 
 marriage with Mr. Daly she did much to make 
 his business ventures a success and in all ways 
 proved a most worthy helpmeet. She died at 
 the age of forty years, leaving eight children 
 to mourn her loss. 
 
 The fourth of this large family was James P. 
 Like all farmers' sons of those days he was 
 brought up on the farm, attending the district 
 schools when the work of the farm would al- 
 low, but most of the time was spent in learning 
 the lessons of real life, the book learning being 
 left for the future. 
 
 Remaining at home until he was twenty-one 
 Mr. Daly then struck out for himself and in 1888 
 located in the Yokohl Valley, where he pre- 
 empted one hundred and sixty acres of land. This 
 he at once began to improve and also engaged in 
 stock-raising, following this for three years or 
 until 1 89 1, when he purchased eighty acres of 
 section 35 and eighteen of section 26. This he 
 devoted to grain and at times he has had as 
 high as seven hundred acres. At the present time 
 he devotes three hundred acres to wheat and bar- 
 ley each year. 
 
 In Mr. Daly this state has a man who has 
 done much toward the building and improve- 
 ments of the public highways. For several years 
 he has devoted much of his time to that work 
 and has constructed many miles of road. He ■ 
 operates a fine road machine on which he works 
 twelve horses, and also a road plow which re- 
 quires from ten to twelve horses to haul it. With 
 this outfit he has constructed one mile of com- 
 pleted road in five days. This road grader and 
 plow are the property of Tulare county. 
 
 In 1883 Mr. Daly was united in marriage 
 with Mattie Combs, who was born in Missouri, 
 a daughter of John Cuthbert Combs, who came 
 to California in 1875. Mr. Combs was born 
 in Kentucky and is a brother of Dr. F. A. 
 Combs of Visalia. On arrival in California Mr. 
 
a^.c^ .Hcjiyl- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 991 
 
 Combs settled in Lake county, where he en- 
 gaged in farming. He died while living near 
 Exeter at the age of sixty-two years. His wife, 
 who in maidenhood was Fanny Shortridge, was 
 also a native of the Bluegrass state. She died 
 in California at the age of sixty-two years. Both 
 were active and consistent members of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church. Three children have 
 been born to Mr. and Mrs. Daly, John, Frank 
 and Mae. 
 
 In fraternal relations Mr. Daly is a member 
 of the Woodmen of the World, while Mrs. Daly 
 takes an active interest in the Women of Wood- 
 craft. In politics, a Democrat, he has always 
 taken a deep interest in the welfare of his party 
 and can be depended on to do his part. 
 
 The Daly family have an assured position in 
 this county. On every hand are scores of friends 
 who have for them a deep and sincere affection. 
 Mr. Daly is active in all public movements and 
 when called upon by his neighbors he is never 
 found lacking. Such families as this are the 
 kind that make the social part of life so attrac- 
 tive. May both Mr. and Mrs. Daly live long 
 to enjoy the pleasures of life, pleasures made pos- 
 sible by the keen business judgment of Mr. Daly. 
 
 CHARLES W. HART. Three miles south- 
 east of Farmersville, Tulare county, is located 
 the farm upon which Charles W. Hart is en- 
 gaged in raising cattle, horses and mules, being 
 one of the large stock dealers in this section of 
 Tulare county. A native Californian, he was born 
 in Gilroy, Santa Clara county, June 30, i860, a 
 son of Charles C. Hart, the representative of an 
 old Connecticut family, born in Litchfield county, 
 that state, in 1826. He married in Connecticut, 
 and came to California by the Panama route 
 about 1857, following a brother, John Hart, who 
 made the trip west via the Horn in the days of 
 '49. The brother had settled first in Gilroy, where 
 he engaged in the dairy business, later located 
 in Tulare county, and finally removed to Han- 
 ford, Kings county, where his death occurred. 
 Charles C. Hart also located in Gilroy, where he 
 followed the dairy business in old Gilroy until 
 1861. In January of that year he removed to 
 Tulare county, locating three miles south of Vis- 
 alia, where he bought a farm of one hundred and 
 twenty acres and engaged in general farming and 
 stock-raising. In 1865 he homesteaded one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, the property now owned by 
 his widow, where he made all the improvements 
 and worked to bring the land to a high state of 
 cultivation. Later, in partnership with his son, 
 Charles W., he bought six hundred and forty 
 acres of undeveloi>ed land a half mile from his 
 home, and also eighty acres of timber land. With 
 his son he engaged in farming until his death. 
 
 which occurred July 18, 1891, at the age of sixty- 
 five years. He was a man of strong principles, 
 an advocate of progress and reform and took an 
 active interest in all movements calculated to in- 
 crease the prosperity of the country. In his 
 political convictions he was a stanch Republican. 
 His wife, formerly Helen Payne, of New York 
 state, survives him, and now makes her home 
 in Tulare county, a consistent member of the 
 Baptist Church. They were the parents of five 
 children, nameh' : Fred Miles, a resident of 
 Kings county, Cal. ; Charles Weston, of this re- 
 view; John H., a farmer located near the old 
 home; Carrie Ellen, the wife of H. T. Ander- 
 son; and Kittie A., vi^ho became the wife of 
 J. L. Tuohy, and died in 1904. 
 
 From the age of six months Charles W. Hart 
 was reared in Tulare county, receiving his edu- 
 cation in the district school in the vicinity of his 
 home. At fourteen years of age he began active 
 farming on his father's place, exercising an abil- 
 ity and judgment which were the result of his 
 early training. Upon attaining his majority he 
 became his father's partner, engaging in the rais- 
 ing of grain and hogs. Together with his fath- 
 er he purchased six hundred and forty acres of 
 railroad" land, and they continued in partner- 
 ship until the death of the elder man. Mr. Hart 
 then purchased the farming outfit and stock and 
 continued in the work, renting from one thousand 
 to twenty-five hundred acres of land upon which 
 to carry on his business. He now owns six hun- 
 dred and forty acres on sections 20, 21' and 17, 
 township 19, range 26, while he rents adjoining 
 properties in three tracts, respectively, eight hun- 
 dred and eighty acres, one hundred and twenty 
 acres and one hundred and sixty acres, a total 
 of eleven hundred and sixty acres for pastur- 
 age and grain. He also owns six hundred and 
 forty acres seven miles northwest of Visalia, 
 where, he runs stock, and twenty-two hundred 
 and forty acres at Jordan Flat, on Horse and 
 Jordan creeks, all fenced and supplied with wa- 
 ter from running springs. He has a herd of 
 about five hundred cattle, making a specialty of 
 Durhams and Aberdeen Polled Angus, and he 
 also raises hogs, making a specialty of Poland 
 China, and has one hundred and fifty head of 
 horses and mules. He has made a success in his 
 efforts and is highly regarded both for his busi- 
 ness ability and his personal integrity. 
 . In Han'ford, Cal., Mr. Hart was united in mar- 
 riage with Lila Conlee, who was born in Morro, 
 San Luis Obispo county, Cal. Her father, Frank 
 Conlee, a native of Illinois, came to California 
 in 1870, and engaged as a lumber manufacturer 
 at Creston and in Tulare county. He is now 
 located at Springville, where he follows general 
 farming and horticulture. His wife, formerly 
 Ella Robinson, is a native of Canada. In their 
 
992 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 religious beliefs they are consistent members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mrs. Hart is 
 the third in a family of nine children. She is 
 the mother of four children, namely: Weston 
 C, Helen, Hazel Irene and Ethel C. In his po- 
 litical affiliations Mr. Hart is very liberal and 
 broad-minded, preferring to reserve the right to 
 cast his ballot for the man whom he considers 
 best qualified for public office. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Fraternal Aid of Farmers- 
 ville, and in his reHgious convictions is a mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which 
 his wife is also a member. ' 
 
 IRWIN JAY BUCKLEY. On a farm of 
 three hundred and fifteen acres located between 
 Snelling and Merced Falls, Merced county, re- 
 sides I. Jay Buckley, a progressive, practical 
 and successful farmer. He was born November 
 17, 1845, in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, and represents 
 the eleventh generation from Peter Buckley 
 (spelled by him Bulkeley), who emigrated from 
 England in 1635. In direct line of descent Syl- 
 vanus Buckley, father of I. J. Buckley, was born 
 in Norwich, Otsego county, N. Y., and was 
 reared on the farm owned by his father. He 
 married Phoebe Merriman, also a native of that 
 county, and a descendant of Scotch-Irish an- 
 cestors, who were soldiers in the Revolutionary 
 war. She was also closely related to the Win- 
 chesters, who were the founders of the Univer- 
 salist religion. Sylvanus Buckley was ambitious 
 and energetic, and in his early life sought a loca- 
 tion in various localities. In 1844 h^ removed 
 to Iowa, and at Mt. Pleasant engaged in the 
 manufacture of plows. While thus engaged he 
 heard the glowing accounts of the discovery of 
 gold on the Pacific coast, and accordingly closed 
 up his business and started across the plains en 
 route to California in 1849. Arriving at his 
 destination, he mined in Placer county for a 
 time with fair success, which enabled him to 
 pay a visit to his family in Iowa in 18.S3. from 
 whence he moved his family to his old home in 
 Ostego county, N. Y. He came back to the 
 mines and remained for another period, return- 
 ing to New York in 1856, when he brought his 
 family to California by way of the Nicaragua 
 route, arriving in San Francisco July 20 of that 
 year. From this time he turned his attention to 
 farming, and unfortunatelv invested in what 
 proved to be a part of a Spanish grant in Ala- 
 meda county, near Alvarado. In 1861 he located 
 in Merced county, and in the vicinity of Snelling 
 embarked in the sheep business, and at the same 
 time was interested in some mines in Nevada. 
 He met with a fair degree of success in his stock 
 business and became owner of about eighteen 
 thousand acres of land. As a public spirited 
 
 man he gave his best efforts toward the advance- 
 ment of the community where he made his home. 
 At the time of his death, 1888, he was seventy- 
 nine years old. He was survived by his wife, 
 who died in 1892, in her eighty-fourth year. 
 There were six children in the family, viz : 
 Henry A. (who died in 1872), Horace F., I. Jay, 
 George W. (who died in 1902), S. P., and 
 C. O. E. 
 
 I. Jay Buckley was reared under the parental 
 roof, attended the public schools, and as soon 
 as he was of age to be useful about the farm as- 
 sisted his father with the duties incident to farm 
 life. He was closely associated with his father's 
 varied interests until the death of the latter. In 
 1887 he purchased his present ranch, made such 
 improvements as were necessary and has fol- 
 lowed diversified farming since that date, and 
 has made this his residence with the exception of 
 about three years spent in Merced. 
 
 In '1878 Mr. Buckley was united in marriage 
 with Mary, a daughter of the late John M. Mont- 
 gomery, a sketch of whom appears on another 
 page of this volume. Of this union was born 
 one child, a daughter, Irma, the wife of John 
 Jardine, of San Francisco. Mr. Buckley is a 
 stanch Republican and has served the party in 
 various capacities in Merced county. He is un- 
 ostentatious in manner, public spirited and well 
 read, very fond of books, and at one time was 
 the owner of one of the largest private libraries 
 in the county, which unfortunately was de- 
 stroyed by fire. He is one of the substantial 
 citizens of Merced county, and his long years 
 of association with its best interests have brought 
 good results. 
 
 RICHARD HUGH OWEN. Among the en- 
 terprising and progressive citizens of Tulare 
 county whose efforts have been productive of the 
 growth and upbuilding of the Exeter section, 
 prominent mention belongs to Richard Hugh 
 Owen, a member of the firm which owns and 
 controls the Rocky Point Granite Works. He 
 was bom in Anglesea, Wales, May 26, 1863, the 
 fourth in a family of five children, all of whom 
 are living. His parents, Hugh and Mary 
 (Evans) Owen, were natives of the same place, 
 where they spent their entire lives, dying at ad- 
 vanced ages. The father was employed in the 
 slate c[uarries. 
 
 Richard Hugh Owen is the only member of 
 his father's family who is located in California. 
 He was reared on the home place in Wales, at- 
 tending the public schools in boyhood. At thir- 
 teen years of age he began to work on the vari- 
 ous farms in the vicinity of his home, and at 
 sixteen found employment in the slate, quarries. 
 In March, 1882, he came to America, working, 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 9&3 
 
 in the slate quarries in Fairhaven, Vt., until De- 
 cember of the following year, when he came to 
 California. His first work in this state was at 
 Penryn, Placer county, where he was appren- 
 ticed as a granite cutter. Three years later he 
 began work at his trade in San Francisco, and 
 in 1888 came to Tulare county, looking for a 
 location which he soon found, then returned to 
 San Francisco and interested Messrs. Hughes 
 and Griffith in a quarry which they opened in 
 the spring of 1889, near Exeter. After five 
 years (during which time Mr. Hughes disposed 
 of his interest to his partners), they bought ten 
 acres of land and opened their present quarry, 
 known as the Rocky Point Granite Works. They 
 expect to have a spur of the proposed electric 
 railway, leading from Visalia to Lemon Cove, 
 run up to the quarry, when they can ship by 
 car, and will also have their works operated by 
 electricity. In addition to his interest in this 
 business Mr. Owen also owns one hundred and 
 six acres adjoining the Griffith property, on sec- 
 tion 6, township 19, range 27, upon which he 
 engages in stock-raising, while he also owns 
 a fine pasture of forty acres near Farmersville 
 and a farm of one hundred and sixty acres three 
 miles southeast of Exeter, where he makes his 
 home. He also owns a handsome residence in 
 Exeter, and is interested in the People's Canal 
 Ditch Company. 
 
 In VisaHa Mr. Owen was united in marriage 
 with Rose Ella Fly, who was born near Exeter, 
 and they are the parents of five children, name- 
 ly: Hugh, Leland, Oliver, Viola and Zylpha. 
 Mr. Owen was made a Mason in Penryn and is 
 now a member of Visalia Lodge No. 128, F. & 
 A. M. He also belongs to the Knights of Pyth- 
 ias, of Exeter, of which he is past chancellor, 
 and the Uniformed Rank, Knights of Pythias. 
 Religiously his wife is a member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, while he is a Presby- 
 terian. Politically he is a Republican. 
 
 FRED STURM. An upbuilder of this section 
 and a successful orange grower, Fred Sturm 
 is named among the representative men of this 
 class. He was born in Illinois November 15, 
 1864, a son of John Sturm, a German emigrant 
 whose biographical sketch appears elsewhere in 
 this volume. He received his education in the 
 common schools, after which he engaged as a 
 painter and paper-hanger in Elgin, 111. He be- 
 came very successful in that line of work, tak- 
 ing big contracts and operating a large number 
 of men in both city and country. Deciding to 
 locate on the Pacific coast he came to California 
 in 1896 and located on his_present property, 
 purchasing with his father two hundred acres 
 at that time. They later added by purchase two 
 
 hundred acres more, the property having since 
 been divided. In his home place Mr. Sturm has 
 twenty-five acres devoted to the cultivation of 
 oranges and lemons. He has recently purchased 
 a tract of thirty acres just west of his home, 
 and also has forty acres of salt grass west of 
 Portersville, as well as owning town lots, an 
 interest in the Rochdale store, and town lots in 
 Elgin^ 111. With the Sturm Brothers Company 
 he was interested in a |:ract of eighty acres south 
 of Piano, forty acres being planted to oranges, 
 while they also owned other tracts in this sec- 
 tion. He has made a success of his work and 
 has a fine orange orchard. 
 
 In Portersville Mr. Sturm was united in mar- 
 riage with Carrie Adams, a native of Visalia, 
 Cal., and they have two children, Esther and Ed- 
 win, both at home. Mr. Sturm is a member of 
 the Evangelical Church, and politically is a 
 stanch Republican. 
 
 CHARLES W. SCHANK. Prominent among 
 the enterprising and successful business men of 
 Newman is Charles W. Schank, a man of 
 marked ability and genuine worth. He is active- 
 ly identified with the mercantile and industrial 
 interests of the place as a hardware merchant 
 and a plumber, and is also well known through- 
 out this section of the county as an undertaker. 
 A son of Charles W. Schank, Sr., he was born 
 April 16, 1859, in Louisville, Ky. 
 
 A farmer by birth and breeding, Charles W. 
 Schank, Sr., was born in Vanderburg county, 
 Ky., and for several years of his earlier life 
 was a resident of Louisville, Ky. He subse- 
 quently settled in Evansville, Ind., where he re- 
 sided until his death. His wife, whose maiden 
 name was Martha Robinson, spent her entire 
 life in Kentucky, dying there in early woman- 
 hood. She bore him five children, one son and 
 four daughters, . Charles W., the special subject 
 of this sketch, being the fourth child in suc- 
 cession of birth. 
 
 Removing to Evansville, Ind., with his father 
 when a lad of seven years, Charles W. Schank 
 there received a practical common school edu- 
 cation. Beginning to learn the tinner's trade 
 when fifteen years old, he served a full appren- 
 ticeship, becoming an expert tinner. Migrating 
 to St. Louis, Mo., in 1879, he followed his trade 
 in that city for a year, and then went to To- 
 peka, Kan.^ where he was similarly employed for 
 two years. In i88:2 Mr. Schank located as a 
 tinner in Silver City, N. M., and the following 
 year came to California, where he worked at his 
 trade for a year, living first in Los Angeles, and 
 then in San Francisco and San Jose. Turning 
 his face eastward in 1884, he was for three years 
 located in Central City, Colo., where he was 
 
994 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 busily employed at his trade. Returning to 
 California in 1887, Mr. Schank look up his resi- 
 dence in Newman, and worked for awhile for 
 Mr. Green. He then accepted a position at 
 Stockton, but owing to the urgent solicitation 
 of Mr. Green, his former employer, returned 
 very soon to Newman. Six months later, in 
 1891, Mr. Schank borrowed $600, and, with a 
 partner, established himself in business as a 
 dealer in hardware and tinware, and as a 
 plumber. Succeeding well in his undertakings, 
 Mr. Schank bought out his partner in 1893, and 
 has since carried on the business alone, having 
 a large and remunerative trade in his line of 
 goods, his stock being varied and extensive, and 
 his work always satisfactory. In 1897 he also 
 established an undertaking establishment, which 
 he is managing most successfully. 
 
 In Newman, Cal, Mr. Schank married Rose 
 Mayland, a native of Germany. Politically Mr. 
 Schank affiliates with the Democratic party. 
 Fraternally he is identified with several of the 
 leading secret organizations of this vicinity, in- 
 cluding the following named: Newman Lodge, 
 F & A. M. ; Stockton Commandery, K. T. ; Or- 
 der of the Eastern Star; Independent Order of 
 Odd Fello^vs; Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men; and tile Knights of Pythias. 
 
 ROBERT GRACEY. The oldest financial 
 institution in the county of Merced is the Se- 
 curity Savings Bank, which was organized for 
 the purpose of conducting a general banking 
 business in March, 1875, and during the pe- 
 riod that has since elapsed, through the wise 
 investments of its directors, has gained a rep- 
 utation for soundness and reliability sur- 
 passed by none. With a capital stock of 
 $100,000 and a surplus of $70,000, and with 
 an efticient corps of officers under the execu- 
 tive oversight of Mr. Gracey as president, it 
 affords exceptional facilities for the invest- 
 ments of savings and for the transaction of 
 business of a general banking nature. 
 
 The Gracey family is of Scotch origin, but 
 was established in Ireland prior to settlement 
 in America in 1799. Robert Gracey was born 
 near Newville, Pa., December 4, 1850, a son 
 of John and Isabelle O. (Sharpe) Gracey. He 
 passed the first fifteen years of his life on 
 the home place, meanwhile receiving such ad- 
 vantages as the district schools afforded. 
 When fifteen years old he went to Pittsburg, 
 where he attended a private school for three 
 years. At the expiration of that time he be- 
 came a student in the Washington and Jef- 
 ferson College in Pennsylvania, where he re- 
 mained until the close of the sophomore year. 
 Next he matriculated in Westminster (Pa.) 
 
 College, from which institution he was gradu- 
 ated in 1871 with the degree of A. B. On the 
 completion of his college course he went to 
 Indiana and for one year acted as an instruct- 
 or in the Richland Academy. In September, 
 1872, he became a teacher in the college at 
 Garnett, Kan., but the location did not prove 
 desirable and he decided to come to the Pa- 
 cific coast. 
 
 During April of 1873 Mr. Gracey arrived 
 in California, where his first position was that 
 of a teacher at San Luis Obispo. From there, 
 in August, 1875, he came to Merced, his pres- 
 ent home, and was thereafter engaged as prin- 
 cipal of the city schools until his retirement 
 from the profession in 1887. 
 
 In 1887 he took up the real estate and ab- 
 stract business in Merced, as a member of 
 the firm of Wood, Simonson & Gracey, and 
 after dissolving that partnership continued 
 alone in the buying and selling of city and 
 country property, at the same time acquiring 
 stock in the Security Savings Bank, of which 
 he was elected a director. From 1899 to 1903 
 he made his home in Pennsylvania, but re- 
 turned to California in May of the latter year, 
 in order to enter upon the duties of president 
 of the bank, to which position he had been 
 elected in April. Now, as for years past, he 
 retains important interests in farm and city 
 property, mainly in this locality. 
 
 Such enterprises as are calculated to pro- 
 mote the material prosperity of Merced, or 
 advance its educational and religious progress 
 receive his co-operation and support. In view 
 of his public spirit, he justly ranks among 
 those men whose presence in Merced has been 
 the chief factor in the growth and commercial 
 development of the place. 
 
 WILLIAM WARREN GIDDINGS. A man 
 of liberal views and of the greatest integrity, 
 energetic and progressive, William Warren Gid- 
 dings of Newman is held in high esteem through- 
 out the community, and is prominently identified 
 with the promotion of the business and financial 
 activities of the city. A son of the late Elisha 
 Giddings, he is a fine representative of the 
 native-born citizens of Stanislaus county, his 
 birth having occurred August 24, 1874, in Tur- 
 lock. He comes from honored colonial stock, 
 being a lineal descendant of George Giddings, 
 who emigrated from Ipswich, England, to 
 Massachusetts in 1630, and settled permanently 
 in Ipswich, Essex county, where he became in- 
 fluential in public affairs. Mr. Giddings' pater- 
 nal grandfather, Benjamin Giddings, a life-long 
 resident of Hartford county, Conn., was for 
 many years one of the leading citizens of the 
 
AH J^S, (t^-^^^- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 997 
 
 town of Hartland. A strong Republican, he. 
 was very active in public affairs, serving as se- 
 lectman, as representative to the state legislature, 
 as commissioner to the Superior Court, and as 
 postmaster of Hartland. 
 
 A native of Hartland, Conn., Elisha Giddings 
 was born September 6, 1829. A young man of 
 great enterprise and shrewd business foresight, 
 he early cast his lot with the brave pioneers of 
 California, taking advantage of the great oppor- 
 tunities afforded the settlers of a new country. 
 Crossing from the shores of the Atlantic to the 
 Pacific in 1852, he located in Stanislaus county, 
 opening a store of general merchandise in Tur- 
 lock. In its management he was very success- 
 ful, and as head of the firm of Giddings & Ward 
 carried on an extensive business until his death, 
 in 1879. He married Miss Cookson, who died 
 in 1876. Two sons and one daughter were born 
 of their union, William W., the special subject 
 of this sketch, being the youngest child. 
 
 Left an orphan when but five years old, Will- 
 iam Warren Giddings was brought up in the 
 home of J. C. Green, one of the early pioneers 
 of the county, receiving his education in the 
 graded schools of Turlock and Newman. He 
 was subsequently engaged in the hardware busi- 
 ness as an employe of Mr. Green, first at Hill's 
 Ferry, and later at Newman. From July i, 
 1898, until August I, 1903, he served as post- 
 master. Resigning that position, he accepted the 
 cashiership of the Bank of Newman, in which 
 he is a stockholder, and has since retained it, his 
 qualifications for the office being recognized, and 
 his services appreciated. Mr, Giddings has also 
 other interests, being a stockholder in the New- 
 man Realty Company, of which he is a charter 
 member. 
 
 Mr. Giddings was married September 14, 
 1904, in Oakland, Cal., to Miss Julia V. John- 
 son, daughter of Captain James Johnson, a vvell- 
 known resident of Oakland. Fraternally he is 
 an active member of the Knights of Pythias, and 
 of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 One of the foremost members of the Republican 
 party, he is now a member of the State Central 
 Committee, and has served on different occa- 
 sions as a delegate to state and county conven- 
 tions. 
 
 MRS. MARTHA ELIZABETH RICE. Com- 
 ing with her .husband to California in pioneer 
 clays, Mrs. Martha Elizabeth Rice experienced all 
 the privations and hardships of frontier life, 
 bravely performing her full share in the upbuild- 
 ing and maintaining of a home in a new country. 
 Through it all she kept up the remarkable wom- 
 anly courage with which nature had endowed 
 her, and is now living in ease and comfort, en- 
 
 joying the fruits of those earlier years of toil, 
 and feeling amply repaid for the discomforts of 
 those darker times, the only bar to her happi- 
 ness being the loss of her beloved husband, to 
 whom she was always friend, companion and 
 counsellor. A daughter of William Gardner, she 
 was born, June 14, 1829, in James county, Ark., 
 of English ancestry. Her paternal grandfather, 
 a life-long resident of Virginia, was a large 
 landholder, at the time of his death owning the 
 land now occupied by the city of Richmond. He 
 had no deed, however, to the property, and as 
 his son William died while en route from Ar- 
 kansas to Virginia to claim the land, and his 
 son George, the next heir-at-law, was then in 
 the Mexican war, the property was diverted from 
 the family. 
 
 Born and reared in A^irginia, William Gardner 
 there learned the trades of carpenter and cabi- 
 net maker, which he followed in his earlier life. 
 Turning his attention to agriculture, he migrated 
 to Arkansas, where he followed farming for a 
 number of years. He became a man of much in- 
 fluence in his new home, and was active in pub- 
 lic life, serving as justice of the peace in Ben- 
 ton. While on his way to Virginia to settle 
 his father's estate he died suddenly, his death 
 occurring in Texas. He married Maria Eng- 
 lish, who was born in England, immigrated with 
 her parents to Tennessee, and died in Benton 
 county. Ark. Of the six children that blessed 
 their union, five grew to years of maturity, and 
 three are living, Martha Elizabeth, the special sub- 
 ject of this sketch, being the second child. 
 
 July 20, 1848, Martha Elizabeth Gardner be- 
 came the wife of Isaac Rice, who was born in 
 1820, in McMinn county, Tenn., and was there 
 brought up on a farm. His father, John Rice, 
 born in Tennessee in 1800, married Tabitha Dod- 
 _ son, and settled on land from which they im- 
 proved a fine homestead. Leaving his native state 
 when twenty-eight years old, Isaac Rice went to 
 Arkansas in pursuit of profitable employment, and 
 after his marriage engaged in farming near Ben- 
 tonville. In 1857 he started with his family 
 across the plains, joining the Ox-team train in 
 which were the emigrants that were massacred 
 at Mountain Meadows. Mr. and Mrs. Rice, and 
 a few others, left the train before reaching Salt 
 Lake, taking the northern trail, while the others 
 kept on to Salt Lake, meeting their doom at the 
 point mentioned. While crossing the mountains, 
 ■Mr. Rice was taken ill, and Mrs. Rice assumed 
 command of affairs and drove the stock, get- 
 ting through with ninety-two head of cattle. 
 
 Settling in Suisun valley, Mr. Rice lived there 
 a year, and was subsequently engaged in the 
 dairy business at Clear Lake for four years. Af- 
 ter spending eight years in Vacaville and one year 
 in Antioch, he removed to Tulare county in 1872, 
 
998 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORC). 
 
 and took up a homestead claim three and one- 
 half miles southeast of Dinuba, and from the 
 wild plain and sheep pasture he improved a rich 
 and valuable ranch. Erecting a dwelling house 
 and farm buildings, he placed the land in a 
 tillable condition, and was here profitably em- 
 ployed in wheat raising until his death, No- 
 vember 22, 1888. For twelve years after the 
 death of her husband Mrs. Rice resided on the 
 home farm, which has since been sold off in dif- 
 ferent lots, but since 1900 has resided in Dinuba. 
 She is a woman of refinement and worth, and 
 is highly esteemed and respected for her many vir- 
 tues and sterling qualities. Of the union of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Rice ten children were born, namely : 
 John C, of Hanford ; Mrs. Laura T. Edwards, of 
 Arizona; Mrs. Melissa J. Lawrence, of Point 
 Richmond ; Mrs. Ella S. Bacon, of Tulare county ; 
 Thomas, of Arizona ; Mrs. Mamie McCracken, of 
 this county; Mrs. Jessie B. Ryce, of Selma; 
 Charles G., in the ice business at Dinuba; Hattie 
 B., wife of W. G. Hunter, of this county; and 
 Frank E., of Dinuba. A strong Prohibitionist and 
 an earnest worker in the temperance cause, Mrs. 
 Rice is a valued member of the Woman's Chris- 
 tian Temperance Union. She is also a faithful 
 member of the Baptist Church, and is president 
 of its Ladies' Aid Society. 
 
 JOHN STURM, Jr., who was formerly a 
 member of the firm of Sturm Brothers Company, 
 which has recently been dissolved and the land 
 divided among the members, is a son of John 
 Sturm, the first of the name to settle in Cali- 
 fornia.- Unable to care for the land which he 
 purchased the elder man induced his sons to come 
 to California from the state of Illinois, where 
 he had located the family upon his emigration 
 from Alsace-Lorraine, his native land. John 
 Sturm, Jr., is also a native of that country, where 
 his birth occurred July 29, 1853. Brought to the 
 United States in childhood he was reared in 
 Illinois, receiving an education in the common 
 schools. In 1873 he secured employment with 
 Libby, McNeil & Libby Packing Company, as 
 city salesman, being located in Chicago. After 
 seven years he engaged in business for him- 
 self, becoming a retail coal dealer, and later 
 engaged in the teaming business. Following his 
 father and brother to California in 1898 he lo- 
 cated in Portersville and purchased fifty acres 
 which he finished planting to orchard, fourteen 
 acres being in Washington navels and late Val- 
 encias, and also lemons. His property is lo- 
 cated four miles east of Portersville, in which 
 city he also owns some lots. In the same year 
 in which he took up his work here Mr. Sturm 
 returned to Chicago and brought his family to 
 
 his ranch, where they have since made their 
 home. 
 
 In Chicago Mr. Sturm married Ann Loehr, a 
 native of that city, and they are the parents of 
 the following children : Emma Grace, the wife 
 of A. V. Chandler, of Chicago; Anna Mabel, the 
 wife of W. .R. Hattersley, of Chicago; Edna 
 Minnie ; Ellen Pearl ; John Lester ; Walter Allen ; 
 Edith Philippine; and Genevieve Magdaline. 
 Mr. Sturm is a member of the Evangelical 
 Church, of which he is a trustee, and is also su- 
 perintendent of the Sunday-school. Politically 
 he is a stanch Republican. He is a director 
 and president of the Campbell & Moreland Ditch 
 Company, director of the Portersville Citrus As- 
 sociation, and director and vice-president of the 
 Portersville Rochdale Company. 
 
 A. HAMMOND SCOFIELD. The thriv- 
 ing blacksmith shop and carriage manufac- 
 tory conducted under the firm name of Sco- 
 field, Alvord & Co., have added considerably 
 to the business activity of Merced, Cal., for 
 the past twelve years. The senior member of 
 the firm, A. H. Scofield, came to California 
 in 1886, at which time he went to Stockton, 
 and for one year was employed in a wheel 
 manufactory there. His identification with 
 Merced dates from 1887, from which time un- 
 til 1890 he was in the employ of others as 
 blacksmith and carriage-maker, trades with 
 which he had become thoroughly familiar by 
 intimate association with his father, who was 
 an expert in these lines. Purchasing the car- 
 riage shop of Elgin Lewis in 1890, Mr. Sco- 
 field continued the business alone until Sep- 
 tember, 1892, at which time he took in as a 
 partner E. R. Alvord, and in 1899 admitted his 
 eldest son, Arthur L. Scofield. The business 
 is now conducted under the name of Scofield, 
 Alvord & Co., and compares favorably in both 
 quality and scope with any like establishment 
 to be found throughout the San Joaquin val- 
 ley. 
 
 Born in Hamburg, Livingston county, 
 Mich., August 7, 1836, Mr. Scofield is a son 
 of Benjamin Ferris and Celestia (Wolcott) 
 Scofield, the father born in Connecticut, and 
 the mother a native of New York state. Her 
 death occurred in Michigan. The Scofield 
 family is of eastern origin, and as early as 
 1833 Benjamin F. located in Livingston coun- 
 ty, Mich. His death occurred in 1863, in 
 Howell, that county, where he had been the 
 pioneer carriage-maker for many years. Of 
 the nine children born to Benjamin F. and 
 Celestia (Wolcott) Scofield, eight grew to 
 years of maturity, and A. H. was the fifth 
 child in order of birth. His training and edu- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 999 
 
 cation were received in Howell, Mich., and 
 when he had reached an age when he could 
 make himself useful, he went into his father's 
 carriage shop to learn his trade. With his 
 father before him an expert carriage-maker, 
 it was but natural that he should grasp the 
 details of the business readily. He continued 
 with his father until 1862, in which year he 
 started out independently in an establishment 
 of his own, and for the following ten years 
 carried on a successful business in Howell. 
 Removing to Detroit in 1872, he varied his 
 former life somewhat by becoming foreman in 
 the street car shops. Four years later he re- 
 sumed his trade in South Lyon, Oakland 
 coimty, Mich., where as a manufacturer of 
 carriages he conducted business until 1886. 
 It was in the latter year that Mr. Scofield first 
 touched California soil, and that his coming 
 has worked to his advantage In various re- 
 spects is evident. 
 
 The commodious family residence recently 
 erected on Eighteenth street is presided over 
 by Mrs. Scofield, who, before her marriage, 
 was known as Harriet Emma Raywalt. She 
 was born in Watkins Glen, Schuyler county, 
 N. Y., a daughter of Isaac Raywalt, who in 
 his later years became a hotel-keeper in Dex- 
 ter, Washtenaw county, Mich. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Scofield were united in marriage in Howell, 
 Mich., and they have two children, the eld- 
 est of whom, Arthur Lane, is in partnership 
 with his father, and Flossie Emma is at home 
 with her parents. The family attend the 
 services of the' Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church, of which Mrs. Scofield is a member. 
 Politically Mr. Scofield is independent, voting 
 for whomsoever in his' opinion will best fill 
 the position in question, irrespective of party 
 name or creed. In Pinckney, Livingston 
 county, Mich., Mr. Scofield was made a Ma- 
 son, and is now a member of La Grange 
 Lodge No. 99, F. & A. M. of Merced. While 
 residing in South Lyon, Mich., he was made 
 an Odd Fellow, and in the local lodge at Mer- 
 ced he is past grand. 
 
 JAMES GARRETT. A successful farmer of 
 Tulare county, James Garrett is located sixteen 
 miles northeast of Visalia, just west of Antelope 
 valley. He came to California in 1867, from 
 Australia, his native land being England, and 
 his birth having occurred in Norfolk in 1837. He 
 was reared in Northumberland, where "he fol- 
 lowed mining in young manhood. Deciding to 
 visit the gold fields of Australia, he went to 
 Melbourne at the age of twenty years, thence 
 to the mines of Castlemaine, following the vari- 
 ous excitements in that country for some time 
 
 and engaging in both quartz and placer mining. 
 Like all miners he had his times of success 
 and of failure, but found a compensation in the 
 work. In 1867 he came to California via Tahita 
 to San Francisco, and following his arrival found 
 employment in the Mount Diablo coal mines, of 
 Contra Costa county, where he remained for 
 two and a half years. In September, 1869, he 
 came to Kings county, and pre-empted a quar- 
 ter section of land near the present site of Le- 
 moore, then known as Mussel Slough. The 
 country was practically a desert at that time, 
 but with twenty-six of the settlers a company 
 was formed, which built the Lower Kings river 
 water ditch. Mr. Garrett's land is all under irri- 
 gation and he is engaged in general farming 
 operations, having made many valuable improve- 
 ments with the passing of the years. In 1885 he 
 rented this farm and bought a farm in Townsend 
 district, Tulare county, where he owns two hun- 
 dred and forty acres on section 14, township 17, 
 range 26. Here he is successfully engaged in 
 raising grain, and is numbered among the prom- 
 inent men of this section. In his religious con- 
 victions Mr. Garrett is a member of the Episco- 
 pal Church. 
 
 CHARLES HENRY MOSHER. A farm 
 improved and made valuable by the energy and 
 resource of a man who has depended solely upon 
 his own efforts and to whom the country is both 
 a profitable and pleasant place in which to dwell, 
 is that of Charles Henry Mosher, who in 1890 
 became the owner of eighty acres five miles 
 southeast of Visalia. Thirty-five acres of this 
 ranch he put under peaches and prunes, and 
 prepared them for market in a home dryer, and. 
 the balance he put in pasture and general farm- 
 ing, being equipped with substantial barns and 
 buildings and needful agricultural implements. 
 
 Born in Tompkins county, N. Y., March 4, 
 1841, Mr. Mosher was six years old when his 
 parents, Ambrose and Sarah (Castleine) Mosher, 
 moved to Battle Creek, Mich., then offering su- 
 perior facilities for lumbering and mercantile 
 enterprises. Ambrose Mosher, who was a na- 
 tive of Dutchess county, N. Y., turned his at- 
 tention to both lumbering and merchandising, 
 owning sawmills and conducting a large and 
 flourishing business. Eleven years after arriv- 
 ing in Michigan, in 1858, his death occurred 
 after a slight illness, he being then but fifty- 
 two years old, and seemingly in the prime of 
 a vigorous manhood. His wife also died in 
 Michigan, leaving two sons and two daughters, 
 the youngest of whom is Charles Henry, who 
 was educated in the common schools of Battle 
 Creek. At an early day he moved to Wisconsin, 
 where he became interested "in lumbering and 
 
looo 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 logging, and where he was sufficiently success- 
 ful to warrant him in starting lumber yards in 
 Minnesota and Iowa, his removal to the former 
 state taking place in 1875. At Lanesboro, Minn., 
 he engaged in business for two years, and upon 
 returning to Wisconsin started a hotel at Wau- 
 sau, which he operated with a partner, to whom 
 he sold his interest at the end of two years. Lo- 
 cating in Centerville, Iowa, he carried on a re- 
 tail lumber business for two years, and in 1888 
 took up his residence in Santa Cruz, Cal., and 
 engaged in a livery business for a year and a 
 half. In 1890 he moved to Tulare county and 
 bought the property which he improved and 
 which was his residence until December, 1904, 
 when he sold out. 
 
 Since casting his first presidential vote Mr. 
 Mosher has been loyal to the Republican party, 
 but has never been willing to accept official 
 honors from his fellow townsmen. His associa- 
 tion with the Masonic fraternity dates from his 
 residence in Wisconsin, from which lodge he was 
 demitted. In Perry county, 111., he married Ger- 
 trude Halsey, who was born in Vermont, and 
 who has become the mother of the following 
 children: William, of Visalia; Belle, at home; 
 Charles, with the Ringling Brothers' circus ; 
 Gertrude, attending the State University at 
 Berkeley ; and Fred and Margaret, at home. The 
 years have brought esteem and honor to Mr. 
 Mosher, leaving him a typical representative of 
 the substantial and successful western gentle- 
 man. 
 
 WALTER E. NETHERTON. One of the 
 most prosperous and thriving agriculturists of 
 either Stanislaus or Merced counties, Walter E. 
 Netherton is conducting his ranch in keeping 
 with the latest and most improved and approved 
 methods, making a specialty of dairying. Re- 
 siding three miles south of Newman, his land 
 is within the limits of Merced county, and is 
 especially adapted to the raising of alfalfa and 
 hay, which are his staple crops. A native of 
 Contra Costa county, he was born near Byron, 
 September 28, 1874, a son of J. Smith Netherton. 
 
 The son of a farmer, J. Smith Netherton was 
 born in Platte county. Mo., in 1835. In 1850 he 
 came across the plains with an ox team train to 
 California, being then fourteen years of age, 
 and at first worked in the mines. He subse- 
 quently began farming in Lafayette, Cal., and 
 afterward entered one hundred and sixty acres 
 of land near Byron. Since that time he has been 
 actively and prosperously engaged in farming 
 and stock raising, being located in Merced coun- 
 tv, where he has a valuable ranch of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres. He married Matilda 
 Ann Estes, a native of Missouri. Her father, 
 
 Joseph Estes, emigrated from England, his 
 native land, to the United States, and located 
 first in Missouri, from there coming with ox 
 teams to California in pioneer times, and spend- 
 ing his remaining days as a farmer in Contra 
 Costa county. Of the nine children born of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. John Smith Netherton, 
 five survive, namely : William P., an attorney 
 in Santa Cruz county; Edward, a printer in 
 San Francisco; George, connected with the Oak- 
 land Street Railway; Walter E., the special sub- 
 ject of this sketch; and Delbert, manager of the 
 home ranch. 
 
 Having completed his studies in the district 
 school, Walter E. Netherton grew to man- 
 hood on the home farm, becoming familiar 
 with the various branches of agriculture. As- 
 suming charge of a large ranch in Merced county 
 in 1892, he labored diligently and effectively, 
 meeting with deserved success in its manage- 
 ment. In 1903, Mr. Netherton located on his 
 present farm, and has since been actively en- 
 gaged in the dairy business, keeping thirty-five 
 cows, and having eighty head of cattle, mostly 
 Holsteins, although he has a few choice Durhams. 
 On his home farm he has forty acres of land 
 in alfalfa, and also owns thirty-seven and three- 
 tenths acres below the ditch, which he devotes 
 to the same crop. Mr. Netherton's farm in point 
 of improvements and equipments is one of the 
 best in the vicinity, with its neat residence and 
 ample barns and outbuildings being a credit to 
 his energy and activity. 
 
 In Modesto, Cal., Mr. Netherton married 
 Mrs. Mary Petersen, who was born in Den- 
 mark, a daughter of Albert Albertsen, a farmer 
 and dairyman, and came with her parents to 
 California when a year old. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Netherton have one child, a daughter, named 
 Mabel Ruth. Fraternally Mr. Netherton is a 
 member of the Knights of Pythias, and of the 
 Uniformed Rank Knights of Pythias. He is a 
 man of good business ability and judgment, and 
 is one of the stockholders in the New Era 
 Creamery Association. 
 
 ANDRES S. RAYNOR. Eight miles east of 
 the town of Le Grand, on the old Raynor ranch, 
 resides the gentleman named above, and without 
 a doubt he is one of the most prominent and 
 successful sheep and stock ranchers in Merced 
 county. His home ranch contains seventeen 
 hundred acres and in Mariposa count}- in part- 
 nership with his brother, W. N. Raynor, he has 
 a two hundred and forty acre grain farm. He 
 also rents eight thousand acres of the Raynor 
 estate, which formerly contained fourteen thou- 
 sand acres, located in Merced, Madera and Mar- 
 iposa counties. It was on Long Island, New 
 
BENJAMIN HICKS 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1003 
 
 York, that Mr. Raynor was born, January 14, 
 1865, and he is one of three children born to 
 WilHam M. and Jennie (Carmen) Raynor and 
 grandson of Micajah and Ruth (Baldwin) Ray- 
 nor. His father, born at Hempstead, N. Y., 
 in 1 83 1 spent his boyhood and early youth on 
 the farm of his father and at seventeen went 
 to Richmond county to learn the baking busi- 
 ness. While here several years later he made 
 up his mind to go to California and according- 
 ly embarked on the steamer Cherokee bound for 
 Panama. After a rough trip, Aspinwall was 
 reached and Mr. Raynor was five days travel- 
 ing up the Chagres river, after which he took 
 the steamer McKino for San Francisco. Bad 
 weather delayed the steamer so long that the 
 supply of coal and provisions gave out and after 
 waiting several months he was at last obliged 
 to take the coast steamer at San Simeon bay, 
 reaching San Francisco after a journey of five 
 months. 
 
 At Jamestown in Tuolumne county, he engaged 
 in mining pursuits for several years, afterward 
 returning to his home in New York. In 1861 
 he married Miss Jennie Carmen, who was born 
 in the Empire state, the only child of Joseph 
 Carmen, who died at Freeport, L. I., December 
 26, 1904, when eighty-five years of age. His 
 daughter, Mrs. Jennie Raynor, died at San Jose, 
 December 21, 1904, when fifty-nine years of age. 
 In 1868, with his family, including Andres S., 
 Mr. Raynor again went to California by the 
 Panama route and in Tuolumne county he en- 
 gaged in raising sheep, which occupied his at- 
 tention up to 1871. In Mariposa county he fol- 
 lowed a similar business the next year, after- 
 ward spending a short time in Fresno county. 
 In 1872 he located on the place previously men- 
 tioned, known as the old Raynor ranch, and here 
 for many years he engaged in raising sheep on 
 an extensive scale. About 1884 he removed to 
 San Jose, but it was in Fresno county that he 
 died in 1893, aged sixty-two years. His chil- 
 dren are Mrs. Addie Daulton, of Madera county ; 
 Andres S. ; and William N., who follows ranch- 
 ing pursuits in Merced county. 
 
 Reared in California, Andres S. Raynor was 
 the recipient of a very good education; his com- 
 mon school learning was supplemented by a com- 
 plete course in the Garden City Business College 
 and after leaving school he took up the life of 
 a rancher, to which his subsequent years have 
 been devoted. He is assisted by his brother, 
 William N., who married Miss Sadie CleeR, a 
 native of Merced county, Cal. It was in Santa 
 Clara county that Andres S. Raynor married 
 Miss Nellie McKee^ who was born in San Jose, 
 and they have three children, Howard, Ruth and 
 Joseph. Like his father, Mr. Raynor is a stanch 
 Republican but has never been active in political 
 
 affairs. His father, however, while a resident 
 of Fresno county, served as supervisor. Both 
 brothers are public-spirited citizens, befitting 
 their high standing in the community. 
 
 BENJAMIN HICKS. From the time of his 
 original settlement in Tulare county until his 
 death, a period of about twenty-five years, Mr. 
 Hicks was intimately associated with the agri- 
 cultural development of this part of California 
 and by his judicious cultivation of the bnd accom- 
 plished much in assisting to place the farming 
 interests of the locality upon a profitable basis. 
 When he began to till the soil here little had been 
 done in that direction and the fertility of the land 
 was an unknown quantity, but he and other 
 pioneers by their industrious efforts proved that 
 grains can be raised profitably in this part of the 
 state and likewise the stock business can be con- 
 ducted on a remunerative basis. 
 
 Of Canadian birth and ancestry, Mr. Hicks 
 was born in Toronto December 30, 1847, ^^'^ 
 grew to manhood in his home city. During 1869 
 •he set out to seek a livelihood and at once came 
 to the States, proceeding direct to California, 
 where he rented farm land in Tulare county, 
 four and one-half miles east of Visalia. After six 
 years on that place he removed to a farm one 
 and one-half miles north of Visalia, and from 
 there in 1884 removed to a stock and grain farm 
 of eight hundred acres. For nine years he cul- 
 tivated that land, meanwhile accumulating con- 
 siderable savings, a portion of which he invested 
 in a tract of one hundred acres two miles north- 
 east of Visalia, and in addition he bought an 
 eighty-acre tract of grain land. When death 
 came to him, June 9, 1900, he had attained a 
 position of influence among the farmers of Tulare 
 county and was held in the highest respect as a 
 man of keen judgment, high honor and great 
 energy. In all his dealings he proved honorable, 
 doing unto others as he would be done by, and 
 exemplifying in his life the teachings of the 
 Christian Qhurch, of which he was a devoted 
 member. Loyal to his adopted country, he gave 
 his support to all measures for the benefit of 
 county and commonwealth. In political matters 
 he believed the principles of the Republican party 
 best adapted to promote the material prosperity 
 of the nation and always supported them by voice 
 and vote. Fraternally he was connected with 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen and In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows. The free 
 school system met with his cordial support and in 
 his service as trustee of the Elbow creek school 
 district he displayed a keen interest in securing 
 for the children of the district the best advantages 
 possible without unduly burdening the tax- 
 payers. 
 
1004 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Near Visalia, in 1871, occurred the marriage 
 of Benjamin Hicks and Elizabeth A. March, a 
 native of Merced, this state, and a daughter of 
 Robert and Mary Jane (Holloway) March, na- 
 tives of Kentucky. In an early day her parents 
 settled in Missouri, and from there, accompanied 
 by his young wife, Mr. March crossed the plains 
 to California in 1849, settling in Mariposa county, 
 later going to Merced county, and eventually lo- 
 cating in Tulare county, where he supplemented 
 farm work by various mining interests. At the 
 time of his death, which occurred in Tulare 
 county in 1903, he had attained the age of seven- 
 ty-eight years. His wife died in 1881, in Tulare 
 county, aged fifty-six years. The family of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Hicks consisted of seven children, but 
 three are deceased. Those now living are Albert 
 E., who has charge of the old home ranch ; Mary 
 Pearl and Jewel, who reside with their mother at 
 No. 503 North Church street, Visalia ; and Ruby 
 Louise, who married A. E. Blair, and lives near 
 Visalia. The family are identified with the Chris- 
 tian Church. Upon the death of Mr. Hicks his 
 wife became administrator of the estate, which 
 she has managed with a capability and wise judg- 
 ment that mark her as a woman of unusual busi- 
 ness talents. 
 
 CARL E. KOCHER. One of the intelli- 
 gent, practical and energetic business men of 
 the San Joaquin valley is C. E. Kocher, who is 
 identified with the industrial interests of that 
 section of the state. He is one of the leading 
 hardware merchants of Merced, the president 
 of the Merced Chamber of Commerce, one of 
 the organizers and the secretary of the Pacific 
 Slate Company, which is successfully operat- 
 ing slate mines that are located about fifteen 
 miles from this city, across the line in Mari- 
 posa county. A son of the late Abraham 
 Kocher, he was born in Hornitos, Mariposa 
 county, December g, 1867. 
 
 Born and brought up in the canton of Berne, 
 Switzerland, Abraham Kocher, not satisfied 
 with his future financial prospects in his native 
 land, emigrated to the United States in 1852, 
 and located in Mariposa county, Cal. Begin- 
 ning his search for gold, he followed mining 
 for a while, and then settled permanently in 
 Hornitos, where he was engaged in business 
 as a saddler and harness-maker until his death, 
 in 1870. He was a man of irreproachable char- 
 acter, strictly honest in all of his dealings, and 
 was a member of the Masonic fraternity, and 
 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He 
 married Catherine Hunziker, who was born 
 in Berne, Switzerland, and now resides in Hor- 
 nitos, where she is carrying on a successful 
 dry goods and millinery business. Two chil- 
 
 dren were born of their union, namely : Emma, 
 of Hornitos; and Carl E., the subject of this 
 sketch. 
 
 After completing the district school course, 
 Carl E. Kocher pursued his studies in the San 
 Jose high school, and then entered the Garden 
 City Business College, vvhere he was graduated 
 in 1887. Coming then to Merced, he entered 
 the employ of his uncle, J. Kocher, a hardware 
 dealer, and remained with him as bookkeeper 
 for ten years. In 1897 Mr. Kocher began busi- 
 ness on his own account, locating on Front 
 street, where he occupies a two-story building, 
 25x150 feet, carrying a complete stock of hard- 
 ware of all kinds. He also deals in agricultural 
 implements and tools of every description, and 
 keeps on hand a full line of paints and oils. A 
 man of decided push and ability, he has built 
 up a large and remunerative business, his trade 
 equaling that of other merchants engaged in 
 his line of business, his store and warehouse 
 being constantly replenished to satisfy the 
 wants of his patrons. He resides in the Brad- 
 ley addition to the city, on Central avenue, 
 where he has erected a modern residence. By 
 good management and wise investment he has 
 acquired a good property, and in addition to 
 his other interests has an orchard of twenty 
 acres, and a vineyard, in the Yosemite colony. 
 
 In Mariposa county, Mr. Kocher married 
 Miss Fay Craighan, a native of that county, 
 and they are the parents of three children, 
 namely: Catherine, Viola and John Edward. 
 PoHtically Mr. Kocher is identified with the 
 Democrats, and for eight years, from 1896 until 
 1904, he served as city treasurer, filling the po- 
 sition in an able and faithful manner. 
 
 HOMER DAILEY WOODARD. A suc- 
 cessful farmer and stockman. Homer Dailey 
 Woodard is numbered among the representative 
 men of Tulare county and holds a prominent 
 place as a citizen. He is a native of Wisconsin, 
 having been born in Waukesha November 22, 
 1850, a son of Myron Woodard. The elder man 
 was born near Rochester, N. Y., June 9, 1819, 
 where the Woodard family had flourished for 
 generations. An ancestor on his mother's side, 
 William Williams, signed the Declaration of 
 Independence, while his father served in the 
 Revolutionary war. Myron Woodard was also 
 a stanch citizen in time of need, having served 
 under General Scott at the time of the trouble 
 between Canada and the United States. He 
 became an early settler of Waukesha county, 
 Wis., where he cleared a farm of beech and ma- 
 ple trees and assisted materially in the develop- 
 ment and upbuilding of the section in which he 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1005 
 
 made his home. Deciding to become a pioneer 
 in the more remote west, he crossed the plains 
 in 1854 with the Hawkins boys, driving cattle, 
 and upon his safe arrival in California he en- 
 gaged in mining. Returning east in 1857 he 
 spent one year in Wisconsin when he brought his 
 family to California by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, after landing in San Francisco coming 
 on to Woodbridge, San Joaquin county, which 
 was then known as Knights Ferry. He there 
 engaged in mining until 1862, when he went to 
 Nevada and in Washoe' valley occupied himself 
 with farming and the wood business. In 1867 
 he returned to California, spending three months 
 in Linden, San Joaquin county, when he went to 
 Columbia, Tuolumne county, and followed min- 
 ing. In 1870 he located at Badger, on the Mill 
 road, where he organized the first school district 
 and postoffice, accepting and filling the office of 
 postmaster. He there farmed and engaged in 
 the stock business, and also conducted a hotel. 
 Upon his retirement he made his home with his 
 son, H. D., where he died three years later, in 
 1886, at the ^ge of sixty-seven years. He was 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 and politically cast his ballot with the Republican 
 party. His wife, formerly Eunisa Dailey, was 
 born in Rochester, N. Y., June 8, 1822. After 
 the death of her husband she sold the Badger 
 property and made her home on the farm in 
 the Townsend district until her: death October 4, 
 1899, ^t the age of seventy-seven years. She left 
 four children, namely: Marvin W., in Tehama 
 county ; Melvin C, a farmer in this section ; Ho- 
 mer Dailey; and H. P., employed by a railroad 
 company in Arizona. 
 
 Homer Dailey Woodard was reared in his 
 adopted western home, receiving his education 
 in the district schools in California and Ne- 
 vada. He remained at home until he was twen- 
 ty years old, when he began railroading as a 
 brakeman on the Southern Pacific, having a run 
 between Fresno and Sacramento. After three 
 years of this work he returned to his early train- 
 ing and began farming, having previously be- 
 come interested in stock-raising. In the fall of 
 1876 he located upon his present property, home- 
 steading one hundred and sixty acres on sec- 
 tion 2, township 17, range 26, entering into the 
 work of cultivation and improvement. In the 
 intervening years he bought property until he 
 now owns sixteen hundred acres here, a fifteen- 
 hundred acre ranch in the foothills, one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres near Tulare, and one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres in Kings county. This 
 extensive property he now devotes to the rais- 
 ing of' stock and general farming operations. 
 He has met with a gratifying success and is 
 deservedly prominent among the successful agri- 
 culturists and stockmen of the county. 
 
 In Cricketville, Tulare county, May 24, 1876, 
 Mr. Woodard was united in marriage with Susie 
 F. Roork, who was born near Carrollton, Ark. 
 Her father, Thomas Roork, was a native of Ten- 
 nessee, who came to California in 1859, bringing 
 his family in a large emigrant train over the 
 southern route. He settled near Visalia and 
 later in the vicinity of Cricketville, where he was 
 one of the first settlers. He engaged in farm- 
 ing until his death, which occurred in that local- 
 ity. His wife, formerly Mary Daniel, was a na- 
 tive of South Carolina, and the daughter of Ab- 
 ner Daniel, who died in that state. Mrs. Roork 
 died in Fresno county in 1899. Of her thirteen 
 children eleven attained maturity and five are 
 now living. Mrs. Woodard is a representative 
 woman, her education being received in the Vis- 
 alia Seminary, after which she engaged in edu- 
 cational work, teaching for five years in Tulare 
 county. To Mr. and Mrs. Woodard were born 
 six children, namely : Flora, a graduate of the 
 San Jose State Normal and a teacher in the 
 schools of the state, is the wife of H. Swank, in 
 the vicinity of Visalia ; Orvis, is a graduate of 
 the Pacific Business College, of San Jose, and 
 was also a student at the Kings Conservatory of 
 Music ; Forrest, a graduate of the grammar 
 schools and resides at home ; Chester is attend- 
 ing the Pacific Business College of San Jose ; 
 Hazel and Myrtle are at home. Mr. Woodard 
 is one of the most prominent men in this section 
 and one who has been called upon to occupy posi- 
 tions of trust and responsibility. He was a mem- 
 ber of the first board of directors for the Town- 
 send district, and up to within three years ago 
 acted either as clerk or trustee. It is worthy 
 of mention that the school building occupies an 
 acre of ground which he donated for the pur- 
 pose. Fraternally he is associated witli* the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen. Both himself 
 and wife are members of the Cumberland Pres- 
 byterian Church at Antelope. Politically he is 
 a stanch Republican and has always taken a 
 keen interest in local affairs, serving at the pres- 
 ent time as a member of the county central com- 
 mittee. 
 
 THOMAS E. AWBREY. In the above- 
 named gentleman, Exeter has a man who has, by 
 his own efforts worked his way frorfi the bot- 
 tom of the ladder to a position in the business 
 world that is the envy of many who had much 
 more flattering prospects at the start. As junior 
 member of the firm of Kirkman & Awbrey, meat 
 dealers, Mr. Awbrey is constantly coming in con- 
 tact with the public and in this daily intercourse 
 is winning friends and affluence. 
 
 Thomas E. Awbrey was born in St. Charles, 
 Mo., June 5, 1867, a son of John and Josephine 
 
1006 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 (Hutchinson) Awbrey. The father was also a 
 native of Missouri, his father having migrated 
 there from Virginia. At the outbreak of the 
 Civil war John Awbrey was a young man and at 
 the call for troops joined a Missouri regiment 
 and fought on the Union side. After the close 
 of hostilities he returned to his home near St. 
 Charles, where he became one of the leading 
 farmers of that section. He died on the home 
 place in 1892. His wife, Josephine Hutchin- 
 son, was born in St. Louis, a daughter of John 
 Hutchinson, who was also a native of the same 
 city. He was a brick manufacturer and marble 
 worker. Mrs. Awbrey is still living and makes 
 her home in Exeter. 
 
 Thomas E. Awbrey was the second in a large 
 family of children, and as soon as able was 
 obliged to assist his father in the work of the 
 farm. His education was limited to that af- 
 forded by a few terms in the district school. 
 Remaining at home until he had reached his 
 twenty-first year, he then took up the battle 'of 
 life and in 1889 came to California, locating in 
 Tulare county, where he followed farming until 
 1892, when he came to Exeter. At that time 
 there was but one store in the town. Soon 
 after arrival in this new western town, he en- 
 tered the employ of T. E. Fridley, who at the 
 time was conducting the meat market, now part- 
 ly owned by our subject. Under the direction 
 of Mr. Fridley he learned the meat business, 
 continuing with him seven years and when Mr. 
 Fridley sold the market to John Bernard, he 
 continued with the successor until September, 
 1903, when in partnership with G. W. Kirkman 
 he purchased a half interest in the business, since 
 which time the market has been conducted under 
 the firm name of Kirkman & Awbrey. 
 
 This firm, in addition to engaging in a general 
 meat business, also raises and buys and sells 
 cattle quite extensively. The market is mod- 
 ern in all its appointments and in the country 
 there is a slaughter house where the meat is 
 prepared for the market. Kirkman & Awbrey 
 have met with success, and although but a few 
 years have passed since Mr. Awbrey came to 
 Exeter, he has improved the opportunities and 
 today is considered one of the substantial men 
 of the town. 
 
 In 1894 he married Lulu Barlow, a native of 
 Saline county. Mo. Three children are the re- 
 sult of this union, as follows : Grace, Edward 
 and Zayda. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Awbrey is an active Democrat 
 and is now a member of the county central com- 
 mittee. He is also a member of the board of 
 trustees, and although most of his time is de- 
 voted to his business, he still finds an oppor- 
 tunity to look after other matters, and may at 
 all times be depended on to do his share toward 
 
 the upbuilding of his town and county. In fra- 
 ternal relations he is a member of the Knights 
 of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 Mr. Awbrey has reason to feel proud over the 
 success he has made in life, and while a young 
 man he has attained that for which many an 
 older man has striven in vain. Success be with 
 him is the hearty wish of his large circle of 
 friends. 
 
 HARLAND E. WRIGHT. Among the en- 
 terprising men of the younger generation in 
 Kings county is Harland E. Wright, one of the 
 organizers of the Hanford National Bank, and its 
 present cashier and manager. Born in Wiscas- 
 set, Lincoln county. Me., May 22, 1863, he is 
 the son of Sullivan Wright, also a native of that 
 state and a jeweler by occupation. Sullivan 
 Wright came of an old New England family, 
 strong in patriotism and courage, and at the 
 breaking out of the Civil war he endeavored to 
 enlist as a soldier in the cause of the Union^ but 
 was rejected on account of physical disability. 
 He lived to be only fifty-five years old. His 
 wife, Maria L. Bailey, also born in Maine, of an 
 old New England family, survives her husband 
 and still makes her home in her native state. 
 
 The boyhood of Harland E. Wright was spent 
 in the parental home, during which years he 
 attended the public schools in the pursuit of 
 an education. He lost his father at the age of 
 nine years, and at thirteen, with the self-reliance 
 inculcated into the character of the sons of New 
 England, he became dependent upon his own re- 
 sources. Learning telegraphy, he followed this 
 pursuit for a number of years, working for the 
 Western Union Telegraph Company in Boston 
 and dififerent parts of Maine until October, 1882, 
 in which year the great strike occurred. With 
 a natural taste and inclination for the work he 
 became an expert operator. During the same 
 year, 1882, he came to California, securing em- 
 ployment with George P. McNear, banker and 
 grain dealer of Petaluma, as bookkeeper, remain- 
 ing in that position until the fall of 1892, when 
 he resigned and removed to Hanford, becoming 
 assistant cashier in the Farmers & Merchants 
 Bank. Eighteen months later he was made 
 cashier, which position he retained until March. 
 1903. In the last named year he sold out his 
 interest in this bank (being at the time the largest 
 stockholder in the same), and in May organ- 
 ized the Hanford National Bank, opening for 
 business on the 28th of July. This bank has a 
 paid-up capital of $50,000, and a $5 ,000 surplus. 
 November i, 1903, a savings department was 
 organized. Besides his interest in th|e bank 
 Mr. Wright is the owner of a stock and dairy 
 ranch of three hundred and twenty acres in 
 
^' Qyi ■ A^^^rzAH/A. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1011 
 
 Kings county, and also a fruit ranch of eighty 
 acres six miles from Hanford. The success 
 which has marked the career of Mr. Wright is 
 due entirely to his own efforts, his native ability 
 and inherited characteristics, supplemented by a 
 practical training in the school of experience, 
 where he early learned the lessons of self reli- 
 ance, independence, honesty and earnestness. 
 
 November 15, 1888, Mr. Wright married Etta 
 Ranard, a native of Sonoma county, Cal., and 
 they have one child, Fae. Mr. Wright is a Re- 
 publican in his political preference and gives his 
 influence toward the advancement of the prin- 
 ciples he endorses. He has never, however, ac- 
 cepted afficial recognition nor is desirous of a 
 public career. Fraternally he is associated with 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the 
 Woodmen of the World. 
 
 LEWIS MORGAN HOWELL. Adjoining 
 the town of Visalia on the west and included 
 within the city limits lies the homestead of thirty- 
 five acres where Mr. Howell resides, engaged in 
 raising stock and such farm products as the size 
 of the farm justifies. Long. familiar with west- 
 ern scenes, not alone through his residence in 
 California, but also by reason of previously 
 making his home in Montana, he is a Missourian 
 by birth and education, and was born in St. 
 Charles county, August 19, 1831. His father, 
 Thomas Howell, a native of North Carolina, set- 
 tled in St. Louis, Mo., in early life, and from 
 there went to St. Charles county, same state, 
 where he remained until death, meanwhile not 
 only engaging in farming, but also finding enjoy- 
 ment and profit in hunting the wild game so 
 plentiful in that region in those days. By mar- 
 riage to Susanna Calloway, a native of Ken- 
 tucky, he became connected with the famous 
 pioneer and hunter, Daniel Boone, for Miss 
 Calloway was a daughter of Boone's child, 
 Jemima. Family history relates how, when 
 Jemima was a young girl, she went rowing one 
 afternoon on a Kentucky river with Elizabeth and 
 Frances Calloway, girls about her own age, and 
 to whose brother she was betrothed. After a 
 pleasant afternoon on the river they started to get 
 out of the boat when Indians sprang from the 
 bushes and took therh captive, hastily carrying 
 them away on their horses. Knowing that friends 
 would try to follow their trail the girls tore bits 
 of cloth from their dresses and dropped them 
 on the ground. Detected at this, they tried the 
 plan of breaking branches of trees as they rode 
 beneath the swaying boughs. The fathers and 
 lovers of the girls were able to follow their course 
 by reason of their ingenuity in marking their 
 path, and they were soon rescued and borne back 
 to their homes in great joy. 
 
 49 
 
 In a family consisting of seven sons and seven 
 daughters, L. M. Howell was next to the young- 
 est and is now the sole survivor. Under the su- 
 pervision of an uncle he was educated in a private 
 school in Missouri. For ten years he was a pilot 
 on Missouri river steamboats, his route being be- 
 tween St. Louis and Omaha, and many of his 
 happiest memories are associated with the care- 
 free days when steamboating was the delight of 
 the aristocratic classes and the popular mode of 
 travel with all. On leaving the river, in 1864, 
 he went to Montana and engaged in freighting 
 in Gallatin county, where he purchased and op- 
 erated the finest grist mill in the entire territory. 
 During 1878 he came to California, and after 
 six months spent in San Jose, removed to Healds- 
 burg, remaining there three years, then returned 
 to San Jose, and in 1885 moved to Visalia, where 
 he engaged in farming. Of his first purchase of 
 two hundred and forty acres he sold sixty-seven 
 acres to the city of Visalia, but still retains one 
 hundred and seventy-three acres, in addition to 
 which he owns a timber claim of two hundred 
 and forty acres in the mountains back from town. 
 
 While living in Missouri Mr. Howell married 
 EHzabeth Jane Wallace, a native of that state. 
 The children born of their union are named as 
 follows : Maggie Susan, who is married and 
 lives in Montana; James W., a miner making his 
 home in Butte, Mont. ; Lizzie L., wife of James 
 M. Cann, of Sultana; Lewis Morgan, Jr., who is 
 living at Sanger, Fresno county ; Eliza Ann, who 
 resides with her parents ; Mary E., wife of Will 
 Luce of Kern, and Charles R., who is still at 
 home. In fraternal relations Mr. Howell is a 
 Mason, in religion he supports the doctrines of 
 the Church of Christ, and politically gives his in- 
 fluence and ballot to support the candidates of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 CHARLES F. FLEMMING. When Mr. 
 Flemming came to Hanford in 1880 for the pur- 
 pose of opening a blacksmith and wagon repair- 
 ing shop he was master of the situation, as no 
 one with like intentions had preceded him hither. 
 With an anvil and a few tools which he brought 
 from Stockton he opened an unpretentious little 
 shop, the nucleus of what is to-day not only the 
 leading estabHshment of the kind in Hanford, 
 but which is not exceeded in size or quality of 
 work turned out by any like establishment in 
 Kings county. As the demands of the business 
 made it necessary Mr. Flemming enlarged the 
 original structure from time to time, and his 
 present quarters measure 65 x 125 feet. He not 
 only does repairing of all kinds, but also manu- 
 factures vehicles of all descriptions, and fur- 
 nishes employment to from five to ten men. 
 
 Mr. Flemming is a native of California, born 
 
1012 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in Sonoma, Sonoma county, October lo^ 1859, a 
 son of William Flemming, who was born in Ire- 
 land in 1817. In 1825, when eight years old, he 
 was brought to the United States, and was 
 reared in New York City. When a young man 
 he went to Rochester, N. Y., and learned the 
 carriage maker's trade, which he followed until 
 January, 1850, when he opened a shop at So- 
 noma. About 1 86 1 he went to San Francisco 
 and established a carriage and wagon factory, 
 but after running this for several years he laid 
 the business aside to work for the quicksilver 
 mining company, becoming head boss of their 
 shops as a millwright. About 1872 he removed 
 to San Jose and began in business for himself 
 once more, owning and conducting a shop up to 
 the time of his death in 1900, when eighty-three 
 years of age. His wife, Celia Doherty, was also 
 a native of the Emerald Isle, and died when 
 sixty years old. 
 
 There were two children in the parental fam- 
 ily, the eldest of whom, Thomas, is now in San 
 Jose, where he is successfully conducting two 
 fruit ranches, carrying on an extensive business. 
 The early boyhood years of Charles E. Elem- 
 ming were spent in San Jose, where he attended 
 the public schools until reaching his fifteenth 
 year. At that age he went into his father's shop 
 and learned the blacksmith's trade, applying 
 himself diligently for the following six years in 
 mastering the details of the business. In 1877 
 he went to Stockton and found employment in 
 the Henderson carriage factory and later in 
 William P. Miller's factory. Upon leaving the 
 latter's employ three years later Mr. Elemming 
 came to Han ford, and in the intervening years 
 has built up a trade of no small proportions, 
 which comes from all parts of the county. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Flemmifig occurred in 
 1889 and united him with Mary E. Corum, 
 whose birth occurred in Portland, Ore. Politic- 
 ally Mr. Elemming is a Democrat, voting for the 
 candidates of that party upon all occasions, but 
 he has steadily refused to accept any office at 
 the hands of his party. His fraternal relations 
 bind him to the Foresters, Woodmen of the 
 World and Ancient Order of United Workmen, 
 in all of which he is a valued member. 
 
 WILLIAM B. NICHOLS. The Nichols 
 family, represented in Tulare county, Cal., by 
 William B. Nichols, proprietor of the Sunset 
 Ranch, has been prominent in the history of 
 Vermont for generations. In Revolutionary days 
 Ebenezer Nichols and his son, William, fought 
 for American independence, giving up the peace- 
 ful pursuits of a New England farm to follow 
 the martial fortunes of Washington. WiUiam 
 Nichols, born in Braintree, Orange county, Vt., 
 
 married Betsey White, a daughter of Ebenezer 
 White, also a patriot in the Revolutionary war. 
 Their son, William H., also born in Braintree, 
 grew to manhood and inarried Ann Eliza Bates, 
 a native of Salisbury, Vt. Her father, William 
 Atwell Bates, was a New England farmer, who 
 became a pioneer of Tabor, Iowa. William H. 
 Nichols still owns the old homestead in Ver- 
 mont, making his home in Randolph, although 
 he became a resident of Cedar Falls, Iowa, 
 after his admission to the bar in i860, practicing 
 law until the first call for volunteers. Respond- 
 ing at once he served as a brevet captain 
 throughout the entire war. He was wounded 
 twice during his service, the first time at the 
 battle of Shiloh and the second time at Corinth. 
 Upon the close of the war he returned to Ran- 
 dolph and there began a successful practice of 
 his profession. In 1870 he was elected to the 
 . state legislature, serving one term, and two years 
 later was a member of the Constitutional Conven- 
 tion. In 1874 he was elected probate judge, 
 which office he has held by re-election ever since. 
 He is a Republican in his political convictions, 
 and fraternally is identified with the Masons. He 
 is a prominent member of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic. His wife died in Vermont in 
 1886, leaving a family of four children, three 
 sons and one daughter, namely : Benito, in Lon- 
 don, England; William B., of this review; Ed- 
 ward H., located on the old homestead in Ver- 
 mont ; and Anna, the wife of David R. Bosworth, 
 of Bristol, Vt. 
 
 Born in Braintree, Orange county, A't., De- 
 cember 4, 1858, William B. Nichols received his 
 education in the Randolph Academy and the 
 state Normal School, located in Randolph, grad- 
 uating from the latter institution in 1878. For 
 one year following he read law in his father's 
 office, after which, in 1880, he wenj: to James- 
 town (now in North Dakota),, where he was 
 admitted to the bar and began the practice of 
 his profession. He also engaged in the real 
 estate business and met with success in his work, 
 being a resident of that place when the North- 
 ern Pacific Railroad was completed about 1885- 
 Later he removed to Duluth, Minn., and en- 
 gaged in silver mining on the north shore, after 
 two years locating in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, 
 where he became superintendent of mines, as- 
 sisting materially in the upbuilding of the Brook- 
 field Company. Afterward he accepted the posi- 
 tion of superintendent of the Malaga Lake Min- 
 ing Company, with whom he remained connected 
 for a period of two years. Going to South Amer- 
 ica he became interested in placer mining in the 
 interior of Dutch Guiana, after one year return- 
 ing to Nova Scotia to accept again the posi- 
 tion of superintendent. After seven months he 
 went to Mexico, and in Jalisco was associated 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1013 
 
 with the La Cumbria Mining Company. In July, 
 1892, he came to CaHfornia, stopping first in 
 Fresno, but in November of the same year com- 
 ing to Tulare county and purchasing the ranch 
 upon which he is now located. This consists 
 of two hundred and forty acres three and a half 
 miles southeast of Dinuba. At the time of his 
 purchase but twenty acres was planted to fruit, 
 since which time he has set out ten acres addi- 
 tional, devoted principally to the cultivation of 
 peaches and olives; one hundred and twenty 
 acres is in vineyard; ten acres in alfalfa; and 
 of the eighty-acre piece across the road from 
 the main ranch, forty acres is devoted to alfalfa 
 and forty is in the process of setting to vine- 
 yard. Besides this Mr. Nichols has set out 
 eighty acres additional of vineyard, which he 
 has sold. His chief interest is in the ohve culti- 
 vation, raising it both for pickling and the mak- 
 ing of olive oil, having put up a picklingr plant 
 and an oil mill, the output for a year being thir- 
 teen thousand gallons of olives and fifteen hun- 
 dred gallons of pure olive oil, sold under the 
 Sunset Brand, which has won for itself a recog- 
 nition based upon its quality. Mr. Nichols has 
 made of his property, which is known as the 
 Sunset Ranch, one of the finest farms in this 
 section, both as to production and appearance, 
 erecting modern buildings in keeping with the 
 times of progress. 
 
 In Duluth, Minn., Mr. Nichols married Emma 
 Heimbach, a native of Walworth county, Wis., 
 and the daughter of Daniel Heimbach, a farm- 
 er in that section. They are the parents of one 
 child, Gretchen. By a former marriage Mr. 
 Nichols has a daughter, Josephine Mattie Nich- 
 ols, who resides in Vermont. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Nichols was made a Mason 
 in Randolph, Vt., and politically is a stanch 
 Republican, having served as a member of the 
 countv central committee. 
 
 CHARLES H. COE. In the management of 
 his warehouse and in the business ability dis- 
 played in the conduct of his hay, grain and gen- 
 eral produce establishment in Hanford Mr. Coe 
 shows inborn tact and a thorough understand- 
 ing of his calling. Mr. Coe is of eastern birth 
 and the first fourteen years of his life were spent 
 amid his native surroundings in Jeflferson coun- 
 ty, N. Y., where his birth occurred June 21, 
 i860. His grandfather, Henry Coe, who claimed 
 Holland-Dutch antecedents, was also a native 
 of New York state. His father, Julius T., was 
 born in Fulton county, N. Y., where he carried 
 on farming during his early life, and subse- 
 quently engaged in the manufacture of gloves. 
 In 1874 he was attracted to California as offer- 
 ing a field for larger opportunity, and with his 
 
 family located on a farm near Vacaville, Solano 
 county. Two years later he came to what is 
 now Kings county and settled on government 
 land two miles south of Hanford, although at 
 that time the town was not in existence. His 
 government claim consisted of one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land, but he continually added to 
 it until he became the owner of two hundred and 
 forty acres, in the cultivation and management 
 of which he was fairly successful, making it his 
 home until his death in 1884, when sixty-four 
 years of age. Politically he allied himself with 
 the Republican party, and in religious belief he 
 was a Presbyterian. His wife, formerly Cath- 
 erine Simpson, was also born in Fulton county, 
 N. Y., and now makes her home in Hanford at 
 the age of seventy-five years. 
 
 At the time of the removal of the family to 
 California Charles H. Coe was fourteen years 
 old, so the greater part of his life has been spent 
 in the Golden state. Brought up on a farm, it 
 was but natural that he should assist in the 
 duties that fall to the farmer's lot, and until 
 twenty-one years old worked side by side with 
 his father. Branching out for himself at that 
 age, he purchased eighty acres adjoining his 
 father's home, and in addition to managing his 
 own farm, also had charge of the home place 
 until 1 89 1, when it was cut up into five and ten 
 acre tracts and sold, and was afterwards known 
 as the Coe Colony. The next year Mr. Coe was 
 employed in a warehouse for a short time, and 
 for the following seven years was engaged in 
 the same line of industry in Hanford, Armona 
 and Lemoore. In 1903 he erected a warehouse, 
 56 X 200 feet, which he occupies to-day and 
 which is one of the finest brick structures in 
 Hanford. In addition to his other business Mr. 
 Coe writes fire insurance, doing considerable 
 business in this line. 
 
 In 1884 Mr. Coe was married to Lizzie Man- 
 ning, who-was born in Oakland, Cal., and they 
 have become the parents of four children, named 
 as follows: Adaline, Myra, Bernard and Ber- 
 nice, all at home with their parents. As an in- 
 terested ally of the Republican party Mr. Coe 
 has been chosen to represent his party in the 
 county conventions of that body and has also 
 assisted at elections, but he has at no time had 
 aspirations for public office, finding private life 
 more suited to his tastes. But one fraternal or- 
 ganization claims Mr. Coe's membership, that 
 being Hanford Court, I. O. F. 
 
 HENRY EICHHOFF. The fact that Henry 
 Eichhoflf inherited the ranch upon which he now 
 lives, two miles from Ripon, and which, ac- 
 cording to popular belief, is one of the best 
 managed and most valuable in San Joaquin coun- 
 
1014 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ty, in no way detracts from the credit due him 
 as a thoroughly intelHgent and up-to-date young 
 farmer. He is a native of this county, having 
 been born on a ranch near Ripon, October 31, 
 1873, and as his name indicates, he is of Ger- 
 man extraction. His father, Gustave EichhofI, 
 was born in Germany April 10, 1830, and after 
 several years on the paternal farm became dis- 
 satisfied with his prospects and determined to 
 immigrate to the United States. The step was 
 taken after mature reflection, for he was a man 
 of thirty when he arrived in New York, and was 
 perfectly capable of judging for himself. Com- 
 ing at once to San Joaquin county, he soon af- 
 terward married Melcinda Winacia, a native of 
 German}', who is now deceased. Mr. Eichhofif 
 settled on the farm now owned by his son in 
 1888, remaining here until his death, February 
 23, 1893. He was progressive and resourceful, 
 and in time had fifteen hundred and fifty-four 
 acres under grain, at the same time raising large 
 numbers of stock. He was successful and 
 prominent and was one of the best illustrations 
 of Teutonic perseverance and pluck vouchsafed 
 the earlier years of this county. 
 
 Henry Eichhofif came to his present farm with 
 his father in 1888, and now owns a one-half 
 interest in nine hundred and fourteen acres of 
 land, chiefly under grain and alfalfa. His place 
 is under a high state of cultivation, and under 
 his ownership improvements have been made 
 of which the original owner never dreamed, so 
 persistent and rapid have been the advances 
 along agricultural lines during thie past few 
 years. Mr. EichhofT is a large, strong man, 
 with a sunny nature, and the ability to make 
 and retain steadfast friends. He is well posted 
 on current events, and believes in surrounding 
 himself and family with all the comforts and 
 diversions possible to those who live beyond 
 the borders of cities, and who, by their toil, lay 
 the foundation for almost every line of occupa- 
 tion known to civilized man. Mr. Eichhoff 
 married Emma Wille, a native of this county, 
 and daughter of Joseph Wille, a prominent 
 rancher near Ripon. Mr. Eichhofif is a Republi- 
 can in politics, and is fraternally connected with 
 the Woodmen of America. He is popular and 
 influential, and stands high in the business and 
 social life of the community. 
 
 HENRY GRIES. Descended from a line of 
 rugged and upright ancestry, Henry Cries rep- 
 resents that class of citizens who gives strength 
 and stability to the community. For manv vears 
 he followed the life of a sailor, and has made the 
 trip from his native country, Germany, around 
 Cape Horn, five times. Born August 10, 1846, 
 a son of Claus Gries, he spent his "early boyhood 
 
 days in his native land and received the best 
 school training available to the citizens of the 
 moderate class in those days, remaining at home 
 until he attained the age of sixteen years. He 
 then chose a sea-faring life and became a sailor, 
 and on one of his trips around Cape Horn went 
 north as far as San Francisco, landing on Cal- 
 ifornia soil in 1868. During the following two 
 years he served in the capacity of a sailor on the 
 revenue cutter Reliance, which plied along the 
 Pacific coast. 
 
 Discontinuing sea life in 1870, Mr. Gries made 
 his home in San Francisco until 1886, and dur- 
 ing that time was engaged in various pursuits, 
 in the meantime saving enough to warrant an 
 investment in land. Being attracted by the special 
 inducements offered to settlers in the San Joa- 
 quin valley, he purchased land in Fresno county 
 in 1887, and has been a resident of the county 
 ever since. His productive farm contains eighty 
 acres in Bethel school district, near Del Rey, 
 thirty-five acres of this being in vineyards, eight 
 acres in orchards, the balance being utilized for 
 general farming. 
 
 Mr. Gries attributes his success in a large 
 measure to his untiring efforts, as the property 
 he has acquired is the fruit of his own exertions 
 and sacrifices. He is unmarried. In his political 
 convictions he is a follower of the precepts of 
 the Republican party. 
 
 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN TEAGUE. 
 Prominent among the successful business men 
 of Exeter is Benjamin Franklin Teague, the 
 owner of the Exeter water works and through 
 his real estate operations one of the material up- 
 builders of this section of the county. He was 
 born in Fort Scott, Kans., December i, 1864, a 
 son of Joab Teague. The latter was a native 
 of Lincoln county, N. C, from which place his 
 father, William, took his family as far west as 
 Morgan county, Ind., in the pioneer days of the 
 state. William Teague was a soldier in the 
 war of 1812 and a substantial citizen of .the 
 community which knew him as a resident. Joab 
 Teague taught school in Indiana until his re- 
 moval to Osage, Mo., where he followed farm- 
 ing for some years. In 1857 he located in Fort 
 Scott, Kans., and was a farmer and pioneer 
 stockman of that section. He became a promi- 
 nent man in the community, holding various 
 public offices, among them that of justice of the 
 peace, serving also as county treasurer of Bour- 
 iDon county for one term. In 1888 Mr. Teague 
 came to California, locating near FarmersviHe, 
 Tulare county, where he engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits until his death in 1891, at the age of 
 seventy-eight years. He was a member of the 
 Baptist Church, His wife, formerly Mary Re- 
 
G^fy O a^^:::^Lc^L^z.^^^ 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1017 
 
 becca Wood, was born in Clarksburg, W. Va., 
 a daughter of William Wood, a native of the 
 same place, and a descendant of English an- 
 cestry. He died in Virginia. Mrs. Teague died 
 in Exeter in 1902 at the age of seventy-eight 
 years. In her religious convictions she was a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Mr. Teague was married twice, by his first wife 
 having five sons and one daughter, of whom 
 five children are now living: John, a resident of 
 Exeter; Calvin, a resident of southern Cal- 
 ifornia ; Monroe, now located near Fort Scott, 
 Kans. ; Jesse, who died in California; Logan, 
 residing near Lemoore, Kings county, Cal. ; and 
 Eliza, the wife of A. B. Gardner, of Idaho. The 
 four sons first mentioned were soldiers in the 
 Civil war. By his second marriage Mr. Teague 
 had two children: Benjamin Franklin, of this 
 review, and Sherman, a farmer near Exeter. 
 
 Benjamin Franklin Teague was reared on a 
 farm in the vicinity of Fort Scott, Kans., receiv- 
 ing his education in the public schools and the 
 Kansas Normal College at Fort Scott. He 
 taught school until he was twenty-four years of 
 age, when he became a clerk in a general mer- 
 chandise establishment in Uniontown, Kans. In 
 1889 he came to California and purchased a 
 farm located one mile south of Farmersville, 
 Tulare county, and in conjunction with his 
 brother Sherman, farmed for several years, at 
 the same time clerking in a store in Farmers- 
 ville. In 1892 he removed to Exeter and en- 
 gaged as a clerk for H. R. Stephens. Two years 
 later he established a general merchandise store 
 on the west side. Purchasing the stock of G. W. 
 Kirkman, he continued alone in the business un- 
 til 1897, when he removed to the east side, and a 
 year later the firm became known as that of 
 Teague & Miles. Continuing in the business 
 until 1902, he then sold out to Charles Fitzsim- 
 mons, when he engaged in the real estate and 
 insurance business. Later, in partnership with 
 Mr. Miles, Mr. Teague bought the old water 
 plant of Exeter. He subsequently became sole 
 owner of the plant, since which time he has re- 
 built the works, putting down a new well which 
 produces fine water, and installing a pumping 
 plant with an electric motor and a capacity of 
 one hundred and fifty thousand gallons per day. 
 
 Mr. Teague is also interested in horticultural 
 pursuits, owning sixty-two and a half acres 
 adjoining Exeter on the south, thirty acres of 
 which are given over to vines, two and a half 
 acres to apricots, and ten acres to alfalfa. 
 Twenty-five acres which he formerly owned he 
 set out to oranges and later sold the same profit- 
 ably. He was also interested with C. H. Cong- 
 don and G. B. Landers of Bakersfield in the lo- 
 cation of the talc mines, about ten miles from 
 Exeter, in the Yokohl valley. Ttiis is now in- 
 
 corporated as the California Talc and Soapstbne 
 Company, with a capitalization of $100,000, Mr. 
 Teague acting as secretary. They have opened 
 quarries and have erected a mill for manufacture 
 and grinding. Their deposit is large and shows 
 exceptionally fine specimens. 
 
 Mr. Teague was united in marriage with 
 Nannie Fife, a native of Cambridge, Ohio. She 
 is a member of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. 
 Teague is associated fraternally with Exeter 
 Lodge No. 308, I. O. O. F., in which he has 
 served as noble grand two terms, and also be- 
 longs to the Encampment, of Visalia. He is 
 also associated with the Woodmen of the World, 
 the Modern Woodmen of America and Knights 
 of Pythias. He is a member of the Unitarian 
 Club, and politically is a stanch Republican, for 
 six years having served as a member of the 
 county central committee. He is a member of 
 the Board of Trade of Exeter, and gives of his 
 best efforts to the upbuilding of the city and the 
 promotion of all worthy enterprises. 
 
 ELMER H. BALDWIN. With him to the 
 coast in historic '49 R. O. Baldwin brought well- 
 formulated ideas, and the grit and determination 
 to overcome whatever obstacles fate might place 
 in his way. Transmitting these desirable traits 
 to his son, Elmer H., the latter has become one 
 of the leading agriculturists and grain raisers of 
 Stanislaus county, and one of its enterprising and 
 influential promoters. The elder Baldwin was 
 living on a farm near Des Moines, Iowa, when the 
 gold excitement broke out, and he gladly added 
 his contribution of physical and moral strength 
 to a band of emigrants bound for the coast, 
 equipped with ox teams and the wherewithal to 
 start housekeeping on a small scale. In the mines 
 of Placerville he experienced fair success, and 
 with the proceeds of his labor came to Contra 
 Costa county in 1852, investing in a small body 
 of land which formed the nucleus of his present 
 •large possessions. The years have dealt kindly 
 with him and left him hale and hearty at the age 
 of seventy-six, while around him is stretched for 
 his enjoyment and comfort a farm of one thou- 
 sand acres, one and a half miles south of Dan- 
 ville, made profitable and valuable by his unre- 
 mitting industry. Surviving the trials of her 
 position as a pioneer woman of the west, his wife 
 is still a sharer of his home, having reared to 
 maturity four sons and two dayghters, the oldest 
 of whom is Elmer H. 
 
 Educated in the public schools, and for the 
 years preceding his majority a resident of the 
 farm upon which He was born near Danville, Sep- 
 tember 16, 1861, Elmer H. Baldwin had also the 
 advantage of a two years' course in the McClure 
 Academy of Oakland, after which he worked the 
 
1018 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHIcAL RECORD. 
 
 home place witK his father. Embarking on an 
 independent career, he located near Grayson, 
 Stanislaus county, on a farm of four hundred and 
 eighty acres, devoting it to grain and general 
 produce, and succeeded as became a youth richly 
 endowed with ambition and practical common 
 sense. In time his farm proved too small for his 
 operations, and he leased three hundred and 
 twenty acres near by, and this also is largely un- 
 der wheat and other grains. He has a fine home, 
 substantial barns and outhouses, well kept fences, 
 and the method and system, without' which farm- 
 ing degenerates into ■ hard and unremunerative 
 work. In Cambria, Cal., he married Zoe A. Kemp, 
 a native of Missouri, and the mother of two 
 daughters, Wenona and Helen. Mrs. Baldwin has 
 been interested in educational matters for many 
 years, and at present is a trustee of her home dis- 
 trict. Mr. Baldwin is a Republican, and in re- 
 ligion finds a home in the Presbyterian Church, 
 in which he has held office, and toward the sup- 
 port of which he is a liberal contributor. 
 
 WILLIAM WILLSHIER HENRY. In the 
 death of W. W. Henry, which occurred Novem- 
 ber 3, 1902, Tulare county lost from her list of 
 representative men a citizen whose best efforts 
 had always been given toward the advancement 
 and upbuilding of this section. A native of 
 South Milford, La Grange county, Ind., he was 
 born in 1858, the eldest child and only son in 
 the family of his parents. His father, Oliver 
 O. Henry (of whom an extended mention is 
 made elsewhere in this work), was one of the 
 pioneers of Tulare county. Until he was seven- 
 teen years old W. Willshier Henry made his 
 home in his native state, largely by his own 
 efforts receiving an education, which enabled him 
 to teach in the public schools at the age of six- 
 teen years. Deciding to locate in California, he 
 came west, arriving in Santa Cruz with only 
 seventy-five cents as the nucleus of the fortune 
 which he hoped to make in this western state, 
 rich in promises of prosperity. For two vears 
 he remained in Santa Cruz, engaged in work of 
 various kinds, when he came to Portersville, Tu- 
 lare county, where an uncle, Albert Henry, had 
 previously located. Later he went to Kern 
 county and found employment in the Long Tom 
 mine, remaining so engaged until he returned to 
 Portersville and, became interested in horticult- 
 ural pursuits. For a time he engaged in the 
 nursery business for his father (who, in the mean- 
 time had come to California and located in Tu- 
 lare county), and in 1889 set out an orange 
 grove upon the place now owned by his widow. 
 He continued to improve and cultivate his prop- 
 erty, meeting with a success in his efforts and 
 
 becoming widely known as one of the prominent 
 horticulturists of the county. This property con- 
 sists of thirty-seven acres a half mile east of 
 Portersville, while he also owned fifteen acres 
 at Westfield, both properties being now in the 
 possession of his widow. He died November 3, 
 1902, in his home near Portersville. Politically 
 he was a stanch adherent of the principles advo- 
 cated in the platform of the Democratic party 
 on national issues, and locally gave his support 
 to the candidate whom he considered best quali- 
 fied for public office. 
 
 Mrs. Henry was formerly Lana B. Taylor, a 
 native of Kendallville, Ind. She is the adopted 
 daughter of the Hon. O. B. Taylor, a farmer 
 and merchant of Wolcottville, La Grange county, 
 and for several terms a member of the state 
 legislature. In 1884 he came to California and 
 bought a ranch near Tulare, where he lived re- 
 tired. He eventually returned to Indiana, where 
 he now makes his home. Mrs. Henry's father 
 was Dr, Leonard Barber, a native of . Stark 
 county, Ohio. He graduated in medicine from 
 Jefferson Medical College, practicing his pro- 
 fession in Kendallville and later in Wolcottville, 
 where his death occurred. His wife, formerly 
 Adeline AUeman, a native of Waterloo, N. Y., 
 survives him, making her home in Indiana. 
 There were nine children in the Barber family, 
 of whom S. A. Barber, M. D., of Portersville, 
 is a member. Mrs. Henry grew to young woaTi- 
 anhood in her home in the middle west and Tu- 
 lare county, and in addition to a classic educa- 
 tion received the best of training in the Ft. 
 Wayne Conservatory of Music, where she was 
 graduated. She was married in Portersville 
 April 22, 1891, and ever since that time has been 
 a resident of this locality. After her husband's 
 death she continued to engage in the work of 
 horticulture, which had engrossed his attention 
 for so long a time, meeting with a success which 
 has given her no little prestige among the horti- 
 culturists of Tulare county. She is a woman 
 suffragist, giving her adherence to the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party, and is a prominent 
 member of the Order of the Eastern Star. She 
 is the mother of four children, namely : Helen 
 Lucile, Leonard Willshier, Schuyler Barber and 
 Anne Mitchell. 
 
 JOHN L. McFARLANE. Fifty years have 
 brought a more than average realization of ex- 
 pectations to John L. McFarlane, a pioneer of 
 1849, and the owner of twelve hundred and forty 
 acres six miles northeast of Snelling. With the 
 satisfaction resulting from ownership of a fine 
 property has come an appreciation of his in- 
 tegrity and industry on the part of his fellow- 
 townsmen, and of his ability to fittingly repre- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 10l9 
 
 sent the broad-minded and progressive farmers 
 of the west. 
 
 Mr. McFarlane was born in Jackson county, 
 Ala., December 25, 1826, but previous to the 
 estabHshment of his family in that state his 
 parents, Robert and Mary C. (Hobbs) McFar- 
 lane, had lived in Tennessee, to which state 
 they removed from their native state of Vir- 
 ginia. His father, a planter, died at the age of 
 fifty, and in 1843 Jo'^n L. and his mother moved 
 overland to Arkansas, where the latter died at 
 an advanced age. His life was uneventful until 
 men began to forsake their farms and industries 
 for the quicker road to fortune pictured by re- 
 turned emigrants from the west, and in the 
 spring of 1849 he joined an ox train and crossed 
 the plains by way of the southern route, reach- 
 ing Los Angeles in October, 1849. Remaining 
 in San Francisco until the spring of 1850, he 
 went to Stanislaus county and afterward to 
 Merced county, in 1854 purchasing his present 
 ranch of twelve hundred and forty acres. For 
 years he tilled its soil and rejoiced at his abund- 
 ant harvests, and as the mile posts of his life 
 grew more numerous determined to lay aside 
 the cares of the farm, and hand its governing 
 over to the. younger members of his household. 
 Today his sons, John and Nathan, attend to all 
 affairs around the place, although the genial 
 owner is still hale and bright, and takes a keen 
 interest in everything around him. Mr. McFar- 
 lane has three hundred head of cattle, three 
 hundred head of hogs, and besides general pro- 
 duce, raises wheat and barley in large quanti- 
 ties. 
 
 In California Mr. McFarlane married Hannah 
 Peeler, who was born in Randolph county, Mo., 
 in 1830. She crossed the plains with her parents 
 in 1854, settling in Merced county. Mr. and Mrs. 
 McFarlane became the parents of five children, 
 namely: John, Nathan, Robert L., George L. 
 (the latter a resident of Fresno), and Laura, the 
 wife of WilHam Duncan, of San Francisco. Mr. 
 McFarlane is independent in poHtics, and at no 
 time in his life has he been an ofifice-seeker. He 
 is a straight-forward, earnest and high-minded 
 man, fair in all of his business dealings, and 
 popular among his fellow-citizens. 
 
 HON. JOSEPH TALBERT McJUNKIN, 
 of Hanford, Kings county, Cal., was born in 
 Centreville, Washington county. Pa., March 6,' 
 1832, and died in Hanford Cal., November 15, 
 1901. He was widely known as one of the most 
 prominent and successful growers of raisin 
 grapes, other fruits and alfalfa in Kings 
 county, where he had resided since 1873, 
 with the exception of eight years. Remov- 
 ing in that year to what is known as the 
 
 Mussel Slough district of Tulare county, 
 but which has since become a part of Kings 
 county, he purchased land two miles northwest 
 of Hanford. This he devoted to the raising of 
 sheep, having brought a large band of sheep 
 vvith him from Yolo county with that idea in 
 view. For twenty-five years he devoted him- 
 self to this industry, but sold his sheep in 1883, 
 and from that time forward was engaged 
 chiefly in the cultivation of raisin grapes. In 
 1882 he removed to Oakland, two and a half 
 years later removed to San Jose, and in 1890 
 returned to Hanford, where the remainder of 
 his life was spent. 
 
 The need of irrigation for the Mussel Slough 
 district had early impressed itself upon Mr. Mc- 
 Junkin's mind, and he took advantage of every 
 means possible to have ditches constructed 
 throughout the territory. In educational mat- 
 ters he also took advanced steps, and in the mat- 
 ter of good government firmly believed in the 
 enforcement of law. He took an active inter- 
 est in politics, and at one time received the Re- 
 publican nomination for the office of member 
 of the assembly, and although he was defeated, 
 the returns were gratifying, coming as they did 
 from a purely Democratic locality. In 1898 he 
 was elected supervisor for the Fifth district, 
 and at the time of his death had served but 
 little more than half of his term. His work 
 on the board was characterized by careful at- 
 tention to the public welfare, and by honest 
 intention according to his own best judgment. 
 
 Mr. Mcjunkin was a son of James and Maria 
 (Rogers) Mcjunkin, both of whom were born 
 in Washington county, Pa. His father, who 
 was a surveyor by occupation, became a man of 
 note in his community. His father's parents 
 came from Ireland in 1795, while his. mother's 
 parents emigrated from Wales in their youth. 
 At the age of five years Mr. Mcjunkin was 
 taken to Ohio, and in that state received his early 
 education and training. The death of his father 
 made it necessary for him to look about for 
 means of self-support, and his first attempt in 
 this direction was as a clerk in the store of his 
 uncle at Brownsville, Fayette county, Pa. Sub- 
 sequently he served an apprenticeship at the 
 ship-builder's trade at Brownsville, a business 
 which he mastered in every detail in four years' 
 time. In 1854 he came to California, and in 
 Sacramento saw an opportunity to turn his 
 knowledge of mechanics to good account by en- 
 gaging in the manufacture of sash and doors. 
 At the time of the Eraser river gold excitement 
 in 1857 he joined the emigration thither and 
 found profitable occupation in the manufacture 
 of rockers used by the miners. In this work he 
 met with unusual success, due no doubt to his 
 thorough understanding of mechanics, as well as 
 
i020 
 
 Historical And biographical record. 
 
 to his determination to succeed, no matter what 
 discouraging circumstances might arise. After 
 leaving the mining districts sheep-raising ap- 
 pealed to him as affording profitable returns, and 
 for many years this industry was followed with 
 most gratifying results. During the later years 
 of his life he became deeply interested in the 
 cultivation of the vine, and at the time of his 
 death his ranch of three hundred and twenty 
 acres contained one of the finest raisin vineyards 
 in Kings county, about eighty acres being de- 
 voted to that purpose. 
 
 In Yolo county, September 5, 1867, Mr. Mc- 
 Junkin was united in marriage with Nancy A. 
 Duncan, who was born in Missouri, but after 
 the age of two years was reared in Illinois. Her 
 parents, Charles and Dorcas (Coffman) Dun- 
 can, made the trip to California overland in 
 1864, locating near Woodland, Yolo county, 
 where the young people became acquainted. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Mcjunkin became the parents of 
 four children, Ella I., Mrs. Alice M. Biddle, Ida 
 B. and Frank T., who have been given excellent 
 educational advantages in Oakland and San 
 Jose. 
 
 Mr. Mcjunkin was a self-made man in the 
 truest sense of the term. He was compelled to 
 leave school at the age of fourteen years, when 
 he began the struggle of life alone and unaided. 
 He won his position in the world by unvarying 
 industry and honest effort, and became recog- 
 nized as a man of influence and unquestioned 
 probity. Politically a strong Republican, he 
 always took a deep interest in the welfare of 
 that party, and at various times was honored by 
 election to public office at its hands. Fraternally 
 he was identified with the Masons, and it was 
 with Masonic rites that his remains were laid 
 to rest. In his death the community lost a 
 useful, practical and public-spirited citizen, who 
 was always willing to lend his assistance toward 
 the promotion of well-considered efforts to ad- 
 vance the best interests of the people. 
 
 HON. VITAL E. BANGS. A man of cul- 
 ture and scholarly attainments, Hon. Vital E. 
 Bangs, of Modesto, holds an honored position 
 among the pioneer settlers of Stanislaus county, 
 which has been his home for almost a half 
 century. In the educational progress of this 
 section of California he has been a potent force. 
 In the establishment and management of bene- 
 ficial enterprises he has borne a conspicuous 
 part, and as an office holder has shown good 
 judgment and excellent administrative abilities 
 in his manner of discharging his duties to the 
 public. A son of Samuel Bangs, he was born, 
 August 26, 1834, in the city of Victoria, Mex- 
 ico, of old colonial ancestry on both the paternal" 
 
 and maternal side, the emigrant ancestors of 
 both his father and mother having emigrated 
 from England to the United States at an early 
 period of its settlement. 
 
 A native of Boston, Mass., Samuel Bangs re- 
 mained in the east until failing health demanded 
 a change of climate. Going then to Mexico, he 
 resided there with his family until his death. 
 He married Susan Payne, who was born in Vir- 
 ginia. She survived him, after his death return- 
 ing to the United States. She subsequently 
 married Henry Brees, a wholesale merchant of 
 Matamoras, Mexico, and they located in Kala- 
 mazoo, Mich., where her death occurred, March 
 20, 1884. 
 
 The fifth child in order of birth of a family 
 of seven children, Vital E. Bangs laid a sub- 
 stantial foundation for his future education in 
 the public schools of Kalamazoo, Mich., after 
 which he continued his studies at Cedar Park 
 Seminary, and then entered Kalamazoo College. 
 Leaving home in 1855, he crossed the plains 
 to California, locating in El Dorado county, 
 where he was engaged for a few months in 
 teaching school and mining. Returning east, he 
 completed his education at the Kalamazoo Col- 
 lege, remaining in Michigan until 1858. Mov- 
 ing in that year to Vernon county. Mo., Mr. 
 Bangs taught school there for two years, and 
 then returned to Michigan, from there going 
 to Douglas county, Kans., where he was mar- 
 ried. The next year, in 1864, Mr. Bangs and 
 his bride crossed the plains to Stanislaus coun- 
 ty, Cal, where he resumed his professional 
 career, for many years thereafter teaching 
 school in this and in Tulare, Placer and Sacra- 
 mento counties. 
 
 Locating in Modesto in 1873, Mr. Bangs be- 
 came connected with the Modesto schools as 
 vice-principal, and has since then been promi- 
 nently identified with the advancement of the 
 educational welfare of this part of- the county. 
 For twelve years he was a member of the coun- 
 ty board of education, and was a popular con- 
 tributor to the "California Teacher" and other 
 educational journals. His services were ap- 
 preciated and recognized by the state of Cal- 
 ifornia, which, through its Department of Pub- 
 lic Instruction, presented him with a teacher's 
 Life Diploma. 
 
 Mr. Bangs was appointed by Governor Mark- 
 ham a director of the Twenty-eighth Agricul- 
 tural District, in which he served most accept- 
 ably, and he was also the first assessor of the 
 Modesto Irrigation District. Being elected by 
 the Democratic party to the state legislature, 
 he served in the session of 1888 and 1889, and 
 in 1892 was re-elected without opposition, re- 
 ceiving the support of both parties, and polling 
 the largest vote of any man in the assembly. 
 
i^^K^ 
 
Historical and biographical' record. 
 
 1023 
 
 Mr. Bangs owns a fine ranch of four hundred 
 and eighty acres, lying three and one-half miles 
 north of Modesto, where he has a very pleasant 
 and attractive residence, surrounded by a mag- 
 nificent grove of trees. He devotes forty acres 
 of his farm to alfalfa, the rest being planted to 
 grain, and keeps a dairy of fifteen cows. 
 
 In 1863, in Douglas county, Kans., Mr. Bangs 
 married Mary G. Moore, who was born and 
 reared in Illinois, and into their household four 
 children were born : Henry T., Susan, Vic- 
 toria, and Vital E. 
 
 JOHN pUNLAP COX. Looking back over 
 his sixty-six years of life, John Dunlap Cox must 
 needs find abundaiit cause for gratitude, not only 
 because he has been endowed with sterling traits 
 of a worthy ancestry, and a constitution which 
 responded to the working of his active brain, but 
 for the perseverance and determination which 
 have enabled him to make the best of his oppor- 
 tunities, resulting "in such substantial assets as 
 extensive land ownership in Stanislaus county, 
 the comfort and inspiration of a family which re- 
 flects his example and ambition, and a good name 
 and universal esteem which rewards his integrity 
 and uprightness. Coming to the state a few 
 months after attaining his majority, in the fall of 
 1859, he found hundreds who sympathized with 
 him in his efifort at advancement, and who also 
 were struggling to combine the climate and soil 
 and glories of air and vegetation to their own 
 and the state's perpetual good. The fifth of four 
 sons and four daughters in a family dependent 
 upon the resources of William Cox, and the ma- 
 ternal guidance of Sarah (Dunlap) Cox, he was 
 born in Colchester county, Nova Scotia, March 
 22, 1838, his parents being natives of the same 
 northern country. William Cox was a man of 
 varied gifts, in early life making his living by 
 teaching navigation and the studies in the com- 
 mon schools, and later on devoting himself en- 
 tirely to farming and stock-raising. 
 
 John Dunlap came west on the steamer John 
 L. Stevens, of pioneer fame, and upon arriving at 
 his destination in the San Joaquin valley worked 
 by the month on farms, first for Ben Holliday, 
 and after a short trip to Oregon, entered the em- 
 ploy of Mr. Ovenheiser of San Joacjuin county. 
 For a time he drove cattle from Stockton to the 
 mines, and from 1864 until 1870 owned and op- 
 erated a ranch in connection with his freighting 
 business. He then took up one hundred and sixty 
 acres near Grayson, where he farmed for three 
 years, removing then to Tulare county and en- 
 gaging in the sheep business near Tipton for 
 three years. Returning to Grayson in 1877, he 
 bought his present home farm of two hundred 
 and forty acres adjoining Grayson on the south. 
 
 to which he has since added one hundred and 
 sixty acres on the east, and seven hundred and 
 sixty-four acres adjoining his first purchase, mak- 
 ing in all eleven hundred and sixty-four acres in 
 one neighborhood. He also " owns a mountain 
 ranch of five hundred acres, devoted chiefly to 
 stock, and in connection with his home ranch 
 leases and operates twenty-six hundred acres of 
 the Patterson estate for wheat and barley. His 
 enlightened methods and practical business 
 sagacity have done much to elevate the grain- 
 raising industry in this section, and his career is 
 yet another proof of what may be accomplished 
 by sheer force of will power and wise disposal of 
 advantages. In his grain-raising he is ably sec- 
 onded by his stalwart son, W. W. Cox, who 
 shares with him the use of the Patterson land and 
 also assists him in the management of the home 
 farm. Mr. Cox married Rebecca Curry, a native 
 of Iowa, and besides William,, the oldest of his 
 children, there are four others : Sadie, Frank A., 
 Mabel and John D., Jr. Mr. Cox cast his first 
 presidential vote for the great emancipator, Abra- 
 ham Lincoln, and has ever since espoused the 
 cause of the party he represented. He is not an 
 office seeker, but is a stanch supporter of his 
 party, as he is of education, and the various up- 
 iDuilding institutions which tend to the lasting 
 good of the community. 
 
 CHARLES SPENKER. Among the young- 
 er generation of grain raisers of Stanislaus 
 cotmty none holds out greater promise of con- 
 tinued success than Charles Spenker, now the 
 manager and lessee of five thousand acres of 
 land near Oakdale. Mr. Spenker has known 
 no other home than the county in which he 
 lives, and in which he was born September 20, 
 1875. As his name indicates he is of German 
 ancestry, and his parents, Joseph and Julia 
 (Stelling) Spenker, were born and reared in 
 the Fatherland. The father came to America 
 as a single man in 1864, and the mother came 
 with her uncle in 1872, meeting and marrying 
 in California after Joseph Spenker had made a 
 start in life. Mr. Spenker was sixteen years old 
 when he arrived in the state with his paternal 
 uncle, Fred Spenker, having journeyed by way of 
 Panama, and settled near Stockton. In 1868 
 they moved to eighty acres of land upon a por- 
 tion of which Modesto has since been built, Mr. 
 Spenker entering this in his own name, at the 
 time little thinking that residences and institu- 
 tions and the hum of general industry would 
 some time be heard on his land. Still regard- 
 ing his possession as nothing out of the ordinary, 
 he traded his farm for his present place in 
 1882, and now owns nine hundred and sixty 
 acres, of which four hundred are in the river bot- 
 
1024 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 torn. He has a rich and productive property, and 
 is one of the representative men of his section, 
 having reared a large family of children and taken 
 part in the general affairs of the community. In 
 the order of their birth his children are : Mrs. 
 Ida Reinhart, Charles, Millie, Joseph, Nellie, 
 Harry (deceased), Leonard and Donald. 
 
 As a youth, Charles Spenker attended the 
 public schools of Stanislaus county, and took 
 readily to farming, profiting by the careful ag- 
 ricultural training of his able father. At the 
 age of twenty-one he started out on his own 
 responsibility, and when twenty-five rented 
 nine hundred and sixty acres of land, which he 
 devoted to grain, and two years later, in 1902, 
 rented the Leach ranch for five years. At pres- 
 ent he is farming five thousand acres of land, 
 all in Stanislaus county, and is making a special 
 study of grain, upon which he has become an 
 authority. He is a careful and painstaking 
 farmer, methodical in his habits, and progressive 
 in his methods. He has an incentive to labor in 
 a helpful and sympathetic wife, who was for- 
 merly Freda Cook, a native of Germany, and 
 daughter of Nicholas Cook, a pioneer of Stanis- 
 laus county. Mr. Spenker is a Democrat in 
 politics, and fraternally is connected with the 
 Woodmen of the World. He has the typical 
 German's 'thrift and enterprise, and also his 
 large heartedness and hospitality, and among his 
 neighbors and friends is noted for his honorable 
 and upright dealings. 
 
 JOHN R. McKAY. One of the most enter- 
 prising and popular liverymen of the San Joa- 
 quin valley is John R. McKay of Fresno, pro- 
 prietor of the Dexter livery stables. Endowed 
 with good business qualifications, accommo- 
 dating and trustworthy, he has built up an 
 extensive and lucrative patronage in the city, 
 and has won the respect and esteem of the 
 community. He was born December 17, 
 1867, in Riverton, Pictou county. Nova Scotia, 
 which was also the birthplace of his father, 
 Isaac McKay, and of his grandfather, John 
 McKay. His great-grandfather, D. McKay, a 
 native of Scotland, emigrated to Nova Scotia 
 at an early day, and, according to historical 
 records, blazed the first trail across the prov- 
 mce. Settling in Pictou county, he took up, 
 a tract of forest-covered land, and from the 
 dense wilderness cleared and improved a 
 homestead, on which he spent his remaining 
 davs. His son, John, the next in line of de- 
 scent, was a blacksmith and farmer, and spent 
 his entire life of ninety-four years in his na- 
 tive county, dying in 1902. 
 
 Learning the trade of a blacksmith when 
 young, Isaac McKav followed it first in Riv- 
 
 erton, Nova Scotia, then in Churchville, later 
 in Sunnybrae, and is now engaged in his 
 chosen occupation in Bridgeville, Nova Scotia. 
 For more than sixty years he has worked at 
 his trade, and is without doubt the oldest- 
 established blacksmith of his community. He 
 is a man of sterling character and worth and 
 a consistent member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. He married Mary Robertson, who 
 was born in Churchville, Nova Scotia, a 
 daughter of Colin Robertson. Mr. Robertson 
 was a lifelong farmer, and was also employed 
 in the milling business for many years, own- 
 ing a saw mill and a grist mill. He was of 
 thrifty Scotch stock, and lived to a venerable 
 age, dydng in 1899,^ aged ninety-three years. 
 Of the union of Isaac and Mary (Robertson) 
 McKay, nine children were born, and all are 
 living, five of them being residents of Califor- 
 nia. 
 
 The second child in succession of birth of 
 the parental household, John R. McKay, ac- 
 quired his early education in the common 
 schools of his native county.- At* the age of 
 fourteen, under his father's instruction, he be- 
 gan learning the blacksmith's trade in Sunny- 
 brae, where he completed his apprenticeship. 
 Going to Boston, Mass., in 1884, he there fol- 
 lowed blacksmithing for four years. In 1888 
 he came to Fresno, and for the first two 
 months after locating here worked in a vine- 
 yard. Turning his attention then to horse- 
 shoeing, Mr. McKay was first employed by 
 the Fresno Agricultural Works, and subse- 
 quently by D. W. Cutten. 
 
 Embarking in business on his own account 
 in 1890, Mr. McKay bought a shop on I street 
 of Creba & Son, and made horseshoeing a 
 specialty. Subsequently buying a livery busi- 
 ness on I street, he ran both the livery and 
 the shop for a while. Selling the latter, he 
 formed a co-partnership with^H. W. Wilbur, 
 and was head of the firm of McKay & Wilbur 
 until December, 1901, when the partnership 
 was dissolved, the I street stables being sold. 
 In October, 1903, Mr. McKay bought his old 
 stable, on I street, corner of Kern street, and 
 now carries on a substantial business, keep- 
 ing one of the finest livery, boarding and sale 
 stables in the county, his large brick barn be- 
 ing 75 X 150 feet and well equipped with 
 horses and vehicles of all kinds. He is also 
 financially interested in an orchard of forty 
 acres at Kingsburg, Fresno county. 
 
 In Fresno, Cal.,, November, 1891, Mr. Mc- 
 Kay married Belle E. McDonald, who was 
 born in Sunnybrae, Pictou county. Nova Sco- 
 tia, and they are the parents of two children, 
 namely : Clarence R. and Wilbur R. Mr. Mc- 
 Kay is a stanch adherent of the Republican 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1025 
 
 party, sustaining its principles by voice and 
 vote. In his religious faith he is a Congrega- 
 tionalist. He belongs to the Fresno Chamber 
 of Commerce and is a member of the Benevo- 
 lent Protective Order of Elks, and of the 
 Woodmen of the World, of which he is a past 
 ofificer. 
 
 GEORGE KIRKHAM HOSTETTER. Since 
 a boy of but five years, Mr. Hostetter has been 
 without father or mother, and while he has suc- 
 ceeded it is the result of his own well-directed ef- 
 forts. His father, Francis Hostetter, was a na- 
 tive of Kentucky, but finally migrated to Mis- 
 souri where he followed farming up to the time 
 of his death, which occurred in 1844. He mar- 
 ried Catherine Lankard, who died two years 
 later. 
 
 G. K. Hostetter was born in St. Charles coun- 
 ty. Mo., January 14, 1841, and after the death 
 of his mother he and two sisters made their home 
 with Alden Farnsworth- near St. Charles until 
 1854, when the family crossed the plains to the 
 Pacific coast. The trip was made with ox-teams, 
 the party following the old Carson route. After 
 a weary journey they arrived in California in 
 October, 1854, and settled in the beautiful Santa 
 Clara valley where one of the party, O. W. 
 Farnsworth, had previously lived. On arriving 
 in the valley Mr. Farnsworth settled on a one 
 hundred and sixty-acre ranch four miles from 
 San Jose and Mr. Hostetter remained with him 
 until 1864, when he went into the mines of Ida- 
 ho. This trip proved a failure and after a few 
 months he went to Oregon, locating in the Grand 
 Ronde valley, where he found employment for 
 one year. In 1865 a return was made to Cali- 
 fornia and farming was resumed in the Santa 
 Clara valley. A year later, on December 11, 
 1866, Mr. Hostetter married Margaret Rea, who 
 was born in Illinois. She is a daughter of 
 James Rea, who was born in the western part of 
 Virginia, March 9, 1799, of Irish and Scotch 
 parentage. He made his home in the vicinity 
 of his birth until early manhood, when he ac- 
 companied his parents to Ohio, locating in Gallia 
 county, and there he married Hannah Hudson- 
 pillar. The latter, also a native of Virginia, was 
 born the same year as her husband and with 
 her parents removed to Ohio about the same 
 years the Reas did, both families settling in Gal- 
 lia county. James Rea engaged in farming for 
 some time after their marriage, being located 
 near Gallipolis, Ohio. In iS.^.^^ he took his fam- 
 ily to Hancock county, residing at Fort Find- 
 lay until the fall of 1838, when they removed 
 to the vicinity of Decatur, Macon countv, 111- 
 In 1854 he crossed the plains to California and 
 located near San Jose, Santa Clara county, where 
 
 his death occurred, at the age of eighty-three 
 years. 
 
 From 1865 until 1891 Mr. Hostetter was en- 
 gaged in farming and horticultural pursuits near 
 Berryessa. While there he improved an orch- 
 ard of fifty-three acres, meeting with marked 
 success in his business ventures. In 1891 he dis- 
 posed of his interests and located in San Jose 
 where he resided until March, 1899, when he 
 located in Lindsay, Tulare county, having pur- 
 chased his present ranch in 1893. Upon his lo- 
 cating on his ranch in 1899 he set out an orange 
 grove of fifteen acres, lie also owns two hun- 
 dred and sixty-four acres a quarter of a mile 
 north of Lindsay. 
 
 While Mr. Hostetter has resided in Lindsay 
 but a few years he has taken a prominent posi- 
 tion in the affairs of the town, and aside from 
 his own personal interests is now vice-president 
 of the Rochdale Company and is a director in 
 the Lindsay Orange Growers' Association. In 
 both of these concerns he is a valued member, 
 his advice being freely asked on all important 
 questions. He has made a success of his life 
 work and has overcome obstacles that would have 
 discouraged many, being determined to win for 
 himself a position of prominence. That he has 
 accomplished his aims all will admit, but in this 
 battle for a competency he has never neglected 
 the duties of a citizen, and when called upon to 
 assist he has always been willing to respond, 
 both with his advice and his means. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Hostetter have been born 
 five children, as follows: Frank F., George F., 
 ' Alvin M., Rea H. and Mary A. They have been 
 reared amid the comforts of life and all have 
 been given the advantages of a good common 
 school education. The family is liked by all and 
 both Mr. Hostetter and his estimable wife are 
 welcomed into the best homes in the state. In 
 Santa Clara county where they lived for many 
 years they have scores of friends who sincerely 
 regretted their departure. 
 
 WILLIAM B. WAUGH. A young man of 
 worth and ability, William B. Waugh is named 
 among the successful stockmen in this section 
 of Tulare countv, where he is associated with 
 his father, J. D. Waugh, an old settler and early 
 pioneer, whose sketch also appears on another 
 page of this work. A native of the state, Wil- 
 liam B. Waugh was born in Grass Valley, Cal., 
 November 28, 1864, where he spent the first 
 nine, years of his life. In 1873 he accompanied 
 his parents to Tulare county, and received his 
 education in the pubHc schools and the Visalia 
 Normal. Following the precept and example ot 
 his father he began an independent life at the 
 
1026 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 age of twenty years, renting his father's dairy 
 and pasturing the cattle on the present site of 
 Millwood, Fresno county, which land his fath- 
 er homesteaded. It was then known as Mill 
 flat, and was later sold to Smith Comstock, and 
 later to the Millwood Company, which dammed 
 it up for fluming lumber. He now takes his 
 cattle to the Roaring river, the head-waters of 
 the Kings river, where he has a permit from the 
 government. He took the first cattle into that 
 section and built the first trail into the" moun- 
 tains. He is also engaged in general farming 
 on the old home place of seven hundred and 
 sixty acres in the Antelope valley, combining 
 this with his stock-raising industry. His brand 
 is an anchor on the left hip. He has made a 
 success of his work and has won the esteem 
 and respect of all who know him, both for his 
 business ability as well as the integrity which 
 has marked his entire life. 
 
 In Visalia, December 12, 1886, Mr. Waugh 
 was united in marriage with Fannie Kirkland, 
 a native of San Francisco. Her father, W. P. 
 Kirkland, was born in Mississippi, and in man- 
 hood conducted a steamboat on the Mississippi 
 river. He took his family first to Central Amer- 
 ica, where he owned a cocoanut grove, and later 
 brought them to San Francisco, where he en- 
 gaged as a merchant. Removing to Visalia he 
 filled many important public offices, among them 
 that oi county superintendent of schools and 
 county auditor. He died in Visalia in Jan- 
 uary, 1900, at the age of eighty-one years. His 
 wife, Louise, died early in life. They were 
 the parents of ten children, seven of whom ara, 
 now living, namely : Mrs. Howard, of Goshen ; 
 Alonzo, of Auckland ; Mrs. Perzian, of Auck- 
 land ; Mrs. McClure, of San Francisco ; Walter, 
 of Auckland ; Mrs. Cason, of Visalia ; and Mrs. 
 Waugh, the youngest, who received her educa- 
 tion in the schools of Visalia. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Waugh were born three children, narriely : Har- 
 ry, Earl and Lawrence. In his political afSlia- 
 tions Mr. Waugh is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 Badger Hill tract is irrigated by three large 
 wells, there being at the foot of the hill a pump- 
 ing plant to carry the water to a reservoir of 
 about two acres. From this reservoir, by means 
 of a seventy-five horse-power electric motor, ft 
 is forced to the top of the hill, a distance of five 
 hundred and eighty-six feet. 
 
 BONNIE BRAE RANCH, owned by the 
 Merryman Fruit, Land & Lumber Company, 
 and planted by George T. Frost in 1896, was 
 under his management until 1904, when he was 
 taken sick and died at his home in Riverside, Cal. 
 Three hundred acres are in navel oranges, and 
 two hundred acres are devoted to lemons, pears, 
 olives, figs, vines, etc. The ranch comprises two 
 thousand acres, divided into two parts, Badger 
 Hill and Bonnie Brae ranches. The property is 
 owned by A. C. Merryman and family, incor- 
 porated, with R. C. Merryman as manager, and 
 in its management and care about thirty-five peo- 
 ple are employed in the various departments. 
 
 JOHN STURM. For the past forty years 
 Rev. John Sturm has been active in the min- 
 istry of the Evangelical Church, and is also 
 well known for his success as a horticulturist. 
 A native of Alsace-Lorraine, France, his birth 
 occurred June 16, 1824. His father, Jacob 
 Sturm, was born in the same place, where he 
 followed farming until his death. His wife, 
 formerly Sarah Froleh, was also a native of the 
 same locality, where she died. Of their eleven 
 children, six sons and five daughters, John 
 Sturm was the third in order of birth. He re- 
 ceived a preliminary education in the common 
 schools of Germany and France, after which 
 he worked for his father on the home farm un- 
 til he was twenty-two years old. At the age of 
 twenty-nine he married, and after remaining in 
 his native locality for a time, came to America in 
 1854 and located in Qiicago, 111., near which city 
 he engaged as a gardener vmtil his removal to . 
 Nebraska in 1857, to Weeping Water, Cass coun- 
 ty, engaging in trade for a livelihood. After 
 remaining there eight years he located for a 
 time in Oregon, Mo., where he was likewise oc- 
 cupied, returning in 1870 to the vicinity of Chi- 
 cago. For the ensuing twelve years he was 
 located in Wheeling, when he located in St 
 James, Minn., remaining there until 1896, when 
 he sought a home on the Pacific coast, locating 
 one mile northeast of Porter-sville, Tulare coun- 
 ty, where he cultivated ten . acres devoted to 
 various kinds of fruits — oranges, prunes, apples, 
 etc. In 1900 he located in Portersville, where he 
 has a residence and two lots, with the cultiva- 
 tion of fruit to occupy his time. 
 
 In 1855 Mr. Sturm was ordained a minister 
 in the German Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 preaching in all the localities in which he has 
 made his home. In 1875, in Barrington, 111., 
 he became identified with the Evangelical 
 Church, in which, faith he has since remained. 
 He has a charge in Portersville, and delivers a 
 sermon every second Sunday, remaining active- 
 ly interested in the work although he is past 
 eighty years of age. He is a regular attendant 
 of the Annual Conference and Annual Camp- 
 Meeting held at Santa Ana, Cal. 
 
 In Alsace-Lorraine, Mr. Sturm married 
 Madeline Herschberger, a native of that place, 
 and they became the parents of eight sons and 
 one daughter, of whom all but two sons are 
 
g^^ G/?i^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1029. 
 
 living, namely: John, Jacob, Fred, Andrew, 
 George, Daniel, and Lena, the wife of Chris 
 Sturm, of Tulare county. The sons are all lo- 
 cated in the vicinity of Portersville, and have 
 ranches of their own with the exception of An- 
 drew and George, who are interested in lands in 
 Nbrth Dakota. Mi:. Sturm has divided his 
 property, which consisted of two hundred acres 
 (one hundred acres of orange land) besides 
 other ranches which he afterward purchased, 
 giving his sons the land. The first four sons 
 are married. Politically Mr. Sturm is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. 
 
 JOHN NEHLS, an influential fruit-grower of 
 Hanford township. Kings county, may with jus- 
 tice be termed a self-made man, as he was 
 thrown upon his own resources at an early age, 
 and his present position of independence has 
 been reached solely as a result of his own un- 
 aided efforts. Born in Prussia, February 17, 
 1850, he was reared in his native surroundings, 
 attending the public schools, until he was thir- 
 teen years of age. He was then brought to the 
 United States by his mother, his father having 
 died when he was, a small child. After four 
 weeks and five days on a sailing vessel Mr. Nehls 
 and his mother landed in New York City in 
 May, 1863, later going to Racine county, Wis. 
 When fourteen years old he began to work as a 
 farm haiid, for a time receiving $4 a month. 
 For several succeeding years he worked on vari- 
 ous farms during the summers and went to 
 school during the winters, working for his boai-d. 
 Being economical, he saved his money and con- 
 tinued to follow farm work until he was twenty- 
 one years old, in time accumulating $1,000. Be- 
 ing obliged to seek a change of climate on ac- 
 count of asthma, he wisely determined to come 
 to California. 
 
 On the first day of January, 1877, Mr. JSTehls 
 arrived at Hanford. Being well pleased with 
 the outlook, he invested -his savings in real es- 
 tate, purchasing the forty-acre farm which is 
 still his home and which is located two miles 
 west of Hanford. Planting part of his land in 
 vines he raised wheat on the remainder. In 1881 
 he returned to Wisconsin and married Miss 
 Lucy Johncox, a native of that state, her parents 
 being natives of England. Returning to Cali- 
 fornia with his bride, Mr. Nehls continued 
 farming along the same lines ' until 1886, that 
 year planting five more acres in vines and seven 
 in orchards of assorted fruits. These yielded 
 such fair returns that he subsequently planted 
 his entire farm to fruit, with the exception of a 
 few acres reserved for pasture, and his place 
 now contains many select varieties of peaches. 
 
 apricots and prunes, in addition to several fine 
 vineyards of raisin grapes. 
 
 Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Nehls, of whom one died in infancy and the 
 others are: George, aged twenty; Mazy, eigh- 
 teen; Jennie, fourteen, and Alta, nine. In their 
 religious inclinations the family favor the doc- 
 trine of the Christian Church, of which both 
 Mr. and Mrs. Nehls are active members, the 
 former officiating at the present time as elder. 
 In his political views he is a stanch Republican, 
 but has never sought office, and is a strong ad- 
 herent of the cause of temperance. He has im- 
 proved and beautified his place in many ways, 
 having built a substantial two-story residence 
 and other buildings. His land has not only in- 
 creased in productiveness with the lapse of 
 years, but also in value, being now worth from 
 $250 to $300 per acre. As a citizen worthy of 
 the fullest recognition in the early history of 
 Kings county, whose services in various fields 
 of labor for the advancement of the interests of 
 his section will not soon be forgotten, Mr. Nehls 
 has made an enviable record. 
 
 JOHN E. BAILEY. Well known among the 
 most industrious, respected and prosperous men 
 of Bakersfield, Cal, is John E. Bailey, an ex- 
 tensive land and property owner, and a stock 
 raiser and dealer of note. In the achievement 
 of his great material and financial success he 
 has had no assistance, but has been the sole 
 architect of his fortunes. Inheriting from his 
 parents a good constitution, a sound mind and 
 great energy,, he began earning his livelihood 
 when young, and from the start has met with 
 encouragement and success. A native of Ire- 
 land, he was born November 28, 1852, in County 
 Down, where his parents, James and Lusana 
 Bailey, are both living, well advanced in years. 
 
 Reared in the Emerald Isle, John E. Bailey 
 worked as a farm laborer until twenty years 
 old, when he turned his face toward the New 
 World. Crossing the Atlantic on a Cunard 
 liner, he arrived in Boston, Mass., in Novem- 
 ber, 1872. Three months later he sailed froixi 
 that city for California, coming by way of Pan- 
 ama. For about a month after arriving in San 
 Francisco he drove a street car, and then went 
 to Sonoma county, where he worked with a 
 threshing machine gang for one summer. Mr. 
 Bailey then tried to obtain work in the lumber 
 camps at Duncans Mills, but failina: in the at- 
 tempt he came to Bakersfield in 1873, and the 
 following year worked on the railway then be- 
 ing constructed between Lathrop, Bakersfield 
 and Los Angeles. He subsequently found em- 
 ployment on ranches or canals for four years. 
 Embarking in business on his own account in 
 
ao3o 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1877, Mr.' Bailey started a livery and hotel 
 business in Bakersfield, opening the Cosmopoli- 
 tan hotel, which he managed for twenty years; 
 He was also engaged in the cattle business on a 
 small scale at the same time. In 1893, how- 
 ever, he formed a partnership with T. L. Briggs, 
 and has since been extensively engaged in ranch- 
 ing and stock dealing. He owns a ranch of 
 six hundred acres lying about seven miles from 
 Bakersfield, the land being subject to irriga- 
 tion ; on section 32, nine miles from Bakersfield, 
 he has two hundred acres of good land, and also 
 owns fourteen hundred acres of mountain land 
 in Kern county. Mr. Bailey buys cattle in Mex- 
 ico and Arizona, fattens them, and sells to dif- 
 ferent niarkjets, shipping to various parts of 
 the northwest. He has made considerable money 
 in buying and selling town property, and still 
 has title to several houses and building lots of 
 value. In 1889 he sold fifty-five acres of land 
 in Bakersfield, receiving $200 per acre for it, a 
 price far below its present value. 
 
 In January, 1884, Mr. Bailey married Carrie 
 Voges, who was born in New Orleans, and came 
 with her sister to California in 1875, and to 
 Bakersfield in 1877. In his political affiliations 
 Mr. Bailey is an independent Democrat. He 
 takes great interest in the general welfare of 
 town and county, and is now serving his_ second 
 term as town trustee. 
 
 JOSEPH HALFORD. Numbered among the 
 active and prosperous business men of Fresno 
 is Joseph Halford, proprietor of the Novelty 
 Iron Works, which are located at No. 1826 
 Mono street, corner of I street. Skillful, indus- 
 trious and enterprising, he has made excellent 
 use of his mechanical genius, and by his business 
 ability and tact has commanded success in his 
 various undertakings. A native of England, he 
 was born April 26, 1848, in Wolverhampton, 
 Staflfordshire, which was also the birthplace of 
 his father, Charles Halford. His grandfather, 
 Edward Halford, was born in the same place, 
 and for many years was there employed as a 
 millwright. 
 
 A moulder by trade, Charles Halford was 
 employed in a foundry for many years in his 
 native land, being an expert workman. Some 
 time after his marriage, he emigrated to Amer- 
 ica, and joined his son Joseph in San Francisco, 
 and as a co-partner with him was employed as 
 a moulder in that city and in Stockton. Now, 
 at the age of fourscore years, he is living, re- 
 tired from active pursuits, in San Francisco. He 
 married Elizabeth Hitchen, who was born in 
 Chester, England, and died in Alameda, Cal. 
 Four children were born of their union, two 
 sons and daughters. Joseph, the oldest child, 
 
 is the subject of this sketch, while Thomas E., 
 the other son, is a well-known resident of San 
 Francisco ; Harriet, the widow of Henry Holm, 
 and Clara, the widow of LeGrand Morehouse, 
 both reside in San Francisco. 
 
 Brought up and educated in the city of 
 Wolverhampton, Joseph Halford began learning 
 the trade of a moulder when fourteen years old, 
 serving an apprenticeship of five years with his 
 father, and afterward working as a journeyman 
 in Liverpool until attaining his majority. Emi- 
 grating to New York City in 1869, he was in 
 the employ of McKinley & Smach for two and 
 one-half years. Going then to Chicago, 111., Mr. 
 Halford worked at his trade, and as a foundry- 
 man, for nearly three years. In 1874 he came 
 to the Pacific coast, and for eight years was em- 
 ployed as a moulder in the Risdon Iron Works, 
 in San Francisco. Starting in business for him- 
 self in 1882, Mr. Halford established a foundry 
 at the San Leandro Agricultural Works, in which 
 he was a stockholder, operating it successfully 
 for four years. Locating in Stockton in 1886, 
 he worked at his trade for a short time, and 
 then opened the Eagle Iron Works, which he 
 subsequently named the Novelty Iron Works. 
 Disposing of that property in 1894, he came to 
 Fresno as foreman of the Fresno Agricultural 
 Works, and three years later establish'ed his 
 present plant and foundry, the Novelty Iron 
 Works, of which he is sole proprietor. Mr. Hal- 
 ford has built up the foundry from the ground, 
 and is carrying on a very extensive and lucrative 
 business, manufacturing machinery of all kinds 
 and iron and brass castings. 
 
 In San Francisco, Mr. Halford married Har- 
 riet M. Bradley, a native of England. Mr. Hal- 
 ford is a member of the Fresno Merchants' As- 
 sociation. Politically he is a stanch adherent of 
 the Republican party, and fraternally he is a 
 member, and past master, of the Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen, which he has served as 
 district deputy. Mrs. Halford is a member of 
 the Episcopal Church. 
 
 WILLIAM GANN. A resident of Lindsay, 
 Tulare county, William Gann is engaged as a 
 blacksmith, in which trade he has met with a 
 gratifying success. He was born in Santa Cruz, 
 Cal., November 13, 1866, a member of a fam- 
 ily of six sons and five daughters, of whom all 
 but one daughter are living. His father, John 
 Gann, was a native of Tennessee, as was his 
 granclfather, John, also. The elder man crossed 
 the plains to California and located near Stock- 
 ton, where he made his home until his death. 
 In 1850 John Gann, Jr., crossed the plains with 
 ox-teams, and upon his arrival in the state fol- 
 lowed mining for a time. He finally located in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1031 
 
 Santa Cruz county and engaged as a farmer 
 until 1881, when he went to Kern county and 
 homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres near 
 Glennville. Since his settlement there he has 
 engaged in the raising of stock. His wife, for- 
 merly Elizabeth Hitchcock, was a. native of Mis- 
 souri and the daughter of Silas Hitchcock, who 
 crossed the plains in 1846. He weht first to 
 Oregon, the following year, however, coming to 
 California, where he became a farmer in the 
 San Joaquin valley, later in Los Gatos, in which 
 place his death occurred. 
 
 William Gann remained in Santa Cruz county 
 until he was seven years old, then accompanied 
 his parents to San Joaquiri county, thence to Inyo 
 county, and in 1881 to Kern county. He at- 
 tended the district schools in these various places, 
 acquiring a substantial foundation for the prac- 
 tical knowledge which has since given him suc- 
 cess in his life-work. He learned the trade of 
 blacksmith in Glennville and Bakersfield, com- 
 pleting his apprenticeship in the latter city. Un- 
 til 1896 he remained in Bakersfield, when he 
 came to Tulare and worked at his trade two 
 years. Locating in Lindsay, in 1898, he bought 
 out the shop of Charles Kirkham and continued 
 his work here for a time. In 1904 he purchased 
 two lots and put up a large, roomy shop, where 
 he carries on an extensive trade in his line of 
 general blacksmith. He has also built a com- 
 fortable residence here, and in many ways takes 
 an active interest in the growth and upbuilding 
 of the town. 
 
 In Lindsay Mr. Gann was united in marriage 
 with Maude Denton, a native of Kentucky. Mr. 
 Ganil is a member of the Woodmen of the World, 
 having been made a member of Lindsay Camp 
 No. 334, of which he is past council commander, 
 and also belongs to Women of Woodcraft. Po- 
 litically he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 ROY CHASE TRABER. Among the young- 
 er generation in California, as well as elsewhere, 
 we find men who have disclosed both tact and 
 capacity for business and have met with gratify- 
 ing success, and of this class we mention Mr. 
 Traber, who for a few years past has given his 
 attention to the raisin culture in the vicinity of 
 Parlier, Fresno county. A native of the same 
 county, which has ever been his home, Mr. Tra- 
 ber was born near Mendocino school house De- 
 cember 30, 1877, and he is the youngest but on? 
 of four sons born to John Wesley and Anna 
 (Kane) Traber; the latter, although a native of 
 the state of Vermont, was reared in Michigan 
 and her marriage took place in Missouri. 
 
 The father of Mr. Traber was born in 1849, 
 in Albany county, in the state of New York, but 
 afterward became a resident of Wisconsin. In 
 
 1866 he went to Missouri, which was his home 
 for a few years, removing to California in 1872. 
 The first three years of his residence in this 
 state were spent teaching school in Mendocino 
 county. In 1874 he first went into Fresno coun- 
 ty and took up a homestead claim on government 
 land, being one of the original twenty-five set- 
 tlers who developed the Long ditch, commonly 
 known as the Church ditch, which brought the 
 first water on those plains. This was the be- 
 ginning of the great system of irrigation in that 
 section. Mr. Traber improved one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land in the vicinity of Parlier. To 
 him belongs the distinction of being the first 
 teacher of the Mendocino and the Kingsburg 
 schools, and with the exception of two years he 
 has followed teaching continuously ever since, 
 being at the present time one of the most suc- 
 cessful educators of Fresno county. The four 
 sons who blessed the union of this couple are : 
 J. Orra, Charles H., Roy Chase and C. B., the 
 latter a resident of the home place ; Charles H. 
 is also a teacher by profession. 
 
 Having every advantage in the way of edu- 
 cation, it is not strange that Mr. Traber should 
 be competent to manage his affairs successfully. 
 His common school education was increased by 
 a complete course in the Selma high school, 
 from which he graduated in the class of 1894. 
 He became a student at the Fresno Business 
 College in the fall of 1896, and the following 
 spring was graduated from that institution, hav- 
 ing completed a full commercial course. Hav- 
 ing a desire to take up the study of law, he 
 entered the law office of Lewis H. Smith of 
 Fresno in 1898, and after pursuing his studies 
 there for one year, lie went into the office of 
 Judge Garter, continuing his legal studies there 
 for a while. In the meantime, while attending 
 school, Mr. Traber had not been idle in vacation 
 time, as in 1891-93 he served as deputy assessor, 
 being also appointed in 1892 deputy in the tax 
 collector's office. 
 
 His subsequent return to his father's ranch 
 was matter of surprise to some of his friends, 
 no doubt; but in this, as in other matters, he 
 substantiated his claim to good judgment, as his 
 present prosperity will testify. He not only 
 owns an interest in the home place, but has a 
 clear title to twenty acres of adjacent land, which 
 he utilizes in raising raisins and other dried 
 fruits. By his marriage, December 27, 1903, he 
 wedded Esther Becker, who was born in San 
 Francisco and is a daughter of H. J. Becker, a 
 native of Germany. Mrs. Traber's father was 
 brought to. San Francisco when but a child of 
 four years. He is now superintendent of a Pa- 
 cific coast tannery. Being politically an active 
 and earnest Democrat, Mr. Traber has proved 
 himself a useful member of his party; he is a 
 
1032 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 member of the county central committee, has at 
 all times been a zealous worker, exercising an 
 important influence in the affairs of the county. 
 He is allied with the Modern Woodmen of 
 America of Kingsburg and the Knights of 
 Pythias of Selma. 
 
 JAMES H. BLAIR. Probably no name in 
 the northern part of California is better known 
 than that of Blair, as the father of our subject 
 was one of the pioneer ministers of the Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian Church. For many years he 
 continued in the ministry in addition to farming 
 and stock-raising. Rev. Jonathan Blair was a 
 native of Tennessee, but on reaching manhood 
 migrated westward and for a time lived in Ark- 
 ansas and Missouri. In 1857 he crossed the 
 plains, coming in the customary way, as in those 
 days ox-teams were the only means of transpor- 
 tation across the continent. He was one of the 
 few to bring a drove of cattle to California. 
 After living in Sonoma county for a short time 
 he located in Little Lake valley, Mendocino coun- 
 ty, where he engaged in general farming and 
 stock-raising, devoting most of his time to the 
 latter industry. During the winter of 1861-62 
 he lost nearly all his cattle, as that winter was 
 an extremely cold one and the stock was frozen, 
 to death. In 1862, with the few head that were 
 saved. Rev. Blair located in Tulare county and 
 here engaged in stock-raising near Visalia. Two 
 years later misfortune again overtook him and 
 he lost nearly everything he owned, that being 
 the year of the great drought. In 1874 he pur- 
 chased the ranch now owned by his son which 
 he improved and placed under a high state of 
 cultivation. From time to time he added to 
 his first purchase until at the time of his death 
 he was the possessor of one thousand one hun- 
 dred acres of fine land. While most of his at- 
 tention was given to the raising of cattle he was 
 for ten years interested c^uite extensively in the 
 sheep business. 
 
 Soon after coming to California Rev. Blair be- 
 gan preaching in the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church, and during his long residence here he 
 continued an active worker, organizing and es- 
 tablishing churches at many different places. 
 The territory he covered was large, preaching in 
 the towns between the Tule and Kings rivers. 
 Sincere in his work he refused to give up the 
 ministry until forced to do so by old age, but 
 his voice was heard up to within three years of 
 his death, which occurred in 1886 at the age of 
 eighty-one years. He married Mrs. Nancy 
 Moffett nee Mayfield, who died in 1897. By 
 her union with Mr. Blair she became the moth- 
 er of ten children, eight of whom reached ma- 
 turity. 
 
 James H. Blair was born in Mendocino coun- 
 ty, February 28, i860. When but a small child 
 his parents removed to Tulare county where 
 he was reared on his father's farm. His edu- 
 cation was obtained in the public schools and 
 when young he began learning the ins and outs 
 of the stock business. When old enough he 
 took charge of the ranch which has since been 
 his home. He now owns one thousand one hun- 
 dred and twenty-four acres of land, and is en- 
 gaged in an extensive stock business, making a 
 specialty of the Aberdeen Polled Angus cattle, 
 of which he has over two hundred head. This 
 industry has proved a decided success and he 
 is now considered one of the leading cattle men 
 of the county. In 1904 he erected for himself 
 a handsome residence of ten rooms which is 
 modern in every way. Running water is piped 
 into the house from a two thousand gallon tank 
 which is filled by a windmill. 
 
 Mr. Blair married Miss Susan Brotherton, 
 who was born in Missouri, a daughter of Wil- 
 liam Brotherton, who came to California in 1875 
 and here became an extensive stock man. By 
 this marriage six children have been born, as fol- 
 lows : Edith, Ewell, Elsie, Edgar, Ruth and 
 Lulu. Both Mr. and Mrs. Blair are members of 
 the Cumberland Presbyterian Chu'xh, the for- 
 mer being the ruling elder. Fraternally he holds 
 membership with the Modern Woodmen of the 
 World and in politics is a Democrat. 
 
 CHARLES M. ABBOTT. Probably no man 
 near Mountainview has made his influence felt 
 in greater degree as an establisher of beafltiful 
 home places than Charles M. Abbott, at present 
 owning an ideal cottage surrounded by ideal 
 grounds on the corner of Allice avenue and 
 Front street. Mr. Abbott has three acres in his 
 place, and all that the landscape artist has at 
 his command has been utilized to produce a rep- 
 resentative California retreat. A true lover of 
 nature, and appreciative of its beautiful influ- 
 ences, this honored citizen has improved his op- 
 portunities in a rare way, understanding well 
 his materials and offering an example of what 
 may be accomplished when ability is combined 
 with judgment and good taste. 
 
 Born on a farm near Boscaweri, Merrimack 
 county, N. H., May 11, 1843, Mr. Abbott passed 
 his childhood and youth in a neighborhood rich 
 in memories of his paternal grandfather, Joseph, 
 who enlisted in the Revolutionary war when 
 sixteen* years old in Colonel Peabody's regiment, 
 and in return for services rendered received the 
 soldier's warrant with which he purchased the 
 land near Boscawen. On this same farm Joseph, 
 the father of Charles M., was born, also three 
 of his older sons, and lived there until the fam- 
 
J^. ^.iMttz 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1035 
 
 ily was dispersed by their various ambitions. 
 Joseph and his wife, formerly Mary Elkins, also 
 of New Hampshire, were the last to leave the 
 old place, coming to California in 1875, and 
 settling in Oakland, where both died, the former 
 in 1877, at the age of eighty years. The four 
 sons of this couple were educated primarily in 
 the public schools of New Hampshire, and 
 Charles M. outlined his future by serving an ap- 
 prenticeship to a carpenter near the home place. 
 In Concord, N. H., he married Emma Bailey, a 
 native of Franklin, N. H., and daughter of 
 Simeon and Nancy (Bachelderj Bailey. Mr. 
 Bailey was a cabinet maker by trade, and learned 
 to do fine finishing work on pianos and other ex- 
 pensive furniture, but his promising career was 
 cut short at the early age of thirty. 
 
 In the fall of 1861 Mr. Abbott gave vent to 
 a long-thought-out project and embarked in a 
 sailer with prow turned toward the south seas, 
 and, going around Cape Horn, arrived in San 
 Francisco April 28, 1862, after an adventurous 
 journey upon the deep. Beginning in a small 
 way he followed his trade in San Francisco, and 
 gradually worked up a large business as builder 
 and contractor in the vicinity, extending his op- 
 erations to Oakland and other near-by towns. 
 He remained a resident of the metropolis until 
 1885, meanwhile making five trips back east, 
 during one of which he brought his wife to the 
 coast. Locating in Mountainview in the fall of 
 1885, Mr. Abbott engaged in carpentering and 
 building and also bought a small place and set 
 out an orchard. This place was improved and 
 cultivated and sold, and since then four others 
 have come under his capable management, each 
 passing to some one desirous of profit by his 
 taste and skill in improving upon and develop- 
 ing natural resources. His methods have been 
 stimulating to others settling in the community, 
 and his example of thrift and enterprise has been 
 reflected in the hornes of many of his fellow 
 townsmen. Besides his home place, he is the 
 owner of other properties in the town, both resi- 
 dence and business, from which he derives a 
 substantial income. Mr. Abbott is a stanch Re- 
 publican, but aside from the formality of casting 
 his vote has never been identified with the local 
 undertakings of his party. He is highly respect- 
 ed for his success and public spirit and for the 
 integrity which has made his word as good as 
 his bond. 
 
 son of Jason and Margaret (Fancher) Gillette, 
 both of whom were descended from prominent 
 and old families of that state. The latter died in 
 i860. At the age of eighty-eight years, Jason 
 Gillete is living retired in the state of his birth. 
 
 J. L. Gillette was reared on his father's farm, 
 remaining at home until twenty, when he went 
 to Emporia, Kans., but a few weeks later went 
 to Michigan, where he spent the summer. In 
 1879 he made the trip to California, locating at 
 once in Merced county. Three years later he 
 purchased four hundred and forty acres of land, 
 two miles west of Le Grand, which is a part of 
 his home place, adding to the original tract un- 
 til he now owns five hundred and sixty acres. 
 Returning to New York in 1883, he was mar- 
 ried October 31 of that year to Carrie Newman, 
 who was born and reared in Onondaga county. 
 They have three children, Florence M., Hazel 
 and Glenn H. The family stands high socially, 
 and politically Mr. Gillette is a stanch supporter 
 of the Republican party. As prosperity has 
 come his way he has added to the value of his 
 property, erecting a modern country home and 
 substantial outbuildings. In all matters pertain- 
 ing to the public welfare he has given such as- 
 sistance as his means would allow, and by his 
 public spirit and energy has become recognized . 
 as one of the representative men of the county. 
 
 J. LOTUS GILLETTE. In one of the beau- 
 tiful modern residences erected in 1902, in the 
 vicinity of Le Grand, Merced county, resides 
 J. L. Gillette, one of the prosperous and suc- 
 cessful ranchers of the county. He was born 
 in Onondaga county, N. Y., March 12, 1852, a 
 
 ANNIE LAURIE BOND, M. D. A woman 
 of rare and admirable qualities, Dr. Bond is 
 widely known and highly appreciated for her 
 work as a physician and surgeon, which has 
 brought her into prominence in Lindsay, Tulare 
 county, and its vicinity. She was born near 
 Woodbine, Harrison county, Iowa, the daughter 
 of Charles Krepps. He was a native of Ohio 
 and an early settler of Iowa, where he improved 
 and cultivated a farm. He remained in that 
 location until 1873, when he brought his family 
 to California and located them at Lemoore, 
 Kings county, in the Mussel Slough country, 
 about six miles south of Grangeville. There 
 he improved a farm upon which he lived until 
 his retirement from the active cares of life, when 
 he located in Lemoore. His death occurred in 
 1902, in Lemoore, at the age of seventy-eight 
 years. He was a man of strong, earnest char- 
 acter and deeply imbued with the principles of 
 right. From 1862 until the close of the war, 
 he served as a volunteer in an Iowa regiment, 
 taking part in the Atlanta campaign as well as 
 many engagements where courage and endurance 
 were the requisites of the soldiers who brought 
 victory to the Union. He was a member of the 
 Grand Army of the Republic and in religion 
 was identified with the United Brethren Church. 
 His wife, formerly Melinda Scovel, was a na- 
 
1036 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tive of New York state and the daughter of 
 Loomis Scovel, who came from the Empire state 
 to Illinois, thence to Iowa, where he was a pio- 
 neer farmer. Mr. Scovel still makes his home 
 in that state, at the venerable age of eighty-five 
 years. Mrs. Krepps survives her husband and 
 makes her home with Dr. Bond. Mr. Krepps 
 was married twice, having four daughters and 
 two sons by his first wife, of whom one son and 
 one daughter are deceased. By his second mar- 
 riage he had four daughters and two sons, all 
 of whom are living. 
 
 The eldest of this family of children, Annie 
 Laurie Bond, came to California with her par- 
 ents in 1873, where she received her education 
 in the public schools of the state. In woman- 
 hood she took up the study of medicine, en- 
 tering the California Medical College of San 
 Francisco, from which institution she was gradu- 
 ated in 1897 with the degree of M. D. Imme- 
 diately following her graduation she began a 
 practice in Stockton, which continued but six 
 months, when she was taken ill. In December, 
 1898, she located in Lindsay and has since con- 
 tinued the practice of medicine and surgery here. 
 She has made a success of her work and has 
 won the confidence of those with whom she has 
 had professional intercourse as well as those 
 who have witnessed her success. 
 
 In Visalia, in 1886, she married Seth H. Bond, 
 a native of Iowa. He is an educator, having 
 taught for many years in Oregon and Califor- 
 nia. They are the parents of one child, Ruth. 
 Dr. Bond is a member of the Fraternal Aid and 
 Women of Woodcraft, and is examining physi- 
 cian for both. In religion she is a Seventh Day 
 Adventist. 
 
 HARRY HILL NEWMAN, who is known 
 as one of the promment and successful farmers 
 of Tulare county, was born in Booneville, Mo., 
 February 21, 1867, a son of Judge Jesse G. New- 
 man, whose biographical record appears at length 
 in the sketch of Robert O. Newman, which ap- 
 pears in another part of this volume. He was 
 reared to manhood on the home fann, three 
 miles southwest of Booneville, receiving his edu- 
 cation in the district school. His father died 
 in 1873, leaving him a half-orphan, at the tender 
 age of six years. He remained at honie until 
 1884, when he came to California and located in 
 Tulare county and farmed with his brothers, 
 Robert O. and Jesse H. Newman. Afterward 
 he formed a partnership with Jesse H. Newman, 
 which has continued ever since. They are now 
 engaged in grain farming, for the first four years 
 of their partnership conducting four hundred 
 acres southeast of Visalia, when they removed 
 to the Fielding Bacon place of two thousand 
 
 acres. In 1900 they rented the old Curtis ranch 
 of a thousand acres, which now belongs to the 
 Bank of Visalia, and in addition to this also 
 operate six hundred and forty acres, which is 
 devoted to grain. They engage in general farm- 
 ing and dairying, having their own separator; 
 run four eight-mule teams, and conduct a Houser 
 combined harvester, which requires thirty-two 
 mules. They also have a fine place on the Cot- 
 tonwood, about eleven miles northeast of Visalia, 
 where they have a prune orchard of forty acres ; 
 a peach orchard of thirty acres, and ten acres 
 in Simona prunes. They are very successful 
 farmers and are numbered among the representa- 
 tive agriculturists of Tulare county. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Newman married Elizabeth A. 
 Grove, a native of Astoria, Fulton county, 111., 
 and a daughter of Matthew Hamilton Grove, 
 now of Bowling Green, Mo. They have two 
 children, Elsie Catherine and Claude Hugh. 
 Mrs. Newman is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. Politically Mr. Newman is a stanch 
 Democrat, and in the interests of his party has 
 served as clerk of the board and school trustee 
 for the Stone Corral district. Fraternally he be- 
 longs to the Modern Woodmen of America. 
 
 CHARLES FORSYTHE. Among the en- 
 terprising fruit and vine growers of Selma 
 there is probably no one more energetic or 
 persevering than Charles Forsythe, whose 
 name appears at the head of this sketch. By 
 birth and breeding, as well as by choice, he 
 is a farmer, and, notwithstanding a few re- 
 verses, has made substantial progress along 
 the highway to success, being the owner of a 
 fruit ranch that in its appointments, equip- 
 ments and productions compares well with 
 any in this section of Fresno county. He was 
 born September 25, 1861, in Perry county, 
 Ohio, which was also the birthplace of his 
 father, the late John Forsythe. 
 
 An extensive and prosperous agriculturist, 
 John Forsythe owned a farm of six hundred 
 acres in Perry county, Ohio, where he spent 
 his entire life. He was a man of excellent 
 business capacity, and a citizen of consider- 
 able prominence and influence. He died in 
 1896, aged eighty years. He married Hannah 
 Gobel, who was born in New Jersey and died 
 in Ohio on the home farm. Of the eleven 
 children, seven boys and four girls, born of 
 their union, Charles was the ninth child. 
 
 Until he was seventeen years old, Charles 
 Forsythe remained at home, attending the dis- 
 trict schools and assisting in the work inci- 
 dental to life on a large farm. Starting then 
 in life on his own account, he went to Colo- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1037 
 
 rado, at first locating in Silverton, San Juan 
 comity, where he was employed in freighting 
 and in a feed stable. Subsequently removing 
 to Durango, Colo., he was for a few years 
 employed in the grocery and queensware busi- 
 ness. Desirous of investing in land, Mr. For- 
 sythe came to California in 1890, locating in 
 Fresno county, seven miles north of Selma, 
 where he bought forty acres of land. He 
 spent much time and money in improving the 
 property, setting out a large vineyard, but 
 in the season of unusual depression that fol- 
 lowed soon after he lost the entire estate. 
 Nothing daunted, Mr. Forsythe, with charac- 
 teristic courage, in 1896 bought his present 
 ranch, which consists of sixty acres of land 
 lying two and one-half miles northeast of 
 Selma, on the line of the Centerville and 
 Kingsburg ditch. He pays especial attention 
 to the culture of the raisin grape, having a 
 fine vineyard of forty acres of bearing vines. 
 He also raises alfalfa on twenty acres of his 
 ranch, this crop being profitable and useful. 
 Mr. Forsythe is also a stockholder in the Co- 
 operative Winery, of Parlier and in the Selma 
 Co-operative Packing House. 
 
 In Fresno county, Cal., Mr. Forsythe mar- 
 ried Ina May Fine, a native of Oregon, and 
 they have one child, Ora. In his political af- 
 filiations Mr. Forsythe is a stanch Republican, 
 sustaining the principles of his party by voice 
 and vote. 
 
 MATTHEW W. GRACE. A son of George 
 W. and Elizabeth (Keller) Grace, Matthew W. 
 was born in Newton county, Mo., January 12, 
 i860. His father was a farmer and during the 
 Civil war enlisted in a Missouri regiment and 
 died during his term of service. Elizabeth Kel- 
 ler was a native of Missouri and a daughter of 
 David Keller, who was born in Pennsylvania and 
 became an early settler in Missouri. 
 
 When Matthew W. Grace was eight years of 
 age he accompanied his mother on her removal 
 to St. Charles county. Here he was brought up 
 on a farm and attended the district schools, re- 
 maining there until 1893 when he came to Cali- 
 fornia, first locating in Exeter, Tulare county. 
 Entering the employ of the Giant Oak Fruit 
 ranch he continued with this company two years 
 and then formed a partnership with Charles 
 Kirkman and engaged in the butcher business in 
 Exeter. The following year they opened a meat 
 market in Lindsay, Mr. Grace coming to the 
 latter place in 1896 to take charge of the mar- 
 ket which he continued to conduct until 1898. 
 In January of that year he received his appoint- 
 ment as postmaster of Lindsay, having filled that 
 position up to the present time. Mr. Grace has 
 
 found time to engage in other lines and now 
 deals in drugs, books and stationery, and has 
 met with success. Aside from his duties as 
 postmaster and merchant, Mr. Grace is also the 
 local manager for the Pacific States Telephone 
 and Telegraph Company. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Grace is a member of the 
 Woodmen of the World, the Fraternal Aid and 
 the Women of Woodcraft. Since coming to Cal- 
 ifornia he has taken a keen interest in politics. 
 Being a firm believer in the principles promul- 
 gated by the Republican party, he is ever ready 
 to work for the success of the party candidates. 
 He has met with success as the result of his own 
 efforts. Since reaching young manhood he has 
 had to make his own way in the world, and in 
 mjiking a success of his life he has gained posi- 
 tion and respect. 
 
 MARION KINMON HENDERSON. 
 Among the enterprising and substantial busi- 
 ness men of Lindsay, Tulare county, mention be- 
 longs to Marion K. Henderson, of the firm of 
 Henderson & McGregor, merchants of this place. 
 Mr. Henderson was born in Modesto^, Cal., July 
 31, 1871, a son of William G. Henderson, who 
 was a native of Harlan county, Ky., in which 
 state his parents lived and died, and where he 
 engaged in farming in young manhood. Decid- 
 ing to emigrate to the more remote west, he 
 crossed the plains with ox-teams in 1858. After 
 his safe arrival in the west he lived in various 
 places, among them Sonoma county and other 
 places north of the center. For a time he lo- 
 cated near Modesto. In 1873 he came to Tulare 
 county and located in the Mussel Slough coun- 
 try, near Grangeville,. and followed farming. 
 Later he removed to Upper North Tule river at 
 what is now Milo, and there his wife's death 
 occurred. For a time thereafter he removed 
 to the coast, when he returned to Tulare county 
 and now makes his home in Lindsay. His wife 
 was in maidenhood Nancy Ainsworth, a native 
 of Cedar county. Mo., whose father, Alfred Ains- 
 worth, crossed the plains with his family in 1857, 
 locating in Sonoma county, where his death 
 eventually occurred. Two children were born to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Henderson, Marion K. of this re- 
 view, and Ruby, the wife of Henry Dillon, of 
 Lindsay. 
 
 After the death of his mother, when he was 
 only four years old, Marion K. Henderson went 
 to live with an uncle, F. M. Ainsworth, and was 
 reared to manhood on the latter's farm on the 
 Tule river. At the age of eighteen years he be- 
 gan clerking at Daunt, where he also became as- 
 sistant postmaster. He then engaged m the 
 mercantile business for one year mdependently. 
 Coming to Lindsay in October, 1895, he was 
 
1038 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 one of the first business men of the place. It 
 was then only a small town, with no orange ship- 
 pers nor any enterprises worthy of mention. He 
 formed a partnership with W. I. Hodge, under 
 the firm name of Hodge & Henderson, and they 
 erected a store on the west side of the ■ South- 
 ern Pacific Railroad tracks and began a mer- 
 cantile business. Later they moved to the East 
 Side when thev shortly afterward dissolved part- 
 nership. Mr. 'Henderson continued the business 
 alone for one year, when, in 1900, the firm of 
 Henderson & McGregor was formed. They have 
 continued successfully to the present time, now 
 carrying agricultural implements in addition to 
 a line of general merchandise. Mr. Henderson 
 has also taken a strong interest in the growth 
 of oranges in this section, setting out an orchard 
 of fifteen acres of Washington navels. 
 
 In Oakland Mr. Henderson married Nellie J. 
 Seybolt, a native of Omaha, Neb., and they are 
 the parents of one daughter, Helen, and' an in- 
 fant son. Politically Mr. Henderson is a Dem- 
 ocrat. He was made a Mason in Portersville, 
 is now a member of Portersville Lodge No. 303, 
 F. & A. M., and Portersville Chapter No. 85, 
 R. A. M., also a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World. 
 
 JASPER NEWTON CROW, a rancher of 
 the Sycamore valley, Contra Costa county, was 
 born in central Missouri, January 22, 1833, the 
 second son of his parents, Lewis and Nancy 
 (Zumalt) Crow, both of whom were natives of 
 the same state. The father eventually located in 
 Lee county, Iowa, from which place the entire 
 family crossed the plains with ox-teams, arriv- 
 ing in California in September, 1853. '^^''^ ^^^^ 
 winter was spent in the Santa Clara valley, after 
 which they located in what has since been known 
 as Crow canyon, where the father and his five 
 sons each took up a quarter section of land. The 
 father became the owner of two hundred and 
 ninety acres, which is now in the possession of 
 John Lewis. Mr. Crow died at the age of sixty- 
 two years, while his wife lived to the ripe age 
 of eighty-seven. Besides Jasper N. they were 
 the parents of the following children : William 
 C, John J., Armilda J., Francis M., Lewis A. 
 and Olivia A. 
 
 Jasper N. Crow pre-empted a quarter section 
 of land at the same time that the rest of the 
 family located in Crow canyon. This he im- 
 proved and cultivated for some time, but finally 
 sold out. Since then he has rented property in 
 various locations, among them being Haywards, 
 Livermore, San Ra,mon, Tassajara, Pleasanton, 
 and in Sycamore valley, where he is now con- 
 ducting the Owens ranch. Mr. Crow has been 
 married twice, his first wife being Adelaide 
 
 Cline, a native of Oregon, who died at the age 
 of twenty-one years. In 1868 he married Jo- 
 sephine Williams, who was born in Oregon, the 
 daughter of David Williams. She died at the 
 age of forty-six years, leaving six children, 
 namely : Lewis D., a farmer, who married Nel- 
 lie Babbitts, by whom he has two children ; Irv- 
 ing Lewis, and Earl ; Nancy Jane, who married 
 Henry Christmann, by whom he has two chil- 
 dren, Gertrude and Henry; William, who mar- 
 ried Maggie Jones, and lives in Oakland; Leo- 
 nor, who married Lewis Eddy, and has one child, 
 Lola Evelyn, and two other children who died 
 in youth. 
 
 WILLIAM ANTONE YOST. One of the 
 many capable, trustworthy and respected citi- 
 zens of Fresno county is William Antone Yost, 
 a resident of Selma. He is actively associated 
 with the advancement of the agricultural and hor- 
 ticultural interests of this locality as a vineyardist 
 and fruit-grower, and as a contractor and build- 
 er is identified with its industrial prosperity. Of 
 German ancestry, he was born January 21, 1854, 
 in Pettis county. Mo., a son of the late John 
 Philip Yost. 
 
 A native of Germany, John Philip Yost was 
 bred and educated in the Fatherland, and there 
 learned the baker's trade. On attaining his ma- 
 jority he emigrated to this country, locating in 
 Morgan county, Mo., where he took up wild 
 land, from which he im.proved a farm. In 1850 
 he came with an ox team train across the plains 
 to California, paying his traveling expenses by 
 cooking for the party. Locating near a mining 
 camp, he worked in the mines three days, and 
 then opened a bakery, which he operated for a 
 year, in that time clearing three thousand dol- 
 lars. Returning to Missouri in 185 1, he re- 
 sumed farming, and continued in that occupa- 
 tion the ensuing twenty-five years. He married 
 EHzabeth Giles, a native of Kentucky, and they 
 spent the m.ost of their married life in Pettis 
 county, where their eight children were born. 
 In 1877 he and his wife came to Contra Costa 
 county, Cal, to visit their son, William An- 
 tone, and both died within two weeks' time, his 
 death occurring thirty-six hours after that of his 
 good wife. 
 
 The oldest child of his parents, William An- 
 tone Yost received such educational advantages 
 as were afforded by the district schools of his 
 native county, and was well trained in agricult- 
 ural pursuits by his father. Migrating to Cali- 
 fornia in 1876, he settled first near Kingsburg, 
 Fresno county, where he worked as a farm la- 
 borer for a while, and afterward as shareholder. 
 Going to Contra Costa county in the fall of 1877, 
 he rented land, which he carried on two years. 
 
/yuJiPru M. ^' 
 
HISTORICAL AND BtOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 104l 
 
 Returning to Fresno county in 1880, Mr. Yost 
 rented a ranch for two years, conducting it with 
 profitable results. In 1882 he bought, in Shaw's 
 colony, one and one-fourth miles northeast of 
 Selma, twenty-three and seven-tenths acres of 
 land lying on the Centreville and Kingsburg 
 ditch. 'He has made practical improvements on 
 his estate, setting out a vineyard and an orchard, 
 and on the remainder of the ranch raising al- 
 falfa. A natural mechanic, he is an expert in 
 the use of tools of all kinds, and in addition to 
 looking after his ranch carries on a substantial 
 business as a contractor and builder, having 
 learned the carpenter's trade by himself. 
 
 In T'ulare county, Cal., Mr. Yost married 
 Phoebe Purves, who was born in this state, and 
 they have five children, namely : , Philip Morse, 
 living near Selma ; William Henry of the United 
 States navy ; Albert Melvin, at home ; George 
 E. ; and Alice Marie. Politically Mr. Yost af- 
 filiates with the Republican party, and has served 
 as school director. Fraternally he is a member 
 of Selma Lodge No. 277, F. & A. M. ; the East- 
 ern Star, the Fraternal Aid, and Woodmen of 
 the World. 
 
 MILTON M. DALE. One of the largest in- 
 dividual dairymen in Tulare county, Milton M. 
 Dale is carrying on a successful business in the 
 vicinity of Poplar, and ranks socially with the 
 representative citizens of this section. A native 
 of Georgia, he was born near Carrollton, Carroll 
 county, September 16, 1866, a son of Valentine B. 
 and a grandson of John M. Dale, for further 
 information regarding whom refer to the sketch 
 of S. E. Dale, which appears elsewhere in this 
 volume. Valentine B. Dale is still living, mak- 
 ing his home on a farrn near Modesto, Stanis- 
 laus county. He was also a resident of Georgia 
 and served in Cobb's Legion, in a Georgia regi- 
 ment, during the Civil war. In 1869 he came 
 to California and located near Modesto, where he 
 homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres, which 
 still forms a part of the old home. His wife, 
 Susan Hinden in maidenhood, was a native of 
 Georgia, and the daughter of Benjamin Hinden, 
 a farmer of that state. She is also living and 
 enjoying the fruits of their early industry. They 
 were the parents of five sons and four daughters, 
 of whom one daughter is now deceased. 
 
 Milton M. Dale was the fifth in order of birth 
 in the family of his parents, practically his en- 
 tire life having been spent in California, where 
 he accompanied his parents when only three years 
 old. He was reared to young manhood in the 
 vicinity of Modesto, receiving his education in 
 the public schools and in Lytton Springs Col- 
 lege, of Sonoma county. He remained at home 
 until attaining his majority, when he came to 
 
 Tulare county, and in the vicinity of Poplar be- 
 gan grain-raising. For several years he con- 
 ducted this business, at times having as many 
 as twelve hundred acres in grain. Realizing the 
 risk he ran each year he soon discontinued his 
 efforts in the farming line and began to devote 
 his attention to stock-raising, having now a herd 
 made up largely of full-blooded and high-grade 
 stock, of Hclstein-Friesian cattle. In 1901 he 
 started his dairy, beginning with eighteen milch 
 cows, since which time he has increased the 
 number to fifty-five, and now has one of the most 
 extensive dairies in the county, owning his own 
 separator. His property, which consists of one 
 hundred and sixty acres, the northwest c|uarter 
 of section 4, township 22, range 26, one mile 
 and a half west of Poplar, is under irrigation 
 from the Poplar Irrigation Company ditch. Nine- 
 ty acres of the place are in alfalfa. Mr. Dale 
 pre-empted one hundred and sixty acres of land, 
 the northwest quarter of section 24, township 
 22, range 26, which he afterward sold. 
 
 In Poplar, May 5, 1896, Mr. Dale was united 
 in marriage with Mary Jones, a native of Stan- 
 islaus county, Cal. Her father, W. J. Jones, a 
 native of Tennessee, crossed the plains in 1850 
 and berame a farmer in Stanislaus county. He 
 is now located near Poplar, engaged in the rais- 
 ing of grain. His wife, formerly Lucy Bailey, 
 was a native of Georgia. They became the par- 
 ents . of seven children, of whom three are liv- 
 ing. Mrs. Dale was next to the oldest and was 
 reared to young womanhood in Tulare county. 
 Fraternally Mr. Dale is identified with the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen and Modern 
 Woodmen of America, and politically is a stanch 
 Democrat, being an ex-member of the county 
 central committee. 
 
 JOHN W. VAUGHN. A sturdy and indus- 
 trious tiller of the soil and one who is practical 
 in his methods, John W. Vaughn is recognized 
 as a prominent dairy farmer, residing in the 
 British colony, in Merced county, Cal., four and 
 a half miles' west of Merced. His productive 
 farm contains sixty acres of choice land and he 
 keeps from sixteen to twenty-five dairy cows, 
 has five acres in orchards, forty-five in alfalfa, 
 and the balance in pasturage. His place is well 
 improved and provided with excellent buildings, 
 adequate for the needs of the farm. Not least 
 among the improvements is the substantial two- 
 story residence surrounded by well-kept lawns, 
 ornamented with shrubs and choice rose bushes, 
 and in 1904 he erected a silo, the second to be 
 erected in his community. 
 
 Mr. Vaughn was born June 20, 1854, in Greene 
 county. Mo., a son of Thomas and Charity 
 (Denny) Vaughn, the former a native of North 
 
1042 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Carolina. He was a farmer by occupation and 
 in his boyhood days he left the south for a home 
 in Missouri, removing afterward to Tennessee, 
 but subsequently returning to Missouri, where 
 he spent three years. In 1851 he crossed over- 
 land to California behind ox teams and at Rough- 
 and-Ready Camp, near Marysville, followed 
 mining pursuits for a year. He came to Califor- 
 nia with a brother, Wilson Vaughn, and before 
 leaving home they had agreed not to part, so 
 when the latter was called home by his wife's 
 illness, Thomas accompanied him, and he re- 
 mained in Missouri until 1874, during this time 
 following farming and stock-raising. Li 1874, 
 accompanied by his family, including John W., 
 Thomas Vaughn went to Colorado and a short 
 time afterward located for a time in Prescott, 
 Ariz., pushing on to California in September, 
 1875. The family took up their abode in Santa 
 Ana, where the father died at the age of sixty- 
 six years. 
 
 Some time after the death of his father, John 
 W. Vaughn engaged in the livery business at 
 Pomona, Los Aijgeles county, where he contin- 
 ued to do a profitable business until 1893. Janu- 
 ary II, of that year, he came to Merced county 
 and purchased the farm where he now lives and 
 which has since been his home. While visiting 
 in Missouri, Mr. Vaughn was joined in mar- 
 riage with Miss Mary J. Ray, a native of that 
 state, and they have seven children, namely, 
 Effie M., Essie, Ray W., Percy H., William A., 
 Freda J. and Fay G. In politics Mr. Vaughn 
 has always affiliated with the Republican party, 
 and has ever been faithful and reliable. He is 
 a member of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, and as a man and a citizen he is of that 
 class which represents good government and sta- 
 bility. 
 
 ROBERT OSCAR NEWMAN. The New- 
 man family is one well represented in Tulare 
 county, the name standing for strong business 
 ability, keen and far-sighted discernment, as well 
 as a personal integrity which has won the con- 
 fidence and esteem of all those who have had 
 either business or social relations with the mem- 
 bers of the family. The family came originally 
 from the south, Jacob Newman being born in 
 North Carolina, the son of a patriot in the war 
 of 1812. Jacob Newman located in Booneville, 
 Mo., in 1821, where he became a farmer and 
 conducted a distillery, located one mile back from 
 the Missouri river. In 1854 he went to Texas 
 and located at Port Sullivan, where his death 
 occurred. In his family was a son named Jesse 
 G., who was born in Booneville, where he grew 
 to manhood, married and began farming in the 
 vicinity of the town. In 1849 '""^ crossed the 
 
 plains with ox teams and mined at Feather river, 
 but returned east in 1852. His death occurred 
 at Booneville, Mo., at the age of fifty-two years. 
 He was a prominent man in his community, be- 
 coming county judge of Cooper county, which 
 office he filled for eight years, and during the 
 Civil war (although he was a Democrat polit- 
 ically) he served for a time as captain of a com- 
 pany of Missouri Home Guards of the Federal 
 troops. Fraternally he was an Odd Fellow. His 
 wife, formerly Elizabeth Hill, was a native of 
 Kentucky, her father, James Hill, being a na- 
 tive of Mississippi, and an early settler in the 
 vicinity of Booneville, Mo., where he engaged 
 as a farmer. He was also prominent in public 
 affairs in Cooper county, where he served as the 
 first sheriff. His death occurred in the state of 
 his adoption. Mrs. Newman survived her hus- 
 band and died in Tulare county, Cal. They were 
 the parents of twelve children, of whom four 
 sons and two daughters are now living, namely: 
 Robert Oscar, of this review; Jesse H. ; Harry 
 Hill; Frank; Fannie, the wife of George P. 
 Robinson of Nevada; and Maggie, the widow 
 of Marion Grove, late of Visalia. 
 
 On July 4, 1848, occurred the birth of Robert 
 Oscar Newman, in Booneville, Mo. He was 
 reared on the paternal farm in the vicinity of 
 that place, receiving his education in the district 
 school, the Booneville school, and Allison's 
 Academy for boys in Booneville. For a time 
 during the Civil war he served as a member of 
 his father's company in the Home Guards, being 
 called out during Shelby's raid of 1863, and 
 Price's raid of 1864. In this latter raid Price 
 came to Booneville with thirty thousand men, 
 and as there were only one hundred and fifty 
 men in the Home Guards they were taken pris- 
 oners. Three days later they were paroled, while 
 this same raid proved the time of defeat for 
 Price, who was driven from Newton, Kans., to 
 Texas. After the war Mr. Newman engaged in 
 work on the home farm until he was twenty- 
 three years of age. In that year he went to 
 Elko, Nev., where he engaged in teaming into 
 the mountains for two years. After his father's 
 death he returned to Missouri to take charge of 
 the home farm, conducting the interests of the 
 place for his mother until 1882. He then bought 
 a farm adjoining the home place and kept it for 
 two years, when he sold out and came to Tulare 
 county, Cal. He first rented land on the Cotton- 
 wood, where he engaged in wheat farming, hav- 
 ing charge of four thousand acres of the ex- 
 tensive property owned by Fielding Bacon. He 
 ran a large farming outfit, having seven eight- 
 mule teams. In the fall of 1892 his assets 
 amounted to $25,000. Following his successful 
 career came the panic of 1893 and several dry 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1043 
 
 years, and with these reverses he once more 
 found himself at the beginning-. Undaunted, he 
 began again, in 1898 locating upon the property 
 which he now makes his home, the old Morgan 
 Beard ranch. He now conducts three hundred 
 and twenty acres devoted to grain and alfalfa, 
 and also runs six hundred and forty acres of the 
 old Fielding Bacon ranch. His principal occu- 
 pation now is the raising of fine trotting stock, 
 he being the only dealer in Tulare county who 
 has the regular Standard horses. In the past 
 few years in which he has engaged in this busi- 
 ness he has produced more record horses than 
 any other man in the San Joaquin valley, among 
 them being the following: Robert Easier, rec- 
 ord 2.20, by Antevolo, 2.19, son of Electioneer, 
 his dam being Elizabeth Basler; De Bernardi 
 Easier, 2.i6}i, by Robert Basler; Ida May, by 
 Grosvenor, the dam of Homeward, 2.13J4, by 
 Strathway, sired George G., record 2.06^ ; Dr. 
 W., 2.I2J4, by Robert Basler; Jonesa Basler, 
 2.1 1, by Robert Basler; Stoneway, record 2.22, 
 by Strathway, 2.19, whose dam was Elizabeth 
 Basler; sired Myway, record 2.22; Stoneleta, 
 record 2.20 at two years old. He owns at pres- 
 ent Robert Direct, three years old, by Direct, 
 record 2.05 >4, dam Daisy Basler, by Robert Bas- 
 ler, one of the finest bred horses in the United 
 States; Dew Drop Basler, by Robert Basler; Ida 
 May, by Grosvenor; Daisy Basler, by Robert 
 Basler; Wedding Bells, by Robert Basler; all 
 fine Standard bred mares. Mr. Newman is uni- 
 versally conceded to be one of the best judges of 
 equine flesh in California, or indeed in the United 
 States. He has given the subject able thought 
 and has brought about the best results to be ob- 
 tained in this line of work. For a time he also 
 dealt in cattle, having a fine herd of Jersey cows, 
 which, however, he sold recently. 
 
 In Booneville Mr. Newman was united in mar- 
 riage with Frances Ziegel, a native of Rochester, 
 N. Y., and the daughter of Andrew Ziegel, an 
 early settler of Missouri, where he farmed and 
 conducted a tannery. Born of this union were 
 seven children, namely : Grace, the wife of 
 Henry J. Lyman of Hilo, Hawaiian Islands; 
 Walter, attending the University of California, 
 class of 1906; Tracy, engaged in merchandising 
 in Portland, Ore. ; Elizabeth, a trained nurse lo- 
 cated in Honolulu ; Nellie, a member of the class 
 of 1905 of the Visalia high school ; Robert O., 
 Jr., attending the University of California, in 
 the class of 1908; and Lola, a member of the 
 class of 1908 of the Visalia high school. 
 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Newman is a 
 stanch Democrat and has always taken an active 
 interest in the support of the principles he en- 
 dorses. For the past eight years he has served 
 as a member of the county central committee 
 and has rendered efficient service. Progressive 
 
 and enterprising, Mr. Newman advocates all 
 movements calculated to advance the general 
 welfare, and is regarded as one of the most sub- 
 stantial and prominent citizens of Tulare county. 
 
 JOHN HOLMES HUNTLEY. A pioneer of 
 California since 1852, J. H. Huntley has been 
 a factor in the upbuilding of the state and of 
 Tulare county since 1865. He was born Sep- 
 tember 7, 1829, in Canajoharie, Montgomery 
 county, N. Y., a son of Oliver D. and Mary 
 (Stark) Huntley, the former born in Stoning- 
 ton, R. I., and the latter in Connecticut, a daugh- 
 ter of Joshua Stark, a farmer, who died in New 
 York. Mrs. Huntley died in New York when 
 her son, John H., was but six years of age. 
 Oliver D. Huntley learned the mercantile busi- 
 ness when a boy and followed that career for 
 ma.ny years. He was twice married; by each 
 union six children were born. His second wife 
 was a sister of his first wife. He died at the 
 age of sixty-five years. The Huntley family is 
 of Scotch ancestry. 
 
 John Holmes Huntley was the third child by 
 the first marriage; was reared and educated in 
 the public schools of his native county and Ames 
 Academy, and for two years found employment 
 in a law-book store in Albany. In 1852 he 
 started for California via the Nicaragua route, 
 and arrived in San Francisco in November of 
 that year. He went at once to the Sonora mines 
 in Tuolumne county, and then turned his atten- 
 tion to buying and selling stock until he enlisted 
 for service during the Civil war. In October, 
 i86r, he enlisted in Company E, Second Califor- 
 nia Cavalry, being mustered in at San Fran- 
 cisco. He served for a time against the Indians 
 on the northern border, and then was trans- 
 ferred to Tulare county, where he served in the 
 outbreak on Owens river, acting as sergeant- 
 major of a division of his regiment. He was 
 mustered out in 1864, after serving three years 
 and four days. 
 
 After the war he spent one year in the mines 
 in Nevada, then went to Tulare county and en- 
 gaged in money loaning in Tulare, Kern and 
 Fresno counties. He purchased land from time 
 to time, until his holdings amount to eight hun- 
 dred and forty acres in the San Joaquin valley, 
 devoted principally to stock-raising. His resi- 
 dence is located on the Mineral King road, two 
 miles east of Visalia. 
 
 August 23, 1879, Mr. Huntley was united in 
 marriage at San Rafael with Nina R. Willfard, 
 a native of Southampton, England. They are 
 the parents of two children, Willfard H., attend- 
 ing Heald's Business College, and Chester S., a 
 student in the Oakland Polytechnic. In 1900 he 
 
1044 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 moved his family to Berkeley to give better edu- 
 cational advantages to his children. 
 
 In politics a Republican, Mr. Huntley has 
 served the party in various offices of trust, being 
 deputy internal revenue collector for Tulare, 
 Kern, Inyo and Fresno counties for five years, 
 or until the office was abolished, and was gauger 
 of liquors and surveyor of stills, holding that 
 office until he resigned. He is a member of 
 General Wright Post, G. A. R., of Visalia. 
 
 In all matters that have advanced the social 
 and educational welfare of Tulare county, Mr. 
 Huntley has been an important factor. He is a 
 man of public spirit and strict integrity, and is 
 one of the best known men in the county. 
 
 JAMES R. "ROGERS, a valued citizen of 
 Merced county, Cal., and one of the successful 
 fig-growers of' the state, of which he is a pioneer 
 of 1850, was born November 14, 1826, in Old- 
 ham county, Ky. In tracing the ancestry of Mr. 
 Rogers it is found that he is a descendant of dis- 
 tinguished families of A'irginia on both paternal 
 and maternal sides. His father, Thomas Rogers, 
 was born in Spottsylvania county, of that state, 
 and his mother, Priscilla Chancellor, was a Vir- 
 ginian and a sister of Sanford Chancellor, a 
 wealthy miner and a member of a prominent 
 family of Virginia. Thomas Rogers followed 
 farming for a livelihood and as early as 1812 
 moved to Kentucky, and in that state the family 
 made their home until James R. was sixteen 
 years old. In 1842 they removed to Missouri, 
 the father becoming prominently identified with 
 that community, remaining there until his death 
 at the age of seventy-eight years. Four of his 
 children are still living, namely : Winslow, a 
 resident of Missouri, now eighty-eight years of 
 age; William, a retired rancher of Santa Rosa, 
 Cal. ; George, a resident of Solano county ; and 
 James R. 
 
 The boyhood' days of Mr. Rogers were spent 
 on a farm and at sixteen he accompanied his 
 parents to Missouri, where he lived until his 
 twenty-fifth year. In 1850 he came overland to 
 California, the train of which he was a member 
 consisting of about forty people. His first month 
 in California was spent in the mines; he then 
 went to the entrance to Grass valley and con- 
 ducted a hotel for a year and a half, after which 
 he spent some time in both the northern and 
 southern mines. Before the close of 1852 he 
 was homeward bound and while crossing the 
 Isthmus of Panama saw for the first time a rail- 
 road. The following year he again left Missouri 
 with the Williams party for California, and upon 
 his arrival, was married in Sacramento to Polly 
 Ann Williams and took up his residence in So- 
 
 noma county, near Santa Rosa. He afterward 
 bought four hundred acres of land in Solano 
 county near Vacaville, which he put out in or- 
 chard and lived upon it for forty years. 
 
 In 1896 Mr. Rogers came to Merced county 
 and August 15 of that year he purchased his 
 home place of fifty acres four and a half miles 
 northeast of Merced, in partnership with his son, 
 S. M. Rogers. Mr. Rogers has his entire place 
 planted in figs, having six hundred and fifty-two 
 trees which are now thirteen years old. These 
 trees yielded in 1902 twenty tons and the fruit 
 was sold on the trees for $750. In 1903 the yield 
 was the same, but $100 additional was realized 
 for the sale of the fruit in the same way. Mr. 
 Rogers has upon this place a comfortable resi- 
 dence containing eleven rooms, and fitted 
 throughout with all modern improvements. His 
 wife died in 1865, leaving three children, Com- 
 modore P., Seldan M., and Zilla, deceased. By 
 his second marriage, in 1866, he was united with 
 Laura Church, a native of Pontiac, Mich., who 
 was born in 1844, and came to California in 
 1865. Two children were born of this union, 
 namely : Celia May and Bertie Agnes, the latter 
 the wife of Bert Hatch. The family unite in 
 worshipping at the Christian Church, of which 
 Mr. ancl Mrs. Rogers are active members. Mr. 
 Rogers is a member of Merced Lodge No. 97, 
 F. & A. M., having been made a Mason in Vaca- 
 ville Lodge No. 133, F. & A. M. 
 
 JOHN B. OSBORN. A successful business 
 man and influential citizen of Atwater, Merced 
 county, is John B. Osborn, since 1892 a resident 
 of this place and a participant in all movements 
 calculated to advance the general welfare of the 
 community. A native Californian, he was born 
 in San Joaquin county, October 10, 1858, a son 
 of Henry A. Osborn, who came to this state in 
 1852. The latter was a native of Woodbury, 
 Conn., where he was born February 13, 1828. 
 He remained in the east until attaining manhood, 
 when he came to California by way of the Isth- 
 mus of Panama, on his arrival engaging in 
 freighting out of Stockton. After some years 
 he found employment in ranching, which occu- 
 pied his attention for some time, after which he 
 entered upon a mercantile life in Turlock, Stan- 
 islaus county, where he has since remained, 
 meeting with success in his work and establish- 
 ing himself in the business life of that section. 
 His wife, formerly Minerva J. Baker, is a native 
 of Pennsylvania and the daughter of W. J. 
 Baker, an early settler of California. The chil- 
 dren born of their union are named in order of 
 birth as follows : William, of San Francisco ; 
 John B., of this review ; Ellen, who married 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1047 
 
 Clark Coulthard, of Fresno county; Edward, 
 who is in business with his father; and Mary, 
 the wife of Albert Owen, of Atwater. 
 
 After spending his youth in Turlock, John B. 
 Osborn came to Atwater in 1892, accepting a 
 position as agent for the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road at this place, and retaining the same with 
 credit to himself until April 15, 1904. In the 
 same year he also engaged in the mercantile 
 business here, purchasing a small store, and 
 building up in the passing years a custom which 
 has justified him in the erection of his present 
 commodious building, which he put up in 1902. 
 He carries a large and complete stock of general 
 merchandise and caters to a large trade through- 
 out this part of the county, his conservative 
 methods and unswerving integrity having won 
 for him many friends. In addition to his mer- 
 cantile interests Mr. Osborn owns a seventy-five 
 acre peach orchard, and four hundred and eighty 
 acres of stock range, located four miles -from At- 
 water, and well stocked with cattle. He also 
 deals largely in sweet potatoes, shipping in a 
 single season over two hundred carloads. 
 
 In Stanislaus county Mr. Osborn was united 
 in marriage with Mattie B. Legallee, a native 
 of Iowa, and they have one son, Charles A. In 
 his political convictions Mr. Osborn is a Repub- 
 lican, and is a popular and progressive man. 
 Fraternally he is associated with the Knights of 
 Pythias. 
 
 R. PORTER PUTNAM. Conspicuous 
 among the early pioneers of Tulare county was 
 the late R. Porter Putnam, who settled near Por- 
 tersville when the town was in its infancy, and 
 resided here until his death. With pleasure and 
 gratification he watched its rapid and healthful 
 development, in the meantime taking an active 
 part in the work necessary to accomplish such 
 an achievement. He became identified with the' 
 agricultural interests of this part of the county, 
 and was the pioneer merchant of the young town, 
 which in his honor was named Portersville. He 
 came of distinguished New England ancestry, 
 being a kinsman of Gen. Israel Putnam, a hero 
 of the Revolutionary war. His parents, Thomas 
 and Zilpha (Porterl Putnam, were life-long 
 residents of Pennsylvania, and there reared their 
 five children, of whom R. Porter was the young- 
 est, his birth occurring August 5, 1837, in Cov- 
 ington, Pa. 
 
 At the age of eighteen years, having acquired 
 an excellent common school education, R. Por- 
 ter Putnam took charge of his father's store, in 
 Covington, Pa., remaining thus employed for two 
 years. In 1857 he started with a train of gov- 
 ernment wagons for California, and while cross- 
 ing the plains did guard duty. Being taken ill 
 
 while on the way, the party continued the journey 
 without him, leaving him lying under a tree. 
 The Indians were very kind, bringing him wa- 
 ter, and watching him carefully,, but not of- 
 fering to molest him. Being picked up by the 
 next train that came along, Mr. Putnam went 
 with that party to Fort Yuma, at the junction of 
 the Gila and Colorado rivers, and as soon as he 
 was able, made his way to Los Angeles, Cal., 
 arriving October 14, 1858. For a few weeks he 
 worked on Colonel Banning's ranch as a day lab- 
 orer. On December 3 he started with the Over- 
 land Stage Company for the Kern river, coming 
 to Tulare county, and locating about ten miles 
 from Visalia. Unable on account of ill health to 
 do any hard manual labor, Mr. Putnam entered 
 the employ of the stage company, receiving $30 
 a month. Locating in what is now Portersville 
 in 1859, lis built a small store and hotel, which 
 became a meeting place for the cowboys, who in- 
 variably spoke of going up to "Porter's," and the 
 name thus became so familiar that when the town 
 was laid out and incorporated it was called Por- 
 tersville in his honor. Mr. Putnam also erected 
 a blacksmith's shop, and was engaged in general 
 ranching, owning some land in his vicinity. As 
 a merchant he was very popular and successful, 
 and carried on an extensive dry goods business 
 until his death, in 1889. 
 
 In Bainbridge, Chenango county, N. Y., Mr. 
 Putnam married Mnry J. Packard, a native of 
 that state, and the daughter of Anson Packard, 
 a blacksmith and a life-long resident of the Em- 
 pire State. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Put- 
 nam two children were born, namely : William 
 Porter, of Portersville ; and Frank O., a general 
 merchant in Campbell, Cal. Identified with the 
 Democratic party, Mr. Putnam was one of the 
 most faithful supporters of its principles, and 
 though not an aspirant for political honors 
 served one term as associate judge. 
 
 WARNER I. HODG^. Horatio Hodge, the 
 father of Warner I., was a native of New York 
 state, and on reaching his majority he became 
 a pioneer settler of Jackson county, Mich., and 
 here Warner I. Hodge was born, November 7, 
 1 85 1. In the same year his father started for 
 the gold fields of California, coming by way of 
 the Isthmus of Panama. While crossing the isth- 
 mus he contracted the yellow fever and died 
 there. His wife, who was Savilla Clark, a native 
 of Vermont, came to California in 1885 and died 
 here. 
 
 Senator H. C. Flodge, a brother of Horatio 
 and a farmer near Concord, Mich., took charge 
 of Warner after his father's death. His moth- 
 er married the second time, a Mr. Clement be- 
 coming her husband. They then lived in Iowa 
 
1048 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and at Lincoln, Neb., on Goat Island, where War- 
 ner I. remained until he was twenty years of 
 age, when he went to live with his uncle, the 
 senator, who was residing at Concord. 
 
 In 1876 he returned to Nebraska and secured 
 employment as a clerk at Firth. Later he went 
 to Oregon and Idaho where three years were 
 spent. In 1884 Mr. Hodge came to Tulare coun- 
 ty, first living at Visalia, where he was engaged 
 in clerking. A year later he secured a posi- 
 tion with the Coburn Lumber Company, on the 
 Tule river and here he remained for eight years, 
 acting as general superintendent and manager 
 of the store and mill. 
 
 In 1895 another change was made, this time 
 coming to Lindsay, where he formed a partner- 
 ship with M. K. Henderson under the firm name 
 of Hodge & Henderson. Continuing here un- 
 til 1897, he disposed of his interest in the firm 
 and became interested in the real estate busi- 
 ness. He is now dealing quite extensively in 
 colony lands, farms, etc., meeting with good 
 success in his operations. 
 
 In Tulare county, March, 1886, Mr. Hodge 
 married Eva M. Coburn, a native of Maine and 
 a sister of A. M. Coburn of Springville. They 
 have three children, namely : J- Herbert, Dora 
 Mae and Allen. 
 
 Mr. Hodge takes an active interest in the 
 Republican party. Fraternally he is a member 
 of the Woodmen of the World and the Indepen- 
 dent Order of Odd Fellows. Ever since start- 
 ing out in life he has had to make his own way 
 in the world. His efforts have been well re- 
 warded as the result of his abilitv to make the 
 best of opportunities. Since engaging in the 
 real estate business he has demonstrated his 
 adaptability for this line of business. Both he 
 and his wife have a large circle of friends. 
 
 WILLIAM THORNTON. This well-known 
 rancher, now practically a retired resident of 
 Merced county, Cal., was born in county Kerry, 
 Ireland, November 15, 1840, and is a son of 
 John Thornton, a prosperous farmer of that 
 country. Reared on his father's farm and edu- 
 cated in the land of his nativity, Mr. Thornton, 
 at the age of twenty-four, in 1864, left Ireland 
 for a home in the United States, and upon his 
 arrival came direct to California and took up 
 his residence in Napa county, Cal, where he 
 worked five years on a ranch as hired man, and 
 having been economical, he accumulated some 
 capital. With this, in 1868 he purchased two 
 hundred and thirteen acres of land in Merced 
 county, a part of the place upon which he now 
 resides. By additional purchases from time to 
 time he has acquired a farm of seven hundred 
 and forty-two acres. 
 
 The intervening years of Mr. Thornton's life 
 have been spent in the active cultivation of the 
 soil, raising grain and stock. His ranch is lo- 
 cated four miles southwest of Merced. In 1904 
 his land was divided as follows, this being an 
 average, three hundred and fifty acres in barley, 
 sixty-five in wheat, six in alfalfa and the rest 
 in pasture; having also one hundred and ten 
 head of high-grade cattle, a small number being 
 choice dairy cows, and forty head of sheep. 
 Although he is in poor health, he manages the 
 work on his farm. He wedded Julia Whalen, 
 also a native of county Kerry, Ireland, and they 
 have eight children, as follows : Patrick, Mary, 
 Maggie, John, Anna, Rose, William and Joseph. 
 In politics Mr. Thornton is a conscientious Dem- 
 ocrat and votes to uphold the principles of that 
 party with the convictions of a man who believes 
 he is right and dares to maintain his position.- 
 He is a member of the Catholic Church. 
 
 ^ SAMUEL H. FERRIL. An only child, Mr. 
 Ferril was born in Saline county. Mo., near Mar- 
 shall, April 13, 1872, a son of David and Cyn- 
 thia (Wheeler) Ferril. The father was also a 
 native of Missouri, being a son of Henry Fer- 
 ril, who migrated to that state from Kentucky, 
 settling at Miami, where he lived the remainder 
 of his Hfe, dying at a ripe old age. 
 
 David Ferril passed his boyhood on his fath- 
 er's farm and in early manhood learned the car- 
 penter's trade, which he followed in connection 
 with farniing. In the early '50s he crossed the 
 plains with ox-teams, coming to California, 
 where he lived a few years, when he returned 
 to Missouri. He engaged in farming and con- 
 tracting and building until 1881, when he again 
 came to California, locating in Fresno county, 
 where he purchased land upon which part of the 
 town of Sanger now stands. Here he lived until 
 his death in 1887. During the Civil war he was 
 in General Shelby's brigade. His wife, who in 
 maidenhood was Cynthia Wheeler, was born in 
 Slater, Mo., a daughter of Samuel Wheeler. The 
 year after her husband's death, Mrs. Ferril sold 
 the farm at Sanger and purchased the prop- 
 ert}' now owned by her son. Here she lived 
 until her death, September 3, 1894, past the age 
 of sixty years. 
 
 Samuel H. Ferril was reared on a fann in 
 Saline county, -Mo., where he lived until his 
 parents came to California. While he was com- 
 pelled to assist his father who was in poor health, 
 he was permitted to attend the district schools, 
 and in this way received a good common school 
 education. At the age of nineteen he began 
 farming his mother's place. From the first he 
 made a success of the business and now owns 
 two hundred and forty acres adjoining the town 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1049 
 
 of Exeter. Here he has one of the finest ranches 
 in Tulare county, devoting the whole to grain 
 and stock-raising. In Farmersville he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Carrie Mades, a daugh- 
 ter of Philip Mades and a native of Missouri. 
 She is the mother of one child, Virgie. 
 
 Mr. Ferril takes a prominent part in lodge 
 work, being one of the enthusiastic members of 
 the local lodge of the Knights of Pythias. He 
 also belongs to the Uniform Rank and has done 
 much to further the interests of the order in this 
 section of the county. He also holds member- 
 ship in the Woodmen o'f the World. In politics 
 he supports the men and measures of the Demo- 
 cratic party, but has neither the time nor in- 
 clination to take an active part in political mat- 
 ters. Socially he and his wife are popular and 
 have a bright future. 
 
 JAMES KIRK. As proprietor of the Kirk 
 hotel, James Kirk is represented among the 
 prominent and successful business men of Exe- 
 ter. In connection with his son, he has just com- 
 pleted the finest business building in Exeter, a 
 two-story brick block, known as the Kirk build- 
 ing, given over entirely to the interests of the 
 hotel with the exception of a large room de- 
 signed for a general merchandise establishment. 
 It is universally conceded by the traveling pub- 
 lic that there is no finer hotel for its size in the 
 San Joaquin valley, with its' well-arranged 
 rooms, large, light and airy, complete in all ap- 
 pointments, and always presenting a gratifying 
 appearance of neatness and cleanliness. Born in 
 Marshfield, Webster county, Mo., April 26, 1856, 
 James Kirk is the son of Isaiah Kirk, a native of 
 Alabama. 
 
 The Kirk family came originally from Scot- 
 land and located in the southern part of the Unit- 
 ed States. John Kirk, a native of Alabama, mar- 
 ried into a German family prominent in the state, 
 and after some years removed to Missouri, where 
 he engaged as a farmer and stockman until his 
 death at an advanced age in 1890. His son, Is- 
 aiah Kirk, followed the same occupation in 
 Greene county (now Webster county), at the 
 breaking out of the Civil war enlisting in Com- 
 pany K, Twenty-fourth Missouri Volunteer In- 
 fantry and serving as corporal until the close of 
 hostilities. Returning to civil life he engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits until his death in 1899, at 
 the age of seventy-five years. He was very 
 prominent man in his community, serving as 
 justice of the peace and school officer for many 
 years, while he held the office of postmaster at 
 Mornington for twenty years. He was always 
 a stanch Republican in his political convictions 
 and was active in local aiifairs. His wife, for- 
 merly Minerva Atkisson, was born in middle 
 
 Tennessee, a daughter of Benjamin Atkisson, 
 also of that state, who settled in Missouri as 
 a farmer and died during the Civil war. Mrs. 
 Kirk died on the old home place, leaving a family 
 of three sons and eight daughters, of whom ten 
 children are now Hving. 
 
 The fourth in his father's family, James Kirk 
 was reared on the paternal farm. He received 
 excellent educational advantages, attending the 
 district schools and Mountaindale Seminary, and 
 later the Henderson Academy, graduating from 
 the last named at an early age. He began teach- 
 ing at the age of nineteen years, continuing in 
 the work in Greene and Webster counties for 
 a period of fourteen years. Coming to Cali- 
 fornia in 1890 he located in Exeter, which had 
 then but one store and a postoffice. The fol- 
 lowing year he built his home, the first two- 
 story residence in Exeter, and engaged in the in- 
 surance business, representing different insur- 
 ance companies. In 1891 he was appointed jus- 
 tice of the peace, and since then has been elected 
 three different times, serving seven years. In 
 connection with insurance he dealt in real estate, 
 in which he met with success. In 1896 he estab- 
 lished a general merchandise store, in which 
 business he has continued up to the present time, 
 this interest now being conducted by his son. 
 In 1904 he planned and built the Kirk hotel 
 block, a two-story brick building, 60x88 feet in 
 dimensions, while the store on the corner has a 
 dimension of 32x60 feet, with an addition 16x24 
 feet. The merchandise business is conducted un- 
 der the firm name of James Kirk & Son. On 
 Sunday, October 30, 1904, the Kirk hotel was 
 opened for business, and bids fair to prove one 
 of the most important enterprises of the city. Mr. 
 Kirk owns a ranch of forty acres near Exeter. 
 
 In Webster county, Mo., August 25, 1881, 
 James Kirk was united in marriage with Ala- 
 bama Thomas, a native of Missouri, and they 
 are the parents of four children, namely: Ed- 
 gar, manager of the store ; Ethel ; Elbert and 
 Ezeta, all at home. In national politics Mr. 
 Kirk is a Republican, while locally he gives his 
 support to the man whom he considers best 
 qualified for public office. 
 
 FRED GILL. A successful stockman of Tu- 
 lare county, Fred Gill is located in Yokohl and 
 Frazier valleys and Epperson Flat, where he has 
 large herds of cattle, roaming over fifteen thou- 
 sand acres of land, which he and his brother 
 own in partnership. He is a native of Iowa, 
 where he was borfi April 13, 1869, the third in 
 a family of five sons and four daughters, all of 
 whom are living except one daughter and one 
 son. His parents, L. L. and Eliza Gill, were 
 both natives of Iowa, the father being a stock- 
 
1050 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 man. He brought his family to California in 
 1874, locating in Yokohl valley, where he bought 
 a farm. Later he removed to Frazier valley, 
 where he now makes his home on -a well-tended 
 and improved ranch, still engaged in the raising 
 of cattle. 
 
 But five years old when he came to California, 
 Fred Gill has spent practically his entire life 
 within the confines of this state. He was edu- 
 cated in the district schools of Yokohl and Fra- 
 zier valleys, after which he engaged with his 
 father in the stock business until he was twenty- 
 six years old. Entering the business for him- 
 self in 1895, he located in the Frazier valley and 
 with his brother, William Gill, conducted the 
 business for a time. Later they located in Yo- 
 kohl valley and increased their stock with Dur- 
 ham and Hereford cattle. They now own three 
 thousand acres in the Frazier valley, upon which 
 is located a number of springs, which furnish 
 an ample supply of water the year around. They 
 have two ranches in the Yokohl valley of five 
 thousand and six thousand acres, the former 
 being the home property of Mr. Gill, while the 
 latter is located two miles east. A ranch in Ep- 
 person Flat contains one thousand acres. In 
 addition to devoting much time to cattle they 
 also deal largely in horses, raising from sevent)'- 
 five to one hundred head, among which are draft 
 horses and roadsters, while their cattle number 
 over a thousand. They are extensively inter- 
 ested in the business and have met with uniform 
 success in their operations, holding the esteem 
 and respect of all for the business qualities, the 
 executive ability and the energy which have dis- 
 tinguished them in their efforts. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Gill was married to Carrie 
 Hickman, a native of Tulare county, aiid the 
 daughter of Alexander Hickman, a pioneer 
 stockman who resides in Mountain View, this 
 state. They are the parents of two children, Roy 
 and Emmet. Politically Mr. Gill is a stanch 
 .adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. 
 
 McLEES BROTHERS. George W. and 
 Martin C. McLees are sons of J. H. McLees 
 and were born in Ontario, Canada, Oxford coun- 
 ty, near Norwich. J. H. McLees was also a 
 native of the same place and a son of James 
 McLees, a sketch of whom will be found in con- 
 nection with that of Edmund McLees. J. H. 
 McLees now makes his home in Lindsay, where 
 he is living in the enjoyment of a good old age. 
 He married Elma Cornwell, who was born in 
 Norwich, Ontario. 
 
 George W. McLees was the second in a family 
 of three children. Both he and his younger 
 brother, Martin C, were brought up on a farm 
 
 in Ontario, receiving their education in the dis- 
 trict schools. In 1899 the father purchased a 
 young orange grove near Lindsay, and in 1900 
 both the brothers came to California, becoming 
 interested in the orange industry. The year after 
 their arrival here George W. purchased ten acres 
 which adjoins the old place. In all the brothers 
 now own some twenty acres, three-quarters of a 
 mile west of Lindsav, and during the season of 
 1904 the McLees orchard was one of the banner 
 ones of the count}'. 
 
 In 1904 the brothers, with others, erected the 
 Independent Packing House in Lindsay and or- 
 ganized the Independent Packing Company, of 
 which George W. is the secretary. Mr. McLees 
 has also become interested with other parties, and 
 in company with Mclndoo bought one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land two miles west of Lind- 
 say. This has been subdivided into ten-acre 
 tracts, and all has been sold to people who have 
 converted the land into bearing orange groves. 
 
 Fraternally both gentlemen are members of 
 the Woodmen of the World and the Fraternal 
 Aid, and both are Republicans. They are meet- 
 ing with excellent success in their business un- 
 dertakings. 
 
 SCHUYLER A. BARBER, M. D. The suc- 
 cess achieved by Dr. Barber has been entirely 
 the result of his own efforts, directed by the en- 
 ergy and ambition which are distinguishing char- 
 acteristics of the members of this family. In 
 Portersville, where he is located, and the sur- 
 rounding country, he is held in the highest es- 
 teem for the ability he has evinced in his profes- 
 sion, the earnestness and thought he gives to his 
 work, and the spirit in which he ministers to the 
 needs of .suffering humanity. A native of Wol- 
 cottville. La Grange county, Ind., he was born 
 September 20, 1872, and was next to the young- 
 est in a family of seven daughters and two sons. 
 His father, Leonard Barber, was born in Ohio, 
 in which state the paternal grandfather had be- 
 come an early settler from New York. In young 
 manhood Leonard Barber entered Jefferson Med- 
 ical College of Philadelphia, from which he was 
 graduated with the degree of M. D. He located 
 in Kendallville, Noble county, Ind., where he 
 engaged in the practice of medicine, and later 
 in Wolcottville, where his death occurred. He 
 was a Knight Templar, and politically was a 
 stanch Republican. His wife, formerly Adeline 
 Alleman, a native of New York state, survives 
 him, now making her residence in the old home 
 in Indiana. 
 
 In Wolcottville Schuyler A. Barber was reared 
 until 1888, receiving his education in the public 
 and high schools of that place, graduating from 
 the latter when sixteen years of age. After his 
 
c^ 
 
 ^:^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1053 
 
 father's death he came west to Cahfornia and 
 in Tulare City found employment as a clerk in 
 a lawyer's office, where he remained eighteen 
 months. He then came to Portersville and with 
 his brother-in-law, W. W. Henry, established a 
 nursery, raising orange and lemon trees princi- 
 pally, and succeeded in building up a lucrative 
 business. His business career, however, was 
 only a means toward an end, for it enabled him 
 to take up the study which had been the ambition 
 of his life. Disposing of his interest in the 
 nursery in 1896, he entered Cooper Medical Col- 
 lege of San Francisco, from which he was grad- 
 uated in the fall of 1899, after a four years' 
 course, with the degree of M. D. He immedi- 
 ately returned to Portersville, where his ability 
 in business lines had won him recognition, and 
 has since demonstrated the talent which inspired 
 his love for his chosen profession. He has met 
 with success as a physician and surgeon, and 
 holds high rank among professional men of the 
 vicinity of Portersville. He has built up an ex- 
 tended practice, which has brought him satis- 
 factory returns. In addition to his profession he 
 is also interested in orange growing to some ex- 
 tent and gives some time and attention to this 
 work. 
 
 In San Francisco Dr. Barber was united in 
 marriage with Edith F. Henry, a native of La 
 Grange county, Ind., and the daughter of Oliver 
 0. Henry, who is represented on another page 
 in this volume. Born to the doctor and his wife 
 is one son, Philip Schuyler. Dr. Barber is city 
 health officer and examining ■ physician for six 
 of the old line life insurance companies, as well 
 as the Woodmen of the World, Modern Wood- 
 men of America and Independent Order of For- 
 esters, being a member of these three orders. 
 Politically he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 JOSEPH KING. One of Merced county's 
 substantial citizens and up-to-date farmers near 
 LeGrand, Cal., is Joseph King, who owns a two- 
 thousand-acre ranch four miles east of the city, 
 upon which he is successfully engaged in the 
 raising of grain. Prior to his occupancy of the 
 land in 1892 it was used as a sheep ranch. Mr. 
 King was born in the Azores Islands, Portugal, 
 in December, 185 1, a son of Frank and Isabel 
 King, honored residents of his native country. 
 
 Leaving home at the age of nineteen years, 
 Joseph King first followed the sea, cruising for 
 three years on the South Pacific ocean and on 
 the coast of Africa. In 1873 he came to the 
 United States, locating first in Pennsylvania, 
 where he again took up a sea-faring life, sailing 
 on Lake Erie for a short time. He later went to 
 Texas, but returned to Pennsylvania the same 
 year. In 1874 he came to California, spending 
 
 the winter of 1874-75 in Sonoma county, and in 
 the spring of 1875 settled in Stanislaus county. 
 Remaining there until 1892 he then located in 
 Merced county, upon the ranch which has since 
 been his home. Upon locating in Stanislaus 
 county Mr. King was united in marriage with 
 Miss Mary Mendonca, also born in the Azores, 
 the ceremony being performed in Bedford, Mass. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. King seven 
 children have been born, namely : Emma (the 
 wife of Manuel Ray, of Merced county), Frank, 
 William, Julia, Mamie, Joseph, Jr., and Bessie. 
 The family are highly esteemed in the community 
 in which they make their home. Fraternally Mr. 
 King is an Odd Fellow, having been identified 
 with the order for over nineteen years, and is a 
 member of the Encampment. In his political 
 opinions he is a Republican. 
 
 CHARLES ORTON COWLES holds a place 
 in the esteem of his fellow citizens which has 
 been won by the rare qualities and sterling traits 
 of his character. Broad-minded, liberal and en- 
 terprising, he has proved a potent factor in the 
 development and upbuilding of this section of 
 Tulare county, being numbered among the most 
 successful orange growers in the vicinity of 
 Lindsay. Born in Rochester, N. Y., February 
 16, 1867, he is the third in a family of five sons 
 and one daughter, of whom four sons are now 
 living. His father, Norman Benjamin Cowles, 
 was also a native of the same place, his grand- 
 father, Joseph Cowles, having located near that 
 city from his birthplace in Massachusetts. The 
 elder man engaged as a farmer until his death. 
 Norman B. Cowles became a farmer on property 
 at Brighton, East Rochester. This he sold in 
 1884 and moved near Jeflferson, Ohio, locating 
 on an extensive farm, which he occupied for a 
 number of years, then retired from active life, 
 making his home in Jefferson. He is- a promi- 
 nent man in his community, a stanch Repub- 
 lican, as such serving as supervisor for several 
 terms. He volunteered for service in the Civil 
 war but was rejected. His wife, formerly 
 Frances Green, born in Massachusetts, a daugh- 
 ter of Daniel Green, who settled near Rochester, 
 N. Y., as a farmer, is still living at the age of 
 sixty-nine years, being three years the senior of 
 Mr. Cowles. 
 
 Until 1884 Charles Orton Cowles remained in 
 New York, where he attended the public schools, 
 and after the removal to Jefferson, Ohio, he be- 
 came a student in the high school of that place. 
 Following this he attended the Williams & Rog- 
 ers Business College, of Rochester, N. Y. In 
 1890 he came as far west as Colorado, locating 
 at Boulder, where he engaged in clerking. De- 
 ciding to locate on the coast, he came to Call- 
 
1054 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 fornia in January, 1892, and in Butte county 
 found employment in a nursery and orange or- 
 chard. Having become interested in Tulare 
 county, he bought a five-acre tract at Lindsay 
 and in the spring of 1893 set it to fruit. In 
 1900 he bought another tract of five acres just 
 across the road from his first purchase, and in 
 1903 followed this with the purchase of sixteen 
 and a half acres a half mile from Lindsay, having 
 now twenty-six and a half acres of Washington 
 navels in full bearing. He purchased seventy- 
 seven acres of unimproved land in 1905, which he 
 intends putting in oranges. His places are 
 equipped with two pumping plants, operated by 
 eight and a half horse power, irrigating the en- 
 tire ranch. In June, 1900, he built his hand- 
 some residence, which is located a quarter of a 
 mile from the Lindsay depot. 
 
 Mr. Cowles is also associated with the Roch- 
 dale Association, in which he is a stockholder. 
 Politically he is a stanch adherent of the princi- 
 ples advocated in the platform of the Repub- 
 lican party, and fraternally affiliates with the 
 Woodmen of the World, and also the Fraternal 
 Aid. He is a member of the Baptist Church, in 
 which he officiates as a deacon, being chairman 
 of the board, and for ten years has held the 
 office of superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
 
 JOHN P. BERGER. A resident of Lindsay 
 since 1893, Mr. Berger has improved his time 
 and is now the owner of as fine a ranch as 
 can be found in this section of Tulare county. 
 He is what America is proud to call a self-made 
 man. Ever since reaching man's estate he has 
 made his own way in the world, and while he is 
 not a wealthy man, he has accumulated a com- 
 fortable competency. Born in Iowa, he is a son 
 of Enos Berger, a native of Richmond, Va. In 
 early life his father removed to Indianapolis, 
 Ind., where he was one of the first to engage in 
 the lumber manufacturing business. Later he mi- 
 grated to Iowa where he entered land and again 
 engaged in the lumber and milling business. He 
 was the founder of the town of Winterset. After 
 several years spent in Iowa he settled in Ne- 
 braska, at Rock Bluflf, Cass county. There he 
 became a large land owner and was also inter- 
 ested in the milling business until he came to Cali- 
 fornia in 1886. Settling in San Jose, he lived 
 a retired life until his death at the age of eighty- 
 three_ years. While in Iowa he took an active 
 part in political matters and for three terms was 
 treasurer of Madison county. Enos Berger was 
 united in marriage with Elizabeth Wallace, a 
 native of Delaware. Her death occurred in San 
 Jose at the age of seventy-seven years. The chil- 
 dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Berger, are as fol- 
 lows : Josephine, wife of S. S. Alley, of Cass 
 
 county, Neb. ; Mary, wife of G. L. Seybolt, of 
 Alameda; Annie, who became the wife of S. R. 
 Johnson, of San Jose; James, a resident of Cass 
 county. Neb. ; George, in San Jose ; and John P., 
 the youngest of the family. 
 
 John P. Berger was born January 15, 1857, 
 in Cass county, Neb., where he attended the dis- 
 trict schools, the only educational advantages of- 
 fered boys in those early days. Remaining at 
 home with his father until reaching his twenty- 
 first year he then struck out to make an inde- 
 pendent living, first engaging in farming, but in 
 a short time he became interested in the drug 
 business at Beaver City, Neb., where he con- 
 tinued a short time. His next location was at 
 Hay Springs, Neb., where he entered into a gen- 
 eral merchandise business, and after carrying on 
 a successful business at this place for some time 
 he sold out. Removing to Boxbutte county he 
 became a large land owner and laid out the town 
 of Berea, where he again engaged in the gen- 
 eral merchandise business. He also served as 
 postmaster of the town for a time. In 1892 he 
 arrived in California, and for a year was in 
 charge of a fruit ranch near the city of San 
 Jose, and then, as stated before, he came to Lind- 
 say in 1893 and purchased twenty acres of land, 
 ten now being devoted to oranges while He ex- 
 pects to have the balance planted in a short time. 
 This place is improved with modern appliances, 
 including a pumping plant equipped with a five 
 horse power electric motor which has a capacity 
 of four thousand gallons per hour. 
 
 Since locating in Lindsay Mr. Berger mar- 
 ried Minnie E. Halliburton, who was born in 
 Tulare county, a daughter of William Hallibur- 
 ton, who up to the time of his death was engaged 
 in ranching near Lindsay. One child, Thurston 
 Wallace, has been born to them. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Berger is a member of the 
 Woodmen of the World and the Knights of 
 Pythias. In political belief he supports the men 
 and measures of the Republican party, but he 
 has never had time to take an active part in 
 public affairs. Still, no man. in the county is 
 more ready to perform the duties devolving upon 
 him. 
 
 J. E. FENLEY. As a farmer and stockman. 
 J. E. Fenley occupies a place among the repre- 
 sentative men of Tulare county, where he has 
 been located since 1888. A native of Missouri, 
 he was born in Callaway county November 9, 
 1866, his father, T. H. Fenley, also being a native 
 of the same locality. The elder man was a 
 farmer and stockman in Missouri until he came 
 to California, locating near Winters, Yolo 
 county, where he is now retired at the age of 
 
lilSTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1055 
 
 eighty years. His wife, formerly Carrie Jane 
 Baker, was born in Missouri and died in Cali- 
 fornia. Of the eleven children born of this 
 union eight attained maturity and seven are now 
 living. 
 
 The ninth in the family of his parents, J. E. 
 Fenley was reared to young manhood on the pa- 
 ternal farm in Missouri, receiving his education 
 at the district school in the vicinity of his home. 
 He remained at home until 1884, in which year 
 he came to California and located at Winters, 
 Yolo county, where a brother had previously 
 settled. He found employment on a farm during 
 the summer months, following which he engaged 
 as a. clerk in the town of Winters for a period 
 of three years. In 1888 he came to Tulare county 
 and located on the plains, where he has since 
 improved and cultivated a farm of six hundred 
 and forty acres on section 22, township 17, range 
 25. He has devoted his time and attention prin- 
 cipally to the raising of grain and stock, while 
 he also raises some alfalfa. He has a pumping 
 plant on his property, equipped with a five-inch 
 pump, a thousand gallons an hour being sup- 
 plied for irrigation purposes. He has erected 
 ample and substantial buildings for all purposes, 
 among them a handsome and comfortable resi- 
 dence. 
 
 In Tulare county Mr. Fenley was united in 
 marriage with Etta Calcote, a native of the 
 county, and a daughter of Allen Calcote and 
 sister of William Calcote, whose sketch appears 
 upon another page of this volume. They are 
 now the parents of two children, Arlie and Carl. 
 In his political affiliations a Democrat, Mr. Fen- 
 ley has been and is one of the stanch supporters 
 of these principles in this section. In the inter- 
 ests of educational lines, he has served as school 
 trustee for three years. 
 
 WILLIAM HOWARD. Probably no man in 
 Tulare county has had a more roving or adven- 
 turous life than the one whose name introduces 
 this review. Since early manhood he has trav- 
 eled much of the time, and while it is only pos- 
 sible for us to give an outline of his career, 
 his life, if fully written, would be of intense in- 
 terest to the reader. 
 
 A native of the Keystone state, Mr. Howard 
 was born in what is now Wyoming county, July 
 II, 1833. His father, Charles, was also a native 
 of Pennsylvania, and was the first white male 
 child born in the vicinity of Wilkesbarre. By 
 trade he was a cabinet maker, but in later life 
 was employed as a lock keeper on the Lehigh 
 canal. His last days were spent in Luzerne 
 county, where he worked for a coal mining con- 
 cern. He married Sarah Blakslee, a native of 
 Connecticut, who became the mother of seven 
 
 children, our subject being the eldest and the 
 only one living in this state. Two sons lost 
 their lives in the Civil war, one being killed and 
 the other dying of small-pox. 
 
 William Howard was reared and educated in 
 the country about Wilkesbarre. At the age of 
 seventeen he was apprenticed to learn the marble 
 cutter's trade. In 1854 he was married to Miss 
 Rosalia Peck, after which they migrated to the 
 westward, Mr. Howard following his trade in 
 different states. At the time of the breaking 
 out of the Civil war he was living in Tennessee, 
 being overseer of a plantation. Later he received 
 a government appointment as assistant assessor 
 of the internal revenue department at Nashville, 
 where he lived until the close of the war. Soon 
 after he went to Alabama to engage in growing 
 cotton, the product at the time being worth $1.25 
 per pound, but a year later the price went down 
 to six and nine cents, and after one year de- 
 voted to this industry he sold out and started for 
 Texas, but before reaching his destination 
 changed his mind and went to Venezuela. There 
 he joined a colony that had received a grant of 
 land from the government. A year was spent on 
 the Orinoco river, when Jie returned to the 
 United States, finally locating in Michigan, 
 where he was employed by the United States 
 Government Coast Survey. His first wife hav- 
 ing died two years after their marriage, Mr. 
 Howard was again married while in Michigan 
 and shortly after he engaged in farming and 
 stock-raising, continuing in this until the Wa- 
 bash railroad cut his farm up, when he sold and 
 engaged in a mercantile business, which he con- 
 ducted for eight years. At this time his wife 
 died, so he disposed of his store and next located 
 in Ocean Springs, Miss., where he followed 
 farming, and where he was again married, but 
 four years later his wife died, and he then came 
 to California, arriving in Tulare county in De- 
 cember, 1890. Locating in Goshen he purchased 
 a small store, which he conducted for three 
 years, when he enlarged his store and has since 
 carried on a general merchandising business. 
 
 In January, 1892, Mr. Howard married Mrs. 
 Cora (Kirkland) Halstead, who was born in 
 Mississippi and is a daughter of William Pitt 
 Kirkland, a native of Baton Rouge, and by pro- 
 fession an attorney and newspaper man. Later 
 in life Mr. Kirkland removed to the Isthmus of 
 Panama, where he conducted a hotel until 1864, 
 when he came to San Francisco and engaged 
 in the restaurant business. In 1870 he took up 
 his residence in Tulare county, engaging in the 
 grocery business at Visalia. He finally removed 
 to Auckland, where he lived at the time of his 
 death. His wife bore the maiden name of Louisa 
 Wilson and was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her 
 father, William, was a merchant there, where he 
 
1056 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lived at the time of his death. iVIr. and Mrs. 
 Kirkland were the parents of ten children, seven 
 of whom are now living, Mrs. Howard being 
 the eldest. Much of her earlier life was spent 
 on the Isthmus, although two years were de- 
 voted to schooling in Brooklyn, N. Y. She re- 
 mained at home until 1866, when she was united 
 in marriage with James Halstead, who crossed 
 the plains in 1854. After leaving home he en- 
 gaged in farming and stock-raising, which vo- 
 cation he was following near Visalia at the time 
 of his death in 1888, at the age of forty-six 
 years. By this union Mrs. Howard became the 
 mother of four children : Erminie, now Mrs. 
 Morrow of Visalia; William Franklin, residing 
 near Layton ; Robert Edward, who is a con- 
 tractor and builder in Los Angeles, and Harry 
 D., at home. Mrs. Howard and her children 
 own one hundred and twenty acres of land three 
 miles southeast of Goshen and one hundred and 
 sixty acres in the Isham valley. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Howard have maiiy 
 friends, and while the former has Hved in Goshen 
 but a few years and is a man well advanced in 
 years, he is still very active and one who can be 
 reUed upon to do his duty as a citizen. 
 
 ALPHONSE V/EILL. The distinction of 
 being the longest-established merchant in 
 Bakcrsfield, Kern county, belongs to Alphonse 
 Weill, who has been engaged in mercantile 
 pursuits here for upward of thirty years. Be- 
 ginning business in a small way, he built up 
 a good patronage, and as the demand for his 
 goods increased he, from time to time, en- 
 larged both stock and store, and is now carry- 
 ing on a thriving trade. Since the completion 
 of the Weill block, which he erected on Nine- 
 teenth street, between Chester avenue and K 
 street, he has occupied the whole of the first 
 floor, devoting one room to hardware, one to 
 groceries, and one to dry goods, managing, in 
 fact, a department store. 
 
 Born December 21, 1852, in A:lsa;ce-Lor- 
 raine, then in France, Alphonse Weill was 
 brought up and educated in his native country, 
 and was there employed as a clerk for a short 
 time. Immigrating tO' the United States at 
 the age of eighteen years, he disembarked in 
 New York City in June, 1870. Two weeks 
 later he came to California and located first 
 in Havilah, then the county seat of Kern 
 county. This section of the state was then 
 but sparsely populated, there being nO' rail- 
 ways in the valley, and but little to invite the 
 attention of the new-comer. For a year he 
 engaged in clerking there, and was afterward 
 similarly employed in San Francisco for an- 
 other year. Settling in Bakersfield in Septem- 
 
 ber, 1872, Mr. Weill worked for about a year 
 as a clerk, and then started in business on his 
 own account. Putting in a small stock of 
 general merchandise, he devoted his entire at- 
 tention and energy to the details of his busi- 
 ness, which has grown to a large proportion, 
 and is now one of the most extensive and 
 lucrative in this part of the county. A man 
 of much enterprise, public-spirited and pro- 
 gressive, Mr. Weill has been the encourager 
 and promoter of different beneficial projects, 
 and was one of the original stockholders of the 
 Southern hotel and of the Bakersfield water 
 works, although not now a shareholder in 
 either. He is one of the principal owners and 
 incorporators of the Jewett Oil Company, 
 which has valuable producing oil property in 
 Kern county. In 1889 Mr. Weill sustained a 
 great loss by the burning of his first block, 
 which he built in 1887, but he has rebuilt it, 
 and now occupies the entire first floor. His 
 residence is pleasantly located at the corner 
 of Seventeenth and H streets, and is ever 
 open to his large circle of friends and acquaint- 
 ances. 
 
 October 15, 1882, Mr. Weill married Henri- 
 etta Levy, of San Francisco, and they have 
 four children, namely Blanche, who was 
 graduated from the University of California 
 in igoo; Irma, a student in the same institu- 
 tion ; Adele, and Lawrence, attending the 
 Bakersfield high school. Politically Mr. Weill 
 is a stanch Republican, but has never been 
 an aspirant for official honors. Fraternally 
 he belongs to Bakersfield Lodge, F. & A. M., 
 which he joined in 1873 or 1874; to the Benev- 
 olent Protective Order of Elks, and to the 
 Eagles. 
 
 ALFRED EDWIN PRUNER. A native of 
 Lodi, Washington county, Va., Alfred Edwin 
 Pruner was born October 30, 1852. His father, 
 James M., was also a native of Virginia, where 
 he engaged in farming and also worked at the 
 wagon maker's trade. He took an active part in 
 county affairs, and at the time of his death was 
 the treasurer of Smith county, Va. James M. 
 Pruner married Fanny Sever, a native of Wythe 
 county, Va. She is still living and makes her 
 home in her native state. By this marriage eight 
 children were born. Two of the sons served in 
 a Virginia regiment during the Civil war. 
 
 Alfred Edwin Pruner was brought up on his 
 father's farm and remained at home until reach- 
 ing his nineteenth year. Leaving home he went 
 to Wytheville, where he served an apprentice- 
 ship at the cabinet maker's trade. After three 
 years he removed to Jefferson, N. C, where he 
 continued working at his trade. At the expira- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1061 
 
 tion of his stay in Jefferson he took up his resi- 
 dence in Washington county, where he hved 
 seven years, working at his trade all the time. 
 Hearing much of the splendid opportunities of- 
 fered the ambitious in Cahfornia, he came to 
 the coast in 1901 and located in Exeter, where 
 he secured employment as a carpenter. The 
 same "summer of his arrival he purchased sixty 
 acres of land adjoining Exeter on the northeast. 
 At the time of purchase the land was a wheat 
 field, but with characteristic energy Mr. Pruner 
 at once began the improvement of his land, and 
 now has one of the finest vineyards in this sec- 
 tion of the county. In partnership with a friend 
 he has installed a pumping plant which has a 
 capacity of irrigating one hundred and forty 
 acres of land, the water being secured from a 
 well one hundred and twenty-eight feet deep. 
 In addition to his vineyard, Mr. Pruner also 
 owns land in Exeter, where he lives. 
 
 In Washington county, Va., Mr. Pruner was 
 united in marriage with Pattie Rosenbaum, who 
 is a native of the same state. Six children have 
 been born to Mr. and Mrs. Pruner, namely : J. 
 Ottie M., Charles D., Pearle, Emma, Myrtle and 
 Edwin, all of whom are living at home. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Pruner is a member of the 
 Odd Fellows, having united with the order while 
 still a resident of Virginia. In politics he votes 
 the Republican ticket, but has never had the 
 time to take an active part in public affairs. Both 
 he and his wife are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church and take a deep interest in 
 religious work. 
 
 Mr. Pruner has made his own way in the 
 world since leaving home. He has made the most 
 of his opportunities and is now in a position to 
 enjoy the latter years of his life. Surrounded 
 by all the comforts and many of the luxuries, he 
 can look back upon the past "and feel that he has 
 no regrets. In his battle with life he has been 
 fortunate in having the assistance of a most es- 
 timable wife, who has never failed him. To her 
 he owes much. 
 
 WILLIAM HENRY SAY. Enterprising, 
 ambitious, and of keen perceptions, William 
 Henry Say, of Selma, is a prominent agricultur- 
 ist, and one of the most successful business men 
 of Fresno county. He is a man of untiring effort 
 and indomitable courage, and in his various un- 
 dertakings- has had the encouragement and sup- 
 port of his wife, who is equally as brave and un- 
 fiinching as he. One of California's native sons, 
 he was born August 2, 1864, in Mendocino 
 county, of pioneer stock. 
 
 James H. Say, father of William H., was born 
 and brought up in Venango county, Pa. In 
 1853, sailing by way of the Isthmus, he came to 
 
 California, and for ten years or more was suc- 
 cessfully engaged in mining in Placerville. The 
 following ten years he was employed in general 
 ranching in Mendocino county, and then, in 1874, 
 located in Fresno county. He pre-empted and 
 purchased three hundred and twenty acres of 
 land lying five miles northeast of Selma, and also 
 bought other tracts of land, becoming quite a 
 holder of real estate. A part of the time he re- 
 sided in Selma, where he erected the Renfro 
 hotel, which was burned in 1890, and a part of 
 the time lived on his home ranch. He died Oc- 
 tober 14, 1902. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Laura Jane Coats, was born in Wisconsin 
 in 1855, and now owns and occupies the home 
 ranch. She bore her husband six children, four 
 sons and two daughters, William Henry being 
 the firstborn of the household. 
 
 Having completed his early education in the 
 district schools, William Henry Say was well 
 trained in agricultural and horticultural pursuits 
 by his father. Beginning Hfe for himself at the 
 age of eighteen years, he bought a vineyard of 
 sixty acres lying north of the town, and subse- 
 quently purchased one hundred and sixty acres 
 of land lying south of Selma, eighty acres of 
 which he devoted to the culture of grapes, and 
 eighty acres to . the raising of alfalfa. In the 
 management of his ranches, Mr. Say met with 
 most satisfactory results, reaping bountiful har- 
 vests each season. His home ranch, adjoining the 
 city of Selma on the northeast, contains thirty- 
 seven acres of rich and arable land, ten acres of 
 which he devotes to the raising of fruit, while 
 on the remainder he sows alfalfa, which he finds 
 a profitable crop. 
 
 In 1898, with characteristic enterprise, Mr. 
 Say went with the crowd of gold-seekers to Daw- 
 son City, Alaska. Locating in the town of Grand 
 Forks, he bought claim No. 6, on the Bonanza 
 creek, and claim No. 48 on the Eldorado, and 
 was there employed in mining until October, 
 1901'. Coming back to California in that month, 
 he remained here until the following spring, 
 when he returned to Alaska. On May 24, 1902, 
 he sold his claims for a snug sum, clearing from 
 $50,000 to $75,000, and on June 2, 1902, was 
 again back in Fresno county. Very soon after 
 he bought his home ranch, alluded to above, and 
 has since resided in Selma. 
 
 In 1884, in Fresno county, near Selma, Mr. 
 Say was united in marriage with Mary E. De 
 Witt, who was born in Missouri, a daughter of 
 T. B. DeWitt. Mr. DeWitt, a native of old 
 Virginia, was a pioneer settler of Missouri, liv- 
 ing first in Sullivan and later in Adair county. 
 In 1883, on account of ill health, he, accompanied 
 by his -daughter Mary, came to California, and 
 was so pleased with the climate that in 1884 he 
 returned to Missouri for the remaining mem- 
 
1062 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 bers of his family. Locating on a ranch five 
 miles northeast of Selma, he was there engaged 
 in the raising of fruit, grapes and alfalfa until 
 his death, in 1891, at the age of fifty-seven years. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Say two chddren 
 have been born, namely: DeWitt H., who died 
 at the age of four years, and Harry Lyle. Mrs. 
 Say has made three trips to Alaska, making her 
 first trip in 1899, and taking her baby with her. 
 In the fall of 1900, she came back to California 
 to put her young son in school here, and Novem- 
 ber 29 of that year started north across the ice, 
 arriving at Dawson December 30. In October, 
 1 90 1, she came with her husl5and to Selma, and 
 subsequently accompanied him on his trip to and 
 from Alaska in the spring of 1902. Politically 
 Mr. Say is a Republican. Fraternally he is a 
 member of Selma Lodge No. 309, I. O. O. F. ; 
 of Selma Encampment No. 176; of the Rebekahs 
 and of Selma Circle, and of the Woodmen of the 
 World. Mrs. Say is a member and secretary of 
 Selma Lodge No. 178, Daughters of Rebekah, 
 and of Selma Lodge No. 191, Women of Wood- 
 craft. 
 
 JAMES WILLIAM CENTER POGUE. It 
 is especially pleasing for the biographer to write 
 a sketch of a man who is as deserving as Mr. 
 Pogue. A son of John Pogue, he was born in 
 Greene county, Tenn., June I, 1839. The father 
 was also a native of the same state and was a 
 son of another John, who was born in Virginia 
 of Scotch-Irish descent. The first of the fam- 
 ily to come to America were three brothers, who 
 landed on the James river in 1740. All owned 
 plantations below Richmond and were very 
 wealthy people. The grandfather of our sub- 
 ject was a first lieutenant in a Virginia Light 
 Horse Cavalry and served with distinction dur- 
 ing the Revolutionary war. The father, John, 
 was a farmer and stock-raiser in Tennessee, 
 where he died at the age of about fifty years. 
 He married Sarah McConnell, who was born in 
 Tennessee, and whose father immigrated to this 
 country from the north of Ireland. She died 
 in her native state on the same day as her hus- 
 band, and they were buried in the same grave. 
 Of this union but one child was born, James 
 William Center, although he had several half 
 brothers and sisters, two of whom came to Cali- 
 fornia, but are now deceased. 
 
 Left an orphan at the tender age of three 
 months, James William Center Pogue lived with 
 his grandmother Pogue until her death, when 
 he was but two years old. After this he went 
 to live with a brother and sister, who moved to 
 Missouri, where he was given the advantages of 
 a subscription school education. At the age of 
 seventeen he, accompanied by his brother and 
 
 sister, started for the Pacific coast. The trip 
 was made overland with ox teams, the start being 
 made on April 15, 1857. From Missouri the 
 old trail to Fort Bridger was followed, and 
 from there the Dawson route was taken as far as 
 Humboldt. Then the party took the Honey Lake 
 trail to Red Bluff, arriving at the latter place 
 late in September. After a short stop at Red 
 Bluff, the journey was continued to Santa Rosa, 
 where the brother, John, purchased land and 
 engaged in farming, Mr. Pogue remaining with 
 him until 1859. In that year he was united in 
 marriage with Nancy M. Blair, whose father, 
 Rev. Jonathan, was a pioneer Presbyterian min- 
 ister of California. Soon after marriage Mr. 
 Pogue removed to Little Lake valley, Mendo- 
 cino county, where he took up a government 
 claim of eighty acres and engaged in the stock 
 business until 1862. In that year he came to 
 Tulare county, where he has since made his 
 home. The first location Mr. Pogue made was 
 at Venice, on the St. John's river, where he 
 followed farming and teaming. In 1864, with 
 the money he had saved from his earnings, he 
 purchased two hundred and forty acres on Bravo 
 lake. This tract he improved, and after a time 
 engaged in the stock business, but the flood of 
 1868 proved very disastrous, washing awav much 
 of his land. It was a hard blow, but with an 
 energy that has made for him his present posi- 
 tion of affluence, he again started in, this time lo- 
 cating at Limekiln, on the Kaweah, where he 
 was soon the owner of five hundred acres of 
 land, on which he resumed general farming and 
 stock-raising. As time passed he continued to 
 add to his first purchase, and later became inter- 
 ested in the sheep business with two partners, 
 O W. Crocker and W. H. Wallace. This com- 
 bination continued for several years, and at one 
 time they owned ten thousand acres, which was 
 known as the Cove ranch, Mr. Pogue being the 
 superintendent. Mr. Wallace died in 1881, and 
 after the division was made with the estate, Mr. 
 Pogue purchased the interest of the other part- 
 ner, becoming the sole owner of six thousand 
 acres. On this he carried on an extensive stock 
 business for several years, much of the land 
 still remaining in his possession. 
 
 In 1877 Mr. Pogue began experimenting with 
 the growing of oranges and lemons. Up to this 
 time it was thought impossible to grow this fruit 
 in this section on account of the frosts. Twenty 
 orange and lemon trees were set out in his or- 
 chard, the irrigation being done the first year 
 with buckets, but the following year a ditch was 
 made, and as the trees grew they showed great 
 vitality and were not injured by the frost. In 
 1885 George Patten examined the fruit and ad- 
 vised Mr. Pogue to send sample boxes to the 
 Los Angeles fair. This was done and as a re- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1063 
 
 suit the fruit received a high award and created 
 quite an excitement among horticulturists, which 
 was responsible for the starting of the citrus 
 fruit industry in Tulare county. A demand for 
 land was at once made and Mr. Pogue disposed 
 of four hundred acres at $75 per acre. Since 
 then he has sold to various people, in all dispos- 
 ing of over one thousand acres, all of which is 
 devoted to the growing of oranges and lemons. 
 Thus the name, "Lemon Cove," came in a per- 
 fectly natural manner. Under great disadvan- 
 tages Mr. Pogue dug the Lemon Cove ditch, 
 which is now owned by a company, but at the 
 time it was constructed no one would invest in 
 the ' enterprise, as the plan was not considered 
 feasible. Every one knows the result, as this 
 whole country is now irrigated with ditches. 
 
 As a result of the marriage of Mr. Pogue and 
 Nancy Blair the following children were born : 
 Martha L., who became the wife of W. H. Mof- 
 fett of Visalia ; Nancy E., now Mrs. Crook- 
 shank of Dinuba; J. Earl, postmaster and head 
 of Pogue Bros., Lemon Cove ; Thomas A., of 
 Pogue Bros.; Sarah Eva, who is a professional 
 nurse, having graduated from the Hollenbrock 
 Sanitarium, now lives in San Francisco; Olive, 
 now Mrs. F. M. Mixter of San Francisco, and 
 Nora Alice, the wife of Dr. D. V. Montgomery 
 of Lemon Cove. The mother of this large fam- 
 ily is now deceased, dying in 1891. 
 
 In politics Mr. Pogue is a Democrat, and at 
 different times has been very active in county 
 affairs, having served two terms as supervisor. 
 He was also school tru«tee for eight years, and 
 during this time did much to assist in building 
 up the schools of his district. Fraternally he 
 is a Royal Arch Mason and also belongs to the 
 Visalia Commandery K. T. In religious mat- 
 ters he is a Presbyterian. In all these various 
 organizations he has taken an active interest, 
 helping in every way possible to further their 
 welfare. By industry and economy he has at- 
 tained a position which he is well qualified to 
 fill. Throughout the county he is well known, 
 and in all sections has hosts of friends. By de- 
 veloping and experimenting with the citrus fruit 
 industry he has done more than the ordinary man 
 for this county. It is now one of the greatest 
 sources of income for thousands, and places Tu- 
 lare county well up as one of the leading coun- 
 ties of the state. 
 
 ELIAS JACOB holds a place in the 
 of the citizens of Tulare county which 
 be effaced with the passing years. So 
 energy he gave to the upbuilding of his 
 fortunes, so much of success he won, 
 achievements are pointed out with pride 
 who worked with him, side by side, in 
 
 memory 
 will not 
 much of 
 personal 
 that his 
 by those 
 the pio- 
 
 neer days of the state. Parallel with his own 
 interests he gave his efforts toward the upbuild- 
 ing of the country, its development, improve- 
 ment and cultivation, taking a strong interest in 
 all movements which tended toward the general 
 advancement of the community. Unlike man 
 citizens whose efforts have won success, his per- 
 sonal success meant the upbuilding of the coun- 
 try's best interests, and the broadening of com- 
 mercial, political and social affairs. 
 
 Born in Germany in 1841, Elias Jacob was 
 the son of German parents, his father being a 
 merchant in his native country. With the sturdy 
 independence characteristic of the German lad, 
 he came to California when only twelve years 
 old. In Stockton he found employment in a 
 dry-goods store, which position he retained un- 
 til 1856. Deciding to see a little more of the 
 country before locating permanently, he started 
 southward, spending one year at Millerton, then 
 the county seat of Fresno county, after which 
 he came to Visalia and took charge of his broth- 
 er-in-law's store in this city. After the death of 
 his brother-in-law, H. Mitchell, in 1859, he be- 
 came his successor, whereupon he enlarged the 
 store and continued the business until 1876. 
 During these years he opened several stores in 
 Fresno and Tulare counties, and met with the 
 same success. On account of declining health 
 he retired from a mercantile life in 1876, and 
 gave himself up entirely to that occupation 
 which ever afterward engrossed his attention. 
 In the years following he became the owner of 
 land in Tulare county, estimated at forty-five 
 thousand acres; the largest tract in one body is 
 eight thousand acres, and in some years the en- 
 tire acreage was sowed to wheat. An improve- 
 ment of incalculable benefit to his property has 
 been the artesian wells which he has made, on 
 some tracts having as many as eight wells, which 
 average a flow of two hundred and eighty thou- 
 sand gallons of water in twenty-four hours, the 
 water being used both for irrigation and stock 
 purposes. During his mercantile employment 
 Mr. Jacob was one of the strongest supporters 
 in the opening up of irrigation ditches, and this 
 brought him manifold returns, as the lands he 
 then acquired have become very valuable by rea- 
 son of the water supply. The stock upon this 
 vast estate up to the present time, has remained 
 intact. He erected many residences in Visalia, 
 all of which still belong to the estate. 
 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Jacob always 
 gave his support to the Democratic party, and 
 was one of its most influential adherents in 
 Tulare county. Personally undesirous of the 
 honors of public office, he repeatedly declined to 
 accept such as his 'party wished to bestow upon 
 him, but at the same time gave his strongest ef- 
 forts to promote the principles he endorsed and 
 
1064 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 add to the power of the party in the county. For 
 many years he served as a member of both the 
 county and state Democratic committees and was 
 looked upon as a man of broad influence, pro- 
 gressive views, as a Democrat loyal to his party, 
 and a citizen loyal to the best interests of the 
 country. Fraternally he was a Royal Arch 
 Mason, an honor conferred upon him by this 
 organization being his appointment as orator at 
 the laying of the corner-stone of the Tulare 
 county court house by the grand master of the 
 state. 
 
 The death of Mr. Jacob occurred October i, 
 1902, removing from the old associations of 
 worth and work a man known and appreciated 
 for his personal characteristics, and a citizen 
 whose best efforts were ever given toward public 
 advancement. His name is honored and will be 
 remembered as long as Tulare county continues 
 to be a prosperous agricultural center and Visalia 
 a city of financial and commercial importance. 
 He made many friends who mourn his loss. 
 
 JAMES ROBERT BAXTER. Among the 
 reliable citizens of Merced county, Cal, mention 
 should be made of James Robert Baxter, who 
 is engaged in farming, having spent his entire 
 life in this occupation. A native of San Joaquin 
 county, born April 23, 1872, when two years of 
 age he was brought to Merced county, and upon 
 his father's farm in the vicinity of LeGrand re- 
 ceived his early training. Supplementing his 
 education in the local district schools by a course 
 in the San Francisco Business College, he then 
 turned his attention to farm work and has since 
 followed a life of consistent industry. He has 
 attained success in a business way, and in pri- 
 vate life is esteemed by all who know him. 
 
 The Baxter family is of Scotch origin, the 
 paternal grandfather, David Baxter, a native of 
 Scotland, immigrating as a young man to Amer- 
 ica and settling in the Dominion of Canada. Some 
 time afterward he married Helen Waugh, a na- 
 tiveof Canada, and they lived on a farm in that 
 section of the country, where Mr. Baxter died 
 in 1849. Their son, James C. Baxter, father of 
 James R., was born in Nova Scotia, Canada, 
 March 19, 1841, and grew to manhood upon his 
 father's farm, remaining at home until he had 
 attained the age of twenty-seven years. In 1868 
 he came to California by way of the Panama 
 route. He landed at San Francisco, going from 
 there to San Joaquin county, where he rented 
 land for five years. 
 
 In 1871 he visited Merced county with a view 
 to_ locating here, and being favorably impressed 
 with the outlook he purchased land in 1873, six 
 miles east of LeGrand, near the Madera county 
 line. Here in time he acquired twenty-seven hun- 
 
 dred acres of land and raised grain on an exten- 
 sive scale. He is now living retired, the ranch 
 being conducted by his sons, to each of whom he 
 has given a half section of land. While a resi- 
 dent of Canada he married Agnes Miller, a na- 
 tive of that country, and they have six children 
 living, namely : George W. ; Maggie E., the wife 
 of E. D. Kahl ; James R. ; David A. ; Mabel A., 
 and John J. The eldest son has a ranch near 
 the home place, owning three-quarters of a sec- 
 tion of land and renting other farms. John J. 
 is a resident of Oakland, Cal. The elder Mr. 
 Baxter is a Republican in his political convic- 
 tions, and fraternally is allied with the Ancient 
 Order of Workmen. The religious views of the 
 family incline toward the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 The home ranch of twenty-seven hundred acres 
 is well cared for by Jam.es R. and David A., and 
 in addition the former purchased another sec- 
 tion of land adjoining the home ranch. The 
 brothers raise barley and wheat, and some atten- 
 tion is paid to raising fine graded horses and 
 mules. The marriage of James R. Baxter united 
 him with Jessie Frances Brandon, who was also 
 born in the San Joaquin valley, the daughter of 
 A. Brandon, whose biography appears elsewhere 
 in this volume. Two children have blessed the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. Baxter, Robert Brandon 
 and James Harold. Like his father, an unswerv- 
 ing Republican, Mr. Baxter has contributed much 
 toward the success of his party in this community, 
 and fraternally he is a member of the Modern 
 Woodmen of America and the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows. A man of marked ability 
 and an ideal farmer, it is needless to add that 
 Mr. Baxter stands foremost among the repre- 
 sentative men of his locality, and his popularity 
 among his fellow-citizens was attested when, 
 November 8, 1904, he was elected supervisor of 
 District No. 2, of Merced county. 
 
 MRS. AMELIA (SIMPSON) CAVA- 
 NAGH. Among the many women who are 
 prominent in the horticultural life of California 
 Mrs. Amelia (Simpson) Cavanagh is deserving 
 of mention, for the ranch upon which she has 
 been located for the past five years in Merced 
 county evidences her ability along these lines. 
 She is a native of Toronto, Canada, and a daugh- 
 ter of William Simpson. He was born in the 
 northern part of Ireland, where his people had 
 settled upon their emigration from Scotland, 
 where they had flourished for generations. He 
 came to Canada when a young man and became 
 a farmer, remaining so engaged until his death 
 at the age of fifty-seven years. His wife was in 
 maidenhood Sarah McCoy, also a native of Ire- 
 land. 
 
C-CJL^ Tlpt^-TyV4^(?-<^ 
 
lilSTORiCAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 10G7 
 
 Amelia Simpson was married in Canada to 
 James O. Patterson, who was also a native of 
 that country, and in 1867 they crossed the line 
 into the United States, and coming west, located 
 in Salem, Ore. He shipped the first carload of 
 lumber from that city. Their home remained in 
 that locality until 1873, when they removed to 
 Idaho and engaged in ranching and stock-raising 
 for two years. The climate being less agreeable 
 than that of their Oregon home they then re- 
 turned to Salem, where Mr. Patterson secured 
 employment with the Pioneer Oil Company at 
 a good salary. He was the first to introduce the 
 culture of flax in Washington and Idaho. He 
 was a successful farmer and met with financial 
 returns adequate to the efforts he put forth in 
 his years of active life. He died in 1884. They 
 were the "parents of two children, namely : Jo- 
 seph A. and Robert J. These young men are 
 now both numbered among the prominent ranch- 
 ers of Merced county, farming about one hun- 
 dred and fifty acres of land. They make their 
 home with their mother. In 1885 Mrs. Patter- 
 son was again married, the ceremony being per- 
 formed in Placer county, Cal., and uniting her 
 with James H. Cavanagh. He was a real estate 
 and grain broker of San Francisco and died in 
 that city December 24, 1891. The year follow- 
 ing Mrs. Cavanagh came to Merced county, both 
 on accovmt of her health and to look after prop- 
 erty which belonged to her. This consisted of 
 fifteen hundred and forty-six acres located on 
 Bear creek, which she has since sold. She made 
 her home near Athalone for five years. She 
 then removed to her present location, five miles 
 northeast of Merced, an eighty-acre place, thirty 
 five acres being devoted to figs, while the balance 
 is given over to assorted fruits and pasture. 
 Mrs. Cavanagh, with the aid of her sons, has 
 made a success of her work, proving herself a 
 woman of rare business judgment and tact, as 
 well as a cultured and entertaining lady. She is 
 a member of the First Presbyterian Church of 
 Merced. 
 
 ISHMAEL MONROE. Prominent among 
 the longest-established and most intelligent and 
 prosperous agriculturists of San Joaquin county 
 is Ishmael Monroe, an extensive land owner, 
 living on the river road, about nine and one- 
 half miles from Oakdale. During the half cen- 
 tury that he has resided in this vicinity he has 
 won for himself an enviable reputation as an 
 honest man and a valuable citizen, and as one 
 who has contributed his "full quota toward the 
 advancement and development of one of the fin- 
 est counties in the state of California. A son 
 of David Monroe, he was born May 29, 1836, in 
 
 Huron count)', Ohio, near Korwalk. His pater- 
 nal grandfather, Joel Monroe, was born near 
 Boston, Mass., and when a young man settled 
 as a mechanic in New Hampshire. He subse- 
 quently removed to Cayuga county, N. Y., and 
 from there to Ohio, where he lived a few years, 
 although he died in Massachusetts. 
 
 Born and reared in Cheshire county, N. H., 
 David Monroe moved with his parents to Cayuga 
 county, N. Y., and subsequently located in Huron 
 county, Ohio. Having in the meantime learned 
 the carpenter's trade, he settled as a carpenter 
 and contractor in Elkhart county, Ind., removing 
 from there in 1848 to Illinois. In that state he 
 followed farming until 1853, when, with his wife 
 and three children, he started for the Pacific 
 coast. On April 13 he crossed the Mississippi 
 river at Albany, 111., and on May 20, at Kanes- 
 ville, he crossed the Missouri and began his 
 tedious journey across the plains. Keeping on 
 the north side of the Platte river, he came by 
 way of Devil's Gate, north of Salt Lake, follow- 
 ing the Walker trail to Tuolumne county, Cal., 
 arriving in Sonora October 4, 1853, having been 
 almost six months en route. The following six 
 years he kept hotel in Sonora, being quite popu- 
 lar as a landlord. In i860, joining his son Ish- 
 mael,- the subject of this sketch, he located in 
 San Joaquin county, buying six hundred acres 
 of land on the Stanislaus river, and began the 
 improvement of the present homestead farm. In 
 1862 he purchased three hundred and twenty 
 acres of adjoining land, and soon afterward 
 erected a substantial residence. Here he was 
 successfully engaged in farming until 1877, 
 when he sold his share to his sons, Ishmael and 
 Euphrates, and removed to Modesto, where, as 
 a carpenter, he built seven different residences. 
 He continued a resident of that place until his 
 death, in 1883, at the age of seventy-two years. 
 He was a man of great integrity and worth, 
 and a member of the Christian Church. He mar- 
 ried Maria Butler, who was born in Delaware 
 county, Ohio, a daughter of David Butler. Her 
 father, a native of Massachusetts, served in the 
 war of 1812, and afterwards settled as a farmer 
 in Ohio, living first in Delaware county and 
 later in Huron county. His wife, a Miss Barr, 
 was the daughter of a Revolutionary soldier, 
 who served throughout the war, taking part in 
 many engagements. He was not wounded while 
 in the service, but had several narrow escapes. 
 At the battle of Bunker Hill his cartridge box 
 was shot off, and in another battle a bullet 
 pierced his hat. Of the union of David and 
 Maria (Butler) Monroe three children were 
 born, namely: Ishmael, the subject of this sketch, 
 with whom the mother spent her closing years, 
 dying at the age of seventy-one years; Euphra- 
 tes, living in cfontra Costa county; and Abigail, 
 
1068 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 who was drowned in the Stockton Slough, in 
 i860, at the age of twenty years. 
 
 Obtaining his early education in the district 
 schools of Indiana and Illinois, Ishmael Monroe 
 remained at home throughout the days of his 
 boyho.od and youth. Starting with the family 
 for California in 1853, he drove a team across the 
 plains, and took his turn regularly in standing 
 guard, once in a while, when necessity demanded 
 it, taking a double turn. In Sonora he assisted 
 in the management of the hotel until 1859, when 
 he made a visit to his old home in Illinois, trav- 
 eling a part of the way by stage. During the 
 journey, while he was in Texas, Mr. Monroe 
 wrote to his father to stay in California, as he 
 should soon be back. After spending a short 
 time with his former companions and friends 
 Mr. Monroe was married in Chicago, and with 
 his fair young bride came by way of the Isthmus 
 of Panama to the Pacific coast, being thirty- 
 eight days on the journey from New York to 
 San Francisco. The ship in which they traveled, 
 the Aerial, was wrecked on a barren island on 
 a fair day. It was commanded by Captain Jones, 
 who later bonded it to Captain Semmes of the 
 Confederate navy. Looking about for a favora- 
 ble place in which to locate permanently, Mr. 
 Monroe and his father selected this land, and 
 as previously mentioned they carried on general 
 farming and stock raising together for a number 
 of years, improving a good ranch. Dividing the 
 property between his two sons, Ishmael Monroe 
 came into possession of one-half of the old home 
 farm, which contains four hundred and seventy- 
 six acres of bottom land, and he also has five 
 hundred acres of upland. He has since contin- 
 ued in business as a general farmer, raising hay, 
 grain, stock and alfalfa, and meeting with undis- 
 puted success in his operations. He has a com- 
 modious and conveniently arranged residence, 
 fine barns and outbuildings, and a well-equipped 
 blacksmith's shop, in which he does much of the 
 repairing necessary where machinery is used. 
 Mr. Monroe also owns other property of value, 
 having a grain farm of four hundred and sixty 
 acres near Sanger, Fresno county, which he 
 rents, and an eighty-acre ranch, which he rents, 
 in Tulare county. Prior to the opening of the 
 Santa Fe railroad he was for thirty-two years 
 postmaster at Burwood, the office being in his 
 house. 
 
 In Chicago, 111., in 1859, Mr. Monroe married 
 Anna E. Slaymaker, a native of Lancaster coun- 
 ty. Pa., and a daughter of George Slaymaker, an 
 early settler of Illinois. Four children have 
 blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Monroe, 
 namely : George David, who died at the age of 
 twenty-two years ; Charles Thomas, who died 
 when nine years old ; Mrs. Abbie B. Keeley of 
 Stanislaus county ; and Henry E., a prominent 
 
 attorney of San Francisco. Henry E. Monroe 
 is a young man of noteworthy attainments and 
 of great legal ability. At his graduation from 
 the Stockton high school he stood at the head 
 of his class. In 1888 he was graduated from 
 the University of California, and the following 
 two )'ears was a student at the Columbia Law 
 College. The required six months of law office 
 work was completed in the office of Secretary 
 Elihu Root, in New York City, and he was ad- 
 mitted to the New York bar in the supreme 
 court, standing third in a class of ninety. Re- 
 turning to California, his admission to the bar 
 was recognized and he has since been actively 
 engaged in the practice of his profession in San 
 Francisco, being head of the firm of Monroe & 
 Cornwall. Mr. Monroe has ever evinced a genu- 
 ine interest in local progress and improvements, 
 and as school trustee has been influential in ad- 
 vancing the educational status of the district. 
 In national politics he is a straightforward, un- 
 compromising Republican. His estimable wife 
 is a faithful member of the Methodist Church. 
 
 A. CLIFFORD DUNCAN. Although a 
 young man, Mr. Dungan has attained a position 
 in the fruit industry of which he may feel proud. 
 He has made his way in the world alone, and 
 while his efforts have been rewarded with suc- 
 cess, it is the result of perseverance and indus- 
 try. A native of Virginia, he was born at Glade 
 Spring September 10, 1875, a son of Thomas 
 N. Dungan. whose sketch will be found in that 
 of Dr. J. F. Dungan, of Exeter. 
 
 Mr. Dungan is the )-oungest son in a large 
 family of children. He came to California in 
 1894 and for a time was at Three Rivers, Tu- 
 lare county, where he labored in a sawmill owned 
 by his brother. In 1895 he entered the employ 
 of the Kaweah Lemon Company, and continued 
 with them for three years, having the care of a 
 lemon orchard. At the expiration of that time 
 h'e secured a position with the Ohio Lemon Com- 
 pany, with whom he remained one year. Dur- 
 ing these years he had been very saving, and 
 with the money thus secured he purchased seven 
 acres of land five miles southeast of Exeter. 
 When this property came into the possession of 
 Mr. Dungan it was rough and unimproved, but 
 with the energy that had made him popular with 
 his employers, he began the improvement of 
 the place. He set out orange trees, erected a 
 pumping plant, and now has five acres of fine 
 bearing navel trees, which are proving very prof- 
 itable. 
 
 After he had improved his place he again 
 sought employment and entered the services of 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1og9 
 
 George T. Frost, who at the time had charge of 
 the Bonnie Brae orchards. Mr. Dungan was 
 placed in charge of the vineyards belonging to 
 the Merryman Fruit, Land and Lumber Com- 
 pany. Here he remained for two years when 
 Mr. Frost placed him in full charge of the or- 
 ange grove on Badger Hill. All this time he 
 was improving his spare time studying the fruit 
 business, and in 1903 he began taking care of 
 groves in the Bonnie Brae district on contract. 
 He now has control of one hundred and seventy- 
 five acres^of bearing trees, and for the past ten 
 years he has met with success in this line of 
 business. In addition to the acreage previously 
 mentioned, he, in partnership with his brother, 
 owns a block in the town of Exeter which is set 
 out with fine bearing orange trees. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Dungan was united in mar- 
 riage with Nellie Tuohy, who was born in Oak- 
 land, a daughter of A. V. Tuohy, of Vacaville, 
 and a niece of John Tuohy, of Tulare. Mrs. 
 Dungan is a graduate of the San Francisco Nor- 
 mal, and for a time was a student in the Johns 
 Hopkins Art Institute. By her union with Mr. 
 Dungan she has become the mother of one child, 
 Mary Virginia. 
 
 Politically Mr. Dungan is a Democrat, and 
 in fraternal relations is affiliated with the Wood- 
 men of the World. He has been a resident of 
 CaUfornia since 1894. He came to the state 
 without a dollar, but by hard work and the 
 exercise of a keen business foresight he has 
 accumulated a good property. 
 
 EDWIN S. BALAAM. A merchant of Exe- 
 ter, where he is one of the oldest settlers, E. S. 
 Balaam is carrying on an extensive business and 
 assisting materially in the growth and upbuild- 
 ing of this section. Born in Johnson coimty, 
 Ark., December 19, 1841, he is a son of George 
 Balaam, who was a native of England, born in 
 London, in 1805, attaining maturity in that loca- 
 tion where he was also married. Eventually he 
 brought his wife and three children to the United 
 States, settling in Louisville, Ky., where he en- 
 gaged as a plumber and painter. Three children 
 were born there during his residence. He later 
 located in Cincinnati, Ohio, finally removing to 
 Johnson county. Ark., where he followed farm- 
 ing. During his residence in that section his 
 family was increased by the birth of three more 
 children. In 185 1 he emigrated to Denton, Tex., 
 and two years later brought his family across 
 the plains by ox-teams, via El Paso, Tucson and 
 Fort Yuma, the journey occupying six months. 
 Prom Warner's ranch they went on to Los An- 
 geles, the trip having been made in safety be- 
 yond a few adventures with the Apache Indians, 
 who stole a small amount of their supplies. They 
 
 located in El Monte, about twelve miles east 
 of Los Angeles and began stock-raising, hav- 
 ing brought through with him from the south 
 between _ forty and fifty head oi cattle. He re- 
 mained in that location for five years, when, in 
 January, 1858, he drove through to Tulare coun- 
 ty, settling one mile west of Farmersville, pur- 
 chased a farm and engaged in the raising of 
 grain and stock. Afterward he sold out and 
 went to Cambria, Cal., where his death occurred, 
 when over ninet}' years of age. His wife, for- 
 merly Sarah Swain, a native of Leicestershire, 
 England, died in the old home in Tulare county 
 at the age of sixty-eight years. They were earn- 
 est Christian people, and members of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. Of the nine children born to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Balaam, seven were brought to 
 California, two being left in the south when 
 the trip was made overland to the Golden State. 
 Five are now living, four sons and one daughter, 
 all in California. 
 
 Next to the youngest of the living children, 
 E. S. Balaam was but twelve years old when he 
 came across the plains, his duty being to ride 
 a big brown mule and drive cattle. In the early 
 days educational advantages were limited in the 
 new state, and the knowledge which today makes 
 of him an intelligent, practical and helpful citi- 
 zen has been gleaned in his years of manhood 
 in a patient and indefatigable effort to acquire 
 what his youth had failed to supply him. He 
 remained at home until he was twenty-one years 
 old, when he married and settled on a farm lo- 
 cated two miles west of Exeter. He homesteaded 
 one hundred and sixty acres, putting up ade- 
 quate buildings, and improving a farm he en- 
 gaged in grain raising. For many years he re- 
 mained a substantial farmer of this section when, 
 in 1891, he located in Exeter, and built a small 
 store, the third in the town, preparatory to a 
 mercantile career. He has since remained so 
 occupied, enlarging the store at four different 
 times, the dimensions of the building now be- 
 ing 40x120 feet. He has since taken into part- 
 nership his two sons, and the firm is now known 
 as that of E. S. Balaam & Co. He built a resi- 
 dence and improved an orange grove, and in 
 various ways has added to the material upbuild- 
 ing of the place. 
 
 Near Farmersville Mr. Balaam married Me- 
 dora M. Glass, a native of Texas, whose father, 
 Robert Glass, brought his family across the plains 
 in 1853. He became a farmer and teamster, 
 freighting from Stockton to Visalia, until his 
 death, which occurred in Tulare county. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Balaam are the parents of the fol- 
 lowing children : Emma, the wife of W. G. 
 Davis, of Exeter; Albert S., a teamster, of Exe- 
 ter; Walter J. and Charles F., partners in the 
 mercantile enterprise. In his religious convic- 
 
lo?o 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tions Mr. Balaam affiliates with the Baptist 
 Church, and politically is independent, reserving 
 the right to cast his ballot for the man whom 
 he considers best qualified for office. He is a 
 charter member of the Exeter Board of Trade 
 and is on the executive committee. Fraternally 
 he was made an Odd Fellow in Visalia, and now 
 belongs to Exeter Lodge No. 308, I. O. O. F., 
 of which he is past grand. 
 
 HARVEY A. FRAME. Although a resident 
 of Tulare .county for comparatively a brief time, 
 Harvey A. Frame has won a recognition as a 
 citizen of worth and ability through the sterling 
 qualities which distinguish him. A native of 
 Wisconsin, he was born in Monroe December 
 20, 1869, the oldest in a family of three sons 
 and four daughters, all of whom are living. His 
 father, Elias Frame, was a farmer in Wisconsin, 
 to which state the grandfather, Silas, had re- 
 moved from his birthplace in Illinois. The latter, 
 who was a farmer, later in life removed from 
 Wisconsin to Johnstown, Neb., where his death 
 occurred. Elias Frame also removed to Ne- 
 braska, locating first near Lincoln, then on a 
 farm near Valparaiso, where he remained for 
 eight years. Locating in Johnstown, Brown 
 county, that state, he engaged as a general farm- 
 er and stockman for the ensuing eleven years. 
 In 1892 he came to California, locating in Por- 
 tersville, and set out five acres of oranges, where 
 he continued to make his home until his death, 
 which occurred in Green county. Wis., in 1901, 
 while there on a visit. He is buried at Martin- 
 town, near Monroe, the place of his residence 
 for so many years. In addition to his farming 
 interests he was also a minister in the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, having taken up that 
 work in Nebraska, serving as pastor of the 
 church at Seward and Johnstown. This he was 
 forced to give up on account of ill health, when 
 he came to California. Politically he was a 
 stanch Republican and was a member of the 
 Grand Army of the Republic, having served in 
 Company A, Forty-sixth Wisconsin Regiment, 
 during the Civil war. His wife, formerly Mary 
 Catherine Trickle, was born near Monroe, Wis., 
 and now resides in Portersville. Her father, An- 
 drew J. Trickle, was a native of Michigan, who 
 settled as a farmer near Monroe, where his death 
 occurred. 
 
 Harvey A. Frame received his education in 
 the common schools of Johnstown, Neb., where 
 the greater part of his boyhood was spent. On 
 attaining manhood he engaged in farming and 
 the stock business with his father until he was 
 twenty-one years old, when he came to Califor- 
 nia. In February, 1891, he located in Porters- 
 ville and entered the employ of the Pioneer 
 
 Company," under R. H. McDonald and E. New- 
 man, with whom he remained for two years. 
 
 Benefiting by his previous business experience 
 Mr. Frame felt justified in estabhshing a produce 
 business on his own responsibility in 1894 and 
 has continued the same successfully to the pres- 
 ent time. He handles all kinds of farm produce, 
 grain, seeds and live stock, shipping by the car- 
 load. His business has grown to such propor- 
 tions that he has the largest establishment of 
 the kind in the county and is second only to 
 those of Fresno. Mr. Frame is also interested 
 in horticulture with his brother, Jesse E. Frame, 
 having set out a twenty-acre orchard two miles 
 from Portersville, in navel oranges, the entire 
 property irrigated by an electric pumping plant. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. Frame was united in marriage 
 with Maggie McDonald, a native of Placer coun- 
 ty, and the daughter of George McDonald, an 
 early and esteemed settler of California. They 
 are the parents of four children, Laura Lurine, 
 Lloyd Harvey, Alton Harley and Paul Donald. 
 Fraternally Mr. Frame was made an Odd Fellow 
 in Portersvihe Lodge No. 359, of which he is 
 past grand, and also belongs to Encampment 
 No. 99, of which he is past chief patriarch. He 
 is also identified with the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, of which he is financier, and 
 the Woodmen of the World. Politically he is a 
 stanch Republican and in the interests of the 
 party holds various positions of trust and re- 
 sponsibility. He is now a member of the coun- 
 ty central committee, and is also serving as coun- 
 cilman from the second ward, elected to the office 
 in April, 1903. In addition to his other duties 
 he is acting as chairman of the street com- 
 mittee, and is a member of the Board of Trade, 
 of which he is a director. 
 
 WILLIAM ALEXANDER BROTHER- 
 TON. A veteran of the Civil war and a resi- 
 dent of California since 1875, Mr. Brotherton 
 is now one of Tulare county's most highly re- 
 spected citizens. A native of Tennessee, he was 
 born February 23, 1837. His father, Henry R. 
 Brotherton, was born in North Carolina and 
 later settled in Tennessee, from which state he 
 removed in 185 1 to Missouri, locating in Carroll 
 county, three miles from Carrollton, where He 
 engaged in farming for the remainder of his 
 life. He was united in marriage with Miss 
 Susan James, a daughter of Thomas James and 
 a native of North Carolina. Of this union there 
 were born thirteen children, eleven of whom 
 reached maturity and three are now living. 
 
 William A. Brotherton attended the district 
 schools in his native state and in 1851 accompa- 
 nied his parents to Missouri, remaining under 
 the parental roof until reaching his twenty-third 
 
(^ai^j2^ e4jJ^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1073 
 
 year. He then married and began farming near 
 Carrollton. March i8, 1861, he enlisted in the 
 Third Missouri Cavalry, Company K, and served 
 until 1865, when, on April 16, he was mustered 
 out of the United States service at St. Louis. 
 During the war he was wounded by bushwhack- 
 ers in the left shoulder and* he was also acci- 
 dentally shot in the left leg by the premature dis- 
 charge of his own revolver. 
 
 Returning to Carroll county after the war, he 
 again engaged in farming, remaining there until 
 1875, when he sold out and came to California, 
 locating in Tulare county. In 1877 he purchased 
 his present place, which he has improved ex- 
 tensively and where he is now engaged in rais- 
 ing grain, cattle, hogs and horses. For eighteen 
 years he made a specialty of raising turkeys, 
 marketing each year from three to six hundred. 
 
 In i860, while still a resident of Missouri, he 
 married Miss Margaret Coop, who was born in 
 Rutherford county, Tenn., and as a result of 
 this union he has become the father of two 
 children now living: Susan, now Mrs. J. H. 
 Blair, and Elmer, who is a merchant and post- 
 master at Naranjo. For many years he has 
 been an active member of the Cumberland Pres-, 
 byterian Church, serving for a long time as the 
 ruling elder. Independent in politics, he believes 
 in voting for the man he thinks best qualified for 
 the office, regardless of party lines. While prac- 
 tically all of Mr. Brotherton's time has been de- 
 voted to his own business, he has ever been found 
 ready to do his duty as a citizen, and while he 
 has never cared for the emoluments of office 
 he has nevertheless been active in promoting any 
 plan that was calculated to be of material bene- 
 fit to his county. Both he and his wife are 
 earnest Christian people who have hosts of 
 friends wherever they are known. 
 
 JAMES MILLER. A resume of the indus- 
 trious and self-made men who are identified 
 with ranching interests in Kings county would 
 be incomplete without due mention of James 
 Miller, owner of a ranch of eighty acres six 
 miles southwest of Hanford, and of a two-hun- 
 dred-acre ranch in the immediate vicinity of 
 Portersville. Mr. Miller owes much of his suc- 
 cess to the possession of conservative and relia- 
 ble Teutonic traits, and to an early training in 
 a home where frugality and industry were 
 paramount. Born in Prussia, Germany, in 
 1840, he recalls nothing of his native land, for 
 he was two. years old when his parents brought 
 him to America in a sailing vessel, settling on a 
 farm in the state of Wisconsin. At the age of 
 sixteen he struck out from the occupation in 
 which his forefathers had engaged for genera- 
 tions and found employment in the copper 
 mines on the shores of Lake Superior, during 
 
 two years in the mines saving enough money to 
 place him above want for some time to come. 
 
 With comparative ease Mr. Miller learned the 
 language of his adopted country, and found out 
 enough about its resources to determine him in 
 locating in the far west, to which he came in 
 1859, by way of the Isthmus of Panama. For a 
 time he worked on a ranch, and then devoted 
 a few weeks to placer mining, not experi- 
 encing the success he had expected, how- 
 ever. Next he turned his attention to work- 
 ing in the copper mines at Copperopolis, also 
 operated a quartz mill in Salt Spring valley, Cal- 
 averas county, for four years, altogether spend- 
 ing about sixteen years in these occupations, and 
 acquiring a comfortable competence. By this 
 time he was keenly anxious to possess a home 
 of his own, and so bought a ranch in the Salt 
 Spring valley, which he sold after two years and 
 removed to Stockton. There he started a dray- 
 ing business, but shortly afterward removed to 
 Modesto, where for seven years he followed the 
 same calling. Disposing of his business he came 
 to Hanford in 1877, and' when the town was 
 laid out he bought two lots, upon one of which 
 he erected the second house upon the town site. 
 For a time he operated a dray in the town and 
 county, a business which increased as the local- 
 ity became more settled, and he assisted in build- 
 ing the mill at Lemoore. He then bought eighty 
 acres of land three miles west of his present 
 home, and later had to pay the railroad com- 
 pany for the same land. He lived thereon for 
 about seven years, and then bought a squatter's 
 right to his home ranch, purchasing the same 
 when the land came into the market. Adding 
 eighty acres adjoining, his home farm now con- 
 sists of eighty acres, of which eight acres are 
 under orchard, twenty-two acres under vines, 
 and the balance under alfalfa. He has a dryer 
 on the ranch, and every facility for caring for 
 and preparing for the market the various 
 products of hi-s farm. For the past two years 
 Mr. Miller has rented his fruit lands for $1,500 
 a year, and he also rents his ranch near Porters- 
 ville. His health at the present time hardly 
 warrants the assumption of large responsibili- 
 ties, and he is enjoying comparative immunity 
 from active labor of any kind. Mr. Miller has 
 an enviable reputation as a business man and 
 neighbor, and enjoys the fullest confidence of all 
 with whom he has to do. He has brought suc- 
 cess from a small start in life, and furnishes a 
 worthy example of the advantages of integrity, 
 industry and perseverance. 
 
 WILLIAM C. STEELING. Among the 
 prominent citizens of Tulare county mention be- 
 longs to William C. Stelling, whose home is lo- 
 cated one mile southwest of Lindsay. A man of 
 
1074 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ability and shrewd judgment, energy and per- 
 severance, Mr. Stelling has made his influence 
 felt along various lines conducive to the growth 
 and upbuilding of the community, being now 
 a director and president of the Lindsay Im- 
 provement Company and is also prominent as one 
 of the successful horticulturists of Tulare coun- 
 ty. Born in San Jose, Santa Clara county, Cal, 
 November 27, 1864, he is the eldest of six chil- 
 dren, all of whom are living, his father, John 
 Stelling, being a native of Hanover, Germany. 
 
 John Stelling emigrated from the fatherland 
 in young manhood, locating first in New Or- 
 leans. Deciding to come to California he made 
 the trip in a sailing vessel around Cape Horn 
 in 1849, arriving in San Francisco in 1850. 
 Thence he went to the mines and followed that 
 occupation until 1856, when he located in San 
 Jose. He was one of the first orchardists of 
 that section, purchasing property on Julian street, 
 between Fourteenth and Fifteenth, and setting 
 out an orchard of six and a half acres. Later 
 this land was subdivided and became known as 
 the Stelling Addition, and is now entirely built 
 up. Mr. Stelling afterward conducted a ranch 
 ten miles from San Jose in the vicinity of Cuper- 
 tino, and there set out an eighty-acre orchard, 
 consisting principally of prunes and apricots. In 
 the passing years he has made a gratifying suc- 
 cess of his work, acquiring a handsome com- 
 petency and at the same time winning by his 
 sterling qualities of manhood the esteem and re- 
 spect O'f all with whom he came in contact. He 
 is now living at the age of eighty years, his 
 health and strength the result of temperate liv- 
 ing. He owns a beautiful home on Magnolia 
 avenue, San Jose, and also a summer residence 
 in Capitola. His wife, formerly Louise Steph- 
 ans, a native of Germany, has also been spared 
 to enjoy the comforts and luxuries which the 
 years have brought to this pioneer couple. On 
 her trip to California Mrs. Stelling came via 
 the Isthmus of Panama. 
 
 The education of William C. Stelling was re- 
 ceived in the public schools, while he was also 
 trained in the practical duties which have meant 
 so much to him in his career. He remained at 
 home until he was twenty-three years old, when 
 he removed to Los Gatos and was employed for 
 three years by C. M. Meriam. In 1891 he went 
 to Santa Maria and bought eighty acres of land 
 which he set to fruit, it being the first orchard 
 in that locality. Not meeting with the success 
 which he had hoped for, Mr. Stelling sold out 
 in 1900, when he located in Lindsay, purclnasing 
 an orange orchard of forty-three acres, all Wash- 
 ington navels, and in splendid condition. On his 
 place he also has a pumping plant, operated by 
 an electric motor. 
 
 On October 31, 1888, in Los Gatos, Mr. Stell- 
 
 ing was united in marriage with Gertrude Mer- 
 iam, a native of Quincy, 111. The family is of 
 New England extraction, the grandfather, Dan- 
 iel Dodge Meriam being a native of Brandon, 
 Vt. Daniel D. Meriam became an early set- 
 tler in Quincy, where he entered the lumber 
 business, continuing so employed until his death. 
 The father, C. M. Meriam, also followed this 
 occupation until 1883, when he came to Cali- 
 fornia, and in 1886 located on a fruit ranch 
 one mile from Saratoga. This property of thir- 
 ty-six acres he later sold, when he retired from 
 the active cares of life and made his home in 
 Los Gatos until his death, at the age of fifty- 
 four years. He was a Mason. His wife, for- 
 merly Emma Osborn, was a native of Quincy, 
 111., and a daughter of William Osborn, a build- 
 er, who located there from his native country 
 of England. Mrs. Meriam died in Los Gatos 
 April 19, 1896. Mrs. Stelling is the second in a 
 family of three children, and received her edu- 
 cation in the schools of Quincy and also of Cali- 
 fornia. She is a woman of rare culture and 
 refinement, and many admirable traits of char- 
 acter. To Mr. and Mrs. Stelling were born four 
 children, namely : Carl Meriam, John Lloyd, 
 Emma Gladys and William Raymond. Mrs. 
 Stelling is a member of the Baptist Church, and 
 belongs to the Order of the Eastern Star. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Stelling affiliates with the Knights 
 of Pythias, the Fraternal Aid, and the Indepen- 
 dent Order of Foresters. Politically he is a 
 stanch Republican. He is interested in the Roch- 
 dale Association, and also the Lindsay Improve- 
 ment Company, serving as president and direc- 
 tor of the latter, which built the fraternal hall, 
 the finest building in Lindsay, a two-story brick 
 building whose dimensions are 50x65 feet. They 
 also built the postoffice annex and in many ways 
 have added to the prestige which belongs to 
 Lindsay as one of the progressive and up-to-date 
 towns in Tulare county. 
 
 SUSMAN MITCHELL. The sterling traits 
 of charactei' which have won for Susman Mitch- 
 ell the confidence and esteem of business asso- 
 ciates as well as of those who know him social- 
 ly, are an inheritance from sturdy German stock. 
 His father, Hyman Mitchell, was a native of 
 Prussia, from which country he emigrated to 
 California in the early '50s. He first located in 
 Stockton, where he engaged in a mercantile en- 
 terprise until 1858. Removing to Visalia, Tu- 
 lare county, in the last-named year, he followed 
 the same line until his death, which occurred 
 a year later, at the comparatively early age of 
 forty-seven years. His wife, whom he married 
 in Stockton, was formerly Dora Jacob, also a 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1075 
 
 native of Prussia. She survived her husBand 
 and has since become the wife of JuHus Lew, 
 making Visalia her home. 
 
 The only child of his parents, Susman Mitch- 
 ell was born in Stockton, Cal, February 7, 1859. 
 He was reared in Visalia, attending the public 
 schools of this city, after which he attended the 
 • Stockton schools. Entering Gates Business Col- 
 lege, of San Jose, he completed a commercial 
 course, graduating from that institution in 1873. 
 Returning to Visalia in the same year he found 
 employment as clerk for his uncle, Elias Jacob, 
 with whom he remained until the death of the 
 latter October i, 1902. During a large part of 
 this time he acted as manager of his uncle's 
 business, always in the capacity of confidential 
 man. In the meantime he had taken up other 
 interests, in 1886 entering upon the duties of 
 postmaster of Visalia, to which office he received 
 appointment from President Cleveland. Three 
 years later he resigned from this position to 
 accept that of cashier in the bank of Harrell & 
 Son, retaining the latter until 1893, when he as- 
 sisted materially in the organization of the Pro- 
 ducers' Bank, with a capital of $45,000, succes- 
 sors to the firm of Harrell & Son. For ten years 
 he filled the position of cashier in the Producers' 
 Bank, winning a reputation for his conserva- 
 tive yet progressive methods in the banking busi- 
 ness, and a constantly increasing popularity for 
 his business ability, as well as the strong in- 
 tegrity and fidelity which marked his every oper- 
 ation. In 1903 the First National Bank of Vis- 
 alia was organized with a caoital of $100,000, 
 and of this institution he became cashier, and 
 still holds the position. Throughout the San Joa- 
 quin valley he enjoys an appreciation for his 
 unusual ability as demonstrated in his present 
 line of woxk, universally conceded to be one of 
 the best bankers in this section of the state. 
 He is as well a leader in other circles, wielding 
 a broad influence in the development and set- 
 tlement of lands throughout this section, in which 
 he is quite liberally interested. He is associated 
 with the Kaweah Lemon Company that has done 
 much to build up the citrus industry in Lemon 
 Cove. He is also treasurer of the Visalia Steam 
 Laundry Association, and occupies the same po- 
 sition in relation to- the Visalia Armory Hall 
 Association, which recently erected the armory 
 hall, a building measuring 66x132 feet. In the 
 municipal life of the city, Mr. Mitchell has been 
 a most important factor, having held the office 
 of city treasurer for fourteen years, the time 
 of his service at each election being for two 
 years until 1902, when the term was changed to 
 four years. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Mitchell was united in mar- 
 riage with Eva Rosenthal, a native of that city, 
 and the daughter of Louis Rosenthal, a pioneer 
 
 of Cahfornia. Fraternally Mr. Mitchell is very 
 promment, having been made an Odd Fellow in 
 the lodge of Visalia, and served as noble grand 
 for two terms in Four Creek Lodge, I. O. O. V. 
 Of the encampment he is past chief patriarch and 
 also belongs to the Canton. Of the Visalia 
 Parlor No. 19, Native Sons of the Golden West, 
 he has served as secretary since its organization 
 eighteen years ago. He is a prominent member 
 of both the State Bankers' Association and the 
 American Bankers' Association. Politically he 
 is an adherent of the principles advocated in the 
 platform of the Democratic party, on national is- 
 sues giving his vote to that party, but reserving 
 the right to cast his vote locally for the man 
 whom he considers best qualified' for public of- 
 fice. Always enterprising, liberal and public- 
 spirited, Mr. Mitchell commands the respect of 
 thoughtful citizens, who best appreciate him for 
 his ' qualities as a business man (and through 
 this his association as an upbuilding factor in the 
 community), as well as for the sterling integ- 
 rity of his life and the manhood which has 
 made him a representative citizen. 
 
 JOSEPH AKERS. A man of marked ability 
 and enterprise, possessing great mechanical in- 
 genuity and skill, Joseph Akers occupies a sub- 
 stantial position in the industrial and business 
 circles of Tulare county, being the leading 
 blacksmith of Dinuba, and one of the foremost 
 dealers in ' agricultural implements. The owner 
 of a snug little ranch in this vicinity, he is act- 
 ively identified with the advancement of the ag- 
 ricultural prosperity of this place, and as a 
 stockholder in the Bank of Dinuba is intimately 
 associated with its financial interests. A native 
 of Wayne county, Pa., he was born December 
 26, 1855, a son of John and Mary (Nevins) 
 Akers, life-long residents of the Keystone state. 
 His father settled as a blacksmith in Newfound- 
 land, Wayne county. Pa., where he became a 
 citizen of prominence and influence, for two 
 terms serving as supervisor of the township. To 
 him and his wife eleven children were born, 
 eight of whom are living, namely : Warren, of 
 Wayne county. Pa. ; T. J., living near Visalia, 
 Cal. ; C. W., of Wayne county. Pa. ; Richard, re- 
 siding near Visalia ; Mrs. Eliza Bird, of Wayne 
 county. Pa.; Joseph, the subject of this sketch; 
 Mrs. Mary A. Heberling, of Visalia; and Eber, 
 of Scranton, Pa. 
 
 Educated in the district school and brought 
 up on the home farm, Joseph Akers early de- 
 veloped a talent for mechanical pursuits, and 
 while yet a boy learned the blacksmith's trade. 
 Settling in Potter county, Pa., in 1879, he worked 
 first at his trade, afte'rwards being there em- 
 ployed in tilling the soil. Coming to California 
 
1076 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 with his family in 1888, Mr. Akers worlced for 
 a short time in Visaha, and then opened a smithy 
 in Monson, which, on account of the extensive 
 teaming of lumber and grain, was a very desira- 
 ble location for him, and he found it profitable 
 from a financial point of view. Coming to 
 Dinuba in 1898, he bought out White & Son, 
 pioneer blacksmiths, and has since been here 
 prosperously employed at his trade. His shop is 
 finely located on a corner tract of land contain- 
 ing ten lots, and adjoining this property he has 
 erected a fine residence. Mr. Akers also owns 
 forty acres of land lying one-half mile east of 
 Dinuba, and on this he has made improvements 
 of much value, having a productive vineyard of 
 fifteen acres, and a five-acre orchard, the re- 
 mainder of his ranch being devoted to tHe rais- 
 ing of alfalfa. In 1901 Mr. Akers embarked in 
 the agricultural implement business, and has 
 built up a large and remunerative trade, han- 
 dling Studebaker wagons and buggies, the old 
 Hickory wagons, Emerson plows, and such other 
 implements as are demanded by the modern, 
 up-to-date agriculturist and horticulturist. 
 
 In Wayne county, Pa., Mr. Akers married 
 Mahala Kelley, a native of that county, and they 
 are the parents of seven children, namely : Wal- 
 ter (engaged in farming and teaming in Dinuba), 
 George (a wagon maker in Dinuba), Mrs. Grace 
 Whittington of Dinuba, Dick, Fern, Ruby and 
 Clayton. Fraternally Mr. Akers was made an 
 Odd Fellow in Wayne county, Pa., and is now 
 a member and the treasurer of Dinuba Lodge, 
 I. O. O. F. ; and belongs to the Beavers also. 
 Politically he is a stanch Republican. Mjs. Akers 
 belongs to the Rebekahs, and is a member of 
 the Christian Church. 
 
 JAMES ALLEN BACON. The trials and 
 dangers of pioneer life have been widely experi- 
 enced by James Allen Bacon, who came to the 
 state in 1858 in young manhood, ready for the 
 burden of hewing out a home in a new coun- 
 try. He is located upon property in the vicin- 
 ity of Orosi, Tulare county, which he purchased 
 in 1889, consisting then of a stubble-field, which 
 ^ he has since transformed into a well-cultivated, 
 well-developed ranch, thirty acres being devoted 
 exclusively to a vineyard. He has made a suc- 
 cess in his efforts since engaging in indepen- 
 dent work, winning a competence and building 
 up a comfortable home, and at the same time 
 making for himself a place in the esteem and 
 respect of his fellow citizens. 
 
 Born in St. Louis county, Mo., November 19, 
 1838, James Allen Bacon was the oldest in a 
 family of eight children, of whom seven are 
 now living. His father, William Bacon, was a 
 native of Kentucky, and the son of Nathaniel 
 
 Bacon, of that state, who located in St. Louis 
 county, Mo., some time after the war of 1812. 
 William Bacon engaged as a fanner in St. Louis 
 county for some years, but in 1849 he started 
 with his family to Texas. On account of ill- 
 ness they stopped in Crawford county. Ark., and 
 he there purchased a farm and made it their 
 home until 1858. In that year he started with 
 ox-teams for California, setting out in April 
 with his wife, four daughters and three sons. 
 They came west by way of El Paso as far as Tuc- 
 son, Ariz., and there they stopped for a time. La- 
 ter they came on to California, traveling via Yu- 
 ma to Los Angeles and over the Tejon Pass to 
 Tulare county. Ten miles northeast of Visalia, 
 on the Kaweah, he bought a farm, and in 1868 
 homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres, which 
 is now the site of Orosi. He was one of the 
 first settlers in the town, James A. Bacon haul- 
 ing lumber from the mountains and with the 
 help of hired men building the first house in 
 Orosi, which is still standing. Mr. Bacon after- . 
 ward located in Visalia, where his death occurred 
 at the age of eighty-one years. His wife, Per- 
 melia, a native of St. Louis county. Mo., died in 
 Fresno county, at the age of seventy-eight years. 
 Besides James Allen the sons of the family are 
 as follows : Thomas, of Fresno ; Charles F., of 
 Hollister ; and William, of Phoenix, Ariz. 
 
 When ten years of age James Allen Bacon was 
 taken by his parents to Arkansas, where he grew 
 to young manhood. In childhood he attended 
 school in a building of primitive make. Upon 
 the second emigration of the family he drove 
 a team to Tucson, Ariz. As the family remained 
 there for a time he spent a year in that section, 
 securing employment as the driver of a stage 
 for Butterfield, the route lying east for about 
 eighty miles. He had to change horses every 
 ten hours, a distance of twenty miles. While 
 in this occupation he was twice attacked by In- 
 dians, once in war paint, but through the swift- 
 ness of his team he managed to escape. At an- 
 other time by his presence of mind he saved not 
 only his own life but the lives of the passen- 
 gers in the overland stage. In 1858 the family 
 came on to California, and for a time he found 
 employment with an uncle,. Fielding Bacon, who 
 was engaged in the stock business. Lfiter he 
 went to the mines in Mariposa county, at Marys- 
 ville and other points, continuing so employed 
 for about five years, when he returned to Tu- 
 lare county and locating in Orosi built his fath- 
 er's house. Once more he engaged with his 
 uncle in the raising of sheep and hogs, remain- 
 ing so occupied for many years, and meeting 
 with a success which justified his continuance 
 in the work. He also found lucrative employ- 
 ment by driving stock to the southern mines. 
 
p. F. CHAPMAN 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1079 
 
 In Tulare county, October 17, 1880, Mr. Bacon 
 married Sarah Edmiston, a native of Calaveras 
 county, and the daughter of N. B. Edmiston, 
 whose sketch appears elsewhere in this volume. 
 In January, 1889, he located upon his present 
 property, where he has since made his home. 
 His wife died March 17, 1901, at the age of for- 
 ty-six years. She was a member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church. She left a family of 
 five children, namely : Alice Maud, now the wife 
 of William Mackersie, of Dinuba ; Thomas Allen ; 
 Edith Theodate; Jessie Ethel; and Elsie Viola. 
 Mr. Bacon is a Democrat in his political affilia- 
 tions, and in the interests of his party has served 
 as school trustee for two terms as well as assist- 
 ing materially in the erection of the school build- 
 ing. He has served efficiently as a member of 
 the county central committee. Since the organ- 
 ization of the California Raisin Growers' Asso- 
 ciation he has been an active member and has 
 given no little aid toward its development. He 
 is universally recognized as one of the landmarks 
 of Tulare county, connecting the present prosper- 
 ity with the days when hardy men and women 
 were required to. give the best of their lives for 
 the formation of a new statehood. 
 
 PLEASANT FAIR CHAPMAN, M. D. 
 Prominent among the most highly respected and 
 esteemed citizens of Portersville was the late Dr. 
 P. F. Chapman, who was for several years one 
 of the leading physicians of this section of Tu- 
 lare county, but for several years, on account 
 of ill health, lived retired from his professional 
 labors. His death occurred October 10, 1904, at 
 his home in Portersville. A man of strong men- 
 tal attainments, he was endowed with business 
 ability and tact, and during his active career ac- 
 cumulated a fine property. A native of Illinois, 
 he was born June 27, 1831, in Fulton county, a 
 son of Wilson and Sarah (Steward) Chapman, 
 both of whom were born in Tennessee, and died 
 in Arkansas. His father was a farmer by oc- 
 cupation, and after moving from his native state 
 to Illinois lived there but a few years, going 
 thence to Washington county. Ark. 
 
 The eldest child of a family consisting of two 
 sons and three daughters, P. F. Chapman was 
 brought up in Arkansas, receiving his early edu- 
 cation in the public schools. He subsequently be- 
 gan to read medicine with Dr. Pollard, of Lafay- 
 ette, Ark., and was afterward graduated from 
 a medical college with the degree of M. D. He 
 began the practice of his profession in Washing- 
 ton county. Ark., and at the time of the breaking 
 out of the Civil war was conscripted into the 
 southern army, but was left at home to look after 
 the women and children. He was subsequently 
 again conscripted, sent to the front, and being 
 
 taken prisoner, was confined at Fort Smith, 
 where he resumed the practice of his profession, 
 remaining there several years after the close of 
 the conflict. Coming to California in 1874, Dr. 
 Chapman resided for a short time in Sacramento 
 before locating in Portersville as a physician. 
 He also established a drug store in the village, 
 and for many years carried on a substantial busi- 
 ness as a druggist, besides having an extensive 
 and lucrative patronage as a general practitioner. 
 His health failing, the doctor was forced to re- 
 linquish his practice, and very soon afterward, in 
 1897, his store was burned, entailing a heavy 
 loss. He then retired from active pursuits, hon- 
 ored and respected by all. In 1898 Dr. Chapman 
 erected the Chapman block, a fine brick building, 
 situated in the central part of the town, and he 
 also owned a valuable ranch of four hundred 
 and eighty acres, located on the Tule river, about 
 twenty-five miles from Portersville. 
 
 In Fayetteville, Ark., Dr. Chapman married 
 Sarah House, who was born in Raleigh, N. C, a 
 daughter of Warren House. Mr. House was born 
 and reared in North Carolina, but removed from 
 there to Tennessee, locating on a farm near Nash- 
 ville. He subsequently became a pioneer of Ark- 
 ansas, and having improved a ranch in the vicin- 
 ity of Fayetteville, resided there until his death. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Delilia Carroll, 
 was born in North Carolina and died in Arkan- 
 sas. Dr. and Mrs. Chapman became the parents 
 of three children, namely : Mrs. Elizabeth Wal- 
 lace, living near Portersville ; Mrs. Melissa Jane 
 Logston, of San Bernardino, Cal. ; and 'Mrs. Ten- 
 nessee Treefry, of Portersville. In his political 
 affiliations the doctor was a stanch Republican. 
 He belonged to the Knights of Pythias, and was 
 an active member of the Christian Church. 
 
 ARTHUR HILL. The work which Arthur 
 Hill is accomplishing as a grower of grain in 
 Merced county is such as to properly place him 
 among the representative agriculturists of this 
 community. His ranch is very extensive, con- 
 sisting of' twelve hundred and thirty- four acres 
 of fine farming land, and this is given over en- 
 tirely to the cultivation of barley and wheat. 
 His crops are among the best produced in the 
 county and are an evidence of the value of the 
 property, as well as the care and thought given 
 to the cultivation of the land. A native son of 
 the state, Mr. Hill was born in San Joaquin 
 county, 'August 27, 1857. 
 
 Thomas B. Hill, the father, was a native of 
 Pennsylvania, where he grew to manhood's es- 
 tate. Dissatisfied with the limitations by which 
 he was surrounded he early sought a change of 
 location, going first to the southern states, after 
 which he came to California, in 1850, making 
 
1080 
 
 •HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the trip by way of the Isthmus of Panama. On 
 his arrival in the state he located at Stockton, 
 where he remained about five years, removing 
 then to Woodbridge, San Joaquin tounty, a dis- 
 tance of ten miles from the former city, and be- 
 coming the owner of two ranches of three hun- 
 dred and twenty and one hundred and sixty 
 acres, respectively. This property he devoted to 
 the cultivation of grain and stock-raising. In 
 1 86 1 he removed to Calaveras county and con- 
 ducted a saw-mill there until 1869, when he 
 brought his family to Merced county and located 
 on Bear Creek, where he engaged in ranching 
 until his death, January i, 1869. 
 
 Arthur Hill remained on the paternal farm 
 unld 1878, assisting in the home duties and the 
 cultivation of the ranch. He then located upon 
 his present ranch of twelve hundred and thirty- 
 four acres and has since been engaged in grain- 
 raising. He is located seven miles northeast of 
 Merced and in a good farming section of the 
 county. In his political preferment Mr. Hill is 
 independent in his views, reserving his right to 
 vote for the man whom he considers best quali- 
 fied to serve the people officially. Fraternally 
 he is identified with the Native Sons of the 
 Golden West and Knights of Pythias. 
 
 FRED ACKERMAN. The sterling traits of 
 character which have distinguished the citizen- 
 ship of Fred Ackerman during his residence in 
 Portersville, Tulare county, are a direct inherit- 
 ance from a long line of sturdy German ances- 
 tors. He was born near Freiburg, Baden, Ger- 
 many, November 25, 1857, the fifth in a family 
 of thirteen children, of whom nine are living; 
 three are in America and only one is in Cali- 
 fornia. His father, Andrew Ackerman, was a 
 native of the same locality in Germany, where 
 he earned a livelihood as a farmer. He was a 
 man of patriotism and loyalty, and during the 
 revolution of 1848 he served in the German 
 army. His death occurred August 8, 1903, at 
 the age of eighty-five years, removing from the 
 community a helpful and earnest citizen and one 
 whose best eflforts were always given for the 
 betterment of the general welfare. Until his 
 retirement on account of advanced aee, he gave 
 effective service as city trustee, and enjoyed the 
 confidence and esteem of all who knew him. He 
 was a devout member of the Lutheran Church. 
 His wife, Anna Maria Ackerman, was also born 
 in Baden, Germany, where her death occurred 
 in July, 1902, at the age of eighty-three years. 
 
 Fred Ackerman was reared on the paternal 
 farm to the age of fifteen years, receiving a prac- 
 tical education in the common schools of his 
 native land. When fifteen he was sent to Stutt- 
 gart, where he was offered a place as a barber 
 
 with Fritz Schaentzel, having been apprenticed 
 to learn this trade when fourteen years old. He 
 also learned hair-dressing under Mr. Schaentzel, 
 with whom he remained until 1874, when Fie 
 came to America and located in Brooklyn, N. Y. 
 He followed his trade in that city, /and later in 
 Hoboken, N. J., remaining until 1878, when he 
 returned to Germany and spent the ensuing six 
 months at home. IDeciding again to locate in 
 the United States, he returned to New York 
 and remained there until 1880, when he went to 
 Providence, R. I., then Manhattan Beach, thence 
 to St. Louis, Chicago and Cincinnati, finally re- 
 turning to New York in the same year. In 1881 
 he went to Chicago again, and from there to 
 Council Bluffs, Iowa, where he spent six months, 
 thence to Butte, Mont., and in December of tiie 
 same year to Helena. In the spring of 1882 he 
 went to Cook City, National Park, and Bozeman, 
 Mont., where he remained one year, then dur- 
 ing the Coeur d'Alene gold excitement went to 
 Spokane Falls, Wash. Returning to Helena, he 
 remained until the fall of 1887, when he came 
 to California and attended Barnard's Business 
 College in San Francisco. In February of the 
 following year he opened a barber shop in Por- 
 tersville, which he conducted for eighteen 
 months, when he returned to Cook City to settle 
 up his affairs. For a time thereafter he was lo- 
 cated in Whatcom, Wash., where he still owns 
 property, conducting a successful business until 
 1891, when he returned to Portersville and 
 opened a restaurant, bakery and lodging house, 
 which brought him large returns for the period 
 of three years that he was interested in it. He 
 then sold the restaurant and bakery, and in 1900 
 sold the building, continuing the lodging house 
 until 1901, when he finally disposed of that. In 
 the meantime he purchased the Putnam block, 
 containing two stores, the dimensions of which 
 are 75 x 126 feet, holding it intact until January, 
 1905, when he sold thirty-five feet. He also 
 owns other valuable business, residence and fafm 
 properties in this section, among which is a thir- 
 teen-acre orange tract adjoining the city, and 
 three acres adjoining the high school building. 
 Mr. Ackerman has had many experiences in his 
 business career, but has met with success in his 
 efforts which have given him a competence, and 
 at the same time has won for himself the re- 
 spect of those with whom he has had business 
 dealings. 
 
 In Portersville, September 2, 1897, Mr. Acker- 
 man was united in marriage with Catherine 
 Sturm, a native of Alsace-Lorraine, and a daugh- 
 ter of Christian Sturm, a farmer of that locality. 
 He came to America in 1892, locating first in 
 Elgin, 111., thence to St. James, Minn., where 
 he remained four years, in October, 1897, com- 
 ing to Portersville. In 1901 he returned to his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1081 
 
 old home in Alsace-Lorraine. His wife, Made- 
 line, is also living and enjoying the fruits of his 
 early industry. They are devout members of the 
 Lutheran Church. Mrs. Ackerman was the 
 youngest child in her father's family. She is 
 the mother of the following children : Ulrich, 
 who died when one year old; Martha; and Re- 
 becca. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Ackerman is identified with 
 the Woodmen of the World and Knights of 
 Pythias, while his wife belongs to the Ladies of 
 the Maccabees. He is a member of the Evangel- 
 ical Association, and politically is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. Interested in 
 the progress and development of the city, Mr. 
 Ackerman takes an active interest in every move- 
 ment that pertains to the general welfare, act- 
 ing as a volunteer fireman and holding the office 
 of secretary of the fire department. Upon the 
 incorporation of Portersville as a city he was 
 elected one of the trustees. 
 
 ABNER ERASER. In promoting the agri- 
 cultural and horticultural prosperity of Tulare 
 county within the past few years the ranchmen, 
 individually and collectively, have labored with 
 diligence and perseverance, taking advantage of 
 every feasible method offered by men of science 
 and thought, and putting into their work as 
 much brain power as physical exertion. The re- 
 sult is everywhere visible in the large orchards, 
 productive vineyards and extensive fields of al- 
 falfa that are in evidence on every hand, adding 
 richness and -beauty to the sunny landscape. 
 Prominent among the enterprising and progress- 
 ive men who have generously assisted in bring- 
 ing about this grand evolution is Abner Eraser, 
 a successful vineyardist and orchardist, living 
 two miles southeast of Dinuba. A son of the 
 late Robert John Eraser, he was born September 
 IS, 1863, in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. His 
 grandfather, John Eraser, whose father emi- 
 grated from Scotland to Nova Scotia, was a 
 lumberman by occupation, owning and operating 
 a sawmill on East river; New Glasgow, where 
 he was accidentally killed by a splinter which 
 penetrated his abdomen. 
 
 Born and brought up in New Glasgow, Nova 
 Scotia, Robert John Eraser learned the trades 
 of a stone mason and plasterer, and also became, 
 an expert cooper. Moving to Massachusetts 
 shortly after his marriage, he lived for a short 
 time in Mansfield, where his oldest son was born. 
 Returning from there to his native to^yn, he 
 lived in New Glasgow several years, following 
 his trade. In 1868 he took his family to Omaha, 
 Neb., where he worked as a stone mason for 
 two years. Coming to California in 1870, he 
 
 took up land in A^isalia, on the Tule river, and 
 for a year carried on farming in connection \vith 
 his trade. The following five years he was em- 
 ployed as a grain raiser on the west half of sec- 
 tion II. Homesteading one hundred and sixty 
 acres of wild land, two miles east of Dinuba, in 
 1878, he changed it from a sheep range to one 
 of the finest-improved ranches of- this part of 
 the county, setting out orchards and vine3'ards, 
 and bringing the land to a high state of cultiva- 
 tion. On the ranch that he so improved he lived 
 and labored successfully until his death, in 1898, 
 at the age of sixty-nine years. He married Anna 
 Eorbes, who was born in Nova Scotia, which 
 was also the birthplace of her father, William 
 Eorbes, a manufacturing cooper and prosperous 
 business man, inheriting the industry and thrift 
 characteristic of his Scotch ancestors. She sur- 
 vived her husband, and now resides near Dinuba, 
 an active and esteemed woman of seventy-five 
 years. Three children blessed their union, each 
 of whom is represented in this volume: John 
 W., Larkens K. and Abner, all of whom reside 
 near Dinuba, and are actively identified with the 
 agricultural and horticultural interests of the 
 place. 
 
 But five years old when his parents removed 
 to Omaha, Neb., Abner Eraser there began his 
 study of books. Coming to Visalia with the fam- 
 ily in 1870, he completed his early education in 
 the district schools, and as soon as old enough 
 learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed 
 for several years, in the meantime becoming in- 
 terested to some extent in fruit culture. In 1884 
 Mr. Eraser purchased his present home ranch 
 near Dinuba, and has since devoted his time and 
 attention to its improvement, sparing neither 
 labor nor expense in his efforts to transform 'the 
 wild range into a valuable and productive farm- 
 ing estate. When the ditch was completed in 
 this locality, he set out his first vineyard, and 
 has since bought adjoining land, having now one 
 hundred and forty acres of rich and fertile land 
 in his ranch. Here he has a peach orchard of 
 fifteen acres and a vineyard of fifty acres, eigh- 
 teen acres being planted to Muscat raisins, twen- 
 ty to the Thompson Seedless, and twelve to Sul- 
 tanas, the remainder of his land being sowed to 
 alfalfa, which yields him rich and bountiful har- 
 vests. 
 
 Mr. Eraser married, in this part of Tulare 
 county, Luana Hildreth, who was born in Sandy- 
 ville, Iowa, and came to California with her 
 father, James Hildreth, a well known photog- 
 rapher. Seven children have been born of the 
 marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Eraser, namely : Clar- 
 ence (attending the Dinuba Union high school, 
 a member of the class of 1906), A^iolet (a pupil 
 in the same school, belonging to the class of 
 1908), Rowena, Lucille, lone, Robert and Aileeh. 
 
1082 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mr. Fraser is a trustee of both the Dinuba public 
 school and the Dinuba Union high school, and 
 for one term was a director in the Alta irrigation 
 district. Politically he is a zealous supporter of 
 the principles of the Republican party, and fra- 
 ternally he is a member of the Modern Wood- 
 men of America, and a member and past officer 
 of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 EDMUND McLEES. Among the successful 
 orange growers in the vicinity of Lindsay, Tulare 
 county, is Edmund McLees, a native of Ontario, 
 his birth having occurred in Norwich, October 
 27, 1845. His father, James McLees, was a na- 
 tive of Dutchess county, N. Y., from whence the 
 grandfather, Peter, removed to the vicinity of 
 Norwich in 181 1. He became a farmer and 
 made that location his home until his death. 
 James McLees followed farming on the old home 
 place located by his father three miles from Nor- 
 wich, the barn which was built in 181 1 still 
 standing and in good condition. In 1894 Mr. 
 McLees retired from active life and in Decem- 
 ber of that year he came to California and made 
 his home with his son, Edmund, until his death, 
 which occurred August 24, 1904, at the age of 
 ninety-four years six months and five days. Al- 
 though so advanced in years, he yet remained 
 hale and hearty up to the very last, retaining his 
 faculties in a remarkable manner. For over 
 sixty years he was a constant member of the 
 Baptist Church. He was prominent in the af- 
 fairs of his adopted country, during the Cana- 
 dian rebellion in 1837 being a strong Mackenzie 
 man and for his principles suffering imprison- 
 ment for a time. His wife, formerly Rachel 
 Dennis, was also a native of Dutchess county, 
 N. Y., and a daughter of John Dennis, who set- 
 tled in Norwich as a pioneer farmer. Mrs. Mc- 
 Lees died in Ontario at the age of seventy-three 
 years, leaving a family of two sons and two 
 daughters, of whom one daughter is , now dS- 
 ceased. 
 
 On the old homestead in Ontario Edmund Mc- 
 Lees was reared to young manhood, attending 
 the common schools for a time. At an early 
 age he became an active worker on his father's 
 farm, where he remained until 1868, when he 
 came to California via New York City and the 
 Isthmus of Panama. Immediately after his ar- 
 rival in San Francisco, May 28, 1868, he went 
 at once to Solano county, where he found em- 
 ployment on a ranch near Vallejo. Later he was 
 located in Napa county, then purchased a farm 
 near Milpitas, Santa Clara county, where he 
 raised fruit and vegetables for three years. In 
 March, 1898, he removed to Lindsay and bought 
 an orange orchard of sixteen acres, all Wash- 
 ington navels, about ten or eleven years old. 
 
 since which time he has continued in orange 
 growing. In 1904 he put up a new residence in 
 Lindsay and has made improvements in various 
 ways on his property. 
 
 In Norwich, Ontario, May 21, 1873, Mr. Mc- 
 Lees was united in marriage with Juliette Corn- 
 well, who was born near that city. Her father, 
 Martin Cornwell, was born in Poughkeepsie, 
 Dutchess county, N. Y., a son of Samuel, who 
 came from England to New York and in 1819 
 settled in Norwich, Ontario, as a pioneer. Fra- 
 ternally he was a Mason and was also a promi- 
 nent man in all local affairs. Martin Cornwell 
 became a farmer in Ontario, where his death oc- 
 curred at the age of seventy-six years and six 
 months. He married Phoebe Young, who was 
 born in New York, a daughter of William 
 Young, the representative of Scotch-Irish ances- 
 try, and an early settler of Norwich. He was 
 an Orangeman politically, and fraternally affili- 
 ated with the Masons. Mr. McLees was made a 
 Mason and is still a member of Naval Lodge 
 No. 87, of Vallejo, of which he is past master; 
 is a member of Naval Chapter, R. A. M., of the 
 same city, and now belongs to Visalia Command- 
 ery, K. T., and also Islam Temple, A. A. O. N. 
 M. S. He is also identified with the Odd Fel- 
 lows, and both himself and wife are demitted 
 from the Order of the Eastern Star, of which he 
 is a past officer. Mrs. McLees is a member of 
 the Baptist Church. Politically Mr. McLees ad- 
 heres to the principles advocated in the platform 
 of the Republican party. 
 
 OSCAR AMOS COLLINS. A skillful and 
 enterprising agriculturist and a man of sterling 
 worth and integrity, Oscar A. Collins, whose 
 well-cultivated and highly improved ranch joins 
 Dinuba on the southeast, has been exceedingly 
 prosperous in his chosen vocation, his practical 
 and systematic methods, excellent judgment and 
 marked ability in the prosecution of his calling 
 being conducive to success. He possesses great 
 natural mechanical genius, is handy with tools 
 of all kinds, and makes good use of his talent, 
 saving himself many a penny in the way of 
 manufacturing or repairing machinery and farm 
 implements. A New Englander by birth and 
 ancestry, he was born October 5, 1856, in Iras- 
 burg, Orleans county, Vt., a son of A. P. Col- 
 lins. His grandfather, Charles Collins, a life- 
 long farmer and stockman in Vermont, served in 
 the war of 1812. 
 
 A native of Orange county, Vt., A. P. Collins 
 pursued the independent occupation of a farmer 
 in his native state for many years, living there 
 until forty years of age. Then, in the prime of 
 a vigorous manhood, he migrated westward, lo- 
 cating in Dane county. Wis., near Black Earth, 
 
GEORGE M. CALDWELL 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1085 
 
 where he carried on farming two years. Going 
 then to Bremer county, Iowa, he settled on a 
 farm near Waverly, and was there a resident 
 until 1884. Returning east, he lived in his old 
 home for two vears, .and in 1886 came to Cali- 
 fornia, and here he lived a few years. Not quite 
 content, however, he went back to Iowa, arid 
 until 1904 resided in Plainfield, but he is now in 
 Tulare county, making his home with his son, 
 Oscar A. He comes of a family noted for its 
 longevity, his mother, whose maiden name was 
 Susan Currier, having lived to be ninety-nine 
 years of age, while her mother and her grand- 
 mother both passed the century mark. He mar- 
 ried Lucinda Sawyer, who was born in Orange 
 county, Vt., and died in Bremer county, Iowa. 
 She bore him six children, five of whom are liv- 
 ing, three being residents of this state. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm in Iowa, Oscar 
 A. Collins acquired the rudiments of his educa- 
 tion in the district school, after which he at- 
 tended the Bradford Academy, then the Waverly 
 high school. At the age of twenty years he 
 began farming on his own account, continuing 
 three years. Going to Colorado in 1879, he re- 
 mained there a year, and then went back to 
 Iowa. In 1881 Mr. Collins came to the extreme 
 western coast, locating in Chico, Cal., where he 
 resumed his former occupation on the Bidwell 
 ranch, remaining there three years. From 1884 
 until 1885 he lived in Salinas, Monterey county, 
 from there coming, in 1885, to Tulare county. 
 Locating near Traver, Mr^ Collins purchased 
 forty acres of land, and on that, and a large 
 tract which he rented, he was employed as a 
 grain raiser for six years. Hoping to better his 
 financial condition, he migrated to Oregon, but 
 his stay in that state was very brief. Returning 
 to California, he was for a while engaged in " the 
 milk business in San Francisco, after which he 
 rented land near Dinuba, and for two' years 
 raised grain, meeting with satisfactory results in 
 the operation. In 1893 he took a pleasure trip 
 east, visiting the Columbian exposition, held in 
 Chicago. Returning to this county, Mr. Collins 
 located, in February, 1894, on his former ranch, 
 near Dinuba, and remained there about a year. 
 In 1895 he bought his present home ranch of 
 sixty acres, adjoining Dinuba, and has since been 
 profitably employed in farming, fruit growing 
 and. stock raising. Fifteen acres of his land is 
 devoted to the culture of grapes, but on the 
 rest he raises principally alfalfa. 
 
 June 8, 1884, in Chico, Cal., Mr. Collins mar- 
 ried Sarah E. Parsons, who was born near 
 Horseshoe Bend, W. Va., which was likewise 
 the birthplace of her father, Andrew Parsons. 
 Her grandfather, James Parsons, a native of old 
 Virginia and for many years a farmer and stock- 
 man in West Virginia, was a sop of one M}J§s 
 
 Parsons, who emigrated from England with 
 three of his brothers, and settled in the old Do- 
 minion state. Andrew Parsons came from his 
 native state to California with his family in 1871, 
 and lived first in Salinas, subsequently settling 
 in San Miguel, where his death occurred in 1893. 
 He married Phoebe Ann Howe, who was born 
 in New York state, and died in California. Of 
 the nine children born of their union, eight are 
 living, seven being residents of this state. Mrs. 
 Collins came to California in October, 1875, 
 joining her two brothers in Salinas. Politically 
 Mr. Collins is a steadfast Republican, and Mrs. 
 Collins is an ardent suffragist, and a member of 
 the Dinuba Woman's Club, of which she was 
 formerly vice president and secretary. 
 
 GEORGE MARION CALDWELL. As a 
 prominent ranchman of Tulare county George 
 Marion Caldwell is remembered by his many 
 friends as a man of energy and industry, and 
 a progressive and enterprising citizen. He was 
 a native of Indiana, where his birth occurred 
 March 30, 1850. His father, George Caldwell, a 
 native of Virginia, located as a pioneer in Indi- 
 ana, and in 1852 crossed the plains to California. 
 Here he engaged in mining in the vicinity of 
 Shaws Flat, later going to San Juan, and event- 
 ually locating in Tulare county, near Visalia, 
 where he followed farming and stock raising. 
 His death occurred in Tulare, December 16, 
 1881. His wife, formerly Lydia Williams, a 
 native of Indiana, died in Portersville, Tulare 
 county. 
 
 The entire life of George Marion Caldwell, 
 with the exception of two years, was spent in the 
 state of California. In boyhood he attended the 
 common schools in the vicinity of his home. In 
 manhood he followed the example of his father 
 and engaged in stock raising, in partnership with 
 his brothers purchasing the Elk Bayou ranch, 
 which they operated for some time. In 1875 the 
 property was divided and Mr. Caldwell took that 
 which now forms the home place of his family, 
 its location being two and a half miles south- 
 west of Visalia and consisting of one hundred 
 and seventy acres. Upon this property he suc- 
 cessfully engaged in farming and the cattle busi- 
 ness until his death April 29, 1892. He was 
 esteemed for his spirit of progression and liberal- 
 ity, his interest always being given to movements 
 calculated to advance the general welfare of the 
 community. Politically he was an adherent of 
 the principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Democratic party, and was always active in the 
 interests he endorsed. 
 
 In Visalia, July i, 1875, Mr. Caldwell married 
 Matilda Louisa Kelly, a native of this city and 
 the daughter of Greenbury M. Kelly, whosg 
 
1086 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sketch is found on another page of this work. 
 She survives her husband and is located on the 
 liome place, acting as manager in the cattle and 
 dairy business which is now carried on. A 
 part of the property is also given over to the 
 cultivation of alfalfa. Eight children were born 
 of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell, namely : 
 WilHam L. ; Jasper C. ; George L. ; Edward E. ; 
 twins, who died in infancy ; Etta May and 
 Ernest M., all of whom are at home. 
 
 JOHN F. FIREBAUGH. Once the owner 
 of all the land upon which the town of Exeter 
 is built, John F. Firebaugh is rightly designated 
 as the founder of the place and a citizen whose 
 efforts have been most productive of material 
 good, growth and prosperity. Of southern an- 
 cestry, he was born near Lexington, Rockbridge 
 county, Va., December 12, 1846, a son of Benja- 
 min Firebaugh, a native of the same locality. 
 The grandfather, John Firebaugh, went south 
 from his native state of Pennsylvania, where the 
 family had been founded by German ancestors, 
 and became a farrner and stockman in Virginia. 
 Benjamin Firebaugh also followed the same oc- 
 cupation in his native state until his emigration 
 to' California, when he became a farmer in Tu- 
 lare county, making it his home until his death. 
 He was a Presbyterian in his religious faith and 
 a man of strong and earnest character. His wife 
 was in maidenhood Rebecca Horn, a native of 
 Rockbridge county, Va., and a daughter of Jacob 
 Horn, a fkrmer, who was also born in the Old 
 Dominion, the descendant of German ancestry. 
 Mrs. Firebaugh died on the old home place, two 
 miles from Exeter. She was the mother of 
 seven children, four of whom attained maturity, 
 namely : James, who died during the Civil war ; 
 John F., of this review; N. B., of Exeter; and 
 Cornelia, who became the wife of H. H. Harlow 
 of Fresno. 
 
 Although a Virginian, the elder Firebaugh 
 owned no slaves, nor did he beheve in the traf- 
 fic, but under the weight of southern influence 
 and prejudice the sons were forced into the 
 army. After the war John F. Firebaugh came 
 to California with the family, following an uncle, 
 Andrew Firebaugh, who crossed the plains in 
 1849 and established the town of Firebaugh, 
 Fresno county, and also established and con- 
 ducted the ferry at that place and built the 
 road over the Pacheco Pass. He became and 
 remained a prominent citizen throughout his 
 residence in Fresno county, his death occurring 
 near Fresno. John F. Firebaugh went from San 
 Francisco in February, 1868, to San Jose, and 
 afterward engaged in farming near Watsonville. 
 In the fall of 1869 he came to Tulare countv, 
 remaining at home, as his father had just bought 
 
 a farm of eighty acres and he was needed to 
 help in its cultivation. In 1873 he married and 
 located first on the railroad lands on the north- 
 east quarter of section 3, township 19, range 26, 
 but as these lands were not in the market he re- 
 moved in 1875 to the northeast quarter of sec- 
 tion to, township 19, range 26, where he pre- 
 empted one hundred and sixty acres, paying out 
 on eighty acres and homesteading the remainder. 
 He put up a small house which formed the home 
 of the family for some time, and broke the land 
 and sowed it to grain. Later on he bought rail- 
 road land, the southeast quarter of section 3, and 
 afterward the southwest quarter of the same sec- 
 tion, and in addition to his homestead took an- 
 other eighty acres, in the north half of the north- 
 west quarter of section 10, making five hundred 
 and sixty acres in one body. This extensive 
 property he devoted to general farming and 
 stock-raising until the founding of the town of 
 Exeter. Through his inducements the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad Company located a station here, 
 and in connection with D. W. Parkhurst, Mr. 
 Firebaugh began the laying out of Exeter. The 
 town is laid out on sections 3 and 10, a portion 
 of two hundred and forty acres, half of which 
 was given to the Pacific Improvement Company, 
 which built the railroad. 
 
 The West Villa addition to Exeter, consisting 
 of forty acres, was laid out by Mr. Firebaugh 
 and Mr. Parkhurst in 1890. About ten years 
 ago the town began a rapid growth, which has 
 not ceased with the passing of the years, but 
 continues to the present day, the population now 
 being over eight hundred. Mr. Firebaugh still 
 owns one hundred and sixty acres of the original 
 property, and a half-interest in one hundred and 
 twenty acres adjoining the city and in town lots. 
 He also owns one hundred acres located three 
 miles east of Exeter, on section 14, which is de- 
 voted to general farming. He also has a pump- 
 ing plant, the well being one hundred and thir- 
 teen feet deep, the electric motor, fifteen horse- 
 power, bringing up fifty-eight inches of water 
 continuously. This will irrigate two hundred 
 and fifty acres of orchard and is designed to 
 reach every piece of land owned by Mr. Fire- 
 baugh. He has also planned to put in one hun- 
 dred acres of Rocky Ford canteloupes, having 
 already made a contract with a firm in New 
 York to dispose of the product. Another of. Mr. 
 Firebaugh's extensive interests was the building 
 of a mill on the site of the old Dillon mill, three 
 and a half miles west of Exeter, the roller process 
 being introduced and many modern improve- 
 ments adding to the value of the enterprise. It 
 was known as the San Joaquin Roller Mill, and 
 was first owned by Mr. Firebaugh and H. J. 
 Ottson, the former eventually purchasing the en- 
 tire interest and conducting it successfully for 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1087 
 
 a period of ten years, when he sold out. His 
 business interests, horticultural, farming and 
 stock raising, as well as the executive ability 
 exercised in the establishment and upbuilding 
 of Exeter, have made him a potent factor in the 
 development and growth of this part of Tulare 
 county, and justly places him in the front rank 
 of representative citizens. 
 
 In Tulare county, in the vicinity of Exeter, 
 Mr. Firebaugh was united in marriage with 
 Mary E. Davis, who was born in Amador coun- 
 ty, Cal. Her father, Edwin Davis, came across 
 the plains in 1852 to California, engaging first 
 as a miner, but eventually locating as a stock- 
 man in Tulare county until his retirement, now 
 making his home in Exeter, in his seventy-first 
 year. His marriage was romantic, occurring on 
 the plains on the trip to California and uniting 
 him with Sarah Ann Spier, a native of Missouri, 
 who died in 1901. Tlie following children were 
 born to Mr. and Mrs. Firebaugh : Minnie B., 
 the wife of M. D. Twiehaus of Exeter; Luther 
 W., a rancher near Exeter; Edna E., the wife 
 of George Hinds of Exeter ; Elmer J., located in 
 Bakersfield, in the employ of the Southern Pa- 
 cific Railroad ; Clarence E. and Lorena D., at 
 home. Mrs. Firebaugh is a member of the Bap- 
 tist Church and supports all its interests gen- 
 erously. PoHtically Mr. Firebaugh is a stanch 
 Democrat. For many years he has acted as a 
 member of the school board, being one of the 
 first school directors in his district. 
 
 MOSES DUDLEY, a pioneer of the state, 
 and a man of fine business qualities, was born 
 in Bath, N. Y., July 13, 1833, a son of Moses 
 Dudley. The elder man was a native of Maine, 
 and became a farmer in Bath, N. Y., where his 
 death occurred. His wife, formerly Mary At- 
 wood, is also deceased. Two of their children 
 came to California, a son, John, locating here 
 in the early days, making his home in San Jose, 
 Santa Clara county, at the time of his death. 
 Moses Dudley, Jr., was reared in his home in 
 New York state, in young manhood following 
 the example of his father in seeking his liveli- 
 hood along agricultural lines. He finally re- 
 moved to Hennepin county, Minn., and engaged 
 "in farming and stock raising, later locating in 
 Kansas, where he took an active part in the bor- 
 der troubles in the army of that state. Return- 
 ing to Minnesota, he was married October 16, 
 1868, to Sarah Bristol, a native of Delaware 
 county, N. Y. In 1870 they decided to locate in 
 CaHfornia, and accordingly settled in San Jose, 
 where they made their home until March of the; 
 following year, when they removed to the horrie 
 now occupied by Mrs. Dudley. Here Mr. Dudley 
 improved a r^nch and alsp purchased other prop- 
 
 erty, taking an active part in the material up- 
 building of this section of Tulare county. The 
 home ranch is located twenty miles northeast of 
 Visalia and is devoted to stock-raising. His 
 death occurred July 27, 1897, ^t Campbell, Santa 
 Clara county. He was a man of strong relig- 
 ious nature, an earnest and faithful Christian, 
 and a practical citizen. Politically he cast his 
 ballot with the Republican partv. 
 
 Born to Mr. and Mrs. Dudley are the follow- 
 ing children : John Guilford, in the stock busi- 
 ness on the home ranch ; Edmund R., associated 
 with the Golden West Real Estate business in 
 Visalia, Cal. ; Benjamin B., in the same work at 
 the same place; and Frances E., the wife of J. 
 K. Yoakum of Visalia. 
 
 GEORGE WALTER KIRKMAN. A wide- 
 awake, enterprising man, ever ready to take ad- 
 vantage of any offered opportunity for improve- 
 ment, George Walter Kirkman is one of Tulare 
 county!s most substantial business men, and an 
 important factor in promoting its industrial in- 
 terests. He owns and ^occupies a ranch, lying 
 nine miles east of Visalia, and in its care and 
 management spares neither time nor expense. 
 He is likewise interested in other pursuits, hand- 
 ling contracts, and being identified with two 
 meat markets, one at Exeter, and one at Lind- 
 say. A son of John Kirkman, he was born, De- 
 cember 4, 1853, in Wayne county, Ind., where his 
 grandfather, George Kirkman, settled as a pio- 
 neer, removing there from North Carolina. 
 
 A native of North Carolina, John Kirkman 
 moved from there to Indiana with his parents 
 when seven years old, and was brought up on a 
 farm, which he helped to clear from the wilder- 
 ness. Early in the '70s he migrated to Missouri, 
 locating in St. Charles county, where he was em- 
 ployed in tilling the soil for about ten years. In 
 the fall of 1 88 1 he came with his son George 
 to CaHfornia, and subsequently made his home 
 with him. He is now seventy-seven ' years old 
 and is a remarkable hunter. In the last five 
 years he has killed eleven deer in eleven shots. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Elizabeth 
 Thornburg, was born in Wayne county, Ind., 
 and died in Missouri. She bore him eight chil- 
 dren, six boys and two girls, George Walter, the 
 subject of this sketch, being the second child. 
 
 At the age of seventeen years George Walter 
 Kirkman went with his parents to Missouri, 
 where he assisted his father in the pioneer labor 
 of clearing a homestead. Coming to California 
 in the fall of 1881, he bought land near Exeter 
 and began the improvement of a ranch. In 1889. 
 the railroad being extended to Exeter, Mr. Kirk- 
 man and his brother, foreseeing its mercantile 
 possibilities, built the first store established m 
 
1088 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the town, and became the pioneer merchants of 
 the place. As the town grew and developed, 
 their trade increased, and for four years they car- 
 ried on a substantial business in general mer- 
 chandise. In 1893 Mr. Kirkman accepted a con- 
 tract to furnish the provisions for the Sanger 
 Lumber Company, and to haul the same to the 
 mountains, in Millwood. This business he has 
 continued since, going each summer into the 
 mountains to fill the contracts. In 1900 Mr. 
 Kirkman bought his present home ranch of three 
 hundred and fifteen acres, which he devotes to 
 general farming and stock-raising. He also has 
 meat markets in Exeter and Lindsay, both of 
 which he supplies with meat from his own farm. 
 He is also interested in breeding and raising 
 race horses, having a string of fine trotters and 
 pacers, including Rockaway, one year old ; Frank 
 B., two years old, with a record of 2 130, and 
 Myway, three years old. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. Kirkman married Mary De- 
 lilah Yarnall, a native of that state, and they 
 are the parents of four children, namely : John 
 Montreville, Maud, Carrie Minerva and Bertie 
 Erwin. Politically Mr. Kirkman is a steadfast 
 Republican, and fraternally he is a member of 
 Exeter Lodge, K. of P. 
 
 ORVILLE CAUGHEY GOODIN. One of 
 the oldest settlers and one who, as a pioneer, has 
 endured the privations and hardships incident 
 to the upbuilding of a new statehood, is Orville 
 Caughey Goodin, well known throughout Tu- 
 lare county, where all but five vears of his life 
 have been spent. He was born near Pineville, 
 McDonald county. Mo., September 5, 1856. Plis 
 father, William Severe Goodin, was born in East 
 Tennessee, from which state his father, Benja- 
 min, removed to Missouri, where his death oc- 
 curred. William S. Goodin engaged as a farm- 
 er in McDonald county until 1857, when he 
 brought his wife and son across the plains with 
 ox-teams. He first located in Sonoma county, 
 where he remained until 1861 and then located 
 near Visalia, Tulare county, engaging ' in agri- 
 cultural pursuits on a farm seven miles east of 
 the city. He was later located on another farm 
 and also owned a farm near Lovell, which he de- 
 voted to grain-raising. His death occurred at 
 the age of sixty-seven years. His wife, for- 
 merly Eliza Blair, was a native of Missouri, and 
 the daughter of Jonathan Blair, who emigrated 
 from his birthplace in Tennessee to Missouri, 
 thence to California across the plains in 1857. 
 He located as a farmer east of Visalia, where his 
 death occurred. Mrs. Goodin died in Farmers- 
 ville, leaving a family of three children, name- 
 ly: Orville Caughey, of this review; W. L., a 
 farmer and horticulturist near Orosi ; and Sj^rah 
 L., a resident of Fresno. 
 
 But one year old when the trip across the 
 plains was made, Orville Caughey Goodin knows 
 no other associations than those of a California 
 home. From the age of five years he was reared 
 in Tulare county, attending the public schools 
 while receiving the practical training of a farm- 
 er's son. When only ten years old his mother 
 died. He remained at home until he was eigh- | 
 teen years old, when he sought employment on 
 neighboring farms and also engaged in team- 
 ing. In 1878 he came to Orosi, then nothing 
 but barren plains, his first employment in this lo- 
 cation being the hauling of lumber to Visalia 
 from the Wagy, Thomas, Comstock and Turbine 
 mills, during which long drives he saw many 
 animals, among them antelopes, which have long 
 since disappeared from the plains. One week 
 was consumed in making the round trip, and on 
 accotmt of bad roads from six to eight horses 
 were required to draw the loads. Until 1890 he 
 remained in this employment, ten years earlier, 
 however, purchasing a half section of railroad 
 land where Orosi now stands, for which he paid 
 $4.50 an acre. The land was wild and uncul- 
 tivated and without improvements of any kind. 
 He built a house and began improving his prop- 
 erty, cultivating it to grain. In 1890 he gave 
 up teaming and since that time has given his 
 attention entirely to the cultivation and improve- 
 ment of his property. The same year he set 
 out considerable fruit, keeping in his possession 
 about ten acres of the original tract, while he 
 sold in ten and twenty acre lots the larger part 
 of the remainder. A part of the town of Orosi 
 is laid out on what was once his farm, his first 
 residence being on the corner now occupied by 
 the Beinhorn Bros, store. He has since built a 
 handsome residence, barns and outbuildings and 
 has made his property to rank with the best in 
 this section. He now owns a ranch of three 
 hundred and twenty acres near Lovell, devoted 
 to stock and alfalfa, one hundred and sixty acres 
 near Traver, a stock ranch, and eighteen hun- 
 dred acres in the foothills, ten miles from this 
 place, up Sand creek, this large property being 
 entirely fenced. This ranch is devoted to the 
 cultivation of hay and stock-raising. Polled An- 
 gus and Hereford cattle, and draft horses form- 
 ing no small part of the live-stock cared for 
 by Mr. Goodin. He has made a success of his 
 work as rancher, stockman and horticulturist, 
 and is numbered among the progressive and 
 enterprising citizens of this part of Tulare coun- 
 ty- 
 
 Near Lemon Cove, Mr. Goodin was united in 
 marriag-e with Nannie Ragle, a native of Sonoma 
 county, the daughter of William Ragle, who 
 came from Tennessee, his native state, to Cali- 
 fornia as a pioneer, locating eventually in Tu- 
 lare county and whose history appears in an- 
 
-^,^. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1091 
 
 other part of this volume. In his political convic- 
 tions Mr. Goodin is a Democrat and in the im 
 terests of his party has served as school trustee. 
 Through his efforts a postoffice was first secured 
 for Orosi and he served as the first postmaster, 
 the office being in his house. He held the posi- 
 tion for two years, when he resigned. Fra- 
 ternally he' belongs to the Knights of Pythias, 
 being past officer and ex-representative; Wood- 
 men of the World; Women of Woodcraft; In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows ; and Rebekahs. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Goodin are members of the Pres- 
 byterian Church, in which he officiates as trus- 
 tee and treasurer. 
 
 GEORGE W. CAMERON. The substantial 
 and progressive citizens of Fresno have no 
 better representative than G. W. Cameron, a 
 successful agriculturist and horticulturist, who 
 is now serving with eminent satisfaction as 
 county assessor of Fresno county. A son of 
 Elisha Cameron, he was born May 5, 1836, in 
 Sparta, White county, Tenn. Hi's grandfather, 
 William Cameron, was born and reared in Scot- 
 land. Emigrating to America when a young 
 man, he located first in North Carolina, from 
 there removing to Sparta, Tenn., where he car- 
 ried on general farming for several years. Mi- 
 grating then to northern Alabama, he lived there 
 until his death at the age of eighty years. He 
 was a deeply religious man, and, like his Scptch 
 ancestors, was a stanch Presbyterian. 
 
 A native of Tennessee, Elisha Cameron spent 
 his entire life in White county, dying at the age 
 of seventy-two years. He was a farmer by oc- 
 cupation, and was also a successful tanner, own- 
 ing a large tannery near Sparta. As a man and 
 a citizen he was held in high respect. In politics 
 he was a Whig, and in religion a Presbyterian. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Hud- 
 son, was born in South Carolina, a daughter of 
 James Hudson. Mr. Hudson was a native of 
 Wales, but came to this country when young, 
 and for a number of years resided in South 
 Carolina. From there he removed with his fam- 
 ily to Tennessee, performing the journey with 
 packhorses, and cutting his way through the 
 cane brakes. Taking up a tract of unbroken 
 land, he improved a good farm from the wilder- 
 ness, and in his new home spent his remaining 
 years. He, too, was a faithful Presbyterian 
 in his religious affiliations. Of his family of 
 eight boys and four girls all grew to years of 
 maturity, and all but one reared families of 
 their own. Three of his sons served in the war 
 of 1812. Of the union of EHsha and Mary 
 (Hudson) Cameron fourteen children were 
 bom, eleven daughters and three sons, and of 
 these two sons and two daughters survive. Two 
 
 of the sons served in the Confederate army dur- 
 ing the Civil war, both being in the same regi- 
 ment and the same company, namely: George 
 W., of this review, and William Newton, who 
 is now a prosperous banker of Coleman, Tex. 
 The latter was an officer, serving as second lieu- 
 tenant of his company. 
 
 The oldest son, and the seventh child in order 
 of birth, George W. Cameron grew to manhood 
 in Sparta, obtaining his early education at a 
 subscription school. Under his father's instruc- 
 tion he learned the trade of a tanner and cur- 
 rier at Cameron's tanyard, which still retains its 
 original name, working in the yard until the 
 breaking out of the Civil war, when his father, 
 being left without help, had to give up the busi- 
 ness. At the first call for troops in the spring 
 of 1861, Mr. Cameron enlisted as a private in 
 Company A, Twenty-fifth Tennessee Confederate 
 Volunteer Infantry, and took part in several en- 
 gagements of importance, including those at Fish- 
 ing Creek, Stone River and Chickamauga. At 
 the battle of Chickamauga, September 19, 1863, 
 -Mr. Cameron received a minie-ball in the left 
 hand, and was taken to Georgia for treatment. 
 At the hospital gangrene set in, an infected pa- 
 tient spreading the disease through the ward in 
 which he was confined, and October 18, 1863, 
 Mr. Cameron's forearm had to be amputated. 
 Honorably discharged from service in February, 
 1864, Mr. Cameron soon afterward returned 
 home, arriving in Sparta April 24, 1864. He 
 found his former home a desolate ruin, the 
 house being demolished, and not an animal 
 left on the place. Going to work as best he 
 could with his one hand, he managed the farm 
 for five years, making a living. Disposing of 
 the property in 1869, Mr. Cameron came to Cal- 
 ifornia on one of the first railroad trains that 
 crossed the continent. Locating at Modesto, 
 Stanislaus county, he put in a crop, but not 
 being pleased with the results of his labors he 
 turfied his face eastward. Arriving in Buchanan 
 county. Mo., he engaged in farming there for 
 a year, and then removed to Arkansas, where 
 he was similarly employed for two years. 
 
 Returning to California in 1874, Mr. Cameron, 
 who had sent his wife and their two children 
 back to Tennessee, arrived in Modesto one Sat- 
 urday evening with just $1.75 in his pockets. 
 Walking out into the country about seven miles, 
 he found employment on a ranch, on which he 
 remained until after harvest, receiving $30 per 
 month and board. Renting a ranch in the fall, 
 he put in a crop, sent for his family, and lived 
 on the place five years. In 1879 he bought a 
 farm of three hundred and twenty acres, about 
 two and one-half miles north of Modesto, pay- 
 ing $16 per acre. Erecting a house, barns and 
 all necessary outbuildings, he carried on gen- 
 
1092 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 eral farming, making a specialty of grain rais- 
 ing. In 1882 Mr. Cameron was elected county 
 assessor of Stanislaus county on the Democratic 
 ticket, and served for four years. He subse- 
 quently bought a ranch of six hundred and forty 
 acres in San Luis Obispo county, and managed 
 that in addition to carrying on his home farm. 
 Selling his Modesto farm in 1894, Mr. Carrieron 
 located m Fresno and engaged in the business 
 of a vineyardistj renting twenty acres of land, 
 which he devoted to the culture of grapes_ of 
 various kinds, making a specialty of the raisin 
 grape. In 1902 he was elected county assessor 
 of Fresno county on the Democratic ticket, re- 
 ceiving a majority of two hundred and ninety 
 votes, and in January, 1903, took the oath of 
 office. 
 
 While living in Tennessee, Mr. Cameron mar- 
 ried Mary Stone, a native of that state, and the 
 descendant of an old and honored family. Of 
 the union of Mr. and Mrs. Cameron four chil- 
 dren V ere born, namely : Jennie, wife of E. 
 Shepherd, of Laton, Cal. ; Emma, who died at 
 the age of twenty-eight years ; Florrila, who 
 died at the , age of eighteen years ; and Forest, 
 the wife ot J. B. Pettit, of Mill Valley, Cal. In 
 1861 Mr. Cameron was made a Mason in Sparta, 
 Tenri., and is now a member of Stanislaus Lodge 
 No. 206, F. & A. M. He also belongs to the 
 Modern Woodmen of America, and Lee Camp, 
 U. C. v., of Fresno, which he has served as 
 commander. In politics he is one of the leading 
 D'-'mocrats of the county, and in religion he is 
 a consistent member of the Christian Church. 
 
 JOHN KAMBICH. Among the foreign-born 
 citizens who have made a success in the western 
 states mention belongs to John Kambich, who 
 is located as a farmer on a ranch of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres adjoining Piano, Tulare 
 county. A native of Austria, he was born De- 
 cember 25, 1857, ^ son of Steven Kambich, also 
 of that country. The elder man came to America 
 in 1869 and located in Chicago, 111., where he 
 engaged in peddling for some time. In 1871 he 
 came to California and was occupied in agricult- 
 ural pursuits in Yolo county for seven years, 
 when, with his competence, he returned to Aus- 
 tria, where his death occurred in 1893. His wife, 
 formerly Mary Ogalin, a native of the same 
 country, still survives her husband. They were 
 the parents of four sons and one daughter, of 
 whom John Kambich was the oldest. 
 
 John Kambich received his education in the 
 common schools of Austria and America, in 
 young manhood being apprenticed to learn the 
 trade of a blacksmith. He remained in Illinois 
 engaged in the prosecution of his trade until 
 April 22, 1883, when he came to Yolo county, 
 
 Cal, and at Blacks Station worked on a ranch 
 and followed blacksmithing. In 1887- he located 
 in Tulare county and in the vicinity of Piano 
 bought three hundred and twenty acres of land, 
 which is devoted to the cultivation of wheat and 
 general farming. In Visalia, Cal, he was united 
 in marriage with Emma M. German, a native of 
 Missouri, and they are the parents of seven chil- 
 dren, all of whom are at home, namely: May 
 Cecelia, Lewis Edward, Henry John, Jo Frank, 
 Anthony M., Bertha Marie and Paul August. 
 Mr. Kambich is a member of the Roman Catholic 
 Church, and politically casts his ballot with the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 JAMES FORNEY DUNCAN, M. D. The 
 success of James Forney Dungan as a physician 
 and surgeon is the result of well-directed effort, 
 sustained by a thorough and earnest prepara- 
 tion for his work. In 1893 he located in Exeter, 
 Tulare county, since which time he has built up 
 an extensive and lucrative practice in the town 
 and vicinity, and even attending patients at a 
 distance of more than fifty miles, having won 
 the confidence of all who have either benefited 
 by or witnessed the value of his efforts. 
 
 Born in Glade Spring, Va., August 4, 1866, 
 Dr. Dungan is the oldest in a family of eight 
 children, of whom six are now living. His fatlj- 
 er, T. N. Dungan, was a native of Missouri, 
 whither the grandfather located as a pioneer in 
 the early days of the state, and where his deatli 
 occurred. In manhood T. N. Dungan went to 
 Virginia, where he became a farmer and stock- 
 man at Glade Spring. In 1894 he came to Exe- 
 ter, Tulare county, and two years later set out 
 the first grove of oranges in this district. He 
 met with gratifying success in his work until his 
 retirement, now making his home in Exeter. His 
 wife, formerly Joanna McKee, was born near 
 Glade Spring, Va., the descendant of an old Vir- 
 ginia family whose sterling traits were inherited 
 from a long line of Scotch ancestry. She died 
 in Exeter, after a useful and earnest life, her re- 
 ligious work being in the Baptist Church, of 
 which she was a devout member, while her hus- 
 band belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Qiurch. 
 
 James Forney Dungan was reared to young 
 manhood in his native place, after receiving a pre- 
 liminary education attending Holston Academy 
 for two years. Deciding to take up the profes- 
 sion of medicine he began the study under Dr. 
 W. L. Dunn, of Glade Spring, with whom he' re- 
 mained two years. He then took a course at 
 The Medical College of Virginia, at Richmond, 
 after which he entered Vanderbilt University. 
 From this latter institution he was graduated in 
 1891 with the degree of M. D., spending a part 
 of the following year at the University of Nash- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1093 
 
 ville (the old Peabody School), in post-graduate 
 work, from which he also received the degree of 
 M. D. Entering upon the practice of medicine 
 in 1892, he was located first in Watauga Valley, 
 Tenn., where he remained a year, when he came 
 to California and became a resident pf Exeter. 
 At that time there were only three or four build- 
 ings on the east side of the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road tracks, where the doctor located, and since 
 then he has given his best effcffts towards the ma- 
 terial upbuilding of the town, as well as devoting 
 thought and attention to the increase of his prac- 
 tice. Through Dr. Dungan's influence the first 
 drug store was established in the town by his 
 uncle, J. W. Dungan, and in various ways the 
 business activity has been increased by the doc- 
 tor's efforts. He has also given some time to 
 horticultural pursuits, having a seven-acre orange 
 grove, as well as several orange tracts not yet 
 planted to fruit. He has also manifested his 
 faith in the future growth and prosperity of the 
 town by the purchase of both business and resi- 
 dence properties. 
 
 Dr. Dungan has been twice married, the first 
 ceremony being performed in Watauga Valley, 
 Tenn., and uniting him with Emma J. Kitzmiller, 
 who was born near Glade Spring, Va., and died 
 in Exeter. She left two children, Lake L. and 
 Mamie Virginia. The doctor's second marriage 
 occurred in Exeter, and united him with Sue 
 Combs, a native of Missouri, and daughter of 
 James Combs, now of Lake count)', Cal. She 
 was reared and educated. in San Mateo and Lake 
 counties, later graduating , from the San Jose 
 Normal, and for ten years taught school in Lake 
 and Tulare counties. They have one son, _ Mar- 
 shall. Mrs. Dungan is a member of the Episco- 
 pal Church. Fraternally Dr. Dungan affiliates 
 with the Knights of Pythias and Woodmen of the 
 World, of Exeter. Politically he is a stanch 
 Democrat, active in his efforts to advance the 
 principles he endorses, and at one time served as 
 a member of the county central committee. 
 Along -the line of his profession he is examin- 
 ing physician for several of the old line insur- 
 ance companies represented in Tulare county. 
 
 THE LINDSAY FRUIT ASSOCIATION 
 was formed in 1904 by three of the leading 
 growers in the Lindsay district, H. S. Black, L. 
 S. White and Hugh Latimer, the latter a resi- 
 dent of Riverside, but owning orange groves in 
 this section of the state. The plan was to pack 
 and ship the products of their own orchards and 
 to also handle fruit for others if desired. The 
 three members of the association have seventy- 
 three acres of Washington navels and twelve 
 acres of late Valencias, and all the fruit is packed 
 and shipped from their packing house, which was 
 
 erected on a siding of the Southern Pacific at 
 Lindsay. The plant has a capacity of three cars 
 per day. The oranges are- sold through the 
 Southern California Fruit Exchange, and thus 
 far the venture has proved a success. 
 
 The men who organized the company are well 
 known throughout Tulare county. Mr. White 
 located in Lindsay in 1902, soon afterward be- 
 coming interested in orange growing. Mr. Black 
 settled here in 1893 and was one of the first men 
 to set out oranges in Lindsay. The other mem- 
 ber of the firm, Mr. Latimer, makes his home 
 in Riverside, but is well known in Tulare county. 
 
 From its inception the association has met with 
 success. The men connected with it understand 
 their business thoroughly and do all in their 
 power to hrlkg about the desired results. 
 
 JOHN W. STOKES. A prominent rancher 
 and stock dealer of Tulare county, John W. 
 Stokes is located in the vicinity of Visalia where 
 he leases land to carry on his business. He was 
 bom in Daviess county, Mo., July 2, 1837, a son 
 of Yancy B. Stokes, the latter a native of Ken- 
 tucky. Yancy B. Stokes came to Missouri in an 
 early day and engaged in farming and stock- 
 raising, in the course of time traveling exten- 
 sively throughout the middle west in his business 
 of buying and selling stock. About 1840 he re- 
 moved to Iowa, where he made his home until 
 1850, in which year, on April 10, he started 
 across the plains to California. The trip was 
 made by ox-teams and occupied seven months, 
 the company arriving in Hangtown, (now Pla- 
 cerville) October 12. He spent his first winter 
 in California in Stockton, being ill the greater 
 part of the time. His son, John W. Stokes, who 
 accompanied him on the journey, cared for their 
 stock that winter, and in the spring they went 
 to Curtis Creek mines. The three months spent 
 there were productive of considerable money, but 
 Mr. Stokes had the misfortune to have it stolen 
 from his trunk. He then went to Mokelumne 
 river, in Calaveras county, where he remained 
 until the spring of 1852, after which he located 
 near Marysville, on the Yuba river. He spent 
 the following spring and summer prospecting for 
 mines, after which he returned to Stockton. In 
 the fall of the same year he went back to Iowa, 
 and in 1853 brought his family across the plains 
 to California, although they stopped and spent 
 the winter in Carson valley, the following spring 
 locating in Contra Costa county, near Martinez. 
 For one year this continued to be the home of 
 the family, when, in December, 1855, they came 
 to Tulare' county and located on government land 
 which Mr. Stokes took up six miles west of Vis- 
 alia. He there engaged in general farming and 
 stock-raising for some time, when he sold the 
 
1094 
 
 Historical and biographical record. 
 
 property to his son, John W. Stokes, and bought 
 another tract in the same vicinity, owning at the 
 time of his death about sixteen hundred acres. 
 His death occurred March 4, 1886. His wife, 
 whom he married in Missouri, was formerly 
 EHzabeth Moore, a native of that state. Her 
 death also occurred in California. In his polit- 
 ical convictions Mr. Stokes was a stanch Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 In a family of six sons and five daughters born 
 to his parents John W. Stokes was the third in 
 order of birth. He received a Hmited educa- 
 tion in the common schools of Iowa and Cali- 
 fornia, to which state he first came with his 
 father in 1850, being then a lad of thirteen years. 
 He remained in California while his father re- 
 turned to Iowa for the remainder oi-the family, 
 working in the mines at various odd jobs. Upon 
 the location of the family in the state he came 
 with them to Tulare county and with his father 
 engaged in general farming and stock-raising. 
 He has continued in this work since, handling ex- 
 tensively cattle, horses, hogs, etc. He has pur- 
 chased a large amount of land, while he also 
 leases land for ranges. He is meeting with a 
 success that bids fair to number him among 
 the successful stockmen of the county. 
 
 In Tulare county, Cal., Mr. Stokes married 
 Rachel M. Gibson, a native of Missouri, who 
 died in San Luis Obispo county, Cal. She left 
 a family of five children, namely : Christina, the 
 wife of Adam Spaith, of Tulare county; Thom- 
 as, of Visalia ; Elta, a resident of Los Angeles ; 
 Miles Andrew, of Visalia ; and Qaud, of San 
 Luis Obispo county, Cal. Mr. Stokes' second 
 marriage occurred in Visalia, and united him 
 with Nancy Liggett, a native of Tennessee, and 
 born of this union are two children, namely: 
 Henry Jenkins and Roxanna, both at home with 
 their parents. In his political convictions Mr. 
 Stokes is like his father, a stanch Republican. 
 
 R. L. march. An enterprising and success- 
 ful farmer, R. L. March enjoys to an unusual de- 
 gree the esteem and confidence of his fellow citi- 
 zens, who appreciate the ability and energy he has 
 displayed in the cultivation and improvement of 
 his farm of one hundred and sixty acres, located 
 seven and a half miles northeast of Visalia, Tu- 
 lare county. He was born in Boone county. Mo., 
 August 13, 1865, the eldest of five living chil- 
 dren. _ His father, George March, was a native 
 of Missouri also, where he engaged in farming 
 until 1 88 1, when he came to California, and, lo- 
 cating near Visalia, engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits for a time. His death occurred in ViSa'lia 
 at the age of forty-seven years. His wife, for- 
 merly Maggie Boyce, was born in Missouri, in 
 which state her father was a farmer, and where 
 
 his death occurred. Mrs. March survives her 
 husband and makes her home in Visalia. 
 
 R. L. March was reared to young manhood in 
 Missouri, attending the district schools in both 
 his native state and California, where he came 
 with his parents when only sixteen years old. 
 He remained at home until attaining his major- 
 ity, when he became dependent upon his own re- 
 sources. He worked on various neighboring 
 farms until he had.earned money to buy a six- 
 horse team and plow, when he rented land and 
 followed grain farming. He finally located on 
 his present place, which he has since improved 
 and cultivated. In addition to his home property 
 he has a farm of one hundred and sixty acres a 
 mile northwest, devoted to farming and stock 
 raising, and eighty acres nine miles west of Vis- 
 alia, on the Mill creek bottoms, where he herds 
 stock. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. March was united in marriage 
 with Belle Campbell, a native of Missouri, and 
 the sister of J. E. Campbell, of Monson, whose 
 sketch appears on another page of this work, 
 giving the family history. They have one child, 
 Loraine. In his political convictions Mr. March 
 is a Democrat, and fraternally affiliates with the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. He and 
 his wife are consistent members of the Christian 
 Church of Visalia. 
 
 J. J. CAIRNS. It is always interesting to 
 chronicle the history of the pioneer. The man 
 who has braved the hardships of frontier life and 
 who has become accustomed to the vacillating 
 fortunes of the farmer on the California plains, 
 is the one who has helped to build up Tulare 
 county in more avenues than one. And particu- 
 larly is this true in the interest he takes in irri- 
 gating by means of wells. When J. J. Cairns 
 first began the sheep business he found it neces- 
 sary to seek other sources of water supply than 
 that of the river and creeks. He at once put 
 down wells in Madera county, where he then 
 lived, and as that was considered very dry land 
 he was surprised to find water in sufficient quan- 
 tity for his stock at a depth of fifteen or sixteen 
 feet; this he also found true of other local- 
 ities in the San Joaquin valley. In Tulare coun- 
 ty he obtained water by sinking wells to a depth 
 of fifty-five to one hundred and fifty feet. For. a 
 time the cost of the wells was out of proportion 
 to the benefits received, and he therefore experi- 
 mented until the desired result was obtained at a 
 cost of $90 for a well that would irrigate an en- 
 tire section of land. By leaving out the casing 
 the expense was materially lessened and its ab- 
 sence allowed the water to flow freely instead of 
 shutting it ofif. He thus proved the efficacy of his 
 scheme and was the first man of the valley to 
 
-^/^.^^J- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1097 
 
 accomplish what is destined to make this one of 
 the greatest farming and horticultural regions 
 in the world. 
 
 J. J. Cairns was born in Forfarshire, Scot- 
 land, August ID, 1844, the youngest of four chil- 
 dren bom to Andrew Cairns. His father was a 
 forester and came of a sturdy old Scotch family. 
 Mr. Cairns received a very good education, ob- 
 tained in the private schools of his native shire. 
 In 1866 he located in New Zealand and engaged 
 in the sheep business for five years, when he 
 came to California. He located in that part of 
 Fresno county which is now Madera county, 
 where he followed the sheep business until 1877, 
 when on account of the drouth he took his flock 
 to the Sacramento valley, ranging them in Co- 
 lusa, Butte and Tehama counties. He sold out 
 inside of a year, and taking into consideration 
 the expense of moving and the death of so many, 
 his receipts enabled him only to come out even 
 on the venture. Once more at the beginning of 
 the business, he located in 1881 in Tulare coun- 
 ty five miles from his present home. Two year§ 
 later he also became interested in the raising 
 of grain, and shortly afterward disposed of his 
 sheep and gave his entire attention to extensive 
 farming. In 1894 he farmed twenty thousand 
 acres of land, all in grain, of which six thou- 
 sand was his own property. A failure of crops 
 that year compelled him to dispose of his land 
 to pay off indebtedness to the amount of $175,- 
 000. He was left with one hundred acres, his 
 present property. In 1893 he set sixty-five acres 
 of this land to narvel oranges, which have proved 
 a success and is considered as one of the finest 
 bearing orchards in the Lindsay district. He is 
 still engaged in grain raising, farming about 
 three thousand acres which he operates with 
 five eight-mule teams. He also owns six hun- 
 dred acres within three miles of Lindsay. On 
 his home ranch he has fine buildings and im- 
 provements, the entire property being under in;j- 
 gation from a large well operated by a nine- 
 horse power electric motor. Mr. Cairns is one of 
 the organizers and the president of the Lindsay 
 Orange Growers' Association, which company 
 has put up one of the largest packing houses in 
 the county. He was also an organizer and is a 
 director in the Lindsay Improvement Company, 
 having acted as its first president. This company 
 built the Fraternal Hall, a large, two-story brick 
 building, and a credit to the place. He is a 
 stockholder in the Lindsay Rochdale Associa- 
 tion and. a director and vice-president in the 
 People's Telephone Company, of Tulare. One of 
 the most popular and prominent men of the sec- 
 tion, he holds a high place in the esteeip and 
 confidence of all who have come in contact with 
 him, either in a business or social way. 
 
 In 1877 Mr. Cairns was united in marriage 
 
 in Fresno county with Eliza Galbraith, who is a 
 native daughter of California. She is very active 
 in the social life of Lindsay. Recently she has 
 formed a club (of which she acts as president), 
 whose aim is to plant trees in the avenues and 
 in general promote the beautifying of this al- 
 ready famous orange section. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Cairns are the parents of the following children : 
 Walter, a stockman of Lindsay; Edith, attend- 
 ing the Santa Cruz Business College ; Ethel ; 
 Laura and Norman. For many years Mr. Cairns 
 has served as school trustee, and has always been 
 greatly interested in educational work and the 
 enhancing of the opportunities of the youth of 
 our country, both intellectually and morally. Po- 
 litically he is an uncompromising Republican. 
 
 ADONIRAM J. PACKARD. For more than 
 a quarter of a century the late Adoniram J. 
 Packard was a resident of Stanislaus county, his 
 home being near Newman, and during that time 
 he was held in high respect as an industrious 
 and enterprising citizen, an able business man, a 
 kind and accommodating neighbor, and a most 
 loving and devoted husband and father; and his 
 death, which occurred May 28, 1903, was a cause 
 of general regret. Coming from honored New 
 England ancestry, he was born July 26, 1840, 
 in Norridgewock, Somerset county. Me., and 
 was there brought up and educated. 
 
 In i860, having previously served an appren- 
 ticeship at the blacksmith's trade, Mr. Packard 
 came by way of the Isthmus of Panama to Cali- 
 fornia. Settling first in Alameda county, he fol- 
 lowed his trade at Haywards for nine years, and 
 was afterwards a blacksmith at Hill's Ferry for 
 two years. From there he removed to Cotton- 
 wood Grove, where he had a smithy for two 
 years. In 1874 Mr. Packard came to Stanislaus 
 county, locating at what was then called Dutch 
 Corners, and, purchasing the home estate now 
 occupied by his widow, was here prosperously 
 engaged in farming until his death. A skillful 
 workman and an expert mechanic, he was kept 
 busily employed until a few years before his 
 death, and possessing good business tact and 
 •judgment, he accumulated considerable prop- 
 erty. He at one time owned one hundred and 
 twenty acres of land lying just east of Newman, 
 but sold it prior to his decease. 
 
 On December i, 1874, in Merced, Cal., Mr. 
 Packard married Miss Leonora Dougharty, who 
 was born in Calhoun county, 111., a daughter of 
 William and Elizabeth Dougharty. A native of 
 Mississippi, William Dougharty settled in Cal- 
 houn county. 111., when a young man, living 
 there until 1854, when he came with his fam- 
 ily to Contra Costa county, Cal., journeying by 
 way of Panama. In 1855 he removed to Ama- 
 
1098 
 
 HISTORICAL AND filOGRAPHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 dor county, but after mining there a short time 
 at Volcano, he returned to Contra Costa county. 
 Locating in Merced county in 1869, he took up 
 land near Cottonwood, and was there engaged in 
 farming until his death. His wife, whose maiden 
 name was Elizabeth Gorham Brown, was born 
 in Illinois, and died, in 1900, in Contra Costa 
 county, Cal. 
 
 Six children were born of the union of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Packard, namely: Maurice L., man- 
 ager of the home place, and a mail carrier on a 
 rural free delivery route ; Lucinda May, assist- 
 ant postmaster at Newman; Bertha M., wife of 
 Alfred Eachus of Newman; Judson; Byron; 
 and Reuel. In his political affiliations Mr. Pack- 
 ard was a stanch supporter of the principles 
 promulgated by the Republican party. He be- 
 longed to the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, and was a faithful member of the Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian Church. 
 
 L. N. BLACKLEDGE, M. D. The confidence 
 of the citizens of Orosi and vicinity has been 
 won by Dr. Blackledge in his work as a phy- 
 sician and surgeon, and he has built up an ex- 
 tensive and lucrative practice, although he has 
 been a resident of this place but a short time. 
 He is a native of Nottingham, Ind., where his 
 birth occurred December 22, 1854. He is the 
 third child and the only one in California in a 
 family of nine sons and two daughters, of whom 
 four sons and the two daughters are now liv- 
 ing. His father, Jason R. Blackledge, was a 
 native of Columbiana count)', Ohio, where his 
 father, a native of Bucks county. Pa., had set- 
 tled upon emigration to the middle west. The 
 elder man subsequently located in Wells county, 
 Ind. The family came originally from English 
 ancestors and in their location in Pennsylvania 
 belonged to the Society of Friends. Jason R. 
 Blackledge was reared in Indiana afteir he had 
 reached the age of ten years, in manhood fol- 
 lowing the example of his father and becoming 
 a farmer. Removing to Newton, Jasper county, 
 Iowa, he followed the same occupation until his 
 death. His wife, formerly Mary Paxson, is a 
 native of Ohio and the- daughter of Benjamin 
 Paxson, who removed from his birthplace in 
 Pennsylvania and settled first in Ohio and later 
 went to Jay county, Ind. Mrs. Blackledge sur- 
 vives her husband, making her home in New- 
 ton. 
 
 L. N. Blackledge was reared in Iowa after 
 reaching the age of three years, his father locat- 
 ing in that state in 1857. He attended the pub- 
 lic schools and later the Hazeldell Academy. 
 Deciding to take up the profession of medi- 
 cine, he entered the Penn Medical University at 
 Philadelphia, from which institution he was grad- 
 
 uated in 1880 with the degree of M. D. Locat- 
 ing in Pennville, Jay county, Ind., he entered 
 upon a practice of his profession which con- 
 tinued for twenty years in the same location. 
 He met with a success in his work which was 
 not the result of accident, but of earnest and 
 conscientious study, his every effort being to keep 
 abreast of all advancement in the science of 
 medicine and surgery. In 1887 he took a course 
 in the Indiana Dental College at Indianapolis, 
 graduating therefrom with the degree of D. D. 
 S., while he also took special clinics on surgery 
 at the Medical Department of the University of 
 Indiana, in Indianapolis. 
 
 In Pennville, Ind., in 1879, Dr. Blackledge was 
 united in marriage with Amanda J. Brown, a 
 native of Monroe county, Ohio, and the daugh- 
 ter of Isaac Brown, of Maryland, who settled 
 first in the Buckeye state, where he engaged as a 
 merchant in Bellville, and later as a farmer in 
 Jay county, Ind. Mrs. Blackledge is also a grad- 
 uate of the Penn Medical College, having com- 
 pleted the course in 1874 with the degree of M. 
 D., and practiced her profession in Pennville un- 
 til her marriage. In 1899, on account of his 
 wife's health, Dr. Blackledge came to California, 
 spending the first six months in Pomona, from 
 there going to Long Beach for a like period, and 
 from there to Piru, Ventura county, where he 
 engaged in the practice of medicine and sur- 
 gery. In February, 1904, he located in Orosi 
 and entered upon a general practice, which has 
 already grown to lucrative proportions. He has 
 evidenced his faith in the growth of the coun- 
 try by purchasing a twelve-acre orange orchard 
 as well as property in Orosi. To himself and 
 wife were born the following children: Cleola, 
 at home; Inez G., a graduate of the high school 
 of Pomona, and now a nurse in the California 
 Hospital ; and Brennan, in the high school of 
 Dinuba. In Pennville, Ind., Dr. Blackledge was 
 made a Mason and is demitted, and was also 
 made a member of the Knights of Pythias, of 
 which he is past chancellor, and is an ex-repre- 
 sentative to the Grand Lodge. He is also asso- 
 ciated with the Woodmen of the' World. 
 
 In addition to his professional work Dr. Black- 
 ledge has always taken an active interest in oil 
 wells, drilling twenty-two wells in Pennville, 
 some of which were excellent producers. 
 
 JOSEPH CARTER, a successful orange 
 grower of Tulare county, was born near Ban- 
 bury, Oxfordshire, England, October 23, 
 1845, the eldest of three children. His par- 
 ents, John, -a farmer in Gardener, and Mary 
 (Coleman) Carter, were both natives of the same 
 place, where their death also occurred. Joseph 
 Carter was reared on a farm, receiving his edu- 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1099 
 
 "Cation in the public schools. Deciding to emi- 
 grate he came to America in 1867 and located 
 near Columbus, Ohio, where he followed gen- 
 eral farming until March, 1873. In that year he 
 came to California, for nearly two years re- 
 maining in the vicinity of Stockton; in January, 
 1875, he came to Portersville, Tulare county, 
 purchasing the property upon which he has since 
 made his home. This consists of eighty acres 
 located one mile east of the town, all being under 
 the Pioneer Ditch, of which company he has 
 since become a director. Hp began at once upon 
 modern methods of improvement and cultiva- 
 tion, putting out alfalfa and deciduous fruits. 
 When growing and bearing he set out oranges. 
 He began this work in 1888, and since that time 
 has budded his entire orchard of twenty-three 
 acres to navel oranges. It is his intention to 
 set out the balance of his property in oranges, in 
 the growth of which he has met with a gratifying 
 success. In conjunction with Moses Davidson 
 he is also interested in a well and pumping plant, 
 whose capacity is fifty inches, operated by an 
 electric motor, his interest being two-thirds of 
 the concern. In 1899 he put up on his property 
 a new and handsome residence, which has added 
 immeasurably to the value of the place. 
 
 Mr. Carter married Mary Lewis, a native of 
 Amador county, who was a resident of the vicin- 
 ity of Portersville, and born of this union are 
 five children, namely : Ella ; Joseph and John, 
 horticulturists, located on forty acres of orange 
 land; Etta; and Clara. Mr. Carter is a member 
 of the Baptist Church. He is a man of much 
 worth and integrity and has taken a prominent 
 place in affairs in Portersville, acting as school 
 trustee and also as clerk of the board. He is 
 broad-minded and public-spirited in every way, 
 and always takes an active interest in move- 
 ments calculated to advance the general welfare 
 of the community. 
 
 JOHN HERVEY DEMAREE. The name, 
 Demaree, is of French origin and_was first known 
 as Demorest. The emigrating ancestor settled 
 in the eastern states, where the family flourished 
 for some time. Cornelius Demaree, a native of 
 Pennsylvania, emigrated to Kentucky, thence to 
 Indiana, where he followed farming as a means 
 of livelihood. In his family was a son called 
 Samuel, who was born in Kentucky, growing to 
 manhood in that state, where he married. He 
 followed teaching for a time, later locating as a 
 farmer in Parke county, Ind., where his death 
 eventually occurred. His wife, formerly Nancy 
 J. Curry, of Kentucky, also died in Indiana. Of 
 their family of ten children four sons and one 
 daughter are living. 
 
 The fifth in his father's family, John Hervey 
 
 Demaree was born near Rockville, Parke county, 
 Ind., June 2^, 1843. He was reared on the. pa- 
 ternal farm in Indiana, receiving his education 
 in the district schools. He remained at home 
 until the fall of 1863, when on December 14 he 
 was mustered into Company A, Eighty-fifth Reg- 
 iment Indiana Infantry, at Indianapolis. Fol- 
 lowing his enlistment he served under Sherman, 
 participating in the battle of Resaca and various 
 others in that locality. At the battle of Big 
 Shanty he was taken ill, and was sent to the hos- 
 pital at Nashville, thence back to Madison, Ind., 
 where he remained under the doctor's care until 
 the spring of 1865. He received his honorable 
 discharge and was mustered out June 7, 1865. 
 His brother, William Scott Demaree, now of Ida- 
 ho, served through the Civil war in the Thirty- 
 eighth Indiana Regiment of Infantry. Upon the 
 close of the war Mr. Demaree found himself a 
 cripple from the effects of sciatic rheumatism. 
 Desiring to complete the education interrupted 
 by the enlistment, he entered the Waveland Acad- 
 emy, and remained for nearly four years, when 
 he graduated and entered upon his work of teach- 
 er in the same institution. After two years in 
 that location he went to Wabash College, but 
 was forced to give up that work on account of 
 trouble with his eyes. Later he located in Kan- 
 sas and engaged in teaching near Carlyle for a 
 year, when he went back to Illinois and fol- 
 lowed the same occupation until 1875. In that 
 year he came to Tulare county, Cal., and bought 
 the eighty acres which forms his present home. 
 This is located on the St. John's river, and at 
 that time consisted of entirely wild land. This 
 he has since improved, and is cultivating to al- 
 falfa and pasture, being principally engaged in 
 stock-raising and the dairy business. The latter 
 business he has been in for the past twenty years, 
 being a pioneer in the work, making butter and 
 selling milk supplied by a herd of fifteen cows. 
 In addition to this property he also owns a farm 
 of three hundred and twenty acres on the White 
 river and forty acres one mile and a half from 
 his home. 
 
 In 1875 he was united in marriage with Mar- 
 tha E. Depler, a native of Ohio, and they are now 
 the parents of four children, all of whom are liv- 
 ing, namely : Bertha Belle, Justin Hughes, Mis- 
 souri Curry and M. Ray. Mr. Demaree is a 
 member of the Presbyterian Church, while his 
 wife belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Politically he is a Republican in national issues, 
 but reserves the right to cast his ballot locally 
 for the candidate whom he considers best qual- 
 ified for public office. Taking a practical inter- 
 est in all local affairs, he helped build the Willow 
 school-house, and has served as school trustee for 
 fifteen years. He is now acting as rural mail 
 deliverer, on Rural Free Delivery No. 2, deliver- 
 
1100 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ing to four hundred patrons north and east of 
 Visalia, having been appointed to this position 
 November i6, 1903. Mr. Demaree is a broad- 
 minded and enterprising citizen, winning the es- 
 teem and confidence of his fellow townsmen by 
 the many, qualities which distinguish his citizen- 
 ship. He has taken a practical interest in the 
 upbuilding and development of this section, mak- 
 ing his own success parallel with .that of his 
 adopted state. 
 
 GEORGE WASHINGTON GOUDY was 
 born in Miami county, Ohio, August 15, 1837, 
 and was the youngest of five children of James 
 and Jennie (Cook) Goudy. The father was 
 born in Ohio and was a lumber manufacturer 
 on the Miami river in the early days. The 
 mother was born in Pennsylvania, and both died 
 in Indiana. 
 
 G. W. Goudy was a brickmason and plasterer 
 by trade, and in 1859 came by way of Panama 
 to California, engaging in mining at the Sierra 
 mines. Placer county, until the breaking out of 
 the Civil ,war. He joined Company K of the 
 Seventh California Volunteer Infantry, his serv- 
 ice being mostly against the Indians in Arizona 
 and New Mexico until the close of the war, when 
 he was honorably discharged. He then located 
 at Saratoga, Santa Clara county, where he fol- 
 lowed the mercantile business and while there 
 was married. May i, 1871, to Mrs. Harriet E. 
 (McGuire) Purdy, born in Lee county, Iowa. 
 Her father, William McGuire, was born in Ken- 
 tucky and was brought up in Chillicothe, Ross 
 county, Ohio. On reaching his majority he 
 began farming first in Ross county, Ohio, then 
 in Miami county, Ind., Hancock county. 111., and 
 Lee county, Iowa. When he went to Iowa the 
 Indians were still wild, and at first the families, 
 for mutual protection, had to live at Fort Keo- 
 kuk. He served in a company of dragoons in 
 the Black Hawk war and his last days were spent 
 in Fulton county. 111. The grandfather, Thomas 
 McGuire, was born in Virginia and settled in 
 Kentucky, where he served as fife major in the 
 war of 1812, and the great-grandfather, Thomas 
 McGuire, served in the Revolutionary war with 
 the same rank. WiUiam McGuire married Mary 
 Ingersoll, who was born in New Jersey and was 
 the daughter of Benjamin F. Ingersoll, who 
 was an early settler of Ohio, later of Peoria 
 county. 111. He was also a fife major in the 
 war of 1812. One of his sons, Robert Green, 
 was the father of the celebrated Col. Robert G. 
 Ingersoll. Mrs. McGuire died in St. Louis. Of 
 her family of seven children four are living, 
 two of the sons having enlisted in the Civil war : 
 Thomas Jefferson served in a Kansas regiment 
 and resides at Ft. Scott, Kans. ; the other, George 
 
 W., enlisted from Arizona and now resides in 
 Cuba, 111. Mrs. Goudy was the youngest child 
 and was reared and educated in Lee county, 
 Iowa. In i860 on account of ill health, she came 
 to California, accompanying the family of Frank 
 Sweeney across the plains in an ox-train to 
 Sacramento, thence to Santa Clara county, where 
 she made her home till 1871. They then re- 
 moved to Portersville, Tulare county, residing 
 there till 1875, when they located in Hanford. 
 At that time there were only sixteen houses in 
 the town. Five years later they went to Santa 
 Maria, Santa Barbara county, where they re- 
 sided until September, 1885. All this time Mr. 
 Goudy was engaged in the building business, but 
 on coming to Fresno in 1885 they purchased a 
 five-acre tract of land one mile from J street 
 and eight months later sold it at a big advance. 
 Mr. Goudy died April 26, 1890. He was a Chris- 
 tian gentleman, an Adventist in religion, and as 
 an honorable old soldier was a member of the 
 Grand Army of the Republic. 
 
 Mrs. Goudy was first married in Gilroy to 
 Stephen Disbrow Purdy, born in Ohio, and who 
 came across the plains to California in 1852. By 
 her first marriage she had two children : EfiSe 
 May, who died at three years of age, and Charles 
 W., a machinist and musician in Fresno. By 
 the second union there was one child, George 
 Washington, a fruit inspector of Fresno. Mrs. 
 Goudy is a member of the Ladies' Circle of the 
 Grand Army of the Republic, is also a member 
 of the Adventist Church, and is an ardent Re- 
 publican. 
 
 FIELDING GUY BURNS. The years which 
 have passed over the head of Fielding Guy 
 Burns, one of Tulare county's oldest pioneers, 
 have brought to him and to the country many 
 changes. When he first came to this section of 
 the state the country was unimproved and un- 
 cultivated, antelopes and elk and other wild ani- 
 mals were roaming over the plains, and there 
 was nothing to presage the prosperity and growth 
 of which the county was capable. To such men 
 as Mr. Burns obstacles existed only to be over- 
 come, and with the courage and industry of the 
 early pioneer he directed his best efforts toward 
 the growth of this section, and his own personal 
 success. Both results have been accomplished, 
 Tulare county ranking with the best in the state, 
 and Mr. Bums holding place with the first men 
 of the section. 
 
 Born in Sherman, Grayson county, Tex., No- 
 vember 2, 1850, Fielding Guy Burns was the 
 youngest of two children born to his parents, 
 his brother, John Franklin Burns, now residing 
 near Tucson, Ariz., where he is engaged in the 
 stock business. His father, Jephtha, and grand- 
 
GEORGE R. PHENEGAR 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1103 
 
 father, Uriah, were both natives of Tennessee, 
 the elder man locating in Texas, and in 1853 
 crossing the plains to California. He became a 
 resident of Monterey county, where his death 
 occurred. As a resident of Texas, he was one 
 of the stanch supporters of the rebellion in that 
 state, and most eager for annexation to the 
 United States. He also took part in the Mexican 
 war. Jephtha Burns was a stockman in Gray- 
 son county, Tex., where he remained until 1853, 
 when he started to cross the plains with his 
 father and two brothers, John and Charles, re- 
 siding respectively in Merced and Monterey 
 counties, the latter being ninety-one years. In 
 Elm river, Tex., where the brothers were fish- 
 ing while on the trip, Jephtha Burns was 
 drowned. His wife, formerly Amanda Virginia 
 Bacon, died February 15, 1851. She was born 
 in Franklin county. Mo., a daughter of Fielding 
 Bacon, a native of Virginia and a farmer and 
 stockman of Grayson county, Tex. He came to 
 California in the same train with the Burns fam- 
 ily, in 1853. He first located at Elmonte, near 
 Los Angeles, where he engaged in the stock 
 business until the spring of 1856. In that year 
 he came to Tulare county and settled on the St. 
 John's river, ten miles east of Visalia, where he 
 entered land and improved a farfn. In the years 
 that followed he gave his attenti(j>n to the estab- 
 lishment of his personal success, which has been 
 the result entirely of his own efforts. When he 
 first came to California he brought with him a 
 few cattle, for which he had traded his land in 
 Texas, and after keeping them for a time in 
 Los Angeles county, sold the two hundred for 
 $125 per head in Graysonville, in the San Joa- 
 quin valley. This money was sent by the Adams 
 Express Company to Los Angeles, while he went 
 by boat to that city, finding on his arrival that 
 the express company had failed, Out of this 
 deal he lost all but his fare and $1,500. With 
 this comparatively small amount he started again 
 in the making of his fortune. He immediately 
 bought of P. O. Pico three hundred head of cat- 
 tle at $5 per head, which he paid for, and an- 
 other three hundred on credit. He immediately 
 took them to Sonorar and sold them in the south- 
 ern mines at good profit. Returning to Los 
 AngeleS; he once more invested in stock. In the 
 fall of 1855 he bought one thousand head of 
 cattle and drove them to Tulare county, where 
 he began the stock business which brought him 
 such lucrative returns in the passing years. He 
 became very successful, accumulating land in 
 Tulare county until he owned eleven thousand 
 acres. At a cost of $12,000 he put up a fine 
 brick house, the brick for which was made on his 
 place, while the woodwork was hauled from 
 Fresno Slough. In the flood of 1867 his house 
 sustained such injuries that he built another resi- 
 
 dence on the Cottonwood, where he had entered 
 land, and made that his home for five years. At 
 the end of that time he located in Visalia, where 
 he lived until 1882, when he moved to Los An- 
 geles, where his death occurred at the age of 
 eighty-nine years. His wife, formerly Sarah 
 Bell, a native of Virginia, also died in Los An- 
 geles. Of their four daughters Mrs. Burns was 
 the eldest, her death occurring in Texas in 185 1. 
 Fielding Guy Burns was reared in Tulare 
 county, a member of the family of his grand- 
 father. Fielding Bacon. He received his educa- 
 tion in the public schools of Visalia and in a 
 private seminary. He remained at home until 
 attaining his majority, when he engaged in the 
 stock business in Humboldt county, Nev. He 
 continued there for three years, when he re- 
 turned to Tulare county and engaged in the 
 sheep business on the plains for the ensuing five 
 years. Following this he engaged in the rais- 
 ing of grain, operating two thousand acres of 
 the property of his grandfather. He has met 
 with success in his work and has accumulated 
 considerable property, now owning six hundred 
 and twenty-six acres on section 32, township 17, 
 range 25. It was originally a section, but the 
 valley railroad took fourteen acres of it. It is 
 fine, productive land, in the vicinity of Elbow 
 creek, and is devoted to alfalfa, grain and stock. 
 He also owns three hundred and sixty acres on 
 sections 18 and rg, township 17, range 26, on 
 the Cottonwood, a productive and well-improved 
 farm, which he rents. In his political affiliations 
 Mr. Burns gives his support to the Democratic 
 party. 
 
 GEORGE ROBERT PHENEGAR. During 
 his life, which spanned a period of nearly fifty- 
 four years, George R. Plienegar followed diversi- 
 fied occupations. His success in a financial way 
 was due to his splendid ability tO' make good bar- 
 gains and to his thorough knowledge of live 
 stock, to which business as a dealer he devoted 
 many years of his life in Merced county, where 
 he also won an enviable reputation as a success- 
 ful rancher and fruit grower. Born July 25, 
 1833, in Columbus, Ohio, he grew up on a farm, 
 and up to 1854, the date of his removal to Cali- 
 fornia, 'his life was comparatively uneventful. 
 In Mariposa county he followed mining until 
 the breaking out of the Feather river excitement, 
 and following the tide of immigration to the lat- 
 ter place he continued mining until he decided 
 to remove to Merced county. For a time he de- 
 voted his time solely to buying and selling stock, 
 meeting with success, and in 1879 ^e purchased 
 forty-seven hundred acres of land in Merced 
 and Mariposa counties, and from that time 
 turned his attention to farming in connection 
 
1104 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 with the stock business. He was one of the first 
 men in his locality to engage in fruit culture. 
 At the time of his death he owned, in addition to 
 his ranch, a fine fruit farm near Selma, Fresno 
 county. 
 
 In 1879 Mr. Phenegar was united in marriage 
 with Mrs. Mary (Anderson) Shaug, formerly of 
 Missouri and a daughter of John Anderson, 
 who crossed the plains from the latter state to 
 California in 1857, and for years was a prom- 
 inent resident of San Luis Obispo county. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Phenegar became parents of four chil- 
 dren : George Leonard, who died in August, 
 1904; Chauncey Anderson; Bert Washburn, 
 who died aged six years, and Georgia Roberta. 
 Mr. Phenegar was a man of strict integrity of 
 character and was highly esteemed by all who 
 knew him. As a business man he possessed 
 more than ordinary ability, was broad-minded, 
 public-spirited and aided materially in develop- 
 ing the natural resources of the various com- 
 munities in which he lived. Upon his death, 
 October 15, 1887, Merced county lost one of 
 her most progressive citizens. 
 
 EARL POWERS FOSTER. Within the 
 limits of the San Joaquin valley the entire life 
 of Mr, Foster has been passed, and here he has 
 achieved a degree of success both gratifying and 
 well deserved. For a considerable period he 
 has had charge of two thousand acres of land, 
 two and one-half miles from Tulare, the prop- 
 erty being owned by James Turner. Of this 
 large tract one hundred acres are under alfalfa 
 and twelve hundred acres under grain, in the 
 sowing and harvesting of which two eight-horse 
 teams are utilized. A specialty is made of rais- 
 ing beef cattle of high-grade Short-horn breeds. 
 In all of his work Mr. Foster employs modern 
 methods and machinery. Practical, resourceful 
 and energetic, he manages the large acreage with 
 wise judgment. 
 
 In the county of Tulare, where he now lives. 
 Earl Powers Foster was born November 4, 1867, 
 being the eldest among six children, four of 
 whom are living. His father, Leander P. Foster, 
 a native of Vermont, came to the Pacific coast 
 in early life and settled on a stock ranclvin Tu- 
 lare county, but later moved to San Joaquin coun- 
 ty and bought three hundred and twenty acres 
 near Atlanta, where he engaged in grain farm- 
 ing until his death in 1875. After coming west 
 he married Hattie Munson, who was born in 
 Maine and now makes her home in Pacific Grove. 
 During girlhood she came to California with her 
 father, Nathan Munson, who remained in this 
 state until his death in Humboldt county. 
 
 At the time of his father's death Earl Pow- 
 ers Foster was a boy eight years of age. After- 
 
 ward he remained on the home farm near At- 
 lanta and early acquired a thorough knowledge 
 of agriculture, besides having the advantage of 
 attendance at Woodbridge College. After com- 
 ing to Tulare county in 1894 he took up grain 
 and stock farming, and has given his attention 
 closely to this work. He votes the Republican 
 ticket. His marriage, in 1892, solemnized at 
 French Camp, San Joaquin county, united him 
 with Sarah, daughter of James Turner, and a 
 native of San Joaquin county. They have three 
 sons : James, Powers and Forest Frederic. 
 
 The Turner family was founded in America 
 by John Turner, an Englishman, who settled in 
 San Joaquin county, thence removed to Stanis- 
 laus county, and died in Tulare county when 
 ninety-two years of age. James, son of John 
 Turner, was a pioneer of 1850 in California, 
 whither he came with ox-teams across the plains. 
 During the first winter in the state he made $400 
 in the mines, later he took up teaming, and in 
 the spring of 1852 settled eight miles from 
 Stockton, where he bought a quarter section of 
 land. At this writing he owns two thousand 
 acres of tillable land in the same locality and 
 there makes his home, being still at the head 
 of his large interests, and hale and robust' for 
 a man who has passed seventy-three busy years. 
 In politics he is a Republican and in religion 
 holds membership with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. His wife, who bore the maiden name 
 of Elizabeth Hannah Blosser, was born in Penn- 
 sylvania and died at the California homestead 
 in 1882. She was a daughter of Jacob Blosser, 
 a pioneer of 1850, who crossed the plains with 
 oxen and settled on a large tract of raw land 
 in San Joaquin county, later removing to Men- 
 docino county, where the last years of his life 
 were passed. 
 
 FRANK E. BLACK. The personality of 
 Frank E. Black has won for him many friends, 
 while his business ability has given him a com- 
 petence among the citizens of Tulare county. 
 Liberal, broad-minded and enterprising, he takes 
 a keen interest in the public affairs of the com- 
 munity, and at the same time gives his atten- 
 tion to the advancement of his own welfare. A 
 native of Ohio, he was born near Maxville, Perry 
 county, July 19, 1863. He was reared in the 
 home of his maternal grandfather, Henry Black, 
 who, with his five sons, served in the Sixty- 
 second Regiment Ohio Infantry during the Civil 
 war, one son dying rn service. His education 
 was received through the medium of the public 
 schools, which he attended for a short time, but 
 became dependent upon his own efforts while 
 still a lad. When sixteen years of age he secured 
 a place as section hand, then became a brakeman 
 
HISTORICAL AND. BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1105 
 
 on the Ohio Central Railroad, September 26, 
 1884, his run being between Bucyrus, Corning, 
 Columbus and Toledo. In the spring of 1885 
 he was employed in the same capacity on the 
 Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, be- 
 tween Fort Wayne and Crestline, Ohio. He re- 
 mained with that company for six years, when, 
 in 1891, he came to California and secured em- 
 ployment with the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 Company, as a brakeman, working out of Tulare. 
 In June, 1894, he was promoted to conductor, 
 running out of Fresno, and November i, 1901, 
 he took his present run, which is between Por- 
 tersville and Mendota, going twice over the road 
 each day, a distance of two hundred and thirteen 
 miles traveled. He is a very successful railroad 
 man, stands high with the officials, and enjoys 
 the confidence and esteem of the traveling pub- 
 lic. He has been in the work for twenty years 
 and has never had an accident. 
 
 In Fort Wayne, Ind., Mr. Black was united 
 in marriage with Marguerite Current, a native 
 of that vicinity, and the daughter of Sylvester S. 
 Current, who was employed in the car shops of 
 the Pennsylvania Railroad Company for thirty- 
 eight years, when he retired from active duties. 
 Mrs. Black was brought up in Fort Wayne, 
 where she was educated. Thev have one child 
 living, Clinton Ellsworth. Mr. Black owns a 
 stock farm on White river, thirty-five miles from 
 Portersville,- which is their mountain home. He 
 was made a^Mason in Portersville Lodge No. 303 
 and belongs to the Portersville Chapter, R. A. 
 M., of this place, and Visalia Commandery, K. T. 
 He is a demitted member of the Knights of 
 Pythias and a member of the Order of Railroad 
 Conductors No. 404, of Kern City, and politi- 
 cally is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 THOMAS FEEMSTER, M. D. A prom- 
 inent place among the professional men is ac- 
 corded Dr. Feemster, of Portersville, where he 
 has been located since 1896. He was bom in 
 Columbus, Miss., May 28, 1850, a son of Will- 
 iam D. Feemster, the representative of a prom- 
 inent family of South Carolina, where his birth 
 occurred in 1826. The grandfather, Silas D. 
 Feemster, born in North Carolina, was a min- 
 ister in the Presbyterian Church, locating first 
 in South Carolina, then in -Columbus, Miss., 
 where he died. His father, William Silas Feem- 
 ster, was a native of North Carolina, and with 
 his oldest brother, Samuel, served valiantly in the 
 Revolutionary war, the old flint-lock musket of 
 the latter being still in the possession of his 
 descendants. The history of the family is traced 
 back to Norway, through England and Nor- 
 mandy, the first ancestor on English soil being 
 with William the Conqueror. After their settle- 
 
 ment in the southern states and during the Civil 
 war (as they were stanch AboHtionists, several 
 members of the family serving in the Union 
 army) they suffered much at the hands of the 
 Confederate sympathizers and lost much valua- 
 ble property. William D. Feemster was a farmer 
 in Mississippi until 1880, when he removed to 
 Kansas, locating near Fulton, where he followed 
 the same occupation. His wife, formerly Frances 
 H. Robinson, was a native of South Carolina, 
 and the daughter of Dr. Flam I. Robinson, of 
 North Carolina. He was a physician of the 
 Eclectic school, having graduated' from the old 
 Worthington Medical College before it was 
 merged into the Eclectic Medical Institute. He 
 then engaged in the practice of his profession in 
 South Carolina and later in Mississippi, where 
 he died when nearly ninety years old. Mrs. 
 Feemster died in Mississippi in i860. Of the 
 two sons and one daughter born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Feemster one son and one daughter are living. 
 
 The oldest son of his father's family, Thomas 
 Feemster was reared in Mississippi until he was 
 nineteen, receiving a preliminary education 
 through the medium of the district schools in 
 the vicinity of his home. He then entered the 
 Greenville and Tusculum College, of East Ten- . 
 nessee, from the scientific department of which 
 institution he was later graduated. Following 
 this he was engaged for two years in teaching 
 school in Mississippi, when, in 1875, he went 
 to Missouri and near Gainesville homesteaded a 
 farm. In 1876 he entered the American Medi- 
 cal College of St. Louis, where he took the first 
 course and then engaged in the practice of medi- 
 cine in Gainesville for nearly five years. In the 
 spring of 1881 he removed to Kansas, locating 
 near Mound City, when he became a student in 
 the American College, from which he was grad- 
 uated in 1882 with the degree of M. D. He con- 
 tinued to practice in Mound City until 1896, in 
 the meantime graduating from the College of 
 Physicians and Surgeons of St. Louis, in March, 
 1895. While in Kansas he was president of 
 the United States examining board of pensions. 
 In 1896 he came to California, locating in Por- 
 tersville in December of that year, since which 
 time he has continued in the practice of medicine 
 and surgery, meeting with a success which has 
 already enrolled him among the prominent pro- 
 fessional men of Tulare county. In addition to 
 his professional interests the doctor is identified 
 with the horticultural life of the community, 
 owning a ten-acre orchard of bearing Washing- 
 ton navels, adjoining the site of Portersville, his 
 place being under ditch and also equipped with 
 a pumping plant. He also owns eighty acres on 
 Deer creek, six miles from Portersville, which 
 land is devoted to the cultivation of grain. 
 
 In East Tennessee Dr. Feemster was united 
 
1106 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in marriage with Frances H. Malloy, of Ala- 
 bama, and tliey are the parents of the following 
 children: Elam I., a graduate of Emporia 
 (Kans.) State Normal, now a practicing attorney 
 of Visalia; Robert, a graduate of the Ft. Scott 
 normal school and Heald's Business College, of 
 San Francisco, and now manager of the Porters- 
 ville Citrus Association; Lola D., the wife of 
 William H. Gould, of Portersville ; and Ethel A., 
 Linnie J. and Russell A., at home. Dr. Feemster 
 gives his support to the Congregational Church, 
 of which his wife is a member. The doctor is 
 a member of the San Joaquin Valley Medical 
 Society. 
 
 QUINTIS VERNILE PLEASANT DAY. 
 During the progress of the Mexican war Pleas- 
 ant Day, who had been a farmer in Missouri, 
 enlisted in the service and was given employ- 
 ment as a teamster, going to the front, where 
 he remained until his death. Before entering 
 the army he had engaged in farm pursuits in 
 Buchanan county. Mo., where his wife and three 
 children were left at the time of his departure 
 for the front. His wife, who had been Ver- 
 ,linda Linville, was born in Jackson county, Mo., 
 beiftg a daughter of Rev. Zachariah Linville, a 
 farmer and also a minister in the Christian 
 Church. During the great emigration to Cali- 
 fornia in 1849 Mr. Linville joined a party of 
 gold-seekers, whom he accompanied across the 
 plains. He prospected in mines near Placer- 
 ville until his death, which occurred the same 
 year. After the death of her first husband Mrs. 
 Day became the wife of Daniel Dunnegan, with 
 whom in 1857 she crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia and settled on a farm in Sonoma county, 
 thence removed to Yolo county, where Mr. 
 Dunnegan died at Woodland. His widow is now 
 making her home in Lake county. Of her first 
 marriage there were two children who attained 
 mature years, namely : Q. V. P., who resides in 
 the suburbs of Dinuba ; and Tenicia Eveline, 
 Mrs. Thompson, of Lake county. 
 
 In Buchanan county. Mo., where he was born 
 February 4, 1843, Q. V. P. Day passed the years 
 of childhood, from there going to Mills county, 
 Iowa, in 1855, and in 1857 crossing the plains 
 with a company who spent seven months en 
 route. While on the Humboldt they were at- 
 tacked by Indians and the eleven men forming 
 the train bravely kept back the red men until 
 help arrived. In Sonoma county Mr. Day at- 
 tended Santa Rosa Seminary, and in 1859 be- 
 came one of the first students in Hesperian Col- 
 lege at Woodland, where he remained a stu- 
 dent a part of two years. On taking up work 
 for himself he clerked in a Woodland store, 
 where he remained for eighteen months. His 
 
 next venture was the purchase of a stock ot 
 groceries. Later he also carried on a livery busi- 
 ness, but this he sold after one year. At Wood- 
 land, October 13, 1868, he married Araminda 
 Giddings, a native of Wisconsin, being a daugh- 
 ter of Edwin Giddings, who crossed the plains 
 in 1852 and for seven years served as clerk of 
 Yolo county. The year following his marriage 
 Mr. Day removed to Stanislaus county and set- 
 tled on a ranch near Grayson, where he engaged 
 in the stock business. Later he took up mer- 
 chandising in Lake county, where he had a store 
 at Middletown for three years and at Lakeport 
 for several years. While there he held the of- 
 fice of treasurer of Lake county for one term 
 of two years. In the fall of 1890 he came to 
 Tulare county and settled one and one-half miles 
 southeast of Dinuba, where he has an orchard of 
 five acres. At the same time, while managing 
 his little homestead, he carries on an insurance 
 and real estate business in town. His two chil- 
 dren, Mrs. Maude Redpath and Mrs. Mabel 
 Weddle, both reside in Dinuba, and the entire 
 family are associated with the Christian Church, 
 in which he officiates as an elder. At one time 
 he was active in Masonry, but now is demitted. 
 In national politics he favors Democratic prin- 
 ciples, but during local campaigns he gives his 
 support to men whom he considers best quali- 
 fied to represent the people in office, irrespective 
 of their political views. In his vie\ys on the cur- 
 rency question he favors the pl^bfonn of the 
 People's party, and in 1898 he was their candi- 
 date for county clerk, but the party is in the 
 minority here as elsewhere, and he suflfered de- 
 feat with the balance of the ticket. During the 
 long period of his residence in California he 
 has witnessed the development of the state from 
 a sparsely populated and desolate region to one 
 of the most prosperous commonwealths in the 
 entire country, and no one rejoices in its de- 
 velopment more than does Mr. Day. 
 
 B. L. CARPENTER, D. D. S. The Carpen- 
 ter family was established in California by A. B. 
 Carpenter, a well-known and highly esteemed 
 farmer residing eight miles southwest of Por- 
 tersville, Tulare county. He was born near Al- 
 bany, N. Y., the representative of a sturdy-east- 
 ern family, and in young manhood he became 
 a farmer in Tioga county, Pa. Deciding to seek 
 the more abundant opportunities of the Pacific 
 coast, he brought his family to California in 
 1875, locating as a farmer in Portersville. Two 
 years later he purchased his present property, 
 where he has sinte made his home. Although 
 seventy-seven years old, he still takes an active 
 interest in his farm, and in addition to general 
 farming gives much attention to a fine apiary 
 
(fA.Km/^ 
 
c/^tA^ W^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1111 
 
 which he owns. His wife, formerly Euphrasia 
 Redfield, a native of Watertown, N. Y., is living 
 at the age of seventy-three years. Of the six 
 children born of their union four are living, the 
 youngest son being B. L. Carpenter, a success- 
 ful dentist of Portersville. 
 
 The birth of B. L. Carpenter occurred May 
 20, 1866, in Westfield, Tioga county, Pa., where 
 he was reared until he was eight years old. His 
 parents locating in Portersville at that time, he 
 received his education by attending the public 
 schools in this place, the Rocky Ford district 
 school near Poplar, and the San Jose State Nor- 
 mal. To acquire funds for his normal course he 
 taught one term of school, and after completing 
 the course he taught another year. He then took 
 up dentistry, studying under Dr. F. L. Argall, 
 of San Jose. Entering the dental department of 
 the University of California he was graduated 
 in 189s with the degree of D. D. S. Returning 
 to Portersville, in July, 1895, he opened an office 
 and has since continued successfully in this loca- 
 tion, building up an extensive practice and one 
 that has brought him large financial returns. He 
 is also interested in the horticultural life of the 
 section, owning a fifteen-acre orchard of navel 
 oranges five miles east of Portersville. 
 
 In Portersville Dr. Carpenter was united in 
 marriage with Minnie Loyd, a native of Piano, 
 Tulare county, and they are the parents of one 
 child, Byron Leonard, jr. Fraternally Dr. Car- 
 penter is identified with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows of Portersville, being past grand 
 of his lodge, and is past chief patriarch of the 
 encampment. He also belongs to the Woodmen 
 of the World. He is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, and is one of the board of 
 trustees. Politically he is a stanch adherent of 
 the principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Republican party, and in the line of his profes- 
 sion is an active member of the State Dental As- 
 sociation. 
 
 WILLIAM MILTON PHILLIPS. The ranks 
 of the pioneers are fast thinning out, and the 
 number of men in whose brain is a clear remem- 
 brance of the features which distinguished the 
 coast country during the early '50s are becoming 
 fewer and fewer. Around these early apostles of 
 adventure is a certain strength and heroism not 
 connected with any other time or place or peo- 
 ple, for necessarily force and determination were 
 required to leave comfortable conditions in the 
 east and travel towards the practically unknown 
 with no assurance of arriving at one's destination. 
 To this class of brave and resolute travelers be- 
 longs William Milton Phillips, whose residence 
 of fifty-two years in California has shifted from 
 the noisy mining camps through various stages 
 
 53 
 
 of development to the peace and plenty of a farm 
 of one hundred and twenty acres three miles from 
 Los Banos. 
 
 This highly esteemed pioneer was born in 
 Newtown, Hamilton county, Ohio, July 30, 1829, 
 his family having been established in the Buck- 
 eye state by his paternal grandfather, James 
 Phillips, who came from Germany, served in the 
 War of 1 812, and who lived to the extreme age 
 of one hundred' and ten years. His son, the 
 father of William Milton, also named James, was 
 born on the Ohio farm, eventually removing to 
 Montgomery county, Ind., and from there to 
 Paulding county, Ohio. In 1839, when William 
 Milton was ten years old, the family located in 
 Polk county, Iowa, where his father purchased 
 a farm within half a mile of Des Moines, dying 
 there when sixty-six years of age. He was fairly 
 well-to-do, reared a family of three sons and four 
 daughters, two sons and one daughter surviving 
 him. William Milton Phillips had the advantages 
 of farni and educational training in Ohio, Indiana 
 and Iowa, his schooling having been acquired in 
 the crude log school houses of that time; he sat 
 on a slab, hewed flat on one side, and wrote with 
 a quill pen. His life was uneventful until he 
 started out on his own responsibility in the spring 
 of 1851, going south to New Orleans, where he 
 worked for a time on boats plying the Mississippi 
 river. The spring of 1852 found him a member 
 of a large and enthusiastic emigrant train, bound 
 for the state of California. Owning a fine horse, 
 and being a skilled marksman, he was chosen 
 liunter of the expedition, and during the four 
 months journey brought down many trophies of 
 the chase, including bear, deer and kindred in- 
 habitants of the plains. In his tramps abroad in 
 search of food he encountered many Indians, 
 with whom he was always on the friendliest of 
 terms, giving them a handshake upon meeting, 
 and evidencing a deep interest in their affairs. 
 His knowledge of the best way to keep on friendly 
 terms with the red men was of long standing, for 
 in both Ohio and Iowa he had become familiar 
 with their traits, and had learned considerable 
 of their vernacular. Consequently, he was rarely 
 molested in his search for food, and both re- 
 ceived and gave many favors. The party came 
 by way of the Carson route, past Johnson's cut- 
 off, reaching Hangtown, now Placerville, in Au- 
 gust, 1852. 
 
 After mining in Eldorado county for a couple 
 of years Mr. Phillips removed to a farm in Contra 
 Costa county, later locating in Lake county, and 
 in 1872 took up his present farm in Merced 
 county. This property he devoted to grain and 
 alfalfa in the early days, and still raises large 
 crops of alfalfa, for the past four years also run- 
 ning a dairy of thirty-five cows. His improve- 
 ments are modern and practical, anc} his thrifty 
 
1112 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 methods and successful management are appar- 
 ent to all who are privileged to visit his hospita- 
 ble and pleasant home. September 30, 1869, he 
 was united in marriage with Sarah J. Phillips, a 
 native of Ray county, Mo., and daughter of 
 William P. Phillips, a Missouri farmer, who 
 crossed the plains in 1852. For several years 
 William P. Phillips engaged in general farming 
 and stock-raising in the vicinity of Oregon City, 
 Ore., removing in 1865 to AntiOch, Cal., later to 
 Hollister, and still later to Fresno. In 1889, in 
 the latter city, he met a tragic death in the burn- 
 ing of the Dexter stables, whither he had gone to 
 rescue some papers from the flames. His wife, 
 formerly Elizabeth Hartman, was also born in 
 Missouri, a daughter of John Hartman. The 
 circumstances of her death were scarcely less 
 pitiable than those surrounding the death of her 
 husband, for while on the way across the plains, 
 when her heart was full of hope regarding the 
 future, she was stricken with mountain fever and 
 succumbed to the dread disease a week after ar- 
 riving in Oregon. At the time her daughter, 
 Sarah J., was but six months old. A son, An- 
 drew J., died in California at the age of twenty- 
 six years. Mrs. Sarah J. Phillips was reared in 
 California and educated in the public schools. 
 Into the home of Mr. and Mrs. Phillips seven 
 children have been born : Lenora E., a graduate 
 of the San Jose Normal, the wife of T. L. Bald- 
 win of the Los Banos district; Florence, who is 
 a graduate of the Stockton Business College, and 
 who became the wife of C. O. Freeman, of Los 
 Banos; Ephraim, the owner and manager of a 
 dairy farm adjoining his father's ranch; Elmer, 
 manager of his father's dairy; Ivy Eleanor, a 
 graduate of the San Jose Normal, and at present 
 engaged in educational work in Los Banos ; 
 William, attending the Polytechnic at Oakland ; 
 and Vivian, who died in 1898 at the age of nine 
 years. Mr. Phillips is a member of the German 
 Baptist Church, while his wife is identified with 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. Previous to 
 the war Mr. Phillips was a Democrat, but since 
 then has voted the Republican ticket. His inter- 
 est in education has been pronounced for years, 
 and is evident, not only from the superior ad- 
 vantages he has given his own children, but frorn 
 his insistence on ample funds and proficient in- 
 structors while a member- of the school board. 
 
 JOSEPH VOSSLER. Germany has fur- 
 nished the United States with many of its most 
 substantial citizens, and in every state the na- 
 tives of that country have become prominently 
 identified with the various industries. The Ger- 
 mans deserve much credit for the pioneer work 
 they have done in the west, as they have at all 
 times been in the van of the settlers. Mr. Vos- 
 
 sler is no exception, for he has for many years 
 been a resident of California, and during his 
 residence here he has taken an active part in 
 the work of development. Coming to this coun- 
 try without a dollar or a friend, he has, by his 
 own individual efforts, accumulated a comfort- 
 able competency and attained a position of af- 
 fluence in Tulare county. 
 
 Born in Germany, March 4, 1840, near Rott- 
 weil, a town located in the vicinity of the fa- 
 mous "Black Forest," he is a son of Simon and 
 Johanna (Schuler) Vossler, both of whom spent 
 their entire lives in the old country. 
 
 Joseph Vossler is the eldest in a family of 
 eight children, and is the only one to locate in 
 California. His early life was spent in his na- 
 tive country, where he attended the common 
 schools and when old enough began learning the 
 trade of a butcher in his father's market. After 
 serving his apprenticeship he worked as a jour- 
 neyman butcher, traveling through Switzerland 
 and visiting the principal cities. Later he re- 
 turned to Germany, but remained there only a 
 short time, when, in 1868, he bade good-by to 
 home and sailed for America, the land of prom- 
 ise. While he has been in this country many 
 years, Mr. Vossler has never regretted his de- 
 cision to leave the place of his nativity, as in that 
 country the chances for advancement are lim- 
 ited, while here every man stands alone, and if 
 it is in him to succeed he can do so. 
 
 Soon after arrival in the United States his at- 
 tention was attracted to an advertisement of the 
 Central Pacific Railroad, offering $5 per day for 
 laborers. In company with a partner he came 
 west and for a time worked for the company, 
 but as the road employed a great many China- 
 men, Mr. Vossler decided to seek anployment 
 elsewhere. With that idea in mind he went to 
 Sacramento in 1869, where he soon secured work 
 on a farm near the city. For the following five 
 years he continued working for others, but in 
 1874 he came to Tulare county, and with 'the 
 money he had saved from his earnings, he pur- 
 chased one hundred and sixty acres of land, 
 which he at once began |;o cultivate and improve. 
 Engaging in grain-raising and the hog business 
 he was soon able to buy more land, adding to 
 his original purchase until he now owns seven 
 hundred and twenty acres, of which two hundred 
 and forty acres is located two miles east of Wood- 
 ville. This place is improved and equipped with 
 all the modern appliances necessary to carry on 
 a successful farming business. His pumping 
 plant is of twenty-four horse power, which sup- 
 plies all the water necessary for irrigation and 
 other purposes. While he devotes considerable 
 of his land to the growing of grain and alfalfa, 
 he is also engaged in the cattle and dairy busi- 
 ness. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.. 
 
 1113 
 
 Mr. Vossler was in the Tule river irrigation 
 district and was a member of the committee that 
 brought about the liquidation and took an ac- 
 tive part in the settlement of the affairs which 
 led to the paying of the bond in 1904. 
 
 In Modesto Mr. Vossler was united in mar- 
 riage with Nannie Gabriel, who was born in Hol- 
 stein, Germany. To this union have been born 
 six children, all of whom are living in the vicin- 
 ity. In order of birth their names are as fol- 
 lows: Fred, Charles, Joseph, Andrew, Cora and 
 Herman. 
 
 Mr. Vossler believes in the rights of mankind 
 and in political belief is strongly in favor of the 
 principles as promulgated by the Socialist party. 
 Taking a deep interest in educational matters, 
 he served for many years as trustee of his school 
 district, and during his tenure of office labored 
 earnestly for the bettering of the existing con- 
 ditions. Fraternally he is a welcome visitor in 
 the Odd Fellows' lodge rooms, while in religion 
 both he and his wife are associated with the 
 Christian Science Church at Portersville. 
 
 JOHN N. LARSON. A prominent business 
 man of Portersville, Tulare county, John N. Lar- 
 son has met with a success which has numbered 
 him among the representative men of this sec- 
 tion. He was born in Chicago, 111., October 16, 
 1859, a son of Nels Larson. The latter was a 
 native of Norway and a ship carpenter by trade, 
 who became an earlv settler of Chicago, where 
 he worked in the first shipyard until his death. 
 His wife, formerly a Miss Lindgren, was a na- 
 tive of Sweden, and her death also occurred in 
 Chicago. Of their three children, two are lo- 
 cated in California, A. J. Larson being engaged 
 in the real estate business in Lodi. 
 
 John N. Larson was the youngest of the three 
 children of his father's family. He was reared 
 to the age of fifteen years in Chicago, attending 
 the public schools in pursuit of an education. At 
 that age he made his first trip to the coast, for 
 eighteen months remaining in Oakland, where 
 he was employed as a lather. Returning to Chi- 
 cago, he attended school until the spring of 1877, 
 when he came back to Oakland. In the same 
 year he went to Leadville, Colo., where he fol- 
 lowed the building trade, in 1880 going to Du- 
 rango, before the railroad carrie through. Re- 
 turning to California about 1881 he located in 
 Lodi, where he engaged in contracting and build- 
 ing, later spending a short time in Colorado, 
 then going to San Diego during that city's rapid 
 growth. There he found abundant employment 
 in contracting and building for a time, after 
 which he again located in Lodi, remaining there 
 until the spring of 1897, when he came to Por- 
 tersville, and bought the Greeley ice business. 
 
 Mr. Larson has enlarged the plant, carrying on 
 a wholesale and retail ice business, and has 
 erected a soda works in connection. He is also 
 interested in the ice and soda water business in 
 Tulare, the firm being known as Frame & Lar- 
 son, and they are also interested in the Visalia 
 soda works, of which Mr. Larson was one of 
 the incorporators and is now president of the 
 company. He is a business man of unquestioned 
 ability and shrewd judgment and with the prac- 
 tical points of his work thoroughly in hand. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Larson was united in 
 marriage with Mattie A. Cochran, who was born 
 near Lawrence, Kans., and they are the parents 
 of two children, Verda and Helen. Mr. Larson 
 has always taken the keenest interest in the 
 growth and progress of his adopted city, being 
 a participant in movements calculated to advance 
 the general welfare. He was active in the or- 
 ganization of the First National Bank of Por- 
 tersville, of which he is a director; has been a 
 director of the Board of Trade since its organ- 
 ization; and is also a member and director of 
 the county Board of Trade of Tulare county. As 
 a Republican he has often been called upon to 
 serve in positions of trust and responsibility. 
 Upon the incorporation of Portersville he was 
 elected councilman, serving his first term from 
 1902, and was re-elected in 1904, at present 
 acting as chairman of the finance committee, as 
 well as serving on various others. During his 
 first term he gave effective service as chairman 
 of the street committee in the laying of new 
 sidewalks, etc. He is also a member of the 
 county central committee. In addition to his 
 business interests Mr. Larson is also identified 
 with the horticultural interests of the section, 
 owning a ten-acre orchard of navel oranges near 
 town, while in addition to this he is setting out 
 twenty acres. Fraternally he was made a mem- 
 ber of the Knights of Pythias in Durango, and 
 is now a member and past chancellor of Por- 
 tersville Lodge. He is also identified with the 
 Independent Order of Foresters. 
 
 REV. FATHER JOHN COEN. The work 
 being done by Rev. Father John Coen as pastor 
 of St. Ann's Church, in Portersville, is such 
 as to place him in the front rank of those who 
 are adding immeasurably to the moral and spir- 
 itual welfare of this section. A native of Ire- 
 land, he was born in County Mayo June 24, 
 1871, next to the youngest in a family of six 
 sons and six daughters, of whom four sons and 
 four daughters are living, he being the only one 
 in America. He comes of an old and distin- 
 guished family of Ireland, which formerly flour- 
 ished in England, from which country an emi- 
 grant located the name in the Emerald Isle. 
 
1114 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Thomas Coen, the father of Rev. John Coen, was 
 a farmer and merchant in County Mayo, dying 
 there in 1893. His wife, formerly Mary Scan- 
 Ion, a native of County SHgo, and the representa- 
 tive of a worthy family, survives him, making 
 her home on the old residence in Ireland. 
 
 When only a lad in years John Coen began the 
 study of the classics. After completing a sem- 
 inary course he entered Carlow College, where 
 he took theology, philosophy and scripture. 
 Upon the completion of this course June 13, 
 1892, he was ordained by Bishop Comerford in 
 the college, and was assigned by Bishop More 
 of Los Angeles to work in Hollister. He imme- 
 diately took passage for Los Angeles, Cal., and 
 upon his arrival became assistant in the Church 
 of the Sacred Heart of Hollister. After four 
 months of service he was appointed pastor of 
 the Watsonville parish, and the following year, 
 at his own request, was returned to Hollister as 
 assistant. He remained in that position until 
 November, 1896, when he received the appoint- 
 ment to his present pastorate, since which time 
 he has continued in charge of the parish. A 
 man of liberal views, earnest consecration and a 
 devotion to his work which admits of no ques- 
 tion. Father Coen has won the love and respect 
 of his congregation and has brought about move- 
 ments which have resulted very materially to 
 the betterment of the people. This congregation 
 was first started by meetings in various houses 
 and halls, the church being built in 1892 by 
 Father Farrelly. In 1902 the presbytery was 
 built through the efforts of Father Coen. He 
 has also organized the congregation at Wood- 
 ville, Tulare county, and while he has in his 
 pastorate all the eastern portion of Tulare county 
 to the Mono and Inyo county lines, he also visits 
 the South Tule Indian Reservation. He has 
 organized an Altar Society, and in all matters 
 pertaining to the spiritual and temporal welfare 
 of the people Father Coen gives his most earnest 
 and undivided efforts. 
 
 CHARLES A. BISHER. Self-made in the 
 best sense implied by the term, Charles A. Bisher 
 enjoys to an unusual degree the high regard of 
 all with whom he has come in either business or 
 social contact, and as a practically retired citi- 
 zen of Visalia is rounding out the years of an 
 active and successful career. The third in a 
 family of seven children, of whom three are 
 living, Charles A. Bisher was born in Musca- 
 tine, Iowa, March 11, 1855, the son of Charles 
 August and Annie Elizabeth Bisher, both of 
 whom died in Iowa, the father when their son 
 was seven years old and the mother when he 
 was eleven years old, Th? father was a native 
 
 of Germany who settled in Muscatine and en- 
 gaged as a wheelwright and cabinet maker. 
 
 Until he was twelve years old Charles A. Bish- 
 er remained in Muscatine, Iowa, and was then 
 bound out to Hiram Kirkpatrick, a farmer, who 
 lived near Cairo, Iowa. He remained there for 
 three and a half years, his first years work be- 
 ing to rake bundles off the old McCormick reap- 
 er. During this time he attended school but two 
 months in the year. On seeking new employ- 
 ment he found work with a neighbor for $18 per 
 month, with whom he remained for some time, 
 in 1873 deciding to locate in California. He 
 accordingly made the trip west and located in 
 Visalia, securing employment with the Weston 
 dairy, where he remained twenty-two months. 
 Being defrauded of his wages he sought and 
 found employment with Henry Hartley, and for 
 five years conducted a dairy ranch near Visalia 
 and again on Elbow creek in Tulare county. 
 Having accumulated sufficient capital he then 
 entered the livery business, becoming proprietor 
 of the Visalia Stables in partnership with W. 
 W. Coughran. Two years later he bought out 
 his partner's interest and continued alone for 
 some j'ears, when he sold to W. H. Moffett. 
 With J. B. McKinley he then established, the 
 Kaweah Stables, which were conducted under 
 the firm name of Bisher & McKinley for some 
 time, Mr. Bisher only buying an interest till his 
 friend was well established. This was the only 
 brick stable in the city, and the largest in dimen- 
 sions, and was well equipped in every particu- 
 lar. After one year he sold out his interests 
 and withdrew entirely from active business, 
 spending his time in looking after his property, 
 which consisted of one hundred and eighty acres, 
 eighty of which is devoted to alfalfa. He has 
 lately disposed of this ranch. He has been suc- 
 cessful in all his undertakings, whether as a 
 farmer or business man, and in his display of 
 ability and unerring judgment has won a place 
 of prominence among the business citizens of 
 this section. 
 
 Mr. Bisher's home at No. 501 North Cotton- 
 wood street, is presided over by his wife, for- 
 merly Ida Hartley, a native of Visaha, where 
 they were married. She is the daughter of 
 Henry C. Hartley, who was born in Indepen- 
 dence, Mo., November 6, 1833, the son of George 
 Hartley, a native of Philadelphia, Pa., and an 
 early settler of the middle west, where he was 
 located in Missouri, Illinois and Iowa. In 1853 
 Henry C. Hartley crossed the plains by horse 
 train as far as Salt Lake City, when they com- 
 pleted the trip to California by pack train. On 
 the journey he became ill and was left by the 
 party and came near dying in the wilderness, but 
 recovered and made his way alone to California. 
 In September, 1853, h? came to Tulare county 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1117 
 
 and in Tulare has since made his home. He has 
 been a very successful farmer and stockman arid 
 now owns a fine ranch on Elbow creek, seven 
 miles northwest of Visalia. He married Isa- 
 belle Baker, a native of Ohio, and the daughter 
 of James Baker who brought his family to Tu- 
 lare county in 1857. She died in Visalia in 1898, 
 leaving a family of four children, namely : La*a, 
 the wife of Mr. Moye; Charles, a farmer near 
 Visalia ; Ida, the wife of Mr. Bisher ; and George, 
 a stockman near Visalia. Mr. and Mrs. Bisher 
 have one child. Merle Elizabeth. 
 
 Mr. Bisher is a Democrat in his political con- 
 victions and is an earnest and broad-minded 
 citizen and gives his support to all movements 
 and enterprises best calculated to advance the 
 general welfare. For one term he served effi- 
 ciently as a member of the city board of trus- 
 tees. 
 
 GEORGE W. SMITH. The life history of 
 George W. Smith is indissolubly connected with 
 the irrigation interests of Tulare county, as he 
 was more closely identified with projects of this 
 nature than an};- other man in this section. He 
 was a surveyor and civil engineer and surveyed 
 the majority of the longest canals and ditches 
 in Tulare county. He was one of the organizers 
 of the Uphill Ditch Company, and served as its 
 president for many years, as well as surveying 
 and superintending its construction. His last 
 work was for the 76 Canal Company, on what 
 is now known as the Alta Irrigation District, 
 acting in the capacity of chief engineer. His 
 death occurred October 24, 1896, at the age of 
 seventy years, removing from the community a 
 man who held the esteem of his fellow citizens 
 for the sterling qualities which distinguished his 
 character. 
 
 . Born in New York August 26, 1826, George 
 W. Smith was a son of David and Lovisa (Pal- 
 mer) Smith, both of whom were also natives 
 of the same state. He vsras the descendant of 
 English ancestry, his great-grandfather having 
 emigrated from his native land and settled in 
 Rhode Island, where his grandfather, Seth 
 Smith, was born. His maternal ancestors were 
 among the early settlers of New York state. 
 George W. Smith was one of a family of nine 
 children, of v;hom he was the eldest son. He 
 remained in his native state until he was twenty- 
 three years old, receiving his education in the 
 meantime. In 1849 he decided to seek his for- 
 tune in the gold fields of California. Sailing 
 from New York City on February 6, a passenger 
 on the Qarissa Perkins, he landed in San Fran- 
 cisco September 12, and immediately entered 
 upon the life of a miner. His first location was 
 at Hawks Bar, after which he went to Rattle- 
 
 snake creek, where he was the first man 
 to_ .strike a pick. He was very successful as a 
 miner, but for a time was less so as an investor, 
 as he lost the greater part of his earnings in the 
 organization whicH turned the course of the 
 Tuolumne river, and after paying his debts and 
 working for a time, lost again in the erection of 
 a quartz mill. For a time previous to this sec- 
 ond venture he was located in Mariposa county, 
 where he drove ox teams and delivered logs to 
 the saw mills. He later engaged in the butcher 
 business at various places and met with the suc- 
 cess which attended the greater part of his ef- 
 forts. 
 
 In 1865 he located on a half-section of land in 
 Tulare county, about seven miles northwest of 
 Visalia, and afterward homesteaded other land, 
 engaging on the entire property in farming and 
 stock-raising. He made this his home until 1887, 
 when he purchased four hundred and eighty 
 acres of land three miles north of Visalia, where 
 he built a handsome residence, substantial barns 
 and outbuildings, improvements which placed 
 his ranch among the most valuable in this section 
 of the county. Until his death he engaged in 
 general farming operations and stock-raising on 
 this property, as well as continuing to take a 
 broad interest and active participation in his 
 work as an engineer and surveyor. For several 
 years he served as county surveyor, holding the 
 office two terms by election and twice by ap- 
 pointment. In 1878 he was elected deputy sher- 
 iff of the county, and later was a prominent 
 candidate of the Democratic party for the office 
 of surveyor-general of the state. Fraternally. he 
 was associated with the Odd Fellows and An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen, and was a 
 Knight Templar Mason, becoming a Master 
 Mason in Car.son City in 1863. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Smith occurred in Au- 
 rora, Esmeralda county, Nev., July 23, 1864, 
 and united him with Nancy Caroline Parker. 
 She is a native of Newton county, Ark., and 
 was the youngest of two daughters born to her 
 parents, Anderson and Mathilda (Kelley) Par- 
 ker. Her father was a native of Tennessee, as 
 was also his father, Alvin Parker, who as a 
 farmer removed to Arkansas and in 1853 crossed 
 the plains to California and became a stockman 
 in Tulare county. Anderson Parker was a 
 farmer in Arkansas and died there when his 
 daughter, Mrs. Smith, was but one year old. 
 Mrs. Parker was a native of Mississippi, but re- 
 moved to Arkansas, in which state her father 
 died. In 1857 Mrs. Parker crossed the plains 
 to California by ox teams, bringing her two 
 daughters. The six-months trip was made by 
 Salt Lake, and was full of peril through the 
 ravages of the Indians, the train requiring a 
 guard each night of the journey. Upon her ar- 
 
ills 
 
 rilSTOUiCAL ANi) BiOGRAPHtCAL ReCORD. 
 
 rival she settled upon a farm near Visalia, where 
 her death occurred at the age of forty-two years. 
 Nancy Caroline Parker was ten years old when 
 the memorable trip was made to California, and 
 upon her arrival made her home with her uncle, 
 B. G. Parker, who had acted as captain of their 
 train, as he had made the trip in 1853 and was 
 familiar with the route. She was reared to 
 womanhood in the west and after her marriage 
 made her home iii the vicinity of Visalia. In 
 June, 1904, she built a handsome residence in 
 the city at the corner of Northwest First ave- 
 nue, and has rented her farm, which now con- 
 sists of three hundred and twenty acres all under 
 irrigation and given over to the cultivation of 
 grain and stock-raising. She has proven her- 
 self a woman of rare business ability and has 
 managed her affairs with admirable skill and 
 judgment since her husband's death. Of the 
 nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Char- 
 lotte is the wife of E. Baker of Kingsburg; 
 Crosby is located at Richmond, CaL, engaged in 
 the Hvery business; Seth is a farmer and stock- 
 man, located on a ranch in the neighborhood of 
 Visalia; Luther died February 24, 1895, at the 
 age of twenty-five years; Burton is located in 
 Los Banos, where he holds the position of super- 
 intendent of the San Joaquin & Kings River 
 Canal and Irrigation Company; Lavonia is the 
 wife of T. Cortner of Tulare county; Lovisa is 
 the wife of Samuel Bond of Tulare county; 
 Luina is at home with her mother; and Law- 
 rence died December 15, 1897, at the age of 
 twelve years. In her political convictions Mrs. 
 Smith is a Democrat and though unable to cast 
 a vote herself wields no little 'influence with those 
 who are. 
 
 HIRAM F. BREY. Liberal and enterprising, 
 Hiram F. Brey has contributed no little to the 
 successful upbuilding of Portersville and vicin- 
 ity, making his personal efforts lie parallel with 
 those for the material welfare of the section in 
 which he has made his horne since 1889. A 
 native of Napoleon, Ohio, he was born Novem- 
 ber 10, 1848. His father, Gideon Brey, was a 
 a native of Pennsylvania, who became a farmer 
 in Ohio, marrying Hannah Frease in Stark 
 county, of which she was a native. Her father, 
 John Frease, was also a native of Pennsylvania 
 and an early settler of Stark county, Ohio, where 
 he was engaged as a farmer. Mr. Brey was lo- 
 cated as a farmer in Henry county, Ohio, until 
 his death, which occurred at the age of seventy- 
 five years, his wife having died in 1853. They 
 were the parents of five children, all of whom are 
 living, 
 
 Hiram F. Brey was reared to the age of six- 
 teen years on the paternal farm in Ohio, receiv- 
 
 ing his education through the medium of the 
 district school in the vicinity of his home. At 
 sixteen he entered the store of an uncle and 
 followed clerking for the ensuing four years. 
 In 1869 he decided to cast in his lot with the 
 pioneer element of a more remote west, and 
 accordingly came as far west as Laramie, Wyo., 
 wTOre he engaged as a clerk for one year. Fol- 
 lowing this he became fireman on the Union 
 Pacific Railroad, which position he retained 
 until January, 1873, when he became conductor 
 for the same company. In December of that 
 year he went to Nevada, and was employed as 
 a conductor until 1876, his run being between 
 Toana and Winnemucca. Following his work 
 in Nevada he accepted a position as conductor 
 with the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, 
 running out of Vallejo, Solano county, for four 
 years, when he went to Oregon and was em- 
 ployed by the Oregon Railroad and Navigation 
 Company between The Dalles and Walla Walla, 
 Wash. After one year he came back to Cali- 
 fornia and was again employed as a conductor 
 on the Southern Pacific Railroad, his run being 
 from Oakland to Sacramento. Resigning fro 
 this position in 1884, he accepted the position of 
 bookkeeper with the West Valley Lumber Com- 
 pany, at Dixon, Solano county, and later was 
 manager of a lumber yard at Reno, Nev., for 
 two years. He then returned to California and 
 in the spring of 1889 located in Portersville, 
 where he became yard manager of the San 
 Joaquin Lumber Company. After four years 
 this company sold out to the Puget Sound Lum- 
 ber Company, with whom he continued in the 
 same capacity until 1895. In that year Mr. Brey 
 organized the Portersville' Lumber Company, 
 which bought out the interests of the Puget 
 Sound Company at Portersville, and this he con- 
 ducted until 1903, in the fall of the year pre- 
 vious having assisted materially in the organiza- 
 tion of the Central California Redwood Com- 
 pany, which bought out the interests of the Por- 
 tersville Lumber Company, the Enterprise Lum- 
 ber Company and mill, and West Pacific Lumber 
 Company and mill, the three consolidating and 
 forming one of the most extensive lumber firms 
 in this section. They at once rebuilt the mill at 
 Dillonwood site, which has a capacity of forty 
 thousand feet per day, their product being 
 shipped principally to the eastern states. The 
 large redwood trees above twelve feet have to 
 be blasted, while upon trees up to that size the 
 Mulay saw, which forms a part of their equip- 
 ment, is used. During the summer they run 
 sixteen ten-horse teams and employ a large num- 
 ber of men, this enterprise adding no little to 
 the industrial supremacy of this section. Mr. 
 Brey was elected secretary of the new company 
 and is also manager of the company business, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1119 
 
 his extensive knowledge, the result of long ex- 
 perience in this line of work, making his services 
 of great value to the firm. In addition to his 
 business interests Mr. Brey has also been identi- 
 fied to some extent with the horticultural life of 
 the community since 1890, when he set out an 
 orange orchard of twelve acres one mile from 
 Portersville, and at the present time he is setting 
 out sixteen acres additional. He has been identi- 
 fied with the Portersville Water Development 
 and Improvement Company since its organiza- 
 tion in 1898, this being the first company to 
 pump water for irrigating purposes in the vicin- 
 ity of Portersville. 
 
 In Virginia City, Nev., Mr. Brey married Ada 
 Lackey, a native of that place, and the daugh- 
 ter of Albert Lackey, a pioneer miner of Ne- 
 vada. They have two children. Alberta and 
 Marie. Mr. Brey is a director of the Board of 
 Trade, with which he has been connected since 
 its organization, and is also a stockholder in the 
 First National Bank of Portersville. Frater- 
 nally he was made a Mason in Winnemucca, 
 Nev., and in 1890 became a charter member of 
 Portersville Lodge No. 303, F. & A. M., of which 
 he was its second master. He became a Royal 
 Arch Mason in 1903, in Portersville Chapter 
 No. 8s, R. A. M., and belongs to Visalia Com- 
 mandery No. 26, K. T., and Islam Temple, 
 N. M. S., of San Francisco. His wife is a mem- 
 ber of the Episcopal Church. Politically he is a 
 Republican in national politics, while locally he 
 reserves the right to support the man whom he 
 considers best qualified for public office. He is 
 a member of the San Joaquin Valley Retail 
 Lumber Dealers' Association, after its organiza- 
 tion becoming its second secretary, which office 
 he held for eight years. 
 
 JAMES WALLACE OAKES. As a pioneer 
 of the state James Wallace Oakes is accorded 
 a prominent place among the citizens who have 
 given the best part of their lives to the estab- 
 lishment and upbuilding of a western common- 
 wealth. Almost a half century has elapsed since 
 he came to California and the greater part of 
 that time has been passed as a resident of Tu- 
 lare county, in the development ' of natural re- 
 sources. Born near Victoria, Ontario, he is the 
 son of Hammon Oakes, a native of the same lo- 
 cality. 
 
 The Oakes family came originally from 
 France and located in New Brunswick where the 
 name was prominent for generations. James 
 Oakes, the son of John W., who died in New 
 Brunswick at the advanced age of one hundred 
 and two years, left the place of his nativity after 
 many years spent as a lumberman on the St. 
 John's river and located near Port Ryerse, where 
 
 he engaged as a farmer and stockman until his 
 death, which occurred in his eighty-sixth year. 
 He was a pioneer of heroic mould, taking up 
 his land in an entirely new locality, clearing it 
 of timber and bringing it to a high state of 
 cultivation. His son, Hammon Oakes, also be- 
 came a farmer in that locality and was exten- 
 sively interested in stock-raising, owning three 
 farms. He lived to be seventy-three years old. 
 His wife was in maidenhood Isabelle PhilHps, 
 a native of New York, and the descendant of an 
 old New England family. He located as a farm- 
 er and stockman near New London. Mrs. Oakes 
 died at the age of sixty-eight years. 
 
 Of the eleven children born to his parents, 
 six of whom are living, James Wallace Oakes 
 is the fifth in order of birth and the only one 
 who ever came to California. His birth oc- 
 curred September i, 1836, and on his father's 
 farm, where he was reared, he received a prac- 
 tical training which has made 'its influence felt 
 throughout his entire career. He attended the 
 district school in his youth. In 1855 he came 
 to the United States and located in Jackson coun- 
 ty, Iowa, where, in the vicinity of Sabula he 
 located until the spring of 1856 when he bought 
 a farm in Harrison county. Mo., consisting of 
 one hundred and sixty acres of prairie land, and 
 twenty acres of timber. He then bought a yoke 
 of oxen and with six others broke his prairie 
 land and proceeded to an improvement of his 
 property. In the spring of 1857 he went to Fort 
 Leavenworth, Kans., and found employment as 
 a driver of a team for freighters under Upton 
 Hayes, between that point and Camp Floyd. He 
 then went to Salt Lake and from that point came 
 with fifteen others by ox-teams to California, 
 making the trip via the Carson route. At Genoa 
 they sold their teams and made the rest of the 
 journey on mules, and after their arrival in 
 Placerville Mr. Oakes followed the precarious 
 fortunes of a miner in that county and also in 
 Butte. In Nevada county he engaged in quartz 
 rtiining for four years, then spent one year in 
 Marysville and in the fall of 1868 came to Tulare 
 county and rented a ranch owned by B. G. Par- 
 ker, on Elbow creek, where he followed farming 
 on a large scale for that time. He conducted 
 tliree farms at the same time and also improved 
 his own ranch, operating about seven hundred 
 acres of land. He now owns two hundred and 
 eighty acres of land two and a half miles east 
 of Visalia, which is all under irrigation and high- 
 ly improved. Both Mill creek and Packwood 
 creek run through his property, and a ditch 
 which he and a half dozen others built. About 
 one hundred and thirty acres are devoted to al- 
 falfa, the largest interests of the place_ being giv- 
 en over to the dairy business, in which he was 
 engaged for sixteen years. He has had as many 
 
1120 
 
 ttlSTORtCAL AND BtOGRAPHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 as eighty-five milch cows at one time. He now 
 rents his ranch for dairy purposes and furnishes 
 the stock. He also has a stock ranch of twenty- 
 three hundred acres at Cherokee, Tulare county, 
 about thirty-five miles east of Visalia, all fenced, 
 where he engages in the raising of cattle and 
 horses. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Oakes married Mrs. Margaret 
 I. (Houston) Allen, a native of Arkansas, whose 
 ancestry is given at length in the sketch of W. 
 W. Houston, which appears in another part of 
 this volume. Fraternally Mr. Oakes is identified 
 with the Ancient Order of United Workmen, 
 and politically is a stanch adherent of the prin- 
 ciples advocated in the platform of the Demo- 
 cratic party. He has never allowed his name to 
 be mentioned as a candidate for office, but has 
 never shirked the responsibilities which have de- 
 volved upon him as a citizen. For two years 
 he served as deputy sheriff under Alfred Balaam, 
 after which, for three years, he served under 
 Chris. Franks as deputy United States marshal, 
 and as such settled up the Mussel Slough trouble 
 between the Southern Pacific Railroad Company 
 and the settlers of that section. This position 
 called into play the exercise of great tact and 
 diplomacy, for the people were naturally sus- 
 picious of anyone who attempted an amicable set- 
 tlement of the dispute. Before undertaking it 
 Mr. Oakes was given his own methods by the 
 railroad company, and in a short time he won the 
 confidence of those with whom he was attempt- 
 ing settlement and was thus given a chance to 
 make satisfactory terms with all interested. No 
 one has ever filled that office with greater effi- 
 ciency nor returned to private life with more 
 commendation than did Mr. Oakes. And it is 
 only just to add that he well merits the high 
 esteem in which he is universally held. 
 
 AZEL B. HAMILTON. Six miles north- 
 east of Merced is located the forty-acre ranch 
 which belongs to Azel B. Hamilton, a progres- 
 sive and enterprising farmer of this section, and 
 one interested as well in the material welfare of 
 the community. A native of Johnson county, 
 Mo., he was born November lo, 1853, a son of 
 
 A. B. Hamilton, Sr. The elder man was a na- 
 tive of Tennessee, where he married a Miss Al- 
 exander, also of that state, who died when Azel 
 
 B. was quite young. The family located in Mis- 
 souri, where Mr. Hamilton carried on farming 
 and stock-raising in Johnson county. 
 
 In Missouri Azel B. Hamilton, Jr., attained 
 his majority, and in the same year he left home 
 to become dependent upon his own resources. 
 He came west to California in 1874, visiting 
 Merced county and spending a year in travel in 
 various parts of the state. He also made a trip 
 
 to Mexico, but in 1876 returned to California 
 and passed the ensuing year in the Sacramento 
 valley, when he located in Merced county, satis- 
 fied to make tliis his permanent home. Until 
 1899 he raised wheat on Bear Creek, when he 
 located on his present ranch, which is located in 
 Rotterdam colony and consists of forty acres of 
 fine farm land. In addition to the cultivation of 
 this property he also rents one hundred and 
 twenty-five acres, while a part of his interests 
 lie in the conduct of a dairy which is supplied 
 by thirty cows. He owns his own separator and 
 carries on the work with much profit. A part 
 of his land is devoted to an olive grove. 
 
 Mr. Hamilton has been married twice, the 
 first ceremony being performed in Mariposa 
 county and uniting him with Sarah C. Laird, 
 who died in 1894. They were the parents of 
 the following children : Paris R., Elsie A., Ev- 
 erett B., David, and Myrtle. In 1899 Mr. Ham- 
 ilton married in Merced county Lillie F. Ward, 
 who is a native of Merced county. In his polit- 
 ical preferment Mr. Hamilton is an adherent of 
 the principles of the Democratic party, in the 
 interests of which he is now serving his second 
 term as supervisor of his district, having acted 
 as chairman of the board for two years. Fra- 
 ternally he is associated with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 MOSES DAVIDSON. A citizen of much 
 worth and integrity, Moses Davidson enjoys to 
 an unusual degree the confidence and esteem of 
 all who have known him during his residence 
 in Portersville and Tulare county, and to no 
 man is greater credit due for the development 
 of the orange industry of that section. A native 
 of Beaver county, Pa., he was born March 20, 
 1837, a son of John Davidson. The elder man 
 was a native of North Ireland, whence he emi- 
 grated with his parents to Beaver county. Pa., 
 his father, Thomas Davidson, becoming a fann- 
 er in that section. In manhood John David- 
 son also followed farming in Pennsylvania until 
 1855, when he removed to Brooklyn, Poweshiek 
 county, Iowa, where his death occurred in 1880, 
 at the advanced age of eighty-eight years. He 
 was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 and politically was a Republican after 1864. His 
 wife, formerly Mary Ann Thompson, was a na- 
 tive of Pennsylvania and the daughter of James 
 Thompson, a farmer of Pennsylvania, who died 
 in Butler county. Mrs. Davidson died in Iowa 
 at the age of fifty-nine years. They became the 
 parents of fourteen children, thirteen of whom 
 attained maturity, while five sons and one daugh- 
 ter are now living. 
 
 The youngest of his parents' living children, 
 Moses Davidson was reared in Pennsylvania un- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1123 
 
 til 1855, receiving his education through the me- 
 dium of the district school in the vicinity of 
 his home. In that year his father emigrated to 
 Iowa, Moses Davidson and three brothers cross- 
 ing the country by team on a four weeks' trip, 
 while the remainder of the family traveled by 
 train to Davenport. Until the breaking out of 
 the Civil war he remained at home with his 
 father, in August, 1862, enlisting in Company H, 
 Twenty-eighth Iowa Regiment Volunteer Infan- 
 try, being mustered into service at Iowa City. 
 He served at Helena, Ark., then during the siege 
 of Vicksburg, on the Red River Expedition tin- 
 der General Banks and the retreat that followed 
 this disastrous venture. He was then sent to 
 Savannah, thence to Washington, serving in the 
 Shenandoah Valley under Sheridan, taking part 
 in the battles of Winchester and Cedar Creek, 
 and continuing in active service until the close 
 of the war. He was mustered out in Savannah, 
 Ga., in July, 1865, being honorably discharged 
 in Davenport, Iowa. Following his service, Mr. 
 Davidson spent one year in an attempt to recover 
 his health, which had been more or less impaired 
 by the rigors which he endured while in the 
 army. He then engaged in a mercantile business 
 in Brooklyn, Iowa, and later began farming, pur- 
 chasing a farm in the vicinity of that place. 
 This property consisted of two hundred and forty 
 acres, devoted to the raising of grain and stock 
 purposes. He became prominent in public af- 
 fairs in the county, serving for several terms as 
 township supervisor. On account of poor health 
 he returned to a commercial life, engaging in 
 the sale of agricultural implements, in which 
 work he remained for two years. Deciding ,to 
 locate in California, he made his first trip to 
 the coast in 1887, but returned shortly afterward 
 to Iowa, where he settled up affairs, disposing of 
 the greater part of his interests there. In 1888 
 he located near Portersville, and engaged in the 
 raising of wheat. He met with success arid in 
 1890 purchased his present property, and the 
 following year set out the first orange grove in 
 this vicinity. His home farm consists of nine- 
 teen acres one mile east of Portersville, all in 
 navel oranges, and where he has built a fine resi- 
 dence and installed a pumping plant, operated 
 by electricity, furnishing a fifty-five-inch stream. 
 Two miles from the town he bought eighty acres, 
 where he put down a well, and built a pumping 
 plant operated by an electric motor. He set 
 out an orchard of twenty acres, and afterward 
 sold forty of the original purchase. Of the bal- 
 ance of forty acres he has set thirty-five to or- 
 anges, of the entire forty having given twenty 
 acres to his son, Carl A., while the other twen- 
 ty he still owns. In addition to this he also 
 owns one hundred and sixty acres in the vicin- 
 ity of Terra Bella. 
 
 In Iowa Mr. Davidson was united in marriage 
 with Eva Rogers, who was born and died in 
 that state, leaving two children, namely : Carl A., 
 a horticulturist, and Eva, who died at the age 
 of twenty months. In Missouri Mr. Davidson 
 married Elizabeth J. Perry, a native of Illinois. 
 Of the four children born of this union two are 
 living, Mabel P. and Alice E., both at home. Mr. 
 Davidson has been a consistent member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church since 1854, and is 
 now acting as chairman of the board of trustees 
 of the church of Portersville. He also served 
 for some time as the superintendent of the Sun- 
 day-school. He is a stockholder in the Syndicate 
 Wells for supplying water for orchards, and is 
 a member and director of the Portersville Cit- 
 rus Exchange and a stockholder in the Exchange 
 buildings. Politically he is a stanch Republican, 
 which ticket he has voted since 1864, refusing to 
 endorse the Chicago platform, which pronounced 
 the war a failure, up to 1900, when he began 
 voting the Prohibition ticket. He is a broad- 
 minded and public-spirited citizen, taking an ac- 
 tive interest in all movements which have for 
 their end the betterment of the community. 
 
 JAMES C. PAINE. The president of the 
 Malaga Packing Company, a corporation which 
 has in no small degree advanced the fruit inter- 
 ests of Fresno county, James C. Paine is a citi- 
 zen of great personal worth, and one whose 
 forceful methods and business ability have won 
 for him the respect of his fellow horticulturists. 
 He is prominent as a vineyardist and fruit 
 grower of the Fowler district, having a hundred- 
 acre ranch which is one of the largest in the vi- 
 cinity, finely developed and improved, fifty 
 acres being given over to the cultivation of 
 raisin grapes, thirty-five acres to various fruits, 
 and the rest to general farming. 
 
 A native of Tippah county. Miss., Mr. Paine 
 was born May 4, 1853, a son of James W. and 
 Eliza (Blackard) Paine. Both parents were 
 natives of Tennessee, the father a son of Hardin 
 L., a native of North Carolina. He was a 
 farmer by occupation. About 1856 James W. 
 Paine removed to Missouri and located in Dallas 
 county. Upon the outbreak of the Civil war he 
 removed to northeast Missouri, finally locating in 
 Macon county. In 1886 he came to California 
 and died here at the age of seventy-three years. 
 His father, Hardin L. Paine, took his slaves to 
 Texas upon the outbreak of the war and spent 
 the rest of his life there.. 
 
 Reared, to manhood on his father's farm in 
 Missouri, James C. Paine received a thorough 
 agricultural training, and on starting out on his 
 own resources at the age of eighteen years 
 sought his livelihood in the same occupation 
 
1124 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 which had employed his boyhood years. He re- 
 mained in Missouri until 1879, when he went 
 to Tennessee and farmed until 1886. In the 
 last named year he came to California. Locating 
 in Madera county, he leased about three thousand 
 acres of land and engaged in wheat raising for 
 twelve years. In the meantime, in 1891, he had 
 purchased his present farm in Fresno county. 
 In 1898 he permanently moved his family upon 
 it, since making this location his home. In 1903 
 he organized the Malaga Packing Company, in- 
 corporated, of which he was elected president. 
 The company purchased the property of the 
 Malaga Co-operative Packing Company, which' 
 it now operates. 
 
 In Tennessee Mr. Paine married Fannie Jef- 
 fries, a native of Mississippi, and the daughter of 
 John Jeffries. The children born of this union 
 are as follows : James S., Victor A., Lyman H., 
 Jesse L., Harry F., John C, Sarah J., and Rob- 
 ert Treat. In his political convictions Mr. Paine 
 is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 JEREMIAH SULLIVAN. While Mr. Sulli- 
 van has resided in Tulare county but a short time, 
 he has already taken a prominent place in the 
 ranks of the leading men of the county and is 
 highly respected by all with whom he has become 
 acquainted. 
 
 Born in Ontario, near Ottawa, Canada, Sep- 
 tember 2, 1854, he is a son of Michael and Mary 
 Ann (Lafifin) Sullivan. The father was a black- 
 smith by trade and later in life removed to Grand 
 Forks, N. D., where he lived at the time of his 
 death. Mrs. Sullivan is still living, making her 
 home in Spokane, Wash. She is the mother of 
 seven children, six of whom are living. 
 
 Jeremiah Sullivan was reared in Appleton, On- 
 tario, where he was educated in the public 
 schools. Under the direction of his father he 
 learned the trade of a blacksmith and in 1877 
 went to Smith's Falls, Ontario, where he worked 
 at his trade until removing to South Dakota. 
 Subsequently he located in St. Paul and later 
 went to Emerson, Manitoba, to take charge of a 
 machine shop. This he conducted for a few 
 years until finally he started a shop of his own, 
 which he owned up to the time of his removal 
 to California, the change being made necessary 
 on account of his health. While living in Emer- 
 son he became prominently identified with the 
 public, taking a leading part in political affairs 
 and serving as mayor of the city for two years, 
 and councillor for thirteen years. So popular 
 did he become that the citizens gave him a ban- 
 quet on the eve of his departure for California 
 and presented him with a set of engrossed reso- 
 lutions, expressing their sincere respect and deep 
 
 regret that circumstances had made it necessary 
 for them to part. 
 
 It was in 1902 that Mr. Sullivan first came to 
 this state. At that time he purchased land near 
 Portersville and then returned east, the following 
 year bringing his family, also a party of sixteen 
 prospective homeseekers. He now owns one 
 hundred and sixty acres near Piano, (adjoining 
 the city of Portersville) of the finest foothill or- 
 ange land. On the farm where he resides is one 
 of the best equipped pumping plants in the coun- 
 ty. His irrigation flumes are of cement, a fifteen 
 horse power electric motor being used to pump 
 the water which furnishes enough to irrigate the 
 entire tract of one hundred and sixty acres, forty 
 of which he planted to orange trees. In addition 
 to his farming interests, he opened the "Summer- 
 land" on October i, 1904. The entire house 
 was refurnished throughout and the rooms are 
 now the finest in the city and are always oc- 
 cupied. 
 
 While living in Smith's Falls, Mr. Sullivan 
 married Sarah Frances Paquette, who is a na- 
 tive of that town. To them have been born three 
 children : Herbert J., Mabel and Armond P. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Sullivan is quite prominent, 
 being a member of the Ancient Order of Unite'd 
 Workmen, the Knights of the Maccabees and the 
 C. M. B. A. Politically, while living in Manitoba, 
 he was a Conservative, but since coming here he 
 has not identified himself with any party. 
 
 No doubt Mr. Sullivan will, as in his former 
 home, make a success of his ventures, and it is 
 safe to say he will at all times be found ready 
 and willing to perform his part as a citizen. He 
 is well read, being posted on the important ques- 
 tions of the day and with a ready command of 
 language he can, at any time, express himself 
 clearly and concisely. 
 
 MRS. MARY VICTORIA ARNOLD. Ten 
 miles northeast of Visalia, Tulare county, on 
 section 30, township 17, range 26, is located the 
 ranch which belongs to Mrs. Mary Victoria Arn- 
 old, one of the successful horticulturists of this 
 section. She was born in Texas, near Marlin, 
 Falls county, next to the youngest in a family 
 of five children, of whom four are now living, 
 and is the only one located on the coast. Her 
 father, Victor Wyres, a native of Georgia, be- 
 came a farmer and stockman in Texas, in which 
 state his father, Robert Wyres, followed the 
 same occupation. Victor Wyres was located in 
 Falls county (then known as Edwards county), 
 his death occurring in Junction City, Tex., in 
 1901. His wife, formerly Elizabeth Ray, of Ala- 
 bama, was a daughter of Dempsey Ray, a farm- 
 er of Texas, in which state she also died. 
 
 Mrs. Arnold, then Mary Victoria Wyres, re- 
 
Historical ANd biographical record. 
 
 1125 
 
 eeived her education in the public schools of 
 Falls and Bell counties, Tex., where she was 
 married in 1878 to George Arnold, who was born 
 in Alabama. In 1882 they came to California 
 and located near Grangeville, Kings county, and 
 engaged in general farming. Later they removed 
 to the Mussel Slough country, and in 1884 set- 
 tled in Tulare county, homesteading a claim 
 near Monson. This quarter section proving al- 
 kali land they left it in 1885, pre-empting a quar- 
 ter section in the vicinity of Visalia. At that 
 time there were no roads through this part of 
 the county, and but few improvements on the 
 neighboring farms. The improvements since 
 made on the property have brought it to rank 
 with the most valualple and productive ranches 
 in the county. Up to within six years ago the 
 land was devoted to the raising of grain, and 
 since that time stock-raising and a hundred or- 
 ange trees are the principal sources of rev- 
 enue. The land is irrigated by means of wind- 
 mills, modern methods being a feature of the 
 work, and Mrs. Arnold is deservedly mentioned 
 as one of the most successful horticulturists and 
 stock-raisers of the county. She is the mother 
 of four children, namely : Lizzie, the' wife of 
 O. B. Kiteley; Archie, Arthur Lee and Dollie, 
 the three last named being at home. In her 
 political convictions Mrs. Arnold is a stanch 
 Democrat, and though unable to cast a vote still 
 wields a marked influence in this direction. 
 
 OLIVER O. HENRY. The record of the life 
 of Oliver O. Henry, one of the most esteemed 
 and useful members of the society of Porters- 
 ville, is closely identified with much that has 
 marked the progress of Tulare county during the 
 last thirty years. He was born in Frederick 
 county, Md., April 13, 1833, the descendant of 
 Scotch-Irish ancestry. His grandfather, John 
 Henry, came from his birthplace in the north of 
 Ireland to America and located in Lancaster 
 county. Pa., a pioneer of the state. His son. 
 Francis Henry, was born in Lancaster county, 
 in manhood removing to Maryland, where he be- 
 came a prominent citizen. He followed tlie occu- 
 pations of farmer and merchant, and was also an 
 extensive railroad contractor. A man of much 
 oratorical ability, he served in the Maryland leg- 
 islature, where he won considerable renown. In 
 time he removed to Michigan, thence to Ohio, 
 in the latter state engaging as a railroad con- 
 tractor with the Erie Company, building up a 
 large business, while he also engaged as a mer- 
 chant. Locating finally in La Grange county, 
 Ind., he engaged as a farmer and contractor, tak- 
 ing a large drainage contract which called for 
 an unusual display of executive ability. He be- 
 came prominently known throughout the state. 
 
 serving in the Indiana legislature two terms and 
 making a record for himself and his cause. ^ He 
 was always a stanch Democrat and gave his sup- 
 port to the principles of this party. Fraternally 
 he was a Royal Arch Mason. His death occurred 
 in Indiana at the age of eighty-eight years. His 
 wife, formerly Elizabeth Formwalt, was born in 
 Maryland and died in Indiana, at the age of 
 sixty-two years. Her' father, John Formwalt, 
 was born near Westminster, Md., and in man- 
 hood became a farmer, locating later in life in 
 Ohio, where his death occurred. Besides Oliver 
 Osborn Henry, mentioned as the subject of this 
 narrative, Mr. and Mrs. Henry were the par- 
 ents of the following children: Catherine. Jane, 
 who became the wife of O. B. Taylor and died 
 in Portersville ; Albert Reese, who died in Por- 
 tersville; and Margaret, who died in youth in 
 Ohio. 
 
 Oliver Osborn Henry received his education 
 principally in the common schools of Ohio and 
 Indiana, also received instruction from a private 
 tutor. He was but thirteen years old when he 
 accompanied his parents to La Grange county, 
 Ind., their home being in the heavy timber lands 
 of that state. With the self-reliance of the pio-. 
 neer lad he set to work to assist in the clear- 
 ing of the lands about their home, at an early 
 age becoming engineer of his father's sawmill, 
 which he conducted for five years. When twen- 
 ty-three years old he married, after which he 
 located on timber lands which he cleared and 
 cultivated. In the spring of 1864 he crossed 
 the plains by HalHday's coach to Nevada and 
 for a time engaged in mining. Coming on to 
 California he spent a short time here, later re- 
 turning to Indiana by the Isthmus of Panama. 
 He remained on his farm until the fall of 1878, 
 when he sold out and coming to California once 
 more purchased the farm which has remained his 
 home ever since. This was then a vast wheat 
 field and since that time has been transformed 
 to a modern ranch, in addition to the raising of 
 grain the setting out of all deciduous trees and 
 grapes occupying considerable time and attention., 
 When Mr. Henry purchased the land in 1S81 he 
 paid $10 per acre, and seven years later sold 
 five acres for $1,000, another five acres for $875, 
 showing the great advance in prices caused by 
 the improvement and cultivation of the prop- 
 erty. In 1878, with his brother Albert, who had 
 purchased one hundred orange trees in Los An- 
 geles, he set out an orange orchard on his place, 
 these being the first budded orange trees at 
 Portersville. He met with a success in this ven- 
 ture as well as in his other efforts, and soon es- 
 tablished a nursery of both deciduous and citrus 
 trees, supplying the greater part of the trees for 
 the early orchards throughout this section. Of 
 his original property eighty acres was under the 
 
1126 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Pioneer Ditch, and of this he still owns twenty 
 acres, the balance having been divided among 
 his children. Twelve acres are devoted to_ the 
 cultivation of oranges, while the remainder is in 
 alfalfa. 
 
 December i8, 1856, occurred the marriage of 
 Mr. Henry, uniting him with Catherine Lydja 
 Dawson, who was born in Sandusky, Ohio, in 
 which state she was reared until she was seven- 
 teen years old, when she accompanied her par- 
 ents to Indiana. Her father, John Dawson, a 
 native of Pennsylvania, was a farmer and an 
 early settler of Ross county, Ohio, whence he 
 removed to La Grange county, Ind., in 1853, 
 following the occupation of farmer until his 
 death at the age of seventy-six years. He was. a 
 man of strong, earnest convictions, and at the 
 age of sixty-six years enlisted in the Forty-fourth 
 Regiment Indiana Infantry, for service in the 
 Civil war. His wife, formerly Lvdia Hud'dell, 
 was born in Ross county, Ohio, and died in Indi- 
 ana, at the advanced age of eighty-four years. 
 Of their family of five daughters and two sons, 
 all but one son and one daughter are deceased. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Henry were born three chil- 
 dren, namely: W. Willshier, who died in Por- 
 tersville November 3, 1902 (for mor.e complete 
 details refer to his biography which appears on 
 another page of this work) ; Clara A., a gradu- 
 ate of the University of California, the wife of 
 Prof. George Louderback, of the Chair of Geol- 
 ogy, in the University of Nevada ; and Edith F., 
 a graduate of the San Francisco High School and 
 a course in the San Francisco Normal School, 
 the wife of S. A. Barber, M. D., of Portersville. 
 In his fraternal relations Mr. Henry was made 
 a Mason in Ionic Lodge, at Wolcottville, Ind., of 
 which he is past master, and is a charter meni- 
 ber of Portersville Lodge No. 303, F. & A. M. 
 Both himself and wife belong to the Order of 
 the Eastern Star of that place. In his political 
 convictions he is a stanch Democrat and has 
 always given his support to the principles he 
 endorses. He is active in partv work in Tulare 
 county, having served efficiently as a member of 
 the county central committee. 
 
 BURTON U. HEBERLING. A prominent 
 position among the business men of Visalia is 
 accorded B. U. Heberling, a successful contrac- 
 tor and manufacturer, and one of the enterprising 
 and progressive citizens of the community. He 
 has been a resident of the city since 1887 and 
 for several years engaged as a carpenter and 
 builder, in 1894 entering into partnership with 
 D. M. Toothacre, and two years later establish- 
 ing their planing mill which has brought to them 
 such satisfactory returns. Among the buildings 
 which they have put up are the Lucier Building ; 
 
 the high school and its addition ; telephone build- 
 ing; Spaulding residence; the building for the 
 California Fruit Canners' Association; the can- 
 nery; Wallack Building; the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church South; the Huey residence, as well 
 as those of Brownfield, Harp, Emery, Marks 
 and others too numerous to mention; the Oak 
 Grove and Angiola schools, etc. Their work has 
 been of a high grade and first class in every 
 particular, and they have legitimately won the 
 position which they hold today as contractors. 
 
 Mr. Heberling is a descendant of German 
 ancestry, the paternal grandfather having brought 
 his family across the water and located them in 
 Wayne county, Pa., where he became a farmer. 
 In his family was a son, Frederick, who was 
 born in Germany and accompanied his parents to 
 their new home in America. He also became a 
 farmer in manhood, remaining on the old home 
 place, which he cleared and put under cultiva- 
 tion. His death occurred in 1875. He left a wid- 
 ow, formerly Sarah Leeper, of Northumberland 
 county. Pa., who was left an orphan in child- 
 hood. She died in 1902. Of her family of three 
 sons and three daughters, one daughter and two 
 sons are now living. B. U. Heberling, the only 
 one of the family in California, was the young- 
 est in the family and was born in Wayne county, 
 Pa., March 4, 1862. He was reared on the pa- 
 ternal farm until he was fourteen years old, and 
 attended the public schools. He then sought em- 
 ployment among the neighboring farmers and 
 also in the sawmills of Alleghany county, Pa. 
 He spent one season in the timber camps of 
 Cattaraugus county, N. Y., and then returned to 
 Wayne county. Pa., where he remained for a 
 time. In 1887 he came to Visalia, Tulare coun- 
 ty, and began to work at the trade of carpenter. 
 In forming the partnership with Mr. Toothacre 
 the firm name became Heberling & Toothacre, 
 and from a small beginning they have risen to 
 the position of the leading contractors in the 
 city. After their establishment of the planing 
 mill in 1896 they have engaged in the manufac- 
 ture of all kinds of building material and carry 
 on a large business in Tulare county. In addi- 
 tion to this interest Mr. Heberling is associated 
 with the Pioneer Brick Company, as one of its 
 organizers, and is its secrd:ary and treasurer. 
 This company manufactures its brick in Visalia. 
 
 The home of Mr. Heberling, which he built 
 at No. 318 Northwest First avenue, is presided 
 over by his wife, formerly Mary A. Akers, of 
 Wayne county. Pa., where they were united in 
 marriage. Three children were born of this un- 
 ion, namely : Alice, Marvin and Floyd. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Heberling is associated with the Wood- 
 men of the World, the Independent Order of 
 Foresters, the Independent Order of Good Tem- 
 plars, and the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1129 
 
 lows. He is an active member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South, now serving as trus- 
 tee of the same and superintendent of the Sun- 
 day-school. An enterprising citizen he is a mem- 
 ber of the Board of Trade and takes an active 
 and intelligent interest in all movements calcu- 
 lated to advance the general welfare of the com- 
 munity. 
 
 JOHN A. COLEY„ a prominent business man 
 of Escalon, San Joaquin county, is a self-made 
 man in every respect, his success in life being due 
 to his own industry and perseverance. Of dis- 
 tinguished ancestry, he is of English descent on 
 the maternal side, and of Irish descent on the 
 paternal side of the family. His grandfather, 
 William Coley, was born in North Carolina, re- 
 moving in early manhood to Russell county, Va., 
 where he became the owner of a large planta- 
 tion. He was a soldier in the war of 1812 and 
 was wounded in battle. His son, George W., the 
 father of John A., although born in North Caro- 
 lina, was reared on the old Virginia plantation 
 of his father in Russell county. He also followed 
 agricultural pursuits in his native state, in the 
 vicinity of Bristol, for years, but during the after 
 part of his life was engaged in commercial pur- 
 suits. At the time of his death, in 1901, he was 
 fifty-eight years old. By his marriage, with Polly 
 Ann Agner, he became connected with another 
 old and distinguished family of Virginia, and his 
 widow still survives him, having in March, 1904, 
 reached the age of fifty-eight years. She has 
 been twice married, having two children by her 
 first marriage now living and six living of those 
 born of her second marriage, one being deceased, 
 and of the latter family, John A. is the eldest 
 but one. 
 
 It was near Bristol, W. Va., that Mr. Coley was 
 born, August 31, 1868, just five years after West 
 Virginia had started her existence as a new state. 
 He was brought up on the home farm, which 
 was located twenty miles west of Bristol. Here 
 he attended the district school during his boyhood 
 and early youth, and remained an inmate of the 
 home until he attained his majority, assisting in 
 farm work. October 8, 1889, he left home en 
 route for California, arriving in San Joaquin 
 county on the fourteenth day of the same month. 
 His home has been in this vicinity ever since and 
 he has been prominently identified with the busi- 
 ness interests of this county, first as farmer and 
 afterward as grain dealer. The first two years 
 of his residence in this county were spent upon a 
 ranch in the present Escalon district, and the 
 land upon which he then worked is now owned by 
 him. In 1891 he began farming on his own be- 
 half, beginning in a modest way with one team 
 and wagon. The first year he cultivated only 
 
 one hundred and sixty acres; this was increased 
 the second year to three hundred and twenty, and 
 the third year to twelve hundred and eighty 
 acres, and he then had three teams. Soon after 
 this Mr. Coley was enabled to purchase three 
 hundred and twenty acres. In connection with 
 operating this farm, Mr. Coley entered the em- 
 ploy of G. W. McNear of San Fraticisco, and 
 for seven years he was grain buyer for this firm 
 at Escalon and Avena. In their interests, he su- 
 perintended the building of their extensive ware- 
 houses at these points. December 7, 1903, he 
 purchased these warehouses and since then he 
 has continued in the grain business on his own 
 behalf. The warehouse at Escalon has a capacity 
 of twenty-four hundred tons and the one at 
 Avena is equally as capacious. He has sold the 
 latter, however, but nearly all the grain raised 
 in this vicinity is handled by him. He still owns 
 a farm of three hundred and twenty ^cres on the 
 French Camp road. 
 
 Quite recently Mr. Coley built a fine, sub- 
 stantial residence in Escalon, and he also erected 
 the Escalon Hall for lodge purposes and public 
 stores. In San Francisco, he wedded Sadie Flor- 
 ence Wade, a lady also born in Bristol, W. Va., 
 and they have one child, Cyril L. Fraternally 
 Mr. Coley is a member of the Modern Woodmen 
 of America, Woodmen of the World, and the 
 Masons, affiliating with Oakdale Lodge No. 275. 
 Politically a Democrat, he is not active in polit- 
 ical affairs, but he is intensely interested in edu- 
 cational affairs, officiating as he does as clerk of 
 the board of school trustees, now building a new 
 and commodious school house in Escalon. Mr. 
 Coley takes a fitting interest in his home place 
 and its surroundings, and in connection with 
 grain buying he, also handles insurance to some 
 extent. 
 
 CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS RIDGWAY. 
 A native of Missouri, Mr. Ridgway was born 
 April 27, 1859, a son of J. D. and Martha (Bald- 
 win) Ridgway. The father was born in Mis- 
 souri, where he lived at the outbreak of the Civil 
 war. Enlisting as a private in a regiment from 
 his native state he served until 1864, when he 
 was honorably discharged. Soon after he and his 
 family crossed the plains to California, the first 
 winter being spent in Lassen county. The fol- 
 lowing spring they located in Solano county, 
 where for the next five years Mr. Ridgway was 
 engaged in farming near Elmira. At the expira- 
 tion of the five years he returned to Lassen 
 county and in 1893 went to Los Angeles coun- 
 ty. There he followed farming for some years, 
 but is now living retired from active pursuits, 
 making his home with his son, the subject of this 
 review. Mrs. Ridgway was a native of Ken- 
 
1130 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tucky and died in Lassen county in 1875. She 
 was the mother of five children, of whom Chris- 
 topher C. is the oldest. 
 
 Christopher C. Ridgway was reared on his 
 father's farm, receiving his education in the dis- 
 trict schools of the neighborhood. He remained 
 at home until after the death of his mother 
 when he started out to make his own way in the 
 world, and since that time he has had many ups 
 and downs, but success has rewarded his efforts 
 and -today he is one of the substantial men of 
 Tulare county. For a time, after leaving home, 
 he worked at anything he could get to do, but 
 finally became engaged in the stock business near 
 Susanville, where he had two hundred acres un- 
 der ditch. This he sold in 1 89 1 and went to 
 Los Angeles county, where he became interested 
 in the dairy business. In 1894 he became iden- 
 tified with the creamery business at Compton, 
 which he conducted as manager for two and one- 
 half years. At the expiration of this time he 
 located at H)'nes, where he became identified with 
 another co-operative creamery. This he man- 
 aged for five years, or until 190 1, when he located 
 near Portersville, where his brother had located 
 a year previously. In partnership they bought a 
 farm of four hundred and eighty acres, one hun- 
 dred and seventy-five of which are devoted to 
 alfalfa, while the balance is used for grazing and 
 general farming purposes. The brothers erected 
 what is now known as the "Sunflower Cream- 
 ery." This model plant has a daily capacity of 
 one thousand pounds of butter, which is shipped 
 to the Los Angeles and San Francisco markets. 
 
 In Lassen county, Mr. Ridgway was united in 
 marriage with Sarah A. Hodges, who was born 
 in Missouri. To this union have been born five 
 children, as follows : Oscar, Ernest, Fred, Archie 
 and Joseph. 
 
 In politics Mr. Ridgway is a Republican, but 
 has neither the time nor the desire to take an 
 active part in political matters. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Independent Order of For- 
 esters, while both he and his wife hold member- 
 ship with the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 ANDREW LESLIE. The sterling traits of 
 character which have distinguished the citizen- 
 ship of Andrew Leslie, a successful miller of 
 Portersville, Tulare county, are an inheritance 
 from a long line of Scotch ancestry, his birth 
 having occurred in Roxburyshire, Scotland, Sep- 
 tember 5, 1848. His father, also called Andrew, 
 was a native of Berwickshire, Scotland, where 
 he engaged as a farmer until 1855, when he took 
 his family to Ontario and located in the vicinity 
 of London. There he made his home for the re- 
 mainder of his life, attaining a prominent posi- 
 tion in the citizenship of that place. The family 
 
 records of the Leslies are intact back to the year 
 1300, and the descendants take pride in the 
 stanch integrity and honor of their ancestors. 
 Andrew Leslie, Sr., married Elizabeth Allan, 
 also a native of Scotland, whose death occurred 
 in Ontario. They became the parents of nine 
 children, all of whom attained maturity, while 
 six are now living. 
 
 Andrew Leslie, Jr., was next to the youngest 
 child in his father's family, remaining in his 
 native land until removing to Ontario with his 
 parents. In November, 1865, when a little more 
 than seventeen years old, he was apprenticed to 
 learn the trade of a miller near London. He re- 
 mained in that location for three years, when, 
 in 1868, he came to the United States and lo- 
 cated in Milwaukee, Wis., where he fol- 
 lowed his trade. Later he was located 
 in the southern part of Illinois until 1872, 
 when he came to California. After following 
 his trade in Sacramento for a time he went to 
 Marysville, working in the Buckeye mills, and 
 was then employed in the Star mills at Vallejo. 
 Deciding to engage in the milling business inde- 
 pendently, he established a business in Balls 
 Ferry, Shasta county, later removing to Red 
 Bluff, where he entered into partnership, the 
 firm being known as Willard & Leslie, pro- 
 prietors of the Red Bluff mills. October 9, 1889, 
 he came to Portersville and assumed charge of 
 the mill which he now owns, conducting the 
 same for about a year, when he entered into part- 
 nership with John T. Manter. This relationship 
 continued until 1893, when Mr. Leslie purchased 
 the entire property, since which time he has 
 operated the mill alone. In 1897 he put up a 
 new mill on the old site, a four-story brick build- 
 ing, 64x30 feet in dimensions, equipped with a 
 modern Plansifter system of bolting and oper- 
 ated both by water (from the Pioneer Ditch 
 Company) and by steam, the mill having a ca- 
 pacity of sixty-five barrels per day. He caters to 
 the local trade in Portersville and vicinity, and 
 has a lucrative business. 
 
 In Cottonwood, Shasta county, Cal., Mr. Les- 
 lie was united in marriage with Carrie Leschin- 
 sky, a native of Philadelphia and the daughter 
 of John Leschinsky, who was born in Poland 
 and immigrated to Philadelphia, where he made 
 his home until 1856, when he brought his fam- 
 ily to California via the Panama route. He lo- 
 cated in Shasta and engaged in business as a 
 blacksmith, later following farming and stock- 
 raising in Cottonwood. He is now retired from 
 active cares, making his home in Redding. His 
 wife, a native of Germany, died in Cottonwood. 
 Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Leslie, 
 namely: Andrew Allan, foreman in his father's 
 mill ; William Walter, a graduate of the Porters- 
 ville high school, and now attending the Uni- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1131 
 
 versity of California as a student in the dental 
 department ; John August, a graduate of the high 
 school, and employed as a clerk in the store of 
 Wilko Mentz; and Fred Arthur, a graduate of 
 the high school, who in 1905 entered the dental 
 department of the University of California. Mr. 
 Leslie is identified fraternally with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, and in national poli- 
 tics is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 JAMES CHARLES McCABE. The partici- 
 pation of J. C. McCabe in business affairs in 
 Portersville, Tulare county, has resulted in finan- 
 cial returns for himself and an increase of com- 
 mercial prestige for the city. Of distinct ability, 
 unswerving integrity, and a broad and liberal in- 
 terest in all movements pertaining tOi the general 
 welfare, he has taken a prominent position in the 
 place, and is esteemed by all who know him. A 
 native son of the state, he was born at Marys- 
 ville March 3, 1857. His father, Owen McCabe, 
 was a pioneer of the state, coming from New 
 York City to California via the Isthmus of Pan- 
 ama in 1849. Unlike many others who thronged 
 to the west in that year, he did not seek his live- 
 lihood in mining but engaged in the hotel busi- 
 ness in Marysville. During the flood of 1862 
 his residence was carried away, but undaunted 
 by the misfortune he moved into another house 
 in that place and continued his efforts. In 1877 
 he located near Modesto, Stanislaus county, 
 where he engaged in farming for many years, 
 even now in his ninety-ninth year, looking after 
 the interests of his place. His wife, fonnerly 
 Margaret Fitzpatrick, died in Marysville many 
 years ago. They were the parents of five chil- 
 dren, all of whom are living. 
 
 The third in his father's family, J. C. Mc- 
 Cabe was reared in his native city until 1867, 
 when he located with , his uncle, Owen Fitz- 
 patrick, in Modesto, Stanislaus county, a stock- 
 raiser of that place^ He attended the district 
 school in the vicinity of his uncle's home until 
 attaining manhood, when he engaged in the stock 
 business. In 1878 he went to San Francisco and 
 served an apprenticeship as an upholsterer, three 
 years later going to Colfax, Wash., where he 
 engaged as an undertaker. Returning to Cali- 
 fornia, he located in San Diego and assisted in 
 the furnishing of the Hotel Del Coronado. After 
 a year he went to San Francisco and took up the 
 undertaking business. In 1889 he located in 
 Tulare and after a few months purchased, with 
 Mr. Carruthers and R. Black, the undertaking 
 establishment of H. N. Denny, of Visalia. For 
 one year he conducted the business, when he sold 
 out, and coming to Portersville established a fur- 
 niture and undertaking business under the firm 
 name of Parks & McCabe, and continued the 
 
 manager for seven 3^ears. The partnership was 
 then dissolved and since that time Mr. McCabe 
 has conducted affairs alone. He is an expert in 
 his line of work, having taken seven courses in 
 embalming in San Francisco. In addition to his 
 business interests, Mr. McCabe owns eight acres 
 adjoining the city, five acres of which is in eight- 
 year navel oranges. He also owns a handsome 
 residence at the corner of Murry and Putnam 
 avenues. 
 
 In Tulare Mr. McCabe married Maggie Griffin 
 and they are the parents of three children, name- 
 ly: May, Charles and Oren. A stanch Repub- 
 lican in his political convictions, Mr. McCabe 
 has often been called upon to serve his party in 
 various positions of trust and responsibility. In 
 1894 he was nominated on that ticket for the 
 office of county coroner and public administrator, 
 and was elected over two candidates by a plural- 
 ity of five hundred, being one of two Republicans 
 elected that year. He took the oath of office in 
 January, 1895, and served efficiently until 1899, 
 at that time refusing further candidacy. Frater- 
 nally he is a member of the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows, the Encampment, of which he is 
 past chief patriarch, Foresters of America and 
 Modern Woodmen of America. 
 
 HENRY CARL WILLIAM PETERSON. 
 In his work as a horticulturist Mr. Peterson has 
 won an unusual success and is deservedly prom- 
 inent among the representative men of this sec- 
 tion, although but a brief time numbered among 
 this 'class of citizens. A native of Sleswick, Ger- 
 many, he was born April 8, 1865, a son of John 
 Peterson, a mason and contractor by trade. Both 
 father and mother, the latter formerly Annie 
 Mathewson, died in that locality. Of the seven 
 children born to them two sons arc now living. 
 The education of Henry C. W. Peterson was re- 
 ceived in the schools of Sleswick, which he at- 
 tended until he was fifteen years old, when he 
 was apprenticed to learn the barber's trade. He 
 continued for four years in that work, after 
 which he traveled throughout Germany and Aus- 
 tria for the same length of time. He then spent 
 two years in Berlin, after which, in 1889, he 
 came to America and located in Elgin, 111. He 
 followed his trade in that location until 1890, 
 when he removed to St. James, Minn. That city 
 remained his home for five years, when he came 
 to California and in Portersville, Tulare county, 
 purchased the Pioneer Barber Shop, and con- 
 tinued in the prosecution of his trade until No- 
 vember 15, 1904, when he sold out to Gus Long. 
 When he first located in Portersville he pur- 
 chased land five miles north of the city and at 
 once began setting out navel oranges, now hav- 
 ing a bearing orchard of twenty acres. Since 
 
1132 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 that time he has bought and set out ten acres of 
 land cue mile north of Portersville, where he has 
 now built a handsome residence and laid out fine 
 grounds. He has a large well adjoining the 
 place, operated by an electric motor, thirty-horse 
 power and of large capacity, now being used to 
 irrigate one hundred acres of oranges. He is 
 also interested in the Hilo Water Company, of 
 which he is a director and secretary. In 1905 
 he contemplates an extended tour throughout 
 Europe and especially in Germany, his native 
 land. 
 
 In Elgin, 111., April 7, 1889, Mr. Peterson was 
 united in marriage with Louisa Michaels, a na- 
 tive of Grasse-Spiegel, Germany, and a daughter 
 of William, a contractor and builder, who came 
 to America in 1902 and now resides with his son- 
 in-law. He was accompanied to the western 
 state by his wife, formerly Augusta Kupplin, a 
 native of the same place in Germany. Of their 
 six children all are living. Mr. and Mrs. Peter- 
 son have one child now living, namely : Rosa 
 Anna Helen; another child, Elsie, died at the 
 age of six years. They are members of the Ger- 
 man Evangelical Association. Mr. Peterson is 
 a member of the Portersville Citrus Union and 
 politically casts his ballot with, the Republican 
 party. 
 
 THOMAS E. HENDERSON, an enterpris- 
 ing citizen of Tulare county and a stock-raiser 
 of considerable note, was born in Huntingdon 
 county, Quebec, January 7, 1851, the youngest 
 and only one in California of a family of eight 
 children, four of whom are living. His father, 
 James Henderson, was born on Grampian Hills, 
 Scotland, inheriting from a long line of Scotch 
 ancestors those qualities of manhood which dis- 
 tinguish the citizens of that country. As a young 
 man he came to America and became a farmer 
 in Quebec, near Franklin Centre, near the line 
 of New York state, where he made his home 
 until his death when over eighty years of age. 
 His wife, formerly Eliza Brower, was a native 
 of Vermont and the descendant of German an- 
 cestry. 
 
 Reared on the paternal farm, Thomas E. Hen- 
 derson received his education in the district 
 school and the Huntingdon Academy, from 
 which institution he was graduated in 1864. He 
 then entered McGill University, taking the classi- 
 cal course until the close of the Sophomore year 
 when he left school and went to Malone, N. Y. 
 He there studied law under the Hon. W. A. 
 Wheeler and was admitted to the bar in Novem- 
 ber, 1869, after which he came directly to Cali- 
 fornia. He located in Santa Clara county until 
 July, 1870, when he came to Tulare county, and 
 became a resident of Visalia. For several years 
 
 following his location in this section he man- 
 aged the Broder ranch and later followed the 
 stock-raising and butcher business, and owned 
 two ranches near Visalia. In 1875 he located on 
 the Tule river, three and a half miles from Por- 
 tersville, where he bought new land and en- 
 gaged in stock-raising until 1881. He then sold 
 out and the following year purchased the prop- 
 erty which he now owns, consisting of one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres of land on the Tule river, 
 under irrigation from the Porter's Slough and 
 Hubbs & Miner Ditch. This property is de- 
 voted to alfalfa and stock, while he also owns 
 one hundred acres on the Tule river three miles 
 below this property. Although educated for the 
 law and in every way fitted to make a success 
 of the profession, the free, open life, the health- 
 ful activity, and the simplicity which comes from 
 close contact with the primitive labors, have 
 meant more to Mr. Henderson than the honors 
 which might have been his in the other field. He 
 has not, however, allowed his early training to 
 l>e lost, but has brought it to bear in many cases 
 which came up before him as supervisor of the 
 First District, to which office he was elected in 
 1884 on the Democratic ticket, taking the oath 
 of office in January, 1885. In 1888 'he was re- 
 elected over two candidates by a large plurality, 
 his majority the first time being only forty votes. 
 Elected again in 1892, he went into office with 
 the largest majority in the county, holding the 
 office until January, 1897. or twelve consecutive 
 years. From 1891 to 1897 he was chairman of 
 the County Board, during which time the new 
 hospital was built, as well as the jail and sheriff's 
 office, and hundreds of miles of road in the 
 county. 
 
 Near Rocky Ford, Tulare county, March 16, 
 1884, Mr. Henderson was united in marriage 
 with Serena Young, a native of Stanislaus coun- 
 ty, Cal., and the daughter of Daniel Young. The 
 latter was a native of Benton county, Mo., from 
 which place he crossed the plains to California 
 in 1849. He became a farmer and stockman 
 near Modesto, in 1872 locating near Rocky Ford, 
 where his death occurred at the age of sixty 
 years. His wife, formerly Martha Maxwell, was 
 a native of Arkansas, and a daughter of Thomas 
 Maxwell, who brought his family across the 
 plains, and located near Knights Ferry, where 
 he died. Mrs. Young is still living and makes 
 her home in Dinuba. Mrs. Henderson was the 
 eldest in a family of eight children, all of whom 
 are living, and was reared to womanhood in 
 Tulare county. Born to Mr. Henderson, and 
 his wife are the following children: Edwin, 
 Robert, Fred, Maurice and Ralph, all of whom 
 are at home. Fraternally Mr. Henderson is a 
 Mason, having been made a member of this or- 
 ganization in 1874 in Visalia Lodge, No. 128, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1136 
 
 and is a charter member of Portersville Lodge, 
 No. 303. Politically he is a stanch adherent of 
 the principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Democratic party, and is a member of the coun- 
 ty central committee. 
 
 RICHARD B. FENTEM. The founder of 
 the Fentem family in the United States was an 
 English merchant bearing the name of Richard 
 Fentem, who brought his family across the ocean 
 to America and settled in Missouri. From that 
 time until death ended his activities he engaged 
 in merchandising in addition to cultivatir g a farm 
 in Lincoln county. His son and namesake, who 
 was born at Manchester, England, learned the 
 carpenter's trade and for years followed the 
 building business, but eventually engaged in the 
 raising of stock and grain, continuing to reside in 
 Lincoln county until his death in 1862. Years 
 afterward his widow died at the home of her son, 
 Richard B., in California, when seventy-seven 
 years of age. A native of Kentucky and bearing 
 the maiden name of Qarissa Palmer, she was 
 a daughter of Burton Palmer, a Virginian, for 
 some time resident in Kentucky, but later a farm- 
 er in Missouri. 
 
 In the family of the second Richard Fentem 
 there were twelve children, of whom severi daugh- 
 ters and one son attained mature years, and five 
 daughters and the son still survive. The latter, 
 who was given the name of his father and grand- 
 father, forms the subject of this article. He was 
 born near Troy, the county-seat of Lincoln coun- 
 ty. Mo., July 28, 1848, and was the youngest in 
 the large circle of children. The district schools 
 and Troy Seminary gave him fair educational ad- 
 vantages. After leaving school he engaged in 
 trading in stock for a year, but malaria had seri- 
 ously affected his health and a change of climate 
 was rendered imperative. Hoping to be bene- 
 fited by the change, in 1869 he came to Cali- 
 fornia, arriving at Stockton in September and 
 without delay securing employment on a ranch. 
 In January, 1870, he bought a flock of sheep 
 and embarked in the sheep business in the San 
 Joaquin valley, where he bought a ranch of four 
 hundred and eighty acres on Orestimba creek. 
 For some time he was extensively engaged in 
 raising sheep, but in 1878 sold off his entire flock 
 and turned his attention to grain farming on the 
 west side. Buying four hundred acres four miles 
 south of Newman, he engaged in its cultiva- 
 tion with gratifying success. On disposing of 
 that property, in 1892 he bought forty acres at 
 the corner of the Hill and Creamery roads, which 
 being under the ditch furnishes an excellent lo- 
 cation for the raising of alfalfa. The residence 
 and barns were erected by the present owner, a 
 wind mill has been put jn and other improve- 
 
 54 
 
 ments made. About fifty head of high-grade 
 Short-horn, Durham and Holsteins may be seen 
 on the place and twenty-five of these are milch 
 cows, for the dairy industry is one of his prin- 
 cipal interests. On the inception of a plan to 
 establish a creamery he aided the enterprise and 
 bought stock in the New Era, which was the 
 first creamery built in the valley and proved a 
 success from the start. As a member of the first 
 board of directors he was instrumental in plan- 
 ning a policy that brought success to the cream- 
 ery company and encouraged the establishment 
 of similar plants throughout the valley. Besides 
 his home place he has three hundred and twen- 
 ty acres on the west side of the canal, which is 
 excellent grain land and will be under the new 
 Sunset canal. While his interests are largely 
 connected with those of the agricultural com- 
 munity of Stanislaus county, his home place lies 
 in Merced county, just across the line from Stan- 
 islaus, two and one-half miles south of Newman. 
 Under his control at this writing there are twelve 
 hundred and eighty acres, the care of which de- 
 mands his entire attention, making him one of the 
 busiest ranchers in all this region. 
 
 Two sons (Warner, who died here, and Ray, 
 a farmer of this locality) were born of the rnar- 
 riage of Mr. Fentem and Miss Thane South, who 
 was born in Pike county. Mo., and died at their 
 California home. After her death Mr. Fentem 
 was united in marriage with Miss Ella Clare, 
 who was born in Lincoln county. Mo., and re- 
 mained there until after her marriage. She is a 
 daughter of Frank Qare, an agriculturist through 
 all of his active life, but now taking the rest 
 to which his four score years entitle him. In the 
 family of Mr. and Mrs. Fentem there are five 
 children, namely: Bessie, a student in the San 
 Jose high school ; Hiram, Alton, Benjamin and 
 Elberta. The family are members of the Cum- 
 berland Presbyterian Church, in which Mr. Fen- 
 tem officiated as ruling elder and clerk for about 
 twenty-four years and also held the office of Sun- 
 day school superintendent. In political views he 
 favors the principles of the Democratic party. 
 
 EDWARD HILL DALE. The dairy busi- 
 ness claims the attention and efforts of Edward 
 Hill Dale to the exclusion of all else except the 
 raising of stock, his work along agricultural lines 
 having been abandoned in 1900. Up to that 
 time he farmed about twenty-five hundred acres, 
 but finding the returns more or less precarious 
 he sold off the greater part of his land in 1900 
 and has since turned his attention into another 
 channel. He is located in the vicinity of Poplar, 
 Tulare county, and is esteemed as a liberal and 
 broad-minded citizen. Born near Carrollton, 
 Carroll county, Ga., July 7, 1849, he is a son of 
 
1136 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 John M. Dale, whose biographical history is 
 given more at length in the sketch of Samuel E. 
 Dale, found in another part of this volume. 
 Until attaining young manhood he remained a 
 resident of his native state, removing in 1868 to 
 Tennessee, thence to Illinois. Returning south 
 he was located in Arkansas and Mississippi for 
 about fourteen years, six of which were spent 
 in the former state, his work during this period 
 being the operation of stationary engines. In 
 March, 1882, he came to California and in Tu- 
 lare county homesteaded the claim where he now 
 lives, the southwest quarter of section 4, town- 
 ship 22, range 26, having to pay $1,200 in cash. 
 He began the raising of grain, which continued 
 uninterruptedly until 1900. He then turned his 
 attention into his present line of work, meeting 
 with a success. Twenty-five acres of his land — 
 all of which is under irrigation from the Poplar 
 Irrigation Company ditch, of which he is a di- 
 rector — is devoted to the cultivation of alfalfa. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Dale occurred in Monroe 
 county. Ark., and united him with Virginia C. 
 Thompson, a native of Tennessee, and they are 
 the parents of the following children : James G., 
 engaged in the oil business in Kern county ; 
 Mary, the wife of Thomas Phillips, of this vicin- 
 ity; John, a graduate of Ramsay's Business Col- 
 lege, and now the principal of the commercial de- 
 partment of the Tulare high school ; Addie, the 
 wife of Howard Bachman, of Berkeley ; Elmer, 
 at home ; Edward, located in Berkeley ; Maud, 
 the wife of J. B. Sailors, of Berkeley ; and Kate, 
 at home. Mr. Dale gives his support to the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church South, of which his 
 wife is a member. Politically he .is a stanch 
 Democrat. 
 
 JAMES LOONEY MINER. A prominent 
 citizen of Tulare county, James Looney Miner 
 is widely esteemed both for his business ability 
 and the steriing traits of character which have 
 distinguished his residence in this section. A 
 native of Gallatin (now Saline) county. 111., he 
 was born October 16, 1835. His father, Daniel 
 Looney Miner, was a native of Tennessee, from 
 which state he served in the war of 1812. He 
 became a pioneer farmer of Illinois, his death 
 occurring in Saline county, at eighty-four years 
 of age. In young manhood he married Polly 
 Bays, a native of Virginia, who was reared in 
 Tennessee. She made her home with her son, 
 James L., until her death, which occurred at the 
 age of eighty years. Of the twelve children born 
 of this union one son and two daughters came 
 to California, of whom two are now living. 
 
 The tenth child in order of birth, James 
 Looney Miner was reared on the paternal farm 
 in Saline county, receiving his education in the 
 
 subscription schools in his home neighborhood. 
 When not quite twenty years of age — on March 
 3, 1855, he married and started in farming pur- 
 suits in Saline county. Responding to the need 
 for men during the Civil war, he enlisted August 
 2, 1861, in Company E, Third Illinois Cavalry, 
 and was mustered out September 5, 1864, after 
 a service of three years, one month and -three 
 days. After enlistment the first move of the 
 regiment was to start to Benton Barracks from 
 Springfield, thence to St. Charles after three 
 days, then to Jefferson City, Mo., and on to 
 Springfield. They returned to Rolla, Mo., in 
 October, and the following February went back 
 to Springfield, Mo., thence to Cross Hollow or 
 Elkhorn Tavern, where Pea Ridge fight oc- 
 curred March 6, 7 and 8, 1862. They then ram- 
 bled in many directions, making cavalry dashes 
 throughout the south that lay west of the Mis- 
 sissippi river, finally reaching Helena, Ark-. 
 Thence his company was sent to St. Louis as 
 bodyguard of General Carr, then first colonel, 
 and there they remained during the winter of 
 1862 and '63. Going to Vicksburg in February 
 they took part in the siege of that place, after 
 its capitulation going to New Orleans, and then 
 to Burwicks Bay, out on a scout, during which 
 Mr. Miner's horse was shot under him, being 
 struck in the flank, behind the shoulders and in 
 the head. As his horse fell Mr. Miner sprang 
 from him and was immediately taken prisoner 
 and compelled to ride a mule forty-five miles 
 before he was given anything to eat. He re- 
 mained under guard sixty-six days before he was 
 exchanged, when he returned at once to his regi- 
 ment and again entered into active warfare. He 
 found the regiment at Port Hudson, where they 
 remained until being sent to Memphis, Tenn., 
 thence to Springfield, 111., where they were mus- 
 tered out of service. 
 
 Mr. Miner returned to civic life as a farmer 
 in Illinois, continuing in that location until 1867, 
 when he decided to come to California, making 
 the trip via the Isthmus of Panama to San Fran- 
 cisco. He first located near Bloomfield, Sonoma 
 county, remaining there for one year, when he 
 went to Yolo county, near Woodland. October 
 ID, 1869, he came to Tulare county, locating five 
 miles west of Portersville with his family. In 
 the fall of 1 87 1 he purchased his present prop- 
 erty, where he has since made his home with the 
 exception of the years 1890 and '91, which he 
 spent on his homestead, southwest quarter of 
 section 32, township 24, range 28, the same being 
 still in his possession. He now owns one hun- 
 dred and fifty-seven acres of the original pur- 
 chase along the Tule river, which is under irri- 
 gation from the Hubbs & Miner Ditch. He 
 also owns the west half of the southwest quarter 
 of section 28, township 21, range 27, less four 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1137 
 
 acres, and the west half of the northwest quar- 
 ter of section 33, township 21, range 27, less 
 nineteen acres. He also owns mountain timber 
 in this county, as follows : the south half and the 
 northeast quarter of the southeast quarter of 
 section 7, township 21, range 31 ; the south half 
 of the northwest quarter of section 8, township 
 21, range 31 ; the northeast quarter of the south- 
 east quarter of section 8, township 21, range 31 ; 
 and the northeast quarter of the southeast quar- 
 ter of section 18, township 21, range 31, two 
 hundred and eight acres in all. 
 
 Mr. Miner has been married twice, his first 
 wife being Christian Elizabeth Smith, of Ken- 
 tucky, who died in Saline county. 111. She was 
 the mother of four children, namely: John As- 
 bury, whose farm adjoins that of his father; 
 Phoebe Elizabeth, the wife of William H. Hens- 
 ley, of Los Gatos ; William David, who died 
 young; and Mary Jane, the wife of J. X. 
 Siwczynski, a farmer near Portersville. In Sa- 
 line county Mr. Miner married Mary Elvira 
 Oglesby, a native of Illinois, and they are the 
 parents of four children : James Willis, engaged 
 in farming with his father ; Hiram Robert, a 
 farmer in this vicinitv ; George Alfred, at home ; 
 and Larrender Margaret, the wife of D. K. Wal- 
 lace. Fraternally Mr. Miner was made a Mason 
 in Saline county, 111., then joined the Porters- 
 ville Lodge, No. 303, from which he is demitted. 
 Mrs. Miner is a member of the Order of the 
 Eastern Star. Politically Mr. Miner is a Jef- 
 fersonian Democrat. 
 
 HON. FRED E. HARDING. The state, of 
 California owes much to eastern men of wealth 
 who have used their money in developing vari- 
 ous industries here. To this class belongs Mr. 
 Harding, who has spent many thousands of dol- 
 lars in improving and developing the resources 
 of Antelope Heights, Tulare county. A native 
 of New York state, he was born in Richfield 
 Springs in September, 1847. His father, Hon. 
 Henry G. Harding, was a native of .Connecticut, 
 from which state he removed to New York where 
 he became a prominent business man and farm- 
 er. He was also a leading politician and served 
 in the legislature as a representative from Otsego 
 county. In 1857 he migrated westward, locating 
 in Monmouth, 111. There he became a member, 
 of the firm of C. Harding & Co., bankers. By his 
 marriage with Elvira C. Hubbard, he became the 
 father of two children, Fred E. being the eld- 
 est. 
 
 Fred E. Harding was a youth of ten years 
 when his father removed to Illinois. His pre- 
 liminary education was secured in the Monmouth 
 public schools, later graduating from Union Col- 
 lege, Schenectady, N. Y., with the degree of A. 
 
 B. He immediately engaged in the banking 
 business as bookkeeper in the National Bank, 
 of Monmouth. Two years later in 1874 
 the Second National Bank of Monmouth was 
 organized and Mr. Harding was appointed 
 as assistant cashier. From that position he was 
 steadily advanced until in 1892 he .was elected 
 president, which connection he still retains. 
 Aside from his interests in this bank, he assisted 
 in the organizing of the Peoria Home Savings 
 and State Bank. He is also a director in the 
 State Bank of Roseville, 111., and is connected 
 with the National Bank of the Republic in Chi- 
 cago. Aside from his banking interests he has 
 been engaged in the manufacturing business in 
 Monmouth, and was also engaged in farming in 
 Warren county, 111. 
 
 In about 1891, Mr. Harding began spending 
 his winters in California. The possibilities of 
 orange growing in the highlands attracted his 
 attention and in 1898, in partnership with Mr. 
 Pattee he purchased one thousand acres of land, 
 which has since been improved and developed. 
 A large portion is now devoted to the growing 
 of oranges, which venture has proved a complete 
 success and "Antelope Heights" is one of the best 
 paying orange properties in Tulare county. The 
 place is equipped with all modern improvements 
 including pumping plant, packing house, etc. As 
 before stated, these improvements have cost many 
 thousands of dollars, the spending of which has 
 done much for this section of the state. 
 
 Mr. Harding has for many years been active 
 in political matters, and in addition to serving 
 as a member of the Monmouth city council, in 
 1894 he was elected to the Illinois State Sen- 
 ate by the Republican party. During the time 
 he filled this office it was his pleasure to as- 
 sist in the election of Senators CuUom and Ma- 
 son. As is usual with a successful business man 
 Mr. Harding demonstrated his ability, and at 
 the expiration of his term his constituents ex- 
 pressed their satisfaction in the work he had 
 accomplished. 
 
 In Monmouth he was united in marriage with 
 Lucy A. Nye, who was born in Massachusetts. 
 Since becoming interested in the Antelope 
 Heights district they have won an enviable place 
 for themselves in the esteem of their friends. 
 
 CHARLES WESLEY TRABER. As one 
 of the active young men in his community to 
 advocate progressive ideas and improvements, 
 Mr. Traber has ever been a willing promoter of 
 every plan to advance the business development 
 of his section, and much of the progress of Par- 
 lier is traceable directly to his influence. A na- 
 tive of Mendocino county, Cal., he was born 
 March 25, 1868, a son of Charles P. and Mary 
 
1138 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 E. (Coates) Traber, the former a native of New 
 York state and the latter born in Wisconsin in 
 1833. The union of this esteemed couple took 
 place in Wisconsin, and in 1861 the father came 
 west to seek a home, locating in Mendocino 
 county, and a couple of years afterward he was 
 joined by his wife. Of the three children born 
 of this union, two are sons and one a daughter, 
 namely : George L. ; Charles W. ; and Loretta, 
 wife of Samuel J. Harp, deputy sheriff of Fres- 
 no county. The father, after locating in Men- 
 docino county, engaged in the flour milling busi- 
 ness and for a period of thirteen years ran a 
 mill near Willits, in that county. In 1874 he 
 removed to the San Joaquin valley, being one of 
 the original settlers on the plains south of Selma, 
 Fresno county. There he took up a homestead 
 claim of one hundred and sixty acres of govern- 
 ment land in the vicinity of Parlier, and he it 
 was who superintended the construction of the 
 Church ditch, or the "Long cut," which has been 
 of untold benefit to the settlers, bringing as it 
 does the water necessary for agricultural pur- 
 suits. He also ran a mill at Centerville for a 
 short time, in connection with his farm pur- 
 suits. His active career was closed by his death 
 in 1878, aged forty-five years. 
 
 The mental training of Charles W. Traber was 
 gleaned from his attendance at the public 
 schools. His school days over, he engaged in 
 farming and stock-raising. He is now joint 
 owner of the paternal farm with his brother 
 George L. They have one hundred cows, and 
 the high brand of their dairy products is un- 
 rivaled. Their extensive vineyards cover forty- 
 five acres devoted to the raisin grape, which 
 alone yields them a comfortable income. The 
 balance of their one hundred and sixty acre 
 farm is used in raising alfalfa, which yields sev- 
 eral successive crops each season, in addition to 
 furnishing pasturage for several months. Mr. 
 Traber is unmarried, and with his mother still 
 resides on the home place, and it is needless to 
 add that she is well cared for by her sons, who 
 anticipate her every want. Although he has 
 abstained from political aspirations, Mr. Traber 
 is active in the advancement of the Republican 
 cause and has proved himself a useful member 
 of his party. Fraternally he is allied with the 
 Knights of Pythias of Selma and the Native 
 Sons of the Golden West. 
 
 JOHN HILTON. Prominent among the suc- 
 cessful fan-ners of Tulare county is John Hil- 
 ton, who is located a mile and a half east of 
 Portersville on property which he purchased in 
 the fall of 1876. He is a native of Oswego 
 county, N. Y., wher? he was born June 8, 1827, 
 
 the third in a family of twelve children, of whom 
 all attained maturity and eight are now living. 
 His father, John Hilton, Sr., was born in New 
 York state, the son of a Revolutionary soldier, 
 in manhood becoming a farmer in Livingston 
 county, Mich. In 1849 he crossed the plains to 
 California and upon his arrival engaged in min- 
 ing in Placerville until his death, which occurred 
 the following year. His wife, Hannah Wrought 
 in maidenhood^ was born in New York state and 
 died in Michigan. One son, George, enlisted in 
 the Third Michigan Cavalry and died in the 
 service. 
 
 John Hilton was reared in New York state 
 until 1836, when he accompanied his parents to 
 Livingston county, Mich., where he received his 
 education in the subscription schools of that sec- 
 tion. He remained at home until attaining his 
 majority, when he began farming at Casnovia, 
 Muskegon county, clearing a farm of heavy tim- 
 ber. He continued to improve and cultivate 
 eighty acres of land until 1864, when he decided 
 to bring his family — wife and seven children — 
 to the more remote west where opportunities for 
 advancement were more plentiful. He accord- 
 ingly outfitted in March of that year with horse- 
 teams and with twelve wagons in the train, 
 going from Grand Haven to Milwaukee by boat, 
 when they drove across Wisconsin and Iowa to 
 the Missouri river. At Council Bluffs they laid 
 in a new supply of provisions and continue'd on 
 their journey, having to wait, hovi^ever, two 
 weeks to cross the Missouri river, as there were 
 forty-two hundred wagons ahead of them. The 
 journey to Oregon was safely accomplished via 
 Fort Hall, and from Oregon City they went to 
 Marion county and located within twelve miles 
 of Salem, where Mr. Hilton engaged in farm- 
 ing until the following year. He then took his 
 family to Mariposa county, Cal., and followed 
 farming for a year; thence to Sonoma county 
 until the fall of 1867, when he located on land 
 he pre-empted twelve miles south of Porters- 
 ville, Tulare county. In 1876 he purchased one 
 hundred and sixty acres where he now resides, 
 which he devoted to grain and stock-raising. Jn 
 1898 he set out twenty acres of navel oranges 
 in addition to his other interests. Of his orig- 
 inal purchase he still owns one hundred and 
 fifty-five acres, all of which is under irrigation 
 from the Pioneer Ditch. 
 
 In Michigan Mr. Hilton married Eliza Aver- 
 ill, who was born in Onondaga county, N. Y. 
 Her father, Samuel H. Averill, was a native of 
 Vermont and an early settler of Onondaga 
 county, N. Y., whei-e he farmed and engaged as 
 a lumberman. In 1848 he removed to Ottawa 
 county, Mich., where he engaged as a farmer 
 until his death at the advanced age of eighty-nine 
 years. Hip wife, formerly Elizabeth McFarran, 
 
aj.f(j%4yn-^^ ^ dJji^/i^-^^A^ 
 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1141 
 
 of New York state, also died in Michigan, at 
 the age of sevent3'-five years. Of their family 
 of twelve children eight attained maturity, two 
 sons serving in the Civil war, one dying in serv- 
 ice. Mrs. Hilton was the fourth in order of 
 birth. To Mr. Hilton and his wife were born 
 the following children : Nellie, the wife of Rob- 
 ert Baker, of Portersville ; Julia, wife of James 
 Montgomery, of Los Angeles ; Carrie, the wife 
 of George Brown, of Bakersfield; Frank P., a 
 prominent member of the Knights of Pythias, 
 being Forest Ranger of the Southern division 
 of the Sierra Forest Reserves, having charge of 
 the Kern river division near Isabella; John, a 
 miner, of Portersville ; Delbert, a farmer at Han- 
 ford, Kings county; Adella, residing in Porters- 
 ville, the widow of C. T. Graef ; and Mary, the 
 wife of Frank Woodley, of Los Angeles. Mr. 
 Hilton is a Socialist in his political afHHations, 
 having withdrawn his allegiance from the Re- 
 publican party in 1894. 
 
 ANDREW J. LAFEVER. Of the old army 
 of '49, composed of men of positive natures, and 
 sufficient number of years to realize the im- 
 portance of the events into which they were ush- 
 ered, comparatively few remain. Soon their 
 deeds and hardships will be told only by their 
 children and children's children, or gained 
 through the medium of narrative and history. 
 The charm of the brave and courageous and un- 
 usual surrounds these men, not only those who 
 have passed the borderland which separates them 
 from their fellows, but those who remain to tell 
 their-own stories and dream their own dreams of 
 the past. To the latter class belongs Andrew J. 
 Lafever, the inheritor of a name connected with 
 early American history, and a representative of 
 a family which on both sides has counted fear- 
 lessness and justice as priceless heritages. Mr. 
 Lafever was born in Knox county, Tenn., No- 
 vember 14, 1826, and is the third child in a family 
 of fourteen, seven sons and seven daughters, 
 who, with the exception of one daughter, at- 
 tained maturity. 
 
 Before the war with England the paternal 
 great-grandfather, Henry Lafever, came to 
 America with his family, and for two years made 
 his home in Virginia, after which he returned 
 to France. Later, when LaFayette came to this 
 country to help liberate the colonies, he accom- 
 panied him, and when the war was over again 
 returned to France. He also served under Na- 
 poleon in the battle of Waterloo. The grand- 
 father, -John Lafever, was born in Virginia, but 
 the greater part of his life was spent in Tennes- 
 see, where he attained a competence as a cotton 
 raiser. He served through the Revolutionary 
 war and gave up his life for his country in the 
 
 war of 1812. During the Revolutionary war 
 some British soldiers sought to refresh the inner 
 man by stealing some sweet potatoes from the 
 farm of this soldier, and his wife, in maidenhood 
 Lucy Barbankez, with the courage of her side 
 of the house, shot seven of them and was ar- 
 rested for the deed. She was, of course, never 
 prosecuted, as the soldiers were appropriating 
 her property, and she gained a deserved reputa- 
 tion for courage and justice. She became the 
 mother of two children, and died at the age of 
 eighty-seven years. William Lafever, the father 
 of Andrew J., was born in Tennessee, moved to 
 Missouri in 1834, and purchased and entered 
 land in Ray county. In time he became one of 
 the large land owners of that territory, raising 
 hemp, tobacco, corn and stock, and having many 
 slaves to do his bidding. He took a great in- 
 terest in the state militia and in the training of 
 soldiers. He served in the war of 1812, Black 
 Hawk war and Seminole war. A temperate and 
 moderate life told in his favor, for at the time 
 of his death he had attained the age of ninety- 
 seven years. Longevity appeared on the ma- 
 ternal side also, for his wife, formerly Elizabeth 
 Roberts, a native of South Carolina, lived to be 
 eighty-four years old. 
 
 Andrew J. Lafever was the third in order of 
 birth of fourteen children. What early educa- 
 tion he received was in a private school, and he 
 worked at cotton scraping with the slaves, and 
 engaged in horse trading on his father's planta- 
 tion. In 1846 he enlisted as a volunteer under 
 General Taylor, being assigned to Colonel Wil- 
 lock's division ; he re-enlisted in 1847 ^"^d was as- 
 signed to Company C, Santa Fe Battalion, 
 U. S. A., becoming sergeant under Gen. Sterling 
 Price. In 1847-48 he was one of the escort of 
 the general, as his second choice, and in 1848 
 he returned to Missouri, stopping for about 
 twenty days at Independence, where he was dis- 
 charged from the service in October, 1848. No- 
 vember 4, 1848, he cast his first presidential vote 
 for General Taylor. Engaging in a butchering 
 and packing business in Camden, Ray county, 
 Mo., he had opportunity to hear much of the 
 great gold discovery on the coast, and April 4, 
 1849, set out across the plains with ox-teams, 
 eventually arriving at the Peter Lawson ranch, 
 near Bidwell's bar, Cal., at the end of about 
 seven months' travel. For the first thirteen 
 months he engaged in mining at Bidwell's bar 
 and other camps in the vicinity. While at Bid- 
 well's bar a thief was discovered in camp who 
 had tried to purloin a can of syrup. A quick 
 consultation was held by the other miners and 
 it was decided to hang without ceremony. Mr. 
 Lafever, however, objected, owing to the absence 
 of a code of laws governing such misdemeanors. 
 The life of the man was spared, but an attempt 
 
1142 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 was made to obviate further trouble of that kind 
 by drawing up a code calculated to terrify evil- 
 doers. For the first offense of petty larceny the 
 penalty was forty-nine lashes and expulsion or 
 hanging; for grand larceny, ninety-eight lashes 
 or hanging; for the second offense of petty lar- 
 ceny, ninety-eight lashes or hanging; for the 
 third offense, hanging; and for the second of- 
 fense of grand larceny, hanging. Willful mur- 
 der was also punished by hanging. Men con- 
 demned to trial had the benefit of the opinion 
 and judgment of twenty-four of the substantial 
 men of the community, and every question had 
 to be answered by the witness. 
 
 From Bidwell's bar Mr. Lafever went to the 
 South Fork of the Feather river with a pros- 
 pecting company, intending to turn the course 
 of the river, a project which signally failed. Re- 
 moving to Marysville, on the Yuba river, he en- 
 gaged in mining for a short time, and then fol- 
 lowed the tide of fortune-seekers to Gold Lake, 
 which, however, was never found. For a time 
 he prospected in St. Louis, Pine Grove and How- 
 land flat, also Nelson creek and Poor Man's 
 creek, and in 1850 mined in Told's Diggings and 
 Forbestown, starting a general merchandise store 
 and butchering business in the latter camp. He 
 was successful in his store and mining, and in 
 the spring of 185 1 built and managed the Lex- 
 ington house, an unpretentious log structure 
 located beside a spring which he had discovered 
 in 1850. He also conducted a general store. 
 In 1852 he built a new house at Lexington, near 
 the log cabin, sawing the lumber by hand. Suc- 
 cessful beyond his expectations, he started a hotel 
 and butcher shop at Spanish Flat, managed the 
 enterprises in both places, but disposed of the 
 Lexington hotel in 1854, and making his head- 
 quarters thereafter in Spanish Flat until 1857. 
 In the mean time, in 1856, there had been great 
 excitement in camp over the water ditches, re- 
 sulting in shooting scrapes, and the organizing 
 of a mob who were going to hang an innocent 
 man, which, however, was dispersed by Mr. La- 
 fever. In the spring of 1857 Mr. Lafever him- 
 self escaped serious trouble because of the justi- 
 fying circumstances surrounding his act. In self- 
 defense he shot and killed Judge John Chapels, 
 the leader of that mob, and though he surren- 
 dered to the authorities, nothing ever came of 
 the matter. Mr. Lafever showed wonderful 
 clemency for his fallen foe, hired a man to care 
 for him, and so far ingratiated himself that the 
 dying man shook hands with him, and expressed 
 appreciation of his bravery. 
 
 In the fall of 1857 Mr. Lafever went to Marys- 
 ville, and then started to Mendocino county, but 
 stopped at Petaluma and Santa Rosa for the win- 
 ter. Purchasing a place near Ukiah, he later 
 started for Colorado, but wintered in Merced 
 
 county with a band of horses and mules. Sick- 
 ness invaded his two hundred and fifty head of 
 stock and he was delayed until August, in which 
 month he came as far as Visalia, taking his 
 horses to the mountains for the winter. On two 
 occasions in Mendocino county thieves tried to 
 take his land away from him, and in 1870 he 
 was shot through the left lung by H. Grififiths, 
 in Potter Valley, almost destroying his left hand 
 and wrist. In 1873 he purchased a home near 
 Kings river, in Fresno county, added to it from 
 time to time, until he owned more than a town- 
 ship of unsurveyed land, including a place called 
 Pine Flat, consisting of a quarter of a township, 
 which he presented to his only child and son, 
 Henry C. Lafever. When the fence law was 
 passed he experienced serious trouble with his 
 land, for grabbers resorted to every device to 
 deprive him of it, even waylaying and killing his 
 son, November 17, 1882. During the trial fol- 
 lowing this brutal murder Mr. Lafever killed 
 Zeb Lashley in the courtyard at Fresno, the out- 
 law being at the bottom of the difficulties over 
 the land and the killing of his son. The outlaw 
 was surrounded by forty-eight of his gang. 
 Through the prevalence of injustice Mr. Lafever 
 lost his cattle and land, and practically everything 
 that he had in the world. During the Indian 
 troubles Mr. and Mrs. Lafever had several nar- 
 row escapes from the savages. In November, 
 1885, he came to Visalia and purchased forty 
 acres in the outskirts of the town. Here he raised 
 cattle, horses and hogs, and in 1893 he moved 
 to his late home of six acres within the city 
 limits, at No. 409 Watson avenue. May 29, 
 1904, he lost this home and all his possessions 
 by fire, entailing a loss of $5,000 over and above 
 $2,200 insurance. Here he was extensively in- 
 terested in raising thoroughbred Poland-China 
 hogs and fine chickens, deriving a comfortable 
 income from this peaceful occupation. 
 
 Mr. Lafever's married life began in Marys- 
 ville, March 19, 1852, his wife, formerly Cath- 
 erine Trullinger, being a native -of Baden, Ger- 
 many, who came to California in 1850. The 
 tragic death of the only son of this union cast a 
 shadow over the lives of both Mr. and Mrs. La- 
 fever, and was among the heart-breaking dis- 
 asters which have paved the way for peace in the 
 far west. Mr. Lafever is a Democrat in politics, 
 and is a member of the California Society of 
 Pioneers and a veteran of the Mexican war, in 
 which he has served as commander. Formerly 
 he was a member of the Knights of the Golden 
 Circle. There are few men whose early experi- 
 ences have been of such a varied character as 
 have been those of Mr. Lafever. The somber 
 side of the camps and mines and trails has seemed 
 to predominate, yet he is a cheerful and opti- 
 mistic man, believing in the good of humanity, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1143 
 
 and evidencing at every turn of his busy life 
 generosity for those less fortunate than himself. 
 Books might be written of absorbing interest 
 concerning his life, and he has observed intelli- 
 gently and faithfully, even impartially, consider- 
 ing the sorrows which have darkened his path- 
 way and the misfortunes which have resulted 
 from man's greed and ingratitude. 
 
 ELLIOTT PATTEN. Coming to California 
 in 1881, Elliott Patten has since met with success 
 in his business ventures and has also made scores 
 of warm personal friends who have an interest 
 in his welfare. He is, in all respects, a self- 
 made man, his success coming as the result of 
 his own well-directed efforts. 
 
 A son of John and Catherine (Waite) Patten, 
 he was bom in Cincinnati, Ohio, May 9, 1858. 
 John Patten is also a native of the Buckeye state, 
 his father, James, being an early settler in Mor- 
 row. On reaching man's estate John Patten en- 
 gaged in farming and stock-raising, meeting with 
 excellent success while living in Brown county. 
 At the outbreak of the Civil war he enlisted in 
 the Fifty-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry, being a 
 corporal of his company. During the war he 
 was wounded several times, but received nO' seri- 
 ous injuries. Mr. Patten was united in marriage 
 with Catherine Waite, who was born in Florida, 
 a daughter of David Waite. This marriage re- 
 sulted in the birth of twelve children, all of 
 whom grew to maturity and ten are still living. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Patten are passing their declining 
 days in Ohio, surrounded by a large circle of 
 friends and all the comforts that make old age 
 enjoyable. _ h! 
 
 Elliott Patten was reared in Brown county on 
 his father's farm, receiving such education as 
 could be secured at the district school. At the 
 age of fifteen years he left his home, going to 
 Butler county, where he secured employment on 
 a farm. Here he remained eighteen months, when 
 he went to Maine, where a sister was living. 
 Securing employment as, driver of a freight wag- 
 on for a lumber firm, he continued at this work 
 for two years. He then determined to seek his 
 fortune in the far west and accordingly made 
 his way to Kansas, locating for one "year in 
 Irving. Again changing his place of residence 
 he went to Salina, the same state, where he was 
 employed on farms until 1881, the year, of his 
 arrival in Tulare county. 
 
 Locating in the foothills he purchased eighty 
 acres of land, which he at once began to im- 
 prove. Buying a house he moved it to its pres- 
 ent location on this ranch and has since re- 
 modeled it and made it modern in its appoint- 
 ments. 
 
 In addition to his first purchase, Mr. Patten 
 
 homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres, which 
 he has improved. He has also made several pur- 
 chases, including the place where he now re- 
 sides, which came into his possession in 1883. 
 Here he erected a fine residence and otherwise 
 improved the place until he has one of the fin- 
 est ranches in this section of the county. In 
 1 901 he disposed of a portion of the old home- 
 stead to the Merryman Fruit, Land and Lum- 
 ber Company. His total possessions now aggre- 
 gate two hundred and eighty acres. Aside from 
 the land in the lowlands, he has a ranch in the 
 Cedar Creek mountain range, just below the 
 snow line, which is used for grazing purposes. 
 He is also engaged in well boring, which occu- 
 pation he has followed several years. During 
 this time he has put down hundreds of wells, 
 most of which have produced at the depth of one 
 hundred feet. 
 
 Since coming to California, Mr. Patten mar- 
 ried Ellen Fly, a daughter of James C. Fly, a 
 sketch of whom will be found on another page 
 of this volume. Four children have been born 
 to them, as follows : Elsie, Otto, Mary E. and 
 Ernest, who died at the age of eighteen months. 
 
 Mr. Patten is an active member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church and takes a deep inter- 
 est in the Sunday-school, having been its super- 
 intendent for several years. In politics he is a 
 Democrat, but takes little interest in political 
 matters. He has had a hard struggle with the 
 world, but his efforts have won a victory of 
 which he may feel proud. Many a man would 
 have failed, and where now appears the word 
 "success" we would have read "failure." He 
 has done much for Tulare county and the peo- 
 ple unite in giving him credit for what he has 
 accomplished. 
 
 LEE LOWREY. Among the younger gen- 
 eration of Tulare county who have early im- 
 pressed their worth upon the community in 
 which they reside, prominent mention belongs to 
 Lee Lowrey, a native of the state, his birth 
 having occurred near Visalia November 21, 1867. 
 His father, J. E. Lowrey, a native of Tennessee, 
 crossed the plains in 1850 with ox-teams, and 
 upon his safe arrival began mining. Later he 
 located in Sonoma, eventually making two trips 
 back east by way of the Isthmus of Panama, 
 his return trips being made across the plains, 
 when he farmed in Sonoma county. In i860 he 
 settled near Visalia, Tulare county, three miles 
 northwest of the city, improving a farm and 
 engaging in the stock iDusiness. He also bought 
 a ranch in Long valley and followed stock-rais- 
 ing in that location, building a home in the 
 foothills, and setting out an orange orchard of 
 two acres, which is said to produce the finest 
 
1144 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 oranges in the state. On account of having 
 impaired health in his valley home the greater 
 part of his time was spent on his mountain 
 ranch, where his death occurred in June, 1904, 
 at the age of seventy-five years. His wife, for- 
 merly Elizabeth Parsons, a native of Missouri, 
 descended from the Fosters, of that state, that 
 being her mother's maiden name. Mrs. Low- 
 rey resides in the old home since her husband's 
 death, — of her family of thirteen children, eight 
 of whom attained maturity, — being surrounded 
 by six surviving children, namely : Marian N., 
 a stockman in the vicinity of Visalia ; J. D., a 
 stockman in Visalia; D. D., in Alaska; Allie E., 
 at home ; W. L., a stockman near Visalia ; and 
 Lee, of this review. 
 
 Upon his father's farm near Visalia Lee Low- 
 rey was reared to young manhood, receiving his 
 education in the public schools of that city and 
 the Normal School. He also attended and grad- 
 uated from the Stockton Business College, and 
 for thirteen months following engaged as a 
 bookkeeper in that city. Returning home he en- 
 gaged in stock-raising, renting the mountain 
 ranch as well as that in the vicinity of Visalia, 
 his brand, a double L, with a bar across the top, 
 being well known throughout this part of the 
 country. Profiting by his business training he 
 decided to enter mercantile activity, purchasing 
 the establishment of J. H. Edwards & Co., of 
 Orosi, in partnership with his brother, the firm 
 name being J. D. & Lee Lowrey. This busi- 
 ness enterprise was successfully continued until 
 1903, in December of that year selling out and 
 dissolving partnership. Mr. Lowrey returned 
 to the stock business on the old Lowrey ranch 
 on Nigger creek, although he still makes his 
 home in Orosi. 
 
 In Orosi Mr. Lowrey married Alethea Hitz- 
 man, a native of Missouri, and a daughter of 
 Fred W. Hitzman, who died in CaHfornia. They 
 are the parents of one child, Rema Elaine. Po- 
 litically Mr. Lowrey is an adherent of the prin- 
 ciples advocated in the platform of the Demo- 
 cratic party, and fraternally is associated with 
 the Knights of Pythias, of Orosi, and Visalia 
 Parlor, Native Sons of the Golden West. 
 
 N. B. EDMISTON. Among the old pioneers 
 of Tulare county prominent mention belongs to 
 N. B. Edmiston, who came to California in 1850. 
 He was born in Gibson county, Tenn., April 25, 
 1827, next to the youngest child in a family of 
 seven, of whorn he is the only one now living. 
 His father, Robert Edmiston, was also a na- 
 tive of Tennessee, and a descendant of Scotch- 
 Irish ancestry. He served in the war of 1812 
 under General Jackson. In an early day he 
 removed to Pope county. Ark., and became a 
 
 pioneer farmer of that state, where his death 
 eventually occurred. His wife, formerly Mary 
 Glasby, a native of Tennessee, died when her 
 son, N. B., was only two years old. 
 
 Reared to young manhood in Pope county. 
 Ark., N. B. Edmiston received his scholastic 
 training in the district school in the vicinity of 
 his home. Upon the breaking out of the Mex- 
 ican war, he became a volunteer in Company 
 A, First Arkansas Cavalry, under Colonel Yell, 
 serving until the expiration of his time (one 
 year), taking part in the battle of Buena Vista. 
 His brother, Andrew, also served as a member 
 of the same regiment. After his honorable dis- 
 charge he returned home and remained a short 
 time, when, in 1850, in company with his broth- 
 er Andrew and two comrades, he started across 
 the plains with a wagon and five yoke of oxen. 
 They traveled by the southern route — El Paso, 
 Tucson, and Yuma to San Diego — thence by 
 sailer to San Francisco. Seventy miles east of 
 Tucson they sold their teams and bought pack- 
 horses with which they continued their trav- 
 els. From San Francisco they went to the mines 
 in Sonora, remaining there for seven months, 
 after which they teamed with ox-teams from 
 that point to the mountains. In March, 1852, 
 Mr. Edmiston returned to Arkansas via Pana- 
 ma and New Orleans, there purchasing cattle, 
 which in the spring of 1853 he started to drive 
 across the plains by the northern route^^by the 
 Platte, and Salt Lake, where they wintered, 
 after which they proceeded to Stockton, near 
 Woodbridge, San Joaquin county. A year later 
 he sold the cattle, continuing in the stock busi- 
 ness, however, for many years. In 1859 he lo- 
 cated in Calaveras county, where he had dis- 
 covered a copper ledge on Table Mountain, 
 which he opened and operated for a time. In 
 1874 he located in the northern part of Tulare 
 county, for one year engaging in the sheep busi- 
 ness on Sand creek. While a resident of that 
 place he was one of the organizers of the Sand 
 Creek district, building the first schoolhouse, 
 which is now in Orosi. In 1876 he purchased 
 his present property of three hundred and twen- 
 ty acres from the railroad, being one of the 
 first to locate in this section. The following 
 was a dry year and he lost his sheep, after 
 which he engaged in the raising of grain. After 
 the building of the irrigation ditch he set out 
 a vineyard, now having twenty-seven acres de- 
 voted to this cultivation, while the balance of 
 sixty acres, which comprises what is left of his 
 original ranch, as he has sold a few acres from 
 time to time, is given over to alfalfa. 
 
 In Woodbridge, San Joaquin county, Cal., 
 Mr. Edmiston was united in marriage with 
 Nancy Howell, a native of Arkansas. Her fath- 
 er, James Howell,, a native of Tennessee, and an 
 
HARVEY LIGHT 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1147 
 
 early settler of Arkansas, came across the plains 
 in 1853-54 with Mr. Edmiston. He married 
 Sarah Bond, also of Tennessee. His death oc- 
 curred in Newman, Stanislaus county. To Mr. 
 and Mrs. Edmiston were born four children, 
 namely: Sarah J., deceased, the wife of J. A. 
 Bacon, of this vicinity ; Allen McD., who is con- 
 ducting a dairy near Sultana; Theodate, de- 
 ceased, who married John Toler, also of this 
 vicinity ; and Bettie, at home. Both himself and 
 wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South, in which he has officiated for 
 forty years as steward. In his political affilia- 
 tions he is a Democrat. 
 
 HARVEY LIGHT. In 1900 the death of 
 Harvey Light removed from the business and 
 social life of Modesto a man whose influence had 
 ever been felt along the lines of advancement and 
 progression in both city and county. Numbered 
 among the pioneers of the state he came to Cali- 
 fornia in 1850, bringing with him the inherited 
 and trained characteristics of the thrifty New 
 Englanders, and with that reserve force, energy 
 and ability, he gave himself to the upbuilding of 
 the western state, his years of usefulness passing 
 considerably beyond the biblical allotment before 
 he was called upon to lay down alike the responsi- 
 bilities and pleasures of this life. 
 
 The family of which Harvey Light was a rep- 
 resentative came from the state of Maine, his 
 father, George W., being a native of Washington 
 county. He was a stone-cutter by trade and at 
 the age of twenty years removed to Bangor, Me., 
 where he took up a farm in the midst of wilder- 
 ness lands and made that his home until his 
 death at the age of eighty-seven years. Through 
 the many noble qualities which were manifest in 
 his character, through his mode of life he came to 
 be a prominent and well-beloved man in the com- 
 munity which knew him intimately for so long .a 
 time. He occupied an influential position in the 
 affairs of the neighborhood and his voice was al- 
 ways to be heard on the side of right and justice. 
 Always a Democrat in his political convictions he 
 lived to see the rupture caused b]^ the political 
 factions of the country, and at the time of the 
 war relinquished his earlier convictions and 
 espoused the cause of Republicanism as that 
 which meant right and justice and equality, in 
 regard to both country and the colored race. His 
 wife, formerly Sarah Jane Lurmen, was bom at 
 Liberty, Me., and died at Bangor at the ad- 
 vanced age of ninety-eight years. They were 
 the parents of eleven children, of whom all but 
 two attained maturity. Given in order of birth 
 they were as follows : Harvey, the personal sub- 
 ject of this review, born at Bangor, Me., Au- 
 gust 17, 1822; Olive, who died in Bangor; Tillie 
 
 Jane, who also died in Bangor ; Sarah Ann, who 
 likewise died in that city; Susan, now a resident 
 of Modesto, and of whom a short sketch will be 
 given ; Arvilla, who died in Bangor ; Henry, who 
 died in Bangor, having served his country in the 
 Civil war; George, an extensive farmer and 
 prominent citizen of Carmel, Me.; Samantha, 
 who died in Bangor; Andrew, who died in Ban- 
 gor; and Clara, now Mrs. Ed Crabtree, of Oak- 
 dale. 
 
 Harvey Light was reared to manhood in his 
 native state, receiving his education in the com- 
 mon schools. Upon attaining manhood he de- 
 cided to come west, starting in 1849 for Cali- 
 fornia via the Isthmus and arriving in San Fran- 
 cisco in the following year. With the majority 
 of those who sought fortunes in the west at that 
 time he became a miner at Marysville, engaging 
 also at LaGrange and various other places before 
 he was satisfied to take up less exciting but more 
 wholesome and profitable labor. After recover- 
 ing from the cholera, which attacked him while 
 still in the mines, he went to San Francisco and 
 became boss of the gang of men who were driv- 
 ing piles on the Pacific wharf in that city, re- 
 maining so occupied until this work was entirely 
 completed. Afterward he was extensively inter- 
 ested in mines and mining operations and at a 
 later date sold his interests to a San Francisco 
 company with considerable profit to himself. In 
 1874 he came to Modesto, Stanislaus county, and 
 located with his sister, Mrs. Susan Hurd, with 
 whom he lived retired until his death in 1900. 
 Like his father he was a strong Republican in his 
 political convictions, and though never desirous 
 of personal recognition was active in the suppc>rt 
 of good government. 
 
 Mrs. Susan (Light) Hurd was born in Ban- 
 gor, Me., February 8, 1836, and when sixteen 
 years of age was united in marriage in her native 
 city with A. D. Hurd, also of Bangor. To them 
 was born one child, named Harvey, who died 
 at the age of three years. Mr. Hurd also came 
 to his death in 1854, while engaged in his work 
 as contractor and builder at Hermon^ Me., be- 
 ing killed by falling rock. Mrs. Hurd came to 
 California in 1872 via the Isthmus and went to 
 live with her brother at LaGrange, the two after- 
 ward locating in Modesto, where she now makes 
 her home. Mrs. Hurd owns considerable real 
 estate in the city, among other property owning 
 the business block at, the corner of I and Tenth 
 streets. 
 
 L. D. HILLIARD. Five and a half miles east 
 of Visalia, Tulare county, is located the -home 
 place of L. D. Hilliard, one of the successful 
 farmers and stockmen of this section. He was 
 born near this same farm on the Hilliard home- 
 
1U8 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 stead, November 22, 1857, a son of A.braham 
 Hilliard, a pioneer of the state and of this local- 
 ity. The elder man was born in Northampton, 
 Pa., his home remaining in the east until 1852. 
 In that year he crossed the plains with ox-teams, 
 bringing with him to California his wife and one 
 child. After 'six months they arrived safe in the 
 state and located in the vicinity of Stockton, 
 where they remained until 1853. Coming to Tu- 
 lare county in that year, they made their home 
 for a short time in Venice, then the county seat, 
 but soon became established on the farm five and 
 a half miles east of Visalia. Here Mr. Hilliard 
 made improvements, putting up a house (their 
 first home here being in a house where the In- 
 dians had killed and skinned a white man a few 
 years before), after which he engaged in the 
 stock business. Later he gave considerable at- 
 tention to general farming, adding to his land 
 from time to time by purchase until he owned 
 five hundred acres on the Kaweah. His death 
 occurred in 1877, at the age of sixty years, and 
 removed from the community one of the pillars 
 in the foundation of the western statehood. Po- 
 litically he was a stanch Republican. His wife, 
 formerly Elizabeth Stoops, of Pennsylvania, sur- 
 vives him, and is now the wife of H. C. Arnold, 
 of Plumas county, Cal. Born of the union of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hilliard were five sons and three 
 daughters, of whom four sons and the three 
 daughters are living. Of the sons F. M. is a 
 farmer near Traver ; W. C. P. is on the old home 
 place; and A. W. is also farming a part of the 
 home property. 
 
 L. D. HilHard was reared on the paternal 
 fann, receiving his education principally through 
 attendance at the district school in Deep Creek 
 district. On account of the illness of his father, 
 he felt it necessary to early assume responsi- 
 bility, at the age of sixteen years conducting tlie 
 farm. After the death of his father he gave 
 his attention entirely to the work of the place 
 for several years. In 1884 he rented a farm 
 and began independent opeirations, his attention 
 being chiefly given to the raising of grain. He 
 finally purchased eighty acres on the plains near 
 Exeter. About sixteen years ago he bought his 
 present property and has since engaged in- farm- 
 ing and stock-raising. The farm consists of 
 two hundred and forty acres on the Mineral 
 King road, about five miles east of Visalia, where 
 he has made all the improvements, putting up 
 substantial barns and outbuildings, and in 1904 
 built a nine-room, two-story residence which adds 
 no little to the value of the property. This is 
 conceded to be one of the finest farm-houses in 
 the vicinity, while the other improvements are 
 in keeping. His herds number among them good 
 graded stock, and Mr. Hilliard has ably demon- 
 strated the fact that he understands the work 
 
 with which he has been so long and so profitably 
 connected. In addition to the property mentioned 
 (located on sections 31, 32 and 27 of township 
 18, range 26), he also owns a ranch on Dry 
 creek of four hundred and forty acres on sections 
 3 and 2, township 17, range 27, six miles north 
 of Lemon Cove. 
 
 Near Exeter, Tulare county, September 3, 
 1884, Mr. Hilliard was united in marriage with 
 Laura B. Teague, who was born in that vicinity, 
 a daughter of John Teague, of Exeter. They 
 are the parents of two children, Carroll Arthur 
 and Effie Elizabeth. Mr. Hilliard takes a deep 
 interest in all local affairs, and for several ternis 
 has served efficiently as school trustee of the 
 Deep Creek district. Politically he is a Re- 
 publican. 
 
 WILLIAM STOBIE. A man of great in- 
 tegrity, William Stobie enjoys the esteem and 
 confidence of all with whom he has come in 
 contact, either business or social. He is located 
 on an extensive ranch of five hundred and eighty 
 acres seven miles northwest of Visalia, where 
 he is engaged in the cattle business, having one 
 hundred head of cattle, and meeting with a 
 success which names him among the prominent 
 stockmen of this section. A native of Scotland, 
 he was born near Dunse, Berwickshire, Febru- 
 ary 17, 1848, a son of Henry Stobie, a shepherd, 
 whose birth and death occurred in the same 
 place. His mother, Elizabeth (Wilson) Stobie, 
 also died in that locality. Of their family of 
 nine children, only three are now living, Will- 
 iam Stobie being the only one in America. 
 
 William Stobie was reared in his Scottish 
 home, receiving his education in the private 
 schools of that country. When ten years old he 
 became dependent upon his own resources, his 
 first employment being to herd cows. He re- 
 mained so occupied for six months, after which 
 he worked on farms in the neighborhood. He 
 saved his earnings and in 1872 came to America, 
 spending the first five months in Canada, and 
 going thence to Texas, where he remained four 
 months. In J 873 he came to California, going 
 first to Sacramento, then to Stockton, working 
 in the latter place for seven months. Locating 
 in Tulare county in February, 1874, he found 
 employment in shearing sheep through the sum- 
 mer, working with a sheep raiser in the moun- 
 tains. In the same fall he bought a thousand 
 head of sheep and herded them on the plains 
 toward Portersville until 1879, when he pur- 
 chased eighty acres of land a half mile north of 
 Farmersville. He continued in this business in 
 that location until 1890, when he sold out and 
 bought one hundred and sixty acres on Cross 
 creek and began the cattle business. He has 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1149 
 
 added to his land until he now owns five hun- 
 dred and eighty acres all in one body, parts of 
 sections 2 and 3, of township 18, range 24, and 
 section 32, of township 17, range 24. In addi- 
 tion to this property he also owns twelve hun- 
 dred and eighty acres on Stone river, on sec- 
 tions 19 and 29, of township 16, range 26. With 
 the passing years the changes which have come 
 into the life of Mr. Stobie have been paralleled 
 by those which the country has experienced. In 
 1874, when he first came to this section, there 
 were no fences, comparatively no improvements, 
 and little cultivation, even within a distance of 
 three or four miles of Visalia, farmers and 
 stockmen riding at will throughout the country. 
 Prosperity and progress have come to the entire 
 section, the upbuilding and development of the 
 country being the direct result of the efforts of 
 such men as Mr. Stobie. 
 
 In Scotland Mr. Stobie was united in mar- 
 riage vnth Elizabeth Allen, a native of the county 
 of Heddington, Scotland, and they are the par- 
 ents of one soUj Wilbur Jones. In his political 
 affiliations Mr. Stobie gives his support to the 
 Republican partv. 
 
 ANDREW R. LAHANN. Although Mr. La- 
 hann was a resident of California but a few 
 years, he made for himself a position that will 
 be honored by his many friends for years to 
 come. Death is always sad, but when the grim 
 reaper takes from our midst one who is young, 
 well-liked, and with a bright future, it is espe- 
 cially sad. 
 
 Mr. Lahann was a native of Illinois, being born 
 in Monmouth, November 16, 1867. His father, 
 Reimer Lahann, emigrated from Germany and 
 settled in Monmouth, where he was engaged in 
 cigar manufacturing for many years. He and 
 his wife are now living in Chicago. She bore the 
 maiden name of Catherine Fongardt, and was 
 also a native of Germany. By their union three 
 children have been born. 
 
 Andrew R. Lahann was the second child and 
 the only son. He was reared in Monmouth and 
 received an excellent education, in the Monmouth 
 college. After com.pleting his schooling he 
 learned the cigarmaker's trade and later engaged 
 in the manufacture of cigars with his father, 
 the two carrying on quite an extensive whole- 
 sale business. In 1898 he disposed of his inter- 
 ests in the east and came to California, locat- 
 ing at Naranjo, or Antelope Heights. Here he 
 at once became engaged in the fruit industry, 
 purchasing twenty-two acres of land, which he 
 converted into an orange' grove, being the first 
 man to set out an orange tree on the Antelope 
 Heights tract, which was christened "the Cathe- 
 rine tree." Later he purchased a general mer- 
 
 chandise store here and for two and one-half 
 years conducted a successful merchandise busi- 
 ness, selling to M. E. Brotherton in April, 1904. 
 Mr. Lahann was also interested in the Antelope 
 Heights Water and Irrigation Company, serving 
 as its secretary for some time. 
 
 In 1892, while still a resident of Monmouth, 
 Mr. Lahann was united in marriage with Miss 
 Minnie Adelaide Rankin, who is a native of that 
 city. She is a daughter of Cyrus Rankin, who 
 was born in Indiana, from which state he re- 
 moved to Monmouth, where he became an ex- 
 tensive farmer and stock-raiser. He married 
 Miss Martha Reynolds, a native of Ohio. Both 
 are now deceased, the former dying in 1899 and 
 the Tatter in 1890. Mrs. Lahann was the fourth 
 of a family of five children and was reared in 
 her native town, receiving her education in the 
 Monmouth college, from which institution she 
 was graduated in 1889 with the degree of A. B. 
 By her marriage with Mr. Lahann she is the 
 mother of two children, Catherine Martha and 
 Reimer Rankin. 
 
 On July 27, 1904, the many friends of Mr. 
 Lahann were shocked to learn of his death. He 
 had become very popular since taking up his resi- 
 dence here. Fraternally he held membership 
 with the Phi Kappa Psi and the Knights of Pyth- 
 ias, and in religion was a member of the Pres- 
 byterian Church, being one of the most earnest 
 workers in that church. Since his demise Mrs. 
 Lahann has been attending to the business he 
 so well established, demonstrating her ability in 
 this time of need. It is her intention to remain 
 here and give her two children the advantages 
 of a good education. Her large circle of friends 
 wish her prosperity, and while they mourn the 
 death of her husband they feel that he left a 
 comfortable competency which will enable his 
 loved ones to live in comfort. 
 
 CHARLES L. DENNEN. No more encour- 
 aging example of the self-made farmer is found 
 in Kern county than Charles L. Dennen, owner 
 of a valuable ranch of one hundred and eighty 
 acres in the Fairview district, and also an addi- 
 tional one hundred and forty acres in the Pan- 
 ama district. Mr. Dennen is the child of par- 
 ents who had little to offer him in the way of 
 pecuniary help, and his youth and early man- 
 hood were one succession of struggles for the 
 success which has since come to him. He was 
 born in Oxford county, Me., March 7, 1857, his 
 father, L. W. Dennen, also a native of Maine, 
 being at that time employed in the factories of 
 the great manufacturing and lumbering state. 
 
 The elder Dennen is a strong character, and 
 all his life has shown a disposition for adventure 
 and change. As a boy he found vent for an ex- 
 
1150 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cess of energy by running away from home and 
 boarding a man-of-war, upon which he served 
 with creditable fortitude about four years. The 
 year of his son's birth he removed to Brown coun- 
 ty, Kans., settled on a farm of eighty acres, and 
 was busily improving the same at the outbreak 
 of the Civil war. In the service of the Union 
 he attained the rank of corporal, and spent his 
 time principally at St. Joseph, Warrensburg and 
 Sedalia, Mo., actively engaged in fighting guer- 
 rillas. From Brown county he removed to Pot- 
 tawatomie county, Kans., where he improved a 
 homestead and became prominent in politics and 
 government affairs. He was awarded the mail 
 contract for eight years, and for a number of 
 years was postmaster of a station in the county. 
 His next home was his present one in Hennessey, 
 Oklahoma, where he is living retired, and where, 
 at the age of eighty years (having been born_ in 
 1824) he is hale and vigorous, and able to enjoy 
 the people and events by which he is surrounded. 
 In both Brown and Pottawatomie counties, 
 Kans., Charles L. Dennen attended the public 
 schools at rare intervals, but he made up for his 
 educational deficiency by becoming a careful and 
 practical farmer. He was but twenty years old 
 when in February, 1877, he married Mary Davis, 
 a native of Madison county, Iowa. After his 
 marriage he conducted a rented farm for four 
 years, at the end of that time investing his earn- 
 ings in a farm of his own, which he managed 
 successfully until 1887. He then sold his farm 
 and came to Kern county, Cal., took up a tract 
 of land covered with weeds and brush, proved up 
 on it, and at the same time rented land for a 
 year from the Kern Land Company. He' was not 
 particularly successful at the start, and when 
 making arrangements for the nucleus of his pres- 
 ent farm, which consisted of twenty acres at $60 
 an acre, he was able to pay down only $10. A 
 stout heart and hope in the future came to his 
 aid, and with the help of his encouraging and 
 economical wife he toiled early and late and 
 finally had his farm paid for and a comfortable 
 home established for his family. More land was 
 soon required, and finally the one hundred and 
 eighty acres proved also too small. The new 
 farm is valued at $100 an acre, but the prospec- 
 tive owner feels no dread of the future, for he 
 has gained a substantial footing in the west, and 
 his career has been of so honorable a nature, 
 that his word has come to be regarded as would 
 be his bond. He makes a specialty of hay and 
 stock, and averages from eight hundred to one 
 thousand hogs a year. He has a good country 
 house, well constructed barns, and the most prac- 
 tical of modern agricultural implements. Feel- 
 ing keenly the disadvantages under which he la- 
 bored in his own youth, because of a hmited edu- 
 cation, he has given his children a better train- 
 
 ing, and every advantage possible under the cir- 
 cumstances. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Dennen have had nine children 
 born to them : Lilly Josephine, the wife of James 
 Hosking ; Charles Richard, living in Bakersfield ; 
 George Bary, a rancher; Le Roy Alfred; Clara 
 C, deceased; Millie -Alline; Lewis William; 
 Mary Myrtle, and Vernon Vivian. 
 
 Mr. Dennen is a man of broad and tolerant 
 sympathies, a good neighbor, faithful friend, and 
 generous and indulgent husband and father. 
 
 CHARLES H. BAILEY. Five and a half 
 miles west of Merced is located the eighty-acre 
 ranch of Charles H. Bailey, a successful rancher 
 and dairyman of the British Colony, and one of 
 the deservedly prominent men of this section. 
 A native of the state, he was born in Sacramento 
 county, eleven miles from Sutter's Fort, January 
 17, 1854, his parents being Joshua T. and Susan 
 (Hughes) Bailey, the latter a native of Illinois. 
 The father was born in Wisconsin in 1804, and 
 in manhood became an engineer, one of his most 
 important achievements being the erection of a 
 smelting works in his native state. He also en- 
 gaged extensively in the lumber business. In 
 1849, in company with his two sons, Joel and 
 James Bailey, he came to California by way of 
 the Isthmus of Panama, upon their arrival pro- 
 ceeding at once to the mines at Placerville, where 
 they made a fortune digging gold. In 1853 he 
 returned home by the same route and in the 
 same year brought his family to California, 
 crossing the plains with a large drove of cattle 
 and horses. At Ash Hollow they had a severe 
 encounter with the Indians, and lost a part of 
 their cattle. On the trip out Mrs. Bailey was 
 taken prisoner by the Indians, but her recapture 
 was safely effected. She was also useful at one 
 time in making bullets for the soldiers at Fort 
 Laramie. On reaching California a second time 
 Mr. Bailey located in the Sacramento valley and 
 engaged in the stock business, operating on a 
 very extensive scale, and was very successful 
 until he lost much of his stock during the floods 
 of 1862. Soon after that disaster he became 
 interested in fruit culture, setting out a large 
 vineyard which was one of the first in Sacra- 
 mento county. In this occupation he continued 
 until his death, which occurred at the ripe age 
 of eighty-four years. For so many years iden- 
 tified with the best interests of the state in its 
 pioneer growth, Mr. Bailey is justly numbered 
 among the men who laid the foundation for the 
 present prosperity and greatness of California. 
 Besides Charles H. Bailey his living children 
 are as follows : Joel, on the old Iiome place in 
 Sacramento county ; George, located in San Luis 
 Obispo county; Joshua, also of Sacramento 
 
#J.«fc^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1153 
 
 county; and Nellie, the wife of A. B. Blair, of 
 Santa Cruz. 
 
 The home of Charles H. Bailey remained in 
 Sacramento county until he was seventeen years 
 old, when he became dependent upon his own 
 resources, with the characteristic self-reliance of 
 the young pioneer. Following his early train- 
 ing he engaged in farming until 1884, being 
 located in Yolo county, going thence to San 
 Joaquin county, where he remained four years. 
 Returning home fie spent some time on the pa- 
 ternal ranch, when, in 1895, he came to Merced 
 county and purchased his present farm. As 
 before mentioned this consists of eighty acres of 
 fine farm land, which is devoted to the culti- 
 vation of alfalfa and grain, while he also suc- 
 cessfully conducts a dairy, which is supplied by 
 twenty-four cows, of graded and thoroughbred 
 stock, in which he takes the greatest pride and 
 interest. Mr. Bailey has made a success in his 
 work and is honored throughout the county for 
 the many sterling traits of character which dis- 
 tinguish him. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Bailey united him with 
 Mrs. Kezziah (Melson) Howell, a widow with 
 one daughter, Zoie, now the wife of H. Davis. 
 Mrs. Bailey was a native of Iowa, and the daugh- 
 ter of James Melson. She died April 21, 1904. 
 By this, union with Mr. Bailey one daughter, 
 Ethel, was born. In his political preferment 
 Mr. Bailey is a Republican and fraternally he 
 affiliates with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows and Native Sons of the Golden West. 
 Always taking an active interest in the advance- 
 ment of the general welfare of the community, 
 Mr. Bailey was an invaluable influence in secur- 
 ing rural delivery for this part of the county. 
 
 WILLIAM HARRISON LOWELL. The 
 earlier settlers of Kern county were brave, sturdy 
 men, of resolute spirit and determination and 
 full of enterprise. Prominent among these 
 pioneer residents stands William Harrison 
 Lowell, who for nearly thirty years has been 
 actively identified with the industrial progress of 
 Bakersfield, and is now one of its most substan- 
 tial and respected citizens. A man of unques- 
 tioned integrity, business tact and , energy, he 
 has achieved success in his undertakings, by 
 strenuous effort and prudent thrift acquiring 
 much wealth, being now one of the leading cap- 
 italists and property owners of this section of 
 the state. A son of William Lowell, he was 
 born April 14, 1841, in Somerset county, Me., be- 
 ing lineally descended from a colonial family of 
 distinction, in New England annals no name 
 standing higher than that of Lowell. 
 
 Reared and educated in Maine, William Lowell 
 worked as a ship carpenter when young, and 
 
 was afterward engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 in his native state, living there four score years. 
 Coming then to Bakersfield, he spent the declin- 
 ing years of his long life with his sons, dying at 
 the advanced age of eighty-four years. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was Mary Tyler, spent her 
 seventy-one years of earthly life in Maine. She 
 was a most estimable woman, and a consistent 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. She 
 bore her husband six sons, namely : Wilmot, a pi- 
 oneer resident of Bakersfield ; Danville, who came 
 to California in early life, and died here at the age 
 of fifty years; WiUiam Harrison, the subject of 
 this sketch; Henry Harrison, of Boston, Mass., 
 a twin brother of William Harrison; John, of 
 Bakersfield ; and Alexis F., also of Bakersfield. 
 
 Brought up on the Maine homestead, William 
 Harrison Lowell acquired his early education in 
 the country schools, and assisted in the care of 
 the home farm until attaining his majority. Jan- 
 uary 14, 1862, he enlisted in the Fourth Battery, 
 Maine Light Artillery, and served for three years 
 with the Army of the Potomac. He was at the 
 front in the battles of the Wilderness, the sec- 
 ond engagement at Bull Run, the battle of 
 Slaughter Mountain, and in many skirmishes of 
 minor importance. Returning home at the close 
 of the war he followed farming during the sum- 
 mer seasons, and in the winter time worked in 
 the lumber camps. 
 
 Migrating to California in 1876, Mr. Lowell 
 worked on a ranch in Kern county with his 
 brothers for awhile, and later, in partnership with 
 them, embarked in the business of sheep raising, 
 being located near Bakersfield. With character- 
 istic enterprise and foresight they bought two 
 hundred and ninety-three acres of land, now 
 known as the Lowell addition to Bakersfield, 
 platted it, laying out streets and town lots, and 
 have since sold the greater part of it, selling to a 
 syndicate for $175 an acre. Prior to platting the 
 land, however, Messrs. Lowell used it for ranch- 
 ing purposes until 1887. These four gentlemen 
 subsequently bought forty acres of land lying 
 three-fourths of a mile from this city, and set it 
 out as an orchard, devoting it especially to the 
 culture of peaches. Messrs. Wilmot and Alexis 
 F. Lowell at the end of five years sold their shares 
 of the orchard to their brothers John and Will- 
 iam, the present owners. 
 
 In partnership with his brother Wilmot, Mr. 
 Lowell owns the entire residence block lying be- 
 tween M and N, and Seventeenth and Eighteenth 
 streets, and containing ten houses. Mr. Lowell 
 has other property of value, having erected two 
 houses on K street, and also owning two houses 
 on Chester avenue, all of which he rents. Money 
 that he has not invested in real estate^ or resi- 
 dences he loans, allowing but little of his capital 
 to lie idle. 
 
1154 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 July 2, 1875, in Maine, Mr. Lowell married 
 Hannah C. Ball, a native of Somerset county, 
 Me., and they have one son, Arthur, living at 
 home. Mrs. Lowell came here with her husband 
 in 1876, and for a few years resided on the 
 ranch, in common with her neighbors enduring 
 hardships and privations unknown in her eastern 
 home. Mr. Lowell is a Republican in politics, 
 and is a member of Hulbert Post No. 127, 
 G. A. R. 
 
 ROBERT M. HOLTBY. While realizing 
 the extent of the difficulties which beset his 
 path, the pioneer sheep raiser of the coast stands 
 forth as a singularly fortunate seeker for inde- 
 pendence, for while his risks were great, his 
 gains also were great, and the freedom of his 
 life, its close association with the elements, and 
 the small demand upon the conventional side of 
 his nature, presents a picture of vigorous oppor- 
 tunity refreshing to the monotonously environed 
 city dweller. Many of the early sheep raisers 
 have indelibly impressed their services upon the 
 past in Kern county, and have assured to their 
 families a share of the opulence of the present. 
 Prominent among these men was Robert M. 
 Holtby, whose shrewd manipulation of crude 
 conditions has caused his name to be identified 
 with sheep raising in both Kern and Tulare 
 counties. His death, March 7, 1892, on the anni- 
 versary of his birth, in Manchester, Canada, 
 March 7, 1847, was deeply regretted, not only 
 because he represented the typically strong per- 
 sonal characteristics of the frontiersmen, but be- 
 cause forty-five years of existence cut short his 
 happiest years. Coming to Bakersfield in 1891, 
 he erected the comfortable house now occupied 
 by his widow, and it was his intention to plant 
 shade trees and lay out the grounds with shrubs 
 and flowers. The latter part of his dream failed 
 of realization, however, but his plans have been 
 since carried out, with the result that the Holtby 
 property is one of the most attractive in the 
 city. 
 
 Of English parentage, Mr. Holtby was reared 
 in Canada, where his father was a large farmer 
 and land owner. He received a practical educa- 
 tion in the public schools, and when nineteen 
 years of age sailed around the Horn to Oregon, 
 and engaged in teaching school for about six 
 months. Discerning the great possibilities of 
 sheep raising, August 26, 1867, he left Oregon 
 and with money giyen him by his father, in- 
 vested in sheep along the White river, Tulare 
 county, Cal., and in time was obliged to pur- 
 chase additional stock and land. His operations 
 finally extended into Kern county, and the ex- 
 tent of his operations may be imagined when it 
 is known that during one winter alone he lost 
 
 six thousand sheep in the deep snow. Notwith- 
 standing this, he continued for many years, off- 
 setting his losses with large gains, and becoming 
 known as one of the most daring and successful 
 raisers in this part of the state. Though his 
 lands were widely scattered, he selected for his 
 home a ranch twelve miles from Bakersfield, on 
 Poso creek, where he lived for several years. 
 One ranch, known as the Troy ranch, a fine prop- 
 erty, where he resided from 1886 until his re- 
 moval to the city, was one of the most valuable 
 and highly cultivated in the county. This was 
 sold in 1891. During his active life Mr. Holtby 
 employed many people on his ranches, and his 
 attitude toward them furnished perhaps the 
 clearest insight into his character. He was al- 
 ways considerate and thoughtful, and had the 
 faculty of inspiring others with his enthusiasm 
 and love of work. As a Republican he was a 
 conscientious voter, but never an office seeker, 
 for his thoroughly honorable and straightfor- 
 ward nature found much that was antagonistic 
 in the manner of securing office. He was of i 
 quiet and reserved nature, but determination and 
 force of character were ever present. His friend- 
 ships covered niany years, and stood every test. 
 May 6, 1880, Mr. Holtby was united in mar- 
 riage with Celia Woodman, a member of an 
 old New England family of English extraction, 
 who was born at Paw Paw, Mich. Mrs. Holtby, 
 who is now the manager of her husband's ex- 
 tensive estate, had excellent educational advan- 
 tages in her youth. She inherits the refinement 
 and strength of character of ancestors who set- 
 tled on the New 'England coast as early as 163S, 
 and her high sense of honor is undoubtedly an 
 additional gift of these religious and liberty lov- 
 ing enthusiasts. One daughter, Roberta, was 
 born to Mr. and Mrs., Holtby. 
 
 LEMUEL W. VAUGHN. Though not a na- 
 tive Californian Mr. Vaughn came to the state 
 at so youthful an age that he knows no other 
 life than that of her native sons. His father, 
 James Vaughn, a native of Virginia, was the 
 first pioneer of the family, emigrating from the 
 Atlantic coast to Missouri when twenty-five 
 years of age and there engaging in the saw-mill 
 business in pursuit of a livelihood. Attracted to 
 the more remote west by the glowing reports of 
 '49, he crossed the plains in that year and en- 
 gaged in mining on the American river, in the 
 first seven weeks washing out $8,000 in gold, by 
 placer mining. He remained in the state two 
 years, continuing a success which sent him back 
 to Missouri in 1851 with considerable wealth, 
 the return trip being made by way of Cape Horn. 
 The following year he again crossed the plains, 
 bringing his family with him. He located in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1155 
 
 Amador county, where he engaged in both placer 
 and quartz mining for twenty years, a greater 
 part of the time being spent on Jackson creek. 
 He is now retired from the active cares of life 
 and makes his home in Shasta county. His wife 
 was in maidenhood Elizabeth Atkinson, also a 
 native of Virginia. 
 
 Lemuel W. Vaughn was born in Missouri 
 March 9, 1848, and was but three years old when 
 he crossed the plains to his western home. He 
 was reared to manhood in Amador county, which 
 was then practically a wilderness, the family for 
 days at a time seeing no one but Indians. As 
 occasion offered he attended school at Jackson 
 in pursuit of an education, but in very youthful 
 years began to follow the occupation of his 
 father, and also found remunerative employment 
 in freighting. With the energy and pluck of 
 the early pioneers, Mr. Vaughn allowed no lack 
 of personal effort to stand in his way of success. 
 May 7, 1869, he arrived in Merced county, hav- 
 ing walked from Stockton, and for the following 
 eight years remained in this county. He worked 
 for wages for two years, when he rented land 
 five miles east of the present location of Merced 
 and engaged in the cultivation of wheat. From 
 this location he went to Shasta county and 
 freighted for seventeen years. Returning to 
 Merced county in 1896 he located on his present 
 ranch, which consists of thirty-three acres one- 
 half mile from Atwater, and seven and a half 
 miles northwest of Merced. This property is given 
 over to the cultivation of alfalfa and fruits, 
 among the latter a variety of grapes, and sweet 
 potatoes, raising of the last named from one 
 hundred and fifty to two hundred sacks to the 
 acre. His home is a comfortable one-story frame 
 house, while the other buildings on the place are 
 substantial and commodious in every respect, the 
 entire ranch presenting an appearance of neat- 
 ness and thrift. In addition to this property Mr. 
 Vaughn has valuable copper-mining interests in 
 Shasta county. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Vaughn occurred in 
 Merced county and united him with Mary E. 
 Upton, a native of New Hampshire, and of this 
 union were born three children : Lemuel, Will- 
 iam and Theresa, the latter the wife of Thomas 
 Upton. Mr. Vaughn is a Democrat in his polit- 
 ical convictions. 
 
 WILLIAM M. CARDEN. During his resi- 
 dence in Kern county, William M. Carden has 
 witnessed many changes for the better, and has 
 himself taken a sufficiently active part to be able 
 to share in the general prosperity of the pres- 
 ent. Although his present home is a leased farm 
 in the Greenfield school district, ten and a half 
 miles south of Bakersfield, the fact that he has 
 
 ceased to be a large land owner indicates a de- 
 sire to avoid responsibility rather than a wish to 
 be less substantially connected with the state of 
 his adoption. Mr. Carden comes of a fine old 
 southern family of English extraction, unex- 
 pectedly launched in America by Sir John Car- 
 den, a large vessel owner, who, with his ship, 
 was captured by the Americans during the war 
 of 1812. Any bitterness which he might have 
 felt on account of this unceremonious handling 
 seems to have disappeared in time, for he set- 
 tled in Georgia, where the grandfather of Wil- 
 liam M. spent many years of his life, and where 
 his son, Thomas J., was born. The family moved 
 to Missouri about 1812, Thomas J. at that time 
 being a young boy, who lived on the home farm 
 until attaining his majority. He married Eliza- 
 beth W. Coker, a native of North Carolina, who 
 was reared and educated in Nashville, Tenn. On 
 the maternal side Mrs. Carden was a Virginian. 
 In time Mr. Carden located with his family in 
 Arkansas, where he bought a tract of ten thou- 
 sand acres with his brother, and engaged in the 
 stock business until the breaking out of the 
 Civil war. The general depression consequent 
 upon the war completely ruined their business, 
 and in 1868 Mr. Carden brought his wife and 
 seven children across the plains, William M., 
 born in Harrison, Carroll county, Ark., May 11, 
 1849, being at that time nineteen years old. The 
 father located on a ranch near Visalia, remain- 
 ing there until his death in August, 1871, at the 
 age of sixty-seven years. In 1874 his widow 
 and the children located near Kernville, Kern 
 county, where the mother died when in her sixty- 
 ninth year. 
 
 William M. Carden began work in earnest af- 
 ter the family came to Kern county, settling on 
 the south fork of the Kern river, and owning 
 about four hundred and eighty acres of land, 
 eventually known as the Carden ranch. The 
 property proved profitable enough, but after the 
 death of his brother in 1893 Mr. Carden became 
 dissatisfied with the place, sold his interest, and 
 purchased the farm upon which he lived until 
 com.ing to his present place in 1902. In the 
 meantime, in 1891, Mr. Carden was united in 
 marriage with Helen J. Vandergaw, a native of 
 Brooklyn, N. Y., and daughter of Cornelius M. 
 and Anna (Sturgeon) Vandergaw. On the pa- 
 ternal side Mrs. Carden is descended from the 
 first settlers of what was then New Amsterdam, 
 now Brooklyn, her remote sires building the first 
 schoolhouse of the place, and eventually own- 
 ing the navy yards. The family was established 
 in San Francisco about 1872, owing to the illness 
 of Mrs. Vandergaw, and in the coast city Mr. 
 Vandergaw engaged in business, but died while 
 on a visit to New York at the age of sixty-six. 
 His wife still continues to live in Oakland, where 
 
1156 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 her children were educated, and where Mrs. Car- 
 den began school teaching at the age of eighteen. 
 For a time she was assistant principal of the 
 Oakland school, until, on account of impaired 
 health, she came to Kern county and taught on 
 the South Fork until her marriage. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Carden have four children: Robert E., 
 Elizabeth A. T., Morris and Sarah J. M. Mr. 
 Carden is a Democrat in politics, but is liberal 
 in his views, and votes for the best man regard- 
 less of political affiliation. He has served as 
 school trustee for a number of years, and has 
 always sought to establish a high standard of 
 instruction in his neighborhood. Since 1876 he 
 has been identified with Bakersfield Lodge No. 
 202, I. O. O. F. Mrs. Carden is a member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 
 THOMAS J. SMITH. Six miles west of 
 Bakersfield, in Kern county, is located the eighty- 
 acre ranch belonging to Thomas J. Smith, who, 
 with his wife — the helpmate of his early life — 
 is passing the evening of his days in peace and 
 plenty, and with the evidence of the country's 
 growth and prosperity all about him. Born in 
 Hempstead county. Ark., November 15, 1834, he 
 was the son of James W. and the grandson of 
 James Smith, the latter being a native of Eng- 
 land who came to the United States when a 
 young man and settled as a farmer on the Hud- 
 son river, in New York state. James W. Smith 
 was reared in Kentucky and in manhood was 
 engaged as a farmer for some years, when he 
 removed to Arkansas and was interested in the 
 cultivation of cotton. He died in Arkansas in 
 1 87 1, at the age of sixty-seven years. He had 
 met with considerable success in all his deal- 
 ings, and at his death was a well-to-do planter 
 of the south. He married Alva Cinda, a native 
 of Missouri, who died at the age of sixty-seven 
 years, the mother of ten children, of whom 
 Thomas J. was the third in order of birth. 
 
 The youth of Thomas J. Smith was spent 
 upon the parental farm in Arkansas, where he 
 remained until reaching his eighteenth birth- 
 day. March 25th of that year he came over- 
 land to California, being one of four to own ox 
 teams, which was their mode of conveyance. Ar- 
 riving at Merced on the i8th of October, 1852, 
 Mr. Smith at once began mining in Mariposa 
 county, continuing in this occupation for about 
 fifteen years. With his earnings he purchased a 
 ranch located ten miles from Mariposa, con- 
 sisting of four hundred acres, which he im- 
 proved and cultivated, devoting the land to hay 
 and stock raising. In 1889 he sold this property, 
 and coming to Kern county became the owner of 
 the eighty-acre ranch which now claims his at- 
 tention and efforts, raising alfalfa and also con- 
 
 ducting a small dairy. When Mr. Smith and 
 his wife first located in Kern county there were 
 but two other houses in the colony, his land be- 
 ing a pre-emption claim, the right to which he 
 purchased at $25 per acre. 
 
 On the 2Sth of December, 1864, Mr. Smith 
 was united in marriage with Mrs. Mary J. Burt, 
 a native of Sevier county, Ark., in which state 
 she was reared. In 1862 she came to California 
 with her parents, Alexander and Mary (Lock) 
 Humphreys, natives respectively of Mississippi 
 and Alabama. The parents located in Los An- 
 geles, but later removed to Mariposa county, 
 where the mother died at the age of seventy and 
 the father at seventy-seven years. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Smith have been born the following chil- 
 dren: J. Albert, who is conducting an engine 
 in the oil fields of Kern county; Wiley C, who 
 is manager of the Rosedale Creamery, at Rose- 
 dale, Kern county ; Thomas M., who is at home ; 
 and Charles G., a talented musician and artist, 
 who is located on a mining claim in Inyo county. 
 By her former marriage Mrs. Smith had one 
 daughter, Isabella Burt, who became the wife of 
 C. E. Coughran, and now lives at Long Beach, 
 Cal. In his political affiliations Mr. Smith is a 
 Democrat, but has never cared for official recog- 
 nition. Fraternally he is identified with the 
 Masons, having been made a member of Mari- 
 posa Lodge No. 24, F. & A. M. Mr. Smith is 
 a member of the Congregational Church, while 
 his wife belongs to the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 GEORGE DAGGETT. Ever since 1878 the 
 name of George Daggett has been identified with 
 ranching in Kern county, where he has improved 
 several properties, and where he still owns a 
 fine ranch of eighty acres five miles south of 
 Bakersfield. Although the land has but recently 
 come into his possession, it shows the conscien- 
 tious care which it has always been his habit to 
 bestow upon whatever he has owned, and at the 
 less arduous stage of his career, furnishes suffi- 
 cient responsibility to keep his mind occupied 
 and his enthusiasm alert. Mr. Daggett has been 
 one of the most active stockmen in Kern county, 
 and is well informed concerning all kinds of 
 stock which flourish in this region. For years 
 he was a member of the stock firm of H. H. Fish 
 & Company, and during this association traversed 
 this entire section, buying, shipping, and raising 
 stock, becoming familiar to everyone in the busi- 
 ness, and both influential and prominent in the 
 development of stock interests in the state. 
 
 In his youth Mr. Daggett had moderate ad- 
 vantages, attending the public schools in Grand 
 Rapids, Mich., near which town his parents re- 
 moved when he was a child from Ingham county, 
 the same state, his birth occurring at Vevay, 
 
^di^c^crO^ cyffp i^^/^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1159 
 
 August 6, 1839. When about twenty-one years 
 old he went to Chicago, 111., to attend school, 
 remaining there until the breaking out of the Re- 
 bellion, when he returned home, and in Sep- 
 tember, 1 86 1, enlisted at Grand Rapids in Com- 
 pany C, P'irst Regiment of Michigan Engineers 
 and Mechanics, serving for twenty-three months. 
 At the end of the service he was discharged at 
 Nashville, Tenn., on account of disability, and 
 subsequently remained on the home farm until 
 1864. The rigors of the war experience had 
 completely undermined his health, and subse- 
 quent out-of-door work failed to restore him to 
 the strength that he sought. Following the ad- 
 vice of friends and physician, he came to Cal- 
 ifcrnia in 1864 and located at Petaluma, Sonoma 
 county, for a time filling a clerkship in a general 
 store. Confinement, however, interfered with 
 his recovery in an ideal climate, and he there- 
 fore turned his attention to ranching near Peta- 
 luma for about eight years. 
 
 In 1878 Mr. Daggett sold his holdings in 
 Sonoma county, and came to Kern county, set- 
 tling near Bakersfield, where he has since lived. 
 His present ranch is on the Kern Island canal, 
 and every foot of it can be irrigated. He is en- 
 gaged in general farming and some fruit rais- 
 ing, and has a comfortable home and a fair 
 share of worldly possessions. However, while 
 fortunes have come and gone Mr. Daggett does 
 not spend time in useless regret, for he has what 
 is better than money, an honored name, and hosts 
 of friends. He is sufficiently high-minded to 
 treasure as his greatest possessions these two 
 evidences of good, faith and integrity, and to look 
 calmly and happily at life, notwithstanding the 
 fact that he is denied the boon of good health, 
 and often finds his tasks a burden. Mr. Dag- 
 gett subscribes to the principles of the Republi- 
 can party, but has never accepted office of any 
 kind. He is well known fraternally, and identi- 
 fied with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
 and is also a mernber of Hulbert Post No. 127, 
 G. A. R. 
 
 JACOB MYER. Noteworthy for his achieve- 
 ments in industrial, business and military circles, 
 Jacob Myer occupies a position of prominence 
 among the public-spirited and progressive resi- 
 dents of San Joaquin county. A veteran of the 
 Civil war, a prosperous agriculturist, and a man 
 of great force of character and strong personal- 
 ity, he is well deserving of honorable mention 
 in a work of this kind, and a brief record of his 
 life will give pleasure to many of its readers. 
 Of strict integrity and high principles, possess- 
 ing broad and enlightened views on all subjects, 
 he has ever been among the foremost in pro- 
 moting the best interests of town and county, 
 
 55 
 
 and has been influential in advancing the educa- 
 tional and moral welfare of the community. A 
 native of Switzerland, he was born August 13, 
 1832, in Ober Endingen, Canton of Aargau, 
 where his parents, Jacob and Elizabeth Myer, 
 spent their entire lives, the father, who was a 
 -farmer, living to the age of seventy-five years. 
 They reared a family of. nine children, of whom 
 five are living, Jacob and two of his sisters being 
 residents of California. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, Jacob Myer 
 attended the public schools of Ober Endingen 
 until fourteen years old, when he began working 
 for wages on neighboring estates. Immigrating 
 to America in 1859, he located first in Seneca 
 county, Ohio, where he pursued his former occu- 
 pation for two years. In 1861, aroused by the 
 same patriotic spirit that inspired the followers 
 of that Swiss hero, William Tell, Mr. Myer of- 
 fered his services in defense of the flag of his 
 adopted country, enlisting in Company H, Fifty- 
 fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and subsequently 
 re-enlisted, serving until the close of the Civil 
 war. He took part in many important engage- 
 ments of the conflict, among them being the fol- 
 lowing : Second battle of Bull Run ; Gettysburg ; 
 Camp Rappahannock; the engagements in the 
 Shenandoah Valley; the battles at Chickamauga, 
 Missionary Ridge and Lookout Mountain; the 
 engagements at Dallas ; at Resaca, where he was 
 wounded in the left hip by a spent ball ; at Peach 
 Tree Creek; Buzzard's Roost; Kenesaw Moun- 
 tain; Lovejoy Station; Jonesboro; the siege of 
 Atlanta; was with Sherman in his march to the 
 sea, and with him entered. Savannah; was sub- 
 sequently with Custer in the battle of Goldsboro, 
 and at the close of the war marched with Sher- 
 man's army in the grand review at Washington. 
 He was honorably discharged, with the rank of 
 corporal, in Cleveland, Ohio, after which he re- 
 sumed work in his former home, Seneca county, 
 Ohio, remaining there several years. 
 
 In 1 871 Mr. Myer was induced by his brother- 
 in-law, Mr. Garrison, a resident of California, 
 then visiting in Ohio, tt> come to this state to 
 settle permanently. Removing, therefore, with 
 his family to San Joaquin county, he bought Mr. 
 Garrison's two hundred and fifty-acre ranch, lo- 
 cated on the Stanislaus river, and embarked in 
 grain and stock-raising. Meeting with eminent 
 success in his agricultural operations, Mr. Myer 
 has since purchased other tracts of land, includ- 
 ing one hundred and sixty acres adjoining his 
 original farm; four hundred acres farther down 
 the river, known as the Bailey ranch ; seven hun- 
 dred acres on the west side, four miles from 
 Los Banos, in Merced county, being now the 
 owner of upwards of fifteen hundred acres, eight 
 hundred and ten acres being in the Stanislaus 
 valley. His Merced county ranch, devoted priti- 
 
1160 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cipally to the raising of grain, he rents, but with 
 the assistance of his sons operates the remainder. 
 On his large and finely cultivated home farm, 
 Mr. Myer has made improvements of a high 
 order, having erected a handsome residence, sub- 
 stantial farm buildings, and set out a family 
 orchard. He has also a fine farm about eight 
 miles cast of Oakdale, through which the Santa 
 Fe Railway passes, affording fine transportation 
 for his farm productions, which are now mar- 
 keted at Riverbank, but one and one-half miles 
 distant, while Stockton, which was formerly the 
 nearest market, is twenty-seven miles away. The 
 wonderful success that has followed Mr. Myer 
 in his undertakings is due entirely to his own 
 strenuous efforts, his industry and energy being 
 apparently unlimited, while his enterprise and 
 ability are unsurpassed. 
 
 In Seneca county, Ohio, Mr. Myer married 
 Kate Snyder, a native of Bavaria, Germany, and 
 they are the parents of five children, namely: 
 Frederick, Sidney and Jacob, assisting in the 
 management of the home farm ; Mrs. Ann Hall, 
 living near the home ranch; and Mrs. Clara 
 Copeland of Copperopolis. Politically Mr. Myer 
 is a .stanch Republican, and an ardent supporter 
 of all temperance reforms. He takes keen in- 
 terest in local aflfairs, and for several terms 
 served as school trustee. Socially he belongs to 
 Grant Post No. 9, G. A. R., of Modesto. Re- 
 ligiously he is a prominent member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church at Birneyville, in which 
 he is now serving as steward, as chairman of 
 the board of trustees and as superintendent of 
 its Sundav-school. 
 
 PHILIP SCOTT. One of the most liberal, 
 enterprising and respected residents of Fresno 
 is Philip Scott, for many years a popular con- 
 ductor on the Southern Pacific Railway, but 
 now a successful vineyardist, and chairman 
 of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors. 
 Coming from good old New England stock, 
 he was born near Joliet, 111., May 3, 1848, a 
 son of the late Jediah H. Scott. His paternal 
 grandfather, Philip Scott, was born and reared 
 in New England, being a cousin of Gen. Win- 
 field Scott, but settled permanently in New 
 York state, where he followed general farm- 
 ing. 
 
 A native of New York state, J. H. Scott was 
 born on an island in the St. Lawrence river. 
 .Succeeding to the independent occupation in 
 which he was reared, he settled in Will coun- 
 ty, 111., taking up land near Joliet, where he 
 improved a farm. In 1852, with his wife and 
 children, he started across the plains with 
 horse teams, also driving a large herd of fine 
 cattl? and horses. Coming along the old 
 
 Placerville route, he stopped over in Carson 
 valley to feed his stock, when the Indians 
 carried away all of his loose cattle and horses. 
 Settling near Sacramento, he bought three 
 hundred acres of land, and was prosperously 
 engaged in the raising of stock and hay until 
 the memorable flood of 1861, when he was 
 drowned out, losing his entire property. Pur- 
 chasing then a small place in Sacramento 
 county, on the American river, he lived there 
 until 1885, when he removed to Amador 
 county, where he followed farming a few 
 years. Coming then to Fresno, he was a resi- 
 dent of this city until his death, in 1895. He 
 married Anna Chamberlain, who was born in 
 Canada, a daughter of Franklin Chamber- 
 lain, a native of Massachusetts, and the de- 
 scendant of an early family of New England. 
 She survived him, and is now living in Fresno. 
 Of the children born of their union the fol- 
 lowing is the record: Franklin was drowned 
 in 185s, aged eleven years; Philip is the sub- 
 ject of this sketch ; Jay, a farmer, was for two 
 terms sheriff of Fresno county; Henry was 
 killed by a mining accident in Tuolumne 
 county ; Ella is a resident of Fresno ; Mrs. 
 Lillie Joy died in Sacramento in 188c; ; Harriet 
 is the wife of Frederick Berry, of San Fran- 
 cisco; Mrs. Alta Prouty is a resident of 
 Fresno ; Benjamin, a farmer, lives in Fresno 
 county; Frank, a farmer, of Fresno, was 
 formerly deputy sheriff; and Mrs. Alice 
 Prouty is a resident of Fresno. 
 
 Coming across the plains with his parents 
 when but four years old, Philip Scott received 
 a practical education in the district schools 
 of Sacramento county, and throughout the 
 days of his boyhood and youth assisted in the 
 farm work. Entering the employ of the Cen- 
 tral Pacific Railway Company in April, 1866, 
 he served as brakeman between Sacramento 
 and Colfax for a year, and was then promoted, 
 becoming conductor on a construction train. 
 Giving up railroad work in 1870, Mr. Scott 
 assisted his father in his agricultural labors 
 for five years. In 1875 he accepted the posi- 
 tion of conductor on the Visalia division of the 
 Southern Pacific Railway, and ran on a freight 
 train between Lathrop and Tulare until 1880. 
 Being then promoted to passenger conductor, 
 he ran from Oakland to Tulare and Bakers- 
 field for ten years, having exceptional suc- 
 cess all the time, meeting with no serious ac- 
 cident. In February, 1890, Mr. Scott went 
 from Bakersfield on a hunting expedition, and 
 Avas shot in the left arm by the accidental dis- 
 charge of the gun of a brother conductor, re- 
 ceiving such an ugly wound that the arm had 
 to be amputated during his journey home in 
 a wagon. Three months later, May 1, 1890, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1161 
 
 he took charge of the local train running be- 
 tween Fresno and Portersville, and served as 
 conductor until April i, 1902, when he re- 
 signed his position, and has since devoted his 
 attention to the care of his finely cultivated 
 vineyard, lying seven miles northeast of 
 Fresno, and containing forty acres. In 1895 
 Mr. Scott took up his residence in Fresno, 
 and opened a livery business, which he man- 
 aged until it was burned out in 1898. In his 
 vineyard he raises grapes of all kinds, making 
 a specialty of raisin grapes, and in addition to 
 his Fresno vineyard owns eighty acres of land 
 in Tulare county. 
 
 In November, 1898, Mr. Scott was elected 
 county supervisor from the third district to 
 fill a vacancy, and in the fall of 1900 was re- 
 elected by a handsome majority for a term of 
 four years, and is now serving as chairman of 
 the board. Under the instruction of the su- 
 pervisors Fresno county is now erecting a 
 new County Hospital at a cost of $90,000, and 
 is building a new steel bridge which will cost 
 $22,000. 
 
 In Sacramento, December 24, 1873, Mr. 
 Scott married Alice Leonard, a native of that 
 city. Her father, the late Albert Leonard, 
 came to California via Cape Horn in 1849, 
 and subsequently married Caroline Merrill, 
 who crossed the plains with her parents in 
 1849, and who is yet a resident of Sacramento. 
 Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Scott four chil- 
 dren have been born, namely : William M., 
 of Fresno, horticultural commissioner for 
 Fresno county ; Jessie, wife of P. B. Donahoo, 
 of Watsonville; Anna, wife of R. G. Barton, 
 manager of the Barton Opera House in 
 Fresno ; and Blanche, wife of J. C. Clark, of 
 Fresno. Politically Mr. Scott is a Republi- 
 can, and fraternally he is a member of the 
 Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. Mrs. 
 Scott is a member of the Christian Science 
 Church. 
 
 WILLIAM UNGER. A son of Frederick 
 and Dora J. Unger, William Unger was born 
 in this state January 3, 1869, and when eleven 
 years old was taken by his parents to Fresno 
 county, where he was reared to manhood. He 
 received a rather limited education in the com- 
 mon school in the vicinity of his home, the 
 greater part of his time being spent in the prac- 
 tical duties of a farmer, to which he was early 
 trained by his father. When twenty years of 
 age he became dependent upon his own re- 
 sources. He put to fruit forty acres of land 
 on the home place on shares, of which twenty 
 acres then became his property. Upon this he 
 built a residence. He sold this farm in 1903, 
 
 and in the same year purchased his present 
 ranch, located four miles northeast of Selma, 
 Fresno county, on the Centerville and Kingsburg 
 ditch. This property consists of forty acres, of 
 which five acres is in vines and thirty acres in 
 fruit trees of various kinds, while he also owns 
 twenty acres devoted to vines in the vicinity of 
 the Fruitvale school. Upon his purchase of the 
 property in 1903, Mr. Unger erected a handsome 
 residence and in every way has sought to beau- 
 tify and improve his home. 
 
 In Fresno county in 1893 Mr. Unger was 
 united in marria,ge with Ada E. De LaGraiige, 
 a native of West Virginia, and they are the 
 parents of two children, Bertha E. and Elwood. 
 Politically Mr. Unger is a Republican, and in 
 the interests of his party is now serving as di- 
 rector in the Fruitvale school district. 
 
 WILLIAM STONEMAN SIMPSON. 
 Prominent among the leading contractors and 
 builders of Stanislaus county is William Stone- 
 man Simpson, an able representative of the in- 
 dustrial interests of Newman. An eminent 
 writer has said, "Never desert your own line 
 of talent. Be what nature intended you for, 
 and you will succeed." Appreciating the thought 
 of this author, Mr. Simpson has measured his 
 own ability, and straightwav followed the path 
 marked out. A native of Illinois, he was born 
 November 26, 1867, in Galena, a son of Thomas 
 and Sarah (Snow) Simpson, receiving the name 
 of "Stoneman" from his mother's mother. Fur- 
 ther parental and ancestral history may be 
 found elsewhere in this biographical volume, in 
 connection with the sketch of his brother, Ed- 
 ward Simpson. 
 
 Removing with his parents to Central City, 
 Colo., in 1871, William S. Simpson there ac- 
 quired his early education, attending the pub- 
 lic schools. From his bovhood he was familiar 
 with mining pursuits, working in the gold mines 
 of Gilpin county and Leadville, Colo., during the 
 summer seasons. He was subsequently em- 
 ployed in timbering during the winters, and in 
 carpentering in summers. Coming to Newman 
 Cal., in September, 1889, Mr. Simpson followed 
 his trade in this locality for several years. In 
 1895 he started in business on his own account 
 as a contractor and builder, for five vears being 
 at the head of the firm of Simpson & Stamper, 
 and since 1900 being senior member of the firm 
 of Simpson & Tompkins. During- all of this 
 time Mr. Simpson has been busily employed, 
 having filled many contracts in Stanislaus and 
 Merced counties, and having erected manv of 
 the larger and more important buildings of New- 
 man, includine among others the Armisted drug 
 store; Tefts building; the bank building; the 
 
1162 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 John Cadoza and Peter Miller residences; the 
 Acme and New Era creameries; the Rosenthal 
 building; the Catholic Church; and his own resi- 
 dence. 
 
 In Newman, Mr. Simpson married Emma Gid- 
 dings, who was born in Stanislaus county, and 
 is a sister of W. W. Giddings, cashier of the 
 Newman bank. Mr. and Mrs. Simpson have 
 two children, namely : John and Vera. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Simpson is an uncompromising Re- 
 publican, having never swerved from the politi- 
 cal faith in which he was reared, and fraternally 
 he is a member of the Knights of Pythias. 
 
 SAMUEL GREGORY. A pioneer high. in 
 the esteem of his fellow citizens is Samuel Greg- 
 ory, who is located on a farm of one hundred 
 and sixty acres two miles west of Portersville, 
 Tulare county. He was born in Cocke county, 
 Tenn., May 23, 1835, a son of William Gregory, 
 also a native of that state. The elder man was 
 a farmer by occupation, who died in 1844, when 
 his son was not quite nine years old. His wife, 
 formerly Susan Meral, was a native of Tenn- 
 essee, and died nearly two years before her hus- 
 band. Of their family of four sons and three 
 daughters, all but one daughter are living. 
 
 Left an orphan at eight years, Samuel Greg- 
 ory was taken into the home of Stewart Har- 
 ris, of Marshall, Saline county, Mo., a saddler 
 and harness maker. He attended the public 
 school, and at the same time learned the trade 
 of saddler. With Mr. Harris he crossed the 
 plains in 1853, the former having made a trip 
 to California in 1849, returning in 185 1, and two 
 years later taking his wife, our subject and his 
 brother, Henry, to the west. The journey was 
 made by way of Fort Bridger, Salt Lake, Hum- 
 boldt and Carson rivers. Upon their safe arrival 
 in the state they located at Woodland, Yolo 
 county, where Mr. Harris engaged in farming 
 and stock-raising. For one year following his 
 arrival in California, Samuel Gregory worked 
 with Mr. Harris, the latter paying him $600 for 
 his services. The following year he engaged 
 in teaming, which occupation he continued for 
 two years. In 1857 he went to Los Angeles and 
 with others bought and brought north a herd of 
 cattle, locating them in Colusa county, where Mr. 
 Gregory took up land. He became the owner 
 of one hundred and seventy acres, which he 
 later sold, engaging in the sheep business jn the 
 foothills of Colusa county, where he bought eight 
 hundred acres. After following this occupation 
 for seven or eight years he located in College 
 City, where he engaged in a mercantile busi- 
 ness with his son, J. G., aiid F. J. Steel, now of 
 Hanford. Later he bought out Mr. Steel, and 
 the firm name was changed to Gregory & Greg- 
 
 ory. This business was continued successfully 
 until 1897, when Mr. Gregory sold out and lo- 
 cated near Portersville, Tulare county, purchas- 
 ing his present farm and engaging in the dairy 
 business and stock-raising. His entire farm is 
 under irrigation, from the Hubbs & Miner Ditch, 
 while Mr. Gregory is also interested in the Cald- 
 well, McGee and Putnam Ditch. 
 
 In Cashville, Yolo county, July 4, 1859, Mr. 
 Gregory was united in marriage _ with Sarah 
 Elizabeth Calmes, born in Clark county, Ky., and 
 a daughter of Fielding and Cassie (Horton) 
 Calmes, of Kentucky. Mr. Calmes was a farm- 
 er in Saline county, Mo., whence he crossed the 
 plains in 1849, returning later and bringing his 
 family to California in 1854. He engaged in the 
 cattle and sheep business in Colusa county, where 
 both himself and wife died. Born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Gregory are the following children : Cas- 
 sie, who died in Colusa, at the age of fourteen 
 years ; Fielding C, a farmer of Maxwell, Cal. ; 
 Lila, the widow of R. H. Mahaffey, now residing 
 with her parents; Belle, the wife of J. M. Kin- 
 cheloe, of Woodland ; Joseph G., a farmer near 
 Portersville; Delia, the wife of W. E. Rise, of 
 Saratoga; H. B., a farmer near Portersville; and 
 Walter, a farmer living at home. Mrs. Gregory 
 is a member of the Christian Church. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Gregory is identified with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, and politically is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 WILLIAM HARLEY LEE. While Mr. Lee 
 is a native of Missouri, nearly his entire life has 
 been passed in California. He has been suc- 
 cessful in his chosen vocation, and this suc- 
 cess is the result of his own labors. Coming to 
 the state many years ago he has been an eye- 
 witness of the rapid growth and development of 
 California, and has taken a prominent part in the 
 improvement of Tulare county. 
 
 Mr. Lee was born October 30, 1849, i" How- 
 ard county. Mo., which was also the birthplace 
 of his father, William Lee. His grandfather 
 was a native of Virginia, and removed from 
 the southern state to Missouri at a very early 
 date. He died when his son was but a small 
 child. After his father's death Wilham Lee was 
 adopted by a Mr. Waite, who raised him as he 
 would an own child. In those days the youth had 
 few of the educational advantages now offered, 
 merely attending the district schools when the 
 work of the farm would allow. Thus his boy- 
 hood was passed, and on reaching man's estate 
 he engaged in farming and tobacco raising, also 
 manufacturing cigars. He was a soldier in the 
 Mexican war, performing the duties of a team- 
 ster. 
 
GEORGE J. WEGMAN 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1165 
 
 In 1850, hearing much of the splendid op- 
 portunities of California and the glorious cli- 
 mate, he determined to seek his fortunes in the 
 far west. Now we would think a journey across 
 the plains with ox teams would be almost im- 
 possible, but in those days it was the only means 
 of getting overland to the coast, and with am- 
 bitious hopes for the future, Mr. Lee bade good- 
 by to home and friends, and with all his earthly- 
 possessions started for the Golden West. On 
 arrival here he first engaged in mining on the 
 Feather and Yuba rivers, meeting with fair suc- 
 cess. He next located in San Jose, Santa Qara 
 county, near which place he engaged in farm- 
 ing. At one time he was the owner of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres where the city of San Jose 
 now stands. After a short residence in the 
 Santa Clara valley he removed to Napa coun- 
 ty, where he remained until 1853, ^^ which time 
 he took up his residence in Tulare county, set- 
 tling in the spring of 1854 near what is now the 
 town of Venus. Here he took up land on the 
 Outside creek, which he improved. He dug the 
 first ditch to be used for irrigation purposes, 
 and it was called the Lee ditch. 
 
 In 1869 Mr. Lee made another change of 
 location, this time removing to the Yokohl val- 
 ley. He purchased railroad land and later pre- 
 empted and homesteaded a tract, owning alto- 
 gether six hundred and forty acres, mostly in 
 the valley. After taking up his residence in 
 the Yokohl valley he became one of the lead- 
 ing farmers and stockmen of the county, con- 
 tinuing to live there until. his death in 1892, 
 at the age of sixty-seven years. 
 
 While still a young man Mr. Lee was united 
 in marriage with Elizabeth Fugit, who was born 
 in Missouri and died in California in 1894. She 
 was the mother of ten children, five of whom 
 are still living, as follows : William H., whose 
 name introduces this review; Charles H., a resi- 
 dent of the Yokohl valley; Joseph F., a farmer 
 and stockman living on the Tula river ; Louisiana, 
 now Mrs. Daly, who lives near Venus ; and May, 
 now Mrs. Dumont, of Yokohl valley. 
 
 William Harley Lee was but a babe in arms 
 when his parents crossed the plains, so that his 
 first remembrance of life is in California. Here 
 he was raised on his father's farm and received 
 his education in the Deep Creek school district. 
 In 1869 he located in the Yokohl valley where he 
 engaged in farming and ' stock-raising. At the 
 age of eighteen he homesteaded the one hundred 
 and sixty acres where he now resides. This 
 place he has improved and placed under a high 
 state of cultivation, making it one of the fin- 
 est ranches in this section of the county. From 
 time to time he has added to his original pur- 
 chase until he now owns eight hundred and sixty 
 acres, most of which is in the valley. In addi- 
 
 tion to farming, Mr. Lee is interested in stock- 
 raising, making a specialty of Short-horn cat- 
 tle. Aside from his farming and stock-raising, 
 Mr. Lee is also engaged in teaming, using eight 
 horses and three wagons to haul talc or soap- 
 stone to Exeter ; he is also interested in various 
 other enterprises. 
 
 In the Yokohl valley Mr. Lee married Miss 
 Livinia Hector, a native of Iowa, and a daughter 
 of John Hector. Six children have been born 
 to them, namely: Nettie Eliza married Samuel 
 Combs, of Yokohl; Emma Louisa, the wife of 
 George Hall, of Chico; Hettie May married 
 Warren Awbery, and died in Exeter in May, 
 1903; Laura Belle, at home; William Edmond 
 of Chico, and Rena Ethel, also living at home. 
 
 Mr. Lee votes the Democratic ticket, but he 
 has never had the time to talce an active inter- 
 est in politics, preferring rather to devote his 
 entire attention to his own business interests. 
 As a result of this application, he has accumu- 
 lated a handsome property, and now he and his 
 estim.able wife have reached the age when they 
 are in a position to enjoy themselves. Both are 
 very popular and have a large circle of friends 
 who wish for them many years of happiness. 
 
 GEORGE JOHN WEGMAN. From the 
 time of his arrival in California until his death 
 more than twenty years later Mr. Wegman was 
 a resident of Tulare county and held an honored 
 position among its energetic farmers. Of Ger- 
 man birth and ancestry, he was born in Hesse- 
 Darmstadt, where his father, Michael, owned a 
 vineyard and winery. The years of his boyhood 
 were spent in the school room and as an assistant 
 to his father, under whose training he learned 
 habits of industry, self-reliance and perseverance 
 of inestimable value to him in later life. Dur- 
 ing early manhood he married Caroline Wenner- 
 hold, who was bom in Kur-Hessen, and was a 
 daughter of Jacob Wennerhold, an officer in the 
 German army. During his service of nineteen 
 years as a soldier he bore a part in the Napo- 
 leonic wars, received many wounds in battle, and 
 participated in the memorable engagement at 
 Waterloo. Subsequent to his honorable dis- 
 charge from- the army he engaged in the hotel 
 business in Germany, remaining there until his 
 death. 
 
 The year 1849 found Mr. Wegman and his 
 wife aboard a sailing vessel crossing the Atlan- 
 tic ocean. Though without means, they had 
 youth and health and hopeful hearts, and to 
 such as these a livelihood is assured in our coun- 
 try. At first Mr. Wegman followed the cooper's 
 trade in Lancaster, Pa., but about 1855 he, went 
 west to the Mississippi river and built a cooper's 
 shop at Warsaw, Hancock county, 111., where 
 
1166 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he remained for some years, also engaged in 
 farming. After the close of the war in 1865, 
 he removed to Wisconsin and took up a farm 
 ih Jefferson county. From there, in May of 
 1875, he came to the- Pacific coast region and 
 settled in Tulare county, where he bought land 
 three miles northeast of Visalia, on Elbow creek. 
 In addition to raising crops suited to the soil 
 and climate he engaged in the stock business, 
 and met with a fair degree of success through 
 his industrious. efforts. On this homestead his 
 death occurred December 29, 1896, when he was 
 seventy-five years of age. A few years later, 
 on the same home place, occurred the death of 
 his wife, who passed away June 24, 1903, aged 
 eighty-two years, five months and twenty-three 
 days. In religious belief she was a sincere mem- 
 ber of the German Reformed Church, and 
 through a long life exemplified in character the 
 doctrines she upheld. Four children comprised 
 her family, namely : Caroline, wife of Andrew 
 Belz ; Theo., who died in Wisconsin at fourteen 
 years of age ; Eliza Otelia, who cared for her 
 parents until their death and since then has con- 
 tinued on the old homestead with the Belz 
 family ; and Mathilda, whO' died in California at 
 eighteen years of age. 
 
 ANDREW BELZ. As indicated by the name, 
 the Belz family is of German extraction, the 
 ancestral home having been in Germany as far 
 back as the records can be traced. The first of 
 the family to establish a home in the United 
 States was Christopher Belz, a Saxon by birth 
 and a machinist by trade, who', during 1854, 
 crossed the ocean to America and settled in 
 Rome, N. Y., following his trade in that city 
 until his death. His wife, who bore the maiden 
 name of Margaret Schnuer, was a native of 
 Saxony and died in the home of her son, Andrew, 
 at the advanced age of eighty-nine years. In 
 religious belief Christopher Belz and wife were 
 faithful adherents of the Lutheran Church, and 
 contributed to its maintenance as their means 
 permitted. They were the parents of four chil- 
 dren, of whom Andrew, the eldest was the only 
 one to settle in California. He was born in Saxe- 
 Meiningen, Germany, January 31, 1832. During 
 boyhood he learned the machinist's trade under 
 the supervision of his father, whom in 1854 he 
 accompanied to Rome, Oneida county, N. Y. 
 Later he removed to Jefferson county. Wis., 
 where he followed his trade. The year 1865 
 found him a pioneer of Visalia, Cal, where he 
 followed the blacksmith's trade. 
 
 Returning to Wisconsin in 1874 Mr. Belz was 
 there united in marriage with Miss Caroline Weg- 
 man, with whom he established a home in Visalia. 
 After his marriage he built a blacksmith's shop 
 
 and followed the trade in Visalia. During 188^ 
 he discontinued work at his trade and on the 
 site of the shop, near the Southern Pacific depot, 
 erected the Pacific lodging house, which still 
 stands. For some years he has made his home 
 on the Wegman estate, three miles from town. 
 This property is largely under alfalfa and is 
 rented for a dairy and stock farm. Excellent 
 irrigation facilities are furnished by the Mathews 
 ditch, in which the family are financially- inter- 
 ested. In politics Mr. Belz votes the Republican 
 ticket, while in religious connections he and his 
 wife, as well as Miss Wegman, are believers in 
 the faith which Dr. Martin Luther established 
 during the stormy period of the Reformation. 
 In the Belz family there are three children. The 
 older son, George Andrew, is a graduate of the 
 San Jose State Normal School with the class of 
 1902 and at this writing teaches school in Kern 
 county. The younger son, Frank Arthur, is a 
 student in Santa Clara College, and the only 
 daughter, Eliza M., remains with her parents 
 on the homestead. 
 
 CHESTER DUSY. Among the native-born 
 citizens of Fresno county conspicuous for their 
 ability and worth is Chester Dusy, a rising 
 young druggist of Selma. He comes of pioneer 
 stock, being a son of the late Frank Dusy, and 
 was born April 22, 1875, in Selma, of Canadian 
 ancestry. Frank Dusy, a native of Canada, re- 
 moved to the States when a lad of twelve years, 
 and was brought up and educated in Maine, liv- 
 ing near Penobscot. After learning the trade of 
 stone-cutter he worked as a journeyman a few 
 years, receiving fair wages. Following the tide 
 of emigration westward in 1852, he came to 
 California in pursuit of gold, and for a number 
 of years thereafter was engaged in mining near 
 LaGrange, in Stanislaus county. Removing to 
 Fresnp county in 1869, he bought one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land lying three miles north 
 of Selma, and first embarked in business as a 
 sheep-raiser, subsequently setting out a vineyard, 
 which he managed with good success. Going to 
 Sunrise City, Alaska, in 189/I, he prospected and 
 mined there for a while, and then returned to 
 Selma, where he lived until his death in 1898, at 
 the age of sixty-nine years. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Catherine Ross, was born in 
 Nova Scotia and died in Selma, on the home 
 ranch, in 1894, aged forty-three years. 
 
 The oldest child of the parental household, 
 Chester Dusy, attended the public schools of 
 Selma during the days of his boyhood and 
 youth, receiving his diploma at the high school 
 in 1894. Desirous then of becoming a pharma- 
 cist, he worked for two years in the drug store 
 of Webster Brothers, and, was subsequently in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 116? 
 
 the employ of E. A. Cutler, druggist, in Fresno 
 two years. Continuing then his studies at the 
 California College of Pharmacy, Mr. Dusy was 
 graduated from that institution in 1901. In 
 January of that year he started in business on 
 his own account, forming a partnership with 
 Mark A. Sawrie, with whom he has since been 
 associated. This enterprising firm has one of 
 the finest stores of its kind in the city, and en- 
 joys a large and lucrative patronage. 
 
 Mr. Dusy married, in Selma, Annette M. 
 Levis, who was born and bred in Farmersville, 
 Cal. Politically Mr. Dusy supports the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party. Fraternally he is 
 a member of Selma Lodge No. 277, F. & A. M. ; 
 of Selma Qiapter, O. E. S. ; of Selma Circle, 
 W. O. W. ; and of Selma Lodge, F. of A. 
 
 GEORGE G. MURRY. A leading attorney 
 of Portersville, George G. Murry is numbered 
 among the representative professional men of 
 that city, his position being won by the ability 
 which has characterized his efforts. He is like- 
 wise distinguished as the son of one of the first 
 settlers of the Tula river section, J. P. Murry, 
 known for nearly forty years as one of the most 
 prominent stockmen of this vicinity. He made 
 and lost several fortunes in the stock business, 
 at his death, however, leaving considerable prop- 
 erty to be divided among his heirs. He was one 
 of the best known and honored of the early citi- 
 zens of the tfountry, still retaining a place in the 
 affections of those who remember him, although 
 his death occurred some years ago. By mar- 
 riage he allied himself with a prominent family 
 of Tulare county, Martha Keeney becoming his 
 wife. She was the daughter of John R. Keeney, 
 a pioneer millwright, who helped build the old 
 flour mills of Portersville, later becoming sole 
 proprietor until his death. He was prominent 
 in public affairs in the county, serving in 1855 
 as county recorder and later as county clerk. 
 Mrs. Murry died June 10, 1900, having survived 
 her husband a little less than a year. 
 
 George G. Murry is the only living child of 
 his parents. He was born in Visalia March 24, 
 1867, his childhood being spent in Portersville 
 and vicinity. He learned the stock business thor- 
 oughly, in all its details, under the capable in- 
 struction of his father, with whom he remained 
 associated until 1884. That year he went to New 
 Mexico, and for three years acted as superinten- 
 dent of a ranch owned by George Hearst and 
 J. B. Haggin. Returning then to Portersville, 
 he engaged as a clerk in the store of R. Porter 
 Putnam, and later for R. W. McFarland. De- 
 ciding to take up the study of law, he entered 
 Vanderbilt University, of Nashville, Tenn., in 
 1893, taking a two years' course. Returning 
 
 home he continued to assist his father until the 
 fall of 1896, when he was admitted to practice 
 before the Supreme Court, and opened an office 
 in Portersville. With the exception of four years 
 — from January, 1899, to January, 1903, when he 
 filled the appointment of j. A. Allen to the office 
 of deputy district attorney — he has since con- 
 ducted a general practice in Portersville and has 
 met with a gratifying success. In the fall of 
 1902, in the Republican convention, he was unan- 
 imously nominated for district attorney, but in 
 the election that followed was defeated, as the 
 county went overwhelmingly Democratic. How- 
 ever, he carried his home town by a majority 
 of two hundred and forty-five, an increase of 
 more than two hundred over the usual Republi- 
 can majority. Since opening his law office in 
 1903 he has gained the principal clientele of Por- 
 tersville and vicinity, where he holds high rank 
 for his ability, tact and talent in the line of 
 his profession. Throughout his career he has 
 been associated with Judge J. A. Allen in all 
 superior court work. Mr. Murry is also a mem- 
 ber of the county central committee, and is state 
 committeeman for Tulare county, his work in 
 the councils of the party wielding no little in- 
 fluence for the advancement of the principles he 
 endorses. 
 
 Mr. Murry also owns a ranch of two hundred 
 and forty acres adjoining Portersville, a part 
 of the original Murry homestead, where he still 
 engages in the stock business. On this property 
 is located the Portersville Golf grounds, Mr. 
 Murry being a member of the club. Fraternally 
 he was made a Mason in Portersville Lodge No. 
 303, and also belongs to the Order of the Eastern 
 Star. He is identified with Visalia- Parlor No. 
 19, Native Sons of the Golden West. 
 
 PRESTON LEANDER BOZEMAN is a na- 
 tive of California, first seeing the light of day 
 near Hanford, in what is now Kings coimty. He 
 was born October 14, 1865. His father, J. W. 
 Bozeman, was born in Mississippi, which state 
 was also the birthplace of his father, Thomas 
 J., who was a large planter and who came to 
 California in 1852, crossing the plains with ox- 
 teams. He was the first man to pitch a tent at 
 the town of Bozeman, which was named in his 
 honor. Later he took up his residence near what 
 is now the town of Kingston, where he died at 
 an advanced age. 
 
 J. W. Bozeman, the father of Preston L., ac- 
 companied his father in the journey across the 
 plains, reaching the Golden State in 1852. For 
 a time he was engaged in the sheep business, 
 but in 1875 settled near Lemoore, where he pur- 
 chased a ranch and became interested in the 
 
1168 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 grain and stock business. Success crowned his' 
 efforts so that he is now able to enjoy his old 
 age, living in a comfortable home in Hanford. 
 
 Miss Susan Hendrey became Mr. Bozeman's 
 wife. She was born in Indiana, a daughter of 
 Isaac Hendrey, who crossed the plains in the 
 early days with his family. Reaching California 
 a settlement was made in San Bernardino coun- 
 ty, where he lived the balance of his life. His 
 wife survived him and died in Hanford in 1900. 
 
 Mrs. Bozeman was the mother of eight chil- 
 dren. The eldest in this large family was Pres- 
 ton L. Bozeman. His boyhood was passed on 
 the farm near Lemoore, attending the district 
 schools when the work of the farm would per- 
 mit. Remaining at home until he had reached 
 his twenty-first year, he then engaged in farm- 
 ing near his boyhood home, where he remained 
 for three years. At the expiration of this time 
 he removed" to Fresno county, locating in the 
 Coast Range mountains, where he lived for the 
 following two years. He then went to Armona, 
 where he engaged in the fruit business for two 
 years. In 1895 he came to Exeter, where he 
 purchased land and engaged in the orange grow- 
 ing business. He also went to work for others, 
 at one time having the care of one hundred and 
 sixteen acres. He erected his present residence 
 in 1904. In addition to his seven-acre home 
 tract, he owns ten acres near his home. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Bozeman was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Lizzie Hill, a native of Mis- 
 souri and a daughter of R. M. C. Hill, who is 
 now living retired in Visalia. Mrs. Bozeman is 
 the mother of five children, namely: Ethel, 
 Claude, Meady, Robert and Carl. 
 
 In politics ,Mr. Bozeman is a Democrat, while 
 fraternally he is a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World. Here where he is best known he 
 has a large circle of friends. His life thus far 
 has been a success and this is the result of his 
 own efforts. 
 
 ALLAN McGregor, a member of the firni 
 of Henderson & McGregor, of Lindsay, Tulare 
 county, came to California in 1884 ^nd has 
 since won for himself a position of prominence 
 among the enterprising citizens of this com- 
 munity. He was born in Ontario, near Ottawa, 
 December 21, 1851, a son of Peter McGregor, 
 a native of Perthshire, Scotland, who immi- 
 grated from his native land in young man- 
 hood, locating in Ontario, where he followed 
 farming for a livelihood. He married Ann Stew- 
 art, also of Perthshire, Scotland, and both him- 
 self and wife are now deceased. They became 
 the parents of five sons and three daughters, 
 of whom three sons and three daughters are now 
 living. 
 
 Next to the youngest in his father's family, 
 Allan McGregor was reared to young manhood 
 among the scenes of his birth. At the age of 
 four years he began an attendance of the public 
 school in the vicinity of his home, after the com- 
 pletion of which course he entered a grocery 
 store in Sarnia, Ontario, preparatory to learning 
 the details of the business. Later he traveled 
 through various parts of Ontario and the United 
 States, finally emigrating to California in 1884. 
 He located first in San Jose, where he engaged 
 in farming, making that locality his home until 
 1895. In the last named year he came to Lind- 
 say and two years later bought an interest with 
 Mr. Henderson in the general merchandise busi- 
 ness, which they now conduct. Mr. McGregor 
 is also interested in orange growing and takes 
 a strong interest in both the commercial and 
 horticultural possibilities of the section. Po- 
 litically he is a Republican and fraternally is a 
 member of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JOHN ROY HEPBURN. A native of Illi- 
 nois, Mr. Hepburn was born at Saybrook, Mc- 
 Lean county, September 27, 1874. His father, 
 John, was born in Scotland, and on coming to 
 this country settled in Saybrook. By occupa- 
 tion he was a stationary engineer. At the out- 
 break of the Civil war he enlisted in an Illinois 
 regiment and served until the close of hostili- 
 ties. On his return to Saybrook, he again took 
 up his occupation of engineer which he con- 
 tinued to follow until October, 1874, when he 
 was killed by an explosion, caused by some one 
 tampering with the engine during a short ab- 
 sence. 
 
 Mr. Hepburn married Elizabeth Smith Mur- 
 phy, a native of Pennsylvania, and a daugh- - 
 ter of Joseph Murphy, who migrated from Penn- 
 sylvania to Illinois, where he followed farming. 
 Mrs. Hepburn now resides in Los Angeles. She 
 is connected with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church and is engaged in missionary work. 
 
 John Roy Hepburn is the youngest of two 
 children, his older brother now living in Ala- 
 meda. In 1882 the Hepburn family removed to 
 Highmore, Hyde county, S. D., where the moth- 
 er had homesteaded a fine farm. Here our sub- 
 ject was reared, attending the public schools, 
 and later taking a course in the Mitchell Busi- 
 ness College. 
 
 In 1890 he came to California, first locat- 
 ing in San Jose. There he entered the employ 
 of Hugh Holthouse, a farmer and liveryman, 
 with whom he remained eight years. At the 
 expiration of this time, in 1898, he removed to 
 Lindsay, where he began budding oranges for 
 K. H. Platte. Continuing with Mr. Platte and 
 Mr. Baggs until 1901 he secured a position with 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1171 
 
 the Moore Orange orchard, where he remained 
 until Alarch, 1904. He then accepted his pres- 
 ent position, that of superintendent of the Giafit 
 Oak Fruit Company, near Exeter. Here he 
 has charge of four hundred and forty acres, 
 three hundred and forty acres of which are de- 
 voted to fruit. It is said to be the finest fruit 
 orchard in the county, and under his supervi- 
 sion satisfactory results are being obtained. 
 
 While in San Jose, Mr. Hepburn was united 
 in marriage with Miss Lillie Foster, a native 
 of Vacaville. Three children are the result of 
 this union: Budd, Merle and Ruth. Being of 
 a saving disposition he has become the owner 
 of eight acres of land where the town site of 
 Lindsay is located. In Mr. Hepburn Tulare 
 county has a man who will surely make his way 
 and become one of the influential citizens. 
 
 BENJAMIN L. ROADCAP. The land which 
 forms the present homestead of Mr. Roadcap lies 
 on the St. Johns river in Tulare county and 
 comprises eighty-three acres of the old Henry 
 Perkins estate. Through an excellent system 
 of sub-irrigation the proper amount of moisture 
 can be furnished to the growing crops, but no 
 necessity for flooding the land has arisen. Corn 
 and alfalfa are the principal crops, several hun- 
 dred tons of the latter product furnishing each 
 year ample feed for the stock on the place, besides 
 giving the owner considerable hay to place upon 
 the market. The raising and feeding of hogs 
 he has made his specialty, and at times there 
 have been as many as four hundred head of fine 
 grade Poland-Chinas in his feed yards. 
 
 The Roadcap family is of old Virginian stock. 
 Emanuel Roadcap, a native of that common- 
 wealth, was a soldier in the war of 1812, after 
 which he took up farm pursuits. George, son 
 of Emanuel, was also of Virginian birth and 
 proved his patriotic spirit by serving in the 
 Union army during the Civil war. Later he 
 removed to Texas and settled on a farm near 
 Dallas, subsequently removing to Trinidad, Colo., 
 and eventually coming to California, where he 
 died at the home of his son Benjamin in 1902, 
 at seventy-one years of age. By his marriage 
 to Lean Ritchie he was united with an old Vir- 
 ginian family, her father having been a farmer 
 in that state. She still survives and makes her 
 home with her only child, Benjamin L., near Vi- 
 salia. The latter was born at Harrisburg, Va., 
 August 14, 1856, and as a boy received such 
 advantages as neighboring schools afforded. In 
 1880 he ventured upon farm pursuits in Texas, 
 but five years later went to Trinidad, Colo., where 
 he engaged in general contracting. Going to 
 Salt Lake City in 1891 he was there employed 
 for three years as superintendent of streets. The 
 
 year 1895 found him in California, where he has 
 since made his home on the Perkins farm in Tu- 
 lare county, at first renting the place, and in 
 January, 1904, acquiring a part of the homestead 
 by purchase. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Roadcap took place 
 in old Virginia and united him with Florence 
 Koogler, who was a native of that state, and 
 who died in Tulare county in 1900. The chil- 
 dren of their union are as follows: Gilbert 
 Floyd, who is interested in baling hay in partner- 
 ship with his father; Effie Lee, wife of John 
 D. Martin, of Visalia; Leslie Bernard, Wonda 
 Virginia and Harry Niles, who reside on the 
 home place. Mr. Roadcap's second marriage was 
 solemnized in Watsonville, Cal., and united him 
 with Sina Maggie Clauson, a native of that 
 place, and a daughter of Hans and Sina M. Clau- 
 son, natives of Denmark and honored citizens of 
 Watsonville, where the mother died in young 
 womanhood. Though not a partisan in opin- 
 ions, Mr. Roadcap is known among acquaintances 
 as a pronounced Republican, ready to give his 
 time and influence to the party's support. The 
 Woodmen of the World receive his allegiance 
 and he in turn is the recipient of such advantages 
 as the order confers upon its members. While 
 the period of his residence in Tulare county has 
 been comparatively brief, covering less than a 
 decade, he has gained a success that is as com- 
 mendable as it is gratifying, and at the same time 
 he has built up a large circle of friends among 
 the people of his part of the county. 
 
 ELEMUEL M. MILLS. Though a resident 
 of the San Joaquin valley but a brief period, Mr. 
 Mills has successfully established himself in an 
 assured position of financial and social promi- 
 nence, having already identified his interests 
 with those of the upbuilding forces of the com- 
 munity. He is located two miles northeast of 
 the city of Merced, and with his wife is owner 
 of the magnificent ranch widely known as the 
 Sells property, toward the development of which 
 $80,000 has been spent in the past few years. 
 T?he property consists of one hundred and fifty 
 acres, given over entirely to horticultural pur- 
 suits, among the fruits successfully produced in 
 this section being lemons, oranges, peaches, 
 plums, figs, apricots, pomegranates, almonds, 
 English walnuts, and in fact about every variety 
 known to the California horticulturist. The 
 splendfd management which Mr. Mills has exer- 
 cised since taking possession of the ranch has 
 increased its value, an evidence of which lies in 
 the superiority of the fruit produced, the quan- 
 tity as well as quality, and the rank which his 
 property takes among the best equipped and 
 most productive of the county. No encomium is 
 
1172 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 needed upon the ability of Mr. Mills, for his 
 work has already proved itself, and he is to-day 
 numbered among the representative horticultur- 
 ists of Merced county. 
 
 Of sturdy eastern stock, Elemuel M. Mills 
 was born in Lancaster county, Pa., September 
 22, i860. His father, Nathaniel B. Mills, was a 
 native of Pennsylvania, in which state his father, 
 also named Nathaniel B., settled when he emi- 
 grated from his English home. Nathaniel B. 
 Mills, Jr., was a man of remarkable business 
 judgment and foresight, and in Pennsylvania 
 became the owner of large freighting teams, with 
 headquarters at Pittsburg and operating to va- 
 rious adjacent points. He also had extensive 
 interests in copper mines in his native state, and 
 owned considerable real estate in Lancaster, his 
 home. In addition to the business judgment and 
 ability which was his by inheritance he was also 
 equipped with a trade, being an expert mechanic. 
 In 1861 he enlisted in Company H, Ninety-sev- 
 enth Regiment, Ohio Infantrj-, in which com- 
 pany he served during the war, in the course of 
 time being raised -to the rank of first Heutenant, 
 and in 1 87 1 he secured the contract for the deliv- 
 ery of mail in Coshocton county, Ohio, removing 
 to that location where he also purchased farming 
 lands. He died in Ohio in 1897, at the age of 
 seventy-seven years. In Pennsylvania he mar- 
 ried Sarah Hagans, also a native of that state. 
 In his political convictions Mr. Mills was a 
 Democrat. He was a man of much erudition, 
 as well as practical ability, both of which were 
 visible in his life work. 
 
 Until he was seventeen years of age, Elemuel 
 M. Mills remained at home, when he went to 
 Columbus, Ohio, a distance of one hundred and 
 twenty-five miles from his birthplace, with the 
 intention of entering good schools and fitting 
 himself for his lifework. During vacations he 
 taught in the public schools, thus earning money 
 to pay his own way in the pursuit of an educa- 
 tion. He graduated from Reynpldsburg high 
 school, after which he entered the National Nor- 
 mal University, by which he was graduated in 
 the College of Science, continuing as student and 
 teacher until 1885. He then located in Indian- 
 ola, Iowa, and secured an interest in a mercan- 
 tile business with which he remained connected 
 for three years. During this time he was elected 
 principal of the Carlisle school and served with 
 credit to himself and those who gave him their 
 support. Returning to Ohio in 1888 he entered 
 Chautauciua College, from which institution he 
 was graduated with honors in 1892, after which 
 he taught in his native state for eight years. In 
 1900 he engaged in his first real estate transac- 
 tion, disposing of some property belonging to 
 the family at Columbus. In the same year he 
 came to California and in Merced county took 
 
 charge of a $3,000 fruit crop, which was his 
 first experience as an orchardist. In the follow- 
 ing year he engaged with J. H. Rucker & Co., 
 a real estate firm in San Jose, and in a very short 
 time had made a record as a salesman, now being 
 considered one of the best real estate men in 
 the valley. In one month he sold eight thousand, 
 two hundred acres of land in the San Joaquin 
 valley to eastern people, in tracts of from forty 
 to three thousand acres. . He is now connected 
 with the A. N. Town Company, of San Fran- 
 cisco. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Mills, which occurred in 
 Ohio in 1883, united him with Carrie B. Behm, 
 also a native of Ohio and the daughter of Joseph 
 and Barbara A. (Helsel) Behm. The father 
 was a native of Pennsylvania, which was also 
 the location of .the maternal ancestry, the ma- 
 ternal grandfather, Philip Helsel, being a native 
 of the state, whence he removed to Ohio in 1801 
 and became the owner of considerable property 
 in and about Columbus. To Mr. and Mrs. Mills 
 were born the following children : Ross M., 
 now a student of Stanford University; Harry 
 B., Edna F., and Sarah V. In his political con- 
 victions Mr. Mills believes as his father did 
 and is a stanch adherent of the principles of the 
 Democratic party. He is a member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church. 
 
 JAMES BUCHANAN JORDAN. A native 
 son of the state, James Buchanan Jordan was 
 born in Monterey county, near San Juan, No- 
 vember 27, 1856, the youngest in a family of 
 twelve children, six of whom are living. His 
 father, John Jordan, was a native of Illinois and 
 a '49er, for more complete details concerning 
 whose life refer to the sketch of E. F. Jordan, 
 which appears on another page of this work. 
 Since 1857 he has made his home in Tulare coun- 
 ty, living first on Chattan's Slough and later on 
 the Kaweah. Plis father being engaged in the 
 stock business, his boyhood years were spent on 
 a farm, while he attended the district school. 
 He remained at home until he was twenty-one 
 years old, when he went to Arizona and spent 
 six years in prospecting and mining in Globe and 
 Silver King. In 1883 he returned to Tulare 
 county and located east of Exeter, where he en- 
 gagecl in the raising of grain on from five hun- 
 dred to three thousand a'cres of land. He used 
 as high as six six-horse teams, and also bought 
 and conducted a combined harvester, meeting 
 with gratifying success in his efforts. He even- 
 tually purchased land, first buying two hundred 
 and forty acres of the northeast half of sec- 
 tion 25, township 18, range 26, and eighty acres 
 of the south half of the northwest quarter of 
 section 35, township 18, range 26. He still 
 
HtiSf OlilCAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1173 
 
 6wns this property, but leases it. In 1899 he 
 located in Yokohl valley, where he owns twen- 
 ty-six hundred acres, all fenced and in one body, 
 and used for stock-raising and general farming 
 purposes, seven hundred acres being under plow. 
 In Kern county, where he made his home from 
 1886 to 1 89 1, he owns three hundred and twen- 
 ty acres, which he rents. 
 
 In Bakersfield, Kern county, Mr. Jordan was 
 united in marriage with Ellen Myers, on the 23d 
 of March, 1893. She was born in San Diego, 
 Cal., the daughter of Joseph Myers, who was 
 born in Illinois and came to California in the 
 '50S. He now resides on Dry creek, Tulare coun- 
 ty, with his wife, formerly Matilda Fancher, a 
 native of California. They were the parents of 
 thirteen children, twelve of whom are living, 
 Mrs. Jordan being the fifth in order of birth and 
 being reared to young womanho^od in Tulare 
 county. To Mr. and Mrs. Jordan have been 
 born six children, namely : Claude Allen, Grace 
 May, James Earl, Harvey Hampton, and twins, 
 Preston Scott and Ethel Fern. Mr. Jordan is a 
 Democrat in his political convictions and has 
 been active in his efiforts to promote the prin- 
 ciples he endorses. He served as a member of 
 the county central committee, and for some time 
 was trustee of the schools in the Kaweah and 
 Yokohl districts. Fraternally he was made an 
 Odd Fellow in Kern county and is now a mem- 
 ber of the lodge in Exeter. 
 
 DR. N. W. WILLIAMS. Born in Ogdens- 
 burg, N. Y., Dr. N. W. WiUiamS is the son of 
 Nelson and Mary (Shapee) Williams. The fath- 
 er was born in Liverpool, England, and the 
 mother in Paris, France. They were farmers 
 near Ogdensburg, N. Y., where their death oc- 
 curred. 
 
 Dr. Williams was reared on the farm, having 
 the advantages of the district schools. He spent 
 some time in a store and then served a three 
 years' appr€hticeship at the blacksmith's trade. 
 Not finding it to his liking he came to Oak- 
 land, Cal., in 1874. He became interested in 
 photography and soon was an excellent retoucher 
 of negatives. While following that business he 
 became interested in the study of medicine un- 
 der Dr. D. D. Crowley, and in due time entered 
 the California Medical College, where he was 
 graduated in 1884, with the degree of M. D. He 
 practiced at Lemoore, now Kings county, for a 
 period of three years and then located at Traver, 
 Tulare county, when that town was at its zenith. 
 He had a successful practice there until Febru- 
 ary, 1903, when he located in Lindsay, where 
 he erected a residence and office and follows his 
 chosen profession. 
 
 Dr. Williams is a stockholder in, the Lindsay 
 
 Rochdale Association. He is a iover of fine 
 horses and owns Dr. W., one of the finest bred 
 and best horses in the state. His first season's 
 record of 2 107^ was made at Sacramento in 1904. 
 Dr. W. was sired by Robert Basler, and his dam 
 was sired by Sacramento, the son of Monroe 
 Chief, and is only four times removed from Ham- 
 bletonian, No. 10. 
 
 Dr. Williams was made a Mason in Pots- 
 dam, N. Y., and is now a member of the lodge 
 at Traver. He is a stanch Republican, and is an 
 active member of the California State Eclectic 
 Medical Association. Mrs. Dr. Williams was 
 Zerelda Pitzer, born in Mariposa county, Cal., 
 and is a lady of much culture and refinement. 
 
 CHARLES E. MACKEY. The Main liv- 
 ery stable has for one of its proprietors Charles 
 E. Mackey, one of the enterprising and worthy 
 young men of Exeter, and one who bids fair to 
 be named among the most successful business 
 men of this section. Born in Rockbridge, Ozark 
 county. Mo., December 20, 1871, he is the son 
 of Archie Mackey, a native of Indiana who set- 
 tled in Missouri at an early day and became 
 a farmer. During the Civil war he served 
 valiantly for three years, after which he removed 
 to Jackson county, Ark., and followed farming 
 until his death in 1876, just on the eve of his 
 departure for California. His wife, formerly 
 Penelope Hawkins, was a native of Gentry coun- 
 ty. Mo., and a daughter of Joseph Hawkins, an 
 old settler of the state who died in Gentry 
 county. After her husband's death Mrs. Mackey 
 returned to Ozark county, Mo., purchased a 
 farm and reared her family to useful manhood 
 and womanhood. Of her ten children five are 
 now living, Charles E. Mackey being the young- 
 est and the only one in California. 
 
 Charles E. Mackey was reared on his mother's 
 farm in Missouri, attending the district schools 
 until assuming the responsibilities of manhood. 
 When but little more than seventeen years old 
 he came to California, in Visalia entering the 
 employ of J. V. Hufifaker for a time, and after- 
 ward being employed in the Driving Park with 
 diflferent horsemen. In 1892 he went to Yokohl 
 valley and engaged in farming and stock-rais- 
 ing for four years, in January, 1896, locating 
 in Exeter and buying the only livery business 
 of the place. Since that time he has conducted 
 the same with constantly increasing success, in 
 1903 taking in a partner in the person of A. L. 
 Montgomery, the firm now being known as 
 Mackey & Montgomery. In 1904 they built a 
 barn, the dimensions of which are 120x50 feet, 
 with an ell measuring 60x75 feet, thorough in 
 all its equipments, and being well supplied with 
 fine horses and vehicles. For several years, 
 
1174: 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 previous to the building of the spur, Mr. Mackey 
 conducted a four-horse stage line between Visaha 
 and Exeter, and met with a splendid success in 
 the enterprise. 
 
 In Yokohl valley Mr. Mackey was united in 
 marriage with Lou Hawkins, a native of Georgia, 
 and they have one child, Aubrey. Mrs. Mackey 
 is a member of the Christian Church, and sup- 
 ports every movement in its interest. Fraternally 
 Mr. Mackey is affiliated with the Knights of 
 Pythias and Woodmen of the World, of Exeter. 
 Politically he is a stanch Democrat and is active' 
 in the support of the principles he endorses. In 
 1898 he was elected constable and served for 
 four years, at the end of that period refusing 
 a re-nomination. In July, 1903, hewas ap- 
 pointed by the board of supervisors justice of 
 the peace, which office he still retains. 
 
 WILLIAM FRANCIS JORDAN. With the 
 passmg away of William Francis Jordan from 
 the scene of his life's activity, was lost to the 
 community one of the time-honored landmarks 
 of the early days of the state, a first settler of 
 Yokohl valley, and for many years a potent fac- 
 tor in its development and progress. He was 
 born in Van Zandt county, Tex., November 14, 
 1838, a son of John and EHza Jane (Sadorus) 
 Jordan, whose biographical history is given at 
 length in the sketch of E. F. Jordan, which ap- 
 pears in another part of this volume. William 
 Francis Jordan was brought to California when 
 only a small child, being reared to young man- 
 hood in Monterey county. In 1857 he came with 
 his parents to Kaweah, Tulare county, where he 
 completed his education in the Kaweah district 
 school. Upon attaining manhood he engaged 
 in general farming and stock-raising, early lo- 
 cating in Yokohl valley, where he bought land, 
 owning at one time twenty-four hundred acres. 
 He was successful in his operations as a stock- 
 man and accumulated a comfortable .competence. 
 His death occurred September i, 1901. He was 
 a man of strong religious character, being an 
 active member of the Baptist Church. Frater- 
 nally he affiliated with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows, and poHtically cast his bal- 
 lot with the Democratic party. 
 
 Mr. Jordan was married twice, his first wife 
 being Henrietta Ann Brooks, a native of Texas 
 and the daughter of Micajah Brooks. Her death 
 occurred on the home farm in the Yokohl valley. 
 Of her six children two attained maturity, Laura, 
 the wife of Henry Watts, of Bakersfield; and 
 Alma, residing in Bakersfield. Near Exeter, 
 February 15, 1888, Mr. Jordan was united in 
 marriage with Mary Sydnor Combs, who was 
 born in Cass county, Mo., where she spent the 
 first few years of her life. Her father, John 
 
 Cuthbert Combs (a brother of Dr. F. A. Combs, 
 of Visalia, whose sketch appears elsewhere in 
 this volume), was a native of Kentucky, and 
 in 187s he brought his family to California, 
 his first trip having been made here in 1849, 
 and several others in the intervening years. Mrs. 
 Jordan was the oldest of ten children. She is the 
 mother of four children, all of whom are at 
 home, namely : William S., Allen Sadorus, John 
 Cuthbert and Samuel Howard. Mrs. Jordan now 
 owns four hundred and sixty acres of land in 
 the Yokohl valley, and since her husband's death 
 has continued the stock business with marked 
 success. She has fine running water on the 
 place, piped throughout, and in every way con- 
 ducts her affairs in a modern and up-to-date 
 method. She has recently set out a small lem- 
 on orchard on her place. In her religious con- 
 victions Mrs. Jordan is a Presbyterian, and po- 
 litically, although she cannot cast a ballot, wields 
 no little influence for the advancement of Dem- 
 ocratic principles. In January, 1905, she re- 
 moved to Exeter in order to give her children 
 better school advantages, though still managing 
 the ranch. 
 
 SAMUEL A. BAGGS. There is not a man 
 in the entire state of California who has a more 
 enviable reputation as a horticulturist than Mr. 
 Baggs. Coming to the state in 1887 and locat- 
 ing in the southern part, he had ample oppor- 
 tunity to enter the fruit business. Becoming 
 deeply interested in his work, he has steadily ad- 
 vanced until now he has gained a reputation of 
 which he may feel proud. 
 
 A native of Illinois, he was born in Sparta, 
 August 20, 1862. His father, William Baggs, 
 came to America and settled at Sparta, where 
 he purchased land and engaged in farming. He 
 married Amanda Hagne, who was bom in Sparta 
 and is now living in Arkansas, the wife of Mr. 
 McBride, Mr. Baggs having died in 1869. 
 
 Samuel Baggs was a youth of butfseven years 
 when his father died and since the age of ten 
 has made his own way in the world. His edu- 
 cational advantages were limited to the district 
 school which he attended while working for his 
 board. Remaining in his native state until 1887, 
 he then came to California, locating at River- 
 side, where he secured work in the orange or- 
 chards. A year later he began pruning and 
 budding and soon gained the reputation of being 
 the most successful budder in the state. Of a 
 saving disposition, he accumulated" a small sum 
 with which he purchased two acres of land at 
 Arlington. 
 
 In March, 1899, Mr. Baggs came to Lindsay, 
 at once engaging in horticultural work. Later he 
 purchased his present home on which he erected 
 
sj c cr--^^,^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1177 
 
 a fine residence and set out orange trees and 
 put two acres into strawberries. This place is 
 highly improved, having a well and a pumping 
 plant run by an electric motor installed at a cost 
 of $i,ooo. 
 
 In addition to looking after his own busi- 
 ness, Mr. Baggs has charge of the San Dimas 
 Nursery Company, for R. M. Teague. Since lo- 
 cating here he has budded over thirty-five thou- 
 sand orchard trees in Tulare county, and since 
 he took up this line of work he has budded 
 hundreds of thousands of trees. Recognizing 
 his worth and ability, the people have made him 
 the horticultural inspector of Lindsay and Exeter 
 and for one term he served as inspector for Tu- 
 lare county. 
 
 While living in Riverside, Mr. Baggs met 
 and married Minnie O. Simms. She was born 
 in Kentucky and when sixteen years of age 
 came to California. Mr. and Mrs. Baggs are 
 the parents of one child, Eva M. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Baggs belongs to Court Cali- 
 fornia No. 551, Independent Order of Foresters, 
 of Riverside. He is also a welcome visitor in 
 the lodge rooms of the Woodmen of the World. 
 In politics he votes the Democratic ticket, but 
 is not greatly interested in political matters. 
 
 Mr. Baggs has had to make his own way in 
 the world since he was a mere youth, and the 
 success he has made of his life is the result of 
 his own- labors. 
 
 JAMES SY,LVANUS LEWIS. The identifi- 
 cation of James Sylvanus Lewis, an esteemed and 
 highly honored citizen of Tulare county, with the 
 progress and development of this section of the 
 state of California is not exceeded by that of 
 any other pioneer. He was born among the prim- 
 itive scenes of the early days, reared through 
 boyhood to an understanding of the privations 
 and hardships of pioneer life, and in manhood 
 bent his every energy and effort, not alone to a 
 personal success, but to a material upbuilding of 
 the state that claimed his allegience. 
 
 The Lewis family came originally of southern 
 stock, Kentucky being their home for many years. 
 There Samuel Lewis, the grandfather of James 
 S., was born, grew to manhood and became prom- 
 inent in public affairs, serving as county judge 
 for some years. He finally removed to Jackson 
 county. Mo., where he served in the same ca- 
 pacity, and in 1849 became a pioneer of Cali- 
 fornia. He spent a few years in Amador coun- 
 ty, thence, with the Harrells, about 1853, came 
 to Tulare county. He engaged as a stockman on 
 the Tule river, where he became owner of a 
 large ranch six miles west of Portersville, the 
 first house on the place being built from timber 
 which he split and dressed for the purpose. His 
 
 death occurred in that location in 1872, at an 
 advanced age. His son, Joseph Lewis, a native 
 of Kentucky, accompanied his father to Missouri, 
 where he was married. In 1849 he crossed the 
 plains to California by means of ox teams, lo- 
 cating in Amador county, where he mined tmtil 
 1855. In that year he located in Tulare county 
 and became interested in stock-raising, entering 
 a ranch on the Tule river six miles west of Por- 
 tersville. In 1859 he moved his family to the 
 ranch, where ■ he followed stock-raising. After 
 the passage of the no-fence law he engaged in 
 grain-raising, purchasing land until he owned 
 three hundred and twenty acres. This he after- 
 ward disposed of and bought one hundred and 
 sixty acres one mile east of Portersville, where 
 he continued to follow general farming and stock- 
 raising. Disposing of that property also, he then 
 purchased a farm on the Upper Tule, seven miles 
 east of Portersville, where his death occurred Oc- 
 tober 17, 1904, at the age of eighty years. He 
 was a devout member of the Baptist Church, and 
 politically cast his ballot with the Democratic 
 party. His wife, formerly Ellen Allen, a native 
 of Missouri, survives him, now residing on the 
 old homestead at the. age of seventy- four years. 
 Of their nine children, of whom four are living, 
 James Sylvanus is the eldest, and was born in 
 Jackson, Amador county, June 25, 1855. 
 
 From the year 1859 the home of James Syl- 
 vanus Lewis has been in Tulare county. He 
 first attended the Oak Grove school, which build- 
 ing was put up through the efforts of his father 
 and several neighbors, and later studied in the 
 school at Piano. He remained at home until at- 
 taining his majority, when he began general farm- 
 ing and stock-raising for himself. In 1876 he 
 purchased his present property, a mile and three- 
 quarters northeast of Portersville, which was all 
 wild land and open plain, antelope and various 
 animals abounding. He at once began the work 
 of improvement and cultivation, putting up ade- 
 quate buildings, setting out trees and in time 
 making his ranch a credit to the county. He now 
 has seven hundred and twenty acres, which is 
 known as the Hillside Slope farm. In 1891 he 
 set out ten acres of navel oranges and later eight 
 acres more, besides which he engages in the cul- 
 tivation of grain and in stock-raising. His farm 
 is irrigated from the Pioneer ditch, of which 
 company he was one of the organizers, and for 
 many years acted as a director. He is also in- 
 terested in the Portersville Water & Develop- 
 ment Company, of which he is director and the 
 president. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Lewis was united in marriage 
 with Mrs. Emma (Strout) Sibley, a native of 
 Maine and the daughter of Elijah and Mary A. 
 (Tyler) Strout. Her father was a contractor 
 and resided near Lewiston, Me., where both he 
 
1178 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and his wife died. The paternal grandfather of 
 Mrs. Lewi.s, Elijah Strout, was a native of Maine, 
 and of German descent. He served as a soldier in 
 the war of 1812 and left an honored name to 
 his descendants. By her first marriage Mrs. 
 Lewis became the mother of two children, Wil- 
 fred S. Sibley and Mrs. Angela M. Tyler, of 
 Portersville. Mrs. Lewis is a member of the 
 Baptist Church. Fraternally Mr. Lewis was 
 made a Mason in Portersville Lodge No. 303, and 
 also belongs to Portersville Chapter, R. A. M. 
 Politically he is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 MAJOR THOMAS JEFFERSON Mc- 
 QUIDDY. The name of Thomas Jefferson 
 McOniddy is a household one throughout the 
 length and breadth of Kings county. His 
 rise from obscurity to influence and success is 
 an encouraging tale to the rising generation, 
 and his courage and persistency in combating 
 adverse circumstances along the line, of his 
 industrious career have attracted to him the 
 good will and graciousness of whomsoever he 
 chances to meet. Now seventy-six years old, 
 hale and hearty, and full of the joy and ex- 
 pectancy of life, he is as much the friend and 
 sympathizer of the present history makers as 
 he formerly was of the men who worked with 
 him in the pioneer days of trial and 
 adversity. Scarcely an onward move- 
 ment in this section but has profited by 
 his financial or other support, from the dig- 
 ging of ditches for irrigation to fighting with 
 the railroad company for titles to the land of 
 the settlers. In fact one of the most pathetic 
 as well as interesting epochs in the life of 
 Major McQuiddy is in connection with the 
 struggles of the Mussel Slough settlers for 
 their homes and rights. With others he lost 
 after years of futile effort, but he had already 
 won a competency, and probably no one ac- 
 cepted an unjust and calamitous decision with 
 more philosophy or dignity. 
 
 Major McQuiddy was born in Woodford 
 county, Ky., March 6, 1828, and is a son of 
 John McQuiddy, a grandson of another John, 
 and great-grandson of David McQuiddy, the 
 latter of whom was born in Scotland and came 
 to the United States long before the Revolu- 
 tionary war. The great-grandfather became a 
 large land owner in Virginia, and with his 
 son John, who was born on the Virginia 
 plantation, follo^ved the martial fortunes of 
 Washington during the war for independence. 
 The latter removed from Virginia to Kentucky 
 at an early day, and at one time did about all 
 the gunsmithing and blacksmithing of Wood- 
 ford county. He was a natural mechanic, and 
 
 built and owned two mills, and also built and 
 repaired wagons. He was a prominent figure 
 in his count)^, and lived to be a very old man. 
 His son John, the father of Major McQuiddy, 
 was born in Woodford county August 10, 1790, 
 and during his active life lived on a farm, at- 
 taining fair success. During the war of 1812 
 he shouldered a musket and fought under 
 General Harrison. About 1840, when Thomas 
 Jefferson was twelve years old, he made ar- 
 rangements to take his family overland to 
 Bedford county, Tenn., a distance of three 
 hundred miles. On this occasion the lad 
 proved true to his training, and became of 
 valuable assistance in managing the expedi- 
 tion. Twenty slaves, besides hogs, cattle and 
 horses, accompanied the family to their new 
 home, and once established, the father turned 
 his attention to cultivating his land and to 
 manufacturing hemp for baling cotton. Sub- 
 sequently he devoted all of his energy to 
 farming and stock-raising, being thus em- 
 ployed until shortly before his death in 1863, 
 at the age of seventy-three years. On the ma- 
 ternal side Major McQuiddy is also descended 
 from Revolutionary stock, his maternal grand- 
 father, Abraham Dale, having served in the 
 Continental army. The latter was a native of 
 Virginia, and was of Scotch descent, his an- 
 cestor having settled in the Old Dominion long 
 before the war. Mr. Dale was survived by his 
 wife, whose death occurred in Missouri at the 
 age of eighty-eight. There were several other 
 children in the Dale family besides Mrs. Mc- 
 Quiddy, who was born in Woodford county, 
 Ky., in 1793, and whose given name was 
 Achsah. She became the mother of six chil- 
 dren, who attained maturity, of whom Thomas 
 Jefferson was the youngest, and is now the 
 only survivor. 
 
 Major McQuiddy remained on the home 
 farm in Tennessee until his nineteenth year, 
 when he married Jane M. Ruth, a native. of 
 Tennessee, who died at the age of thirty-five, 
 leaving seven children. Of these, Achsah is 
 the wife of S. E. Biddle; William R. is an 
 attorney in Hanford, and is represented in 
 this work; John Talbot is a contractor of 
 Sonoma, Sonoma county, Cal. ; Katie is the 
 widow of P. E. Jacobs of Hanford, proprietor 
 of the Vendome hotel ; Sarah, deceased, was 
 the wife of James H. Sharp of Kings county; 
 Reden Dale is a resident of Santa Barbara, 
 Cal. ; and George P. died at the age of twelve. 
 After his marriage Major McQuiddy managed 
 his father's farm until 1849, in which year he 
 moved to Clay county, Mo., and for two years 
 engaged in manufacturing hemp. He then 
 went to Nodaway county, where he became 
 prominent and in 1859 was elected sheriff of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1179 
 
 Nodaway county, a, position which he held at 
 the breaking out of the Civil war. Leaving a 
 deput)'' in charge of the sheriff's office, he 
 raised a company of eleven hundred out of a 
 voting population of seventeen hundred, and 
 was made captain of what constituted the state 
 guards, serving six months under Sterling 
 Price. He then entered the Confederate ser- 
 vice as a captain of Company G, Third Bat- 
 talion, Confederate Cavalry, under Col. A. W. 
 Slayback, and in four or five months was pro- 
 moted to the rank of major, in command of a 
 battalion. He was with Price in his first cam- 
 paign in Missouri, and in 1862 went to Cor- 
 inth, Miss., and Alabama, in 1863, being as- 
 signed to the secret service, where he re- 
 mained for the balance of the war. In Novem- 
 ber, 1862, he was wounded at the battle of 
 Corinth two days in succession, the first being 
 a slight flesh wound in the right arm, and the 
 second a more serious injury in the right 
 thigh. For the following three or four months 
 he was confined to the hospital, and upon re- 
 covering joined his regiment. While in the 
 secret service he was captured in Tennessee 
 in 1864, but made his escape, and continued 
 the v/ork for which he was well fitted, because 
 of great familiarity with all parts of Tennes- 
 see and the south. 
 
 Returning to his home after the war. Major 
 !\TcQuiddy took charge of the*settlement of his 
 father's estate, the latter having died while 
 his son was wearing the gray of the Con- 
 federacv. His wife had also joined the silent 
 majority while her husband was serving in 
 the army. In 1867 Major McQuiddy married 
 Mary J. Huffman, a native of Tennessee, 
 whose grandfather, Peter Huffman, served 
 in a North Carolina regiment in the Revolu- 
 tionary war. 
 
 Mrs. McQuiddy has been a faithful mother 
 to her husband's seven children, rearing them 
 to manhood and womanhood. She became the 
 mother of one child, Lila Cyrene, now de- 
 ceased, and has reared three grandchildren to 
 maturity. 
 
 In 1873 Major McQuiddy came to the Pa- 
 cific coast and settled oii one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land four miles northeast of Hanford, 
 on what is now known as Mussel Slough, 
 soon afterward taking up an adjoining ranch 
 of the same size. He afterward purchased 
 three hundred and twenty acres of land of the 
 Southern Pacific Company, the company mak- 
 ing promises in pamphlet form that, upon se- 
 curing title, the land should be graded at from 
 $2.50 to $5 per acre, improvements made by 
 settlers not to be considered in fixing the 
 valuation. Relying upon the word of the rail- 
 road company, about two hundred and fifty 
 
 families settled on the lands, which were then 
 nothing but an arid sand plain, and cultivated 
 them at an enormous expenditure of time, 
 money and patience. Banding together in a 
 common cause, they organized the Settlers' 
 Ditch Company, diverted water from the 
 Kaweah river, a distance of twenty miles, and 
 in time witnessed the transformation of their 
 desert home. In 1877 the railroad was built 
 through, and in 1878 the company graded lands 
 at from $5 to $45 an acre, thus completely ig- 
 noring its former promise. A spirit of in- 
 tense bitterness prevailed among the settlers, 
 and a league was formed to protect their homes 
 and lands. The company, however, gave no 
 heed, but secured indictments, in many in- 
 stances evicting holders and selling to other 
 settlers. Their spirit of vindictiveness and 
 persecution resulted in the killing of seven 
 men, May 11, 1880. During this affair Major 
 McQuiddy was the means of saving the lives 
 of United States Marshal Pool and land 
 grader Qerk. Litigations continued through the 
 courts until 1887, when the settlers were 
 obliged to pay for their land according to the 
 assessed value. Major McQuiddy was one of 
 the foremost who exerted strenuous efforts for 
 fair dealing, but he also was obliged to pay the 
 exorbitant demand, and continued to live on 
 his farm until removing to Hanford in 1889. 
 For a couple of years he leased his farm, then 
 managed the same for two years, and later 
 leased six hundred acres, upon which he en- 
 graged in stock and grain raising until 1895. 
 Since then he has been practically retired from 
 active life, although at present he is servings 
 as inspector of weights and measures for Kings 
 county. He is entitled to the credit of having 
 raised the first oranges in Kings county, and 
 of being one of the first to discover that alfalfa 
 was particularly adapted to its soil. He de- 
 voted about two hundred and forty acres to 
 alfalfa, and had forty-five acres under vines, 
 and the balance utilized for horses, mules and 
 cattle. He was one of the most scientific 
 farmers of the county, and had the finest im- 
 provements known to this section. 
 
 Since i8.i;7 Major McQuiddy has been identi- 
 fied with the Masonic fraternity, and' is a life 
 and charter member of Hanford Lodge No. 
 279. Both he and his wife are members of 
 the Church of Christ Scientist. He has 
 been interested in many enterprises in Kings 
 countv, both before and since it was set aside 
 from Tulare county. At present he owns stock 
 in the Arc Light Mining Company, now op- 
 erating in Fresno county, and of which he is 
 president. He is also interested in the noted 
 Coalinga oil fields, and is developing gypsum 
 in that locality, being one of the first to dis- 
 
1180 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cover its richness. He is a lifelong Jeffer- 
 sonian Democrat, and in 1882 was a candidate 
 for governor of the state of California on the 
 Greenback ticket. His political services have 
 been of the same thoughtful and practical kind, 
 as his other eflforts toward the upbuilding of 
 Kings county, and have strengthened the re- 
 gard in which he is held by the people, regard- 
 less of political preferences. He has the 
 sterling worth of the typical western pioneer, 
 but little of the visionary dreamer whose ex- 
 pectation of large wealth was out of all propor- 
 tion to the amount of work he expected^ to ac- 
 complish. He has been a man of action, of 
 vigorous, infectious energy, and in his opinions 
 and theories has always been guided by a lofty 
 regard for the rights and prerogatives of his 
 associates. 
 
 LOUIS HAAS, deceased, a native of Phila- 
 delphia, Pa., was a son of Mathias Haas, who 
 was also born in the Quaker City, the descend- 
 ant of German ancestry. Louis Haas engaged as 
 a butcher in young manhood, remaining in his 
 native city until 1852, when he came to Cal- 
 ifornia by way of the Isthmus of Panama. Upon 
 his arrival in San Francisco he went to Monte- 
 zuma Hill, where he engaged in the grocery and 
 bakery business, and later located in Gravel 
 Range, at Dutch Flat, where he bought a mine 
 and entered upon its operation. Later he went 
 to North Butte, Sutter county, and became very 
 successful in his efforts. In i860 he located in 
 the northern part of Tulare county, where there 
 was a wide range, and there engaged in the sheep 
 business. Subsequently he became the owner of 
 seven sections of land in that locality around 
 Smith mountain, and three sections in the Han- 
 ford country, now Kings county. In 1862 he 
 brought his family to Tulare county, but eventu- 
 ally located them in Stockton, where they made 
 their home until 1875, in that year removing to 
 Grangeville, Kings county. When the land be- 
 came settled Mr. Haas sold his sheep, and in part- 
 nership with a Mr. Crow engaged in general 
 farming, although from that time on he was 
 practically retired. His death occurred in San 
 Francisco in 1888, at the age of sixty-four years. 
 In his political affiliations he was a stanch Repub- 
 lican, and was a liberal and progressive citizen, 
 lending his aid and support to every movement 
 which had for its ultimate end the general wel- 
 fare of the community. His wife, formerly Mary 
 Marsh, a native of Pittsburg, Pa., and daughter 
 of Thomas Marsh, still survives him, residing on 
 the old homestead. Of their four children three 
 attained maturity, viz. : Mrs. Vania Orr, of Visa- 
 lia; Mrs. Robison, of Hanford; and F. Pierce, 
 in the vicinity of Hanford. 
 
 Vania Haas was reared to young womanhood 
 in Stockton, in which city she was united in mar- 
 riage with Walter Crow. He was a native of 
 Missouri and the son of William Crow of Ripon, 
 Cal. He engaged in farming and stock raising 
 in the vicinity of Grangeville, Kings county, and 
 there met his death at the hands of the Settlers' 
 League, which precipitated the Mussel Slough 
 fight. He was shot dead in May, 1880, at the 
 age of thirty years. They were the parents of 
 the following children : Lola, a graduate of the 
 Stockton Hhigh school, now the wife of D. M. 
 Stewart of Oakland ; Clarence, a graduate of the 
 University of California, now an electrician of 
 New York City; and Walter, a farmer residing 
 south of Visalia. Her second marriage occurred 
 in Grangeville, and united her with Prof. A. R. 
 Orr, who was born in Illinois March 18, 1855, 
 and who graduated from Kirksville normal in 
 June, 1875. The same year he came to CaHfor- 
 nia and located in Visalia, where he became an 
 instructor in the city schools. In 1876 he or- 
 ganized the Visalia Normal and became its presi- 
 dent, retaining the position for eleven years. He 
 then accepted a position in the United States 
 land office in the contest department, and main- 
 taining the same for seven years. Mrs. Orr has 
 shown herself a woman of rare business ability, 
 after the death of her first husband assuming 
 control of his extensive interests as a farmer and 
 stockman, as she' had also done in her father's 
 estate. She has a stock ranch in Kings county, 
 and owns a ranch of four hundred -and eighty 
 acres a mile and a half west of Dinuba, Tulare 
 county, of which four hundred acres are in al- 
 falfa, the chief interest of the place being an 
 extensive dairy. She also has an eighty-acre 
 vineyard at Sultana. At one time she owned 
 thirty-two hundred acres around Smith moun- 
 tain, but this she has since sold off in small 
 tracts. 
 
 SAMUEL LOUIS GIVENS. The Givens 
 family is too closely connected with the early 
 history of Mariposa and Merced counties to need 
 any introduction to the readers of the history 
 of the San Joaquin valley. A worthy scion of 
 this distinguished family is found to-day in the 
 person of Samuel L. Givens. At the age of ten 
 he accompanied his parents to California and in 
 1879 purchased his home ranch in Merced coun- 
 ty, thirteen miles east of Merced,, and upon this 
 place he still lives. Born in Union county, Ky., 
 November 8, 1842, Mr. Givens is the youngest 
 of nine children born to Thomas and Catherine 
 D. F. (Richards) Givens, the former born in 
 Virginia December i, 1798, and the latter bom 
 in Kentucky February i, 1805. The nine chil- 
 dren born to Thomas Givens and wife are as 
 
'l/r^ f-^UA^Uw^^l^ 
 
(^JyUj^ 2^ j^ a^ (;lryvayr\^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1185 
 
 follows : Robert R., deceased ; Eleazar T., born 
 October 17, 1828; Matilda, deceased; Mrs. Jane 
 R. Pool, of Stockton, Cal., born March 7, 1832; 
 Catherine A., deceased; Thomas Jr., deceased; 
 John H., of San Francisco, born October 15, 
 1838; Mrs. Mary R. Thrift, of Stockton; and 
 S'lmuel Louis. December 24, 1852, Mr. and 
 Mrs. Givens with their family started for Cali- 
 fornia, reaching New Orleans January i, 1853, 
 and on January 4 they embarked on board the 
 Pampero bound for Greytown, which they 
 reached twelve days later. ' Crossing the Isth- 
 mus on the backs of mules, they then took pas- 
 sage on the Brother Jonathan, bound for San 
 Francisco, which they reached February 2 of the 
 same year. In Mariposa county the father pur- 
 chased the Texas ranch, containing ten hundred 
 and forty acres, and this ranch is now owned 
 by Samuel L. and his sister-in-law, Mrs. Thomas 
 Givens. Here the father died in i860. 
 
 From his tenth year Mr. Givens was educated 
 in Mariposa county, with a finishing course at 
 the University of the Pacific in Santa Clara coun-* 
 ty. His education completed, he continued to 
 remain on the old home place until 1870, pur- 
 chasing that year the ranch upon which he still 
 lives, in Merced county, and. upon this place the 
 intervening years of his life have been spent. 
 His home place contains five hundred and twenty 
 acres devoted to grain, stock and grazing, and 
 in addition he rents three thousand acres in 
 Mariposa county, the latter utilized solely in rais- 
 ing stock. He has in all six hundred head of 
 stock. 
 
 December 20, 1877, '" Mariposa county, Mr. 
 Givens was united in marriage with Miss Susan 
 L. Wills, who was born in the above named 
 county December 9, 1855, a daughter of Ben- 
 jamin Wills, a native of Alabama ; he married 
 Miss Amanda Cathey. Mr. Wills made his first 
 trip to California in 1849 ^-^d afterward went 
 back to Alabama for his family, who crossed 
 overland to Mariposa county. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Givens have but one child, a son, Archibald. 
 They are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South. Politically Mr. Givens is a Dem- 
 ocrat. Personally he is active and well built, 
 and claims a popularity which is justly due. 
 
 WILLIAM BENJAMIN HARDMAN is the 
 owner of a large and valuable ranch near Volta, 
 Merced county, which invariably attracts the at- 
 tention of the passer-by as a home of peace and 
 plenty. In the acquisition of this fine property 
 Mr. Hardman labored earnestly and vigorously, 
 and after many years of strenuous effort in his 
 chosen line of work finds himself the owner of 
 four hundred and eighty acres of choice land, well 
 improved, furnished with a substantial set of 
 
 56 
 
 farm buildings, and all the appliances and ma- 
 chinery required by the intelligent and progressive 
 modern agriculturist. A son of Levi W. Hard- 
 man, he was born April 21, 1847, '" St. Joseph 
 county, Ind., near South Bend. His grandfather 
 Benjamin Hardman, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 was a farmer and a pioneer settler of Indiana. 
 Leaving there in 1847, he finally located in the 
 Willamette valley, Oregon, where he passed the 
 remainder of his days, dying at a venerable age. 
 
 A native of Indiana, Levi W. Hardman was 
 there engaged in farming with his parents until 
 the summer of 1847. Then, a young man, he 
 started with his father and brothers and others 
 for the western frontier, Stephen Broadhurst 
 forming one of the party. Going as far as Mis- 
 souri, the entire party spent the winter in that 
 state, and April 17, 1848, started across the 
 plains for Oregon, behind ox teams, with Captain 
 Wambaugh in command of the train. Hearing of 
 the wonderful discovery of gold while on the way, 
 Levi W. Hardman and a few of the more ventur- 
 some men of the train determined to follow the 
 trail to California instead of going on to Oregon, 
 and accordingly left the main body of the party 
 at Fort Hall. Mr. Hardman, being an expert 
 marksman, was detailed as hunter for the crowd, 
 and in his endeavors to keep the company sup- 
 plied with buffalo and deer meat had several 
 hairbreadth escapes from the Indians. Arriving 
 in California, he spent a year at the Marysville 
 mines. His health failing, however, he located 
 in Napa, where he purchased land and engaged 
 in ranching. Meeting with good success in his 
 operations, he bought another ranch, lying about 
 four miles from his original purchase, on the 
 Soda Springs road, and in Napa county reared 
 his family. He died whilst on a visit to 
 his son. William Benjamin, December 17, 1897, 
 aged seventy-seven years. He married Alice 
 Broadhurst, who was born in Michigan, and who, 
 now a bright and active woman of seventy-six 
 vears, resides in Shasta county. Sixteen children 
 blessed their union, eight of whom grew to years 
 of maturity, and are now living, William Benja- 
 min being the eldest child. 
 
 Coming when an infant with his parents to Cal- 
 ifornia, William Benjamin Hardman was edu- 
 cated in the district schools of Napa and Napa 
 county, remaining beneath the parental roof-tree 
 until after attaining his majority. Locating in 
 Merced county in November, 1869, he home- 
 steaded and pre-empted three hundred and twen- 
 ty acres of land, which are included in his pres- 
 ent home ranch. The land was in its original 
 wildness, and he at once began its improvement 
 by erecting a rude cabin, hauling the lumber 
 from which it was made from Banta Station, six- 
 ty-five miles away, there being no timber in this 
 section of the valley. After his marriage, Mr, 
 
1186 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Hardman brought his bride to his cabiri, and at 
 once embarked in business as a farmer and stock- 
 grower. Energetic, resolute and persevering, he 
 met with well-deserved success in his undertak- 
 ings, and subsequently purchased one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land lying about a mile from 
 his home ranch, and has now a fine farm of four 
 hundred and eighty acres, all under irrigation. 
 One hundred acres he devotes to the growmg of 
 alfalfa, which he uses largely for feeding stock. 
 He raises fine cattle and horses, the latter bemg 
 principally English Shires and Clydesdales, 
 among those of the former breed being an im- 
 ported horse, Scropton Fashion, which he has 
 exhibited twice at state fairs, on each occasion 
 carrying off the first premium. Among his 
 Qydesdale horses of note is Clunie, a handsome 
 four-year-old. He is also engaged to some ex- 
 tent in the raising of poultry, which he finds 
 profitable. 
 
 December i, 1870, in Snelling, Merced county, 
 Mr. Hardman married Alice Broadhurst, who 
 was born in Napa county, Cal., in 1852. Her 
 father, Stephen Broadhurst, was born in Ohio. 
 Her grandfather, William Broadhurst, a native 
 of Pennsylvania, settled first in Ohio, but after- 
 ward removed to Michigan, locating as a pioneer 
 near Niles, where he spent the remainder of his 
 life. Five years of age when he accompanied 
 his parents to Niles, Mich., Stephen Broadhurst 
 there grew to manhood on the farm that his 
 father cleared from the wilderness. When twen- 
 ty-two years of age he started with the Hardman 
 party for Oregon. While spending the winter 
 in Missouri he married Rebecca McCombs, who 
 was born in Ohio, a daughter of Lambert Mc- 
 Combs, a farmer. Mr. McCombs removed from 
 Ohio to Indiana, from there coming across the 
 plains to California in 1849, and settling in Napa 
 county, where his death occurred a few weeks 
 later. Stephen Broadhurst was engaged in farm- 
 ing in Napa coimty until i86g, when he settled 
 as a farmer and stockman in Merced county. He 
 subsequently removed to Calaveras county, where 
 he resided until his death, in 1886. His widow 
 survived him, dying in 1889. They were the 
 parents of five children, all of whom are living, 
 Mrs. Hardman being the second child in order 
 of birth. Mr. and Mrs. Hardman have four chil- 
 dren living, namely : Icie P., at home ; Frank U., 
 at home; Arabella, wife of F. H. Helmer, of 
 Plainsberg, Cal. ; and Bertha M., wife of L. P. 
 Raven, of Los Banos. A stanch Republican in 
 politics, Mr. Hardman takes great interest in lo- 
 cal affairs, and for many terms served as school 
 trustee, being president of the board a part of 
 the time, and assisting in building all of the 
 school houses in this part of the county. During 
 the Civil war, when but sixteen years of age, he 
 was a member of the state militia, belonging to 
 
 the Napa Rangers, a cavalry company. He is past 
 master workman of the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen ; and belongs to Mountain Brow Lodge 
 No. 82, I. O. O. F., of which he is past grand. 
 His wife is a member of the Rebekahs. 
 
 ALEX R. CARNEY. A resident of Cali- 
 fornia since 1899, Alex R. Carney has become 
 one of the largest orange growers .in this sec- 
 tion of the state, also an active factor in other 
 lines of business, being interested in the Exeter 
 Lumber Company, of which he was the organizer. 
 A man of exceptional educational ability, he has 
 attained a position in the business world that 
 each year becomes more secure. 
 
 Alex R. Carney is a native of Marinette, Wis., 
 a son of Fred and Elizabeth (Corry) Carney. 
 Fred Carney was born in Fredericton, New 
 Brunswick. After reaching man's estate, he en- 
 gaged in the lumber business, a few years later 
 .removing to Marinette, Wis., being a pioneer set- 
 tler of that place. Here he became associated 
 with Whitbeck & Co., lumber dealers, and for 
 fifty years he continued with the firm, being 
 their superintendent and manager. As time 
 passed and Marinette became an important city, 
 Mr. Carney assisted in organizing several banks. 
 He also became the owner of oyer one thousand 
 acres of land, which he improved, plattine po''- 
 tions of it as additions to the city of Marin- 
 ette. A Republican in political belief, he al- 
 ways took an active part in the affairs of the 
 state and county, being one of the most influ- 
 ential men of the city. A believer in advance- 
 ment, he was at the head of manjf plans calcu- 
 lated to advance Marinette. Mr. Carney mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Corrv, who was born in Chatham, 
 New Brunswick. As a result of this union six 
 children were born, viz. : Mary, wife of C. G. 
 Andrews, of Los Angeles ; Jennie, who married 
 W. J. Davis, of Marinette ; Elizabeth, the wife of 
 W. L. Ducey, of San Francisco; Fred, Jr., and 
 Frank L., of Marinette ; and Alex R. 
 
 Born April 27, 1876, Alex R. Carney was first 
 a student at Notre Dam?, Ind., where he was 
 prepared for Harvard University. Entering the 
 university in 1897 he continued his studies at 
 that institution for one year. In 1899 he came 
 to California, locating near Exeter, where his 
 father had already become interested in the grow- 
 ing of oranges, having, in 1896 purchased land 
 and set out part of the orchard now bearing the 
 name of "Bonnie Brae." On his arrival the son at 
 once took charge of the business, which at that 
 time consisted of fifty acres. Since then he has 
 added to the original purchase, until he now 
 has one hundred and ninety acres, all in the 
 family name. One hundred and twenty acres 
 of this are devoted to oranges, all navels and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1187 
 
 the trees are bearing. Seventy acres are in 
 grapes, the Emperor variety being in the lead. 
 The product of these fine orchards and vine- 
 3"ards is shipped direct to the eastern markets. 
 In addition to the orchard property, Mr. Car- 
 ney owns other lands and in 1901 he erected one 
 of the finest residences to be found in Tulare 
 county. 
 
 While his fruit business has taken most of his 
 time, Mr. Carney has branched out in other lines 
 and in 1900 organized the Exeter Lumber Com- 
 pany, of Exeter. This concern is now on a good 
 paying basis and is one of the city's leading in- 
 dustries. 
 
 Mr. Carney was united in marriage at Notre 
 Dame, Ind., with Kittle Culbert, a native of Mus- 
 kegon, Mich. One child has been born to them, 
 A. R., Jr. 
 
 When the contemplated electric car line is 
 built, it will pass Mr. Carney's place, and he 
 is now planning to erect his own packing house, 
 and with the electric power will run a large 
 pumping plant. The Carney ranch is second to 
 none in the county, and with Mr. Carney at the 
 helm modern irhprovements will be added from 
 time to time which will keep it in the van of 
 others in this section. 
 
 GEORGE WARREN FILLMORE. The 
 Fillmore family, well represented in California, 
 is of New York ancestry, members of whom 
 have been prominent citizens in Onondaga county 
 for generations. W. C. Fillmore was a farmer 
 in that location, and as a representative citizen 
 held the office of sheriff. His son, William 
 Cortland, was a native of Onondaga county but 
 in manhood removed to Madison county and in 
 the neighborhood of Chittenango engaged in 
 farming. He lived to be eighty-two years old, his 
 death occurring in 1902. He was a man of 
 strong, forceful nature and public-spirit, and 
 gave his best efforts toward the upbuilding of 
 the community in which he made his home. He 
 gave his support to the Baptist Church, in which 
 he was -a deacon for many years. His wife, for- 
 merly Harriette Waldo Wing, was a native of 
 Moultrie county, Ohio, whose parents died early 
 in life. Her death occurred in New York in 
 1893. She left a family of five sons and two 
 daughters, of whom Jerome, who died in San 
 Francisco, February 11, 1902, was general man- 
 ager of the Southern Pacific Railroad; George 
 Warren is the subject of this review; William C., 
 Jr., who died in Los Angeles in 1894, was also 
 connected with the Southern Pacific Railroad; 
 Nancy became fhe wife of W. J., Sheldon and 
 died in Chicago in 1904 ; Wing is a conductor 
 on the Southern Pacific Railroad between Los 
 Angeles and Fresno; Mary is the wife of S. H. 
 
 Tuttman, of Hamilton, Mont. ; and Edward Lu- 
 ther is associated with the Union Iron Works 
 in San Francisco. 
 
 A native of Chittenango, Madison county, N. 
 Y., George Warren Fillmore was born July i, 
 1847. He was reared to young manhood in his 
 native state and attended the district schools. 
 About 1865 he became associated with the Dela- 
 ware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad, acting as 
 foreman during the construction of the second 
 track. Returning to New York he remained for 
 about three years, after which, in 1875, he came 
 as far west as Nevada and engaged as brake- 
 man on the Southern Pacific Railroad, running 
 out of Winnemucca. Two years later he became 
 conductor, retaining this position until 1881, 
 when he was transferred to the western district, 
 running out of Oakland as conductor on pas- 
 senger trains. Since that time he has made his 
 home in Oakland, having built a residence at 
 No. 965 Jackson street. About 1885 he pur- 
 chased a farm five miles south of Visalia, Tulare 
 county, consisting of one hundred and sixty 
 acres. Upon this he has made all the improve- 
 ments, in 1891 having set out an orchard of about 
 forty acres, a part of which is planted to a 
 vineyard. It is universally acknowledged that 
 this orchard of Mr. Fillmore's is the finest in 
 Tulare county, in point of the growth and health 
 of the trees, every care and attention having 
 been given to their cultivation. 
 
 In Amsterdam, N. Y., Mr. Fillmore married 
 Anna Wayne, a daughter of John Wayne, a 
 descendant of "Mad Anthony." He was a farm- 
 er in New York state, where his death occurred. 
 His wife, formerly Angeline Brower, was also 
 of an old and distinguished New York family. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Fillmore have one daughter, Bes- 
 sie May. In his oolitical affiliations Mr. Fill- 
 more is a stanch Republican. He is a citizen 
 widely known and honored for the many sterling 
 traits of character which distinguish him, and 
 through which he has won the confidence and 
 esteem of all who know him. 
 
 JAMES T. CARTER, a successful dairyman 
 of Tulare county, in the vicinity of Visalia, was 
 born in Davis county, Iowa, near Bloomfield, 
 December 11, 1852. His grandfather, Joseph 
 Carter, a native of Kentucky and a patriot in the 
 Black Hawk war, became arj early settler of 
 Iowa, where he engaged in farming. Later in 
 life he removed to Barry county, Mo., where his 
 death occurred. His son, William Carter, was 
 a native of Kentucky. He also became a farni- 
 er in Iowa, in which state he remained until 
 after the Civil war broke out. During the war 
 he removed to Woodson county, Kans., then to 
 Missouri, and later to Wilson county, Kans., 
 
1188 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 where he became a pioneer farmer. In 1882 he 
 came to California and located near Three Riv- 
 ers, Tulare countyy where he still resides. His 
 wife, formerly Mary F. Hill, of Kentucky, was 
 a daughter of Robert Hill, of the same state, 
 who removed to Iowa, where his death occurred. 
 Mrs. Carter is still living, the mother of seven 
 sons and two daughters, having lost two chil- 
 dren by death. 
 
 The fourth child in the family of his par- 
 ents, James T. Carter was reared on the home 
 farm. Until he was twenty-five years old he 
 remained at home, when he engaged in farming 
 independently near Fredonia, Kans. In 1883 he 
 came to California and in Tulare county entered 
 the employ of James Pouge, with whom he re- 
 mained eight years. Since that time he_ has 
 been engaged in general farming, stock-raising 
 and the dairy business. He is located on an 
 eighty-acre tract two and a half miles northwest 
 of Visalia, where he has a dairy of thirty cows. 
 He is a very successful farmer and is one of the 
 representative men of this section. In Visalia, 
 January 25, 1893, he married Mrs. Ovitt (Tay- 
 lor) Stong, a native of Birkenhead, Chester, 
 England. Her father, W. G. Taylor, also a 
 native of England, conducted a mercantile estab- 
 lishment, selling gloves and hosiery in Liverpool. 
 In 1850 he brought his wife and three children 
 to California on the barque Ocean Queen, via 
 Cape Horn. The ship was wrecked off Cape 
 Horn and the greater part of the year was spent 
 on the sea. Upon their safe arrival in the state, 
 Mr. Taylor went at once to the mines in Mari- 
 posa county, and later to Stanislaus county, fol- 
 lowing mining at Knights Ferry, until 1874. In 
 that year he returned to England, and settled in 
 South Devon, where his death occurred. His 
 wife, formerly Ovitt E. Hannon, was bom at 
 Birmingham, England, and died at Knights Fer- 
 ry, Stanislaus county. Of the five children born 
 of their union, Mrs. Carter, the third in order 
 of birth, is the only one now living. She was 
 reared to young womanhood in the state of her 
 father's adoption, receiving her education in the 
 public schools. In 1872, in San Francisco, she 
 married M. S. W. Stong, a native of Illinois. 
 He was a son of Solomon Stong, a farmer of 
 Illinois of German descent. He came to Califor- 
 nia in 1849, crossing the plains with ox-teams 
 from Missouri, and upon his arrival in San Juan 
 engaged in the mercantile business. After his 
 marriage he removed to Battle Mountain, Nev., 
 and in 1873 located in Visalia, Tulare county, 
 in the latter place following building and farm- 
 ing. In 1880 he located on a farm adjoining the 
 one now owned by Mrs. Carter, this being pur- 
 chased in 1887, in which year Mr. Stong died. 
 He was a Mason of Royal Arch degree, and po- 
 litically cast his ballot with the Democratic par- 
 
 ty. Taking a strong interest in all local affairs 
 he served as school trustee. Of the five chil- 
 dren born of her first marriage four are living, 
 namely : Clara M., the wife of W. E. Malone, of 
 Los Angeles ; Ovitt E., the wife of A. R. Shippy, 
 of Visalia ; David B. Stong, located near Visalia ; 
 and Guy W. Stong, at home. In his political 
 aifiliatio'ns Mr. Carter is a Democrat, and fra- 
 ternally is associated with the Woodmen of the 
 World'. / 
 
 JOHN HEDBERG, as manager of the Lind- 
 say Citrus Nursery Company, has attained a 
 prominence in the nursery business of which he 
 may well feel proud. Ever since leaving home 
 he has had his own way to make in the world, 
 and by industry and economy he has accumulated 
 a handsome property. A native of Sweden, he 
 was born July 19, 1870, and is a son of Erick 
 and Annie Hedberg. The father is now engaged 
 in farming in the old country. The mother 
 bore four children, two of whom are in America. 
 
 John Hedberg remained at home until reach- 
 ing his twenty-first year, when he entered the 
 Swedish army, remaining in the service one 
 year. At the expiration of that time, in 1891, 
 he bade good-bye to his home and friends and 
 came to the United States, first locating in Madi- 
 son county. Neb., where he remained one year. 
 In 1893 he arrived in California, securing em- 
 ployment in a vineyard and orchard in Fresno 
 county. Later he entered the employ of Mar- 
 shall & Wilson, the nurserymen, with whom he 
 continued three years, learning the business 
 thoroughly. In 1895 he came to Lindsay and 
 was the first to engage in the citrus nursery 
 business in a commercial way at this place. For 
 four years he continued in the business two 
 miles from Lindsay, but at the end of this 
 period sold out and purchased eighty acres on 
 the hill-side three miles northeast of Lindsay. At 
 the time of purchase the land was in stubble, but 
 Mr. Hedberg lost no time in beginning the im- 
 provement of the place. A well was sunk and a 
 pumping plant installed which now has a ca- 
 pacity of five thousand gallons per hour,' enough 
 to irrigate his orange grove of forty-three acres. 
 Since then he has set out twenty acres to nursery, 
 containing one hundred and fifty thousand or- 
 ange trees, being the largest citrus nursery north 
 of Tehachapi. and in addition has set out other 
 varieties of fruit trees. In the spring of 1905 
 he set out forty acres more of navel oranges in 
 Round Valley, three miles from his home place, 
 where he also-owns two hundred and sixty acres 
 of citrus land. While most of his time is devoted 
 to the nursery and horticultural business, Mr. 
 Hedberg has also become Interested in several 
 business enterprises, including the Lftidsay Cit- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1191 
 
 rus Nursery Company, in which he holds a half 
 interest ; the Rochdale Association, and the Lind- 
 say Building and Improvement Company, of 
 which he is a director. 
 
 Fraternally he holds membership in the Wood- 
 men of the World, and in politics he supports 
 the policies of the Republican party, but has 
 never taken a very active interest in the politics 
 of' the county, preferring to devote his whole 
 time to his business.' He has met with excellent 
 success and now -has one of the finest nurseries 
 in the entire state. When one considers that 
 Mr. Hedberg has been in this country but a few 
 years, and that he has never had any assistance, 
 his success can be fully appreciated. At the 
 same time he has never neglected his duties as 
 a citizen, and when called upon by his neighbors 
 he has always responded. 
 
 WILLIAM P. RATLIFF. The popular post- 
 master of Tulare is a descendant in the third gen- 
 eration from a native of the Isle of Man who 
 became a farmer in Pennsylvania and whose son, 
 William, carried the family fortunes further west, 
 establishing a home in Indiana and later in the 
 midst of frontier environments in Iowa. At the 
 time of the removal from Pennsylvania John, 
 son of William, was a small boy, and in early 
 manhood he carried on a farm in Iowa, but the 
 spirit of adventure and desire to gain a fortune 
 led him to cross the plains in 1850. For eight 
 years he prospected and mined, and finally re- 
 turned to Iowa via Panama and New York City. 
 During a brief stay in New York City he married 
 Elizabeth Madden, who was born in Dublin, Ire- 
 land, and whose brother, Michael Madden, had 
 been a partner of Mr. Ratliff in their mining 
 operations in California. Intending to settle up 
 his affairs and go back to California, Mr. Ratliff 
 brought his wife to his old farm. In January, 
 i860, three months after the birth of his son, 
 W. P., and just prior to the intended departure 
 for California, he was thrown from a horse and 
 killed. The widow and orphan child carried out 
 his plans and came via Panama to California in 
 i860, settling in Plumas county, where later Mrs. 
 Ratliff became the wife of E. H. Holthouse. Born 
 of that marriage are four sons and a daughter, all 
 residents of Santa Clara county. In 1870 the 
 family moved to the vicinity of San Jose and 
 bought a farm near Lawrence Station, where 
 Mrs. Holthouse died in 1902, at sixty-eight years 
 of age, her death being the result of an acci- 
 dental fall. 
 
 While his parents were living at Oskaloosa, 
 Iowa, W. P. Ratliff was born October 12, 1859. 
 However, his earliest recollections are associated 
 with California, where he supplemented a com- 
 mon school education by a course of three years 
 
 in Santa Clara College. After leaving college 
 he secured a clerkship with T. W. Spring. Com- 
 ing to Tulare in 1882, he became a brakeman on 
 the Southern Pacific Railroad and a year later 
 was made a conductor between Tulare and 
 Huron. In 1888 he left the railroad and took a 
 position with Braly & Blythe, real estate agents, 
 also agents for the Wells-Fargo Express Com- 
 pany. Resigning from their employ in 1892, he 
 accepted the cashiership of the Tulare County 
 Bank and. the Tulare Savings Bank. In August 
 of 1896 he resigned there and became assistant 
 cashier of the Bank of Tulare, continuing in the 
 position until February, 1901, when he was 
 chosen superintendent of two different oil com- 
 panies in the Kern river oil fields. To assume 
 the duties of the new place he removed to Kern 
 county, but misfortune soon overtook him. He 
 fell a victim to typhoid fever and for five months 
 was unable to leave his bed. Meanwhile he had 
 been removed to San Francisco, in order to have 
 the best possible attention and medical care. 
 Upon regaining his strength he returned to Tu- 
 lare in November, 1901, and a few months later 
 became cashier of the Bank of Tulare, where he 
 remained until his appointment as postmaster in 
 April, 1902, under President Roosevelt, assum- 
 ing the duties of that position on the ist of May. 
 In Tulare, June 5, 1888, Mr. RatHff was united 
 in marriage with Alice Harter, a native of Stock- 
 ton and a daughter of Isaac and Matilda 
 (Parker) Harter, pioneers of this state. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Ratliff have one son, Qinton P. Politically 
 a Republican, Mr. Ratliff has been a local leader 
 of the party, has served as a member of the state 
 central committee, in 1896 was chairman of the 
 county central committee, for one term served 
 as city assessor and for two years held office as 
 city treasurer. In the Board of Trade he has 
 held the offices of president and secretary. Fra- 
 ternally he is a member of the Woodmen of the 
 World; Ancient Order of United Workmen, in 
 which he is recorder; Olive Branch Lodge No. 
 269, F. & A. M., in which he was made a Mason 
 and of which he is past master ; and Tulare Chap- 
 ter No. 71, R. A. M., in which he is past high 
 priest. 
 
 WILLIAM WHITFIELD WRIGHT. It is 
 with much pleasure that we present to our read- 
 ers a brief sketch of the life of W. W. Wright. 
 One of the oldest employes in the service of 
 the Southern Pacific Railroad, and one of the 
 pioneers of California, his life is an interesting 
 recital of the advance of modern transportation. 
 It is impossible for us to go into details, owing 
 to lack of space. If we could, the incidents as- 
 sociated with his life would read like a romance. 
 
 A native of Wisconsin, Mr. Wright was born 
 
1192 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 near the city of Milwaukee, January 26, 1856. 
 His father, W. W., was born in Connecticut, but 
 in early pioneer days removed to Wisconsin 
 where he engaged in the tilling of the soil. Later 
 he removed to Illinois, settHng in Grant county. 
 There he lived until the news of the discovery 
 of gold in California. The same year he out- 
 fitted, and with ox teams made the trip across 
 the plains. The following year he went east for 
 a visit, and on his return to this state he engaged 
 in mining for three years. At the expiration of 
 this period he again went east, where he lived 
 until 1864, when he again crossed the plains, this 
 time accompanied by his family. The journey 
 was made with horses and in the remarkably 
 quick time of ninety-four days. They came via 
 the Platte river and Salt Lake. At the latter 
 place they were addressed by Brigham Young. 
 On arriving here the family settled in San 
 Joaquin county, near Stockton, where Mr. 
 Wright engaged in the raising of grain. In 
 1872 he disposed of his interests there and came 
 to Tulare county, homesteading one hundred and 
 sixty acres near Buzzard's Roost, ten miles west 
 of Tulare. There he carried on a successful 
 farming business until 1875, when he located in 
 Tulare where he purchased a lot and erected a 
 fine residence in which he lived until his death 
 at the age of sixty-four years. After moving 
 into Tulare he engaged in well-boring for sev- 
 eral years. He married Cynthia Oliver, a native 
 of Illinois. After the death of Mr. Wright she 
 married George H. Castle of Stockton, where she 
 resided until his death and then returned to 
 Tulare, in which place she died at the age of 
 seventy-four years. By her first marriage she 
 became the mother of two children : Lizzie, who 
 is the deceased wife of Delos Wilson ; and W. W. 
 William W. Wright remembers well the jour- 
 ney across the plains. His education was secured 
 in the district schools of California. In 1873 he 
 came to Tulare and entered the employ of the 
 Southern Pacific Railroad as a hostler in the 
 roundhouse. Two years later he^ was promoted 
 to the position of fireman, and in 1880 was trans- 
 ferred to the right-hand side of the cab. Fronj 
 that time to the present he has never lost a day, 
 except through an accident and when he desired 
 a vacation. His first run as an engineer wa§ 
 between Los Angeles and Lathrop, pulling 
 freight. In 1892 he was promoted to the pas- 
 senger service with headquarters at Fresno. 
 Five years later he was sent to Visalia. Later 
 when the road was completed to Portersville, he 
 located here and has since made this place his 
 home. The only accident he has had occurred 
 while running on the "Sunset Limited" between 
 Fresno and Bakersfield. Two side bars on the 
 engine broke and one rod tore through the cab, 
 tearing the seat out and otherwise demolishing 
 
 the woodwork. It is a wonder he was not killed, 
 but while he was laid tip for nine months he 
 was, at the expiration of that- time, able to re- 
 sume his place. 
 
 On one of his trips, between Fresno and Tu- 
 lare, the train was held up by Britt and Dan 
 McCall. As there were two deputy sheriffs 
 aboard a fierce fight ensued and one of the rob- 
 bers was killed. There are many other incidents 
 in connection with his railroad experience, but 
 space will not permit of their being mentioned. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Wright was united in 
 marriage with Kate Gilmer, a native daughter 
 of California. Her father, Rufus, is now living 
 in Visalia, and a sketch of him will be found 
 on another page of this work. Mrs. Wright 
 was engaged in teaching for thirteen years. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Wright is a Mason, belong- 
 ing to the Royal Arch Masons and the Com- 
 mandery. He is also a member of the Mystic 
 Shrine, being associated with Islam Temple of 
 San Francisco. In connection with his life's 
 work he is a member of the Brotherhood of 
 Locomotive Engineers of Bakersfield, of which 
 he is past chief engineer. 
 
 In politics he supports the principles of the 
 Republican party, but has never had the time to 
 take any part in public affairs. His life has been 
 a success. At all times he has been found true 
 to every trust reposed in him, as is evidenced by 
 his many years of service with the Southern 
 Pacific. Both he and his wife are honored by 
 all who know them. 
 
 REV. JONATHAN WALTON GRAYBILL, 
 A. B., M. D. In Rev. J. W. Graybill, Lindsay 
 has a citizen whom all take pleasure in hon- 
 oring. No more earnest worker in the cause of 
 religion can be found, and while he now devotes 
 a good share of his time to other lines, he is 
 still the pastor of three churches, and in the 
 past has been one of the most active members 
 of the profession. Having a desire for greater 
 usefulness, Mr. Graybill also took up the profes- 
 sionof medicine, being a graduate M. D. Since 
 coming to Lindsay, in 1902, he has proved him- 
 self to be a very useful member of that sec- 
 tion of the county. Progressive, he is always 
 in favor of any movement calculated to be of 
 material benefit to his adopted town and county. 
 
 A native of Virginia, he was born at Salem, 
 August 2, 1853, a son of Michael Graybill and a 
 grandson of John, who was also a native of 
 Virginia of Holland descent, from which country 
 George Graybill, the progenitor of the family in 
 America, emigrated and settled at Lancaster, 
 Pa. Michael Graybill married Mary ObencHain, 
 a daughter of Peter Obenchain, who was a large 
 planter in Virginia and also served in the war 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1193 
 
 of 1812, while her grandfather fought for the 
 independence of the Colonies in 1776. 
 
 Rev.. J. W. Graybill was one of nine chil- 
 dren, five of whom are living, but he is the 
 only one that came to California. A brother. 
 Rev. A. T., was a missionary in Old Mexico, 
 where he had been engaged in this work for 
 thirty years. Reared on his father's farm near 
 Salem, J. W. Graybill attended the public schools 
 and the Fincastle Academy. From there he en- 
 tered the Hampton-Sidney College, from which 
 he was graduated with the degree of A. B. in 
 1876. After this he matriculated in the Union 
 Theological Seminary at the same place, gradu- 
 ating in 1880. The following year, at Roanoke, 
 Va., he was ordained a minister in the Presby- 
 terian Church. After his graduation he studied 
 in the Kentucky Medical School at Louisville, 
 Ky., from which he was graduated in 1882 with 
 the degree of M. D. The same year of his 
 graduation he went to Old Mexico as a Presby- 
 terian missionary. While in that country he held 
 the chair of languages in a theological school, 
 and was also superintendent of four different 
 mission schools. Here it was that his medical 
 training proved useful, for during the time he 
 was in Mexico the vellow fever raged. Dr. 
 Gra)'bill treated over five hundred cases and was 
 also stricken with the dread disease and suf- 
 fered a severe illness. 
 
 Dr. Graybill returned to Kentucky in 1886, 
 locating at Richwood, where he was pastor of 
 the Presbyterian Church for six years. At the 
 end of that time he was compelled to leave on 
 account of ill health. Going to Colorado, he 
 was in charge of the Presbyterian Church at 
 Brighton for three years. From there he re- 
 moved to Trinidad, where he continued in church 
 work for five years. Then, in 1897 he accepted 
 a call to the pastorate of the church at Palo 
 Alto. While there he did post-graduate work 
 in Stanford University, and two and one-half 
 years later he went to San Rafael. At the latter 
 place he became part owner and one of the head 
 masters in the Tamalpais Military Academy for 
 two years. 
 
 In 1900 Dr. Graybill had purchased land near 
 the town of Lindsay, and owing to the ill health 
 of his son, he left San Rafael at the expira- 
 tion of two years, locating at Lindsay, where 
 he has since made his home. Having become a 
 land owner, he concluded to take less active part 
 in church work and devote more attention to the 
 cultivation of his property. Since locating here 
 he has made additional purchases of land, now 
 owning several fine orange orchards, all being 
 under a high state of cultivation and bringing in 
 good interest on the original investment. 
 
 Since his arrival in Lindsay he has organized 
 the Lindsay Presbyterian Church, which is now 
 
 in a flourishing condition. He has also been 
 instrumental in organizing churches at Exeter 
 and Piano, being pastor of all three. With all 
 his business investments to look after, he finds 
 time for church work and so arranges Ris work 
 that he is able to look after his congregations 
 in each of the towns mentioned, and when any 
 special movement is inaugurated to better the 
 existing conditions of either church, he is to be 
 found planning and laboring earnestly to make 
 a success of the venture. 
 
 In Shelbyville, Ky., August 30, 1881, Rev. 
 Graybill was united in marriage with Luella 
 Crockett, a native of Kentucky, and to them 
 has been born one child, Robert E. 
 
 _ During his residence in Trinidad, Dr. Gray- 
 bill was made a Mason, and he is also a member 
 of the Knights of Pythias. In politics a Re- 
 publican, he is deeply interested in the question,? 
 of the day and keeps well posted on current 
 
 topics. '; 
 
 Socially he and his wife are prominent, and 
 while they have lived in Lindsay but a few years, 
 they have made a large circle of friends. As a 
 business man Rev. Graybill is a success, and 
 those who have had dealings with him are now 
 his friends. He has had an eventful life, but 
 is now in good health and looks forward to 
 many years of happiness. 
 
 CAPT. ARTHUR J. HUTCHINSON. 
 Forced to come to California on account of ill 
 health. Captain Hutchinson has become one of 
 the prominent men in the San Joaquin valley, 
 and there is no man who has done more for Tu- 
 lare county, especially that section about Lind- 
 say. When the captain arrived here most of 
 the land was unimproved, and there was no wa- 
 ter for irrigation purposes, but he soon demon- 
 strated that water could be pumped from wells 
 for that purpose. Aside from being the pioneer 
 in pumping water in this manner, he has also 
 been prominent in other lines, his vast experience 
 has fitted him for any position, but he prefers 
 the quiet life of an orchardist to that of any 
 other. 
 
 A native of the Island of Bermuda. A. J. 
 Hutchinson was born August 30, 1846. His 
 father. Gen. William Nelson Plutchinson, was 
 born in England in 1800. Entering the English 
 army he was advanced to the position of general. 
 Later in life he went to the Bermudas where 
 for a time he served as governor, this being an 
 appointive office, made by the king of England. 
 In 1894 he returned to his home in Devonshire, 
 England, where he died. His father, Sir William 
 Hutchinson, was a general in the English army 
 and a man of great prominence. 
 
 Gen. W. N. Hutchinson was united in mar- 
 
1194 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 riage with Mary Russell, a daughter of John 
 Russell, D. D., who at one time was the head 
 master of Charter House and one of the canons 
 of the Canterbury Cathedral. Mrs. Hutchinson 
 died in England at the age of seventy-eight 
 years. She was the mother -of six children, five 
 of whom are still living. 
 
 Arthur J. Hutchinson received a good educa- 
 tion, graduating from the Royal Military Col- 
 lege in 1864. Soon after he was commissioned 
 an ensign in the Twenty-third Fusileers and sent 
 to India, where he served until 1870. During this 
 time he was raised to the rank of captain and 
 in the year mentioned was invalided home. Con- 
 tinued poor health led him to seek a more health- 
 ful country and in 1 871 he came to CaHfornia. 
 Here he decided to remain on account of the 
 climate, and make it his permanent home. _ With 
 this idea in mind he sold his commission in 
 the English army and located at Pomona. Pur- 
 chasing a ranch there he engaged in the fruit 
 business for a time and was the first to have an 
 artesian well. Finally he sold out and purchased 
 an interest in the Cicuega Ranch near Los An- 
 geles, where he became engaged in the raising 
 of fine blooded horses, among the number being 
 Beaconsfield, Hock Hocking, Manzinita, Arthur 
 H., St. David and others. 
 
 In 1887 Captain Hutchinson sold his farm and 
 stock with the intention of returning to Eng- 
 land, but the following year, while traveling in 
 Virginia, he met and married Sadie Lindsay Pat- 
 ton, and in 1889 they came to California. Tak- 
 ing up his residence in Tulare county, the cap- 
 tain purchased his present ranch. Later the 
 Lindsay Land Company was formed with Cap- 
 tain Hutchinson as director and manager. This 
 company purchased two thousand acres of land, 
 a portion of which was subdivided into town 
 lots and the town of Lindsay was located, named 
 in honor of Mrs. Hutchinson. 
 
 During the winter of 1892 and '93 Captain 
 Hutchinson sunk a number of wells and began 
 the improvement of his ranch, setting out orange 
 trees, which have proved a success. In 1893 and 
 '94 about five hundred acres of oranges were set 
 out. This has led to extensions all over the 
 county toward the foothills. These orchards are 
 irrigated from wells, the water from which is 
 directly distributed through pipes to the different 
 sections of the orchards. At the present time 
 there are, within a few miles of Lindsay, over 
 two thousand acres that are planted to oranges 
 and other fruits, all of which are irrigated from 
 wells. This immense business began with one 
 central pumping plant, which secured water from 
 one well. When the captain first planned this 
 extensive business and gave the figures to the 
 company, the others did not think the plan feas- 
 ible and engineers pronounced it impossible. 
 
 However, in spite of all that was said, the cap- 
 tain had confidence in his scheme and finally told 
 the company he would go ahead and do it alone. 
 This he did, and now that it has proved such a 
 success the full credit is accorded Captain Hutch- 
 inson. In addition to his interest in the com- 
 pany, he owns fifty acres which are devoted to 
 navel oranges and tangerines, having one of the 
 largest orchards of the latter in the state. His 
 ranch has been finely improved. The first^pack- 
 ing house that was built in Lindsay was put up 
 by the captain and .still remains in his posses- 
 sion. 
 
 To Captain and Mrs. Hutchinson three children 
 have been born, namely: Mary Lindsay, Wil- 
 liam Nelson Lindsay and Arthur John Lindsay. 
 In politics Captain Hutchinson is a Republican, 
 but' has no time to devote to public matters, al- 
 though there is no man in Tulare county more 
 ready to give of his time and means when called 
 upon to do so, providing the matter is worthy 
 of his support. Such men as he are always at 
 the front to introduce modern methods ; Lindsay, 
 in fact the entire state, owes much, to Captain 
 Hutchinson. He has met with success, but in 
 gaining his success others have been benefited 
 to a large extent. 
 
 ALBEA EDGAR SCRUGGS has every rea- 
 son to be pleased with Tulare county, for a prop- 
 er use of its opportunities has resulted in a 
 competence for him. He owns a fine farm nine 
 miles west of Portersville, where he has made 
 many improvements, putting up buildings ade- 
 quate for his needs and erecting a handsome resi- 
 dence. He is justly named among the represen- 
 tative farmers of this section. A native of Vir- 
 ginia, he was born near Palmyra, Fluvanna coun- 
 ty, February 4, 1846, the descendant of southern 
 ancestry. His father, Joseph Scruggs, was bom 
 in Buckingham county, Va., where he engaged 
 as a farmer until his death, his wife, formerly 
 Pearley Shepherd, of Virginia, also dying in the 
 same locality. They were the parents of seven 
 sons and five daughters, of whom four sons and 
 two daughters are living. 
 
 The youngest in the family of his parents, Al- 
 bea Edgar Scruggs was reared on the paternal 
 farm in Virginia, receiving his education in the 
 public schools in the vicinity of his home. In 
 manhood he decided to seek his fortune in the 
 more remote west, believing in the abundant op- 
 portunities of the newer states. He accordingly 
 came to California in 1867, first locating in 
 Crow's Landing, Stanislaus county. Subsequent- 
 ly he made several trips back east, but his inter- 
 ests remained in California. In 1875 he located 
 in Tulare county, raising stock for a time. In 
 1876 he bought a ranch of the railroad company 
 
GEORGE B. OTIS 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1197 
 
 and began to make improvements, while at the 
 same time he followed grain farming and the 
 raising of stock. He now owns four hundred 
 acres on sections 28 and 33, -township 21, range 
 26. Of this land one hundred and fifty acres 
 is devoted to alfalfa. In 1892 he began set- 
 ting out an orchard of prunes, pears and peaches, 
 being one of the first to devote land to this pur- 
 pose. He now has an orchard of twenty-five 
 acres, while his entire property is under irriga- 
 tion from the Woods Central Irrigation Ditch, 
 of which company he is a director. He also 
 owns a grain farm on the plains of four hundred 
 and eighty acres. One of Mr. Scruggs' chief 
 interests on his farm is a dairy, noted for the 
 excellence of its products. 
 
 Near Portersville Mr. Scruggs was united in 
 marriage with Mrs. Julia (Rhoades) Turner, a 
 native of Texas, and the daughter of William 
 Rhoades, one of the first settlers near Porters- 
 ville. He had eight children, of whom Mrs. 
 Scruggs was the sixth in order of birth. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Scruggs have been born nine chil- 
 dren, viz. : William J., of Nevada ; John E., a 
 dairyman ; Pearley, who died at the age of 
 eighteen years ; Hugh E., of Berkeley ; Clarence ; 
 Fay; Clifford; Roy and Ray (twins), the last 
 five named are at home. 
 
 Mr. Scruggs gives his support to the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church South, of Poplar, of 
 which he is a member. Fraternally he is iden- 
 tified with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, of Tulare, and politically is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Democratic party as far as regards 
 national issues, reserving the right to cast his bal- 
 lot locally for the man whom he considers best 
 qualified for public office. 
 
 GEORGE BUELL OTIS, a pioneer of Cali- 
 fornia and an honored resident of Berkeley, was 
 born in Chittenden county, Vt., near Bolton, 
 . September 16, 1844, and is a son of Albert Hins- 
 dale and Mary (Jewell) Otis. The former was 
 born in Massachusetts and was the only child 
 of Joseph and Viola (Hinsdale) Otis, of Eng- 
 lish ancestry. Albert Hinsdale Otis was reared 
 in Massachusetts and was there educated, grad- 
 uating from the Wesleyan University with the 
 degree of D.D. In Vermont he married Mary 
 Jewell, who was a daughter of Jesse Jewell, one 
 of the early settlers of Bolton, Vt. In 1838, with 
 his wife, he went to Wisconsin and bought gov- 
 ernment land near what is now Kenosha, but was 
 then known as Southport. In addition to his 
 duties as a circuit rider in the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church, he followed millwrighting success- 
 fully for years. He improved a farm in Wis- 
 consin, to which state his father later went and 
 
 took the home prepared by the son, who at once 
 made another home on an adjoining farm. Al- 
 bert H. Otis and his wife reared a family of 
 five children, one daughter. Ruby, dying in early 
 childhood. Charles Wesley, born in Wisconsin, 
 IS a retired merchant now living in Santa Rosa, 
 Sonoma county; Sarah Anna is the wife of 
 George P. Laird, of Cambria, Cal., a retired 
 dairyman and educator ; Philo J., a retired farmer 
 of Fresno county, was formerly a teacher in 
 Oregon; and George B. is the subject of this 
 sketch. The father came to Cahfornia in 1851, 
 locating in Grass valley. He assisted in build- 
 ing the first quartz mill in California and en- 
 gaged in mill building for some time. In 1854, 
 via the Isthmus of Panama (having crossed the 
 plains in his former trip to California) he re- 
 turned to Wisconsin and two years later brought 
 his family to California, settling in Sonoma coun- 
 ty, where he followed farming. His death oc- 
 curred in Alameda county on the site of the Uni- 
 versity of California, in 1865, while his wife 
 died in 1887, and both are interred in Petaluma. 
 
 George B. Otis received his education in Wis- 
 consin and Sonoma county, Cal, after which 
 he took a six months' course at the University 
 of the Pacific. In 1864 he went to Nevada and 
 followed mining for a time, but not meeting with 
 success he returned to California and with his 
 brother Philo purchased one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land near Petaluma. The ranch was 
 later disposed of and in 1866 they drove a band 
 of dairy stock to Salinas valley, where they leased 
 a part of a Spanish grant near Castroville. They 
 there added to their stock and continued the dairy 
 business. It was there that Mr. Otis met and 
 married his wife, formerly Elizabeth Roadhouse, 
 who was born near Stockton, Cal., November 
 20, 1851, a daughter of Joseph Roadhouse. In 
 1872 the brothers removed to Santa Clara coun- 
 ty, their lease having terminated, and there fol- 
 lowed the dairy business until 1876, when they 
 dissolved partnership. George B. Otis removed 
 to Fresno county and there in time accumulated 
 six hundred acres of land, now owning eighty 
 acres adjoining the town of Selma. There he 
 established his home and in 1880, with three 
 others, platted the town of Selma. It was Mr. 
 Otis who selected the name by which the town 
 is known. There he erected a comfortable home 
 and resided until his removal to Berkeley. George 
 B. Otis is a direct descendant of James Otis of 
 Revolutionary fame.* 
 
 To Mr. Otis and his wife were born four chil- 
 dren : Albert Joseph was born in Pajaro valley, 
 Santa Cruz county, January 25, 1871 ; he is un- 
 married and makes his home in Selma; George 
 Fredron, born in Santa Clara county, August 
 7, 1873, is married and has one son, Buell; he 
 makes his home in Selma, having charge of his 
 
1198 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 father's business there; Elizabeth, born Novem- 
 ber 17, 1878, is the wife of Jacob Boehler, of 
 Watsonville; and Earl Norriss, born August 16, 
 1 88 1, is unmarried and makes his home in Selma. 
 Elizabeth and Earl were born in Selma, Fresno 
 county, in what was formerly part of the orig- 
 inal courthouse. Mr. Otis assisted in building 
 up the town of Selma and gave of his time and 
 means to advance its interests. He has never 
 aspired to public office, although he has always 
 been an ardent Republican. He and his family 
 are members of the Episcopal Church. Frater- 
 nally he is an active member of Selma Lodge No. 
 309, I. O. O. F., being a charter member and 
 one of the organizers of same. He has passed 
 all the chairs of the lodge and is also a member 
 of the Encampment, and has attained the Can- 
 ton. 
 
 JOSIAH MESSER FERGUSON. A veteran 
 of the Civil war and a resident of California for 
 many years, Mr. Ferguson is well worthy of men- 
 tion in this work. His has been a successful life, 
 the result of his own efforts. In youth no spe- 
 cial advantages were associated with his sur- 
 roundings, and as he advanced in life and grad- 
 ually attained a position of affluence he could 
 truly say that all was his from "right of con- 
 quest." 
 
 A native of Georgia, Mr. Ferguson was born 
 March 25, 1843, ^ son of Champion and Rachel 
 (Duckett) Ferguson. The father was born in 
 Kentucky, where his early life was spent and 
 where he engaged in farming for a time, but 
 while still a young man he removed to the state 
 of Georgia. There he continued his occupation, 
 subsequently migrating to Meigs county, Tenn., 
 where he lived until his death at the age of sixty- 
 seven years. His wife was a native of Georgia 
 and a daughter of Jacob Duckett, who settled in 
 the latter state at a very early date, having re- 
 moved there from North Carolina. Mrs. Fer- 
 guson died in Arkansas. She was the mother of 
 eleven children, three of whom were killed in 
 service during the Civil war. 
 
 J. M. Ferguson is the only one of the family in 
 California, where he has resided since 1875. His 
 early life was spent on his father's, farm, where 
 he assisted in the farm labors as soon as he was 
 old enough. In those days educational advan- 
 tages were limited and the schooling of Mr. Fer- 
 guson amounted to only a few terms in a sub- 
 scription school. In 1863 he made his way 
 through the mountains of Tennessee and joined 
 the Tenth Tennessee Cavalry, Company G, in 
 which company was also a brother. Enlisting as 
 a private he was later promoted to orderly ser- 
 geant. Most of the time was spent in scouting 
 in the mountains of Tennessee, although hf took 
 
 part in the battle of Nashville. In the fall of 
 1864 his company was ordered to New Orleans, 
 where he remained until the close of the war, 
 being honorably discharged at Nashville, in 1865. 
 Returning to Georgia, he spent a short time 
 visiting the scenes of his boyhood days. That 
 same fall he went to Tennessee and from there 
 to Russell county, Ky., where he was employed 
 in a sawmill for one year. Returning to Ten- 
 nessee he engaged in farming for seven years. 
 At the expiration of this time he disposed of 
 his interests in the south and in 1875 bade good- 
 by to his home and friends and came to Cali- 
 fornia, locating in Tulare county, at what is 
 now the town of Poplar, so called from a row 
 of poplar trees. At that time the country was 
 sparsely settled, and where are now fine farms 
 and orchards was nothing but uncultivated plains. 
 Mr. Ferguson homesteaded one-quarter of sec- 
 tion 2, which he at once began to cultivate and 
 improve. He was one of the first to engage in 
 grain raising in this section of the county, having 
 at one time one thousand acres under cultiva- 
 tion. When he settled there, no postoffice was 
 established but he and Arthur B. Carpenter got 
 up the petition and after a short time succeeded 
 in having the Poplar postoffice established. At 
 first Mr. Carpenter was the postmaster, but later 
 Mr. Ferguson was appointed and served for one 
 year, when owing to a change in his business 
 affairs, he resigned. 
 
 In addition to his farming and grain growing 
 interests, Mr. Ferguson engaged in a general 
 mercantile business at Poplar, which he conducted 
 for ten yeai's. During this time he was one 
 of the most active men in that section of the 
 state. He assisted in the building of the Poplar 
 Irrigation Ditch, which was the first ditch to be 
 constructed on the south side of the Tule river. 
 He helped to run the first water and was for 
 years the president of the company. During 
 the past few years Mr. Ferguson has disposed 
 of much of his land, although he still owns three 
 hundred acres on sections 2 and 35, three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres on section 7, which is a 
 grain farm, and one hundred and sixty acres in 
 the foothills. 
 
 In 1904 he rented his farm arid removed to 
 Portersville, where he is now enjoying the re- 
 sult of his many years of hard labor. In 1903 
 he purchased an interest in the grocery business 
 now known as Futrell & Ferguson in Porters- 
 ville. This was formerly conducted by Futrell 
 & Howatt. Later he purchased the latter's inter- 
 est and the business is now conducted by his son 
 and son-in-law. 
 
 While living in Tennessee Mn Ferguson was 
 united in marriage with Parthena C. Cundiff, a 
 native of that state. To this union have been 
 bom eight children, as follows: Cordelia, now 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1199 
 
 the wife of Fletcher Martin, who is living on 
 the old place; Cora, who married William 
 Walker of San Francisco; Dora, wife of George 
 Futrell, of Portersville ; Mary, who married 
 Arthur Hayes, of Poplar; Tennie, at home; 
 James, who was accidentally drowned in the Fre- 
 mont Baths at Oakland, in March, 1902; 
 Thomas, at home, and Fletcher, who is at home 
 attending the high school. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Ferguson is a Mason and a 
 valued member of the Grand Army of the Repub- 
 lic, although he does not attend the meetings of 
 the latter organization. In politics he is a firm 
 believer in the principles advocated by the Re- 
 publican party, and while he has never had the 
 time nor the inclination to take a very active part 
 in political matters, he is always deeply inter- 
 ested in local affairs, and has at all times been 
 found ready and willing to perform his duties as 
 a citizen. He has been especially interested in 
 educational matters, and was a director of his 
 district for many years. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson are active mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In that 
 section of the county where they made their home 
 for so many years they have hosts of friends. 
 
 SAMUEL E. DALE. Since locating in Tu- 
 lare county in 1875 Samuel E. Dale has acquired 
 a position of prominence among the representa- 
 tive citizens of this section of the San Joaquin 
 valley. Of southern ancestry, he was born near 
 Carrollton, Carroll county, Ga., August 18, 1841, 
 one of a family of ten children, of whom nine 
 attained maturity. His father, John M. Dale, 
 was born in Abbeville district, South Carolina, 
 and in young manhood engaged in the Indian 
 wars of the country. He removed to Carroll 
 county, Ga., and engaged as a planter and stock- 
 raiser until 1868, when he came to California 
 and located near Modesto, Stanislaus county, 
 where his death occurred at the age of seventy- 
 three years. His wife, in maidenhood Polly 
 Bailey, was a native of Gwinnett county, Ga., 
 and a daughter of Robert Bailey, of South Caro- 
 lina, and a farmer of Georgia. She died in 
 Georgia, at the age of thirty-nine years. The 
 children born of this union were as follows: 
 John H., who died in the Red River country in 
 Texas; William C, of Poplar; Willis, who died 
 at the age of seventeen years; Valentine B., a 
 resident of Stanislaus county, Cal. ; Robert F., 
 who died in Tate county, Miss.; Samuel E., the 
 subject of this review; Elizabeth, who married 
 Jesse Patterson, of Texas, where her death oc- 
 curred ; Sarah, the. wife of David Hulsey; Z. 
 Taj'lor, who died in San Joaquin county; and 
 Edward Hill, of Poplar. 
 Samuel E. Dale was reared in Georgia and ob- 
 
 tained his education in the public schools in the 
 vicinity of his home. In the spring of 1861 he 
 volunteered in the Seventh Georgia Regiment, 
 and during the four years of active service was 
 located principally in Virginia, taking part in 
 the battle of Gettysburg, as well as in those bat- 
 tles which followed in Maryland and Virginia, 
 during the siege of Petersburg and Richmond. 
 He was with General Lee in Richmond until 
 the surrender. During the service he was 
 wounded twice, the first time at the battle of 
 Bull Run in 1861, receiving a flesh wound in the 
 left thigh, and later was wounded in the side. 
 Upon the close of the war he engaged in raising 
 cotton in Georgia until 1868, when he left the 
 state, going by boat from New York City to 
 Panama, thence by steamer to San Francisco. 
 Arriving in the state of California, he located on 
 the Stanislaus river in Stanislaus county, where 
 he followed farming until 1875. In that year he 
 came to Tulare county, where he purchased two 
 hundred and forty acres of railroad land, which 
 now forms his home ranch. This land was wild 
 and without any improvements or cultivation, 
 and he at once began the work which to-day 
 places his farm in the front rank of those of this 
 section. Later he purchased two other places, 
 one of one hundred and sixty acres and the 
 other of eighty acres, making a total of four 
 hundred and eighty acres. For many years he 
 engaged in general farming and stock-raising, 
 but for the past eight years has devoted his at- 
 tention principally to the latter occupation. He 
 also conducted a dairy business for some years, 
 when he sold out. He has disposed of a portion 
 of his property, now owning in the home place 
 but three hundred and twenty acres, two and a 
 half miles southwest of Poplar, which he rent,s. 
 Mr. Dale is a Democrat in his political con- 
 victions and an ex-member of the county central 
 committee. He has served acceptably on the 
 grand and petit juries, and has in all ways taken 
 an active interest in public affairs. He is a mem- 
 ber of the Sterling Price Post, United Confed- 
 erate Volunteers, at Fresno. 
 
 _ SAMUEL JAMES VINCENT. The posi- 
 tion which Mr. Vincent occupies in the social, 
 financial and business life of Tulare county has 
 been won by the display of unusual ability, stanch 
 and unswerving integrity in all his dealings, and 
 a personality which has given him a leadership 
 in the community. A native of Ontario, he was 
 born near Kingston July 4, 1870, the son of 
 Hugh Gilmore Vincent, an old settler of that 
 place and a farmer, who came to California in 
 1876. He engaged in the sheep business here, 
 and is still living, hale and hearty, at the age of 
 seventy-one years. His wife, formerly Mary J. 
 
1200 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Carmichael, is also living. They were the par- 
 ents of nine children, eight of whom are living 
 and are located in California. The children are 
 as follows : Mary, deceased, v/as the wife of 
 W. J. Grue; Margaret, the wife of J. B. Monroe, 
 of Woodvilie; John, a stockman of Woodville; 
 Belle, the wife of M.^Santry, of Woodville; 
 Samuel James, the subject of this review; Mar- 
 tha, the wife of Patrick Griffin, of Woodville; 
 Annie, of Woodville; Tina, the wife of John 
 Billingslea, of Woodville ; and H. Gilmore, a 
 stockman of Woodville. 
 
 The sixth in order of birth, Samuel James 
 Vincent, accompanied his parents to California 
 when only six years old, receiving his education 
 in the public schools. At the age of nineteen 
 years he engaged in the stock business, being 
 principally interested in the raising of sheep. 
 This occupation he has since followed with 
 marked success. In 1894 he became the owner 
 of a ranch of one hundred and sixty acres about 
 seven miles west of Portersville, upon which he 
 located two years later and proceeded to improve 
 -and cultivate the property. He now owns three 
 hundred and twenty acres on sections 26 and 27, 
 township 22, range 27, about half of which is in 
 alfalfa, the entire land being under the Stockton 
 Ditch Company, of which he is secretary. In 
 addition to this property he also owns three 
 other tracts of land, six hundred and forty acres 
 and three hundred and twenty acres, eight miles 
 southwest of Sausalito, and one hundred and 
 sixty acres northwest of that place. 
 
 In Woodville. June 19, 1898, Mr. Vincent was 
 united in marriage with Jane E. Oughton, a na- 
 tive of Ireland, and they are the parents of the 
 following children: Violet, Roy and Ray. Mr. 
 Vincent is school trustee for the Woodville dis- 
 trict and has also served as clerk of the board. 
 Politically he is a stanch Republican and an ex- 
 member of the county central committee, and 
 fraternally was identified with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows of Woodville. 
 
 CHARLES J. CARLE. A native of the Gold- 
 en State, Mr. Carle was born at Phillips Flat, 
 June 9, 1858, a son of Andrew Jackson Carle, 
 a native of Ohio. His father, Joshua Carle, was 
 also a native of the Buckeye state, later he re- 
 moved to Wapella, 111., where he died in 1894 
 at the age of eighty years. 
 
 Andrew J. Carle crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia about 1850 and for a time lived at Phillips 
 Flat, Mariposa county. Later he organized a 
 water system for the purpose of supplying water 
 to the mines. After this venture he took up 
 his residence in San Francisco, where he en- 
 gaged in a general merchandise business. While 
 living there he became interested with others in 
 
 a company that was formed for the purpose of 
 exploring the island of Cocos, off the coast of 
 Central America. By the decision of the mem- 
 bers of the company he was made captain of 
 the expedition. All finally being ready the start 
 was made and after an absence of eight months 
 the party returned to San Francisco. The hard- 
 ships of the voyage undermined Mr. Carle's 
 health and soon after his return he died. 
 
 Mr. Carle was united in marriage with Cath- 
 erine Rebecca Hampson, a native of Ohio. She 
 became the mother of five children, four of whom 
 are still living. The second of this family was 
 Charles J. Carle. His early boyhood was spent 
 in San Francisco, where he lived until going to 
 Sonoma county. At the age of eleven he went 
 east with his guardian, W. R. Carle, and made 
 his home with an uncle, J. T. Carle, at Clinton, 
 111., where he attended the public school. After 
 two years there C. J. Carle removed to New- 
 castle, Pa., where the time was spent on a farm 
 and in attendance of the public school in the 
 vicinity. Three years later he returned to Illi- 
 nois and lived at Wapella for five years. During 
 a portion of this time he was a student in the 
 Butler University, but in his junior year he re- 
 turned to California. Prior to this, however, he 
 had taught school for one year in Illinois. 
 
 Upon arrival in California in 1879, he se- 
 cured a position as clerk in San Francisco. Later 
 he lived in different parts of the state, finally 
 returning to San Francisco, where he was en- 
 gaged in the produce business for two years. He 
 then bought a farm in the Santa Cruz mountains 
 near Los Gatos. This he improved and for five 
 years was there engaged in the fruit business. 
 The property is still in his possession. At the 
 expiration of the five years he formed a part- 
 nership under the firm name of Topham, Carle 
 & Co. and located in Milpitas, Santa Clara coun- 
 ty. After continuing there for eight years as 
 manager of a general merchandise business he 
 came to Lindsay, where he had previously pur- 
 chased twenty acres, five acres of which had been 
 set out with Washington navel oranges. Since 
 making his home here, he has set out the bal- 
 ance of his land and otherwise improved it. 
 
 In addition to his orange business, he is one 
 of the progressive members of the El Mirador 
 Land Company. This company has purchased' 
 four thousand acres of the Lewis Creek ranch. 
 The land has been divided into small tracts and 
 named the El Mirador Colony. Mr. Carle is the 
 resident director and manager of the company, 
 and through his personal oversight the venture 
 has proved a success. The tract is located in the 
 foothills three miles east of Lindsay. 
 
 While living in Milpitas, Mr. Carle was united 
 in marriage with Grata M. Ashley, who was born 
 in Placer county, this state, and a daughter of 
 
p-t-^^^-k^/^^'-^ (y~-<^^^^W^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1203 
 
 John T. Ashley, a California pioneer. Mrs. Carle 
 is the mother of two children, William Ashley 
 and Jackson Tyler. By a former marriage Mr. 
 Carle has one child, Helen E. 
 
 In Portersville, Mr. Carle was made a Mason 
 and is now a member of the lodge and chapter. 
 He also holds membership in the Sigma Chi fra- 
 ternity. Politically he supports the Republican 
 party, but has never cared for any of the emol- 
 uments of public office. His life thus far has 
 been a success, and while succeeding in a finan- 
 cial way, he has never neglected his duties as a 
 citizen. He and his wife have a wide circle of 
 friends. 
 
 COURTNEY TALBOT. The many talents 
 of Courtney Talbot have won for him the ad- 
 miration and esteem of all who have come to 
 know him throughout his long residence in Tu- 
 lare countv. The family is an ancient one on 
 American soil, the first emigrating ancestor pre- 
 sumably having located in Virginia, where the 
 name flourished for generations. Nichblas Tal- 
 bot was born in Virginia November lo, 1776. 
 In young manhood he immigrated to Kentucky 
 to take part in the formation and upbuilding of 
 that state, in Bourbon countv. May 19, 1799, 
 being united in marriage with Aria Kennedy. 
 She was born May 11, 1781, the daughter of 
 John Kennedy, who was taken prisoner by the 
 British at Guilford Courthouse, N. C, March 15, 
 1781. He died soon afterward from the effects 
 of the inhuman treatment received aboard the 
 British prison ship. A letter that he wrote be- 
 fore entering the army is carefully preserved 
 among the relics of the family, the spirit of fer- 
 vent patriotism and the prayer for the success 
 of the colonies speaking eloquently of the man- 
 hood which sustained our country in its incipi- 
 ency. That for which he gave his life was af- 
 terward def ended. bv four of his grandsons, who 
 fought gallantly in the Civil war. Nicholas Tal- 
 bot died May i, 1828, while his wife survived 
 him until January, 1862. The parents of Nich- 
 olas Talbot were Samuel (born in Virginia, 
 March 17, 17.S6,) and Constantine (Ragan) 
 Talbot, the daughter of Nicholas Ragan, also 
 of Virginia. Coleman Talbot, the son of Nich- 
 olas and Aria Talbot, was born in Bourbon coun- 
 ty, Ky., July 13, 1809, and made his home in 
 his native state until attaining his majority. In 
 1830 he went to Adams county. 111., and enlisted 
 in Capt. David Crow's company, serving in the 
 Black Hawk war of 1832. He remained in that 
 location for about twenty years, in 1850 following 
 the examole of his ancestors and seeking a new- 
 er field. In 1850 he crossed the plcfins to Cali- 
 fornia, upon his arrival engaging in mining first 
 at Hangtown (Placervillel and later at Coloma 
 
 and Diamond Springs. April 15, 1851, he lo- 
 cated in Sonoma county and engaged in farming 
 until January, 1852. He then took passage on 
 the steamer California bound for Panama, thence 
 on the El Dorado to New York City, and from 
 there to Kentucky, visiting- for the last time the 
 scenes of his childhood and the home of his 
 mother, who was then livinp-. On the 20th of 
 April of the same year he once more crossed the 
 plains to California, in company with J. M. 
 Bowles, T. H. Tate, M. Britton and others, ar- 
 riving in Sonoma county in October. In July 
 of the following year he settled near Santa Rosa, 
 Sonoma county, where he now resides, sustain- 
 ing the reputation of the family for longevity as 
 well as rare powers of strength and endurance. 
 He was married to Drusilla Bowles, a daughter 
 of Jesse Bowles, a native of Kentucky, who mar- 
 ried a Miss Parker of Kentucky. Coleman and 
 Drusilla (Bowles) Talbot became the parents of 
 five sons and four daughters, of whom Courtney 
 Talbot was the fourth in order of birth, being 
 , a native of Adams county,' 111., where he was 
 born April 11, 1837. 
 
 In the common schools of Illinois and the 
 Sonoma Academv Courtney Talbot received his 
 education. Following the example of the great 
 majority of the citizens of the state at that time 
 he became a miner at Oroville, Butte county, 
 and along the Feather river when only eighteen 
 years old. He subsequently engaged in the more 
 stable pursuit of farming, although from i860 to 
 1863 he was located in Nevada in prospecting 
 and mining. In the last named year he returned 
 to his home in Sonoma county and there set out 
 a vineyard, which he conducted for a time. In 
 the year 1871 he conducted a hotel known as 
 the American hotel in Petaluma, after one year 
 going to Merced, in the San Joaquin valley, 
 where he engaged in farming near Los Banos. 
 His chief interest for some years was the cul- 
 tivation of wheat. While a resident of that lo- 
 cality he attained a prominent position, discharg- 
 ing the duties of justice of the peace for two 
 years. Coming to Tulare county in 1874, he lo- 
 cated near Hanford, where he farmed and also 
 assisted in the building of the Settlers' ditch. 
 During the famous Mussel Slough fight he was 
 an active participant in behalf of the settlers. 
 In 1883 he located in the cottonwoods near Vis- 
 alia, Tulare county, and engaged in the raising 
 of wheat for several years, v-hen, in 1887, he 
 located in Tulare for the purpose of giving to his 
 children the better educational advantages of that 
 place. He engaged in horticulture in the Rus- 
 sel and Oakdale colonies but lost heavily. In 
 1890 he located on the Tule river and established 
 and built up the Sunnyside Grove, located four- 
 teen miles east of Portersville. This property 
 consists of twenty acres of fine, bearing Wash- 
 
1204 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL 'RECORD. 
 
 ington navel oranges, which fruit he ships him- 
 self, the first carload from the district this year 
 being from his ranch, and sent to the San Fran- 
 cisco markets. He is making a success of his 
 work, giving to its prosecution his talents, en- 
 ergy and industry, and the interest which comes 
 from congenial employment. He enjoys the out- 
 door work although he is a man of letters, and 
 devotes much time to the reading of good books, 
 and also does considerable writing, especially 
 in the realm of poetry. One of his best-known 
 poems is "An Ode to Tule River," which is given 
 in full at the close of this sketch. 
 
 In Santa Cruz, in 1867, Mr. Talbot was united 
 in marriage with Amelia Holser, a native of Han- 
 cock county. 111., and a daughter of Conrad Hol- 
 ser, who came to California in an early day and 
 engaged in the butcher business and later the 
 hotel business in Petaluma, conducting the Mag- 
 nolia hotel, until his death. They became the 
 parents of the following children: Jessie Mill- 
 man (deceased), Alice, Willie Coleman and 
 Pearl E. at home. The son is an intelligent and 
 promising young man of this community, a po- 
 sition of trust already granted him being his ap- 
 pointment as horticultural commissioner of the 
 Portersville district. Politically Mr. Talbot was 
 first a Republican, afterward a Democrat and 
 now reserves the right to cast his ballot -for the 
 candidate whom he considers best qualified for 
 public office. In 1884 he was elected supervisor 
 from the fourth district, and served acceptably 
 for a term of two years. 
 
 AN ODE TO TULE RIVER, 
 (By C. Talbot.) 
 Hail mystic connection of cloud and of snow 
 With the sun-bathed valley of the land below ; 
 Down from the summit of old Moses' brow, 
 Silently climbina;, but who can say how? 
 But soon in thy pranks, thy infant tricks 
 Are seen in thy splashing and whirling sticks. 
 Go on in thy fun, you cute little brooks, 
 Playing hjde-and-go-seek in all the dark nooks, 
 Now J^in hands and close up your ranks. 
 Not single or double, but in solid phalanx, 
 For down through the rocks thy way must be hewn. 
 With evidence of power thy path must be strewn. 
 Silently working and wearing away, 
 All the hours of the livelong day. 
 
 Hail ! dashing river in the pride of thy youth 
 
 Like impetuous young manhood in the pursuit of truth, 
 
 Ever onward, singing, dashing along. 
 
 Swelling the chorus of the mountain's wild song. 
 
 Down through forests ei^ darkest green, 
 
 Mid fern-covered banks thou flowest between, 
 
 Where the buck, the do?* and the cute little fawn, 
 
 Delighteth to linger on thy cool, shadv lawns. 
 
 Still onward through mountains of wild chaparal. 
 
 Where the bear, and the lions and the panthers do 
 
 dwell ; 
 Where the eagle from his cleft swoops down with a 
 
 scream. 
 Spreading terror to all that drink from the stream; 
 Now out o'er the cliffs with a wild, reckless leap, 
 
 Filling the air with a white, silvery sheet, 
 
 While the sunbeams form a bow in the sky. 
 
 Which forever shall linger, while the waters pass by. 
 
 Now resting awhile in the caverns below. 
 
 With foam for a nsantle, as white as snow. 
 
 From under this mantle, thy waters run clearer. 
 
 Spanning the banks with a beautiful mirror. 
 
 While the mountains and peaks seem below as above, 
 
 As- perfectly united as two hearts in love. 
 
 Perhaps it is here in the ages gone by. 
 
 Thou hast heard the sound of the lover's sigh. 
 
 For a dusky maiden would repair to the brink 
 
 Where she would see her form as she leaned o'er 
 
 to drink. 
 Stop not, oh river, 'mid these scenes old and hoary. 
 There waits thy coming a far brighter story. 
 Well mayst thou know it, I will tell it thee now — 
 Thou shalt follow in the furrow of the husbandman's 
 
 plow; 
 Thy way shall be changed, thou shalt be led from thy 
 
 course, 
 Thou shalt be bridled and led like a man does his 
 
 horse ; 
 Around through the glades of fair Pleasant Valley, 
 Where spring first unfolds the poppy and lily. 
 Around through the hills, where periods of dearth. 
 Have held constant sway since God made the earth, 
 Still sparkling and rippling thy waters glide along. 
 As pure and as limp as a maiden's love song. 
 Till yonder, oh river, at the base of the hill, 
 Thou shalt arrive at the town of old Porterville, 
 The pride of the valley of the great San loaquin, 
 And thou art the jewel of this bright lovely queen. 
 Now send for Pomona, old Ceres and Flora, 
 Bid them arrange there grand Courts and I'll tell them 
 
 a story. 
 Let them marshal their forces and prepare for a rally. 
 For we'll have here a wedding ere thou enter the val- 
 ley, 
 Since the valleys and mountains do here clasp hands. 
 We'll join here in wedlock the waters and lands; 
 Thou, oh • river, thou hast been wooed and been won 
 Like many a fair daughter by some mother's son. 
 Bid sanchero come to this grand celebration, 
 And open his ditches in every direction. 
 And the mountains and valleys together shall sing. 
 The result of this union great wonders will bring : 
 Pomona will reign here mid her apples of gold 
 And Flora will come and her beauties unfold. 
 The churches and schoolhouses, with many a spire, 
 Shall rejoice at the coming and all rise higher; 
 And songs of praise shall ascend to the Giver, 
 And thank the good Lord for our own Tule River. 
 
 JAMES C. FLY is a gentleman whom it is a 
 real pleasure to meet. Hale and hearty he is 
 considered one of the most popular residents of 
 Tulare county, where he has lived for so many 
 years. Now that he has reached old age he is 
 able to enjoy all the comforts and many of the 
 luxuries of a well earned competency. 
 
 A native of Tennessee, Mr. Fly was born 
 March 15, 1837, near the city of Nashville, a 
 son of John and Betsev (Turner) Fly. John Fly 
 was also a native of Tennessee, where he lived 
 until 1840, when he removed to Barry county. 
 Mo., where he engaged in farming for several 
 years. Later in life he 'took up his residence near 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1205 
 
 Ft. Scott, Kan., where he continued to follow 
 farming and stock-raising until 1890, when he 
 followed his son to California, locating in Tu- 
 lare county. Here he finally died at the age 
 of sixty years. His marriage resulted in the 
 birth of nine children, seven of whom are still 
 living. 
 
 James C. Fly accompanied his parents on their 
 removal from Tennessee to Missouri, spending 
 his boyhood on the farm. In those days the 
 farmer youth had little opportunity of attend- 
 ing school, a few terms in the district school be- 
 ing the limit of educational advantages. Going 
 to Kansas with his father, he remained there 
 one year, when he returned to Barry county. 
 Mo., and engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 on the Missouri river. 
 
 "Hearing such flattering reports of California, 
 Mr. Fly determined to come west and in 1865 
 he started on the long journey. Ox-teams and 
 wagons were the only transportation facilities 
 that Mr. Fl)' could command, but in those days 
 the young men thought little of such a trip, and 
 \vith a cheerfulness now hard to imagine, he 
 and his outfit started for the Golden West. On 
 reaching Prescott, Ariz., he remained there for 
 one year, engaging in placer mining until the 
 water gave out, when he again started for Cali- 
 fornia. This time no stops were made, and 
 after many weeks of tiresome traveling Mr. 
 Fly reached Tulare county, and here he has since 
 made his home. 
 
 Soon after his arrival Mr. Fly purchased eighty 
 acres of land two miles from Farmersville. This 
 he at once began to improve, securing water 
 from the People's ditch for irrigation purposes, 
 with which he was able to produce splendid 
 crops of grain and alfalfa. During all these years 
 this land has remained in his possession, and 
 each year he has raised from one to three crops, 
 never having a failure. In addition to this, 
 his first purchase, he homesteaded another eighty 
 acres on section 2, which he has improved and 
 placed under a high state of cultivation. Aside 
 from general farming Mr. Fly has devoted con- 
 siderable attention to stock-raising, owning one 
 hundred and sixty acres in the foothills, near 
 Dry Creek, which is used for grazing purposes. 
 
 While still living in Barry county. Mo., Mr. 
 Fly was united in marriage with Mary Palmer, 
 who was born in Arkansas. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Fly have been born the followine: children : Me- 
 linda, who married Henry Adkisson and died 
 in 1884 : Ellen, the wife of Elliott Patten ; John, 
 who is a stockman living near Fresno ; Martha, 
 now Mrs. William Hester ; Rosa, now Mrs. R. H. 
 Owens ; Ettie, now Mrs. C. Noel, and Vinton, the 
 youngest, who lives near the old home and as- 
 sists his father in the work of the farm. 
 
 Politically Mr. Fly is a Democrat on national 
 
 issues, but in local matters he believes in voting 
 for the man best qualified for the office. Aside 
 from serving as school trustee he has never tak- 
 en an active part in public matters, deeming it 
 best to devote his time to his own business. For 
 j'ears he has been one of the leading members 
 of the Exeter Methodist Church, and has al- 
 ways done his part in the upbuilding of Chris- 
 tianity. He has lived here many years and is 
 well known throughout the county. He is one 
 of the upbuilders of California, and while he 
 has never, in any degree, been a public man, 
 he has done his part as a citizen. 
 
 J. SMITH DUNGAN is probably one of 
 the best posted men on oranges in the San 
 Joaquin valley. He is a persistent student 
 and spends all his leisure time reading books 
 and papers relating to the industry. As super- 
 intendent of the Bonnie Brae ranch, he has an 
 ample opportunity to demonstrate his ability. 
 
 A son of Thomas N. Dungan (whose sketch 
 will be found on another page of this work" in 
 connection with the sketch of Dr. J. F. Dungan, 
 of Exeter), he was born in Washington county, 
 Va., near Glade Spring, March 28, 1872, and is 
 the second of six living children. His early 
 life was sp^nt on the home farm in Virginia 
 where he worked and attended the public schools. 
 Remaining at home until reaching the age of 
 twenty-one, he then struck out for himself and 
 in 1895 came to Exeter. He soon became inter- 
 ested in the citrus fruit industry and for a time 
 was in the employ of the Ohio Lemon Company, 
 doing the nursery work for that company until 
 February, 1901, when he resigned his position 
 to become associated with George T. Frost, who 
 at that time was with the Merryman Fruit, Land 
 and Lumber Company, having charge of the 
 Bonnie Brae orange grove. Mr. Dungan was 
 placed in charge of the orchard and continued 
 in this position until Mr. Frost severed his con- 
 nection with the Bonnie Brae. Mr. Dungan 
 then took charge of the orange grove for the 
 owners, the Merryman Fruit, Land and Lumber 
 Company. 
 
 This is an important position and one that car- 
 ries a ^reat deal of responsibility with it, but the 
 company place implicit confidence in Mr. Dungan, 
 and that this confidence is not abused is shown 
 by the condition of the trees. In addition to 
 the Bonnie Brae tract, Mr. Dungan also has 
 charge of the Santa Regina tract of one hundred 
 and seventy-five acres. Of this seventy acres 
 are devoted to olives, forty-three to pears and 
 five acres are in grapes. The balance is used 
 for general farming purposes. To carry on this 
 business requires the services of a large force 
 of men, all of whom are under his direct super- 
 
1206 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 vision. Mr. Dungan owns a residence in Exeter 
 and is also the owner of three acres of oranges, 
 located in the town of Exeter, block i. 
 
 Mr. Dungan has taken an active interest in 
 fraternal matters, being a member and past chan- 
 cellor of the Knights of Pythias and also holds 
 membership in the Uniformed Rank, K. P., of 
 Exeter. 
 
 Politically a Democrat, he has never had a 
 desire to hold public office, preferring to devote 
 his entire time to his business interests. Pub- 
 lic-spirited, he is an active member of the Exeter 
 board of trade and can be counted on to do his 
 part in the work of progress. 
 
 JOHN ETZENHOUSER. Holding a sub- 
 stantial position among the representative busi- 
 ness men of Visalia is John Etzenhouser, a 
 prominent contractor and builder, a successful 
 agriculturist, and the president and manager of 
 the Pioneer Brick Company, which he assisted 
 in incorporating, and in which he is a large 
 shareholder. He is a native of California, his 
 birth having occurred November 20, 1864, in 
 San Joaquin county, on Dry creek, where his 
 father, the late Henry Etzenhouser, Jr., settled 
 in 1854. His paternal great-grandfather, Jacob 
 Etzenhouser, was a lifelong resident of Germany. 
 His grandfather, Henry Etzenhouser, Sr., emi- 
 grated with his family to the United States in 
 1841, locating first in Pennsylvania, and then in 
 Illinois. In 1852 he came across the plains to 
 California, and followed mining for a while. 
 After the death of his wife, which occurred in 
 the northern part of the state, he returned east, 
 settling in Jackson county, Mo., where he was 
 accidentally killed by a railway train. 
 
 A native of Germany, Henrv Etzenhouser, Jr., 
 was born near Cassel, Kur-Hessen, January 13, 
 1824, and was brought up in his native country. 
 On July 13, 1841, he came to America, and set- 
 tled near Philadelphia, with his parents, with 
 whom he afterward removed to Illinois, taking 
 with him his bride, whom he had married in 
 Pennsylvania. Coming with an ox-team train 
 to the Pacific coast in 18.S2, he was engaged in 
 mining pursuits for several months. In 1853 ^^ 
 had the misfortune to lose his right arm by the 
 premature discharge of a fuse, and soon" after, 
 in 1854, he settled near Drv Creek, in the San 
 Joaquin valley, where he followed general farm- 
 ing until 1871. Removing in that year to Jack- 
 son county. Mo., he purchased land near Inde- 
 pendence and was there engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits until his retirement. He subsequently 
 lived there until his death, in November, 1902. 
 Near Philadelphia, Pa., he married Hannah 
 Margaret F. S. Qay, who was born November 
 9, 1826, in Saxe- Weimar, Germany, and' came 
 
 with her parents to Pennsj-i-vania, where they 
 spent the remainder of their lives. She bore her 
 husband nine children, namelv : Henry died at 
 the age of two years ; Mrs. Rosanna L. A. C. 
 Morss, of San Jose, Cal. ; Elias, a collector, re- 
 siding in Kansas Citv, Mo. ; Rev. Rudolph, a 
 traveling evangelist : Daniel died at the age of 
 sixteen months ; Alfred, living on the old home 
 farm in Missouri : John, the subject of this 
 sketch ; Alma, a farmer in Jackson county, Mo. ; 
 and Celestia, wife of Elmer Weldon. died in San 
 Jose, Cal., in 1902. 
 
 Being taken by his parents to Missouri when 
 in the seventh year of his age, John Etzen- 
 houser was there brought up on a farm, and 
 educated in the district school. Beginning life 
 for himself at the age of fourteen years, he went 
 to Colorado, where he worked in a sawmill for 
 a short time. Returning then to Missouri, he 
 worked for two years at brick-making, waiting 
 for an opportunity to learn the bricklayer's trade. 
 In 1882 Mr. Etzenhouser again went to Colo- 
 rado, and as an employe of the Denver & Rio 
 Grande Railway Company helped to build the 
 roundhouse and shoos at Grand Junction, and 
 while so employed began the trade of a brick 
 mason. Continuing with the company, he 
 worked as a mason on the roundhouse and shops 
 at Pleasant Vallev. Utah, and after their com- 
 pletion, on November 4. 1882, came to San Fran- 
 cisco, Cal. The ensuing two vears he was em- 
 ployed in dairy farming in San Luis Obispo 
 county. Subsequentlv marrving, Mr. Etzen- 
 houser followed farming in San Benito county 
 for eighteen months, and then settled in Kern 
 county, where he continued in his independent 
 occupation for two vears. his farm being located 
 near Bakersfield. While there, he completed the 
 brick mason's trade, under the instruction of 
 Tohn English, and then followed it for a time 
 in Fresno. He subsequently worked as a brick 
 mason in various places, includina: Visalia 
 Fresno, San Jose, and Portland, Ore. Locating 
 in Tulare county in 1894, Mr. Etzenhouser 
 bought one hundred and twenty acres of land 
 near Traver, and there carried on farming m 
 addition to working at his trade until 1902. His 
 land is nearly all under irrigation, and he has 
 it well improved. He has a good orchard of 
 three acres, a vinevard of fourteen acres, while 
 the remainder is devoted to raising alfalfa for 
 dairy purposes, his dairy containing thirty cows. 
 
 Desiring to give his attention exclusively to 
 contracting, building and brick-making, Mr. Et- 
 zenhouser rented his ranch in T902, and moved 
 to Visalia, where he boueht his present residence 
 property. He has erected many of the important 
 public and private buildings throughout the 
 countv, both in city and country, and has ac- 
 cumulated considerable wealth. The Pioneer 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1209 
 
 Brick Company, of which he was one of the in- 
 corporators, and is the president and manager, 
 has a large factory, which is well supplied with 
 modern machinery, run by oil, and makes a su- 
 perior quality of both common and pressed brick, 
 which is in good demand in the local markets. 
 
 In HoUister, Cal., Mr. Etzenhouser married 
 Anna Morss, who was born in San Joaquin 
 county, a daughter of Dudley and Mary (Kane) 
 Morss. Her father, a native of Illinois, came to 
 CaHfornia with his father, Jacob Morss, in i860, 
 settling first in San Joaquin county as a farmer, 
 and now being a resident of Santa Clara county. 
 Three children have blessed the marriage of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Etzenhouser, namely : Arthur Earl, 
 now a sophomore in the Visalia High School; 
 Benjamin died when but eight days old; and 
 Edith Augusta. Fraternally Mr. Etzenhouser is 
 a member of the Woodmen of the World, and 
 politically he is a Socialist. 
 
 L. ROY PAYNE, a worthy representative of 
 the men of energy and thrift who halve had 
 much to do with the development of the pack- 
 ing industry of the San Joaquin valley, was 
 born February 2, 1875, in Qyde, Allegan county, 
 Mich., a son of J. H. and Celia A. (Askins) 
 Payne. The former, a native of England, ac- 
 companied his father to the United. States and 
 settled on a farm in Michigan. Later he en- 
 gaged in the insurance business, and died in that 
 state at the age of sixty-eight years. Mrs. Payne 
 is a native of Allegan, and a daughter of a 
 pioneer farmer of Michigan, who came from 
 Pennsylvania at an early day; she makes her 
 home in Fresno. Of the five children born to 
 Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Payne four are living, viz. : 
 Bertram D., a lumber manufacturer of Fresno 
 county; Frank T., also engaged in the lumber 
 business; Esther C., the wife of Milton Loyrea, 
 of Spokane, Wash. ; and L. Roy. 
 
 L. R. Payne spent his boyhood days in Alle- 
 gan county, attending the public school and the 
 high school in Vicksburg, Mich., and graduating 
 in 1892. In 1893 he came to California and set- 
 tled in Fresno with his mother. Entering the 
 employ of the Fresno Home Packing Company, 
 by steady application and observation he grad- 
 ually worked his way from the lower rung of 
 the ladder to a position of prominence. In 1896 
 he became general superintendent of the pack- 
 ing house and in 1898 purchased an interest in 
 the business and was elected secretary of the com- 
 pany and a director. In 1902 he was elected vice- 
 president and made general outside manager, 
 having charge of all the packing interests. 
 
 The Fresno Home Packing Company owned 
 the first seeded raisin packing plant in the 
 valley. They built up a lucrative business, and 
 
 57 
 
 •later had several branch houses. In 1902 the con- 
 solidation of five independent packing houses was 
 made, the plant being known as Pacific Coast 
 Seeded Raisin Company, the largest shippers in 
 the state. They erected the largest buildings in 
 the state, used for that purpose, and fitted them 
 with special machinery to handle all kinds of 
 California fruits and raisins. All labor-saving 
 devices are used, and nowhere in the world is to 
 be found as modern a plant for the handling 
 of and preparing for market the raisin output 
 of the United States. 
 
 Since the organization of the new company 
 Mr._ Payne has devoted his entire time and at- 
 tention to the advancement of the business, to 
 maintaining a standard grade of goods, to the 
 installation of the latest machinery and keeping 
 on friendly relations with their employes. 
 
 In Oakland, December 19, 1901, Mr. Payne 
 was united in marriage with Delia M. Hodges, 
 a native of Fresno and a daughter of I. A. 
 Hodges, who is now a resident of Oakland. 
 They have one daughter, Marian Frances. Mt. 
 Payne is a member of the Fresno Chamber of 
 Commerce. At one time he served on the execu- 
 tive committee, was a merriber of the building 
 committee during the erection of their new build- 
 ing, and is now chairman of the committee on 
 exhibits. He was also a member of the Louis- 
 iana Purchase Exposition committee. Frater- 
 nally he is a Mason, being initiated into the order 
 in Fresno Lodge No. 247, and is a member of 
 Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. M., Fresno Com- 
 mandery No. 29, K. T., and of Fresno Lodge 
 of Perfection. Politically he is a pronounced 
 Republican, though he has never allowed Ris 
 name to be mentioned for office. Socially he is 
 a charter member of the Sequoia Club of Fresno. 
 In all matters that have had for their object the 
 advancement of the social, moral, educational and 
 commercial affairs of Fresno county and Cali- 
 fornia, Mr. Payne has been a liberal contributor. 
 By his strict integrity and perseverance he hao 
 worked his own way in the world and in business 
 circles he has attained a firm position among the 
 substantial men of Fresno. 
 
 E. T. RAGLE. Every year the grim reaper 
 is thinning the ranks of the pioneers. The men 
 who left comfortable homes in the east to brave 
 the dangers and the privations of the far west- 
 ern wilderness, are rapidly being called to their 
 final reward. But throughout this grand state 
 there are yet many of these noble characters who, 
 although well advanced in j^ears, are still hale and 
 hearty. Among this number mention must be 
 made of Mr. Ragle. In the early '50s, when the 
 only means of transportation across the barren 
 deserts and trackless prairies was the "prairie 
 
1210 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 schooner," this man came to California, . To 
 be sure he was but one of thousands, but to 
 him and his associates, the state of California 
 owes a debt that will never be repaid. In this 
 busy world of the present, too little credit is giv- 
 en the men who blazed the wav for future gen- 
 erations. 
 
 Mr. Ragle was born in Hawkins county, 
 Tenn., May i8, 1833, a son of George and 
 Annie Margaret (Miller) Ragle. The father fol- 
 lowed farming in Tennessee and there his death 
 occurred. His wife, a native of Virginia, bore 
 him ten children, but only two of this large 
 family are now living. 
 
 E. T. Ragle was reared on his father's farm 
 in Tennessee, receiving his education in the old- 
 time subscription schools. Upon leaving the 
 parental roof, he went to Dubois county, Indi- 
 ana, where he remained two winters .and one 
 summer. At this time the stories of this west- 
 ern coast were being told in every household, 
 and with the determination to seek his fortune 
 in the Golden West, Mr. Ragle went" to St. Jo- 
 seph, Mo., from which point the pioneer was 
 starting for California. At Weston^ Mo., he 
 joined a train with which he remained until 
 reaching Salt Lake. There he and three com- 
 rades secured pack horses and came on in ad- 
 vance of the train, finally reaching Trinity coitn- 
 ty in safety. The winter after his arrival he 
 followed mining, but not liking- that occupation, 
 he went to Santa Rosa in the spring of 1855, 
 soon after buying a farm on the Santa Rosa creek. 
 There he engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 until 1 86=; when he sold out and came to Tulare 
 county and followed farming on Outside creek, 
 until 1872. In the last-named year he purchased 
 his present place on the Kaweah. When this 
 land came into his possession it was wild and 
 unimproved, but under the direction and super- 
 vision of the owner, it was placed under culti- 
 vation and improvements were made, until to- 
 day it is one of the most valuable properties 
 in the county. Mr. Ragle has devoted his time 
 to_the raising of grain and stock and has han- 
 dled over four thousand sacks of grain per year. 
 From time to time land was purchased until the 
 aggregate reached six hundred and forty acres, 
 but since then two hundred acres have been 
 sold. 
 
 In Sonoma county, Mr. Ragle met and mar- 
 ried Eliza Ann Moffett, who was born in east- 
 ern Tennessee and crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia in 1857. Of this union twelve children 
 have been born as follows : Frances L., now 
 Mrs. Renick; George Wesley; Martha Louise, 
 who is now Mrs. Toler of Orosi ; Charlotte Jane, 
 now Mrs. Thomas Morrison; William Hamilton, 
 who resides at home; John Henry, living near 
 Tulare; Aijnie Eliza, deceased; Elizabeth A., 
 
 living near Visalia; Virginia Caroline; Mary 
 Josephine, at home; Warren Emanuel, also at 
 home ; and Nancy Alice, who resides in this vicin- 
 ity. 
 
 Mr. Ragle is a stanch Democrat, believing 
 firmly in the principles of this party. While he 
 has never cared for the emoluments of public 
 office he has nevertheless taken an active inter- 
 est in local matters, especially along educational 
 lines, serving for several years as trustee of the 
 Antelope school district. A member of the Cum- 
 berland Presbyterian Church he has for years 
 been one of its most substantial supporters and 
 has at all times been ready to give of his time 
 and means to further the interests of this de- 
 nomination. 
 
 It will be seen by the foregoing sketch that 
 this honored pioneer has made his own way in 
 the world, and while he has met with success it 
 is not the result of outside assistance but rather 
 the outcome of his own industry and persever- 
 ance. In his battle for success he owes much of 
 the result to the faithfulness of his most esti- 
 mable wife, who has at all times been a true 
 helpmeet. 
 
 MORGAN JAMES WELLS. In passing 
 through Tulare county in the luxurious palace- 
 cars of today, the traveler sees on either side 
 waving fields of grain and alfalfa, fine orchards 
 and magnificent vineyards, and cannot but be im- 
 pressed with the thrift, enterprise and progres- 
 sive spirit of its citizens. The trials, privations 
 and hardships of the original 'settlers, however, 
 are not apparent, and th'e courage and endur- 
 ance necessary to change the primitive face of 
 the country to its present bright picture of civi- 
 lization can not be realized by the younger gen- 
 erations. Among the prominent pioneers of this 
 section of California is Morgan James Wells, 
 who settled on his present homestead, near Vis- 
 alia, alrnost fifty years ago, and has since been 
 an important factor in developing the resources 
 of town and country. A native of Tennessee, 
 he was born June 15, 1833, ™ Dixon county, 
 which was also the birthplace of his father, the 
 late Henry Gilbert Wells. 
 
 In the fall of 1833, Henry Gilbert Wells re- 
 moved with his family to Arkansas, locating in 
 Pope county. Buying wild and unbroken land, 
 he improved a ranch, and engaged in general 
 farming and stock-raising for several years. 
 Coming across the plains to California with ox- 
 teams in 1856, he spent his declining years with 
 his son, Morgan James, dying at the age of 
 eighty-one years. He married Nancy Wilson, 
 who was born in Tennessee, and died at the 
 home of her son, Morgan J., in California, when 
 sixty years of age. Her father, Adam Wilson, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1211 
 
 was born in. Ireland, and after his emigration 
 to the United States was engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits in Tennessee. 
 
 The sixth child and only survivor of a family 
 of seven children, Morgan James Wells has had 
 a varied experience in life. His parents re- 
 moving to Arkansas when he was but a few 
 months old, he was brought up in true pioneer 
 style, with none of the advantages given to the 
 .^boys of today. He was educated in a subscription 
 school, which was kept in a rude log house, with 
 a shake roof and slab benches, and was taught 
 to write with a quill pen made by the teacher. 
 Being seized with a severe attack of the gold fev- 
 er in the spring of 1852, he formed a company 
 and started with ox-teams for the Pacific coast. 
 Following the Cherokee route, he went up the 
 Arkansas valley, through Denver, which was 
 then a very small hamlet, along the Platte to 
 Salt Lake, thence by way of Humboldt and 
 Carson City to Tuolumne county, arriving in 
 Sonora, being six months en route. After min- 
 ing there for a year, Mr. Wells went to old Mil- 
 lerton, where he resided for three years, being; en- 
 gaged in mining and teaming. Locating in Tu- 
 lare county in 1856, he continued as a freighter 
 for a few months, hauling lumber from the 
 mountains with ox-teams. 
 
 In 1857, Mr. Wells, with his bride, settled on 
 his present home ranch, about five miles north- 
 west of Visalia, on Elbow creek. Entering one 
 hundred and sixty acres of wild land, he first 
 built a shake house, which in course of time 
 was replaced by a substantial frame residence. 
 By dint of energetic perseverance he improved 
 a good ranch, and until the close of the Civil 
 war was engaged in general farming and team- 
 ing, making a specialty of raising wheat, cattle 
 and hogs. He pays considerable attention to 
 fruit culture, having now a productive family 
 orchard, and about thirty acres of prunes, which 
 grow well in this locality. A man of excellent 
 business tact and ability, Mr. Wells has made 
 wise investments, and in addition to his home 
 farm, which now contains two hundred and 
 forty acres, he owns Bone Canyon ranch, which 
 is situated fourteen miles northeast of his home 
 farm, and contains eleven hundred acres of land, 
 devoted principally to grain and stock-r-aising. 
 His land is under good irrigation from the 
 Wutchumna canal, in which he is financially 
 interested. 
 
 In 1857, in Tulare county, Mr. Wells married 
 Catherine Fudge, a native of Tennessee, and the 
 daughter of John C. Fudge, a farmer, who 
 crossed the plains with his family in 1856, com- 
 ing to California as a pioneer. Of the union of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Wells six children were born, 
 namely: Mary, who married L. H. Douglass, 
 died at the age of twenty-three years in Visalia, 
 
 leaving one child, David Roy Douglass, now at- 
 tending the San Francisco College of Pharmacy ; 
 Sallie, of Visalia ; Susan E., wife of David Doug- 
 lass, died in Visalia, at the age of thirty-two 
 years; Maggie died when eighteen years old; 
 John died when twenty years old; and William 
 Reid, well-known farmer and stockman, oper- 
 ating the Bone Canyon ranch. William Reid 
 Wells married Linda Pleas, a native of San 
 Joaquin county, and they have one child, Donald 
 Morgan Wells. In his political views Mr. Wells 
 is a stanch Democrat, and an ex-member of fhe 
 county committee. In 1879 he was elected 
 sheriff, and took the oath of office in March, 
 1880, and served most acceptably for two years 
 and ten months, his term being extended owing 
 to the change of Constitution ; at its expiration 
 he was not a candidate for re-election. As 
 sheriff, Mr. Wells was associated with several 
 celebrated cases, among others being that of 
 Ben Harris, a colored man, who killed his wife 
 and her child. Harris fled to the brush, and on 
 being found by Mr. Wells and his deputies defied 
 them, and was shot by one of the deputy sheriffs. 
 Fraternally Mr. Wells belongs to Visalia Lodge 
 No. 148, F. & A. M., to which his son, William 
 R., also belongs ; and to Visalia Chapter, R. A. 
 M. ; and is a member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. Mrs. Wells has proved her- 
 self a true helpmate to her husband through- 
 out his career, and, like him, is held in high re- 
 spect by all. She is ' a valued member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church South. 
 
 RAPHAEL BARCROFT. Progressive and 
 enterprising, R. Barcroft, one of the leading 
 hardware merchants of Merced, is prominently 
 identified with the mercantile prosperity of this 
 section of the San Joaquin valley. The descend- 
 ant of a pioneer family of prominence^ he is 
 a worthy representative of the native-born sons 
 of California, and one of its most esteemed citi- 
 zens. He was born September i'^, 1856, in 
 Hornitos, Mariposa county, a son of R. W. Bar- 
 croft. Further parental and ancestral history 
 may be found elsewhere in this volume, in con- 
 nection with the sketch of his brother, Frederick 
 Barcroft. 
 
 Educated in the public schools, R. Barcroft 
 learned the blacksmith trade when young, work- 
 ing first as an apprentice, and later as a journey- 
 man. Locating in the city of Merced in 1878, 
 Mr. Barcroft followed his trade for seven years, 
 acquiring a good reputation for his mechanical 
 skill, and accumulating some property. Embark- 
 ing in the mercantile trade in 1885, he bought 
 out the hardware business of his brother Fred- 
 erick, and for two years was at the head of the 
 firm of Barcroft & Branson, being located in a 
 
1212 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 small frame building. In 1887 Mr. Barcroft 
 bought out his partner's interest in the firm, and 
 has since carried on the business alone. In this 
 he has met with success, his trade having rapidly- 
 increased. Being forced by the demands of his 
 customers to have more room, he built, in 1894, 
 on Main street, his present brick store, 25x100 
 feet. In the fall of 1903 he built a store ad- 
 joining the original structure, making that 
 25x100 feet, and raised the entire building one 
 story, also putting an addition 40x50 feet on the 
 old store, making the building in its entirety 
 50x140 feet. The second floor is used for lodge 
 rooms and offices, but the remainder he occupies 
 in his own business, and in addition has a 
 plumbing shop, 24x50 feet, and a warehouse in 
 which he stores his surplus goods. ]\Ir. Bar- 
 croft has the most complete stock of goods in 
 his line to be found in the county, including 
 heavy and light shelf ware, stoves, furnaces and 
 house furnishing goods. He also handles agri- 
 cultural machinery and implements of all kinds, 
 and deals in carriages and wagon?. 
 
 Mr. Barcroft married, in Tuolumne county, 
 Cal., Margaret Tinney, a native of that county, 
 and they are the parents of two children, namely : 
 William R., a student in the electrical depart- 
 ment of the Wilmerding Mechanical College; 
 and Frank R., in the store with his father. In 
 national politics Mr. Barcroft is a stanch Repub- 
 lican, and in local affairs he is quite active, for 
 twelve years having served as a member of the 
 city board " of trustees, during which time a 
 first-class sewer system has been installed, and 
 other improvements made. Fraternally he is a 
 member of the Knights of Pythias ; of the Wood- 
 men of the World; of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, in which he is a past officer; 
 of the Independent Order of Foresters; and of 
 the Young Men's Institute. 
 
 JOHN A. VAN CLEVE. Exeter has in the 
 above-named gentleman, a young man who, 
 while he has been in California but a few years, 
 has already won for himself an assured posi- 
 tion in the orange industry. Mr. Van Cleve 
 comes from Wisconsin, which state has furnished 
 California, and particularly Exeter, with several 
 of its best citizens. 
 
 John A. Van Cleve attended the public school 
 in his native town, later entering the Univer- 
 sity of Michigan, preparing for his university 
 work at St. John's Military Academy. In 1897 
 he was graduated from the university, after which 
 he entered the Ypsilanti Business College, where 
 he remained until 1899. The following three 
 years were spent in various parts of the state, 
 and in 1901 he came to California, locating at 
 Exeter. In the spring of 1902 he took the con- 
 
 tract for looking after the Badger Hill Orange 
 ranch, being in the employ of the Merry- 
 man Fruit, Land and Lumber Company. Here 
 he has remained up to the present time, now 
 having charge of two hundred and sixty-one 
 acres. 
 
 While Mr. Van Cleve has been busily at work 
 for others he has saved his money and now owns 
 one hundred and sixty acres four miles north- 
 east of Exeter, and intends to devote it to the 
 growing of canteloupes. Thus it will be seen that 
 he has made a splendid start in life, and is one 
 of the young men that in the future will become 
 one of our best citizens. 
 
 A true-blue Republican he takes an active in- 
 terest in the welfare of his party, but has neith- 
 er the inclination nor the time to seek office. 
 He is well posted, not only on current events, 
 but has read extensively and is thoroughly con- 
 versant with his chosen vocation. Since locating 
 in Exeter he has won a large circle of friends 
 who, unite in wishing him continued success. 
 
 JASPER HARRELL. A potent factor in the 
 upbuilding of the best interests of Visalia, Jas- 
 per Harrell is numbered among the most worthy 
 of the pioneers of the state. Born in Atlanta, 
 Ga., August 16, 1830, he was a son of Edward 
 Harrell, who was born in 1800 and died in Cali- 
 fornia June 7, 1889. Jasper Harrell started in 
 life with few educational advantages, and all that 
 came to him in after years to make of him a suc- 
 cessful, well-read, well-informed man was the 
 result of his own unaided efforts. In young 
 manhood he drifted west, in 1850 taking pas- 
 sage from New Orleans on a steamer bound for 
 San Francisco. Upon his arrival there he went 
 at once to the mines in Tuolumne county, where 
 he remained two years. Although he was more 
 or less successful, the life of a miner held but 
 little attraction for him, and he accordingly lo- 
 cated near Visalia, where he engaged in the 
 stock business. Since 1850, and until within a 
 few years of his death, he purchased large tracts 
 of land. These tracts have since been devoted 
 to stock-raising purposes, now consisting of 
 about ten thousand acres of land situated seven 
 miles north of Visalia, where Mr. Harrell made 
 his home for many years. He met with com-, 
 plete success in his work, acquiring liberal 
 means. His spirit of enterprise was largely man- 
 ifested, in that he gave liberally of all he had 
 to the furthering of important enterprises, pub- 
 lic or private, putting up various residences in 
 Visalia, as well as a magnificent three-story bank 
 building on the corner of Court and Main streets, 
 erected in 1889 at a cost of $35,000. In the same 
 year a private bank, under the name of Harrell 
 & Son, was started and conducted successfully 
 
. 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 / 
 
 ^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1215 
 
 until 1893, when the Producers' bank was in- 
 corporated which assumed the business of Har- 
 rell & Son, Mr. Harrell being one of the largest 
 stockholders. The principal reason for the 
 change in banks being that A. J. Harrell 
 wished to give his individual attention to the 
 Sparks-Harrell Corporation, which is still in ex- 
 istence and in a flourishing condition. In addi- 
 tion to his varied interests in Visalia he was 
 a large landowner in the city of Los Angeles, 
 among other possessions belonging to the es- 
 tate being the Nadeau Hotel and a fine residence 
 at the corner of Pearl and Orange streets. He 
 was the owner of the Sparks-Harrell Company, 
 a land and cattle corporation owning one hun- 
 dred and seventy thousand acres of land in Ne- 
 vada, and herding thirty thousand head of cattle 
 on that range. The many activities of Mr. Har- 
 rell were cut short by death May 13, 1901, when 
 nearly seventy-one years of age. He left a va- 
 cancy in the business world which could be filled 
 by very few. 
 
 In the fall of 1857 Mr. Harrell was united 
 in marriage with Martha E. Bacon, a native of 
 St. Louis, Mo., and the daughter of Fielding 
 and Sarah (Bell) Bacon, the former a native of 
 Missouri and the latter of Pennsylvania. Born of 
 this union were two children, of whom Andrew 
 J. is a banker in this city, and Victoria is the 
 wife of Walter J. Trask, an attorney. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Harrell always gave 
 his support to the principles advocated in the 
 platform of the Democratic party. A broad, 
 liberal and enterprising man he is justly remem- 
 bered as a citizen of worth and abilitv, and 
 one whose best efiForts for personal success lay 
 parallel with those for his adopted state. He 
 was readily accorded an honored place in the 
 memory of the people who profited by his public- 
 spirited life, which won for him the distinction of 
 being one of the foremost citizens of his day 
 in Tulare county. 
 
 THOMAS PRICE was born at Plainsberg, 
 December 16, 1864, and with the exception of one 
 or two short intervals his entire life has been 
 spent within the borders of his native county. 
 He was reared on a farm and the greater part 
 of his life has been spent in general farming and 
 stock-raising. Since 1902 he has been associated 
 in the real estate business with H. H. Miner, of 
 Le Grand, his. present place of residence. This 
 .enterprising firm has been instrumental in bring- 
 ing many homeseekers to this section of the 
 state. 
 
 Thomas Price, Sr., was one of the prominent 
 and influential pioneer settlers of Merced coun- 
 ty, one who was closely identified with the early 
 history of the county. He was born on a farm 
 
 October 4, 1825, in Arkansas, a son of James and 
 Pamelia (Browning) Price. In 1846, at the age 
 of twenty-one, he was united in marriage with 
 Alice Slinkard, and from then until the spring 
 of 1852 the young people made their home in 
 Arkansas. 
 
 Accompanied by his wife and one daughter, 
 Mr. Price crossed the plains to California in 1853, 
 the journey lasting from April 17 to October 22, 
 the date of his arrival in Marysville, where they 
 remained but a short time, afterward residing 
 for a few months in Sonora, Tuolumne county. 
 In August, 1854, he located in Merced county, 
 which at that time was a part of Mariposa county, 
 and here he made his home the balance of his 
 life. Unlike the majority of those who settled 
 in California at that early date he did not seek 
 his fortune in the mines, but with keen fore- 
 sight he was quick to realize the advantages of 
 free grazing, and as soon as possible turned his 
 attention to stock-raising. 
 
 Going into Texas in the spring of 1855, he 
 bought a drove of cattle, brought them to Cali- 
 fornia, and by giving his personal attention to the 
 business succeeded beyond his expectations. He 
 continued to follow the stock business until 1871, 
 when the great land excitement broke upon the 
 community. Following in its train was the law 
 prohibiting stock from running at large, and as 
 a natural result the stock business declined. Sell- 
 ing his stock Mr. Price turned his attention to 
 general farming, a venture which was crowned 
 with success. In 1873 he again went to Texas 
 and purchased large tracts of land on the fron- 
 tier. His home farm near Plainsberg contained 
 twelve hundred and thirty acres and in addi- 
 tion he owned a two thousand acre ranch in 
 Mariposa county. Politically a Democrat, he was 
 active in political affairs. He died in 1887, at the 
 age of sixty-two years. Seven children were 
 born to him and his wife as follows : Mary J., 
 wife of W. C. Wilson, a butcher of Le Grand; 
 Sadie R., wife of J. F. McSwain, of Merced; 
 George, a resident of Fresno county; James D., 
 who resides in Mariposa county; Jefferson D., 
 of Le Grand, where he is filling the office of jus- 
 tice of the peace ; Thomas, and Nettie L. 
 
 In his youth Thomas Price had exceptional 
 educational advantages; after completing the 
 grammar school course he took a high school 
 course at Merced, subsequently taking a thor- 
 ough commercial course at Heald's Business col- 
 lege in San Francisco. His school days over, 
 farming claimed his attention in his home coun- 
 ty until 1885. He then went to Nebraska and 
 engaged in stock-raising for a couple of years, 
 afterward returning to Merced county, which has 
 since been his home. In addition to the real es- 
 tate business Mr. Price owns an interest in twen- 
 ty-two hundred acres of stock land in Mariposa 
 
1216 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county. By his marriage in 1891 he was united 
 with Miss Stella Aiken, a daughter of the late 
 W. B. Aiken, of Merced, one of the first super- 
 visors of the county. A native of Louisiana, he 
 crossed the plains to California at an early day. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Price have one son, Justin G., who 
 was born in 1895. Like his father, a Democrat 
 in political views, Mr. Price has rendered effi- 
 cient service as supervisor of Merced county for 
 the past four years, representing the second dis- 
 trict. Fraternally he affiliates with the Wood- 
 men of the World, Modern Woodmen of Amer- 
 ica, Native Sons of the Golden West, and the 
 Fraternal Aid Association. 
 
 PUTNAM BROTHERS. Enterprising and 
 substantial citizens, the Putnam brothers occupy 
 a place high in the esteem and confidence of their 
 fellowmen, and are widely known throughout 
 Tulare county for the ability and energy which 
 have marked their career. They are sons of Jos- 
 eph Putnam, a pioneer of '49, who left his fath- 
 er's farm in the Green mountains of Vermont, 
 where he was born, going first to the state of 
 Massachusetts, thence to California. He en- 
 gaged in mining in Calaveras and Amador coun- 
 ties, which occupation he continued until he went 
 into the mercantile business at Volcano. Later 
 he located on the Mokelumne river, in San 
 Joaquin county, and set out an orchard of sixty 
 acres, the balance of his four hundred acre farm 
 being devoted to the raising of grain. He re- 
 mained in that location until his death, which oc- 
 curred in 1893, at the age ot sixty-two years. He 
 had taken a lively interest in the growth and up- 
 building of his adopted state, with the exception 
 of a short time spent in the east, to which he 
 made two subsequent trips, remaining in Cali- 
 fornia the balance of his life. He was a mem- 
 ber of the California Pioneers of Stockton. His 
 wife, formerly Mary Ann Fletcher, was a native 
 of Massachusetts, in which state she was married 
 to Mr. Putnam. In 1859 she came to CaHfornia 
 by the Panama route, and died in the old home- 
 stead in 1899. Of the nine children born of this 
 union, six are living, namely : Mary Ellen, the 
 wife of Lucian Athern, of Clements, Cal. ; Jos- 
 eph Fletcher ; Lucy, the wife of W. E. Whipple, 
 of Clements; William; E. A., at Clements, and 
 Jennie, the wife of Abner Jones, of Clements. 
 
 Joseph Fletcher Putnam was born in Cam- 
 bridge, Mass., in 1854, and with his mother came 
 to California when five years old. He received 
 his education in the district school in the vicinity 
 of the home farm in San Joaquin county. He 
 followed farming on the Tiome place after attain- 
 ing maturity, finally, however, locating on a farm 
 thirty miles east of Visalia, Tulare county, on 
 Three Rivers, where he homesteaded and en- 
 
 gaged in the stock business. He resided there 
 thirteen years, when he sold out, and, returning 
 to the old home engaged in farming there for a 
 few years. He then went to Santa Qara county, 
 and engaged in horticulture until 1903, when he 
 located on the farm now owned by himself and 
 brother, William. This consists of four hundred 
 and twelve acres seven miles west of Visalia, 
 where they are engaged in general farming and 
 stock raising. They have a fine place, and very 
 productive land, all under irrigation from the 
 Persian Ditch, of which company Mr. Putnam is 
 superintendent. Sixty acres of this property is 
 devoted to alfalfa. Mr. Putnam has a family of 
 three children : Ira, at home with his father ; 
 Lena, the wife of H. J. Stokes, of Visalia, and 
 Blanche, at home. In his political preference 
 Mr. Putnam is a stanch Republican, giving his 
 voice and vote to the support of every move- 
 ment calculated to advance the principles he en- 
 dorses. He is an enterprising and liberal citi- 
 zen and is held in the highest esteem by all who 
 know him. 
 
 William Putnam is a native Californian, his 
 birth having occurred at Clements, Cal., in 1862. 
 He grew to manhood amid the scenes of his 
 birth, receiving his education in the-distfict school 
 in the vicinity of his home. He first engaged in 
 general farming and fruit growing on the old 
 home place at Clements, and later followed the 
 stock business on the Calaveras river in Cala- 
 veras county. In 1903 he joined his brother in 
 their present farming venture, in which they are 
 meeting with gratifying success. In Calaveras 
 county he married Maud Messenger, a native of 
 that county, and the daughter of Captain H. A. 
 Messenger, a pioneer prominent in the early his- 
 tory of the state. They are the parents of three 
 children, viz: Ralph, Frances and William, Jr. 
 
 THOMAS W. PEDIGO. As a merchant and 
 rancher of Tulare county, Mr. Pedigo is well 
 known and esteemed for his sterling traits of 
 character which distinguish him in "his business. 
 A native of Lawrence county, Ind., he was barn 
 July 30, 1865, the son of John Douglas Pedigo. 
 The latter was a native of Kentucky, who, when 
 a boy, went to Indiana with his father. In young 
 manhood he engaged in farming in Lawrence 
 county, where his death occurred in 1876, at the 
 age of sixty-two years. His wife, formerly Jen- 
 nie Garten, was a native of Indiana, where she 
 also died. They were the parents of nine chil- 
 dren, four sons and five daughters, of whom 
 Thomas W. was the youngest. 
 
 The education of Thomas W. Pedigo was re- 
 ceived in the common schools of his native state, 
 where he grew to manhood. In 1881 he secured 
 employment with the Louisville, New Albany & 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1217 
 
 Chicago Railway as brakeman, two years later 
 becoming conductor on the Louisville & North- 
 ern Railway. In the fall of 1884 he came to 
 California and located in Sonoma county, fol- 
 lowing the carpenter's trade in and about Santa 
 Rosa until 1886, when he located in Tulare 
 county. He first located in the Lake country, 
 where he was employed in boring wells for a 
 time, in the spring of that year coming to Spring- 
 ville, where for five years he engaged in team- 
 ing into the mountains. During this time he 
 helped to take out the Chicago World's Fair tree 
 on Bear creek, a branch of the North Tule river, 
 and helped to set it up in San Francisco for ex- 
 hibit. Being located in San Francisco, he then 
 engaged as an electric lineman until April, 1892, 
 when he returned to Springville and followed 
 teaming until 1900, when he established a mod- 
 est mercantile enterprise in Springville. In the 
 four years of its existence it has grown to a 
 size commensurate with the custom to which it 
 caters, and has proven a profitable venture for its 
 owner. In addition to this business Mr. Pedigo 
 also owns eight hundred acres of land in a cattle 
 ranch adjoining the town of Springville. 
 
 Mr. Pedigo has been twice married, his first 
 wife being Bertha Rae, with whom he was united 
 in 1892. She was a native of California and died 
 here in June, 1898. They had two children, 
 Maud and Minta, both at home. In the fall of 
 1898 Mr. Pedigo married Grace Wells, a native 
 of Kansas, who came to California with her par- 
 ents when a child. In 1897 Miss Wells received 
 the appointment to the postmastership of the 
 office in Springville (Daunt), and with the ex- 
 ception of nine months has held it continuously. 
 Fraternally Mr. Pedigo" is identified with the 
 Woodmen of the World, having passed all the 
 chairs, and belongs to Mt. Whitney Camp No, 
 605, of Springville. He is also a member of 
 the Women of Woodcraft. Politically he is a 
 Republican, although for two years he was active 
 in the Populist party. With others he gave his in- 
 fluence to this party in order to purify the coun- 
 ty of a political ring that was a curse and a 
 biirden to Tulare county ; as soon as this was 
 acromplished he again affiliated with his old 
 party. ' 
 
 CALVIN A. CASE, M. D. Professional abil- 
 ity is an inherited talent of the Case family, as 
 is evidenced by the fact that four brothers of the 
 name entered the practice of medicine and surg- 
 ery and attained more than ordinary success. 
 One of the brothers. Dr. Case, of Pleasanton, 
 although comparatively a newcomer in Alameda 
 county, has already established a reputation for 
 skill in diagnosis and accuracy in the treatment 
 of disease. Prior to his removal to this locality 
 
 he was identified with the medical profession of 
 the San Joaquin valley, where he built up a 
 growing and profitable practice, but the heat of 
 summer there caused him to seek another loca- 
 tion. 
 
 In Geauga county, Ohio, on a farm lying near 
 Chagrin Falls, Cuyahoga county, Calvin A. Case 
 was born November 18, 1848, his parents being 
 Albert and Mehitabel (Sprague) Case, natives 
 respectively of Connecticut and Vermont. The 
 paternal grandfather, Asa- Case, was born in 
 Connecticut, of one of the pioneer families of 
 that state, and traced his lineage to England. 
 During-the war of 1812 he served with courage 
 and fidelity. A wound received in battle troubled 
 him for many years and finally resulted in his 
 death, at seventy years of age. During the ac- 
 tive period of his life he made his home in Ohio, 
 where he improved a farm from the virgin soil. 
 Little is known concerning the maternal grand- 
 father, except that he was born in Wales, immi- 
 grated to the United States at an early age, set- 
 tled in Vermont, and thence removed to Ohio, 
 where he died at the age of ninety-six years. 
 His daughter, Mrs. Case, was thirty-six at the 
 time of her death, which occurred in Michigan. 
 
 When a small child Albert Case accompanied 
 his parents to Ohio, where he was reared and re- 
 ceived such advantages as the district schools of 
 that day afforded. Until 1856. he engaged in 
 farming in the same locality in Ohio, but during 
 that year he removed to the vicinity of Lansing, 
 Mich., and acquired a valuable farm near Oke- 
 mos, Ingham county, where he continued to re- 
 side until his death at seventy-six years. At the 
 time the family removed to Michigan, Calvin A. 
 Case was a boy of eight years, and two years 
 later he was orphaned by his mother's death. 
 He was then taken into the home of an uncle 
 near Detroit, but two years later returned to his 
 father's home, and remained there until he 
 started out to earn his own way in the world. 
 At sixteen years of age he secured employment 
 in a drug store in Saginaw, Mich., where he re- 
 mained about four years, meantime gaining a 
 knowledge of the compounding of drugs that has 
 been of inestimable value to him in his profes- 
 sional career. When twenty years of age he 
 began to read medicine with two older brothers 
 who were physicians in Saginaw county. In 
 1868 he matriculated in the medical department 
 of the University of Michigan, where he took 
 the full course of lectures. After his graduation 
 in 1870 he became a student in the Detroit Med- 
 ical College, where he carried on his studies for 
 a year. At the expiration of that time he began 
 to practice the medical profession, remaining one 
 year in Chesaning, Saginaw county, and eight 
 years in Shepherd, Isabella county, Mich. From 
 the latter town he removed to St. Louis and en- 
 
1218 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 gaged in practice. The year 1885 found him in 
 California, but after a sojourn of two years he 
 returned to Michigan. In 1890 he again came 
 to the Pacific coast, where he has since made his 
 home. For a considerable period he conducted 
 a large practice at Oakdale, Stanislaus county, 
 and from there removed to Pleasanton in July of 
 1903. Though his residence in his new location 
 has been comparatively brief, he has already es- 
 tablished an enviable reputation for professional 
 skill. While living in Michigan he was active 
 in county medical society work, but has not allied 
 himself with similar organizations in California. 
 By his marriage to Adaline Bigelow, a native 
 of Michigan, Dr. Case has three children, 
 namely: Garfield Sprague, who is a student in 
 the Oakland Polyclinic; Horace Arthur, now a 
 student in the University of CaHfornia; and 
 Winnifred, who resides with her parents in 
 Pleasanton. In fraternal relations Dr. Case is 
 connected with the Blue Lodge of Masons and 
 the Knights of Pythias. Politically he has been 
 an active worker in the Democratic party, and 
 before leaving the east held a number of local 
 offices within the gift of his party, also acted as 
 a delegate to county and state conventions. 
 
 stanch Democrat, and in the interests of his 
 party has served as school trustee of the Stone 
 Corral district. Fraternally he is identified with 
 the Woodmen of the World and Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen, and both himself and wife 
 are members of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 JESSE H. NEWMAN, who is pleasantly 
 located eleven miles northeast of Visalia, was 
 born in Booneville, Mo., in 1857, a son of Judge 
 Jesse G. Newman, whose biographical record 
 appears on another page of this volume. He 
 was reared in Missouri and engaged as a farm- 
 er. When twenty-four years old he came as 
 far west as Nevada, where he spent a year, 
 and then returned to Missouri. He remained 
 in his native state until 1884, when he once 
 more came west, this time locating in Cali- 
 fornia, and in Tulare county engaging in the 
 raising of grain and the dairy business. In part- 
 nership with his brother, Harry H. Newman, 
 he operates the old Curtis ranch of one thou- 
 sand acres as well as six hundred and forty 
 acres adjoining, all being devoted to the rais- 
 ing of grain, horticulture and the dairy busi- 
 ness. He also owns eighty acres in two dif- 
 ferent farms near Dinuba, which is devoted to 
 alfalfa and vineyard. Mr. Newman is a very 
 enterprising and progressive farmer, his meth- 
 ods are modern and up-to-date, and he gives 
 to his work that application without which no 
 amount of talent can bring success. For his 
 personal qualities he is held in the highest re- 
 gard by his fellow citizens. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Newman united him 
 with Miss Elmira Grove, a native of Illinois, 
 and they have four children, all of whom are 
 af home : Edgar, Jesse J. R., Marion and Max. 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Newman is a 
 
 ERIE ALANSON MAY. For nearly thirty 
 years Mr. May has lived in the state of Cali- 
 fornia and during this time has been in the front 
 ranks of those in favor of progress and reform. 
 Never has a movement been started, calculated to 
 be of material benefit to his county or state, 
 that has not received his warm personal sup- 
 port. It is doubtful if any man in this sec- 
 tion of the county has devoted more time to the 
 needs of the community, or been more respon- 
 sible for the good accomplished, than he. 
 
 A native of New York state, E. A. May was 
 born in Wales, Erie county, February 11, 1847. 
 His father, Robert May, was a native of Eng- 
 land, as was his grandfather, also named Rob- 
 ert, who was a successful farmer. Robert May, 
 Jr., learned the trade of a tailor which he fol- 
 lowed for some years prior to his emigrating to 
 the United States. On arriving in this country, 
 he first located in Buffalo, N. Y., where he en- 
 gaged in business as a merchant tailor until 
 1854, when he removed to Henry county. 111. 
 There he continued in the same line of business 
 until 1870, the year of his arrival in this state. 
 Going to Modesto he there established himself 
 in business, remaining for several years. He 
 then retired and took up his residence in San 
 Jose, where he died in 1900 at the age of ninety- 
 two years. His wife, who bore the maiden 
 name of Ann Rowe, was also a native of Eng- 
 land. She died in 1855 at the age of fifty-five 
 years. Her marriage resulted in the birth of 
 eight children, all of whom are still living, six 
 having located in California. Five of the sons 
 participated in the Civil war. 
 
 Erie A. May was the youngest in the family. 
 His early life was spent in New York, where 
 he was educated in the public schools. Early in 
 the spring of 1865 he enlisted in Company I, 
 One Hundred and Ninety-fourth New York 
 Volunteer Infantry and served until being mus- 
 tered out of the service at the close of the war. 
 Immediately thereafter he joined his father, who 
 was then residing in Henry county. 111. A year 
 later he located near St. Charles, Minn., and en- 
 gaged in farming, then removed north of Minne- 
 apolis and followed lumbering. Three years la- 
 ter he sold out his various interests and migrated 
 to Canton, Lincoln county, S. Dak. Soon after 
 his arrival he homesteaded and pre-empted three 
 hundred and twenty acres of land, and during 
 the time he was proving up on his entry, he se- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1221 
 
 cured a position as teacher in one of the nearby 
 district schools, but as soon as his title was se- 
 cured he began the cultivation and improvement 
 of his land, devoting the whole to the growing 
 of grain. In 1875 Mr. May was appointed ser- 
 geant-at-arms at Yankton, the state capitol, and 
 directly after the close of the legislative session 
 he was selected to return east as a represen- 
 tative of the farmers, to solicit aid for those 
 who had been impoverished by the grasshopper 
 scourge, this terrible pest having destroyed the 
 crops of the country. 
 
 Not being entirely satisfied with the prospects 
 in Dakota, Mr. May sold out in 1877 and came 
 to California, spending the first year of his resi- 
 dence here in Modesto. The following year he 
 located in the vicinity of Poplar, Tulare county, 
 where he has since made his home. From time 
 to time he has added to his first purchase of 
 land, until he now owns two hundred and forty 
 acres of fine land. The entire tract is well im- 
 proved, and in the carrying on of his stock and 
 farming interests he has equipped the place with 
 all the modern appliances needed in the way of 
 labor saving machinery, etc. 
 
 While he has been very busy looking after his 
 own interests, he has, nevertheless, found the 
 time to take an active part in political matters. 
 Being a firm advocate of the People's party, he 
 has worked energetically to further the inter- 
 ests of the party's cause. In 1891, in company 
 with Mr. Gilstrap, he organized the Tulare Val- 
 ley Citisen. The publication office was located 
 in Tulare and this was one of the first People's 
 party papers to be started in the state. For some 
 time he continued to conduct the paper and did 
 much to influence the vote of the people in Tu- 
 lare county by his able discussions of the impor- 
 tant questions of the day. Prior to organizing 
 the paper he was sent as a delegate to the first 
 State Convention of his party, which was held in 
 Los Angeles. He also served as chairman of 
 the county central cornmittee and for one year 
 served as deputy county assessor under Mr. Jef- 
 fords. In the fall of 1894 his party nominated 
 him for the office of county treasurer, and at the 
 following election he was successful, defeating 
 two other candidates. In January, 1895, he took 
 the oath of office, serving in a most satisfactory 
 manner until January, 1899. 
 
 Mr. May has associated himself with the lead- 
 ing men of this portion of the county and that 
 the ventures in which he has interested himself 
 have proved successful reflects credit upon his 
 judgment. For one year he acted as manager 
 of the Poplar Co-Operative store, and for several 
 years was secretary of the Poplar Irrigation 
 Ditch Company. 
 
 While living in Yankton, S. Dak., Mr. May 
 married Martha C. Jones, who was born in Ohio, 
 
 a sister of Hon. A. Sheridan Jones, formerly 
 State Superintendent of Public Instruction in Da- 
 kota. By this union have been born two children : 
 Howard, now living in Springville, and Iva May, 
 at home. He was formerly associated with the 
 Grand Army of the Republic at Visalia. Both 
 he and his wife are highly esteemed for their 
 many excellent traits of character and have scores 
 of friends throughout the county. 
 
 PAUL NEUMANN. Of the many callings 
 at which a man may succeed the world recog- 
 nizes agriculture as of extreme importance and 
 to-day the honest farmer or rancher can hold his 
 own with the best wherever he may go. Follow- 
 ing this line of endeavor with marked success is 
 Paul Neumann, a resident of Merced county, 
 living near Le Grand, a man who has the utmost 
 respect and esteem of his neighbors and ac- 
 quaintances and one who deserves all the suc- 
 cess which he enjoys. In his life work he but 
 follows in the footsteps of his father, Charies 
 Neumann, a native of Germany, who came to 
 New York when quite young. There he took for 
 his wife Miss Abbie Herwig, also of German na- 
 tivity; the parents still reside in New York state, 
 where, though seventy-two years of age, the 
 father still follows farm pursuits. Besides Paul 
 there is a son, John P., of San Mateo county, and 
 a daughter, Mrs. J. L. Gillette, also residing in 
 California. 
 
 Upon his father's farm in central New York, 
 Paul Neumann was born October 25, 1857, ^^'^ 
 upon this same farm he was reared and lived un- 
 til twenty-two years of age, when he left his 
 home for the west. Traveling first to Kansas, 
 after remaining there a short time he started in 
 October of that same year for California, locating 
 in Merced county, which has been his home ever 
 since. He first hired out as a laborer on a ranch, 
 following this until he was able to rent two hun- 
 dred acres of land near his present place. He 
 afterward rented one thousand acres of rich land 
 and finally accumulated enough to purchase his 
 eight hundred and eighty-acre ranch one mile 
 from Le Grand, where he now lives. Besides 
 this ranch Mr. Neumann rents twenty-six hun- 
 dred and forty acres, which he devotes to grain 
 and stock. The thriving condition of his whole 
 place speaks well for his business ability and 
 worth. 
 
 In California Mr. Neumann was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Martha A. Mallory, a native of 
 Sonoma county and a daughter of the late J. F. 
 Mallory, a pioneer of that section. This union 
 has been blessed with the following six children : 
 Qiarles F., Edith A., Mabel M., Lester P., How- 
 ard L. and Marvin E., all of whom are still at 
 home. Politically an adherent of Republican 
 
1222 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 principles, Mr. Neumann has served his party as 
 supervisor of his district for one term, from 1892 
 to 1896, and has also served as school trustee of 
 his district for several years. He was one of the 
 organizers of the California Grain Growers' As- 
 sociation, and fraternally affiliates with the Odd 
 Fellows and the Fraternal Aid. The success 
 which has come to Mr. Neumann has been richly 
 deserved, as his position to-day is the result of 
 enterprise and perseverance. 
 
 WILLIAM CONRAD RAGLE. In the death 
 of Mr. Ragle Tulare county lost one of its most 
 respected citizens and California an honored pio- 
 neer. It is true that much has been said and 
 written of the pioneers, but they are deserving, 
 and with all that has been done in their honor 
 we still owe them a debt of gratitude that will 
 never be repaid. They left homes and loved ones 
 in the east and with a courage worthy the cause 
 braved the dangers and hardships of a trip across 
 the plains, through mountain passes where the 
 only road was a blazed trail to make the way 
 clearer for those who were to follow. They 
 were the advance guard of civilization. To this 
 number must be added the name of Mr. Ragle 
 and no man who came to California in those 
 trying days is more worthy a place in history 
 than he. Not that he became a man of public 
 affairs, nor did he ever pose before the admiring 
 throngs as a prominent man, but he did perform 
 his duties as a citizen, and wherever known 
 his name is revered. 
 
 A native of Tennessee, Mr. Ragle was born 
 in Hawkins county, October 15, 1830, and was 
 a son of George and Margaret (Miller) Ragle. 
 The father emigrated from Germany and set- 
 tled in Tennessee, where he lived the balance 
 of his life. When a young man our subject left 
 his native state and removed to Missouri, locat- 
 ing in Dade county, where he lived until 1852, 
 the year of his departure for California. Upon 
 arrival here he took up his residence in Green 
 valley, Sonoma county, and while living there 
 he was united in marriage with Miss Lucinda A. 
 Moffett, who was born in Tennessee, near Fay- 
 etteville. Her father, James Moffett, was a 
 farmer in Tennessee, where he died. His wife 
 bore the maiden name of Nancy Mayfield and in 
 later years married the Rev. Jonathan Blair, a 
 more extended account of whom is given in the 
 sketch of James H. Blair. 
 
 After the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Ragle they 
 continued to live in Sonoma county until 1866 
 when they came to Tulare county, where the 
 family has since resided and where Mr. Ragle 
 lived until his death. For one year he lived 
 near Exeter, where he was engaged in the sheep 
 business, continuing there until 1869, when he 
 
 removed to Dry Creek. In December, 1871, he 
 came to what is known as the Ragle neighbor- 
 hood, now called Antelope Heights. When the 
 land first came into the possession of Mr. Ragle 
 it was wild and unimproved, but he soon in» 
 augurated a series of improvements that re- 
 sulted in making his ranch one of the best in 
 Tulare county. At the time of his death, April 
 21, 1895, he owned five hundred and twenty acres 
 but since then Mrs. Ragle has disposed of two 
 hundred and forty acres and on the balance she 
 and her son are carrying on a successful stock 
 and grain business. Mrs. Ragle is the mother of 
 eight children, as follows : Albert, a farmer near 
 here; Nancy, now Mrs. O. C. Goodin, of Orosi; 
 Margaret, living in Los Angeles county, the wife 
 of George Skaggs; Mary Alice, living at home; 
 George, who is engaged in farming on the old 
 home place; Catherine, who married Joseph 
 Lynn and lives in this vicinity; Arthur, at home, 
 and Rose,, now Mrs. William Moore, of Visalia. 
 In politics, Mr. Ragle was a Democrat, and 
 fraternally belonged to the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. Religiously, he was an elder and 
 an active member of the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church. Like many of the pioneers, he 
 never had a desire for prominence, but in local 
 matters he could always be depended upon to 
 perform the duties devolving upon him. He 
 took a special interest in educational affairs and 
 for several terms served as school trustee of 
 his district. At his death he not only left a 
 competency but an honored name. 
 
 GEORGE C. MURPHY occupies a prominent 
 place among the representative citizens of Por- 
 tersville, Tulare county, although he has been a 
 resident of this place but a comparatively brief 
 period. He is a native of Ontario, his birth hav- 
 ing occurred in Brockville, January 28, 1866. 
 His father, John Murphy, a farmer by occupa- 
 tion, was a native of the same location, where 
 his death occurred. His wife, formerly Jane 
 Gotkin, was also born and reared there. Of the 
 eight children born of their union six are now 
 living, the only one in California being George 
 C. Murphy, of this review. 
 
 Mr. Murphy was reared on the paternal farm 
 in Canada until he was seventeen years old, 
 when he entered upon an apprenticeship to learn 
 the carpenter's trade. Two years later he came 
 to the United States and located at Grand Forks, 
 N. Dak., where he completed his trade under 
 the instruction of his uncle, John Earl. In 1887 
 he came to Los Angeles, Cal, and worked at 
 his trade for two years. Following this he lo- 
 cated in San Jose and engaged as a contractor 
 and builder, meeting with success in his chosen 
 work. From 1894 to 1896 he was located in San 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1223 
 
 Francisco, when he came to Portersville, and 
 has since engaged in contracting and building. 
 He has met with a gratifying success, among 
 the buildings which he has erected being the resi- 
 dences of J. H. Williams, C. N. Henderson, 
 C. H. Boydson, Farmersville block. First Na- 
 tional Bank, Barrett block, and the brick block on 
 Main street, which he owns. In addition to his 
 own residence on Third street he has put up 
 two others there. He is also interested in horti- 
 culture, having set out a ten-acre orchard of 
 navel oranges at Sunnyside, to which he gives 
 as much attention as is possible. 
 
 In San Jose Mr. Murphy was united in mar- 
 riage with Theresa Hatton, a native of that city, 
 and the daughter of William Hatton, now a resi- 
 dent of Portersville. They are the parents of one 
 child, Dorris. Fraternally Mr. Murphy was 
 made a Mason in Portersville Lodge, No. 303, 
 of which he is past master, and is high priest of 
 Portersville Chapter, No. 85, R. A. M. He is 
 also a member of Visalia Commandery, No. 26, 
 K. T., and of- Islam Temple, N. M. S. Both 
 himself and wife are members of the Eastern 
 Star, of which Mr. Murphy is past patron. Po- 
 litically he is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Democratic 
 party, and is now serving as a member of the 
 county central committee, being a member of the 
 execdtive committee. 
 
 ISAAC SHIRK. Six miles west of Visalia is 
 located the farm which belongs to Isaac Shirk, 
 who has been a resident of Tulare county since 
 the spring of 1889. He was born near Water- 
 man, Ind., December 12, 1849, the youngest of 
 four sons and the only one who is located in 
 California. His father, Isaac Shirk, Sr., was 
 also a native of Indiana, and was a farmer near 
 Waterman, where he likewise engaged in flat- 
 boating on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. He 
 died of cholera on his twenty-first trip between 
 Wabash and New Orleans. His wife, formerly 
 Sarah Williams, was a native of Illinois, and the 
 daughter of Zachariah Williams, of Pennsyl- 
 vania, who settled in Edgar county. 111., and later 
 became the pioneer hotel man in Newport, Ind. 
 Mrs. Shirk died in her home in Indiana. 
 
 Isaac Shirk, Jr., was reared on the paternal 
 farm in Indiana, where he .attended the district 
 schools and assisted his mother in the home 
 duties. After he attained his majority he became 
 manager of the home place, which he conducted 
 until 1878, when he went to Champaign county, 
 111., for a period "of two years and engaged as a 
 farmer. He then located in Douglas county. III, 
 where he remained until 1888, in which year he 
 came to California. He spent a part of his first 
 year in Napa county, when he came to Tulare 
 
 county, and has since made this his permanent 
 location. He purchased his present property, 
 which consists of one hundred and twenty acres, 
 at that time being all pasture land. He has made 
 many improvements and now raises grain and 
 alfalfa, and also devotes some time to stock rais- 
 ing. He is located within six miles of Visalia, 
 his land is well improved and cultivated, and his 
 success as an agriculturist has given him a sub- 
 stantial position in the community in which he re- 
 sides. 
 
 In Woodville, Tulare county, Mr. Shirk mar- 
 ried Laura DeWitt, a native of Douglas county, 
 111., and a daughter of James DeWitt, who also 
 came to California, where he died in this county. 
 They are the parents of five children, namely: 
 William, Sarah, Hope, Anna and James. Mrs. 
 Shirk is a member of the Christian Church, to 
 which Mr. Shirk gives a liberal support. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Shirk is a stanch Re- 
 publican. 
 
 PERRY CRANDALL, M. D. In the latter 
 part of the eighteenth century there came to 
 America many emigrants, driven from their na- 
 tive land by the constant wars which devastated 
 the European countries. Among these were 
 three brothers from Scotland, one of whom was 
 drowned at sea during the passage, the others 
 safely reaching their destination, John Crandall 
 locating in New Jersey, while Charles settled in 
 Rhode Island. Charles Crandall's grandfather 
 was chieftain of the clan of Crandalls of the 
 Highlands, Scotland, while a heavy price had 
 been placed upon the head of his son, Gardner, 
 who was a sailor, by the English government. 
 Charles Crandall remained in the New England 
 states until after his marriage, when he became 
 a pioneer of Ohio, locating in Marion county, 
 where he continued to reside for many years. 
 In his family was a son called Washington 
 Crandall, who was born in Connecticut in 1814, 
 and who removed with his parents to Ohio, 
 where he remained until 1850. In that year he 
 located in DeWitt county. 111., where his death 
 eventually occurred at the age of seventy-five 
 years. He was a minister of the United Breth- 
 ren Church, and was faithful to the cause 
 throughout his entire life. He married Anna 
 Jones, a native of Ross county, Ohio, whose 
 people came to that state from Virginia. Her 
 father, Abel Jones, served in the v/ar of 181 2. 
 Of this union was born a son. Perry Crandall, 
 in Ross county, Ohio, April 18, 1843. 
 
 It was the good fortune of Perry Crandall to 
 receive a good education in the earlier years of 
 his life, attending the public schools in prelimi- 
 nary study, after which he entered Rush Medical 
 College, of Chicago. Later becoming a student 
 
122i 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in the Eclectic Medical Institute, of Cincinnati, 
 Ohio, he was a graduate of the class of 1877. 
 Entering upon the practice of his profession he 
 remained so engaged for twenty-two years, lo- 
 cating first in Missouri and afterward in Chau- 
 tauqua county, Kans. In the latter location he 
 made his home until 1891, in which year he 
 came to California and located in Merced county. 
 His home is in the Bradley Addition, two miles 
 from town, and consists of seven acres, all in 
 fruit. In addition to this property he also owns 
 forty acres in the British Colony, which he 
 leases, and eighteen acres which his son farms. 
 The doctor, in 1899, retired from the active prac- 
 tice of his profession, and is enjoying a relaxa- 
 tion among the pleasant surroundings of his Cal- 
 ifornia home. 
 
 Sharing the pleasant life of Dr. Crandall is 
 his wife, who was formerly Sarah A. Adams, a 
 native of Missouri, and the daughter of Schock- 
 ley Adams. Mr. Adams, a native of Georgia, 
 saw active service in the Mexican war, and was 
 one of the party under General Wool, who was 
 surrounded by the enemy and was without food 
 for several days. They were rescued by the 
 soldiers sent out from Fort Leavenworth for 
 that purpose. After the war Mr. Adams located 
 in Missouri and engaged in farming. Mrs. 
 Crandall is a woman of admirable qualities and 
 has made their home an ideal one. Their union 
 has been blessed with the birth of three children : 
 Qiristopher C, a rancher of Merced county; 
 Alma, wife of G. A. Fitchett, of Merced county ; 
 and Anna, the wife of Robert C. Weaver, also of 
 Merced county. In his political views the doctor 
 is broad-minded enough to see something of 
 good in each of the platforms of the parties, but 
 does not conform wholly to any one of them, 
 reserving the right to cast his vote for the man 
 whom he considers best qualified for office. In 
 fraternal orders he is a Royal Arch Mason, and 
 is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 Personally the doctor is a man of many fine qual- 
 ities, well read and a lover of history, which 
 makes him a very entertaining companion. He 
 is a broad-minded, whole-hearted man, and as a 
 citizen of worth is appreciated by all who have 
 come to know him. 
 
 ARTHUR ABEL ABBEY. The name which 
 heads this review is that of an old New England 
 family that flourished in the state of Connecticut. 
 It was noted for its pioneers — men of strength 
 and endurance, and the ability to give their best 
 efforts in the upbuilding of a new country. 
 Luther Abbey left his home in Connecticut, 
 where he was bom, and located in Elyria, Lo- 
 rain county, Ohio, and engaged in contracting 
 and building until his death, January 5, 1850, 
 
 at the early age of thirty-nine years. His wife 
 was in maidenhood Lucy Allen, a native of Mas- 
 sachusetts, and the daughter of Reuben Allen, 
 a pioneer farmer of Lorain county. Mrs. Abbey 
 died in Ohio at the age of seventy-six years. 
 They became the parents of four children, of 
 whom two are now living, namely : Roland, who 
 served in the Forty-second Regiment Ohio Vol- 
 unteer Infantry and was wounded at Vicksburg, 
 now residing in Michigan; and Arthur Abel, the 
 second in order of birth. 
 
 Arthur Abel Abbey was born in Elyria, Ohio, 
 November 3, 1842, and was reared on a farm 
 near that place until the breaking out of the 
 Civil war, receiving his education in the district 
 school in the vicinity of his home. In October, 
 1862, he responded to the pressing need for men, 
 and enlisted in Company D, Sixth Ohio Cav- 
 alry, being mustered in at Cleveland, Ohio, for 
 one year. He served until January, 1864, in the 
 Army of the Potomac, taking part in the battles 
 of Gettysburg and Fredericksburg, as well as 
 seeing dangerous service in the path of the Con- 
 federate army. After an honorable discharge 
 he returned to civic life and once more entered 
 into the life of an Ohio farmer. In 1866 he lo- 
 cated in Ausable, Mich., and engaged for two 
 years in the lumber mills of that region, after 
 which he went to Oshkosh, Wis., and followed 
 the same occupation until 1874. In February of 
 the last named year he came to California, to 
 which state he had previously made a trip in 
 ■ 1868, accompanied by his younger brother, An- 
 drew, who continued to make his home here 
 until his death in 1882, in Stockton. Mr. Ab- 
 bey located at Portersville and engaged in the 
 sheep business, which he continued for two years, 
 when, in 1876, he established a livery stable and 
 conducted it for about six years. He then pur- 
 chased the grist mill and in partnership with C. 
 A. McLean established the Portersville Flour 
 Milling Company, operated by water power. 
 They eventually changed to the roller process, 
 but sold out in 1886, after a very successful ca- 
 reer. Mr. Abbey then engaged in speculating 
 and dealing in real estate for one year, when 
 with Thomas Kelley, he bought eighty acres of 
 orange land, being among the first to set out or- 
 ange groves for commercial purposes. Later they 
 sold a half of this property, each retaining twen- 
 ty acres, which Mr. Abbey still owns, while he 
 makes his home in Portersville. 
 
 In Portersville, in 1882, Mr. Abbey married 
 Emma Gilmer, a native of Tulare county, and 
 the daughter of Rufus Gilmer, of Visalia, whose 
 biographical record appears elsewhere in this 
 work. Born of this union are five children, 
 namely: Ernest, who was accidentally drowned 
 at the age of nine years ; Alner, who died at the 
 
WILLIAM DEAKIN 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1227 
 
 age of four years ; Rosalind ; Lawrence ; and 
 Hester. Mr. Abbey is a member of the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen and the Grand Army 
 of the Republic, both of Portersville. Political- 
 ly he is a true-blue Republican and has often 
 been called upon to serve his party in posi- 
 tions of trusty and responsibility. In I901, upon 
 the organization of the present corporation of 
 Portersville, he was made councilman from the 
 third ward, and in 1903 was re-elected for four 
 years as a representative of the same ward. 
 
 WILLIAM DEAKIN. The late William 
 Deakin is remembered by a large circle of friends 
 to whom he had endeared himself by his kindly 
 manners and strict integrity. He was born at 
 Primrose valley, near Rotherham, England, in 
 1828, a son of Benjamin and Mary Deakin, the 
 former a soldier in the British army. 
 
 William Deakin was reared in.the place of his 
 birth, educated in the schools of England, and 
 as he reached manhood learned the trade of a 
 fendermaker (fenders for fireplaces). In 1849 
 he immigrated to the United States and in St. 
 Louis followed his trade. Hearing much of 
 the Pacific coast and the fortunes made in the 
 mines, he decided to cast in his lot with the emi- 
 grants. He accordingly outfitted with wagons 
 and ox teams and started on the overland journey. 
 Reaching Salt Lake he remained there about one 
 year, then continued his journey to California. 
 He took up farming near San Bernardino, 
 where he remained three years, later coming to 
 Fresno county. He hoped to find a satisfactory 
 location on Big Dry creek, but being disappoint- 
 ed in this he settled on Kings river and engaged 
 in the stock business and general farming. His 
 health failing, after a residence there of six years, 
 he removed into the foothills and Ideated at the 
 head of Qarks valley, purchasing land from time 
 to time as success came his way, accumulating 
 about two thousand acres of land. He continued 
 in active business until his death, August 14, 
 1897, at the age of sixty-nine years. He was 
 made- a Mason in Visalia Lodge. He served as 
 justice of the peace for many years on the Demo- 
 cratic ticket. 
 
 In 1899 Mrs. Deakin sold the Kings river 
 ranch and also disposed of the bther ranch 
 at a good, advance. The lady who became 
 the wife of William Deakin was in maid- 
 enhood Elizabeth Measley. She was born 
 in Rotherham, England, January 9, 1829, a 
 daughter of John and Alice (Huntington) Meas- 
 ley. The former, who was a rope and twine 
 spinner by trade, was born near Chesterfield, and 
 there his death occurred. His wife, who was a 
 native of the same locality, came to California 
 and passed her last days at the home of her 
 
 daughter, Mrs. Deakin, on Upper Kings river. 
 
 Mrs. William Deakin was reared in Rother- 
 ham, educated in the public schools and became 
 acquainted with Mr. Deakin there. They em- 
 barked on the same vessel for the United States 
 in 1849 and were married on the high seas in 
 May of that year. They came to New Orleans, 
 thence to St. Louis. To them was born one 
 child, Eliza, the widow of Peter William Fink, 
 of Kings river. Mrs. Fink has five daughters 
 and one son living, viz. : Alice N., Mrs. Felix 
 Hill, who has four children living; JuHann 
 Marsh, who has five children living*; Rose May 
 Geason, who has one child; Augusta E. Street, 
 who also has five living children ; Mary Mitchell, 
 who has one son ; and Peter Elliott Fink, at home 
 on the ranch with his mother. 
 
 Mrs. Deakin is a Presbyterian in religious be- 
 lief. Since the death of her husband she has 
 looked after her property interests and disposed 
 of both ranches. She spends her summers in 
 San Francisco and the winter months in Fresno, 
 at her home which she purchased at No. 528 O 
 street. Like her husband, Mrs. Deakin has ever 
 extended a helping hand to those less fortunate 
 than herself and of all enterprises that she deems 
 worthy is a liberal supporter. The position held 
 by Mr. and Mrs. Deakin has been attained by 
 their own efforts, good management and an ap- 
 preciation of the rights of others. In the an- 
 nals of the state where their success has been 
 made, a monument is erected in the history of 
 the San Joaquin valley that has claimed them as 
 citizens for over fifty years. 
 
 HANS P. PETERSEN. Worthy of note 
 among the industrious and respected men of the 
 San Joaquin valley is Hans P. Petersen, a keen, 
 wide-awake representative of the agricultural 
 interests of this section. A man of energy and 
 high aspirations, he is in every respect a self- 
 made man and the architect of his own fortune, 
 his prosperity being due solely to his own ef- 
 forts. As a general farmer and chicken raiser, 
 he has fine success, and his large crops of hay 
 and grain bring him in handsome profits each 
 year. The son of a m.achinist, he was born De- 
 cember 24, 1861, in Denmark, where his parents, 
 Carl and Carry (Christian) Petersen, were born, 
 lived and died. Their family consisted of seven 
 children, five sons and two daughters, four of 
 whom are living, Hans P. being the third child 
 in order of birth. 
 
 Having obtained a substantial education in the 
 common and private schools. of his native dis- 
 trict, Hans P. Petersen learned the cabinet mak- 
 er's trade, which he there followed for a while 
 as a journeyman. Immigratine to the United 
 States in Search of more favorable opportunities 
 
1228 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for bettering his financial prospects, he located 
 at Grand Rapids, Mich., in 1882, and there fol- 
 lowed his trade for two years. Coming to Cali- 
 fornia in 1884, he worked on a ranch in Modesto 
 for two years. In 1886, looking about for a 
 place in which to settle permanently, Mr. Peter- 
 sen was so impressed with the richness and fer- 
 tility of the soil of the west side of the San Joa- 
 quin valley that he secured a position as a farm 
 laborer on a ranch .at Hills Ferry, and while 
 thus employed bought one hundred and sixty 
 acres of the land now included within his present 
 home farm. '• Three years later, in 1889, he gave 
 up working for wages and removed to his own 
 ranch, which lies nine miles southwest of New- 
 man, and has since been farming on his own ac- 
 count. By the exercise of his native industry 
 and good judgment, he has met with most sat- 
 isfactory success in his labors. He has bought 
 another quarter section of land, having now a 
 valuable ranch of three hundred and twenty 
 acres, on which he raises large crops of wheat 
 and barley. He is also interested in the poultry 
 business, having large chicken yards, houses and 
 incubators, and during the past year raised thir- 
 ty-three hundred white Leghorn chickens, in 
 this branch of industry, which is a _side one, 
 finding profitable returns for the money invested. 
 In Modesto, Cal., Mr. Petersen married Anna 
 Matsen, a native of Denmark, and they have 
 three children, Carrie, Augusta and Emily. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Petersen belongs to Newman 
 Lodge, A. O. U. W., and politically he is a strong 
 supporter of the principles of the Democratic 
 party. He takes great interest in local affairs, 
 and though not an office seeker has served for 
 a number of terms as school trustee in the Occi- 
 dental district. 
 
 F. A. TRACY. That absorbing interest which 
 surrounds the men whose strength and nobility 
 have encompassed the civilization of the western 
 slope, of whose trials the conservative easterner 
 knows little, and whose faith in the verity and 
 success of his mission has at times approached 
 the sublime in human nature, assures to the his- 
 tory of this once droning land an abiding place 
 in literature. In no other part of the world has 
 pioneer life offered greater contrasts, sung more 
 alluring songs, or fashioned for man's conquer- 
 ing greater or more discouraging obstacles. To 
 the youth born into the prosperity of the present, 
 the calm, sane and practical life of the straggler 
 for western supremacy represents an inspiring 
 lesson in self-control, self-sacrifice and manli- 
 ness. Such a one is F. A. Tracy, than whom 
 none in the vicinity of Bakersfield more nearly 
 approaches the typical pioneer. 
 A native of Wilkesbarre, Luzerne county, Pa., 
 
 Mr. Tracy was born October 21, 1829. August 
 6, 1850, he arrived at Placerville^ Cal., where he 
 engaged in mining with fair success until 1852. 
 During that year he became interested in farm- 
 ing and stock-raising in the San Joaquin valley, 
 Tulare county, in partnership with Hon. Wel- 
 lington Canfield, thus inaugurating a business 
 association which, from the standpoint of length 
 of years, disinterested loyalty and harmony of 
 understanding, probably has no counterpart on 
 the Pacific coast. Fifty-two years have been 
 recorded on the dial of time since these pioneers> 
 joined their interests, yet in all that time no 
 harsh word has been spoken, no sign of selfish- 
 ness been manifest, nor aught of discord ap- 
 peared to weaken faith or cast the shadow of 
 disillusionment. From the ranch at Four Creeks 
 the partners changed their base of operations to 
 Fresno county in 1859, and in 1863 came to 
 Kern county to pasture their large herds on 
 the open prairie. In 1872 they began to pur- 
 chase lands as the market warranted, and at one 
 time owned several thousand acres in what is 
 known as the Canfield precinct, a part being on 
 the Kern river. For years they conducted a 
 large dairy, and are still engaged in ranching, 
 although of late the burden of the responsibility 
 has fallen on others, owing to the somewhat im- 
 paired health of both Mr. Tracy and Mr. Can- 
 field. 
 
 As proof of his faith in the future of Bakers- 
 field Mr. Tracy has invested heavily in real es- 
 tate, and has aided in establishing many of the 
 chief enterprises of the town, including the Bank 
 of Bakersfield, in which he is still a director. 
 He is generosity personified, is a liberal con- 
 tributor to the worthy causes which mark the 
 humanitarianism of the community, and has 
 helped many a comrade out of a temporary 
 slough of despondency. To some extent he has 
 encouraged mining in the locality, and owns 
 Valuable properties in Kern and surrounding 
 counties. As a stanch Republican he has upheld 
 the best tenets of his party. Like many stock- 
 men in this section he has had his ups and downs, 
 and in the early days suffered the privation 
 and uncertainty incident to pioneer life. 
 Through all he has maintained that kindness and 
 serenity which is one of the chief causes of his 
 influence and power, for he has carried a happy 
 temperament into the dark places of life. 
 
 Not only is Mr. Tracy one of the representa- 
 tive pioneers of Kern county, but through his 
 marriage he became identified with one of the 
 most prominent families which has invaded this 
 western country. January 19, 1875, ^^ married 
 Mrs. Baker, widow of Col. Thomas Baker, 
 founder of Bakersfield, and widely known as 
 the most vigorous promoter of its material wel- 
 'fare that Kern county has known. As a testi- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1229 
 
 mony of the kind-heartedness and generosity of 
 his helpmeet, it is pleasant to record that in the 
 early days many a sick person brought to their 
 home owed life to her gentle care and nursing, 
 gratuitously bestowed. Mrs. Tracy stands 
 unique among the early settlers of this section, 
 not only because she brought intelligence and dis- 
 cernment into the wilderness, pursued a life of 
 more than average usefulness and retains undi- 
 minished her many recollections of the early 
 days, but because she is the only one living of 
 the few who were here at the time of her ar- 
 rival. Mrs. Tracy is popular and socially promi- 
 nent, being a member of the Woman's Qub, in 
 the deliberations of which she takes a conspicu- 
 ous part. Recently she read before that organi- 
 zation a paper, which, for graphic descriptions 
 of the early days, fine command of language, and 
 moderation and accuracy of statement, must re- 
 main a classic of its kind. 
 
 COL. THOMAS BAKER, founder of 
 Bakersfield, was born in Muskingum county, 
 Ohio, November 5, 1810, his birthplace being in 
 the beautiful valley extending from Newark to 
 Dresden, through which the Ohio canal runs. A 
 military bent was given to the youthful ambi- 
 tions of Colonel Baker by the times in which he 
 was educated and the circumstances in which he 
 was placed. He was appointed a colonel in the 
 Ohio State Militia before he attained his ma- 
 jority; but peace became so well assured that he 
 turned his attention to civil pursuits. 
 
 Reared on a farm and familiar with survey- 
 ing, he studied .law with the intention of making 
 land law his specialty. Shortly after his admission 
 to the bar he removed to Illinois, where, however, 
 he remained but a short period. The rapid in- 
 flux of population into the territory of Iowa 
 induced him to go there, and his ambitions as 
 a lawyer were soon rewarded with success. He 
 was appointed the first United States district 
 attorney of that territory and retained the office 
 until the adoption of the state constitution. He 
 was then elected senator, and on the organiza- 
 tion of the legislature was chosen president of 
 the senate, becoming under the new constitution 
 ex officio lieutenant-governor, the first in that 
 office in Iowa. He was subsequently returned 
 several times to the state senate. No man had a 
 larger share in the early legislation of that 
 powerful state ; and many of her important laws 
 on her statute books were devised and drafted 
 by him. 
 
 Influenced by the gold excitement and his bias 
 for adventure, he finally determined to emigrate 
 to the Pacific coast. In the autumn of 1850, 
 after the usual tedious and dangerous overland 
 journey made by most men of those days, he 
 
 arrived at Benicia, where he remained a few 
 months, when he removed to Stockton. In 1852 
 he removed to Tulare county, and was one of 
 the founders of the town of Visalia. In 1855 he 
 was chosen representative of that district to the 
 state assembly. During the next fall he was ap- 
 pointed receiver of the United States Land 
 Office, which position he held during the admin- 
 istration of President Buchanan. In 1861 he 
 was elected state senator from Tulare and Fres- 
 no counties, and served in the sessions of 1861- 
 62. 
 
 September 20, 1863, he arrived on Kern Island 
 with his family, preparatory to commencing his 
 work of reclamation, remarking at the time, 
 "Here at last I have found a resting-place, and 
 here I expect to lay my bones." To him the 
 country was neither new nor strange. He had 
 visited it and explored it, and carefully noted 
 its capabilities years before. He was a man of 
 keen perception, broad views, and comprehended 
 fully the natural resources and peculiar advan- 
 tages of a country, and systematically set about 
 the prosecution of his work of reclaiming and 
 developing his lands. He was liberal to a fault, 
 and that was with him an almost entire abnega- 
 tion of self. Often, when his ingenuity was 
 taxed to supply his own wants, he was found 
 willing to aid those who were in dire need, and 
 the stranger was always a welcome guest at his 
 home. His friends, like those of President Jef- 
 ferson, delighted with his genial manners and 
 hospitality, seemed never to suspect that his 
 store could be exhausted. The leading trait of 
 his character was his uniform good nature and 
 his philosophical placidity and coolness of tem- 
 per and disposition. Nothing seemed to disturb 
 his equanimity and self-poise. One of his favor- 
 ite mottoes was : "Time will justify a man who 
 means to do right." He thought it unworthy a 
 rational being to indulge in vain regrets. What 
 ever ills he suffered he wasted no time in brood- 
 ing over them, and it was this peculiarity of 
 mind or mental training that often gave him 
 the mastery over adverse circumstances and en- 
 abled him to extricate himself. 
 
 He knew better how to make a fortune than 
 how to keep it. The result was that though several 
 times in his life he might have retired wealthy, 
 fortunes were lost with seeming indifference. 
 His ambition was not so much to acquire, lands . 
 as it was to develop them, and in this he suc- 
 ceeded to a greater extent probably than any 
 other man in' the state of California. His ab- 
 sorbing desire was to see his lands improved and 
 occupied by settlers as soon as possible; and in 
 furtherance of this object he was invariably more 
 liberal than the national government itself. He 
 was the original owner of the town site of Bak- 
 ersfield and induced the erection of several of 
 
1230 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the public buildings there by his liberality,^ giving 
 away many lots to persons desiring to build. In 
 fact, he was the projector of nearly all the pub- 
 lic works and improvements. His great experi- 
 ence, intuitive sagacity, indomitabJe persever- 
 ance and public spirit made him a useful man 
 to his people. 
 
 September 12, 1857, Colonel Baker was mar- 
 ried to Miss Ellen M. Alverson, daughter of Dr. 
 Laban Alverson, in Visalia. Dr. Alverson, on 
 coming to Kern county from Iowa in 1870, prac- 
 ticed medicine in Tulare and Kern counties, and 
 died here in 1879. By this marriage there were 
 four children, two of whom survive, Thomas A. 
 and Lottie, wife of J. M. Jameson, of Bakers- 
 field. An elder daughter married C. C. Cowgill 
 of Bakersfield, and is deceased, and May mar- 
 ried H. A. Jastro. Colonel Baker died Novem- 
 ber 24, 1872. Mrs. Baker, the widow of the 
 colonel, was married, January 19, 1875, to F. A. 
 Tracy, a prominent pioneer citizen of Kern 
 countv. 
 
 THOMAS McKEE DUNCAN. An ambi- 
 tious and energetic young man who holds a high 
 place in the citizenship of Visalia is Thomas 
 McKee Dungan, whose ability has already 
 brought to him the discharge of various public 
 duties. He is a native of Washington county, 
 Va., where his birth occurred January 4, 1874. 
 His father, Thomas Nelson Dungan, was also a 
 native of that state, where he engaged in farm- 
 ing for many years. In 1894 he came to Cali- 
 fornia and located at Exeter, Tulare county, 
 where he bought a ranch and planted it to or- 
 anges. He is now retired at the age of sixty- 
 four years, making his home in Exeter in en- 
 joyment of the fruits of his years of active citi- 
 zenship. While a resident of Virginia he served 
 as a soldier in the Confederate army. His wife, 
 formerly Josephine McKee, also a native of the 
 Old Dominion, died in California, leaving a fam- 
 ily of four sons and two daughters, of whom 
 Thomas McKee Dungan is the fourth in order 
 of birth. 
 
 Thomas McKee Dungan received his educa- 
 tion in the common schools in hi? native state, 
 where he made his home until 1894, in which 
 year he came to California with his father. With 
 his brother, J. S. Dungan, he established the 
 Bonnie Brae nurseries near Exeter, which have 
 now a capacity of seventy thousand trees, all of 
 citrus fruit. They have made a financial success 
 of their work, having built up a wide patronage 
 through the county. In addition to these inter- 
 ests, Mr. Dungan is acceptably filling the ofSce 
 of county coroner and public administrator, to 
 which position he was appointed in 1904 to com- 
 plete an unexpired term. To accept this posi- 
 
 tion he resigned that of deputy assessor. In 
 Exeter, Cal., Mr. Dungan married Sallie Sea- 
 bright, a native of Virginia, and bom of this 
 union are two sons, Seabright and Lee. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Dungan is identified with the "Wood- 
 men of the World, and politically adheres to the 
 principles advocated in the platform of the Dem- 
 ocratic party. He has been and is active in po- 
 litical circles and a successful and helpful future 
 is predicted for him. 
 
 ROBERT DOHERTY. The most prominent 
 characteristic in Robert Doherty is that of large 
 heartedness, to which he owes practically all of 
 his experiences in life. A study of his successes 
 and failures, of his present prominence as a 
 rancher and dairyman of Kings county, of his 
 remarkable public spirit and adaptability to a 
 crude and pioneer country, reveals in glowing 
 colors this fine and most human of all attributes. 
 Like all men of generous and trustful impulses, 
 his confidence has been misplaced, and his abil- 
 ity to accumulate money, and therefore assume 
 the backing of friends and enterprises has 
 brought disaster around his head. That he is 
 to-day conservatively rated at $100,000 argues 
 the possession of particularly strong and perse- 
 vering accompaniments, and without exception 
 he has done as much as any man to improve the 
 general conditions of Kings county. Mr. Do- 
 herty lives nine miles southeast of Hanford, 
 where he has a ranch of fourteen hundred acres, 
 one hundred of which are under alfalfa, and the 
 balance is devoted to one hundred dairy and four 
 hundred market stock, and eighteen hundred 
 hogs. He also owns a ranch containing a section 
 and a half on Tulare lake, and is one of the 
 most extensive stock and dairy farmers in this 
 section of the state. 
 
 Mr. Doherty's remarkably enterprising life 
 began in County Tyrone, Ireland, June 10, 1840, 
 and for many years was associated with his 
 father, George Doherty, a native of the same 
 part of the country, and to whom he owed much 
 in the way of personal encouragement and prac- 
 tical training. When he was twelve years old, 
 in 1852, his family came to the United States 
 and settled in Great Barrington, Mass., where 
 George Doherty bought property and farmed on 
 a small scale, in 1855 removing to Wisconsin, 
 where he bought a one hundred and sixty acre 
 farm near Mineral Point, Iowa county. In the 
 fall of 1858 a move was made to Nemaha coun- 
 ty, Kans., where he took up government land, 
 but, unhealthy conditions prevailing, the family 
 became ill, and in the spring of i860 the farm 
 was abandoned and a start was made across the 
 plains. The equipment consisted of ox teams 
 and wagons, and the long distance was accom- 
 
^ 
 
 (o cM^^^^^/yp-^/^ri^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1233 
 
 plished without any of the dangerous experi- 
 ences which characterized the earlier wanderings 
 of the emigrants. Renting a farm near Stock- 
 ton, Mr. Doherty Hved there until the fall of 
 
 1863, when he moved to Stanislaus county, near 
 Salida, where his son Robert helped to locate 
 him, assisted him in the building of his house 
 and made every effort to render his last years 
 happy and contented. He lived to be eighty-two 
 years old, dying a stanch believer in the tenets 
 of the Roman Catholic Church. Politically he 
 was a Democrat. During later life he was com- 
 paratively alone, for his wife, formerly Margaret 
 O'Hare, a native of Ireland, died in Wisconsin 
 after rearing eight of her nine children, seven 
 of whom are now living. 
 
 Robert Doherty is the second child in his 
 father's family. He remained at home until 
 
 1864, when, on account of the drouth killing off 
 large numbers of stock upon which he had de- 
 pended for a Hvelihood, he went to Idaho and 
 engaged in mining and prospecting about four 
 years. Not meeting with success, he returned 
 to California in 1868 and took up land on the 
 west side of the San Joaquin river in Stanislaus 
 county. He also rented large tracts of land, from 
 three to five thousand acres, and engaged in 
 grain raising, and in 1873 removed to his pres- 
 ent ranch, which he homesteaded, and the next 
 year sold his Stanislaus county farm. In the 
 fall of 1873 he organized the Lake Side Ditch 
 Company with James Guernsey and C. W. Clark, 
 and became its president in 1874. Under his 
 management the ditch with its iDranches -was 
 constructed for ten or fifteen miles, becoming one 
 of the most necessary and useful improvements 
 in the county up to that time. He remained 
 with the company until its interests were thor- 
 oughly established,' and resigned oiily on ac- 
 count of pressure of other business. In those 
 days he owned and operated a threshing ma- 
 chine through the county, arid as inany were 
 poor and trying to get a start in life, he tendered 
 his services upon supposed credit, and in many 
 instances received no remuneration for his serv- 
 ices. For several years he was known as one 
 of the largest grain farmers in Kings county, 
 and in 1877 eight thousand sheep were grazing 
 in his pastures and on the mountains. A drouth 
 killed off about half of the sheep in one season, 
 a misfortune which greatly depleted his finances, 
 but which failed to dampen his determination 
 to succeed. 
 
 Mr. Doherty's public spirit and ambition have 
 led him to active interest in many enterprises 
 which he alone might have brought to a success- 
 ful issue, but which, taken ifi connection with 
 people of less resource and busiiiess sagacity, 
 have brought down on his head many severe 
 losses. To accommodate a friend he helped to 
 
 58 
 
 build a toll road up the mountain to facilitate 
 the development of certain mines, but although 
 he spent a large sum and devoted two years of 
 his time to the project, he never received a cent 
 in return. On another occasion he took a $50,000 
 government contract to fill up the slough at Pre- 
 sidio San Francisco, but this also proved a los- 
 ing venture and would have completely under- 
 mined a man of less financial resource. His 
 stronghold has been in stock-raising, of which 
 he has keen and comprehensive knowledge, and 
 of which he has made a remarkable success. Mr. 
 Doherty has never been particularly interested 
 in politics, but whatever interest he has shown 
 has invariably been for some aspiring friend. 
 The maintenance of friendships has been to him 
 a sort of religion, a unity to be strengthened by 
 sacrifice if necessary, and never to be tarnished 
 by any act or word of his own. No more loyal 
 and helpful and disinterested friend ever invaded 
 the San Joaquin valley, and no more generous 
 upholder of education, improvement and high 
 living ever added to the wealth of a liberal mind, 
 an open purse and a cheerful disposition to fts 
 continuous upbuilding. Mr Doherty married 
 Missouri E. Davis, a native of South Carolina, 
 and his family consists of his wife and three 
 children, Rose E., George Emmett and Agnes. 
 
 JOHN E. THOMPSON. As the proprietor 
 of an up-to-date general store at Thompson's 
 Corner, three and a half miles east of Crow's 
 Landing, in Stanislaus county, Mr. Thompson's 
 position in the community is one of consequence 
 and he is easily recognized as one of the leading 
 citizens of the neighborhood in which he has re- 
 sided since 1876. Being a fine mechanic, upon 
 first removing to the locality he opened a black- 
 smith shop and in connection with conducting a 
 general store, he engaged in the manufacture of 
 wagons, buggies, etc., also doing general repair 
 work. But when the railroad was built through 
 this section he closed the- shop and devoted his 
 entire time to the mercantile business. In addi- 
 tion to his other interests he has followed farm 
 pursuits to some extent, and has twenty acres 
 adjoining his store in alfalfa. 
 
 Born in Clay county, Ky., April 26, 1839, Mr. 
 Thompson is one of five children born to William 
 Warner and Nancy (Turner) Thompson, being 
 the only son and the youngest child in the family. 
 His mother, a native of Alabama, died when he 
 was an infant. His father was born near Rich- 
 mond, Va., but at an early date located in Clay 
 county, Ky. After the death of his wife, in 
 1839, he went west as far as Missouri and pur- 
 chasing land in Randolph county, followed farm 
 pursuits for a number of years. In 1868 fie dis- 
 posed of his farm interests and moved to Renick^ 
 
1234 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mo., where his last days wa"e spent in retire- 
 ment, at the time of his death having reached the 
 age of eighty-eight years. 
 
 It was in the common schools of Randolph 
 county, Mo., that Mr. Thompson was educated, 
 and after leaving school he became apprenticed to 
 learn the blacksmith's trade in Milton, Mo., and 
 in time thoroughly mastered this useful occupa- 
 tion. In 1856 he left Missouri and for several 
 3-ears worked in the lead mines of Benton, Wis., 
 where he was quite successful from a financial 
 standpoint, and it was in this state that his mar- 
 riage took place, in i860. When the war broke 
 out, being a true son of the south, he naturally 
 espoused the cause of the Confederacy and in 
 1861 he enlisted in the southern army under Gen- 
 eral Price, but was transferred in 1863 to the 
 ranks of General Pempelton. At Vicksburg he 
 was taken prisoner, but was afterwards ex- 
 changed. 
 
 At the close of the war Mr. Thompson re- 
 turned to Missouri and after sending for his wife, 
 turned his attention to farm pursuits in Randolph 
 county, which continued to be his home until 
 1874, the date of his removal to California, where 
 he has lived ever since. The first two years of his 
 residence in this state were spent at Stockton, as 
 blacksmith for Madison & Williams, manufac- 
 turers of plows, implements, etc. He then pur- 
 chased a shop at Crow's Landing, also opening 
 a general store, and soon he won recognition as 
 a citizen of worth. Years of intercourse in both 
 a social and a business way have only strength- 
 ened the ties between him and his neighbors and 
 his success is richly deserved. By his marriage, 
 in LaFayette county. Wis., Mr. Thompson was 
 united with Miss Mary Oldham, a native of Ken- 
 tucky. Four daughters and one son blessed their 
 union, but the latter is now deceased. The 
 daughters are Mrs. Julia Winters, Mrs. Amanda 
 Carson, Mrs. Nona Roe and Mrs. May Love. 
 The beloved mother passed away in San Fran- 
 cisco. Politically Mr. Thompson is a Democrat 
 and his influence is far-reaching. 
 
 JOHN A. RODUNER. A very youthful 
 pioneer when he came to California, Jo'hn A. 
 Roduner, in his manhood years, has achieved a 
 success which made the move of his father a 
 fortunate one. The elder man, also called John, 
 was a native of Switzerland, who came to the 
 United States in 1846, from New York, where 
 he first located, removing to Wisconsin and later 
 to Minnesota. He was a carpenter by trade and 
 engaged in this work in his various locations. 
 In 1863 he came to California by way of the 
 Isthmus of Panama, sailing from New York 
 City on the ship Ocean Queen, and landing at 
 San Francisco from the ship Golden Shore. He 
 
 brought his family with him, and located in 
 Stockton, where he followed his trade until 
 1903. He now makes his home with his son, 
 John A., retired from the active cares of life, 
 at the age of seventy-eight years. 
 
 John A. Roduner was born in Minneapolis, 
 Minn., March 10, 1853, and was but ten years 
 old when he accompanied his parents to Califor- 
 nia, where all his life has since been passed. He 
 received his education in the public schools of 
 Stockton, after which he attended Heald's Busi- 
 ness College, of San Francisco. For ten years 
 he followed teaming in Stanislaus, Fresno, Mar- 
 iposa and Merced counties, first coming to the 
 latter county in the fall of 1869. In 1879 he 
 located upon his present property, which consists 
 of four hundred and forty acres of land, one 
 hundred acres being devoted to the cultivation 
 of barley, while he also raises some alfalfa, and 
 has about eighty-five head of stock. A profitable 
 source of income is an artesian well seven hun- 
 dred feet deep, supplied with a nine-inch pipe 
 at the top and a seven-inch at the bottom. 
 Twenty-four thousand gallons of water flow 
 from this well every twenty-four hours. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Roduner is a Repub- 
 lican, and fraternally is associated with the 
 Woodmen of the World. 
 
 In Merced county Mr. Roduner was united 
 in marriage with Hattie Arthur, a native of 
 Ohio, and they are the parents of ten children, 
 all born in Merced county, and all living: John 
 E., George A., Isabella L., Julia, Elmer, Mary, 
 Neil, Roscoe, Walter and Robert. 
 
 NIELS HANSEN. Cattle, wheat and barley 
 are the three _ resources to which Niels Hansen 
 has devoted his energies since coming to Califor- 
 nia m 1888. As his name and personal charac- 
 teristics indicate, Mr. Hansen is of Danish an- 
 cestry, and was born in the now German de- 
 pendency of Schleswig-Holstein, northern Ger- 
 many, November 17, 1870, his parents being 
 Niels and Maggie (Schmidt) Hansen, both na- 
 tives of Denmark. The elder Hansen was of a 
 migratory turn of mind in his younger years, 
 and came to Mendocino count}', Cal., in 1870, 
 leaving his family in Schleswig-Holstein, while 
 he sought to make a fortune in the nevy world. 
 As a farmer and sawmiller he succeeded fairly 
 well, and returned to Germanv in 1877, remain- 
 ing there until again locating in California in 
 i8si. Continuing his former occupations for 
 five years, he again took up his residence in the 
 country of his birth, and now lives in Schleswig- 
 Holstein. 
 
 The second of four sons and two daughters 
 in his parents' family, Niels, Jr., received a fair 
 common school education in Schleswig-Holstein, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1235 
 
 and eventually left the farm and engaged in 
 riding for a horse trader for three years. He 
 followed his father's example and came to the 
 United States in 1888, locating in Mendocino 
 City, where he engaged in herding cattle until 
 1889. Removing to Stockton, he learned the 
 plasterer's and brick-layer's trade, and at the 
 same time took a two-year course at the Stock- 
 ton Business College. The longing to return to 
 the country overcame him in 1892, and with 
 Grayson as his headquarters he again engaged 
 in herding cattle and in ranching in the foot- 
 hills. About the same time he became a land 
 owner to the extent of one hundred and sixty 
 acres, and soon afterward took up a similar 
 amount of land near the summit of the coast 
 range. These properties were both in Stanislaus 
 county and were devoted to stock ranching, oc- 
 cupations in which their owner achieved a de- 
 served measure of success. The summit ranch 
 was eventually disposed of, and in 190 1 Mr. 
 Hansen leased five hundred and eighty acres and 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres in the 
 neighborhood. Wheat, barley and cattle are his 
 chief resources, and of all he is reasonably sure 
 of a substantial yearly income. 
 
 Mr. Hansen is a Democrat in politics, but has 
 never disturbed the tranquillity of his life by 
 aspiring to office. He leads a moderate, very 
 industrious existence, never fretting himself with 
 ambitions which nature never intended him to 
 realize, or longing for more than enough to make 
 life comfortable, sane and wholesome. His lit- 
 tle family consists of his wife, who was formerly 
 Minnie Brown of Newman, and who is a native 
 daughter of Germany; and a son, Niels, Jr., 
 representing the third generation to bear that 
 name. Mr. Hansen is an honored neighbor and 
 loyal friend, and is ever ready to aid those to 
 whom fortune has been less kind than to himself. 
 
 ASHBEL POST OSBURN is remembered in 
 Springville as a citizen of worth and ability, and 
 one whose best efforts were always given to all 
 movements calculated to advance the general 
 welfare of the community in which he lived. He 
 was born in New York state and while yet a lad 
 removed with his parents to. the Mississippi val- 
 ley. His home was first in Ohio and later in 
 Galena, 111., where he was reared to young man- 
 hood. In 1850 he crossed the plains with ox- 
 teams to California, locating in Grass valley, Ne- 
 vada county, where he engaged in mining for a 
 time. In i860 he came to Tulare county and 
 settled near Portersville, making that place his 
 home for twelve years. He then disposed of his 
 interests in that locality and located near Globe, 
 where he engaged in raising orchard fruits and 
 the cultivation of a vineyard. He met with suc- 
 
 cess in this work, in which he continued until 
 1901, when he sold out and located in Spring- 
 ville and engaged in a mercantile enterprise. His 
 death occurred December 4, 1903, at the age of 
 seventy-eight years. Fraternally he was identi- 
 fied with the Masons. 
 
 Mr. Osburn is survived by his wife, formerly 
 Susan Miles, with whom he was united in mar- 
 riage in October, 1887. She was the fourth child 
 in a family of five sons and four daughters, and 
 was born March 30, 1830, in Madison county, 
 Ind. Her father, William Miles, was born in 
 New York state in 1801 and came to Indiana 
 and engaged in farming; in 1825. Ten years 
 later he located in DeKalb county. III, and farmed 
 until 1847, when he removed to Milan county, 
 Tex., and followed the same occupation. Fol- 
 lowing the westward trend of emigration he 
 came to California in 1852, crossing the plains, 
 and after his arrival in the state located near 
 Healdsburg, Sonoma county, where he engaged 
 in general farming. Just prior to his death, 
 which occurred at the age of seventy-seven years, 
 he came to the vicinity of Portersville, Tulare 
 county. His wife, formerly Elizabeth Allen, a 
 native of North Carolina, died in Illinois. Mrs. 
 Osburn received a preliminary education in the 
 common schools of Indiana and Illinois, and 
 afterward added to her knowledge by a thorough 
 course of reading. 
 
 PETER PERKINS DAVIS. As a prominent 
 pioneer of Portersville, and a man of sterling 
 worth and integrity, noted for his business tact 
 and judgment, it gives us pleasure to place before 
 the readers of this volume a brief record of the 
 life of the late Peter Perkins Davis. By birth 
 and breeding a Virginian, he was born, August 
 27, 1840, in Henry county, Va., which was also 
 the birthplace of his father, Thomas B. Davis. A 
 well-to-do. agriculturist, Thomas B. Davis owned 
 a plantation near Martinsville, and was there en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits during his active 
 career. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Martha Coleman, spent her entire life in Vir- 
 ginia. 
 
 Attending school through the days of his boy- 
 hood and youth, Peter Perkins Davis obtained a 
 practical education in the common branches of 
 study. At the age of sixteen years he began to 
 be self-supporting, securing employment as clerk 
 in a mercantile house. On the breaking out 
 of the Civil war he enlisted in the Confederate 
 army, and served under Gen. Robert E. Lee in 
 Longstreet's Corps, Pickett's Division, Kemper's 
 Brigade, beina: a member of the Twenty-fourth ' 
 Virginia Infantry. He participated in many im- 
 portant engagements, and was several times 
 wounded. At the close of the war, Mr. Davis 
 
1236 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 migrated to Missouri, locating in Jonesburg, 
 where he was engaged in the mercantile business 
 for nearly ten years. Coming to California in 
 1874, he bought land on the Tule river, and em- 
 barked in farming, but did not meet with suffi- 
 cient success in that industry to continue it very 
 long. Locating, therefore, in Portersville in 
 1880, Mr. Davis resumed his former occupation, 
 opening a general merchandise store. In this 
 undertaking he was exceedingly prosperous, and 
 built up a large and lucrative trade, which he 
 managed until 1894, when, on account of failing 
 health, he sold out. From that time until his 
 death, November 8, 1899, Mr. Davis lived re- 
 tired from business cares. He acquired a good 
 property, and in 1888 erected the P. P. Davis 
 block, a fine brick building. He was public- 
 spirited and liberal, and very fond of music and 
 children. In politics he was a stanch Democrat, 
 and in religion was a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South. For a number of years 
 he served as justice of the peace, and at the time 
 of his death was notary public. 
 
 In Warrenton, Mo., Mr. Davis married Lurena 
 S. Howell, who was born and reared in that town. 
 She is a woman of culture and ability, and as 
 administrator of her husband's estate settled his 
 affairs most satisfactorily to all concerned. She 
 owns a ranch of sixteen acres, lying near Por- 
 tersville, has an attractive home, and has title 
 to three-fourths of the brick block in town. Her 
 father, John C. Howell, was born in St. Charles 
 county. Mo., and was there engaged in tilling 
 the soil until 1874, when he came to California 
 and settled in Tulare county, where he spent his 
 declining years. The mother died at the home 
 of her daughter, Mrs. Davis. 
 
 FRANK GIANNINI. The success which 
 has met the efforts of Mr. Giannini since he 
 made his first purchase of land in Tulare county 
 has left him no reason to regret his removal 
 from his native land. Of Italian birth and an- 
 cestry, he was born at Porto Ferrajo, on the 
 island of Elba, off the coast of Tuscany, March 
 3, 1864, and is the second among three sons, all 
 of whom immigrated to the United States. In 
 the family were also four daughters. His par- 
 ents. Dominico and Magdalena (Bolano) Gian- 
 nini, were natives of Elba, where the mother 
 died in 1869; the father is still living on the 
 island and is engaged in general farming pur- 
 suits, supplemented by the occupation of a vine- 
 yardist. At an early age Frank Giannini gained 
 a thorough knowledge of grape culture and 
 from the age of seventeen years he had charge 
 of his father's vineyard. Meanwhile he often 
 read accounts of California's climate and soil, 
 resembling those of his own land, yet present- 
 
 ing to settlers far greater opportunities for the 
 attainment of prosperity than was possible with- 
 in Italy's borders. As soon as he attained his 
 majority he sold his property and crossed the 
 ocean to the United States, landing at San Fran- 
 cisco with $1,000 to be used in the purchase of 
 a place. Within a month or more he purchased 
 land near Brentwood and embarked in grain 
 farming, but an experience of two years con- 
 vinced him that he could not make the invest- 
 ment bring fair returns. 
 
 The first visit of Mr. Giannini to Tulare 
 county was made in 1887, but he did not pur- 
 chase land until 1889. Meanwhile he engaged 
 in farming and the raising of fruits and grapes 
 in Madera and Fresno counties, also from 1887 
 to 1902 carried on a stock farm and acted as 
 manager of an orchard at Reedley, Fresno coun- 
 ty. Meanwhile, in 1889, with two others, he 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres of bare 
 land two and three-fourths miles northeast of 
 Tulare, for which $20,000 was paid, an appar- 
 ently exorbitant price for those times, yet the 
 investment has proved profitable in every re- 
 spect. The entire quarter section was at once 
 placed under improvement, one hundred and 
 twenty acres being planted in an orchard, and 
 the balance in a vineyard. In 1891, by pulling 
 up an occasional vine and setting out a tree, 
 greater profits from each acre were made pos- 
 sible. During the same year (1891) he pur- 
 chased the interests of his two partners and has 
 since been the sole owner of the orchards. Nor 
 does this property represent the limit of his in- 
 vestments. By purchase he has acquired four 
 hundred and eighty acres adjoining, which gives 
 him an entire section in one body. As previous- 
 ly stated, one hundred and twenty acres of the 
 land is in orchard and vineyard, and he has also 
 put eighty acres under alfalfa. Near Tipton, 
 Tulare county, he also owns one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land, and in 1902 he increased his 
 holdings by the purchase of six hundred and 
 forty acres three miles east of his orchard. Of 
 this tract he has three hundred and twenty acres 
 in alfalfa, furnishing an abundance of 'feed for 
 his herd of about four hundred head of cattle 
 and rendering possible the carrying on of a large 
 dan-y business. The section is watered by the 
 canals of the Farmers' Ditch Company, in which 
 he owns six shares. Irrigation is secured on 
 his home place by means of a pumping plant 
 with a sixty-foot surface well that never fails, 
 power being provided by a twenty-horse-power 
 engine, throwing from a thousand to eleven hun- 
 dred gallons per minute. Buildings provided 
 with ail the conveniences for the management of 
 the business may be found on the home place. 
 Drying yards furnish ample accommodation for 
 the drying of the fruit and the packing houses 
 
SYLVESTER NEWHALL 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1239 
 
 afford the necessary equipment for shipping 
 preparations. There is also a new winery, with 
 a large capacity for the manufacture of wine. 
 During the busy season one hundred and fifty 
 hands are employed in the orchard to care for 
 the fruit and prepare it for shipment. With en- 
 terprise and sagacity he superintends all of the 
 employes, oversees all shipping arrangements, 
 maintains a close supervision of the entire prop- 
 erty, as well as his other holdings. In spite of 
 all these business responsibilities, he finds time 
 to discharge every duty as a citizen to his adopted 
 country and chosen, community. As a stock- 
 holder he is connected with the Farmers & Mer- 
 chants Bank of Tulare, Tulare Milling Company, 
 and other local enterprises have the advantage 
 of his financial aid and influence. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Giannini united him 
 with Miss Louise Lombardi, who was born and 
 reared in Sacramento, Cal., her father, John, 
 having been a pioneer of northern California. 
 One child, Aurena, blesses their union. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Giannini votes the Republican ticket. 
 Fraternally he was associated in former years 
 with the Knights of Pythias and is still active 
 in Masonry. Originally a member of the blue 
 lodge of Madera, he later transferred his mem- 
 bership to the Reedley lodge, with which he is 
 now associated, and in addition he is identified 
 with the Royal Arch Chapter at Tulare. 
 
 MRS. MARY E. NEWHALL. Prominent 
 among the successful horticulturists of the San 
 Joaquin valley is Mrs. Mary E. Newhall, who 
 since the death of her husband has conducted 
 her large orange interests in a profitable man- 
 ner. She is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and 
 a daughter of Mahlon Myers, a native of West 
 Virginia. Her grandfather, Silas Myers, was 
 at one time a planter and owned slaves, but be- 
 ing opposed to the bondage of the negro he re- 
 moved to Ohio, where he freed his slaves. Set- 
 tling in Pomeroy, he engaged in general farm- 
 ing and milling for the remainder of his life, al- 
 though he lived for several years in Carroll coun- 
 ty. His son, Mahlon Myers, on reaching man- 
 hood, engaged in farming near Pomeroy, but 
 later located near Cleveland, then returned to 
 Pomeroy where he passed his last days. Frater- 
 nally he was prominent in Masonic circles, and 
 politically was a Republican, taking an active in- 
 .terest in the welfare of this party. His wife, 
 formerly Rebecca Phillis, was a native of the 
 Buckeye state and spent her entire life within 
 its borders. They became the parents of seven 
 children, of whom three are now living. 
 
 Next to the oldest in this family was Mary E. 
 Myers. In girlhood she was adopted by Amos 
 Stoddard, a prominent citizen of Qeveland, and 
 
 was taken into his home there, where she was 
 reared to young womanhood; receiving the best 
 ' of trammg and educational advantages. In 1861 
 she was united m marriage with Anthony Stod- 
 dard, a native of Iowa, and the nephew of her 
 foster father. They made their home in the 
 east for seven years, when, in 1868, they came 
 to Caufornia, locating in San Jose. Mr. Stod- 
 dard died in San Francisco. Mrs. Stoddard con- 
 tmued to make her home in San Jose, where she 
 married Sylvester Newhall, a prominent nursery- 
 man and orchardist of the Santa Clara valley. In 
 addition to furnishing stock for many of the larg- 
 er orchards in the valley Mr. Newhall owned and 
 improved a beautiful place on Lincoln avenue, 
 near the Willows. 
 
 A native of the Bay state, Mr. Newhall was 
 born in Lynn and in 1850 crossed the plains to 
 California with ox-teams. Arriving in the Santa 
 Clara valley after several months of weary trav- 
 el, hardships and dangers characteristic of this 
 mode of journeying, Mr. Newhall became one of 
 the first horticulturists of this section. His busi- 
 ness ventures proved successful and in addition 
 to his place at Willows he owned several ranches 
 in different parts of the valley. His death oc- 
 curred in 1897, at the age of seventy-six years. 
 He left behind him the record of his Hfe in a 
 fair name, stanch integrity, the patriotism and 
 worth of a pioneer, and with the passing years 
 his name will continue to be associated with 
 much that was indicative of the upbuilding and 
 prosperity of the Santa Qara valley. Frater- 
 nally he was identified with the Masons and po- 
 litically cast his ballot with the Republican par- 
 ty- 
 After the death of her husband Mrs. Newhall 
 continued the ranching interests of the estate. In 
 1896 she became the owner of a fine place four 
 miles southeast of Exeter, which she has set 
 out with the Washington navel orange, having 
 at this time about eighty-six acres devoted to this 
 fruit. It is considered the banner orchard in 
 this section, nearly every year bearing ten days 
 eariier than any other in the section. In 1901 
 and 1904 her crop from these trees received the 
 highest price at public auction in the eastern 
 markets. It is undoubtedly through the personal 
 attention which Mrs. Newhall has given her or- 
 chards that such results have been attained, one 
 noticeable point being the perfect arrangement 
 of ditches, assisted by a fine pumping plant, by 
 which all parts of the orchard can be irrigated. 
 Situated on her beautiful place is a cave and 
 accordingly Mrs. Newhall has named her ranch 
 Rockhurst, which is very appropriate. While 
 much of her time is spent in San Jose, where 
 she lives at the Vendome hotel, Mrs. Newhall is 
 considered one of the Tulare county residents. 
 Public-spirited and enterprising she takes a keen 
 
1240 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 interest in the welfare of the community, and 
 can always be counted upon for her support and 
 thorough understanding in all movements cal- 
 culated to advance the general good. By her per- 
 sonal characteristics- as well as by her business 
 ability she has won the respect and esteem of 
 her employes, who give their best efforts to the 
 furtherance of her plans. Politically she is in 
 sympathy with the Republican party, is a firm 
 believer in woman suffrage, and looks forward 
 confidently to the time when politics will be im- 
 proved in many ways by this movement. In re- 
 ligion she is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church. 
 
 By her first marriage three children were born : 
 Fred, deceased; Bessie, widow of George Haw- 
 ley, of Capitola; and Grace, wife of William Ry- 
 der, of San Jose. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Newhall three children have also been born : 
 Georgie, the wife of E. W. Dunne; Carl; and 
 Belle, the wife of James McKiernan, all being 
 residents of San Jose. 
 
 PAUL SHEPPA. Wide-awake, energetic and 
 far-sighted, Paul Sheppa is a worthy represen- 
 tative of the dairy interests of Tulare, and well 
 deserving of the high rank he has attained among 
 the men who have distinguished themselves as 
 useful and enterprising citizens. In his every- 
 day life he has labored diligently, and his thrift 
 and industry have met with their legitimate re- 
 ward. Of German ancestry, he was born, Jan- 
 uary 25, 1857, in Springboro, Crawford county. 
 Pa., a son of WilHam and Martha Augusta 
 (Schettler) Sheppa, both of whom were born and 
 reared in Bremerhaven, Germany. On emigrat- 
 ing from the Fatherland to this country, William 
 Sheppa settled first in Crawford county. Pa., 
 but subsequently continued his chosen occupa- 
 tion of farming in Erie county. Pa., where he 
 still resides, being now over eighty years of age. 
 Enlisting in 1862, he served until the close of 
 the Civil war as a soldier, being for nearly 
 three years a member of the Eighteenth Pennsyl- 
 vania Cavalry. While in the army he received a 
 sunstroke. He is a stanch Republican in poli- 
 tics, and a member of the Lutheran Church. His 
 wife died on the home farm in 1902. Nine chil- 
 dren were born of their union, seven of whom 
 survive, Paul, of this review, being the fourth 
 child. 
 
 Brought up principally in Erie county. Pa., 
 Paul Sheppa, like the majority of the farmers' 
 sons of his day, acquired a limited education in 
 the district schools. Bidding good-bye to home 
 and friends in the fall of 1876, he crossed the 
 continent to the Pacific coast. Locating in So- 
 lano county, Cal., he worked as a farm laborer 
 in the vicinity of Dixon for three years. He 
 
 subsequently began work for himself on a rented 
 ranch, and afterward bought a farm near El- 
 mira, where he was engaged in grain raising for 
 several seasons, being quite successful. In 1891 
 he was unfortunate enough to lose $4,000 worth 
 of grain in the field, it being set on fire by sparks 
 from a passing engine on the nearby railway. 
 Selling out immediately afterward, Mr. Sheppa 
 located sixty miles southwest of Tulare, in Kern 
 county, where he homesteaded one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land. Making improvements of 
 a substantial character, he was there engaged in 
 stock-raising, at intervals, for five years, prov- 
 ing up on the property, which is still in his pos- 
 session. Subsequently settling in Tulare, Mr. 
 Sheppa bought a complete set of boring tools, 
 and has since been extensively employed in bor- 
 ing wells throughout Tulare county, carrying on 
 a large and remunerative business in this line of 
 industry. 
 
 In 1898 Mr. Sheppa embarked in the dairy 
 business, beginning on a modest scale, with but 
 four cows, and has since greatly enlarged his 
 operations, having a herd of thirty-two cows, at 
 the head of which he has a fine Holstein bull. In 
 the Russell colony he has sixty-four acres of 
 land, all under in-igation, and sowed mostly to 
 alfalfa. In addition he rents ninety-six acres 
 in the colony, and on this raises some alfalfa, 
 and has a half interest in four hundred and eighty 
 acres of pasture land. He has a large retail milk 
 route in Tulare. 
 
 In Solano county Mr. Sheppa married Eme- 
 line Connell, who was born on the Platte river 
 in 1864, while her parents were on their way 
 across the plains to California. Her father, Giles 
 Connell, settled in Marin county as a farmer and 
 dairyman. Mr. and Mrs. Sheppa are the par- 
 ents of eight children, namely : Walter, assisting 
 his father in the dairy; Bertha, at home; Mrs. 
 Delia Clements, of Ventura county, Cal. ; Leland 
 Stanford; Lola May and Ola May, twins; Ada; 
 and Paul, Jr. In his political affiliations Mr. 
 Sheppa is a Republican, and takes an active part 
 in local affairs. Fraternally he was made an 
 Odd Fellow in Dixon, Cal., and is now a member 
 of Tulare City Lodge, I. O. O. F. ; and also be- 
 longs to the Fraternal Brotherhood. Mrs. Shep- 
 pa is a member of the Christian Church. 
 
 WILLIAM THOMAS HELLAR. A mile 
 and a quarter northwest of Farmersville, Tu- ■ 
 lare county, is located the forty-acre ranch of 
 ]\Ir. Hellar, upon which he is engaged in the 
 cultivatioii of fruit, grain and alfalfa. He is a 
 native of Virginia, having been born in Peters- 
 burg, December 14, 1849, but has spent the 
 greater part of his life in California, to which 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1241 
 
 state he came in 1858, brought by his father, 
 Thomas Hellar. The latter was a native of 
 Ohio, but in manhood located first in Virginia 
 and later in Illinois, engaging in both states in 
 the mercantile business., Upon his emigration 
 to California he chose the Panama route, being 
 a passenger on the steamer Arizaba. He made 
 his home in San Leandro, Alameda county, for a 
 short time, then spent a year in San Lorenzo, 
 same county, after which he removed to Hay- 
 wards, where^ for thirt)' years he carried on farm- 
 ing. In 1892 he went to San Francisco and en- 
 gaged in the hotel business for two years, when 
 he removed to Roseville, Placer county, Cal., 
 where he now makes his home at the age of 
 eighty-two years. Fraternally he is identified 
 with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
 having joined the organization while a resident 
 of Virginia. Politically he is a Democrat. His 
 wife, formerly Eliza Knock, a native of Sheppey 
 Island, England, died in 1875. 
 
 In a family of five sons and four daughters 
 William Thomas Hellar is the oldest. After 
 completing his education, which was received in 
 the common schools of Haywards, Cal, he was 
 apprenticed to learn the painter and paper hang- 
 er's trade. Subsequently he worked at his trade 
 in San Francisco and Oakland and then spent 
 three years in Sumner county, Kans. Returning 
 to California, he engaged at his trade in Hay- 
 wards until 1890, when he came to Tulare coun- 
 ty and engaged in farming on his present prop- 
 erty. He was also interested in fruit-raising and 
 a prosecution of his trade until 1901, but since 
 which time he has devoted his attention entirely 
 to fruit. Twelve acres of his ranch are planted 
 to fruit, while he also owns twenty acres in 
 Placer county, near Roseville. 
 
 In Oakland Mr. Hellar was united in marriage 
 with Sarah McCray, a native of Placer county, 
 Cal., and born of this union are four children, 
 namely : Martin C, a resident of Placer coun- 
 ty,- Grace Virginia, the wife of A. Thompson, 
 of Farmersville ; Mary E., of Hanford, Kings 
 county ; and Lloyd, at home. Fraternally he was 
 associated with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, and politically is a Socialist. In his re- 
 ligious affiliations he is a Spiritualist. 
 
 CHARLES MERWIN COE. The Coe fam- 
 ily came originally from Wales, where Henry 
 Coe was born and reared to manhood. He was 
 the first emigrant in the family, locating first 
 in New Jersey and later in New York, where 
 he became a farmer. A man of ability, he won 
 a prominent place in local affairs in his com- 
 munity, joining the state militia, in which he 
 served as major. In his family was a son, Julius, 
 
 who was born in Gloversville, Fulton county, the 
 town then being known as Stump City. In man- 
 hood he became a glove manufacturer in that 
 place, a pioneer in that line, continuing in that 
 location until 1867, when, on account of failing 
 health, he came to California. He located near 
 Knight's Landing, and later removed to the 
 Mussel Slough country, where he purchased a 
 farm of three hundred and twenty acres. This 
 property remained his home until his death at 
 the age of sixty-four years. Flis wife, formerly 
 Catherine Simpson, survives him and makes her 
 home in Hanford, at the age of seventv-eight 
 years. Her father, a native of England, immi- 
 grated to this country and became a farmer in 
 New York state. Mr. and Mrs. Coe became 
 the parents of seven children, of whom five are 
 now living. 
 
 The oldest in his father's famil}-, Charles Mer- 
 win Coe was born in Gloversville, Fulton county, 
 N. Y., March 23, 1847, ^"d was reared on a 
 farm in Jefferson county until attaining the age 
 of fifteen years. He received his education 
 through an attendance at the district and high 
 schools of his vicinity, and although desirous 
 of taking up the study of medicine was con- 
 strained by circumstances to learn the trade of 
 glove-making. He became an expert glove man- 
 ufacturer, and was later traveling salesman for 
 different glove factories in Gloversville, travel- 
 ing over the middle west, the west and north- 
 east. In 1870 he came to California and located 
 in Vacaville, Solano county, where he made his 
 home for two years, at the end of which time, 
 through the indications that the Southern Pa- 
 cific Railroad would make settlements in the 
 Mussel Slough district, he came south and home- 
 steaded one hundred and sixty acres, took a tree 
 claim for one hundred and sixty acres and bought 
 one hundred and sixty acres of railroad land, 
 all adjoining. He immediately set out trees, put 
 up buildings and began an active improvement 
 of his extensive property. With others he took 
 an active part in the organization of the Lake- 
 side Ditch Company, of which he afterward be- 
 came a director. Two hundred and forty acres 
 of this property are now under irrigation from 
 that ditch and two hundred and forty under the 
 People's ditch, the land being devoted to alfalfa 
 and grain. The railroad company forced him to 
 pay the price of $15 per acre, instead of the 
 folder price of $2.50 per acre. In 1889 he sold 
 this property and located in Tulare county, pur- 
 chasing one hundred and sixty acres five miles 
 southwest of Visalia, principally bottom land 
 along the Kaweah river. This is under the 
 Farmers' ditch, of which he is a director and 
 was formerly president. Fifty acres are devoted 
 to the cultivation of alfalfa, while the rest is 
 p-iven over to prain and stock, raising Shorthorn 
 
1242 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cattle and Berkshire and Poland-China hogs. 
 He has a fine farm, well situated and productive, 
 and fair in natural beauty, being thickly studded 
 with giant oaks. He has added various im- 
 provements and gives to its cultivation all the 
 energy and ability of which he is capable. 
 
 In Gloversville, N. Y., Mr. Coe married Cath- 
 erine Flogg, a native of Germany, and they have 
 two children, of whom Leonard, who graduated 
 from the United Medical College of_ San Fran- 
 cisco and practiced in Fresno, Cal., died in Colo- 
 rado at the age of twenty-seven years: and 
 Charles Smith, who graduated from the College 
 of Physicians and Surgeons of San Francisco, 
 is practicing his profession in Palo Alto, ^ Cal. 
 Mr. Coe is a stanch Republican in his political 
 convictions and gives his best efforts to advance 
 the principles he endorses. He is a communicant 
 in St. Mary's Catholic Church of Visalia. 
 
 JOHN HAHESY. Laurel farm, which has 
 been the home of Mr. Hahesy since 1903, com- 
 prises one hundred and sixty acres situated three 
 miles west of the city limits of Tulare. With the 
 benefit of previous years of successful experi- 
 ence in different departments of agriculture, Mr. 
 Hahesy is admirably qualified to successfully op- 
 erate his present property ; and, while he has lived 
 here for a comparatively brief period, he has 
 instituted improvements of a valuable nature. 
 One of the most important and expensive of these 
 improvements is the electric pumping plant, com- 
 prising a well five hundred or more feet in depth, 
 equipped with a centrifugal pump with a capacity 
 of five hundred gallons per minute. The electric 
 motor is of ten-horse power, but in order to ir- 
 rigate the entire homestead only five-horse power 
 is necessary, and the motor therefore is not oper- 
 ated at its largest capacity. A reservoir covering 
 one acre of ground completes an irrigation sys- 
 tem that is thoroughly modern and. practically 
 faultless. 
 
 In County Waterford, Ireland, Mr. Hahesy was 
 born January 6, 1852, being one of six children, 
 five of whom are now living. His parents, Will- 
 iam and Bridget (Houlahan) Hahesy, were na- 
 tives of Ireland, and in 1863 brought their chil- 
 dren to the United States, settling on a farm near 
 Manchester, Delaware county, Iowa, where the 
 father died in 1866. The mother survived him 
 for many years, passing away in Iowa in the 
 spring of 1904, aged seventy-five years. After 
 the death of his father John Hahesy took charge 
 of the property, afterward remaining at home un- 
 til he was twenty-one, when he started out in the 
 world to earn his own livelihood. In 1875 he 
 went to the Black Hills, but after prospecting for 
 a time without success he abandoned the mines 
 for the more quiet and less venturesome life of a 
 
 farmer. In 1879 he came to California and set- 
 tled in Tulare county, which has since remained 
 his home and headquarters. During 1883 he re- 
 turned to Iowa with the intention of staying in 
 that state, but homesickness for the fair climate 
 of the west led him in six weeks to start back 
 to Tulare county, and since then he has had no 
 desire to leave this region. 
 
 Plaving no means with which to take up inde- 
 pendent farming, for some time after settling 
 in Tulare county Mr. Hahesy worked for others, 
 but as soon as he had accumulated a sufficient 
 amount to justify renting property he began for 
 himself. While renting the Abbott place near 
 Piano and on Deer creek, he often raised as much 
 as two thousand acres of grain per year. At the 
 same time, until 1886, he operated a threshing 
 machine, and was the first to use a combined 
 thresher in Tulare county. As previously stated 
 he purchased his present property in 1903, and 
 has since brought it to a high state of im- 
 provement, having one hundred acres under al- 
 falfa, which enables him to conduct an extensive 
 stock business. In addition he continues to make 
 a specialty of raising grain, and for this purpose 
 rents two adjoining tracts, one embracing a sec- 
 tion of land, while the other comprises fourteen 
 hundred and forty acres, the larger part well 
 adapted to the cultivation of grain. 
 
 In Tulare occurred the marriage of Mr. Hahesy 
 to Miss Louise Beshears, a native of Missouri. 
 Of their union are four children now living, 
 William Martin, Helen May, John Francis and 
 Charles Jefferson. Educational affairs always 
 receive deserved attention from Mr. Hahesy, who 
 at this writing holds the office of school trustee 
 of the Laurel district. In politics he favors 
 Democratic principles, and has served as a mem- 
 ber of the county central committee, but aside 
 from that position he has not been intimately as- 
 sociated with local politics. In fraternal societies 
 he has membership with the Woodmen of the 
 World, Knights of Pythias and Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen. 
 
 RICHARD KUKER. A fund of energy, 
 ability and resource was the capital with which 
 Richard Kuker came to California and under- 
 took the upbuilding of his personal fortunes, 
 while he at the same time gave his best efforts 
 toward the material development of the com- 
 munity in which he now makes his home. He 
 was born in Hanover, Germany, near Verden, 
 July 26, 1838, one of a family of three children, 
 all of whom are living, Mary being the wife of 
 William Mehrtens, located near Exeter, and 
 Henry being still in Germany. 
 
 Richard Kuker was reared in his home in Ger- 
 many, attending the common schools until he was 
 
d^C^J), 
 
 (i,^KA.,^t^r^-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1245 
 
 fourteen years old, at which age he lost his 
 father. From that time "until his emigration to 
 America he found employment on farms in the 
 vicinity of his home. Upon his location in the 
 United States he bought a small' farm, which he 
 conducted until 1872. Selling out in that year 
 he came to California by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, landing in San Francisco, where he 
 bought two horses and moved by wagon to Sand 
 creek, Tulare county. After two years of gen- 
 eral farming he located on his present property, 
 purchasing six hundred and forty acres of rail- 
 road land on section 17, township 19, range 27, 
 while he pre-empted eighty acres on section 8, 
 township 19, range 27, and homesteaded eighty 
 acres on section 18, township 19, range 27, now 
 owning the eight hundred acres in one body. 
 Of this tract four hundred aci-es are under plow 
 and devoted to the raising of grain and cattle. 
 He has improved his property and brought it up 
 to a high state of cultivation, giving the most 
 painstaking attention to all the departments of 
 the work. In his herd of cattle he has some 
 fine graded stock in Short-horns and Durhams. 
 In Germany, in 1866, Mr. Kuker married 
 Catherine Bienhorn, a native of Verden, Han- 
 over, and born of this union are two children, 
 Dora, the wife of William Starns, of Yokohl, 
 and Sophia, the wife of Axel Anderson, located 
 near Lemon Cove. Mr. Kuker is a member of 
 the Lutheran Church, and politically is an active 
 Republican, having served as an election judge 
 of the Yokohl district and in many ways has 
 given his strongest support to the advancement 
 of the principles he endorses. 
 
 ANDREW MITCHELL DARWIN. Among 
 the earliest settlers of Fresno county, Cal., An- 
 drew Mitchell Darwin is remembered as a suc- 
 cessful stockman and a citizen of worth and 
 integrity. He was born in Jackson county, Tenn., 
 a, son of James Darwin, the representative of an 
 old Virginia family of English descent, mem- 
 bers of which served valiantly in the Revolu- 
 tionary war. _ James Darwin was a farmer in 
 Tennessee, where Andrew M. was reared to 
 young manhood. Deciding to cast in his lot with 
 the pioneers of the more remote west, he crossed 
 the plains to California in 1852, and upon his 
 arrival located at Millerton, Fresno county. For 
 four years following his location in the state he 
 carried on mining, after which he entered land 
 on Kings river and later on Dry creek, where 
 he began the cattle and sheep business. He was 
 one of the first to so engage in business in this 
 section, and one of the first to drive a stake 
 in Fresno county to mark the present site of 
 Fresno. He met with success in his operations, 
 and for thirty years, in partnership with E. C. 
 
 Ferguson, was numbered among the most ex- 
 tensive stockmen of the San Joaquin valley. In 
 1875, on account of ill health, he gave up the 
 stock business and removed to Santa Rosa, So- 
 noma county, where he made his home until his 
 death, which occurred in 1890, at the age of sixty- 
 nine years. He is interred in the Santa Rosa 
 cemetery, mourned by many friends in both that 
 city and Fresno county, where he was so well 
 known for many ye^rs. In Visalia, November 
 28, 1867, he was united in marriage with Martha 
 J. Patterson, of whom a brief sketch is given 
 in that of Joseph W. Reese, whom she married 
 in 1893. They had one daughter, Addie Cole, 
 who died at the age of two and a half years, 
 after which they adopted a daughter, Georgia, 
 who is now the wife of William H. Bryan, of 
 Fresno. 
 
 J. W. BEARUP. Through business interests 
 that are not limited to his home town of Madera, 
 but also extend into other parts of Madera coun- 
 ty, Mr. Bearup has established a reputation as 
 one of the leading men of affairs in this section 
 of the state. When he came to his present loca- 
 tion in 1896 he embarked in the agricultural im- 
 plement business and has since built up the largest 
 trade of its kind in the county, carrying in stock 
 a full equipment of modern machinery as well 
 as buggies and wagons of the most approved 
 styles of construction. In addition, he is exten- 
 sively engaged in the grain business, and has 
 warehouses in Madera, Berendo, Talbot and Bor- 
 den, Madera county, where he has adequate pro- 
 vision for the storage and shipment of wheat and 
 barley. 
 
 A resident of California since 1888, Mr. Bearup 
 was born at Wawaka, Noble county, Ind., April 
 25, 1865, and was the only child of John W. and 
 Jennie (Golden) Bearup, natives respectively of 
 New York and Ohio. His paternal grandfather, 
 James H. Bearup, was a native of New York, 
 but spent much of his active life in Ohio. The 
 maternal grandfather, William Golden, became 
 a pioneer of Indiana and remained there until 
 his death. During the Civil war John W. Bearup 
 left his farm in Noble county and enlisted in the 
 service of the Union, becoming sergeant of Com- 
 pany G, One Hundredth Indiana Infantry. After 
 an active service of more than two years he was 
 honorably discharged on account of physical dis- 
 ability. Afterward he moved from Indiana to 
 Ohio and settled at Wellington. About 1890 he 
 came to Madera, where he is now living retired. 
 While he was still living in Indiana he was be- 
 reaved by his wife's death in 1868. For many 
 years he has been an active member of the Grand 
 Army of the Republic. 
 
 On finishing the studies of the grammar and 
 
1246 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 high schools of WelHngton, J. W. Bearup was 
 sent to Ada College at Ada, Ohio, where he re- 
 mained for a time. Afterward he learned the 
 trade of butter and cheesemaker which he fol- 
 lowed in Ohio for five years. After his arrival in 
 California he became an employe of a grain house 
 in Turlock and for two years held the position of 
 foreman. During that period he gained a thor- 
 ough knowledge of the grain business, which has 
 been of inestimable value to him in his subsequent 
 business operations. Removing to Barendo in 
 1891, he built a warehouse and engaged in buy- 
 ing grain. In order to command a larger field 
 and engage in business upon a more extensive 
 scale, in 1896 he came to Madera, where he still 
 resides. After coming to this county he married 
 Miss A. M. Crow, who was born in Wisconsin 
 and came to California with her parents, settling 
 in Madera county. Her father, H. D. Crow, was 
 a member of a Wisconsin regiment and served 
 for a considerable portion of the Civil war. Since 
 coming to this county he has been engaged in the 
 mercantile business at Barendo, where he is an 
 influential citizen. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Bearup on^ child was born, Carl G. Bearup. 
 
 The Madera Board of Trade is one of the local 
 organizations with which Mr. Bearup co-operates, 
 in that way helping enterprises calculated to bene- 
 fit the town. Among business men his standing 
 is high and his reputation that of an honorable 
 and efficient man of affairs. Along the line of 
 his business, he holds membership in the San 
 Joaquin Valley Hardware Dealers' Association 
 and takes a warm interest in the organization. 
 The Republican party has had his vote and influ- 
 ence ever since he attained his majority, and since 
 coming to his present place of residence he has 
 served for four years as treasurer of the county 
 central committee. While living in Berendo he 
 was elected justice of the peace for the second 
 district and held the position until his removal 
 to Madera in 1896, when he resigned. By his 
 high principles of honor, unquestioned integrity 
 and persevering industry, he has won the respect 
 and confidence of those with whom he has had 
 business dealings and has gained a place among 
 the leading business men of his county. 
 
 HUBERT HEITMAN, D. M. D. It is safe 
 to say that in no professional calling has science 
 shown such marked and rapid advance as in that 
 of dentistry, one of the best-known and most 
 important branches of surgery, as there is scarce- 
 ly an adult member of the human family but re- 
 quires its services at some period of hfe. A com- 
 paratively few years ago but rude methods were 
 employed in the care of the teeth, the dentist's 
 principal requirement being a good stock of 
 
 physical strength. Patient investigation, careful 
 experiment, aided by modern discoveries and in- 
 ventions, have since elevated dentistry to an hon- 
 orable position among the leading sciences of the 
 twentieth century. Prominent among the bright 
 and intelligent young men of California who have 
 acquired a good knowledge of this science is 
 Hubert Heitman, a successful dentist of Merced. 
 A son of Dr. F. W. Heitman, Sr., he was born, 
 May I, 1878, in College City, Colusa county, 
 Cal., of German descent. His great-grandfather, 
 a life-long resident of Germany, was a trumpeter 
 in the German army, and fought against Napol- 
 eon, receiving a gold medal for bravery on the 
 field of battle. The doctor's grandfather, Diet- 
 rich Heitman, emigrated from Germany to this 
 country, and took up land in Illinois, where he 
 improved a good farm, on which he resided until 
 his death, in December, 1903, at the venerable 
 age of eighty-three years. 
 
 Born and reared on the home farm, in Ran- 
 dolph county, 111., F. W. Heitman, Sr., received 
 exceptional educational advantages, and was 
 graduated from the Bellevue Hospital Medical 
 College and the St. Louis Medical College, with 
 the degree of M. D. About 1875 he came to Cali- 
 fornia, settling first in College City, where he 
 built up a good practice, and served for a while 
 as county coroner. Subsequently removing to 
 Colusa, he continued there as a physician until 
 his death, in 1882, when but twenty-eight years 
 old. He was a man of wide information, active 
 and public-spirited, and a stanch supporter of the 
 Democratic party. He married Emma Houchins, 
 who was born in Boone county, Mo., a daughter 
 of Samuel Houchins, a native of Kentucky. After 
 his graduation from college Mr. Houchins re- 
 moved with his family to California, becoming 
 a pioneer of Colusa county. He engaged in farm- 
 ing to some extent, but for a number of years 
 was principal of the Colusa schools, and for two 
 or three terms served as county superintendent 
 of schools. At the time of his death he was serv* 
 ing his second term as county auditor. He was 
 a Democrat in politics, and a member of the 
 Masonic fraternity. Mrs. Emma Heitman is a 
 woman of culture and refinement, and for the 
 past twenty-three years has been engaged in edu- 
 cational work. She has two sons, Hubert, the 
 subject of this sketch ; and Dr. F. W. Heitman, 
 who is in partnership with his brother, in Mer- 
 ced. Dr. F. W. Heitman, the youngest son,- was 
 born December 12, 1879, i" Colusa, Cal. In 1898 
 he was graduated from the Colusa high school, 
 after which he entered the dental department of 
 Washington University, in St. Louis Mo., from 
 which he was graduated in 1901 with the degree 
 of D. M. D. He had the distinction of ranking 
 the highest in the class winning first honors, and 
 the gold medal. He began the practice of den- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 124T 
 
 tistry in Colusa, but since 1903 has been in part- 
 nership with his brother. 
 
 Reared and educated in Colusa, Hubert Heit- 
 man completed the course of study in the high 
 school, receiving his diploma in 1897. The fol- 
 lowing year he entered the dental department of 
 the university of California, where he remained 
 one year, afterwards graduating from the dental 
 department of Washington University in St. 
 Louis in 1901. Beginning the practice of his 
 profession in Colusa county Dr. Heitman re- 
 mained there until 1903, when, in company with 
 his brother, he settled in Merced, where he is 
 fast building up a good patronage, his skill as a 
 dentist being already recognized and appreciated. 
 
 Dr. Heitman married, in Sacramento, Cal., 
 Miss Blanche Peart, who was born in Colusa 
 county, and was graduated from the Sacramento 
 high school. In politics the doctor affiliates with 
 the Democratic party. Fraternally he belongs to 
 Merced Lodge, I. 0. O. F. ; he demitted from 
 Meridian Lodge No. 100, F. & A. M., College 
 City, and now belongs to La Grange Lodge No. 
 99, F. & A. M., of Merced ; is a member of Mer- 
 ced Chapter No. 12, R. A. M., and of Yosemite 
 Parlor, N. S. G. W. He is a member of the 
 State Dental Association and of the Psi Phi Fra- 
 ternity. 
 
 CLIFFORD H. SLAUGHTER. While the 
 management of his farm, situated two and one- 
 half miles northwest of Tulare, engrosses much 
 of Mr. Slaughter's time and attention, he yet finds 
 leisure to devote to the duties of his position as 
 superintendent of the Tulare irrigation district, 
 in which capacity he has served continuously 
 since 1895. He is a member of an eastern fam- 
 ily, and was born at Elizabethtown, Essex coun- 
 ty, N. Y., January 18, 1854, being the youngest 
 child of Theron and Julia (Lobdell) Slaughter, 
 natives of the same county as himself. The pa- 
 ternal grandfather,^ Abram Slaughter, was like- 
 wise a native of Essex county, where the family 
 became established at a very early day. Some 
 of the name served in the war of 1812, also in 
 the first struggle with England. During early 
 manhood Theron Slaughter was employed as an 
 iron miner, but after settling in Iowa in 1854 he 
 engaged in lumber milling on the Mississippi 
 river and eventually bought and located upon a 
 farm near Davenport, in Scott county. There 
 his death occurred when he lacked only five years 
 of having rounded out a full century. His wife 
 also died m Iowa. Of their eight children all 
 but two attained mature years, and four are now 
 living. One of their sons, Fayette, who is now a 
 resident of Marshalltown, Iowa, served during the 
 Civil war as a member of the Thirteenth. Iowa 
 Infantry. 
 
 Reared on the home farm in Scott county, 
 Iowa, CHfford H. Slaughter attended the public 
 school and academy at LeClaire, but at the age 
 of sixteen left school in order to earn his own 
 livelihood. At first he was employed in the 
 lumbering business in Wisconsin, and from there 
 went to the Black Hills during the first year of 
 the excitement in the mines of that country. Af- 
 ter prospecting and engaging in placer mining 
 for three years, he left that region, driving to 
 Fort Pierre and thence going by boat to Omaha, 
 from which point he returned to the Scott coun- 
 ty farm. After some years as a farmer near the 
 old home, in 1884 he moved to Clinton county, 
 Iowa, and engaged in farm pursuits near Clinton. 
 From there he came to California in 1888 and 
 settled in Tulare county, where he at once en- 
 tered upon grain-raising. In 1893 he bought 
 thirty-two acres near Tulare, which he has in 
 alfalfa and an orchard, and sells hay, fruit and 
 dairy products. 
 
 The Tulare irrigation district, of which Mr. 
 Slaughter has been superintendent and a director 
 since 1S95, embraces three hundred miles of main 
 and lateral canals in Tulare county, and is divided 
 into four sections. The three headgates are re- 
 spectively from the head of St. Johns, head of the 
 Kaweah, and out of Deep creek. Every improve- 
 ment has been made in order to meet the re- 
 quirements of the farmers securing water from 
 the ditch. It is the ambition of the directors to 
 bring their system to a point of development 
 sui-passed by none, thereby enhancing the value 
 of all the property tributary to their canals. In 
 politics Mr. Slaughter votes with the Democratic 
 party and at this writing acts as a member of 
 the county central committee. Fraternally he is 
 connected with the Woodmen of the World and 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. While 
 engaged in farming in Iowa he established do- 
 mestic ties through his marriage April 22, 1885, 
 to Miss Adele Hardt, a native of Scott county, 
 and the recipient of fair educational advantages 
 in that locality. Born of their union are three 
 children, Bl3'the, Herman and Paul. 
 
 BENNET RISING. Ten miles southeast of 
 Tulare and three miles from the postoffice of 
 Woodville Hes the farm home of Mr. Rising, who 
 has made this the scene of his labors ever since 
 coming to Tulare county in 1879. The nucleus 
 of his present possessions he acquired by the pur- 
 chase of one hundred and sixty acres in section 
 II, formerly owned by the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road Company, and situated dn the Tule river. 
 After settling on the place he erected a substan- 
 tial set of farm buildings and has also made the 
 necessary arrangements for irrigation. At this 
 writing he owns two hundred and eighty acres 
 
1248 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of land, on which he engaged in raising grain un- 
 til about 1894, but since then has made a specialty 
 of dairying and raising stock. To secure hay for 
 his stock he has placed twenty acres under alfalfa, 
 several crops of which may be cut in a year. 
 
 In a family of eleven children, all but two of 
 whom attained maturity and five are now living, 
 Bennet Rising was the youngest in order of birth 
 and is the only member of the family to settle 
 in California. One of his brothers, Joseph, served 
 with a Pennsylvania regiment in the Civil war. 
 His father, Martin Rising, was born and reared 
 in Bavaria, Germany. Accompanied by his wife 
 and two children, he crossed the ocean to Penn- 
 sylvania and settled in Indiana county, where he 
 engaged in farming near the city of Indiana, and 
 died at eighty-six years of age. While the fam- 
 ily were living there Bennet Rising was born 
 February 10, 1852. The mother, who bore the 
 maiden name of Margaretta Young, was born in 
 Bavaria and died in Pennsylvania. Both were 
 devoted members of the Roman Catholic Church. 
 
 The boyhood years of Bennet ' Rising passed 
 uneventfully upon the home farm, in the pursuit 
 of such work as falls to the lot of a farmer's boy. 
 In 1877 he came to California and settled in Yolo 
 county, but after two years as a farmer there he 
 came to Tulare county and settled upon a farm 
 which he stilL owns and occupies. During his 
 residence- in Pennsylvania he was married, in In- 
 diana county, to Miss Maggie Stadtmiller, a na- 
 tive of that state, her father, George Stadtmiller, 
 liaving immigrated here from Germany during 
 early manhood. Three of her brothers became 
 residents of California, and two of them died in 
 this locality. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Rising 
 comprises the following children : George M. 
 and Joseph H., who assist in the management of 
 the home farm ; Florence, who is married and 
 lives at Farmersville, Tulare county ; Mabelle, 
 Raymond and Guy, who are with their parents. 
 The family are connected with the Roman Cath- 
 olic Church of Tulare and contribute to its main- 
 tenance and various charities. Though not active 
 in politics, Mr. Rising always gives his support 
 to the Democratic party. Among the many move- 
 ments which meet his approval may be mentioned 
 the free schools, the work of which he consistent- 
 ly supports, and for many years, while serving as 
 trustee of Surprise district, he was able to do 
 much to promote the interests of the home schools. 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON GIST. A success- 
 ful farmer and dairyman, and an excellent rep- 
 resentative of the substantial and highly esteemed 
 residents of Tulare county, Thomas J. Gist is 
 well deserving of especial mention in this bio- 
 graphical work. A native of Tennessee, he was 
 born, July 11, 1856, in Clements ville, Qay coun- 
 
 ty, which was also the birthplace of his father, 
 the late Jabez C. Gist. Of English descent, he 
 comes of honored colonial stock, his great-great- 
 grandfather, Christopher Gist, having served un- 
 der Gen. George Washington in both the French 
 and Indian wars, and in the Revolution, being 
 an aide-de-camp in both, and in the former acting 
 as guide through the Indian country, his name 
 being prominently mentioned as such in the vari- 
 ous histories of the United Stales. 
 
 The son of a pioneer farmer of Tennessee, 
 Jabez C. Gist grew to manhood on the home 
 plantation, succeeding to the independent occupa- 
 tion in which he was reared. At the age of 
 twenty-two years he was elected justice of the 
 peace, and served most capably until the break- 
 ing out of the Civil war. When his native state 
 seceded, he remained loyal to the Union, re- 
 signed his office, and, being a strong abolition- 
 ist, freed the slaves which had come into his 
 possession by inheritance. Disposing of his prop- 
 erty in that section, he removed to Tompkins- 
 ville, Ky., where he continued farming for a 
 number of years. He became active while there 
 in public affairs, and in 1875 was elected justice 
 of the peace. Resigning the office the following 
 }'ear, he came to the Pacific coast, and the fol- 
 lowing six years was employed as an agricul- 
 turist in Woodland, Yolo county, Cal. Coming 
 from there to Tulare county in 1881, he located 
 about three and one-half miles northwest of Tu- 
 lare, buying a ranch containing eighty acres, and 
 there continued farming until his retirement from 
 active pursuits. Moving then to Tulare, he was 
 an honored resident of this city until his death. 
 May 30, 1903, in the seventy-eighth year of 
 his age. He was elected justice of the peace 
 while in this county, and served with efficiency 
 for fourteen years, being elected on the Repub- 
 lican ticket, which he invariably supported. He 
 was a Mason, and a valued member of the Chris- 
 tian Church, with which he united in 1878. 
 He married Kittie M. Marrs, who was born in 
 Kentucky, a daughter of Henry B. Marrs, a 
 farmer, and for many years clerk of the Monroe 
 county courts. She died in Tulare, in April, 
 1899. Of the ten children born of their union, 
 seven survive, namely : Frank M., a horticul- 
 turist in Santa Ana; M. H., of Woodland, Cal.; 
 Thomas J. ; Levi, of Los Angeles, blacksmith for 
 the Southern Pacific Railway Company ; Jabez R., 
 a stationary engineer, employed by the Southern 
 Pacific Railway Company; Mrs. Luella Sullivan, 
 of Tulare ; and James B., assistant cashier in the 
 Los Angeles Central Bank. 
 
 A small lad when his parents removed to Ken- 
 tucky, Thomas J. Gist grew to manhood on the 
 home farm, acquiring a practical education in 
 the district school. Coming with the family to 
 California he completed his studies at the Hes- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1251 
 
 perian College, and in 1881 came to Tulare coun- 
 ty, where for about a year he worked in a lum- 
 ber yard. He subsequently worked at farming 
 for awhile, being afterward superintendent of 
 the Little Tulare Ditch & Kaweah Canal. In 
 1886 Mr. Gist purchased his present ranch, lying 
 four miles northwest of Tulare. It contains one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land, all under irri- 
 gation from the canal, and on it he has made 
 improvements of a noteworthy character. He has 
 fifty acres of alfalfa, the remainder being de- 
 voted to grain and stock, and is carrying on an 
 extensive and profitable business as a dairyman 
 and stock-raiser, his estate being numbered 
 among the best and most productive in the neigh- 
 borhood. Mr. Gist is one of the leading agri- 
 culturists of this part of the county, and is a 
 stockholder in both the Tulare Rochdale Asso- 
 ciation, and the Tulare Co -Operative Creamery 
 Association. 
 
 November 3, 1886, Mr. Gist married Fannie 
 Zuniwalt, who was born near College City, Colusa 
 county. Her father, J. B. Zumwalt, emigrated 
 from Missouri to California in 1849, crossing the 
 plains with ox-teams. At first he worked in the 
 mines, and then located as a farmer in Colusa 
 county. In 1878 he settled in Tulare county, 
 about four miles northwest of Tulare, becoming 
 owner of a farm containing a 'thousand acres, 
 which he managed successfully a number of years. 
 Subsequently removing to Irvington, he lived 
 there retired until his death. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Lydia A. Dewitt, was born in 
 Kentucky, and is now a resident of Tulare. She 
 bore him eleven children, all of whom are liv- 
 ing, Mrs. Gist being the fourth child. Mr. arid 
 Mrs. Gist are the parents of four children, Cecil, 
 Brooks, Harold and Maurine. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
 Gist are members of the Christian Church, and 
 for fourteen years Mr. Gist has served as su- 
 perintendent of its Sunday-school. In his politi- 
 cal views he is a true-blue Republican, sup- 
 porting the principles of his party at all times. 
 Fraternally he belongs to the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, and of the American Yeo- 
 
 LOUIS SELIGMAN. The Seligman family 
 is of German extraction and has been identified 
 with the historv of Rhenish Bavaria from a very 
 early period. During the meteoric career of the 
 first Napoleon the regimental commissary of his 
 army was Aaron Seligman, a stock dealer, who 
 delivered meat and provisions to the soldiers on 
 contract. Among the children of this ancestor 
 was S. Seligman, who became a commission mer- 
 chant in his native Rhenish Bavaria, and who 
 married Helen Frank, a native of the same vicin- 
 ity her father, Lipman Frank, having been en- 
 
 gaged in business there. Both S. Seligman and 
 his wife passed away, but several of their chil- 
 dren survive, the sons being Louis and Emil, of 
 Dinuba, Cal., and Ferdinand, a prosperous lum- 
 ber dealer at Bingen on the Rhine. The daugh- 
 ters are : Miss Carrie Seligman ; Mrs. Hauchen 
 Phillips; Mrs. Sanchen Gutenberg, of Coblentz, 
 Germany; and Mrs. Regina Borg, of Albisheim, 
 Germany. Mrs. Phillips formerly resided in Han- 
 ford, Kings county, Cal., where her husband con- 
 ducted a general merchandise establishment ; they 
 now reside in Bingen, Germany, at the home of 
 Ferdinand Seligman. 
 
 The second son, Louis Seligman, was born in 
 Albisheim on the Pfrim, eighteen miles from 
 Mainz, in Rhenish Hesse, Germany, July 24, 
 1851, and as a boy lived with his parents in Al- 
 bisheim, about twelve miles from Worms. He 
 served an apprenticeship of three years in the 
 lumber trade in Bingen. While he liked his na- 
 tive home he was fond of learning the ways of 
 the world, and in October 'of 1868 landed in New 
 York City, where he secured employment as a 
 clerk with L. Dreyfuss & Co., at Nos. 292-336 
 Broadway. Later he held a clerkship with E. 
 Loeb & Co., at No. 9 Charter street, New Or- 
 leans. In 1871 he came to California and be- 
 came clerk with Levis, Sweet & Co., in Kingston, 
 Fresno county, later clerking for Jacob Einstein 
 & Co., in Centerville and Kingston. During the 
 years 1876 and 1877 he managed the clothing 
 department for S. Sweet & Co., at Visalia. In 
 the latter year he embarked in business for him- 
 self at Visaha, where he kept the finest goods 
 of that day and town, making a specialty of fine 
 jewelry, fine cigars, musical instruments, sew- 
 ing machines and fancy goods. February 3, 
 1897, he brought his stock of goods to Dinuba 
 and with his brother formed the firm of L. & 
 E. Seligman, proprietors of the largest depart- 
 ment store in the town. In addition he has stock 
 in the Bank of Dinuba and owns several farms. 
 In politics he has always been independent. When 
 twenty-one years of age he was made a Mason 
 in Visalia Lodge No. 128, F. & A. M. Since 
 1873 he has been associated with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, having been initiated 
 during that year into King's River Lodge at Cen- 
 terville, and since 1875 he has been a member 
 of Four Creek Lodge No. 94. Public spirited 
 and capable, he has done much to_ promote the 
 progress of the various communities where he 
 has resided. 
 
 EMIL SELIGMAN. A long experience m 
 the dry-goods business, beginning with an ap- 
 prenticeship under successful merchants m Ger- 
 many, has qualified Mr. Seligman for the capable 
 discharge of his responsibilities as a member of 
 
1252 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the firm of L. & E. Seligman, proprietors of 
 the largest department store at Dinuba. A na- 
 tive of - Rhenish Bavaria, he was next to the 
 youngest among nine children and was born 
 February 17, 1858. At the age of fourteen he 
 became an apprentice to the dry-goods business 
 at Worms, where he served for three years. The 
 year 1875 found him in California, where he 
 secured a clerkship with the S. Sweet Company 
 at Visalia and later aided in establishing the gen- 
 eral mercantile store of PhiUips, Sweet & Co., at 
 Hanford, which the great fire there destroyed. 
 Afterward he was employed by Sweet & Co. as 
 manager of a lumber yard at Traver. After three 
 years, in 1887, with Levis, Sweet & Co., he 
 started a general mercantile establishment in a 
 building 40x90 feet. 
 
 On the selling out of the business and the dis- 
 solution of the partnership, in 1896, Mr. Selig- 
 man formed a partnership with his brother Louis 
 and opened a store in Dinuba near his present 
 site. In 1902 they erected a substantial brick 
 double store, 60x80 feet, two floors, with a large 
 warehouse in the rear, 50x80, and here they con- 
 duct a department store, making a specialty of 
 general merchandise and hardware. In addition 
 they are interested in farming and own several 
 farms within a radius of ten miles. When the 
 project was first mentioned to start a bank in 
 Dinuba Emil Seligman was enthusiastic in be- 
 half of the plan and in February, 1902, he assist- 
 ed in the work of organization, at which time he 
 was chosen the first president and a member of 
 the board of directors. While he still remains 
 in the latter capacity he resigned the presidency 
 after a short time, in order to devote himself to 
 the increasing demands of the department store. 
 In politics he favors Republican principles. For 
 eight years he acted as treasurer of the Alta irri- 
 gation district. Fraternally he is associated with 
 the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows, his connection with the lat- 
 ter order dating from his residence in Traver. 
 It was while living at Traver that he met and 
 was united in marriage with Anna Fry, a native 
 of Switzerland, and of their union they have a 
 family of four sons and four daughters. 
 
 THOMAS _C. GAINES. As a pioneer 
 Thomas C. Gaines has been identified with the 
 history of California for a half century, and has 
 experienced the hardships, dangers and priva- 
 tions incident to such a life. He first came to 
 California in 1850, returning east about four 
 years later, and in 1856 again came to the "land 
 of sunshine and flowers," which had made so 
 great an impression upon him that he could not 
 be satisfi^ to make his home in the rigoi^ous 
 climate of Wisconsin. In July, 1873, he located 
 
 upon his present property eighteen miles north- 
 west of Visalia, paying purchase price twice, the 
 first time buying a squatter's right, and when 
 the railroad claimed it, he bought it from them. 
 He has given energy and thought to the culti- 
 vation and improvement of his farm, and has 
 made a success of his work. His life-history is 
 interesting in a volume gathered from the lives 
 of the representative pioneers of the state. 
 
 Born in St. Anthony, Canada, in 1830, Thomas 
 C. Gaines was the son of John Gaines, a native 
 of Quebec, who became a farmei; in St. Anthony, 
 where he died. His wife, Mary, a native of 
 Canada, is also deceased. Thomas C. Gaines 
 was the youngest of eight children. When about 
 ten years -old he went to what was then Dunn 
 county. Wis., where he found employment suf- 
 ficient to make his living, being dependent upon 
 his own resources. He received but scant edu- 
 cation, but in the intervening years has made 
 every effort to acquire that which his youth 
 failed to give him, and has thus become a well- 
 read, well-informed man. He engaged in lum- 
 bering principally during his residence in Wis- 
 consin, in 1850 with several comrades crossing 
 the plains on horseback and also by pack ani- 
 mals. After their safe arrival in Hornitos, Mari- 
 posa count3^ Cal., Mr. Gaines found employ- 
 ment in the mines for about eighteen months. 
 Returning east in 1854, he spent some time in 
 ^yisconsin, Missouri and Iowa, and in 1856 came 
 via New York and the Isthmus of Panama to 
 San Francisco, which city he reached July 4. 
 Going at once to the mines, he was engaged for 
 a time at Placerville and Hornitos, where he 
 prospected, after which he went to Santa Cruz 
 county and engaged in lumbering in the redwood 
 forests. He continued so occupied until 1864, 
 when he once more tried mining in Mariposa 
 county, being located at Mariposa and Prince- 
 ton, in Colusa countv. In July, 1873, he came 
 to Tulare county, and became the owner of his 
 present property. Pie has since added by pur- 
 chase to his land, now owning two hundred and 
 forty acres, which he rents to his son, Francis, 
 who owns four hundred and forty acres adjoin- 
 ing. The farm is devoted to general farming 
 and stock-raising. 
 
 In Santa Cruz county Mr. Gaines married 
 Mary Vasques, who was born in Alameda county, 
 Cal, but which was then Contra Costa county, 
 to which state her father, Jose Maria Vasques. 
 came after service in the Mexican war. They 
 are the parents of the following children : Lucy, 
 the wife of W. K. Hammond of Fresno; Mary, 
 the wife of Peter Hanson of Stockton; Char- 
 lotte, the wife of Fred Emory of Fresno ; Amelia, 
 the wife of Scott Gilliam of Fresno ; Ellen, the 
 wife of Charley C. Teburg of Oakland ; Lena, 
 who married Frank Smith, and Pearl, at home- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1253 
 
 A. Frank is farming the old home place and owns 
 four hundred and forty acres adjoinino;, and 
 leases enough more land to make fifteen hun- 
 dred acres; Joseph R., the fifth, is also engaged 
 in farming; and Edward, the tenth, is a farmer. 
 The eldest son, Thomas, died at the age of twen- 
 ty-four years. In his political convictions Mr. 
 Gaines is a stanch Republican and in local affairs 
 is quite prominent, now serving as school trustee 
 of the Townsend district. 
 
 DENNIS JAMES LOONEY. An experi- 
 ence of two years as manager of the Tracy 
 Publishing Company, publishers of the Tracy 
 Press, abundantly qualified Mr. Looney to as- 
 sume the duties connected with the position of 
 proprietor and editor of the paper, which he 
 purchased February lo, 1903. The Press is is- 
 sued on Saturday of each week and is a six- 
 column quarto, devoted to the interests of the 
 town and surrounding country, independent in 
 politics, favoring the best men irrespective of 
 political affiliations, and maintaining that the 
 welfare of a community depends less upon the 
 success of a party platform than upon the citizen- 
 ship of men of energy, high principles of honor 
 and progressive spirit. 
 
 Near Tracy, Cal., in San Joaquin county, Den- 
 nis James Looney was born April 19, 1873, being 
 a son of Daniel J. and Mary (Linnehan) Loon- 
 ey. His father, who was born at Killarney, 
 Ireland, received an excellent education in his 
 native land. After coming to America he settled 
 in New York and was at West Point when the 
 Civil war broke out, whereupon he was ap- 
 pointed to service in the commissary department 
 of the Union army. The only injuries he re- 
 ceived in the service were caused by a fall from 
 a horse in the cavalry. At the close of the war 
 he came to California and served as a government 
 guard at San Quentin, Marin county, being sta- 
 tioned there at the time of the attempted assas- 
 sination of Captain Murphy. At the expiration 
 of his period of service he settled near Bethany 
 and took up a government tract of one hundred 
 and sixty acres, which he improved with a house 
 and other needed buildings. At this writing he 
 continues to make his home on the same farm, 
 but being an invalid is obliged to delegate to 
 others the active management of the land. 
 
 In a family comprising three sons and one 
 daughter now living Dennis James Looney is 
 next to the oldest. His advantages for an edu-, 
 cation were meagre. After attaining the age 
 of fifteen years he could no longer attend school, 
 but was obliged to devote his entire time to work 
 on the farm. However, he was always fond of 
 reading and by self-improvement has acquired 
 an excellent education. In addition to general 
 
 farm work he operated a hay press and threshing 
 machine in season, having acquired a knowledge 
 of machinery through working in a machine shop 
 at intervals for two years. After serving for a 
 year as constable in 1902 he was elected justice 
 of the peace of Tulare township, San Joaquin 
 county, on the Democratic ticket, carrying every 
 precinct over his opponent and taking the oath 
 of office January 5, 1903, for a term of four 
 years. Since his election he has had his office 
 in the court room at the town hall. In addition 
 to his duties as justice and as editor of the Press 
 he represents the Phoenix Fire Insurance Com- 
 pany of Hartford and to some extent is also 
 engaged in the handling of real estate. In local 
 councils of the Democratic party he wields con- 
 siderable influence, as is evidenced by his mem- 
 bership on the county and state central com- 
 mittees of the party. In the Native Sons of the 
 Golden West he is connected with Tracy Parlor 
 No. t86, in which he acts as senior past presi- 
 dent. 
 
 EDWARD ELDEN SCRANTON. The mer- 
 cantile interests of Tulare are ably represented 
 by the enterprising firm of Anderson & Scranton, 
 which has attained a high standing in business 
 circles. Beginning in a modest way, these gentle- 
 men have established one of the most complete 
 and best-stocked dry goods houses in this part 
 of the county, and are conducting a profitable 
 and a rapidly increasing trade. Edward Elden 
 Scranton, the junior member of this firm, was 
 born December 10, 1866, in West Liberty, Musca- 
 tine county, Iowa, a son of Irving W. Scranton. 
 
 A native of Ohio, Irving W. Scranton began 
 life for himself as a merchant in West Liberty, 
 Iowa. He subsequently removed to Missouri, 
 locating first in Westboro, where he engaged for 
 a time in mercantile pursuits, from there going 
 to Mound City, and there residing until his death. 
 Enlisting in an Iowa regiment during the Civil 
 war, he took part in several engagements, in one 
 battle being wounded. His wife,, whose maiden 
 name was Hannah J. Maguire, was born in Penn- 
 sylvania, and is now a resident of St. Joseph, 
 Mo. She bore her husband two daughters and 
 four sons, all of whom are living, Edward Elden 
 being the second child. 
 
 Having completed the course of study in the 
 district schools of West Liberty, Iowa, and West- 
 boro, Mo., Edward E. Scranton began to earn 
 his own living when a lad of fourteen or fifteen 
 years, for three years thereafter working in a 
 livery stable in his native town. Entering then 
 a store located just across the street from the 
 stable, he was first employed in a modest position, 
 but securing a clerkship by applying for a va- 
 cancy, he remained with his employers from 1886 
 
1254 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 until 1890, giving much satisfaction to the firm, 
 and becoming familiar with the details of the 
 business. Coming to Tulare in 1890, Mr. Scran- 
 ton secured a situation with F. M. Shultz, for 
 ten 3'ears having charge of the dry goods depart- 
 ment of his store. Resigning the position in 
 1900, he formed a partnership with Frank E. 
 Anderson, a brief sketch of whom may be found 
 elsewhere in this biographical volume, and March 
 15, 1900, they embarked in business under the 
 present firm name of Anderson & Scranton, and 
 by straightforward dealings and honest methods 
 have built up a lucrative trade, their patronage 
 being extensive and lucrative and constantly 
 growing. 
 
 In Westboro, Mo., Mr. Scranton married Ro- 
 berta Hightower, who was born in Nebraska 
 City, NelD., and they have one child, Grace B. 
 Public-spirited and enterprising, Mr. Scranton 
 takes an intelligent interest in local affairs, and 
 is a member of the board of library trustees; a 
 member and a director of the Tulare Building 
 and Loan Association ; and one of the directors of 
 the Odd Fellows' building. He was made an Odd 
 -Fellow in Westboro, Mo., and is now past grand 
 of Tulare City ^..odge No. 306, I. O. O. F. ; and 
 a member of the Fraternal Aid. He also belongs 
 to the Tulare Board of Trade. In his religious 
 beliefs he is a Methodist, and is a valued mem- 
 ber of the chtircli of that denomination. Politi- 
 cally he supports the principles of the Republican 
 party by voice and vote. 
 
 W. H. GRANT. Numbered among the horti- 
 culturists of Tulare county is W. H. Grant, who 
 is located on a ranch of thirty-nine acres, of 
 which thirty-five is given over to the cultivation 
 of oranges, all bearing navels. Mr. Grant is a 
 native of Cherryfield, Me., where he was born 
 February 3, 1869. His father, Timothy L. 
 Grant, was a New England farmer. A descend- 
 ant of patriotic ancestry he enlisted in a Maine 
 regiment during the Civil war and served until 
 its close. His wife, formerly Mary Willie, a 
 native of Maine, is also living, their home being 
 still in that state. The eldest of five living chil- 
 dren, W. H. Grant was reared to young manhood 
 in his native state, receiving a good education 
 through the medium of the public and high 
 schools in the vicinity of his home. In manhood 
 he became connected with the George Emory 
 Company, of Boston, who were engaged in get- 
 ting out mahogany lumber in Central America. 
 He was sent to that country, where he remained 
 for four years, and was then located in the 
 northern part of Minnesota. Finally resigning 
 his position with this firm, he went to Minneap- 
 olis, Minn., where he accepted a like position 
 with another lumber firm. In Eveleth, Minn., 
 
 April 16, 1904, he was united in marriage with 
 Eda F. Conway, the daughter of Thomas A. 
 Conway, whose biographical sketch follows. 
 After his marriage Mr. Grant came to California, 
 locating upon a ranch of thirty-nine acres. This 
 is all under irrigation from the Pioneer Ditch, 
 in which company Mr. Grant is interested. He 
 is also identified with the Zante Citrus Associa- 
 tion. Fraternally Mr. Grant was made a Mason 
 in Cherryfield, Me., and both himself and wife 
 are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. 
 Politically he is a stanch advocate of the prin- 
 ciples of the Republican party. 
 
 THOMAS A. CONWAY. For only a brief 
 time was Thomas A. Conway a citizen of the 
 vicinity of Portersville, although he had been a 
 horticulturist of Zante since 1893. He came to 
 this locality in 1901, purchasing twenty acres of 
 navel oranges, and engaged in its cultivation and 
 improvement until his death, which occurred 
 February 17, 1904. He was a native of Cincin- 
 nati, Ohio, where his father, Thomas, spent his 
 life as a jeweler. Thomas A. Conway worked 
 in a planing mill in Minnesota, acting as fore- 
 man for the firm of Smith & Wyman. Deciding 
 to locate in California, he was engaged as a 
 horticulturist in Zante from 1893 to 1901, owning 
 a fifteen-acre orchard of oranges, which he set 
 out. After his location here he remained until 
 his death, one of the successful orange grow- 
 ers of the vicinity. Fraternally he was a promi- 
 nent Mason and politically was a stanch adher- 
 ent of the principles advocated in the platform of 
 the Republican party. During the Civil war he 
 enlisted for service, and was raised to the office of 
 second lieutenant in the Twenty-first Regiment, 
 Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry for the period of 
 three years. He was united in marriage with 
 Lane Miller, a native of Naples, 111., and the 
 daughter of Asher Miller. Her father was a 
 miller by occupation in Naples, where his death 
 occurred. Mrs. Conway died in Minneapolis 
 February 16, 1900. Thev were the parents of 
 two children, Eda F., the' wife of W. H. Grant, 
 and Alice, the wife of Seymour S. Hough, who 
 resides in Eveleth, Minn. 
 
 ARCHIBALD YELL HINDS. Since boy- 
 hood Archibald Yell Hinds has been a resident of 
 Tulare county, an eye-witness of the develop- 
 ment of the country from its most primitive 
 stages to its present prosperous condition, and 
 a participant in many of the movements calcu- 
 lated to advance the general welfare of the com- 
 munity. When he first located in the county 
 there were only a few houses upon the present 
 site of Visalia, which city was then known as 
 

 
 
 
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1257 
 
 Four Creeks. Deer and elk were plentiful 
 throughout the country and even bears were 
 sometimes shot. The mail for the settlers was 
 obtained at Fort Miller and their groceries were 
 brought from Stockton, and all the -hardships, 
 privations and dangers mcident to pioneer life 
 made up the largest part of their existence. In 
 reminiscence Mr. Hinds often goes back to those 
 early days of the state, and gives tathe younger 
 generation a history replete with adventure and 
 excitement. 
 
 Born in Crawford county, Ark., November 8, 
 1837, Archibald Yell Hinds is a son of David 
 and Margaret Ann (Maddox) Hinds, both of 
 whom died in that state. Of their family of 
 seven children, three sons and four daughters, 
 two are living, of whom Archibald Yell is the 
 fourth in order of birth. He was reared in 
 Arkansas and trained to the practical duties 
 which were his as the son of a farmer. April 15, 
 1852, when he was less than fifteen years old, he 
 started to California with his brother Edward, 
 who died in Exeter, in 1894. They were equipped 
 with ox-teams, provisions and all necessary ar- 
 ticles and after crossing the Arkansas river, set 
 out through Texas, via El Paso, Tucson and 
 Fort Yuma, to Los Angeles, and although the 
 train consisted of but five wagons, known as 
 the Van Buren Company, they came through 
 safely without an attack from the Indians, al- 
 though many atrocities were committed both in 
 front and behind them. In the fall of the year 
 Mr. Hinds drove to Gilroy, Santa Clara county, 
 and engaged in farming for one year. In Oc- 
 tober, 1853, he came to Tulare county, the pres- 
 ent city of Visalia being then known as Four 
 Creeks, and having but three settlers, viz : Rich- 
 ard Chattan, Abram Murray and S. C. Brown, 
 names familiar to all who revere and honor the 
 links which bind the prosperous present to the 
 historic past. He located on what is known as 
 Hinds' prairie, two miles east of Visalia, which 
 land his brother had entered, and here the two 
 resided and engaged in general farming and 
 hog raising. In 1866 he removed to the place 
 which has ever since remained his home, located 
 within one and a half miles of Exeter, and a 
 part of which is under the People's ditch. He 
 purchased the property from C. A. Williston, a 
 sheep grower, immediately after which he be- 
 gan improvements and cultivation, breaking the 
 land and sowing it to grain. In addition to his 
 one hundred and fourteen acres on sections 33 
 and 34, township 18, range 26, he rented land 
 and carried on his operations on seven or eight 
 hundred acres. He was soon numbered among 
 the successful farmers and stock-raisers in this 
 vicinity and has since continued to merit the 
 prominence which became his in the pioneer days 
 of the state. 
 
 Mr. Hinds has been twice married, the first 
 ceremony being performed on the Tule river and 
 uniting him with Elizabeth Lewis, a native of 
 Missouri, "who died in Visalia. He was after- 
 ward married at Outside creek to Sarah Earsley 
 Buckman, a native of Union, Ky. She came of 
 an old Kentucky family, her father, Clement E., 
 being the son of John Buckman, both of whom 
 were natives of that state. Both were farmers 
 by occupation. Clement E. Buckman removed 
 in young manhood to the vicinity of Fort Scott, 
 Kans., where he followed farming for seven 
 years. In 1865 he immigrated to California, 
 crossing the plains with ox-teams. He brought 
 a band of cattle with him, and his daughter 
 Sarah, then only thirteen years old, rode horse- 
 back and helped drive them, her brothers and 
 sisters also helping in the work. The winter 
 was spent at Prescott, Ariz., after which they 
 came on to Fort Rock, now Kingman, where the 
 Indians stole their stock and started to drive 
 them away. Mrs. Hinds and her brother, A. J., 
 himself only sixteen years old, started in pur- 
 suit, and as the herder had killed two Indians 
 the others were evidently frightened away, for 
 the cattle were recovered and the party returned 
 to Prescott. In the spring of 1866 they came 
 to California and located in Tulare county upon 
 a farm, where the father died at the age of fifty- 
 seven years. His wife, formerlv Savilla Shanks, 
 a native of Kentucky, also died in this vicinity. 
 They were the parents of four sons and four 
 daughters, of whom all but one son are now 
 living. Mrs. Hinds was reared to young woman- 
 hood in Tulare county, where the balance of her 
 . life has been spent. Of the twelve children born 
 to herself and husband, eight attained maturity, 
 namely ; Clement Emery, engaged in the butcher 
 business in Visalia; Clara Josephine, the wife of 
 D. J. Toomey, of Visalia ; Ollie Savilla, the wife 
 of G. B. Simpson, of Stockton ; Joseph Orville, 
 a farmer in the vicinity of Exeter ; James Robert, 
 a butcher of Visalia ; Lawrence Buckman ; Sarah 
 Margaret; and Mary. Mr. Hinds is a Demo- 
 crat in his political convictions and has served as 
 school trustee for many years. The family are 
 members of the Catholic Church of Visalia. 
 
 ANDREW FLETCHER. The name of An- 
 drew Fletcher is associated with the pioneer his- 
 tory of the state of California, he being one of 
 the emigrants of 1850 who laid aside the pick 
 and shovel to assist in the agricultural develop- 
 ment of the country. A native of Edinburgh, 
 Scotland, born September 24, 1813, he was 
 brought to the United States by his parents when 
 only five years old. He became a resident of 
 Greene county, Ohio, where he remained until 
 attaining his majority, when he located in Knox 
 
 59 
 
1258 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county, 111. Following the westward trend of 
 emigration he crossed the plains in 1850 by means 
 of ox teams, and upon his safe arrival in Placer- 
 ville, Cal., engaged in mining on the Feather 
 river. He met with varying fortune for four 
 years, when, in 1854, in company with Joseph 
 Spier, he started the new ditch, bringing the 
 water from the middle south fork of the Stanis- 
 laus river for mining purposes. The enterprise 
 necessitated the expenditure of $1,000,000. but 
 brought about results of incalculable benefit. In 
 1859 Mr. Fletcher went to Santa Cruz, where 
 he remained until 1873, when he came to Tulare 
 county. Here, in 1878, he was united in mar- 
 riage with Mrs. Rachel D. Elkins, and made his 
 home upon the farm where she lived until his 
 death, which occurred July 29, 1892. He was 
 mourned by many friends and the community 
 suffered a loss in his demise such as can only 
 be felt when a public-spirited, honorable and up- 
 right citizen, a leader in all matters of reform, a 
 social and kindly nature, passes on to the re- 
 ward which awaits right living. In his political 
 convictions he was a conscientious Republican and 
 gave his best efforts to advance the principles he 
 endorsed. 
 
 Mrs. Fletcher was in maidenhood Rachel D. 
 Neal, born in Lincoln county. N. C, May 26, 
 1834. Her father, Moses Neal, was born in the 
 same state, February 10, 1806, and was a farmer 
 by occupation. He emigrated to Missouri in 
 1839, locating in Stoddard county, and a year 
 later went to Cape Girardeau county, where he 
 farmed. In 1874 he came to California with his 
 daughter, and died here at an advanced age. 
 His wife, formerly Susan Smith, was born in . 
 Pennsylvania, and died in Missouri. They were 
 the parents of three sons and two daughters. 
 Rachel D. received her education in the com- 
 mon schools of Missouri, where she was reared 
 to young womanhood. There she was united in 
 marriage with Louis Elkins, a native of Tennes- 
 see, who died in Missouri. They were the par- 
 ents of two children, Jane, now Mrs. Eaton, and 
 Lee Lindsey, the efficient night watchman of 
 Portersville. In 1874 Mrs. Elkins came to Cali- 
 fornia with her father, daughter and grandson 
 and located near Mountain View, Tulare county. 
 After her marriage to Mr. Fletcher she resided 
 on the latter's farm of one hundred and twenty 
 acres, but since his death she has rented the 
 land. 
 
 his own efforts, and is justly recognized as one 
 of the most prosperous business men of the 
 town. A son of Daniel Stanley, he was born 
 November 2, 1861, in Colorado. 
 
 Born, reared and educated in Ohio, Daniel 
 Stanley resided in his native state until 1859. 
 Becoming interested to some extent in mining 
 pursuits, he then removed with his family to 
 Colorado, where he remained five years. Lo- 
 cating in Cass county, Iowa, in 1864, he followed 
 his trade of carpenter and builder in that locality 
 for many years, retaining, however, his interests 
 in his Colorado mining property. In 1900, he 
 came to California, and has since lived retired 
 from business cares, making his home in New- 
 man. His wife, whose maiden name was Lois 
 Parsons, also was born in Ohio, and died in Iowa. 
 Four sons and two daughters blessed their mar- 
 riage, Frank S., the special subject of this sketch, 
 being the third child in order of birth. 
 
 But three years of age when his parents re- 
 moved to Iowa, Frank S. Stanley grew to man's 
 estate in Cass county, obtaining his early edu^ 
 cation in the district schools. With the zeal and 
 ambition of youth he came to California in 1882, 
 and for six years thereafter was engaged in quartz 
 mining in Tuolumne count)-. Removing to Stan- 
 islaus county in 1888, he worked for two years 
 as carpenter and builder, keeping busily em- 
 ployed. In 1890 he located at Crows Landing, 
 opening a general merchandise store, where he 
 has" built up a large and remunerative trade. En- 
 terprising and progressive, Mr. Stanley carries 
 a complete stock of goods, aiming in every man- 
 ner to please the tastes and meet the demands 
 of his numerous patrons, and he is meeting with 
 great success as a general merchant. 
 
 In Tuolumne county, Mr. Stanley married 
 Maggie Jasper, a native of that county, and into 
 their household three children have been born, 
 namely: Lois, Hubert and Teresa. In politics 
 Mr. Stanley affiliates with the Republican party, 
 andthough he is interested in local and national 
 affairs, he has never been an aspirant for official 
 honors. 
 
 FRANK STEPHEN STANLEY. Promi- 
 nent among the foremost citizens of Crows Land- 
 ing is Frank Stephen Stanley, one of the leading 
 merchants in this part of Stanislaus county. A 
 man of great energy, resolution and persistency, 
 he has built up his present fine trade solely by 
 
 J. M. MUGRIDGE. A resident of California 
 but a little over four years, Mr. Mugridge has 
 gained for himself an enviable reputation as a 
 horticulturist and his place is one of the best in 
 this section of the county. To build up and 
 improve a ranch in such a short time requires 
 a great amount of hard labor, but in face of the 
 many obstacles he has had to overcome, our 
 subject has made hosts of friends and is con- 
 sidered one of the leading members of his dis- 
 trict. 
 
 A native of New Hampshire, he was born 
 in Concord, August 27, 1867, a son of John Y. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECOJ^D. 
 
 1269 
 
 and Maria E. (Eaton) Mugridge. The father 
 was also a native of Concord, where he was en- 
 gaged in the practice of law, becoming one of 
 the best known men in the state. For years he 
 took a leading part in political matters and at 
 one time had the distinction of serving as pres- 
 ident of the New Hampshire State Senate. His 
 wife was the daughter of Dr. Leonard Eaton, 
 a graduate of Dartmouth College and a leading 
 physician of the state. Mrs. Mugridge became 
 the mother of two children, Annie, now Mrs. F. 
 L. Pattee, of Boston ; and J. M. 
 
 Reared in the city of his birth, J. M. Mugridge 
 there and elsewhere received an excellent edu- 
 cation. At the age of twenty he located in Colo- 
 rado, pre-empting one hundred and sixty acres 
 of land in the San Luis valley. The following 
 year he sold out and returned east on account of 
 the death of an aunt. With the intention of en- 
 tering Dartmouth he spent some time in a pre- 
 paratory school, but changing his plans he came 
 west again in 1890, locating in Wyoming, where 
 he soon became interested in the sheep business. 
 This occupation he continued to follow for eight 
 years, when he disposed of his business and 
 made a trip east. After a short time spent amid 
 the scenes of his boyhood, he again started for 
 the west, finally going to Old Mexico, where he 
 became interested in growing coffee. In 1900, 
 owing to the unhealthful climate, Mr. Mugridge 
 was compelled to return to California. On his 
 arrival he located in Tulare county, purchasing 
 twenty-two acres of land near Naranjo. In order 
 to become familiar with the growing of oranges 
 he spent six months in Tulare county, at the 
 end of that time beginning the improvement of 
 his own ranch, which is now a ,very attractive 
 place. 
 
 A Republican in politics he is deeply inter- 
 ested in the welfare of his party, but has tteith- 
 er the time nor the inclination to take an ac- 
 tive part in political matters, preferring rather 
 to devote his entire time to his own business in- 
 terests. 
 
 HECTOR BURNESS. The records of the 
 Burness family prove them to have a long and 
 honorable Scotch ancestry. Their most distin- 
 guished representative, Robert Burns, whose name 
 is immortal in the world of literature, changed the 
 spelling of the family name to the form by which 
 he is universally known, but other members of 
 the family retained the original spelling. Among 
 the near relatives of the Scotch bard was Will- 
 iam M. Burness, a native of Montrose, Scotland, 
 and a manufacturer by occupation. In religion he 
 adhered to the Presbyterian religion, which had 
 been the family faith since the founding of that 
 denomination. Among his children was a son. 
 
 John Young, born at Lawrencekirk, Kincardine- 
 shire, near the shores of the North sea. Possess- 
 ing mechanical ability of more than ordinary ex- 
 tent, he utilized his genius in the starting of the 
 first power loom at Brechin, Forfarshire, not 
 many miles from the place where he was born 
 and reared. The plant which he built up became 
 one of the most important concerns of that city 
 and furnished employment to more than eight 
 hundred hands. His successful management of 
 an undertaking of so great magnitude proved 
 the possession on his part of business ability as 
 well as mechanical genius. With the passing of 
 the years and the approach of old age, he found 
 the responsibilities of the plant greater than his 
 physical strength justified, and he therefore re- 
 linquished the management of the works, and 
 in 1893 came to San Francisco, where he has 
 since made his home. In his younger years he 
 possessed a voice of rare melody and power, and 
 his ability as a musician brought him into circles 
 where artistic genius was the open sesame and the 
 sole passport. In his marriage he became allied 
 with an old Scotch family, his wife, Mary Forbes, 
 having been born at Marykirk, near Lawrence- 
 kirk and Montrose, where her father, John 
 Forbes, made his home, following the occupation 
 of a fisherman on the coast of the North sea. 
 
 In the family of John Y. and Mary (Forbes) 
 Burness there were seven sons and three daugh- 
 ters, all of whom are living but one son and one 
 daughter. Of the sons we note the following: 
 William M. and John E. are employed respective- 
 ly as first engineer and chief engineer of the Pal- 
 ace hotel in San Francisco ; Thomas N. is an in- 
 structor of music and organist in the Dalziel par- 
 ish church in Matherwell, Scotland; Hector is 
 the representative of Balfour, Guthrie & Co., in 
 the San Joaquin valley, and resides in Fresno; 
 Alexander is connected with the same company at 
 Bakersfield, this state; David died in boyhood; 
 and Robert D. is professor of music and organist 
 in Calvary Church, San Francisco. Hector Bur- 
 ness was born at Dundee, Scotland, January 18, 
 1859, and attended the Brechin public schools un- 
 til twelve years of age, when he was apprenticed 
 as a bookkeeper in the Denburn works (founded 
 by his father at Brechin). After three years 
 there he was apprenticed as a banker in Brechin, 
 where he served a term of three years and then 
 continued for about eiehteen months as an em- 
 ploye. On resigning that place, he went to Lon- 
 don and for four and one-half years held the 
 position of head bookkeeper in a merchant's 
 office. 
 
 Leaving England in August, 1884, Mr. Bur- 
 ness came to the United States in order to accept 
 a position previously offered him as head book- 
 keeper for a large wholesale dry goods house in 
 Austin, Tex. Arriving there, the firm wished 
 
1260 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 him to wait for a time before taking up the work, 
 but, the position still not being given him, in 
 January, 1885, he came to San Francisco, where 
 his first position was in the auditing department 
 of the Wells-Fargo Company. After three 
 months he resigned to become bookkeeper with 
 Balfour, Guthrie & Co., on the Chowchilla ranch 
 in Merced county. This position he filled for four 
 years. When the company purchased twenty-five 
 hundred acres of wild land in Fresno county, in 
 August, 1889, he was sent to Fresno to take 
 charge of the land and superintend its improve- 
 ment. Immediately taking up the work, he set 
 out a vineyard and orchard and placed many 
 acres under alfalfa. Some of the land he also laid 
 out in small tracts and sold. However, while some 
 was sold, the company kept increasing their hold- 
 ings by purchase, until they now have about six- 
 teen thousand acres in the San Joaquin valley, 
 directly under the control of Mr. Burness. 
 Among their properties are the Anita and Las 
 Palmas vineyards of one hundred and sixty acres 
 each, both vineyards of the very best class. 
 
 In 1890 Mr. Burness was appointed the corn- 
 pany's sole representative in the San Joaquin 
 valley and was placed in charge of their loans, 
 with headquarters in Fresno. Under his direct 
 supervision are the following properties : Pa- 
 cific and Agricultural Colonization Company's 
 lands, aggregating six thousand acres and includ- 
 ing the Anita vineyard of one hundred and sixty 
 acres ; Strathmore Land Company, with over four 
 thousand acres of orange land, irrigated by a 
 modern pumping plant ; the Balfour, Guthrie In- 
 vestment Company's holdings of two thousand 
 acres in Stanislaus county, all in alfalfa, and im- 
 proved with pumping plants, etc. ; the Thompson 
 ranch in Napa county, comprising six hundred 
 acres, of which four hundred acres are being re- 
 claimed; and other properties under the control 
 of Balfour, Guthrie & Co. His offices are in the 
 Patterson block, Fresno, while he makes his home 
 on the Anita vineyard, one of the most pictur- 
 esque vineyards in the entire state, and frequently 
 visited by tourists who have heard of its many 
 attractions. 
 
 Besides the numerous responsibilities that come 
 to him as the company's representative in the 
 San Joaquin valley, Mr. Burness finds time to 
 identify himself with other activities, notably the 
 Fresno Realty & Agency Company, which he 
 assisted in organizing and of which he is now 
 a director ; also the South Branch Ditch Company, 
 of which he is vice-president and a director ; the 
 Kearney Vineyard Syndicate, in which he is a 
 director; and the California Raisin Growers' As- 
 sociation, in which he served as a director during 
 1901-02 and at the same time held office as its 
 treasurer. After coming to Fresno he married 
 Miss Mary Young, who was born at Almond 
 
 Bank, near Perth, Scotland. Of their union are 
 three children, Hector Ian, Thomas Binny, and 
 Mary Anita (the two latter being twins). The 
 family attend the Presbyterian Qiurch and Mr. 
 and Mrs. Burness are active workers in that de- 
 nomination. His political views are in harmony 
 with Republican principles and he casts his ballot 
 for the men and measures of that party. An ac- 
 tive member of St. Andrew's Society, at one time 
 he officiated as president of the organization. 
 While in Sanger he was made a Mason and has 
 since transferred his membership to Fresno Lodge 
 No. 247, F. & A. M. Personally he is a man of 
 rare qualities, combining the honor, thrift and in- 
 tegrity of his Scotch progenitors with the enter- 
 prise and keen judgment that are distinctively 
 American traits. Perhaps none of his character- 
 istics impress the stranger more than his excel- 
 lent judgment, which is evinced in his sagacious 
 control of the lands and loans of his firm and their 
 allied companies. With justice he is ranked 
 among the most influential men in the valley. 
 
 OLE SVENSEN. The lives of some men, 
 mayhap of the majority, are spent in quiet and 
 contentment, \vith few events of consequence to 
 any excepting the immediate participants. Not 
 so, however, with the subject of this sketch, Ole 
 Svensen, whose life record is rich in incident and 
 experience, reading like a tale of romance, which 
 at times becomes almost tragical. He has lived 
 and labored in many different countries of the 
 world, has won and lost fortunes, and now, hav- 
 ing for thirty-five years been associated with the 
 agricultural prosperity of Stanislaus county, is 
 living retired from active pursuits on his finely 
 improved ranch, lying two miles west of Mo- 
 desto. A native of Westre Hedemarken, Nor- 
 way, he was born April 26, 1827, at precisely 
 seven o'clock and two minutes A. M., a son of 
 Swen Reyerson and Maret Reyerson, both na- 
 tives of Norway. 
 
 At the age of eight years, being dependent 
 upon his own resources, he left home, and while 
 a youth learned the stone-mason's trade, which 
 he followed until twenty years old. Emigrating 
 then from Norway, Mr. Svensen sailed for 
 America, landing in New York City, and very 
 soon after went to Wisconsin, where he had a 
 brother. Christian Svensen. In the same year, 
 about 1847, "■^ company with ten Americans, he 
 and his brother went to South America to search 
 for gold, and from there made their first trip to 
 California. Returning to South America, Mr. 
 Svensen and his companions went to Lima city, 
 Peru, and from there to the Andes mountains, 
 where, in the -ensuing three months, each of the 
 twelve men in the party made $15,000 in mining. 
 In 1849 Ml"- Svensen made his second trip to Gal- 
 
PERRY LE BLANC 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1263 
 
 ifornia, locating in Auburn, Placer county, where 
 he engaged in mining pursuits. From 1856 until 
 1858 he was similarly employed in Shasta county, 
 being very successful. Leaving claims that were 
 then, in 1858, paying him $12 a day, he went to 
 British Columbia on a prospecting tour. Pre- 
 vious to this time, Mr. Svensen had bought prop- 
 erty in San Francisco, giving $80,000 for the 
 two and one-half blocks of land lying just back 
 of the present site of the Palace hotel. This he 
 subsequently sold for $280,000, and it is now 
 valued at more than $15,000,000. 
 
 Six months after his arrival in British Colum- 
 bia, Mr. Svensen joined a company of seventy 
 men, with whom he made an extended prospect- 
 ing trip, traveling through Alaska, and going to 
 Siberia, where they passed over the Amur prov- 
 ince to the great desert of Asia. There the party 
 were engaged in mining for two and one-half 
 years, during which time terrible privations and 
 hardships were endured by the few who survived. 
 At times their only food was grass roots and 
 berries; even black bear, the only game in that 
 region, being scarce. Out of the seventy men 
 that left British Columbia, only fourteen re- 
 turned, the others having perished from exposure, 
 hardships and starvation, and each of these four- 
 teen men brought back with him from $S,ooo to 
 $10,000, a sum scarce worth mentioning com- 
 pared with the sufferings they had endured. Mr. 
 Svensen returned to British Columbia by steamer, 
 from there coming to San Francisco, bringing 
 with him $18,000 in cash, which was $262,000 
 less than he had in his pockets when he left Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 Locating next in Shasta county, Mr. Svensen 
 made $70,000 mining in a short space of time. 
 With this sum he went to Idaho, where he bought 
 a claim farm, paying Mr. Dodge $8,000 for the 
 claim, and put in a dam the following winter, 
 which soon washed out ; subsequently, selling the 
 claim to a Chinese company for $6,000, he re- 
 turned to San Francisco. Deciding to turn his 
 attention to agriculture, he visited dififerent parts 
 of the state, and in 1870 located in Stanislaus 
 county, buying his present home ranch of one 
 hundred and sixty acres, situated two miles west 
 of Modesto. He later bought three hundred 
 and twenty acres additional, but which he subse- 
 quently sold. For many years thereafter he car- 
 ried on farming on an extensive scale, at times 
 renting three thousand acres of land, and in one 
 year, alone, making $10,000 in raising grain. He 
 continued in active labor until 1898, but since 
 then has rented his ranch, and is now living re- 
 tired, enjoying the reward of his earlier years of 
 toil. Since he first came to the Pacific coast 
 wonderful changes have taken place, the luxuries 
 of those early days having become the necessities 
 of the present time. For the first apple that he 
 
 ate in the Santa Clara valley he paid $6, and he 
 has paid as high as $6 for a gallon of milk. 
 
 In San Francisco, Mr. Svensen married 
 Rachael Bareg, a native of Norway, and they 
 have one child, Norwena Elizabeth. In his po- 
 litical affiliations Mr. Svensen is independent, vot- 
 ing with the courage of his convictions. He cast 
 his first presidential vote in favor of James 
 Buchanan, and has since supported the candidate 
 which he thinks best fitted for the office. 
 
 PERRY LeBLANC. The name which heads 
 this review is one remembered by the early cit- 
 izens of Fresno, Cal, as that of a man who 
 proved a potent factor in the development and 
 progress of this city and the advancement of 
 Its best interests. Mr. LeBlanc was a native of 
 Vermilion Parish, La., where he was born in 
 1839, the descendant of French ancestry, his 
 grandfather having emigrated from France. He 
 was reared on a farm and educated in the com- 
 mon schools. During the Civil war he served 
 in a Louisiana regiment, and in 1868 left his 
 native state and settled in California, locating 
 first in Stockton, San Joaquin county, where he 
 engaged in general farming on the Mokelumne 
 river, cultivating three hundred' and twenty acres. 
 In 1874 he came to Fresno county and estab- 
 lished a sheep business on the plains and foot- 
 hills, where he remained for three or four years, 
 then located in the city of Fresno. He became 
 prominent in public affairs, serving first on the 
 city police, later as United States ganger and 
 was afterward superintendent of streets. On ac- 
 count of impaired health he retired from active 
 cares, remaining a resident of Fresno, in which 
 city his death occurred June 3, 1904. Fraternally 
 he was associated with the Knights of Pythias, 
 and politically was a stanch adherent of the prin- 
 ciples advocated in the platform of the Demo- 
 cratic party. 
 
 In Vermilion Parish, La., in November, 1866, 
 Mr. LeBlanc married Mrs. Sarah J. (Hough) 
 Fitzgerald, who was born and reared in Jasper 
 county. Miss. Her father, Richmond Hough, 
 was a native of Mississippi, where his father 
 lived and died. Richmond Hough became a 
 farmer in young manhood, removing to Louisiana 
 during the Civil war and in 1868 locating in 
 California. He followed farming and stock-rais- 
 ing near Stockton, San Joaquin county, until his 
 death, which occurred three months after his 
 arrival in the state. His wife, formerly Matilda 
 Everett, was born in Alabama and died in Louis- 
 iana. Of the ten children born to Richmond 
 Hough and his wife all attained maturity and 
 three are now living. The oldest daughter in 
 this family, Sarah J., grew to womanhood in 
 
1264 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mississippi, where she was first married to John 
 Fitzgerald, a native of Chicago, III, and by oc- 
 cupation a conductor on the MolDile & Ohio Rail- 
 road. Mr. Fitzgerald died in Mississippi, and 
 in 1866 his widow became the wife of Mr. Le- 
 Blanc. Since her husband's death Mrs. LeBlanc 
 has remained a resident of Fresno, where she is 
 held in high esteem by all who have known her 
 throughout the many years spent here. She is 
 the mother of four children, namely : Robert, 
 of Santa Ana, Cal. ; Joseph, of Fresno ; Thomas, 
 of San Francisco; and Albert, of Fresno. Mrs. 
 LeBlanc owns considerable valuable property in 
 Fresno, where her greatest interests are cen- 
 tered. 
 
 WILLIAM J. McNULTY. A prominent 
 place among the representative citizens of 
 Fresno county is given to the memory of Wil- 
 Ham J. McNulty, whose efforts resulted in a 
 material upbuilding of the best interests of this 
 section. He was born in Ashland, Ohio, July 
 19, 1857, the elder of two sons, his brother, Ned 
 B. McNulty, being a prominent dentist in Du- 
 luth, Minn. His father, William McNulty, was 
 a native of Franklin county. Pa., who became a 
 pioneer of Ashland, Ohio, where he followed his 
 trade of builder until his death. He married 
 Margaret Pugh, who was born in Mansfield, 
 Ohio, a daughter of Jonathan Pugh, of Virginia. 
 William J. McNulty was reared in his native 
 city, receiving his education in the public and 
 high schools, after which he entered LJnion Col- 
 lege, in Schenectady, N. Y., from which insti- 
 tution he was graduated in 1880. He imme- 
 diately entered the railroad service, working on 
 the frontier in the Panhandle country on tlie 
 Texas Pacific Railway, practically living in the 
 saddle among the dangers and hardships inci- 
 dent to such a Hfe. After two years of recon- 
 noissance, location and construction, he secured 
 a position in the United States Government 
 work through Major Wathen of the United 
 States Survey and was employed on the Missis- 
 sippi Commission work, measuring the discharge 
 of water of the Mississippi river. Following this 
 he was located in Minneapolis, Minn., engaged 
 in the commission business for a short time, but 
 being strongly solicited to return to his former 
 work he engaged on the Missouri Pacific in Mis- 
 souri and Kansas until his promotion to the po- 
 sition of engineer of maintenance of way on the 
 Iron Mountain Railroad, with headquarters at 
 St. Louis, Mo. The success of his work had 
 attracted more than passing attention from men 
 in like employment, and when the old railroad 
 contractor, George Burnett, was elected superin- 
 tendent of streets in St. Louis he immediately 
 sought Mr. McNulty as liis first assistant super- 
 
 intendent. He therefore resigned his positioil 
 with the railroad and gave his attention to city 
 engineering work, finally receiving the appoint- 
 ment of civil engineer of the board of public 
 improvement for the street department of St. 
 Louis ; which office he maintained creditably un- 
 til a radical change of officials. While in this 
 position he had charge of the construction of the 
 new city hall, and afterward Theodore Link, the 
 architect and superintendent of the Union Depot, 
 sought Mr. McNulty and solicited him to take 
 the position of supervising architect, which he 
 did, having entire charge until its completion, this 
 being the finest depot in the United States. He 
 also did much work for the city and county poor- 
 house asylums, his reliability and integrity in 
 making the actual work equal to the specifica- 
 tions winning for him an unusual degree of con- 
 fidence. Just before the final completion of the 
 Union Depot Mr. McNulty was offered a posi- 
 tion as general traveling agent of the Continental 
 Fruit Express, which he accepted and came to 
 California in the fall of 1894, as inspector and 
 manager of the distribution of cars. The win- 
 ter of 1894-95 he spent in Florida in this work, 
 and in the spring of 1895 he returned to Cali- 
 fornia, and while engaged with that company 
 making his trips between Sacramento and Los 
 Angeles he became aware of the opportunities 
 which the San Joaquin valley presented to the 
 enterprising business man. In connection with 
 his work the advantages of an artificial ice plant 
 at Fresno were suggested to him, and in the 
 fall of 1896 he resigned his position with the 
 Continental Fruit Express Company and locating 
 in Fresno he organized the San Joaquin Ice 
 Company. He then went east and secured the 
 machinery, the plant being built that winter and 
 put in operation in the following spring. This 
 was the first enterprise of the kind in the San 
 Joaquin^ valley and in the passing years has 
 proved its worth to the city, county and country. 
 Mr. McNulty became its manager, and after the 
 business was established on a firm basis he estab- 
 lished the creamery which is now operated in 
 connection with it. Through his efforts this 
 business was brought to a high state of perfec- 
 tion, he himself sending east for pure-blooded 
 stock, Holstein-Friesian, Jerseys, Guernseys, etc.. 
 turning these over to the dairymen, who were 
 allowed to pay for them out of the returns. In 
 this way the herds of the countv were immeas- 
 urably improved. He established skimming sta- 
 tions — fourteen in number — throughout the coun- 
 ty, and until his death gave his attention to this 
 business, which owes its success to his energy, 
 business ability and shrewd judgment. He was 
 taken with appendicitis and was operated upon 
 in Fresno, and three weeks later, August 23, 1901, 
 his death occurred in San Francisco, at the early 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1265 
 
 age of forty-four years. In Mr. McNulty the 
 community lost a man of stanch integrity and 
 manhood, and one whose influence could only 
 have been exerted for the moral uplift of the 
 people, while as a citizen he was single-hearted 
 in his efforts to promote the general welfare, 
 increase public prosperity and add prestige to 
 his adopted city as a business center of the San 
 Joaquin valley. He was a member of the Cham- 
 ber of Commerce, which passed resolutions of re- 
 spect at the time of his death. Fraternally he 
 was a member of Lodge No. 247, F & A. M., 
 and belonged to the American Society of Civil 
 Engineers. He was reared a Presbyterian in 
 his religious faith, and politically was a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. 
 
 In Ashland, Ohio, November 27, 1884, Mr. 
 MtNulty was united in marriage with May 
 Sprengle, who was born in that cit)', the third 
 in a family of six children born to her, parents. 
 Her father, Louis Jefferson Sprengle, was a 
 native of Frederick, Md., a son of David 
 Sprengle. The latter was a mechanic by occu- 
 pation, and a native of the same place in Mary- 
 land, where his death from cholera occurred in 
 1832. His wife, formerly Caroline Mary Ann 
 Ruth, was a native of Georgetown, D. C., and 
 a daughter of Capt. Henry Ruth, who served 
 in the war of 181 2. One of his sons, Rev. Francis 
 Ruth, was a pioneer Lutheran minister who went 
 to Ohio by horseback and engaged as a mission- 
 ary for a time. He finally returned to Maryland 
 and induced others to seek a home in the then 
 remote west. Accordingly jNIrs. Sprengle, his 
 widowed sister, went with her family across the 
 mountains on horseback and carriage and located 
 in Ashland, where Louis Jefferson Sprengle was 
 reared to manhood. His education was received 
 principally through personal effort and not 
 through an attendance of the public schools, al- 
 though for a time, while engaged in learning 
 the cabinet maker's trade, he walked fourteen 
 miles to recite to Lyman Andrews, of Ashland. 
 He established the Ashland Times, which is still 
 published, promoted manufactories, fire , insur- 
 ance companies, and was a factor in the upbuild- 
 ing of the city and county. He was a stanch 
 Republican politically, and during the war he 
 served as provost marshal. In his religious con- 
 victions he was a Methodist. He died in Ash- 
 land, at the age of sixty-four years. He mar- 
 ried Sophia Waters Coffin, a native of Benning- 
 ton, Vt., and the daughter of Frederick Coffin, 
 of the same place, who brought his family to 
 Ohio over the Erie canal and located near Ash- 
 land, where he engaged at his work of contractor 
 and builder until his death, which occurred there 
 at the age of eighty-four years. Religiously he 
 was a Presbyterian. His great-grandfather. 
 
 James Fay, served in the Revolutionary war. 
 Mrs. Sprengle died in the home of her daughter, 
 Mrs. McNulty, September 16, 1904, at the age 
 of seventy-two years. She was a Methodist in 
 her religious convictions, a woman of intelli- 
 gence and education, and a great assistance to 
 her husband in his literary career. They were 
 the parents of the following children : Ella, the 
 wife of J. E. Stubbs, LL.D., D.D., president of 
 the University of Nevada; Jessie, who became 
 the wife of William Grav Stubbs, and died in 
 Ashland; May C, Mrs. W. J. McNulty; Will- 
 iam, a graduate of the McGill Medical College, 
 and a practitioner in Cleveland, Ohio; Martha 
 F., of Fresno; and David Sidney, associated 
 with the Thacker Fruit Company, of Mobile, 
 Ala. Since her husband's death Mrs. McNulty 
 resides at her home at No. 1115 T street, with 
 her two sons, Niel and Hugh. She is a mem- 
 ber of the Episcopal Church and the Parlor Lec- 
 ture Club. Politically she gives her influence for 
 the advancement of the principles of the Repub- 
 lican party. 
 
 JOHN CUNNINGHAM. An enterprising, 
 practical and prosperous farmer of Madera coun- 
 ty, John Cunningham is proprietor of an excel- 
 lent ranch, pleasantly located about five miles 
 south of the city of Madera, where he is large- 
 ly engaged in general farming, exercising great 
 skill and judgment. Of good financial ability, 
 and a man of industry and wise forethought, he 
 has met with satisfactory pecuniary results in his 
 chosen avocation, and occupies a secure position 
 in the consideration and respect of his fellow- 
 men. A son of Andrew Cunningham, he was 
 bojrn May 3, 1843, ^^ Indiana, of Irish ances- 
 try. 
 
 A native of Ireland, Andrew Cunningham was 
 brought up on a farm. Immigrating to America 
 when a young man, he located permanently in 
 Dearborn county, Indiana, where he cleared a 
 farm, and was subsequently actively engaged in 
 business as a general merchant, in addition serv- 
 ing as postmaster. He died in his Indiana home 
 in 1849, when his son John was a lad of six 
 years. His wife, whose maiden name was Cath- 
 erine Craig, was also born and reared in the 
 Emerald Isle. 
 
 Brought up on the parental homestead, and 
 educated in the district schools, John Cunning- 
 ham remained at home until after the breaking 
 out of the Civil war. Fired with patriotic enthu- 
 siasm, he enlisted in 1862 in Company E, Six- 
 teenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, which was 
 assigned to the Western Division of the Federal 
 army, and took part in various engagements of 
 importance, including the battle at Richmond, 
 Ky., the siege of Vicksburg, the battle of Port 
 
1266 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Gibson, and others. Being discharged from 
 service on account of poor health, Mr. Cun- 
 ningham returned to Indiana. In the spring of 
 1868 he came to Cahfornia by way of the Isth- 
 mus of Panama, disembarking from the ship Colo 
 in San Francisco. After mining in the San Joa- 
 quin valley for a year, Mr. Cunningham settled 
 as a stock raiser in Fresno county, about twenty- 
 five miles from his present home. Subsequently 
 removing to Madera he kept a meat market in 
 that city, and later engaged in the general mer- 
 chandise business, being in business about eight 
 years. Purchasing his_ present ranch of one hun- 
 dred and fifty acres in 1883, he has since been 
 actively engaged in general farming, including 
 the raising of grain, alfalfa and some stock. In 
 addition to managing the home farm, he also 
 rents other land, carrying on a substantial busi- 
 ness as a ranchman. 
 
 Mr. Cunningham married, in Indiana, Sarah 
 Whiteford, a native of that state, and of their 
 union six children have been born, namely : Mar- 
 garet, William E., Russell, deceased; Henry M., 
 Albert C. and Mary A. Politically Mr. Cunning- 
 ham is a steadfast Democrat, and for many years 
 has rendered efficient service as school trustee. 
 
 PHILIP W. WITTEN. Among the indus- 
 trious and thrifty agriculturists of Stanislaus 
 county is Philip W. Witten, who is most success- 
 fully pursuing his free and independent occupa- 
 tion of dairyman and ranchman, his farm being 
 advantageously located a short distance east of 
 Crows Landing. A native of Pike county. Mo., 
 he was born near Bowling Green, January 4, 
 1861. His father, the late" Kinsley D. Witten, 
 was born and brought up in West Virginia. Fol- 
 lowing the march of civilization westward, he 
 located in Pike county. Mo., as a pioneer in 1840, 
 and was there engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 until his death. He married Annie Elizabeth 
 McCullouch, who was born in West Virginia, 
 and died in Missouri. They became the parents 
 of eight children, four boys and four girls, Philip 
 W. being the fifth child in succession of birth. 
 
 After completing his early studies in the dis- 
 trict schools, Philip W. Witten acquired a prac- 
 tical knowledge of the different branches of agri- 
 culture while living beneath the parental roof- 
 tree, and after the death of his father assumed 
 the entire management of the home farm. Sub- 
 sequently disposing of his interests in Missouri, 
 Mr. Witten came with his family to California, 
 locating in Kings county, near Lemoore, in 
 March, 1895. Removing to Crows Landing in 
 1897, he bought thirty acres of alfalfa land, and 
 has since been prosperously employed in dairy- 
 ing, keeping about twenty-five cows, and ship- 
 ping the products of his fine dairy to Oakland. 
 
 While a resident of Missouri, Mr. Witten mar- 
 ried Maggie Lewis, a native of West Virginia, 
 and they have two children, namely : Howard 
 Porter and Beryl Lewis. Politically Mr. Witten 
 is a sound Democrat, never swerving from party 
 allegiance. Fraternally he is a member of the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen, and re- 
 ligiously he belongs to the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 TOBIA LESNINI. Conspicuous among the 
 thriving, progressive and successful agriculturists 
 of the San Joaquin valley is Tobia Lesnini, who 
 owns a fine dairy farm and orchard, and in addi- 
 tion to managing it most profitably also carries 
 on the lairge ranch belonging to L. J. Crow. 
 Energetic, enterprising and especially capable, 
 he has met with satisfactory results in his agri- 
 cultural labors, and as a man and a citizen has 
 won to a marked degree the esteem and confi- 
 dence of his large circle of friends and ac- 
 quaintances. A native of Switzerland, he was 
 born February 22, 1862, in Locarno, canton of 
 Ticino. His father, the late Pasquel Lesnini, 
 was there engaged in farming during his life, 
 and his mother, whose maiden name was Mary 
 Gorjetta, still resides in that locality. He is the 
 third child in order of birth of a family of four 
 children, of whom two are residents of Cali- 
 fornia, a brother, Marx Lesnini, being in Stock- 
 ton. 
 
 Brought up and educated in his native land, 
 Tobia Lesnini began working when young, and 
 there learned the art of dairying, becoming fa- 
 miliar with all of its branches, from the rais- 
 ing of stock to the rnanufacture of butter aiad 
 cheese. Immigrating to this country in 1880, 
 Mr. Lesnini came to Stockton, this state, where 
 he embarked in business as a gardener, working 
 first for wages, but subsequently being in busi- 
 ness on his own account for four years. Pur- 
 chasing land at Warnersville, Stanislaus coun- 
 ty, in 1890, he carried on general farming most 
 successfully for seven years. Disposing of that 
 property in 1897, Mr. Lesnini returned to Swit- 
 zerland, and injiis native town engaged in mer- 
 cantile pursuits, at the same time turning his 
 attention to horticulture, becoming owner of an 
 orchard and a grapery. Preferring California, 
 however, either as a place of residence or busi- 
 ness, he came back to the Pacific coast in 1903, 
 locating in San Joaquin county, and buying his 
 present ranch of fifty acres. His land is situated 
 on the Stanislaus river, about seven miles from 
 Oakdale, and' is admirably adapted for dairy 
 purposes. He raises hay and grain for his cat- 
 tle, and in his well-kept orchard of four acres he 
 has choice varieties of prunes and other fruits. 
 
 In Stockton, Mr. Lesnini married Louise Ver- 
 
^(^^^-^-i^ ^^4'tHArH^^^^-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1269 
 
 zarceh, a native of Switzerland, and they are 
 the parents of five children, namely: Adeline, 
 -Mary, Peter,^ Nellie and Herminia. Mr. Les- 
 nini is a loyal citizen of his adopted country and 
 a stanch supporter of the principles of the Re- 
 publican party. 
 
 GABRIEL CHRISMAN. Distinguished not 
 only as an early pioneer of California, but as a 
 man of sterling worth and integrity, Gabriel 
 Chrisman is well deserving of special mention 
 in this historical work. Like the majority of the 
 people that settled here half a century ago, he 
 came to the state poor in pocket, but rich in en- 
 ergy, courage and perseverance, and has since 
 contributed his full share in developing its re- 
 sources. For nearly fifty years he has been a 
 resident of Tulare county, his home being near 
 Visalia, and during the time he has faithfully 
 fulfilled all the obligations of an honest man and 
 good citizen, and as such is held in high re- 
 spect by his neighbors and acquaintances. A son 
 of Job Chrisman, he was born in Lee county, Va., 
 February 9, 1833. Great-grandfather Chrisman, 
 a German by descent, was one of the first men 
 to settle west. of the Blue Ridge, Va., where he 
 was killed by the Indians. Nimrod Chrisman, 
 the grandfather, was a Virginia planter, and 
 served in the Colonial wars. 
 
 Born and brought up in old Virginia, Job 
 Chrisman spent his early life in his native state. 
 After his marriage he removed to Ohio, and a 
 year later went to Johnson county. Ark., where 
 he took up land, and was engaged in farming 
 and stock raising until after the breaking out of 
 the Civil war, when he was murdered, being 
 shot by a band of marauders, who had first set 
 his barn on fire. He married Elizabeth France," 
 who was born in Virginia, of German ancestry, 
 a daughter of William France, a farmer. She 
 died in Arkansas. Six children were born> of 
 their union : Elizabeth died in Arkansas ; Henry 
 Tyler crossed the plains to California in 1853, 
 buj; in 1856 returned to Arkansas, in 1857 ^^ 
 again came to California, but in 1893 went to 
 Missouri, and there spent his last years ; William 
 France died in Arkansas during the Civil war, 
 being killed by Jayhawkers ; Gabriel is the spe- 
 cial subject of this sketch; Millie Jane died in 
 Arkansas ; and Josiah served in the Civil war un- 
 der General Price, subsequently coming to Vi- 
 salia, Cal., where his death occurred December 
 31, 1889. 
 
 Accompanying his parents to Arkansas when 
 a mere child, Gabriel Chrisman lived in John- 
 son county until nine years old, afterward re- 
 siding in Newton county, where he received but 
 limited educational advantages. He remained at 
 home until becoming of age, assisting his father 
 
 in the care of the ranch, and afterward worked 
 as a farm laborer for a few years. In 1857, with 
 his_ brother, Henry Tyler, he came across the 
 plains with an ox-team train, driving a herd of 
 loose cattle. Leaving home on March 25, he fol- 
 lowed the old Cherokee trail past the present site 
 of Denver, and thence along the Humboldt and 
 Carson route to Tulare county, arriving in the 
 vicinity of what is now Visalia October 27, 1857, 
 having been seven months and two days in mak- 
 ing the trip. Beginning work here by the month, 
 Mr. Chrisman wa^ first employed as a farm 
 hand, and was afterward engaged in milling and 
 lumbering, and in manufacturing rails, of which 
 he made about forty thousand in this county 
 alone. Locating on the Patterson road in 1868, 
 he purchased his present ranch of eighty acres, 
 which was then in its original condition, and at 
 once began its improvement. He broke the land, 
 erected his dwelling house and barns, and as- 
 sisted in building the Mathews ditch, by which 
 his ranch is irrigated, and has since been pros- 
 perously engaged in agricultural pursuits, rais- 
 ing grain, alfalfa and stock. His homestead 
 property is advantageously located, being three 
 miles northeast of Visalia, in the midst of a 
 rich farming community. 
 
 In Fremont county, Iowa, in 1877, Mr. Chris- 
 man married Polly Chrisman, who was born in 
 Andrew county. Mo., a daughter of Gabriel 
 Chrisman, formerly of Virginia. Two children 
 were born of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Chris- 
 man, neither one of whom is living, Efifie O., the 
 eldest child, having died at the age of fourteen 
 years, and Sarah E. living but nine months. In 
 his political affiliations Mr. Chrisman is a sound 
 Democrat, and fraternally he belongs to the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 RUFUS GILMER. A pioneer of the state 
 and one who has experienced the adversities and 
 profits of the early mining days, Rufus Gilmer, of 
 Visalia, Tulare county, stands as a link between 
 the prosperous present which is the outgrowth 
 of the efforts of unselfish and courageous pio- 
 neers, and a past replete with danger, hardships 
 and privations. For fifteen years he has made his 
 home in this city, enjoying in retirement the 
 fruits of his early efforts, this home at No. 118 
 West Willow street being presided over by his 
 daughter. 
 
 A native of Pope county. 111., Rufus Gilmer 
 was born in Golconda October if, 1824, a son 
 of Campbell Gilmer. The elder man was a na- 
 tive of Adair county, Ky., who came to Illinois 
 in an early day, locating at Golconda, where he 
 made his home until 1835, practicing medicine. 
 In the last named year he removed to Fort Madi- 
 son, Iowa, and continued the practice of his pro- 
 
1270 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 fession until his death. His wife had died when 
 Rufus Gilmer, the oldest in a family of two sons 
 and two daughters, was quite young. This son 
 is the only one now living. He received a rather 
 limited education in the common schools in the 
 vicinity of his home, remaining in the middle 
 west until 1850. In that year he crossed the 
 plains with horse-teams, and upon his safe ar- 
 rival in California located in the mines at George- 
 town, Eldorado county, but which was then 
 known as the Eldorado country. For nine years 
 he followed the occupation of miner, meeting 
 with a success which justified his long continu- 
 ance in the work. He was principally interested 
 in placer mining. In 1859 h^ decided to with- 
 draw from the work of a miner and accordingly 
 came to Tulare county and near Visalia located 
 with a herd of cattle. Following this he engaged 
 for fifteen years in the stock business, upon the 
 passing of the fence law disposing of his cattle, 
 after which he engaged in farming. For two 
 years he also conducted a livery stable in Por- 
 tersville, Tulare county, at the same time that he 
 was interested in farming. In 1889 he returned 
 to Visalia and has since lived retired from the 
 active cares of life. 
 
 In Eldorado county, this state, Mr. Gilmer was 
 united in marriage with Ann Harvey, a native of 
 Kentucky, who died in Visalia in the early '80s. 
 They became the parents of five children, namely : 
 Kate, who married William Wright, an engineer 
 on the Southern Pacific Railroad and whose home 
 is at Portersville ; Jane, who married W. Cart- 
 nell, of Tulare ; Guy, in the employ of Jhe South- 
 ern Pacific Railway ; Emma, who married A. Ab- 
 by, of Portersville; and Eleanor, who married 
 John Cutler and now makes her home with her 
 father. In his political affiliations Mr. Gilmer is 
 a Democrat. 
 
 GEORGE RICHARD ANDREWS. Liberal 
 and enterprising, George Richard Andrews has 
 made his own success parallel with his efforts in 
 behalf of the general public, giving his aid to ad- 
 vance all movements calculated to increase the 
 general prosperity. He was born in Andrews 
 county. Ma., June 27, 1872, a son of Thomas O. 
 Andrews. The latter was born in Michigan 
 and went to Illinois, where he learned the woolen 
 mill business, after which he located in Andrew 
 county, Mo., as a farmer. In 1873 he came to 
 California and followed mining for two years, 
 when he was joined by his family and located 
 in Ashland, Ore. He became superintendent of 
 the Ashland Woolen Mills, which position he 
 maintained for eight years, after which he en- 
 gaged in the cattle business in Klamath county, 
 Ore. Returning to Ashland, he engaged as a 
 farmer for two years, then founded a harness 
 
 and carriage repository for a like period. Fol- 
 lowing this he worked in Salem, in the same 
 state, as superintendent of the finishing room of 
 the Salem Woolen Mills. Two years later he 
 engaged with a Mr. Leach in the Capitol City 
 Nursery, until the death of his partner, when 
 he purchased the entire nursery and conducted 
 it for three j'ears. In 1895 he located in River- 
 side county, Cal., and at Corona is now engaged 
 in horticulture and has an apiary. Thomas O. 
 Andrews was a soldier in the Civil war, serving 
 in the Second Michigan Cavalry, enlisting at the 
 age of seventeen years. He received wound's in 
 the left arm and leg, and was blinded in the left 
 eye from powder burns. He served until the 
 close of the war, participating in the famous 
 march to the sea with Sherman, and many im- 
 portant engagements. He is a member of the 
 Grand Army of the Republic, and politically is 
 a stanch Republican. In the line of his present 
 work he is president of the California Bee Men's 
 Association. His wife, formerly Elizabeth S. 
 Lackner, of St. Thomas, Canada, is also living. 
 They are the parents of three sons and three 
 daughters, of whom George Richard Andrews is 
 the second in order of birth. 
 
 Reared in Oregon, George R. Andrews .re- 
 ceived his education in the public and high schools 
 of Ashland. At the age of fifteen years he en- 
 tered the employ of the Ashland Woolen Mills, 
 where he remained three vears, after which he 
 began the study of telegraphy in the Postal Tel- 
 egraph office in Ashland, and in time became 
 operator and filled positions at Delta, Cal., Ash- 
 land, Ore., and St. Helens, Ore., as combination 
 man, until November i, 1894, when he was trans- 
 ferred to Fresno, Cal., as manager of the Postal 
 Telegraph office, which position he has since held, 
 ■with the exception of about eight months, when- 
 he was engaged in the real estate business, being 
 solicited to return to his old position of manager 
 with liberal inducements. Mr. Andrews has been 
 active in the building up of Fresno, besides his 
 own residence at No. 260 Effie street, having built 
 five other residences. He also owns a small ranch 
 near Fresno, about three miles out on the Santa 
 Fe^ railroad, which is occupied by the Fresno 
 Brick and Tile Company. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Andrews was united in mar- 
 riage with Irene Patterson, a native of Illinois 
 and a daughter of William Patterson, a farmer, 
 living three miles north of Fresno. They are 
 the parents of three children, Elaine E., George 
 Eugene and Chester Rowell. Mrs. Andrews is 
 a member of the Christian Church. Mr. An- 
 drews is secretary of the Fresno Poultry, Pigeon 
 and Pet Stock Association, being himself a breed- 
 er of Barred and Buff Plymouth Rocks. He be- 
 longs to the Chamber of Commerce and political- 
 ly is a stanch Republican, having been nominated 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 1271 
 
 in 1902 as county assessor of Fresno county, 
 but was defeated by a very small majority by 
 the fusion candidate. Fraternally he is promi- 
 nent, having been clerk for the past eight years 
 of Manzanita Camp No. 160, W. O. W., the 
 largest fraternal lodge in the San Joaquin val- 
 ley and the fourth largest of this organization 
 in California, having eight hundred members. 
 In 1902 he represented his district at the head 
 camp convention at Cripple Creek, Colo. For 
 eight years he was an active member of the Na- 
 tional Guards, having enlisted in December, 1904, 
 in Company F, Sixth California Regiment Na- 
 tional Guards of California. He rose from the 
 ranks to the office of sergeant, thence to second 
 lieutenant, and January, 1900, he was elected 
 captain of the company, serving until 1902, when 
 he declined a re-election on account of his other 
 duties. He also belongs to the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows, of Fresno, and both him- 
 self and wife are members of the Women of 
 Woodcraft. 
 
 JAMES PORTEOUS. The success which 
 has attended the deyelopment of the Fresno Ag- 
 ricultural Works since the establishment of the 
 plant in 1877 is due to the inventive ability, 
 enterprise and sagacious judgment of James Por- 
 teous, who, as owner of the plant and inventor 
 of much of its machinery, has every reason to 
 feel a just pride in the growth of the industry 
 which he founded and fostered. Not only is 
 his plant the largest manufacturing enterprise 
 in the San Joaquin valley, but it is the oldest 
 as well. It had its origin in a little wood-work- 
 ing shop established by Mr. Porteous on the 
 present site of the Grand Central hotel, where 
 he conducted business for three years. In 1880 
 he purchased his present site on Tulare and 
 L streets and erected the first building in the 
 block, where he engaged in the manufacture 
 and repair of buggies and wagons. By degrees 
 his attention was turned to the manufacture of 
 machinery especially needed in his own locality, 
 and from this he drifted into the construction 
 of a general line of machinery, some of which 
 has been sold in South Africa, Australia and other 
 countries. 
 
 The prosperity crowning the efforts of Mr. 
 Porteous probably dates from the time when he 
 began to manufacture scrapers for the leveling 
 of ground and building of ditches. The Fresno 
 scraper, as it is known, in the opinion of its 
 inventor has never been equaled for durability, 
 capacity or ease of working. By the adjustment 
 of nuts the dirt may be scattered in layers from 
 one to ten inches deep or left in one heap. A 
 solid bottom is used of I2x^ plow steel, which 
 stiffens the bowl, prevents it from wearing, and 
 
 prevents buckling in hard places. The scraper 
 travels on the bottom when loaded and on the 
 shoes when empty. During two months of 1902 
 more than five hundred of these scrapers were 
 sold to railroad contractors on one line alone. 
 One of the special products of the Fresno Agri- 
 cultural Works is the four-ton North Porteous 
 raisin mill, which has a capacity of from four 
 to six tons per hour for raisins, while as many 
 as eight tons per hour of dried grapes have been 
 stemmed and cleaned in the same time. The rais- 
 ins are shoveled from the hopper into the cylin- 
 der and delivered from the spouts on both sides 
 of the machine directly into fifty-pound boxes 
 and in four grades, usually designated as one- 
 crown or seedless, two-crown, three-crown and 
 four-crown. The machine being open, the rais- 
 ins are visible at all times except when under 
 the cylinder. Possessing some similarity to this 
 mill is the End Shake North Porteous raisin 
 mill without elevator, the larger size of which, 
 commonly known as the two-ton mill, has a ca- 
 pacity for raisins of about two tons per hour, 
 and is suitable for small packing houses or large 
 vineyards. The North Porteous hand-power 
 raisin mill, made especially for vineyard men, 
 has been shipped to Chile, in South America, also 
 to Australia, South Africa and Europe. 
 
 Numbered among the other products of the 
 agricultural works may be mentioned the fol- 
 lowing: Fresno raisin stemmer, Fresno raisin 
 grader, cap stemmer, an invention of Mr. Por- 
 teous, which was the first machine to success- 
 fully stem raisins ; Fresno differential press, used 
 for pressing dried fruit into fifty-pound boxes; 
 Fresno layer gang press, which is used for press- 
 ing layers; the Dryer truck for moving trays; 
 Fresno floor truck for carrying raisins in the 
 sweat boxes to the scales and cars ; transfer car 
 and sulphur truck, which affords the most eco- 
 nomical way of handling dried fruit; fruit truck 
 for use on drying grounds and in sulphur houses ; 
 four-wheel vineyard truck, for hauling among 
 vines and trees; four-wheel cross-reach truck, 
 arranged so that the hind wheels will follow 
 in the tracks of the front wheels in turning among 
 vines; steel truck that can be fitted with side 
 boards ; steel cross-reach truck ; winery truck ; 
 three-wheel vineyard truck; brush burner and 
 steel truck, for use where it is desired to burn 
 the brush from vineyards; brush binder; brush 
 rake; brush cutter; weed cutter; wheeled weed 
 cutter; hard-pan plow, for the hardest kind of 
 work on roads, gravel beds, etc. ; vee for mak- 
 ing ditches and levees; Fresno vineyard disc, a 
 two-horse disc harrow, which can be instantly 
 adjusted by lever to tear up a patch of weeds 
 and then reset for ordinary work without stop- 
 ping the team; Fresno vineyard disc reversed, 
 which may be used as a disc, a spader or a vme 
 
1272 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cutter; spader, patented by Mr. Porteous, for 
 spading old alfalfa or for vineyards ; Fresno disc 
 with vine cutter attached; vine cutter for sum- 
 mer pruning of vines ; Fresno two and three- 
 gang vineyard plows; orchard and vineyard 
 bench plow, having wheels inside the plow, thus 
 rendering it possible to get close to vines and 
 trees ; Porteous improved tree plow, patented by 
 Mr. Porteous, a two-hprse plow with which the 
 ground can be tilled under the spreading branches 
 of fruit trees without injury to the limbs, and 
 especially serviceable for irrigation purposes, as 
 it stirs up the moisture in the ground and does 
 it with perfect safety to the tree; the Porteous 
 header, which renders possible the saving of very 
 short grain; rotary harrow, a device well-nigh 
 indispensable in a vineyard, as it will roll un- 
 der the spurs and close to the vines without in- 
 juring them; and the Fresno cultivator, a pat- 
 ent of Mr. Porteous, and in use in many of the 
 vineyards of Fresno county. 
 
 The plant occupied by the works covers one- 
 half block, with large warehouses of brick, ma- 
 chine shop and foundry, and forging furnaces 
 operated by oil, which lessens the cost of operat- 
 ing the plant. In addition to operating this large 
 enterprise Mr. Porteous is interested in orchard 
 and vineyard culture and owns eighty acres of 
 such land one mile from Fresno. In 1902 he 
 built on the corner of Fresno and I streets a 
 brick building, 150x50 feet in dimensions, and 
 three stories in height. With all of his other 
 activities, he has found time to devote to the 
 presidency of the Knob Hill Oil Company at 
 Bakersfield. The Fresno Chamber of Commerce 
 numbers him among its leading members, while 
 fraternally he is a past officer in the lodge of 
 Odd Fellows and a member of the Encampment. 
 
 CHARLES B. SHAVER, as president and 
 manager of the Fresno Flume and Irrigation 
 Company, has been an important factor in the 
 promotion of this work, which has proved of no 
 little importance in the development of this sec- 
 tion. He was born in Steuben county, N. Y., in 
 1855, ^ son of John L. Shaver, a native of Dela- 
 ware county, same state, and the descendant of 
 an old and honored family. The elder man was 
 a miller in New York state until 1864, when he 
 located in Michigan, engaging in farming in St. 
 Louis, Gratiot county, until his retirement. He 
 continued to make his home in that location until 
 his death, which occurred at the age of seventy- 
 four years. His wife, formerly Mary Rose, sur- 
 vives him and now makes her home with her son, 
 Charles B., who was next to the youngest in a 
 family of four children. He received the princi- 
 pal part of his education in the common schools 
 of Michigan, to which state he removed when 
 
 nine years of age. He grew to manhood there 
 aijd at the age of eighteen years engaged in lum- 
 bering in the employ of the firm of Whitney & 
 Stinchfield of Detroit, Mich. After some years 
 he became foreman in the woods, in which posi- 
 tion he remained until 1882, when he resigned 
 and accepted a position with A. B. Long & Son 
 of Grand Rapids, Mich. While in their employ 
 he assisted in the building of the logging rail- 
 way and became interested in their mills and lum- 
 ber plant until 1889. He then resigned and ac- 
 cepted a position with the White Friant Lumber 
 Company, continuing with them for two years, 
 during which he built fourteen miles of logging 
 railway and put in over one hundred million feet 
 of logs. In 1891 he went to south Missouri and 
 built a mill for Bo}'den & Wyman Lumber Com- 
 pany at Neelysville, and the following year came 
 to California and located at Fresno. With his 
 wide experience in the lumber business he fore- 
 saw the possibilities which existed for the Fresno 
 Flume and Irrigation Company, just organized, 
 and immediately bought an interest in the con- 
 cern. He at once assumed charge of the con- 
 struction, completing the surveys and building the 
 flumes from Stevenson creek, where they built 
 a dam sixty feet high, the flume from that place 
 to Clovis, Fresno county, being forty and one- 
 quarter miles in length. It is formed of plank, 
 and required about nine million feet of lumber 
 to construct, at a cost of $200,000. At the same 
 time the construction of the mills in the moun- 
 tains was begun and carried to completion, two 
 years being occupied in preparation for this ex- 
 tensive work. They now have two mills operated 
 by steam power, ec|uipped with double bands, dry 
 kilns, railroad locomotive and cars, tug boats and 
 booms, with a capacity of thirty-five million feet 
 per year. They also handle the output of four 
 other mills with a capacity of ten million feet. 
 Their supply of sugar and white pine is practic- 
 ally inexhaustible, as there are twenty thousand 
 acres of this timber around the lake. The plan- 
 ing mills, box factory and dry kilns (operated by 
 steam) are located in Clovis, to which the lumber 
 is brought down by flume, several thousand cords 
 of wood each year being handled. The mills in 
 the mountains are operated from April to Decem- 
 ber. Their box factory at Clovis is equipped with 
 all modern machinery and is operated the entire 
 year. They employ a force of six hundred men 
 during their busy season, and are an important 
 factor in the industrial development of the coun- 
 try. Their output is shipped to all parts of the 
 world, and the business is extensive and lucrative. 
 Their general office is located in Clovis and their 
 local office in Fresno, both scenes of activity and 
 business enterprise. Mr. Shaver has been presi- 
 dent of the company since 1894. He is also a 
 member of the Pine Box and Lumber Company 
 
^^^^;^^^^^- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1275 
 
 of San Francisco, who have distributing plants on 
 the coast, and of the Cahfornia Sugar and White 
 Pine Agency of the same city, in both of which 
 he is a director. 
 
 In Grand Rapids, Mich., Mr. Shaver was 
 united in marriage with Lena A. Roberts, a na- 
 tive of Pennsylvania, and they have three chil- 
 dren, Grace, Ethel and Doris. Fraternally Mr. 
 Shaver is a Mason, having joined the organiza- 
 tion in Edmore, Mich., and now belongs to 
 Fresno Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M. He was 
 made a Chapter Mason in Stanton and now be- 
 longs to Trigo Chapter No. 69 of this place. He 
 is-a member of Fresno Lodge No. 29, K. T., hav- 
 ing been raised to this degree in Ionia, Mich., 
 and belongs to the Lodge of Perfection of Fresno, 
 and Islam Temple, N. M. S., of San Francisco. 
 He is also associated with the Benevolent and 
 Protective Order of Elks, and politically is a Re- 
 publican. He is a member of the Chamber of 
 Commerce and socially is identified with the Se- 
 quoia Club. 
 
 JESSE JANSEN. Since taking up his resi- 
 dence in Reedley Mr. Jansen has been actively 
 identified with all progressive movements, nev- 
 er hesitating to give of his time and means to 
 build up and improve the place. Self-made, his 
 record is one that the young men of today may 
 read with much profit. Coming to this country 
 when a young man, without money or friends, 
 he has worked his way to the front until today 
 he is not only the foremost citizen of Reedley, 
 but is one of the most influential residents of 
 Fresno county. The soul of honor, his w'ord is 
 considered as good as his bond, and while he 
 has accumulated a handsome competency he has 
 never forgotten to perform his duties as a man 
 and citizen. Generous to a fault, there are many 
 people in this section of the state who would 
 have suffered many privations had it not been 
 for his assistance. 
 
 A native of Denmark, Mr. Jansen was born in 
 Bodum, Schleswig, August 21, 1855. His fath- 
 er, Henry Jansen, was a native of the same lo- 
 cality. For many years he followed the sea, be- 
 ing master of a vessel, and in the early min- 
 ing days he visited the port of San Francisco. 
 He died at his home in Denmark in 1887. His 
 wife bore the maiden name of Anna Christina 
 Olsen and was a native of Jylland, Denmark. She 
 is still living, making her home in Schleswig. By 
 her marriage she became the mother of seven 
 children, our subject being the oldest. His early 
 life was spent in the country of his nativity, 
 where he attended the public schools, supple- 
 menting the course in the lower gra'des by at- 
 tendance at a private school. At the early age 
 of sixteen years, in 1871, he bade good-bye to 
 
 the fatherland and sailed for America. On ar- 
 riving in California he located in Placer county, 
 where he secured employment on a farm, being 
 paid $100 for a year's work. After a time he 
 left the farm and went to Lincoln, where he was 
 given work in a meat market, later conducting 
 the market himself. In 1880 he secured a posi- 
 tion as foreman of two large ranches in Yuba 
 and Placer counties, where he continued for over 
 six years, having in the meantime leased them. 
 At the end of this time he returned to his home 
 in the old country, and while there was united 
 in marriage with Helen Maria Miller. In 1886, 
 with his wife, he returned to California and 
 again ^engaged in farming, making a specialty of 
 raising wheat. In 1887 he contracted to dispose 
 of his product tO' the Pioneer Milling Company, 
 but through the fault of the agent the wheat did 
 not come up to the sample shown and the com- 
 pany refused the whole consignment. Mr. Jan- 
 sen knew that his wheat was all right and de- 
 termined to dispose of it. With that idea in 
 mind he went to San Francisco and called on G. 
 W. McNear, who purchased his entire crop 'and 
 paid more than the contract entered into with 
 the former company- The acquaintance formed 
 with Mr. McNear at that time soon ripened into 
 friendship and Mr. Jansen has since been asso- 
 ciated with him, buying millions of bushels of 
 wheat and paying out thousands and thousands 
 of dollars. In addition to his farming and grain- 
 buying interests at that time Mr. Jansen also 
 did considerable insurance writing and dealt in 
 real estate, in 1890 buying sixteen acres ad- 
 joining Lincoln, which he still owns. 
 
 It was in 1899 that Mr. Jansen located in 
 Reedley and since that time he has been one of 
 the most active business men of the town. Com- 
 ing here as buying agent for Mr. McNear, he 
 engaged in purchasing the wheat grown in this 
 section of the state, carrving on an extensive 
 grain dealing business. In 1902 he organized 
 and incorporated the Reedley Hall and Store 
 Company, of which he is president. After the 
 disastrous fire of 1902 he purchased the bank 
 corner and erected the Jansen block, which is 
 one of the finest buildings in the town. A year 
 later he organized and capitalized the Reedley 
 state bank, which is now doing a fine business, 
 Mr. Jansen being president of the same. In 
 1904 he organized the Jesse Jansen Company, for 
 the transaction of a general real estate, broker- 
 age and insurance business. It is his intention 
 to purchase land, divide it into small tracts and 
 sell to those who desire to grow fruit or or- 
 anges or beets for the sugar plant. 
 
 Mrs. Jansen, who in maidenhood was a Miss 
 Miller, became the mother of seven children, one 
 of whom, Henrv, is deceased. The others are: 
 Anna, Helen, Rebecca, Jesse, Jr., Henry and 
 
1276 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Norman. In fraternal relations Mr. Jansen is a 
 member of Valley Lodge No. 107, I. O. O. F., 
 the Encampment at Marysville and Citrus Re- 
 bekahs No. 129. Mr. and Mrs. Jansen are mem- 
 bers of the Lutheran Church and they have gen- 
 erously assisted in building up other churches. 
 In politics Mr. Jansen is a stanch Republican, 
 but has been too busy looking after his own in- 
 terests to take an active part in political mat- 
 ters. 
 
 JOHN BUCHANAN MONROE. While 
 Mr. Monroe was born in Missouri in 1853, Prac- 
 tically his entire life has been spent in Cali- 
 fornia, whither he was brought by his parents 
 in infancy. Residing here for so many years 
 he has been actively associated with many of 
 the movements the result of which has made 
 California one of the greatest states in the Union. 
 Success has crowned his efforts, but while he 
 has accumulated a comfortable competency, he 
 has never neglected his duties as a citizen and 
 when called upon he has always responded. 
 
 He is a son of Wesley Monroe, who was a 
 native of Illinois, but lived in Missouri for sev- 
 eral years prior to crossing the plains. This 
 memorable trip was made in 1856 with ox teams, 
 six months being consumed in making the jour- 
 ney. He was accompanied by his wife and two 
 children and on arriving here settlement was 
 first made in Butte county, where, near Dog- 
 town, he engaged in farming and stock-raising. 
 Subsequently the family removed to Sonoma 
 county, near Petaluma, where Mr. Monroe' fol- 
 lowed farming, his ranch being located in Grass 
 Valley. Meeting with excellent success in his 
 operations he continrted there until 1865, when 
 he came to Tulare county and homesteaded one 
 hundred" and sixty acres of land, which is now 
 occupied by his son, John B. Here he engaged 
 in general farming and stock-raising until his 
 death, which took place during a visit to Fresno 
 at the age of fifty-two years. He married Eliza- 
 beth Coundray, a native of Tennessee, who died 
 in Madera at the age of sixty-three years. By 
 her union with Mr. Monroe there were born ten 
 children, five of whom are still living. 
 
 John B. Monroe was the oldest child and at 
 the age of three years was brought to California 
 by his parents. His early life was spent on his 
 father's farm, attending the district schools and 
 assisting in the farm labors until reaching his 
 majority, when he started out in life for him- 
 self. Engaging in the stock business, he ranged 
 his cattle in the foothills until 1884, when he pur- 
 chased his father's farm. Since then he has add- 
 ed to his first purchase until he now owns five 
 hundred and eighty acres, all in one body ad- 
 joining Wqodville. Of this one hundred and 
 
 fifty acres are devoted to alfalfa, while the bal- 
 ance is used for grazing and general , farming 
 purposes. Water for irrigation purposes is se- 
 cured from the Pioneer ditch, of which Mr. Mon- 
 roe is the president. For a number of years he 
 has been the only user and occupant of the Wood- 
 ville ditch and in addition he has a private ditch 
 on his farm which enables him to irrigate every 
 acre of his land. Ever since starting out in life 
 for himself he has been actively engaged in the 
 stock business and for the last ten years he has 
 been interested in the sheep business, now own- 
 ing between two and three thousand head. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Monroe was united in marriage 
 with Margaret Vincent, who was born in On- 
 tario, Canada, a daughter of Hugh Vincent (see 
 sketch of S. J. Vincent). As a result of this 
 union the following children have been born: 
 Luella Brooks, Mary EHzabeth, Qiarles C, John 
 Almond, Hugh Wesley, Samuel Adolph, Nor- 
 vell Vern and Verna Viola. 
 
 In politics Mr. Monroe is a Republican. Aside 
 from his service as clerk of the board of school 
 trustees he has never cared to take an active part 
 in public matters, preferring rather to devote his 
 entire time to his own business interests. The 
 results show that this policy has paid him well, 
 for today he is considered one of the substantial 
 farmers in this section of Tulare county. He 
 can write the word "success" in a bold hand 
 on the pages of his history and this success has 
 been attained by the result of his perseverance 
 and determination to succeed. 
 
 JAMES DOYLE. For thirty years Mr. Doyle 
 has been a resident of California, and with the 
 exception of the first two»years after his arrival 
 in this state he has been in the employ of the 
 Southern Pacific. Starting in at the bottom he 
 has, by industry and a strict attention to 
 business, been promoted until he now occu- 
 pies the position of roadm.aster, with headquar- 
 ters in Fresno. His long term of seirvice and 
 his promotion are evidence of the standing he 
 has with his employers. While the nature of his 
 employment has made it necessary for him to 
 live in different places, he has always taken an 
 active interest in the affairs of the town in which 
 he resided emd since taking up his residence in 
 Fresno he has been one of the active men in 
 the city, at all times performing his duty as a 
 citizen. 
 
 A native of Ireland, Mr. Doyle was born 
 March 19, 1852, a son of Michael and Ellen 
 (Curran) Doyle. The father immigrated to 
 America in 1864, locating in Holyoke, Mass., 
 where the balance of his life was passed. His 
 marriage resulted in the birth of nine children, 
 sijc: of whom are living. Of this family, James 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1277 
 
 Doyle was the fourth child. His education was 
 obtained in the public schools of Holyoke, Mass., 
 but at an early age it was necessary for him to 
 give up his schooling and enter the cotton mills 
 at that place. Securing a position in the dress- 
 ing department of the Lyman mill, he remained 
 there until 1875, when he resigned and came to 
 California. His first employment here was with 
 a Mr. O'Neil, a contractor 'in Oakland, with 
 whom he continued for two years. In 1877 he 
 entered the employ of the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road in Oakland, securing a position in the 
 track department. Three years later, having been 
 promoted to foreman, he was sent to New Mex- 
 ico, where he continued for six years. As 
 foreman of the yards, he was then transferred 
 to Los Angeles, where he remained for two 
 and one-half years. At the expiration of this 
 period he was again promoted, being made road- 
 master with headquarters at Benson, Ariz., where 
 the company kept him for two years. June 23, 
 1893, he came to Fresno as roadmaster of the 
 Fresno Division. Four years later he was trans- 
 ferred to the Keene district, but in 1899 he re- 
 turned to Fresno to relieve G. A. Starkweather, 
 who was sent to Ventura. Mr. Doyle now has 
 charge of seventeen sections, all the lines run- 
 ning out of Fresno, making his position one 
 of great importance, as there are hundreds of 
 miles of road under his supervision, the com- 
 pany looking to him for the condition of road 
 beds. 
 
 In Chicopee, Mass., Mr. Doyle was united in 
 marriage with Miss Mary Allen. At her death 
 Mrs. Doyle left one child, Kate, who is attend- 
 ing Trinity College. Fraternally Mr. Doyle is 
 a member of the Knights of Columbus. His rise 
 to the position he now holds has been by the di- 
 rect result of strict attention to business. In 
 Fresno, as in other places where he has made 
 his home, he has a large circle of friends who 
 are deeply interested in his success. 
 
 I. W. GOLDMAN. Although not a native 
 of this country, Mr. Goldman has made his home 
 in California for so many years that he is inti- 
 mately associated with its progress and devoted 
 to its development. As a boy he attended the 
 public schools in Westheim, Bavaria, Germany, 
 where he was born in 1836, and after leaving 
 school he learned the trade of a shoemaker. On 
 coming to America in 1853 he secured employ- 
 ment in New York City, but in 1855 left there 
 for California. The trans-continental railroad 
 had not yet spanned the country and travel was 
 made by "prairie schooners" or by ship. He 
 chose the latter method of transportation and 
 sailed to Panama, where he took passage on the 
 John L. Stevens to San Francisco, landing at 
 
 the Golden Gate November 14, 1855. Without 
 delay he was able to secure work at his trade. 
 Carefully saving all that he earned, he utilized 
 the capital thus secured in the establishment of 
 a shoe store about 1857. The first shop was a 
 _ small affair, with a frontage of twelve feet. Soon 
 the business outgrew his limited quarters and he 
 sought more adequate accommodations, leasing 
 a large store on Kearny street, where he re- 
 mained in business -until 1871. On disposing 
 of that establishment he embarked in the gen- 
 eral mercantile business at Pleasanton, Alameda 
 county. 
 
 When the railroad was built to Merced in 
 1872 Mr. Goldman started a general store in 
 that town. About the same time the railroad 
 reached Tulare and he went to that town on one 
 of the first trains. By the aid of a city plat he 
 selected as a site for a store the northeast corner 
 of J and Tulare streets, but the railroad erect- 
 ed a hotel there, and he bought the adjoining 
 lot, subsequently acquiring possession of the cor- 
 ner lot. The frame building in which he opened 
 a general store in the spring of 1873 ^i^ duty 
 as a place of business until 1875, when it burned 
 to the ground. Immediately afterward he leased 
 the southeast corner, where a brick building 
 afforded more convenient accommodations than 
 previously enjoyed. A second time disaster over- 
 took him in the loss of all of his stock in the 
 fire of 1885. Forced to seek new quarters, he 
 bought the northeast corner of J and Tulare 
 streets, where he conducted an extensive general 
 merchandise establishment, the largest of the 
 kind in the city. Since the sale of the business 
 in May, 1900, he has devoted himself to the 
 development of property, under the firm name 
 of J. & I. W. Goldman, with office and head- 
 quarters at No. 4 Sutter street, San Francisco. 
 In addition to erecting the Goldman Hall in 1887 
 he has put up other structures, including a sub- 
 stantial brick warehouse, and the Wells-Fargo 
 building. 
 
 During all the years of his identification with 
 the mercantile interests of Tulare Mr. Gold- 
 man has been a buyer of adjacent lands and now 
 has a tract of more than twenty-eight hundred 
 acres, four and one-half miles north of town, 
 which is now beiiig subdivided into twenty-acre 
 tracts and is known as the Goldman colony tract. 
 A pumping plant has been built on the prop- 
 erty sufficiently large to irrigate all of the land. 
 In partnership with his cousin Mr. Goldman 
 owns Paradise orange grove tract of eight hun- 
 dred and fifty acres, on which an abundance_ of 
 excellent water is secured by means of pumping 
 plants operated by electricitv- The land lies one- 
 half mile from Lindsav. Tulare county, and is 
 being sold for $100 per acre, including water 
 right, purchasers having the privilege of buy- 
 
1278 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ing any amount from five acres up. It has been 
 found by experiments that citrus fruits can be 
 raised there and much of the property is being 
 laid out in orange groves. Besides the proper- 
 ties named Mr. Goldman owns other valuable 
 lands in Tulare county, also in Kern county and 
 some real estate in Fresno, besides his home 
 place in San Francisco. While the management 
 of his lands takes up his attention to a large ex- 
 tent, he also engages in the stock business. Fra- 
 ternally he holds membership in Fidelity Lodge, 
 F. & A. M., in San Francisco, and in political 
 matters favors the Republican party, the work 
 of which he has promoted by his vote and m- 
 fluence. After settling in San Francisco he mar- 
 ried Carrie Rothschild, who was born in New 
 York City, and by her he has four children, 
 Julian, Hilda, Bertie Violet and Blanche Daisy. 
 
 E. M. CAPURRO. The manager of the 
 Madera Electric Light Company and the Madera 
 Water Company was born in Stockton, this state, 
 April 22, 1864, and is a son of Emanuel and 
 Pauline (Sopania) Capurro, natives respectively 
 of Genoa, Italy, and Mazatlan, Mexico. His 
 father, who was captain of a vessel in Italy, 
 came to California during the great mining ex- 
 citement of 1849, but did not himself become 
 directly interested in seeking for gold. Instead, 
 he took up the freighting business as offering a 
 more certain income and with his pack trains 
 traveled all through the mountains and into the 
 mining camps, building up a large business in the 
 sale of merchandise to miners. Much of his 
 profits he invested in farm lands, the value of 
 which constantly increased, thus yielding him 
 gratifying returns. For years he made his home 
 in Stockton. On his retirement from business 
 he spent some time in Italy, visiting the friends 
 of his youth and such relatives as remained near 
 Genoa. His death occurred in Stockton in 1888 
 when he was eighty-two years of age. 
 
 In a family of two daughters and one son the 
 youngest was E. M. Capurro, who was educated 
 in the grammar and high schools of Stockton. 
 While still a mere boy he gave evidence of 
 mechanical ability. At the age of nineteen he 
 was apprenticed to the machinist's trade in the 
 machine shop of Farrington & Hyatt, with whom 
 he remained for four years. He then went to 
 Modesto to erect a planing mill for Gilbert & 
 Bennett, and after completing the plant he re- 
 mained for two years as its superintendent. Dur- 
 ing the following three years he was master 
 mechanic for the Second Street Cable Company 
 in Los Angeles and superintended the building 
 of their cable road. For about a year afterward 
 he acted as chief engineer of the San Diego 
 cable road, and from there w^nt to San Francisco 
 
 as superintendent of the plant of D. Block & Co., 
 trunk manufacturers. Later he was made chief 
 engineer of the electric street railway in Oak- 
 land, and was next with the Oman Engine Manu- 
 factory in the construction and setting up of its 
 machines and engines. 
 
 Coming to Madera in 1894 as master mechanic 
 of the Krogh Manufacturing Company, Mr. 
 Capurro completed the electric plant and has 
 since been its manager, meanwhile enlarging it 
 from time to time as the increased business de- 
 mands. The plant is an exceptionally fine one, 
 carefully and substantially constructed and 
 thoroughly equipped. It has a capacity of one 
 thousand incandescent lights and fifty arc lights. 
 In addition, Mr. Capurro is manager of the Water 
 Company, whose works he constructed. The 
 plant comprises four wells, respectively three 
 hundred and eighty, two hundred and ten, one 
 hundred and ten and six hundred feet deep; 
 also two triple action Krogh pumps with a capac- 
 ity of eighteen thousand gallons per hour for 
 each pump ; one Warrington duplex steam pump 
 with a capacity of thirty-six thousand gallons 
 per hour ;. with one hundred and ten pounds 
 pressure for fire purposes, and two tandem 
 compounds of sixty horse-power each, oil being 
 used for fuel. The plants are located on E and 
 Fifth streets. To aid in his work Mr. Capurro 
 has invented a number of devices, one of these 
 being a system of alarm by electricity which starts 
 the pumps. Besides his other positions he acts 
 as manager of the Sunset Telephone Company, 
 at Madera. He is a member of the National 
 Association of Marine Engineers of San Fran- 
 cisco and maintains a deep interest in everything 
 pertaining to his chosen field of activity. Politi- 
 cally he is a Republican, while in fraternal mat- 
 ters he is connected with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows and Foresters at Madera, and 
 San Diego Parlor, N. S. G. W. 
 
 ROBERT J. PADEN. In a history of the San 
 Joaquin valley, with its many prominent citizens 
 and fruit growers, the name of Robert J. Paden 
 is deserving of special mention, not alone as a 
 descendant of distinguished Virginian ancestors, 
 but from the fact that he has gained considerable 
 prominence in his section as a real-estate dealer. 
 As an extensive vine-grower and as secretary 
 and manager of the Sanger Wine Association, 
 Mr. Paden has gained added prominence and is 
 considered a representative citizen in the vicinity 
 of Sanger in Fresno county, which has been his 
 home since 1887. 
 
 United by close ties to Van Buren, Ala., it was 
 there that he was born January 15, 1846, a son 
 of John and Nancy (Copland) Paden, the latter 
 also born in Alabama. John Paden was a native 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1281 
 
 of Virginia and his father, also called John, emi- 
 grated from Glasgow, Scotland, to that state in 
 an early day, and was prominent in the history 
 of Virginia. The father of Robert J., when a 
 young man, left Virginia and took' up his resi- 
 dence in Alabama, where he lived until 1855. He 
 was a farmer by occupation and the closing years 
 of his life were spent in Sharp county, Ark., 
 where he died at the age of sixty-seven years. 
 
 The early education of Robert J. Paden was 
 received in the public schools, and he was four- 
 teen years old when his parents moved to 
 Arkansas, which continued to be his home until 
 1862. During that- year he enlisted in the Con- 
 federate army as a member of the Eleventh 
 Missouri Cavalry and served throughout the war. 
 In 1869 he went to Texas and there engaged in 
 the stock business in connection with farming 
 until 1887, when he came to California and lo- 
 cated upon the present site of Sanger, being the 
 first one to live in the town after it was platted. 
 In addition to carrying on farming he became 
 real-estate agent for the Southern Pacific Railway 
 Company and through his efforts in their behalf 
 many important land deals were made. Mr. Paden 
 retired from the real-estate business in 1901, and 
 since then his entire time has been given to his 
 farming interests and to the successful manage- 
 ment of the winery with which he is connected. 
 His fine ranch contains one hundred and twenty 
 acres, of which eighty acres are devoted to the 
 raising of wine grapes and fruit. By his mar- 
 riage, January .•^o, 1864, in Arkansas, Mr. Paden 
 was united with E. Alice Richie, formerly of 
 Tennessee, and to them six children have been 
 born, as follows: John T. ; M. A., the wife of L. 
 C. Vermillion ; Frank ; Mattie, the wife of Fred 
 Rogers; CalHe D. and Osieolie. Mr. Paden is 
 a member of the Masonic fraternitv of Sanger, 
 and of the Independent Order of Foresters. 
 
 FRANK S. KNAUER. One of the very first 
 to locate in the town of Reedley, Mr. Knauer 
 has been prominently identified with the upbuild- 
 ing of this thriving town, and since 1888 his 
 wife has acted as postmistress, her husband hav- 
 ing been instrumental in having the office estab- 
 lished. During these years there have been many 
 chang^es in this section, as on settling in Reedley 
 Mr. knauer's was the first house to be erected. 
 
 A native of Kentucky, Mr. Knauer was born in 
 Campbell county, October iq, i8.q.'^, a son of 
 Elias and Maria Melcina (Brooks) Knauer ._ The 
 father was born in Pennsylvania, but in pioneer 
 days removed to Kentucky, locating ?n Campbell 
 county, where he followed his trade, that of a 
 wheelwright and general mechanic. While living 
 in Kentucky he erected many grist and saw mills, 
 being one of the leading builders of the county. 
 
 After some years he went to Ohio, where he 
 worked at his trade until 1858, when he migrated 
 to Nebraska. Locating in Brownville, he fol- 
 lowed his vocation until the next year, when he 
 outfitted with ox-teams and crossed the plains 
 to California. Going to Yolo county, he settled 
 at what is now the town of Woodland) and in 
 1874 erected the first grist mill in that place. La- 
 ter he built a saw mill in Lake county and en- 
 gaged in the lumbering business for a short 
 time, but in 1876 he returned to Woodland, where 
 he died the same year. His wife was born in 
 Kentucky and is now living, about seventy-five 
 years of age. Her grandmother was a sister 
 of the wife of Daniel Boone, the famous hunter 
 and Indian scout. Mrs. Knauer was twice mar- 
 ried and became the mother of six children, two 
 by the first marriage and four by the second. 
 
 Frank S. Knauer was- the oldest child and 
 was six years old at the time his parents crossed 
 the plains. He enjoyed the advantages of the 
 best schools of the state, and after finishing in 
 the public schools of Yolo county he attended 
 Hesperian College at Woodland, where he made 
 a record as a diligent student. His tuition in the 
 latter institution was paid with money which he 
 earned by working in the harvest field. Subse- 
 quently he took a one-year course in the state 
 normal at San Jose, after which for five years he 
 was engaged in teaching, in Yolo county. In 
 1888 he came to Reedley as a teacher in the dis- 
 trict school. A year later, however, he was com- 
 pelled to S'ive up teaching on account of disabil- 
 ity, resulting from appendicitis. After regain- 
 ing his health, in i8qo, he took a clerical posi- 
 tion with The y6 Land and Water Company, and 
 in addition to representing this company he is 
 also the local representative of the California 
 Fruit and Wine Land Company. He is also a 
 notary public, is interested in the insurance busi- 
 ness to some extent, and is assistant postmaster 
 at Reedley. 
 
 Mr. Knauer was united in marriage with Flora 
 Bierer, a native of Kansas. Ever since coming 
 to Reedley Mrs. Knauer has acted as postmistress, 
 and the familv still have in their possession a 
 sack in which the mail was brought from Fresno. 
 The office is now third class and one of the best 
 paying ones in this part of the state. As a mat- 
 ter of interest the records of the office have been 
 perserved and show that the first year, during 
 the month of August, there was only $1 worth of 
 stamps sold, and for three months the income 
 amounted to but $2.84. During the past year 
 nearly $600 worth of stamps were disposed of 
 and many tons of mail matter were handled. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Knauer have been born three 
 children : Carmi M., who is cashier in Leonard's 
 confectionery store in Oakland; Charles M., a 
 bookkeeper and acting postmaster at Caltente, 
 
1282 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Cal, and Frank LeRoy, who lives at home. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Knauer is a member of the Wood- 
 men of the World and Fraternal Aid, and in re- 
 ligion is connected with the Baptist Church. He 
 has never cared to take an active part in political 
 matters, but is a firm believer in the principles 
 advocated by the Prohibition party. Both he and 
 his wife are very popular and have hosts of 
 friends wherever known. 
 
 EDGAR GRAHAM HOPE. Of pioneer an- 
 cestry, and a resident of California since his 
 boyhood, Edgar Graham Hope has witnessed 
 wonderful transformations in the face of the 
 country, and has ably assisted in the develop- 
 ment and promotion of its industrial progress. 
 His finely improved ranch, a part of which he 
 inherited from his parents, lies about ten miles 
 south of the city of Madera, and is one of the 
 most attractive and productive in the vicinity. 
 A skillful, thrifty and • enterprising farmer, he 
 holds a position of prominence among the lead- 
 ing agriculturists of this section of the state, and 
 is a worthy representative of all that constitutes 
 an exemplary citizen. A son of the late Aquilla 
 M. Hope, he was born January 29, 1841, in Ken- 
 tucky, but was reared in Missouri and Califor- 
 nia. 
 
 Born in Baltimore, Md., Aquilla M. Hope 
 learned the trade of millwright, which he subse- 
 quently followed in conjunction with farming 
 in Kentucky for fifteen years. Removing with 
 his family to Scotland county. Mo., in 1844, he 
 was there actively engaged in many industries, 
 working as millwright, farmer and stock-raiser, 
 and as tanner. In 1852 he came across the 
 plains with his family, in an ox-team train, and 
 located in Santa Clara county, where he had the 
 distinction of grinding the first sack of flour 
 made in the Santa Clara Mills. Removing to 
 Contra Costa county in 1853, he remained there 
 two years, being employed in milling and stock 
 raising. The following year he spent in Amador 
 county, and then removed to Westpoint, Cala- 
 veras county, where he was successfully engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits from 1856 until 1873. 
 Coming then to what was at that time Fresno 
 county with his family, he bought a ranch of one 
 thousand two hundred and fifty acres of land, 
 which is now included within the limits of Ma- 
 dera county, and here followed his free and in- 
 dependent occupation until his death, at the age 
 of seventy-six years. He made a specialty of 
 wheat raising, although for six years he was a 
 sheep raiser and dealer, carrying on an exten- 
 sive business in that line. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Sarah Graham, was born in 
 Virginia, the granddaughter of a Revolutionary 
 soldier. She died at the homestead, in Madera 
 
 county, at the age of seventy-nine years, and 
 her body was laid beside that of her husband in 
 the family burying-bround, on the home ranch. 
 She bore her husband ten children, and of these 
 two sons are California farmers, namely : S. D., 
 of Merced, who owns a ranch of three hundred 
 and twenty acres in Madera county; and Edgar 
 G., the subject of this sketch. 
 
 Bred . and receiving his early education in 
 Scotland county. Mo., Edgar Graham Hope came 
 with his parents to California in 1852, and sub- 
 sequently lived with them in different places un- 
 til coming to Madera county in 1873. Subse- 
 quently learning the trade of blacksmith, he fol- 
 lowed it for twelve years, having a blacksmith 
 shop in Madera. Inheriting from his parents 
 one hundred and sixty acres of the old home 
 place, he is now engaged in farming pursuits, 
 and is meeting with great success. He carries 
 on a ranch of one thousand acres, raising large 
 quantities of wheat, for which his land is es- 
 pecially adapted, averaging about seven hun- 
 dred pounds to the acre. 
 
 Mr. Hope married Elizabeth Edwards, and 
 they are the parents of seven children, namely: 
 George, a merchant in Madera ; Frank E., a 
 prosperous farmer, his ranch adjoining that of 
 his father ; Marion, a barber in Madera ; Edith, 
 wife of S. Crowder; Versa, wife of D. Steven- 
 son, of Oakland ; Laura, and Thomas. Politic- 
 ally Mr. Hope is a sound Democrat, but has 
 never been an aspirant for official honors. 
 
 GEORGE W. MORDECAI. The substantial 
 and prosperous citizens of Madera, Madera 
 county, Cal., have no more worthy representative 
 than George W. Mordecai, an extensive land- 
 holder, a large sheep and stock raiser, and one 
 of the most successful and best-known farmers 
 of this part of the state. A son of Augustus 
 Mordecai, he was born April 18, 1844, in Vir- 
 ginia, near Richmond. His grandfather, Jacob 
 Mordecai, was a Virginian by birth and breed- 
 ing, but for many years was a resident of North 
 Carolina. He comes of Revolutionary stock, 
 both of his great-grandfathers having served as 
 soldiers in the Revolutionary army, and is of 
 English descent, the emigrant ancestor of the 
 Mordecai family having come from London, 
 England, to America in the seventeenth cen- 
 tury. 
 
 Born in North Carolina, Augustus Mordecai 
 removed in early life to Virginia, the home of 
 his ancestors, and was there engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits until his death. He was a 
 prominent planter, and a man of influence, serv- 
 ing for a number of years as presiding justice of 
 the board of magistrates of Henrico county, Va. 
 He married Rosina Young, who was born in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1283 
 
 Virginia, which was also the birthplace of her 
 father, William Young, and she is still living, 
 residing on the home plantation, "Rosewood." 
 
 Reared on the home farm, George W. Mor- 
 decai received a practical education in the private 
 schools of Richmond. In 1862, in Richmond, 
 he enlisted in the Confederate army, in which 
 he served until the close of the war, taking part 
 in many of the engagements of that conflict. 
 Subsequently going to North Carolina he had 
 charge of his uncle's plantation for three years. 
 Coming to California in 1868, Mr. Mordecai took 
 up and purchased the land that is now included 
 in his present ranch, which was then a part of 
 Fresno county, but is now in Madera county. 
 Engaging in general farming, he has improved 
 a valuable ranch, and as a stock and grain raiser 
 has met with eminent success. He has four 
 thousand acres of land in his ranch and devotes 
 the greater part of it to the raising of grain. 
 He likewise raises much stock, including cattle, 
 sheep and horses, and by sturdy industry and 
 judicious management has acquired a compe- 
 tency. Mr. Mordecai has made several trips to 
 the east, visiting his old home and acquaintances. 
 He has a very pleasant and attractive home, 
 lying about four and one-half miles south of 
 Madera. 
 
 Mr. Mordecai married, in Kern county, Miss 
 Louise Dixon, a native of Mississippi and daugh- 
 ter of Judge R. L. Dixon. They have four 
 children living, namely: George W., Jr., an 
 attorney in Madera ; Louise ; Brooke, and Ethel- 
 fleda. Politically Mr. Mordecai is a stanch 
 Democrat, and is prominent in public affairs. 
 For two terms he served as a member of the 
 state legislature, and was nominated as state 
 senator, but was defeated. 
 
 BENJAMIN Y. COLSON. The varied ex- 
 periences which have entered the life of Benja- 
 min Y. Colson as a sailor before the mast have 
 in no wise unfitted him for routine duties on 
 land. An intelligent, capable, and energetic man, 
 he has proven his ability as an agriculturist, the 
 steady qualities inherited from his New England 
 ancestry making him a most desirable citizen 
 in any community where he might care to take 
 up his residence. Since his location in Fresno 
 county in the spring of 1886 he has held the 
 position of manager of the Smith ranch, which 
 consists of three hundred and twenty acres of 
 land devoted to general farming, and where he 
 employs three men. The ranch is located six 
 and a half miles from the city of Fresno, in the 
 Malaga district. 
 
 Bom in New Bedford, Mass., February 27, 
 1845, Mr. Colson is the son of O. D. Colson. 
 The birth of the latter occurred in Massachu- 
 
 setts, August I, 1819. In manhood he became 
 a tinner, spending the greater part of his life 
 in his native state, though his latter days were 
 passed in Fresno, Cal. He married Amanda 
 Cushman, who was born June 14, 1826. Until 
 he was seventeen years old Benjamin Y. Colson 
 remained at home with his parents, learning the 
 machinist's trade. Attracted by a sea-faring life 
 he then became a sailor and left his native town 
 in 1864 on a whaling voyage. He made one 
 voyage around the Horn on the barque Sunbeam, 
 under the command of Capt. D. C. Barrett and 
 another voyage around East Cape under Capt. 
 Thomas Fisher. He followed this life for 
 twenty years, from 1864 to 1884, during which 
 time he sailed through many seas, visiting many 
 points. 
 
 In 1876 Mr. Colson married Annie E. Ellis, 
 of Massachusetts, and in the summer of 1886 he 
 came to California and entered upon the work 
 which has since claimed his attention. To him- 
 self and wife were born two children, Marion 
 and Evelvn. Politically Mr. Colson casts his 
 ballot with the Prohibition party and fraternally 
 is identified with the Knights of Pythias, is a 
 Mason and belongs to the Rathbone Sisters. 
 
 JAMES MURPHY. No great amount of 
 wealth has come to Mr. Murphy. Dame For- 
 tune has brought her gifts to him with niggardly 
 hands, and reverses more than once have 
 wrested from him the gold that he sought in 
 the mines; vet he has sufficient to surround his 
 old age with the comforts of existence, and as 
 he passes the twilight of a busv life in his own 
 little home at No. 612 North Bridge street, Vis- 
 alia, he can look back over the past without re- 
 gret and forward to the future with a cheery 
 heart and a sunny spirit. "Owe no man any- 
 thing" is one of his mottoes, and by following 
 this precept he has kept his fiinancial aflFairs in a 
 satisfactory condition. His friends are legion, 
 and although death has deprived himself and 
 wife of their children, the kindness of their asso- 
 ciates prevents them from feeling alone in the 
 world. 
 
 In County Galway, Ireland, Mr. Murphv was 
 bom in 1819, being a son of Patrick and Kathe- 
 rine fTharpy) Murphy, who were born in Coun- 
 ty Galway and remained there many years, and 
 then removed to Countv Mayo, where thev died, 
 the father being engaged as a farmer and cattle- 
 buyer. Out of a family of eleven children only 
 two sons and two daughters attained mature 
 years. James, who was the youngest of the 
 children, received his education in the national 
 schools of Ireland and at thirteen years of aee 
 came to the United States. For a considerable 
 period he lived in New Orleans. During 1846 
 
128-4 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he went to St. Louis and secured employment. 
 From there in 1851 he crossed the plains to 
 California, landing at Hangtown, where he rested 
 from the fatigue of the long journey. In a few 
 days he. proceeded to Georgetown, where he 
 prospected successfully in the mines. A change 
 of location in 1856 took him to the mines of 
 Oroville, Butte county, where at first he was 
 prosperous. Ultimately, however, a flood caused 
 the waters of the Feather river to overflow and 
 in a few hours he suffered a loss of $25,000. 
 Though left penniless he did not despair, but 
 changed his plan of work and prospected in 
 Deep Diggings. At the time of the Washoe 
 gold excitement in Nevada in 1859 he started 
 for those mines, but changed his plans and pros- 
 pected in Inyo county, Cal., remaining there 
 some four years. 
 
 While Mr. Murphy considered Vis^lia his 
 home as early as 1859 he did not settle perma- 
 nently in that locahty until 1865, when he leased 
 a tract of land and engaged in raising cattle. At 
 the time that the fence law was passed he owned 
 some five hundred head of cattle, but being de- 
 prived of range for them he was compelled to 
 sell at a heavy sacrifice. Afterward for six 
 years he acted as foreman of a ranch. During 
 early days he followed the stone-mason's trade 
 and laid the first sewerage system in Visalia, be- 
 sides doing other work of a similar nature. Po- 
 litically he votes the Democratic ticket. While 
 living in St. Louis he married Ann Burns, who 
 was born in Ireland and with him is a faithful 
 member of the Roman Catholic Church. They 
 became the parents of three children, but all died 
 before the family removed from Missouri. 
 
 CHARLES RICHTER. The Richter family, 
 represented in Fresno by Charles Richter, an en- 
 terprising and esteemed citizen, came originally 
 from Germany, the emigrating ancestor, John 
 M. Richter, locating in Philadelphia, Pa. He 
 engaged in that location as a merchant tailor un- 
 til the fall of 1837, when he removed to Spring- 
 field, 111. In conjunction with his mercantile busi- 
 ness he also conducted a small hotel, where he 
 had the honor of entertaining both Lincoln and 
 Douglas, as well as Judge Treat. Five years 
 later he removed to Dewitt, Dewitt county, where 
 he followed the same business, and during his 
 residence in the latter place performed the duties 
 of postmaster for twenty-five years. His death 
 occurred in that place at an advanced age. Flis 
 wife, formerly Annie Hagen, was a native of 
 New Jersey, who died in Dewitt. They were the 
 parents of two children, Albert, who died in San 
 Jose, Cal., and Charles. 
 
 The birth of Charles Richter occurred in Phila- 
 delphia, Pa., February 20, 1833, and at the age 
 
 of four years he was taken to Illinois, where he 
 was reared to manhood. Abraham Lincoln 
 stopped several times in their home in Dewitt, 
 and the first money Charles Richter ever earned 
 was a Spanish quarter which Mr. Lincoln gave 
 him for wading a creek and cutting a fishing pole 
 with the latter's knife. Also while a resident of 
 Dewitt he heard Peter Cartwright preach in Hur- 
 ley's grove. He received his education in the 
 subscription schools, which were held in a log 
 cabin, with puncheon seats and desks, mud and 
 stick chimney, quill pens and other primitive con- 
 ditions incident to the day. As he grew to young 
 manhood he assisted his father in the store and 
 postofifice, and after the death of the latter in 
 1862 he becam.e postmaster and conducted the 
 store also. In the meantime, in 1854, when a 
 boy of twenty-one, he made a trip across the 
 plains to California, traveling by ox teams from 
 Illinois via St. Joseph, Mo., thence to Fort 
 Kearney and Fort Laramie, the only two places 
 on the route where they saw houses and signs 
 of civilization. The journey occupied six months, 
 but the little company arrived ^ in safety, after 
 which Mr. Richter engaged in mining on the 
 Feather river. He continued for three years in 
 that occupation, and met with a reasonable de- 
 gree of success. In 1857 he returned to Illinois 
 by way of the Isthmus of Panama and took up 
 his home occupations once more. He became 
 prominent in public affairs in Dewitt, being elect- 
 ed township supervisor two terms and also presi- 
 dent of the board of trustees of the town for 
 many terms. In 1876 he went to the Black 
 Hills, through the Indian country, where he re- 
 mained for about four months, then returned to 
 his mercantile business. He eventually resigned 
 the office of postmaster and engaged as a manu- 
 facturer of drain tile, carrying on an extensive 
 business until 1885, in which year he was ap- 
 pointed postmaster by Mr. Cleveland. He re- 
 tained this office for three years, when he re- 
 signed and came to California, locating in Fresno, 
 where he bought three hundred and twenty acres 
 of land three miles south of the city and set one 
 hundred and sixty acres of the tract to raisin 
 grapes. Later he disposed of a part of il, con- 
 tinuing in the cultivation of the remainder for 
 three years, when he sold the entire property 
 and for a time continued in the purchase and 
 sale of vineyard property. He also purchased 
 property in Fresno, where he made his home. 
 He now owns two small vineyards three miles 
 east of Fresno. During the first gold excite- 
 ment in Alaska he went on a prospecting tour 
 to Cook Inlet. For the past eight years Mr. 
 Richter has also been engaged in mining inter- 
 ests in Fresno county, having opened a mine sev- 
 enty-five miles east of Fresno, near the summit 
 of the Sierra Nevada mountains, where he built 
 
M 
 
 i-IXl/TMyy/ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1287 
 
 a. quartz mill in 1904, which is operated three 
 months of the year by water and the balance by 
 steam power, five miles of ditches having been 
 built to run the water. He ailso made a road to 
 haul the machinery to the mill, everything be- 
 ing modern and thoroughly up to date. This is 
 known as the Badger Mine, and has proved a 
 success thus far. He is also interested in other 
 mines in the same section. 
 
 In Dewitt county. 111., December 3, 1857, Mr. 
 Richter was united in marriage with Rachel Wil- 
 son, a native of Ohio, and a daughter of Amos 
 Wilson. The latter was a native of Marvland, 
 an early settler cf Ohio, and eventually a farmer 
 in Dewitt county, 111. Of the eight children born 
 to Mr. Richter and his wife six attained maturity, 
 namely : John A., of Fresno, a vineyardist and 
 deputy United States internal revenue collector; 
 H. W., in business with his father ; Viola, the 
 wife of Nathan Trego, of Dewitt; Annie, de- 
 ceased, was the wife of Charles Leasure ; Alberta, 
 the wife of T. W. Fresh, of Fresno ; and Ollie, 
 the wife of James McDonald of Fresno. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Richter was made a Mason in Anion 
 Lodge of Dewitt, 111., and now belongs to Fresno 
 Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M. In national politics 
 Mr. Richter is a Democrat, but he cast his ballot 
 for Abraham Lincoln, whom' he personally knew 
 and honored for the sterling qualities known to 
 all the country. 
 
 CHARLES G. BONNER, justly named among 
 the representative citizens of Fresno, is a 
 native son of California, his birth having oc- 
 curred in San Francisco, February 4, 1869. His 
 father, Charles Bonner, a native of Canada and 
 the descendant of an old and honored New York 
 family, came to California by the Isthmus of 
 Panama in the early '50s and engaged in mining. 
 He also mined in Nevada, and became superin- 
 tendent of the Gould and Curry mine of Virginia 
 City, being considered one of the best mining 
 experts both in Nevada and California. His 
 death occurred in San Francisco in 1871, and 
 he was buried on Staten Island. His wife, for- 
 merly Rosa Gore, was a native of Cambridge, 
 Mass., a sister of Mrs. John Reddington, of San 
 Francisco, and a granddaughter of ex-Governor 
 Gore of Massachusetts. She came to California 
 in an early day and died in San Francisco. Of 
 their three children Charles G. Bonner was the 
 only son and the youngest child. He was reared 
 in San Francisco and received his preliminary 
 scholastic training in the schools of that city, 
 after which, in 1885, he entered the University 
 of California, graduating four years later with 
 the degree of B.S. In the same year he came 
 to Fresno and purchased a vineyard and en- 
 tered at once upon a horticultural career. He 
 
 set out what is known as the Bonner vineyard 
 eight miles east of Fresno, where he owns a six 
 hundred and forty acre tract, of which four hun- 
 dred acres are in vines and trees, while the bal- 
 ance is devoted to alfalfa and stock. This prop- 
 erty is in the hands of the Bonner Vineyard 
 Company, which was incorporated in 1892 with 
 Mr. Bonner as president. From this modest be- 
 ginning Mr. Bonner began buying and shipping, 
 and has since put up a packing house commensu- 
 rate with the business transacted, putting in nec- 
 essary equipments in the shape of a raisin seed- 
 er and stemmer operated by steam, etc. In 1899 
 Mr. Bonner also formed a partnership with 
 James Madison, of San Francisco, in the pack- 
 ing and shipping of fruit, this firm being incor- 
 porated in 1903 under the style of Madison & 
 Bonner, of which Mr. Bonner is secretary and 
 local manager. They own five acres of the Bon- 
 ner vineyard at Locan's Spur, and five acres of 
 land for the packing plant and necessary equip- 
 ments, etc. They ship by carloads direct to 
 eastern markets, their business being the lead- 
 ing one with the exception of the Seeding Trust, 
 and has proven of commercial importance to 
 Fresno. 
 
 Mr. Bonner has been twice married, his first 
 marriage occurring in Boston, Mass., and uniting 
 him with LoUise Tripp, of Massachusetts, who 
 died in San Francisco. She left one daughter, 
 Beatrice Louise. His second marriage occurred 
 in San Francisco and united him with Marie 
 Walters, who was born in Sierra county, Cal, 
 a daughter of J. C. Walters, a pioneer of the 
 state, who resides in Sierra county. He was 
 one of the founders of the Walters Colony in 
 Fresno county. Mrs. Bonner is a member of the 
 Presbyterian Church. Fraternally Mr. Bonner is 
 associated with the Benevolent Protective Or- 
 der of Elks and Native Sons of the Golden-West. 
 He belongs to the Chamber of Commerce and 
 politically is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party. 
 
 NATHAN O. MILLER. About three miles 
 southwest of Le Grand is the grain and stock 
 ranch belonging to N. O. Miller, who is con- 
 ceded by all to be a man worthy of the highest 
 respect and esteem, and the owner of seven 
 hundred and fifty acres of as fine land as may 
 be found in the county. He is a son of Jacob 
 and Mary (Singleton) Miller, both natives of 
 Indiana; the former came to California in 1850 
 with ox-teams. Upon reaching his destination, 
 he went at once to Placer county, where he 
 mined two years, with good success. He re- 
 turned home in 1852, and eight years later re- 
 turned with his family by way of the Isthmus of 
 
1288 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RfeCORD. 
 
 Panama. Landing in San Francisco, they lo- 
 cated first in Santa Clara county, where Jacob 
 Miller purchased one hundred and eighty acres 
 of land, part of which he set out in an orchard, 
 remaining there until his death, at the age of 
 fifty-five years. Surviving him were his wife 
 and seven children, as follows : Sarah ; Stephen 
 J., of Gilroy; Scott, of Eureka; Mrs. Josephine 
 Ross, of Modesto; Alice; Nathan O., and Wil- 
 liam E. ; the mother died in 1901 at the advanced 
 age of seventy-four years. 
 
 Nathan O. Miller was born in Santa Clara 
 county, November 13, 1861. His early educa- 
 tion was received in the common schools, and 
 supplemented by a course in Heald's Business 
 College, in San Francisco, after which he spent 
 three years as foreman of a sugar plantation in 
 the Hawaiian Islands. Returning once more to 
 Santa Clara county he was engaged as an or- 
 chardist for six years, finally trading his prop- 
 erty for the ranch he now owns. By his mar- 
 riage in 1899 he was united with Fanny E. Har- 
 rison, also a native of Santa Clara county, daugh- 
 ter of Eli and Mary (Hobson) Harrison. The 
 former was born in Massachusetts in 1831, a son 
 of James Harrison, an Englishman, Mrs. Har- 
 rison being a native of Illinois. In 1852 Eli Har- 
 rison journeyed from New York by way of the 
 Isthmus to San Francisco, going first to the 
 mines and then to Santa Clara county. He had 
 the distinction of being one of the first orchard- 
 ists to locate in Santa Clara county, and also of 
 being one of the prominent men who had Elm. 
 Rock Park set aside for San Jose. He owned 
 about thirteen hundred acres of land in the San 
 Joaquin valley. He served the Republican par- 
 ty as public administrator. Mr. Miller is a Re- 
 publican who never swerves from the doctrines 
 of that party. He was a member of Palo Alto 
 Parlor, N. S. G. W. 
 
 JOHN C. RORDEN. As president and gen- 
 eral manager of the Selma Land Company, which 
 was incorporated under the laws of the state 
 of California August 3, 1900, with principal 
 place of business in Selma, Fresno county, John 
 C. Rorden is thoroughly conversant upon all 
 the advantages of this section, having been a 
 resident of this immediate vicinity since 1888. 
 He owns one hundred and twenty acres of "land 
 adjacent to Selma on the east, conducts a dairy 
 of fifty head of cattle, has eighty acres in alfalfa, 
 and one hundred acres of rmimproved land 
 near by. 
 
 Born May 28, 1864, in Schleswig, Germany, 
 also the birthplace of his parents, Mr. Rorden is 
 the fourth child born in a family of nine, eight 
 of whom were sons. Flis father, Heinrich F. 
 Rorden, was for many years captain of a sail- 
 
 ing vessel, but spent the latter part of his life 
 in retirement in his native land. He married 
 Tifine D. Jensen, who still survives him, resid- 
 ing in Germany. Acquiring a common school 
 education in Germany, after leaving school Mr. 
 Rorden emulated the example of his father and 
 went to sea. For three years thereafter he was 
 a sailor on the William English, and during 
 this time he made two trips around Cape Horn 
 to Valparaiso, in addition to visiting the princi- 
 pal ports of England, Holland, France and 
 other parts oi Europe. In 1883 he decided to 
 abandon sea life and settle permanently in 
 the United States. Locating in Mendocino 
 county, Cal., he was employed for a brief time 
 in the lumber mills. On account of ill health, 
 he went to the hospital at San Francisco, where 
 he received treatment, and while recuperating 
 engaged as cook in a hotel, subsequently spend- 
 ing one year in the United States laundry of that 
 place. His next place of residence was Vallejo, 
 and during his six months' stay there, he 
 learned the barber's trade and then followed this 
 occupation for some time in San Francisco and 
 in Alameda. Returning to San Francisco in 
 1885 he worked in the Grand Central barber 
 shop in that city for three years, and September 
 28, 1888, he found' a desirable business open- 
 ing in Selma, in Fresno county, and, opening a 
 barber shop in the Whitson hotel, he began busi- 
 ness in his own behalf. He subsequently re- 
 moved his shop to Front street and in connec-' 
 tion, purchased a saloon which he afterward 
 sold, but continued to conduct the shop until 
 1902. 
 
 In October, 1901, Mr. Rorden decided to en- 
 gage in the real estate and insurance business, 
 and at that time he purchased an interest in 
 the Selma Land Company, and has been presi- 
 dent of this company ever since. During the 
 first year of his connection with this firm, over 
 a quarter of a million dollars' worth of land 
 changed hands through its efforts. The com- 
 pany acts as land agent, buying, selling and rent- 
 ing lands, also lending money at lowest rates 
 of interest, making a specialty of looking after 
 town and country property for non-residents. 
 But the main object of the company is to induce 
 homeseekers to settle there, presenting argu- 
 ments to show that in the six townships of choice 
 lands directly tributary to Selma, there is room 
 for a population of fifty thousand people. 
 
 Aside from his interests already mentioned, 
 Mr. Rorden owns considerable stock in the Sel- 
 ma Creamery, in the Farmers' Bank^ of which 
 he is a director, and in the Selma Improvement 
 Company. He is quite active in politics, using 
 both his vote and influence in behalf of the 
 Democratic party. In fraternal circles he is a 
 valued member of the Foresters of America and 
 
iaiSTORICAL AND BIuGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1289 
 
 Woodmen of the World. By his marriage in 
 Selma he was united with Miss Georgia Levis, 
 a Wisconsin lady, and their home is made happ)' 
 by the presence of three children, Dora, Cleo 
 and Helen. 
 
 MRS. ANNIE QUINLAN. Woman's abil- 
 ity to manage important industries is no longer 
 questioned by those who were once skeptical 
 concerning her breadth of mind and the wisdom 
 of her judgment in commercial affairs. As illus- 
 trating the possession of these qualities, mention 
 belongs to Mrs. Annie Quinlan, who has built 
 up a valuable business in the raising of orchard 
 and vineyard supplies. Her homestead is at- 
 tractiyely situated on East avenue, about four 
 and one-half miles from Fresno. The most 
 prominent feature of the place is the modern 
 residence, which is lighted from a gas plant in 
 the house, and supplied with hot and cold water 
 in every room. Surrounding the home, and 
 forming a picturesque environment, may be seen 
 large orchards and vineyards, which during the 
 season are laden with fruits and raisin grapes. 
 
 Mrs. Quinlan .was reared near Hillsboro, 
 Montgomery county. 111., of which her parents, 
 Luke and Margaret (Kealy) Shelly, were early 
 settlers, her father having improved a farm 
 there and engaged in the stock business until 
 his death. The family numbered five sons and 
 five daughters, all of whom attained maturity 
 and five are now living. Two sons are in Aus- 
 tralia, one in St. Louis, and one (Luke) in Fres- 
 no. Mrs. Quinlan was next to the youngest in 
 the family and received such advantages as the 
 district schools afforded. When a young girl 
 she was married in Hillsboro to Michael Quin- 
 lan, who was an employe of the Wabash Rail- 
 road, but after coming to California in 1877 was 
 for seven years a foreman on the Southern Pa- 
 cific road. On resigning in 1884 he bought 
 forty acres on what is now East avenue near 
 Fresno and here built a small frame house. The 
 land was set out in vineyard and orchard, Mrs. 
 Quinlan having personal supervision of all the 
 work. After three years an additional purchase 
 was made, comprising one hundred and forty- 
 five acres at Malaga Station, formerly owned 
 by Colonel Forsythe. Thirty-fiA'e acres of the 
 tract had been put under alfalfa, ten acres were 
 in figs and pears, and one hundred acres in 
 raisins, forming one of the oldest vineyards in 
 Fresno county and one of the most celebrated as 
 well. Few vineyards had yielded as abundantly. 
 In one year seventy-five tons of raisins were 
 shipped, while at other times the harvests had 
 been almost as large. Mrs. Quinlan is also the 
 owner of forty acres on Cedar avenue, which is 
 under cultivation to seedless Sultana raisins, 
 
 olives, walnuts and small fruits. The orchards 
 are cared for under contract and Indians are en- 
 gaged to pick the fruit. In addition she has a 
 number of head of cattle and hogs on her place 
 and has proved as efficient in the care of stock 
 as in the management of her land. 
 
 In the family of Mrs. Quinlan there are eight 
 children, namely: Mamie, Gregory, Sylvan, 
 Cecelia, Margaret, Martin, Thomas and Luke. 
 All have been educated in St. Augustine's Acad- 
 emy. On the organization of St. John's Church 
 Mrs. Quinlan became one of its charter members 
 and has since been a faithful attendant of its 
 services. In national politics she adheres to 
 Democratic principles. Woman's suffrage finds 
 an earnest champion in Mrs. Quinlan, who be- 
 lieves firmly that women who are obliged to pay 
 taxes upon their property should not be subjected 
 to taxation without representation. She keeps 
 in touch with horticulture in all of its branches 
 and holds membership in the Raisin Growers' 
 Association. 
 
 N. ROSENTHAL. The mercantile interests 
 of Madera have an able representative in Mr. 
 Rosenthal, resident member of the firm of Rosen- 
 thal & Kutner. Although a native of Germany, 
 born February 8, 1853, he is a patriotic Ameri- 
 can, and especially loyal to the state of Cali- 
 fornia, where he has made his home since 1876, 
 and where he has gained a host of warm personal 
 friends. The foundation of his present knowledge 
 of the dry goods business was gained through 
 an apprenticeship of three years to the trade, 
 and at the expiration of his time he worked in 
 different parts of his native land. During the 
 year 1876 he arrived in California and coming to 
 Fresno, entered the employ of Kutner, Goldstein 
 & Co., with whom he remained about twelve 
 months. At the expiration of that period he went 
 into business for himself in the same town, 
 opening a cigar and tobacco store. In 1879 he 
 established himself in business in Phoenix, Ariz., 
 where he conducted a general mercantile store. 
 However, while engaged in business there, he still 
 considered California his home state, and in 1886 
 disposed of his Arizona interests, since which 
 time he has resided in Madera. 
 
 Shortly after the fire of 1886 Mr. Rosen- 
 thal built a small frame store room and in it he 
 inaugurated a mercantile business. At first his 
 stock of goods was small, but as his sales in- 
 creased he enlarged the stock to meet the de- 
 mands of the trade. On the corner of Yosemite 
 and D streets he erected a two-story structure, 
 30x80 feet in dimensions, which was one of the 
 first brick stores in the city. This has since been 
 enlarged, so that it gives an area of 30x100 feet 
 for the accommodation of the stock of general 
 
1290 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 merchandise. However, after a time even the 
 increased space proved insufficient, and he then 
 bought out the dry goods store of Sweet & Co., 
 a few doors below the old stand, and moved his 
 merchandise to the new quarters, where he car- 
 ries a full line of dry goods and clothing. In 
 the older building he has a full equipment of 
 groceries, hardware and furniture. Since 1885 
 the business has been conducted under the firm 
 title of Rosenthal & Kutner, his partner being J. 
 Kutner, who has charge of the San Francisco of- 
 fice and resides in that city. 
 
 On the organization of the Commercial Bank 
 of Madera Mr. Rosenthal became one of its char- 
 ter stockholders and has since served upon its 
 board of directors. Included in his other inter- 
 ests is the ownership of thirty-eight acres in the 
 heart of Madera, consisting of three hundred lots, 
 and all the buildings formerly owned by the old 
 Madera Flume and Trading Company, among 
 these buildings being a sash and door factory, 
 170x300 feet, operated by Watkins & Thurman. 
 Since the organization of the board of fire com- 
 missioners of Madera he has held the office of 
 clerk and been very active in its workings. He 
 is a member' of the Madera Chamber of Com- 
 merce and an enthusiastic supporter of all enter- 
 prises for the benefit of the city. In politics he 
 votes with the Republican party. While in Phoe- 
 nix he was made a Mason and is now connected 
 with Madera Lodge No. 280, F. & A. M., Fres- 
 no Chapter No. 69, R. A. M., and the Order of 
 the Eastern Star. His marriage united him with 
 Hattie Price, who was born and reared in San 
 Francisco and is the daughter of a pioneer fam- 
 ily of that city. Their only child, Thekla Rosen- 
 thal, is a graduate of Miss Hamlin's Seminary in 
 San Francisco. 
 
 JOSEPH Y. NELSON. A successful and 
 highly respected citizen of Fresno county is 
 Joseph Y. Nelson, who, sixteen years ago, be- 
 came the owner of his present ranch, which con- 
 sists of forty acres of as good land as the sec- 
 tion affords. The family which is represented 
 by Mr. Nelson in California has long been con- 
 nected with the agricultural interests of Essex 
 county, Mass., where father and grandfather, 
 both named Daniel, were born, lived and died. 
 The father married Mary Hoyt, also a native 
 of that section. 
 
 Born June 22, 1849, i^i Essex county, Mass., 
 Joseph Y. Nelson was reared to manhood upon 
 the paternal farm, his inheritance of the thrifty 
 qualities of the New Englander being added to 
 by years of practical training. In 1876 he came 
 to California, locating in Yolo county, where he 
 carried on farming for two years. He then 
 went north to Oregon and followed the same 
 
 pursuits in eastern Oregon from 1879 to 1882. 
 The following year he once more located in 
 California, then becoming a resident of Fresno 
 county. A few years later he purchased his 
 present property of forty acres and with the 
 passing years has brought it to a high' state of 
 cultivation, twenty-five acres being given over 
 to the cultivation of wine and raisin grapes, 
 while the remainder is devoted to orchard and 
 general farming pursuits. He has made a suc- 
 cess of his work and is known throughout as 
 a man of ideas, practical methods and an enter- 
 prising spirit. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Nelson occurred in Yolo 
 county in 1877 and united him with Alice Crea- 
 son, of Missouri. They are the parents of two 
 children, Frank and Aimee. In his political con- 
 victions Mr. Nelson adheres to the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party. 
 
 MARION M. VINCENT. One of the enter- 
 prising and progressive business men of Merced 
 is M. M. Vincent, who is carrying on a sub- 
 stantial business as a blacksmith and carriage 
 manufacturer. A man of energy and capability, 
 he has won acknowledged success in his indus- 
 trial efforts, and stands high among the esteemed 
 and respected residents of the city. He was born 
 September 27, 1861, on Flores, the most western 
 of the Azores, on which his parents, John and 
 Mary Isabelle Vincent, spent their entire lives, 
 being employed in agricultural pursuits. He is 
 the secorid child in succession of birth of a fam- 
 ily of six children, of whom five are living, all 
 being residents of California. 
 
 Coming to Tuolumne county, Cal., in 1871, 
 when but ten years old, M. M. Vincent com- 
 pleted his early education in the public schools, 
 and subsequently worked as a farm laborer in 
 that county until 1888. Locating then in Selma, 
 he served an apprenticeship of three years at the 
 trades of carriage-maker and blacksmith, and 
 then started in business on his own account, re- 
 maining there until 1897. In that year, Mr. Vin- 
 cent removed to Merced, and has since been 
 actively identified with its industrial prosperity. 
 Buying out the Jack Richards plant, he has 
 greatly enlarged it, having now a separate black- 
 smith shop and carriage manufactory, and has 
 built up an extensive and remunerative business. 
 In his shops he has machinery of the most modern 
 approved patterns, including saws and planes of 
 various makes and styles, and in his smithy has 
 installed a George Barcus horse-shoer for hold- 
 ing fractious horses. He has also a gasoline en- 
 gine of eight horse-power, and a Henderson pat- 
 ent cold-tire setter. Among his manufactures of 
 importance are wagons, carriages, plows, har- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1293 
 
 fows, etc. Mr. Vincent also deals largely in 
 agricultural implements, representing Porteous, 
 of Fresno, and Thompson & Diggs, of Sacra- 
 mento, and many eastern manufacturers. In the 
 sale of gasoline engines and pumping plants, he 
 represents the Samson Iron Works, of Stockton. 
 In Selma, this state, Mr. Vincent married 
 Emma M. Wasgatt, who was born and brought 
 up in Maine. In fraternal organizations Mr. 
 Vincent is active and prominent, being ofiEcially 
 identified with a number of secret societies, 
 namely : the Woodmen of the World, of which he 
 is past consul; the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, of which he is past grand; of the En- 
 campment; and of the Knights of Pythias, of 
 which he is a past officer. He is a Prohibitionist 
 in politics, and belongs to the Cumberland Pres- 
 byterian Church, in which he is a deacon. 
 
 ISAAC NEWTON EARLIER. In the above- 
 named gentleman we find the founder of Earlier 
 and one of the most substantial citizens of the 
 county. A native of Illinois, he was born in 
 Washington county, October 22, 1842, a son of 
 Isaac and Catherine (Hall) Parlier, both of 
 whom are now deceased. The father was born 
 in Georgia, but on reaching man's estate he 
 moved to Illinois, locating in Washington coun- 
 ty, where he engaged in general farming. Later 
 he went to Belleville, the same state, where for 
 several years, or until his death, he was inter- 
 ested in the flour milling business. His wife, a 
 native of Alabama, came to California and died 
 here at the home of her son. By her marriage 
 with Mr. Parlier she became the mother of six 
 children, only two of whom are now living, Isaac 
 N. and Allen, the latter residing in Los An- 
 geles. 
 
 Isaac N. Parlier was but a youth when his 
 father died, so he was unable to secure much of 
 an education, as he was compelled to assist in 
 the work of the farm. In the fall of 1873 he came 
 to California, locating in Stanislaus county, 
 where he rented land and engaged in farming. 
 Three years later, in the fall of 1876, he dis- 
 posed of his interests there and settled in what 
 is now Parlier, homesteading one hundred and 
 sixty acres and also purchasing railroad lands 
 and four hundred acres of desert. On a portion 
 of this land Parlier now stands, he having laid 
 out and named the town. The year after coming 
 here Mr. Parlier was foreman of the Center- 
 ville and Kingsburg Irrigation ditch, assisting 
 in the construction of the main ditch, and for 
 many years was president of the company, but of 
 late years he has practically devoted his entire 
 time to general farming and stock-raising. Eigh- 
 ty acres of his farm are devoted to a vineyard, 
 one of the finest in the county. Aside from his 
 
 other interests, in company with Mr. Hayhurst, 
 he operated a general store in Parlier for sev- 
 eral years with success. On coming to Califor- 
 nia he was a stranger without money or influence, 
 but by industry and frugality he has accumu- 
 lated a handsome competency. He practically 
 built up the town of Parlier and has been at the 
 head of nearly every enterprise calculated to be 
 of material benefit to the community. 
 
 In Illinois Mr. Parlier was united in marriage 
 with Mary Laird, who has become the mother of 
 nine children, as follows : Eliza Catherine, now 
 Mrs. David Fett; Charles Allen; Carrie Ann, 
 now Mrs. John Thomas ; George W. ; Nora, now 
 Mrs. Osterhout; William W., of Reedley; J. 
 Bert; Mary Ada, and Lula Grace. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Parlier is a member of the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, being asso- 
 ciated with the lodge at Modesto, and also be- 
 longs to the Ancient Order of United Workmen, 
 of Fresno. In politics a Democrat, he is deeply 
 interested in the welfare of his party, but has 
 never cared to take an active part in public af- 
 fairs, preferring rather to devote his time and 
 attention to his own and to the interests of the 
 town where he has made his home for so many 
 years. The only public office he has ever held is 
 that of postmaster, being the present incum- 
 bent. 
 
 ROBERT D. HANNAH. Numbered among 
 the respected residents of Merced is Robert D. 
 Hannah, who, as proprietor of an up-to-date liv- 
 ery stable, is carrying on a thriving business. 
 Possessing an unlimited stock of energy and per- 
 severance, he has labored with untiring diligence 
 since beginning life's battle on his own account, 
 and by industry and good management has met 
 with marked success in his undertakings. A son 
 of J. M. Hannah, he was born, November 28, 
 1853, in Randolph county. Mo. His grandfather, 
 Robert Hannah, was born and reared in Tennes- 
 see, but in early life followed the march of civ- 
 ilization westward, becoming a pioneer settler of 
 Randolph county. Mo. He was a man of great 
 honesty and affability, well liked and popular in 
 the community, and was familiarly known to 
 both old and young as "Uncle Bobby." 
 
 A native of Tennessee, J. M. Hannah lived 
 there until a boy of thirteen years, and then went 
 with his parents to Missouri, where he assisted 
 his father in the pioneer labor incident to clearing 
 a farm. On beginning life for himself, he was 
 employed in tilling the soil in Randolph county, 
 but subsequently engaged in general farming in 
 Macon county, Mo. In 1870 he migrated with 
 his family to California, and the following spring 
 located in Merced county, buying one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land on Dry creek. Afterward 
 
1294 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 removing to a farm on Merced river, he was there 
 employed in agricultural pursuits until his death, 
 in 1886. He married Sarah J. Peeler, the daugh- 
 ter of John Peeler, a Missouri farmer, and she is 
 now a resident of Merced. Of the thirteen chil- 
 dren born of their union, eight grew to years 
 of maturity, and six are living. 
 
 The third child in order of birth of the pa- 
 rental household, R. D. Hannah was educated in 
 the district schools of his native state, and while 
 young became familiarly versed in the various 
 branches of agriculture, his father proving an apt 
 instructor. Locating in Merced county in the 
 spring of 1 87 1, he followed farming on the home 
 ranch for several years. Taking up his residence 
 in Merced in 1889, Mr. Hannah purchased an 
 eight-horse team and four wagons, and for eight 
 years was employed in teaming and freighting be- 
 tween that citv and Mariposa. Starting in the 
 livery business' m July, 1897, Mr. Hannah was 
 located on Main street for five years, and was 
 quite successful in his operations. Removing to 
 the corner of Alameda and Eighteenth streets in 
 1902, he took possession of the fine new stable 
 which he had erected, and has here continued the 
 business with excellent results. The stable is 80 
 x8o feet, containing fifty-six stalls, and is well 
 furnished and equipped. Mr. Hannah has ac- 
 cumulated a good property, and built an attrac- 
 tive residence in the city. 
 
 In Merced, CaL, Mr. Hannah married Fannie 
 D. Daniel, a native of Macon county. Mo., and 
 they have four children, namely : Luther Daniel, 
 Elbert Lee, Zella Lou and Homer Reuben. Po- 
 litically Mr. Hannah is an adherent of the Demo- 
 cratic party, and fraternally he belongs to Snell- 
 ing Lodge No. 121, I. O. O. F., of which he is 
 past grand. Mrs. Hannah is a member of the 
 Cumberland Presbyterian Church. 
 
 CURTIS T. FORREST. Numbered among 
 the successful young ranchers of Merced county 
 is Curtis T. Forrest, who is located three miles 
 southeast of Le Grand and engaged in the culti- 
 vation and improvement of two thousand acres 
 of land. This property he has accumulated since 
 coming to this location in 1903. Since that time 
 devoting his attention to the raising of wheat, 
 barley, cattle and hogs, his financial success is 
 the result of painstaking and methodical effort 
 and the ability to execute as well as plan. Born 
 in Oakland, Cal., December 4, 1879, he is a son 
 of Curtis T. and Flora J. (Stocker) Forrest, 
 both pioneers of California. 
 
 His father, Curtis T. Forrest, had four chil- 
 dren, all of whom were born in Oakland : Curtis 
 T. ; Flora, wife of Charles Anderson of San 
 Francisco ; Bessie S., and Newell. The father 
 died in 1891, aged about sixty years. His widow 
 
 survives him, and married J. W. Stevens of San 
 Francisco. They now make their home in Oak- 
 land. 
 
 Curtis T. Forrest was reared in his home in 
 Oakland, and after receiving a preliminary edu- 
 cation in the public schools of that city entered 
 Stanford University, where he completed a 
 course calculated to prove of material benefit in 
 whatever line he should attempt for his life- 
 work. He came to Merced county to look after 
 his own and the property interests of the fam- 
 ily, and has since been engaged in farming. 
 
 RIENHOLD H. G. KAEHLER. Many of 
 the thrifty and enterprising residents of Merced 
 county are of foreign birth and breeding, who 
 have brought from their homes across the sea 
 those habits of industry and energetic persever- 
 ance that have won them success in their under- 
 takings. Prominent among this number is Rien- 
 hold H. G. Kaehler, a well-known and prosperous 
 business man of the city of Merced. A son of 
 George Kaehler, he was born, June 9, 1862, in 
 Kiel, Prussia, which was likewise his father's 
 birthplace. 
 
 A machinist by trade, George Kaehler was for 
 many years master mechanic of a manufacturing 
 establishment in the Fatherland. As a soldier in 
 the Danish army, he was in active service dur- 
 ing the Revolution of 1848. Immigrating to 
 this country, he settled in California, and is now 
 a resident of Merced. He married Josepha Ferdi- 
 nand, a native of Silesia, Prussia, and they have 
 three children living, namely : George, a whole- 
 sale dealer of liquors, in Fresno ; Rienhold H. G., 
 the subject of this review; and Max, of Los 
 Banos. 
 
 Endowed with excellent mental ability, Rien- 
 hold H. G. Kaehler obtained a good education in 
 his native city, and at the age of fourteen years 
 began learning the trade of manufacturing and 
 distilling liquors, at which he served an appren- 
 ticeship of four years. Shipping then as purser 
 on the Chinese cruiser Nankin, he sailed through 
 the Chinese waters, and along the coast of Japan, 
 visiting ports of both countries. Coming to San 
 Francisco in 1884, Mr. Kaehler was employed as 
 a clerk' in that city for awhile, and then went 
 to Seattle, Wash., as manager for the firm of 
 "VA^alter Brothers & Co. Returning to San Fran- 
 cisco, he remained there two years. Locating in 
 Merced in March, 1888, he established a whole- 
 sale liquor business, representing the Rainier beer 
 in Merced county for the Seattle Brewing Com- 
 pany, and being agent for the James D. Pepper 
 whiskey. Mr. Kaehler has acquired a large prop- 
 erty in this locality. He has built several busi- 
 ness houses, but has disposed of all excepting a 
 brick store building, 25x95 feet. He likewise 
 
HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 1295 
 
 erected a number of residences as an investment 
 for his money, and of these he has sold all ex- 
 cepting the one in which he now lives. Pur- 
 chasing land in this vicinity, he improved it, set- 
 ting out an orchard of twenty acres, and this, 
 likewise, he sold at an advantage. 
 
 Mr. Kaehler married, in San Francisco, 
 Blanche Wallinfels, a native of that city, and 
 they have two children, namely : Rienhold and 
 Norman. Fraternally Mr. Kaehler is a member 
 of the Druids and of the Foresters. Politically 
 he is a Democrat. 
 
 CHARLES E. JOHNSTON, M. D. Since 
 his location in Visalia, February, 1899, Dr. C. E. 
 Johnston has risen to a -place of prominence 
 among the physicians of the city and won the 
 commendation of all who have had occasion for 
 his services. He is a physician of the physio- 
 medical school, having graduated from an insti- 
 tution of this character in Indianapolis, Ind., in 
 1896, with the degree of doctor of medicine, 
 after which he was variously located until his 
 settlement in Visalia. 
 
 The family of which Dr. Johnston is a mem- 
 ber belongs to the old southern family of John- 
 stons, represented in the Confederate army by 
 Gen. Joseph Johnston. Mathias Johnston was 
 a native of. Scotland who, upon his immigration 
 to America, settled in Maryland, later removing 
 to Delaware, thence to Ohio, where he engaged 
 as a farmer until his death at the age of one 
 hundred and one years. He was a patriot and 
 served in the Revolutionary war. In his family 
 was a son, Joseph C. Johnston, who became a 
 farmer in Ohio, later removing to Missouri, 
 where he followed the same occupation. Inherit- 
 ing from his patriotic father a stanch love for 
 the Union he remained loyal in a state of much 
 ■ disaffection. He was a strong Union man and 
 a member of the Missouri State Militia. He 
 made his home in Missouri until his death, which 
 occurred at the age of eighty-two years and 
 seven months. He married Paulina McCauUy, 
 a native of Tennessee and daughter of John Mc- 
 Caully, also a native of that state and a descend- 
 ant of Scotch-Irish ancestry. He died in Ten- 
 nessee at an advanced age. Mr. Johnston died 
 in Missouri, leaving a family of five sons, of 
 whom four live in California : James L., a re- 
 tired physician of Los Angeles ; Samuel W., a 
 bridge contractor of Los Angeles ; Clark F., a 
 merchant of Stockton; and C. E., the subject of 
 this review, who was born February 8, 1869, in 
 Russellville, Mo. 
 
 The youngest in his father's family, C. E. John- 
 ston was reared on the paternal farm, attending 
 the public schools while he received practical 
 training which has left its impress upon his 
 
 character. He remained at home until attain- 
 ing the age of nineteen years, entering, in 1889, 
 Hooper Institute, in Clarksburg, Moniteau 
 county. Mo., where he took a literary course. 
 Deciding to enter the professional ranks he then 
 became a student in the Physio-Medical College, 
 at IndianapoHs, Ind., from which institution he 
 was graduated in 1896. He began the practice 
 of his profession with Dr. T. J. Martin, in Lewis- 
 port, Ky., remaining in this connection for one 
 year, when he located in the city of his birth 
 for a like period. In 1898 he came to California 
 and in Los Angeles engaged in medical practice 
 with his brother for a short time, following this 
 with a removal in February, 1899, to Visalia, 
 where he has since resided. He has made a suc- 
 cess of 'his work since locating here, having 
 built up an extensive general practice, while he 
 gives much of his time and attention to chronic 
 diseases, making a specialty of this line. 
 
 In Indianapolis Dr. Johnston married May 
 Crompton, a native of that city, and born of this 
 union is one daughter, Madge. Fraternally Dr. 
 Johnston belongs to the Knights of Pythias Uni- 
 formed Rank, and the Foresters, Fraternal Aid, 
 Fraternal Brotherhood, Order of Lions and Or- 
 der of Pendo. He is a member and trustee of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church, and politically 
 is an active Republican. 
 
 OLE JOHN OLSEN. Many hundreds of 
 miles from his native Norway, where he was 
 born November 12, 1865, Ole John Olsen has 
 found unsuspected opportunities, and has well ap- 
 plied the useful and practical abilities with which 
 his countrymen are generally endowed. His farm 
 of one hundred acres three and a half miles north 
 of Newman has not been won without much of 
 struggle and deprivation, but his occupancy of 
 the same since 1900 has proved him to be a 
 conscientious and progressive farmer, saving al- 
 ways more than he spends, and looking forward 
 to increasing his landed possessions. Half of 
 his farm is under alfalfa and wild grass, and he is 
 maintaining a dairy of thirty-five cows, and en- 
 gaging in alfalfa raising and general farming. 
 
 Mr. Olsen's father, named Ole, followed the 
 occupation in which his son is engaged, but 
 never wandered from his shut-in and limited hori- 
 zon. His ancestors had been born in Norway, 
 and to him its mountains and fjords were objects 
 of endless delight. He gave his son a practical 
 common school education, and trained him in all 
 that had to do with the successful operation of a 
 farm in -the lowlands. The young man was 
 twenty-four years old when he stepped from the 
 gang-plank of his steamer in New York, and 
 thereafter he worked as a laborer in the me- 
 tropolis until 1890, in which year he came to 
 
1296 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 San Francisco, securing employment on a ranch 
 along the Merced river. Six months later he 
 went to Yolo county and there spent the summer, 
 locating in the fall of 1892 near Crows Land- 
 ing, where he worked on ranches until 1900. He 
 then purchased his present place of one hundred 
 acres, where, as heretofore stated, he lives alone, 
 with the exception of the help required to run 
 his dairy. Mr. Olsen is a Democrat in politics, 
 and is connected with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. He is a steady, thorough going 
 rancher, thrifty as regards expenditures, and an 
 example of unflagging industry. In his neigh- 
 borhood he is esteemed for his honesty and fair 
 business dealings, and for his strict attention to 
 his farm, his dairy and the general responsi- 
 bilities which surround him in his adopted state. 
 He is fortunate in having many of his country- 
 men as neighbors, and in having learned so quick- 
 ly and well the language of his foster country. 
 
 ALVA E. SNOW. A man of sterling quali- 
 ties, and a lawyer of ability and skill, Alva E. 
 Snow is a citizen of prominence and influence, 
 who for four years rendered excellent service as 
 district attorney of Fresno county. He comes of 
 distinguished stock, being a Mayflower descend- 
 ant, and the representative of one of the most 
 ancient and honored families of New England. 
 His immigrant ancestor on the paternal side was 
 Nicholas Snow, who came from England to 
 America, and married, at Plymouth, Mass., prior 
 to June I, 1627, Constance Hopkins, who came 
 over with her father, Stephen Hopkins, on the 
 Mayflower in 1620. Nicholas Snow died in East- 
 ham, Mass., November 25, 1676. His descend- 
 ants were for many generations active in the 
 management of the public affairs of Plymouth 
 county, Mass., which was the birthplace of Mr. 
 Snow, and of his father, the late Harvey Snow. 
 Capt. Prince Snow, Mr. Snow's grandfather, was 
 born, and Hved and died in Plymouth county. He 
 was a seafaring man, and was also engaged to 
 some extent in agricultural pursuits. 
 
 Succeeding to the occupation in which he was 
 reared, Harvey Snow was a New England 
 farmer, and was likewise employed in mercantile 
 pursuits in Mattapoisett, Plymouth county, 
 Mass., where he reared his family. He died at 
 the age of sixty-five years. He was held in high 
 respect as a man and a citizen, and served as 
 selectman, and as school trustee. He was liberal 
 in his religious beliefs, and a member of the Uni- 
 versalist Church. In politics he was a Repub- 
 lican. His wife, whose maiden name was Mar- 
 ron, was born near Sheffield, England, and now 
 resides in Fresno, with her son Alva, the eldest 
 and only surviving child of her family of three 
 girls and one boy. 
 
 Born October 13, 1861, Alva E. Snow was 
 brought up in Plymouth county, Mass., obtain- 
 ing his early education in the grammar and high 
 schools of Mattapoisett, and at the Taber Acad- 
 emy, in Marion, Mass. After his graduation 
 from Tufts College in 1887, with the degree of 
 A. B., he entered the Harvard Law School, and in 
 1889 was admitted to the Massachusetts bar. 
 Coming immediately to California, Mr. Snow 
 settled in San Francisco, where for about eighteen 
 months he was with the firm of Herman & Soto, 
 attorneys-at-law. Locating in Fresno January i, 
 1891, he practiced his profession two years, and 
 then served two years as deputy district attorney 
 under Firman Church. The Republican nominee 
 for district attorney in the fall of 1894, Mr. Snow 
 was elected for a term of four years, having the 
 distinction of being the first Republican district 
 attorney of Fresno county. Taking the oath of 
 office in January, 1895, he served until January, 
 1899, at the same time being in partnership with 
 G. C. Freman as head of ^the law firm of Snow 
 & Freman. As deputy district attorney Mr. Snow 
 succeeded in convicting the train robbers, Chris 
 Evans and his partner Sontag, securing life im- 
 prisonment, and also conducted the prosecution 
 of Sanders, the noted forger. He was successful 
 as district attorney, having conducted several 
 cases of importance, and established an enviable 
 reputation as an able prosecutor. He is now 
 busily engaged in a general practice of the law, 
 having an extensive and lucrative patronage. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Snow married Dora P. Colson, 
 who was born and bred in Plymouth county, 
 Mass., where her father, Owen D. Colson, was 
 a well-known merchant. In 1903 Mr. and Mrs. 
 Snow revisited their old New England home, 
 and afterward made a trip to England and the 
 continent, traveling throughout Europe. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Snow was made a Mason in Marion, 
 Mass., and is now a member of Fresno Lodge No. 
 274, F & A. M.; and of the Benevolent Pro- 
 tective Order of Elks, in which he is a past 
 officer. He likewise belongs to the County Bar 
 Association. Politically he is a straightforward 
 Republican. Mrs. Snow is a member of the Con- 
 gregational Church. 
 
 HARRY W. R. THORNTON. One of the 
 successful, interesting and well-posted business 
 men of the Los Banos district, and whose pio- 
 neer experiences embrace practically all of the 
 phases which made of the early days of Cali- 
 fornia a picturesque and unusual addition to the 
 world's history, is Harry W. R. Thornton, a 
 pioneer of 1852, and known as a successful 
 miner, stage-route driver and manager, hotel 
 proprietor and general rancher. Mr. Thornton 
 was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, June 6, 1839. 
 
[ if W^ollt.uxA'Vi^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1299 
 
 In 1845 he accompanied his family to Burling- 
 ton, Iowa, and in 1848 removed to Knox coun- 
 ty, 111. His trip across the plains with horse- 
 teams in 1852 was a welcome diversion in a life 
 hitherto devoid of any particular promise, and 
 once in California, a creditable ambition led 
 him to visit practically all the large mining cen- 
 ters, which, however, failed to net him expected 
 gains. His experiences in these communities all 
 through the northwest were ofttimes startling 
 and always impressive. 
 
 Mr. Thornton's interest in mining ceased in 
 1869, and the following year he went to the 
 South Sea Islands, returning to California and 
 Gilroy in the fall of 1870. In 1876 he undertook 
 the management of the old Hotel Los Banos, at 
 Los Banos. When the new brick Hotel Los 
 Banos was completed by Miller & Lux, he 
 leased the same and conducted it with signal 
 success from 1891 until June, 1903. Selling out 
 and retiring from the hotel business, he devotes 
 his energies to the improvement of his three 
 thousand acres of land in the vicinity of Los 
 Banos, part of which is under irrigation. He 
 also owns property in Volta, and has bought 
 and sold lands in different parts of the county. 
 His land is devoted chiefly to raising alfalfa and 
 stock, and his improvements are modern. Mr. 
 Thornton possesses to a marked degree the char- 
 acteristics which insure popularity, confidence 
 and influence, and his successful financial under- 
 takings bespeak a broad knowledge of the rules 
 and amenities of business life. He is a Repub- 
 lican in politics, and though never active from 
 the standpoint of office-seeking, takes a keen in- 
 terest in the political ambitions of his friends, in 
 good government, and the best possible educa- 
 tional advantages. He married in San Jose, 
 in 1876, Jane Potter. 
 
 SAMUEL FRANCIS DICKENSON. The 
 pioneer experiences of the past years of Califor- 
 nia have formed a large part of the life of Sam- 
 uel Francis Dickenson, an esteemed resident of 
 Fresno county, being located on a ranch of one 
 hundred and sixty acres in the vicinity of Con- 
 ejo. He was born in Jackson countv, Mo., March 
 13, 1837, a son of Gallant D. Dickenson, who' 
 was born in Tennessee and reared in Virginia. 
 In young manhood he returned to Tennessee, 
 where he was married in 1828, and in 1832 lo- 
 cated in Jackson county. Mo., and engaged in 
 farming and stock-raising. Deciding to become 
 a pioneer in the more remote west, he came to 
 California in 1846, crossing the plains by means 
 of ox-teams. They left Missouri in April and 
 arrived in California in September. Mr. Dick- 
 enson located in Monterey, where he engaged 
 in the lumber business, the following year mak- 
 
 ing the first brick ever made in CaHfornia, which 
 was used in the construction of the Dickenson 
 home, which is still standing in Monterey. In 
 June, 1848, Mr. Dickenson went to the Dry Dig- 
 gings, now Coloma, Cal., and mined until Octo- 
 ber of the same year, when he engaged in mining 
 at Mokelumne Hill. The following year he lo- 
 cated in Stockton, San Joaquin county, where he 
 purchased property and engaged in real estate 
 operations, the renting of property and loaning 
 of money, having brought away with him from 
 Mokelumne Hill five hundred pounds of gold. In 
 185 1 he removed to Tuolumne river, at Dick- 
 enson ferry, which was named for him, and 
 there followed farming until his death in 1869, 
 at the age of sixty-three years. His wife, for- 
 merly Isabelle McCreary, a native of Tennessee, 
 died in San Jose in 1877. They were the par- 
 ents of four sons and two daughters, of whom 
 Samuel Francis Dickenson was the fifth in order 
 of birth. 
 
 A rather limited education was received by 
 Samuel F. Dickenson through an attendance of 
 the common schools in the vicinity of his home, 
 after which he engaged in the raising of stock, 
 locating in 1856 in the vicinity of Snelling, Mer- 
 ced county. He engaged in loaning money an'3 
 speculating until 1868, when, on account of the 
 dry weather, he removed to the mountains with 
 some stock he owned, the greater portion of 
 which he lost. On his return to the San Joaquin 
 valley he found employment on various ranches 
 for nine months, after which he engaged in the 
 cattle business with a partner, J. T. Stockard. 
 Two years later he sold out with a profit of 
 $40,060. With the proceeds he bought the Bear- 
 field farm of four hundred acres on the Merced 
 river, but the death of his partner induced him 
 to dispose of his interests to the widow. He 
 then loaned his money for a time, and about 
 1871 purchased nineteen hundred and twenty 
 acres on Mariposa creek, twenty miles east of 
 the city of Merced, where he engaged in sheep 
 raising and farming until 1883. He disposed of 
 this property, but continued to follow the sheep 
 business while he made his home in Merced. In 
 1885 he located in Fresno county, purchasing 
 his present property, which consists of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, where he carries on prin- 
 cipally the interests of an extensive dairy. He 
 is interested in the Co-operative Creamery and 
 takes a keen interest in all that tends toward the 
 development of the country. 
 
 In Sacramento, March 24, 1870, Mr. Dicken- 
 son was united in marriage with Laura Bur- 
 ton, who was born in Missouri October 20, 1848. 
 Her father. Major Charles Burton (who won his 
 title during the Indian wars), was a native of 
 Virginia and removed to Kentucky and thence 
 to Missouri, in the vicinity of Paris engaging in 
 
1300 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 farming and stock-raising. In 1854 he crossed 
 the plains with ox-teams, and in the same year re- 
 turned to Missouri. Five years later he drove 
 cattle to California and upon his safe arrival lo- 
 cated in Sacramento county, where his death 
 occurred. His wife, formerly Lucy Nelson, was 
 a native of Virginia and a direct descendant 
 of Thomas Nelson, a signer of the Declaration 
 of Independence. She also died in Sacramento 
 county. Mr. and Mrs. Dickenson have one son, 
 Clarence F., who was born March 12, 1871. He 
 was educated in the medical department of the 
 University of California, from which he was 
 graduated in 1894, with the degree of M. D. He 
 has since become a surgeon of prominence, in 
 1900 accepting the position of assistant surgeon 
 and being sent to the Philippine Islands. He 
 is now at home on a leave of absence. He also 
 went to the Kadiak Islands, Alaska, for the Al- 
 aska Commercial Company as surgeon, on the 
 C. G. White schooner, was wrecked off Wood isl- 
 and, Alaska, in a freezing gale, in April, 1895, 
 and the members of the crew were frozen nine 
 days before they were rescued. Without the nec- 
 essary instruments for the work. Dr. Dickenson 
 was compelled to use such as could be manu- 
 factured for him by a blacksmith, amputating 
 limbs, etc. Out of the eleven he lost but one 
 man, the papers recounting vividly the heroism 
 as well as the skill of the brave surgeon. Mr. 
 Dickenson is associated fraternally with the Ma- 
 sons, being a member of Merced Lodge, F. & 
 A. M., of Merced, and Merced Chapter No. 12, 
 R. A. M., of the same place. Politically he is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 JOHN H. FIELD. Among the leading hor- 
 ticulturists of Madera county John H. Field is 
 given a prominent position. He was born in Co- 
 lumbia, Mo., February 14, 1856, a son of John H. 
 Field, Sr., a native of Richmond, Ky., who left 
 the familiar scenes of his young manhood and lo- 
 cated in Missouri, where he became prominent as 
 a farmer and stockman and as a merchant in the 
 town of Columbia. He died near Mexico at the 
 age of fifty-seven years. He was connected with 
 the Hardin family on the maternal side, an old 
 family of Virginia. John H. Field, Sr., mar- 
 ried Frances Provines, a native of Kentucky and 
 a sister of Judge R. R. Provines, a pioneer of San 
 Francisco. 
 
 Educated in the common schools of Columbia, 
 Mo., John H. Field later took a course in the state 
 university and was graduated in 1877. Having 
 received special training as a surveyor and civil 
 engineer he followed that line of work for fif- 
 teen years, five years in the government service on 
 the Mississippi River Commission, and ten years 
 in the employ of various railroads. During the 
 
 time he surveyed on all the principal roads be- 
 tween the two mountain ranges, being located in 
 Colorado after 1879. 
 
 About 189s Mr. Field decided to locate in Cal- 
 ifornia and upon going to Fresno county, he en- 
 tered the employ of E. A. Eliott of Fresno, and 
 in the interest of the latter served as superinten- 
 dent of different ranches throughout that section. 
 In 1904 he purchased forty acres on the Green 
 section, one and one-half miles south of Madera, 
 which he is preparing to put into fruit and alfalfa 
 and making other improvements for a home 
 place. By his marriage, Mr. Field was united 
 with Ida Lee Price, a daughter of R. Price, and 
 of this union two children, Marie and Price, have 
 been born. In his political opinions, Mr. Field 
 allies himself with the Democratic party. 
 
 CHARLES PAGE. An active and enterpris- 
 ing citizen of Bakersfield, Charles Page is the 
 owner of a well improved ranch in Kern county, 
 and was for many years successfully identified 
 with the agricultural interests of this section of 
 the state. Moving to this city when his children 
 were young, that they might have good educa- 
 tional advantages, he has since resided here, and 
 is now night watchman in the Bakersfield Iron 
 Works. The descendant of an old New England 
 family, he was born August 11, 1843, i" 01^- 
 town, near Bangor, Me., which was the birth- 
 place of both his parents. 
 
 Like many boys brought up near the coast, 
 Charles Page had a great desire to go to sea, 
 and at the age of fourteen years ran away from 
 home in order to accomplish his desire. Ship- 
 ping as cabin-boy on a vessel bound for the Pa- 
 cific coast, he sailed around Cape Horn to San 
 Francisco, where he arrived in 1857. Soon after 
 landing he found an old friend of his father's, 
 and this friend made him driver of a wagon 
 carrying supplies to the Fremont mines, in Mari- 
 posa county, a position that he held two years. 
 During the excitement that followed the finding 
 of gold along the Fraser river, he and his friend 
 went there prospecting, and remained there a 
 number of years, being engaged in mining during 
 the summer, and in lumbering during the winter 
 seasons. Returning to California in 1867, Mr. 
 Page rented with his father-in-law a ranch in 
 Monterey county, about four miles from Salinas, 
 but was not successful in its management. Going 
 then to Peachtree valley, in the same county, he 
 took up land, and for seven years was there 
 engaged in raising cattle and horses. The en- 
 suing seven years he was employed in lumbering 
 in Santa Cruz county. Locating in Kern county 
 in 1880, Mr. Page took up a claim of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres in the artesian belt, about 
 thirtv-two miles from Bakersfield, and in the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1301 
 
 three years that he lived on his ranch he did 
 much work in ditching, boring wells, etc., adding 
 improvements of value to the place. Subsequently 
 removing with his family to Bakersfield in order 
 to better educate his children, he has since re- 
 sided there, and has worked much of the time at 
 carpentering. 
 
 In 1867, Mr. Page married Elizabeth Ann Mc- 
 MuUen, a native of Tazewell county. 111., and they 
 are the parents of four children, namely : John 
 C, Edna Davis, Ida and Marion L. Politically 
 Mr. Page is a Republican, and fraternally he 
 belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Feh 
 lows. 
 
 THOMAS RANSOM BREWER. Although 
 a resident of California since 1877, it was not 
 until the spring of 1885 that Mr. Brewer took 
 up his residence permanently in Selma, Fresno 
 county, and at that time he opened a drug store 
 which is first-class and up-to-date in every way, 
 and to this business he has devoted himself as- 
 siduously ever since. In addition to always 
 keeping on hand a line of fresh and pure drugs, 
 he also handles numerous fancy articles, sta- 
 tionery, notions, etc., found in every first-class 
 drug store. It may be said of Mr. Brewer that 
 he is a pharmacist of- unusual ability, and before 
 going into business on his own behalf he received 
 special training in this line of work. His three 
 years' apprenticeship to W. S. McCartney of 
 Selma, and H. H. Brown of Stockton, Cal., was 
 followed by a thorough course in the California 
 College of Pharmacy in the latter place, and he 
 subsequently became a registered pharmacist, 
 being thoroughly competent to fill all prescrip- 
 tions entrusted to him. 
 
 He was born April 28, 1867, in Salem, Dent 
 county, Mo., and his father, James H. Brewer, a 
 native of the same state, conducted a drug store 
 in the above-named city for a number of years. 
 In 1861 he enlisted in Company D, Fifth Mis- 
 souri Cavalry, was later transferred to the For- 
 ty-eighth Infantry, and participated in the great 
 internecine conflict, being mustered out of ser- 
 vice in 1866. He fought a number of notorious 
 characters engaged in guerrilla warfare, among 
 them the James boys and Quantrell. He died 
 in Salem about 1872. By his marriage he was 
 united with Virginia Matthews, a Missouri lady, 
 and three children blessed their union. Of these, 
 the eldest was a son and the two younger were 
 daughters. In 1877, a few years after the death 
 of her husband, Mrs. Brewer and her family 
 came to California. Purchasing eighty acres of 
 railroad land, adjoining the present site of Sel- 
 ma on the northeast, she engaged in farm pur- 
 suits, subsequently planting a vineyard. It was 
 in this vicinity' that she reared her children and 
 
 has lived ever since^ being at the present time a 
 resident of Fresno. 
 
 In his youth Thomas R. Brewer had excep- 
 tional educational advantages. His common 
 school education, gleaned from the common 
 schools of Fresno county, was followed by a 
 complete course in the Stockton Business Col- 
 lege, from which he graduated, entering at once 
 upon his career in the drug business. He was 
 united in marriage with Miss Myrtle H. CuUom, 
 formerly of Arkansas, and they have one child, 
 whom they call Aileen. In fraternal circles, Mr. 
 Brewer affiliates with a number of orders, among 
 them Fresno Lodge No. 439, B. P. O. E. ; Selma 
 Lodge No. 55, K. of P. ; and Woodmen of the 
 World, of Selma. A strict adherent of the Dem- 
 ocratic party, he has filled various positions of 
 trust and is quite active in politics. For eight 
 years he was a member of the city council of 
 Selma, and during this time he served four 
 years as chairman of that honorable body. In 
 1891 he was chosen tax collector for this irriga- 
 tion district, and rendered excellent service. It 
 will readily be seen from the foregoing account 
 that Mr. Brewer occupies a place of prominence 
 among the successful business men of Selma, 
 and is regarded as one of the rising young men 
 of this section. 
 
 JOHN J. KROG. An esteemed business man 
 of Fresno, John J. Krog is associated with the 
 firm of Krog, Lauritzen Company as vice-presi- 
 dent and is an important factor in its upbuilding 
 and development. He is a native of Jutland, 
 Denmark, where he was born December 25, 1861, 
 a son of J. C. Krog. The elder man was also a 
 native of that locality, where his death occurred 
 at the age of fifty-eight years. He engaged in 
 the manufacture of brick as a means of liveli- 
 hood. His wife, formerly Johanna Lund, was 
 a native of the same place, where she also died, 
 at the age of sixty-seven years. They were mem- 
 bers of the Lutheran Church, and highly re-, 
 spected citizens of their native community. Of 
 their seven sons five are now living, the eldest 
 being John J. Krog, of this review. 
 
 Reared in Denmark, John J. Krog received 
 his education in the common schools of that 
 country, which he attended until he was fourteen 
 years old. He was then apprenticed to learn 
 the trade of blacksmith in Alminde, where he 
 remained for four years, then worked as a jour- 
 neyman throughout Denmark. In 1883 he came 
 to America, and June 28 located in Fresno, which 
 had then but thirty-five hundred inhabitants. He 
 engaged at his trade as a journeyman for several 
 ^•ears when he established a shop of his own on 
 inyo street between H and I streets, conducting 
 the same successfully for two years. He then 
 
1302 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 purchased an interest with James Jacobsen on 
 I street and moved his business to that location 
 for two years, when he purchased the entire 
 business and continued alone until May, 1903. In 
 that year he bought an interest with Ahrensberg 
 and Lauritzen and assisted in the incorporation 
 of the H. Ahrensberg Company, which continued 
 for a brief time, when Mr. Ahrensberg retired 
 from the firm. It was then reincorporated un- 
 der the title of Krog, Lauritzen Company, with 
 Mr. Krog as vice-president, and Mr. Lauritzen 
 as president. They have one of the largest manu- 
 factories of carriages, wagons, agricultural imple- 
 ments, etc., in the San Joaquin valley, their place 
 of business being at the corner of H and Fresno 
 streets, where they own a lot 75x150 feet in 
 dimensions. Mr. Krog has also built a resi- 
 dence in the city, which is located at No. 219 
 Magnolia avenue, and also owns a twenty-acre 
 ranch near Reedley. 
 
 In Fresno, Cal., Mr. Krog was united in mar- 
 riage, with Annie Anderson, a native of Copen- 
 hagen, Denmark, and they are the parents of five 
 boys : Jens, Jesse, Alfred, Howard and Walter. 
 Fraternally Mr. Krog is associated with the Roy- 
 al Arcanum, the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, and the Dania Society of California, of 
 which he is past grand president. He is a Luth- 
 eran in religion and politically casts his ballot 
 for the principles advocated in the platform of 
 the Republican party. 
 
 ANDREW KINKADE. In the vicinity of 
 Visalia, Tulare county, is located the ranch of 
 one hundred and sixty acres which was origin- 
 ally entered by Andrew Kinkade, one of the 
 early pioneers of this section. He was born in 
 Missouri September 20, 1824, and in his native 
 state grew to manhood and married in 1848. At- 
 tracted to the west by the manifold opportunities 
 held out to the pioneer, he crossed the plains 
 in 1852 and upon his safe arrival in California 
 located in Sacramento and remained about two 
 years, and then in Pacheco valley, near Martinez, 
 Contra Costa county, where he engaged as a 
 laborer. He remained in that locality until the 
 fall of 1856; then removed to Tulare county and 
 took up a ranch of one hundred and sixty acres 
 located four miles southwest of Visalia.- Upon 
 this property he engaged in the raising of cat- 
 tle, hogs and other stock until his death, which 
 occurred March 28, 1863. He was a successful 
 ranchman and a worthy and esteemed citizen, 
 leaving to his family the inheritance of a good 
 name and a competence won through a right 
 use of opportunities. 
 
 Mr. Kinkade is survived by his wife, formerly 
 Ellen Allnutt, who was born in Montgomery 
 county, Md., near Washington, D. C. Her 
 
 father, George Allnutt, was also a native of 
 Maryland, where he engaged in farming until 
 his removal to Missouri as a pioneer of that 
 state. He located in Boone county, where his 
 death occurred. Two sons were born of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. Kinkade: James Harvey, 
 the eldest, is now located on the home property 
 with his mother, and George died in infancy, 
 while crossing the plains. Since her husband's 
 death Mrs. Kinkade has entered eighty acres 
 adjoining the original property, and also three 
 hundred and twenty acres in the vicinity of 
 Goshen, Tulare county. The entire property is 
 given over to a successful stock business and 
 general farming. 
 
 E. H. HOAR. In the mental attributes of the 
 district attorney of Merced county may be noted 
 the influences of heredity. Members of the Hoar 
 family have always displayed intellectual gifts of 
 a superior order and have possessed a culture fre- 
 quently observed among descendants of the colon- 
 ial residents of New England. To a striking de- 
 gree his father, Rev. Samuel Everett Hoar, ex- 
 emplified these traits and mental attainments, and, 
 had his physical strength equaled his intellectual 
 acumen, his would have been a life of rare use- 
 fulness and success. However, notwithstanding 
 the handicap of ill-health, he accomplished much 
 in the brief period that destiny spared him to fam- 
 ily and friends. Born near Boston, he was a 
 cousin of the late United States Senator Hoar, 
 who is recognized as one of the most distinguished 
 and conservative statesmen in our nation. As a 
 boy his acuteness of perception, fine mind and re- 
 ligious temperament led him to prepare himself 
 for the ministry, and after having graduated in 
 belles-lettres at Dartmouth College he was or- 
 dained as a Presbyterian minister. A constitu- 
 tion none too robust became impaired through 
 overwork in the discharge of his ministerial 
 duties, and he came to the Pacific coast in the 
 hope that the genial climate might prove bene- 
 ficial, but after preaching for a short time he was 
 obliged to seek another occupation. He then 
 opened a successful mercantile business in San 
 Francisco, which he carried on for some time, 
 meanwhile suffering loss by fire, but rebuilding 
 and continuing in business. Some years later he 
 sold out, and after a few vears spent in farm- 
 ing in Kern county, went to Arizona for his 
 health, but the change failed to benefit him and he 
 died in Tucson when the subject of this sketch 
 was nine years old. 
 
 After coming to California Rev. Samuel Ever- 
 ett Hoar married Martha Jane Price, who was 
 born, in Fort Smith, Ark., and accompanied her 
 parents across the plains with ox-teams during 
 the '50s, settling among the pioneers of Placer 
 
GEORGE D. WOOD 
 
, HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1306 
 
 county. After the death of Mr. Hoar she was 
 again married, becoming the wife of Edward 
 Jackman, a leading and successful attorney of 
 Merced. Mr. Jackman was born and reared in 
 England and received exceptional advantages as 
 a law student in London, but was led to seek his 
 fortune in the mines of California in 1849, com- 
 ing from England via Cape Horn to San Fran- 
 cisco and working in mines in this state and the 
 south of Oregon. Success, however, failed to re- 
 ward his persistent efforts, and he then returned 
 to the law, gaining admission to the bar of Cali- 
 fornia and engaging in practice at San Rafael. 
 From there he removed to Merced and conducted 
 a large general practice until his death about 
 1894. Since then his widow has made her home 
 in San Francisco. 
 
 The eldest of three children, E. H. Hoar was 
 born in San Francisco, December 3, 1871, and at 
 the age of eleven years accompanied his mother 
 to Merced, where he was a student in the gram- 
 mar and high schools. Later he took a commer- 
 cial course in Heald's Business College at San 
 Francisco. In 1894 he received an appointment 
 as official reporter of the superior court of Merced 
 county and continued to fill this responsible posi- 
 tion until 1902, when he resigned to accept the 
 nomination for district attorney. During the 
 years of his service as reporter he had devoted 
 all of his leisure hours to the study of law and 
 had been admitted to practice before the supreme 
 court in 1896. Having gained a wide acquaint- 
 ance and many warm friends during the period 
 of his service as reporter, he proved an admirable 
 candidate for the office of district attorney, to 
 which he was nom.inated in 1902 by the Demo- 
 cratic party. His election with a majority of six 
 hundred and fifty is a striking proof of his 
 popularity among the people, and the efficient 
 manner in which he discharges every duty as 
 district attorney justifies his selection for the 
 post. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Hoar united him with 
 Jane Elizabeth Berriman, who was born at Grass 
 Valley, Nevada county, this state, and is a grad- 
 uate of the schools of that county. Her father, 
 Nicholas Berriman, a native of England, came to 
 California at the time of the discovery of gold 
 and was one of the early miners in Nevada coun- 
 ty. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Hoar consists 
 of three sons, Fred Emerson, Lawrence Bradley 
 and George Everett. Fraternally Mr. Hoar is 
 connected with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, the Woodmen of the World, and is a 
 member of Yosemite Parlor No. 24, N. S. G. W., 
 of which he is past president. Through his serv- 
 ice on the board of trustees, he has been active 
 in the work of the Merced Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. It is often said that every man has his 
 hobby, and if Mr. Hoar cannot be classed among 
 
 the exceptions to this rule, he would probably 
 acknowledge having a special fondness for the 
 study of psychology. When at leisure from pro- 
 fessional and official work he enjoys spending a 
 few hours in the study of this science, to the in- 
 telligent mastery of which he is admirably quali- 
 fied by reason of his keenness of perception and 
 breadth of intellect. 
 
 GEORGE D. WOOD. Among the sturdy pio- 
 neers of the San Joaquin valley, Mr. Wood has 
 performed his part in its development. A na- 
 tive of Ohio he was born fourteen miles north- 
 east of Portsmouth January 21, 1829. His fath- 
 er, Abner, was a native of the Empire state, 
 being a son of another Abner, who was born in 
 England and who came to the United States at 
 a ver,y early day, locating in Ohio, where he 
 became a prominent agriculturist. The father 
 was reared in Ohio, where he lived until 1840, 
 when he removed to Illinois, locating in Clark 
 county, where he engaeed in farming until his 
 death six vears later. His wife bore the maiden 
 name of Nancy Calvert and bv her marriage 
 she became the mother of nine children. 
 
 George D. Wood was reared on his father's 
 farfn. When not otherwise emploved he attend- 
 ed school a few months during the winter sea- 
 son, but in those pioneer days the youth was 
 educated at home instead of in a schoolhouse, 
 his learning being obtained principally in the field. 
 In the fall of 18^^ he migrated to southwest Mis- 
 souri, where he lived one year, when he out- 
 fitted with ox-teams and crossed the plains to 
 this state. His first location here was ' in Sut- 
 ter countv, west of Marysville, where he re- 
 sided until Julv, i860, when he came to Fresno 
 countv, thus becomine one of the very first set- 
 tlers in this countv, there being at the time less 
 than four hundred voters here, and manv of 
 these were horse-thieves and cut-throats or Mex- 
 ican bandits. After living for a time near Kings- 
 ton Mr. Wood purchased ei^htv acres and here 
 he resided until his death, February i.'^, 190.1?, 
 devoting his time and energies to the tilling of 
 the soil and raising of cattle. At one time he 
 was extensively interested in the cattle and sheep 
 business, but owing to failing health he was 
 obliged to give up active business several years 
 ago, and thereafter lived a retired life. 
 
 February 17, 1848, in Illinois, was celebrated 
 the marriage of Mr. Wood and Lucy Childers, 
 who was born in Indiana. To this union were 
 born eight children, namelv: Nancy E., de- 
 ceased; Mills C, who resides near the home 
 place ; Mrs. Sarah Jane Lewis ; Henrv L., de- 
 ceased ; Marv A., now Mrs. C. T. McCullah ; Job 
 Albert, who lives in Lemoore ; Lucy Emma, now 
 Mrs. George L. Lewis, of Selma; and Harriett 
 
1306 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Minnie, deceased. Minnie Violet Wood, a 
 daughter of Mills C. Wood, makes her home 
 with her grandparents, to whom she is as dear 
 as one of their own children. 
 
 Prior to the formation of the Republican pa-rty, 
 Mr. Wood was a Whig, but after it was merged 
 into the Republican party he was a stanch sup- 
 porter of the principles advocated by this grand 
 old organization. He was a man of consider- 
 able prominence, and at one time filled several 
 local offices, including that of road master. He 
 was also a school trustee for twenty-five years, al- 
 ways doing all in his power to promote higher 
 education and to improve the facilities for teach- 
 ing the 3'oung. When a boy his father's house was 
 used as a meeting place for the followers of the 
 United Brethren Church, and he himself became 
 an active member of that denomination. Mr. 
 Wood made a success in life and but for the loss 
 of his eyesight he would have accumulated a large 
 fortune. However, he had enough to make his 
 declining days comfortable and leave his fam- 
 ily free from care. The family are highly re- 
 spected and have a large circle of friends. 
 
 ISAAC HENRY WASH. Among those who 
 have come to Fresno within the last decade is 
 Isaac Henry Wash, the owner of a fine sixty- 
 acre farm eight and a half miles southeast of 
 Fresno, where he is profitably engaged in the 
 raisin business, having twenty-six acres of bear- 
 ing vines. A worthy descendant of a distin- 
 guished family of Virginia, the lineage of Mr. 
 Wash is traced back to John Wash, the great- 
 grandfather, who fought in the Revolutionary 
 war under Washington. He was a native of 
 Virginia, as was also his son, John Wash, Jr., 
 who died in that state about 1847. From there 
 the family moved into Kentucky, and it was 
 within the borders of the latter state that both 
 parents of Mr. Wash were born. His father, 
 John Martin Alexander Wash, was born in 1820, 
 and his wife, whose maiden name was Annie 
 Adams, was born November 8," 1822. Some time 
 after marriage this esteemed couple went west 
 and settled in Lewis county. Mo., where the 
 father died July 24, 1844. During his life he 
 followed the occupations of farmer and miller, 
 and was so engaged up to the time of his death. 
 He left but two children, Isaac Henry and Lucy, 
 and the latter is now deceased. In 1855 the 
 mother contracted a second matrimonial alliance, 
 this time with Enoch Hansborough, who died 
 in 1863. His widow now makes her home with 
 her daughter, Mrs. Annie Mathiesen, of Billings, 
 Okla. . ^ 
 
 Born October 20, 1841, six miles from La- 
 grange, Lewis county. Mo., Mr. Wash spent his 
 boyhood in the vicinity of his birthplace. His 
 
 education was limited. At sixteen he left home 
 to make his own way in the world, and the fol- 
 lowing year found him in Texas. While there 
 he followed the cattle business for three years 
 in Collin county, and in 1861 went to Montague, 
 following similar work. Upon the outbreak of 
 the Civil war he enlisted in Company F, Four- 
 teenth Texas Cavalry, as a private, and served 
 until December 31, 1862. Participating in the 
 battle of Murfreesboro, Tenn., during which he 
 fell, he was left on the field for dead. At this 
 time he was serving under division commander 
 General McCown. Being picked up by Federals, 
 he was taken to their hospital and afterward 
 returned to Texas. He subsequently returned 
 to Marion county. Mo., and followed farm pur- 
 suits there for a couple of years. November 7, 
 1865, he was united in marriage with Mary S. 
 Taylor, who was born in Missouri in 1844. The 
 year following their marriage, the young couple 
 moved to Knox county, and this continued to be 
 their home until 1890. Disposing of his farm 
 in December of that year, Mr. Wash came to 
 California, locating for a time near Fresno, but 
 in the spring of 1 89 1 he purchased the farm 
 which is still his home and which to-day ranks 
 among the best improved in his vicinity. He has 
 made many improvements on this place. Of his 
 children, one is deceased and the others are all 
 residents of Fresno county. They are as follows : 
 Samuel J.; Annie H., wife of R. L. Rutherford; 
 George, deceased ; John J. ; Henry M. ; Mary L. 
 and Nadine Belle ; the latter two, together with 
 Samuel J., are still at home. The family worship 
 at the Malaga Baptist Church. Mr. Wash united 
 with the Baptist Church in 1857. His political 
 preference is given to the Democratic party and 
 he is a member of the Masonic fraternity, having 
 been made a Mason in Knox county. Mo. 
 
 LAURITZ LAURITZEN. The manufactur- 
 ing interests of Fresno are given added prestige 
 by the business known as the Krog, Lauritzen 
 Company, an incorporation engaged in the manu- 
 facture of carriages, wagons, agricultural imple- 
 ments, etc., as well as carrying on general black- 
 smithing. The president of this concern is Laur- 
 itz Lauritzen, who was born near Apenrade, 
 Schleswig, Germany, October 6, 1867, the young- 
 est in a family of two daughters and one son, 
 and the only one in America. His father, Laue 
 Lauritzen, was a sailor who, in 1849, left his 
 ship at San Francisco and with three brothers 
 engaged in mining for eight or nine years. He 
 met with success and finally returned home with 
 sufficient means to purchase a ship, when he 
 engaged in a coasting trade until his death at the 
 age of fifty-two years. His wife, formerly Mata 
 Crag, was born in Schleswig, Germany, the de- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1307 
 
 scendani of an old family oif that section, where 
 her death also occurred. 
 
 Lauritz Lauritzen was reared in the old seaport 
 town of Gjenner, receiving his education in the 
 common schools. At the age of fifteen years he 
 was apprenticed to learn the blacksmith's trade 
 after the completion of which he continued at 
 his trade in different parts of Germany. In 
 November, 1889, he came to America, locating in 
 Racine, Wis., until July of the following year, 
 when he came to California and in Fresno en- 
 tered the employ of H. Ahrensberg. At a later 
 date he worked for G. Brainard for four years, 
 in the location of his present business, purchas- 
 ing then an interest with H. Ahrensberg on K 
 street. He eventually bought the lot on the 
 corner of Fresno and H streets, where he be- 
 gan the manufacture of carriages and followed a 
 general blacksmithing business. In 1903 the 
 business was incorporated under the title of H. 
 Ahrensberg & Co. Shortly afterward Mr. 
 Ahrensberg retired from the firm, when it was 
 incorporated as the Krog, Lauritzen Company, 
 with Mr. Lauritzen as president. Their busi- 
 ness has continued profitably since and is one of 
 the important industries of the city of Fresno. 
 Mr. Lauritzen has also built a residence at No. 
 180 Valeria street. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Lauritzen was united in mar- 
 riage with Anna Christine Jorgensen, a native of 
 Shelland, Denmark, and they are the parents of 
 three children, namely : Louisa, Laura and Will- 
 iam. Fraternally Mr. Lauritzen is identified 
 with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, be- 
 longing also to the Encampment, and the Dania 
 Society of California, of which he is ex-presi- 
 dent. He is a Republican politically and is a 
 member of the Chamber of Commerce, taking an 
 active interest in all public movements which 
 have for their end the enhancing of the general 
 welfare. 
 
 GEORGE S. CLEMENT, The property of 
 Mr. Clement, an esteemed citizen of Tulare 
 county, is located four miles southwest of 
 Springville and consists of six hundred and 
 sixty-four acres of land given over to the rais- 
 ing of horses and cattle. He has two acres of 
 oranges and considerable hay and pasture land, 
 and by his conservative yet progressive methods 
 is numbered among the representative farmers 
 of this section. Born near Grand Rapids, Mich., 
 October 23, 1856, he was a son of Jacob Clement. 
 The latter was a native of New York state, who 
 came to Michigan in an early day and worked in 
 the timber lands and farmed for a livelihood. 
 In 1866 he removed to Iowa and in 1868 to Lin- 
 coln, Neb., where he took up land. His death oc- 
 curred in that location. His wife, formerly 
 
 Emily Jane Gault, was born in Michigan, and 
 died in that state. They were the parents of two 
 children, a son and daughter, of whom George S. 
 was the elder of the two. He received his edu- 
 cation in the common schools of his native state, 
 and in Iowa and Nebraska, remaining in the 
 latter state until 1881. In the last named year 
 he came as far west as Boise City, Idaho, where 
 he worked on a ranch for one year, returning in 
 1883 and finding employment on a farm in 
 Michigan. He remained in that section for four 
 years, when, in 1887, he came to California and 
 located on the Tule river just above Daunt, 
 honiesteading one hundred and sixty acres, to 
 which he added by purchase until he owned one 
 thousand acres. This he sold in 1901 and pur- 
 chased his present property of six hundred and 
 sixty-four acres, where he is engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits and stock-raising. 
 
 In Leighton, Mich., September 15, 1887, Mr. 
 Clement was united in marriage with Effie May 
 Cronk, a. native of that state. In his political 
 convictions he is a stanch adherent of the prin- 
 ciples advocated in the platform of the Repub- 
 lican party. 
 
 MARTIN P. KNUDSEN. One of the re- 
 cently-established dairy enterprises near Los 
 Banos is that of Martin P. Knudsen, owner of 
 twenty acres of land a mile from town, and since 
 April, 1904, conducting a dairy of seventeen 
 cows. Mr. Knudsen had a great deal of practi- 
 cal business experience before embarking upon 
 his present venture, all of which he is bound to 
 use to increase his dairying project. He has his 
 own separator, as well as other conveniences 
 known to the modern and up-to-date dairyman, 
 and finds his work profitable and congenial. 
 
 Born in Soby, Aeroe, Denmark, May 18, 1864, 
 Mr. Knudsen is the fifth child in order of birth 
 in a family of eleven children, six of whom are 
 living. Three of the four who are in America 
 reside in San Francisco. He comes of seafaring 
 stock, and both his father, Peter Knudsen, and 
 his grandfather, were in the coasting trade for 
 many years, owning their own vessels, and con- 
 tinued so employed until old age incapacitated 
 them for that vocation. Peter Knudsen lived to 
 be fifty-two years old, and his wife, formerly 
 Anna Maria Petersen, continues to live on the 
 old home place in Denmark. The family are 
 faithful in their attendance and contributions to 
 the Lutheran Church. 
 
 Martin P. Knudsen was educated in the public 
 schools of Soby, and early found it to his ad- 
 vantage to start upon an independent life; ac- 
 cordingly, with the example of his forefathers 
 before him, he chose the sea, and followed it for 
 a couple of years. Finding he did not have the 
 
1308 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 same liking for this occupation as his father had, 
 he quit the sea and located on a farm for one 
 year, but in the spring of 1882 he immigrated to 
 the United States, soon afterward arriving in 
 Merced county, Cal., where without money and 
 with no recommendation save good health and 
 energy, he secured a position with Miller & Lux, 
 in whose employ he remained four years. He 
 also engaged in farming, and was the first man 
 to set a plow in what is now Plow Camp, in 1885, 
 a part of which he now owns. In 1886 he went to 
 Hills Ferry, where he was employed on a farm 
 for three years, and while there married, in 1889, 
 Christine Rasmussen, of Denmark. Soon after- 
 ward he conducted a boarding-house and sa- 
 loon at the Ferry, moving four months later to 
 Newman, where he bought a house and lot and 
 engaged in his occupations of boarding-house and 
 liquor business. In November, 1899, he located 
 in Los Banos and erected a large house, which 
 he opened up under auspicious circumstances, but 
 which four da}s later burned to the ground. He 
 then engaged in the liquor business until 1904, 
 in which year he sold out and bought his pres- 
 ent place of twenty acres a mile south of Los 
 Banos. He has built a comfortable and com- 
 modious residence, and has modern improve- 
 ments on his ranch. 
 
 Mr. Knudsen takes a keen interest in Demo- 
 cratic politics, and is interested in the cause of 
 education and good government. He is a mem- 
 ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of 
 Newman, and the Ancient Order of Druids, of 
 Los Banos. He proposes to give his children, 
 Peter and Christine Maria, the best advantages 
 within his power. He is genial and generous 
 when called upon to further charitable or other 
 undertakings. 
 
 JOHN MILTON IRWIN. In no branch of 
 agriculture is a more thorough knowledge and 
 greater business capacity needed than in that 
 pertaining to the breeding, raising and buying 
 and selling of cattle ; and in this industry no one 
 has met with more deserved success than John 
 Milton Irwin, a well-known and prosperous 
 stockman of Tulare county, residing four miles 
 east of Visalia, on the Morgan estate. A man 
 of venerable years, he has had a wide and varied 
 experience in life, and by his excellent character 
 and straightforward business course has fully 
 established himself in the esteem and confidence 
 of all with whom he has had dealings. A native 
 of Alabama, he was born in Madison county, 
 January 12, 1828, a son of the late John and 
 Elizabeth (Logan) Irwin, both natives of Ten- 
 nessee. 
 
 Removing from his native state to Alabama, 
 John Irwin was a shoemaker in Madison county 
 
 for many years. In 1838 he migrated to Mis- 
 souri, becoming a pioneer of Franklin county, 
 where he began to clear a farm, and also worked 
 at his trade until his death, which occurred within 
 a few months after his arrival. 
 
 The fourth child in a family consisting of four 
 sons and three daughters, John M. Irwin re- 
 ceived his education in the district school, and 
 subsequently engaged in tilling the soil for a few 
 years. Thinking to get rich much more easily 
 and quicker in a country rich with gold, he came 
 across the plains to California with ox-teams 
 early in the 'SOS, and for a while worked with 
 pick and shovel in the Mud Springs mines. His 
 labors not proving as remunerative as he had 
 anticipated, Mr. Irwin worked for three years in 
 a sawmill, after which, in 1859, he located in 
 Tulare county, near Visalia, where he worked as 
 a farm laborer for a number of seasons. In 1867 
 he embarked in the stock business, having for his 
 partner Mr. Woods, who died in 1896. Until 
 1878 Mr. Irwin and his partner dealt principally 
 in hogs, but since that time he has bought and 
 sold cattle only. He is not a householder, but 
 since 1892 has resided at the Morgan home. 
 Politically he is a sound Democrat, never swerv- 
 ing from party allegiance. 
 
 GEORGE MARCHBANK. As the efficient 
 superintendent of the Mid Vale Land and Fruit 
 Company, composed largely of Pennsylvania cap- 
 italists, who own one of the largest and most 
 productive fruit ranches in Madera county, Cal., 
 Mr. Marchbank is filling a position of prominence 
 and has proved to be exceptionally well fitted for 
 the place. He has twenty men under his super- 
 vision and in the management of this ranch he 
 has shown excellent judgment and executive abil- 
 ity of a high order. The three hundred and 
 twenty acres comprising his ranch are devoted al- 
 most wholly to fruit culture. Here one finds ex- 
 tensive orchards of peaches, apricots, figs, al- 
 monds and a few orange groves, besides large 
 vineyards of raisin grapes and thirty acres of al- 
 falfa. In the fall of 1897 Mr. Marchbank became 
 superintendent of this ranch and the excellence of 
 the various products of the place is attributed 
 largely to his efforts, as he personally directs all 
 laborers, and employs only the best methods of 
 raising and caring for the fruits. 
 
 A descendant of Scotch parents, and himself 
 a native of Scotland, born December 23, 1857, 
 Mr. Marchbank was reared on the farm which 
 belonged to his parents, George and Jessie (Camp- 
 bell) Marchbank, both of whom spent their en- 
 tire lives in Scotland ; educated in his native land, 
 at the age of twenty Mr. Marchbank came to 
 America and for three years served as deputy 
 United States surveyor in the territory of Utah. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1311 
 
 He was afterward located for fourteen months in 
 Minnesota and a short time in Oregon, engaged 
 in similar work, and in 1884 he took up his resi- 
 dence in California. In 1886 he went into Fres- 
 no county and for a time was in the employ of 
 the George W. Mead Company, and was subse- 
 quently raisin inspector for the Co-Operative 
 Packing Company of Madera county. Receiving 
 the offer to superintend the Mid Vale Land 'and 
 Fruit Company, in Madera county, he at once as- 
 sumed the duties of his present position. Aside 
 from casting his vote in favor of Republican can- 
 didates Mr. Marchbank takes little interest in pol- 
 itics. Fraternally he affiliates with the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen. He has two chil- 
 dren, Marion A. and Margaret C. 
 
 JAMES W. RYCE. The name Ryce is well 
 known in Fresno county, where for many years, 
 the family have resided, and James W. R3'ce is 
 considered one of the substantial farmers in the 
 county. Born in Scotland December 30, 1855, 
 he is a son of Andrew C. Ryce, also a native of 
 that country. Coming to the United States in 
 1866 he located in San Francisco, where he se- 
 cured employment as a bookkeeper. During the 
 time he lived in the city he was also interested 
 in many mining speculations, being secretary of 
 several companies. On account of ill health he 
 was compelled to seek a change of climate and 
 in 1880 came to Fresno county, where he pur- 
 chased a section of land five and one-half miles 
 southwest of Selma. Soon after locating here 
 he erected what at that time was the finest resi- 
 dence in this section of the state, naming it The 
 Palace. Engaging in farming and stock-raising 
 on a large scale, he continued to make this coun- 
 ty his home until his death at the age of seven- 
 ty-one years. He also purchased a section east 
 of Selma and a half section near Reedley, but 
 these he later sold. The orchard of eighty acres 
 which Mr. Ryce set out on his land was the 
 first to be planted in this locality, but the venture 
 did not prove a success on account of insuffi- 
 cient water. A year or so afterward he re- 
 planted forty acres and his orchard now ranks 
 among the best in Fresno county. In 1885 he 
 disposed of his land in Alameda county and in- 
 vested the proceeds in property in the valley. 
 With others he was interested in the building of 
 a hotel in Kingsburg, a structure which was 
 destroyed by fire a few years later. In 1890 he 
 went to Scotland on a visit, and on his return 
 to California found that his affairs had been 
 badly managed, so much so that out of the Once 
 handsome property that he owned he retained 
 only forty acres. He died in San Francisco at 
 the home of a daughter, Mrs. T. P. H. White- 
 law. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
 
 Margaret Wilson, was also a native of Scot- 
 land, and was born in 183 1. She is still living, 
 making her home with a daughter, Mrs. Robert 
 Kennedy, in Fresno. By her union with Mr. 
 Ryce she became the mother of nine children, 
 six of whom grew to maturit}-. 
 
 James W. Ryce was the fourth child, and the 
 only son who grew to maturity. He accom- 
 panied his parents on their emigration to the 
 United States, and for several years was asso- 
 ciated with his brother-in-law, Mr. Kennedy, in 
 the sheep business, but in 1878 he engaged in 
 farming with his father. In 1890 he purchased 
 one hundred and sixty acres of land of his fath- 
 er and became interested in the growing of 
 grapes and also raised considerable stock. He 
 now has a dairy of forty cows. His ranch, which 
 is one of the best equipped in the county, is 
 supplied with all modern appliances, including 
 a steam plant which is used for cutting wood, 
 pumping water and other purposes. In addi- 
 tion to his farming interests he is a director in 
 the Farmers' Bank of Selma, and is president 
 of the Selma Co-operative Packing Company. 
 
 Near Visalia Mr. Ryce was united in marriage 
 with Jessie B. Rice, a native of the state, and 
 to them have been born six children, Andrew 
 C, Jessie B., EHzabeth, Flora, James W., Jr., 
 and Margaret, all of whom are living at home. 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Ryce are members of the 
 Cumberland Presbyterian Church, he being an 
 elder of the same. In politics he is a Repub- 
 lican, but he has no desire to take part in public 
 affairs. He has made a success of his labors 
 and is one of the popular men in the county. 
 
 WILLIAM H. MILLS. A well-known pio- 
 neer family of Tulare county is that of the Mills', 
 now represented by the widow of the pioneer and 
 three sons, one at home with his mother and two 
 located on ranches in the neighborhood of their 
 childhood's home. WilHam H. Mills, deceased, 
 is remembered as a man of enterprise and abil- 
 ity and one of the successful farmers of this 
 section. He was bom in Atlanta, Ga., March 15, 
 1821. -As a young man he removed to Missouri, 
 where he made his home until 1849, when he 
 crossed the plains with mule-teams. Arriving 
 in California, he engaged in mining in Hangtown 
 until 185 1, when he returned to Missouri and was 
 married. With his wife he left Missouri April 
 18, 1852, and arrived in California in August. 
 He was one of the strong and forceful pioneer 
 citizens,- his greatest efforts having been given 
 to the stable pursuit of farming throughout the 
 greater part of his life in the west, although 
 until the fall of 1856 he followed the precarious 
 fortunes of a miner in Eldorado county and at 
 Cedarville. Locating in Tulare county he en- 
 
1312 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 gaged in general farming and stock-raising 
 among the pioneer conditions which existed then, 
 and took up land upon which he made his home 
 for many years. In November, 1880, he located 
 on the property now owned by his wife, consist- 
 ing of one hundred acres two miles west of Far- 
 mersville. This he cultivated and improved for 
 sixteen years, winning a competence for himself 
 and family. His death occurred on this ranch 
 June 25, 1896, at the age of seventy-four years, 
 six months and ten days. Politically he adhered 
 to the principles advocated in the platform of 
 the Democratic party. He was a consistent mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. 
 
 The -marriage of Mr. Mills united him with 
 Louisa Jane Lawless, who was born in Saline 
 county. Mo., March 13, 1833. Her father. Bird 
 Lawless, was a native of Kentucky, who removed 
 to Howard county. Mo., and later to Saline coun- 
 ty, where he engaged as a farmer and stockman, 
 in 1850 he crossed the plains to California and 
 mined for a year, in 1851 returning to Missouri, 
 and in the following year bringing his family 
 back to California. He located in Sacramento, 
 where he bought an extensive ranch, later dis- 
 posing of this and in the fall of 1856 locating 
 near Visalia, Tulare county, where he took up 
 land. He engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 until his removal to Farmersville, where his 
 death occurred. His wife, formerly Lizzie Scott, 
 a native of Kentucky, also died in California. 
 Mrs. Mills received her education in the common 
 schools of her native state, where, in Saline coun- 
 ty, she was married February 5, 1852. Born of 
 this union are three children, namely : Merritt T., 
 William A., and Charles H., the two first named 
 being located on ranches in this vicinity, while 
 the last is with his mother. 
 
 DR. JOHN C. COOPER. During the year 
 1876 Dr. Cooper came to California and in 1879 
 estabHshed his home in Fresno, where, in Jan- 
 uary of the following year he opened an office and 
 has since engaged in the practice of dentistry. 
 For a time he occupied rooms on H street, but 
 now has his office in the Cooper building, a brick 
 block, 50 X 100 feet two stories in height, erected 
 by Baker & Johnson, at No. 2030 Mariposa street. 
 In addition to this property he owns the exposi- 
 tion building, 26>^ x 150 feet, two stories, con- 
 structed of brick, and located on J street between 
 Fresno and Tulare ; also the Molor brick block, 
 75 X 75, which in 1901 he erected on Fresno, be- 
 tween J and K streets. Other buildings which 
 he erected have since been sold. 
 
 Dr. Cooper was born in Rutherfordton, N C 
 February 23, 1857, a son of J. O. and Sarah 
 (Hardm) Cooper, also natives of North Caro- 
 lina. Of their eleven children all but two at- 
 
 tained mature years and seven are now living, 
 John C. being fourth in order of birth. In 1876 
 he took up the study of dentistry, and, in 1878 
 opened an office at Winters, Yolo county, but 
 the following year came to Fresno, of which he 
 is now, in point of years of practice, the oldest 
 dentist. He is a charter member of the Mid- 
 winter Fair Dental Congress, and in politics is 
 a stanch Democrat. The public school system has 
 always had a stanch friend in him, aiid at this 
 writing he is a member of the board of education 
 of Fresno. After coming to Fresno he married 
 Miss Mary Hopkins, who was born in San Jose, 
 Cal., and by whom he has two daughters, Edna 
 and Susie. Mrs. Cooper is a daughter of Rev. 
 I. L. Hopkins, member of an old Connecticut 
 family and for many years_ a minister of the 
 Methodist Episcopal denomination in California. 
 About 1879 he settled in Fresno county, where 
 for years he labored in the interests of the church, 
 but finally removed to San Jose, where his death 
 occurred. 
 
 THOMAS EDWARD BACON. As a pio- 
 neer among the primitive conditions, hardships 
 and dangers of the early days, Mr. Bacon re- 
 calls the events which have marked the progress 
 and development of Fresno county. He was 
 born in St. Louis county, Mo., September 9, 
 1838, the fourth in a family of children born 
 to his parents. His father, William Bacon, is 
 mentioned at length in the biographical sketch 
 of James A. Bacon, of Orosi, which appears 
 in another part of this volume. Thomas Edward 
 Bacon was reared in his birthplace until attain- 
 ing the age of eleven years, when he started to 
 Texas with his father. Instead oi completing the 
 journey a stop was made in Arkansas, where, 
 in Crawford county, the elder man engaged m 
 farming. For ten years Thomas E. remained 
 upon the paternal farm, receiving his education 
 in the common school in the vicinity of his 
 home. On September 2, 1858, he married Lucin- 
 da Strawn, a native of Crawford county, Ark., 
 and the following year they came as far west as 
 Tucson, Ariz., with ox-teams, spending the win- 
 ter in that place. In i860 the journey was com- 
 pleted to Visalia, Tulare county, shortly after the 
 arrival locating on the St. John's river, seven 
 miles northeast of that city. In 1861 Mr. Bacon 
 went to Mariposa county and engaged in the 
 wood business /or four y^ars, in January, 1865, 
 locating in the Kings river bottom about two 
 and a half miles below old Scottsburg. He en- 
 gaged in the raising of hogs and cattle and met 
 with success in the venture. In 1868 he bought 
 a section of land nine miles northeast of the 
 present site of Centerville, which he improved 
 and utilized in stock-raising. He remained in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1313 
 
 that location for sixteen years, when he sold out 
 and moved to Academy, on Dry Creek, where 
 he bought a residence and twenty acres of land, 
 this inove being for the purpose of educating his 
 children in what was then the best school in Fres- 
 no county. He still follows the cattle business 
 on the Upper Kings river, where he owns a 
 stock ranch. In 1902 he located in Fresno, pur- 
 chasing his present residence at No. 251 Clark 
 street. In 'addition to his ranch on Upper Kings 
 river he owns in partnership with his son-in-law, 
 J. G. Simpson, a large herd of cattle on Dry 
 creek. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Bacon were born the follow- 
 ing children : Amanda R., the wife of Dr. B. W. 
 Doyle, of Fresno; Amelia, the wife of Wesley 
 B. Hazeiton, of Sanger; John A., in the stock 
 business in the vicinity of Fresno; Frank, in the 
 stock business at Academy; Laura B., the wife 
 of J. G. Simpson, of Academy; and Ida M., a 
 teacher in the Fresno schools. Mr. Bacon served 
 as school trustee for several terms in the Fancher 
 Creek and Academy districts, and takes a strong 
 interest in the development and progress of edu- 
 cational matters in the community. He is a 
 Democrat politically and served as deputy asses- 
 sor in the same localities for thirteen years and 
 as a member of the county central committee. 
 He is a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church, in which he is ruling elder, and fra- 
 ternally is identified with the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. 
 
 MATTHEW CORRIGAN. A well-known 
 rancher of Stanislaus county, Matthew Corrigan 
 was born in Ireland February 6, 1838, a son of 
 Patrick and Rose (Riley) Corrigan. The elder 
 man was a mason and farmer by occupation and 
 died at the age of seventy-eight years. Matthew 
 Corrigan remained at home until 1857 when he 
 went to Australia and there secured employment 
 on a farm, where he remained for thirteen years. 
 In 1870 he came to California and made his home 
 in San Francisco for two years, during a part 
 of that period working on the big Second street 
 cut. In 1872 he came to Stanislaus county, during 
 the ensuing eight years working for wages on the 
 Booth ranch. In the meantime, in 1874, he en- 
 tered eighty acres of land which formed the be- 
 ginning of his home ranch, later purchasing one 
 hundred and sixty acres, the property being lo- 
 cated six miles southeast of Oakdale. In addition 
 to his own land he rents one hundred and sixty 
 acres which is devoted entirely to the cultivation 
 of grain, while he raises only enough stock to 
 supply his home. He has met with a noteworthy 
 success during his residence in California, and 
 at the same time that he has risen financially he 
 
 has won the esteem and confidence of his fellow- 
 citizens. 
 
 In Australia Mr. Corrigan married Mary Has- 
 lett, a native also of Ireland, and of this union 
 were born six children, namely : Agnes, the wife 
 of P. H. Gleason; Rose; Mamie; Matthew; 
 Emma, the wife of James L. Goodyear; and 
 Albert. Mamie and Emma are graduates of the 
 high school of Oakdale, as Mr. and Mrs. Corri- 
 ■ gan believe thoroughly in a proper equipment for 
 whatever line of work is to be taken up. Mrs. 
 Agnes Gleason graduated at the Stockton Busi- 
 ness College and for two years taught her home 
 district, giving general satisfaction as a teacher. 
 In the interests of the community Mr. Corrigan 
 has served for twenty years as school trustee. 
 Politically he is a Democrat and fraternally is 
 associated with the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen. He is a member of the Roman 
 Catholic Church. 
 
 A. L. NELSON. As senior member of the 
 firm of Nelson Brothers, of Fresno, A. L. Nelson 
 stanck high among the business men of this 
 city. He is a native of Port Leyden, N. Y., 
 where he was born July 30, 1868, a son of John 
 Nelson. The latter took his family to Saint 
 Ansgar, Iowa, in 1869, and there engaged as a 
 farmer for a time, thence removing to Qitherall, 
 Ottertail county, Minn. He there improved a 
 farm on the prairie lands where he made his home 
 for ten years. In 1887 he came to California 
 and located at Fowler, Fresno county, where he 
 died at the age of seventy-seven years. His 
 wife, formerly Hannah Steck, also died in that 
 location. They were the parents of six sons and 
 two daughters, all of whom are living, fifth in 
 order of birth being A. L. Nelson, of this re- 
 view. 
 
 A. L. Nelson was reared to young manhood in 
 Iowa and Minnesota, receiving his. education in 
 the district schools in the vicinity of his home. 
 He remained on the paternal farm until 1886, 
 when he went to Manti, Utah, and made his home 
 on a farm while he attended school for a time. 
 His parents having located at Fowler, Fresno 
 county, Cal., he came to the state in 1889. He 
 began at the foot of the ladder so far as re- 
 sources were concerned, finding employment on 
 various ranches and vineyards, until he had ac- 
 cumulated sufficient means to enable him to en- 
 gage in horticulture independently. He was 
 employed for a time in a packing house until, 
 with his brother Andrew, he engaged in a vine- 
 yard which they purchased together at Fowler. 
 In 1898 they located in Fresno and bought out 
 Dow & Ross, who were conducting a cigar store 
 and billiard hall on Mariposa street, and under 
 the firm name of Nelson Brothers have continued 
 
i3i4 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in the business since. On June 29, 1903, they 
 located at No. 1039 J street, their present place 
 of business, conducting one of the finest and 
 largest billiard halls and bowling alleys m the 
 San Joaquin valley, the billiard hall being 
 equipped with ten Brunswick tables made m Chi- 
 cago, III, for their special use, and the six alleys 
 all fitted up complete in every detail, the whole 
 forming the most attractive place of amusement 
 in Fresno. They also carry on an extensive cigar 
 business. For one year (1902) Mr. Nelson was 
 associated with J. E. Mitchell, in the growing, 
 packing and shipping of dried fruits and raisins, 
 the firm being known as Nelson & Mitchell. The 
 partnership was dissolved and since that time Mr. 
 Nelson has given his entire time and attention to 
 his present business. 
 
 Mr. Nelson lives at No. 807 N street, where he 
 has built a handsome residence, presided over by 
 his wife, formerly Sadie Simpson, a native of 
 Missouri, whom he married in Fresno county. 
 She is a member of the Baptist Church. Mr. 
 Nelson is associated fraternally with the Knights 
 of Pythias, of which he is past chief chancellor 
 and ex-representative; the Improved Order of 
 Red Men ; Woodmen of the World, and Fraternal 
 Brotherhood. He is a Republican in national 
 politics but locally reserves the right to cast his 
 ballot for the man whom he considers best quali- 
 fied for public office. He belongs to the Cham- 
 ber of Commerce and is active in all movements 
 pertaining to the general welfare of the city or 
 county. 
 
 ZEPHANIAH DANIEL BEALL. Two 
 miles east of Lemoore, Kings county, is the valu- 
 able ranch of Z. D. Beall, one of the most high- 
 ly respected of the horticulturists who are achiev- 
 ing success in this locality. In a neighborhood 
 where manly, traits and a progressive spirit are 
 appreciated for what they are worth, and where 
 the standard of work and life is high, this hor- 
 ticulturist is thoroughly at home and personally 
 popular, exerting an influence for moral and 
 material excellence. Mr. Beall has twenty acres 
 under vines and fourteen under trees, represent- 
 ing assorted fruits, and his improvements are in 
 accord with his practical and painstaking meth- 
 ods. 
 
 Born in Ripley county, Ind., March 18, 1852, 
 he was reared to country life on his father's 
 farm, and remained under the family roof until 
 twenty-two years of age. As the years passed 
 he more and more realized the limitations by 
 which he was surrounded in an already over- 
 tilled country, and his ambitious spirit naturally 
 turned to the west, where so much awaited the 
 touch of energy and resource. Arriving in Cali- 
 fornia in the fall of 1875, he added to his some- 
 
 what depleted finances by working on a farm 
 in the vicinity of VisaHa for a couple of years, 
 afterward renting land and working for farm- 
 ers in the country around Lemoore for about five 
 years. He was frugal and industrious, and in 
 1882 was in a position to become a land owner on 
 his own responsibility, and purchased his pres- 
 ent ranch, at that time a barren plain. He soon 
 ascertained that his land was adapted to fruit 
 culture, and he gradually set out trees and vines, 
 and prepared for his present large fruit indus- 
 try. He has a pleasant and comfortable home, 
 at the head of which is his wife, formerly Jen- 
 nie Beaver, whom he married in 1901. Mr. 
 Beall is a Democrat in politics, but has never 
 been willing to accept local office. For years he 
 has found recreation in fraternal lodges, and is a 
 member of the Foresters and the Woodmen of 
 the World. He is a genial and considerate 
 neighbor, carries with him an impression of earn- 
 estness and sincerity, and has the faculty of mak- 
 ing and retaining friends. 
 
 P. J. S. MONTGOMERY. Among the fore- 
 most citizens of Tulare county is P. J. S. Mont- 
 gomery, manager of the extensive property of 
 Paige & Monteagle, and himself a large land- 
 holder, and an agriculturist of prominence and 
 influence. Thrown upon his own resources when 
 but a boy, he successfully made his own way, 
 steadily climbing the ladder of attainments, and 
 in the following brief record of his active career 
 may be found a forcible illustration of what can 
 be accomplished by industry, determination and 
 enterprise. A son of R. F. Montgomery, he was 
 born, November 18, 1857, ^t Social Circle, Walton 
 county, Ga. His paternal grandfather, David F. 
 Montgomery, who came from Scotch-Irish an- 
 cestors, was a planter in Newton county, Ga., 
 residing there until his death, at the age of eighty- 
 five years. He was a man of exceptional integ- 
 rity and worth, and a member of the Baptist 
 Church. 
 
 A life-long resident of Georgia, R. F. Mont- 
 gomery early learned the trade of builder, and 
 also studied architecture. He served during the 
 Civil war as captain of Company A, Nineteenth 
 Georgia Regiment, and was five times wounded 
 in battle. He subsequently continued as an archi- 
 tect and builder for many years prior to his death, 
 which occurred August 2, 1902, at the age of 
 seventy-two years. He married Mary A. Middle- 
 brooks, a daughter of Isaac Middlebrooks, a 
 planter. She died in Georgia at the age of sixty- 
 five years. Of the children born of their union 
 three grew to years of maturity and two are 
 living. 
 
 The second child of the parental household. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1317 
 
 R. J. S. Montgomery was brought up during the 
 exciting times of the Civil war in Social Circle, 
 and necessarily had but limited educational ad- 
 vantages. At the age of eight years he entered 
 a mercantile and banking institution as errand 
 boy, and gradually worked his way upward to 
 positions of importance and trust. At the age of 
 fourteen years he had charge of the books, and 
 six years later was made special partner in the 
 business, being given a guarantee and a certain 
 per centage of the gains. His health failing, Mr. 
 Montgomery sold out his interests in the institu- 
 tion in 1884 and went to New Mexico to recuper- 
 ate in the saddle. Engaging in the cattle business 
 on his own account, he purchased a large range on 
 the Vermejo river, and through his out-door life 
 and his long horseback rides he recovered his 
 former physical vigor in a few years. In Colo- 
 rado he became acquainted with Mr. Morton, of 
 the firm of Paige & Morton, and he persuaded 
 Mr. Montgomery to come to California for a 
 visit of two months. Therefore, in 1890, having 
 disposed of his New Mexico property he came 
 to Tulare. Mr. Morton, the superintendent of 
 the lands belonging to the firm of which he was 
 partner, sold out to Mr. Paige in 1891, and Mr. 
 Paige induced Mr. Montgomery to accept the 
 position of manager and superintendent of the 
 estate. He has since continued in this capacity, 
 and has control of three large ranches. The 
 home ranch, called Vineyard, contains seven hun- 
 dred and fifty acres of vines, and is well equipped 
 with packing houses and everything necessary for 
 caring for the large quantities of grapes harvested 
 each season. Adjoining this ranch is a vast 
 orchard of seven hundred and fifty acres, de- 
 voted principally to the culture of prunes, peaches 
 and pears, while near by is the Mitchell ranch of 
 eight thousand acres, a large stock farm, on 
 which is raised grain, alfalfa and stock. The 
 vineyards and orchards belonging to Paige & 
 Monteagle are the largest in the San Joaquin 
 valley, and give employment to about eight hun- 
 dred people during the busy season, while on 
 the Mitchell farm about twenty hands are em- 
 ployed. One thousand acres of this ranch are 
 already sowed to alfalfa, and Mr. Montgomery 
 intends to sow three thousand more, devoting one- 
 half of it to this valuable product. The home 
 ranch lies within one and one-half miles of the 
 city limits of Tulare, and is finely improved, 
 and has all of the latest and most modern ma- 
 chinery and appliances, including a telephone and 
 electric light system. 
 
 Mr. Montgomery likewise owns much valu- 
 able real estate in this part of the state. In the 
 foot hills, about twenty-three miles east of De- 
 lano, he has a stock farm of twenty-five hundred 
 and sixty acres ; at Semitropic, Kern county, he 
 has a ranch of six hundred and forty acres, which 
 
 he is converting into a dairy farm; on the Tule 
 river he owns a small farm; and in Tulare coun- 
 ty he has a well-stocked sheep range. He also 
 has one-tenth interest in the El Mirador Orange 
 Land Company at Lindsay, of which he is a di- 
 rector and vice-president. This company owns 
 an orange tract in Lindsay having four thousand 
 acres of land, which is being laid out and sold. 
 Mr. Montgomery is also interested in the Tulare 
 Lumber Company, of which he is president; is 
 a member and president of the Mountain View 
 Oil Company, operating in Devil's Den country; 
 and is second vice-president of the Tulare Board 
 of Trade, and one of its executive committee. In 
 1898 he was appointed by Governor Gage a di- 
 rector of the Twenty- fourth Agricultural Dis- 
 trict of California, and four years later was re- 
 appointed for another term. 
 
 July 3, 1884, in Trinidad, Colo., Mr. Mont- 
 gomery married Ruth Norma Lacy, who was 
 born in Cleveland, Texas, and was educated in 
 Colorado, being graduated from the Trinidad 
 Convent, and later at Wolf Hall, Denver. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Montgomery are the parents of three 
 children, namely : Carl Lacy and Orland Frank- 
 lin, attending the Tulare High School, members 
 of the class of 1905 ; and Rex Kenneth. Political- 
 ly Mr. Montgomery is a Republican, and fra- 
 ternally he belongs to the Woodmen of the 
 World. His family are members of the Chris- 
 tian Church. 
 
 SAMUEL L. HEISINGER. Coming to the 
 state but a few years ago without money or in- 
 fluence, Mr. Heisinger started at the very bottom 
 of the ladder as an employe in orchards and 
 vineyards, but at that time he had something bet- 
 ter than money or friends — determination to 
 make a success. With this idea firmly fixed in 
 his mind he observed keenly all that was trans- 
 piring about him, rapidly learning the ins and 
 outs of the fruit business. As a result he is 
 now the owner of one of the finest vineyards in 
 the San Joaquin valley and is looked upon as one 
 of the most influential young men of the county. 
 A son of William and Magdalina (Lierman) 
 Heisinger, he was born in Lafayette county, Mo., 
 December 14, 1870. His father, who was a na- 
 tive of St. Louis, engaged in farming in Mis- 
 souri for many years, but finally removed to 
 Kansas, where he died April 13, 1883. His wife, 
 who was a native of Germany, is still living, mak- 
 ing her home at Elmonte, Cal. She became the 
 mother of nine children. 
 
 Samuel L. Heisinger was the second child in 
 a large family. His education was received in 
 the district school near the home farm.. On 
 reaching man's estate he engaged in farming in 
 Kansas, where he lived until 1888, when he re- 
 
1318 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 moved to Nebraska. There he continued farming 
 until 1892, the year of his arrival in California. 
 Coming at once to the San Joaquin valley, he se- 
 cured employment in the orchards and vineyards. 
 After a year spent in the vicinity of Hanford he 
 located near Selma, and was variously employed 
 until 1898, when he purchased forty acres of 
 land, which he still owns. From the first his 
 venture met with success and in 1900 he bought 
 the Loretta Vineyard of one hundred and sixty 
 acres, five miles east of Selma, one of the best 
 properties in the vaUey, and here he makes his 
 home. In addition to 'this property, in partner- 
 ship with O. W. Stearns, he owns considerable 
 land near Mendota. They also have options on 
 other lands, it being their intention to develop 
 the property by artificial irrigation, it now being 
 barren land. 
 
 Mr. Heisinger has taken an active interest m 
 local enterprises and is now serving as one of the 
 directors in the Co-operative Packing Company, 
 of Selma, is president of the Masonic Temple 
 Association of the same place, and a director of 
 the Rochdale Company,' of Selma. By his mar- 
 riage with Lena F. Martin, who was born in Mis- 
 souri, two children have been born, Lawrence L. 
 and Lena, both of whom are at home. In fra- 
 ternal relations Mr. Heisinger is a member of the 
 Woodmen of the World. In politics he is a Re- 
 publican, but cares little for public Hfe, preferring 
 to devote his time to his own business interests. 
 Both he and his wife are members of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church South, and for the past 
 eight years Mr. Heisinger has been superinten- 
 dent of the Sunday School. 
 
 WILLIAM H. HARTLEY. Industriously 
 engaged in the prosecution of a calling upon 
 which the support and wealth of our nation so 
 largely depends, William H. Hartley, of Merced, 
 is meeting with eminent success, and is contrib- 
 uting his full share toward the agricultural ad- 
 vancement of Merced county. A typical repre- 
 sentative of the courageous and energetic pio- 
 neers of California, who braved the dangers 
 and harships of life on the extreme frontier of 
 civilization, he has been an important factor in 
 developing the wonderful resources of this state, 
 and in the grand transformations that have taken 
 place within its limits, he has been an active 
 and influential participant. A son of Henry 
 Hartley, he was born in Lancastershire, Eng- 
 land, March 26, 1834, coming from an ancient 
 and honored English family. 
 
 Born and reared in Yorkshire, England, Henry 
 Hartley spent his early life in his native land, 
 being first employed in mercantile pursuits, and 
 afterward being connected with the management 
 of the Government railways. Immigrating with 
 
 his family to America in 1842, he located in 
 Lowell, Mass., where for nine years he was as- 
 sistant foreman in a cotton mill. In 1851, ac- 
 companied by his two sons, John and William 
 H., he started for California. Sailing from New 
 York to Chagres, Panama, he crossed the isth- 
 mus, on foot, and subsequently spent three months 
 in Panama. Boarding the steamer Golden Gate, 
 he arrived in San Francisco in April, 1852, and 
 went directly to the mining fields in the northern 
 part of Eldorado county. The climate, however, 
 did not agree with him, and after an illness of 
 three months, he returned to Lovrell, Mass., 
 where he resumed his former employment in the 
 cotton factories, having eight or nine men under 
 his supervision, and continued there until his 
 death. His son John remained in California, 
 and died, in 1870, in Sacramento. 
 
 Coming with his father and brother to Cali- 
 fornia in 1852, William H. Hartley followed 
 mining for two years, and then located in Stock- 
 ton, where he and seven others owned an interest 
 and engaged iii freighting and forwarding goods 
 to the mines for delivery for the Chinese Com- 
 mission Company. This company built up a 
 very large and profitable business, employing 
 many men and teams, continuing until the ex- 
 tension of the railway, in 1870, to Modesto. Mr. 
 Hartley then located in Merced county, where 
 he kept a number of teams that he let out to 
 farmers, receiving a good income from his ven- 
 ture. He also rented land, and embarked in grain 
 raising. Being successful, he soon began invest- 
 ing in lands in this section of the state, and is 
 now a large property owner, and one of the ex- 
 tensive and prosperous agriculturists of the 
 county. He has a valuable ranch of two thou- 
 sand three hundred acres near Merced ; a ranch 
 of six hundred and forty acres in Livingston; 
 and at Turner, on Bear creek, he owns a farm 
 of eight hundred acres. He superintends the 
 most of his land himself, raising principally 
 wheat and barley, the staple grains of the county. 
 In the early days, when he first began farming, 
 he used to harvest large crops, which he sold 
 for good prices. He has valuable residential 
 property in the city, and a pleasant and attractive 
 home. 
 
 Mr. Hartley was interested in the construction 
 of the Crocker-Huffman Canal, but has sold out 
 his shares in the enterprise. He possesses great 
 financial ability, and was one of the organizers 
 of the Merced National Bank, which was re- 
 organized as the Commercial and Savings Bank, 
 and later changed to the Commercial Bank, of 
 which he is vice-president, and a director. Until 
 the Granger warehouse was sold, he was presi- 
 dent of the company which owned it. He is also 
 a stockholder in the Fountain City Milling Com- 
 pany, and is serving as its president. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1319 
 
 In 1869, in Lowell, Mass., Mr. Hartley mar- 
 ried Frances L. Otis, a native of that city. Mr. 
 Hartley is a Republican in national politics, and 
 takes a genuine interest in local affairs. For one 
 term he served as county supervisor. He attends 
 the Presbyterian Church, toward the support of 
 which he contributes liberally. 
 
 WILLIAM Mcdonald. Of an active and 
 enterprising disposition, endowed by nature with 
 a resolute will and an unlimited stock of energy, 
 William McDonald began life for himself when 
 a mere lad, and has met with deserved success 
 in his undertakings, his failures and reverses be- 
 ing so slight and obscure that no mention of 
 them is necessary. Well-known in the business 
 circles of Merced county, he has the distinction 
 of being the lorigest-established blacksmith in 
 the city of Merced, and one of its most thriving 
 and esteemed residents. Coming of Scotch an- 
 cestry, he was born, March 12, 1853, i^ Gait, 
 Ontario, a son of Sweden McDonald. 
 
 Born and bred in Scotland, Sweden McDonald 
 immigrated to Canada, locating in Gait, Ontario, 
 where he was in the government employ as a 
 railroad contractor until his death, in manhood's 
 prime. He married Ellen Bell, who was born 
 in Kelso, Scotland, and died in Michigan. Seven 
 children were born of their marriage, three of 
 whom are living, William, the subject of this 
 sketch, being the sixth child in order of birth, 
 and the only one residing in California. 
 
 Forced by adverse circumstances to begin the 
 battle of life for himself when but nine years 
 of age, William McDonald left home and worked 
 at anything a boy could do for three years. Go- 
 ing to Harrison, Ontario, in 1865, he served an 
 apprenticeship of three years at the blacksmith 
 trade, and then went to Buffalo, where, for a 
 few months, he was employed in the Erie Rail- 
 road shops. Locating in Grand Rapids, Mich., 
 in December, 1868, he remained there until the 
 spring of 1869, when he came tO' California in 
 search of employment. For a year he worked 
 in San Francisco and Oakland, and then followed 
 his trade in Merced during the summer of 1870, 
 and in Saint Helena, Napa county, the ensuing 
 winter. In the spring of 1871, Mr. McDonald 
 returned to Merced, where the city lots were just 
 being placed for sale. Buying a lot on Main 
 street, he erected a frame building, and estab- 
 lished the pioneer blacksmith shop and carriage 
 manufactory in the place. Meeting with success 
 from the start, he has greatly increased his 
 business operations, now owning and occupying 
 two buildings fronting on Main street. In ad- 
 dition to his smithy and carriage works, Mr. 
 McDonald has a turning, painting and machine 
 shop, and is carrying on an extensive business. 
 
 He handles agricultural implements, represent- 
 ing the McCormick Harvester Company, the 
 Moline Plow Company, Fisher Brothers' wagons, 
 and deals in Racine carriages and buggies. He 
 also manufactures plows, harrows and cultiva- 
 tors, employing in his shop and factory from 
 nine to thirteen men. Mr. McDonald has exer- 
 cised keen intelligence in accumulating and in- 
 vesting his money, is a shareholder in the Com- 
 mercial Bank of Merced, and" is largely interested 
 in valuable property in Stockton, and in Mari- 
 posa and Mendocino counties. In Merced he 
 owns a fine residential property. 
 
 Mr. McDonald married first, in Mariposa 
 county, Phoebe Branson, a native of this state. 
 She died in early womanhood, leaving four chil- 
 dren, namely: John, ^employed with his father; 
 Mrs. Nancy Price, of San Francisco; William, 
 of San Francisco, and Tracy, wife of James 
 Garibaldi, of Merced. Mr. McDonald married 
 for his second wife, in Merced, Agnes Dunn, 
 who was born near Hastings, Minn., and of the 
 two children born of this marriage but one is 
 living, namely: Morris Ellsworth. Politically 
 Mr. McDonald is an earnest advocate of the 
 principles of the Democratic party, fraternally he 
 is a member of the Knights of Pythias and of the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 GEORGE A. HATFIELD. The position of 
 agent for the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Rail- 
 road Company in Fresno is efficiently filled by 
 George A. Hatfield, one of this city's most en- 
 terprising and liberal citizens. He was born in 
 Meadow Creek, Whitley county, Ky., September 
 4, 1865, the second of three children born to 
 his parents. His father, G. B. Hatfield, was 
 also born in Whitley county, Ky., where his 
 grandfather, a Virginian descendant of English 
 ancestry, removed in an early day. G. B. Hat- 
 field was reared on a farm and in manhood en- 
 gaged as a successful merch'ant, first in Kentucky 
 arid afterward in Attica, Kans. He also farmed 
 in the latter location and during the Oklahoma 
 race he located in Woods county and engaged as 
 a farmer and stockman. He is now a merchant 
 at Elkton, where he is residing at the age of 
 sixty-four years. His wife, formerly Elizabeth 
 Brown, of Whitley county, Ky., was the daughter 
 of Henry P. Brown, who migrated from Virginia 
 to Kentucky, where he attained an advanced age, 
 and died in Kansas in 1887. 
 
 George A. Hatfield was reared in his native 
 state until attaining the age of seventeen years, 
 attending the common schools and also having 
 one term at Oberlin College. On account of his 
 health he came as far west as Wellington, Kans., 
 in 1884 and entered the employ of the Atchison, 
 Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad Company, begin- 
 
1320 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ning as assistant agent, later as relief agent at 
 different points on that division, his headquar- 
 ters being at Attica, the terminal of the railway 
 during the building of the Amarillo and Medi- 
 cine Lodge lines. He remained there for three 
 )ears, when in 1887 he was transferred to Bar- 
 stow first as cashier, then agent, where he re- 
 mained until 1892. He was then promoted to 
 the position of traveling auditor of the Santa 
 Fe, with Southern California headquarters in 
 Los Angeles. Following this he traveled through- 
 out California for seven years, after which he 
 engaged as freight agent in Los Angeles for 
 eighteen months. In 1902 he was transferred 
 to Fresno in the capacity of local freight and 
 passenger agent, which position he is now hold- 
 ing. 
 
 In San Bernardino, Cal, Mr. Hatfield was 
 united in marriage with Susie H. Davidson, the 
 ceremony being performed August 20, 1897. She 
 was born in Chnton, Mass., a daughter of A. 
 S. Davidson, who settled in San Bernardino, 
 where he is now living retired from the active 
 cares of Hfe. They have one child. Homer, 
 fraternally Mr. Hatfield is a member of the 
 Woodmen of the World, and belongs to the 
 Chamber of Commerce of Fresno. Politically 
 he is a stanch adherent of the principles advo- 
 cated in the platform of the Republican party. 
 
 ALFRED OILMAN CLOUGH. The county 
 assessor of Merced county has the distinction of 
 being the son and grandson of pioneers of 1849 
 and is himself not only a native of California, but 
 also of the county where he now makes his home. 
 His father, A. W., was born in Hopkinton, N. H., 
 being a son of Gilman Clough, of New England 
 ancestry. At the time gold was discovered in 
 California he was a young man, ambitious to get 
 a start in the world and eager for adventure. At 
 once he decided to join the throng of gold-seekers 
 on the coast. Taking passage on a vessel he 
 sailed around Cape Horn and landed in San 
 Francisco, September 20, 1849. From there he 
 proceeded at once to Mariposa county and took 
 up the work of mining, which engaged his at- 
 tention for several years. On abandoning that oc- 
 cupation he began to work at the blacksmith trade, 
 which he followed at Hornitos, Mariposa county, 
 and at Phillips Ferry on the Merced river. In 
 1874 he went to Merced and conducted the Mari- 
 posa hotel until his retirement from business 
 cares. His death occurred in 1891 when he was 
 sixty-two years of age. 
 
 After coming to California A. W. Clough mar- 
 ried Thirza Phillips, who was born at Mineral 
 Point, Wis., and died at Merced, Cal., in 1902. 
 Her father, John Phillips, was a native of Eng- 
 land and in 1849 crossed the plains to California, 
 
 where he met with indifferent success as a min- 
 er. Soon afterward he started Phillips Ferry in 
 Mariposa county. Returning east overland in 
 1 85 1, the next year he brought his family to Call; 
 fornia and settled at the Ferry, but later went 
 to Hornitos, Mariposa county, where he engaged 
 in stock-raising and farming until his death in 
 1864. In the family of A. W. and Thirza Clough 
 there are four sons, namely : A. G., of Merced ; 
 E. F., who is a manufacturer of acetylene gas ma- 
 chines at San Jose ; C. W., a real estate dealer in 
 Watsonville ; and S. B., who is connected in busi- 
 ness with his brother at San Jose. 
 
 The earliest recollections of Alfred Gilman 
 Clough are associated with the locality where he 
 has always made his home. He was born Janu- 
 ary 3, 1857, and passed the years of youth at 
 Hornitos, where he attended the public schools. 
 At twenty years of age he came to Merced and 
 for two years worked in a livery barn. In 1879 
 he bought a furniture business on Main street, 
 where he engaged in the sale of house-furnishing 
 goods and also conducted an undertaking estab- 
 lishment. Reliable as a business man, and hon- 
 orable in every transaction he vfbn the confi- 
 dence of associates. From the time of attaining 
 his majority he has voted with the Republican 
 party and maintained a warm interest in its suc- 
 cess. On that ticket in 1892 he was elected coun- 
 ty coroner and public administrator, and two 
 years later was re-elected to the office, which 
 he filled from January, 1893, to January, 1899. 
 Meanwhile he had been called to another office, 
 his election as county assessor taking place in 
 1898, when he was elected by a majority of one 
 hundred and thirty-two. At the expiration of a 
 term in that office, in 1902 he was elected by a 
 majority of one hundred and ten over his op- 
 ponent. In order that he might devote his en- 
 tire attention to his official duties in 1901 he dis- 
 posed of his furniture and undertaking establish- 
 ment, and since then has given his time wholly 
 to work connected with the assessorship. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Clough took place in 
 Merced in 1879, his wife being Mary E. Tinney, 
 who was born in New York state and died at 
 Merced in January, 1892. Two children were 
 born of their union, namely : Alfereta, the wife of 
 L. E. Gosner, of Salinas ; and Winslow T. The 
 present wife of Mr. Clough is a native of Merced 
 county and bore the maiden name of Mary A. 
 Blunt. By this union there are two daughters, 
 Lucile and Ruth. It has always been character- 
 istic of Mr. Clough that he has maintained an 
 interest in educational affairs and is a stanch 
 friend of the public-school system. For seven 
 years he served as a trustee of the city schools 
 and during the period of his service^ the west side 
 school was erected, a work in which he aided ma- 
 terially. On the organization of Parlor No. 24, 
 
iaHL4M. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1323 
 
 N. S. G. W., he became a charter member, but 
 has not retained his membership in the body. 
 Fraternally he holds membership in the Woodmen 
 of the World, the Knights of Pythias and the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen, in which 
 latter lodge he is past master workman. 
 
 JUDGE WILLIAM R. SHANNON. Al- 
 though he is now living a retired life, Judge 
 Shannon has been very active. A '49er, he spent 
 several years in the gold mines of this state and 
 took a prominent part in the affairs of those early 
 days. Prior to coming to California he was a 
 soldier in the Mexican war and also saw ac- 
 tive service in the Rebellion, thereby be- 
 ing a veteran of two wars,' a record that 
 few men can equal. Born in Kentucky 
 January 15, 1825, the judge is a son of 
 George Shannon, who was a member of the Lew- 
 is and Clark expedition. At that time he was 
 but a boy of sixteen years and ran away from 
 home to join the party. The expedition started 
 in 1802 and during the winter of t8o4-5; camped 
 at the mouth of the Columbia river. Mr. Shan- 
 non was the youngest member of the party, but 
 it is said he performed the duties and labors of a 
 man, never shirking any task that was assigned 
 him. At the Little Missouri river he was' wound- 
 ed in the left leg by a bullet and later the leg 
 was amputated at the militarv post of Bellefon- 
 taine. Mo. On the return of the expedition to 
 the east, Mr. Shannon again took up his studies 
 in Lexington, where he attended the common 
 schools. Later he was graduated from the Phil- 
 adelphia law school and practiced in Lexington 
 until 1828, when he moved to St. Louis. During 
 this time he served on the circuit bench. Even- 
 tually he settled in St. Charles, Mo., where he 
 lived until his death in 18:^6. His father, George 
 Shannon, was born in Philadelphia and was a 
 soldier in the Revolutionary war, being raised to 
 the rank of captain. He lost his life in Belmont 
 county, Ohio, freezing to death while hunting. 
 
 George Shannon, Jr., married Ruth Price 
 and to them were born seven children. Mrs. 
 Shannon died in St. Charles. Judge W. R. 
 Shannon was the youngest child. After finishing 
 his common school education he attended the Bel- 
 mont Institute, at St. Clairsville, Ohio, and dur- 
 ing 1840-41 he attended school at Edwardsville, 
 III. Prior to the breaking ^ut of the Mexican 
 war, he was appointed private secretary to his 
 uncle, Wilson Shannon, who was the United 
 States minister to Mexico, and while in his 
 uncle's office he began reading law. Leaving 
 that country before war was declared. Judge 
 Shannon enlisted in Company I, Willock's Bat- 
 talion of mounted volunteers, frorn Marion coun- 
 ty, Mo., and remained in the service for the suc- 
 
 ceeding sixteen months. He was then discharged 
 and returned to Ohio, where he remained until 
 February 14, 1849, when he started for Califor- 
 nia, coming via Cape Florn. For four years he 
 followed mining, but upon hearing flattering re- 
 ports of the advantages offered young men in 
 Texas, he migrated to that state and settled near 
 Dallas, where he engaged in the practice of his 
 profession and also carried on quite an extensive 
 cattle business, spending many months looking 
 after his interests on the frontier. The judge 
 took an active part in public affairs and in 
 1855 was. sent to the Texas legislature, be- 
 ing returned repeatedly and serving con- 
 tinuously until 1887, excepting the time spent 
 in the Civil war. When the war broke out 
 he enlisted in the Confederate army, serving 
 as captain, but was later promoted to the posi- 
 tion of lieutenant-colonel of the Tenth Texas In- 
 fantry. Twice during the war- he was severely 
 injured, first at the battle of Mission ridge, 
 where his left leg was broken by a bullet, and 
 during the campaign in and around Atlanta his 
 right foot was crushed. These severe injuries 
 made it physically impossible for him to longer 
 continue in the service, so he secured his honor- 
 able discharge and returned to Texas, taking up 
 the practice of law at Weatherford, where he 
 made his home until 1887, when he disposed of 
 his interests there and again came to California. 
 For a time thereafter he lived in Ventura, but 
 on account of ill health he was oblisred to change 
 climates and a year later located in Fowler, where 
 he is now living, honored and respected by a 
 large circle of friends. In addition to his office 
 as justice of the peace he owns a tract of land 
 adjoining the town on which, in a quiet way, he 
 carries on general farming. 
 
 While living in Texas Judge Shannon was 
 united in marriage with Nannie J. Sweatt, a na- 
 tive of Wilson county, Tenn., and to them were 
 born six children, Wilson, who lives in Texas ; 
 one who died in infancy; Willie, deceased; Ruth, 
 Mrs. E. G. Hoag. of Fowler ; SalHe, deceased ; 
 and Nannie E., Mrs. G. E. Giffen, of Tulare 
 county. All his life a stanch Democrat, Judge 
 Shannon has been an active worker. Fraternal- 
 ly he is a Mason, having attained to the Royal 
 Arch degree. 
 
 NIS JOHNSON. Associated with the gro- 
 cery firm of Graff & Co., Nis Johnson has done 
 much toward the building up of a fine trade 
 throughout the city of Fresno and vicinity. He 
 was born in Germany, April 0. i86.-^, a son of 
 N. Johnson, a farmer in the same vicinity, 
 where his death occurred in 1904. His wife, for- 
 merly Ellen Hansen, was also a native of the 
 same locality, where she died early in life. They 
 
1324 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 were the parents of three sons and two daugh- 
 ters, all of whom are living. Nis Johnson is the 
 youngest in this family, and was reared to young 
 manhood on the paternal farm, receiving his edu- 
 cation in the public schools. When eighteen years 
 of age he decided to locate in America and ac- 
 cordingly came to San Francisco, arriving in 
 August, 1 88 1. For two years following he was 
 engaged in farm work in San Mateo county, 
 after which he worked in the vicinity of San 
 Francisco until 1887. With the proceeds of his 
 years' work he came to Fresno and in 1889 estab- 
 lished a grocery store on the corner of Inyo and 
 H streets, under the firm name of Ff. Graflf & 
 Co. Later they removed to the Wiener block, 
 on Tulare street, where they added a hardware 
 stock and proceeded to build up a trade in this, 
 line. Outgrowing the second location in 1901, 
 they removed to the Patterson block, which was 
 just then completed, and where they have since 
 been located. They now conduct the most ex- 
 tensive grocery store in Fresno and at the same 
 time carry one of the finest stocks of hardware 
 in the San Joaquin valley, catering to an exten- 
 sive trade in both departments. Their build- 
 ing is 64x150 feet in dimensions, occupying two 
 floors, while they have also two warehouses on 
 the Southern Pacific Railroad, one of brick, 50X 
 125 feet, and the other of frame, 40x72 feet. 
 They have nine wagons for delivery, and carry 
 on both a wholesale and retail business. The 
 business was incorporated as H. Graff & Co., of 
 which Mr. Johnson is a director and vice-presi- 
 dent, and manager of the hardware and imple- 
 ment department. In addition to this Mr. John- 
 son has other interests in the city, being the owner 
 of residence property, also his home at the cor- 
 ner of San Joaquin and Forthcamp avenues. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Johnson was united in marriage 
 with Catherine Kruhl, a native of Germany, and 
 they are the parents of five children, namely: 
 Ellen, Mamie, George, Myrtle and Nis Albert. 
 Fraternally Mr. Johnson is associated with the 
 Knights of Pythias and the Danish Brotherhood 
 of America, of which he is past president. He 
 is a Lutheran in religion. Active in the develop- 
 ment of the city of Fresno, he is a member of 
 the Chamber of Commerce and gives his best 
 interests toward the growth and prosperity of 
 this section. 
 
 CARROLL C. CASTLE, D. D. S. The many 
 valuable discoveries and improvements made in 
 dentistry during the past few years have elevated 
 it to a distinct and separate science, and in the 
 great advancement that has been made America 
 has taken the lead. Quick to take advantage of 
 all new methods used in the practice of his pro- 
 fession, C. C. Castle, of Merced, has acquired an 
 
 enviable reputation as a skillful and up-to-date 
 dentist, and since locating in this city has built 
 up a large and lucrative practice. A native of 
 Illinois, he was born, January 14, 1872, in Knox 
 county, near Galesburg, a son of Rufus A. Cas- 
 tle. He is of German descent, the name in the 
 Fatherland having been spelled Cassell, as was the 
 division of Germany, Hesse-Cassell, in which the 
 family originated. The doctor comes of honored 
 colonial ancestry, one of his forefathers having 
 fought in the Revolutionary war. His grandfath- 
 er, Reuben Castle, was born in Greenbrier coun- 
 ty, W. Va., and when a young man migrated to 
 the western frontier, traveling on horseback 
 through the hunting-grounds of the Indians, who 
 had held the country for centuries, and were not 
 pleased with the advances of the pale-faced 
 strangers. Locating in Knox county. 111., in 
 i8'^2, he took up wild land, and improved a home- 
 stead, on which he subsequently spent his life. 
 
 Born and bred on the home farm, in the Prairie 
 state, Rufus A. Castle laid a substantial founda- 
 tion for his future education in the public schools, 
 and afterward continued his studies at Knox Col- 
 lege, in Galesburg, until the breaking out of the 
 Civil war. Enlisting then in the Eightv-third 
 Volunteer Infantry, he served under General 
 Grant until the close of the conflict. Returning to 
 Knox county, he established himself as a farmer 
 near Galesburg, and was there prosperously em- 
 ployed in agricultural pursuits for a quarter of a 
 century. Removing to California .in 1890, he lo- 
 cated first in San Jose, from there going to 
 Healdsburg, where his death occurred, in August, 
 1900. He was public-spirited and patriotic, and 
 a faithful member of the Grand Army of the Re- 
 public. He married Alice Va Boylan, who was 
 born in Ohio, left an orphan at an early age, and 
 now resides in San Francisco. Of the three chil- 
 dren born of their marriage, two are living", name- 
 ly: C. C, of this review; and Reuben R., who 
 was graduated from the dental department of the 
 San Francisco Colleg-e of Plivsicians and Sur- 
 geons in 1904, receiving: the degree of D. D. S. 
 After leaving the district school. C. C. Castle 
 entered the Galesburg high school, where he re- 
 ceived his diploma in i8gi. Subsequentlv becom- 
 insT interested in life insurance, he represented the 
 Prudential Life Insurance Company in Gales- 
 burg for fifteen months, and then went to Pe- 
 oria, where he continued with the companv as as- 
 sistant superintendent until 180^. In the fall of 
 1897, having decidecf to enter upon a profession- 
 al career, he entered the dental department of the 
 Northwestern Universitv, at Evanston. 111., and 
 was there g-raduated with the decree of D. D. S. 
 in 1809. Dr. Castle- immediatelv located in Ton- 
 ica, LaSalle countv. Til., where he practiced his 
 profession a short time. In January, 1900. he lo- 
 cated in Merced, and has since won a_ most satis- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1325 
 
 factory patronage. His ofSce is furnished with 
 all the modern machinery, implements and de- 
 vices used by dental experts and authorities. 
 
 Dr. Castle married, in Merced county. Rose D. 
 Hooper, a daughter of Clayton Hooper, a pioneer 
 of this county, and they occupy a modern resi- 
 dence, which he erected on Twenty-second street 
 in 1902. The doctor is a member of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, and in his political affilia- 
 tions is a Democrat. He belongs to the Merced 
 Lodge, I. O. O. F., and to the Woodmen of the 
 World. 
 
 WILLIAM H. COOK. The earliest recollec- 
 tions of Mr. Cook are associated with the San 
 Joaquin valley. Many wonderful changes have 
 been wrought since the days of his childhood. 
 Often he has seen wild horses and antelopes in 
 large droves roaming unmolested through the 
 wild grass which grew in undisturbed luxuriance 
 on every hand. As a boy more than once he 
 was present at round-ups on the present site of 
 Merced. The only transportation facilities were 
 such as could be secured on the stage running be- 
 tween Stockton and Mariposa, the route lying via 
 Snelling, which was then the county-seat. In 
 1872 the county-seat was moved to Merced, which 
 has since then attained a distinctive place among 
 the cities of the valley. 
 
 A native of California, Mr. Cook was born in 
 Stockton, August 17, 1858, being a son of Josiah 
 C. and Maria (Sheridan) Cook, natives respec- 
 tively of Virginia and England. As early as 
 1852, while still a single man, the father crossed 
 the plains to California and engaged in farming 
 and stock-raising in San Joaquin county. From 
 there in 1863 he came to Merced county and set- 
 tled ten miles east of Merced, where for many 
 years he made a specialty of raising cattle and 
 sheep. Meanwhile he also bought and developed 
 a mine in Mariposa county, known as the Green 
 Valley mine, and this property he still owns, in 
 addition to a quartz mine at Hornitos. The year 
 after he crossed the plains Miss Sheridan made 
 the same trip, starting from Missouri and pro- 
 ceeding with a band of immigrants to the coast. 
 Of their marriage five sons were born, namely: 
 William H., of Merced ; John Franklin, who died 
 in Humboldt county, this state; James and Ben- 
 jamin, who are living in Merced county; and 
 Archibald, a resident of Stockton. 
 
 Fortified with such advantages as the common 
 schools offered, William H. Cook began to earn 
 his livelihood lat seventeen years of age, his first 
 employment being in the harvest field. In 1878 
 he settled on two hundred and forty acres lying 
 on Bear creek, ten miles east of Merced, and 
 there he raised grain and stock. Meantime he had 
 gained prominence as a local Democratic leader. 
 
 with sympathies in favor of the free coinage of 
 silver. Without being a candidate for any of- 
 fice, in 1894 he received the nomination for coun- 
 ty auditor at the Populist convention to which he 
 had been a delegate. There were two other can- 
 didates for the position, but he won by a large 
 plurality. In January, 1895, he assumed the 
 duties of the office. At the expiration of his first 
 term he was again nominated by the Populists and 
 indorsed by the Democrats, winning again by a 
 fair majority. When his second term had expired, 
 in 1902, he was renominated on the Democratic 
 ticket and elected by a majority of two hundred 
 and eighty-seven, to serve until January of 1907. 
 In point of years of service, he is the oldest in- 
 cumbent of a county office, and his service has 
 not only been long but eminently satisfactory. 
 Devoting his entire time to the work of auditing, 
 he has proved himself a painstaking, efficient and 
 trustworthy representative of the people, and has 
 carefully conserved the interests of the taxpay- 
 ers wherever possible, especially through his la- 
 bors in fighting illeg-al claims. 
 
 The union of Mr. Cook and Rosa Demick 
 ("daughter of Nelson Demick and a native of 
 Ohio) was solemnized at Turlock, in 1878, and 
 terminated with her death ten v'ears later in Mer- 
 ced county. Two children comprise their fam- 
 ily. The son, W. H.. Jr., is a olumber in Mer- 
 ced, while the daughter, Mrs. Nettie Mav Hol- 
 lister, lives in Fresno. On the orsfanization of 
 the Woodmen of the World at Merced Mr. Cook 
 became one of the charter members of the lodse 
 and is still identified therewith. After coming 
 to Merced he identified himself with the lodafe 
 and encampment of Odd Fellows, but is no long- 
 er active in the latter. As past president of 
 Parlor No. 24, he was officiallv connected with 
 the Native Sons of the Golden West. 
 
 ROBERT H. SRONCE is named among the 
 representative citizens of Fresno, Cal. He was 
 born in Newton, N. C, August 9, 1877, ^ son 
 of William A. Sronce, of the same vicinity, 
 and the descendant of an old Virginia family 
 who had early removed to North Carolina. Wil- 
 liam A. Sronce was a carriage manufacturer in 
 Newton, where he now resides, retired from the 
 active cares of life. His wife, formerly Jane 
 Cobb, a native of North Carolina, died early in 
 life. Of a large family of children three at- 
 tained maturity and are living, Robert H. Sronce 
 being next to the oldest. 
 
 Until he was eleven years old Robert H. 
 Sronce remained in Newton, N. C, when he 
 came to Riverdale, Fresno County, Cal, in com- 
 pany with an aunt, Mrs. Robert E. Sronce, her 
 husband becoming a large farmer and stock- 
 raiser in that location. He made his home with 
 
1326 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his aunt until attaining maturity, attending the 
 pubHc and high schools of Fresno, graduating 
 from the latter in 1894. He then entered the 
 .Fresno Business College, from which he was 
 graduated in 1895, after which he entered the 
 employ of the Philadelphia Shoe Store. He re- 
 mained for a time in that connection, when he 
 became a salesman in the employ of W. Parker 
 Lyon, with whom he continued until 1900. In 
 the last-named year he engaged in business for 
 himself, forming a partnership known as Sronce 
 & Dick. They handle wall paper, paints and 
 picture frames, doing a wholesale and retail busi- 
 ness at their store at No. 11 57 I street, having 
 a building 25x75 feet in dimensions, and occupy- 
 ing three floors. They also engage in contract 
 painting and decorating, having twenty-two em- 
 ployes. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Sronce was united in marriage 
 with Anna Fitzgerald, a native of Woodland, 
 Yolo county, Cal, and the daughter of a pioneer 
 of the state. Fraternally Mr. Sronce is a mem- 
 ber of the Benevolent and Protective Order of 
 Elks, Foresters of America, Fraternal Brother- 
 hood and Woodm.en of the World. He belongs 
 to the Chamber of Commerce and is active in all 
 movements pertaining to the upbuilding of the 
 city and county. Politically he is a stanch ad- 
 herent of the principles of the Democratic party. 
 
 WALTER RUSSELL ROBB. Nestling un- 
 der the snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains, 
 in Tulare county, is located the picturesque villa 
 of Orosi, already famous for its products of tree 
 and vine. In this vicinity is the well-developed 
 fruit ranch of Walter Russell Robb, who is en- 
 gaged as a horticulturist and viticulturist. He 
 was born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, October 20, 
 i860, a son of Alexander Robb, founder of the 
 Robb Engineering Company, Limited, of Am- 
 herst, Nova Scotia, which is now one of the 
 leading steam engine works in Canada. Mr. 
 Robb was one of the chief promoters of the Am- 
 herst Boot and Shoe Company, another of the 
 leading Canadian manufactories. He was pre- 
 eminently a successful as well as a self-made 
 man, and in addition to his personal interests 
 took an active part in every movement pertain- 
 ing to the general welfare. He was prominent in 
 political and educational matters and a promi- 
 nent actor in the confederation of provinces of 
 the Dominion of Canada in 1867, taking an active 
 interest in the Free School bill. In religion 
 he was a member of the Presbyterian Church and 
 an earnest worker in all of its branches. His 
 wife, formerly Emeline Logan, was born in Am- 
 herst Point, Nova Scotia, a daughter of David 
 Dickey Logan, the representative of an old New 
 England family which came originally from 
 
 Scotland. Mrs. Robb survives her husband, still 
 making her home in Amherst. She is the mother 
 of four sons and one daughter, of whom David 
 is president and Aubrey is superintendent of the 
 Robb Engineering Company, Limited; Frederick 
 (who was accidentally drowned in Nova Scotia) 
 was for many years financial manager of the 
 Robb Engineering Company; Walter R. is the 
 subject of this review ; and Margaret A. is the 
 widow of the Rev. D. McGregor, for many years 
 pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Am- 
 herst, Nova Scotia. 
 
 In his native city Walter Russell Robb was 
 reared to manhood, receiving his education in 
 the public and high schools of Amherst and the 
 Amherst Academy, finishing his education in 
 Delhouse College, in Halifax. For several years 
 following the close of his school work he was 
 connected with the firm of A. Robb & Sons 
 and managed the stove and hardware branch of 
 that business. On account of ill health Mr. Robb 
 retired from active business life and assisted 
 his father in operating a large farm near Am- 
 herst, in which they met with gratifying suc- 
 cess. In 1891 Mr. Robb located in Califortfia, 
 his first year in the west being spent in Southern 
 CaHfornia and in travehng. In 1892 he came to 
 Orosi, Tulare county, and purchased his present 
 ranch of twenty acres, to the improvement and 
 cultivation of which he has since given most of 
 his attention, and being for a time engaged in 
 the nursery business. His ranch is entirely given 
 over to the cultivation of fruits, raising princi- 
 pally peaches, prunes, figs, plums and oranges, 
 his plums being shipped green to the eastern 
 markets. He now owns a residence in Fresno, 
 where he intends to spend the winters on ac- 
 count of better educational advantages for his 
 children, who are attending high school. 
 
 In Halifax, Nova Scotia, Mr. Robb was united 
 in marriage with Lizzie Powell, a native of 
 Montreal, and the daughter of William and 
 Elizabeth (Robb) Powell, formerly of Montreal. 
 They became the parents of four children, of 
 whom Marguerite and Alexander are living. 
 William died in Nova Scotia at the age of two 
 and a half years, while Ivy died in California in 
 infancy. Mr. Robb is a member of the Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 J. EARL POGUE. A native son of the Gold- 
 en West, Mr. Pogue was born in Tulare county, 
 Cal., October 17, 1867, a son of James W. C. 
 Pogue, a sketch of whom will be found on an- 
 other page of this volume. J. E. Pogue remained 
 at home and attended the public schools, receiv- 
 ing a fair education, his elementary training be- 
 ing supplemented by attendance at the Visalia 
 Normal. After completing his schooling he as- 
 
G. HERMINGHAUS 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1329 
 
 sisted his father in the work of the ranch until 
 reaching his twenty-first year. A year later, in 
 1889, he opened the first store at Lemon Cove, 
 which he has since conducted, meeting with 
 marked success in his mercantile ventures. When 
 the store was first opened it was under the firm 
 name of J. W. C. Pogue & Son ; later a brother, 
 Thomas A., became interested in it and the firm 
 was known as J. W. C. Pogue & Sons until July 
 I, 1894, when J. W. C. Pogue was bought out 
 and the firm is now Pogue Brothers. The small 
 structure that was first used has been replaced 
 by_a modern store building, two stories high and 
 built of block and brick, the brick being burned 
 in Lemon Cove, where a fine quality of clay 
 can be found. 
 
 The first floor of the building is devoted to 
 store purposes and also contains the rotunda 
 and dining room of the Lemon Cove hotel, which 
 is conducted by J. E. Pogue. The second floor 
 is used for general hotel purposes and is one 
 of the best in this section of the county. In 
 addition to his mercantile and hotel business, Mr. 
 Pogue is also quite extensively engaged in hor- 
 ticulture, owning twenty acres of land, which is 
 set out with oranges. He has also been inter- 
 ested in general farming, he and others of the 
 family farming over four thousand acres at one 
 time, but since his mercantile business has in- 
 creased to such proportions it has been impossible 
 for him to devote much time to outside mat- 
 ters. 
 
 Since 1889 Mr. Pogue has served as postmas- 
 ter of Lemon Cove, the name being changed in 
 the same year from Lime Kiln. Being deeply 
 interested in fraternal societies, he holds mem- 
 bership in the Woodmen of the World and is 
 also affiliated with the Native Sons of the Gold- 
 en West, being associated with Visalia Parlor. 
 While Mr. Pogue is a young man, he has made 
 for himself a splendid record. In this section 
 of .the coimty where he is best known he is hon- 
 ored and respected. His business ventures have 
 proved successful and although his time has 
 been utilized in building up his mercantile in- 
 terests, he b,as ever been found ready to do his 
 part as a citizen. Young and full of life, he 
 favors progress, and may be depended upon to 
 put his shoulder to the wheel whenever neces- 
 sary. 
 
 GUSTAVE HERMINGHAUS. In the death 
 of the above-named gentleman, Fresno county 
 lost one of its most prominent citizens and the 
 family a most kind and indulgent father and 
 husband. The United States is indebted to Ger- 
 many for many of her sturdy pioneers and to 
 this class of citizens Gustave Herminghaus be- 
 longed. His life was a success, and the results 
 of his labors will live for many years. 
 
 A native of Germany, Mr. Herminghaus was 
 born on the Rhine, March 5, 1820. His father 
 brought_ the family to America and settled near 
 St. Louis, Mo., where he cleared a farm and re- 
 sided until his death. On this farm Gustave 
 Herminghaus was reared. When the work of 
 the farm allowed he improved the opportunity 
 and attended the district school, but in those 
 days the youth's education was limited to a few 
 terms in the winter. In 1850, in companv with 
 others, Mr. Herminghaus crossed the plains, the 
 party bringing cattle through to California. On 
 arriving here he settled on the McCosma river, 
 where he engaged in mining until his removal 
 to San Jose. From there he continued to Pe- 
 noche, where he hunted game for the New Idra 
 quicksilver mines at New Idra. Later he en- 
 gaged in the sheep business at Penoche. About 
 1867 he located near White's Bridge, where he 
 purchased and also entered land and improved 
 a fine place, becoming one of the largest sheep 
 owners in that section of the valley, at one time 
 owning ten thousand head. In 1895 he sold 
 his sheep and rented the land to H. Miller, of 
 Miller & Lux. It is now rented to Isaac Bird 
 of Merced county, manager of Chowchilla ranch. 
 Two years later, in 1897, Mr. Herminghaus 
 came to Fresno, where he continued to reside 
 up to the time of his death, November 18, 1904, 
 at the age of eighty- four years. 
 
 In San Jose, in 1884, Mr. Herminghaus was 
 united in marriage with Miss Amelia Spangler, 
 who was born in Crescent City, Del Norte coun- 
 ty, this state, a daughter of William Spangler, 
 who was born in Philadelphia, Pa., a son also of 
 William, who was a manufacturer in the Quaker, 
 City. The father of Mrs. Herminghaus came to 
 California in 1849, via the Panama route. For 
 several years he followed mining in this state and ' 
 then removed to Portland, Ore., where he en- 
 gaged in the livery business. Later he renioved 
 to Idaho and still later to Walla Walla, Wash., 
 where he was a United States mail contractor. 
 Finally he settled in the Willamette valley. Ore., 
 and engaged in the stock business near Eugene. 
 Subsequently he located on the Pitt river, where 
 he continued in the stock business until his re- 
 moval to Gilroy, Santa Clara county, where he 
 followed general farming. In 1870 he went to 
 Penoche and engaged in teaming to the New Idra 
 mines. Later he again went to Oregon, but 
 in a short time returned to Santa Clara county, 
 engaging in teaming at San Jose. His next lo- 
 cation was in Fresno, where he lived but a short 
 time subsequent to his locating in Stockton, 
 where he is still living at an advanced age. He 
 married Mary Hardin, a native of Arkansas, who 
 came to California in the '50s and died at Pe- 
 noche. She was the mother of ten children, 
 six of whom are still living, Mrs. Herminghaus 
 
1330 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 being the second child. By her marriage Mrs. 
 Herminghaus has two children, Bertha Genevieve 
 and Victoria Pearl. 
 
 Mr. Herminghaus' life is a splendid example 
 of what may be accomplished through persever- 
 ance and industry. His ranch at White's Bridge, 
 on the San Joaquin river, contains about six- 
 teen thousand acres, all in one body, fenced and 
 improved. In addition to this property he erect- 
 ed thirteen residences in FresnO' and built a 
 brick business house which is three stories high 
 and modern throughout. This property was ac- 
 cumulated in a few years. In youth and young 
 manhood he knew what poverty was, but that 
 same poverty was the stepping stone to his suc- 
 cess, and hard work, energy and perseverance 
 brought him a deserved reward for his many 
 years of toil. This review of the life of Mr. 
 Herminghaus carries with it encouragement and 
 an example for the )'oung men who start in life 
 with no capital save manliness, courage, persist- 
 ency of purpose and a willingness to work. 
 
 CHARLES A. SCHWEIZER. A successful 
 and popular business man, Charles A. Schweizer 
 is located in Fresno, conducting the most exten- 
 sive and best equipped harness establishment in 
 Fresno county. He was born in St. Paul, Minn., 
 December 29, 1861, a son of Bernard Schweizer. 
 The elder man was a native of Wurtemberg, 
 Germany, where he learned the trade of wagon 
 maker. He immigrated to America and jour- 
 neyed to Chicago, where he remained for a few 
 months, locating about 1854 in St. Paul, Minn., 
 which was then only a landing place for the boats 
 of the Mississippi river. There he bought a lot 
 and built a residence, for a livelihood engaging 
 first in a saw milling enterprise, later building 
 and conducting a wagon shop, and finally follow- 
 ing the butcher business, the last named occupa- 
 tion demanding his time and attention until his 
 retirement from the active cares of life. His 
 death occurred in St. Paul in 1899, at the age 
 of seventy years. He was a member of the Ro- 
 man Catholic Church, having assisted materially 
 in the erection of the first Catholic Church in 
 St. Paul. Politically he was a Democrat. His 
 wife, formerly Bernardina Staudacher, also a na- 
 tive of Wurtemberg, Germany, died in St. Paul 
 m 1903. Of the seven children born of this un- 
 ion SIX are living, Charles A. being the third 
 in order of birth. 
 
 Charles A. Schweizer was reared in St. Paul 
 and received his education in the public and 
 high schools of that city. From boyhood he as- 
 sisted his father in his business and when sixteen 
 years old was apprenticed to learn the trade of 
 a harness maker and saddler, working with 
 Charles Friend, who conducted the oldest estab- 
 
 lished and most extensive business of its kind 
 in that city, the firm still occupying a leading 
 place in such work. He served a three years' 
 apprenticeship wfth Mr. Friend, and remained 
 six months after its termination, when he went 
 to Keokuk, Iowa, and later to Des Moines^ of 
 the same state. Gradually working his way west- 
 ward, he was employed for a time in Omaha, 
 Neb., then in Cheyenne, Wyo. In the latter place 
 he was located from 1881 to 1887, engaged at 
 his trade. He then came to California, and for 
 six months following his arrival was located in 
 San Francisco employed at his trade. Coming to 
 Fresno in August, 1887, he established a shop 
 of his own at No. 956 I street in partnership 
 with Charles A. Kramer, the firm being known 
 as Kramer & Co. For sixteen months they con- 
 tinued in partnership, when Mr. Schweizer 
 bought Mr. Kramer's interest and since that time 
 has continued alone. In the great fire of 1893 
 Mr. Schweizer's shop was burned to the ground, 
 the loss but half protected by insurance. The 
 fire occurred Saturday night and Monday morn- 
 ing he had rented the store which he now occu- 
 pies at No. 2020 Mariposa street, restocked im- 
 mediately, and by the following Saturday opened 
 for business once more. His business is the old- 
 est of its kind in Fresno and lias developed to 
 lucrative proportions, manufacturing nearly all 
 of the harness which he sells, harness supplies 
 and saddlery goods. He has bought residence 
 property in this city, owning a home at No. 817 
 M street. 
 
 In Cheyenne, Wyo., Mr. Schweizer was united 
 in marriage with Mary Ternes, a native of Lux- 
 embourg, Germany, who came to Wisconsin with 
 her parents when only three years old. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Schweizer is associated with the Be- 
 nevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the 
 Woodmen of the World, and the Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen. Politically he is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. He is a member 
 of the Chamber of Commerce and is active in 
 all movements pertaining to the general welfare 
 of the community. 
 
 WILLIAM GASS COLLINS. A resident of 
 California since 1874, William G. Collins has 
 been actively engaged in the sheep business since 
 1876. He was born in Rhea county, Tenn., 
 March 20, 1848, the son of James Pierce and 
 Susan (Darwin) Collins. The former was born 
 in Virginia, a son of Henry Collins, an early 
 settler of East Tennessee and a farmer in Rhea 
 county. During the Civil war he was a strong 
 Union man. Airs. Collins was a daughter of 
 James Darwin, a native of Virginia, who was 
 also an early settler of East Tennessee and whose 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1331 
 
 ancestors served in the Continental army. Both 
 Mr. and Mrs. Collins died in Tennessee. 
 
 The third in order of birth in a family of 
 seven children, five of whom are living,. W. G. 
 Collins spent his boyhood and youth on the pa- 
 ternal farm, attended the pioneer subscription 
 scliools and engaged in farm work until 1874, 
 when he decided to come to> California, believ- 
 ing that this state held out better inducements 
 for young men. He located in Fresno county 
 upon his arrival in the state and in 1876 engaged 
 in the sheep business with his brother, Alfred 
 S., and since that time they successfully handled 
 thousands of sheep. They began by buying one 
 thousand sheep, ranging them on the plains and 
 in the foothills. As opportunity offered they in- 
 creased their herds, having as high as eight thou- 
 sand at one time. For a time these brothers were 
 engaged in merchandising at Dry Creek post- 
 office, with another brother, J. D. Collins, the 
 present sheriff of Fresno county. A. S. and W. 
 G. Collins raised considerable grain on eight hun- 
 dred acres of land near CoUis, which they later 
 sowed partly to alfalfa and set out an orchard. 
 They entered land and also homesteaded a tract 
 near Academy, which was their home for sev- 
 eral years. In 1902 they sold out and Cjuit the 
 grain business, and W. G. Collins erected a com- 
 fortable residence in Fresno at. No. 1625 I street, 
 where he resides. The brothers still maintain 
 their sheep industry on Big Dry creek, near 
 Academy. 
 
 William G. Collins was united in marriage with 
 Lillie Rogers, who was also a native of East 
 Tennessee, and they have two children, Sidney 
 and Emma. Mrs. Collins is a member of the 
 Cumberland Presbyterian Church. In politics 
 Mr. Collins is a Republican and on national issues 
 has always worked for the party. Public-spirit- 
 ed, enterprising and self-made, he has worked 
 hard to be able to give the comforts of the 
 home his family now enjoy and establish in the 
 county of his adoption an enviable reputation 
 for strict integrity and honor. 
 
 B. A. GARDNER. Throughout his long and 
 well directed life B. A. Gardrfer has exerted an 
 influence for good, has represented the strong 
 and capable men in American country life, and 
 has given his practical good judgment to the 
 development of western conditions from early 
 pioneer days up to the present time. His mind 
 is a storehouse of valuable information concern- 
 ing the rise of the west from its crude conditions 
 under Spanish dominion, and he has passed 
 through the various stages of its awakening: with 
 observant eyes and intelligent brain. Mr. Gard- 
 ner located on his present stock ranch of twenty 
 acres in 1898, having an unrivaled location ad- 
 
 joining Los Banos, north of the park. His 
 ground is all in alfalfa, and he is conducting a 
 dairy of Durham cattle. 
 
 Mr. Gardner comes of an old eastern family, 
 established in Rhode Island prior to the birth 
 of his paternal grandfather, Levi Gardner, who 
 married in his native state, and became a pioneer 
 of Chenango county, N. Y. Job Gardner, the 
 father of B. A., was born in Chenango county, 
 and married Esther Chapman, a native of the 
 same county. The oldest son of this union, L. 
 B., is a retired jeweler of Santa Rosa; D. P., 
 the second child, is a resident of Klamath coun- 
 ty. Ore. ; and the youngest son, T. M., is a car- 
 penter of Santa Rosa. The youngest of these 
 children is now sixty-five years old. The father 
 was a man of much enterprise, evidenced in both 
 his early and later life. He was a trustee of the 
 first free school in New York state, a position 
 encumbered with much responsibility and dis- 
 sension, owing to the trend of popular opinion. 
 He conducted a large .dairy and general farm, 
 but was ambitious of brighter prospects, and 
 determined to profit by the experience of his 
 brother-in-law, J. S. Chapman, who had already 
 established himself on the coast. Therefore, in 
 the spring of 1853, he set out with a spring 
 wagon and horse-team for Illinois, and in April, 
 1854, became one of a party which crossed the 
 plains with two wagons and four yoke of oxen 
 to each wagon. Coming by way of Salt Lake 
 City, he arrived in Eldorado county, Cal., Sep- 
 tember 3, having been five months on the way. 
 In October, 1855, he went to Santa Clara county, 
 and in December, 1858, to Santa Cruz, purchasing 
 a farm in the Pajaro va'lley, upon which he lived 
 until his death, January 15, 1857, at the age of 
 fifty-three years. His wife survived hmi for 
 almost half a century, her death occurring April 
 30, 1902, at the age of ninety-one years and one 
 month. 
 
 B. A. Gardner was one of the first pupils m 
 the first free s'chool of New York state. There 
 he laid the foundation for his subsequent liberal 
 researches. He was seventeen years old when 
 the family started across the plains, and he drove 
 a bull-team, and after reaching this state en- 
 gaged in mining in Eldorado county. In 1855 
 he went with the family to Santa Cruz, assisted 
 in the cultivation of his father's three-hundred- 
 acre farm, and experienced the disappointment 
 of having to relinquish their claim, owing to its 
 being a portion of the Castro grant. In 1875 
 he located in Sonoma county, and in 1877 came 
 to the west side of Merced county, where he 
 bought a farm, which he operated for three 
 years, and then turned it into an orchard and 
 vineyard. Disposing of the same he located on 
 and improved a place near Fresno, where he re- 
 mained four years, when, on account of his 
 
1332 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wife's health he bought a farm in Monterey 
 county and proceeded to raise grain for twelve 
 or fourteen years. In 1898 he came to his 
 present place, which is a finely improved and 
 profitable property. 
 
 In Watsonville, December 4, 1870, Mr. 
 Gardner married Mary Driskell, who was born 
 in Keokuk, Iowa, a daughter of James Driskell, 
 a pioneer of California, and prominently identi- 
 fied with agricultural interests in the state. Mrs. 
 Gardner was reared in Oregon from her seventh 
 year, coming to California at the age of fifteen. 
 She is the mother of four children, namely: 
 Mamie, the wife of J. C. Myers, of Los Banos ; 
 Anna, the wife of William Wisenor, of the vi- 
 cinity of Los Banos ; Qarence and Loran Arthur. 
 Mr. Gardner is a stanch Republican, but has 
 never taken any part in the local deliberations 
 of his party. He has served as a member of the 
 school board for several years. Both himself 
 and wife are members of the Methodist Church, 
 and he was formerly superintendent of the Sun- 
 day-school. Mr. Gardner is highly esteemed in 
 his neighborhood, and wherever he has lived 
 has made many friends and enjoyed the promi- 
 nence due a man of his earnest, generous, and 
 painstaking nature. 
 
 Tyler H., who is attending the high school of 
 Reedley. Politically Mr. Jack is a Democrat and 
 is active in the counsels of his party. He has 
 been a delegate to the county and state conven- 
 tions, and a member of the county central com- 
 mittee. 
 
 ROBERT F. JACK, a successful agriculturist 
 in the vicinity of Parlier, Fresno county, was 
 born in Hamilton county, Tenn., February 22, 
 1854. His father, Robert Jack, was a native of 
 the same state, where he engaged as a coal miner 
 until his death. His wife, formerly Jane Martin, 
 was torn and died in Tennessee. They had a 
 family of one son and two daughters, Robert F. 
 Jack being the youngest. He received his educa- 
 tion in the common schools, upon the completion 
 of which he came to California with a brother-in- 
 law, J. M. Heiskell, arriving in 1869, when he 
 located in San Joaquin county. For a time he 
 worked at farming and in 1872 bought land near 
 Oakdale, Stanislaus county, which he cultivated 
 for eleven years. In 1883 he came to Fresno 
 county and purchased one hundred and sixty 
 acres in the vicinity of Parlier, two miles east of 
 that place and four miles west of Reedley. He 
 raised wheat until the organization of the ditch 
 companies, which gave him sufficient water, when 
 he devoted the greater part of his land to horti- 
 cultural interests. He has planted forty acres to 
 vines, twenty acres to alfalfa and two acres to 
 trees, the balance of the one hundred and twent\ 
 acres which he now owns being devoted to the 
 cultivation of hay and grain. He also owns 
 stock in the Growers' Winery at Parlier. 
 
 In 1888, at Oakdale, Cal, Mr. Jack was united 
 in marriage with Susan P. Heiskell, a native of 
 Eldorado county, Cal., and they have one son. 
 
 JOHN HENRY J ANSON. The^ president 
 and manager of Chesnutwood's Business Col- 
 lege of Fresno, Cal., John Henry Janson, has 
 been largely instrumental "in bringing the com- 
 mercial course tO' a high grade of excellence. 
 He is well and widely known and esteemed for 
 his business qualities as well as for the integ- 
 rity and honor of his manhood. Born in Ne- 
 vada City, Cal., August 15, 1872, he is a son of 
 John Janson, who came around Cape Horn to 
 California in the spring of 1850, going thence to 
 Nevada City, where he engaged in mining. He 
 met with success in his venture, but eventually 
 engaged in farming near that city until his re- 
 tirement, when he located in Santa Cruz, where 
 his death occurred in 1899, at the age of sev- 
 enty-seven years. Fraternally he affiliated with 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His 
 wife, formerly Charlotte C. Johnson, came to 
 California in an early day, and she now makes 
 her home in Paso Robles. 
 
 John Henry Janson was the only child born 
 to his parents. He was reared in Nevada City 
 until attaining the age of eighteen years, attend- 
 ing the public schools and preparing for the pro- 
 fession of a teacher in Nevada county. On ac- 
 count of the impaired health of his father he 
 was compelled to take charge of the farm until 
 1892, in which year he entered Chesnutwood's 
 Business College, in Santa Cruz. In June, 1893, 
 he was graduated from this institution, after 
 which he was employed as an expert account- 
 ant. In 1896 he was asked to take a position in 
 the college from which he had graduated, fill- 
 ing the chair of penmanship and bookkeeping 
 with rare efficiency. He also became financially 
 interested in the institution, being one of the in- 
 corporators in 1898, and was then elected to the 
 office of president, which he has since filled. Un- 
 der his presidency the college assumed a prom- 
 inent place among business institutions of the 
 Pacific coast, being now considered one of the 
 finest in California. Up to 1901 Professor Jan- 
 son was identified with the Pacific Coast Busi- 
 ness College, of San Jose, in which he was sec- 
 retary and a director until he sold out in the 
 last-named year. In June, 1904, Chesnutwood's 
 Business College was established in Fresno, the 
 school opening in September of that year with 
 an enrollment of eighty pupils. In five months' 
 time the number increased to two hundred stu- 
 dents, who are accommodated in the Hedges 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1335 
 
 building. They teach a thorough commercial 
 course and stenography, and hope to establish a 
 normal course upon the occupation of their new 
 building. Thousands of young people have gone 
 from these colleges into splendid positions of 
 trust and responsibility. 
 
 In Santa Cruz, Cal, Mr. Janson was united 
 in marriage with Mabel Ora Smith, a native of 
 Vermont, a graduate of the Santa Cruz high 
 school and Chesnutwood's Business College. 
 They have one son, Herbert Browning. In 
 August, 1904, Mr. Janson removed to Fresno 
 from Santa Cruz, where he had made his home 
 for several years. For the seven years prior to 
 his removal he acted as president of the Young 
 Men's Christian Association, which position he 
 resigned at that time. He is still a member of 
 the Chamber of Commerce of Santa Cruz, as 
 weir as of that of Fresno. He is a member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church and fraternally 
 is identified with the Knights of Pythias, of the 
 Uniformed Rank, and Knights of the Maccabees, 
 being first past commander of Santa Cruz. Po- 
 litically he is a Democrat. 
 
 FRANK VIETOR. Fresno county is the 
 home of many German- Americans v.'ho have been 
 important factors in the work of developing this 
 part of the state. Active and industrious, they 
 have labored earnestly for the advancement of 
 the county, realizing that as the country devel- 
 oped they were reaping their reward. Born in 
 Germany March 30, 1838, Mr. Victor is a son 
 of John Victor, also a native of the same country. 
 He came to the United States in 1848, locating 
 in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he followed his trade 
 of weaver. In i860 he removed to Connersville, 
 Ind., where he engaged in the merchandise busi- 
 ness until his death. Prior to his emigration 
 he married Gertrude Altman, who survived 
 her husband several years, but finally died in 
 Cincinnati. Her marriage resulted in the birth 
 of four children, two daughters and two sons,. 
 Frank being the second child. He was ten years 
 old when his parents came to this country. His 
 education was received in the Catholic schools of 
 Cincinnati, and later he engaged as a huckster, 
 disposing of his produce tO' the grocery stores 
 and to the general public, having a stall in the 
 public market. In 1861 he sold out and came to 
 California, at first locating in Red Bluff, where 
 he engaged in a general teaming and hauling 
 business. While, following this vocation he had 
 many thrilling experiences. He was the first 
 man to haul government goods to Klamath Lake, 
 Oregon. While on this trip he was guided by 
 Captain Jack, an Indian, who later was the leader 
 of the terrible massacre at the Lava Beds. Tir- 
 ing of this life, which was very trying, he went 
 
 to San Jose in 1869 and there followed the same 
 line of business for several years. At one time 
 he hauled flour from the mills at Los Gatos and 
 also hauled lumber from the Big Basin. In 1872 
 he went to what was known as the Kimball tract, 
 Contra Costa county, where he had charge of 
 farming interests. Later he removed to Staten 
 Island, in the Mokelumne river, where he acted 
 as superintendent for Hagan & Tevis, continuing 
 until the fall of 1881, when he came to Fresno 
 county and in partnership with George M. Ed- 
 munds l-;is present ranch was purchased. The 
 tract at the time comprised three hundred and 
 twenty acres, but the new owners cut it up into 
 small tracts and sold all but one hundred and fifty 
 acres which were divided between the two part- 
 ners, Mr. Vietor taking eighty acres, while Mr. 
 Evans came into possession of the balance. Since 
 then he has followed farming and also engaged in 
 the raisin business to quite a large extent. He 
 has also taken a prominent part in outside enter- 
 prises, being one of the organizers of the Fowler 
 Fruit & Raisin Packing Company, incorporated, 
 he being the vice-president and general manager 
 for five years and under his personal direction the 
 business was made a success. With others he is 
 interested in one thousand two hundred acres of 
 land on the west side of the San Joaquin valley, 
 and also owns a third interest in eighty acres 
 on the McCall road. 
 
 While living in San Jose, Mr. Vietor was 
 united in marriage with Miss Barbara Kuhn, who 
 is a native of Germany, and to them have been 
 born two children : Edward, in the butcher busi- 
 ness in Fresno ; and Katie, now the wife of Otto 
 Loescher, who lives near Fowler. A stanch Re- 
 publican, Mr. Vietor has been active in the af- 
 fairs of his party, being for several years a mem- 
 ber of the county central committee. The family 
 are members of the Catholic Church and wher- 
 ever known have hosts of friends who' join in 
 wishing them many years of happiness and con- 
 tinued prosperity. 
 
 LEWIS C. KEELEY. A resident of Cali- 
 fornia since 1880, Mr. Keeley has become one 
 of the leading grain farmers of Tulare county, 
 his success in life being the result of his own 
 well-directed efforts. While he has succeeded in 
 accumulating a competency, no man in the coun- 
 ty is more liberal and he never fails to respond 
 when called upon to support a movement, either 
 financially or otherwise. A native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, he was born in Chester county, Decem- 
 ber 22, 1856, a son of Henry and Martha Eliza- 
 beth (Peck) Keeley. The father was also born 
 in the Keystone state, where he followed farm- 
 ing and surveying. For many years he was in 
 the employ of 'the Pennsylvania Central Railroad 
 
1336 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 as a civil engineer, his duties in this capacity tak- 
 ing him to all parts of the state. He is still liv- 
 ing, making his home in Youngstown, Westmore- 
 land county, Pa. His wife, who bore him six 
 children, died in 1900. 
 
 Lewis C. Keeley remained at home and at- 
 tended the district schools of Westmoreland 
 county, whither his parents removed soon after 
 his birth. At the age of twenty-one he started 
 out to make his own way in the world, spend- 
 ing the first six months in Iowa, and subsequently 
 locating in Tulare county, Cal, where he has 
 since made his home. On first coming to the 
 county he purchased land and engaged m the 
 raising of grain, which business he has since 
 followed with success. For several years he has 
 been associated with his brother, John H., and 
 together thev have carried on one of the largest 
 grain businesses in the county, at times having 
 five thousand five hundred acres under grain. 
 From time to time Mr. Keeley has added to his 
 first purchase of land until he and his brother 
 now own two thousand acres in and around the 
 town of Lindsay. In addition to their grain in- 
 terests the brothers have a stock ranch near 
 Woodville, where they raise horses and cattle. 
 Their ranch is well equipped with modern ap- 
 pliances for carrying on a large business, and 
 besides having two combined harvesters, they 
 also own many other labor-saving implements.- 
 The home place, which is located three miles 
 southwest of Lindsay, is among the finest places 
 in this part of the county. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Keeley is a member of the 
 Odd Fellows, but the lodge at Woodville of 
 which he was a member has given up its char- 
 ter and he has not associated himself with any 
 other lodge. In political belief he is a Democrat 
 and takes a deep interest in the welfare of that 
 organization. Aside from holding the position 
 of school trustee he has never held public office, 
 but while a member of the board he made a 
 hard fight for a much larger schoolhouse than 
 was planned. As a result the district now has 
 one of the largest and finest school buildings in 
 the county, which gives ample room for the large 
 attendance. 
 
 and his most estimable wife are highly respect- 
 ed for their many sterling traits of character and 
 both have a large circle of warm personal friends. 
 
 JOHN H. KEELEY was born in Pennsyl- 
 vania in 1858. In 1879 he located in Tulare coun- 
 ty, Cal., where for many years he has been asso- 
 ciated in business with his brother. B>' his mar- 
 riage with Charlotte, daughter of Julius Orton, 
 five children have been born, namely : Lizzie, 
 John, William, Ralph and Julius. 
 
 Mr. Keeley has never cared to take a promi- 
 nent part in political matters, but is deeply in- 
 terested in educational affairs and is now serv- 
 ing as trustee of the Lindsay school district. He 
 
 JAMES SHARPE TANNAHILL. Born in 
 Huntingdon county, Quebec, Canada, November 
 17, 1848, J. S. Tannahill is a son of John and 
 Marian (Caldwell) Tannahill, the former born 
 near Glasgow, Scotland. At an early day he 
 immigrated to Canada, settling in Huntingdon 
 county, where he cleared a farm of one hundred 
 and fifty acres. In 1850 he came to California 
 via the Isthmus of Panama, but after one year 
 returned to his home in Canada, where he had 
 left his family, and where he died a few days 
 afterward, from a fever that he had contracted 
 while in the west. His wife, who was also born 
 in Scotland, became the mother of two sons "and 
 five daughters. She died at the old home in 
 1881. 
 
 James S. Tannahill was reared on his father's 
 farm in Canada, making it his home until reach- 
 ing his twenty-first year, when he was appren- 
 ticed to learn the trade of a miller. Two years 
 later, in 1871, he migrated westward and finally 
 reached California. Soon after arriving here 
 he located in Redwood City, San Mateo county, 
 where he secured employment as a carpenter 
 after conducting a mill for one month, being 
 compelled to make the change on account of ill 
 health. Continuing to make his residence in 
 Redwood City until 1891, he then removed to 
 Fresno county and engaged in ranching. Dur- 
 ing the years he lived in San Mateo county he 
 owned and operated a planing mill and followed 
 contracting and building most of the time. Many 
 of the finest residences in that place and at 
 Menlo Park were constructed by him. 
 
 The first three and one-half years of his res- 
 idence in Fresno county Mr. Tannahill devoted 
 his attention to farming and growing grapes, but 
 at the expiration of that time moved into the 
 city of Fresno and has since been following gen- 
 eral contracting and building, now being one 
 of the leading builders in the San Joaquin val- 
 ley. Among the more prominent residences that 
 he has erected may be mentioned the Kearney 
 mansion, the home of James Brown and others. 
 He has also erected for himself a nice home at 
 No. 442 Blackstone avenue. 
 
 While living in San Mateo county Mr. Tan- 
 nahill was united in marriage with Isabelle Stew- 
 art and to them have been born seven children, 
 namely : Marion, Archibald, Leslie, Norman, 
 Jennie, Wallace and Gertrude. Politically Mr. 
 Tannahill is • a stanch Republican and while he 
 does not care to take an active part in public 
 affairs, he is deeply interested in the questions 
 of the day, and while living in Redwood City 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1337 
 
 was for three years a member of the city coun- 
 cil. In fraternal relations he holds membership' 
 with the Improved Order of Red Men and the 
 Order of St. Andrew. Starting at the bottom of 
 the ladder, he has gradually forged his way to 
 the front and by the exercise of his own efforts 
 has accumulated a comfortable competency and 
 has attained a position "of influence in the state. 
 
 GEORGE F. STANIFORD. A prominent 
 place among the business men of Fresno is ac- 
 corded George F. Staniford, secretary of the 
 Chamber of Commerce, and one of the enter- 
 prising and substantial citizens of this city. He 
 is a. native of Rockport, Mass., where his birth 
 occurred March 2, 1855. His ancestors were of 
 English descent who located in the colonies and 
 were active as patriots during the Revolutionary 
 war. His father, Daniel Staniford, was born in 
 Ipswich, Mass., in which state he engaged in 
 farming for many years, finally removing to 
 Brooklyn, N. Y., where his death occurred. His 
 wife, formerly Caroline Fawcett, was born in 
 New York City, the child of English parents. 
 Her father, William Fawcett, was a master me- 
 chanic in England and came to America to su- 
 perintend the launching of the first steamboat, the 
 Clermont, for Robert Fulton. He followed his 
 trade in New York City, where his death oc- 
 curred. Mrs. Staniford died in Brooklyn, leav- 
 ing a large family of children, four of whom 
 were born of her first marriage to Frederick 
 Weber, a banker of New York City, and five 
 children by her union with Mr. Staniford. Of 
 the four children, only two are living, both being 
 residents of San Leandro. Of the second mar- 
 riage all the children are living, the only one 
 in CaUfornia being George F., of Fresno. 
 
 George F. Staniford made his home in Massa- 
 chusetts until he was fifteen years old, removing 
 at that time to Brooklyn. He received his edu- 
 cation in the public schools of Rockport and 
 Salem, and after locating in Brooklyn he at- 
 tended a commercial college. Entering business 
 life, he filled the position of bookkeeper for the 
 Montauk Insurance Company for six and a half 
 years. In 1878 he came to California and locat- 
 ing at Riverside improved an orange grove and 
 vineyard, a ten-acre tract, which he sold two 
 years later. He then located in San Francisco 
 and entered the insurance business as bookkeeper, 
 retaining the position for six years, then engag- 
 ing as traveling special agent for the City of Lon- 
 don, Scottish Union and National, and the Home 
 Mutual Fire and Marine Insurance Companies. 
 During this period he located his home in Fresno, 
 bringing his family here in 1890, in which year 
 he established an insurance business in this city, 
 
 a local agency for many of the old line com- 
 panies. In 1898 he sold his business and in July 
 of the same year became associated with the Rais- 
 in Growers' Association, having assisted mate- 
 rially in its organization. He became chief clerk 
 and held the position until September, 1903, sub- 
 sequently holding other positions with the asso- - 
 elation until December, 1904, when he accepted 
 the secretaryship of the Chamber of Commerce, 
 which has five hundred and twenty members, be- 
 ing the largest business men's association in the 
 San Joaquin valley. In 1904 the Chamber built 
 the Chamber of Commerce building, which is 
 given over to conventions, etc., as well as con- 
 taining a complete exhibit of California prod- 
 ucts. They had a magnificent exhibit at the 
 St. Louis Exposition in 1904, where the county 
 took the grand prize and several gold and silver 
 medals. 
 
 Mr. Staniford has built a beautiful home at 
 the corner of Belmont and Van Ness avenues, 
 which is presided over by his wife, formerly Vir- 
 ginia Lee Jamison, whom he married in Fresno. 
 She is a native of Stanislaus county, and the 
 daughter of Harvey Jamison, a pioneer of that 
 county, and a highly respected citizen, who ably 
 filled the office of county assessor of Stanislaus 
 county for many years, and who is remembered 
 for his many good qualities of head and heart. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Staniford have two children, Kenneth 
 Jamison and Warren Paul. Mrs. Staniford is a 
 member of the Presbyterian Church. Fraternal- 
 ly Mr. Staniford affiliates with the Woodmen of 
 the World, Fraternal Brotherhood, and the New 
 England Society of Fresno, which he served as 
 president. Politically he is a stanch Republican 
 and has served as a member of the county central 
 committee. 
 
 THOMAS STILWELL, an esteemed resident 
 of Exeter, was born in Illinois, March 26, 1866, 
 a son of Hiram Stilwell. The latter was a na- 
 tive of Indiana and a farmer by occupation. 
 When but a mere boy he left his native state 
 with his parents, and removed to Illinois. In 
 i860 he went to Denver, Colo., during the gold 
 excitement, but returned to Illinois the same 
 year, where he remained until the fall of 1868. 
 He then moved to 'Missouri, where he remained 
 until 1880, when he went to Kansas. In 1882 he 
 crossed the plains to Oregon and then came to 
 California in 1885, and settled near Farmersville, 
 and later at Camp Badger, where he was en- 
 gaged in stock-raising until his death, which oc- 
 curred May 10, 1896. His wife, formerly Ann 
 Howard, a native of Indiana, survives him, now- 
 making her home near Exeter. They were the 
 parents of five children, four sons and one daugh- 
 ter, all of whom attained maturity. Thomas 
 
1338 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Stilwell being the second in order of birth. He 
 was reared in HHnois, Bates county, Mo., and 
 Neosho county, Kans. In 1882 he came to Cal- 
 ifornia and began farming and stock-raising, 
 which double occupation he has since followed. 
 He now has a residence on the Portersville road 
 upon his ranch of' four hundred acres, all de- 
 voted to the raising of graded cattle. Short- 
 horns, etc., while he rents four hundred and 
 eighty acres which is planted to grain. He mar- 
 ried Emma Pickett, and they have one daugh- 
 ter, Agnes Lowell. Mrs. Stilwell is a member 
 of the Roman Catholic Church, of Visalia. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Stilwell is identified with the Wood- 
 men of the World. 
 
 Mrs. Stilwell is a daughter of Dr. Daniel LaF. 
 Pickett, who was born in North Carolina, Jan- 
 uary 28, 1828, of Qviaker parents. He attended 
 a medical college in North Carolina, from which 
 he graduated with the degree of M.D., after 
 which he practiced in his native state for some 
 time. He then went to Missouri and spent the 
 winter of 1849-50 and thence, in 1850, crossed 
 the plains by means of ox teams. He made his 
 home in various places on the coast, spending 
 some time in Oregon and Nevada. Eventually 
 he came to California and bought a farm near 
 Farmersville, Tulare county, where he practiced 
 medicine in connection with his horticultural in- 
 terests for many years. About thirty years ago 
 he gave up the practice of his profession. In 
 1884 he homesteaded a ranch on the Portersville 
 road, where he made his home until his death, 
 January 2, 1905. Fraternally he was a promi- 
 nent Mason, and politically cast his ballot with 
 the Republican party. He served at different 
 times as clerk of the school board, filling that 
 office at the time of his death, and had also acted 
 as justice of the peace. His wife, formerly Cath- 
 erine Josephine O'Brien, was a native of Ire- 
 land, and died in San Diego. They had no 
 children, but reared as their own, Emma Pick- 
 ett, now the wife of Thomas Stilwell, who gave 
 to them the care and affection of a daughter. 
 
 JEFFERSON D. STATHAM. The son of a 
 pioneer, Jefferson D. Statham was born in Fresno 
 county, August 21, 1862, and reared among the 
 primitive scenes and conditions incident to the 
 early days of the state. His father, Albert H. 
 Statham, was born in 1832 in Virginia, from 
 which state he emigrated in boyhood to Arkansas, 
 whence he participated in the Mexican war as 
 drummer boy. Deciding to locate in the remote 
 west where opportunities were more abundant, 
 he crossed the plains in 1852, taking the southern 
 route through Texas (in which state he met his 
 wife) and upon his safe arrival in California 
 
 located on Arkansas Flat, on Kings river. He 
 engaged in the stock business and also teamed 
 to Stockton, San Joaquin county, in 1868 enter- 
 ing land and moving on the plains. He located 
 his home a half-mile from Centerville, where he 
 bought three hundred and twenty acres and fol- 
 lowed the raising of sheep. He eventually bought 
 land in the vicinity of Sanger, Fresno county, and 
 also at Lone Tree, owning about twelve hundred 
 acres, when, in 1876, he located in Fresno and 
 later sold his land. He first engaged in the liv- 
 ery business in this city, and followed that with 
 a meat market, finally engaging in a real estate 
 enterprise. In 1886 he removed to Los Angeles, 
 where he purchased property and made that city 
 his home until his death in 1900. He was a mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church South, 
 and one of the founders of the church in Fresno. 
 His wife, formerly Serepta Akers, was a native 
 of Arkansas, who died in 1870. They became 
 the parents of the following children: George, 
 located in Montana; James, engaged in the real 
 estate business in Fresno; Jefferson, of this re- 
 view ; Albert, of Los Angeles ; Marvin, who died 
 in Fresno ; and Rosa, the wife of C. G. Hinds, 
 of Alameda. 
 
 Until he was fourteen years old Jefferson D. 
 Statham was reared in Centerville, where he at- 
 tended the district school, and after his location 
 in Fresno in 1876 he completed his education in 
 the public schools. At the age of sixteen years 
 he began work for himself, farming and team- 
 ing in various localities in the San Joaquin val- 
 ley. Two years after his marriage, which 
 occurred February 14, 1883, Mr. Statham went 
 to Pendleton, Ore., where he engaged extensively 
 in the stock business, dealing in both cattle and 
 horses. He remained in that location for four 
 years, when he returned to California and set- 
 tled in Madera county. He followed the butcher 
 business and the raising of stock in Raymond 
 until 1896, when he located in Fresno county, 
 purchasing a ranch of one hundred and sixty 
 acres located one mile northeast of Cone jo. This 
 ranch is under irrigation from the Emigrant and 
 Fowler Switch ditches, and is devoted to alfalfa, 
 where he is also engaged in stock raising — cattle, 
 horses and mules, — being largely interested in 
 bringing cattle from Arizona. In addition to his 
 own property he also rents land. In 1898 he 
 bought a small ranch at the corner of Church and 
 East avenues, v/here he made his home until 1902, 
 when he moved into Fresno. He owned the 
 southwest corner of Mariposa and M streets, 
 and in 1904 put up the Mariposa Hotel, a com- 
 modious and comfortable hostelry which covers 
 nearly four lots. His personal interests are en- 
 tirely given over to the raising of stock. 
 
 Mrs. Statham was in maidenhood Ida Helm, a 
 
X 
 
 z 
 
 s 
 
 W 
 en 
 O 
 
 A 
 
 ^/ 
 
 S 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1341 
 
 native of Princeton, Mariposa county, and the 
 daughter of Allen Helm, who was a native of 
 Missouri. His father located in that state and 
 later crossed the plains to California in 1852. He 
 followed farming in Merced county and also in 
 Mariposa county, his death occurring on one of 
 his ranches in the latter county in the fall of 
 1876. Brought to the state in 1852 Allen Helm 
 became a farmer in manhood near Merced, now 
 owning a farm and stock ranch in the lower foot- 
 hills in Mariposa county. His wife, formerly 
 Melvina Smith, a native of Arkansas, was a 
 daughter of William Smith, who crossed the 
 plains to California and settled near Centerville, 
 where his death occurred. Mrs. Helm died in 
 Fresno county February 28, 1873, leaving two 
 children of the three born to herself and hus- 
 band, Mrs. Statham being the eldest. Mrs. Stat- 
 ham is a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church. Politically Mr. Statham is a Demo- 
 crat. 
 
 JOSEPH MINGHETTI. A native of Swit- 
 zerland, Mr. Minghetti was born in that country 
 May 24, 1836, a son of Joseph and Lucy (Mar- 
 zorini) Minghetti. The father was a shoe-maker 
 by trade and also followed farming to some ex- 
 tent. His union with Miss Marzorini was blessed 
 by the birth of six children. Both the parents 
 are deceased. 
 
 Joseph Minghetti was the oldest child and is 
 now the only one living. His education was ob- 
 tained in the common schools of his native coun- 
 try, where he later engaged in farming until 
 1856, when he went to Australia. After remain- 
 ing there five years he went to New Zealand, 
 where for the same length of time he worked in 
 the gold mines. In 1866 he returned to his na- 
 tive country and three years later immigrated to 
 the United States. For a time he lived in Iowa 
 and Nebraska, working on the railroad for three 
 years. At the expiration of this time he made an- 
 other trip to his old home, but the following 
 year, 1875, returned to this country and located 
 in Fresno county, near Kingsburg. There he 
 took up one hundred and sixty acres of land and 
 engaged in the raising of cattle and general farm- 
 ing. In 1885 he sold that place and located on 
 the ranch that has since been his home, which 
 consists of five hundred acres, two miles south 
 of Conejo. It is one of the best farms in the 
 valley and here he conducts a very successful 
 stock and dairy business, having about one hun- 
 dred milch cows. 
 
 Mr. Minghetti was united in marriage with 
 Catherine Kelley, a native of Ireland. Both are 
 members of the Catholic Church. Mr. Minghetti 
 is a Republican in politics. He has never cared 
 for political honors, preferring to devote his 
 
 whole time to the building up of his business, a 
 policy which has proven successful, as today 
 he is one of the leading agriculturists of Fresno 
 county and an influential citizen. Starting in 
 life without a dollar, he has labored hard to 
 accumulate a competency and that he has accom- 
 plished his aims reflects much credit upon his 
 industry and ability. Both he and his estimable 
 wife are popular with a large" circle of friends 
 and are welcome visitors in the' homes of the lead- 
 ing people of the county. 
 
 CHARLES W. MUSICK is the secretary of 
 the Fresno Flume and Irrigation Company, one 
 of the most extensive industrial interests of this 
 section. He is a native son of the state, his birth 
 having occurred in Yolo county, May 8, 1863. 
 His father, James J. Musick, was born in Mis- 
 souri and reared to young manhood on a farm. 
 In 1849 he became a victim to the gold fever 
 and crossed the plains to California, where he 
 engaged in mining on Feather and Yuba rivers. 
 Later he sought the less uncertain fortunes of a 
 farmer, locating in Yolo county and later in 
 Napa county. In 1881 he came to Fresno county 
 and began the manufacture of lumber, locating 
 and purchasing timber lands on Pine . Ridge, 
 which he continued to purchase until he owned 
 about two thousand five hundred acres. He built 
 a mill on this tract on what is known as Musick 
 Meadows, under the firm name of J. J. Musick 
 & Sons. Their mills were operated by steam and 
 with a capacity of twenty-five thousand feet per 
 day. He conducted the business successfully 
 until his death, which occurred in 1891. He was 
 a man of strong convictions, a Methodist in re- 
 ligion and a Republican in politics. His wife, 
 formerly Mary W. Gardner, was a native of 
 Arkansas, who came to California in the early 
 '50S. She survives her husband and makes her 
 home in Pasadena, Los Angeles county, Cal. 
 They became the parents of six children, of whom 
 three sons and two daughters are living. One 
 son, H. L., a resident of Pasadena, is also inter- 
 ested in the Fresno Flume and Irrigation Com- 
 pany. 
 
 Next to the oldest of the living children of his 
 parents, Charles W. Musick was reared on his 
 father's fami in Yolo and Napa counties, receiv- 
 ing his education in the public schools. He lo- 
 cated with his parents in Fresno in 1881, after 
 which he took a commercial course in the Stock- 
 ton Business College, from which institution he 
 was graduated in 1888. In that yeir he assumed 
 active management of the J. J. Musick & Sons 
 lumber concern. Upon the death of his father 
 in 1891 the firm became known as Musick 
 Brothers. The business was successfullv con- 
 ducted until 1893, when the mill was burned 
 
1342 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 down. They did not rebuild, as they had^ al- 
 ready become interested in the Fresno Flume 
 and Irrigation Company, and had assisted in the 
 organization of the old Pine Ridge Flume and 
 Irrigation Company, which was later absorbed by 
 the former company. In 1894 he began giving 
 his attention to the business in Fresno and in 
 1898 he succeeded his brother (who resigned 
 in that year), to the office of secretary and di- 
 rector, which he has since held. (For more 
 complete details concerning the Fresno Flume 
 and Irrigation Company, refer to the sketch of 
 Charles B. Shaver, which appears elsewhere in 
 this volume.) 
 
 In Amador county, Cal, Mr. Musick was 
 united in marriage with Eva M. Marchand, a 
 native of Oakland. Fraternally he is identified 
 with the Native Sons of the Golden West, and 
 politically is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party. He is a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce, and is active in all movements pertain- 
 ing to the development of the city, county or 
 state. 
 
 CAMILLA RANCH. Orange growing in 
 California is perhaps the most profitable of 
 all the outdoor pursuits that have made the 
 Golden State so attractive to the homeseek- 
 er ; certainly it is the most alluring. There is 
 a nameless something about an orange grove 
 that appeals to the man from the east, satisfy- 
 ing to the full the longing that fills his heart 
 when his mind's eye draws its picture of Cali- 
 fornia. The orange grove is not the alpha and 
 omega of California attractions by any means ; 
 nevertheless it is the first thing the man from east 
 of the Rockies hopes to see. 
 
 "But how can I get an orange grove unless 
 I go to California," is the plaint of one man. 
 Another says, "1 want an orange grove, but I 
 cannot leave here now, and I want it ready to 
 support me when I get there. What am I to 
 do ?" The Camilla Ranch Company answers both 
 these questions. In fact the Camilla Ranch 
 Company came into existence for the exact pur- 
 pose of meeting these and other "long-felt 
 wants" of the orange industry. And it was in 
 response to the scores of letters in this vein from 
 eastern friends that the Camilla Ranch Com- 
 pany evolved its tmique proposition. 
 
 Briefly, the Camilla people have put forth a 
 proposition something like an interchangeable 
 mileage book. It is good for land or it is good 
 for dividends. If you cannot look after your 
 land now. draw dividends on your investment. 
 When you are ready for }our land, hand in your 
 stock, get your deed and the land is vours. Sim- 
 ple, isn't it? And you can do this when you 
 
 want to, in a month, a year, two years or five 
 years. When yon want to, not when somebody 
 else wants you to. No restrictions. It is all 
 at your option. When you get your deed the 
 land is absolutely yours — no strings tied to it. 
 
 The Camilla Ranch Company is the absolute 
 owner of one hundred and ninety-five acres of 
 the choicest and most fertile orange land in Tu- 
 lare county, the banner orange growing district 
 of the state. The property is fully equipped in 
 every Way, with its own wells and pumping 
 plant, houses, barns, live stock and implements, 
 and is today a paying property. Its earnings for 
 1905 will approximate $25,000, which would pay 
 the handsome dividend of sixteen and two- 
 thirds per cent, on $150,000. The property is 
 situated at Lindsay, in the heart of the Tulare 
 orange district. There is no finer nor more pro- 
 ductive orange property in all of California. 
 
 Nine years ago one hundred and twenty acres 
 of this property were planted to navel and Va- 
 lencia oranges and the condition of this fine 
 grove today is sufficient evidence of the care 
 and good management it has had. It is well 
 known as one of the best and most productive 
 groves of that region of splendid orange prop- 
 erties. 
 
 The property has three fine wells from which 
 water for irrigation is pumped by electric power. 
 By means of large underground pipes the water 
 is conducted to the various parts of the ranch 
 as required. The efficiency of the Camilla irri- 
 gation system is well known to everyone in the 
 Lindsay district. This irrigation system will 
 at once be incorporated and stock issued, free of 
 charge, to the purchasers of Camilla orange land, 
 in the ratio of one share to every acre. The own- 
 er of a Camilla orange grove is thus assured of 
 all the water required for his trees, at a mini- 
 mum expense. 
 
 The Lindsay district's greatest advantage in 
 the growing of oranges lies in the early ripening 
 of all citrus fruits, due to the higher elevation 
 and extreme dryness of the climate. The rich, 
 sedimentary soil, which requires no fertilization, 
 also plays its part in bringing the Lindsay orange 
 to the perfection which distinguishes it. The 
 navel orange in the Lindsay district is ready for 
 the market early in November, six weeks ahead 
 of the southern fruit. 
 
 The Lindsay oranges, navels and Valencias, will 
 average a net profit to the grower of not less 
 than $1 per box in the packing house, and often 
 far more. In order to be conservative, we estimate 
 the yield for Camilla ranch at only two and 
 one-half boxes to the tree for navel and four 
 boxes for Valencia oranges, and for the other 
 forty-seven acres at one box per tree. We esti- 
 mate the net price in the packing house at only 
 $1 per box, though such a low price, with one 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1343 
 
 exception, has not been known in the history 
 of Lindsay. 
 
 Thus we have for Camilla Ranch 8,800 navels, 
 22,000 boxes, $22,000; 4,400 Valencias, 17,600 
 boxes, $17,600; and for the other forty-seven 
 acres planted later, 5,500 trees, 5,500 boxes, 
 $5,500. Total gross profits, $45,100. From this 
 deduct cost of working ranch as above, $6,800; 
 net returns, $38,300. 
 
 The yield of fruit, and consequently the profits, 
 will continue to increase for the next ten years 
 or more. 
 
 COLUMBUS WATSON ELLIOTT. Very 
 early in the history of the United States Andrew 
 Elliott came to this country from Scotland and 
 settled in Maine, where he built and operated a 
 grist and saw mill at New Portland, remaining 
 in the same town as long as he lived. He was 
 a man of sturdy principles, irreproachable char- 
 acter and a devoted member of the Baptist 
 Church. After his death the mill was managed 
 by his son, Robert, who was born in New Port- 
 land and continued there until his death. After- 
 ward the old mill descended to the hands of his 
 son James, who like himself had been born and 
 reared in New Portland, and this third owner of 
 the mill not only superintended its management, 
 but also followed the millwright's trade and built 
 mills in different parts of Maine. After retiring 
 from business affairs he turned the mill over to 
 the charge of his son-in-law, D. Butler, and it 
 still remains in the family. In religious belief 
 James Elliott was a Universalist. At the time 
 of his death he was seventy-four years of age. 
 By his marriage to Rebecca Kasley, who was 
 born in Maine and died there at the age of sev- 
 enty, he had three children, of whom Columbus 
 Watson was second in order of birth, and he 
 and a sister are the only survivors. He was born 
 at the old home place in New Portland, Me., 
 June 17, 1 841, and received a common-school ed- 
 ucation in the town, after which he was appren- 
 ticed to the carpenter's trade. 
 
 On leaving home in 1867 Mr. Elhott went to 
 Minnesota, where he engaged in the building 
 business at Lakeland, Washington county. From 
 there he came to California in 1873 and endeav- 
 ored to secure work in San Diego, but the build- 
 ing business was dull, so he sought other em- 
 ployment. Going thirty-two miles east of that 
 city he began to farm a raw tract of land, but at 
 the end of a year he had nothing but debts to 
 show for all his hard work, so he decided it 
 would be wise to seek another location. Packing 
 his blankets, he proceeded to the JuHan mines, 
 where he worked for two years. With the money 
 thus secured he returned to his ranch and re- 
 mained there three years, paying off all of his 
 
 mdebtedness by 1879. During that vear he came 
 to Tulare county and settled at Cross Creek, 
 where he followed the carpenter's trade. In 
 1880 he bought one hundred and sixty acres of 
 railroad land at $5 an acre and two years later 
 settled on the tract, at once beginning the im- 
 provement of the wild land. Not a tree was in 
 sight and no buildings had been erected, but it 
 was not many years before the place had taken 
 on a homelike appearance under his capable over- 
 sight and constant care. For three years he gave 
 his attention entirely to raising wheat, but since 
 then he has raised other kinds of grain and has 
 also made a specialty of the stock business. A- 
 small part of the land has been sold, but he still 
 owns one hundred and forty acres, situated six 
 miles southwest of Dinuba and four and one-half 
 miles north of Traver. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. ElHott was solemnized at 
 the Snedeker home near Smith Mountain, Fresno 
 county, and united him with Laura Snedeker, 
 who was born in New Orleans, La., of Ger- 
 man descent, came to California in 1873, and 
 died in Tulare county on the home farm, Feb- 
 ruary 22, 1904, leaving to mourn her loss Mr. 
 Elliott and their four children. Amy, Etta, 
 Claudia and Ira. Among the people of his com- 
 munity Mr. Elliott is highly esteemed for his 
 qualities of mind and heart that have contributed 
 to his success and have made him a progressive 
 and public-spirited citizen. Though not active in 
 politics, he has been a pronounced Republican 
 ever since attaining his majority, and in 1894 
 he was his party's candidate for county super- 
 visor, but, not desiring the office, he refused to 
 enter into the work of the campaign, yet, not- 
 withstanding his indifference, he lost only by two 
 votes against two opponents, a fact which proves 
 his popularity among associates and acquaint- 
 
 ances. 
 
 A. H. GREELEY. A native son of California, 
 Mr. Greeley was born in Dutch Flat, Placer 
 county, October 7, 1865, a son of J. F. Greeley, 
 whose sketch appears on another page of this 
 work. A. H. Greeley was reared in Truckee 
 until reaching his fifteenth year, attending the 
 public schools of that place. In 1881 he came to 
 Fresno and secured a position as clerk in a store, 
 in this way working his way through the public 
 schools. In 1885 he entered the State Agricultural 
 College at Manhattan, Kans., where he remained 
 for four years. On returning to California he 
 resumed clerking, but soon after, in company 
 with Herbert Bishop, started a grocery store in 
 Fresno under the firm name of Bishop & Greeley. 
 Later he sold out and entered the employ of F. 
 J. Burleigh as a bookkeeper, continuing at this 
 for eight years. At the expiration of this time. 
 
1344 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in IQOI Mr. Greeley established himself m the 
 o-rain business. Since then he has gradually en- 
 ■farged his business until now he is one of the 
 leading wholesale commission dealers m tresno, 
 dealing in dried fruit, raisins, gram, live stock, 
 nuts, beans, onions, potatoes, etc. At Clovis lie 
 has erected a large and well-equipped packing 
 house, while his office and salesrooms are located 
 at No. 1925 Tulare street, Fresno. 
 
 In Oakland, Mr. Greeley was united m mar- 
 riage with Miss Ella Brownell, who was born at 
 "The Oakes," near Stockton, a daughter of Rus- 
 sell G. Brownell, who is a native of Cincinnati, 
 Ohio, and one of the pioneer settlers of Cahfor- 
 nia To Mr. and Mrs. Greeley have been born 
 three children: Albertha, Edna and Margaret 
 
 Fraternally, Mr. Greeley is a member of the 
 Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. .In pol- 
 itics he follows in the footsteps of his father, be- 
 ing an ardent supporter of the men and measures 
 of the Republican party. He has been prominent 
 in the affairs of the county, at one time was a 
 candidate for the office of county tax collector, 
 but was defeated by but two hundred and seventy 
 votes. This was considered a remarkable record, 
 as the county is strongly Democratic. 
 
 Mr. Greeley has made his own way m the 
 world since reaching young manhood. He worked 
 his way through school, but has never regretted 
 the time and money spent in securing an educa- 
 tion. Today he is looked upon as one of the 
 leading young men of the county, but while he 
 has been very busy looking after his own afifairs 
 he has never neglected his duties as a citizen. 
 
 place he purchased eighty acres of land which 
 adjoins the town of Parlier. The entire tract is 
 highly improved, twenty acres being devoted to 
 a vineyard, fifteen acres to trees, and the balance 
 to alfalfa and general farming. 
 
 While still a resident of Illinois he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Pocahontas Glazbrook, 
 who was born in Tennessee April 21, 1858. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Laird have been born seven chil- 
 dren, namely : Nora, now Mrs. J. R. Baird; An- 
 drew ; Annie, who is attending the State Normal 
 school at San Jose ; Mary, a student in the high 
 school in Reedley ; Orlie, Bessie and Edgar, all 
 at home. 
 
 Mr. Laird and his wife are members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, he being one of the 
 trustees. In politics he has always been a Re- 
 publican, but has never cared to take an active 
 part in pubHc affairs. Starting out in life with- 
 out money, Mr. Laird has been successful, and 
 now that he has reached old age he and his wife 
 are enjoying the results of his hard labor. Both 
 are very popular and have hosts of friends. 
 
 LEWIS N. LAIRD. A native of Illinois, Mr. 
 Laird was born in Jefferson county, near the town 
 of Mount Vernon, October 25, 1849, His father, 
 Joseph Laird, migrated from his native state, 
 Kentucky, to Illinois in 1816. Locating in Jeffer- 
 son county he engaged in farming and also 
 taught school several terms. After several years 
 he removed to Kansas, but soon returned to Jef- 
 ferson county, where he continued farming and 
 where his death occurred at the age of fifty-one 
 years in 1869. He married Emma Allen, a na- 
 tive of Kentucky, who died in Illinois in 1880. 
 Eight children were born of this union, Lewis N. 
 being the youngest boy and the fourth child. As 
 soon as old enough he assisted his father in the 
 work of the farm, his education being limited to 
 attendance at the district school during the win- 
 ter months. In those days the youth's training 
 was more in the line of hard work than in study, 
 but Mr. Laird, in latter years has read extensively 
 and is now a well-posted man. After the death 
 of his father he engaged in farming near Ashley, 
 111., where he remained until 1882, the year of 
 his arrival in California. Locating on his present 
 
 LOUIS WEGNER. Merced has no more 
 earnest or practical advocate of progress than is 
 found in its popular and successful builder and 
 contractor, Louis Wegner. This typical German- 
 American, who, since 1902, has been a helpful 
 and influential member of the board of trustees 
 of Merced, is a native of Preetz, Schleswig-Hol- 
 stein, Germany, where he was born October 29, 
 1859, next to the youngest in a family of seven 
 children, four of whom are living. Of these, 
 two sons and one daughter are in America, 
 William being a carpenter in the employ of his 
 brother Louis. For generations Schleswig-Hol- 
 stein has been the home of this family, and on 
 one of its fertile farms the paternal grandfather 
 was born and passed his entire life, the same re- 
 gion being the birthplace also of John Wegner, 
 the father of Louis, who left the farm and en- 
 gaged in the carpenter and builder trade at Kiel. 
 He was an energetic and resourceful man, 
 worked up a large trade, and was well known for 
 his thrift and ingenuity as a workman. In early 
 life he married Margaret Tiedemann, who was 
 born in Hanover, and after whose death at an 
 advanced age, he retired from active duties, his 
 last years being spent with his son in Merced, 
 Cal, where his death occurred at the age of 
 seventy-six years. 
 
 Louis Wegner lived in Preetz until 1869, and 
 then removed to Kiel, where he attended the 
 public schools and graduated from the high- 
 school. At the age of sixteen he apprenticed to 
 his father as a carpenter, and further qualified 
 for his life work by taking a course at the archi- 
 tectural school at Eckernforde, from which he 
 
o't^. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1347 
 
 was duly graduated at the expiration of three 
 years of steady application. The following year, 
 in 1879, he entered the army, becoming a soldier 
 in Company 3, Thirty-first German Infantry, 
 later being transferred to One Hundred and 
 Twenty-ninth Infantry, in the latter serving as 
 drum major, and attaining the rank of sergeant. 
 Receiving his honorable discharge after three 
 years of military service, in 1882, he came to 
 New York in September, and thence to Cali- 
 fornia, where he joined his brother in carpenter 
 work in Merced. 
 
 Possessing the grit and determination of his 
 race, and realizing the opportunities by which 
 he was surrounded, Mr. Wegner soon made his 
 influence felt, not only as a builder, but as a 
 promoter of general improvements. From car- 
 penter work he advanced to contracting and 
 building, an occupation which he has followed 
 uninterruptedly in Merced and vicinity since 
 1884. Many of the best residences and public 
 buildings in the town and county are due to his 
 combined effort as architect and builder. He 
 drew the plans for the Wolfsen house, erected the 
 Gillett, James King, George Koehler, and other 
 residences, the Koehler home being one of the 
 finest in Merced county. Dixon's drug store was 
 both designed and built by him as was also his 
 own commodious and modern residence at No. 
 619 Twenty-third street. 
 
 Before leaving Kiel Mr. Wegner was united in 
 marriage with Benedicta Nicholsen, a native also 
 of Schleswig-Holstein, and who died in Merced. 
 His second marriage was celebrated May 11, 
 1896, his wife being Hedwig Wallenfels, a na- 
 tive of San Francisco, and daughter of Frederick 
 Wallenfels, who was born in Frankfort, Germany. 
 Mr. Wallenfels lived four years in New York 
 after immigrating to America, and in 1873 came 
 to San Francisco, where he engaged in the in- 
 surance business for the balance of his life. His' 
 wife was formerly Francisca Greenthaler, who 
 at present lives in Mill Valley, and who is the 
 mother of two children, the youngest of whom, 
 Blanche, is the wife of Rheinhold Koehler of 
 Merced. For years Mr. Wegner has taken an 
 active interest in Democratic politics, although 
 he entertains exceedingly liberal views regard- 
 ing local political undertakings. He was a mem- 
 ber of the county central committee, and in 1902 
 was elected a member of the board of trustees 
 of Merced, and chairman of the street commit- 
 tee. During his term of service marked improve- 
 ments have been noted, including better kept side- 
 walks and the laying of cement walks. He in- 
 sists upon cleanliness in the streets and alleys, 
 and of innovations of a substantial and lasting 
 nature. Mr. Wegner is a firm believer in the 
 benefits of municipal ownership, and is working 
 hard to secure city possession of the water- 
 
 works and electric lighting plant. Fraternally 
 he is connected with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows of Merced, of which he is past 
 grand, the encampment of which he has been 
 chief patriarch for three terms; the Woodmen 
 of the World ; and the Druids, of which he is a 
 past officer. In religion, as on other subjects in- 
 teresting the human race, he is broad and toler- 
 ant. Mr. Wegner is deservedly popular with his 
 business, social and political associates, and is 
 regarded as a man of high ideals. He is genial 
 and approachable, generous in his contributions 
 to causes meriting his assistance, and considerate 
 and thoughtful of the men who are in his em- 
 ploy. 
 
 ANTONE CHARLES PALLADINE. A 
 native of sunny Italy, Mr. Palladine was born in 
 that far away country July 25, 1854, a son of 
 Caesar and Maria Louisa (Falvella) Palladine. 
 The father was born in France and was a col- 
 onel in the French army. After resigning his 
 commission he remove'd to Italy, where he mar- 
 ried and where he resided until his death, at the 
 age of seventy-eight years. He became a very 
 wealthy, influential man, and made his home near 
 the city of Rome. His wife was born in Italy, 
 and there her death occurred. She became the 
 mother of nine children. 
 
 A. C. Palladine was educated in his native 
 country by the Jesuit fathers and was graduated 
 as a civil engineer. Coming to the United States 
 in 1885 he first located in San Jose, Cal., where 
 he was engaged in .wine manufacturing for ten 
 years, conducting the Pacific Wine Company. 
 Later he was employed by C. Carpy & Co., until 
 1893, when he joined an Italian colony and lo- 
 cated in Madera, where he acted as manager of 
 the winery and vineyards, the latter comprising 
 one thousand five hundred acres. In 1902 he 
 came to Kingsburg, where he has since made his 
 home. For a time after locating here he acted 
 as manager of the winery of the Italian-Swiss 
 Colony. 
 
 While living in San Jose Mr. Palladine was 
 united in marriage with Kate Eagan, a native 
 of county Qare, Ireland, and a daughter of 
 Thomas and Mary (Casey) Eagan. Mrs. Palla- 
 dine came to California with an aunt. To this 
 union have been born four children, Chester, Ben, 
 Katie and Walter, all living at home. 
 
 Mr. Palladine is quite prominent in fraternal 
 circles, being a member of the Masons, haying 
 joined the order in Rome, where he also attained 
 to the Scottish Rite degree. He is also a mem-, 
 ber of San Jose Lodge No. 242, I. O. O. F., the 
 Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order 
 of Foresters. In politics he is independent, vot- 
 ing for the candidate who, in his opinion, is best 
 
1348 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 qualified for the office. Since coming to Fresno 
 county he has met with splendid success, taking 
 advantage of opportunities as they presented 
 themselves. Both he and his estimable wife are 
 highly respected and have a large circle of 
 friends. 
 
 WILBUR F. CHANDLER. For fifteen years 
 a resident of Fresno county, Wilbur F. Chandler 
 has become known as one of the successful men 
 of this section, and one whose efforts have been 
 given toward the upbuilding and promotion of 
 all movements calculated to advance the general 
 welfare of the community. He was born in De 
 Witt county. 111, in 1855, and is descended on 
 the paternal side from one of three brothers who 
 left Wales at an early date for a home in Amer- 
 ica, setthng in Massachusetts. He is a son of 
 Hiram and Rachel (Manlove) Chandler, the 
 former a native of Vermont and the latter of 
 Ohio. In 1852 his father removed to De Witt 
 county. III, where he followed farming until his 
 death. His wife also died in that locality. In 
 the common schools of that county Wilbur F. 
 Chandler received his mental training, and at the 
 same time was instructed in the practical duties 
 which fell to his lot as the son of a farmer. He 
 remained at home until 1889, when he came to 
 California as he was a firm believer in the ad- 
 vantages of the west over the east, especially to 
 the young men of ambitious temperament. 
 
 Locating at once in Fresno county, Mr. Chan- 
 dler purchased one half section of land three 
 miles north of Selma, and his interests have since 
 been centered in this locality. Planting two hun- 
 dred and fifty acres of this tract in vines, he sub- 
 sequently sold all but about one hundred and 
 fifty acres, and of this only a small portion is re- 
 served for orchards for family use, the remainder 
 being one extensive vineyard of the Muscat or 
 raisin grape. That this venture proved a success 
 is demonstrated by the following figures : In the 
 year 1902 the first crop consisted of one hundred 
 and eighty tons and when sold averaged $71 per 
 ton; the second crop yielded sixty- four tons and 
 averaged $65 per ton. After deducting the cost 
 of raising, this leaves a good profit, fully justify- 
 ing all expenditures. In 1898 Mr. Chandler pur- 
 chased a half interest in the Home Oil Company, 
 which at the time of its incorporation had a cap- 
 ital stock of $100,000, worth $100 per share. 
 After being connected with the company for sev- 
 eral years he disposed of his holdings and turned 
 his attention to the Kern Oil Company, of which 
 he is president. This company operates along 
 the Kern river, where it owns four hundred and 
 eighty acres of land. The company was incor- 
 porated with a capital stock of $100,000, each 
 share worth $1, but the value has now increased 
 
 to $5. In addition to his connection with the 
 ab'ove company Mr. Chandler is a director of 
 the Associated Oil Company of San Francisco, 
 which conducts operations in Kern and other 
 counties and was formed by the consolidation of 
 a number of minor companies. This company 
 was incorporated in January, 1902, with a capi- 
 tal stock of $40,000,000, shares valued at $1 each, 
 and at the present time $18,000,000 worth of 
 stock has been issued, showing the demand for 
 shares to be unusually large. The output of oil 
 is four hundred and ninety thousand barrels per 
 month, or over one hundred car loads per day. 
 Mr. Chandler also owns a two-thirds interest in 
 the Pittsburg Oil Company, which has one thou- 
 sand acres in Kern county, and aside from his 
 interest in these oil fields he is identified with 
 the Farmers' National Bank of Selma, of which 
 he is a director. 
 
 Mr. Chandler was united in marriage in Illi- 
 nois with Edna M. Goble, a native of that state. 
 Several children, all sons, blessed this union, and 
 five are living. They are named as follows: 
 Howard H. ; Chester W., who died at the age of 
 ten years ; Clayton I. ; Ray L. ; Roscoe ; and 
 Charles. One, the fourth child, died in infancy. 
 Politically a Republican and one of the most 
 active men in his party in this locality, Mr. Chan- 
 dler was their choice for assemblyman in 1900, 
 serving one term, at the end of which time, in 
 1904, his re-election followed. He is particularly 
 active in educational work, having served twenty- 
 three years as a trustee, a greater part of this 
 time as clerk of the board. 
 
 W. D. COATES, as manager of the Sperry 
 Flour Company, is demonstrating his ability as a 
 business man, his keen and far-sighted judgment 
 resulting in a success for the company and a per- 
 sonal success, which places him among the rep- 
 resentative men of this section. He was born at 
 Peru, La Salle, county, III, November i, 1848, 
 a son of John Coates, of Norristown, Montgom- 
 ery county. Pa. The elder man, before the 
 Black TTawk war, located in La Salle county, 111., 
 and engaged as a grain merchant, having a large 
 warehouse located on the Illinois River. It was 
 a receiving point for wheat v.p to the time of the 
 railroads, and he carried on an extensive business 
 for many years. His death occurred in that lo- 
 cation in 1863. He was prominent in all local af- 
 fairs, taking part in all movements calculated to 
 advance the general welfare. He served in the 
 Black Hawk war,, which occurred after his loca- 
 tion in Illinois. Plis wife was a descendant of the 
 Russell and Bull families of New England. Their 
 only son was W. D. Coates, who, at the age of 
 twelve years, enlisted in the navy and served un- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1349 
 
 der Commodore W. D. Porter on the gunboat 
 Essex, being located for five months, in 1862, ;n 
 the Mississippi River. He received his education 
 in the high school at Peru, and on attaining man- 
 hood went south and assumed the managership 
 of an ice company, with headquarters at Mem- 
 phis, Tenn. He came to California in 1875 and 
 located in San Francisco, where he remained 
 for fourteen years. He then came to Fresno and 
 was identified with the Fresno MilUng Company 
 as bookkeeper, this company afterward being 
 absorbed by the Sperry Flour Company. Mr. 
 Coates became manager of the latter, and has 
 since conducted its aflfairs with profit. The mill 
 at Fresno is new and modern in every way, be- 
 ing the first mill in California operated by elec- 
 tricity; it has a capacity of five hundred barrels 
 per day, employs a large force and adds greatly 
 to the industrial life of the community. 
 
 In Memphis, Tenn., Mr. Coates was united in 
 marriage with Kate Dixon, a native of Jackson, 
 Miss., and they are the parents of four children, 
 namely: Frank, a traveling salesman, located in 
 Portland, Ore. ; Lee, associated with the Roeding 
 Fig Company, of Fresno; William D., Jr., attend- 
 ing the University of Pennsylvania, at Philadel- 
 phia ; and John, at home. The family are mem- 
 bers of the Episcopal Church. Mr. Coates is a 
 member of the Chamber of Commerce, and so- 
 cially is identified with the Sequoia Club. 
 
 DAVID COWAN SAMPLE. The success 
 achieved by David Cowan Sample has been the 
 result entirel}' of his own efforts,- for he came 
 to California with nothing but courage, energy 
 and ability as a foundation for the competence 
 he hoped to win. Beginning at the bottom of the 
 ladder he has not only acquired wealth in the 
 shape of real estate, grain lands, stock, etc., but 
 is honored and esteemed as one of the first citi- 
 zens of Fresno county — liberal, public-spirited 
 and enterprising, and one who is always eager 
 to give his best efforts toward the upbuilding and 
 progress of his adopted state. Born in Lexing- 
 ton, Miss., February 12, 1849, ^e is a son of 
 Isaac Sample, a native of South Carolina, and 
 the descendant of an old Scotch family. The 
 latter removed to Lexington, Miss., where he 
 engaged in farming until his death when his son 
 was a child. His wife, formerly Mary H. Du- 
 lany, of North Carolina, was a daughter of Dan- 
 iel Dulany, of the same state, who served in the 
 war of 1812 as a colonel. He was a large land- 
 owner in Mississippi, where his death occurred. 
 Mrs. Sample also died in Mississippi, leaving a 
 family of three sons and one daughter, of whom 
 David Cowan was the youngest. 
 
 His father's plantation, the "Cypress," was 
 
 about nine miles from Lexington, and there 
 David Cowan Sample was reared to young man- 
 hood. He received his education in the private 
 schools of Lexington. At the age of fifteen years 
 he left school and home and joined the Confed- 
 erate army as a scout under General Forest, fur- 
 nishmg his own horse, and serving until the close 
 of the war. The home plantation was devas- 
 tated, the slaves and stock gone, and farming im- 
 plements destroyed, so Mr. Sample found em- 
 ployment as a clerk. After one year he once 
 more entered a private school in Lexington, 
 where he remained for a like period, when he 
 came to California by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama, in company with Major and Mrs. 
 Thomas P. Nelson. He went to Dry creek, 
 where he worked for wages for two years, when 
 he went into the sheep business for himself. He 
 met with success and began at once the purchase 
 of lands, now owning eighteen sections of land, 
 on the plains and foothills, farming land on Dry 
 creek, and stock ranches on Sails and Holland 
 creeks. He farms about three thousand acres of 
 grain land, and in the Holland creek country has 
 some small lemon and orange groves, the land 
 being peculiarly adapted tO' the cultivation of 
 oranges. The land is of such equality that tomato 
 vines grow all the year round. He is also largely 
 interested in stock raising, dealing in Shorthorns, 
 Durhams, and full-blooded and high-grade stock. 
 His range is all under fence and is modern and 
 improved in every way, his home being located 
 on Dry creek, nineteen miles northeast of Fresno. 
 In the meantime he became interested in property 
 in Fresno and is still identified with many busi- 
 ness enterprises of this city. He is president of 
 the -Carl & Sample Carriage Company, the most 
 extensive and modern enterprise of its kind in 
 the San Joaquin valley. In January, 1904, he 
 was one of the organizers of the Fresno Meat 
 Company, of which he is acting as president, 
 and manager. The packing house, which was 
 built two miles west of Fresno, was consumed by 
 fire in January, 1905, but they are now rebuild- 
 ing the plant, which is the most extensive busi- 
 ness in the valley. The offices of the company 
 are located in the Barton Opera House, at the 
 comer of Fresno and J streets, where they carry 
 on a large wholesale and retail business. He 
 was also an organizer of the Tahipathy Power 
 Company, of which he is acting as president. 
 This is established in Blue Canon, on the middle 
 fork of Kings river, where the company expect 
 to erect a modem power plant to distribute 
 power throughout the San Joaquin valley. There 
 is a fall of thirty-three hundred and" sixty feet 
 in a twenty-three-foot stream at lowest water. 
 This is the most extensive water proposition in 
 the country and bids fair to be a revolutionary 
 force in the San Joaquin valley. He was also 
 
1360 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 one of the originators and organizers of the 
 Fresno Fhune and Irrigation Company, and 'put 
 the first money into the proposition. They at 
 once began surveys, but on the eve of construc- 
 tion the panic of 1880 induced them to dispose 
 of their plans. The project was afterward com- 
 pleted and is a great credit to the county. 
 
 In Millerton, Cal, Mr. Sample was united in 
 marriage with Sallie Cole, who was born in So- 
 lano county, Cal., the daughter of William T. 
 Cole. He was a native of Missouri who- crossed 
 the plains in 1849 and became a pioneer of the 
 San Joaquin valley, now making his home on 
 Dry creek. Mr. and Mrs. Sample became the 
 parents of eleven children, namely : William C. ; 
 Maude, the wife of John Shipp, of Fresno coun- 
 ty; Thomas N., who graduated from Cooper 
 Medical College in 1901, is practicing medicine 
 in Fresno and is- now county physician ; Mary, 
 the wife of J. A. Blassingame, of Fresno county ; 
 Annie ; Estelle ; David C, Jr. ; Sallie ; Fillmore ; 
 Ruth; and Harry, all but the first four named 
 being residents of their parents' home. Mrs. 
 Sample is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. Mr. Sample affiliates with Fresno 
 Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M. Politically he is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Democratic party, and has 
 served as a member of the county central com- 
 mittee. He is a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce, and is active in all movements which have 
 for their end the advancement of the community. 
 
 GEORGE M. KOHLER occupies a promi- 
 nent place among the enterprising business men 
 of Fresno. The sterling qualities of his citizen- 
 ship and the character of his ability are an in- 
 heritance from Danish ancestors, his birth having 
 occurred in_ Denmark in 1844. He made that 
 country his home until he was eighteen years old, 
 when he came to America and located in Cali- 
 fornia. He became a farmer near Borden, Ma- 
 dera county, where he remained for some time, 
 then removed to Fresno and engaged in the 
 butcher business. He was the pioneer in this 
 work and met with gratifying success. Eventu- 
 ally he went into the hotel business and opened 
 the Kohler House on I street, which he con- 
 ducted for five years. Disposing of these inter- 
 ests he lived retired for several years, when he 
 engaged in a restaurant on the same street, estab- 
 lishing what is now known as the City Bakery 
 and Restaurant, and with the profits of 'a few 
 years he and his wife built the Kohler apartment 
 house. This was an innovation in Fresno and 
 for a time was known as Kohler's white elephant, 
 but it very shortly proved a success, as did also 
 the flat building which they put up— the first of 
 the kind in the. city of Fresno. At the time of 
 
 the laundry strike in 1901 Mrs. Kohler, with 
 keen business judgment and discernment, saw an 
 opportunity which she at once took advantage of, 
 by fitting up the Kohler Laundry, which has 
 grown to its present proportions under her 
 splendid management. It is modern in all its 
 appointments, operated with steam and equipped 
 with the m.ost modern machinery. It has its 
 own pumping plant and soap works, and is now 
 the largest enterprise of its kind in the San 
 Joaquin valley, giving employment to fifty hands. 
 The entire corner of K and Merced streets has 
 been built up by Mr. Kohler and his wife — 
 nearly six lots, covering an area of 150x250 feet. 
 They have been most important factors in the 
 upbuilding' and progress of Fresno, and both 
 rank among the representative business citizens. 
 
 Mrs. Kohler was formerly Lottie A. Pickford, 
 a native of Taunton, Mass. Her father, Oliver 
 Pickford, of Manchester, England, located in 
 Massachusetts and in Taunton operated a sta- 
 tionary engine. Later he removed to Trempea- 
 leau county. Wis., where he followed the same 
 occupation combined with farming. During the 
 Civil war he volunteered in a Wisconsin regi- 
 ment but was rejected. In 1875 he came to CaH- 
 fornia and located in San Luis Obispo county, 
 where he followed his work of engineer, and 
 eight years later (in 1883), located in Fresno 
 and following the same occupation until his re- 
 tirement, being now seventy-six years old. His 
 wife, formerly Mary Ann Hooley, also> a native 
 of iManchester, England, is the granddaughter 
 of John Aslem, the inventor of calico printing, 
 (Aslem street, in Nashville, Tenn., is named for 
 the family.) Mrs. Pickford is still living at the 
 age of seventy-seven years. They became the 
 parents of three daughters and five sons, of 
 whom Mrs. Kohler was the eldest. She spent 
 her childhood days in Wisconsin, attending the 
 public schools of that place, and in 1875 came 
 with her parents to California and passed sev- 
 eral years in San Luis Obispo county. In 1883 
 she came to Fresno and the same year became the 
 wife of George M. Kohler. She has proven a 
 worthy helpmeet and has given to their com- 
 bined success the ability, energy and enterprise 
 which are hers by inheritance and training. 
 
 Both Mr. Kohler and his wife are prominent 
 in the fraternal circles of the city, Mr. Kohler 
 being a member of the Masons, Independent 
 Order of Odd F'ellows, Woodmen of the World, 
 United Artisans, Danish Brotherhood and 
 Knights of the Maccabees. Mrs. Kohler is a 
 member of the Ladies of the Maccabees, Women 
 of Woodcraft, United Artisans and Fraternal 
 Brotherhood. Both belong to the Episcopal 
 Church, and politically are true-blue Republic- 
 ans. Mr. Kohler is a member of the Chamber 
 of Commerce and is active in all movements cal- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1351 
 
 culated to advance the general welfare. The 
 comforts and benefits of the home of Mr. and 
 Ivlrs. Kohler have been given to three orphan 
 girls, who have been reared to womanhood as 
 members of the household, and who are now 
 married and well settled in life. 
 
 WILLIAM M. AMER. On the organization 
 of Madera county and at the first election held 
 therein. May, 1893, Mr. Amer was elected on 
 the independent ticket to the office of county 
 treasurer, receiving a plurality of seventy-eight 
 votes over three opponents. On the 28th of the 
 same month he took the oath of office and entered 
 upon its duties. At the regular election in 1894 
 he was elected by a majority of two hundred and 
 fifty-three. Four years later, on the expiration 
 of his first regular term, he was re-elected by a 
 majority of three hundred and seventy- four. A 
 further evidence of his popularity as an official 
 is shown by the fact that in 1902, at the close of 
 his second regular term and his election for a 
 third term, he received a still larger vote, having 
 a majority of about five hundred. At the last 
 two conventions of the Democratic party in 
 Madera county he was nominated without opposi- 
 tion. When his present term expires, in January, 
 1907, he will have served for a period oi almost 
 fourteen years. When he first became county 
 treasurer the office was located in a business 
 block, but later was removed to the old Russ 
 house, and in January, 1902, was transferred to 
 the new court-house. 
 
 The Amer family is of English extraction. 
 Richard Amer, son of William Amer, was born 
 in Herefordshire, England, and grew to man- 
 hood upon his father's farm. Seeking a home 
 amid the newer scenes and greater opportunities 
 of the United States, he crossed the ocean and 
 settled in the then frontier regions of Pottawatta- 
 mie county, Iowa. In those days Omaha had not 
 been founded and Council Bluffs, now the county- 
 seat of Pottawattamie county, was an insignificant 
 liamlet. With his wife, who' was 1 Fannie Sell- 
 wood, a native of England, in 185-2 he started 
 across the plains, and while on the plains, in the 
 then territory of Colorado, their son, William M., 
 was born, August 25 of that year. Tlie family 
 remained in Colorado for a time, and in 1858 
 removed to Utah, where the mother died. In 
 i860 the other members of the family came to 
 California and settled in Stockton, where the 
 father engaged in freightinfr until his death in 
 1873. Of his five children three are living: John, 
 a farmer near Oakdale; William M., of this re- 
 view ; and Sarah, wife of S. B. Robinson, near 
 Ferndaie, Humboldt county, this state. 
 
 From the age of almost eight years William 
 M. Amer was reared in Stockton. As a boy he 
 
 63 
 
 was obliged to earn his own livelihood. He had 
 neither prestige nor influence to aid him in get- 
 ting a start. Eagerly accepting any work that 
 offered living wages, he endured many har'd- 
 ships and faced many discouragements in his 
 early days. Little by little he worked his way 
 toward independence. For a time he engaged 
 in farming near Roberts Ferry in Stanislaus 
 county. In 1886 he came to what was then 
 Fresno (now Madera) county and after working 
 on the Adobe ranch for two years he was chosen 
 manager for the company that owned the prop- 
 erty. The Adobe estate comprised more than 
 twenty-two thousand acres and its management 
 entailed many responsibilities. After two years 
 as superintendent, Mr. Amer removed to Fresno 
 Flats and engaged in raising stock for a year. 
 From there he removed to Madera and resumed 
 farming. During 1890, while engaged in field 
 work, he lost his left hand in a harvester, but 
 continued farming for three years more, notwith- 
 standmg his loss. 
 
 In Modesto, Stanislaus county, in 1876, Mr. 
 Amer married Catherine Garner, who was born 
 in Illinois and in 1859 accompanied her parents 
 to California. To their union six children have 
 been born, namely : George, who is a farmer in 
 Madera county; Burt, who acts as deputy county 
 treasurer; Myrtle, Elmer, Millie and Katie. The 
 fraternal organizations to which Mr. Amer be- 
 longs are as follows : Fraternal Brotherhood ; 
 Woodmen of the World, in which he has held 
 official pK>sitions ; Lodge and Encampment of Odd 
 Fellows, also the Grand Lodge of the same body, 
 and he is past grand of the Madera Lodge. 
 
 WALTER SCOTT SMITH. Untiring in his 
 efforts, Walter Scott Smith has proved himself 
 an efficient city official, under whose superintend- 
 ency there has been a great advancement and 
 improvement in the streets of Fresno. He is a 
 native of Benton county. Mo., where his birth 
 occuri-ed January 23, 1870. He is the descend- 
 ant of an old Virginia family, his grandfather, a 
 native of that state, being a physician and sur- 
 geon in the army. Fie practiced medicine in 
 Tennessee and in Benton county. Mo. In his 
 family of children was a son, G. C. Smith, who 
 was born in Tennessee and accompanied his pa- 
 rents to Benton county. Mo., in which state he 
 followed farming for a means of livelihood, later 
 locating in Hickory county, where he now makes 
 his home. His wife, formerly Mary Frances 
 Davis, is a native of Benton county. Mo. Her 
 father, Stephen Hamilton Davis, was an exten- 
 sive farmer in Missouri, from which state he 
 emigrated to California in the '60s. He located 
 in Mariposa county as a miner, but later returned 
 to Missouri, his death occurring in Bentoij coun- 
 
1352 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 t.y. Mr. and Mrs. Smith became the parents of 
 five sons and two daughters, one son, E. R., 
 being a contractor and builder, and at the pres- 
 ent time is engaged in the construction of the 
 new pumping station for the Standard Oil Com- 
 pany between Bakersfield and Point Richmond. 
 Another son, Stephen H., is a foreman in the 
 employ of E. R. Smith. Walter Scott Smith is 
 the fourth son and the fourth child, and was 
 reared in Benton county until attaining the age 
 of seventeen years, attending the district school. 
 He also attended the schools of Kansas City for 
 a time, and in 1891 came to California and locat- 
 ed in Fresno, and entered the employ of his 
 brother, E. R. Smith, working at the carpenter's 
 trade for about two years, when he entered the 
 police department, where he remained for sev- 
 eral years. On November 6, 1902, he was ap- 
 pointed superintendent of streets of Fresno, 
 since which time he has held the office, and 
 luider his management a marked improvement 
 has taken place, new cement sidewalks being 
 laid all over the city, also asphalt pavement, etc. 
 Mr. Smith is a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce, and is active in all movements pertaining 
 to the advancement and upbuilding of the city. 
 Fraternally, he is associated with the Benevo- 
 lent and Protective Order of Elks, the Independ- 
 ent Order of Odd F"ellows, of Fresno, and Mod- 
 ern Woodmen of America. Politically, he is a 
 Democrat. 
 
 CAPT. WILLIAM WALLACE MACHEN. 
 A man of strong personality, William Wallace 
 Machen holds a prominent place among the 
 representative ^ citizens of Fresno, where he has 
 made his home for nearly twenty years. He is 
 a native of Barnsle)', Yorkshire, England, where 
 he was born February 17, 1836, the second in a 
 family of seven children, of whom six are living, 
 he being the only one on the Pacific coast. His 
 father, W. W. Machen, was a manufacturer of 
 cotton and linen goods in Barnsley, as was also 
 his grandfather. The former brought h'is fam- 
 ily to America in 1845 and located in Milwaukee, 
 Wis., where a landing was effected by small boats 
 at what was known as Walker's Point, no pier 
 having yet been made. He was one of the first 
 settlers of Black Earth, Wis., which was peopled 
 by a colony from England. He remained in 
 that location for about a year, when he removed 
 to Janesville, Wis., at that time a crossroads, 
 where he bought and sold lands. Removing to 
 Dunkirk, Dane county, Wis., he farmed for 
 twenty years, and upon his retirement from 
 active duties located in Dallas county, Iowa, 
 where his death occurred at the age of eighty- 
 four years. PI is wife, formerly Ann Hoa'g, was 
 also a native of England, and died in Iowa at 
 
 the age of sixty-six years. Two sons fought in 
 the Civil war, Charles F. serving in the Thirty- 
 second Wisconsin Regiment, and being accident- 
 ally killed at Waupun, Wis. William Wallace 
 jVIachen was also in the army, answering the 
 first call in April, 1861. As the quota was full 
 he enlisted in Company D, Seventh Wisconsin 
 Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered in August 
 JO of that year. His regiment was sent to Wash- 
 ington, where they camped a quarter of a mile 
 east of the Capitol building, thence they were 
 sent to Chain Bridge and to Arlington Heights, 
 on Robert E. Lee's plantation. In the beginning 
 of 1862 they participated in the second battle 
 of Bui! Run, at Antietam, South Mountain, the 
 Wilderness, and at Gettysburg, where his bri- 
 gade opened the battle. His regiment continued 
 in active duty to Appomattox and the surrender 
 of Lee's arm.y. Mr. Machen was wounded three 
 times, first at the battle of Gaines Mill, the first 
 day of the battle of the Wilderness and at Cold 
 Harbor, all flesh wounds received in the neck, 
 hip and foot. He participated, in the Grand Re- 
 view at Washington as aide to Gen. Henry A. 
 Morrow. From the ranks Mr. Machen was pro- 
 moted to the position of captain of his company, 
 which was mustered out of service July 14, 1865, 
 of the original one hundred and sixty-eight who 
 enlisted only fourteen remaining. 
 
 Upon the close of the war Capt. William W. 
 Machen returned to Dane county to take up 
 again the peaceful pursuits interrupted by civil 
 strife. He had made his home in Wisconsin 
 from the age of nine years, receiving his educa- 
 tion in the primitive schools of the time (where 
 the desks were puncheon slabs laid on pins put 
 in the walls, puncheon seats, etc.), and in young 
 manhood followed the training given by liis 
 father as a farmer. He engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits near Dunkirk until 1868, when he re- 
 moved to Dallas county, Iowa, where he bought 
 new land, improving a farm of three hundred 
 and twenty acres. He became prominent in pub- 
 lic affairs in the county, filling the offices ,P,f 
 county commissioner and county recorder, the' 
 latter for a term of four years. Deciding to lo- 
 cate in the more remote west, he came to Cali- 
 fornia in 1886 and began farming thirty-five hun- 
 dred acres of land, which new adjoins the city 
 limits of Fresno. He continued in that occupa- 
 tion for thirteen years, conducting as many as 
 six ten-horse teams with combiried harvesters, 
 averaging ten acres to the team. His departure 
 from agricultural pursuits was through his nom- 
 ination in 1892 on the Republican ticket as 
 county recorder. He was defeated by eight votes 
 in favor of the Fusion candidate. Two years 
 later he was re-nominated and elected over the 
 Fusion candidate by a majority of three hundred 
 and fifty-six votes. In January, 1895, he took 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1?,L3 
 
 the oath of office and continued to discharge the 
 (hities efficiently until 1899. Since that time he 
 has engaged in the oil business, in 1898 organ- 
 izing the Commercial Oil Company with himself 
 as president. They located oil lands in Coalingo, 
 where they put down two wells that were fail- 
 ures. They then leased a piece of railroad land 
 where they put down eight wells, all of which 
 are producers, they being the first to get a flow- 
 ing well in section 31. They have since operated 
 in this field and have made a gratifying success 
 of the enterprise. In 1904 Mr. Machen resigned 
 from the office of president, as he did not care 
 to spend so large a portion of his time away from 
 his home, and sold his holdings to the Associated 
 Oil Company. He also organized a company in 
 Bakersfield, in 1899, known as the Comet Oil 
 Company, with himself as president, and they 
 operated on sections 4 and 28, putting down 
 eight wells, all of which are- producers. This 
 company has since also become a part of the 
 Associated Oil Company. Mr. Machen owns a 
 one-third interest in sixty acres, adjoining the 
 lands leased by the Commercial Oil Company 
 and in Fresno owns a handsome residence at No. 
 103 Glenn street. 
 
 In Dane county, Wis., October 2, 1865, Mr. 
 Machen was united in marriage with Sarah L. 
 Bishop, a native of Cayuga county, N. Y., and 
 they are the parents of seven children, namely : 
 Edward L., of Fresno ; Clara, the wife of DeWitt 
 Blaisdell, of San Francisco ; Arthur I., of Sac- 
 ramento, Cal. ; George E., of Fresnoi ; Elva ; Carl 
 and Myrtle, the last three named being at home 
 with their parents. Mrs. Machen is a member 
 of the Presbyterian Church. Fraternally Mr. 
 Machen is a member of the Benevolent and Pro- 
 tective Order of Elks and belongs to Fresno 
 Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M., having been made a 
 member of this latter organization in Stoughton, 
 Wis. He belongs to Atlanta Post No. 145, 
 G. A. R., of which he is post commander. Po- 
 litically he is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party,'' and is ex-member of the county and state 
 central com.mittees. 
 
 STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS HOGAN. From 
 January, 1902, until January i, 1905, when he 
 resigned, Mr. Hogan acted as superiritendent of 
 the Cain Fruit & Nursery Co., managing a ranch 
 of two himdred and forty acres, much of which 
 he put under alfalfa, while one hundred and 
 twenty-five acres are in prunes, peaches, apricots, 
 etc. During the busy season he employed as 
 many as ninety hands. He also raised large 
 numbers of cattle and hogs. 
 
 Born in Adams county. III, July 27, 1856, Mr. 
 Hogan is a son of George W. Hogan, the latter 
 
 born near Covington, Ky., a son of George 
 Hogan, a farmer who died in that state. George 
 W. Hogan settled in Adams county. 111., and fol- 
 lowed the occupations of farmer and miller, op- 
 erating both saw and flour mills, which were run 
 by water power. He removed to Knox county. 
 Mo., where he spent ten years, then went to 
 Qiariton county, near Old Brunswick, and 
 finally to Kansas City, where his death occurred. 
 For eight months he served in the state militia 
 of Missouri. His wife, formerly Sarah Ann 
 Owen, was a native of Washington, D. C, and 
 a daughter of Edward Owen, who came from 
 Scotland, the country of his iDirth, and located 
 in the capital city. He engaged in the hotel 
 business, but finally removing to Illinois, fol- 
 lowed farming in that state and Missouri until 
 his retirement from active life. His death oc- 
 curred while he was an inmate of the home of 
 G. W. Hogan. Mrs. Hogan died in Linn county. 
 Mo., leaving a family of five sons and four daugh- 
 ters, of whom one son is deceased. 
 
 The youngest child in the family of his parents, 
 Stephen A. Douglas Hogan was reared in Mis- 
 souri, having removed wirti the family in Janu- 
 ary, 1859, from their home in Illinois. He at- 
 tended the common school in the vicinity of his 
 home and at the same time received the practical 
 training which fell to his lot as the son of a 
 farmer. In manhood he began farming for him- 
 self in Chariton county, from which location he 
 removed in 1882 to Benton county. Ark., there 
 following farming and the cultivation of nursery 
 stock, setting out the nursery himself and fol- 
 lowing this business until 1888. He came still 
 farther west in that year and located in Tulare 
 county, Cal., where for four years he engaged 
 in the cultivation of grain on a large scale. Not 
 meeting with the success anticipated he accepted 
 the position of superintendent of the Comstock 
 ranch for S. Sweet Company, which position he 
 held for six years and seven months, when he 
 resigned to take charge of a tract of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres south of Visalia for the 
 Bank of Visalia. This he subdivided, made 
 roads, built bridges and put in numerous im- 
 provements, holding it until the greater part 
 was sold, doing all this in four months. He then 
 took charge of the Evansdale Fruit Company 
 orchard for a period of six months, and follow- 
 ing that work accepted the responsible position 
 sof superintendent of the Cain Fruit & Nursery 
 Co. Upon resigning this position Mr. Hogan 
 removed to Visalia. 
 
 In Chariton county. Mo., Mr. Hogan was 
 united in marriage with Angie Dunkel, a native 
 of McDonough county. 111. She is a daughter of 
 Henry Dunkel, a native of Pennsylvania, who 
 removed to Illinois and afterward to Missouri, 
 where he followed farming for a livelihood. His 
 
1354 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wife was formerly Susie Hosier, of Pennsyl- 
 vania. Six children blessed the union of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hogan, namely: Susie (the wife of C. S. 
 Warren, of Modoc, Cal.), Roscoe, Minnie, 
 Travis, Uda and Esther Pearl. Mr. Hogan is a 
 Democrat in his national politics. Locally he is 
 interested in the election and support of the can- 
 didates best qualified for public office. For one 
 term he held the office of school director. Fra- 
 ternally he is a member of the Modern Wood- 
 men of America, while his wife belongs to the 
 Royal Neighbors. 
 
 JOHN A. NEU. A resident of Fresno since 
 1893, John A. Neu has becom-e one of the leading 
 business men of the city and has also been prom- 
 inently identified with its upbuilding, having 
 served for two years as president of the Chamber 
 of Commerce, in which position he was able to 
 carry out developing work which resulted in 
 much good to the city and county. 
 
 A native of Wisconsin, Mr. Neu was born in 
 Madison, June 30, 1863, a son of M. and Chris- 
 tine (Kliefif) Neu. The father was for a time 
 engaged in mercantile business in Madison, but 
 later sold out and located on a farm. Some years 
 thereafter he returned to Madison, where he 
 died. His wife bore him seven children, four of 
 whom are still living. Of this family John A. 
 was the second in order of birth. His boyhood 
 was spent in Madison and on the farm, but at the 
 age of twelve he started out to make an inde- 
 pendent livelihood, and since then he has never 
 received help from anyone. Securing a position 
 as an office boy in the Singer Sewing Machine 
 Company's store at Madison, he worked there for 
 several years, being promoted first to the position 
 of salesman, later being made a collectoi" and still 
 later was appointed special agent. In the mean- 
 time he had left Madison and gone to Milwaukee, 
 and for several years he traveled out of that city, 
 making towns in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa, 
 as a representative for a large wholesale confec- 
 tionery establishment. At the end of four and 
 one-half years he re-entered the employ of the 
 Singer Sewmg Machine Company, finally being 
 made manager of their branch office at Elkhart, 
 Ind., v\^here he rem.ained until 1890, when he came 
 to California as manager of the store in the city 
 of Oakland. This position he filled for six 
 months, when he was made special agent, with 
 headquarters at Sacramento. In 1893 the com- 
 pany sent him to Fresno as manager of their 
 store in this city. Soon afterward he enlarged 
 his business and put in a* stock of pianos and 
 musical instruments, and in 1895 he disposed of 
 the sewing machine business, since which time 
 he has devoted his entire time to the building up 
 of his present extensive piano and ^music busi- 
 
 ness, having the largest piano house in this sec- 
 tion of the state. All the leading makes are car- 
 ried in stock, including Weber, Fischer, the 
 Behniiig, Kohler & Chase, and many others. His 
 store and show rooms occupy two floors, 150x25 
 feet. 
 
 After coming to Fresno Mr. Neu married 
 Miss Lola A. Avila, who was born in San Fran- 
 cisco. Mrs. Neu is very popular in Fresno and 
 has done much to assist her husband in the prose- 
 cution of his business. Mr. Neu is a prominent 
 member of the Chamber of Com.merce, having 
 formerly been connected with the board of trade. 
 At the time the Chamber of Commerce was or- 
 ganized he was appointed a member of the ex- 
 ecutive committee, and in January, 1902, was 
 elected president of the organization. This posi- 
 tion he filled for a term of two years, and was 
 very active in promotion work, often devoting 
 time to that work that should have been used in 
 his own business. It was during his term of of- 
 fice that the Chamber erected its building near 
 the Southern Pacific depot. This structure is 
 42x66 feet in dimensions, and is used for exhibit- 
 ing purposes, a fine display of Fresno countv 
 products being on exhibition there all the time. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Neu is a member of the Elks, 
 in which he is Loyal Knight ; ■ the Woodmen of 
 the World, and the Knights of Columbus, being 
 grand knight m the last-named organization. In 
 politics he is inclined to the Democratic party, 
 especially in national affairs, but in local matters 
 believes in voting for the man whom he thinks is 
 best qualified for the office. In 1905 he was a 
 candidate for the office of Mayor of Fresno. 
 
 J. F. GREELEY. A pioneer of California and 
 a resident of the San Joaquin valley for the past 
 twenty-five years, J. F. Greeley is now living re- 
 tired on his twenty-acre ranch adjoining Fresno 
 on the west. He was born June 30, 1830, in 
 Rochester, Vt., the sixth child in a family of 
 seven born to Robert and Desire (Hosford) 
 Greeley. Robert Greeley came of Scotch an- 
 cestry. In addition to following his trade as 
 contractor and wheelwright, he also carried on 
 farming. He enlisted "for service in the war of 
 18 12, but the struggle ended before he saw active 
 service. 
 
 The education of J. F. Greeley was received 
 in the common schools of Vermont. At an early 
 age he left school to fill a clerkship in a general 
 merchandise store, and while so employed heard 
 much of the wonderful discovery of gold in Cal- 
 ifornia. At the age of nineteen he decided to 
 cast in his lot with the tide of emigration, and 
 came to this state via the Isthmus of Panama. 
 He embarked from New York on the old steam- 
 ship Uncle Sam, crossed the Isthmus by tow- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1356 
 
 boats and re-embarked on another vessel for Cali- 
 fornia. He almost despaired of reaching his des- 
 tination, however, as the boat took fire and en- 
 dangered the lives of all the passengers. Arriv- 
 ing in San Francisco, which was then a tented 
 city, .with but fifty cents in his pocket he was 
 ready to accept any honest employment to re- 
 plenish his exchequer. Anxious to reach the 
 gold fields, but having no money, he accepted 
 a position, at a lucrative salary, in Mount Greg- 
 ory, Eldorado county, as clerk in a general store 
 which furnished supplies to the miners. 
 
 Leaving Mount Gregory with five thousand 
 dollars in gold, Mr. Greeley engaged in tlie en- 
 terprise to flume the middle fork of the Ameri- 
 can River, and while thus employed saw pans of 
 gold weighing twenty-seven pounds taken from 
 pockets. The high waters swept everything 
 away before the work was completed and he 
 abandoned the task, poorer in pocket. For a time 
 afterward he bought gold dust. At American 
 bar he also engaged in a general mercantile busi- 
 ness successfully for four years, when the floods 
 once more laid waste the work of years. He then 
 went to Dutch flat and opened a hotel. For four 
 years he served as constable, and also was deputy 
 sheriff, during which time he saw exciting times 
 during the construction of the Central Pacific 
 Railroad through the mountains. He enlisted 
 in the Home Guards, becoming enrolling officer. 
 
 Some time later Mr. Greeley started a general 
 store at Truckee and served two terms as post- 
 master there. He experienced the season of law- 
 lessness which called into existence the famous 
 Vigilance Committee known as "6oi." After 
 eleven years in Truckee, he located in Fresno, in 
 1880, at which time there was but one brick house 
 on Mariposa street. He engaged in work as a 
 carpenter for a time, and lived in a house which 
 stood on the present site of Barrett & Hicks' hard- 
 ware store. He then purchased the twenty acres 
 of land upon which he still resides. The orchard 
 which he set out was drowned out by heavy 
 rains, and he later set out a vineyard of raisin 
 grapes. Still retaining his home place, he spent 
 three years in Selma as agent for the Union Ice 
 Company, and also manufactured carbonated wa- 
 ters, after which he went to Portersville and en- 
 gaged in the same business for that company. 
 While doing business in that city he made a trip 
 to his ranch"^and there met witli an accident which 
 crippled him for life. While pruning some tall 
 poplar trees he fell and injured himself, since 
 which time, 1895, he has been unable to engage 
 in any work, though he has managed the work 
 on the ranch. 
 
 In Auburn, Cal., in 1861, Mr. Greeley was 
 united in marriage with Margaret O'Bay, a 
 daughter of James and Mary (McCullen) O'Bay. 
 The former located in Canada in 1810, later went 
 
 to M.ontpelier, Vt., and still later to Rochester, 
 Ohio. To Mr. and Mrs. Greeley have been born 
 four sons : William Henry, of Fresno, an ex- ' 
 pert mill mechanic, is married and has two sons, 
 Harry and John ; Clarence Eugene, also engaged 
 in mill work, has one son, Irwin; Albert H. is 
 mentioned on another page of this volume ; and 
 Edward Foster, also of Fresno,. is an insurance 
 solicitor; he has one daughter, Esther. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Greeley has always been a Republican. 
 For many years he was an active Odd Fellow, 
 joined the order when there were but fourteen 
 lodges in the state, has passed all the chairs of 
 the lodge and was also a delegate to and an active 
 worker in the Grand Lodge. 
 
 EDWARD P. HUGHES. A successful 
 ranchman and one of the oldest settlers of the 
 Malaga district, Fresno county, Edward P. 
 Hughes is numbered among the pioneers of the 
 state. In Independence county. Ark., he was 
 born September 7, 1835, a son of Thomas 
 Hughes, a native of England. The latter came 
 to the United States in 1816 and settled in Mor- 
 gan town, N. C, where he engaged in the trades 
 of tinner aiid coppersmith. Later he located in 
 Arkansas, and in 1849 crossed the plains to 
 California and settled in Los Angeles. After 
 a short residence there he went to the Sandwich 
 Islands, returning to California in 1853, when 
 he went to the mines in Calaveras county. His 
 death occurred in this state at the age of seven- 
 ty-four years. His wife was Sarah Elizabeth 
 McGuire, a native of Scotland. 
 
 Until he was seventeen years old Edward P. 
 Hughes remained in his native state, and in 1853 
 crossed the plains to California via Pike's Peak 
 and Carson City, and located at Murphy's Camp, 
 in Calaveras county. For the ensuing five years 
 he was interested in mining, after which he lo- 
 cated in San Joaquin county and engaged in 
 farming, until 1864. He was there married to 
 Elizabeth C. Smith, who was born in Platte 
 county. Mo., February 3, 1848. She was the 
 daughter of James C. Smith, a native of Ten- 
 nessee, who jiiarried Harriet Melcina Boone, a 
 grand-niece of Daniel Boone, her- father being a 
 nephew of the famous Kentucky frontiersman. 
 Mrs. Hughes' parents crossed the plains in 1852 
 and located in San Joaquin county, shortly after 
 which her father returned to Missouri and 
 brought back with him a large amount of live 
 stock. He then engaged extensively in stock 
 raising, becoming widely known throughout 
 the valley, his cattle ranging as far south as 
 Fresno county. He died at the age of seventy- 
 eight years. In July, 1880, Mr. Hughes came to 
 Fresno county, and in October of the same year 
 settled in the Malaga district on his present 
 
1356 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 property, becoming the owner at that time of 
 one hundred and sixty acres, though he has 
 since disposed of all but forty acres. At that 
 time there were no settlers between his ranch 
 and the city of Fresno, and he is now the oldest 
 settler of the locality. The first year of his 
 residence there he raised grain, while the next 
 year he planted his vineyard, which is one oi 
 the oldest in that section. He has led an active 
 and busy life, and has won a competence through 
 his well directed efforts. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Hughes were born nine 
 children, of whom Edward Aaron, the eldest, died 
 at the age of three years. The others are: Burt 
 L., Harriet Melcina (the wife of W. W. Boust, 
 of Fresno), James C, Bessie L., John P., 
 Thomas E., Richard L., and Edith. 
 
 GEORGE S. BLOSS, Sr. Among the liberal 
 and public-spirited men of Merced county, 
 George S. Bloss; Sr., occupies a prominent place. 
 He was born in Bethlehem, Conn., November. 26, 
 1847, ^ son of George T. and Emily (Brown) 
 Bloss, both natives of the same city, the former 
 being of French and the latter of Scotch ances- 
 try. The paternal ancestors of Mr. Bloss settled 
 in Killingsworth, Conit., upon their removal 
 from France, and in that state George T. Bloss 
 followed farming for a livelihood, remaining so 
 occupied until his death at the age of forty-one 
 years. George S. Bloss spent his boyhood days 
 on the home farm, attending the local schools of 
 his section, while at the same time he received 
 the practical training of a farmer's son. In man- 
 hood he engaged in farming pursuits, remaining 
 a resident of his native state until he was thirty- 
 six years old. 
 
 Deciding to locate in the west, Mr. Bloss came 
 to California in 1884 and purchased land in the 
 vicinity of Atwater, Merced county, where he 
 engaged in the raising of stock and grain, having 
 had broad experience in this line in his New 
 England home. He has prospered in his efforts 
 and is to-day the owner of two sections of land 
 in Merced county, one section at Atwater, com- 
 prising the home place, of which one hundred 
 and seventy-five acres is devoted to alfalfa and 
 the balance to grain; while the other section is 
 ten miles distant and is given over entirely to the 
 cultivation of grain and the raising of cattle. In 
 addition to his agricultural pursuits he has taken 
 an active interest in a corporation known as the 
 Fin-de-SiecIe Im^estment Company, which was 
 organized in 1899, with Mr. Bloss as president. 
 This company purchased the estate of John W. 
 Mitchell, who died November 26, 1893, at which 
 time Mr. Bloss took up the duties of administra- 
 tor, to which office he had been appointed, and 
 gave his undivided attention to this work until 
 
 }899. The careful manner in which he executed 
 the trust reposed in him has won the approval 
 of all connected with the vast estate. This estate 
 formerly contained one hundred and seventeen 
 thousand acres, but is now reduced to ninety 
 thousand and comprises land in Stanislaus, 
 Merced, Madera and Fresno counties, devoted 
 to stock and grain raising. The Fin-de-Siecle 
 Investment Company held this property intact 
 until August, 1904, when they sold their interests 
 as follows : one-third to the Bloss Land and Cat- 
 tie Company; one-third to Crane Brothers Com- 
 pany; and one-third to the Geer-Dallas Invest- 
 menf Company. Mr. Bloss has shown business 
 ability, shrewd judgment, and a practical knowl- 
 edge in his management of the affairs intrusted 
 to him, and has ably demonstrated the fact that 
 conservative methods may yet be progressive 
 ones. 
 
 Mr. Bloss has been married twice, his first 
 xtnion having take place in 1873, when Ella 
 Stone, formerly of Woodbury, Conn., and niece 
 of the late John W. Mitchell, became his wife. 
 She died in 1893, leaving two children, of whom 
 Edna is the wife of Julian Thorne, of San Fran- 
 cisco, and George S., Jr., is a prominent stock- 
 man in Merced county and director of the Com- 
 mercial Bank of Merced. February 2, 1904, Mr. 
 Bloss was again married, being united with Mrs. 
 Edna (Thompson) Hull, whom he had known 
 from early childhood, her birthplace having also 
 been Bethlehem, Conn. In addition to his varied 
 business interests Mr. Bloss is a director of the 
 Security Bank of Merced, and exercises a broad 
 influence in the matter of progress and reform 
 throughout the county. He is a man of public 
 spirit and is held in the highest esteem by all 
 with whom he has come in business or social 
 contact. 
 
 GEORGE TAYLOR FRANKUM. Five 
 miles east of Portersville, Tulare county, in the 
 Rosedale Colony, is located the ranch which be- 
 longs to George Taylor Frankum, an enterpris- 
 ing and substantial orange grower of this sec- 
 tion. A native of Russell county, Ky., he was 
 born August 12, 1855, a son of William 
 Frankum. The latter was a native of the same 
 state, who, in 1857, removed as a farmer to 
 Jasper county, southwestern Missouri, near' Car- 
 thage, where his death occurred April 19, 1866. 
 During the Civil war he enlisted in 1862 in the 
 Union army, serving until 1864, when he was 
 discharged on account of a fever which settled 
 in his left arm leaving him a cripple. His wife, 
 formerly EHzabeth McClure, also a native of 
 Kentucky, died in Missouri in. 1874, when about 
 fifty-four years old. They were the parents of 
 four sons and one daughter, of whom George 
 
ttlSTORlCAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1357 
 
 Taylor Frankurn was the second in order of 
 birth. 
 
 A rather Hmited education was all that George 
 T. Frankurn was enabled to obtain through an 
 attendance of the primitive schools of the early 
 day, on account of the war. In 1870 he went to 
 Denton county, Tex., and engaged as a cowboy 
 throughout the state, working on the range for 
 a time, after which he commenced driving on 
 the trail. He remained so occupied for five and 
 a half years, in 1876 going to Colorado and en- 
 gaging in mining in San Juan county for seven 
 years. Followmg this he was located in Pen- 
 dleton, Ore., in the same occupation, where he 
 ■remained until 1891, in which year he came to 
 California and settled near Portersville. He 
 bought ten acres six miles east of the city and 
 planted it to oranges, and in 1902 bought his 
 present property of thirteen acres, where he has 
 since engaged in the nursery business, raising 
 orange trees. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. Frankurn was united in mar- 
 riage with MoUie Watkin, a native of that state, 
 and they are the parents of three children, name- 
 ly: Clarence, Nettie and Claudie, all at home. 
 Fraternally Mr. Frankurn is a member of Por- 
 tersville Lodge No. 303, F. & A. M., and the 
 Woodmen of the World. Politically he was a 
 Republican but is now a stanch advocate of 
 socialism. He owns one share in the Rochdale 
 store of Portersville, and is interested in every 
 way in all movements which tend to develop the 
 resources of this section. 
 
 H. C. WARNER is remembered in Fresno as 
 a successful business man and one who proved 
 himself an important factor in the commercial 
 upbuilding of the city and surrounding country. 
 He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, June 22,. 1849, 
 a son of Christian Warner, who emigrated from 
 Germany and became a merchant tailor in that 
 city, where he engaged in active business for 
 many years. Upon his retirement he continued 
 to make that city his home, and still resides there 
 at an advanced age. He is a Lutheran in re- 
 ligion and politically is a stanch Republican. Of 
 his three children, all of whom are deceased, 
 H. C. Warner was the eldest. He received his 
 education in the public schools of Cincinnati, 
 which he attended until attaining the age of four- 
 teen, when he was apprenticed to learn the jew- 
 eler and watch-maker's trade. When twenty 
 years old he came to California on one of the 
 first trains that ever crossed the continent. Upon 
 his arrival he engaged in business in San Diego 
 for one year, and following this he spent the 
 same length of time in Castroville, Monterey 
 county. He then located in Gilroy, Santa Clara 
 county, and established a jewelry business, as 
 
 well as practicing as an optician. He made that 
 city his home until 1880, when he located in 
 Fresno and established the first permanent jew- 
 elry business in this city, being located on Mari- 
 posa street, ni the building now occupied by 
 C. H. Reige. He first purchased a frame store 
 buildmg, but later put up a brick building, and 
 was established in that location for many years, 
 but finally sold and removed to a place on J 
 street, near the corner of Mariposa. He was 
 the first optician in this city, having taken a 
 course in San Francisco, and was very successful 
 in his work. 
 
 Mr. Warner was a citizen of worth and in- 
 tegrity, who won the highest appreciation from 
 his fellow-townsmen. He was active in the Bap- 
 tist Church as trustee and treasurer, and politi- 
 cally was a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Republican party. 
 Fraternally he was made a Ma:son in Watson- 
 ville, becoming a member of Lodge No. 247, of 
 this city, and was also a member of Trigo Chap- 
 ter No. 69, of this place, and a charter member 
 of Fresno Commandery No. 29, K. T., having 
 been made a Kniglit Templar in Visalia Com- 
 mandery. He also belonged to the Order of the . 
 Eastern Star. His death occurred June 25, 1897, 
 at the comparatively early age of forty-eight 
 years. 
 
 In Gilroy, Cal., January 25, 1873, Mr. Warner 
 was united in marriage with Laura Bennett, a 
 native of Sonora, Cal. She is the eldest of three 
 children now living. Her father, William C. 
 Bennett, was a native of New Preston, Conn., 
 and the son of Joseph Bennett, a miller of the 
 same place, where he also died. The paternal 
 ancestors were patriots in the Revolutionary war 
 and were active in colonial development. Will- 
 iam C. Bennett came to California in 1849, ^^^ 
 Cape Horn, and immediately sought the mines 
 at Sonora. He finally located in Salinas valley, 
 where he engajged as a farmer, and later went to 
 Gilroy, near which city he engaged in the raising 
 of grain. Removing to Merced he spent the last 
 years of his life at that place, his death occurring 
 from the effects of an accident at the age of 
 sixty-eight years. Fraternally he was a Mason 
 and politically was a stanch Republican. He be- 
 longed to the Presbyterian Church. His wife, 
 formerly Abigail Noble, was a native of Maumee, 
 Ohio, and came to California via the Isthmus of 
 Panama in the early '50s. She died in Fresno in 
 the home of her daughter, Mrs. Warner, at the 
 age of forty-seven years. Mrs. Warner spent 
 her childhood in Gilroy, where she was married, 
 and in 1880 became a resident of Fresno. Since 
 her husband's death she has conducted the busi- 
 nes under the old name, her son, Albert O., act- 
 ing as manager of the establishment, which is 
 now located at No. 1819 Mariposa street. She 
 
1358 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 has three children, namely: Albert O., who 
 graduated from the high school and from the 
 University of California with the degree of 
 Ph. G., and who later took a course in optics; 
 Edna F., the wife of Dr. R. B. Cockrill, of 
 Fresno; and Frank Edmund, who graduated 
 from a New York College with the degree of 
 Doctor of Optics ; later he passed the state board 
 examination and is now a practicing optician. 
 For many years Mrs. Warner was a member of 
 the Order of the Eastern Star, and is an active 
 member of the Parlor Lecture Club of Fresno. 
 She is a member of the Baptist Church. 
 
 three children, Irma Catherine, Cecil Raymond 
 and Louie Roderick, all at home. Fraternally 
 Mr. Elfers is associated with the Woodmen of 
 the World, of Selma, and politically is a stanch 
 advocate of the principles of the- Democratic 
 party. 
 
 LAWRENCE C. ELFERS. Two and three- 
 quarter miles southeast of Conejo, Fresno coun- 
 ty, is located the ranch which belongs to Law- 
 rence C. Elfers, one of the successful and promi- 
 nent men of this section. He is a native son of 
 the state, his birth havmg occurred in Oakland 
 August 30, 1866. His father, Archibald D. El- 
 fers, was a native of Germany, who came to 
 California in 1854 and located in Marysville, 
 where he engaged as a miner. Later he removed 
 to San Francisco and engaged in the brewery 
 business and the manufacture of cigars. In 
 1870 he went to Stanislaus county and in the 
 vicinity of Crow's Landing engaged in farming 
 until 1892, when he removed to Alameda, where 
 he is now living retired. His wife, Catherine, is 
 also a native of Germany. They became the 
 parents of twelve children, eight of whom at- 
 tained maturity, four sons and four daughters, 
 of whom Lawrence C. was the tenth in order of 
 birth. 
 
 Lawrence C. Elfers received his education in 
 the common schools of California, after which 
 he engaged in farming in Stanislaus county, 
 where he remained until 1901. Locating in 
 Fresno county in that year he purchased his 
 present property, consisting of three hundred 
 and thirty acres, which he has since devoted to 
 the cultivation of alfalfa and the raising of stock. 
 He has added many improvements to his prop- 
 erty, in 1901 building a fine residence on the 
 ranch, and has installed a pumping plant, oper- 
 ated by a gas engine, drawing water from a well 
 one hundred and seventy-eight feet deep, for 
 irrigation purposes. He is a director in the 
 Immigrant Irrigation Ditch, and still owns an 
 interest in a warehouse at Crow's Landing. 
 
 In Stanislaus county, Cal, in 1891, Mr. Elfers 
 was united in marriage with Georgia Albina Kin- 
 near, a native of Canada. Her father, James 
 Kinnear, a native of Scotland, came to Califor- 
 nia in 1865, and now makes his home three 
 miles west of Modesto, Stanislaus county, where 
 he is engaged in the raising of stodc and alfal- 
 fa. To Mr. Elfers and his wife have been born 
 
 JOHN THOMPSON. Recent years have wit- 
 nessed the subdivision of many large tracts of 
 grain land into small fruit farms, and the prop- 
 erty which Mr. Thompson acquired by purchase 
 in 1902 forms an instance of this nature. Three 
 years after buying the land he moved thereto, 
 hence is a newcomer in his vicinity, but posses-, 
 ses thorough familiarity with the soil, climate and 
 the fruit-growing business, and is in every re- 
 spect sufficiently experienced to justify the be- 
 lief that he will reap success in his new ven- 
 ture. By birth he is of English nationality, born 
 in Yorkshire, March 4, 1865, being next to the 
 youngest in a family of four sons and four daugh- 
 ters who lived to mature years. His parents, 
 Thomas and Jane Ann (Tindall) Thompson, 
 were born, reared and married in England, and 
 there continued to reside until death, the father 
 following during all of his active life the occu- 
 pation of a boot and shoe-maker. 
 
 Until nine years of age John Thompson at- 
 tended public school, but at that time he was 
 put to work and had no further opportunities 
 for acquiring an education. The wages which 
 he received were the smallest, being but $15 per 
 year, and his work the most arduous and wearing, 
 but with the optimism of youth he endured hard- 
 ships with a cheerful face and steadfast heart. 
 At the age of seventeen years he came to the 
 United States in the hope of bettering his con- 
 dition. At first he settled near Jacksonville, 
 111, where he worked as a farm hand for three 
 years. During 1885 he came to California and 
 established his headquarters at Fresno, mean- 
 while working as a farm hand wherever oppor- 
 tunity offered. In those days he had many dis- 
 couragements, though he found steady employ- 
 ment as soon as be was located. Finally he was 
 fortunate in securing employment in orange or- 
 chards with F. G. Berry, under whom he re- 
 mained for fourteen years as a permanent assis- 
 tant, in full charge of Orangedale, a farm of 
 seventy acres under cultivation to citrus fruits. 
 With the savings of those years he purchased 
 the property which is now his home, comprising 
 twenty acres three and one-half miles northeast 
 of Sanger in Centerville district, in a locality 
 adapted to fruit culture. Here he has a vine- 
 yard of fourteen acres, besides two acres in or- 
 anges, two acres in peaches and two in alfalfa. 
 A neat residence adds to the homelike attrac- 
 tiveness of the fruit farm, and it is the owner's 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1359 
 
 hope to make other improvements from time to 
 time, as his means permit. 
 
 After coming to C'aHfornia Mr. Thompson re- 
 mamed a bachelor for fifteen years. In 1900 he 
 was united in marriage with Miss Mary Lizzie 
 Weldon, a native of Texas, and by this union 
 there are two cliildren, FuUon G. and Fannie 
 Lois. Besides his home place Mr. Thompson 
 is interested in the Del Rey packing house. Fra- 
 ternally he is connected with various organiza- 
 tions, including the Knights of Pythias at Fres- 
 no, and in political affiliations he sympathizes 
 with Republican issues and principles. Industry 
 and perseverance have helped him out of poverty 
 into a position of independence. A high sense 
 of honor, displayed in transactions of every 
 nature, has brought him the confidence of asso- 
 ciates. Being of a quiet and home-loving dispo- 
 sition, when other duties permit he finds his 
 greatest happiness in his home and the society 
 of wife and children; notwithstanding this, he 
 neglects no duty as a citizen, but in his new 
 home, as in former locations, may be depended 
 upon to support movements for the benefit of the 
 people. 
 
 JOHN QUINN BYERS. Since his twen- 
 tieth year John Q. Byers has lived on the farm 
 which he now calls home, and where he is con- 
 ducting an extensive stock business, in addi- 
 tion to a dairy and wood business. Skirting 
 the San Joaquin river, and located four miles 
 northeast of Crow's Landing, he has five hun- 
 dred and twenty acres, all admirably adapted 
 to the purpose for which it is required. As a 
 pioneer of 1853 the genial owner enjoys an 
 esteem in the community commensurate with his 
 well-balanced and industrious life and with the 
 steadiness and success with which he has pur- 
 sued his time-honored occupation. That the 
 farm is his by inheritance in no wise detracts 
 from his ability to have earned it had the neces- 
 sity presented itself, for his management evi- 
 dences those solid traits of character which are 
 bound to win their possessor a realization of his 
 expectations. 
 
 Born in Preble county, Ohio, August 24, 1833, 
 Mr. Byers' family was established in the Buck- 
 eye state by his paternal grandfather, Isaac, 
 who was born in Virginia in 1802, and who 
 brought to the wilds of Ohio a knowledge of 
 blacksmithing and bell manufacturing intelli- 
 gently pursued for many years. Of an equally 
 ambitious and courageous nature, his son, Will- 
 iam, the father of John Q., sought a larger field 
 of activity in Delaware county, Ind., where his 
 wife, formerly Jane Quinn, died when her only 
 son, John, was about two years old, and from 
 where he removed to Morgan county. Mo., his last 
 
 home in the middle west. In 1853, when John 
 was twenty, his father came with him to the 
 coast, driving an ox team, and bringing a herd 
 of cattle as a nucleus of the intended large stock- 
 raising business. Soon- after arriving in the 
 state he settled on the river farm since in the 
 possession of the family, homesteading a hundred 
 and sixty acres, and remaining there until his 
 death, February 11, 1889, at the age of eighty- 
 six years and ten months. On this same farm 
 his second wife, Elizabeth (Malcomb) Byers, 
 died December 27, 1882, aged sixty-six years. 
 
 To the original purchase William Byers added 
 as success came his way,- and was able to leave 
 to the care of his son five hundred and twenty 
 acres of good land, which is devoted entirely to 
 stock raising and pasturage of cattle. To J. Q. 
 Byers the land represents all that he has accom- 
 plished since he started out in life, and the pride 
 which he naturally feels is reflected in the judg- 
 ment of everyone privileged to witness the work 
 of his hands. He married into one of the pioneer 
 families of the state. Miss Mary Elizabeth Bishop 
 being a daughter of Eli Bishop, who first came to 
 California in 1858, when his daughter was three 
 years old. Again he crossed the plains in. 1875, 
 and died at Modesto, Cal., where he had lived 
 retired for several years. Mr. and Mrs. Byers 
 became the parents of ten children, one of whom 
 died in infancy. The others are : Mrs. Amanda 
 J. Allen ; William Eli ; Mrs. Frances E. Patchett ; 
 John Cleveland, who was accidentally drowned 
 April 22, 1892, aged eight years ; Mary Bell, 
 Isaac Q., Edna E., George F. and Cordelia Ann. 
 Mr. Byers is independent in politics, and in re- 
 ligion is a member of the Adventist Qiurch. 
 Though well along in years, and in a position to 
 practically retire from active life, Mr. Byers still 
 maintains his, interest in the smallest details of his 
 farm, encouraging by his precept and example 
 the happy band of youthful workers who are pre- 
 paring to follow in his footsteps. 
 
 GEORGE LARSEN. Born in Horsholm, 
 Denmark, May 15, 1866, George Larsen inherited 
 from a long line of Danish ancestors those sturdy 
 qualities which have made these people citizens 
 to be desired in any country. His father, Jor- 
 gen Larsen, was in the Danish army, and was so 
 severely wounded in the battle of Saukelmark 
 that he was incapacitated for five years. He died 
 in Horsholm in 1870. His wife, formerly Char- 
 lotte Oleson, survives him and still makes her" 
 home in Denmark. Of their six children five 
 are living, three sons having located in the United 
 States, of whom Ole and Peter participated in 
 the Civil war, in which both lost their lives. 
 
 George Larsen was the youngest in the family 
 of children born to his parents. He was reared 
 
1360 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in Copenhagen and Horsholm, receiving a very 
 limited education in the common schools, tor at 
 eight years of age he went to work on the tarm. 
 He continued in that work and also learned the 
 butcher business, combining work at the two 
 until he was seventeen, when he was appren- 
 ticed to learn the blacksmith's trade. He con- 
 tinued in Copenhagen for three years, after which 
 he traveled throughout Denmark and Germany, 
 eventually working for thirty months in the larg- 
 est iron works in Denmark. In 1892 he came 
 to Fresno, Cal, without a dollar, but with a 
 good trade, plenty of muscle and good health, 
 and an energy and determination which could 
 only bring him success eventually. For seven 
 months following, his arrival he was employed in 
 a vinevard, then worked at his trade for a year, 
 after which he established a shop of his own, go- 
 ing in debt $485 for machinery and tools. He 
 met with deserved success and in 1896 built a 
 shop on his lot 50x150 feet in dimensions, and 
 two stories in height, the first floor the manu- 
 factory and the second a store-room. He manu- 
 factures plows, wagons, carriages, etc., being 
 specially well-known for the quality of the plows 
 he turns out. He has also built a comfortable 
 residence at No. 1407 Fresno street, where he 
 makes his home. 
 
 Mr. Larsen was united in marriage in Fresno 
 with Marie Jensen, a native of Copenhagen, and 
 they have five living children, namely : Halvor, 
 Edward, Ollie, Roy and Otto. Mr. La.rsen be- 
 longs to the Danish Brotherhood, of which he is 
 ex-president, the Dania Society of CaHfornia, 
 of which he is past president, the- Ancient Order 
 of United Workmen and the Modern Woodmen 
 of America. Politically he is a stanch Democrat. 
 
 ADIE B. EVANS, as superintendent of the 
 San Joaquin Ice Company, is giving his best ef- 
 forts toward the advancement of the company's 
 interests and the increase of general business in 
 Fresno and vicinity. A native of Huntingdon, 
 Pa., he was born August 15, 1867, the young- 
 est in a family of nine children, of whom four 
 are living". His father, J. W. Evans, was an or- 
 dained minister of the Baptist Church. He was 
 a native of the vicinity of Tredga, Wales, but 
 became a pioneer of the Schuylkill valley, where 
 he studied for the ministry. He was later lo- 
 cated at Cambria, Huntingdon, Irwin Station, 
 Philipsburg, and in Dividing Creek, N. J., about 
 T892 coming as far west as Nebraska, where he 
 was stationed at Beatrice. In 1895 he came to 
 California and now resides in Fresno. His wife, 
 formerly Rebecca Bowen, is a native of Wales. 
 They are the parents of four children now living. 
 
 Adie B. Evans received his education in the 
 public schools of his native state, and Keystone 
 
 Academy, Factoryville, Pa., from which insti- 
 tution he was graduated in 1887. He then took 
 a commercial course in Wood's Business Col- 
 lege, and as a bookkeeper came to California in 
 March, 1889, following this work in Fresno for 
 one year. Going to Bakersfield, Kern county, 
 in 1890, he entered the employ of Miller & Lux 
 as bookkeeper and manager of their store on 
 Button Willow ranch. Following this he served 
 one term as deputy county clerk of Kern county 
 under F. W. Craig, his time of service expiring 
 after four years, January i, 1899. In April of 
 the same year he returned to Fresno and en- 
 tered the employ of the San Joaquin Ice Com- 
 pany at the time of its organization, holding 
 the position of bookkeeper until the death of the 
 superintendent, W. J. McNulty. Ii} August, 
 1902, he was elected to succeed the late superin- 
 tendent, and has since discharged the duties of 
 this office with efficiency and energy. This com- 
 pany has one of the largest manufacturing plants 
 of Fresno, comprising a cold storage plant with 
 a three thousand ton capacity, an ice machine 
 with a capacity of fifty tons per day, and a one 
 hundred and eighty horsepower steam engine. 
 The plant is located on the Santa Fe railroad and 
 on a spur of the Southern Pacific, their prod- 
 ucts being shipped throughout the valley, to ev- 
 ery important city and town from Modesto to 
 Bakersfield. This company has also engaged ex- 
 tensively in the manufacture of butter and cheese, 
 having a creamery at Fresno, with a capacity of 
 six thousand pounds per day, and a cheese fac- 
 tory at Selma, with a large capacity and modern 
 plant. They have fifteen agents in Fresno, Kings 
 and Tulare counties, and also receive cream 
 from Madera county. This company are largely 
 engaged in the cattle and dairy business, and 
 have been the means of enlarging this industry 
 to an appreciable extent. They took the initia- 
 tive in importing from the east pure bred cattle 
 — Plolstein, Jersey and Guernsey, placing them 
 with the dairymen and allowing them to pay from 
 the returns, charging no advance, and paying the 
 regular market price for butter. This enter- 
 prise required a capital of $100,000, but has been 
 the micans of bringing to the county and com- 
 pany a vast increase of business, adding to the 
 prosperity of the farmers of the community, and 
 proving an important factor in the development 
 and upbuilding of the best interests of the gen- 
 eral public. 
 
 In Green Grove, Lackawanna county, Pa., Mr. 
 Evans was united in marriage with Carrie M. 
 Lowrey, a native of Dundaflf, Susquehanna coun- 
 ty, that state, and a daughter of Wright Lowrey, 
 a farmer of that locality. They are the parents 
 of two children, Elma and Mildred. Mr. Evans 
 is a member of the Chamber of Commerce and 
 has served on its executive committee. Frater- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1361 
 
 nally he is associated with the Knights of Pyth- 
 ias, the Uniformed Rank of the Knights of Pyth- 
 ias, and in the line of his business belongs to 
 the California Creamery Operators' Association. 
 He is a member of the Baptist Church, and po- 
 litically is a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Republican party. 
 
 CHARLES M. McCARDLE. The McCardle 
 family has been prominent in the pioneer history 
 of this section, where James McCardle located 
 many years ago. He was a native of Belfast, 
 Ireland, at the age of thirteen years leaving his 
 home and going to Liverpool, England, from 
 which port he shipped as a sailor before the mast. 
 His first long trip was around Cape Horn and 
 up the Pacific coast, and his second trip was 
 made in the fall of 1848. Arriving in San Fran- 
 cisco he left the vessel, going first to Sacra- 
 mento, thence to Tuolumne county, and later lo- 
 cating in Mariposa county, where for some years 
 he followed both placer and quartz mining. He 
 finally engaged in a mercantile enterprise and 
 also the raising of stock, becoming prominent in 
 Fresno county, where he located in 1873. In 
 1874 he was elected constable, when he removed 
 to Fresno, and was later elected deputy sheriff. 
 In 1884 he resigned that office and bought an 
 interest in what was known afterward as the 
 Smith & McCardle Lumber mill at Pine Ridge. 
 This business he continued successfully until his 
 death, which occurred in 1898. Politically he 
 was a stanch Democrat and took an active part 
 in the workings of this party in Fresno county. 
 Fraternally he was a charter member of Fresno 
 Lodge No. 186, I. O. O. F., at Millerton, the pio- 
 neer lodge of this organization in the county, 
 and in this he served in all the offices. His 
 wife, formerly Ellen G. Baley, was a native of 
 Missouri, and the daughter of Judge Gillum Bal- 
 ey, who came to California across the plains with 
 ox-teams in 1852. Judge Baley engaged in min- 
 ing until 1859, when he returned east and brought 
 his family back to California across the plains. 
 He located them near Chowchilla, Mariposa coun- 
 ty, where he followed mining for a time, then 
 removed to the old toll house of Fresno county, 
 where he engaged in general farming and stock- 
 raising. He was elected courtty judge when the 
 county seat was at Millerton, and held the of- 
 fice two terms ; the county seat was afterward re- 
 moved to Fresno. He then located in this city, 
 where he engaged in the mercantile business un- 
 til his .death at the age of eighty-five years. His 
 wife, formerly Parmelia Myers, survives him, 
 making her home in the city of Fresno, at the 
 age of eighty-five years. Mrs. McCardle is also 
 living, residing upon her ranch in the Arizona 
 Colony. She is the mother of three daughters 
 
 and four sons, of whom Charles M. McCardle, 
 the subject of this review, is the third in order 
 of birth. 
 
 A native son of the state, Charles M. Mc- 
 Cardle was born at Fine Gold (now O'Neils), fif- 
 teen miles above Fort Miller, November 7, 1869. 
 He was reared and educated in Fresno, and at 
 the age of thirteen years was apprenticed to learn 
 the blacksmith's trade, serving foui;- years in this 
 capacity. He continued at his trade for three 
 more years, being employed at the Fresno Agri- 
 cultural Works, then followed the lumber busi- 
 ness for about four years. He then accepted a 
 position in the grocery of R. B. Parker, main- 
 taining a clerkship until his nomination for the 
 public office which he now holds, that of county 
 recorder. The memorable fight of 1902 attracted 
 considerable attention in this section of the state. 
 The general returns gave Barstow, the Republi- 
 can candidate, the election by eighteen votes, 
 when he obtained a certificate and assumed the 
 duties of the office. Mr. McCardle filed con- 
 test and secured a recount, which gave to him 
 the election by forty-eight votes, according to 
 the superior court, and in the supreme court he. 
 was awarded over one hundred votes in major- 
 ity. He then assumed the duties of the office, 
 entering upon the work November 18, 1904, and 
 although but a short time has elapsed he has al- 
 ready given evidence of the ability and integrity 
 which have won him the esteem and respect of all 
 who knew him in his past career. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. McCardle was united in mar- 
 riage with Olivia R. Vogel, a native of Illinois. 
 Her father, Jacob Vogel, was formerly engaged 
 in the mercantile business in Clinton, 111. He 
 came to Fresno in 1886 and became prominent in 
 business affairs, now serving as a director in the 
 First National Bank, of this city. He now re- 
 sides in Fruitvale, Cal. Mrs. McCardle received 
 her education at Stanford University, and is a 
 woman of culture and refinement. She is a mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Mc- 
 Cardle is a Democrat politically and is associ- 
 ated with the Native Sons of the Golden West 
 through membership in Fresno Parlor. 
 
 CHARLES W. BARRETT. The Barrett 
 family was established in America prior to the 
 Revolutionary war, in which the great-grand- 
 father of Charles W. Barrett, an esteemed resi- 
 dent of Fresno, Cal., was a participant. The 
 name was prominent in Maine, where F. A. Bar- 
 rett was born, and whence he removed to New 
 York City, and engaged as a builder. In 1861 
 he came to California via the Isthmus of Pana- 
 ma, and located as a contractor and builder in 
 San Francisco, working at this business in dif- 
 ferent sections around the bay until his death in 
 
1362 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1899. His wife, formerly Agnes Berry, was born 
 in New York state, the descendant of an old 
 New England family. She survives her hus- 
 band and now makes her home in Fresno. Of 
 their three living children Charles W. Barrett is 
 the eldest, his birth having occurred in New York 
 City May 11, 1859. 
 
 Brought to California in 1861 by his parents, 
 Charles W. Barrett was reared to manhood in 
 San Francisco, where he received his education 
 in the grammar and boys' high school. He 
 studied bookkeeping while attending the public 
 schools, and at the age of fifteen years learned 
 the plumber's trade. Deciding to locate in Fres- 
 no, he came to this city in 1882, and entered the 
 employ of the Donohoe-Fanning Company, with 
 whom he remained four years. He then estab- 
 lished his present business, which has since 
 grown to large proportions, locating first on J 
 street and later removing lo 1035 I street. The 
 firm, which is known as the Barrett-Hicks Com- 
 pany, was incorporated in 1895, with Mr. Barrett 
 as president, and today they carry on the most 
 extensive hardware business in the city of Fres- 
 no. Their wholesale and retail establishment, 
 where they display general hardware, stoves and 
 tinware, is 50x150 feet in dimensions, while the 
 shop is 35x150 feet, and is three stories in height. 
 Their warehouses are located on the Southern 
 Pacific Railroad. This business has proved one 
 of the chief enterprises of Fresno, and has added 
 much to the commercial prestige of the place. 
 
 Mr. Barrett was united m marriage in San 
 Francisco with Minnie Thomas, a native of Phil- 
 adelphia, Pa. Fraternally he was made a Mason 
 in Fresno Lodge No. 247, of which he is past 
 master, and also belongs to Trigo Chapter, R. A. 
 M., of this place ; Fresno Commandery No. 29, 
 K. T., and is also associated vv'ith the Independent 
 C)rder of Odd Fellows. He is a Republican in his' 
 political convictions, and is a member of the First 
 Presbyterian Church. Mr. Barrett is a charter 
 member of the Chamber of Commerce, belongs 
 to the Retail Hardware Association of the Pacific 
 coast, and is a member of the Master Plumbers' 
 Association. 
 
 H. H. SARRINGHAUSEN is a farmer of 
 Fresno county, located within four and a half 
 miles of Reedley, and engaged in general agri- 
 cultural and horticultural pursuits. He was born 
 in Ripley county, Ind., December 28, 1869, a son 
 of Conrad Sarringhausen, who came from Ger- 
 many to the United States in an early day and 
 became a farmer in Ripley county, where his 
 death occurred in 1872. His wife, Maggie, also 
 a native of Germany, died in Indiana, leaving a 
 family of five sons and three daughters, of whom 
 H. LI. Sarringhausen is the voungest. He re- 
 
 ceived a limited education in the common schools 
 of his state, and in the passing years has added 
 to the foundation he then laid by broad reading 
 and observation, which have given him a place 
 among the well-informed men of the community. 
 He worked on a farm in Indiana until 1883 when 
 he came to California and located in Fresno and 
 found employment in a planing mill. Follow- 
 ing this he bought his present ranch near Reedley 
 in 1886. It consists of one hundred and sixty 
 acres located four and a half miles southwest of 
 Reedley, forty acres being in vines, four acres in 
 trees and forty acres in alfalfa, while the balance 
 is devoted to grain. He also owns stock in the 
 packing house at Parlier, and is a member of the 
 Parlier Packing Association. He owns stock in 
 the Reedley State Bank, and is prominent in 
 business afifairs in that town. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Sarring'hausen is identified 
 with the Woodmen of the World, of Reedley, and 
 politically is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party. 
 
 JOSEPH PARKER LANE was born in 
 North Carolina, a son of John Lane," a native 
 of the same state, who removed to Tennessee 
 when his son Joseph was but a few months old. 
 His mother was a niece of Noah Macon, United 
 States Senator from North Carolina. In Knox- 
 ville Joseph P. Lane was given the benefit of a 
 good education, supplementing his public school 
 learning by a thorough study of law, later being 
 admitted to the bar of that state. At the age of 
 twenty-two he removed to Texas, locating near 
 the present city of San Antonio, and there he 
 practiced law to some extent. In 1849 he came 
 to Calif ornia, , the journey being made with a 
 pack train through Sonora and Mazatlan to Los 
 Angeles. From the latter city he went direct to 
 Stockton and engaged in trading in the mines. 
 In 1850 he located in Stockton and in partner- 
 ship with Nathan Fairbanks, opened a wholesale 
 liquor store after the big fire. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Lane was united in marriage 
 with Ann Mary Barnett, who was born in Hay- 
 ward county, Tenn., November 6, 185 1, a daugh- 
 ter of Bird B. Barnett, a native of Carroll county, 
 that state. Mr. Barnett was a large planter and 
 tobacco grower. He married Martha Walker, 
 who was born in Charleston, S. C. In 1848, 
 with his family, Mr. Barnett located near St. 
 Joseph, Mo., where the v/inter was spent. The 
 following summer they continued on to Salt 
 Lake, intending to reach the coast that year, but 
 on arriving in the latter place it was too late in 
 the fall to attempt the journe}' across the moun- 
 tains, so they remained in that citv until the 
 following spring, when they continued their jour- 
 V 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1363 
 
 ney, reaching California in July, 1850. The first 
 settlement was made on Weaver creek, where 
 Mr. Barnett opened a hotel, which he conducted 
 until the following year, when he removed to 
 Stockton, shortly afterward buying a ranch three 
 miles from that city. There in addition to farm- 
 ing and stock-raising he conducted a hotel, which 
 was extensively patronized by the early settlers. 
 Besides this property he also owned a large ranch 
 on the Calaveras river. He died when over 
 eighty years of age, at the home of a daughter, 
 Mrs. C. D. Reynolds, in Calaveras county. His 
 wife passed away in Stockton, where they had 
 lived continuously for twenty years, after having 
 spent about six years in Mariposa county. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Lane continued in 
 business in Stockton until 1855, when he disposed 
 of his interests and with his wife removed to 
 Monterey county, where he purchased a farm ad- 
 joining the town of San Juan and engaged in 
 the stock business for four years. While there 
 he served as justice of the peace and took a 
 prominent part in county affairs, also serving 
 two terms as supervisor. Subsequently he re- 
 moved to Mariposa county, locating on Little 
 Mariposa creek, where he engaged in the cattle 
 business until 1868. From that year until 1870 
 he was interested in the sheep business, but at 
 the end of that time sold out and came to the 
 San Joaquin valley, settling near what is now 
 known as Lane's Bridge, ten miles east of the 
 present site of Fresno. In this section he re- 
 sumed the stock business and as the years passed 
 accumulated about seven thousand acres of fine 
 farming land. Tn all his business ventures he 
 met with .success, and at the time of his death 
 was considered one of the most substantial men 
 in this section of the state. He was accidentally 
 killed December 15, 1879, his death causing deep 
 regret among his many friends. Since his death 
 Mrs. Lane has carried on the business. She 
 became the mother of five children, namely : 
 Joseph Adolphus, of Fresno; Mary, now Mrs. 
 Liddell ; Edward, who is engaged in farming 
 near Fresno; William Henry, who resides in 
 Santa Cruz county; and Frank Mark, a grad- 
 uate of the State Normal school at San Jose 
 and now principal of the Hawthorne school in 
 Fresno. Her children remained on the farm 
 until they were all married, after which, in 1897, 
 she moved into Fresno, where she has since re- 
 sided. During her residence here she erected her 
 home at No. 1652 N street, besides which she 
 also owns several thousand acres of land on the 
 San Joaquin river, which is rented. Mrs. Lane 
 is an active member of St. James Episcopal 
 church and is very popular with all her acquaint- 
 ances, being one of the few pioneer ladies living 
 in the city. 
 
 In politics. Mr. Lane was a Democrat, but he 
 
 never had the time nor inclination to take an 
 active part in public matters, though none had 
 the interest of his county at heart more than 
 did Mr. Lane. He was at all times ready to give 
 of his time and means to further any movement 
 that was calculated to be of material benefit to 
 the county or state. His life was a success and 
 in his history there is much that could be read 
 with profit by the young men of the present day. 
 He m_et and overcame all obstacles, and was ever 
 willing to give credit to his wife, who was at all 
 times a v/orthy helpmeet. 
 
 GEORGE S. BAMBAUER. As one of the 
 live and progressive agriculturists who are con- 
 tinuing the work of upbuilding begun by their 
 pioneer sires, George S. Bambauer commands 
 consideration from his f ellowmen in . Stanislaus 
 and Merced counties, more especially because of 
 the wholesome ambition and energy which is 
 characterizing the management of his farms six 
 miles south of Newman, one comprising forty 
 and the other fifty-five acres. Extended mention 
 is given the early struggles and subsequent suc- 
 cess of his parents, in another part of this work, 
 and it is sufficient here to locate him as the third 
 in a large family, and one of the most zealous 
 in keeping the children together after the rather 
 premature death of his father. With a common 
 school education to back him, he removed from 
 the farm in San Joaquin county, where he was 
 born August 7, 1862, to Merced county with 
 his mother, managing a ranch in the Cotton- 
 wood district, below the canal. His ambition 
 to become an independent land owner was real- 
 ized in 1894, when he bought his present farm 
 of forty acres, and later added the farm near by. 
 His land is under alfalfa and pasture, and a 
 dairy of eighty cows offers abundant opportu- 
 nity for a model and paying milk and butter 
 enterprise. Mr. Bambauer owns stock in the 
 New Era Creamery, to which he sells his prod- 
 ucts, and he is otherwise identified with the busi- 
 ness interests in his immediate neighborhood. 
 
 As becomes so broad-minded and public-spir- 
 ited a man, Mr. Bambauer is interested in the 
 political outlook, and an earnest promoter of the 
 principles and issues of the Democratic party. 
 He has been called upon to represent his district 
 in county and state conventions, and has always 
 done so with distinct credit to those who hon- 
 ored him with their preference. His genial and 
 kindly manner causes him to be a welcome ad- 
 dition to the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men and the Woodmen of the World, and his 
 sociability and good fellowship are further recog- 
 nized in his home, where hospitality and sympa- 
 thy await the many friends of the family. Mrs. 
 Bambauer was formerly Mary Alzina De Mont, 
 
1364 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 who was born in Oakland, and who is the de- 
 voted mother of three children, L. Lloyd, Ste- 
 phen and an infant son. Mr. Bambaoer's career 
 presents many points of encouragement for as- 
 piring land owners and developers, for he is an 
 acknowledged practical and reliable man, de- 
 pending solely upon the gifts with which nature 
 has endowed him, and striving always for the 
 best possible of attainment in his line. 
 
 G. P. CUMMINGS. The position of esteem 
 and respect occupied by G. P. Cummings has 
 been won by sterling traits of character rather 
 than by influence. Irrespective of party lines he 
 was cliosen by the board of supervisors as county 
 assessor in 1900, and performed the duties inci- 
 dent to his office with the same efficiency and 
 thoroughness which had previously characterized 
 his work as deputy county clerk and acting clerk 
 of the board of supervisors. A native of War- 
 ren county, Tenn., he was born near McMinn- 
 ville. May 30, 1856, the youngest in 'a family of 
 ten children, all of whom attained maturity, he 
 being the only one located on the coast. The 
 family came originally from Virginia, which 
 was the birthplace of his father, G. P. Cummings, 
 Sr., the youngest child born to Col. Joseph Cum- 
 mings, who went to Virginia from Scotland and 
 won his title in the war of 1812. Colonel Cum- 
 mings engaged in farming near Spencer, Van 
 Buren cqunty, Tenn., after the war of 1812, his 
 death occurring in that locality at the advanced 
 age of ninety-nine years. G. P. Cummings, Sr., 
 followed .the occupation of farmer and was also 
 sheriff of Van Buren county, whence he removed 
 to the vicinity of McMinnville. He served in 
 the latter location as district assessor, and also 
 engaged as a farmer until his death, at the age of 
 sixty-four years. His wife, formerly Elizabeth 
 Plumlee, was a native of Virginia and the daugh- 
 ter of John Plumlee, who took part in the war of 
 1812. Her death also occurred in Tennessee. 
 
 G. P. Cummings, Jr., received his education 
 in Burritt College, Spencer, Tenn., and in 1876, 
 when nineteen years old, began teaching, which 
 occupation he followed for nine years, in time 
 winning a place on the county board of teachers' 
 examiners, of Warren county. Deciding to locate 
 on the Pacific coast, he came to California in 1885 
 and in Fresno county taught school at Eastin 
 (now in Madera county). In 1887 he came to the 
 city of Fresno and secured employment as clerk in 
 a grocery establishment,- where he remained for 
 one year, when he entered into business for him- 
 self. He was located on I street, and the firm 
 was known as Cummings & Higgins. This enter- 
 prise was continued successfully until 1894, when 
 they sold out and dissolved partnership. For a 
 time he was employed as traveling salesman, but 
 
 on January i, 1899, he was made deputy county 
 clerk under George W. Cartwright,^ and was the 
 clerk of the county board of supervisors from that 
 time until July 30, 1900. Upon the last-named 
 date he was appointed by the board of super- 
 visors to fill the unexpired term of J. W. Fergu- 
 son, county assessor. This office he filled ac- 
 ceptably until January, 1903, when he retired and 
 engaged in the real estate business under the firm 
 name of Murdock, Cummings & Murdock, being 
 located on Tulare street. January i, 1904, they 
 dissolved partnership and he then accepted a po- 
 sition with the county recorder, to make ab- 
 stracts of mortgages for county assessor. On 
 the 1st of February, 1904, he was appointed un- 
 der sherifi' by J. D. Collins, since which time he 
 has discharged the duties of that office. 
 
 Mr. Cummings' home, at the corner of O and 
 Kern streets, is presided over by his wife, for- 
 merly Bettie Smartt, a native of Warren county, 
 where they were married. She was a daughter 
 of George M. Smartt, a farmer of Tennessee, and 
 a granddaughter of William C. Smartt, a patriot 
 in the war of 1812, who emigrated from Vir- 
 ginia to Tennessee. Mr. and Mrs. Cummings are 
 the parents of four children, namely : Bonnie 
 Jean, George, Annabel and G. P., Jr. Mr. Cum- 
 mings has taken an active interest in educational 
 aiTairs in Fresno, and for five years has served 
 as a member of the city board of education. Dur- 
 ing the building of the high school, the Park 
 Avenue, and the remodeling of the Emerson 
 school, on K street, he served as secretary of the 
 board, and was an important factor in the prog- 
 ress of the school system. He is a member of 
 the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; 
 the Independent Order of Foresters, of which he 
 is past chief ranger; Knights of Pythias, of 
 which he is past chancellor commander; Wood- 
 men of the World; and St. Andrew's Society. 
 Politically he is a stanch Democrat, having served 
 as a member of the county central committee. 
 
 ELMER E. GRAHAM. A native of Iowa, 
 Mr. Graham was born in Birmingham, May 22, 
 1862, a son of Joseph and Margaret (Walters) 
 Graham. The father was born near Zanesville, 
 Ohio, a son of Joseph,, a native of Virginia, who 
 was an early settler in Van Buren county, Iowa, 
 where he was a successful farmer and stock raiser. 
 Joseph, the father of Elmer E. Graham, was 
 engaged in general merchandise business in Bir- 
 mingham until 1894, when he retired from active 
 pursuits and is now living on a farm adjoining 
 the city where he .was for so many years a sue- 
 cessful figure in the mercantile world. His wife 
 was born in West Virginia, and by her marriage 
 became the mother of four children, two of 
 whom are living. She died in Iowa in 1881. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1365 
 
 Elmer E. Graham received a fair education in 
 the public and high schools. Between the ages of 
 eighteen and twenty 3'ears he served an appren- 
 ticeship at the cabinet maker's trade, and in 1882, 
 went to Minneapolis, Minn., where he secured em- 
 ployment in the railroad depot as assistant depot 
 master. Seven years later he engaged in the res- 
 taurant business in the same depot, which busi- 
 ness he followed for some ten years. In addition 
 to his stand in the Union depot, he had several 
 other restaurants, and at one time was conducting 
 a large and profitable business. While Hving 
 there he spent several winters in California, and 
 in 1894 purchased twenty-cne acres of orange 
 land near Portersville, in the Sunnyside district. 
 Ten acres of this he set out in oranges, while 
 the balance was devoted to peaches and prunes. 
 Up to 1902 he continued his residence in Minne- 
 apolis, coming to California each year to look 
 after his property interests. In that year he dis- 
 posed of part of his business interests in the east 
 p.nd located here permanently. In 1904 he set 
 out six acres to grapes and otherwise improved 
 his possessions, and since then he has set out 
 more orange trees, and now has one of the finest 
 ranches in this section of the coimty. He was 
 one of the organizers of the Sunnyside Water 
 Company and has served as president and director 
 from the first. The company has three wells, all 
 connected, which furnish water for irrigating 
 nearly two hundred acres. The wells being about 
 one hundred and sixty feet deep are never fail- 
 ing. He is also interested in the Zante packing 
 house, being a director of the association. In 
 addition to these interests he is engaged in the 
 restaurant business in Minneapolis, owning the 
 Powers' restaurant, which is located in the Pow- 
 ers' mercantile company's large department store. 
 
 While living in Minneapolis Mr. Graham mar- 
 ried Delia G. Alguire, who was born in Montreal, 
 Canada. In politics he is a Republican, and 
 fraternally is a member of the Royal League. 
 His success in life is the result of his own well- 
 directed efforts. While he has lived in Tulare 
 county but a few years, he has attained a posi- 
 tion of prominence both in the business and social 
 world. He and his wife are highly esteemed, 
 and have already a large circle of friends. 
 
 JULIUS A. MILTON. Located upon his 
 ranch of forty acres three miles west of Reedley, 
 Fresno county, Julius A. Milton is engaged in 
 horticultural pursuits and meeting with success 
 in his work. He was born in Rutherford county, 
 N. C, April 18, 1848, a son of Lindsay F. Milton, 
 a farmer of the same state, and grandson of Cor- 
 nelius Milton. The latter was a planter and 
 farmer of Virginia, who, during the Revolution- 
 ary war, removed to North Carolina and engaged 
 
 in agricultural pursuits until his death. Lindsay 
 F. Milton also died in that location, as did his 
 wife, formerly Sallie Fortune, a native of North 
 Carolina. They were the parents of seven daugh- 
 ters and one son, all but one now living. Julius 
 A. Milton was the youngest of this large family 
 of children. He received his education in the 
 common schools until 1864, when at the age of 
 sixteen years he enlisted in the Confederate army 
 as a courier on the staff of General Barrington, 
 Hampton's Corps of cavalry. He served 
 eighteen months, and upon the close of the war 
 remained in his native state until June, 1869, 
 when he started via the Isthmus of Panama for 
 California. He arrived in San Francisco July 3, 
 when he located at Farmington, in the San 
 Joaquin valley, and rented land upon which he 
 engaged in ranching. In 1891 he came to the 
 vicinity of Reedley, Fresno county, and pur- 
 chased his present property, eighteen acres of 
 which he planted to vines, four acres to trees, 
 while the balance is devoted to alfalfa. He car- 
 ries stock in the Growers' Winery at Parlier, and 
 is interested in all movements pertaining to the 
 general welfare of the community in which he 
 makes his home. 
 
 In Stockton, San Joaquin county, Cal., Mr. 
 Milton was united in marriage with Josephine 
 Martin, a native of that county, where she also 
 died. She left one son, Frank T., who is located 
 on property adjoining his father on the east. In 
 Calaveras county, Cal., Mr. Milton married 
 Blanche Schrack, and they are the parents of two 
 children, Clay and Susie. Fraternally Mr. Mil- 
 ton is identified with Farmington Lodge No. 
 297, I. O. O. F., and politically he is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- • 
 form of the Democratic party. 
 
 HAROLD V. ARMITAGE, agent for the 
 Wells Fargo Express Company, of Fresno, Cal., 
 was born in Bowling Green, Ky., October 4, 1867, 
 the eldest of two children born to his parents, 
 Valerius and Sarah (Hess) Armitage. His father 
 was left an orphan at an early age, growing to 
 manhood in Bowling Green, whence he crossed 
 the plains in 1849, via Council Bluffs to Port- 
 land, then south to California. He engaged in 
 mining for two years, then returned east by way 
 of the Isthmus of Panama. Locating again in 
 Bowling Green he engaged in the hotel business 
 until his death. He was a soldier in the Mexican 
 v/ar, serving in the First Indiana Regiment of 
 Volunteers. Fraternally he was identified with 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mrs. 
 Armitage is a native of Bowling Green, Ky., and 
 the daughter of Alexander Hess, who was en- 
 gaged in the hotel business at that place until his 
 
1366 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 death. She is residing in the old home in Ken- 
 tucl<y. 
 
 Reared to young manhood in Bowling Green, 
 Harold V. Armitage received his education in the 
 public schools and Ogden College, graduating 
 from the latter institution in 1885. The follow- 
 ing year he came to California, securing employ- 
 ment with the Wells Fargo Express Company in 
 San Francisco, in the purchasing and supply de- 
 partment. He remained in the main offices, fojr 
 several years, the last year being in the superin- 
 tendent's department, when he was transferred to 
 Fresno as clerk, coming to this city in 1889, when 
 there were only about five thousand inhabitants. 
 He continued as chief clerk until 1892, when he 
 was made cashier, and in 1896 was made agent, 
 which position he has since held. From a small 
 office requiring the services of three men the 
 business has grown to such proportions that 
 twelve men are needed, and thus the entire at- 
 teijtion of Mr. Armitage is required in the dis- 
 charge of his duties. The office is located at No. 
 1038 J street. In 1902 he built a comfortable 
 home at No. 455 Neilsen avenue. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Armitage was united in mar- 
 riage with Ella Daly, a native of Millerton, Fres- 
 no county, Cal., and the daughter of Judge R. 
 H. Daly, who was county judge at the time the 
 county seat was rem.oved from Millerton to Fres- 
 no. They have one daughter, Helen Elizabeth. 
 Mrs. Armitage is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South. Politically Mr. Armit- 
 age is a stanch adherent of the principles advo- 
 cated in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 ■He is a member of the Chamber of Commerce 
 and is active in his efforts to advance the general 
 welfare of the city and county. 
 
 ALBERT B. CLARK. Among the prominent 
 men of Fresno mention belongs to A. B. Clark, 
 who has been active for a number of years in 
 the development of the natural resources of this 
 county and the upbuilding of its best interests. 
 He was born in Fort Madison, Iowa, October 10, 
 1858, the descendant of an old Maryland family 
 prominent in the history of the country, his 
 grandfather having taken part in the war of 
 1812. His father, John H. Clark, a native of 
 Maryland, went to Indiana when a boy and 
 learnec the trade of a tanner. When of age he 
 began farming at Rising Sun, and later was a 
 pioneer of Fort Madison, Iowa, where he en- 
 gaged in tlie manufacture of shoes with the firm 
 of Clark & Elschrode. This business he contin- 
 ued for several years, when he removed to the 
 ^vicinity of West Point, Iowa, and again engaged 
 in farming. In the fall of 1870 he removed to 
 Eldorado, Butler county, Kans., and homesteaded 
 property, as well as purchasing land, and tliere 
 
 followed farming and stock-raising until 1882, 
 when he came to California and located in Mo- 
 desto, Stanislaus county. He made that city his 
 home after his retirement fiom active cares, his 
 death occurring in that locality in 1890, at the 
 age of seventy-seven years. He was a member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Qiurch, with which 
 he had been identified throughout his entire life. 
 Following the example of his patriotic ancestors, 
 he enlisted for service in an Iowa regiment dur- 
 ing the Civil war, but was rejected on account of 
 an injury to his shoulder. His wife, formerly 
 Edith E. Emerson, was a native of Ohio, and the 
 daughter of Asa Emerson, who died early in life. 
 She still survives and makes her home in Oak- 
 dale, Cal. Six children were born of this union, 
 four of whom are living. By a former marriage 
 Mr. Clark had four children, one now surviving, 
 two sons, Frederick and Emer, having come to 
 California as farmers, where both died in 1890. 
 
 A. B. Clark was the eldest child born to his 
 paj'ents. He was reared in Lee county, Iowa, on 
 the paternal farm, and attended the public schools. 
 In 1870 he went to Kansas and attended Ward's 
 College, at Wichita. Deciding to locate on the 
 Pacific coast, he came to California in 1875, and 
 settled near Stockton, where he engaged in farm- 
 ing in various parts of San Joaquin county for 
 several years. He met with fair returns from his 
 work and finally purchased five hundred acres near 
 ?^/[odesto, Stanislaus county, renting adjoining 
 land, which gave to him a farming area of three 
 thousand acres. He still owns the five hundred 
 acre ranch located six miles west of Geres, now 
 in the Turlock Irrigation district, a twenty-foot 
 ditch running through the entire place. Since 
 1887 he has rented the land to the same tenant. 
 In 1887 he moved to Kings river, three miles 
 south of the present site of Reedley, where he 
 rented a farm of five thousand acres and began 
 the raising of grain. He continued in that loca- 
 tion until 1893, and in the meantime set out three 
 hundred and twenty acres of vines on contract, 
 at the end of three and a half years becoming the 
 owner of one hundred and sixty acres. Follow- 
 ing this he gave his attention to his vineyard for 
 two and a half years, after which he once more 
 took up general farming, renting two thousand 
 acres northeast of Reedley. Four years later, in 
 September, 1899, he removed to Fresno, and in 
 T901 built the residence which he has since made 
 bis home. He sold his large vineyard in 1903, 
 but still owns several smaller ones, as well as 
 farming lands near Reedley, and two hundred 
 acres two miles south of Parlier, one hundred and 
 sixty acres of which is in orchard and vineyard. 
 During his long period in the work Mr. Clark 
 has improved about six hundred and forty acres 
 of vineyards, and has been an important factor 
 in the development' of that industry.- 
 
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1367 
 
 In Modesto, Stanislaus co'jnty, Cal., Mr. Qarlc 
 was united in marriage with Susie 'Crispin, a na- 
 tive of Oskaloosa, Iowa, and the daughter of 
 Frank Crispin, a farmer, who settled in Modesto 
 in 1883. He was associated with the Society of 
 Friends. Two children have blessed the union 
 of Mr. and Mrs. Clark, Georgia and Eva. Mr. 
 Clark is prominent fraternally, having been made 
 a Mason in Reedley and now belongs to Los Pal- 
 mas Lodge, of Fresno, and Trigo Chapter, R. A. 
 M. ; Fresno Commandery No. 29, K. T., of which 
 he was eminent commander in 1903 and '04; 
 Islam Temple, ,N. M. S., of San Francisco ; Fres- 
 no Lodge of Perfection, and Rose Croix Chapter. 
 Both himself and wife are members of the Order 
 of the Eastern Star, of which Mrs. Clark is past 
 matron. Politically Mr. Clark is an advocate of 
 the principles of the Republican party. 
 
 WOOLSEY WEYANT. During Mr. Wey- 
 ant's residence in Fresno county, from 1894 un- 
 til his death, October 10, 1902, was demonstrat- 
 ed his character and ability. He was born Octo- 
 ber 25, 1837, near Ft. Montgomery, N. Y., and 
 was reared and educated on lona Island, in the 
 Hudson. He learned the vineyard business 
 there, and for twelve years was engaged in prop- 
 agating and growing vines for a Dr. Grant. In 
 1869 he removed to Nebraska and settled four- 
 teen miles west of Lincoln, where he homestead- 
 ed and improved a farm, eventually adding three 
 hundred and twenty acres adjoining, upon which 
 he raised grain and stock. He then removed 
 to Lincoln and embarked in the grocery business 
 for a few years, then began buying and im- 
 proving business and residence property and sell- 
 ing at advanced figures. 
 
 In 1894 Mr. Weyant sold out his holdings and 
 came to California and at once settled m the 
 Eggers Colony, where he purchased forty acres, 
 which he set to vines and built and improved a 
 comfortable home place. He added forty acres 
 which he also improved, and continued actively 
 interested as a vineyardist until his death. The 
 lady who became the wife of Mr. Weyant was 
 formerly Saloma Louisa Rhodes, a native of 
 Rockland county, N. Y., and a daughter of Will- 
 iam and Permelia (June) Rhodes, the former a 
 native of England, and an only son of William 
 Rhodes, and a native of Staffordshire. Mr. 
 Rhodes settled in New York and found employ- 
 ment in a wholesale estabhshment, but subse- 
 qaently he removed to Haverstraw and engaged 
 in manufacturing silk covered wire, later em-' 
 barking in a farming enterprise, and then his 
 death occurred. His wife was a native of Rock- 
 land county, N. Y., a daughter of Ethiel and 
 granddaughter of Ethiel June, who was a Revolu- 
 tionary soldier. She died in 1884 in New York 
 
 64 
 
 state, on the farm where she was born. Mrs. 
 Weyant was reared and educated in her native 
 state and near Ft. Montgomery met and, Febru- 
 ary 24, 1855, was united in marriage with Wool- 
 sey Weyant. They became the parents of ten 
 children, nine of whom reached maturity : Wool- 
 sey, engaged in the oil business in Texas ; Oscar, 
 in the employ of the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 Company in San Francisco ; Luther, a vineyard- 
 ist in the Eggers Colony; Charles, likewise en- 
 gaged in the Jefferson Colony ; Sidney, employed 
 by the Southern Pacific Railroad at Beaumont, 
 Cal. ; Eva, wife of Frank Naden, of Fresno coun- 
 ty; EUa^ who married T. J. Alexander and re- 
 sides in Temperance Colony ; John, a vineyardist 
 in Eggers Colony, and Aretes, in the same place. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Weyant gave their children 
 such school advantages as the times afforded. 
 They were members of the Methodist Church 
 and in politics always stanch Republicans. Since 
 the death of her husband Mrs. Weyant has con- 
 tinued to reside on the home place and carry on 
 the vineyard. She has purchased four lots, and 
 erected a cottage in Fresno on Clark street. Mr. 
 Weyant had purchased one hundred acres of land 
 in Texas at what is known as Pierce Junction, 
 six miles from Houston, and since his death oil 
 has been discovered on this property, making it 
 very valuable. Though a resident of Fresno 
 county but a few years, Mr. Weyant became 
 identified with the business interests of the coun- 
 ty, and by his straightforward manners, strict 
 integrity and public spirit soon made a host of 
 friends. Mrs. Weyant has ever extended a help- 
 ing hand to those less fortunate than herself and 
 now in the afternoon of a well-spent life can en- 
 joy the comforts that the passing years have 
 brought to her. 
 
 JOHN H. COCHRAN is well known through- 
 out Fresno county, where he has been engaged 
 for fourteen seasons in operating a threshing 
 outfit. Disposing of these interests in the fall of 
 1903 he settled on the property upon which he 
 now makes his home. He was born in Plymouth, 
 N. H., March 22, 1844, a son of David Cochran, 
 a native of Ireland, who came to the United 
 States in an early day and located first in Massa- 
 chusetts and later in New Hampshire. In 185 1 
 he went to Derby Center, Vt., where he followed 
 farming until his death. His wife, formerly Mary 
 Burk, was born in Nova Scotia and died in New 
 Hampshire. They were the parents of eight chil- 
 dren, five sons and three daughters, of whom 
 John H. was the second child. 
 
 John H. Cochran received his education in the 
 common schools of Plymouth, N. H., after which 
 he engaged in farming on the home place with 
 his father. In 1866 he secured employment with 
 
1368 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad Com- 
 pany, and later became engineer. He remamed 
 in that connection for five or six years, then was 
 employed by the Mount Washington Radway for 
 the ensuing five years. Following this he was 
 engaged as stationary engineer for two years, 
 working principally in sawmills. In 1882 he 
 came to California and located at Stockton, San 
 Joaquin county, where for two seasons he ran 
 an engine in threshing. He then came to Fresno 
 county and ran an engine for William J. Berry 
 for five seasons. In 1889 he took up the business 
 for himself, equipping himself with a threshing 
 outfit and in partnership with Samuel Kline, 
 which partnership lasted two years, he followed 
 the business throughout the county for fourteen 
 seasons. He also ran stationary engines and con- 
 ducted combined harvesters. In the fall of 1903 
 he sold his outfit and purchased one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land three miles north of Huron, 
 on the west side of the San Joaquin valley, which 
 he still owns. On the property where he lives 
 twenty acres is in vineyard, while he rents one 
 hundred acres in wheat and one hundred acres in 
 barley. 
 
 In'Stanstead Plain, Canada, Mr. Cochran was 
 united in marriage with Elizabeth Rock, a native 
 of Vermont, who died in California in 1899. 
 They had two children, Ada, the wife of William 
 Levis, in this vicinity, and Joseph E., of Boston, 
 Mass. Mr. Cochran is a member of the Roman 
 Catholic Church, and politically is a Democrat. 
 
 in the Southern Pacific Railroad shops m Newark 
 for the period of four years. In 1884 he located 
 in Hanford, Kings county, where he followed gen.- 
 eral blacksmithing for one year, then removed to 
 Selma, where he made his home for eleven years, 
 following his trade. In 1896 he came to Reedley, 
 and has here built up a lucrative busmess as a 
 blacksmith. . , . 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Enos was united m marriage 
 with Maggie Reynolds, a native of New York, 
 and they are the parents of five children, all of 
 whom are at home, namely : Mary, Leo, Lewis, 
 Ida and Paul. Mr. Enos is a member of the 
 Roman Catholic Church, and politically is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Republican party. 
 
 MANUEL ENOS. A general blacksmithing 
 and horseshoeing business is conducted by Man- 
 uel Enos, in Reedley, Fresno county, Cal., where 
 he has made his home since 1896. He is a na- 
 tive son of the state, having been born in Trin- 
 ity county, August I, 1865, the eldest in a fam- 
 ily of nine children, two daughters and seven 
 sons. His father, Manuel Enos, Sr., was born 
 in Portugal and immigrated to California in 
 1849 in search of gold. He engaged in min- 
 ing in Trinity county, Cal., until 1876, when he 
 went to San Leandro, Alameda county, and se- 
 cured employment in a plow manufactory of that 
 place. He continued in that location for a time, 
 after which he engaged in ranching at Pescadero. 
 Returning to Newark he was employed by the 
 Southern Pacific Railroad Company until he re- 
 signed and went to Selma, Fresno county, where 
 he now owns a ranch. He is seventy years of 
 age and makes his home with his sons and daugh- 
 ters. His wife, formerly Mary Carmel, also a 
 native of Portugal, is deceased. Manuel Enos, 
 Jr., received his education in the schools of Cal- 
 ifornia, after which, at the age of sixteen years, 
 he was apprenticed to learn the blacksmith's 
 trade at Mission San Jose. In 1880 he worked 
 
 JOHN NELSON POOL. As a successful 
 farmer John Nelson Pool has done much toward 
 the agricultural development of Fresno county. 
 He is located on a ranch a mile and a half east 
 of Fowler, and engaged at present in horticult- 
 ural pursuits. Born in Bond county, 111., Au- 
 gust 12, 1850, he is a son of Alexander Pool. 
 The latter was a native of Hardin county, Tenn., 
 where his birth occurred December 15, 1824, his 
 father, William Pool, of North Carolina, having 
 brought his family to Illinois in 1829 and located 
 in Bond county, where he engaged in farming 
 until his death. Alexander Pool came to Cali- 
 fornia in November, 1874, and located near Isle- 
 ton, Sacramento county, where he farmed until 
 his death in 1879. His wife, formerly Martha 
 Ann Myatt, was a native of Hardin county, 
 Tenn., whose parents removed to Illinois and 
 spent the balance of their lives. Mr. Pool and 
 and his wife became the parents of twelve chil- 
 dren, three sons and nine daughters, , of whom 
 two sons and three daughters are deceased. 
 
 The fourth child in order of birth in the fam- 
 ily of his parents, John Nelson Pool received 
 his education in the common schools of Illi- 
 nois, after which he engaged with his father in 
 farming. He came to California with the latter 
 in 1874 and located near Isleton, on the Sacra- 
 mento river, where he followed farming for a 
 time, later purchasing land in that vicinity. Six 
 months later he sold his property but continued 
 to make his home there until 1881, in which 
 year he came to Fresno county. He bought rail- 
 road land at Lone Star, where he engaged in 
 general- agricultural pursuits for nine years, re- 
 moving in 1890 to Del Rey and in 1902 to his 
 present property, which consists of twenty acres 
 a mile and a half .east of Fowler. Ten acres of 
 this property is devoted to vines, six acres to 
 trees and the balance is in pasture. In Bond 
 county, 111., in 1870, he was united in marriage 
 with Mary Ann Levick, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1369 
 
 and they are the parents of the following chil- 
 dren : Francis Marion, of Lone Star, Cal. ; 
 Woodson Alexander, a farmer of this vicinity; 
 Salina Letitia Ann, at home; Charles Henry, of 
 Lone Star ; Lester Percy, at home. By a former 
 marriage Mrs. Pool had one son, William Louis 
 Levick, whose home is with his mother and Mr. 
 Pool. They also have an adopted daughter, Lil- 
 lie May, who is at home also. Fraternally Mr. 
 Pool is identified with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows, of Fowler, in which lodge he has 
 passed all the chairs. Politically he reserves the 
 right to cast his ballot for the man whom he 
 considers best qualified for public office. 
 
 REV. MARTIN MILLER. A pioneer minis- 
 ter of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Rev. 
 Martin Miller is held in the highest esteem 
 throughout the San Joaquin valley,' where he has 
 been instrumental in organizing' a number of 
 churches of this denomination. He was born in 
 Carroll county, Ohio, December ii, 1836, a son 
 of Joseph Miller, the latter having been born in 
 the vicinity of Harrisburg, Cumberland county. 
 Pa. The elder man was a farmer v/ho emigrated 
 to Carroll county, where he married and engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits. He made that locaHty 
 his home from 1828 to 1862, when he removed 
 to Montgomery county, 111., where his death oc- 
 curred in 1873, at the age of sixty-two years. His 
 wife,- formerly Isabelle McClintock, of Ohio, 
 now resides in Illinois, at the age of ninety years, 
 still active and well preserved. They were the 
 parents of six sons and one daughter, of whom 
 Martin Miller was the eldest. 
 
 Martin Miller received a preliminary education 
 in the common schools of Ohio and also' attended 
 an academy in that state. After his removal to 
 Illinois he took a theological course in the Illi- 
 nois State University at Springfield, graduating 
 therefrom in 1865. His first charge was in 
 Montgomery county, 111., and following this he 
 was located in Warsaw, Camp Point and No- 
 komis. He came to California in 1873 and was 
 in charge at Georgetown, Eldorado county, for 
 three years; then in Richland and Marysville, 
 and in 1880 located in the vicinity of Reedley, 
 Fresno county. In January, 1882, he organized 
 the first Methodist Episcopal church in Fresno, 
 Cal. The same year he organized the first Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church at Selma, of which he 
 remained in charge for three years. In 1894 he 
 was located at Hanford, Kings county, and the 
 following year at Sanger, Fresno county. Dur- 
 ing 1887 and 1888 he preached at Traver, Tulare 
 county. He now has charge of the church at 
 Parlier, which he organized in January, 1904. 
 Since his location here he has been absent only 
 two years, which time he spent in Los Angeles 
 
 educating his children, and while there he 
 preached at Ivanhoe. He also became interested 
 in real estate in that citv, owning some property 
 in partnership with a brother-in-law. In 1878 
 Mr. Miller bought forty acres of land near Par- 
 lier, where he located in 1880, making that his 
 home until recently, when he sold out and has 
 now moved to his new home on the banks of the 
 Kings river, just opposite Reedlev. This con- 
 sists of forty-four acres, ten of which are planted 
 to oranges, and twelve acres to Sm\Tna figs. 
 
 In Illinois, August 19, 1866, Mr. Miller was 
 united in marriage with Miss Ardalissa M. 
 Dryer, a native of that state, and a daughter of 
 Albert and Louisa (Weber) Dryer, natives re- 
 spectively of Vermont and Pennsylvania, but of 
 Holland descent. They were among the early 
 settlers of Montgomery county, 111., and were 
 held in high esteem there. They were prominent 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and 
 he was an officer and leader. He died at the age 
 of ninety years and she at the age of eighty-four 
 years. They were the parents of six children, 
 who are all living, three of them being in Cali- 
 fornia. Rev. and Mrs. Miller became the parents 
 of three sons, and one daughter, of whom George 
 A., a graduate of the Stanford University, is 
 pastor of the English-speaking Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church in Manila, Philippine Islands ; 
 Charles D. is located in Los Angeles, Cal. ; Clara 
 I. is at home ; and John M. is attending Stanford 
 University. The daughter is a well-known 
 teacher of music. In his political convictions Mr. 
 Miller is independent, reserving the right to cast 
 his ballot for the man whom he considers best 
 qualified for public office. 
 
 AXEL THEODOR LINDGREN. As cashier 
 and secretary of the Kingsburg State Bank, of 
 Fresno county. Axel Tlieodor Lindgren is one of 
 the prominent business men of Kingsburg. He 
 was born in McPherson county, Kans., Feljruary 
 10, 1872, a son of S. P. Lindgren. The latter 
 was a native of Sweden who came to the United 
 States in 1868 and located in Chicago, 111., thence 
 going to Lindsborg, Kans., becoming secretary 
 of that colony when organized and for many 
 years conducting a hotel and drug store in the 
 place. He came tO' California in 1888 and located 
 in Kingsburg Colony, where he engaged in 
 farming until his death in February, 1902, at the 
 age of sixty-seven years. His wife, formerly 
 Martha Olson, also a native of Sweden, sur- 
 vives him and makes her home with her son, Axel 
 Theodor. They were the parents of three sons 
 and two daughters, of whom A. T. Lindgren was 
 the youngest. He received his preliminary edu- 
 cation in the common schools, after which he 
 took one year at the Lindsborg College. He lo- 
 
1370 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 
 
 cated in California when sixteen years old arid 
 here grew to manhood. In 1899 he was made 
 manager of the Linnea Packing Company at 
 Parher and Kingsburg, the following year tak- 
 ing a leave of absence and going to Nome, Alas- 
 ka While there he made his expenses, but 
 after a few months returned to California and 
 resumed the duties of his position. In 1902 he 
 entered the Stockton Business College and took 
 a commercial course, and in 1904 was active 
 in the organization of the Kingsburg State Bank, 
 of which he became secretary and cashier. He 
 was also one of the organizers of the Rochdale 
 store, and also of the Mutual Protective Fire 
 Insurance Association here. He is still asso- 
 ciated with the Linnea Packing Company as sec- 
 retary, and in addition to these interests owns 
 a sixty-acre ranch, where he raises orchard fruits, 
 grapes, stock, etc., having received at one time 
 the first prize at the state fair for his Poland 
 China hogs, and in 1904 secured the seventh 
 prize on Buff Leghorn chickens at the St. Louis 
 Exposition. He also, owns a packing house and 
 warehouse here, which he leases. He is a mem- 
 ber of the Swedish Mission Church, of this place, 
 and politically is an active Prohibitionist, during 
 the last campaign serving as president and sec- 
 retary of the committee. 
 
 eighty acres to grain, owning in all two hundred 
 and twenty-five acres, of which twenty-five acres 
 is overflow land along the river. He also con- 
 ducts a dairy of seventeen cows. On his place 
 he has a stock-grower's winery and also a grow- 
 er's packing house. He has recently rebuilt his- 
 residence and has made many other improve- 
 ments which have increased the value of his 
 property. 
 
 In Cincinnati, Ohio, Mr. Sarringhausen was 
 united in marriage with Sophia Clostermier, a 
 native of Indiana, and they are the parents of the 
 following children, all at home: Serena A. M., 
 Hazel Dorothy, Dorma F. D. and Lienor Sophia. 
 Politically he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 FRED SARRINGHAUSEN. Four and a 
 half miles southwest of Reedley, Fresno county, 
 Cal, is located the ranch of one hundred and 
 sixty acres belonging to Fred Sarringhausen, 
 one of the enterprising agriculturists of this sec- 
 tion. He was born in Ripley county, Ind., No- 
 vember 17, 1858, a son of Nicholas Sarring- 
 hausen, a native of Germany, who came to the 
 United States in 1850 and located as a farmer in 
 Ripley county, Ind., where his death occurred. 
 His wife, Maggie Sarringhausen, also a native 
 of Germany, died in Indiana in 1865. They were 
 the parents of eight children, five sons and three 
 daughters, of whom Fred Sarringhausen was the 
 third in order of birth. He received a very lim- 
 ited educated in the common schools of his native 
 state. Losing his mother when only seven years 
 old and his father when eleven, he made his home 
 with an aunt for a time, when he became de- 
 pendent upon his own resources and found em- 
 ployment on a farm in Indiana. In 1882 he came 
 to California and first located in Fresno, where 
 he worked on a ranch until 1884, subsequently 
 purchasing eighty acres near Reedley, but con- 
 tinuing to make his home in Fresno, however, un- 
 til 1887, when he purchased his present property, 
 of which fifty acres is devoted to alfalfa, five 
 acres to orchard, and fifty-five acres to vines of 
 raisin grapes, the balance being given over to the 
 raising of grain. He also devotes his ranch of 
 
 GEORGE S. COLQUHOUN. Nearly the 
 entire life of G. S. Colquhoun has been passed in 
 Fresno, where he has worked himself up from a 
 lowly position to one of importance. This suc- 
 cess is the result of his own eflforts, as he has 
 never had the benefit of influence, his position be- 
 ing the just reward for many years of honest la- 
 bor. Born in Oakland, September 26, 1872, he 
 is a son of M. W. and Annie E. (Bouton) Colqu- 
 houn, the former a native of Cornwall, Ontario. 
 The grandfather emigrated to Canada from Scot- 
 land at a very early day, and besides carrying on 
 a farm also acted as Indian agent for the Cana- 
 dian government. M. W. Colquhoun was a sta- 
 tionary engineer in his native country prior to 
 locating in California in 1866. On first coming 
 to the west he went to the mines near Virginia 
 City, Nev., where he filled a position as station- 
 ary engineer until 1879. In that year he located 
 in Eldorado county, where he followed the same 
 vocation until 1881, when he removed to Fresno. 
 Here he entered the employ of the Fresno Water 
 Company as an engineer, continuing in their em- 
 ploy until he M^as accidentally killed by an explo- 
 sion in the engine room. At the time of his 
 death he was fifty-two years of age. Fraternally 
 he was a member of the Masons, and personally 
 he was a man well liked, as was shown by his 
 large circle of friends in Fresno. His wile was 
 born in Hillsboro, 111., a daughter of William and 
 Olive Bouton, who came to California in i860. 
 Mr. Bouton lived for a time in the Sacramento 
 valley, but after the terrible flood of 1862 he re- 
 moved to Virginia City, and later to Silver City, 
 Nev. Here he was subsequently made postmas- 
 ter and also acted as justice of the peace. He is 
 now living retired in Santa Barbara, while his 
 daughter makes her home with her son, our sub- 
 ject. 
 
 George S. Colquhoun was nine years of age 
 when his father came to Fresno. Here he at- 
 tended the public schools until he was fourteen. 
 At that early age he started to learn the trade of 
 

 :^^$^- 
 
ttiSTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 13?1 
 
 a plumber under the direction of Weaver & Dun- 
 bar, and the following nine years were devoted 
 to this vocation. Subsequently, for four years, 
 he was in the employ of the Fresno Gas and 
 Electric Light Company as repair-man. The 
 company recognizing his efficiency, in i8gg he 
 was promoted to the office of superintendent of 
 the entire works. In 1902 the California Gas and 
 Electric corporation purchased the plant, and Mr. 
 Colquhoun was made general superintendent. 
 Since that time improvements have been made 
 and the company now has one of the best 
 equipped establishments of the kind in the state. 
 All this has been done under the direct supervi- 
 sion of the superintendent, who has labored in- 
 dustriously to make the business a success. 
 
 In Fresno the marriage of Mr. Colquhoun and 
 Mrs. Dora Edith (Lynn) Fairweather was cele- 
 brated in 1904. She is the daughter of Theodore 
 A. Lynn, an early settler of this state, who crossed 
 the plains in the customary way. He is now liv- 
 ing retired in the city of Fresno. Mr. Colqu- 
 houn is a member of the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows and the Woodmen of the World. 
 He also holds membership in the Fresno Cham- 
 ber of Commerce and takes an active interest in 
 the upbuilding of the city and county. 
 
 GEORGE W. WYLLIE. Immediately ad- 
 joining Dinuba on the southwest lies Karnak, 
 the home of Mr. Wyllie and declared by com- 
 petent judges to be as -fine a vineyard .as Cali- 
 fornia may boast. With the exception of five 
 acres devoted to buildings, lawns and gardens, 
 the entire tract of one hundred and sixty acres 
 is under cultivation to grapes, fifty-five acres 
 being in Muscats, twenty-five in the sgedless 
 variety, twenty-five acres in Malaga table grapes 
 and fifty in Emperor table grapes. To facilitate 
 the work he erected a large and well-equipped 
 packing house, where shipments are prepared for 
 the eastern markets. Although the place has been 
 in its present owner's possession for a few years 
 only, such has been the energv and judgment 
 with which he has superintended the vines that 
 in the third year he shipped fifteen carloads and 
 in the fourth year shipped more than forty cars, 
 when under ordinary circumstances few or no 
 shipments would have been possible. One of 
 the improvements on the place, and which shows 
 him to be an excellent carpenter and mason, is a 
 stone bridge across the canal flanked with sub- 
 stantial stone piers and finished with a solid 
 wall each way. 
 
 The Wyllie family came from Scotland, John 
 Wyllie, who was a native of Edinburgh, became 
 a pioneer farmer of Lee county, Iowa, where 
 he improved a tract of three hundred and twenty 
 acres until it was considered the best farm in 
 
 the entire county. On that place he remained 
 untd his death in 1872. After coming to Amer- 
 ica, he married Sarah Best, who was born in 
 Illinois, of an old Pennsylvania family, and now 
 makes her home in Los Banos, Merced county, 
 Cal. They were the parents of three sons and 
 three daughters, of whom two daughters are de- 
 ceased. Of the sons Frank makes his home in 
 Riverdale, Cal., James M. lives near Gilrov, and 
 George W. resides near Dinuba. The last- 
 named, who was second among the children, was 
 born near Keokuk, Lee county, Iowa, February 
 12, 1856, and as a boy lived with his parents in 
 a log cabin, meanwhile attending common 
 schools and the Denmark Academy. When 
 twenty-one years of age he came to California 
 and for three years taught school in Sutter 
 county, then was similarly employed in Colfax, 
 Cal., and later went to Santa Rosa, where he 
 bought a fruit farm. The climate did not prove 
 satisfactory, but the soil was excellent. At the 
 time of the New Orleans exposition he sent there 
 a pumpkin, weighing two hundred and twelve 
 pounds, and so large that he could not reach 
 around it so as to lift it from the ground. The 
 pumpkin contained a statement that it was raised 
 on his farm. A visitor at the exposition no- 
 ticed and admired the pumpkin and on coming 
 to California later visited the farm and bouerht 
 it from Mr. Wyllie. In 1884, after selling, Mr. 
 Wyllie moved to Fresno county and bought one 
 hundred and sixty acres three and one-half 
 miles southeast of Fresno, which he improved, at 
 the same time for a year acting as vice-principal 
 of the Fresno school, and for one year being 
 principal of the Washington colony. The place 
 cost him $4,000 and two years later, after he 
 had set out a vineyard and sown a large acreage 
 of alfalfa, he sold it for $14,000. His next loca- 
 tion was near Fresno, where he bought forty 
 acres at $250 per acre. The land was wholly 
 destitute of improvements. Soon he had forty 
 acres in Muscat grapes, which he carefully culti- 
 vated until it brought him large crops year after 
 year and enabled him to sell raisins profitably 
 during all of the hard times. In 1899 he sold the 
 place for $14,000 cash, gold, which was the larg- 
 est price ever paid up to that time for a forty- 
 acre vineyard. Afterward for four years he 
 rented the place of the new owner, whom he paid 
 ten per cent on $14,000 per year as rental. Mean- 
 while, in 1900, he bought three hundred and 
 twenty acres on section 18, southwest of Dinuba, 
 and here he erected a house in 1903 and brought 
 his family. Since coming to this place he has 
 sold a quarter section in twenty-acre colony lots, 
 and the balance of the acreage, with the excep- 
 tion of five acres, is under grape culture. Ever 
 since the organization of the Raisin Growers' 
 Association, in which he was warmly interested. 
 
1372 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he has been active in its work, as indeed in all 
 movements allied with the industry to which he 
 devotes his attention. In religion he is of the 
 United Presbyterian faith and in politics favors 
 Prohibition principles. In Salinas, Cal, he mar- 
 ried Miss Emma E. Nichols, who was bom at 
 Dutch Flat, Placer county, Cal., her father, 
 George, having been a miner in early days and 
 later a merchant. The children of their union 
 are Roy (a student in the University of Cali- 
 fornia), Eva M., Minnie L., Mabel, Carrie Irene, 
 Kirby Ray and Corinne, who are with their 
 parents on the Dinuba homestead. 
 
 THOMAS E. COLLINS. Fresno has a citi- 
 zen in Thomas E. Collins who has at all times 
 been found true to every trust reposed in him. 
 Since locating in this city he has been identified 
 with -all the movements calculated to be of mate- 
 rial benefit to the city or county. Prominent po- 
 litically, he is personally acquainted with the 
 leading men of the state, and as a hotel man he 
 has established an enviable reputation. 
 
 A native of Ireland, Mr. Collins was born in 
 County Cork, Jane 20, 1862. Plis early life was 
 spent on a farm and attending the schools 
 of the neighborhood. Hearing much of the 
 opportunities offered young men in America, 
 Mr. Collins, in August, 1881, bade good- 
 by to home and friends and, departed from 
 his native country to take up the battle of 
 life in America. He has never regretted the de- 
 cision made and the present shows he has made 
 the best of his chances. On landing in New 
 York he at once proceeded to San Francisco, 
 where he soon after secured employment as a 
 street car conductor. Later he secured a position 
 on the cable line, continuing there until 1884, 
 when he went to Merced and entered the employ 
 of William Fahey, who at the time was proprie- 
 tor of the Tuolumne Hotel. Two months later 
 he became manager of the hotel, which he con- 
 ducted until 1886, when he became associated 
 with J. B. Baker, with whom he remained until 
 1894. In September of that year he came to 
 Fresno, and in partnership with his brother, Dan- 
 iel E., leased the Ogle House, with which he has 
 since been connected. 
 
 January i, 1897, Mr. Collins purchased the 
 interest of his brother and has since been sole 
 proprietor of the business. During these years 
 he has made many improvements in the building 
 and in the service. In 1897 an addition was 
 eredted, containing twelve rooms, and the entire 
 plan of the hotel was changed. Again in 1903 ex- 
 tensive improvements were made, the whole es- 
 tablishment being thoroughly overhauled. ' New 
 furniture was put in, better service was arranged 
 for, the whole going to make his hotel one of the 
 
 best equipped in this section of the state. The 
 house is conducted on the American plan, and 
 those who have enjoyed the hospitality of Mr. 
 Colhns will vouch for the excellence of the gen- 
 eral management. Located opposite the South- 
 ern Pacific depot and the Chamber of Commerce 
 building, it is convenient to the trading center, a 
 fact which is much appreciated by out-of-town 
 visitors. 
 
 In Merced Mr. Collins was united in marriage 
 with Mary Quilty, who is also a native of Ire- 
 land. To this union have been born four chil- 
 dren, as follows : Mary Juha, Annie Mercedes, 
 Margaret Josephine and Edward Thomas. Mrs. 
 Colhns takes pleasure in assisting her husband, 
 and much of the success that he has attained is 
 due to the good influences and popularity of his 
 most estimable wife. Mr. Collins is interested 
 in several outside ventures, including the South- 
 ern Pacific Oil Mining Company, of which he is 
 vice-president and one of the largest stockhold- 
 ers. In Kern county he owns a ten-acre tract 
 which is equipped with wells and a fine pumping 
 plant. 
 
 Politically Mr. Collins is a stanch Democrat, 
 and is one of the active workers in that party, at 
 present being a member of the state central com- 
 mittee and serving on the executive board. While 
 he has never cared for the honors of public of- 
 fice, he has, nevertheless, been one of the party's 
 hardest workers, and many successful cancUdates 
 owe their election to the executive ability of Mr. 
 Collins. In fraternal circles he is a member of 
 the Young Men's Institute, the Benevolent and 
 Protective Order of Elks, and the Foresters of 
 America. He is also a charter member of the 
 Fresno Chamber of Commerce and was formerly 
 on the executive committee. In this organization 
 he has taken a deep interest, and the list of mem- 
 bers contains no name that is more prominently 
 associated with the success of the Chamber than 
 that of Mr. Collins. Coming to this country a 
 total stranger, without money or influence, he 
 has worked his way up until today he is consid- 
 ered one of the influential men of Fresno. This 
 position was secured by perseverance and the 
 ability to take advantage of the opportunities as- 
 they were presented. 
 
 ASA I. POWELL. A successful rancher, 
 Asa I. Powell enjoys to an unusual degree the 
 confidence and esteem of his fellow townsmen, 
 holding a high place among the citizens of Reed- 
 ley, Fresno county, where he has made his home 
 for some time. He is a native of Cambridge 
 county, A^t., where he was born January 24, 1842, 
 a descendant of an old family of A'"ermont, his 
 father's birth occurring there August 27, 1814. 
 His grandfather, Erastus Powell, also a native 
 
HISTORICAL AND BtOGRAPHiCAL RECORfi. 
 
 1373 
 
 of Vermont, served as a patriot in the war of 
 1812. Salmon Powell removed to Chittenden 
 comity, in manhood, and engaged as a farmer 
 until his retirement from the active cares of life, 
 when he came to California, in 1902, and now 
 makes his home with his son at the age of ninety 
 years. His wife, formerly Sarah Ingalls, a na- 
 tive of Vermont, died in Underhill March 24, 
 1872. They were the parents of six sons and 
 one daughter, of whom Asa I. Powell is the sec- 
 ond in order of birth. The other sin, Erastus, 
 served in the Thirteenth Vermont Volunteers and 
 died at Camp Corosa, Virginia, May 25, 1863. 
 
 Asa I. Powell received his education in the 
 common schools of his native state, and in man- 
 hood engaged in farming at Jericho and Under- 
 hill, both towns of that state. In the spring of 
 1890 he went to Jersey county, 111., and that fall 
 came to California and located at Reedley, 
 Fresno county, in December purchasing twenty 
 acres in Curtis and Shumale Colony. He made 
 the first improvements upon the property, which 
 he planted to fruit and vines, with the passing 
 years transforming it into a valuable property. 
 In 1901 he removed to San Jose for the purpose 
 of educating a niece who made her home with 
 him, and after one year returned to Fresno 
 county. He then rented his ranch and located 
 permanently in Reedley. His niece, Emma M. 
 Powell, graduated at the State Normal and is 
 now a teacher in Fresno county. Mr. Powell has 
 been married twice, his first wife, whom he mar- 
 ried in 1864, being Thirza Story in maidenhood, 
 and a native of Vermont, where she died Octo- 
 ber 2, 1885. They had one child, Erastus Clark, 
 who died May 2, 1888. Mr. Powell was united in 
 marriage in September, 1890, with Lora T. Pal- 
 mer, of Illinois, and her death occurred here 
 January i, 1894. Mr. Powell is a member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he 
 is steward and trustee, and is very active in all 
 church work. Politically he is a stanch adherent 
 of the principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Republican party. 
 
 HENRY PHILIP HEDGES. The success 
 achieved by Henry Philip Hedges, an old resident 
 of Fresno and an honored and esteemed citizen, 
 has been entirely the result of his own unaided 
 eiiForts, and his ability, energy and determina- 
 tion to win a competence. A native of Warren 
 county, N. Y., he was born in Chestertown, Au- 
 gust 20, 1824. His father, Philip Hedges, was 
 born in Montauk Point, Long Island, in 1786, 
 the descendant of English ancestry. He became 
 an early settler of Warren county, N. Y., where 
 he engaged as a farmer until his death, which 
 occurred in Chestertown, December 27, 1865. He 
 was a patriot in the war of 1812 and a worthy 
 
 and esteemed citizen of the community where 
 he made his home for so many years. His wife, 
 formerly Mary Stickney, was a native of the 
 town of Northumberland, N. Y. She died in 
 1831, leaving a family of three children, two of 
 whom are now living. Moses S. Hedges, a sol- 
 dier in a New York regiment during the Civil 
 war, resides on the old home place in Chester- 
 town at the age of eighty-four years. 
 
 Reared on the paternal farm, Henry Philip 
 Hedges received his education in the public 
 school. He remained at home until attaining his 
 majority, helping his father with the harvest after 
 his twenty-first birthday, when he set out in the 
 world dependent upon his own resources. His 
 first winter he spent in the timber lands, engaged 
 in lumbering, setting out withoui a dollar with 
 which to provide the necessary outfit, like many 
 others securing credit at the local store un- 
 til the spring, when he was paid for his work; 
 Shortly afterward he located in Seneca Falls, 
 N. Y., Vv^here he found employment in the woolen 
 mills for a period of three years, following which 
 he acted as superintendent of a farm and saw 
 mill in Washington (now Ozaukee) county. Wis., 
 for three years. He then purchased land and im- 
 proved and cultivated a farm until 1863, becom- 
 ing a prominent and successful man of that com- 
 munity, serving- as township clerk, justice of the 
 peace and other minor offices. Removing to 
 Coldwater, Mich., he purchased a farm, which 
 he made his home until 1865. He then became 
 a resident of Waubeek, Linn county, Iowa, where 
 he engaged in a mercantile enterprise for many 
 years, serving as justice of the peace and town- 
 ship clerk, etc., during his long residence there. 
 In 1881 he sold out, and, coming to California, 
 located in Fresno, which was then but a small 
 town. He bought considerable property, forty 
 acres, then a mile out, on what became Black- 
 stone avenue, and which he afterward laid out in 
 lots and sold as Hedges' Addition. He also had 
 one hundred and sixty acres two miles north of 
 Fresno on the same avenue, eighty acres of which 
 he sold, while the remainder he laid out and desig- 
 nated as the Hedges Colony. He built a resi- 
 dence at No. 2505 Fresno street, which is now 
 the home of the family ; also erected the building 
 occupied by Chesnutwood's Business College, twa 
 business houses on K street, between Fresno and 
 Mariposa streets, as well as various residences 
 throughout the city. Mr. Hedges has been an 
 important factor in the upbuilding and develop- 
 ment of Fresno, and is justly named among the 
 representative citizens of this community. 
 
 In New York state, in Cato, Cayuga county, 
 June 8, 1850, Mr. Hedges was united in marriage 
 with Mary Hunt, a native of Ontario, and the 
 daughter of Benjamin Hunt, of Vermont. He 
 was a comb manufacturer and later in life en- 
 
1374 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 gaged in farming near Coldwater, Mich., where 
 he was accidentally killed in a runaway, at the 
 age of eighty years. He was a soldier in the war 
 of 1812 and an esteemed resident of the place 
 where he lived for so many years. His wife, 
 formerly Thankful Tolman, was born in Onon- 
 daga county, N. Y., and died in Michigan. Mrs. 
 Hedges was next to the youngest in a family of 
 six children, four of whom are living, her birth 
 occurring November 22, 1826. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Hedges were born the following children : Lu- 
 ella, who became the wife of A. T. Stevens, and 
 died in Fresno in 1903 ; Charles, who died at the 
 age of twenty-five in Iowa; Mary, the wife of 
 John H. Pefly, of Amedee, Cal. ; and Tena, the 
 wife of William Shaw, of Fresno. Mrs. Hedges 
 has been a member of the Baptist Church for 
 sixty years. Fraternally Mr. Hedges was made 
 a Mason in Ozaukee Lodge at Port Washington, 
 Wis., and is now a member of Fresno Lodge No. 
 247, F. & A. M. ; Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. 
 M.; a charter member of Fresno Commandery 
 No. 29, K. T., of which he has served as treas- 
 urer since its organization; and Islam Temple, 
 A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Francisco. Politically 
 he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 J. FIOWARD WILLIAMS. The Williams 
 family flourished for many generations in the 
 state of New Jersey, the first ancestor on Ameri- 
 can soil being the representative of an old Welsh 
 family. John Williams, the grandfather of J. 
 Howard Williams, a highly esteemed citizen of 
 Portersville, Tulare county, became a farmer in 
 New Jersey. In his family was a son, Daniel S., 
 who was born in Good Luck, N. J., and who, 
 in manhood, followed the sea. He became a cap- 
 tain and a vessel owner, running a line of ves- 
 sels in the coast trade and also in the West In- 
 dies. He carried on an extensive and successful 
 business, investing his large returns in land in 
 his native state until he owned considerable 
 property. He died at the age of seventy-two 
 years, removing from the community a citizen 
 esteemed for his patriotism and loyalty to the 
 best interests of the country, and a man of 
 much personal worth and ability. His wife, 
 formerly Amelia Newbury, was a daughter of 
 Capt. Corlis Newbury, both being natives of 
 Waretown, N. J. Fie was a sea captain until his 
 retirement from the active duties of life, being 
 in the government service during the war. Mrs. 
 Williams died in New Jersey, leaving two chil- 
 dren, of whom the youngest, Daniel S., Jr., died 
 in the same state. The oldest, J. Howard Will- 
 iams, was born August 9, 1861, in Good Luck 
 (now Lanoka), N. J. 
 
 Reared in his native state, J. Howard Williams 
 received his education in Shortlidge's Academy, 
 
 of Media, Pa., after his graduation going to sea 
 in his father's vessels when twenty years of age. 
 Although he had been on the vessels constantly 
 from boyhood, he began at the bottom, taking 
 his place before the mast and working his way 
 up until he was in charge of a three-master, 
 being then twenty-four years old. He continued 
 in that work until 1887 when he left a seafaring 
 life, and the following year came to California, 
 and spent the winter at San Diego. In 1889 he 
 located in Portersville and engaged in the plan- 
 ing mill business as a manufacturer. Two years 
 later lie returned to New Jersey where he spent 
 the ensuing three years, when he once more lo- 
 cated in California. In the meantime, in 1894, 
 he had established himself in horticultural lines, 
 by setting out an orange grove on his ranch ad- 
 joining Portersville on the east. This ranch con- 
 sists of one hundred and fifty-five acres, one 
 hundred acres being devoted to oranges and 
 twenty acres to lemons. It is known as the 
 Winter-Haven ranch and is finely located, laid 
 out with drives lined with beautiful rows of 
 palms, while the home is a beautiful and stately 
 residence. The property is under the Pioneer 
 Ditch Company, the irrigation being done by 
 gravitation, while Mr. Williams also has wells 
 and a pumping plant of fifty-horse power, which 
 furnishes an ample supply of water. He is also 
 largely interested in the stock business, having 
 incorporated the Williams & Young Company, 
 which owns a number of ranches consisting of 
 several thousand acres of land. This company 
 conducts a fine dairy farm west of Portersville 
 planted to alfalfa, where they have full-blooded 
 Holstein cattle, specimens from the herd having 
 talcen premiums at the Hanford and Tulare 
 fairs. They have undoubtedly the largest herd 
 of full-blooded Holsteins in the county, and one 
 of the largest in the entire San Joaquin valley. 
 Mr. Williams is a member of the Portersville 
 Citrus Association, of which he is ex-president, 
 while for two years he also served as president 
 of the Tulare County Citrus Fruit Exchange. 
 He is a member of the Holstein-Friesian Asso- 
 ciation of America, and belongs to the State 
 Game and Fish Protective Association, of which 
 he is first vice-president. In addition to his 
 horticultural and stock interests, he was one of 
 the organizers of the First National Bank of 
 Portersville, of which he is now vice-president 
 and director. 
 
 In Portersville Mr. Williams married Edith B. 
 Howard, of Tomah, Wis., and they are the par- 
 ents of five children, namely: Helen E., Amelia 
 N., Katharine, Margaret and J. Howard, Jr. 
 Mr. Williams was made a Mason in Harmony 
 Lodge No. 18, of Toms River, N. J., and became 
 a charter member of Portersville Lodge No. 303. 
 He became a Royal Arch Mason in Siloam 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1375 
 
 Chapter, Camden, N. J., and was raised to the 
 Commandery in Visalia Commandery No. 26. 
 He is also a member of The Lodge Perfection 
 of Visalia, Cal., and of Islam Temple, N. M. S., 
 of San Francisco. In religion Mrs. Williams is 
 a member of the Congregational Church. 
 
 GILBERT L. BAKER. A genius for me- 
 chanical invention, the ability to make almost 
 anything in wood and iron, the capacity for ex- 
 haustive agricultural research, and the ability to 
 forcefully and gracefully set down his observa- 
 tions for the guidance of others, combine to make 
 Gilbert Baker one of the most interesting and 
 useful additions to the community of Oakdale 
 and Stanislaus county. As the correspondent for 
 Stanislaus county to Washington for the past 
 eight years, he is probably better informed than 
 any one in the county on its resources, condi- 
 tions and possibilities, and those familiar with 
 the position realize that the task would entail 
 laborious study and great accuracy of judgment. 
 To Mr. Baker the task is a pleasant one, furnish- 
 ing an outlet for his strenuous mind, and at the 
 same time enabling him to acquire that compre- 
 hensive knowledge which is at once his pride 
 and that of his fellow agriculturists. It is per- 
 haps as an inventor that his name will longest 
 be identified with the west, for fortunately" his 
 thought has run in practical channels, and his 
 products must necessarily reach a corresponding 
 number of people. His inventiveness has result- 
 ed in six different patents, one of the most in- 
 genious of which is a combination of harness 
 tools, enclosed in a hammer, and containing 
 twelve different tools ; another is a lock snap, 
 taking the place of the ordinary snap, but lock- 
 ing securely; a combination tug hook, which is 
 self adjusting ; a door lock ; a padlock and safe, 
 and a set of permutation locks. Mr. Baker's 
 knowledge of mechanics enables him to make 
 all of his models out of wood or iron, thus ren- 
 dering impossible the confiscation or misuse of 
 any of the products of his brain. In the interest 
 of his patents he has made two trips to Washing- 
 ton. His inventions have the merit of extreme 
 originality and practicability, and have at once 
 seized upon the popular approval and support. 
 
 The life of Mr. Baker began in Berryville, 
 Carroll county. Ark., February 28, 1867, his 
 grandfather, Aaron, having been one of the first 
 settlers of that locality. While yet the timbers 
 were tall, the rivers unnavigated, and the wig- 
 wam of the Indian the prevailing style of archi- 
 tecture, this father came from near Lexington, 
 Ky., made his way up the river for sixty miles, 
 and took up four hundred and eighty acres of 
 land where no white man had as yet made his 
 habitation. A rude log house with greased paper 
 
 window lights and puncheon floors constituted 
 his home for many months, yet he succeeded in 
 making a profitable and paying investment out of 
 his emigration, rearing a large family of chil- 
 dren, and at the time of his death, in 1887, at 
 the age of eighty-five, had cause to view with 
 gratitude the inspiration which led his steps to 
 the wilderness of Carroll county. His son, Al- 
 fred, the father of Gilbert L., was born 6n this 
 pioneer farm, and in time owned and operated 
 land in the same locality. He owned two hun- 
 dred and forty acres of as fine farm land as 
 the county contained, and his industry brought 
 wealth and comforts his way, as they were un- 
 derstood and appreciated in that day. He died 
 while yet in the zenith of his powers, in 1891, at 
 the age of forty-nine. During his boyhood days 
 in Carroll county he played with the children 
 of one George S. Moody, the latter one of the 
 pioneers of the coimty, and the owner of a fine 
 five hundred and twenty acre stock and general 
 farm. Mr. Moody was a noted musician, and 
 the composer of songs which he himself sang in 
 a sweet and sympathetic voice, and his home 
 was naturally the scene of much hospitalitv. His 
 daughter Adelaide grew into a graceful arid 
 home-loving woman, and from a school-day 
 friendship, her regard for Alfred Baker devel- 
 oped into something deeper, and their marriage 
 was one of the social events of Carroll county. 
 She became the mother of eight children, five 
 of whom are living, and died at the early age of 
 thirty-six, deeply mourned by a large circle of 
 friends. 
 
 Reared on the home farm in Carroll county, 
 Ark., Gilbert L. Baker had more than the aver- 
 age educational chances granted the middle-west 
 farmer lad of his time, attending the public 
 schools, and the Berryville Academy, graduating 
 from the latter April 7, 1882. As evidencing 
 his ambitious tendencies, and preconceived plans, 
 two days after his graduation, on April 9, he 
 started for California, arriving in the Waterford 
 district, Stanislaus county, April 19, 1882. His 
 uncle, William Wilkinson Baker, an Argonaut 
 of 1849, ^^'^ ^^ extensive farmer, gave him a 
 royal welcome, and under his guidance he pur- 
 sued the studies in agriculture which had al- 
 ready engaged his time and attention in Ark- 
 ansas. Eighteen months later he engaged in 
 independent ranching, and in 1888 rented seven 
 hundred and twenty acres of land near Water- 
 ford, where he began to raise stock and grain, 
 and in time increased his holdings to twelve 
 hundred and eighty acres. In 1891 he pur- 
 chased three hundred and one acres of bottom 
 land on the Tuolumne river, and in 1902 bought 
 six hundred and fifty-six acres four miles south 
 of Oakdale, since which time he has operated 
 his own land exclusively. Needless to say that 
 
1376 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his property is a model of wise management 
 and perfect method, or that the most ingenious 
 of machinery is utiHzed for its harvesting. A 
 blacksmith shop on his farm enables him to sat- 
 isfy his craving for manufacture, and practical- 
 ly all of the machinery on his place is the work 
 of his own hands. That purchased because of 
 its bulk and want of facility for proper malt- 
 ing is subject to novel and practical changes 
 on the part of the owner, even standard ma- 
 chines, supposed to represent the highest achieve- 
 ments of the agricultural mind, coming in for 
 a share of his inventive skill. He even manu- 
 factures his own tools, and probably no outfit 
 thus put together has been of greater use or 
 achieved more practical results. His earnings 
 have of necessity been large, and as a result 
 of his faith in the future of Oakdale he has in- 
 vested heavily in her town property, owning 
 numerous desirable lots besides that upon which 
 his own delightful home has been built, and 
 of which the family took possession in 1902. 
 In Oakdale, Mr. Baker married Mabel Roberts, 
 born at Knight's Ferry, Cal, a daughter of 
 Thomas Roberts, now deceased, the original 
 owner and builder of the Oakdale Water Works. 
 Two children comprise the Baker household, Ir- 
 win and Ethel. Mr. Baker is a Democrat, and' 
 an attendant at the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
 He is a man of remarkable reserve force, of un- 
 flagging industry, and of great belief in the abil- 
 ity of mankind in general. While naturally 
 gifted, he is the advocate of perseverance as 
 an avenue to success, and believes that more 
 can be accomplished by the average individual 
 than he knows of or himself believes. His 
 achievements, both as an inventor and as an 
 advocate of the climatic and other resources of 
 Stanislaus cotmty as embodied in his monthly 
 reports to the agricultural department at Wash- 
 ington, reflect lasting credit upon his adopted 
 state, besides placing him among the wealthiest 
 and most prominent of the men who have aided 
 the agricultural upbuilding of the county. 
 
 MARTIN MADSEN. Denmark has fur- 
 nished the United States with many successful 
 men and there is scarcely a state in the Union 
 but has been greatly benefited by this class of 
 citizens, especially the states of the west and 
 northwest, where pioneer developing work has 
 been done in the past fifty years. Among this 
 class of Danish-born Americans who have come 
 to this country without money or friends and by 
 their own efforts have made a success in life may 
 he mentioned Martin Madsen. At an early age 
 he started out to make, his own way in the world, 
 since which time he has climbed the ladder of 
 success rung by rung until now he is at the top. 
 
 In no other country in the world can a man rise, 
 by his own efforts, to such an enviable j)Osition. 
 
 A native of Denmark, Martin Madsen was 
 born January 28, 1857, ^ son of Madsen and 
 Bertha (Jorgensen) Jensen. The father was a 
 farmer, which occupation he followed up to the 
 time of his death in 1895. His wife bore him 
 eight children, five of whom are living, two being 
 residents of this state, Martin, and a brother, 
 Jens, who resides near Fowler. Martin Madsen 
 was reared on his father's farm and obtained a 
 limited common school education. In 1874 he 
 determined to start out in life for himself, and 
 as he had heard much of the opportunities which 
 existed in America, he bade good-by. to home and 
 friends and sailed for New York. The first lo- 
 cation was in Perth Amboy, N. J., where he fol- 
 lowed the trade of a butcher, working for others 
 until 1879, when he engaged in the same business 
 for himself, continuing there until 1881. He then 
 sold out and returned to his native country for 
 a visit. After three months he again came to this 
 country, locating in California. Tal{:ing up his 
 residence in Fresno, he has since made this place 
 his home, and during the years of his residence 
 here has gained a comfortable competence. Soon 
 after arriving in Fresno he opened a meat mar- 
 ket on Mariposa street, which he conducted for 
 a period of ten years. In 1888 he formed a part- 
 nership with Thomas Pickford, the firm bearing 
 the name of Madsen & Pickford, wholesale deal- 
 ers in meat, etc. This firm, under the personal 
 direction of Mr. Madsen, met with splendid suc- 
 cess and built up a large business enterprise, 
 which was continued until 1891, when Mr. Mad- 
 sen sold his interest to Mr. Pickford. Subse- 
 quently, accompanied by his family, he crossed 
 the water to the country of his nativity, 
 spending seven months in Denmark and tour- 
 ing other countries in Europe. On his re- 
 turn to Fresno he engaged in farming, which 
 he followed until 1901, when he again formed 
 a partnership, this time uniting his business 
 interests with M. L. Woy, under the firm 
 name of Woy & Madsen, dealers in real es- 
 tate, with offices at No. 1138 J street. In addi- 
 tion to the real estate business the firm also dealt 
 extensively in oil stocks, Mr. Madsen being 
 prominently identified with several of the largest 
 oil companies in the state, including the Com- 
 mercial Oil Company, of which he was one of the 
 organizers and is now a director, and the Mon- 
 tana-Fresno Oil Company, being also a member 
 of the board of directors in this organization. In 
 the meantime Mr. Madsen has been extensively 
 interested in farming, stock raising and fruit 
 growing. Eight miles southwest of Fresno he 
 owns six hundred and forty acres, which he de- 
 votes to the grov/ing of alfalfa. On Blackstone 
 avenue, one mile out of town, where he makes 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1377 
 
 bis home, he has forty-five acres, devoted to an 
 orchard and vineyard. In 1902 he laid out the 
 "Poppy Colony," located one mile north of Fres- 
 no. This tract was divided into five, ten and 
 twenty acreages, most of which have already 
 been sold. 
 
 Since coming here Mr. Madsen has been 
 united in marriage with Anna Dorothea Petersen, 
 a native of Denmark, and to them have been born 
 the following children: Bertha, Martin, Theo- 
 dore and Nadine, all living at home. In politics 
 Mr. Madsen is a stanch Republican, but aside 
 from casting his vote and being deeply interested 
 in the success of the party he has never cared to 
 take part in public affairs, preferring rather to 
 devote his time and attentions to his own busi- 
 ness interests. Fraternally he is a member of the 
 Knights of Pythias. Both he and his wife occupy 
 a prominent place in the various social circles of 
 Fresno, and are highly respected. 
 
 JAMES JOHN REYBURN. Owing to the 
 death of his father, J. J. Reyburn obtained but 
 a limited education, havmg had to make his own 
 way in the world from an early age. A native 
 of Ohio, he was born in' Miami county, August 
 14, 1836, a son of John Stewart Reyburn, who 
 was born in the state of Kentucky. The grand- 
 father was a soldier in the war of 18 12. On 
 reaching maturity J. S. Reyburn removed to 
 Miami county, Ohio, where he followed the trade 
 of a cabinet maker until 1839, when he migrated 
 to Burlington, Iowa. Later in life he purchased 
 a farm near that city, on which he was living at 
 the time of his death. May 31, 1840. His wife 
 bore the maiden name of Nancy Davidson. She 
 was born in Virginia and died in Iowa, Septem- 
 ber 30, i860. Of her union with Mr. Reyburn 
 four children were born, two of whom are liv- 
 ing, a son Joseph, and James John, of this re- 
 view. The former crossed the plains to Oregon 
 in 1862 and later located in Stanislaus county, this 
 state. Subsec[uently he lived for a time in Fres- 
 no county, but later removed to the Jeffersori 
 district, where he is now living. 
 
 James J. Reyburn was the third child of the 
 family of four children and was but a boy 
 when his father died. This made it necessary 
 for him to strike out for himself at an early 
 age. His first employment was on a farm five 
 miles west of Burlington, Icv/a. Later he en- 
 tered a flour mill and subs.equently purchased 
 an interest in the Franklin Mill at Des Moines, 
 Iowa, where he continued in business until 1866, 
 when he sold out and went to Missouri. Lo- 
 cating in Scotland county he engaged in general 
 farming and stock-raising until 1873, when he 
 disposed of all his interests in the east and came 
 to California. First going to Stanislaus county, 
 
 he became interested in raising wheat near Sa- 
 lida, remaining there until 1875, when he moved 
 to the Big Dry Creek district in Fresno county. 
 Here he pre-empted and homesteaded a tract of 
 land, later adding by purchase until he owned 
 six hundred and forty acres, all in one body on 
 Big Dry Creek, fourteen miles northeast of Fres- 
 no, at a place called Red Bank. He continued 
 livmg on this place until the spring of 1890, de- 
 voting his attention to the raising of wheat, at 
 times having many acres of rented land undet 
 cultivation. In the last year mentioned he pur- 
 chased eighty acres of land ten rhiles northeast 
 of Fresno, set out a vineyard and orchard, both 
 of which are now in fine bearing, of which he 
 retains forty acres. While living on this ranch 
 he engaged in raising fancy chickens, and at the 
 poultry exhibitions secured many prizes for his 
 fine birds. In 1903 he disposed of his six 
 hundred and forty acre ranch on Big Dry 
 Creek and located in Fresno, where he is now 
 living a retired life, although he still looks after 
 his various interests. 
 
 In Mount Pleasant, Iowa, Mr. Reyburn mar- 
 ried Mary McDonald, and to them have been 
 born five children, namely : John S., deceased ; 
 Chester H., William D., Clarence J., and Nancy, 
 the wife of M. M. Shaver. Mr. Reyburn has at all 
 times taken an active interest in county affairs, 
 and while living on his ranch acted as school trus- 
 tee for several years. In politics a Republican, 
 he is deeply interested in the welfare of the party. 
 He has seen many changes in the San Joaquin 
 valley since first coming here, and in the onward 
 march of civilization he has performed his part. 
 
 JAMES H. MORTON. The Morton faniily, 
 well-known and widely esteemed throughout Tu- 
 lare county, was established in America by 
 James Morton, a native of the north of Ireland, 
 who came to New York state and thence via the 
 Isthmus of Panama to California. He first fol- 
 lowed mining in Tuolumne county and was later 
 located in Mariposa county until 1869, when he 
 began stock-raising on the west side, on the 
 Orestimba, Stanislaus county. He remained in 
 that location for some time, when he removed 
 to Merced Plains and continued in the same busi- 
 ness. In 1880 he located in Tulare county, 
 where, in partnership with Timothy Paige, he 
 purchased a three-thousand-acre tract of the 
 Bain ranch, and under his direction orchards 
 were set out — the beginning of horticulture on a 
 commercial scale in Tulare county. At the time 
 of his death, which occurred in 1894 at the age 
 of sixty-one years, twelve hundred acres had 
 been put to orchard and vineyard, and success 
 had accompanied the venture in a measure to 
 place Mr. Morton among the representative hor- 
 
I3t8 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ticulturists of this section. His wife, formerly 
 Jane Ball, was also a native of the north of Ire- 
 land, their marriage having taken place in New 
 York. Her death occurred in San Jose in Janu- 
 ary, 1903. Born of their union was a son, James 
 H. Morton, whose birth occurred at Horseshoe 
 Bend, Mariposa county, July 22, 1864. 
 
 James H. Morton was reared principally in 
 the northern counties of the San Joaquin valley, 
 removing at the age of seventeen years to Tulare 
 county, where he took an active part with his 
 father in the setting out of orchards and their 
 cultivation. He remained so occupied until 1891, 
 when with a son of his father's partner and 
 L. F. Monteagle he bought and set out a vine- 
 yard of three hundred acres. Later he purchased 
 independently a tract of six hundred and forty 
 acres six m.iles northeast of Tulare, where he 
 began improving an orchard of two hundred 
 and forty acres, set to peaches and plums, while 
 the balance of the ranch was devoted to alfalfa. 
 At the same time he improved and developed a 
 handsome property in Tulare city, owning one 
 hundred and thirty acres, which is devoted to a 
 fine dairy. He has beautified his place in many 
 ways, one noticeable feature being the row of 
 palms, which he has set out along the drive from 
 the house. In horticultural pursuits he is justly 
 considered an authority, having done much to 
 bring to a prominent place this branch of work 
 in Tulare county. He is as well identified with 
 many of the most important enterprises in this 
 section, being interested in the Tulare Flour 
 Milling Company, a director in the Rochdale 
 Company, and a director in the Bank of Tulare. 
 Mr. Morton has also won for himself the respect 
 and esteem of the citizens of Tulare county for 
 his excellent services rendered as a member of 
 the Bond Liquidating Committee, which suc- 
 ceeded in compromising with the bondholders at 
 forty-one cents on the dollar, making possible the 
 liquidation of the Tulare Irrigation District 
 bonds. By this equal assessment they secured 
 the consent of property owners, both local and 
 foreign, which paid off the $500,000 bonds and 
 accrued interest, thus placing the land owners 
 free from an incumbrance which had hung over 
 them for years, and had more or less impeded 
 progress and advancement, as it seemed at one 
 time impossible to pay off this great indebted- 
 ness. The benefit of this movement is incal- 
 culable, the change which is noticeable in the 
 comparatively brief time since the event being 
 only the presage of the prosperity yet to follow. 
 In San Francisco Mr. Morton was united in 
 marriage with Cora Wallace, who was born in 
 Placer county, Cal., a daughter of William H. 
 Wallace. He came to California about 1850 
 from Massachusetts, and engaged in business in 
 San Francisco, becoming the head of the firni of 
 
 Sisson Wallace & Co., wholesale merchants and 
 bankers. He was also largely interested in lands 
 in the San Joaquin valley and was an important 
 factor in the development and upbuilding of the 
 best interests of the country. His death occurred 
 in San Francisco. Mr. Morton is a Republican 
 in his political convictions, and fraternally is a 
 Mason, having been made a member of that or- 
 ganization in Tulare lodge. 
 
 LEVI GARRETT. In the history of Mr. 
 Garrett there is much that is worthy of emula- 
 tion. His life is a splendid illustration of what 
 one may accomplish if he but possess the grit 
 and determination to succeed. In young man- 
 hood he had no special advantages, but as a result 
 of his industry and perseverance he is to-day the 
 leading citizen in the thriving town of Kings- 
 burg, and while he has written the word "suc- 
 cess" in a bold hand, he has at no time neglected 
 his duties as a citizen. On the contrary, he has 
 been most active in promoting the welfare of his 
 state and county. 
 
 A native of Pennsylvania, Levi Garrett was 
 born in Delaware county, near the city of Phila- 
 delphia, February 27, 1842. His father, Simeon, 
 was also born in the Keystone state, and as a man 
 became engaged in the mercantile business and 
 general farming, in Delaware county, seven miles 
 from Philadelphia, where he lived until his death. 
 He married Julia Ann Hall, also a native of 
 Pennsylvania, whose death took place in Wil- 
 mington, Del., in 1865. She became the' mother 
 of six children, Levi being the fourth child. He 
 received a good common school education, which 
 was supplemented by a course in the Fairville 
 Academy. On September 6, 1861, he enlisted as 
 a private in Company H, Eighth Pennsylvania 
 Cavalry. His company was attached to the Army 
 of the Potomac and Mr. Garrett participated in 
 thirty-two battles, including Cold Harbor, Fair 
 Oaks, Gettysburg, the siege of Richmond, and 
 many other of the most important engagements 
 of the Civil war. While he was never wounded 
 he had several narrow escapes. At the battle of 
 Cold Harbor his saber was cut from his hand, 
 and while in front of Richmond a bullet tore his 
 spur off. After three years of active service he 
 was honorably discharged, his papers being 
 dated September 6, 1865. Following his dis- 
 charge he returned to Philadelphia, and soon after 
 engaged in farming in Delaware county. A 
 year later he went to Chester county, the same 
 state, and remained two years. He then returned 
 to .Delaware county for a short time, and finally 
 purchased a farm, near Wilmington, Del. Later 
 he engaged in the meat business, and in 1878 he 
 again went to Philadelphia where he lived until 
 1887, the year of his arrival in this state. He 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1379 
 
 located in Kingsburg July i, 1889. Soon after 
 taking up his residence here he became interested 
 in the warehouse, taking charge for The Granger 
 Bank of San Francisco. May i, 1890, he pur- 
 chased the livery stable which business he has 
 since conducted, although he is interested in 
 many other ventures. Public spirited he assisted 
 in organizing the local board of trade and is now 
 president of that body. He is also interested in 
 the Kingsburg bank, being its present vice-presi- 
 dent. As secretary and treasurer of the Kings- 
 burg Colony Ditch Company, he has been influ- 
 ential in making that business a success. It is 
 worthy of mention that every business house or 
 block has been burnt in Kingsburg except the 
 livery barn owned by Mr. Garrett. 
 
 In West Chester, Chester county, Pa., Mr. 
 Garrett was united in marriage with Elizabeth C. 
 Richards and to this union have been born four 
 children, viz. : Josephine H., now Mrs. James 
 A. B. Hanby, of Fresno; Theona, now Mrs. E. G. 
 Dobson, of Hanford ; Emily B., the wife of Dr. 
 M. A. Gilreath, of Selma, whose sketch will be 
 found on another page of this work ; and Charles 
 H., who lives at home. 
 
 In political matters Mr. Garrett is a stanch Re- 
 publican and has been one of the most active 
 workers of the party in this county. For six 
 years he served as deputy sheriff and for four 
 years was constable of this place. He is also a 
 member of the county central committee. While 
 living in Wilmington, Del, he served for four 
 years as a member of the city covmcil. In fra- 
 ternal matters Mr. Garrett has also been quite 
 active. He was made a Mason while living in 
 Wilmington thirty-two years ago. He also 
 joined the Odd Fellows in the same city. For 
 the purpose of keeping up old associations he has 
 for years been a member of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic and has served as an aide-de-camp 
 on the staff of General Rice, the department com- 
 mander. Although well along in years, Mr. Gar- 
 rett is still hale and hearty, an exception to most 
 veterans of the Civil war. Far-sighted and pos- 
 sessed of a keen business judgment he has pros- 
 pered, and both he and his most estimable wife 
 have scores of friends in whose homes they are 
 at all times welcome visitors. 
 
 JASPER NEWTON MUSICK. There is 
 probably no man residing in Fresno that 
 has taken a more active part in the upbuild- 
 ing of the city and county than has the gentle- 
 man whose name introduces this review. Born 
 near Jefferson City, Mo., Jasper N. Musick is 
 a son of Abraham and Nancy (Davis) Musick. 
 The father, a native of Wayne county, Va., of 
 Scotch-Irish descent, removed to Kentucky when 
 a boy and after reaching his majority migrated 
 
 to Missouri, locating near what is now Jeffer- 
 son City. At that early day St. Louis was only 
 a small trading post. There on the western 
 frontier he purchased land and improved a farm, 
 at the time of his death owning four hundred 
 acres of fine land, all under cultivation. In pol- 
 itics he was a Democrat and in religious belief a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South. He died at the ripe old age of ninety- 
 three years. His wife, who was born in Ken- 
 tucky, of English descent, died at the age of 
 eighty-five years. By her union with Mr. Mu- 
 sick she became the mother of fifteen children, 
 twelve of whom reached maturity and three of 
 whom are still living. One son, Jeremiah, came 
 to California after the close of the Civil war 
 and here engaged in an extensive stock business. 
 Later he purchased land in Fresno and laid out 
 an addition. He died in January, 1904. An- 
 other son, Thomas, died on a farm owned by 
 his brother, J. N. 
 
 Jasper N. Musick was the sixth child in the 
 parental family. His early life was spent on 
 his father's farm, although he was allowed to at- 
 tend a few terms of school held in a log school- 
 house. At the age of seventeen he started out 
 in life for himself and in company with an older 
 brother, Chesley, he crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia, the party arriving here in the fall of 1850. 
 As far as Salt Lake the trip was made with, ox 
 teams, but at the latter place they decided more 
 rapid progress could be made with horses, so 
 traded "their oxen and continued the journey. 
 On their arrival in Hangtown they were surprised 
 to see the very oxen they had traded standing 
 in the streets, having arrived several days pre- 
 vious and in much better condition than the 
 horses, thus showing that the "race does not al- 
 ways go to the swiftest." As did nearly all the 
 emigrants, Mr. Musick entered the mines, and 
 for six years followed mining in Amador coun- 
 ty, meeting with reasonable success. In 1856 he 
 settled in what was then Mariposa county, but 
 shortly afterward came to Fresno county. He 
 had not been here long ere the Indians were on 
 the war-path, making it necessary for every able- 
 bodied settler to shoulder a musket and go to 
 the front. In this emergency Mr. Musick was 
 not found wanting, being a member of a small 
 company which was present at the battle above 
 the Tule river, where the redmen were defeated 
 and the outbreak quelled. Soon after this he 
 settled 'at Millerton and engaged in teammg be- 
 tween that place and Stockton and the mmes. 
 For hauling provisions from Stockton to the 
 mines he was paid five cents per pound, it re- 
 quiring ten days to make the round trip, in 
 1858 he assisted in moving the soldiers from Fort 
 Miller, later in the same year locating on Dry 
 creek, where, in partnership with John G. Simp- 
 
1380 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 son, he engaged in the stock business. They also 
 conducted a meat market in Millerton and each 
 spring they drove a band of cattle to Sonora 
 and other places in the mining regions, where 
 they sold their stock for good prices. This part- 
 nership was continued with success until 1865, 
 when they dissolved and Mr. Musick entered into 
 the sheep business, establishing his ranch at what 
 is now the town of Letcher. There he entered 
 and purchased land until his ranch now embraces 
 some eight hundred acres, all under cultivation 
 and highly improved. Besides carrying on an 
 extensive stock business, making a specialty of the 
 Short-horn breed, he also raises a large amount 
 of hay and has a fine orchard of oranges and 
 other deciduous fruits, it having been proven that 
 this section of county is especially adapted to 
 the growing of fine oranges. 
 
 Up to 1892, the year of his removal to Fresno, 
 Mr. Musick carried on a very prosperous busi- 
 ness, but in that year he left the ranch and has 
 since been living in the city. Since locating here 
 he has erected seven residences and in addition 
 owns several building lots. He also owns forty 
 acres adjoining the city near the PoUasky depot, 
 which is now devoted to the growing of alfalfa. 
 At Millerton he owns eighty acres of land on 
 which is located a very fine sulphur spring which 
 is noted for its medicinal qualities. There he 
 has built a summer home where the family re- 
 side during the hot months. Located on the 
 proposed electric line that will probably soon be 
 constructed between Fresno and the Yosemite 
 valley, it is quite likely the springs will become 
 a popular resort. 
 
 Mr. Musick has been twice married, his first 
 union being with Miss Rebecca Richards, the 
 ceremony being performed on Dry creek. She 
 was a native of Millerton, a daughter of James 
 Richards, who was a pioneer settler of that 
 town. Mrs. Musick became the mother of five 
 children, three of whom reached maturity, as 
 follows: Mary Effie, now the wife of William 
 Henderson of Fresno; Nancy Ann, wife of J. 
 P. Fincher of We.stpark; and Laura Isabelle, 
 wife of Benjamin Sims of Fresno. The mother 
 of these children died on the Dry creek ranch. 
 
 For his second wife, Mr. Musick married 
 Nancy Jane Messersmith, the wedding occurring 
 at Lemoore, December 27, 1878. She was born 
 m Cole county. Mo., a daughter of Rial Messer- 
 smith, a native of Virginia. Mr. Messersmith 
 became a farmer in Cole county. Mo., and after 
 the Civil war came to California, locating at 
 Lemoore, where he engaged in farming. He 
 was living with his daughter, Mrs. Musick, at 
 the time of his death, at the age of eighty-three 
 years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
 Edna Duncan, was a native of Kentucky, and died 
 
 in Missouri. She became the mother of nine 
 children. 
 
 In politics Mr. Musick has always been an 
 active Democrat and in the early days was a 
 prominent leader of his organization, serving as 
 county supervisor for two terms, being chair- 
 man of the board a portion of the time. It was 
 during his incumbency that the county seat was 
 moved from Millerton to Fresno and Mr. Musick 
 was one of the champions of the change, he con- 
 tending that the county seat should be located 
 on a railroad. He was also in office at the time 
 of the erection of the court house and took an 
 active part in the necessary arrangements and 
 plans. While living on Dry creek, in company 
 with neighbors, he formed a company which 
 built the academy that soon afterward became 
 one of the best schools in that section of the 
 state. Later the building and grounds were deed- 
 ed to the school district of which Mr. Musick 
 was trustee for many years. It will thus be 
 seen that while he has succeeded in life, he has 
 been prominently identified with many of the 
 most important events that have transpired since 
 he took up his residence in this county. 
 
 In fraternal relations he is a member of the 
 Odd Fellows and in religious matters is an in- 
 fluential member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South. A resident of the state for over 
 half a century, he has been an eye-witness to 
 the many remarkable changes that have taken 
 place since he crossed the plains. During these 
 years he has had many ups and downs, but as 
 a result of industry and far-sightedness he has 
 accumulated a handsome property, the direct re- 
 sult of his individual efforts. Mr. Musick is a 
 living example of what may be accomplished if 
 one will but persevere and make the best of the 
 opportunities that are presented. Starting out 
 in life at an early age without money or influ- 
 ences he has steadily worked his way upward 
 until today he is one of the most substantial cit- 
 izens of Fresno county. In early life his ad- 
 vantages were few, but while still a voung man 
 he determined to succeed, and with this decision 
 constantly in mind he has labored and saved un- 
 til now he can enjov the comforts and luxuries 
 of life, feeling that his life has not been wasted 
 and that while he has succeeded he has not failed 
 to at all times perform his duties as a citizen. 
 The life histories of such men as Mr. Musick 
 contain much that is well worthy of emulation. 
 Both he and his most estimable wife are pop- 
 ular and have hosts of friends wherever they 
 are known. 
 
 JAMES MADISON BRALY. A native of 
 Missouri, Mr. Braly was born in Cape Girardeau 
 county, April 26, 1826, a son of Rev. Frank M, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1381 
 
 and Elizabeth (Madison) Braly. The father was 
 born in North CaroHna, a son of James Braly, 
 who was a native of the same state, of Scotch- 
 Irish descent. He was one of the early settlers 
 of North Carolina, and in 1811 removed with his 
 family to Cape Girardeau county, Mo., where he 
 lived until his death. His son. Rev. Frank, was 
 but a boy when his father removed to the then 
 far west. On reaching man's estate he engaged 
 in farming and was a minister in the Presby- 
 terian Church, following that profession for many 
 years. He finally migrated to Arkansas, locat- 
 ing at Cain Hill, where he died in 1856. He 
 was a very good man and did much good in 
 those early days, and was beloved by all who 
 knew him. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Madison, was born in Bowling Green, Ky., and 
 died when James M. was but nine years of age. 
 She was a member of the James Madison fam- 
 ily. 
 
 The early life of James M. Braly was much 
 like that of other boys of that period. His school- 
 ing was limited to a few winter terms at the 
 district schools. As soon as old enough he car- 
 ried on the work of the farm while his father 
 traveled here and there preaching the gospel. In 
 this way he learned the lessons of thrift and in- 
 dustry very thoroughly. 
 
 Later he attended the Spring River Academy 
 and there laid the foundation of an education un- 
 der the tutelage of Robert King, which enabled 
 him to become the scholarly gentleman for which 
 his friends recognize him. During the year of 
 his majority he taught a three months' term of 
 school and following that secured employment as 
 a clerk in a general store at Sarcoxie, Mo. Here 
 he continued until 1850 when, accompanied by 
 others from the same locality he started for Cali- 
 fornia. The long journey across the plains was 
 made with a six mule team and consumed three 
 months and twenty-five days, the party reaching 
 Sacramento August 25. Soon after arrival Mr. 
 Braly engaged in mining on the Yuba river, the 
 spring following going to Nevada City, where he 
 continued at the same occupation for two years. 
 Tiring of mining and with the money he had 
 saved, he located in Santa Clara county, near San 
 Jose, where he became interested in farming, pur- 
 chasing land near what is now the town of Law- 
 rence. Two years later he went to Amador coun- 
 ty, where he remained one year, at the expiration 
 of which time he returned to his farm in Santa 
 Clara county. There he followed farming until 
 i860, when he went to Virginia City and en- 
 gaged in mining near Aurora, Nev. While there 
 his camp was visited by Mark Twain, who was 
 collecting material for his story, "Roughing It." 
 While prospecting in Nevada he discovered gold 
 in partnership with James M. Cory. The camp 
 was called Aurora by Mr. Braly, who had the 
 
 town laid out. He was elected recorder and filled 
 the office for one year. His friends named the 
 mountain south of the town. Mount Braly, in his 
 honor, and as such it is on all the maps. In the 
 winter of i860 and '61 there were five thousand 
 inhabitants in the town. He was the only civil 
 officer in the camp and disputes of all kinds were 
 decided by him. He followed mining for four 
 years, and during that' time the Wells Fargo Ex- 
 press Company shipped fourteen million dollars' 
 worth of gold out of that camp. In 1864 Mr. 
 Braly returned to Santa Clara county. Lo- 
 cating in the city of San Jose he there be- 
 came engaged in a general merchandise busi- 
 ness on First street. Later he sold his stock 
 of goods and established himself in a gen- 
 eral mining and brokerage business, which he 
 followed with success until 1881. In that year 
 he came to Fresno and at once became associ- 
 ated with the real estate business. Later he was 
 for a time connected with O. J. Woodward iii 
 the same line of business, and together they laid 
 out the Woodward addition to the city of Fresno, 
 consisting of sixty acres which was sold in about 
 three months' time. During these years Mr. Bra- 
 ly has been one of the most active real estate 
 men in the county and has done a great deal to 
 build up and improve this section of the state. 
 Later he erected the business block at the corner 
 of I and Tulare streets, which is 100x75 feet in 
 dimensions, and one of the finest buildings in the 
 city. 
 
 While living in Santa Clara county Mr. Braly 
 was united in marriage with Susan I. Braly, a 
 native of Crawford county, Missouri, and a 
 daughter of Rev. John E. and Susan (Hyde) 
 Braly. Her father was born in North Carolina 
 and became a pioneer minister in Missouri. In 
 1847 he crossed the plains to Oregon. Mr. Braly 
 was captain of the train and the members there- 
 of had a very narrow escape from death, their de- 
 parture from Fort Whitman occurring just a 
 few days before the fearful massacre of the whites 
 by the Indians. Soon after arriving in Oregon 
 settlement was made in the Willamette valley, 
 where the family resided until 1849, when they 
 came overland to California. The first stop in 
 this state was made at the mouth of the Feather 
 River. Two years later Mr. Braly located in 
 Santa Clara county, where he engaged in farm- 
 ing and stock-raising. He died in San Jose in 
 1870 at the age of seventy-five years. During 
 those pioneer days he spent much of his time 
 preaching in different sections of the state. It 
 is said that he was the first orthodox minister to 
 deliver a sermon on the Pacific coast, and no one 
 took a more active part in the early work of the 
 church than he. In nearly all the coast coun- 
 ties he formed congregations and erected 
 churches, paying for many of them out of his 
 
1382 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 own pocket. His wife was a daughter of John 
 Hyde, who migrated from his native state of 
 North Carolina' to Missouri at a very early day, 
 and who was a direct descendant of the old 
 Hyde family, members of which received a grant 
 of land from the King of England. She lived 
 to reach the age of ninety-three years, her death 
 occurring in San Jose in 1897. 
 
 Mrs. Braly, the wife of James M., was the 
 youngest child. She was fortunate enough to 
 receive a splendid education, graduating from the 
 University of the Pacific at San Jose. Since lo- 
 cating in Fresno she has been one of the most 
 active members of the Arbor Club, which, organi- 
 zation she assisted in forming. Fresno county 
 owes much to Mrs. Braly, for it is through her 
 efiforts that many of the beautiful shade trees 
 now lining the public highways, were planted. 
 Both she and Mr. Braly are very public-spirited 
 and have probably done more than any other 
 couple in promoting and building up the county. 
 
 In politics Mr. and Mrs. Braly are warm sup- 
 porters of the principles and measures of the 
 Democratic party, and during the campaign of 
 1904 he was treasurer of the Hearst club in this 
 city. In religious views both he and his wife 
 endorse the Presbyterian faith, and in their Chris- 
 tian life they carry the same progressive ideas 
 that they have shown in the business world, be- 
 lieving that one of the best ways to worship God 
 is to do His work sincerely and just as willingly 
 as though it were their own. This worthy couple 
 are now well advanced in years, but both are still 
 hale and hearty. 
 
 G. W. ANDERSON has met with success as a 
 member of the real estate firm of Cate & Ander- 
 son, with which he has been connected since De- 
 cember, 1904, when he purchased the interest of 
 J. C. Moore, the firm up to that time having 
 been known as Moore & Cate. Mr. Anderson 
 was born in San FranciscO', January 28, 1883, a 
 son of Gustav Anderson. The latter came to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1881 and found employment in San 
 Francisco as a street car contractor for some 
 time, finally removing to Fresno in 1887, when 
 he engaged in general contracting. He died in 
 1890, at the age of fifty years. During the Civil 
 war he served in a Michigan regiment of cavalry, 
 and became a member of the Grand Army of the 
 Republic. Fraternally he was identified with the 
 Masonic organization. His wife, formerly Au- 
 gusta J. Smith, of New York state, died in San 
 Francisco in 1902. They were the parents of 
 three children, all living, of whom John Q. is the 
 secretary of the Pierce Lumber Company, of 
 Fresno, James L., of Fresno, and G. W., the 
 youngest, is the subject of this review. 
 
 Fresno has been the home of G. W. Ander- 
 
 son since he was two years old. He received his 
 education in the public schools of this city and 
 afterward attended the high school and the Los 
 Angeles Business College, of Los Angeles, Cal., 
 graduating from the latter institution in 1900. 
 He returned to Fresno and accepted the position 
 of bookkeeper for C. S. Pierce & Co., a lumber 
 firm of this city, maintaining the same creditably 
 until December, 1904, when he resigned to take 
 up his present work as a member of the firm of 
 Cate & Anderson. He purchased an interest in 
 the business, which is both insurance and real es- 
 tate, and the handling of loans. Mr. Anderson 
 enjoys the esteem and confidence of all who have 
 known him during his brief career in Fresno. 
 He is a member of the Chamber of Commerce. 
 Fraternally he was made a Mason in Fresno 
 Lodge No. 247, and also belongs to Trigo Chap- 
 ter No. 69, R. A. M. 
 
 A. W. ANDERSON. The Hfe of Mr. Ander- 
 son is a splendid example of what one may ac- 
 complish in this country if he but possess the 
 necessary determination and industry. Coming 
 to America from Sweden, he landed in the United 
 States a total stranger, without money or friends, 
 but better still he had a stout heart and a good 
 trade. A native of Sweden, Mr. Anderson was 
 born in Helsingborg, February 28, 1865. He is a 
 son of Andres Nelson and Mary (Jensen) Ander- 
 son, both of whom were natives of the same coun- 
 try. The father is still living in Sweden, where he 
 is following his vocation, that of a farmer. His 
 wife became the mother of nine children, eight of 
 whom are still living. Mrs. Anderson died in 
 1890. 
 
 A. W. Anderson was reared on his father's 
 farm and obtained a limited education in the pub- 
 lic schools. At the age of fifteen he was appren- 
 ticed to learn the cabinet-maker's trade. This he 
 followed for four years in the old country, but in 
 March, 1885, he bade good-by to his parents 
 and came to the United States. For a time after 
 arriving here he worked at his trade in Albany, 
 N. Y. From there he went to Rockford, 111., 
 but after a short time he went to Davenport, 
 Iowa. A few months later he made another 
 change, going to Burlington, the same state, 
 where he remained until the spring of 1887. The 
 following summer was spent in St. Paul, Minn., 
 and in the winter of 1888 he arrived in Califor- 
 nia, first locating in Los Angeles, where he work- 
 ed as a carpenter until he came north to San 
 Francisco. There he worked at ' his trade and 
 also engaged in building to some extent. In 
 1 891 he came to Fresno and at once began con- 
 tracting and building. Later he branched out and 
 carried on a planing mill business. This finally 
 resulted in the starting of his planing mill in 
 
f.(^.fo{G^ 
 
^-^^ 4 P^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 13S7 
 
 1898, on I street. He built up a fine paying busi- 
 ness, engaging in the manufacture of lumber and 
 fixtures, the firm being known as Anderson 
 Brothers. On May 9, 1904, the business was in- 
 corporated as the Anderson Brothers' Planing 
 Mill and Manufacturing Company, with Mr. An- 
 derson as president and general manager ; H. E. 
 Anderson, assistant manager, and E. E. Hall, 
 secretary. July 11, the same year the I street 
 plant was burned. Directly following this the 
 firm erected their present plant on their own land 
 near the Southern Pacific tracks. This mill is 
 one of the best equipped in the state. The com- 
 pany is engaged in the manufacture of store and 
 office fixtures, sash and doors, and also do a 
 general planing mill business, giving employment 
 to thirty-five men. Since their new mill was 
 started they have turned out some of the finest 
 work ever seen in the city of Fresno, and in their 
 business they are now meeting with well-deserved 
 success. 
 
 Mr. Anderson was united in marriage with 
 Miss Neva Colburn, who- was born in Napa, this 
 state, a daughter of H. S. Colburn, an old settler 
 of that county. Mrs. Anderson died in 1901, 
 leaving one child, Neva. In fraternal relations 
 Mr. Anderson is a member of the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent and 
 Protective Order of Elks. In politics a Demo- 
 crat, he is actively interested in the welfare of 
 his party, but has neither the time nor the in- 
 clination to take part in political matters. By 
 this it must not be inferred that he is remiss in 
 his duties as a citizen, for there is no man in the 
 city of Fresno that is more willing to support 
 public enterprises than Mr. Anderson. His rise 
 in life has been remarkable. Just a few years ago 
 he came to Fresno without money or acquaint- 
 ances. Now he is at the head of one of the lead- 
 ing industries in the city, and has attained a po- 
 sition in the business world that he may well feel 
 proud of. 
 
 JOHN WESLEY POTTER. The genealogy 
 of the Potter family, represented by this influ- 
 ential citizen of Clovis and Fresno county, is 
 traced back to Derbyshire, England, whence 
 George Potter came to America as a soldier 
 in the English army during the Revolutionary 
 war. Secretly in sympathy with the colonies, 
 when he was made a prisoner of war by them 
 and later exchanged, he neglected to report tb 
 his own army, but established himself among the 
 patriots and ever afterward called himself an 
 American. When peace reigned throughout the 
 country, he laid down his arms for the imple- 
 ments of husbandry and became one of the ear- 
 liest of the white men who penetrated the wil- 
 derness of Kentucky. During the year 1818 he 
 
 65 
 
 removed further west and settled at Boonville, 
 Cooper county, Mo., where he built and for years 
 operated a ferry boat across the Missouri river, 
 eventually retiring from this and all other activ- 
 ities to spend his declining days in the enjoy- 
 ment of comforts rendered possible by a life of 
 frugality and honor. At the time of his death 
 he was past four score years of age. June 6, 
 1782, he married Hannah Fitzhugh, who was 
 born August 20, 1758, and died when over eighty 
 years of age. 
 
 A son of this Revolutionary soldier. Col. 
 Joseph Anderson Potter was born in Logan 
 county, Ky., July 16, 1803, and accompanied the 
 family to Cooper county. Mo., where he carried 
 on farm pursuits. Upon the discovery of gold 
 in California he joined a party of gold-seekers 
 in 1849 c^nd crossed' the plains with ox-teams. 
 After a short experience in the mines of the 
 west he returned via Panama and the Mississippi 
 river to Missouri. The second trip to the coast 
 was made in 1853, when, accompanied by other 
 members of his family, he crossed the plains and 
 settled on Mormon slough, in the San Joaquin 
 valley, entering a tract of land twelve miles 
 northeast of Stockton and near the site of the 
 present town of Linden. From the raw land he 
 developed a valuable farm, which for years con- 
 tinued to be his home. Certain disadvantages, 
 however, led him to seek another location, and 
 in 1875 he removed to a farm twelve miles east 
 of Visalia. He made another trip east in the 
 spring of 1865 just prior to Abraham Lincoln's 
 assassination. That same spring his death oc- 
 curred, when he had reached the age of seventy- 
 two. The title of colonel by which he was fa- 
 miliarly known came to him during his service 
 in a Missouri regiment at the time of the strug- 
 gle with the Mormons, and he aided in driving 
 that people out of the state into Illinois, whence 
 later they were banished to the further west. 
 
 The marriage of Joseph Anderson Potter 
 united him with Miss Elizabeth Gier, who was ^ 
 born in St. Charles county, Mo., January 21, 
 1808, and died in May, 1871, in San Joaquin 
 county, Cal. The Gier family is of southern ex- 
 traction. Her father, Henry Gier, was a native 
 of North Carolina, but at an early age settled 
 in Tennessee, whence he removed to Missouri 
 during the frontier period of that state's his- 
 tory. When he settled in St. Charles county the 
 Indians were still numerous and hostile, and 
 he with other farmers found it expedient to 
 carry a gun when at work in the field. After 
 a short time he moved to Cooper county, where 
 the families o£ farmers lived in a fort for mu- 
 tual protection. A man of unusual ability as 
 a mechanic, he was fitted for the hardships of 
 pioneer life, and not only made his own harness 
 and wagons, but also was able to assist neigh- 
 
1388 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 bors in their needs. In Cooper county he built 
 a horse-power grist-mill, all of which exceptmg 
 the burr was constructed of wood, and this mill 
 he operated as a means of livelihood and also 
 as a source of aid to farmers for miles around. 
 When old age came upon him it was his misfor- 
 tune to witness the strife between north and 
 south, and the closing year of that historic strug- 
 gle was also the year of his death. 
 
 Reared in a home where simple and sincere 
 piety ruled the lives of old and young, Mrs. 
 Potter became affiliated with the Cumberland 
 Presbyterian Church and through the course of 
 her early useful Hfe exemplified the doctrines 
 of that denomination. After they came to Cali- 
 fornia both Mr. and Mrs. Potter joined the 
 church. In its faith also they reared their chil- 
 dren, of whom there were ten. Two of their 
 sons, Henry G. and George, died in Missouri; 
 three others, William Nelson, James Madison 
 and Thomas B., died in California, the fir'st in 
 Fresno county and the two latter in San Joaquin 
 county. The fifth son, John Wesley, forms the 
 subject of this article; the sixth, Thomas Ben- 
 ton, died in San Joaquin county; Logan F. is a 
 builder in Fresno; Joseph and Mrs. Jane Drace 
 reside in Linden, this state; and Mrs. Elizabeth 
 Jones, formerly of Lompoc, is now deceased. 
 
 During the residence of the family on a farm 
 near Boonville, Mo., John Wesley Potter was 
 born, January 5, 1837, and there he received 
 his education in a log schoolhouse, which, with 
 its slab benches and puncheon floor, was typical 
 of the frontier schools of the day. Accompany- 
 ing the other members of the family, in 1853 he 
 crossed the plains, via Forts Kearney and Lar- 
 amie, through South Pass, along Bear river, by 
 Soda Springs, down the Humboldt river to its 
 sinks, then following the Carson river to Cali- 
 fornia and to San Joaquin county. For twelve 
 years after coming west he remained at home and 
 assisted his father in grain and stock farming. 
 In 1865 he bought a tract of land near Linden 
 and for some years devoted his attention to the 
 transformation of the property from its original 
 wild state into an improved farm. When in 
 1872 he came to Fresno county the town of 
 Fresno was in its infancy. The only mercantile 
 establishment in the place was operated by Otto 
 Frolich. It was not until Mo years later that 
 the first experiment was made in grape culture 
 by the planting of a vineyard. Shortly after 
 his arrival he preempted one hundred and sixty 
 acres and later homesteaded the adjoining one 
 hundred and sixty acres, which tracts form a 
 portion of his present homestead three miles 
 east of Clovis. Not a house had as yet been 
 built between his land and the town of Fresno. 
 Travel ' was not without attendant difficulties. 
 Coming home from Fresno one evening in Octo- 
 
 ber, 1874, a heavy rain storm arose and in the 
 dense darkness, he nearly lost his way on the 
 plains. 
 
 For years Mr. Potter made a specialty of the 
 sheep business. During the summers his flocks 
 pastured along the mountain sides, while in the 
 winter months they were kept on the plains.- By 
 gradual increase he became the owner of three 
 thousand or more sheep and three thousand and 
 two hundred acres of farm land. In 1892 he 
 abandoned the sheep industry and turned his 
 attention to grain farming. At this writing his 
 homestead, which comprises practically five en- 
 tire sections of land, is under cultivation to 
 grain, with the exception of twenty-five acres in 
 alfalfa under the Enterprise ditch, thirty acres 
 in raisin grapes, and a family orchard. A com- 
 bined harvester and other modern equipments 
 have aided materially in the cultivation of this 
 immense acreage. Of recent years, finding the 
 personal supervision of the land too arduous for 
 his strength, he has rented the larger portion of 
 the estate to tenants. In 1893 the value of the 
 property was enhanced by the erection of a 
 commodious residence and there are also sub- 
 stantial barns and other outbuildings on the prop- 
 erty. 
 
 At Vacaville, on Christmas eve of 1873, oc- 
 curred the marriage of Mr. Potter and Miss 
 Mattie J. Webster, a native of California. Three 
 children bless their union, namely : Kate, wife 
 of Rev. C. T. Qark, of Mountain View, this 
 state ; Webster, a vineyardist residing on the 
 home place ; and Lizzie, wife of Rev. O. L. Rus- 
 sell, of Cloverdale, Sonoma county. Both the 
 paternal and maternal ancestors of Mrs. Potter 
 were of southern extraction. Her father, Greene 
 Washington Webster, was a native of North 
 Carolina and was the son of a southern planter. 
 The latter at an early age moved to Missouri, 
 where he and his wife (a Miss Leonard) both 
 passed away in life's prime. Left an orphan at 
 the age of eleven years, their son had neither 
 a good education nor ample means with which 
 to take up the battle of life. However, with 
 health and hope to aid him, he earned a liveli- 
 hood, amassed a competence and gained a repu- 
 tation for integrity. The occupation to which 
 he was apprenticed, that of a brick-mason, fur- 
 nished him with a meagre support in youth, and, 
 dissatisfied with the outlook, in 1852 he crossed 
 the plains to California, bringing a band of cat- 
 tle and consuming six months in the trip. The 
 first year in California was spent in Napa 
 county, after which he bought a tract in the 
 San Ramon valley. Contra Costa county, and 
 the estate there built up by him still bears his 
 name. After eleven years on that place he re- 
 moved to Vacaville, and carried on large stock 
 operations. While neglecting nothing that per- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. ' 
 
 13S9 
 
 tained to the management of his property, at the 
 same time he was active in rehgious affairs and 
 held membership with the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South. At the time of his death, in 
 1872, he was fifty-two years of age. During 
 early manhood he had established domestic ties 
 through his marriage to Jane C. Smith, who 
 was born in Tennessee and now makes her home 
 at No. 310 Howard street, Fresno. At the age 
 of one year she v/as taken by her parents to 
 Missouri, where her father settled in the Platte 
 purchase, became a large land-owner and also 
 was employed by the United States government 
 as blacksmith among the Kickapoo Indians. 
 Though now somewhat advanced in years (be- 
 ing seventy-seven), Mrs. Jane C. Webster main- 
 tains her interest in life's activities and particu- 
 larly in the welfare of the Methodist Episcopal 
 denomination, with which she has been identi- 
 fied for a long period. In her family there are 
 nine children, namely: Mrs. Mary Staton, of 
 Healdsburg, whose husband, Rev. F. M. Staton, 
 died at Gilroy; Mrs. Lizzie Ward, of Berkeley; 
 John M., of Fresno; Mattie J., Mrs. Potter, of 
 Fresno county; Mrs. Eliza Sifford, of Los An- 
 geles; Mrs. Mellie Trezise, of Amador county; 
 Morris S., of Fresno; Abbie, wife of George 
 Shipp, of Fresno; and Josie, wife of Wallace 
 Potter, of Fresno. Mrs. Potter was born in 
 Napa City and received an excellent education 
 in the Pacific Methodist College. Possessing 
 broad mental endowments, she has used her tal- 
 ents in the cause of religion, and has been an 
 active and successful worker in Sunday-school 
 and in missionary societies, aiding her husband 
 by the exercise of tact, judgment and enthusiastic 
 cooperation, as well as by a gentle Christian spirit 
 and devotion to the principles for which Christ 
 lived and died. 
 
 During early days, before Clovis was founded, 
 Mr. Potter felt the need of religious services, 
 and so aided in securing preaching at the Mis- 
 sissippi school once a month. Sunday-school was 
 held there each Lord's day, -and he was a leader 
 in the work. When Clovis started he and his 
 old friend, J. W. Gate, since deceased, deter- 
 mined to build a church. This was the first 
 church building erected in Clovis. Four lots 
 were bought, lumber was purchased, and a house 
 was constructed where the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South held the first religious services in 
 the town. Here also the first Sunday-school 
 was organized with about twelve children (since 
 increased to more than one hundred). In this 
 same building the Baptists organized their con- 
 gregation. Ever since then Mr. Potter has been 
 a teacher or superintendent of the Sunday-school 
 and with his wife has been a factor in the 
 religious life of the community, lending their 
 Christian influence to the building up of the 
 
 moral and religious life of the community. The 
 first regular minister in Fresno county was Rev. 
 David Latimer, who came in 1854 and who rode 
 a circuit from Millerton to Visalia. A man of 
 noble character and deep spirituality, he gave an 
 impetus to the early work of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South in this community and left 
 to his successors the example of a spotless min- 
 istry. The first congregation was established at 
 Millerton, the second at Scottsburg, and at this 
 writing the denomination has congregations at 
 Fresno, West Park, Clovis, Academy, Sanger, 
 Selma, Kingsburg, Dinuba, Orosi and Visalia, 
 all being well established congregations with 
 resident pastors. 
 
 Though a believer in Democratic principles, 
 Mr. Potter is not a partisan at heart, but a riian 
 of large and liberal sentiments, and stanchly in 
 sympathy with any movement for the benefit of 
 community) state and nation, whatever party 
 may stand sponsor for the same. In what is 
 now the Clovis (formerly the Mississippi) dis- 
 trict he served as a school trustee for some 
 years, and in that capacity, as in Sunday school 
 work, he proved a helpful factor in the upbuild- 
 ing of the community. Successful in life, pros- 
 perous and respected, he is an honor to his 
 county and to the citizenship of the community 
 with which his life for long years has been 
 closely identified. 
 
 ALEXANDER WATT, a man of unusual 
 ability, education and pleasing personality, has in- 
 herited his sterling qualities of mind and char- 
 acter from forefathers who were natives of Scot- 
 land, his own birth occurring in Aberdeen July 
 15, 1859. His father, George Watt, was drill 
 master and sergeant in the Ninety-second Regi- 
 ment Gordon Highlanders for seventeen years, 
 but is now living retired in Aberdeen. His moth- 
 er, formerly Margaret McKay, is now deceased. 
 There were nine children in the family, of whom 
 five are living. 
 
 Fifth in order of birth, Alexander Watt was 
 reared in Aberdeen until attaining his majority, 
 attending the public schools in pursuit of an edu- 
 cation. Following the example of his father he 
 was interested in military affairs and served as 
 gunner in a volunteer artillery company in Aber- 
 deen for three years. When sixteen years of 
 age he was apprenticed to learn the trade of 
 granite cutter, completing his apprenticeship five 
 years later, when he came to the United States, 
 and in Quincy, Mass., found employment in the 
 prosecution of his trade. He was later associated 
 with the Penryn quarries in Placer county, Cal., 
 subsequently going to Oregon, where for thirteen 
 years, or until they were completed, he was en- 
 gaged in cutting stone for the Cascade Locks. 
 
13C0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In 1895 he went to Jerome, Ariz., and was en- 
 gaged for two years in that place and New Mexi- 
 co as a stone cutter. In Raymond, Cal., he spent 
 some time as a granite cutter, then went to Rock- 
 lin, Cal., and in April, 1901, -entered the employ 
 of the Rocky Point Granite Works, as cutter. In 
 addition to his interest in this capacity he has 
 also homesteaded a claim of eighty acres, on Bad- 
 ger hill, and on the top and north side of Rocky 
 hill, in section 6, township 19, range 27, the view 
 from which was declared by the visiting Knights 
 Templar in 1902 to be one of the finest in Cali- 
 fornia, ranking next to Yosemite. Fraternally 
 Mr. Watt was made an Odd Fellow in Cascade 
 Locks, Ore., of which lodge he is still a member, 
 belongs to the encampment of Portland and the 
 canton of Visalia, and is a drill-master of Orange 
 Blossom Lodge of Rebekahs of Exeter. Politi- 
 cally he is a Republican, and in his religious con- 
 victions is a member of the Presbyterian Church. 
 
 A. W. PETREA. This well known and highly 
 respected citizen of Fresno county is a son of 
 Augustus Petrea, a native of Mecklenburg county, 
 N. C. A. W. Petrea was born near Charlotte, 
 N. C, in the same county, January 29, 1849. His 
 grandfather, Henry Petrea, served in the war of 
 1812 and died in Rowan county, N. C, where 
 his father had settled after he arrived in America 
 from Germany. Augustus Petrea settled in 
 Rowan county in 1852. During the Civil war he 
 served in a North Carolina Regiment, was cap- 
 tured and died in prison at Camp Chase, Ohio. 
 His wife, Jane Hunter, was a native of South 
 Carolina, and died in Rowan county. She was 
 married twice, by her union with John Bing- 
 ham becoming the mother of four children, 
 two of whom are now living. John C. and Henry 
 Joseph were soldiers during the Civil war. By 
 her marriage to Mr. Petrea four children also 
 were born, and two survive, of these Robert W. 
 was also a soldier in the Civil war. 
 
 A. W. Petrea was the third child born to his 
 parents. He was reared on their farm and at- 
 tended the common school and five months at 
 Mount Pleasant Academy, and after the death of 
 his father carried on the home farm for his 
 mother until his twenty-third year. He then 
 went to Dallas county, Ala., where he farmed for 
 two years. Pie then. spent three years in Missis- 
 sippi on the Yazoo river raising cotton, when, on 
 account of the climate, he started for California. 
 Arriving at Greene county, Ind., he stopped to 
 visit a sister, Mrs. Linn, and becoming interested 
 in farming ho continued for six years in that 
 place. May 8, 1885, he came to Fresno county 
 and located near the Toll House in Big Sandy val- 
 ley, where he pre-empted land. Two years later 
 he secured the contract for carrying' the mails 
 
 from Fresno to Toll House, a distance of forty 
 miles, and put on a stage, making trips twice a 
 week at first and later established daily trips, 
 using twenty horses. He continued this until 
 1897, when he sold the stage line and embarked 
 in the hotel and general merchandise business at 
 Toll House, also conducted a blacksmith shop and 
 lumber yard. In 1901 he sold these and pur- 
 chased a sawmill and machinery and moved it to 
 a tract of timber land he owned on Pine Ridge. 
 Here he built a mill with a capacity of twenty- 
 five thousand feet per day, operated by steam 
 power, and at present is conducting an extensive 
 iDusiness, hauling to Fresno by teams, a distance 
 of fifty-two miles, using twelve-horse teams, tak- 
 ing eight days for a round trip, and hauling 
 about t-en thousand feet to the load. In 1902 
 he established a retail lumber business at the cor- 
 ner of Fresno and Illinois avenue, also erected 
 a store and conducts a merchandise business. He 
 is also interested in mining on Laurel creek, Fres- 
 no county. 
 
 Mr. Petrea was married in North Carolina to 
 Laura Petrea, a native of that state, whose father 
 was a cabinet-maker. They are the parents of 
 five children now living : Jane E., wife of George 
 Hawkins, living near Malaga ; Allen Anthony ; 
 Ancil Lee ; Perry L. ; and Louis, who remain 
 with their parents. Mr. and Mrs. Petrea are 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal QiuiTh, 
 South, of Fresno. He is a member of the Fra- 
 ternal Aid, and in politics is a Democrat. Since 
 Mr. Petrea has been a resident of the San Joaquin 
 valley he has had the interests of the people at 
 heart, has contributed liberally for wortliy en- 
 terprises, and as a business man is respected for 
 his integrity and straightforward methods. As 
 a friend and neighbor he has been most valued 
 and has made a host of friends. His business 
 abihty secured him a competency, and his fine 
 qualities of head and heart have won for him a 
 host of friends who rejoice in his continued suc- 
 cess and who wish him many more years of hap- 
 piness and prosperity. 
 
 A. LEWIS BOLLIN. Numbered among the 
 progressive and enterprising men of Reedley, 
 Fresno county, Cal., is A. Lewis Bollin, a mem- 
 ber of the firm of Bollin & Mathews, the principal 
 hardware merchants of this place. He was born 
 in Cooper county. Mo., September 2, 1871, a son 
 of A. Lewis Bollin, Sr., who was a native of Ger- 
 many, and who immigrated to the United States 
 and located in Cooper coimty. Mo. Later in life he 
 went to Kansas for a time, eventually returning 
 to Missouri, where he followed blacksmithing un- 
 til his death, which occurred in 1872. His wife 
 was in maidenhood Minnie Miller. They be- 
 
c^i^^^uuX. (f^X^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1393 
 
 came the parents of ten children, of whom A. 
 Lewis, Jr., was next to the youngest. 
 
 The early education of A. Lewis Bollin was 
 received in the common schools of his native 
 state, being able to obtain, however, but one 
 year's instruction. The fund of information and 
 knowledge which Mr. Bollin now possesses is 
 the result of 3rears of patient endeavor, reading 
 and observation, acquired entirely bv his own ef- 
 forts. He worked on the home place and also 
 learned the trade of blacksmith, and after his ar- 
 rival in California, in January, 1889, he located 
 in Los Angeles. He then secured employment on 
 a ranch near Traver, Tulare county, after which 
 he clerked in a store in that place. In 1897 he 
 came to Reedley and engaged in a blacksmith and 
 machine shop, known by the firm name of Drake 
 & Bollin. They were burned out in 1900, and 
 the following year he engaged as a blacksmith in- 
 dependently. In February, 1902, he sold out and 
 in partnership with C. W. Mathews purchased 
 the stock of the Gosliner Brothers, who were con- 
 ducting a general merchandise business, and un- 
 der the firm name of Bollin, Mathews & Co., the 
 new enterprise was established. In August of 
 the same year they were burned out, their loss, 
 however, being covered by insurance. In Octo- 
 ber of 1903 they engaged in a general hardware 
 business, under the firm name of Bollin & Math- 
 ews, carrying a full line of agricultural imple- 
 ment's, etc. They are very successful in this busi- 
 ness enterprise, both Mr. Bollin and his partner 
 being men of business sagacity and practical 
 judgment. 
 
 In 1891, in Fresno, Mr. Bollin married Ellen 
 Root, a native of California, and they are the 
 parents of three children, all at home, namely: 
 Roy, Nelson and Elsie. Fraternally Mr. Bollin 
 is a member of the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows in which he has passed all the chairs, 
 now being past grand of this lodge, and also be- 
 longs to tjie Rebekahs. He affiliates with the In- 
 dependent Order of Foresters, in which he has 
 also passed all the chairs. Politically he is active 
 in the cotmcils of the Republican party, having 
 been elected a delegate to the county convention 
 in 1904, being then a member of the county cen- 
 tral committee. Mr. Bollin has had many re- 
 verses in his business career, but he has allowed 
 nothing to daunt him or to lessen his courage. He 
 lias continued to give his best efforts to win a 
 competence and has succeeded agitinst heavy 
 odds. He enjoys the esteem and confidence of all 
 who know him. 
 
 ALFRED BAIRD. At an early period in 
 the colonization of America the Baird fam- 
 ily crossed the ocean from England and 
 identified themselves with the forces strug- 
 
 gling to develop the new world. To their 
 English determination of will they added the 
 traits of thrift and economy inherited from re- 
 mote Scotch ancestry, and thus they were fitted 
 admirably to cope with the undeveloped condi- 
 tions of the American soil. Josiah Baird, a 
 native of New York state, proved himself a 
 worthy representative of the race. Possessing 
 characteristics which qualified him for the ardu- 
 ous existence of the pioneer, early in life he 
 blazed a way through the forests of Ohio and 
 settled in the midst of a tract of great old oak 
 trees. When these were cleared he began to till 
 the soil, meanwhile building for his family a 
 log cabin of rude appearance, but possessing the 
 comfort of the hospitable frontier home. After 
 many years in Ohio he sold his farm and moved 
 to Winneshiek county, Iowa, where he success- 
 fully conducted farm pursuits during the re- 
 mainder of his active years. Notwithstanding a 
 life filled with the most arduous pioneer work, 
 he was spared in health and activity to the age 
 of ninety-three years. During the existence of 
 the Whig party he supported its principles and 
 later became one of the original supporters of 
 the Republican party. In religion he affiliated 
 with the United Brethren Church. His wife, 
 who bore the maiden name of Sarah Ryland, was 
 born in Wayne county, Ohio, and died in Iowa. 
 Of their seven children the second, Alfred, alone 
 survives. One of the sons, Warren, enlisted in 
 the Union army at the opening of the Civil war 
 and went to the front as a member of the Twen- 
 ty-seventh Iowa Infantry, remaining in service 
 until his death at Little Rock, Ark., before the 
 close of the war. 
 
 The pioneer home of Josiah Baird in Rich- 
 land (now Ashland) county, Ohio, forms the 
 earliest recollections of Alfred Baird, who was 
 born there November 16, 1829, and as a boy 
 aided in clearing the land from its heavy forest 
 growth. When not needed at home he was 
 permitted to attend a school held in a log build- 
 ing near by. The furniture of the schoolhouse 
 was as crude as the building itself. Slab benches 
 afforded the children little comfort, while the 
 slab desk was for use and not for ornament. 
 Text-books were inferior to those of the present 
 day and teachers often illy educated, yet children 
 who wanted to learn had no difficulty in acquir- 
 ing a knowledge of the three Rs. At the age 
 of sixteen Alfred Baird became an apprentice 
 to the carpenter's trade in Ashland. At the ex- 
 piration of a service of two years he took up 
 the work of a journeyman. In the spring of 
 1850 he left Ohio and traveled by the great lakes 
 to Wisconsin, where he crossed to Portage and 
 thence to McGregor, Iowa. Under the employ 
 of Mr. McGregor he aided in the erection -of 
 some of the first houses in different towns in 
 
1394 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 that part of Iowa, and for eight years he fol- 
 lowed the building business. Each day he earned 
 enough to buv an acre of land, and he invested 
 in property until he had acquired eight hundred 
 acres. Meanwhile a brother-in-law came to 
 Iowa and left $1200 with him to buy school land 
 as it came into the market, and this Mr. Baird 
 did in addition to purchasing his own holdings. 
 
 Though prosperous to an unusual degree, Mr. 
 Baird found the climate of Iowa too cold to 
 be congenial, and he determined to seek a home 
 where conditions would be more favorable from 
 the standpoint of personal comfort. Selling out 
 in 1859, he brought his wife and two children 
 across the plains. They left Iowa in April with 
 four yoke of oxen, crossed the Missouri river 
 at Council Bluffs, and landed at Kings river, 
 Fresno county, on the 8th of October. Settling 
 in the Upper Kings River valley, Mr. Baird im- 
 mediately set to work to erect a log cabin four- 
 teen feet square, his wife persuading him to 
 make a puncheon floor. For a time he followed 
 the carpenter's trade in this locality. Taking 
 up a homestead claim, he built a comfortable 
 house, and the next summer, i860, brought a 
 seven-mile ditch from the mountains. The ter- 
 rible flood of 1 86 1 destroyed his orchard and 
 the house which he had recently erected. The 
 barn was carried up stream by a strong cur- 
 rent, but the house, being tied down, remained 
 in its place. Mr. Baird afterward took a band 
 of sheep on shares. The outbreak of the Civil 
 war depreciated the value of wool to such an 
 extent that shipments were impracticable, and 
 the wool was utilized for upholstering purposes 
 in San Francisco. When the railroad was com- 
 pleted the demand for wool increased to such 
 an extent that he was enabled to sell it for 
 forty-five cents per pound, delivered at White's 
 Bridge. At first he kept the sheep near Sand 
 creek, but after a year he took them to the St. 
 Johns river, near Visalia, where he bought a 
 half section of land. Owing to another disas- 
 trous flood he was driven out of that section. 
 
 During 1868 Mr. Baird removed to Letcher, 
 Fresno county, and homesteaded a portion of 
 his present ranch, where he embarked in the 
 sheep business. Naturally he encountered con- 
 siderable antagonism from cattlemen, but he 
 held his own against their formidable opposi- 
 tion, and gradually increased his herd until he 
 at one time had as many as five thousand head. 
 In 1887 he sold his flocks of sheep and began 
 to raise cattle and also to devote considerable 
 attention to grain. In early days no one sup- 
 posed the grazing lands were adapted for grain. 
 Accidentally some barley hauled to the cattle 
 was tramped into the ground and the rains 
 caused it to sprout, producing as fine a crop 
 of barley as cultivated land made possible. Peo- 
 
 ple quickly acted after this and soon grain was 
 being raised on the former grazing lands. In 
 other places it was found that the land that 
 was almost too barren for sheep pasturage could 
 be profitably utilized for vineyards and orchards, 
 hence these occupations began to attract new set- 
 tlers to the locality. 
 
 By gradual purchase Mr. Baird has acquired 
 six thousand acres in a body fourteen miles east 
 of Clovis, three thousand five hundred acres 
 of this being fine grain land. On section 19 he 
 erected a comfortable residence and the othej 
 buildings necessary to a model ranch, in addf- 
 tion to which he has five other sets of improve- 
 ments scattered over the large acreage. Besides 
 his vast tracts here he owns six hundred and 
 forty acres (the old Hughes place) about seven' 
 miles southwest of his home, and also owns one 
 thousand acres near Visalia, all of which prop- 
 erty is rented to tenants. The first oranges in 
 this part of the state were raised on his. ranch. 
 The work accomplished by him in stock-raising, 
 farming and horticulture has been along pioneer 
 lines and will prove most helpful to the future 
 development of the region. To an unusual de- 
 gree Mr. and Mrs. Baird possess the pioneer 
 trait of hospitality. The guest to their home is 
 welcomed with unfeigned cordiality. A visit 
 there is an event never to be forgotten, and chief 
 among the memories which the guest carries 
 away is the thought of the unfailing courtesy 
 extended. 
 
 At Washington Prairie, Winneshiek county, 
 Iowa, February 17, 1853, occurred the marriage 
 of Alfred Baird and Lydia K. Beard, a na- 
 tive of Yellow Springs, Greene county, Ohio, 
 born December 2, 1829. Her father, Benja- 
 min Beard, was bom on the Susquehanna river 
 in Pennsylvania, and removed to Greene county, 
 Ohio, thence to Laporte county, Ind., and after- 
 ward to Winneshiek county, Iowa, where he be- 
 came a prominent farmer. For a half century 
 he oiflciated as an elder in the Presbyterian 
 Church and at the time of his death he had 
 reached the age of ninety-three, dying in Cal- 
 ifornia at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Baird. 
 During early manhood he had married Mary 
 Ann Knott, who was born in New Jersey, and 
 was a daughter of Peter Knott, also born in 
 that state. At an early period the Knott family 
 settled in Greene county, Ohio, where Peter 
 Knott passed his last days. Mrs. Mary Ann 
 Beard came to California and died in the home 
 of her daughter, Mrs. Baird, when seventy-one 
 years of age. Of her eleven children five are 
 living. One of her sons, James, served in an 
 Iowa regiment during the Civil war, and later 
 came to California, where he now makes his 
 home at Laytonville, Mendocino county. In the 
 family of Mr. and Mrs. Baird there were six 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1395 
 
 children, namely: Benjamin Morgan, now a 
 farmer in Fresno county; Addison, who died in 
 Visalia at the age of twelve years; Lewis Ed- 
 wm, also deceased; Mrs. Sarah A. Rutherford, 
 who resides with her parents; Matie Ellen, who 
 died in Santa Clara at the age of seven years; 
 and Florence G., Mrs. Rollo Keeler, of Tulare 
 county. 
 
 During the memorable political campaign of 
 i860 Mr. Baird was an ardent admirer of Abra- 
 ham Lincoln and cast a ballot for him in the 
 election at Scottsburg, but the returns showed 
 no Republican votes cast. It was his privilege 
 to be present at the first Republican meeting held 
 in Fresno county, and on that occasion he was 
 nominated for the state assembly, but of course 
 in those days the ticket had no chance for vic- 
 tory. Always he has been stanch in his ad- 
 herence to Republican principles, no less in the 
 days when those principles were new and un- 
 popular than now, when a Republican presi- 
 dential candidate at the last election received an 
 overwhelming majority. Though not personally 
 connected with any denomination, he is a be- 
 liever m religious work and contributes to the 
 Presbyterian Church, of which his wife long has 
 been a member. 
 
 JOHN R. MULLINIX is a prominent and 
 representative citizen of the Hanford district, in 
 Kings county, Cal. He is rapidly nearing his 
 eighty-second milestone, and for more than a 
 quarter of a century has been a resident of this 
 county. His identification with Kings county dates 
 back to 1877, when it was a part oi Tulare 
 county. The first two years after locating here 
 he rented land near Hanford and was afterward 
 enabled to purchase an eighty-acre ranch in the 
 same locaHty. At the time of purchase this land 
 was a wild, sandy desert and contained only one 
 tree. Here he helped put in the first irrigation 
 ditches, and from the desert made a home, and 
 upon this land, which is four miles southwest 
 from Hanford, Mr. Mullinix has passed the in- 
 tervening years of his life in general farm pur- 
 suits. Although advanced in years, he is still 
 able to oversee aflfairs on his place, which he 
 leases to his grandson, with whom he makes his 
 home. 
 
 A Tennesseean by birth, John R. Mullinix was 
 born in Greene county of that state, November 
 27, 1822, and is a son of William and Elizabeth 
 (Reed) Mullinix, the former also born in Ten- 
 nessee and the latter a native of Scotland. The 
 father, a lifelong farmer by occupation, served 
 with distinction under Gen. Andrew Jackson, 
 and was severely wounded in the left shoulder. 
 He died at an advanced age and his wife was 
 also about sixty years old at the time of her 
 
 death. John R. spent his boyhood" days at home 
 with his parents until he reached his majority. 
 He then began farming on his own account, re- 
 maining in the home locality until 1849. He then 
 went west to Monroe county, Iowa, when that 
 country was new and undeveloped, and here for 
 a period of nineteen years he followed general 
 farming and stock-raising, when he sold out and 
 removed to Schuyler county. Mo. Here he pur- 
 chased one hundred and twenty acres of land and 
 continued his favorite vocation until 1877, sell- 
 ing out at that time and locating permanently in 
 California. In this vicinity Mr. Mullinix still 
 owns his original purchase, and his farm is well 
 improved and highly productive. 
 
 He was joined in marriage with Miss Alzara 
 Brandon, who was born in Tennessee and died in 
 1902 at the advanced age of seventy-four years. 
 This aged couple reared three children ; of these, 
 Esther, the eldest, is the wife of George Fees, 
 of Exeter, Cal. ; Eliza, the second child, mar- 
 ried Stephen Hicks, of Kings county ; and Eliza- 
 beth, the youngest, married Peter Scazighim, of 
 Grangeville, in the same county. Politically Mr. 
 Mullinix is an ardent Democrat, and he is highly 
 esteemed in his locality. He has not only been a 
 practical farmer, but a good business man in 
 every particular, having made friends of "all with 
 whom he has had dealings. In his younger days 
 he was a man of splendid physique and of stal- 
 wart frame, being six feet in height, with an aver- 
 age weight vin his prime of one hundred and 
 eighty pounds. It is a remarkable fact that he 
 reads now without the aid of glasses, nor 
 has he ever used them. Mr. Mullinix enlist- 
 ed in Company G, Forty-sixth Iowa Regiment, 
 and served three months as a private in Memphis, 
 Tenn., and in Mississippi, and while in the serv- 
 ice he threw the champion wrestler, a strong and 
 powerful man of the regiment, which contained 
 one thousand men. His military career was cut 
 short by illness, however, and after being sick for 
 six weeks he returned to his home and did not re- 
 enlist. 
 
 WILLIAM HENRY SEAWARD. Pennsyl- 
 vania has furnished California with many of 
 her most substantial and highly respected citi- 
 zens. Among those who have migrated from 
 that state here is W. H. Seaward. His birth 
 occurred in Bradford, McKean county, Septem- 
 ber 26, 1846, a son of J. S. and Daphne D. (Farr) 
 Seaward. The father was born in Allegany 
 county, N. Y., August 7, 1816, and in 1840 re- 
 moved to Pennsylvania, where he engaged in 
 school teaching. He is still living, making his 
 home in Bradford, at the advanced age of eighty- 
 eight years. To Mr. and Mrs. Seaward were 
 
1396 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 born twelve children and of this large family, 
 W. H. was the third child. 
 
 William Henry Seaward was educated in the 
 common schools oi his native state and was 
 also instructed at home, his father being a man 
 of exceptionally fine attainments. On starting 
 out in life for himself he learned the occupa- 
 tion of a stationary engineer and for twenty 
 years acted as an engineer in the oil regions of 
 the Keystone state. In July, 1898, he removed 
 to Washington county, the same state, where 
 he resided until 1893, the year of his removal 
 to California. His first home in this state was 
 at Kingsburg, where he still resides, having pur- 
 chased his present place of twenty acres. Here 
 he is now conducting a very successful fruit 
 business, also devoting some attention to the 
 growing- of alfalfa. Aside from his private ven- 
 tures he is a stockholder in the Co-operative 
 Packing Association, having served for two years 
 as a director. 
 
 In Jamestown, N. Y., was celebrated the mar- 
 riage of Mr. Seaward and Miss Anna EL Mar- 
 tin. She is a native of Sweden and by her 
 union has become the mother of four children : 
 Charles Leonard, Gale W., Sophia Amelia and 
 Lizzie Margaret. All are at home with the 
 exception of the first named, who is engaged in 
 carrying the mail on Route I. All his life a 
 stanch Republican, Mr. Seaward has taken an 
 active interest in the affairs of his party. Three 
 times he has served as a delegate to the county 
 convention and in otUer ways has done a great 
 deal to assist the candidates, but as for himself 
 he has never cared to seek public favor. He 
 and his wife are highly respected and have 
 hosts of friends. Mr. Seaward has made a suc- 
 cess of his life and is now enabled to enjoy his 
 declining years surrounded by every comfort. 
 
 A. S. EDGERLY. A resident of California 
 and Fresno county since 1887, A. S. Edgerly has 
 been actively engaged in the upbuilding of the 
 city of Fresno since that date. He was born in 
 New Hampton, N. H., March 15, 1834, a son of 
 David and Sarah (Sanborn) Edgerly, both of 
 whom were born in Meredith, N. H., and there 
 died at advanced ages. The grandfather, Samuel 
 Edgerly, was born in the New England states, of 
 Ebglish parentage. On the maternal side the 
 grandfather, Asa L. Sanborn, was of English an- 
 cestry and was a farmer. Edwin and Orrin Ed- 
 gerly were soldiers in the Civil war, the former 
 being wounded in an engagement. 
 
 The sixth in order of birth of twelve children, 
 A. S. Edgerly was reared on a farm in New 
 Hampshire, at New Hampton and Meredith, un- 
 til nineteen years of age, being given such ad- 
 vantages as the common schools afforded. He 
 
 entered New Hampton Institution, then Hills- 
 dale College, where he remained but one year, 
 when, on account of failing health, he was obliged 
 to leave. He engaged in teaching near Cuthbert, 
 Ga., in 1859, as proprietor of Springvale Insti- 
 tute, and remained at the head of that institution 
 until 1866, at which time he went to Sandwich, 
 Mass., as principal of the high school, and held 
 that position four years. Engaging then in the 
 life insurance business, he was made special state 
 agent for Vermont of the Continental Life In- 
 surance Company of New York. 
 
 In 1873 he removed to Otoe county. Neb., and 
 at Palmyra purchased six hundred and forty acres 
 of railroad land and engaged in the stock busi- 
 ness until 1875, when he removed to Lincoln and 
 went into the hardware business under the firm 
 name of Parker & Edgerly, which continued four 
 years. The partnership being dissolved, Mr. Ed- 
 gerly embarked in the real estate business, buy- 
 ing, improving and selling residence and business 
 properties until 1887. Disposing of his interests, 
 he located in California and at once settled in 
 Fresno, where he engaged in the real estate busi- 
 ness. Having a firm belief in the future of that 
 city, in '1889 he manufactured the brick and erect- 
 ed the Edgerly block on the corner of Tulare and 
 J streets. In 1891 he built an addition, the 
 whole being 150x70 feet, with an L 40x80 feet, 
 three stories high. He also improved consider- 
 able residence and other business property in 
 the cit}'. Among his other enterprises worthy 
 of special mention is the laying out of the Hart- 
 ley addition of ten acres into lots, which was soon 
 disposed of. With William Harvey and W. R. 
 Thomas he laid out the Belmont addition of 
 eighty acres, which was sold off in two months 
 in city lots, with the exception of three blocks 
 which had been reserved. He now owns two 
 hundred acres, one mile north of Fresna on 
 Blackstone avenue, which is devoted to a vine- 
 yard, and also has an orchard and vineyard of 
 forty acres near Fowler. 
 
 At West Sandwich (now Sagamore), Mass., 
 August 6, 1859, Mr. Edgerly was united in mar- 
 riage with Lydia E. Crowell, who was a native 
 of that place and a daughter of Paul and Lydia 
 (Ellis) Crowell, both natives of Massachusetts, 
 the former of Dennis and the latter of Plymouth. 
 Of their six children three are now living, Mrs. 
 Edgerly being the second in order of birth. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Edgerly six children have been 
 born, namely : Willie Alberto, a vineyardist ; 
 Nellie Effie D., wife of R. E. Wheeler, of Fresno; 
 Lillian May Rebecca, the wife of J. S. Gardner^ 
 of Fresno; Charles D., at home; Fred Lincoln 
 and Nellie Elsie died in infancy. 
 
 Through the influence of Mr. Edgerly the lo- 
 cation of the postoffice was secured for the cor- 
 ner of Tulare and J streets, by giving the lower 
 
-^ --y ' <^L^u^rz^{rz^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1399 
 
 floor space, 50x70 feet, to the government for 
 use for a term of years free of charge, with the 
 understanding that the property holders adjacent 
 to that corner would pay the rent of one-half the 
 space. This arrangement was entered into and 
 was carried out for only a few months, when the 
 property owners repudiated their part of the 
 agreement, with the exception of Dr. Chester 
 Rowell, who still fulfills his part. In this way 
 Mr. Edgerly practically gave the use of his build- 
 ing gratis from 1891 until he sold it in 1895. 
 
 In politics a Republican, Mr. Edgerly has al- 
 ways had the interests of the party at heart, 
 though never an aspirant for official recognition. 
 As one of the enterprising citizens of Fresno 
 county, he has ever been a supporter of measures 
 that have had for their object the advancement 
 of the people and the prestige of Fresno in the 
 San Joaquin valley. His success in life has been 
 of his own making, and in the annals of his adopt- 
 ed state his name is entitled to enrollment among 
 the progressive builders of a commonwealth. 
 
 SAMUEL T. BROWN. Twenty-one years 
 ago Mr. Brown came to California with pnly 
 $10 in his pocket, and to-day he is one of the 
 most substantial farmers in Fresno county, a 
 result which has been brought about by his 
 own untiring efforts. He has labored indus- 
 triously, saved his money, and with a keen judg- 
 ment has invested his savings in land that will, 
 as time passes, greatly increase in value. A 
 native of Tennessee, Mr. Brown was born in 
 Sparta, White county, September 28, i860, a 
 son of Samuel Brown, who was a native of the 
 same state. In 1849 he rounded the Horn and 
 came to California, where he remained until 
 1852, spending the time in the mines. In the 
 latter year he returned east and with the money 
 that he had saved purchased a fine farm in 
 Tennessee, where he is now living at the age 
 of seventy-eight years.* His wife in maidenhood 
 was a Miss Rebecca Henry and by her union 
 became the mother of eight children, six of whom 
 are living. Mrs. Brown is now .in her seventy- 
 seventh year, and, like her husband, is enjoy- 
 ing good health. Both are active members of the 
 Presbyterian Qiurch and have a large circle of 
 friends. 
 
 Samuel T. Brown was the fourth child in 
 the parental family. He remained at home un- 
 til 1884, when he followed in the footsteps of 
 his father and came to California, but, unlike 
 the latter, he has remained here, and his efforts 
 have been handsomely rewarded. The first two 
 years after locating here Mr. Brown worked 
 on different farms in the vicinity of Modesto, 
 and was later employed near Fresno for a year. 
 At the end of that time, having in the mean- 
 
 time saved enough to purchase the necessary 
 equipment, he rented a ranch of six hundred and 
 forty acres and began raising wheat. From the 
 first his efforts met with success, and as time 
 passed he increased his acreage until at one 
 time he was farming two thousand acres. In 
 1892, with the money he had accumulated, he 
 began buying land in the Garfield country, which 
 he farmed, together with leased lands. In 1897 
 he purchased the place where he is now living, 
 one of the finest properties in this section of 
 the county. From time to time he has added 
 to his first purchase until he now owns ten hun- 
 dred and twenty acres, all under cultivation with 
 the exception of one hundred and sixty acres in 
 Aubrey valley, which is used for grazing pur- 
 poses. The three hundred-acre tract in the Gar- 
 field country is devoted to grain and on his home 
 place he has a twenty-acre vineyard. Located 
 four miles east of Clovis, the ranch is one of 
 the most valuable properties in the county. It 
 is equipped vvith a pumping plant, which sup- 
 plies water to the entire tract. 
 
 In Fresno county was celebrated the marriage 
 of Mr. Brown and Lydia Beard, who is a 
 native of California. To this union have been 
 born five children, viz. : Walter Gate, Qiarles 
 Kenneth, Samuel Lloyd, and Lydia Irene and 
 Lourine Rebecca, twins. Mrs. Brown and the 
 children are members of the Christian Church, 
 which denomination is also liberally supported 
 by Mr. Brown. In poHtics he is inclined to be 
 liberal. In national questions he votes with the 
 Democrats, but in local affairs he believes in 
 supporting the man best qualified for the office, 
 regardless of party lines. He himself has never 
 cared for office, and althoiigh he has often as- 
 sisted in the election of others, he prefers to de- 
 vote his time to his own business. In carving 
 out a fortune Mr. Brown has never allowed him- 
 self to become selfish, but at all times has liber- 
 ally given of his time and means to support any 
 movement calculated to be of material benefit to 
 his adopted state. 
 
 CHARLES D. BOYDSTON. The misfortune 
 of failing health, which compelled Qiarles D. 
 Boydston to seek a milder climate, has resulted 
 in added business for Porters ville, Tulare county, 
 where he located and is now carrying on an ex- 
 tensive business as an orange grower. A native 
 of Orrville, Ohio, he was born October 15, 1866. 
 His father, Solon Boydston, was a native of the 
 same place, his father, Thomas, a patriot of the 
 Revolutionary war, being an early settler from 
 Virginia. He was a farmer and died in Ohio. 
 Solon Boydston was in the lumber manufacturing 
 business for years, and later engaged as a furni- 
 ture and casket manufacturer, his plant being lo- 
 
1400 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cated in Orrville, where he became the most 
 prominent undertaker. He was accidentally killed 
 while serving as county coroner, about 1889. 
 During the Civil war he served valiantly, enlist- 
 ing in the One Hundred and Twentieth Regi- 
 ment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry in 1861. His 
 wife, formerly Kate Schultz, a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania, survives her husband, and now makes her 
 home in Chicago with her son, Frank T. They 
 were the parents of two sons and two daughters, 
 of whom Charles D. was the eldest. 
 
 Reared in Orrville, Ohio, Charles D. Boydston 
 received his education in the common schools of 
 that place and the high school, from which he 
 was graduated in 1882. In the same year he 
 went to Chicago' and engaged in the undertaking 
 business, which he had learned under his father. 
 With his brother he established an extensive busi- 
 ness, being located at the corner of Forty-second 
 street and Cottage Grove avenue, having about 
 thirty men in their employ. Their business, 
 which is the most extensive of its kind in the 
 United States, is in charge of Frank T. Boyd- 
 ston,' who is in Chicago. Mr. Boydston came to 
 California in 1900 to recover from the effects of 
 a severe paralytic stroke. In partnership with 
 his brother he bought his present place, which 
 consists of eight hundred acres five miles south- 
 east of Portersville, one hundred and thirty acres 
 being planted in Washington navels from one to 
 four years old. In the spring of 1906 it is Mr. 
 Boydston's intention to set out two hundred and 
 fifty acres additional in oranges, as the climate 
 is especially adapted to the cultivation of this 
 fruit. 
 
 In Chicago Mr. Boydston was united in mar- 
 riage with Nellie B. Sprague, a native of that 
 place, and they are the parents of two sons, Solon 
 James, aged thirteen, and Charles Raymond, 
 eight years of age. Mr. Boydston is a member 
 of the Methodist Episcopal Church, known as 
 the Oakland Church, of Chicago, 111., and polit- 
 ically is independent, reserving the right to cast 
 his ballot for the candidate whom he considers 
 best qualified for public office. Fraternally he be- 
 longs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows 
 of Chicago, and the Knights of Pythias of the 
 same city, and the Sons of Veterans. 
 
 HENRY C. WITT. The present postmaster 
 of Success, Tulare county, Henry C. Witt is a 
 citizen who commands the respect and esteem of 
 all who have had business dealings with him. He 
 also conducts a general store in that place, as 
 well as participating actively in the agricultural 
 interests of the section. A native son of the state, 
 he was born in Sacramento countv, Cal., Febru- 
 ary II, 1868. His father, Henry Witt, was born 
 in Rhea county, Tenn., and in 1852 removed to 
 
 Texas, thence crossed the plains to California 
 the following year, driving a herd of cattle for 
 James Houston. Upon his arrival in the state he 
 located near Sacramento, devoting his time to 
 farming and giving some attention to mining at 
 Brown's Flat and Nevada City. In 1872 he lo- 
 cated in the San Joaquin valley, homesteading one 
 hundred and sixty acres on the South Tule river, 
 where he farmed and set out the first orange 
 grove in this section. His death occurred there 
 in 1897, at the age of sixty years. His wife, for- 
 merly Anna Murray, of Pennsylvania, survives 
 him, now making her home in Portersville, Tu- 
 lare county. They were the parents of nine chil- 
 dren, six sons and three daughters, of whom 
 Henry C. Witt is the second in order of birth. 
 
 The education of Henry C. Witt was obtained 
 in the common schools of California, after which 
 he engaged in farming and stock-raising with 
 his father. Later he gave his attention to the cul- 
 tivation of oranges, ten acres of the sixty whidi 
 he now owns being devoted to that fruit. In 
 1903 he received the appointment which gave to 
 him the postmastership of the office at Success, 
 since which time he has combined those duties 
 with his work as a merchant. He is a Democrat 
 in his political convictions. February 11, 1902, 
 he was united in marriage with Mattie Livingston, 
 also a native of the state and daughter of J. H. 
 Livingston, one of the earliest pioneers, her birth 
 having occurred in Martinez, Contra Costa 
 county. 
 
 DANIEL BROWN, Jr. A man of rare per- 
 sonality and attainments, Daniel Brown, Jr., 
 is cashier of the Fresno National Bank. A na- 
 tive son of the state, he was born in Petaluma, 
 Sonoma county, in 1863, the second in a family 
 of seven children. His father, Daniel Brown, was 
 a native of Tipperary, Ireland, who came to 
 America and located first in New York city. In 
 1851 he came to California via the Isthmus of 
 Panama, and after his arrival in San Francisco 
 engaged in the mercantile business in that city. 
 He afterward 'located in Petaluma, and in 1856 
 started the banking business of that place, be- 
 coming vice-president of the Wickesham Bank- 
 ing Company, and later president of the same. 
 He was also vice-president of the Savings Bank 
 of Santa Rosa. His death occurred in 1902, and 
 up to the last he remained active in the business 
 life which had known the value of his master- 
 mind for so many years. Politically he was also 
 active, being an adherent of the principles of the 
 Democratic party, having served on the state 
 committee and various other committees. His 
 wife, formerly Annie Ferguson, survives him and 
 now resides in San Francisco. 
 
 Daniel Brown, Jr., was reared in Petaluma, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1401 
 
 receiving a preliminary education in the public 
 schools of that place, after which he entered the 
 University of California, then the Hastings Law 
 College, graduating from the latter institution in 
 1884, with the degree of LL. B. He was ad- 
 mitted to the bar and practiced for about a year, 
 when he gave up the profession and secured a 
 position in the cashier's office in the United 
 States Mint at San Francisco. In 1890 he came 
 to Fresno and for six years engaged in the livery 
 business on I street, in 1900 accepting the position 
 of assistant cashier of the Fresno National Bank, 
 in which he had been a director for several years. 
 In 1902 he became cashier of the bank, which 
 position he has since retained, to the upbuilding 
 and progress of the bank. He is also director in 
 the Fresno Land and Investment Company and 
 the Central Land and Trust Company. Frater- 
 nally he is a charter member of the Sequoia Club, 
 of which he is a director and treasurer. Politic- 
 ally he is a Democrat and is an ex-member of the 
 county central committee. 
 
 JOHN RANDOLPH HITCHCOCK. Among 
 the men who have been instrumental in the de- 
 velopment of the rich agricultural resources of 
 Tulare county, John Randolph Hitchcock holds 
 no unimportant place. He is an extensive land- 
 holder, one of the largest stockmen of Tulare 
 county, and one of Tulare's most esteemed and 
 influential citizens. Although the greater part 
 of his time is given to the care of his private in- 
 terests, he never neglects his duty as a public- 
 spirited citizen, but as opportunity offers assists 
 in the establishment of all beneficial and progres- 
 sive enterprises. The son of the late Hon. J. R. 
 W. Hitchcock, a prominent pioneer of Califor- 
 nia, he was born February 10, 1864, in San 
 Joaquin county, of English ancestry. His grand- 
 father. Rev. John Hitchcock, was born in Eng- 
 land, and after his immigration to the United 
 States settled in Virginia, locating first in Rich- 
 mond as a blacksmith and machinist, and later 
 becoming pastor of a Baptist church. He died in 
 Richmond in 1851. 
 
 Born, reared and educated in Richmond, Va., 
 J. R. W. Hitchcock learned the machinists' trade 
 when young. In 1849, excited by the thrilling 
 stories of the abundance of gold to be obtained 
 in California, he came around Cape Horn on a 
 sailing vessel, and after a vovage of six months 
 landed in . San Francisco. The following two 
 years he worked in the mines at Sonoma and 
 Jimtown, meeting with fair success. Entering 
 land on the French Camp road, eleven miles from 
 Stockton, in 1851, he began his career as a farm- 
 er and stock-raiser. Making money in these pur- 
 suits, he subsequently bought adjoining land, be- 
 coming possessor of sixteen hundred acres in 
 
 one body, and was one of the first extensive grain 
 growers of that locality. He also became the 
 owner of another good ranch. In the manage- 
 ment of public affairs he was very prominent, 
 and as one of the delegates to the Constitutional 
 Convention of 1880 assisted in the framing of 
 the present state laws. He was one of the direct- 
 ors of the Stockton Agricultural Association, and 
 was interested in the building of the first canal 
 in that section of the state ; and was likewise one 
 of the originators of the Stockton Farmers' 
 Union, in which he served as a director for many 
 years. Deeply interested in religious matters, he 
 was an active and valued member of the Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian Church. He died on the home 
 farm in 1901, at the age of seventy-two years, 
 his death being deplored as a public loss. 
 
 J. R. W. Hitchcock was married twice. He 
 married, first, Mary Elizabeth Dickey, who was 
 born in Missouri, and died on the home farm, 
 near Stockton, at the early age of thirty years. 
 Her father, Alexander Dickey, came to California 
 as a pioneer in the early '50s, settling first at 
 Point of Timber, Contra Costa county, later re- 
 moving to Stockton, and from there going to Mo- 
 desto-, where he resided until his death. Of the 
 three children born of this riiarriage, two are liv- 
 ing, namely: Mrs. Fannie C. Leisy, of San 
 Francisco; and John Randolph, of this review. 
 He subsequently married a second time, and of 
 that union five children were born, all of whom 
 are now living. 
 
 After completing the course of study in the dis- 
 trict schools, John R. Hitchcock entered -Qark's 
 Business College, in Stockton, where he was 
 graduated in 1884. The following two years he 
 assisted his father in the care of the home farm. 
 In 1886 he came to Tulare county, and for nine 
 years thereafter was engaged in farming and 
 stock-raising on the sixteen hundred-acre ranch 
 belonging to his father. In 1895 he established 
 himself in the butcher business in Tulare, open- 
 ing a market on Kern street, and continued un- 
 til 1904, when he sold out in order to give his at- 
 tention to other interests, handling his own and 
 the family property. Forming a partnership 
 with P. F. Wood, Mr. Hitchcock purchased from 
 the family estate the sixteen hundred-acre ranch 
 located six miles southwest of Tulare, and has 
 continued its improvement. It is all subject to 
 irrigation, having two artesian wells on the place, 
 and over two hundred acres are already sowed to 
 alfalfa. Here he and his partner are extensively 
 engaged in raising cattle, carrying on a profitable 
 business. Thev also purchased the old John 
 Jones ranch of eighteen hundred acres, which 
 they sold off in lots. Individually Mr. Hitchcock 
 is engaged in buying and shipping stock to San 
 Francisco and Los Angeles, and also owns two 
 good ranches, one of ninety acres adjoining the 
 
1402 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 old Hitchcock farm, and one of three hundred 
 and twenty acres adjoining Waui<ena, both of 
 which he rents. He is interested in different ditch 
 companies, being a director in the Elk Bayou 
 Ditch Company, of which he was formerly presi- 
 dent, and having been a director in the Farmers' 
 Ditch Company until resigning. 
 
 In San Joaquin county, Cal., Mr. Hitchcock 
 married Henrietta R. Von Glahn, a native of that 
 county, being the daughter of C. H. Von Glahn, 
 who settled as a pioneer on the French Camp road. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hitchcock are the parents of four 
 children, namely : Ralph, Harold, Ethel and Kathe- 
 rine. Politically Mr. Hitchcock is a Democrat in 
 national affairs. In igo2 he was elected council- 
 man from the fifth ward, now the third ward, 
 and served as chairman of the street committee, 
 and for a number of years he was school trustee. 
 He is a member of the Woodmen of the World, 
 of the Women of Woodcraft, of the Improved 
 Order of Red Men, and of the Fraternal Aid. 
 Religiously he belongs tO' the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church, and is president of its board of trus- 
 tees. 
 
 JOHN HENRY ' BURNETT. The largest 
 foundry in Fresno is owned and operated by John 
 Henry Burnett, an esteemed citizen of that city. 
 He was born in Hellstone, Cornwall, England, 
 December lo, 1859, ^ son of Evan Burnett, a na- 
 tive of Truro, England. His grandfather was a 
 native of Wales and an iron moulder bv trade, 
 being engaged in this business at Truro. Evan 
 Burnett also engaged in the foundry business in 
 manhood, being located first at Truro and later 
 at Hellstone. Coming to America in 1868, he 
 went to Chicago, III, and followed his trade there 
 for three years, when he came to- California. Lo- 
 cating in San Francisco he engaged in the Union 
 Iron Works at his trade for several years, and 
 died at his home in Alameda, aged ■ seventy-six 
 years. His wife, formerly Catherine Rule, was 
 a native of Red Ruth, England, and a daughter 
 of Captain Rule, who was superintendent of the 
 gas plant at Red Ruth, where his death occurred. 
 Mrs. Burnett died in Alameda, January 25, 1905, 
 aged eighty-five years. Of the fifteen children 
 born of this union, eight attained maturity, five 
 sons and three daughters, all of whom are' now 
 living except one daughter. Two brothers, Rich- 
 ard and Fred C, are both in Fresno and in the 
 employ of John Henry Burnett, who was the 
 fourth in order of birth of the living children. 
 
 In the common schools of his native country 
 John Henry Burnett received his education, re- 
 maining in England until 1868, when he accom- 
 panied his parents to Chicago. He attended 
 school there until their removal to California, 
 where, at the age of eleven years, he was appren- 
 
 ticed to learn the moulder's trade in the old Union 
 Iron Works in San Francisco. He remained 
 there for four years, when, in September, 1879, 
 he came to Fresno. He first engaged in the vine- 
 yard culture in this locality, purchasing forty 
 acres in the Scandinavian Colony, where he re- 
 mained for four or five years. He then sold out 
 and bought eight hundred acres on Dry creek, 
 where he followed the stock business for several 
 years, and then engaged in mining in Fresno and 
 Kern counties. This venture proved unsatisfac- 
 tory, so he once more engaged at his trade, three 
 weeks after his return to the old work being made 
 foreman of the foundry. A year later he leased 
 the foundry and engaged in business for himself, 
 since which time he has continued profitably. In 
 1904 he built a new foundry on the Santa Fe, 
 the largest in the San Joaquin valley, having a 
 capacity of casting ten tons per day. He manu- 
 factures structural iron and steel work, and also 
 a general line of castings and foundry work. He 
 has made a success of his work and has proved 
 his exceptional ability as a business man. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Burnett was united in marriage 
 with Annie E. Firebaugh, a native of Santa Cruz, 
 and the daughter of Andrew Firebaugh, who 
 came from his native state of Virginia to Califor- 
 nia as a pioneer. He located in Santa Cruz for 
 a time and then went to the present site of Fire- 
 baugh, where he was one of the first white settlers 
 on the west side. He built the first ferry at the 
 town now known as Firebaugh, and also the 
 Pacheco Pass road over the Coast range as a toll 
 road, and later sold it to the county. He engaged 
 in the stock business in Fresno, where he spent 
 his last days. His wife, formerly Susan Berges, 
 daughter of Judges Berges, survives him and 
 makes her home in Fresno. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Burnett were born two daughters, Maude E. and ^ 
 Winnifred, who died aged seven years. Mrs. 
 Burnett is a member of the Presbyterian Church. 
 Fraternally Mr. Burnett is identified with the 
 Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows, Woodmen of 
 the World and Ancient Order of- United Work- 
 men. Politically he is an advocate of the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party. 
 
 JOHN B. LEWIS. A native of Illinois, 
 J. B. Lewis was born in Bond county, November 
 13, 1862, a son of Alfred and Rho'da (Powell) 
 Lewis. The father was born in Nortli Carolina, 
 but at a very early day removed with his parents 
 to Illinois, where he later became engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits, which occupation he fol- 
 lowed until his death in 1879, at the age of 
 forty-five years. His wife, who was born in 
 Tennessee, is still living and makes her home 
 in Selma. By her marriage she became the 
 
MARVIN SIMPSON 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1405 
 
 mother of nine children, six sons and three 
 daughters. 
 
 John B. Lewis obtained a Hmited common 
 school education and remained at home until 
 1880 when he came to California with his 
 mother. Six 3-ears later he engaged in the stock 
 business on his own account in the Riverdale 
 district, where he lived until purchasing his pres- 
 ent fine property of forty acres, nine miles west 
 of Laton. To this he has lately added seven 
 hundred acres, most of which is used for graz- 
 ing purposes, Mr. Lewis being extensively in- 
 terested in the cattle business. He also conducts 
 a dairy of forty cows, being one of the leading 
 dairymen in the county. 
 
 In Gilroy, Santa Clara county, was celebrated 
 the marriage of Mr. Lewis and Miss Nannie A. 
 Turner. Mrs. Lewis was born in Monterey 
 county and a daughter of James H. Turner, 
 who came to California across the plains in 1849, 
 and again in 1852. He was a stock-raiser in 
 Monterey county and followed general farming 
 in Santa Clara county. In 1883 she went to 
 Fresno county and engaged in teaching in the 
 Riverdale district and remained three years. 
 She also taught one year in Santa Clara county 
 and one in Butte county, when she returned to 
 Santa Qara county, where her marriage oc- 
 curred. To this union have been born two 
 children: Alfred T., and Tina, both of whom 
 are living at home. 
 
 A Democrat in politics, Mr. Lewis is one of 
 the active workers of that party in the county. 
 Although he has never desired public office, he 
 has served as road overseer for the past five 
 years and during this time has constructed many 
 miles of splendid road. Public-spirited to a large 
 degree, any movement calculated to be of ma- 
 terial benefit to the county receives his hearty 
 endorsement. He was one of the promoters 
 and is a stockholder in the Farmers' telephone 
 line and is also interested in many other enter- 
 prises of like nature. As for his business ven- 
 tures,' they have been successful and he is named 
 as one of Fresno county's leading and influ- 
 ential citizens. 
 
 HON. MARVIN SIMPSON. Adding to the 
 prestige of an honored family name the impetus 
 of his own forceful personality, Mr. Simpson 
 has gained a reptltation for capability and enter- 
 prise, and deservedly is honored as one of the 
 pubHc-spirited men of Fresno county. His 
 worth as a citizen has been recognized from his 
 youth and his influence has been felt by all com- 
 ing in contact with him in local gatherings or 
 in committee work. As a stanch upholder of 
 Democratic principles, he possesses influence 
 
 among the local workers of the party and further 
 has wielded influence in the councils of state. 
 On the regular party ticket in 1900 he was 
 elected to represent the sixty-third legislative 
 ticket (now the sixty-first) in the lower house of 
 the state legislature, receiving a fair majority 
 of the ballots of the people. In the session of 
 1 90 1 he served as a member of the committees 
 on claims, prison and reformatory institutions, 
 public morals and election laws, in each capacity 
 proving himself to be intelligently informed con- 
 cerning the needs of the people and the import- 
 ance of careful legislative action. On the ex- 
 piration of his term he declined to be a candi- 
 date for re-election, and has since devoted him- 
 self to the management of his large landed in- 
 terests. 
 
 A Hfelong resident of Fresno county, Marvin 
 Simpson was born at Academy August 31, 1869, 
 and was fourth among the children of John G. 
 and Sarah M. (Baley) Simpson, concerning 
 whom mention appears elsewhere in this work. 
 When he was eight years of age his father died 
 and afterward he remained on the homestead 
 with his mother, recei-ving such advantages as 
 the Academy school district afforded. Upon 
 attaining his majority he started out for him- 
 self, receiving as his share of the estate an 
 amount sufficient to give him an excellent start 
 in the world: Stock-raising and general farm- 
 ing have been his hobbies (if such they may be 
 called), and there is no department of activity 
 in connection with these specialties that he can- 
 not handle judiciously and with promptness. 
 
 It was during 1893 that Marvin Simpson set- 
 tled on his present place near Letcher, Fresno 
 county, and began the series of improvements 
 that have converted the property into one of the 
 most desirable for many miles around. In- 
 cluded in the homestead are four hundred and 
 twenty acres three-fourths of a mile east of 
 Academy, in addition to which Mr. Simpson 
 owns five hundred and twenty acres lying on 
 sections 16, 9 -and 8, township 12, range 22; 
 also six hundred and forty acres on sections 26 
 and 27, township 12, range 22; and in addition 
 about six hundred acres in the foothills and 
 mountains where he ranges his cattle in the 
 summer months ; also, in partnership with his 
 mother, two hundred and forty acres on the 
 Middle Fork of the Kings river, forming fine 
 meadow land ; and lastly a tract of forty acres 
 five miles northwest of Fresno. The possession 
 of so large a landed estate makes Mr. Simpson 
 one of the most extensive property owners of his 
 community and gives to him, at an early period 
 of life, considerable influence among the cattle- 
 men and gi:ain-raisers of the eastern half of 
 Fresno county. Some years ago he sold fifty- 
 one acres which is now being developed into a 
 
1406 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 granite quarry, opening a new industry on Big 
 Dry creek and furnishing monumental granite 
 than which none finer can be found in the entire 
 state. 
 
 The marriage of Marvin Simpson was solem- 
 nized in Woodville, Tulare county, and united 
 him with Miss Ida May Hedgepeth, who was 
 born, reared and educated in California, and 
 possesses qualities admirably adapting her for 
 high social position. Of their union the chil- 
 dren are Myrtle, William Robert and Elizabeth 
 Irene. Mrs. Simpson is a daughter of Rev. Joel 
 and Hester (Anderson) Hedgepeth, natives re- 
 spectively of Missouri and California, and among 
 the seven children of the family (all but one 
 still living) she was second in order of birth. 
 When a young man Mr. Hedgepeth crossed the 
 plains as a member of Governor Edwards' party, 
 some of whom were massacred on the Colorado 
 river in an attack made by Indians. The sur- 
 vivors of the ill-fated expedition, deprived of 
 their oxen, were forced to walk back to Albu- 
 querque, where they arrived in a famished con- 
 dition. The trials of that memorable journey 
 were borne by women as well as men with forti- 
 tude and heroism, and when eventually they 
 reached their destination they had little incliiia- 
 tion ever again to brave the terrors of hunger 
 and thirst on the desert. For a long period Mr. 
 Hedgepeth taught school in the central part of 
 California, and in that occupation his splenchd 
 education (largely acquired by self-culture) en- 
 abled him to wield a large influence for good 
 over the students under his supervision. Event- 
 ually he concentrated his time and attention to 
 the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South, in whose work he has been active 
 throughout the state and now preaches to the 
 congregation at Academy. Mentally he is in 
 his prime, although sixty-four busy years have 
 left their traces on face and form. In the respect 
 of the community and the affection of his parish- 
 ioners he occupies an enviable position and with 
 his wife, who also survives, he is enjoying the 
 comfort possible to the twentieth-century citi- 
 zens of the state. 
 
 In their denominational connections Mr. and 
 Mrs. Simpson affiliate with the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South, in which he serves as a 
 member of the board of trustees and has been 
 a generous contributor to all church activities. 
 In fraternal relations he holds membership with 
 the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks at 
 Fresno. Besides the office of assemblyman pre- 
 viously mentioned, he has served as school trus- 
 tee for one term, but with these exceptions has 
 declined official recognition, his tastes being less 
 toward public service than toward the peaceful 
 pursuit of his chosen occupation. 
 
 JOHN WILLIAM BEALL. The qualities of 
 character which have won for Mr. Beall a financial 
 success in his efforts have also won for him the 
 esteem and respect of all who have come to know 
 him, either socially or in a business way. He is 
 a successful ranchman and is located six miles 
 west of Laton, Fresno county, while he has also 
 taken an active interest in real estate operations 
 throughout this section. He was born in Rip- 
 ley county, Ind., September 14, 1849, a son of 
 John T. Beall, a native of the same place, where 
 he engaged as a farmer until his death. His 
 grandfather, Zephaniah Beall, was born in Mary- 
 land, and in 1818 located in Ripley county, Ind., 
 where he became a pioneer farmer, hewing his 
 fann out of the timber lands of the state. He 
 was the descendant of Revolutionary ancestors 
 of a fine southern family. John T. Beall mar- 
 ried Elizabeth H. Hancock, a native of Indiana, 
 where she now resides at the age of eighty years. 
 She was the mother of eight sons and three 
 daughters, of whom John William was the third 
 in order of birth. 
 
 John William Beall received his preliminary 
 education in the common schools, after which he 
 attended Moores Hill College, an institution sup- 
 ported by the Methodist Episcopal Qiurch in In- 
 diana. Upon the conclusion of his etudies he en- 
 gaged as an educator in Indiana until 1874, when 
 he came to California. He located near Visalia, 
 Tulare county, where he took up a homestead of 
 one hundred and sixty acres just east of that city, 
 and two years later came to Fresno county and 
 bought twenty acres in Temperance Colony. This 
 was planted to orchard and vinevard, and he cul- 
 tivated it for eight years, when, in 1884, he 
 bought one hundred and sixty acres adjoining 
 the city of Fresno. He retained this property un- 
 til 1888, when he sold out to F G. Berry, who 
 made it an addition to the city. Mr. Beall then 
 located in Fresno and engaged in die real estate 
 business, purchasing a block on Mariposa street, 
 at the corner of R street, and also built a resi- 
 dence, disposing of his interests in 1894, when he 
 removed to Oakland. In the latter city he en- 
 gaged in the produce commission business on 
 Eleventh street, remaining in that location foi 
 four years, when he sold out and traveled for a 
 year, and in 1899 came to the vicinity of Laton 
 where he purchased forty acres. The greater pari 
 of this property he set to peaches, apples, apricots 
 and pears, while an acre and a half is devoted tc 
 the cultivation of Logan and blackberries. The 
 balance of the land is in alfalfa, and he also give: 
 some time to the raising of stock. He owned si? 
 hundred and eighty acres in Riverdale, which hi 
 divided and sold in small tracts, and has sino 
 bought two thousand acres in partnership witl 
 A. S. Kellogg, of Healdsburg, Cal. Mr. BeaU i 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1407 
 
 a director in the Murphy Slough Association and 
 is president of the Riverdale Canal Company. 
 
 In Fresno county Mr. Beall was united in mar- 
 riage with Martha Ann Hutchings, a native of 
 Iowa, and they have one daughter, Adelle Lo- 
 rena, who married EL P. Blanchard, of Laton. In 
 their religious convictions they are members of 
 the Seventh Day Adventists and are active in the 
 work. Politically Mr. Beall is a stanch adherent 
 of the principles advocated in the platform of 
 the Democratic party. 
 
 EZRA M. RUSSELL. A veteran of the 
 Civil war and a resident of California for over 
 thirty years, Mr. Russell is entitled to a place 
 in this work. From early manhood he has made 
 his way in the world, never receiving assistance 
 from outside sources, his success being the result 
 of hard work and perseverance. 
 
 A native of New York, Jie was born in Os- 
 wego county, January i6, 1841, a son of Jona- 
 than W. and Elizabeth (Secner) Russell. The 
 father was a brick mason by trade and in 1847 
 removed from New York to Illinois where he 
 lived until 1853, when he located in Iowa. There 
 he worked at his trade and also engaged in 
 farming. In 1866 he sold out and started to 
 cross the plains, but owing to the uprising 
 among the Indians he was compelled to give up 
 the venture. After living in Denver for a short 
 time he returned tO' Iowa, where he remained 
 until 1872, when he came to California. Locat- 
 ing near what is now the town of Kingsburg he 
 purchased land and followed farming and fruit- 
 raising until his death. His wife, who also died 
 in this state, became the mother of ten children. 
 
 Ezra M. Russell was the second child. His 
 education was obtained in the district schools, 
 but at an early age he was obliged to give up 
 school. He started out in life as an apprentice 
 to the brick mason's trade, which he followed 
 until 1873, when he came to California, locating 
 in Oakland, and continued working at his trade. 
 Later he went to Clear Lake and still later to 
 Fresno, arriving in the latter place in 1874. 
 Soon after he took up a soldier's homestead 
 claim of one hundred and sixty acres near Kings- 
 burg, where he has since made his home. He 
 is now engaged in general farming and stock- 
 raising, also devoting a portion of his land to 
 the cultivation of grapes and other fruits. 
 
 In 1862 Mr. Russell enlisted in Company B, 
 Thirteenth Regiment, United States Infantry, 
 his company being attached to the Western army. 
 At the battle of Vicksburg, where he received 
 seven separate wounds, he was severely wounded 
 by being shot in the left foot. He was honorably 
 discharged from active service in 1864, but in 
 
 the spring of 1865 he assisted in organizing a 
 company of which he was elected captain. 
 
 In Iowa Mr. Russell was united in marriage 
 with Miss Sarah Jane Jones, who was born in 
 Lalce county, 111., January 12, 1845. Her father, 
 Jonathan, was a native of New York state. 
 Later in life he removed to Illinois and still later 
 took up his residence in Iowa where his death 
 occurred. To Mr. and Mrs. Russell have been 
 born eight children, namely ; Alice, now the wife 
 of F. Enos Silva; Ada, deceased; Rena, now 
 Mrs. E. Vanwinkle; Nellie, Benjamin, Cassie, 
 Clark, who is married and lives near Kingsburg, 
 and Chester. In fraternal relations Mr. Russell 
 is a member of the Knights of Pythias, and is 
 also a member of the Grand Army of the Re- 
 public, Atlanta Post, of Fresno. Like nearly 
 all old soldiers, he is a stanch Republican, but 
 he has never cared to take a very active part in 
 political matters. Here in this section of the 
 county where he has lived for so many years 
 and where he is so well known he is highly re- 
 spected. He was one of the first settlers in the 
 Kingsburg country, and has never neglected to 
 do his part in the work of building up and im- 
 proving the country. 
 
 EDWIN PICKETT. A native of England, 
 Edwin Pickett was born in the city of London, 
 January 26, 1842. His father, Joseph Pickett, 
 was also a native of the same country and for 
 years followed the trade of a brickmason. He 
 was also engaged in contracting and building. 
 His marriage to Miss Sarah Butler resulted in 
 the birth of two children. Both the parents died 
 in England. 
 
 Edwin Pickett, soon after completing his edu- 
 cation, enlisted in the English army, joining the 
 Fifteenth Hussars, Light Dragoons. The fol- 
 lowing three and one-half years were devoted to 
 the service of his country, but at the expiration 
 of that period he resigned and came to the 
 United States. Locating in the city of New 
 York, he remained there for a time, or until the 
 latter part of 1862, when he enlisted in the 
 United States Navy, being assigned to the bark 
 William G. Anderson, which was connected with 
 the Western Gulf squadron. Subsequently he 
 was transferred to the gunboat Scioto, then to 
 the Itasca, on which he served while the former 
 boat was being repaired, it having been torpedoed 
 in Mobile Bay. When the Scioto was once more 
 ready for active work, Mr. Pickett was pro- 
 moted to the position of master at arms and 
 served in that position until 1865, when he se- 
 cured a leave of absence, but owing to the close 
 of the war just at that time, he never returned. 
 The same year he went to Lowell, Mass., where 
 he secured employment in the woolen mills. A 
 
1408 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 year later he went to Rhode Island and worked 
 in the mills in that state until 1870. That year 
 he joined the Greeley Colony and migrated to 
 Colorado, living near Greeley for eight years. 
 Following his residence there he came to the 
 coast and for four years lived in Washington, 
 being engaged in farming and stock-raising. It 
 was in 1882 that he arrived in California. Soon 
 after he located near Hanford and purchased a 
 ranch. This he soon sold and accepted a posi- 
 tion as a clerk in a general store at Kingsburg, 
 From there he removed to Selma, following the 
 same line of business until finally he grew tired 
 of the indoor life and located near Huron, where 
 he made his home until 1899. That year he 
 came to Cone jo, where he engaged in the gen- 
 eral merchandise business. This he has since 
 conducted, meeting with excellent success in his 
 venture. 
 
 In Fresno, in 1887, was celebrated the mar- 
 riage of Mr. Pickett and Miss EHzabeth Burns, 
 and they have one child, Lucile Irene, who was 
 born in Visalia in November, 1893. In politics 
 Mr. Pickett is a Republican, and since living in 
 Fresno county has been an active worker for 
 his party's interest. June 21, 1899, he was ap- 
 pointed postmaster of Cone jo and re-appointed 
 for a second term. He has made his own way 
 in the world, and in spite of great obstacles and 
 many disappointments, has succeeded, and now 
 has a comfortable home and a competency. Both 
 he and his wife are highly respected and have a 
 large circle of friends. 
 
 Ragle has since married Mrs. Maggie Williams, 
 nee Awbrey, and they are the parents of two 
 children, namely : Thomas Vernon and Eunice 
 Gertrude. Mr. Ragle is a member of the Cum- 
 berland Presbyterian Church, and politically is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 GEORGE WESLEY RAGLE, the son of E. 
 T. Ragle, whose biographical sketch appears 
 elsewhere in this volume, was born September 
 15, i860, in Sonoma county, Cal. At an early 
 age he accompanied his father to Tulare county, 
 ^yhere he has since made his home. His educa- 
 tion was received in the district school in the vi- 
 cinity of his home, and he was early trained in 
 the practical duties of a farmer's son. Upon at- 
 taining his majority he began farming for him- 
 self in Antelope Valley, making a specialty of 
 grain raising. In partnership with his father he 
 bought three hundred and twenty acres at Na- 
 ranjo, Tulare county, to which he has added by 
 purchase from time to time until he now owns 
 over one thousand acres. A large part of this is 
 devoted to grazing purposes, and he also raises 
 considerable grain, and has five and a half acres 
 m oranges. He has made a success of his work 
 and is named among the representative farmers 
 of this section. 
 
 Mr. Ragle has been married twice, his first 
 wife, Margaret Shipley, being the daughter of 
 Benjamin Shipley, a native of Arkansas. At 
 her death she left one child, Maggie Ethel. Mr. 
 
 JUDSON SETH PELTON. For nearly 
 thirty years J. S. Pelton has been a "resident of 
 the state, and during that time he has witnessed 
 the vi'onderful growth of this favored section, 
 performing his share in the onward march. He 
 is now living on a ranch near Selma, surrounded 
 by all the comforts of life, made possible by 
 years of industry. He has cause to feel proud 
 of his life's work, as he started at the bottom of 
 the ladder and without friends or special influ- 
 ence has climbed upward, until now he is named 
 as one of the substantial men of Fresno county. 
 
 A native of Ohio, Judson S. Pelton was born 
 in Cuyahoga county, July 17, 1835. His father, 
 Setli D. Pelton, was a native of Connecticut and 
 served as a captain in the war of 1812. In 1880 
 he removed to Ohio where he lived until 1885, 
 the year of his death. His wife, who was born 
 in Connecticut, bore the maiden name of Mary 
 Porter, and by her marriage became the mother 
 of five boys and three girls. 
 
 Judson S. Pelton was the sixth child. He re- 
 mained at home, attending school when the 
 work of the farm permitted, but in those pioneer 
 days the youth was expected to assist in the 
 making of a home, although many hours were 
 devoted to study after the day's work was over. 
 Mr. Pelton was an exception, as he was per- 
 mitted to attend the academy at Norwalk and 
 later engaged in teaching, but only followed that 
 occupation one winter. In 1858 he removed to 
 Iowa, and at Mount Pleasant engaged in the 
 general merchandise business. Subsequently he 
 sold out and for a time followed farming. In 
 1866 he migrated to the state of Kansas and in 
 Topeka re-engaged in the mercantile business, 
 also conducted a small farm near the town. 
 There he made his home until 1875, when he 
 disposed of both the farm and store and came 
 to California. His first business venture here 
 was in San Francisco, where he engaged in the 
 buying and selling of real estate. Later he sold 
 out and purchased a ranch in Solano county, 
 near Cordelia, which he conducted but a short 
 time when he again located in San Francisco, 
 and engaged in the livery business until locating 
 in the San Joaquin valley, when he purchased 
 the place that has since been his home. This 
 ranch of sixty acres is two miles south of Selma 
 on the McCall road. Twenty acres are devoted 
 to a vineyard, the same amount to fruit, and the 
 
^ u^ 
 
 / 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1411 
 
 balance is used for growing alfalfa. He also 
 has a small dairy. 
 
 In Iowa Mr. Pelton married Miss Margaret 
 Baley, and to this union have been born eight 
 children, namely: Berdie, deceased; Maud M., 
 now Mrs. Rev. N. L. Rowell, of Los Angeles; 
 Harriett S., wife of T. D. Black, of Oakland; 
 Margaret B., now Mrs. Bradford Webster, of 
 Oakland; Dr. Harrison S., who went to Alaska 
 in 1898, and was frozen to death near Nome 
 while attempting the rescue of some comrades; 
 William, also deceased; Paul F., who is mining 
 in Alaska; Mabel M., wife of Dr. C. A. Cam- 
 eron, of Redlands. All his life a Republican, 
 Mr. Pelton is very active and one of the leaders 
 in this section of the county, but he has never 
 cared for office, preferring to devote his ener- 
 gies to the management of his own business. 
 Both he and Mrs. Pelton are members of the 
 Baptist Church of Oakland. - Mr. Pelton's early 
 life was surrounded by many disadvantages, but 
 in spite of the environments at that time he has 
 made a success. In the different parts of the 
 state where he has lived, and where he is well 
 known, he has many friends among whom his 
 word is considered as good as his bond. 
 
 BENJAMIN MORGAN BAIRD. The 
 ranching interests of Fresno county are ably 
 represented by Benjamin Morgan Baird, who 
 is a man of progressive spirit and keeps abreast 
 with all the developments made in agricultural 
 affairs in his community. A son of the honored 
 pioneer, Alfred Baird, he inherits from his father 
 qualities of the greatest value in the upbuilding 
 of character as well as in the accumulation of 
 property; and through the possession of sterling 
 personal attributes he has won the good will 
 of his associates and the confidence of friends. 
 While it has been his good fortune to reap the 
 benefits of his father's financial acumen and 
 large success, such are his traits of enterprise 
 and thrift that probably unaided by others suc- 
 cess would have rewarded his sagacious under- 
 takings. 
 
 While the family were living in Iowa Benja- 
 min Morgan Baird was born at Frankville, Win- 
 neshiek county, December 27, 1853. At the age 
 of six years he came across the plains with his 
 parents and settled in Visalia, where he had pub- 
 lic school advantages, sirpplemented by study un- 
 der Father Dade. His education was completed 
 by attendance at the San Jose State Normal 
 School and by graduation from the business col- 
 lege in San Jose. On his return home he took 
 up the sheep business in partnership with his 
 father, but some years later became connected 
 with an independent business in sheep-raising in 
 Tulare county. During his sojourn there he 
 
 sowed the first alfalfa in the vicinity and set 
 out a vineyard of fifty-five acres, the first in 
 all that neighborhood. Another forward move- 
 ment which owed much to his enterprise was 
 the organization of a ditch company, and it was 
 in this way he secuied water for irrigating his 
 land. On selling out his sheep he embarked 
 in the grain business with John A. Patterson, 
 they being the first to place under cultivation 
 the Glide ranch in Stokes valley, also the first to 
 introduce the L. U. Shippey combined haryester 
 operated by sixteen horses. For two of these 
 machines they paid $400 freight to Cross creek. 
 Under ordinary circumstances they would have 
 reaped large profits from their cultivation of 
 four thousand acres, but poor crops and low 
 prices combined to make the investment unprofit- 
 able, and they sold out their holdings. 
 . On his return to Fresno county Mr. Baird 
 became interested in the grain and cattle busi- 
 ness, which he now conducts on his father's 
 homestead. In politics he supports Democratic 
 principles and keeps posted concerning events 
 and issues affecting the progress of our govern- 
 ment and the welfare of the country. For years 
 he has affiliated with the Masons, his connection 
 with the order dating from his taking of the 
 first degree in the blue lodge at Visalia, F. & 
 A. M. At Reno, Nev., January 24, 1898, he 
 was united in marriage with Mrs. Mary (Davis) 
 Givens, a native of Mariposa county and a 
 daughter of William and Sarah J. (ElHs) Davis, 
 born respectively in Arkansas and Virginia. Her 
 father was a second cousin of Jefferson Davis 
 and the family features can be noted in her 
 face. When eighteen years of age William 
 Davis crossed the plains to California and set- 
 tled among the pioneers of Millerton, where he 
 became interested in the stock business, making 
 a specialty of sheep. During the Indian troubles 
 he assisted in bringing the savages into sub- 
 jection to Authority. The maternal grandfather 
 of Mrs. Baird was Dr. T. O. EUis, a member 
 of an old Virginia family and the first physician 
 to practice in Fresno county, also the first in- 
 cumbent of the office of county superintendent 
 of schools, and in addition the first man in the 
 entire county to set out a vineyard and an or- 
 chard. When he passed away in 1871, the coun- 
 ty lost one of its most progressive pioneers, a 
 man whose citizenship had been of the highest 
 value in the development of latent resources. 
 Since the death of William Davis, which oc- 
 curred in 1 87 1, his widow has made her home 
 near Academy. Of her six children all but one 
 are living, Mrs. Baird being the third among 
 these. Educated in Visalia and Oakland, she 
 received advantages which qualify her to- adorn 
 the best circles of society. By her first mar- 
 riage she had two daughters, Hazel and Edith, 
 
1412 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 who are now students in the Fresno high school. 
 Of her union with Mr. Baird there are three 
 sons, Walter Addison, Morgan Corwin and Car- 
 roll Hubbard. Besides these sons Mr. Baird 
 had five children born of his first marriage, 
 namely : Nellie Ray, who married Frank Beck, 
 a photographer in Fresno ; Clifford Jefferson, an 
 electrician engaged in business in Fresno ; Alfred 
 Morgan, at home ; John Alexander, who died at 
 Fresno in 1899, and Robert Lee, an electrician 
 in Fresno. In religious belief Mrs. Baird holds 
 membership with the Episcopal Church and sup- 
 ports by influence and financial aid those move- 
 ments calculated to advance the spiritual wel- 
 fare or the moral life of the community. 
 
 NICHOLAS LANG is one of the leading 
 German-American residents of Fresno county, 
 and since coming to this state he has had many 
 ups and downs. Soon after his arrival he lost 
 $15,000 in the oil business, all the money he pos- 
 sessed, but with an energy characteristic of the 
 race he went to work and has since met with 
 success in his ventures, being now considered 
 one of the most substantial men in this part of 
 the county. For many years he was. a "soldier 
 of fortune," fighting under different flags and 
 taking part in some of the most important bat- 
 tles this world has ever witnessed. Among these 
 can be named the battle of Sevastopol, Mr. Lang 
 being under the command of Napoleon. 
 
 A native of Lorraine, Nicholas Lang was 
 born December 16, 1831, a son of John George 
 and Barbara (Greer) Lang. ^ His father was a 
 bricklayer by trade and also followed farming. 
 He died in his native country, as did his wife, 
 who by her marriage became the mother of five 
 children. Of this family, Nicholas was the 
 third child. In 1851 he entered the P>ench 
 army, and followed the life of a soldier for six- 
 teen years. During this time he was in the war 
 between Italy and Austria, fighting under the 
 flag of sunny Italy. At the time of the war be- 
 tween the United States and Mexico he was 
 prepared to come to this country and assist the 
 States in the struggle for supremacy, but was 
 unable to get away. In 1871, when Germany 
 and France were disputing over certain terri- 
 tory, the former country endeavored to force 
 Mr. Lang into service, but he did not propose to 
 be coerced and one day bade good-by to all and 
 saded for America, arriving in New York in 
 June of that year. From that city he went to 
 Pittsburg, Pa., where he became interested in 
 the oil business, continuing there until 1882 the 
 year of his migration to California. Locating 
 in San Buena Ventura he engaged in the oil 
 industry, which at that time was^n its infancy 
 While m Pennsylvania, Mr. Lang had worked 
 
 in one of the best refineries in the state and con- 
 sequently understood the refining of the crude 
 oil. Up to that time no refining had been done 
 in California, but soon after coming here Mr. 
 Lang began to refine the oil and established the 
 first complete refinery of the oil industry in Cali- 
 fornia. Later, through speculations, he lost 
 every dollar, some $15,000, that he had made 
 since immigrating to this country. After that 
 he secured employment with the Standard Oil 
 Company, with whom he remained until 1886, 
 when he went to Santa Cruz and engaged in 
 the restaurant and hotel business, continuing 
 there four years. At the expiration of this period 
 he sold out and came to Fresno county, locat- 
 ing on the ranch that has since been his place of 
 residence. Here he owns eighty acres, all 
 under a high state of cultivation, two and one- 
 half miles southwest of Selma. Thirty acres are 
 in orchard, about twenty in a vineyard, and the 
 balance is devoted to general farming and stock- 
 raising. He also conducts a small dairy. 
 
 While still living in the fatherland Mr. Lang 
 was united in marriage with Miss Mary Ann 
 Oblinger, and to them have been born five chil- 
 dren, namely: Barbara, wife of Joseph Hasel- 
 hofer, at home ; Mary, wife of John F. Howard, 
 Michael and Charles, who are all living in Los 
 Angeles. Charles has a position as an electrical 
 engineer. One son, Joseph, was accidentally 
 killed while working as an electrician in Fresno, 
 aged twenty-five years. Mr. Lang is a Repub- 
 lican, but has neither the inclination nor the 
 time to take part in political matters. Both he 
 and his wife are popular with a large circle of 
 acquaintances, all of whom are pleased that his 
 efforts have made it possible for himself and 
 wife to be surrounded by comforts and man)- 
 luxuries. 
 
 RICHARD GREEN MIDDLETON. A na- 
 tive of Mississippi, Mr. Middleton was born July 
 10, 1845, a son of David Middleton. The father 
 was born in Arkansas, but removed to Mississippi 
 where he lived for some yearsy later returning 
 to the state of his nativity, residing there until 
 .1859 when he sold out and crossed the plains to 
 California, six months being consumed in mak- 
 ing that long, tiresome journev. Unfortunately, 
 after withstanding the hardships of that trip he 
 lived but ten days after his arrival in Yolo 
 county. His wife bore the maiden name of Miss 
 Jennie Brazell and by her union with Mr. Mid- 
 dleton she became the mother of eight children. 
 She was a native of Alabama. 
 
 Richard G. Middleton was the second child in 
 his father's family. Owing to the circumstances 
 that his parents were in financially he was unable 
 to obtain an education, not even attending the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1413 
 
 district schools, as most youths of his day. At 
 the time his parents crossed the plains he was 
 fourteen years of age and after the death of his 
 father it was necessary for him to work. En- 
 tering the mines in Grass valley he remained 
 there two winters and at the end of that time 
 went to Virginia City where he engaged in 
 teaming. Later he lived in Silver City, Utah, 
 until 187s, when he returned to California and lo- 
 cated on Cash creek, and secured employment on 
 a farm, The summer of 1880 he arrived in the 
 San Joaquin valley, and with the money that he 
 had saved from his earnings he purchased a 
 farm near Hanford. There he followed farm- 
 ing for a time, subsequently selling his land and 
 removing to the vicinity of Visalia where he 
 lived until taking up his residence near Huron. 
 Here he located on a half section of land and 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1895. In 
 that year he removed and located near Lemoore 
 and rented land and continued his farming oper- 
 ations until 1903, the year of his removal to the 
 place that is now his home. Here he first pur- 
 chased forty acres, but has since added ten acres 
 more. This ranch is located nine miles west of 
 Laton and is one of the good paying properties 
 in that section of the county. 
 
 Near Visalia was celebrated the marriage of 
 Mr. Middleton and Miss Flora House, who was 
 born in Mendocino county, this state. They have 
 two daughters. Vera Belle and Margaret, both 
 at home. Mr. Middleton is a member of the In- 
 dependent Order of Foresters and formerly of 
 the Odd Fellows. In politics a Democrat he has 
 always taken an active interest in the welfare 
 of his party, but has never cared for political 
 honors. Starting out in life when but a boy, 
 he has had to make his own way in the world 
 ever since. 
 
 MILTON F. MASON was born in Harrison 
 county, Mo., April 14, 1859. His father, James 
 Mason, was a native of North Carolina and at 
 an early day migrated to Missouri where he 
 lived until 1865 when he moved to Iowa, settling 
 near the city of Des Moines. There he engaged 
 in a general farming enterprise and lived until 
 his death in 1902. He married Miss Sophia 
 Baber who was born in Indiana and died in 
 Iowa. To Mr. and Mrs. Mason were born three 
 children, two sons and one daughter. 
 
 Milton F. Mason was the second child, and 
 after completing his schooling he engaged in 
 farming in Iowa on rented land, where he lived 
 until 1887 when he disposed of his interests and 
 came to California. Locating near Fowler, he 
 purchased twenty acres of land, but later he 
 sold it, and in 1892 bought his present fine ranch 
 of forty acres. Twenty acres of this is in vine- 
 
 yard and the balance is devoted to the growing 
 of alfalfa. 
 
 While living in Iowa Mr. Mason married Miss 
 Sarah Fannie Rife, and to them have been" born 
 nine children, as follows : Ira, George, James, 
 Walter, Harvey, Chester, Francis, Maud and 
 Myrtle. All the children are living at home 
 and their parents are giving them the benefit of 
 a good common school education. Mr. Mason 
 is a member of the Woodmen of the World and 
 in politics is independent, believing it best to 
 vote for the man whom he thinks qualified for 
 the office. For eight years he has served as 
 school director and was clerk of the board most 
 of the time. He has met with splendid success 
 m his undertakings, all the result of his own 
 efforts, as he has made his way in the world 
 alone since leaving home. 
 
 GEORGE PICKFORD. Associated with 
 George M. Kohler as one of the proprietors of 
 the City Bakery and Restaurant, George Pick- 
 ford is named among the business men of Fresno. 
 He was born in Trempealeau county. Wis., De- 
 cember 28, 1861, the fourth in a family of eight 
 children. His father, Oliver Pickford, was a 
 native of Manchester, England, and an early 
 settler of Wisconsin, where he engaged as a 
 farmer and an engineer. He is now living in 
 Fresno at the age of seventy-six years. (For 
 more complete details concerning his life refer 
 to the sketch of George M. Kohler, which ap- 
 pears elsewhere in this volume.) 
 
 Until he was fourteen years of age the home 
 of George Pickford remained in Wisconsin, 
 where he attended the public schools. Removing 
 with his parents to California in 1875, he was lo- 
 cated for a short time in Cambria, San Luis 
 Obispo county, in 1879 coming to Fresno, which 
 had then less than one thousand inhabitants. He 
 secured employment shortly afterward with the 
 Madera Planing mill, where he remained for one 
 year, when the loss of the fingers on his left 
 hand caused him to leave the business. He then 
 learned the butcher business and established a 
 place of his own in Mariposa street, between I 
 and J streets, which was known for eight or nine 
 years as the firm of Pickford Brothers. Disposing 
 of this interest, he became the proprietor of the 
 Ogle House, which he conducted for one year, 
 and also of the Pleasant View Lodging House, 
 at the corner of Fresno and J streets, and con- 
 ducted it for two years, when he sold out and 
 established the Armory Stables on K street, fol- 
 lowing the livery business for about three years. 
 In 1895 he disposed of this business and estab- 
 lished the City Bakery and Restaurant, which 
 has since grown to be the most extensive busi- 
 ness of its kind in the city. The bakery is thor- 
 
1414 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ouglily equipped and modern in every way, the 
 large 'oven having a capacity of three thousand 
 loaves, from five to eleven hundred being dis- 
 posed of each dav. The restaurant is the largest 
 in the city and has a capacity of one hundred 
 and fifty people. Mr. Pickford also owns real 
 estate in Fresno in addition to this property, and 
 is interested in both business and residence prop- 
 erty in Oakland and San Jose. He is an im- 
 portant factor in the business progress of Fresno 
 and is esteemed by all who know him. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Pickford was united in mar- 
 riage with Ida Studer, a native of New York 
 city, and they are the parents of two children, 
 Rollin A. and William O. Mr. Pickford is a 
 member of the Woodmen of the World, and po- 
 litically is a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Republican party. 
 
 of one daughter, Jennie May. Mr. Pratt is a 
 member of the Methodist Et>iscopal Church of 
 Portersville, and politically is a Socialist, having 
 left the Republican party to take up these in- 
 terests. Fraternally he is identified with the 
 Woodmen of the World of Portersville. 
 
 DARIUS PRATT. A native of Parke county, 
 Ind., Darius Pratt was. born Februai-y 4, 1859, 
 a son of Darius Pratt, Sr. The latter was a 
 native of Ohio, who as a pioneer farmer located 
 in Indiana, where his death occurred. His 
 mother, formerly Lucy Rinehart, was also a na- 
 tive of Ohio, who died in Indiana. Of their 
 two children Darius was the youngest and the 
 onh' one now living. He received his education 
 in the common school in the vicinity of his 
 home, and at the same time was trained to the 
 practical duties of a farmer's son. In 1874 he 
 came to California and engaged as a machinist, 
 and was later employed as the engineer of a 
 stationary engine in San Jose, where he had first 
 located, having crossed the plains from Missouri. 
 He located in that state in 1869, and engaged 
 in farming near Kingsville, Johnson county. 
 After nine years spent in California he made a 
 trip back east, where he spent a year and a 
 quarter, then returned to California. Until 1884 
 he remained in San Jose, when he came to Tu- 
 lare county and engaged in farming for six 
 _vears. In the spring of 1890 he went to Ari- 
 zona and worked in a machine shop in Prescott 
 for three years, then returned to California and 
 accepted a position as engineer in a sawmill in 
 Kern county. He continued so occupied for three 
 ,vears, in the meantime (in 1896) purchasing his 
 present property, which is located five miles east 
 of Portersville, in Rosedale Colony, and is plant- 
 ed to oranges. In 1897 he located on this prop- 
 erty, where he has since made his home during 
 the summers, and has also worked in mills as 
 engineer. 
 
 In Tulare county, September 26, 1900, Mr. 
 Pratt was united in marriage with Ada I. Dun- 
 can, a native of Visalia, and the daughter of O. 
 H. P. Duncan, a sketch of whose life is given 
 elsewhere in this volume. They are the parents 
 
 FRED JAY STONE. As a contractor and 
 builder Fred Jay Stone has taken an active part 
 in the material upbuilding and development of 
 the city of Fresno, Cal., where he has made his 
 home since 1887. A native of Montpelier, Vt., 
 he was born February 14, 1865, the descendant 
 of an old French family originally known as La 
 Roche, the name being changed to Stone by the 
 great-grandfather of Fred Jay StOi.3. This an- 
 cestor emigrated from France to Ontario, Can- 
 ada, thence to Vermont (where the name was 
 legally made Stone), and again located in On- 
 tario, where he died. His son, John Stone, en- 
 gaged as a farmer in Ontario, where his son, 
 John Stone, Jr., was born. The latter became a 
 farmer in Montpelier, Vt., where he remained 
 until 1868, when he reirioved to Wisconsin, and 
 at Fox Lake and Green Lake engaged as a 
 farmer. In February, 1887, he immigrated to 
 California and located as a horticulturist and 
 farmer in Fresno, where he died in 1902. His 
 wife, formerly Sarah Phillips, a native of Eng- 
 land, died in Fresno in 1895. They were the 
 parents of two sons, of whom George is fore- 
 man for Fred Jay Stone. 
 
 In Wisconsin Fred Jay Stone was reared un- 
 til attaining his majority, receiving his educa- 
 tion in the district schools. At the age of sev- 
 enteen years he was apprenticed to learn the 
 trade of carpenter and builder, near Hurley, Iron 
 county. Wis., where he remained until 1887, 
 during the last eight months of his stay there 
 engaging in contracting and building. Upon 
 his arrival in Fresno he engaged in the prosecu- 
 tion of his trade, following the same to the pres- 
 ent time. Among the residences, business houses, 
 etc., that he has erected are the following : Resi- 
 dences of Dr. Thomas, Dr. Buker, Adam Mowat 
 and Louis Kutner, the W. Parker L\-on build- 
 ing, the Dunn block, the Green block, the Por- 
 teous Agricultural works, the Moultne block, the 
 O'Neill block, the Diamond street school, and 
 moved the Hawthorne school building one block 
 and made the addition of the second story, which 
 was considered one of the most difficult feats 
 ever performed in the city in this line of work. 
 He has been very successful and is accorded a 
 prominent place among the contractors and build- 
 ers of Fresno. 
 
 In Neenah, Wis., Mr. Stone was united in 
 marriage with Carrie Larson, a native of that 
 place, and they are the parents of three children, 
 Emery, Opal and Vivian. Mrs. Stone is a mem- 
 
W^ 5^^'AyiTnPf'^^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BtOGRAPHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 1417 
 
 ber of the Adventist Church. Politically Mr. 
 Stone is a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platform of the Republican party, 
 and fraternally affiliates with the Benevolent 
 Protective Order of Elks. He is now building a 
 handsome residence on T street, near Mariposa 
 street, where the family will reside. Mr. Stone 
 is an enthusiastic sportsman and has been instru- 
 mental in the organization and support of vari- 
 ous gun clubs throughout the country. He was 
 one of the organizers of the Fresno Gun Club, 
 of which he is ex-president, and is a member 
 of the Golden Gate Gun Club and the California 
 Wing Club, both of San Francisco. 
 
 JOSEPH COE THOMPSON. Not only by 
 reason of identification with California during 
 the historic period beginning in 1849, t'ut also 
 by virtue of his long association with the stock 
 and farm interests of Fresno county, Mr. Thomp- 
 son holds a leading position among the citizens 
 of his community. When in 1864 he came to 
 his present location at Letcher few attempts 
 had as yet been made to place the surrounding 
 country under cultivation and he was one of the 
 ■first settlers along Dry creek. On entering a 
 tract of one hundred and sixty acres, he turned 
 his attention to raising hogs and later became in- 
 terested in the sheep business, having flocks on 
 his farm and in the mountains. Eventually he 
 embarked in the cattle industry and there now 
 may be seen upon his estate full-blooded high- 
 grade Shorthorn and Hereford cattle, represent- 
 ing as fine breeds as the district can boast. In 
 the homestead he now has three hundred and 
 thirty-two acres on sections 15, 12 'and 22; in 
 addition, with his son, James W., he now owns 
 a mountain ranch of two hundred and eighty 
 acres, a stock farm of five hundred and sixty 
 acres known as the Bacon place, and the old 
 Burton place, comprising more than a section 
 of land, which is utilized for a stock ranch. 
 
 In tracing the family his.tory of Mr. Thomp- 
 son we find that his paternal grandfather re- 
 moved from Maryland to Rockingham county, 
 N. C, and there lived upon a plantation during 
 his remaining years. The father, Henry Thomp- 
 son, was born on the Eastern Shore of Mary- 
 land, and became a teacher in Hardeman coun- 
 ty, Tenn., where also he cultivated a farm. 
 After his removal to Missouri in 1839 he be- 
 came a teacher in Cole county and also improved 
 a farm from a tract of raw land. After more 
 than eighty years he passed to his grave, hon- 
 ored and mourned as a useful citizen and gen- 
 erous -friend. While still living in North Caro- 
 lina he married Elizabeth Lee, who was born 
 in Maryland and from there removed to Rock- 
 ingham county, N. C, with her father, Wil- 
 
 loughby Lee; her death occurred in Missouri. 
 Of her thirteen children all but one attained ma- 
 ture years, but Joseph, the ninth in order of 
 birth, is the sole survivor and the only one who 
 ever settled on the coast. Born in Hardeman 
 county, Tenn., January 24, 1828, he remembers 
 well the privations and hardships of the days 
 of his childhood, and recalls the excitement in- 
 cident to the removal from Tennessee to Mis- 
 souri when he was eleven years of age. Later 
 he was a pupil in a school taught by his fathen. 
 in Cole county. The school was held in a log 
 building of primitive construction, erected on 
 land donated by his father, and there the chil- 
 dren learned to write with quill pens and gained 
 their ideas of the world from the pages of the 
 blue-backed spelling book. 
 
 When the discovery of gold drew thousands 
 to the then unknown regions west of the Rocky 
 mountains Mr. Thompson became fired with en- 
 thusiasm on the subject and determined to risk 
 the perils of the overland trip in the search for 
 gold. With a comrade he left home April 28, 
 1849. After waiting at Independence for some 
 time, they secured outfits and other supplies, 
 and then proceeded with Governor Edwards 
 along the old Santa Fe trail and Cook's route, 
 arriving safely at Los Angeles during the latter 
 .part of October. From there they traveled 
 northward through the Tehachapi Pass and the 
 San Joaquin valley. All through what is now 
 Tulare and Fresno counties not a white man 
 was to be seen except a few travelers who, like 
 themselves, were hastening toward the mines. 
 When they reached Mariposa they began to dig 
 for gold, using the old-fashioned method of 
 washing with rockers. The claim proved to be 
 a good one and Mr. Thompson met with reason- 
 able success. The gold thus secured he sent 
 home by express and in 1853 he journeyed east 
 via Panama and New York, thence to Cole coun- 
 ty. Mo. The proceeds of his western trip were 
 invested in a farm and to that new home he 
 brought his bride, Elizabeth Greenup, a native 
 of Missouri. A few years were spent there in 
 reasonable prosperity. However, the thoughts 
 of Mr. Thompson often turned toward the far 
 west, and finally he and his wife decided to 
 seek a home on the coast. In 1861, accompanied 
 by their three children, they went to Panama 
 and from there sailed to San Francisco. Im- 
 mediately after their arrival they came to Fresno 
 county, where Mr. Thompson engaged for some 
 years in the stock business with N. L. Bach- 
 man four miles from the Fresno river. From 
 there he removed to his present place at Letcher, 
 where he and his only son, James W., conduct 
 extensive stock operations. Since the death of 
 his wife in 1875 his home has been presided over 
 by his daughter, Annie L., who looks after his 
 
1418 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 comfort with careful solicitude. His other 
 daughters are dead, the youngest, Isabelle, hav- 
 ing died in Missouri at six months; the eldest, 
 Mary, came to California with the family and 
 married Pierce Baley, but a few years later died 
 at Tollhouse, Fresno county. Mrs. Thompson 
 was the daughter of John Greenup, a Kentuckian 
 who became a pioneer of Missouri and spent 
 his last days on his ranch at Dog creek in _Cali- 
 fornia. '.- ' 
 
 On the organization of the first board of 
 school directors in his district Mr. Thompson was 
 chosen a trustee. Later he assisted in establish- 
 ing and building the academy, of which iot 
 years he officiated as a trustee. In politics he 
 has been a stanch Democrat, yet not an active 
 partisan. The Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South numbers him among its earnest support- 
 ers. Not only has he been liberal in gifts of 
 money, but he has aided materially through serv- 
 ice as trustee, steward and Sunday school super- 
 intendent. The denomination with which he is 
 identified merits distinction as the first to enter 
 this field, its original representative. Rev. David 
 Latimer, having engaged in missionary work in 
 this locality as early as 1854, and after him 
 came Rev. Mr. Overton, Rev. Mr. Turner, Rev. 
 B. F. Burris, and other capable and pious labor- 
 ers on whom the mantle of their distinguished 
 predecessor worthily fell. 
 
 F. A. JONES. Although still a young man, 
 Mr. Jones has attained an enviable position in 
 the railroad world. This success is not the result 
 of any special influence, but the direct rewai'd 
 for honesty, perseverance and industry. He is 
 now filling the important position of general 
 agent (freight and passenger department of the 
 San Joaquin valley) for the Santa Fe and is con- 
 sidered by his superiors to be one of the most 
 efficient men in the service. 
 
 A native of Illinois, Mr. Jones was born in 
 Lafayette, Stark county, January 5, 1863, a son 
 of J. M. and Katherine (Atherton) Jones. The 
 father was born in Ohio and became one of the 
 early settlers of Stark county, III, where he en- 
 gaged in the harness business for many years. 
 He is now living retired, devoting his time to the 
 management of his extensive farming interests. 
 A Republican in politics, he has at all times been 
 an active worker for the success of that organi- 
 zation, but has never cared for the emoluments 
 of public office. In fraternal relations he holds 
 membership in the Masonic lodge, and is consid- 
 ered one of the most substantial citizens of the 
 county, where he has lived for so many years. 
 His wife is a native of Hancock county, III, and 
 a daughter of Milton Atherton, who migrated 
 from Pennsylvania to Hancock county at a very 
 
 early day, later settling in Stark county. At the 
 time of the Black Hawk war he took an active 
 part in the campaign, and three of his sods were 
 in the Civil war. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. J. M. Jones were born two 
 children; Nellie, Mrs. Frank Quinn, of Stark 
 county, III, and F. A. The latter's boyhood and 
 youth were spent in Lafayette, where he attended 
 the public schools, later entering the Kewanee 
 Academy, and after completing his studies in that 
 institution he matriculated in the Northern Illi- 
 nois Normal School, at Dixon, 111., from which he 
 was graduated in 1883. Soon afterward he en- 
 tered the employ of the Iowa Central Railroad as 
 timekeeper, and subsequently, when the road was 
 extended to the Mississippi river, he was pro- 
 moted to the position of cashier in the office at 
 Peoria, under John F. Wallace, who is now the 
 chief engineer of the Panama canal. While act- 
 ing as cashier Mr. Jones decided to come west, 
 and in 1884 located in Topeka, Kans., where 
 he secured a position with the Santa Fe in the 
 general offices, which position he held until 1886. 
 In that year the road was building extensively in 
 California, and Mr. Jones was transferred to this 
 end of the line. For a time he was agent at va- 
 rious places, as the road progressed, finally being 
 appointed agent at Santa Ana. Subsequently he 
 was promoted to the position of traveling freight 
 agent, making Los Angeles his headquarters, and 
 for four years prior to locating in Fresno he was 
 general agent at Santa Barbara. Soon after the 
 Santa Fe secured control of the San Joaquin Val- 
 ley road Mr. Jones was transferred to Fresno as 
 district freight and passenger agent, in 1900, and 
 since that time has made this city his place of 
 residence, being now the general agent of the 
 valley division, a very responsible position. 
 
 Aside from his duties in connection with the 
 railroad, Mr. Jones has taken a prominent part 
 in the work carried on by the Fresno Chamber of 
 Commerce and in many ways has done much to 
 further the interests of the city and valley. Al- 
 ways obliging and willing to do his duty, he has 
 not only pleased the railroad company, but has 
 secured the good will and friendship of all with 
 whom he has had dealings. 
 
 In Oceanside Mr. Jones was united in marriage 
 with Miss Florence Croff, a daughter of John P. 
 Croff , and a native of Minnesota. To this union 
 has been born one son, Lloyd Francis. While re- 
 siding at Santa Ana Mr. Jones was made a 
 Mason, and in Santa Barbara attained the Royal 
 Arch degree. In the same lodge he was made a 
 Knight Templar, being a member of St. Omer 
 commandery. He is also asShriner, being asso- 
 ciated with Islam Temple, of San Francisco; is 
 an Odd Fellow, being past grand of the lodge at 
 Oceanside, and is also a member of the Encamp- 
 ment. At one time he was a member of the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1419 
 
 Knights of Pythias, but has demitted from that 
 organization. Since coming to Fresno he has 
 joined the Elks and is a member of the Wood- 
 men of the World. In politics Mr. Jones has 
 always been identified with the Republican party, 
 but has never had time to take an active part m 
 political matters. In connection with his rail- 
 road associates he is a member of the Transporta- 
 tion Club, of San Francisco, and a charter mem- 
 ber of the Sequoia Club, of Fresno. 
 
 CHARLES SHARP. In Elgin, Kane county, 
 111., March 14, 1846, occurred the birth of Charles 
 Sharp, a son of Craigie Sharp, whose history is 
 given at length in another part of this volume. 
 His life began under very untoward circum- 
 stances, his first home being a log cabin in the 
 midst of the prairie lands of Illinois. He was 
 taken by his parents to Dover, Bureau county, 
 same state, where his home remained for but a 
 brief time, when he removed to North Prairie, 
 five miles west of LaMoille and fifteen miles each 
 from the towns of Princeton and Mendota, 111. 
 There he was reared to young manhood, receiv- 
 ing his preliminary education in the district school 
 in the vicinity of his home. Against the disad- 
 vantage of a slight frame and apparently weak 
 constitution, his thirst for knowledge, indomitable 
 will power and ambition to excel spurred him on 
 to exert himself beyond his physical ability. His 
 parents having the greatest desire to give him 
 what he so ardently wished, sent him to Abingdon 
 College, whence he returned so broken in health 
 that he was not recognized by his father. Shortly 
 afterward he became very ill and it was thought 
 that he would never recover, but his will 
 power again asserted itself, and without the 
 help of physicians he gradually came back to 
 a health and strength which he had never be- 
 fore known. Within nine months after his 
 severe illness he weighed one hundred and 
 eighty pounds, could lift nine hundred and 
 fifty pounds, and neither his father nor any of 
 his brothers were willing or able to match him in 
 strength or physical ability. That was his first 
 great victory in the battle of life and the founda- 
 tion for all the success which he afterward 
 achieved. His next step was to acquire the edu- 
 cation which had been interrupted so many times, 
 and accordingly he attended Eureka College for 
 four years, in the meantime giving his oversight 
 to the farm work during vacations, holidays, etc., 
 while in the summers he traveled for various agri- 
 cultural manufacturing companies, among them 
 that of J. D. Easter, Gammon Deering Company, 
 and the C. H. & L. J. McCormick. He became 
 an expert binder and holds the world's champion- 
 ship as the fastest binder on record. Upon the 
 completion of the scientific, classical, theological 
 
 and commercial courses in Eureka College, Mr. 
 Sharp continued in the employ of the various har- 
 vester companies until 1878. In that year he was 
 employed for C. H. & L. J. McCormick and had 
 contracted to represent them at the exposition in 
 Australia, but the company withdrew, believing 
 it to be too late to ship machinery. Mr. Sharp, be- 
 ing in a position to make a change of residence, 
 decided then to come to California, inducing his 
 father, who was then on the eve of a removal to 
 Texas, to locate also in this state, on account of 
 the superior advantages of climate, of which he 
 had learned in the teaching of a district school 
 early in his career. In 1879 ^r- Sharp located 
 temporarily in San Francisco, while his brother, 
 Robert Sharp, went to Santa Rosa. For a time 
 following his location in the state Mr. Sharp 
 traveled throughout various sections and thus be- 
 came acquainted with the advantages of certain 
 localities. Deciding to locate in Hanford, Kings 
 county, in partnership with his brother he estab- 
 lished a hardware and agricultural implement 
 business, which they conducted for several years 
 with profit. Their business was destroyed by fire 
 at a loss of $9,000. Charles Sharp then bought 
 out the interest of his brother and built what is 
 known as Sharp's block on the corner of Sixth 
 and Harris streets, where he has continued up 
 to the present time in the sewing machine and 
 household furnishing business — continuing in 
 this location for twenty-six years and being 
 known as the oldest merchant in Hanford. 
 Throughout his long residence here Mr. Sharp 
 has taken a most active interest in the upbuilding 
 of the place and the development of its best in- 
 terests, and has constantly exerted a strong moral 
 influence in the community. He has been notice- 
 ably successful in his temperance work, through 
 his publication of the Alliance Messenger, of 
 which he was editor and proprietor, his efforts 
 proving him a strong factor in the carrying of 
 Kings county for prohibition. Through his ef- 
 forts the first Christian church building was put 
 up here (the first also in the San Joaquin valley), 
 in 1884. In addition to his mercantile interests 
 he is also extensively interested in oil transac- 
 tions, being president of and owning the control- 
 ling interest in the Lady Bryan Development 
 Company. This company was incorporated 
 March 9, 1900, and controls twenty-four hundred 
 acres in the Devil's Den oil district in Kern 
 county, which district contains ten townships. 
 Mr. Sharp owns personally about six thousand 
 acres of the cream of the Devil's Den oil district 
 unpatented land. The country is as yet undevel- 
 oped, but holds out great promise of future suc- 
 cess if the enterprise is followed up, and Mr. 
 Sharp expects to make his fortune out of the oil 
 interests with which he is connected. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Sharp united him with 
 
1420 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 Jane A. Smyth, a native of Ireland, and to them 
 were born three children, namely : Craigie S., a 
 clerk in Hanford ; Sidney J. W., a student ; and 
 an infant daughter deceased. In his political con- 
 victions Mr. Sharp is a stanch Prohibitionist and 
 has for many years been active in advancing the 
 principles he endorses, although personally he 
 has never cared for official recognition. He has 
 been a member of the Christian Church since he 
 was thirteen years old and has always taken an 
 active interest in its work, which has resulted, 
 by study and research, in making him an enter- 
 taining and instructive teacher in the Bible class 
 of the Sunday school. He has also officiated in 
 the church in various capacities, and is now the 
 only charter member of the Hanford Christian 
 Church. Mr. Sharp can always be depended 
 upon to give his best efforts to advance the men- 
 tal, moral and physical culture of whatever com- 
 munity he makes his home. The qualities of his 
 Scotch ancestry were a part of Mr. Sharp's in- 
 heritance, and to these were added the training 
 received under the parental roof, as well as the 
 experiences received through direct contact with 
 the world. One of his most commendable charac- 
 teristics was his unbounded devotion to his pa- 
 rents and the sacrifices he made for them while 
 living. He is to all men true, earnest, honest 
 and just, giving to them an implicit faith which 
 is reciprocated by all who come in contact with 
 him. He enjoys the esteem and confidence of 
 many friends who have been associated with him 
 either in a business or social way, commanding 
 the respect of all for the proeressive yet con- 
 servative methods which have distinguished his 
 career, and the unswerving integrity noticeable 
 in all his transactions. 
 
 THOMAS FRANKLIN MOODY. The son 
 
 of a California pioneer, Mr. Moody was born in 
 
 Santa Clara county. May 31, 1855. His father, 
 
 G. W. Moody, was a native of Missouri and in 
 
 1847 he crossed the plains with ox teams to 
 
 California. Locating in the beautiful Santa 
 
 Clara valley he there engaged in farming and 
 
 stock-raising for several years, but finally sold 
 
 out and moved to San Benito county, where he 
 
 lived until 1880, when he came to Fresno county. 
 
 Ten years later he again made a change, this 
 
 time going to Santa Barbara county. Here he 
 
 made his home until 1902, when he sold his 
 
 farm and returned to Fresno county where he 
 
 has since made his home with his son Thomas. 
 
 In young manhood he was united in marriage 
 
 with Miss Emily Lynn, who was born in Illinois 
 
 and died in Santa Qara county. By her union 
 
 she became the mother of eight children five 
 
 boys and three girls. ' 
 
 After completing a common school education 
 
 Thomas F. Moody engaged in agricultural pur- 
 suits. Coming to Fresno county in 1878 he lo- 
 cated near Lemoore. Since then he has lived in 
 Kings and Tulare county, but in 1901 he pur- 
 chased his present fine ranch of one hundred 
 and fifty acres which is located five miles west 
 of Laton. Here he is now carrying on a dairy 
 business, having thirty head of milch cows. 
 
 In Napa county in 1877 was celebrated the 
 union of Mr. Moody and Miss Lovey Jane 
 Deitzman, also a native of Santa Clara county. 
 To them have been born seven children, namely : 
 Pearl E., Ernest L., Lela M., George C, Thomas 
 LeRoy, Lester D., and Elmer I. All the chil- 
 dren are at home. Mr. Moody is a stanch Dem- 
 ocrat, but has never cared to enter the lists for 
 public favor. He has made a success of his op- 
 portunities and is one of the most highly re- 
 spected citizens in Fresno county. Both he and 
 his wife are members of the United Brethren 
 Church and take an active part in church work. 
 
 WILSON R. SMITH is one of the oldest res- 
 idents of the Laguna de Tache tract. During 
 the many years that he has made this place his 
 home he has been prominently connected with 
 the upbuilding of the country and at all times 
 has performed his part. A native of New York 
 state, Mr. Smith was born in Franklin county, 
 August 14, 1832, a son of David and Eliza 
 (Jackman) Smith. The father was born in Ver- 
 mont, but at the age of ten years he was taken 
 by his parents to New York. In 1836 he left 
 his home and moved to Ohio, where he remained 
 for one year, then going to Indiana, he resided 
 m that state a like length of time, in 1838 lo- 
 cating in McHenry county, HI., where he fol- 
 lowed farming until 1850. In that year he 
 crossed the plains to California and lived here 
 until 1861, when he returned east. Locating in 
 Iowa, he engaged in farming and continued there 
 until his death. His wife was a native of the 
 old Bay State. She died in Illinois in 1856, aged 
 forty-seven years. By her marriage she became 
 the mother of seven children. 
 
 Wilson R. Smith was the second child. He 
 obtained a limited education in the common 
 schools and engaged in farmmg in the east for 
 a time, but m i860 he came to California. Tak- 
 ing up his residence in San Joaquin county, near 
 Stockton, he became interested in farming, re- 
 maining there until the spring of 1871, when he 
 sold out and came to Fresno county, locating 
 thirteen miles east pf Fresno, where he engaged 
 m agricultural pursuits, making a specialty of 
 raising wheat. In 1881 he disposed of his ranch 
 there, which consisted of three hundred and 
 twenty acres, and purchased twenty acres in the 
 Temperance Colony. This place' was sold in 
 
— -^^^^Z;,^ ^T^/f^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECOkb. 
 
 1423 
 
 1888 and Mr. Smith went to Fresno, where he 
 estabhshed a feed and wood yard. In 1892 he 
 became interested, as a contractor, in the build- 
 ing of canals in the Liberty country. A year 
 later, however, he rented land in the L^guna de 
 Tache tract, having four thousand acres under 
 his control. The larger part of this was used for 
 grazing purposes, although a portion was de- 
 voted to the raising of wheat. He now leases 
 one thousand acres, and in addition owns one 
 hundred and sixty acres one and one-half miles 
 north of Laton. The place where he resides is 
 composed of thirty acres, all of which is devoted 
 to fruit and alfalfa. Aside from his fruit inter- 
 ests he is now conducting an extensive dairy, 
 which is a very profitable branch of his business. 
 
 While still living in Illinois Mr. Smith was 
 united in marriage with Miss Susan Smith, who, 
 however, was no relation. To this union have 
 been born three children : Wilson R., who is mar- 
 ried and is now engaged in the real estate business 
 in San Francisco; Charles E. lives near his 
 father's place and conducts a skimming station ; 
 Albert E. lives at home, being in partnership with 
 his father. On the occasion of their golden wed- 
 ding, September 28, 1893, Mr. and Mrs. Smith 
 were taken by surprise by their friends and 
 neighbors, who invaded their home on that 
 memorable evening to the number of one hun- 
 dred and five and left with them substantial me- 
 mentoes of their good-will and golden opinions 
 in the way of gold articles, among them a beauti- 
 ful gold-headed cane for Mr. Smith. 
 
 Mr. Smith cast his first ballot for Abraham 
 Lincoln and has never failed to -vote for the 
 candidates of the Republican party. He has cer- 
 tainly made a splendid success of his life and 
 deserves credit for the work he has accom- 
 plished. Starting in life without a dollar, he 
 has, by the exercise of a keen business judg- 
 ment, accumulated a handsome property, the re- 
 sult of perseverance and industry. While he has 
 never cared for public office, it must not be un- 
 derstood that he has lived within himself, for 
 no man in the county is more liberal or more 
 willing to give of his time and means in the 
 support of a movement that he deems of material 
 benefit to the country and its people. Both, he 
 and his family are highly respected and have 
 hosts of friends. 
 
 JULIUS ORTON. One of the oldest pioneers 
 of the state, Mr. Orton is still hale and heartv 
 and can relate many stirring stories of those early 
 days. The pioneers were a brave and fearless 
 people and when they blazed the way across the 
 plains and through trackless forests they little 
 realized the great good they were doing future 
 
 generations. Since the arrival of Mr. Orton :n 
 California there have been many changes. 
 
 A native of Richland county, Ohio, Julius Or- 
 ton was born August 29, 1825, a son of Miles 
 and Lucy (Gamble) Orton. The father was 
 born in Connecticut, where the grandfather was 
 also born. From the state of his nativity Miles 
 Orton migrated to New York, later removing to 
 -Richland county, Ohio. There he engaged in 
 farming near the town of Shelby untif 1838, 
 when he removed to the northwestern part of 
 Missouri. Locating in Gentry county, he en- 
 tered land and engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
 At the time of his settlement there were only 
 about twenty families in the county and when 
 he was ready to raise his log cabin the whole pop- 
 ulation of the county was on hand to assist. 
 Now, where his farm was located, stands the 
 thriving town of Albany. Mr. Orton married 
 Lucy Gamble, a native of New York state, and 
 a daughter of James Gamble, who settled in 
 Richland county, Ohio, at a very early day. The 
 land he entered is now the site of the city of 
 Shelby, which was named by Mrs. Orton 's 
 father. To Mr. and Mrs. Orton were born four 
 children. Both parents died in Missouri, Mrs. 
 Orton being over ninety years of age at the time 
 of her demise. 
 
 Julius Orton was the oldest in -the family and 
 about all he can recall of his early life is the 
 fact that he had to work all the time. A few 
 terms of school was the limit of his educational 
 advantages. The schoolhouse was built of logs 
 with slab benches for seats, while quill pens were 
 used for writing. He remained at home assist- 
 ing in the work of the farm until the breaking out 
 of the Mexican war, when he hired as a team- 
 ster in the Oregon Battalion, in the quartermas- 
 ter's department. Soon afterward the news of 
 the discovery of gold reached him and he de- 
 cided to come to California. The journey was 
 made with ox teams, via Fort Hall, the Humboldt 
 and Carson rivers, Mr. Orton arriving in Hang- 
 town September 10, 1849. Remaining there un- 
 til the following March, as a miner, he then went 
 to Georgetown, where he engaged in mining on 
 Canyon creek until 1852. Tiring of that life, he 
 went south to the Santa Clara valley, where he 
 worked as a farmer for a time. Subsequently h'f 
 went to Santa Cruz county and there engagoc' 
 in farming and stock-raising until 1859, when 
 he came to Tulare county, driving his cattle be- 
 fore him. At that time it was all open country 
 and on arriving at his destination he entered land 
 and continued in the cattle business. In i86i ho 
 settled on section 10, pre-empting one hundred 
 and sixty acres for his home and headquarters. 
 In 1884 he homesteaded his present place, con- 
 sisting of one hundred and sixty acres in section 
 
1424: 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 14, which he has improved and placed under a 
 high state of cultivation. In addition he owns 
 a ranch on the Tule river which he devotes to 
 the stock business. 
 
 While living in Santa Cruz county Mr. Orton 
 was united in marriage with Lucretia Kirby, who 
 was born in Pittsburg, Pa., a daughter of 
 Gresham Kirby, a native of the Keystone state 
 who migrated to California in 1853, settling in 
 Santa Cruz county. His wife was in maiden- 
 hood Lucy Moon, a sister of David Moon, who 
 was with Perry at the time of his great battle 
 on Lake Erie. Mrs. Orton died April 22, igc/O. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Orton were born the follow- 
 ing children : Lucy, wife of E. J. Hunsaker ; 
 May, wife of George DeWitt, of Lindsay ; Char- 
 lotte, wife of John Keeley, of Lindsay; Jesse T., 
 a farmer near Lindsay; Silas G., a farmer near 
 Exeter; Eugene, who lives in Lindsay; Eben, 
 manager of the Spaulding Lumber Company, of 
 Lindsay; and Clyde, a butcher living in Lindsay. 
 
 Socially Mr. Orton is a member of the Pioneer 
 Society of Tulare county. In politics he has al- 
 ways been a firm supporter of the men and meas- 
 ures of the Republican party, but has never cared 
 for public office. He served as school trustee 
 for several terms. 
 
 OTTO LOESCHER. Born in Prussia, Ger- 
 many, December 29, 1859, Mr. Loescher is a 
 son of Gustave and Caroline (Dolke) Loescher, 
 both of whom were natives of the same country. 
 The father was a mill owner and resided in the 
 fatherland until his death. His wife became 
 the m.other of five children, two sons and three 
 daughters. Of this family Otto was the eldest 
 son and the third in order of birth. His educa- 
 tion was obtained in the public schools and at 
 an eariy age he was apprenticed to learn the 
 miller's trade. Coming to the United States in 
 1886, he located in the state of Indiana where 
 he followed his trade for two years, when he 
 came to California. Soon after arriving in this 
 state he settled in Selma where he engaged in 
 the carpenter business. • Later he worked in the 
 grist mill, and finally, having been saving of his 
 money, he was able to purchase a ranch, in the 
 meantime operating the mill at Reedley. In 
 1901 he located on the place that has continued 
 to be his home. Since taking possession he has 
 erected a fine residence and otherwise improved 
 the place until he has one of the finest properties 
 in this section of Fresno county. His land hold- 
 ings consist of forty acres adjoining the town 
 of Fowler on the north and forty acres on the 
 south. The larger portion, some seventy acres, 
 is devoted to the growing of grapes. 
 
 Since coming to Fresno county, Mr. Loescher 
 has married Miss Katie Victor, a daughter of 
 
 Frank Victor, a sketch of whom will be found 
 on another page of this work. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Loescher have been born three children: Ella, 
 Agnes and Edward, all living at home. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Loescher is a member of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows. He worships at 
 the German Lutheran Church. Since coming to 
 California he has worked hard, and as a result 
 he has not only accumulated a comfortable for- 
 tune, but has made for himself an enviable repu- 
 tation, his word being considered as good as his 
 bond. 
 
 B. OROGNEN. Residing on a farm which 
 adjoins Los Banos is Mr. Orognen, who has 
 made his own way in the world, and by the 
 exercise of his native industry and talents has 
 accumulated a fair share of this world's goods. 
 A man of good judgment, possessing much busi- 
 ness ability and tact, he has been identified with 
 different industries, and in his undertakings has 
 met with noteworthy success. A native of 
 France, he was born January i, 1864, in Oloron, 
 department of Basses-Pyrenees, which was also 
 the birthplace of his father, Antoine Orognen. 
 His father, a farmer by occupation, married Cath- 
 erine Boy, and both are yet living in their native 
 country. They have but two children, and both 
 are residents of California, John residing in San 
 Francisco, and the subject of this sketch. 
 
 Receiving but a limited common school edu- 
 cation, B. Orognen began work on the farm 
 when a mere boy, remaining with his parents un- 
 til after attaining his majority. Desirous then of 
 seeing more of the world, he immigrated to 
 America in 1885, taking up his residence in San 
 Francisco. Entering into partnership with his 
 brother, he was there engaged in the restaurant 
 business for a year. Locating on the west side 
 of Merced county in 1886, he worked as a ranch- 
 man for Miller & Lux for three or four years, 
 m the meantime saving some money. Embark- 
 ing then in business on his own account, Mr. 
 Orognen was for a while employed in sheep 
 raising in Calaveras and Merced counties. Re- 
 turning to San Francisco from there, he remained 
 in that city a year, being engaged in various pur- 
 suits. Subsequently opening the "Bon Ton" in 
 Los Banos, Mr. Orognen has since been pros- 
 perously engaged in the restaurant and liquor 
 business. In the meantime, making judicious in- 
 vestments of his money, he purchased the farm 
 which he now occupies, and on which he has made 
 improvements of great value. It contains twentv- 
 one acres of good land, the larger part of which 
 he devotes to alfalfa. He has erected a substan- 
 tial residence, and in the care of his property 
 finds pleasure and profit. He also owns valuable 
 residence and business property in Los Banos, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1425 
 
 all of which he now leases, receiving a good an- 
 nual income from the rental of these. 
 
 In Los Banos Mr. Orognen married Annie 
 Hoffman, who was born in Alamo, Contra Costa 
 county, a daughter of Henry Hoffman, and a sis- 
 ter of Edward H. Hoffman, of whom a brief 
 sketch may be found elsewhere in this biographi- 
 cal work. Politically Mr. Orognen is a straight- 
 forward Republican, and fraternally he belongs to 
 Mountain Brow Lodge No. 82, I. O. O. F. 
 
 A. J. DeLANEY. As president of the A. J. 
 DeLaney Company, a large hardware establish- 
 ment of Portersville, Tulare county, Mr. De- 
 Laney is numbered among the representative 
 business men of this city and holds a prominent 
 place_ as an upbuilder of the .best interests com- 
 mercially and socially, and also in being instru- 
 mental in bringing many new settlers to this 
 prosperous city and vicinity. A native of Og- 
 densburg, N. Y., he was born October 22, 1852, 
 the second in a family of five sons, of whom four 
 are living. His father, James A. DeLaney, who 
 removed about 1855 to Canada, was engaged 
 for many years in manufacturing agricultural and 
 mill machinery in Peterboro, Ontario, Canada, but 
 having sustained a heavy loss by fire in 1878 he 
 removed to the then territory of Dakota, where 
 he dealt in real estate, carried on farming, etc., 
 being quite successful and prosperous. Later he 
 removed to Grafton, N. Dak., taking an active 
 part in political and other public afifairs for the ad- 
 vancement of the city. He served as judge of 
 the city for several years, after which he contin- 
 ued the practice of law until his death in 1902. 
 He died in Grafton, N. Dak., as did also his wife, 
 formerly Annie Wilson, of Ogdensburg, N. Y. 
 
 A. J. DeLaney was reared to young manhood in 
 Ontario, Canada, receiving his education in the 
 various schools, and later passed a successful ex- 
 amination for teacher. After graduating he was 
 offered a position at his home in a general mer- 
 chandise store which he accepted, and in this work 
 he laid the foundation for his future success. 
 Later his father offered him an interest in his 
 manufacturing business in Peterboro, which he 
 accepted, and remained with him until they were 
 burned out in 1878. He then went to the new 
 northwest country and settled in Winnipeg, Man- 
 itoba, Canada, and engaged in manufacturing, 
 mercantile and real estate business in that vicinity 
 until 1882. Having been successful in the mean- 
 time, he retired from active business for a time, 
 but in 1882 the great land boom of the northwest 
 broke and a reaction set in, which brought values 
 down to almost nothing. Having faith in the 
 country and believing the depression to be only 
 tem.porary, Mr. DeLaney decided to await the 
 return of prosperity and associated himself with 
 
 a legal firm in Pembina, N. Dak., where he 
 studied law. After being admitted to practice in 
 the state courts he immediately purchased an in- 
 terest in said legal firm in Pembina, practicing in 
 this connection for a year, after which he en- 
 gaged in business on his own account. In 1890 
 he removed to California and located in Hanford, 
 Kings county, purchasing an interest in a hard- 
 ware and plumbing business in that city. In 1892 
 he purchased his partner's interest and became 
 sole proprietor, after which he carried on a hard- 
 ware and general merchandise business. In 1895 
 he established a branch store in Portersville, Tu- 
 lare county, the two being conducted profitably 
 until 1899. Becoming attached to Portersville 
 on account of its beautiful surroundings and ad- 
 vantages, he sold the Hanford store and has since 
 devoted his time and attention to his business in 
 this city. He at once took steps to enlarge his 
 business, having now a building 40x125 feet in 
 dimensions, with an L on another street. Here 
 he conducts an extensive business, and carries a 
 full line of hardware, stoves and tinware, agate 
 ware, crockery, glassware, paints, oils, glass, 
 blacksmith supplies, agricultural implements, 
 wagons, and in addition carries on a plumbing 
 business and handles all the necessary supplies. 
 In 1902, with a capitalization of $20,000, this busi- 
 ness was incorporated under the firm name of A. 
 J. DeLaney Company, of which Mr. DeLaney is 
 president and principal owner. 
 
 The pleasant and comfortable home which Mr. 
 DeLaney established in Portersville is presided 
 over by his wife, formerly Jennie Anderson, a 
 native of Brooklyn, N. Y., with whom he was 
 united in marriage in South Falls, Canada, in 
 1875. Fraternally Mr. DeLaney is identified with 
 the Knights of Pythias and Independent Order 
 of Foresters, and in his political convictions is a 
 stanch supporter of the principles of the Repub- 
 lican party. He is an active member of the Board 
 of Trade of Portersville, and as a broad-minded 
 and liberal citizen takes an active interest in all 
 movements that pertain to the general welfare of 
 the community. 
 
 OSCAR DUKE. A prominent and successful 
 ranchman, Oscar Duke is now engaged in con- 
 ducting a dairy of sixty cows, while he also en- 
 gages extensively in the raising of stock on his 
 place of five hundred and twenty acres, known 
 throughout Fresno county as Poverty Row Stock 
 Farm. He was born in Lee county, Miss., June 
 17, 1864, a son of Thomas L. Duke. The elder 
 man was a native of Massachusetts, who located 
 in the south, thence came as far west as Colorado, 
 and to California in the fall of 1875. He located 
 in the Mussel Slough country, where he served 
 
1426 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORI). 
 
 as presiding elder of this Conference for one 
 term, being a minister of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South. Later he preached in Davisville, 
 and Winters, Yolo county, after four years re- 
 turning to Fresno county for a like period ; thence 
 to Merced and then to southern California. He 
 is now retired from active work and makes his 
 home near his son. His wife, formerly Henrietta 
 Virginia Stone, was also a native of Mississippi, 
 and is now deceased. Of their three sons and two 
 daughters, Oscar was the eldest. 
 
 Oscar Duke was reared in the various states 
 and localities in which his parents lived, attend- 
 ing school in Mississippi and Colorado for a lim- 
 ited time. In California he soon found employ- 
 ment on various ranches, in 1881 coming to Fres- 
 no county and worked on his father's ranch in 
 the vicinity of Selma for three years. Upon the 
 sale of this place he engaged in draying in Selma 
 for a period of four years, when he went to San 
 Francisco and was employed as gripman on the 
 cable cars of that city. After seven months he 
 returned to Selma and purchased property which 
 reached a high figure at the' time of the great in- 
 crease in property values of Selma. In 189S he 
 bought twenty acres of unimproved land three 
 miles west of Conejo, later added by a purchase 
 of twenty acres, and then by forty, eighty, and 
 three hundred and sixty, owning in all five hun- 
 dred and twenty acres. With the exception of 
 thirty acres this is all under irrigation, and all but 
 eighty acres in alfalfa. He has a herd of three 
 hundred cattle and also carries on a dairy of sixty 
 cows. Up to a short time ago he had charge of 
 the large ranch owned by Clarence J. Berry, but 
 found it impossible to manage his constantly in- 
 creasing personal interests and that of his em- 
 ployer, and consequently was forced tO' resign 
 from the position. He is a man of energy as well 
 as ability, and bids fair to win more than an or- 
 dinary success as a ranchman of this section. 
 
 In Madera, Cal., Mr. Duke was united in mar- 
 riage with Mrs. Lottie Norris, a native of Kew 
 York state, who' had one son, Raymond Norris, 
 Jr., by her first husband, Raymond Norris. Po- 
 litically Mr. Duke is a stanch adherent of the 
 principles advocated in the platform of the Demo- 
 cratic party. 
 
 JOSHUA PECKHAM. Among the repre- 
 sentative men of Fresno county mention is due 
 Joshtia Peckham, a retired citizen of Fresno. He 
 was born August 15, 1839, in Middletown, R. 
 I., a son of Joshua and Eliza R. (Tilley) Peck- 
 ham, both natives of Newport, R. I., and repre- 
 sentatives of prominent old families of the New 
 England states, where the grandfather Peckham 
 was a farmer in Middletown, R. I. They had a 
 family of seven sons and seven daughters born 
 
 to them, of whom two sons and one daughter 
 are living, Mr. Peckham being the only one to 
 make his home on the Pacific coast. Reared on 
 a farm in Rhode Island, Joshua Peckham attend- 
 ed the public school of his locality. At the 
 age of seventeen years he started westward, re- 
 mained in Chicago a short time, then went to 
 East Bend, Champaign county, DL, and pur- 
 chased eighty acres of land from the lUinois Cen- 
 tral Railroad Company. This he started to im- 
 prove, but did not complete and farmed on other 
 land in that county. After the battle of Bull 
 Run, July 4, 1861, Mr. Peckham enlisted in 
 Company F, Twenty-fifth Regiment Illinois Vol- 
 unteer Infantry, was sent to Jefferson Barracks, 
 Mo., tlien on to Rolla, Mo., and did guard duty 
 at Lamine River Bridge ; there their first engage- 
 ment with Price's army occurred. While there 
 Mr. Peckham was taken sick with intermittent 
 fever and was in the camp hospital for one month 
 and was then sent to St. Louis General Hospital, 
 New House of Refuge, where he had typhoid 
 and finally contracted rheumatism with which he 
 is still afflicted. February, 1862, he was honor- 
 ably discharged on account of physical disabil- 
 ity and at once returned to his home, where he 
 spent the greater part of that year in regaining 
 his health. He then took up farming for one 
 year and met with success, raising a good crop 
 and receiving good prices. In 1863 he erected 
 a store at East Bend and engaged in the general 
 mercantile business, also started a meat market 
 in connection with the store. Later he began 
 farming on a large scale. In the fall of 1869 
 he made a trip to his home in Rhode Island and 
 resided there from 1869 until the spring of 1880. 
 At Newport he purchased a grocery store and 
 in March, 1870, put in a stock of goods in addi- 
 tion to the old stock. Between March i, 1870, 
 and January I, 1871, he sold $28,000 worth of 
 goods, and the second year about $40,000 ; quad- 
 rupling the volume of business done by-his pred- 
 ecessor. He purchased property, erected another 
 store with two flats above for his residence. From 
 1872 until 1877 he conducted a large business as 
 a general merchant as well as operating a grist 
 mill from 1872 to 1875, first with two partners, 
 but eventually succeeded to the entire ownership. 
 In the fall of 1871 he restocked his old store 
 with $5,200 worth of boots and shoes, conduct- 
 ing all three enterprises separately and success- 
 fully. January i, 1877, he sold and retired from 
 active business temporarily. In 1880 he came 
 to California and near San Jose engaged in the 
 grain, orchard and vineyard business 011 Senter 
 Road and Coyote creek, remaining so engaged 
 for two years. He then purchased property in 
 San Jose and embarked in the real estate and 
 livery business. About 1883 he engaged in the 
 tea and coffee business in San Jose successfully 
 and in 1884 opened a wholesale and retail tea 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1429 
 
 and coffee store and manufactured spices in San 
 Francisco for one year ; then removed to Bixby's 
 Landing, Monterey county, where he was in the 
 mercantile and lumber business. After a short 
 residence there he returned to San Jose and soon 
 after, in 1890, located in Fresno and purchased 
 the Pleasant View House and conducted a hotel 
 for over six years. Selling out, he went to Los 
 Angeles and in six months had to take back his 
 hotel property in Fresno. Selling again, he spent 
 nearly a' year in San Jose, but having a liking 
 •for Fresno county again located here, purchasing 
 a farm near Selma, which he set out in orchard 
 and vineyard. He sold forty acres of this and 
 removed to Fresno and located at No. 232 Va- 
 leria street, his present home. He later traded 
 his balance of forty acres near Selma for eighty 
 acres near Conejo, which he leases as a dairy 
 farm. He also owns an alfalfa ranch of one 
 hundred and sixty acres near Conejo on which 
 he installed a pumping plant at a cost of $2,000. 
 This ranch is well stocked and a lucrative dair}' 
 business is carried on under the management of 
 his son, Joshua Peckham, Jr. 
 
 In Newport, R. L, October 5, 1871, Mr. Peck- 
 ham was united in marriage with Mrs. Hattie N. 
 (Peckham) Kaull, who is a native of Nevvport, 
 and a daughter of Solomon and Roxanna (Bar- 
 ker) Peckham. Of this marriage three children 
 have been born: Annie R., the wife of L. E. 
 Hughson, of Collis ; Joshua, Jr. ; and Hattie N., 
 deceased. Mr. Peckham and his wife are Spirit- 
 ualists in their religious belief. In politics a Re- 
 publican, he has ever been identified with the 
 party's best interests. Socially he is a member 
 of the Royal Arcanum and the Grand Army of 
 the Republic. In the busy life that Mr. Peck- 
 ham has led he has never forgotten the duties 
 of a citizen, but has always given of his time 
 and means to further the interests of the com- 
 munities where he has been a resident. Start- 
 ing at the bottom of the ladder, he has gradually 
 worked his way by strict integrity and perse- 
 verance to a position of affluence, and now in the 
 afternoon of a busy life he is able to live retired 
 from the cares of business and with his wife en- 
 joy a competency well earned. 
 
 JAMES B. HERSEY. The ancestry of James 
 B. Hersey, a well-known and esteemed resident 
 of Tulare county, is traced back to the colonial 
 days of our country, when members of his fam- 
 ily participated in the stirring events which led 
 up to the independence of our nation. The fam- 
 ily flourished in the New England states for 
 many generations, Randolph Hersey, a native of 
 Maine, finally settling in Montreal, Canada, where 
 he became a prominent iron manufacturer, being 
 president of the Pillow-Hersey Manufacturing 
 
 Company. He is also president of the Hersey- 
 Page Pipe Company, the manufacturers of water 
 and gas pipes. Later in life Mr. Hersey dis- 
 posed of his interests in Montreal and after a 
 time found his way to California, locating in 
 Santa Clara county, where he purchased a ranch 
 of one hundred and sixty acres five miles from 
 the city of San Jose and engaged in general farm- 
 ing and horticulture. He is now living retired. 
 By his marriage with Mary Louise Price, who 
 is now deceased, the following children were 
 born : John Randolph, general superintendent of 
 an iron manufacturing plant in Montreal, where 
 he makes his home ; Theodore, who is engaged in 
 horticultural pursuits in Santa Clara county; 
 Fernando P., of San Francisco; Milton, assayer 
 and chemist in an iron manufacturing plant in 
 Montreal ; Arthur, also engaged in the iron busi- 
 ness in Montreal ; Laura Beatrice, the wife of H. 
 Roland, of Santa Clara county; and James B. 
 After the death of his wife Mr. Hersey again 
 married, by the second union having four chil- 
 dren : Effie, Florence, Lena and Gertrude, all 
 of whom are living in the east. 
 
 James B. Hersey was born March 30, 1856, 
 and in early manhood learned the trade of a 
 machinist and engineer. Coming to California 
 in 1872 he first found employment in San Fran- 
 cisco, where he assisted in the erection of the 
 Pacific Rolling Mills. Later he followed engin- 
 eering at various times, making several trips to 
 the Orient as first assistant engineer on ocean 
 liners. He has also devoted several years to 
 mining, being located at times in Colorado, Cali- 
 fornia, Arizona, New and Old Mexico and Ne- 
 vada, and at the present .time he owns two mines 
 on the edge of Death Valley, which he is now 
 operating, having his own stamp mills. Mr. Her- 
 sey was in Leadville the year before the discovery 
 of gold in 1877 and later returned to that won- 
 derful region and followed mining for a time. 
 His experience as a horticulturist dates from 
 1885 and since then he has engaged in this line 
 of business at various times. For a period he 
 was located in the Santa Clara valley ,_ where he 
 purchased and improved a ranch of sixty acres, 
 all devoted to an orchard. This place is now 
 owned by his brother, Theodore. In 1897 Mr. 
 Hersey located in Lindsay, Tulare county, where 
 he has since made his home. The land now in 
 his possession was at time of purchase a stubble 
 field, but under the direction of the owner exten- 
 sive improvements have since been made. _A 
 pumping plant has been installed and with an m- 
 vention of his own a double quantity of water 
 can be secured. This is the only plant of its 
 kind in the state but it has proved a complete suc- 
 cess, and in the future, many, no doubt, will 
 take advantage of the improved methods. As his 
 ranch adjoins the Southern Pacific Railway it is 
 
1430 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the intention of Mr. Hersey to build a packing 
 house for his own use. Fifty acres of his prop- 
 erty are devoted to the cultivation of the Wash- 
 ington navel orange and in the future this acre- 
 age will be increased. 
 
 In Montreal Mr. Hersey was united in mar- 
 riage with Albertine M. Holland, and they are 
 the parents of the following children: Mans- 
 field Randolph, Ralph James, Clarence Theo- 
 dore and Mary Louise, all of whom are living 
 at home. In his political convictions Mr. Her- 
 sey is a stanch Republican, but has never aspired 
 to public office. 
 
 ELISHA HARLAN has been a resident of 
 California since 1846, growing to manhood 
 among the primitive scenes and conditions of 
 the pioneer days, and experiencing the hardships 
 and privations incident to the lives of the build- 
 ers of a statehood. He has watched the growth 
 and progress of the state and has been an active 
 participant in the development of Fresno county, 
 where he located in i860. Born in Berrien 
 county, Mich., August 5, 1838, he was the son 
 of George Harlan. The latter was a native of 
 Kentucky, who removed to Indiana and thence 
 to Berrien county, Mich., locating near Niles. 
 Deciding to cast in his lot with the vanguard of 
 civilization in the remote west, he started for 
 California in 1845, reaching Lexington, Mo., 
 where they spent the winter. In (he spring'of 
 1846 they set out across the plains with ox-teams, 
 traveling in Captain Ahrens' company. They 
 left Lexington in March and after seven months 
 of journeying arrived at Sutter's Fort October 8. 
 During the trip they met with the Donner party, 
 but parted from them at Hastings' cut-ofif. Mr. 
 Harlan located at Santa Clara, where he enlisted 
 for service in the Mexican ,war, as did his son, 
 Joel Harlan. In the spring the family removed 
 to Mission San Jose, where a crop of wheat was 
 put in, and when the season was over located in 
 Napa valley and engaged in stock-raising. After 
 one year he went to San Francisco and conducted 
 a dairy business, selling out a year later and re- 
 turning to Mission San Jose and later to Napa 
 City. During the gold excitement of 1848 he 
 went to Coloma, Eldorado county, and mined for 
 six months, then engaged in the butcher busi- 
 ness in Sutterville for eight months. For a time 
 following he was located in Cash creek canyon, 
 thence returned to San Francisco and spent' the 
 winter. Flis death occurred in Mission San Jose 
 in June, 1850. His wife, formerly Betsey Dun- 
 can, a native of Pennsylvania, died in Santa 
 Clara, in 1846. They were the parents of four 
 sons and three daughters, of whom Slisha Harlan 
 was next to the youngest, and besides him Mrs. 
 
 Henry H. Smith of Livermore, Cal., is the only 
 one living. 
 
 Elisha Harlan was educated in the common 
 schools of California, and at an early age found 
 it necessary to take up the burden of self-support. 
 He began his work in farming and stock-raising, 
 and after the death of his father he went to live 
 with his brother Joel in San Francisco, and later 
 located at Mission San Jose. He then farmed 
 near San Lorenzo one year, thence to Napa val- 
 ley, near Calistoga, thence to San Ramon until 
 i860. In the last named year he came to Fresno 
 county and bought land in the vicinity of Kings- 
 ton, on the Lower Kings river, where he en- 
 gaged in the buying and selling of stock. He 
 remained in that location for nine years, when 
 he located on the property which he has since 
 made his home, taking up at that time one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres and adding by purchase 
 until he now owns seven hundred acres, seventy- 
 five acres in alfalfa and the balance in wild 
 grass. He is located ten miles we.st of Laton in 
 the Riverdale country, and for the past eighteen 
 years has kept the Riverdale postoffice. He car- 
 ries on an extensive dairy and is successful in 
 his ranching operations. 
 
 In, San Luis Obispo, Cal., September 14, 1871, 
 Mr. Harlan was united in marriage with Lucy 
 I. Hobaugh, a native of Indiana, and they have 
 four children, namely : Jerome, at home ; Irene, 
 the wife of John Hancock (see personal sketch 
 elsewhere in this volume); Le Roy, at home; 
 and Aleda, the wife of J. Sherrell, minister in 
 the United Brethren Church, at Riverdale. In 
 his political affiliations Mr. Harlan is active in 
 the counsels of the Republican party. 
 
 BENJAMIN F. WALKER, M.D. In every 
 profession and trade we find men who have by 
 their own efforts worked their Way upward to 
 their present responsible positions. B. F. Walker, 
 by hard work, perseverance and industry, suc- 
 ceeded in gaining a college education and is now 
 one of the leading medical practitioners of Fres- 
 no county. A native of Illinois, he was bom in 
 Vandalia, March 7, 1877. His father, B. F. 
 Walker, was a native of the same state, where 
 he was engaged in farming and stock-raising un- 
 til his death at the early age of thirty-three years. 
 His wife bore the maiden name of Mildred Yar- 
 brough, and is now living in Laton. By her mar- 
 riage,_she became the mother of three children, 
 all boys. 
 
 Dr. Walker was the youngest child, and after 
 attending the common schools he was allowed 
 to attend the Fayette county high school in Van- 
 dalia, from which he was graduated in 1894. 
 Thereafter he engaged in teaching in his native 
 state for a time, but later accepted a position 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1431 
 
 as a conductor on the Union Depot railway at 
 St. Louis, which occupation he followed for 
 three years, or until 1897, when he entered the 
 Barnes Medical College, from which he was 
 graduated in 1901. Soon after he came to Cal- 
 ifornia and located at Tres Pinos, where he en- 
 gaged in the practice of medicine until February, 
 1902, when he came to Laton. Here he has 
 built up one of the best paying practices in 
 the county, making a specialty of the nose and 
 throat. Since coming here he has also' been 
 engaged in the drug business, but in December, 
 1904, he disposed of that business. 
 
 In Laton, June 24, 1903, was celebrated the 
 marriage of Dr. Walker and Miss Edith A. 
 Crews, who is a native of Fresno county, being a 
 daughter of one of the pioneers of this county. 
 Fraternally the doctor is quite prominent, being 
 a member of the Odd Fellows, the Modern Wood- 
 men of America and the Woodmen of the World. 
 He has taken an active interest in the affairs of 
 the Baptist Church, and for some time was 
 superintendent of the Sunday-school. Holding 
 membership with the Chamber of Commerce, he 
 has taken an active part in the upb.uilding of this 
 section of the state, being at all times willing 
 to give his time and attention to any movement 
 calculated to be of material benefit to the state 
 or county. Since coming here he has not only 
 made hosts of friends, but has become one of 
 the best specialists in his line located in this 
 section of the state. Meantime he has performed 
 his part as a citizen, serving in different ca- 
 pacities. He was one of the organizers and is 
 now a director of the Laton public library. He 
 is deputy health officer, having filled that office 
 for the past three years. In connection with his 
 profession he is a member of the Fresno County 
 Medical Association, the California Medical So- 
 ciety, the Tri-county Medical Society, the Amer- 
 ican Medical Association and the San Joaquin 
 Valley Medical Association. In all of these he 
 stands high. 
 
 GEORGE T. LONG. Since 1902 George T. 
 Long has been located upon his present property 
 three miles southwest of Fowler, Fresno county, 
 where he is engaged in the cultivation of fruit 
 and alfalfa. A native of Washington county, 
 Iowa, he was born October 23, 1861, a son of 
 James Long. The latter was a native of Penn- 
 sylvania who located in Washington county, 
 Iowa, in 1856, where he engaged as a farmer 
 until his death. His wife, formerly Margie A. 
 Campbell, a native of Pennsylvania, survives her 
 husband and now makes her home in Fowler, 
 where she located in 1891. She was the mother 
 of four sons and one daughter, of whom George 
 T. was the fourth in order of birth. 
 
 George T. Long received his education in the 
 common schools of Iowa, after which he followed 
 farming until 1885, when he came to CaHfornia. 
 He first located at Selma, Fresno county, where 
 he engaged in house painting for a time, and 
 was then employed in a shingle mill in the 
 mountains. He rented a place near Fowler in 
 1889, consisting of forty acres, later purchasing 
 the same, and in. 1902 he sold out. In that year 
 he bought his present property, consisting of 
 eighty acres, twenty acres being devoted to vine- 
 yard, thirteen acres to orchard and forty acres 
 in alfalfa. He built a handsome residence in 
 1904, presided over by his wife, formerly Joanna 
 Chalmers, of Warren county. 111., whom he mar- 
 ried in Washington county, Iowa. They are the 
 parents of the following children : Charles, 
 Harry, George, Jr., Arthur, Cloice and Roscoe, 
 all at home. Mr. Long is a member of the 
 United Presbyterian Church of Fowler, and po- 
 litically casts his ballot with the Republican 
 party. He has done considerable speculating out- 
 side of his regular work and has met with suc- 
 cess. 
 
 CHARLES J. LINDGREN. Few general 
 contractors in the state are better or more widely 
 known than Mr. Lindgren. For years he has 
 carried on an extensive business in Fresno and 
 adjoining counties and recently he enlarged his 
 field of operations and is now contracting in San 
 Francisco, Oakland, Bakersfield, Modesto, Fres- 
 no, Merced and other places. Mr. Lindgren in- 
 herits his ability as a builder from his father, 
 who was for years engaged in that line of busi- 
 ness in Sweden, but the position he has attained 
 in California is the result of his own efforts. 
 When he came here he was unknown and without 
 money, but by industry and perseverance he has 
 struggled forward until to-day he is considered 
 one of the most prominent contractors in the 
 state. During this time he has erected practically 
 the entire business section of Bakersfield and 
 Kern City, thus doing a great deal to make these 
 cities modern and attractive to the prospective 
 business man. 
 
 A native of Sweden, Mr. Lindgren was born 
 in that country on August 5, 1859. His father, 
 J. F. Lindgren, was also a native of the same 
 country and for years engaged in building, de- 
 voting his energies to the erection of stone and 
 granite buildings. He was very successful and 
 owned valuable granite quarries near the city of 
 Nordkoping. During the winter of 1901-2 he 
 visited in California, spending most of the time 
 with his son, and on his return to his home he 
 was taken ill and lived but two months after his 
 arrival. His wife bore the maiden name of 
 Johanna M. Johnson and by her marriage she 
 
1432 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 became the mother of ten children, four boys and 
 six girls. Of these three boys and five girls 
 reached maturity and all are now living in the 
 United States with the exception of two daugh- 
 ters, who remain in the old country. 
 
 Charles J. Lindgren was reared in the place 
 of his birth and obtained a fair education in the 
 public schools, but at an early age he started 
 out to make his own way in the world, securing 
 employment on a farm, but soon after he went 
 to work under his father, learning the trade of 
 a granite cutter. Finally he formed a partner- 
 ship with his father, which continued for about 
 one year, when he sold and .came tO' America. 
 Locating in Chicago, he there worked at any 
 occupation he could secure for two years. Sub- 
 secjuently he learned the trade of a bricklayer 
 and for three and one-half years he filled the 
 position of a foreman in that city. In January, 
 1888, he came to Los Angeles, where he soon 
 after engaged in the general contracting and 
 building business. From that city he removed to 
 Bakersfield, where as before stated, he has 
 erected practically the entire business section of 
 the city. While there he also assisted in the or- 
 ganiza:tion of the Bakersfield Sandstone Brick 
 Co., of which he is now the vice-president. Un- 
 der his direction a fine plant was constructed 
 and the business gradually increased until to- 
 day it is the most extensive brick manufacturing 
 concern in the count}-. From the start Mr. Lind- 
 gren has made a success of his various ventures, 
 and since 1900 has been contracting in all sec- 
 tions of the state, building some of the most im- 
 portant structures in the various cities. He is 
 also interested in other ventures, including the 
 Lindgren-Hicks Company of San Francisco ; the 
 Golden Gate Sandstone Brick Company and the 
 Holland Sandstone Brick Company; located at 
 Antioch. 
 
 In 1903 Mr. Lindgren came to Fresno, where 
 he has erected for himself one of the best resi- 
 dences in the city. Here he and his wife, who 
 bore the maiden name of Christina Bergquist, are 
 living surrounded bv all the comforts and many 
 of the luxuries of life. Their marriage has re- 
 sulted in the birth of three children, namely: 
 Gertrude A., Edna M., and Charles ]., Jr. Mrs. 
 Lindgren is a native of Sweden and a daughter 
 of John Bergquist, who was a contractor and 
 builder in that country. He was also an archi- 
 tect of ability and later was the superintendent 
 of a large estate at Mariane Lund, Smoland. 
 Eleven years ago he came to this country and is 
 now living retired in the city of Chicago. His 
 wife was a Miss Stole, a native of Sweden. Her 
 father, John Stole, was an officer in the Swedish 
 army all his life, serving in the Hussar Regi- 
 ment. He died at the ripe old age of ninety-nine 
 years. 
 
 In politics Mr. Lindgren is a Re]jublican, but 
 while he has been too busy looking after his ex- 
 tensive interests to take an active part in public 
 matters, he is at ^11 times ready to support any 
 measures calculated to be of material benefit to 
 the state or county. The success that he has at- 
 tained shows what one can accomplish in this 
 country if he but possess grit, intelligence and 
 industry. 
 
 HEiMRY KRUSE. A resident of Cahfornia 
 since 1887, Henry Kruse is classed among the 
 upbuilders of Fresno county. He was born in 
 Westphalia, Germany, July 27, 1859, ''.nd is a 
 son of Henry and Fredricka Louisa (Bunkman) 
 Kruse. The former died at his home in West- 
 phalia, where his widow still makes her home. 
 
 The third child in a family of four sons and 
 two daughters, Henry Kruse received his educa- 
 tion in the public schools and in an Agricultural 
 College. At the early age of fourteen he was 
 apprenticed to a superintendent of a large farm, 
 and later he himself became superintendent of a 
 large place in Westphalia, where he remained un- 
 til 1886, when he came to America and at once 
 went to Fremont, Neb. In 1887 he came to 
 California, where he secured work for two years 
 with Mr. Eggers as second foreman. He then 
 became superintendent of Los Palmas ranch, a 
 position he held four years. In 1889 he pur- 
 chased twenty-six acres, which he improved and 
 set out to grapes, later adding twenty-six and 
 one-half acres, also in grapes, all located in the 
 Eggers Colony. He has also set out vineyards 
 for others. Upon his home place he has erected 
 a modern residence and otherwise improved liis 
 surroundings. 
 
 August 21, 1892, in Westphalia, Mr. Kruse 
 was united in marriage with Anna Hilka, who 
 was born there. They have four children, Freda, 
 Greta, Clara and Ellen. 
 
 In politics a Democrat, Mr. Kruse is active 
 in the counsels of the party. A friend of edu- 
 cation, he has always favored good schools. He 
 was one of the founders of the German Luth- 
 eran Church in Fresno and has been a member 
 of the church board since then. In every sense 
 of the word he is a self-made man and has al- 
 ways given of his time and means to promote 
 the welfare of the county of his adoption, in 
 which he has a host of friends. 
 
 ERICK GUSTAV ROSENDAHL. For many 
 years E. G. Rosendahl was an active member of 
 the ministry, but a few years ago, on account of 
 failing health, he was compelled to relinquish his 
 work and take up a rural life. During the time 
 he was a minister he filled pulpits in many of 
 
/tU^Oy(!^^C^-^-iA^^^^ 
 
(^fVy^yMyU 
 
 Tdyy^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1435 
 
 the leading Swedish churches in this country 
 and was considered one of the brightest and 
 most successful men in the Conference. By his 
 retirement the church lost a man who had done 
 inuch to place the Swedish Church on its pres- 
 ent firm basis, but although he is now practi- 
 cally retired from the church, he is still very 
 active in promoting the general welfare of his 
 people. 
 
 A native of Sweden, Erick Gustav Rosendahl 
 was born February 22, 1849. He was the young- 
 est in a large family and was able to obtain only 
 a limited common school education. In 1869 
 he bade good-by to home and friends and sailed 
 for New York, where after landing he con- 
 tinued to reside for five years. At the expiration 
 of that time he returned to his native coun- 
 try and remained there for four years. It was in 
 1879 that he again took up his residence in the 
 United States, this tmie locating in Dover, N. J., 
 where he secured a position in the railway shops. 
 Three years later, with the money he had saved, 
 he went to Evanston, III, and entered the Swed- 
 ish seminary at that place, taking up his long- 
 cherished study of theology. The following three 
 years were devoted to the study of this branch 
 of education and that year in the Conference 
 at Dayton, Iowa, he was ordained a minister 
 of the Swedish Church. The same year he was 
 given a charge at a place called New Sweden, in 
 Iowa, one of the oldest Swedish churches in that 
 state, where he remained for one year, when the 
 Conference assigned him to another old and large 
 congregation at Stratford, the same state. Sub- 
 sequently he was transferred to the California 
 Conference, coming to this state in 1888. The 
 first year was spent in Kingsburg and at the ex- 
 piration of that period he was compelled to re- 
 sign, his health having failed and it being 
 necessary for him to take up a different occupa- 
 tion. Purchasing his present place of twenty 
 acres, three miles northeast of Kingsburg, he was 
 one of the very first to locate in this colony. 
 His land is devoted to peaches, grapes and al- 
 falfa. 
 
 Since taking up agricultural pursuits, Mr. 
 Rosendahl has been very active in promoting va- 
 rious business ventures. He was one of the 
 organizers of the Scandinavian Mutual Protective 
 Fire Insurance Company, of which he. is vice- 
 president, director and appraiser. He is also sec- 
 retary of the Swedish Methodist Church of the 
 United States, and is interested in the Co-opera- 
 tive Packing Company at Kingsburg, being a 
 director of the same. This section of the coun- 
 ty has developed very rapidly, and Mr. Rosendahl 
 was the instigator of the present rural delivery 
 service. He has also been very prominent in 
 school and religious work, at all. times doing 
 his part to promote the welfare and growth of 
 
 67 
 
 the same. He was the first director of Harrison 
 school district and it is said that the people of 
 this section look upon him as the leader of every 
 movement that tends to improve existing condi- 
 tions. The old saying that "there is no great 
 loss without some gain" is very true in this 
 instance, for while the church lost a very use- 
 ful leader in the resignation of Mr. Rosendahl 
 this county gained a splendid citizen. 
 
 In New York city occurred the marriage of 
 Mr. Rosendahl and Miss Annie Elizabeth Dam- 
 strom, who is also a native of Sweden. To 
 them have been born two children : Albert Hen- 
 ry and Hannah Eugene, both of whom are liv- 
 ing at home. The entire family is most highly 
 respected in this section of the county where 
 they have a large circle of warm and personal 
 friends. 
 
 HERMAN S. BACHMAN. In every local- 
 ity there is always some man to take the lead 
 and develop some special line of business and 
 to this man the whole country is under lasting 
 obligation. To Mr. Bachman credit must be 
 given for the great work he has done along dairy- 
 ing lines. He was the man to see the possi- 
 bilities of this business and was the first to en- 
 gage in dairying from a commercial standpoint. 
 As a result of his judgment the section of the 
 county about Portersville has become enriched 
 to the amount of many hundreds of thousands 
 of dollars. 
 
 A native of Maine, Mr. Bachman was born in 
 Cumberland county, near the town of Harrison, 
 November 27, 1854. His father, Sigmund Bach- 
 man, was born in Reckendorf, Bavaria, Germany. 
 On immigrating to the United States he set- 
 tled in Maine, where he engaged in business as 
 a merchant. In 1855 he migrated to Wiscon- 
 sin, locating in Milwaukee, where he became a 
 prominent wholesale dealer in dry goods. Two 
 years later, however, he removed to the town 
 of Monroe, where he remained until 1861, when 
 he located in Chicago as a dealer in merchan- 
 dise. There he conducted a very successful 
 business until 1879, when he went to Denver, 
 Colo., where he engaged in business until 1881, 
 the year of his death. His wife bore the maid- 
 en name of Susan A. Woodsum, and was born 
 in Harrison, Me. She is still living and makes 
 her home in North Bridgton, Me. By her mar- 
 riage with Mr. Bachman she became the mother 
 of four children, three of whom are living. 
 
 The second in this familv was Herman S. 
 Bachman. He accompanied his parents on their 
 removal west and his early life was spent in the 
 vai'ious towns in which his father was engaged 
 in business. On the removal of the family to 
 Chicago he was but a boy and there he received 
 
1436 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his education, but his schooHng was hmited, for 
 at the age of eleven years he entered the employ 
 of a wholesale men's furnishing and notion store, 
 which was located on Lake street. Beginning at 
 the very bottom as an errand boy he worked his 
 way up, until at the expiration of three years he 
 was promoted to the position of stock keeper. 
 He then was employed in his father's store as a 
 salesman and until 1869, when his father, re- 
 moved to Crown Point, Ind., where he remained 
 for one vear. Tiring of a mercantile life he 
 then began farming near Crown Point, continu- 
 ing for two years or until 1872. That year wit- 
 nessed his arrival in California. The first win- 
 ter was spent in Lake county and the following 
 spring he went to San Diego, where he remained 
 for a short time. Going to Holcomb valley, San 
 Bernardino county, he followed mining there, in 
 Kern county and in Arizona, until 1874. From 
 1874 to 1876 he was with the Southern Pacific 
 Railroad Company as foreman of a gang of men 
 engaged in tunnel work. He had charge of the 
 head of the tunnel and during the time he was 
 with the company he had no accidents, neither 
 was a man in his gang injured. After eighteen 
 months he resigned his position and returned to 
 Riverside, where he purchased fifty acres of land 
 and engaged in horticultural pursuits and farm- 
 ing, growing oranges and alfalfa. This venture 
 proved a success and there he remained until 
 1885, when he sold out and located in Tulare 
 county. For tw-o years after his arrival in the 
 county he was engaged in general farming. In 
 1887 Mr. Bachman purchased a livery stable in 
 Tulare which he conducted successfully until 
 1896. In 1892 he had purchased his present farm 
 ten miles southwest of Portersville and on dis- 
 posing of his livery stable he took up his resi- 
 dence on this farm, which consists of four hunv 
 dred and eighty acres, two hundred and forty 
 acres of which are devoted to the growing of 
 alfalfa, while the balance is used for grain pur- 
 poses. 
 
 Since taking up his residence on this farm Mr. 
 Bachman has become one of the leading dairy- 
 men of the state. He now has sixty head of 
 cattle. Short-horns and Holsteins, ancl although 
 he was the first to engage in the butter business 
 from a commercial standpoint, that venture has 
 proved a wonderful success. Mr. Bachman is a 
 firm believer in everything modern and his farm 
 is one of the best equipped in California. In 
 September, 1903, Mr. Bachman rented his farm 
 and now lives in Portersville, but while not di- 
 rectly interested, he still manages the farm. Pie 
 is the largest stockholder and is president of 
 the Poplar Irrigation Ditch Company, and has 
 been prominently identified with water afTairs 
 since living on his ranch. 
 
 In maidenhood Mrs. Bachman was Miss Cvn- 
 
 thia P. Smith, a native of Wisconsin and a 
 daughter of Henry M. Smith, who was born in 
 New York state and became an early settler of 
 Wisconsin, where he followed farming. During 
 the Civil war he served in a Wisconsin regi- 
 ment. In 1886 he came to California and located 
 at Riverside, but two years later he removed to 
 Tulare county, where he lived until his death in 
 1904, at the age of seventy-two years. Mr. 
 Smith married Palmyra Frost, who was born in 
 Ohio, a daughter of Alva Frost, also a native of 
 Ohio. He removed to Wisconsin, where he was 
 engaged in farming at the outbreak of the Civil 
 war. Enlisting in a Wisconsin regiment he 
 served until the close of that memorable contest. 
 His wife is still living and makes her home at 
 Rialto. She has six children living, Mrs. Bach- 
 man being the oldest. Mrs. Bachman married for 
 her first husband, Ervin Cornell, who died in Ne- 
 braska, leaving one child, Minnie, the wife of 
 Isaac Bunton, of Poplar. By her marriage with 
 Mr. Bachman, which occurred February 16, 
 1885, she has five children : Ervin Herman; 
 Susan Adah, Chloie Annis, Leah Gretchen and 
 Hazel Olive. By a former marriage Mr. Bach- 
 man had two children : Howard E., at Tehama, 
 Cal., and Frankie, the wife of James Crose, of 
 Poplar. 
 
 Mr. Bachman has always taken an active inter- 
 est in the welfare of his county and has been 
 especially interested in local affairs. He was 
 one of the reorganizers of the Poplar Co-Opera- 
 tive Association, of which he is now vice-presi- 
 dent and director. In politics he is a Demo- 
 crat and a warm supporter of William Jennings 
 Bryan. He formerly held membership in the 
 Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. That 
 success has attended the efforts of Mr. Bachman 
 is the result of his own business ability and per- 
 severance. He has had many obstacles to over- 
 come, but with a determination to succeed he 
 has gone steadily forward, until today he is con- 
 sidered one of the most substantial men in Tu- 
 lare county. Both he and his estimable wife have 
 a warm place in the hearts of the residents of 
 Portersville, all of whom rejoice in the fact that 
 they are able to enjoy their latter years amid 
 peace and good will. 
 
 WILLIAM SHIELDS. Born in the north of 
 Ireland, October 31, 1834, the late WiUiam 
 Shields accompanied his parents to America 
 when seven years of age and with them settled 
 in Malone, New York, where he was reared, edu- 
 cated and where he remained until 1855, when he 
 started for the middle west. Settling in Illinois, 
 he improved a farm from the prairie, five miles 
 from Gibson City, Ford county, and engaged in 
 general farming and the stock business. In 1873 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1437 
 
 he disposed of his interests and came to CaH- 
 fornia, arriving May lo of that year and locating 
 in Marin county. For two years he farmed six 
 miles south of P'etaluma, then purchased three 
 hundred and twenty acres in San Benito county, 
 where he remained until the fall of 1876. Re- 
 moving then to San Mateo county, hfe settled near 
 Half Moon Bay, where he remained until lo- 
 cating in Fresno county in 1884. He here pur- 
 chased eighty acres of stubble land one and one- 
 half miles north of Fresno, on Blackstone avenue, 
 which he set out in a vineyard of fifty-five acres 
 and the balance in orchard, also erecting a com- 
 fortable residence. In addition to his other in- 
 terests he engaged in buying, selling and im- 
 proving land. He was a Republican and a Ma- 
 son. Always in favor of education, he took a 
 keen interest in maintaining 'good schools. He 
 became prominent as a citizen of Fresno county 
 and followed a successful career until his death, 
 March 7, 1902. 
 
 Mr. Shields was married in Genoa, III, Jan- 
 uary I, 1858, to Elizabeth M. Marsh, who was 
 born September 11, 1838, in Chautauqua county, 
 N. Y., a daughter of Alva Marsh, who was born 
 in West Brattleboro, Vt. Her grandfather, Will- 
 iam Marsh, was also a native of the same place 
 and served as captain of a company during the 
 war of 1812. His father, also named William, 
 was in the Revolutionary war. 
 
 In tracing her ancestry Mrs. Shields dates back 
 to the landing of the Pilgrims. Her father re- 
 moved to Chautauqua county, N. Y., thence in 
 1842 to Illinois, by way of Chicago, which was 
 then only a small town, and settled in DeKalb 
 county, where he engaged in farming. He 
 eventually came to California, where he spent his 
 remaining years. His wife, Hannah House, was 
 born in the Mohawk valley, N. Y., of German an- 
 cestry, a daughter of Adolphus and granddaugh- 
 ter of another Adolphus House. The latter came 
 from Germany prior to the war of the Revolu- 
 tion, and served as a captain during that strug- 
 gle for independence. He gave his orders in 
 German, being unable to speak English. He set- 
 tled in the Mohawk valley and there died. Mrs. 
 Marsh died in California. Two of her sons, 
 Alva and Adolphus Marsh (the latter being 
 raised to a lieutenant), were soldiers during the 
 Civil war. Mrs. Shields is the sixth in order 
 of birth of ten children, six of whom are liv- 
 ing. She was reared and educated in Illinois. 
 Since the death of her husband she erected a 
 residence at No. 385 San Pablo avenue, Fresno, 
 where she now resides, having rented her ranch 
 and vineyard. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Shields became the parents of 
 eight children: Alice V., deceased, married 
 Thomas Newell, of Selma ; Adolphus, a farmer on 
 Whites Bridge road, is a Knight Templar Ma- 
 
 son ; Charles E. died in infancy ; Ella M. became 
 the wife of Leon Bean, of Palo Alto; Lillian E. 
 married George Taylor, of Ft. Bragg, Cal. ; Jo- 
 sephine P. became the wife of Wright Spencer, 
 of Fresno; Flora D. is Mrs. Frank Montague, 
 also of Fresno; William Alexander died in in- 
 fancy. Mrs. Shields is a member of the Meth- 
 odist Church, to which Mr. Shields gave liberally. 
 In all the years of their residence in California 
 Mr. and Mrs. Shields endeared themselves to 
 a wide circle of friends, especially in Fresno 
 county. Since the death of Mr. Shields his wid- 
 ow has ably managed the estate and is living 
 in the enjoyment of a competency which she and 
 her husband earned. In all charitable enterprises 
 Mrs. Shields takes an active part. 
 
 HERMAN GRANZ. A resident of California 
 since the spring of 1869, Herman Granz has 
 been actively engaged in building up the com- 
 mercial circles of the state. A native of Saxony, 
 Germany, he was born near Chemnitz, August 
 I, 1841, a son of Samuel Granz, who was de- 
 scended from an old family. A brother, Louis 
 Granz, died in San Francisco in 1904. 
 
 Herman Granz was reared on his father's farm 
 and educated in the schools of Germany. At 
 the age of sixteen years he was apprenticed to 
 learn the cabinet-maker's trade, which he fol- 
 lowed in Austria, Switzerland and France for 
 a time. Hearing and reading a great deal of 
 the splendid opporttmities offered young men in 
 the United States, he decided to emigrate, and 
 in 1868 he was able to carry out his cherished 
 plans. Arriving in New York city, he worked 
 at his trade one year, during which time he heard 
 of the better opportunities for advancement in 
 the newer state of California and with the money 
 he had saved made the trip to San Francisco bv 
 way of the Isthmus of Panama. He followed 
 his trade in that city for a time, then started a 
 furniture factory on a small scale in Hayes val- 
 ley. Later, as his business increased, he estab- 
 lished a factory on Barry street, and four years 
 later built on Brannan street, the plant being 
 operated by steam power. Here he manufac- 
 tured furniture of all kinds and employed sev- 
 enty-five hands. This enterprise was conducted 
 successfully until 1887, when, on account of ill 
 health, he wished to leave the city. 
 
 Upon purchasing his present property in 1881 
 Mr. Granz began the work of improvement by 
 setting it out to vines, and at the time the 
 railroad was built into Clovis, Fresno county, he 
 had his eighty acres in vineyard. He erected 
 a winery in 1884 and began the manufacture of 
 a high grade of wines and in the passing of the 
 years he has built up a lucrative business. His 
 winery has a large capacity and on his home 
 
14:_J8 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 place, to which he brought his family in 1887, 
 he has erected a fine house and laid out beauti- 
 ful grounds. It is located four miles east of 
 Fresno, on Belmont avenue. 
 
 Mr. Granz was married in New York city to 
 Adelaide Bauhofer, who is a native of Austria. 
 To them have been born eight children, viz.: 
 Carl, of San Francisco, connected with the Cal- 
 ifornia Wine Association as city salesman ; Emil 
 H., owner of a winery in Sultana; O. J., with 
 his father; Edward H., also with his father; 
 Hermina, who married M. Saier, of Fresno; 
 Sophia, the wife of John L. Gilbert, also of Fres- 
 no ; Adelaide and Clara, at home. 
 
 Mr. Granz has always given his support to 
 the Republican party, though he never would 
 allow his name to be mentioned for office. He 
 is an active member of the Fresno Chamber of 
 Commerce. A property owner of Fresno county 
 for nearly a quarter of a century, Herman Granz 
 has given liberally of his means toward the 
 upbuilding of the varied interests that have 
 brought the county to its present position in the 
 San Joaquin valley. He gives employment to 
 a great many people and always extends a help- 
 ing hand to those less fortunate than himself. 
 Starting at the bottom of the ladder, he is justly 
 entitled to the position of a self-made man. 
 
 CONRAD METZLER. A native of Russia, 
 Mr. IVJetzler was born October 3, 1866, near 
 Saradif, which was also the birthplace of his 
 father, Conrad, who was of German descent. 
 By trade he was a shoemaker. Both Mr. Metz- 
 ler and his wife, formerly Sophia Elizabeth Fred- 
 rick, were members of the Lutheran Church. The 
 former died in his native country. 
 
 Conrad Metzler, Jr., obtained a limited com- 
 mon school education and upon attaining his ma- 
 jority immigrated to the United States. Com- 
 ing at once to Fresno, he worked for two years 
 in the city and one year in a vineyard. Subse- 
 quently for about five years he engaged in busi- 
 ness as a general contractor, when he purchased 
 a grocery business in Fresno on E street. While 
 conducting this grocery store he did consider- 
 able excavating work on contract and finally dis- 
 posed of his store and engaged in the cement con- 
 tracting business. From a small beginning this 
 venture developed until he soon conducted the 
 largest cement walk and grading business in 
 Fresno: Early in the year 1905 he took the con- 
 tract for grading the Visalia and Lemon Cove 
 electric railroad between Exeter and Lemon 
 Cove. Aside from these interests Mr. Metzler 
 owns a ranch of one hundred acres southwest of 
 Fresno, where he is engaged in growing alfalfa 
 and raising stock. 
 
 Prior to coming to the United States Mr. 
 
 Metzler was united in marriage with Mary Ru- 
 dolph, whose parents are residents of Fresno. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Metzler were born seven chil- 
 dren, namely : Mary (the wife of V. V. Pitt- 
 man of Fresno) ; Conrad, Emma, Henry, August, 
 Alex and Annie, all natives of California. The 
 success Mr. Metzler has made of his life is the 
 result of his individual efforts. Starting without 
 a dollar in a strange country, with the disad- 
 vantage of having to learn a new language 
 against him, he has steadily worked upward until 
 he is now one of the leading contractors of cen- 
 tral California. 
 
 GEORGE HARPER BLAND, M.D. As su- 
 perintendent and resident physician of the county 
 hospital and almshouse of Fresno county, George 
 Harper Bland has proven himself an important 
 factor in the growth and development of this 
 institution, which is universally acknowledged as 
 one of the best arranged and well kept estab- 
 lishments of its kind in the San Joaquin valley. 
 Dr. Bland is a native of Todd county, Ky., where 
 he was born August 29, 1869. His father, Stew- 
 art Dolly Bland, was born in West Virginia, the 
 youngest son of Stewart Bland, who was twice 
 married and had a family of eighteen sons and 
 six daughters. Of these sons some enhsted in 
 the Union army and some in the Confederate, 
 giving their services in the Hne their convictions 
 lay. Stewart D. Bland served in a Virginia 
 regiment in the Confederate army as captain of 
 his company, and in the various engagements 
 in which he participated was wounded seven 
 times ; was captured and in prison eighteen 
 months, spending a part of that time in Camp 
 Chase, Fort Delaware, Johnson, etc. After the 
 close of the war he located in Todd county, Ky., 
 where he became a farmer, and also participated 
 to some extent in public affairs, holding the office 
 of high sheriff for two terms. He is a Democrat 
 in his political convictions, and belongs to the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church South. He mar- 
 ried Virginia Harper, a native of Pendleton coun- 
 ty, W. Va., and the daughter of George Harper, 
 of Virginia, who became a farmer in West Vir- 
 ginia, where he died, past eighty-three years of 
 age, longevity being a trait on both sides of the 
 house. Mr. Bland had a brother, Adam, who 
 came to California as early as 1850, and died in 
 southern California in 1895, while another 
 brother. Rev. Henry J. Bland, came in 1853 and 
 now resides in San Jose. Mr. and Mrs. Bland 
 are the parents of seven children, having lost 
 two, the third in order of birth being George 
 Harper Bland. 
 
 George Harper Bland received his education, in 
 the district school near his home in Kentucky, 
 in which state he remained until 1895, farming 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1441 
 
 with his father until attaining his majority, and 
 after that engaging in the nursery business. He 
 came to CaHfornia in 1895 and in San Jose had 
 charge of the college campus of the University 
 of the Pacific for the period of eight months, 
 when, in the fall of 1896, he entered the academy 
 for a special course, studying until 1899. He 
 then became a student in the College of Phy- 
 sicians and Surgeons of San Francisco, from 
 which he was g:raduated in 1901 with the de- 
 gree of M.D. Following this he became resi- 
 dent physician for the Copper King Mining 
 Company, seven miles above Academy, where he 
 engaged in practice until the closing of the mines, 
 when he located at Academy and continued in 
 practice for one year. In September, 1903, he 
 removed to Clovis, Fresno county, where he built 
 up a lucrative practice, continuing until January 
 II, 1905, when he received the appointment of 
 superintendent and resident physician of the 
 county hospital and almshouse of Fresno county, 
 to which he has since given his entire attention. 
 The success which Dr. Bland has acquired since 
 locating in CaHfornia has been entirely the result 
 of his own efforts and while attaining the posi- 
 tion given a skilful surgeon and physician, he 
 has also won the esteem and confidence of all 
 who have corne to know him either professionally 
 or personally. > 
 
 In San Jose, Cal., Dr. Bland was united in 
 marriage with Emily A. Nowell, a native of Cop- 
 peropolis, Cal. She graduated from the State 
 Normal, at San Jose, and attended Stanford Uni- 
 versity to the senior year, when she began teach- 
 ing, continuing for six years. They have one 
 child, Virginia. Fraternally Dr. Bland is a 
 member of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows; Knights of Pythias, of which he is a past 
 officer ; Ancient Order of Foresters and Fraternal 
 Brotherhood. Mrs. Bland is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. Politically the doc- 
 tor is a Democrat, and in the line of his profes- 
 sion belongs to the County Medical Society, State 
 Medical Society and the American Medical As- 
 sociation. 
 
 WILLIAM J. JONES. A pioneer of Califor- 
 nia, William J. Jones is located on his ranch on 
 section 9, township 21, range 26, in the vicinity 
 of Poplar, and engaged in the cultivation and 
 improvement of the land which has transformed 
 the San Joaquin valley into one of the fine farm- 
 ing sections of the state. He was born in Roane 
 county, Tenn., March 15, 1839, and was left an 
 orphan when about three years old. He was then 
 taken into the home of an uncle, J. H. Hacker, and 
 his education was obtained in the common schools 
 in the vicinity of his uncle's farm. By means 
 of ox-teams he and his uncle crossed the plains 
 
 in 1853, the trip consuming six months. His 
 younger brother, Joseph Jones, was left in Ten- 
 nessee, where he now makes his home. Upon 
 their arrival in California Mr. Hacker located 
 near Modesto, Stanislaus county, and engaged in 
 farming and stock-raising along the banks of 
 the Stanislaus river. There Mr. Jones grew to 
 manhood, receiving the practical training which 
 enabled him to make a success of his indepen- 
 dent efiforts. He remained with his uncle for 
 some years after attaining manhood, driving a 
 team and engaging in general farming and stock- 
 raising. In 1879 he came to Tulare county and 
 in the vicinity of Poplar bought two hundred 
 and forty acres of railroad land, upon which 
 he engaged in the raising of grain and alfalfa, 
 besides engaging in stock-raising. He is now the 
 owner of between five and six hundred acres of 
 land, upon which he has made all the improve- 
 ments, one hundred and sixty acres being located 
 six miles south of his home property, and eighty 
 acres four miles north. He has made a suc- 
 cess of his work and is highly esteemed, both in 
 a financial and social way. 
 
 In Stanislaus county Mr. Jones was united in 
 marriage with Lucy A. Bailey, a native of Carroll 
 county, Ga., and they are the parents of three 
 children, namely : Oscar, a farmer on Deer 
 creek, Tulare county; Mary, the wife of Milton 
 M. Dale, whose biography appears elsewhere in 
 this volume ; and Sarah, the wife of Otto Beeler, 
 located in the vicinity of Pixley. Politically Mr. 
 Jones is a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 vocated in the platforrt of the Democratic party. 
 
 ABRAM VANWINKLE. Isaac Vanwinkle, 
 the father of Abram, was born in Kentucky and 
 in 1837 migrated to Perry county, Indiana. He 
 followed farming until 1843 when he removed to 
 Iowa, locating in Davis county, and there re- 
 sumed agricultural pursuits, which he followed 
 until 1850. In that year he disposed of his in- 
 terests there, outfitted with ox-teams and crossed 
 the plains to California. The first two years after 
 his arrival here were spent in the mines near 
 Hangtown, his efiforts being well rewarded. He 
 then returned to his home in Wapello county, 
 Iowa, where he remained the balance of his life, 
 his death occurring in 1895, at the age of seventy- 
 tv/o years. His v/ife, who in maidenhood bore 
 the name of Agnes Miller, was born in Kentucky, 
 and is the mother of ten children. She is now 
 living in Iowa at the advanced age of eighty- 
 four years. 
 
 Abram Vanwinkle, the second in this large 
 family, was born in Perry county, Ind., January 
 4, 1841. Like most boys of those early days his 
 schooling was- limited to a few terms in the 
 
1442 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 district schools near the home farm. In 1862, 
 he started out to make his own way in the world 
 and the same year crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia. The first three years of his life in this 
 state were spent in teaming between Sacramento, 
 Virginia City and Austin, Nev. He then en- 
 gaged in the lumber business on the Russian 
 river in Sonoma county for two years, at the 
 end of which time he located in Napa county, 
 where he engaged in farming until 1870. The 
 next three years were spent in Stanislaus coun- 
 ty on the San Joaquin river. Prior to locating 
 in Fresno county he was engaged in the sheep 
 business in Fresno, now Madera county, but this 
 venture proved a failure and he lost every dol- 
 lar he had. In 1879 he purchased one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land, two and one-half miles 
 west of Kingsburg and three miles south of 
 Selma. Here he engaged in farming and stock- 
 raising, also conducting a medium-sized dairy, 
 and keeping a herd of Angora goats, from which 
 he derives a good profit. 
 
 In 1872 Mr. Vanwinkle married Miss Emma 
 Brown, who was horn in Australia, coming to 
 the United States with her parents when a child. 
 Her father, Henry Brown, was born in England 
 and at" the time of the discovery of gold in 
 Australia, left his native country and followed 
 mining until his emigration to California. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Vanwinkle have been born three 
 children, namely : Charles, who lives in Arizona ; 
 Amanda, wife of Albert Elder, of Fresno county, 
 and Agnes, who lives at home. In politics Mr. 
 Vanwinkle votes the Republican ticket, but fur- 
 ther than exercising his right of franchise, he 
 has never cared to appear in the arena of public 
 life. He has, however, been prominent in local 
 affairs, never failing to give both his moral and 
 financial assistance to any movement which he 
 deemed of benefit to^ the county. Ever since 
 leaving home he has had to make his own way in 
 the world and as a result of his energy and 
 perseverance he has accumulated a competency. 
 During his residence in California, since 1862, 
 he has made five trips to Iowa to visit his par- 
 ents, making eleven trips over the plains. 
 
 SILVIO ADAMS. Born in Switzerland, 
 March 19, 1864, Silvio Adams is a son of Joseph 
 and Marie (Cirini) Adami. The father was, by 
 profession, a civil engineer and for years engaged 
 in contracting and building, but the last forty 
 years of his life was spent as a judge in Switzer- 
 land, an office equal to the supreme court of 
 our state. His wife bore him nine children, and 
 five sons and one daughter grew to maturity. 
 Both the parents died in their native country. 
 
 Silvio Adams adopted this name upon com- 
 ing to this country. After completing his edu- 
 
 cation, he engaged in farming and stock-raising 
 in his native country until 1881, when he came 
 to the United States and located in Marin county, 
 Cal., where he secured employment on a farm. 
 Later he lived in Sonoma county for a time, but 
 returned to Marin county, where he continued 
 working for others until 1888. In that year he 
 came to Fresno county, and with the money he 
 had saved from his wages, purchased his pres- 
 ent place of three hundred and thirty acres. 
 Here he is now conducting a large dairy busi- 
 ness, having about seventy-five head of milch 
 cows. All of the milk is used in the manufac- 
 ture of cheese, Mr. Adams having a modern 
 creamery on his ranch and his brand, "California 
 Pure Cream Cheese," has a ready sale in the 
 markets of Fresno. Since coming into posses- 
 sion of the ranch, the owner has greatly im- 
 proved it and now has a very valuable place. 
 While he has been very busy looking after his 
 own interests, he has, nevertheless, taken an 
 active interest in other matters and can be de- 
 pended on to give his support to any worthy 
 movement, being a firm believer in progress and 
 development. 
 
 FELIX DESIRE DUQUESNE is remem- 
 bered by the old pioneers as an upbuilder of 
 Fresno, and is given an honorable place in the 
 records of the city and county. He was born in 
 Louvain, Belgium, and was there reared to man- 
 hood and educated as a physician. On account of 
 his health he gave up the practice of his profession 
 and left his native country. In 1853 h^ came to 
 California, making the trip by way of the Isthmus 
 of Panama. Upon his arrival in the state he fol- 
 lowed mining in Tuolumne county, and later was 
 deputy county trustee and city trustee of Sonora, 
 in which city he also engaged in the liquor busi- 
 ness for a time. In 1878 he went to San Fran- 
 cisco and there engaged in the painting business, 
 then spent six months in Kern county, after 
 which he came to Fresno. In 1881 he engaged 
 in the hotel business on H street, remaining so 
 occupied until he was burned out twenty-three 
 months later. In the meantime he had purchased 
 several lots on H street, where he had built a 
 small house. He was employed by Dr. Leach in 
 his distillery until he built on a lot which he 
 owned on I street, where he engaged in the 
 wholesale liquor and wine business, known as tlie 
 Pioneer Liquor Store. Later he iDuilt a winery 
 and wine cellar on H street, known as the Pion- 
 eer Wine Cellar. He was very successful in his 
 work, but lived only a short time after, his death 
 occurring November 27, 1887, from blood poison- 
 ing, resulting from an accident. Fraternally he 
 was a Master Mason, and in his political convic- 
 tions was a stanch adherent of the principles ad- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1443 
 
 vocated in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 In Sonora, Cal., January 2, 1864, Mr. Du- 
 quesne was imited in marriage with Mathilda 
 Amy, who was born at Frankfort-on-the-Main, 
 Germany. Her father, Claude Amy, was born 
 in Lyons, near Paris, France, and was the re])re- 
 sentative of an old family of that section. He 
 was a wholesale merchant in Frankfort until 
 1852, when he brought his wife and five children 
 (one son, Victor, having preceded them in 1849) 
 to California. The journey was made via Cape 
 Horn on the Courie de LTinde and occupied sev- 
 en and a half months from Havre to the port of 
 San Francisco, a stop having been made at Rio 
 Janeiro in Brazil, and at Valparaiso, in Chili. 
 Upon their arrival in California they went to 
 Sonora, Tuolumne county, where Mr. Amy en- 
 gaged in farming until his retirement from active 
 duty. His death occurred in that location .in 
 1901, at the age of eighty-eight years. Frater- 
 nally he was a Mason. His wife, formerly Julie 
 Deboissy, was a native of Beaumont, and her 
 death occurred in Sonora in 1892, at the age of 
 seventy-eight years. They were the parents of 
 six children, of whom two are living, Mrs. Du- 
 quesne being the fourth in order of birth. She 
 received her education in the schools of Frank- 
 fort, and was of an age to enjoy the long yet in- 
 teresting trip from her birthplace to California. 
 Since her husband's death she has looked after 
 the interests of the property, still owning the 
 Pioneer store and her home residence. She has 
 two daughters, of whom Pauline is the wife of 
 Henry Robson, of Oakland, and Leonie is the 
 wife of W. C. Abbay, of Berkeley. She is a 
 member of St. John's Catholic Church, and polit- 
 ically is in sympathy with the principles of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 THOMAS YOST. During the colonial pe- 
 riod of our country's history a young Bavarian 
 bearing the name of Peter Yost crossed the ocean 
 and settled in New Jersey, whence he afterward 
 went to the front as a soldier in the Revolu- 
 tionary war. When peace again reigned and 
 the United States had become an independent 
 power among other nations, he resumed tlie du- 
 ties of private citizenship, and eventually moved 
 to Ohio, where his son, Robert Yost, was born. 
 The latter followed general farming, making his 
 home successively in Belmont county, Ohio, and, 
 directly across the Ohio river in Ohio county, 
 W. Va. Noah Yost, son of Robert, was born in 
 Belmont county, Ohio, January 30, 1813. The 
 star of empire, which from the beginning of his- 
 tory has wended its slow course toward the west, 
 led him from his eastern home into the then 
 frontier regions of Illinois, where, in 1853, he 
 became a farmer of Pike county. Somewhat la- 
 
 ter he removed to Piatt county, in the same 
 state, and there his death occurred, February 
 24, 1892, at the age of seventy-nine years. While 
 living in the east he had married Elizabeth Price, 
 who was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, April 
 17, 1817, and died in Illinois August 30, 1858, 
 having won many warm friends during her com- 
 paratively brief period of residence in Illinois. 
 In her home she was a careful housekeeper, a 
 devoted wife, and a loving mother to her large 
 family, which comprised three sons and nine 
 daughters, two sons and one daughter dying in 
 infancy. 
 
 The third member of the family circle was 
 Thomas Yost. As his early home in West Vir- 
 ginia, where he was born on Christmas day of 
 1840, was exchanged m 1853 for the newer coun- 
 try of Illinois, he was obliged to aid his parents 
 in the support of the large family and had no 
 opportunities for obtaining an education. Not- 
 withstanding this, he is a well-informed man, 
 with a depth of knowledge not always equaled 
 by those whose opportunities have been greater. 
 After leaving the home farm he secured em- 
 ployment as clerk in a general store at Bement, 
 111. The opening of the Civil war found him 
 eager to aid the Union cause. May 7, 1861, he 
 enlisted as a private in a regiment authorized 
 by the state, from the Seventh Congressional Dis- 
 trict, which afterward became the famous Twenty- 
 first Illinois Infantry (General Grant's regiment j, 
 being assigned to Company A. Later he was 
 made a corporal. With the army he engaged in 
 service in Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Ala- 
 bama, and other portions of the south where the 
 Army of the Cumberland operated. From the 
 ranks he was promoted to be sergeant and con- 
 tinued in that capacity until the expiration of 
 his service. Among his acquain:tances he is 
 known as "Captain," a title that clings to him 
 in spite of his earnest protestations that in the 
 war he held no rank higher than that of ser- 
 geant. However, it may be stated that many an 
 officer who held higher rank than he suffered 
 far less in the country's cause and gave to the 
 Union neither greater fidelity nor more valiant 
 service than the record of Thomas Yost shows. 
 
 While he participated in all the engagements 
 of his regiment, Mr. Yost escaped being wound- 
 ed for a considerable period, but finally, at the 
 battle of Chickamauga, both arms were broken 
 by minie balls. For twenty-one days he lay 
 on the battlefield, too ill to walk, and over- 
 looked by those who were busy in removing the 
 injured from the field. To protect him from 
 the hot sun by day there was only a small peach 
 tree, in the shadow of whose foliage he found 
 a partial protection from the heat of a Georgia 
 sun. At night the ground and air seemed cold, 
 and this in contrast with the heat of the day 
 
1444 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 increased his misery. Meanwhile his wounds, 
 not being dressed, caused him' the greatest ag- 
 ony. Hour after hour slowly dragged away in 
 terrible suffering. By chance a Confederate 
 found him there and with pity for his deplora- 
 ble condition brought him food and water, but 
 was unable to care for the wounds. Yet, the 
 simple act of charity on the part of the south- 
 erner gave the wounded northern soldier a differ- 
 ent feeling toward tlie boys in gray. When fin- 
 ally he was removed by the Confederates he was 
 taken north by slow stages to Richmond, Va., and 
 in Libby Prison it was found that the wounds 
 were so eaten by verinin that recovery would 
 be tedious, and further service being impossible 
 in his crippled condition, he was sent to Annap- 
 olis, from there to Chicago and honorably dis- 
 charged in Louisville, July 5, 1864, after which 
 he returned to his Illinois home with his arms in 
 a sling. 
 
 The first visit to California made by Mr. Yost 
 was in 1866, but he soon returned to Illinois. 
 After his marriage in the spring of 1869 he again 
 came west, this time settling at Hollister, where 
 he remained for seventeen years, and carried 
 on business as a dealer in merchandise, stationery 
 and jewelry. During fifteen years of that time 
 he was postmaster at Hollister. After coming 
 to Fresno in 1887 he carried on a jewelry and 
 stationery store. In 1893 he bought thirty acres 
 near Centerville and this he planted in oranges 
 and lemons, later selling the property. In De- 
 cember of 1901 he returned to his old home in 
 the east and remained there for some time, also 
 visited twenty-two states of the Union. Finding 
 no location so satisfactory as Fresno county, 
 in 1903 he returned to California and purchased 
 fifteen acres adjoining Centerville, where he has 
 oranges, lemons, prunes and grapes. In the sun- 
 shine and peace of his little home he expects 
 to spend his declining days. 
 
 In Homer, 111., Mr. Yost married Miss Emma 
 Thomas, who was born in Champaign county. 111., 
 a daughter of Elias Thomas, a Kentuckian by 
 birth, but during the greater part of his life a 
 farmer in Illinois. The only child of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Yost was Howard L., who was born Mav 
 26, 1870, at Hollister, Cal., and received his 
 education in that town, being a graduate of the 
 high school. At an early age he showed ability 
 as an artist and a number of his paintings are 
 now among the most prized possessions of his 
 parents. After having been in business with 
 his father for some years, in 1894 he was ap- 
 pointed head bookkeeper for the First National 
 Bank of Fresno, and continued in that position 
 until his death, which occurred March 23, 1898. 
 The death of their promising son was the deep- 
 est bereavement of his parents' lives, and the 
 years that have since passed have not dimmed 
 
 the realization of their loss; yet it is their joy to 
 remember that the only sorrow he ever caused 
 them was in his death. 
 
 Stanch in his allegiance to the Republican par- 
 ty, Mr. Yost has been active in local politics 
 and has served as a member of the county cen- 
 tral committee. In 1900 he was a forced can- 
 didate for the assembly and came within fifty 
 votes of being successful. Old war days are kept 
 in memory through the comradeship of other vet- 
 erans. In Atlanta Post, G. A. R., at Fresno, 
 he has been a prominent member and has been 
 honored with the office of commander of the 
 Post. 
 
 JAMES A. BERNARD. The financial genius 
 of a Bernard stepped into a waiting niche in the 
 crude pioneer days of Kern City, developed its 
 resources with far-sighted and correctly gauged 
 judgment, and eventually handed over the splen- 
 did results of his toil to his son and heir, no less 
 painstaking and wise in the discharge of a respon- 
 sibility which bears slight impress of his own 
 making. Of James A. Bernard, engaged in man- 
 aging his father's large real estate interests, it 
 may be said, that while he is scarcely a self-made 
 man, he has not been unmade by the good for- 
 tune which has come his way, a fact equally 
 worthy of commendation. He was born in Rusk, 
 Cherokee county, Tex., January 9, 1854, a son of 
 Arsene P. and Eliza (Miller) Bernard, the latter 
 born in Missouri, and reared and married in 
 Texas, and who is still living in San Francisco. 
 
 Arsene P. Bernard was born near Lake Pont- 
 chartrain, in the vicinity of New Orleans, La., 
 February 22, 1824, the son of John Bernard, who 
 came from France and was a planter in Louis- 
 iana long before the purchase of the territory was 
 consummated. The fertility of the region netted 
 him a handsome fortune, but he died at middle 
 age, when his son Arsene was three years old. 
 The latter had excellent educational advantages, 
 and after graduating from the Jesuit College in 
 St. Louis returned to New Orleans, soon after 
 removing to Cherokee county, Tex., where he 
 engaged in a general merchandise business in a 
 wild and sparsely settled country. In 1857 he 
 went to Central America as an officer in the com- 
 missary department of Walker's filibustering ex- 
 pedition, and March i, 1859, arrived in San Fran- 
 cisco with his wife and only son, James A. For a 
 year he lived in Sacramento, and in i860 went to 
 Vacaville and engaged in a general merchandise 
 business until 1872, in the meantime becoming 
 prominent in various enterprises for the upbuild- 
 ing of that section. He was one of the builders of 
 the Vaca Valley Railroad from Elinira to Vaca- 
 ville, and which is now a part of the Central 
 Pacific Railroad, his partners being men by the 
 
(Jr^a^^^^^t^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1447 
 
 name of Mason and Stevenson, who profited 
 equally with him in the ambitious venture. Mr. 
 Bernard arrived in what was then Sumner, now 
 Kern City, in 1872, finding few hquses, and but 
 few signs of future prosperity. He inaugurated 
 the first 'bus line between Kern and Bakersfield, 
 and while carrying the mail and express until 
 about 1881, made money with a degree of rapid- 
 ity scarcely appreciated by followers of the busi- 
 ness to-day. Feeling the natural decline of his 
 powers, he retired to his home in Kern City, and 
 died there July 20, 1891, at the age of sixty- 
 seven. While in the stage business he invested 
 his earnings in Kern property, eventually accu- 
 mulating an estate now valued at $300,000. He 
 bought the south half of the section of land ad- 
 joining the town on the north, and much more 
 scattered throughout the community. The Ber- 
 nard addition is unquestionably the finest resi- 
 dence section in the city, and as such brings the 
 highest prices and commands the patronage of 
 the best class of people. He was somewhat of a 
 politician, and though never seeking office, was 
 elected county treasurer on the Democratic ticket 
 on two occasions. A quiet, unassuming man, he 
 impressed all with his ability and public spirit, his 
 fine personal characteristics winning and retain- 
 ing a host of friends, as well as influence and 
 prominence in general affairs. He was one of 
 the great majority who gave of their vitalizing 
 energy, their substantiality, and clear judgment 
 to the advancement of civilization in the coast 
 country, and as such his name will go down in 
 history, especially that part of it which has to do 
 with the upbuilding of Kern City. 
 
 James A. Bernard is the only child born to his 
 parents and was educated at Santa Clara College, 
 attending for three years. He became of valua- 
 ble assistance to his father in his 'bus business, 
 and in 1880 embarked upon a railroading career, 
 which at that time he intended to follow indefi- 
 nitely. He took readily to the occupation, worked 
 as a fireman for three years, and afterward ran a 
 freight engine from Kern to Los Angeles, also 
 from Kern to Tulare. The death of his father in 
 1891 put an end to his railroading career, for he 
 had been appointed administrator of the estate, 
 and heir with his mother tO' the splendid legacy 
 of his sire. He has since managed the property 
 with that conscientious regard for details and ac- 
 curacy which is partly inherited and partly ac- 
 quired, and which gives assurance that the inher- 
 itance will lose nothing of the dignity and in- 
 tegrity associated with its accumulation. Mr. 
 Bernard maintains the family interest in Demo- 
 cratic politics, and filled the office of first trustee 
 of the town of Kern after its incorporation. In 
 1876 he was united in marriage with Edith Long, 
 a native of Vacaville, Cal., and of this union seven 
 children have been born, one of whom died in 
 
 infancy. Clophine and Arsene Reed are living at 
 home, and the latter is an engineer on the South- 
 ern Pacific Railroad; Edgar Louis is a jeweler at 
 Bakersfield; and Correnah, James A., Jr., and 
 Alton J. are members of the home circle. Mr. 
 Bernard is fraternally connected with the Knights 
 of Pythias, and his vyife is a member of the Rath- 
 bone Sisters. He is one of the most prominent 
 business men of Kern, and has a reputation for 
 reliability and sagacity commensurate with his 
 training, his adaptability and his progressive ten- 
 dencies. 
 
 WILLIAM HAZELTON. A pioneer and one 
 of the most extensive stockmen on the Upper 
 Kings river, William Hazelton holds a high 
 place among the representative citizens of this 
 section of Fresno county. A native of Albany 
 county, N. Y., he was born September 7, 1825, 
 a son of Joseph Hazelton, of New Jersey, who 
 located in New York state, where be engaged as 
 a blacksmith until his death. His wife, for- 
 merly Sophia Cleveland, was born in New York 
 state, where she also died. They were the par- 
 ents of four sons and three daughters, all of 
 whom are deceased except the youngest, Will- 
 iam Hazelton. He received his education in 
 the common schools of his native locality, where 
 in young manhood he engaged as a clerk in a 
 mercantile establishment. In 1845 he went to 
 New York City and enlisted in the United States 
 Second Dragoons, and was later stationed in 
 Florida and the vicinity of the Choctaw nation. 
 Being discharged from the service about the 
 time of the Mexican war, he went to Mexico 
 as a teamster in the commissary department, 
 where he remained throughout the war. Re- 
 turning to New York in 1848, he followed this 
 with a trip across the plains to California, com- 
 ing by way of Texas and spending the winter of 
 1849 ill San Diego, Cal. He located in the north- 
 ern mines, where he met with moderate suc- 
 cess, remaining until 1853, when he came to his 
 present place on the Upper Kings river, taking 
 up a quarter section of landt, where he has 
 since engaged in stock-raising. He has con- 
 tinued to add to his property by purchase until 
 he now owns over seven thousand ^ acres, on 
 which he has a herd of seven hundred cattle. 
 
 In this locality, in 1857, Mr. Hazelton was 
 united in marriage with Mary Jane Akers, a 
 native of Sabine county, Tex., and the daughter 
 of Henry Akers, who was born in Illinois. He 
 located first in Missouri, later in Texas, and in 
 1852 came to California and located near the 
 home of Mr. Hazelton, where he engaged in 
 farming and stock-raising until his death. His 
 wife, formerly Delilah Miller, was born in Illi- 
 nois and diecl in California. To Mr. Hazelton 
 
1448 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and his wife were born the following children : 
 Clara E., the, wife of F. R. Lindsey, of Sanger, 
 Cal. ; Wesley B., of Sanger ; Henry, a stockman ; 
 Laura D., at home ; Sophia, the wife of George D. 
 Fisk, of Yolo county, Cal. ; Catherine, deceased ; 
 John, deceased; Alice C, the wife of R. M. Kim- 
 ball, of Napa county, Cal.; and Edward, de- 
 ceased. Politically Mr. Hazelton is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Democratic party. Although eighty 
 years old he is still hale and hearty and takes a 
 keen and active interest in all his affairs and 
 shows still the superior judgment and business 
 ability which have made his success. 
 
 PERRY COMMODORE PHILLIPS. An 
 honored link in the chain which reaches back 
 across the years of the prosperous present to the 
 pioneer days of the state, Perry Commodore 
 Phillips is a representative of the type of citizen- 
 ship which laid the foundation for the statehood 
 of California. He is located one mile south of 
 Laton, Fresno county, and is engaged in conduct- 
 ing an extensive dairy. In the past he has been 
 prominent among the sheep growers of this sec- 
 tion, is an extensive land owner and has taken 
 a deep and helpful interest in the development 
 of the country. Born in Gibson county, Ind., 
 April 7, 1838, he was the son of Robert Phil- 
 lips, a native of South Carolina, who located in 
 Indiana with his parents, where he engaged as a 
 farmer until his death. His wife, formerly Celia 
 Melbourne, died in Indiana. They were the par- 
 ents of four sons and four daughters, of whom 
 Perry C. Phillips was the sixth in order of birth. 
 
 In the subscription schools as well as the pub- 
 lic schools of the early day Perry C. Phillips 
 received his education until he was fourteen years 
 old, when his father died. He then worked on 
 neighboring farms until 1854, when he crossed 
 the plains by means of ox teams, and upon his 
 safe arrival in California located on the Yuba 
 river north of Nevada City, where he was en- 
 gaged in mining. Later he went to Siskiyou 
 county, where he remained until 1859, when he 
 removed to Solano county and there engaged on 
 various farms as well as attending school for 
 a short time. In the following year he came to 
 Fresno county and on October 23 located upon 
 his present property, purchasing eighty acres in 
 the vicinity of Kingston, to which he has since 
 added until he owns two hundred and forty 
 acres in this place. Seventy or eighty acres of 
 this ranch are devoted to alfalfa, while his chief 
 interest is a dairy of about two hundred cows. 
 At one tim.e he was an extensive sheep grower, 
 having over eighteen thousand head of sheep. In 
 addition to his home place he owns seven other 
 ranches, namely: At Guernsey, Kings county, 
 
 one farm of three hundred and twenty acres, 
 and the other of four hundred acres, given over 
 to alfalfa and a dairy ; twenty-nine hundred acres 
 at Cross creek, east of Hanford; two hundred 
 and eighty acres at Last Chance headgate, called' 
 the Fair View farm; three hundred and sixty 
 acres near old Kingston; eighty acres at Coalingo, 
 and one hundred and sixty acres at Eureka 
 school house, Kings county, comprising alto- 
 gether four thousand seven hundred and forty 
 acres of valuable land. He is also interested in 
 oil lands in the vicinity of Coalingo, Fresno 
 .county. 
 
 In Solano county, Cal., April 29, i860, Mr. 
 Phillips was united in marriage with Elizabeth 
 Hildebrand, a native of Shelby county, Ind., 
 where she was born October 22, 1840. She is 
 a daughter of Joseph Hildebrand of Pennsyl- 
 vania, who came to California in 1853. He lo- 
 cated in Vaca valley, Solano county, and after 
 engaging in mining for two years removed in 
 1861 to Yolo county, and in 1866 to San Luis 
 Obispo county. In the last named location he 
 remained until 1872, when he removed to Kings 
 county and engaged in farming for a time, short- 
 ly afterward locating in Hanford, where he lived 
 retired. Eventually he located on his son-in- 
 law's place, where he died October 17, 1895. His 
 wife, formerly Anna Harkarader, of Ohio, died 
 in the home of Mr. Phillips in 1899. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Phillips were born the following children: 
 Florence Ellen, the wife of Edward Morton, of 
 Bremerton, Wash. ; Mrs. Isabelle L. Phillips, 
 near Traver, Tulare county; Carrie Winifred, 
 the wife of Louis Lowe, of Kings county; Ada 
 Bianca, at home; George Hudson, a dentist of 
 Hanford; Robert and Oscar LeRoy, at home; 
 and Dora Elizabeth, deceased. Politically Mr. 
 Phillips is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican 
 party. Both himself and wife are prominent 
 members of the society of this community, highly 
 esteemed for their m.any fine qualities of head 
 and heart. Mrs. Phillips is gifted with a re- 
 markably clear memory, and recalls with pleas- 
 ing distinctness tlie events of the early days, 
 which she retails to the vounger generation. She 
 is a woman of rare refinement and culture and 
 has many friends. , 
 
 JESSE S. TAYLOR. Now one of Fresno 
 county's leading agriculturists, Mr. Taylor was 
 born in Clark county, Mo., April 21, 1861, a son 
 of James H. and Samantha (Sisson) Taylor. The 
 father was a native of Pennsylvania and became 
 an. early settler in Missouri, where he followed 
 farming and also engaged in plastering, a trade 
 he had learned in his native state. Soon after 
 the outbreak of the Civil war he enlisted in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1449 
 
 Colonel Moore's division .Twenty-first Missouri 
 Regiment, U. S. A., and served for four years. 
 He died in Missouri. His wife was born in Vir- 
 ginia and is now living in Los Angeles county, 
 this state, the mother of four children. 
 
 Jesse S. Taylor was the eldest child. His edu- 
 cation in the common schools was supplemented 
 by a course in a business college at Keokuk, 
 Iowa. After graduation he engaged in book- 
 keeping for a time, but later followed farming. 
 In 1890 he disposed of his interests in the east 
 and came' to California, first locating northwest 
 of Selma, where he lived until 1895, when he 
 purchased his present ranch of one hundred and 
 sixty acres, four miles southwest of Selma. Here 
 he is now engaged in general farming and also 
 conducts a medium-sized dairy, His place is 
 one of the best properties in this section of the 
 county, being equipped with all modern conven- 
 iences, including a gasoline pumping plant. 
 
 In the state of Missouri was celebrated the 
 marriage of Mr. Taylor and Miss Ranna S. Chap- 
 pell, and to them have been born three chil- 
 dren, Charles, Leona and George. Mr. Taylor 
 is a member of the Woodmen of the World, be- 
 ing associated with Camp No. 368 of Selma. In 
 political matters he is not inclined to take a 
 very active part, but exercises his right of fran- 
 chise in favor of the Republican party. Both 
 he and his wife are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South, Mr. Taylor being a 
 trustee. Starting in life without money or in- 
 fluence Mr. Taylor has persevered until now he 
 is considered one of the leading citizens of his 
 section. 
 
 PARRIS ALLEN. A native of Dearborn 
 county, Ind., Mr. Allen's birth occurred on 
 August 26, 1852. His father, John Allen, was 
 born in New York state and became an early 
 settler of Indiana. Later he removed to Ripley 
 couniy, the same state, where he followed agri- 
 cultural pursuits. His wife bore the maiden 
 name of Mahala Fletcher and lived several years 
 after the death of her husband, her death oc- 
 curring- at the home of her daughter, Margaret 
 A. Bewley, of Selma, in November, 1904, at the 
 age of seventy-five years. By her marriage she 
 became the mother of seven children, four of 
 whom grew- to maturity. 
 
 Parris Allen was the second child. His edu- 
 cation was limited to three months' attendance 
 in the district school. Upon leaving home he en- 
 gaged in farming, continuing at that occupation 
 until 1875, when he disposed of his interests in 
 the east and came to California. Locating near 
 Winters, Solano county, he secured employment 
 as a farm hand until 1882, when he came to 
 Fresno county and with the money that he had 
 
 saved purchased the ranch on which he has since 
 resided. This consists of one hundred and sixty 
 acres, located two miles west of Selma, and is 
 said to be one of the m.ost highly improved farms 
 in the San Joaquin valley. Fifty acres are de- 
 voted to the growing of grapes, forty is set out 
 in orchard and the balance is devoted to alfalfa. 
 
 In Ripley county, Ind., February 12, 1878, 
 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Allen and 
 Miss Mary E. Mills, who was a native of that 
 county. To them have been born two children : 
 George W. and Susan Ethel. 
 
 Mr. Allen is prominent in fraternal circles, be- ' 
 ing a member of the Masons, and Eastern Star 
 Chapter, to which Mrs. Allen also belongs, the 
 Woodmen of the World, Independent Order of 
 Foresters and the Knights of the Maccabees. Po- 
 litically he is a Democrat, but is liberal in his 
 views, and in local issues votes for the one whom 
 he considers best qualified for the ofiice. 
 
 JOHN Q. HANCOCK. Although a young 
 man, Mr. Hancock has attained an enviable posi- 
 tion in the business circles of Fresno county. He 
 has made his own way in the world since leaving 
 home, in youth and young manhood having had 
 but few advantages. 
 
 A native of Iowa, Mr. Hancock was born in 
 Keokuk, June 4, 1868. His father, D. A. Han- 
 cock, was born in Indiana, and at an early day 
 located in Iowa, where he followed farming near 
 Keokuk until his death at the age of sixty-five 
 years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
 Isabella Hare, became the mother of nine chil- 
 dren, seven sons and two daughters. 
 
 John Q. Hancock obtained a limited common 
 school education and remained at home until 
 i, when he came to California. The first 
 
 month of his residence here was spent in Stock- 
 ton, but on account of lung trouble he came to 
 Fresno, where the following year was spent in 
 regaining his lost health. He then purchased a 
 team and engaged in hauling lumber from the 
 mountains to Fresno. This occupation he fol- 
 lowed for three years, meantime purchasing a 
 place of twenty acres, ten miles east of Fresno, 
 which he planted to a vineyard. In 1893 he lo- 
 cated on the Laguna de Tache grant seven miles 
 west of Laton. Here he rented land and engaged 
 in raising wheat, corn and barley, having nearly 
 fifteen hundred acres under cultivation. Five 
 years later, owing to the hard times and drought, 
 he became interested in the cattle business, buy- 
 ing and selling to quite a large extent. About this 
 time the tract was opened up and subdivided, 
 Mr. Hancock buying one hundred acres, four 
 and three-quarter miles west of Laton, on which 
 he engaged in a cattle and dairy business. He 
 also conducted a skimming station, which he still 
 
1450 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 owns. Since making his first purchase he has 
 added land until he now has two hundred acres, 
 and in addition owns another ranch in the River- 
 dale district which is devoted to the growing of 
 alfalfa. In 1903 he purchased eighteen hundred 
 acres of land in the mountains, where he grazes 
 cattle during the summer, in the winter bringing 
 them to his valley ranch where he feeds and fat- 
 tens them for market. Aside from his general 
 farming and cattle interests, in October, 1904, he 
 formed a partnership with Alex Sime and pur- 
 chased the interests of the Laton Lumber Com- 
 pany, incorporated. Mr. Hancock is now serving 
 as the president and general ma:nager of this con- 
 cern and is also carrying on an extensive hay and 
 grain business. Recognizing the need of better 
 banking facilities, he assisted in the organization 
 of the Laton State Bank, of which he is a direct- 
 or and vice-president. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Hancock and Miss Irene 
 Harlan was solemnized in Fresno. She is a na- 
 tive of Fresno county, her birth having occurred 
 twelve miles west of Laton. By her marriage she 
 has become the mother of two children, Ruth and 
 Hazel. Mr. Hancock has been too busy looking 
 after his' extensive interests to take an active part 
 in political matters, and aside from voting for 
 the candidates of the Republican party, he leaves 
 such matters to others. His friends unite in 
 wishing him many years of continued prosperity. 
 
 JULIUS F. WARREN. Residing on a farm 
 two miles south of Laton, Mr. Warren is now 
 enjoying Hfe, but in former days when the west 
 was a wilderness, when "cattle was king" and 
 the cowboy reigned, he took a leading part in 
 the life on the range, and can relate many stirring 
 stories of those exciting days. Many a time has 
 he entertained some of the most noted Indian 
 scouts and chiefs at his campfire, but now all 
 that has passed. The cowboy is almost ex- 
 tinct. Civilization has conquered the wilds, and 
 where once roved bands of cattle are now vil- 
 lages and cities, and the screech of the locomo- 
 tive has taken the place of the shrill whoops of 
 the cow-punchers. 
 
 Born in Alabama, December 16, 1861, Julius 
 F. Warren is a son of Ellison Warren, who was 
 a large farmer and sheep-raiser in Alabama. 
 Prior to the Civil war he owned slaves, but 
 after the war and the abolition of slavery he dis- 
 posed of his plantation and removed to Texas 
 in 1869, where he engaged in ranching until his 
 death. His wife in maidenhood bore the name 
 of Malza Sawyer. She was born in South Caro- 
 lina and by her marriage became the mother of 
 ten children. She is now deceased, passing away 
 after taking up her residence in Texas. 
 
 The third child in this large family was Julius 
 
 F. Warren. Reared .on his father's farm in 
 Texas, he was early made familiar .with cattle, 
 as the state at that time was a cattle country. 
 His first trip was made in 1880, when he assist- 
 ed in driving nearly three thousand head from 
 Texas overland to Wyoming. The trip was 
 made in safety, although the Indians were bad 
 and gave the party considerable trouble. The 
 spring of 1881 Mr. Warren returned to Texas, 
 assisted in the round-up and again made the 
 trip over the same trail to Wyoming. This time 
 he remained in Wyoming for five years, being 
 in charge of a large cattle ranch most of the 
 time on the Cheyenne river, south of the Black 
 Hills. Subsequently he had charge of a ranch 
 in Montana on the Little Missouri river, re- 
 maining there until the severe winter of 1886- 
 87, when out of sixty-one thousand head of cat- 
 tle on the range he was able to bring in only fif- 
 teen thousand, the balance freezing to death. 
 During these years Mr. Warren met many of the 
 most prominent western characters, including 
 Sitting Bull, Buffalo Bill (William Cody) and 
 others. Theodore Roosevelt, now president of 
 the United States, at one time was the owner 
 of one of the ranches on which Mr. Warren 
 was foreman and the ranch was visited by him 
 and party. At this time it was not uncommon 
 to see herds of buffaloes runiiing wild on the 
 plains, but now that noble animal is nearly ex- 
 tinct, with the exception of a few herds in cap- 
 tivity. The spring of 1887 witnessed Mr. War- 
 ren's arrival in California. Soon after he en- 
 tered the employ of Miller & Lux, the big 
 cattle firm of the state, and for several years 
 continued with them, buying cattle in all sections 
 of the state, Arizona and New Mexico. It was 
 in 1897 that Mr. Warren decided to settle down 
 and with the money he had saved he purchased 
 his present ranch near old Kingston, where he 
 engaged in the cattle business. 
 
 In the city of Oakland was celebrated the mar- 
 riage of Mr. Warren and Miss Lelia C. Somers, 
 who is also a native of Alabama and a daughter of 
 George and Ellen H. (Wolfe) Somers. George 
 Somers is a native of Germany and came to the 
 United States with his father, George Spmers, 
 who lived in Alabama, and there engaged as a 
 merchant. He was known as Captain Somers 
 and was a prominent man in Mobile, Ala. He 
 went to Washington and from there to Oregon 
 and then settled in San Francisco, where he lost 
 heavily. He then removed to Sonoma county 
 and settled near Healdsburg, and from there 
 moved to Oakland, and in 1892 he came to 
 Fresno county, where he bought one hundred and 
 two acres, and now resides at old Kingston. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Warren have been born three chil- 
 dren : Julius Clarence, Myrtle Harriett, and Ed- 
 na Ellen, deceased. Fraternally Mr. Warren is a 
 
C-i-'7'^Potrv^y?o^'i^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1453 
 
 member of the Woodmen of the World, and in 
 politics supports the principles advocated by the 
 Democratic party. His life has been filled with 
 many wild adventures. For years his associates 
 were the roughest of men, and in those days it 
 was customary to drink whisky as freely as water, 
 but at that time he never drank a drop of liquor, 
 which was very remarkable. Since locating in 
 this county he has built up a substantial stock 
 business and has also gained a wide circle of 
 warm personal friends. 
 
 GODFREY NORWOOD VANWORMER. 
 A man of education, culture and refinement, G. 
 N. Vanwormer is located within three and a 
 half miles of Fowler, Fresno county, where, in 
 the management of the Maud Vineyard, he is 
 demonstrating his business ability and judgment.- 
 He was born in Jefferson county, N. Y., August 
 20, 1836, a son of John Vanwormer, a native of 
 the same state, and grandson of Cornelius, a 
 farmer there until his death. The latter was a 
 patriot in the war of 181 2 and a prominent man 
 in the community where he made his home, his 
 father and nine brothers participating in the Rev- 
 olutionary war. John Vanwormer was a ship 
 carpenter by occupation, in the employ of the 
 government, working on the famous Constitu- 
 tion and other vessels of note. He came to his 
 death by drowning while out in a small boat in 
 Boston harbor. His wife, Eliza Jane Welch, a 
 native of Boston, Mass., died when her son, G. 
 N., was a lad. He was the only child, and after 
 the death of his mother was reared by his pa- 
 ternal grandparents. He received his education 
 in the common schools and took the junior year 
 at Ann Arbor, Mich. At the age of twenty 
 years he left New York state, and after three 
 months located in Missouri, where for four years 
 he engaged in teaching, and also for a part of 
 the time attended Pleasant Hill Academy, of 
 Missouri ; while at this place the Confederate 
 flag was raised on the grounds. In i860 he went 
 to Michigan to visit an uncle and afterward en- 
 gaged as a teacher in Genesee. During 1863 
 he was principal of the Vassar schools, and for 
 one year filled the same position in the Flint 
 schools. Following this he taught in Saginaw 
 for four years, and Bay City for two years, after 
 which he went to Wisconsin, and in Chippewa 
 Falls engaged in the fire insurance business for 
 two years. Later he taught in Mineral Point 
 for one year, when he returned to Bay City; 
 Mich., and engaged in a mercantile enterprise. 
 He then entered the University of Michigan and 
 studied for a time, when he went to Dennison, 
 Iowa, as principal of schools of that place. De- 
 ciding to locate in California he came west in 
 1880, and in Napa accepted the chair of mathe- 
 
 matics in the Collegiate Institute. Two years la- 
 ter he accepted the position of manager of the 
 Maud Vineyard, which company he promoted 
 and was an important factor in its incorpora- 
 tion during the winter of 1881 and 1882. The 
 property consisted of one hundred and twenty 
 acres, of which sixty acres were planted to vine- 
 yard and the same amount to peaches and necta- 
 rines. He still retains the management of the 
 place, in which he owns a half interest, and has 
 brought about the success which has character- 
 ized the venture. He also owns forty acres of 
 vineyard and orchard one mile west of Del Rey, 
 Fresno county. Mr. Vanwormer is a member 
 of the Episcopal Church, and politically casts his 
 ballot with the Republican party. Fraternally 
 he is identified with the Masonic organization, 
 of which he became a member in Portsmouth, 
 Mich. 
 
 ROBERT KENNEDY. One of the best 
 known stockmen in Tulare and Fresno counties 
 is Robert Kennedy, who is as well an extensive 
 farmer, the Kennedy -Clark ranch being one of 
 the finest stock ranches in this section. Mr. 
 Kennedy is a native of Liverpool, England, 
 where he was born March 23, 1839. His father, 
 William Kennedy, was a merchant in that city. 
 Robert Kennedy received his education in the 
 common schools, after which he was apprenticed , 
 to learn the carpenter's trade. In July, 1862, he 
 took passage aboard the sailing vessel, Utopia, 
 and sailed from Plymouth to Brisbane, Australia,, 
 around the Cape of Good Hope, arriving early 
 in November of the same year. In Brisbane he 
 engaged in contracting and building until No- 
 vember, 1866J when he took passage on the sail- 
 ing vessel Nimrod, to San Francisco, making a 
 brief call at the Sandwich Islands and arriving 
 in San Francisco in March, 1867. He followed 
 contracting and building in that city for three 
 'years, when he came to the San Joaquin valley, 
 which was then merely a stock country. He 
 began the sheep business, locating first on the 
 San Joaquin river below Millerton, and in 1872 
 settled on the plains twenty miles northwest of 
 Visalia, where he bought a section of school 
 land and later entered a homestead. He con- 
 tinued to add to his land during the years in 
 which he followecl this business until to-day the 
 ranch known as the Kennedy-Clark contains 
 thirty-six hundred acres in one body, which is 
 well fenced, under irrigation and planted largely 
 to alfalfa. He also has a moimtain ranch of two 
 thousand acres located on Sand creek, and since 
 1885 has devoted his attention to general stock- 
 raising, although he is very much interested in 
 sheep, having seven thousand head of fine grade. 
 He raises Shorthorn and Durham cattle and is 
 
1454 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 accounted one of the most successful stockmen in 
 the San Joaquhi valley. In 1892 he located in 
 Fresno, where he now owns a handsome resi- 
 dence at No. 2907 Mariposa street, considered 
 one of the finest in the city, while he also owns 
 various other residences throughout the city and 
 county. He is a valued citizen in public afifairs 
 in Fresno, being a director, stockholder and vice- 
 president in the Bank of Central California. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Kennedy was united in 
 marriage with Marian Ryce, a native of Scot- 
 land, and they are the parents of the following 
 children : May, who became the wife of A. W. 
 Clark, and is now deceased; Margaret, the wife 
 of E. A. Cutter, of Berkeley; Jessie, the wife of 
 Fred D. Prescott, of Fresno; Elizabeth; Ethel; 
 and Helen, the last three named being at home~ 
 with their parents. In his political convictions 
 Mr. Kennedy is a stanch adherent of the prin- 
 ciples advocated in the platform of the Repub- 
 lican party. 
 
 A. G. WISHON. The Wishon family came 
 originally of southern stock, the name being 
 prominent for generations in North Carolina. 
 Benjamin Wishon, a native of that state, was 
 the first western emigrant, coming as far west 
 as St. Louis, Mo., where he became associated 
 with Samuel Wiggins in what was afterward 
 known as the Wiggins Ferry Company. Later 
 he went to Crawford county and followed mer- 
 cantile pursuits, farming and stock-raising until 
 his death, which occurred when nearly seventy 
 years of age. Fraternally he was prominent in 
 Masonic circles, and socially he wielded a broad 
 influence in his adopted community. In his fam- 
 ily was a son, Marion, who was born in East 
 St. Louis and in young manhood followed the 
 example of his father in engaging as a farmer 
 and merchant. He was located in St. James, 
 Phelps county, Mo., where he became prominent 
 in local afifairs, serving two terms as sheriff 
 upon the organization of the county. His death 
 occurred in 1886, and removed from the com- 
 munity a man of ability and integrity, and one 
 whose best efforts were given toward the prog- 
 ress of the country. He married Mary Cop- 
 pedge, a native of that section of Missouri which 
 eventually was known as Phelps county. Her 
 father, Lindsay L. Coppedge, a native of Vir- 
 ginia, was the representative of an old and dis- 
 tinguished family of that state. His father be- 
 came government agent among the frontier In- 
 dians, being located in Kentucky and having 
 gone to Southwest Missouri in the first wagon 
 that ever crossed the Gasconade river. He was 
 active during the Black Hawk war as a scout. 
 Lindsay L. Coppedge became a pioneer settler 
 of Pulaski county, Mo., residing for sixty years 
 
 at Coppedge Mills, w-hich place was given its 
 name through the mill which he built there. He 
 also built many other mills throughout that sec- 
 tion of the state, all operated by water. Mrs. 
 Wishon is still living and makes her home in 
 Fresno. To Mr. Wishon and his wife were born 
 seven children, of whom five are living and four 
 are in California. 
 
 The eldest in his father's family, A. G. Wishon 
 was born in Phelps county, Mo., November 6, 
 1858. He was educated at the School of Mines 
 at Rolla, after which, at the age of eighteen 
 years, he became dependent upon his own re- 
 sources. His first employment was as a clerk 
 in the employ of Moody, Michel & Co., of St. 
 Louis, and later he traveled throughout the south 
 for Adler Goldman Company, cotton brokers of. 
 the same city. Deciding to engage in mercantile 
 pursuits independently, he established a store at 
 Sullivan and later at St. James, both of Missouri, 
 which he conducted successfully for several 
 years. Disposing of these interests, he then be- 
 came chief clerk for Capt. R. M. Peck, super- 
 intendent of bridges and buildings of the Mis- 
 souri Pacific Railroad at Pacific, Mo. In 1888 
 he resigned this position which he had filled 
 efficiently and came to California, becoming as- 
 sociated with the old San Joaquin Lumber Com- 
 pany at Tulare, which was then under tlie man- 
 agement of Mr. T. G. Yancey. For two years 
 following this work he filled the position of cash- 
 ier and bookkeeper for the Tulare County Bank, 
 after which he opened an office in that city for 
 the promotion of various enterprises and the 
 disposal of lands. His first extensive work was 
 the building of the Kaweah Ditch (having then 
 located in Visalia) this being brought from the 
 river above Lemon Cove and along the base of 
 the hills for a distance of about twenty .miles, 
 almost to Lindsay, Tulare county. At that time 
 there was not an orange or lemon grove in the 
 section covered by this ditch, but his successful 
 completion of the work has transformed the 
 country into one of the best producing sections 
 in the state. He financed the enterprise and 
 after its completion sold his lands at a considera- 
 ble profit, the lands which he oflFered then to 
 the public being those covered with such groves 
 as the Merryman, Newhalls, INIoore, Lord, Car- 
 son, Burr, Bonnie Brae and others which are to- 
 day numbered among the finest orange groves 
 in the state. The insuflSciency of water to be 
 obtained through the ditch system gave to Mr. 
 Wishon his next idea in regard to the develop- 
 ment of the country and accordingly he con- 
 ceived the plan of securing power to pump the 
 water throughout the country. This resulted in 
 the organization of the Mount Whitney Power 
 Company, and the rights to the headwaters of 
 the Kaweah being secured, he then associated 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Ii55 
 
 with himself Wilham H. Hammond and the 
 power plant was installed. Mr. Wishon con- 
 tinued to finance and manage the enterprise until 
 an entire success was assured. This plant now 
 distributes power and light to Tulare, VisaHa, 
 Exeter, Portersville and Lindsay. Mr. Wishon 
 had already been interested in the Visalia Water 
 Works, and later sold out. Upon his withdrawal 
 from the Mount Whitney Power Company Mr. 
 Wishori arranged with capitalists of Los Angeles 
 to put in a power plant on the Tule river, eight 
 miles above Springville, and when the final 
 papers are completed the work will be prosecuted 
 and a forty-five hundred horse-power plant will 
 be installed and the work carried to a successful 
 issue. 
 
 In May, 1903, Mr. Wishon accepted the gen- 
 eral management of the San Joaquin Power 
 Company, of Fresno. He is vice-president, di- 
 rector and manager of the Fresno City Railway, 
 and president and manager of the Fresno Water 
 Company, with headquarters in Fresno. He first 
 secured an option on the old Berry & Einstein 
 lines, after which the new lines, built by Griffith 
 & McKenzie, consisting of fifteen and a half 
 miles throughout the city, were bought for the 
 newly organized company. The San Joaquin 
 Power Company installed a plant on the San 
 Joaquin river, which is being enlarged from 
 twenty-five hundred horse-power to twenty 
 thousand horse-power, the water being obtained 
 from the north fork of the San Joaquin river. 
 Mr. Wishon also secured large reservoirs for the 
 company, five being provided for the company's 
 use. This plant also furnishes power for the 
 railway, for the city water works from a system 
 of wells, and also light and power for Fresno, 
 Hanford, La ton and other places. In 1904 Mr. 
 Wishon was associated in the organization of the 
 Fresno Traction Company, with a capitalization 
 of $5,000,000, to absorb the Fresno City Rail- 
 way and to build a line to Yosemite Valley, a dis- 
 tance of eighty miles, via the company's power 
 plants in Crane's valley, reaching an altitude of 
 five thousand feet at Fish Camp, then down to 
 Wawona, at the edge of the valley, this being 
 one of the finest scenic roads on the coast. He 
 is still interested in Visalia, being associated with 
 the Visalia Manufacturing Company, in which 
 he is a director, and in other enterprises which he 
 helped to found. 
 
 In St. James, Mo., Mr. Wishon was united 
 in marriage with Etta Emory, a native of Steel- 
 ville, that state, and they are the parents of two 
 children : Emory and Jenny. Mr. Wishon is 
 prominent in fraternal circles, having been made 
 a Mason in Sullivan, Mo., and is now a member 
 in Los Palmas Lodge, of Fresno. He also be- 
 longs to Fresno Chapter, R. A. M., and the 
 Knights Templar Lodge at Fresno. He belongs 
 
 to Sequoia Club and is a member of the Cham- 
 ber of Commerce. Politically he is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Republican party. He gives his 
 support to the Methodist Episcopal Church, of 
 which his wife is a member. 
 
 CHARLES S. PECK was born in Buffalo, N. 
 Y., in 1834, a son of Jesse Peck, a native of Con- 
 necticut, and almost the first builder in the city 
 of Buffalo, N. Y. The son naturally followed in 
 his father's footsteps, learned to be a practical 
 builder, and evidenced in early life the ambitious 
 tendencies which found vent in the west. In 
 1849 the family peace was disturbed by the jour- 
 neying to the coast of two sons of the family, 
 James and John, and the reports sent back by 
 these early Argonauts fired the enthusiasm of 
 Charles S., who followed in their wake in 1852, 
 making the journey by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama. Frank Peck was an addition to the 
 family gathering in California in 1853, and he 
 has survived the vicissitudes of the times and 
 still lives on his farm in Merced county. 
 
 Soon after settling in Snelling Charles S. Peck 
 built the first stone building there, and afterward 
 went to the mines in Mariposa county, where he 
 achieved ordinary success as a miner. After six 
 years in the rude camps of different parts of the 
 state he returned to New York, and in 1859, in 
 Erie county, married Adaline, daughter of Peter 
 Cook, the latter a native of Genesee county, N. 
 Y., and later a farmer and stock-raiser of Erie 
 county. Mr. Cook married Lydia White, of Ver- 
 mont. With his wife Mr. Peck went to house- 
 keeping in Buffalo, in January, i860, his house- 
 hold being enlarged by the advent of his first 
 son, James F., whose cradle was rocked between 
 the performance of many tasks, all relating to 
 the proposed journey overland to the coast. As 
 soon as the snow was off the ground, and 
 thoughts of spring sent hope bounding through 
 the human heart, the father and mother started 
 on their way with horse-teams, consuming twen- 
 ty-one days more than two months on the way. 
 Locating at Snelling Mr. Peck contracted and 
 built for a short time, moving then to Prince- 
 ton, Mariposa county, where he erected a large 
 store for Fremont, the Pathfinder, going thence 
 to Mariposa, where he erected the Masonic hall 
 and other buildings, finally returning to Snelling. 
 He arrived in Merced before the town had been 
 platted or a lot sold, and it was he who erected 
 the first brick building in town. For many 
 years he was the foremost builder in this lo- 
 cality, and the majority of the old buildings and 
 residences were erected by him, either wholly or 
 in part. During the last eight years of his life 
 he lived retired from any kind of work, and died 
 
1456 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in October, 1902, at the age of sixty-eight years. 
 He is survived by his wife, who lives in Merced, 
 and who is the mother of four children, James 
 F. ; Lydia, the wife of W. B. Bunker, of Las 
 Vegas, N. M. ; Addie M., the wife of H. E. Stem- 
 ler, of Portland, Ore. ; and Jessie A., a resident 
 of Merced. 
 
 JOSEPH WAGGONER. The prestige of the 
 Los Banos district as a grain and stock pro- 
 ducing center has been upheld by the worthy 
 efforts of Joseph Waggoner, owner of a three 
 hundred and twenty-acre ranch two miles south- 
 east of Los Banos, upon which he has made his 
 home since 1869. Since purchasing his original 
 property Mr. Waggoner has added another ranch 
 of three hundred and twenty acres on Los Banos 
 creek, which is devoted to raising grain. He 
 also owns a typical California home in Pacific 
 Grove, where his family spend the greater part 
 of the year. His land has been made valuable 
 by cultivation and its output presents a fair illus- 
 tration of what may be accomplished by the 
 exercise of industry, good management and busi- 
 ness shrewdness. 
 
 Mr. Waggoner, on the paternal side, is of 
 French ancestry. His family was established in 
 America by his father, Bernhardt Waggt)ner, 
 who came from Alsace-Lorraine and settled first 
 in New York state. He later became a pioneer 
 of Hardin county, Ohio, where Joseph Waggoner 
 was born, October 23, 1840, his parents having 
 also two other sons and four daughters, of whom 
 Joseph and George, who live together and are 
 working in cooperation, are the only ones in 
 California. Bernhardt Waggoner lived near 
 Kenton, Ohio, for many years, and in 1853 gath- 
 ered together his effects and moved his family 
 by wagon to Jones county, Iowa, where he lived 
 and prospered for many years, his death occur- 
 ring at the advanced age of ninety years. His 
 wife, formerly Barbara Emart, was born in 
 Pennsylvania and died in Iowa. Joseph, the eld- 
 est of the children, attended the public schools 
 of Iowa and Ohio, but first and foremost in his 
 life was the hard work on the pioneer farm in 
 Iowa, which he assisted in breaking with ox- 
 teams during the summer, and in the winter time 
 hauled rails from the near-by woods. Physical la- 
 bor of the hardest kind developed his physique 
 and gave him a zest for Hfe, but the farm in Jones 
 county gave little promise of the future, and it 
 is not surprising that while he labored in the 
 heat of summer and the cold of winter his am- 
 bitious brain was busy conceiving plans of a more 
 cheerful and hopeful nature. At the age of 
 eighteen years he left home and started for Kan- 
 sas, but becoming sick on the way he was obliged 
 to return, and soon after began to farm in Iowa, 
 
 remaining there until 1864. In 1862 he married 
 Sarah S. Kuhn, a native of Carroll county, Ohio, 
 and in 1864 he started for California with horse 
 teams, bringing his wife and child with a com- 
 pany unusually small, and therefore more or less 
 defenseless. The journey proved more fortunate 
 than was expected, for although' there were sev- 
 eral attempts on the part of the Indians to con- 
 fiscate their stock, the men stood their ground 
 and succeeded in holding their own, as the In- 
 dians were out of ammunition. The party came 
 into California by way of Spring Valley and 
 Goose Lake, then via Susanville to Red Bluff, 
 which they reached October i, 1864. For about 
 four and a half years Mr. Waggoner engaged in 
 the dray business in Red Bluff, and in 1869 
 went to Livermore, and with this as a head- 
 quarters looked around for a desirable farm. The 
 fall saw his plans fairly matured, and he located 
 on the ranch which has since been his home, and 
 which, with the aid of his more recently ac- 
 quired property, has brought him an income of 
 gratifying proportions. 
 
 Mr. Waggoner has been foremo.st in estabhsh- 
 ing many civilizing agencies in the Los Banos 
 district. He was a member of the school board 
 that erected the first schoolhouse, giving lib- 
 erally of his time and means, and assisting with 
 hauling the lumber for the crude establishment 
 from Stockton. In later years he served on the 
 board of education. He has also attended various 
 county and state political conventions. With his 
 family he is a member of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church. Mr. and Mrs. Waggoner have 
 eight children, of whom Ida M. is the wife of 
 C. H. Harmon of San Jose ; James Franklin died 
 in Fresno at the age of twenty-eight _ years; 
 George Edward is a resident of Los Angeles; 
 Carrie L. lives in San Francisco; Chauncey 
 Howard is a rancher near Los Banos; Jessie B 
 is in San Francisco; Arthur B. lives in Plains- 
 berg, Cal. ; and Sarah J. is at home. Mr. Wag- 
 goner is not only an intelligent and successful 
 business man, but one sociably and kindly dis- 
 posed, gentle in his judgment of his fellowmen. 
 and having within himself a capacity for making 
 and retaining friends. 
 
 CAREY W. MATHEW^S. The hardware es- 
 tablishment of which Carey W. Mathews is a 
 proprietor is one of the chief commercial enter- 
 prises of Reedley, Fresno county, Cal., and Mr. 
 Mathews is justly named among the representa- 
 tive business men of this section. He is a native 
 son of the state, his birth having occurred in 
 Sacramento December 12, 1869. His father, Amos 
 Mathews, of Ohio, was a civil engineer by occu- 
 pation. He removed to Iowa from the Buckeye 
 state, thence to California via the Isthmus of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1457 
 
 Panama at an early date in the history of this 
 state. He located at Sacramento and' became 
 prominent in public affairs, acting as captain of 
 the State Guards of California, being stationed 
 at Washington, Yolo county. His death oc- 
 curred in 1873. His wife, formerly Rosa Woods, 
 was a native of California and the daughter of 
 Jonas S. Woods, who drove cattle across the 
 plains in an early day. Carey W. Mathews was 
 the only child born of this union. He received 
 his education in the schools of the state, after 
 which he took a commercial course in Heald's 
 Business College, of San Francisco, graduating 
 in 1888. His first business employment was in 
 a fire insurance office in Willows, 'where he re- 
 mained for two years, coming then to Reedley, 
 Fresno county. He first engaged in agricultu- 
 ral pursuits on rented land, remaining so occu- 
 pied until i8q6, when he found employment 
 with G. W. McNear in his warehouse. He con- 
 tinued until 1901 in this employment, at that 
 time purchasing the general merchandise busi- 
 ness of the Gosliner Brothers. In the memorable 
 fire of Reedley he lost his property, which loss, 
 however, was covered by insurance. The firm 
 name at that time was Bollin, Mathews & Co., 
 and is now known as Bollin & Mathews, a gen- 
 eral hardware establishment, carrying a full line 
 of agricultural implements, etc. The firm is 
 meeting with success and their business is adding 
 to the commercial prestige of the place. 
 
 In Fresno, Cal., Mr. Mathews was united in 
 marriage with Lucy Fairweather, a native of 
 Ohio, and a daughter of John Fairweather, editor 
 of the Reedley Exponent. Fraternally Mr. Math- 
 ews is a member of Reedley Lodge, No. 304, F. 
 & A. M., of this place, and the Woodmen of the 
 World, also of Reedley. Politically he is a Re- 
 publican and is active in the counsels of his 
 party, having served as a member of the county 
 central committee. 
 
 JOHN H. BYRD. Along the lines of per- 
 sonal success and public enterprise John H. Byrd 
 is named among the representative citizens of 
 Fresno, Cal., having been a resident of the coun- 
 ty since 1858. He was born in Canton, Ga., 
 May 8, 1837, the descendant of a family promi- 
 nent in the southern states for generations. His 
 grandfather, Thomas Byrd, was a native of Vir- 
 ginia, who removed to Cherokee county, Ga., 
 where he became a successful planter, being 
 largely engaged in the cultivation of tobacco. 
 He was also a millwright and built several wa- 
 ter power mills in Georgia. He acquired large 
 landed possessions and wielded marked influence 
 throughout the section in which he made his 
 home. In his family was a son Nathan, who 
 was born in Virginia and reared in that state and 
 
 68 
 
 Georgia-, where he accompanied his parents in 
 youth. He also raised tobacco in Georgia, re- 
 maining in that state until 1847, when he re- 
 moved to Arkansas, and seventeen miles south 
 of Little Rock engaged as a cotton planter un- 
 til his death at the age of sixty years. His wife, 
 formerly Eliza Jones, was born in South Car- 
 olina, a daughter of Caleb Jones, a planter of 
 the Spartansburg district, of that state, who 
 afterward removed to Canton, Ga., where he 
 became an extensive planter. Mrs. Byrd died in 
 Arkansas in 1901, at the age of eighty-five years. 
 She was a devoted" member of the Baptist Church. 
 Of her family of eight children, three are now 
 living, the eldest being John H. Byrd, of this 
 review, the only one who has sought a home in 
 California. 
 
 When ten years old John H. Byrd accom- 
 panied his parents to Arkansas, where he was 
 reared to )'Oung manhood. He received his edu- 
 cation- in the primitive schools of Georgia and 
 Arkansas — log buildings, with slab seats and 
 puncheon floors. In 1857 he left home and went 
 to Sherman, Tex., making the trip on horseback. 
 He remained there until April of the following 
 year, when he set out for California, traveling 
 by ox-team in the Keener train, which took the 
 southern route via Las Cruces, N. Mex., to Fort 
 Yuma, Ariz., thence to Los Angeles. Mr. Byrd 
 came to Visalia, Tulare county, on the 2z|th of 
 October, 1858, and December 24 of the same 
 year went to work for wages on the ranch of 
 Francis Jordan. For two years he remained in 
 that location, when he bought one hundred and , 
 sixty acres on the Kings river bottom and en- 
 gaged in the raising of hogs. He met with suc- 
 cess and gradually accumulated land adjoining 
 and also bought in Clark's valley, in 1870, locat- 
 ing on the latter place, where he established a 
 ranch and engaged in agricultural and stock- 
 ' raising. He raised sheep for a time, but finally 
 sold out and engaged in the cattle business, rais- 
 ing high grade Herefords and Short-horns and 
 meeting with success in his efforts. He had a 
 single $20 gold piece in his possession when he 
 arrived in Visalia nearly a half century ago, 
 but since then he has accumulated a competency 
 by his own efforts, energy and ability. He 
 owns two thousand acres of land in the Kings 
 river bottom, all under fence and devoted to al- 
 falfa and grass, a fine ranch, which is given over 
 to the grazing of his cattle; and forty-six hun- 
 dred acres in Clark valley ten miles from Cen- 
 terville, all under fence and about two hundred 
 acres under cultivation. In 1896 he located in 
 Fresno, where he bought a residence on O and 
 Tulare streets, and since that time has made his 
 home in this city. 
 
 In 1870, in Kings river, Mr. Byrd was united 
 in marriage with Sarah C. Robinson, a native 
 
1458 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of Boone countv, Mo., and the daughter of John 
 and Harriet (PhilUps) Robinson, the former a 
 native of Kentucky, and of old Virginia and 
 Revolutionary stock, and the latter a native of 
 Missouri. Mr. Robinson brought his family to 
 California in the early '50s and engaged as a 
 farmer in San Joaquin county. Mrs. Byrd is 
 a niece of ex-supervisor Austin Phillips, of Fres- 
 no county. To Mr. and Mrs. Byrd were born 
 nine children, of whom eight are living: Har- 
 riett, the wife of Alonzo Stewart, of Colusa coun- 
 tv ; Nellie, the wife of Charles Doyle, of Fres- 
 no; Qiarles, engaged in a bicycle store at Fres- 
 no ; Kittie, who died at the age of fourteen years ; 
 Lucy, the wife of Lee Sim, of Westpark ; Walter, 
 Thomas, Marie and Newton, at home with their 
 parents. Mr. Byrd has always taken an active 
 interest in educational affairs in whatever com- 
 munity he has made his home, and for several 
 terms has served as school director. Fraternally 
 he was made a Mason in Fresno Lodge N.o. 247, 
 and is also associated with the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows. Politically he is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Democratic party. In 1867 Mr. Byrd 
 made a trip back to the eastern states, going and 
 returning by way of the Isthmus of Panama, en- 
 joying a visit among the scenes of his child- 
 hood. 
 
 JOHN MARSHALL EVANS. Missouri has 
 furnished California with a large percentage of 
 its prominent citizens — men who are hard work- 
 ers and in favor of improvements. Among these 
 may be named John Marshall Evans, who was 
 born in Pettis county. Mo., May 23, 1838, a son 
 of Thomas and Mrs. Susan Qark (Joplin) Evans. 
 The father was born in Washington, D. C, and 
 when a young man migrated to Missouri, where 
 he took up his residence in Cooper county. He 
 was a physician and practiced medicine in that 
 county for many years, but finally removed to 
 Pettis county, where he lived until his death. His 
 wife was born in Virginia and died at the home 
 of her son in California. Her union resulted in 
 the birth of nine children, six sons and three 
 daughters. 
 
 After completing a limited education in the 
 common schools of his native state, John M. 
 Evans took up the occupation of a farmer, which 
 he followed until 1881, when he disposed of his 
 interests in the east and came to Califotnia. Lo- 
 cating in Fresno county, he purchased his pres- 
 ent fine farm, three and three-quarters miles 
 southeast of Cone jo. Here he has for many 
 years carried on a dairy and stock business, 
 meeting with success in his business ventures. 
 
 Prior to coming to this state Mr. Evans was 
 united in marriage with Miss Bettie Gentry, and 
 
 to them have been born three children : Emma, 
 deceased; Henry, of Selma, and Wallace, in the 
 employ of Miller & Lux. Mr. and Mrs. Evans 
 have scores of friends, and by his industry their 
 declining years are surrounded by all the com- 
 forts that make old age attractive. Mr. Evans 
 has splendid business ability, and while he is 
 no longer very active, his dairy is paying a hand- 
 some profit. He has always been a Democrat, 
 but has been too busy to take an active part in 
 political matters. He prefers to spend all his 
 spare time in his home, and it would, indeed, be 
 a difficult matter to find a more happy or con- 
 tented couple than IVlr. and Mrs. Evans. 
 
 ELDER CRAIGIE SHARP was born on a 
 farm near Rosey Hill, County of Perth, Scotland, 
 in 1815, a son of Charles Sharp, also a Scotch- 
 man, and a gardener by trade. The latter re- 
 ceived a fair education, and was born and reared 
 a Presbyterian Calvinist. His mother, who was 
 naturally independent and a reformer, was also 
 a Presbyterian, but was too liberal to be a Cal- 
 vinist. Her tenderness and devotion to her son 
 Craigie seems to have been the inspiration of_ 
 his life. From his mother he inherited in a 
 great measure that fidelity to duty and consci- 
 entiousness of character that made him in after 
 life such a benediction to all those who knew 
 him. 
 
 Craigie Sharp early developed a religious ten- 
 dency, which led him to be a very zealous stu- 
 dent of the word of God, and quite a successful 
 local preacher and proselyter to the Presbyterian 
 faith. His advanced views led him, with others, 
 to reject infant baptism and follow their Mas- 
 ter down into the water, with the result that they 
 were accounted heretics by their Presbyterian 
 brethren and excluded from said church. -With 
 Mr. Sharp's devotion and zeal as a proselyter 
 this little nucleus of heretics soon grew into an 
 independent, self-supporting church, and later 
 Mr. Sharp took a charge at Coatbridge, which 
 necessitated his walking from twenty to tliirty 
 miles and preaching two sermons each Lord's 
 day. 
 
 It was at one of these services held at Coat- 
 bridge that three others, with Miss Ann Thorn, 
 a farmer's daughter, obeyed from the heart that 
 form of doctrine once delivered to the saints 
 and renounced their Methodism. The latter 
 not only renounced her Methodism, but also her 
 maiden name. Miss Thom, and ever after bore 
 that of Mrs. Craigie Sharp. For over fifty years 
 they traveled the pathway of life together hap- 
 pily. Shortly after their marriage Mr. Sharp 
 was arrested by the Rev. Mr. Murdock, a Pres- 
 byterian divine, whom he had reviewed in a ser- 
 mon on the topic "Proper Subject and Mode of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 U59 
 
 Baptism." Mr. Sharp was handcuffed and taken 
 to Hamilton jail, but upon trial was acquitted. 
 Instead of remaining and prosecuting said di- 
 vine for false imprisonment, as he was advised 
 to do, with his wife he shipped to America, a 
 country he had read about as possessing more 
 religious and political freedom than his native 
 land. 
 
 The saiHng vessel Brunswick, bound for New 
 York, had three hundred and fifty passengers 
 aboard, of whom two hundred were Irish Ro- 
 man Catholics. During their six-weeks passage 
 Mr. Sharp was asked to take charge of the medi- 
 cine chest, see that the lights were extinguished 
 at eight p. m., and also to measure out the water 
 to the passengers. By his fair dealing and oblig- 
 ing disposition he soon won the good will of all, 
 even those of opposite faith. Being a strong- 
 Abolitionist he was advised by the captain not 
 to settle in the south, but to "go west." How- 
 ever, his means giving out he settled in New 
 Jersey on a farm, working out as a farm hand 
 until he had sufficient means to remove to Illi- 
 nois. While residing in New Jersey, at Camden, 
 two children were born to them, Craigie, Jr., and 
 Anna. 
 
 When Mr. Sharp and his family landed in 
 Chicago it appeared more like a duck pond than 
 a town. All the iiouses could be canvassed in 
 a few hours, and wagons were mired in the 
 principal streets. Going on west to the Fox riv- 
 er, Mr. Sharp settled near Elgin, III, of which 
 city his brother, Peter Sharp, has been clerk for 
 over thirty years, and still makes his home there. 
 Near that town Mr. Sharp opened, up a farm, and 
 in order to make the final payment on same was 
 compelled to sell the boots off his feet. It was 
 while the family were residing near Elgin, 111., 
 that Charles Sharp was born, March 14, 1846. 
 
 Selling out his interests in that locality, Craigie 
 Sharp removed with his family to Dover, Bureau 
 county. 111., which was the birthplace of his son 
 George. He remained there for a year or two, 
 during which time he worked on a farm to sup- 
 port his family. His longest residence at any 
 one place was on North Prairie, where he took 
 up and improved a new farm, remaining on it 
 for fifteen years. Here it was that the rest of 
 his children were born, James, Robert, Bella and 
 Cecellia. 
 
 From North Prairie, near La Moille, 111., Mr. 
 Sharp removed to Minonk, 111., and opened up 
 a farm of four hundred acres, on which he built 
 a three-story house, the finest and largest in 
 that section of country, and became one of Min- 
 onk's most influential business men. Selling out 
 at Minonk, he and his family removed to Haw- 
 thorne, 111., a suburb of Qiicago, where he laid 
 out and graded a town. He witnessed the great 
 fire of 1871, and was one of the contractors who 
 
 assisted in rebuilding that city. Mr. Sharp's 
 financial career was nearly as varied as his re- 
 ligious experience. He was one of the founders 
 of Abingdon College of Abingdon, 111., and with 
 a Mr. Burt built and owned the first flouring 
 mill at Minonk. There with others, he sunk the 
 first coal shaft, and Messrs. Pierce, Clark and 
 Sharp were the first prime movers, owners and 
 builders of the Chicago, Pekin & Southwestern 
 Railroad. While residing at Hawthorne he was 
 elected and served for years as one of the trus- 
 tees of the town of Cicero, and it is needless to 
 say that many were the fights against the saloon 
 before the board, in which Mr. Sharp was the 
 principal anti-saloon champion. Thoroughly 
 loyal to his convictions, under no circumstances 
 would he betray his constituency, although at 
 one time he was offered $150,000 if he would sell 
 his interest in the Chicago, Pekin & Southwest- 
 ern Railroad to a party who declined to make 
 it a competing line. He spurned the offer and 
 died a comparatively poor man, an heir to a 
 kingdom; gold and silver could not tempt him 
 to swerve one iota from the path of duty. His 
 health failing him (lung trouble) he sold out 
 his interests near Ciiicago and removed with his 
 family to Hanford, Tulare county (now Kings), 
 Cal., and bought a raw piece of land two and a 
 quarter miles northeast from town, which he im- 
 proved and upon which he resided until his 
 death, December 14, 1893. 
 
 In Hanford, Cal., Mr. Sharp will be remem- 
 bered as the preacher, founder, and elder of the 
 first Christian Church of that city, — one whose 
 services were invaluable in building up that 
 church and uplifting the people of that city. He 
 indeed "Labored not for the meat that perisheth, 
 but fof the meat that endureth unto eternal life," 
 and has gone to his reward. He died as he had 
 often prayed to, in the harness, passing away 
 without a struggle. His widow, "Grandma 
 Sharp," as everybody called her, had not a single 
 enemy, and was ever the life and joy of her 
 household. She came of Scotch-Irish stock, a 
 woman of indomitable energy and perseverance, 
 economy and frugality. A mother in Israel, loved 
 and respected by everyone, she fell asleep in 
 Jesus and passed over the river March 21, 1900, 
 aged eighty-nine years two months and twenty- 
 four days. She became the mother oi eight chil- 
 dren, of whom Cecellia died at North Prairie, 
 near La Moifle, 111., at the age of five years; 
 James T., a young and promising lawyer at Min- 
 onk, died at the age of twenty-one years;' Anna 
 (Mrs. Welch) passed away about six months 
 after the death of her mother. The rest of 
 the children are living. Bella, the youngest of 
 the family, and the youngest graduate from' 
 Eureka College, married C. C. Van Valkenberg, 
 and is now living in Fresno, Cal.; she has one 
 
14G0 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 son, Craigie Van Valkenberg. Robert T. Sharp 
 resides eight miles north of Visalia, where he 
 conducts a dairy and chiclcen ranch; he married 
 Ida Glass, and to them were born two sons and 
 two daughters. George Sharp resides at Pasa- 
 dena, Cal., and to himself and wife have been 
 born'two sons and one daughter. Craigie Sharp, 
 the eldest child in the family, married Miss 
 Sarah Johnson, a native of Michigan, and to 
 them were born two sons and two daughters. 
 Like his father, Craigie Sharp, Jr., has always 
 manifested a great deal of public spirit. He 
 was one of the organizers and managers of the 
 Mid-Winter Fair Exposition at San Francisco, 
 also manager of two other expositions at Oal<- 
 land (where he resides), and organizer of the 
 Board of Trade of Oakland, being its secretary 
 for six years. Personally he is very frank, open 
 hearted and hospitable. 
 
 THEODORE COLLINS BRATTON. A 
 veteran of the Civil war and for many years 
 a resident of Fresno county, Mr. Bratton's life 
 history is one of great interest. In addition to 
 being a soldier and a participant in many of the 
 important battles of the war, he was a member 
 of a general court-martial and in this position 
 became associated with many of the most promi- 
 nent men of the day. Born November 3, 1838, 
 in Ripley, Brown county, Ohio, he is a son of 
 James and Sally Ann (Kendall) Bratton. His 
 father was also a native of Ohio, a son of Thomas 
 Bratton, who was born in France, and prior to 
 immigrating to this country served as an officer 
 in the French army. After coming to the United 
 States he followed farming in Ohio until his 
 death. James Bratton was a physician and prac- 
 ticed his profession in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana 
 and Illinois, his death occurring in Ohio. Mrs. 
 Bratton, who died in Missouri, was a native of 
 Brown county, Ohio, and a schoolmate of Gen- 
 eral Grant. By her marriage she became the 
 mother of four children, the youngest of whom 
 'was Theodore C. His education was limited. 
 For a time he studied medicine, but in i860 at the 
 outbreak of the Civil war, he enlisted in the 
 United States army. Company D, Sixteenth Ken- 
 tucky Infantry, being made captain. After en- 
 gaging in the battle at Ivy Mountain, his com- 
 mand was transferred to Knoxville, taking an 
 active part in the siege of that city. During 
 this time he was appointed temporarj' assistant 
 brigadier quartermaster. In 1863 his regiment 
 reenlisted, Mr. Bratton retaining the same rank 
 in the same regiment and company. Soon after 
 this he joined Sherman's army, which at the time 
 was in the vicinity of Chattanooga, and remained 
 with this famous general until 1864, when at 
 Cassville, Ga., he was wounded, being hit in the 
 
 right hip by a minie-ball. After his recovery 
 he was detailed as a member of a g:eneral court- 
 martial, with headquarters at Louisville, Ky. His 
 associates comprised many of the prominent army 
 officers, and during the time he was a member 
 of the court several very important cases were 
 tried. In February, 1865, not being able for field 
 duty, he resigned and went to Cincinnati, Ohio, 
 where he took a course in a business college, after 
 which he returned to Louisville and engaged in 
 the grocery and notion business for one year. 
 He then sold and went to Johnson county, Mo., 
 where he secured a position as a clerk in Mar- 
 shall. In 187s, thirty years ago, he came to Cal- 
 ifornia and soon after arrival located on the place 
 which has since been his home. Here he home- 
 steaded one hundred and sixty acres, his ranch 
 being two and one-half miles southwest of Selma. 
 Practically his entire time has been devoted to 
 general farming and stock-raising, although he 
 has been interested in several business venture.^, 
 being one of the organizers of the Centerville 
 and Kingsburg Irrigating Ditch Company, serv- 
 mg for two years as president, and as vice-presi- 
 dent and director for several years. 
 
 While living in Missouri Mr. Bratton married 
 Mary Jane Elmore, who was born in New York 
 city. A Democrat in political belief, he takes 
 a deep interest in the welfare of that party. He 
 is a member of the Grand- Army of the Repub- 
 lic. In Fresno county, where he has lived for 
 so many years, Mr. Bratton is highly respecteS 
 and has a large circle of friends. He has made 
 a success of life and is now able to enjoy the 
 results of his early struggles. 
 
 FRANK D. ROSENDAHL. The Kingsburg 
 Colony, Fresno county, owes much of its growth 
 and prosperity to the efforts of Frank D. Rosen- 
 dahl, one of its early settlers and promoters, 
 whose association with the real estate interests 
 of the place has given an impetus to progres- 
 sive movements. A native of Sweden, he was 
 born June 5, 1843, '^ son of Henry Rosendahl, 
 also of that country, who came to the United 
 .States in 1869 and located first in New York. 
 In Sweden he had engaged as an iron maker in 
 a rolling mill and followed the same occupation 
 after coming to America. He came to Califor- 
 nia in 1875 and made his home with his son 
 until his death, which occurred in 1890. His wife, 
 formerly Elizabeth Erickson, was born and also 
 died in Sweden. They were the parents of two 
 sons and three daughters, of whom Frank D. 
 was the eldest. 
 
 Frank D. Rosendahl received his education in 
 the common schools and in a college of Sweden, 
 after which he studied landscape gardening and 
 surveying in Rosendal College. In 1868 he was 
 

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 14C1 
 
 engaged to lay out the city park at Umeo, Swe- 
 den, and in the same year he came to New York 
 City, and was employed in Central Park, where 
 he rem.ained seven years as a division gardener. 
 In 187s he came to San Francisco as gardener 
 in Golden Gate Park, which was then being laid 
 out, and a year later engaged in the nursery 
 business in Oakland. In 1878 he came to Fres- 
 no county and engaged in fruit raising in Wash- 
 ington Colony, later trading his ranch for one 
 hundred and forty acres in Kingsburg Colony, 
 where he followed the nursery business until 
 1900; when his son, Henry Rosendahl, assumed 
 charge of the work. In the meantime he en- 
 gaged in the real estate business from 1885, han- 
 dling all kinds of property, and giving his best 
 efforts to the colonization of Kingsburg. He is 
 helc' in the highest esteem by all who know him 
 and appreciated for the qualities which have 
 distinguished his character. 
 
 In Sweden Mr. Rosendahl was united in mar- 
 riage with Hannah Elizabeth Wickman, a na- 
 tive of that country, and they are the parents 
 of the following children : Frank T., a rancher 
 in the vicinity of Bakersfield; Henry, a nursery- 
 man of Turlock; Fannie and Edith, both teach- 
 ers of Fresno ; and Plorence, of San Jose, Cal. 
 Fi-aternally Mr. Rosendahl is a member of the 
 Independent Order of Foresters, being active 
 in the lodge of Kingsburg, and politically is ac- 
 tive in the counsels of the Republican party. 
 
 JOSEPH WILLIAM REESE. The Reese 
 family, represented in Fresno county by Joseph 
 W. Reese, a pioneer settler of this community, is 
 of southern ancestry. An early pioneer, James 
 Reese, a native of Wales, came to America and 
 settled in the part of North Carolina which was 
 afterward made the state of Tennessee. He be- 
 came prominent, as did also his 'two sons, Joseph 
 Brown Mackey and William B., the former suc- 
 cessful as a physician and the latter as a lawyer 
 and judge of the Supreme Court of Tennessee. 
 Dr. Reese, a native of Jefferson county, Tenn., 
 graduated from the Jefferson Medical College of 
 Philadelphia, Pa., and engaged in the practice of 
 his profession while he also resided on a farm in 
 his native locality. He married Sophia Emerson, 
 a native of Tennessee, and the daughter of 
 Thomas Emerson, of Virginia, a pioneer attorney 
 of Jonesboro and judge of the Supreme Court of 
 Tennessee, and the first mayor of Knoxville. 
 Mrs. Reese died in Tennessee, leaving a family 
 of seven children, of whom only three are now 
 living, one son, O. B. Reese, being located in 
 Brownsville, Ore., where he is practicing medi- 
 cine. 
 
 The fourth child in his father's family, Joseph 
 William Reese, was born near Knoxville, Tenn., 
 
 February 4, 1834, and was reared to young man- 
 hood on the old plantation thirty miles from 
 that city. In childhood he attended a private 
 school, and later entered East Tennessee Uni- 
 versity at Knoxville, where he remained two 
 years. He then became a student in Emery and 
 Henry College, Washington county, W. \'a., 
 which place he left to come to California in 1854. 
 He went to Dallas, Tex., where he outfitted with 
 ox-teams, leaving April i and -arriving Octo- 
 ber I. The train with which he traveled went 
 north across the mountains to Fort Bridger, over 
 the Fremont trail, via Salt Lake, Humboldt river, 
 Honey Lake, to Shasta county, Cal. Following 
 his arrival in the state, Mr. Reese engaged in 
 mining in Eldorado county during the summer of 
 1855, when he went south to Los Angeles and 
 met a brother who had come through the Tejon 
 Pass to Los Angeles county. He spent some 
 time there, when he went to Mariposa county 
 and again engaged in mining until i860. Decid- 
 ing to return east he made the trip via the 
 Isthmus of Panama, landing at New York City, 
 and going thence to Tennessee. At the first tap 
 of the drum he enlisted in the Third Tennessee 
 Regiment, Confederate Volunteers, a member of 
 Company A, serving first as sergeant, later as 
 first lieutenant, and finally becoming captain of 
 the company. He took part in the first battle of 
 Bull Run, and was later transferred to Tennes- 
 see, where he served under General Bragg in the 
 Kentucky raid and was also in the sieg^ of 
 Vicksburg. After the fall of that place he was 
 paroled and was later exchanged. Not being 
 notified while in East Tennessee he was captured 
 and sent to Johnson Island, where he remained 
 a prisoner for eighteen months, or until the end 
 of the war. In 1865 he returned home, and 
 until 1874 remained in Tennessee, engaged in 
 trading, and various occupations as a means of 
 livelihood. Once more locating in California he 
 followed a mercantile enterprise in Fresno, con- 
 ducting it successfully for several years, and in 
 the meantime improved a vineyard and orchard 
 a mile and a half east of this city. Finally locat- 
 ing on this property he engaged in horticultural 
 pursuits, owning sixty-five acres, of the original 
 ninety acres embodied in the ranch, twenty acres 
 being in Emperor grapes and forty-five acres in 
 Muscats and deciduous fruits. After the burn- 
 ing of his residence on the ranch they removed 
 tO' Fresno, where they have since resided. 
 
 Mr. Reese has been married twice, his first 
 wife being Augusta Pryde, with whom he was 
 united in marriage in Tennessee. She died in 
 California, leaving three children, namely : Her- 
 bert, on the home ranch; Minnie, the wife of 
 Thomas Patterson, of San Francisco; and 
 Sophia, the wife of John Ash, of Mississippi. 
 On May 17, 1893, Mr. Reese was united in mar- 
 
1462 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 riage with Mrs. Martha J. (Patterson) Darwin, 
 a native of Newton county, Ga. Her father, 
 Thomas Patterson, was a native of Virginia, 
 from which state he enhsted for service in the 
 war of 1812. He became a teacher and sur- 
 veyor in Newton county, Ga., and later in Chero- 
 kee county, Ala., his death occurring at Cedar 
 Bluff. His wife, formerly Nancy Hendry, was 
 a native of Georgia, and the daughter of Thomas 
 Hendry, a physician of Georgia, in which state 
 he was born and died. Mrs. Patterson died in 
 Georgia, leaving a family of ten children, of 
 whom seven attained maturity, and two are now 
 living, Mrs. Millie Hill of Fresno and Mrs. 
 Reese. John A. Patterson came to^ California in 
 1849, crossing the plains, and became a pioneer 
 of Visalia, Tulare county, where he was an ex- 
 tensive farmer until his death. Another son, 
 Elisha Patterson, came to California and died in 
 Fresno. Mrs. Reese was the youngest of the 
 family, and was reared in Georgia, receiving her 
 education in the private schools of that state. In 
 the spring of 1867, with her brother Elisha, she 
 came to California via the Isthmus of Panama, 
 taking passage on the Golden Gate, to San Fran- 
 cisco, whence they came to Visalia. She was 
 first married November 28, 1867, to Andrew 
 Mitchell Darwin, of whom a biographical sketch 
 is given elsewhere in this volume. They had 
 one daughter, Addie Cole, who died at the age 
 of two and a half years. They adopted a daugh- 
 ter, Georgia, who became the wife of William H. 
 Bryan, of Fresno. Mrs. Reese is now the owner 
 of six thousand acres on the Kings river and 
 Dry creek, consisting of grain farm and range 
 lands, where the cattle business is extensively 
 carried on, the property being rented. She also 
 owns an orange and lemon orchard of twenty 
 acres at Centerville, Fresno county. She is a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South and belongs to the Order of the Eastern 
 Star. Mr. Reese is a Democrat in his political 
 convictions. 
 
 ABRAHAM J. WELDON. While the Unit- 
 ed States still held rank as one of England's 
 colonial possessions the Weldon family came to 
 this country from Europe and became identified 
 with plantation life in Old Virginia. When the 
 struggle began with the mother country one of 
 the name bore arms in defense of liberty and in- 
 dependence, and y«ars later, when a second strug- 
 gle took place with England, J. B. Weldon, a 
 son of the Revolutionary soldier, offered his 
 services to the United States, and served with 
 a valor characteristic of the family. Somewhat 
 later, when the tide of emigration began to drift 
 westward be3'ond the mountains, he left Virginia 
 for Kentucky, and settled on a raw tract of land 
 
 out of which he cultivated a fine farm. Next 
 in line of descent was Abraham B. Weldon, a 
 native of Kentucky, but in early life a settler 
 of Boone county, Mo., where he entered a tract 
 of land, energetically pursued the calling of agri- 
 culturist, and remained at the same place until 
 eighty-eight years of age, when he passed from 
 time to eternity. Many years before this he 
 had lost his wife, Polly Carpenter, who was born 
 in Kentucky and died in Missouri while her 
 children were still young. In the family were 
 four sons and six daughters, Abraham J. being 
 the third in order of birth. A native of Boone 
 county, Mo., born June 12, 1839, he experi- 
 enced his first heavy loss in the death of his 
 mother. The need of his help on the farm ren- 
 dered attendance at school impracticable, except 
 for a few weeks of the year, but in spite of lack 
 of opportunities he has gained a broad fund of 
 information on matters of current or historic im- 
 portance. 
 
 At the opening of the Civil war Abraham J. 
 Weldon enlisted in Company I of Qark's Infan- 
 try, C. S. A., but later was transferred to Shel- 
 by's Cavalry in the Trans-Mississippi army, and 
 with his regiment participated in many bitterly 
 contested battles with the northern troops. When 
 the war ended and the Confederate cause was 
 abandoned as lost, he laid down his arms and re- 
 turned to his home. In 1866 he settled in Texas 
 and for a time engaged in carpentering in Collins 
 county, but during 1870 became interested in 
 the cotton-gin business in Denton county, same 
 state. Three years later he bought a ranch in 
 Texas and for years made stock-raising his prin- 
 cipal industry. The year 1887 found him a resi- 
 dent of California. During his first two years 
 in the state he followed the trade of a carpen- 
 ter and builder in Fresno, but later became in- 
 terested in wheat farm.ing at Redbanks. To a 
 tract of thirty acres, previously purchased, he 
 moved in 1896, and here he has since engaged 
 in fruit culture, having the land in a vineyard 
 and orchard. The farm lies three and one-half 
 miles northeast of Sanger in Centerville dis- 
 trict and under his close and intensive system 
 of cultivation has been brought to a condition 
 far in advance of former years. > 
 
 While living in Texas Mr. Weldon was mar- 
 ried in Denton county, in 1868, to Miss Mattie 
 L. Lindsay, a native of Alabama. They are 
 the parents of six sons and two. daughters, name- 
 ly : L. E., a carpenter and builder at Qovis, 
 Fresno county; R. W., now living in Burr val- 
 ley ; Roy C, also in Burr valley ; James B., a min- 
 ister in the Christian Church and now instructor 
 of classics at Christian University, Canton, Mo.; 
 W. B., of Burr valley; L. O., who is a student 
 in a college at Louisville, Ky. ; Mary E., wife of 
 John Thompson, whose home adjoins the Wei- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1463 
 
 don property ; and Fannie I., at home. The fam- 
 ily- are identified with the Christian Church at 
 Centerville and ever have been zealous in the 
 promotion of the religious life of their commun- 
 ity. Fraternally Mr. Weldon holds membership 
 with Sanger Lodge No. 316, F. & A. M. In 
 political matters he always supports Democratic 
 men and measures and has kept thoroughly post- 
 ed concerning problems affecting the prosperity 
 of state and nation. During a long period of 
 service as school director he had the welfare of 
 the school of his district constantly upon his 
 mind. Any project calculated to give to the 
 pupils better advantages and more carefully pre- 
 pare them for life's responsibilities received his 
 stanch support, and it was his ambition always 
 to select teachers with such caution and care 
 that the best interests of the pupils might be 
 conserved. 
 
 WESTWOOD JAMES BAKER, owner of 
 Tahlequah, on Ventura avenue, four miles east 
 of Fresno, was born in Courtland, Ala., Feb- 
 ruary 25, 1849, a son of Joseph Baker, of Eng- 
 lish descent and a native of Wiscasset, Me. The 
 latter was an attorney in Courtland and served 
 as district attorney for several years. Fraternally 
 he was a Knight Templar Mason. He died in 
 1880. His wife, A. A. James, was born in 
 Alabama, a daughter of Westwood Wallace 
 James, who was born in old Virginia, a direct 
 descendant of Sir William Wallace, of Scotland. 
 He was a planter in Alabama. Mrs. Baker re- 
 sides at the old place. W. J. Baker had two 
 uncles, Edward C. and Westwood James, who 
 were prominent physicians in Alabama and were 
 surgeons in the Confederate army. 
 
 After receiving his preliminary education, W. 
 J. Baker began the study of medicine with his 
 uncles, then entered the University of Pennsyl- 
 vania, medical department, from which he was 
 graduated in 1873 and at once engaged in prac- 
 tice in Courtland, Ala. In 1876 he located in 
 Greenback, Ark., where he purchased a large 
 plantation of two thousand acres on the Arkansas 
 river. He superintended tlie work of the cotton 
 plantation and practiced his profession until 1889, 
 when he retired from practice and located in 
 Fresno, Cal. He purchased his present place of 
 one hundred acres, which he improved, and now 
 has a valuable vineyard and orchard, a com- 
 fortable residence and well appointed grounds, 
 his driveway being bordered with palms and um- 
 brella trees. Dr. Baker still owns large inter- 
 ests in Arkansas. Mrs. Baker, formerly Alice 
 Gary Cooke, was born at Riverside, the country 
 place of her father. Dr. Stephen Cooke, thirty 
 miles from Louisville, Kv. Dr. Cooke graduated 
 from Louisville Medical College, practicing in 
 
 Kentucky, and later in Arkansas. His father, 
 Dr. John Esten Cooke, a native of Virginia, was 
 professor in the Louisville Medical College and 
 built the country place Riverside. He married 
 Miss Sallie Newsom Cary of Virginia, whose 
 ancestry dates to heroes in the Revolutionary 
 war. Mrs. Baker is a cousin of John Esten 
 Cooke, the author. The Estens are of English 
 descent, and one of the forefathers was governor 
 of the Bermudas. By a former marriage Dr. 
 Baker has one son, Joseph Westwood Baker. 
 Mrs. Baker is a member of the Episcopal Church. 
 The doctor has taken an active part in politics, 
 having served as chairman of the Democratic 
 county central committee. He was made a Ma- 
 son in Courtland, Ala., and now belongs to Fres- 
 no Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M., was raised to 
 the Royal Arch Chapter in Courtland and is now 
 a member of Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. M. At 
 Pine Bluff, Ark., he joined the Knights Templar, 
 and now holds membership with Fixsno Com- 
 mandery No. 29, K. T. He is also a memb'er 
 of Fresno Lodge of Perfection and Islam Temple, 
 A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Francisco. In the 
 line of his profession he is a member of the 
 San Joaquin Valley Medical Association. 
 
 Since becoming a resident of Fresno county 
 Dr. Baker has closely allied himself with all 
 movements that have had for their object the 
 advancement of the social, moral and commer- 
 cial prestige of the county, and among the peo- 
 ple who have come in contact with him in any 
 capacity, all unite in according him a permanent 
 position among representative citizens of the San 
 Joaquin valley. 
 
 ROBERT C. THOM. During the long pe- 
 riod of his residence in Fresno county, covering 
 thirty years or more, Mr. Thorn has been suc- 
 cessful in the accumulation of landed estate. At 
 this writing he is the owner of eight hundred 
 and forty acres six and one-half miles northeast 
 of Centerville, seven hundred acres also in the 
 vicinity of Centerville, three town lots in San- 
 ger, one hundred and sixty acres in Squaw val- 
 ley, and one-half interest in thirty-two hundred 
 acres of mountain ranch land. The ownership of 
 these large tracts renders possible the pasturing 
 of large herds of stock, and now he has one- 
 half interest in five hundred head of cattle, in 
 addition to other stock. While the raising of 
 cattle is his principal business, he likewise gives 
 attention to general farm pursuits and on his 
 tillable land raises crops of such products as are 
 adapted to the soil. 
 
 In Jefferson county, Ind., Robert C. Thom was 
 born December 2, 1830, being a son of Alexander 
 C. and Elizabeth (Taylor) Thorn, natives re- 
 spectively of Pennsylvania and Maryland, and 
 
1464 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 from 1818 until death residents of Indiana, where 
 the father cultivated a farm and followed also 
 the blacksmith's trade. The paternal grandfath- 
 er, Joseph Thom, was born in county Donegal in 
 the north of Ireland, whence he came to America 
 shortly before the outbreak of the first war with 
 England. In that historic struggle he bore arms 
 for his adopted country and later engaged in 
 farming in Westmoreland county. Pa., but even- 
 tually joined his son in Indiana, where his clos- 
 ing days were passed. In a family of six sons 
 and four daughters Robert C. Thom was fourth 
 in order of birth. After having gained a com- 
 mon school education he began to teach, which 
 occupation he followed in Indiana, Kentucky 
 and Illinois. 
 
 When gold was discovered in Pike's Peak in 
 i8S9' ]^''- Thom started for the mines of Colo- 
 rado in company with two companions, but he 
 was deterred from carrying out his original pur- 
 pose through meetirig disappointed gold-seekers 
 returning east. After considering the matter he 
 decided to push through to the coast and ac- 
 cordingly proceeded with ox-teams across plains, 
 rivers and mountains, in due time arriving in 
 Mariposa county. For a number of years he 
 remained in that section and followed mining 
 and saw-milling, but in 1875 he became a resi- 
 dent of Fresno county, where he now owns a 
 homestead thirteen miles east of Sanger. He 
 has never married, but keeps bachelor's hall on 
 his ranch. Political matters engage his atten- 
 tion to a certain degree and he keeps posted 
 concerning national problems, but aside from 
 voting a straight Republican ticket at all na- 
 tional elections he takes no part whatever in local 
 politics. 
 
 ARTHUR C. BLAYNEY. Although a young 
 man, Mr. Blayney has already become well es- 
 tablished in Fresno county as one of the repre- 
 sentative agriculturists and vineyardists. A na- 
 tive of Kansas he was born in Douglas county, 
 July 5, 1869. His father, Charles O. Blayney, 
 was born in Pennsylvania, and shortly before the 
 breaking out of the Civil war located in Kansas 
 where he engaged in general farming. Remain- 
 ing there until 1875, he then sold out and came 
 to California. The first two years of his resi- 
 dence in this state were spent near Visalia, where 
 he followed farming. At the expiration 'of that 
 period he moved to San Luis Obispo county, 
 where he also carried on agricultural pursuits. 
 Subsequently he went to Napa county and in 
 1882 located in Fresno county, near Fowler, 
 where he was living at the time of his death 
 m^ 1902, at the age of fifty-eight years. His 
 wife bore the maiden name of Alice Stone and 
 was a native of Wisconsin. She died in 1892. 
 
 In their family were eight children, three sons 
 and five daughters. 
 
 Arthur C. Blayney was the eldest child, and 
 after completing his education he engaged in 
 farming near Fowler. In 1891 he located on 
 the ranch which he occupies at present, and 
 which he leases, consisting of three hundred and 
 twenty acres. Here he is now carrying on an 
 extensive horticultural and grain business, meet- 
 ing with success in his ventures. He also raises 
 considerable stock and conducts a small dairy. 
 
 In 1891, in the city of Stockton, Mr. Blay- 
 ney was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
 Cower, who is a native daughter of California, 
 her birth having occurred in San Joaquin coun- 
 ty. This union has resulted in the birth of 
 two children : Lillian Alice and Charles Ober- 
 lin, both of whom are living at home. Both Mr. 
 and Mrs. Blayney are m.embers of the Presby- 
 terian Church of Fowler and take an active in- 
 terest in church work, and both are members of 
 the Fraternal Brotherhood. In political views 
 Mr. Blayney is a Socialist, believing the prin- 
 ciples underlying the organization are correct 
 and that sooner or later the country will be gov- 
 erned by this party. 
 
 SIDNEY F. HADSELL. A well-known edu- 
 cator and business man of Fresno county, Sidney 
 F. Hadsell is a worthy representative, born in 
 Calhoun county, Mich., July 13, 1843, a son of 
 Martin and Susan (Forward) Hadsell. The 
 former, a native of Connecticut, went to New 
 York, thence to Ohio, and finally, in 1837, lo- 
 cated in Michigan near Battle Creek, where he 
 died. His wife was a native of Ohio and also 
 died at their home in Michigan. 
 
 The youngest of three sons and four daugh- 
 ters, S. F. Hadsell received his early education 
 in the common schools and later at Hopkinton 
 College in Iowa. He engaged in teaching in 
 Michigan and in 1868 located in Independence, 
 Iowa, where he continued his chosen vocation 
 and also took the college course, teaching at 
 various places until 1875, when he came to Cali- 
 fornia and located at Santa Rosa. 
 
 In 1876 Mr. Hadsell came to Fresno county 
 and secured a position as teacher. He taught the 
 first school in Madera in 1877, the school con- 
 sisting of but one room. When Madera county 
 was organized he remained in that city until go- 
 ing to Mariposa county, from there returning to 
 Fresno county. In 1888 he engaged in the real 
 estate business, at the same time carrying on a 
 ranch. In Fresno he was associated with the 
 well-known firm of Hadsell, Green & Co., real 
 estate dealers, for three years, 1888, '89, '90. He 
 now owns a ranch of one hundred and twenty 
 acres purchased in 1889, in the Carmelita district, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1465 
 
 fifty acres of which are in vineyard, fourteen in 
 orchard and the balance in alfalfa and grain. 
 This farm he rents. 
 
 In 1876 Mr. Hadsell was united in marriage 
 in San Francisco with Thesta Dana, who was 
 born in Independence, Iowa. They have three 
 children: Dan, attending the State University,, 
 Grovine and Edith. In politics he is a Demo- 
 crat and has been active in the deliberations of 
 that party, though never an aspirant for office. 
 In local issues he is always in favor of men 
 best fitted for the office, and is a member of the 
 county central committee. The cause of educa- 
 tion has always found in Mr. Hadsell a warm 
 adherent and he rendered valuable service as 
 a member of the Fresno board of education. In 
 1885 he platted Hadsell's addition of Fresno, a 
 tract of twenty-five acres, which was sold off in 
 city lots. He makes his home at No. 201 Valeria 
 street. Thesta street in this addition is named 
 in honor of Mrs. Hadsell. In 1888 he platted 
 Elm Grove addition, which was also sold off. At 
 the time of locating in the San Joaquin valley 
 Fresno county was little more than a desert and 
 the change that the years have brought forth 
 has been through the perseverance of such men 
 as Mr. Hadsell. Both Mr. and Mrs. Hadsell have 
 a wide circle of acquaintances and in all move- 
 ments that have been advanced for the promo- 
 tion of the welfare of the citizens of their adopt- 
 ed county have taken an active interest. By 
 their united efforts they have accumulated a 
 competence which they are now living to enjoy. 
 
 JOHN GREENUP SIMPSON. Significant 
 of the advantages offered by Fresno county is 
 the success achieved both by the pioneers and 
 by their sons, the latter of whom, following in 
 the footsteps and reaping the benefit of the 
 labors of their predecessors, now enjoy comforts ■ 
 undreamed of at an earlier period of the coun- 
 ty's history. A gratifying degree of material 
 prosperity attended the efforts of the first John 
 G. Simpson and the second bearer of the name 
 no less is worthy of praiseworthy mention in 
 recognition of his intelligent and well-directed 
 activities in the domain of agriculture. Honor- 
 ably ambitious to secure independence, neverthe- 
 less in his enterprises for the advancement of 
 his personal affairs he has lost sight of no duty 
 as a citizen, but ever has shown a public spirit 
 and high ideal of citizenship characteristic of 
 
 the family. 
 
 A lifelong resident of Fresno county, John 
 Greenup Simpson was born at Academy April 
 25, 1872, and received a fair education in his 
 native town. The first event of special note in 
 his life was his independent establishment as a 
 farmer, which dates from 1893. During that 
 
 year he settled near Academy on a tract of 
 eight hundred and twenty acres, lying on sec- 
 tions 9, 10, 16, 12 and 22. This property still 
 continues to be his home and the scene of his 
 activities. The raising of grain and of stock 
 are his specialties, and on his ranch may be 
 found a fine grade of Shorthorns and Herefords, 
 each bearing the brand which he has adopted 
 for his own use in the marking of his stock. 
 As a stockman he shows keen discrimination in 
 the selection of stock and wise judgment in their 
 breeding, and already he has established a repu- 
 tation m his chosen line of occupation. 
 
 It is worthy of note that Mr. Simpson's wife, 
 like himself, is a native of this locality, having 
 been born near Academy and here reared to 
 womanhood. She was Miss Laura Bacon, 
 youngest child of Thomas E. Bacon, now a resi- 
 dent of Fresno. The children of the union are 
 named Mark Story, John Lawrence and Mil- 
 dred. No trace of partisan spirit has been no- 
 ticeable in Mr. Simpson's character, yet he is a 
 stanch Democrat, a pronounced supporter of 
 party measures, and has rendered efficient serv- 
 ice as a member of the county central commit- 
 tee. A thorough believer in the free-school sys- 
 tem, his sympathy with educational movements 
 led him to accept the position as school trustee 
 in the Dry Creek district and also he has been 
 helpful to the work through his service as clerk 
 of the board of trustees. The Fraternal Brother- 
 hood at Clovis numbers him among its members 
 and his fraternity relations are further enlarged 
 through his association with Manzanita Camp 
 No. i6c, W. O. W., at Fresno. To round out 
 a character of more than ordinary worth, the 
 influence of religion is added. In the work of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church South Mr. 
 Simpson has given liberally of time, means and 
 influence. His willingness to be of service led 
 him to accept the offices of recording steward 
 and clerk of the board of trustees, in which ca- 
 pacities he has proved most helpful to the con- 
 gregation. Other plans along lines morally or 
 educationally helpful find in him a stanch ally, 
 ready to give all the assistance in his power for 
 their upbuilding and success. 
 
 GEORGE D. FULLERTON. A native of 
 Monroe county, Ind., George D. Fullerton was 
 born October 5, 1844, a son of John and Mary 
 D. (Roberts) Fullerton. The father was born 
 in the state of Tennessee and removed to Indiana 
 at a very early day, being a pioneer farmer of 
 that state. Locating near Bloomington he car- 
 ried on a successful agricultural business for sev- 
 eral years, but finally settled in Monroe county, 
 Iowa, where he died at an advanced age. His 
 wife was a native of Kentucky and by her mar- 
 
1466 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 riage became the mother of six children,- all sons, 
 of whom George D. was the fourth. He re- 
 mained at home and obtained a limited educa- 
 tion in the public schools. On starting out to 
 make his own way in the world he engaged m 
 farming in Ringgold county, Iowa, where he 
 lived until 1887, the year of his removal to Cah- 
 fornia. Locating near Easton he there_ followed 
 his former occupation of farming until his re- 
 moval to his present ranch near Fowler. His 
 first purchase of land here consisted of twenty 
 acres, but since then he has added to his pos- 
 sessions until he now owns forty acres of as 
 fine land as can be found in the county. In 
 addition to this ranch he homesteaded one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres near Firebaugh. Mr. Ful- 
 lerton is a veteran of the Civil war, enHsting in 
 1863 in the Third Iowa Battery, and serving un- 
 til the close of the war. His battery was as- 
 signed to the Seventh Army Corps and saw 
 considerable active service. He also had two 
 brothers in the army, both of whom were killed. 
 While still living in Iowa, Mr. Fullerton was 
 united in marriage with Miss Martha Magaw, 
 a native of Ohio. She has given birth to six 
 children, namely: A daughter who died in in- 
 fancy; Carl C. ; John; Inez, now Mrs. C. B. 
 Scott ; Bert and Dwight. All the children live in 
 Fresno county. In politics Mr. Fullerton sup- 
 ports the principles of the Republican party and 
 cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln. He has 
 always been very active, and whenever called 
 upon to give of his time or means in the support 
 of any movement for the betterment of the state 
 or county, he has responded willingly. Both 
 he and his wife are deservedly popular, and have 
 " a large circle of friends in this part of the val- 
 ley where they are so well known. 
 
 ents of three sons and five daughters, of whom 
 John K. was the eldest son and the third child 
 in order of birth. 
 
 John K. Kennedy received a limited educa- 
 tion in the common schools of Iowa, where he 
 grew to manhood and engaged in farming until 
 1885. In that year he came to California and 
 in December located on his present place, con- 
 sisting of two hundred and eighty acres, three 
 and a half miles southwest of Fowler, Fresno 
 county. He first followed the cultivation of 
 wheat, but has since devoted a large part of the 
 land to fruit, putting in forty-eight acres of vine- 
 yard and eighteen acres of orchard. Sixty acres 
 is devoted to alfalfa and the balance to wheat and 
 pasture. 
 
 Near Des Moines, Iowa, Mr. Kennedy was 
 united in marriage with Lydia Hastie, a native 
 of that vicinity, and they became the parents of 
 three children, namely: J. Herman, an under- 
 taker of Fresno; Charles Edward and Clyda 
 Elizabeth, both at home. Mr. Kennedy is a 
 member of the United Presbyterian Church of 
 Fowler, and politically is a Republican. 
 
 JOHN K. KENNEDY. An early settler and 
 a pioneer who has endured the hardships and 
 privations incident to the founding of a state- 
 hood, John K. Kennedy is living in the enjoy- 
 ment of the prosperity which has followed his 
 efforts. He was born in Logan county, Ohio, 
 April 21, 1853, a son of William Kennedy, who 
 came from his native land, Ireland, to the United 
 States in 1850. He located for one year in 
 Philadelphia, Pa., where he followed his trade 
 of weaver, and in 1851 removed to Logan coun- 
 ty, Ohio, in the vicinity of Bellefontaine. There 
 he engaged as a railway contractor until 1856, 
 in which year he settled in Madison county, Iowa, 
 and followed farming for twenty-one years. He 
 came to California in 1887 and located on a 
 farm adjoining that of his son, in Fresno county, 
 where his death occurred in 1891. His wife, 
 formerly Nancy Brazill, a native of Ireland, 
 died in California in 1896. They were the par- 
 
 JOSHUA BENTON CRAVEN. Few of the 
 men now living in the Kings river region have 
 been identified with the locality for a longer pe- 
 riod than Mr. Craven claims as the duration of 
 his citizenship in this part of Fresno county, and 
 doubtless no one has been more assiduous than 
 he 111 endeavoring to place the live-stock business 
 upon a permanently substantial basis. The labors 
 of years have found tangible evidence in the ac- 
 cumulation of property, which is of sufficient ex- 
 tent to place him among the large land-owners 
 of Clark's valley. On taking up his present place, 
 twelve miles east of Sanger, in 1870 he acquired 
 the title to one hundred and sixty acres, but 
 by addition this has been increased to four hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, in one body, in the home- 
 stead. He also owns a mountain ranch bf ten 
 hundred and forty acres and two hundred and 
 sixty acres of grazing land just back of the home 
 place, the whole forming ample facilities for the 
 pasturage of his stock, numbering two hundred 
 head of cattle and one hundred and fifty head of 
 hogs. 
 
 In Ray county. Mo., Joshua Benton Craven 
 was born, December 26, 1839, being a son of 
 Solomon and Sarah J. (Kincaid) Craven, na- 
 tives of Tennessee. As early as 1828 his father 
 became a farmer in Missouri, where he improved 
 a tract of land in Ray county. Many years later, 
 following the tide of emigration westward, in 
 1865 he crossed the plains to Oregon and settled 
 in Polk county, ■ where he took up a tract of 
 farm land and remained until death. In that 
 same county also occurred the death of his wife 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1467 
 
 They were the parents of nine sons and five 
 daughters, of whom the subject of this narra- 
 tive was fifth in order of birth. Little of special 
 iTioment occurred to mark the years of his early 
 youth, which were spent in the schoolroom dur- 
 ing the winter months and in the field at work 
 during the summer. When he was twenty years 
 of age the longing to see more of the world led 
 him to join a party bound for Pike's Peak. How- 
 ever, the boom had burst before he reached the 
 mines, and thereupon he pursued his way to the 
 coast. During his first winter in California he 
 worked for Mr. Potter, on Kings river, then 
 secured employment with William Hazelton. In 
 1867 he made a start for himself by embarking 
 in the cattle business and three years later came 
 to the ranch he still owns and occupies. 
 
 For many years Mr. Craven has filled the office 
 of school director and his work in that position 
 has been helpful to the welfare of the school, 
 whose interests he has labored to promote by 
 every means within his power. Active in the lo- 
 cal work of the Democratic party, in no capacity 
 has his political service been more helpful than 
 as a member of the county central committee, 
 a responsible position that has been filled ably 
 by him for twenty or more years. After coming 
 to California he married in Kings county. Miss 
 Virginia A. Robinson, who was born in Boone 
 county, Mo. They became the parents of eleven 
 children, seven of whom are living, namely : 
 Sallie, who -married W. D. Mitchell, of Sanger, 
 this state; Nellie, Wesley, Chesley, Jennie, Kittie 
 and Laura, who are with their parents on the 
 home farm. 
 
 JAMES GORDON FERGUSON was the 
 first settler of the now thriving town of Clovis. 
 Coming here with the Fresno Flume and Irri- 
 gation Company in 1894, he found nothing but 
 vacant fields, and where now stands a town of 
 fifteen hundred people there was not a single 
 house. Soon after his arrival he erected a resi- 
 dence, which was the first one built here. Thus 
 it was that a native of old England became the 
 pioneer of one of the thriving towns in the San 
 Joaquin valley. At an early age he started out 
 in life by ehtering one of the greatest financial 
 institutions in the world, the Bank of Liverpool. 
 Subsequently he lived in Australia and for several 
 years has been prominently identified with the 
 lumber industry of our own state. 
 
 Born in England, James Gordon Ferguson first 
 saw the light of day in the city of Liverpool, -on 
 May 31, i86r. His father, Capt. James Fergu- 
 son, was a native of Scotland and as a boy went 
 to sea. As time passed he was promoted from 
 one position to another until finally he was made 
 captain of one of the large vessels owned by the 
 
 famous Cunard line. Practically his entire life 
 was spent as a sailor in the trans-Atlantic trade. 
 His death occurred in Liverpool. In young 
 manhood he was united in marriage with Helen 
 Kerr Fead, also a native of Scotland, and who is 
 also deceased. 
 
 The early life of Mr. Ferguson was spent in 
 the city of his birth. His common school educa- 
 tion was supplemented by a course in the Liver- 
 pool College, from which institution he was grad- 
 uated in 1876. Soon after he secured a position 
 in the counting room of the Bank of Liverpool. 
 By industry and a strict attention to his duties 
 he was finally promoted, and in 1883 when he 
 resigned he was one of the tellers, a very re- 
 sponsible position. Following his resignation, 
 Mr. Ferguson immigrated to Australia, where he 
 engaged in the shipping and forwarding business, 
 being located in the city of Sydney. While liv- 
 ing there he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Ada Florence Bond, a native of the same city, 
 whose father, Thomas Bond, was born in Eng- 
 land. ' After his emigration to Australia he en- 
 tered the mines, which occupation he followed 
 for several years, or until his death. 
 
 Soon after his marriage, Mr. Ferguson dis- 
 posed of his interests in Australia and with his 
 bride came to California, arriving in San Fran- 
 cisco July 8, 1886. His first position was with 
 Harpst & Spring, prominent lumber dealers in 
 Humboldt county. Not long after he was offered 
 a position in San Diego as head bookkeeper with 
 the Russ Lumber Company, which he accepted. 
 There he remained until 1889, when he returned 
 to San Francisco and entered the employ of 
 Pope & Talbot as cashier and office manager. 
 Three years later he resigned to accept a posi- 
 tion in Fresno with the San Joaquin Lumber 
 Company, with whom he continued as head book- 
 keeper and cashier until the organization of the 
 Fresno Flume and Irrigation Company. This 
 was the position that brought him to Clovis, and 
 since then he has continued in their employ, be- 
 ing head bookkeeper and cashier. 
 
 In addition to his regular duties Mr. Ferguson 
 has taken an active part in political matters and 
 was postmaster of Clovis for two terms. He 
 has also served as a member of the board of 
 school trustees since its organization and was 
 responsible for the erection of the first grammar 
 school building. As a member of the county 
 central committee he is influential in county pol- 
 itics, being considered one of the leading repre- 
 sentatives of his party. Quite prominent in fra- 
 ternal circles, he is a member of the Elks, the 
 Woodmen of the World, the Fraternal Brother- 
 hood, the Ancient Order United Workmen and 
 the St. Andrew's Society. Mr. Ferguson has 
 made a splendid success of his life. Obstacles 
 have been met and overcome with a determina- 
 
1468 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tion that would withstand no opposition He has 
 not only made for himself a comfortable com- 
 petence, but has gained a position m the world 
 of which he may well feel proud. It is a pleas- 
 ure for us to present our readers with the review 
 of such men's lives, as there is much written here 
 that is worthy of emulation. 
 
 JACOB WISE BROWNE is one of the oldest 
 settlers of the San Joaquin valley. Since the 
 vear of his arrival here there have been many 
 changes, and in this work of transformation he 
 has taken an active part. Practically his entire 
 hfe has been spent as a tiller of the soil and as 
 such he has been engaged in developing the land 
 and otherwise improving the country. As a 
 member of this great army he has ever been 
 ready to perform his duty as a citizen, and no 
 man can say that he has ever shirked a duty 
 or refused aid to any movement calculated to 
 be of material benefit to the county or state. 
 A native of Pennsylvania, Mr. Browne was born 
 in the staid old city of Philadelphia, April 7, 
 1851. His father, Isaac E. Browne, was born m 
 New York, but later took up his residence in the 
 Quaker City, where he worked at his trade, that 
 of a machinist, for several years. Subsequently 
 he removed to Pittsburg, where he worked at 
 his trade until his removal to Winchester, Scott 
 county. 111. After spending seven years there 
 he again made a change, this time going to Ben- 
 ton county. Mo., where he lived until his death. 
 During the Civil war he enlisted in Company B, 
 Seventh Missouri Cavalry, as a sergeant, and 
 served until the cessation of hostihties. Mr. 
 Browne was united in marriage with Miss Re- 
 becca Wise, a native of Pennsylvania, and to 
 them were born seven children. Mrs. Browne's 
 death occurred in Missouri. She was the daugh- 
 ter of Jacob Wise, who was a farmer in the Key- 
 stone state. 
 
 Jacob W. Browne was reared in IHinois and 
 Missouri, his education being obtained in the 
 common schools of Benton county. At the age 
 of nineteen he took up his residence with an 
 uncle. Dr. Horace A. Browne, who lived in Mer- 
 cer county, and not only practiced medicine but 
 also conducted a drug store. In this store Mr. 
 Browne was given employment, where he con- 
 tinued for two years. About this time his mar- 
 riage with Mrs. Rebecca (Weaver) Gates was 
 solemnized in the town of Cameron. She is the 
 daughter of William M. Gates, and was born in 
 Clark county. Mo. Her father was a prominent 
 farmer and lived and died in that state. Soon 
 after his marriage Mr. Browne decided to mi- 
 grate westward and in 1873 came to California, 
 vhere he has since lived and where he has done 
 so much in the great work that has been car- 
 
 ried on here in the past forty years. His first 
 home was at Modesto, near which place he en- 
 gaged in farming in what is now called the 
 "pocket." Five years later he disposed of his 
 interests there and returned to Benton county. 
 Mo., where he purchased a farm and conducted 
 the same for the following five years. During 
 this time his father died and soon after he sold 
 out and again came to this state, locating in 
 Fresno jn 1884. In the spring of that year he 
 purchased three hundred and twenty acres of 
 land on section 18, which he placed under the 
 plow and devoted to the raising of grain. This 
 business he has since followed with great suc- 
 cess. In 1892 he erected the fine residence that 
 is now his home, and here, surrounded by all 
 the comforts of life and a loving family, he is 
 enjoying the fruits of his earher toils. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Browne have been born 
 the following children : Dottie, now Mrs. Charles 
 Brown, a sketch of whom will be found on an- 
 other page of this work ; Muriel Daisy, now Mrs. 
 R. G. Johnson, of Oleander; Robert E., of 
 Kern county; Emanual, of San Francisco; Ella, 
 who is preparing to be a professional nurse in 
 Fresno ; J. Wise and Amanda, both at home. In 
 political matters Mr. Browne is a Democrat and 
 takes an active part in the affairs of his party, but 
 has never cared to ask favors from the people. 
 Known all through this section of the county, he 
 has a large circle of friends, and among these 
 his word is considered as good as his bond. 
 There could be no better testimonial than this to 
 define the position Mr. Browne has attained here. 
 Starting in life at the bottom of the ladder, he 
 has steadily worked his way upward. 
 
 CHRIS P. JENSEN. A member of the firm 
 of Teilman & Jensen, Chris P. Jensen is justly 
 accorded a high place among the civil engineers 
 of this section, and is named among the repre- 
 sentative citizens of Fresno. He is a native son 
 of the state, his birth having occurred in the vi- 
 cinity of Antioch, November 9, 1873. His father, 
 Martin Jensen, came from Slesvig, Germany, to 
 America, locating first in Ohio, where he en- 
 gaged as a mechanical engineer. Pie held a po- 
 sition of stationary engineer until 1870, when he 
 came to California and found employment in the 
 coal mines near Antioch, Contra Costa county. 
 He remained in that location until 1875, when he 
 removed to Fresno and purchased twenty acres 
 in Central Colony and engaged in the cultiva- 
 tion of a vineyard and orchard. Since his loca- 
 tion here he has bought and sold many pieces 
 of valuable property, purchasing thirty-one acres 
 of the old Frolich place and laying it off in lots, 
 which he sold to good profit. He now resides 
 in Fresno with his wife, formerly Adelheid Jor- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1469 
 
 genscn, a native of Slesvig. They became the 
 parents of two children, Chris P., of this review, 
 and Andrew. 
 
 Chris P. Jensen was reared in Fresno county, 
 where he attended the district school, after which 
 he graduated from the Oakland high school in 
 1891. He then entered Van der Naillen's School 
 of Engineering, of San Francisco, graduating 
 therefrom in 1.893, with the degree of C. E. His 
 first work was in San Francisco, where he was 
 employed by the Sanborn Map Company, re- 
 maining in that city until 1895, when he came to 
 Fresno and became associated with I. Teilman, 
 the firm name being Teilman & Jensen, survey- 
 ing and civil engineering occupying their time 
 and attention. They have been associated in the 
 surveying and construction of many important 
 enterprises, among them the Madera Flume, the 
 logging railroad for the Madera Sugar Pine 
 -Company ; the Fresno Canal and Irrigation Com- 
 pany; the Consolidated Canal and Irrigation 
 Company; the Alta Irrigation District; the '76 
 Land and Water Company ; the Balfour Guthrie 
 Company, from Napa to Portersville, and many 
 others. They are very successful in their work 
 and have done not a little toward the develop- 
 ment and upbuilding of this section of the state. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Jensen was united in marriage 
 with Isabelle Baird, a native of Nevada, who died 
 in this city. They had two children, Katharine 
 and Donald. Mr. Jensen is a member of the 
 First Presbyterian Church, and politically is a 
 stanch adherent of the principles advocated in 
 the platform of the Republican party. 
 
 HOWARD P. BENDER. During an early 
 period in the history of America the Bender fam- 
 ily left Holland and settled at Fort Orange 
 (now Albany), N. Y. A son of the original 
 emigrant was Christian Bender, whose birth oc- 
 curred in the United States in 1723 and who 
 served faithfully as a sergeant during the Revo- 
 lutionary war. Next in line of descent was 
 Matthew, a native of Albany county, N.-Y., and 
 a lifelong agriculturist. On the old homestead 
 in Albany county his son, Wendell M., was 
 born and reared, and from there he went to the 
 city of Albany in early manhood. Starting with 
 limited means, but with an abundance of energy 
 and determination, by degrees he built up an ex- 
 tensive lumber business. After accumulating a 
 competency he retired from business and spent 
 the remainder of his days in the enjoyment of 
 those comforts which his industry had rendered 
 possible. At the time of his death he was about 
 sixty-eight years of age. His wife, Sarah, was 
 born in Kings county, N. Y., and is now seventy- 
 one years of age. She was of English extrac- 
 tion and a daughter of John F. Porter, a soldier 
 
 in the Mexican war. Her paternal grandfather 
 was a native of Massachusetts. 
 
 Among the phildren of W. M. and Sarah 
 Bender was a son, the late Howard P: Bender, 
 of Bakersfield, Kern county, who was born in 
 Albany, N. Y., July 17, 1859. At the age of 
 fourteen years he left home and went to New 
 York City, joining an uncle who held a position 
 as agent for the Erie Railroad. For the five 
 following years he worked in the company's 
 freight office in that city. With the restless am- 
 bition of youth, desiring to see more of our 
 country and hoping to find business openings in 
 the far west, in 1877 he came to California, ar- 
 riving in Bakersfield in February, 1878. In this 
 place he engaged in the decorating business and 
 also worked as a paperhanger for nine years. In 
 1887 he secured employment in a large abstract 
 office, where he was retained as head searcher of 
 records until 1891. At this time he embarked 
 in the real estate and abstract business for him- 
 self, and in August of 1894 took into partner- 
 ship J. B. Hewitt, since which time the firm of 
 Bender & Hewitt, under the title of the Kern 
 Valley Abstract Bureau, has built up a profita- 
 ble and extensive business. 
 
 From the early infancy of the oil industry Mr. 
 Bender was interested in the development of 
 wells, and was one of the original locaters of the 
 Kern Oil Company's property. On the organi- 
 zation of the company he was elected secretary, 
 an office which he filled until his death, which 
 occurred in Bakersfield January 24, 1904. The 
 business of the company developed rapidly, ship- 
 ments often averaging one hundred and twenty 
 thousand barrels per month. Mr. Bender also 
 owned a controlling interest in the Monarch Oil 
 Company at McKittrick, Kern county, and was 
 not only its secretary, but also a member of the 
 board of directors. Another organization in 
 which he was interested was the Kern County 
 Investment Company. Perhaps no man in 
 Bakersfield was better informed than he regard- 
 ing the values of properties and titles to the 
 same. His long identification with the abstract 
 business made his advice invaluable on subjects 
 pertaining to the keeping of the records and per- 
 fecting of titles. He built up a large business as 
 a fire insurance agent, and also wrote life insur- 
 ance policies. In addition to his residence at 
 Bakersfield he owned a cottage at Ocean Park. 
 
 On New Year's day of 1889 Mr. Bender mar- 
 ried Miss Cora F. McGrann, who was born in 
 Mariposa county, Cal., of New York and Vir- 
 ginia descent, and who prior to her marriage en- 
 gaged in teaching school. Seven children were 
 born of their union, namely : Harold P. ; Gerald, 
 who died in infancy; Corinne F., Qaire, Oiloris 
 R., Clophine and Camille. Politically Mr. Ben- 
 der was a stanch Republican. For some years 
 
1470 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he served as secretary of the county central com- 
 mittee. Upon the soHcitation of members of his 
 party, in i8go he consented to become the Re- 
 pubHcan candidate for comity clerk. This being 
 a Democratic county he was defeated, though 
 only by a small majority. In 1892 he was again 
 his party's candidate for the office and again 
 suffered defeat with the balance of the ticket. 
 Upon the organization of the Benevolent Pro- 
 tective Order of Elks, he was among the first 
 to identify himself with the fraternity and he 
 was also active for a long period in the Knights 
 of Pythias at Bakersfield. 
 
 MARTIN ELDER has lived in California 
 continuously for twenty-seven years and was a 
 member of one of the very first parties to cross 
 the plains, making that long journey in company 
 with his father in 1846 when he was a boy of 
 eight years. Subsequently he returned east, but 
 again in 1875 came to this state, where he has 
 since made his home. He is a veteran of the 
 Civil war, serving all through that memorable 
 struggle, and his life has been filled with many 
 strange adventures and hardships. 
 
 A native of Missouri, Martin Elder was born 
 in that state July 3, 1838, a son of Turner and 
 Polly (Rhoads) Elder. The father was born in 
 Tennessee, but at an early day moved to Illi- 
 nois and later to Missouri, where he followed 
 farming in Ray county until 1846. In that year 
 he joined a party and crossed the plains with 
 his family to California. During the journey 
 the famous Donner party were passed by the 
 train of which he was a member. On arriving 
 here Mr. Eldef located near Sacramento, but 
 soon after removed to what is now the site of 
 Stockton, where he followed farming on the 
 Mokelumne river. Later, however, after the dis- 
 covery of gold, he entered the mines, meeting 
 with splendid success. Tiring of the life and 
 haying a desire to see the east, he returned to 
 Missouri in 1850 and resumed farming in Ray 
 county, where he is now living at the advanced 
 age of eighty-nine years. His wife, who was 
 born in Illinois, died in Missouri. She became 
 the mother of nine children, four boys and five 
 girls. 
 
 _ Martin Elder was a boy of eight years when 
 his father crossed the plains, and he remembers 
 well the hardships, trials and privations of that 
 long journey. On his father's return east he 
 was a member of the party and thereafter fol- 
 lowed fanr.ing in Ray county until 1862, when he 
 enlisted in Company C, Third Missouri Infan- 
 try, serving under the Confederate flag for the 
 next four years. At the close of the war he re- 
 engaged in farming in Missouri, continuing until 
 1875, when he once more crossed the plains to 
 
 the Golden State. His first location was near 
 Lemoore, now Kings county, where he fol- 
 lowed farming two years. He then came to Fres- 
 no county and settled on the place that has 
 since been his home. This consists of three 
 hundred and forty acres and is one of the most 
 valuable ranch properties in the county. In ad- 
 dition to raising stock and carrying on general 
 farming, he is also engaged in dairying. 
 
 While living in Missouri Mr. Elder was united 
 in marriage with Elizabeth Jane Brown, a 
 native of that state, and to them have been born 
 nine children, the order of their birth being as 
 follows : Albert, at home ; Thomas, who resides 
 in Kingsburg; Estelle, now Mrs. Bennett; Ber- 
 nice, at home ; Samuel, in the employ of the 
 Southern Pacific Company ; Nellie and Nora, both 
 of whom are living at home, and two children 
 who died in Missouri. Mr. Elder has lived in 
 California many years and during this time has 
 witnessed the transformation of the west. Years 
 ago when he first came to the state it was but a 
 wilderness. Where one now sees beautiful farms 
 and orchards was a barren waste of sand or un- 
 broken forest. In all this work of progress he 
 has performed his part, never refusing or neg- 
 lecting to respond when called upon to support 
 any movement calculated to be of material bene- 
 fit to the country. Both he and his estimable 
 wife are highly respected for their many admir- 
 able traits of character and both have a host 
 of warm personal friends. 
 
 FRED DODD. As owner and manager of the 
 Hughes Hotel at Fresno, Mr. Dodd has become 
 known not only as the youngest hotel man in the 
 state, but as one of the most successful. This 
 popular establishment is the largest hotel in the 
 San Joaquin valley, and no town in the state 
 can boast of a hostelry that is more modern or 
 better equipped. A native of England, Mr. Dodd 
 was born in Manchester, a son of Frederick 
 Dodd, who was also a native of the same city. 
 
 Fred Dodd was reared in the town of Man- 
 chester, where he remained until 1892. That 
 year he went to South Africa, locating at Johan- 
 nesburg, where he was living at the time of the 
 Metabele uprising. After spending two years in 
 that country he came to California, arriving here 
 in 1894. Going at once to Fresno, he became 
 identified with its business interests, and in 
 1897 purchased the Hughes Hotel property, tak- 
 ing possession on his twenty-third birthday, at 
 the time being the youngest hotel man in the 
 state. Since becoming the owner of this well 
 known hotel Mr. Dodd has spent $50,000 in re- 
 modeling and refitting it ; $30,000 of this amount 
 was spent in 1904. In addition to being the larg- 
 est hotel in the valley, it is also one of the largest 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1471 
 
 buildings in the city of Fresno. Nearly two hun- 
 dred sleeping rooms are furnished with all mod- 
 ern improvements, thirty having private baths, 
 while all are equipped with a private telephone. 
 Every comfort possible has been installed by Mr. 
 Dodd, the entire building being lighted by elec- 
 tricity, while the sanitary arrangements are the 
 best that money can procure. As an adchtion to 
 the hotel and for the accommodation of the gen- 
 eral public, this progressive business man started 
 an up-to-date steam laundry, which was one of 
 the first of the kind to be erected in the valley. 
 He is also interested in several outside business 
 ventures, including the manufacture of sand-lime 
 brick, which is being put on the market by the 
 Golden Gate Brick Company, of which he is a 
 director and manager. 
 
 Mrs. Dodd, formerly Miss Irene Hawkins, is 
 a native daughter of the Golden state. Active 
 in his own afifairs, Mr. Dodd also takes a deep 
 interest in matters pertaining to the general wel- 
 fare of the city, being one of the progressive 
 members of the Chamber of Commerce. In fra- 
 ternal relations he is associated with the Elks. 
 The progressive spirit shown by Mr. Dodd in 
 the past in connection with the hotel business in 
 Fresno is fully appreciated by the traveling pub- 
 lic and the business men of the valley, who realize 
 that they may always depend on him to keep 
 abreast of the growing commercial or tourist 
 trade that must in the near future pass through 
 Fresno, the gateway of Nature's wonderland, the 
 Yosemite valley, as well as Kings river canyon. 
 
 Plans are already formulated to build a two- 
 story addition to the Hughes Hotel, and equip- 
 ping it in every way for a tourist hotel to give 
 every comfort to the most exacting tastes of the 
 traveling public. 
 
 met with success in their business operations and 
 are considered two of the most substantial men 
 in this part of the county. 
 
 ARTHUR MANLOVE. A native of Illinois, 
 Mr. Manlove was born in DeWitt county, a 
 son of John N. Manlove, who was born in In- 
 diana. In 1849 he crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia and here engaged in mining. Later he 
 returned to Indiana, where he resided until 1886, 
 when he again came to this state and is now re- 
 siding in Selma, living a retired life. 
 
 Arthur Manlove was the fifth child in a fam- 
 ily of nine children. He came to California in 
 1887, joining his brother Scott, who the year 
 previous had purchased one hundred and fifty- 
 five acres of land three and a half miles north 
 of Selma. Forming a partnership with his 
 brother, the two have since conducted a large 
 vineyard and farming business. In addition to 
 the place mentioned they also own eighty acres 
 one mile north of Selma and have a quarter-sec- 
 tion of timber land in Madera county. Both of 
 these young men are highly respected. They have 
 
 CHARLES JOSEPH BROWN. A native of 
 Fresno county, Mr. Brown has made his own 
 way in the world since attaining his sixteenth 
 year. His labors have been richly rewarded, 
 and although a young man, he has accumulated 
 a handsome competency and is one of the lead- 
 ing agriculturists of the county. His father, 
 Samuel Brown, was born in Maine, and when 
 a young man "rounded the Horn" to San Fran- 
 cisco. Shortly after he located in Stanislaus 
 county, where he engaged in the stock business. 
 Later, however, he disposed of his interests there 
 and settled on Little Dry creek, Fresno county, 
 where he became interested in the sheep busi- 
 ness, subsequently reengaging in the cattle busi- 
 ness, which occupation he followed for some 
 years, but was engaged in farming at the time 
 of his death in 1895. His wife was Miss Jennie 
 Gift, a native of Tennessee, and she survives her 
 husband. This union was blessed by the birth 
 of eight children, four sons and four daughters. 
 Mrs. Brown makes her home on a ranch near 
 where she and her husband first settled when 
 they came to Fresno county. 
 
 Charles J. Brown first saw the light of day 
 May 21, 1870. His early life was spent on 
 his father's farm, but at the age of sixteen he 
 started out to make his own way, leasing the 
 Helm ranch and engaging in grain raising. Here 
 he has since made his home, at times having sev- 
 eral thousand acres under cultivation, although 
 there are but six hundred and forty acres of the 
 original Helm ranch left. During these years the 
 business ventures of Mr. Brown have met with 
 success and in 1900 he purchased one hundred 
 and sixty acres of the Burkhead ranch, to which 
 he added eighty acres later on. In addition he 
 also owns three hundred and forty acres adjoin- 
 ing this place, on which he is now engaged in 
 grain raising and the cattle business. To carry 
 on such extensive farming operations Mr. Brown 
 has the latest and most improved machinery, 
 and also owns nearly fifty head of horses. These 
 he uses for freighting during the winter be- 
 tween Fresno and the copper mines, thus being 
 actively employed twelve months in the year. 
 
 In Garfield was celebrated the marriage of Mr. 
 Brown and Miss Dottie Browne, who was born 
 in Stanislaus county, a daughter of Jacob 
 Browne, one of the very old settlers of that sec- 
 tion of the state. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are the 
 parents of the following children : Floyd, Stan- 
 ley, and Lawrence Burnette. In politics Mr. 
 Brown is a Democrat, but he has been too busy 
 looking after his own interests to take an active 
 
1472 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 part in political matters. He is at all times ready 
 and willing to give of his time and means to 
 further the interests of his county, and this pol- 
 icy has won, not only friends by the score, but 
 a most enviable position. 
 
 SALMON H. LOOMIS. The present post- 
 master of Kingsburg is not only a veteran of the 
 Civil war, but is one of California's pioneer cit- 
 izens. His life has been an active one, and dur- 
 ing the many years of his residence in the state 
 he has done much to assist in the upbuilding and 
 developing work that has placed California in 
 the front ranks of the states in this grand Union 
 of ours. Born in Ohio, September 13, 1838, 
 Mr. Loomis is a son of Almyron and Roxanna 
 (Moore) Loomis. The father, a native' of Ohio, 
 removed to Wisconsin, where he engaged in 
 farming on what is known as Ball Prairie. Re- 
 maining there until 1849, he then went to Peoria, 
 111., where he secured a position as traveling sales- 
 man for the Sanders' Separator, and continued 
 with that company for some time. He finally 
 removed to LaSalle, in the same state, and there 
 engaged in the trunk manufacturing business, in 
 which he was interested up to the time of his 
 death. As a result of his marriage with Roxanna 
 Moore he became the father of nine children, 
 seven sons and two daughters. 
 
 Salmon H. Loomis was the sixth child and 
 at an early age was apprenticed to learn the 
 marble-cutter's trade in Peoria. He remained in 
 that city until 1859, the year of his arrival in 
 California. Locating in Georgetown, he fol- 
 lowed mining there until 1861, when he enlisted 
 in Company F, Fourth California Volunteer In- 
 fantry. At first his company was stationed at 
 Auburn, but later was transferred to Camp 
 Union in Sacramento, being in that city during 
 the memorable flood. Subsequently he went to 
 San Pedro, Camp Latham, Fort Yuma, La Paz, 
 then back to Fort Yuma and San Pedro, where 
 he was honorably discharged in 1864. Going to 
 San Francisco, he reenlisted in Company E, 
 Eighth California Volunteer Infantry, and was 
 stationed on Alcatraz Island until 1865, when he 
 left the service. Returning to Georgetown, he 
 soon after moved to Truckee, locating there in 
 the spring of 1868. While living in this place 
 he conducted a drug store, but finally sold out 
 and secured a position as brakeman on the Union 
 Pacific railroad. In 1869, while making a 
 coupling, he was quite seriously injured and was 
 sent to the railway hospital at Sacramento On 
 regaining his health he again returned to George- 
 town and followed mining, also being interested 
 m the nursery business. From Georgetown he 
 moved to Marysville, securing employment on a 
 ranch near there, where he remained until 1870 
 
 when he joined his uncle in Tehama county and 
 followed farming for several years, or until Jan- 
 uary, 1875, the year of his arrival in Kings- 
 burg. Here for a time he was engaged in the 
 hotel business, but finally sold out and purchased 
 a barber shop, which he conducted until 1901, 
 when he disposed of it, his son taking charge. 
 During these years he carried on quite an ex- 
 tensive business and also followed papering and 
 painting. In 1898 he was appointed postmaster, 
 which office he is still filling, it being but a just 
 reward for the many years he spent as a soldier 
 in the regular army. 
 
 In 1870 the marriage ceremony of Mr. Loomis 
 and Miss Mary L. Hoover was celebrated in 
 Marysville, and as a result of this union four chil- 
 dren have been born, namely : Acie B., the as- 
 sistant postmaster here; Calfernie D., now Mrs. 
 A. Stukey, of Arizona; Almyron C, who con- 
 ducts a barber shop in Kingsburg; and Bessie H., 
 now Mrs. R. D. Adames, of Fresno. Fraternally 
 Mr. Loomis is a member of the Knights of 
 Pythias, being associated with the lodge in Fow- 
 ler, and is also a member of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic. A Republican in poHtics, he is 
 actively interested in the welfare of his party. 
 
 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN GIFFIN. Six 
 miles east of the town of Clovis is located one 
 of the finest ranches in the San Joaquin valley. 
 On approaching it one is at once attracted' by 
 the splendid buildings and the general air of pros- 
 perity that is in evidence. The owner is one 
 of Fresno county's most highly respected citizens, 
 a man who is self-made in every particular and 
 one whose integrity cannot be questioned. A na- 
 tive of Ohio, B. F. Giffin was born in Butler 
 county, December 18, 1850, a son of Ambrose 
 and Amanda J. (Closser) Giiifin. The father was 
 a native of the same state. For years he fol- 
 lowed farming in Butler county, but eventually 
 removed to Iowa, where he took up his residence 
 near Morning Sun, living there until he retired 
 from active life, when he sold out and came to 
 California and spent his last days, his death oc- 
 curring in Fowler at the ripe old age of eighty- 
 two years. His wife was born in Ohio and died 
 in IHinois. One child, B. F., was born of her 
 union with Ambrose Giffiin. At the age of nine 
 years he went to Illinois, where his education was 
 obtained in the district schools. At the age of 
 twenty-one Mr. Giffin started out to make his 
 own way in the world, renting a farm near 
 Salem, Pike county, 111., where he engaged in 
 general farming and stock-raising. Later he pur- 
 chased and improved a place of one hundred 
 and thirty acres, on which he lived until coming 
 to California in 1881. Two years previous he 
 had made a trip to the state and so favorably was 
 
i/wwyi-O-^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1473 
 
 he impressed with the climate and general sur- 
 roundings that he determined to make his home 
 here as soon as he could dispose of his interests 
 in the east. On arriving in California in 1881 he 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres of his 
 present ranch, but since then he has added to it 
 until he now owns eight hundred acres, all in 
 one body and all under cultivation, most of the 
 land being devoted to the growing of grain. In 
 addition he also leases four hundred acres, mak- 
 ing in all twelve hundred acres, thus being one 
 of the largest grain growers in this part of Fres- 
 no county. In conducting this big business he 
 uses the latest and most improved methods, and 
 being the owner of a combined harvester, he not 
 only harvests all his own grain, but hundreds of 
 acres for his neighbors. 
 
 In Pittsfield, Pike county, 111., was celebrated 
 the marriage of Mr. GifiSn and Miss Maria 
 Starkey, who was born in that state, a daughter 
 of Jonathan and Jane (Laughery) Starkey. Jon- 
 athan Starkey was a native of Virginia. His 
 father, John Starkey, migrated from Virginia 
 to Ohio at a very early day, and in 1836 the 
 family removed to Pike county, 111. Mrs. Gif- 
 fin's father was a large farmer, being at one 
 time the largest land-owner in Pike county. His 
 death occurred in Griggsville, in March, 1890. 
 His wife was born in Ohio, a daughter of 
 Nicholas Laughery, who was a native of Ire- 
 land. He immigrated to the United States and 
 died in Indiana. Mrs. Giffin is one of nine chil- 
 dren. To Mr. and Mrs. Giffin have been born 
 five sons : Jonathan Ambrose, who is engaged in 
 farming near Clovis ; Tracy Adolph, Floyd 
 Mirillo, Lucian Chalmers, and Parnell Childreth. 
 
 In politics Mr. Giffin is a Democrat in national 
 issues, but in local elections he .votes for the 
 man he deems best qualified for office, regardless 
 of party lines. Ever since locating here he has 
 been active in local affairs and is now serving as 
 president of the board of school trustees. By 
 straightforward dealings and honorable methods 
 Mr. Giffin has established an enviable reputation, 
 his word being considered as good as his bond. 
 Both he and his estimable wife are highly re- 
 spected wherever known. 
 
 WILLIAM SWALL. As showing what may 
 be accomplished by a young man who marks out 
 a career for himself and resolutely goes to work 
 to make his dream of success in life a reality, the 
 career of William Swall of the Visalia district, 
 affords a useful lesson to the youth of a later day. 
 Mr. Swall, who is one of the large land owners 
 and substantial and prominent men of his neigh- 
 borhood, was born in La Salle county. 111., No- 
 vember 5, 1848, and. is a son of Mathias and Eliza- 
 beth (Hayne) Swall, both natives of Germany, 
 
 69 
 
 the former born in Berlin January 24, 1824. The 
 elder Swall came to the United States in a sailing 
 vessel in 1840, locating in La Salle county, 111., 
 where his marriage occurred April 16, 1847, ^^id 
 where he continued to farm until 1865. Having 
 become interested in the far west, he came to 
 California by way of Panama in the summer of 
 '65, spending the first winter on a farm near 
 San Jose, and in the fall of 1866 locating on 
 land near Tracy, San Joaquin county. In 1871 
 he sold his land and removed to Monterey coun- 
 ty, engaging in dairying and stock-raising until 
 1877, in which year he moved to Ventura county, 
 and from there to Sherman, Los Angeles county, 
 in the fall of 1882. Mr. Swall continued to farm 
 and run a dairy until shortly before his death, 
 in May, 1896, being survived by his wife, who 
 still lives in Sherman. Mr. Swall was a stanch 
 Democrat, and in religion was a member of the 
 Roman Catholic Church. 
 
 The oldest of two daughters and nine sons, 
 William Swall was educated in the .public schools 
 of La Salle county, III, and Santa Clara county, 
 Cal.,. finally attending the San Jose Institute for 
 one term. He was well trained in all phases of 
 farm work, to which he took naturally and with 
 due appreciation of its many advantages, and 
 in 1873 came to Tulare county and homesteaded 
 eighty acres of land, later adding to his posses- 
 sions by buying land along the Tule river. In 
 1884 he moved to his present place of eight hun- 
 dred acres, known as Deep Creek ranch, which 
 he has improved into one of the finest and most 
 productive properties in the county, having one 
 hundred and fifty acres under peaches, prunes and 
 pears, and the balance under hay and grazing. 
 His original place is known as the Tule River 
 ranch, and in all he owns over twenty-five hun- 
 dred acres of land, his extensive operations neces- 
 sitating the renting of an additional thousand 
 acres, which he uses for stock and fruit. He 
 has given splendid and intelligent effort to the 
 development of his land, has embraced all of the 
 means at the disposal of the latter-day agricul- 
 turist, and has reaped the reward due to so liberal 
 minded and progressive a rancher. Mr. Swall 
 has diverted his energies from the farm to the 
 town, and is a stockholder of the Bank of Tulare, 
 a director in the Tulare Telephone Company, and 
 a stockholder and a director in the Rochdale 
 stores of Visalia and Tulare. H? has been one of 
 the foremost promoters of irrigation in the coun- 
 ty, and was one of the original instigators of the 
 Tulare Irrigation District. During the settlement 
 in 1903, with the bondholders he was one of the 
 directors of the irrigation district and continues 
 in that capacity to the present time. A Repub- 
 lican of many years standing, he has never been 
 an office seeker, but has nevertheless served as a 
 director of the Elk Bayou school district. 
 
U7i 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In San Francisco, in 1869, Mr. Swall was unit- 
 ed in marriage with Emma Cole, a native of Knox 
 county, III, and daughter of Asa Cole, born in 
 Ohio. Mr. Cole is a California pioneer of 1856, 
 having crossed the plains with his family, locat- 
 ing in Contra Costa county. Removing to Santa 
 Clara county several years later, he located in the 
 fall of 1866 near Tracy, San Joaquin county, in 
 1873 taking up his residence in Visalia, and in 
 1888 returning to Brentwood, Contra Costa coun- 
 ty, where he died the same fall. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Swall became the parents of the following chil- 
 dren : George, a dairy rancher near Visalia ; 
 Newell, deceased; Walter, a dairy rancher near 
 Visalia; Arthur, a rancher five miles south of 
 Visalia ; and William, Jr., living near his father, 
 five miles south of Visalia. Mr. Swall is de- 
 scribed by his host of friends as a prince of 
 good fellows, as a man always ready to lend a 
 helping hand to those less fortunate than him- 
 self, and as one to whom the responsibilities of 
 citizenship appeal with force and decisiveness. Of 
 resolute and commanding character, he is noted 
 for his fairness in all matters of business, for 
 his leniency, kindness and good judgment, and 
 for his loyalty to family, friends and general in- 
 terests. 
 
 CHARLES HENRY DEWEY. A descend- 
 ant of a fine old New England family and the 
 son of one of California's most respected pion- 
 eers, Mr. Dewey is especially worthy of mention. 
 A native son of the state, he has made his own 
 way in life since attaining young manhood, and 
 that he is now considered one of Fresno county's 
 most substantial citizens is proof that he has made 
 the most of his opportunities. Born in San Joa- 
 quin county, April 27, 1858, Mr. Dewey is a son 
 of Henry Dewey, a native of Westfield, Mass., 
 where he was born, February 5, 1825. On leav- 
 ing the parental roof he was apprenticed to learn 
 the trade of a mason, which he followed in his 
 native state until he disposed of his interests in 
 the east and, owing to the ill health of his wife, 
 he came to California, arriving here January i, 
 1857. Shortly after this he located ten miles 
 north of Stockton at Woodbridge, where he lived 
 until 1869, when he purchased a ranch of one 
 thousand two hundred acres near Plainsberg. 
 Mr. Dewey was the first man to patent and make 
 a sixteen-foot header, which he later enlarged to 
 18, 22, 25, 28 and 34 feet. Owing to failing 
 health he sold his place in 1890 and removed 
 to Fresno, where his death occurred February 13, 
 1902. His first marriage was with Miss Eliza- 
 beth Bromley, who was born in Chester RTass 
 May II, 1828. She died November 19, 1863.' 
 This union was blessed by the birth of three chil- 
 dren, all of whom are deceased excepting Charles 
 
 Henry. Later in life Mr. Dewey was again mar- 
 ried, his second wife being Miss Jane Applegath. 
 The marriage ceremony was performed in Wood- 
 bridge, and to them were born two children, one 
 of whom is living, Amey M., of San Francisco. 
 Mrs. Dewey died at Riverdale. 
 
 Charles H. Dewey was educated in the com- 
 mon schools of this state, and up to the time of 
 his father's removal to Fresno in 1890 he re- 
 mained at home.- Soon after taking up his resi- 
 dence here he purchased the ranch that has since 
 been his home and which consists of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres eight and one-half miles 
 west of Laton, near Riverdale. Here he is now 
 conducting a general farming and dairy business, 
 a portion of his land also being in vineyard. 
 
 On March 18, 1894, in Riverdale, was cele- 
 brated the marriage of Mr. Dewey and Miss 
 EiTuna Eliza Ballard, who was born near Stock- 
 ton, January 23, 1868, a daughter of Simeon Mil- 
 ler Ballard, a native of Kentucky, who came to 
 California in 1852, crossing the plains from Mis- 
 souri with ox-teams. On arriving here he en- 
 gaged in farming in different counties until 1881, 
 when he located in Fresno county, near Riverdale, 
 where he was living at the time of his death, 
 March 15, 1890. His wife bore the maiden name 
 of Miss Amey E. Dye and was born in Ohio. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Dewey have been born four 
 children, the order of their birth being as fol- 
 lows: Helen; Simeon M., who died in infancy; 
 Emeline, and Charles A., all at home. Pohtically 
 Mr. Dewey supports the principles advocated by 
 the Democratic party, and during his residence 
 here he has been very active in county affairs, 
 now serving as a member of the county central 
 committee. In fraternal circles he is also quite 
 prominent, being a m.ember of the Ancient Or- 
 der of United Workmen, and the Odd Fellows. 
 In attaining the position that he now occupies 
 Mr. Dewey has labored very energetically and 
 has allowed no obstacles to stand in his' path. 
 Such a word as fail is not in his vocabulary- 
 he knows nothing but success, and that word 
 has been written in a bold hand on the pages of 
 his life's historv. 
 
 J. A. BEALL. Twenty-three years ago Mr. 
 Beall came to California.' During these years 
 he has steadily worked his way upward from 
 the very bottom, until he is now the owner of 
 one of the finest properties in Fresno county. His 
 home, which is known as the "Grant House," 
 IS one of the best residences in the valley, and 
 since it came into the possession of the present 
 owner the ranch has been greatly improved and 
 placed under a high state of cultivation. All this 
 has been accomplished as the direct result of 
 his own efforts, as Mr. Beall has made his own 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1475 
 
 way ill the world since leaving home. A native 
 of Indiana, he was born in Ripley county, May 
 i6, 1861, a son of John and Elizabeth H. (Han- 
 cock) Beall. The father was also a native of 
 Ripley county, where he followed agricultural 
 pursuits all his life. His wife is still living and 
 makes her home in the county where she was 
 born. By her marriage she became the mother 
 of eleven children. 
 
 J. A. Beall, on reaching manhood, engaged 
 in farming in his native county until 1882, when 
 he came to California. Locating near Fresno, he 
 continued his farming operations for ten years, 
 when he purchased land in the Laguna de Tache 
 grant, where he resided until 1901. In that year 
 he came into possession of the old Grant House 
 and one hundred and forty acres of land. This 
 is located two miles west of Laton, and is one 
 of the most valuable ranches in the county. Mr. 
 Beall makes a specialty of raising full-blooded 
 Percheron and Norman horses, and has the 
 finest stud in this section of the state. He is 
 also extensively interested in cattle raising, hav- 
 ing some two thousand head which he grazes 
 in the Riverdale district, where he leases thirteen 
 thousand acres of land. 
 
 In Fresno county the marriage of Mr. Beall 
 and Miss Jennie E. Parks was solemnized, No- 
 vember 10, 1889, and this union has been blessed 
 by the birth of one child, Zona May. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Beall is a member of the Woodmen 
 of the World, and in politics votes for the candi- 
 dates of the Democratic party. While he has 
 never cared to take a leading part in public af- 
 fairs, he is nevertheless public-spirited and is. 
 ever ready to support any movement deemed of 
 value to the county. Mr. Beall has improved his 
 opportunities, and although still a young man, has 
 accumulated a handsome competence. Both he 
 and his wife are highly respected and have a 
 host of friends. 
 
 ORVILLE C. HARRINGTON. A native of 
 Audubon county, Iowa, Mr. Harrington was 
 born August 30, 1868, a son of Josiah H. and 
 Mary N. (Montgomery) Harrington. The fath- 
 er was born in Indiana in 1848 and became an 
 early settler of Iowa. By occupation a photog- 
 rapher, he continued in business in the latter 
 state until 1880 when he removed to Nebraska 
 where he lived until his death, which occurred 
 in Denver, Colo. Since the death of her hus- 
 band, Mrs.' Harrington married G. D. Miller and 
 resides in this section of Fresno county. 
 
 Orville C. Harrington was the eldest child in 
 a family of three. From early boyhood he 
 worked in his father's photograph gallery_ and 
 later followed that business in Colorado, makmg a 
 specialty of viewing. Later he engaged in the 
 
 stock business near Sidney, Neb., where he lived 
 until 1902, the year of his arrival in California. 
 Locating in Fresno county, he purchased his 
 present place consisting of forty acres in the 
 Laguna de Tache grant, six miles west of Laton, 
 and here he is carrying on a successful farming 
 and dairy business. 
 
 In Nebraska Mr. Harrington was united in 
 marriage with Miss Agnes Middlesteadt, who 
 was born in Illinois. This union has been blessed 
 by the birth of the following children : Clar- 
 ence, Florence, Lawrence and Alice, all of whom 
 are living- at home. Mr. Harrington is a Re- 
 publican and fraternally united with the Modern 
 Woodmen of America, while living in Nebraska. 
 He has made a very flattering success of his life, 
 never failing to improve his opportunities. Since 
 locating in Fresno county, he has developed a 
 fine property and is considered one of the most 
 substantial young agriculturists in the Laton dis- 
 trict. 
 
 JOHN R. TURNER. It is especially pleas- 
 ing to write of a native son who has made a suc- 
 cess of his life, and in John R. Turner we find 
 one who has certainly made the best of the op- 
 portunities afforded young men in this state. Mr. 
 Turner's birth occurred in Santa Clara county, 
 December 8, 1871. His father, James Turner, 
 was a native of Illinois and in 1846 crossed the 
 plains to California, being among the first to 
 make the long journey. The following three 
 years after his arrival here were spent in the 
 mines and he then returned to Illinois, via the 
 Isthmus of Panama. Locating near the town of 
 Galena, he engaged in fai-ming, but after three 
 years he again crossed the plains to this state. 
 Taking up his residence in Santa Clara county, 
 he engaged in general farming for several years, 
 but finally removed to San Benito county. Later 
 he returned to Santa Clara county and took up 
 his residence near the town of Gilroy and fol- 
 lowed farming until 1887, when he came to Fres- 
 no county, settling twelve miles west of Laton, 
 where he remained until his death. His wife 
 bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Milliken. She 
 was born in Ohio and by her union with Mr. 
 Turner became the mother of seven children, one 
 son and six daughters. A more complete sketch 
 of Mrs. Turner will be found on another page 
 of this work. 
 
 John R. Turner was the youngest child. His 
 common school education was supplemented by 
 a course in a business college in San Jose. 
 Later he engaged in stock-raising on the home 
 place and in 1901 purchased a general merchan- 
 dise store in Laton, which is one of the best 
 paying business ventures in this section of the 
 county. 
 
1476 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Since coming to Laton Mr. Turner has married 
 Miss Belle Blanchard, who is a native of Iowa. 
 Mrs. Turner is one of the most popular ladies 
 in Laton and is in no small measure responsible 
 for the social life of the town. In fraternal 
 relations Mr. Turner is a member of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows and the Wood- 
 men of the World. Ever since attaining his 
 majority he has voted the Democratic ticket, 
 but during, the campaign of 1904 he became con- 
 vinced that the policy of the Republicans was 
 the right one, and having the courage of his 
 convictions, he did not hesitate to cast his vote 
 for that party's candidates. Mr. Turner's future 
 appears very bright. He has labored industri- 
 ously and deserves success. 
 
 MRS. ELIZABETH TURNER. A native of 
 Ohio, Mrs. Turner was born March 2, 1832. Her 
 father, John Milliken, was born in the same 
 state. In 1838 he moved to Illinois and located 
 near Wabash, where he lived for two years. 
 He then sold his farm there and in 1840 took up 
 his residence in Iowa, following farming in Lee 
 county until 1852. In that year he crossed the 
 plains with ox-teams and on his arrival in Cali- 
 fornia located in Santa Clara county, where he 
 lived until his death in 1880. Mr. Milliken was 
 quite a prominent man and took an active part 
 in the affairs of the county. Milliken's Corners 
 was named in his honor, and is now the center 
 of a thriving farming and fruit district. His wife 
 in maidenhood was Miss Nancy Harren, a na- 
 tive of Ohio. She died in Santa Clara county 
 in 1884. 
 
 While living in Santa Clara county Mrs. Tur- 
 ner was united in marriage with James Hilton 
 Turner, who was born near Galena, 111., Sep- 
 tember 28, 1815. On reaching man's estate he 
 entered the lead mines of that state and also 
 worked in the mines in Wisconsin. Directly after 
 the news of the discovery of gold in California, 
 in 1849, he joined a party and crossed the plains. 
 On arriving here he went into the mines in the 
 northern part of the state, where he remained 
 for tv>ro years. His labors were well rewarded 
 and with the money that he had accumulated, in 
 partnership with D. G. Montgomery, he bought 
 ,a ranch where the town of Marysville now stands. 
 This he sold in 185 1 and returned to Galena, 
 111. _ A year later, however, he again came to 
 California, locating in Santa Clara county, where 
 he engaged in farming. Subsequently he dis- 
 posed of his interests there and removed to Mon- 
 terey county, but in 1861 he again took up his 
 residence in Santa Clara county, locating near 
 the town of Gilroy, where he lived for twenty- 
 four years. Being much impressed with the pos- 
 sibilities of Fresno county, in 1887 he settled at 
 
 Riverdale, purchasing three hundred and twenty 
 acres. To this he later added one hundred acres, 
 owning at the time of his death four hundred 
 and twenty acres of as fine land as could be 
 found in the San Joaquin valley. 
 
 As a result of the union of Mr. Turner and. 
 Miss Elizabeth Milliken seven children were 
 born, as follows : Emma, deceased ; Eva, now 
 Mrs. M. C. Roundtree; Nancy Ann, now Mrs. 
 J. B. Lewis, of Riverdale; Mary J., now Mrs. 
 Henry Lewis, of Fresno county; Ida, deceased; 
 Clara B., now Mrs. James T. Crews ; J. R., who 
 lives in Laton. In addition there were three 
 stepchildren: Eliza, now Mrs. Waland, of 
 Paso Robles ; EHzabeth, Mrs. James Frame, of 
 Hanford, and George, of OroVille. 
 
 The death of Mr. Turner in 1897 was a sad 
 blow, not only to his family, but to this sec- 
 tion, as he was most highly respected. For years 
 he had taken a leading part in all movements, be- 
 ing at all times ready to give of his time and 
 means to further the interests of his county. All 
 his life a Democrat, he took a prominent part 
 in the affairs of his party and while living in 
 Gilroy, Santa Clara county, served as a justice 
 of the peace. Fraternally he was a member 
 of the Masons, being associated with the order 
 in Santa Clara county. Since the death of her 
 husband Mrs. Turner has continued to live on 
 the ranch, and has assumed the active manage- 
 ment of the same. March i, 1905, she removed 
 to Laton. Her ability as a farmer is proved by 
 the success that has attended her efforts. In ad- 
 dition to general farming she conducts a large 
 dairy which each year nets a handsome profit. 
 Not only in this county but in Santa Clara 
 county, Mrs. Turner has a large circle of friends 
 who wish her many years of continue'd happiness 
 and prosperity. 
 
 EDVv^ARD DUBOIS. With the organization 
 of the Academy Granite Company a new indus- 
 try was inaugurated which promises much for 
 the future commercial growth of the eastern part 
 of Fresno county. The inception of the new 
 enterprise is due to the sagacity of Edward Du- 
 bois, who for almost seven years devoted his time 
 to an inspection of California quarries offering 
 advantages for the development of a dark gran- 
 ite for monumental purposes. Little success met 
 his efforts until he came to Fresno county and 
 inspected a tract of fifty-one acres near Letcher. 
 Here he found a material not only hard and dur- 
 able, but susceptible to a fine and" mirror-like fin- 
 ish, admirably adapted for monumental work, 
 but of course far too valuable for building pur- 
 poses. In connection with J. S. Williams and 
 M. Marshall, of San Jose, he formed the Acad 
 emy Granite Company in 1901 and erected der- 
 
HISTORICAL AND JBIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 iill 
 
 ricks and other equipments necessary to a mod- 
 ern quarry. As resident partner and manager, 
 the supervision of the entire plant rests with 
 him, and the work of cutting, poHshing and fin- 
 i.shing the granite comes under his personal 
 charge. 
 
 As his name indicates, Mr. Dubois belongs 
 to a French family. His father, Peter Dubois, 
 was a native of France and there acquired a 
 thorough knowledge of landscape gardening and 
 the nursery business. In 1847 he came to Cali- 
 fornia via Cape Horn and settled at Old Mis- 
 sion, m Santa Clara county. Upon the discov- 
 ery of gold he went to the mines, but after his 
 partner was killed by desperadoes he left the 
 region and went to New Orleans, returning, 
 however, to California a year or more later and 
 settling in San Jose. Thereafter he engaged in 
 the nursery business and landscape gardening, 
 and continued to make the city his home until 
 his death at seventy-eight years. His wife, who 
 bore the maiden name of Josephine Guerre, was 
 born in France and died at San Jose at the age 
 of sixty-eight years. Of their fous children the 
 second in order of birth was Edward, born at 
 San Jose, CaL, November 17, 1864, and educated 
 in the public schools of his native city. At the 
 age of fifteen years he began an apprenticeship 
 to the trade of granite-cutter, at which he served 
 almost three years, and then as a journeyman 
 traveled from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and 
 from the gulf to the lakes, visiting every state 
 where granite quarries are to be found, and mak- 
 ing a specialty of quarrying and finishing. Dur- 
 ing the period of his travels, from 1883 to 1900, 
 he not only earned large wages, but had the 
 further advantage of gaining a famiHar knowl- 
 edge of the United States and of its quarries 
 in every portion. Six times he has crossed the 
 continent to the east, and on one of his trips to 
 New York city he there formed the acquaintance 
 of Miss Lillian Teed, who is now his wife. 
 
 Born in Detroit, Mich., Mrs. Dubois is a 
 daughter of Edgar Teed, now of New York City, 
 and her marriage was solemnized in Fresno, Cal. 
 One child, William, blesses their union. During 
 the period of his journeyman's experiences Mr. 
 Dubois was employed on the Hall of Record in 
 New York City, the Tombs in New York City, 
 Prospect Park monument in Brooklyn, Grant's 
 monument in Chicago, Odd Fellows' building in 
 San Francisco, Crocker building, Hibernian 
 Bank, and postofiSce, also in San Francisco, as 
 well as other prominent structures in the west- 
 ern metropolis. Since acquiring an interest in 
 the company in Fresno county he has devoted 
 himself assiduously to securing success for the 
 new industry, and already a gratifying degree 
 of fame has come to the products of the quarry. 
 Much of the income so far received from the sale 
 
 of the product has been invested in the plant, 
 which thus acquires a constantly increasing 
 value, and one of his recent acquisitions was a 
 gas engine of ten-horse power for the work of 
 polishing. In view of his wide experience, it 
 may be said that no one is better fitted than he 
 to develop the quarry acquired by his company, 
 and undoubtedly the product of the plant will 
 come into constantly increasing demand as its 
 value becomes more widely known and appre- 
 ciated. In politics he votes with the Republican 
 party, but the close attention demanded by his 
 business affairs prevents him from taking part 
 in political matters. By virtue of his western 
 birth he is identified with the Native Sons of 
 the Golden West, his membership being with 
 California Parlor No. i, at San Francisco. 
 
 HERBERT KIMBALL HULS. Persever- 
 ance and industry have raised Herbert Kimball 
 Huls from a comparatively humble and obscure 
 position in life to one of the foremost farmers 
 and land owners along the Merced river. Since 
 1889 this popular dairyman, grain grower and 
 general farmer has owned his present ranch of 
 six hundred acres, one hundred and twenty acres 
 of which IS rich bottom land. On his place is 
 a skimming station known as Huls station, and 
 the many improvements which have followed 
 in the wake of his ownership indicate the pro- 
 gressive spirit and thrift which have brought 
 him. success. Mr. Huls cuts four or five crops 
 of alfalfa a year, and he has a dairy of forty 
 cows, the rest of the property being devoted to 
 grain and grazing. 
 
 Born in Kane county, 111., January 30, 1855, 
 H. K. Huls was reared in Louisa county, Iowa, 
 to which state he was taken by his parents, 
 Henry and Elizabeth (Mqore) Huls, when 
 three years old. Henry Huls and his wife were 
 born in New York and Vermont, respectively, 
 and after their marriage started housekeeping in 
 Illinois,, which they reached overland with teams 
 and wagons. They lived for some years in 
 Iowa, where Mrs. Huls died in 1868. Subse- 
 quently Henry Huls removed to Benton county, 
 Ind., where he died in 1904. Herbert K. was 
 given the average advantages known to the boys 
 of the middle west. His education was acquired 
 mostly in the public schools of Columbus, Iowa, 
 where he lived for a few years, and where also 
 he learned the miller's trade, beginning to work 
 at that vocation when thirteen years of age. 
 Later he settled in Minnesota and followed his 
 trade, and in 1877 came to California, residing 
 in San Francisco for a year. He then selected 
 Merced Roller Mills, located near Snelling. 
 Merced county as a promising field of activity, 
 and from 1878 until 1889 was manager of the 
 
14:78 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Since then he has been Hving on and conducting 
 his ranch, which today rewards his industry by 
 a varied and luxurious output. 
 
 Through his marriage with Jennie Montgom- 
 ery Mr. Hu!s became identified with one of the 
 prominent pioneer famiHes of Merced county, 
 the late Hon. John M. Montgomery, the father 
 of Mrs. Huls, having been one of the foremost 
 early settlers and upbuilders of this section. A 
 ' sketch of his life appears on another page of 
 this work. Mr. Huls is a stanch upholder of 
 Republican principles, and although no aspirant 
 for political honors, has done much to stimulate 
 good government in the county, and . to secure 
 the best possible educational advantages for the 
 youth of his neighborhood. Fraternally he is 
 connected with La Grange Lodge No. 99, F. & 
 A. M., with Merced Chapter, R. A. M., and the - 
 Knights of Pythias. He is a wide-awake, sub- 
 stantial and popular rancher, enjoying to the 
 full the confidence and esteem of his fellow- 
 
 men. 
 
 EUGENE SHEPHERD. All his life Mr. 
 Shepherd has been engaged in the cattle and 
 meat business, being one of the best posted cat- 
 tlemen in the state. While he is a young man, 
 he has already attained a high position in the 
 business world, being considered one of the most 
 influential citizens of Laton. A native of Cali- 
 fornia, he was born in San Juan, June 9, 1874. 
 His father, William N. Shepherd, was born in 
 the state of Kentucky and in 1849 crossed the 
 plains to this state, being one of the earliest pio- 
 neers. Unlike most of the men who came here 
 in those days, Mr. Shepherd did not enter the 
 mines, but engaged in the stock business near 
 the present town of Hollister. Later he was 
 also the owner of a general merchandise store, 
 and in addition conducted a hotel in what is 
 now Hollister. Subsequently he disposed of 
 his interests there and settled in San Benito 
 county, where he followed farming and stock- 
 raising until 1869. In that year he took up his 
 residence in San Juan and conducted an eating 
 house in that place. Later he moved to Gilroy, 
 purchasing a livery and feed stable, which he 
 conducted for several years. From there he 
 finally removed to San Luis Obispo county and 
 later to San Juan, where he was living at the 
 time of his death at the age of seventy-eight 
 years. His wife, who was a native of Clark 
 county, 111., died in Gilroy. By her marriage 
 she became the mother of eleven children, three 
 sons and eight daughters. 
 
 The education of Eugene Shepherd was lim- 
 ited, as at the age of fourteen he was left an 
 orphan and has since been compelled to make 
 his own way in the world. For a time he en- 
 
 gaged in the stock business in the San Benito 
 mountains, but in 1898 removed to Kings county, 
 near the town of Hanford. There he followed 
 the same business that he was formerly inter- 
 ested in, continuing to make it his home until 
 1 90 1, when he became a resident of Fresno 
 county, locating on the place that has since been 
 his home, and which consists of one hundred 
 acres of as fine land as can be found in this 
 section of the county. Here he is now con- 
 ducting a profitable dairy and stock business, it 
 being his intention to purchase more land as 
 his means will allow and gradually increase his 
 business interests in that direction. The first 
 day of January, this year, he opened a first-class 
 modern meat market in the town of Laton, and 
 from the first has met with excellent success. 
 In connection with this he buys and sells a 
 large number of cattle, owning at the present 
 time about four hundred head. 
 
 In the city of Fresno was celebrated the mar- 
 riage of Mr. Shepherd and Miss Jennie Cam- 
 eron, and to them have been born two children : 
 Hazel Pearl, and Alfred Eugene. Mr. Shep- 
 herd is a stanch Republican, and while he has 
 no desire to seek office for himself, he is active 
 in promoting the candidacy of his friends. 
 Ever since he was fourteen years of age he has 
 been obliged to fight the battle of life alone and 
 unaided. That in these few years he has at- 
 tained such an influential position speaks well 
 for his ability. Perseverance and integrity are 
 sure to bring success, and the many friends of 
 Mr. Shepherd join in wishing him years of 
 prosperity and happiness. 
 
 CARL A. JOHNSON. The second represent- 
 ative from Sweden to seek a home in Kingsburg 
 Colony, Fresno county, Carl A. Johnson has 
 been largely instrumental in the upbuilding' and 
 development of this section. He was born in 
 Glopsjon, Orebro, Sweden, June 18, 1859, a son 
 of John Johnson, a native of the same place. 
 The elder man owned iron mines and shares in 
 an iron furnace in that country, manufactured 
 charcoal, and also farmed, meeting with success 
 in all his enterprises, and being justly named" 
 among the representative citizens of his com- 
 munity. His death occurred in that locality in 
 1864, his wife, formerly Christina Erickson, of 
 the same place, surviving him and now making 
 her home with her son in Kingsburg. They were 
 the parents of two sons, of whom Carl A. was the 
 younger. 
 
 Carl A. Johnson received his education in the 
 common schools of his native country, where he 
 made his home until attaining the age of eighteen 
 years, when he immigrated to America. In 1878 
 he located at Ishpeming, Mich., and secured em- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1479 
 
 ployment in the iron mines, later being placed 
 in charge of a diamond drill, which work he fol- 
 lowed for about five years. In 1882 he engaged 
 in the general merchandise business in that place, 
 where he remained until July, 1886, when he 
 came to California and located at Kingsburg and 
 engaged in the hotel and butcher business. A 
 year later he bought forty acres one mile east 
 of Kingsburg and engaged in horticulture, raising 
 orchard fruits and raisins. He cultivated this 
 ranch until February, 1903, when he sold out. 
 In the meantime he became active in public af- 
 fairs and served as postmaster of Kingsburg un- 
 der Harrison's administration and one year un- 
 der Cleveland. In the spring of 1898 he went 
 to the Klondike and engaged in mining for two 
 years in Dawson City, when he returned to Cali- 
 fornia. Following this he worked for a time in 
 a wholesale house in San Francisco for one year, 
 then located again in Kingsburg and continued 
 farming until 1903. In the fall of the same year 
 he opened his present general merchandise busi- 
 ness, which he has since enlarged and has built 
 up a fine custom, his reputation for integrity 
 and straightforward dealing winning him many 
 friends. He has taken a strong interest in all 
 important movements of the place, owning an 
 interest in a packing house here and stock in the 
 Kingsburg State Bank. Politically he is a Re- 
 publican, and fraternally has been a member of 
 the Knights of Pythias. 
 
 JAMES C. HARRAH. Although but a 
 short time a resident of California, Mr. Harrah 
 has demonstrated his ability as a farmer. He 
 is located within the vicinity of Fowler, Fresno 
 county, his attention being largely given to the 
 cultivation of fruit. Born in Dexter, Iowa, Oc- 
 tober 9, 1881, he is a son of William G. Harrah. 
 The latter was a native of Pennsylvania who re- 
 moved to Iowa in the early '60s, locating near 
 Andrew, Jackson county. At the age of twenty- 
 one years he began farming in the vicinity of 
 Dexter, where he remained until 1902. In that 
 year he came to California and settled two and 
 a quarter miles west of San Jose, on Moorpark 
 avenue, where he is now living. His wife, for- 
 merly Katherine B. Graham, a native of Mon- 
 mouth, 111., is also living. They became the par- 
 ents of ten children, eight sons and two daugh- 
 ters, of whom eight are living. 
 
 The eldest in the family of his parents, James 
 C. Harrah was reared in his native locality and 
 educated in the common schools. After his com- 
 pletion of the common school course he entered 
 Monmouth College in the fall of 1899 and took 
 the classical course to the junior year. He came 
 to California in the spring of 1903 and located 
 with his father for three months, after which, 
 
 with his brother, Roy D., he purchased their pres- 
 ent place, eighteen acres of which is in vines, 
 eighteen acres in trees and the balance in alfalfa. 
 They have a little cottage on their ranch, mod- 
 ern in every detail, located two and a half miles 
 south of Fowler. They, with others, rent a sec- 
 tion of land nine miles west of Fowler which is 
 devoted to grain and alfalfa, and they also rent 
 another small place. In Monmouth, III, May 
 25, 1904, James C. married Effie M. Clark. Her 
 father, J. Q. Clark, was a native of Monmouth, 
 where he engaged as a contractor and builder un- 
 til his death. Her mother, Alice Glenn in maid- 
 enhood, is a native of Pennsylvania. Mr. Har- 
 rah belongs to the United Presbyterian Church 
 and politically is a Republican. 
 
 JAMES WILLIAM HOLIDAY. About six- 
 teen miles east of Sanger, near the base of the 
 mountains that form the eastern border of Fresno 
 county, lies the ranch now and for many years 
 the home of Mr. Holiday, a California pioneer 
 of the '50s and one of the early settlers of the 
 region which still remains his place of residence. 
 Descended from an old Virginian family, he is 
 a native of Kentucky and was born in Bourbon 
 county, December 8, 1834, being the only surviv- 
 ing child of the union of George Holiday and 
 Sarah Ann Hankins, natives respectively of Vir- 
 ginia and Kentucky. His father, who settled in 
 Kentucky at an early age, married in that state 
 and subsequently removed to Missouri, settling 
 in Clay county, near Kansas City, where he re- 
 mained until his death in 1836. Twenty years 
 after his demise Mrs. Holiday came to California 
 and settled in Fresno, where she and her second 
 husband, John Burgan (whom she married in 
 Missouri), remained until death. 
 
 The common schools of Missouri furnished 
 James William Holiday with a fair education, 
 and the knowledge thus acquired has been sup- 
 plemented by habits of reading and close observa- 
 tion. In 1856 he accompanied his mother to Cal- 
 ifornia, and being then of age, he started out to 
 make his own way in the world, his first venture 
 being the raising of stock on the Lower Kings 
 river near Kingston. The year 1868 found him 
 a land-owner at Squaw valley, where he ac- 
 quired the title to one-half section of land and 
 by subsequent purchases became the owner of 
 fifteen hundred acres, utilized largely for the 
 pasturage of cattle. After having managed the 
 land for years, in 1902 he disposed of it at a 
 fair profit, and since then has devoted himself 
 wholly to the management of his stock and grain 
 farm of six hundred and forty acres situated six- 
 teen miles east of Sanger, in Clark's valley. At 
 this writing he has about forty head of cattle 
 
1480 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECOkD. 
 
 and the balance of the farm not needed for pas- 
 ture is devoted to crops. . 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Holiday was solemnized 
 in Fresno county in 1867 and united him with 
 Miss Mary Jane Demasters, who was born in 
 1850 when her parents were crossing the plains 
 in a "prairie schooner" to Cahfornia. Mr. and 
 Mrs Holiday became parents of eight children : 
 Permeha, wife of J. D. Cromley; Laura, wife 
 of S. D. Mclntire; George; Nellie, wife of A 
 E Pearson; Charles, deceased; Dora, wife of 
 L. L. Scott; Nathaniel and J. Fred. A lady of 
 kindly disposition and gentle manner, Mrs. Hol- 
 iday's death was a deep bereavement to her hus- 
 band. The loneliness of his life is increased by 
 his isolation, but he loves the mountains and like 
 all men of sincere yet simple manner to whom 
 solitude and Nature possess a deep charm, he 
 could not content himself if transplanted to the 
 artificial life of a city. In appearance he reminds 
 one of the familiar pictures of Abraham Lin- 
 coln, a resemblance that seems deepened by his 
 manner and conversation. To one of his tastes 
 politics possesses no fascination and he has taken 
 no part whatever in such matters aside from 
 voting a Democratic ticket at elections. 
 
 WILLIAM McHALEY. Throughout the 
 long period of his residence in Fresno county 
 Mr. McHaley has been intimately associated with 
 the development of its stock and grain interests 
 and has accomplished much toward the develop- 
 ment of the eastern part of the county. Upon 
 settling near the upper Kings river in 1879 he 
 purchased a tract of land twelve miles east of 
 Sanger, at the foot of the mountains, and from 
 time to time has added to his original purchase 
 until at this writing, with his partner, R. C. 
 Thom, he is the owner of three thousand acres 
 of grain and pasture land, where now graze six 
 hundred head of cattle. During the winter 
 months he resides in Sanger in order that his 
 children may enjoy desired educational advan- 
 tages, but through all of the spring and summer 
 months he is busily engaged in the care of his 
 stock and the oversight of his land. 
 
 Mr. McHaley is of southern birth and ancestry 
 and was born at Fort Smith, Ark., May 30, 1846. 
 At the age of one year he was orphaned by the 
 death of his father, John McHaley, a Kentuckian, 
 who had settled in Arkansas at an early age. Not 
 long afterward his mother (who was Elizabeth 
 Huckbey, a native of Kentucky) removed with 
 himself and his older sister to Texas, settling at 
 Austin, where she became the wife of Isaac Pier- 
 son, a widower with one daughter and two sons. 
 In 1 86 1 the family came to California and settled 
 on the upper Kings river, but later removed to 
 a ranch on Hughes creek, where th'e mother, at 
 
 the age of seventy-five years, is now making her 
 home. 
 
 It was not possible, owing to the poverty of 
 the family, for Mr. McHaley to secure even a 
 common school education, as his labor was needed 
 to aid in the support of his widowed mother. 
 After her second marriage he remained at home 
 and from Texas accompanied her to California, 
 where he secured employment as a ranch hand. 
 By carefully saving his wages he was enabled 
 after a time to embark in business for himself and 
 began by buying a few head of cattle, to which 
 he added as his means permitted. Thus the nu- 
 cleus of his present extensive business was estab- 
 lished. As previously stated, in 1879 he acquired 
 property in the mountains east of Sanger and 
 since then has built up a large industry in raising 
 cattle and grain. 
 
 After coming to the Kings river region Mr. 
 McHaley was united in marriage with Amanda 
 Chambers, who was born in Tulare county, Cal., 
 and numbers a host of friends among the people 
 of eastern Fresno county. Their family consists 
 of the following-named children: Richard, who 
 is employed on the Kings river ranch; Henry, 
 who is similarly interested; Clara, who married 
 C. J. Powell and lives in the old home neighbor- 
 hood; John M., a ranchman of Fresno county; 
 Joseph W., likewise interested in ranch pursuits ; 
 James; George, of Sanger; Frank, Ovilla, Win- 
 ifred and Annie, who reside with their parents. 
 In the fall of 1904 the family moved into the vil- 
 lage of Sanger, where they are surrounded by 
 all the accessories of an enterprising community, 
 including churches and good schools. The win- 
 ter seasons are spent in town, but in the spring 
 they return to the ranch and aid Mr. McHaley 
 in the important duties connected with his stock 
 and farm interests. In politics he votes the Re- 
 publican ticket. At no time has he desired office, 
 nor has he taken an active part in local politics, 
 for his tastes incline him toward domestic life 
 and the independence of existence on his moun- 
 tain ranch rather than toward public affairs with 
 their attendant problems and cares. 
 
 AMOS HARRIS has been successful as a 
 farmer in the San Joaquin valley, and has as 
 well won the confidence and esteem of his fel- 
 low citizens by his manly attributes. He was born 
 in Cayuga county, N. Y., May 29, 1831, a son 
 of Howard Harris. The latter was a native of 
 Connecticut who went to New York about 1800, 
 there grew to manhood, participating in the war 
 of 1812, and engaging in farming as a means 
 of livelihood until his death, which occurred in 
 the town of Locke, Cayuga county. His wife, 
 formerly Melinda Hurlbut, was also born in Con- 
 necticut and died in New York state. They were 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1481 
 
 the parents of ten children, six sons and four 
 daughters, of whom Amos was the sixth in order 
 of birth. 
 
 In the common schools of his native state Amos 
 Harris received his education, after which, in 
 185 1, he came to Cahfornia by way of the Isth- 
 mus of Panama. He followed mining in Nevada 
 and Placer counties, where he remained for six 
 years. He met with a moderate degree of suc- 
 cess and carried back to his eastern home a mod- 
 est fortune. In December of the same year 
 (1857) he located in Jackson, Mich., and en- 
 gaged in the mercantile business for three years. 
 In i860 he located in Iowa for a short time and 
 then returned to New York state for two years. 
 Locating once more in Michigan, he engaged 
 in farming at Coldwater, remaining in that loca- 
 tion until 1864, when he became a pioneer of 
 Montana, engaging in mining in Virginia City. 
 After a few months he went to Lawrence, Kans., 
 whence he came to California in 1874. He en- 
 gaged in farming in Stanislaus county on rented 
 property until the fall of 1881, when he came 
 to his present location, purchasing at that time 
 three hundred and twenty acres, all of which 
 except eighty acres he has since sold ofif in small 
 tracts. Of the eighty acres of land which form 
 his home farm, located one mile southeast of 
 Fowler, Fresno county, twenty acres is- devoted 
 to the cultivation of the raisin grapes, ten acres 
 to orchard and ten acres to alfalfa, while the 
 balance is unimproved. He gives the greater 
 part of his attention to the cultivation of fruit, 
 although he is also interested in stock-raising. 
 In addition to this property he owns one hundred 
 and sixty acres in Kern county and three hundred 
 and twenty acres in Kings county. 
 
 In Jackson, Mich., in 1859, Mr. Harris was 
 united in marriage with Nettie Pelham, a native 
 of that state, and they became the parents of the 
 following children : Belle, deceased, and Frank 
 B., her twin brother, who is a large contractor in 
 building irrigation ditches for the United States 
 government; Howard A., the editor and pro- 
 prietor of the Fowler Ensign; and Robert A., de- 
 ceased. In his political affiliations Mr. Harris 
 is a stanch Republican, and in the interests of 
 his party as well as the general public he has 
 served as school director for many years, act- 
 ing as clerk of the board for about twenty years. 
 
 RICHARD C. JAY. Before William the 
 Conqueror had brought his victorious armies to 
 England the Jay family lived and flourished in 
 the land of Normandy. Early in the history of 
 America some of that name crossed the ocean 
 from England and identified themselves with the 
 patriots in the colonies. The most distinguished 
 representative of that era was John Jay, the 
 
 first chief justice of the United States. Another 
 of the family, Charles Jay, served in the conti- 
 nental army during the Revolutionary war, hav- 
 ing come to this country a short time before the 
 outbreak of the struggle. This Revolutionary 
 soldier had a brother, Stephen, who remained in 
 England and engaged in farming there through- 
 out all of his life. Richard Jay, a son of Stephen, 
 was born at St. Blazey, England, and in 1859 
 came to the United States, settling on a farm 
 near Honesdale, Wayne county. Pa., and after- 
 ward removing to Jermyn, Lackawanna county, 
 where he died. Before leaving England he mar- 
 ried Mary Curtis, whose father, William Curtis, 
 was a farmer in England. Her death occurred 
 in Jermyn, Pa. In her family there were four 
 children who attained mature years, namely : 
 Joseph, who died at Jermyn; Thomas, who is 
 engaged in mining and lives at Butte, Mont. ; 
 Rev. Stephen Jay, D. D., pastor of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church at Fortyfort, Luzerne 
 county, Pa. ; and Richard Curtis, the only repre- 
 sentative of the family in California. 
 
 The last named child, Richard Curtis, was born 
 at St. Blazey, England, March i, 1853, and at 
 six years of age accompanied the family to Penn- 
 sylvania, where his education was obtained in 
 the Honesdale common schools. While attend- 
 ing school in the winter, after the age of fifteen 
 he clerked in a mercantile store during the sum- 
 mer months. Going to Jermyn, Pa., in 1869, 
 Mr. Jay secured employment as clerk in the 
 general store of John Jermyn, with whom he 
 remained much of the time for twelve years. 
 Meanwhile he had gained a local reputation as a 
 musician. From boyhood he has been fond of 
 music and readily acquired a thorough knowl- 
 edge of various instruments. In addition to 
 clerking he taught music and founded the Jermyn 
 band, of which he was the leader. Under his 
 skillful training the band won the medal for 
 the district. 
 
 On coming to California in 1877 he was en- 
 gaged as a musician in San Jose. Next he went 
 to Virginia City, Nev., . and later taught the 
 band of Eureka, same state, for two years. In 
 1 88 1 he returned to Jermyn, Pa., and the follow- 
 ing year became teacher of the band at Nanticoke, 
 that state, and was proprietor of a music store 
 there. When he again came to California, in 
 1890, he settled in Madera and embarked in the 
 furniture business. In September, 1894, he added 
 an undertaking business in connection with his 
 other work, and in 1901 converted the establish- 
 ment into exclusively undertaking and picture 
 framing. During the existence of the Madera 
 band he was its leader. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Jay, in Moosic, Pa., 
 united him with Anna E. Swisher, who was 
 born in Susquehanna county, that state. They 
 
1482 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 own and occupy a residence in the Hughes addi- 
 tion to Madera. Their eldest daughter, Mrs. 
 Ella J. Tuggles, resides in Fresno, but the others, 
 Robert Selden, Mattie S., Stephen and Mary E., 
 are still at home. Mrs. Jay is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church and the family at- 
 tend services there. Mr. Jay is an active mem- 
 ber of the Madera Board of Trade, a believer in 
 Republican principles, and a progressive citizen, 
 contributing generously to worthy movements. 
 In 1898 the Republicans nominated him county 
 coroner and public administrator and he was 
 elected by a majority of four hundred, taking 
 the oath of office in January, 1899, for a term of 
 four years. So satisfactory was his service that 
 in 1902 he was re-elected by a majority of one 
 thousand and thirty, his second term to expire 
 in January, 1907. The duties of his office and 
 the conduct of his business make him a very 
 busy man, but he finds leisure to participate in 
 the activities of the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen, in which he is past master workman ; 
 and also in the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, in which he was noble grand two terms. 
 To prepare himself for satisfactory and efficient 
 work in embalming, he took a course of study 
 in the Champion College at Springfield, Ohio, 
 and later enjoyed the advantage of a practical 
 and thorough course in the New York Training 
 School of Embalming, by means of which he has 
 become fully qualified for the important task of 
 embalming. 
 
 SOLOMON M. KING was born in Bedford 
 county, Tennessee, October 26, 1830, a son of 
 Jonathan and Jemima (Maxwell) King. The 
 father was a native of the same state, but in 
 1 83 1 removed to Illinois, locating in Washington 
 county, where he engaged in farming, but later 
 he sold this place and settled in Perry county, 
 where he lived until his death. His wife, who 
 died in Illinois, became the mother of ten chil- 
 dren, only three of whom are now living: Solo- 
 mon M. and two daughters. 
 
 Solomon King was reared on his father's farm 
 in Illinois, his education being obtained in the 
 district schools. He remained in that state, fol- 
 lowing farming, until 1876, when he came to 
 California, first locating in Stanislaus county, 
 where he remained for one year. He then came 
 to Fresno county, where he has since resided. 
 His first purchase of land was six and one-half 
 miles east of Selma, where he lived until 1898, 
 when he sold and moved to his present fine place, 
 three miles northeast of Kingsburg. Here he 
 owns thirty acres, which is devoted to fruit and 
 alfalfa. 
 
 While still living in Illinois Mr. King was 
 united in marriage with Miss Phoebe Parlier and 
 
 to them have been born eight children, namely: 
 Mrs. Amey Marshall, deceased ; Nannie, also de- 
 ceased; Jonathan A., who lives in Parlier; Cor- 
 nelius, of Fresno ; James, deceased ; Mrs. Abigail 
 Sanderson, residing near Parlier; William R., at 
 home ; and one who died in infancy. In politics 
 Mr. King is a Democrat, but has never cared to 
 take a very active part in political matters. He is 
 a stockholder in the Growers' Winery and was 
 one of the first to work on the Centerville & 
 Kingsburg ditch. He has made a success here 
 and has a reputation for honesty of which he 
 may justly feel proud. 
 
 JUDSON DOUGLAS JACOBIE, M. D. 
 Early in the colonization of America the Jacobie 
 family emigrated from Holland and settled in 
 New York. Nicholas Jacobie, who was a native 
 of that state and the son of a Revolutionary sol- 
 dier, followed farm pursuits in the same locality 
 throughout all of his active life, and died in 
 Lewis county. Next in line of descent was Will- 
 iam Henry Jacobie, likewise a native of New 
 York and by occupation a tiller of the soil. After 
 years of activity in agricultural circles he re- 
 moved from Lewis county to the west in the 
 fall of 1886 and established his home in Los 
 Angeles. Until his death he remained retired 
 from active cares, spending his time between his 
 son's place in Fresno county and the city of 
 Los Angeles. His wife, who bore the maiden 
 name of Lydia. S. Douglas, was born in Lewis 
 county, N. Y., and died in Lbs Angeles, where 
 also occurred his demise. 
 
 Among the three children (two sons and a 
 daughter) of William Henry Jacobie, the young- 
 est, Judson D., was born in Lewis county, N. 
 Y., May 4, 1856, and at an early age planned 
 his studies with a view to entering the medical 
 profession. Upon the completion of his classical 
 studies he matriculated in the Eclectic Medical 
 Institute of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he took the 
 regular course of lectures and was graduated 
 in 1885. June of the following year found him 
 in California, where for a time he made his 
 home in Los Angeles, but in October, 1887, came 
 to Fresno county and took up the general prac- 
 tice of medicine at Centerville. To a man alive 
 to opportunities the purchase of land presented 
 a field for profitable investment, and gradually 
 he became the owner of a considerable acreage, 
 which led him to embark in the stock business. 
 Later, however, the stock was sold and he turned 
 his attention to general farming", with a specialty 
 of alfalfa. Eventually he became interested in 
 horticulture, and now has fifty acres in figs, one 
 hundred acres in alfalfa and twenty-four acres 
 in oranges, the balance of the ranch of four hun- 
 dred and forty acres being in pasture. In addi- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1483 
 
 tion to this property, which is located at the foot 
 of Mt. Campbell to the west, he is the owner 
 of two hundred and ninety-five- acres on the 
 Kings river bottom, adapted not only for the 
 grazing of cattle, but also to a considerable ex- 
 tent suited for general farming, and here may 
 be seen excellent grades of stock, including a 
 number of full-blood Polled Angus cattle. Be- 
 sides his other ranches he is the owner of Wild 
 Flower place of one hundred and fifty-four acres, 
 situated near Conejo in the Duke school district. 
 After coming to Fresno county Dr. Jacobie 
 met and married Miss Nancy E. Demasters, who 
 is a native of Tulare county and has spent her 
 life wholly in the west. Born of their union are 
 two sons, Judson G. and Douglas L. (twins), 
 and a daughter, Ninon Adell. While still a resi- 
 dent of New York Dr. Jacobie was initiated into 
 Masonrj' and still holds membership with the 
 blue lodge in his old home town. Conversant 
 with public questions and familiar with the prin- 
 ciples of each of the great political organizations, 
 he gives his preferences to the Republican party 
 and supports its candidates and measures by his 
 ballot. 
 
 THEODORE CROCKETT DOUGLASS. 
 Four miles northeast of Sanger in the Cen- 
 terville district lies the homestead purchased by 
 Mr. Douglass in 1888 and since that year the 
 scene of his activities. At the time of purchase 
 the thirty acres had been under cultivation to 
 wheat, but he soon made important improvements 
 and now has seven acres in oranges, ten acres 
 in vineyard and the balance in alfalfa. While 
 giving careful attention to 'the improvement of 
 his property he has' found leisure for participa- 
 tion in various movements of a progressive na- 
 ture, notable among which may be mentioned the 
 Kings River Citrus Association (cooperative), a 
 branch of the Southern California Citrus Ex- 
 change. In the organization of this important 
 movement he bore a prominent part, and at this 
 writing officiates as its president and manager. 
 
 On a farm in the mountains of East Tennessee 
 Theodore Crockett Douglass was born, Novem- 
 ber ID, 1838, being a son of Jonathan and Jane 
 Crockett (Young) Douglass, natives of Tennes- 
 see. Of a family of nine children he was the 
 youngest and is now the sole survivor. When 
 he was two years of age his father died while 
 visiting in Missouri; afterward his mother re- 
 mained in Tennessee until her death in 1861. The 
 family being large, the father dead, and their 
 means limited, he was early obliged to earn his 
 own way in the world, and by chance drifted 
 into photography, which in those days was far 
 less of an art than at the present time. Daguer- 
 reotypes were much in vogue and he acquired 
 a thorough knowledge of the process, but made 
 
 a specialty of the style familiarly known as tin- 
 types, the right for which he purchased at con- 
 siderable expense. With his appliances in a 
 light wagon he traveled from town to town in 
 the eastern part of Tennessee, and always found 
 work in his line. 
 
 During the year 1862 Mr. Douglass gave up 
 photographic work and settled in Denton county, 
 Tex., where he became interested in raising sheep 
 and horses, and for years had varying experi- 
 ences of successes and reverses as the prices of 
 stock advanced or receded. When he left Texas 
 in 1887 he came to California and for a year 
 made Fresno his headquarters, meanwhile with 
 his well-boring machine doing considerable busi- 
 ness throughout this part of the state, boring 
 altogether about one hundred wells during the 
 year. In 1888 he came to the eastern part of 
 Fresno county, where he and his wife (formerly 
 Emma C. Darden, and a native of Alabama) have 
 established a comfortable home. They are the 
 parents of nine children, namely : Mrs. Anna 
 Cameron, of Sanger ; John, whose home is in 
 Centerville district; William, a rancher of Fres- 
 no county; Mrs. Mary Jackson, of Sanger; 
 Charles, who resides with his parents; Viola, 
 who is engaged in teaching school ; Emma, Lottie 
 and Kate, at home. 
 
 In politics Mr. Douglass votes with the Demo- 
 cratic party and fraternally he is allied with the 
 Masonic order. His membership in the Sterling 
 Price Camp, Confederate Veterans' Union, at 
 Fresno, comes to him by virtue of his war serv- 
 ice shortly after he removed to Texas. It was 
 during 1862 that he joined the Confederate cause 
 as a soldier and became a private in Company A 
 of Alexander's Regiment, which was assigned to 
 the Indian Territory to work in cooperation with 
 the Indians there. Until the end of the war he 
 remained in the army and when the cause was 
 lost and the soldiers laid down their arms he 
 returned to his stock farm in Texas and resumed 
 the pursuits of civic life. 
 
 WILLIAM TEMPLE COLE. The family 
 represented by this California pioneer of 1849 
 came to America from France, the first of the 
 name on this side of the Atlantic being one Will- 
 iam Temple Cole, who left his native land for 
 the larger opportunities afforded by the new 
 world. After some years spent among the plant- 
 ers of Virginia he joined Daniel Boone in cross- 
 ing the-mountains to the wilderness of Kentucky, 
 where he hewed out a homestead from the timber 
 and endured the hardships incident to frontier 
 life among hostile Indians. At the outbreak of 
 the war of 1812 he and his brother, Capt. Stephen 
 Cole, with five other men, suffered an attack from 
 savages to the number of seventeen. Only two 
 
1484 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the seven survived to tell the tale of then- 
 sufferings, and they, after seven days of fearful 
 hardship, reached Lauter Island, where they 
 found a settlement of white people. One of the 
 two survivors was Captain Cole, a man of splen- 
 did physique and remarkaUe strength. Alone 
 and unaided he had killed five of the Indians, 
 throwing two of them into the fire and holding 
 them there until they were burned to death. The 
 others he kept at bay with his gun. It was his 
 policy to refrain from shooting, but the Indians, 
 knowing that he carried a loaded gun, were care- 
 ful to keep out of his reach. During 1818 this 
 indomitable Indian fighter fell a victim to their 
 cruelties, being killed by them near Taos, N. 
 M., and thus was ended a career as remarkable 
 though less famous than that of his friend and 
 associate, Daniel Boone. 
 
 When the wilderness of Kentucky began to 
 come under the influences of civilization and 
 settlers poured in from the east, the spirit of 
 Daniel Boone pined for the unbroken forests of 
 Nature primeval, and thus he was led to seek 
 a new home beyond the confines of the white 
 man's power. At the opening of the nineteenth 
 century he took his family to Missouri, and in 
 this journey he was accompanied by Samuel 
 Cole, a Virginian by birth and a son of the 
 Frenchman who founded the family in America. 
 For three years this lad acted as errand boy to 
 the famous frontiersman, and after Boone's death 
 he accompanied the widow and her family to a 
 new location, where a fort was built and the 
 town of Boonville founded. Six years later he 
 moved twelve miles south of Boonville and there 
 remained until his death at ninety years of age. 
 During the Indian wars in Missouri he proved 
 himself as brave a fighter as his uncle, and the 
 company of which he was captain did much to 
 bring the savages under subjection. 
 
 After coming to Missouri Samuel Cole mar- 
 ried Sally Briscoe, who was born in Kentucky and 
 died in Missouri in 1-856. Andrew Briscoe, her 
 father, a Kentuckian by birth, became a farmer 
 in Cooper county. Mo., and during the Creek 
 war served as a colonel under General Harrison. 
 In the family of Samuel Cole there were nine 
 sons and five daughters, all of whom survive but 
 two sons and two daughters, William Temple 
 Cole being the eldest of the family and its only 
 representative in California. Born in Cooper 
 county. Mo., August 2, 1825, his lot in childhood 
 was that of a pioneer's son in a region where 
 work was plentiful and opportunities few. Once, 
 when not well enough to work at breaking hemp, 
 he was sent to school for three weeks, but with 
 that exception he had no opportunity to acquire 
 an education. Such books as he could get (and 
 they were indeed few) he eagerly studied at night 
 when the heavy labor of the day had ended. In 
 
 this way he has gained a knowledge equal to 
 that of many a high-school graduate. After he 
 started out for himself the world became his 
 school and Experience was his schoolmaster, and 
 who shall say that the lessons there learned were 
 less valuable than those gleaned from the pages 
 of the blue-backed speller, the encyclopedia of 
 knowledge in those days ? It is'said of him that 
 he possessed remarkable strength and endurance, 
 and never found his superior in a wrestling 
 match, while once in St. Louis he attracted con- 
 siderable attention by lifting five hundred pounds. 
 He has been a man of magnificent physique, and 
 was a remarkable walker and runner in his day. 
 He has beaten a stage many times, and has 
 walked from Auburn to Sacramento, about fifty 
 miles, in one day and carried $5,qoo in gold 
 dust. He was a volunteer in the Mexican war 
 from Boonville and boarded the steamer Louis F. 
 Lin for St. Louis, where he was mustered in and 
 joined a regiment under Colonel Hughes. His 
 company, with Captain Stephens, was stationed 
 in the courthouse and were well treated by the 
 patriotic citizens. No member of his company 
 was arrested for misdemeanor while in St. Louis. 
 They were finally ordered back to Boonville, 
 where they were paid off. 
 
 At the age of twenty-one years William Tem- 
 ple Cole started out for himself, and for two 
 years traded with the Indians in Kansas. Upon 
 learning of the discovery of gold in Cahfornia 
 he started across the plains with mule-teams. At 
 Goose creek his party left their wagons and mules 
 and proceeded with pack-horses to San Francisco, 
 where he landed August 10, 1849. This now fa- 
 mous metropolis of the coast then presented a 
 most -unattractive appearance, being a mere brush 
 thicket with nothing to attract settlers except its 
 beautiful harbor of the Golden Gate. Not a 
 house had yet been finished. Incoming vessels 
 and pack-horses from the plains brought their 
 constant throng of gold-seekers to swell the pop- 
 ulation of a settlement without laws and depend- 
 ent upon a hastily organized vigilance committee 
 to enforce order 'among a reckless and lawless 
 band. After having secured the company's mail 
 at San Francisco, Mr. Cole returned eastward 
 and met them on Bear river, near the present 
 site of Nevada City. With the members of the 
 party he then proceeded to the vicinity of John- 
 son's ranch, where he spent one month in as- 
 sisting the company to close out its affairs, and 
 then made his way to the Yuba river, where he 
 mined until a severe illness and the advice of his 
 physician caused him to seek another location. 
 Two miles from Sacramento he took up a tract 
 of land, where he embarked in the stock busi- 
 ness, and in addition furnished steamers with 
 wood. For a time he was exceedingly prosper- 
 ous, but all was lost in the floods of 1849 ^"^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1485 
 
 1850. After continuing in the stock business 
 there for some years, in i860 he removed to Fres- 
 no comity and settled on the Kings river bot- 
 tom. There, too, a flood soon came to bring 
 him reverses, and in a second flood he lost about 
 $15,000 and a valuable farm. 
 
 Desiring to settle in a neighborhood where his 
 children could enjoy educational advantages, Mr. 
 Cole removed one mile above the present site 
 of the academy, which institution he assisted in 
 starting and building, and of which for years 
 he ofjficiated as a director. By gradual purchase 
 he acquired six hundred and forty acres in one 
 body, and this he has improved with neat build- 
 ings and good fences. For years he made a 
 specialty of the stock business, but since 1897 
 he practically has been retired from large farm- 
 ing interests, preferring to enjoy in his declining 
 years the comforts accumulated by long years of 
 toil. Among associates he is regarded as a man 
 of large heart and generous impulses. No one 
 in need was ever turned away from his door 
 empty-handed and hungry. During the early 
 days he proved a friend to emigrants. On the 
 top of the Sierras he had a little store, and when 
 the emigrants landed there, destitute of pro- 
 visions they gladly availed themselves of the op- 
 portunity to replenish their depleted stock of 
 supplies. Flour brought him seventy-five cents 
 a pound, and many willingly would have paid him 
 twice that amount had he cared to demand it; 
 to those who were out of money as well as sup- 
 plies he gave freely of his supplies, so that emi- 
 grants came to regard him as a benefactor and 
 personal friend. 
 
 In Solano county, Cal, Mr. Cole was united 
 in marriage, January 12, 1854, with Miss Jane 
 Sweany, a native of Dallas county, Mo., and a 
 daughter of James Sweany, a California pioneer 
 of 1850, for some years living in Nevada City, 
 later carrying on a farm in Solano county, and 
 eventually dying at Visalia. In the family of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Cole there are the following named 
 daughters, all of whom received excellent educa- 
 tional advantages and became active church mem- 
 bers : Sally, wife of D. C. Sample, of Acad- 
 emy; Alice, Mrs. WilHam Hoskins, who died in 
 Fresno; Mary, Mrs. John Stroud, of Oakland; 
 Angeline, Mrs. Burkhead, of Fresno; Jane, who 
 married Frank Estell, of Academy; Ida, wife 
 of John Bell, of Fresno county; Kate, wife of 
 W. H. Shafer, of Selma ; William Grace, who 
 married Robert Hoag, of Fresno ; Emily, wife of 
 William Haskell, of Dry creek; and Harriet, 
 who married Alfred Blasingame, of Academy. 
 In their church membership both Mr. and Mrs. 
 Cole are active workers and at one time he offi- 
 ciated as a trustee of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South, to the support of which he has 
 always been a liberal contributor, as Re is to 
 
 other organizations for the upbuilding of the 
 community. At no time active in politics, he 
 takes no part in public affairs aside from casting 
 a straight Democratic ticket at all elections. In 
 fraternal relations he formerly held membership 
 with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 HUGH L. HAMILTON. While Mr. Hamil- 
 ton IS still a young man he has accumulated a 
 handsome property and is considered one of the 
 substantial men in Tulare county. His success in 
 life is the result of his own efforts, having made 
 his own way in the world since 1881. He is a 
 native of Arkansas, and was born in Mississippi 
 county, near Osceola, January 16, 1861, a son of 
 Andrew J. Hamilton, who was born in Ireland. 
 The latter was a son of Charles Hamilton, who 
 removed from Ohio to Virginia, afterwards going 
 to Missouri, settling in Cass county, where he 
 became actively engaged in general farming. 
 During his residence in Cass county he made 
 several trips across the plains, and in 1872 lo- 
 cated in Tulare county. Here he lived until his 
 death in 1882, at the ripe old age of ninety-seven 
 years. His last days were spent at the home of 
 his son Hugh, near Kaweah. 
 
 Andrew J. Hamilton spent most of his life in 
 Arkansas, where he was a large farmer, dying 
 there in 1869. Of his marriage with Elizabeth 
 Moberly six children were born, Hugh L. being 
 the youngest and the only one living. Mrs. Ham- 
 ilton died in 1864 at her home in Arkansas. 
 
 Hugh L. Hamilton was eight years of age 
 when his father died. His grandfather then took 
 him to Cass county. Mo., where he remained until 
 1872, when he came to California, making his 
 home with his uncle, Hugh Hamilton. Here he 
 lived until the death of the uncle, October 3, 1883. 
 Before this, however, in 1881, he had purchased 
 two hundred and forty acres of land on section 2, 
 which now adjoins the town of Exeter. Follow- 
 ing the death of his uncle, Mr. Hamilton engaged 
 in the grain and stock business, in which he has 
 continued to be interested up to the present time. 
 In addition to the land mentioned, he has from 
 time to time made other purchases, some of which 
 he has sold, but he still retains one hundred acres 
 of the land adjoining the town. 
 
 Aside from his farming and stock business, 
 Mr. Hamilton has followed his trade, that of a 
 blacksmith, for several years, having opened the 
 first shop in this section of the country. This 
 he did for his own accommodation, but was soon 
 compelled to do custom work for his neighbors, it 
 being the only shop in this part of the county. 
 Being a natural mechanic, Mr. Hamilton enjoyed 
 the work and has continued his shop up to the 
 present time. In addition to general blacksmith- 
 ing work he also builds wagons and does other 
 
1486 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 work of a like nature, and it has been said there 
 is nothing to be constructed of iron and wood that 
 Mr. Hamihon cannot make. 
 
 Mr. Hamilton has been twice married, his first 
 wife being Miss Mildred Ferril, a native of Mis- 
 souri, and a daughter of John Ferril, who came 
 to Tulare county in 1881 and now lives near 
 Exeter. Mrs. Hamilton became the mother of 
 five children, namely : Mary Leta, Hugh Mere- 
 dith, John Henry (deceased), Camilla Eleanor 
 and Milton Ferril. The mother of this family 
 died January 15, 1895. In 1897 Mr. Hamilton 
 married Ida M. Butts, who was born near Visalia, 
 a daughter of James H. Butts, who now lives in 
 Hanford. This marriage resulted in the birth of 
 two children : Harry Wheeler and Marion Ger- 
 trude. The latter died very suddenly November 
 22, 1904, falling dead while playing with her little 
 brother. 
 
 In political belief Mr. Hamilton is a Democrat 
 and has taken quite an active part in the affairs 
 of the county, serving for a time as a member of 
 the county central committee. He has also been 
 active in school work, being a member of the 
 board of trustees of the Exeter district. Frater- 
 nally he belongs to the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen and the Knights of Pythias. In both 
 these lodge rooms he is at all times a welcome 
 visitor, being popular with a large circle of ac- 
 quaintances. Mr. Hamilton has an assured posi- 
 tion in the affairs of Tulare county, where he has 
 spent so many years. 
 
 EMIL WOLFFS. In this state where such 
 a large percentage of the population is made up 
 of people who have migrated from other states 
 it is pleasing to meet one who is a native son 
 and who has made a success of the opportunities 
 that have presented themselves. Mr. Wolfes is 
 now the superintendent of the Eggers vineyard. 
 Fie was born in San Francisco, in 1871, and is 
 a son of Gerard and Caroline Eggers. The 
 father was born in Germany and on immigrating 
 to this country took up his residence in San 
 Francisco, where he lived until his death in 
 1877. His wife is still living, making her home 
 with George H. Eggers,, the founder of the vine- 
 yard bearing his name. By her marriage she 
 became the mother of two children of whom 
 E. Wolfes is the eldest. His boyhood and youth 
 were spent in the city of his birth where he ob- 
 tamed a practical common school education. At 
 an early age, owing to sickness, he was com- 
 pelled to give up his schooling and afterward en^ 
 tered an office as a clerk. Subsequently he be- 
 came an accountant and bookkeeper, which oc- 
 cupation he followed until 1894, when he located 
 m Fresno county. The first three years of his 
 residence here were spent on the ranch that his 
 
 mother had previously purchased, but at the end 
 of the two years Mr. Wolfes again took up his 
 old occupation of bookkeeping, entering the em- 
 ploy of a winery. In 1900 he was put in charge 
 of the books of the Eggers' vineyard and five 
 years later was made the superintendent, which 
 position he is now filling. This property is lo- 
 cated six miles northeast of Fresno and consists 
 of seven hundred acres, five hundred and fifty 
 of which are in vineyard. 
 
 In political matters, Mr. Wolfes is a Repub- 
 lican, but he has never cared to take a very 
 active part in public affairs, preferring to give 
 his whole time to his employers. Enterprising 
 and industrious he has attained an enviable posi- 
 tion among the vineyardists of Fresno county. 
 
 REUBEN JOSHUA GARRETSON. Born 
 in Pike county, Mo., March 8, 1861, Mr. Garret- 
 son is a son of William G. Garretson, a native 
 of Virginia. At a very early day he removed 
 to Missouri, locating in Pike county. Later he 
 took up his residence in Audrain county, where 
 he purchased a farm and lived until his death, 
 March 10, 1900, at the age of seventy-one years. 
 His wife, Lucinda Victoria Mooney, was born 
 in the same state as her husband. In Septem- 
 ber, 1903^ she came to California and is now liv- 
 ing in Fresno with her children. Her marriage 
 resulted in the birth of eight children, four sons 
 and four daughters. 
 
 Of this large family Reuben J. was the eldest. 
 After completing his education he secured a po- 
 sition as a brick mason, which trade he learned 
 very thoroughly. In 1887 he disposed of his 
 interests in the east and took up his residence in 
 San Diego county, but a year later he came to 
 Fresno and engaged in contracting and building, 
 remaining in that place for another year, or until 
 1889, the year of his arrival in Conejo, although 
 at that time there was no town here and it was 
 called the "wild flower country." For a time Mr. 
 Garretson worked on different ranches and in 
 1 90 1, with the money he had saved, he purchased 
 his present place of one hundred and sixty acres, 
 just east of Conejo, and here he is now conduct- 
 ing a profitable dairy and stock business, also 
 raising considerable fruit, mostly almonds and 
 peaches. 
 
 Mr. Garretson was united in marriage with 
 Miss Sarah Isabelle Frazier, who was also born 
 in Pike county, Mo., a daughter of William 
 Frazier. Her father died when she was young 
 and her mother subsequently married John At- 
 kinson, and Mrs. Garretson accompanied her 
 mother and stepfather on their removal to Cali- 
 fornia in 1888. Mr. Atkinson is now living in 
 the Perin Colony. Mrs. Atkinson died several 
 years ago. To Mr. and Mrs. Garretson have been 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1487 
 
 born six children : Eva May, deceased ; William 
 Everett, Lena Belle, Lillian Gertrude, Nellie 
 Arreta and Walter Marvin, all of whom are Hv- 
 iftg at home. 
 
 Mr. Garretson is highly respected by all who 
 know him, not only for his high sense of honor, 
 but for the influential position he has attained in 
 the business world. Fraternally he is a member 
 of the Modei-n Woodmen of America, while in 
 poHtics he supports the men and measures of 
 the Democratic party. 
 
 JOHN W. SUMMERS. The name of Sum- 
 mers belongs to one of the earliest of the Cali- 
 fornia pioneers, A. G. Summers having come 
 to the state in the historic days and located in 
 Solano county. He was a native of Virginia and 
 brought with him to the west the qualities which 
 have ever distinguished the citizens of that state. 
 His trip across the plains was necessarily filled 
 with hardships and dangers, his early residence 
 in the state from 1858 was one of privation and 
 toil, but no discouragement had power to daunt 
 his energy or ambition and in the succeeding 
 years he became one of the prominent men of 
 Solano county. He owned a thousand acres of 
 land located six miles from Dixon, upon which 
 he engaged in grain-raising for many years. His 
 death occurred in August, 1900, when fifty- 
 three years of age. He was prominent frater- 
 nally, being a Knight Templar Mason. His 
 wife, formerly Susan Warfield, a native of So- 
 lano county and the daughter of Charles War- 
 field, who died there, still survives him, and 
 makes her home on the old place. Of their five 
 children four are living, the only son and next 
 to the oldest child being John W. Summers, a 
 well-known and much-esteemed resident of Tu- 
 lare county. 
 
 John W. Summers was born in Dixon, Solano 
 county, Cal., November 18, 1875, and was reared 
 to manhood on the paternal farm. He received 
 a preliminary education in the district school in 
 the vicinity of his home, after which he attended 
 college at Oakland and at College City and 
 Heald's Business College of San 'Francisco, 
 where he completed a commercial course. He 
 was fourteen years old when he lost his father, 
 and being the only son it soon became incumbent 
 upon him to manage the home place. He en- 
 gaged in farming for about three years there 
 and in 1899 located in Tulare county on twelve 
 hundred and eighty acres on sections 16 and 21, 
 township 17, range 25, nine miles northeast of 
 Visalia. Eight hundred acres of this large farm 
 are under the Alta Irrigation ditch, his princi- 
 pal occupation being the raising of grain. He 
 has made a success of his work and is numbered 
 among the representative men of this section. 
 
 October 24, 1899, Mr. Summers was united 
 in marriage near Woodland with Mattie Cramer, 
 a native of that locality. Her father, Louis Cra- 
 mer, was born in Kentucky, reared in Ohio and 
 in 1848 crossed the. plains to California and en- 
 gaged in mining on the American river. He 
 became an early settler of Yolo county and en- 
 gaged in general farming and stock-raising, in 
 partnership with J. L. Pace, the firm name be- 
 ing Pace & Cramer, calling to mind to the oldest 
 inhabitants of the county the most extensive 
 stockmen of their day. Mr. Cramer now owns 
 two hundred and forty acres on Cache creek, 
 within four miles of Woodland, Yolo county, 
 where he is engaged in the fruit business, the 
 entire property being in orchard and vineyard. 
 In California he married Mattie Pace, a native 
 of Missouri and a daughter of the Rev. Russ 
 Pace, a Baptist minister of Missouri. Of their 
 five children all are living, Mrs. Summers being 
 the third in order of birth. She received her 
 scholastic training in St. Mary's Academy, at 
 Woodland. Mr. and Mrs. Summers have one 
 son, Roscoe. The farm upon which they are 
 located has been in the Summers family since 
 1883, when his father purchased it. Fraternally 
 Mr. Summers is a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World of Visalia, and both himself and wife 
 belong to Women of Woodcraft. Politically he 
 is a stanch adherent of the principles advocated 
 in the platform of the Democratic party. 
 
 WILLIAM M. GIBSON. A mile and a half 
 northwest of Conejo, Fresno county, is located 
 the ranch which belongs to William M. Gibson, 
 and where he is engaged in general farming and 
 stock-raising. He has a dairy of thirty-five cows, 
 eight acres of vineyard, and is contemplating 
 planting to orchard and vineyard a- tract of one 
 hundred acres adjoining- the one hundred and 
 sixty which forms the home place. He is a na- 
 tive of Jefferson county, Ky., where he was born 
 August 8, 1838. His father, William M. Gibson, 
 Sr., was a native of Bardstown, Ky., and was the 
 son of another William M., who was born in 
 Albemarle county, Va., and in manhood emi- 
 grated to Kentucky, where he became a large 
 slave-owner and where his death eventually oc- 
 curred. WilHam M. Gibson, Sr., was a hatter 
 by trade and also engaged as a teacher in the 
 public schools, teaching in Jefferson county, Ky., 
 and Clark county, Ind., for several years. He 
 died at Gibson Station, Ind., aged eighty-six 
 years. He was reared a Catholic. His wife, 
 formerly Mary L. Hikes, was born and reared in 
 Jefferson county, Ky., and died in Indiana. They 
 were the parents of five sons and six daughters, 
 of whom William M. was the eldest. 
 
 Educated in the public schools and in Oberlin 
 
1488 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 College, Ohio, William M. Gibson engaged in 
 farming in young manhood, in 1862 enlisting m 
 the Fourth Indiana Cavalry, Company D, in 
 which he was elected sergeant and served for 
 three years. Ke participated in many engage- 
 ments, among them Perryville, Stone River, etc. ; 
 spent two weeks in Libby prison; was paroled 
 with Gilroy's men, and was honorably discharged 
 in July, 1865, in Edgefield, Tenn. He then en- 
 gaged in farming in Clark county, Ind., where 
 he remained until 1870, in which year he located 
 in Sedalia, Mo. Ten years later he sold out and 
 came to California, purchasing his present prop- 
 erty of one hundred and sixty acres, where he 
 combined the interests of farming with general 
 teaming into the mountains. With nothing in the 
 way of improvements Mr. Gibson has brought 
 his property to rank with the best ranches in 
 this section, adding various improvements in the 
 way of buildings and fences, and bringing it up 
 to a high state of cultivation. He now owns two 
 hundred and sixty acres, one hundred of which 
 he intends planting to orchard and vineyard at 
 no distant date, while he also rents land for farm- 
 ing purposes. 
 
 In Clark county, Ind., Mr. Gibson was united 
 in marriage with Eliza J. Bennett, a native of 
 Lexington, Ky., and they have one child, Ella, 
 the wife of Rolla Prather, who farms the ranch 
 with his father-in-law. Politically Mr. Gibson 
 is a stanch Republican and is a prominent mem- 
 ber of the Grand Army of the Republic, Fresno 
 Post. 
 
 prominent business men of the town. Mr. Davis 
 is associated fraternally with Kingsburg Lodge 
 No. 9138, M. W. A., of this place, of which 
 he acts as secretary, and politically he is a stanch 
 adherent of the principles advocated in the plat- 
 form of the Democratic party. 
 
 SAMUEL DAVIS. A pioneer merchant of 
 Kingsburg, Fresno county, Samuel Davis has 
 been associated with the progress and develop- 
 ment of the place since 1875. He is a native 
 son of the state, his birth having occurred in 
 Mariposa county, October 8, 1857, where his 
 father. White Davis, located in 1854, having 
 come to the United States a year previous from 
 Austria, his native land. The elder man fol- 
 lowed a general merchandise business in Coulter- 
 ville, Cal, until his death, which occurred in 
 1890. His wife, formerly Bettie Weinstock, also 
 a native of Austria, died in San Francisco in 
 1892. They were the parents of four children, 
 three sons and one daughter, of whom Samuel 
 Davis was the youngest. He received his edu- 
 cation in the common schools of his native state, 
 and in young manhood followed the occupation 
 of his father. He located in Merced in 1872 
 where he engaged in a general merchandise busi- 
 ness, and three years later came to Kingsburg 
 Fresno county, and established a mercantile busi- 
 ness, which he has since conducted, having his 
 brother, Solomon Davis, for his partner. They 
 have made a success of the enterprise and are 
 
 JOHN LESTER was born in Iowa, near 
 Burlington, February 18, 1844, and is the son 
 of James Lester, a native of Pulaski county, Ky. 
 In that state he engaged in farming, later re- 
 moving to Iowa, and becoming an early settler 
 of Des Moines county. There he remained until 
 1863, when, accompanied by his family, he 
 started for California, going by way of New 
 York on the steamship Illinois. They were 
 obliged to remain at Panama from Qiristmas 
 until New Year's, when they took passage on 
 the steamship America, bound for San Fran- 
 cisco, and reached that city January 13, 1864. 
 On his arrival in California he settled on the 
 Stanislaus river near Salida where he home- 
 steaded land and engaged in grain raising. He 
 died at the age of sixty-three years while visiting 
 in Fresno. His wife bore the maiden name of 
 Sarah Ann De Voe and was born in Baltimore, 
 Md., a daughter of Col. William H. De Voe, 
 who in the early days removed to Burlington, 
 Iowa, where he lived at the time of his death. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Lester were born nine chil- 
 dren, five of whom are living. 
 
 John Lester was reared on his father's farm in 
 Iowa where he remained until attaining his ma- 
 jority. During this time he obtained a limited 
 education in the district schools of the neighbor- 
 hood, but in those days the youth was needed to 
 assist in the work of the farm and little attention 
 was given to educational matters. Upon the re- 
 moval of his parents to this state, our subject 
 accompanied them and for the two years fol- 
 lowing his arrival here worked on farms in the 
 San Joaquin valley. At the end of this period 
 he entered land near Salida and engaged in grain 
 raising. Later he became interested in the lum- 
 ber business on the Tuolumne river in partner- 
 ship with J. D. Reyburn. Subsequently he again 
 took up farming and also engaged in sheep rais- 
 ing, following the latter business for ten years, 
 his ranch being located on the Cantura creek in 
 Fresno county. In 1888 he disposed of his sheep 
 business and located on his present place two 
 and one-half miles southeast of Clovis. Here he 
 owns six hundred and forty acres which he has 
 improved and placed under a high state of culti- 
 vation. 
 
 In the city of Stockton, Mr. Lester was united 
 in marriage with Miss Susan Sayre, who was 
 born on Long Island, N. Y., and to them have 
 been born the following children; Frank H., 
 
1^Uj2M/yL^{p,'^^:t.S3^xt^^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1489 
 
 who died in Modesto at the age of twenty-three 
 years; Mary Ellen; Hattie S., now Mrs. Fred 
 Dawson; Calvin De Voe, who lives in Santa 
 Ana ; Leroy, at home ; Grace, now Mrs. William 
 Keller of Fresno; Rose V. and Blanche H., both 
 at home. 
 
 Ever since attaining his majority, Mr. Lester 
 has been a stanch Republican but has never cared 
 to enter the arena of public life. Nevertheless 
 he has always been willing to do his part to- 
 wards promoting the welfare of his county. His 
 success in life is the result of hard labor, indus- 
 try and perseverance. He started in life at the 
 bottom of the ladder and that he has succeeded 
 is a matter of which he and his children may 
 well feel proud. Such men's lives contain much 
 that is worthy of emulation. 
 
 EZ. CALLISON. Few pioneers of the San 
 Joaquin valley have been more successful and 
 none has gained a higher position in the regard 
 of associates than Mr. Callison, who since 1870 
 has made his home on a farm four and one-half 
 miles east of Tipton, and twelve miles southeast 
 of Tulare. A member of an old Virginian fam- 
 ily, who proved to be good citizens alike in war 
 and peace, he was born in Ohio January 30, 1831, 
 and was next to the youngest among eight sons 
 and five daughters of Moses and Catherine (Bon- 
 net) Callison, natives of Virginia. It is worthy 
 of note that all of the sons attained mature years 
 and only one of the number was less than six 
 feet tall. Ez. is the only one in California. Sev- 
 eral of his brothers enlisted in the Civil war and 
 died during their service. His father, who was 
 a soldier in the war of 1812 and fought under 
 General Jackson at New Orleans, became a pio- 
 neer of Ohio, and in 1832 settled in Vermilion 
 county. 111., thence going to Greene county. Mo., 
 in 1842, and remaining there until his death when 
 about one hundred and two years old. When the 
 Black Hawk war stirred to action the pioneers of 
 the Mississippi valley, he gave his services in de- 
 fense of home and country with the same fidelity 
 characteristic of his previous military career. 
 Throughout life he made agriculture his occupa- 
 tion. His wife, like himself, was a Virginian by 
 birth, and died in Missouri when two years past 
 the century mark. 
 
 The earliest recollections of Mr. Callison are 
 associated with life upon the frontier. When an 
 infant he was taken to Illinois, where his early 
 years were passed in Vermilion county. When 
 the family removed to Missouri he was ten years 
 of age, and recalls vividly the early days of life 
 in the new country, in a cabin illy adapted to 
 render comfortable those who dwelt therein. Nor 
 was the log schoolhouse more comfortable than 
 the home. With walls of logs and floor of earth, 
 
 with greased paper for windows, and rude 
 benches for seats, there was little in the environ- 
 ment to aid the pupils in the attainment of a com- 
 mon-school education. After leaving this school 
 he was a student in Ebenezer College at Spring- 
 fieldj^Mo. While there he heard much concern- 
 ing California and, fired with an ambition to see 
 the far west, he left college and joined a com- 
 pany outfitted with ox-teams and wagons, and 
 the other necessities of a trip to the coast. At 
 Santa Fe the oxen and wagons were sold and the 
 company, mounted on pack-mules, proceeded 
 through the Rocky Mountains to Utah Lake, 
 where their provisions were renewed. From 
 there they journeyed to Los Angeles and on 
 through the San Joaquin valley to the mines, 
 where they arrived in the fall of 1849. During 
 the next two years Mr. Callison prospected and 
 mined in every part of Mariposa county, but in 
 1851 he abandoned mining and embarked in the 
 cattle business on Big Dry creek, where he had 
 a herd of about five hundred head. In 1857 he 
 came to the San Joaquin valley, which has been 
 the scene of subsequent activities. On the Tule 
 river, south of Portersville, Tulare county, he es- 
 tabhshed a stock ranch, finding the wild grass of 
 the range furnished abundant pasturage for the 
 cattle. In early days he frequently drove cattle 
 to the Sonora mines for sale. In 1864 he drove 
 a herd to Nevada, where they were sold at a 
 profit. 
 
 The property owned and occupied by Mr. Cal- 
 lison since 1870 has been increased from the 
 original tract of one hundred and sixty acres ac- 
 quired by purchase and a homestead of eighty 
 acres, until at this writing he has forty-one hun- 
 dred and eighty acres on the Tule river, embrac- 
 ing section 31, township 21, range 26; sections 
 36, 35, 26, 25, and one-half of 27, township 21, 
 range 25; one-half of section i, township 22, 
 range 25, and one-half of section 3, same town- 
 ship, all lands lying in one body. All of the im- 
 provements have been made under his supervision 
 and prove him to be a thrifty, progressive and 
 resourceful farmer, thoroughly modern in all of 
 his ideas. About fourteen hundred acres are de- 
 voted to grain and there are also large tracts used 
 for pasturage. The farm is one of the most ex- 
 tensive and valuable in ' the entire region and 
 furnishes eloquent testimony to Mr. Callison's 
 wise judgment. 
 
 At all times interested in the welfare of his 
 community, Mr. Callison has been a willing con- 
 tributor to movements of an educational or 
 philanthropic nature, has served as school trustee 
 a number of years, and has been one of Tulare 
 county's most public-spirited men. In politics 
 he gives his support to the Democratic party, of 
 whose county central committee he was at one 
 time a member. His wife, whom he married in 
 
 70 
 
1±90 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Stanislaus county, this state, was Miss Susan 
 Caroline McGee, a native of Missouri, being a 
 daughter of Richard McGee, who was born in 
 Tennessee, became a pioneer of Missouri and m 
 1850 crossed the plains to California, where he 
 engaged in the stock business until his death in 
 Tulare county. Besides their only child, Louis 
 Napoleon, now a farmer near the old home, Mr. 
 and Mrs. Callison gave a home to a girl whom 
 they reared and who is now Mrs. Mattie Talbott, 
 a teacher in, a neighboring school. 
 
 JAMES F. MITCHELL. Although Mr. 
 Mitchell is now one of the leading horticulturists 
 of Lemon Cove, Tulare_county, he was for many 
 years a prominent railroad contractor, having 
 constructed many miles of road for different com- 
 panies. But like thousands of others, the quiet 
 life of a horticulturist appealed to him, and it is 
 now his intention to pass the remainder of his 
 life amid the orange blossoms. 
 
 A native of Missouri, Mr. Mitchell was born 
 in Benton county, January 28, 1868. His father, 
 Henry L. Mitchell, was a native of Indiana, but 
 in later life removed to Missouri. During the 
 Civil war he served in the Union army, being 
 captain of his company. He saw some active 
 service and at Cold 'Camp was quite seriously 
 wounded. He died in Nevada, Vernon county, 
 Mo. His wife bore the maiden name of Caroline 
 Osborne, and to them were born thirteen chil- 
 dren, ten of whom are living. One son, Edgar, 
 resides in Modesto, and a daughter, Lucile, is now 
 Mrs. Rohrer of Fresno. 
 
 James F. Mitchell was reared on his father's 
 farm in Missouri, his educational advantages 
 being limited to the district schools of the neigh- 
 borhood. In 1877 his parents went to Colorado, 
 where his father engaged in merchandising. 
 James F. removed to Grand .Junction at the time 
 when irrigation was first started there, and soon 
 afterward he engaged in general contracting, 
 building many miles of ditches. In 1886 he mi- 
 grated westward, taking up his residence in 
 Walla Walla, Wash., where for one year he con- 
 ducted a large livery business. Not being entirely 
 satisfied with the prospects there, he went to 
 Spokane Falls, where he continued in the livery 
 business for five years. At the expiration of this 
 time he moved to Tacoma, Wash., and later to 
 Montesano, Wash., where he conducted a livery 
 and became interested in railway construction as 
 a subcontractor for the Northern Pacific. His 
 next change found him in Astoria, Ore., where 
 for eighteen months he was engaged in railroad 
 construction. Going to Boise City, Idaho, he 
 there followed contracting and building of ditches 
 and roads and farming. The year 1896 witnessed 
 his arrival in Tulare county and for the follow- 
 
 ing two years he was engaged in the deciduous 
 fruit business. In 1898 he purchased ten acres 
 of land at Lemon Cove, where he has since made 
 his home. By purchase he has added to his first 
 ten acres and now has in all twenty acres. This 
 is nearly all set out in oranges and is one of the 
 most valuable ranches in .the Lemon Cove dis- 
 trict. In addition to his own business he has en- 
 gaged in contracting, caring for several other 
 groves in this section. 
 
 Since coming to Tulare county Mr. Mitchell 
 married Otie Southerland, who was a daughter 
 of Charles Southerland, a resident of Fresno. 
 This marriage has been blessed by the birth of 
 one child, Velma. Fraternally Mr. Mitchell is a 
 charter member of Lemon Cove Lodge, No. 712, 
 W. O. W. In politics he is a Republican and 
 takes an active part in the local affairs of his 
 party, being a hard worker but not in any way a 
 seeker for office. Alive to the future of the 
 Lemon Cove district, Mr. Mitchell may always 
 be depended upon to do all in his power to favor 
 the interests of this section. He and his wife 
 are very popular among the young people, hav- 
 ing hosts of friends who are always pleased to 
 greet them. They are members of the Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian Church. 
 
 RUTHVAN HENDERSON. A descendant 
 of Scotch ancestry, Ruthvan Henderson has in- 
 herited the sturdy qualities which have made 
 those people desirable citizens in any commun- 
 ity. He was born in Monroe county, Iowa, May 
 2, i860, a son of Samuel Henderson. The latter 
 was a native of Pennsylvania, born March 4, 
 1817, his father being an immigrant to the Unit- 
 ed States from Scotland. Samuel Henderson 
 came to Iowa in young manhood and located in 
 Keokuk, where he followed his trade of cooper 
 during winters and farmed in the summers. He 
 built up a large trade and acquired a success, 
 but left that location in 1874 and came to Cali- 
 fornia, settling as a farmer in Salinas, Monterey 
 county, where his death occurred November 19, 
 1887. His wife, formerly Elizabeth J. Colwell, 
 of Ohio, also died in this state. They were the 
 parents of five sons and two daughters, of whom 
 Ruthvan was the youngest. 
 
 Educated in the common schools of Iowa and 
 California, Ruthvan Henderson grew to man- 
 hood in the latter state, his first independent ven- 
 ture being in the dairy business in TVIonterey 
 county. Later he came to Fresno county and 
 engaged as a farmer on rented land in the Amer- 
 ican Colony, and as the colony became more 
 thickly settled he removed farther out and en- 
 gaged in wheat farming. In 1890 he purchased 
 his present place, consisting of sixty acres, since 
 which time he has planted thirty-five acres to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1491 
 
 vineyard, and five acres to orchard, while the 
 balance is m alfalfa. In 1901 he located upon 
 «iis property, where he has since been a resi- 
 dent, being four miles southwest of Fowler, 
 Fresno county. 
 
 Ill Fresno county Mr-. Henderson married Mary 
 A. Burrows, a native of California and the 
 daughter of Edward Burrows. The latter was a 
 native of New York state, who came to Califor- 
 nia in an early day and built up a law practice, 
 becoming judge of Calaveras county, his death 
 occurring during his service on the bench. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Henderson were born two sons 
 Miller R. and William L. Fraternally Mr. Hen- 
 derson is identified with the Modern Woodmen 
 of America, of Fowler, Cal., and politically is 
 a stanch Republican, being active in the counsels 
 of the party and a delegate to various conven- 
 tions. He is a member of the United Presby- 
 terian Church. 
 
 J. V. TOSCANO. From a quaint town in the 
 province Di Potenza, Italy, to the energetic and 
 promising Los Banos district, is a distance 
 spanned with gratifying profit by J. V. Toscano, 
 one of the most prosperous of the Los Banos mer- 
 chants, and- one of the most genial and success- 
 ful of the town's citizens. Mr. Toscano was born 
 December i, 1868, and spent the first thirteen 
 years of his life in the little village near his 
 father's farm. The family immigration to Amer- 
 ica took place in 1881, the elder Toscano pur- 
 chasing a farm of forty acres at Badger Flat, 
 near Los Banos, where he has since continued 
 gardening to his entire satisfaction, and where 
 an outdoor life keeps him in excellent health 
 and spirits. To himself and wife, Maria (Rose) 
 Toscano have been born six children younger 
 than J. v., all of whom have liad fair advantages 
 in the public schools. 
 
 In the new country to which his father's am- 
 bition had led him, J. V. Toscano began at the 
 bottom round of the ladder, and as the oldest 
 son assisted with the family maintenance by driv- 
 ing a vegetable wagon to town. For nine years 
 his goods were as fresh, as varied, and as lux- 
 uriant as the soil of the state can produce, and in 
 the meantime the village of Los Banos took on 
 importance, and justified him in establishing a 
 vegetable headquarters within its borders. He 
 gradually added, as custom came his way, laying 
 in a stock of groceries, and branching out as' 
 became a thrifty and farsighted citizen. His 
 little store outgrew its usefulness, and in 1890 
 he erected the frame store now used for his 
 furniture store, and which is 36x80 feet in 
 dimensions. Still further increase in business 
 necessitated greater capacity, till in 1899 he built 
 his present store, 40x70 feet, two stories in 
 
 height, as well as a large warehouse. Various 
 lines of goods' have increased his usefulness as 
 a merchant, including cigars and tobacco, fancy 
 groceries and provisions, crockery ahd hardware, 
 clothing and gentlemen's furnishings, hats and 
 caps, boots and shoes, notions, paints and oils 
 and agricultural implements. 
 
 _ Mr. Toscano's success and public spirit are in- 
 dicated in his town and country investments, 
 owning, besides his own residence, seven others 
 which he rents, and four of which he built him- 
 self. He also is the owner of several valuable 
 city lots and three farms, one of eighty-two acres 
 at Badger Flat, and two five-acre ranches near 
 Los Banos. All of the ranches are under alfalfa 
 and are used for dairying purposes. Mr. Toscano 
 is interested in insurance, representing such well- 
 known firms as the Home Fire Insurance Com- 
 pany, the National Union and the Scottish, and 
 he has a bureau of general travelers information 
 and sells steamship tickets. Several years ago 
 he established a home of his own in Los Banos, 
 marrying, in Merced, Mary Sarbo, who was born 
 in Italy, and who is the mother of six children: 
 Joseph, Rosa, William, Maggie, Julia and An- 
 toine. The political sympathies of Mr. Toscano 
 are with the Republican party, and he is frater- 
 nally connected with the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows, of which he is past grand ; the For- 
 esters, of which he is past chief, ranger; the 
 Druids, of which he is district deputy; the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen; and the 
 Modern Woodmen of America. Mr. Toscano's 
 success is well merited, he possesses the best 
 traits of the Latin race, with the additional ad- 
 vantage of true western grit and determination. 
 He is high-minded and obliging, honorable and 
 fair in his business transactions, and popular with 
 all classes who patronize his establishment. 
 
 REV. NICHOLAS GUSTAVUS NELSON 
 was born in Sweden July 14, 1853, and was the 
 son of John and Margaret Nelson, who were 
 descendants of old and honorable Swedish fami- 
 lies. The father was an employe of the corpora- 
 tion railroad as a station master until he brought 
 the family to America in 1868, locating in Pierce 
 county, Wisconsin, where he entered land and 
 cleared a farm from the forest. There he made 
 his home and has reached the ripe old age of 
 seventy-nine years. His wife died in 1904, aged 
 seventy-nine years. They were the parents of 
 four children, our subject being, the oldest son, 
 
 Rev. Nicholas G. Nelson was educated in the 
 common schools of his native country and also 
 assisted his father in the station. At the age of 
 fifteen he accompanied his parents to Wisconsin 
 where he helped them in clearing the farm, re- 
 maining at home till 1876, when he entered the 
 
1492 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Swedish Methodist Theological Seminary at 
 Evanston, III, and was graduated in 1880, being 
 ordained a deacon and two years later an elder. 
 His first charge was at Keokuk, Iowa, in 1880, 
 and in 1882 he removed to Rockford, III, where 
 he remained two years. He was then trans- 
 ferred to Minneapolis, Minn., where he served 
 three years, thence to Clear Lake in the same 
 state for one year. In 1889 he was appointed 
 to Seattle, Wash., as pastor for two years, and 
 in 1 89 1 came to Kingsburg as pastor of the 
 Swedish Methodist Episcopal Church. Here he 
 labored faithfully and his efforts were crowned 
 with success, thus aiding greatly in advancing 
 the social, moral and religious welfare of the 
 Kingsburg Colony that has since become so 
 beautiful and prosperous. Afterwards he was 
 pastor of the Easton and Fresno churches. In 
 
 1902 he was appointed presiding elder in charge 
 of the Swedish district of the California confer- 
 ence of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 
 
 1903 he retired from the ministry to devote his 
 time to ranching. He owns eighty acres two 
 miles northeast of Kingsburg; of this thirty- 
 seven acres are devoted to raisin grapes, twenty 
 acres in orchard and the balance in alfalfa. He 
 takes a very active interest in the organizing and 
 holding together of the raisin growers for the 
 mutual advancement of the industry and secur- 
 ing a reasonable profit to all. He is secretary oi 
 the Scandinavian Mutual Protective Fire Insur- 
 ance Association and was one of its organizers. 
 
 Rev. Nelson was united in marriage in Iowa 
 to Miss Carrie Henrietta Peterson, born in Jef- 
 ferson county, Iowa, and they have six children: 
 Lloyd, Arthur, Lawrence, Qarence, Grace and 
 Helen. The life of Mr. Nelson is worthy of 
 emulation, as by his industry, integrity and great 
 moral worth he wields an influence for good 
 that is felt by all. California can well feel proud 
 to welcome such men to aid in reclaiming and 
 building up the great San Joaquin valley. 
 
 HON. ANDREW G. SMITH, a prominent 
 citizen of Laton, Fresno county, Cal., was born 
 in Lanarkshire, Scotland, July 24, 1865, a son 
 of Alexander Smith. The latter was also a na- 
 tive of Scotland, who came to the United States 
 in 1872 and located in Pittsburg, Pa., and fol- 
 lowed farming in that vicinity. He removed to 
 North Dakota in 1884 and engaged in the same 
 occupation in Dickey county for twelve years, 
 when he came to California. He located first 
 m Lemoore, Kings county, but has since re- 
 moved to Santa Barbara, where he is now en- 
 gaged in farming. His wife, formerly Jane Gib- 
 son, was also a native of Scotland. They be- 
 came the parents of seven children, three' sons 
 and four daughters. 
 
 Andrew G. Smith received his education in 
 the common schools of Scotland and the United 
 States, after which he taught school in North 
 Dakota for about three years. Following his 
 parents to California, he located in Lemoore in 
 1898, where he engaged in a general merchandise 
 enterprise, which occupied his attention for four 
 years. Coming to Laton in 1902 he followed 
 the same line until 1904, when he sold out in 
 August of that year and gave his time to the 
 real estate and insurance business. He was ap- 
 pointed justice of the peace in 1903 and also 
 holds the office of notary public. He owns a 
 ranch of thirty acres four miles west of Laton, 
 devoted to alfalfa, and to this he gives his per- 
 sonal attention. He owns considerable town 
 property, having built two business houses and 
 his home residence. 
 
 In Chicago Mr. Smith was united in marriage 
 with Maggie I. Byrne, a native of Illinois, and 
 they are the parents of two children, Mary Juan- 
 ita and Harvey, both at home. Fraternally Mr. 
 Smith is identified with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows, of Laton, and the Modern Wood- 
 men of America and Woodmen of the World, 
 both of the same place. Politically he is an active 
 Democrat. While a resident of Dickey county, 
 N. D., he was elected in 1894 to the state legis- 
 lature, serving two years. He is interested in 
 educational work here, having served for some 
 time as school director, being clerk of the board. 
 He is one of the prominent men of Laton, taking 
 an active interest in the upbuilding of the place, 
 and giving his best efforts toward all movements 
 pertaining to general advancement. 
 
 RASMUS MADSEN is one of this county's 
 most respected citizens. Coming here but a few 
 years ago he has attained not only success but 
 a position among his fellow-men of which he 
 may justly feel proud. A native of Denmark, 
 he was born on the Island of Fyn, April 22, 
 1866, a son of Madsen Mortensen, who was also 
 a native of the same locality. He was a farmer 
 and in early life married Miss Anna C. Olsen. 
 To them were born nine children, five of whom 
 are living, two being residents of this state. 
 Both the parents are deceased. 
 
 Rasmus Madsen was reared on his father's 
 farm, obtaining a limited common school educa- 
 tion. As soon as old enough he was obliged to 
 assist his father in the work of the farm, remain- 
 ing at home until 1885, when he enlisted in the 
 Danish army, serving therein until 1887. The 
 following three years he worked for different 
 ones, saving enough from his earnings to pur- 
 chase a ticket to America, and in the year last 
 mentioned he bade good-by to his native land 
 and sailed for the new world. The first two 
 
ti.mj, LyiA..€uQ^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1493 
 
 years of his life in the United States were spent 
 working on farms in Iowa, but at the expiration 
 of that period he came to CaHfornia, locating in 
 Fresno county. For a time he worked for others, 
 but he had determined to have a place of his 
 own and eventually leased a fruit ranch which he 
 conducted until he had accumulated enough 
 money with which to purchase forty acres in 
 the Washington colony, seven miles south of 
 Fresno. Since making his first purchase he has 
 become the owner of one hundred and sixty acres 
 more on section i8, which he still owns. It was 
 in 1904 that he purchased his present home, 
 formerly known as the J. J. Reyburn ranch, six 
 miles east of Clovis. Here he has four hundred 
 and eighty acres, which is devoted to grain and 
 stock. It is one of the finest ranches in this 
 section of the county, equipped with a beautiful 
 residence, fine barns and outbuildings and all 
 modern improvements. 
 
 Since coming to California Mr. Madsen has 
 been united in marriage with Mrs. Johanna 
 Petersen, also a native of Denmark. Mrs. Mad- 
 sen is the mother of five children, namely: 
 Christian, Peter, Annie and Mary Petersen, and 
 Thora Matina Madsen, all of whom are at home. 
 The first four children are by a former marriage 
 of Mrs. Madsen to Madas Petersen, a native 
 of Denmark. 
 
 _ Mr. Madsen has made a splendid success of 
 his life and both he and his wife are highly 
 respected fo^r their many admirable traits of 
 character. 
 
 THOMAS NEWTON JARRARD was born 
 m Georgia, near Clarksville, November 15, 1827, 
 a son of Thomas W. and Judes (Worley) Jar- 
 rard. The father was a native of Kentucky and 
 a son of David Jarrard, who was born in Virginia 
 and at a very early day removed to Kentucky, 
 being a pioneer settler of that state. He was a 
 farmer and was a soldier in the war of 1812. 
 Later in life he moved to Georgia, where he 
 finally died at the age of ninety-four years. His 
 father, also named David, the great-grandfather 
 of our subject, was born in France, and met his 
 death while fighting for the independence of the 
 colonies under Washington. Thomas W. Jar- 
 rard was a farmer and also engaged in the man- 
 ufacture of stoneware on his farm, thirteen miles 
 from Qarksville. His first wife bore him one 
 child,. Thomas N. of this review, and she died 
 at the early age of forty. His second marriage 
 resulted in the birth of eight children. 
 
 Thomas N. Jarrard was reared on his father's 
 farm, and while he was given the benefit of the 
 schools of the neighborhood, he was compelled 
 to take charge of the farm as soon as old enough, 
 so that his father could devote his time to his 
 
 manufacturing business. Remaining at home un- 
 td reaching man's estate, in 1851, he started for 
 California, the trip being made via New York, 
 where he embarked on the steamer Brother Jon- 
 athan for the Isthmus of Panama. Eleven days 
 were consumed in crossing the isthmus and on 
 reaching this side he took passage on a boat 
 called the Victorine. Upon reaching San Diego 
 the craft was condemned and the balance of the 
 trip to San Francisco was made on the Monu- 
 mental City, he finally reaching the end of his 
 journey in March, 1852. Soon after landing he 
 went to the mines in Coloma, Eldorado county, 
 where he remained three months. Then, in com- 
 pany with three others, he prospected in the Bear 
 river country until the spring of 1853, when he 
 went to Montezuma. There he engaged in min- 
 ing until the spring of 1855, when he bought a 
 farm on John's creek, in Stanislaus county. Ad- 
 ditions were made to his original purchase from 
 time to time until he owned three hundred and 
 forty acres of fine grain land. While residing 
 there, July 4, 1861, he was married to Virginia 
 Blair, a native of Indiana, and a daughter of 
 James Blair, who was born in old Virginia. 
 At a very early day he removed to Indiana and 
 in 1853 brought his family to California, the 
 journey being made with ox teams and consum- 
 ing several months. The first settlement was 
 made in Stockton, but he later located in Stanis- 
 laus county, where he engaged in general farm- 
 ing and there his death occurred at the age of 
 seventy-nine years. He married Martha Ann 
 Dickerson, a native of Kentucky and a daughter 
 of James Dickerson, who was a soldier in the 
 Revolutionary war. Later in life he settled in 
 Indiana, where his death occurred. Mrs. Blair 
 died in 1899, at the age of eighty-four years. She 
 was the mother of ten children, six of whom are 
 still living. Mrs. Jarrard was the second child 
 and crossed the plains in 1853. Prior to her 
 present marriage she became the wife of Barney 
 Cook, who died in the mines of Australia. By 
 this union was born one child, Ina P. Cook, who 
 lives near Lindsay with Mr. and Mrs. Jarrard. 
 By the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Jarrard one 
 son, W. A., has been born. 
 
 In 1872 Mr. Jarrard located on the plains three 
 miles west of Lindsay, where he homesteaded one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land. Since then he 
 has been engaged in the sheep and cattle busi- 
 ness. He added to his first possession until he 
 owned six hundred and forty acres, but during 
 the winter of 1904-S three hundred and twenty 
 acres of this were divided into twenty-acre col- 
 onv tracts, the land being especially adapted to 
 the cultivation of oranges. In addition to the 
 land owned by Mr. Jarrard, his wife has one 
 hundred and sixty acres on section 9, which is 
 highly improved. 
 
1494 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Jarrard is a Mason, uniting 
 with that order in Tuolumne county, and he now 
 belongs to Olive Branch Lodge No. 269 of Tu- 
 lare. Socially he renews old acquaintances m 
 the Pioneer Society of Tulare county. He served 
 as school trustee of the Central district for many 
 years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Jarrard are highly 
 esteemed in this section of the county, where 
 they are best known. They have traveled the 
 path of life together for many years, and m all 
 his undertakings Mr. Jarrard has found in his 
 wife a true helpmeet. 
 
 HON. DAVID VAN LEAR ROBINSON. 
 More than a half century has elapsed since Mr. 
 Robinson cast in his fortunes with those of the 
 new state of California. When he was a youth 
 of seventeen years he left his Missouri home 
 and, in company with a -brother, John C, who 
 was two years his senior, he joined a train of 
 emigrants westward bound. Leaving Missouri, 
 at Council Bluffs on the loth of May, 1853, the 
 train of thirteen wagons with ox-teams pursued 
 the long journey over a trail whither had passed 
 a long procession of Argonauts. _ Fortunately es- 
 caping any serious encounters with the red men 
 who roamed the plains, they proceeded up the 
 North Platte and by way of Devil's Gate up the 
 Sweetwater. The 4th of July was spent in Salt 
 Lake City, from which point they traveled down 
 the Humboldt and Carson rivers and into Cali- 
 fornia. After a brief stay at Jackson, Amador 
 county, the brothers went to Tuolumne county 
 and began mining. Knowing nothing of the busi- 
 ness, they were persuaded into buying a claim 
 they afterward learned was considered worthless. 
 However, luck was with them, and they were 
 fortunate in obtaining gold representing a value 
 two times as great as the purchase price of the 
 property. Other claims were taken up in the 
 same locality, and for two years the brothers 
 continued together in the mines. 
 
 It will thus be seen that Mr. Robinson holds a 
 place among the pioneer miners of the state. In 
 addition he was one of the early stock-raisers of 
 the San Joaquin valley. Ever since coming to 
 Tulare county, in 1867, he has been engaged in 
 the stock business and in general farm pursuits, 
 and has acquired a thorough knowledge of the 
 possibilities of this section from an agricultural 
 standpoint. To such men as he, far-seeing, 
 shrewd, loyal and progressive, the county is in- 
 debted for the development of its material re- 
 sources, and his fellow-citizens have recognized 
 his ability and patriotic spirit by electing him to 
 positions of trust and honor. In these various 
 posts he has shown the same uprightness and in- 
 telligence characteristic of his management of 
 
 private concerns, and has gained a deserved rep- 
 utation for energy and probity. 
 
 The Robinson family is of southern lineage. 
 William L. Robinson, who was born in Lexing- 
 ton, Fayette county, Ky., in 1800, removed to 
 Palmyra, Marion county. Mo., at twenty-one 
 years of age, and began the cultivation of a tract 
 of raw land. Later he added the raising of stock 
 to a general farm industry. At the time of his 
 death, which occurred in Missouri, he had 
 reached the age of sixty-eight years. Afterward 
 his widow joined her sons in California and died 
 at Modesto. By biirth and training she was a 
 Kentuckian, and was born in Bourbon county in 
 1801, bearing the maiden name of Augustina 
 Biddle. Of her twelve children six are still liv- 
 ing. It is worthy of note that five sons came to 
 California. Richard B., who was a pioneer of 
 1849, died at Long Beach in 1894. In 1850 the 
 second son, William T., crossed the plains to the 
 mines of the west, but his death occurred here 
 during the year of his arrival. Milton is still 
 living in California. John C, who came with 
 David Van Lear, died in Montana. 
 
 On the home farm in Marion county, Mo., 
 David Van Lear Robinson was born January 24, 
 1836. From there, at six yeairs of age, he ac- 
 companied the family to Schuyler county^ Mo., 
 and settled on a farm near Lancaster. Free 
 schools had not as yet been introduced into that 
 section, the schools being still conducted on the 
 subscription plan. During four or five months of 
 the year he attended these schools, which were 
 held in log buildings furnished in a most primi- 
 tive manner. Although the method of instruction 
 was as crude as the building itself, he gained 
 the rudiments of a fair education, which later 
 years of observation and self-culture have broad- 
 ened and deepened. When the discovery of gold 
 in California led one brother across the plains in 
 1849 '^nd another in 1850 he began to dream 
 dreams of the country across the mountains be- 
 side the sunset sea, and was eager to try his for- 
 tune in the undeveloped west. As before stated 
 he and a brother engaged in mining for two 
 years after landing in California. For the fol- 
 lowing twelve years he carried on a stage busi- 
 ness between Big Oak Flat in Tuolumne county 
 and Sonora. 
 
 Coming to Tulare county in 1867, Mr. Robin- 
 son remained in Visalia for two years and then 
 pre-empted a homestead on the Cottonwood ten 
 miles northeast of the town. From its primeval 
 condition he transformed the land into a, farm 
 improved with buildings and other necessary 
 equipments, and by the purchase of adjoining 
 property he increased his holdings until he owned 
 five hundred and sixty acres. In 1900 he bought 
 nine hundred and forty-five acres on the Tunisa 
 road near Visalia and, having disposed of his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1495 
 
 old homestead in February, 1904, he moved to 
 the larger estate, which he now occupies, sub- 
 letting much of the land to tenants. While living 
 in Tuolumne county, September 10, 1861, he was 
 united in marriage with Miss Elvira M. Harrell, 
 who was born m Forsyth county, Ga., and in 
 1859 came to California with her parents, Ed- 
 ward and Nancy (Strickland) Harrell, natives 
 of Jackson county, Ga. Her father, who was the 
 son of John Harrell, a farmer of Georgia and a 
 native of that state, became one of the pioneer 
 orchardists of Tuolumne county, where he re- 
 mained for many years, but died in Tulare county 
 at the age of eighty. Her mother passed away 
 at Visalia when seventy-six years of age. They 
 were the parents of twelve children, but Mrs. 
 Robinson and three others are the only survivors 
 of the large family. In religious belief she is an 
 adherent of the Christian Church. Born of her 
 marriage are four children, namely : Lee, who 
 at this writing is principal of the Visalia gram- 
 mar school; Abi, a teacher by occupation; Ida, 
 who is engaged in the photographic business at 
 Visalia ; and Tod, a photographer at Madera, 
 Madera county. 
 
 From boyhood Mr. Robinson has been a be- 
 liever in Democratic principles, and since coming 
 to Tulare county he has served as a member of 
 the county central committee. His interest in 
 educational matters led him to accept the office of 
 school trustee, which he filled for a long period. 
 On the Democratic ticket in 1884 he was elected 
 supervisor of the fourth district of Tulare coun- 
 ty, his term lasting from January, 1885, to Jan- 
 uary, 1887. In 1886 he was re-elected, this time 
 for a term of four years, and again, in 1898, he 
 was elected to the office for a term of four years. 
 As the representative of the sixty-fifth legisla- 
 tive district in 1894 he was elected to the state 
 legislature, where he served in the session of 
 1895 and secured the passage of an irrigation 
 bill of local importance, besides giving his influ- 
 ence to promote other measures of benefit to his 
 constituents. 
 
 JAMES THOMAS CROW. One of the best 
 conducted ranches in the vicinity of Crow's 
 Landing is that owned by James Thomas Crow, 
 three miles east of town, and comprising over 
 four hundred acres of land. Mr. Crow's family 
 is too .well known in this section to require more 
 than passing mention, for on every hand are evi- 
 dences of the high regard in which his fath'er 
 was held, one of the most ambitious and re- 
 sourceful of the grain raisers of the county. 
 Mr. Crow was born in Pike county, Mo., De- 
 cember 13, 1855. In 1865 he came to California 
 with his father. In addition to his public school 
 training he had the advantage of a course at 
 
 Heald's Business College. After leaving college 
 he farmed his father's land, and in 1884 pur- 
 chased his present farm in partnership with his 
 brother, B. T. Crow, which then comprised thir- 
 teen hundred acres. The tract was subsequently 
 divided between the brothers, and in addition to 
 the portion which James T. Crow owns he also 
 has one hundred and sixty-six acres on the creek, 
 and eight hundred acres of grain land in the 
 Cottonwood district. His home farm is under 
 a high state of cultivation, and the greater part 
 of it is rented out, its owner at present devoting 
 much of his attention to the management of a 
 cheese factory erected on his farm in 1903, 
 which has already proved a paying enterprise. 
 
 December 13, 1877, Mr. Crow was united in 
 marriage with Mary D. Riggs, who was born in 
 Ashley, Mo., and is a daughter of Ambrose D. 
 and Ann Eliza (Purse) Riggs, natives of Ken- 
 tucky and New York City, respectively. Mr. 
 Riggs moved from Kentucky to Missouri with 
 his parents when six years of age, and at Ash- 
 ley followed his trade of saddle and harness 
 making for the balance of his life. Four chil- 
 dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Crow, of whom 
 Jessie, the eldest, is the wife of W. W. Bruner, 
 a coffee plantation owner of Honolulu, and 
 Ralph, Walter and Georgia are living at home. 
 Mr. Crow has voted the Democratic ticket ever 
 since attaining manhood, but has never sought 
 nor been willing to accept public office. He is a 
 quiet, unassuming, home-loving man, a model 
 husband and father and an excellent business 
 man. He has the confidence of his neighbors 
 and associates in the county, and his lifework 
 maintains the agricultural prestige established 
 by his father. He is a member of the Cumber- 
 land Presbyterian Church. 
 
 EDWIN L. VAN VALER. From the age of 
 six years, when he accompanied his mother to 
 California, until death terminated the business 
 activities that had marked his career, Mr. Van 
 Valer was a resident of Visalia and maintained 
 the deepest interest in all movements tending 
 to develop the resources of this city and the 
 adjacent country. Of eastern birth and parent- 
 age, born in New York City September 8, 1849, 
 he remembered the long journey in 1855, when 
 he accompanied his mother, Mrs. Matilda Van 
 Valer, to the Pacific coast, joining his brothers 
 who had preceded them to Visalia. Upon the 
 death of his mother in 1866 he was taken into 
 the home of G. A. Botsford and about the same 
 time began an apprenticeship to the tinner's 
 trade, serving under Charles Strong. Proficiency 
 in. the trade led him to supplement the occupation 
 with kindred lines of work, and for some years 
 he not only manufactured tinware and engaged 
 
1496 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in repair work, but also made a specialty of the 
 manufacture of metal tanks. Later he grad- 
 ually drifted into the business of well bormg, m 
 which he acquired such a reputation that his 
 services in that capacity were in frequent de- 
 mand, and many of the wells m this part of the 
 country were bored under his personal super- 
 vision That occupation continued to be his spe- 
 cial line of work until his death, which occurred 
 in Visalia May 30, 1894. The passing away of 
 a man so long identified with the history of the 
 city and one whose character had ever been 
 above reproach was mourned as a public loss. 
 Masonic honors were accorded him in burial, a 
 tribute from his fehow-workers in the Visalia 
 Blue Lodge. Through aU of his life he was a 
 pronounced Republican, voting the straight 
 
 ticket. ..,,,, , 
 
 The lady who for years was the faithful help- 
 mate of Mr. Van Valer and who now survives 
 him was Sarah C. Ridgway, a native of Mari- 
 posa county and a daughter of Jarrett M. and 
 Ann Mitcheh (Barnard) Ridgway, bom re- 
 spectively in Texas and Virginia. Her father, 
 whose birth occurred in the year 1808, came to 
 California at the time of the discovery of gold in 
 1849, when, after crossing the plains, he became 
 a miner in Mariposa county, where he success- 
 fully opened and operated the Princeton mine. 
 Previous to acquiring extensive mining interests 
 he had carried on a butcher shop and also en- 
 gaged in the bakery business, but these he sold 
 upon engaging in the work of a miner. His 
 death occurred March 9, 1866, long before the 
 demise of his wife, who survived until 1903. 
 The union of Mr. and Mrs. Van Valer was 
 blessed with two sons, namely: Claude O., a 
 traveling engineer for the Standard Oil Com- 
 pany, and Clarence, who represents the same 
 company on the coast. Mrs. Van Valer con- 
 tinues to make her home in Visalia, where she 
 has residence property. 
 
 employment in this store. He then went into 
 partnership with a brother in the stock business 
 and the partnership then formed lasted for 
 twelve years, which was a prosperous period for 
 both. 
 
 In 1894 Mr. Hoffknecht came to Merced 
 county and purchased the farm upon which he 
 resides, located five miles west of Merced. Upon 
 this farm, which contains fifty acres of fine land, 
 he has forty acres devoted to alfalfa, the balance 
 of his land being devoted to pasturage, upon 
 which he raises a large number of hogs, realiz- 
 ing from the sale of the latter from $400 to 
 $500 per year, and he also keeps about twenty- 
 five fine dairy cows, which yield him. a fair in- 
 come. His place is well kept and contains a 
 convenient and comfortable residence. In ad- 
 dition to his home place, Mr. HofiEknecht bought 
 one hundred and eighty acres, and this farm 
 furnishes pasturage for about one hundred head 
 of cattle. 
 
 Mr. Hofifknecht was joined in matrimony with 
 Miss Lillian Altnow, who was born in Minne- 
 sota, and accompanied her parents to Oregon 
 when young. Her parents were prominent and 
 well-to-do people, and they subsequently came 
 to California. They have three children, Louisa, 
 Frank and Gussie. Politically a Democrat of 
 strong convictions, Mr. Hoffknecht is not an 
 active politician. He is broad-minded, public- 
 spirited, and one who willingly assists in any 
 movement calculated to benefit his county. 
 
 WILLIAM HOFFKNECHT. This well- 
 known farmer and stockman of the British col- 
 ony, in Merced county, which has been his home 
 for the past ten years, furnishes a good example 
 of what a man may do by his own efforts when 
 he has the brains and energy to improve his op- 
 portunity. Born in Westphalia, Germany, De- 
 cember 7, 1866, a son of Frederick and Lovina 
 (Lindwick) Hoffknecht, William Hoffknecht 
 was reared and educated in his native land. His 
 father, a farmer by occupation, died at the age of 
 sixty-three years, and at the age of sixteen Will- 
 iam sailed for the United States. The year fol- 
 lowing his arrival in this country, he came to 
 Sacramento county, Cal., where he had an uncle 
 who kept a store, and for nine months he found 
 
 REV. FATHER J. D. McCARTHY. A man 
 of much culture and great religious zeal. Rev. 
 J. D. McCarthy, pastor of St. John's Church, in 
 Fresno, is doing a most notable work for the 
 people under his charge. By his ability, his quiet 
 persuasion and his earnest enthusiasm, he has 
 improved the material as well as the spiritual 
 condition of those who have looked to him for 
 help, comfort and advice, all of which he gives 
 freely. Through his efforts the parish has been 
 enlarged, its financial strength increased, new 
 church and school buildings have been erected, 
 and much energy and enthusiasm have been 
 aroused among his parishioners. His ministries 
 in many other ways, also, have been full of good 
 works and faithful service. 
 
 A native of New York City, Father McCarthy 
 was born in 1864. After leaving the grammar 
 schools of his native city he prepared for college 
 in Brooklyn, N. Y. Entering St. Francis' Col- 
 lege in 1879, he was graduated from there in 
 the class of 1884. Going immediately to Rome, 
 Italy, he entered the American College of the 
 Propaganda, where he remained until forced to 
 give up his studies on account of ill health. In 
 search of a more salubrious climate, he went to 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1497 
 
 Dublin, Ireland, and there completed the study 
 of theology at All Hallow's College. June 24, 
 1890, he was ordained priest by Bishop Brown- 
 rigg, of Ossery, and sent immediately to the 
 diocese of Los Angeles and Monterey, Cal. 
 After remaining at Los Angeles for three years 
 as assistant pastor of the Church of Our Lady of 
 the Angels, Father McCarthy was appointed resi- 
 dent pastor of the St. Francis de Sales Church, 
 Riverside, Cal., and during the five years that 
 he was there he started missions at Jacinto, Elsi- 
 nore, Ferris and Corona. In October, 1898, he 
 was appointed pastor of St. John's Church, 
 Fresno, and has served most acceptably ever 
 since. This parish was organized more than a 
 quarter of a century ago by Rev. Father Val 
 Aguillera, who built the first church structure in 
 the place. In 1902 the parish erected a new 
 brick church, and in 1903 made further improve- 
 ments by building a new priest's house. In con- 
 nection with the church is St. Augustine's Acad- 
 emy, for the instruction of young ladies, and St. 
 Joseph's School, a parochial institution under the 
 direction of the Sisters of the Holy Cross. This 
 parish is very prosperous, owning much valuable 
 property, and having a membership of five thou- 
 sand souls, the largest of any congregation in the 
 San Joaquin valley. 
 
 JAMES LAKE HAMILTON. A very ex- 
 tensive stockman, and one whose success has 
 numbered him among the representative men of 
 Tulare county, is James Lake Hamilton, who is 
 located seven miles from Exeter. He was born 
 on the Isthmus of Darien, July 4, 1852. His 
 parents dying when he was a small child, James 
 Lake was taken into the home of Hugh Hamil- 
 ton, given the latter's name and reared with all 
 the care and attention that could be bestowed 
 upon him. Hugh Hamilton, a native of Virginia, 
 came across the plains in 1852 and became the 
 owner of a ranch on the line between San Mateo 
 and Santa Cruz counties. On the 24th of De- 
 cember, 1864, he located on the Kaweah and en- 
 gaged as a farmer and stockman until his death, 
 which occurred in October, 1883, at the age of 
 sixty-two years. He was very successful in his 
 efforts and became the owner of a large amount 
 of land, the ranch upon which he lived contain- 
 ing ten hundred and eighty acres, while he also 
 owned considerable other property. His wife sur- 
 vives him and is now the wife of T. J. Dale of 
 San Jose. . 
 
 The only member of the Lake family which 
 attained maturity James Lake Hamilton came to 
 Tulare county at the age of twelve years, attend- 
 ing school in the Kaweah district, while he per- 
 formed the duties which were his as the son of a 
 farmer He was also trained in the thrifty habits 
 
 and strict business methods which distinguished 
 his foster father, and in manhood they have 
 formed no small factor in his successful career. 
 He remained with Mr. Hamilton to the time of 
 the latter's death, the two carrying on the stock 
 business and general farming operations which 
 had engrossed the attention of the elder man for 
 so many years. He was also taught the value of 
 independence and at the age of twenty- two he 
 took a number of hogs on shares, later doing the 
 same with sheep and cattle. After his marriage 
 he farmed on Kaweah, Dry and Yokohl creeks, 
 and in 1887 began the improvement and cultiva- 
 tion of the property where he now makes his 
 home. He owns one quarter of section 28, one- 
 half of section 29, all of section 32, three-quarters 
 of section 33, all of section 5 and one-quarter of 
 section 4, aggregating twenty-four hundred acres 
 in one body and all fenced for stock purposes. 
 He also rents two thousand acres of the Dale 
 property for stock-raising and general farming, 
 and seven hundred acres in the hills adjoining his 
 own lands. The irrigation ditch runs through 
 his property, while he also has a pumping plant, 
 operated by a gasoline engine, to use in dry sea- 
 sons. He has about seven hundred head of cattle, 
 full-blooded, graded Durham and Shorthorns, 
 comprising one of the finest herds in the San 
 Joaquin valley. 
 
 May 8, 1878, Mr. Hamilton was united in mar- 
 riage with Rebecca Mehrten, a native of Cala- 
 veras county, Cal., and the daughter of Louis 
 Mehrten, a pioneer miner. They are the parents 
 of six children, namely: Louis Ray, John Gar- 
 land, Charles Albert, Troy Edmond, Elizabeth 
 May and Ethel. In national politics Mr. Hamil- 
 ton is a Democrat, but locally gives his support 
 to the man whom he considers best qualified for 
 public duty. He has taken a broad interest in 
 educational affairs of his community, serving as 
 school trustee of the Kaweah district, having 
 acted as clerk of the board for a time. A broad- 
 minded, enterprising citizen, Mr. Hamilton merits 
 the esteem and confidence which is given hini 
 in such large measure by all who have come in 
 contact with him, either in a business or social 
 way. 
 
 ALFRED G. STONESIFER. A man of 
 great energy and enterprise, able and far-sighted, 
 Alfred G.'Stonesifer, of Newman, has contrib- 
 uted his full share toward the promotion and ad- 
 vancement of the agricultural and industrial "pros- 
 perity of Stanislaus county. As a sheep breeder 
 and raiser he carried on an extensive and lucra- 
 tive business for many years, well earning his 
 title of "King of the sheep industry." A native 
 of Adams county, Pa., he was born December 31, 
 1831, a son of Solomon and Susan (Swope) 
 
1498 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Stonesifer, being the youngest child i" a Jamily 
 consisting of five boys and five girls. Neither of 
 his parents are living, both having died m Lit- 
 tlestown, Pa., not far from the places of their 
 
 ^"Si leaving school, Alfred G. Stonesifer began 
 life for himself as a clerk in a store m Hanover, 
 Pa where he remained four years, hollowing 
 the 'march of civilization westward, he went to 
 Alton III, in 1854, and was there similarly occu- 
 pied for a short time. Going to Pike county, 
 Mo., in 1855, he was engaged m mercantile pur- 
 suits in Louisiana for nine years. March i, 1864, 
 Mr. Stonesifer started with his family for Cali- 
 fornia, crossing the plains with mule-teams. On 
 September i of that year he arrived in Napa City, 
 having only $2.50 in his pockets. The ensuing 
 year he worked at any honorable employment, 
 and saved some money. Coming to Stanislaus 
 county in the fall of 1865 Mr. Stonesifer located 
 in the San Joaquin valley, amid the foothills, on 
 the west side of the creek. Taking up one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres of land, he stocked the 
 range with sheep of a common grade, and did so 
 well in the venture that he decided to try some- 
 thing better. Purchasing, accordingly, for 
 $4,000, one hundred and sixty head of French 
 Merinos, he has met with noteworthy success in 
 his operations, and is now owner of seven thou- 
 sand acres of good land, and also has in his home 
 ranch, near Newman, two hundred and thirty- 
 seven acres of valuable land, which he devotes 
 largely to alfalfa. Having by good management, 
 judgment and investment accumulated a goodly 
 property, he is now living somewhat retired from 
 active business, enjoying a well-earned leisure. 
 
 In Missouri, Mr. Stonesifer married Sophia 
 Weed, a native of Illinois, and of their union five 
 children have been born, namely: C. A., de- 
 ceased ; Mary B., deceased ; Catherine E., wife of 
 Dr. W. H. Mays, of Honolulu ; Augusta, wife of 
 A. H. Mays, of California; and Lois, wife of 
 Charles E. Evans, of San Francisco. Politically 
 Mr. Stonesifer is a steadfast Democrat. For a 
 number of years he served as justice of the peace, 
 but while filling that office never brought a case 
 to trial, settling all difficulties without bringing 
 them into court. He married eighteen couples 
 in his official capacity, but he never made a 
 charge for a marriage or for a lawsuit. 
 
 NEWTON PHILLIPS. The varied indus- 
 tries which conduce to the development and main- 
 tenance of Letcher find in Mr. Phihips a stanch 
 friend and supporter. From the time of acquir- 
 ing mercantile interests in the village up to the 
 present he has been a leading factor in the com- 
 mercial life of the place and a contributor to 
 movements for its substantial and permanent 
 
 progress. No influence has entered into the 
 growth of the little town more important than 
 that exerted by him in his capacity of general 
 merchant, postmaster and proprietor of hotel. 
 Since 1895 he has been at the head of a general 
 store and since 1896 has officiated as postmaster, 
 in addition to which for some years he has car- 
 ried on the hotel here and superintended his 
 farm of one hundred and thirty acres in the vi- 
 cinity. 
 
 The early representatives of the Phillips fam- 
 ily in America were planters in old Virginia. 
 From that commonwealth John Phillips removed 
 to Missouri and took up general farming pur- 
 suits. Austin, son of John, was born in Mis- 
 souri, and became the founder of the family in 
 California, starting across the plains as early as 
 1848. After he had gone as far as Salt Lake he 
 stopped for a year and hence did not arrive in 
 California until the spring of 1850. For a short 
 time he engaged in prospecting and mining in 
 Tuolumne county, after which he opened a gen- 
 eral store at Sonora, and later became identified 
 with ranch and stock interests in San Joaquin 
 county. During 1865 he came to Fresno county 
 and settled on the upper Kings river, where he 
 gradually established large stock and farm in- 
 terests. At the same time he became a promi- 
 nent factor in local Democratic politics and for 
 twelve years served as a member of the county 
 board of supervisors. In addition he was active 
 in the Masonic fraternity. At the time of his 
 death, which occurred in 1885, he was fifty-nine 
 years of age. After coming to the coast he mar- 
 ried Miss Margaret Barton, who was bom in 
 Missouri and during 1852 crossed the plains 
 with ox-teams in company with her father, Jack- 
 son Barton. At first Mr. Barton made his home 
 in San Joaquin county, but during 1865 he re- 
 moved to the upper Kings river and from that 
 time to his death continued to reside in Fresno 
 county. At this writing Mrs. Margaret Phillips 
 makes her home near Letcher, where she has a 
 host of warm personal friends. For years she 
 has been an earnest member of the Christian 
 Church and a stanch supporter of its doctrines. 
 In the family of Austin and Margaret Philhps 
 there were four sons and tv/o daughters, namely : 
 Newton, whose name introduces this article ; 
 William, living in New Mexico; Mrs. Blanche 
 Perry, of Sonora, this state ; J. A., whose home 
 is in the vicinity of Letcher; Theodore, now. in 
 New Mexico; and Mrs. Pina Bogard, living near 
 Letcher. The eldest of the family, Newton 
 Phillips, was born on the home farm in San 
 Joaquin county February 4, 1857, and at eight 
 years of age accompanied the family to the 
 Kings river ranch, where he soon became an as- 
 sistant to his father in the improvement of the 
 property. During winter months he attended the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1499 
 
 public schools and later was a student in the 
 academy. After having assisted his father for 
 a long period, at the age of twenty-six years he 
 left home and started out for himself, embarking 
 in the stock business and general farming on the 
 upper Kings river. The property at that location 
 was sold in 1887 and he then removed to a ranch 
 two miles above Letcher, from there coming into 
 the village during 1895 and embarking in the 
 business he still conducts. For eight years he 
 acceptably filled the office of school director in 
 Dry creek district and for ten years held office 
 as justice of the peace. As a Democrat he has 
 been active in town and county politics and 
 wields considerable influence in local party af- 
 fairs. Possessing versatile ability, he success- 
 fully conducts his store, hotel, postoffice and stock 
 and grain farm, and through these varied avenues 
 of labor finds himself the possessor of a merited 
 competence. 
 
 During 1882 Mr. Phillips established domestic 
 ties. The lady who then became his wife was 
 Miss Frances A. Greenup, a native of Cole 
 county. Mo., and a daughter of John C. Greenup. 
 After years of activity in farm pursuits in Mis- 
 souri, in 1875 Mr. Greenup brought his family 
 to California and settled on a farm in Fresno 
 county, where he remained until death. At her 
 father's home near Letcher Miss Greenup became 
 the wife of Mr. Phillips, to whom she has since 
 been a capable counselor and efficient helpmate. 
 Their family consists of the following named 
 children: J. Austin, Newton Allen, Claude, and 
 Frank, but death has removed from the family 
 circle the third son, who died at twelve years of 
 age. The family are adherents of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church South and Mr. Phillips acts 
 as recording steward of the local congregation, 
 to which he also contributes generously of his 
 means, time and influence in support of its vari- 
 ous charities and societies. 
 
 JOSEPH SULLIVAN. A pioneer settler of 
 . Merced county, Joseph Sullivan has taken an 
 active interest in developing the agricultural in- 
 dustries of this section of California, and while 
 aiding in the upbuilding of the county has im- 
 proved for himself a valuable farm, which is 
 pleasantly located about four miles east of Mer- 
 ced. He has been an intelligent observer of men 
 and events, and his broad experience and shrewd 
 common sense have been important factors in his 
 success as a farmer and a business man. A 
 son of Lawrence and Catherine (Morrison) Sul- 
 livan, he was born in County Kerry, Ireland, in 
 *" 1833, and when but three weeks old was left 
 fatherless. 
 
 At the age of sixteen years, Joseph Sullivan, 
 who was a bright and ambitious lad, emigrated 
 
 to the United States, the supposed poor man's 
 paradise, crossing the ocean in 1849. Locating 
 in Virginia, he obtained work on the Valley 
 Railroad, and remained there and in the South 
 for fifteen years. Coming to Cahfornia by way 
 of the Isthmus of Panama in 1864, Mr. Sullivan 
 was employed in farming in Solano county for 
 four years. In 1868 he removed to Merced 
 county, and located on his present ranch, buy- 
 ing six hundred and forty acres of land, a part 
 of which he has since sold. He now owns three 
 hundred and twenty acres, and is one of the 
 thriving and successful general farmers of this 
 locality, raising principally wheat, barley and 
 stock. His ranch is well improved and product- 
 ive, yielding him a good annual income. In 
 politics Mr. Sullivan is independent, voting for 
 the best men and measures irrespective of party 
 restrictions. He is a man of stanch integrity, 
 much respected as a citizen, and is a faithful 
 member of the Catholic Church. 
 
 In San Francisco, Mr. Sullivan married Mar- 
 garet Kern, and they have six children living, 
 namely : Mary, a teacher ; Lawrence ; Joseph ; 
 Margaret ; Michael ; and John. 
 
 JOHN D. McCarthy. Too much cannot be 
 said in praise of the enterprise and thrift which 
 have brought success to John D. McCarthy, one 
 of the public-spirited and capable business men 
 of Los Banos. Mr. McCarthy has built up a 
 paying livery business since 1896, in which year 
 he bought out the Gardner stable, which he en- 
 larged and improved, and started upon what 
 has proved a successful career. Obstacles have 
 impeded his progress, however, for in 1900 the 
 building burned to the ground, resulting in the 
 erection of a more modern structure, 70 x 100 
 feet dimensions. He carries a line of equipages 
 suitable for all occasions, and supplies his livery 
 with thoroughbred horses raised by himself on 
 his ranch of three hundred and twenty acres, 
 three miles southwest of Los Banos. This ranch, 
 with its three sets of improvements, and its ex- 
 ceptional value as a dairy center, brings one to 
 a resume of the life of its original purchaser, 
 John McCarthy, the father, for whom the sub- 
 ject of this sketch was named. 
 
 John McCarthy was born in Ireland and came 
 as a young man to Boston, where he married 
 Catherine McCarthy, who died in that city leav- 
 ing one son, John D. of this review, who was 
 born in Boston October 25, 1864. When his 
 son was five years old, in 1869, the elder Mc- 
 Carthy came to California and located on a farm 
 near what is now Los Banos, Merced county, 
 the one now owned by his son and heir. He 
 liked the state, its climate and people, and in 
 1873 returned east and brought his son, John D., 
 
1500 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 back with him, the vouth having m the mean- 
 time gotten a fair start in the pubhc schools. 
 Mr. McCarthy engaged in farming and stock- 
 raising until his death in 1896, at the age of 
 sixty years. He was prominent and successful, 
 and unquestionably one of the best and most 
 useful settlers which Merced county has known. 
 He took an intelligent but not active interest m 
 politics, and for years served as a member of 
 the school board. 
 
 From 1873 until 1879 John D. McCarthy at- 
 tended the public schools of San Francisco, then 
 located on his father's Merced county farm, 
 thoroughly learning the science of agriculture. 
 In 1893 he journeyed to Guatemala, South 
 America, and upon his return six months later 
 bought his present livery business in Los Banos. 
 He has leased his finely appointed farm and is 
 devoting his entire time to conducting one of 
 the best livery enterprises in Merced county. 
 The first marriage O'f Mr. McCarthy occurred in 
 Madera, with Jennie Griffin, born in Ireland, 
 who died in Los Banos leaving three children, 
 Mary, Katherine and Leo. The present Mrs. 
 McCarthy was formerly Mary Maher, and she 
 has two children, Genevieve and Zita. Mr. Mc- 
 Carthy is a Republican. He is a popular, genial, 
 and enterprising member of the community, aid- 
 ing it not only with his business success, but with 
 his interest in all matters of public moment. 
 
 JOHN G. SIMPSON, Sr. No state in the 
 Union maintains a deeper pride in her pioneers 
 than does California, nor has any state a greater 
 reason for so doing. It is the pioneers of Cali- 
 fornia who by their hardships and sacrifices ren- 
 dered possible the comforts of the present era. 
 Their patient courage was the foundation stone 
 upon which the permanent superstructure of a 
 commonwealth was built ; their zeal was a con- 
 stant bulwark against disappointments, and their 
 enterprise founded towns, improved farms and 
 made the "desert to bloom as the rose." Among 
 such pioneers an honored place belongs to the 
 late John G. Simpson, Sr., whose memory is 
 treasured as that of a resourceful citizen and 
 kind friend, and whose name is perpetuated by 
 descendants inheriting the qualities that inspired 
 his successful career. 
 
 On a farm in Kentucky John G. Simpson was 
 born October 22, 1829, and from there he went 
 to Missouri with his parents, Robert and Keziah 
 (Greenup) Simpson, settling with them on a 
 tract of raw land in Miller county, where they 
 remained until death. At the time of attaining 
 young manhood he was confronted by the oppor- 
 tunity to settle in California, concerning which 
 but little was known. Desiring to seek his for- 
 tune amid the untried conditions of the coast he 
 
 started with ox-teams across the plains, being' a 
 member of the party under Governor Edwards, 
 with whom also came Joseph C. Thompson of 
 Fresno county. At first he tried his luck at 
 minhig in Mariposa county, but the result was 
 unsatisfactory, and he turned his attention to 
 teaming from Fort Millerton to Stockton and 
 the mountains. The next venture in Which he 
 became interested was a butcher and stock busi- 
 ness with J. N. Musick as a partner. On the 
 dissolution of the partnership in 1861 he became 
 interested in ranching, at first renting land on 
 Dry creek and later entering land from the gov- 
 ernment. 
 
 Coming to the vicinity of Academy, Fresno 
 county, in 1863, Mr. Simpson began to buy land 
 and sheep, and eventually acquired the title to 
 about eight sections. The qualities which made 
 him successful in the acquisition of property con- 
 tributed to his pre-eminence in other departments 
 of activity. The Democratic party, to which he 
 always gave steadfast support, for many years 
 retained him in the office of county superintend- 
 ent of schools, and as a director he aided in the 
 building of the academy. Indeed, the cause of 
 education in this vicinity had no supporter more 
 stanch than he, and his advice was often sought 
 by those in whose hands rested the training of 
 the youth of this locality. Fraternally he held 
 membership with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows, and in religious connections affiliated 
 with the Methodist Episcopal Church South, in 
 whose large and devoted congregation he became 
 a leader by force of his upright character, sincere 
 Christian life and sagacious judgment. 
 
 The marriage of John G. Simpson was solem- 
 nized at Yisalia September 13, 1859, and united 
 him with Miss Sarah M. Baley, who was born 
 in Nodaway county. Mo. The Ijaley family is of 
 eastern extraction. William Baley, an easterner 
 by birth and education, followed the tide of emi- 
 gration westward and settled among the pio- 
 neers of Missouri, where he passed his remain- 
 ing years on a farm. Among his children was 
 a son, William Wright Baley, a native of Madi- 
 son county, Mo., and for some years a farmer 
 in Nodaway county, that state. When the dis- 
 covery of gold in California in 1848 drew the 
 eyes of the entire world to this section he de- 
 termined to try the fickle goddess, Fortune, in 
 the far-distant regions. The year 1849 found 
 him a pioneer emigrant on the plains, where he 
 traveled with Judge Gillam Baley. Naturally 
 the mines were his goal and, still following the 
 experience of others, he had no especial good 
 luck in the mines, yet the months were not 
 wholly unfruitful of results. 
 
 Returning to Missouri in 1852 William 
 Wright Baley took up agricultural pursuits 
 which he had relinquished for the more adven- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1501 
 
 turous life of a miner. In 1857 h^ again started 
 for the west, this time accompanied by his fain- 
 ily. The second trip was marked by misfortune. 
 After having - spent the winter at Albuquerque 
 the party proceeded westward via the Colorado 
 river and there one evening suffered an attack 
 from a large number of savage Indians. The 
 white men were conquered by superior numbers 
 and were forced to helplessly watch the red men 
 drive their stock across the river. Left without 
 any means of proceeding on their journey, men, 
 women and children walked back to Albu- 
 querque-. A search there for new equipment was 
 almost a failure, but they finally secured a few 
 thin cattle and started again for the west. Soon 
 the cattle gave out and were killed and eaten by 
 the little band of almost starved emigrants. 
 Again they were forced to return to Albu- 
 querque, this time driven by pangs of keenest 
 hunger. Their condition was pitiable in the ex- 
 treme. Footsore and starving, they finally 
 landed in the town, where comforts were pro- 
 cured for the suffering crowd. It was remarked 
 by all that the women of the party had endured 
 all of the hardships of this memorable journey 
 without uttering a word of complaint ; the fright- 
 ful sufferings were endured with a patience born 
 of true heroism, nor did they give up in despair 
 although it became necessary for them to walk 
 the entire distance to California. 
 
 After having passed through Los Angeles in 
 the fall of 1858 William Wright Baley settled 
 at Visalia and engaged in teaming. Later he 
 removed to Stockton. About 1865 he embarked 
 in the stock business on Big Dry creek, Fresno 
 county, and here he continued to make his home 
 until he died in 1883. His wife, who bore the 
 maiden name of Nancy -Funderburk, was born in 
 Tennessee and died in California. They were the 
 parents of the following children : Sarah M., 
 Mrs. Simpson, of Fresno county ; Nancy J., who 
 died at Visalia; Henry, a resident of Fresno; 
 Berthena, who died in Missouri ; William Wash- 
 ington, a stock-raiser and farmer at Tollhotise, 
 Fresno county ; G. Pierce, a merchant and 
 farmer at Tollhouse ; Caleb, who conducts a 
 hotel at Tollhouse ; Mary, who died in infancy 
 on the Gila river; Benjamin, who died after the 
 family settled on Big Dry creek; John, a farmer 
 near Academy; and Dolly, Mrs. Parker, whose 
 husband is a minister at Sanger, Fresno county. 
 
 As a child Mrs. Simpson was a pupil in sub- 
 scription schools held in log buildings near her 
 Missouri home, and naturally her advantages 
 were few, yet she has attained a broad knowl- 
 edge and is a woman of refinement. Since the 
 death of her husband she has continued to reside 
 at the old homestead near Academy, where she 
 owns almost eleven hundred acres and makes a 
 specialty of the stock business. For many years 
 
 she has been identified with the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South, whose activities have in 
 her a generous contributor and encouraging as- 
 sistant. In her family there were seven chil- 
 dren, but two have passed from earth, namely : 
 Mary, Mrs. Henry Hazelton, who died at Acad- 
 emy ; and William who was accidentally drowned 
 in 1893 while bathing in Double ditch, at the 
 age of thirty years. The sons and daughter now 
 living are as follows : Thomas Jackson, Marvin 
 and John G., all of whom operate large stock 
 ranches near Academy ; Lizzie, wife of John Fly, 
 of Academy; and George Pierce, who conducts 
 a stock ranch near Academy, Fresno county. 
 
 GEORGE PIERCE SIMPSON. Represent- 
 ative of one of the pioneer families of California 
 is the progressive young stock-raiser whose life- 
 long identification with the county, intimate 
 knowledge of its history, thorough familiarity 
 with its soil and wide acquaintance among its 
 people make him a forceful personality in a lo- 
 cality rapidly gaining prestige as one of the de- 
 sirable locations afforded by the state. Having 
 known no other home than the county of his 
 present residence, Mr. Simpson naturally feels 
 the deepest interest in the development of its 
 material resources and in the enlargement of its 
 products, and in his own chosen occupation he 
 has accomplished much to benefit the citizenship 
 of the district. 
 
 The record of the family appears in the sketch 
 of John G. Simpson, a pioneer of honored mem- 
 ory, for years one of the liberal, popular and 
 resourceful residents of this part of the state. 
 George Pierce Simpson, who was the youngest 
 son of this pioneer, was born at the family home 
 in Academy, Cal., December 18, 1877, and re- 
 ceived his education in local schools. Habits of 
 close observation and extensive general reading 
 perhaps have accomplished more for him in the 
 development of a broad culture and the attain- 
 ment of a liberal education than the study of 
 text-books made possible. Until twenty-one 
 years of age he remained at home, meanwhile 
 preparing himself for life's activities by indus- 
 try, perseverance and energetic application to 
 the work in hand. In 1889 he established his 
 headquarters on his present property at Acad- 
 emy, where he has erected necessary buildings, 
 made important improvements and established a 
 growing busmess as a stockman. In addition 
 to superintending this property of eight hun- 
 dred and thirty-five acres, he owns a ranch of 
 three hundred and twenty acres in the Sycamore 
 district, in the foot-hills, where he has the ad- 
 vantage of an abundance of range for his cattle. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Simpson united him with 
 Miss Imogene Humphreys, a native of Mechan- 
 
1502 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 icsville district, tliis county. In an early day 
 her father, J. C. Humphreys, crossed the plains 
 from Tennessee to California with ox-teams and 
 after becoming a resident of the west supple- 
 mented the blacksmith's trade with the occupa- 
 tion of general farmer and stock-raiser, making 
 his home at Mechanicsville. He is now a resi- 
 dent of San Bernardino county. The union of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Simpson has been blessed by .two 
 sons, George Walter and Herbert Wright. 
 Though not desiring political prominence, Mr. 
 Simpson keeps thoroughly posted concerning 
 matters affecting the welfare of the people, and 
 has voted the Democratic ticket in all elections. 
 Being of a genial, companionable disposition, he 
 has found pleasure in the activities of fraternal 
 organizations, and has identified himself with 
 the Eagles at Fresno and with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows at Sanger. 
 
 RICHARD NASON BARSTOW. Among 
 the active, useful and highly esteemed resi- 
 dents of this section of the state is Richard 
 N. Barstow of Fresno, the present county re- 
 corder of Fresno county. From a long line 
 of New England ancestrj^ he has inherited 
 those cardinal virtues of industry, energy and 
 thrift characteristic of the earlier settlers of 
 the Atlantic coast. Many members of the 
 honored family from which he is descended 
 have acquired distinction in professional, 
 business, political and military circles. His 
 great-grandfather, William Barstow, Sr., a 
 pioneer settler of Haverhill, N. H., was a sol- 
 dier in the Revolutionary army. William 
 Barstow, Jr., the grandfather of Mr. Barstow, 
 was born, lived and died in Haverhill, N. H., 
 where for many years he served as postmaster, 
 and was also the leading merchant. He was a 
 citizen of prominence, public-spirited and pa- 
 triotic, and served in the war of 1812. One 
 of his sons, Hon. George Barstow, was a prom- 
 inent attorney in San Francisco during the 
 '50's, and during one term of the California 
 Legislature was speaker of the House. A 
 large part of the great wealth which he ac- 
 quired he devoted to charitable purposes, and 
 after his death his widow continued the phil- 
 anthropical work which he had established. 
 
 A native of New Hampshire, Mr. Barstow 
 was born February 3, 1853, in Haverhill. His 
 father, Hon. James Townsend Barstow, was a 
 life-long resident of that place, dying there 
 at the age of seventy-six years. He was a 
 farmer by occupation, and very active in the 
 management of public affairs. For many years 
 he served as town clerk, and for two terms 
 was a Representative to the State Legislature. 
 He was a broad, liberal-minded man, exem- 
 
 plifying in his daily life the precepts of the 
 Golden Rule, which was his daily guide, and 
 his only religious creed. He married Sarah 
 J. Brown, also of Haverhill, being a daughter 
 of Richard N. Brown, a dealer in hardware 
 and tinwrare. Of the six children born of their 
 union, four grew to years of maturity, and 
 one daughter and two sons are now living. 
 
 The eldest child of his parents, Richard N. 
 Barstow grew to man's estate in his native 
 town, acquiring a practical education in the 
 public schools and the village academy. Go- 
 ing to Boston in 1874, he was for five years 
 clerk in a wholesale oil store. In 1879 he 
 came to California as superintendent of the 
 Jones-Hill Hydraulic Mine Company, and had 
 charge of two giant engines until the passage 
 of the anti-Slickens law, and was subsequent- 
 ly general manager for the, company until it 
 gave up business, in 1889. Purchasing then 
 a colony lot in Central Colony, five miles from 
 Fresno, Mr. Barstow embarked in the culture 
 of fruit, making a specialty of raisins. Selling 
 out in 1895, he bought three thousand acres 
 of land in the San Joaquin valley, and turned 
 his attention to the raising of grain, in which 
 he was quite successful. In 1901 he bought 
 three hundred and twenty acres of land, and 
 on this, by irrigation, he raises five crops of 
 alfalfa each year, cutting five tons to the acre 
 per season. In the fall of 1902, Mr. Barstow 
 was nominated on the Republican ticket for 
 county recorder, was elected by upward of 
 one hundred majority, and in January, 1903, 
 took the oath of office, and began his term of 
 four years. 
 
 In Eldorado county, Cal., Mr. Barstow mar- 
 ried Agnes H. Baldwin, who was born in 
 Coulterville, Cal., the daughter of a pioneer 
 family, her parents having removed there from 
 Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Barstow have two chil- 
 dren, George, an employe of the Raisin Grow- 
 ers' Association; and James Townsend. Po- 
 litically Mr. Barstow is a Republican, and for 
 two years was a member of the State Cen- 
 tral Committee. Fraternally he was made an 
 Odd Fellow in Georgetown, Cal., and now be- 
 longs to Fresno Lodge, No. 186, I. O. O. F. 
 
 MANUEL GONZALES, Jr. Among the 
 younger generation of men who are successfully 
 following agricultural pursuits in Merced 
 county, and who are doing their part in a prac- 
 tical and intelligent way to make this county 
 famous for its fine farms and excellent products, 
 due mention should be made of Manuel Gon- 
 zales, Jr., who takes an active interest in all mat- 
 ters that are calculated to advance the interests 
 of the community in which he lives. Residing 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1503 
 
 on a seventeen and one-half acre ranch in the 
 Atwater colony, devoted to the cultivation of 
 sweet potatoes, it may be said of him that he 
 understands perfectly how to make a success of 
 this product, having raised as high as two hun- 
 dred bushels to the acre. This is considered an 
 enormous yield and is brought about not only 
 by the exceptional fertility of his land, but also 
 by his excellent methods of planting and caring 
 for his crop. 
 
 In Mariposa county,. Cal, May 25, 1875, Mr. 
 Gonzales was born, one of three sons Ijorn to 
 Manuel, Sr., and Mary (Silva) Gonzales. His 
 father, a native of the Island of Pico, Portugal, 
 was a sailor. In the early '60s he landed at San 
 Francisco and soon afterward he located in Mar- 
 iposa county. There he followed mining, but 
 subsequently engaged in sheep-raising. When 
 thirty years old his marriage took place in the 
 above named county, which continued to be his 
 home until 1894. He then removed to Merced 
 county and purchased land in the Buhach colony, 
 and in this locality he still owns twenty-eight 
 acres, being now sixty years old. His youngest 
 son, Anthony, assists in caring for this place, 
 and his two eldest sons, Joseph and Manuel, 
 each have seventeen and one-half acres in the 
 Atwater colony. 
 
 Reared and educated in Mariposa county, 
 Manuel Gonzales, Jr., when of sufficient age, 
 engaged in sheep-raising,-with his father, and at 
 one time they owned five thousand sheep. Upon 
 the removal of the father to Merced county the 
 sons all accompanied him and about two years 
 ,ago Manuel removed to the farm where he now 
 lives and engaged in raising sweet potatoes, as 
 previously mentioned. He wedded Miss Mary 
 Armas, who was born in Mariposa county, and 
 they have one son, Thomas. In politics Mr. 
 Gonzales affiliates with the Republican party, 
 and as a citizen he is one of the highly esteemed 
 young farmers in the Atwater colony. 
 
 PATRICK BOLAND. Engaged in the pros- 
 ecution of an honorable and independent call- 
 ing, Patrick Boland of Merced county exercises 
 good judgment and commendable skill in his ag- 
 ricultural pursuits and is contributing his full 
 share in developing and promoting the industrial 
 interests of the community in which he resides. 
 He holds a worthy position among those sturdy 
 and energetic men who have come to the United 
 States from a foreign land, and in the support 
 of the institutions of their adopted country have 
 proved themselves most .loyal and patriotic 
 American citizens. A native of Ireland, he was 
 born in 185 1 in the city of Dublin, which was 
 also the place of birth of his parents, Patrick 
 and Mary (McGuirk) Boland. 
 
 Obtaining his early education in his native 
 city, Patrick Boland remained at home until 
 about fourteen years old. In 1864 he emigrated 
 to the United States and the following year en- 
 listed in the United States regular army, with 
 which he was actively associated for nearly 
 thirty years. A part of this time he held various 
 non-commissioned grades in the Nineteenth In- 
 fantry, and for fifteen years was employed in the 
 medical department of the division to which he 
 was attached. Retiring from the army on ac- 
 count of ill health in 1893, Mr. Boland at once 
 located in California, and in the fall of that year 
 purchased his present ranch, which is situated 
 about five miles west of Merced. Here he has 
 forty acres of land, fifteen acres of which he 
 devotes to the culture of fruit, on the remainder 
 raising alfalfa. He is also carrying on a suc- 
 cessful business as a dairyman, having eighteen 
 cows of a good grade, which produce a fine 
 quality of milk that is highly appreciated by his 
 customers. 
 
 Mr. Boland married first, in 1878, Libbie Fitz- 
 maurice, who died in 1898, and they had seven 
 children, namely: William P., Thomas, Ed- 
 ward, Francis, Harry, James and Mary, the two 
 latter deceased. In 1901 he married Mrs. Net- 
 tie (Smith) Woodard, who had two children, 
 Sadie and Ethel, by her first husband. Fratei-- 
 nally Mr. Boland is a member of the Modern 
 Woodmen of America. 
 
 MRS. EMILY J. EDWARDS. A resident 
 of Merced county for many years, Mrs. Emily 
 J. Edwards is widely known and appreciated 
 for her many estimable traits of character, and 
 the business sagacity and judgment which have 
 marked her conduct of financial interests. She 
 is now located upon her ranch of twenty acres, 
 three and a half miles northeast of the city of 
 Merced, in Yosemite Colony, the property being 
 given over to the cultivation of figs, olives and 
 alfalfa. Of sturdy English stock, Mrs. Edwards 
 was born in Manchester, England, the daughter 
 of William J. Molineux. 
 
 The Molineux family has flourished in Eng- 
 land for generations, having crossed from France 
 during the Norman Conquest. The later mem- 
 bers of the family have become factors in the 
 commercial life of their land, both William, Sr., 
 and William, Jr., grandfather and father of Mrs. 
 Edwards, being hardware merchants of Man- 
 chester. William Molineux brought his family 
 to the United States when Mrs. Edwards was 
 still an infant, remaining in New York for one 
 year, when they returned to England. A little 
 later they again crossed to the western world, 
 locating in New Orleans, La., where the father 
 engaged in business until 1856, at which time 
 
1504 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he came to California by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama. Locating in Grass Valley he continued 
 in his mercantile business, conducting a hard- 
 ware establishment in Nevada county until his 
 retirement from the active duties of life, when 
 he removed to San Francisco, where his death 
 occurred at the age of sixty-two years. Two 
 years after his location in Grass Valley he sent 
 for his family, who came west by the same route 
 as that traversed by him in 1856. Mr. Molineux 
 was a Mason and was quite prominent in the 
 order, establishing a lodge in Nevada county. 
 Mrs. Molineux, who was before marriage Mary 
 A. Weaver, died in 1902, at the home of Mrs. 
 Edwards in Merced, at the age of seventy-eight 
 years. 
 
 In California Emily J. Molineux became the 
 wife of C. R. Edwards, who is now deceased, 
 and by this union she had one son, Henry E., of 
 Los Angeles, who has been connected for sixteen 
 years with W. P. Fuller & Co., of that city, and 
 since 1904 has been in business for himself. He 
 married Clara Doyle and they are the parents of 
 two children, Clarence and Glenn. Mrs. Ed- 
 wards made her home in San Francisco for four- 
 teen years, when, on April 5, 1880, she located 
 in the city of Merced and made that her home 
 until 1903. Removing then to her ranch, as 
 before mentioned, she is now numbered among 
 the agriculturists of this section. In addition to 
 her home property she also owns a business 
 block in the city. In her religious affiliations 
 Mrs. Edwards is a member of the Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 ^ PIANS A. HANSEN. A man of unques- 
 tioned ability and integrity, active .and enterpris- 
 ing, Hans A. Hansen, as manager of the Selma 
 yards of the Valley Lumber Company, is promi- 
 nently identified with the industrial progress of 
 Fresno county. He takes an interest in the pub- 
 lic welfare of the community in which he resides, 
 and enjoys to a high degree the respect and 
 esteem of his fellow citizens. A native of Ger- 
 many, he was born May 28, 1869, in Schleswig, 
 which was also the birthplace of his parents, 
 Ehm and Elsa Hansen. His father, a farmer 
 by occupation, spent his entire life in the Father- 
 land, where his widow still resides. 
 
 The youngest of a family of four children, 
 Hans A. Hansen attended the common schools 
 of his native town until twelve years old. In 
 1881 he came to the United States, and for two 
 years was employed as a farm laborer in Dwight, 
 111. Migrating to California in 1883, he entered 
 the employ of the Prescott & Pierce Lumber 
 Company, at Fresno, serving first as clerk then 
 as yardman and teamster. This company 'being 
 merged in the Valley Lumber Company Mr 
 
 Hansen remained in its employ, being first sent 
 to Caruthers as clerk of the yard in that place, 
 and subsequently occupying a similar position in 
 Sanger. He was afterward placed in charge of 
 the yards at Kingsburg, remaining there until 
 1898, and from that time until 1899 was manager 
 of the company's branch yard in Fresno. Coming 
 then to Selma, Mr. Hansen has since had entire 
 control of the Selma yards belonging to this 
 company, and as a manager has been very suc- 
 cessful in advancing and promoting the material 
 and financial interests of the firm. 
 
 While living in Kingsburg, Mr. Hansen was 
 married in 1893 to Minnie Kling, who was born 
 in Iowa, a daughter of John Kling, a resident 
 of that state. Mr. and Mrs. Hansen have three 
 children, Elsa I., Chester O., and Frank P. In 
 political affairs Mr. Hansen is an active and use- 
 ful member of the Republican party, and is now 
 rendering good service as city councilman, a 
 position to which he was elected in 1902 for a 
 term of four years. 
 
 GILLO EDWARD NORDGREN. For 
 some years Mr. Nordgren has been at the 
 head of a furniture and undertaking business 
 that is one of the largest of its kind in the 
 entire San Joaquin valley. Situated on the 
 corner of Main and Alameda streets, his store 
 occupies a site 50x150 feet in dimensions, 
 with the undertaking establishment adjoining 
 25 X 80 feet in size. A gallery enables him 
 to command a greater amount of space than 
 otherwise possible for the display of furniture 
 and carpets, a full assortment of which he 
 constantly carries in stock, together with the 
 latest styles in wall paper and interior finish- 
 ings. For his work as undertaker he pre- 
 pared by taking a course in Clark's Embalm- 
 ing School in Chicago, from which he was 
 graduated. In addition to the management of 
 his large business he acts as coroner and pub- 
 lic administrator, having been elected to the 
 office in 1902 by a majority of two hundred 
 and fifty-five, for a term of four years. 
 
 A native Californian, Mr. Nordgren was 
 born at Saratoga, Santa Clara county, March 
 25, 1862, being a son of E. H. and Sophia 
 Nordgren, who died at Saratoga. Both his 
 father and grandfather were natives of Stock- 
 holm, Sweden, and the former learned the 
 trade of a diamond setter in his native city, 
 while the latter engaged in the occupation of 
 a silver smith. Both came to America and 
 settled in California during the early mining 
 history of this state, having made the voyage 
 hither by wa)'- of Cape Horn to San Fran- 
 cisco. For a time the father conducted a jew- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1505 
 
 elry store on Montgomery street, San Fran- 
 cisco, but later gave his attention to setting 
 out and caring for an orchard at Saratoga. 
 However, his abilitj^ as a diamond setter was 
 so extraordinai-y that his services were in de- 
 mand for such worlc, and for twenty years 
 he was employed in that occupation by a large 
 jewelry establishment of San Francisco. At 
 the time of his death, which occurred April 
 17, 1903, he had reached the age of eighty- 
 three years ; his wife had died in 1889. Both 
 were faithful members of the Lutheran 
 Church, whose doctrines they endeavored to 
 exemplify in their lives. After coming to 
 America and acquiring citizenship, he voted 
 with the Republican party, but never was act- 
 ive in public affairs, nor desirous of holding 
 local offices, preferring to devote himself to 
 his chosen occupation. Of his three sons and 
 one daughter, there are two sons now living, 
 Gillo Edward being in Merced and Seth in 
 Hollister. 
 
 When eleven years of age Gillo Edward 
 Nordgren removed with the family from Sara- 
 toga to San Francisco, where he spent the 
 next few years in the grammar school. At 
 the age of fifteen he began as an apprentice 
 to the upholsterer's trade under W. J. Heeney 
 & Co., with whom he served for two and one- 
 half years. The following eighteen months 
 were spent at his trade in Tombstone, Ariz., 
 during the days of that mining town's re- 
 markable prosperity. On his return to San 
 Francisco he became an employe of the firm 
 with which he had learned the trade, but 
 three months later began to work for Clark 
 & Co., in the same line. His residence in 
 Merced dates from November 15, 1884, when 
 he entered the employ of A. G. Clough in 
 the furniture business, his work being in the 
 upholstery department. It was his intention 
 to remain only until after the holidays and 
 then return to San Francisco, but the burning 
 of the store caused a change in his plans and 
 he remained to assist in the task of rebuilding, 
 then became an employe in the furniture de- 
 partment. In 1890 he was admitted to part- 
 nership in the undertaking business, the firm 
 title becoming Clough & Nordgren, but ii? 
 1899 he purchased the undertaking depart- 
 ment and has since continued alone. 
 
 After establishing himself in Merced Mr. 
 Nordgren met and married Miss Emma Lud- 
 escher, who was born in Mariposa county, and 
 has been of the greatest assistance to her hus- 
 band by her counsel and co-operation. She 
 is a daughter of Joseph Ludescher, a native 
 of Alsace, who, upon immigrating to America, 
 settled in California during the early history 
 of this state. Throughout much of his life he 
 
 7» 
 
 followed the trade of a merchant tailor and 
 built up a considerable trade in his line at 
 Merced, where he resided during the last 
 years of his life. Always pronotmced in his 
 allegiance to the Republican party, Mr. Nord- 
 gren has served as a member of the county 
 central committee of his party and on that 
 ticket was elected councilman, serving four 
 years. In Masonry he is identified with La- 
 Grange Lodge No'. 99, F. & A. M. While 
 following his trade at Tombstone he was ini- 
 tiated into the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, and is now connected with Merced 
 Lodge No. 208, also with the Encampment in 
 that city. In addition he holds membership 
 in the Woodmen of the World, the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen and Merced Par- 
 lor No. 24, N. S. G. W. 
 
 RICHARD JEFFERSON WIGLEY. Among 
 the prominent and enterprising farmers of Tulare 
 county, Richard Jefferson Wigley is located with- 
 in the vicinity of Poplar and engaged in the oper- 
 ation of his extensive ranch, consisting of twenty- 
 five hundred and fifty-five acres. He was born 
 in Gordon county, Ga., April 21, 1852, a son of 
 Richard and the grandson of William Wigley, 
 the former born in North Carolina in 181 3, where 
 the latter removed from his birthplace in Vir- 
 ginia and followed the occupation of farmer. In 
 manhood Richard Wigley sought a home further 
 south, locating in Gordon county, Ga., about 1850, 
 where he farmed in Sugar valley. In 1866 he 
 removed to Franklin county, Ark.,- where he en- 
 gaged in farming until his death, which occurred 
 in 1890. His wife, formerly Minerva Mackey, 
 was born in Georgia and died in Arkansas. They 
 were the parents of eleven children, six sons and 
 five daughters, of whom Richard Jefferson Wig- 
 ley was the ninth in order of birth. 
 
 A limited education was all that Richard Jef- 
 ferson Wigley could obtain among the primitive 
 conditions of the early day. From earliest child- 
 hood he was trained in the practical duties which 
 fall to the lot of a farmer's son, assisting his 
 -father in farming until 1872. In that year he 
 went to Texas and located at Clarksville, where 
 he engaged in farming for six years. He then 
 went home to Arkansas, and spent the ensuing 
 year with his parents, after which he came to 
 California. For one year he remained in the San 
 Joaquin valley, when he went to Walla Walla, 
 Wash., and remained the same length of time. 
 Returning to California, he located near Poplar, 
 Tulare county, in conjunction with his brother 
 purchasing two sections of land. Later he bought 
 his brother's interest in the land and has con- 
 tinued to add to the original purchase until he 
 now owns twenty-five hundred and fifty-five acres, 
 
1506 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 About thirty acres of this extensive tract is in 
 alfalfa, while the balance is given over to the 
 cultivation of grain. His interests are very ex- 
 tensive and he has met with success in all of his 
 operations, his property ranking among the fin- 
 est in this section. 
 
 In Visalia, Cal, Mr. Wigley married Laura H. 
 Radliff, a native of Wisconsin, and they are the 
 parents of the following children: Ethel, Amy 
 and Carrie, all at home. In 1901 Mr. Wigley 
 purchased property in Tulare city, establishing 
 his home there in order to give his children the 
 advantages of the high school of that place. P'o- 
 litically he is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated by the Democratic party. 
 
 CHARLES A. ROGERS, M. D. The ances- 
 try of Dr. Rogers of Bakersfield may be traced 
 to England, Scotland and Ireland, and among 
 his personal attributes may be noticed character- 
 istics typical of each of these nationalities. His 
 paternal grandfather, Alexander Rogers, came 
 from Ireland to the United States and settled in 
 Ohio, but soon went to Indiana, where he took 
 up government land near Mechanicsbvirg, Boone 
 county. By degrees he succeeded in clearing the 
 land and placing it under cultivation. Improve- 
 ments were made as his means permitted, and at 
 the time of his death, which occurred at sixty- 
 eight years, he owned a valuable farm and was 
 accounted a successful man for those days. His 
 wife, Katherine, also was a native of Ireland, 
 and died in Iiidiana at fifty-seven years. Among 
 their seven children was a son, William R., 
 who was born near Urbana, Ohio, and in child- 
 hood accompanied the family to Indiana, where 
 he assisted in evolving a farm out of the pri- 
 meval soil. Following the westward trend of 
 emigration he removed to Iowa and settled near 
 Cedar Rapids, where he carried on a farm from 
 1863 until 1887. The latter part of his life was 
 passed in Topeka, Kans., and he died in that 
 city when sixty-eight years of age. During all 
 of his mature life he was a stanch supporter of 
 the Republican party and maintained a warm 
 interest in politics. When the Civil war opened 
 he offered his services to the Union, but failed 
 to pass the required physical examination and 
 thus was prevented from serving his country as 
 he desired. 
 
 The marriage of William R. Rogers united 
 him with Emily Davis, who was born in Indiana 
 and grew to womanhood in her native county of 
 Boone, later spending many years in Iowa, and 
 thence going to Topeka, Kans., where she died 
 at sixty-five years of age. Her parents, Charles 
 and Susan Davis, were natives respectively of 
 England and Scotland and attained the advanced 
 
 ages of ninety-six and ninety-two years. In a 
 very early day Charles Davis shipped produce 
 down the Mississippi river to southern markets, 
 but later he gave his attention more especially 
 to the development of a farm, meeting with a de- 
 gree of success that reflected credit upon his 
 energy and judgment. In their religious belief 
 WilHam R. Rogers and his wife were members 
 of the Christian Church. They were the parents 
 of three sons. The second son, J. A., is an at- 
 torney and federal commissioner at Clarion, 
 Iowa, where he has long been a leading Repub- 
 Hcan. Ephraim P., who was graduated from the 
 Topeka Medical College, carried on medical prac- 
 tice until his death, December 17, 1899. 
 
 The eldest of the three sons, Charles A., was 
 born on a farm near Lebanon, Boone county, 
 Ind., February 22, 1851, and at twelve years of 
 age accompanied the family to Iowa, where he 
 was a student in the Cedar Rapids high school. 
 At the age of nineteen he entered Cornell Col- 
 lege, where he remained for two years, a class- 
 mate of Leslie M. Shaw and M. L. Ward of San 
 Diego. His rudimentary knowledge of medicine 
 was gained through study under Drs. Mansfield 
 and Carpenter, of Cedar Rapids, after which he 
 studied in Rush Medical College, Chicago, in 
 the winter of 1873-74. His first experience as a 
 regular practitioner was gained in Brighton, 
 Iowa, where he remained until 1876. The fol- 
 lowing year he practiced at Sergeant Bluff, 
 Woodbury county, Iowa, and then entered the 
 College of Physicians and Surgeons at Keokuk, 
 Iowa, from which he was graduated in 1878. A 
 subsequent course in Rush Medical College gave 
 him a diploma from that institution in the spring 
 of 1879. Immediately afterward he came to 
 California and settled in Kern county. After 
 seven months at Kernville he came to Bakers- 
 field, of which city he has since been a well- 
 known citizen and leading physician. In point 
 of years of active practice, he is the oldest phy- 
 sician in the place. Pie holds the commission of 
 captain and assistant surgeon in the California 
 National Guard, and during the Spanish-Amer- 
 ican war, while assistant surgeon of the Sixth 
 Regiment of California Volunteers, he was or- 
 dered with his company to Benicia barracks and 
 became post surgeon for three months, when he 
 was transferred to the Presidio. On the organ- 
 ization of the Southern California Medical So- 
 ciety he became one of its charter members, and 
 he is likewise identified with the San Joaquin 
 Valley Medical Society and the Association of 
 Naval and Military Surgeons. 
 
 In 1872 Dr. Rogers was united in marriage 
 with Miss Frances Case, who was born in Mount 
 Morris, N. Y. They have two sons, namely: 
 Homer, a graduate of the medical department of 
 the University of Southern California and now 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1507 
 
 engaged in practice with his father, and Guy, 
 a graduate of the State University, and now a 
 practicing dentist in San Francisco. Frater- 
 nally connected with the Benevolent Protective 
 Order of Elks and the Knights of Pythias, Dr. 
 Rogers is a charter member of Bakersfield Lodge 
 No. 266, B. P. O. E., which he has represented 
 in the Grand Lodge. The Republican party has 
 always received his ballot, but in no other way 
 has he identified himself with politics, and he 
 has refused to permit the use of his name as a 
 candidate for office. His attention has been 
 given almost wholly to professional duties. It is 
 his ambition to keep abreast of the developments 
 th&.t are being made constantly in the science of 
 therapeutics. With this object in view he is an 
 inte'lHgent reader of medical journals and a close 
 student of every discovery made in the healing 
 art. By his careful diagnosis and skillful ap- 
 plication of remedial agencies he has won the 
 confidence of the people of his home city and 
 adjoining region, among whom he has a host of 
 warm personal friends. 
 
 WILBUR F. CLARKE. In the days when 
 Virginia was still a colonial possession of the 
 mother country the Clarke family came from 
 Eng^land and took up the occupation of plant- 
 ers in the Old Dominion. Christopher Clarke 
 was the son of a native Virginian and was 
 himself born and reared there, becoming in 
 early life a planter and following this occupa- 
 tion through all of his active life, with the 
 exception of the period of his service in the 
 Revolutionary war. At the time of his death 
 he was eighty-eight years of age, while his 
 wife, Elizabeth Hope, lived to be almost one 
 hundred. ■ Their son. Rev. William G., father 
 of W. F. Qarke, was born near Charlottes- 
 ville, Va., in 1816, and while earning a liveH- 
 hood from his plantation he devoted all of his 
 leisure hours, gratuitously, to the ministry of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church South. A 
 man of deep religious spirit, he counted no 
 labor in vain that advanced the kingdom of 
 God on earth, and many were the sacrifices 
 he made in order that the growth of the 
 church might be promoted. His death oc- 
 curred in Virginia in 1884, when he was sixty- 
 eight years of age. During the years of his 
 young manhood he married Martha U. Huck- 
 "step, who was born in Virginia in 181Q and 
 died there in October, 1902. The family of 
 which she was a member originated in Ger- 
 many, her grandfather having immigrated 
 from that country to a Virginia plantation. 
 Her father, Charles Huckstep, was a native 
 of Virginia, where he became a prosperous 
 
 and extensive planter, and died at an advanced 
 age. 
 
 In the family of Rev. William G. Clarke 
 there were seven children who- attained ma- 
 ture years, namely: W. F., tax collector of 
 Merced county, Cal. ; Mrs. Martha W. Taylor 
 of Kern county, this state ; Louisa, who re- 
 sides in jMissouri ; Christopher, who enlisted 
 in Company K, Second Virginia Cavalry, dur- 
 ing the Civil war, and was killed in a skirmish 
 near Winchester, Va., in the fall of 1863 ; Mrs. 
 Elizabeth Cleveland of Selma, Cal. ; Sarah M., 
 who died in Virginia ; and Maria, Mrs. Mar- 
 shall, a resident of Virginia. W. F. Clarke 
 was born near Charlottesville, Va., April 12, 
 1839, and grew to manhood on a farm twelve 
 miles from that town. After being primarily 
 educated in- subscription schools he became a 
 student in Palmyra Academy, and then con- 
 tinued his studies in Emory and Henry Col- 
 lege in Virginia. While in the junior year his 
 studies were interrupted by the outbreak of 
 the Civil war. Immediately afterward he en- 
 listed in Company D, Nineteenth Virginia In- 
 fantry, with which he participated in the first 
 battle of Bull Run, the engagements at Will- 
 iamsburg, Seven Pines or Fair Oaks Station, 
 the seven days' battles around Richmond, sec- 
 ond battle of Manassas and the engagement 
 at Sharpesburg or Antietam. On being ex- 
 changed from the infantry to Company K, 
 Second Virginia Cavalry, he served under 
 General Fitzhugh Lee, in whose army he re- 
 mained until the close of the war. Among 
 his battles as a cavalryman were those at 
 Fredericksburg, Winchester, Brandy Station 
 and Buckland, Va., a skirmish at Beverly, W. 
 Va., and the battles of Five Forks and High 
 Bridge. 
 
 At the close of the war Mr. Clarke returned 
 home to find that hi? father was financially 
 ruined, the farm laid bare by devastating 
 armies, and the sawmill burned to the ground. 
 On every hand were tales of distress and be- 
 reavement. There was none to help and few 
 to encourage. Undiscouraged by the gloomy 
 prospect, the son began to aid in the support 
 of the fam^ily. By remodeling and repairing 
 the old sawmill he was able to operate it, and 
 so began to saw pine and oak, which he 
 .shipped to Baltimore. By the exercise of pa- 
 tience and tireless labor he placed the business 
 on a profitable basis; and, buying one-half in- 
 terest in the milling business, he continued 
 the manufacture of lumber until 1869, when 
 he sold out in order to engage in farming. 
 The year 1870 found him in California, where 
 he taught school in Stanislaus and Merced 
 counties, and in 1872 bought a farm of two 
 hundred and forty acres on Los Banos creek, 
 
1508 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 three miles out from the city of the same 
 name. After having engaged in raising grain 
 on this farm for nine years, in 1881 he sold 
 the property and bought one hundred and 
 sixty acres four miles from Merced, where for 
 years he engaged in farming, gardening and 
 raising fruit. Eventually the tract was sold 
 ofif in small lots. In 1893 he moved to Mer- 
 ced, where he now resides. For ten years 
 after his removal to this city he owned twenty 
 acres in the suburbs, but finally disposed of 
 the tract. 
 
 In Fairfax county, Va., Mr. Clarke married, 
 December 12, 1866, Miss Sarah Summers, 
 whose ancestors were the first settlers of Belle 
 Haven, Va. (now Alexandria), and built the 
 first house in the place. Her father, William 
 T. Summers, was born in Alexandria, as was 
 also her grandfather, William Summers, a 
 manufacturer by occupation. The lineage of 
 the family is traced to Scotland. The grand- 
 father married Jane Millan, two of whose 
 brothers were colonels in the war of 1812. 
 William T. Summers became a large and en- 
 terprising miller in Fairfax county. For a 
 wife he chose Mariana Johnson, a native of 
 Fauquier county, Va., and a daughter of 
 Moses Johnson, a Virginian planter, whose 
 father, William Johnson, was a hero of the 
 Revolution. The Johnson family is of French 
 extraction, but has been identified with Amer- 
 ican history since the colonial period. Long 
 surviving her husband, who died in 1858, Mrs. 
 William T. Summers died in Virginia in June, 
 1903, when advanced in years. She was the 
 mother of six children, namely: Sarah, wife 
 of W. F. Clarke of Merced; Mrs. Mildred 
 Lucas, who died in Kentucky ; Elizabeth, wife 
 of J. L. Wright, who holds office as city clerk 
 and assessor of Santa Cruz ; Mrs. Isabelle 
 Holden of Fairfax county, Va. ; William, a 
 merchant in Chicago ; and George, a farmer of 
 Merced county, Cal. Mrs. Clarke was born 
 in Fairfax county and passed the years of 
 childhood on the home estate, situated two 
 miles from the site of the first battle of Bull 
 Run. In this vicinity, indeed, were waged nu- 
 merous engagements of the Civil wat, and 
 the peaceful valley was devastated by the 
 grim hosts of war. The family of Mr. and 
 Mrs. Clarke comprises four daughters, name- 
 ly : Inez, wife of W. A. Saunders of Merced ; 
 Mattie May, wife of E. Langenhovel of Mer- 
 ced county; Isabella, wife of Dr. J. C. Rob- 
 ertson of Modesto; and Ada, wife of Edgar 
 Landram of Merced, The family are identi- 
 fied with the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 South, in which Mr. Clarke acts as steward 
 and has officiated as chairman of the board 
 of trustees. Fraternally he is connected with 
 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. In 
 national politics he votes with the Democratic 
 party, but in local matters he has never been 
 radical. While living at Los Banos he served 
 for six years as justice of the peace and notary 
 public. As the Democratic candidate in 1902 
 he was elected tax collector of Merced county 
 by a majority of two hundred and fifty votes, 
 and entered upon his duties in January, 1903, 
 for a term of four years. 
 
 JAMES EGGLESTON PETTUS. Bakers- 
 field in its crude and undeveloped state formed 
 the setting of James Eggleston Pettus' career 
 for many years. At no time of his life did he 
 retain a vivid memory of his home in Charlotte 
 county, Va., where he was born February 26, 
 1827, for when seven years old he removed with 
 his widowed mother to Arkansas, and was reared 
 there on a farm, receiving a scant education in 
 the public schools. Martin and Sarah W. Pettus 
 were natives of Virginia, and the latter con- 
 tinued to live in Arkansas until her death, at the 
 age of ninety years. James Eggleston came 
 around the Horn to the mines on the Feather 
 river in 1850, and while experiencing fair suc- 
 cess made his home in Vallejo, then the capital 
 of California. Afterward he kept a hotel in the 
 town with his fathei--in-law, Charles H. Veeder, 
 who from the standpoint of public spirit deserves 
 to rank with the substantial upbuilders of the 
 state. Colonel Veeder was born in Schenectady, 
 N. Y., and married Lavina Watkins, a native of 
 Canada. In his youth he was a merchant in 
 New York, but removed at an early day to Illi- 
 nois, and from there to New Orleans, where he 
 studied law, and combined it with his mercantile 
 ventures. With his wife, and daughter, Cor- 
 nelia E., who became the wife of Mr. Pettus, he 
 crossed the plains with ox teams in 1850, and in 
 San Francisco established a steam laundry, 
 which he operated with fair success for sev- 
 eral months. He next went to Vallejo, 'where 
 he practiced law and ran a hotel, and in 1852 
 removed to Petaluma, going from there to the 
 site of Calpella. Mendocino county. He laid out 
 the latter town, kept a hotel there, and attended 
 to the legal complications that arose among the 
 early settlers. In time his son-in-law managed 
 the hotel, and for many succeeding years after 
 that the lives of the two men were closely en- 
 twined. 
 
 In 1866 the Pettus and Veeder families moved 
 down the coast with teams and wagons to San 
 Bernardino, remained there a year, but not be- 
 ing favorably impressed, made their way again 
 to Vallejo. A year later, in 1869, they came to 
 Bakersfield and took up land on section 8, where 
 Stockdale now stands, each man taking one hun- 
 
Historical anId biographical record. 
 
 1509 
 
 dred and sixty acres, upon which they followed 
 farming and stock raising. At the same time 
 Colonel Veeder practiced law, finding opportuni- 
 ty especially in connection with contested land 
 claims. He was the only person at the time who 
 knew anything about the laws of the land, and 
 was in consequence a man of prominence and 
 great usefulness. Several years later his health 
 began to fail, and he died in 1876, at the age of 
 seventy-eight years, his wife having died Feb- 
 ruary 28J 1867, at the age of fifty-three. The 
 latter was a devout member of the Episcopal 
 Church. Colonel Veeder, who possessed a strong 
 character and constitution, won his title in the 
 war of 1812. 
 
 Until the death of his wife, December i, 1877, 
 at the age of forty-three, Mr. Pettus lived on 
 his ranch at Bakersfield, and afterward was an 
 interested spectator of the growth of the city 
 over what had once been a dreary desert. His 
 death occurred July 25, 1898, and he left six 
 children, five having died in infancy. Leonora, 
 the oldest of the eleven children, was born in 
 Petaluma, Sonoma county, and came to Bakers- 
 field when a small child. There were four other 
 girls in the place at the time, but she alone has 
 been permitted to live and watch the rise of the 
 populous city. March 6, 1873, Leonora was 
 united in marriage with Howard A. Cross, a na- 
 tive of Farmersville, N. Y., who came to Los 
 Angeles, Cat., as a child. His father, Anson, also 
 born in New York state, came to California at 
 a very early day, and for a time was engaged in 
 the butchering business for the soldiers at 
 Wilmington. With his son he came to Bakers- 
 field about 1869, locating on a ranch near the 
 town, and became prominent in various lines of 
 activity in the community. His son ran a liv- 
 ery stable in Bakersfield for several years, and 
 brought the first hack to the town, at the same 
 time owning a meat market, and inaugurated the 
 first milk delivery in the town. In the meantime 
 the father went to the mines of Arizona, 
 achieved fair success, and finally died in Placer- 
 ville, Cal., in 1891. Howard A. Cross made a 
 success of his life in Bakersfield, and his name 
 will always be connected with its earliest and 
 most substantial enterprises. In the early days 
 his farm house stood on the corner of H and 
 Nineteenth streets, where the Produce Bank is 
 now located. He was a Republican in politics, 
 but was always averse to accepting office. His 
 death, September 17, 1890, removed from a field 
 of great usefulness a citizen who had won the 
 sincere respect of his fellowmen, and to whom 
 his intimate friends accord a high personal 
 tribute Five children were born to Mr. and 
 Mrs Cross, of whom Lucy Cornelia is the wife 
 of M E. Carlock, of Shasta county,' this state ; 
 Harriet A. is the wife of P. A; Dickman, of 
 
 San Francisco; James N. is engaged in the cat- 
 tle business in Kern county ; Carrie A. is the wife 
 of D. B. Bristo; and Olive L. died at the age 
 of seven years and seven months. Mrs. Cross is 
 one of the interesting and observing pioneers of 
 Bakersfield, is an entertaining talker, and pos- 
 sesses a fund of information regarding the early 
 days. Her parents, her husband, and her hus- 
 band's family were all pioneers, and as she was 
 the eldest daughter, a well-loved wife, and al- 
 ways popular with her many friends, she has 
 many memories to keep her heart young, and her 
 life full of incentives to that kindness and con- 
 sideration for which she is so well known. 
 
 CHARLES U. HENDERSON. As agent for 
 the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad at 
 Laton Charles U. Henderson is classed among 
 the rising citizens of this place. He was born 
 at Ripon, Wis., a son of George M. Henderson, 
 a merchant of Aberdeen, Scotland, who came 
 to America and located in Northwest territory, 
 Canada, where he became captain of a vessel in 
 the employ of the Hudson Bay Company. Later 
 he located^ in Chicago, III, where he engaged in 
 business, finally removing to Brownville, Neb., 
 as a merchant conducting a paying enterprise 
 outfitting parties crossing the plains. The trans- 
 portation business also occupied some of his time 
 and attention, in both of which he met with 
 success. His death occurred in that location at 
 the age of fifty-two years. His wife, formerly 
 Jane Merrill, a native of Connecticut, died in 
 Oakland, Cal., whither she came in 1872. She 
 was the mother of one son and two daughters, of 
 whom the oldest was Charles U. Henderson. He 
 received his education in the public schools of 
 Brownville and the state normal at Peru, from 
 which he was graduated in 1872. The following 
 year he came to California and engaged with the 
 Central Pacific Railroad Company as operator 
 and agent at Alameda, after three years going 
 to Milton, thence to Blue Canyon, Red Bluff, 
 Downey, and in Stockton, San Joaquin county, 
 becoming ticket agent, later having charge of the 
 Stockton Railroad Agency for a period of five 
 years.* In 1883 he located on Kings river, south 
 of Kingston, on property which he owned and- 
 there engaged in ranching and the cultivation of 
 fruit. He was the first horticulturist in that 
 vicinity, setting out two hundred acres in trees, 
 building a canal for irrigation, etc. After the 
 panic of 1893-4-5, he removed from the ranch 
 and in 1900 was appointed postmaster at Kings- 
 ton, which office was later removed to Laton, 
 and also had a contract to carry the mail. When 
 Nears & Saunders located in Laton and began 
 to open up the Laguna DeTache grant, he en- 
 tered their employ as local agent, the business 
 
1510 
 
 HISTORICAL AND iStOGRAPHlCAL RECORt). 
 
 rapidly assuming an important place in this sec- 
 tion When the Santa Fe Railway Company built 
 their road through the place Mr Henderson was 
 made agent. At the same time he became agent 
 for the Wells Fargo & Co. Express, continuing 
 in his various positions until the building ot 
 the station, since which time he has given his 
 attention to the railway and postoffice alone, tor 
 a time he was connected with a lumber yard 
 known as the Fassett Lumber Company, which 
 he helped to open up and conducted for a time. 
 Mr Henderson has been interested in all that 
 has pertained to the growth and development of 
 this section, giving his time and energy m the 
 promotion of irrigation concerns, and the build- 
 ing of good roads and schoolhouses. He was 
 a member of . the first committee sent to Sacra- 
 mento to interest the legislature in the division 
 of Kings county from that of Tulare, he sug- 
 gesting the name of Kings, by which the county 
 is known. 
 
 In Stockton, Cal., Mr. Henderson was united 
 in marriage with Rose S. Sutherland, who was 
 born near Kingston, Fresno county, Cal, and 
 was reared and educated in Stockton. She is 
 assistant postmaster and manages the office. Her 
 father, John Sutherland, was born in England 
 and came to the United States in an early day, 
 locating in St. Louis, Mo^, where he engaged 
 as a coal miner. He crossed the plains to Cali- 
 fornia and engaged in mining in Amador coun- 
 ty, thence located in King river, Fresno county, 
 and took up government land and added by pur- 
 chase until he owned fifteen thousand acres south 
 of that town. Later he located . in Stockton, 
 where he conducted retail meat markets. He 
 had interests in. various parts of the country and 
 in Texas, acquiring considerable wealth before 
 his death. Mr. Henderson is associated fra- 
 ternally with the Modern Woodmen of America, 
 of Laton; the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, and the Masons, having pined this organ- 
 ization in Hanford, Kings county, where he was 
 raised to the Royal Arch degree, and now be- 
 longs to the Commandery of Fresno. Political- 
 ly, he has always been a Jeffersonian Democrat, 
 and on that party's ticket in the early '90s he was 
 nominated for the assembly. * 
 
 JUDGE CHARLES L. CLAFLIN, of Bakers- 
 field, Kern county, Cal., attorney, and former 
 superior judge of Modoc county, was born in 
 Lebanon, Van Buren county, Iowa, August 17, 
 1858, and is a son of Ira and Hannah (Richard- 
 son) Claflin, both of whom were natives of Ad- 
 dison county, Vt. Both parents were reared, 
 educated and finally married in Vermont, but 
 in 1836 removed to Van Buren county, Iowa, 
 
 where Ira Claflin found abundant opportunity 
 for the practice of his profession as surveyor 
 and civil engineer. That territory was then wild 
 and the inhabitants widely scattered. He pur- 
 chased at public auction a tract of land which 
 he set about to improve, developing a fine farm, 
 upon which he lived until his death at the age 
 of eighty-three years. His widow, now ninety 
 years of age, still occupies the old home in Van 
 Buren county. Ira Claflin became a man of 
 prominence and influence' in his Iowa home, 
 serving as surveyor of Van Buren county for 
 twenty years, and was also employed extensively 
 by the federal government in surveying public 
 land in Iowa and Wisconsin. Until six weeks 
 before his death he continued in active life, re- 
 taining full possession of the faculties which 
 rendered his career broad and successful. For 
 many years he was identified with the Masons 
 and 'the Odd Fellows. He was a man of public 
 spirit, and at all times exhibited an unselfish de- 
 sire to do all in his power to bring the raw 
 western territory in which he lived up to a high 
 state of development. 
 
 Ira Claflin was a son of Nathan Claflin, a na- 
 tive of Massachusetts, who married a represen- 
 tative of the ancient New England family of 
 Shelby. He was of Scotch descent, the family 
 having been founded in America in 1660 by 
 Robert Mackclothlan, who came from Scotland 
 direct to Massachusetts. Representatives of this 
 family have since become prominently identified 
 with commercial, industrial and financial affairs 
 throughout the country, especially in the east- 
 ern states. 
 
 At the age of fifteen years Charles L. Claflin 
 left his home in Iowa and visited a sister resid- 
 ing in California. Returning home a year later 
 to complete his education, he entered Troy 
 (Iowa) Academy, going from that institution 
 to the Southern Iowa Normal School at Bloom- 
 field, from which he was graduated. At the age 
 of nineteen years he began teaching in the pub- 
 lic schools of Iowa, in the meantime taking up 
 the study of the law. In 1880 he came to Cal- 
 ifornia, locating in Modoc county, where he was 
 admitted to the bar in 1881. The following year 
 he was elected district attorney of Modoc county, 
 as the nominee of the Republican party, and 
 served in that office two years. From 1884 to 
 1890 he remained in private practice in that coun 
 ty. In the latter year he was nominated for 
 judge of the superior court of Modoc county by 
 the Republican party, and though the county was 
 overwhelmingly Democratic he was elected by 
 a large majority, occupying the bench for a term- 
 of six years to the eminent satisfaction of all in- 
 terested. Upon his retirement from this post 
 he removed, in 1897, to Los Angeles, but soon 
 afterward was compelled to abandon the delight- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BtOGRAPHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 1511 
 
 fill home he had established in that city, owing 
 to a severe attack of asthma. For the following 
 3-ear he practiced in Modoc county, and then 
 went to Susanville, where he remained until De- 
 cember, 1900, since which time he has maintained 
 an office in Bakersfield, where his professional 
 labors have been rewarded with a rare measure 
 of success. He is the attorney for and one of 
 the directors in the Pacific Smelting Works, an 
 industry which is contemplating making Kern 
 its headquarters. Fraternally he is identified 
 with the Masons. May 8, 1884, he was united 
 in marriage with Nellie Welsh, a native of Ne- 
 vada county, Cal. They are the parents of six 
 children, namely : Harlan W. and Charles Le- 
 land, Jr., who are students in the Bakersfield 
 high school, and Anita E., George Elwood, 
 Harry L. and Teddie, students irn the lower 
 grades. 
 
 Judge Claflin is a strong and forceful man, 
 gifted with keen insight into human nature and 
 current events, and impressing all with his sin- 
 cerity and courageous convictions. During the 
 years of his residence in California he has made 
 a marked impress upon the trend of public 
 events, his striking personality and breadth of 
 mind winning for him the confidence of all 
 classes of intelligent men, and giving him a 
 place among the leaders in public thought and 
 action. Thoroughly grounded in the principles 
 of the law, he has evidenced rare capabilities 
 in the application of these principles to the causes 
 intrusted to his care, and the success which has 
 attended his practice has caused him to_ become 
 recognized, by the profession and the laity, as a 
 leader of the bar of southern California. 
 
 OSCAR WILLIAM STEINWAND, M. D. 
 Talented, trustworthy, and well versed in med- 
 ical lore, Oscar William Steinwand, M. D., of 
 Selma, is especially adapted for his professional 
 calling. As a general practitioner he has at- 
 tained marked success, and during the compara- 
 tively brief time that he has been located in this 
 city 'has won a generous patronage and gained 
 the respect and esteem of the community. Of 
 German ancestry, he was born May 12, 1869, m 
 Chicago, 111., a son of Joseph Steinwand. 
 
 A native of Wurtemberg, Germany, Joseph 
 Steinwand grew to manhood in the fatherland, 
 living there until 1850. Emigrating in that year 
 to the United States, he followed his trade of 
 carpenter and builder in many of the prominent 
 cities of the Union, including New York, Chi- 
 cago Memphis and New Orleans, being also en- 
 gaged to some extent as a millwright. Return- 
 ing from New Orleans to Chicago, he remained 
 in that city until 1875, when he came to Cali- 
 fornia locating in Oakland as a contractor and 
 
 builder. On January 19, 1881, he bought a 
 raisin vineyard in Fresno county, four and one- 
 half miles east of the city, and has since been 
 successfully employed in its improvement and 
 management. He married Elise Munch, a na- 
 tive of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, and they be- 
 came the parents of four children, of whom 
 Oscar W., the subject of this biographical 
 sketch, is the second child. 
 
 Acquiring the rudiments of his education in 
 the primary schools of Chicago, Oscar William 
 Steinwand came with his parents to this state, 
 living first in Oakland and later in Fresno, in 
 these places continuing his studies. Entering 
 Cooper Medical College in 1893, he studied there 
 two years, and was then engaged in hospital 
 work in San Francisco and Fresno for one year, 
 in 1897 being graduated from the Cooper Med- 
 ical College with the degree of M. D. Locating 
 in Fresno, Dr. Steinwand remained there until 
 June, 1898, when he removed to San Francisco, 
 where he continued the practice of medicine for 
 one year. Coming to Selma in 1901, the doctor 
 has here built up a large and lucrative general 
 practice, his skill and professional knowledge 
 being known and appreciated. He is a close 
 student, and in 1903 took special instruction in 
 bacteriology and pathology in San Francisco, 
 perfecting himself still further in the science of 
 medicine. He has a finely equipped office, in 
 which, among other valuable instruments and 
 machines, is a sixteen-plate X-ray machine. 
 
 In San Francisco, Dr. Steinwand married 
 Louise E. Storz, a native of New Jersey, and they 
 have a daughter, named Grace. The doctor is 
 now serving as city health officer, as such per- 
 forming the duties devolving upon him most 
 faithfully. He is a member of the American 
 Association for the Advancement of Science ; of 
 the California Medical Society ; of the Fresno 
 County Medical Society; of the San Joaquin 
 Medical Society; and of the American Medical 
 Association. In politics he is independent, vot- 
 ing according to the dictates of his conscience, 
 regardless of party prejudice. In his religious 
 views he is broad and liberal, and is a valued 
 member of the Unitarian Church. Fraternally, 
 the doctor is a member of Selma Lodge No. 277, 
 F. &. A. M. ; of Selma Lodge, I. O. O. F. : of the 
 Woodmen of the World ; and of the Foresters 
 of America. 
 
 ROBERT J. BUTTS. A prominent agricul- 
 turist, and an able business man, Robert J. Butts 
 is an important factor in the industrial circles 
 of Merced county, and one of the most valued 
 and highly esteemed citizens of Ingomar. Since 
 coming here to live, on the farm which his wife 
 inherited from her father, the late Henry Whit- 
 
I5l2 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 worth, Mr. Butts has dihgently improved the 
 property, which, with its substantial -buildings, 
 gives ample evidence to the passerby of his thrift 
 and skill as a practical farmer. A son of Daniel 
 Butts, he was born January 15, 1850, in Rock 
 county. Wis. 
 
 A native of New Jersey, Daniel Butts spent 
 a part of his early hfe in Pennsylvania, and then 
 removed to Rock county. Wis., where he was 
 employed for a number of years as a tiller 
 of the soil. Coming across the plains to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1850, he cast his lot with the min- 
 ers, and was here numbered with the gold seek- 
 ers for many years. In 1873 or 1874 he went 
 to Oregon, locating in Salem. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Eunice Berry, was born in 
 New Jersey, and died in Pleasanton, Alameda 
 county, Cal, in 1877. Of the three sons and 
 oiie daughter born of their union, Robert J. was 
 the youngest child. 
 
 Having acquired the rudiments of his educa- 
 tion in the public schools of Wisconsin, Robert 
 J. Butts completed his early studies in the dis- 
 trict schools of Illinois. He subsequently lived 
 for several 'years in Illinois, at first running a 
 threshing machine, and afterward being em- 
 ployed in the Chicago Steel Works for five years. 
 His health becoming impaired, he came to Cal- 
 ifornia in 1872, hoping in this climate to find re- 
 newed vigor and strength. He first found em- 
 ployment in Pleasanton, Alameda county, and 
 was later engaged in mining for two years at 
 Bull Run, in Kern county. Returning from 
 there to Pleasanton, Mr. Butts operated a thresh- 
 ing machine in that locality for several seasons. 
 Settling at Big Valley, near Lookout, Modoc 
 county, in 1884, he bought a half-section of land, 
 and improved a fine ranch, which he still owns, 
 and was there successfully engaged in general 
 farming for twelve years. After the death of his 
 father-in-law he removed to his present farm, 
 and on its four hundred and thirty-five acres of 
 productive land carries on a large and lucrative 
 business as a raiser of wheat and barley. 
 
 In July, 1879, Mr. Butts married, in Ingomar, 
 Mary Jane Whitworth, who was born in Tuo- 
 lumne county, Cal., a claughter of Henry Whit- 
 worth. A native of England, Mr. Whitworth 
 immigrated to the United States when a young 
 man, and in 1849 made his way across the conti- 
 tinent to California. He traveled extensively 
 throughout the state, finally locating permanently 
 in Merced county. Taking up land from the gov- 
 ernment, he improved the homestead now owned 
 by his daughter, Mrs. Butts, and also bought 
 other valuable pieces of real estate, becoming a 
 very large landholder, and was here an honored 
 resident until his death, in February, 1897. The 
 marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Butts has been blessed 
 by the birth of ten children, namely : Grace E., 
 
 Lillie, Walter, Warren, Robert, Alfred, May 
 Lois, Henry Dayton, Carrie Edith and John 
 William. With the exception of Grace E., who 
 resides in Pleasanton, and Carrie Edith, who is 
 deceased, all of the children reside at home. Po- 
 litically Mr. Butts is an active member of the 
 Republican party, and one of its most loyal ad- 
 herents. While living in Illinois he enlisted in 
 the state militia, hoping to enter the army, but 
 was refused admission on account of his youth- 
 fulness. Fraternally he belongs to Adin Lodge 
 No. 273, I. O. O. F., of Modoc county. 
 
 JONAS A. ALLEN, who since 1898 has 
 been a legal practitioner of Visalia, was born 
 September 10, 1857, in Kane county. 111., his 
 parents being Aaron G. and Sarah (Lanfear) 
 Allen, the former of whom was born in 
 Benson, Rutland county, Vt., in 1816, and the 
 latter in Ticonderoga, Essex county, N. Y., in 
 1 82 1. Aaron Allen removed from Vermont to 
 Whitehall, N. Y., and from there came overland 
 to Kane county, 111., in 1836, purchasing land 
 of the government near Hampshire, in that 
 county. About 1 87 1 he located in Elgin, 111., and 
 now is living retired in the renowned watch- 
 making city. His wife died in 1898, having 
 reared a family of three sons and two daughters, 
 of whom Jonas A. is the youngest boy. 
 
 Partly through the success of his father, and 
 partly through his own ability to earn money, 
 young Jonas entered the University of Illinois 
 in 1877, at Champaign, remaining until the sen- 
 ior year. He then began to read law with Judge 
 Henry B. Willis and John W. Ranstead, and in 
 the fall of 1880 came west to Santa Rosa, Cal., 
 leaving his legal studies uncompleted. After a 
 year in Santa Rosa; and a year and a half in 
 San Francisco, he returned to Illinois in 1883, 
 and after further study under his old preceptors, 
 was admitted to the bar of Illinois in 1884. Con- 
 tinuing with Mr. Ranstead for a year, he again 
 removed to California in May, 1885, and in Tu- 
 lare had charge of his brother's ranch business 
 until December, 1886, when he began the prac- 
 tice of the law in Tulare. In 1887 he formed 
 a law partnership with Hon. J. W. Davis, which 
 continued until December, 1898. For years an 
 active Republican, his poHtical aspirations and 
 legal quahfications were happily blended in his 
 election as district attorney in 1898, during which 
 year he took up his residence in Visalia, which 
 has since been his home. He received the Re- 
 publican nomination for superior judge of Tu- 
 lare county in 1904, but was defeated by a plu- 
 rality of forty-five votes, the county being Demo- 
 cratic by thirty-five. 
 
 In Belvidere, III, in 1885, Mr. Allen was 
 united in marriage with Nettie E. Lawrence, a 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1513 
 
 ijative of Belvidere, the daughter of E. L. Law- 
 rence, a farmer near Belvidere, and grand- 
 daughter of a judge of IlHnois. Eugene Law- 
 rence, the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Allen, is 
 living with his parents. Mr. Allen is an en- 
 thusiastic fraternalist, and is identified with the 
 Blue Lodge, F. & A. M., of Tulare, the Eastern 
 Star and the Woodmen of the World. He is a 
 member of the Congregational Church, con- 
 tributing generously toward its support. A man 
 of commanding presence, and sane and prac- 
 tical view of life in general, he is a master of 
 the theory and practice of law, and adorns a 
 position in which strength of character, good 
 judgment and integrity are leading requirements. 
 
 J. FRED KESSING. The home of J. Fred 
 Kessing, in Piano, Tulare county, is one among 
 the handsome and comfortable residences of this 
 place. He not only built the house, but also 
 furnished it according to his own ideas, filling 
 the grounds with a variety of citrus fruits and 
 plants, which make of it a garden spot even 
 among the beautiful places of the cities of Cali- 
 fornia. In addition to its beauty it also holds 
 out the attraction of hospitality, for Mr. Kes- 
 sing is widely known for this quality, with gen- 
 erous hands giving to others all wherewith he 
 has been blessed in his efforts. He comes of 
 one of the oldest families of California, being 
 a native of Santa Rosa, where he was born June 
 3, 1863. His father, John F. Kessing, was born 
 in Hamburg, Germany, and in an early day 
 came to America as a pioneer. In 1849 ^^ 
 crossed the plains to California, settling as a 
 pioneer in Sonoma county, where he served as 
 the first revenue collector, and was one of the 
 pioneer merchants of Santa Rosa. He was also 
 one of the first merchants in Oroville. Subse- 
 quently he removed to San Francisco, where for 
 many years he engaged in the commission busi- 
 ness. Finally he sold out to his brother, who 
 still carries on the business. Mr. Kessing had 
 originally intended, with the many others who 
 flocked to the west in that year, to mine, but 
 gave it up as too precarious and uncertain a 
 method of obtaicing a livelihood. He came 
 south to Tulare county and in 1872 laid out 
 the town of Tulare, about that time becoming a 
 warm personal friend of Mark Hopkins, of the 
 Southern Pacific Railway Company. He is now 
 retired from active labors and makes his home 
 in Alameda, at the age of seventy-four years. 
 His wife, formerly Maria G. Karenberg, of Os- 
 nabriick, Germany, is also living. They became 
 the parents of two sons and three daughters, . of 
 whom J. Fred Kessing is the third in order of 
 birth. 
 
 In the schools of San Francisco J. Fred Kes- 
 
 sing obtained a preliminary education and for a 
 time thereafter attended the university. A nat- 
 ural mechanic, he turned to labors which gave 
 him an opportunity to exercise this ability, in 
 Tulare, in 1872, engaging in contracting and 
 building and meeting with success. He has 
 built over one hundred and sixty houses in Tu- 
 lare county, as well as other buildings, among 
 them the Rocky Ford schoolhouse. In 1886 he 
 located in Piano and built the wagon road for 
 the Portersville Land & Lumber Company, run- 
 ning from the reservation to the summit. With 
 nothing as a foundation for his fortune, Mr. 
 Kessing has made the best use of the talents 
 given him, acquiring a competence by a steady 
 effort. In 1887 he purchased four lots in Piano, 
 and to this property has added fifty acres by pur- 
 chase. Nine acres are in alfalfa and the balance 
 is used as a pasture for a herd of twenty-eight 
 Jersey cows; the dairy is superintended by his 
 wife. Mr. Kessing continues to follow his trade 
 of carpenter and contractor, being one of the 
 popular men in this trade in Tulare county. 
 Among other buildings, he put up the bath house 
 at Hot Springs, a credit to his ability and the 
 mechanical talent which he has always mani- 
 fested. 
 
 In San Francisco Mr. Kessing married Ger- 
 trude C. McEntee, who was born in Detroit, 
 Mich., in 1863, the daughter of Judge T. M. 
 McEntee. They have two children, Albert F., 
 attending the State University at Berkeley, and 
 Qarence R., a student in the high school. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Kessing is a member of Orange 
 Camp No. 333, W. O. W., at Portersville. Po- 
 litically he is active in the Republican party, and 
 gives his support to every movement calculated 
 to advance the general welfare of Tulare county 
 and California. 
 
 CARTER LANDRAM. Occupying a promi- 
 nent place among the early settlers of Merced, 
 Carter Landram has im.pressed his worth upon 
 the community as a merchant and grain dealer, 
 as a promoter of education and public utilities, 
 and as an active and liberal member of the Cum- 
 berland Presbyterian Church. He is one of the 
 many native sons of Missouri who have found a 
 field of activity in the San Joaquin valley, and 
 who reflect credit upon the environment in which 
 their youth was passed. Born in Macon county, 
 Mo., April 13, 1840, he is a son of Reuben and 
 Elizabeth (Dingle) Landram, the former born 
 in old Virginia, and the latter in Kentucky, and 
 of English parentage. His paternal grandfather, 
 James Landram, was born in Virginia of Scotch- 
 Irish extraction, and soon after the birth of his 
 son Reuben moved to Kentucky, where the 
 youth was educated in the public schools, and 
 
1514 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 where he married at an early age. From Ken- 
 tucky, Reuben Landram moved to Macon county, 
 Mo., where • he died at an advanced age, and 
 where several of his nine children were born. 
 Seven of these children attained maturity, and 
 six are now living. Carter being the youngest. 
 Besides the latter, the family is represented in 
 Merced by James E., who came to the west in 
 1850, and by Abner P., now a resident of Sa- 
 linas. Reuben Landram was a farmer his en- 
 tire active Hfe, and to the end of his days re- 
 called vividly his experiences as a soldier dur- 
 ing the war of 1812. 
 
 Carter Landram was educated in a private 
 school in Missouri, and at McGee College, in 
 Macon county. Prior to the Civil war he en- 
 gaged in school teaching, which occupation he 
 abandoned to wear the gray of the Confederate 
 soldier. Enlisting under General Price in a 
 Missouri regiment, he served at the battle of 
 Lexington, and was soon after taken ill and 
 sent home to recover from an attack of typhoid 
 fever. Rejoining the army, he was elected Heu- 
 tenant under Colonel Poindexter, was taken 
 prisoner in Randolph county, Mo., and was im- 
 prisoned in St. Louis, Mo., and Ahon, III, re- 
 ceiving his parol at the latter prison. In 1864 
 he left home and crossed the plains with ox 
 teams, being six months on the way, and experi- 
 encing trouble with the Indians, owing to the 
 soldiers being withdrawn from the plains. Lo- 
 cating in Solano county, Cal., he worked on 
 farms by the month until he had gotten a lit- 
 tle ahead, and in 1873 located in Merced, where 
 he invested his capital in a book, stationery and 
 musical instrument store, later adding notions 
 and jewelry. Success came his way and the 
 capacity of the store was enlarged to meet the 
 growing trade. This store was sold in 1884, 
 and in the meantime Mr. Landram had become 
 interested in the grain business in 1881, buying 
 and shipping to different parts of the state until 
 July, 1882. He then entered the employ of Geo. 
 W. McNear, of San Francisco, as agent in Mer- 
 ced, and continued the buyer for the firm at this 
 point until November, 1903. Since then he has 
 conducted an independent grain business, but 
 still continues to represent the San Francisco 
 firm. 
 
 Mr. Landram has various interests scattered 
 throughout the town and county. He is president 
 of the Merced Lumber Company, and at differ- 
 ent times has owned and operated farms in the 
 county. He was one of the chief instigators, as 
 president of the Board of Trade, to induce the 
 Santa Fe Railroad to run through the town ; 
 aided the company in paying for lands, and 
 raised about $5,000 in the town of Merced. He 
 contributed both time and money for this worthy 
 cause, and won the gratitude of the merchants 
 
 and people in general for the success of his co- 
 operation. He is prominent in fraternal circles, 
 being a member of La Grange Lodge No. 99, 
 F. & A. M., of which he was treasurer for 
 many years. Mr. Landram is a Democrat in 
 politics, but has never desired or accepted office. 
 He was the first president, and held the position 
 for eight years, of the old Board of Trade of 
 Merced. Near Salida, Cal., Mr. Landram mar- 
 ried Alice Kerr, a native of Pike county. Mo., 
 who was reared and educated in California. 
 Five children have blessed this union, of whom 
 four attained maturity: John Max, represent- 
 ing the Merced Lumber Company and the grain 
 interests of his father at Livingston, where there 
 is a branch of the former and a warehouse owned 
 by Mr. Landram ; Margaret Mathena, widow of 
 J. C. Landram, of Merced; Hugh Kerr, attend- 
 ing the University of Tennessee, at Lebanonj 
 and Telete, living with her father. October 28, 
 1896, the devoted mother passed away, leaving 
 a host of friends to mourn her death. Mr. Land- 
 ram has been active in the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church for many years, is a ruling elder 
 in the church, and was formerly superintendent 
 of the Sunday school. In his life he bears out 
 the teachings of his denomination, and is one of 
 the high-minded, very liberal, and progressive 
 men of the community. 
 
 JAMES FENNER CHAMBERLAIN. 
 Among the retired citizens of Merced vvho are 
 drawing liberal incomes from extensive land 
 holdings in Merced county, is James Fenner 
 Chamberlain, representative of one of the old 
 families established on the Pacific coast in 1849. 
 Mr. Chamberlain, whose paternal great-grand- 
 father followed the martial fortunes of Washing- 
 ton during the Revolutionary war, and whose 
 maternal ancestors date their American occupa- 
 tion from the historic Mayflower, was born at 
 Central Falls, R. I., October 18, 1847, ^ son of 
 Adolphus Chamberlain, a native of Sharon, 
 Schoharie county, N. Y. His mother, Eliza 
 (Patt) Chamberlain, was born in Rhode Island, 
 a daughter of Jabel Patt, born in Cumberland, 
 R. I., and for many years machinist in the cot- 
 ton mills of that place. 
 
 Adolphus Chamberlain was a builder and ma- 
 chinist by trade and being of an ambitious turn 
 of mind came west in February, 1849, leaving 
 his family in Rhode Island, until such time as 
 he had gained a start in California. Setting sail 
 in the ship Shemoset, he sailed around Cape 
 Horn, arriving at his destination in San Fran- 
 cisco after six months of ocean voyage. Not 
 realizing his expectations in the mines on the 
 Feather and Yuba rivers and at Hangtown, he 
 returned to San Francisco and worked at his 
 
HISTORICAL AND IBIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1515 
 
 trade, being one of the contractors on the cus- 
 tom house and other buildings erected in the early 
 days. Later he engaged in farming near Stock- 
 ton and in i860 bought a ranch in San Joaquin 
 county, which he successfully devoted to grain 
 farming. For one year he lived in Nevada en- 
 gaged in business, and April 7, 1865, came to 
 Merced county, where he engaged in the dairy 
 business on the Miller & Lux ranch. This 
 proved a substantial undertaking, and included 
 the milking and care of two hundred and fifty 
 cows, and the manufacture of butter and cheese. 
 These commodities were taken to Stockton and 
 to San Francisco by boat, netting their pro- 
 ducer a handsome yearly income. In 1869 ^r. 
 Chamberlain purchased four hundred acres of 
 land in Merced county and engaged in the stock 
 and dairy business. He also raised grain on this 
 farm, and in its management duplicated his 
 former pronounced success. His death occurred 
 May 8, 1893, after a career of unusual activity. 
 He was a typical pioneer, generous and unos- 
 tentatious, making friends all along the course 
 of his useful and well directed life. He was 
 a stanch Republican, and in religion was broad 
 and tolerant. His wife, who survived him until 
 January 12, 1898, left two children, J. F. and 
 Melissa, the widow of J. S. Potter, of San Fran- 
 cisco. 
 
 James Fenner Chamberlain was twelve years 
 old when he accompanied his mother and sister 
 to the coast to join his father, leaving New York 
 on the steamer Northern Star and Panama on 
 the Golden Age. After landing in San Francisco 
 he lived in Stockton until his sixteenth year. He 
 then entered the employ of Miller & Lux, upon 
 whose farm his father was a department man- 
 ager, working for them at stock feeding, and 
 still later building fences for them along the 
 San Joaquin river. In 1875 he engaged in an 
 independent trucking business, and in 1881 
 bought a farm six miles from Merced, where he 
 engaged in grain raising, and where he 
 now owns seven hundred acres, well improved, 
 fitted with modern buildings and implements. In 
 1886 he moved to Merced and built his pres- 
 ent fine residence, at which place he is living 
 practically retired, although having the super- 
 vision of his country properties. Mr. Chamber- 
 lain and his sister still own the old homestead 
 of nearly nine thousand acres, of which they 
 rent all but eight hundred acres, and upon that 
 they conduct a stock business, raising principally 
 Shorthorns and Hereford cattle. He also leases 
 his farm near Merced. 
 
 Mr. Chamberlain married in San Francisco, 
 Celina Fuller, a native of Rhode Island. They 
 have one son, Fenner Adolphus, attending the 
 University of California. Mr. Chamberlain is 
 a Republican, and is fraternally connected with 
 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which 
 he is past grand. His wife is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. He is highly re- 
 spected by his fellow townsmen in Merced, by 
 the people with whom he has been connected 
 throughout the county, and represents the solid 
 and substantial men who have profited by the ad- 
 vantages of the great western country. 
 
 HON. JESSE RICHARD DORSEY. To 
 none of her professional leaders does Bakers- 
 field point with more pride than to Hon. Jesse 
 Richard Dorsey, an attorney representing the 
 concentrated energy of the west, who has had 
 the inclination and persistency to step out of a 
 trade and farm environment into the most prom- 
 ising legal atmosphere of the state, and in a few 
 years acquire a reputation which would generally 
 be considered liberal reward for a decade of 
 earnest endeavor. 
 
 Mr. Dorsey was born in Argentville, Lincoln 
 county. Mo., September 2, 1877, but comes of 
 southern ancestry, early identified with both 
 Maryland and Kentucky, the family having been 
 established in Missouri by the paternal grand- 
 father, Richard Dorsey, for many years a large 
 farmer in Maryland and Kentucky." At the tiine 
 of the emigration overland, Richard, Jr., the 
 father of Jesse R., was a small boy, and he was 
 reared on the Lincoln county farm, in time wit- 
 nessing the departure of his father for the war, 
 in which he served in the Confederate army under 
 General Price, in Texas, Arkansas and Missouri. 
 Richard the younger learned the blacksmith's 
 trade in Missouri, thereafter combining it with 
 farming until coming to California in 1888. He 
 married Mary A. Crosland, who lived to share 
 his fortunes until 1896, when her death occurred 
 in Delano, Kern county, Cal., at the age of forty- 
 nine years. Besides Jesse R. she had a daughter. 
 Belle, the wife of N. R. Mitchell, of Delano. 
 
 From the age of fifteen to eighteen Jesse R. 
 Dorsey attended the public schools of Watsorj- 
 ville, at the same time working his way through 
 a commercial school, from which he was duly 
 graduated. In Watsonville he began reading 
 law with Judge Dickerman, becoming also deeply 
 interested in Republican politics. After eighteen 
 months of preparation he entered the Northern 
 Indiana Law School at Valparaiso, from which 
 he was graduated in the class of 1898. Return- 
 ing to California, he practiced law at San Pedro 
 for ten months, and in 1899 was appointed deputy 
 district attorney of Kern county, serving three 
 years in that capacity, when he resigned. 
 
 In November, 1902, Mr. Dorsey was nom- 
 inated on the Republican ticket for the general 
 assembly, and was elected bv a gratifying ma- 
 jority in a Democratic county. During the ses- 
 
1516 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sion of 1903 his ability found vent in many di- 
 rections, and he served as chairman of the com- 
 mittee on claims, and as member of the county 
 and township governments, county boundaries, 
 revision and reform of laws, mines and mining 
 committees, rendering particularly efificient ser- 
 vice in the department of mining. Mr. Dorsey 
 is prominent fraternally, and is president of 
 Bakersfield Aerie, Fraternal Order of Eagles, and 
 at the state convention of this order, held in 
 1903, he was elected state vice president. He 
 is also a member of the Woodmen of the World, 
 past commander of the Knights of the Macca- 
 bees, and past chief ranger of the Foresters of 
 America. December 30, 1903, Mr. Dorsey was 
 united in marriage with Marion Stokum, who 
 was born in Santa Barbara, and who resided for 
 some time in Kern. Mr. Dorsey has a com- 
 prehensive knowledge of general law, but makes 
 a specialty of probate and criminal law. He is 
 conscientious in the discharge of his duties, is 
 faithful to the interests of his large clientele, 
 and throughout his private and public life main- 
 tains a dignity which presages a successful 
 career. 
 
 J. A. BUTHENUTH. The firm of_ Buth- 
 enuth & Miller is one of the representative en- 
 terprises maintaining the stock-raising prestige 
 of Stanislaus county. Both men have years of 
 practical experience behind them, and have a 
 familiarity with the mountains and plains ad- 
 dicted to stock in general, ofttimes not acquired 
 in a decade. J. A. Buthenuth, the senior mem- 
 ber of the firm, is a pleasing example of the 
 stockman at his best, his push and enterprise, 
 enthusiasm for his work, and his success as in- 
 dicated by a competence, and a fine family, con- 
 spire to place him among the encouraging and 
 useful citizens of this section. 
 
 A native son of the golden west, Mr. Buth- 
 enuth was born in Jamestown, Tuolumne coun- 
 ty, Cal., December 7, 1855, three years after the 
 arrival on the coast of his parents, Frederick and 
 Maria Anna (Mitchell) Buthenuth, both of 
 whom were born in Germany. Frederick Buth- 
 enuth had previously lived a few years in New 
 Orleans, and in 1852 came west by way of Pan- 
 ama, thereafter engaged in mining in various 
 parts of the state, making his home in James- 
 town for many years. Eventually he removed 
 to Oakdale, and eight years later died at an 
 advanced age, in 189 1. He was a Democrat in 
 politics, and was a substantial, moderately suc- 
 cessful miner and business man. He left a wid- 
 ow and seven children, two of his children hav- 
 ing died in infancy. Besides J. A., of this sketch, 
 the other children are: Elizabeth, the oldest 
 daughter,^ow Mrs. Lee, of Oakdale ; Frederick, 
 
 making -his home in Oakdale; Caroline, the wife 
 of Mr. Woodside, of Oakdale; Henry F., en- 
 gaged in mining in Amador county; Joseph, a 
 resident of Oakdale ; and Julia, Mrs. Huddleson, 
 of Ceres, Cal. Naturally, the children of Fred- 
 erick Buthenuth took kindly to mining, and at 
 an early age began to follow their father's ex- 
 ample. J. A. continued to mine throughout the 
 state until the business began to wane, when 
 he turned his attention to farming, at first work- 
 ing by the month. In 1892 he inaugurated an 
 independent stock business, rented a range, and 
 was successful as a sheep raiser until 1903. In 
 the meantime he had roamed over the ranges 
 and through the mountains, until the trails be- 
 came like old friends, their difficulties disap- 
 pearing the more closely he associated with them. 
 He knows the Sierras all through this section, 
 and carries in his heart a genuine appreciation 
 of their grandeur and influence. At times re- 
 verses came to him as to all engaged in the 
 stock business, but he met them calmly and phil- 
 osophically, profiting by the lessons taught and 
 starting in with renewed vigor to recuperate his 
 losses. When he sold out in 1903 it was with 
 a distinct sense of success and financial gain, 
 and with a justifiable conviction that he had im- 
 proved his opportunities, and learned all pos- 
 sible of sheep raising. Since then Mr. Buth- 
 enuth has been in business with Mr. Miller, rais- 
 ing about five thousand head of sheep a season, 
 and owning a ranch of three thousand acres in 
 Tuolumne county, near Coopertown. 
 
 September 25, 1884, Mr. Buthenuth married 
 Clara Boone, a native of Tuolumne county, and 
 daughter of Tobias Boone, a native of Mary- 
 land. Mr. Boone is a pioneer of 1852, who 
 crossed the plains and engaged in mining for 
 some years, but finally located on a farm in Tuo- 
 lumne county. Latterly he sold his farm and 
 lives in Knights Ferry, where he is highly es- 
 teemed and substantially identified with the gen- 
 eral interests of the town. His wife, formerly 
 Caroline Blackwell, is also of the south land, and 
 was born near Nashville, Tenn. Reared on a 
 farm, she is a daughter of William Blackwell, 
 an emigrant of the early '50s, and who farmed 
 in the vicinity of Browns Flat for the balance of 
 his life. Mrs. Buthenuth is the oldest of eight 
 children, seven of whom are living, Jefferson, 
 the second oldest, having died in Modesto. Em- 
 ma, Mrs. Coop, is a resident of Knights Ferry; 
 Frank is a resident of Stockton ; Henrietta is the 
 wife of Mr. Morrison, of Knights Ferry; Ida is 
 now Mrs. Morrison, of Knights Ferry; Tobias 
 is a resident of Knights Ferry ; and Lulu is Mrs. 
 Collins, of Modesto. Mr. and Mrs. Buthenuth 
 have six children, Emma, Eva, Albert, George, 
 Qarence and Frank. Mr. Buthenuth is well 
 known in politics,. He was nominated by the 
 
.M-,^J^t~^/^ >2.^^ 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1517 
 
 Republican party for the ofifice of supervisor 
 of the first district of Oakdale, but was not elect- 
 ed. He has attended many state and county con- 
 ventions, and has labored zealously for his 
 friends and the party. Fraternally he is con- 
 ,nected with the Oakdale Lodge No. 228, I. O. O. 
 F., of which he is past officer, and the Woodmen 
 of the World. Before the discontinuance of the 
 Encampment and Canton, he was active in both 
 organizations, and past chief of the former lodge. 
 Formerly he was active in the Oakdale Parlor 
 No. 142, N. S. G. W., and was the first presi- 
 dent of the parlor. Mr. Buthenuth is a man of 
 strong and well directed convictions, of great 
 progressiveness and public-spiritedness, and his 
 character and deeds are a credit to the noblest 
 type of self-made men. 
 
 ABRAHAM R. BALL. A veteran of the 
 Civil war, Mr. Ball has an army record of which 
 he may well feel proud. Not many men would 
 reenlist in the service after being honorably dis- 
 charged on account of physical disability, but in 
 the case of Mr. Ball the first taste of war was 
 just enough to spur him on, and as soon as he 
 was able to pass the examination he again went 
 to the front, taking part in the memorable march 
 of Sherman through Georgia. Since the war he 
 has been engaged in tilling the soil, meeting 
 with excellent success in his undertakings. 
 
 Born June 22, 1839, Mr. Ball is a son of 
 Willis and Achsah (Kinsley) Ball, the former 
 born near Bowling Green, Ky. At an early age 
 he removed with his parents to Indiana, where 
 he subsequently engaged in farming, later fol- 
 lowing the same vocation in Iowa. His death 
 occurred in Peoria, 111. Mr. Ball was a lineal 
 descendant of Col. William Ball, who was a 
 brother of George Washington's mother. The 
 chart containing this valuable information is in 
 the possession of A. R. Ball and is prized as 
 one of his most valued possessions. Mrs. Ball 
 was born in Indiana, a daughter of John Kins- 
 ley, the latter a native of New York state who 
 migrated to Indiana, where he was for years en- 
 gaged in tilling the soil. 
 
 Abraham R. Ball is the youngest son in a 
 family of six children. His boyhood and youth 
 were spent in the state of his nativity, but at 
 the age of sixteen he went to Iowa, where he 
 secured employment on a "farm, making his home 
 with his parents until attaining his majority. On 
 starting out in life for himself he worked on 
 farms in Iowa and also engaged in breaking 
 oxen for neighboring farmers. Later he pur- 
 chased and improved a farm of his own near 
 Osceola, where he was living in 1862, the year 
 of his enlistment in Company H, Fourth Iowa 
 Volunteer Infantry. Later he was taken ill and 
 
 was finally given his honorable discharge, it be- 
 ing thought that he was in such poor health 
 that it would be impossible for him to remain in 
 the service. A few weeks at home, however, 
 made a new man of him and soon afterward 
 he reenlisted in Company G, Thirteenth Iowa 
 Volunteer Infantry, and in this company he 
 served until the close of the war. He was at 
 the front most of the time, being with Sherman 
 during the Atlanta campaign. After the, fall of 
 the Confederacy Mr. Ball remained with his 
 army corps until the grand review at Washing- 
 ton, when he returned to his home in Iowa and 
 there he followed farming until 1884, when he 
 disposed of his farm and came to California. 
 
 On arriving here he located in Fresno county, 
 purchasing forty acres of land upon which he 
 took up his old occupation of farming. Later 
 he sold that place and bought the ranch that 
 has since been his home. This consists of two 
 hundred and fifty acres and is devoted to grain 
 and general farming. From time to time Mr. 
 Ball has added to his first purchase, until at the 
 present writing he and his sons, Isaac and 
 Harry, own nearly two sections of land, being 
 among the most extensive farmers in this sec- 
 tion of the county. The ranch is equipped with 
 modern appliances, including a combined har- 
 vester and other labor-saving machinery. 
 
 While residing in Iowa Mr. Ball was united 
 in marriage with Miss Mary Fouche, who was 
 born in Indiana and is a descendant of one of 
 the oldest families of that state. This union has 
 been blessed by the birth of the following chil- 
 dren: Delia, now Mrs. David Ash, of Iowa; 
 Isaac, at home ; Harry, also at home ; and Ach- 
 sah, now Mrs. Jam.es Sherwood. 
 
 Years ago Mr. Ball was made a Mason and 
 he is also a member of the Grand Army of the 
 Republic, being a member of the Atlanta Post 
 of Fresno. Politically a Democrat, he is at all 
 times actively interested in the welfare of his 
 party. Self-made in every sense of the word, 
 he is to be congratulated on the success he has 
 made of his opportunities, as he started without 
 a dollar. Both he and his estimable wife are 
 highly respected for their many excellent traits 
 of character, and that they may live long and 
 enjoy years of happiness is the wish of a large 
 circle of sincere friends. 
 
 CHRISTIAN A. NELSON. For its longest 
 established photograph gallery Bakersfield is 
 indebted to Christian A. Nelson, who came to 
 Bakersfield in the year 1888, when the town 
 had much less than one thousand inhabitants 
 within its borders, and was hardly able to sup- 
 port a resident photographer. Yet by economy, 
 industry and fair dealing, the town in the mean- 
 
1518 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 time slowly gaining in size, he succeeded in es- 
 tablishing himself permanently and firmly, and 
 built up a good business, which kept pace with 
 the growth of the city and the improvements in 
 the art of photography. 
 
 C. A. Nelson was born in Copenhagen, Den- 
 mark, January 4, 1847. He was reared in 
 Odense, which is one of the oldest cities in 
 northern Europe, being named in honor of 
 Odin, the god of the mythology of the Germanic 
 and Gothic nations. This city is also noted as 
 the birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen, the 
 author. As a boy Mr. Nelson enjoyed the ad- 
 vantage of a liberal education. After leaving 
 school he went to sea in merchant vessels, visit- 
 ing many ports on the shores of the Northern and 
 Baltic seas. At the age of nineteen years, in the 
 year 1866, he came to California and decided to 
 remain here. Later he returned to Copenhagen 
 to study navigation. There he married Eva J. 
 Hoyer, also a native of that city, and brought 
 her to San Francisco in the year 1874. She is 
 the mother of three children, William O., who 
 at this writing is engaged in the plumbing busi- 
 ness in Seattle, Wash. ; Clara, who is an artist 
 in her father's studio ; and Florence, who has re- 
 ceived a commercial education as bookkeeper and 
 stenographer in the high school of Bakersfield. 
 
 Mr. Nelson became master of vessels sailing 
 out of San Francisco to ports on the Pacific coast 
 of North and South America, from Alaska to 
 Chili, but gave up the seafaring life in 1884, 
 when he, baing naturally of an artistic turn of 
 mind, engaged in the study and practice of 
 photography, which he has ever since cultivated. 
 He is fraternally connected with the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, and has at this time held 
 the office of financial secretary of the local lodge 
 for about three years. 
 
 ^ GEORGE W. FRANCIS. Since establishing 
 his home in Tulare county and embarking in the 
 stock business Mr. Francis has met with a de- 
 gree of success that enables him, in the afternoon 
 of a busy life, to enjoy the comforts so richly 
 merited. The possession of large tracts of land 
 indicates that he has displayed wise judgment in 
 investments. Included in his property holdings 
 may be mentioned his old homestead northeast of 
 Visalia, consisting of four hundred and eighty 
 acres; one hundred and twenty acres in close 
 proximity to Visalia; one hundred and sixty 
 acres in Goshen valley and a forty-acre tract near 
 the - last-named farm. Although practically re- 
 tired from agricultural activities he still attends 
 to the buying and selling of cattle and maintains 
 the oversight of his lands. 
 
 _ The father of Mr. Francis was a Virginian by 
 birth and parentage and in boyhood accompanied 
 
 his parents to Ohio, settling in Muskingum coun- 
 ty and engaging in the tilling of the soil. When 
 the war with Mexico broke out he enlisted in 
 the United States army and started for the front, 
 but was never heard from afterward, and it is 
 supposed that he died in battle or in a hospital, 
 unknown. His wife, who bore the maiden name 
 of Susan Holmes, was born in Virginia, and 
 passed away in Ohio in 1899. In their family 
 of seven sons and five daughters George W. 
 Francis was third in order of birth, and was 
 born in Muskingum county, Ohio, March 13, 
 1830. The family being large and their means 
 small, it was impossible for him to devote much 
 time to school, and his education was acquired 
 principally by self-culture, he having been from 
 childhood a close observer and great reader. 
 
 With ox teams, wagons, and a party of emi- 
 grants, George W. Francis crossed the plains to 
 California in 1853, and after a journey of five 
 months and thirteen days he arrived at Hang- 
 town, where he began mining. A few years 
 later, in 1856, he went to the mines of Mariposa 
 county. In 1858, abandoning mining, he went 
 to the Kings river region and settled in Drums 
 Valley, where he and Andrew Drum engaged in 
 the hog business. The presence of wild animals, 
 especially bears, incurred constant danger for 
 their drove of hogs, and after a year he disposed 
 of his interest in the business to his partner. 
 About the same time (1859) ^^ removed to a 
 cattle ranch not far ffom Visalia, where event- 
 ually he acquired the control of four thousand 
 acres and had large herds of cattle grazing on 
 the plains. When the compulsory fence law was 
 passed, the cattle business no longer being profit- 
 able there, he took his herds to San Luis Obispo 
 county, although still retaining his residence near 
 VisaHa. 
 
 At Visalia, in i860, Mr. Francis married 
 Clementine Shipp, a native of Tennessee and a 
 daughter of George Shipp, one of the earliest 
 settlers of the San Joaquin valley. Mr. Shipp 
 was born in Tennessee and there grew to man- 
 hood and married. Accompanied by his fam- 
 ily, in 1852 he crossed the plains, follov^fing the 
 southern route, and settled in what is now Tulare 
 county. Immediately after his arrival he pre- 
 empted land four miles northeast of VisaHa and 
 there raised cattle and general farm crops. In 
 1863 he removed to San Luis Obispo county 
 and devoted his attention to stock raising for 
 some years, but finally retired from active labors. 
 His death occurred in 1894. In Tulare county 
 his name is perpetuated as that of a very early 
 settler. At the time he came to the county he 
 found only a very few residents, and about the 
 time of his arrival there came to this part of the 
 valley such pioneers as Dr. George, Mr. Jei> 
 nings, Abraham Murray, S. C. Brown, Dr. Cut- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1519 
 
 ler, R. Qiatten and Nat. Vise, in whose honor 
 the town was named. 
 
 Of the eight children comprising the family 
 of Mr. and Mrs. Francis three sons and two 
 daughters are living, namely : Gilmore, who lives 
 near his father's home; Simeon; Walter, resid- 
 ing near Kmgsburg ; Mrs. Ida Wilkes and Mrs. 
 Katie Weatherman, of this vicinity. The chil- 
 dren deceased were named Andrew, William and 
 Fred. During all of his life Mr. Francis has 
 been an advocate of Republican principles and 
 has supported his opinions at the ballot box. 
 There is one thing that Mr. Francis takes pride 
 in, and that is that he voted for Abraham Lin- 
 coln at Venice, Cal., in 1861, when there were 
 but seventy-one votes cast and but two of these 
 were Republican. He was implored at that time 
 to change his principles, as Tulare county never 
 would be won by his party, and also at this time 
 the men raised a purse of $2.50 each for the two 
 men who cast the Republican votes. Mr. Fran- 
 cis owned up to his principles but would not 
 accept the money, and said that he wanted to live 
 and would live to the time when his county would 
 be carried by that party. They then told him he 
 would have to live a thousand years, which he 
 said he would do, it making no difference to 
 him. That this desire was gratified was shown 
 by the election held November 8, 1904, when 
 the Republicans carried the county by an over- 
 whelming majority. All through his active life 
 he has officiated as a school trustee, in which ca- 
 pacity he has been helpful in promoting the in- 
 terests of the school in his district. 
 
 SAMUEL HALL. At the time of his arrival 
 in Visalia in 1874 Mr. Hall found a small ham- 
 let planted in the midst of an uncultivated 
 stretch of country, whose value was unknown 
 and possibilities unrecognized. To the south 
 Los Angeles and its outlying country were at- 
 tracting permanent settlers ; to the north the 
 valley of the Santa Clara presented an inviting 
 aspect, while westward lay the mountains that 
 shut off the coast counties and formed a barrier 
 to the ocean. The accident of location had pre- 
 vented pioneers from investigating the possibil- 
 ities of the soil, hence the San Joaquin valley was 
 left for the civilization of the latter part of the 
 nineteenth century. 
 
 Appreciative of the opportunities offered to 
 permanent settlers, Mr. Hall has never regretted 
 the decision that led him to cast in his lot with 
 the people of Visalia. He is an Englishman and 
 descended from a long line of English progeni- 
 tors. His father, Thomas Hall, crossed the 
 ocean from England to America in 1841 and 
 settled in Albany, N. Y., where he followed the 
 butcher's trade. Later he was similarly em- 
 
 ployed in other parts of the same state. Janu- 
 ary I, 1853, he left Rome, N. Y., and proceeded 
 to New York City, where he took ship for Pan- 
 ama enroute to California. The journey was 
 uneventful, except for a serious attack of Pan- 
 ama fever. His first location was in Trinity 
 county and from there he went to Shasta county, 
 engaging in the butcher's trade. Eventually he 
 embarked in the wholesale sheep business in San 
 Francisco, where he remained until his death in 
 1872. In common with the majority of the pio- 
 neers he never lost his interest in mining, and 
 not only did he prospect to some extent in his 
 own state, but he joined the gold-seekers at the 
 time of the Frazer river excitement in Mon- 
 tana and also went to Idaho at the time gold was 
 discovered there. His wife, who bore the maiden 
 name of Charlotte Smith, was born, reared and 
 married in England, and died in San Francisco 
 September i, 1901, having survived him almost 
 thirty years. 
 
 Manchester, England, is Mr. Hall's native 
 city, and October 17, 1840, the date of his birth. 
 He was the eldest in a family consisting of six 
 sons and two daughters. When his parents came 
 to the United States he was an infant, hence his 
 earliest recollections are associated with the coun- 
 try which has since been his home and of which 
 he is a loyal citizen. The common schools of 
 New York state afforded him fair educational 
 advantages, which have since been supplemented 
 by extensive reading and habits of close observa- 
 tion. In 1858 he joined his father in California 
 and for a time worked with him in business, later 
 taking up the butcher's trade for himself in 
 San Francisco. For seven years he remained in 
 business in that city and then, in 1874, came 
 to Visalia, where he carried on a meat market 
 for fourteen years, meanwhile also buying and 
 shipping stock. During 1896 he set out an or- 
 chard of twenty-five acres upon his tract of fifty- 
 six and one-half acres, the balance of which is 
 devoted to general farm purposes. The value 
 of the property is enhanced by the fact that it all 
 lies within the city limits of Visalia. 
 
 The family home of Mr. Hall, at No. 743 
 Goshen avenue, Visalia, was presided over by 
 the lady whom he met and married in this city, 
 and whose death, June 23, 1^03, was a sore be- 
 reavement to him and their only child, Glenn 
 Whitt. Mrs. Hall bore the maiden name of 
 Hannah Whitt and was born in Missouri, being 
 a daughter of John G. Whitt, by birth a Ken- 
 tuckian but after 181 2 a resident of Missouri. 
 When quite advanced in years, during 1874, he 
 came to California, and settled in Visalia, where 
 he made his home with Mr. Hall until his death 
 October 7, 1904, at the age of ninety-two years. . 
 Fraternally Mr. Hall is connected with the An- 
 cient Order of United Workmen and the Inde- 
 
1520 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows. In national 
 problems he supports the Republican party, but 
 in local matters he votes for the men and meas- 
 ures he considers best qualified to promote the 
 welfare of the people. 
 
 HENRY CLAY DAULTON. Especial inter- 
 est attaches to the lives of those men who, dur- 
 ing the adventurous days, following the dis- 
 covery of gold in Cahfornia, braved the dangers 
 of deserts and mountains and in the midst of 
 perils known and unknown made their difficult 
 way toward the Pacific coast. Such a man was 
 Henry Clay Daulton, the son of a soldier in the 
 war of 1812, and the grandson of a Revolution- 
 ary soldier, from whom he inherited a steadfast 
 courage and fearlessness of character. The eighth 
 among ten children, he was born at Marysville, 
 Ky., April 7, 1827, and in childhood accompanied 
 the family to the vicinity of Hamiibal, Mo., where 
 he grew to manhood. By the death of his par- 
 ents when he was fourteen he was thrown upon 
 his own resources for a livelihood at an age when 
 most boys are unhampered by cares and respon- 
 sibilities. Working in the employ of farmers, 
 he continued in the home neighborhood until 
 after news had reached him concerning gold in 
 the far west. Immediately he resolved to seek 
 his fortune in the mines. April 7, 1850, with a 
 brother, he started across the plains with ox- 
 teams, arriving August 1 1 in what is now Placer- 
 ville. For two years he prospected in the north- 
 ern mines, but, deciding after a time he could 
 reap larger profits from a stock business, he 
 returned east via Panama to purchase sheep and 
 cattle for a stock ranch. While en route for his 
 home the ship, Republican, was wrecked in a 
 storm and taken into port of Acapulco for re- 
 pairs, thus delaying him for weeks. After a 
 tedious delay he arrived at home and at once 
 set about purchasing sheep and cattle. In 1853 
 he started across the plains with his stock, being 
 accompanied by Thomas Hildreth, who later 
 founded the town of Hildreth. The party arrived 
 in Los Angeles early in November, 1853, and 
 for a few years he remained in the San Gabriel 
 valley, but later settled on a farm twelve miles 
 northeast of Madera, where he purchased a large 
 tract of government land. 
 
 At the San Gabriel mission, Los Angeles coun- 
 ty, in 1854, was solemnized the marriage of 
 Henry C. Daulton and Mary Jane Hildreth, a 
 daughter of Jesse, and sister of Thomas Hildreth, 
 and who had accompanied the party across the 
 plains. She is still residing at the old homestead 
 in Madera county. Of her ten children five are 
 living, namely : Mrs. Ida Saxe, of Madera ; John 
 F., of Madera; Jonathan, who is engaged in 
 the sheep business in Madera county; Mrs. 
 
 Maude L. Mann, of Oakland; and James Wil- 
 liam, living at Imperial, San Diego county. In 
 1854 Mr. Daulton was elected justice of the 
 peace of Los Angeles and held the position until 
 his removal from the county. In 1857 he settled 
 on what is known as the Santa Rita ranch in 
 Fresno county, and later purchased the present 
 homestead, which he called Shepherd's Home. 
 In i860 he was elected to the office of supervisor 
 of Fresno county, and held the position until 
 1875, when he declined re-election. However, 
 three years later he was persuaded to accept the 
 position again and served for one more term. 
 At one time the American party nominated him 
 for the senate and he made an excellent race, 
 although the party was numerically weak. When 
 the subject of organizing Madera county was 
 brought up, he became a champion of the move- 
 ment, and acted as chairman of the commission- 
 ers appointed to conduct the election which de- 
 cided the proposed county division. At that 
 election. May 20, 1893, he was elected a super- 
 visor, and when the county was organized he 
 was made chairman of the board, which position 
 he was filling at the time of his death. Frater- 
 nally he was connected with the Lodge and En- 
 campment of Odd Fellows and the Blue Lodge 
 and Chapter of Masonry. 
 
 There are few men whose influence has been 
 felt throughout Madera county in a greater 
 degree than that of Henry C. Daulton, and his 
 sudden and accidental death was widely mourned. 
 October 28, 1893, when he was driving home 
 from town, his horse ran away, and he was 
 thrown from the cart, his foot catching in the 
 shaft in such a manner that he was dragged a 
 considerable distance. When found he was dead. 
 His untimely death cast a gloom over the com- 
 munity which he had so long honored by his 
 citizenship and whose growth had been so con- 
 tinuously fostered by his enterprise and progres- 
 sive spirit. 
 
 JOHN L. BROWN. A stanch Republican 
 and business man of recognized ability and in- 
 tegrity, John L. Brown is proving his all-round 
 worth as postmaster of Turlock, an office to 
 which he was appointed seven years ago by Presi- 
 dent McKinley. Mr. Brown comes of very old 
 and prominent New York ancestors, and his 
 birth occurred in TSTew York City, November 
 28, 1848. His father, James M. Brown, was 
 born in the same city in 181 1, and his largest 
 field of usefulness was the temperance cause, in 
 which he worked zealously for many years. He 
 had the gift of oratory and earnestness, aug- 
 mented by a singing voice which greatly added 
 to his effectiveness in his chosen work. For 
 years he lived in Yonkers, and so well known 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1521 
 
 was he that he was called "Brown of Yonkers." 
 A member of the Brooklyn board of health, he 
 was also a police officer of that city, his original 
 occupation being that of cabinet-making and 
 building, which he practically renounced for the 
 temperance cause. In New York he married 
 Mary Von Tassel, a member of an old New York 
 family of Dutch descent, and whose father's 
 farm became a portion of the present site of the 
 city of New York. Mr. Brown transferred his 
 allegiance to CaHfornia in 1867. His brother, 
 John L. Brown, had immigrated to the coast in 
 1849, locating in Milton, Calaveras county, and 
 thither he went after a brief residence in Stock- 
 ton, and there his death occurred at the age of 
 .sixty-one. He was a man of strong character 
 and fine moral courage, and during his all too 
 brief existence accomplished a world of good 
 among his fellow-men. 
 
 Attending the public schools of New York 
 City during his childhood, John L. Brown, the 
 subject of this sketch, later in Hfe learned the 
 printer's trade, and was employed on the Brook- 
 lyn Times and at job work until coming to the 
 coast in 1866. Embarking at New York City 
 on the clipper Seminole, under Captain Holmes, 
 he sailed around the Horn on a four months' 
 voyage, joining his paternal uncle in Milton and 
 remaining with him until 1868. He then came 
 to the San Joaquin valley, in the county of that 
 name, and in 1870 moved to Stanislaus county, 
 where he farmed until 1876. During that year 
 he began to work in the Turlock warehouse. In 
 1889 he was made foreman and held that posi- 
 tion for three years before severing his con- 
 nection with that concern. For a year he lived 
 with his family in Berkeley, and since then has 
 resided in Turlock, having served as postmaster 
 of this city for the past seven years, fulfilling the 
 duties of his position with credit to himself and 
 to the satisfaction of the entire community. At 
 one time he served as justice of the peace, and 
 is now a member of the school board. Frater- 
 nally he is a member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. Mr. Brown married Mary 
 J. Laughlin, a native of California, whose chil- 
 dren have all been born in Stanislaus county. 
 The eldest daughter, Mamie, is deceased, and 
 the others are Lulu F., Walter M., Leroy Van T. 
 and Aetna. 
 
 NEWTON W. MILLER. Although compar- 
 atively a recent acquisition to the society of Or- 
 osi Tulare county, Newton W. Miller has al- 
 ready demonstrated his ability and has won the 
 esteem and confidence of all with whom he has 
 come in contact, either in a busmess or social 
 way A native of Montgomery county, Ind., he 
 was born near Ladoga January 9, 1857, ^e rep- 
 
 resentative of a Virginian family, the first of the 
 name born on American soil being Robert Miller, 
 his grandfather, who was a child of English 
 emigrants. He served in the war of 1812 and 
 was a prominent citizen in his community. His 
 son, James, was born in Virginia, and in man- 
 hood he located in Montgomery county, Ind., 
 where he engaged as a farmer, and where his 
 death occurred. He married Elizabeth Kinder, 
 a native of Pennsylvania, who also died in Mont- 
 gomery county. Her father, William Kinder, was 
 a native of Pennsylvania, born of German ances- 
 tors and he also became an early settler in Mont- 
 gomery county, Ind. Born to Mr. and Mrs. Mil- 
 ler were seven children, five sons and two daugh- 
 ters, of whom four sons and the two daughters 
 are now living. 
 
 Newton W. Miller was the fourth child in the 
 family of his parents and is the only one located 
 in California. He spent the first eleven years of 
 his life in Montgomery county, Ind., after which 
 he went to live with a sister on a farm in Parke 
 county. In pursuit of an education he attended 
 the public school and also Wabash College. In 
 young manhood he went to Iowa, where he re- 
 mained two years, eventually returning to Indi- 
 ana. He there engaged in farming in Parke 
 county until 1890, when he came to California. 
 He spent the first year in the west in Visalia, 
 engaged in the nursery business with his broth- 
 er-in-law, Robert S. Demaree, the two together 
 putting out six hundred thousand grape cuttings. 
 The following year he located in Orosi, pur- 
 chasing twenty acres of land, which has since 
 been set to fruit trees, having now an orchard 
 devoted principally to peaches and plums._ He 
 has also improved his property by the erection of 
 commodious and substantial buildings, among 
 them a fruit shed and packing house, while a 
 railroad connects the dryer and grounds with 
 the sulphur house. In addition to this he owns 
 a ten-acre tract adjoining, given over to the 
 cultivation of grapes, figs and peaches. A half 
 mile above the Alta canal he has forty acres, 
 which he planted to peaches and plums in 1905, 
 the water for which is obtained from his own 
 well. The well known Transvaal Nursery, in 
 the northern part of Tulare county, is also 
 owned by Mr. Miller, and in the foothills, twen- 
 ty-five miles northeast of Orosi, he owns a ranch 
 of three hundred and twenty acres, where he 
 makes a specialty of apple trees, this ranch be- 
 ing known as the Hooligan Heights apple ranch. 
 Mr. Miller has made a success of his work and 
 holds high rank among the most progressive and 
 enterprising agriculturists of Tulare county. 
 
 In Parke county, Ind., December i, 188 1, Mr. 
 Miller was united in marriage with Miss Sarah 
 J. McCampb€ll, a native of that county, and a 
 daughter of John and Nancy (Henderson) Mc- 
 
1522 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Campbell. Her father and mother were both 
 natives of Kentucky, of Scotch ancestry, the for- 
 mer a farmer by occupation in Parke county, 
 Ind. Mr. and Mrs. Miller became the parents 
 of five children, namely : Blanche, Winnie, Ralph, 
 Maude and Stella. Mr. Miller is a member of the 
 Presbyterian Church, in which he officiates as 
 ruling elder, and politically is a stanch Repub- 
 lican. Fraternally he belongs to the Knights of 
 Pythias of Orosi', in which lodge he is a past 
 chancellor, and is a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World, his wife being a member of the 
 Women of Woodcraft, of which she has served 
 as president. 
 
 IRA CHRISMAN. Honored as the descen- 
 dant of a pioneer family of prominence, and dis- 
 tinguished not only as a native-born son, but 
 as one of the capable and popular public offi- 
 cials of Tulare county, Ira Chrisman is well de- 
 serving of special mention in a work of this 
 character. In the positions of responsibility to 
 which he has been called, Mr. Chrisman has in- 
 variably discharged the duties devolving upon 
 him with promptness, fidelity aiid success, win- 
 ning the approval of his constituents. A son 
 of the late Henry Tyler Chrisman, he was born, 
 April 24, 1863, near Visalia, of thrifty German 
 ancestry. His great-grandfather Chrisman emi- 
 grated from Germany to the United States, 
 bringing with him a number of horses, and lo- 
 cating first west of the Blue Ridge. During the 
 old Indian war, he was scalped by the savages 
 while fighting in Tennessee. His son. Job 
 Chrisman, Mr. Chrisman's grandfather, settled 
 first in Virginia, but subsequently removed with 
 his family to Arkansas, locating near Clarks- 
 ville, Johnson county,, where he improved a stock 
 farm. During the Civil war marauders set fire 
 to his barn, and when he went to loose his stock 
 he was shot dead by the incendiaries. 
 
 A native of old Virginia, Henry Tyler Chris- 
 man was but a child when he was taken by his 
 parents to Arkansas, where he was reared and 
 educated. In 1852, with B. G. Parker, he came 
 across the plains with ox-teams to Tulare coun- 
 ty, being six months en route. Locating in 
 Visalia, he continued with Mr. Parker, who was 
 a man of much influence, until i860, when he 
 bought one hundred and sixty acres of govern- 
 ment land, adjoining Mr. Parker's on the west, 
 and began the improvement of a ranch. In 1853 
 he went east by way of the Isthmus of Panama, 
 and after remaining there two years came back 
 across the plains to the Pacific coast. The fol- 
 lowing year, i8.s6, he again went east, again re- 
 turning to California by teams across the plains 
 in 1857, in the five years between 1852 and 1857 
 making a wonderful record as a traveler, He 
 
 met with many narrow escapes from the Indians, 
 just missing the Mount Meadow massacre by sep- 
 arating from the train with which he started, 
 taking a different route the latter part of the 
 journey. Succeeding well in the improvement 
 of his original purchase of land, he bought ad- 
 joining tracts, enlarging his farm to six hun- 
 dred and ninety-four acres, and on his estate, 
 lying two miles northwest of Visalia, he resided 
 until his death, March 16, 1892. He was enter- 
 prising and progressive in his agricultural meth- 
 ods, being interested in the Uphill Ditch Com- 
 pany from its inception, serving as its president 
 a number of years. He put his entire ranch 
 under irrigation, and engaged in raising wheat 
 and alfalfa after giving up the stock business. 
 He married Elizabeth Parker, who was born in 
 Arkansas, and died, September '8, 1882, on the 
 home farm, near Visalia. Of the five children 
 born of their union, four grew to years of ma- 
 turity, namely: Ira, of this review; Anderson, 
 formerly deputy county clerk, who died at the 
 age of twenty-six years ; Mrs. L. O. Cutler, of 
 Tulare county, and Elbert, engaged in the stock 
 business in Tulare county. 
 
 Brought up on the home farm, and attending 
 the district schools during the days of his boy- 
 hood and youth, Ira Chrisman completed his 
 education at Heald's Business College, in San 
 Francisco, where he was graduated in 1883. He 
 subsecjuently assisted his father in farming for 
 four years, after which, from January, 1887, un- 
 til January, 1889, he served as deputy county 
 sheriff under George A. Parker. The ensuing 
 two years, from January, 1891, until January, 
 1893, Mr. Qirisman was deputy county record- 
 er under C. E. Evans. After the death of his 
 father, Mr. Chrisman, as executor of the estate, 
 operated the home farm until it was sold, man- 
 aging it most successfully. In 1894 he was 
 elected county recorder, on the Democratic ticket, 
 by a majority of two hundred and seventy-five. 
 Taking the oath of office in January, 1895, he 
 served until January, 1899, when he was not a 
 candidate for re-election. His ability as a pub- 
 lic official being recognized, Mr. Chrisman Mas 
 not allowed to retire then to private life, but the 
 same year, 1899, under the old charter, was 
 elected mayor of Visalia, and at the close of his 
 term was re-elected to the same high position. 
 Six weeks later, on the adoption of the new 
 charter, he was elected as the first mayor under 
 the new charter, and served for two years as head 
 of the municipal government of Visalia. 
 
 Becoming interested in the oil possibilities of 
 California, Mr. Chrisman became one of the in- 
 corporators and organizers of the Devil's Den 
 Development Company, with oil wells in the 
 northwestern part of Kem county, and served as 
 its superintendent for over a year, when he re- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 I52;i 
 
 signed from the position. He then served for a 
 tnne as deputy county assessor under J. F. Gib- 
 son. In 1902, becoming the Democratic candi- 
 date for the office of coimty recorder, he was 
 elected by a majority of nine hundred and ninety- 
 four votes, leading his ticket, and in January, 
 1903, took the oath of office, for a term of four 
 years. His record of public service has been 
 horiorable in every respect, and the handsome 
 majority of ballots which he received at the polls 
 give evidence of his popularity as a man and a 
 citizen. 
 
 Mr. Chrisman married, in Visalia, May E. 
 Robertson, a native of Georgia, and they have 
 two children, namely: Ireta and Errol. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Chrisman is one of the leading Demo- 
 crats of Tulare county, and active in party work. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Visalia Lodge No. 
 128, F. & A. M., of the Knights of Pythias, of 
 which he has served as an official, of the Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, which he has served 
 as master workman two terms, of the Woodmen 
 of the World, and was one of the first mem- 
 bers of VisaHa Parlor No. 79, N. S. G. W. Mrs. 
 Chrisman is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South. 
 
 WILLIAM H. LAREW. On account of the 
 revocation of the edict of Nantes and the mas- 
 sacre of St. Bartholomew the Huguenot family 
 of La Rue were forced to flee from France and 
 seek safety in another land. It was in this way 
 that they became established in America and 
 their settlement in Augusta cbunty, Va., antedated 
 the opening of the Revolutionary war. From 
 there they removed to Monroe county, now a 
 part of the state of West Virginia, but then in- 
 cluded in the Old Dominion. Later generations 
 gave the family name to Larue county, Ky., noted 
 in history as the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. 
 The original spelling of LaRue is still followed 
 by some branches of the family, but others have 
 adopted the simpler form of Larue, while still 
 others have changed the spelling tO' Larew. 
 
 The founder of the family in America was 
 Abraham La Rue, whose son, Isaac, born in Au- 
 gusta county, Va., was the father of Jacob, a 
 planter of Augusta county and the first to adopt 
 the Americanized spelling of Larew. His son, 
 Peter, removed to Monroe county, where he was 
 the owner of a large plantation and remained on 
 that estate until his death. During the war of 
 1812 he was a soldier in the American army. Of 
 his two sons the elder, Jacob, removed to Mis- 
 souri. The younger, John M., who became the 
 possessor of the old plantation, lived to be about 
 seventy-seven years of age and died in the house 
 where he was' born. During the Civil war he 
 served in the commissary department and his old- 
 
 est son, Peter, was also in the army for a short 
 time. 
 
 The Larew estate comprises a plantation of 
 five hundred and fifty-five acres, situated three 
 miles from Red Sulphur Springs in what is now 
 West Virginia. The residence was erected by 
 the grandfather, Peter Larew, and has since been 
 added to from time to time. Built after the south- 
 ern style of architecture, it forms one of the pic- 
 turesque features of the locality. Since its pur- 
 chase the property has never been out of the 
 family's possession and is now the home of sev- 
 eral of the children of John M. Larew. The lat- 
 ter married Sarah Peters, who was born in Mon- 
 roe county and died there in 1862 thirty years 
 before the death of her husband. She was a 
 daughter of Col. Conrad Peters, who was born in 
 Monroe county, Va., of German extraction, and 
 married Clara Snidow, of Giles county, Va., also 
 a descendant from German ancestry. In the fam- 
 ily of John M. and Sarah (Peters) Larew there 
 were eight children, all of whom are still living. 
 Clara Peters, Peter and Mary Ann still occupy 
 the family residence and Conrad Lewis resides 
 upon a portion of the old homestead. William 
 Henry and his youngest brother, John Snidow, 
 are attorneys-at-law in Madera and Mariposa 
 respectively. Margaret R. married Walter Mc- 
 Claugherty, an attorney of Bluefield, W. Va., and 
 James Alexander follows farm pursuits in Mari- 
 posa county, Cal. 
 
 At the family homestead in Monroe county, W. 
 Va., William Henry Larew was born February 
 8, 1855, and there he attended the district schools. 
 At the age of sixteen he began to teach not far 
 from the old plantation. From the time he was 
 eighteen until twenty years of age he taught in 
 the home district where he had attended school in 
 boyhood. In 1875 he came to California with 
 his brother Peter, the latter returning east in 
 1884. The former secured work in a warehouse 
 at Winters, Yolo county, and then attended the 
 state normal school at San Jose for seven months. 
 His first term of school was taught at Salmon 
 Creek in Humboldt county. In the fall of 1876 
 he taught in Yolo county and then returned to 
 the normal to take up the studies of the senior 
 year, leaving, however, before graduation to take 
 a school in Hollister, San Benito county, where 
 he was employed as vice-principal for one term. 
 In the fall of 1878 he began to teach in Mari- 
 posa county and during the period of his resi- 
 dence there served as a member of the county 
 board of education and also as county superin- 
 tendent of schools. 
 
 When he came to Madera in 1891 it was Mr. 
 Larcw's purpose to engage in the manufacture of 
 adjustable blackboards, which he had patented, 
 but he abandoned the plan in order to take up the 
 study of law, his early knowledge of which had 
 
1524 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 been gained during his leisure hours as, a school 
 teacher. In the fall of 1891 he was admitted to 
 the supreme court and began to practice in Ma- 
 dera, where he has since become a prominent at- 
 torney. Under appointment he held the office of 
 district attorney for two years. In 1892 he or- 
 ganized the movement to divide Fresno county 
 and organize a new county under the name of 
 Madera. Ably seconded by J. W. Watkins and 
 John M. Griffin, he launched the movement, 
 which was successfully presented to the legisla- 
 ture, and the county was organized in May of 
 1893. He was appointed a member of the coun- 
 ty board of education and became its first presi- 
 dent, filling the position for a number of years. 
 A thorough believer in education, his children 
 have been given good advantages, .in order that 
 they might be prepared for positions of respon- 
 sibility and honor. His eldest daughter, Clara 
 Peters, married Ernest Brimmer, of Madera; 
 the only, son, James W., a graduate of the Madera 
 schools, is employed by the Madera Sugar Pine 
 Company ; Virginia is a graduate of the Madera 
 high school and is employed in her father's of- 
 fice, and Christine is a student in the grammar 
 school. At the age of twenty-one years Mr. La- 
 rew was made a Mason in Buckeye Lodge No. 
 195, F. & A. M., at Winters, Cal., and is now con- 
 nected with Mariposa Lodge No. 24, also Wood- 
 land Chapter No. 46, R. A. M., and Opal Chap- 
 ter of the Eastern Star at Winters. In political 
 views he has always been a believer in Demo- 
 cratic principles and has supported that party 
 and its candidates by his ballot and influence. 
 
 E. D. FARROW, M. D. The distinction of 
 being the oldest practicing physician of Tulare 
 county doubtless belongs to E. D. Farrow, M. 
 D., who began his professional career in Farmers- 
 ville in 1875, thirty years ago. Talented and 
 skilful, he has been very successful in his career, 
 and has established a fine reputation throughout 
 this part of the state as a general practitioner and 
 likewise in eye, ear and throat diseases, which 
 he treats with good results. He is now located 
 at Visalia, where he has a wide and remunerative 
 practice, extending far beyond local limits. As 
 a boy he served in the Civil war as the mascot 
 of the Fifteenth Maine Infantry Volunteers, en- 
 tering the army before he was fifteen years old, 
 but to this day does not know whether his name 
 appeared on the company's roll, although he 
 afterward drew his clothes, rations and pay, and 
 had a good time, being a favorite with the older 
 soldiers, who cared for him, and protected him 
 whenever they could. A son of John P. Farrow, 
 he was born, May 21, 1849, at Summerside' 
 Prmce Edward Island, where his Grandfather 
 Farrow settled on emigrating from England. 
 
 John P. Farrow grew to manhood in Summer- 
 side, Prince Edward Island, but subsequently set- 
 tled in business in Portland, Me., as a manu- 
 facturer of stoves. Selling out his interests in 
 that city, he afterward removed to Oldtown, Me., 
 where he was successfully engaged as a merchant 
 until his death, at the advanced age of seventy- 
 four years. He married Margaret Stewart, who 
 was born on Prince Edward Island, where her 
 father settled on coming from Scotland to Amer- 
 ica. She now resides in Oldtown, Me., a bright 
 and active woman of eighty years. Of her 
 children, three are living, Dr. E. D., the special 
 subject of this sketch, being the oldest child. 
 
 Brought up and educated in Portland, Me., 
 E. D. Farrow attended the grammar and high 
 schools of that city. During the progress of the 
 Civil war he enlisted without his parents' consent. 
 Leaving his books under a plank sidewalk, he 
 ran away from home, going to Washington, D. 
 C, where he joined the Fifteenth Maine Volun- 
 teer Infantry, entering the quartermaster's de- 
 partment, but afterward was attached to Com- 
 pany H as a musician. During the last year of 
 the war he accompanied the regiment through 
 the Shenandoah valley, serving until the close of 
 the war, when, with his comrades, he returned 
 home. He was at that time a strong, wiry and 
 hardy boy, full of life and activity, overflowing 
 with fun, ready to see the humorous side of 
 any situation, and the anecdotes of army life 
 which are indelibly imipressed on his mind are 
 both amusing and interesting. Although he had 
 some hard experiences, he stood the long, hard 
 marches most remarkably well. 
 
 Returning to Portland from the scene of con- 
 flict, the youth completed the course of study in 
 the high school, after his graduation working 
 for a year in the Portland office of the Grand 
 Trunk Railway Company. He subsequently 
 worked as a clerk in a wholesale establishment, 
 later being employed in a drug store in that city. 
 Going thence to Missouri, he located in Hamil- 
 ton, where his uncle. Dr. R. D. King, was a prac- 
 ticing physician and a druggist. He at once 
 began work in his uncle's drug store, and at 
 the same time read medicine under his instruction, 
 continuing for five years. Entering then the 
 Medical Department of the University of Penn- 
 sylvania, he took four courses of lectures there, 
 being graduated in March, 1874, with the degree 
 of M. D. Returning to Hamiliton, Mo., Dr. 
 Farrow practiced medicine there for a year, and 
 then, in March, 1875, migrated to California. 
 Locating immediately at Fannersville, Tulare 
 county, he built up a thriving practice in that vi- 
 cinity, traveling on horseback over a large terri- 
 tory, his trips oftentimes extending over fifty 
 miles. For four years the doctor was away 
 from Tulare county, spending two years in Ama- 
 
Historical and BtoGRAPHicAL record. 
 
 1525 
 
 dor county, and for two years practicing medi- 
 cine in Salt Lake City. Returning from there 
 to California, he has since been one of the lead- 
 ing physicians of Visalia, having built up a large 
 practice. By his excellent business ability and 
 foresight, the doctor has been financially success- 
 ful. For a number of years he served as county 
 physician, and now fills that position; he is also 
 district surgeon for the Southern Pacific Railroad 
 Company. 
 
 In 1876, in Tulare county, Dr. Farrow married 
 Mary E. Overall, a native of the county and a 
 daughter of one of its honored pioneer settlers, 
 D. G. Overall, a large landholder and a capital- 
 ist. Dr. and Mrs. Farrow are the parents of 
 three children, namely : Mary Edna, wife of W. 
 L. Fisher, of Tulare county; Daisy, living at 
 home, and E. D., Jr., a student at the Berkeley 
 high school. Politically Dr. Farrow is a stanch 
 supporter of the principles advocated by the 
 Democratic party, and formerly belonged to the 
 county central committee. Fraternally he is a 
 member of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, he is a member of the County Medical So- 
 ciety and of the Pacific Coast Association of Rail- 
 way Surgeons. 
 
 JAMES SHURTLIFF STONE. The his- 
 tory of Stanislaus county runs parallel with the 
 best years of James Shurtliff Stone, a California 
 pioneer of 1850, whose death, December 27, 1900, 
 removed yet another of that brave class of men 
 whose physical and mental strength carried them 
 safely through Indian-infested plains, and made 
 clear their duty to conquer whatever lay in the 
 way of the civilization of the Pacific slope. Mr. 
 Stone is recalled as one of the best and most 
 successful farmers and stock-raisers which this 
 county has known. He was born February 10, 
 1829, in Jefiferson county, N. Y., whither his 
 father, Andrew, had removed at an early day, 
 and where he had cleared a farm in a timbered 
 wilderness. The youth was one in a large family 
 which taxed the resources of the farm, and his 
 educational and other opportunities were strange- 
 ly in contrast with those enjoyed by the farm- 
 er boys of Jefiferson county today. His twenty- 
 first year found him with hardened muscles and 
 great capacity for work, and with an ambition 
 which reached out.beyond his father's fences, and 
 groped in the little understood country border- 
 ing on the Pacific. The early spring of 1850 
 found him aboard a vessel turned toward the 
 south sea, and eventually he rounded the Horn, 
 and proceeded north to the land of his youth- 
 ful dreams. Four years in the mines of the state 
 enlarged his horizon, made him acquainted with 
 more phases of life than he had ever heard of, 
 and familiarized him with the bravery and good 
 
 fellowship which often has its being under rough 
 and uncouth exteriors. Returning to New York 
 in 1854, Mr. Stone married Mary McAlister, 
 with whom he had attended the little log school- 
 house^ of Jefiferson county, and who had been his 
 chief inspiration in seeking a fortune in the west. 
 The ceremony gladdened the hearts of the neigh- 
 bors and friends May 28, 1854, the bride being a 
 daughter of Alexander McAlister, a native of 
 Ireland, and who came to the United States with 
 his parents when twelve years old. Locating in 
 New Orleans, the McAlisters were overtaken by 
 disaster shortly after, for yellow fever was rag- 
 ing, and the parents died leaving five children. 
 Alexander attained his majority amid much trib- 
 ulation, for responsibility fell thick around him, 
 and left little time for the enjoyment or improve- 
 ment of his life. Eventually he settled in Jefifer- 
 son county, N. Y., having previously farmed for 
 a time in Oswego county. In the latter he estab- 
 lished a home of his own, marrying Isabelle 
 Lindell, born in Rhode Island, and daughter of 
 English parents who became pioneers of Oswego 
 county. He finally removed to Theresa, N. Y., 
 where he rounded out his busy life managing a 
 grocery business. Like his grandfather, who re- 
 moved from Scotland and established the family 
 in Ireland, Mr. McAlister lived to a good old 
 age, seventy-four years and several months, be- 
 ing survived by his wife until her eighty-fourth 
 year. 
 
 Discontented in the east after his experience 
 in the west, Mr. Stone started for Pike's Peak 
 in 1859, but on the way changed his mind and 
 continued his journey to California. In Febru- 
 ary, i860, his wife joined him after a journey 
 across the Isthmus of Panama, and together they 
 followed farming in Tuolumne county, at the 
 same time becoming interested in mining. Mr. 
 Stone opened a mine two miles above Knights 
 Ferry, expecting to realize largely on its output, 
 but a flood filled it with water and cut short his 
 operations. Thereafter he lived on rented farms 
 in different parts of Tuolumne county until 1864. 
 He then bought property three miles above 
 Knights Ferry, and engaged in the stock busi- 
 ness. Success came his way, for he was both 
 frugal and industrious, and as good a manager 
 as his neighborhood has ever known. At the 
 climax of his prosperity he owned seventeen 
 hundred and eighty acres of land in one body, 
 and raised hundreds of high-grade stock. 
 
 After the death of Mr. Stone his widow con- 
 tinued to live on the farm until 1903, when .she 
 rented the property to her brother, Spencer Mc- 
 Alister, who devotes it to stock and grain. She 
 has since built a handsome residence in Oak- 
 dale, where she is surrounded with material com- 
 forts, and where she enjoys the companionship 
 of many warm friends. A son. Burton W., died 
 
16-26 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in his nineteenth year, and a dkughter, Mattie, 
 is now Mrs. Anthony Arnold of Oakdale. Mrs. 
 Arnold has four children: Mrs. Bertha Capps, 
 Edna, Gertrude and James. Mrs. Stone is a gra- 
 cious and hospitable woman, a believer in the 
 Democratic party, and a stanch supporter of 
 schools and wholesome diversions. , She treas- 
 ures the memory of her kind and sympathetic 
 husband, recalling the noble traits which ani- 
 mated his life and the broad and tolerant sym- 
 pathies which he held for all mankind. 
 
 J. WILBUR GATE. Thoroughness has been 
 the watchword of J. Wilbur Gate of Fresno in 
 whatever he has attempted to do, so whatever of 
 failure has attended his efforts has not been the 
 fault of himself but rather that of a combination 
 of circumstances, while he has labored persistent- 
 ly and untiringly for that success which to-day 
 places him among the representative men of 
 Fresno. As a member of the real estate firm 
 of Moore & Cate he is actively interested in the 
 development of the city and surrounding coun- 
 try, and while seeking his own success also bends 
 every energy to promote the general welfare. 
 Deservedly popular and esteemed, he ranks 
 among the first men of the community. A na- 
 tive Californian, Mr. Gate was born in Los An- 
 geles county, near San Gabriel, November 17, 
 1868, the youngest member of the family born 
 to his parents, his father dying in March, 1900, 
 and his mother still living in Los Angeles. The 
 elder Mr. Gate was a pioneer of this state, hav- 
 ing crossed the plains with ox-teams from New 
 Hampshire and became the first white settler be- 
 tween the two San Gabriel rivers. For more 
 complete details concerning the life of this pio- 
 neer refer to his sketch which appears on an- 
 other page of this work. 
 
 In 1888 J. Wilbur Gate attended the Los An- 
 geles Commercial College, and in 1893 he came 
 to Fresno and engaged in business here. With 
 his father he entered into the milling business 
 at Glovis, the firm being known as J. W. Gate 
 & Son, in the course of three years improving 
 and enlarging the business until' they had a ca- 
 pacity of one hundred barrels per day. At the 
 expiration of that period they met with a loss of 
 about $30,000 by the burning of the mill. The 
 junior member of the firm then went to Ed- 
 monton, Alberta Province, Canada, and in 1897 
 outfitted a party to establish an overland route 
 to the headwaters of the Pelly river, a tributary 
 of the Yukon. Mr. Cate became captain of 
 the party of twenty-seven men, who took with 
 them an outfit which cost $20,000, consisting of 
 one hundred and sixty head of horses packed 
 with provisions, etc. The expedition met with 
 disaster; the horses died from exposure about 
 
 a thousand miles out, and with the exception of 
 Mr. Cate and two comrades the party went into 
 winter quarters. These three made their way 
 out by going down Slave lake and river, and 
 Athabasca river, and thence on foot to Edmon- 
 ton. Mr. Cate then returned to Fresno and en- 
 gaged as a vineyardist, but shortly afterward 
 bought out the Fresno Undertaking Company 
 and established and built up a successful under- 
 taking business, being located on J street, where 
 he remained for four years. He met with suc- 
 cess in this work, becoming widely known as a 
 successful embalmer, and there was every in- 
 ducement for him to remain so engaged, but he 
 sold out, at the same time giving up the position 
 which he had occupied as deputy coroner under 
 Dr. G. L. Long, having conducted the inquests 
 for the county for four years. In October, 1902, 
 he bought out the interest of I. G. Nees of the 
 firm of Moore & Nees, real estate, loan and in- 
 surance men, and since then has been identified 
 with this business. 
 
 In Rivera Mr. Cate was married to Jennie A. 
 Coft'man, a native of Marysville and the daugh- 
 ter of Alfred Coffman, a pioneer of the Sacra- 
 mento valley. Mrs. Cate is a finely educated 
 woman, being a graduate of the state normal 
 school at San Jose. Mr. and Mrs. Cate are the 
 parents of three children, Clyde, Leroy and Al- 
 fred. Socially and fraternally Mr. Cate occu- 
 pies a prominent position in Fresno, being a 
 member of the Apollo Club and Fresno Auto 
 Club, and belongs to the following orders: 
 Fresno Lodge No. 274, F. & A. M. ; Trigo Qiap- 
 ter No. 69, R. A. M. ; Fresno Lodge No. 186, 
 I. O. O. F. ; Fresno Encampment No. 78; Fres- 
 no Canton No. 30 of the Rebekahs; Fresno 
 Lodge No. 138, K. P. ; Uniformed Rank, K. P., 
 and is now serving as quartermaster with the 
 rank of captain in the California No. 4; Wood- 
 men of the World, Fresno Camp No. 160; M. 
 W. A., Sunset Camp No. 7199; and Fresno Par- 
 lor No. 25, N. S. G. W. He is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church and president of 
 the Young Men's Qiristian Association, and po- 
 litically is a Democrat. Always interested in 
 the advancement of the city's prosperity he is a 
 member of the Chamber of Commerce. 
 
 OSCAR NELSON. Among the younger gen- 
 eration of men who will long be remembered for 
 the influence their personality left upon the com- 
 munity in which they resided is Oscar Nelson, 
 who was born near Oskarsom, Smoland, Swed- 
 en, April 30, 1867, a son of Nels and Hannah 
 Nelson, the latter of whom died there in 1883, 
 Nels Nelson was a large land holder, and is now 
 a lumber manufacturer in a nearby city. 
 
 Oscar Nelson received a common-school edu- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 15S? 
 
 cation in his home city and in 1886 left Sweden 
 and came to America. Going to Kansas, he re- 
 mained there a few months, then left for Califor- 
 nia and located in Tulare county in 1887. He 
 found employment in the lumber camps for about 
 one year, and in 1888 embarked on an independent 
 venture, eventually becoming an extensive dealer 
 in wood, shipping to Kern and Fresno counties, 
 also supplying the railroads. He manufactured 
 charcoal, for which he found a ready market. 
 Purchasing timber land, he cleared it and em- 
 barked in the stock business. As success came 
 his way he enlarged his operations and became 
 the owner of two hundred and twenty acres on 
 the St. Johns river. He made Visalia his home 
 until the fall of 1904, removing then to the house 
 he had erected on his land, and where he died 
 December 12, 1904. 
 
 Besides his home place he owned eighty acres 
 on the Mineral King road, devoting this and the 
 home ranch to the stock business. He was a 
 member of Four Creeks Lodge, I. O. O. F., a 
 Lutheran in religious belief, and a Republican in 
 politics. 
 
 July 6, 1897, in Visalia, Mrs. Sadie E. (Burn- 
 ham) Carlton became his wife. She was born in 
 Waterloo, Iowa, a daughter of John and Eliza- 
 beth (Vanderbergh) Burnham. Mr. Burnham 
 was a native of Massachusetts, and followed car- 
 pentering in Waterloo, Iowa. Coming to Cali- 
 fornia, he settled in Visalia and followed his 
 trade until his retirement. He was a soldier in the 
 Thirty-second Massachusetts Regiment during 
 the Civil war ; was wounded in battle and taken 
 prisoner, being confined in Libby prison. His 
 wife was born in Blackhawk county, Iowa, and 
 became the mother of six children. Mrs. Nelson, 
 the eldest child, was educated in the schools of 
 Iowa and Massachusetts and engaged in educa- 
 tional work until her marriage to David Carlton, 
 in Clear Lake, Iowa. Mr. Carlton died four 
 years later, leaving two children born of this un- 
 ion : Ernest W. at home, and David, deceased. In 
 1891 Mrs. Carlton came to Visalia and was here 
 married to Mr. Nelson. Four children were born 
 of this marriage, Carl, Paul, Nadine, deceased, 
 and Idene. Mrs. Nelson is a Methodist, becom- 
 ing converted when sixteen years of age. 
 
 Oscar Nelson was a self-made man in every 
 sense of the word. Of strong character and pub- 
 lic spirit he made friends wherever he went, was 
 devoted to his family and true to his friends, and 
 his death is a loss felt by the whole county. 
 
 CHESTER WORTHINGTON WOOD. 
 Among the foremost and substantial exponents 
 of western success in Merced county is Chester 
 Worthington Wood, one of -the incorporators 
 and vice-president of the Uriah Wood Company, 
 
 and president of the firm of C. W. Wood & Com- 
 pany, commission merchants, 406-408 California 
 street, San Francisco, also owner of one of the 
 finest fruit ranches and one of the most modern 
 country homes in Merced county. Mr. Wood 
 possesses the shrewdness, adaptability and prac- 
 tical common sense which characterizes the men 
 responsible for the upbuilding of the state. He 
 not only is able to recognize an opportunity, but 
 knows how to take advantage of it to the per- 
 manent good of himself and others. Behind 
 his eflPort is the pride of all worthy native sons 
 of California, and more especially that of one 
 thoroughly in harmony with the present and the. 
 future of the west. Bom in old Gilroy August 
 21, 1864, he is a son of Uriah Wood, whose 
 life and deeds are set forth elsewhere in this 
 work, and who is numbered as one of the re- 
 sourceful and successful pioneers of the state. 
 
 Tlie oldest of four children, C. W. Wood had 
 exceptional educational advantages in his youth, 
 going from the district schools to St. Augustine 
 College at Benicia, from there to the Military 
 Academy of San Mateo, and later attending the 
 Hopkins Academy of Oakland. After graduat- 
 ing from Heald's Business College in San Fran- 
 cisco he inaugurated his business career as a 
 bookkeeper and assistant cashier of the Bank of 
 Hollister, and eight months later, in 1885, he 
 started a dairy business with three hundred and 
 seventy acres of land and one hundred and twenty 
 head of cattle at San Felipe. His business grew 
 apace, and he established a cheese .and butter 
 manufactory on his ranch, having plenty of al- 
 falfa and excellent water from numerous artesian 
 wells. From 1885 until 1889 he supplied the San 
 Francisco markets with butter and cheese, and 
 after disposing of his enterprise came to Los 
 Banos and leased the Los Banos ranch of five 
 thousand acres, devoting the same to grain and 
 stock until 1893. He then permanently located 
 on his present ranch of one hundred and sixty 
 acres, two and one half miles northeast of Los 
 Banos, all under irrigation from the old canal, 
 and upon which he had already set out an 
 orchard consisting of one hundred acres of 
 prunes, teii acres of peaches and five acres of 
 apricots. This was an experimental venture, and 
 was found to be fairly successful, notwithstand- 
 ing the fact that ten acres of prunes were set 
 out on low ground, and the apricots did not come 
 up to requirements. Mr. Wood has his own 
 dryers and packing house, and furnishes direct 
 to Eastern markets. He has given the study of 
 fruit growing and packing exhaustive consider- 
 ation, availing himself of every possible means 
 of keeping in touch with the best producers in 
 all tropical climes. 
 
 As one of the incorporators and the vice-presi- 
 dent of the Uriah Wood Company, Mr. Wood 
 
1528 
 
 HISTORICAL And biographical record. 
 
 has assumed a large and varied responsibility, 
 having the management of the four thousand 
 five hundred acres belonging to the company in 
 Merced county; of the San Felipe dairy, which 
 is leased as a seed farm; and of residence and 
 business property in San Jose. They expect to 
 bring their dairy up to a thousand cattle, and 
 indications promise one of the most complete 
 dairying enterprises in this part of California. 
 As a Republican Mr. Wood has taken a promi- 
 nent part in the local deliberations of his party, 
 has represented his district in state and county 
 conventions, and served on the county central 
 committee. His influence along educational lines 
 has resulted in constant improvement in school 
 buildings, and in the standard of instruction 
 adopted in both county and towns. He was a 
 member of the school board from 1885 until 1904, 
 and during most of that time was clerk of the 
 board. Fraternally he is connected with the 
 Los Banos Lodge No. 312, F. & A. M., and was 
 a charter member of Fremont Parlor No. 44, 
 N. S. G. W., of Hollister. In Hollister Mr. 
 Wood was united in marriage with Minnow 
 Ingels, born in 1864, while her parents were on 
 a trip to California. Her father, the late Ben- 
 jamin F. Ingels, eventually settled in the state, 
 becoming a grain and stock-raiser near Hollister, 
 later removing to a fruit ranch near San Jose. 
 Mr. Ingels is survived by his wife, formerly 
 Martha Stewart, who at present resides in San 
 Jose. Mrs. Wood is a graduate of the Hollister 
 College, and is the mother of two children, Ches- 
 ter Earl, born in 1886, now attending the Uni- 
 versity of California, class of 1908 ; and Hazel 
 Vivian, born in 1888, a student in the high school 
 of Los Banos. Mr. Wood is one of the sub- 
 stantial and reliable business men of Merced 
 county, and one in whom the future commercial 
 interests of the locality are safely vested. Scat- 
 tered over the state are many who enjoy his 
 friendship, who feel a just pride in his business 
 success, in his conversational and other gifts 
 and his faculty of diffusing an air of prosperity, 
 happiness and energy. He has a just apprecia- 
 tion of the social duties of life, is a capital shot 
 and sportsman and has in his possession many 
 prizes and trophies of the chase. 
 
 ALFRED EDWARD PURCELL, one of the 
 original proprietors of the site of Oakdale, was 
 born in Kentucky in 1825, and when a mere boy 
 removed with his parents to Montrose, Lee coun- 
 ty, Iowa, where he was reared on a farm in a 
 new and sparsely settled country. His active 
 mind received its first educational impulse at the 
 rude schoolhouse in the vicinity of his home and 
 his muscles were hardened and his exuberance 
 curbed, in the hard struggle for existence which 
 
 confronted the youth of his time and place. Into 
 his uneventful farming existence came an open- 
 ing for something better and broader with the 
 breaking out of the Mexican war, in which he 
 enlisted and veteranized, a volunteer in two Iowa 
 regiments. 
 
 With the desire for achievement surging in 
 his brain, Mr. Purcell followed the universal 
 trend of 1850 and crossed the plains in an ox- 
 train, enduring the hardships, suffering and im- 
 minent danger common to the lot of the men of 
 daring and courage who comprised the fortune 
 seekers of that time. Not realizing his mining 
 expectations, he turned his attention to sheep 
 raising in partnership with A. J. Patterson, who 
 is still living, purchasing a large tract of land, 
 a part of which eventually became the site of the 
 prosperous and homelike town of Oakdale. Suc- 
 cess came his way, and his worldly possessions 
 took on dignified and substantial proportions. 
 The partners, out of the fullness of their opu- 
 lence, and their public-spiritedness, presented one- 
 half of the town site and the right of 'way to 
 the railroad company to locate the town, the 
 deeds to lots bearing the signatures of Patter- 
 son, Purcell & Jackson. The partners also 
 owned a large tract of land in San Luis Obispo 
 county, twelve miles from Paso Robles, where 
 for some years Mr. Purcell lived, and engaged 
 in an extensive stock business. On returning 
 to Oakdale, he resumed his farming and stock 
 raising at this point, his farm being one and a 
 half miles south of the town, but eventually the 
 approach of old age brought its additional bur- 
 dens of ill-health and loss of energy, and his 
 last years were spent in Oakdale, where he suf- 
 fered greatly, although patient and uncomplain- 
 ing. In this emergency the superintending of 
 his farm and general business devolved upon his 
 step-daughter, Sadie Kelley, now Mrs. Mehler, 
 to whom he was devotedly attached, and in whose 
 good judgment and ability he placed implicit 
 confidence. Mr. Purcell married, in Keokuk, 
 Iowa, in 1873, Mrs. Sabra (Williams) Kelley, 
 who was born in Mansfield, Ohio, the widow of 
 Dr. James Kelley, a graduate of the Keokuk 
 Medical College, and a prominent physician and 
 surgeon of Montrose for many years. Mrs. Pur- 
 cell had one child by her first marriage, and two 
 by her second. She is now living with her 
 daughter, Sadie, in Oakdale. Mr. Purcell died 
 in Oakdale July 24, 1902, and not within the 
 memory of the oldest inhabitant of the town, 
 has there been more sincere regret at the pass-- 
 ing of its most honored men. He was the soul 
 of integrity, the embodiment of industry, and the 
 rarest example of good judgment, large-hearted- 
 ness, and public-spiritedness, and his services in 
 behalf of the early upbuilding of Stanislaus coun- 
 ty and Oakdale cannot be overestimated. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1529 
 
 Mrs. Edward M. Mehler's career presents 
 many claims upon the appreciation and grati- 
 tude of her fellow citizens of Oakdale. She is a 
 woman of ability and resource, and in any emer- 
 gency which has presented itself for her consid- 
 eration, has proved herself apt and ready and 
 faithful. As the manager of her step-father's 
 estate she has shown unusual shrewdness and re- 
 liability. Prior to her marriage she engaged in 
 educational work for ten years, nine of which 
 were spent in her home town. In 1897 she start- 
 ed what has since become the largest, most com- 
 plete and finest millinery establishment in Stan- 
 islaus county, bringing to bear upon her chosen 
 occupation the taste, discretion, obligingness and 
 business sagacity needful for the conduct of an 
 enterprise patronized by the best and most ex- 
 clusive trade in this part of the county. Mrs. 
 Mehler is the mother of one son, Alfred Edward. 
 Of the other children of Mr. Purcell's family, 
 Alfred Edward died at the age of twenty-three, 
 and Maude L. is the wife of Frank Anderson, 
 of Seattle, Wash. The Purcell family, as estab- 
 lished by the grand old pioneer, is honored for 
 its good name, the beneficence of its members, 
 their business ability, and their social and gen- 
 erally useful qualities. 
 
 JOSEPH DAVIDSON REYBURN. A pio- 
 neer among primitive scenes and conditions, Jos- 
 eph Davidson Reyburn has been an active par- 
 ticipant in all that has tended to develop this sec- 
 tion of the San Joaquin valley, his home now be- 
 ing three miles east of Clovis, Fresno county. He 
 is a native of Burlington, Iowa, where he was 
 born December 25, 1840, a son of J. S. Reyburn 
 (see sketch of J. J. Reyburn in another part of 
 this volume). He was reared in his native state 
 and educated in the public schools, which were 
 held in log buildings. Trained to practical farm 
 work, when twenty years old he engaged in this 
 work for himself, being employed on neighboring 
 farms. In 1862 he came west in company with 
 others, traveHng by mule team across the plains, 
 via the Platte rive'r to The Dallas, Ore., thence 
 down the Columbia river to Portland, where they 
 obtained their first good meal after leaving home. 
 They vvent on to Marion county, where they win- 
 tered in Howell's Prairie, but on account of the 
 rain they were dissatisfied with the climate, and 
 in 1863 drove over the mountains on the stage 
 route to California. From the Sacramento river 
 they went to Folsom and crossed the mountains 
 into Carson City, Nev., where Mr. Reyburn en- 
 gaged in teaming to Virginia City until the fall 
 of that year. In September he drove the same 
 team to Stockton, San Joaquin county, Cal, in the 
 vicinity of which place he spent the wmter and 
 disposed of his mules at that time. The follow- 
 
 ing season he went to Nevada once more and was 
 employed until the fall of 1864, when he returned 
 to CaHfornia and settled on the Stanislaus river 
 in the county of that name. Upon the present 
 site of Salida he pre-empted and homesteaded 
 three hundred and twenty acres, for the first two 
 years engaging in the lumber business on the 
 Tuolumne river. He was married in 1869, when 
 he began the cultivation and improvement of his 
 property, continuing in grain farming until 1881, 
 when he sold out for $50 per acre. He then came 
 to Fresno county, and with J. P. Vincent pur- 
 chased three sections of land on the plains, but 
 later sold two to his partner. The next year he 
 bought three sections more, and with the one 
 which he had reserved in the sale to Mr. Vincent 
 he then owned four. One of these he eventually 
 sold to John Lester, leaving him then three sec- 
 tions located on sections 11, 12 and 13, of town- 
 ship 13, range 21, east. Since his location in 
 California he has been engaged in the raising 
 of wheat, his entire service as an agriculturist 
 being about thirty-eight years, during which he 
 has never had a total failure of crops. Having 
 so much land, he summer fallows a half each year, 
 and m this way keeps it as rich and productive- 
 as when he first entered it. He plows three times 
 between crops, the first plowing being between 
 eight and nine inches, the second about four 
 inches. He replants, and in the seeding time he 
 plows again and seeds it. The last few years he 
 has rented to his son, but the same process has 
 been carried out since he has so ably deinon- 
 strated the success of the idea. He also improved 
 a home on section 13, where his son now resides. 
 In 1892 he erected a large and handsome resi- 
 dence on section 11, where he makes his home, 
 forty acres in this location being in Muscat 
 grapes, while twenty acres is devoted to a peach 
 orchard. 
 
 The first marriage of Mr. Reyburn united him 
 with Mary Ella Lester, a native of Iowa, who 
 came to California and located in Stanislaus 
 county, near the property homesteaded by Mr. 
 Reyburn. She died in 1893, leaving a family of 
 the following children : Charles T., a clerk in 
 Fresno ; Leslie D., farming on the home place ; 
 Glenn W., attending Stanford University ; Emery 
 Everett, superintendent of the home farm ; C. 
 Ray and Ida May, twins ; Walter P. and John L., 
 all at home, and one child, who died in infancy. 
 In San Jose, May 9, 1897, Mr. Reyburn married 
 Anna P. Buckley, a native of Auburn and a grad- 
 uate of the State Normal at San Jose. Before her 
 marriage she engaged for eleven years as a 
 teacher. They are the parents of five children, 
 namely: Gilbert Rowell, who died at the age of 
 two years ; Gladys, Alfred, Doris and Mary Mar- 
 garet. For over thirty-five years Mr. Reyburn 
 has been a member of the Cumberland Presby- 
 
1530 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 terian Church, and in the Clovis church is ruhng 
 elder, which office he has filled for twenty years. 
 He has also served as superintendent of the Sun- 
 day school. His children all inherit musical tal- 
 ent and are in demand socially on account of their 
 splendid voices. Politically Mr. Reyburn is a Re- 
 publican and is strong in national politics. He 
 has always taken an active interest in all public 
 affairs. He took a prominent part in the organi- 
 zation of the Jefferson school district, and has 
 been a director for many years. The building 
 erected then is still standing. He assisted mate- 
 rially in the organization of the state grange in 
 Napa in 1876, and was the first master of the lo- 
 cal grange at Salida. 
 
 WALLACE FERGUSON. The manager of 
 the Oakdale Water Works is eminently fitted for 
 his important responsibility, not only because he 
 is faithful to trusts imposed, and conscientious 
 beyond the average, but because years of his Hfe 
 have been devoted to a trade bearing upon his 
 present occupation. As a blacksmith he was proud 
 of his handiwork, and was never at a loss for 
 occupation, and it is safe to predict that under 
 his management the water works will continue 
 to fulfill their mission of usefulness to the citizens 
 of Oakdale in a manner both gratifying and pro- 
 gressive. Mr. Ferguson is a westerner by adop- 
 tion, having been born in Amsterdam, Mont- 
 gomery county, N. Y., September 15, 1842. His 
 ancestry is that of the rugged products of the 
 Scotch highlands, and his tendencies are in accord 
 with their high regard for plain living and honest 
 dealing. His Grandfather Ferguson brought 
 his family to America when John P., the father 
 of Wallace, was five years old, settling in Mont- 
 gomery county, N. Y., where he lived to an ad- 
 vanced age. John P. Ferguson was reared on a 
 farm, and in early manhood married Maria Van 
 Warner, a native also of Montgomery county, and 
 daughter of an early Dutch settler of that vi- 
 cinity. The family was an old one on the Mo- 
 hawk river, owning extensive lands along its 
 placid waters. Not content with farming, John 
 P. in middle life turned his attention to railroad 
 contracting on the New York Central, but died 
 in comparatively early life, when Wallace was 
 eight 3'ears of age. He was survived by his wife 
 until her fifty-fifth year. Plis oldest son, Wil- 
 liam, served in the Civil war during its entire 
 course, his death occurring while on an expedition 
 up the Red river. John is a retired mechanic 
 of Amsterdam, N. Y. ; Almeran P. also lives in 
 Amsterdam; Mark lives in Marquette, Mich.; 
 and Mary E. is the wife of Mr. Davis, of Amster- 
 dam, N. Y. 
 
 _ Until his seventeenth year Wallace Ferguson 
 lived on a farm near Amsterdam, and during 
 
 that time gleaned whatever of education was to 
 be found in 'a little red schoolhouse somewhat 
 remotely situated from his home. A leaning 
 toward things mechanical led himself and brother 
 John to learn the blacksmith trade, and he ap- 
 prenticed in Amsterdam to a man for three years, 
 receiving, in addition to room and board, $25 
 for the first, $35 for the second, and $45 for the 
 third years, in all $105 in money, for the three 
 years. He afterward worked in a foundry 
 and machine shop for three or four years, 
 and then, with his brother John, bought out 
 the shop in which they served their appren- 
 ticeship and ran it for eight years. Feehng the 
 limitations by which he was surrounded, and hav- 
 ing great faith in the west as a field of activity 
 for the industriously inclined, Mr. Ferguson 
 came to California by way of Panama in 1874, 
 continuing his journeyings from San Francisco 
 to Burnett by rail, and from Burnett to Knights 
 Ferry by boat. Here he worked at his trade 
 until 1876 for another man, and then rented a 
 shop for a year, at the end of that time purchas- 
 ing its business and good-will. Twenty-five 
 years he continued the increasingly successful 
 and popular artisan, having a trade extending 
 far beyond the borders of the town, and accumu- 
 lating a comfortable fortune through the exer- 
 cise of caution and economy. Weary of the close 
 confinement, and desiring an all-around change, 
 he rented the shop, which he still owns, in 1 901, 
 and in 1902 removed to Oakdale, where he built 
 a residence the following year. 
 
 In the meantime, December 25, 1879, Mr. Fer- 
 guson married, in Knights Ferry, Anna Roberts, 
 a native of that town, and daughter of Thomas 
 Roberts, a native of Cornwall, England. Mr. 
 Roberts immigrated to America and California 
 in 1855, living in Knights Ferry for many years, 
 and in 1884 starting the Oakdale Water Works, 
 of which he eventually became sole owner. The 
 death of himself and wife in 1899 put an end to 
 his management of the enterprise, or rather to 
 his supervision, as he had previously leased the 
 works to a Mr. Rand for a period of ten years. 
 Mr. Rand in the meantime had died suddenly, 
 and his administrator. Dr. C. A. Case, undertook 
 the management of the works. Mr. Ferguson 
 had been appointed administrator of the Roberts 
 estate, and in 1903 bought out the lease of the 
 works and assumed the active management him- 
 self. Mrs. Ferguson is the second oldest in a 
 family of five daughters, the others being Salina, 
 now Mrs. Boling, of San Francisco ; Nellie, now 
 Mrs. Harriman, of Oakdale ; Laura, Mrs. Aber- 
 nethy, of Santa Cruz ; and Mabel, the wife of 
 Gilbert Baker, of Oakdale. Mr. and Mrs. Fer- 
 guson have three children, of whom Herbert J. 
 is in San Francisco, and Beatrice C. and Irma are 
 at home. Mr. Ferguson adds to his business 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1531 
 
 success an inclination toward general affairs, and 
 IS of an especially social turn of mind. His stand- 
 ing m the community is attested by membership 
 m the Masonic fraternity, he having come here 
 from the Artisan Lodge No. 84, of Amsterdam, 
 N. Y., and also the Royal Arch Masons. His 
 wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. Mr. Ferguson impresses all who know 
 him as a man of latent as well as developed re- 
 sources; as a man of energy and dignit)- of char- 
 acter, yet as the most genial and approachable 
 of associates. He is honorable and sincere, pub- 
 lic-spirited and enterprising, and as such adds 
 to the importance of an enterprise intimately con- 
 nected with the welfare of the city. 
 
 ORAMIL McHENRY. One of the soundest 
 and most conservative financial institutions of 
 Stanislaus county is the First National Bank of 
 Modesto, of which that popular and progressive 
 citizen, Oramil McHenry, is the president and 
 propelHng force. In his efforts to elevate the 
 standard of his adopted city, though he is him- 
 self a native of Stanislaus county, he has given 
 his voice and vote to all worthy causes and has 
 lent the weight of his influence .on the side of 
 advancement. He is connected with various of 
 the business movements of the city, and has from 
 time to time become the possessor of much coun- 
 try property, including twelve thousand acres in 
 the Modesto and Turlock districts, the greater 
 part of which is now rented. Possessing a splen- 
 did knowledge of finance, which is his by in- 
 heritance as well as training, he has made the 
 best of the opportunities with which he was sur- 
 rounded from childhood, and has, besides, the 
 satisfaction of knowing that all who know him 
 wish him well, and rejoice in the strict integrity 
 which characterizes all of his dealings. 
 
 Born November 14, 1861, Oramil McHenry is 
 the son of Robert McHenry, a citizen for many 
 years connected with the business interests of 
 Modesto and revered for the many fine qualities 
 which were manifest in his life. The elder man 
 was a native of Vermont, from which state he 
 emigrated in manhood to New York, later locat- 
 ing in Louisiana, where he had charge of a large 
 plantation. During the Mexican war, in 1846, 
 he came to California via the Isthmus, locating 
 in 1849 iri Stockton, where he was engaged in 
 draying. Going to the mines at Chinese Camp, 
 he remained for a -period of six months, after 
 which he came to Stanislaus county, and took up 
 the land which now constitutes the ranch known 
 as Bald Eagle. This then consisted of two thou- 
 sand, six hundred and forty acres, but was after- 
 ward increased to four thousand. In 1878 he 
 located in Modesto and engaged in the banking 
 
 business, becoming the cashier of The Modesto 
 Bank, in which capacity he remained until 1884. 
 Upon the incorporation of the First National 
 Bank of Modesto he became its president and so 
 continued until 1890, when he was succeeded by 
 his son, his death occurring June 2 of the same 
 year. He married Matilda Hewitt, a native of 
 Ohio, whose death occurred here in 1896 at the 
 age of fifty-six years. She had crossed the plains 
 with ox-teams in the early '50s, her father, Sam- 
 uel, locating in the San Joaquin valley, where 
 he spent the remainder of his life. 
 
 The only child of his parents, Oramil McHenry 
 was reared to manhood in Stanislaus county, re- 
 ceiving his education in the common school in 
 the vicinity of his home, afterward attending the 
 State University for three years. He then en- 
 gaged with his father in the First National Bank, 
 acting as bookkeeper until the death of his father, 
 when he became president, assuming the duties in 
 1890 and acceptably filling the position to the 
 present time. Besides being largely interested in 
 the real estate of Stanislaus county, he is con- 
 nected with the general merchandise company of 
 Modesto, known as G. P. Shaffer & Co., the 
 stock of their store being valued at $155,000. He 
 is also interested in The Modesto Bank, being 
 a director and the largest stockholder. The 
 growth of the First National Bank has been re- 
 markable, at the time of its incorporation in 1884 
 having a capital of but $50,000, and three years 
 later doubling that amount, while the capital is 
 now $100,000 with a reserve of $75,000. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. McHenry occurred in 
 Modesto and united him with Myrtle Conneau, a 
 graduate of Stanford University, class of 1901. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Stockton Lodge 
 No. 218, B. P. O. E., and is also identified with 
 the Masons, belonging to the Blue Lodge and 
 Chapter of Modesto, and with the Native Sons of 
 the Golden West. Politically he is a Republican. 
 
 R. E. HYDE. The career of no leader ip 
 commercial affairs of Tulare county furnishes a 
 more striking example of the wise application 
 of sound principles and safe conservatism than 
 does that of Richard E. Hyde. Like many others 
 who were important factors in shaping the des- 
 tinies of the new west, he is a product of the 
 east, bringing to the coast the priceless heritage 
 of industry, energy, brains and confidence. 
 These are the men whose influence has been far- 
 reaching and notable in the history of the west. 
 The Bank of Visalia, the pioneer monetary in- 
 stitution of Tulare county, Cal., and one of the 
 oldest in the San Joaquin valley, was established 
 by Mr. Hyde in August, 1874, and has since 
 been under the presidency of this able and high- 
 
1532 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 minded financier, his present associates being 
 C. J. Giddings, cashier; S. C. Brown, C. L. 
 Adams and E. O. Larkin, directors. 
 
 Richard E. Hyde was born in what is now 
 Port Ewen, Ulster county, N. Y., and is a son 
 of David and Sarah (Houglitaling) Hyde, 
 natives also of New York state. The circum- 
 stances surrounding his youth were such as to 
 inspire an appreciation of honest toil, of frugality 
 and sterling integrity, and also of sympathy with 
 and good-will toward his fellow men, and 
 with these assets he set forth at a comparatively 
 early age to earn his own living as clerk in a 
 mercantile store. He had six brothers : Abram, 
 Jeremiah, Alfred, Christopher, John and Will- 
 iam. His father dying when he was quite young, 
 the training of the sons was watched over by a 
 devout Christian mother, whose love and cease- 
 less devotion were rewarded by the knowledge 
 that all of the sons developed into exemplary 
 men and were a credit to their respective com- 
 munities. Two of them, Christopher and John, 
 settled on pioneer land in Wisconsin, and be- 
 came important agricultural factors in their 
 neighborhoods. John reared a large family, and 
 Christopher reared two daughters and one son, 
 the latter, Clarence, being now in business in 
 Oakland. 
 
 Mr. Hyde began his western career as clerk in 
 a mercantile store in one of the mining districts 
 of California. Later he engaged in the mercan- 
 tile business on his own responsibility in Santa 
 Cruz, still later establishing the Bank of Visalia. 
 Mr. Hyde combines the conservatism and caution 
 of the east with the energy of the west and op- 
 portunity has never had to knock twice at his 
 door. His interests are large and invade many 
 avenues of activity, and the faculty of success 
 has found in him a master of strong proportions. 
 The many buildings erected by him in Visalia 
 and his association with commercial undertak- 
 ings attest his faith in the city and county. He 
 is known as the wealthiest, as well as one of the 
 most dignified and reserved men in the business 
 world of the San Joaquin valley, where he em- 
 bodies the personification of commercial and 
 social honor. Newer generations will profit by 
 his example and revere his memory. 
 
 C. ELMER CODY, who has already gained 
 considerable prominence as an orchardist in 
 Fresno county, Cal., is one of the younger 
 generation of citizens who are rapidly work- 
 ing their way to a place of honor and success 
 by their untiring eflforts, ability and energy. 
 Although from his earliest recollections he re- 
 members no other than a California home, he 
 was born August i8, 1871, in Tecumseh, Neb., 
 a son of Truman B. and Mary A. (Vaughn) 
 
 Cody, the former born in New York in 1832 
 and the latter a native of Wisconsin, and it 
 was in the latter state that their marriage 
 took place. 
 
 T. B. Cody and his wife came to California 
 in 1875, and located in Tulare county and this 
 continued to be their home for a number of 
 years, and while residing there, farming oc- 
 cupied the attention of Mr. Cody. It was in 
 1884 that the family came to Fresno county 
 to live, and Mr. Cody purchased at that time 
 a ranch in Rosedale school district, and here 
 it was that his subsequent years were spent 
 until 1903. Leaving his sixty-acre ranch to 
 the care and management of his son Elmer, he 
 retired to Los Angeles, Cal., where he an- 
 ticipates spending his declining years in the 
 quiet enjoyment of his life of toil. 
 
 Being but a few years old when brought to 
 California by his parents, C. Elmer Cody, 
 during his early boyhood days, attended school 
 in Tulare county and after the removal of 
 the family to Fresno county, his education was 
 completed within its borders. Having been 
 reared in the rural districts, he very naturally 
 followed ranching pursuits. In addition to 
 managing his father's farm he owns a sixty- 
 acre farm four miles south of Sanger and 
 upon this he raises fruit extensively. By his 
 marriage October 15, 1896, he united his for- 
 tunes with those of Anna E. Powell, a Vir- 
 ginian, and they have three children. Rose 
 Ellen, Hattie May and John C. At all times 
 a stanch supporter of the Republican party, 
 Mr. Cody is not an active politician nor an as- 
 pirant to office, and fraternally he is allied with 
 the Woodmen of the World and the Fraternal 
 Brotherhood of Del Rey. He is one of the en- 
 terprising men of his locality and is a man of 
 shrewd and unerring judgment. 
 
 JOHN JAY VANDERBURGH. As editor, 
 publisher Snd proprietor of the Selma Irrigator, 
 John Jay Vanderburgh is widely and favorably 
 known, and is carrying on a successful business. 
 Under his judicious management, the paper ex- 
 erts a healthful influence throughout the com- 
 munity, encouraging the establishment of bene- 
 ficial enterprises, and promoting as far as possi- 
 ble its industrial, financial, educational and moral 
 progress. A son of the late Isaac K. Vander- 
 burgh, he was born April 13, 1866, in Waterloo, 
 Blackhawk county, Iowa. 
 
 A native of Canada, Isaac K. Vanderburgh 
 was born in Norwich, Oxford county, on the pa- 
 rental farm. After his marriage he settled in the 
 United States, and as a member of a government 
 party helped survey the stat:e of Iowa. He made 
 his residence in Blackhawk and adjoining coun- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1533 
 
 ties, where he resided nearly twenty years. Com- 
 ing to California with his family in 1875, he con- 
 tinued in his chosen occupation, living near Fire- 
 baugh, Fresno county, four years, and in Santa 
 Cruz county two years. Returning to Fresno 
 county in 1881, he bought forty acres of land ly- 
 ing five miles north of Selma, it being a railway 
 claim, and was there engaged in ranching until 
 his death in 1890. Lie was a very successful 
 business man, and an active member of the Re- 
 publican party. He married Pluma Gaines, who 
 was born March 16, 1834, in Barre, Oswego 
 county, N. Y. She is a woman of considerable 
 business ability, and since the death of her hus- 
 band has been very successful in the management 
 of the home ranch, among other improvements 
 which she has added to the place being the set- 
 ting out of a peach orchard. She bore her hus- 
 band six children, all of whom are living, name- 
 ly : B. D., owner of a stock and dairy ranch near 
 Hanford, Cal. ; C. M., living near the home 
 ranch ; Annie, wife of S.-Bondsen, a dairy farmer 
 and stock-raiser, in Tulare county; Mrs. P. H. 
 McDowell, living with her mother; Mrs. C. C. 
 Cavin, wife of a prosperous farmer of Madera; 
 and John Jay, the subject of this sketch. 
 
 Obtaining his elementary education in the 
 common schools of California, and afterward at- 
 tending the Selma high school two years, John^ 
 Jay Vanderburgh began his active career as a' 
 teacher, and for four years -taught school in 
 Fresno county. Engaging in journalistic work 
 in 1893, he bought one-half interest in the Selma 
 Irrigator, and four years later purchased the re- 
 maining interest of the paper, of which he has 
 since been editor, business manager and sole pro- 
 prietor. This paper was estabUshed in 1886 as 
 a weekly, being a pioneer in its line, and has 
 now a weekly circulation of six hundred. In 
 addition to publishing the Irrigator, Mr. Vander- 
 burgh also does job printing, carrying on a re- 
 munerative business. He is a Democrat in poli- 
 tics and for two years, from 1900 until 1902, 
 served as chairman of the board of city trustees. 
 
 Near Selma, in 1889, Mr. Vanderburgh mar- 
 ried M. Isabelle Bowen, a native of Missouri, and 
 they have two children living, Zoe and Isabelle. 
 Fraternally Mr. Vanderburgh is a member of 
 Fresno Lodge, B. P. O. E.; of Selma Lodge, I. 
 O. O. F. ; of Selma Encampment; and of the 
 Rebekahs. 
 
 HON. STANTON LESTER CARTER. 
 Upon its establishment in America the Carter 
 family was first associated with the history of 
 colonial Virginia, but more recent generations 
 have been identified with the activities of the 
 north and west. Judge Carters father, Levi 
 Carter, was a native of Jefferson county, N. Y., 
 
 and during early manhood was interested in 
 lumbering in that state and Canada. In 1854 
 he became a pioneer farmer near Mount Car- 
 roll, Carroll county, 111., and from there in i860 
 crossed the plains to the west. After a short 
 time in Nevada and California, in 1861 he re- 
 turned via Panama for the purpose of bringing 
 his family to the coast with him. The little 
 party, with Mr. Carter as captain, started on 
 the long journey over mountains and deserts 
 in 1862, joining others who had a similar desti- 
 nation in view. While on the way the party 
 was compelled to battle with the Indians on 
 Goose creek, in which two men were killed. 
 After three months their horse-train arrived 
 in Washoe, Nev. A short time afterward the 
 Carter famiFy proceeded to Diamond Spring, 
 Eldorado county, Cal., and from there to Fol- 
 som, Sacramento county, where Mr. Carter 
 engaged in teaming. Next he bought land 
 eight miles east of Stockton and took up farm 
 pursuits. From there he removed to the San 
 Joaquin valley, and in 1868 settled in Stockton, 
 but continued to follow farming until advanc- 
 ing years rendered further manual work im- 
 possible. His death occurred on his ranch in 
 Stanislaus county at seventy-six years of age. 
 Three weeks after his demise Mrs. Carter 
 passed away. She was Fama Eve Shoup, of 
 Canadian birth and Dutch descent. They were 
 the parents of five children, of whom three 
 sons and a daughter survive. 
 
 The next to the oldest of the children was 
 Stanton L. Carter, who was born in Clayton, 
 Jefferson county, N. Y., January 16, 1853. His 
 earliest recollections are associated with Illi- 
 nois, for he was only a year old when the fam- 
 ily settled in Carroll county. In 1862 he 
 crossed the plains with the family and wit- 
 nessed many memorable scenes during that 
 eventful journey, as well as later when the 
 family were undergoing the privations and 
 dangers attendant upon life on the frontier and 
 in mining regions. In 1871 he was graduated 
 from the Stockton high school. His first inde- 
 pendent work was as manager of a grain ware- 
 house at Ceres, Cal., which he operated dur- 
 ing the vacation months. In 1874 he com- 
 pleted the course of study in Heald's Business 
 College. Previous to this he had taken up the 
 study of law, and April 10, 1876, he was ad- 
 mitted to the bar. After gaining considerable 
 experience through clerking in the law office 
 of Byers & Elliott in Stockton, in 1878 he 
 opened an office in Stockton, where, from 1884 
 to 1888, he was a member of the firm of Carter, 
 Smith & Keniston. In September, 1879, he 
 was appointed city attorney of Stockton to fill 
 a vacancy and subsequently was twice elected 
 to the office. 
 
1534 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD, 
 
 Removing to Fresno in 1891, Judge Carter 
 has since been a well-known citizen of this 
 place. In 1894 Governor Markham appointed 
 him judge of the superior court of Fresno 
 county to fill a vacancy in the office, and he 
 served for two years, when, the legislature 
 having .divided the county and reduced the 
 number of judges from three to two, abolish- 
 ing the department over which he presided, 
 he retired from the bench and resumed the 
 practice of law. Since 1903 he has been a 
 member of the firm o.f Carter, Ricketts & 
 Dolph, his partners being A. H. Ricketts, one 
 of the most prominent mining attorneys on the 
 Pacific coast, and Chester V. Dolph, son of 
 the late United States Senator J. N. Dolph, 
 of Portland, Ore. The firm maifitains offices 
 in Fresno and San Francisco. Judge Carter 
 acts as attorney for the Santa Fe Railroad 
 Company, the Sanger Lumber Company, the 
 Fresno Building & Investment Company, and 
 the Reedley State Bank at Reedley, and served 
 as counsel for the Emigrant Ditch Company 
 until its consolidation with similar companies. 
 He is also attorney for numerous other cor- 
 porations. He is a director in various local 
 companies of Fresno. Through his connection 
 with the County Bar Association his influence 
 has been further enhanced among those of his 
 ow'n profession. Stanchly Republican in his 
 political faith, he is one of the local leaders 
 of his party, and had the honor of acting as 
 chairman of the county central committee in 
 1900, when William J. Bryan's majority of 
 eleven hundred and ten in Fresno county in 
 1896 was reduced to a tie. On the organiza- 
 tion of the Sequoia Club he became one of 
 its charter members. Though not connected 
 with any religious denomination, he is a con- 
 tributor to the support of the Presbyterian 
 Church, with which his wife is connected. 
 Mrs. Carter, whom he married in Salt Lake 
 City, was Armenia Oliva, a native of Stocltton, 
 Cal., and the daughter of pioneer parents. 
 They have three children, Lester L., Royle A., 
 and Armenia Mignon. 
 
 Especial interest attaches to Judge Carter's 
 association with the Knights of Pythias, for 
 he has been a leader in that organization. Ini- 
 tiated at Stockton, he has since been active in 
 the work of the order. In 1884 he was elected 
 grand chancellor from the floor. From 1891 
 to 1899 he held office as supreme representa- 
 tive, and for four years of this time he was 
 chairman of the judiciary committee. In the 
 Uniform Rank he holds rank as colonel on the 
 major-general's staff and is now chief tribune 
 of the Grand Tribunal of California. The En- 
 dowment Rank also numbers him in its list 
 of members. During the conclave of 1898 at 
 
 Indianapolis, his name was brought forward 
 for the office of supreme vice-chancellor of the 
 order, and he lacked only eight votes of being 
 elected. Throughout the order he has a host 
 of warmi personal friends, who have been at- 
 tracted to him by those qualities of mind and 
 heart which win admiration in every associa- 
 tion, whether political, professional, fraternal 
 or social. 
 
 In the practice of the law. Judge Carter's 
 labors have been rewarded with a rare meas- 
 ure of success. He entered upon his legal 
 career unusually well equipped, with a sound 
 foundation of knowledge of the principles of 
 the science, and his ability correctly to apply 
 these principles to the cases in hand has been 
 demonstrated in a marked manner. He is now 
 regarded as one of the leaders of the bar in the 
 San Joaquin valley. Personally he is a high- 
 minded, public-spirited citizen, warmly advo- 
 cating all measures which, in his judgment, 
 have for their end the advancement of the wel- 
 fare of the community. He has become recog- 
 nized as a potential factor in the progress and 
 prosperity of Fresno county, and as a citizen 
 of the highest utility in the daily walks of life. 
 
 HON. WILEY J. TINNIN. One of the 
 best known and most highly esteemed citizens 
 of the San Joaquin valley is Hon. Wiley J. 
 Tinnin of Fresno, an honored pioneer of the 
 state, and a lawyer of note. He has had a 
 busy and eventful career, and has wisely and 
 faithfully served his fellowmen in various 
 capacities. A man of honor, and integrity, he 
 has exerted a healthful influence in whatever 
 community he has resided, and has ever been 
 among the foremost in advancing the interests 
 of town, city and county. A native of Missis- 
 sippi, he was born near Jackson, October 7, 
 1829, a son of Asa Tinnin. His grandfather, 
 William Tinnin, was a life-long resident of 
 North Carolina, and was the descendant of a 
 family of Scotch people that settled there in 
 colonial times. One of Mr. Tinnin's paternal 
 ancestors was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
 war, serving in the swamps of the Pedee un- 
 der Generals Marion and Sumter. 
 
 A native of North Carolina, Asa Tinnin sub- 
 sequently settled in Mississippi, where he was 
 engaged in raising cotton until his death in 
 1843. I'Tf^ was a man of patriotism, and served 
 under General Jackson in the Seminole Indian 
 wars in Florida. The maiden name of his 
 wife was Matilda Carr, who was born in Ala- 
 bama, of Scotch-Irish ancestors, and died in 
 Mississippi in 1836. Eleven ~ children were 
 born of their union, two of whom survive. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1535 
 
 Three sons came to California in pioneer 
 times: Wiley ]., the subject of this sketch; 
 John, who came in 1849, subsequently becom- 
 ing a miner at Grand Junction, Colo., where 
 he was murdered by robbers ; and Wilham W., 
 who came in 1850 and died in 1880. 
 
 Reared on his father's cotton plantation in 
 Mississippi, Wiley J. Tinnin attended first a 
 private school in Jackson, afterward going to 
 Tennessee, where he continued his studies at 
 Franklin College, remaining there until the 
 close of his junior year. In 1850, joining a 
 party of ten well educated and intelligent young 
 men, he started for the Pacific coast. Leav- 
 ing New Orleans on February 27, he went 
 by boat to the Isthmus of Panama, and from 
 there the party were poled up the Chagres 
 river to Gorgona by naked natives. The party 
 then proceeded on the backs of hired mules to 
 Panama, where they were unable to find a 
 steamer going northward. While waiting in 
 that city for transportation, the party enjoyed 
 themselves as well as they could, considering 
 that the majority of the population spoke 
 Spanish, a language of which they were en- 
 tirely ignorant, and found ample amusement. 
 At the end of ten days, they embarked on a 
 sailing vessel, the Paola, and on May 12, 1850, 
 landed in San Francisco, just two days after 
 the great fire had nearly ruined the city. 
 
 Mr. Tinnin went immediately to a hotel, 
 where he paid $10.00 a day for a room and 
 $1 for each meal. Remaining there but four 
 or five daj's, he went to the mines on the 
 American river, and for three months was lo- 
 cated at Fisher's bar. Going then to Nevada 
 county, Cal., he worked in the mines until the 
 breaking out of the Gold Lake fever, when he 
 joined a party starting for that region. On the 
 Yuba he was taken ill, and while the party 
 waited there the crowd that had preceded them 
 by mule trains began to return, having found 
 out that the man who had started the stam- 
 pede that cost a half million dollars was in- 
 sane. The price of mules immediately 
 dropped from $500 to $100 apiece. With his 
 companions, Mr. Tinnin was employed in min- 
 ing on Poor Man's creek until the fall of the 
 year, when he returned to Nevada county, 
 where, during the big storm that occurred that 
 fall, hundreds of people died from pneumonia, 
 among others being two of Mr. Tinijin's part- 
 ners. Subsequently, with his two brothers, 
 John and William, he went down the Sacra- 
 mento valley to Benicia, but finding the pros- 
 pects for making a living no better than in 
 their former location they started back. On 
 their way home, near Sacramento, they came 
 across vast numbers of geese. A happy idea 
 striking them, they shot a large number, 
 
 which they packed on their backs to Sacra- 
 mento, where they sold them for $1 apiece. 
 The business proving profitable, they subse- 
 quently bought a mule to do thei'r packing, 
 and in course of time had made a sufficient 
 sum of money to purchase four mules. Load- 
 ing these animals with a quantity of provi- 
 sions, Mr. Tinnin and his brothers started for 
 the Salmon River mines, but the Indians 
 proved to be so troublesome in that region 
 that they concluded to stop at the Trinity 
 River mines, remaining there frgm March, 
 1851, until the following March. The ensuing 
 year Mr. Tinnin was successfully engaged in 
 mining at French Gulch, in Shasta county. 
 
 Returning to Weaverville, Trinity county, 
 Mr. Tinnin then embarked in the mercantile 
 business with his brother, William W., who had 
 loaned money on a tin-shop, which then came 
 into his possession, the tinsmith not being 
 able to pay his indebtedness. Taking charge 
 of the business, they added a stock of hard- 
 ware, stoves, paints and glass. Subsequently 
 erecting a two-story brick building, 40 x no 
 feet, they embarked in general mercantile busi- 
 ness at Weaverville under the firm name of 
 W. W. Tinnin & Co., and also established a 
 bank, and bought all the gold dust brought 
 into the place. In 1861, Mr. Tinnin erected 
 a house in Weaverville, and in partnership 
 with John W. Owens continued in mercantile 
 business as head of the firm of Tinnin & 
 Owens. In 1867 the junior partner of the firm 
 died and Mr. Tinnin sold out his business. 
 Removing then to San Francisco, Mr. Tinnin 
 became a dealer in real estate, and in 1870 he 
 entered the political arena in Trinity county, 
 serving in the house of representatives for 
 two terms and for one term being state sen- 
 ator. In 1879 he was a member of the con- 
 stitutional convention, and came within one 
 vote of being elected chairman, the vote stand- 
 ing seventy to seventy-one. 
 
 In 1880 Mr. Tinnin was admitted to the bar, 
 and began the practice of his profession at 
 Weaverville. In 1884 he was nominated state 
 elector on the Democratic ticket, and in 1886 
 was appointed by President Cleveland sur- 
 veyor of the Port of San Francisco, a position 
 which he filled for four years and one month, 
 during which time he did his best to enforce 
 the Chinese restriction laws. In 1890 he 
 opened a law office at No. 420 California street, 
 San Francisco, but on account of a catarrhal 
 trouble was advised by his physician to seek a 
 warmer climate. Accordingly, in 1891, he lo- 
 cated in Fresno, where he has since been 
 actively and successfully engaged in the prac- 
 tice of his profession. He is still interested 
 in mining property, in company with C. J. 
 
1536 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Beck owning the Minerette mines on the head- 
 waters of the San Joaquin river. He is also 
 referee in bankruptcy for Fresno county, hav- 
 ing been appointed by the United States Dis- 
 trict Court. 
 
 In 1861, in Weaverville, Trinity county, Mr. 
 Tinnin married Irene Lowden, who was born 
 in Brown county. 111. Her father, Spencer 
 Lowden, a farmer by occupation, came to 
 Trinity county, Cal., in 1856, joining his sons, 
 William, who crossed the plains to the Pa- 
 cific coast, in 1849, and Matthew, who came 
 here in 1852. Politically Mr. Tinnin is an un- 
 compromising Democrat, and is always active 
 in state conventions. Fraternally he is very 
 prominent in the Masonic order. In 1854 he 
 joined Trinity Lodge No. 27, F. & A. M., at 
 Weaverville, which he served as master, and 
 is now a member of Fresno Lodge No. 247, F. 
 & A. M. In 1855 he became a member of 
 Shasta Chapter No. 9, R. A. M., of which he 
 is past high priest, and is now a member of 
 Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. M. In 1885 and 
 1886 he was grand master of the Grand Lodge 
 of California; in 1880 and 1881 he served as 
 grand high priest of the Grand Chapter of 
 California ; and he is also a member, and ex- 
 vice-president, of the Order of High Priest- 
 hood. Mrs. Tinnin inactive in the social affairs 
 of the city, and is now president of the 
 Wednesday Club. 
 
 in his character. His young manhood was spent 
 in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and he 
 started out in the world for himself at the age 
 of fifteen years. He learned the trade of boiler- 
 maker, and when only twenty-one years old was 
 second hand and had over two hundred men 
 working under him in a factory in Rhode Island. 
 Interested in the manifest advantages of the 
 West, he came to California in 1876 and at once 
 located in Fresno county. During the first two 
 years in this county he engaged in teaming in 
 the mountains, which was a remunerative em- 
 ployment, and in 1878 he located upon his farm, 
 where he has since resided. 
 
 In this state Mr. Banister was united in mar- 
 riage, in 1883, with Milly F. Bartlett, a native 
 of Massachusetts, and the daughter of Charles 
 L. Bartlett, who came to California in 1888. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Banister have been born two chil- 
 dren, Zilpah, aged seventeen, and Albert W., 
 aged thirteen. In politics Mr. Banister is a 
 stanch Republican, and fraternally affiliates with 
 the Odd Fellows and Woodmen of the World. 
 
 WILLIAM B. BANISTER. A model little 
 farm is that of William B. Banister, a well- 
 known vineyardist of Central Colony, his prop- 
 erty of foily acres being located within four 
 and a half miles of Fresno. Eighteen acres is 
 devoted to the cultivation of grapes, running 
 about five hundred vines to the acre, and turn- 
 ing out about twenty-three tons per year; three 
 and a half acres are in orchard, one of his prin- 
 cipal crops being figs, as he has thirty trees of 
 this kind ; and has also seventeen acres in alfalfa. 
 This farm, which consisted originally of twenty 
 acres, was purchased by Mr. Banister in 1876, 
 shortly after his arrival in Fresno county, but 
 he did not locate permanently upon it until two 
 years later, since which time he has been en- 
 gaged almost exclusively in ranching. A native 
 of Massachusetts, he was born in Middlesex 
 county August i, 1855, a son of Seth W. Ban- 
 ister. 
 
 Seth W. Banister was likewise a native of the 
 Bay state and was a Baptist minister. He mar- 
 ried Fanny Cummings, also of Massachusetts, 
 and died at the age of forty years. Being left 
 an orphan at an early age, Mr. Banister experi- 
 enced many hardships in his younger days, but 
 these only served to bring out the strong points 
 
 JOHN H. SIMONSON. In financial and 
 political circles John H. Simonson, of Merced, 
 is an active and important factor. Public- 
 spirited and progressive, he has served the county 
 with efficiency and fidelity in various official posi- - 
 tions, and is now carrying on a substantial busi- 
 ness as head of the well-known firm of Simonson 
 & Harrell, dealers in real estate, and insurance 
 agents. A native of German)', he was born No- 
 vember 6, 1850, near Hamburg, the same prov- 
 ince in which the birth of his father, Jasper 
 Simonson, also occurred. 
 
 Having served an apprenticeship to a cabinet- 
 maker, Jasper Simonson followed his trade near 
 Hamburg for a few years. Emigrating with 
 his family to this country in 1857, he settled in 
 Minnesota, buying land in New Ulm, where he 
 was engaged in farming for a year. Removing 
 to Marine Mills, Minn., in 1858, he followed his 
 trade in that city until his death. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was Anna Maria Clausen, 
 was born near Hamburg, Germany, and died in 
 Minnesota. Of the six children born of their 
 union, but two are living, John H., the youngest 
 child, being the only one in California. 
 
 Obtaining his early education principally in 
 the publif schools of Marine Mills, Minn., John 
 H. Simonson began life as a wage-earner at the 
 age of thirteen years, becoming clerk in a gen- 
 eral store. Later being promoted to the posi- 
 tion of bookkeeper, he remained with the firm 
 until 1876. Coming to Merced, Cal., in the fall 
 of that year, he accepted a similar position in the 
 mercantile house of Simon, Jacobs & Co., general 
 merchants, and continued as bookkeeper for two 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1537 
 
 and one-half years. In 1879 Mr. Simonson was 
 the Republican nominee for county clerk, and 
 being elected served for two years, from March, 
 1880, but on account of the new constitution, 
 which went into effect in 1880, his term was ex- 
 tended until January, 1883. Being twice re- 
 elected, he served for four years more, until 
 January, 1887, giving satisfaction to all con- 
 cerned. Subsequently embarking in the real 
 estate and abstract business, Mr. Simonson com- 
 piled and completed a full set of abstract books. 
 In 1890 he was nominated on the Republican 
 ticket for county assessor for a term of four years, 
 was elected, and at the expiration of his term 
 was re-elected for another four years. In this 
 position he served acceptably from January, 
 1891, until January, 1899, but in the fall cam- 
 paign of 1898 was not a candidate for re-elec- 
 tion. Resuming his former business, he has 
 since been busily employed as an abstracter, and 
 a dealer in real estate, as senior member of the 
 firm of Simonson & Harrell, handling both city 
 and country property. He is also engaged in the 
 insurance business, representing several of the 
 old-line insurance companies. 
 
 Mr. Simonson married, in Merced, Jessie B. 
 Stoddard, who was born in Calaveras county, 
 Cal., where her father, E. M. Stoddard, was an 
 early settler, and they have one child, Stanley 
 Simonson. Mr. Simonson is a prominent mem- 
 ber of the Masonic fraternity, and has done much 
 to promote the good of this order. He was 
 made a Mason at St. John's Lodge No. i, F. & 
 A. M., at Stillwater, Minn., where he is still 
 a member; was demitted from Stillwater Chap- 
 ter, and now belongs to Merced Chapter, No. 12, 
 R. A. M., in which he has served as high priest ; 
 at Sonora, Cal., united with Pacific Coast Com- 
 mandery, No. 3, K. T., and now belongs to 
 Fresno Commandery No. 29, K. T. ; and is a 
 member of Islam Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S. 
 He is also a member, and past chancellor, of 
 the Knights of Pythias, and formerly belonged to 
 the Uniform Rank, K. P. In his political views 
 he is a Republican, and is a member of the Re- 
 publican County Central Committee. 
 
 WILLIAM O. MILES. As the present in- 
 cumbent of the county clerk's office and through 
 previous business associations, William O. Miles 
 has become well known to the people of Fresno 
 county. He is a member of a pioneer family of 
 Indiana, his grandfather, Nathan Miles, with 
 two brothers, having settled in that state in an 
 early day. During the excitement caused by 
 the discovery of gold in California, W. J. Miles, 
 a native of 'Indiana and father of William O., 
 started across the plains with that host of emi- 
 grants whom the year 1849 brought to the coast. 
 
 The trip consumed six months and was made 
 with ox teams. Many perils were faced and 
 many hardships endured ; but he was young and 
 robust, as well as ambitious and brave, and all 
 the difficulties of the journey failed to lessen 
 his enthusiasm. In the mines 'of Eldorado coun- 
 ty he gained his first experiences as a gold 
 seeker. While living in California he married 
 Adelia M. Hutchison, who was born in Illinois. 
 Some years after his marriage he returned to 
 Indiana with his wife and children. It was his 
 intention to remain there only temporarily and 
 to return to the far west, but his death in 1871 
 wrecked all plans for the future. At that time 
 he was about thirty-nine years of age. At one 
 time he filled the office of justice of the peace, 
 but at the expiration of his term he declined to 
 serve longer. 
 
 Another emigrant of '49 was George Hutchi- 
 son, the maternal grandfather of William O. 
 Miles. Later he crossed the plains many times, 
 his first trip back east being made for the pur- 
 pose of bringing his family west with him. A 
 son, W. J. Hutchison, and a daughter, Mrs. A. 
 A. Schaeffer, still live in Fresno county. In the 
 spring of 1871, after the death of her husband, 
 in Indiana, Mrs. Miles came with her children 
 to California. She is the mother of three chil- 
 dren. The eldest, Walter, died at Centerville 
 when fifteen years of age. The only daughter, 
 Ida, acts as deputy county clerk of Fresno coun- 
 ty, and she and her mother make their home, 
 with Mr. Miles in Fresno. 
 
 William O. Miles was born at Sullivan, Ind., 
 April 7, 1870, but his earliest recollections are 
 of Fresno county. After studying in the Fresno 
 public schools he entered the San Jose Business 
 College, from which he was graduated in Au- 
 gust, 1888. On returning to Fresno he secured 
 employment as cashier and bookkeeper with A. 
 J. Wiener, a merchant. The next year he be- 
 came deputy tax collector under A. D. Ewing. 
 In 1 891 he was appointed deputy to W. C. 
 Guard, serving for a year. During this time he 
 was also deputy county assessor. 
 
 After spending the year 1893 in San Jose Mr. 
 Miles returned to Fresno and for six months 
 was employed by T. J. Hammond, the whole- 
 sale seed merchant. For a similar period he was 
 assistant bookkeeper and cashier for Kutner, 
 Goldstein & Co. In January, 1895, he was en- 
 gaged as bookkeeper by S. Evenger, wholesale 
 and retail butcher, with whom he remained for 
 five years. In the meantime, in 1898, he was 
 elected public administrator of Fresno county, 
 which position he filled from January of 1899 
 to January of 1903. Upon resigning his posi- 
 tion with Mr. Evenger in 1900 he entered the 
 Fresno National Bank as assistant cashier. 
 From the beginning of the development of the 
 
1538 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 oil fields he has been interested m this work, 
 and in January, 1901, he resigned from the 
 bank in order to devote himself to his interests 
 in the Coalinga and Bakersfield districts, where 
 he was associated with Messrs. Murdoch and 
 Ingels in developing oil. 
 
 The active support Mr. Miles has always 
 given the Democratic party, received recogni- 
 tion from that partv in 1902, when he was nomi- 
 nated for county clerk. Although Fresno is a 
 Republican county, he received a. majority of 
 one hundred and eighty-seven votes at the elec- 
 tion. In January of 1903 he took the oath of 
 office for four years and has since devoted all 
 of his time to 'the duties of the position. A 
 leading member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church South, he is a member of its board of 
 trustees and board of stewards. He was made a 
 Mason in Fresno Lodge No. 247, F. & A. M., 
 and was raised to the chapter degree in Trigo 
 Chapter No. 69, R. A. M., in which he is an 
 office-holder. The Templar honors were con- 
 ferred upon him in Fresno Commandery No. 29, 
 K. T. In addition, he is identified with Lodge 
 of Perfection No. 6, of Fresno, and Islam Tem- 
 ple, N. M. S., of San Francisco. He is also a 
 member of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 ISAAC B. HINES, M. D. Not alone through 
 his private practice, but also through his con- 
 nection with the Agnew hospital in Fresno, Dr. 
 I. B. Hines has gained a wide reputation. The 
 hospital was opened in March, 1903, and is sit- 
 uated at No. 634 I street. Its appliances are 
 such as belong to the most modern buildings of 
 the kind. A specialty is made of surgery and 
 the equipment for the operating table is complete. 
 In connection with the hospital Dr. Hines built 
 and fitted up the Fresno Swimming Baths, where 
 may be had Russian, Turkish, medicated and 
 electro-chemical baths ; also a swimming pool, 
 25x50 feet in dimensions. 
 
 The ancestry of Dr. Hines is traced to Vir- 
 ginia, whence William Hines removed to Ten- 
 nessee in a very early day and there operated 
 a mill and cleared a farm. Isaac Bright Hines, 
 a son of William, was born at Gap Creek, Knox 
 county, Tennessee, September 15, 1795, and 
 throiigh his active life engaged in the milling 
 business and the manufacture of lumber. Dur- 
 ing the War of 1812 he served in the American 
 army, the most important engagement in which 
 he participated being the memorable battle of 
 New Orleans under General Jackson. Archelaus 
 D. C. Hines, son of this veteran, was born 
 March 20, 1825, in Knox county, Tenn. He fol- 
 lowed in his father's footsteps in the selection 
 of an occupation, but, in addition to milling and 
 manufacturing lumber, he also conducted farm 
 
 pursuits. About 1892 he relinquished his busi- 
 ness interests and came to CaUfornia, since which 
 time he has made Fresno his home. At this 
 writing (1904) he is seventy-nine years of age. 
 His wife, who bore the maiden name of Pres- 
 sure Margaret Bowman, was born November 7, 
 1835, at Calhoun, Tenn., of German descent, and 
 is still living. Her father. Rev. John N. Bow- 
 man, a native of Tennessee, followed farming as 
 a means of livelihood, but gave his attention 
 largely to ministerial work in the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church in Alabama and Tennessee, 
 and was one of those pioneer circuit riders who 
 exerted so large an influence upon the early 
 settlers of our country. 
 
 In the family of A. D. C. Hines there were 
 six sons and three daughters all of whom ex- 
 cept one son are still living. The surviving- 
 sons are as follows: I. B., of Fresno; John 
 Newton, a merchant of Fresno; Francis Marion, 
 a rancher of Fresno county; Samuel Bowman, 
 who is connected with mercantile interests in 
 Fresno; and A. Don, who received the degree 
 of M. D. from the Boston University School 
 of Medicine and is now engaged in practice at 
 San Jose. The three sisters, Edith M., Mary and 
 Alice M., also reside in California. Dr. I. B. 
 Hines was born eight miles from Knoxville, in 
 Knox county, Tenn., July 5, 1856. As a boy 
 he attended the Knoxville schools and assisted 
 in the lumber-mill and on the. home farm. In 
 1 88 1 he was graduated from the University of 
 Tennessee with the degree of A. B., and the fol- 
 lowing year received the degree of B. S. For 
 five years afterward he was employed as an ob- 
 server in the weather bureau of the Engineering 
 Corps of the United States army, being succes- 
 sively stationed at New York City, Sandy Hook, 
 N. J., and Block Island, R. I. At the expiration 
 of his time he received an honorable discharge. 
 
 During 1887 Dr. Hines began his medical ed- 
 ucation in the Boston University School of Med- 
 icine, from which he was graduated in 1890 with 
 the degree of M. D. F'or some years after grad- 
 uating he remained in Boston, and while there 
 had charge of the infirmary connected with the 
 Massachusetts General Homeopathic Hospital. 
 December 18, 1894, he arrived in Fresno, on a 
 visit to his parents, and being so favorably im- 
 pressed with the country and its possibilities he 
 decided to make California his future home. In 
 1897 he acted as surgeon for the Fresno Flume 
 and Irrigating Company's mills at Shaver, Fres- 
 no county, since which time he has given his at- 
 tention wholly to professional work in his home 
 town, where he resides at No. 333 Blackstone 
 avenue. He still retains membership in the Mas- 
 sachusetts Homeopathic Medical Association. 
 Since coming to Fresno he has been a member 
 of the Chamber of Commerce, In religion he 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1539 
 
 IS an adherent of the Baptist Church, while in 
 pohtics he votes with the Democratic party. 
 While stationed on Block Island he was made a 
 Mason in Atlantic Lodge No. 31, F. & A. M., 
 and later, in Boston, was admitted to Roxbury 
 Lodge No. 211, I. O. O. F., with which he still 
 holds membership. His fraternal connections 
 also include membership in the Woodmen of the 
 World. 
 
 LOUIS KAHN. Endowed with a strong per- 
 sonality, exceptional executive and financial abil- 
 ity, and an almost marvelous business instinct, 
 Louis Kahn, of Oakdale, has been a dominant 
 force in the upbuilding of Stanislaus county. 
 During the quarter of a century that he has 
 resided in Oakdale, he has been actively identi- 
 fied with its growth and prosperity, and a lead- 
 er in the establishment and maintenance of ben- 
 eficial projects. A native of Germany, he was 
 born March 20, 1855, near Baden-Baden, which 
 was likewise the birthplace of his father, Dan- 
 iel Kahn. 
 
 Born, bred and educated near Baden-Baden, 
 Daniel Kahn belonged to one of the oldest and 
 most respected families of southern Germany. 
 He began life for himself as a merchant, but*kub- 
 sequently served in the Germany army as a 
 soldier, taking an active part in the Revolu- 
 tion of 1848. Being forced to leave the Fath- 
 erland for a time, he came to America, remaining 
 in New York until after the amnesty proclama- 
 tion, when he returned to his native country, 
 and was there engaged in mercantile pursuits 
 until his death, while in manhood's prime. He 
 married Fannie Hirschfelder, who was born in 
 Hohenzollern, Germany, where her father, Jacob 
 Hirschfelder, was a farmer and merchant. After 
 the death of her husband, she came to Califor- 
 nia, and spent the remainder of her life in San 
 Francisco. Of her family of two sons and four 
 daughters, all are living with the exception of 
 the second son, Jonas Kahn, who died in San 
 Francisco, in 1903. 
 
 The oldest child of the parental household, 
 Louis Kahn received excellent educational ad- 
 vantages, after completing the course in the 
 public schools, being graduated from the Baden- 
 Baden Gymnasium. Immigrating to the Pa- 
 cific coast in 1871, he spent a short time in San 
 Francisco, and then went to Austin, Nev., where 
 he accepted the position of clerk in a large gen- 
 eral store, and while thus employed became fa- 
 miliar with the English language. Going thence 
 to Belmont, . Nev., Mr. Kahn was engaged m 
 business, as a partner of J. J. Koemgshoffer un- 
 til 1873, when the firm transferred its busmess 
 to Helena, Mont., where Mr. Kahn had charge 
 of its large store for four years. Closing out 
 
 its Montana establishment in 1877, the firm 
 opened a store in Oakland, Cal., and the junior 
 member continued as manager of the business 
 for three years. Severing his connection with 
 the firm in 1880, Mr. Kahn located in Oakdale, 
 Stanislaus county, as a member of the firm of 
 Haslacher & Kahn, opening a general store in 
 this city, and one at Knights Ferry, putting in a 
 complete stock of merchandise in each place. 
 In 1 88 1 the store at Knights Ferry was burned 
 down, and the firm, instead of rebuilding, trans- 
 ferred all the business to Oakdale, and con- 
 tinued its management until 1887, when it was 
 sold. Since that time, Mr. Kahn has been a pro- 
 moter and supporter of many of the most ex- 
 tensive and important business enterprises that 
 have been established in this section of the state, 
 doing more, perhaps, than- any other one man, 
 to increase the growth and prosperity of town 
 and county. 
 
 In January, 1888, Mr. Kahn was one of the 
 organizers of the Bank of Oakdale, one of the 
 leading financial institutions of the county, and 
 is now the principal stockholder and its cash- 
 ier, Thomas B. Dorsey being president, and Jo- 
 seph H. Kahn assistant cashier. Subsequently, 
 in partnership with Mr. Haslacher, he organ- 
 ized the Haslacher & Kahn Warehouse Company, 
 which has since carried on an immense grain 
 business, operating warehouses in Farmington, 
 Cometa, Clyde, Burnett, Oakdale, Occidental, 
 Paulsell, Warnersville, Claribel, Waterford, Hick- 
 man, Montpellier, Amsterdam, Merced, Athlone, 
 Cressey, Ceres, Modesto, Salida, Escalon, River- 
 bank and Claus, all of which places are con- 
 nected by a private telephone system. This com- 
 pany has its main office in Oakdale, with branch 
 offices in Modesto, Merced, and Farmington. 
 
 In April, 1903, the Haslacher & Kahn Com- 
 pany was legally incorporated, with Mr. Kahn as 
 president, and his son, Joseph H. Kahn, as sec- 
 retary, and has already established a very large 
 business in loans, real estate, grain insurance 
 and grain dealing, being widely and favorably 
 known by its large operations in these lines 
 throughout the San Joaquin valley. This enter- 
 prising company was the first to subdivide land 
 in Stanislaus county, and was the first to obtain 
 water for irrigating purposes in the eastern part . 
 of the county. Among Haslacher & Kahn's ad- 
 ditions to the town of Oakdale are two hundred 
 and fifty acres of land, divided into five and ten 
 acre tracts, all subject to irrigation, and devoted 
 to the growing of oranges, fruits and alfalfa, and 
 the Villa and Syndicate tracts, containing four 
 hundred and fifty acres, divided into lots of one 
 or more acres, all well irrigated, and adapted for 
 raising alfalfa, fruit and berries. This company 
 also laid out the Orange Blossom Colony tract 
 of seven thousand acres, lying four miles east 
 
1540 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the city. One thousand acres of it, laid out 
 in small lots, is under irrigation, and devoted to 
 the culture of oranges, berries and alfalfa. In 
 January, 1904, Mr. Kahn bought out Mr. Has- 
 lacher's interest in the Haslacher & Kahn Com- 
 pany, and has since continued the business alone, 
 having his principal office at Oakdale and a 
 branch office at No. 315 California street, San 
 Francisco. He is also president of the Oak- 
 dale Irrigation Company, of which he was one 
 of the originators. 
 
 A man of unusual business aptitude and integ- 
 rity, Mr. Kahn has accumulated large wealth, 
 being the owner of numerous valuable grain 
 farms, which he rents, and has good business and 
 fine residential property in Oakdale. In finan- 
 cial and business circles, he holds a place of 
 prominence and influence, belonging to the Mer- 
 chants' Exchange of San Francisco ; to the State 
 Bankers' Association, and to the American Bank- 
 ers' Association. In the upbuilding of Stanis- 
 laus county he has been very active and conspicu- 
 ous, having been the first to bring its superior ad- 
 vantages for business and residence to the public 
 notice by advertising, and the first to have made 
 and published a bird's-eye view of the city of 
 Oakdale. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Kahn married Cecilia Hoen- 
 igsberger, who was born in San Francisco, a 
 daughter of Joseph Hoenigsberger, a pioneer 
 merchant of that city, and of Knights Ferry. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Kahn are the parents of three 
 children, namely : Joseph H., educated at the 
 Leland Stanford, Jr., University, assistant cash- 
 ier of the Bank of Oakdale, and secretary of 
 both the Haslacher & Kahn Company and of the 
 Haslacher & Kahn Warehouse Company; Rheta 
 L., a graduate of Mills College ; ancl Bertha, at- 
 tending Mills College. Fraternally Mr. Kahn is 
 a member of Oakdale Lodge No. 275, F. & A. 
 M. ; of Modesto Chapter, R. A. M. ; of Stockton 
 Council; and is prominently identified with the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belonging to 
 the Lodge, Encampment and Canton, and in the 
 latter organization was chief of equipment of 
 the Pacific coast. 
 
 REV. AMOS FRANKLIN GILBERT. The 
 career of Rev. Amos Franklin Gilbert is unique 
 among the men who are living in and laboring 
 for the welfare of the west, in that it demon- 
 strates anew the possibility of harmonizing large 
 business interests with self-sacrificing and noble 
 work in the ministerial field. He is not a man 
 of the past, whose deeds are seen through the 
 haze of years, idealized by distance and strength- 
 ened by the telling of loving friends, but is a 
 wideawake citizen coming and going in business 
 circles of Oakdale, at the head of an extensive 
 
 and successful lumbering business, while at the 
 same time laboring for the spread of the gospel 
 of good cheer, for the diffusion of Christian edu- 
 cation, for the relief of the suffering and the up- 
 lifting of the lowly. 
 
 Mr. Gilbert inherits his strong and vitalizing 
 tendencies from an English-Scotch ancestry, rep- 
 resented on both sides of his family among the 
 early settlers of Nova Scotia and New Bruns- 
 wick. He himself was born in Cumberland coun- 
 ty. Nova Scotia, July 6, 1849, and is the only 
 one of six survivors in a family of ten children 
 to make his home in Cahfornia. His oldest 
 brother, Thomas, came to the coast in 1865, and 
 died in San Francisco. His father and grand- 
 father were both named John, and the latter came 
 from England at an early day, settling in Nova 
 Scotia after a short residence in Boston, Mass. 
 He farmed for the balance of his life, attaining 
 to the advanced age of ninety-two, while his wife 
 Fannie hved to be eighty-nine years old. The 
 second John lived in Nova Scotia from his sixth 
 year, and farmed there until his death at the age 
 of seventy-eight. He married Mary J. Simpson, 
 a native of Keith, Scotland, and member of a 
 time-honored family of the. highlands. Captain 
 Alexander Simpson, the father of Mrs. Gilbert, 
 was*a sea captain, an early arrival in New Bruns- 
 wick, and a later settler in Nova Scotia. He died 
 at the age of eighty-four. Mrs. Gilbert lived to 
 be eighty-four, and is recalled by her cliildren as 
 a woman of lofty Christian character, and great 
 strength of mind. 
 
 As a youth Amos F"ranklin Gilbert possessed 
 strong religious convictions, and wanted only 
 confidence to engage in missionary and evangel- 
 istic work at the outset of his career. The 
 need of self-support becoming paramount when 
 he was about seventeen, he applied himself to 
 learning the ship carpenter's trade, and the plan- 
 ing mill business at Parrsboro, Nova Scotia, and 
 with the proceeds of his labor was able to supple- 
 ment his discouragingly meager education by a 
 year at the high school at Amherst, Nova 
 Scotia, and the same length of time at Sackville 
 College, Mount AlHson, Nova Scotia. In 1871 
 he went to Boston and found a promising 
 field for his trade, and did so well that he 
 branched out into contracting and building, fol- 
 lowing the same until coming to California in 
 November, 1875. December 30, the same year, 
 he was united in marriage with Annie J. Dodge, 
 whom he had known in Nova Scotia, and who 
 was born there in Annapolis county, a daughter 
 of a planing mill operator, L. M. Dodge. Mr. 
 Dodge had come to San Francisco some years 
 before, and had continued his former business in 
 the Pacific city. After working for a year in a 
 planing mill in San Francisco, Mr. Gilbert re- 
 moved to Stockton and engaged in building and 
 
Historical and biographical recorid. 
 
 1541 
 
 contracting until 1882. He then located in 
 Modesto, built the first planing mill in that town, 
 and thereafter engaged in the lumber manufac- 
 turnig business for fourteen years. In 1895 he 
 settled in Oakdale, having purchased a lumber 
 yard there in 1893, and which had been under 
 the management of his nephew in the meantime. 
 Taking hold of the business himself, he increased 
 it to its present large proportions, and besides 
 manufacturing all kinds of builders' materials, 
 deals in lime, cement, brick, coal and wood. His 
 enterprise has assumed the dignity of a paying 
 and influential concern, based upon the rare busi- 
 ness sagacity of a man whose reliability and in- 
 tegrity are unquestioned, and who embodies the 
 highest principles of finance, and the most 
 courteous and considerate regard for his increas- 
 ingly important patronage. In the interests of 
 lumber dealers through this part of the state, 
 he helped to organize, and has since upheld with 
 his support, the Retail Lvunber Dealers' Associa- 
 tion of central California, of which he is presi- 
 dent at the present time. 
 
 It was while living in Modesto that Mr. Gil- 
 bert found the opening for religious work which 
 his nature had long craved, and for which he 
 was eminently fitted. Want of confidence in him- 
 self as a leader had hitherto prevented his step- 
 ping forth into the lime-light of public service, 
 and but for the earnest solicitations of Rev. D. 
 W. Calfee, whose entreaties extended over a 
 year or more, he might never have been known 
 as one of the most zealous and earnestly helpful 
 Christian workers which this section has known. 
 For ten years he had been superintendent of 
 the Sunday-school of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, which he joined at the age of fifteen, and 
 for the ministry of which he began to study 
 when arrived ■ at twenty years. Other things 
 intervening, his ambition was left to smoulder 
 or lose itself in lesser channels of usefulness, 
 but for fifteen years he has uninterruptedly 
 preached, often at great physical and general in- 
 convenience. Often his congregation was as- 
 sembled in some remote schoolhouse, where _ a 
 Sunday-school was organized and started on its 
 way, and a community of Christian activity 
 turned into a channel of ever-widening influence. 
 He has been known to drive fifty miles, and be- 
 fore returning preach in three diflferent places, 
 and his errands of mercy to the sick and afflicted 
 are of a kind and extent which will probably be 
 known only to himself and his Maker. He now 
 preaches regularly at Orange Blossom, and has 
 various other intermittent charges, besides still 
 keeping up his work of organizing Sunday- 
 schools He is a trustee of the church at Oak- 
 dale and at Modesto, contributing generously 
 toward their maintenance, as well as toward the 
 upbuilding of various charitable and humanizing 
 
 enterprises in the county. Moderate and cautious 
 in all things, it is not surprising that he should 
 feel keenly the evils of drink, and should per- 
 sistently lend his influence to the Prohibition 
 cause. As a speaker he is earnest and forceful, 
 using his gifts of expression convincingly, and 
 appealing to his hearers by the sanity and reason- 
 ableness of his teaching. His creed is simple, 
 his belief in humanity unbounded, and his desire 
 to help bounded only by his physical endurance 
 and the necessary limitations of his moderate 
 fortune. That his financial success is a strong 
 argument of appeal is unquestioned, for more 
 and more is a proper share of worldly goods 
 recognized as the rightful heritage of the indus- 
 trious and capable, as against the indigent and 
 slothful. Mr. Gilbert owns property in Modesto 
 as well as in Oakdale, and in 1904 completed his 
 beautiful residence in the latter town, where his 
 friends and associates bask in a refining and up- 
 Ufting atmosphere. This noble teacher is a 
 genial and whole-souled man, looking on the 
 bright side of things, and believing in the optim- 
 ism and good cheer of the world. In his chil- 
 dren are reflected not only his strength and up- 
 rightness, but his ability and thriftiness. His 
 oldest daughter, Laura, is a teacher who is at 
 present attending the University of California; 
 Eva is a graduate of that institution of learning, 
 and as vice-principal of the Gilroy high school, 
 is fulfilling her destiny as an unusually gifted 
 educator; Irving, his father's assistant in the 
 lumber business, is a graduate of the high school, 
 and attended the University of California for two 
 years ; Lindley D. is a student at the high school ; 
 and Bernice and Mildred are school girls. 
 
 HON. ROBERT S. JOHNSON. Prominent 
 among the pioneer settlers of California is Hon. 
 Robert S. Johnson, of Fresno, the well-known 
 proprietor of the Excelsior livery stables. Of 
 pronounced business ability, he has been success- 
 ful in mercantile pursuits, and as a breeder and 
 trainer of standard-bred horses has acquired a 
 wide reputation. He is a veteran of the Civil 
 war, and has long been influential in pubhc 
 affairs, from 1886 until 1890, serving as a mem- 
 ber of the state legislature. A native of Eng- 
 land, he was born April 10, 183S, in Bedford, 
 Bedfordshire, winch was likewise the place of 
 birth of his father, R. B. Johnson. His grand- 
 father, WiUiam Johnson, or Johnston, as the 
 naine was then spelled, was born in Scotland, but 
 as a political refugee fled to England, which was 
 afterward his home. R. B. Johnson spent the 
 earher years of his life in his native country, 
 living there until after his marriage, and the 
 birth of his children, of whom Robert S., the 
 subject of this sketch, is the only survivor. With 
 
15^2 
 
 HiSTORtCAL AND BlOGRAPHiCAL RECORD. 
 
 his family he emigrated to America, settling first 
 in Montreal, Canada, and then in Qiicago, 111. 
 Subsequently coming to California, he spent the 
 later years of his life in Stockton. His wife, 
 whose maiden name was Ann Smith, was born 
 in Hertfordshire, England, and died in Stock- 
 ton, Cal. 
 
 Coming with his parents to this country when 
 about seven years old, Robert S. Johnson re- 
 ceived his early education in Montreal, Canada. 
 In 1850 he accompanied his parents to Chicago, 
 which was then in its infancy, there being but 
 one brick building then standing on Lake street. 
 Entering the employ of Frank Newhall, a 
 wholesale fruit dealer, he gradually worked his 
 way upward, in course of time becoming man- 
 ager of the business. While thus employed, he 
 became a charter member of the old Chicago 
 Light Guard, and was also a member, and for a 
 year chief engineer, of the old' volunteer fire de- 
 partment. Going from Chicago to Racine, Wis., 
 Mr. Johnson was engaged in the manufacture 
 of hollow wooden-ware for a few months. Dur- 
 ing the Pike's Peak excitement of 1857, he start- 
 ed across the plains with an ox-team train, and 
 prospected for awhile along the South Platte, 
 but not finding pay dirt he returned as far as 
 the Missouri river with oxen, thence to St. Louis 
 by boat, and from there by rail to Racine. Start- 
 ing for California by way of Panama a short 
 time after, Mr. Johnson landed in San Fran- 
 cisco in September, 1858, and for a year there- 
 after was employed in a wholesale fruit house. 
 In 1859 he embarked in the wholesale produce 
 and fruit business in Stockton, and subsequently 
 became a member, and first sergeant, of the 
 Stockton Company California National Guard. 
 In 1861 he organized Company K, First Cali- 
 fornia Volunteer Cavalry, of which he was com- 
 missioned captain by Governor Stanford, and by 
 an order issued from the war department was 
 afterward commissioned major of the regiment. 
 Believing, however, that there were men more 
 competent for the position than he, he returned 
 the commission, and remained captain of his 
 company. Going to Arizona, he fought the 
 Apaches, the Kiowas and the Comanches, in that 
 territory. New Mexico and Cahfornia, and was 
 ■with Kit Carson on many of his scouting expe- 
 ditions. With his regiment he was engaged in 
 battle with Gen. Sterling Price at Kansas City, 
 and afterward returned to New Mexico, where 
 he, with the noted scout. Kit Carson, was em- 
 ployed in fighting Indians until the close of the 
 war. Being mustered out of service at Fort 
 Union, N. M., Mr. Johnson returned to Stock- 
 ton, where, at the time of his enhstment, in 
 1861, he was making $50 a day. During his ser- 
 vice as a soldier, he was wounded in a hand-to- 
 hand fight with an Indian, the red man's toma- 
 
 hawk grazing his left temple, and coming within 
 a quarter of an inch of killing him. 
 
 For several years after his return to Stockton, 
 Mr. Johnson was employed as a commission mer- 
 chant, and then embarked in the livery business, 
 building up one of the largest and finest stables 
 in the state. He paid much attention to rais- 
 ing thoroughbred horses, owning several that 
 developed great speed for that day, being among 
 the fastest trotters in Cahfornia. SelHng out in 
 1899, Mr. Johnson went to Honolulu, Hawaii, 
 where he began contracting for concrete work. 
 In this enterprise he was very successful, but 
 being injured in an accident, and in addition 
 taken ill, so that for four months he was unable 
 to attend to his affairs, he sustained business 
 losses. Under the direction of his physician, Mr. 
 Johnson came back to California, locating in 
 Fresno June i, 1903, and there purchased the 
 Excelsior stables, which are situated at No. 1234 
 I street. The main stable, a large brick building, 
 50x150 feet, is one of the finest in Fresno coun- 
 ty, and is fully equipped in every department. 
 
 Mr. Johnson has always taken an intelligent 
 interest in public matters, and while living in 
 Stockton was for seven years a member of the 
 City Council, a part of the time serving as presi- 
 dent. Fie was a representative to the state leg- 
 islature two terms, and for four years was one 
 of the board of directors of the State Insane 
 Asylum. He also belonged to the old volunteer 
 fire department. Fraternally Mr. Johnson joined 
 the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks in Hon- 
 olulu; is a member of Rawlins Post, G. A. R., 
 of Stockton; of California Commandery, Loyal 
 Legion ; and is past junior and past senior vice- 
 commander of the Department of .California. In 
 Fresno he is a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce. He is also a member of the Episcopal 
 Church. 
 
 Mr. Johnson has five children, namely : W. R., 
 of Stockton who was colonel of the Sixth Cali- 
 fornia Volunteer Infantry during the Spanish- 
 American war ; Charles R., of Bakersfield ; Mrs. 
 Eva L. Brown, of F^resno; Mrs. Ida M. Davis, 
 of Alameda; and Roy R., of Stockton. 
 
 GEORGE W. WEAR. Nearly a third of 
 a century has been passed in the community 
 where Mr. Wear now makes his home, and in 
 that time, as he so graphically describes in an 
 article which appeared in the Daily Calif ornian 
 the last issue of the year 1903, many changes 
 have taken place; each New Year's day finds 
 some one of the old pioneers gone, sees some 
 new improvement or invention which adds to 
 the prosperity of the country, — a forward step 
 which leaves still farther behind the primi- 
 tive condition of the early days. But though 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1543 
 
 these changes inevitably come, the memory of 
 the pioneer, his courage, self sacrifice and de- 
 votion to the cause of the country which he made 
 his own by a cheerful acceptance of the condi- 
 tions, will outlive the passage of time and go 
 on to brighten the beginning of many new years. 
 Mr. Wear is himself a pioneer and the pioneer 
 newspaper man of the community, and in the 
 last twenty-eight years has been active and 
 earnest in the development of all which has 
 tended to bring about the present prosperity of 
 the city and county, and the affection and esteem 
 of all who know him is accorded him and his ef- 
 forts. Born in Carroll county. Miss., February 
 28, 1852, he was the son of George W. Wear, Sr. 
 The elder Mr. Wear was a native of England, 
 and when only a mere lad he came to the United 
 States, and on attaining manhood married in 
 North Carolina. Shortly afterward he went to 
 Mississippi, and there taught music, having been 
 finely educated in this line before crossing the 
 ocean. Later he located permanently in Mis- 
 sissippi, and became a prominent man in the 
 community, first conducting a hotel, after which 
 he became a planter and the owner of many 
 slaves. He became a wealthy man, own- 
 ing much country and town property, and 
 was deservedly numbered among the suc- 
 cessful planters of that region. Though in 
 no sense of the word a politician, he was very 
 decided in his views, and during the Civil war 
 served in the state troops of the Mississippi 
 Home Guards. He died when about sixty years 
 of age. His wife, formerly Julia Holt, was born, 
 reared and educated in North Carolina, and her 
 death occurred when about eighty years of age. 
 She was a member of the Methodist Church. 
 
 George W. Wear was the fourth in a family 
 of seven children, and received his education in 
 private schools in Mississippi. When about fif- 
 teen years old he entered a printing office and 
 learned the mechanical part of the work, and 
 was soon afterward engaged as a printer, before 
 he was twentj'-one owning a paper which he 
 himself established. Before leaving the state he 
 owned three different papers, which he suc- 
 cessfully conducted, and also engaged in farm- 
 ing for one year. In the winter of 1874 he sold 
 out and came to California, and for a short time 
 worked on the Express, Mirror and Star, in Los 
 Angeles. In the spring of the sanie year he 
 came to Kern county, and locating at Bakersfield, 
 which was then only a small village, went to 
 work upon the Calif ornian. Two or three years 
 later he purchased the Gazette, a weekly, and 
 later closed out and discontinued the publication, 
 after conducting it for twenty years. In the 
 meantime he had purchased the ranch where he 
 now makes his home, this consisting of eighty 
 acres located three and a half miles west of 
 
 Bakersfield. About half of this property is now 
 devoted to the cultivation of grapes and various 
 other fruits and has all improvements in the way 
 of comfortable and substantial buildings and 
 forms an ideal home for the man who correctly 
 appreciates the dignity of the farmer's life. 
 
 In 1872, in Tennessee, Mr. Wear married 
 Fannie Nash, a native of that state. They are 
 the parents of three children, namely : Earl, 
 whO' is employed upon the Echo in Bakersfield ; 
 Bessie, the wife of E. R. Putnam, a rancher in 
 this district ; and George, still at home. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Wear is a Democrat, and for many 
 years was an important factor in local affairs, 
 doing all in his power to advance the principles 
 which he endorses. In 1889 he represented his 
 district in the state legislature, ably supporting 
 the cause of his constituents, and in Bakersfield 
 he served on the school board for six years. He 
 has since devoted the greater part of his energies 
 to the cultivation of his ranch, and has practically 
 withdrawn from public life, though he is serv- 
 ing as trustee in his district at the present time. 
 One of the principal interests in the Hfe of Mr. 
 Wear at the present time is his articles which he 
 writes for the various papers of Bakersfield, one 
 appearing nearly every week. His writing is 
 graphic, clear-cut and forcible, and in later days 
 holds much interest for the younger generation 
 for the reminiscent strain which calls up for 
 them a picture of the past. 
 
 JAMES W. WARREN. Actively and in- 
 dustriously engaged in the prosecution of the 
 independent and honorable calling upon which 
 the life, strength and wealth of the nation large- 
 ly depends, James W. Warren holds a substan- 
 tial position among the esteemed and success- 
 ful fanners of Ingomar, Merced county. A son 
 of Asahel Warren, Jr., he was born July 20, 
 1834, in Windsor county, Vt., of thrifty New 
 England ancestry. His paternal grandfather, 
 Asahel Warren, Sr., was born and reared in 
 Massachusetts, but removed to Vermont, settling 
 on a farm in Windsor county, where he passed 
 the remainder of his life. Asahel Warren, Jr., 
 and his wife, whose maiden name was Rhoda 
 Bailey, were both life-long residents of the 
 Green Mountain state, living on a farm in Wind- 
 sor county, where they reared five children, two 
 boys and three girls. 
 
 The second child of the parental household, 
 James W. Warren, in common with the children 
 of the neighboring farmers, obtained his edu- 
 cation in the district schools, and from his father 
 acquired a practical knowledge of New England 
 farming, which he subsequently followed for 
 awhile amid the rocks of his native state. Fol- 
 lowing the march of civilization westward, he 
 
1544 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 settled in Ogle county, 111., in 1855. Four years 
 later, in 1859, he started for Pike's Peak, takmg 
 the overland route. While crossing the plauis 
 he changed his plans, deciding to come to Cali- 
 fornia. Locating- first in Butte county, Mr. 
 Warren turned his attention to any employment 
 that he thought would prove profitable, work- 
 ing in the mines for a time, then making shakes, 
 and finally becoming a freighter. He afterward 
 drifted to Plumas county, then to Humboldt 
 county, Nev., going from there to Sonoma coun- 
 ty, Cal, and thence to Washoe county, Nev., 
 where he worked for wages in a logging camp. 
 Returning to California in 1869, Mr. Warren 
 located on the west side of the San Joaquin 
 valley, in Merced county. Buying one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land, five and one-half miles 
 southwest of Ingomar, and fourteen miles from 
 Newman, he immediately began the improve- 
 ment of his present homestead. He met with 
 excellent success as a general fanner, and was 
 also employed at carpentering and building for 
 a number of years, his services as a skilful 
 mechanic being in great demand throughout 
 this part of the valley. He leases other land 
 ' besides his own ranch, carrying on three hundred 
 and eighty acres in all, raising as his principal 
 crops wheat and barley, which invariably do well 
 in this region. 
 
 In Modesto, Cal., Mr. Warren married Carrie 
 Fink, a native of Ohio, and they are the parents 
 of three children, namely: Etta May, wife of 
 W. S. Wicks, of Fresno; James Frederick and 
 Ida Matilda, living at home. A stanch Repub- 
 lican in his political views, Mr. Warren takes 
 an intelligent interest in the public welfare, and 
 for a number of years was school director in the 
 Clay district. 
 
 HIRAM HUGHSON. The keen and far- 
 seeing judgment which led Mr. Hughson to 
 cast in his destiny with that oi the far west in 
 the early and untried days of adventure also 
 led him to make investments in property, large 
 tracts of which he purchased in the days when 
 prices of realty were low. By this course of 
 action he has become one of the extensive land 
 owners of Stanislaus county, and is ranked 
 among the successful men of the county. A 
 native of Schoharie county, N. Y., he was born 
 November 22, 1840, the son of Nicholas M. and 
 the grandson of George Hughson. The latter 
 -was a very prominent man in his community, 
 being an old-line Whig politically, and in the 
 cause of his country having an arm blown of¥ 
 by a cannon ball in the Revolutionary war. Upon 
 the return to peace in the colonies, or what was 
 then our own United States, he was elected to 
 the offices of county treasurer, constable and 
 
 collector, respectively, being able to use his left 
 hand in writing. By occupation he was a 
 farmer, and died in New York when over seven- 
 ty-five years old. Nicholas M. Hughson was 
 born on Long Island, and as a farmer spent 
 his life in Schoharie county, where he was 
 numbered among the successful men of the com- 
 munity. Politically .he was a Republican, and 
 in his religious affiliations subscribed to the doc- 
 trines of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He 
 married Charlotte Duncan, born in Edinburgh, 
 Scotland, and who came to the United States 
 at the age of ten years. Her father, Charles S., 
 was a minister in the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, as well as a capable blacksmith and 
 farmer, practicing the two occupations during 
 the week and preaching on Sunday. He died at 
 the age of eighty years, after a useful life in 
 whatever community he had made his home, as 
 a broad, noble character, a profound student and 
 an earnest and progressive citizen making his 
 presence felt among his fellow townsmen. 
 
 Of the six sons and four daughters born to 
 his parents Hiram Hughson was the fifth in 
 order of birth. Pie received his education in 
 the common school in the vicinity of his home, 
 after which he attended the Norwich Academy 
 for a period of three years. Upon becoming de- 
 pendent upon his own resources he engaged as 
 a clerk in a general merchandise store at El- 
 mira, N. Y., his employers being R. & E. Covell 
 & Co., with whom he remained for nearly four 
 years. He then became a partner with his 
 brother, O. M. Hughson, in a general mer- 
 chandise establishment at Norwich, remaining 
 in this connection until 1857. He then emi- 
 grated to California, traveling by way of the 
 Isthmus of Panama on the steamer Star of 
 the West, and arriving in San Francisco on 
 Christmas night. He remained in San Fran- 
 cisco for about a week, after which he went to 
 Marysville and engaged as a clerk in the store 
 of Kirby & Burns, continuing in that employ- 
 ment for a year and a half. In 1858 he entered 
 the mines at Monte Christo, where he remained 
 six months, afterward spending seven months at 
 the mines on Fraser river, British Columbia. In 
 the following year he worked his passage to 
 San Francisco on the old Pacific steamer, not 
 having met with financial returns as he had 
 hoped to. On his arrival in the city he bor- 
 rowed $20 from George Walton, a friend in 
 Marysville, going to work for him on a ranch 
 for the following six months. In i860 he en- 
 gaged with John Campbell in taking beef cattle 
 to the mines, later engaging in the work for 
 himself, continuing in tlie work for one year, 
 when he had made $3,000. The following year he 
 engaged in teaming over the mountains, receiv- 
 ing $100 per ton for freight between Sacra- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1545 
 
 mento and Virginia City. Within the period of 
 two and a half years he had made $7,000, the 
 business then becoming profitless through the 
 building of the railway. Coming then to San 
 Joaqum county, Mr. Hughson rented five hun- 
 dred acres of land near Stockton, four miles 
 southeast, upon which he engaged in raising 
 grain for three years. In 1872 he bought five 
 hundred acres located in the vicinity of the rented 
 land, paying $25 per acre; farmed this property 
 for fourteen' years and then sold it for $50 per 
 acre, the value having .doubled in the passing 
 years with the natural increase of land and that 
 given to it by Mr. Hughson's progressive 
 methods and improvements. In 1882 he moved 
 his family to Stockton, after which he bought 
 one thousand acres located eight miles east of 
 Modesto, Stanislaus county, erecting thereon a 
 substantial and comfortable home and making 
 many improvements calculated to increase the 
 value of his property. With the passing years 
 he has invested heavily in real estate, now own- 
 ing over seven thousand, five hundred acres of 
 land, of which four thousand, three hundred and 
 sixty are valued at $60 per acre, and the re- 
 mainder at $25 per acre, all located in the irri- 
 gation district. No part of his land has ever 
 been encumbered with a mortgage, a striking 
 evidence of the busiiiess ability and thrift of 
 the owner. In 1901 Mr. Hughson rented his 
 land and located in Modesto, purchasing a fine 
 property here, spending his days in retirement 
 with the exception of such cares as are entailed 
 by his vast landed interests. All of the success 
 of Mr. Hughson has been achieved by his own 
 exertions; through no royal road has he won 
 his way to fortune. Like all pioneers, he suf- 
 fered numberless hardships and discomforts be- 
 fore he had surrounded his family with the 
 comforts of existence. One of the greatest mis- 
 fortunes which came to him was the loss of his 
 left arm, the spring on his mowing machine 
 breaking and throwiijg him to the ground and 
 against the sickle. Notwithstanding this, he 
 continued to advance in success, and today oc- 
 cupies a position only won by those whose own 
 efforts have brought them through trials and 
 privations. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Hughson was united m mar- 
 riage with Luella R. Avery, of New York, who 
 came to California with her father, Denias, also 
 a native of that state, journeying from Iowa, m 
 which state they had formerlv settled. He en- 
 gaged in mining upon his first arrival in the 
 wett, but later became a farmer, and so con- 
 tinued until his death. The following children 
 were born to Mr. Hughson and his wife : Belle 
 C the wife of R. T. Hudleson, of Stanislaus 
 ■' nty; Ore M., located on a ranch; George also 
 
 of San Jose; Minnie L., the wife of Harry Stur- 
 gell, a conductor on the Santa Fe railwa>', lo- 
 cated in Berkeley; Hiram; Lavina; Olive', and 
 Lester, the four last named being still at home 
 with their parents. Politically Mr. Hughson is 
 a Republican. 
 
 cou 
 
 on a ranch; Mary M., the wife of J H. Deal 
 of Stockton; Edna M., the wife of C. W. Craig. 
 
 JOHN B. NEWPORT, president of the 
 Farmers and Merchants Bank, of Hanford, 
 Kings county, has been a resident of California 
 since 1874, and for a number of years has been 
 intimately identified with the most important 
 upbuilding forces of the county in which he 
 resides. He was born in Warren county, Ohio, 
 July 28, 1852, a son of Joseph C. and Elizabeth 
 (Montgomery) Newport. His paternal great- 
 grandfather, David Newport, a native of Scot- 
 land, immigrated to America in young manhood, 
 locating in Pennsylvania, where he resided for 
 many years. During the early years of the col- 
 onization of the Western Reserve, now the state 
 of Ohio, he erected a cabin in sections, and 
 started overland, with teams and wagons, for 
 the then new and wild country. After a long 
 and tedious journey he arrived in what is now 
 Warren county, Ohio, where he found a heavily 
 timbered country, with Indian trails as the only 
 roads, and almost complete isolation from the 
 rest of the white settlers. Setting up his primi- 
 tive cabin, he cleared some land, sowed grain and 
 planted such crops as he deemed essential to the 
 maintenance of life, and then erected a more 
 modern and commodious residence for himself 
 and family. He prospered as the country yielded 
 of its abundant natural resources, and as his 
 sons attained young manhood, they put their 
 shoulders to the wheel and rendered material as- 
 sistance in the accumulation of a competency. 
 He lived to be eighty-six years of age, and was 
 recognized as a man of great influence among 
 the pioneers of his community. With him from 
 Pennsylvania came his son James, then a small 
 boy, who served in the war of 1812, and after- 
 ^^'ard received a commission as captain in the 
 Ohio state militia. The latter attained the age 
 of seventy-six or seventy-seven years, and de- 
 voted his entire active life to agriculture. Joseph 
 Corwin Newport, son of James and father of 
 John B. Newport, was born on the farm in 
 Warren county in 1816. He became widely 
 known as a successful farmer and horticulturist, 
 and accomplished much toward developing the 
 pomological resources of Ohio. In young man- 
 hood he married Elizabeth Montgomery, a na- 
 tive of either Pennsylvania or New Jersey, who 
 removed to Ohio with her parents in childhood. 
 Her father, William Montgomery, was a native 
 of Ireland, and when a boy immigrated to the 
 United States, living for several years in Penn- 
 
1546 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sylvania. Joseph C. Newport lived to be seven- 
 ty-five years old, and before his death celebrated 
 his golden wedding in the midst of many friends 
 and great rejoicing, while on a visit to what is 
 now Kings county, Cal. He is survived by his 
 wife, who is now eighty-six years old, and who 
 is still active and bright, and able to do her own 
 work in her Warren county home. 
 
 At the age of nineteen John B. Newport left 
 home and began to work on neighboring farms, 
 for the first three months receiving his room and 
 board in compensation for his services, but after 
 that $20 a month, until he had enough to pay 
 his way to California in 1874. In Sonoma coun- 
 ty, this state, he rented a farm near Petaluma 
 with his brother, W. J., and after harvesting 
 a fifty-acre crop of potatoes went to San Fran- 
 cisco and became a fireman on the San Fran- 
 cisco & North Pacific (now the California 
 Northwestern) Railroad. Later he was given 
 charge of an engine, running the same until 
 1878, when he resigned the post. The summer 
 of that year he helped his brother move to 
 Kings county, arriving here December 8, 1878, 
 and settling three and a half miles northwest of 
 Hanford on one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land. The cost of the land was $30 an acre, 
 and they were obliged to run in debt for it, and 
 also for the threshing machine which they oper- 
 ated throughout the county for several years. 
 From the first they were successful with their 
 crops, and the threshing machine soon paid for 
 itself, so that both felt encouraged and hopeful 
 of the future. In the meantime Mr. Newport 
 had left much of the management of the farm 
 to his brother, while he worked at the carpen- 
 ter's trade during the winter time, returning to 
 the farm in summer. 
 
 In 1881 J. B. Newport was united in mar- 
 riage with Emma Tait, a native of Iowa. She 
 died in 1889, leaving a son, Fred T., now 
 twenty yea'rs of age, who has just completed 
 his training at the Mt. Tamalpais Military Acad- 
 emy. In 1891 Mr. Newport married Louise 
 Horlock, who was bora in London, England. In 
 1890 he sold one hundred and sixty acres of 
 his property, having in the meantime purchased 
 an adjoining eighty acres. He received $200 an 
 acre for this tract, a forty acre tract later 
 brought him $260 an acre, and the balance $200. 
 He continued to operate his ranch until 1900, 
 and became known as one of the most substan- 
 tial and successful ranchers of the county, be- 
 ing one of the first to engage in the cultivation 
 of raisin grapes. A variety of high-grade stock 
 contributed a handsome yearlji income, and 
 blooded horses constituted a source of constant 
 satisfaction to their owner. It is needless to 
 say that the ranches were improved according 
 to the highest tenets of agricultural science, and 
 
 represented the acme of independent and lux- 
 urious country life. 
 
 Mr. Newport's banking experiences began in 
 1887, when he helped to organize the first bank 
 of Hanford. In 1891 he became one of the or- 
 ganizers of the Farmers & Merchants Bank, and 
 has served as a director continuously since, and 
 in July, 1902, was elected president of the board. 
 He has been prominent in politics for many 
 years, but although a stanch supporter of the 
 Republican party has never been willing to ac- 
 cept offices within the gift of his fellow towns- 
 men. When the county was divided in 1893 
 he came to the rescue with his influence and 
 money. Many other enterprises have been 
 rendered secure through his timely assistance, 
 and the citizens who count upon the resources of 
 this unrivaled region to furnish them homes and 
 sustenance have reason tO' be grateful for his 
 far-sightedness and public spirit. When the rai- 
 sin growers were on the verge of collapse 
 through inability to sell their products, he took 
 an active part in organizing the Raisin Growers' 
 Association, which secured good prices for their 
 products, and practically saved the cause. He 
 was active also in securing right of way through 
 the county for the Santa Fe Railroad Company, 
 giving of his time and money, and urging the 
 advantage to settlers and shippers. 
 
 Yet another resource which has profited by 
 the business ability of Mr. Newport is the oil 
 in the Coalinga and Sunset districts. He is a 
 stockholder in the Kern Sunset Oil & Develop- 
 ment Company, which has the brightest of pros- 
 pects, and whose property is now being devel- 
 oped. For five years he was the president of 
 the Esperanza Oil & Gas Company, which spent 
 $35,000 before oil was produced. The prospects 
 at one time were so doubtful that Mr. Newport 
 and his brother bought the shares of discontented 
 members, thus holding a very large interest in 
 the enterprise. When oil was finally discovered 
 they felt fully repaid for their efifort to allay 
 hard feelings, the first well producing three hun- 
 dred barrels of oil per day, and another five 
 hundred barrels per day. They sold their inter- 
 ests at a gratifying advance above the purchase 
 price. 
 
 For nearly a quarter of a century Mr. New- 
 port has been an active worker in the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, and has extended material 
 assistance in the erection of three different houses 
 of worship. Fraternally he is connected with 
 the Masons and the Odd Fellows. He is a man 
 of high moral principle, broad-minded, liberal 
 and possessed of a high public spirit, exhibiting 
 genuine concern when measures for the promo- 
 tion of the welfare of the community are under 
 consideration, and giving generously of his 
 means toward the furtherance of all worthy and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1547 
 
 well-considered efforts to elevate the social, 
 moral or industrial status of the whole people! 
 His name is indissolubly linked with the progress 
 and prosperity of Hanf ord and Kings county^ and 
 is entitled to a permanent place in the historical 
 literature of the state of California. 
 
 FRED M. HART. The desire to do all things 
 well, and the ability to concentrate upon a given 
 subject until complete mastery thereof is ob- 
 tained, are universally acknowledged to be step- 
 ping-stones to success in almost any line of activ- 
 ity. At the bottom of the endeavors of Fred M. 
 Hart has lain this excellent view of life, and to 
 its practical fulfillment is due his success as an 
 apiarist, as a practical rancher and a promoter of 
 the county's prosperity. He represents the sec- 
 ond generation thus to contribute to the well- 
 being of Kings county, and to his father, Charles 
 C. Hart, was due credit for introducing bee 
 culture in this county. 
 
 The Hart family is numbered among the Cali- 
 fornia emigration of 1855. Charles C. Hart, the 
 founder of the name on the Pacific coast, was 
 born in the conservative rural district of central 
 Connecticut, and -being of ambitious tendencies 
 set sail for Panama and San Francisco from New 
 York in the spring of 185-5. The departure to the 
 west was not an occasion of great importance to 
 the family circle, for in 1849 his brother, John H., 
 had come-to the coast, and sent back favorable 
 accounts of the opportunities existing here for 
 the ambitious and industrious young man. 
 Charles C. Hart avoided mining and settled near 
 Gilroy, Santa Clara county, where he engaged in 
 bee culture and dairying until 1859, establishing 
 a pleasant home for his wife, formerly Helen 
 Payne, who was born in New York. Here their 
 son, Fred M., was born. 
 
 In 1859 Charles C. Hart and his brother pur- 
 chased half a section of land one mile east of 
 Visalia, one-half of which was under fence, the 
 largest fenced property in the San Joaquin valley 
 at that time. The brothers had brought with 
 them about a hundred colonies of bees, and in 
 the spring of i860 they were able to supply many 
 ranchers desirous of embarking in the business, 
 among them Dr. Cobb, to whom they delivered 
 thirty-seven colonies for $3,700. The Hart 
 brothers continued in partnership for two or three 
 years, when Charles C. bought a ranch of one 
 hundred and twenty acres' three miles south of 
 Visalia, half of which is still owned by his widow, 
 and where he lived until 1866. He then removed 
 to near Farmersville, Tulare county, and fook up 
 government land, where he also conducted gen- 
 eral ranching and bee culture. In 1878 he turned 
 his bees over to his son Fred M., whom he had 
 thoroughly trained in the science of bee culture, 
 
 and thereafter devoted his energies entirely to 
 farming and stock-raising. In all he farmed 
 about three thousand acres, owning one hundred 
 and twenty acres below Visalia, one hundred and 
 sixty acres on his homestead, and a section or 
 more in partnership with his son, C. W. At the 
 time of his death at the age of sixty-six his es- 
 tate was valued at $35,000, all won through his 
 persistent and untiring efforts as a pioneer 
 rancher and apiarist. He was never active in 
 politics, but was a stanch supporter of schools 
 and churches, donating liberally to the latter, and 
 to other worthy enterprises in his neighborhood. 
 His ranch in Tulare county is still occupied by 
 his widow, who is sixty-eight years old, and an 
 active worker in the Baptist Church. 
 
 Fred M. Hart was born in Gilroy, Santa Clara 
 county, October 20, 1867. At the age of thirteen 
 he left the home farm and went into camp to care 
 for his father's stock, a lonely occupation at best, 
 for the country was sparsely settled. When he 
 took charge of his father's apiary in 1878 he had 
 about one hundred and fifty colonies, and to these 
 he added fifty colonies, and devoted his entire 
 time to the study and care of his small charges. 
 Moving into his present neighborhood, seven 
 miles northeast of Hanford, in Kings county, in 
 1884, he bought five acres of land, and soon after- 
 ward purchased one hundred and sixty acres near 
 Traver which he still owns. He combined farm- 
 ing and bee culture until 1899,' when he pur- 
 chased his present farm of sixty acres, and in 
 all owns four hundred acres in Tulare county, in- 
 cluding a two-hundred-and-forty-acre farm six 
 miles from Visalia. Besides his home place of 
 sixty acres in Kings county, he owns a twenty- 
 acre fruit farm which he rents. He has seven 
 hundred colonies of bees divided into ten sep- 
 arate apiaries in the northeastern part of the 
 county, the precaution of small lots being taken 
 because the pastures are so closely cropped by the 
 stock. Mr. Hart has had remarkable success with 
 his industry, and in addition to being one of the 
 most scientific and well posted apiarists in the 
 state, is one of the most extensive. His stock 
 and fruit and general produce have helped to 
 swell the dimensions of his ample fortune, and 
 place him among the substantial and well-to-do 
 men of Kings county. 
 
 February 17, 1889,. Mr. Hart was united in 
 marriage with Kizzie Smith, who was born and 
 reared at Centerville, Iowa. Two sons and one 
 daughter have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Hart, 
 Elmer D., Leora Miles, and David Payne. Mr. 
 Hart is a broad-minded and public-spirited man, 
 taking a keen interest in local Republican politics, 
 and has filled a number of offices with credit to 
 himself and the community. He is the friend 
 of education and progress, and has interested 
 himself in the establishment of a high standard 
 
1548 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of mental training as a member and trustee of 
 the school board. Fraternally he is valued as a 
 member of the Hanford Lodge No. 275, I. O. 
 O. F., and the Encampment; is also identified 
 with the Rebekahs, his wife belonging to the 
 latter organization, and Hanford Parlor No. 37, 
 N. S. G. W. Mr. Hart is a generous and large- 
 hearted man, practical and possessing a fund of 
 business sagacity. A valuable lesson is taught in 
 his straightforward, industrious and manly life. 
 
 LEWIS J. CROW. Distinguished as an early 
 pioneer of Stanislaus county, and as one of its 
 most esteemed and honored residents, Lewis J. 
 Crow stands prominent among the intelligent, 
 enterprising and progressive men who have been 
 influential in promoting the agricultural, indus- 
 trial and social prosperity of this part of the 
 state. His fine homestead and farm, containing 
 nearly five hundred acres, situated partly in San 
 Joaquin and partly in Stanislaus county, is one 
 of the most valuable and attractive in the San 
 Joaquin valley; in point of improvements and 
 equipments ranking with the very best. Skilled 
 in the use of rifle and gun, Mr. Crow is an ex- 
 pert marksman, and has acquired wide fame as 
 a hunter, both he and his hounds enjoying the 
 chase. A son of Walter Crow, he was born 
 March 27, 1829, in Pike county. Mo., at Ashley, 
 near Bowling Green, of old Virginia stock. His 
 grandfather Crow served as a soldier in the Rev- 
 olutionary war. 
 
 _ Walter Crow was born and reared near Dan- 
 ville, Ky., being bred to agricultural pursuits. 
 He took an active part in the Black Hawk war, 
 after which he settled in Ashley, Pike county. 
 Mo., where he carried on farming for a number 
 of years. In 1849, accompanied by his son Lew- 
 is, he crossed the plains to California, coming 
 here to investigate the conditions for stock-rais- 
 ing. Finding the conditions most favorable, he 
 went back by way of Panama to Missouri, and 
 the following year, 1850, again crossed the 
 plains, bringing with him a large herd of cattle, 
 m the driving of which he was assisted by his 
 sons William, Benjamin, James and A. M. Ar- 
 riving at the mouth of the Feather river in the 
 fall of 1850, he was taken ill and died of moun- 
 tain fever. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Susan Pritchet, was born in Kentucky (where 
 her father, Abraham Pritchet, spent his entire 
 life) and died in Missouri. Nine- children were 
 born of their marriage, namely: Isaac, a resi- 
 dent of Crows Landing, who came to California 
 m 1865 ; William, who died near Ripon, San Joa- 
 qiun county; James A., of Stockton; Benjamin 
 H. of Crows Landing; John B., who died in 
 Oakland, while his home was at Crows Landin<r • 
 A. M., who died at Crows Landing ; Lewis J ' 
 
 the special subject of this sketch; C. P., of 
 San Jose ; and Susan, wife of Capt. J. W. Smith, 
 of Stockton. 
 
 Brought up on a Missouri farm, Lewis J. Crow 
 obtained a limited common school education in 
 Ashley, and in his boyhood days was initiated 
 into the mysteries of farming, being made to 
 plow corn barefooted when but eight years old. 
 Determining to seek his fortune in the newly- 
 discovered gold-fields of California, he came 
 with his father across the plains in 1849, leav- 
 ing Pike county in the spring, and coming with 
 ox-teams via Fort Hall, down the Humboldt riv- 
 er, and along the Carson route to Placerville, 
 arriving September 10. The father soon started 
 on his return trip, but Lewis J. Crow began 
 mining on the Yuba river, and remained in that 
 locality until fall, 1850, when he went to meet 
 his father and brothers, and assist in driving the 
 five hundred cattle that they brought with them. 
 At the mouth of the Feather river, as previously 
 stated, the father died, and the brothers came to 
 Stanislaus county, and spent the winter on the 
 present site of Ripon. In the spring of 1851 
 they settled near Ripon, where they carried on 
 an extensive and lucrative butchering and dairy 
 business until 1864. In the meantime, in 1854, 
 they entered land on the west side, becoming 
 owners of a large tract, and having built ware- 
 houses there for convenience in shipping grain 
 down the river, the town and railway station 
 were both named in their honor. Crows Land- 
 ing. Mr. Crow had a ranch of seven hundred 
 acres eight miles west of Crows Landing on 
 which he lived and labored several seasons. In 
 1863 he bought his present farm of four hun- 
 dred and eighty-two acres, which is advantage- 
 ously located on the Stanislaus river, about five 
 miles from Oakdale, and at once began its im- 
 provements. His tasteful and substantial resi- 
 dence, and his large and convenient barns and 
 outbuildings are located in Stanislaus county, 
 but the major part of his ranch is within the 
 limits of San Joaquin county. On the bottoms 
 he has three hundred acres, all under the plow, 
 with seventy-five acres devoted to the raising of 
 alfalfa. In addition to general farming, he has 
 been extensively engaged in stock growing, he 
 and his brothers having been the largest mule 
 raisers in the valley. Since 1900 he has rented 
 his land, and lived retired. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Crow married Marv E. Rose, 
 who was born in Iowa and at the age of four 
 years, in 1850, came with her parents to Napa, 
 where she was reared and educated. Of the chil- 
 dren born of this union six are living, name- 
 ly: Thomas A., a farmer, living near Modesto; 
 Frank, engaged in farming near Crows Land- 
 ing; Herbert M., of Oakdale, proprietor of a 
 creamery ; Harry L., a resident of Oakland ; Mrs. 
 
HISTORICAL AXD BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1549 
 
 Editli Epley, of Oakland ; and Mrs. Ethel Leitch, 
 of Oakdale. A daughter, Estella, married John 
 Conant, and died February 13, 1896. In his po- 
 litical affiliations Mr. Crow is a Democrat. A 
 man of unusual worth and integrity, his busi- 
 ness dealings have ever been characterized by 
 fairness»and honesty, and he and his good wife 
 are held in high respect throughout the com- 
 munity, where their hospitahty and generosity 
 are proverbial. Mrs. Crow is a faithful member 
 of the Free Methodist Church of Oakdale. 
 
 JOHN W. KEEFER. A typical representa- 
 tive of the self-made men of our country, John 
 W. Keefer has made rapid strides along the path- 
 way of prosperity, and is now numbered among 
 the biisiness men of the city of Merced. Begin- 
 ning his career with but little capital save that 
 of courage, pluck and persistenc)- of purpose, 
 he has labored industriously, working as a wage- 
 earner many years. By means of thrift and 
 economy, he accumulated a sufficient sum of 
 money to establish himself in business, and is 
 now proprietor of a large and well-patronized 
 livery, feed and sale stable, which he is manag- 
 ing with characteristic enterprise and success. 
 He was born, October 8, 1855, in Exeter, Lower 
 Canada, a son of Joseph Keefer. 
 
 Born and reared in Germany, Joseph Keefer 
 immigrated when a young man to America, and 
 first engaged in farming in Upper Canada, and 
 afterward near Goderich, Ontario. Removing 
 with his family to Nebraska in 1867, he located 
 near Columbus, on the North Fork, where he 
 carried on general farming the remainder of his 
 life. His wife, whose maiden name was Louisa 
 Nolan, was born in Germany, and now resides 
 in Idaho. Of the nine children born of their 
 marriage, all grew to years of maturity, and 
 eight are living, John, the subject of this brief 
 -personal notice, being the eldest child, and the 
 only one on the coast. 
 
 Receiving limited educational advantages in 
 his Canadian home, John W. Keefer began to 
 work out as chore boy on a farm when but nine 
 years old. Accompanying his parents to Ne- 
 braska when twelve years of age, he continued 
 in his agricultural labors, assisting his father, or 
 working for neighboring farmers in order to 
 help support the family. Coming to California 
 in 1875, Mr. Keefer was engaged in agricultural 
 pursuits in Sacramento county for two and one- 
 half years, and then went' back to Nebraska, 
 where he remained eighteen months. Returning 
 then to the Pacific coast, he traveled through 
 Washington and Oregon, and for nearly two 
 years was a resident of San Diego county. He 
 has since resided in Merced county, and for 
 more than twenty years was engaged in general 
 
 farming, having charge of a ranch of seven 
 hundred or more acres, which he devoted prin- 
 cipally to grain raising. 
 
 In 1899 Mr. Keefer established himseff in the 
 livery business on South Main street. Although 
 he had but a small sum to start with, he put 
 forth his best efforts and was very successful 
 until burned out. Fortunately he at that time 
 saved all of his stock and vehicles, his actual 
 loss being but $75. He subsequently continued 
 business in small quarters until his present 
 stable was completed. This is a brick building, 
 60 X 130 feet, two stories in height, with stalls 
 for fifty head of horses. He is popular as a 
 liveryman, and has built up a remunerative busi- 
 ness in. this line of industry, being liberal and ac- 
 commodating to his numerous patrons. 
 
 Mr. Keefer married, in Merced, Mary Col- 
 lins, a native of Missouri, and into their house- 
 hold seven children have been born, namely : Al- 
 bert, Annie, Ray, Charles, William, Leo and 
 Elsie. Politically Mr. Keefer is a steadfast ad- 
 herent of the Democratic party, and is now a 
 member of the Merced board of school trustees. 
 He belongs to the Woodmen of the World, and 
 is a member of the Catholic Church. 
 
 JOHN B. AVILA. A successful farmer and 
 merchant, John B. Avila commands the respect 
 and esteem of all who have witnessed his steady 
 progress up the ladder of success since he lo- 
 cated in Merced county in 1888. He had located 
 in the state five years earlier, having emigrated 
 from St. George, in the Azores Islands, where 
 he was born March 19, 1865, settling first in 
 Alameda county. There he followed ranching' 
 until he removed ■ to Merced county, with the 
 proceeds of his five years' work purchasing 
 twenty acres of land located in the Buhach Col- 
 ony. Here he engaged in farming with the same 
 energy and ability which had characterized his 
 first years in his adopted land, becoming one of 
 the pioneer sweet potato growers in the county. 
 This business he has found exceedingly profit- 
 able in the passing years, and now devotes ten 
 acres exclusively to the cultivation of this tuber, 
 the average yield being from one hundred to 
 one hundred and fifty sacks to the acre. He 
 ships his own products to various localities, the 
 principal points being Denver, Colo., Washing- 
 ton and Oregon, disposing of as many as one 
 hundred and forty-five carloads in one year. 
 With his constantly increasing financial ability 
 he has added to his ranch until he now owns 
 forty acres of well developed land, ten acres of 
 which is devoted to fruit, ten to sweet potatoes, 
 and twenty to alfalfa. In addition to his ranch- 
 ing interests he conducts a general merchandise 
 establishment in Merced, in partnership with I. 
 
1550 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 J. I'imentel, Jr., carrying a well assorted stock 
 valued at $5,000. He resides upon his ranch, 
 which is located five miles west and north of 
 Merced. , ' 
 
 Mr. Avila has been twice married, his first 
 wife being Emilia Pacheco, by whom he had 
 the following children: Delfina and Belmira. 
 His second marriage united him with Puhscena 
 Duarte, also a native of the Azores, and of this 
 union was born a daughter, Maggie. In his 
 political convictions Mr. Avila is a Republican, 
 and though undesirous of official honors for him- 
 self has nevertheless taken an active interest in 
 the advancement of his party's interests. In 
 fraternal orders he is quite prominent, being a 
 member of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men. Religiously he is a member of the Roman 
 Catholic Church. 
 
 FREDERICK BONTADELLI. Conspicu- 
 ous among the most intelligent, influential and 
 progressive dairymen of the San Joaquin valley 
 is Frederick Bontadelli, who has a thorough 
 knowledge of agriculture in its various branches, 
 and stands high among the practical and suc- 
 cessful farmers of this locality. His ranch, 
 which is situated two miles southeast of New- 
 man, is finely improved, his residence, which he 
 erected in 1901, being one of the most attractive 
 in the dairy country, while his conveniently ar- 
 ranged barns and outbuildings, and all of his 
 machinery and equipments, are such as are re- 
 quired by a first-class modern agriculturist. A 
 son of Peter Bontadelli, he was born Novem- 
 ber II, 1857, in Personico, Canton of Ticino, 
 'Switzerland, which was likewise the birthplace 
 of his father, and of his grandfather, Joseph 
 Bontadelli, a lumber manufacturer and dealer. 
 
 A prominent and influential citizen of Person- 
 ico,, Peter Bontadelli spent his entire life in his 
 native town, being actively engaged in business 
 as a lumber and flour manufacturer, and as a 
 general merchant. Of his union with Mary 
 Filosi, the descendant of an old and honored 
 family of the Canton of Ticino, fourteen children 
 were born, eleven of whom grew to years of ma- 
 turity, seven now living, five residing in Califor- 
 nia, namely: Emil, of Guadaloupe; Peter, of 
 Watsonville; Philomena, of Salinas; Modesto, 
 jlist now in Alaska; and Frederick, the subject 
 of this sketch. 
 
 After his graduation from the Personica High 
 School, Frederick Bontadelli, at the age of nine- 
 teen years, served for four months in a military 
 company. He subsequently learned the cabinet- 
 maker's trade, which he followed for a few years 
 in connection with the mercantile business, re- 
 maining in' his native land until 1879. Emi- 
 grating in that year to America, he arrived in 
 
 San Francisco with ninety-three dollars in his 
 pockets, his entire assets. With a courageous 
 heart and willing hands, he started out to make 
 his living in a new country, a stranger in a 
 strange land. Having previously worked with 
 a veterinary in his old home, Mr. BontadelH 
 felt somewhat familiar with the care pi cattle 
 and horses, and was soon working on a ranch. 
 Subsequently locating in Gilroy, he worked on 
 a ranch, and as a butter and cheese maker for 
 five years. Removing thence to Monterey coun- 
 ty, he purchased one hundred and twenty acres 
 of land near Salinas, and embarked in dairying, 
 successfully managing not only his own dairy, 
 but a dairy of one hundred and sixty cows be- 
 longing to a neighboring farmer. 
 
 Visiting the west side of the San Joaquin val- 
 ley in 1896, Mr. Bontadelli quickly perceived its 
 advantages as a dairy region, and tried to inter- 
 est the people in the subject of raising alfalfa, 
 for which the land was especially adapted. Dur- 
 ing the dry season of 1898, when Monterey 
 county, especially, suffered with the excessive 
 drought, he returned to this valley, bringing his 
 family with him, and settled on the west side. 
 For two years thereafter he rented land from 
 C. C. Eastin, and then, in 1900, purchased eighty 
 acres of unimproved land, and set about improv- 
 ing it. Fencing it, he subsequently dug a well 
 seventy-one feet in depth, erected a windmill, 
 and the following year built his attractive resi- 
 dence. He was very successful in the raising 
 of alfalfa, and now rents fifty-six acres of ad- 
 joining land, on which he also raises the same 
 crop, and is now carrying on dairying with 
 marked success, keeping about one hundred 
 cows, mostly Durhams. He likewise raises 
 horses and cattle, having about one hundred and 
 ninety head of stock, and keeps about three hun- 
 dred hogs. 
 
 In Switzerland, Mr. Bontadelli married Mary 
 Borcine, a native of the Canton of Ticino, and 
 they have one child, namely: Frederick F. 
 BontadelH, a graduate of the Newman High 
 School and now a student at the Santa Clara 
 College. Politically Mr. Bontadelli is a Repub- 
 lican, and fraternally he belongs to the Druids, 
 and is serving as treasurer of his lodge. He is 
 recognized as an authority on all questions con- 
 nected with dairying, and is one of the directors 
 of the New Era Creamery. 
 
 LUTHER M. SAY. From his earliest recol- 
 lection Mr. Say has known nO' other home than 
 California until he reached mature years. He 
 was born in Venango county, Pa., December 3, 
 1873, being the fourth child born to James H. 
 and Laura (Coates) Say, the former a native of 
 Pennsylvania and the latter of Wisconsin, The 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1561 
 
 father lollowed farming for a livelihood and 
 in 1874 came to California with his family, locat- 
 ing for a tune in Mendocino county. He subse- 
 quently settled in the vicinity of Parlier, in Fres- 
 no county, at an early day in the history of this 
 county. His widow still lives on the old home 
 place in this locality, a short distance from Luther 
 M. 
 
 The recipient of a good education, gleaned 
 from the common schools of California aiid from 
 the three years' attendance at the Selma high 
 school, Mr. Say started out to make his way in 
 the world more thoroughly equipped than the 
 average young man,. so far as education is con- 
 cerned. Like his father, he followed farming 
 for a time, but in 1895 he went to San Francisco, 
 and for four or five months was engaged as grip- 
 man on the street cars in that city. In 1896 he 
 secured employment on the police force, and for 
 a period of about five years he was on duty be- 
 tween Fourth and Sixth streets and northward, 
 with the Chinatown squad. 
 
 In 1900 he went to Alaska and for one year 
 officiated as bookkeeper in the mines of his 
 brother, W. H. Say. Returning home, he took 
 possession of his place near Parlier, in 1901, 
 having previously purchased the ranch in 1897. 
 Mr. Say has one of the most productive farms in 
 this part of Fresno county, owning eighty acres, 
 thirty in vineyard, twenty-five in peach orchards, 
 the balance in alfalfa. In 1903 he built a mod- 
 ern cottage which adds greatly to the appear- 
 ance of the place, in addition to adding to the 
 comfort of the family. By his marriage in San 
 Francisco, he was united with Diantha L. Trem- 
 per, who was born in Lake county, Cal. Their 
 home is made happy by the presence of one son, 
 Harry. Politically Mr. Say is an unswerving 
 Republican, and socially he is allied with the 
 Woodmen of the World and the Widow and 
 Orphans' Aid Society for Policemen, of San 
 Francisco. Mr. Say is rapidly attaining a high 
 place in the estimation of his neighbors, as a 
 conscientious, energetic young nrtan, whose deal- 
 ings with everyone are both upright and honor- 
 able. 
 
 MRS. DORA (JANTZEN) UNGER. It 
 gives us much pleasure to place in this volume 
 a brief biographical record of the life of Mrs. 
 Dora J. Unger, widow of the late Frederick 
 Unger, who for a score of years was actively 
 identified with the development of the agri- 
 cultural resources of that part of Fresno coun- 
 ty lying near Selma. She is a most estimable 
 woman, of superior character and endow- 
 ments, and well deserves the respect and es- 
 teem of the community in which she has so 
 long resided, A daughter of Herman Jantzen, 
 
 she was born April 10, 1835, near Dorum, 
 Hanover, Germany. 
 
 A lifelong resident of Hanover, Germany, 
 Herman Jantzen followed the trade of baker 
 during his earlier life, and was afterward em- 
 ployed as a tiller of the soil until his retire- 
 ment from active pursuits. His wife, whose 
 maiden name was Helen Schleier,. died at a 
 comparatively early age, leaving one son and 
 one daughter, Dora J., the special subject of 
 this sketch, being the youngest child. 
 
 Receiving a limited education in the com- 
 mon schools of her native town, Dora Jantzen 
 remained at home until twenty-three years 
 old. Having two half-brothers and a brother 
 in the United States, in Philadelphia, and one 
 in California, she determined to join them, 
 and in August, 1858, landed in New York 
 City. A short time later, accompanied by her 
 brother, she came by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama to San Francisco, where a half- 
 brother was living, and with him made her 
 home until her marriage in i860 with Fred- 
 erick Unger. 
 
 A native of Schanning, Brunswick, Ger- 
 many, Frederick Unger grew to manhood in 
 the Fatherland, obtaining his education in the 
 public schools. Emigrating to the United 
 States in 1854, he spent a few months in New 
 York City, from there coming by way of the 
 Nicaragua route to the Pacific coast. After 
 working in the mines for some time, he set- 
 tled near Santa Clara, where, in 1858, he pur- 
 chased a small ranch on which he lived four 
 years. Removing then to Centerville, he was 
 engaged in farming in that locality for three 
 years. In 1865 he bought land near Petaluma, 
 living there until 1873, when he established 
 hims.elf as a farmer and dairyman at Bird's 
 Landing, Solano county. In 1880 Mr. Unger 
 rented land in Fresno county, near Selma, and 
 two years later, in 1882, bought the home- 
 stead now owned and occupied by his widow 
 and her family. From the one hundred and 
 forty acres of land included in his purchase he 
 developed a most productive ranch, having a 
 finely-bearing vineyard of sixty acres ; an or- 
 chard of forty acres planted to fruit trees of 
 different kinds, while on fourteen acres he 
 raised alfalfa. In the management of his farm 
 he was very successful, his energetic industry 
 and thrift being well rewarded. On Novem- 
 ber 8, 1903, Mr. Unger passed to the life 
 beyond, leaving a large circle of friends who 
 deeply deplore his loss. He was highly es- 
 teemed throughout the community as a man 
 of sterling worth and integrity, and was an 
 active member of the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. 
 Unger seven children were born, namely: 
 
1552 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Charles Frederick, proprietor of a stationery 
 store in Selma ; Herman Theodore, living near 
 Selma; Caroline, wife of John Seaton of Port 
 Townsend, Wash.; William, residing near 
 Selma; Angie, the wife of M. E. Browe of' 
 Selma; Dora, wife of John Anderson of Los 
 Angeles, and G. A., of Selma. Mrs. Unger is 
 a woman of good business qualifications, and 
 is administratrix of the estate left by her late 
 husband. She is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 JOHN H. HUTCHINSON. One of the 
 most promising features of the commercial life 
 of California is the fact that its climate, soil 
 and business possibilities have attracted to its 
 citizenship many of the educated and ambitious 
 young men of the east. Coming from the older 
 city of Cleveland to the younger but no less 
 progressive city of Fresno, Mr. Hutchinson has 
 thrown his energies and resourceful mind into 
 his duties as secretary of the Fresno Consum- 
 ers' Ice Company, and by supplementing the 
 judicious management of the president, Calvin S. 
 Hill, has contributed tO' the already encourag- 
 ing success of this enterprise. 
 
 The Hutchinson family is of Scotch-Irish ex- 
 traction, and its first representatives in America 
 identified themselves with the province of On- 
 tario. George H. Hutchinson, who was a na- 
 tive of Otterville, Ontario, removed to Qeve- 
 land, where he remained until death, meanwhile 
 engaging in the lumber business. His wife. 
 Mary E. Martin, was born and reared in Cleve- 
 land, whither her father, John Martin, had mi- 
 grated in an early day. He was a native of the 
 north of Ireland and a shipwright by trade. Af- 
 ter settling in Cleveland he engaged in ship- 
 building and conducted a yard until his death, 
 which occurred at the age of forty-nine years. 
 At this writing Mrs. George H. Hutchinson re- 
 sides with their only child, John H., in Fresno. 
 
 In Cleveland, Ohio, where he was born Feb- 
 ruary 17, 1871, John H. Hutchinson had the ad- 
 vantages offered by the excellent schools, supple- 
 menting which he also took a full course of study 
 in DuQuesne College, at Pittsburg, Pa., from 
 which he was graduated in 1892, with the de- 
 gree of B. S. Immediately after the comple- 
 tion of his college course he entered the office 
 of the Curll-Hutchinson Lumber Company, his 
 father being one of the members. For three 
 years he continued with that firm, and then went 
 to Niles, Ohio, as office manager for the Colum- 
 bia Manufacturing Company. He filled the 
 duties of this responsible position with rare 
 judgment and tact for three years, and then 
 resigned in order to return to Cleveland, where 
 in 1899 he was chosen cashier of the Garry Iron 
 
 & Steel Company. In addition to the office of 
 cashier he filled the position of head bookkeeper, 
 remaining with the company until April, 1903, 
 when he resigned. The following month he 
 came to Fresno and bought an interest in the 
 Fresno Consumers' Ice Company, of which he 
 has since been secretary and a director. While 
 the period of his residence on the coast has been 
 comparatively brief, he has become a stanch 
 believer in the great west, an enthusiastic sup- 
 porter of its industries and an admirer of its 
 climate. Socially he is popular among his ac- 
 quaintances, an active member of the Society 
 of Hoo Hoo's, and a welcome guest into the 
 most select circles of Fresno. Reared in the 
 Episcopal faith, he has always been in sympathy 
 with the work of that denomination and a con- 
 tributor to its charities. Political affairs have 
 never won him from business duties, yet he is 
 interested in questions affecting the prosperity 
 of state and nation, and gives his allegiance to 
 the Republican party. 
 
 PETER P. HANSEN. Ever since he was old 
 enough to step out and learn the miller's trade 
 in far-off Denmark, the life of Peter P. Han- 
 sen has moved along in quiet, safe grooves, far 
 from the fret and worry of large ambitions, and 
 the trouble incident to useless and out-of-the-or- 
 dinary requirements. His life began on a small 
 farm in the village of Scoby, in northern Den- 
 mark, where he was born March 13, 1866, and 
 where his parents, Nis and Mary (Claussen) 
 Hansen, are passing their declining years. His 
 cradle was rocked by a mother who was the, 
 soul of industry and high principle, and who had 
 besides five sons and two daughters, he being 
 the sixth child. Industry and frugality reigned 
 in the humble home, and little remained after 
 the purchase of necessities for the schooling or 
 advantages which the children craved. Peter P. 
 improved whatever chances came to him, at- 
 tending the public schools whenever able, and 
 diligently performing his duties around the home 
 place. After completing his trade he worked 
 thereat for some months, and in the meantime 
 planned to enlarge his horizon as soon as his 
 means permitted. 
 
 At the age of eighteen Peter immigrated to 
 America and located in Cleveland, Ohio, but in- 
 stead of following the miller's trade, began to 
 drive a street car for the city railroad company. 
 This occupation netted fair returns to a lad ac- 
 customed to economize and save, and in 1888 
 he came to San Francisco and drove a street car 
 team for the company of that city. In his next 
 home in Los Banos, Merced county, he worked 
 on the canal for Miller & Lux, becoming man- 
 ager of a section of the canal, and remaining in 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1553 
 
 that capacity for eight years. He was bright and 
 faithful, and won the approval of his employers, 
 hence his long retention in their service. His 
 work on the canal proved profitable in the light 
 of his continued thrift and patience, and he was 
 able to purchase a farm of forty acres near New- 
 man, Merced county, which he operated as a 
 dairy until 1903. He then invested in his pres- 
 ent home of sixty acres, which he has placed un- 
 der alfalfa, and is devoting to a dairy of forty 
 cows. His improvements are in accordance with 
 the kind and extent of his operations, and it is 
 his intention to increase both his possessions and 
 his business. His house, barns and implements 
 are sufficient for his needs, and neatness and or- 
 der, the chief essentials of dairying, are the key- 
 note of his success in that direction. 
 
 Mr. Hansen met and married Ida Werner, a 
 native daughter of San Francisco, and who pre- 
 sides over his country home with economy and 
 good judgment. He is in sympathy with the 
 Democratic party, and finds recreation and com- 
 panionship in the lodge of the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows. While Mr. Hansen is cau- 
 tious and conservative, and less prone than many 
 to accept innovations and advances, he is genial 
 of manner and large of heart, and has won de- 
 served and substantial success. 
 
 OLIVER D. McPHERSON. Among the 
 foremost citizens of Colony Center, O. D. Mc- 
 Pherson, the genial and popular proprietor of 
 the Center Hotel, holds an honored place. Pub- 
 lic-spirited, liberal and enterprising, he takes 
 great interest in advancing the welfare of the 
 community in which he resides, and is much 
 esteemed as a man of worth. A son of Aaron 
 McPherson, he was born, October 25, 1869, in 
 Iowa Falls, Iowa, of Scotch ancestry. His 
 Grandfather McPherson was for many years en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits in Indiana, .but 
 spent his declining years in Iowa. 
 
 Born in Indiana, near Indianapolis, Aaron 
 McPherson enlisted in an Indiana regiment soon 
 after the breaking out of the Civil war, and 
 served as a soldier during the greater part of the 
 conflict. At the close of the war he settled at 
 Iowa Falls, Iowa, where he improved a farm. 
 In 1871 he removed with his family to Geneva, 
 Neb., where he continued in farming and stock- 
 raising for many years. Migrating still farther 
 westward in 1894, he came to Merced county, 
 locating in the Dos Palos Colony, where he pur- 
 chased twenty acres of land, on which he made 
 substantial improvements. He set out an 
 orchard of choice fruit trees, and was employed 
 successfully in fruit growing and dairying until 
 his death, in 1903, at the age of sixty-two years. 
 He was highly respected as a man, and was ac- 
 
 tive in the Grand Army of the Republic, taking 
 a keen interest in the organization. He married 
 Elvina Jones, who was born and reared in Wis- 
 consin, and now resides in Colony Center. Of 
 their union eight children were born, seven of 
 whom survive, O. D., the subject of this review, 
 being the second child in order of birth. 
 
 Growing to manhood on a Nebraska farm, 
 O. D. McPherson attended first the common 
 schools, afterward entering the Geneva high 
 school, where he completed the full course, ob- 
 taining his diploma. Engaging in business for 
 himself at the age of twenty years, he ran a large 
 broom factory in Geneva, Neb., until 1896, 
 when he gave up the business, and came to Cali- 
 fornia. Taking up his residence with the Dos 
 Palos Colony, Mr. McPherson bought ten acres 
 of land, built a residence, and engaged in the 
 raising of fruit and alfalfa, also resuming his 
 trade of making brooms. Material for his manu- 
 factures being scarce, Mr. McPherson, with true 
 enterprise and thrift, rented about forty acres of 
 land, and began the raising of broom corn, de- 
 voting his entire crop to broom making, a ven- 
 ture in which he was quite successful. In 1901 
 he built the Center Hotel, which has since been 
 well patronized by the public, who speak of his 
 management in very complimentary terms, find- 
 ing him a most accommodating and pleasant host, 
 well acquainted with his duties, and ever mind- 
 ful of the comfort of his guests. 
 
 In Wayne county. Neb., Mr. McPherson mar- 
 ried Dora Fox, who was born in Ohio, a daugh- 
 ter of Einmor Fox, who settled as a farmer in 
 Geneva, Neb., and there brought up his family. 
 Two children have blessed the union of Mr. and 
 Mrs. McPherson, namely : Roy and Velma. 
 Politically Mr. McPherson is a stanch supporter 
 of the principles of the Republican party. Fra- 
 ternally he is a member of the Modern Woodmen 
 of America, and the clerk of his lodge, and also 
 a member of the Knights of the Maccabees. 
 
 THEODORE C. SCHMIDT. Energetic, 
 industrious and capable, Theodore C. Schmidt, 
 well known in Newman and vicinity as a skill- 
 ful mechanic and as one of the foremost black- 
 smiths of the place, is carrying on an extensive 
 and flourishing business. A native of Den- 
 mark, he was born November 17, 1863. His 
 father, Peter Schmidt, a blacksmith by trade, 
 was born in Denmark and is now living retired 
 from active pursuits in Schleswig, Germany. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Maria Sor- 
 ensen, died at the early age of thirty years. 
 For his second wife he married a native of 
 Denmark and she is the mother of four sons. 
 Of the four sons and one daughter born of the 
 
1554 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 first marriage, Theodore C, the special sub- 
 ject of this sketch, is the second child. 
 
 Having acquired a good common school edu- 
 cation in his native town, Theodore C. Schmidt 
 worked for a number of years in his> father's 
 smithy, serving an apprenticeship at the black- 
 smith's trade. Emigrating to the United 
 States in 1883, he came to California, locating 
 first in Rio Vista, where he followed his trade 
 for a year. Going then to San Joaquin coun- 
 ty, he worked first in Lathrop and then in 
 Linden. From 1885 until 1888 Mr. Schmidt 
 was a resident of Salem, Ore., where he was 
 employed in various kinds of labor. Return- 
 ing then to California, he worked at his trade 
 for a year in Dos Palos, Merced county, being 
 in the employ of Miller & Lux. Coming to 
 Newman in 1889, he continued at his trade, 
 working the first two years in partnership 
 with A. S. Jefsen, and the next two years in 
 partnership with L. H. Kahrt. Buying out 
 his partner, Mr. Kahrt, in 1894, Mr. Schmidt 
 has since carried on a substantial business as 
 a general blacksmith, having built up a large 
 and lucrative patronage. By dint of hard labor 
 and good management he has acquired con- 
 siderable property, in addition to his other 
 holdings being a half owner of a ranch of thir- 
 ty-three acres, which he devotes to pasturing 
 and the raising of alfalfa. 
 
 Mr. Schmidt married first, in Modesto, Cal., 
 Anna Krogh, a native of New York. She died 
 in 1899, leaving two children, namely : How- 
 ard and Theodore. Mr. Schmidt married sec- 
 ond, in San Francisco, Mrs. Hansine Soren- 
 sen. In politics Mr. Schmidt is a zealous Re- 
 publican, active in party ranks, and has rep- 
 resented his town as a delegate to county 
 conventions. He is identified with two of the 
 leading fraternal organizations of Newman, 
 being a member and past officer of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows and a member 
 of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 HENRY F. W. C. MEIER. Energetic, enter- 
 prising and industrious, Henry F. W. C. Meier 
 is actively identified with the business interests 
 of Newman as a manufacturer and bottler of 
 soda water and soft drinks of all kinds. A na- 
 tive of Germany, he was born August 5, 1854, 
 in Prussia, which was also the birthplace of 
 his parents, Henry and Catherine Meier. 
 
 Having acquired a practical education in the 
 elementary schools of his native country,, Henry 
 F. W. C. Meier emigrated, in 1871, to America, 
 hopmg m this land of plenty to secure greater 
 opportunities for bettering his financial condi- 
 tion. _ Coming directly to California, he spent a 
 year in Rocklin, Placer county, working for his 
 
 brother-in-law, Henry Nieman. The following 
 six years he was a resident of San Francisco. 
 From there he went to Hill's Ferry, but being not 
 very well satisfied with his prospects in that 
 place, went to Sacramento, where he remained 
 nearly two years. Returning to Hill's Ferry in 
 1880, Mr. Meier worked there eight years, when, 
 in 1888, he settled in Newman, taking charge of 
 the Newman Hotel. Giving up the hotel in 1896, 
 he continued the saloon business until 1899, 
 when he gave that up also. Since that time he 
 has devoted much of his time and attention to 
 the management of his bottling business, w'hich 
 he established in i8g6, although for more than 
 three years, from 1899 to 1903, he was in busi- 
 ness in Tulare county, having charge of the Lind- 
 say Hotel. He bottles soda waters and soft drinks 
 of all kinds, having one of the largest plants 
 of its kind in this section of the county, and 
 has been exceedingly successful in its manage- 
 ment, having built up a large and profitable busi- 
 ness. 
 
 In Sacramento, Cal., Mr. Meier married Eliza- 
 beth Miller, a native of Hunsbach, Prussia, and 
 of their union twelve children have been born, 
 namely : Emil, of Lindsay, Cal. ; Mrs. Lola 
 Robin, of Eureka ; Henry, of Newman, Cal. ; Al- 
 bert and Clarence, twins, of Newman, the latter 
 proprietor of a confectionery store ; Bertha, Min- 
 nie, Fredie, Lizzie, Eunice, deceased; Louie, and 
 a child that died in infancy. Politically, Mr. 
 Meier is an earnest adherent of the Democratic' 
 party. Fraternally he is a member and past 
 officer of the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men and of the Knights of Pythias. 
 
 _ THOMAS FREEMAN NEWELL. The ag- 
 ricultural community of Selma has no more 
 worthy representative than Thomas Freeman 
 Newell, a farmer of experience and skill, who has 
 met with success in his independent calling, and 
 is now living retired from active pursuits. A 
 son of Edward Newell, he was born Augvist i, 
 1843, in Cumberland county, Me. His grand- 
 father, Enoch Newell, a native of Massachusetts, 
 came from honored colonial stock, being de- 
 scended from one of four brothers who emigrated 
 from England to the old Bay State. When a 
 young man he removed to Maine, and there spent 
 his remaining years. A life-long resident of 
 Cumberland county. Me., Edward Newell fol- 
 lowed the trade of a ship-carpenter and joiner. 
 His wife, whose maiden name was Mary W. 
 Freeman, was born in Massachusetts, and died in 
 Maine. Of their family of five boys and two 
 girls, of whom one son and the two daughters are 
 deceased, Thomas F., the subject of this biograph- 
 ical sketch is the youngest. 
 Reared and educated in his native state. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1555 
 
 Thomas Freeman Newell remained at home un- 
 til eighteen years of age, when, accompanied by 
 a brother, he came by way of the Isthmus of 
 Panama to the Pacific coast. Locating in Amador 
 coa.inty, Cal, he was engaged in mining in Vol- 
 cano for four years, and the ensuing year was a 
 resident of Sonoma county. Visiting his old 
 home and friends in 1867, he stayed in Maine 
 eleven months. Returning to California in 1868 
 Mr. Newell bought land in San Mateo county, 
 and was there prosperously employed in stock- 
 raising, daii-ying and general farming foT twenty 
 ' years. In 1888 he settled in Fresno county, lo- 
 cating on the line of the Centerville and Kings- 
 burg ditch, and buying one hundred acres of 
 land lying one mile northeast of Selma. At the 
 time of the purchase, six acres of the ranch was 
 devoted to the raising of fruit. He has since im- 
 proved the entire ranch, having now an orchard 
 of forty acres and a vineyard of thirty-four acres, 
 while the remainder of his land yields bountiful 
 crops of alfalfa. Although he still lives on his 
 ranch, he rents the land, receiving a good annual 
 income. 
 
 In San Mateo county Mr. Newell married Alice 
 M. Shields, a native of Illinois. She died on the 
 home farm, in Selma, in 1895, leaving three chil- 
 dren, namely : Mabel F., wife of Orland Dolson, 
 of Los Angeles; Mrs. Marie Ross, living near 
 Selma ; and Lillian May, wife of Alexander Mc- 
 Donald, of San Francisco. Politically Mr. Newell 
 is a steadfast Republican, but has never been an 
 aspirant for official honors. 
 
 HENRY A. HANSEN. Among the repre- 
 sentative business men of Colony Center, Dos 
 Palos, is Henry A. Hansen, an enterprising and 
 highly esteemed citizen, who is carrying on a 
 large and successful business as a general mer- 
 chant. A native of Illinois, he was born Novem- 
 ber 16, 1868, in LaSalle county, near Ottawa, a 
 son of Hans Hansen. His Grandfather Hansen, 
 a life-long resident of Norway, was a prosperous 
 agriculturist, and the owner of the noted farm 
 "Hjelmeland." 
 
 Hans Hansen was born on the parental farm, 
 in Qvinherre, Norway, in 1835, and was there 
 bred and educated. At the age of sixteen years, 
 in 185 1, he immigrated to America, and began 
 life in this country as a farm laborer near Ot- 
 tawa, 111. In course of time he became owner 
 of a good tract of land, from which he improved 
 a farm, on which he lived a number of years. In 
 1874 he removed to Ford county. 111., where he 
 bought land, and continued in agricultural pur- 
 suits for nearly twenty years. Settling in Stan- 
 hope, Hamilton county, Iowa, in 1892, he is now 
 carrying on a successful mercantile business in 
 
 that place. He is a man of upright principles, 
 a stanch Republican in politics; and a consistent 
 member of the Lutheran Church. He married 
 Anna Sorbe, who was born in Ronnes Island, 
 Norway, where her father, Andreas Sorbe, spent 
 his entire life. She came with her mother, and 
 the other children, to America when a child of 
 eight years. She died February 15, 1901, in 
 Stanhope, Iowa, leaving three children, namely : 
 Mrs. Johnson, of Iowa; Henry A., the special 
 subject of this sketch; and J. E. a contractor 
 in Marshalltown, Iowa. 
 
 Receiving a practical education in the public 
 schools of Illinois, Henry A. Hansen began the 
 battle of life for himself at the age of eighteen 
 years, becoming a clerk in a mercantile estab- 
 lishment at Elliott, Ford county. 111. Removin;:? 
 with his parents to Stanhope, Iowa, in 1892, he 
 was there similarly employed for some time. Lo- 
 cating at Lorenz, Iowa, in 1900, Mr. Hansen 
 was engaged in the grocery business for several 
 months. Selling out in December, 1901, he came 
 directly to Dos Palos, and five days after his 
 arrival here purchased a half-interest in a mer- 
 cantile business, and in partnership with C. A. 
 Bibler established himself as a general mer- 
 chant at Elgin Corners, becoming junior mem- 
 ber of the firm of Bibler & Hansen. When the 
 town moved to Colony Center, this enterprising 
 firm erected a large store on the corner now oc- 
 cupied by John Kincaid, and there built up a 
 good trade. In May, 1903, Mr. Hansen disposed 
 of his interest in the firm, and four months later, 
 in November, 1903, opened a new store, and has 
 since been in business alone having won a lucra- 
 tive patronage. 
 
 In Webster City, Iowa, Mr. Hansen married 
 Grace Bibler, a native of Hamilton county, Iowa, 
 and they are the parents of two children, name- 
 ly: Verne and Keith. Politically Mr. Hansen 
 is actively identified with the Republican party. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Polar Star Lodge 
 No. 113; F. & A. M., of Legrand, Iowa; of 
 Sigma Chapter, R. A. M., of Marshalltown, 
 Iowa; and of the Modern Woodmen of Amer- 
 ica. Religiously he is a Lutheran. 
 
 _ REV. MICHAEL McNAMARA. Among the 
 pioneers of California worthy of special men- 
 tion in this work is Rev. Michael McNamara, 
 who has had charge of St. Patrick's Church, 
 in Merced, for upward of thirty years. A man 
 of deep religious devotion, and of extreme earn- 
 estness of purpose, he has performed noble work 
 in this section of the state, building up good 
 congregations in different localities, and every- 
 where elevating the moral and religious status 
 of his people. He is finely educated, familiar 
 with the classics, a philosopher and a theologian 
 
1556 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and a noted student of history. He" was born, 
 March 19, 1837, hi the parish of Croom, Coimty 
 Limerick, Ireland, being the second child in a 
 family of ten children born of the union of 
 Thomas and Nora (Joyce) McNamara, who 
 were life-long residents of the parish of Croom, 
 County Limerick, and respected members of the 
 farming community- 
 Brought up in Limerick, Michael McNamara 
 obtained his classical education partly in Killmal- 
 lock, Charleville and in the Jesuit Seminary of 
 Limerick, after which he studied theology at 
 St. John's College, in Waterford, County Water- 
 ford, Ireland. In June, 1870, by the Bishop oi 
 Australia, he was ordained in the college for the 
 diocese of San Francisco, and at once started for 
 California. After spending a short time at St. 
 Mary's Cathedral in San Francisco, Father Mc- 
 Namara began his missionary labors, going first 
 to Mariposa to look after St. Joseph's Church and 
 its people. He subsequently organized a parish 
 on Bear creek, at present the city of Merced, 
 where, in 1873, he was successful in establishing 
 a Catholic Church. Since 1875 he has made his 
 residence in Merced, but long continued to at- 
 tend the church in Mariposa, and in other places. 
 At Los Banos, he took up contributions for the 
 building of the church there, which were after- 
 ward turned over to the Los Angeles and Mon- 
 terey diocese. In his work along this western 
 frontier, he endured all the hardships and priva- 
 tions of the early pioneers, traveling by stage 
 over rough roads, walking long distances through 
 the mountain districts, making his own pathway 
 in many cases, and fording streams oftentimes ; 
 sleeping wherever night overtook him, be it in 
 cabin, tent, or with no roof between him and the 
 firmament on high. Father McNamara is con- 
 nected with various church societies, and is an 
 honorary member of the Young Men's Institute. 
 
 ARCHIBALD L. SILMAN. Among the 
 most active, skillful and successful ranchmen of 
 Dos Palos A. L. Silman, manager of Miller & 
 Lux's Santa Rita ranch, holds an assured posi- 
 tion. Of honored ancestry, he is a native son of 
 Merced county, and a worthy representative of 
 one of its most respected pioneer families. He 
 was born on the Merced river, in Merced county, 
 Cal, February 26, 1874, a son of William Sil- 
 man. His grandfather Silman, a native of the 
 east, spent the major ^jortion of his life in Ar- 
 kansas, where he was an early settler. 
 
 Born in Arkansas, William Silman was there 
 reared and educated. In 1851, with two of his 
 brothers, he came across the plains to the Pacific 
 coast, and for a while worked with shovel and 
 pick as a miner. He subsequently formed a 
 
 partnership with Archibald James Stevensc 
 whose daughter he afterward married, and ei 
 barked in the stock business on the Merced rivi 
 In the valley he entered land, becoming own 
 of a ranch of two thousand acres, and in com 
 of time accumulated much wealth in grain a: 
 stock-raising. He built a residence in. the to\ 
 of Merced, and with his partner erected t 
 first water works of that locality. He was ve 
 prominent in town, county and state affai: 
 being one of the leading members of the Dem 
 cratic party. He had the honor of being one 
 the first trustees of the city of Merced, and 
 1892 served as presidential elector, casting 1 
 vote, in Sacramento, for Grover Cleveland. I 
 died at his summer home, in Pacific Grove, 
 1896. He married Charlotte Stevenson, w' 
 was born in Boone count)'', Mo., where her fath( 
 Archibald J. Stevenson, settled on removii 
 from the east. Mr. Stevenson served in t 
 Mexican war, after which, in 1847, he locat 
 in California, engaging in the cattle business 
 the Merced River and San Joaquin valleys, 1 
 headquarters being at Fremont's Ford, on t 
 San Joaquin river. This ford was named 
 honor of one of his particular friends. Gen. J. 
 Fremont. Mr. Stevenson was an extensive Ian 
 holder, owning twenty thousand acres of lar 
 and was one of the best-known cattle men 
 central California. His death, which > occurr 
 in 1882, was a loss to the community as well 
 to his family. He reared three children, t\ 
 daughters and one son. His daughter Chariot 
 Mrs. Silman, died in 1896, leaving one chi! 
 Archibald L. 
 
 After his graduation from the San Francis 
 Business College, in 1892, A. L. Silman w 
 engaged in various capacities for five years. 
 1897 he made a bold start in life, going first 
 Seattle, and from there, on the Rosalie, to Ska 
 way, Alaska, thence over the Chilkoot pass 
 Dawson, where he was engaged in prospecti 
 and mining for fourteen months, remaining uti 
 the fall of 1898, when he returned to Mercf 
 In 1899 he took charge of the Inglasbe ram 
 on the Merced river, retaining its managerne 
 until 1902, when he resigned. The next t 
 years Mr. Silman was grain buyer at Merced 1 
 Hai^lacher & Kahan. Entering the employ 
 Miller & Lux in February, 1904, he was forem 
 on their Temple ranch for three months, t 
 since that time has filled his present position 
 manager of the Santa Rita ranch, at Dos Pal 
 This ranch, containing several thousand acr 
 is one of the largest owned by the firm, and 
 especially devoted to the breeding and raisi 
 of fine horses. Mr. Silman owns a farm on 1 
 Merced river, having a ranch of seven hundi 
 and twenty acres, finely located, about fiftc 
 miles from the city of Merced, and well adapl 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1657 
 
 for raising corn, teing under irrigation. This 
 estate he rents. 
 
 In Stockton, Cal., Mr. Sihnan married Marie 
 Inglasbe, who was born in Merced county, the 
 daughter of Daniel Eames Inglasbe, a large land 
 owner and an extensive stockman. Politically 
 Mr. Silman, true to the faith in which he was 
 reared, is a strong Democrat. Fraternalh- he be- 
 longs to La Grange Lodge No. 99, F. & A. M., 
 of Merced; to Merced Chapter, R. A. M. ; and 
 to Yosemite Parlor No. 24, N. S. G. W. 
 
 JOSEPH SPENCER SPARKS. A man of 
 undoubted ability, industry and enterprise, the 
 late Joseph Spencer Sparks was for many years 
 intimately associated with the development and 
 growth of the agricultural interests of Merced 
 county, and contributed his full share towards its 
 advancement and prosperity. Dependent entirely 
 upon his own efforts, he applied himself diligent- 
 ly to his chosen work, and in course of time won 
 a place of distinction among the most successful 
 farmers and stock-raisers of his neighborhood, 
 and a place of honor among the industrious and 
 respected citizens of the community. A son of 
 Madison Sparks, he was born. May 12, 1830, in 
 Kentucky. 
 
 Born and reared in Virginia, Madison Sparks 
 settled in Kentucky when a young man, and as 
 a planter and a slaveholder there spent the re- 
 mainder of his life, dying at the venerable age of 
 eighty-two years. He married Winnie Thomas, 
 who was born in Virginia., and died in Ken- 
 tucky. Eight children blessed their union, seven 
 sons and one daughter, Joseph Spencer being the 
 third child in order of birth. 
 
 Having acquired a good common school edu- 
 cation, Joseph Spencer Sparks remained in his 
 native county until after attaining his majority. 
 His enthusiasm having been aroused by the en- 
 thusiastic reports concerning the discovery of 
 gold on the Pacific coast, he followed the tide of 
 emigration westward, coming overland to Cali- 
 fornia in 1852. Locating claims in Placer coun- 
 ty, he was there engaged in mining for many 
 years, sometimes being quite prosperous in his 
 ventures and sometimes meeting with reverses. 
 About 1867 he removed to Butte county, settling 
 near Chico, where he was engaged in the lumber 
 business for two or three years, fillmg contracts 
 for hauling logs to the mills. Coming to the 
 San Joaquin valley in 1869, Mr. Sparks pur- 
 chased one hundred and sixty acres of land at 
 Cottonwood, and the next year, in 1870, bought 
 the ranch now owned and occupied by his widow 
 It contains three hundred and twenty acres of 
 land and is pleasantly located near Ingomar, and 
 but ten miles southwest of Newman With char- 
 acteristic courage and energy Mr. Sparks began 
 
 his agricultural career, making practical improve- 
 ments on his estate and placing the land in a high 
 state of cultivation. In addition to general farm- 
 ing, he carried on a large business as a stock 
 grower, and became noted as a breeder and raiser 
 of valuable horses. He rented other land than 
 his own, his operations being extensive and prof- 
 itable, and was known as one of the most thor- 
 ough-going and skilful ranchmen of this vicin- 
 ity. As a man, a neighbor, and as a citizen, Mr. 
 Sparks deservedly held high rank, and his death, 
 which occurred at his late home, in 1892, was re- 
 gretted as a public loss. In his political rela- 
 tions he was a steadfast Democrat, active in local 
 affairs, and for several years rendered good serv- 
 ice as school trustee. He was a man of strong 
 religious convictions, and a valued member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal Church. Fraternally he 
 was an Odd Fellow. 
 
 In Chico, Butte county, Cal., Mr. Sparks mar- 
 ried Melissa C. Eachus, who was born in Iowa, 
 and came with her parents across the plains to 
 California in 1865. Since .the death of her hus- 
 band Mrs. Sparks has managed the home ranch 
 with marked ability, adding from year to year to 
 the improvements already established, in 1901 
 having erected the commodious residence that 
 now adorns the estate, besides adding one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres to the home place. She 
 raises large crops of grain and hay, and below 
 the canal has twenty acres, of alfalfa. Of the 
 union of Mr. and Mrs. Sparks six children were 
 born, namely : David William, deceased ; Lucy 
 May, living at home ; Nellie Bird, deceased ; Mar- 
 garet Russell, a teacher in the public schools; 
 George Madison, living at home; and Joseph 
 Spencer, Jr., at home. 
 
 FRANZ BUCKREUS. The fact that Franz 
 Buckreus has held the important position of su- 
 perintendent of the Kern County Hospital for 
 over twenty years is by no means the only evi- 
 dence of his ability and faithfulness received by 
 his fellow townsmen of Bakersfield. From the 
 time of his arrival in Kern county in 1875 he has 
 impressed his general worth upon those with 
 whom he has been associated, proving himself a 
 stable and energetic citizen, conscientious to an 
 unusual degree, and having the knowledge of 
 how best to further the interests of his fellow 
 men. He is a native of Bavaria, and was born 
 November 30, 1845. He received the practical 
 home and educational advantages accorded the 
 average youth of the Fatherland, supplemented 
 by a course in surgery, for which he evidenced 
 particular aptitude. When he arrived in New 
 York City in July, 1871, he was twenty-six years 
 old, and soon afterward found a position as stew- 
 ard in a New York hospital, later filling a sim- 
 
1558 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ilar office in the city of Brooklyn. In both places 
 he was able to add to his knowledge of surgery. 
 He also gained a general knowledge of hospital 
 management, which was of mestimable value to 
 him upon assuming his present large responsi- 
 bility Finding the work congenial, humane and 
 satisfying, he resolved upon his future course of 
 action, should opportunity come his way. 
 
 Arriving in Bakersfield in 1875, Mr. Buckreus 
 turned his- attention to operating a barber shop m 
 the old Arlington hotel. The enterprise soon 
 proved the best of its kind in the town, many 
 personal characteristics of the manager contribut- 
 ing to his popularity and success. He was well 
 informed, jovial, sympathetic and ready at 
 repartee, besides being neat and temperate in his 
 habits, high-minded and generous in his thoughts, 
 and always ready to do a good turn for one in 
 trouble. In connection with these days of early 
 prosperity, he is glad to recall that some O'f his 
 patrons are still his warmest friends and sup- 
 porters. For eight years the little barber shop 
 was a busy center of activity, and the proprietor, 
 having the natural thrift and economy of his 
 race, saved- money. 
 
 Mr. Buckreus left his barber shop to assume 
 the superintendency of the hospital in 1883, and 
 two years later, in' 1885, he was elected coroner 
 and public administrator on the Democratic 
 ticket. This responsibility he filled with satis- 
 faction to all concerned until 1892, and in 1896 
 was re-elected, serving until January, 1903. It 
 is doubtful if any occupant of the office has in- 
 vested it with greater dignity and ability, his 
 shrewdness, tact, general knowledge and un- 
 questioned integrity, supplying the chief requis- 
 ites of the responsibility. Mr. Buckreus is a 
 charter member of the Knights of Pythias and 
 of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He 
 is genial, practical and thorough in his man- 
 agement of the hospital, understanding well how 
 to harmonize the various factions with which he 
 has to contend. ' 
 
 FRANK L. GOULARTE. To Frank L. 
 Goularte belongs the distinction of being one of 
 the pioneer sweet potato raisers in the Atwater 
 Colony, in Merced county, Cal. The entire acre- 
 age of his farm is utilized in raising this crop, 
 and in addition he rents ten acres of adjacent 
 land for the same purpose. So successful was 
 he in this venture that many of his neighbors 
 followed his example, and now thousands of 
 acres are planted in sweet potatoes in the county, 
 the soil being especially adapted to their culture, 
 the general average being seventy-five sacks to 
 the acre. Born in the Azores, Island of Pico, 
 Portugal, in 1858, Mr. Goularte was reared on 
 
 a farm and at the age of twenty left his home 
 and crossed the ocean to the United States, pur- 
 suing his way across the continent to California. 
 
 In Monterey county he worked on a sheep 
 ranch for four years and at the close of that 
 time he went to Fresno county and began rais- 
 ing sheep on his own behalf, continuing with 
 success for eight years. Removing to a new 
 location in Madera county he followed similar 
 work there, still doing a profitable business up 
 to 1899, when he discontinued the stock business 
 and purchased forty acres of land near Atwater, 
 in Merced county.' Upon this land he has since 
 lived. He at once began the cultivation of sweet 
 potatoes, having retained twenty acres of his 
 original purchase. In Madera county he owns 
 some valuable real estate, having twenty-tw'o 
 town lots in Madera, a number of them contain- 
 ing residences, and from the rent of these cot- 
 tages a steady income is derived. 
 
 By his marriage, in California, Mr. Goularte 
 was united with Miss Belle Mallo, a native of 
 Mariposa county, and three children have been 
 born to them, Anna, born in 1895 ; Marion, born 
 in 1897, and Belle, born in 1901. The family 
 are members of the Catholic Church. Mr. Gou- 
 larte is a member of the I. D. E. S. and U. P. E. 
 C. lodges. He is well known as a farmer of 
 the best type, and one whose individuality and 
 force of character have been felt even in the few 
 short years of his residence in Merced county. 
 In politics he is a Republican. 
 
 JASPER PARNELL. Among the native- 
 born citizens of California who have spent their 
 lives within its precincts aiding in every possible 
 way its growth and development, whether relat- 
 ing to its agricultural, industrial or financial pros- 
 perity, is Jasper Parnell, one of the best known 
 and most highly esteemed residents of Merced 
 county, owning and occupying a ranch near In- 
 gomar. Of pioneer ancestry, he was born No- 
 vember 14, 1853, in Calaveras county, a son of 
 John Parnell. 
 
 A native of England, John Parnell grew to 
 manhood in the British Isles, living there until 
 1846. Immigrating then to the United States, 
 he settled first in Galena, 111., as a steamboat 
 engineer, but subsequently became a pioneer 
 resident of Wisconsin. Crossing the plains with 
 horse teams in 1850, he located in Calaveras 
 county, Cal., where he followed mining and 
 ranching for a number of years. In 1867 he 
 located on the west side of Stanislaus county, 
 near Grayson, where he took up one hundred 
 and sixty acres of government land, from which 
 he improved a good ranch. As a tiller of the 
 soil he met with unbounded success, and from 
 time to time bought more land, increasing his 
 
Historical and biographical record. 
 
 1559 
 
 estate until he had one thousand acres of land. 
 Far-sighted, capable and practical, he accumu- 
 lated much wealth, and, on retiring from active 
 pursuits, purchased a residence in Stockton, and 
 also had a beautiful summer home at Pacific 
 Grove, Monterey county, where his death oc- 
 curred July 28, 1902. He was a man of un- 
 blemished character, deeply respected by all, and 
 was a consistent member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church. His wife, whose maiden name 
 was Julia Stevens, was born in Cornwall, Eng- 
 land and died, January 2, 1903, in Stockton, Cal. 
 She was laid to rest beside her husband, and on 
 the monument that marks the place their son Jas- 
 per has had this epitaph carved, "They lived to 
 enjoy this life, and by faith to enjoy Eternity." 
 Of their happy union three boys and one girl 
 were born, Jasper being the second child and the 
 oldest son. 
 
 Having completed his early education in the 
 common schools of Calaveras county, Jasper Par- 
 nell came with his parents to Stanislaus county, 
 where he assisted his father in improving a home- 
 stead, becoming familiar at the same time with 
 the various branches of farming. In 1887 Mr. 
 Parnell bought his present ranch of four hun- 
 dred and eighty acres, which is advantageously 
 located in Merced county, near Ingomar, and 
 about ten miles south of Newman. He has also 
 other valuable real estate, owning a cattle ranch 
 of four hundred and eighty acres in the moun- 
 tains, and having a farm equally as large in Stan- 
 islaus county, not far from Grayson, where he 
 raises large crops of wheat and barley. On his 
 home farm he makes a specialty of growing 
 alfalfa. 
 
 In Stockton, Cal., Mr. Parnell married Cas- 
 sie Barney, a native of Pennsylvania, and they 
 are the parents of three children, Stella, Harold 
 and Cora. Mr. and Mrs. Parnell live on the 
 home ranch the greater part of the year, although 
 they spend their summers at their home in Pacific 
 Grove, where they enjoy the invigorating sea 
 breezes. Politically Mr. Parnell is an earnest 
 supporter of the principles of the Democratic 
 party, and fraternally he belongs to the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows and to the Wood- 
 men of the World. 
 
 WILLIAM T. ALLEN. As a successful 
 rancher William T. Allen is doing much to ad- 
 vance the agricultural interests of the community 
 about Bakersfield, his forty-acre ranch being lo- 
 cated just seven miles west of that city. Empty- 
 handed he came to Kern county less than ten 
 years ago, and with indefatigable energy and per- 
 severance has already established himself among 
 the men whose efforts have counted in the bat- 
 tle of life. A native of Kenton county, Ky., he 
 
 was born September i, 1853, the representative 
 of an old colonial family, and one in which the 
 pioneer element had no little place. The grand- 
 father, Hugh Allen, was a native of Virginia 
 and was one of the first to cross the mountains 
 into Kentucky, in time establishing himself as an 
 extensive farmer and the owner of a large num- 
 ber of slaves in Woodford county, where he 
 lived to an advanced age. He married Hannah 
 Trumbull, who belonged to the family which 
 numbered Governor Trumbull of Ohio among its 
 members. Carey T. Allen, their son and the 
 father of W. T. Allen, of this review, was born 
 in Kentucky and spent his entire life in that 
 state as a farmer, meeting with great success in 
 all his operations, but losing his fortune in later 
 life through security debts. He died at the age 
 of fifty-six years. His wife, formerly Charlotte 
 Cleveland, was born in Kentucky in 1818 and 
 died in 1878, with the exception of a few years 
 in Indiana, having spent her entire life in her 
 native state. She was a member of the Baptist 
 Church. 
 
 Of the ten children born to his parents William 
 T. Allen was the sixth in order oi birth. He re- 
 mained at home on the farm until early manhood, 
 when he married and entered into an independent 
 life as a farmer and dairyman. In 1894 he came 
 west to California, where he rented property for 
 four or five years, when he purchased the forty 
 acres which now constitutes his home, lo- 
 cated on section 23, township 29, range 26, east, 
 his postofifice being Rosedale. This has become 
 a very valuable piece of property, the land 
 being devoted to the cultivation of alfalfa and 
 grapes, besides which he has a water fran- 
 chise. In addition to managing his ranch he 
 moves houses and makes considerable money in 
 that way. December 20, 1881, he was united in 
 marriage with his second cousin, Elizabeth 
 Allen, who was born and reared in Kentucky, 
 the daughter of James Trumbull and Louisa 
 (Robertson) Allen. The father was born in 
 Kentucky in 1828, and is now storekeeper and 
 gauger for the government in Kentucky, being 
 hale and hearty, though past seventy-five years. 
 Politically he is a Republican. His wife was a 
 native of New' York, her parents being emigrants 
 from Scotland, and he is still living at the age of 
 seventy-two years. She is a member of the Pres- 
 byterian Church. To Mr. and Mrs. Allen were 
 born two children, namely : Hugh S., now a stu- 
 dent in the State University at Berkeley, taking 
 a course in mining engineering ; and Louisa Rob- 
 ertson, who is attending the high school of 
 Bakersfield. Politically Mr. Allen is a Democrat 
 and in the interests of his party and the general 
 public as well has served for many years as school 
 trustee. Both himself and wife are members of 
 
1560 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the Congregational Church at Rosedale, and both 
 take an active interest in the church and Sunday 
 school. The life of Mr. Allen has been such as 
 to call forth the esteem and respect of all with 
 whom he has come in contact, all honoring him 
 for his energy and perseverance and evident 
 business ability, and for the unswerving integrity 
 which has characterized all his dealings. He is 
 often chosen to fill responsible posts as he well 
 represents the best interests of the people. 
 
 CAPTAIN NORRIS H. DORSEY. The 
 present postmaster of Delano has come into his 
 rank through meritorious service on the battle- 
 fields of the Civil war, and is honored for his 
 patriotism, his even, temperate life, and his ex- 
 ample as a painstaking, conscientious and high- 
 minded pioneer. Mr. Dorsey was born in Schuy- 
 ler county. III, July 25, 1835, and on the pa- 
 ternal side is of Irish ancestry, his immigrating 
 forefather having settled in Maryland at a very 
 early day. His grandfather, Azel Dorsey, re- 
 moved from Maryland to Kentucky, and from 
 the latter state to Schuyler county. III, in 1828, 
 and died there at the age of seventy-eight years. 
 He was a noncommissioned officer in the war 
 of 1812. His son, G. G., the father of Captain 
 Dorsey, was born in Kentucky, but reared on the 
 Schuyler county farm, and from Illinois enlisted 
 for service in the Black Hawk war in the same 
 regiment with Abraham Lincoln. He married 
 Elizabeth, daughter of Calvin and Sarah Hobart, 
 who was born in Vermont and settled in Schuy- 
 ler county with her parents in 1825. The condi- 
 tions at that time were extremely crude, and 
 her mother was the first white woman at the old 
 military reserve. Her parents came from old 
 New England families, and the father served in 
 the war of 1812, while his father was a soldier 
 in the Revolutionary war. Mrs. Dorsey lived to 
 be forty years old, and left six children, of whom 
 Captain Dorsey was the oldest. 
 
 At the age of twenty Captain Dorsey left the 
 Schuyler county farm and removed to Red Wing, 
 Minn., where he attended the Hamlin Uni- 
 versity, supplementary to his common school and 
 academic education received in Illinois. Eventu- 
 ally he engaged in educational work in Red 
 Wmg until the breaking out of the Civil war 
 He enlisted December 19, 1861, in Company A, 
 Fifth Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, as a pri- 
 vate, going south with his regiment in the spring 
 of 1862. He participated in many of the famous 
 battles of the Civil war, including Corinth 
 siege of Vicksburg, Jackson, Nashville, Spanish 
 I<ort, Blakely and the Red River campaign For 
 meritorious service he was elevated to the rank 
 of sergeant in the spring of 1862; to that of 
 
 second lieutenant in November, 1862 ; to first 
 lieutenant in the spring of 1863, and to captain 
 in December, 1864. 
 
 Returning to Minnesota after the close of the 
 war. Captain Dorsey engaged in farming about 
 four years, and then purchased a mill at Winne- 
 bago City, which he operated until coming to 
 California in 1886. Securing a government 
 homestead adjoining the town of Delano, he has 
 since made his home upon it, devoting it to gen- 
 eral farm produce. April i, 1901, he was ap- 
 pointed postmaster, a position maintained by 
 him with distinct credit. He has otherwise 
 served the interests of the Republican party, 
 having served for many years as justice of the 
 peace in Minnesota, and held minor offices in 
 Kern county, this state. He is a member of the 
 Grand Army of the RepubHc, and is fraternally 
 connected with the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows. Mr. Dorsey has been a hard working, 
 painstaking man, and deserves all praise for the 
 wise disposition he has made of the opportuni- 
 ties within his reach. He is quiet and unassum- 
 ing, kindly in manner and judgment, and deeply 
 interested in the welfare of the town of his adop- 
 tion. 
 
 PETER BLADT. A skillful and successful 
 agriculturist, thoroughly understanding the de- 
 tails of the different branches of farming, Peter 
 Bladt is actively identified with the development 
 and progression of the industrial interests of 
 Merced county. Residing seven miles south of 
 Newman, he is widely and favorably known as 
 a true citizen in every respect, and has an ex- 
 cellent reputation as a straightforward and up- 
 right man. A native of Germany, he was born, 
 January 17, 1854, in Schleswig-Holstein, where 
 his parents, Peter and Elizabeth (Qausen) Bladt, 
 spent their entire lives, being engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits. 
 
 The youngest of a family consisting of three 
 sons and five daughters, Peter Bladt received 
 such educational advantages as were afforded in 
 the common schools of his native land. As a boy 
 he began working for wages on a farm, con- 
 tinuing to thus earn his living until 1872, when 
 he emigrated to the United States, locating on 
 an Illinois prairie farm, near Chicago, where he 
 worked for a short time. In 1873 he came to 
 California, and for awhile was employed on a 
 ranch in the Salinas Valley. Coming to the San 
 Joaquin Valley in 1876, Mr. Bladt secured work 
 on a ranch at Crow's Landing, and there con- 
 tinued in his chosen occupation four years. Wise 
 in his savings, and prudent in his expenditures, 
 he had then accumulated sufficient money to war- 
 rant him in starting in business on his own ac- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1561 
 
 count. Accordingly, in 1880, he rented eight 
 hundred acres of land near Newman, and in the 
 raising of wheat and grain was very successful. 
 Investing the money he thus made in land, Mr. 
 Bladt bought the ranch that he now owns and 
 occupies. It lies about seven miles south of 
 Newman, and contains two hundred and forty 
 acres of land. In its care and cultivation he has 
 been exceedingly prosperous, the land being as 
 rich and fertile as can be found in this part of 
 the county, and has all the buildings and machin- 
 ery required by a first-class modern agriculturist. 
 He also owns twenty-three acres of alfalfa land 
 lying about three miles from Newman, and leases 
 four hundred and eighty acres adjoining his home 
 ranch, and this he devotes to the raising of wheat. 
 In Stanislaus county, Cal., Mr. Bladt married 
 Katharin Peterson, who was born in Germany, 
 and into the household thus established two 
 children have been born, namely : Peter, Jr., a 
 carpenter and builder, residing in San Francisco ; 
 Anna, at home. The mother of these children 
 died in 1886 near Newman. On March 28, 1888, 
 Mr. Bladt was married to Miss Anna Klemm, 
 also a native of Germany, and a daughter of 
 Frederich and Carolina Klemm, natives of Ger- 
 many, where they still reside. The present Mrs. 
 Bladt is the mother of three children: Rosa C, 
 Stella H. and Fannie Blajdt. Of these, Rosa C. 
 is a student in the Heald's business college in 
 San Francisco. In his political affiliations Mr. 
 Bladt is an earnest supporter of the principles 
 of the Democratic party. 
 
 CAPT. WILLIAM HENRY PAYSON. Life 
 on the sea has its attractions for many and by 
 selecting the life of a mariner. Captain Payson 
 not only followed the bent of his ambition but 
 emulated the example of his ancestors. Born 
 October 2, 1836, in the town of Lincolnville, 
 Me., and educated in the common schools of his 
 native state, young Payson, at fourteen, went to 
 sea as cook on a coast vessel. At seventeen he 
 began to learn the art of shipbuilding under his 
 father. Three years later he again took up a 
 sea-faring life. For twenty-seven and one-half 
 years he followed the sea, becoming master of 
 a vessel at twenty-three, and during all this time 
 he met with but one accident and lost but two 
 and a half months' work. He engaged only on 
 vessels on the Atlantic, and in 1883 he discon- 
 tinued sea life, locating for a brief time in Cam- 
 den, Me. In the fall of the same year (1883) 
 he took passage for California, arriving Novem- 
 ber 9. Very soon after his arrival he proceeded 
 to Fresno county, purchased twenty acres of un- 
 improved land on California avenue, three and 
 three-fourths miles from the city of Fresno, and 
 
 at once engaged in viticulture. ]Many fine im- 
 provements were made on this place, and he had 
 eighteen acres in vines. In March, 1904, he sold 
 this place and purchased twenty acres adjoining, 
 where he is principally engaged in raising alfalfa, 
 and dairying. 
 
 The Payson family is of Scotch, English and 
 German descent, and the great-grandfather of 
 Captain Payson was a brave soldier in America's 
 war for freedom. His son, Noyes Payson, was 
 born in Maine and participated in the war of 
 1812, in which he was a captain. He died in 1850, 
 at the age of seventy-two years. In tracing the 
 ancestry one generation farther down, we come 
 to the life history of the captain's father, Erastus 
 Foote Payson, born October 8, 1803, in South 
 Hope, Me. As a mechanic of no mean ability, 
 he was successful as a shipbuilder during the 
 active years of his life and had almost rounded 
 out his four score years when cut off by death, 
 in April, 1883. By his marriage he was united 
 with Caroline Gilkey, who was born at Long 
 Island, Me., December 17, 181 1, a daughter of 
 John Gilkey, a native of Massachusetts. Her 
 father, who was a seaman, removed from the 
 Bay State to Long Island, Me., and followed 
 a sea-faring life until he was fifty years old, 
 when he turned his attention to farm pursuits. 
 
 Being the fourth child in a family of nine chil- 
 dren born to his parents, William H. Payson is 
 one of only two survivors. His sister, Fidelia 
 C, widow of the late F. C. Hastings, is a resi- 
 dent of Massachusetts. The beloved mother died 
 in 1886, at the home of her daughter in South 
 Framingham, Mass. The marriage of Captain 
 Payson was solemnized June 17, 1866, in Con- 
 necticut, when he was united with Frances Caro- 
 hne Gould, born March 31, 1839, in Camden, 
 Me. They have reared three daughters, all resid- 
 ing in Fresno. They are Caroline E., wife of 
 J. A. Webster; Adeline G. ; and Lucy R., wife 
 of F. W. Gregory. Fraternally, Captain Payson 
 affiliates with but one secret society, holding a 
 membership in St. Paul Lodge No. 82, F. & 
 A. M., of Rockport, Me. In politics, he is inde- 
 pendent in both local and national issues. 
 
 THEODORE ANDERSON. The thorough 
 knowledge which Theodore Anderson possesses 
 of the millwright's and machinist's trades ad- 
 mirably qualifies him to discbarge the varied re- 
 sponsibilities of his present position as head mil- 
 ler fcr the Sperry Milling Company of Fresno. 
 During the period of his connection with this 
 company he has risen, by successive promotions, 
 and in recognition of his mastery of the milling 
 business, from a humble position to one of trust. 
 He is of Swedish birth and ancestry and was 
 
1502 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 born at Wadstena, on Lake Wetter, in the south- 
 ern part of that country, December 12, 1868. 
 He learned the millwright's trade under the 
 painstaking instruction of his father, John An- 
 derson, a machinist and millwright, who through 
 much of his active life has engaged in the flour 
 milling industry, but at this writing, and for 
 some time past, has been interested in the stone 
 business. 
 
 At the time of coming to America in 1888 
 Mr. Anderson had acquired the complete ac- 
 quaintance with his trade which is the custom in 
 the land of his birth. Every detail of millwright- 
 iug was carefully explained to him, in order that 
 he might be fitted for reliable work in the occu- 
 pation. For a few months after his arrival in the 
 United States he worked in Massachusetts, but 
 during the same year came to California, joining 
 his uncle, Axel Carlson, in Fresno, where he has 
 since made his home. At the time of his arrival 
 he could find no position in a mill, so temporarily 
 took up other work pending a vacancy that would 
 furnish him a suitable opportunity to prove his 
 skill as a millwright and machinist. After work- 
 ing for some years in planing mills and ware- 
 houses, in 1897 ^^ was taken into the employ of 
 the Sperry Flour Company, being at first given 
 a very humble position, but rising step by step 
 by force of industry and good workmanship. In 
 July of 1903 he was placed in charge of the mill, 
 and in November of the same year was appointed 
 head miller of the Fresno mills, the largest in 
 the San Joaquin valley, operated by electric power 
 and having a capacity of three hundred and fiftv 
 barrels each twenty-four hours. In his native 
 land he was trained in the Lutheran faith, and 
 still adheres to the religion of his forefathers. 
 Since coming to Fresno he has become a natur- 
 alized citizen of the United States, and a sup- 
 porter of the Republican party, voting for its 
 men and measures both in local and general elec- 
 tions. Movements for the benefit of the work- 
 men receive his co-operation and support, par- 
 ticularly the Fraternal ^Brotherhood, of which 
 he is an active member. His wife, whom he 
 married in Fresno, bore the maiden name of Edna 
 Johnson, and, like himself, is a native of Sweden. 
 
 CHRISTIAN BACHTOLD has been particu- 
 larly mterested in the culture of cereals in Fres- 
 no county for the past eighteen years, especially 
 m the region of Selma, his home, having pur- 
 chased in 1886 the Valley View flouring mills, 
 which he improved, changed into a roller mill' 
 and has operated ever since, giving it the name 
 of the Selma flouring mill. This mill manufac- 
 tures several choice brands of flour, and the out- 
 put—seventy barrels per day of twenty-four 
 hours— is shipped principallv to the nearby mar- 
 
 kets. An expert miller of broad experience, Mr. 
 Bachtold has made a life work of this business, 
 which he learned in his native country, Switzer- 
 land, and after immigrating to America, he fol- 
 lowed his trade in New York, San Francisco, 
 Portland, and in other cities. Although he first 
 came to California in 1874, it was not until 
 twelve years later that he took up his residence 
 in Fresno county, where he now ranks among 
 her most prosperous and well-to-do business men. 
 
 Born January 20, 1853, ™ the canton of 
 Schafifhausen, Switzerland, Mr. Bachtold is the 
 second in a family of twelve children born to 
 Casper and Verena (Myer) Bachtold, both 
 of whom were also natives of the above named 
 canton. Of their children, ten were sons and , 
 two daughters, and of these five sons and one 
 daughter left their native land for a home in 
 the United States. The father was a manufac- 
 turer of tools for the greater part of his life, 
 but his declining years were spent in farm pur- 
 suits. Both he and his wife are now deceased, 
 the latter having passed away in 1880, aged 
 about fifty-six years, and the death of Mr. Bach- 
 told occurring in August, 1903. He was a very 
 successful man, financially and otherwise. 
 
 Educated in the common schools of Switzer- 
 land, Christian Bachtold, at the age of six- 
 teen, became apprenticed at flour milling on the 
 border line between Germany and Switzerland, 
 at a place called Stulingen, in Baden. At 
 eighteen he went to Geneva, and spent one year 
 as miller in a large mill there, subsequently go- 
 ing to Germany and working in the same capaci- 
 ty until 1873 at Speirr, Bavaria. 
 
 In April, 1873, Mr. Bachtold started on his 
 way to America, and the first year of his resi- 
 dence in this country was spent at his trade 
 in Syracuse, N. Y., the trip to California being 
 made in December of the following year. Af- 
 ter spending one week in San Francisco he pro- 
 ceeded to Portland, Ore., and for three months 
 followed milling in that city, but in May, 1875, 
 returned to San Francisco. The following two 
 years were spent as a miller in the employ of 
 George P. McNear in his mills at Petaluma, but 
 on New Year's day, 1878, Mr. Bachtold tendered 
 his resignation in order to accept a more lucra- 
 tive situation in Winnemucca, Nev., and there 
 he -followed milling until 1886. 
 
 In addition to his milling interests, Mr. Bach- 
 told is largely interested in various other enter- 
 prises in this section, being an advocate of ex- 
 pansion. He is vice-president of the First Na- 
 tional Bank of Selma, and vice-president and 
 director of the Selma water works. He served 
 as town trustee for eight years, being chosen to 
 fill that office March 15, 1893, and for four years 
 he officiated as chairman of the board. He is 
 also interested in the oil development of the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1563 
 
 San Joaquin valley, being president of the Hico 
 Oil Company, which has a number of paying 
 wells at Coalinga. In fraternal circles Mr. 
 Bachtold affiliates with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias of 
 Selma. His political preferences are given to the 
 Republican party, and he is among the most 
 active politicians of his locality, having served 
 upon various occasions as delegate to the county 
 and state conventions. By his marriage in 
 Selma, in 1888, he was united with Mrs. Libbie 
 Hartman, a native of Indiana, and they have 
 one child, John C, who is a student in the pub- 
 lic school. 
 
 SAMUEL A. SMITH. Among the substan- 
 tial and successful dairy farmers of Merced 
 county is Samuel A. Smith, a well-known and 
 highly respected resident of Los Banos, his 
 ranch lying half a mile from the city limits. 
 A pioneer settler, having the distinction of being 
 the longest established resident of the west side, 
 he has been very prominent in the upbuilding 
 of this section of the county, having been espe- 
 cially active in advancing the educational and 
 moral welfare of the community in which he 
 resides. Laboring with zeal and earnest pur- 
 pose in his efforts to improve his estate, he has 
 acquired an excellent reputation as an intelli- 
 gent and skillful agriculturist, and as a most 
 capable and prosperous business man. A son 
 of the late Lewis Smith, he was born, February 
 14, 1839, near Rock Island, 111., where he lived 
 until two years old. In 1841 he was taken by 
 his parents to Winnebago county. 111., where he 
 obtained his early education, attending the dis- 
 trict schools. In 1856 his parents became pio- 
 neers of Fayette county, Iowa, where he assisted 
 his father in clearing a homestead. 
 
 Leaving home in 1862, Samuel A. Smith 
 crossed the plains to California, hoping in this 
 genial climate to easier obtain a living from 
 the soil. After living a year in Yolo county, 
 he removed to Solano county, where he was 
 engaged in general farming for several seasons. 
 Locating in Merced county, on the west side, 
 in October, 1868, Mr. Smith pre-empted one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land on section 
 twenty-three, township ten, range ten, and has 
 since resided there, the north line of his ranch 
 being but one-half a mile from the present limits 
 of Los Banos. He subsequently purchased an 
 adjoining tract of one hundred and sixty acres 
 after which he added thirty-six acres of and 
 lying near by, enlarging his estate to three 
 hundred and fifty-six acres. A part of this land 
 Mr Smith has since disposed of, having divided 
 one. hundred and sixty acres of it among four 
 of his sons, giving to each forty acres of land. 
 
 on which the individual owners are raising al- 
 falfa in large quantities. Mr. Smith has now 
 one hundred and ninety-six acres of valuable 
 land in his home ranch, the larger part of which 
 he devotes to alfalfa, and is extensively en- 
 gaged in dairying, keeping over two hundred 
 head of stock, the business at the present time 
 being under the management of his son, Charles 
 P. Smith, of whom a sketch appears on another 
 page of this work. He has made noteworthy 
 improvements on his place, having the land all 
 under irrigation, and furnished with, a substan- 
 tial set of farm buildings. 
 
 In Iowa, in i860, Mr. Smith married Nancy 
 Dollarhide, a native of Indiana, and a daughter 
 of John Dollarhide, who came to California in 
 pioneer days, settling on the Sacramento river. 
 Mrs. Smith passed to the life beyond in 1879, 
 leaving seven children, namely : Oscar, Jasper, 
 Grant, Frank, Charles P., Alice and Amanthus. 
 The sons are all successfully engaged in farm- 
 ing on the west side. Politically Mr. Smith is 
 an earnest advocate of the principles of the 
 Democratic party, and for many years rendered 
 good service as justice of the peace. He was 
 a member of the school board of the first dis- 
 trict, and helped build the first schoolhouse on 
 the west side. Fraternally he belongs to the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. He is a 
 prominent and leading member of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church, and is now chairman of 
 its board of trustees. 
 
 ANDREW P. JENSEN. Among the active 
 and prosperous residents of Newman, no one is 
 better known to the general public than Andrew 
 P. Jensen, the genial and popular proprietor and 
 landlord of the Farmers' Hotel. A man of en- 
 ergetic temperament, and good business ability, 
 he has succeeded well in his undertakings, and 
 is well deserving of the respect and confidence 
 so universally accorded him. A son of James H. 
 Jensen, he was born November 10, 1867, in 
 Ringkjobing, a seaport town of Denmark, lo- 
 cated on the west coast of the peninsula of Jut- 
 land. 
 
 Also a native of Ringkjobing, James H. Jen- 
 sen has been a life-long resident of that place, 
 being now a hale and hearty man of seventy 
 years, residing on the home farm. He is a man 
 of sterling worth, and a member of the Lutheran 
 Church. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Elsie M. Petersen, was born, lived and died in 
 Ringkjobing. Of their seven children, three 
 are living, Andrew P. being the only son. One 
 daughter, Mrs. Paulsen, is also a resident of 
 Newman. 
 
 Bred to agricultural pursuits, Andrew P. Jen- 
 sen obtained his early education in the common 
 
1564 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 schools, remaining at home until becoming of 
 age. Emigrating to America, he located m 
 Newman, Cal., May 29, 1889, and for six years 
 worked on a ranch in this vicinity. Gomg to 
 San Francisco in 1895, he learned the barber's 
 trade, and subsequently opened a barber's shop 
 in Newman, on Front street, where he carried 
 on a successful business until 1900. Giving up 
 his trade in that year, Mr. Jensen leased the 
 Farmers' Hotel, and met with such success in its 
 management that, in 1903, he purchased the en- 
 tire hotel property, and is now its sole owner 
 and manager. The house is conveniently ar- 
 ranged for regular or transient guests, and all 
 are sure of finding a warm welcome and gener- 
 ous treatment at the hands of the accommodat- 
 ing host, whose highest aim is to please his 
 patrons. 
 
 In Newman, Mr. Jensen married Amalia 
 Jacobson, who was born on the Island of Moen, 
 Denmark, and they have three children, namely : 
 Elsie, Clarence M., deceased, and Clara. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Jensen belongs to Newman Lodge, 
 I. O. O. F., and to the Danish Lodge. Reli- 
 giously, true to the faith in which he was reared, 
 he is a Lutheran. 
 
 JASPER N. STUHR. To whatever country 
 the Dane transfers his citizenship he brings the 
 qualities of thrift, economy and perseverance 
 that make his native land a power among larger 
 and greater European countries. In the career 
 of Mr. Stuhr in California these traits have been 
 manifested and have made him an influential 
 factor in the commercial growth of Stanislaus 
 county. Varied as are his interests, he main- 
 tains a close oversight of all. In Newman, 
 where he has his home and business headquar- 
 ters, he represents twelve old-line insurance 
 companies, including the Liverpool-London 
 Globe, Home of New York and German-Amer- 
 ican. Since about 1892 he has acted in the ca- 
 pacity of notary public. As a member of the 
 firm of Williams & Stuhr he negotiates import- 
 ant real estate transfers and handles the Acme 
 colony tract, comprising seven hundred acres of 
 alfalfa land, now laid out in twenty-acre lots. 
 Through his instrumentality was organized the 
 Realty Development Company of Newman and 
 he now acts as president of this important or- 
 ganization, having for its object the growth and 
 prosperity of this part of Stanislaus and Merced 
 counties. To him also belongs the credit of 
 having taken the initiative in the establishment 
 of the first creamery in this vicinity, thereby 
 making the dairy business profitable for farmers 
 of the county. 
 
 .A. resident of California since 1872, Mr. Stuhr 
 was born at Erteberg, on the island of Alsen, 
 
 province of Schleswig, Denmark. His father, 
 Joachim H., a native of the same island, and a 
 merchant by occupation, served in the Schles- 
 wig-Holstein war of 1848-51, and was a sutler 
 in the army in 1864. He lived to be eighty- four 
 years of age, dying in 1901 at his island home. 
 His wife, who had died there in 1888, bore the 
 maiden name of Dorothea Iversen, and was a 
 daughter of Nicholi Iversen, a farmer and mem- 
 ber of a very ancient family of the island. The 
 paternal grandfather of Mr. Stuhr was Chris- 
 tian Stuhr, of German ancestry, and for years 
 engaged in the coasting trade as master of his 
 own vessel. In the family of Joachim H. Stuhr 
 there were eight children, three of whom are 
 living. Jasper N. was born November 5, 1854, 
 and received a grammar school education at 
 Erteberg. When sixteen years of age he went 
 to the island of Lyo, Denmark, where he se- 
 cured work on a farm. Crossing the ocean to 
 America in 1871, he proceeded direct to Chi- 
 cago, and the next year came to California. Af- 
 ter some four years of work in the lumber yard 
 at Salinas, in 1876 he went to Hill's Ferry, Stan- 
 islaus county, where he followed farm pursuits. 
 In 1877 he began to work on the old canal as a 
 section foreman, remaining in the position until 
 1885. The next year he returned to Denmark 
 and spent a year with old friends, coming back 
 to the San Joaquin valley in 1887 and resuming 
 work on the canal. 
 
 Shortly after the founding of the town of 
 Newman Mr. Stuhr in 1888, opened the first lum- 
 ber yard here, acting as manager for the San 
 Joaquin Lumber Company. For four and one- 
 half years he continued in the same position, 
 retiring when the yard was sold to other par- 
 ties. His next venture was as real estate agent, 
 in which work he continues to the present time. 
 Lnder the firm title of J. M. L-athrop & Co. he 
 began in the business, later was alone, and since 
 1900 has had Mr. Williams as a partner. One 
 of the enterprises which now engages his time 
 is the supervision of fifteen hundred acres lying 
 ten miles southwest of Newman, on which he 
 and his partner are building a canal from the 
 outside canal. Ever since coming to this locality 
 he has been an indefatigable worker for the de- 
 velopment of the valley by irrigation and im- 
 provement. Realizing the importance of a 
 creamery, he organized the New Era.'which was 
 the first creamery started in this locality. While 
 filling the office of secretary he assisted in build- 
 ing the structure utilized by the creamery com- 
 pany for its plant and situated two miles south of 
 Newman. This industry was the nucleus of 
 local creameries and established the dairy busi- 
 ness upon a profitable basis for the first time in 
 the history of the region. Later he organized 
 and bought stock in the Acme creamery, three 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1565 
 
 miles north of Newman, which company he 
 served as secretary. At this writing the ship- 
 ments from creameries in the vicinity of New- 
 man amount to $i,ooo per day. What this means 
 to the^ stoclcraismg and business interests of 
 the neighborhood only those familiar with pre- 
 vious conditions can conceive. It has wrought 
 a transformation in the dairy industry and has 
 indirectly promoted other Hnes of activity 
 Without doubt no movement has been more pro- 
 ductive of benefit to the people of Stanislaus 
 count)' than the establishment of the creameries 
 here. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Stuhr took place in Sa- 
 linas, and united him with Miss Annie Kathrine 
 Iversen, a native of Schleswig, Denmark. They 
 are the parents of four children, Christine Dor- 
 othea, Alfred J., Jasper N., and Ivy R. As a 
 member of the county central committee and in 
 other ways Mr. Stuhr has been an active worker 
 in the interests of the Democratic party. He 
 holds the office of secretary of the Newman 
 Board of Trade, and is serving his third term 
 as a member of the board of county horticul- 
 tural commissioners. In his native land he was 
 reared and confirmed in the Lutheran religion, 
 to which he has always adhered. Fraternally 
 he is identified with Dania Lodge, Woodmen of 
 the World, and Hill's Ferry Lodge No. 236, 
 F. & A. M., in which he was made a Mason, and 
 which was transferred to Newman on the found- 
 ing of this town. No citizen has been more in- 
 terested than he in the promotion of the welfare 
 of Newman. Through his able service for three 
 years as postmaster, and in many other ways, 
 he has aided the interests of the city and been 
 a contributor to its material progress. 
 
 JAMES THOMAS DOWLE, M. D. Inspir- 
 ing his fellowmen with confidence in his superior 
 ability as a physician and surgeon, and winning 
 the faith and esteem of his many patients, James 
 Thomas Dowle, M. D., has built up an extensive 
 and lucrative medical practice in Newman and 
 vicinity, where he has been located since 1893. 
 A son of J. T. Dowle, he was born June 21, 
 1864, in Kent county, England. 
 
 Having obtained a practical common school 
 education, James Thomas Dowle came to Cal- 
 ifornia, taking up his residence in San Fran- 
 cisco in 1884. Deciding upon a professional 
 career as the one most suited to his tastes, he 
 entered the Cooper Medical College in 1887, and 
 three years later, in 1890, was graduated from 
 that institution with the degree of M. D. From 
 1891 until 1892 Dr. Dowle was an interne at the 
 French Hospital in San Francisco, where he 
 made good use of his professional knowledge, 
 and acquired a valuable experience. In Febru- 
 
 ary, 1893, he located in Newman, where he has 
 met with distinguished success in his chosen 
 work, attaining a noteworthy position among 
 the leading physicians of the city. In connec- 
 tion with his residence and office, the doctor 
 has built a small sanitarium, which he is man- 
 aging with great success, devoting to it much 
 of his time and best effort. 
 
 Dr. Dowle married Louisa Dahl, who was 
 born in Germany. The doctor cordially endorses 
 the principles of the Republican party, but has 
 never been an aspirant for public office. Fra- 
 ternally he belongs to the Ancient Order of Free 
 and Accepted Masons; to the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows ; to the Woodmen of the 
 World; and to the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen. 
 
 ADOLPH DOBRZENSKY. Numbered 
 among the prosperous and respected residents 
 of Newman is Adolph Dobrzensky who, as pro- 
 prietor of the Vendome Stables, is actively iden- 
 tified with the industrial progress of this section 
 of Stanislaus county. Like many others of Cali- 
 fornia's most enterprising and successful busi- 
 ness men, he is of foreign birth, and has brought 
 from his native land those traits of industry, 
 economy and thrift that are the dominant fac- 
 tors in advancing the welfare of our country, 
 and in establishing the prosperity of its people. 
 He was born March 13, 1857, m Fosen, Ger- 
 many, which was likewise the birthplace of both 
 of his parents, Samuel and Minnie (Ries) Do- 
 brzensky. 
 
 In 1876 Samuel Dobrzensky emigrated with 
 his family to the United States, settling in San 
 Francisco, where he first found employment in 
 a gas manufactory, and was subsequently en- 
 gaged for a number of years in teaming. After 
 the death of his wife, he removed to Newman, 
 and now makes his home with his son Adolph, 
 the special subject of this sketch. Of the six 
 children born of his marriage with Minnie Ries, 
 three sons and one daughter are living. 
 
 Reared and educated in Germany, Adolph Do- 
 brzensky learned the trade of a brass finisher in 
 San Francisco, serving an apprenticeship in the 
 Union Brass Foundry, in which he worked for 
 eight years. Entering then the employ of James 
 Stot & Co., proprietors of a brass foundry, he 
 did special work for fifteen months, making all 
 of the brass knobs for the Palace Hotel. Sub- 
 sequently giving up his trade, Mr. Dobrzensky 
 was for fourteen years engaged as a teamster in 
 San Francisco, doing both light and heavy team- 
 ing. For two years thereafter he carried on a 
 good business as a real estate dealer. Leaving 
 that city on June 16, 1895, Mr. Dobrzensky 
 located in Newman, where he has since been 
 
1564 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 schools, remaining at home until becoming of 
 age. Emigrating to America, he located in 
 Newman, Cal., May 29, 1889, and for six years 
 worked on a ranch in this vicinity. Going to 
 San Francisco in 1895, he learned the barber's 
 trade, and subsequently opened a barber's shop 
 in Newman, on Front street, where he carried 
 on a successful business until 1900. Giving up 
 his trade in that year, Mr. Jensen leased the 
 Farmers' Hotel, and met with such success in its 
 management that, in 1903, he purchased the en- 
 tire hotel property, and is now its sole owner 
 and manager. The house is conveniently ar- 
 ranged for regular or transient guests, and all 
 are sure of finding a warm welcome and gener- 
 ous treatment at the hands of the accommodat- 
 ing host, whose highest aim is to please his 
 patrons. 
 
 In Newman, Mr. Jensen married Amalia 
 Jacobson, who was born on the Island of Moen, 
 Denmark, and they have three children, namely : 
 Elsie, Clarence M., deceased, and Clara. Fra- 
 ternally Mr. Jensen belongs to Newman Lodge, 
 I. O. O. F., and to the Danish Lodge. Reli- 
 giously, true to the faith in which he was reared, 
 he is a Lutheran. 
 
 JASPER N. STUHR. To whatever country 
 the Dane transfers his citizenship he brings the 
 qualities of thrift, economy and perseverance 
 that make his native land a power among larger 
 and greater European countries. In the career 
 of Mr. Stuhr in California these traits have been 
 manifested and have made him an influential 
 factor in the commercial growth of Stanislaus 
 county. Varied as are his interests, he main- 
 tains a close oversight of all. In Newman, 
 where he has his home and business headquar- 
 ters, he represents twelve old-line insurance 
 companies, including the Liverpool-London 
 Globe, Home of New York and German-Amer- 
 ican. Since about 1892 he has acted in the ca- 
 pacity of notary public. As a member of the 
 firm of Williams & Stuhr he negotiates import- 
 ant real estate transfers and handles the Acme 
 colony tract, comprising seven hundred acres of 
 alfalfa land, now laid out in twenty-acre lots. 
 Through his instrumentality was organized the 
 Realty Development Company of Newman and 
 he now acts as president of this important or- 
 ganization, having for its object the growth and 
 prosperity of this part of Stanislaus and Merced 
 counties. To him also belongs the credit of 
 having taken the initiative in the establishment 
 of the first creamery in this vicinity, thereby 
 making the dairy business profitable for farmers 
 of the county. 
 
 A resident of California since 1872, Mr. Stuhr 
 was born at Erteberg, on the island of Alsen, 
 
 province of Schleswig, Denmark. His father, 
 Joachim H., a native of the same island, and a 
 merchant by occupation, served in the Schles- 
 wig-Holstein war of 1848-51, and was a sutler 
 in the army in 1864. He lived to be eighty- four 
 years of age, dying in 1901 at his island home. 
 His wife, who had died there in 1888, bore the 
 maiden name of Dorothea Iversen, and was a 
 daughter of Nicholi Iversen, a farmer and mem- 
 ber of a very ancient family of the island. The 
 paternal grandfather of Mr. Stuhr was Chris- 
 tian Stuhr, of German ancestry, and for years 
 engaged in the coasting trade as master of his 
 own vessel. In the family of Joachim H. Stuhr 
 there were eight children, three of whom are 
 hving. Jasper N. was born November 5, 1854, 
 and received a grammar school education at 
 Erteberg. When sixteen years of age he went 
 to the island of Lyo, Denmark, where he se- 
 cured, work on a farm. Crossing the ocean to 
 America in 1871, he proceeded direct to Chi- 
 cago, and the next year came to California. Af- 
 ter some four years of work in the lumber yard 
 at Salinas, in 1876 he went to Hill's Ferry, Stan- 
 islaus county, where he followed farm pursuits. 
 In 1877 he began to work on the old canal as a 
 section foreman, remaining in the position until 
 1885. The next year he returned to Denmark 
 and spent a year with old friends, coming back 
 to the San Joaquin valley in 1887 and resuming 
 work on the canal. 
 
 Shortly after the founding of the town of 
 Newman Mr. Stuhr in 1888 opened the first lum- 
 ber yard here, acting as manager for the San 
 Joaquin Lumber Company. For four and one- 
 half years he continued in the same position, 
 retiring when the yard was sold to other par- 
 ties. His next venture was as real estate agent, 
 in which work he continues to the present time. 
 Under the firm title of J. M. Lathrop & Co. he 
 began in the business, later was alone, and since 
 1900 has had Mr. Williams as a partner. One 
 of the enterprises which now engages his time 
 is the supervision of fifteen hundred acres lying 
 ten miles southwest of Newman, on which he 
 and his partner are building a canal from the 
 outside canal. Ever since coming to this locahty 
 he has been an indefatigable worker for the de- 
 velopment of the valley by irrigation and im- 
 provement. Realizing the importance of a 
 creamery, he organized the New Erafwhich was 
 the first creamery started in this locality. While 
 filling the office of secretary he assisted in build- 
 ing the structure utilized by the creamery com- 
 pany for its plant and situated two miles south of 
 Newman. This industry was the nucleus of 
 local creameries and established the dairy busi- 
 ness upon a profitable basis for the first time in 
 the history of the region. Later he organized 
 and bought stock in the Acme creamery, three 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1565 
 
 miles north of Newman, which company he 
 served as secretary. At this writing the ship- 
 ments from creameries in the vicinity of New- 
 man amount to $i,ooo per day. What this means 
 to the stock raismg and business interests of 
 the neighborhood only those familiar with pre- 
 vious conditions can conceive. It has wrought 
 a transformation in the dairy industry and has 
 indirectly promoted other lines of activity. 
 Without doubt no movement has been more pro- 
 ductive of benefit to the people of Stanislaus 
 county than the establishment of the creameries 
 here. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Stuhr took place in Sa- 
 linas, and united him with Miss Annie Kathrine 
 Iversen, a native of Schleswig, Denmark. They 
 are the parents of four children, Christine Dor- 
 othea, Alfred J., Jasper N., and Ivy R. As a 
 member of the county central committee and in 
 other ways Mr. Stuhr has been an active worker 
 in the interests of the Democratic party. He 
 holds the office of secretary of the Newman 
 Board of Trade, and is serving his third term 
 as a member of the board of county horticul- 
 tural commissioners. In his native land he was 
 reared and confirmed in the Lutheran religion, 
 to which he has always adhered. Fraternally 
 he is identified with Dania Lodge, Woodmen of 
 the World, and Hill's Ferry Lodge No. 236, 
 F. & A. M., in which he was made a Mason, and 
 which was transferred to Newman on the found- 
 ing of this town. No citizen has been more in- 
 terested than he in the promotion of the welfare 
 of Newman. Through his able service for three 
 years as postmaster, and in many other ways, 
 he has aided the interests of the city and been 
 a contributor to its material progress. 
 
 JAMES THOMAS DOWLE, M. D. Inspir- 
 ing his fellowmen with confidence in his superior 
 ability as a physician and surgeon, and winning 
 the faith and esteem of his many patients, James 
 Thomas Dowle, M. D., has built up an extensive 
 and lucrative medical practice in Newman and 
 vicinity, where he has been located since 1893. 
 A son of J. T. Dowle, he was born June 21, 
 1864, in Kent county, England. 
 
 Having obtained a practical common school 
 education, James Thomas Dowle came to Cal- 
 ifornia, taking up his residence in San Fran- 
 cisco in 1884. Deciding upon a professional 
 career as the one most suited to his tastes, he 
 entered the Cooper Medical College in 1887, and 
 three years later, in 1890, was graduated from 
 that institution with the degree of M. D. From 
 1891 until 1892 Dr. Dowle was an interne at the 
 French Hospital in San Francisco, where he 
 made good use of his professional knowledge, 
 and acquired a valuable experience. In Febru- 
 
 ary^ 1893. he located in Newman, where he has 
 met with distinguished success in his chosen 
 work, attaining a noteworthy position among 
 the leading physicians of the city. In connec- 
 tion with his residence and office, the doctor 
 has built a small sanitarium, which he is man- 
 aging with great success, devoting to it much 
 of his time and best effort. 
 
 Dr. Dowle married Louisa Dahl, who was 
 born in Germany. The doctor cordially endorses 
 the principles of the Republican party, but has 
 never been an aspirant for public office. Fra- 
 ternally he belongs to the Ancient Order of Free 
 and Accepted Masons ; to the Independent Or- 
 der of Odd Fellows ; to the Woodmen of the 
 World; and to the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen. 
 
 ADOLPH DOBRZENSKY. Numbered 
 among the prosperous and respected residents 
 of Newman is Adolph Dobrzensky who, as pro- 
 prietor of the Vendome Stables, is actively iden- 
 tified with the industrial progress of this section 
 of Stanislaus county. Like many others of Cali- 
 fornia's most enterprising and successful busi- 
 ness men, he is of foreign birth, and has brought 
 from his native land those traits of industry, 
 economy and thrift that are the dominant fac- 
 tors in advancing the welfare of our country, 
 and in establishing the prosperity of its people. 
 He was born March 13, 1857, ™ Posen, Ger- 
 many, which was likewise the birthplace of both 
 of his parents, .Samuel and Minnie (Ries) Do- 
 brzensky. 
 
 In 1876 Samuel Dobrzensky emigrated with 
 his family to the United States, settling in San 
 Francisco, where he first found employment in 
 a gas manufactory, and was subsequently en- 
 gaged for a number of years in teaming. After 
 the death of his wife, he removed to Newman, 
 and now makes his home with his son Adolph, 
 the special subject of this sketch. Of the six 
 children born of his marriage with Minnie Ries, 
 three sons and one daughter are living. 
 
 Reared and educated in Germany, Adolph Do- 
 brzensky learned the trade of a brass finisher in 
 San Francisco, serving an apprenticeship in the 
 Union Brass Foundry, in which he worked for 
 eight years. Entering then the employ of James 
 Stot & Co., proprietors of a brass foundry, he 
 did special work for fifteen months, making all 
 of the brass knob's for the Palace Hotel. Sub- 
 sequently giving up his trade, Mr. Dobrzensky 
 was for fourteen years engaged as a teamster in 
 San Francisco, doing both light and heavy team- 
 ing. For two years thereafter he carried on a 
 good business as a real estate dealer. Leaving 
 that city on June 16, 1895, Mr. Dobrzensky 
 located in Newman, where he has since been 
 
1566 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 actively engaged in the livery business, being 
 proprietor of the Vendome Stables, which are 
 well stocked, and furnished with carriages and 
 vehicles of all kinds. 
 
 In Livermore, Cal., Mr. Dobrzensky married 
 Anna Levi, who was born in San Leandro, Ala- 
 meda county, and they are the parents of two 
 children, namely : Milton and Doris. In poH- 
 tics Mr. Dobrzensky is a supporter of the prin- 
 ciples of the Republican party. He is very much 
 interested in Masonry, belonging to Hill's Ferry 
 Lodge No. 236, F. & A. M. ; and to the Modesto 
 Chapter No. 49, R. A. M. 
 
 ST. AUGUSTINE'S ACADEMY. Occupy- 
 ing almost one-half block on Mariposa and R 
 streets lies the academy which, since its estab- 
 lishment, has been recognized as one of the lead- 
 ing educational institutions of Fresno. While 
 its influence has been greatest among those of 
 the Roman Catholic faith, yet it has received stu- 
 dents of all denominations and the religious con- 
 victions of each has been sacredly respected. 
 Under the capable yet kindly supervision of Sis- 
 ter Florian, superior of the academy for the 
 Sisters of the Holy Cross, connected with the 
 mother house at Notre Dame, Ind., and with 
 the assistance of an efficient corps of instructors, 
 thorough instruction is furnished in all branches 
 of higher education as well -as primary classes. 
 The department of art, voice culture and instru- 
 mental music, offer advantages that are appre- 
 ciated by many students. To aid those who may 
 have their own livelihood to earn, stenography, 
 typewriting and bookkeeping are taught, while 
 for the benefit of those whose tastes turn to do- 
 mestic affairs plain sewing, fancy work and lace 
 work are taught by teachers of experience. To 
 develop natural dignity and noble simplicity of 
 character is the aim of the academy's system of 
 education, and every teacher has this ideal placed 
 before her pupils. Sister Florian and her assist- 
 ants endeavor to implant in the heart of each 
 student a love for truth and a devotion to duty 
 that will enable them, whether called to high or 
 inconspicuous spheres of life, to wield a helpful 
 and abiding influence on their associates. 
 
 Sister Florian is a native of Watertown, Wis., 
 where her parents were pioneers. She com- 
 pleted her education at Notre Dame, Ind., under 
 the oversight of the Sisters of the Holy Cross, 
 to which order her active life has been conse- 
 crated. In the fall of 1892 the first steps were 
 taken toward the establishment of an academy 
 at Fresno. During November of that year the 
 Mother-General Augusta of Notre Dame, accom- 
 panied by Mother Praxadese, Sister Florian and 
 Sister Elenore, visited Fresno and founded the 
 academy, which was opened January 5, 1893. 
 
 At that time three other teachers were sent as 
 assistants. Sisters Sylvia, Angelita and Lilliosa, 
 none of whom is now connected with the school. 
 As soon as the preliminary arrangements had 
 been completed, the Mother-General returned to 
 Notre Dame and left Sister Florian in charge. 
 At the opening there were only fourteen pupils, 
 but when the term closed, June 15, 1893, the 
 number had been increased to forty. In 1897 
 property on N street was purchased, to which 
 was moved the old high school building. On the 
 evening of the completion of the remodeling of 
 the structure, it burned to the ground. A build- 
 ing was then rented on N street, where the school ■ 
 remained until October, 1898, and was then 
 moved to Mariposa street, this site having been 
 purchased the preceding February. The resi- 
 dence was remodeled and converted into a build- 
 ing suitable for academy purposes and a new 
 parochial school was built on the adjoining lots, 
 the two institutions now having an attendance of 
 one hundred and seventy-five pupils. While stu- 
 dents are in attendance from all parts of the 
 state, the majority of them come from the San 
 Joaquin valley, the institution being best known 
 through this region. Much of the success of the 
 work is due to the faithful, intelligent and tact- 
 ful labors of Sister Flcfrian, who has abundantly 
 justified the wisdom of the Mother-General in 
 selecting her for this responsible position. 
 
 JAMES M. DAVIS. In Merced county, Cal., 
 few men hold so important a position as James 
 M. Davis, who since 1890 has been superintend- 
 ent of the Buhach Plantation, which is without 
 doubt one of the finest plantations in the San 
 Joaquin valley. By Kis individual efforts Mr. 
 Davis has been instrumental in making this place 
 the pride of Merced county. A descendant of 
 distinguished Virginia ancestors and born July 
 31, 1839, i^^ Xenia, Ohio, he is the son of John 
 and Catherine (House) Davis, both of whom 
 were natives of Virginia. His father left that 
 state when a young man for a home in Ohio, 
 and was a pioneer settler in Xenia, Greene 
 county. In 1848, accompanied by his family, 
 he went farther west and settled in Missouri, 
 where he again took up a mercantile life, which 
 had been his occupation in the east. Here he 
 became a prominent citizen and served as jus- 
 tice of the peace for a number of years prior to 
 his death, which occurred at the advanced age 
 of seventy-eight years. 
 
 Being but nine years old when his parents 
 removed to Missouri, J. M. Davis was educated 
 principally in the latter state and remained at 
 the home place until 1859, i" the meantime be- 
 coming a telegraph operator in Kansas City, 
 Mo. During the excitement following the dis- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1567 
 
 covery of gold at Pike's Peak, he left home for 
 that scene of activity, and afterward followed 
 mining in Colorado, Idaho, Utah and Arizona. 
 In 1869 Air. Davis discontinued mining and 
 cai*ie to California, where other occupations en- 
 grossed his attention. In Lake county he en- 
 gaged in the saw-milling business for a time, 
 and afterward built a saw-mill in Sonoma 
 county, following that business for eleven years 
 near Middletown. 
 
 In 1880 Mr. Davis turned his attention to ag- 
 ricultural pursuits and during that year he took 
 the contract of planting the Olivina vineyard, in 
 Alameda county. Two years later he planted 
 the big vineyard at Folsom, one of the largest in 
 the state, and from 1886 to '88 he had charge 
 of various vineyards in Napa county. By this 
 time, having gained a reputation as a successful 
 vineyardist, he received a call to become super- 
 intendent of the Buhach Plantation, which he 
 accepted, assuming the numerous duties of this 
 position in 1890. 
 
 Mr. Davis has been twice married, his first 
 marriage, in Idaho, in 1865, uniting him with 
 Amerette Holly, who died in 1880, leaving three 
 children to the care of her husband, namely : 
 Katie, Amy and Walter. In 1882 Mr. Davis 
 again married, being united with Susan Patter- 
 son, a native of California and a daughter of the 
 late M. G. Patterson, who left North Carolina 
 -in 1846. He served under General Fremont 
 during the Mexican war and was wounded. 
 Mrs. Patterson survives her husband and resides 
 with Mr. and Mrs. Davis. She is a native of 
 Tennessee, and to her belongs the distinction of 
 being the first white woman to live in Livermore, 
 Alameda county, Cal. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have 
 one son, Frank P., who is a student at St. Mat- 
 thews Academy. Politically Mr. Davis is an 
 unswerving Democrat. As superintendent of the 
 Buhach ranch his position is one of importance, 
 and in connection with a sketch of his life a brief 
 description of this prominent ranch is herewith 
 appended. 
 
 THE BUHACH PLANTATION. Generally 
 conceded to be one of the finest and most pro- 
 ductive as well as one of the most extensive 
 ranches in the San Joaquin valley, this plantation 
 is conveniently located on the main line of the 
 Southern Pacific Railway, six miles west of Mer- 
 ced and one mile east of Atwater. It is owned 
 by J. D. Peters, of Stockton, Cal., and comprises 
 twelve hundred acres, one thousand acres being 
 under irrigation. The entire place, which is 
 well kept, is a delight to the eye, being completely 
 surrounded by magnificent poplar and umbrella 
 trees. Under the efficient management of J. M. 
 Davis, who is assisted by J. F. Peters, the place 
 
 furnishes employment for from thirty to one 
 hundred and fifty men, according to the season. 
 Seven hundred acres are in vineyards of both 
 wine and table grapes, the latter varieties being 
 shipped to the northern and eastern states. An 
 extensive winery and distillery are located upon 
 the plantation and a number of fine port wines 
 and brandies are made. One hundred and fifty 
 acres are devoted to raising sweet potatoes, so 
 profitably grown throughout the Buhach Col- 
 ony; fifty acres are in orchards and contain 
 choice varieties of peaches, pears and plums; 
 and eighty acres are in almonds. 
 
 But it is from the cultivation of pyrethrum, to 
 which two hundred acres of this place is planted, 
 that this plantation as well as the entire colony 
 adjacent have come into prominence, for from 
 this flower is made the famous Persian powder 
 known as "Buhach," from which the plantation 
 and colony derive their name. This flower in 
 appearance resembles the chrysanthemum ; the 
 plants are placed in rows four feet apart and the 
 plants eighteen inches apart in the rows. It is 
 harvested with the old-fashioned sickle, the flow- 
 ers stripped from the stems by iron fingers. 
 After being thoroughly dried they are sent to 
 Stockton, where the whole is ground into pow- 
 der and put up in packages, being then sent for 
 sale to all parts of the world. This powder is. 
 said to be deadly to insects, bugs, flies, etc., but 
 is harmless .to htiman beings and it commands 
 a good price, the sales being enormous. Twenty- 
 five tons of Buhach is raised on this plantation 
 each year. The expert manner in which the 
 whole place is managed reflects great credit on 
 the untiring efiforts of Mr. Davis. 
 
 ELMER JEWETT FARR. The family rep- 
 resented by Mr. Farr, a well-known contractor 
 and builder of, Fresno, was established in New 
 England during the colonial period. Both of his 
 grandfathers, James Farr (a blacksmith) and 
 Chester Goodrich, were lifelong residents of Ver- 
 mont, and his parents, L. B. and Clarissa (Good- 
 rich) Farr, were natives of the same state, the 
 former born in Rutland county, the latter near 
 Middlebury. After having followed general 
 farm pursuits for some years in Vermont and 
 New York, about 1863 L. B. Farr settled in 
 Marshall county, Iowa, and took up a tract of 
 wild land eight miles from Marshalltown, where 
 in the course of time, by untiring industry, he 
 transformed a half section of wild acreage into 
 a finely improved farm. While he still conducts 
 farm pursuits, he now makes his home in Chero- 
 kee county, Iowa. His entire family, consisting 
 of wife and six children, are still living. Of 
 the children Elmer J., who was next to the 
 youngest, is the only one on the Pacific coast. 
 
1568 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 He was born near Stockholm, St. Lawrence 
 county, N. Y., April 27, 1862, and in infancy 
 was taken to Iowa, where his earliest recollec- 
 tions are of the home farm with its frontier sur- 
 roundings. 
 
 When eighteen years of age Mr. Farr began 
 to work at the carpenter's trade in Grinnell, 
 Iowa, and after a year was made foreman of 
 work in Aurelia, Iowa. Another year found 
 him in Sioux Falls, S. Dak., and Sioux City, 
 Iowa, in which latter place he took up the work 
 of a contractor and builder, which he has suc- 
 cessfully followed for many years. Prior to this 
 he was foreman on the Minnehaha county court 
 house at Sioux Falls, also as contractor erected 
 Banker Bailey's residence. Among his contracts 
 in Iowa were the Lindholm Block, and residences 
 of Thomas Green and A. C. Stephens in Sioux 
 City. Coming to California in the fall of 1895, 
 he spent the winter in Stockton and during the 
 spring of 1896 settled in Fresno, where he was 
 first employed by the Santa Fe Railroad Com- 
 pany as division foreman in charge of the round- 
 house, carworks and engines. This position he 
 filled until 1899, and then resigned in order to 
 start in the building business, his first work in 
 that capacity being as foreman for F. J. Stone. 
 In ,1902 he took up contracting and building. 
 Among the buildings which he has had in charge 
 are the residence on Butler avenue owned by 
 Fred Dow, William Kennedy's house, and the 
 remodeling of the residence owned by Thomas 
 Patterson. 
 
 While living in Sioux City, Iowa, Mr. Farr 
 married Carrie Hamsher, who was born in Wis- 
 consin. They, with their two children, Forest 
 and Vida, reside at No. 519 L street. The fam- 
 ily are identified with the Cumberland Presby- 
 terian Church. In matters political Mr. Farr 
 has always given his support to the Republican 
 party, but his interest in such matters is wholly 
 that of a private citizen, not an office-seeker. In 
 addition to being a member of the Woodmen of 
 the World he has fraternal relations with the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, into which 
 he was initiated at Sioux Falls, but is now a 
 member and past noble grand of Central Cali- 
 fornia Lodge No. 343, at Fresno. 
 
 EDWARD H. HOFFMAN. Closely allied 
 with the industrial and business interests of Los 
 Banos is Edward H. Hoffman, the pioneer 
 plumber and tinsmith of this section of Merced 
 county. He is a man of practical energy and 
 judgment, taking an active part in advancing 
 the welfare of the community in which he re- 
 sides, and of which he is an esteemed member. 
 A native-born Californian, his birth occurred 
 March 14, 1864, in Alamo, Contra Costa county, 
 
 a son of H. Hofl^man. A brief account of his 
 parents and immediate ancestors may be found 
 on another page of this volume, in connection 
 with the sketch of James J. Sweeney. 
 
 After completing his early studies in the pub- 
 lic schools of Alamo, Mr. Hoffman learned the 
 blacksmith trade with William Snyder, at Dutch 
 Corner. Going then to Stockton, he worked for 
 a year in the sash and blind factory of White & 
 Thomas, after which he returned home and the 
 succeeding year engaged in the cattle business 
 on the Aqua Frea ranch. Not content with that 
 occupation, he went to San Francisco, where he 
 entered the employ of J. T. Farrell, with whom 
 he served an apprenticeship of three years at the 
 plumber's and tinsmith's trade. Thoroughly 
 equipped for the business in which he was to en- 
 ter, Mr. Hoffman went directly to Los Banos 
 to establish himself as a plumber and tinsmith, 
 being the first of his trade to locate here. Erect- 
 ing his present establishment in June, 1890, he 
 has since resided here, and in the time that has 
 elapsed has built up an extensive and lucrative 
 business. He is agent for the Pacific Pump and 
 Windmill Company of San Francisco, and in 
 this line of industry, also, does a great deal of 
 work, his business extending up and down the 
 west side of the valley. 
 
 In his political views Mr. Hoffman is a zeal- 
 ous advocate of the principles of the Democratic 
 party. Fraternally he belongs to Los Banos 
 Lodge No. 312, F. & A. M. He was a charter 
 member of Santa Rita Parlor, N. S. G. W., be- 
 longing to it until it disbanded. 
 
 MRS. ETTA MOORE SOPER has long been 
 known in Merced county in the realms of edu- 
 cation, art, and dairying. In the former capac- 
 ity in particular her name is associated with 
 continuous effort to maintain a high standard, 
 and probably no other woman in the county has 
 exerted a broader or more practical influence 
 toward this end. Before her marriage Mrs. 
 Soper was Etta Moore ; she was born in Potsdam, 
 St. Lawrence coimty, N. Y., and reared in Wash- 
 ington county, Vt., whither her parents removed 
 when she was a child. He father, Samuel Moore, 
 was born in England. Mrs. Soper's father died 
 when she was a child, as did also her mother, 
 whose maiden name was Pray, and who was of 
 Scotch-Irish descent. She was the mother of 
 six children, four of whom are living, the oldest 
 son, Truman, having died at Alexander, Va., as 
 a member of a Vermont regiment. 
 
 Mrs. Soper was educated in the public schools 
 and at Godard Seminary, at Barre, Vt., working 
 her wa)' through the latter institution by teach- 
 ing, which she began at the age of fifteen. Con- 
 tinuing to teach in Washington county, Vt., until 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 I5G9 
 
 1885, she then came to Merced county and taught 
 in the school at old Central Point for a year, 
 since then teaching in different schools in the 
 county for eight years. Having always a pre- 
 dilection for country life, she became the owner of 
 a thirty-eight-acre ranch in 1892, and has in the 
 meantime converted its bare and wild aspect into 
 one of beauty and usefulness. Her residence, 
 barns and general buildings, her orchard and gar- 
 den, bespeak the care and painstaking methods 
 which characterize her life, and more especially 
 her courage in the face of discouraging obstacles. 
 In 1899 her house was burned to the ground, 
 and her library, paintings, and treasures, became 
 things of the past. Her land is all under alfalfa, 
 and she is engaged in dairying. Mrs. Soper is 
 gifted in art, having a comprehensive knowledge 
 of the work and methods of the principal masters 
 whose genius has embellished the world, and she 
 is apt in expressing in oils and crayons both ani- 
 mals and landscapes. She is a member of the 
 Universalist Church. Her farm is located a mile 
 and a half southeast of Los Banos. Mrs. Soper's 
 intellectual qualities have not eliminated the 
 traits most desirable and lovable in women. She 
 is popular with her friends, numbering them 
 among the best people in the county. 
 
 FRANK J. BURLEIGH. Descended from 
 an old Massachusetts family of English extrac- 
 tion, Frank J. Burleigh of Fresno was born at 
 Hill, N. H., February 25, 1848, being a son of 
 J. M. and Harriet N. (Privier) Burleigh, also 
 natives of New Hampshire. His maternal 
 grandfather, Joseph Privier, for years carried 
 on a farm in New Hampshire, but finally re- 
 moved to Illinois, and died at Buda, Bureau 
 county. In the days when agitation was keen 
 concerning the fate of Kansas as a free or slave 
 state, J. M. Burleigh in 1854 went to that region 
 for the purpose of giving his support to the 
 anti-slavery side. Settling at Lawrence, he 
 opened the old Free State hotel, the first inn 
 kept there, his guests being entertained in a 
 rude but comfortable sod building, with a 
 thatched roof. In 1855 he removed to Deep 
 creek, Wabaunsee county, where he entered 
 land and improved a farm. After ten years on 
 tha't place he changed his place of residence to 
 Manhattan, and later engaged in stock-raising- 
 and farming on the head of Timber creek, in 
 the northwestern part of Riley county. Dur- 
 ing the period before the Civil war he was a 
 leading abolitionist of his section. Politically 
 a Republican, he served as postmaster and as jus- 
 tice of the peace while living in Kansas. Dur- 
 ing 1874 he came to California and bought prop- 
 erty in Fresno, where he made his home until 
 he died at seventy-two years of age. In religion 
 
 he was connected with the Christian Church. 
 His wife, who is now (1904) seventy-nine years 
 of age, makes her home with members of her 
 family in Fresno county. Of her six children 
 four are living, all in Fresno county, namely: 
 Frank J.; Frederick L., a stockman and vine- 
 yardist; Howard E., who owns stock and vine- 
 yard interests, and at this writing holds the 
 office of county supervisor; and Mrs. Sarah 
 McNeil. 
 
 When six years of age Frank J. Burleigh 
 was taken to Kansas by his parents. The state 
 being then a frontier region, he had no ad- 
 vantages of an educational or social nature, and 
 the knowledge he has acquired represents his 
 unaided exertions. In 1868 he enlisted in Com- 
 pany M, Nineteenth Kansas Cavalry, with Cap- 
 tain Moody and Colonel Moore, and after hav- 
 ing been mustered into service at Topeka was 
 sent in pursuit of the Cheyenne Indians, taking 
 part in the battle against them on the Washita 
 river. Supplies were exhausted while the regi- 
 ment was at the front;, far from the commissary 
 headquarters or from any town where relief 
 could be secured. For fourteen days the twelve 
 hundred soldiers subsisted on wild berries and 
 the meat from one buffalo. A train with sup- 
 plies was sent to their relief at Wichita, but 
 failed to reach them, so that three days' govern- 
 ment rations was all the provisions they had for 
 twenty-one days. After six months of service 
 the regiment was mustered out in the spring of 
 1869, at Port Hayes, Kans. On this expedition 
 General Custer was in command of the Nine- 
 teenth, as well as the old Seventh United States 
 Cavalry. 
 
 During 1867-68 Mr. Burleigh was employed 
 in the building of the Kansas Pacific railroad 
 through the frontier regions of Kansas. In 
 1872 he married Mary A. Harris, a resident of 
 Riley county, Kans., and a native of Eng- 
 land, being a daughter of John Harris. The 
 latter brought his family to America when his 
 daughter was five months old and settled in 
 Illinois, but later went to Kansas, and from 
 there to California, his death occurring in Fres- 
 no. The two children of Mr. and Mrs. Burleigh 
 are Charles M. and Harriet, the wife of Walter 
 C. Penn of Fresno. Charles M. is a graduate 
 of the Fresno Business College and now en- 
 gaged with his father in the stock and grain 
 business. Two years after his marriage Mr. 
 Burleigh sold his stock ranch in Kansas and 
 came to California. For a time he was with 
 Donahue & Glass, who owned what was one of 
 the first lumber mills in Fresno county, near 
 Pine Ridge. While working there he always 
 made Fresno his home. In 1879 he embarked 
 in the warehouse and lumber business on H 
 street, between Tulare and Kern, and continued 
 
1570 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 there until selling out in 1885. In 1889 he built 
 a warehouse 60x250 feet, on G street, and the 
 following year erected a brick building adjoin- 
 ing, 60x150, for the storage of raisins and 
 fruits. The old warehouse has been utilized for 
 grain and barley, and has a capacity of ten 
 thousand tons. In addition, a large business is 
 conducted in the buying and shipping of cattle, 
 sheep and hogs, some of the latter having been 
 sent to Honolulu. The Fresno Meat Company, 
 incorporated in 1903, consists of himself and 
 son as stockholders and du'ectors. Besides the 
 varied business interests which he manages he 
 superintends his orchard of twenty acres one 
 mile north of the city, as well as other valuable 
 property which he owns in Fresno. Though 
 not a partisan, he is a stanch Republican, and 
 always supports the party in whose faith he 
 was reared. Through his membership in the 
 Chamber of Commerce he has given his influ- 
 ence to movements of benefit to Fresno, whose 
 rise to a position as a recognized center of a 
 great fruit growing industry is a source of pro- 
 found satisfaction to him as well as to all 
 progressive citizens. In fraternal matters he is 
 connected with and a charter member and one 
 of the organizers of the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen, and Benevolent and Protective Or- 
 der of Elks. 
 
 ANDREAS OTTO. Unusual interest at- 
 taches to the name of Andreas Otto, for it was 
 he whO' built the first mill in the United States 
 for the manufacture of sugar, and, although 
 many attempts had previously been made, he 
 was the first successfully to manufacture sugar 
 from the beet. His knowledge of the refining 
 and making of sugar was gained in Germany, 
 where for seventeen and one-half years he en- 
 gaged in the business near Magdeburg on the 
 river Elbe. He was born near that city May 6, 
 1825, being a son of Peter and Maria Sophia 
 Otto, natives of Germany, where the former was 
 interested in general farming and the stock 
 business. At the age of eighteen Andreas Otto 
 entered a sugar-mill near his home for the pur- 
 pose of learning the business, which he studied 
 :n every department, finally becoming foreman 
 and superintendent of the plant. At the time of 
 the revolution of 1848 he entered the German 
 army and for three years served as a soldier, re- 
 turning to the mill at the expiration of his 
 service. 
 
 On coming to the United States in 1867 Mr. 
 Otto settled at Fond du' Lac, Wis., where he 
 lived in a block house and built a crude mill, 
 which was the first of its kind in the country. 
 Sixteen acres of his land was under sugar 
 beets, which he used in the manufacture of 
 
 sugar. People ridiculed his enthusiasm on tlio 
 subject of sugar beets, and declared his mill 
 would be a failure. One old man, in particular, 
 scoffed at the idea of making sugar out of beets. 
 After the season's crop was harvested he manu- 
 factured some sugar. When the old man came 
 he was shown the product, and on tasting found 
 it excellent. Not knowing it was beet sugar, 
 he asked, where it had been purchased. His sur- 
 prise was great on being assured that it was 
 a product of beets. At first he was incredu- 
 lous, but finally was convinced that he had 
 tasted genuine beet sugar. The success of the 
 mill became known elsewhere. Papers con- 
 tained glowing accounts of the manufacturer's 
 success in the new industry. As a consequence 
 he received letters of inquiry from all parts of 
 the United States asking for information con- 
 cerning his methods of making sugar. 
 
 Upon the solicitation of people in California 
 who were interested in the manufacture of sugar, 
 Mr. Otto was induced to come west in 1870. 
 Messrs. Flint, Dyer, Hutchinson and others 
 formed a company and built at Alvarado the 
 first mill in California. For five years Mr. Otto 
 had charge of this plant. At the expiration of 
 that time it was removed to Santa Cruz and re- 
 built on a larger scale, with a capacity of fifty 
 tons of beets per day. As manager he remained 
 in Santa Cruz for five years, but during the en- 
 tire time there was constant dissension among 
 the stockholders, which finally resulted in the 
 disintegration of the corporation. In 1880 Mr. 
 Otto was engaged by Claus Spreckels to go to 
 the Sandwich Islands, where he built a sugar 
 mill at Paahau, and engaged in the manufacture 
 of sugar from cane. The mill had a large ca- 
 pacity, and was successfully operated. During 
 the period of his residence there, in 1882, he in- 
 vented and patented a machine for saving the 
 sugar from the waste scum that had been turned 
 into the ocean previously. By reason of this 
 new machinery the mill was enabled to turn out 
 more sugar from the same amount of cane than 
 any other mill on the island. He also built tanks 
 to hold the syrup so the sugar that theretofore 
 had been wasted would become crystallized and 
 saved. His patent covered only ten years, and 
 therefore brought him little financial profit, but 
 he has the satisfaction of knowing that it is now 
 in universal use to the benefit of all sugar re- 
 finers. 
 
 After six years on the Sandwich Islands, Mr. 
 Otto returned to California. In 1882 he had 
 purchased eighty acres on what is now East 
 avenue, four and one-half miles from Fresno, and 
 in 1886 he settled on the place, which has since 
 been his home. All of the improvements now 
 noticeable here are the result of his energy and 
 careful oversight. It was his ambition to make 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1571 
 
 of the property one of the most vahiable in all 
 of this section, and in this hope he has not been 
 disappointed. The residence that he erected is 
 a comfortable and attractive abode. Orchards 
 and vineyard have been set out, and through an 
 excellent system of irrigation have been made 
 to bear abundant harvests. A special feature of 
 the estate is the dairy industry, for the manage- 
 ment of which he has a steam pumping and cool- 
 ing plant. Of recent years he has rented the 
 place to his son, Ewald R. Otto, who is profitably 
 conducting the dairy business. While living in 
 Germany Mr. Otto married Miss Elizabeth Elise 
 Wienbeck, a native of the same province as him- 
 self. They became the parents of eight children, 
 five of whom are living, namely : Emil F., who 
 is connected with the packing house in Fresno; 
 Emma, wife of George Noble, of VisaHa ; Bertha, 
 who married Thomas Givens ; Rosa, Mrs. George 
 W. Cartwright; and Ewald R., who rents the 
 home place. 
 
 FAUSTINO M. NORIEGA. Among the 
 men who have made possible the enormous 
 sheep raising business in Kern county, none 
 stands higher in the public regard than F. M. 
 Noriega, for many years a trusted employe of 
 Miller & Lux, extensive sheep and cattle ranch- 
 ers, and since identified with the buying and 
 selling of sheep and the purchasing and improv- 
 ing of country and town property. It is doubt- 
 ful if any man in Kern county is a better judge 
 of the animals who contribute so generously to 
 the making of western fortunes, for during his 
 active life he has purchased many herds of sheep, 
 often paying as high as $30,000 a herd. He has 
 made a practical study of the habits and con- 
 ditions under which sheep are best cared for, and 
 the fact that he is a pioneer in this line of in- 
 dustry, and has watched with keen interest its 
 development up to the present time, gives special 
 weight to his judgment and opinion. 
 
 As his name implies, Mr. Noriega is a Span- 
 iard, and was born in Santander, Spain, Feb- 
 ruary 15, 1856. At the age of fifteen he left 
 his parents' home and became errand boy in a 
 near-by city, but when tired of this work came to. 
 California in 1872, his choice of location being 
 influenced by the fact that his god-father, Vin- 
 cent Noriega, lived in Tulare county. The jour- 
 ney here was an event to the untraveled boy, 
 and consumed many weeks, for he immigrated 
 first to New York, and from there came to the 
 coast by way of the Isthmus of Panama, reach- 
 ing San Francisco October 4, 1872. His first ex- 
 perience of importance was not calculated to 
 impress him favorably with his adopted country, 
 for upon stepping off the train at Oakland he 
 broke his ankle. Recovering, he was taken by 
 
 friends to Visalia, where he worked with his 
 cousin at sheep herding, and in time managed 
 to save enough money to take up land on his 
 own responsibility. Pie became identified with 
 the Kern County Land Company as a sheep 
 driver in 1879, later being advanced to the posi- 
 tion of foreman for the same company. In 1882 
 he began to work for Miller & Lux, and was 
 foreman of the ranch until 1893. During that 
 time his operations as buyer and seller were con- 
 ducted on a large scale, and he had from thirty 
 to forty men under his charge. That his ser- 
 vices were satisfactory in the extreme is evident 
 from the fact that he remained in the same em- 
 ploy for eleven years. 
 
 In December, 1893, Mr. Noriega came to Kern 
 and erected the Ivoria hotel, for which he was 
 obliged to borrow $3,500, and which he himself 
 operated successfully until leasing the same in 
 1901. He has also erected the new brick Hotel 
 Pyrenees costing $9,000, and besides, is the owner 
 of other houses and property in the town. His 
 interest in sheep is in no way abated, for he is 
 half owner of a herd of eight thousand, which 
 in winter are grazed in this county, but are 
 driven to Nevada for the summer season. 
 
 February 14, 1893, Mr. Noriega married 
 Louise Inda, a native of France, and the mother 
 of three children : Martha Lena, Julia and Chris- 
 tian. Through all of his varied experiences Mr. 
 Noriega has preserved a genial temperament, 
 and has never lost track of the innate courtesy 
 and consideration of his race. He is high minded 
 in the extreme, and a public-spirited citizen to 
 whon: his townsmen look for support in all 
 efforts at general municipal improvement. 
 
 SAMUEL ALEXANDER MOOREHEAD. 
 For more than forty years a citizen of the glori- 
 ous state of California, Mr. Moorehead, during 
 his long and eventful life covering a space of 
 seventy-one years, has followed diversified occu- 
 pations, but the main occupation in which the 
 greater part of his hopes have been centered is 
 agricultural pursuits, with kindred branches ; this 
 line of work still claims his attention on his beau- 
 tiful home place five miles west of Crows Land- 
 ing. Here he has a fine ranch of two hundred 
 and six acres of choice land, devoted to general 
 farm pursuits, but principally to raising wheat 
 and barley. In addition to this he owns two hun- 
 dred and forty acres near his homestead. 
 
 Born January 10, 1833, in Greenbrier county, 
 West Va., Samuel A. Moorehead is a son of John 
 Moorehead. His education commenced in his 
 native state and was continued in Iowa, whither 
 his parents had removed with the family in 1850. 
 They located on a farm in Louisa county and in 
 
1572 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 this vicinity Mr. Moorehead began farm pursuits 
 on his own behalf. In 1863 he was induced to 
 start for California, crossing the plains behind 
 horse-teams and stopping for a short time at Car- 
 son City. In December of the same year he 
 reached Marysville, Cal., remaining there also 
 but a short time. In January, the year following, 
 he began teaming to and from the mines hauling 
 freight. This occupation, although somewhat 
 hazardous, was a paying business and he followed 
 it up to the time of his marriage, in 1868, after- 
 ward working in a sawmill. 
 
 It was in the fall of 1869 that Mr. Moorehead 
 took one hundred and sixty acres of land among 
 the foothills in the San Joaquin valley. This 
 land is located near the present home of Mr. 
 Moorehead, along Crow creek, in Stanislaus 
 county and here for years Mr. Moorehead fol- 
 lowed ranching pursuits. By a subsecjuent pur- 
 chase, eighty acres of additional land were added 
 and Mr. Moorehead still owns this fine ranch, 
 which now contains two hundred and forty acres. 
 In 1889 he removed to his home place, which he 
 purchased at that time and upon it he has lived 
 ever since. His' land is very productive, but with 
 the aid of his combination harvester, he is en- 
 abled to handle the harvest easily. 
 
 April 8, 1868, in Placerville, Cal., INIr. Moore- 
 head married Alice Morgan, who was born in 
 Ireland, but who accompanied a brother to New 
 York and afterward to California. Of the six 
 children born of this union, three are deceased. 
 They are Alexander, Etta and Walter. Those 
 living are Rena, now Mrs. Charley Carver ; Lee, 
 who resides at the home site ; and Fannie, now 
 Mrs. Gilbert Ostrum, a resident of Knights 
 Ferry, Cal. A Democrat in his political views, 
 Mr. Moorehead has been useful to his party in 
 many ways, and he has served many years as 
 school director, being largely interested in the 
 educational affairs of his locality. Fraternally 
 he is a Mason, joining the order in Truckee, 
 this state. 
 
 GEORGE FEAVER. A well-known and 
 successful fruit-grower and vineyardist of 
 Fresno county, George Feaver is located on 
 his eighty-acre ranch in the Fowler district, 
 eight and a half miles southeast of the city 
 of Fresno. A native of England, he was born 
 in 1838, and there remained for many years, 
 earning his livelihood among the more or less 
 hampering conditions of a thickly peopled 
 country. He was forty-seven years old when 
 he decided upon emigration to the western 
 world, in 1883 crossing the ocean and seek- 
 ing a new home for his family. California 
 was his destination, and on his arrival here he 
 settled in Fresno county, in Washington col- 
 
 ony purchasing land upon which he remained 
 for three years. He then moved to the Fow- 
 ler district, and in 1902 he removed to his 
 present location and is now devoting his en- 
 ergies to the cultivation of raisin grapes and 
 fruit of various kinds. Though having nearly 
 reached the biblical allotment of years he is 
 still active and energetic, and takes a keen 
 interest in the supervision of his affairs. 
 
 Mr. Feaver married Ellen Andrews, a na- 
 tive of Wells, England, and they are the par- 
 ents of ten children, namely: George, who 
 is the superintendent of the Scott vineyard; 
 Ethel, who married F. L. Bennetts ; May, who 
 married Charles Bennetts; Ernest; Lillian; 
 Claude; Cecil; Morris; John; and Helen. In 
 his political convictions Mr. Feaver is an ad- 
 herent of the principles ^of the Republican 
 party. 
 
 HENRY L. KUNS. One of the most promi- 
 nent, enterprising and thrifty agriculturists of the 
 San Joaquin valley is Henry L. Kuns, a man of 
 strict integrity and high moral character, and one 
 of the most respected and valued citizens of Mer- 
 ced county. In his agricultural work he displays 
 excellent ability and skill, his farm, lying near 
 Ingomar, being in a good state of cultivation and 
 well improved. A son of David Kuns, he was 
 born, November 19, 1847, i'"' Cass county, Ind. 
 His grandfather, John Kuns, was born and 
 reared in Pennsylvania, but when a young man 
 removed to Ohio, and later to Carroll county, 
 Ind., from there going to Illinois, where he spent 
 his closmg years. In his religious faith he was 
 a Dunkard, having inherited his beliefs from his 
 ancestors, who were among the pioneers of that 
 denomination in the United States. 
 
 A native of Ohio, David Kuns was born in 
 Dayton, in 1820, on a farm, and when six years 
 of age accompanied his parents to their new home 
 in Carroll county, Ind. Until after his marriage 
 he continued a resident of that state, living in 
 Cass county until 1853. I" that year he migrated 
 to Illinois. Coming to California in 1890, he is 
 now living retired from active pursuits in Los 
 Angeles. His wife, whose maiden name was 
 Margaret Lamb, was born in Virginia, the de- 
 scendant of a family of prominence, her birth 
 having occurred in 1828. 
 
 The only child of his parents, Henry L. Kuns 
 received the rudiments of his education in the 
 common schools of Illinois, after which he was 
 graduated from the Monticello, 111., high school, 
 and for two years continued his studies at Wa- 
 bash College, in Crawfordsville, Ind. Under his 
 father's careful training he acquired a good 
 knowledge of the science of agriculture while still 
 
HlSTORiCAL AND i3tOGRAPHiCAL RECORD. 
 
 1573 
 
 young, and was subsequently employed in various 
 branches of industry in Illinois, having been an 
 engnieer, a merchant, a nurseryman, a grocer and 
 gram dealer and for three years a farmer. Migrat- 
 ing to California in 1878, Mr. Kuns purchased 
 land in Gilroy, and for several years carried on a 
 substantial business in general farming, his large 
 orchard and nursery also bringing in good re- 
 turns. In 1892 Mr. Kuns assumed possession of 
 the large ranch of five thousand acres which he 
 had previously purchased in Merced county, ly- 
 ing near Ingomar, and ten miles south of New- 
 man. Here he has continued his agricultural la- 
 bors with characteristic success, making note- 
 worthy improvements on the place, among them a 
 large pumping plant, furnished with water from 
 wells. He has fourteen hundred acres under 
 canal and three hundred acres in alfalfa, a profit- 
 able crop, which he increases each year, while the 
 remainder of his grain land is devoted to wh'ea't. 
 in his orchard of sixty acres, the only one in the 
 vicmity, he raises almonds, apples, peaches, 
 prunes and pears, all of which yield well in this 
 climate. 
 
 Mr. Kuns married, in Ohio, Mary Pearce, a 
 native of that state, and they have five children, 
 namely : Henry A., a civil engineer ; Margaret, 
 .vife of W. Williams, of Lordsburg ; Lena, wife 
 of John Nenr; David, living at home; and Ora, 
 at home. Politically Mr. Kuns is an active 
 worker in the Prohibition party, and has served 
 as a delegate to the national conventions. Religi- 
 ously he is a valued member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church. 
 
 INGVART TEILMAN. A prominent place 
 is accorded Ingvart Teilman, a civil engineer of 
 Fresno, in the business activity of this place, 
 which has felt in no small degree the influence 
 of his splendid ability. The city of Fresno is 
 indebted to Mr. Teilman for its sewer system, 
 which he laid out and surveyed under the difficul- 
 ties which would necessarily, confront the en- 
 gineer in a place so nearly level as this. Tht 
 plan which he drew up and submitted was 
 adopted on account of having a gravity out-fall 
 sewer, while all others were designed for the 
 use of pumps, he having discovered a gentle slope 
 from Fresno southwesterly in the surveying of 
 canals and ditches. He superintended the con- 
 struction of the sewers, and since 1901 has served, 
 as city engineer, his work being an important 
 feature in the future of Fresno from both a com- 
 mercial and sanitary standpoint. 
 
 A native of Ribe, Denmark, Ingvart Teilman 
 was born February 15, i860, the youngest in a 
 family of seven children, of whom five are now 
 living, one sister, Mrs. S. M. Toft, being located 
 
 near Fresno. His father, Hans N. Teilman, was 
 also a native of that place, and the descendant 
 of an old and honored family. He engaged as a 
 farmer for many years, his death occurring at an 
 advanced age. His wife, formerly Anna Nielsen, 
 was born in the same place, where she also died. 
 They were members of the Lutheran Church. 
 When fourteen years old Ingvart Teilman was 
 apprenticed to learn the carpenter's trade, work- 
 ing for three years, when he was employed as a 
 journeyman in Germany. Deciding to seek the 
 more abundant opportunities of the western 
 world, he came to California in 1879, and No- 
 vember 9 of the same year located in Fresno. He 
 followed farm work until he learned the English 
 language and then engaged in the' prosecution 
 of his trade. He entered the employ of the Ma- 
 dera Planing mill, as carpenter, where he met 
 with an accident which caused the loss of his 
 left hand. Forced to seek some other means of 
 livelihood, he followed the advice of friends and 
 took a business course in the Pacific Business 
 College of San Francisco. While there the pro- 
 fessor in charge of mathematics noticed his tal- 
 ent for this science and induced him to take up 
 surveying. He accordingly entered Van der 
 Naiilen's School of Engineering, from which in- 
 stitution he was graduated in 1885, after which 
 he returned to Fresno and entered upon his new 
 line of work. Since that time he has met with 
 marked success, advancing steadily to the front 
 rank of his profession. He has laid out the 
 greater portion of the additions of Fresno and 
 has also served various companies and corpora- 
 tions of this city, among them the Fresno Canal 
 and Irrigation Company, of which he is chief 
 engineer, also serving in the same capacity for 
 the Consolidated Canal Company, having charge 
 of construction works of about four hundred 
 miles of main canals and miles in distributing 
 ditches in the two systems. He was also chief 
 engineer for the Madera Canal and Irrigation 
 Company, for which he constructed a reservoir 
 system, and the Madera Sugar Pine Company, for 
 the latter laying out the new lumber flume fifty- 
 four miles in length, from the mills in the moun- 
 tains to the plant in Madera, and also their log- 
 ging railroad which carries logs about twenty 
 miles. In 1902 he became assoctated with Chris 
 P. Jensen, a civil and hydraulic engineer of 
 Fresno. Since 1901 he has served as city en- 
 gineer. In addition to these interests Mr. Teil- 
 man also owns two vineyards in the vicinity of 
 Fresno, in the success of which he is very much 
 interested and gives a portion of his time to them. 
 He is a man of energy, talent and ability, and 
 has turned' his attention to various lines in the 
 course of his career, making each object more 
 or less a success. After his accident he secured 
 an artificial hand, but it had a leather cuff and 
 
1574 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BtOGRAPHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 the lacing produced such heat and pressure as to 
 cause a shrmkage of the arm. He ingeniously 
 planned one on his own ideas, and later had it 
 manufactured in aluminum, which has served him 
 successfully for many years, and he finds that it 
 cannot be improved upon. 
 
 Mr. Teilman's beautiful home, which he built 
 at No. 470 Neilsen avenue, is presided over by 
 his wife, formerly Anna K. Holm, a native of the 
 vicinity of Ribe, Denmark, and whom he married 
 in Fresno. They are the parents of four chil- 
 dren, namely: Ingvart H., Maren, Dora and 
 Henry. Since 1883 Mr. Teilman has been asso- 
 ciated with the independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, of which he is past officer, and is also 
 a past officer of the Encampment. He is an active 
 member of the Danish Brotherhood of America 
 and was its representative to the national con- 
 vention. He is a member of the American So- 
 ciety of Civil Engineers. Politically he is a Re- 
 publican. He is a charter member of the Luther- 
 an Church (Danish), and during the erection of 
 the building was chairman of the board of 
 trustees. 
 
 HIRAM NEWTON RUCKER, M. D. De- 
 voted to the practice of his profession, Hiram 
 Newton Rucker, M. D., of Merced, well deserves 
 the reputation which he enjoys of being one of 
 the most skillful physicians of the San Joaquin 
 valley. His superior knowledge and medical ex- 
 perience have rendered him especially proficient 
 in his chosen work, and gained for him the con- 
 fidence and respect of a wide community. He is 
 a popular and highly esteemed citizen, and one 
 of the influential and prominent members of the 
 Masonic fraternity, in which he has been, and is, 
 an active worker, being' Past Grand Master of 
 the Grand Lodge of California. A native of 
 Missouri, he was born September 6, 1844, in Ar- 
 row Rock, Saline county, a soil of William T. 
 Rucker. On the paternal side he is of French de- 
 scent, the immigrant ancestor having come fro^m 
 France to the United States, settling in Virginia, 
 where the doctor's grandfather was born, and 
 where the family for several generations was 
 known by its French surname, Roquier. On the 
 maternal side they are of German ancestry. 
 
 Born and bred in Virginia, William T. Rucker 
 left his ancestral home in early manhood, migrat- 
 ing to Missouri, where he acted as agent for old 
 Dr. Sappington, and later was manager of his 
 estate. In 1852, he, with others, organized a 
 large party and started across the plains with 
 ox-teams for California, arriving here after a trip 
 of five months. Locating in Santa Clara county, 
 he bought a pueblo grant of two hundred and 
 twent)'-five acres, paying $1,500 for the tract, 
 but subsequently had to buy the land a second 
 
 time in order to get a title, paying thirty dollars 
 an acre for it. After being engaged for soitie 
 time in general farming and stock-raismg, ne 
 sold off his estate in small lots, and removed to 
 Santa Clara, where he lived retired until his 
 death, at the age of threescore and ten years. He 
 married Verinda S. Taylor, who was born m 
 Madison county, Va., and died in Santa Clara, 
 Cal, at the venerable age of eighty-seven years. 
 Of their union twelve children were born, name- 
 ly : Joseph E., died in San Jose in 1890; Mary 
 L., married Benjamin Campbell, of Campbell, 
 Santa Clara county; John S., died in Gilroy, 
 Cal.; James T., died in infancy; William D., of 
 San Jose; Robert T., a farmer, living near San 
 Jose; Hiram N., the subject of this sketch; Zach- 
 ariah T., of Santa Rosa, Cal. ; Nancy C, wife of 
 J. P. Finley, of Portland, Ore.; George F., of 
 Lompoc, Cal. ; Mrs. Maggie E. Clark, of Camp- 
 bell, Cal.; Benjamin W., real-estate dealer in San 
 Jose. 
 
 Leaving Missouri with his parents when seven 
 years old, ITiram Newton Rucker was crossing 
 the Sierras when the eighth anniversary of his 
 birth occurred. His early education was ob- 
 tained in the district schools of Santa Clara coun- 
 ty; he then continued his studies for three and 
 one-half years at the University of the Pacific, 
 and then studied medicine with Dr. A. B. Cald- 
 well, of Santa Clara, and, subsequently entering 
 the medical department of the University of 
 California, he was graduated with the first class 
 from there, with the degree of M. D., in 1870. 
 The following five years Dr. Rucker practiced 
 medicine in Plainsberg, Merced county, where he 
 met with excellent success. Removing then to 
 Merced, he continued his professional labors for 
 thirteen years, acquiring knowledge, ■ skill and 
 fame. In the meantime, in 1884, he was ap- 
 pointed by Governor Stoneman a director of the 
 State Insane As)'lum at Stockton, and four years 
 later, in 1888, he was elected superintendent of 
 that state institution by its board of trustees. 
 Taking charge of the asylum in November, 1888, 
 he retained it until November, 1892, when he 
 resumed the practice of his profession in Oak- 
 land. During the winter of 1885 and 1886, the 
 doctor took a post-graduate medical and sur- 
 gical course in New York City. In 1901 he left 
 Oakland and took up his residence once more 
 in Merced, where he has built up an extensive 
 and remunerative general practice of medicine 
 and surgery, being one of the foremost phy- 
 sicians and surgeons of Merced county. He is 
 considered an expert on insanity and is fre- 
 quently called as a witness in cases of insanity. 
 In San Francisco, Dr. Rucker married £mma 
 F. Abbott, who was born in Lawrence, Mass., 
 and they have one child, Ella Robin. The doctor 
 is a sound Democrat in his political affiliations 
 
HISTORICAL AND BlOGRAf HICAL RECORD. 
 
 15< 
 
 and served as chairman of the Democratic county 
 central committee. For several years he served 
 as county coroner of Merced county, for five 
 years was a member of the Oakland pension 
 board, and for two years was president of the 
 Oakland board of health. Dr. Rucker is a mem- 
 ber and past master of La Grange Lodge No. 99, 
 F. & A. M. ; was elected junior grand warden 
 in 1883 and '84; in 1885 was elected senior grand 
 warden; was deputy grand master in 1886; was 
 grand master of the Grand Lodge in 1887; is a 
 member and past high priest of Merced Chapter 
 No. T2, R. A. M. ; was made a Knight Templar 
 in Pacific Commandery No. 3, of Sonora, and 
 now belongs to Stockton Commander}- No. 8, K. 
 T. ; to Stockton Council, R. & S. M., and is a 
 demitted member of Scottish Rite Lodge of 
 Masons, of Oakland. The doctor also belongs 
 to the Ancient Order of United Workmen, being 
 a charter member of Merced Lodge No. 74. He 
 has been a member of the State Medical So- 
 ciety since 1876 and of the American Medical 
 Association since 1893 ; is a member and vice 
 president of the Merced Comity Medical Society 
 and a m.ember of the San Joaquin Valley Medi- 
 cal Society. He is a Methodist in religious belief. 
 In September, 1904, Dr. Rucker received a call 
 from the trustees of the Masonic Widows' and 
 Orphans' Home, located at Decoto, Alameda 
 county, to assume the duties of superintendent of 
 that institution, which he accepted, and took 
 charge November ist. 
 
 THOMAS JACKSON SIMPSON. One of 
 Fresno county's native sons, Mr. Simpson is^ a 
 son of John G. Simpson, a pioneer of California, 
 who came here from Missouri, the state of his 
 nativity, in 1850, the long journey being made 
 via the southern route. Mr. Simpson was accom- 
 panied by ex-Governor Edwards, of Missouri. 
 The winter of 1850-51 was spent in New Mex- 
 ico, the trip being renewed in the spring. Ar- 
 riving at Stockton, Mr. Simpson there worked 
 at teaming until 1855, when he removed to Mil- 
 lerton and engaged in the livery business until 
 1858, when he sold out and started a stock busi- 
 ness in partnership with J. N. Musick. This 
 association was continued until 1865, at which 
 time the firm dissolved partnership and Mr. 
 Simpson continued in the stock business alone 
 until his death. In 1856 he was in the Indian 
 campaign in Tulare county, and in every. way 
 took an active part in the pioneer work of the 
 state. His death, at the early age of forty-seven 
 years, was much regretted by all. He was one 
 of the first stockmen to locate on Dry creek, and 
 was one of the early supervisors of that county. 
 He purchased land at what is now Academy, and 
 before his death accumulated nearly six thou- 
 
 sand acres. He was one of the builders of the 
 Academy on Dry creek, being a director of the 
 company. This school was for years one of the 
 best in the state. In fraternal relations he was 
 a member of the Odd Fellows and in politics wa:s 
 a stanch Democrat. 
 
 His wife bore the maiden name of Sarah M. 
 Baley. She was a native of Missouri and a 
 daughter of W. Wright Baley, a brother of Judge 
 Gillam, who came to California in 1849. ^^■ 
 Baley crossed the plains and settled at Yisalia, 
 where he was for some years engaged in team- 
 ing between the latter place and Stockton. He 
 died at his home on Dry creek. His wife died 
 at her home near Academy. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Simpson were born seven 
 children, as follows: Mary K., who married 
 Henry Hazelton and has since died; William, 
 who was drowned in the canal near Sanger while 
 bathing; Thomas J., our subject; Marvin, John 
 G. and George P., all living at Academy ; Lizzie, 
 the wife of John Fly, a stockman living at 
 Academy. 
 
 Thomas J. Simpson was born July 13, 1866. 
 His early life was spent on the farm, while his 
 education was received in the academy at Acad- 
 emy. When but eleven years of age his fa1:her 
 died and from that time until he left home he 
 took an active part in the work of the farm. At 
 the age of twenty he started out to make his 
 own way in the world, beginning as a sheep 
 rancher on rented land fourteen miles from Fres- 
 no. In 1886 he bought five hundred head of 
 sheep from John Baley's partner, the partnership 
 thus formed continuing for two years, when Mr. 
 Baley sold out to William R. Simpson. In 1889 
 T. J. Simpson disposed of his interest in 
 the business to his brother, William R., they 
 owning at the time five thousand head of sheep. 
 Soon after selling, Mr. Simpson became inter- 
 ested in the cattle business and a little later es- 
 tablished his brand, "P. L.," which is known 
 all through the cattle country. He has nine 
 hundred acres of land on Dry creek, below 
 Academy, which is all fenced and improved. 
 Here he is engaged in an extensive grain busi- 
 ness, although the place is rented, making it 
 possible for Mr. Simpson to devote his entire 
 time to his cattle interests. His range is located 
 in the Sierras, about eighteen miles east of his 
 ranch, where he and his brother own valuable 
 range land. 
 
 In Academy Mr. Simpson married Miss 
 Eleanor Ann Perry, a native daughter of Fresno 
 county. Her father, Peter Perry, settled here and 
 engaged in farming on Kings river. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Simpson have been born the following chil- 
 dren : Edwin R., Ina May, Thomas Russell, 
 Hugh, Annie Laurie, Mary Elizabeth and RuTh. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Simpson are members of the 
 
1576 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Methodist Episcopal Church South, Mr. Simpson 
 being a member of the official board. In politics 
 he is a Democrat, but has never cared to enter 
 the arena of public life, but at all times has been 
 found ready and willing to perform the duties 
 devolving upon him as a citizen. His success 
 in life is the result of his own efforts, and while 
 he is still a young man, he is considered one of- 
 the substantial residents of the county and is 
 very popular with all his associates. 
 
 LAYTON J. HANSBERGER. California, 
 with its beautiful landscapes, its lakes and 
 streams, its picturesque mountains, its progres- 
 sive towns and cities, its farms with the fertile 
 soil, its wonderful prosperity and its abundance 
 of fruit and flowers, makes a habitation fit for 
 a king, and no history would be complete unless 
 due mention were made of the pioneers who as- 
 sisted in settling this great state, and in this 
 Virginia furnished her quota, among them Mr. 
 Hansberger, who first stepped on California soil 
 October 6, 1878, and for a quarter of a century 
 has been identified with the agricultural interests 
 in the vicinity of Selma, Fresno county. In 1902 
 Mr. Hansberger retired from his farm, taking up 
 his residence in Selma^ and at once engaging in 
 the real estate and insurance business. The first 
 year he was associated with T. L. Jones, but he 
 now carries on an extensive business under the 
 name of the Hansberger Land Company, buying 
 and renting land and doing a general insurance 
 business. 
 
 Mr. Hansberger was born March 2, 1850, in 
 the vicinity of Fredericksburg, Va., and is one 
 of six children born to L. J. and Martha (French) 
 Hansberger, natives of the same state. The 
 father, a native of Rockingham, Va., was a Meth- 
 odist Episcopal minister and his demise took 
 place in a parsonage near Appomattox Court- 
 House. He was survived some years by his 
 widow, who died in her sixty-fifth year at Se- 
 dalia, Mo. Of their children, three were sons 
 and three were daughters, and they are as fol- 
 lows : W. F., a mail contractor, residing at Se- 
 dalia. Mo. ; HeniT, residing near Yuma, Ariz. ; 
 Layton J. ; Mrs. Louise Guerant, also a resident 
 of Sedalia ; Mrs. Alice Fretwell, residing at Dan- 
 ville, Va.; and Mrs. G. S. Hewitt, of Fresno 
 county. 
 
 The mental training of Mr. Hansberger was 
 received in private subscription schools, which 
 he attended during the Civil war, and when of 
 sufficient age he engaged in farm pursuits in his 
 native state, raising tobacco, principally. His 
 people were southerners, and at this time lived 
 near Cartersville, but in 1867 Layton J., in com- 
 pany with his brother Henry, went west to Se- 
 
 dalia, Mo., and followed farm pursuits there, 
 renting land. Upon the death of their father, they 
 returned to Virginia and stayed there for eigh- 
 teen months, but in the fall of 1870 they returned 
 to Sedalia, which was their home for several 
 years. About 1878 Mr. Hansberger came to 
 California, purchasing a quarter section of land 
 three miles south of Selma, which he still owns. 
 He lived upon this place and carried on agricult- 
 ural pursuits until 1902; since then he has lived 
 in Selma. 
 
 The home ties of Mr. Hansberger date back 
 to November 18, 1877, when he was united in 
 marriage with Miss Nannie Stone, fomierly of 
 Missouri. Three children came to bless this 
 union. They are : Alma, now Mrs. Morris Yost, 
 residmg near Selma; Celeste, who was a high 
 school student in Selma, class of 1904; and 
 Nannie, also a high school student. The mother 
 of these children passed to the great beyond in 
 1889, and October 26, 1890, Mr. Hansberger 
 married for his second wife Mrs. Julia B. Reed, 
 a native of Missouri, and she has one daughter, 
 Ruth Reed, who is also a high school student. 
 
 In 1899 Mr. Hansberger was one of the or- 
 ganizers of the Selma Co-operative Dairy Asso- 
 ciation, of which he is now serving as president. 
 Fraternally he is prominently connected with a 
 number of secret societies, among them Selma 
 Lodge No. 155, K. of P.; Valleyview Lodge 
 No. 208, A. O. U. W., and Justice Council No. 
 322, Fraternal Aid, of which his wife and daugh- 
 ters are members. In his political convictions he 
 is termed an Independent Democrat and has 
 served as school director many times, being also 
 twice elected director for the High School of 
 Selma. 
 
 FRED A. BENNETT. Distinguished for 
 his executive and business ability and judgment, 
 F'red A. Bennett is one of the best known inen 
 of Merced county, and as manager of the Dos 
 Palos Colony Rochdale Association is one of the 
 prominent men in Dos Palos. Energetic, pro- 
 gressive and practical in his methods, he has 
 beeii the leading spirit in the promotion of the 
 affairs of the colony, and as manager of the co- 
 operative establishment, founded and located 
 through his enterprise and keen foresight, has 
 built up one of the most extensive and important 
 mercantile trades of central California. In- 
 heriting in an eminent degree the sterling quali- 
 ties of his Puritan ancestors, he is a man of un- 
 questioned integrity, upright in all of his deal- 
 ings, above reproach or suspicion, his word at all 
 times being as good as his bond. A son of F. C. 
 Bennett, he was born, September 13, 1863,' in 
 New Marlboro, Berkshire county, Mass., the'de- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1577 
 
 scendant of a colonial family of prominence. He 
 comes from Revolutionary stock, his great- 
 grandfather on the paternal side having served 
 as Washington's bodyguard during the great 
 struggle for independence. 
 
 A native of Connecticut, F. C. Bennett was 
 there reared to agricultural pursuits. Subse- 
 quently settling in New Marlboro, Mass., he 
 was there employed for a number of years as 
 millwright and carpenter. Removing with his 
 family to Nebraska in 1874, he purchased land 
 in Fairmont, Fillmore county, where he still' re- 
 sides, being now retired from the activities of 
 business, a venerable and highly respected man 
 of seventy-five years. He is connected with the 
 Masons. He married Phoebe Ann Hadsell, 
 who was born in Massachusetts, where her 
 father, Moses Hadsell, was a life-long farmer, 
 and in 1902 this happy couple celebrated their 
 golden wedding. On this auspicious occasion all 
 of their eleven children, with the exception of the 
 youngest child, who was unavoidably detained, 
 were present, and with the many friends and ac- 
 quaintances assembled assisted in making the 
 event one to be remembered most pleasantly. 
 
 The sixth child in order of birth of the parental 
 household, Fred A. Bennett spent the first twelve 
 years of his life among the picturesque hills of 
 the Berkshire mountains, laying a good founda- 
 tion for his future education in the common 
 schools of the old Bay state. Removing with 
 his parents to Nebraska in 1874, he was subse- 
 quently brought up on the farm in Fairmont, at- 
 tending the district -School for a few 3'ears. He 
 afterward continued his studies at the University 
 of Nebraska, in Lincoln, completing his school 
 life at the Lincoln Business College. Locating 
 then in Fairmont, Mr. Bennett was for five 
 years there engaged in the hardware business 
 as a member of the firm of Gary, Bennett & Co. 
 Disposing of his interest in the firm in 1894, he 
 came to Merced county, Cal., locating in the Dos 
 Palos Colony, where he carried on farming for 
 two years. Starting the co-operative store in 
 1896, he managed it with eminent success, the 
 business growing so large within the ensuing 
 three years that Mr. Bennett, in 1899, found it 
 expedient to incorporate the Dos Palos Colony 
 Rochdale Association, of which he has since 
 been manager. Not liking the first location of 
 the store, he selected its present site in 1897, 
 which has proved a very advantageous one, be- 
 ing now in the center of a farming community 
 with an estimated population of two thousand 
 people. Under the supervision of Mr. Bennett 
 a very large and lucrative trade in general mer- 
 chandise has -been built up, this co-operative 
 store dealing in dry goods, clothing, furs, boots 
 and shoes, furniture, hardware and queensware, 
 and handling large quantities of lumber, having 
 
 extensive lumber yards. The main building is 
 30x60 feet, containing two floors stocked with 
 goods, while the hardware department and the 
 warerooms are each 16x60 feet. In connection 
 with his mercantile business Mr. Bennett has 
 charge of the association's large creamery and 
 ice plant, manufacturing butter for the city and 
 Rochdale markets, and making ice for the same, 
 and maintaining a cold-storage plant. 
 
 In Shickley, Neb., Mr. Bennett married Retta 
 Baker, who was born in Missouri, and they are 
 the parents of four children, namelv : Chester, 
 Mabel, Gladys and Alfred. Politically Mr. Ben- 
 nett is a Socialist; fraternally he is a member 
 of the Modern Woodmen of America, of which 
 he is banker, and of the Fraternal Aid; relig- 
 iously he is a member and a trustee of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church South. 
 
 MICHAEL KAA^ANAGH. Two miles 
 southeast of Fresno is the fifty-six-acre ranch of 
 Michael Kavanagh, well improved and as prac- 
 tically managed as the most fastidious horticult- 
 urist could desire. Thirty-two acres are in 
 grapes, five acres in orchard, and the balance is 
 seeded to alfalfa. In 1900 the successful owner 
 of the property completed what is^ one of the 
 finest rural residences in the vicinity, a white 
 structure two stories in height and containing 
 eleven rooms. The property has more than real- 
 ized the financial expectations of this genial and 
 popular horticulturist, who sees the bright side 
 of everything and appreciates the luxuries made 
 possible by his wise disposal of the advantages 
 which have come to him. 
 
 Mr. Kavanagh comes of a family known in 
 Queens county, Ireland, for generations. His 
 father, Michael Kavanagh, was a native of that 
 part of the country, and he himself was born 
 there June 26, 1851, while his mother, formerly 
 Mary Howard, came from County Tipperary. 
 The elder Michael was a man of ambition and 
 ability, and for years was agent for a very large 
 estate in Ireland, which responsibility passed to 
 his son, Daniel, at the time of the older man's 
 death at the age of fifty-two years. The younger 
 Michael was reared on a farm and remained at 
 home until coming to America in 1869. During 
 the winter of i869-'7o he attended school in 
 New York City, and for the seven following 
 years engaged in farming in Livingston county, 
 N. Y. Upon arriving in California in 1876, he 
 located on a farm in Yolo county. In 1877 he 
 made a trip to Texas, in quest of a more desira- 
 ble place of residence. Returning to Yolo coun- 
 ty in 1878, he farmed there until 1884, and then 
 came to Fresno county, and in 1885 purchased 
 his present ranch. In 1890 he married Nora 
 Martin, a native of Livonia, N. Y., and a daugh- 
 
1578 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ter of James and Margaret (Lindsley) Martin. 
 Of the union there have been born three chil- 
 dren, Martin Howard, Marguerite Louise and 
 Genevieve. In 1899 the family enlarged their 
 horizon by taking a trip east, a jaunt which fur- 
 nished pleasant relaxation. Mr. Kavanagh is a 
 Democrat, but locally votes for the man best 
 qualified for the office. Lie is identified with the 
 Knights of Columbus and is a member of the 
 Catholic Church. Twice he has served as a 
 member of the school board, and materially 
 aided in establishing the present high standard 
 of instruction. He is highly respected in his 
 neighborhood, representing as he does the high- 
 est type of the Irish-American citizen. 
 
 SEROPIAN BROTHERS. Notwithstanding 
 the misfortunes that have befallen the Armenian 
 race through persecution in their own land, 
 comparatively few of that nationality have 
 sought homes in other countries. Representa- 
 tives of the Seropian family were not only the 
 first Armenians to settle in California, but 
 among the first to come to^ the United States 
 as well. The two brothers, John and George, 
 are now at the head of a large fruit business in 
 Fresno, whish they incorporated April 22, 1902, 
 under the name of Seropian Brothers, and re- 
 incorporated two years later as Seropian Broth- 
 ers Company. Under their direct oversight and 
 capable management has been built up one of 
 the largest packing houses in California. The 
 work is systematically divided, the younger 
 brother having the management of the sales and 
 finances, while the elder brother takes charge of 
 the buying, also of the management of the pack- 
 ing house. The firm maintains a branch house 
 in Chicago, and possesses every facility for the 
 efficient and profitable conduct of a large and 
 responsible industry. 
 
 The two brothers are natives of Marsovan, 
 Armenia, George having been born in 1868, and 
 John in 1870. Their father, a prosperous mer- 
 chant, held a position of influence in his com- 
 munity, and was one of the leading members of 
 the Congregational Church there. He was mar- 
 ried twice, by his first union having five sons 
 and three daughters, of whom one daughter now 
 resides in Fresno county, and two sons died 
 here. Two sons were born of his second mar- 
 riage, John and George, and a daughter, who is 
 now deceased. Two sons of the first marriage 
 settled in Massachusetts about 1870 and founded 
 the family in America. During the summer of 
 1880 the tv»fO younger sons joined them at Wor- 
 cester, Mass., and in 1881 came with them to 
 California, where they attended the FresnO' pub- 
 lic schools. Without any assistance they worked 
 their own way, being for a time employed on 
 
 farms in the Central Colony. For six years 
 George continued in the employ of .Mr. Babcock, 
 receiving wages in the summer, but working for 
 his board in the winter and attending school. 
 At first the older brothers carried on a fruit 
 business where the Grand Central hotel now 
 stands, but the loss of the building and stock 
 by fire left them without capital to begin again 
 at once. A vineyard of twenty acres was then 
 rented, which John and George cultivated so 
 assiduously that the appearance of the property 
 was greatly improved and the owner sold it at 
 a fair profit. Later they turned their attention 
 to the fruit business, at first selling' from a wagon, 
 and then opening a store on I street near Mari- 
 posa. As the trade increased a stock of gro- 
 ceries was added, and in time they became pro- 
 prietors of a large store on Mariposa street. 
 
 On disposing of the business the brothers be- 
 gan to improve a tract of land which they had 
 previously purchased in Fresno colony, and im- 
 proved it with thirty acres of raisins and other 
 fruits. However, the sale of fruit possessed 
 for them greater fascination than the growing 
 of the same, and they soon returned to the fruit 
 and produce business, and also managed a re- 
 tail grocery, which was conducted on J street, 
 under the name of Seropian Brothers. Some- 
 what later they moved near Fresno street on J, 
 where they had a frontage of seventy-five feet. 
 One side of the building was utilized for the 
 receiving of the fruit, and the other side con- 
 tained the packing department. So successful 
 were their undertakings that they felt justified 
 in discontinuing the grocery trade and devoting 
 themselves wholly to fruit packing, in which 
 they engaged on J street for four years. In 
 1898 they built a commodious packing house, 
 fitted with every accommodation for their busi- 
 ness, but were met with misfortune at the very 
 outset by the destruction of the building in a fire, 
 with only partial insurance. With an energy 
 characteristic of their whole business career, they 
 at once began to rebuild, and the new structure 
 was completed in sixty days, a portion of it being 
 three stories in height, and the whole 275x100 feet 
 in dimensions, with facilities for shipment via the 
 Santa Fe and Southern Pacific Railroads. Their 
 specialty is seeded raisins and figs, and they 
 pride themselves on having been the pioneers 
 in the shipment of figs, also of pound pack- 
 ages or bricks of California figs. Indeed, they 
 deserve great credit for their work in introduc- 
 ing the figs of the state to the markets of the 
 world, and creating a demand for what is now 
 one of the profitable products of California. 
 By means of machinery they have a capacity for 
 seeding five cars of raisins per day, also of pack- 
 ing ten cars a day. The Honey Brand' is their 
 specialty in figs, while in raisins their leading 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1570 
 
 brands are Seropian Best, Mount Whitney and 
 Lotus. Shipments are made to every part of the 
 United States, as well as to Germany, France, 
 Holland and England. In addition to their 
 principal packing house at Fresno, they operate 
 similar establishments at Watsonville, Healds- 
 burg, San Francisco, Lemoore and Tulare. Both 
 brothers have made several trips through the 
 eastern states and become personally acquainted 
 with the trade, and are member's of the Fresno 
 Chamber of Commerce and the California Raisin 
 Growers' Association. In political views they 
 are stanch Republicans and loyal supporters of 
 the government of their adopted country. John 
 is married, his wife having been Miss Hazel 
 Malikian, of Fresno. 
 
 When it is remembered that the brothers came 
 to California unfamiliar with the English lan- 
 guage and with American customs, strangers in 
 a strange land, and far removed from any of 
 their own race, their courage and resolute spirit 
 are worthy of the highest admiration. Amid 
 surroundings that might have discouraged many, 
 they pushed resolutely forward, working as op- 
 portunities offered, and constantly adding to 
 their store of learning and experience. By de- 
 grees, without extraneous aid, they have built 
 up a business that would reflect credit upon the 
 ability of any of our native-born citizens. They 
 ■ have gained prominence and influence in their 
 adopted city and throughout the entire San 
 Joaquin valley. 
 
 JOSIAH WINTER DAVIS. A man of more 
 than average ability and energy, Josiah Winter 
 Davis holds a position of prominence among 
 the foremost citizens of Portersville. He is dis- 
 tinguished as a participant in the Civil war, and 
 his subsequent career as a business man has 
 been successful and noteworthy. A son of Will- 
 iam Davis, he was born August 7, 1841, in St. 
 Joseph county, Ind., near South Bend. 
 
 A native of New York state, William Davis 
 was well educated, and for a few years was 
 pastor of the United Brethren Church near Elk- 
 hart, Ind. Going from there to Cincinnati, Ohio, 
 in 1.852, he opened a general merchandise store, 
 but subsequently returned to Indiana. For a 
 short time he resided near South Bend, but in 
 i860 was appointed president of Western Col- 
 lege in Iowa, and for twelve vears was con- 
 nected with that institution as its head official. 
 On resigning the position he removed to Lisbon 
 near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where be resided until 
 his death, in 1881, at the age of sixty-seven 
 vears. He married Charlotte M. Miller, who 
 was born in Butler county, Ohio, and died m 
 188^ in Iowa. Four sons and three daughters 
 blessed their union, of these Josiah Winter being 
 
 the second child in order of birth and the oldest 
 one now living. 
 
 After leaving the public schools of Indiana, 
 Josiah W. Davis took an academic course at 
 Seven Mile, receiving a diploma, and subse- 
 quently entered the Pittsburg University at Pitts- 
 burg, Pa. During his fourth year in that insti- 
 tution the Civil war broke out, and all of his 
 patriotic spirit was aroused. At once enlisting 
 in Company I, Fifty-fourth Illinois Volunteer 
 Infantry, he went to the front as drummer, and 
 later was made a member of the regimental 
 band. At the battle of Shiloh he was wounded. 
 Subsequently Mr. Davis was detailed as chief 
 clerk in division headquarters at Cairo, 111., and 
 had charge of all the traffic up and down the 
 river. In 1864 he was promoted to the office of 
 assistant quartermaster, with rank of captain, 
 and stationed at Memphis, Tenn. He was after- 
 wards sent to Washington, D. C, but was again 
 ordered to Memphis, where he received all stores 
 from the regiments located there. Going thence 
 to New Orleans, he took charge of the stores of 
 the different regiments, being mustered out of 
 service at the close of the war. 
 
 Having received his honorable discharge from 
 the army, Mr. Davis went to Detroit, Mich., and 
 for twenty-five years was connected with a to- 
 bacco firm as bookkeeper and cashier. In 1886, 
 as an employe of John J. Bagley & Co., he came 
 to California, taking charge of the firm's branch 
 office, which was located at No. 109 Front street, 
 San Francisco. Retiring from m.ercantile pur- 
 suits in 1889, Mr. Davis located in Portersville, 
 and in this vicinity made wise investments in 
 land, and is now the owner of, fourteen hundred 
 acres, all of which he devotes to general farm- 
 ing. He is actively identified with several of 
 the leading enterprises of Portersville, and is 
 \yell known in business circles. In 1901 he as- 
 sisted in organizing the A. J. De Laney Hard- 
 ware Company, of which he is vice president, 
 and he also assisted in the organization of the 
 Rosedale Water Company, of which he is a 
 stockholder, one of the directors and a vice presi- 
 dent. He was also one of the organizers of the 
 California State Board of Trade, and is one of 
 its most active members. 
 
 In Chicago, III, Mr. Davis married Victoria 
 E. Van Auken, who was born in New York. 
 She died in early womanhood, in Detroit, Mich., 
 leaving one child, William W. Davis, accountant 
 in the money order department of the Wells 
 Fargo Express Company in^ New York City. 
 Fraternally Mr. Davis stands high in Masonic 
 circles. He joined the order in Detroit in 1862, 
 but demitted, and is now a member of Porters- 
 ville Lodse No. 303, F. & A. M., of Porters- 
 ville; of Portersville Chapter No. 85, R. A. M. ; 
 of Visalia Commandery No. 26, K. T. ; and of 
 
1580 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Portersville Chapter O. E. S. He is a stanch 
 Republican in politics, and in 1894 was a candi- 
 date for the assembly, but was defeated at the 
 poils. October i, 1904, he was nominated by the 
 Republicans for the same office. For twelve 
 years he was school trustee in the Burton dis- 
 trict, rendering good service. 
 
 CHRIST H. KROGH. The farm owned and 
 occupied by Mr. Krogh is situated three' and one- 
 half miles from Newman and lies in Merced 
 county, with the exception of one-eighth of an 
 acre across the line in Stanislaus county. The 
 nucleus of this property was acquired by him 
 about 1885, when he purchased eighty acres and 
 embarked in the raising of grain. Investigations 
 made in the following years convinced him that 
 ■alfalfa could be made a profitable crop and by 
 1896 he had the entire tract under that product, 
 which flourishes so luxuriantly that five crops 
 can be cut in the course of a year. An orchard 
 with fruit sufficient for family use and a resi- 
 dence erected in 1896 add to the value of the 
 homestead, while other improvements made as 
 opportunity affords prove the owner to be a 
 man of progressive spirit. 
 
 Near the town of Soudeborg in Schleswig- 
 Holstein, on the sea-girt island of Alsen, one 
 of the possessions of Denmark, Mr. Krogh was 
 born June 13, 1852, and is one of nine children, 
 seven still living, of whom three crossed the 
 ocean to America. A younger brother, Hans 
 H., resides four miles southwest of Newman, 
 where he has a valuable alfalfa farm. The 
 father, Peter, was a son of Jorgen Krogh, a 
 baker by occupation, and he himself not onlv 
 worked as a baker, but also followed the 
 butcher's trade and also operated his own farm. 
 He is still living on the old homestead, where 
 in 1901 he enjoyed a visit from his son, Christ 
 H., who returned for a brief sojourn among old 
 friends and the associations of youth. The 
 mother, Catherine Maria Moller, was a daughter 
 of Jens Moller, by occupation a farmer. She 
 died in the fall of 1871. 
 
 The farm which is still the family homestead 
 was the home of Mr. Krogh 's youth and there 
 he worked diligently to assist in the support of 
 the family. At fifteen years of age he left 
 school and in 1870 crossed to the mainland of 
 Denmark, where he remained six months. Dur- 
 ing 1 87 1 he came to America and during the 
 summer season worked as a farm-hand near 
 Chatsworth, Livingston county, 111. From there 
 he came to California in 1B73 and at Hill's 
 Ferry secured employment on the Noxon ranch, 
 remaining in the same position for a long period. 
 In 1877, with Noxon's teams, he ran a grading 
 
 machine and helped to construct the canal on 
 both the east and west sides in the San Joaquin 
 valley. Later, after severing the partnership 
 with David Noxon, he assisted in constructing 
 the Stevenson canal on the east side, for which 
 purpose he had teams there for more than a 
 year. About 1878 he became a partner of his 
 former employer and as such superintended a 
 large ranch largely under cultivation to grain. 
 Until about 1880 he also managed a ranch of six 
 hundred and forty acres which he had purchased. 
 A few years later, about 1885, he bought eighty 
 acres of his present property, which is one of 
 the finest alfalfa farms in this region. Dairy 
 interests have engaged his attention and he now 
 has a herd of thirty-five milch cows, also other 
 cattle, aggregating one hundred head in all. For 
 the cultivation of the land he keeps sixteen head 
 of horses, these being used not only on the home 
 place, but also on a rented farm of five hundred 
 acres, which he has in wheat. When the project 
 of starting a creamery was first formulated he 
 became enthusiastically active in the measure, 
 and in 1896 was one of the organizers of the 
 New Era creamery, the first of the creamery 
 plants established in the county and the founda- 
 tion of the dairy industry that has proved per- 
 haps the most important factor in the progress 
 of the farming community. In 1896 he moved 
 to his present home and began to improve it. 
 
 In Stockton Mr. Krogh was united in mar- 
 riage with Mrs. Jensina (Hurlock) Hermand- 
 son, a native of Schleswig. Mrs. Krogh is the 
 mother of five children, three of whom are now 
 living, namely : Mrs. Catherine Hill, who lives 
 upon a dairy farm in Merced county ; Andrew 
 and Wilbur. 
 
 By her previous marriage Mrs. Krogh had 
 two children. The daughter, Mrs. Annie 
 Schmidt, who died in Newman, and the son, 
 Henry Krogh, who is manager of all of the 
 Newman warehouses. On different occasions 
 Mr. Krogh has been chosen to serve on grand 
 and petit juries and he has also been a delegate 
 of the Democratic party to county conventions. 
 Since coming to California he has associated 
 himself with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows in Newman and is further connected with 
 the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 
 NATHANIEL P. DUNCAN. M. D. To 
 Nathaniel P. Duncan, M. D., belongs the dis- 
 tinction of being the oldest physician in Han- 
 ford, Kings county, in point of years of service 
 in the medical profession. Dr. Duncan was 
 born in Pittsburg, Pa., January 9, 1849, a son 
 of Robert C, and grandson of Thomas Duncan 
 whose father, a native of Scotland, came to the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1581 
 
 United States about the time of the Revolution- 
 ary war and first located in Louisiana, where he 
 operated a plantation for a number of years. He 
 subsequently removed to Pennsylvania, but soon 
 afterward died in Pittsburg, while still a com- 
 paratively young man, from yellow fever. 
 
 Robert C. Duncan was born in Louisiana, and 
 was an infant when his parents removed to 
 Pennsylvania. He was reared and educated in 
 the latter state, and engaged in merchandising 
 in Beaver Falls and Pittsburg. He died in the 
 latter city at the age of about seventy years. 
 He married Nancy Patterson, a native of Penn- 
 sylvania, who still resides in that state at the 
 advanced age of eighty-seven years. Her father, 
 Nathaniel Patterson, was at one time a civil en- 
 gineer in Pittsburg. 
 
 The boyhood and youth of Dr. Nathaniel P. 
 Duncan were spent in Pittsburg and vicinity, 
 where he received the benefit of a common- 
 school education. He subsequently attended 
 Beaver Academy, and at the age of eighteen 
 years, having decided upon a career in medicine, 
 began the study of that science under the direc- 
 tion of Dr. Stanton of New Brighton, Pa., a 
 cousin of Edwin Stanton, secretary of war dur- 
 ing Lincoln's administration. He afterward took 
 a course in Jefferson Medical College, Phila- 
 delphia, and in 1871 was graduated from Belle- 
 vue Hospital Medical College, New York City. 
 He at once opened an office at Enon Valley, Pa., 
 but after spending two years in that locality he 
 decided that a better field for practice could be 
 found in the newer western country. Coming 
 to California, he visited various towns, finally 
 locating, in 1876, at Lemoore, Kings county, 
 where for eight years he was engaged in gen- 
 eral practice. In 1884 he established himself in 
 Hanford, where he has since built up a reputa- 
 tion which is a just reward for his humane and 
 self-sacrificing efforts. During the years of his 
 residence here he has become thoroughly identi- 
 fied with the town's best interests in various 
 ways. He has given evidence of his faith in the 
 stability of Kings county by the purchase of 
 twenty-four hundred acres of grazing land near 
 the mouth of Tule river, which is devoted to the 
 raising of Durham cattle. He is a Republican 
 in politics, but has steadfastly refused to become 
 a candidate for public office, preferring to con- 
 centrate his time and capabilities upon his pro- 
 fession. He is a member of the California State 
 Medical Society and the San Joaquin County 
 Medical Society. Fraternally he is identified with 
 Hanford Lodge, K. P. In 1903 he took a promi- 
 nent part in the organization of the Hanford 
 National Bank, of which he has since been 
 president. At Lemoore, CaL, in 1877, he was 
 united in marriage with Mary Cramer, a native 
 of Calaveras county, Cal. 
 
 Personally Dr. Duncan possesses those quali- 
 ties which tend to endear a man closely to those 
 who know him. Though he has always devoted 
 himself closely to his scientific labors, in which 
 he has been accorded a rare measure of success, 
 he has not been unmindful of the general wel- 
 fare of the community, but has always exhibited 
 a keen interest in those movements having for 
 an end the advancement of the material well- 
 being of the people. Public-spirited, progres- 
 sive, liberal-minded and unselfish, he has come 
 to be regarded as one of the best type of rep- 
 resentative citizen, who is entitled to more than 
 passing recognition in the annals of the state 
 of California. 
 
 ^ DANIEL P. SHIPPEY. With the excep- 
 tion of five years Daniel P. Shippey has been a 
 resident of Visalia, Tulare county, since 1872, 
 and by the many sterling traits which distinguish 
 his character, he has won the confidence and 
 esteem of all with whom he has come in business 
 or social contact. As a farmer and carpenter 
 he has spent the greater part of his life here, but 
 in 1902 he became interested in the milling busi- 
 ness, purchasing the Hubbs Planing Mill, now 
 known as A. B. Shippey & Co., his two sons, 
 A. R. and A. B. Shippey being equal partners in 
 the concern and the practical managers. 
 
 A native of Pomeroy, Ohio, where he was 
 born December 27, 1836, Daniel P. Shippey was 
 taken to Illinois when three years old, his father 
 then locating in McDonough county near Ma- 
 comb. In 1842 he went to Missouri, where he 
 was reared to young manhood by J. H. Dice, a 
 farmer of Cedar county. He received his educa- 
 tion in the common school in the vicinity of his 
 home, after which he was apprenticed to learn 
 the trade of carpenter, being located in St. Clair 
 county, Mo. At the breaking' out of the Civil 
 war he left his personal pursuits and in April, 
 1861, enlisted from that county in the first com- 
 pany of Loyal Home Guards. In December of 
 that year he joined the first battalion of Yates 
 Sharpshooters, comprising five hundred and 
 forty men, and equipped for service by the war 
 governor of Illinois, being a part of Company 
 A, Sixty-fourth Illinois Regiment. His enlist- 
 ment was for three years, and he served until 
 January 15, 1864. He afterward re-enlisted 'for 
 three years more, out of which time he was al- 
 lowed thirty days as furlough, and went to Ot- 
 tawa, 111. There his regiment was re-organized 
 with recruits from other companies and called 
 the Sixty-fourth Illinois, comprising nine hun- 
 dred and sixty men, rank and file. At the close 
 of the war, when mustered out in Chicago, it 
 numbered only one hundred and fifty, Mr. Ship- 
 pey being one of nine of the original company 
 
1582 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in which he eiihsted. During the time that he 
 served he was in seventeen important battles, in- 
 cluding those about Atlanta, the March to the 
 Sea, through the Carolinas, the capture of Gen- 
 eral Johnston, and the march to Richmond. He 
 was in the Grand Review in Washington, and 
 received his honorable discharge in Louisville, 
 July 15, 1865. Mr. Shippey entered the army 
 as a private, and in the course of time received 
 the promotion to the position of corporal, then 
 sergeant, up to the first duty sergeant, and won 
 much commendation for personal bravery. 
 
 After being mustered out of service in Chi- 
 cago, 111., Mr. Shippey returned to his home in 
 Missouri and engaged in farming and the prose- 
 cution of his trade until the fall of 1872. In 
 that year he came to California and located in 
 Visalia, where he followed the same occupation 
 until 1 88 1. Removing then to Umatilla county, 
 Ore., he engaged in a general merchandise busi- 
 ness in Willow Station until July 4, 1886, when 
 he returned to Visalia and once more followed 
 his trade and general farming operations. Since 
 1900 he has withdrawn entirely from the latter 
 occupation. In 1902 he purchased the , Hubbs 
 Planing Mill, which, with his two sons, he now 
 conducts, and also owns other citv property, 
 among which is his residence and live lots on 
 South Court street. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Shippey united him with 
 Amanda Melvina Hurt, a native of Missouri, and 
 they are the parents of four sons and four daugh- 
 ters. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church and a member and the quartermaster of 
 Gen. George Wright Post, No. iii, G. A. R., 
 of Visalia. Politically he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 JUDGE C. S. COTHRAN. Prominent 
 among the progressive farmers of Merced coun- 
 ty that have contributed their full share in bring- 
 ing about the present fine condition of the coun- 
 try is Judge C. S. Cothran, a well-known and 
 highly esteemed citizen of Los Banos, and the 
 proprietor of two well-kept dairy ranches. He 
 is the son of the late Henry Cothran, a pioneer 
 of the coast, and was born, May 18, i860, in 
 Tomales, Marin county, Cal. His grandfather, 
 for many years a resident of Illinois, was killed 
 during the Civil war. 
 
 A native of Indiana, Henry Cothran spent 
 his earlier years in that state, afterward living 
 in Illinois. Deciding to enter upon a professional 
 career', he was graduated from the Cincinnati 
 Medical College, but did not at once begin the 
 practice of medicine. He made a trip across 
 the plains to California in search of a favorable 
 location, and being pleased with the country 
 and climate returned to Illinois for his wife, 
 
 coming back with her by way of the Isthmus 
 of Panama early in i860. After living a short 
 time in Tomales, he settled at Grand Island, 
 Colusa county, where he was for awhile success- 
 fully engaged in farming. Removing from there 
 to the Green valley, he continued in agricultural 
 pursuits at Watsonville, Santa Cruz county, for 
 two years. Deciding then to resume his pro- 
 fession, he settled as a physician in Hollister, 
 San Benito county, where he built up a large 
 and lucrative practice. His health failing, how- 
 ever, he again took up farming, buying land 
 near Hollister, and was thus engaged until his 
 death, at the age of fifty-two years. He was a 
 man of great integrity, greatly beloved and 
 respected. In politics he was a strong Repub- 
 lican, and in religion was a member of the 
 Christian Church. He was active in fraternal 
 circles, being a Mason. His wife, whose maiden 
 name was Mary Pope, was born in old Virginia, 
 and is now a resident of San Jose. Eight chil- 
 dren were born of their union, C. S., the special 
 subject of this sketch, being the firstborn. 
 
 His parents returning to Illinois in 1863, C. 
 S. Cothran lived with them in Duquoin, Perry 
 county, until six years old. Coming back to 
 California with them in 1866, he acquired his 
 rudimentary education in the pubHc schools of 
 Hollister, completing his studies at the Univer- 
 sity of the Pacific, in San Jose, attending that 
 institution a year. He was afterward engaged 
 in farming in San Benito county until 1886, 
 when he located on the west side of Merced 
 county, where, on the Uriah Wood ranch of 
 six hundred acres he carried on a successful 
 business at grain raising for a number of years. 
 In 1902 Judge Cothran removed to his present 
 home estate, where he has one hundred and fifty 
 acres ; of this ranch sixty-one acres are planted 
 to alfalfa. The judge has also a valuable grain 
 ranch in the foothills. On his home farm he 
 has made improvements, having a comfortable 
 residence, and substantial farm buildings. In 
 addition to carrying on general farming with 
 such marked success. Judge Cothran has a well- 
 established and profitable dairy business. In 
 1894 he was elected justice of the peace, and has 
 since served with eminent satisfaction in this 
 office, having been re-elected in 1896 and 1900, 
 the district over which he presides includes 
 township No. 3. 
 
 Judge Cothran married, in Los Banos, Hettie 
 Bibby, who was born in Napa, Cal., a daughter 
 of Nicholas Bibby, a prominent pioneer, and ex- 
 supervisor. A brief sketch of Mr. Bibby may 
 be found elsewhere in this volume. Judge and 
 Mrs. Cothran are the parents of four children, 
 namely: Robert, Ethel, Charles and Alvin. 
 Fraternally Judge Cothran is a member and 
 Council Commander of Blue Gum Camp No. 491, 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1583 
 
 W. of W. ; a member of the Fraternal Aid and 
 Women of Woodcraft. Politically he is one of 
 the leading Democrats of this part of Merced 
 county, and an ex-member of the Democratic 
 county committee. 
 
 EDWARD M. DEWEY. Born in 1829, Ed- 
 ward M. Dewey became one of the old residents 
 of the San Joaquin valley, a pioneer whose life 
 has lain along the hard lines of the beginners of 
 a statehood, a citizen whose efforts have mate- 
 rially assisted in the development of this section 
 of the country. His life has been made up of 
 varied experiences. Reared to the Hfe of a farm- 
 er until eighteen years of age he afterward served 
 as an apprentice in the United States Coast Sur- 
 vey; as a pedagogue; as a bank clerk in Wash- 
 ington, D. C. ; then as newspaper man, and an 
 engraver. Lastly, he threw in his lot with the 
 pioneers of the extreme west, taking his place 
 among the early settlers of Tulare county, Cal., 
 where as a journalist he labored zealously for 
 the development of all resources which might 
 make of the state what time has since proven it 
 to be. 
 
 In 1861 Mr. Dewey came to California by way 
 of Panama. In Downieville the year following 
 he began the publication of the Mountain Mes- 
 senger, in partnership with G. A. Vaughn pur- 
 chasing it from A. T. Dewey, a brother of the 
 former. Before the railroad had been built into 
 Tulare county Mr. Dewey came to Visalia from 
 Gilroy, Santa Clara county, in 1871. Several 
 years later, however, the railroad was built and 
 improvements followed. When he first came to 
 the county there was not even a hut to mark the 
 now flourishing city of Tulare, the county seat 
 being at Millerton, at the foothills on the east 
 bank of the San Joaquin river, which was then 
 crossed only by ferries. Bakersfield was hardly 
 known, the county seat of Kern being at Havilah, 
 a mining town in the mountains near Upper Kern 
 river, about forty miles above Bakersfield, which 
 was then only a supply headquarters for miners 
 and stockmen, though it had one newspaper 
 called the California. When Mr. Dewey resumed 
 charge of the Delta its political standing was 
 changed from Republican to Independent. The 
 positive status of the then existing parties by 
 vote was about four Democrats to one Republi- 
 can. 
 
 The inhabitants of the several counties in the 
 Upper San Joaquin were very largely from the 
 southwestern border slave states, and this was 
 emphasized in the travels of Mr. Dewey through- 
 out the country, as he would find in nearly all 
 the homes, whether white or colored, pictures of 
 President Jefferson Davis, of the Southern Con- 
 federacv. General Lee, Beauregard, and others 
 
 of the southern leaders. The sentiments of the 
 southern people were strongly Confederate, but 
 they were found to be the most kindly and hos- 
 pitable people among whom Mr. Dewey had ever 
 traveled. 
 
 The native Indians, at that time, were rapidly 
 disappearing. There was little farming or fenc- 
 ing. Lumber was scarce and hardly within reach 
 in price. The fencing was principally of crooked 
 fences made of split oaks, and the first houses 
 were made of whip-sawed oak and home-made 
 brick or adobe. Most all of the valuable stock 
 or grazing lands still belonged to the govern- 
 ment, and were offered at $1.25 per acre, and 
 were a free range for thousands of horses, hogs, 
 sheep and cattle. Most all of the first settlers 
 were large owners of herds of stock, but butter 
 and potatoes were luxuries and were brought in 
 by freighting teams; later Chinamen began to 
 plant gardens and supply the settlers with vege- 
 tables. There was only one bearing orange and 
 one bearing olive tree in Visalia, though there 
 were several bearing lemon and orange trees on 
 Tule river and in that vicinity. 
 
 The uncultivated plains of Tulare county in a 
 good rainy season in the spring time were cov- 
 ered with verdure and flowers; fields of blue, 
 red, white and golden hues; all of one color by 
 hundreds of acres. It was a wonderful view, 
 grand beyond description, though the flowers had 
 little fragrance. There were countless numbers 
 of ground squirrels and jack rabbits, as well 
 as all kinds of wild domestic animals, belong- 
 ing to stockmen who only gathered their herds 
 once a year, usually by a general rodeo, when 
 the young stock was branded by the owners with 
 a hot iron to prove ownership when it should be 
 gathered in after years, to be sold and driven 
 away. At these rodeos there would be gathered 
 and camped hundreds of horsemen in the employ 
 of different brand owners. It was considered a 
 time of great interest. Hundreds of settlers 
 would be there also to find their stock which had 
 unintentionally (of course) been gathered up 
 by the big stockmen; and they found them, 
 too, all too often. Many of these big stockmen 
 owned only a quarter section of land upon which 
 they had a large corrall or two, a few cotton- 
 wood trees, perhaps a live spring instead of a 
 well; and a few dogs; the free government 
 range constituting the rest of their possessions. 
 Lumber to fence with in those days was out of 
 the question ; hardly enough could be had for 
 houses, barns and the fencing of small culti- 
 vated fields. Most of the fencing done was with 
 oaken split rails, crooked fence fashion. At the 
 first organization of the county and town the 
 jail was a sort of log corrall, made of whip- 
 sawed oak planks, covered with hand sawed oak 
 shakes, and in the jail prisoners were chained to 
 
1584 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 stumps. There it was that William Governevir 
 Maurice, United States marshal of the district, 
 with the aid of another man as lawless as him- 
 self, caused a man named Deputy, with a knife 
 at his throat, to sign away $56,000 worth of prop- 
 erty of which the Visalia mill property was said 
 to be a part. Mr. Maurice shot and killed the first 
 publisher of the Delta in a drunken row on the 
 Mill creek bridge near the court house. 
 
 Naturally, the rapid incoming of emigration 
 and the taking up of public lands foreshadowed 
 the downfall of the free range stock industry, 
 by which many of the old settlers were growing 
 rich ; and they let their herds range over the 
 growing crops of settlers to their destruction, 
 threatening starvation to the settlers and their 
 small herds. The attention of Mr. Dewey was 
 early called to this state of affairs, and his paper 
 became an advocate for the enactment of a 
 state law requiring the owners of stock herds 
 to fence or herd them off their neighbors, the 
 settlers. There was no lumber for farmers to 
 fence with, and the free range around them they 
 considered naturally belonged to them and not 
 to the predatory owners of wild stock who had 
 little or no range of their own. The proposed 
 law was known as a "no-fence" or "herd-law," 
 meaning that stockmen should be obliged to 
 herd their flocks and that farmers should not 
 be expected to fence against others' stock, as had 
 been the practice. 
 
 Quite a bitterness of feeling had arisen between 
 the two factions, and the stockmen had begun 
 calling the settlers "sand-lappers," in derision, 
 from the manner of horse and cattle lapping up 
 the dry feed off the plains in summer, and in re- 
 turn the stockmen, from being horsemen and 
 wearing leggings were nicknamed "hair-leggers." 
 Preparatory to the oncoming election the new 
 settlers, sand-lappers, about half and half politi- 
 cally, decided to vote together for Republican 
 candidates pledged to the herd-law, and Tipton 
 Lindsey, of Visalia, and a Mr. Canfield, of Bak- 
 ersfield, were nominated for the senate and as- 
 sembly ; both popular men, and both were elected. 
 They secured the passage of a herd-law, but it 
 proved unconstitutional when tested in the courts 
 and there was great rejoicing on the side of the 
 stockmen. But they were speedily made sad by 
 the enactment of a "higher law" by the settlers 
 of Woodville, who, one moonlight night, slaugh- 
 tered a whole herd of trespassing cattle. Stock- 
 men rode into the slaughter field from several 
 counties and they left, saying to themselves that 
 the settlers had now enacted a law that could not 
 be declared unconstitutional in any court of their 
 jurisdiction. 
 
 Soon after Mr. Dewey's arrival in Visalia a 
 meeting of prominent citizens was held to dis- 
 cuss the question as to whether or not it was ad- 
 
 visable to yield to what was said to be a demand 
 from the Southern Pacific Railroad magnates to 
 make a donation of $100,000 to induce them 
 to build to Visalia or to let the road pass the city 
 by a more southern survey. The most promi- 
 ent attorneys pledged their reputations that the 
 road had to come to Visalia ; the bonds called for 
 it and- the government charter would require it, 
 and it must come. But they, the best citizens, 
 thought it might be well to appoint a committee 
 to go out a few miles west on the survey and 
 get the farmers to give a bond for a deed for 
 a dollar to give the right of way through their 
 land, to have their farms cut in two for the bene- 
 fit of Visalia land ov/ners. The committee was 
 appointed, but no money was raised for the com- 
 mittee to pay the farmers for the bond for right 
 of way through their land. Therefore nothing- 
 was done toward helping the great corporation 
 to follow the law, the charter, or the legal opin- 
 ions of the lawyers. 
 
 FREDERICK V. DEWEY, editor and 
 proprietor of the Daily Journal of Hanford, 
 inherits his journalistic ability from his father, 
 Edward M. Dewey. The latter was for several 
 years engaged in publishing newspapers in Mas- 
 sachusetts, but when his son was a lad of four 
 years, left his home in Massachusetts and settled 
 in Downieville, CaL, as publisher of a newspaper. 
 Three years later he ' went to San Francisco, 
 where he engaged in the real estate business. In 
 1870 he went to Visalia, Tulare county, in the 
 latter place owning and managing the Vis- 
 alia DeltOi. 
 
 While living in Visalia, Frederick V. Dewey 
 attended the public schools there, which fur- 
 nished him with an excellent educational basis, 
 upon which he later build^d by attendance at 
 the Visalia Normal School and Heald's Busi- 
 ness College at San Francisco. To attempt to 
 state definitely when Mr. Dewey first dis- 
 played a predilection for newspaper work 
 vvould be well-nigh impossible, as his asso- 
 ciations and surroundings throughout early 
 life when not in school were type and print- 
 er's ink. His adaptability for the work was 
 such that when only seventeen years old he 
 was enabled to take a man's position on a 
 newspaper as compositor, and a few years 
 later went to San Francisco, where he held 
 cases on the California Magadnc, the Bulle- 
 tin and the Call. Thereafter his time was di- 
 vided between San Francisco and Visalia for 
 several years, or until he became foreman of 
 the Visalia Delta. In the meantime, in 1882 
 he came to Hanford and conducted the Mus- 
 sel Slough branch of the Visalia Delta, having 
 charge of the same for about eight 'months 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1585 
 
 After serving as foreman of the Visalia 
 Delta for several years he was for a short time 
 an employe of the state printing office, going 
 from there to Traver, Tulare county, where, as 
 editor and proprietor of the Traver Advocate, 
 he wielded a trenchant pen for about six years. 
 Upon disposing of the latter paper in 1891 
 Mr. Dewey came once more to Hanford, and 
 the same year established the Weekly Journal, 
 its first issue appearing April 14, 1891. Such 
 was the success of the paper that five years 
 later Mr. Dewey was warranted in making it 
 a semi-weekly journal, the first issue of this 
 paper appearing March 21, 1896. Still greater 
 success was in store for Mr. Dewey, for May 
 T, 1898, he was enabled to give to the reading 
 public the first issue of the Daily Journal, 
 continuing also the publication of the Semi- 
 Weekly Jottrnd, which papers have constant- 
 ly grown in circulation and popularity until 
 they rank among the leading Democratic 
 newspapers of the interior of the state. 
 
 Mr. Dewey is an easterner by birth, having 
 been born in Massachusetts November 14, 
 i860. His marriage in 1881 united him with 
 Martha E. McBee, a native of Visalia, Cal., 
 and they became the parents of four children, 
 one of whom, Walter, died in infancy ; Harry 
 McBee died when in his fourteenth year ; Irene 
 W. is the wife of Robert McCourt, a merchant 
 of Hanford; and Frederick V., Jr., is a stu- 
 dent in the Hanford high school. Mr. Dewey 
 is a Democrat in political sentiment, and a 
 stanch defender of party principles. Fra- 
 ternally he belongs to the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows and the Knights of the Macca- 
 bees. 
 
 JOSEPH BROWN. Born in White county, 
 Tenn., March 14, 1858, Mr. Brown is a son of 
 Samuel Brown, whose sketch will be found in 
 that of Samuel T. Brown, on another page of 
 this work. 
 
 Joseph Brown was reared on his father's farm 
 and by attending school during the winter 
 months obtained a fair common-school educa- 
 tion. In 1876, in company with his brother Will- 
 iam, he went to Texas, where he followed farm- 
 ing near Dallas for nine months. At the end of 
 that time he returned to his native state and was 
 employed on the old farm for a few months, 
 later taking full charge. Here he carried on gen- 
 eral farming and stock-raising until 1897, when 
 he disposed of his interests in Tennessee and 
 came to California. Locating in Fresno county, 
 he leased his present place of residence and has 
 since been engaged in farming and stock-rais- 
 ing, although a large portion of the five hundred 
 and twenty acres are devoted to the raising of 
 
 76 
 
 grain. While he still rents this place, Mr. Brown 
 has purchased three hundred and thirty-two acres 
 on section 31, four and one-half miles west of 
 Clovis, which he also farms in connection with 
 his place of residence. 
 
 In White county, Tenn., Mr. Brown was united 
 in marriage with Miss Mattie England, a native 
 of Arkansas, and to them have been born the 
 following children: Ollie (now the wife of 
 Jared Moore, of Clovis), May, William, Harland, 
 Samuel T., Fina, George Henry and Joseph, all 
 of whom are living at home. Mr. Brown has 
 never taken a very prominent part in politics. 
 He thinks it best to cast aside party lines in local 
 elections, but in national issues he votes for the 
 Democratic candidates. In fraternal relations 
 he is associated with the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 MILLS ELEY. Prominent among the repre- 
 sentative stockmen of Fresno county. Mills Eley 
 is engaged in this work in the vicinity of Pulaski, 
 while he makes his home in Fresno at No. 925 
 O street. He was born in Talladega, Ala., in 
 1858, a son of Merritt Eley. The elder man was 
 a native of Madison county, Ala., where his fath- 
 er. Mills Eley, had removed from his home in 
 Virginia, which had been established there many 
 generations earlier by English ancestors. Mills 
 Eley had proven a patriot in time of need, taking 
 part under General Jackson in the war of 1812. 
 He died early in life, his family of children being 
 reared on the paternal homestead. As a boy 
 Merritt Eley went to Talladega county, where 
 he engaged as a planter in manhood. During the 
 Civil war he served in an Alabama regiment. He 
 died in March, 1870, at the early age of forty- 
 six .years. Religiously he was a member of the 
 Cumberland Presbyterian Church, in which he 
 acted as ruling elder. In January, 1854, he was 
 united in marriage with Sophronia Blasingame, 
 a native of Marshall county, Ala., and a daugh- 
 ter of Jesse Blasingame. He was a native of the 
 Carolinas. He located as a planter in Marshall 
 county, Ala., where he married Mary Walker, 
 whose parents were from South Carolina. Mrs. 
 Eley brought her family to California in 1876, 
 and entered land in the vicinity of Fresno, where 
 she engaged in the stock business. She is the 
 mother of nine children, seven of whom are still 
 living. 
 
 Mills Eley, the subject of this sketch, was 
 reared on the paternal farm in Alabama until 
 1876, in which year he accompanied his raother 
 to California, his education being received in the 
 common schools of his native state. On his moth- 
 er's property he engaged in stock-raising, and in. 
 1878 entered into the business for himself. He 
 located first on Kings river, where he remained 
 
1580 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 one year, thence going to Academy, where he be- 
 gan the sheep business, his range at that time 
 being in what is now Madera county. He entered 
 land and also homesteaded a farm eight miles 
 east of Borden, where he made all improvements 
 and gave intelligent effort to the success of his 
 enterprise. Later he sold out and located his 
 home in Fresno, while he still conducts the sheep 
 business on his ranch northwest of Pulaski, 
 which, since 1903, has been a partnership affair, 
 A. H. and L. A. Blasingame being interested with 
 him. They have over twenty thousand acres of 
 pasture land for their sheep, which number from 
 ten to fifteen thousand head of a good grade of 
 mutton stock. This enterprise has been one of 
 the most successful in Fresno county, and has 
 named Mr. Eley among the representative stock- 
 men of the section. For many years he has been 
 a member of the National Sheep Breeders' Asso- 
 ciation, and fraternally was made a Mason in 
 Fresno Lodge No. 247, and is also a member of 
 Trigo Chapter No. 69, R. A. M. Politically he 
 is a Democrat and an ex-member of the county 
 central committee. 
 
 PETER DROGE. A successful fruit dealer 
 of Fresno, Cal, Peter Droge is named among the 
 prominent business men of this city. He is a na- 
 tive son of the state, his birth having occurred 
 in San Francisco, September 2, 1872. 
 
 Peter Droge was reared in San Francisco, re- 
 ceiving his education in the public schools and 
 Heald's Business College, graduating from the 
 latter institution in 1887. His first business em- 
 ployment was with George Wallcon, of San 
 Francisco, with whom he remained as bookkeeper 
 for three years. Following this he came to Fres- 
 no and entered the employ of the Seropian Bros, 
 as manager of their fruit business, remaining so 
 occupied until he went into business for himself. 
 He met with success in his work, and in the 
 spring of 1902 established a packing plant, which 
 was incorporated in July of the same year, under 
 the name of the Droge Fruit Company, with a 
 capitalization of $25,000. Mr. Droge became its 
 first president, his brother its treasurer, and 
 Charles A. Paulden vice-president and secretary. 
 The company then built a packing house on the 
 Southern Pacific Railroad, with a capacity of five 
 thousand tons, modern in every way and operated 
 by steam power. In November, 1904, this plant 
 was destroyed by fire, when the company pur- 
 chased the Porter Brothers' plant, fitting it up 
 for the business with double the capacity. This 
 plant is also located on the Southern Pacific Rail- 
 road, with an office at No. 1823 Tulare street. 
 They handle all kinds of fruit, buying from Mo- 
 desto to Bakersfield. They are the largest pack- 
 ers of California figs in the state, handling one- 
 
 third of the product of this section, having made 
 a specialty of this fruit at the beginning ot tne 
 business. Mr. Droge's business is an important 
 factor in the development and progress of i-resno 
 and .he is accounted one of the enterprising and 
 resourceful business men and one who can always 
 be depended upon to give his best efforts toward 
 the upbuilding of the community in every possi- 
 ble way. 
 
 CHARLES A. KIMBLE. Prominent among 
 the men who have come to Kings county with 
 assets consisting of physical strength and mental 
 alertness, and who have had the sagacity to per- 
 ceive and the boldness to push to a successful 
 issue a large and paying opportunity, mention is 
 due Charles A. Kimble, one of the most extensive 
 stock raisers and most prominent and wealthy 
 pioneers of Kings county. Traveling south ov&r 
 well kept country roads four miles from Hanford 
 one comes to the model stock farm, from which 
 no improvement suggested by latter day enter- 
 prise has been omitted, and where grow to ma- 
 turity some of the finest sheep and Clydesdale 
 horses on the Pacific coast. Mr. Kimble came 
 to Kings county in 1889, bought a half interest 
 in a one hundred and sixty acre ranch, managed 
 the same for some time, and then purchased it 
 all for his present home. In addition he rented 
 large tracts of land for his sheep-raising industry 
 in 1895 and at the present time has eight thou- 
 sand head of American Merino and RambouUet 
 sheep, twelve hundred of which are the famous 
 RambouUet bucks. At the head of his herd of 
 Clydesdales is the well-known stallion whose 
 registered name is Yathin Stamp, the winner of 
 m*ny premiums, and whose graceful and splen- 
 did proportions have been the admiration oi many 
 hundreds gathered at the district and agricultural 
 fairs. Yet another source in the stock line is 
 a high grade of hogs, of which Mr. Kimble sold 
 four hundred and forty-two head at one time, 
 averaging two hundred and twenty-six pounds. 
 He receives good prices for his Clydesdales and 
 ships them all through the west and as far east 
 as Giicago, 111. Having insufficient feed for 
 his stock Mr. Kimble bought, in 1901, three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres of land eight miles south 
 of Hanford, and in 1903 added to it two hundred 
 and forty acres of land, both farms being under 
 alfalfa. He also rents three hundred and twent}^ 
 acres adjoining his home farm, which contrib- 
 utes further to the alfalfa output. He is one 
 of the best judges of fine stock in the San 
 Joaquin valley, and his advice and counsel are 
 sought and appreciated on occasions involving the 
 prestige of Kings county as a stock producing 
 center. He is a director in the Kings county 
 Agricultural Association, an institution which 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1587 
 
 has proved of great benefit to stock and produce 
 raisers throughout the county. 
 
 When Mr. Kimble started out on his own re- 
 sponsibihty at the age of twenty-one, he had a 
 thorough knowledge of farming and an aptitude 
 for making it a paying proposition. Until then 
 he had lived on the home farm in Ontario' county, 
 N. Y., where his birth occurred November 2, 
 1865, and where his father, Chillian Kimble, 
 still makes his home. Having posted himself 
 regarding the various chances for advancement 
 open to the ambitious youth on the coast, he went 
 to Phoenix, Ariz., near which city he worked on 
 a farm for a year. Not liking the prospects in 
 Arizona, he came to California with hopes of 
 better success, and in Woodland worked at the 
 carpenter's trade for two years, removing to his 
 present farm in 1889. He was obliged to go 
 partially in debt for his land, but industry soon 
 enabled him to rise above this handicap, and his 
 way has been comparatively clear of hindrances 
 since getting a start. His family consists of his 
 wife, formerly Bertha Dewey, a native of Cali- 
 fornia, and four children : Florence, Elmer, Nel- 
 lie and Alice. Mr. Kimble's intelligent grasp of 
 the needs and possibilities of this county has 
 made him an important factor in many of its 
 outside enterprises, especially in connection with 
 the development of water. He is the representa- 
 tive of Kings and Tulare counties in the St. 
 John's River Association, and the president of 
 the Lake Side Ditch Company. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Woodmen of the World, and 
 of the Hanford Lodge No. 194, K. of P. Mr. 
 Kimble is a solid, substantial and practical man, 
 a generous contributor to worthy causes, and 
 a supporter of education and progress. As a 
 stock-raiser no one has excelled and few ap- 
 proached his standard, and as he is a compara- 
 tively young man, his career is surrounded with 
 every indication of extended future usefulness. 
 
 WILLIAM H. GARDNER. A prominent 
 wheat grower of the Upper Kings river country, 
 William H. Gardner is widely known through- 
 out this section of Fresno county. He was born 
 in Orleans county, Vt., November 24, 1838, a 
 son of Roswell Gardner, of Massachusetts, who 
 located first in Canada and later crossed the line 
 into Vermont, where he made his home for many 
 years. He came to California on a visjt to his 
 son in 1879, and died that year at the age of 
 seventy-two years. His wife, formerly Eliza 
 Hussey, a native of Maine, died in Newport, 
 Vt. They were the parents of twelve children, 
 of whom ten attained maturity, five sons and 
 five daughters, while three sons and one daugh- 
 ter are now living. William H. Gardner was 
 the oldest of this large family of children, re- 
 
 ceiving his education in the common schools of 
 both Canada and Vermont, while he was trained 
 to the practical duties of a farmer's son. De- 
 ciding to try his fortunes in the remote west, 
 he cam.e to California in 1866 by way of the Isth- 
 mus of Panama, and upon his safe arrival lo- 
 cated near Santa Clara and engaged in grain 
 farming. For sixteen years he remained in that 
 locality, when he came to Fresno county, pur- 
 chasing a ranch of one hundred and sixty acres, 
 where he engaged in grain farming. He has 
 since added by purchase until he now owns three 
 hundred and twenty acres in the home place, 
 forty acres near- by, and four hundred and eighty 
 acres west of Fresno, near Huron. He has also 
 a stock ranch of six hundred and forty acres in 
 the mountains, where he raises horses and cat- 
 tle. The greater part of his land is devoted to 
 the cultivation of wheat, in which he has met 
 with a gratifying success. 
 
 In Santa Clara, Cal., Mr. Gardner was united 
 in marriage with Imogene Riker, a native of 
 New York, and they are the parents of two 
 sons, Harry P., a rancher, and Frederick J., a 
 blacksmith at Sanger. Politically Mr. Gardner 
 is a Democrat and in the interests of this party 
 held the office of school director while a resident 
 of Santa Qara county. 
 
 LUCIUS POWERS. The Powers orchard 
 and vineyard, of which Lucius Powers is general 
 manager, holds rank among the most carefully 
 improved and most thoroughly cultivated fruit 
 farms in the Centerville district of Fresno county. 
 The property, which adjoins Centerville on the 
 west, comprises an aggregate of three hundred 
 and seventy acres, subdivided as follows : one 
 hundred and fifty acres in raisin grapes ; twenty 
 acres in Em.peror grapes ; eleven acres in oranges ; 
 ten acres in apples; six acres in figs of the 
 White Adriatic variety; ten acres in Calnjema 
 figs ; two acres in peaches ; twenty acres in alfalfa, 
 and the balance in hay and grain which furnish 
 feed for the stock carried on the place. 
 
 Ever since the stirring days of 1849 the Pow- 
 ers family has been identified with California 
 history. The founder of the family on the coast 
 was Aaron H. Powers, a native of New Hamp- 
 shire, but from early childhood a resident of 
 Boston, Mass., having accompanied his parents 
 to that city. At the time of the discovery of 
 gold in California he took passage on a sailing 
 vessel and after a long voyage by way of the 
 Horn landed at the Golden Gate, whence he pro- 
 ceeded to the mines of the north. Eventually 
 he became engaged in business in Sacramento, 
 where he continued for twenty years. Upon 
 retiring from commercial life in 1887 he pur- 
 chased two hundred and fifty acres west of Cen- 
 
158S 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 terville in Fresno county and soon afterward 
 planted one hundred acres of the tract in fruits 
 of various kinds, also laid out a large vineyard. 
 Of recent years he has given the management 
 of the place into the hands of his son, Lucius, 
 but still maintains a close supervision of the 
 property and by wise counsel and keen judg- 
 ment is proving a helpful factor in the highest 
 development of the land. His wife, who bore 
 the maiden name of Emma Louisa Sweasey, was 
 born in London, England, and died in Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 Of six sons and three daughters comprising 
 the family of Aaron H. Powers the gentleman 
 whose name introduces this article was next to 
 the youngest. As a boy he received common- 
 school advantages in his home town of Sacra- 
 mento, where he was born January ii, 1872. 
 After having taken a course in a business col- 
 lege in San Francisco he started out for him- 
 self, and ever since has been 'associated with 
 the fruit ranch in Fresno county, where still 
 he makes his home. An incident of his youth 
 indicates his progressive, enterprising disposi- 
 tion. In 1889, when seventeen years of age, he 
 established the Kings River Nezvs, a four-page 
 sheet, which was 6x8 inches in size, and was 
 published every other week. The people of the 
 community around Centerville, which had no 
 publication of its own, appreciated his efforts 
 to give them the news of current interest, and 
 their support encouraged him to increase the 
 paper to eight pages, but after he had published 
 it for two years other matters required his atten- 
 tion and he discontinued the little publication. 
 
 By his marriage to Miss Abbie Vian, who was 
 born at Colusa, this state, Mr. Powers has three 
 children, Lucius, Jr., Mary Louisa and Martha 
 Kate. In political belief a Republican, he has 
 been active in local affairs of the party, and 
 for some years has served as a member of the 
 county central committee. Fraternally he is asso- 
 ciated with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows and the kindred organization of Rebekahs 
 at Centerville. Both he and his father, who 
 continues to make the ranch his home, take an 
 intelligent interest in matters for the benefit of 
 the county and especially give encouragement to 
 movements for the development of the fruit in- 
 terests of this locality, believing that the land 
 can be made more profitable by following horti- 
 culture and viticulture than by continuing in 
 general farming or stock-raising. 
 
 JACOB VOGEL. Prominent in financial 
 circles in the San Joaquin valley, Jacob Vogel 
 has given his best efforts toward the development 
 of the best interests of this section. He is a 
 native of Germany, his birth having occurred in 
 
 Flesse-Cassel, November 27, 1839, his father, 
 Baltasar Vogel, being born in the same locality, 
 where he engaged as a farnier and merchant un- 
 til his death in the fall of 1848. In that same 
 year he participated in the revolution, being a 
 member of the Revolutionary party. In religion 
 he was a Lutheran and was a strong moral citi- 
 zen and one who gave his efforts to advance the 
 welfare of the community in which he made his 
 home. His wife, formerly Christine Hoffman, 
 was a native of Germany, where she also died. 
 Of the five children born of their union only 
 two are living, a son and daughter. A son, John, 
 went to England and engaged as a baker until 
 his death, and the otheT son, Ludwig, remained 
 on the old home place, where his death occurred. 
 Reared on the home farm in Hesse-Cassel, 
 Jacob Vogel attended the public schools until he 
 was fourteen years old, when he was confirmed. 
 He was then apprenticed to learn the shoemak- 
 er's trade, remaining so occupied for three years, 
 when in 1857 he came to America. His passage 
 was made on a slow steamer, the voyage occupy- 
 ing three weeks, and after his safe arrival in 
 New York City he went on to Chicago, 111., 
 where he found himself with but $1 left of his 
 savings. He remained in that city but four 
 months, when he went to Bloomington, same 
 state, and for three months worked in the em- 
 ploy of a mason as he was unable to follow his 
 trade. He received $1 per day as his remunera- 
 tion for his three months' work, after which he 
 found work at his trade until the breaking out 
 of the Civil war. He had taken a keen and in- 
 telligent interest in the question of the day, and 
 in 1858 had heard Lincoln and Douglas debate 
 five times in different cities in Illinois. He did 
 not at first enlist for service, but in the spring 
 of 1862 he was a volunteer among three hun- 
 dred, a company raised in one night to go to 
 Springfield to guard prisoners. In the July fol- 
 lowing he enlisted in Company A, Ninety-fourth 
 Illinois Regiment Volunteer Infantry, being 
 mustered in at Bloomington, after which the 
 regiment was sent to service in Missouri and 
 Arkansas, where, December 7, 1862, at the bat- 
 tle of Prairie Grove, the regiment suffered great 
 loss. Following- they participated in the siege 
 of Vicksburg, after which they were sent to the 
 relief of Port Hudson, and thence to New Or- 
 leans. In that city the greater part of the regi- 
 ment was incapacitated through fever, and four 
 months later the Thirteenth Army Corps was 
 organized and all that was left of the regiment 
 became a part of the same. They were then sent 
 to Brownsville, Tex., on the Rio Grande, one of 
 the most trying and difficult expeditions during 
 his long service, their only food being salt pork. 
 Scurvy broke out in the regiment and the suffer- 
 ing was intense. Later they went to Mobile 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1589 
 
 bay, taking part in the battles of Fort Morgan 
 and Fort Gaines, and also doing garrison duty. 
 In the taking of the fort at Mobile this corps 
 was active, and immediately afterwards came 
 the news of the assassination of Lincoln. The 
 anger of the troops was something terrible in 
 its magnitude, and but for the previous surrender 
 of the fort the southern soldiers would have suf- 
 fered at the hands of the enraged sympathizers. 
 In Mobile the troops remained for a time, after 
 which they were sent to Galveston, Tex., where 
 Mr. Vogel was honorably discharged and mus- 
 tered out of service in July, 1865. During his 
 long service he was wounded once in the right 
 hand at the battle of Vicksburg. Returning to 
 Bloomington, 111., Mr. Vogel engaged at his 
 trade for some time, did some traveling through- 
 out the west, as far west as Omaha, and later re- 
 turned. His employer suggested to him the idea 
 of starting a store and shop, and accordingly 
 he located in Clinton, Dewitt county, 111., where 
 he established his business. He met with suc- 
 cess and very shortly his business assumed lucra- 
 tive proportions, and in a very short time he 
 found it necessary to make two trips a year to 
 the eastern factories, where he purchased his 
 goods. During this time he purchased and im- 
 proved property in Illinois, owning a farm of 
 four hundred and eighty acres. In 1886 he came 
 to California as delegate to the National G. A. R. 
 Encampment at San Francisco, and while in the 
 state visited various localities. Charmed with 
 the climate, and the business possibilities of the 
 state, upon his return to Illinois he at once sold 
 «ut his business and returning to California in- 
 vested in lands, real estate and stock in the vicin- 
 ity of Fresno, Fresno county. He built a hand- 
 some residence on Q street, and later on pur- 
 chased a forty-acre vineyard in the vicinity of 
 the city, which, however, he has since sold. He 
 also improved four hundred acres on Kearney 
 avenue, devoted principally to alfalfa, and where 
 he conducts a large dairy, and owns as well vari- 
 ous other lands throughout Fresno county. In 
 1900 he located his home in Fruitvale, at the 
 corner of Fruitvale avenue and Bellevue street, 
 but still retains a prominent place in the business 
 activity of Fresno, to which city he goes each 
 month to look after his interests, being director 
 and vice-president of the First National Bank 
 of Fresno; president of the Fresno Street Im- 
 provement Company; and owns three-quarters 
 of a brick block at the corner of I and Fresno 
 streets. He is also a stockholder in the Peo- 
 ple's Savings Bank of Fresno and the . Fresno 
 Abstract & Title Company, as well as the First 
 National Bank of Selma, the Bank of Dinuba 
 and the First National Bank of Madera, while 
 he also owns three store rooms in Sanger. Mr. 
 Vogel has brought about his noteworthy success 
 
 by a close application to his business, without 
 which even ability cannot bring a man desired 
 results.. With nothing but his ability and powers 
 of application, he has risen from a position of 
 dependence to one of competency and affluence, 
 at the same time winning for himself a place 
 high in the esteem and confidence of all who 
 know him either in a business or social way. 
 
 In Bloomington, 111., Mr. Vogel was united 
 in marriage with Eliza Ludolph, a native of 
 Kur-Hessen, and the daughter of Martin Lu- 
 dolph, who located as a farmer in Indiana, where 
 his death occurred. They became the parents of 
 six children, namely : Amelia, the wife of A. 
 Hall of Fresno ; Lulu, the wife of Harry Aid- 
 rich of Fresno; Olivia, the wife of Charles Mc- 
 Cardle; Herbert E., in charge of the dairy at 
 Fresno; Welby, at home; and Burnel, at home. 
 Fraternally Mr. Vogel is identified with the In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows, and also be- 
 longs to the Encampment. He is a member of 
 Appomattox Post, G. A. R., of Oakland, and 
 is a past commander of Atlanta Post, of Clinton, 
 111. He is a member of the Lutheran Church, 
 while his wife belongs to the Christian Qiurch. 
 Politically he is a strong Republican in national 
 issues, but locally gives his support to the men 
 whom he considers best qualified to discharge 
 public duties. Mr. Vogel has proven himself one 
 of the most helpful upbuilders of the San Joa- 
 quin valley — a man of strong moral influence 
 and unusual business ability, and a citizen whose 
 best efforts have been given to advance the in- 
 terests of the community in which he has made 
 his home, as well as the general public which 
 holds his allegiance. 
 
 DAVID R. GRIFFITH. Representative of 
 the enterprise and spirit of progress which have 
 distinguished the commercial, industrial and agri- 
 cultural life of Tulare county, David R. Griffith 
 is entitled to the position accorded him by the 
 liberal and public spirited citizens of this section. 
 A member of the firm of Griffith & Owen, pro- 
 prietors of the Rocky Point Granite Works, he 
 is giving his best efforts toward the success of 
 this enterprise, as ' well as interesting himself 
 generally in all movements calculated to advance 
 the public welfare. Born near Carnarvon, Wales, 
 December 12, 1851, he is the only one out of 
 a large family to seek a home in America. His 
 father, Robert Griffith, was also a native of the 
 same place, and the representative of a very old 
 Welsh family. He was employed in the slate 
 quarries in that locality, where his father had 
 followed farming for a livelihood. His wife, 
 formerly Mary Jones, was also a native of the 
 same locality, where both herself and husband 
 died. They became the parents of eleven chil- 
 
1590 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 dren, of whom ten attained maturity, while only 
 three sons and one daughter are now living. 
 
 Until he was seventeen years old David R. 
 Griffith -remained in Wales, attending the Na- 
 tional school in boyhood, and when old enough 
 assuming a place in the slate quarries. In the 
 spring of 1869 he came to New York state and 
 found employment in the slate quarries at Middle 
 Granville. From there he went to Quincy, Mass., 
 in 1872, and became an apprentice to learn the 
 work of granite cutter and maker of building 
 stone. In 1875 he returned to Wales and for 
 the ensuing seven years found employment again 
 in the slate quarries in Llanberis. From 1876 
 to 1882 Mr. Griffith was secretary and one of 
 the assistant leaders of the Eryri Choral Union, 
 one of the leading choirs of North Wales dur- 
 ing this period. The choir, which consisted of 
 one hundred and fifty picked voices, competed 
 for prizes every year and during this time won 
 about $5,000 in prizes. The most noted com- 
 petition was the one ^at Berkenhead in 1878, 
 where two of the best choirs of South Wales 
 and two of the best choirs from North Wales 
 and one from Liverpool entered the contest for 
 a prize of $1,000, which was won easily by the 
 one to which Mr. Griffith belonged. During this 
 time he was also a leader of another choir of 
 one hundred voices that was successful in compe- 
 titions. He also wrote many pieces of poetry 
 that became popular, namely : The Soldier 
 Brave, Choral March, music by Dr. Joseph 
 Parry, Gwenfron, music by R. S. Hughes. Other 
 pieces were set to music by American composers. 
 He was special correspondent to the Carnarvon 
 Herald during the same years and he made his 
 home at Llanberis, where he was known entirely 
 by his Bardic name Granvillefab. The Eryri 
 Choral Union was the first choir in North Wales 
 to give an opera in costume, as the churches 
 of that location, at that time, were much opposed 
 to operatic singing. Mr. Griffith was the one who 
 induced the members to undertake the matfer. 
 The expense of one entertainment was over 
 $1,000 (a neat sum at that time in North Wales), 
 the costumes being obtained from London. The 
 opera Blodwen, by Dr. Joseph Parry, the first 
 Welsh opera ever written, was produced and was 
 a grand success, over six thousand people attend- 
 ing it, being held at the Pavilion Carnarvon. 
 For years he led the singing in one of the largest 
 churches in Llanberis and devoted one night each 
 week in teaching the children to sing, using the 
 Tonic Sol Fa method. In 1888 he was the 
 leader of a male choir in San Francisco. He 
 taught a music class in Exeter, his home, during 
 the winters of 1889-90, and also led the singing 
 in the church there. His services were alwavs 
 given gratis and were appreciated by those wFTo 
 were benefited. 
 
 Deciding to locate again in the United States 
 Mr. Griffith went to Austin, Tex., and engaged 
 in the granite business, helping to cut the gran- 
 ite for the state capitol. After one year in that 
 location he came to California, worked in San 
 Francisco for nine months, then found employ- 
 ment at Penryn, Placer county, for three months, 
 when he returned to Texas. In June, the follow- 
 ing year (1887), making a six months' trip to 
 Wales. In September, 1887, he located in Den- 
 ver, Colo., where he remained until the spring of 
 1888, when he once more came to California and 
 located in San Francisco in the prosecution of 
 his trade. He removed to Tulare county in 
 1889 and leased and opened a granite quarry 
 on Rocky Hill, being associated with D. G. 
 Hughes and R. H. Owen, the former eventually 
 disposing of his interests to the other partners. 
 Mr. Griffith and Mr. Owen have remained con- 
 nected ever since, five years afterward giving 
 up their lease and purchasing ten acres for a 
 quarry on the north side of Rocky Hill, four 
 miles east of Exeter, and opened new quarries. 
 The quarry is admirably located for a profitable 
 conduct of the business, a spur from the Electric 
 Railroad soon to be built to enable them to ship 
 by the carload. They have built derricks, sheds 
 and shops, all thoroughly equipped, and are soon 
 to have electric power with which to operate. 
 In Exeter they have also built a polishing shop, 
 where thej' make cut stone and monumental 
 work, all by electricity. Their product is shipped 
 all over California, the elccellence of their work, 
 and the despatch with which orders are exe- 
 cuted, bringing them a large and lucrative cus- 
 tom. In addition to his business interests Mr. 
 Griffith owns two hundred acres adjoining the 
 quarry, one-half interest in sixty acres on the 
 west side of Rocky Hill (one and a half miles 
 from Exeter), and also owns seventeen acres 
 adjoining, of which ten acres are in a bearing 
 orange grove, where he is now building a resi- 
 dence. Mr. Griffith is prominent locally, being 
 a director of the Exeter Water & Irrigation 
 Company, which canal runs near his property, 
 and is president of the Exeter Citrus Fruit Asso- 
 ciation, a packing and shipping concern, of which 
 he was one of the organizers. 
 
 In Wales Mr. Griffith was united in marriage 
 with Ellen Thomas, a native of that country, 
 where she also died. She left one child, a daugh- 
 ter, Blodwen, who is now in Wales, a teacher in 
 the public schools at Llanrug. In Grass Valley, 
 Cal., Mr. Griffith was afterward married to Em- 
 ma Bagley, who was born in Rough and Ready, 
 the daughter of a pioneer miner from Maine. 
 Mr. Griffith is a member of the Presbyterian 
 Church, and politically is a stanch Republican, 
 now serving as a member of the county central 
 committee. He belongs to the Exeter Board 
 
HISTORICAL ANt) BIOGRAPHICAL RfiCORb. 
 
 1691 
 
 of Trade and is active in all public movements. 
 Fraternally he belongs to Exeter Lodge No. 308, 
 I. O. O. F., of Exeter, of which he is past grand, 
 and is also a member of Damascus Encamp- 
 ment No. 44, Canton Visalia No. 24, and 
 Orange Blossom Rebekah Lodge No. 265, of 
 which Mrs. Griffith is also a member. 
 
 G. W. WEBSTER was born in Chatham 
 county, N. C, a son of Micajah Webster, who 
 was one of a family of "fifteen children, twelve 
 sons and three daughters. When his son G. W. 
 was a child Micajah Webster went to Indiana, 
 and there he carried on farming the remainder of 
 his life, dying in that state, as did also his wife, 
 Mrs. Jane B. (Colburn) Webster. 
 
 When twenty years old G. W. Webster went to 
 Missouri, where he followed the brickmaker's 
 trade. In Andrew county, that state, in Sep- 
 tember, 1844, he married Miss Jane C. Smith, 
 a daughter of John P. and Elizabeth (Critten- 
 den) Smith. In 1852, with his wife and three 
 children, Mary E., Sarah E. and John M., Mr. 
 Webster crossed the plains with ox-teams, the 
 journey occupying six months. Two of Mr. 
 Webster's uncles, Hiram and Nathan Smith, who 
 were also in the party, died of cholera. Mr. 
 Webster first settled in San Ramon valley, Con- 
 tra Costa county, going from there to Vacaville, 
 where he died June i, 1872. After coming to 
 California six other children were born to Mr. 
 and Mrs. Webster, as follows:- Mrs. Martha J. 
 Potter, Mrs. Eliza Dunn, Mrs. Nellie Tre- 
 vise, Morris S., Mrs. Abigail Shipp and Mrs. 
 Josie Potter. In 1890 the family came to Fres- 
 no county. 
 
 DR. CHESTER ROWELL, of Fresno, was 
 born in Woodsville, N. H., October 7, 1844, the 
 son of Jonathan and Cynthia (Abbott) Rowell. 
 In 1849 his parents, with their eight sons, re- 
 moved to Stouts Grove, near Bloomington, III, 
 where his father died the next year. With the 
 other younger children he lived with his mother 
 on an Illinois pioneer farm, until the outbreak 
 of the Civil war in 1861, when, with four other 
 brothers, he entered the Union army, taking part 
 in the battles of Fort Donelson, Shiloh, the Siege 
 of Vicksburg and most of the battles and cam- 
 paigns of the Army of the Tennessee, from 1861 
 to 1864. 
 
 After the war Mr. Rowell attended Lombard 
 College, Galesburg, 111., for a time, and then 
 went to Chicago, where he attended a business 
 college and took up the study of medicine in 
 private. In 1866 he came across the plains of 
 California and settled in San Francisco. He 
 studied medicine with his cousin, Dr. T.saac Row- 
 
 ell, and in the medical department of the Univer- 
 sity of the Pacific, now Cooper Medical Col- 
 lege, where he graduated in 1870. During this 
 time he spent one year in Oregon, where he 
 taught school. He began the practice of medi- 
 cine in San Francisco, but in 1874 came to 
 Fresno, and has continued the practice of his 
 profession in this city and vicinity ever since. 
 In 1876 Dr. Rowell established the FresnO' Re- 
 publican as a small weekly paper. It remained 
 under his control for three years, and was then 
 transferred to others. After many vicissitudes 
 the same paper, grown to a promising daily, 
 came, in 1891, into the possession of the present 
 Fresno Republican Publishing Company, of 
 which Dr. Rowell is president and principal 
 stockholder. The paper has now become one 
 of the leading influences and best newspaper 
 properties in California. Dr. Rowell was elected 
 as a Republican to the state senate in 1879, at 
 a time when the county was almost solidly Demo- 
 cratic and was the first Republican ever elected 
 to office in Fresno county. He served as sen- 
 ator until 1883, and was again elected to the 
 same office in 1898 and 1902, and is therefore 
 just completing his twelfth year of service as a 
 senator. He was appointed a regent of the Uni- 
 versity of California in January, 1891, and has 
 been fourteen years in that office. His present 
 term will expire March 10, 1910. Dr. Rowell 
 was appointed a member of the State Board of 
 Health in 1880, and was a presidential elector 
 in 1884. He was a delegate to the National 
 Republican convention in 1900 and was one of 
 the sub-committee of nine which framed the 
 national platform of that year. He has been 
 a delegate to many state and other Republican 
 conventions and has always been active in pol- 
 itics. During the legislative dead-lock of 1900, 
 Dr. Rowell voted continuously for Thomas R. 
 Bard, who was finally elected senator at the 
 called session of the following year. 
 
 In 1872 Dr. Rowell was married to Mrs. 
 Nellie Rowell, widow of his former preceptor, 
 her death occurring in 1884. In 1887 and 1888 
 Dr. Rowell made an extended tour of the world, 
 visiting Japan, China, India, Egypt and all the 
 countries in Europe. He has taken other less 
 extensive trips at intervals, and has always been 
 an enthusiastic traveler, taking an active and 
 well-informed interest in the affairs of other 
 countries as well as his own. He is a man of 
 public spirit, whole-souled and generous, and is 
 honored by all who know him, either in a social 
 or political way. 
 
 ROBERT E. LEE GOOD. The most, exten- 
 sive merchant in Clovis, Fresno county, Robert 
 E. Lee Good is active in the upbuilding of the 
 
1592 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 best interests of this place. He was born at St. 
 Albans, W. Va., April 19, 1868, the fourth in a 
 family of twelve children, of whom ten are now 
 living. His father, Thomas Good, was a son of 
 Henry Good, both natives of Virginia, in which 
 state the latter died. They were descended from 
 an English family of prominence and occupied a 
 position of importance in the development of the 
 Old Dominion. Thomas Good removed to St. Al- 
 bans, W. Va., improving a farm on the Great 
 Kanawha river until his retirement, now making 
 his home in that city at the age of seventy-six 
 years. His wife, formerly Louisa Smith, was a 
 native of West Virginia and the descendant of an 
 old Virginia family. She died in the old home in 
 1886. 
 
 The childhood of Robert E. Lee Good was 
 spent on the paternal farms, while he received his 
 education in the common schools. He remained 
 at home until 1886, when he came to California, 
 and in Fresno county engaged in the cultivation 
 of a vineyard in the employ of M. F. Tarpey. 
 He remained in that connection for ten years, six 
 of which he acted as superintendent of the vine- 
 yard. In 1896 he entered upon a commercial ca- 
 reer on the corner of Fourth and Front streets, 
 where he has since been located. He bought 
 these lots, which were then nothing but a wheat 
 field, and put up a small building 24x36 feet, and 
 established a general merchandise business. In 
 1900 he built a new store, 75x110 feet, buih of 
 brick,_with a large warehouse 50x150 feet, with a 
 capacity of forty thousand sacks. He carries a 
 full line of dry goods, clothing, hardware, gro- 
 ceries, all kinds of produce and dried fruits, and 
 has built up an extensive and lucrative trade. He 
 is also interested in farming, conducting twelve 
 hundred acres planted to wheat and barley, run- 
 ning five six-horse teams in the operation of the 
 work. He- has met with success and is esteemed 
 as well for the qualities which have distinguished 
 his citizenship. 
 
 Near Clovis Mr. Good was united in marriage 
 with Amy Clay, a native of Merced county, Cal., 
 and the daughter of John A. Clay, an early set- 
 tler. They became the parents of two children, 
 George and Helen. Fraternally Mr. Good is iden- 
 tified with the Benevolent and Protective Order 
 of Elks and the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, the former of Fresno and the latter of Clo- 
 vis. Politically he is a stanch adherent of the 
 principles advocated in the platform of the Demo- 
 cratic party, and is ex-member of the county 
 central committee. 
 
 December 27, 1857, a son of W. B., and grand- 
 son of George M. Gibson, both natives of Tennes- 
 see, and early settlers of Greene county, Mo., 
 where both died. W. B. Gibson, although of 
 southern birth, was a strong advocate of the 
 Union, and during the war served as a member 
 of the state militia. Susanna Wills, a native of 
 Virginia and the daughter of Lewis Wills, an 
 early settler of Greene county, Mo., became the 
 wife of W. B. Gibson, whom she survives, now 
 making her home in that state. She was the 
 mother of seven children, of whom Lewis Wills 
 was the eldest. He was brought up on the pater- 
 nal farm in Missouri, receiving his education in 
 the district schools and Henderson Academy. In 
 young manhood he followed farming and stock- 
 raising in the vicinity of Springfield, Mo., re- 
 maining so occupied until 1886. In that year 
 he came to California, and in Tulare county pre- 
 empted one hundred and sixty acres, and later 
 homesteaded the same, improving a quarter sec- 
 tion of land and cultivating grain until 1897. In 
 the same year he located in Tipton, Tulare county, 
 and engaged in a mercantile enterprise for one 
 year, when he came to Clovis and estabHshed the 
 business which was then known as the firm of 
 Hutchinson & Gibson. Three years later he and 
 T. J. Mitchell bought his partner out and the 
 firm was known as Gibson & Mitchell. A year 
 later he bought his partner out and has since 
 continued alone, now carrying on a large general 
 merchandise business. 
 
 In Greene county, Mo., Mr. Gibson was united 
 in marriage with Miss E. A. Kerr, a native of 
 that place, and they are the parents of five chil- 
 dren, namely: Ernest, who died at the age of 
 twelve years ; Clyde, a student in the business col- 
 lege of Fresno: Fred, Floyd and Susie. Frater- 
 nally Mr. Gibson was made a Mason in Sanger, 
 Fresno county, and is also identified with the 
 Woodmen of the World. He is a Republican po- 
 litically, and is a member of the county central 
 committee, and of the school board here. 
 
 LEWIS WILLS GIBSON. A prominent 
 man_ in local affairs in Clovis, Fresno county, 
 Lewis Wills Gibson is active as a merchant of this 
 place. A native of Springfield, Mo., he was born 
 
 HANS AHRENSBERG. A successful manu- 
 facturer, Hans Ahrensberg has done much for the 
 industrial development and prestige of Fresno. 
 He is a native of Schlesvig, Germany, born at 
 Larsmark, near Apenrade, July 19, 1865, the 
 youngest in a family of eleven children, of whom 
 seven are living. His father, Hans Christian 
 Ahrensberg, was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, 
 and in manhood learned the blacksmith's trade' 
 combining this with farming pursuits in Bars- 
 mark, where his death occurred at the age of 
 seventy-six years. He was the representative of 
 a very old and prominent family of Copenhagen 
 His wife, formerly Maria Christine Hansen died 
 m Barsmark at the age of seventv-five years 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1593 
 
 They were devout members of the Lutheran 
 Church. 
 
 Reared in Barsmark, Hans Ahrensberg re- 
 ceived his education in the common schools of 
 that place. Upon leaving school he entered the 
 blacksmith shop of his brother, where he served 
 an apprenticeship of two years. At the age of 
 seventeen years he immigrated to America and 
 came at once to California, locating first at Sole- 
 dad, where he followed his trade for one year; 
 thence to Salinas for eighteen months in the same 
 work; and in April, 1885, he located in Fresno. 
 He engaged in the prosecution of his trade for 
 four years, when he established a blacksmith busi- 
 ness on L street under the firm name of Jacobsen 
 & Ahrensberg. Upon the death of the former 
 two and a half years later Mr. Ahrensberg con- 
 tinued for a like period alone, when he took in as 
 a partner L. Lauritzen, the firm name being H. 
 Ahrensberg & Co., their business first on K 
 street and later on Fresno and H streets. He 
 established an agricultural implement factory, 
 which was conducted successfully for eight years, 
 when it was incorporated under the style of H. 
 Ahrensberg Company, with Mr. Ahrensterg as 
 president. Eight months later he sold out his in- 
 ter^ests and in 1904 established his present busi- 
 ness on I and Mono streets, building a shop 
 50x75 feet in dimensions, two stories in height, 
 where he carries on general blacksmithing and 
 horseshoeing. He has also built a comfortable 
 residence at No. 1245 R street. 
 
 In Salinas, CaL, Mr. Ahrensberg was unifed 
 in marriage with Elvine C. Nielsen, a native of 
 Schlesvig. Fraternally Mr. Ahrensberg is a 
 member of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows, of which he is past grand and ex-represen- 
 tative ; the Encampment, of which he is past chief 
 Patriarch and ex-representative, and is a char- 
 ter member of Fresno Canton No. 30, of which 
 he has served as treasurer since its organization, 
 in 1900. He is a member of the Rebekahs and a 
 charter member of the Dania Society of Califor- 
 nia and past grand president. In national politics 
 he is a stanch Republican. 
 
 FREDERICK C. SHUMARD. During the 
 past thirty years many men have migrated from 
 the east, settled in Fresno county, and by perse- 
 verance and industry have accumulated and be- 
 come the owners of handsome property. To ac- 
 complish this they have been saving, and yet 
 with all their economy they have instituted and 
 promoted numerous public improvements. Such 
 men as Mr. Shumard have made Fresno one of 
 the leading counties in the state. Born in Cler- 
 mont county, Ohio, August 11, 1845, Frederick 
 C. Shumard is a son of Jacob and Mary (Cline) 
 Shumard. The father was born, reared, lived 
 
 and died in Ohio. During the Civil war he en- 
 listed in Company K, Seventy-ninth Ohio Volun- 
 teer Infantry, being in the service from 1862 un- 
 til 1865. His marriage resulted in the birth of 
 seven children, four boys and three girls. 
 
 Frederick C. Shumard obtained a common 
 school education and remained at home working 
 on his father's farm until 1868, when he came 
 to California. Locating at Hollister, he engaged 
 in the lumber business and was also interested 
 in farming until 1876. In the fall of that year 
 he took up his residence near Liberty, Fresno 
 county, where he followed stock-raising five 
 years. He then sold his interests there and 
 bought his present place of one hundred and 
 twenty acres, twelve and one-half miles west of 
 Laton. Here he is carrying on a stock and dairy 
 business, his efforts being well rewarded. 
 
 While living at Hollister he was united in mar- 
 riage with Elizabeth Ann Hill. She is a native 
 of Ohio and a daughter of Jonas Hill. This 
 union has been blessed by the birth of the follow- 
 ing children : Lenora Pearl, wife of J. W. Down- 
 ing, of Elkhorn; Ernest C, who is attending a 
 dental college in San Francisco ; Albert M., de- 
 ceased ; George R. ; Sarah Edna married F. I. 
 Sherrill of Riverdale, and Gladys at home. 
 Politically, Mr. Shumard firmly believes in the 
 principles of the Prohibition party, and is an 
 active supporter of that party. Starting in life 
 without money or influence, he has persevered 
 and to-day Fresno county counts him one of its 
 substantial citizens. 
 
 JOSEPH J. STREET. A noticeable fact in 
 the population of California is that the southern 
 element is represented in almost equal degree 
 with the northern, for the climate and opportuni- 
 ties of the coast region have proved as attractive 
 for families south of Mason's and Dixon's line 
 as for the people from the colder climate of the 
 north. Among the men of FresnO' county who 
 trace their lineage to southern progenitors, men- 
 tion belongs to Joseph J. Street, who is a south- 
 erner by birth and ancestry. Born in White 
 county, Tenn., December 6, 1846, he was only 
 three years of age when his father, hoping to 
 better their financial condition, removed the fam- 
 ily to Arkansas. As the years passed by, how- 
 ever, Richard Street found his prospects less 
 bright than at first, for in addition to financial 
 troubles, the war cloud was beginning to hang 
 heavy over the land. In i860 he decided to 
 make another move, and this time he crossed 
 the plains with ox-teams and settled in California. 
 After two years on the Kings river, in the fall 
 of 1862 he bought a tract of land near Visalia 
 and took up ranch pursuits. Probably prosperity 
 would have rewarded his arduous exertions had 
 
1594 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his life been spared, but he died within a year 
 after settling on the ranch from whose purchase 
 he had hoped so much. His wife, who bore the 
 maiden name of Patience Randolph, was born in 
 Tennessee and died in Tulare county, Cal. 
 
 In the parental family there were three daugh- 
 ters and five sons who attained mature years, 
 one of these being Joseph J. Street, now of 
 Fresno county. As a boy he had practically no 
 advantages for an education. Poverty reared an 
 impassable barrier between him and the schooling 
 he earnestly coveted. Toil was his portion from 
 childhood and the future held little promise in 
 the Arkansas environment. When the decision 
 was made to seek a home in California he gladly 
 agreed to the proposition and accompanied his 
 parents across the plains, settling on a ranch m 
 Tulare county. In the fall of 1877 he came to the 
 upper Kings river and rented a ranch three miles 
 east of Centerville. In October, 1901, he se- 
 cured his present homestead sixteen miles east 
 of Sanger, where he not only conducts ranch 
 pursuits, but also carries on a stage station. 
 The ranch is situated on the Sequoia mill road, 
 a highway in more frequent use by travelers 
 than some of the other roads in the eastern part 
 of Fresno county. In addition to this property 
 he owns a cattle ranch and also leases a con- 
 siderable acreage. His wife, formerly Mrs. Al- 
 mira Hutchinson, is the owner of a ranch of two 
 hundred and forty acres in Clark's valley, their 
 aggregate possessions representing a considerable 
 amount. In politics he has been a stanch Demo- 
 crat ever since casting his first ballot. Though 
 not an office seeker, he accepted the positions of 
 road master and school director at the solicita- 
 tion of the people of his district, and these offices 
 he filled with care and praiseworthy diligence. 
 
 PHILIP W. HASTIE. An extensive farmer, 
 Philip W. Hastie is located on a ranch of one 
 hundred acres three miles south of Fowler, Fres- 
 no county, which was originally a portion of a 
 four hundred acre tract which he has sold ofif 
 in small tracts, the whole being known as the 
 Iowa Colony. He was born in Warren county, 
 Iowa, December 21, 1851, a son of Andrew 
 Hastie, who emigrated from his birthplace near 
 Edinburgh, Scotland, to the United States and 
 located in Ohio, near Columbus. He engaged 
 as a railway contractor, some of the first con- 
 struction throughout that locality being his work. 
 He went to Iowa in 1850 and located in War- 
 ren county, where he engaged in farming. He 
 is now retired from the active cares of life 
 and makes his home in Carlisle, Iowa. His 
 wife, formerly Elizabeth Whittecar, a native of 
 Ohio, died in 1868. They were the parents of 
 
 four sons and two daughters, of whom Philip 
 W. Hastie was the oldest. He was reared m 
 Iowa and educated in the common schools, mak- 
 ing his home in that state until 1873. Coming 
 to California in that year, he spent the two years 
 following in various parts of the state, in Monte- 
 rey, Lake Tahoe country, etc. He returned to 
 Iowa in 1876 and engaged in farming on his 
 father's place. In the fall of 1882 he once more 
 located in California and on Christmas day of 
 that year accepted the position of superintendent 
 and foreman of the Iowa and California Fruit 
 Company, located two miles northwest of Fow- 
 ler, Fresno county, and consisting of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres. This he conducted suc- 
 cessfully for two years, when, in 1884, he en- 
 gaged in farming independently on rented land. 
 Later he purchased land, and in the fall of 1885 
 he bought his present place. This consisted at 
 that time of four hundred acres three miles south 
 of Fowler and was nothing but a bare and deso- 
 late plain. He engaged in farming and later colo- 
 nized the tract which. was known as the Iowa 
 Colony, having left but one hundred acres of 
 the original purchase. In the meantime he colo- 
 nized section 26, and the west half of section 27, 
 north half of section 21, north half of section 33, 
 and east half of section 29, and is now engaged 
 in the sale of section 22, all in the vicinity of 
 Fowler. On the Santa Fe Railroad south of 
 Oleander he also colonized eleven hundred acres 
 known as the Bowles tract. In the midst of his 
 other interests during the past sixteen years he 
 has carried on a threshing machine business, he 
 himself renting four thousand acres devoted to 
 grain. In the wheat panic of 1893 he lost quite 
 a fortune, which, however, he partially regained 
 in 1895, after which he quit the business. He 
 then engaged in the cultivation of fruit and 
 helped in the placing of irrigation ditches. He 
 still retains an interest in real estate operations 
 and is active in all public movements of the 
 community, where he is an influential member. 
 He is a Republican politically and during the 
 election of McKinley as president he gaye his 
 best efforts toward his support, being at that 
 time chairman of the Republican committee. He 
 is a member of the Pioneer Club of Fresno 
 countv. 
 
 JOB MALSBARY. A pioneer of California 
 and one of the oldest residents of Fresno county, 
 Mr. Malsbary is not only a most respected citi- 
 zen of the State, but is one of the most success- 
 ful farmers of Fresno county. Coming to the 
 state in 1853, he has been an eye-witness to the 
 remarkable growth and development of Califor- 
 nia, and in this work of progress he has ablv 
 performed his part. A native of Clermont coun- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1595 
 
 t3 , Ohio, he was born June ii, 1833. His father, 
 Isaac Malsbary, was born in New Jersey, later 
 taking up his residence in Qermont county, Ohio, 
 where he lived until his death. His wife bore 
 the maiden name of Isabelle Hall, and by her 
 marriage became the mother of six children, four 
 sons and two daughters. She died in Ohio Au- 
 gust 8, 1849. 
 
 While in Ohio, and after the death of his 
 mother, Mr. Malsbary worked for $8 per month 
 until he accumulated sufficient means to pur- 
 chase a ticket to San Francisco, which cost him 
 $130, steerage passage. After a very stormy 
 voyage he arrived in San Francisco February 16, 
 1853. From there he went to the mines near 
 Placerville, remaining until 1858, then entered 
 the University of the Pacific, where he was a 
 student for two years. He subsequently engaged 
 in farming on rented land near San Jose, until 
 1874, when he, removed to San Benito county, 
 locating near Hollister, where he purchased 
 three hundred acres of wheat land. There he 
 carried on a successful business until 1885, when 
 he located in Fresno county, near Riverdale. 
 Here he bought his present place of two hundred 
 and forty acres and has since been engaged in 
 the stock and dairy business. 
 
 In June, 1859, when twenty-six years of age, 
 Mr. Malsbary was united in marriage with Hen- 
 rietta Shaw, a native of Lake County, 111. This 
 union has been an unusually happy and con- 
 genial one, and has been blessed by the birth of 
 five children, as follows : Albert J. ; Sanford, de- 
 ceased ; Amey, now Mrs. F. R. Green ; Cora, de- 
 ceased, and Otis. 
 
 A stanch supporter of the principles advocated 
 by the Prohibition party, Mr. Malsbary has tal<en 
 an active interest in local affairs. Through the 
 exercise of economy and industry, he has ac- 
 cumulated a handsome property and is classed 
 among Fresno county's most successful farmers. 
 Both he and his estimable wife have a circle of 
 friends that is co-extensive with their circle of 
 acquaintances. 
 
 CRISS WELDON TREMPER. Everyone 
 knows more or less about the great mining ex- 
 citement at Nome, Alaska, but in Mr. Tremper 
 we find a man who was one of the very first to 
 stake a claim in that famous country, and was 
 the original discoverer of what is known as "Gla- 
 cier Hill." For four years he was one of the fore- 
 most mining men of Nome, his efforts being re- 
 warded with splendid success. Since returning 
 to California he has become extensively interested 
 in the fruit and cattle business, and while he has 
 lived in Fresno county but a short time, his force 
 of character and business ability have gained for 
 him a position in the business world that is as- 
 
 sured, opening up a future that appears very 
 bright. The soul of honor and a royal good fel- 
 low he has already gained a large circle of friends 
 that is constantly increasing. 
 
 A native son of the Golden West, Mr. Tremper 
 was born in Lake county, Cal., May 23, 1867, ^ 
 son of L. B. and Matilda (Slater) Tremper. L. 
 B. Tremper was a native of New York state. 
 When a boy his parents removed to Crown Point, 
 Ind., where he learned the blacksmith's and ma- 
 chinist's trade. In 1848 he crossed the plains to 
 California, thus being one of the first to blaze a 
 trail across the barren deserts and trackless for- 
 ests. Locating in the mines of northern Califor- 
 nia, he remained there until 1854, when he was 
 severely injured and made a cripple for life. On 
 recovering he went to Napa county for a time, 
 subsequently locating in Lake county, where he 
 followed his trade. He is now living in Lower 
 Lake county at the age of eighty years, and in 
 spite of his crippled condition is hale and hearty. 
 His wife was born in Springfield, 111., and be- 
 came the mother of ten children. 
 
 Criss W. Tremper was the third child. His 
 father gave him the benefits of a good schooling, 
 his studies in the lower grades being supple- 
 mented by a course of study in an academy under 
 Prof. William H. Adamson. On reaching his 
 majority he went to the mines, and from that 
 time until his removal to Fresno county He fol- 
 lowed mining. In 1888 he went to Utah and for 
 ten years thereafter worked in the mines of 
 Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, New Mex- 
 ico and California. In 1898, the year of the great 
 Klondike excitement, he went to that frozen 
 country and for two years was employed as a 
 salesman by the Alaska Exploration Company. 
 At the time of the discovery of gold on the beach 
 at Nome in 1900 Mr. Tremper resigned his posi- 
 tion and went to that section. Being an experi- 
 enced miner he soon saw the possibilities of the 
 country, and a little later discovered "Glacier 
 Hill," one of the richest mines at Nome. Real- 
 izing that it would take many thousands of dol- 
 lars to develop the property, he formed. a part- 
 nership with J. T. Price, and together they spent 
 about $64,000, all of which was used in litigation 
 in the courts, they being mixed up in seven law- 
 suits, but in each case the court rendered a de- 
 cision in their favor. Glacier Hill proved very 
 rich, and for four years yielded up its hidden 
 gold, nearly $2,000,000 being taken out in that 
 time. Mr. Tremper was identified with much of 
 the pioneer work at Nome, being the first man 
 to dig a ditch, which was named the Price-Trem- 
 per Ditch. This connected Glacier creek and the 
 Nome river. 
 
 In 1904, tiring of the life in that faraway coun- 
 try, Mr. Tremper disposed of his water rights 
 and other interests and came to Fresno county. 
 
1596 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 locating on his present place, four miles north- 
 east of Kingsburg. Here he purchased one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, most of which is devoted to 
 grapes and other fruits. In Lake county he has 
 extensive interests, being the owner of the Trem- 
 per Hog Ranch, composed of twelve hundred and 
 eighty acres. It will thus be seen that his inter- 
 ests are very extensive. His success in life has 
 been little short of marvelous, as he started out 
 without a dollar, all his possessions being the re- 
 sult of his own individual efforts. 
 
 In Calaveras county Mr. Tremper was united 
 in marriage with Miss Eva Edna Tupper, and 
 to them have been born one child, Criss W., Jr. 
 In fraternal relations Mr. Tremper is a member 
 of the Odd Fellows, having united with the Arc- 
 tic Brotherhood of Alaska, he being the third 
 man to join, and is a life member. A Republican 
 in politics, he is deeply interested in the welfare 
 of his party, but his life has been too busy for 
 any active participation in public affairs. 
 
 CHESTER H. ROWELL, editor of the 
 Fresno Republiccm, was born in Bloomington, 
 111., November i, 1867, the eldest son of Jona- 
 than H. and Maria (Woods) Rowell. In boy- 
 hood he attended the public and high schools 
 of his native city and the Illinois State Normal 
 University, after which, in the fall of 1885, he 
 entered the University of Michigan. He gradu- 
 ated in 1888 with the degree of Ph. B. and re- 
 mained one year more for graduate study. The 
 following three years Mr. Rowell spent in Wash- 
 ington, D. C, two years as clerk to the com- 
 mittee on elections of the House of Representa- 
 tives, of which his father was chairman, and 
 the other year in private literary work. While 
 in Washington he compiled a Digest of the con- 
 tested election cases in the Fifty-first Congress, 
 which was pubHshed by order of Congress, and 
 gathered most of the material for his volume 
 on the election cases in all the congresses, which 
 was subsequently published. Mr. Rowell then 
 went to Europe, where he spent two years in 
 study and travel. He was enrolled as a student 
 in the Universities of Halle and Berlin, Ger- 
 many, and also studied in Rome and Paris. He 
 traveled on foot across Germany, Switzerland 
 and Italy, and- made another foot-tour in Bo- 
 hemia. 
 
 Returning to America Mr. Rowell engaged in 
 teaching. He taught in Baxter College (now de- 
 funct), Kans. ; in Racine College, Wis., the 
 Fresno (Cal.) high school and in the University 
 of Illinois. In the university he had charge of 
 the work in Scientific German, and in the other 
 institutions taught languages and mathematics. 
 In 1898 Mr. Rowell returned to Fresno, where 
 he had formerly been a teacher in the high school, 
 
 and assumed the editorial management of the 
 Fresno Morning Republican, in which work lie 
 has been engaged ever since. He spent the win- 
 ter of 1900-01 in Washington. In 1901 he was 
 Republican candidate for mayor of Fresno, but 
 was defeated by the incumbent, L. O. Stephens. 
 He served for several years as trustee of the 
 Fresno Free Public Library and secured from 
 Andrew Carnegie the gift of $30,000 for the 
 construction of the present library building. He 
 is now a member of the school board. 
 
 Mr. Rowell was married in Chicago, August 
 I, 1897, to Myrtle M. Lingle. They have had 
 two children, Chester H., born July 4, 1898, and 
 died January 22, 1900, and Cora W., born May 
 4, 1900. Besides newspaper articles, lectures, 
 and contributions to scientific and other period- 
 icals, Mr. Rowell is the compiler of the volume 
 of the reports of the contested election cases in 
 the Fifty-first Congress above mentioned and is 
 the author of "A Historical and Legal Digest 
 of All the Contested Election Cases on the 
 House of Representatives of the United States, 
 from the First to the Fifty-first Congress — 1789 
 — 1 90 1," published by order of Congress at the 
 Government printing office in 1901. Mr. Rowell 
 is a man of ability and culture, a scholar of 
 thorough training, and has given special atten- 
 tion to the study of languages. He is also a 
 successful business man, and has taken an active 
 interest in public, and especially municipal, af- 
 fairs. He is held in high esteem by all who 
 know him, either personally or through the 
 medium of his pen. 
 
 JOHN RANKINE. When the California 
 Wine Association desired to select a thoroughly 
 qualified and experienced man to place in charge 
 of an important undertaking, they chose John 
 Rankine and by this act showed the high con- 
 fidence reposed in his knowledge of viticulture. 
 As manager and superintendent of the Wahtoke 
 vineyard for the Great Western Vineyards Com- 
 pany, he occupies a position of trust and' re- 
 sponsibility. The tracts of the company lie seven 
 miles north of Reedley, with mail service fur- 
 nished by Rural Route No. 2 from Sanger. Ap- 
 proaching the grounds at a distance one is im- 
 pressed with the beauty of the place. The .neat 
 white buildings present an attractive contrast to 
 the wealth of vines, and when the visitor learns 
 that all of these results have been accomplished 
 within a very brief period he is impressed anew 
 with the energy of the manager. 
 
 A native of Scotland, Mr. Rankine was born 
 in Lanarkshire, June 17, 1870, being a son of 
 John and Agnes (Hall) Rankine, natives of the 
 same locality. The father followed farm pur- 
 suits in Scotland vmtil death and since then the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1597 
 
 mother has continued at the old hoine place. 
 They were the parents of five sons and five 
 daughters, John being the eldest of the family. 
 In addition to the advantages offered by com- 
 mon schools, he was sent to school in Glasgow 
 and thus acc[uired an excellent education. Im- 
 mediately after coming to the United States in 
 1892 he settled in California and secured em- 
 ployment as a laborer in the Carmelita vineyard 
 in Fresno county. During 1900 and until 1902 
 he was in the employ of Mr. Forsythe, having 
 charge of a vineyard and packing house, and, 
 having attracted the attention of the company 
 he is now with, received an offer of a responsible 
 position in their employ. In 1903 he superin- 
 tended the planting of fifteen hundred acres 
 forming the Wahtoke vineyard. It is said by 
 judges that no vineyard in the entire state is 
 planted or conducted upon more modern plans 
 than this, and already the owners are beginning 
 to rea,p the results that usually come to industry 
 and intelligence. 
 
 The duties of his position leave Mr. Rankine 
 little leisure for participation in local matters, in 
 which, indeed, he talces no part except such as 
 may be represented by the casting of a Repub- 
 lican ballot at elections. In fraternal relations 
 he is an enthusiastic Mason and a believer in the 
 high principles for which the order stands. Be- 
 sides belonging to the Blue lodge at Reedley, 
 he is identified with Chapter No. 114, R. A. M., 
 and Commandery No. 3, K. T., Scotland. Since 
 coming to Fresno county he has established a 
 home of his own, his wife being Effie Holmes, a 
 native of Iowa. In his work as an expert with 
 grapes he has found in his wife an able assistant 
 as well as a practical helpmate, and they and 
 their daughter, Agnes, have a comfortable home 
 at the Wahtoke vineyard. 
 
 THOMAS B. McKELVY. ' Although the 
 above-named gentleman has been a resident of 
 California only a few years, he has from the first 
 taken a leading part in public affairs, and in 
 addition to improving a fine fruit and stock ranch 
 near Clovis, he is prominently identified with 
 several business enterprises in which he is the 
 moving spirit. In the early spring of 1901 he 
 organized the Clovis Improvement Company, of 
 which he is still manager. During the past four 
 years this company has developed over one 
 thousand acres in the vicinity of Qovis to vine- 
 5'ard, orchard and alfalfa. At the present time 
 Mr. McKelvy has under his management about 
 two thousand acres of fruit, stock and grain 
 lands; he is manager of the T. B. McKelvy & 
 Co. real estate firm of Fresno and president of 
 the Clovis Land Company of Clovis. He is one 
 of the resident managers of the Clovis Fruit 
 
 Company, which he organized in St. Paul, Minn., 
 in November, 1904. 
 
 Mr. McKelvy was born in western Tennessee 
 in 1858. His father, Elijah McKelvy, joined the 
 Union army soon after the opening of the Civil 
 war and conflicting reports came back from time 
 to time of his being taken prisoner. During the 
 war the mother and child became separated and 
 the three never met again. Mr. McKelvy says 
 that the story of his childhood is similar to hun- 
 dreds of others whose homes were destroyed 
 by the cruel war and to this day he abhors wars 
 of all kinds and declares that they have no ex- 
 cuse for existence among civilized nations. Dur- 
 ing the war he went with friends through the 
 states of Arkansas, Missouri and Illinois, and iri 
 1867 went with a colony to northern Minnesota, 
 which was then in part claimed by the Indians. 
 For the first four or five years in this new coun- 
 try there were no schools of any account, so that 
 he was about fifteen years old when he first had 
 the privilege of attending a country school. The 
 following three winters he managed to get into 
 the village school of Alexandria and at the age- 
 of nineteen secured a teacher's certificate and 
 taught his first term of school in Douglas county, 
 Minn. He afterwards took a course in the State 
 Normal School and followed educational work in 
 the state of Minnesota for about twenty years. 
 He held the office of county superintendent of 
 schools for eight years in Dakota county, Minn. 
 After retiring from educational work he became 
 general manager for the School Education Com- 
 pany, wholesale dealers in school books and sup- 
 plies and publishers of School Education, the 
 teachers' state journal. In addition to his educa- 
 tional work, Mr. McKelvy has always kept in 
 close touch with the business world, spending his 
 vacations as traveling salesman, bookkeeper, 
 clerk, manager of harvesting crews on large 
 farms, etc. For several years before leaving 
 Minnesota he owned and operated a large farm, 
 also had a half interest in an agricultural imple- 
 ment house. 
 
 In 1883 Mr. McKelvy was united in marriage 
 to Miss Mary W. Weichselbaum and to them 
 have been born eight children : Thomas M., 
 Marie J., Anna S., Rowena M., John G., Pearl, 
 Warren H. and Gladys. Little Rowena died at 
 the age of four ; the other seven are all at home. 
 
 In politics Mr. McKelvy is a stanch Repub- 
 lican and for many years has been active in po- 
 litical matters, but since coming to California 
 he has been too busy looking after his personal 
 affairs and the building up of the country at 
 Clovis to take much part in the politics of his 
 new home. As will be seen by this short review, 
 Mr. McKelvy has made his own way in the 
 world since his early childhood. He had not 
 seen the face of a relative from about the age 
 
1598 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of three years until two years ago, when, upon 
 a visit to the old home of his childhood, he 
 found a number of relatives who gave him a 
 royal welcome. He visited the grave of his 
 father, who is buried in Bollinger county. Mo., 
 but was unable, at that time, to locate the bury- 
 ing place of his mother. 
 
 Mr. McKelvy has spent most of his life on 
 the frontier, which gives him very valuable 
 practical experience for the work he is now en- 
 gaged in. He is personally acquainted in most 
 of the middle west and western states. He has 
 made the best of many opportunities, been perse- 
 vering and industripus, and as a result has ac- 
 cumulated a handsome property. Both he and 
 his most estimable wife and their large family of 
 children are highly respected and have a host 
 of friends who join in wishing them continued 
 prosperity. 
 
 ARTHUR WEHRMANN. Notwithstanding 
 a few experiences of a somewhat discouraging 
 nature, the business career- of Mr. Wehrmann 
 has been successful and he now occupies a posi- 
 tion among the capable and resourceful business 
 men of Madera. He is of German birth and an- 
 cestry, a native of Halla, Saxon, and a son of 
 Louis and Louise Wehrmann, both of whom 
 spent their entire lives in that province. The 
 father was a harness-maker by trade and served 
 in the German army until he was retired. In 
 a family of six children, four of whom are liv- 
 ing, Arthur, the youngest of all, was born Janu- 
 ary 5, 1865. His boyhood years were unevent- 
 fully passed in Halla, where he had such educa- 
 tional advantages as the common schools af- 
 forded. At fourteen years of age he was taken 
 from school and apprenticed to a baker, with 
 whom he served for three years. At the expira- 
 tion of his time he set sail for America, arriving 
 in San Francisco, August 12, 1882. Three days 
 later he secured work at his trade in that city 
 and continued employed there until 1890, when 
 he removed to Fresno. It had been his ambition 
 to own a store and his savings were carefully 
 hoarded with that object in view, but his first 
 experience was not encouraging. The bakery 
 and coffee house that he conducted for six 
 months in Fresno proved an unfortunate ven- 
 ture, although he paid every dollar of his in- 
 debtedness even at considerable loss to himself. 
 After closing out his business he worked for a 
 baker in the same town. 
 
 On coming to Madera in 1893 Mr. Wehrmann 
 bought out Stohl's bakery, which he enlarged 
 and successfully conducted. As the years passed 
 by he established a reputation as a baker and 
 commanded a large trade. Desiring to enlarge 
 the business by the addition of a stock of gro- 
 
 ceries, in 1899 he formed a partnership with Mr. 
 Meileke and built a new store, to which iii 1903 
 another new building was added, making the 
 total capacity 50x150 feet. A full assortment is 
 kept of staple groceries, c[ueensware, house fur- 
 nishing goods, etc. The bakery has a capacity 
 of four hundred loaves per day and its equip- 
 ment is modern and complete. To this depart- 
 ment Mr. Wehrmann gives much of his time 
 and thought, his partner superintending the gro- 
 cery department. The two are energetic, push- 
 ing business men, and deserve a large measure 
 of success. 
 
 Of the brothers and sisters of Mr. Wehrmann, 
 one sister, Eliza, has never left Germany, but 
 the others came to America. Max lives in Chi- 
 cago, where he is engaged in the furniture busi- 
 ness, and Clara, Mrs. Lehmann, is also a resi- 
 dent of Chicago. Two brothers, Oscar and 
 Ernest, came to California; the former died in 
 San Francisco and the latter in Fresno. While 
 making his home in Fresno Mr. Wehrmann 
 married Miss Bertha Baden, a native of Ger- 
 many, and by this union there are two daugh- 
 ters, Erna and Marguerite. The family are iden- 
 tified with the Lutheran Church and believers in 
 its doctrines. Though not prominent in politics 
 nor desirous of holding office, Mr. Wehrmann 
 always supports the Democratic party and is a 
 stanch believer in its principles. Local move- 
 ments of a beneficial nature receive his support 
 and co-operation, and notably the Madera Board 
 of Trade, which has done much to- promote the 
 growth of the city. In his fraternal relations he 
 is connected with the Ancient Order of United 
 Workmen and the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows at Madera. 
 
 FRANK S. SMITH, a dairyman of the Los 
 Banos district, and former editor of the Los 
 Banos Enterprise, was born on the old Smith 
 place, near, where he now lives, September 11, 
 1872, and has since allied his energy with the 
 most substantial upbuilding of Merced countv. 
 Mr. Smith's father, Samuel A. Smith, of whom 
 extended mention is made elsewhere in this 
 work, was born in Illinois and came to the 
 coast in the early '50s, crossing the plains with 
 ox teams, and engaging in mining in Solano 
 county. In 1866 he pre-empted one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land in the west side of Merced 
 county, which is now within half a mile of the 
 town of Los Banos, and to which he has added, 
 and now has two hundred acres. Owing to the 
 fertility of this property, he has derived a grati- 
 fying income from alfalfa and stock, and of late 
 years has leased it to his youngest son, Charles. 
 Since practically the beginning of his success iri 
 life Mr. Smith has been a widower, for his wffe 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1599 
 
 formerly Nancy Dollarhide, a native also of 
 Illinois, died in 1878, leaving to his care and 
 guidance five sons and two daughters, all of 
 whom are living. These are Oscar, Jasper, 
 / Grant, Frank, Qiarles, Alice and Amanthus. 
 The common school education of Frank S. 
 Smith was supplemented by a course at the 
 Stockton Business College, after graduating 
 from which he returned to the home farm for a 
 year. He next engaged in the general mer^an- 
 dise business in Los Banos for four years, after 
 which he began to improve his present place, lo- 
 cating thereon in 1898. The first to cultivate the 
 soil and build in this district, he has since raised 
 alfalfa to a considerable extent, and now has a 
 dairy of twenty-five cows, and other stock to the 
 number of thirty. Mr. Smith has signaled his 
 appreciation of the comforts and conveniences of 
 life by erecting a modern and thoroughly up-to- 
 date country residence, presided over by the wife 
 whom he married in Los Banos, and whose girl- 
 hood name was Effie Abbott, born in Merced 
 county, and the daughter of an early California 
 pioneer. Mr. Smith for a year edited the Los 
 Banos Enterprise, at the end of that time return- 
 ing to his farm with added regard for the peace 
 and satisfaction of modern agricultural life. He 
 is a Democrat in national politics, and fraternally 
 is connected with the Woodmen of the World. 
 As one of the younger and more energetic and 
 resourceful of the dairymen and stock-raisers of 
 the vicinity of Los Banos, Mr. Smith occupies a 
 position of honor, not only because he is a na- 
 tive son, but because he is honorable and public- 
 spirited, broad minded and resourceful, and in 
 his intercourse with friends and business men is 
 tactful, considerate, and genial. 
 
 ROBERT KELLEY MADSEN. Occupying 
 a position of prominence and influence among the' 
 extensive fruit growers of Fresno county, Rob- 
 ert Kelley Madsen has done as much as any one 
 man to have the orchard and fruit productions of 
 this section of California placed advantageously 
 upon the markets of the world. Largely through 
 his influence, in 1900, the Growers' Winery and 
 Distillery Company, of which he is president, was 
 organized, and also, in 1902, the Parlier Pickling 
 House Association, of which he is president, was 
 formed. With this association, he also estab- 
 lished, in 1903, a co-operative seeding plant, and 
 he IS now organizing the Fresno Canning Asso- 
 ciation, which will be of great practical benefit 
 to all raisers of fruits in this locality. He was 
 born April 4, i860, in Denmark, which was like- 
 wise the birthplace of his father, Jorgen Madsen. 
 
 A man of versatile talents, Jorgen Madsen 
 
 learned the trade of a painter when young, but 
 subsequently followed the sea for awhile, cross- 
 ing the Atlantic in 1849, and visiting the West 
 Indies, Mexico and California. Remaining on 
 the Pacific coast for a time, he was engaged in 
 the bakery business in San Francisco. Return- 
 ing to Denmark in 1856, he is now living there 
 retii-ed from active pursuits, being seventy-two 
 years old. Of his union with Conradina Riddle, 
 of Denmark, one son and one daughter were 
 born, the son, Robert Kelley, being the eldest 
 child. 
 
 Completing his common school education at 
 the age of fourteen years, Robert Kelley Madsen 
 served as cabin boy on board ship for six months. 
 Going then to Aarhuus, Denmark, he attended 
 a school of navigation for thirteen months, at 
 the end of which time he passed the examina- 
 tions for all the ranks from mate to captain. 
 Shipping then before the mast as a cornmon sea- 
 man, he visited all the important ports of the 
 globe, arriving in San Francisco in 1877. The 
 ensuing six months, Mr. Madsen was here em- 
 ployed in coasting, and was afterwards employed 
 on shore, in a warehouse, for two years. Go- 
 ing then with a ship load of barley to New York 
 City, he was on the water one hundred and thir- 
 ty-eight days before reaching that port. Re- 
 turning to his old home in 1880, Mr. Madsen 
 learned how to manufacture compressed yeast and 
 whiskey, and the following year came again ib 
 San F4:g.ncisco. The ensuing six months he was 
 yeast maker for the Partrero Compressed Yeast 
 Company, and was then employed for a year with 
 the National Vinegar Works, on Fourth street. 
 Entering then the newly-organized compressed 
 yeast department of the Bay View Distillery 
 Company, he remained there eight months, and 
 then returned to the works of the National Vine- 
 gar 'Company, with which he was connected for a 
 year and a half. From 1884 until 1889, with the 
 exception of four months spent in Denmark in 
 1887, Mr. Madsen was an employe of the Fraike 
 & Lewis Vinegar and Pickle Manufacturing 
 Company, in Oakland, Cal. When, in 1889, the 
 company dissolved partnership, Mr. Madsen 
 went with Mr. Lewis to San Francisco, where 
 he was employed in the manufacture of vinegar 
 and pickles for seven years. 
 
 Locating in Fresno county in 1896, Mr. Mad- 
 sen purchased eighty acres of land, lying three 
 and one-half miles west of Parlier, and has since 
 devoted his entire attention to the care of his 
 private interests. He has a vineyard of twenty 
 acres, and a magnificent orchard of fifty-four 
 acres, in which he has six thousand peach trees. 
 As a fruit grower he has been very successful, 
 finding a ready market for all of his products. 
 He ships large quantities of raisins from his vine- 
 yard, his special brands being known as River 
 
1600 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Bend, El Toro, El Fresno, Sunrise, Sunset and 
 IXL. ^,, , 
 
 In Denmark Mr. Madsen married Annie l<leck, 
 a native of that country, and into their house- 
 hold ten children have been born, namely : Geor- 
 gia ; Carl ; Anna ; Helga ; Halven, deceased ; Rob- 
 ert Kelley, Jr.; a child that died in infancy; 
 Ellen, deceased ; Henrietta, and Harold. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Madsen invariably supports the princi- 
 ples of the Republican party, and fraternally he 
 is a member of the Dania, of San Francisco ; of 
 the Danish Brotherhood, of Fresno; and of 
 Fresno Lodge No. 439, B. P. O. E. 
 
 FREDERICK BACHLE. Well worthy of 
 note among the most enterprising and successful 
 business m"en of Los Banos is Frederick Bachle, 
 the oldest established and most extensive con- 
 tractor of this section of Merced county. He 
 owns a snug little ranch adjoining the village, 
 and on this be resides, having made substantial 
 improvements which render it attractive and val- 
 uable. Coming here v/hen the city was in its in- 
 fancy, he has taken much pleasure in watching 
 its rapid growth, in its upbuilding and advance- 
 ment being a potent force. A native of Switzer- 
 land, he was born March 24, 1846, in the canton 
 of Aargau, which was also the place of birth of 
 both of his parents, John and Annie (Hoch) 
 Bachle. He is the youngest of a family of three 
 children, and the only one in America. 
 
 Brought up in Aargau, Frederick Bachle ob- 
 tained a practical education in the common 
 branches of study, and at the age of fifteen years 
 began learning the miller's trade, at which he 
 worked until 1867. In that year, following in 
 the wake of those of his countrymen who had 
 crossed the Atlantic and had sent home cheering 
 reports of their improved condition in the New 
 World, he resolved to come to America. After 
 a tedious voyage, he landed in New York City, 
 and from there proceeded immediately to Toledo, 
 Ohio, where he worked at the carpenter's trade 
 for nearly ten years. Migrating to California 
 in 1876, Mr. Bachle located in San Jose, where 
 he worked at his trade a year. In 1877 he began 
 contracting and building on his own account, and 
 in the following four years erected some of the 
 finest residences of that city. Removing to the 
 west side of Merced county in 1881, he settled at 
 old Los Banos, and there, and at Central Point, 
 was employed as a wagon manufacturer for two 
 years. Going to Fresno in 1883, Mr. Bachle re- 
 sumed work as a contractor, and in that capacity 
 built many of the largest and most imposing 
 dwelling houses and business establishments of 
 that locality, remaining there eighteen months. 
 The ensuing year he was engaged in building in 
 Redding, from there going to San Diego, where. 
 
 during the time that the boom was-on, he earned 
 on a very profitable contracting business. Re- 
 turning to Merced county in 1890, Mr. Bachle 
 located at New Los Banos, which was then ]ust 
 started, and has since been the leading contractor 
 and builder of this vicinity. Many of the hand- 
 somest and most substantial residences and pub- 
 lic buildings have been erected under his super- 
 vision, and are a standing monument to his abili- 
 ty ^d skill. Among those of importance may 
 be mentioned Dr. Wade's residence, two large 
 schoolhouses, and the Odd Fellows' Hall. In 
 addition to his contracting, Mr. Bachle pays con- 
 siderable attention to his ranch, having twenty- 
 two acres of alfalfa, and in his dairy of twenty 
 cows, which is up-to-date in every respect, and 
 is furnished with a separator, he has a good busi- 
 ness, renting it for a goodly sum. 
 
 Mr. Bachle was married twice. By his first 
 marriage he had one son, Frederick Bachle, Jr., a 
 carpenter by trade, who was accidentally killed 
 in a railroad accident in Nevada. Fraternally 
 Mr. Bachle belongs to Los Banos Lodge No. 
 312, F. & A. M. 
 
 SAMUEL A. WILLIAMS. It is doubtful if 
 any rancher in the vicinity of Bakersfield is more 
 fittingly heir to the title of self-made man than 
 Samuel A. Williams, owner of a thrifty ranch 
 of sixty acres in the Greenfield school district, 
 eight miles southeast of the town, and which is" 
 valued at $7,000. Located on the Kern Island 
 canal, every foot of the ranch can be irrigated, 
 and the improvements are many, all of them hav- 
 ing been made by the industrious owner who is 
 utilizing them in his alfalfa and hog raising en- 
 terprise. 
 
 Samuel A. Williams has the satisfaction of 
 knowing that every cent he has in the world rep- 
 resents so much honest toil and practical good 
 judgment, for his youth knew little diversion, few 
 educational advantages, and no influence to help 
 him on his way. He was born in Ross county, 
 Ohio, December 15, 1854. His father, Jona- 
 than B. Williams, was an early settler of the 
 Buckeye state, having come from his native Ver- 
 mont. He died in Ohio at the age of forty- 
 nine. After his death his wife with her sons and 
 daughters, returned to Vermont and continued to 
 live there for the balance of her life. Samuel A., 
 older than his brothers and sisters, was nine 
 years of age when his father died, and he man- 
 fully put his shoulder to the wheel and bolstered 
 up the slender fortunes of the family with his 
 earnest toil. Securing employment on various 
 farms in the neighborhood, he remained in Ver- 
 mont until his sixteenth year, when he removed 
 to Connecticut. He worked for his board and 
 clothes for a time, and later on sent all of his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1601 
 
 earnings to the dear ones at home. By the time 
 he had attained his majprity his responsibility 
 lifted somewhat, and in 1875 he married Mar- 
 garet O'Brien, a native of Connecticut, and of 
 which union five children were born : May, who 
 died at the age of nineteen; William A., who is 
 employed in Bakersfield; Frederick S., an em- 
 ploye in the Coalinga oil fields ; Elmer, at home ; 
 and Ray E., an infant. 
 
 For some time after his marriage Mr. Wil- 
 liams continued to wo-rk by the day and month, 
 and in 1883 came to Bakersfield, where he was 
 employed by the Kern County Land Company, 
 remaining with the company for eight years and 
 seven months, during that time looking after 
 their canals. Upon the death of the manager of 
 the company he resigned his position, and with 
 his earnmgs purchased his present farm, now 
 one of the best in the district. Mr. Williams is 
 a Democrat who leaves to others the trouble of 
 office seeking and holding. Fraternally he is con- 
 nected with the Woodmen of the World. He is 
 honorable in all of his dealings, public spirited 
 and generous, and a model of kindness and con- 
 sideration in his familv and towards his friends. 
 
 M. C. PURCELL, more familiarly known as 
 "Mike," throughout Kern county, of which he is 
 a pioneer, is a well known figure in stock circles 
 in the community, as by investments in this line 
 he has made several fortunes since locating here. 
 As a sheep and cattle raiser he holds a place in 
 the front ranks among stockmen in the county, 
 and since going out of business for himself he 
 has held the position of manager of the Rosedale 
 Ranch for the Kern County Land Company, lo- 
 cated in the neighborhood of Bakersfield. A na- 
 tive of Philadelphia, Pa., he was born December 
 25, 1842, a son of Patrick Purcell. The latter 
 was born and reared in Ireland, and in manhood 
 married there, after which he came to the United 
 States and settled in Pennsylvania. He there be- 
 came connected with the famous Molly Maguires 
 in the capacity of captain, and was finally com- 
 pelled to leave the country, coming to California 
 during the gold excitement in 1849. His first 
 employment here was in the mines near Mari- 
 posa, where he met with fair success, after which 
 he went to Napa and bought a farm upon which 
 he spent the remainder of his life, living to an 
 advanced age. His wife, Julia, also a native of 
 Ireland, died in Philadelphia at the age of sev- 
 enty-ttiree years. 
 
 Until he was thirteen years of age M. C. Pur- 
 cell remained at home in Philadelphia, after 
 which he became dependent on his own re- 
 sources, going as far west as Missouri and Kan- 
 sas, being employed in the two states until 1858. 
 He then came overland to California by ox team, 
 
 himself owning an interest in the team, and on 
 arriving in the west located at what was then 
 Kernville, this county, where he worked in the 
 mines for a time. The following year he rented 
 a ranch and engaged in stock-raising, dealing 
 principally in cattle and sheep. In 1864, during 
 the dry year, he took twelve hundred head of cat- 
 tle to Nevada, after which he sold out and re- 
 turned to Linns Valley, where he owned a ranch, 
 and once more engaged in the cattle business, 
 continuing until 1870. In 1872 he bought a thou- 
 sand head of sheep and ran them on range for 
 five years, the greater part of them dying in the 
 dry year — 1877 — which meant to him the loss of 
 the proceeds of his year's work. He then ac- 
 cepted the position of foreman of a large sheep 
 ranch owned by Solomon Jewett, with whom he 
 remained for three years, when he again pur- 
 chased a ranch, this consisting of one hundred 
 and sixty acres located three miles north of Ba- 
 kersfield, stocking it with a thousand head of 
 sheep, which he went in debt to purcbase. He re- 
 mained so engaged until 1894, when he sold his 
 lot of twenty-five hundred head and went to work 
 for the Kern County Land Company as foreman 
 ol the sheep department at Santa Media. After 
 two years he took charge of the Jackson ranch, 
 which handled from twenty to thirty thousand 
 sheep, buying, selling, raising, etc., and afte" 
 three years he was changed to his present ranch, 
 where he has from ten thousand to twenty thou- 
 sand sheep and cattle, and also has charge of sev- 
 eral thousand acres of land. Mr. Purcell was 
 married to Ellen Glass, who was born in Los 
 Angeles and died in Kern county, June 15, 1891, 
 the mother of six children, five of whom are now 
 living. His second marriage united him with 
 Mrs. Weston, a native of Arkansas, and they 
 are the parents of four children. Politically Mr. 
 Purcell is a Democrat, but has never cared for 
 official recognition, as he has had little time in 
 his busy life for public aflfairs. Fraternally he is 
 identified with the Knights of Pythias, being a 
 member of the Uniformed Rank, and also lie- 
 longs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of 
 Elks. 
 
 EDWARD SIMPSON. Possessing an unlim- 
 ited amount of energy, push and ability, Ed Simp- 
 son, as he is familiarly known to a host of friends 
 and well-wishers, is one of the most active, prom- 
 ising and popular young business men of New- 
 man, and enjoys to a high degree the esteem and 
 confidence of the community. Of English de- 
 scent, he was born in Central City, Gilpin, county, 
 Colo., a son of Thomas Simpson. His Grand- 
 father Simpson, a life long resident of England, 
 assisted as a stone mason in building one or more 
 large aqueducts, and under the employ of Robert 
 
1602 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Stephenson, was foreman in the construction of 
 the first railroad built in his native country. 
 
 Born and reared in Westmoreland county, Eng- 
 land, Thomas Simpson learned the trade of a 
 stone mason from his father. Immigrating to 
 the United States, he followed his trade in Ga- 
 lena, 111., for a few years. Crossing the plains to 
 Pike's Peak in 1859, he located at Central City, 
 where he worked for a while, but was afterward 
 engaged in contract work, building stamp mills at 
 Blackhawk, Central City, Gold Hill, Sunshine, 
 and in O'ther localities. He subsequently engaged 
 in mining on his own account, after which he was 
 city marshal of Central City for two terms, and 
 then assistant marshal until failing health com- 
 pelled him to return to Denver, Colo., where he 
 resided until his death, in December, 1886. He 
 was a most loyal - and faithful Republican. He 
 married Sarah Snow, who was born in Devon- 
 shire, England, and came to this country with her 
 father, Robert Snow, a brewer, whO' settled in 
 Galena, 111., where he was employed in lead min- 
 ing until his death. She survived her husband 
 many years, dying in Newman, Cal., in 1902. Of 
 the children born of their union, three sons and 
 two daughters grew to years of maturity, and 
 with the exception of one daughter, are still liv- 
 ing. 
 
 Living in Central City, Colo., until eleven years 
 of age, Ed Simpson there acquired the rudiments 
 of his education. On going to Denver, he at- 
 tended school for a few terms, and was afterward 
 employed as a messenger boy in that city. Com- 
 ing to California in 1887, he lived at Hills Ferry 
 two years, in 1889 settling in Newman, where he 
 has since resided. Entering the employ of J. C. 
 Green in 1889, Mr. Simpson learned the trade 
 of a plumber, and in 1893 started in the plumbing 
 business on his own account, and as a contractor, 
 plumber and tinner has met with great success. 
 
 Mr. Simpson is an important and influential 
 member of several fraternal organizations, be- 
 longmg to Newman Lodge No. 139, K. of P., of 
 which he is a past officer, and to the Uniformed 
 Rank, and is a member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. In politics he is actively iden- 
 tified with the Republican party, and in its ranks 
 no truer or more intelligent supporter of its prin- 
 ciples can be found. He is an ex-member of the 
 Republican county central committee, and for two 
 years belonged to its executive board. 
 
 LOUIE ELFERS. Many desirable personal 
 characteristics are contributing to the success of 
 Louie Elfers, one of the largest and foremost 
 wheat and barley growers of the vicinity of 
 Crow's Landing. Although still a young man, 
 having been born not far from where he now lives 
 January 11, 1873, he is substantially connected 
 
 with the agricultural prestige of his locality, own- 
 ing a farm of three hundred and twenty acres 
 four miles north of the Landing and renting two 
 thousand acres which he devotes exclusively to 
 wheat and barley. Mr. Elfers' family is too well 
 known to require more than passing mention, 
 more especially as his father, Archibald, a native 
 of Germany and a pioneer of 1849, is written of 
 at length in the sketch of John H. Elfers. Not 
 only was Louie Elfers born with a liking for the 
 soil and its possibilities, but his well trained and 
 ambitious mind is ever seeking for new and more 
 practical means of accomplishing his end, and of 
 contributing yet further to the comfort and all- 
 around welfare of those who comprise his house- 
 hold. 
 
 Bright, genial and tactful, Mr. Elfers carries 
 out in a well-knit and finely proportioned phys- 
 ique the harmony of his thought and action, view- 
 ing life .sanely and practically, and always 
 with a thought of its brighter side. His farm is 
 well equipped and well managed, a model of 
 neatness, thrift and promise. The machinery 
 which enables him to harvest his crops is the 
 latest and best, and his house and barns leave 
 little to be desired from the standpoint of com- 
 fort and utility. Politically he votes the Demo- 
 cratic ticket in national affairs, giving his sup- 
 port to the best man in local offices. He is pop- 
 ular and influential in his comm.unity, and one of 
 its ablest, most enterprising native sons. 
 
 H. R. SCHELL. A prominent rancher and 
 wine man of Stanislaus county, located about two 
 miles from Knights Ferry, is H. R. Schell, a gen- 
 tleman who well merits the esteem in which he 
 is universally held. A native of Lyon Falls, N. 
 Y., he was born June 3, 1845, a son of Adam 
 Schell, who was the descendant of a German fam- 
 ily which immigrated to the Mohawk Valley, N. 
 Y., from Baden-Baden during the eighteenth cen- 
 tury. Adam, Schell became a mechanic and fol- 
 lowed this occupation throughout his entire life. 
 He attained the ripe age of ninety years. His 
 wife was in maidenhood Charlotte S. Harris, also 
 a native of New York state. 
 
 Reared to young manhood in his native state, 
 H. R. Schell knew no other home for many years. 
 The descendant of patriots, he enlisted, in Au- 
 gust, i86i, in Battery H, First New York Light 
 Infantry, and following this served throughout 
 the entire war, participating in many and severe 
 engagements, enduring hardships and privations, 
 but coming safe through it all with never a wound 
 or a sick spell. He was honorably discharged 
 in Elmira, N. Y., in June, 1865, after which he 
 returned to his New York home. In 1867 he de- 
 cided to emigrate to the more remote west, and 
 accordingly took passage to California by way of 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1G03 
 
 the Isthmus of Panama, after crossing which he 
 embarked on the Golden City, under the com- 
 mand of Captain Lappage. After landing in the 
 state he came at once to the county where he has 
 since been located, at that time joining an uncle, 
 Abraham Schell, who is now deceased. He came 
 to California in 1849, and became a prominent 
 lawyer of Stanislaus county. Soon after his ar- 
 rival in the county, H. R. Schell located upon his 
 present ranch and engaged in the wine business. 
 His property is located twelve miles northeast of 
 Oakdale, on the Knights Ferry and Stockton 
 road, and consists of three thousand acres of land, 
 a part of which, however, is in Calaveras county. 
 He has seventy acres devoted to a vineyard, and 
 thirty acres in fruit, which includes oranges, 
 lemons, peaches, apples, etc., and has as well three 
 hundred head of cattle. Besides many miles of 
 wire fence he has eight miles of stone fence. His 
 property is well improved, a beautiful two-story 
 frame house and well kept grounds adding to its 
 value. His production of wine during the year 
 amounts to thirty thousand gallons, while he 
 turns out four thousand gallons of brandy. For 
 twenty-five years he has found a market for his 
 wines, both dry and sweet, in New York City. 
 
 In California, in 1873, Mr Schell was united in 
 marriage to Clara Church, who was born in New 
 York state, and they are the parents of eight chil- 
 dren, namely: Artie C, Pearl, Violet, A. Edi- 
 son, Lucile, Qiarlotte, Roman and Charles E. In 
 his political convictions Mr. Schell is a stanch 
 Republican, but though active in his efforts to 
 promote the principles he endorses, he is not de- 
 sirous of official recognition. He is a member of 
 the Grand Army of the Republic. 
 
 ROBERT WILLIAM MUSGRAVE, M. D. 
 The fact that Dr. Musgrave came to Flanford, 
 Kings county, long before it could boast the 
 proud name of city gives him undisputed claim 
 to the title pioneer. When he first set foot with- 
 in its present confines but one physician had 
 preceded him hither. Dr. Musgrave at once saw 
 before him the possibilities of a growing town, 
 and forthwith established an office which has wit- 
 nessed a growing practice from that day to the 
 present time. Not content to serve his own in- 
 terests alone, he worked unremittingly for the 
 betterment and upbuilding of the infant town, 
 and as secretary of the Hanford Improvement 
 Company his influence was far-reaching. 
 
 A native of California, Dr. Musgrave was born 
 in Grass Valley, Nevada county, December 9, 
 1858, a son of Richard M. The grandfather, who 
 was a native of Scotland, as an employe of 
 the English government, had charge of sur- 
 veying the harbor of Waterford, Ireland. It 
 was while the family were residing in the latter 
 
 place that the birth of Richard M. occurred, and 
 there also he spent his early youth. Brought 
 up within sight of the placid ocean his inborn 
 love for the water led him to adopt a sea-faring 
 life, and when still a young boy entered the Eng- 
 lish navy. Working his way up gradually he 
 finally became captain of an English merchant- 
 man, which landed in the harbor of San Fran- 
 cisco in 1855. This trip proved tO' be his last 
 nautical experience, for he afterward became 
 interested in the mines of California, and finally 
 became superintendent of the Gold liill Mill and 
 Mining Company, and still later having an in- 
 terest in the Idaho mines. His vigorous out-door 
 life had given him a robust constitution, and the 
 news of his death in Grass Valley, in 1878, after 
 an illness of only three days, was a severe shock 
 to all who had known him. His ocean voyages 
 had taken him into all the principal seaports of 
 the ivorld, and at the time of his death he was a 
 comparatively young man, being only fifty-five 
 years old. His wife, in maidenhood Margaret 
 Wilson, was born in the north of Ireland of 
 Scotch parents, who allied themselves with the 
 Orangemen in sentiment and belief. Her father, 
 Robert W. Wilson, served as a soldier in the 
 English army, and when quite advanced in years 
 came to the United States, locating in Philadel- 
 phia, Pa., where his death occurred at the age of 
 eighty years. The mother of Dr. Musgrave, with 
 her two sisters, cam.e to San Francisco from Phil- 
 adelphia about 1855, being accompanied on the 
 journey by Bishop Kipp. Mrs. Musgrave died 
 in Oakland in 1901, when in her sixty-seventh 
 year. She was a consistent member of the Epis- 
 copal Church. The parental family comprised 
 five children, two of whom died young. Those 
 living are : Robert William, Mary E., the wife 
 of W. J. Tuck, of Oakland, Cal, and Margaret 
 Wilson, the widow of George W. Payne. 
 
 Dr. Musgrave attended the public schools of 
 Grass Valley, graduating therefrom in 1873. In 
 1875 he entered the University of California and 
 was duly graduated from that institution in 1879. 
 Among his classmates was G. C. Pardee, who aft- 
 erward became governor of the state. After his 
 graduation Dr. Musgrave taught school at Brent- 
 wood, Cal., for a time, and later was temporarily 
 engaged in mining, surveying and railroading in 
 Nevada, but finally returned to teaching, becom- 
 ing principal of a school in Contra Costa county, 
 Cal. The last two years of this time he had been 
 reading medicine and he subsequently entered the 
 California Medical College at San Francisco, 
 graduating therefrom in April, 1884. He came 
 at once to Hanford, and has had no cause to re- 
 gret his choice, as he has established a lucrative 
 practice and stands high in the estimation of his 
 fellow citizens. 
 
 The marriage of Dr. Musgrave occurred Jan- 
 
1604 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 uary 15, 1900, and united his fortunes with those 
 of Sue A. Barrett, who was born in Michigan. 
 They have become the parents of three children, 
 Margery M., Dorothy and Donald Robert. Po- 
 litically Dr. Musgrave is a stanch Republican, and 
 has taken an active part in promoting the party's 
 welfare. Fraternally he is identified with the Ma- 
 sons, being a member and past master of Hanford 
 Lodge No. 279, and Hanford Chapter No. 74, 
 R. A. M., in which he has served as treasurer. 
 He is president of Hanford Parlor, N. S. G. W., 
 and is a charter member of the local lodge of the 
 Woodmen of the World. The family find their 
 religious home in the Episcopal Qiurch. 
 
 NICHOLAS BIBBY. Distinguished as one 
 of the early pioneers of California, and as a 
 prominent farmer and stockman of Merced 
 county, Nicholas Bibby is pleasantly located in 
 the town of Volta, on the Bibby road, which 
 was named in his honor. Coming to this local- 
 ity in 1852, he purchased his present fine farm, 
 which was then an unimproved tract of land, 
 giving but scant promise of becoming the fertile 
 and valuable estate into which he has trans- 
 formed it, making it one of the best stock ranches 
 in this section of the state. A son of John 
 Bibby, he was born May 18, 1833, in Troy, Rens- 
 selaer county, N. Y. His paternal grandfather, 
 Thomas Bibby, a native of Wales, came to this 
 country as a soldier in the British Army during 
 the Revolutionary war. At the second battle of 
 Saratoga, when Burgoyne surrendered, he was 
 captured, and after being paroled joined the 
 American army, in which he served as drum 
 major until the close of the war. He subse- 
 quently settled in New York City, where he 
 spent his remaining years. 
 
 John Bibby was a lifelong resident of New 
 York state. Learning the trade of a blacksmith 
 when young, he located in Troy, N. Y., where 
 he followed his chosen occupation until his 
 death, while yet in manhood's prime, in 1835. 
 He married Mehitabel Lindopt, a daughter of 
 Enoch Lindopt. She survived him but six 
 months, dying when her son Nicholas, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch, was but three and one-half 
 years of age. She bore her husband four chil- 
 dren, three sons and one daughter. One son, 
 Enoch Bibby, came to California in pioneer days, 
 and was accidentally drowned when fording the 
 Big Blue, while out on a trip with his brother 
 Nicholas. 
 
 Left an orphan when a mere child, Nicholas 
 Bibby lived in western New York until fourteen 
 years old, obtaining his elementary education in 
 the public schools. Going then to Twin Lakes, 
 Wis., he completed his studies in the village 
 academy, after which he served an apprentice- 
 
 ship at the blacksmith's trade. Returning to New 
 York state, he followed his trade at Adirondack 
 Furnace for awhile, and then, with the adven- 
 turous spirit of youth, drifted westward to Mis- 
 souri. A few days later Mr. Bibby joined a 
 party just starting across the plains for Cali- 
 fornia, entering the employ of Dr. Cunningham, 
 the captain, who gave him $19 a month and his 
 board while on the journey, a period of six 
 months. Arriving in Sacramento, he bade good- 
 by to his comrades, and in parting with the 
 crowd that came through with him Mr. Bibby 
 treated each one, paying $1 a drink, a sum that 
 took all of his money, leaving him penniless. 
 Going then to Nevada county, he went to work 
 in a blacksmith shop for $8 per day, and was 
 also engaged in mining to some extent. 
 
 At the end of two years Mr. Bibby located 
 ■ in Northern California, where he established 
 himself in the dairy business, which proved 
 profitable, milk selling at $1 per gallon, and but- 
 ter at $1.50 per pound. His partner, Mr. Kleg- 
 horn, being taken ill, Mr. Bibby gave him $400 
 with which to take a trip to Honolulu. Mr. 
 Kleghorn settled there permanently, and became 
 a citizen of much importance. He finally mar- 
 ried the king's daug"hter, was appointed governor 
 of one of the islands, and one of his children was 
 the Princess Emma. After Mr. Kleghorn's de- 
 parture to the Hawaiian Islands, Mr. Bibby em- 
 barked in the cattle business in the Sacramento 
 valley, and after his marriage located on a farm 
 in Solano county. Subsequently removing to 
 Napa county, he purchased land, and engaged in 
 general farming until the Berryessa grant was 
 sold, after which he opened a blacksmith's shop 
 in Monticello. Disposing of his land in Napa 
 county in the spring of 1869, Mr. Bibby came 
 to Merced county, first taking up government 
 land on Los Banos Creek, later buying a ranch 
 near Central Point, where he followed his trade 
 in connection with farming. Remaining there 
 but a short time, he sold out that property and 
 bought seven hundred acres of land in Volta, 
 where he has improved a valuable estate. Pay- 
 ing especial attention to the raising of stock 
 he has been very successful in his undertakings, 
 and is numbered among the foremost agricultur- 
 ists of this section of the county. His ranch 
 now comprises five hundred and sixty acres of 
 land, eighty acres of which he devotes to alfalfa, 
 a prolific and good-paying crop. 
 
 In Solano county, Cal., Mr. Bibby married 
 Mary Robinson, who was born near Troy, Mo., 
 and came across the plains to the Pacific coast in 
 1857, with her cousin, Frank Perkins. Of their 
 union the following children have been born, 
 namely: Annie M., wife of M. F. Lundy, of 
 Newman ; Enoch, a carpenter and farmer in 
 Volta; John, carrying on the home farm, and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 iGOo 
 
 also his own ranch, which adjoins the home es- 
 tate ; W. R., engaged in carpentering and farm- 
 ing in Newman ; Edward, of Los Bancs ; Hettie, 
 wife of Judge C. S. Cothran, of Los Bancs ; Min- 
 nie died at the age of seven months; Ida, wife 
 of D. V. Brown, of Dos Pales ; Samuel, a farmer 
 and dairyman, living near Los Bancs; Nicholas, 
 Jr., a carpenter and farmer, of Los Bancs ; and 
 George died at the age of sixteen years. Politi- 
 cally Mr. Bibby is an earnest supporter of the 
 principles of the Democratic party, and is an ex- 
 member of the county central committee. He 
 was the first supervisor appointed by the Gov- 
 ernor of the state, and served for two terms in 
 that capacity. He was elected justice of the 
 peace, but did not qualify for the office. Fra- 
 ternally he belonged to Hills Ferry Lodge, F. 
 & A. M., but demitted, and is now a member of 
 Los Banos Lodge ; he is also a member of Merced 
 Chapter, R. A. M. ; of the Knights of Pythias; 
 and of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 
 In religion he is an Episcopalian. 
 
 JOHAN BRAUN. In the foothills of Stan- 
 islaus county, ten miles southwest of Newman, 
 lies the large farm owned and cultivated by the 
 prosperous German-American citizen, Johan 
 Braun. Among the many people of his nation- 
 ality who have found independence and a coan- 
 petency in the new world, he is one who has no 
 reason to regret the decision which has made 
 him a citizen of the United States, for under 
 the conditions prevailing in .his native land op- 
 jx>rtunities for advancement were meager. As 
 he came to this portion of California when land 
 was cheap, he has reaped the benefit accruing 
 from the increased value of property as well as 
 the benefits resulting from the careful cultivation 
 of the soil. 
 
 Pomerania, Germany, is Mr. Braun's -native 
 province, and he was born near Colberg, October 
 3, 1859, being a son of Christleib and Auguste 
 (Beling) Braun, natives of the same province, 
 and both residents there throughout their entire 
 lives. In religion they were devout Lutherans. 
 Of their ten children only five attained mature 
 years, namely: William, who engages in farm 
 pursuits three miles north of Newman, Stanis- 
 laus county; Wilhelmina, who is married and 
 lives in Wisconsin; Carl, who conducts a hotel 
 In Stockton, Cal. ; Johan ; and Bertha, who 
 makes her home in Wisconsin. During the boy- 
 hood years of Johann Braun he gained a thor- 
 ough knowledge of agriculture as conducted in 
 Germany. His father being a painstaking, in- 
 dustrious farmer, taught him the principles of 
 the occupation, and at the same time trained 
 him in habits of energy, perseverance and econ- 
 omy, important factors in his subsequent success. 
 
 At fourteen years of age he left school and 
 thereafter gave his entire attention to farm work 
 for some years. Following the custom of his 
 country, at twent3f-one years of age he entered 
 the army. For three years he served as a mem- 
 ber of Company Tliree, Twenty-first Regiment, 
 stationed during the entire time at Bromberg in 
 the province of Posen. On the expiration of his 
 term of service he was honorably discharged. 
 
 After having spent eighteen months in Berlin, 
 in 1885 Johan Braun came to the United States 
 with his brother Carl. His first location in Cali- 
 fornia was in the foothills on the west side of 
 Stanislaus county, where he secured employment 
 on Webster's ranch. In 1888 he resigned that 
 position and with his brother, Carl, began to 
 raise grain on seven hundred acres of rented 
 land. The two continued together for a number 
 of years. Meanwhile, in 1891, they bought forty 
 acres of the Page tract, three miles north of New- 
 man. After four years Carl sold his interest to 
 another brother, William, and since then the 
 latter has been in partnership with Johan in 
 the cultivation of the land. To the original pur- 
 chase of forty acres they have added twenty 
 acres, making a total of sixty acres under the 
 ditch. By reason of the irrigation facilities al- 
 falfa has proved a profitable crop, and is utilized 
 for the pasturage of the seventy-five head of 
 milch cows comprising the dairy. Another im- 
 provement in the property is an orchard of 
 three acres which the brothers have planted. 
 This farm is the home of William, while Johan, 
 as previously stated, has his home ten miles from 
 Newman, where he operates six hundred and 
 fort}^ acres of grain and pasture land. In the 
 many labors devolving upon him he has had the 
 counsel and assistance of his capable wife, whom 
 he married in Nevada and who was Bertha 
 Braun, a native of Pomerania. Together they 
 have labored to improve their home place and 
 educate their four children, Hedvig, William, 
 Herbert and Anna, whom they are training in 
 the Lutheran faith and in habits of industry and 
 the highest principles of honor. 
 
 JOHN CERINI. Born in Switzerland, Janu- 
 ary 20, 1854, Mr. Cerini is a son of Peter and 
 Mary Ann (Posy) Cerini. The father was 
 a native of the same country and in 1855 imrrii- 
 grated to Australia, locating on Jim's Creek, 
 where he engaged in mining until his death in 
 1866. To Mr. and Mrs. Cerini were born nine 
 children, four sons and five daughters. 
 
 John Cerini was the youngest child in his 
 father's family. His education was obtained in 
 the public schools of his native country. When 
 a young man he started out to make his own 
 way, securing employment on farms in the neigh- 
 
1606 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 borhood, continuing working for others until 
 1869, when he came to the United States. Soon 
 after his arrival in New York he decided to make 
 his home in the west and accordingly shipped on 
 a vessel bound for the Isthmus of Panama, mak- 
 ing the journey in remarkably short time. His 
 first employment in California was in Alameda 
 county, where he built a board fence. Later he 
 resided in Marin county for a short time, subse- 
 quently going to Sonoma county, where he pur- 
 chased a small ranch, which he has added to from 
 time to time until he now owns two ranches in 
 that county, four hundred acres in each. In 
 1886 he took up his residence in Fresno county, 
 buying a portion of his present ranch, but since 
 then he has purchased additional land until he 
 now owns three thousand acres. This place is 
 located twenty-one miles southwest of Fresno 
 and here Mr. Cerini is carrying on an extensive 
 stock and dairy business. In his dairy he has one 
 hundred and twenty-five cows, using the milk for 
 the manufacture of cheese, which he disposes of 
 in the Fresno markets. In addition to his dairy 
 cows he has about eight hundred head of fat 
 cattle. 
 
 While living in Sonoma county Mr. Cerini was 
 united in marriage with Miss Frances Calzascia, 
 who is also a native of Switzerland. To this 
 union have been born seven children. Mr. Cerini 
 is a Democrat and takes an active interest in the 
 welfare of his party. In the past he has been 
 a delegate to both county and state conventions, 
 while at home he is a leader in public affairs, be- 
 ing at all times willing to give of his time and 
 means to further the interests of the county. 
 Aside from his own personal business interests 
 he is prominently identified with several ventures, 
 including the MiUrace Ditch Company, of which 
 he is president and the largest stockholder. He 
 was also one of the founders and promoters of 
 the Mussel Slough Association and is now serv- 
 ing as its president. 
 
 CHARLES THOMAS TULLOCH. Of the 
 native sons of Stanislaus county none have de- 
 voted their lives to its upbuilding with greater 
 earnestness, greater regard for its future, or 
 " more sincere pride in its standing among the 
 substantial communities of the west than Qiarles 
 Thomas TuUoch, president of the Stanislaus 
 Milling and Power Company, and manager of 
 the Stanislaus Water Company. Behind his en- 
 ergy and resourcefulness, his integrity aiid public 
 spirit Mr. Tulloch has the example of a Scotch 
 ancestry, steeped in the lore, the conservatism, 
 the simple living and regard for truth, which 
 distinguished the descendants of Robert of 
 Bruce. The family theater of activity was 
 shifted from Scotland to Virginia by the paternal 
 
 grandfather, who, became an expert miller ^"j^ . ^ 
 native land, and after his marriage with Miss 
 Whitelaw, crossed the sea and thenceforth phed 
 his trade in the Old Dominion. He possessed 
 the true Scotch grit and perseverance, and in 
 time had six or seven mills along the James river, 
 humming their way into the confidence of the 
 business community, and netting their sagaciotis 
 owner a handsome income. The milling busi- 
 ness was so profitable that he naturally trained 
 his children in the same occupation, his son, 
 David Whitelaw, the father of Charles Thomas, 
 taking to it with kindly persistence, and reflect- 
 ing credit upon the ambition and teaching of his 
 sire. David Whitelaw was born in 1813, and 
 eventually succeeded to the business of his miller 
 father, succeeding also to his Presbyterian stern- 
 ness, and his little s)'mpathy with the pomps and 
 vanities of life. In time he removed to Ken- 
 tucky, where he married Sarah White, daughter 
 of John White, and three children were born to 
 him in the Bourbon state. In 1850 he shared the 
 spirit of unrest which visited the land because of 
 the apparently easy fortunes being made in the 
 far west, and, accomipanied by his wife, children, 
 father-in-law White, and brother James, removed 
 to Hannibal, Mo., in 185 1, the following winter 
 making extensive preparation for emigration to 
 the coast. The journey was accomplished with- 
 out serious accident or incident of any kind, 
 Mr. White separating from the rest and locating 
 in Madera county, where he engaged in the stock 
 business until shortly before his death, which 
 occurred near Buchanan mine, and James Tul- 
 loch engaging in mining in different parts of the 
 state until his death in Angel's Camp about six 
 years ago. David Whitelaw Tulloch spent three 
 years in Stockton, freighting between there and 
 the mines, and in 1855 located in Knight's Ferry, 
 where he engaged in mining for several years. 
 His income, however, was not sufficiently en- 
 couraging or his future of enough promise, to 
 warrant a life devotion to winning wealth from 
 the mines, and the occupation of his younger 
 days seem.ed of all others that in which he could 
 place the most confidence and reap the largest 
 reward. Accordingly, he purchased the mill at 
 Knight's Ferry and operated it until 1875, in 
 which year he left it in charge of his son and 
 removed to Fresno, where he became interested 
 in the stock business. In 1883 he returned to 
 the old mill, managed it with the vigor and en- 
 thusiasm of old, and continued to delight in its 
 noise and output until shortly before his death 
 in November, 1897. As became a southern gen- 
 tleman in whom the tenets of the plantation were 
 firmly grounded, he was a stanch Democrat, his 
 zeal extending only to his own personal vote, 
 and what assistance it was in his power to render 
 his office-seeking friends. He was a Master 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPtllCAL RECORD. 
 
 160? 
 
 Mason, and a Pi-esbyterian. His wife died in 
 Fresno in 1882, having reared two of her chil- 
 dren, of whom John W., the elder, is a rancher 
 three miles south of Oakdale. 
 
 The educational training of Charles Thomas 
 TuUoch terminated at his fifteenth year, and was 
 acquired in the public schools and at Santa Clara 
 College. He arrived in Fresno in 1873, in time 
 to see the first house erected and the first rail- 
 road train pull into the then small hamlet. From 
 boyhood up he had worked around his father's 
 rtiill, but near Fresno he engaged in the sheep 
 business, later following the miller's trade in 
 Fresno, Tulare and Kern counties for a period 
 of eleven years. In 1884 he returned to Knight's 
 Ferry and helped his father run the mill, and 
 in 1895 incorporated the Stanislaus Milling and 
 Power Company, of which he has since been 
 manager and president. In 1896 the company 
 started a lighting plant, furnishing light to 
 Knight's Ferry and Oakdale, and in 1899 the 
 greater facilities and superiority of location of- 
 fered in Oakdale, resulted in the removal of 
 the mill to that town, and the installation of the 
 full roller process machinery, run by electric 
 power generated by the company. The capacity 
 of the mill at present is one hundred and fifty 
 barrels per day, and the leading brand of "Stan- 
 islaus" reaches markets throughout the state, be- 
 ing especially popular in the mining camps of 
 Mariposa, Calaveras, Stanislaus, Merced and 
 Madera counties. 
 
 The Stanislaus Water Company was organ- 
 ized in June, 1899, when the company bought 
 the old Stanislaus and San Joaquin Ditch Com- 
 pany's canal, extending from a point six miles 
 from Stanislaus to within six miles of Lathrop. 
 The new company eiilarged the canal, and from 
 an outlet seven miles from French Camp car- 
 ried it seven miles to Slough, put in masonry for 
 spillways, and set in motion an enterprise of far 
 greater capacity and utility. At present there is 
 contemplated further enlargement of the plant 
 to a capacity of six hundred feet of water per 
 second, when it will be possible to irrigate fifty 
 thousand acres of valuable land. Before the 
 completion of the ditch the land along its pro- 
 posed course sold for $15 per acre, and at present 
 the same property, unimproved, brings at leaSt 
 $75 an acre. Under the able management of 
 Mr. Tulloch the company has prospered, and 
 taken on the dignity of a necessary and upbuild- 
 ing enterprise. 
 
 Mr. Tulloch joins to his business qualifications 
 a predilection for public affairs. His interest 
 and support are easily enlisted in charitable and 
 other undertakings, as well as in the lighter side 
 of social diversions. For many years he has been 
 an honored member of the Masonic fraternity, 
 and has twice been master of Summit Lodge No. 
 
 112, of Knights Ferry. He is a member of the 
 Royal Arch Masons of Modesto, and of the Pa- 
 cific Lodge No. 3, K. T., of Sonora, and the 
 Stockton Lodge No. 218, B. P. O. E. In Fresno, 
 this state, he was united in marriage with Anna 
 Nielsen, a native of Jamestown, Tuolumne 
 county, and of which union four children have 
 been jjorn: David, with the Stanislaus Milling- 
 and Power Company of Modesto ; John, with the 
 Stanislaus Water Company; Neil, a student who 
 will graduate at the Santa Clara College in the 
 class of 1905 ; and Lila, who is attending the 
 Sacred Heart Convent of Oakland, and will 
 graduate in 1905. Commencing life in compara- 
 tive obscurity, laboring in an humble capacity 
 with steady industry, practicing economy and 
 sobriety, Mr. Tulloch has prospered in his af- 
 fairs. He has seen several communities grow 
 with great rapidity, and has profited beyond the 
 fortune of the majority in the value which a 
 growmg community confers upon fortunate lo- 
 cation. His life thus far has been marked by 
 probity, enterprise, and industry, and his charac- 
 ter has been enriched by those high qualities of 
 generosity and kindliness which have won him 
 business popularity and influence, and the sin- 
 cere regard of a large circle of friends. 
 
 JOHN J. RICHARDSON. The representa- 
 tives of the Richardson family in California are 
 pioneers of the state and men who have experi- 
 enced the trials and privations of a new country. 
 The head of the family is Thomas Richardson, 
 who came to the state first during the excitement 
 of the gold discovery, returning afterward to his 
 eastern home, when he brought his wife and chil- 
 dren across the plains. A son of Robert Richard- 
 son, a native of Virginia, he was born in Burton 
 county, Ky., September 18, 1818, whither his 
 parents had removed. When only three months 
 old his home was changed to Pike county. Mo., 
 where his father located on a farm, shortly after- 
 ward locating in Pike county, 111., where the 
 same occupation was followed. Thomas Rich- 
 ardson was reared upon a farm and trained to 
 the practical duties which have since occupied his 
 attention with the exception of a very few years. 
 In 1846, on seeking independent operations, he 
 located in the state of Iowa, where he remained 
 until 1850. In that year he crossed the plains 
 to California, traveling by means of ox teams, and 
 after spending one year in the mines he returned 
 home by way of the Isthmus of Panama. The 
 ■following year he again crossed the plains, bring- 
 ing his family to California, locating in what is 
 now Stanislaus county, being the second man to 
 locate on the south bank of the Stanislaus river. 
 He took up land which proved to be a Spanish 
 grant, and he therefore had to purchase the ranch 
 
1608 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORt). 
 
 which he had improved. This consists of five hun- 
 dred acres devoted to grain and fifty acres of 
 bottom land, which is planted to orchard fruits 
 and a vineyard. Since his location here October 
 7, 1852, he has brought the land to a high state 
 of cultivation and made many improvements 
 which have placed his ranch among the most 
 productive and attractive in Stanislaus county. 
 He is still active in the pursuit of his agricul- 
 tural duties, and as well takes a deep interest in 
 public affairs, in the interests of the Democratic 
 party, of which he is a stanch adherent, having 
 served for some time as justice of the peace. Fra- 
 ternally he is quite prominent, being a charter 
 member of the Masonic lodge at Knights Ferry, 
 a member of the Knights of Pythias, and of the 
 Odd FeUows. In Illinois he married Lucinda 
 J. Wagoner, who is now deceased. Their two 
 living children are John J., the subject of this re- 
 view, and Ephraim. 
 
 John J. Richardson was born in Pike county, 
 111., January 15, 1849, and was a child of only 
 three years, when he crossed the plains with his 
 parents to the state which he has since made his 
 home. He was reared to young manhood on his 
 father's ranch in this county, interspersing home 
 duties with an attendance of the public schools. 
 He remained at home until he was twenty-three 
 years of age, when he entered upon independent 
 operations in the agricultural line at various 
 places in Stanislaus county. He is now located 
 near Oakdale, this county, and engaged in a suc- 
 cessful prosecution of his chosen occupation. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Richardson are the parents oi four 
 children, namely: Fannie, Thomas E., Ora Lee 
 and Emmet Wilham. In his political preferment 
 Mr. Richardson is a Republican. 
 
 CYPRIEN PUCHEU. Many of the most 
 successful ranchmen of sunny California are of 
 foreign birth and breeding, and have brought 
 from their early homes beyond the seas those 
 habits of industry, honesty and thrift that have 
 made them valued and respected citizens of their 
 adopted country. Prominent among this number 
 is C3'prien Pucheu, of Mendota, Fresno county, 
 who is carrying on a prosperous business as a 
 sheep raiser and. dealer. A native of France, he 
 was born January 13, 1869, in the village of 
 Barcus, Department of Basses-Pyrenees, being 
 the eldest of a family of eleven children, of whom 
 but two, himself and his brother Pierre, who is 
 in his employ, are in America. His parents, 
 Pierre anrl Engroce (Cibery) Pucheu, still live 
 on the home farm in Barcus. 
 
 Receiving but limited educational advantages, 
 Cyprien Pucheu began helping his father when 
 small, being well trained in farming and stock- 
 raising while young. Before attaining his ma- 
 
 jority, he immigrated to America, arriving in 
 San Francisco in October, 1889, his sole capital 
 being his strong hands, willing heart and cour- 
 ageous spirit. Coming directly to the west side 
 of the San Joaquin valley, he worked for nearly 
 three years for Domingo Gastombide, in the 
 meantime acquiring a practical knowledge of the 
 stock business as carried on in this country. In 
 1893 Mr. Pucheu started in the sheep business 
 on his own account in Esmeralda county, Nev. 
 He was quite successful until his health failed, 
 when he had to go to a hospital, where he was 
 confined for one hundred and fifty-four days. 
 Returning then to California, he located in 
 Fresno county, building a residence in Mendota, 
 and has since continued in the stock business, 
 having a range about seven miles south of the 
 town, and keeping on an average from twenty- 
 five hundred to four thousand sheep. 
 
 Mr. Pucheu married, in San Francisco, Mary 
 H. Pon, who was born in Basses-Pyrenees, 
 France, and they have one child, Julia. In poli- 
 tics Mr. Pucheu is anadherent oi the Republican 
 party. Fraternally he is a member and a trustee 
 of the Knights of Pythias, and belongs to the 
 French Mutual Benevolent Association of San 
 Francisco. Religiously he is a Catholic. 
 
 A. D. SWEET. The business interests rep- 
 resented by the firm of S. Sweet & Co., of which 
 A. D. Sweet is vice-president, are not only of a 
 ■ most extensive nature, but also have brought an 
 added commercial prestige to Visalia. Through 
 a gradual enlargement of stock, the business has 
 developed into a department store of a size un- 
 surpassed by any establishment in the city, four 
 rooms being occupied with a total frontage of 
 one hundred feet and a depth of one hundred 
 and twenty-five feet. In addition to the stock 
 found on the first floor, the second floor also pre- 
 sents an array of goods representing every de- 
 partment of general merchandise. A large retail 
 lousiness is supplemented by a growing whole- 
 sale trade that extends throughout the entire San 
 Joac|uin valley. 
 
 At the family home in San Francisco A. D. 
 Sweet was born July 24, 1876, being a son of 
 Solomon and Annie E. (Phillips) Sweet, natives 
 respectively of Germany and New York Cily. 
 After having completed the course of study in 
 the San Francisco public schools he matriculated 
 in the University of California, where he took 
 the complete literary course, graduating in 1898 
 with the degree of Ph. B. Immediately after 
 his graduation he was admitted to the firm of 
 which his father remained the president until 
 death and which, with an office in San Francisco 
 and a large establishment in Visalia, is thor- 
 oughly equipped for the prosecution of a sue- 
 
HtSTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1609 
 
 cessful business. In many respects the son has 
 inherited traits that brought prosperity to his 
 father, having the same wise judgment, the same 
 keen discrimination and the same resourceful 
 spirit. 
 
 The marriage of A. D. Sweet united him with 
 Miss Carrie Weathers, who was born and reared 
 in Visaha, her father, J. B. Weathers, being a 
 well known citizen of this place. The Visalia 
 Board of Trade numbers Mr. Sweet among its 
 members, and in other ways he endeavors to 
 promote the business prosperity of his home city. 
 His wife is identified with the Parlor of Native 
 Daughters at Visalia, and he is a member of 
 Visalia Parlor No. 19, Native Sons, both being 
 leaders in the work of their respective organiza- 
 tions. In addition, he also takes a warm interest 
 in Masonry and is a member of Visalia Lodge 
 No. 128, F. & A. M. Though not a partisan in 
 political views, he is a stanch Republican and 
 always votes the straight ticket in local and 
 general elections. 
 
 JAMES CRAWFORD. Self-made in the 
 best sense implied by the term, James Crawford 
 holds to-day a high position in the esteem and 
 confidence of his fellow-citizens. He came west 
 in the pioneer days of the state with nothing to 
 presage future success save an unlimited supply 
 of courage and energy and a manhood which 
 could admit no defeat. To his credit it may also 
 be said that he has never allowed his efforts to- 
 ward a personal success to crowd from his life 
 that interest in public affairs, that helpfulness to 
 his fellowmen, which makes for the. moral growth 
 and upbuilding of a community, retaining amid 
 all hardships, deprivations and labors the integri- 
 ty which to-day makes his word as good as his 
 bond among all who know him. A brief resume 
 of his life is herewith given — interesting reading 
 to the younger generation as well as tO' those 
 who have worked with him toward a common 
 end — the upbuilding of a western statehood. 
 
 A native of Guernsey county, Ohio, James 
 Crawford was the eldest in the family of four 
 daughters and two sons, of whom all but one 
 daughter are now living. His father, Robert 
 Crawford, was a native of Scotland, from which 
 country he immigrated to the United States and 
 located in Ohio, where he became a pioneer 
 farmer. From the age of ten years he was de- 
 pendent upon his own resources and early de- 
 veloped the traits of self-reliance necessary to a 
 success. After his location in America he made 
 a trip to the West Indies, eventually returning to 
 Ohio, where he farmed and also engaged in the 
 tannery business at Malta. His death occurred 
 in Ohio. His wife, formerly Rebecca Willis, a 
 native of Guernsey county, Ohio, survives him. 
 
 making her home in Malta, Morgan county, that 
 state. James Crawford was reared in Ohio on 
 the paternal farm until he was eight years old, 
 when he accompanied his parents to Malta. He 
 received scant schooling while at home in Ohio, 
 but was not satisfied, and after his trip to Cali- 
 fornia, made during the war by the Panama 
 route, he attended school in Marysville, Cal. 
 After his arrival in the state Mr. Crawford went 
 first to Penryn, from San Francisco, where he 
 remained from May until January, when he be- 
 gan placer mining on Dutch Ravine, where, in 
 six weeks and three days he cleared $385.20. One 
 year after his arrival in the state he went to 
 Quincy, Plumas county, and prospected and 
 mined, and at the end of four more years he had 
 $4,000. He then bought a mine at Newcastle, 
 which venture proved a lamentable failure, as 
 he not only lost all he had saved, but found him- 
 self $300 in debt. He then found employment at 
 $2 per day for one month, and after that at $4, 
 working steadily at this until he had paid off his 
 debt. He then found work at various things in 
 the vicinity of Rio Vista, Solano county, until, 
 with a partner, he became interested in gathering 
 the cotton from the cat-tails on the Sacramento 
 river, using a scow in the process and averaging 
 one hundred pounds a day. This was sold in San 
 Francisco at eight cents per pound and used in 
 the making of mattresses and upholstering. As 
 they had something Hke five tons they made con- 
 siderable money. December 5, 1873, Mr. Craw- 
 ford came to Visalia, Tulare county, attracted to 
 this section by the discovery of gold at Mineral 
 King, where he helped in the building of the 
 trail, from the beginning to the completion. He 
 located claims and followed mining for two years, 
 when he returned to Visalia and began stock- 
 raising, running hogs on the lake. In 1878 he 
 entered the employ of Wiley Coughran, with 
 whom he remained two years. Mr. Coughran 
 then removed to Santa Rosa and Mr. Crawford 
 assumed the entire management of the ranch, 
 acting as superintendent for twenty-four years. 
 With the exception of ten months he has held this 
 position continuously for that time, during the 
 ten months being located in the east. New Mexi- 
 co and Texas, and near Oroville, Butte county, 
 Cal., acting as superintendent of the Pleasant 
 Valley ranch. This last position he resigned at 
 the earnest solicitation of Mr. Coughran to return 
 to Tulare county in the same capacity. Of one 
 thousand acres in the ranch one hundred and 
 forty are devoted to alfalfa, while the greater 
 part of his attention is given to the raising of 
 hogs, horses and cattle. He also has charge of 
 Mr. Coughran's other interests in the county, 
 and has thoroughly demonstrated the ability and 
 trustworthiness which have always distinguished 
 his character. 
 
1610 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mrs. Crawford was in maidenhood Cora H. 
 Adams, a native of Missouri, and tlie daughter 
 of D. M. Adams, of Maine, now a resident of 
 Visah'a. He served for four years in the Civil 
 war as a member of an IlHnois regiment. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Crawford are the parents of five chil- 
 dren, namely: Cora Rebecca, Lena L., James 
 Milton, Wiley W. and Esther. Fraternally Mr. 
 Crawford was made an Odd Fehow in Four 
 Creeks, and his wife is a member of the Re- 
 bekahs. Politically he is a true-blue Republican, 
 having cast his first presidential vote for Grant 
 in 1868. I In the educational interests of the com- 
 munity he has served as school trustee for several 
 terms. 
 
 LAWRENCE BULGER. In the business 
 rush and hurry of the present day the question 
 of the transportation of men and merchandise 
 has to be met, and the chief means established 
 throughout the length and breadth of our con- 
 tinent is by means of railways. That travel on 
 these may be safe and a high rate of speed main- 
 tained, railway men are exerting strenuous ef- 
 fort, employing skilled workmen only in the con- 
 struction and management of these roads. Prom- 
 inent among the ofiScial employes of the Southern 
 Pacific Railway Company is Lawrence Bulger, 
 roadmaster of the Merced District of its West- 
 ern Division. Gifted with great mechanical in- 
 genuity and abihty, he industriously cultivated 
 his natural talents, becoming skilled in the use 
 of tools, and was first a house carpenter, later a 
 bridge builder, and now occupies a position of 
 trust among the practical and experienced rail- 
 way men of this state. A son of Thomas Bulger, 
 he was born in Malone, St. Lawrence county, N. 
 Y. His grandfather, John Bulger, born in the 
 north of Ireland, immigrated to the United 
 States, and improved a farm in St. Lawrence 
 county, N. Y. 
 
 Born on the parental homestead in New York, 
 Thomas Bulger succeeded to the free and inde- 
 pendent occupation of his ancestors, becoining a 
 prosperous farmer in Malone, N. Y., where he 
 resided, an esteemed and respected citizen, until 
 his death, about 1889. He married Mary Mc- 
 Cabe, who was born, lived and died in St. Law- 
 rence county, N. Y., being the daughter of Law- 
 rence McCabe, a farmer in Malone. She was of 
 Scotch descent, and of Revolutionary stock, her 
 grandfather McCabe having served as a soldier 
 in the Revolutionary war. She bore her husband 
 seven children, Lawrence, the subject of this 
 sketch, being the fourth child in order of birth. 
 One other son, Hugh Bulger, of Oakland, is an 
 employe of the Southern Pacific Railway Com- 
 panv as foreman of bridges and buildings. 
 
 After completing his early education in the 
 
 district schools of his native town, Lawrence 
 Bulger served an apprenticeship at the carpen- 
 ter's trade, beginning at the age of fifteen years. 
 Migrating to California in 1878, he followed his 
 trade in Martinez for a year, and then entered the 
 employ of the Southern Pacific Railway Com- 
 pany, which had at that time extended its road to 
 a point about twenty-five miles south of Tucson, 
 toward El Paso. As a carpenter he assisted in 
 building the bridges and erecting the buildings 
 along the line to Texas, continuing in this Capaci- 
 ty for three years. Going to Oakland in 1882, 
 Mr. Bulger was a bridge and building carpenter 
 for the company for another year. Being then 
 promoted to the position of foreman of the bridge 
 and building department, he remained thus em- 
 ployed until 1895, with headquarters in Oakland. 
 Proving himself able and trustworthy as fore- 
 man, the company appointed him assistant super- 
 intendent of the bridge and building department 
 of the Western Division of the road, and four 
 years later, in 1899, made him roadmaster of the 
 Merced District of the Western Division of the 
 road, with headquarters at Merced. At first Mr. 
 Bulger had charge of two hundred and sixteen 
 miles of the railway, but since the reconstruction 
 of its divisions his district now embraces but one 
 hundred and sixty-eight miles, that extending 
 from Lathrop to Muscatel, from Merced to Oak- 
 dale on the Stockton branch, and that from Be- 
 rendo to Raymond on the Yosemite branch. In 
 his district are sixteen sections, with two extra 
 gangs of workmen. Under the management of 
 Mr. Bulger, during the summer of 1903, new 
 steel rails were laid between Lathrop and Fresno, 
 the fifty-pound steel being replaced by eighty- 
 pound steel, and in addition sixty thousand new 
 ties were put in. As roadmaster Mr. Bulger dis- 
 plays great ability, his efficiency being recognized 
 by both his employers and his employes. He is a 
 Republican in politics, and a member of the 
 Woodmen of the World. 
 
 MARCUS LAFAYETTE MORRIS. Con- 
 spicuous among the most extensive and progress- 
 ive agriculturists of Stanislaus county is Marcus 
 Lafayette Morris, familiarly known by his 
 friends and associates as_ Captain Morris. Own- 
 ing and occupying a valuable ranch, which is 
 located about one and one-half miles east of 
 Crows Landing, he is carrying on general farm- 
 ing and dairying with most satisfactory results, 
 finding his chosen occupation congenial as well 
 as profitable. Coming from substantial Virgin- 
 ian stock, he was born January 6, 1840, in Lin- 
 coln county. Mo., a son of Charles R. Morris. 
 His father, a native of Virginia, married Eliza- 
 beth Mason, who was also born and reared in 
 the Old Dominion state, and they soon removed 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1611 
 
 to Lincoln county, Mo., becoming pioneer farm- 
 ers of that place, and there both spent the re- 
 mainder of their lives. 
 
 One of a family of twelve children, Marcus 
 Lafayette Morris obtained his early education 
 in the district schools of Missouri, and while on 
 the home farm he became thoroughly versed in 
 the various branches of agriculture. Beginning 
 life for himself as a dealer in stock, he lived in 
 Lincoln county until 1863, when he removed to 
 Pike county. Mo., where he continued trading in 
 stock, and also in buying and selling leaf to- 
 bacco for a year. Crossing the plains with a 
 mule- team train in 1864, he brought a large 
 drove of cattle to California, arriving in the 
 Humboldt valley after a journey of sixty-five 
 days. From 1865 until 1868 he resided in Stock- 
 ton. Coming from there to Stanislaus county he 
 bought his present farm of seven hundred acres, 
 all of which is subject to irrigation from the 
 canal, and has since been very successfully em- 
 ployed in agricultural pursuits. Captain Morris 
 makes a specialty of raising alfalfa, and is one 
 of the largest dairymen in this section of the 
 San Joaquin valley. He keeps one hundred and 
 seventy-five cows of a superior grade, and in his 
 well-equipped factory, which has a capacity of 
 , two hundred pounds per day, he manufactures 
 American cheese, which he sells to the Pacific 
 coast markets, receiving the highest price quoted. 
 From 1872 until 1892 he was engaged in the 
 wholesale and retail butchering business in Oak- 
 land, killing and selling sheep and cattle, making 
 a specialty of sheep. 
 
 In Stockton, Cal., Captain Morris married Vir- 
 ginia Crow, a native of Missouri, and into their 
 household three children have been born, 
 namely: Walter and Roy, living at home; and 
 Archer, of San Francisco. Politically the Cap- 
 tain is a steadfast Democrat and a stanch sup- 
 porter of its principles. 
 
 JOHN C. MOORE. It is asserted by many 
 competent to know that, in matters pertaining to 
 values of property in Fresno, no man is better 
 posted than Mr. Moore, senior member of the 
 real estate firm of Moore & Cate, with office at 
 No. 1050 J street. The firm of which he is a 
 member has carried through to a successful con- 
 summation some of the most important deals in 
 the city and county of Fresno and has established 
 a record as noteworthy as it is gratifying. In 
 addition to their real estate business they repre- 
 sent twelve old-line insurance companies for fire 
 protection, also the Equitable Life Insurance 
 Company and the National Surety Bond Com- 
 pany. Another feature of the business is the 
 making of loans. 
 
 Referring to the ancestral history of Mr. 
 
 Moore, it may be stated that he is a descendant 
 of Virginian progenitors, wlio were represented 
 in the early wars of our country. His grand- 
 father, John Moore, a native of old Virginia, and 
 a soldier in the war of 1812, removed to Tennes- 
 see and settled upon a plantation. The father, 
 Calvin Moore, was born and reared in Tennes- 
 see and carried on a plantation there up to the 
 time of the Civil war. Being a Union man, he 
 assisted the Union forces by engaging in scout- 
 ing. After the war came to an end he removed 
 to Sailor Springs, Clay county. 111., and there 
 conducted farm pursuits until his death. In re- 
 ligion he was a faithful member of the Method- 
 ist Episcopal Church and in politics voted with 
 the Republicans. His wife, Catherine Jenkins, 
 was born in Tennessee and died in Illinois; her 
 father, William Jenlcins, was a Virginian by 
 birth and went from that state to Tennessee. 
 
 In the Moore family there were originally 
 twelve children and of these three sons and four 
 daughters are now living, John C. being one of 
 the youngest. He was born in Hawkins county, 
 Tenii., March 31, 1861. When a boy he attend- 
 ed puljlic school in Illinois and aided in the culti- 
 vation of the home farm. March 19, 1883, he 
 arrived in Los Angeles, and for five months was 
 employed in a store at Orange, receiving $16 per 
 month. On account of poor health he left there 
 and went into the mountain regions around Bear 
 valley, where he worked in lumber mills. After 
 his i-eturn to Los Angeles he suffered a severe 
 attack of typhoid fever. On regaining his 
 strength he came to the San Joaquin valley. His 
 long illness and inability to work had reduced 
 his savings until he had only $30 when he ar- 
 rived in Fresno in April, 1884. For three years 
 he worked on farms, after which he and J. F. 
 Hall bought eighty acres at Selma and planted 
 the same in an orchard and vineyard. Eight 
 months later he sold his half of the property at 
 a profit of $1,000. He then turned his attention 
 to trading in lands near Selma and at the expira- 
 tion of three years had accumulated about $10,- 
 000. With this capital he embarked in the agri- 
 cultural implement business at Selma, where he 
 built up a large trade and continued until Octo- 
 ber of 1895. Meantime he had assisted in incor- 
 porating the city of Selma and served as its first 
 city clerk. He was also connected with the 
 Fowler Switch Company and the Emigrant Ditch 
 Company as secretary and manager. During the 
 panic of 1893-94 he suffered the fate of most of 
 the heavy property holders and lost the accumu- 
 lations of vears of labor, but he paid one hun- 
 dred cents on every dollar of his indebtedness 
 and thus retained the excellent business credit he 
 had built up. In October of 1895 he came to 
 Fresno, where he has since engaged in the real 
 estate, insurance and money brokerage business, 
 
1612 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 having been successively the partner of T. C. 
 White, G. J. Nees and J. Wilbur Cate. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Moore occurred in Selma 
 and united him with Miss Matie Goodman, a 
 teacher in the schools there and a native of Ver- 
 mont. They have two living children, Calvin 
 and Ruth, and lost one son, Alfred, in boyhood. 
 Mrs. Moore is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church South. Fraternally Mr. Moore is 
 connected with the Woodmen of the World. For 
 years he has been an active worker in the Re- 
 publican party and a member of Republican 
 clubs, besides which he has served as secretary 
 of the county central committee. In April of 
 1899 the Republicans elected him city trustee 
 from the first ward and he continued in the of- 
 fice until the new charter went into effect in 
 1901, when he declined to become a candidate 
 for re-election. He is a member of the Cham- 
 ber of Commerce and a charter member of the 
 Fresno Real Estate Exchange, in which he is 
 now a director. 
 
 BURR BROTHERS. Tulare county owes 
 much to the young men who have taken up their 
 residence within its boundaries and are making 
 this one of the greatest counties in the state. 
 Progressive and industrious, the young men are 
 the ones to build up new industries. In this 
 work special mention must be made of the Burr 
 Brothers, who have done much for Tulare coun- 
 ty. Always alert to adopt new ideas, they have 
 met with success in their business ventures and 
 are now looked upon as two of the most sub- 
 stantial young business men in the county. 
 
 John Burr, Jr., and Charles Felton Burr are 
 sons of John Burr, Sr., a native of Aberdeen, 
 Scotland. He came to California in 1873, ^rid 
 being a landscape gardener by trade, he soon 
 secured a position with ex-Senator Charles Fel- 
 ton, with whom he continued for ten years. In 
 1883 he located at Goshen and started a forty- 
 acre vineyard. This he conducted for three years, 
 when he sold out and removed to the San Fer- 
 nando _ valley, where he set out orange, lemon 
 and olive trees, now owning ninety acres, twen- 
 ty-one miles north of Los Angeles. His ranch 
 is known as the "Morning Side Ranch" and is 
 one of the finest places in Los Angeles county. 
 From the first he took an active interest in po- 
 litical matters and has served one term as sheriff 
 of Los Angeles county. Filling this office gave 
 him a wide acquaintance, and wherever known 
 he has scores of warm personal friends, who re- 
 spect him for the position he has gained in this 
 state. Mr. Burr married Miss Annie Philpott, 
 who was born in England. By this union three 
 children have been born : John and Charles, 
 who will be mentioned later, and William, who 
 
 is living at home, assisting his father in the work 
 of the ranch. 
 
 John Burr, Jr., was born in San Mateo coun- 
 ty, this state, on March 10, 1874. His early lite 
 was spent in the county of his nativity and on the 
 removal of his parents to Los Angeles county he 
 accompanied them. His common school educa- 
 tion was supplemented by a course in a Los An- 
 geles business college, from which he was grad- 
 uated in 1893. From a boy he took an active in- 
 terest in horticulture and devoted all his spare 
 time to the work on his father's ranch. In 1898, 
 in company with his brother Charles, he came to 
 Lindsay, and together they purchased one hun- 
 dred and thirty acres four miles north of the 
 town. Improvements were at once begun and 
 soon ninety acres were set out with navel or- 
 anges, while the balance was placed under excel- 
 lent cultivation and in the spring of 1905 the 
 whole will be set out in oranges. The entire . 
 ranch is on the hillside and above the frost. This 
 makes it possible to produce an excellent quality 
 of fruit and much earlier than the ranches in the 
 lowlands. While Mr. Burr has been very busy 
 looking after his own interests he is interested 
 in the Exeter Water and Irrigation Company, of 
 which he is one of the directors. He was one of 
 the organizers of the Lindsay Orange Growers' 
 Association and is now one of the directors. He 
 is also connected with the Rochdale Association. 
 While still living in Los Angeles county Mr. 
 Burr was united in marriage with Miss Hallie 
 Cresap, a native of Iowa. She died in January, 
 1903, leaying one child, Annie, who is also de- 
 ceased, dying at the age of seven months. Mr. 
 Burr's second marriage took, place in Lindsay 
 and united him with Miss Grace Foster, who is a 
 native daughter of California, having been born 
 in Salinas. In politics Mr. Burr is a Repub- 
 lican and fraternally is a member of the Wood- 
 men of the World. He has little time for the 
 social side of life, yet he and his most estimable 
 wife are very popular, and the best homes in this 
 section of the county are always open for their 
 reception. 
 
 Charles F. Burr is also a native of California 
 having been born at Menlo Park, San Mateo 
 county, May 6, 1876. His education was re- 
 ceived m the schools of Los Angeles county later 
 taking a course in the Los Angeles Business col- 
 Qo ,^<^"^'"§' to Lindsav with his brother in 
 1898, he has since been actively associated with 
 him m business. The two brothers have worked 
 together m every sense of the word and as a re- 
 sult Sunny Slope" is one of the finest ranches 
 m the county. 
 
 In Los Angeles county Mr. Burr married Miss 
 tilsie L. Hoyt and now has two children : Qiarles 
 1/ i Jr. and an infant unnamed. Mr and 
 Mrs. Burr have made scores of friends since tak- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1613 
 
 ing up their residence in Tulare county, all of 
 whom are deeply interested in the welfare of 
 their new acquaintances. Like his brother, Mr. 
 Burr is a director in the Rochdale Company, and 
 is interested in the Lindsay Improvement Com- 
 pany, the Lindsay Orange Growers' Association 
 and the Exeter Water and Irrigation Company. 
 A stanch Republican, he takes an active interest 
 in the welfare of the party, and while he has 
 never had the time nor inclination to seek office 
 he endorses those he thinks should be elected and 
 will work for their successful candidacy. 
 
 ADDISON L. WISEMAN. One of the more 
 important factors in the advancement of the in- 
 dustrial and horticultural interests of Tulare 
 county is Addison L. Wiseman, who as an or- 
 chardist and vineyardist is carrying on a most 
 prosperous and successful business, his ranch 
 being about two m.iles south of Reedley. He is 
 a man of great energy and activity, a natural 
 mechanic, and in addition to his horticultural 
 labors has done notable work as a carpenter and 
 contractor. He is a nian of fine physique, strong 
 and athletic, with an imlimited amount of grit 
 and pluck. On one occasion, while working in 
 the North woods, his left hand was nearly sev- 
 ered by the accidental blow of an ax in the hands 
 of a fellow-workman. Mr. Wiseman was then 
 eighty-six and one-half miles from the nearest 
 railway station. His comrade stopped the flow 
 of blood by tying a rawhide around the wrist, 
 and then the sufferer started on foot through the 
 snow for medical aid, walking thirty-two miles 
 the first day, thirty-five miles the second, com- 
 pleting the remaining distance by the following 
 noon, and then taking the train for the city and 
 hospital. This little incident shows the mettle 
 of the man, who is as honest and brave as he is 
 fearless. A son of Samuel Wiseman, he was 
 born December 21, 1863, near Gallipolis, Ohio, 
 of pioneer ancestry, his grandfather, Isaac Wise- 
 man, having settled in Ohio in 1837. 
 
 Born in Virginia in 1833, Samuel Wiseman 
 was brought up and educated in Ohio, near Gal- 
 lipolis, being reared to agricultural pursuits. 
 During the Civil war, in 1864, he served for four 
 months in^ an Ohio regiment. Migrating to 
 Michigan in 1869, he located near Howard City, 
 , Montcalm county, and was there employed in 
 farming until 1891, when he came to Tulare 
 county, and has since resided with his only child, 
 Addison L. He married Elizabeth Wright, who 
 was born in Ohio, where her father, Moses 
 Wright, settled on leaving Virginia, his native 
 state. She died in Ohio, very soon after the 
 birth of her son. 
 
 But six years of age when he accompanied his 
 father to Michigan, Addison L. Wiseman ob- 
 
 tained his education in the district schools of 
 Montcalm county. When a small boy he began 
 working on the river as a log driver, and at 
 the age of fifteen was such an expert as a log 
 driver that he received $3 a day at the work, 
 riding the head log and acting as jam cracker, 
 employment that he enjoyed thoroughly. Going 
 to Wisconsin, he was similarly employed on the 
 headwaters of the Tomahawk, in one of the first 
 mills erected in that locality. Leaving there in 
 July, 1884, Mr. Wiseman went to Seattle, Wash., 
 in search of a favorable business opportunity, 
 but that was a season of depression, and he came 
 down into Butte county, Cal., and for three years 
 was engaged in farming near Gridley. Locating 
 in Tulare county in 1887, he worked for three 
 years as warehouseman, first in Traver, then at 
 Reedley, and later in Dinuba he was a piler, after 
 the first season receiving $3.50 a day. 
 
 In 1890 Mr. Wiseman bought his present 
 ranch of twenty acres, lying two miles south of 
 Reedley, and at once began its improvement, 
 having now a highly productive orchard of 
 twelve acres, the remainder being vineyard and 
 alfalfa land. Making good use of his native 
 mechanical talent and ability, he has since erected 
 a good residence and substantial buildings on 
 his place, and built houses for many of his neigh- 
 bors, all of which are a credit to his skill and 
 industry, as well as an ornament to the com- 
 munity. He has likewise filled contracts for set- 
 ting out orchards and vineyards, in this line 
 meetmg with great success. Thrifty and capable, 
 he has accumulated considerable wealth, owning 
 other valuable property aside from his home es- 
 tate. 
 
 In Fresno, Cal., Mr. Wiseman married Nellie 
 McClanahan, who was born in Butte county, and 
 they have one child, Alta Echo. Mrs. Wiseman 
 died in 1894, her death being a loss to the com- 
 munity as well as to her family and to the 
 Methodist Church, of which she was a member. 
 In politics Mr. Wiseman is Independent. He is 
 a member of the Woodmen of the World, be- 
 longing to lodge and circle ; is a member of the 
 Fraternal Aid, and president of the Court of 
 Honor; and is a member and past chief ranger 
 of the Independent Order of Foresters. 
 
 LOUIS H. PFITZER. A thorough master of 
 the machinist's trade, which he is following at 
 the present time in Los Banos, Louis H. Pfitzer 
 is also known as one of the successful dairymen 
 and land owners of Merced county, his ranch of 
 one hundred acres four miles southwest of town, 
 rented out since the fall of 1904, being one of the 
 valuable and paying properties of a section which 
 has proved a veritable dairyman's paradise. Mr. 
 Pfitzer's name correctly indicates his nationality. 
 
1614 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and his father, Anthony, was born near Stuttgart, 
 Germany, coming to America as a young man to 
 avoid the Hmitations by which he was surrounded 
 at home, and making a name for himself in Mer- 
 ced county and other parts of the state of CaU- 
 fornia. The elder Pfitzer located a farm three 
 miles from Volta, where the majority of his chil- 
 dren were born, among them Louis H., whose 
 natal day was September 7, 1878. 
 
 The machinist of Las Banos was educated in 
 the public schools, in the Santa Cruz high-school, 
 which he entered at the age of fourteen, and at 
 the Santa Cruz Business College, from which he 
 was graduated in 1897. Upon determining to 
 become a master machinist he selected the best 
 possible place on the coast to learn his trade, the 
 Union Iron Works, where he served an appren- 
 ticeship of four years. Objecting to the confine- 
 ment incident to this kind of work, he followed 
 farming for a couple of years, and in February, 
 1903, located on his present farm, which was 
 then wild and bare land, giving little promise of 
 its present prosperity. The fall after making his 
 purchase the outside canal was extended, and he 
 prepared the land for alfalfa, in 1904 the water 
 being sufficient to grow five crops. This he 
 utilized for dairying, having one hundred milch 
 cows, but although successful in the management 
 of his property, he preferred his trade, and so 
 rented his land to responsible parties. 
 
 At Newman, Mr. Pfitzer married Edith Each- 
 us, daughter of Major W. P. Eachus, a farmer 
 near Newman, and of this union Lois Bertrand 
 has been born. Mr. Pfitzer is a stanch advocate 
 of Republicanism, but has never seen his way 
 clear to actively participate in local political un- 
 dertakings. He is an obliging, high-minded, and 
 agreeable gentleman, doing well whatever task 
 confronts him, and believing always that the best 
 is none too good to strive for. 
 
 to carrying on general farming he assisted in 
 building the canal, continuing thus employed until 
 his death, while yet in the prime of life, in 1877. 
 His widow, an energetic and accomplished busi- 
 ness woman, subsequently bought the farm on 
 which they had been living, and still resides on it, 
 it being now managed by her son, Hermann A., 
 the subject of this sketch. 
 
 The youngest child of the parental household, 
 which consisted of two sons and four daughters, 
 Hermann A. Kricke has spent his entire life on 
 the home ranch, of which he now has tHe sole 
 charge. In his chosen vocation he has been ex- 
 ceedingly prosperous, his practical and systematic 
 methods, excellent judgment and wise manage- 
 ment being conducive to success. He has estab- 
 lished a large and remunerative dairy business, 
 and has one hundred and thirty acres of land in 
 alfalfa, the remainder of the farm being devoted 
 to the raising of grain. 
 
 In Stockton, Cal., Mr. Kricke married Mabel 
 McClintock, who was born in DeKalb county. 
 Mo., and they are the parents of two children, 
 namely : Velma and Virginia. In politics Mr. 
 Kricke is a stanch Democrat, and in religion he 
 is true to the faith in which he was reared, be- 
 longing to the Lutheran Church. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 HERMANN A. KRICKE. A man of abil- 
 ity and sterling integrity, and an important fac- 
 tor in developing and advancing the dairying and 
 fariuing interests Oif Stanislaus county, Hermann 
 A. Kricke is especially deserving of particular 
 mention in a work of this character. He is a na- 
 tive of this county, and was born on the home- 
 stead where he now resides, one-half mile east 
 of Crows Landing, on March i, 1874, a son of 
 the late Charles Kricke. 
 
 Born in Germany, Charles Kricke was reared 
 and educated in his native country, and there 
 married Anna Schickor. Immigrating with his 
 wife to the United States in 1864, he was a resi- 
 dent of Sheboygan county. Wis., for five years. 
 Coming to Crows Landing, Cal., in 1869, he 
 rented the two hundred and forty acres of land 
 now included in the home ranch, and in addition 
 
 CLARENCE J. BERRY, of Selma, was born 
 June 23, 1867, in Mendocino county. Coming to 
 Fresno county with his parents in 1874, he re- 
 ceived such educational advantages as were af- 
 forded by the district schools. At the age of 
 twelve years he began working with his father 
 on the home farm, in the River Bend district, and 
 also assisted him in operating a threshing ma- 
 chine throughout this section of the county, re- 
 maining at home until after attaining his ma- 
 jority. During the great excitement that fol- 
 lowed the first discovery of gold in Alaska, Mr. 
 Berry was among the first to go to that region, 
 arriving at Dawson, on the Yukon river, in 1894. 
 Locating fifty miles further down the river, at 
 Forty Mile Creek, he bought several claims, but 
 they proved to be worthless. In the fall of 1895 
 he returned to California and the following spring 
 March 15, 1896, was married. Subsequently he 
 made another trip to Alaska. After prospecting 
 a few months near Forty Mile Creek he went 
 into the Klondike district, locating on Eldorado 
 Creek, and later bought eight ad'joining claims 
 on the side hills, besides owning claim No. 5 on 
 the Bonanza creek, and a half interest in claim 
 No. 42 in the Hunker district. He likewise 
 owned for awhile a third interest in a claim on 
 Damon creek, but this he sold at an advantage. 
 From 1897 until 1902 he made frequent trips be- 
 tween California and Alaska, and has still heavy 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1615 
 
 interests in various placer mines of the Klondike 
 region. 
 
 Investing his money freely in California lands, 
 Mr. Berry has a large cattle and stock ranch ly- 
 ing north of Grants ; owns a farm of six thousand 
 acres south of Selma, in Fresno county, where he 
 raises alfalfa and salt grass, and keeps two thou- 
 sand head of cattle ; in Stockton he owns twelve 
 hundred acres of garden land, known as the 
 Wakefield ranch, which he leases ; and has one 
 thousand acres of oil land in Kern county. Mr 
 Berry has other interests of great importance, be- 
 ing a director of the Eldorado Oil Company, in- 
 corporated with a capital of $100,000; and also 
 a director of Our Own Oil Company, which has 
 twelve wells in operation, with a capacity of two 
 thousand barrels daily. He likewise owns valu- 
 able city property in Selma, owning seven store 
 buildings on Front street. In 1900 and 1901 
 the Berry Improvement Company, of which he is 
 president, was incorporated, with a paid up cap- 
 ital of $100,000, the Berry family being the stock- 
 holders of the company. Mr. Berry was also 
 one of the organizers and is the president of the 
 Farmers' National Bank, which has a paid up 
 capital of $50,000. 
 
 In Selma Mr. Berry married Ethel D. Bush, 
 a native of California. Politically he is an ad- 
 herent of the Democratic party, and fraternally 
 he is a member of the Native Sons of the Gol- 
 den West and of the Benevolent and Protective 
 Order of Elks. 
 
 WILLIAM RUDY. Five miles southeast of 
 Fresno is located the farm which belongs to Will- 
 iam Rudy, a well known and successful agricul- 
 turist of this county. Of the eighty acres in his 
 ranch, fifty are devoted to the culture of grapes, 
 both raisin and wine grapes, while the remaiiider 
 is given over to an orchard and general farming. 
 A native of Ohio, Mr. Rudy was born in Mus- 
 kingum county, December 25, 1840. He was the 
 son of Rudolph Rudy, who was born in Ger- 
 many and reared in Pennsylvania, afterward re- 
 moving to Muskingum county, Ohio, where his 
 death occurred. He was a farmer by occupation 
 throughout his entire life. His wife was formerly 
 Mary Dean, also a native of Pennsylvania. 
 
 Until attaining the age of nineteen years Will- 
 iam Rudy remained upon the paternal farm, after 
 vi'hich he went to Illinois and located in Sanga- 
 mon county, where he made his home for the 
 period of twelve years. He then removed to Ne- 
 maha county, Kans., where he engaged in farm- 
 ing and stock-raising until 1880. Locatmg at 
 that date in Missouri, he made that state his home 
 until 1884, when he came to California. Upon 
 his first trip to the state he spent but a short 
 time, when he returned to his old home in Illinois, 
 
 three years later again coming to the west. Set- 
 tling in Fresno county, he has since made this 
 locality his home, giving his attention to his ranch 
 of eighty acre?. In Illinois he was united in mar- 
 riage with Susan M. Fairbanks, a native of Ohio, 
 and of this union were born the following chil- 
 dren: William F., J. J., Henry V., and Alice, 
 now Mrs. Rhinehart. In his political preferment 
 Mr. Rudy is a stanch adherent of the principles 
 advocated in the platform of the Republican par- 
 ty, his first vote having been cast for Abraham 
 Lincoln. 
 
 HANS J. SCHMIDT. A man of unlimited 
 energy, industry and activity, Hans J. Schmidt, 
 living about eight miles southwest of Newman, 
 holds high rank among the skillful and prosper- 
 ous farmers of Stanislaus county. Hard-working 
 and persevering, possessing shrewd common 
 sense, and thinking for himself, he has met with 
 success as a tiller of the soil and has gained the 
 respect and confidence of the community. He 
 was born across the Atlantic ocean, his birth hav- 
 ing occurred June 21, 1853, in Denmark, where 
 his parents, George M. and Mary (Elholm) 
 Schmidt, were life long residents, the father hav- 
 ing been employed as a stone mason. 
 
 The second child in a family consisting of two 
 boys and two girls, Hans J. Schmidt was reared 
 and educated in his native land, attending the 
 public schools, and being trained to farming pur- 
 suits. At the age of seventeen years he bade 
 good-by to his parents, friends and neighbors, 
 and, filled with the high ambitions of youth, im- 
 migrated to America, arriving in New York City 
 in 1870. Proceeding directly to Livingston coun- 
 ty, 111., he worked as a farm hand in Chatsworth 
 for two years. Migrating still farther westward 
 in 1872, he came to California, locating first in 
 San Francisco, and a week later going to Liver- 
 more valley, where he operated a threshing ma- 
 chine for a time. Subsequently coming to the 
 San Joaquin valley, Mr. Schmidt was so im- 
 pressed with its agricultural advantages and pos- 
 sibilities that he made up his mind to settle here 
 permanently. He has since rented land in this 
 vicinity, having had under his management tracts 
 containing from three hundred to two thousand 
 acres of land, and as a general farmer has met 
 with well-deserved success. He has now eleven 
 hundred acres of land under his care, located on 
 the Garsos creek, eight miles southwest of New- 
 man, and is extensively engaged in raising wheat 
 and barley. He has also a nice chicken ranch, 
 furnished with an incubator, and as a poultry 
 raiser has acquired fame, raising about eight hun- 
 dred chickens each season. 
 
 In Modesto, Cal., Mr. Schmidt married Cathe- 
 rina Mary Peterson, a native of Schleswig, Ger- 
 
1616 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 many, and they are the parents of four children, 
 namely: George W., living near home; John, 
 also residing in this vicinity ; Irene, wife of Hans 
 Jensen, of San Francisco; and Chester W. Po- 
 litically Mr. Schmidt is a loyal adherent of the 
 Republican party, and for several years served 
 as school trustee. Fraternally he belongs to New- 
 man Lodge, F. & A. M. ; to Newman Chapter, 
 E. O. S. ; to the Ancient Order of United Work- 
 men, and to Dania Lodge, Danish Society. True 
 to the rehgious faith in which he was reared, he 
 belongs to the Lutheran Church. 
 
 JAMES M. DAGGS. With the progress of 
 Kings county, Cal., Mr. Daggs has been inti- 
 mately associated for many years, having con- 
 tributed materially to the development of its re- 
 sources and the growth of its industries ever 
 since he came here in 1884. From that year un- 
 til 1903 he carried on a general ranching and 
 stock business, but in the latter year he went east 
 for the purpose of purchasing high grade stock 
 and returned, with twelve Shorthorn cattle, bulls, 
 Poland-China hogs, one Millard thoroughbred 
 trotting stallion and a fine jack, and has since 
 engaged in raising only thoroughbred stock. To 
 Mr. Daggs is due credit for the fine fair grounds 
 which since 1901 have added to the attractiveness 
 of Hanford. He himself raised the money and 
 built the track of the Central California Fair 
 Grounds, of which he has been a director and 
 president ever since its organization, and has 
 spent time and money unstintingly to promote 
 its success. 
 
 Mr. Daggs was born in Scotland county. Mo., 
 June 26, 1848, a son of George W., a native of 
 Virginia, and a grandson of Ruel Daggs, a na- 
 tive of Maryland, who went from there to Vir- 
 ginia and still later, in 1833, to Missouri. In 
 Clark county, where the balance of his life was 
 spent, he followed farming and stock-raising un- 
 til his death, when eighty-four years of age. It 
 was in the latter state that his son, George W., 
 grew to mature years. He followed the caUing 
 to which he had been reared, and with the as- 
 sistance of five slaves carried on his farm, with 
 good results, in addition to which he conducted a 
 merchandise business. In the spring of 1864 he 
 sold out his interests in Missouri and came to Cal- 
 ifornia overland, bringing with him a large band 
 of horses. With this as a nucleus he started in 
 the stock business on the Lower Kings river, but 
 two or three years later transferred his interests 
 to the Mussel slough district, the land upon which 
 he then located being the same upon which his 
 son now lives. At the time he located here the 
 land was entirely unimproved, but in course of 
 time it took on the appearance of a well-ordered 
 ranch, and was his home until his death, at the 
 
 age of sixty-two vears. His wife, who was a na- 
 tive of West Virginia, died on the Kings county 
 farm at the age of sixty years, leaving five chd- 
 dren, as follows : James M. ; Sarah, who married 
 Anderson Kelly and resides in Hanford; Letha, 
 Mrs. Stephens, who is now a widow ; Cora, and 
 Mattie, Mrs. Miller, who is also a widow aifd now 
 residing in San Francisco. 
 
 James M. Daggs spent the first sixteen years 
 of his life in Scotland county. Mo., and attended 
 school at Memphis, that state. When the family 
 . removed to California, in 1864, he was sixteen 
 years old and remained at home until 1872, when_ 
 he returned east and was united in marriage with 
 Miss Annie Kerns, who v/as born in Hancock 
 county, 111., and who died in 1880, leaving three 
 children. Peter B. is engaged with his father 
 in the- stock business; CUnton is at home, and 
 Birdie is the wife of Robert Logan and resides 
 in San Francisco. 
 
 In addition to raising high-grade cattle, Mr. 
 Daggs conducts a butcher shop and owns two 
 hundred and thirty acres, devoted to the raising 
 of alfalfa and grain. Politically he is a Demo- 
 crat in national affairs, and in local elections 
 votes for the man best fitted for the position, re- 
 gardless of party affiliation. 
 
 CLAUS J. MARTENS. The progress of any 
 community is dependent upon the efforts of its 
 citizens. In estimating the advancement made 
 by Tulare county within the past few decades, 
 due credit should be given the brothers, Claus 
 J. and John^Martens, for their persevering and 
 successful labors in the development of the stock 
 industry, one of the most important occupations 
 followed by the people of this part of California. 
 The brothers were pioneers of Tulare county 
 and sons of John Jacob Martens, their family 
 history appearing in the sketch of John Martens, 
 presented elsewhere in this volume. Claus J. 
 was born at Heide, Holstein, Germany, Febru- 
 ary 6, 1846, and was second among six chil- 
 dren now living. At the age of fifteen years he 
 left school and was confirmed in the Lutheran 
 Church, after which he aided on the home farin 
 until twenty years of age, also served for four 
 years as an apprentice to the trade of a cabinet- 
 maker. 
 
 Coming to America in 1866 Claus J. Martens 
 spent nine months in Chicago, where he fol- 
 lowed the carpenter's trade and kindred occu- 
 pations. In May, 1867, he came to California 
 and secured work on a farm near San Francisco, 
 but later in the same year gave his attention to 
 building a residence and barns on a large ranch 
 near Tracy. On his return to San Francisco he 
 resumed work at his trade in that city. In the 
 fall of 1871 he went to the southern part of the 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 16i; 
 
 state and entered land near San Diego, but found 
 he could accomplish little owing to lack of moist- 
 ure in the soil. Abandoning the place in the 
 spring of 1872, he came to Tulare county and 
 took up land nine miles southwest of Tular^, 
 but gave his attention principally to carpentering. 
 He aided in building the Tulare depot, the first 
 store and the first residence in town, and' con- 
 tinued in the same occupation for three years, 
 after which he embarked in the sheep business on 
 'his ranch. In 1883 he disposed of his sheep 
 and also sold one thousand acres of land near 
 Pixley, after which he spent a year in San Fran- 
 cisco. Returning to Germany in 1888 he re- 
 mained at his old home in Heide for three years. 
 Since his return to the United States in 1891 he 
 has made Tulare his home. For some years he 
 again conducted~an extensive sheep business on 
 his range near Tipton, Tulare county, and in ad- 
 dition he now owns a stock farm of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres near Woodville, which he 
 rents. Besides the three years' sojourn in Hol- 
 stein he has made a second trip to the old home 
 and has also traveled much through our country, 
 thus gaining a wide and cosmopolitan experience 
 that makes him an interesting companion. Since 
 comiiTg to America he has been a supporter of 
 Republican principles and here, as in the old 
 home, has adhered to the Lutheran religion. 
 While in San Francisco he married Miss Mar- 
 gareta Lorenz, who was born in Holstein, Ger- 
 many, and died in California. Four daughters 
 survive her, namely : Kate, who is a student in 
 the University of California; Clara, Freda and 
 Elsie, who are attending school in San Francisco. 
 
 WILLIAM G. H. BROWN. Though com- 
 paratively a new comer to Stanislaus county, 
 William G. H. Brown has lived long enough 
 in his present neighborhood to impress his worth 
 upon it and to take his place among its repre- 
 sentative German-American agriculturists. Born 
 in the agricultural province of Pomerania, 
 Northern Prussia, Germany, November 30, 1849, 
 he is the oldest of three sons and two daugh- 
 ters, all of whom were reared on a farm too 
 small to permit of many advantages penetrat- 
 ing its well tilled borders. His parents, C. H. 
 and Augusta (Beling) Brown, were natives also 
 of Pomerania, where they spent their entire 
 lives. 
 
 In his youth William G. H. Brown attended the 
 common schools. He had ample assets in grit 
 and determination and physical strength, and as 
 soon as success came his way he proceeded with 
 German thrift to establish a home of his own, 
 pursuing the while the occupation of farming and 
 stock-raising. His vi'ife was formerly AmeHa De 
 Genre, a native also of Pomerania. Of their chil- 
 
 dren two have left the family roof, these being 
 the second and third oldest daughters, Mrs. Ber- 
 tha Brown and Mrs. Minnie Hanson. Those re- 
 maining are : Annie, August, Ferdinand, Will- 
 iam, Lena, Ewalt, Emma and Otto. In 1892 Mr. 
 Brown disposed of his land and boarded a north- 
 ern hner for the United States, coming at once 
 to Cahtornia, where he purchased sixty acres of 
 alfalfa land three and a half miles west of New- 
 man. To the improvements on his land at the 
 time he has added greatly and now has an or- 
 chard of three acres, the balance of his land being 
 devoted to general farming and stock-raising. 
 The family are members of the German Lutheran 
 Church. 
 
 CHRISTOPHER C. ARKLE. The Arkle 
 family is of English origin, Charles C. Arkle im- 
 migrating from Newcastle-upon-Tyne to Ameri- 
 ca, where he located in Cadiz, Ohio, and en- 
 gaged as a shoe merchant. Later he removed 
 to Preston, Minn., where his death occurred. 
 His wife, formerly Mary Hilliard, was a native 
 of the Isle of Wight, her death occurring in 
 Ohio. They were the parents of four children, 
 all of whom are living, next to the youngest be- 
 ing Christopher C. Arkle, a highly esteemed and 
 successful business man of Portersville, Tulare 
 county. 
 
 Christopher C. Arkle was born in Cadiz, Ohio, 
 May 19, 1847, and was reared in the vicinity of 
 that place, receiving his education in the district 
 schools. When twelve years old he learned the 
 shoemaker's trade and continued at this work un- 
 til he was seventeen. In May, 1864, he enlisted 
 in Company D, One Hundred and Seventieth 
 Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was 
 mustered in at Bellaire, Ohio, serving in the 
 Army of the Shenandoah, and taking part in the 
 Battle of Winchester, and others of that year, 
 being mustered out of service September 15, 
 1864, in Columbus. In 1865 he went to Missouri, 
 locating in Warrensburg, in the fall of the same 
 year going to Preston, Minn., where he followed 
 his trade. After a period of seven years he came 
 as far west as Wadsworth, Nev., and engaged 
 in the manufacture of shoes, finally going to 
 Benton, Mono county, Cal., where he spent one 
 year. Returning to Nevada he made that state 
 his home until 1876, when he located in Visalia, 
 Tulare county, and followed the manufacture of 
 shoes for the ensuing five years, when he lo- 
 cated in Fresno. For seven years he met with 
 success in that city, when he went to Seattle, 
 Wash., and spent one year, engaged as a shoe 
 merchant, when he returned to Visalia and fol- 
 lowed the same occupation until 1896. For a 
 time he conducted a shoe store at Arroyo Grande, 
 San Luis Obispo county, about eighteen months 
 
ItilS 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 later — in August, 1898 — coming to Portersville 
 and opening the slioe business, which he has 
 since conducted with much profit. His estab- 
 Hshment, known as the Citrus Shoe Store, is the ■ 
 largest in the place and his wide patronage has 
 brought him good financial returns. He has also 
 a ten-acre orchard of bearing navel oranges, ad- 
 joining Piano, set out in 1899, and to the care 
 and cultivation of which he gives considerable 
 time and attention. 
 
 In Visalia Mr. Arkle was united in marriage 
 with Caroline Majors, a native of Visalia, and 
 the daughter of Columbus P. Majors, a pioneer 
 farmer of that city. They have one daughter, 
 Ethel. Mr. Arkle gives his support to the Chris- 
 tian Church, of which his wife is a member. In 
 his political convictions he is a Socialist. A 
 practical and broad-minded citizen, he is always 
 interested in all that adds to the material welfare 
 of the city and takes an active part in public 
 affairs, being a member of the Board of Trade 
 here as well as giving his support to various 
 other public works. 
 
 A. L. SAYRE. The genealogy of the Sayre 
 family is traced to England, where many genera- 
 tions of honored ancestors lived and labored. The 
 first of the name to cross the ocean to the new 
 world was Thomas Sayre, a native of Padding- 
 ton, Bedfordshire. From the little that family 
 history and tradition record of this original im- 
 migrant he was undoubtedly a man fond of ad- 
 venture, undaunted by the perils of pioneer ex- 
 istence, and the possessor of business ability 
 which found its culmination in the accumulating 
 of considerable means. As early as 1636 his 
 name appears on the town records of L3'nn, 
 Mass. In 1640 he removed to South Hampton, 
 Long Island, and there erected a substantial resi- 
 dence which has withstood the storms of more 
 than two and one-half centuries and still stands 
 on the spot where originally built. Later gener- 
 ations removed to New Jersey and still others 
 identified themselves with the Quaker colony of 
 Pennsylvania. 
 
 A. L. Sayre, Sr., was born on the homestead 
 near Morristown, N. J., a son of Ebenezer Sayre, 
 a thrifty farmer. Supplementing exceptional na- 
 tive abiHty by such educational advantages as the 
 times and locality afforded, he grew to manhood 
 fitted for responsibilities in the business world. 
 Solely through his unaided exertions he rose to 
 a position of prominence among the business men 
 of New York City of 1844, where he established 
 himself as a fruit merchant and where in time he 
 became a leading importer and jobber of foreign 
 fruits. After a successful career covering thirty 
 years, failing health, resulting from the nervous 
 strain incident to great responsibihties, caused 
 
 him to retire from the fruit business. About the 
 same time a visit to California in the mterest of 
 his health brought to his keen and far-seemg 
 mind a realization of the vast opportunities af- 
 forded by the fertile soil and fair climate of the 
 far west. Embracing "this exceptional opportu- 
 nity for investment, he purchased eight hundred 
 and four acres one mile southeast of Madera, 
 forming what is now known as the Sierra 
 Rancho. Afterward he divided his time between 
 New York City and California until his death, 
 which occurred on his ranch in 1887. His wife, 
 Mrs. Julia W. (Harris) Sayre, now a resident of 
 Fresno, was born in Sing Sing, N. Y., a daugh- 
 ter of William H. Harris. Her grandfather, 
 Harris, of New York, fought under Washington 
 during the Revolutionary war, and endured all 
 the vicissitudes of the memorable winter at Valley 
 Forge. 
 
 The younger of the two children of A. L. and 
 Julia W. Sayre, the subject of this narrative, was 
 born at the family residence in Thirty-fifth street, 
 New York City. His education was obtained 
 principally in the military academy at Stanford, 
 Conn., after which he was engaged as a buyer for 
 a New York house for eight years. Upon the 
 death of his-father he came to CaHfornia to take 
 charge of the Sierra Rancho, which he has since 
 successfully superintended. The eight hundred 
 and four acres which at the time of purchase were 
 in the primeval condition of nature, have been 
 brought under cultivation and transformed into 
 one of the most complete ranches in the entire 
 state. In 1881 twenty-five acres were set out in 
 raisin grapes, and three years later two hundred 
 acres were planted to the same product, this be- 
 ing the first attempt made to raise raisins in the 
 community. The venture proved successful and 
 this portion of the ranch is still under raisins. In 
 addition there is an orchard of deciduous fruits. 
 The balance of the farm is in cereals and alfalfa. 
 The dairy business is one of the important in- 
 dustries conducted on the ranch. In the fine herd 
 of Friesian-Holstein cattle there are about three 
 hundred milch cows. To add to the convenience 
 of the work Mr. Sayre has erected a creamery, 
 operated by steam power and fitted with modern 
 machinery. The product is disposed of princi- 
 pally in Fresno and other parts of the San 
 Joaquin valley. The value of the ranch has been 
 increased by irrigation, the entire tract being un- 
 der ditch, besides which he has put in a pumping 
 plant that has no superior in the state. Realizing 
 the importance of a packing house in Madera, in 
 1894 he erected a building fitted with modern ap- 
 pliances, and of this he has since been the man- 
 ager. 
 
 When an organization was effected of raisin 
 growers under the title of the California Raisin 
 Growers' Association, in April, 1898, Mr. Sayre 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1619 
 
 gave his co-operation to the plan, beUeving- it 
 would prove helpful to all persons engaged in 
 that industry. His prominence in the organiza- 
 tion and the fact that he was a pioneer and suc- 
 cessful raisin grower led to his selection as man- 
 ager of the association during the first year of 
 its existence and he was further a member of the 
 first board of directors. During the second and 
 third years he acted as manager of the inspection 
 and stock department. In 1901 he was not a 
 director, but the next year was again elected to 
 the board, also in 1903. During 1902 he was 
 elected secretary of the association, and this re- 
 sponsible position he now fills. Those most in- 
 timately connected with the association state that 
 its success is largely due to Mr. Sayre's careful, 
 intelligent and wise oversight. Much time and 
 thought have been given by him to the organiza- 
 tion, and all has been done gratuitously, with the- 
 sole object of benefiting those who are aiding in 
 the development of this important industry. 
 
 While necessarily spending much time in Ma- 
 dera, Mr. Sayre since 1898 has made Fresno his 
 home, and is a member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce and the Sequoia Qub of this city. His po- 
 litical views are in harmony with Republican 
 principles, while in religion he is a contributor to 
 and attendant of the Presbyterian Qiurch, with 
 which his wife is identified. In Madera he mar- 
 ried Miss Etta M. Hensley, daughter of John M. 
 Hensley. Born in Tulare county, Mrs. Sayre has 
 spent her entire life in California and is a gradu- 
 ate of the State Normal School at San Jose, and 
 a lady of the highest culture and artistic tastes. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Sayre have two sons, Logan and 
 Donald. 
 
 EMANUEL ROGERS. The Hfe work of 
 Emanuel Rogers is being carried on a long way 
 from the Azore Islands, where he was born Sep- 
 tember 18, 1859. Equipped with the best educa- 
 tional training possible, he came to California 
 with an uncle, reaching Alameda county Sep- 
 tember I, 1874. Physically he was strong and 
 rugged, and the farm work, which seemed the 
 only available means of livelihood at the time, 
 seemed less arduous to him than it would to 
 a less hardy youth. Through working by the 
 day and month for land owners in different parts 
 of the county he accumulated what appeared a 
 small fortune, and in August, 1885, leased 
 his present farm of thirteen hundred acres. 
 Near by, five miles south of Grayson, he has pur- 
 chased eighty acres of land, upon which he 
 makes his home, and which he devotes to gen- 
 eral farming. He has the latest in^ agricultural 
 implements, including a combined harvester, and 
 his house, barns and general improvements show 
 
 the tendency of a progressive and enlightened 
 agriculturist. 
 
 Mr. Rogers is surrounded by a family which 
 shares his desire to succeed, and which supports 
 him in every worthy effort. In Alameda county 
 he married Mary Marshall, a native of the coun- 
 ty, and his two sons and one daughter, Frank, 
 Daniel and Emily, give promise of realizing his 
 expectations for them. It is the intention of their 
 parents to give them every advantage within their 
 power. Mr. Rogers is social in his tendencies, 
 and is a popular and long standing member of 
 the Knights of the Maccabees. Politically he is 
 a Democrat in national politics, and locally votes 
 for what he considers the best man. 
 
 WILLIAM C. KENNEDY. A native son of 
 the state, William C. Kennedy was born at the 
 corner of Twenty-third and Howard streets, San 
 Francisco, June 16, 1870. His father, Edward 
 Kennedy, was born in Troy, N. Y., where he 
 engaged in manhood as a merchant tailor. De- 
 ciding to seek the more abundant opportunities 
 of the remote west, he crossed the plains in 
 1849, traveling by ox-teams on the long and 
 tedious journey. Upon his safe arrival in San 
 FranciscQ he engaged as a merchant tailor in 
 that city for a good many years, early in the 
 '80s coming to Fresno, and in 1884 purchased a 
 tract of one hundred and sixty acres, where he 
 improved a vineyard. He became a prominent 
 citizen of Fresno, becoming a director of the 
 First National Bank, of Fresno, and later its 
 vice-president. In 1892 he suffered a severe 
 sunstroke, after which he returned to San Fran- 
 cisco, where he is now residing. He still has ex- 
 tensive interests in both Fresno and San Fran- 
 cisco. Politically he is a stanch adherent of the 
 principles advocated in the platform of the Re- 
 publican party and gives his best efforts to ad- 
 vance the interests of that party. His wife, for- 
 merly Judith Colby, of New Hampshire, is also 
 living, at the age of sixty-eight years. She 
 came of an old and honored family of the Granite 
 state, prominent in colonial history. Two of her 
 brothers lost their lives in the Civil war. They 
 are the parents of two children, Nellie, of San 
 Francisco, and WilHam C, of this review. 
 
 William C. Kennedy was reared in San Fran-' 
 cisco, to the age of sixteen years, where he at- 
 tended the public schools, and later became a 
 student in Heald's Business College. Coming to 
 Fresno in 1886 he worked with his father in 
 the vineyard until 1892, in which year he took 
 charge of the work and successfully conducted 
 its interests until 1902, when he leased the prop- 
 erty. In the meantime he improved a ranch of 
 six hundred and forty acres belonging to his 
 father and located near Rolinda, twelve miles 
 
1620 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 west of Fresno. Water for irrigation was brought 
 from the Houghton ditch and Fresno canal. The 
 land is planted to alfalfa, the interests of the 
 i-anch being devoted to a fine dairy of Holstein- 
 Friesian cattle, owned by Mr. Kennedy in con- 
 junction with A. D. Owens. They use every 
 modern method in conducting their work, having 
 a separator operated by steam, and every possible 
 convenience. Mr. Kennedy is also engaged in the 
 raising of cattle, and looks after his father's iiv 
 terests in Fresno. In 1 901 he built a fine resi- 
 dence at No. 64 Forthcamp avenue, where he 
 now makes his home, presided over by his wife, 
 formerly Elizabeth Davison, whom he married 
 in Fresno. She is a native of Placerville and 
 the daughter of M. C. Davison, of this city, a 
 pioneer of the state, as well as a veteran ol 
 the Civil war, serving in a California regiment. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Kenned)- have one daughter, \'era. 
 Politically Mr. Kennedy is a RepubHcan, and 
 fraternally is associated with the Benevolent and 
 Protective Order of Elks. 
 
 GEORGE THOMING. The fertile grain 
 raising region around Crow's Landing has among 
 its developers many native sons of the state, men 
 who appreciate its substantial business opportu- 
 nities, and who furnish an example of unrivaled 
 industry in pursuing their chosen vocation. Of 
 these, none are held in higher esteem than 
 George Thoming, since 1903 the occupant of a 
 ranch of sixteen hundred acres four and a half 
 miles west of the Landing. In his veins Mr. 
 Thoming has the blood of a hardy German ances- 
 try, one trained to industry, and moderate and 
 conservative in its tendencies. His father and 
 mother. Theirs and Lena (Massoff) Thoming, 
 came to the United States from Germany in 1869, 
 soon after their marriage, bringing with them lit- 
 tle of this world's goods, but riches galore in the 
 way of intrepid determination and practical com- 
 mon sense. Theirs Thoming had been reared on a 
 farm and took kindly to that occupation, and after 
 locating near San Francisco engaged in potato 
 growing with gratifying success. In time re- 
 moving to San Joaquin county, he located near 
 Vernalis, where he at present resides, a prosper- 
 ous general farmer, secure' in the possession of a 
 finely improved and paying property. Besides 
 George, who is the eldest son and second cliild, 
 there were two sons and two daughters in his 
 family, all trained to be useful men and women 
 by their well-beloved but now deceased mother. 
 
 Like his brothers and sisters, George Thom- 
 ing had the average advantages of the boy born 
 into the unsettled west, but of these he made the 
 most, developing that strength of chai^acter and 
 determination which have aided him in many a 
 discouraging bout with fate, After leaving the 
 
 home farm he engaged in independent farming 
 near Vernalis, San Joaquin county, on fourteen 
 hundred acres of land, and in 1903 came to his 
 present leased land, comprising sixteen hundred 
 acres. His farm equipment is complete and mod- 
 ern, and includes a combined harvester of great 
 value and excellent make. During the harvest 
 time he employs many hands, and his waving 
 fields of golden grain, shimmering in the sunlight, 
 are a sight calculated to make a man feel at peace 
 with himself and the world in general. In keeping 
 with his success, his breadth of mind and public 
 spirit, Mr. Thoming entertains justifiable pride 
 in local ail'airs, promoting the cause of good gov- 
 ernment on the part of his Republican colleagues, 
 and interesting himself in establishing a high 
 standard of school instruction. Fraternally he is 
 a welcome member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen. The wife of Mr. Thoming, 
 formerly Flora Russell, is a native daughter of 
 California, and owes her birth and education to 
 Stockton. The family circle is brightened by 
 two interesting children, Thelma and Russell. 
 Mr. Thoming is a practical agriculturist, dispos- 
 ing of his land to the best possible advantage, and 
 carrying his operations to the standpoint of an 
 exact science. He is a genial and popular man, 
 always ready to do a favor, and inclined to look 
 on the cheerful and helpful side of life in general. 
 
 WILLIAM LUDOLF HEINE. One of the 
 enterprising towns of Fresno' county is Reedley, 
 which by its location on the Kings river and 
 by the fertility of the surrounding soil affords 
 an excellent illustration of the resources of Fres- 
 no county, made profitable and possible by the 
 abundance of water for irrigation. East of the 
 town lie large tracts where wheat growing is a 
 specialty, and among the most extensive wheat- 
 raisers of the locality is William L. Heine, who re- 
 sides seven miles northeast of Reedley, where he 
 owns thirty-eight hundred acres. Of German 
 birth and parentage, Mr. Heine was born in Hol- 
 stein May 21, 1854, and is a son of Ferdinand 
 and Bertha (Stein) Heine, also natives of Ger- 
 many. His father, who was born and reared in 
 the city of Hamburg, came to the United States 
 in 1870 and after one year in Wisconsin removed 
 west to the coast, settling in Solano county, Cal., 
 where he made a specialty of wheat farming. 
 After a time he removed to the adjoining county 
 of Yolo and there he died in 1877. Since his 
 demise Mrs. Heine has made her home in San 
 Francisco. 
 
 In a family including five sons and three 
 daughters, William Ludolf Heine was the eld- 
 est. As a boy he was given fair advantages and 
 received his education principally in private 
 schools. When sixteen years of age he accompa- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1621 
 
 nied the family to the United States and a year 
 later settled in California, where he assisted his 
 father in growing wheat in Solano county. From 
 1873 to 1887 he made his home in Yolo county, 
 where he carried on grain farming. During the 
 latter year he first came to Fresno county, but 
 it was not until 1888 that he permanently settled 
 at the place he still owns. To his original pur- 
 chase of six hundred acres he has added from 
 time to time until at this writing he owns six 
 sections of wheat land (most of which is in one 
 body), but of this he usese some for pasture land, 
 and sows about twenty-four hundred acres to 
 wheat. In stock he has made a specialty of 
 sheep and now has twenty-five hundred head in 
 his flock. 
 
 In addition to his large tracts in Fresno county 
 Mr. Heine is the owner of property in Oakland. 
 Since becoming a citizen of the United States Re 
 has made a careful study of our natjonal affairs 
 and has given his allegiance to the Republican 
 party. In fraternal connections he is associated 
 with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and 
 the blue lodge of Masons at Reedley. 
 
 DENVER S. CHURCH. The genealogy of 
 this well-known attorney of Fresno is traced back 
 to the east, where several generations of the fam- 
 ily lived and labored. Joshua Church, a native 
 of Pennsylvania, grew to manhood in that state, 
 married, and settled upon a farm there, but later 
 removed to Chautauqua county, N. Y. At the 
 time of the removal to New York his son, E. J., 
 who was born in western Pennsylvania, was a 
 lad in years, and he aided in bringing the new 
 farm under cultivation. In 1852 he crossed the 
 plains with ox-teams to California, in company 
 with Millard Church, who afterward returned 
 east and died there ; also an older brother, M. J. 
 Church, who is remembered as the founder of 
 the irrigation system in Fresno county. Settling 
 at Diamond Spring, E. J. Church engaged in 
 mining, but not finding the occupation profitable, 
 he removed to Woodbridge, San Joaquin county, 
 where he followed the blacksmith's trade. After 
 a very short time he removed to Folsom City, 
 Sacramento county, where in addition to black- 
 smithing he also devoted considerable attention 
 to the stock business. A later location was in 
 the vicinity of St. Helena, Napa county, where 
 he took up general farming in connection with 
 stock-raising. For a long period he continued 
 there, but finally advancing years made further 
 manual labor unwise, and he thereupon retired, 
 coming to Fresno about 1898. In this city he 
 now makes his home. 
 
 The marriage of E. J. Church united him with 
 Catherine Rutan, who was born m Illinois and 
 during the early '50s crossed the plains with her 
 
 father, Samuel Rutan, settling on a farm near 
 Woodbridge. By her marriage four sons and 
 one daughter were born, of whom the following 
 survive: Millard D., a merchant in Fresno; 
 L. H. Church, M. D., who is a well-known physi- 
 cian of Grand Junction, Colo. ; and Denver S., 
 the youngest of the family, who was four years 
 of age when he lost his mother by death. He 
 was born at Folsom City, CaL, December 11, 
 1864, and received his education primarily in St. 
 Helena, after which he was a student in Healds- 
 burg College, completing the regular course of 
 study in that institution. In 1877 he first came 
 to Fresno, joining an uncle, M. J. Church, whom 
 he helped to carry the chain that surveyed the 
 boundaries of the Temperance Colony. After 
 settling permanently in Fresno during 1887 he 
 engaged in the study of law and in 1893 was 
 admitted to the bar, since which time he has 
 conducted a general practice. At this writing 
 he acts as attorney for the public administrator. 
 From January, 1899, to January, 1903, he served 
 as deputy district attorney under O. L. Everts. 
 The Democratic party has always received his 
 allegiance and he is one of its leading members 
 in his home city. Various societies number him 
 among their members, among these being the 
 County Bar Association, the Benevolent and Pro- 
 tective Order of Elks, Fresno Parlor No. 25, 
 N. S. G. W., and the Woodmen of the World. 
 Sharing with him the esteem of the community 
 is his wife, whom he married in Reno, Nev., 
 and who was Miss Louise Derrick, a native of 
 that city, her parents having been pioneers of 
 the Carson valley. In their family are three 
 children. Earl, Fern and an infant unnamed. 
 Through his accurate knowledge of the law Mr. 
 Church has won a position of deserved prom- 
 inence among the practitioners of Fresno and his 
 high standing may be attributed to his unaided 
 efforts, for he had no assistance except such as 
 could be given Tsy his own determination, intelli- 
 gence and resourceful mind. 
 
 A. T. YEARGIN. In the prosperous farming 
 and fruit raising section surrounding Fresno, the 
 name of A. T. Yeargin stands for progress and 
 success, and for active participation with all that 
 has to do with the general upbuilding of the com- 
 munity. In Lawrence county, S. C, where he 
 was born near Lawrence, December 20, 1852, the 
 family name was identified with all that was fine 
 and patriotic, and with the terrible tragedy which 
 often rewards the valor of bearers of the stand- 
 ard. Out of a family of ten children born to his 
 parents, Wiley and Nancy (Morgan) Yeargin, 
 five sons exchanged the coarse farm clothes for 
 the habiliments of war, and when peace had been 
 declared at the expense of the defeat of the Con- 
 
1622 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 federacy,, but one returned to tell of his suffer- 
 ings in tent and camp and on the march. Wiley 
 Yeargin was born in South Carolina, and died 
 in Cherokee county, Ala., in 1865, his wife, also 
 a native of South Carolina, surviving him until 
 1870. 
 
 A. T. Yeargin was two years old when his 
 parents removed to Cherokee county, Ala., and 
 he was there educated in the country schools, and 
 developed a strong constitution while working in 
 the fields. In 1870 he came to California by rail, 
 locating first near Centerville, on Kings river, 
 where he found work on a farm by the month. 
 He then turned his attention to independent farm- 
 ing and stock-raising on rented land, and in 1889 
 sold his equipment and came to his present farm 
 with D. J. McConnell, and purchased eighty 
 acres of land, three and a half miles southeast 
 of Fresno. The partners planted general crops, 
 and set out a vineyard of twenty acres, later on 
 setting out fifteen acres more in vineyard. In 
 1894 Ben Cakly succeeded Mr. McConnell in the 
 ownership of half the property, and in 1901 the 
 land was divided evenly, each partner caring for 
 his own property and crops. Mr. Yeargin has 
 forty acres, of which twenty-seven are under 
 Muscatel grapes, five acres under general fruit 
 trees, and the balance is devoted to general farm- 
 ing. He has made many fine improvements on 
 his land, and has one of the most productive and 
 well-cared for properties in this section. 
 
 While living in Centerville, Cal., Mr. Yeargin 
 married Mattie Spears, born in Cherokee county, 
 Ala., and who came to Centerville, Fresno county, 
 with her parents in 1870. Two children have 
 been born to Mr. and Mrs. Yeargin, Dela and 
 Max, both living at home. Mr. Yeargin is prom- 
 inent fraternally, and identified with the Man- 
 zanita Camp No. 160, W. O. W. He is a Demo- 
 crat in politics, and has filled the office of school 
 trustee m Page district with characteristic thor- 
 oughness. His religious convictions are with the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church of Fresno. 
 
 C. C. EASTIN. Two miles west of Newman 
 lies the farm owned and occupied by Mr. Eastin, 
 one of the progressive farmers and dairymen of 
 Stanislaus county. During the long period of his 
 residence in the county he has acquired large 
 landed tracts, and at the same time has gained 
 and retained a position among the honored citi- 
 zens and upright men. As early as 1874 he pur- 
 chased the place he still owns, consisting origin- 
 ally of four hundred and eighty acres, and here 
 he became interested in grain farming and rais- 
 ing mules. By subsequent purchases of adjacent 
 property he has acquired the title to two thousand 
 acres, of which four hundred are under ditch and 
 in alfalfa. With J. B. Crow as a partner, he pur- 
 
 chased fifteen hundred acres of the Wilson ranch, 
 and this he laid out in tracts of forty acres or 
 larger, all under ditch and utilized for dairy pur- 
 poses. 
 
 The Eastin family is of Scotch ancestry and 
 was founded in America by John Eastin, who im- 
 migrated from Scotland to Kentucky and set- 
 tled on a farm. During the Revolutionary war 
 he served his adopted country with zeal and fidel- 
 ity as an enlisted soldier. His son, James T., 
 was born near Madisonville, Hopkins county, Ky., 
 and from there removed to Pike county. Mo., 
 where he conducted agricultural pursuits upon 
 an extensive scale. With the patriotic instincts 
 characteristic of the family, he was a loyal Amer- 
 ican, proving his fidelity by brave service in the 
 war of 1812. Politically he was a believer in 
 Whig principles. He attained a great age, pass- 
 ing away about the time of the outbreak of the 
 Civil war in 186 1. By his marriage to Theo- 
 dosia South, a native of Kentucky, he was con- 
 nected with an old Virginian family of English 
 extraction. Her father was a planter in Ken- 
 tucky, and during the war of 18 12 held the rank 
 of general. Mrs. Theodosia Eastin came to Cal- 
 ifornia in later life and spent her last days in 
 the home of her son, C. C, dying here at ninety- 
 six years of age. In her family were eight sons 
 and four daughters. The family traits of bravery 
 and patriotic spirit showed themselves among her 
 children; four of her sons volunteered in the 
 army during the Civil war and two fell while 
 fighting for the principles which they espoused. 
 Four sons came to California during the mining 
 days of 1849 and 1850. Of these Brutus died 
 in Orestimba; Octavius is engaged in farm pur- 
 suits near Merced; Oscar returned to Missouri 
 and there died; and James is living in Madera 
 county, where he carries on a farm. 
 ^ Near Bowling Green, Pike county. Mo., C. C. 
 Eastin was born February 22, 1840. During boy- 
 hood days he was a pupil in district schools and 
 had the further advantage of a four years' course 
 in Watson Seminary. In early manhood chance 
 led him into the study of medicine, which he car- 
 ried on under Dr. South in 1858. Later he ma- 
 triculated in Pope's Medical College, from which 
 he was graduated in 1861 with the degree of M. 
 D. During the period of his residence in St. 
 Louis he cast his vote for Bell and Everett and 
 later in his home county cast a ballot against se- 
 cession. When Missouri seceded he was driven 
 into the southern army, and during the four years 
 of the war he served in a regiment of artillery 
 and was present at the siege of Vicksburg, later 
 accompanying Gen. Joseph Johnston in the Geor- 
 gia campaign and through North Carolina The 
 last service that he gave was under General 
 Hood. At the close of the war he settled in Mis- 
 sissippi, where he took ud the raising of grain 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1623 
 
 and stock. During 1868 he became a pioneer of 
 the San Joaquin valley in California, where his 
 first business venture was the purchase of one 
 thousand head of sheep that he pastured on the 
 Orestimba. In 1870 he removed to Tulare Lake, 
 Fresno county, where he remained for four years, 
 engaging in the cattle and sheep business, and 
 then settled upon the property near Newman 
 that has been the scene of his subsequent activi- 
 ties. The dairy industry has been his principal 
 business, and he now has a dairy of sixty cows. 
 As a farmer and dairyman he is progressive, 
 quick to adopt improved methods and accurate in 
 attention to every detail. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Eastin, in Madison coun- 
 ty, Miss., united him with Miss Emma Compton, 
 who was born there of North Carolina parentage. 
 Eight children were born of their union, namely : 
 Cassius J., who conducts a farm in Merced coun- 
 ty ; Martha P., who resides with her parents ; E. 
 E., a merchant in Los Angeles ; Lucius O., who 
 is engaged in farming at the old homestead ; Vi- 
 ola, at home ; Marion Grover, who is engaged in 
 the dairy business ; Claude and Walter, at home. 
 Mr. Eastin has always been interested in move- 
 ments for the religious, educational and moral 
 upbuilding of his community, and has been a con- 
 sistent member of the Presbyterian Church of 
 Newman. Politically an active Democrat, he 
 served as a member of the county central commit- 
 tee of the party several different terms, and for 
 four years held the office of supervisor. During 
 his service on the school board, covering a period 
 of eighteen years, he assisted in the building up 
 of the schools and did much to promote the stand- 
 ard of education. Indeed, in every worthy move- 
 ment looking to the future prosperity of Stanis- 
 laus county he has been deeply interested and has 
 contributed of his time and means to plans of 
 such a nature. 
 
 CASSIUS C. CROW. In Mr Crow we have 
 an example of that class of citizens who were pio- 
 neer settlers in the San Joaquin valley in Califor- 
 nia, for his home has been in this section from 
 his early boyhood days. Born in Pike county. 
 Mo., July 18, i860, at the tender age of five 
 years he accompanied his parents across the great 
 plains to a home in Stanislaus county, Cal., where 
 his father located on a large farm and carried on 
 ranching pursuits extensively. Here it was that 
 Cassius C. was educated in the common schools, 
 and when of a suitable age he began assisting his 
 father in farm pursuits on the home ranch, which 
 is located in the western part of the county. He 
 has seen the country change from a vast plain 
 to one of the finest alfalfa and dairy farming 
 communities on the Pacific slope and to-day he is 
 the proud possessor of one of the finest dairy 
 
 farms in that section of the county. Llis farm 
 contains two hundred and twenty acres of fine 
 land under tne West Side Irrigation Ditch. It is 
 very productive, being well located along the 
 Orestimba creek, near the junction of the latter 
 with the San Joaquin river. It is a part of the 
 original farm settled upon by his father, and 
 the magnificent tail trees which it contains were 
 planted by that beloved parent. 
 
 In addition to carrying on general farm pur- 
 suits Mr. Crow also has a cheese factory located 
 on his place, which, at the present time, he leases 
 out. His pretty cottage residence is just three 
 and one-half miles east of Crow's Landing and is 
 among the most attractive spots in his neighbor- 
 hood. By his marriage he was united with Cora 
 C. Cressey, who was born in San Jose, Cal. Mrs. 
 Crow has exceptional literary talent, having at- 
 tained quite a good deal of prominence as a story 
 writer. Their only child, Paul, a native son of 
 California, takes great pleasure in assisting on 
 the ranch, deriving enjoyment from the pursuit. 
 Politically Mr. Crow is an ardent Democrat, and 
 aside from his ranching pursuits he has been in- 
 terested in a number of enterprises of worth, 
 among them the Crow Oil Company, of which he 
 was one of the incorporators and is now serving 
 as director. This company was incorporated with 
 a capital stock of $300,000, with eighteen hun- 
 dred acres in the Sunset belt, but is not active at 
 this writing. 
 
 HENRY D. BOLLIN. An enterprising mer- 
 chant of Reedley, Henry D. Bollin is engaged 
 in a general mercantile business in this place, in 
 the conduct of which he is meeting with success. 
 He was born in Cooper county. Mo., October 16, 
 1865, a son of A. Lewis Bollin. The latter, who 
 was a native of Pryson, Germany, emigrated to 
 the United States and located in Cooper county, 
 Mo., where he engaged as a farmer and black- 
 smith. He removed to Kansas in 1867 and at 
 Kickapoo engaged as a blacksmith. Two years 
 later he returned to Missouri and followed his 
 trade until his death, which occurred in 1872, at 
 the age of fifty-five years. His wife, formerly 
 Minnie Miller, was glso born in Germany. She 
 came to California in 1889 and died here in 1895. 
 They were the parents of three daughters and 
 six sons, of whom Henry D. Bollin was the 
 fourth in order of birth. 
 
 The education of Henry D. Bollin was received 
 in the common schools of Missouri, where he 
 remained until 1889. In that year he came to 
 California with his mother and engaged in farm- 
 ing at Traver, Tulare county, where he remained 
 until 1897, in which year he located in Reedley. 
 He secured employment as clerk for two years, 
 and following this he engaged in a general mer- 
 
1624 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 chandise business under the firm name of Stout 
 & Bollin for a like period. Purchasing the en- 
 tire interest at the end of that time, Mr. Bollin 
 continued the enterprise for one year, when 
 (March, 1902) he started a general merchandise 
 business under the firm name of Bollin, Mathews 
 & Co. They carried on business until they were 
 burned out by the memorable fire which devas- 
 tated the entire town. Their loss was covered 
 by insurance, however, and following the fire 
 Mr. Bollin engaged in a general merchandise 
 business which he has since conducted success- 
 fully. He has also been instrumental in the busi- 
 ness enterprises of Reedley, with his brother or- 
 ganizing the Reedley Hotel & Store Company, 
 and assisting in the erection of a brick block. 
 
 In Missouri Mr. Bollin was united in marriage 
 with Alvina Bank, a native of Monitor county, 
 that state, and they are the parents of the fol- 
 lowing children : Leonard, Harry, Maggie, Dora 
 and Lucy. Fraternally Mr. Bollin is associated 
 with the Woodmen of the World, the Women of 
 Woodcraft, the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows and Rebekahs, all of Reedley. He was 
 formerly a member of the Ancient Order of 
 United Workmen, in which he had passed all the 
 chairs, and twice attended the meetings of the 
 Grand Lodge. Politically he is a stanch Repub- 
 lican. 
 
 HUGH A. BLODGET. As showing what 
 may be accomplished by a normal, healthy and 
 ambitious mind which marks out a career for 
 itself and resolutely goes to work to make its 
 dream of success a reality, the case of Hugh A. 
 Blodget, vice-president and general manager of 
 the California Consolidated Oil Fields Company, 
 and ex-president of the Kern Valley Bank, af- 
 fords a lesson strong in human interest, and vital 
 in its ring of encouragement. The story is not 
 embellished with meteoric rise, indulgent early 
 fortune, out of the ordinary gifts, or get-rich- 
 quick opportunities. Its strength and assurance 
 lie in the fact that it can be emulated by the right 
 sort of man, possessing the right sort of inten- 
 tions. Mr. Blodget's underlying mental and phys- 
 ical vigor comes from good ancestors and from 
 the fact that he is a son of the soil, having been 
 born on a farm in Chautauqua county, N. Y., Oc- 
 tober 23, 1855. His father, William O. Blodget, 
 was also born in Chautauqua county, and was 
 reared on a farm which extended over into Penn- 
 sylvania, and which had been settled by his father, 
 Orba Blodget, when the property was owned by 
 the Holland Land Company. The grandfather 
 was born in Massachusetts, was a soldier in the 
 war of 1812, and was accidentally killed in middle 
 life. William O. Blodget graduated from farm- 
 ing into the mercantile business, which he left at 
 
 the outbreak of the Civil war to raise a company, 
 and was raised to the rank of lieutenant in the 
 service. He was a member of the Reynolds Di- 
 vision at the battle of Gettysburg, and was 
 wounded in front of the historic stone wall, from 
 the effects of which wound he contracted con- 
 sumption, and died at the age of forty-one. Ad- 
 ditional pathos was added to his untimely death 
 by the decease of his wife, three days before. 
 Mrs. Blodget was formerly Esther A. Spencer, a 
 native of Warren county, Pa., and besides Hugh 
 A., the second of her three children, there is Ella, 
 wife of C. F. Lake, of Boulder, Colo., and Spen- 
 cer L., a resident of Bakersfield. 
 
 Ten years old at the time of his parents' death, 
 Hugh A. Blodget lived with his maternal grand- 
 mother until his seventeenth year, working on the 
 farm. He received his preliminary education in 
 the public school, after which he took a course at 
 the Jamestown Collegiate Institute. In Decem- 
 ber, 1872, he arrived in Windsor, Sonoma county, 
 Cal., with a depleted exchequer, but abiding confi- 
 dence in a future of large accomplishment. For 
 a couple of years he alternated clerking in a store 
 with harvesting on a ranch, and in January, 1875, 
 arrived in Bakersfield and found employment on 
 a nearby ranch for two or three months. He then 
 became clerk for the county recorder for a couple 
 of years, and so faithfully attended to business 
 that he was able to secure a position as book- 
 keeper in the Kern Valley Bank. His faith in 
 himself was communicated to his superiors 
 through ways best known to practical and dis- 
 cerning business men, and he was promoted to the 
 cashiership in the bank in 1884, and in 1902 be- 
 came president of the institution. Pressure of 
 outside business interfered with the latter respon- 
 sibility to such an extent that in 1903 he resigned 
 from the bank, and was then abie to devote his 
 entire energy to the development of oil in this 
 section, of which he was one of the first and most 
 energetic promoters. 
 
 Mr. Blodget became interested in oil in the 
 Sunset region in 1890, and that year, with Solo- 
 mon Jewett and Charles Barnard, put down the 
 first wells drilled in the district. The project not 
 proving successful, Mr. Barnard withdrew from 
 the field, leaving Mr. Blodget and Mr. Jewett to 
 conduct further experiments. It was not until 
 1897 that their efforts were rewarded with sue 
 cess, but so sure were they of the practically ex- 
 haustless supply, that in the spring of 1903 Mr 
 Blodget and C. M. Beall organized what is now 
 the California Consolidated Oil Felds Company 
 of Bakersfield and Kern County, which company 
 controls seven thousand acres in the Sunset Dis- 
 trict and containing at present forty-seven oil- 
 procucmg wells. Mr. Blodget has done more to 
 encourage the oil business in the section than any 
 one other mdividual, giving it the support of his 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1625 
 
 clear judgment,, and ample facilities for ascertain- 
 ing facts. His reputation for substantiality and 
 reliaoiiity count for much in an enterprise more 
 or less speculative, and invest it with an assur- 
 ance peculiarly gratifying to cautious minds. 
 
 The energy and public spirit of Mr. Blodget 
 have invaded many avenues of improvement in 
 Bakersfield, and since his arrival at a time wh'en 
 the town consisted of an aggregation of huts, he 
 has had a share in the enterprises most emphatic- 
 ally developing and lasting, including the water 
 works, lighting plant, street transportation, and 
 the Southerjti hotel. That he believes in the fu- 
 ture of the city is evident from his many invest- 
 ments in its desirable real estate, including his 
 own well appointed home. Mr. Blodget married 
 Miss A. L. Park, a native of Wisconsin, and who 
 came to California in 1878. Three children have 
 been born of the union : Haselton P., a student 
 in San Francisco; and Ruth and Anna L., at 
 home. Mr. Blodget is a stanch Republican, but 
 has never been willing to accept office. One of 
 . his greatest services to the town has been in con- 
 nection with education, not only as president of 
 the board of education, but through individual 
 effort whenever opportunity has arisen requiring 
 his support and co-operation. He is fraternally 
 connected with the Masons, the Knights of Pyth- 
 ias, and the Benevolent and Protective Order of 
 Elics. Mr. Blodget's many fine traits of character 
 have won him hosts of friends in Bakersfield and 
 throughout the entire county, and his name stands 
 for all that is progressive and substantial. 
 
 JOHN BIBBY. Actively identified with the 
 agricultural interests of Merced county is John 
 Bibby, who owns a valuable ranch of fifty acres 
 in Volta, and in addition to managing that also 
 carries on the farm belonging to his father, 
 Nicholas Bibby, Sr., of whom a brief biographi- 
 cal sketch may be found on another page of this 
 volume. He is a man of energy and integrity, 
 well informed, with a mind broadened by ob- 
 servation and travel, and is deservedly esteemed 
 throughout the community in which he resides. 
 In his industrial operations he has met with ex- 
 cellent success, his well-cultivated and well- 
 improved land yielding good annual crops. Of 
 Welsh ancestry on the paternal side, he wa-^ born 
 in Solano county, Cal., and there spent the first 
 seven years of his life. 
 
 Coming to Merced county in the days of his 
 boyhood, John Bibby received such educational 
 advantages as were afforded by the district 
 school. He subsequently obtained a wide and 
 varied knowledge of places, men and events by 
 traveling, visiting Arizona, Oregon, Nevada, 
 Wyoming and the Hawaiian Islands. When 
 
 ready to settle permanently in life, Mr. Bibby 
 selected the independent occupation to which he 
 was reared, and assuming possession of his pres- 
 ent ranch of fifty acres on the Bibby road at 
 once began its improvement. In addition to this 
 he has, since 1901, engaged in stock-raising on 
 the parental homestead, which adjoins his own 
 estate, and in the care of both farms has been ex- 
 ceedingly prosperous, his skill and systematic 
 methods bringing him much success. 
 
 Taking an intelligent interest in local affairs, 
 Mr. Bibby is a stanch Democrat, and uniformly 
 casts his vote with that party. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Woodmen of the World. 
 
 JOHN ARTHUR BENHAM, manager of the 
 Sanitary House Cleaning Company, of Fresno, 
 Cal., was born at Flushing, Mich., November 20, 
 1859, the eldest in a family of three sons and two 
 daughters, all of whom but one daughter are 
 now living. His father, John C. Benham, was a 
 native of Ontario, where he engaged in lumber- 
 ing and farming, and was then employed foi 
 eight years as manager of the Crapo ranch. He 
 made his home in Flushing, Mich., where his 
 death occurred in 1904 at the age of eighty-seven 
 years. His wife, formerly Sarah Glidden, was a 
 native of New York. She survives her husband 
 and makes her home in Flushing. Reared in his 
 native town until attaining his majority, John Ar- 
 thur Benham received his education in the pub- 
 lic schools of that place and at Flint. In 1881 
 he went to Stevens' Point, Wis., where he en- 
 gaged for sixteen years in business. Deciding to 
 locate in the remote west, he came to California 
 in 1897, and remained for. a. time in Oakland,, in 
 the same year coming to Fresno, where he 
 brought out the first slot machine, engaging in 
 that business until 1901. He then became asso- 
 ciated with Fulton G. Berry as partner in the 
 Grand Central Bar and Billiard Room, remain- 
 ing so occupied for fifteen months. Forced to 
 withdraw from the business on account of rheu- 
 matism, he then entered into partnership with 
 Lester Funge, with whom he built the Grand 
 Theater, which was opened in May, 1903. In 
 October of the same year he sold out, and in the 
 following December located on his ranch near 
 Cone jo. He remained in that location until De- 
 cember, 1904, engaged in the dairy business, 
 which he still conducts. He returned to Fresno 
 and became a stockholder on the organization of 
 the Sanitary House Cleaning Company, and also 
 its manager, having fortunately become free from 
 the disease which had troubled him. This com- 
 pany uses the Lotz vacuum and compressed air 
 machine in their process of cleaning, and are al- 
 ready doing an extensive business, being agents 
 
1626 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for the entire San Joaquin valley. Mr. Benham 
 owns a comfortable residence at No. 821 O street, 
 which is presided over by his wife, formerly Ella 
 Van Riper, a native of New York state, whom he 
 married in Port Huron, Mich. They are the pa- 
 rents of three children, Irene, Arthur and Law- 
 rence. Politically Mr. Benham is a Republican 
 and fraternally is associated with the Benevolent 
 and Protective Order of Elks. 
 
 W. N. ROHRER. The success which W. N. 
 Rohrer has achieved since locating in Fresno 
 county has placed him indisputably among the 
 prominent and representative citizens of this sec- 
 tion. A business man of remarkable acumen and 
 unerring judgment, combined with a quickness 
 of decision, he has steadily advanced to an im- 
 portant position among the commercial and in- 
 ■ dustrial interests of the county, to whose upbuild- 
 ing he has devoted his best efforts since locating 
 here less than twenty years ago. His most im- 
 portant achievement has been the development 
 of the Mount Campbell Orange Tract, one of the 
 finest pieces of property in this section of the 
 state. This consists of about nine thousand -acres 
 of land lying at the southern base of Mount 
 Campbell, directly east of Fresno, six miles from 
 Reedley and nine miles from Sanger, and is 
 from forty to eighty feet higher than the fertile 
 fields adjacent in the Kings river bottom, thus 
 being above the line of severe frost, while the 
 mountain protects it from the northern winds. 
 The location commands a fine view of the Sierra 
 mountains, as well as vast stretches of orchards 
 and vineyards to the south and westward. Ex- 
 cellent drinking water is obtained at a depth of 
 sixty to eighty feet, while the large Alta canal 
 furnishes an abundant supply of water for irri- 
 gation purposes. 
 
 In Juniata county. Pa., W. N. Rohrer was 
 born, the son of the Hon. Abraham Rohrer, a 
 native of the same locality. The family flour- 
 ished originally in the state' of Maryland, whence 
 the grandfather removed to Pennsylvania and 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits. Abraham Roh- 
 rer was reared in Pennsylvania and in young 
 manhood followed the example of his father. 
 During the Civil War, although a stanch Demo- 
 crat in his political convictions, he was still Iut 
 tensely loyal to the Union and served as a re- 
 cruiting officer. He was known all over the 
 state by the cognomen of "Honest Abe," and dur- 
 mg his service as a member of the state legisla- 
 ture, to which he was twice elected, he ably up- 
 held the high opinion which was universally ac- 
 corded him. He died in 1888, at the age of sixty 
 years. In his religious life he was a devoted 
 member of the United Brethren Church, in the 
 ministry of which he served for many years. His 
 
 wife was in maidenhood Mary Pannebaker, whc 
 was also born in Pennsylvania the descendant o: 
 an old and honored family. Mrs. Rohrer sur- 
 vives her husband and still makes her home ir 
 Pennsylvania. 
 
 Of the seven children born to his parents W. 
 N. Rohrer was the fourth, and the only one now 
 located in California. He was reared to man- 
 hood in his native state, engaging alternately in 
 study at the district school and the. farm duties 
 which were a part of his daily life. His first ef- 
 forts along an independent line were as school 
 teacher, in which he met with the success which 
 has always characterized his work. When a boy 
 he decided to come west and accordingly located 
 in Durango, Colo., in 1876, a pioneer in that dis- 
 trict. He engaged in the abstract and real estate 
 business there until 1887, when he continued his 
 journey west and settled in Fresno-, with whose 
 best interests he has since been identified. Real 
 estate has occupied a large share of his attention 
 since locating here. In 1899 he conceived the 
 idea which has resulted in the formation of the 
 Mount Campbell Orange tract, upon which he has 
 expended many thou,sands of dollars, and an in- 
 calculable amount of time and thought. He has 
 thoroughly advertised this section all over the 
 United States as well as in many foreign coun- 
 tries. He has spared no effort to make a success 
 of his enterprise and thus far he has been re- 
 warded by most gratifying returns, while the 
 future holds out promise of still greater achieve- 
 ments in his endeavors to build up and develop 
 the resources of the country. 
 
 In Colorado Mr. Rohrer was united in mar- 
 riage with Lucinda Mitchell, a native of Missouri, 
 and to them were born three children. Mr. Roh- 
 rer is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, 
 and in religious affairs is identified with the Uni- 
 tarian Qiurch. 
 
 SAMUEL PRATT. Prominent among the 
 well-to-do and prosperous agriculturists of 
 Stanislaus county is Samuel Pratt, an extensive 
 land owner and stock raiser, and a business man 
 of unquestioned ability and integrity. Self-sup- 
 porting from his boyhood days, he' has been in 
 very truth the architect of his own fortunes, at- 
 taining his present assured position in the indus- 
 trial world by persevering toil, good judgment 
 and keen foresight. His home ranch lying six 
 iniles southeast of Oakdale, is one of the best in 
 its appointments and improvements of anv in the 
 locality giving to the passer-bv visible evidence 
 of the thrift and wise management of its proprie- 
 tor. A son of Samuel and Priscilla (Denford) 
 Pratt, he was born April 6, 1854, in Devonshire 
 England, where he received a very limited edn 
 cation. 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1627 
 
 Leaving his native land when ten years old, 
 Samuel Pratt came alone to the United States, 
 and for two years thereafter lived with friends 
 in Brown county, Kans. In 1869 he migrated to 
 California, and in June, 1873, took up his resi- 
 dence in Stanislaus county. For about six years 
 Mr. Pratt worked as a farm laborer in the vicinity 
 of Oakdale and Modesto, and with characteristic 
 economy and prudence saved the larger part .of 
 his wages. Buying land near Modesto in 1879, 
 he carried on farming for several years, as a 
 grain raiser meeting with satisfactory pecuniary 
 results. In 1895 he bought his present home 
 ranch of eight hundred and eighty acres, and has 
 since been actively and profitably employed in 
 general farming, raising hay, grain and stock, 
 keeping on an average five hundred head of cat- 
 tle. He has other real estate of value, owning 
 three thousand acres of land in Stanislaus county. 
 Public-spirited and progressive, he has ever 
 evinced a warm interest in local advancement and 
 improvements, and heartily endorses all enter- 
 prises calculated to benefit the town or county. 
 Politically he supports the Republican party. 
 
 Mr. Pratt has been married twice. He mar- 
 ried first, in California, Elizabeth Cobb, who died 
 in early womanhood, leaving two children, Ed- 
 win W. and Charles S. His second wife was 
 formerly Jennie Sage. 
 
 JAMES MONROE BOND. In the medical, 
 as in other professions, if a man would rise he 
 must work, and he will ever find plenty of room 
 at the top. In Dr. Bond we recognize one who 
 is bound to win, as he has taken his place in 
 Kings county, Cal., as one who has come to 
 stay, and is quietly engaged in attending to the 
 stream of practice that is converging in his di- 
 rection. Although during his early manhood 
 days he followed ranching pursuits mainly, he 
 finally determined to enter the medical profes- 
 sion, having a great deal of natural ability in that 
 direction and having practiced to some extent 
 before taking a special preparation. It was not 
 until about 1890 that he entered the California 
 Eclectic Medical College in San Francisco, and 
 after his graduation from this institution in 1893, 
 he practiced one year in the same cfty. Return- 
 ing to Kings county the following year. Dr. 
 Bond opened an office in Hanford and engaged 
 as general practitioner. Shortly afterward, how- 
 ever, he started a sanitarium, and here for five 
 years he worked with earnestness and vim in 
 building up his practice. In 1903 he purchased 
 the place upon which his sanitarium is now lo- 
 cated. This place contained five acres of ground, 
 and is well located within the city limits and 
 just outside the residence portion of Hanford, 
 
 where everything is quiet and peaceful. The ex- 
 tensive grounds are laid out m beautiful lawns, 
 well-kept and beautified in every conceivable way 
 by ornamental flowers, trees and shrubbery. The 
 Sanitarium proper is a large and commodious 
 two-story building, which furnishes accommoda- 
 tions for fifteen patients, in addition to the fam- 
 ily living rooms. The building is well fitted with 
 the latest medical appliances and surgical instru- 
 ments, as the doctor is well informed on the lat- 
 est discoveries applying to medicine and tO' sur- 
 gery, and adopts the most improved methods of 
 healing in treating different cases. 
 
 The birth of Dr. Bond took place near Knox- 
 ville, in Marion county, la., November 17, 1847, 
 and he is one of four children born to William 
 B. and Hannah (Hayes) Bond, the latter an 
 Ohio lady, died in the Blue Mountains, while the 
 family were en route to Oregon, in 1853. Will- 
 iam B. Bond descended from a worthy English 
 family who left England in the sixteenth century 
 and settled in Virginia, which was also his birth- 
 place. The progenitor of the family in America 
 was one John Bond, the great-grandfather of 
 William B. Bond. His son, Solomon, was a 
 native of Virginia and served in the Revolution- 
 ary war and his son, the father of William B., 
 was a Baptist minister and married a Virginia 
 lady. Reared in his native state, where in his 
 early manhood he followed farm pursuits, the 
 father of Dr. Bond left his eastern home and 
 traveling westward, he settled for a time in Illi- 
 nois, proceeding on to Iowa in 1846. Here he 
 took up government land in this section, which 
 was new and undeveloped, and he was engaged 
 in tilling the soil here until 1853. Selling out, 
 he crossed overland to Oregon, and having lost 
 his beloved companion on the way, he was left 
 with the care of four small children. He took up 
 a claim near Harrisburg, in Linn county, and 
 lived there for twelve 3'ears, and in 1865 located 
 permanently in Benton county, where he died 
 shortly afterward, being forty-nine years old at 
 the time of his death. 
 
 The boyhood days of Dr. Bond were spent 
 upon his father's farm, and he attended public 
 school until about twelve years of age, receiving 
 but a limited education. He followed farm pur- 
 suits until about the close of the war and after 
 the death of his father, when only nineteen years 
 old, he married and continued to farm in that 
 section a couple of years afterward. It was in 
 1868 that he first stepped on California soil and 
 at that date he took up a homestead claim at 
 Crows Landing, in Stanislaus county, and here 
 at times he followed farm pursuits during the 
 next few years. In 1874 he purchased a gov- 
 ernment claim in Kings county, three miles 
 southeast of Lemoore, but did not occupy this 
 place as a home until the spring of 1877. He 
 
1628 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 followed ranching and stock-raising here until 
 1889 and about that time he determined upon a 
 medical career and taking a complete medical 
 course, he has devoted his life to this profession 
 ever since. 
 
 By his marriage, November 11, 1866, in Ore- 
 gon, Dr. Bond linked his fortunes with those 
 of Miss Sarah T. Storr, a lady whose parents 
 moved to Oregon in 1847, ^^'^ i* was in that 
 state that she was born. Mrs. Bond is both amia- 
 ble and accomplished and is in every way a fit- 
 ting companion for the doctor. They have 
 reared a family of eleven children, of whom they 
 are justly proud, many of them filling positions 
 of trust in a professional way and all prominent 
 in the communities in which they reside. They 
 are enumerated as follows : Emma, wife of R. A. 
 Wheeler, of Healdsburg, Cal. ; William F., a res- 
 ident of Hanford; James E., a minister of the 
 Seventh Day Adventists' Church, stationed at 
 Phoenix, Ariz. ; Elmer C, a rising young physi- 
 cian conducting a sanitarium in the same city ; 
 Frank Storr and Walter Guy, who are Seventh 
 Day Adventist missionaries, now laboring in 
 Spain; Edith, a successful teacher at Phoenix, 
 Ariz. ; and Jessie May, Charles Lester, Harry 
 Cecil and Mildred G., who are still at home with 
 their parents. As may be inferred, both the doc- 
 tor and his wife are enthusiastic Seventh Day 
 Adventists and have reared their family in the 
 same belief. In his political views, the doctor is 
 a Republican, but he has had neither time nor 
 inclination for aspirations in the field of political 
 favor, as he places his profession emphatically 
 before every other interest. Outside of work in 
 his sanitarium, he has a large patronage extend- 
 ing far into the surrounding country, and it may 
 be said of him that he has made a record equaled 
 or excelled by few. A deep and logical thinker, 
 well-read, with good judgment and keen, trust- 
 worthy common sense, he has in addition a 
 strong ambition and a high standard of profes- 
 sional excellence. These attributes are bound to 
 bring the permanent rewards of a successful ca- 
 reer, and he can truly be said to be the "architect 
 of his own fortune." 
 
 WILLIAM NATHANIEL HARRIS. A 
 prominent citizen of Laton, Fresno countv, Cal, 
 William Nathaniel Harris is representative of 
 the developing forces of this section. He was 
 born in Burlington, Vt., January 27. 1862, the 
 son of William L., of Middleboro, Vt., and the 
 grandson of Nathaniel, of New York state. The 
 elder man owned a marble quarry in Middleboro, 
 Vt., where he also engaged as a dentist, becom- 
 ing a popular and prominent citizen of the com- 
 munity. His death occurred there after a long 
 
 and useful life. William L. Harris also became 
 a dentist and located in Burlington, Vt., where 
 he engaged at his profession until his removal 
 to Chicago, 111. Later he returned to BurHngton, 
 thence located in Washington, D. C, where he 
 filled the office of deputy assistant commissioner 
 of pensions for three years. On account of im- 
 paired health he came to California and in Santa 
 Bjirbara engaged in stock raising until his death, 
 wlaich occurred in 1870, at the comparatively 
 early age of forty-two years. He served in the 
 Civil war, enlisting in 1861 for three months as 
 captain of his company in the Seventh Verriiont 
 Regiment. He was a strong, man, of fine phys- 
 ic[ue and splendid constitution, but was severely 
 wounded and compelled to stay four months in 
 the hospital. He rejoined the regiment earlier 
 than he should have done, so eager was he to be 
 in active service again, and consequently lost his 
 health. He was sent to New Orleans in charge 
 of a prison ship, where, after one and a half 
 years' service, he was honorably discharged. His' 
 wife, formerly Sarah A. Hoyt, was a native of 
 Rochester, N. Y., and died in San Francisco at 
 the age of sixty-one years. Of their three chil- 
 dren two died in infancy, William Nathaniel be- 
 ing the youngest. 
 
 William N. Harris attended the common 
 schools of Vermont and later of Washington, 
 D. C. He accompanied his parents to Santa 
 Barbara, Cal., where he finished his education, 
 in 1879 entering the Berkeley Gymnasium, hav- 
 ing previously completed the high school course. 
 He later entered the class of 1884 as a special 
 student in chemistry and civil engineering in 
 the' University of California, having spent the 
 year previous in Boston, where he took a course 
 in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, studying 
 engraving under Mctor L. Chandler. After his 
 return to California and the years spent in the 
 University of California he took up book illus- 
 trating and engraving, after which he was em- 
 ployed in the art department of the San Francisco 
 Chronicle for two years. Deciding to take up a 
 comm.ercial life he entered the insurance business 
 with the George Easton company, of San Fran- 
 cisco, and in 1893 engaged with Easton, Eldridge 
 & Co. in real estate operations, his principal work 
 being colonizing. He was afterward associated 
 with other companies. In 1897 he came to 
 Fresno, where he acted as the agent for the 
 Canadian & American Mortgage and Trust Co. 
 and the United Trust (limited), for the 
 period of three years. During this time he col- 
 onized three large tracts in Fresno county and 
 took an active part in the growth and develop- 
 ment of the country. In 1890 he became asso- 
 ciated with Nears & Saunders, and handled the 
 larger part of their business. He represented 
 Kings county at the Louisiana Purchase Exposi- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1629 
 
 tion and is a stanch supporter of the best inter- 
 ests of California. 
 
 In Los Angeles Mr. Harris was united in mar- 
 riage with Fleeta W. Cummings, a native of Illi- 
 nois, whose death occurred in San Francisco. 
 Fraternally Mr. Harris is associated with the 
 Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and is 
 a member of the Sec[uoia Club. He is a promi- 
 nent member of the Chamber of Commerce and 
 the San Joaquin Valley Commercial Association. 
 He is actively identified with the work of St. 
 James Episcopal Church, of Fresno, where he 
 has held the position of choir master for the past 
 three years. Politically he is a stanch advocate 
 of the principles of the Republican party. Mr. 
 Harris was the originator of lecturing and ste- 
 reopticon views in California, and has given 
 lectures throughout various parts of the states, 
 as well as in the m.iddle west and Pennsylvania. 
 It is his plan to go to the Lewis and Clark Ex- 
 position with his views and lectures and antici- 
 pates his usual success. 
 
 DAVID STEWART JONES. Numbered 
 among the successful young men of Fresno coun- 
 ty is David Stewart Jones, who is located at 
 Lane's Bridge, and engaged in an extensive cul- 
 tivation of grain. He was the third in a family 
 of seven children, his birth occurring in Trimble, 
 Dyer county, Tenn., July 27, 1871. His father, 
 Ezra Jones, crossed the plains in the '60s and in 
 California married Mary Lewis, of Arkansas, 
 who had crossed the plains to this state in the 
 '50s. They returned to Tennessee, where Mr. 
 Jones engaged as a farmer and merchant until 
 his death. Until he was thirteen years old Da- 
 vid Stewart Jones was reared in Tennessee, 
 where he attended the public schools in pursuit 
 of an education. In 1884 he came to California 
 and in young manhood took charge of his moth- 
 er's farm on Owens creek, Merced county, 
 where he remained for some years. He then 
 bought a farm at Raymond in the mountains, 
 where he engaged in the cattle business for four 
 years, after which he located on the San Joaquin 
 river, two miles west of Lane's Bridge, in Ma- 
 dera county, where he engaged in the cultivation 
 of grain on one hundred and sixty acres of land. 
 In 1904 he bought the old Lane home of eighty 
 acres at Lane's Bridge, upon which he located, 
 and now conducts the two farms, as well as rent- 
 ing considerable land, making in all sixteen hun- 
 dred acres devoted to grain and alfalfa. 
 
 In Fresno Mr. Jones was united in marriage 
 with Delia Walker, a native of San Joaquin 
 county, and the daughter of J. N. Walker, the 
 first sheriff of Fresno county, and one of the 
 prominent men of this section. (For more com- 
 plete details concerning Mr. Walker refer to his 
 
 biography, which appears elsewhere in this vol- 
 ume.) To Mr. and Mrs. Jones were born the 
 following children : Zella, Orville and Zolo. Mr. 
 Jones is independent in politics but takes a keen 
 interest in the welfare of the community. At 
 various times he has served as school trustee and 
 has given his best efforts to advance educational 
 interests. 
 
 JOHN McDonald WILMANS, a native 
 of Plumas county, Cal, was born in Quincy 
 March 29, 1858, a son of David I. and Martha 
 (Bass) Wilmans, natives respectively of Phila- 
 delphia, Pa., and Potosi, Mo. His paternal 
 grandfather was a native of Germany, born on 
 the River Rhine, and in manhood was occupied as 
 an importer of silks and wines. A member of 
 an old and honored family he secured a splendid 
 education and became a prominent citizen in 
 whatever locality he made his home. He immi- 
 grated to America and followed merchandising 
 in Philadelphia and afterwards in St. Joseph, 
 Mo. His death occurred at the age of seventy 
 years. His son, David I. Wilmans, who became 
 a pork packer and merchant of that city, came to 
 California with the gold seekers in 1849, organ- 
 izing a train of about sixty men, well armed and 
 well equipped, coming by way of Utah. Upon 
 his arrival in California he settled in Marysville, 
 or rather founded that town, putting up the first 
 frame building and establishing a store. Dispos- 
 ing of these interests he went to Quincy, Plumas 
 county, in 1850, and became a leading miner and 
 merchant on Nelson creek, where he made a 
 fortune in gold mining and merchandising. He 
 died in Gila county, Arizona, where he was en- 
 gaged in a mercantile enterprise, at the age of 
 sixty-seven years. His name was well known 
 over the entire west. He was a personal friend 
 of George C. Gorham, Judge Stephen J. Field, 
 United States Senator Jones, Senator Sharron, 
 and others equally well known in the west, a 
 man of honor and probity and great ability. 
 In his political affiliations he was a Democrat, 
 and fraternally was a member of the Masonic 
 order, in which work he was quite active in early 
 life. He married Martha J. Bass, a native of 
 Missouri, and a descendant of English ancestry 
 related to the old and distinguished Bass family 
 of England. With her brothers, Stephen D. and 
 Richard S., both of whom were partners of Da- 
 vid I. Wilmans, she came overland to California 
 in 1853 and was married in Quincy. She died at 
 "Woodside," the country ranch of the Wilmans, 
 at the age of seventy-one years. Of the five 
 children born to Mr. and Mrs. Wilmans, three 
 reached maturity, namely: F. W., J. M., and 
 S. C, of whom the last named died August 6, 
 1901, at the age of thirty-five years, leaving a 
 
1630 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wife and three children. F. W. resides at Seat- 
 tle, Wash. 
 
 John McDonald Wilmans was educated in Me- 
 vada, principally. From the time he was four- 
 teen years old he engaged in mining, for the 
 greater part being located in Nevada, and was 
 a successful miner even at that age. After he 
 left Nevada in 1876 he was head distributer m 
 the San Francisco postoffice in the paper depart- 
 ment for three years, after which, on account of 
 failing eyesight^ he went to Gila county, Ariz., 
 and engaged in mining. As before he met with 
 success. He remained in that locality about eight 
 years, half of the time being spent as a mer- 
 chant. He was also a contractor and managed 
 several other mining properties, making- Globe, 
 Ariz., his headquarters. For a part of this time 
 -he was also interested in the cattle business. In 
 1888 he went to Park City, Utah, thirty-five miles 
 south of Salt Lake City, where he took a lease 
 on a mine, in partnership with his brother, F. 
 W. Wilmans, the two taking out $620,000 in gold 
 in ten months. The lease being for twelve 
 months they disposed of the other two months 
 for $47,000. This mine is now known as the 
 Silver King and has produced $15,000,000 worth 
 of gold. After disposing of his interest in this 
 mine Mr. Wilmans located his family in San 
 Francisco. He there became interested with 
 James L. Pearsall, in Monte Cristo, Wash., in 
 mining in the Monte Cristo and other mines, and 
 again met with success. Although he eventually 
 disposed of a part of his interests to John D. 
 Rockefeller, he acts as manager of and owns the 
 controlling interest on a forty-seven mile rail- 
 road, which cost about $3,000,000. His brother, 
 F. W., is president. Since his identification with 
 the Monte Cristo mine, the improvements made 
 have been remarkable, while several million dol- 
 lars' worth of gold has been taken out. Mr. Wil- 
 mans owns a one-third interest in the Monte 
 Cristo mine and is also interested in mines in 
 Alaska. 
 
 "Woodside" ranch was bought in 1900, when 
 it was practically a desert, and the improvements 
 since made have demonstrated both the ability 
 and taste of the owner. About eighteen hun- 
 dred acres are under cultivation and irrigation 
 and in alfalfa. A portion of this ranch has been 
 sold to W. B. Witcher. Mr. Wilmans was mar- 
 ried in Arizona to Qara James, a native of Logan, 
 Iowa. She is the mother of two children, Trma 
 and Frederick S. Mr. Wilmans is a prominent 
 Mason, being a member of Golden Gate Com- 
 mandery, K. T., and Islam Temple, N. M. S. 
 Politically he adheres to the principles advocated 
 in the platform of the Democratic party, in which 
 faith he was reared. He has shown himself to 
 be a man of enterprise and ability and has done 
 much toward advancing the best interests of the 
 
 community in which he makes his home. He 
 was instrumental in securing the rural telephone, 
 thus connecting his ranch by long distance with 
 San Francisco and other places of importance. 
 In the matter of improvements on his ranch he 
 has exercised his most intelligent efforts to bring 
 his broad fields to a high state of cuUivation and 
 make them rank among the most profitable of 
 this section of the country. Some idea may be 
 gained when it is known that the ranch was 
 bought at the rate of $55 per acre and is now 
 worth at least $200, renting for $12.50 per acre. 
 He is interested in dairying and has a number 
 of Holstein and Durham cattle. At one time he 
 was much interested in sheep raising, importing 
 from France sheep that cost as high as $1,000 per 
 head, twenty-six being purchased for $17,000. 
 He has since sold his sheep and now gives con- 
 siderable time and attention to the raising of fine 
 horses. 
 
 HIRAM FORD. A resident of Fresno since 
 1887, Hiram Ford was born in Ohio county, 
 Indiana, April 28, 1850, and is a son of Darius 
 and Margaret (Brown) Ford, natives respective- 
 ly of Rutland, Vt., and Indiana. The maternal 
 grandfather, David Brown, was born in Penn- 
 sylvania and in an early day identified himself 
 v/ith the then frontier region of Switzerland 
 county, Indiana, where he cleared a tract of raw 
 land. After settling in Ohio county, Indiana, 
 Darius Ford followed the tanning business for 
 some years, but eventually turned his attention 
 to flour milling and continued in that industry 
 until his death. Both he and his wife spent their 
 last days in Indiana. They were the parents of 
 two sons and two daughters, all of whom are 
 still living, Hiram being the only member of the 
 family to settle on the Pacific coast. His younger 
 brother, Oliver P. M. Ford, M. D., was reared 
 under his supervision and he paid the expenses 
 of his education in the Ohio Medical College at 
 Cincinnati, from which he was graduated. At 
 this writing he is a successful physician at Ris- 
 ing Sun, Ind. 
 
 In the county where he was born, Hiram Ford 
 passed uneventfully the years of boyhood and 
 A^outh, receiving meager advantages in neighbor- 
 ing schools, but acquiring through reading and 
 observation a large fund of valuable information. 
 Under his father he learned the milling and 
 stone dressing business and after his father's 
 death he operated the mill for a year, when it was 
 sold. Thereupon he turned his attention to the 
 carpenter's trade. About this time he married 
 Miss Sophia C. Cooper, who was born and 
 reared in Ohio county, Indiana, and whose co- 
 operation has been of great assistance to him in 
 all of his active life. After his marriage he en- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1631 
 
 gaged in the mercantile business at Bennington, 
 Ind., for seven years, and on selling out resumed 
 work as a carpenter. 
 
 When Mr. Ford came to Fresno in 1887 the 
 town had only one three-story brick building. 
 During the next three years the building busi- 
 ness was active, carpenters were in constant de- 
 mand, and he had no difficulty in securing steady 
 work. In 1891 he took -up contracting, his first 
 contract being for the building of a large fruit 
 cannery in Fresno. Since then^is business has 
 grown steadily, and now during the busy seasons 
 he gives employment to about thirty hands. 
 Scores of elegant residences in various parts of 
 the city have been built under his supervision. 
 Among other buildings for which he had the con- 
 tract are the Baptist church, Union high school 
 at Clovis, Kirk school house in Fresno and 
 the John Brown colony school house in Madera 
 county. Not only does he understand every de- 
 tail and department of the contracting business, 
 but he is further fortunate in being able to 
 handle his workmen without friction, a matter 
 of no small importance in these days of constant 
 conflict between capital and labor. He makes 
 his home in a residence that he built on the 
 corner of K and San Benito streets. In his 
 family there are six children, namely : Mar- 
 garet A., wife of Alvin G. Lorbeer, who is now 
 living at Tucson, Ariz. ; Flora A., at home ; 
 Harrison H., a farmer of Fresno county ; 
 Grace G., wife of Thomas C. Edgar, of Reedley; 
 Charles W., who is employed as foreman of his 
 father's building operations ; and Stephen L., a 
 box-maker. 
 
 On the organization of the Citizens' Alliance 
 Mr. Ford became one of its charter members, and 
 he is an active member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce, Politically he is a believer in Republican 
 principles. On the organization of the local 
 lodge, Woodmen of the World, he became a 
 charter member. About 1873 he was initiated 
 into the Independent Order of Odd Fellows while 
 a resident of Indiana and since coming to the 
 coast he has affiliated with Fresno Lodge No. 
 186, of which he is secretary at this writing. For 
 -two terms he has been past chief patriarch of the 
 encampment of Fresno, and also officiates as clerk 
 of the canton of this city. When the Build- 
 ers' Exchange was established he became a char- 
 ter member and now serves as secretary of the 
 governing board. He took a warm interest in the 
 organization of the Contractors' Association and 
 was honored by the members with the office of 
 president, which he has filled with fidelity and 
 efficiency. 
 
 WILLIAM McINDOO. The most extensive 
 dairy business of Fresno county' is conducted by 
 William Mclndoo, who, as president of the 
 
 Jersey Farm Dairy (incorporated), is giving his 
 best efforts toward tlie success of the enterprise. 
 He was born near Peterboro, Ontario, April i, 
 1846, the eldest son in a family of six sons and 
 five daughters, of whom nine attained maturity 
 and are living. Three brothers, Robe'rt, Mat- 
 thew and James, are also located in Fresno. His 
 father, Matthew Mclndoo, was a native of On- 
 tario, where he was engaged as a farmer until 
 his death, which occurred in 1902 at the age of 
 eighty-three years. He was a descendant of 
 Irish ancestry, his father, William Mclndoo, hav- 
 ing immigrated from that country in 181 5 and 
 became a farmer in Ontario. Matthew Mcln- 
 doo married Mary Carter, a native of Peterboro, 
 Ontario, and the daughter of Robert Carter, who 
 came to Ontario from the north of Ireland, 
 where the family had been located by Scotch an- 
 cestors. Mrs. Mclndoo still survives her hus- 
 band and makes her home in the old residence in 
 Ontario. 
 
 William Mclndoo was reared on the paternal 
 farm, while receiving his education in the pub- 
 lic schools and the military academy at Toronto. 
 When twenty-one years old he began farming 
 for himself, continuing in that occupation for 
 three or four years, when he sold out and en- 
 gaged in the cattle business. For the following 
 five or six years he engaged in the exportation 
 of beef cattle for New York and Buffalo markets. 
 In 1886 he came to California and located in 
 Fresno county, where he engaged in mining 
 above Fish camp in the Sierras. He jprospected 
 for about six months, when he went to Oakland 
 and engaged in the restaurant business. After 
 eighteen months he came to Fresno, locating 
 here in January, 1888. He first worked at the 
 fruit business in the Scandinavian Colony, hav- 
 ing charge of a vineyard until it was sold, and 
 four months later he moved into Fresno. Short- 
 ly after this he began the dairy business, which 
 has since occupied his attention, he being the 
 first to introduce this work as a means of liveli- 
 hood. He began with one cow and gradually 
 increased his herd until two years later he 
 moved to a farm two miles out of the city, 
 where he conducted his enterprise for several 
 years. His dairy farm is now located on Kear- 
 ney avenue six miles west of Fresno, where he 
 has thoroughbred Jersey and Holstein stock, 
 about three hundred in number, his ranch having 
 two hundred and eleven acres devoted to alfalfa. 
 In February, 1903, the business was incorporated 
 under the name of the Jersey Farm Dairy, with 
 Mr. Mclndoo as oresident and manager. They 
 run five wagons in delivery, while the balance 
 is manufactured into butter at their creamery. 
 Mr. Mclndoo also owns an eighty-acre farm 
 on section 18, three miles east of Fresno, and 
 leases five hundred acres of the Newhall estate 
 adjoining, where he raises hay and grain. He 
 
1630 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wife and three children. F. W. resides at Seat- 
 tle, Wash. 
 
 John McDonald Wilmans was educated in Ne- 
 vada, principally. From the time he was four- 
 teen years old he engaged in mining, for the 
 greater part being located in Nevada, and was 
 a successful miner even at that age. After he 
 left Nevada in 1876 he was head distributer in 
 the San Francisco postofifice in the paper depart- 
 ment for three years, after which, on account of 
 failing eyesight, he went to Gila county, Ariz., 
 and engaged in mining. As before he met with 
 success. He remained in that locality about eight 
 years, half of the time being spent as a mer- 
 chant. He was also a contractor and managed 
 several other mining properties, making- Globe, 
 Ariz., his headquarters. For a part of this time 
 "he was also interested in the cattle business. In 
 1888 he went to Park City, Utah, thirty-five miles 
 south of Salt Lake City, where he took a lease 
 on a mine, in partnership with his brother, F. 
 W. Wilmans, the two taking out $620,000 in gold 
 in ten months. The lease being for twelve 
 months they disposed of the other two months 
 for $47,000. This mine is now known as the 
 Silver King and has produced $15,000,000 worth 
 of gold. After disposing of his interest in this 
 mine Mr. Wilmans located his family in San 
 Francisco. He there became interested with 
 James L. Pearsall, in Monte Cristo, Wash., in 
 mining m the Monte Cristo and other mines, and 
 again met with success. Although he eventually 
 disposed of a part of his interests to John D. 
 Rockefeller, he acts as manager of and owns the 
 controlling interest on a forty-seven mile rail- 
 road, which cost about $3,000,000. His brother, 
 F. W., is president. Since his identification with 
 the Monte Cristo mine, the improvements made 
 have been remarkable, while several million dol- 
 lars' worth of gold has been taken out. Mr. Wil- 
 mans owns a one-third interest in the Monte 
 Cristo mine and is also interested in mines in 
 Alaska. 
 
 "Woodside" ranch was bought in 1900, when 
 it was practically a desert, and the improvements 
 since made have demonstrated both the ability 
 and taste of the owner. About eighteen hun- 
 dred acres are under cultivation and irrigation 
 and in alfalfa. A portion of this ranch has been 
 sold to W. B. Witcher. Mr. Wilmans was mar- 
 ried in Arizona to Qara James, a native of Logan, 
 Iowa. She is the mother of two children, Irma 
 and Frederick S. Mr. Wilmans is a prominent 
 Mason, being a member of Golden Gate Com- 
 mandery, K. T., and Islam Temple, N. M. S. 
 Politically he adheres to the principles advocated 
 in the platform of the Democratic party, in which 
 faith he was reared. He has shown himself to 
 be a man of enterprise and ability and has done 
 much toward advancing the best interests of the 
 
 community in which he makes his home. He 
 was instrumental in securing the rural telephone, 
 thus connecting his ranch by long distance with 
 San Francisco and other places of importance. 
 In the matter of improvements on his ranch he 
 has exercised his most intelligent efforts to bring 
 his broad fields to a high state of cultivation and 
 make them rank among the most profitable of 
 this section of the country. Some idea may be 
 gained when it is known that the ranch was 
 bought at the rate of $55 per acre and is now 
 worth at least $200, renting for $12.50 per acre. 
 He is interested in dairying and has a number 
 of Holstein and Durham cattle. At one time he 
 was much interested in sheep raising, importing 
 from France sheep that cost as high as $1,000 per 
 head, twenty-six being purchased for $17,000. 
 He has since sold his sheep and now gives con- 
 siderable time and attention to the raising of fine 
 horses. 
 
 HIRAM FORD. A resident of Fresno since 
 1887, Hiram Ford was born in Ohio county, 
 Indiana, April 28, 1850, and is a son of Darius 
 and Margaret (Brown) Ford, natives respective- 
 ly of Rutland, Vt., and Indiana. The maternal 
 grandfather, David Brown, was born in Penn- 
 sylvania and in an early day identified himself 
 v/ith the then frontier region of Switzerland 
 county, Indiana, where he cleared a tract of raw 
 land. After settling in Ohio county, Indiana, 
 Darius Ford followed the tanning business for 
 some years, but eventually turned his attention 
 to flour milling and continued in that industry 
 until his death. Both he and his wife spent their 
 last days in Indiana. They were the parents of 
 two sons and two daughters, all of whom are 
 still living, Hiram being the only member of the 
 famil)' to settle on the Pacific coast. His younger 
 brother, Oliver P. M. Ford, M. D., was reared 
 under his supervision and he paid the expenses 
 of his education in the Ohio Medical College at 
 Cincinnati, from which he was graduated. At 
 this writing he is a successful phvsician at Ris- 
 ing Sun, Ind. 
 
 In the county where he was born, Hiram Ford 
 passed uneventfully the years of boyhood and 
 youth, receiving meager advantages in neighbor- 
 ing schools, but acquiring through reading and 
 observation a large fund of valuable information 
 Under his father he learned the milling and 
 stone dressing business and after his father's 
 death he operated the mill for a year, when it was 
 sold. Thereupon he turned his attention to the 
 carpenter's trade. About this time he married 
 Miss Sophia C. Cooper, who was born and 
 reared m Ohio county, Indiana, and whose co- 
 operation has been of great assistance to him in 
 all of his active life. After his marriage he en- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1631 
 
 gaged in the mercantile business at Bennington, 
 Ind., for seven years, and on selling out resumed 
 work as a carpenter. 
 
 When Mr. Ford came to Fresno in 1887 the 
 town had only one three-story brick building. 
 During the next three years the building busi- 
 ness was active, carpenters were in constant de- 
 mand, and he had no difficulty in securing steady 
 work. In 1891 he took up contracting, his first 
 contract being for the building of a large fruit 
 cannery in Fresno. Since then iliis business has 
 grown steadily, and now during the busy seasons 
 he gives employment to about thirty hands. 
 Scores of elegant residences in various parts of 
 the city have been built under his supervision. 
 Among other buildings for which he had the con- 
 tract are the Baptist church. Union high school 
 at Clovis, Kirk school house in Fresno and 
 the John Brown colony school house in Madera 
 county. Not only does he understand every de- 
 tail and department of the contracting business, 
 but he is further fortunate in being able to 
 handle his workmen without friction, a matter 
 of no small importance in these days of constant 
 conflict between capital and labor. He makes 
 his home in a residence that he built on the 
 corner of K and San Benito streets. In his 
 family there are six children, namely : Mar- 
 garet A., wife of Alvin G. Lorbeer, who is now 
 living at Tucson, Ariz. ; Flora A., at home ; 
 Harrison H., a farmer of Fresno county; 
 Grace G., wife of Thomas C. Edgar, of Reedley ; 
 Charles W., who is employed as foreman of his 
 father's building operations ; and Stephen L., a 
 box-maker. 
 
 On the organization of the Citizens' Alliance 
 Mr. Ford became one of its charter members, and 
 he is an active member of the Chamber of Com- 
 merce. Politically he is a believer in Republican 
 principles. On the organization of the local 
 lodge. Woodmen of the World, he became a 
 charter member. About 1873 he was initiated 
 into the Independent Order of Odd Fellows while 
 a resident of Indiana and since coming to the 
 coast he has affiliated with Fresno Lodge No. 
 186, of which he is secretary at this writing. For 
 iwo terms he has been past chief patriarch of the 
 encampment of Fresno, and also officiates as clerk 
 of the canton of this city. When the Build- 
 ers' Exchange was established he became a char- 
 ter member and now serves as secretary of the 
 governing board. He took a warm interest in the 
 organization of the Contractors' Association and 
 was honored by the members with the office of 
 president, which he has filled with fidelity and 
 efficiency. 
 
 WILLIAM McINDOO. The most extensive 
 dairy business of Fresno county is conducted by 
 William Mclndoo, who, as president of the 
 
 Jersey Farm Dairy (incorporated), is giving his 
 best efforts toward the success of the enterprise. 
 He was born near Peterboro, Ontario, April i, 
 1846, the eldest son in a family of six sons and 
 five daughters, of whom nine attained maturity 
 and are living. Three brothers, Robrt't, Mat- 
 thew and James, are also located in Fresno. His 
 father, Matthew Mclndoo, was a native of On- 
 tariO', where he was engaged as a farmer until 
 his death, which occurred in 1902 at the age of 
 eighty-three years. He was a descendant of 
 Irish ancestry, his father, William Mclndoo, hav- 
 ing immigrated from that country in 181 5 and 
 became a farmer in Ontario. Matthew Mcln- 
 doo married Mary Carter, a native of Peterboro, 
 Ontario, and the daughter of Robert Carter, who 
 came to Ontario from the north of Ireland, 
 where the family had been located by Scotch an- 
 cestors. Mrs. Mclndoo still survives her hus- 
 band and makes her home in the old residence in 
 Ontario. 
 
 William Mclndoo was reared on the paternal 
 farm, while receiving his education in the pub- 
 lic schools and the military academy at Toronto. 
 When twenty-one years old he began farming 
 for himself, continuing in that occupation for 
 three or four years, when he sold out and en- 
 gaged in the cattle business. For the following 
 five or six years he engaged in the exportation 
 of beef cattle for New York and Buffalo markets. 
 In 1886 he came to California and located in 
 Fresno county, where he engaged in mining 
 above Fish camp in the Sierras. He prospected 
 for about six months, when he went to Oakland 
 and engaged m the restaurant business. After 
 eighteen months he came to Fresno, locating 
 here in January, 1888. He first worked at the 
 fruit business in the Scandinavian Colony, hav- 
 ing charge of a vineyard until it was sold, and 
 four months later he moved into Fresno. Short- 
 ly after this he began the dairy business, which 
 has since occupied his attention, he being the 
 first to introduce this work as a means of liveli- 
 hood. He began with one cow and gradually 
 increased his herd until two years later he 
 moved to a farm two miles out of the city, 
 where he conducted his enterprise for several 
 years. His dairy farm is now located on Kear- 
 ney avenue six miles west of Fresno, where he 
 has thoroughbred Jersey and Holstein stock, 
 about three hundred in number, his ranch having 
 two hundred and eleven acres devoted to alfalfa. 
 In February, 1903, the business was incorporated 
 under the name of the Jersey Farm Dairy, with 
 Mr. Mclndoo as oresident and manager. They 
 run five wagons in delivery, while the balance 
 is manufactured into butter at their creamery. 
 Mr. Mclndoo also owns an eighty-acre farm 
 on section 18, three miles east of Fresno, and 
 leases five hundred acres of the Newhall estate 
 adjoining, where he raises hay and grain. He 
 
1632 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 also leases the East Fresno tract, where he 
 is engaged in the raising of hay and grain. At 
 Lindsay, Tulare county, he improved an orange 
 grove, consisting of fifty acres, thirty of which 
 are bearing navels. He is one of three inter- 
 ested in the Lindsay Independent Packing Com- 
 pany, incorporated, Mr. Mclndoo being vice- 
 president. They have a packing house in Lind- 
 say and a fine grove of oranges and are meeting 
 with satisfactory success in the enterprise. 
 
 Near Gadridge, Ontario, Mr. Mclndoo was 
 united in marriage with Charlotte Graham, a 
 native of that place, and the daughter of James 
 Graham, a blacksmith and carriage manufacturer, 
 now residing in Fresno. They are the parents 
 of three children : Edith, Ivan Carter and Clari- 
 bel. Fraternally Mr. Mclndoo is associated 
 witn the Masons, havine been made a member 
 of this organization in Wmgham, Ontario, and 
 is now a Royal Arch Mason, belonging to the 
 lodge in Fresno. Both himself and wife are 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
 politically Mr. Mclndoo is a stanch Republican. 
 In the line of his business he belongs to the 
 Milkmen's Association. 
 
 J. B. CHINN was born in Kentucky Novem- 
 ber 29, 1830, a son of Joel H. and Caroline 
 (Blackwell) Chinn. The grandfather, John 
 Chinn, was a native of Virginia, of English de- 
 scent. Later in life he removed to Kentucky, 
 locating near Lexington, where he engaged in 
 general farming. He married a Miss Higgins 
 and became the father of eighteen children. Be- 
 ing a great believer in education he did much 
 for his family in that direction. He was an 
 ardent admirer of Henry Clay. The father of 
 our subject was engaged in the manufacture of 
 hemp; and also carried on farming. In 1852 he 
 moved to Missouri and followed farming until 
 his death, in 1874, being seventy-three years of 
 age. He was the father of nine children, J. B. 
 being the eldest of the family. 
 
 J. B. Chinn was reared in Kentucky and at 
 the age of sixteen began teaching, which voca- 
 tion he followed for nearly four years, mean- 
 while spending some time in St. Louis and two 
 winters in the Gulf states, returning from the 
 south in the spring of 1850. In September fol- 
 lowing he matriculated as a student in Bethany 
 College, in Virginia, of which Alexander Camp- 
 bell was president, and pursued his collegiate 
 studies until the beginning of 1854. On' the 
 first of Mav of that year he started across the 
 plains in company with four other young men, 
 bringing through some twenty-five head of se- 
 lected horses. The trip was a long and trying 
 one, each man in the party being compelled to 
 stand guard every night two hours to protect 
 
 the stock. Finally, having had one Indian figiit 
 on the Humboldt, they arrived at Sacramento 
 September 15. After casting about for awhile 
 J. B. Chinn accepted a position as teacher in San 
 Jose, taught out the term, and February 4. 1855, 
 left for what was then thought to be a great 
 mining field, the Kern river. He and Wharton 
 M. Moore, a college chum, fitted up with provi- 
 sions and mining outfit, rockers, long toms, etc., 
 and leaving San Jose, passed through the Pacheco 
 Pass into the tljen seemingly limitless San Joa- 
 quin valley. Crossing Kings river near Visalia, 
 they passed on by where is now the beautiful 
 village of Portersville, and down to Posey creek 
 at the base of the Sierra, on which stream they 
 mined for two days, getting from $1 to $2 per 
 day. At this place the range was crossed to 
 Kern river. Gold could be found in many places 
 in small quantities, but not in quantities to jus- 
 tify working. 
 
 After an interesting trip through an uninhab- 
 ited region, abounding in wild horses, bear, elk, 
 deer, antelope and Indians they arrived at San 
 Jose May i. On the third of the same month 
 Mr. Chinn left for Iowa Hill, Placer county, 
 where the summer was spent in fluming the 
 American river. The venture was unsuccessful 
 and in February, 1856, he took charge of the 
 school in Butte county and taught without ces- 
 sation in Oroville and Yolo county until Novem- 
 ber, 1861, at which time he went to the famous 
 Ccmstock silver lode. For several years he was 
 engaged in the lumber business and subsequently 
 carried on farming in Carson valley, and was 
 among the first in the then territory to plant al- 
 falfa. In 1867, when the Overland Railroad had 
 penetrated the heart of the Sierra, he located on 
 the same and engaged in the wood and lumber 
 business for twenty-two consecutive years, a busi- 
 ness which proved to be very lucrative. Mean- 
 while, in 1884, he interested himself in a fruit and 
 cattle ranch near Vacaville, in which he beguiled 
 himself during the winter months when lumbering 
 could not be carried on. The railroad got the 
 lion's share of the profits, and it is his belief it 
 has continued to get it during the long interven- 
 ing years. Much money was spent fruitlessly, 
 as many another man in the same calling, fruit- 
 raising, would testify. Being tired of working 
 for carriers and middlemen, and having heard 
 of the resources of Tulare county, he went to 
 Portersville in 1887, and engaged in alfalfa and 
 cattle raising and general farming. He has en- 
 joyed life in the exploiting of the great resources 
 of this county. 
 
 ^ Though verging on to seventy-five years Mr. 
 Chinn is still active in the details of his business 
 and alive to every move looking to the better- 
 ment of the community in which he lives. He 
 is one of those who believe that employment is 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1633 
 
 only another name of enjoyment. Religiously 
 he is a believer in the fundamental principles 
 set forth in the sacred oracles, and that the ad- 
 herence to them builds up the best and highest 
 type of civilization. Politically he thinks that all 
 public utilities should be used for the benefit of 
 the people, and not for a few persons. 
 
 LEVI HUNT. The name of Levi Hunt is as- 
 sociated with all that is honorable and progres- 
 sive in the ranching vicinity of Bakersfield, where 
 he owns sixty acres of land on the Kern Island 
 canal, and is engaged in horticulture and stock- 
 raising. Comparatively speaking he is a new 
 comer to the vicinity, having arrived in 1899 to 
 pasture stock raised on his ranch in San Luis 
 Obispo county. So favorably impressed was he 
 with the advantages at the disposal of the rancher 
 of Kern county that he bought his ranch a year 
 later, after disposing of the majority of his large 
 herd. Naturally, he found many improvements 
 on the property, but he is a progressive and wide- 
 awake man, and the next few years will doubt- 
 less see many modern changes as the direct re- 
 sult of his investigation and advancement. 
 
 Mr. Hunt has spent all but nine years of his 
 life in California and he comes of one of the 
 pioneer families of 1852 which added brawn 
 and useful endeavor to the unsettled conditions 
 of that time. Born in Gentry county, Mo., Oc- 
 tober 5, 1841, he is a son of John Hunt, a native 
 of Ohio, a natural mechanic, and who for many 
 years was an engineer on boats plying the Mis- 
 souri and Mississippi rivers. Mr. Hunt brought 
 his family overland in 1852 with wagons and 
 ox-teams, and after a journey of five months 
 settled at Petaluma, Sonoma county, and ran a 
 blacksmith shop for a couple of years. He then 
 removed north to Oregon, remained a year, and 
 upon returning to California took up his resi- 
 dence in Monterey county, where he operated a 
 blacksmith shop for many years. His next home 
 was near Watsonville, and in 1882 he settled 
 near Rio Grande, San Luis Obispo county, and 
 ran a shop until selling out in 1900. Mr. Hunt 
 then came to live with his son, Levi, where he 
 still makes his home, and where, at the age 
 of eighty-six, he still finds pleasure and profit in 
 the carrying on a small blacksmith shop. His 
 wife, a native of Kentucky, shared his uphill 
 early fortunes and later prosperity, and reared 
 his four sons to be conscientious and capable 
 men. Mrs. Hunt lived to be seventy-seven years 
 of age. 
 
 Until his twenty-first year Levi Hunt re- 
 mained in his father's home, but much earlier 
 than that learned the miller's trade, at which he 
 ' worked in San Luis Obispo county for about ten 
 years. In Santa Cruz county he married Miss 
 
 Frances Haynes, a native of Chili, South Ameri- 
 ca, and six children have been born of the 
 union. The oldest son, Edward, owns a paying 
 mine known as the Rocky Mountain Mine, near 
 Randsburg, in which his father has an interest; 
 George holds the responsible position of cattle 
 boss on the Ta Jone ranch, Kern county ; Albert 
 is part owner of the mine with his brother Ed- 
 ward. Ida is the wife of William Branch, a 
 rancher of this county; Alice is the wife of Mr. 
 Collins, a plumber and gas fitter of Kern City; 
 and Fannie is living at home. 
 
 Giving up his trade in San Luis Obispo coun- 
 ty, Mr. Hunt engaged in the cattle business there, 
 owning sometimes as high as five hundred head. 
 During the dry season of 1899 he came here to 
 pasture his cattle, with the result that he has be- 
 come one ' of the most promising ranchers of 
 the vicinity of Bakersfield. He takes pardonable 
 interest in the politics of his neighborhood, vot- 
 ing the Republican ticket, but stanchly refusing 
 official recognition. Fraternally he is a Mason. 
 
 HON. JAMES NULL WALKER. One of 
 the pioneers of the San Joaquin valley, and a man 
 who has ever had the interests of the people at 
 heart, is James Null Walker, who was born 
 February 7, 1829, in DeSoto, Mo., a son of 
 William G. and Elizabeth (Null)' Walker, 
 the former a native of Tennessee and the 
 latter of Missouri, whose parents came 
 to that state from Pennsylvania. William 
 C. Walker settled in Missouri in 1824 and en- 
 gaged in the stock business on an extensive 
 scale, marketing his stock in New Orleans. 
 James Null Walker comes from sturdy German 
 parentage and was reared on a farm and re- 
 ceived his education in the subscription schools. 
 He early became interested in the handling of 
 stock. At the age of fifteen he was sent to New 
 Orleans in charge of his father's stock, and as 
 he grew older was taken into partnership with 
 him and became prominent as a drover in the 
 southern city. He made his last trip to that city 
 in 1849 and his share of the proceeds en- 
 abled him to purchase an outfit to come to Cali- 
 fornia, which he did in 1850, making the long 
 trip overland with ox-teams and arriving in Sac- 
 ramento in August of that year. He followed 
 mining in Grass valley and also in Mariposa 
 county, and engaged in merchandising in Coarse 
 Gold Gulch, Fresno county, conducting a large, 
 business with the^ miners and extending credit, 
 so that in i860, when the mines gave out, he had 
 to close out the business at a heavy loss. He 
 then embarked in ranching at Fine Gold and in 
 1863 went to the foothills. He purchased cattle 
 at $4 per head to stock his range there. In 1867 
 he located on his present place on the north side 
 
1634 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the San Joaquin river in what is now Madera 
 county. He has a fine place, well improved and 
 devoted to the raising of cattle and alfalfa. A 
 meadow one and a quarter miles by a half mile, 
 is a special feature, being one of the best in the 
 valley. He has added from time to time until 
 he now owns thirteen hundred acres on the river. 
 His first stock venture was in raising mules, 
 after which he engaged in the sheep business for 
 twelve years, and since then has devoted his 
 time almost exclusively to the cattle business. He 
 also owns one hundred and sixty acres set to 
 vines near Malaga and one year's yield gave him 
 one hundred and forty-eight tons of raisins. As 
 he has prospered in his business ventures he has 
 gained the confidence of his fellow townsmen and 
 in 1861 was elected to the state legislature and 
 served two terms. In 1866 he was elected sher- 
 iff of Fresno county and served one term, was 
 re-elected for a second term without opposition, 
 and refused a third term. In 1870 he was again 
 elected to the state legislature and served one 
 term. 
 
 In Fresno county Mr. Walker was united in 
 marriage vifith Agnes Cranmer, a native of Cala- 
 veras county, Cal., and they have had seven chil- 
 dren : Clarence ; J. N. ; William ; Belle, the wife 
 of D. S. Jones ; Sallie, the wife of John Patten ; 
 Addie ; and Minfer, all residents of the San Joa- 
 quin valley. Mr. Walker was made a member 
 of Lodge No. 186, I. O. O. F. of Millerton, then 
 transferred to Fresno, but is not an active mem- 
 ber. In politics a Democrat, he has served offi- 
 cially, and it is said by his friends that as sheriff 
 of the county he was the best official the county 
 ever had. 
 
 In looking over the past Mr. Walker calls to 
 mind the condition of the country when he first 
 came to the San Joaquin valley. The settlers of 
 that period are nearly all gone, and he is one of 
 five men now left of the early settlers of Fresno 
 county. The friends of Mr. Walker have taken 
 pleasure in according him a place in the annals 
 of the state that has claimed him as a resident 
 for over half a century. 
 
 LINDSAY PARKER TIMMINS. Born Oc- 
 tober 8, 1864, near Ottawa, Canada, Lindsay 
 Parker Timmins is a son of John and Margaret 
 (Donnelly) Timmins, who are living on a farm 
 near Ottawa ; the former a native of La Shute, 
 is a son of Andrew Timmins, who was born in 
 the north of Ireland of English ancestry, set- 
 tled in the Province of Quebec and later removed 
 to a farm near Ottawa, where he died. John 
 Timmins was a member of the town council in 
 earlier days, and in his religious views is a 
 Methodist. L. P. Timmins is the fifth child in 
 a family of eleven children, nine of whom are 
 
 living. He was educated in the district and high 
 schools and learned the blacksmith's trade on 
 the home farm. In 1881 he went to Michigan 
 and the same year to Minnesota. Deciding to 
 come to CaHfornia, in 1882 he made the trip and 
 settled in Fresno county, where he found em- 
 ployment on a ranch near Fowler, then ran a 
 derrick fork on a thresher in the season of '83, 
 and that fall began work at his trade in Fres- 
 no. He conducted a successful business until 
 1886, when he sold out and engaged in getting 
 out logs by contract for Judge Donohoo and 
 later for Musick & Son. This he followed until 
 1892. In the meantime in 1887 he had married, 
 in Fresno, Emm^a Studor, a native of Yonkers, 
 N. Y. In 1892 Mr. Timmins purchased a ranch 
 of twenty acres on Blackstone avenue, which he 
 set out in vineyard. January, 1893, he was ap- 
 pointed outside deputy under sheriff Scott, and 
 gave his entire time to the performance of the 
 duties of that position for six years. The fall 
 before Mr. Scott took the office, Sontag and Ev- 
 ans had committed their several crimes, and were 
 still at large. The incoming officer took up the 
 hunt, which terminated in the fight at Stone Cor- 
 rall, by the Fresno posse. Mr. Timmins having 
 originated the plan of capture, was detained from 
 being present by the Heath case then on trial, 
 and where considerable courage was a necessity 
 as feeling ran high and revolvers were drawn 
 several times. That evening with a comrade, 
 Mr. Timmins left for Stone Corrall, where the 
 fight had taken place. Sontag had received sev- 
 en wounds, from the effects of which he after- 
 ward died, and Evans was very badly wounded. 
 Not making the capture the desperadoes made 
 their way to the ranch of E. H. Perkins in Wil- 
 cox valley and sent Mr. Perkins' son tO' Visalia 
 with an offer of surrender if the reward would 
 be equally divided with Mrs. Evans. When the 
 Fresno officers left Visalia the officers of that 
 city refused to go into the mountains as they had 
 already lost so many men, but they agreed to 
 watch Evans' house in case he should go back 
 there. When the offer to surrender reached 
 them they could not withstand the temptation of 
 a capture and securing fast teams, passed the 
 Fresno men v^ho also increased their speed and 
 arrived as the others entered the room, where the 
 robbers were staying. Jay Scott's advice being 
 heeded that night prevented bloodshed between 
 the rival posses. Sontag died in the county jail, 
 and Evans afterward made his escape with the 
 aid of Murello, an ex-convict, who was employed 
 at the restaurant that furnished meals to Evans. 
 This was done by the ruse of a suspected train 
 hold-up at Goshen. Mr. Timmins and the other 
 deputies went to the scene, during which time 
 Evans and Murello escaped to the mountains. 
 Pursuit was made at once and continued day and ' 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1635 
 
 night, the party gradually lessening to Timmins, 
 Henry and Peck, who determined to effect the 
 capture or give up their lives in the attempt. 
 They persistently followed and searched the 
 mountains, swimming the streams and exposing 
 themselves many times to the outlaws, who knew 
 the mountains and were in advance, until after 
 two months when -the cabin was reached and set 
 on fire, and then a running fire and chase began 
 towards the plains, and, Visalia being reached, 
 they found their men had surrendered about 
 thirty minutes before. The criminals were sen- 
 tenced for life, and Evans frequently stated that 
 Murello had drawn a bead on Mr. Timmins sev- 
 eral times as they passed them hidden in the 
 bushes, but was induced by Evans to spare his 
 life as he had been kind to him while a prisoner 
 and was attentive to his children when they came 
 to see him. During his terms in office the Dil- 
 wood and James gangs were run down, about 
 fifteen receiving sentence. Also the Saunders 
 case, in which Mr. Timmins secured the evidence 
 which caused conviction. In 1899 he left the 
 sheriff's office and entered the police department 
 as a private detective and specfal officer. Febru- 
 ary, 1901, he was appointed deputy United States 
 marshal of the southern district of California, by 
 H. Z. Ozborne, of Los Angeles, having under-his 
 charge the following counties in the northern di- 
 vision of that district: Merced, Madera, Mari- 
 posa, Fresno, Kings, Tulare, Kern and Inyo, dis- 
 charging the duties of his office without favor. 
 He stands high in the esteem of his superiors 
 and the citizens of Fresno. 
 
 By his marriage three children have been born, 
 Mabel Margaret, Claude Walter and Alice. Mr. 
 Timmins is a member and past master workman 
 of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and 
 also belongs to the Modern Woodmen of Ameri- 
 ca and the Knights of the Maccabees. He is a 
 Republican and a member of the Fresno Chamber 
 of Commerce. In all matters that have had for 
 their object the advancement of the county, Mr. 
 Timmins has been a liberal supporter. In the 
 pursuit of his duties he has sho_wn himself a 
 fearless officer and by his kindly manners has 
 gathered about him a host of friends. 
 
 A. C. MAUDE, who, at the time of his death, 
 September 27, 1904, was an esteemed citizen of 
 Bakersfield, Kern county, was born in Derby- 
 shire, England, August 13, 1839. In the spring 
 of 1859, when nearly twenty years of age, he 
 caine to the United States, landing in Boston, 
 where he followed any occupation that offered an 
 honest livelihood. Upon the outbreak of the 
 Civil war, he gave his services and was employed 
 in various capacities, but did not regularly en- 
 list until August, 1863, when he became sergeant 
 
 of Company B, Seventeenth New York \'eteran 
 Volunteers. When in front of Atlanta, under 
 Sherman, in July of 1864, he was promoted to 
 be second lieutenant. He was with his regiment 
 in Virginia, then down the Mississippi, and from 
 Vicksburg to Meridian and return, up the Red 
 river with the Banks expedition, then with Sher- 
 man to Atlanta, later helped to head off General 
 Flood, then on to the sea, from there through 
 North Carolina, and finally, in July of 1865, after 
 the Grand Review, received an honorable dis- 
 charge at Washington. 
 
 At the close of the war Mr. Maude entered 
 the freight office of the Rensselaer & Saratoga 
 Railroad Company, at Green Island, N. Y., but 
 soon went to Richmond, Va., where he worked 
 in the sutler's department, and thence to Jack- 
 son, Miss., where he became a post trader and 
 army sutler, later following the same occupation 
 in Tennessee and Louisville, Ky., during the re- 
 construction period, in connectiouv, with the Sev- 
 enth Cavalry and Fourth Infantry. His work 
 took him at different times to all the military 
 posts between Natchez and Louisville. On the 
 abandonment of the reconstruction policy and the 
 disbanding of the army, he came west, stopping 
 meanwhile at different posts. He came to what 
 is now Bakersfield in July of 1872, and took up 
 government land six miles away, on what is now 
 Bellevue ranch, engaging there in ranching and 
 general stock pursuits. In 1874 he sold his prop- 
 erty for $4,000 to J. B. Haggin, who afterward 
 sold it to the Kern County Land Company. 
 
 From 1875 to 1879 Mr. Maude was engaged 
 in the real estate and insurance business. During 
 the latter year he purchased the Weekly Calif or- 
 nian, and in 1880 established a daily edition of 
 the paper, the first daily newspaper to be estab- 
 lished in Kern county, managing and owning the 
 same until the spring of 1882, when he sold out. 
 Subsequently he conducted a real estate and in- 
 surance business, although meanwhile he had 
 other interests, especially from 1894 to 1902, 
 when he owned and published the Kern Stand- 
 ard of Kern City. At various times he erected 
 buildings in Bakersfield, and the destruction of 
 some of these in the great fire of July, 1889, 
 entailed upon him a loss of $30,000. In Bakers- 
 field he married Miss Helen E. Lechner, who 
 was born in Indiana, and they became the par- 
 ents of three children, Harry E., an employe of 
 the Southern Pacific Railway Company; Sarah 
 Flelen and Martha M., who are students in the 
 Bakersfield schools. 
 
 Upon the organization of the local lodge of 
 the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks Mr. 
 Maude became one of its charter members, and 
 he was also connected with the Masonic frater- 
 nity. He was ever a stanch Republican, active 
 in the political life of every community where 
 
1636 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he made his home. For fifteen years he served 
 as United States commissioner, and for twenty 
 years acted as a notary public. He was inter- 
 ested in educational matters and served on the 
 school bpard for one term. The death of a city 
 trustee, T. E. Harding, in November, 1902, caus- 
 ing a vacancy on the board, he was appointed 
 to fill the same, and in April, 1903, was duly 
 elected to the office. As chairman and secretary 
 of the Republican County Central Committee at 
 various times he was enabled to do effective 
 work for his party, especially during campaigns 
 and at elections. For six years he was a mem- 
 ber of the Republican State Central Committee. 
 At his death Mr. Maude left many friends as he 
 was held in high esteem by all with whom he had 
 had either business or social relations. 
 
 JAMES FRIKKA. While the identification 
 of Mr. Frikka with the citizenship of California 
 covers a comparatively brief period only, he has 
 established a reputation for honesty and energy 
 among his neighbors in Fresno county and con- 
 ducts with characteristic thrift the property on 
 which he has established his home. The date of 
 his arrival in California was 1874, but he came 
 then as a prospector rather than as a permanent 
 settler, and during the following years he had 
 many interesting experiences in the mines of 
 northern California. When he came to the coast 
 the second time it was in company with his fam- 
 ily and with the intention of establishing a per- 
 manent home m the west. Since then he has 
 operated a very large tract of land situated seven 
 miles east of Clovis, where he is engaged in 
 raising wheat and barley. In the cultivation of 
 his lands he uses three ten-horse teams and the 
 work of harvesting the crops is carried forward 
 by means of a combined harvester requiring 
 thirty head of horses. 
 
 The native land of Mr. Frikka is Denmark, 
 and he was born at Dalby, Jutland, Jyllarid, Oc- 
 tober 18, 1848, being a son of Hans and Maria 
 (Randoup) Larseh, natives respectively of 
 Schleswig and Jylland. He was one of two 
 sons, his brother, George, being a farmer in the 
 state of Washington. His father served as a 
 soldier in the Danish army during the struggle 
 of 1848 and later engaged in the milling busi- 
 ness at Kolding, where both he and his wife died 
 at the age of seventy-two years. In religion 
 they were faithful members of the Lutheran 
 Church. At the time of removing to Kolding 
 their son, James, was a youth of eighteen years, 
 strong, alert, energetic and well educated in the 
 Danish language. With a view to improving 
 his opportunities, in 1873 he crossed the ocean 
 to America. After a year at Oxford, N. J., he 
 came to the Pacific coast find spent five years in 
 
 the mines of California. During 1879 he went 
 to Arizona, where he was engaged as shift boss 
 for the Tombstone Milling and Mining Com- 
 pany. On resigning that position, in 1884 he re- 
 turned to the home of his boyhood, where he 
 enjoyed a visit amid the scenes familiar to him 
 from his earliest recollections. After a year at 
 the old home he returned to his former position 
 in Tombstone, Ariz. In a few months, how- 
 ever, he went back to Denmark and purchased 
 a hotel and farm at Bramdrop. In addition to 
 managing the hotel he conducted the farm, but 
 later sold that place and bought another farm. 
 An experience of some years in Denmark proved 
 not altogether profitable nor congenial, and in 
 the fall of 1902 he again came to the new world, 
 this time to cast his fortunes with the agricultur- 
 ists of California. Shortly after his arrival in 
 Fresno county he, leased the ranch of D. C. Sam- 
 ple, comprising twenty-three hundred acres, and 
 on this immense tract he has since conducted 
 extensive farm operations. In all of his plans he 
 has the co-operation of his wife, who was Chris- 
 tine Peterson, a native of Bramdrop, Denmark, 
 and the two labor in sympathy and with cease- 
 less energy in order to secure good advantages 
 for their children and establish the family for- 
 tunes upon a substantial basis. Both are earnest 
 members of the Lutheran Church and give to 
 movements for the religious upbuilding of their 
 community. In fraternal matters Mr. Frikka 
 holds membership with the Independent Order 
 of Odd Fellows. Devoted to the welfare of his 
 adopted country, he may always be found upon 
 the side of progress, justice and religion. Of 
 his children the eldest, Maria, is the wife of 
 James Thompson of Enterprise, and the others, 
 Carrie, Hans, Johanna and Andrew, remain with 
 their parents on the home farm. 
 
 O. IT. P. DUNCAN. As a pioneer citizen of 
 worth and ability, O. H. P. Duncan is remem- 
 bered by all and honored for the qualities which 
 distinguished his manhood. He was born in Illi- 
 nois October 16, 1836, and when only sixteen 
 years old started across the plains to California. 
 Through a gainful and severe accident — the 
 breaking of his thigh— he was .compelled to re- 
 main a year in Salt Lake City. The following 
 year he came on to California and went to min- 
 ing in Placerville. After four years of this life 
 he came to Tulare county and engaged in the 
 sheep business, and the following year (1858) he 
 bought eighty acres of land on Deep creek. 
 After his marriage, which occurred in Decem- 
 ber, i860, he located on his wife's land, five 
 miles east of Visalia, removing in 1866 to that 
 city while he served as deputy sheriflf. In 1867 
 he went to Kings river, near Kingston, and 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1637 
 
 homesteader] one hundred and sixt)' acres and 
 bought eighty acres adjoining, making that loca- 
 tion his home until the spring of 1872. He then 
 moved to Lemon Cove and bought all of the 
 land, seven hundred and forty acres, which he 
 sold in 1874, then located in Springville. He 
 there purchased eighty acres, including the hotel 
 and springs, and engaged in stock-raising for 
 two years. In December, 1876, he went to the 
 South Tule distiict and bought one hundred and 
 sixty acres and pre-empted a like number, and 
 also secured eighty acres from the railway com- 
 pany. This continued to be his home until his 
 death, which occurred in June, 1889, after a long 
 and lingering illness following a paralytic stroke. 
 Mr. Duncan's widow was in maidenhood Ma- 
 tilda Swanson, a native of Peru, La Salle county, 
 111., where she was born February 20, 1843. Her 
 father, John Swanson, was a native of Union 
 county, Ind., who came to Illinois and located in 
 Putnam county, where he conducted a flour mill. 
 Later he engaged in farming, in 1850 crossing 
 the plains to California by meari^s of ox teams. 
 Upon his arrival he engaged in mining in Eldo- 
 rado county until the following year, when he 
 returned east for his family, which he brought 
 back in 1852. They left their home in the Prairie 
 state March 5, ancl arrived in Placerville in Au- 
 gust. There the father engaged in mining for 
 a time, in the same year locating at Knights 
 Ferry on Stanislaus river, where he conducted 
 a store in conjunction with his mining opera- 
 tions. He eventually went to Suisun City, So- 
 lano county, and took up land, which he found 
 was a Spanish grant, so in June, 1854, he lo- 
 cated near Visalia, Tulare county, where he 
 bought four hundred and eighty acres of land. 
 Later he added two hundred acres of school land, 
 and in 1858 bought the seven hundred and forty 
 acres which comprise Lemon Cove. He there 
 built the Lemon Cove ditch and did much toward 
 the development and upbuilding of this section. 
 The freshet of 1861 and '62 washed out every- 
 thing in this section, and he afterward sold the 
 property. His death occurred in August, 1863. 
 His wife, formerly Hannah Sherman, of Ohio, 
 also died near Visalia. After the death of her 
 husband, Mrs. Duncan, to whom all the prop- 
 erty was deeded, took charge of the land and 
 conducted it for a time, finally disposing of all 
 but one hundred and twelve acres, which is de- 
 voted to general farming and stock-raising. To 
 .herself and husband were born the following 
 children : John W., of Portersville ; Oliver K. ; 
 Qara V. ; May M. ; Pelham ; Rey M. ; Ada I., 
 the wife of D. Pratt, of the North district; 
 Hayne ; and Claude. Four children are deceased, 
 Oliver K., Clara V., May M. and Hayne. The 
 others are located in the vicinity of their child- 
 hood's home, while Claude is living with his 
 
 mother and caring for the home property. ]\Ir. 
 Duncan was always active in the counsels of the 
 Democratic party. 
 
 When Mrs. Duncan first came to Tulare coun- 
 ty the Indians were very troublesoriie and had 
 massacred many of the settlers. They were met 
 at Kaweah Bridge and at Woodville by Indians, 
 who told_them not to cross. Her father traded 
 and made friends with them, so they came on to 
 Cameron creek. She learned the Indian lan- 
 guage and for some years the Indians were her 
 only playmates. In 1855, on one of her trips to 
 the Indian camp all the squaws were gone, and 
 shortly afterward a:i Indian girl came to see her 
 and told her that the Indians were going to kill 
 all the white people. In a panic the little white 
 pioneer girl ran with the news to older people, 
 and thus the settlers of that section escaped, the 
 Tulare county Indian war following. She lias 
 witnessed great changes during her long resi- 
 dence in the west and has taken an active part, 
 with her husband, in the progress and develop- 
 ment of this section. 
 
 EDWARD E. BUSH. The industrial history 
 of Hanford lies parallel to and absorbs the life 
 history of Edward E. Bush. This leading real es- 
 tate man of Kings county, who has probably done 
 more to stimulate varied activity in this particu- 
 lar part of the state than any other single agenc}, 
 and who is widely known as the organizer of 
 the Hanford Abstract Company, organizer and 
 manager of the Hanford Gas & Power Company, 
 hardware merchant, oil promoter, developer of 
 extensive vineyards, and all-around successful 
 business man, has been a resident of this section 
 since his fifth year, and at one time used to 
 drive cattle over the desert upon which Hanford 
 has since risen to importance. He was born at 
 Waukon, Allamakee county, Iowa, June 25, 
 1859, a son of Moses D. Bush, whose association 
 with the pioneer industries of Kings county fur- 
 nished a notable example of industry, public 
 spirit, and the old fashioned virtues of kindness, 
 generosity and humanity. 
 
 Moses D. Bush was born and reared on a Hud- 
 son river farm in New York state, and, being 
 left an orphan at the age of nine, was obliged 
 to early assume the responsibility of self-support. 
 When grown to maturity he went west to the 
 shores of Lake Michigan, and where Chicago 
 now astonishes the world purchased a hundred 
 and sixty acres of land, upon which he lived and 
 ran a boarding house for a few years. From 
 Chicago he returned east and married Emily E. 
 Randall, and upon his return located in Allama- 
 kee county, Iowa, where he helped to survey the 
 boundary line of the state, and subsequently prac- 
 ticed surveving in connection with the cultiva- 
 
1638 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tion of a large farm. In 1864 he came over- 
 land to California, and after running a small 
 foundry at San Jose for three years, sold out and 
 came to what is now Kings county and took up 
 land upon which the town of Lemoore now 
 stands. When the railroad made the town a 
 possibility he removed to an adjoining quarter- 
 section and engaged in farming and stock-rais- 
 ing with great success, at the same time exert- 
 ing his influence to acquire for himself and 
 neighbors the advantages enjoyed by the agri- 
 culturists in the settled commrinities of the east. 
 When he first arrived in the county Samuel 
 Wright and H. F. Bicknell were the only other 
 settlers, a few stock-raisers temporarily availing 
 themselves of the grazing advantages, completing 
 the inhabitants. Mr. Bush became enthusiastic 
 in praise of the county, and was the means of 
 inducing many emigrants to settle within its 
 boundaries. As an inducement he allowed them 
 to live on his farm without pay until such time 
 as they could investigate and select a place of 
 residence, in the meantime sharing his vegetables 
 and grain with them, and otherwise holding out 
 encouragement and assistance. With four or five 
 others he started the first ditch in Kings county, 
 taking water from Kings river ; and when the 
 lower Kings river ditch company was organ- 
 ized he was one of the foremost of its promoters, 
 sharing with the other settlers the labor of dig- 
 ging the ditch with shovels, and with them re- 
 ceiving compensation by taking stock in the new 
 enterprise. He lived on his second farm until 
 1879, when he located on four hundred acres 
 eight miles south of Hanford in the Lakeside 
 district, and engaged in farming and dairying. 
 In 1884 he sold his farm and retired from active 
 life in Haniord, where his death occurred No- 
 vember 16, 1893, at the age of seventy-six years. 
 Politically he was a Democrat, and though never 
 an office seeker, held a number of local offices. 
 His wife, who survived him until eighty-two 
 years of age, and who spent her last years with 
 her son, Edward E., was a member of the Ad- 
 ventist Church, which he attended but never 
 joined. But two or three men who shared with 
 him the rigors- of the crude pioneer days are liv- 
 ing at the present time, but these are loud in 
 their praise of his honesty, his unselfishness and 
 his practical common sense. 
 
 When his family came to Tulare, or what is 
 now liings county, Edward E. Bush was eight 
 years old, and it may be imagined his educational 
 and other opportunities were extremely limited. 
 He distinctly recalls walking five miles to the 
 nearest school house, over plains covered with 
 wild cattle, and of assisting with the clearing of 
 the farm as soon as his strength permitted. In 
 1 88 1 he started on an independent farming enter- 
 prise, but the following year came to Hanford 
 
 and started a livery business on a small scale. 
 He was successful in the latter capacity, in- 
 creased his equipment and trade and disposed of 
 his business in 1890 at a gratifying profit. From 
 then until the present time he has been engaged 
 in a real estate business in Hanford and vicinity, 
 and has probabl)' held out greater inducements 
 to settlers than any other man similarly employed 
 in the county. He has never stopped to consider 
 the cost of any departure calculated to make this 
 county a pleasant and profitable place in which 
 to live, and has often advanced or given money 
 when the requisite funds were not forthcoming. 
 This tendency on his part was particularly no- 
 ticeable when the question of extending the 
 Santa Fe Railroad from Fresno to the Kern 
 county line arose, and it was principally owing 
 to the generosity and untiring zeal of Mr. Bush 
 that Hanford was able to profit by the passing 
 through of the road. 
 
 At an early stage of the country's develop- 
 ment Mr. Bush ascertained its particular adapta- 
 bility to vine growing, and after most satisfac- 
 tory experiments, started, in 1889, the Del Monte 
 Vineyard Company, which set out one hundred 
 and sixty acres in vines and trees. In 1890 he 
 organized the Banner Vineyard Company, which 
 purchased three hundred and twenty acres, set 
 the land out in vines and trees, and disposed of 
 It the same year. A few months later he bought 
 the Grangeville Vineyard of one hundred and 
 sixty acres, set out vines and sold the second 
 year. About the same time he bought a section 
 of land in the Foster section, half of which he 
 set out in vines and sold to P. McRae, in 1891 
 planting the other half and disposing of it to 
 the Ormona Orchard & Vineyard Company. In 
 the fall of 1891 he went to Butte, Mont., and 
 organized the Silver Bar Vineyard & Orchard 
 Company, set out two hundred and forty acres 
 in orchard and vineyard, and disposed of entire 
 to the company. In the spring of 1892 he set 
 out half a section of land in prunes and peaches 
 near Butte City, went into partnership with seven 
 other men, the same year inducing eastern men 
 of capital to come west and purchase the prop- 
 erty. In 1890 he purchased and platted the Red- 
 dmgton Addition of forty lots in Hanford, and 
 soon after bought an additional twenty acres in 
 the northern part of the town, platted half of it, 
 and has since seen it develop into the most exclu- 
 sive residence section of the city. Another 
 twenty acres was purchased in the town about 
 the same time, and sold in one tract. 
 
 Mr. Bush's active interest in oil began in the 
 early '90s, and in 1896 he organized the ConsoH- 
 dated Oil & Development Company with a capi- 
 tal stock of $100,000. The company bought a 
 section of land in the Kroyenhagen district sank 
 a well and found oil, but not a producer' He 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1639 
 
 then organized the Caribou Oil Company in the 
 Coahnga country for $100,000, became superin- 
 tendent and manager of the same, and with C. 
 C. and W. A. Spinks bought a section of land 
 in Kings covuity. A portion of this land was 
 afterward sold to the Peerless Oil Company, 
 eighty acres to the Merced Oil Company, and 
 eighty acres to the Great Northern Oil Com- 
 pany. The land still owned by the original com- 
 pany has five wells in operation and is yielding 
 its promoters a handsome yearly income. In the 
 Kern River country Mr. Bush organized the 
 Provident Oil Company, with a capital stock 
 of $200,000, developed sixty acres in oil, but sus- 
 pended operations owing to cheap oil. He also 
 organized the McFadden Oil & Mining Com- 
 pany with a capital stock of $100,000, put down 
 a weh, and, although operations have since been 
 suspended, the company retains possession of the 
 land. In both of these companies Mr. Bush owns 
 a controlling interest. A still more ambitious 
 effort at oil production was his organization of 
 the Del Rev Oil Company for $1,000,000, the 
 company owning four hundred acres, forty of 
 which are in the heart of the Kern river field. 
 Seven producing wells are the result of this 
 combination of capital, and during the develop- 
 ment of the wells Mr. Bush was superintendent 
 and general manager, and still owns stock in the 
 company, as well as hundreds of acres of unde- 
 veloped lands in the same world-famed locality. 
 While his coal interests have been on a com- 
 paratively small scale, Mr. Bush has been instru- 
 mental in interesting many in this future great 
 resource of the county. In 1898 he organized the 
 Del Monte Coal Company, which developed coal 
 lands in the western part of the county, but 
 owing to exorbitant shipment rates was obliged 
 to suspend operations. 
 
 The Hanford Abstract Company was organ- 
 ized with a paid up capital of $10,000, and since 
 November, 1901, Mr. Bush has been superintend- 
 ent and manager, at the same time owning a 
 controlling interest in the stock. He has been 
 directly concerned with the majority of the im- 
 provements which have marked the growth of 
 Hanford from a village to a thriving industrial 
 community, one of his most noteworthy efforts 
 having been in connection with supplying the 
 town with gas. With four stockholders he or- 
 ganized the Hanford Gas & Power Company, of 
 which he is secretary and general manager, and 
 which company has erected one of the finest 
 plants in the state of California at a cost of 
 $60,000. The plant has been running for about 
 seven months, and during that time has demon- 
 strated its utility and money-making advantages. 
 Although a stanch Democrat, Mr. Bush' has in- 
 variably refused official recognition, but has 
 
 served as secretary of the last central commit- 
 tee, and has been a delegate to numerous con- 
 ventions. In the fall of 1892 he was one of 
 those most interested in. the division of Kings 
 from Tulare county, generously contributing 
 time and money to secure so manifest an ad- 
 vantage for the settlers of the county. He was 
 appointed a member of the committee on organi- 
 zation by the governor, the other members being 
 S-. E. Biddle, John Malone, W. J. Newport, Will- 
 iam Ogden and G. K. Wendling. 
 
 In Tulare county, December 21, 1884, ^f. 
 Bush was united in marriage with Emma L. 
 Byrd, a native of California, and they have four 
 children : Ruby Pearl, Clarence E., Moses Ly- 
 man and Grover L. Mr. Bush is a welcome 
 member of various fraternal organizations, in- 
 cluding the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
 the Knights of Pythias, and the Independent 
 Order of Foresters. Politically he is a Demo- 
 crat. As a type of the captains of industry who 
 have planted civiHzation in its highest form in 
 the country west of the Rocky Mountains, Mr. 
 Bush is entitled to a place in the remarkable 
 history of a resurrected desert, and the manner 
 in which he has exploited the opportunities of- 
 fered by the state of California may well serve 
 as a model for future commercial, industrial and 
 social advancement. 
 
 GEORGE W. STIMPSON. For some gen- 
 erations the Stimpson family resided in Maine, 
 George Washington Stimpson, Sr., who was a 
 native of that state, removed to Michigan and 
 settled at Cheboygan, where he embarked in the 
 lumbering business. A few years later he re- 
 moved to the present site of Mackinaw, Qieboy- 
 gan county, where, at old Fort Mitchell, had 
 once occurred a terrible Indian massacre. He 
 was the first white man to settle there, built the 
 first house and the wharves, and then began fish- 
 ing, sending out many boats on the lake and 
 employing over one hundred hands. When the 
 fishing season came to an end he engaged in 
 lumbering until the opening of spring again per- 
 mitted the pursuit of his favorite occupation. 
 Along the entire shore of the lake there was no 
 shipper who sent out as large consignments as 
 he, and his success was recognized among all 
 who were familiar with the fishing business. Po- 
 litically he was a Democrat. Elected the first 
 justice of peace in Mackinaw, he held the office 
 until his death, which occurred at sixty-three 
 years of age. During the Civil war he served 
 as a quartermaster-general in the Federal army, 
 his headquarters being at Fortress Monroe. His 
 wife, Elvira A. Pillsbury, was born in New 
 Hampshire of an old family of that state, and 
 now makes her home in Mackinaw, Mich. Of 
 
1640 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 their four sons and two daughters all are living 
 but one son. Of these, George W., Jr., was next 
 to the youngest and is the only one on the Pa- 
 cific coast. He was born in St. Albans, Me., 
 August 15, 1859, ^'^d at seven years of age ac- 
 companied his parents to Cheboygan, Mich., 
 three years later going to Mackinaw with the 
 family. After completing the studies of the 
 public schools he entered the Northern Indiana 
 Normal at Valparaiso, Ind., and after completijig 
 a course of study there took up veterinary sur- 
 gery. In 1880 he matriculated in the Ontario 
 Veterinary College at Toronto, from which he 
 was graduated in 1883, with the highest honors 
 of his class, and the degree of Member of the 
 Ontario College of Veterinary Surgeons. 
 
 Believing Quincy, 111., would offer excellent 
 advantages for his work, Dr. Stimpson settled 
 there, an entire stranger to everyone. Notwith- 
 standing this disadvantage, he soon had estab- 
 lished a valuable practice and won a reputation 
 for skill in veterinary science. The high opinion 
 held of his skill is evidenced by his appointment, 
 unsoHcited, as assistant state veterinarian of Illi- 
 nois ; and is further proved by his credentials 
 from the board of live stock commissioners. 
 After three years of service in the office of as- 
 sistant veterinarian he resigned upon leaving the 
 state. While his practice in Quincy aggregated 
 $9,000 per year, the health of his wife was such 
 that a change of climate seemed imperative, and 
 he therefore brought the family to California in 
 February of 1888. As soon as they were west 
 of the Rockies she commenced to improve and 
 after settling at Oakland soon regained her 
 health. Meanwhile Dr. Stimpson established 
 himself in practice in Oakland, where he built 
 and conducted a hospital for animals on Nine- 
 teenth street and San Pablo avenue. In addition 
 he responded to call from the large ranches in 
 that part of the state and was given the charge 
 also of many fine standard and race horses. 
 After a time, devotion to his practice under- 
 mined his strength and he was obliged to seek 
 a different climate; therefore in February, 1903, 
 came to Fresno, where he is now a leading vet- 
 erinary and also engaged in breeding and raising 
 standard-bred horses. He is the owner of Koh- 
 lan King, ten years old, a Wilkes, Sidney, Strath- 
 more, Hambletonian trotting stallion, combining 
 the greatest blood lines of the present day ; and 
 further owns Kohlan Prince, sired by Kohlan 
 King, five years old, and considered by compe- 
 tent judges without a superior in the west. 
 
 Politically Dr. Stimpson is a Democrat, a be- 
 liever in the principles championed by William 
 Jennings Bryan and a promoter of the same by 
 his influence and ballot. While living in Quincy 
 he married Miss Emma Kibby, who was born 
 in Palmyra, Mo., and by her he has three chil- 
 
 dren, Earl, Ruby and Mildred. His Connection 
 with Masonry dates from his residence in 
 Quincv, when he entered the blue lodge and was 
 raised 'to the Royal Arch degree in Quincy Chap- 
 ter No. 5. Since coming to California he and 
 his wife have been identified with the Order of 
 the Eastern Star. His fraternal relations are 
 further extended by his association with the 
 Woodmen of the World. 
 
 WILLIAM FRISBIE LEWIS, M. D. The 
 first immigrant of the Lewis family came to 
 America from Belfast in 1650, the time of Crom- 
 well's entrance into Ireland, whence two sisters 
 of this Thomas Lewis fled to Holland for refuge. 
 Thomas Lewis was born in Belfast in 1628 and 
 landed in New Amsterdam in March, 1650, and 
 in that city became engaged in shipping and mer- 
 chandising. In conjunction with Frederick 
 Philipse and Thomas Delaval, he purchased the 
 territory which became known as the Manor of 
 Philipseburgh, now the city of Yonkers, stretch- 
 ing sixteen miles along the Hudson river. This 
 property remained in the family until after Mr. 
 Lewis' death, which occurred in his home on the 
 northeast corner of Hanover Square and William 
 street. New York City, in 1686, his widow, a 
 year later, selling out these interests. His wife 
 was formerly Geesji Parent, a native of Holland, 
 who made her home in Beverwyck, now Albany, 
 N. Y. Of their family a son, Leonard, born 
 August 3, 1667, rose to prominence in New 
 York City, serving in various public capacities, 
 being alderman from 1696 to 1700, then gover- 
 nor-general of New York. Afterward he re- 
 moved to Dutchess county, where he was the 
 first resident representative in the Colonial As- 
 sembly, and the first judge and the first treas- 
 urer of Dutchess county. He was associated 
 with Johannes Hardenburgh in the purchase of 
 the great patent of land in Ulster county, N. Y. 
 A man of much ability and a strong and upright 
 character, he won the esteem and confidence of 
 all who knew him. On December 23, 1772, by 
 order of the New York legislature, he was 
 awarded nine ounces and fifteen pennyweights 
 of silver plate " for his services done at Albany in 
 an expedition against the French in the Mo- 
 hawcks country." He married Elizabeth Harden- 
 burgh, the daughter of J. Gerrit and Jalpje 
 (Schepmors) Hardenburgh, both natives of Hol- 
 land. A son of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis, Gerardus, 
 born January 2, 1698, became allied through 
 marriage with one of the oldest and most promi- 
 nent families of the eastern states, his wife being 
 m maidenhood Rachel Kip. She was a descend- 
 ant of the De Kype family (as the spelling of 
 the name was originally given), which was 
 prominent m the early history of France. Rulofif 
 
HISTORICAL AND BtOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1641 
 
 De Kype, a sixteenth century ancestor, resided 
 near Alencon, in Bretagne, where he took a 
 prominent part in the civil war between the Cath- 
 oHcs and Protestants, being a warm adherent of 
 the Guises. Upon the triumph of the Protestants 
 under Conde in 1562, his chateau was burned and 
 he was forced to leave the country. He took 
 refuge in the Low Countries with his three sons, 
 where they lived for several years under an as- 
 sumed name. Later he fought in the interests of 
 his native country and was killed in the battle 
 of La Charante. His son, Ruloff, remained in 
 the Low Countries and eventually became a Prot- 
 estant, locating in Amsterdam, where the family 
 name (from which the French prefix De was 
 dropped) flourished until nearly the middle of 
 the seventeenth century. In 1635 Henry Kype 
 came to New Amsterdam and brought his family 
 with him, but later returned to Holland, while 
 his sons remained and became important factors 
 in the upbuilding of the western country. Of 
 these sons Isaac became a prominent citizen of 
 New York and acquired large landed property, 
 including what now forms Central Park. Nas- 
 sau street was then called Kip street in his honor 
 and is so laid down in the early maps. Under 
 the Great Burgher Right introduced into New 
 Amsterdam by Governor Stuyvesant, Isaac Kip's 
 name is to be found, being one of twenty which 
 composed the aristocracy of New York at that 
 time. He married Catalina de Suyers and reared 
 a large family, of whom Rachel Kip became the 
 wife of Gerardus Lewis. One of her brothers, 
 Jacobus, born August 25, 1666, was especially 
 prominent in the history of that time, being co- 
 patentee of the Manor of Kipsburg, which re- 
 mained in the family for several generations. 
 One-fifth of this afterward passed into the pos- 
 session of the Livingston family, through the 
 inheritance of the mother of Chancellor Living- 
 ston, the granddaughter of Col. Henry Beekman, 
 to whom it was sold. Jacobus Kip left a son, 
 Samuel, who was a Royalist during the Revolu- 
 tionary war and served in the British army as 
 a captain, having raised a company of cavalry, 
 which he commanded in a valiant and daring 
 manner. He survived the war, although he was 
 severely wounded. Johannes, a son of Gerardus 
 and Rachel (Kip) Lewis, married Anetjie Hen- 
 drickson, whose father located in New York state 
 in 1631. Of their family a son, Gradus Lewis, 
 married Angelica Gonsaulus, of Spanish descent. 
 The founder of the Gonsaulus family came from 
 Spain and located in Schenectady, N. Y., in 1684. 
 He was a member of Captain Merrill Teunises' 
 military company at Kingston, while his descend- 
 ants became prominent in the French and Indian 
 wars. A son of Gradus Lewis, John by name, 
 married Ann Eliza Frisbie, a daughter of Dr. 
 William and Elizabeth (Davidson) Frisbie, of 
 
 Vermont, where he practiced medicine, following 
 it later, however, in Phelps, N. Y. The Frisbie 
 family is of English and Scotch descent, and 
 the Davidsons of Scotch ancestry, the great- 
 grandfather of both families serving in the Revo- 
 lutionary war, the maternal ancestor taking part 
 in the battle of Saratoga and dying in Vermont, 
 while a Davidson served as a member on the 
 Committee of Safety. John Lewis graduated in 
 Albany Medical College with the degree of M. 
 D., after which he practiced in Clyde, Wayne 
 county, N. Y., untd his death at the age of 
 thirty-eight years. His wife, surviving him, 
 married William D. Wylie. Her death occurred 
 in Walworth, N. Y. By heT first marriage she 
 had two children. 
 
 Born October 3, 1829, in Clyde, Wayne coun- 
 ty, N. Y., William Frisbie Lewis was reared to 
 young manhood in that town and Phelps, receiv- 
 ing his preliminary education in the Phelps 
 Academy, from which he was graduated. Decid- 
 ing to take up the profession of his father, he 
 spent the first two years in this study at Rush 
 Medical College, Chicago, his third year being 
 passed in the College of Physicians and Sur- 
 . geons, in New York City. From this latter in- 
 stitution he was graduated in 1854, with the de- 
 gree of M. D., and practiced for a time in New 
 York City. Following this he visited the hos- 
 pitals of Europe when he went to Edinburgh, 
 Scotland, to attend a course of lectures. In 1856 
 he located in Mankato, Minn., practicing medi- 
 cine only a short time 'until he became interested 
 in the land and banking business in that city. 
 He was one of the first bankers of the city, his 
 business being conducted for many years under 
 the firm name of Lewis & Shaubut. On account 
 of impaired health he was finally forced to give 
 up his many business interests. While a resident 
 of that locality in 1857 he was appointed captain 
 of a company of forty men who went to quell 
 the Indians that had taken part in the Spirit 
 Lake massacre, and a battle was fought near 
 Mankato. Seeking recuperation Dr. Lewis came 
 to Cahfornia and located in Oakland in 1887, 
 since which time he has virtually retired from 
 the active cares of life. The greater part of his 
 time is spent in traveling, having been abroad 
 four times, once around the world, all through 
 India, Asia Minor and Egypt, as well as in nearly 
 every state in the Union. Interested in the state 
 of his adoption, he has purchased two fruit 
 ranches in Tulare county. 
 
 In Vienna, Walworth county. Wis., June 15, 
 18.S7, Dr. Lewis was united in marriage with 
 Albertine E. Cowham, a native of New York 
 City. The family came originally from England, 
 where her grandfather, James Murray Cowham, 
 was an admiral in the British navy. His son, 
 Joel F. Cowham, was a native of London, Eng- 
 
1642 
 
 HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 land, and a commander of a ship. In New York 
 he married Mary Albertine Mellgren, a native 
 of Gothenburg, Sweden, and in that state located 
 his family while he continued to follow the sea 
 until his death on the Isle of St. Thomas, in the 
 West Indies. After her mother's death Mrs. 
 Lewis went to Wisconsin and lived in Burling- 
 ton with an uncle, receiving her education in the 
 Female College of Milwaukee. To the doctor 
 and his wife were born the following children : 
 Irving C, engaged in the cattle business and a 
 resident of Oakland ; John Mellgren, a prominent 
 attorney of San Francisco ; Louisa ; and Bertina, 
 the wife of S. E. Grove of Oakland. Dr. Lewis 
 is a Royal Arch Mason and politically adheres 
 to the principles advocated in the platform of the 
 Republican party. Mrs. Lewis is a member of 
 the Presbyterian Church. The doctor and his 
 wife have several grandchildren, Irving C. Lewis 
 having one son, Phillip Frisbie, born August 26, 
 1892, in Oakland, and Mrs. Grove the following 
 children: Albertina, born August 14, 1885, at 
 Spirit Lake, Iowa, and who will graduate at the 
 Tulare high school this spring; Irene, born De- 
 cember 14, 1886, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and will 
 graduate in two years; Mabel, born May 3, 1891, 
 in Oakland, and is now attending the grammar 
 schools; and Ruth, born November 6, 1896, in 
 Oakland. 
 
 ' DAVID T. CURTIS. Although a resident of 
 Oakland, making his home at No. 126 Ninth 
 street, facing Madison Square, David T. Curtis 
 is properly named among the representative citi- 
 zens of the San Joaquin valley, where so large a 
 part of his active life has been passed. A native 
 of Warren county. Pa., he was born April 26, 
 1843, ii'' the city of Columbus, a son of James 
 and grandson of David Curtis. The latter was 
 a native of France, who ^ immigrated to the 
 United States during the Revolutionary war, tak- 
 ing part in the struggle under Lafayette. Upon 
 the close of hostilities he located in New York 
 state, near Sherburne, where he engaged as a 
 farmer and surveyor. He finally removed to 
 Warren county, Pa., taking with him a large 
 number of people who formed a colony in what 
 was then a wilderness. He established the town 
 of ColLimbus, where he owned the extensive 
 lumber mills, and also engaged as a farmer and 
 surveyor. His death occurred in the town and 
 colony he had established, removing from the 
 community an important factor in its develop- 
 ment and progress. His son, James Curtis, was 
 born in Chenango-, N. Y., in 1813, and in boy- 
 hood was brought to Pennsylvania by his father. 
 He was reared in the latter state, and in man- 
 hood became a farmer, removing to Iowa in 
 1852 and locating in Mitchell county. He fol- 
 
 lowed farming in that location until he came to 
 California, making the trip across the plains by 
 ox teams. He left his family in Iowa, with the 
 exception of David T. Curtis, of this review, 
 whom he brought with him. They located at 
 West Point, Calaveras county, Cal., where they 
 both mined for two years, then located in La- 
 throp, San Joaquin county, and engaged in farm- 
 ing. In 1863 Mr. Curtis returned to Iowa and 
 engaged again in farming near Frankville, Win- 
 neshiek county. Once more locating in Califor- 
 nia in 1869, he made his home with David T. 
 Curtis until 1872, when he removed,, to Watson- 
 ville, Santa Cruz county, Cal. He lived retired 
 in that city until • his death, which occurred in 
 1902, at the advanced age of ninety years. His 
 wife, formerly Alzina Hill, of New York state, 
 died in 1892. They were the parents of four 
 sons and five daughters, of whom David T. was 
 the eldest son. 
 
 David T. Curtis received a rather limited edu- 
 cation in the common schools of Pennsylvania 
 and Iowa, the knowledge which is his to-day 
 being the result of his efforts in later years — 
 his contact with the world, his reading on broad 
 lines, and the mental training to which he has 
 bent his mind. He came to California with his 
 father when only sixteen years old, experiencing 
 the dangers and hardships of the journey across 
 the plains, and afterward engaging as a miner 
 for two years. Coming to the San Joaquin val- 
 ley in 1861, he engaged in farming in the vicin- 
 ity of Lathrop, and in 1863 located eight miles 
 west of Modesto, Stanislaus county, where he 
 pre-empted one hundred and sixty acres of land, 
 which he still owns. He engaged in its improve- 
 ment and cultivation and now owns in that tract 
 three hundred and twenty acres. In 1868 he 
 bought six hundred and forty acres which is in 
 the Turlock irrigation district. He remained in 
 Stanislaus county until 1878, in which year he 
 came to Fresno and bought section 4, at Del Rey, 
 Fresno county, where for six years he engaged 
 in general farming. In the year of his settle- 
 ment in Fresno county he bought twenty-eight 
 hundred and eighty acres adjoining Reedley on 
 the south, and in 1890 colonized this land under 
 the name of the Level Orchard Land Colony, 
 which he sold to sixty-two people, retaining nine 
 hundred acres, which is devoted to alfalfa and 
 wheat. This is in the Alta Irrigation district and 
 is well improved, being thoroughly well fenced, 
 and is highly cultivated. In 1885 Mr. Curtis 
 bought his Mountain View ranch twelve miles 
 east of Reedley, along the foothills, consisting of 
 twenty-five hundred and sixty acres of wheat and 
 grazing land, where he raises cattle, a large per 
 cent of his four hundred head of stock being 
 Durham. He also owns six hundred and forty 
 acres six miles south and one mile east of Reed- 
 
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1G43 
 
 ley, which is devoted to alfalfa and pasture land ; 
 six hundred and forty acres in the Lake coun- 
 try devoted to pasture; and eighty acres adjoin- 
 ing the town site of Salida. On his Turlock 
 ranch he has a fine Holstein dairy, and is at pres- 
 ent interesting himself in the sugar beet industr} 
 on his Reedley ranch. He is very successful in 
 his work, is a large land owner in the San Joa- 
 quin valley, and a supporter of all movements 
 calculated to advance the general welfare of this 
 section. 
 
 In Frankville, Iowa, Mr. Curtis was united in 
 marriage with E. Luella Hollaway, a native of 
 La Porte, Ind. She is the daughter of Henry 
 Hollaway, who died early, leaving his widow, 
 
 Susan (Pagan) Hollaway, to rear her family. 
 She was a woman of remarkable strength of 
 character and intellect, a historian of no little 
 note, and a temperance worker who did much 
 for the cause. Mrs. Curtis is also interested in 
 the temperance movement in Oakland, and was 
 a delegate to the convention at Buffalo. She is 
 a woman of rare personality, broad-minded and 
 liberal, and possessing qualities which peculiarly 
 adapt her for this work. She is a member of 
 the Congregational Church of Oakland. Mr. 
 Curtis is a stanch Republican politically, and 
 gives his support to the advancement of this 
 party.